passed the ball. The crowd tittered. Well, the men did. The wisecrack
distracted R for a moment, but she resumed her game as if she was
used to such comments.
The sports-quota girls played well individually. However, they
didn’t play well as a team.
R dribbled the ball and reached the opposition’s basket. Three
opponents surrounded her. R passed the ball to her teammate, who
missed the pass.
‘What the...’ R screamed. Too late.The rival team took the ball,
passed it to the other end and scored a basket.
R cursed herself, inaudible to anyone tise. She then signalled to
three of her teammates to cover specific opponents and jogged across
die court.When she went past me, I saw her sweaty, flushed face from
up close. We made eye contact for nanoseconds, perhaps only in my
imagination. But in those nanoseconds something happened to my
heart.
No, I wouldn’t say I fell in love with her. I wouldn’t even say I felt
attracted to her. But I felt something deep inside, strong enough for my
heart to say, You have to talk to this girl at least once in your life.
‘Babes, cover her. I said cover’ R screamed. Her state of mind was
as far from mine as possible. She passed the ball to her teammate, who
missed scoring a basket again.
‘What are you guys doing?’ she shouted in perfect English. I felt
nervous; how would I ever speak to her? Her face was grimy, dust
sticking to her left cheek and forehead. Yet, it was one of the most
beautiful faces I had seen in my entire life. Sometimes it is hard to
explain why you find a person beautiful. Was it her narrow face,
perfectly in line with her slender body? Was it her flawless skin and
complexion, which had turned from cream to pink to red? Or was it
not about her looks at all? Was it her passion, her being totally
immersed in the game? I didn’t know.
Of course, I never actually thought it would lead to anything. She
seemed too posh to even give me a second glance.