My team and I are currently on the team bus, on our way to Las Vegas for the game tonight. We had to pull out of the facility bright and early so we can arrive on time in order to do pre-game interviews, warmups, and all that matter. I really enjoy short road trips to other cities close by. Since the three years I've been on the Sparks, I've really considered this team like my family. So these road trips just feel like one big family road trip. 

As we are on the road, I'm texting Hailee to pass the time. She is telling me about her morning and how Martini ripped up one of her favorite scrunchies this morning. She tells me about how she's going to watch the game tonight at her parents house, along with Griffin. While I'm typing away with my thumbs, a few of my team mates peer over my shoulder.

"Ooooo Jay look at you all smiling and shit." Liz says loudly. Now two other girls come and playfully hit me.

"You texting your girl huh?" 

"Yeah look at her giggly." 

"Knock if off guys, I could be texting anyone."

"Then why she got a lil heart next to her name?" Jasmine points out, and I start to blush. 

"Aye she blushin! Look at her cheeks red as hell!" Rae remarks. The other girls start to settle down back in to their seats, except Liz stays and takes a seat next to me. 

"Hey girl." 

"Hi Liz, what's up." I say, putting my phone down to give her my full attention. 

"It's going really well with her isn't it?" 

"Yeah, pretty well indeed." 

"That's great girl, I'm happy for you for real." She says kindly. 

We both don't respond for a few minutes, as if Liz wants to ask me something.

"Does she know?" Liz asks.

"Know what?" 

"You know, about your um, special condition down there?" 

I start to stare at the seat in front of me. I hadn't even thought about it to be honest. I start to grow nervous, thinking about how she might react. Other people have not handled it well in the past, and it really taints my self image and confidence. I begin to play with my hands, and Liz notices.

"It's okay if you haven't. I can't imagine how scary it must be, especially when you like someone so much." 

"Yeah, I don't really know how it's going to go."

"You know I'm here for you, okay?" She reminds me. 

"I know Liz, I appreciate it a lot." I reply, resting my head on to her shoulder to show my appreciation. 

"I'll leave you to it, I'll be in my seat if you need me." 

And with that, she returns to her seat and I'm left with my thoughts. My mind floods with the different possibilities of how Hailee could find out. Should I tell her before? Or should I let her find out on her own? I brush away the thoughts temporarily, putting it in the back of my mind for now. I raise the volume on my headphones and doze off, looking out the window. 

---

When I wake, we are arriving to the arena, which is known as the Michelob Ultra Arena. Out of all the arenas we visit during the regular season, this has to be one of my favorites. The team and I walk to our own area that's made for guests, and I put my bag down in the designated space in front of me. I check my phone for the last time and I see a few texts I missed while I was on the bus. 

Steph Curry: good luck tonight kid, give me a 30 piece! peep me in the stands tonight!

Jayden: i got you bro, i'll try and catch you at the end of the game.

Steph Curry: yessir, see you then

Now I'm even more nervous. Not only will Hailee be watching from home with her whole family, but Steph Curry is going to be at the game watching my every move. I let out a sigh as I check the last unread notification.

Lizzie: wishing you the best of luck tonight at the game. i'm sorry if i've been distant since that one night. i was thinking we could meet up to talk when you get back?

Jayden: thanks lizzie. it's okay i'm sorry too. i'll hit you back when i'm in LA again for plans. 

Lizzie: okay jay, love you

Jayden: love you too

The text from Lizzie doesn't even phase me, and I change into my warmup shirt and pants. We all walk on to the court and start shooting around. I get in the zone by raising the volume to the max on my Beats, as I'm listening to my rock playlist thats riddled with Nirvana, Radiohead, and more. 

Something seems to be going on tonight, and almost all my shots are dropping in tonights warm-up. A few of my team members and Coach notice. I take my headphone off one ear to listen in. 

"Damn Jay!" I hear coach behind me. "You see this guys? Y'all better hit her with the ball every time she's open." I hear, and right as he says that, I sink another three pointer from the corner. 

After that shot, I transition into some ball handling and passing drills as per usual. The arena begins to fill with fans, and I notice many sports reporters and cameras set up in their respective area. 

"ESPN wants to talk with you for a little before we go back into the locker room." Coach mentions to me. 

"Oh for real?" I ask, now taking off my headphones.

"Yeah, see that reporter over there?" He motions towards a woman in front of a camera.

"Her?" I point towards a young reporter with long blonde hair.

"Mhm. Now go, they are waiting for you." 

I lightly jog over to the ESPN reporter section and I shake hands with many different reporters and sports announcers, even the camera crew. 

"Hi Jayden, my name is Cassidy from ESPN. Is it alright if I ask you some questions before the game?" 

