Chapter 434: The Danger in My Words
On Mirage’s side, nobody had said a single word since the match ended.
Kaito was gripping the railing with both hands, his eyes wide and darting around like he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Usually, this guy reads everyone like a book, he was the one who cuts off passes before they even happen, but right now? He couldn’t even process the scoreboard.
"Seth lost," Kaito finally muttered. "Seth actually lost."
"Twenty-four points," Mirage added, not even bothering to look back at him. "I don’t think I’ve ever seen Seth taking a beating like that."
"But the guy never loses! It’s not possible, it’s just..." Kaito rubbed his ear ring. "And did you see him? He didn’t even look pissed at the end. He just... stood there."
Mirage let out a little laugh, but not in his usual playful way. It was more of a "well, shit" kind of laugh.
"Here we go," he whispered. "Now, nobody can say it was just luck. He beat the best of us."
Maya popped a bubble with her chewing gum, scrolling on her phone. She stretched her ridiculously long legs, then slid the device into the pocket of her jacket.
"Well, it was worth the trip," she said. "And honestly, the guy is pretty hot."
Kaito turned his head toward her.
"Excuse me? You think Seth is hot?!"
"No, you idiot, I’m talking about Nash," Maya shrugged, a smirk on her lips. "He’s got that... I don’t know. That wild, sexy vibe. It really does it for me."
"You’ve never told me I was hot," Kaito grumbled, sounding like a kicked puppy.
"You never asked," she shot back.
Kaito pointed to himself and tried to give her these big, puppy-dog eyes. "
Am I cute, ma’am?"
"Ew..."
Mirage burst out laughing, for real this time. Kaito just mumbled something incoherent and sat back down, looking totally offended.
"Seriously though, did you see what they did?" Mirage asked. "The Colossus were the gold standard. And Nash and his girls just tore them down piece by piece, right on their own turf. Starting tonight, every single team is going to be studying Blacklist. And Nash? He’s officially everyone’s target."
He stood up and straightened his jacket, switching back into his "public image" mode, the smiling star you see in all the commercials.
"This is going to be very interesting."
In another section of the stands, Chloé was bouncing on her seat, unable to stay still.
"OH MY GOD, DID YOU SEE THAT?!" she screamed, clutching her notebook tightly against her chest. Her cheeks were bright red, not like Aiko red, but something closer and she looked completely worked up. "Did you see how he finished the match?! Like, he was dead, totally freaking exhausted, and he still had the nerve to give that smirk at the end! I can’t even deal with him! Aaah these girls are soooo luckyyyy...."
Snow groaned, arms crossed. He looked like a zombie who hadn’t slept in three days. For him, who had yet to defeat Seth, this match was the biggest red flag possible... If only the pink energy ball next to him wouldn’t take his mind out of the thought.
"Get down from there," he muttered.
"But this is HISTORY!" she yelled back, "The first team to go a whole regular season without a single loss! I have to put this in my notebook with a heart, okay? It needs to be recorded! It never happened before, even in the Upper... Huh, oh, wait, there’s still that guy’s team... But he’s not as dazzling as Nash. Yeah, definitely not, gotta put a whole lot of heart in it.."
"You don’t put hearts in a stats notebook, Chloé."
"I put whatever I want in it!"
She started hopping up and down, scribbling furiously. Her eyes were sparkling like she was obsessed. The notes she was writing looked like something out of a middle school girl’s diary, lots of arrows, little stars, and the word "magnificent" circled in red three different times.
Where could be written any shit about strategy? That only pissed off Snow.
"I’m going to the fan zone!" she announced suddenly.
Snow opened one eye.
"No."
"Yes! They do autographs after the games! I want Nash’s autograph! And a photo, maybe. Actually, no, not maybe. A photo for sure. I’ll use my influence to get a photo with him... And a few words!"
"Chloé."
"What?"
Snow slowly stood up, keeping his hands in his pockets.
"Rain is here," he said.
"Yeah, and?"
"Rain. My buddy. Your childhood friend. The guy who literally killed himself in training just so he could face us one day. And that day is coming," he looked her straight in the eye with a deadpan expression. "And here you are, jumping around like a thirsty groupie, drawing hearts in a notebook for some other guy. That’s a total betrayal, you know?"
Chloé froze for a second. Then, her face turned a real Aiko shade of red, the blush spreading all the way to her ears.
"It’s not betrayal! It’s objective admiration! I’m an analyst!"
"You wrote ’magnificent’ three times."
"Because it’s true!"
Snow let out a long, tired sigh.
"Poor Rain," he muttered.
"Don’t say it like that! Besides... what’s the point? Rain is Rain, and Nash is Nash. How is that betrayal?"
"I’m going home. I’m sick of listening to you. Figure it out yourself."
