This Saturday, a lot is at stake. The baseball team gets ready for their eastern conference championship game. The tennis team heads to their conference championship tournament. In just a days time, a few unexpected events throw Damon and Simone off their game. As their freshman collegiate seasons come to a close, they are both left feeling an array of emotions. Week 5 of pledging.
——
Amara, Gabby, Nate, and Keisha see Simone and Thea off as the men and women's tennis teams load their buses to head to the tournament. Their wins are just 2 hours away in Augusta. "I'm so proud of you baby girl! You've really pushed through this season. I just know you're going to kill it out there!"
"Yeah she's gonna kick everybody's asses.... I'm sure you will too, Thea," Keisha says.
"Thanks," Thea says in response. Nate gives Thea a hug, then she heads over to talk to Rome. This is his last collegiate tournament before he goes pro after he graduates. Rome and Thea have gotten pretty close over the past month. At first he was just giving her the cortisone shots, but the more they talked, the more they realized how much they had in common. Even after Thea stopped buying the cortisone shots from Rome, they constantly gravitated toward each other and found themselves having more and more conversations, especially after Damon and Thea's relationship ended.
She never had to explain herself to Rome in the ways she did with Damon. Rome just got her. He understood her mindset as an athlete and he was the same way. A bit ruthless. He didn't care much about who he had to get through to be at the top of his game. They challenged each other to be better athletes and, in some ways romantic partners. It was easy, and Thea liked that. They weren't going to see much of each other for the rest of the day, so they went ahead and gave their well wishes and goodbyes. They would be spending the remainder of their trip to Augusta getting their heads in the game and they would be hitting the courts not too long after their arrival.
Thea gets on the women's bus. Simone continues to chat with Amara, Gabby, Nate, and Keisha as the men's bus pulls off. Simone's phone buzzes. It's a text from Lando wishing her luck. She's honestly surprised that he had time to think about her since the baseball team is getting ready for their championship game later. She reads the text from her notification screen, and her face sours a bit. Gabby notices. "You good girl?"
"I'm fine, just Lando texting me, 'Good luck.'"
Keisha: "What, you wishing it was Damon?"
In all honesty, Simone appreciated the text. It was nice that Lando thought of her. His text just reminded her that she had two guys waiting on her to tell them how she felt about them. That's not at all what she needed to think about. "What I wish for... is to kick ass at this tournament. I'm not trying to think about boys right now."
"Boyzzz, plural," Amara questions.
Keisha: "Apparently Damon loves her and Lando likes?? her."
Amara: "Oh I see. Well, I don't know Lando like that, but he seemed nice. And Damon... Let's just say no one should be surprised by that."
Amara's words stun Simone. It seemed like everyone knew Damon loved Simone, but her. That somehow made her feel worse. She had been taking her time with everything. Reasonably so... But, she never quite knew the magnitude of emotions that she would have to consider.
Gabby: "Okay, I can see you getting overwhelmed with your thoughts. Don't worry. The boys will still be in the same place when you get back. Your championship title awaits!"
Simone takes a deep breath. "Thanks Gab. I love you. I love all of y'all too." Simone picks up her bag and heads to the bus as her aunt and friends say their goodbyes. As she walks off she overhears Amara saying, "Two boys? I see what I miss out on when we don't have family dinners." That makes Simone chuckle slightly. Now she's wondering what would have happened had Amara not stopped family dinners in the first place. The girls finish loading up and the bus finally pulls off. Amara and friends wave goodbye as the bus rolls past them.
Meanwhile, Damon has been in back to back interviews all morning. He's mentally exhausted, but he's finally finishing up his last pre-game interview of the day, then he will have a little but of time to himself before the team has to head to Truist Park (Atlanta Braves) baseball stadium for their game. Marcus, JR, Santiago and Lando had some interviews as well, but none of them received the same intense line of questioning that Damon did. As a former MLB prospect many eyes are on him to bring Bringston a championship win, especially since he put his MLB dreams on pause to attend Bringston and help save the baseball program.
