Nia clapped her hands together, her eyes practically glowing.

"Yay!" she squealed, bouncing on her toes. "So many orgies after matches! I’m calling dibs on the middle spot every single time, no take-backs!" She said it like she was claiming the last slice of pizza, all greedy and proud.

Jaz didn’t even wait a second before throwing her arms wide open, grinning like a maniac.

"Group hug! Get over here, new sister!" she yelled, like Aiko had any choice in the matter.

And well, she didn’t. Before Aiko could even think about dodging, not that she really tried, the three of them crashed into her like a pile of overexcited puppies. Soft bodies squished her between warm chests and loud laughter.

Aiko let out this tiny squeak, her arms flailing like she didn’t know what to do with them, but she didn’t actually push them away. Instead, she just buried her face deeper into Nash’s chest, muttering something that sounded a lot like "you’re all degenerates" again.

Nash chuckled, letting the hug drag on for a few more seconds before finally peeling them off like he was dealing with clingy octopuses.

"Alright, alright," he said, shaking his head. "Let her breathe before she literally explodes."

He glanced around the half-court then, the split was obvious. The girls had claimed their space, lounging around like it was a damn spa day, while the boys were all the way on the other side, looking like they wanted to murder the floor with their glares.

"So... stupid question, but," Nash said. "Why are you three over here chilling like you’re at a resort while the boys are over there acting like they’re about to commit war crimes?"

Nia shrugged, still half-hugging Aiko’s shoulders like she was a teddy bear.

"Predictable loser boy drama," she said, rolling her eyes. "They said we should just wait for you since you only ever play with the girls anyway. So they decided to train on their own. Real mature, right?"

Nash looked across the hangar at the boys. Jinzo had stopped slamming the ball and was now staring straight at them, his jaw so tight you could probably crack walnuts with it.

Nash just smiled, calm and easy, like none of it bothered him.

"Yeah... that’s fair," he said, shrugging. "I am the one responsible, after all."

Over on the boys’ side, the atmosphere was so icy you could practically see frost forming. Jinzo’s eyes were locked onto Aiko, still pressed against Nash, and he gritted his teeth.

"In the end... even she’s fallen," he muttered under his breath.

Drew, standing a step behind him, frowned and wiped sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand.

"Doesn’t look like it to me," he said, squinting. "She’s all shy and closed off. Doesn’t seem like she wants to be with them at all." 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

Mac let out a low whistle, crossing his arms like he was watching a soap opera.

"Damn, Blaze looks way too lively after everything," he said, shaking his head. "I was sure you’d try to kill him the second you saw him, Jinzo... especially after he took Jaz."

At the mention of her name, Jinzo’s face twisted with raw anger, like someone had just poured gasoline on a fire.

"Shut the fuck up about her," he snapped.

Mac raised his hands, smirking like the little shit he was.

"Sorry, sorry," he said, not sounding sorry at all. "Touchy subject."

Jinzo’s voice dropped lower, venomous.

"That bastard declared war on me the second he put his hands on what was mine," he hissed. "I’m not sneaking out the back door like some weak bitch. I’m gonna make him pay. Slowly. And that’s not something you do with your fist."

Drew added quietly, arms still crossed like he was trying to hold himself together. "Especially when your opponent is a six-foot-tall muscular beast who owns the whole team."

The three NPCs nodded like they had any opinion.

Nash watched everything from the other side of the basketball court. His face looked calm, like always, but inside his head, gears were turning.

He wasn’t the kind of guy to waste time feeling guilty or crying about emotions. Nah. He knew exactly what he’d done to get here, and yeah, his goal was selfish as hell.

But when you’ve already jumped into the deep end, there’s no point looking back, only forward. Right now, he just had to figure out his next move.

He’d been in situations like this before. Usually, something would click in his head, some little trigger, invisible to others, that gave him the perfect move, plus a little extra bonus at the end. This was his mess, his darkness, and he’d stared into it long enough to know how to twist things just right.

Turning to the girls first, he spoke in that smooth, warm voice that made people actually listen.

"Alright, listen," he said. "I get it. Everyone’s pissed. But we’re a team. If half of us are sulking in a corner and the other half is laughing, Blacklist will lose one day. I’m the captain, fixing this before it screws us in real games is my job. So I’m gonna go talk to them. Aiko, stay with the girls for a sec. Girls... just give her space if she needs it, yeah? We’ll figure this out."

