Do you think we made a really big mistake?" Mia asked.
"Yeah… looks like it," Jasmine answered without taking her eyes off Niko.
The whistle blew again, signaling the start of the game.
The match had just kicked off. Team J had possession of the ball, which meant the game would start with them. The referee blew the whistle, and a player from Team J passed the ball straight to Jack.
As soon as Jack had the ball, he began heading toward the basket to score. Team N quickly moved into defensive formation. But there was something… different. The look in their eyes, the way they positioned themselves—it all felt unusual compared to before.
With the support of his teammates, Jack kept charging forward. Niko stood at the front, and his entire team was locked in full defensive focus. But it didn't do them any good. From a distance, Jack fired a shot. The ball sailed smoothly through the air and straight into the hoop—three points.
The scoreboard moved again. Team J's lead went from 40 to 43 points just like that.
Niko's face was tight with anger. He wanted to crush Team J—especially Jack—to prove a point, and more importantly, to teach a certain someone, Luxe, a lesson. But anyone watching knew one thing: Jack wasn't someone you could beat so easily.
Something in Team N had shifted, maybe because of Niko's words. But to Jack, this still looked like the same team he had easily dominated in the first half. And right now, they were 43 points behind because he had just drained another three.
What Jack didn't realize was that something was about to change—and he was going to find out soon enough.
Now it was Team N's turn to move forward with the ball. They passed it between each other, edging closer and closer to scoring. But Team J's defense was already set and determined to keep them from getting any points. Team N was struggling to break through—it seemed like nothing was working. Then suddenly, one of Team N's players lobbed a high, awkward-looking pass into the air.
"That sloppy pass? That's ours now," Jack murmured to himself under his breath.
But then, out of nowhere, Niko—who had been silently standing in the corner doing absolutely nothing—slipped into the center, leapt high into the air, snatched the ball mid-flight, and slammed it straight into the basket.
Every single player on Team J froze in shock.
"Where the hell did that come from? And how the hell did he score like that?" Jack thought to himself, stunned.
Jack couldn't figure out how Niko had done it, but Team N seemed unfazed, almost like this was part of their plan all along.
Team J didn't dwell on it. They quickly inbounded the ball and passed it straight to Jack. With all of Team N still clustered on Team J's side of the court, Jack had a clean path to their basket. He started dribbling at full speed—this was going to be easy points.
But just then, the very same Niko who had just made that incredible play stepped right into his path.
"That's enough," Niko said firmly, blocking him.
"How is he this fast? I literally just blew past him," Jack thought, irritation flashing through his mind.
Determined, Jack attacked, switching up his dribble to outmaneuver Niko—and he did.
"Hmm, that was easy," Jack smirked to himself.
"Not this time," came Niko's voice.
What Jack didn't know was that Niko had let him get past on purpose. He knew exactly what Jack would try, and while Jack thought he'd beaten him, Niko had already repositioned himself exactly where the ball would be on the next dribble.
By the time Jack realized what had happened, it was too late—Niko swiped the ball clean from his hands.
"What the—?!" Luxe shot up from her seat, eyes wide.
Mia, on the other hand, couldn't help but smirk.
"Look at Luxe," Mia whispered to Jasmine. "She's completely stunned."
"Hm." Jasmine's only response came with no visible change in her face.
"Mia… I think because of Luxe, Jack's taking unnecessary hits here," Jasmine said quietly.
"Jasmine, listen—no one's hurting Jack physically, okay? Niko's just playing his game, doing what it takes to win. It's not personal," Mia explained calmly.
"I guess you're right…," Jasmine replied softly.
"So stop overthinking it. Just watch the game. None of this is your fault," Mia reassured her.
"Okay," Jasmine agreed, turning her eyes back to the court.
Meanwhile, Luxe was still stunned by what she had just seen—but this, she didn't know, was only the beginning.
Niko now had the ball. He pushed into Team J's side of the court and dished it off to one of his teammates, who was already positioned close to the basket with a clear scoring opportunity. Everyone on the court knew nobody could block that shot from here. Team J instinctively rushed toward him to shut it down.
The player jumped to throw the ball toward the basket—but instead of aiming at the hoop, he launched it backward… to Niko.
Now every single Team J player was in tight near the rim, but Niko? He was wide open—way back behind the three-point line. The closest defender was miles away.
A two-point shot would be easy from where his teammate was, but from Niko's position, this could be three.
And Niko didn't hesitate.
He caught the ball, steadied himself, and with one fluid motion, shot from deep.
The ball soared high, the air in the arena tightening with anticipation. Everyone on the court and in the stands was watching. Half the crowd held their breath, praying it would go in. The other half silently begged for it to miss.
The ball reached the rim… collided against it and…