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plot: in which phee is so deeply in love to the point of invention

trope: teammates to lovers 🙂‍↕️

pairings: wbb! reader x napheesa collier

warnings: angst (happy ending dw)

a/n: ngl i loved writing this one 😩 bc I'm indecisive, do you want a sydney colson, jessica shepard, shakira austin, OR a rookiexvet skylar diggins fic?

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Let's revisit the past. More specifically, the first time Napheesa met the love of her life.

Y/n was laying down on the couch she bought for her college dorm because the one provided wasn't cutting it for her. She needed full comfort. There was an NBA game on the TV, a bowl of popcorn in her lap, a glass of Kool-aid on the coffee table. She knew she was gonna get a roommate, she just didn't know when that was.

On the other side of the door, the UConn freshman Napheesa Collier was taking deep breaths to soothe her nerves. She was aware her roommate was already here given how loudly she was shouting at the tv. She was mentally preparing herself for the conversation that was about to happen when she opened that door.

Exhaling softly, she knocked on the door three times. No response. Was the tv that loud or was her knock too quiet? She sighed, knocking again- this time a bit louder than before. "If you're the roommate, it's unlocked! If you're a serial killer, I have a baseball bat and I'm not afraid to use it!"

Napheesa chuckled in amusement, already able to tell this girl was gonna make her laugh all the time. She turned the handle and pushed the door open, picking up her bags to drag them inside. She shut the door behind her as the girl hopped over the couch and laid her eyes on her roommate. "Hmm, not a serial killer..I hope?"

Napheesa smiled, shaking her head, too nervous to look at her yet. "Nope. Not a serial killer."

"Not a ghost either, right?"

She cracked a laugh, shaking her head, "no, I'm very much still alive."

She tilts her head in amusement, "you can look at me. I dont have laser beam eyes if that's what you're worried about."

She gulped, slowly moving her eyes away from the floor. Her breath was quite literally taken away at the sight of her roommate. There was no way she was real. This had to be dream. It had to be a mistake. She couldn't be roommates with her. That would be impossible. How could someone be so attractive and funny at once?

She waved her hand in front of her, "Hello? Is something wrong? Do I have something on my face? Is my mouth stained red? I was drinking a sinful amount of Kool-aid..."

Napheesa coughed, snapping herself out of her gaze. "Sorry- it's just, you're very pretty."

Y/n smiled at the compliment, "thanks roomie." Really? Roomie? Is that all she was gonna be to her now? "Here, I'll show you to your room." She picked up her suitcases with ease, not struggling whatsoever as she carried them down the hall. Napheesa quickly followed behind, heart fluttering as she listened to y/n ramble about the decor.

"So yeah, that's it. Uh, I got you like a mattress topper thing 'cause my dumbass brother ordered two, but if you don't want it, I can take it back." She finished, patting the topper laying on the bed. She notices her squints and turns to see the portrait of an owl on the wall. "Oh- right. About that- uh, I ran out of space in my room so I just hung it up in here."

She hums, taking a liking to the portrait. It was stunning with the stars and moon in the background, all the details pulling it together. "You like Owls?"

"Yes, I love them. They're so mysterious." She smirks, taking a glance over the portrait before putting her eyes back on her roommate.

Napheesa also noticed that she deep cleaned the entire room. It smelled super good in there. "Did you clean in here?"

Y/n pursed her lips awkwardly, "..yes, I'm a bit of a clean freak. I was hoping you didn't notice..some people think it's weird."

Napheesa frowned, quick to reassure her. She did not want her feel embarrassed at all. She didn't deserve to feel any amount of that. "No, I don't think it's weird. I think a lot of people should be like you."

She smiled, nudging her arm, "thanks, roomie. I'll leave you to it." Once the door was shut, Napheesa plopped onto the bed and groaned. She couldn't tell if y/n was into her and that was beyond frustrating because she knew she wasn't gonna stop thinking about her every second of the day.

She received a knock on the door and quickly got up to open it. It was obviously her roommate. "Sorry, I just realized I never caught your name. Mine is y/n, in case you're interested in knowing."

Napheesa chuckled softly, "my name's Napheesa but you can call me Phee."

Y/n hummed, "that's a pretty name, Phee."

