Rebound: A 2nd Chance

Kyle scratched his head in embarrassment as he pulled away from Kyle "You're right hehe. I was probably being just a bit dramatic."

Jason just shook his head as he stuck his fist out toward Kyle "Then again it's moments like this that make you Kyle."

Kyle smiled brightly as he pounded Jason's fist back with his own "So what brings you over here? Were you talking about something important with Tory?

Sorry if I interrupted anything. I just got really excited from seeing you for the first time in a few days."

Tory looked like she didn't know what to say. Her mouth kept on opening and closing and yet she couldn't find any words to spit out.

Jason reached up and flicked one of the drooping pink bunny ears that were attached to the top of Kyle's headphones.

"It was nothing. Tory was just showing me one of her highlights from her Judo meets. She actually knocked the poor girl out with her hip throw."

Tory seemed revitalized as she hopped on to Jason's story with a bit too much enthusiasm. She flexed her bicep and slapped her muscle a few times.

"Hahaha! You know me. Sometimes I forget how weak and fragile some girls are. I guess I just got used to having my dad as a training partner hahaha!

Did I mention that I have some pretty sweet muscles? Wanna check them out?" She began to do all sorts of weird body builder poses as she flexed all of her muscles.

Jason face palmed before turning to Kyle "I actually came over to hang out and spend some time with you. Let's head over to your room."

Kyle took another look at Tory as she continued to flex her muscles. He then looked to Jason with a confused expression on his face "Sure...."

Jason and Kyle both used their crutches as they made their way to Kyle's room. Jason felt strangely familiar as he was greeted with Kyle's collection of anime and video game related figures and stuffed toys.

Jason took a seat on the edge of Kyle's bed before laying down slowly "So who were you talking to?"

Kyle just laughed before taking off his headset "Oh I was talking to one of my guildmates. We were supposed to clear a high level dungeon today but we ended up wasting our ticket.

How about you? I'm guessing that you and Tory weren't just talking watching her old highlights."

Jason nodded his head as he grabbed a manga from the shelves that were placed above the head of Kyle's bed.

He began flipping through it as he answered "It was nothing bro. She was just showing me some of the stuff that these sports talk show hosts are saying."

Kyle just nodded his head as he sat on his computer chair "Oh so that's what is was." Jason looked away from the manga as he turned his head toward Kyle.

"Hmm? You're actually taking this really well. No offense but I'm kinda surprised." Kyle looked at Jason questioningly "Surprised? Why are you surprised?"

Jason closed the manga as he laid it down beside him "Well you know... Normally whenever some negative comments pop up about me or the team people normally get all wide eyed.

They start getting defensive and say a whole bunch of stuff while caring too much about what those people said."

Kyle shook his head as he leaned back into his chair "Well you kind of have a point. I'm pretty sure that's what I was doing before.

But after spending so much time with you I kinda realized that it was a waste of time. Why should I care so much about what other people are saying when the person that they're talking about doesn't even care?

I guess that's why my reaction is so lukewarm I guess." Jason smiled as he nodded his head. He looked at Kyle.

"You're finally starting to get it man. Next thing you know you're gonna be the dude that doesn't care what anyone says about him. The kind of dude that just bleeds out self confidence."

Kyle had been sipping some water from his cup. When he heard Jason say that he almost spat out the water from his mouth.

He started coughing as he choked on some of the water "Cough cough! Slow it down man. I think you're making a big jump out of nowhere.

Just because I don't care what other people say about you doesn't meant that I don't care what people say about me.

The limits of my self confidence end with me asking the workers how long it will take for a table for four.

I don't think I could survive people shitting on me the way that they do to you. If it ever happened I think that I would have to just buy a cabin and go completely off the grid."

Jason started laughing after he heard Kyle say that "Don't be so hard on yourself man. You should never say never.

Just take a look at you right now. At the beginning of the year did you ever see yourself being on the basketball team and winning a county title?"

Kyle thought about it for a moment before shrugging his shoulders "I guess you have a point.

But it still seems like a crazy idea for me to transform into the same type of person that you are."

Jason went back to reading the manga from Kyle's collection while Kyle would occasionally answer any questions that Jason had while playing his game on his computer.

"So why does he have to go to the beach while he's supposed to be training to defeat an ancient demon?"

"That's because the beach offers him the chance to train in sand. Being in the sand trains different parts of his muscles that he normally wouldn't be using."

"That doesn't really make that much sense. He had to drive for like two hours to get to the beach. 

That's a lot of time to be wasting when you're supposedly in a hurry to get as strong as possible for a battle with an ancient demon.

If he really wanted to train in sand so much he could have just bought some sand from a Home Depot or a Lowes and made his own sandbox in his backyard."

Kyle slammed his mouse down "That is blasphemy! How the hell would you get your mandatory beach chapters in!?

Where the hell would you put in the fan service? Are you going to have girls wearing bikinis at the sandbox in some dudes house? That's crazy talk." 

Jason paused for a second "So all of that was just an excuse to have girls in bikinis?" Kyle didn't say a word as an awkward silence began to grow.

After a few minutes Kyle tried to change the topic "So have you been in touch with any of the other guys?

Everyone was bummed after the loss to High Bridge but I think that they're all more or less okay at this point.

In fact I think that they're most worried about you. You completely went ghost after the game.

You had that one interview at the end of the game, you talked with everyone in the locker room, and then after you got home you were impossible to get a hold of.

If it wasn't for your parents then we might have called the police thinking that you were dead or something."

Jason shook his head "I haven't talked to anyone yet. You and Tory are the first people that I've spoken to besides my parents in the last few days."

Kyle looked at Jason with a worried expression on his face "Does that include.... Sammy?" Jason dropped the manga that he was reading after he heard Kyle say that.

The manga landed on Kyle's bed as Jason's mouth dropped. After a few seconds he managed to speak "Y-yeah."

Another awkward silence grew between the two as they didn't know what to say. Jason finally spoke out.

"I think I messed up Kyle. Let's plan a get together for today. We can get all of the guys to come and tell Sammy to invite her friends again."

Kyle hurriedly nodded his head as the two of them pulled out their cellphones and began sending some texts and making some calls.