Healing and Hoops - A Stephen Curry Story

Summer league - 7

                                               Meet Serena on the header

Less than 24 hours after being selected by the Warriors, Stephen was in Oakland for an introductory press conference with his new team. He paced back and forth in his hotel room. He had been trying to reach Alexis but every call went straight to voicemail. He had even sent her multiple text messages, but there was no response. The uncertainty and worry ate away at him, causing an uneasy knot in his stomach. He couldn't shake off the feeling of urgency, the need to talk to her, to fix whatever was broken between them. As each attempt to reach her failed, Stephen's frustration turned into anger.

He grabbed his phone and angrily typed out a message to her. "Alexis, we need to talk. I don't understand why you're not answering my calls or texts. I need to know what's going on. This is not okay. Call me back ASAP."

Stephen hit send, hoping that this time she would respond. But minutes turned into hours, and there was still no reply. The silence only intensified his worry and amplified his frustration. He felt a sense of helplessness, not knowing what was going on or how to fix it. 

A few days later, Stephen's attempts to contact Alexis remained futile. He was on edge, unable to focus on his training for the upcoming summer league. He couldn't understand why Alexis had suddenly become unreachable. Maya wasnt picking his calls either, Jay couldnt help since he was out of the country for work. It didn't help him that Olivia was posting on social media, flaunting her proximity to him at the celebrations and claiming to be helping him settle in here in Oakland. It didn't sit well with him, and it only fuelled his desire to reach out to Alexis even more.

The team had now arranged an apartment for him during his stay in town, he shared it with Seth, who had left for the day to explore Oakland. As Stephen entered, his eyes widened in disbelief as he came face to face with Alexis, seated calmly on the couch. Their gazes locked, the relief and longing he felt upon seeing her was instantly overshadowed by an intense wave of betrayal and hurt that he couldn't suppress. His bag slipped from his grasp, crashing to the floor, shattering the silence. Alexis rose slowly from the couch and made her way towards him, her voice barely above a whisper

"Hi" she said while Stephen slowly closed the door then turning to face her

"Where the hell have you been?" he demanded. His eyes bore into hers, burning with a passion she had never seen before. "I've been trying to reach you for days. Do you have any idea how worried I've been?" 

Her voice trembled. "Stephen, I... I needed some time"

Stephen's frustration boiled over, his voice rising. "What the hell does that even mean? You ignored my calls and texts, I don't even know what I did"

Alexis struggled to find the right words amidst the whirlwind of emotions swirling around them "Stephen I..... I am sorry okay"

"You shut me out and now you show up here unanounced, what exactly did you expect will happen?"

Alexis' frustration was also building up. "Definitely not you running back to an ex"

"You know what, one thing that I hate is a person who doesnt communicate. I cant deal with whatever this is" he walked passed her going to the kitchen

"What are you saying right now?" Stephen looked at her without saying a word and shook his head while opening the fridge grabing a water bottle. "I saw the pictures from the celebrations, Stephen. Now she's here, helping you settle in. How do you explain that?"

Stephen's frustration mingled with his hurt, his voice tinged with bitterness. "You shut me out and then you show up here, accusing me of running back to an ex?" His anger flared, and he took a step closer, his face flushed with emotion. "First, you left without an explanation on draft night, and now you come here, throwing accusations without even giving me a chance to explain? Is this how it's going to be? Is this what you truly think of me?"