Basketball System: Rebound of the Underdog

Kai frowned as Renren took the two unfinished bowls of soup and placed them in the counter's sink.

"I suggest you leave if you don't have any other important thing to say," Renren said, walking to the door.

Kai was about to speak more, but Renren slammed his fist on the metal door.

"Nothing that you say will make a difference to my decision," he continued, placing his hand on the knob.

Kai pursed his lips before letting out a deep sigh.

Renren twisted the knob before pushing the door open.

Meanwhile, Kai placed his bag over his shoulder and waited for Renren to open the door. He would just wait until Renren was in a good mood before speaking about the team.

Kai stood there impatiently as Renren pushed the door once more. However, it seemed like it wasn't budging at all! Kai's eyebrows furrowed as Renren kept trying to open the door.

"What's happening?" Kai asked.

Renren frowned before trying once more.

Kai clicked his tongue and went over to where he was.

"Let me try," Kai said, gently pushing Renren away.

However, his push was nowhere near gentle, and Renren stumbled back. His eyebrows raised in surprise as he looked at Kai.

He was really strong just now.

Kai then tried to open the door, and he found that it truly wouldn't budge. After a few more tries, Kai sighed.

"It's locked," he said, making Renren frown.

"It can't be," Renren said.

"It is," Kai confirmed. "I think the owner locked us in by mistake. But you have a back door, right?"

Renren pursed his lips before responding. "I've already locked the backdoor from the outside before closing time," he said.

"Can't you call the owner or the chef?" Kai asked.

Renren dug through his pocket for his phone and saw that it was out of battery.

Kai pursed his lips. "Have you memorized their number? My phone still has some battery."

Renren paused for a moment before shaking his head.

"Well, do you have a charger?" Kai asked. "I'm sure there are sockets in here somewhere."

Renren raked his fingers through his hair before shaking his head once more.

"Shit," Kai cursed under his breath. "What are we going to do now?" he asked in a distressed tone.

However, if you asked him, he was anything but distressed!

In fact, he had a wide smile on his face, which he expertly hid as he directed his gaze to the ground. He also had a charger in his bag, but, of course, he wasn't going to share that information!

"I guess we'll have to stay here until the morning then," Kai said, trying to hide the smile on his face.

Kai knew he would get a massive scolding from Grandma Bingbing in the morning for not going home, but this was his chance to convince Zhou Renren to come back to Shizi High!

Zhou Renren sighed. "Just my luck," he muttered.

With that, he slumped to the floor, making Kai surprised.

However, not long after, he joined him.

Zhou Renren covered his face with his arm. "Why did you even go here?"

"I already told you," Kai chimed. "I want to bring you back to the team."

"What for?" Zhou Renren chuckled.

"So we can win," Kai seriously said, causing Renren to burst into full-blown laughter.

"The Shizi Dogs? Win? I don't think those two should be in the same sentence."

"We're better now," Kai said. "You must know. I'm sure you've been keeping up with our games."

Renren's jaw clenched. "You guys didn't even make it into the semi-finals," he muttered, causing Kai to smirk.

"So, you were watching," Kai remarked, making Renren focus on his hands.

"Anyway, one of our teammates left, so we replaced him with a good shooter. However, even then, we can't find a great Point Guard that could alternate with Kun," he continued. "I heard about you from Lina and thought that you'd be the perfect addition to the team."

"I told you—I'm not coming back," Renren sighed.

"Why not?" Kai persistently asked.

"Just because," Renren spat. "You don't have to know the reason."

"Does it have something to do with the fact that you're lying about your house?" Kai asked.

Renren clicked his tongue. "I did not lie about my house."

"Oh, so you lived there before?" Kai probed, trying to figure out the reason why Renren left the team and why he didn't want to come back.

"Another family brought it from you. Then, you probably moved to a smaller house near here and started working in this diner," Kai continued guessing the course of Renren's life.

"Enough," Renren said. "Has anybody told you that you're annoying?"

"Nope," Kai said. "Scary—yes. Annoying—no."

Renren shook his head. "They were probably too afraid to point it out."

"Anyway, you won't get anything out of me," Renren smirked. "I know what you're trying to do."

Kai clicked his tongue and focused his gaze on the front once more.
Enjoy new tales from empire

There, he saw a garbage bin from afar, almost like the distance of the net and the three-point line.

"Hey," Kai said. "Are you up for a bet?" he asked.

"Or are you afraid to do that too?" Kai provoked him.

"What kind of bet?" Renren said, already not liking where this was heading.

"You see that garbage can over there?" Kai asked.

"Hmm," Renren hummed. "What about it?"

Kai opened his bag and grabbed the quiz paper that Sir Dao had returned before crumpling it up.

"If I shoot this ball into that bin, will you answer all of my questions?" Kai asked.

Renren frowned. "Why would I do that?"

"Just cause," Kai said. "If you don't agree with the bet, then I'll come here every day. I'll also find your house and pester you there until I get a response," he continued.

Renren sighed and massaged his nose bridge. "Goodness. What have I gotten myself into?"

"So, are you down?" Kai asked.

"And what do I get when you fail?" Renren asked. "It cannot only be you who will benefit."

Kai shrugged. "I'll leave you alone," he said.

"That's not good enough," Renren said.

"Why?" Kai asked. "Are you scared? You should know that I'm not that great at shooting."

Renren pursed his lips.

That was true.

Kai was good at shooting from up close, but he had never landed a three-pointer in the entire Winter Cup.

"Come on, loser," Kai said, provoking him further. "This will be fun."

Renren sighed. "Fine," he snapped. "You better leave me alone if you really don't make it."

"Promise," Kai said with a smile.

Then, he raised his hand, not moving an inch from where he was sitting.

He closed one eye and focused on the goal.

After that, he released the crumpled paper into the air, creating an arc toward the bin.

Renren held his breath as he watched the piece of paper journey to the trash bin.

Like magic, it perfectly went in, causing Renren to freeze.

Then, he felt Kai's gaze on the side of his face.

"Well, well, well—look like you have to answer my questions now."