RUN WITH ME
CHAPTER 21: CHILDISH

News of the basketball game between Gavin and Archie spread so quickly across the school that almost all the seats on the indoor court were full. Fortunately Arunika, Hera, Maverick, and Floyd came faster and sat in the first row. They could see Gavin entering the room in his gym clothes and carrying a bag on his shoulder. The arrival of the man was able to make the students, especially the women, shout with excitement. A few seconds later, Archie entered the room while putting on a headband. The screams reverberated to welcome Archie's arrival.

Gavin placed his bag on the long chair beside the field, right in front of his four friends who were only separated by a small fence. Then he saw one by one the people who were looking at him.

"Destroy the jerk" Maverick said with fiery eyes as he clenched his hand. Gavin chuckled, then looked at Floyd.

"Excited, Vin," said Floyd with a big smile that was answered by a smile also by Gavin.

Then his gaze turned to Hera who asked him to come closer, Gavin stepped on his feet and stopped with a very thin distance between the small fence. Hera patted Gavin's left shoulder and whispered, "want you to lose or win, don't bow your head before him" he said with a serious face. Gavin smiled slightly and then nodded in understanding.

Finally he arrived in front of Arunika who was sitting with a flat face crossing both hands. Gavin rested his hands on the chest-high fence and landed his head on it in a slightly sobbing position. "You don't want to say anything to me?" ask her in a soft voice. Arunika grieved hearing that so that he released his cross arms, then advanced his body while crossing his right leg over his left leg. His chin is placed on the right hand resting on the right thigh.

Adam and Eve looked at each other for a few seconds, Arunika with slightly squinted eyes and Gavin who was still a gentle gaze from earlier. Many people around them glanced full of curiosity. I don't know why it feels like these two are getting closer and more intense.

Arunika had drowned in the turquoise sea so that when she realized, her eyes glanced in another direction, making Gavin smile meaningfully. "Don't get hurt, I don't want you to get my treatment for the third time" Arunika said in a small voice, but could still be heard by Gavin.

Gavin smiled ignorantly at the sentence in that flat but soft voice, "means my free subscription period is up, huh?" Arunika looked straight back into Gavin's eyes with a raised finger, ready to point at the man. Unfortunately the referee was already on the pitch and called both players to go into the field. Gavin also ran small towards the field, as well as Archie. Arunika could only stare at that increasingly distant back, while the three people next to her were already shouting cheers for Gavin.

"We will only use half the field and in each new round, we will move to use the other side of the field," said David—kak class as well as members of the school basketball team— while pointing to the center line of the field.

"We're only going to play three rounds with ten minutes in each half, okay?" Gavin and Archie nodded in understanding, "the rules of the game are the same as you play normally," continued David while raising the ball in his hand.

David inserted a whistle between his lips with eyes that looked at Gavin and Archie in turn. Before long the whistle he sounds and the ball is thrown upwards, signaling the game begins. Gavin and Archie quickly jump to get the ball. Archie managed to take it because his jump was a second faster than Gavin.

Gavin tries to grab the ball, but Archie can quickly move to avoid Gavin's obstruction and shoot the ball into the ring. The first two points belonged to Archie. Then David gave the ball to Gavin so that Gavin was in an attacking position and Archie in a defensive position. Since Archie was in a defensive position, he had to rest on very strong horses so Gavin needed to find a direction that made Archie have to change his pedestal. Fortunately Gavin managed to get through the gap. He slightly moved his body to the right, as if hinting at running to the right. Archie was consumed by the movement so Gavin quickly ran to Archie's left and inserted the ball with a lay out. Two points for Gavin.

The first round of play was quite fierce. Several times Gavin managed to snatch Archie's ball, making Archie a little surprised. Before he thought Gavin wasn't that good at exercising and it seemed like he had to change that perception. On the other hand, Gavin quite enjoyed the game and had suspected that Archie's basketball skills are very slick, can be seen from the man who has three times got the *three-point shoot*. And it did not feel ten minutes had passed and the victory was in the hands of Archie, with a very thin score, which is 18—16.

Gavin walked towards his chair with a breath of breath, his hand also lifting his shirt to wipe away the sweat on his face. Then he sat down and lowered his head for a moment. After that he opened the bag and took a small white towel, rubbed the towel on his face and both arms.

"Gavin's." Gavin looked back when the ears heard his name called. Of course he already knew who was calling, who else if not Arunika.

Arunika thrust a bottle of isotonic drink at Gavin, leaving the man silent for a while.

"You don't want to?" tanya Arunika resuscitated Gavin from his composure. He chuckled and accepted it.

"Of course I accept, where it is possible that the goods from Arunika are not accepted." Arunika shuddered amusedly hearing that answer, whereas Gavin had drunk it a little, not wanting her stomach to be bloated.

"Vin, can't you win?" maverick asked as he crouched behind the fence and the hand that held it.