Damon still doesn't have one regret. Giving up the MLB has forced him to learn so many things about himself. He found a family that he never thought he would have, blood and non-blood. He found love twice, and he never thought something like that would happen. The only thing that he wish was different right now is for Xavier to be able to see him play in this championship game. Damon wouldn't be where he is or who he is without Xavier. Damon is feeling so much gratitude right now, but he still feels that extreme loss. It hasn't been that long since Xavier's passing anyway. It weighs on him every day. It's a pain that he knows will never truly go away.
Damon finally gets back to the dorms and lays down to rest. Xavier is on his mind heavy so he unlocks his phone and scrolls through some old pictures of Xavier, some family pictures with as well. Cam gets back to the room shortly after. He sees Damon and says, "Perfect timing," to himself. "Get up!"
Damon rolls over. "What? Why?"
"I can't believe I'm actually saying this but, it's a surprise."
Damon hops off the bed. "Well this surprise better include some food."
"Yeah whatever."
The boys head out of their room and toward the the common area. As they get closer, Cam says that he forgot something in the room. "Go ahead, I'll be right back." Damon continues heading toward the common area. As he walks around the corner, he sees Keena leaning against the foosball table. She was scrolling on her phone, handling some business when Damon walks around the corner. "Mom?" Keena looks up and smiles. She stands straight up as Damon walks over to her. She opens her arms and Damon embraces her. Damon's eyes fill with tears. "I can't believe you're here," he says.
"I would never miss your big game."
Damon squeezes Keena tightly. "I missed you. I miss dad. I wish he was here too."
"Me too," she says. "Me too." In an effort to stop her own tears, she breaks their hug. "Okay, let's go get something to eat. We can't have you playing unenergized."
Damon and Keena head off campus. They were going to go to Local Green Atlanta for lunch but Damon got a last minute text from Gabby. KEK is hosting a celebration for JR in preparation for the championship game. Most of the frat and the pledges were working hard to pull it together and prepare food. They were going to keep it lowkey but ended up having so much food that they decided to invite the rest of the baseball team and a few extras. They brought out the grill. They've got ribs, chicken kabobs, bbq chicken, hot dogs, hamburgers, mac n' cheese, baked beans, potato salad, salad, chips, cupcakes, cookies, soda, sweet tea, and lemonade. JR has been having a really good season and since the team is top 25, his brothers got a little carried away in all the excitement over at the KEK house.
In order to keep their spirits up, Damon and Keena decide to go join in on the fun. A little free food never hurt anybody. Keena also feels like it's important for Damon to be surrounded by good energy and she thinks that taking a little bit of time to bond with his team before the game might help him really get his head in the game. They circle back around to campus and head to the KEK house. When they pull up, they can see that it's turned into a very lit situation. They notice a lot of familiar faces.
*Told ya, bitch, I'm a soldier
I thought I told ya, bitch, I'm a soldier
I thought I told ya, bitch, I'm a soldier
I thought I told ya, bitch, I'm a soldier (new Chlöe)
I thought I told you that I'm the shit
You must not know who you fuckin' with
I thought I told you that I'm the one (uh)
All of you hoes, get up off my D (whoa)*
"Can't believe I haven't listened to her album yet," Tootie says. "It's fire." About an hour later, the tennis team is making their way down the highway. Simone asked Coach Loni if she could play some music during the ride the help keep the girls hype before the match. Her plan is working. Chloe's album is doing it's job. Simone doesn't know it yet, but she's in for a real treat when she gets to their destination. Nate and Keisha are on their way to the tournament to support her, and Tina will be meeting them there as well. They are hoping that having their support will help Simone push through and take home the win. Gabby wanted to go, but her first priority is her man, and Simone will have more than enough of a support system with her. Amara would have gone too, but she was asked to make a special statement along with AD Taylor at the baseball championship.
*And I shine so bright in, in all these VVs (woo)
I-N-D-E-P-E-N-D-E-N-T (yes)
Don't need no nigga, I don't need a ring*
Everyone but Thea seems to be enjoying the moment. Simone switches seats to check on her. This is the last tournament of the season and Thea's first tournament since her injury. She's back playing at her fullest potential, but she's still having some trouble mentally. For the first time in a very, very long time, she doesn't know if she's going to dominate this tournament like she normally does. Simone reminds Thea of how far she has come and lets her know that she always has a confidant in her as a teammate if she needs another pep talk. At the end of their conversation, Simone heads back to her seat and the bus comes to a screeching halt.