"Yeah sure of course ma'am." I respond, and she positions me to sit in what looks like a directors chair from cinema, except it has the ESPN logo on it. She hands me a mic and signals to the camera person that she's ready. She asks if I'm ready and I nod. She waits for the transition from reporter to reporter to begin speaking, the camera man counting down from 3. 

"Thank you Paul. I'm here with Jayden Carter from the LA Sparks live in Las Vegas, just minutes before tip-off here at Michelob Arena. Jayden, how are you feeling tonight?" 

"I'm feeling pumped tonight, Las Vegas is one of my favorite places, and getting to do what I love in this amazing city is even better." I reply.

"That's awesome Jayden. Now, your last outing against the Chicago Sky had you at an incredible 32 point, 12 assist game. Do you think you can top that tonight? What seems to be your strategy for taking on the Aces?

"Well, every game is different you know. The outcome is always unpredictable. But tonight, my team and I are going to make sure our communication on the court is key so we can find those easy looks and open spaces on the floor. Now as my stats go, I honestly don't keep track during the games. What matters to me during those 40 minutes is just me, my team mates, and the ball."

"What a great answer. Before you go anything you want to say to the camera?" 

"For those of you watching from home, and for those who are traveling to watch us play tonight, I appreciate your support and let's go Sparks!" 

"Thank you Jayden, good luck out there tonight!" 

"Thank you."

Cassidy smiles until she is notified she isn't on camera. I hand the microphone back to her and she hands it gratefully. I stand up from the folding chair and I go to walk back to the court but I am stopped.

"Hey um, thanks for interviewing with us." Cassidy calls out.

"Yeah no worries, it's my pleasure."

"You went to UCLA right?" She asks.

"I did. Why?"

"I used to go to all the UCLA women's basketball games. My friends and I always had so much fun." She mentions.

"Oh wow what a small world. I'm glad you guys enjoyed yourself, even though the crowds were never as large as the mens games."

"Yeah unfortunately not. But hey, you have a pretty big crowd for yourself here don't you?"

"I've come a long way, yes." I reply

"Here um, take this." She hands me her business card. I flip it over and her personal number is on it with a heart next to it. 

"Your business card?" I ask, trying to divert from the fact she is clearly flirting with me. "Don't you think this is a little unprofessional?"

"Only if you want it to be unprofessional." She says, now smirking at me. "You know I always thought you had the looks, even since college.

"That's really kind of you, I appreciate this and all but right now I'm here for business, business meaning the game I'm about to play. And even if I wasn't here for business, I'm not in search of anything related to what you're trying to do here." I respond, hoping it didn't come off as too harsh. 

"Yikes." She says, her cheeks flushing red in embarrassment. "I knew I shouldn't have waited this long." I laugh awkwardly and try to find a way out of this conversation.

"Thanks again for the interview. I think I heard Coach calling me so I'm going to leave now. Okay bye." I say while awkwardly walking away, still trying to process whatever that was. 

I head back through the tunnel, entering the locker room earlier than everyone else. I pull out my phone to text Hailee.

Jayden: just finished warming up, in the locker room now :)

Hailee: omg hi! we are all here on the couch waiting for the game to start!

Hailee: [attachment: 1 image]

Hailee: griffin wanted to take a selfie and send it to you, lol!

Jayden: you guys look great, you look really pretty Hailee

Hailee: enoughhh you can't do this to me in front of my family

Jayden: i'll call you beautiful wherever you are and you're just going to have to accept it

Hailee: you're so sweet i can't

Jayden: i gotta head out soon. i'll text you after the game okay? tell everyone i say hello!

Hailee: i will. good luck my love <3

I stare at my phone for a little while, staring at the last two words. Just the word my brings a smile to my face. The simple fact that she considers me hers is everything and more. I put my phone in my bag as my team members flood into the locker room space. Coach gives me the thumbs up for me to give our pre-game speech as captain of the team. 

"Alright guys bring it in." I call out, and everyone huddles around. 

"Our defense needs to be on lockdown tonight. They are going to try and put pressure on top since they know we have a high shooting percentage, so Liz I need you to be on your best game tonight. We are gonna be getting a lot of looks in the paint." I begin.

"Put everything you have on the floor tonight. Make sure to call out the plays and your positions. If we don't communicate we will lose this game, and I know y'all don't want a 4 hour bus ride home in silence." I add on, and they nod, knowing how much the ride home after losing a game sucks.

"Hands up guys come on." I motion, and everyone puts their fist in the air.

"Family on three family on three, one two three family!" We all say in unison. Once we break from the huddle, we begin to head out through the tunnel. Before putting up more shots, I notice Steph Curry court side and his wife, Ayesha, near our side of the bench. I have a couple minutes to greet them so I head over to their seats.

"What's good Chef Curry." I call to him, and they both stand up from their seats. Steph claps me up, patting me on the back. I move on to Ayesha and I give her a hug. 

"Hey bro it's good to see you." He tells me.

"Yeah thank you guys for coming out tonight it means a lot." 

