Chap2: Livin'Da Dream

I got out of bed, stood up.

'Damn, I'm really tall.'

Don't get me wrong, before I was around 6'2 or 6'3, which is pretty good, but now… it's insane. From what I remember, I'm 6'7 now, and I'm in my senior year of high school, so to think that I still grow…

Anyway, I decided to leave the room, passed through the living room, and headed to the bathroom. Our apartment is small, so it's easy to navigate thanks to the memories I have.

As I entered the bathroom, I looked at myself in the mirror and saw that I had the same face I had created for my 2K character with the cyberfaces. So, it didn't really throw me off regarding my face, because that's pretty much what I looked like to begin with. 

"Luckily, this didn't happen with a face scan player,bro" I thought ironically.

After examining myself a bit, I went back to Cee-Cee's and my room, lay down, even though I couldn't manage to close my eyes that night. Too many thoughts were swirling in my mind.

Morning came without me even realizing it.

I leave the room to grab some breakfast. As I enter the living room, I spot the father of the family. 'What was his name again? Pete. Well, I guess he's my father now.'

"Frank, already up?"

"Yeah, I'm kinda hungry," I said as I headed towards the fridge.

"Son, how many games do you have left in the season, two?"

"I have two, yeah. One against the Parkside Dragons and another against the Bulldogs. If we win, we'll be in the state finals."

"Alright, son, do your best. You know we're behind you no matter the result. I'm off to work, see you tonight."

"Yeah, Dad, go ahead. See you tonight." He left.

Then I got back to what I was doing, had my breakfast, and followed up with my morning routine—brushing my teeth, etc. As I was leaving the bathroom, I ran into Cee-Cee.

"Frank, you woke up really early today. Anyway, move out of the bathroom, I'm going in quick or we're gonna be late for school."

She did what she had to do, then we left for school. We took Pete's car since he doesn't use it to get to work. When we arrived, we ran into Victor—or Vic, as I seemed to call him.

"Yo Pres, come on, let's skip. I really don't feel like going to class today."

'I hadn't seen that in my memories, but yeah, that's my nickname. People call me President because of my name, Franklin Lincoln—it really sounds like a president. But honestly, I know it's just the nickname from NBA 2K17.'

"No, you know I can't do that, Vic. I gotta stay focused to succeed."

"Yeah, don't listen to Vic, Frank," Cee-Cee added, clearly annoyed by Victor's presence.

"Come on, Cee-Cee, let your brother hang out with me for once, the first FOF."

"What's that supposed to mean?" she said.

"It means Friend of Frank."

'I already noticed it while playing before, but he really glaze me' I couldn't help but think to myself. "Anyway, we're off to class. Vic, see you later. We'll meet you at the cafeteria if you pass by later."

The day passed by smoothly. When I got home, I crossed paths with my mom for the first time since I got here, Martha. Then the days just kept going like that, and I started getting more and more used to my new life.

Today was a new day, and I finally had a game. We were playing against the Parkside Dragons. I'm with the Fairview Tornadoes. Honestly, I'm not sure if these teams existed in my old life, but this is where I am now.

We were playing at home, so we arrived pretty relaxed. I sat in front of my locker and started changing. I put on my number 7 jersey, then strapped a knee pad on my right leg, an elbow pad on my right arm, and slipped on a pair of sneakers. I'm not sure what they are, but they're Nikes.

We could hear the other team arriving in their locker room, and then the game was finally about to take place. I made my way to the court with the other starters.

Before the whistle blew, I heard my sister yell, "Cook 'em, Frank, like always!" followed by Vic saying, "Show them who the Pres is!"

The whistle blew, and the game was on...

I felt the adrenaline rush through me as I lined up for the tip-off. As the ball flew in the air my Center got the ball, passed it to my point guard.

The ball came to me, I had one defender ahead. I faked left, then drove hard to the right—he was playing way too tight. I sidestepped him and went up for the dunk. "Get out of here!" I yelled as I hammered it down, letting the rim rattle as I landed. The crowd went wild.

On defense, I was all over my man. I noticed he was trying to get cute with his dribbling, so I kept my hands active and stayed low. He tried a quick spin move to get past me—big mistake. I slapped the ball away and started the fast break. "You're not getting past me, bro!" I taunted him, turning to run up the court.

Back on offense, I was feeling it. My teammate passed me the ball on the wing, and as I sized up the defender, I could tell he was nervous. I faked a drive, stepped back behind the three-point line, and let it fly. "That's cash" I shouted as the ball swished through the net, and I pointed at the defender, giving him a little shrug. "Don't leave me open like that." He was surprised that I was left-handed.

The Dragons tried to respond, but I wasn't having it. I switched onto their best shooter and made him work for every inch of space. He tried to pull up for a jumper, but I was right in his grill. "No easy shots!" I yelled as he missed badly, and I grabbed the board with one hand. I pushed the ball up the court, looking for an opening.

Suddenly, I saw it—my teammate was running the floor. I threw an alley-oop pass, and he caught it with one hand, slamming it down. I turned to the crowd, putting a finger to my lips and quieting them down. "Shh… we own this."

Back on defense, the Dragons were trying to get a fast break going, but I was there to shut it down. I tracked the ball handler, staying with him every step of the way. As he tried to pull off a Eurostep, I jumped the passing lane and swiped the ball out of the air. "Nice try, but you gotta do better than that!" I barked as I took the ball and sprinted down the court.

Late in the game. The Dragons were getting desperate, but I wasn't letting up. I set a screen for my point guard, then rolled to the basket. He found me with a perfect pass, and I went up for a layup through traffic. "Too easy!" I yelled, flexing my arms as I finished the play.

The game ended, and we walked away with a 22-point victory, I laughed and waved it off, feeling good about the game.

A win is a win.