[victory is ours]
lessons were cancelled, as everyone followed back to the room i was sat in not twenty minutes ago. the sofas had been cleared out and had been replaced with a ping pong table.
"what going on?" i ask,
joy beside me answered, "the ping pong tournament, our school's crazy."
chairs were being set out for the opposing teams audience while i took a seat in between eddie and fabian.
"hello." i smiled at fabian, "sorry about waking you this morning."
"this morning? what happened this morning?"
"i barged into your room and started screaming at my brother." i explained, surely he hadn't forgotten.
"um no i don't remember." he shrugged turning back to the ping pong table.
jerome entered with amber, both in a uniform. the school clapped as the approached the end of the table.
"if i win, let me take you on a movie date love?" jerome asked me with a grin.
"in your dreams." i chuckled, the boy then turned back to the table.
my brother then nudged me lightly as the opposing teams audience entered, "patricia didn't draw on you."
"who else would of, she's a bitch eddie." i growled, "she's out to get me."
"you know what y/n, why can't you be a little nicer." my brother wished, the sharp pain returned in my side where the mark was.
"ow." i yelped, gripping my hip,
"you know i heard that?" patricia snapped, "and i'm pretty sure you're the bitch, i apologised."
"patricia if you don't have anything nice to say don't say anything at all." my brother turned to her,
"i accept your apology, sorry about this morning." i said to her before leaning back in my seat. the two looked at me oddly but their gaze was torn away as the other team entered the room.
alfie stayed close and kept recording the entire thing. the shield that jerome was playing for was brought into the room and he couldn't tear his eyes away.
my father whispered something to jerome before a younger girl approached him. "i think it's amazing what you're doing for dad with the jewel and everything." he had a sister?
"who told you?" jerome questioned and mara giving him an apologetic look.
and the three continued to speak as i sat back and watched over the room. eddie and patricia were pep talking amber, he told her to grow up when she had said she quit ping pong because of boys and they made her lose focus.
jerome turned back to the audience for moment and approached me, "good luck." i smiled, "i believe in you."
eric then called the teams to the table and the game began. and after one serve we were already losing.
it didn't take long before they were winning by a mile with us twenty seven point down. amber served, the others quickly hitting it back and jerome hitting it off the table.
jerome turned to the shield for a second before the other team served. them losing the last point. "no, no, no." jerome cried.
the other audience clapped for their schools victory while i approached jerome and rubbed my hand up and down his back. "hey, we'll figure it out okay." i smiled sympathetically at him as he then stopped crouching and stood up, now towering over me.
"there is no other way we can get that shield y/n."
"ugh." alfie groaned loudly, as if he were a child. "boring!"
alfie then was running round the room as if he were a plane while i ran my hand up and down jerome's back. "if it makes you feel any better, i'll-"
my eyes watched as alfie threw the ping pong ball onto the table, it barely bouncing after it hit the table.
i caught it, removing my hands from jerome, "that's weighted." i yelled, dropping it on the table and it doing the exact same thing again.
"am i in denial or did that look like a total fix?" jerome asked aloud, grabbing the ball.
alfie stole the boys hat as many other wighted balls fell to the floor. alfie slid the cap on his head and ran round the room.
"you little-" jerome began, approaching the boy on the other team.
"calm down jerome." eric announced. i grabbed his shoulder lightly. "we have agreed both teams will play one final game."
everyone cheered as i returned to my seat. amber lifted her arm to serve and a loud snap filled the room. "ow." she groaned, trying to move her arm. "i feel really stiff and achey. i'm sorry jerome i don't think i can do this anymore."
"oh well i guess we win." the boy on the other team grinned.
"no!" mara yelled, "y/n can play."
"can i?" i question the girl behind me, "mara you're joking?"
"come on y/n, please, you need to help jerome."
i look at the boy and he is staring at me sadly, if i didn't step in he would never get the shield. i stood up slowly and approached the table, pulling off my blazer and gripping a hold of the ping pong bat.
i served first, the other girl hitting it back and jerome waking it and the other boy missing, winning us the point. everyone behind us cheered, jerome now served, the boy hitting it back, then jerome hitting it over once more, and the girl waking it back over to me. i hit it with the edge of the bat but won the point as everyone cheered.
jerome grabbed me and held me in a hug tightly, "we did it." he smiled.
"you're welcome." i grinned into his shoulder before we pulled away. eddie, fabian and ever patricia were clapping.