"We just had to come and see the WNBA's best out here." 

"Well I don't know about that, but still, thank you." I reply with a wide smile at this compliment. 

"The corner three is gonna be on lockdown tonight. The Aces lower defense will miss it every time, so catch a rhythm while you can. Trust me." 

"I'll see what I can do. Thanks for the advice. If you guys want or need anything, just say my name." 

"Will do Jay. I'm also sending you two tickets to the next Warriors game, so if you want to bring a special someone you can." He offers, and I start to blush thinking of Hailee.

"No way man, you're too kind. You're welcome to any Sparks game I got you." 

"Any time Jay, go kill em tonight." He says, shaking my hand one last time.

I wave goodbye then head to our bench with the rest of my team. The announcer begins his usual introduction while I stretch a little before my number gets called. He begins with the away team as usual. 

"Jayden Carter, #3." He says, and I stand up and high-five my teammates before heading to the center of the court. I can hear a few Sparks fans in the crowd cheering for me. The referee makes some calls before tip-off, signaling to us which side of the court is which. Liz and the opposing teams center are in the middle of the court, awaiting the jump ball. 

The referee blows the whistle and tosses the ball in the air, and Liz jumps up and gets us the ball. It gets passed to me and I begin to bring it down the court. The crowd erupts with cheers and screams and I tune it out as best I can. I scan the floor, trying to analyze what defense the Aces put out. They begin with man-to-man defense, so I'm being guarded by their best player: Kelsey Plum. I pass the ball around, trying to move to different spots on the court. Jasmine sets a screen for me, giving me space from Kelsey to make my way to the corner. 

The ball gets passed my way and I'm wide open in the corner. I take the shot, holding my follow through, and it goes in with a swish. As I run back to the other side of the court for defense, I tap my heart twice, hoping Hailee notices that the first shot of the game was for her. 

The first half goes smoothly, we are winning by almost 15 points now. Our defense has outweighed theirs, and I've been able to get a few steals and fast break dunks to the other side of the court. I feel pretty tired though, having played about 20 minutes without break, so Coach decides to sit me out for the first few minutes of the last few quarters.

I look up at the big scoreboard that's hanging in the middle of the arena and I see I already have 22 points and 9 assists, which is pretty good so far. From the bench, I watch as my teammates continue the energy from the first half, scoring and making great plays.

About 8 minutes into the 3rd quarter, Coach signals me to take a kneel by the announcers. The referee blows his whistle and calls for a substitution. I high five the teammate I'm switching out for and I find my place on the court. I wipe my shoes from dirt and dust a few times to make sure my traction is on point. I get right back into it, passing the ball around and making quite a few assists. 

The last quarter of play begins and we are up by 18, the Aces defense falling apart, which has allowed us to maintain a large lead, which we are able to continue until the end of the game.

The final seconds on the clock expire, confirming we won the game with a final score of 102-88. I high five the other team, giving Kelsey Plum a hug since we are pretty good friends. She congratulates me on the win. 

Before walking back through the tunnel, I notice a few Sparks fans that catch my attention. I take off my jersey, leaving me in my compression shirt and jersey bottoms, hanging it to a fan. He's a young guy, probably teenager. He hands me a sharpie and I gladly sign it for him. I take off my shoes and hand them to another young girl, signing them for her as well. I fist bump a few more fans, and the I walk back with the rest of the team and coaching staff. When we get back to the locker room we all jump around in excitement from winning the game. 

We all gather our things and we walk back to the bus after completing some post-game interviews. I take my previous seat on the bus, checking my phone for any unread messages.

Hailee: you played so amazing!! 

Jayden: thank you <3

Hailee: i saw you do our little signal i got so happy you're so cute

Jayden: im so glad you noticed yay. we are heading back now. are you back home?

Hailee: yep just got back here a little while ago. had to feed teenie. my family and i had so much fun watching the game tonight

Jayden: thats so awesome :)

Hailee: they want to plan a night where the two of us come over. they really want to meet you.

As I read those words, I immediately start to get nervous. I already start to worry about the impression I have to make and all the contingencies of meeting the parents of someone you really like. 

Jayden: that sounds great! i'd love that

Hailee: yay we will plan it. do you know when you'll be home?

Jayden: probably around 4am, i think im gonna knock out on this bus though. head against the window and all

Hailee: ugh poor thing you're going to be so tired tomorrow

Jayden: unfortunately :(

Hailee: well ill let you get your rest. let's talk tomorrow, i want to make plans to see you this coming week

Jayden: of course love let's do it

Hailee: okay!! good night safe travels <3

Jayden: good niteee 

And the second I turn off my phone and put it in my pocket, I doze off to sleep with my head against the rattling window. 

3178 words

VICTORY comes late,

And is held low to freezing lips

Too rapt with frost

To take it.

- Emily Dickinson