Basketball

## Meta

**Timing:** Immediately after "Breathe"

**Setting:** Tang clan compound, somewhere in Mainland China

## Text

The aide's come for her tray and gone and Blossom's made it one page in the book (a fifteenth-century travel journal to Laputa) when panic rises back up her throat and she curls in on her stomach.

"Are you okay?" asks a shadow with a basketball.

Blossom looks up, most likely puffy-eyed and blotchy. "I'm pregnant."

A second person, wearing—shuttershades?—bends over, addresses her stomach. "Yo, kid, stop freaking your mom out."

"Please don't talk to it."

"Is the father dead?" asks—

The first person overhands the ball.

—a third person, catching it.

"I don't even know if there /**is** a father."

All three people question.

Blossom clears her throat. "I'm pregnant with someone's science experiment and I don't even know if it's human."

"Ooooh," realize all three people in unison.

"That was almost us," says Two.

"The science experiment," amends Three, tossing the basketball. "Not the pregnant part."

One catches it, looks pointedly at Two.

"I wasn't pregnant!" Two snatches—

One dodges, tosses to Three.

Three catches. "Your girlfriend almost was."

"That was one time!" Two grumbles, "Now I know what condoms are, no thanks to you assholes."

Three throws back to—

One plucks the ball from the air. "None of which is to say—"

Two grabs—

One feints, passes to Three—

Three makes a mighty leap, catches it.

"We have any idea what you're feeling."

"I have no idea what I'm feeling either." Blossom's stomach rolls. "I think—" Curls in on herself—

One and Three freeze.

Two squeaks, "Is it the baby?"

"—I'm going to be sick." Grimaces. "It's morning sickness."

Three, Two, and One exhale.

"I-I need to go inside." Blossom jabs the button Liu left.

"D'you want water—"

"Or antacid—"

"Ginger tea, maybe?"

Nurse Wei skids into view, pants, "What can I do for you?"

Blossom clutches her stomach. "'m gonna be sick."

"Ooo, let's get you back inside." Nurse Wei giggles. "I'll drive carefully."

"Thanks," whimpers Blossom.

## Original Text

"Are you okay?" asks a person with a basketball.

Blossom looks up, most likely puffy-eyed and blotchy. "I'm pregnant."

"Is the father dead?" asks—

The first person overhands the ball.

—a second person, catching it.

"I don't even know if there /**is** a father."

A third person, wearing—shuttershades?—bends over, addresses her stomach. "Yo, kid, stop freaking your mom out."

"Please don't talk to it."

All three people question.

Blossom clears her throat. "I'm pregnant with someone's science experiment and I don't even know if it's human."

"Ooooh," realize all three people in unison.

"That was almost us," says Three.

"The science experiment," amends Two, tossing the basketball. "Not the pregnant part."

One catches it, looks pointedly at Three.

"I wasn't pregnant!" Three snatches—

One dodges, tosses to Two.

Two catches. "Your girlfriend almost was."

"That was one time!" Three grumbles, "Now I know what condoms are, no thanks to you assholes."

Two throws back to—

One plucks the ball from the air. "None of which is to say—"

Three grabs—

One feints, passes to Two—

Three makes a mighty leap, catches it.

"We have any idea what you're feeling."