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“Oh,” she said and looked around her room as if they could see her through the phone.
She stood up then, feeling like she should have some actual clothes on for this phone call.
“I’m calling about your internship application.”
“Yes, okay,” she said and spun in a circle before realizing she was acting like an idiot and sat back down on her bed.
“We wanted to let you know that you’ve been accepted into our program.”
“Wait. Really?”
“Yes, congratulations.”
“Wow! Thank you!” Layne stood up again, needing to be on her feet but still wearing her shower shoes.
“So, I’m going to email you a packet with information in it. I need you to sign that, and you’ll need to report to our Chicago office on the date listed on the offer letter.”
“Yeah, I can do that,” she replied.
“Great. It’s a yearlong internship with the possibility of some travel, so we’ve got a questionnaire you’ll fill out once we get your paperwork back. We just need to know travel preferences. You might not need to travel, depending on where you end up, but I think that’s all I need from you for now. Can you sign the paperwork by the end of the week?”
“I can sign it right now,” she said.
“The end of the week is fine.” The woman laughed. “We’re excited to have you on board.”
They ended the call. Layne dropped her phone, lifted her arms up, and danced around her dorm room. She’d gotten herself the only internship she’d actually wanted: a full year in Chicago, working for one of the top sports management firms in the US, and it was paid on top of that. She wouldn’t make much, and she’d have to find a cheap apartment to live in for a year, but there was a chance that if she did well, this would turn into a job for her. All she had to do was fill out her paperwork, graduate, and drive to Chicago. No more Dunbar or her teammates who didn’t understand her and hadn’t really ever taken the time to. No more classes. No more small-town life, and no more living in the athletic dorm, wishing the school allowed her to have her own off-campus apartment. It was finally about to happen for her. In just a few months, her life could finally really start.
???
It was the third quarter, and they were down by six against a really good team. Layne didn’t have to track stats tonight, so she was leaning forward in her chair, watching Shay bring the ball up the court. Shay passed to Martin, who passed to Hilton, who sent it back to Martin, who then took a shot. She was fouled, and when the other player’s arm hit Martin’s, Martin went back and twisted her ankle, hitting the floor.
“Shit,” Coach said as she paced in front of the bench.
Martin was able to get up on her own but started limping back and forth. She waved off the trainers and went to the line to take her shots.
“Layne, up.”
Layne probably looked at her coach in surprise. Technically, she was Martin’s backup, but she’d been removed from the main rotation for most of the season in favor of a junior who had been playing really well. Layne stood up and removed her warm-up stuff, tossing it aside in a practiced move before she stood next to her coach.
“Seventeen is killing us. She’s faster than Lisa,” Coach said of the junior who would normally be going in for Martin. “You’re faster than her. Got it?”
“Yes, Coach,” she replied.
“Play aggressive. I want Martin out to check her ankle, but if she’s out-out, you’re in for the rest of the game, got it?”
“Yes, Coach.” Layne moved to the score table and said, “Nineteen for Twelve.”
Then, she knelt down in front of the table to wait for Martin to take her two shots.
Martin missed the first one but made the second. When the buzzer sounded, she turned to see that Layne was coming in for her. She limped off the court, and Layne took number seventeen. Seconds later, Layne watched the way Seventeen dribbled and her feet. She’d noticed some of her moves on the game film they watched to prepare, and when she saw her try to fake a move to the left but really go right, Layne moved in her way and earned the charge call against Seventeen. They got the ball back. Shay inbounded to her before Layne passed it back to her to get them through the backcourt press.
Her job was to support their main shooter, in her opinion, so she set a pick for Shay and rolled out, waiting for the pass. Shay was covered, and so was Hilton. Layne could toss the ball across the court to Jameson; she could wait for Michaels to make her way over; or, she could shake Seventeen. Layne knew Seventeen liked to reach for the ball when she thought she could get it, so she dribbled out a little, waited for her to go in for the steal, and ran around her toward the other team’s center. She then bounce-passed to Hilton and watched her bank in the shot for two points.
“Nice,” Shay said when she slapped her hand at half-court as they moved back on defense.
Layne smiled and refocused. She had one job, and that was to guard Number Seventeen, who had already scored twenty points on them. She knew she was faster, so she got close when Seventeen was out by the three-point line. When Seventeen tried to run on her, Layne was there and held her off, so Seventeen had to pass the ball. Hilton tipped it, though. Shay got to it and ran down the court to make an easy layup. Layne looked over at the bench and noticed that Martin was getting treatment, so it was likely she didn’t have long before she’d get recalled to the bench. She decided to give it everything she had to help her team win, and when the other team brought the ball back down the court, she played aggressively again, making Seventeen try to get around her and fail once more.
The ball was passed, and a shot was taken, but it was a bad one, and it missed. Hilton got the rebound and gave the ball to Shay, who walked it up the court. Layne took her spot on the left and waited for Shay’s hand to signal the play. They were running five, which meant that Layne was going to run along the baseline and appear on the other side of the court, trying to get open. Hilton would set the pick for her, and she should get free. When she did, Layne took a shot behind the three-point line. It went in.
