OUR THREE POINTS
Title: Our Three Points
Author: Tachida Shuri
E-mail: kimichan05@edsamail.com.ph
Series: Slam Dunk
Disclaimer: I own Slam Dunk! Oh, gomen. I DO NOT own Slam Dunk.
Warning: YAOI… and SPOILERS...
Rating: Uhm... PG-13?
Genre: Romance and Action? I think so.
Suggestion: Listen to "Sekai Ga Owaru Made Wa" while reading this.
Teaser: Uhm… it's the game of Shohoku versus Ryonan. It's getting hotter and hotter until the weak points of Shohoku start to show… it's was Kogure's turn as replacement of Mitsui. How can he help the team go to the inter-high?
_____________________________
Current fouls of Shohoku:
Sakuragi, Mitsui : 3 fouls
Miyagi, Akagi : 4 fouls
Rukawa, Kogure : 0 fouls
_____________________________
"Micchy!"
A voice shouted from behind, running towards him.
"Sakuragi," Mitsui thought.
Other people calling his name are everywhere. But he can't find the voice of someone, someone he cares for, someone he expects to be there for everyone of them, including himself.
"K-- Ko..." Mitsui mumbled and lost his consciousness.
"Mitsui! Are you ok?" The voice of Ayako wakes him up after a few minutes. Mitsui opens his eyes and sees her. But he keeps silent. He was looking around for that someone. But the person wasn't anywhere near.
"Mitsui?!" Ayako shouted which made Mitsui go back to his senses, "You just collapsed and fainted during your game with Ryonan. You lost all your stamina. You have to rest."
Mitsui looks around and sees three cans of drinks behind him, which Ayako noticed and asked, "Those are for you. You need to get back the lost water in your body."
Sweating all over, Mitsui gets a can but drops it immediately due to weakness. Kogure suddenly walks into the scene looking tired and helps Mitsui open the can.
"Thanks," Mitsui said, "Uh, Kogure, why do look so... tired?"
"Oh, nevermind me," Kogure replied, "I ran out of the door to find the vending machines for drinks."
"I see," Mitsui says and coughs a couple of times.
"Mitsui! Ayako told us that you didn't take much water. Just drink and rest and you'll be ok," Kogure says with a smile. Mitsui kept silent still. As he sees Kogure run towards the court, he feels as if he lost something important in his life, something he needed most for survival.
"It's a lost," Mitsui thought, "I didn't even care that much then."
"What were you saying?!" Ayako asked in demand hearing Mitsui's words, "What do you mean 'it's a lost'?"
"Did I just say that?" Mitsui asked, "Oh, nevermind. We'll win the game!"
Mitsui takes a seat where Kogure was sitting a minute ago, "I guess he warmed this part of the bench well."
He laughs, then looks up to the ceiling of the venue, he reminds himself of his past years, wasting all his time, and now losing his stamina and everything. He should have been there when they were all practicing, and he was able to be with his best friends...
"Ryonan! Ryonan!" The cheer of the Ryonan fans filled the whole court and even Sakuragi's ears.
"Shut up, you morons! You'll just wait when the true power of Tensai comes!" Sakuragi shouts and laughs after.
"Do-ahou... I can't wait," Rukawa mumbles at his back, sarcastically.
"Damn you, Rukawa! Don't interfere with Tensai Sakuragi!" the red-head said in reply beating his chest.
"Calm down Sakuragi!" the guy with glasses pulled Sakuragi away from Rukawa, "Concentrate on the game, not Rukawa."
"Megane-kun..." the calming face of Kogure was stuck in his head, calming his own mind and spirit.
The game was very close for both teams. They have only one point difference, Shohoku, leading. Sendoh was still the ace of Ryonan, and Rukawa, ace of Shohoku. Since Uozomi was back on the game, Shohoku hasn't made a point, and Sendoh has been getting everything. Mitsui's weakness wasn't bad for Shohoku after all.
Kogure was Mitsui's replacement and he was doing good. The ball was passed to him and was about to make a shot. Unfortunately, Uozomi was guarding him, but...
"Kogure!" Mitsui shouted, "Kogure! You can all do it!"
Those few words went into Kogure's two ears. Hearing it, he shot the ball without Uozumi blocking it.
"Fake!" Haruko exclaimed from the audience seats, sitting with her friends and the Sakuragi gundan.
"Damn!" Uozumi said.
The cheer of Ryonan suddenly stopped, which started Shohoku's. Kogure was happy for the group and didn't mind his own shot at all. Everyone was praising him, but Kogure didn't mind them. He looked at Mitsui who was looking at him, and smiled.
"Thanks for the encouragement, Mitsui-kun," Kogure thought as a big hand hit his back, pushing him forward.
