Basketball System: Rebound of the Underdog

"Do you only smile?"

Calvin's first interaction with Fenhua flashed in the back of his mind.

"Huh?" Calvin asked, the smile still on his face. "What do you mean?"

"They're talking shit about you for being in the shadow of your brother. However, you're still smiling. You could tell them off, you know?"

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Calvin shook his head. "I don't want to be a hassle."

Fenhua clicked his tongue. "Well, we're a team now. You should know that we don't tolerate people who jeopardize our teamwork. Tell me if you're struggling, alright?"

Calvin felt like his heart stopped beating for a moment. Fenhua had told him since the very beginning. It has always been obvious, yet he chose to ignore it.

71-79.

The gap had now stretched to eight points in favor of the Shizi Dogs. However, Calvin kept his gaze on his teammates, appearing to be at their coolest.

And at that moment, everything made sense.

A tear fell down from his eye. Along with that, he felt a warm hand on his back.

"We thought you were better," Coach Hope said. "However, I should have known better. You're the best at hiding your real emotions."

"Fenhua is really hurt," she continued. "He doesn't like seeing you this way—so isolated. You guys are a team. So, it's alright if you're not perfect. It's alright if you show you're struggling. Isn't that what teams are for—to make up for other people's flaws?"

"At the end of the day, as cliche as it may sound, nobody is truly perfect."

Just then, the Shizi Dogs called for a time-out—their last one.

The Dragons went back to their bench, all breathless and covered with sweat.

Dafu collapsed on the bench and shook his head. "I don't know how you're able to do it. Kai Guo is such a menace to face."

A small smile appeared on Calvin's smile. However, it wasn't the usual smile he wore—it was genuine this time.

"I can't do it anymore, coach," Dafu said. "I seriously need help."

Coach Hope smiled and turned to Calvin, who nodded at her.

"I'm fine now," he said.

Fenhua frowned and turned to him. Calvin quickly altered his answer.

"Actually, I'm not," he said. "I'm not fine. I need your guys' help."

It felt weird coming from Calvin's lips, but the small smile that appeared on Fenhua's smile was worth it.

"Come on," Fenhua said. "We can still do this—eight points."

The players resumed on the court, and everyone was on the edge of their seats. It was definitely the most entertaining game they had seen in a long while!

It was no longer a one-man battle between Kai and Calvin.

Calvin faced him, and Kai smiled.

"Do you get it now?" Kai asked.

Calvin scoffed and evaded his gaze.

He had been watching from the bench, his mind racing as he tried to figure out what went wrong. How had he, one of the Elite Five, been completely shut down by Kai? It wasn't just a skill issue. There was something deeper at play here. Something he hadn't understood before.

Calvin wasn't smiling anymore. His usual carefree expression had been replaced with something more focused. More determined.

As the referee prepared to whistle, he glanced at his teammates.

He couldn't do this alone.

No one could.

It wasn't too bad to ask for help. It wasn't a sign of weakness.

"Help," Calvin muttered under his breath, almost to himself. Then, louder to his teammates, "Help me."

The words felt strange, but at the same time, they felt liberating. Like something had been plucked out of his heart, a burden he didn't even know he was carrying. If his brother saw him now, he'd probably be disappointed. But Calvin didn't care. For the first time, he liked the feeling—of being in a team, of admitting you needed help, of realizing that you didn't have to carry everything on your own.

He initiated the next play. It wasn't flashy; it wasn't unpredictable. It was a standard pick-and-roll, something every team practiced. Fenhua moved to set a screen, and Calvin dribbled around him, Dafu positioning himself for the next pass.@@novelbin@@

Kai stood off to the side, watching the play unfold with a small smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. He recognized what Calvin was doing. It was predictable, yes, but there was something different about it now. Calvin wasn't relying on pure talent. He was relying on his team.

For a moment, Kai wondered if he should step in and stop him. He could. He was reading Calvin perfectly now. But then something held him back.

Calvin was unstoppable.

The screen set by Fenhua was perfect, and when the ball came back to Calvin, it wasn't just him taking the shot. It was all of them—the Dragons—working together.

Calvin rose up for the shot, every ounce of his energy, of his effort, in that single moment.

The gym fell silent as the ball soared through the air, spinning toward the hoop. Kai's eyes followed it, his small smile still in place as he watched Calvin play with everything he had. There was no arrogance in that shot, no overconfidence. Just pure teamwork.

The ball sailed cleanly through the net, and the sound of it swishing echoed in the gym.

73-78.

Calvin landed softly on his feet, his breaths heavy, his heart pounding, but for the first time in this game, his smile returned—not the cocky, self-assured grin, but something real.

Kai nodded to himself, understanding now what had changed. Calvin hadn't just beaten him with that shot. He had beaten the part of himself that believed he had to do it all alone.

The shot clock echoed across the court, and the game moved on.

Kai possessed the ball, and he, too, glanced at his teammates. Aside from Yuze, their ideal line-up was on the court. He quickly passed to Renren, who capitalized on his height difference with Fenhua.

Fenhua struggled to keep up with him. While Yuze was more powerful, Renren was faster—too fast for someone with his height.

Then, he passed to Andy, who was waiting on the three-point line. However, Guri was right on him.

Andy passed to Jet instead, who set a screen before passing it to Kai.

"Thank you," Kai smiled as he grabbed the ball.

He bounced it—once, twice.

Kai felt someone hot on his heels, but he was confident he could make it.

He jumped up, readying himself for a shot. However, just as the ball was about to leave his hands, he felt a figure loom above him.

That didn't stop Kai.

He grabbed the ball once more, dribbled it once before jumping on the opposite side.

Calvin had just landed on his feet when Kai had already launched the ball.

Their eyes met, and Kai felt it once again.

It was over.

He was simply better than Calvin Wu.