Chapter 49 He's Free to Condemn Me as He Wishes
Chapter 49 He's Free to Condemn Me as He Wishes
"He plays basketball as a hobby. Even if he doesn't play anymore, he can still go home and squander money. You play basketball for a living and to earn money. Besides, it's just a tryout. No one knows if you’ll make the team.” Sydney looked at the boy with eyes full of pity. "You poor, poor thing."
"Y-You!" The boy's mother went ashen with anger.
Jayden watched Sydney snub them with a calm face. He felt incredibly satisfied when he saw them choke with anger and turned pale.
Seeing her coming toward him, he shivered and almost rushed forward, pulling her coat sleeves and begging in a small voice, "I really want to play basketball. Don't let Hunter take me away. Let me take part in the tryout.”
"When did I say I’ll let Hunter take you away?” Sydney tilted her head at him. "Or do you want to leave with him?"
Jayden was stunned. "T-Then why is he...?”
"He drove me here."
"Oh.” Jayden patted his chest. "I thought he was here to drag me back. That scared me to death."
Sydney ignored him and went over to shake hands with the coach. "Hello, I'm Jayden's sister. I'm sorry. I was busy at the office, so I could only come over now."
"It’s okay since you're here now."
After shaking hands, the coach brought the contract to Sydney. "Jayden is a great talent. He'll definitely pass the tryout! Don't worry about him and just leave him to me. I'll take good care of him."
Sydney smiled. "I'm assured by your words."
She flipped through the contract and was just about to sign, but the parents behind her shouted, "I watched them play basketball earlier. Jayden's skills are mediocre and not as good as my son's. Why should he participate in the tryout?"
"Yeah, I also saw that he didn't play well!"
The coach calmly explained to the parents, "I'm the coach, so I know better than you how the students are playing. Jayden is a good player..."
"Oh, you always praise him. I've never seen you praise anyone else." Another parent said, "You're making us feel that it's unfair.”
"Exactly. Would you want our sons if they’re not good at basketball?"
"Coach, did his brother talk to you beforehand?" a parent asked. The implication in her words was crystal clear.
"You... That's rubbish!" Jayden almost cussed. His teeth gnashed when he spoke in anger, "I'm just good at playing basketball. What has that got to do with my brother? Don't slander me!"
"We don't think you play very well either, Jayden." Several boys who signed the tryout contract also chimed in.
"Hey, you guys..." The coach was afraid that saying something would start a war.
Seeing the coach’s frustrated and helpless look, Sydney narrowed her eyes and put down the pen. She shouted at Jayden, "Jayden, since your classmates think you can't play basketball, why don’t you have a match?"
She also looked at the boys. "Best of three. How does that sound?"
"Bring it on!" They were also picked by the national team coach and their skills were nothing to sniff at, so they were naturally unafraid to play with Jayden.
"Great." Sydney looked at the coach apologetically. " I'm going to have to keep you a little longer.”
The coach saw Sydney mediate the scene and sighed in relief. "It's okay. I also want to observe them again and see which position they’re best suited for."
Soon, the coach arranged the number of people on both sides and their respective positions.
Sydney took a towel for Jayden to wipe his hands. "
Play well. If you win, I'll help you sign the tryout contract. If you lose, we'll be ashamed together, and you might get a slap when you go home."
Then, she added, "If you lose, they'll think that they're right and you can only join the tryouts using connections. You'll also embarrass your brother.”
"I won’t let my brother be humiliated." Jayden's eyes were firm and full of enthusiasm. "I’ll definitely win!"
It was just a game between classmates, but Sydney saw a touch of fervor in the teenager’s eyes. It was like he did not just think of basketball as a hobby but as a wonderful part of his life.
The Julien Flint she met was always calm and restrained, dealing with everything in an orderly manner, while the teenager in front of her was full of enthusiasm.
The teenager seemed like a different side to Julien.
Sydney suppressed the emotions in her heart and said softly, "Go on. I hope you don't make me come here for nothing."
Jayden nodded and soon entered the field.
Sydney walked to the parents and curled her lips in a smile. "The kids will be playing for some time and there's a coach watching. Why don’t we play cards in the meantime? We won't gamble money and just play for fun. How about it?"
The parents present also quite liked to play cards.
Their hands started to itch at her words.
Someone asked, "Are you good at cards?"
"So-so. I haven’t played for a long time, so my skills are probably rusty." Sydney looked back at the parents and counted the number of people with her eyes. "It seems we don't have enough people. Alright, how about I play with three tables alone?”
"What? Are you joking?" That parent laughed at Sydney. "Your skills are 'so-so' but you want to play against nine of us? Are you crazy?"
The smile on the corner of Sydney's mouth was shallow. "Let's give it a try. I might end up winning a round or two."
The parents laughed loudly at those words.
"Sure. If you want to play against the nine of us, then we'll humor you!" A parent said, "But there are no tables to play on. What should we do?"
Hunter followed Sydney in and had been listening quietly from the side. He did not expect Sydney to be so bold as to go behind Julien’s back and come as a parent to help Jayden sign the basketball team’s tryout contract.
He also quietly recorded a video while Sydney was talking to Jayden.
When Hunter saw Sydney asking to play cards with the parents, he was smart enough to guess what Sydney was up to. He found it deeply amusing, so he
dialed a number and then said, "I got someone to send the tables over. They'll arrive in three minutes."
Three minutes later, the transport workers carried three tables and sets of chairs into the hall.
The parents were shocked at the rapid action.
Since Sydney would be playing at three tables alone, the tables were placed in a triangle. RêAd lat𝙚St chapters at Novel(D)ra/ma.Org Only
She sat in the middle of the tables and shuttled back and forth between the tables. Her face was calm and not the least bit flustered.
To the side, Hunter started recording another video again. He pointed the camera at Sydney playing cards and suddenly said, "Jayden has to help out in Flint Corporation in the future. Aren't you afraid that his brother will blame you for signing the tryout contract for him and letting him play basketball?"
"He’s free to condemn me as he wishes." Sydney threw a card out and kicked her feet, wheeling the chair to another table. "He doesn't have a good impression of me anyway. Besides, he has to reflect on himself."
"Oh?" Hunter raised his brows. "Reflect on what?"
Sydney said faintly, "Reflect on how he's supposed to act as an older brother. Watch how Jayden wants to live his life. Don't wait until something happens before he regrets it.”
"You’re absolutely right, Ms. Raines. I agree." Hunter seconded the motion.
After he recorded the video, he opened WhatsApp, sent both videos to Julien, and then typed a message.
[HunterCohen: Tsk, your ex-wife is bad*ss. She’s playing against nine others at once.”
Julien was in his office. After receiving Hunter’s message, he opened it up and saw the text message first. His eyes darkened slightly.