Number one and only. [Nicholas &team]

Chapter 19 - The Quiet Rival

By morning, the basketball court’s echo was still alive in the school — only now it carried through whispered conversations, bursts of laughter, and the occasional exaggerated retelling.
“Nicholas? The quiet kid with the glasses?” a girl whispered by her locker. “He totally crossed Maki yesterday—”
“No way. Maki’s untouchable.”
“I saw it. He’s… kinda hot without the glasses.”
Everywhere Ava went — the hall, the canteen, even the girls’ locker room before practice — she caught fragments of it. The shy scholarship boy who “didn’t play” had left the court with everyone talking.

In the boys’ section of the gym, Maki was lacing his sneakers when Harua slid onto the bench beside him.
“You’re quiet today,” Harua said.
Maki pulled the laces tighter. “Just thinking.”
“About Nicholas?”
Maki didn’t answer, but the sharp tug of his knot was enough.

Ava found herself scanning the cafeteria for Nicholas during lunch. He was in his usual spot — corner table, book open, a half-finished sandwich untouched beside him. He didn’t look like someone who had become the center of the school’s chatter.
She sat with Christine instead, but her mind kept circling back to him. It wasn’t just that he could play — it was how he played. That calm, the way he read the game like he’d been doing it for years.
By evening, Ava had made up her mind.

Her father was in his study when she knocked — papers spread across the mahogany desk, a glass of scotch by his side.
“You’re supposed to be at practice,” he said without looking up.
“I need a favor.”
That got his attention. He leaned back, studying her. “What kind of favor?”
“There’s this student… Nicholas. New scholarship kid.” She tried to sound casual, but her father knew her too well.
“What about him?”
“I want to know more. Where he’s from, what he did before Northbridge… anything you can find.”
He arched a brow. “And why is my daughter suddenly interested in a scholarship student?”
Ava smirked faintly. “Let’s just say he’s… interesting.”
Her father didn’t press further. “I’ll see what I can do.”
As she left the study, Ava’s lips curved in quiet satisfaction. By next week, she’d know exactly who Nicholas really was.