The fourth quarter started, and the energy was crazy.
The Riverside players were getting desperate, throwing wild passes and playing sloppy.
Meanwhile, Brandston kept his cool, steady like a storm just waiting to explode.
Joel, still full of himself from that one lucky layup earlier, kept running around yelling,
"Give it to me! I'm hot, I'm hot!"
Dude hadn't scored again since, but hey — the confidence was admirable.
Brandston waved him off gently, setting up a clean play instead.
Pass. Move. Screen. Pass again.
Then — snap — Brandston darted through an opening like a shadow, caught the ball, and rose for a perfect jump shot.
SWISH.
Lincoln High's crowd went nuts.
The cheerleaders were shaking pom-poms like their lives depended on it. Even Coach Davidson looked like he was trying not to dance on the sidelines.
Meanwhile, Allan?
Still sitting on the bench, clenching his fists so tight his knuckles turned white.
Good. Let him stew.
With just 30 seconds left on the clock, Lincoln was up by 12 points.
The game was basically sealed, but Riverside wasn't giving up.
Their best player tried one last attack — charging hard toward the basket.
Brandston read it like a book.
He timed his steps perfectly, leapt into the air — BLOCKED!
The ball smacked off the backboard, and Joel grabbed the rebound, shouting,
"DEFENSE, BABY!" while accidentally tripping over his own feet.
The ref called it:
GAME OVER.
Final score: Lincoln High 67 – Riverside 55.
Brandston stood in the middle of the court, letting it sink in.
His first game as captain...
And they crushed it.
The crowd poured out onto the court, swarming the players.
Everyone was shouting his name, giving him fist bumps, patting him on the back.
Joel basically bear-hugged him while jumping up and down like a maniac.
"CAPTAIN BRANDSTON! CAPTAIN BRANDSTON! WOO!"
Brandston laughed, pushing him off.
But then—
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw her.
Audrey Lawson.
She wasn't screaming or running around like the others.
She just stood there on the side, a soft smile tugging at her lips.
Brandston felt his heart stumble a little.
Should he go talk to her?
Would that be weird? Too eager?
He hesitated — and of course, that's when Joel decided to push him forward.
Literally.
Brandston stumbled forward, catching his balance just a few feet away from her.
Audrey looked up at him, her water bottle tucked under one arm.
"Good game," she said simply, her voice calm and low.
Brandston scratched the back of his neck, feeling like a little kid.
"Thanks. Uh...you were cheering, right?" he said, trying to play it cool.
Audrey chuckled lightly.
"Maybe. A little."
Then she glanced sideways and added, half-teasing:
"Don't let it go to your head, captain."
Dang.
That smile.
That voice.
Brandston felt like he just got dunked on emotionally.
Before he could even think of something clever to say back, Coach Davidson called out from across the gym,
"Team meeting! Let's go, let's go!"
Brandston pointed awkwardly toward the group.
"I should, uh...yeah."
Audrey nodded, stepping back.
"Go on, captain. Congrats."
And just like that, she turned and walked off, blending into the crowd.
Brandston watched her go for a second longer than he probably should have...
then jogged off toward the team, his heart pounding faster than it had during the entire game.
As he reached Joel, his best friend grinned at him knowingly.
"Oooohhh," Joel whispered, wiggling his eyebrows.
"Somebody's in LOVE."
Brandston shoved him lightly.
"Shut up," he muttered — but he was smiling.
Because tonight, everything felt just a little different.
And he had a feeling it was only just the beginning.