Already Too Late

Zhang Yu Han passed the ball to Li Qin Yao and she had caught it perfectly in her hand.

Li Qin Yao glanced at the ball in her hand for and hesitated. Holding the basketball ball again, she was reminded of the first time she had shot the ball into the hoop.

On that day, she had come with Han Yue Xiu to support her game. When everyone else went for a break, Li Qin Yao had taken the opportunity to enter the court. Seeing that there was no one else around, she had picked up the ball and started to dribble the ball clumsily as she tried to recall the way her friend would do it.

As she caught the sight of the hoop from her peripheral vision, an idea struck her head.

She wanted to try and shoot the ball.

Li Qin Yao had watched Han Yue Xiu and her friends shot the ball into the hoop for countless times, and as she stood at the center of the court, her hand itch to try it too.

Tilting her head to look at the hoop, Li Qin Yao thought that the hoop was way too high. However, seeing that there was no one around, Li Qin Yao was determined to try it. Gripping her hand tightly on the ball, she stared at the hoop for a few seconds and shot.

Her heart skipped a beat as she watched the ball flew up high and soon, went into the hoop. Her eyes rounded in surprise. It was her first attempt, and she was surprised to see that she had made it in her first try.

Li Qin Yao clenched her hands into fists and started to jump around in joy.

Suddenly, she had a feeling of being watched.

Li Qin Yao paused, looked around and saw a group of boys in the spectators' seating area. The boys were talking and joking with each other. No one was looking at her direction, except for one boy.

Suddenly, Li Qin Yao did not know what to do. She was afraid that this boy would go ahead and report her to the management for going into the court without permission. However, after a few seconds have passed, she was sure that the boy was not going to do anything. Li Qin Yao quickly nodded and ran off the court before the boy changed his mind.

Since then, Li Qin Yao has been pestering Han Yue Xiu to teach her to play basketball. However, no matter how many times she attempted to shoot the ball, none of them would go into the hoop again. Frustrated, she then chose to give up.

It was until a few weeks ago when Han Yue Xiu talked to her into shooting the ball again that she had successfully shot the ball into the hoop.

Li Qin Yao snapped out of her thought and turned to Zhang Yu Han. Because they were standing too close, Li Qin Yao had to tilt her head up to look at him properly. "Okay. But, you have to promise that you won't be angry when I didn't play well."

Zhang Yu Han smiled. "I promise."

Satisfied with his answer, Li Qin Yao threw the ball back to him. Because she had once learned the basics from Han Yue Xiu, it was not hard for her to understand the game. But because it has been a long time since she had played, her movement was stiff and clumsy.

The two of them played around in the empty court for a while as Zhang Yu Han taught her a few tricks. In the night, only the sounds of their voice and the ball bouncing on the floor could be heard.

"Now you try to shoot," Zhang Yu Han passed the ball back to Li Qin Yao after he had demonstrated a few times.

Li Qin Yao held the ball in one hand, as she pushed a few strands of hair behind her ears. At this time, she had taken off her blazers, leaving her cream color top and dark blue pants.

"Alright," Li Qin Yao took a few deep breaths to steady herself before she took her place. She bounced the ball a few times, take position watched the rim intently. Then, she shot the ball.

When the ball did not go into the hoop as she had expected, Li Qin Yao began to laugh at her clumsiness.

"Well, your posture is better than the last time," Zhang Yu Han commented. He jogged to pick up the ball and went back to Li Qin Yao's side. When he saw sweat trailing down from her forehead to her cheek, his heart started to ache. "Should we stop now?"

Li Qin Yao shook her head. "Since you have been patiently coaching me today, let's try and shoot for one last time."

Seeing the determination in her face, Zhang Yu Han let out a helpless sigh. He walked over to her and passed the ball. With the ball in her hand, Li Qin Yao dribbled for a few seconds and went back to her position to shoot the ball.

"Hold on."

"What?" Li Qin Yao turned around.

"Your hand isn't straight enough," Zhang Yu Han commented. "Do it again."

Li Qin Yao went back to her stance, ready to shot the ball again. However, when she sensed that a presence behind her, Li Qin Yao tilted her head back absentmindedly.

Zhang Yu Han had approached Li Qin Yao to correct her posture when he saw that her arm that was holding the ball slanted a little bit. His body froze when he felt her head brushing on his chest. He tilted his head down and their gaze met.

The two of them were staring at each other like that for a full five seconds.

"Sorry," Zhang Yu Han took two steps back.

Li Qin Yao coughed as she looked away. She quickly adjusted her mood and bounced the ball on the floor twice. "So, I should hold it like this?"

Zhang Yu Han glanced at the way she was holding the ball and nodded. Fortunately, Li Qin Yao had turned her focus back to shooting the ball and did not seem to notice how his expression had changed after that interaction.

"Bent your knees slightly… and shoot."

With Zhang Yu Han at her side, Li Qin Yao has been listening to his instruction. She jumped slightly, shot the ball and followed the ball with her eyes.

Li Qin Yao gasped as she watched the ball touched the backboard slightly before it went into the rim. "It went in!"

Seeing the wide, happy smile on Li Qin Yao's face, Zhang Yu Han was affected. His heart began to thump loudly. At this moment, Zhang Yu Han thought that his heart thumped as loudly as the ball that was bouncing on the floor in the background.

His heart was full as he watched her smiling face. It seemed that, even if he decided to retreat now, it was already too late. Zhang Yu Han found that he can barely control his feelings. He already liked this girl too much.