What happened after the final whistle was a blur to Winston, the awe he was in was hard to explain. He felt like crying. The head coach and assistants were now sure Winston would start, and the changing room was buzzing. After a few hours, the entire team came out of the changing room wearing club tracksuits. They had back-to-back games, and they didn't have time to relax. The bus journey to their match in another city, mirroring their previous trip, saw Winston in the window seat. The bus entered the freeway at the intersection, and Winston, momentarily blinded by a light post, reflected on experiencing "flash scanner vision" during the Giant Hawks game, an event mirroring a previous awakening in a plain simulation.
He wondered how many things would keep popping up, although he had been journaling everything that had been happening to him. When he searched online, he couldn't find answers on the core system. These things didn't scare him because he knew that they were part of the core, what bothered him was how they kept popping up out of nowhere. And he didn't want these things to affect his play.
With a sigh and a chuckle, Winston shifted his attention to the snoring Oswin, then closed his eyes, pretending to fall asleep. After the sound of footsteps in the bus hallway faded, Winston opened his eyes. He had been counting down the time, where the assistant coach would roam around the bus checking on all the youths. This happened about three times until they too fell asleep. Now it was the bus driver and Winston who were up, of course, the driver didn't know that another youth was up with him.
As the sun rose, the sky was painted in warm shades of orange and gold. Winston was still looking at the window, this time he was playing a game—where he counted how many distances until another road safety pole came into view. Until morning, he maintained this behavior. Then he got up, acted disoriented, and stumbled towards the rear of the bus, finding the kitchen and bathroom section and closing the curtain. He quickly started performing his regiment even though the space was tight; he proceeded exercising. Sit-ups were his first exercise; the limited space resulted in his knees constantly striking the kitchen cupboard doors. With each slam he stopped and waited to hear footsteps, since they were none. He continued until a phone rang and there was shuffling at the bus. Winston quickly got off, and as he did, the bus driver glanced at him in the rear-view mirror and smirked. Winston rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment, "Oh, Winston, you are already awake, please help me wake up everyone," the assistant coach said, stretching himself.
After everyone woke up, "okay settle down everyone, since we have back-to-back matches. When we arrive at the next city, I need you to rest up, in these upcoming matches, we need you to be at your best," the head coach said, standing in the bus hallway.
And he continued, "We'll be staying here for now. You're allowed to go out and explore the city, but once noon passes, there'll be a curfew. I need everyone back at the bus by 3 p.m."
Following that, the group mingled; some individuals played games on their handhelds, and others returned to their books. Oswin typed on his phone, and with frustration, he said,
"damn now I won't have time to check out babes on the Hampstead city,"
"Pray we arrive at noon so you can explore the city,"
"God, please help me, I don't want to spend time surrounded by sausages,"
Winston chuckled, "Stop being dramatic, Oswin, you can call the woman you have,"
"I guess, but I love to chase when a woman plays hard to get or when she shows you she wants to you know.." Oswin said, shrugging his shoulders.
"Why do you like chasing girls?"
Oswin exaggeratedly said, "Because these girls need me, Wis—they need me. They're all screaming for me to save them and give them the illusion of a relationship." He chuckled. "Nah, I'm joking. I don't know… what can I say? I love women."
Oswin's over-the-top performance, which resembled stage acting, took aback Winston. They both chuckled, "That was a line from the screenplay Oracle by Albert Grongg. I dated this girl who was a Broadway fanatic, I used to get my dick sucked when the lights were dimmed,"
"You could have skipped the last part,"
"Nah, you need to get the full detail, and she had huge honkers,"
"No, bro, please stop,"
"One time she sucked me so nicely, I loudly groaned people at the theater thought that I was being touched by the play,"
Amusingly, Winston shaking his head, "That disgusting bro, I am good, I don't want to hear anymore,"
Oswin finished making hand gestures that resembled a female form and then shifted the conversation. "Oh, by the way, you're now fifth on the scoreboard."
"Yeah, I saw. I need to score a couple more goals to reach the top spot, and you're also in the top four on the assists board."
Oswin shrugs his shoulders. Frankly, the top assists leaderboard was not on his mind. Oswin was only setting Winston up to score so he could stand out in the youth league. When Winston and Oswin were training a couple of weeks ago. Oswin asked Winston what his plan in these remaining matches of this season, and Winston laid out the plan to stand out from the league. And Oswin decided to help him achieve his goal, so him being on the assistant board was inevitable. "It was inevitable that I would be on the list; I am the best in the league. You are second, don't worry though I will take you under my wing,"
Both Winston and Oswin burst out laughing—their laughter caught the attention of everyone on the bus. "You wish, okay, let's make a bet. If you score more goals in the upcoming match, you will be top five in the league. Only then I will consider you my peer,"
Both grinning and handshaking in agreement, Oswin ran into the back of the bus. After a while they arrived at Hampstead city. With vast mountains as its backdrop, the city is famed for its picturesque natural landscapes. It was popular among hikers and people who seek a place to be one with nature. As if Oswin's prayers were answered, they arrived in the middle of the afternoon.
Winston decided to explore the city once the bus was parked, looking for a stadium where he could practice privately. He walked around the city until it got dark, when he walked out of the last building in the city. Behind the differently colored apartments was a row of three small football grounds. They were beautifully trimmed and well-kept grounds. Towering fences painted green bordered the football grounds; Winston descended the steep steps. After reaching the bottom of the steps, each football ground had LED lights on each corner of the ground. Winston spotted a football on the field and peered through the fence. Walking along the tall green barrier, he came across a gate and tried the handle. To his surprise, it was unlocked. After glancing around the empty premises, Winston stepped inside and began dribbling the ball across the field.
"Sure, I won't be late, you said ten, right? Don't worry, I will make it," the mysterious figure said, leaning against the wall with his phone to his ear; he stood in the shadows watching Winston dribble the ball. He smirked and said to the person on the call. "You said ten, right? Listen, I will call you later,"
"I have never seen you here before,"
Startled by the voice behind him, Winston turned and said, "Oh, I am sorry, I couldn't help myself, I'll leave"
"Nah, you good, so what's your name?"
"I am Winston,"
"I am Alex, want to have a one one match,"
With a well-built physique and dark skin, Alex stood tall with dreadlocks styled into a ponytail. His attire consisted of a gray vest, shorts, and sneakers.