The atmosphere across China was surreal. Streets that were once so busy now stood silent.
Not because of a curfew, or a governnt ban, but because of the basketball finals of the Global Gas. Police officers in the country were having a blast due to the quiet streets.
In fact, most of the world had paused, wanting to see who will reign on topped.
Gymnasiums were packed to their fullest capacity as the clock ticked down to the main event.
China versus USA.
Inside the arena, thousands flocked to the seats. Staff had a difficult ti controlling them, but they did their utmost best.
In one corner, the faculty of Shizi High filled the seats. The principal had pulled every possible string to make sure his school was represented.
Every teacher, every coach, along with the mbers of the Shizi Dogs were seated together in a sea of red and gold.
He had personally funded the tickets for them all, viewing it as an investnt in pride.
"This is what I always knew Kai Guo would achieve," the principal said as he sat on his seat. So others turned toward his way, whispering among themselves. He smirked, taking pride for the student he didn't even know about until his team won the Interhigh Nationals.
Among the teachers, Sir Dao sat in the middle, surrounded by a group of new hires. With the influx of new students, they inevitably had to hire more teachers, too.
"I told you before, didn't I?" he started off. "That kid looked up to . He wouldn't even have touched a basketball if it weren't for my guidance. I gave him a hard ti, but it was necessary.
"Do you see this?" he gestured to the gymnasiums. "Shizi High's na has gone global. Admissions are through the roof, and we've hired you young folks because of our expansion. It's all thanks to Kai…and ," he smiled.
Jet shook his head. They were above them, listening to every word Sir Dao was saying.
"He's speaking out of his ass again," he said to the team. "Sir Dao hated Kai before."
"That's true," Suzy confird. "He thought he was a good-for-nothing."
Bao chuckled and wrapped one arm around Suzy. However, his arm was actually too short to encircle around her, so it was propped awkwardly on the edge of her shoulder.
"I wonder how Kai looks now," Andy chid. "He was already handso before."
The new players listened attentively. anwhile, Caishen scoffed, pouting as he waited for the players to enter. "He can't be that handso," he muttered.
High above, in the comntator's booth, sat David and Gina. They represented the local network and were as surprised as anyone to find themselves calling a match of this magnitude.
"I still can't believe this," David muttered, adjusting his earpiece. "China. In the finals. Against the USA. And we're in the booth for it. It's surreal."
"Blessed day," Gina agreed. "The entire world is watching."
Indeed, the world was watching. From bars in New York to hos in Beijing, to the highest floors of the arena itself, where the eliminated teams sat in their exclusive seats.
Teams like Spain, France, and South Korea—teams who had fallen to either China or the USA—were now spectators. They knew better than anyone the ferocity of the two squads about to face off.
"Team USA would be the safer bet," a Japanese coach murmured to his assistant.
"True," the assistant agreed, "but this is China's ho turf. That changes things."
In outdoor gymnasiums across China, makeshift betting pools had already sprung up. Wads of cash changed hands as debates raged over which team had the edge.
Among the spectators in the lower levels, Lina sat with her father. It was all thanks to Kai, of course. They were seated among the relatives of those within the team.
Lina's heart raced like she was the one about to step onto the court.
"Calm down," Mr. Huang said, chuckling.
However, when Lina glanced at him, she saw that his hands were trembling, too. He couldn't even drink his soda properly! Lina laughed and shook her head.
"I think we both need to work on your nerves, dad," she teased.
Mr. Huang placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder but said nothing.
Just then, soone took the empty seats next to them.
Lina's eyes widened when she saw Grandma Bingbing dressed prettily.
"Grandma," she said, greeting her with a bow.
"Oh, Lina," she smiled. "You're already here. We had a hard ti finding the seats because there were way too many people."
"Tell about it," Lina chuckled. "Everyone is so excited for this ga. Wait, did you just say—we?" she asked.
"Oh, right," Grandma Bingbing chuckled. "I brought soone to join us."
"This is Aiden. Kai's sibling," she announced nonchalantly.
Lina blinked, her eyes nearly popping out of their sockets.
"Sibling?"
Aiden, unbothered by her shock, winked at her. "That's ," he said, sliding into the seat beside her.
He offered his hand. anwhile, Lina rely stared at it. However, he continued to talk. "I think we've t before. Wait, scratch that. I've seen you before during a video call. You're much prettier in person!"
Lina didn't know what to say, so she rely chuckled in awkwardness.
"Sibling," she muttered.
"But—" Lina began, only to be interrupted by the deafening roar of the crowd.
The lights dimd slightly, signaling the beginning of the pre-ga introductions. Lina barely had ti to process what Grandma Bingbing had said, let alone ask Aiden any follow-up questions.
Her attention was drawn entirely to the court as the announcer's voice bood through the arena.
"Ladies and gentlen, welco to the finals of the Global Gas!"
The arena erupted into cheers. Flags waved, chants echoed, and the volu of noise made the floors vibrate. Lina's heart pounded in her chest as the spotlight swept across the stands, pausing on the VIP sections, the comntators' booth, and finally the court itself.
"And now," the announcer continued, drawing out the mont, "introducing the teams for tonight's matchup!"
The spotlight shifted, illuminating the entrance tunnels on either side of the court.
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