*You know I thank God sun rises and shines on yooouuuuu
You know there's nothin', nothin', nothin' I would not doooooooooo
Whoooaaaaa, noooo
Before I let you gooooooooooooooooooo
Ooohhhhhh ooohhhhh
I would never, never, never, never, never, never, never
Never let you go before I know*
Everybody is out on the KEK house lawn doing the electric slide. Damon, Keena, Gabby, and JR are in the same area as one another. As the instrumental break in the song happens, Keena pauses to catch her breath. She steps away from the dancing group and goes to grab a bottle of cold water out of the cooler. As she takes a sip of her water, someone behind her says, "It seems like y'all are having a good ole time out here." When Keena turns around, she finds out that it's Celine. She almost didn't recognize her. Celine surely didn't know that it was Keena that she was talking to until she turned around to face her. Damon notices them from a distance. He taps JR to show him what's going on and they rush over to them. Celine, Keena, and Jesse never got the opportunity to meet and none of them thought that they would be meeting unexpectedly. JR didn't even know that Celine was showing up to the gathering. He soon realizes that Gabby is the one who invited her. (Jesse will be showing up for the game later)
"Celine, right," Keena inquires.
"Yes, nice to meet you Keena," Celine says as she reaches her hand out to shake Keena's. Keena does not extend her hand to shake back. JR and Damon finally make their way over to their mothers.
"Hey ma," JR says as he goes to hug Celine. "Surprised to see you here."
"Well you know I was coming for the big game and Gabby texted me letting know about your last minute gathering, so I decided to come through for a few. Wasn't expecting all of this."
"Me either," Keena says in a sly tone.
Damon looks from Keena, to Celine, then back to Keena. "Uhhhh ma, can I talk to you for a second?" He pulls her away. "You good? I know this was unexpected."
"Actually, I'm okay right now. Just..."
"Yeah, I know. It's a lot to unpack there. I'm still unpacking it myself."
"And I'm so proud of you for how you've been handling all this. I just don't think I should be handling all this before the biggest game of your collegiate career thus far."
"I get it. I need to be heading out soon anyway for warmups. We can go ahead and get out of here if you want." They leave. Damon has to get back to the dorms to gather his things and Keena has to check into her hotel and freshen up before the game anyway. Damon waves his goodbyes to JR, Gabby, and Celine.
"I just wanted to come and wish you luck before the game," Celine says to JR. "I know you and Damon are gonna kill it."
"I appreciate it! I know that was weird, but hopefully y'all can work through it soon. You wanna get some food?" JR points over to the tables lined with food.
"If there is any left, I'll definitely help myself to a little something," Celine says.
*Look I woke up in beast mooooode
With my girl, that's beauty and the beast thooouuuugh
Been top 5, these niggas sleep thooouuuugh
Only thing that sold out is the seats thooouuuugh*
As Nate and Keisha head down the highway, they are listening to Keisha's Talk Yo Shit playlist to keep them up beat during their ride. They've been on the road a little more than an hour, so they are halfway to their destination when they notice the traffic slowing. They come to a complete stop and hope that it's something that will last for just a few minutes. After about 20 minutes, they still haven't moved much. There is a sea of vehicles ahead of them too. Keisha texts Simone so see if there is traffic where they are. The bus was about 20 minutes ahead of them when they left campus. Simone doesn't respond, but Keisha chalks it up to service not being the best. Keisha sighs deeply as she sits her phone down in the cupholder. "Well this sucks."
"I'm sure it will be over soon," Nate says in response.
"I hope so. I knew I should've peed before we left."
"Yeah, you definitely should've... Can you see anything ahead? All I can see is this truck and the slight curve of the highway on my side."
Keisha sticks her head out of the window. "Yeah, what I'm seeing does not look good. There are a lot of cars ahead and not a lot of movement going on." Her phone starts ringing.
Cam and his line brothers are cleaning up the KEK yard and house. Most of the guests are gone. The baseball game is in a little less than 2 hours, so JR, Damon, Coach, and the rest of the team are at the stadium. The big brothers are actually going to let the pledges go to the game, so they are in for the most fun they've had in the last 5 weeks, other than the masquerade ball. Cam sees and opportunity to take a break, so he calls Keisha to see how everything is going her way. Her and Nate should be close to arriving at their destination by now.