She blushed, "thanks. Yours is pretty too."

She chuckled, playfully nudging her arm, "liar," she joked as she walked away to leave her alone again.

It was just a couple months into freshman year when it happened. Obviously Phee and her roommate had gotten pretty close, mostly just bestfriends status. But they did have flirty and tension filled moments at times. Y/n never made a move on her yet and it was a little frustrating. That's why Napheesa had to take things into her own hands because trust, she wasn't gonna let this go. Y/n was going to be hers.

She told her teammates the plan to ensure they wouldn't call or interrupt at all. She made sure her phone was completely off too. No interruptions could happen tonight.

She was in her room, pulling a hoodie and some sweats over some lingerie in y/n's favorite color. The lingerie was just in case something happened. She wasn't exactly planning to have sex tonight. But if y/n wanted that, she wanted it too. How could she not?

Y/n stepped into their dorm with the pizza and pasta for the movie night Napheesa planned. She was very persistent on a roommate's only movie night rather than all the movie nights they've had with their teammates. But she didn't question it. Whatever Phee wanted, she got.

"I got the food! What movie are we watching again?" She set the food onto the coffee table and walked back to the kitchen to grab some Kool-aid because she wasn't a soda person.

As she returned to the living room she found Phee sitting down on the couch, legs pulled under her looking as beautiful as ever. "We're watching the Notebook, remember?"

"Ah yes, I remember you mentioning something about a notebook. I just figured you wanted to borrow some of my notes." She said, taking a seat on the couch beside her and handing her the remote. Phee chuckled, clicking on the movie to play. "Of course you did." Y/n smiled, sliding an arm around her to pull her closer. It was out of pure instinct. She did it a lot in practice.

After eating their food, y/n had turned the lamp off and pulled Napheesa into her. She smiled to herself, curling into her side as y/n pulled a blanket over them for more comfort. "Why'd you pick such a sad movie?" She mumbled, her arm pulled around Phee's waist like it's where it belonged.

"We haven't even gotten to the sad part yet." Phee whispered back, holding onto y/n's hand and pressing a little kiss to her palm.

"Well I know what's gonna happen and it's gonna make cry. I'll look like a whimp in front of you." She retorts, and Phee frowned, looking up at her with such soft and caring eyes. "Don't say that. You're not a whimp. Crying just makes you vulnerable and being vulnerable can be good sometimes."

Her words did cheer her up just a bit, up until the end of the movie where she sobbed like a baby. This time Phee was pulling her arms around her, trying to comfort her. "You're okay. I'm here. I won't leave you."

She glanced away from her hands to look at Phee. She was beautiful as always. So beautiful she didn't think she deserved her. She was like a shooting star, so unexpected, so rare and beautiful to experience. "Why do you like this movie?"

"Because I want to experience that kind of love." She leaned in closer, hardly any space between their lips, "with you." She barely gave her time to react before she pressed their lips together. It wasn't rough or impatient. It was sweet and delicate, sort of testing out the waters. If y/n didn't like it and wanted to pull away, she fully could.

She pulled away with a grin, all that sadness fading instantly. "How long were you planning to do that?"

Napheesa smiled shyly, messing with the strings on her hoodie, "..since I met you."

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Flash forward to 2022, they were overseas to play in France.

It was the night before a game, they were laid up in bed together, Phee resting her head on her girlfriend's chest as a vinyl played lowly in the background. Y/n hated being overseas. She hated that she had to play competitively in her off-season just to make a little extra money. Her body was overworked. She was constantly sore, in a terrible mood. And God, the constant traveling was exhausting.

Phee was trying her hardest to keep her in good spirits. "Does your knee still hurt?" She asked, tracing little circles on y/n's tattooed wrist. She only had two tats, one of Phee's name and the other being the date she won a NCAA championship on the back of her neck.

Her knee wasn't in the best shape since she landed on it wrong a couple games ago. They said it wasn't injured but she still felt pain playing on it. "Yeah, I don't think it's going away anytime soon."

"Are you sure you still wanna play on it tomorrow?"

She sighed, shaking her head, "no, but I have to. Coach isn't gonna sit me down."

