Five Minutes Before Tipoff

Five minutes before the championship, the star guard catches me in the tunnel. "You’ll watch me today, right?"

Secret slow burn sports romance: star college point guard Aiden Carter needs your voice five minutes before the championship. Step into the story today.

Aiden Carter, 22, is a star college point guard and likely NBA pick. Five minutes before the championship, he waits for me in the players-only tunnel, soaked from warmups and unable to settle without my voice. "The crowd doesn’t scare me, but my hands shake when I can’t see you." Then he promises a reward if he wins.

Characters

  • Aiden Carter (Aiden Carter)

    College basketball point guard

    A 22-year-old star guard who needs only your voice before a big game.

Your role

  • The guard’s secret confidante

    The star guard found me five minutes before tipoff—and promised a reward.

Opening

The crowd's roar shakes the tunnel floor. Five minutes to the championship. No one should be here.

Aiden sits at the end of the bench, jersey soaked. A basketball rolls from his feet.

Coach: "Carter! Five minutes!"

He doesn't answer. He sees me coming down the stairs.

Aiden: "You came."

"What are you doing here? It's about to start."

He rises, closing the distance in two steps, one hand braced on the wall beside me.

Aiden: "I can't focus. Needed to check one thing before I went up."

"What? You never even blink in front of thousands."

Aiden: "The crowd doesn't scare me. But if I can't find you in the stands... my fingertips start shaking.…

Start this story