THE HOWL BENEATH THE RIM

The first rumor was that the anonymous writer had to be a professor. The second was that it had to be a woman who had already experienced heartbreak. By the third month, every student at Hawthorne University had their own theory. Every Friday night at exactly 11:59 p.m., a new chapter of the online romance Midnight Between Us appeared. Students skipped parties to read it. Basketball players refreshed the page during halftime. Even professors quietly quoted lines from it. Nobody knew who wrote it. Nobody. * "You cried." "I did not." "You absolutely cried." "Noah Carter laughed as he elbowed his best friend." "You closed the tab when I walked in." Ryan Hayes folded his laptop shut. "I wasn't crying." "You highlighted a paragraph." "I liked the writing." "Liar." Ryan rolled his eyes. "I appreciate good storytelling." Noah smirked. "You appreciate kissing scenes." Ryan shoved him. "Shut up." Their laughter echoed through the men's basketball locker room. Outside, the arena buzzed with excitement. Two days. Only two days until the National College Showcase. NBA scouts. Former NBA legends. Sports journalists. Every major sports network. One game. One chance. Ryan Hayes had dreamed about it since he was seven years old. His father reminded him every morning. "The NBA isn't a dream." "It's your obligation." * Coach Daniels clapped loudly. "Listen up!" The room became silent. "I don't care who comes to watch." "I don't care how many cameras." "You play your game." His eyes stopped on Ryan. "You lead." Ryan nodded. "I will." Coach smiled. "I know." Practice began. The gym exploded with squeaking sneakers. Ryan stole passes. Blocked shots. Perfect footwork. Step-back jumper. Swish. Another..! Another…!! Another….!!! And it definitely became a pattern. Even his teammates stopped to admire him. Noah whistled. "Bro..." "You're terrifying today." Ryan caught the ball again. "I'm not leaving this campus without hearing my name called on draft night." Across the hall... The women's team practiced. Coach Melissa sighed. "Again!" The players groaned. "Seriously?" One of them pointed. "Coach, why is she even here?" Laughter spread. Standing alone beneath the basket... A girl quietly picked up loose basketballs. Dark curls. Deep brown skin, wearing an oversized practice hoodie. Her scholarship shoes were so worn that the white rubber had turned gray. She didn't complain. Didn't answer. Didn't even look up. Instead... She solved a calculus equation in a notebook balanced against the wall. Coach Melissa blinked. "Luna..." The girl looked up gently. "Yes, Coach?" "You've got practice." Luna Brooks closed the notebook. "Sorry." One teammate whispered loudly enough for everyone to hear. "Maybe she'll calculate how to make a layup." The gym erupted with laughter. Another girl added... "Scholarship girl probably thinks basketball has equations." More laughter. Luna simply smiled. "I'm still learning." "Oh please." "You've been learning for two years." Someone threw her the ball. Unfortunately she missed the catch as expected. More laughter. Only one player didn't laugh. Victoria Sterling. Team captain. Beautiful and Confident. She is Ryan Hayes' girlfriend. She crossed her arms. "Run laps." Luna frowned. "But Coach didn't" "I said..." Victoria stepped closer. "Run." Coach Melissa opened her mouth... ...then closed it again. Luna lowered her eyes. "Okay." She started running. ****** Three buildings away... Philosophy 301. Professor Grant adjusted his glasses. "Today's topic..." "Is hatred ever inherited?" Ryan leaned back confidently. "Absolutely." The professor nodded. "Explain." Ryan answered without hesitation. "Children become reflections of their parents." Several students nodded. The professor smiled. "And can that reflection change?" Ryan shrugged. "Why would it?" A quiet voice came from the back. "Because mirrors don't have souls." The room turned. That was Luna. Professor Grant smiled warmly. "You disagree?" She nodded. "I do." Ryan sighed. "Of course." The professor gestured. "Go ahead." Luna stood. "My mother taught me that hatred is borrowed." "If you keep borrowing it… It becomes impossible to remember which feelings were actually yours." Silence. Ryan chuckled. "That's poetic. It isn't realistic." She looked directly at him. "Maybe reality disappoints you because you've never questioned what you were taught." The room gasped. Ryan narrowed his eyes. "You don't even know me." "No." "I know your words." "And your words sound borrowed." Noah whispered... "Dude..." "She got you." Students laughed