"Snow! You’re just leaving me?!"
"Yep."
He walked away without even looking back, disappearing into the crowd of people heading down the stairs. Chloé just stood there with her mouth open, looking stunned. After a moment, she shrugged and started gathering her things.
What was wrong with him? She couldn’t figure, or maybe, she didn’t want to. Her mind was elsewhere, as she left, she didn’t even notice that her bag was still sitting exactly under her seat.
A little further away, a young man with a calm face was carefully putting away a camera. He stood up, ignoring the screaming fans around him, and left the stands. He had seen everything he wanted to see, and honestly, he hated almost all of it.
Up at the very top, a giant of a man, who had spent half the match asleep, sprawled across three seats, opened one eye as the noise of the crowd spiked. He glanced at the scoreboard, and blinked for several seconds.
"... Heh?... Lucid dream?"
Meanwhile, over with the Falcons, the mood was way less happy. It was fucking tense.
"Twenty-four points," Griffin spat out. He looked like he was about to explode with his face almost as red as his hair. "They got hammered for twenty-four points. I’ve never seen them get fucked up like that."
"Nobody has ever seen them get fucked up," Shane corrected him, leaning back with a smug. "That was the whole point. Since they got Seth last season, they haven’t lost a single game."
Hunter didn’t say a word. He just stood there, glasses pushed up on his nose, staring at the field. His face was a total blank, and nobody could tell what the hell he was thinking. He had spent nights dreaming about avenging Travis against the Colossus, and tonight, someone else had done it for him, right in front of the whole Underground.
"It’s not our job to beat them now," Hunter finally said. "Our job is to beat the people who beat them. That’s how this shit works."
Griffin looked up, his eyes shining.
"Nash."
"Yeah."
Next to them, Rain hadn’t moved an inch. He was just watching Nash disappear into his swarm of girls.
"You saw that phenomenon, right?" Griffin asked, lowering his voice.
"I saw," Rain replied.
"Doesn’t it worry you?"
"No." Rain gave a tiny shrug. "It’s normal. He plays beautifully. I didn’t expect anything less from him. I was ready to see one of the two fall today; it’s just logic. But seeing Seth lose? That really does something."
Griffin grunted but didn’t say anything else. Ryan, the big silent wall of the team, just nodded. Sam was trying to do a blind pass in the air with no ball, while Scott looked at him with pure annoyance, busy packing up the water bottles like he always did, ignored by everyone. Erica was checking her notes and, oh, it was bad.
"His stats are..." she started.
"Absurd?" Shane suggested.
"I don’t even have a word for it." She blushed a little, looking at the screen. "Let’s go, or we’re going to miss the last bus."
Shane turned around to count heads.
"One, two, three, four... Ah, Alexia is missing."
Alexia hadn’t moved from her seat. She had her legs crossed, her coat draped over her shoulders, staring at the empty field as if the game were still happening right there.
"Alex!" Shane yelled. "You coming, or are you having sex with the ceiling?"
"... What a kid," she replied, not even glancing at him.
"I’m being serious here."
"And you’re being an idiot." She finally stood up, smoothed out her coat, and gave him a smile that arrived about a millisecond too late. "I’m coming."
Shane raised an eyebrow. Usually, she would have hit him back with a joke that would make everyone cringe. This time? Nothing. Just a polite, empty smile.
"You okay?"
"I’m thinking."
"About what?"
"About nothing."
It was a total lie, and everyone knew it, but nobody pushed. Alexia followed them down the stairs, her eyes glazed over and lost.
In her head, one sentence was playing on a loop since the last quarter. It was the poison that Victoria had injected into her blood:
I really want you to join Blacklist.
You’ve never been a second-rate player. You just never got the spotlight you deserved.
Victoria’s offer.
She had laughed the first time. She laughed the second time, too, saying she’d think about it, that she had teammates, a contract, a project with Griffin.
But then she watched the match. She saw what a great team that actually wins together looks like, and she realized she didn’t want to go home. She didn’t actually want to be the "big sister" anymore, watching over her little brothers just to see them succeed where she failed.
Failed? Had she actually failed? Why did playing in the Underground with her new team feel so much like... pre-retirement?
What if she... what if she just said... that one cursed word?
Yes.
Just one word, but so many consequences.
Would she have been on the court today? Would she have been among those girls with that amazing chemistry? Would she have been closer to Victoria?
But what would happen to the Falcons?
Fuck, she thought. I really don’t know anymore...
Meanwhile, the Blacklist locker room looked like a total war zone.
Jerseys were tossed all over the floor, towels were scattered everywhere, and water bottles were just rolling around on the wet tiles. Rumi had the speakers blasting, but the loud music could barely drown out the screaming, laughing, and random singing going on.
