Chapter Text
The gym was filled with the awful racket of kids' voices. It seemed like the whole school had shown up, even though the meeting was only for the basketball players.
"What did everyone come here for?!" Minhyeok complained, sitting next to Baku on the bench. "They're just distracting us!"
"They should have held it at the stadium," Ijun said. Sion shook his head.
"It'll be dark there by the time we're done."
"They should have only let the candidates in," Minhyeok grumbled, crossing his arms and watching the athletes train out of the corner of his eye. "Instead, they're jumping around here like goats!"
Humin snorted into his fist. One kid almost fell on him trying to catch a ball. Minhyeok jumped up, practically kicking the poor guy in the pants.
"Aish! Stay behind the line! Shoo!! Move it, move it!"
He ran along the bench until he'd cleared the perimeter of the loitering students. Baku was whispering to Ijun, giggling. His phone buzzed. He'd received a short message:
"Good luck, Humin-ah!"
It immediately brightened the recipient's face.
"Shoo!! You're disturbing the athletes' training!" Minhyeok shouted, shooing the crowd away. He ran over to the coach, who had just entered the gym. "Coach Jin!! Say something to them!"
"Participants! Attention!!" Coach Jin tried to shout over the crowd. "We'll begin in five minutes!"
He sat down at a table next to Humin, watching the students disperse and clear the floor for the athletes, and muttered, "Well, that's settled."
"Finally, damn it!" Minhyeok grumbled, crossing one leg over the other. The gym was getting quieter. But then he perked up. "Look! Is that Lee Gaon?"
"Where?" Baku exclaimed, jumping to his feet. Ijun and Sion followed suit.
"That's really Gaon!"
"GAO-O-ON!!" Humin shouted, waving his arms. "Gao-o-on!!"
Minhyeok nudged him with his elbow.
"Don't yell, you idiot! He knows where to go."
A guy with a buzz cut, rather short for a basketball player, approached them. He jogged up to them. The hall filled with a hundred voices again.
"Guys!!" Gaon shouted, waving his arms over his head. Minhyeok pretended to grumble:
"You idiot, you're making noise again!!" He grabbed him by the ear and pulled him down, ignoring his protests. "They just calmed down! Now you calm them down!"
Sion ran over and pulled Gaon's arm, shouting, "You're going to rip his ear off, you idiot!"
Ijun rushed to his aid. Baku sided with Minhyeok, just to balance things out. He was laughing his head off.
"Guys! Guys!!" Coach Jin called out, snapping his fingers. When that didn't work, he pulled out his whistle.
The guys jumped.
"Calm down," the coach asked calmly. Baku clutched his chest.
"Why would you do that, Coach Jin! I almost had a heart attack..."
"If you have a heart attack over something so small, we're not going to get very far with a captain like you!"
The coach stood up, calling for silence.
"ATTENTION!! We're starting!! Participants, take your places! I ask the rest of you to leave the gym so you don't distract the athletes!"
Outraged shouts echoed through the hall.
"Come on, come on!! Or we'll be here clucking until midnight!" the coach added finally. The students had to leave: no one wanted to test Coach Jin's patience. Minhyeok sighed loudly.
"Finally! I was ready to start throwing balls at them."
He shook himself and put on the most focused expression he could muster. Humin barely managed not to laugh.
The tryouts for the fifth player on the school's basketball team began.
First, Coach Jin asked the candidates to introduce themselves. He sat at the table and began flipping through lists, occasionally looking up at the next boy who stepped to the center of the gym and said his name, class, and position. Some spoke boldly, some mumbled, some blushed and didn't know where to put their hands. The team sat on the bench, exchanging glances and commenting quietly.
"That one's from some sports school," Minhyeok whispered, looking at a boy with a confident stance. Ijun nodded.
Humin remained silent. He watched each person who came out, roughly gauging whether they'd fit. Many had potential. The question was whether it was enough to strengthen the team.
When Coach Jin called out the name Go Hyeontak, Humin perked up his ears. He immediately remembered the new kid he'd met in the hallway.
"Oh, it's that guy," Ijun said. "The new kid in Baku's class, right?"
