Ughhh. I'm tired. I'm so tired. How the hell did I get to our bed?. Oh yeah. I passed out during the match. Wait a minute, I passed out. Fuck yeah, finally I know what it feels like to faint. Do you know how long I've been trying to?. Ahhhh shit, I forgot about the pain. And now they're coming back, gosh I'd rather just pass out again. And where in heavens name is Jensen or Jace or even coach. You can't just leave a patient by himself. Whatever I guess.
I eventually dragged my broken body out of the sheets, every joint popping like dry twigs. Shuffling into the bathroom, I stared at the mirror. I looked like one of those zombies from world war z.
I slowly brushed my teeth, spitting out a faint reddish-pink foam, and stepped into the shower. The warm water hitting my scraped elbow and bruised ribs made me hiss through my teeth, but it finally washed away the dried sweat and the lingering stench of Jarquin's stigma.
Once I was clean, I didn't even bother putting on real clothes. I just pulled on a loose pair of shorts, limped straight back to bed, and collapsed onto the mattress. I reached for my phone on the nightstand, squinting at the bright screen.
There were a dozen notifications lighting up the display. First thing I noticed were the missed calls from peanut. Right under those was a single unread text from teph.
'call me whenever you get this'.
I didn't even hesitate. I tapped her name and pressed the phone against my ear, letting out a heavy sigh as it began to ring. It didn't even ring three times before she picked up.
Tephnine: hi warrior
Me: (chuckles) hi girlfriend to a warrior.
Tephnine: (laughing) I guess i am. How are you?.
Me: Depends. The truth or the very truth
Tephnine: Hmm. The latter then
Me: I feel like dying. I know for a fact that I'm not playing this weekend.
Tephnine: Duhh. Of course. None of the starters are.
Me: How'd you know that?.
Tephnine: Really?.
Me: my bad. I forgot who you were for a second.
Tephnine: (chuckling) Try resting. You guys aren't coming back till tomorrow.
Me: uhhh. I understand us not returning but what about the rest of the team, them returning tomorrow Friday would give them close to no time to rest.
Tephnine: what you on about?. Didn't Jensen tell you its just the starting five, Coach and miss Edwards that's remaining over there. The others left this morning.
Me: I didn't know. Woke up five minutes ago and thought of calling you first.
Tephnine: Awwn. That's so sweet. Isn't Jensen with you?.
Me: not really. Haven't seen neither him nor Jace.
Tephnine: why would they leave a patient alone.
Me: I said the same thing
Almost as if he's been eavesdropping, Jensen appeared from no where holding two nylon. I could perceive the faint smell of meat pie coming from one.
Me: guess who just walked in?.
Tephnine: my brother
Me: yeah. The same one who left me to die alone
Jensen: uhh. When'd i do that?
Tephnine: can you give him the phone?.
Me: 100 percent. (To Jensen) your sister wants to speak with you
Jensen: (taking the phone) geez. Wassup Teph.... no... I swear..... Would you let me speak..... Sorry..... I'm serious..... I just wan-.... okay.... yeah, no more (to me) here, she wants you to have your phone back
Me: what the hell was that? (to Tephnine) hey dear. Don't tell me you gave him a earful.
Tephnine: I didn't. Lets talk later okay?.
Me: okay dear.
Tephnine: And get something to eat, you need it.
Me: yes ma.
Tephnine: okay bye. I love you
Me: I love you too. (Hanging up)
That's me having peace for the rest of the day.
Me: I smell meat pie
Jensen: meat pie?. What is that?
Me: the thing you're carrying
Jensen: I thought these were Empanadas
Me: what now?.
Jensen: you don't know what Empanadas is
Me: I'm too hungry to care about that. How many did you get ?
Jensen: it was pretty cheap so I got enough for us all. Where's Jace?.
Me: how the hell am I supposed to know.
Jensen: true.
Me: (taking a bite) and yeah, please remind me to never push myself past my limits ever again. I'm dying right now
Jensen: (laughing) I don't think you have a choice. You're the one answering such deep layered name.
