Basketball System: Rebound of the Underdog

"Kai, you coming?" she asked.

Kai snapped out of his thoughts and nodded, swiftly following after her.

"Yup," he said. "Sorry about that," he muttered.

He looked at the things he needed to find, and he felt that it was his most ridiculous mission up to date.

Why would he need a pretty rock, a ballpoint pen from a doctor, and merch from their opponents?

"I'll walk you home," Kai said, making Lina surprised.

"Are you sure?" she asked. "The skies are getting dark since we still talked about the upcoming Winter Cup."

Kai chuckled and nodded. "Yeah," he said. "It's not like I haven't walked you home before."

Lina smiled. "Alright," she said.

The two of them walked home while comfortably conversing.

Then, when they arrived near Lina's home, Kai froze when he saw her dad's car already parked in front of their gate.

"Oh crap," he muttered.

Lina chuckled as she heard Kai curse.

"It's fine," she said. "He likes you."

Kai shook his head. "He definitely doesn't," he muttered. "I think I should leave before he sees me."

Lina appeared amused as she nodded.

"I'll see you on Monday," she said, waving her hand.

"Hmm," Kai smiled. "See you."

Kai was about to leave when Lina called for him again.

"Oh, and about what we talked about the other day," she said.

Kai turned around and looked at Lina with raised eyebrows.

"About the merch sales?"

"Yeah," Lina said, shyly looking down at the ground. "I didn't mean it. I was just frustrated with the bet I made with Fei."

"I understand," Kai said. "It would be hard to wrack in sales with this face."

Lina's eyes widened. "That's not what I meant."

Kai chuckled and ruffled her hair.

"I know," he said. "I'm hoping the best for your bet, but I probably wouldn't be able to do that with my looks. I'll make sure to prove them wrong with my skills, though."

Lina pursed her lips and wordlessly nodded.

It was at times like this that Kai appeared very handsome in her eyes.

"Lina! Is that Kai you're with?" they heard Officer Huang shout from a distance.

Kai's eyes widened, and he looked at Lina with panic.

Lina merely chuckled in amusement.

"Go now," she said. "Be careful, alright? It's already dark."

"Yeah! See you!" Kai called, already running away.

Lina continued watching him despite her father screaming for her to get into the house.

Kai swiftly walked away from their street.

Lina's eyes widened when she saw the scene before her quickly unfold.

Kai cursed under his breath since the roads appeared darker than usual because of his pesky bangs.

He held onto his hair and cursed under his breath.

"Maybe I should really cut it," he muttered.

"It's so freaking dark," he complained.

Just then, he saw something very bright from his peripheral vision.

He heard a loud honk, causing his eyes to widen in shock. He turned to the side and saw a dark green car coming at him at full speed.

"Kai!" Lina's voice rang through the entire street.

"Holy crap," Kai muttered.

Was this how he was going to die?

Because he couldn't see his damn surroundings because of his bangs?

There were moments in his life when he called actors stupid for standing right in front of a car without making any effort to move.

However, he finally realized that it was easier said than done!

He couldn't move an inch!

So, with that, he closed his eyes—almost as if he was accepting his fate.

***

Kai heard sobs inside the cold room, making him frown.

"Lina?" he whispered when he recognized her voice.

"He's not waking up!" she exclaimed through the phone.

"Honey, calm down," Officer Huang said, also sounding stressed out. "He's fine. Oh no, honey. Stop calling the other players."

"Yuze!" Lina exclaimed, not listening to her father. "Kai got hit by a car!"

"What?"

Despite the phone being on normal speaker mode, Yuze's voice rang in the entire room.

"I already told coach, and he's on his way," Lina explained.

Just then, Kai heard the familiar voice of her grandmother. He closed his eyes, not really knowing how to act after everything that had happened.

He didn't feel any pain, so he took that as a good sign that the car didn't hit him.

"My grandson!" Grandma Bingbing exclaimed before Kai felt someone holding onto his shoulders.

He continued closing his eyes. However, Grandma's grip increasingly became tighter on his shoulders, causing him to grimace.
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"What happened? Who did this to him?" she frantically asked.

"Grandma Bingbing, calm down," Officer Huang said. "Your grandson is fine."

With Officer Huang's statement, Grandma Bingbing's hold on Kai's shoulder tightened further.

Kai couldn't take it anymore, so he pushed his grandma away. However, she didn't budge, which confused Kai.

Did super strength really run in their family?

"Kai!" Lina softly said, looking at him with wide eyes.

Kai instantly melted when he saw Lina's tear-stricken, concerned eyes.

Meanwhile, Officer Huang shook his head.

"Are you alright now?" he asked in a strict tone.

Kai pursed his lips and nodded, moving his body around to see if anything felt wrong.

"Yeah, I think I'm fine," he said.

"See?" Officer Huang exclaimed. "I told you that there's nothing to worry about. The car should even be more worried. It was very dented when I saw it speed away."

Lina glared at her dad.

"But a car literally hit him! Kai rolled down our street, and you want me to believe that he's fine?" she exclaimed. "Are you really alright?" she asked, turning to Kai.

Kai held out an okay sign, making Grandma Bingbing shake her head.

"Kai has always been sturdy," she said. "So, you don't have to worry, sweetie. If Kai says that he's fine, then he's fine."

"It must be because he was on that damn phone," she said with narrowed eyes.

Kai scratched the back of his head. "I wasn't even on my phone."

"Anyway," Officer Huang chimed, clearing his throat. "The car was definitely overspeeding in the residential area. I have gotten the plate number, and we'll apprehend them as soon as possible."

Grandma Bingbing bowed her head. "Thank you, officer. It is well appreciated."

Just then, their conversation was interrupted when hurried footsteps entered the hospital room.

Yuze, Kun, and Coach Muchen appeared before them with concerned looks.

"What happened?" Yuze asked with a deep frown.

"Kai got hit by a car, but the car got hurt instead," Lina explained, now with a smile.

The three of them turned to each other in confusion.

"What?"