He glanced at Humin. He didn't answer, but now he watched more intently.
Hyeontak stepped to the line, and it became clear he wasn't the type to get nervous. Some were nervous, glancing at the coach, at the team, at the opponents. Hyeontak simply stood and silently waited for instructions.
"Go Hyeontak. Class 2-2. Shooting guard," the guy said, and fell silent. No "hello," no "nice to meet you," no obligatory smile. The team whispered. Humin raised an eyebrow slightly, but said nothing.
Coach Jin nodded and made a note on his tablet. Hyeontak moved to the edge of the court and stood watching the others.
The first stage began. They tested physical fitness — shuttle run, vertical jump, pull-ups. Several people were cut — some didn't finish the run, some didn't make the jump. Hyeontak passed, showing a good, though not outstanding, result.
In the second stage, they tested ball-handling skills: blind dribbling, passing accuracy, shooting from different distances. Several more were cut. Five remained. Five guys who didn't yet know that the hardest part was still ahead. Hyeontak was among them.
"Well, athletes," the coach gave the remaining guys a cheerful look. "Five out of twenty-two candidates made it to the final stage. They made it to the most interesting part!"
He waved his hand toward the bench where the main team was sitting. The guys stood up, stretching their muscles after sitting for so long.
"Five on five. You're one team. The veterans are the other. Gaon, join in, since you're here."
Gaon snorted amidst the general laughter.
The first few minutes were chaotic. The four newcomers were trying hard but kept getting in each other's way. Hyeontak just moved in the shadows. Humin immediately took charge of the game — he was everywhere: he intercepted a clumsy pass from a newcomer, set up Minhyeok for a layup, scored himself from mid-range. Coach Jin nodded, but his eyes scanned the court for something else.
"Go, Baku! Don't go easy on them!" Sion shouted, grabbing rebound after rebound on defense.
The game was one-sided: 12:2. The newcomers started to give up, lowering their heads. One of them, tall and clumsy, threw the ball at the hoop and missed. The team players were getting bored.
But Hyeontak didn't give up. He didn't try to attack, didn't ask for the ball — he just worked. He covered for that clumsy guy when he missed, grabbed rebounds after Humin's shots (and Humin deliberately started shooting with resistance to test the newcomer), wedged himself between the defenders and Minhyeok, not letting him turn around comfortably.
"He's hanging in there," Minhyeok smirked when Hyeontak blocked his shot mid-jump.
In the eighth minute, Hyeontak touched the ball on offense for the first time. A defensive rebound, a short pass to the point guard, a sprint along the baseline. Ijun rushed to meet him, thinking the newcomer would stumble or pass the ball. But Hyeontak tucked the ball to his chest, spun on his heel, and jumped right in front of Ijun's nose. Ijun was late — the shot caught him off guard. The ball hit the backboard dully and bounced into the hoop.
12:4. Silence. Ijun looked at Humin in surprise. He shrugged.
"He can play."
From that moment on, the pace of the game changed. The guys stopped fooling around. They started tightly guarding the newcomers, blocking all paths to the basket. And then Hyeontak's main strength was revealed.
Humin drove to the basket. Two newcomers scattered in front of him like bowling pins, but Hyeontak blocked his path. He didn't foul, didn't grab — he just stood his ground, forcing Humin to slow down and switch the ball to his other hand. That second was enough for Minhyeok to come from behind and block the shot.
"Good," Humin said through his teeth, looking at Hyeontak.
But Hyeontak was already on the break. He caught the ball thrown by Minhyeok and raced toward the other basket. Ijun and Baku chased after him. Together. Hyeontak heard their footsteps behind him but didn't look back. In the final second, when Sion was already reaching out to knock the ball away, Hyeontak didn't try to score himself — he passed the ball back, right into the hands of that clumsy guy who was still standing on his side of the court. The guy caught the ball in surprise and immediately passed it back, but the moment was lost. The whistle blew.
"Enough!" Coach Jin announced, stacking his papers. "I've seen everything I needed to see."
Humin walked over to Hyeontak, wiping sweat from his forehead.
"Where did you learn to play like that?"