Some girls were hugging each other and crying, others were jumping around, and a few were teasing each other like a bunch of toddlers.
Nash sat right in the middle on the bench, shirtless with a towel draped over his shoulders. He felt a little better than a few minutes ago. His legs still felt like jelly though, but he couldn’t care less.
They had actually done it. The whole damn thing. And seeing all these girls in joy around him, he felt so much pride... And worry. The victory was good, but maybe he was too tired for the reward.
Although, it would actually heal him, but with Jaz among the girls... Maybe he could use some real rest first.
But of course, Hina didn’t share his opinion and made herself right at home on his lap.
She spread her thighs wide over his, planting her ass right on his cock through the towel and his shorts. She started rocking, slow and shameless, grinding her pussy against his hardness like she was trying to get off right there in the room.
Her big sweaty tits were smashed against his chest, her skin feeling so hot and sticky. Her nipples were rock hard, and he could feel them poking through her thin top.
She kept rolling her hips in little circles, then dragged herself forward so her clit rubbed right over the head of his cock. Every time she hit the spot, she let out a tiny moan right into his ear.
This sounded more like a call, a call for the remaining members of the pride, meaning: the buffet is open, and this tired buffet sure understood he was cooked.
"Hina," Nash breathed out. "I’m beat."
"I know," she whispered, her voice sounding like honey as she wrapped her arms around his neck. She ground down once, hard, and he felt the sweety heat of her pussy right through the fabric, so wet that it was starting to soak through to his skin. "That’s why I’m helping you relax."
"You aren’t helping me relax at all," Nash joked, though he was loving every single second of it. His hands had already found her ass, squeezing hard the soft, heavy flesh, feeling the meat of her cheeks give under his fingers.
Ok, he was tired, sure, but he definitely wasn’t dead.
"Yes I am. Look, you’re smiling." she grinned.
This little demon... yes, he was. He couldn’t stop if he tried. Having her grind into him after the chaos of the game made his chest feel warm. Hina leaned in and licked the sweat off the side of his neck slowly, flat tongue, then gave him a little bite.
Then she did it again, lower, right where his neck met his shoulder, rocking her hips at the same time so he felt her soaking pussy drag over his cock while her mouth was on his skin.
He took a glance around, and saw it was over.
Kai was leaning against a locker, her eyes glued to them. She had one hand shoved under her own shirt, her thumb circling a nipple, pinching it and rolling it between her fingers like it was a habit. Her other hand had slipped deep into her shorts.
Nash could see her wrist moving in a slowly, and he noticed the way her thighs kept tensing up.
Rumi was sitting cross-legged on the floor, watching them. Her shorts were already pushed to one side, and she had two fingers jammed between her lips, spreading her pussy open a little while she watched Hina grind.
Alicia "accidentally" rested her hand on his shoulder, then let it slide down his chest, her nails dragging through the sweat all the way to his abs. She didn’t stop there. Her fingers hooked under the towel and brushed the base of his cock, like she was just checking, then she did it again.
Mai was massaging his neck, her tits brushing his back every time she leaned in. Every so often, she’d lean closer and lick a drop of sweat off his shoulder, then go right back to rubbing. Even Yuna, who was usually a little brat, was leaning in close, her face bright red, one hand on his thigh with her fingers creeping higher.
She got brave enough to cup him through the towel for a second, feeling how rock hard he was, then yanked her hand back like she’d been burned, only to put it right back a moment later and squeeze.
The room was hot, and it wasn’t just because of the showers. Nash could feel it all on his skin. Hina’s ass in his hands. Alicia’s fingers. Mai’s tongue. Yuna’s shy little grabs. He was exhausted and hard at the same time, and he was sure the healing was coming.
A bit further away, Rei was leaning against a locker. Her legs were pressed tight together, and she was openly watching. One hand kept tugging at the hem of her shorts. She crossed her ankles, uncrossed them, then crossed them again.
Nash caught her shifting her weight, pressing her thighs together harder, and he was pretty sure she was trying not to touch herself in front of everyone, but strangely, every time their gazes met, she didn’t looked away as usual.
It was like this time, she was fine holding it. Her hand dipped between her legs for half a second, then she snatched it away and stared harder as to tell him something in alien language.
Then Nia walked out of the bathroom.
She had a towel around her neck, hair dripping wet, and face was flushed. She walked through the locker room like a little boss, stopped right in front of Nash, and crossed her arms.
The towel didn’t hide much; her nipples were hard under the thin fabric, and the bottom of the towel barely covered her ass. She looked at the girls, and her mouth twitched.
"So."
"So what?" Nash asked, acting innocent. He drummed his fingers once on Hina’s ass, just to feel her twitch, and she answered by grinding down harder.
