Playing for Keeps: Finding Love Beyond the Lies - Chapter 113: Chapter 113

It had been nearly two weeks since I transferred The Harvey School.
I rented a small apartment near campus. My parents terrified that Lucas Brooks might see me again and blow up, so they told me not to come home at all.
Same city, sure. But if no one tried, we wouldn't cross paths.
"Yo, Sophie Turner. Come watch me play today."
The guy speaking wore a black and white jersey, his fox-like eyes tilting upward with amusement.
When I first arrived, one of the girls in class had warned me. "That's Caleb Morgan. He's famous for being gorgeous but totally toxic."
Everyone around us pretended to be minding their own business, but I could feel them stealing glances at us.
I'd lost count of how many times Caleb had approached me since I transferred here.
Word was, this was the first time he'd ever chased after a girl, and he'd been at it for quite a while.
When you're a teenager, there's always part of you hoping those storybook high school romances will happen to you or someone close to you.
They said Caleb was a reformed player.
But reformed or not, a player is still damaged goods.
I shook my head gently. "I can't. I've got homework."
He glanced at the workbook on my desk and raised an eyebrow. "Sophie, you know I've been chasing you for two weeks now, right?"
"And?"
He chuckled softly. "So why do you keep rejecting me?"
By now, most of our classmates had left. Outside, the sunset was beginning, painting half the sky in shades of amber and gold.
I suddenly remembered something I'd read once: The beauty of the world is free to all, but your soul is one of a kind.
"Sophie, do you know there's something contradictory about you?"
A whistle from the basketball court cut through the fading light. I looked at him as he quirked his lips into a slight smile. "A kind of deadness mixed with this inexplicable toughness."
"That makes me even more interested in you."
I gave him a cold look, helpfully reminding him. "Your game's starting."
"Today's game is against New York High," he said in a husky voice, making his point and nothing more.
I looked down at my textbook. Finding me boring, he clicked his tongue and walked away.
Once he was gone, I looked up at the silent classroom clock. The post on the school's anonymous board... I had a pretty good idea who'd written it.
But what did he gain from doing that?
At 6:30, the power in the classroom shut off, leaving only the glow of twilight from outside.
I packed up my books and headed downstairs with my backpack.
The gentle evening breeze shook loose cherry blossoms from the trees. They fell to the ground, petals scattering before being carried away by the wind.
I stood there, blinking softly as I watched them go.
Looking back at my brief seventeen years, my life felt like those cherry blossoms—fragile and at the mercy of forces beyond my control.
"Hey... is that Sophie Turner?"
The voice snapped me back to reality. I turned, about to walk away—But two familiar faces stepped in front of me, shocked to see me here.
They were Lucas's friends. Back when I was still part of his world, we'd always gotten along fine.
Both were holding water bottles, probably just came from the vending machines.
"Sophie, did you really transfer here?"
I glanced at them, not understanding the emphasis on "really," and just nodded.
The guy with the spiked hair elbowed his friend. "Sophie, you and Lucas grew up together. He's actually here today too. Maybe now's a good chance to clear the air... talk things out."
Everyone thought I would never do something like that, but Lucas, who'd known me since childhood, was convinced I had.
"I didn't—"
Before I could finish, Lucas's cold voice cut in from a distance. "Does it take that long to buy water, or are you just standing there chatting with irrelevant people?"
He stood not far away, his eyes dark and hostile as he gave me a look that made me feel like a complete stranger.
Hearing this, they looked at me awkwardly. I forced a smile and said, "I should go. See you."
"Yeah, see you."