"I was on my old school's team," Hyeontak replied. Humin blinked in surprise.
"I never saw you at any matches."
"Not in Seoul."
Humin chuckled and slapped him on the shoulder, grinning widely.
"You can tell you're a pro!"
Coach Jin called Hyeontak over.
"Why did you freeze in front of him?" the coach asked, nodding toward Humin, who was drinking water by the bench. "Get scared?"
"No, sir," Hyeontak shook his head. "I just knew I couldn't stop him. But I made him slow down."
Coach Jin chuckled, clearly approving.
"It takes courage to admit something like that."
Hyeontak shrugged.
"Even professional athletes can't do everything."
Coach Jin smirked. He looked at Hyeontak and didn't see a rookie. He saw a player. Maybe not a star, not someone who'd score twenty points a game. But someone who doesn't crumble under pressure. Who thinks. Who sees the court.
"Guys like you win championships," the coach thought.
Coach Jin nodded, smiling slightly, and walked to the center of the gym.
"Thank you, everyone! You all did well. The team and I will be stepping out for about ten minutes to make a decision," he glanced back at the guys, nodding to them. The noise in the gym grew.
The team followed the coach into his office.
"Well, it seems obvious who fits, doesn't it?" Minhyeok said as he walked in. "Right?"
Gaon slapped his shoulder with a heavy hand.
"We had to step out to make the decision for appearance's sake. Otherwise, it looks unprofessional," Gaon glanced at Baku, smirking. "Right, captain?"
Baku didn't answer. He sat down in a creaky chair at the teacher's desk and leaned his elbows on his knees. The guys exchanged puzzled glances. Gaon muttered, "Is he okay? Why isn't Baku being Baku?"
"I can hear you," Humin grumbled, staring at the floor.
"Then answer the question."
Coach Jin shot him an annoyed look and grunted, "We're here for a different reason, Lee Gaon. Don't distract the captain. Baku," he handed Humin a sheet of paper he'd filled out while evaluating the participants. "Look this over."
Gaon snorted but fell silent. Sion came over to him.
"He's just stressed. We really need a player."
"Quiet, please!" Coach Jin cut him off. "If you want to chat — go outside the door!"
Gaon pretended to lock his lips and put his hands behind his back. Finally, the office fell silent.
"Don't we need to see it too?" Ijun asked.
"After Baku."
Ijun nodded. Baku passed the paper to Minhyeok, who was standing closest, and looked at the coach.
"We still need to choose an alternate."
Minhyeok slapped his forehead.
"I completely forgot! An alternate. Right... I didn't even think about it."
The coach looked at him seriously.
"Think about it now. You have ten minutes."
Minhyeok frowned, looking at the sheet with the results.
"The main thing is we have our main player," Baku stated, his gaze shifting from one guy to another. They nodded in agreement.
"Let's hope the alternate won't be needed," Sion said. "If you want my opinion: they're not at our level."
Minhyeok laughed loudly, squeezing the back of Sion's neck and shaking him.
"Look how important you are, you paper ferret!"
The guys laughed. Sion lunged at Minhyeok, swinging his fist.
"Who are you calling a ferret?!"
The guys kept laughing. Coach Jin exclaimed indignantly, "Keep it up — we'll need that alternate sooner than you think!"
By then, the paper had been passed around and returned to the coach.
"Excellent. Go Hyeontak is the main player, the alternate is Ju Eunoo. Well," he looked around at the guys.
"There's one more. Park Doheon," Minhyeok said.
"Only you picked him," Gaon, who had looked at the paper last, chuckled. "It doesn't really matter, dude. None of them are a great fit. But the majority ruled."
He tapped the teacher's desk importantly. Coach Jin pushed his hand away.
Baku stood up slowly from the chair.
"Okay. Let's go announce the results."
The team left the office, led by the coach. They stood before the candidates, who had formed a line. Students from the hallway poured back into the gym, filling it with noise again.
"ATTENTION!! Participants and spectators!" Coach Jin shouted, punctuating his words with a whistle. Everyone fell silent. "The team and I have deliberated and reached a decision. The main and fifth player of the Yangpyeong School basketball team will be... Go Hyeontak!"
