Strings of Fate: The First Loop

CHAPTER 28

The crowd giggled, turned. I didn’t care. We weren’t here to be subtle. Drake, never one to be left out, shot a flying kiss to Corey, who theatrically caught it and pressed it to his heart like he’d won the lottery.

But Betty? She didn’t flinch. Her eyes weren’t on the crowd. They were locked on James. Quietly. Steadily. And when he looked back, his face softened. Like someone who hadn’t smiled in days but just remembered how.

It was… romantic. In that low-key, aching kind of way.

Then---

As if the universe couldn’t resist drama, the opposing team walked onto the court.

And there he was. Matt.

Golden boy. Clean lines. Hair in perfect place. Calculated. Eyes always looking like he’s solving a math problem and a heartache at the same time.

Betty’s breath hitched.

I saw it, how her shoulders tensed for half a second before she gently shook her head like she was brushing off a ghost.

Then, she turned back to James. Cheered his name like it's the end of the world. And when he caught her cheering, he stood a little taller. Brighter. Like a hero mid-transformation.

The whistle blew. The game started.

And my heart thudded in rhythm with the ball bouncing on concrete. Squeaks. Shouts. Blurs of color. Tim darting left. Drake spinning. James--- a blur of motion, confidence, power. Like he had something to prove to the whole damn world. The scoreboard ticked upward, like a heartbeat on life support. The gap closing.

Time-out.

Their coach called them in. I watched James nod, sweat dripping, hands on his hips. Drake whispered something that made Tim smirk. I watched Betty too.

She never looked away from James. Not once. And I wondered what it must be like--- to have two boys with whole storms inside them, and both of them thundering your name in their silence.

The whistle screamed again. Play resumed. 3 minutes. Tim with the ball--- pass to Drake--- bounce to James.

James surged forward like a comet.

And then---

Matt. Quick. Deliberate.

Too close. Too soon.

James hit the ground. Hard.

The sound was brutal--- like bones and hope and fury cracking all at once. The gym held its breath.

James stood up. Shoulders squared. Eyes burning.

And then--- he shoved Matt. Not violently. But full of something ancient. A declaration.

“Learn to back off, bro!” James's voice thundered across the court.

Time froze. Even the ball stilled, like it didn’t want to interrupt.

I looked at Betty. Her eyes were wide. Lips parted. And suddenly, I saw it.

This wasn’t just about a play. This was about love.

And rivalry.

And years of being compared. Of being second. Of being doubted. Of losing.

Matt vs. James was never about trophies.

It was about her.

I could see it in how Matt stood stunned--- not guilty. Not confused. Just… lost.

And I knew.

The whole game--- the fake wedding, the whispers, the longing glances--- this was just the explosion that had been building between the three of them, for months.

Betty stood.

Not suddenly. Not dramatically. Just… with quiet pain. She looked between them. Two boys on opposite sides of the court.

One who always played safe. One who never knew how to.

And for a moment, I wished I could pause the world and protect her from the decision she never asked to make.

James was pulled back by Drake. Tim whispered something to him.

Matt didn’t move.

Betty sat back down beside me, her hands trembling. And all I could do was reach out and squeeze her hand.

Because sometimes, when you’re caught between superheroes and villains, you forget---

Real people bleed too.

And today, no matter who won the game, someone’s heart would lose.