"Nah babe. Traffic is damn near at a stand still. We've been in the same general area for a while now. When we get the chance, we're probably going to turn around. We probably won't even make it in time."
"That sucks. I know y'all really wanted to be there for Simone. Have you heard from her? Did they make it."
"I texted her, but no response. I'm sure it's because of the cell service or something. And they're supposed to be jumping right to it when they arrive."
After warming up on the field for a bit, Damon goes into the locker room to pee, get some water, and check his phone. He's thinking about both of his moms and how he knows conversations are about to be had very soon. He sits down on the bench as he sips his water and scrolls on his phone. He checks in with Keena. She's getting ready for the game. Then, he ends up on Instagram. He's going through some people's stories and Simone pops up in the background of one of the tennis girls stories. At that moment, he realizes that he hasn't texted her to wish her luck. He's had a pretty busy day, so him forgetting comes as no surprise. Simone not texting him to wish him luck by now is a bit odd to him though, but he's not upset about it. She's busy too. He wishes her luck and tells her that he knows that she's going to kill it at the tournament. What he doesn't know is that she's not going to be able to text him back any time soon. He puts his phone down, then heads back to the field for a stretch session with the team.
On the bus, it's been quite a few minutes since the bus came to a halt. Jade woke up on the floor. She can hear muffled voices as she comes back to consciousness. One of the bags hit her on the head when it was jolted out of the storage area above and across from her upon impact, causing her to lose consciousness and fall out of her seat. Tootie is standing over her. She's rubbing Jade's back softly to wake her. "Jade. Wake up. Can you hear me?" Jade eventually starts to groan as she wakes. Coach Loni is at the front of the bus checking on the bus driver. Something at the front of the bus is smoking. They hit a car, that hit another car, that hit another car, that hit another car that hit another car. Someone lost control causing a ripple effect that's blocking majority of the highway. Fortunately, everyone on the bus is mostly in tact.
"Ah," Thea says as she holds her wrist. She tweaked it trying to catch herself upon impact.
Somehow Simone made it safely to her seat just in time to avoid anything but whiplash. "Let me see it," Simone says as she grabs Thea's arm. "It's probably just a sprain."
"Just my luck," Thea says. "Is Jade okay?"
"I think so. They're getting her up now."
"Okay everybody, remain calm. Emergency services are approaching. The had a few other vehicles to get through," Coach Loni says. "We'll probably have to get off the bus soon, so gather your things and be ready." She walks over to Jade and Tootie. "You might have a concussion, so just try to stay alert and awake until we can get someone to check you out. Tootie, make sure she stays awake."
"Yes, coach!"
Coach Loni walks over to Simone. "I'm gonna get off the bus in a second to talk to the police. Can you make sure everyone stays calm?" Everyone knows that Simone has the ability to keep people together in times of need.
"Yeah, I can do that." Simone reaches in her pocket for her phone, but she realizes that it's not there. She starts to look around for it. She checks in the gaps between the seats, and finds it toward the front of the bus. She picks it up and the screen is cracked but it's still working. Music is still playing, but the touch screen isn't working properly. "Fuck!" She takes a deep breath. It's okay. Everything is fine. We'll get out of here. We're fine. "Anyone wanna hook their phone up to the aux? I feel like we need a change of pace right now?" The girls give Simone an odd look. "...Or we can just continue listening to mine until Coach Loni gets back. Just make sure y'all gather your stuff and rest in the meantime."
By now, the stands at the baseball stadium are opening up to the fans and people are starting to trinkle in. Damon and JR are standing on the mound talking about what they're going to do with their whole mom situation, when a familiar face approaches. JR taps Damon, "There he is." Damon looks over and notices Trevor, one of the players on the other team who had been talking junk on socials about Damon and the BU team on socials. "Well if it ain't the MLB-wanna-be Damon Sims," he says. "You ready to carry your team to victory?"
"You still on that? I know you've been watching my interviews cause every time I say something, you get to running your mouth on socials, but let me reiterate. WE work as a team over here. No one man did any of this alone. But you'll come to realize that real soon."
