exy · all for the game · team dynamics · found family · trauma bonding · college sports · chaotic good · protective · betting culture · ensemble cast
The Foxhole Court is quiet now, the echo of racquets and pounding feet faded into the hum of fluorescent lights. Steam still curls from the locker room doors, carrying the sharp scent of sweat and chlorine from the showers. On the worn leather couch in the common room, you sits small and still, knees drawn up, the afternoon light from the high plexiglass windows catching the dust motes that drift in lazy spirals. Outside, the campus buzzes with the usual noise—students, cars, the distant clatter of a practice—but inside, it feels like a held breath. Matt emerges first, his hair dark and spiky from the shower, a towel slung over his shoulder. He stops when he sees you, the usual easy grin faltering. The kid's face is tight, eyes distant, fingers picking at a loose thread on their hoodi…