Leila's POV

Adam's health improved significantly, that at the end of the week he was back to his old self. Emilia had been praying for her Dad, and we prayed together so that he'd get better quickly. The prayers definitely worked.

When we went to church, I sat with Adam and Emilia. While the pastor spoke, I saw that Adam was far away, deep in thought and I wondered what was wrong with him. Maybe the pastor's sermon was getting to him.

He was speaking about grace, and how it was like a flood that was undeserved and unearned. All we had to do was believe in Jesus. Did he feel like he didn't deserve it? I decided that I'd talk to him about it later.

When the sermon was over, people parted ways going in different destinations. I had packed my bag so I took it and went with Tori for the weekend.

We were watching TV when she suddenly spoke, breaking the silence.

"Girl! We got a sports day tomorrow."

" What's this sport thing you talking about? No announcement was made."

"It's done once every four months. People from neighbouring churches are going to come and we're going to play some friendly games. The main aim for this is for people to interact and get to know each other. Trust me. It's fun. "

We never had these back home. I was looking forward to it.

"Which ones?"

"We play tons of them. The headmistress of a nearby school allows us to have the sports there. You and I will play volleyball like the good old days."

Tori and I used to be in the volleyball team in high school. We had so much fun during those days. It ought to be fun. A frown suddenly appeared when a thought came to mind.

"I don't have anything to wear."

She patted my thigh as she stood up and then proceeded to drag me to her room.

"Don't worry. I got you covered."

*********

A wind picked up the moment we got out of Tori's car. The weather's cool condition made it a perfect sports day. I looked about to see a lot of people had already arrived. Men, women, boys and girls wore different colourful attires for different sports.

Tennis, basketball, volleyball, handball, soccer and many others. The elderly were going to the big hall of the school.

"Where are the elderly going?"

"To play elderly people games. We'll worry about that when we get there."

I laughed then, agreeing with her. The sports hadn't begun yet, so people were just talking to each other. We walked to the other volleyball players and we began to talk about the sport. I made new friends from the other churches whom I saved their numbers in my phone so that we would chat some more in the future.

"Players of all sports, come closer. We gotta make some announcements before we begin."

We walked to the makeshift stage, where the MC stood wearing his basketball gear.

"Thank you for coming today. So, before we play, let me just say that we aren't here to compete. This is for fun, I repeat, FUN! Some people ended up getting a little 'emotional' last time at the basketball pitch. We are also here to socialize, so be open with people and who knows, maybe you'll find a special someone."

People began to snicker about, and I even laughed. I wasn't expecting him to say that.

"There are gonna be people selling foods and beverages. You know where they'll be. Tim is our guy on the job and he said that they'll be here any moment. Now, let's pray before we play. God, keep us safe while we play these games. May this place be filled with your presence, so that all goes well. Amen."

Everyone opened their eyes and clapped before they went to their respectful game areas. People came with their teams already put up. The first team played, and it was amazing. These teams were professionals so they didn't play around. Spikes were being hit, and the air was filled with excitement. A crowd gathered, cheering on until one team won which was going to the next round.

We cheered, and Tori's crazy side was beginning to show. I just laughed along with her, feeling the blood rushing from the game that had just been played. Our team was up next.

When we were ready, the umpire blew the whistle and the game commenced. The team we played against was fair, but they weren't as big an opponent as we'd expected. For a person who hadn't played volleyball in a while, it felt like I'd just stopped playing yesterday. When the game was over, we'd won. Walking out of the court, I saw Emilia wearing a cheerleader's uniform with purple pom-poms.

"Wow, Aunt Lei. You were great."

I smiled at her when she gave me the water she was holding.

"Thanks, little one."

I took a healthy gulp of it.

"You're welcome!", she replied while she waved her pom-poms about.

"Dad told me to give you the water."

My eyes widened a little, my heartbeat quickened at the mention of Adam. I took another sip.

I need to chill.

"Oh. Can you thank him for me?"

"Or you can just thank me right now. That works too."

I looked up from the little one to see him a few feet close to us, wearing his purple basketball jersey.

"Hi, Adam. Good morning."

He smiled then, and looked at Emilia.

"Good morning. I see you are the one with my cheerleader."

Emilia blushed then, which made me laugh.

