“YAH KARLS ROO!”

Heaving a deep sigh, Roo ducked her head and headed towards her brother’s direction.

“Home, park or food?” He helped his sister on to his car before placing her crutches in the back seat and returning back to the driver’s seat.

“away from you”

“Why so sulkish?” He pulled Roo’s cheek, “still unhappy about what I said?”

“Let’s just go for food. I need it right now”

“Alright” he ruffled her head and smiled at his sister’s behaviour before driving off.

“Is that Roo’s boyfriend? They seem so intimate.” JongSuk asked WooBin as they saw the car drove off.

“Are you still going to continue this topic? Can we just eat in peace” Joongki has been blabbering about her operation since they stepped into the shop and Roo was already halfway through finishing her food, he was still on it.

“You know what will happen if you don’t go for that operation!”

“And you know what will happen if I go for that operation!”

Roo sighed deeply, putting down her utensils, grabbing her crutches to leave to the place, “Where are you going! YAH!” He stood up to grab Roo’s arm to stop her. “Where are you going?” He softened his tone.

“Oppa, can we just drop it? I clearly know what will happen. I won’t be able to walk, I will have to give up basketball for my whole life if it acts up. But going for operation means going back to that…that past that I don’t want to go back. You don’t know how bad it was. I never once said, but it affects me so much. I am scared”

“Watch how their no.13 player block the opponent’s shooting guard, Park Bogum, Park Chanyeol, that’s your job to attack.” They were observing HyoNam high’s competition clip because Roo was able to get them to play a friendly game with SansPeur. Their position and formation on court were somehow showing up without even trying too hard to place them, each of them has their own forte. Roo didn’t have much trouble trying to find out.

“Their no. 1 is their MVP, I have seen him played once back in Seoul and he was insanely smart in executing his techniques. He’s fast.”

Lee Jongsuk stopped watching, “You are just pushing us to die on our own. How are we supposed to win them? They are TongYeong’s strongest team, and we are TongYeong’s lousiest team.”

Roo straightened up and stared in to his eyes, “Losing confidence already? Have you all forget who you are? The wolves of SansPeur never back down. The wolves that never falter in front of their opponent. This is only a friendly game, to gain an experience. It’s a good exposure to HyoNam, get to know their techniques, and when the tournament comes, you’ll be prepared to trash them. Losing is just a choice. Even if you really lost, it doesn’t matter, as long as you grew from it.” JongSuk avoided her eye contact. “okay enough of those videos. Back on court.”

Park Bogum was looking at Roo, feeling something off, he ignores his feelings and followed her instructions.

“Park Chan Yeol, if you are no.13, what will you do? BoGum, you be the opponent.” She grabbed his arms and positioned it before throwing the ball to Park BoGum. “the opponent is an ordinary player, but no.13 is using fanciful techniques on him which is redundant. Chanyeol, using you own way, how are you going to defend that attack?”

The rest stood on the side-line watching chanyeol getting prepared. He stood in a position that Roo had taught them in the last training. He opened up his arms and stood in a steady position, with his stamina and speed, before Bogum could process, ChanYeol had already stolen the ball that he was dribbling before he did a lay-up. The rest of the guys were impressed by ChanYeol.

“Good Job, applying what you had learn. Exchange position and practice. I will come back to you guys again.”, next, “Kim Yugyeom, Kim WooBin, remember the part when no.1 did that attack? React that scene, same thing, in your own way, own technique, own style.”

The training as usual, continues and after every training, Roo was happy that she had seen improvement in them, in that short period of time.

“There are 10 numbers on my hand.” She opened up her fist to show them before tossing it in to a bottle. “From the oldest to the youngest, pick your number for your jersey”. Their eyes brightened up upon hearing that.

“We are getting our jersey?! Are you serious?” Minho voiced excitedly.

“Yeah? Don’t all team get a jersey?” She looks at them weirdly

“We haven’t get one since 2 years ago, the younger ones doesn’t even have a Jersey. School thinks that it’s a waste of money to get us jerseys” JongHyun told Roo.

“Seriously. What have y’all been wearing to competitions then? Whatever it is, pick your number, I will talk to whoever that rejects the idea” She held out the bottle that held the 10 numbers.