Applause rippled through the gym, but not immediately: many didn't know the new student. For the first time, a smile lit up Hyeontak's face. Baku raised his eyebrows. Minhyeok whispered in his ear, "Wow! Only just transferred and already on the team. Lucky!"
"It's not luck," Humin replied without turning around.
Hyeontak stepped forward and bowed low.
Gaon loomed threateningly over Minhyeok's ear: "Years of training. For you, you idiot, it's luck! You don't do anything, but you stick your nose in everywhere!"
"Hey! What?!" Minhyeok grabbed Gaon by the scruff of the neck, but Sion elbowed him hard.
"Keep your composure! What kind of example are you setting for the newcomers?!"
Minhyeok snorted in displeasure, crossing his arms.
"I didn't start it..."
He sulked for a while longer until the joyful atmosphere in the gym cheered him up.
"The alternate player is... Ju Eunoo!"
The gym erupted in applause. The guy with a thick head of hair pumped his fists, waving them around furiously.
"I knew it!! I knew it!" the guy rejoiced. His friends ran up to him, shouting and patting him on the back.
"Rookies, come here!" Coach Jin called them over, smiling happily. When the guys came over, he put his arms around their shoulders and shook them.
The noise in the gym was so loud that someone's ears started ringing.
"Congrats!! Congrats!" Baku shouted, running over to the new players. He shook their hands right after Coach Jin. "I'm the team captain, Park Humin! Which you already know. I'm counting on you this season!"
Baku smiled from ear to ear as the other team members shook the rookies' hands.
"Welcome to the team, guys!" Minhyeok exclaimed. Gaon popped out from behind him.
"And I'm the reason you're all here today!"
"I know," Ju Eunoo spoke up, snorting. "I've been wanting to ask for a while. Why did you leave the team?"
Gaon scratched the back of his head, pretending to be embarrassed, and mimed playing the guitar.
"I chose the path of a musician."
Eunoo nodded approvingly.
"Do you have a band?"
"Yeah! We're going to perform at a festival for the first time this year. Come!" he turned to his friends. "You guys come too. Definitely! I'll be counting on you."
Minhyeok chuckled cheerfully, rolling his eyes.
"Of course we'll come, bro!" Baku exclaimed, putting his arm around Gaon's shoulders.
"And now let's go get a drink!" Minhyeok shouted. "Let's celebrate!"
Coach Jin instantly perked up.
"What do you mean, drink?! You little brats, have you lost your minds?!"
"I meant juice!"
He swung at Minhyeok, about to cuff him.
"Let's go to our cafe," Humin said, pulling Minhyeok away. "I want steak! Coach Jin's paying!"
"Hey!" the teacher shouted, but Humin had already skipped out of the gym. "Well, I'll be..."
"Come on, Coach," Minhyeok said, flashing his best smile. "We're finally complete. That deserves a celebration!"
Coach Jin rolled his eyes, but Minhyeok didn't see it. He'd gotten caught up in conversation with Ijun and Gaon and left the gym with them.
Humin stepped out into the fresh air and spread his arms wide, breathing deeply. Heavy blue clouds hung overhead, warning of a thunderstorm.
"We'd better hurry," Humin said to himself and took out his phone. He moved a bit away from the school building, as a noisy stream of students was pouring out of it.
"Min-ah."
"Jin-ah," Humin said, grinning widely. "You won't believe who became the fifth player! That new guy we ran into in the hallway. Go Hyeontak."
"Oh! Is that so," Baekjin replied in a slightly tired voice. "See? And you were worried."
"Yeah," Humin chuckled, looking up at the sky and putting his hand in his pocket. "How are you doing? Hitting the books again?"
Baekjin snorted, looking down at his notebook covered in formulas.
"Something like that."
"Baku, we're lea-aving!" Minhyeok called out mockingly. Humin turned to them, not taking the phone from his ear.
"The guys are calling me. We're going to celebrate. Don't stay up too late."
Baekjin chuckled quietly, closing his textbook.
"You too. Have a good rest."
"Good night!"
"You too," Baekjin replied with a long yawn, and ended the call.