Chapter 01

Sage's pov

All eyes were on me.

As I walked through the familiar hallway, the chit-chat and laughter immediately died down, replaced with silent murmuring.

I could see judgment in their eyes. Suddenly, it felt like my sneakers' echoed through the hallway.

Sage Davis the girl who cost her team the championships because of a selfish shot. Who even does that?

I heard someone say to another person.

I clutched on the backpack I had on, ducking my head and kept moving. I could feel their piercing gaze on me even without looking.

The hallway wasn't packed as usual, and that was one thing I was grateful for. Summer school only had half of the school's population.

Some students had online classes while others spent the entire summer break partying and wasting time on the beach far away from here.

I spotted some of my teammates standing by a locker, and when their gaze fell on me, the expression on their faces was clear, they didn't want anything to do with me.

Hillcrest College hadn't changed in the one year I was gone, so that's good to know everything was still the same.

I made my way to the locker room, needing some time to breathe. The air was suffocating.

My ankle had healed, but the nerves never left me. It clung to me like a scar no one could see.

The locker room door made a cracking sound, a wave of nausea washing over me. I didn't realize how much I'd missed this place until now.

Steam rolled out like it was coming from a sauna. Sharp scent of soap filled the air. I blinked severally through the haze.

And for a minute, I could feel myself literally stop breathing.

He was there, towel wrapped around his waist, water dripping down his tanned body.

Muscles well-defined in every part of his upper body.

I opened my mouth to speak, to excuse myself, but I couldn't find the words I just kept staring.

He didn't look startled. He just calmly grabbed a shirt and glanced my way.

God, why the hell was I still staring?

“I didn't expect anyone yet," he said, his voice deep and gentle.

I watched him put the shirt over his head, my eyes never leaving his body until he had it on.

I couldn't move, didn't say a word I just stood there like a complete idiot.

Then he walked towards me, extending a hand. “I'm Coach Andrew Jefferson. I'll be leading the team this season."

Coach.

That word broke the trance I was in, pulling me back to reality, but I still couldn't say anything my thoughts were racing very fast.

A familiar voice came from behind me.

“Hey, Dad, I wanted to—"

She stopped mid-air when she saw me. It was Pauline, my best friend since high school.

She stood there surprised for a moment before launching herself at me, almost bringing the both of us to a fall.

“Oh my God, I missed you so much! I had no idea you were coming today," she said as her hug tightened.

I hugged her back, "I missed you too."

After a moment, she let go, and I turned back to the man who had introduced himself as the new coach. He had a smile on his face.

But no, this couldn't be Pauline's dad the man I'd heard about for years now but never had the chance to meet.

No, no, no, no.

Pauline had always said he was handsome, but I didn't expect this level of handsomeness.

"Hi, I'm Sage," I said, finally able to pull myself together.

 He nodded, a polite smile spread across his lips. “I know, Pauline would never stop talking about you."

After a few seconds of silence, Pauline tugged me by the arm. “Come on, let's go change." I let her drag me to her locker. “We've got our first team intro in fifteen minutes," she said.

As Pauline got dressed in her cheer uniform, I kept telling myself that's your coach, that's Pauline's father, he's off-limits.

But tell that to the part of me that still felt the intensity of his eyes on me long after he was gone.

I also got dressed in my practice gear, and we both made our way to the gym. Pauline held my hand as she noticed the way everyone stared at me.

“So, what do you think about my dad coaching? Pretty cool, right?"

I tried to sound normal about her bringing up her dad. “I didn't expect him to look like that..."

She snorted. “I know, right? He gets that a lot."

“Do you think it's weird working with your dad?" I asked.

“Nope, it's pretty cool. I’ll get to spend more time with him, and he's not planning on staying for long it's just for the season."

Those words should have made me feel better, but they didn't.

~~~~

When we got to the gym, most of my teammates were already there stretching.

No one said a word to me they just kept giving me mean looks.

But I wasn't going to allow this to stop me. I was stronger than all of this.

Coach Andrews stood at the center of the court, clipboard in hand. We all gathered in one line, and he looked very serious, but his voice was commanding yet calm.

"Welcome back, everyone. For those of you who don't know who I am, my name is Coach Andrews, and due to the circumstances with your past coach, I will be the one in charge for this season.

That aside, we are here to prepare for the biggest tournament in the region. I know there's been some changes. and I'm not going to be here permanently, I'm only here to help the team win and I take that seriously."

His eyes roamed the ground, landing on me, and it lasted longer than expected.

I looked away fast.

~~~~

Practice started and it was brutal. I hadn’t been on the court for a while and I missed it, but I was barely holding up. My ankles held up through out practice but but barely. The pivots and sharp cuts they still made me hesitate. I hated it. Every time I pulled back even slightly, it felt like proof that I wasn’t who I used to be.

Coach didn’t say anything to me, he just watched. I could feel his gaze on me even when I wasn’t looking.

After about two and a half hours, we wrapped up. My legs ached so much, my lungs burned for air, smell of sweat thick in the air.

I stayed back, bouncing a ball as everyone left one after the other, including Pauline.

And that’s when I heard his voice again.

“You move well.”

I turned around and he stood, arms crossed, watching me from near the bench.

“Thank you,” I said, forcing a smile.

“You’re not at full strength yet.”

“And I’m not sure I ever will,” I mumbled under my breath as I kept bouncing the ball.

“Hey, hey, don’t say that. You are good, Sage. And you will get better.”

His voice was so reassuring.

He walked further into the court. “All you need is more time on the court.”

I kept bouncing the ball around, not meeting his gaze. “You don’t know what they say about me, do you?”

“Oh, I do, believe me.” I looked up at him and we started laughing.

“I didn’t know you listen to gossip,” I said.

“I have Pauline for a daughter. I listen to everything.” I just smiled.

He looked even more handsome when he was being playful. And his smile my Lord.

“But don’t let what they say define who you are, and who you're going to become,” he said, dropping the playful demeanor.

His voice was steady, and it made me feel safe.

“Do you always give such great advice?”

He walked closer to me.

“I know what it’s like living with regret. Don’t let it consume you.”

We stood there in silence for a moment.

I moved back.

“I should get going.”

He nodded. “Sure. See you tomorrow, Sage.”

As I walked towards the door, I could still feel his eyes on me.