Rules really were useless in that kind of basketball, especially to the older guys. They would hold on to the ball for too long without dribbling, or they would commit fouls such as travelling and the referee wouldn't even bat an eye. Although it goes for both teams. He Tian took several steps without dribbling on purpose and he wasn't called out, so he tried experimenting, taking note of the times when the referee actually calls for fouls. Usually, they only consider intentional fouls like bumping and pushing.
And their positions were all over the place, just as Nato said. Whoever gets the ball gets everyone's attention and that's when they lost most of their points. The kids were easily intimidated when boxed out by the big guys.
They were behind on points when they took a short break.
"Guys, you're smaller but it doesn't mean you're at a disadvantage," Rica said, shouting just to get her voice across the loud crowd. "Their footwork is sloppy, aside from that of Kyle and Jomar."
"They play for the school," Nato informed He Tian who was wiping his sweat with his shirt. He took it off, making the girls squeal even more, and drove the men even bitter than earlier. Mo Guan Shan could only shake his head in disbelief.
"Whoever gets the ball scores, right?" He Tian asked. "Little Mo, I'll wait under the basket, you bring me the ball!" he shouted loud enough for whoever's listening to hear.
"Sure," Mo Guan Shan answered. After working up a sweat, he seemed more giddy to move around and play. He used to play in public courts on weekends just to stay in shape and keep his stamina in check.
They're only playing in a small "court" with a cement floor and two baskets on each side, no roof. Not much different from the ones in his neighborhood, but smaller and rougher, no paint whatsoever.
It's getting darker but nobody seems to notice.
When they resumed, the other side had the ball but Nato quickly intersected, already expecting that they wouldn't pass and just go directly to the basket. Mo Guan Shan was in position, waiting for the ball. Kyle had the good instincts to guard him even if his teammates were all over Nato. The unguarded Bentong saw the opportunity and he approached from the side as Nato tried to feint a shot and passed him the ball. Their eyes all landed on Mo Guan Shan who raised two hands to receive the pass. They were expecting Bentong to bring him the ball but the kid already threw the ball as high as he could towards their basket. He Tian was all smiles when he jumped and caught the ball, running without any intervention, and tossed it for a simple lay-up.
Dunking made impossible by his flimsy flipflops, but the goal was to not stand out too much.
Throughout the game, they kept on doing overhead passes and letting He Tian get it mid-air, taking advantage of the fact that he's the tallest. It was going too well and the other team became restless and started isolating him from everyone. Mo Guan Shan had to think of a different strategy to hold up while the opposition grounded He Tian.
"I'm confident with my three point shots but just to be on the safe side, Bentong and Sydney should wait under the basket to follow-up. Once we score several three's, they'll surely scatter," he told Nato as he dribbled the ball and Nato quickly nodded. He's been around coordinating.
"If I can't make the shot, you get the ball and I'll stop Kyle under the basket," Mo Guan Shan told him earlier. They trust him and it's satisfying.
He heard that the townspeople were already convinced that they'll lose because He Tian can't even touch the ball and he can't have that. He won't let their team lose because he wanted to prove something to these motherfckers.
Sydney managed to ferret the ball from JR and he passed it to Nato who delivered the ball beneath the basket, luring in their enemies before passing it back to Mo Guan Shan.
Mo Guan Shan took a step back to avoid the Tank's arm as he tried to reach for the ball. He's on the right spot and it felt like the ball would go in so he flicked his wrist, letting the ball follow its course, just before he staggered back and fell on his butt. Clutching his right eye, he's still seeing lightning when he was hit by the base of Tank's hand.
There were shouts but he stood up and raised a hand, indicating that he's fine. He Tian cocked his eyebrows and he gave him two thumbs up. No big deal.
"Sorry," the Tank smiled, showing his yellow set of smoker's teeth.
"Sure. No problem," he answered, squinting his teary eye. He wiped it with his shirt and noticed that the creepy guy was still staring at him. Not at his face but on his body. That's when he remembered his hickeys and he immediately let go of his shirt.
"Ouchy? Go get your boyfriend," he said in decent English. Mo Guan Shan smiled, turning around to ignore him. "You know, it's obvious that you're the bottom."
"I'm not denying it," he said, spreading his arms wide so the other guy can't get a pass.
"Oh, that is good news. They say Chinese men have tiny dicks. How about I give you a taste of real good Pinoy cock, huh?"
Mo Guan Shan felt himself shiver. He remembered his video. He can't do it but he wanted to ask if this guy knew him from somewhere or if he already watched his video scandal. He glanced at He Tian and then to his other teammates. They weren't doing bad and right now, he's the one who's stuck on a deadlock.
He's done. He just wanted to get it over with and go home.
They managed to get ahead by doing their original plan, suppress the old guys and let the kids play the game. Mo Guan Shan was merely moving by pure adrenaline, his head buzzing as he tried to focus on the game and ignore the pervert looking at him like he's naked.
