Basketball System: Rebound of the Underdog

Chapter 248 The Great Onion Spread

"Holy shit! This is really good," Jet exclaimed, making Grandma Bingbing beam with joy.

She chuckled as she placed another serving of onion soup on the table.

"I made a lot, so eat well," she fondly said.

Renren shyly raised his hand. "Can I have another omelet?"

"Of course. I'll make one for each of you. You all need protein for the upcoming tournament," Grandma Bingbing smiled. "Wait for a second."

As Grandma Bingbing left, they were stuck in awkward silence once again.

Renren cleared his throat and stood from the floor.

"Bathroom," he softly said.

Kai stopped mid-bite and also stood up. "I'll take you there."

Renren nodded and followed after Kai.

"Thanks," Renren muttered. "You can leave me now."

Kai nodded. However, he stayed behind, wanting to talk with Renren.

Renren froze when he saw Kai leaning against the wall.

"What are you doing here?" he asked with a small frown.

Kai smirked and faced him, his arms crossed in front of his chest.

"Do you believe me now?" he asked.

Renren directed his gaze to the ground.

"I've never tasted luxury, so I don't know what it's like to fall from the very top," Kai started off. "However, I am not ashamed of how I was raised—because I know that our money comes from a good heart."

"My grandma works hard for our daily expenses, and for that, I could not be prouder. I'm sure your dad is working hard, too," Kai continued.

"So, who cares if you don't have your big ass house? Or chefs, drivers, and maids? Nobody cares about that in this team," he smiled, placing his hand over Renren's shoulder.

Renren was about to speak when they heard a clanging sound near them.

They turned their attention to the sound, only to find Yuze with his phone on the floor.

Kai's eyebrows raised in surprise as Yuze cleared his throat.

"I needed to go to the bathroom, too," he said, directing his gaze anywhere but Renren's.

Kai smirked as he looked back and forth between the two of them.

"I'll give you guys some time to talk," he softly said before leaving.

When he got back, he found the rest of the boys talking about Zhou Renren.

"He's a foreigner?" Jinping asked.

"His mother's Russian," Kun responded. "That also contributes to his height."

"I have a good feeling that he's really good," Andy said, stroking his chin.

Lina smirked. "He is," she said. "Renren has great potential. However, it hasn't been shown a lot because he was frequently absent in the games. If we have him in our team, he'll be another secret weapon."

"Dang," Jinping whispered. "It'll be great if he actually joined."

Kai cleared his throat, cutting their conversation short.

"Well, you took long," Shang remarked. "Wait, where's Renren?"

Kai shook his head. "Continue eating," he said.

Just then, Grandma Bingbing emerged from the kitchen with a fresh batch of omelets.

The team cheered as she placed it on the table.

"Adopt me, please!" Lina said since the food was really good.

Grandma Bingbing smiled as she gazed at Lina.

"Oh, I'm too old for that," she said.

"If you want, you can just marry Kai so you can be a part of our family!"

***

It was nearing 8PM when the basketball team finished with their dinner.

The tension had eased after Renren and Yuze had their conversation. Meanwhile, Lina's red cheeks still haven't died down after Grandma Bingbing mentioned marriage.

"I'll see you guys tomorrow!" Kai exclaimed, waving his hand goodbye.

"I told you—we're going to register our team," Yuze said.

"We'll join," Kun said. "I don't have anything to do anyway."

Lina smiled. "That's good. Let's all go together."

"Hmm," Yuze hummed in agreement. "See you guys tomorrow then."

With that, the group of boys started dispersing.

Kai was about to call Renren's name, but he reckoned that the guy needed some time to think.

So, he decided to keep it simple.

"We'll be waiting," he exclaimed, to which Renren didn't react.

Kai continued watching his figure before sighing.

"I really hope you come tomorrow."

Renren then boarded a bus, his mind still stuck on his conversation with Yuze.

"We'll be registering our team tomorrow."

"Shizi High accepts mid-year transferees and late enrollees, so that's something you can think about."

"And lastly, I don't mind," Yuze sighed.

"I don't know what made you think that we befriended you for your money, but I haven't even thought about that. I just thought you were a good player and a great friend."

Renren sighed and pressed the stop button as he arrived at their neighborhood.

He got out of the bus, suddenly thinking of his future self.

No matter how he thought about it, basketball was part of it.

However, he also knew that it wasn't as simple as that.

"Even if you guys want me back, I can't just go," he said to himself as he got near their house.

"Why not?"

Renren's eyes widened when he heard his father's familiar voice.

He quickly turned around. "Dad?" he exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"

His dad smiled as he walked next to Renren.

"Do you want to get some ice cream?" he asked.

"This late in the night?"

"It's not too late for ice cream," his dad chimed.

Renren shook his head but nonetheless followed his dad to the nearby convenience store.

"You have work in the construction site until 9 PM, right?" Renren asked as he scooped some of the Pistachio-flavored ice cream into his mouth.

"Hmm," his father hummed. "I didn't go to work today, though."

Renren frowned. "Why not?"

His dad had a meaningful smile on his face as he showed Renren a piece of paper.

Renren froze as soon as he read the contents of the paper.

"What's this?" he asked, in disbelief of what he was seeing.

His dad's smile widened as he placed his ice cream on the bench.

"I heard what you said last night," his dad started off, making Renren hold his breath. "It seems like you have forgotten to end the call."

"However, I've been thinking about it for a while. I believe you deserve to do the thing that you love the most."

Renren felt tears brimming in his eyes.

"But you—"

"Don't think about me," he smiled.

"You're the most important person in my life, and I want you to be happy."

"You are my son, after all."