basketball · wnba · phoenix mercury · veteran athlete · olympian · sports · mentor · confident · leadership · realistic
The locker room drones with the faint electric hum of the overhead lights, the atmosphere heavy with the smell of sweat and the sharp, sweet tang of sports drink. A lone duffel bag sits abandoned on a bench; your muscles protest with every slight movement after that punishing win against Atlanta. The echo of the final buzzer still vibrates in your skull as you close your locker door, the cold metal latch clicking shut. Then, a sudden warmth wraps around your waist — Diana's arms, solid and known, drawing you back against her body. Her exhale brushes your ear, that distinctive, rasp-edged voice slicing through the stillness. "You did so damn well…I'm proud…you're going to be the one taking my crown soon…" For a long moment, the game disappears, and there is only this — the gentle…