"I didn't mean to snatch her from you. Our game must've been more fun than yours, I'd like to guess?"

The little one began to laugh then.

"They were beaten on the-."

He quickly held her mouth, stopping her from saying anything further. He looked embarrassed because his face was slightly pink. I laughed at his antics. He didn't want me to know that they'd lost already.

"Wow, Adam. I had so much faith in you.", I said, snickering to myself.

"Haha. Very funny. And just because of that, you don't get any ice cream. Come, pumpkin, let's go. We leave meanies alone. They don't deserve ice cream."

Meanies?

I began to laugh while I watched them walk away towards the ice cream stand. Tori came to me then, a small smirk on her face.

"Employer, ey? I don't remember being that cozy with my employer before."

I stopped laughing then, and turned to her with a small scowl.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

She shook her head, laughing to herself.

"I'm just saying that you and Adam look good together. I even saw a few girls looking at you and him talking. I guess they were jealous of you."

I rolled my eyes then, trying to ignore the butterflies in my belly. Did we look good together?

Stop it! What are-

A voice broke me out of my reverie.

"Stop overthinking, Leila, and just let God lead girl. See where it goes. Besides, we have a game going on. I wanna win. And I'm also hungry, so let's go look for some grub."

******

We'd played another team and we'd won, which automatically made us quarter finals qualifiers. I was very excited for the game, and I hadn't had this much fun in a while. It reminded me of my days in high school. Although I didn't have friends, Tori helped me make some of the best memories I could get.

We were playing with a stray ball when she suddenly held the ball, laughing to herself.

"What is it?"

"Adam has been looking at you for a while now."

I was about to turn when she held her hand up, making me stop my action.

"Don't turn."

"Why not?"

She put on her 'duh' face, as if I'd just asked a stupid question.

"I wanna see how long he'll look at you."

I palmed my face, really hoping that she was joking.

"You think I'm joking? Fine! Look."

Turning slowly, I saw his gaze quickly shift to James who was next to him and began to talk to him.

"See?"

He was looking.

"Let's just play, okay?"

She sighed then, disappointment written all over her face.

"Okay.", She passed the ball to me.

*********

Our team got called to the court and we got to our positions. The team we were playing against that time looked stronger and more professional. When the game began, it was already competitive. People cheered on as we played, and I looked to the side to see Emilia waving her pom-poms about with Adam by her side, cheering as well.

The game remained heated, and the first round was won by the other team. After a little pep talk, we began to play the other round. Our team wanted to win so we put in our all and won the second round. The confidence we'd lost returned and we went on to the last round. Both teams were now desperate for a win, so they played defense and offense with an swiftness that was exhausting. We'd successfully managed to get the ball to the other side when they played and passed it back to our side. How they'd passed it on, however, was not what I'd expected.

One of their players had spiked the ball to our side, and it came with a force that I hadn't anticipated. It hit me square in the face on the forehead, making me stumble and fall to the ground. A huge pain exploded in my head, making me hold it in pain. When I tried to open my eyes, all I saw were stars on a black swirling backdrop. I heard people talking but I couldn't really concentrate on what they were saying.

"Leila! Leila!! Open your eyes."

I tried to open them but it was too painful. My body was suddenly lifted, making me feel light-headed. After a short while, I was put down again. It was more comfortable where I laid, and I assumed that it was a bed.

"Leila. Can you open your eyes?"

Putting more effort that time, I opened them to see that I was in a small room, which I guessed was the school nurse's office. A woman was standing next to me with water and a bottle of pills in her hands.

"You have to drink these pills, but you will have to sleep after that."

Anything to take that horrible pain away.

I took the pills and laid myself down again.

"That was a nasty blow you got. You have to rest for the whole day tomorrow to avoid you having any fainting spells."

Thanking the nurse for her help, I saw her leave the room. After a while, I heard the door open and in walked Emilia, Adam and Tori.

"How's your head?", Adam asked, face filled with concern.

I yawned then, feeling the pills begin to kick in.

"It hurts, but I'll get better soon."

Tori spoke then.

"The girl who spiked the ball apologized for hitting you. She didn't know that it was going to be that strong."

I closed my eyes, allowing the pills to just take the pain away for a while, and let me sleep.

†††††

That was fun to write, not going to lie😂😂