Chapter 38 || One Last Picture

Chapter 38: 38 || One Last Picture

In the hallway, a giant teddy bear dressed in a basketball uniform stood quietly against the wall.

Its head hung low, its black eyes fixed on the polished floor.

’I’m good I managed to get away from there.’

Suddenly, a hand appeared in front of its face, holding out a can of soda.

The bear stared at it for a moment before turning its oversized head.

Sakura stood beside it, a smile on her face.

"Here. You must be thirsty after the show you put on back there."

Her gaze shifted to the bear’s paw.

"On second thought, I’ll hold on to it for you."

The bear turned its head towards her.

"Were you the one who turned off the lights?"

Sakura looked ahead through the glass door, watching the players still gathered around the court.

"Yes. The argument would’ve escalated if I hadn’t."

Her eyes settled on Caden, Torin, and Ken, who were talking a short distance away.

"Aren’t you going to join your friends, Code?"

The bear turned to face her.

Sakura let out a light laugh.

"Your way of getting out of trouble is funny. Some people might even call it cowardice."

The bear’s head tilted slightly.

"I don’t care what people think."

Its black eyes returned to the group ahead.

"I’ll go back when everyone’s calmed down."

With that, it raised both paws and lifted the oversized teddy bear head off its shoulders.

The costume’s head came free, revealing Code’s face beneath it.

Sakura turned towards him.

"This is the first time we’ve actually had a proper conversation. I think we should introduce ourselves."

She extended her hand, wearing a small smile.

"Sakura Ellery, Class 1-B."

Code tucked the teddy bear head beneath his left arm and shook her hand.

"Code. Class 1-D."

Sakura tilted her head.

"Code...?"

"Code Warden."

Her smile brightened.

"It’s nice to finally meet you properly, Code."

"Same here."

...

Code returned to the court without the costume, wearing only his regular uniform.

Three cans of soda hung from a white plastic strap in his left hand, while he carried another can in his right.

The basketball court was now quiet and empty.

Torin sat on the bench with Ken beside him, still dressed in his sports clothes. Ken took one last sip from his water bottle before screwing the cap back on and placing it beside him.

Code walked over to them.

Torin turned at the sound of his approaching footsteps.

"You’re back. Where were you?"

Code raised his left hand, showing him the sodas.

"I was thirsty, so I went to get something to drink."

He tossed the one he held towards Ken.

"Good work out there."

Ken caught the can.

"Thanks."

Code took a can for himself before handing the strap to Torin.

Torin accepted it, pulled one can free, then let the remaining one drop to the floor beside the bench.

Pssht!

The three of them opened their drinks almost simultaneously. The familiar hiss of the cans echoed through the otherwise silent court.

They drank without saying a word.

Torin leaned back against the bench and released a satisfied breath.

"Man, I really needed that. Thanks, Code."

Just then, the front door swung open.

Footsteps pounded across the court.

The three turned right towards the sound and spotted Caden rushing in, a set of photographs clutched in his hand.

He stopped in front of them, bent over, and planted both hands on his knees.

"Sorry for... Sorry for taking so long."

Torin took another sip of his soda before lowering the can.

"Where have you been?"

Caden raised one finger without looking up.

"Just a moment."

He struggled to catch his breath, his shoulders rising and falling rapidly.

A second later, his legs gave way.

Thud!

He collapsed onto the floor, spread his arms wide, and lay there panting, still holding on to the photographs.

The others stared at him.

Not one of them moved to help.

They simply continued drinking their sodas.

After about a minute, Caden finally sat up. His gaze wandered until he spotted the can lying on the floor beside Torin.

He reached for it and picked it up.

"I believe this is for me."

He popped it open and took a long gulp.

Gulp. Gulp.

Then he lowered the can and breathed out in satisfaction.

"Ahhh... That’s exactly what I needed."

Torin glanced at the photographs in his hand.

"So, what’s with those pictures? Whose are they?"

Caden placed his can beside him and turned the photographs around. A grin spread across his face as he held them up for everyone to see.

"It’s us. Well, not all of us..."

The others leaned closer to look.

In the first picture, Caden and Torin stood side by side, with the giant teddy bear positioned between them.