Gavin was silent for a while then shook his head, leaving the four people there a little surprised. "Actually I'm sure I can't win because of the huge difference in ability, so I've not been too concerned about the results since," he explained with both shoulders raised indifferently.

"Then why did you take the challenge from him?" ask Arunika.

"Have you forgotten what I said yesterday?" ask Gavin back which makes Arunika speechless.

"Don't you feel weird about Gavin since yesterday?" asked Arunika with a fixed view on Gavin who was in the middle of the field. Hera who heard that smiled slightly.

"Why would he accept this challenge if he knew he was going to lose? What is the reason for accepting this challenge? And all kinds of questions are spinning in your brain, right?" timpal Hera with which answered a nod by Arunika.

"If I were in Gavin's position, my pride would be quite hurt. But I am not Gavin who has lost many times in the competition, so I don't know how he feels" Arunika exclaimed with a heavy sigh.

"You worried about his feelings?" Arunika nodded slowly, "then do something for her." The sentence caused confusion in Arunika. When he wanted to ask his point, suddenly the audience shouted loudly. It turned out that Gavin had just scored his first three-point in that match. Maverick and Floyd shouted loudly calling Gavin's name.

Arunika smiled looking at that while looking at Gavin. A second later, Gavin turned his head towards the audience to his right, or rather at Arunika who was sitting not far from him. Just contact the two pairs of netra meet and Gavin immediately gave a wide smile, making Arunika give two thumbs to the man.

Then the game went back, somehow until finally the second half ended with Gavin leading with the score 29—32. In the second half, Gavin was seen often pressing Archie so that he managed to snatch the ball from him, while Archie was determined not to lose in the last round because his good name as a school basketball player was at stake. There is no way he lost to people who make basketball as entertainment only.

After resting for two minutes, the third round began and it was seen that Archie was eager to dominate the game so that he unconsciously made several fouls. Thanks to that, Gavin has four times got the opportunity to make a free throw that is worth one point. In the remaining three minutes, the points of each individual were still chasing, leaving the entire audience not knowing who would win.

Archie took the lead at 40—39, as he again managed to fire three points in the eighth minute. Because it only differs one point, when Gavin managed to enter the ball, then he holds the leadership now, 40—41 in the ninth minute. Now it's less than a minute and Gavin is in a defensive position. He tried to push the ball so that Archie could not shoot it into the ring. Unfortunately Archie catches the intent of Gavin's actions so he quickly dodges and runs close to the ring, then enters it in layout style.

The long whistle of the round sign ended. The basketball game between Gavin and Archie was declared finished with a score of 42—41, a victory at the hands of Archie. Archie was happy half to die because he managed to beat the person who lately disturbed his heart due to his closeness with the woman he liked. Archie's friends immediately greeted him and gave him congratulations.

On the other hand, Gavin was still standing in the middle of the field with both hands on his waist, his breathing completely unsettled. Then his gaze turned to Archie who was busy chatting with his gangmate. He walked over, attracting the attention of the people there. Gavin's steps came to a halt and extended his hand, "good game" he said with a friendly smile.

Archie was silent at the sight of the hand, then crossed his hands and turned his head, "you should have known the real reason I'm asking you to fight." Gavin lowered his hand and nodded.

"Because you like women who are close to me, right? You want to show me that you are better than me and yes, congratulations, now that you are" Gavin casually replied.

"True, be sensitive to yourself as well" Archie said with a proud smile.

"But do you know why I accepted your challenge?" Archie's smile faded upon hearing the question, while Gavin still maintained his smile.

"Initially I wanted to reject your challenge because I didn't like to do trifles like this, showing myself better in areas that clearly benefit one side." Archie's forehead frowned hearing that. He knew what Gavin meant, which was unfair.

"But I also feel unacceptable to simply succumb to someone who challenges others simply because the woman he likes is closer to another man. Did you do that to any man close to Arunika?" Everyone there was silent. The sharp question really pierced Archie's heart, as if questioning his maturity as a man who was already sixteen years old.

"If so, how many men have you challenged secretly just for being close friends with Arunika?" The question again glided with a spicy from Gavin's lips, making Archie not warty.

"Gavin's." Gavin turned his back and found that all four of his friends had been standing about five steps away from him. He could see Arunika's flat face, which he thought had heard a bit of her conversation with Archie.

On the other hand Arunika, Hera, Maverick, and Floyd finally find out why Gavin accepted Archie's challenge. The man wanted to reprimand Archie's childish attitude. Arunika actually already suspected Archie had feelings for her, but she did not care much. He also did not expect Archie could do such a childish thing.

Arunika exhaled softly while closing her eyes. "Come, go. Let him," he asked as he gave a small smile to Gavin. Gavin obeyed Arunika's words without refuting in the slightest so that the Arunika gang stepped away from Archie's gang.

Archie stared at those backs with all ten fingers tightly clenched.

...⁕⁕⁕...