The gym smelled different in the morning.
Less sweat, more polish. The faint hum of floor wax machines and echoing footsteps filled the air.
Teo stood near the baseline, clutching a ball like it was still a secret he hadn't learned to keep. Riki stretched lazily beside him, while Bong was squatting near the bench, inspecting a row of basketballs.
"These feel… heavier," Bong muttered.
Riki grinned. "That's 'cause they're real. Not bridge-grade."
Bong tossed one up, caught it, frowned. "Yeah, but where's the tape holding them together?"
Coach Alvarez blew his whistle. "Alright, comedians. On the line."
Thea stood off to the side, clipboard ready, ponytail high, looking more like a general than a student. Drei was already on the court, spinning the ball, calm but focused. Jax and Kio flanked him, both stretching in sync — varsity precision.
The coach's eyes tracked Riki, Teo, and Bong with a kind of cautious disbelief. "So these are the bridge kids, huh?"
Riki smirked. "Graduates of the Underpass Academy, sir."
Bong added, "Major in streetball, minor in survival."
The whistle blew again — sharp. "Good. Let's see if your diplomas mean anything."
Scene: Drills
They started with suicides.
It wasn't pretty.
Teo's strides were too long, Riki's too fast for his own footing, and Bong looked like he was running from debt collectors.
Thea scribbled notes. "They're uncoordinated, but… their spacing's reactive. Like they can read each other's panic."
Coach Alvarez raised an eyebrow. "That's not a compliment."
Next, passing drills.
Riki to Drei — crisp.
Jax to Kio — efficient.
Then Riki to Teo — too fast.
Ball hit Teo's chest like a cannonball.
Teo grunted, caught it last second, nearly stumbled, but managed a bounce pass back.
The ball thudded perfectly into Riki's hands.
Coach Alvarez tilted his head. "Not clean, but… natural."
Thea grinned. "Told you. They don't calculate — they sync."
Riki winked. "We call that improv."
"Call it lucky," the coach muttered.
Scene: Scrimmage
The whistle blew again.
"Varsity versus… whatever this experiment is," Alvarez said, arms crossed.
Drei stepped into position with Riki, Jax, Kio, Teo, and Bong forming the lineup.
"Five on five. Let's see if you can actually move like a team."
From the far end, varsity players lined up — familiar faces from training, all sizing up the newcomers.
The ball tipped up — Drei got it, passing to Riki instantly.
Riki dribbled through traffic, bounce-pass to Teo — fumbled, recovered, laid it in.
The crowd on the sidelines murmured.
Next possession, Jax cut inside, drew a double, kicked out to Bong.
Bong hesitated — looked at the rim, looked at the bench — and fired.
Swish.
Perfect.
The bench erupted. Riki clapped him on the back. "See? Told you chaos works."
Bong blinked like he couldn't believe it himself. "I aimed for the backboard."
Coach Alvarez rubbed his chin. "Maybe I've underestimated stupidity."
Thea grinned. "You mean instinct."
By the third possession, it wasn't luck anymore.
Riki's rhythm, Drei's calm reads, Teo's rebounds, Jax's drive, Kio's quiet setups, Bong's offbeat timing — they began to form something.
Not polish. Not structure.
Flow.
The coach's whistle cut through the sound. "Alright, enough. You're not perfect — but you're not random either."
He looked at them one by one. "You've got something. Just don't lose it chasing the system."
Scene: Outside the Gym — The Rival Glimpse
Practice wrapped.
Thea gathered her notes, already buzzing about what she'd seen. Riki was arguing with the vending machine again; Bong was trying to trade one Gatorade for another flavor.
Teo sat by the door, toweling off quietly, lost in thought.
That was when a shadow crossed the doorway.
Marco "Wave" Herrera — Iron Tide's captain — walked past, varsity jacket slung over his shoulder, earbuds in, expression cool and unreadable.
Behind him trailed two teammates: Ethan "Tank" Cruz and Ian "Flash" Mendoza.
They stopped just long enough to glance inside the gym.
Wave smirked. "So these are the bridge kids."
Tank chuckled. "Coach really scraping the floodway this time."
Flash spun a ball on his finger. "Hope they can swim."
Riki caught the comment mid-sip, lowering his drink. "You say something?"
Wave didn't stop walking. "Just wondering how long you'll last."
Thea stiffened. Drei's jaw tightened, silent but burning.
Bong looked between them. "Are we supposed to know those guys?"
Drei answered quietly. "You will."
Thea's eyes followed the Iron Tide trio down the hallway.
The tournament poster on the wall fluttered as they passed — Governor's Cup: ₱500,000 Grand Prize.
She smiled faintly. "Guess the season just started."
End of Chapter 8 — First Practice