Ken studied the photograph.

"When was this taken?"

"When you were getting ready for your game," Caden replied.

Torin stared at the picture for another moment before a look of recognition crossed his face.

"Oh, right. I actually forgot we took these."

Caden flipped to the next photograph.

This time, he was sitting on the teddy bear’s shoulders, both his hands held it ears as he grinned widely at the camera with his teeth showing.

He turned to another.

In this one, Caden, Torin, and Code stood together. Caden and Torin were smiling, while Caden had raised his hand behind Code’s head, holding up two fingers like a pair of rabbit ears.

Caden chuckled as he moved to the final photograph.

"And... the last one."

He turned it around.

It showed Code standing alone, still wearing the oversized teddy bear head without the body.

Code stared at the picture, his expression unchanged.

"Where did you get these from?"

Caden gathered the photographs into a neat stack and placed them beside him.

"I ran after the senior who helped us take them. It was a long run, but I conquered it."

Torin gave him a brief nod.

"Good for you."

Caden picked up his soda and took another gulp.

Ken, however, placed his own can beside him and turned towards Caden, his expression growing serious.

"Caden... I need you to stop betting on the games."

Caden lowered his drink and folded his arms.

"And why should I? We actually made money from it."

"Yeah, we did," Torin added. "How much was it again?"

Caden glanced upwards, thinking for a moment.

"Two thousand bronze coins."

Code lowered his can.

"This has to stop, Caden. Because of the performance you three put on, an argument broke out among the players."

Torin frowned.

"It’s not our fault your teammates don’t know how to handle losing."

He paused, trying to recall something.

"That Player 6... what was his name again?"

He waved a hand dismissively.

"Doesn’t matter. He saw us making deals with the others and decided he wanted in. He should’ve been prepared to lose."

Caden picked up his soda again.

"He made the highest bet. A thousand bronze coins. He must’ve been pretty confident in his abilities."

He took another drink, seemingly unconcerned.

Ken rose from the bench.

"You two aren’t getting it. I don’t care who started the betting or who placed the highest bet. It needs to stop. That’s it."

Caden looked up at him.

"You still haven’t given me a good reason to stop."

Ken stared back at him.

"Because I said so."

Torin sighed and shook his head.

"You can’t expect us to stop just because you said so, Ken. Yes, things got out of hand, and maybe it would’ve turned into a fight. But it didn’t, did it? So let’s just put this behind us."

Ken opened his mouth to respond.

CLANG!

A can of soda struck the floor, the sharp sound ringing across the court.

It rolled away, spinning in a slow circle before finally coming to a stop.

Everyone fell silent.

Code looked at the group.

"Sorry. It slipped."

For a moment, nobody said anything.

Then Caden stood up, slipped the photographs into his pocket, and stretched his arms above his head.

Torin took one last gulp of his soda before placing the can on the floor. He walked over to Ken and rested a hand on his shoulder.

"Relax. I promise we won’t cause a scene next time."

He glanced at Caden before looking back at Ken.

"We’ll behave."

Ken studied him for a few seconds before letting out a tired sigh.

"Fine. But I’ll be keeping an eye on both of you."

His gaze shifted towards Code.

"In fact, all three of you."

Caden approached him with a small, almost innocent smile.

"Yes, sir."

"Okay," Code replied.

Caden reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone.

"Now, let’s take another picture. Ken wasn’t in any of the others."

Torin snickered.

"He must be feeling sad and left out."

Ken’s brows drew together.

"I’m not."

Torin laughed.

"Alright, then. Let’s take another one."

He waved Code over.

"Come on, Code."

Code walked towards them.

Ken held out his hand for the phone.

"Why not let someone tall hold it?"

He raised the phone into the air and positioned himself in the middle of the group.

Code stood at the back, while Torin took the left side and Caden the right.

Ken adjusted the angle, making sure everyone was in the frame.

"Ready... go!"

BAM!

At the last possible moment, Caden stomped on Ken’s foot.

"OW!"

Click!

The picture was taken.

Ken’s face was twisted in pain, while Caden and Torin smiled brightly at the camera.

And Code...

...looked completely indifferent.