"How is she?"

"Has this happened before?"

"No! Can I just see my daughter, please?"

"Give her time. She needs rest."

"I won't disturb her. Let me just see her!"

"No, ma'am. She-."

"Mamma?" I call out weakly," Are you there?"

"Yes I am, sweetie. And I'm not leaving you," Mom reassures me.

"Where am I?"

"You're in the first aid area. You collapsed."

That's when a rush of memories return: me falling while Logan calls my name.

The nurse appears.

"We were hoping you could tell us what you think caused you to collapse or at least clues," the nurse suggests.

"Can I talk to my Mum privately, please?" I ask as polite as I could.

"Fine," the nurse says grudgingly," Call me if you need anything."

The nurse leaves the room. Mamma sits on the chair next to my bed.

"What do you want to talk about?" Mom questions eagerly.

"How bad was I playing today?" I ask, straight to the point.

"You weren't that bad," my Mum lies because her eyes are anxious.

"The truth."

Mamma sighs heavily.

"You were really bad, Luna. That was probably the worst I've ever seen you play. But we all have our bad days," Mom tries to not seem too negative.

"I wasn't concentrating," I state.

"Yeah. You looked distracted."

"I kept having flashbacks of..."

"The day Ella died."

I nod. I hesitate because I'm about to ask a question that I've never dared to ask.

"What helped your grief, you know? Over Papa?"

My Mum hesitates. She clearly didn't expect that question to pop up.

"Um...honestly I was a mess. Your dad was the only reason that I stayed in Italy, to have to bear the discrimination every day. I thought that I could do anything as long as I had him by my side."

She sniffed before continuing.

"So when I received the phone call, I felt my whole world collapse. I felt that I couldn't live without him. It took time for me to open my eyes and realise that I had to accept that I would never see him again. But I had two great gifts."

"What?" I ask.

"A five-year-old girl who looks like him and having him in my heart."

There's a silence.

"Luna, you have to accept it," Mamma advises.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Coach!" I call out.

Coach Taylor turns around.

"Luna, how are you?" Coach asks awkwardly.

"Good if you allow me to play. Please!" I beg.

Coach Taylor exhales.

"Luna, I can't. This is a team so I can't favour you. Anyway, it's not good for your health. If it happened once, it can happen again, right?" Coach explains.

"Please, sir. I promise you that the whole collapsing thing won't happen again. You don't understand how much I need this," I plead.

"I'm sorry, Luna. But it can't happen."

Coach Taylor calls for a timeout and the team approaches us, throwing cautious stares at me.

"Coach! Please!" I beg, not giving up.

"I have other things to worry about, Luna, like winning the finals," Coach shrugs me off.

Logan walks over to the bench and sits down.

"What do you think you're doing, Logan? Get up! You have a game to play!" Coach questions, turning a shade of red.

"I'm not playing the rest of the game, Coach," Logan explains casually.

"Then, tell me. Who is? A member of the crowd, huh?"

"No. Luna."

Coach Taylor is at boiling point.

"Who do YOU think YOU are? I'M the coach. YOU listen to ME. Get out onto that court, NOW!" Coach explodes, his arms flailing.

"Yes and I'M the captain. I wouldn't be doing this if I didn't think this is best for the team," Logan argues, keeping his cool," Luna is what you call 'a model player'. She's got talent and determination.

The referee blows the whistle.

"Go get them!" Logan says.
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There's 5 seconds left.

5 seconds I have to throw the ball into the hoop and win.

4

3

2

1

...And the ball enters the hoop just as the scoreboard says 0 seconds left.

There's an eruption of cheers and the team huddles up.

"You should listen to me more, Coach," Logan advises.

"You better watch your mouth, boy," Logan warns but he smiles.

Fans of our team crowd onto the court: parents hugging their children proudly, siblings slipping a few compliments, friends whooping with joy.

Luna, her mum, Mamma, Logan and his parents crowd onto the court. We squash each other until we can't breathe but nothing in this world can put me in a bad mood right now.

A man with a serious look on his face, dressed in a grey suit and a plain tie approaches us.

"Number 11 and number 24?" he calls out.

I look down at my shirt and realise that I'm number 11. Logan does the same and notices he's the latter number. We share a nervous glance before answering him.

"That's us, sir," Logan gulps.

"What are your names?" the man asks, curiosity sparkling in his eyes.

"I'm Logan Williams and she's..."

"Luna Rossi. I'm Luna Rossi," I introduce myself after gathering up all my courage.

"Well, Logan and Luna, I am Harry Davis. I have to say that I've attended many high school basketball games and I've never been entertained as much as yours today," Harry explains.

"Well, we're flattered, Mr Davis," Logan says, his pleasure obvious.

"And you should be! Because you two where the main causes of the entertainment."

Mr Davis turns to me.

"One of our beliefs at the college I represent is that determination can't be taught. You, Luna, was a clear example of that today. Sportspeople commonly get injured and they struggle to recover. You, collapsed today but you were determined to get back on that court no matter what. That's what I admire of you, Luna," Mr Davis compliments.

"T-T-Thank you, M-M-Mr Davis," I stutter.

Mr Davis turns to Logan.

"Sportsmanship is one of the most important qualities that makes a basketball player. You, Logan, was an example of a good sportsman, today. I noticed that when Luna had recovered, she was asking the coach to put her back in the game. Am I right, Luna?"

"Yes, sir," I agree.

"And he refused to let you play because of the recent incident?" Mr Davis prompts.

"Yes and Logan gave me my place and I'm extremely grateful to him," I add, smiling at Logan.

He glows, appreciating the attention.

"And you should be! It's a true act of selflessness. That's why I am offering the both of you full scholarships to the University of Florida," Mr Davis concludes.

I'm shocked. My mind has gone blank. A. Full. Scholarship. To. The. University. Of. Florida.

"Of course, you'll have to discuss it with your guardians before making your decision," Mr Davis explains," It's been nice talking to you."

He walks out of the court.

"Luna?"

"Yes, Logan."

"Because I held you when you collapsed, can you hold me? I'm going to faint as we've just been offered a FULL SCHOLARSHIP TO THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA!" Logan exclaims.

"No thanks. You're kinda heavy," I remark.

"Rude!"

Logan turns his back on me.

"Don't go all moody on me!" I beg," We've just been offered to play basketball at college!"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"What did that guy want with you and Logan at the court?" Mamma questions as we stroll back home.

"I was waiting for the right moment!" I tell her," Logan and I have been offered a full scholarship to play basketball at the University of Florida! What do you think?"

"What do I think? This is your future, not mine! It's your choice! And anyway, I know you'll do the right thing," Mom replies, smiling.

There's a silence.

"What are you thinking?" my Mum asks.

"I was just thinking of a name I could call myself when I play in WNBA. It has a nice ring," I explain.

"What is it?"

"The Immigrant Who Played Basketball."