Phee frowned, pressing a kiss to her cheek. "I'm sorry love. I wish there was something I could do." She truly hated this. She hated seeing her light dimmed. She was always so happy and carefree and now...now she couldn't even break a smile, let alone crack a joke.

"I don't wanna do this anymore. I wanna stay in the states and be with you..start a family someday." Phee smiled at her words, "really?" She returned the smile, the thought of a family with Phee bringing her happiness. "Yeah. Whenever you're ready. I think we'd be pretty good moms."

Phee pressed a kiss to her lips, "how many do we want?"

"I'd say four, only so we could play 3v3 all the time," y/n said, staring at the ceiling, just imagining how great their life would be with kids. She chuckled, raising a brow, "really, 3v3? Not 2v2?" She nodded, almost offended that she'd even ask that question. "Uh, yes. 3v3 is superior."

Phee hummed, not getting it yet. "Please explain how it's superior to 2v2."

Y/n turned on her side, holding herself up with her arm and Phee copied her pose, smiling as she admired her beautiful features up close. "Think of it like this. If you shrink down a court, 3v3 would be the best playing format. You have one post, two pgs. And everyone loves running down the court so imagine doing this almost every possession? It's heaven."

"I'm not understanding." She understood completely but she wanted y/n to keep going. To keep talking passionately about this subject, talking about it so much she forgot all about her problems.

"Okay, think of it like this babygirl. You're at the park. There's twelve people there who wanna play a game. But if you do 5v5, people get tired and there's nobody on the bench to switch out. You do 3v3, players get tired, you have three extra players on the bench to check in for you. Pgs will be more open for threes. Posts will be more open for layups. More points. More competitiveness. It's the superior format. 2v2 can suck it."

Phee chuckled, pressing a kiss to her lips again. "Okay, that's actually a really good explanation. You moved me. 2v2 sucks."

Y/n grins, "see, this is why you're perfect for me. You get it."

Phee blushed, burying her face into the pillow as she chuckles, rubbing her back in a soothing manner. She took a breath and looked back at her girlfriend, now starting to think about this idea a little deeper. "You know that's actually a really good idea. A 3v3 league in the states where nobody has to travel overseas or overwork their body in the off-season."

Y/n snorts, turning on her back, head relaxed under her arm. "Yeah, as if that'd ever happen. They don't care enough about women's sports to create a league like that."

"But, if it did happen, would you go?"

She nods, not an ounce of hesitation. "Oh absolutely."

"What would they call it though?" She pondered, laying her head back on her chest, an arm over her waist as they stared up in thought.

"I'd call it unrivaled. Rivals just seems too predictable, and most likely trademarked," she joked.

"Unrivaled is a good name."

The next day was where it all went downhill. It happened so fast. One minute y/n was making a little joke to cheer up Napheesa because she was having a bad game and the next she down on the floor screaming in pain. The girl on the other team got a block on her, and she fell to the floor harshly. She felt a pop in her knee and a rush of pain hit her body.

Napheesa was the first one to run towards her as soon as she went down. Tears rolled down her eyes, sobs escaping her lips. She was too scared to touch her. More people were running over to help and cover her from the cameras. "It's gonna be okay. You're gonna be okay."

Hours and hours later, y/n was laying in a hospital bed post ACL surgery. She stared at the ceiling, processing the news she received from her doctor. The surgery was successful, but there was quite literally no guarantee she'd ever be able to play basketball again. If she did, it'd be a miracle. Not that she had one positive thought right now.

Napheesa walked in, holding a tray of food she went off to get in case y/n was hungry when she woke up. She had a smile on her face, trying to keep things positive. "Um, I got you some food. It's probably not to your taste but it's something to put in your stomach." She spoke, setting it on the table. The hospital food in France wasn't exactly the most appealing.

"I'm not hungry."

She sighed, nodding her head, "okay. Could you at least drink some water?" She tried to hold the cup in front of her but she pushed it away. "Stop. Just stop! Please."

Her behavior was completely off. She was never one to act like this. She was always so sweet and gentle with Phee, never one to raise her voice no matter how angry she was. This wasn't like her at all. "What's wrong?"

"What's wrong?" She took her eyes off the ceiling to look over her girlfriend. Phee didn't like the way she looked. How cold and drained she was. "I might never step foot on a court again. That's what's wrong, Napheesa."