"Don't matter what the media says. We got a better record than y'all. Y'all definitely ain't the team to beat or whatever they said."
Lando walks over. "Don't you got something better to do? Maybe go focus on your team. Save all that energy for the game. You'll need it."
"Hmph. You talking loud number 2," Trevor says in reference to Lando being the 2nd best pitcher on the team. "I heard that you're starting today. I hope you can live up to the hype." The hype being Damon.
Damon is a little shocked at how Lando came to his side. He could've left him and JR to deal with it alone, but it seems like the team dynamic is really having an impact on him. "It's cool, Lando. Like I was just telling Trevor. We a team. You're included in that. No one person got us here."
"Aight y'all, let's go," JR says.
In preparation for her speech, Amara shows up with the earlier crowd. She walks down the stairs to the area closest to the Lions pit where she can see Marcus standing. He's facing the field and taking in its essence. He's actually very zen. He doesn't have a worry about the game. He knows how for the team has come and he feels like they're ready for take the win home. "Marcus," Amara calls out. He turns around and walks over to the fence smiling. "Shouldn't you be gearing up for your big game day speech?"
"I've have that locked and loaded for weeks now"
"You don't seem nervous..."
"I woke up this morning thinking about how far we've come... how far I've come. And, just like that the nerves were gone. I'm surprised you're here this early though."
"I have a little speech coming soon myself, and I wanted to bring you something before the game." She pulls Marcus' old championship ring out of her purse, then reaches around the gate and hands it to him.
"Oh wow! My championship ring?"
"I guess I always knew we'd find our way back to each other."
"So does that mean... I almost thought that this was you closing the door to that chapter of our lives."
"In a sense, I am, but only because I want to move forward with you in a new way."
Marcus let's put a deep sigh or relief and smiles simultaneously. Just as he's about to respond, Amara's phone starts ringing. She looks down at her phone. "Hold on. I gotta take this." It's Tina calling.
"Hey! Wish Simone good luck for me. I know she's gona do great...... Wait what? What do you mean they haven't gotten there yet?" She checks her watch. They should've been there by now. "Have you heard from Simone? ...... Okay, let me try Coach Loni and I'll get back to you."
"Everything good," Marcus questions.
"Probably, but I need to make a few phone calls. Good luck with your game day speech." She heads up the stairs. She calls Coach Loni a few times but she doesn't get an answer on the first few tries. She tries Simone and doesn't get an answer from her either. Now she's getting worried. She reaches out to Keisha and Nate, who let her know about the traffic. None of them can get in contact with Simone. Coach Loni isn't answering her phone. They haven't made it to the tournament yet. They're starting to piece terrible thoughts together. "Wait, Dr. P... You don't think..."
"No Keish, hold on. Let's not go there. Actually, lemme see if I can reach Thea." Keisha remains on the phone with Amara, while Nate calls Thea. The phone rings for a while and no answer.
By now, the tennis girls are coming off of the bus. Everyone is getting checked out by emergency services. Thea indeed does just have a sprain. Her wrist is getting wrapped right now. Simone is doing her best to keep the girls calm. They're all concerned about where things goes from here being that this is their last day to play this season. Jade and Thea are the only girls with clear injuries, but the rest of the girls are still pretty shaken up. They probably wouldn't even be able to play through it if they made it on time. Simone walks by Thea as she's getting her wrist wrapped. "Simone, can you hand me my phone out of my bag. I think it was ringing."
"Yeah, I gotchu." She rustles through Thea's bag and grabs her phone. It's ringing again. "Oh, it's Nate." Thea pics up the phone. "I got her guys," Nate says to Keisha and Amara who is on speaker.
"Okay, ask her what the hell is going on," Keisha says.
Thea speaks to Nate for a moment. "There was an accident," Nate says. Keisha gasps. "Simone's phone was damaged. Thea has a sprained wrist and Jade might have a concussion. Everyone else seems to be okay though. The bus was damaged in the accident. It took a while for emergency services to get to them, so they probably won't be able to make it to the tournament."
"Okay, let me call Tina. I'll call y'all back."