“Did you write 10? Can I get number 10?” Sehun whined, Roo raised an eyebrow at his behaviour.

“Depends on your luck”

“Please pretty please, this is my first Jersey please give me 10” Sehun kept on irritating Roo, “10?”

“Oh Sehun, get the hell out, you will get your turn to pick. Hong JongHyun!”

“I am in the middle! It’s going to get picked!” Roo rolled her eyes at him and the others too had their eyes rolled. “I want 10”

“Get the out, you will be the last to pick”

“nooooo, please don’t do that to me, give me 10. Whoever takes 10 will die in my hand” He was still whining

“Seriously Oh Sehun? What’s with you and 10. Leave the Gym now, you are irritating me and I am not giving you 10. Leave”

“Yahhhh Roooooooo!”

“Get him out of my sight please before you lose your chance of getting any jersey” Hearing this, Minho was the first one whom sprung up and dragged Sehun out of the gym with the help of the others.

Yugyeom who was just watching the scene before him caught Roo laughing, making him smile.

The rest successfully got rid of Sehun and returned to get their numbers.

“Alright guys, if you are nice enough to give Sehun his number, I have no objection”

“Why didn’t you tell him this?”

“He was being irritating.”

“You are childish” Minhyuk commented,

“and you can’t do anything about it” Roo rolled her eyes.

They had all gotten their numbers and JooHyuk willingly agreed to exchange the number 10 with Sehun’s number 16. Sehun had went back home after being lock out, and they found out after they called him when they can’t find him in the sports building. It was kind of funny for the team.

“Meh, I hate you guys.”

“Seriously Oh Sehun, you owe me 200 suicides for leaving before training ends” He was on speaker and they were crowding to listen to the conversation.

“Give me 10 and I will give you 200 suicides.”

“300”

“no 10 no suicides”

“400”

The next week, when Sehun opened up his locker, he screamed in Joy. There he saw his number 10 Jersey lying in his locker. They had all decided to kept that fact that he got no.10, and he refused to talk to them. He even ignored Roo since that training which was kind of childish.

When he saw Roo coming out of the women’s locker room, her ran over and hug her, she was caught off guard and stumbled abit.

“What the hell! Watch out! Sehun?”

“Thank you!!! thank you for giving me number 10! It meant so much to me!” Sehun was jumpy and excited over the fact that he got his number 10 Jersey.

“Well, don’t thank me, thank JooHyuk, he gave you that” Roo brushed past him and headed towards the exit.

“You know” Sehun started, catching her attention, she had her back towards him, but didn’t turn to face him, “I don’t know about others but I am thankful you came into my life, as a schoolmate, as a friend, as a coach.” Hearing the word coach coming out of sehun’s mouth warmed her heart. She didn’t expect them to treat her like a coach since the first day, because she knew they wouldn’t respect her as one. She didn’t agree on the part where they were friends tho, she didn’t have any friends. She didn’t want to have any. It scares her whenever someone said they wanted to be her friends because they will always end up like her ex-teammates. Nonetheless, she waited for him to finish. “We’ve never had any chance to learn anything because people just left us, let us be, gave up on us eventually.  With you, we managed to pick up quite a few things. I could see improvement in every one of us. I could finally see some teamwork in us. We never had a chance to have any friendly games, nor do we have any Jersey. It was all thanks to you Roo.”

Roo was getting awkward. No one has ever said all these to her. She didn’t give any respond and left the gym.

She limped herself to the school canteen to grab some food before carrying her tray in one hand, crutches in another hand and whipping her head around to find a seat. She was about to walk to the spotted seat when someone else took over the tray for her. She switched her attention from the empty seat to the said person.

“Song MinHo?”

“Don’t misunderstand, I was just getting around when I saw a helpless kitty cat finding her way to her bed”

Roo stared at him weirdly, not knowing what he was talking about. She attempted to take back her tray but minho beat her to it and walked in front of her to the empty seat. He placed the tray down and helped her to the chair.

“Are you trying to bribe me into helping you with things?” She accused

“Oh c’mon Roo, I’m not that kind of person. I was…just being…”

“Being?”

“Beinggratefultoyou”

“I am sorry, I didn’t catch that”

“I said… I am being grateful” He didn’t dare meet her eyes.