She shook her head in denial, rubbing her head from stress. "No. No. All you need is physical therapy- you can do it, baby. You're gonna come back from this."

"Don't you get it? This isn't some come back story. You gotta be realistic. This is the end. I'm through. I'm done. It's over." Napheesa continuously shook her head, running her hands down her face, mumbling "no's" under her breath. "No, no, it's not. You can't just give up. That's not you. You don't give up."

"Basketball is my life. Without it, I have nothing. I am nothing."

Phee gulped, tears rolling down her cheeks, a sight she never liked to see. "You have me. Am I not enough for you? What about us? What about the family-- t-the plans, our plans?"

"We were living in a fairytale, Napheesa."

Her lip quivered, "so you didn't mean any of it?"

She looked away, not able to stand to see her cry. "Reality's finally hit us."

She sniffled, reaching up to wipe her tears. Shaking her head as she grabbed her things, voice growing more stern. "No. I'm not listening to this. You need some rest. I'll give you a couple days to regroup and we can revisit this conversation because I will not let you push me away."

She didn't reply, and she didn't need to her. Phee's point was made clear. Still, she couldn't up and leave right there. Her eyes softened before she stopped beside her bed and leaned down to press a kiss to her head. "I'll see you later. Get some rest. I love you."

That was the last night she saw y/n. When she came back two days later, she was gone. She left behind her stuff at their apartment. She didn't get left a letter. She didn't get a call. She didn't get anything. Just the bouquet of roses she bought y/n, still sitting in the vase on the table. She tried to look everywhere she could think y/n would be in France.

After finishing up her contract overseas, she headed back to the states. The WNBA season was coming up, and she wasn't gonna do it without y/n by her side. She went back to her hometown, hoping she'd be there staying with her family. Turns out, they didn't even know she was gone.

She tried to go to Connecticut, hoping maybe she went back there. She had just missed her. Y/n had visited Geno at his place and they talked for a little bit. He tried to encourage her to go back to Phee, but she wasn't listening. She still didn't give up her search. She was gonna try every place she could think of until she finds her.

As she did that, she wanted to make sure when y/n came back, she would never have to play overseas again.

It was her mission to make Unrivaled real. To bring y/n's vision to life.

To bring y/n back to her.

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It was early 2023 when y/n was sitting on a beach in Thailand. She was trying to get her mind off everything, using the beach as an escape. Her therapist wanted her to go relax and get out her head. She wanted her to focus solely on basketball. That was the whole point of going to Thailand. To get away from everything and just focus on getting this knee back together. And it was working, for the time.

It took lots of hard work but her knee was finally feeling more reliable. It wasn't perfect, but it was better than never playing again.

Her physical therapist felt a lot different. He didn't see y/n coming back from this without the support from her family. He knew her leg was good. He knew she'd be able to play again. But he didn't see her getting far if her mental state continued to be as bad as it was. She was losing the entire plot. She didn't need to fix her knee to come back. She needed to fix her life. She needed to fix her relationship.

Without the support from the woman she loved most in the world. All of this work would be for nothing.

Which is why he did what he thought was best. Yesterday morning, he had gotten ahold of Napheesa Collier and told her exactly where her girlfriend was and would be. She didn't even stay on the line to keep talking. She just set her phone down, grabbed her laptop and booked a flight, then started packing her bags.

She arrived in the morning and got to the beautiful house by the beach. She tried to knock, no answer. She peeked into the windows and knew immediately that this was y/n's place by the portrait of Owls hung up on the wall. She sighed, looking around, trying to think of what to do. She went back to the conversation and remembered what he said. If she wasn't home, she was at the beach.

She hurried down the porch and sprinted down the beach. Then she spotted her. She was coming out of the water, surfboard under her arm. "Y/n."

Y/n turned at the call of her name, the breath knocked out of her again. The surfboard slipped from her grasp as Napheesa ran to her. Tears rolled down her cheeks, not sure if they were sad or happy or both. She wrapped her arms around y/n, sobs leaving her. She clung onto her, scared if she let go she'd disappear forever. She felt her arms tighten around her, kisses pressed her head and cheek.

