Chapter 104 – A New Role

The gym was quiet, the kind of quiet that only settled after the last basketball had been picked up and the last echo had faded into the rafters.

Ryan rolled toward the coach's office, his hands slightly shaking from the workout he'd done with Tyler earlier. Sweat clung to his neck, and there was a tightness in his chest—not from pain, but from nerves.

Coach Daniels sat at his desk, scribbling something onto a clipboard. The glow from the desk lamp threw soft shadows across the room.

Ryan knocked once on the open door.Daniels looked up, smiled faintly. "Whitmore. Thought you'd vanished."

"Just needed a second," Ryan said, wheeling in slowly.

Daniels gestured to the empty chair next to him. "You don't need to knock. What's up?"

Ryan took a breath, then another. His fingers tightened around the wheels of his chair. "I wanted to talk to you about Tyler."

The coach leaned back, folding his arms across his chest. "Go on."

Ryan licked his lips. "He's rough around the edges. No court sense yet, no real control. But his instincts? They're crazy. I don't know how to explain it, Coach. It's like… he sees the game three steps ahead. He just doesn't have the body or discipline to keep up with what he sees."

Daniels nodded slowly, listening.

"I've been training him for a month. He works hard. Shows up early, stays late. He wants this. He really wants it. And I think… with time, with structure… he could be something special."

Coach didn't respond right away. He rubbed his chin thoughtfully, then looked at Ryan. "You think he's ready?"

Ryan hesitated. "Not yet. But if we don't give him a shot, someone else will. And they might not care enough to shape him right. He needs guidance. He needs to believe he belongs."

Daniels nodded again, thoughtful. "You care about this kid."

"I do," Ryan said, his voice firm.

The coach leaned forward, elbows resting on the desk. "And what about you?"

Ryan blinked. "What about me?"

"You planning to just keep training him from the sidelines? Or are you gonna stick around for the long run?"

There was silence for a moment.

Then Ryan leaned forward in his chair, locking eyes with him. "I want to rejoin the team."

Daniels raised an eyebrow.

"Not as a player," Ryan added. "I know I may never play again. And I'm okay with that. But I'm not done with the game. I still see things. I still feel the rhythm of it. I can help. I want to help."

"You want to be my assistant," Coach said plainly.

Ryan nodded. "Yeah."

Coach Daniels didn't respond right away. He leaned back again, eyes studying the ceiling as if the answer was hidden in the rafters.

Then, a small smile formed.

"You're already doing half the job," he said. "You've got the respect of the team, you understand the game, and clearly, you're invested. But being an assistant coach isn't just drills and advice. You're gonna be responsible for shaping these guys, not just as players, but as people. Can you handle that?"

Ryan didn't flinch. "Yes, sir."

Daniels held his gaze a second longer. Then he reached into his desk drawer, pulled out a team clipboard, and slid it across the table.

"Welcome to the staff, Coach Whitmore."

Ryan's chest tightened, not from nerves this time, but from something like pride.

He took the clipboard with both hands.

"Thank you," he said quietly.

Daniels gave him a rare full grin. "You earned it. And as for Tyler…" He stood up and looked toward the court. "Let's get the kid a tryout. The Wolves could use someone with vision. Even if his body needs time to catch up."

Ryan smiled. "He'll surprise you."

The two stood—or in Ryan's case, sat—in silence for a moment, the court beyond the glass window whispering memories and future dreams alike.

Something had changed.

Not just in Ryan's life.

But in Rosehill's gym.

And it started with a boy who couldn't walk…

…finding a new way to run.