Me: fuck you. That whole speech would only work once and you've exhausted that one usage. I don't have any strength to lose anymore
Jensen: (mouth full) If you say so. But then these are good. What'd you call em?.
Me: meat pie. One of the best things my country's ever made.
Jensen: The way you belittle your country for food.
Me: uhh. What'd you mean?.
Jensen: aren't Nigeria an oil producing country?.
Me: so?. How many litre gets to me?.
Jensen: Their finished product does.
Me: but we don't make the finished product, but then meat pie?. We make those. So leave me to my choices.
Jensen: how are you my best friend
Me: (chuckling) I was ?.
He was about to give me some lame-ass reply but was immediately cut off by my ringtone. Caller id: Peanut. Awwnn. I forgot about my angel.
Jensen: so..... peanut. Did I tell you she's been calling since last night?.
Me: (looking blankly) no. No you didn't
Jensen: oh..... I see. So.... aren't you picking ?
Me: what's with you?
Jensen: me?. Nothing. So, you picking?.
Me: not if you keep acting weird
Jensen: how am I acting weird?. Oh look, it's stopped ringing.
Me: yeah, I know. I have ears too
Jensen: well whatever, she'll call again. I'm getting this tea by crook or crane
Me: fucking hell. Who do you think that is?.
Jensen: I don't know?. One of our girls?.
Me: no. That's my fucking sister.
Jensen: uhh
Me: don't uhh me. That's my baby sis. My peanut
Jensen: who stores their sisters name as peanut?.
Me: I do. Jesus.
Almost on cue. Peanut called again and this time i immediately picked.
Peanut: what's wrong with you?. Why haven't you been picking?. Do you know how worried I was?.
Me: Jesus, I don't need this right now peanut.
Peanut: sorry. You just had me scared.
Me: why would you be?. Didn't you think of the fact that maybe my brother is in class or something like that.
Peanut: I saw you faint while playing, why would I think that?.
Me: sorry, hold up. You saw me faint?.
Peanut: yeah.
Me: are you a witch?. How?.
Peanut: well you know how you always brag about your school and how much of a good player you are?. One day i thought about how maybe this big school my brother brags about should have a YouTube channel. You did have one. And I saw they stream your matches. So one day I started watching you guys and it became something of a habit. And then I watch you faint yesterday while bleeding heavily. So sorry I've been calling like mad. I was scared?.
Me: sheesh. Now it looks like I'm the bad guy. I'm sorry.
Peanut: you've always been the bad guy
Me: yeah yeah I know. But I'm good okay. Just some light bruises. And I hope you didnt tell mom
Peanut: use your head. Has she called you?.
Me: no. She would have been burning my phone if you did.
Peanut: good. Your brain still functions.
Me: remind me to cut off your tongue when I return
Peanut: (chuckling) okay. I miss you though. When are you guys vacating?.
Me: next month, but I have no plan of coming back
Peanut: don't you dare.
Me: (laughing) just wanted to see tour reaction. Don't worry, I'll be back okay?.
Peanut: okay. I'll leave you to rest
Me: okay, talk to you later
Peanut: bye. Love you
Me: yeah yeah (Hanging up)
Jensen: wow. You have a really healthy relationship with all of your siblings.
Me:shouldn't I?.
Jensen: you should. I'm just saying
Me: oh. Okay. I'm going back to bed
Jensen: it's almost 12
Me: do I strike you as one who gives a fuck?.
Jensen: (sighs) unfortunately, no.
Me: this is why I love you. You know me.
I didn't even bother waiting for Jensen's reply. I pulled the blanket over my head, drifted away from the dull aches in my body, and surrendered completely to the darkness.
When my eyes opened again, the sunlight leaking through the window curtains had turned a deep, golden amber. I blinked, rubbing the sleep from my eyes, and instinctively checked the digital clock on the nightstand.
5:12 PM.
Fuck, I slept for five straight hours. My head felt slightly clearer, though my ribs still gave me a gentle reminder that they were touched whenever I tried to sit up. But what really brought me out of my trance wasn't the pain. It was the rapid, frantic clack of plastic buttons being mercilessly mashed, accompanied by the dramatic, booming voice of a video game announcer.