The moment He Tian got the ball, the tank left him and they ganged up to stop him from getting a point. Their kids tried again and threw him a high pass, but when He Tian was mid-jump, his stomach was bulldozed by a crouching Tank's head. He Tian grunted with the impact, as if he was hit by a speeding car. He toppled over and hit the cement ground with a dull thud, clutching his stomach.
"He Tian," he breathed, eyes full of dread as he stared at He Tian's still, crumpled figure on the ground.
The Tank looked back at him, grinning from ear to ear. The referee pulled him aside but he kept on grinning, waiting for a reaction.
"Motherfucker!" he shouted in his own language, running as fast as he could to give the gorilla a kick that he would never forget for the rest of his life.
The crowd shouted, "AAAAY!" just as the big guy fell on the ground like timber. Mo Guan Shan felt hands trying to pull him away and the referee was squatting down to defend the other while fending him off but he harshly shook them off, circling his prey like a hungry shark.
"Come on, motherfucker! Get up!" he shouted.
"Whoa! Shaolin soccer!"
"Kung Fu, uy, bogo!"
When the Tank indeed woke up, Mo Guan Shan wasted no time and stomped on his stomach several times. After making sure that he can't punch him back, Mo Guan Shan stood over him and punched his face as hard as he could before he was dragged away.
"How'd that feel, huh?"
He was burning with rage and he wanted to silence this man forever or he might tell everyone what he saw, if he saw his video, he's not sure about that but he's gonna shut him up forever. He needed to kill them one by one until nobody alive could recognize him. He'll take them to hell with their eyes plucked out from their sockets.
"Stop it!" Rica shouted in Mandarin and she was also shouting at the others.
Mo Guan Shan was pulled harshly and when he looked behind him, a fist was coming to meet his face but it stopped abruptly so he quickly slinked back to regain a better footing. He's on guard and he felt everything going on around that he decided he'd fight whoever tries to threaten him. It was the Battering Ram, but Nato had linked his arm on the man's arm, almost hugging it to his chest and pulling at it. He Tian inserted himself between them and placed a hand on the man, firmly pushing him away while talking softly in Visayan. Nato let go when the Battering Ram shoved him but he's still enduring a staredown, talking like they're spitting insults at each other.
"That's enough, Little Mo," He Tian said, also in Mandarin, walking towards him with a slight limp. "He's unconscious."
"Fuck, I'm gonna kill him," he replied. "Are you okay? Did you break anything?"
"No, I didn't," He Tian said. "Calm down, you're hyperventilating."
Mo Guan Shan can't stop himself. He's too wired to chill and He Tian's too close and he wanted to punch him for not getting angry when he's fucking seething. He needed to break something or he's going to explode!
"See?! I told you I wasn't in the mood! We shouldn't have come here!" he shouted at He Tian. People were gawking at them and he wanted to poke their eyes out so they wouldn't look.
"Okay, okay, let's just go," He Tian said, pulling him close and hugging him tight so he would calm down. He bit He Tian's inner arm and felt his arm muscles tense up but he didn't let go. "You did good."
Satisfied, Mo Guan Shan stopped and almost cried when he noticed that He Tian's skin was actually bleeding and his teeth were clearly etched red on his pale skin.
"Calmed down already?"
"You should've whacked me when I went too far," he said but He Tian just pulled him to his body again and leaned on him while they walked.
"What a feisty Little Bean you are."
Mo Guan Shan took one last look at the unconscious man on the floor and the angry looks that the other group was shooting at them. Their own group decided to leave the crowd and walked back together.
"Don't worry, it was intentional, and I got a video on Nato's phone," Rica assured them. The kid gave her the phone to hold on to so he wouldn't accidentally break it in the middle of the game.
"Huh, that serves them right. Calling us bayot and all," Sydney said, laughing. "We were ahead though, so technically we won that game."
"Now who's gay? I'd bet they can't kick like that," Bentong said, still pumped up.
"But I am gay!" Mo Guan Shan said, his forehead stuck on his usual frown. He's supporting He Tian who was leaning on him too much, his arms wrapped around his neck.
"Weeeh? You're joking! But you were like, so strong!" Bentong said, clearly frustrated.
"What, I can't be gay and strong?!"
"This guy was a gangster and a junior delinquent," He Tian said proudly. Mo Guan Shan snapped his head at him and gave him a dirty look but He Tian scrunched his face and rubbed his nose on his.
"I wasn't! Kids just pick on me because I'm poor so I learned to fight back!"
"In school, Nato gets bullied because he looks like a girl," Bentong whispered. Nato was walking behind them, fiddling on his new phone.
He Tian gave Mo Guan Shan a look that meant, "I told you so."
"But he's good at everything, so like, that's the only thing they could think of so they could pick on him," Bentong said. Clearly he's the follower type and he respects Nato's capabilities way beyond his own.
