The next couple of days for Lance have been exhausting and insightful all in the same vein. Annie and his mother, upon learning of his amnesiac state, spent the next three days fussing over him and retelling countless stories of their past with accompanying picture in an effort to stimulate his memory. One's he never had, and while exasperating, trying to deal with their almost excessive care combined with Annie's relentless teasing. The pictures and stories they have been practically force feeding Lance have been incredibly helpful.
Unfortunately, the information about the previous Lance, even with his mother and sisters nicer, doctored versions, is less than positive.
It seems that Lance and his family are from the south of America, specifically Texas, and having lived their till recently. His father, a military veteran, passed away in the line of duty when Lance and Annie were thirteen, leaving their mother to take care of them by herself. Struggling to keep up with the economic burden of having two children along with managing the medical bills that come with their families rare genetic disease, Chromaplex Erythropigmentia (this is not a real condition), she found herself home less and less often.
This condition, passed down from their mother, is what led to Lance and Annie's pink hair and tall height. However, it also comes with a plethora of medical issues that, can be outgrown from after puberty occurs, can be very expensive to manage treat.
Even after growing out of them, patients with this condition are still more sensitive to sunlight light making them naturally pale along with more sensitive adrenal responses leading to heightened hormonal responses when stimulated.
Lance, becoming jaded by his father's death and mother's absence, began to get mixed in with the wrong crowd getting involved with what can only be considered gang activity down in the Houston area. This lifestyle led to Lance turning cold to his mother and sister, often disappearing for days at a time.
Eventually, right after Lance had turned sixteen, his mother received a call that Lance was hospitalized with serious wounds having been shot. Arriving at the hospital, Annie and his mother saw that Lance had been shot three times in the abdominal area, surviving through sheer luck and the timely assistance of a good Samaritan.
The siblings mother, knowing that if something did not change she would lose her son too, made the decision to move her family to Japan through a program called The Special Physical Aptitude Relocation Program. This program would allow the Moss family to move to Japan with an expenses covered move and free school tuition for the kids. The catch, the family is required to stay for five years and can apply for receive dual citizenship at the end of the term.
Without consulting the siblings, their mother made the decision and moved the family with an otherworldly level of haste. Not long after the move did Lance run square into a car, leading to the present.
After another full day of pampering and finally being able to convince his family that he is okay. Lance finds himself in his room late at night. A deep sigh escapes his lips as he looks at himself in the mirror, seeing the bullet scars that are sit on the right side of his abdomen.
While he had noticed these beforehand, having lived in Japan in his previous life, Lance was not sure as to what they were. However, he definitely did not expect them to be bullet wounds or that Lance used to be an ex gangster.
'Ha, I should just be fortunate that this guy didn't get any crazy tattoos.'
As that self deprecating thought echoes through his mind, the silence of his dark room seems to stretch on infinitely as hundreds of thoughts churn through inside his head.
'It makes sense why Annie was so hostile and mom was shocked when I called her, well, mom.'
It seems to be a night of self deprecating sighs as another one rolls out between Lance's lips as he recalls how fervently his family had taken care of him when they learned of his 'amnesia'. All that care even despite how the old Lance's poorly treated them.
'It's only been a couple days, but it feels like I've known them forever. How could this asshole ever disregard them so cruelly? Ah, whatever. I'm not him and won't ever be.'
As a firm oath consolidates within his mind, Lance finally turns his attention away from the tumultuous and complex issues of his past and familial relations. Instead directing his attention back over to the topic of basketball and how he will spend the next two monthes before school starts.
'Annie said she'd take me to the gym she found around here tomorrow. That'll be good to finally start getting used to this body and get it basketball ready.'
An ironic scoff pops out of Lance as he shakes his head in mild humor thinking that he'd have to get this behemoth of a body, basketball ready.
'I really need to improve my acceleration, speed and vertical. Only after I've gotten those to a solid level and get a better grasp on my coordination will I pick up a ball.'
While it might seem strange to put such a heavy emphasis on physical specs while ignoring the the other aspects of basketball, but in Lance's position it is not all that odd. The reason behind this decision is simply due to Lance's current lack of body control.
Many people argue about what makes a great athlete and what exactly distinguishes someone talented from not. Lots speculate it is a natural knack for their sport, not a wholly incorrect assertion but doesn't answer why some top athletes who have never played a sport can pick up a different one with such quick speed.
Others think it is being athletic or physically ideal for a sport or position, but this isn't correct either. There are many big, corn fed boys who are the perfect archetype to be successful linemen in football but never will be.
The real distinction of genius, in an athletic sense, is body control. Body control is confused often for physical fitness or ideal physique but it is different. Body control is what separates athletes from freaks. To see an example, one simply needs to turn on the television and go watch their favorite superstar play or look up a highlight reel.
There are many parts that make a champion or superstar: mentality, hard work, passion. But without proper body control, those people would never have reached the heights they did.
As hard of a pill that is to swallow, no one knows it better than the old Lance. The short kid who worked harder than nearly everyone else, making it farther than anyone thought possible. But, eventually, he reached a point where the people were so far above him and to far ahead to close the gap, but not this time. Not with this body.
Lance has noticed over the past couple of days as he has acclimated to this body, that it possesses that monstrous level of innate body control. The only problem, he simply isn't, one, coordinated enough to access it yet and, two, his body isn't good enough to make full use of it.
Sure, he is more then strong enough. Hell, even today, he let his mind wander and accidentally bent his fork during dinner today. A metal fork. Bent from merely a mindless expression of his strength. The look Annie and his mom gave him still elicits a light chuckle out of him.
'This body is has the potential, I can feel it. I'm just not used to it yet, but it has more, a whole lot more, before it reaches anywhere close to it's peak.'
As that thought crosses his mind a surge of excitement and adrenaline course through his veins like fire. His fist clenches as Lance looks forwards to see how far he can push himself. To show everyone what someone with a work ethic can do when given the keys to a supercar.
'This is going to be a long, fun, summer.'