"FINISH HIM!"
I paused, squinting at the far wall. Mounted right under the wall TV was a sleek, black PlayStation 4, its blue light bar glowing faintly. Sitting on two plastic chairs right in front of it were Jensen and Jace, aggressively leaning forward, gripping the controllers like their lives depended on it.
Me: What the hell guys?.
Jensen didn't even turn his head, his thumb furiously pounding the directional pad.
Jensen: Look who's back from the dead.
Me: (staring blankly) Where the hell did a PS4 come from?. I know for a fact this room was empty when we lodged here. Did you guys rob a store while I was sleeping?.
Jace: (chuckles, executing a combo on Jensen) Nah. Coach and Miss Edwards talked to the hotel manager after the win. He was so hyped about Starling making the finals that he literally hauled his personal setup into our suite as a congratulations gift.
Me: (shaking my head) Unbelievable. People really do treat winners differently. If we had lost, we'll be training by now.
I swung my legs over the side of the bed, groaning softly as I leaned against the headboard to watch the screen. Jace's Sub-Zero froze Jensen's character solid, triggering an ungodly, bone-crunching Fatality that filled the screen with blood. This is why we love MK.
Jensen: (throwing his hands up in frustration) Fuck off, Jace!. You've been picking Sub-Zero all day just to spam that stupid ice slide!
Jace: (grinning, tossing his controller lightly in his palm) A win is a win. Not my fault you suck at low-blocking.
Me: (laughing) Imagine losing to a guy who only knows one special move. Couldn't be me.
Jensen: (glaring at me) Shut up, patient. You can't even hold a controller right now without your ribs complaining.
Jace leaned back in his chair, turning around to look at me properly for the first time since I woke up.
Jace: How's the body feeling, hero?.
Me: Honestly?. Like I got run over by a haulage truck, backed over, and then hit again for good measure. But I'll survive. Just surprised I woke up back in this hotel room instead of being reincarnated as an overpowered first prince in another world.
Jensen: (snorting) Trust me, with your shitty luck, you'd get reincarnated as a goblin or even something like a vending machine.
Me: (glaring at Jensen) Fuck you. Anyway... what happened after I fainted?. How many of you criedthinking i was dying?.
Jensen: eew. No one.
Me: sheesh. Boring. What about Jarquin, did they try to do something stupid?.
Jace: Nahhhh. They were too busy crying on their bench. Their coach was screaming at King, King was screaming at Praise, and Praise looked like he was about to transf3r schools right there on the court.
Jensen: Oh, and speaking of the post-match announcements... you won MVP of the match.
I froze, staring at Jensen to see if he was pulling my leg.
Me: I won what?.
Jensen: MVP of the match. Man of the match. You know, that plaque sitting right there on the dresser under your sweat jacket?.
Me: (looking over at the dresser) Are you serious?. I literally played like trash in the third quarter, got my head split open, wept like a baby on the floor, and then passed out before the whistle even stopped blowing.
Jace: Yeah, but you also completely broke King's ego, baited their entire offense into a civil war, and hit the game-tying three while getting murdered in mid-air, and also dictating the tempo and pace and movement of the game. The officials couldn't give it to anyone else.
Me: (a slow, arrogant smirk spreading across my face) Damn... I really robbed you guys, didn't I?.
Jace: (laughing, shaking his head) Unbelievable. The guy doesn't even deny it.
Me: Why would I deny facts?. Deep down, we all know Matt carried our defense and Jace was our highest scorer, and Jensen was just Jensen. But hey, if the officials want to hand the match crown to the master tactician who won it on one leg and half a brain, who am I to argue with them?.
Jensen: (sighing, picking up his controller again) I regret bringing you those empanadas. I should have let you starve.
Me: (chuckling, wincing as my ribs stretch) meat pie. Must I keep correcting you?.
Jensen: I'm not calling it that
Me: yeah yeah. Hand over the pad. Wanna deal with Jace.
