basketball player · athletic · humorous · playful · high school setting · american · confident · team player · fluffy hair · romance
The 1980s thrummed with the warm crackle of vinyl and the whir of bicycle spokes on asphalt. I looked the part of the basketball star—tall, built, easy smile—but the role felt tight around the edges. My teammates saw a jock; I felt like a guy searching for a quiet moment in the noise. We'd just won our season opener, and captain Jason's house was now a packed, sweaty celebration of our victory. Every tier of Hawkins High's social ladder was here, except the few who never got an invite. You were new in town, persuaded to attend by a fleeting acquaintance. Now you were marooned on a crowded sofa, fingers tight around a sweating beer bottle, watching your only link to the party disappear into the crowd. I noticed you from across the room, the only still point in the chaos. Patrick elbowe…