Basketball System: Rebound of the Underdog

It was already the next day, but Kai still couldn't shake his mind away from Potato Boy.

There was no doubt that he was the one Kai played with during his first day of school—the one Jinping chose to be his teammate.

He was pretty useless during the game, just standing there while eating his potato chips.

However, now that he thought about it, Potato Boy actually shot a three-pointer at that time.

"Hey, Jinping," Kai said, causing Jinping to stop drinking water.

"What?" he deadpanned.

They had just finished their training and were now resting before getting ready to leave.

"Do you remember that guy who I played with when I destroyed you on the court?"

Jinping turned to him with narrowed eyes.

"I don't recall you destroying me in the court, but yes," he said. "That was Bao, right? He was awful."

"No, not Bao," Kai said. "The other guy."

Jinping clicked his tongue and thought hard about it.

"Hmm, I don't remember. I think that guy didn't even move an inch. So, I forgot about him," he said.

"Right," Kai said.

There was no way, right?

However, even then, Kai still couldn't stop thinking about it.

With that, he clicked his tongue and faced Jinping once more.

"Hey, do you want to join me later?" he asked.

Jinping's eyebrows raised in surprise. Then, his face twisted into a frown.

"Why?" he asked. "Are we friends or something?"

Kai shrugged. "Right—we're not. I'll just go on my own."

Jinping pursed his lips as he suddenly felt disappointed.

"You can go with us," he muttered.

"What?" Kai asked.

Jinping cleared his throat and straightened his posture.

"I said—you can come with us," Jinping said. "My friends and I are going to the convenience store later for some snacks before hitting the arcade."

A small smirk appeared on Kai's lips.

"The convenience store, huh?"

"Perfect."

***

"Here," Jinping said, placing down everything they've picked on the counter.

The same guy who was manning the counter yesterday looked up at the four big boys before quickly looking away.

Even from far away, he could already tell that they were trouble.

"What an unlucky day," the worker muttered. He was already dealing with the potato chips-obsessed boy who always messed with the garbage, and now, he had gangsters in the store.

"Here," Kai said, giving Jinping some money.

Jinping clicked his tongue and paid for all of the snacks.

"It's quite cheap," he said. "So, let me pay for all of it."

Kai raised his eyebrows in surprise, and then he shrugged, not wanting to pass up on the chance for free food.

"Are you sure that's the only thing you want?" Jinping asked as Kai picked up a samoyed-shaped mochi ice cream.

"Yes," Kai said.

Yuan shook his head. "He surprisingly likes cute things despite his tall figure."

"Are you sure we can hang out with him when we nearly killed him back then?" Hui asked, causing Jinping to slap the back of his head.

The worker's eyes widened after Hui said those words.

This bunch was even more dangerous than he thought!

With that, he quickened his pace to get them to leave faster.

"Thank you," Jinping said, gathering all of the snacks before proceeding outside.

The worker shook his head.

"Please just leave," he whispered.

Meanwhile, the group of boys started eating the snacks scrumptiously.

"Hey," Yuan said, capturing Kai's attention. "Why are you hanging out with us? Don't you have friends?"

Kai shook his head. "You could leave if you want to."

Yuan's eyes narrowed. Somehow, that made him want to stay even more, feeling challenged.

Meanwhile, Hui observed Kai.

"Do you know that you look older than us?" he asked.

"When we were younger, I've mistaken you as a professor," he confessed.

Kai chuckled, surprised the two of them. They had always known Kai to be a serious guy who rarely laughed, so seeing him laughing gleefully brought pride to Hui's heart.

"I get that a lot," Kai said. "I do look older. It might be because of my height and build."

Jinping scoffed.

"It's definitely because of your ugly facial hair and long-ass bangs."

Kai scratched the back of his head, and at that moment, the tattoo on his ribcage peeked through his jersey.

"Wait," Hui said, suddenly looking inside Kai's jersey.

Their eyes widened in surprise, and Kai quickly pushed Hui away.

"What are you doing?" Kai asked.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

"Is that what I think it is?" Hui asked, ignoring his friend's weird stares.

"What?" Kai frowned.

"You have a tattoo?" he exclaimed.

Kai pursed his lips. He couldn't believe he just revealed it.

It was a tattoo that was covered under his left arm, so he had hidden it pretty well until now.

"I don't," Kai said, trying to deny the accusation.

Hui narrowed his eyes at Kai.

"You definitely have a tattoo. Unless you have a very big mole in the shape of Doraemon," he remarked.

Kai froze.

He even got to see the shape of it?

That was why he was so embarrassed to show it in the first place!

When Kai first saw the tattoo, he couldn't quite believe it.

However, it was real...and it was none other than Doraemon. He didn't even know how a 16-year-old managed to get a tattoo!

The three of them stayed silent, so Kai dreaded their reactions.

But with Yuan's reaction, Kai's eyebrows instantly relaxed.

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"That's so cool," Yuan said with bright eyes. "We love Doraemon! We've been trying to get this Doraemon plushie from the arcade for a while now!"

"Really?" Kai asked.

Jinping scratched the back of his head. "Yeah, Doraemon is pretty cool."

Kai meekly nodded. "Yeah, he's a cool dude."

With that, the four big students started talking about the cute cartoon, which strengthened their bond.

They talked about their favorite episodes and the Doraemon merch that Jinping had.

"Hey, you're pretty cool," Yuan said. "I thought you were just a troublemaker."

Kai shook his head in amusement. "You guys, too."

They were about to continue their conversation when the man on the counter started screaming once more.

"You're here again?" he exclaimed.

Kai quickly snapped his gaze inside the store, a smirk arising from his lips.

"He's here," he muttered.