Jensen: I was even getting tired of his boring gameplay.
Okay timeskip everyone. The next day though. My body was still throwing a whole temper tantrum. Every step I took across the shiny airport terminal sent a sharp, dull ache through my ribs, and the bandage under my bucket hat felt like a heavy crown.
Beside me were the rest of the core crew: Jensen, Jace, Matt, James, Coach, Miss Edwards, and Nurse Sarah the school's assistant nurse who Coach had practically assigned to me as a full-time bodyguard.
We were sitting near the boarding gate, waiting for our 10:57 AM flight back to Lagos. Everyone was relaxed, scrolling on their phones or listening to music, while I was staring out the massive glass window at the Boeing 737 sitting on the tarmac like a oversized metal death trap.
Me: (muttering) I hate heights. I genuinely, deeply hate heights.
Jensen: you made me ask my dad for this, what the hell you mean by you hate height?.
Me: I don't know. I just hate it
Jace: (looking up from his phone) since when?. We literally flew in on a plane for the Victory Game last month and you didn't say a single word.
Me: That was before.
Jensen: Before what?.
Me: Before I watched Final Destination.
Matt: (snorting) You're comparing a commercial flight to a movie about death hunting down teenagers?.
Me: (glaring at Matt) Have you seen the opening scene of part one?. The plane literally explodes in mid-air because of a tiny electrical spark. Shit like that can also happen in this plane.
Jensen: are you genuinely dumb?. Do you hear the words that are coming out of your mouth?.
Jace: (laughing, shaking his head) What's crazy is at this point, you have a phobia of literally everything. Heights, deep water, loud noises, fast cars... how are you even an athlete?.
Me: I have a healthy respect for staying alive, Jace. There's a difference.
Nurse Sarah: (handing me a small plastic cup) Here, Keima. Take your painkillers now so they kick in before takeoff.
Me: (sighing, swallowing the pills) Thank you, Nurse Sarah. At least someone here cares about my survival.
Jensen: yeah yeah little baby
The chime rang through the terminal, announcing our flight. We filed through the gate, walked down the jet bridge, and stepped onto the plane.
I immediately claimed the window seat, with Jensen sliding into the middle next to me and Jace taking the aisle. As the engines roared to life and the plane began its high-speed taxi down the Anambra runway, my knuckles turned completely white against the armrests.
Jensen: (watching me) You look like you're about to pass out again.
Me: If I do, do not wake me up until my feet are touching solid Lagos soil.
Jensen: would you prefer we travel by land?
Me: what?, no. It's just... nevermind.
The plane lifted off, the ground falling away below us. But between the fatigue from the Jarquin match and the heavy painkillers Nurse Sarah gave me, my eyes started getting insanely heavy before we even hit cruising altitude. The humming of the twin jet engines turned into background noise, and I knocked out cold.
I was having a magnificent dream i can't quite remember, but that dream was destroyed by a banshee-like announcer
banshee: Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Lagos. The local time is 12:02 PM.
A gentle shake on my shoulder woke me up completely. I blinked, looking out the window to see the familiar chaotic, sun-drenched sprawl of Lagos state. We had landed.
Jensen: See?. No explosion. You survived.
Me: (stretching carefully) It was a close call. I felt turbulence in my dreams.
We grabbed our overhead bags and shuffled off the plane, walking through the air-conditioned hallways of Murtala Muhammed Domestic Terminal down to the arrival hall. Jensen insisted we took some pictures to remember this journey. So we did. Just the unholy trinity though. I don't think they really care about the rest of the team.
As we stepped out of the airport into the humid Lagos air, the iconic blue and gold Starling High bus was already idling at the pickup curb, hazard lights flashing. The driver popped the luggage compartment, and Coach slapped Jensen on the shoulder.
Coach: Alright, boys. Throw your gear in the back. Let's get back to school.
We loaded up, climbed into the bus, and sank into the cushioned seats as the driver pulled out into the Lagos traffic, heading straight back to school.
I guess you could say we triumphed on our journey to the east.