Keisha talks to Cam again and gives him the run down on everything that happened. Nate and Keisha are going to try and get off the highway at the nearest exit until they can get an update. Cam is heading to the stadium with his line brothers by now. "Tell Simone and Thea, that I said I'm glad they're okay. Keep me updated." He gets off the phone with Keisha and tells his line brothers that he will meet them in their section. He goes to find the baseball team's locker room. He's debating about if he should tell JR and Damon what happened. They are Thea and Simone's friends too, and he knows how important Simone is to Damon. As Cam walks down the hall, he can hear music coming from the locker room.
*All I do is win, win, win, no matter what (what)
Got money on my mind, I can never get enough
And every time I step up in the building, everybody hands go up
And they stay there
And they say "yeah"
And they stay there (up, down, up, down, up, down)
'Cause all I do is win (win), win (win), win
And if you goin' in, put your hands in the air
Make 'em stay there*
Most of the guys are vibing out to the song while Damon is sitting silently sitting in his booth. Marcus takes a seat next to him. "Look, Damon. I know there's been a lot of talk about you carrying this win on your back, son."
"I ain't gon' lie, coach. The pressure has been getting to me. I know that it shouldn't, but like..."
"When a lot of people put the pressure on you, the only thing you can do to overcome it is remember who you are."
"That's it?"
"Yeah, for now. I don't have much else to say cause you're gonna bring us home. You're gonna get the team out to that field, so go ahead and hype up ya boys."
"You want me to give the speech?"
"You've seen me give enough of them. Just speak from your heart, Damon." This was Marcus' way of helping Damon get out of his head. When Damon is the most inspired, it's because he is some how inspiring others. Marcus pauses the music and Damon gathers the boys.
"Aight fellas. Let's bring it in." The boys gather around in a circle around Damon. "Look, we done came a long way since last year. We had a lot of people that counted us out... And what did we do every single time? We stepped up and delivered. Today ain't gon' be no exception. When I first came to BU, I thought that I had to put this team on my shoulders for us to win. That was cap. Real talk because I was standing on yours the whole time. We done came so far and we defied every odd because that is who we are. When we go out on that field, we can't forget that, aight?" He pauses looking for a slight response from the boys. "Aight?" "Aight," they all respond. "No matter what anyone says, we are part of a whole. No one here can do anything on their own, especially win. And that's exactly what we're gonna do here today. Y'all hear me?" This moment has Marcus smiling like a proud father.
"YEAH!"
"B WHAT?"
"B U!"
"B WHAT?"
"B U!"
"B WHAT?"
"B U!"
"Aight, let's get it!"
Cam overhears most of the speech and he decides not to say anything to JR or Damon. This win means a lot to them, and the girls are okay, so nothing should get in the way of this win. He heads to the stands where his line brothers are.
A little more than 2 and a half hours have gone by and the game is in it's final inning. Damon's pitching to close the game out. He walks out onto the field with confidence. Lando did a good job pitching, but the other team is doing just as well when it comes to pitching and hitting. Both teams have been neck and neck the entire game, so it's finally time to see if Damon has what it takes to bring it all home. He's throwing heat and all of the other teams hitters are striking out. The crowd is chanting his name. "DA-MON SIMS, DA-MON SIMS, DA-MON SIMS!" Trevor finally comes up to bat in the last round. The game is tied. If Trevor hits the ball, there is a possibility that his team will win.
Damon has done his research. He knows that Trevor is one of the best hitters in their conference. He can hit almost any ball thrown at him. Trevor steps up to bat and smirks at Damon as he prepares himself to hit. He just knows that he's the shit, and in many ways, he is. He just knows that he's going to quite literally knock this out of the park. He's never hit against Damon Sims though.
Damone takes a deep breath. He's thinking that fast balls or cutters (which break away from right handed hitters just before it reaches the plate) are his best options. Trevor is a right handed hitter and those are the fastest options to help the Lions pull through and win. Damon throws the fast ball first. Trevor misses. He nods his head as he realizes the type of ball he missed. He's ready to hit again. Damon throws a cutter. Trevor hits the ball, but it's a bad hit. The ball pings straight up and comes straight down. Damon is thinking another cutter might be the way to go. He debates for a moment, but he can't think about it for too long though.