softly. Ryan's jaw tightened. "You think you're smarter than everyone." Luna calmly packed her notebook. "No." "I just think intelligence sounds quieter than arrogance." Professor Grant smiled into his coffee. "Excellent discussion” he concluded. Ryan wasn't smiling. After class... Ryan caught up to her. "Hey." She kept walking. "I'm talking to you." She stopped. "What?" "You embarrassed me." "You embarrassed yourself." "I wasn't finished talking." "I was." She turned away again. Ryan frowned. "You really think you're better than me?" She smiled sadly. "I think we're both pretending." He blinked. "What does that even mean?" She looked at him for a second... ...almost as if she wanted to tell him something. Instead... She whispered, "I hope you never find out." Then she walked away. *** That evening... Ryan arrived home. The Hayes Mansion overlooked the entire city. Luxury cars. Private security. Marble floors and every luxury essentials you can assume. His father, Richard Hayes, stood in the dining room. "You were seen talking to that Brooks girl." Ryan frowned. "So?" His mother's expression hardened. "She's trouble." "You don't know her." His father placed his fork down. "We know enough." Ryan scoffed. "You've never even met her." His father stared at him. "There are people...whose blood only brings problems. You'll understand a lot of things when you grow up. Sometimes it's not about Age” Ryan looked uncomfortable. His parents weren't simply wealthy. They were respected and extremely powerful. Owners of one of the largest cosmetic companies in the country. Business partners with the Sterling family. Everything, including his relationship with Victoria had already been planned. As both were seen and assumed to be heir to empires someday by both families. His future, his career, his marriage. Everything was actually planned. * Meanwhile, across town... Luna unlocked the tiny apartment she shared with her mother. "Mom?" Are you home..? No answer. She found a note. "Working late." "There's soup…Love you forever." Luna smiled faintly. Then... She heard scratching. Not outside. Inside. Her smile disappeared. "...Hello?" Silence. She slowly walked toward her bedroom. The scratching stopped. She opened the door. Nothing. Except... Five deep claw marks across her bedroom wall. Fresh. Her breathing became uneven. "I..." "I don't remember doing that..." She touched them. Her fingertips trembled. Then... Blood. Tiny drops of blood stained her own fingernails. Her eyes widened. "What… what's going on…what…” "...is happening to me?" She said faintly. * Two nights later. Around 11:47 p.m. Ryan left the gym after extra shooting drills. The campus was nearly empty. His phone buzzed. It was his girlfriend, Victoria. "Where are you?" He ignored it. Another message. "Dad wants to discuss Saturday after dinner." He sighed. Then... He heard faint footsteps behind him. He turned. He saw nothing. Again another step. Closer. "Who's there?" Silence. All of a sudden, a masked figure lunged from the darkness. Ryan barely reacted. The knife plunged into his side. Pain exploded through his body. He staggered backward. Another attacker appeared, then another. There became three in number and kind of seemed to know him very well. One whispered, "Break his hands." "No NBA." "No future." Ryan swung wildly. A punch landed. Another knife flashed. Blood splashed onto the pavement. Ryan collapsed. His vision blurred. "So..." "This..." "...is how it ends..." One attacker lifted the blade. "Finish him." Then... A terrifying howl shattered the night. Not human. Not animal. Something... ...older. The attackers froze. Did you hear that? One of them said. "What was…" A dark figure burst from the trees with impossible speed. Bones cracked. A scream echoed. One attacker flew several meters before crashing into a parked car. Another disappeared into the darkness. The last dropped his knife and ran. Ryan blinked weakly. The moonlight illuminated the stranger . Long dark curls. Shaking hands. Golden... Glowing... Eyes. "L..." "Luna...?" She looked horrified. "No..." "No..." "Please don't look at me..." She grabbed him before he hit the ground. Her strength was impossible. She held him as though he weighed nothing. Ryan stared into her glowing eyes. His voice barely escaped. "You..." "... really saved me..." Buh…who are you… How did…you… he stammered. A single tear rolled down her cheek. Then she whispered the words that would haunt him forever. "I always hurt the people I try to save..." And somewhere deep in the forest... Something answered her howl.