The girls blinked, caught off guard. Jaz’s mouth actually hung open for a second. Alicia stopped picking at Aiko. Even Nia, who always had that smart-ass smirk, looked at him with something like confusion.

Nash just nodded and started walking toward the boys’ side. Aiko trailed behind him, for three steps, before stopping, biting her lip like she was nervous. The girls stayed put, watching with worried faces.

Wait... was this really Nash?

The tension got thicker with every step. The boys froze. Basketballs rolled away, forgotten. Mac straightened up, arms crossed. Drex spat on the floor, gross, but whatever. The three NPCs puffed up their chests, faces hard. Jinzo wiped sweat off his forehead but never looked away.

Nash stopped a few feet away, hands loose at his sides like he wasn’t about to throw a punch.

"Alright, listen up," he said. "I know this is late, and I know it’s messy, but we gotta figure out how we’re handling things here. Straight up, I’m not here to fight my own team. We’ve got a season to win. So I’m offering a truce. On the court, we leave the personal crap behind. After that... whatever needs settling, we settle it. One-on-one if we have to."

There was a bit of silence, then Drex laughed.

"Truce? You roll in here with your little rival bitch hanging off you like you own the place, and now you want peace? Nah, Blaze. You’re too good for us. Don’t need the team, right? You got your girls, your spotlight, your whole act. Go play hero somewhere else."

Mac nodded.

"Yeah. We’ve been watching you carry every game while we rot on the bench like extras. Why pretend we’re equal now?"

The NPCs muttered agreement, shoulders tense, like they were itching for a fight that wasn’t gonna happen.

Nash didn’t flinch. His face stayed calm, eyes locked on each of theirs like he wasn’t scared.

"I need this team," he said. "All of it. That’s why I’m here. We win together or we lose together. Truce on the court, that’s all I’m asking right now."

The boys didn’t answer right away. The hostility in the air was so thick you could choke on it. It was weird, seeing Nash offer peace. Or... maybe not weird. The guy starting the fight always offers peace first, right? So the other side doesn’t smash his face in immediately. Maybe that was it.

Nash didn’t push. His plan was already working, he just needed one last little nudge.

"Tell you what," he said, shrugging. "Let’s make it simple. Quick game, my team versus yours. Whoever plays better gets to decide who sits on the bench next game. No tricks. Sound fair?"

Drex snorted.

"Hell no. We’re not stepping on the court with you. You’ll just show off again and make us look like clowns."

Nash smirked, he’d expected that.

"Fine, fine. I’ll give you a handicap: I won’t shoot. No jumpers, no layups, no dunks. That evens things up, right?"

The boys glanced at each other. Mac looked tempted. The NPCs shifted, considering it.

Nash... not shooting? No insane throws that always landed, no ridiculous dunks? That actually sounded interesting.

But Jaz was still there, he could still pull off that crazy move they’d used against Baby-Boom.

They thought about it.

Jinzo, though, stayed quiet a second longer, eyes sharp like he was dissecting Nash’s words. This was his chance, his moment to embarrass Nash without looking like the bad guy.

He just needed... one more push.

"Still not enough," Jinzo said, voice flat. "If you’re so serious about this ’team first’ bullshit... add another rule: You can’t pass. No assists. You can only rebound and defend. Take it or leave it."

The other boys whipped their heads toward Jinzo. For a second, they looked stunned, then their faces split into huge, ugly grins.

"Shit, Jinzo," Mac laughed, slapping him on the back. "That’s brutal. Didn’t know you had it in you."

Drex smirked for the first time. "Damn, yeah! No passing? He’s basically a walking traffic cone out there. Let’s do it."

The NPCs nodded fast, suddenly pumped, muttering "Fuck yeah" and "He’s screwed now."

Nash’s eyes widened for a fraction of a second, just a quick flash of surprise. He hadn’t expected Jinzo to go this far.

Jinzo caught it and smirked.

"What? Too much for the captain? I thought you’d do anything for the team."

But Nash recovered fast. The surprise melted into a slow, easy smile, one that actually made Jinzo flinch.

What Jinzo didn’t know? He’d just handed Nash everything he needed.

Nash chuckled and looked Jinzo dead in the eyes.

"Damn... I’d really have to put everything on the line for this one," he said. "Alright. Deal. Girls versus boys. No shooting, no passing. Let’s see what we’re really made of."

The second the words left his mouth, a familiar light popped in front of him, just like he’d planned.

[Special Quest: Team Unity]

And boom. Mission accomplished.