They stayed that way for what felt like hours. Y/n broke the silence, tears escaping her. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

Phee pulled away, their arms still wrapped around each other. She reached a hand up to brush some of her wet hair away from her face. She'd already come to accept y/n's a long time ago. It took a lot of time, but she did. She wanted to forgive her. She wanted to put it past them. She just wanted y/n back no matter what. "I will forgive you on one condition."

She nods, licking her lips, a salty taste in her mouth from the tears. "I'll do anything."

"Don't ever leave me again." She stated firmly in a shaky tone, a hand resting over her cheek.

She didn't hesitate to nod, capturing their lips into a kiss. It was too quick to savor but long enough to want more. "I won't. I promise you, baby. I won't ever leave you again."

Later that day, they were laying in bed, Phee curled up into her side, clinging onto her body. She had expected Phee to be more mad at her. But throughout the day, spending time together without any interruptions, it was probably one of the happiest moments she's had in a long time.

It made her a little nervous. Like she was waiting for things to blow up. "Why uh..why haven't you screamed at me yet?"

Phee frowned in confusion, glancing up at her. "I thought we were over this. I forgave you."

"I know but...I expected you to be a little more upset. I mean...I did leave you in France without so much as a goodbye. You're allowed to be mad at me. In fact- I think I encourage it."

She sighs, sitting up to look at her, fingers subconsciously tracing over the tattoo of her name. "I was angry. For months I wanted to scream, I wanted to hate you. Then Geno called. He made me look at it from your perspective. I realized a lot in that time. All the pain you were going through and how the ACL was just your breaking point. I understand why you left. It hurt, but I came to accept it."

She pressed a kiss to her head, pulling her back into her arms. Grateful to have a girlfriend so understanding and forgiving. "I'm so sorry I put you through all this. I didn't mean anything I said that night. You're more than enough for me. You've always been enough. I'd be nothing without you. I love you, Phee. I always have."

Phee smiled softly, sniffling before placing a kiss over cheek. "I love you too." She placed her head back over her chest, y/n resting her eyes as she gazed over her body. She observed the surgical scars on her knee. She couldn't help but think of all the pain she must've have gone through all by herself. "I don't ever want you to feel that again," she whispered, finger trailing over the scars.

"I know baby."

"No, I'm serious." She glanced back up at her, meeting those curious eyes. "You don't ever have to go overseas again."

She reached over, cupping her jaw, always so delicate with her touch. "What are you talking about?"

"Do you remember that conversation we had the night before the injury?"

Of course she did. She remembered all important little conversations with her girlfriend. "Yeah. What about it?" Phee smiled, unable to contain her excitement. "It's real, well, it'll be real on July 6th. Me and Breanna founded it. It's a 3v3 league. It's exactly like you talked about."

She blinked, trying to digest all of this information. "I'm sorry...you created a league for me?"

She nods, "yeah. That way you don't ever have to overwork your body going overseas." She pulled her into a hug, Phee smiling as she buried her face into her neck. She pressed a kiss to her head, "I love you so much, Phee."

She pulled away to reach over into her bedside table, pulling out a wooden box with their initials carved into it. Phee furrowed her brows, sitting up to get a better look. "What's that?" Y/n set it in her hand, "open it." She smiled and pulled open the box, eyes widening at the ring inside. Her eyes immediately found y/n's, "will you marry me, Napheesa Collier?"

She squealed, nodding her head and tackling her into a hug, repeating "yes" a million times. She brought her into a kiss before taking the box into her hand and pulling out the ring. Phee eyed all the details with interest. "So, it's supposed to resemble a shooting star. Ya know, 'cause you're my very own shooting star," she winked playfully.

Phee giggled, pressing a kiss to her cheek. "You're so cute."

"I uh- I got it made last year, 'cause I knew when I came back to you, I didn't want you to just be my girlfriend anymore. I wanted to call you my wife. My beautiful wife." She spoke as she slid the ring onto her finger, some tears rolling down Phee's cheeks.

Phee brought her into a kiss, a longer, but soft and passionate one. As she did that, she shifted onto her lap, needing to be closer and closer to her. "What's it called?" Y/n asked as they pulled away for air, fingers slipping under her hoodie to touch her skin.

"Unrivaled."

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