Chapter 1 Eighteen and Invincible

⁠✧ Lois Pov ✧

The noise of the gym bleachers always sounded like a huge wave right before the final whistle.

I wiped the sweat from my forehead with the back of my hand. My wristband was damp, and my eyes stayed locked on the girl guarding me. She was breathing hard, her sneakers squeaking against the polished court, but I didn't give her any space to rest.

Basketball wasn't just a game to me. It was the one place where the noise in my head finally went quiet.

A sharp whistle cut through the air.

"Lois! Drive the lane!" Coach shouted from the sidelines, his face red from yelling.

I didn't need him to tell me twice. I moved left, placed my foot firmly on the floor, and cut right so quickly that the defender nearly tripped over her own shoes. Two steps. I jumped into the air and released the ball.

It hit the backboard before dropping straight through the net.

Swish.

The buzzer sounded, signaling the end of the fourth quarter, and the crowd exploded.

"That's my twin! That's my fucking sister!"

I didn't even need to look toward the top row to know who was shouting. Landon's voice could be heard over everyone else.

I looked up and caught him grinning as he leaned dangerously far over the railing, waving his arms like a complete idiot. He was wearing his varsity jacket, the sleeves covered with championship patches.

My cheeks immediately burned. I lowered my shoulders as half the gym turned their attention from me to him.

I hated being in the spotlight. Put me on a court with a basketball in my hands, and I knew exactly what to do. Put a camera or a crowd of cheering people in front of me, and I wanted to disappear.

"Lois, brilliant finish!" my teammate and best friend Priscilla shouted, throwing an arm around my neck and practically dragging me toward the bench. "High school team captain looks good on you, girl."

"Shut up, Priscilla," I muttered with a small smile as I grabbed my water bottle. "I missed two free throws in the second quarter. It was sloppy."

"Will you stop being so damn hard on yourself?"

Landon's voice came from behind me. Before I could turn around, he grabbed me in a tight headlock and rubbed his knuckles over the top of my head until my ponytail came loose.

"Landon, get off me! You're disgusting!" I screamed, pushing him away with both hands.

He threw his head back and laughed, that bright, easy laugh that always made people look his way.

Landon and I were twins, but we couldn't have been more different. I was quiet, reserved, and terrible at conversations, while Landon was impossible to ignore. He was tall, athletic, with messy brown hair and an easy smile that made half the girls in our senior class crush on him.

He had already received a scout offer from one of the best university sports programs in the country.

"I'm disgusting?" Landon asked dramatically, putting a hand over his heart. "I just ran down three flights of stairs to congratulate my shy little twin sister on her game winning shot, and this is how you treat me?"

"I'm older than you by four minutes, you idiot," I said, rolling my eyes as I picked up my gym bag.

"Four minutes of useless seniority," he shot back, putting an arm around my shoulders as we walked toward the locker rooms. "Mom's waiting in the car. And before you ask—yes, she brought the cake."

My heart jumped. "She didn't."

"She did. Eighteen, baby. We're officially adults. Well, legally. Spiritually, you're still a twelve year old who gets nervous talking to the cashier at Target."

"I do not get nervous at Target!" I snapped, my face turning red because he was completely right.

"Right. And I don't dominate the court." He winked as he let go of me at the girls' locker room door. "Hurry up and change, Captain. Birthday dinner awaits."

The drive home in Mom's old SUV was filled with the usual noise that came with living in the Luther household.

Mom was driving, looking at us through the rearview mirror every few minutes. Tears filled her eyes.

"I just can't believe it," Mom said, wiping her eye with a tissue while we waited at a red light. "My babies. Eighteen. It feels like yesterday when I was dragging you two through the mud in the backyard because neither of you would stop playing catch in the rain."

"Mom, please don't cry," I said softly from the back seat, leaning forward and resting my chin on the headrest. "You're going to make me cry, and Landon will never let me hear the end of it."

"Hey, I have feelings too!" Landon protested from the passenger seat, even though he was busy sneaking icing from the bakery box on his lap.

"Landon Carter Luther, keep your fingers away from that cake!" Mom swatted his hand without even looking at him. "Your sister worked hard on that court tonight. We're eating dinner first."

"I was just testing it for poison," Landon grumbled with a grin, rubbing his knuckles.

When we finally got home and walked into the kitchen, the house smelled like Mom's homemade pasta and sweet vanilla frosting.

We didn't have a huge house, and we definitely weren't rich. Ever since Dad left when we were kids, it had been the three of us against the world.

Mom worked double shifts as a nurse to keep us in decent sports gear, and in return, Landon and I gave everything we had to our sports. We were going to make it.

That was the promise we never had to say out loud.

Landon was going to university on a full scholarship, while scouts from the national development program had started coming to watch my high school games.

We sat around the small wooden dining table while the candles on the cake flickered in front of us.

"Make a wish, kids," Mom said softly, her voice full of pride.

Landon looked across the table at me. His hazel eyes, so much like mine, softened. The goofy, confident look he usually wore disappeared, leaving only my brother—the boy who had shared every secret, every bruise, and every dream with me since the day we were born.

"You first, Lo," he said quietly.

I closed my eyes.

I didn't need to think about my wish.

Let us stay like this. Let us both reach the top. Keep us safe.

I opened my eyes, and together, we blew out all eighteen candles in one breath.

"What did you wish for?" Landon asked, stabbing his fork into his slice of cake the second Mom cut it.

"If I tell you, it won't come true, dumbass." I smiled and took a small bite of mine.

"Fine. Keep your secrets." He scoffed playfully before leaning back and resting his elbows on the table. Then his expression became serious.

"You know the national scouts are coming to your regional match next month, right?"

I swallowed, my chest tightening with excitement and fear. "Yeah. Coach mentioned it."

"You're going to destroy them, Lois," Landon said firmly, pointing his fork at me. "You're better than half the players already on that roster. You just need to stop hiding inside your own head. When you're on that court, you're terrifying. Own it."

"Thanks, Lan," I whispered, genuinely touched.

"Don't get emotional on me now." He smirked, ruining the moment almost immediately. "I just need you to get famous so you can buy me a mansion when I retire from the professional leagues."

"In your dreams!"

Later that night, long after Mom had gone to sleep and the house had become quiet, I sat on the window sill in my bedroom, staring at the faint glow of the streetlights.

My room was a mess of basketball trophies, framed medals, and clothes scattered across the floor. Then a quiet knock came at my door. Landon pushed it open without waiting for an answer and walked inside. He tossed a small velvet-wrapped box onto my lap.

"What's this?" I asked, looking up.

"Your actual birthday present," he said, sitting on the edge of my bed. "Not the shared cake stuff."

I opened the box.

Inside was a delicate silver chain with a small whistle pendant hanging from it. I lifted it out and ran my thumb over the smooth metal.

"It's so you remember," Landon said softly. "Before the final whistle blows on any game, you still have time to turn things around. Whenever you feel like giving up or getting scared out there... just look at it."

I looked at my twin brother, the boy who had been my shadow and my support for eighteen years.

I leaned forward and wrapped my arms around his neck, hugging him tightly.

"Thank you, Lan," I whispered into his shoulder.

"Yeah, yeah. Don't make it weird," he mumbled, though he hugged me just as tightly. "Happy birthday, sister."

Everything was perfect.

My life was right in front of me—a clear path of basketball courts, bright lights, national teams, and my brother beside me every step of the way.

We were invincible.

We had no idea the world was about to tear us apart.