Damon's almost certain that Trevor is expecting another cutter, so he goes for the fast ball. He throws his fastest pitch of the game, but Trevor still manages to hit it. Damon watches in disbelief as the ball flies out of the field. It's a home run. Trevor does his jog around each plate on the field. As he returns home, he locks eyes with Damon again and smugly takes a bow, then he runs off to celebrate with his team who is off to the side.
JR runs from the outfield over to Damon. The rest of the team draws in as well. JR can see Damon's face about to break. "It's okay bro. You did your best. We all did."
"My best just wasn't good enough."
"But it was though. We wouldn't have been here without you at all. Yeah, losing sucks.."
"But we did it as a team," Lando says as he approaches. He places a hand on Damon's shoulder. "Isn't that what you're always going on and on about anyway?"
"Yeah, man," Damon says. He brags. "Besides, I'm still the best pitcher in the conference anyway. This don't change that."
"There he is. Cocky Damon still manages to rear his head," Santiago says.
Marcus walks up. "No matter what, y'all are still a championship team... And, I am proud of each and every one of you for how you guys pulled through this season. Win or lose, I wouldn't have wanted my first season head coaching to go any other way." After 3 hours on the field, the team put in their best work. Marcus hopes that they're able to accept the loss without having regrets. Coach pulls JR and Damon in for hugs, then the rest of the team joins in for a group hug.
Cam heads to the field to finally deliver his message. Amara waits back for Cam. Keena, Jesse and Celine make their way down toward the field to meet their boys. As the team breaks their hug, Cam squeezes into the middle of the group. He finally sees, Marcus, Damon, and JR. "I hate to break up y'all's moment, but something happened and we all gotta go. Dr. P is waiting for us." Marcus, Damon, and JR all give Cam a confused look, but they follow. Marcus let's Coach Yee know that he's going to meet the team back at campus after he handles something. Celine, Jesse and Keena finally make their way to the field as the boys are walking off. They follow to figure out what's going on.
On their way out of the stadium, Cam explains everything that happened. From the accident, to Nate and Keisha being stuck in traffic, Tina being at the tournaments, the girls not being able to play (they wouldn't have made it in time to compete anyway), having to wait for a bus ride, and having to ride back with the boys who go to compete. So now, they're getting the family together to meet the bus as it returns to campus. They want to all be there for Simone when the bus arrives.
The men's tennis team did well at the tournaments, but despite that, the bus ride back to campus is very quiet. This time, the bus is packed. The girls are still pretty shaken up and exhausted. Whatever adrenaline that was rushing at the time, is long gone by now. Jade does appear to have a grade 3 concussion. Most of the girls do have some bruising and a few have whiplash. They're all in one piece though, and that's what matters. At least that's what every girl on the tennis team are trying to tell themselves on the ride back. Their season ended abruptly, but at least they're alive.
Tina, Keisha, and Nate have all made it back to campus. They're still waiting on the bus to get back though. While they wait, Keena sees it as the appropriate time to have some necessary conversations. She's had a lot of time to think about all the things that she would say to Celine if she ever saw her. She didn't know when she would ever be able to face her, or is she would ever have anything nice to say. Now, in this very moment, all she has is gratitude. She sees everyone standing around and waiting. They know that the girls are safe, but still having a small level of fear in them as they anticipate the buses arrival. Seeing is believing, and right now they can't see Simone for it to fully click that she's safe. Keena is just grateful to see Damon be happy, healthy, and out of harms way.
Keena wouldn't have Damon if it weren't for Celine, Jesse, or Xavier. No matter how messed up their choices were, Keena still ended up with the greatest gift of all, Damon. Even though Damon and his team lost their game, and he's worried about Simone, she knows that he's safe. She wants to make sure that he doesn't have to live with another burden, especially at her hands, so she puts her feelings aside. She allows herself to make a connection with Celine and Jesse for Damon's sake. No matter his mistakes, Keena doesn't want to keep remembering Xavier that way either. It's time for her to truly move forward. They all sit at a nearby table and talk for a while.