"You made me a promise."
The laughter in the room died down instantly. The girls turned their heads. Now was finally the time. Hina didn’t get off; she just rolled her hips again, slow, and Nash had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from groaning.
"Hehe... what promise?"
"DON’T.... hem... don’t play dumb," Nia avoided his gaze. She stepped closer, close enough that he could smell the soap on her skin and the sweat still under it. "On the field, earlier. What you planned to do to me. About... well, the P word... And the fact that it wasn’t just going to be for one night." She dropped one hand, grabbed the edge of his towel, and tugged it just enough to show the head of his cock, thick, already wet at the tip. Then she wrapped her fingers around him, right there, and gave him one slow stroke from base to tip. "You said you were gonna fuck me until I couldn’t walk. I haven’t forgotten."
The girls burst into laughter, and the lockers practically shook.
"Aw," Hina said, her eyes sparkling. She reached down between them, pushed Nia’s hand aside for a second, wrapped her own fingers around him, and gave him a slow stroke of her own, thumb rubbing over the head. "she’s shy about it."
"I’m not, you elephant tits," Nia shot back. She wasn’t even blushing anymore, she was beyond that. It was so surprising coming from her. She leaned in, licked the sweat off his collarbone, then bit the same spot, then straightened up.
Her hand went back to his cock. She stroked him again, slower this time, and used her other hand to tug Hina’s top down just enough that one of Hina’s tits spilled out. "But anyway, you promised, and I plan on starting right here. Right now. You owe me, so let’s get back to work."
"Damn..." Kai choked out. She had both hands under her shirt now, and one of them had moved lower, wrist working inside her shorts. "Damn, she’s on fire... Nash, you’re dead meat."
Nash chuckled. He was about to answer, one hand still full of Hina’s ass, the other sliding up to squeeze the tit Nia had just freed, thumb rubbing over the nipple, when the voice of endgame cut through the mood.
"Nope."
Victoria was standing in the doorway, arms crossed, with Dahlia right beside her. She looked at the room with that look that could turn a party into a funeral in seconds.
Her eyes went to Nia, to Hina, to Yuna to the way half the girls had their shorts shifted and their hands between their legs. She didn’t look surprised. She looked like she had expected exactly this but still waited until it happened, just for the sake of being right.
"There are two hundred journalists in the hallway," Victoria stated. "A stadium full of fans, cameras everywhere, and a locker room without a lock. We don’t have time for this."
"But..." Nia started, giving him one more stroke, then finally pulled her hand back.
"The manor is twenty minutes away," Victoria interrupted with her Ma’am tone. "You can do whatever you want there. Not here. To celebrate the record, we’re going to see the fans and sign autographs right now. This little gesture will only make the fans crave you more."
The whole room let out a collective groan. Hina sighed dramatically, gave his cock one last squeeze through what was left of the towel, licked her own fingers clean like a damn hungry animal, then collapsed against his shoulder. Kai pouted and pulled her hands out of her shirt and shorts, though she didn’t bother fixing anything. Rumi mumbled something under her breath, pulled her fingers out of herself, and fixed her shorts.
Nia turned away with the dignity of a pissed-off princess, though she still shot him a look that said she was collecting later, he’d pay for every single word he pronounced these few hours. Yuna yanked her hand off his thigh so fast she almost fell over. Alicia’s hand stayed on his chest a second longer than it needed to.
"That’s so unfair," Alicia whispered.
"That’s life," Victoria replied.
Nash raised a hand. He was still hard, he was still tired, he was also having a pretty good time, and he wasn’t about to let the mood die all the way.
"Girls."
They all turned their attention back to him.
"I’ll pay you back a hundred times over," Nash said, playing with fire again. He gave Hina’s ass one more squeeze, then patted it so she’d know he meant it. "Every single one of you. You’re all getting a tsunami of what you want at the house. That’s a promise."
There was a half-second of silence, and then the room exploded in screams. Hina planted a loud, wet kiss on his mouth, tongue and all, then bit his lip before she pulled back and wiped her spit off his chin with her thumb. Jaz punched the air, Miko clapped. Even Aiko, who was pretending to be mad, couldn’t hide the smirk on her face.
Nia walked past him on the way to her locker and dragged her nails across the front of his shorts, right over his cock, slow enough that he felt every finger, then she leaned in and whispered, "You better," before she kept walking.
Victoria sighed, but Nash saw the smile she was hiding on her lips. Or maybe she wasn’t hiding, maybe she met his gaze and it came naturally.
"Hurry up," she said. "The fans are waiting. Get ready, and Nash, put that away before it gathers more degenerates."
He laughed, adjusted the towel, and stood up. After conquering the league, it was time to conquer the fans.