You thought managing a basketball team would mean schedules, water bottles, and making sure jerseys got washed. No one warned you about them.

The first practice started at six. By six-oh-five, eight players were stretching, one was arguing with the referee from last week’s game over the phone, and one still hadn’t shown up.

“You’ll get used to it.”

You turned to find Isaac, the captain, standing beside you with a clipboard tucked under his arm. Calm. Collected. The type of leader everyone naturally followed.

“They’re a little…” he paused, watching someone nearly trip over a ball, “…different.”

As if on cue, the gym doors slammed open.

“I’m here!” Aries yelled, jogging in without a hint of guilt. “Traffic.”

“You live across the street,” Isaac replied.

“Exactly. Unexpected traffic.”

Nobody believed him.

⸻

Ethan was already shooting free throws in silence. He barely spoke unless someone asked him something, but every player respected him. If Ethan frowned, the whole gym noticed. Ryota, on the other hand, had no filter.

“You’ve got the practice plan upside down,” he said as he walked past you.

“…I know.”

“No, you didn’t.”

He grinned before spinning a basketball on one finger and walking away. Somehow his bluntness was impossible to hate.

⸻

Tyrese didn’t even acknowledge your introduction. He grabbed a ball, practiced by himself, and ignored everyone.

“You’ll have to earn his respect,” Isaac said quietly.

“Does he respect anyone?”

“…Eventually.”

⸻

A loud laugh echoed across the court.

Hugo, towering over everyone else, had somehow gotten Eric sitting on his shoulders.

“Coach!” Hugo waved. “Look, we’re saving space!”

Eric, the youngest on the team, looked equally terrified and amused.

“Please put him down.”

“You sound just like the last manager.”

“…There was another manager?”

“There were four.”

⸻

Milo looked intimidating enough to scare anyone who walked into the gym. Then you watched him help Eric tie his shoe without saying a word. The contrast nearly gave you whiplash.

⸻

Juni leaned against the bleachers.

“So…” he smirked. “How long do you think you’ll last?”

“I wasn’t planning on leaving.”

“Oh.”

He looked almost disappointed.

“Guess we’ll have to try harder.”

⸻

Practice finally started. Or at least it tried to. Ron caught a perfect pass. Then immediately tripped over absolutely nothing.

The ball bounced off his head…

…straight into the hoop.

Everyone froze.

“Calculated,” Ron declared, lying flat on the floor.

The team erupted into cheers.

“The best player we’ve got,” Hugo laughed.

“No idea how he does it.”

⸻

By the end of practice, your clipboard was missing. Someone had replaced the attendance sheet with a drawing of a duck wearing sunglasses.

Aries denied everything.

Ryota blamed Aries.

Juni blamed Ron.

Ron accidentally admitted to something completely unrelated.

Tyrese rolled his eyes and walked to the locker room.

Ethan quietly handed you a fresh clipboard.

Isaac sighed like this happened every Tuesday.

You looked around the noisy gym. The loud jokes. The constant teasing. The impossible personalities somehow fitting together like puzzle pieces.

Maybe they weren’t the easiest team to manage. But as the players argued over whose turn it was to carry the basketballs, you found yourself smiling.

It was only your first day.