As the bus approaches campus, a wave of emotions wash over Simone. At the start of the day, she knew that she would be returning to campus with a title, or at least a good amount of wins. She never thought that she wouldn't even get the chance to touch the courts. She's grateful to be alive and well, but in many ways, she's mourning a loss. She's feeling like all the work she has put in to make it to the top 6 was for nothing. Her upper left arm and neck are sore, she has a headache, and she hasn't eaten in hours. That's probably why her head hurts. She honestly wasn't that hungry until now.
Simone is sitting at the back of the bus. She looks around the bus. Thea is clinging to Rome. Jade and Tootie are sitting next to each other. Everyone else appears to be asleep, but Coach Loni. Her mind is going a mile a minute, just like Simone's. There's a lot to figure out, but it will all have to be figured out another day. The bus finally pulls into the lot outside of the athletic building. As the bus rounds into a parked position, Simone notices many familiar faces outside. Her family is there. This is the first time she has felt a smile curve her face in hours. She sees Tina and Amara standing beside each other. She didn't even know her mom was in Georgia. Marcus is standing on the other side of Amara. Nate, Keisha, Gabby and Cam are just behind them and are now walking up to their side. JR and Damon stand up to walk away from the table that they were sitting at with their parents to join the rest of the group.
The bus sounds off a hiss as the driver puts it into park. Everyone stands to grab their things in response, then they all start to file out of the bus. Since Simone is in the back, she's one of the last people to get off. Thea gets off before Simone. Nate goes to hug her. Simone finally takes her final step off of the bus. Tina and Amara immediately rush to hug Simone. Nate, Keisha, and Gabby join in shortly after. Simone lets out a soft sob. Happy tears begin to fall from her face as her loved ones embrace her. "I can't believe all of y'all are here." The guys hang back for a moment. Damon's hands cling to his sides. He is resisting the strongest urge to run over to Simone and hug her. At the very least, he feels like her family should have this moment with her first.
Cam and Marcus finally get their hugs in. By the time JR walks over to the rest of the group, Damon remains stuck in place. Since he was trying to stop himself from running over to Simone, all his thoughts about that are playing on a loop in his mind. As he stands there, Keena walks up to him to make sure he's okay. "You wanna tell me why you're standing over here and not over there with everyone else."
"She has enough people around her. She doesn't need to be smothered by another person right now." He might literally smother her if he does hug her.
"I'm sure she'll want you there either way."
"And how do you know that?"
"Simone is the same girl who flew with you to Chicago for one day last semester just because she thought you needed support. The same girl who checked in on the both of us after your father died. When you wouldn't return her calls or texts, she was always there in one way or another. She never said it, but I could tell that she missed you. No one... Not even JR reached out to me that much, and he's your brother. So, something tells me that she'll always feel your absence no matter how small." As Damon listens, he's trying to figure out what the hell any of that means. Keena reads his face and chuckles as she comes further into her realization. "I can see how much you love her. It's written all over your face. I just can't quite figure out why that's holding you back in this moment though."
Damon relaxes his arms. He takes a deep breath as he turns to look at Keena. "I just don't know if she loves me that much too."
Keena is pretty sure she already knows. It's her mother's intuition, but she knows it's not for her to say. Either way it's Simone's business to tell when she's ready. "Only one way to find out," she says as she nudges Damon forward.
Damon finally walks over as everyone is calming down. He taps Thea's shoulder as he walks by her and acknowledges that he's glad that she's okay. Simone suddenly remembers that the baseball team had a game too. "Wait, did you guys win the game," she questions as wipes the tears away from her face.
"Nah, we lost... but it's cool," Damon says as he goes to hug Simone.
For some reason, those words make Simone tear up again. This time it's due to sadness. In the midst of her gratitude, she is reminded of her significant loss. It hurts. "I guess we lost too," she says as she wraps her arms around Damon's waist. Another tear rolls down her cheek.
Damon rubs Simone's back to soothe her. He's finding it hard to say the right thing to her right now. He doesn't want to do too much. For now, him being there is just enough.
Songs in the order they appear
Told Ya - Chloe Bailey ft. Missy Elliot
Before I Let Go - Frankie Beverly & Maze
Bounce Back - Big Sean
All I Do Is Win - DJ Khaled ft T-Pain, Rick Ross, Ludacris & Snoop Dog
Don't forget to vote ⭐️
Check out Keep the Family Close by Drake