"Why not beat them up for once?" Mo Guan Shan whispered back.
"He'd kill them if he did that," Rica answered, smelling the brewing gossip. "Every time my brother comes home, they train together. And my brother's also a big idiot, he always tells him that whenever he's cornered and has no way to avoid a fight, he should always go for the kill. That way, he's guaranteed to win."
"Your brother's a badass."
"Saying things like that when he's a man of the law. He's just your average idiot."
"Thank goodness the kid's as calm as a Buddha," He Tian chuckled, wrapping his arms tight on Mo Guan Shan's neck. "Little Mo, my stomach hurts so bad. Carry me."
"Shut up!"
"I sprained my foot too, you know?"
"Ugh, you're a big baby," Mo Guan Shan said but he lowered his back and He Tian enthusiastically hugged him from behind. The boys looked at them like they're aliens not from China but from outer space.
"So like, you guys are boyfriend, girlfriend?" Bentong asked, pointing to He Tian and then to Mo Guan Shan.
"No. Boyfriend, " Mo Guan Shan answered, pointing a thumb to He Tian. "Boyfriend," he pointed to himself.
"Ehhh? But. . ."
"How do you make babies?!" Sydney joked, making his voice sound like an inquisitive little girl. That made them laugh so hard He Tian complained about his aching stomach.
"Stop asking nonsense, Bentong," Nato said, catching up to them.
"But, who's the girl?!" Bentong asked, obviously getting more confused the more they talked about it.
"We're both boys, actually," He Tian said. Of course they knew what the kid was talking about but they needed him to understand that it doesn't work that way.
"Research, boys! Research! I can let you borrow manga to read about gay relationships," Rica chimed in, trying to recruit new followers to her rotten religion.
"No thanks," Bentong said. "Ugh, the world really is filled with all sorts of people."
"Right. So you guys better get good grades so you can go explore the world and meet different kinds of people," Rica said.
The boys pouted, not ready to talk about school, so they chose to shut up.
"Sorry, I asked you guys to play with us," Nato said after a long moment of silence.
"That's just wrong. You say sorry if you don't invite us, not the other way around."
"But they might call the police," the kid said, not meeting their gaze. "It will ruin your good record."
"We're adults. We can handle it."
"That fucker had it coming," Mo Guan Shan said.
"Yeah, he's been miming to his teammates when you're not looking, groping your ass and humping you," Sydney said before Nato could stop him. "He's a known pervert but nobody stands up to him because he's big."
"That motherfucker," Mo Guan Shan said. "You saw that?!"
He Tian sighed.
"I didn't want you to worry. I figured I'd deal with it later when the game's over."
"Huh."
"You beat him up for me, that's really sweet," He Tian said in their own language but Mo Guan Shan stuck out his tongue.
"You wish. He was offering me his 'big cock' because he said that us Chinese men have small pee-pees," Mo Guan Shan said, waiting for He Tian's reaction.
"That asshole! Let's go back and check if he's telling the truth!" He Tian said, kicking on his thigh like he's a horse.
Mo Guan Shan laughed. He can't tell He Tian that he snapped partly because of his paranoia.
Later that night, after their trip to the barangay hall and facing the Tank's angry family members, Mo Guan Shan asked him as they sprawled on the sofa. The flatscreen TV was on and they randomly chose a movie from their hard drive, just to let it mumble in the background.
"If I go crazy. . .like, even crazier than how I am right now, would you still tell me that you won't leave me?"
That kind of talk has become their ritual and He Tian swore he would answer honestly, no matter how frequently Mo Guan Shan asks him. Mo Guan Shan admitted that he needed to know, because most of the time, when He Tian won't look at him or talk to him, he would assume that he's being hated. Sometimes when He Tian stares at him, he would feel like he's glaring, angry and secretly despising him. His mind contorts everything he perceives and he's counting on He Tian to set things straight.
"That's when you'll need me the most, Little Mo. I will never leave, even if you try to drive me away."
"I'd be useless, you know."
He Tian stared at him, his eyes serious.
"I don't want you to go crazy. When that happens, you'll be the one leaving me. You're with me physically but your mind will be somewhere else, and I can't have that."
"I was just asking though."
"Gods, please tell me about everything, okay?"
"Okay."
"You did great today."
"I did not."
"So stronk. Amgery widdle bean."
"That's disgusting!" Mo Guan Shan laughed. "But you looked cool too."
"Small thing. You were looking so I had to look extra cool."
They joked and they kissed, until they fell asleep.
* * *
Note:
At the back of my mind, I have the urge to turn this into a twisted, psychological story but I don't want people to hate it.
Just saying this out loud, letting it out, so I can get rid of it. Hehe.
*
. . . uy, bogo! - Uy is a common expression, so much like Oi in Japanese. Bogo means stupid.
Weeeh? - expression when you don't believe in something a person is saying.