"Megane-kun!" Sakuragi shouted with a wide smile, "Nice shot!"
"That shot?! Eh, it was just luck, that's all..." Kogure said smiling.
Everyone sweatdropped. Akagi went near and asked with a question mark on his head, "It's luck, huh?"
"Uhm, yea, it's just luck," Kogure said with a weak smile on his face glancing at Mitsui after every second..
The game continued. Koshino was holding the ball and passing it to Sendoh. Everyone had a surprised and scared look on their faces. Rukawa starts running, trying to block Sendoh's shot. Unfortunately, but fortunately for Sakuragi, Sendoh passes the ball to Fukuda, guarded by Sakuragi, then Fukuda to Uozumi, guarded by Akagi.
"Don't forget, you already have four fouls. Don't even try what you're thinking," Uozumi threatened Akagi.
Uozumi shoots the ball but Akagi was unable to block him because of the foul threat. But Sakuragi jumps behind Akagi and blocks the ball by himself.
Uozumi's face turned into an angry monkey's. He should have thought of Sakuragi as a good player for once. Ryonan's coach, Taoka, had a bad feeling. "Amature or Genius Sakuragi? How was he able to do that?" The question runs in his head as the game goes on.
The blocked ball was about to be passed to Koshino again. But Kogure, with full energy, got the ball and it's time for Shohoku's offense again.
"If I was there, Kogure might not be able to do that move. It's so good," Mitsui thought, "At least he gets to play before..."
Mitsui stood up with the other players on bench. They all started to cheer for their school's basketball team. "Offense! Offense!" was the only thing heard by the people, as if everyone now are for Shohoku.
"Let's go!" Sendoh tells his teammates, "Defense, guys!"
Sakuragi has got the ball. At first he got two players blocking him. Rukawa was asking him to pass to him but Sakuragi himself shot the ball. He was about to pass to Kogure but he passed to Miyagi, then to Kogure, but the last pass wasn't successful.
"Yoshi!" Uozumi said as he got tha ball back to his team. He passed to Sendoh. The tall-haired guy ran so fast that there was no one guarding him. He shot the ball right away and it's in the hoop before anyone could go near.
A Ryonan cheering started again for a while, but still doesn't beat Shohoku's loudness.
"Darn! Another shot again! I should have also been watching out for that Sendoh," Miyagi thought.
The score is now 65 to 64, one point difference again. The ball's now with Shohoku, Miyagi's got the ball. Two people are guarding him. Since he's got four fouls, he didn't take the risk of charging, instead, he passed to Sakuragi.
Sakuragi on the other hand, played fake on Fukuda and threw the ball to the hoop.
"What?!" Akagi shouted, "Rebound!!"
"I'll get it myself!!" Sakuragi shouted and got the ball, but he shot it again, and made another rebound.
This time, Uozumi got the ball and tried passing to Sendoh, but Sendoh was too far away and Koshino got the ball and passed it. But Koshino slipped and went off-line, hitting a part of his head on the floor.
"Off-line..." Ayako mumbled.
"Don't mind! Koshino-kun!" Hikoichi said pulling Koshino up, "Nice play! Nice play! Don't mind! Don't mind!"
Sendoh smiled at Koshino, "He's not bad, well, he's good," he thought, looking at Koshino stand up again.
The ball was back at Shohoku's hands, in the hands of Sakuragi again. He sees Rukawa being blocked by two Ryonan players.
"Pass to me! Pass to me!!" Rukawa begged Sakuragi.
"Sorry, Rukawa," Sakuragi thought as he passes to the only free guy, Kogure.
"Kogure! He's gonna make it! A three-pointer!" Mitsui said as he stood up, with all of his left energy. His jaws almost dropped on the floor, his smile is becoming wider every millisecond, his eyes were shining as he sees Kogure's perfect body, pushing the ball to the hoop smoothly...
*F-L-A-S-H-B-A-C-K*
"Mitsui Hisashi! The past years' MVP guy!" Kogure happily says in surprise as he sees the famous guy in front of him, "So you're also studying at Shohoku Highschool?"
"Hey, Mitsui, you're that popular, ey?" his friend elbowed him.
"Yeah, so, what's your name, guy?" Mitsui asked the shorter one.
"Kogure Kiminobu. I'm in the basketball team. I hope to see you there too," Kogure replied with a smile.
At the basketball practice, they all announced to the others their goal upon joining the team. Akagi, Kogure and Mitsui's goals were all the same -- to be National Champions. They all did their best while Mitsui just did what he liked that time. He jumps shoots a ball. The ball was in but when Mitsui landed on his feet...
"Aaaaah! My... leg... it's," Mitsui cried.
After that time, Mitsui was never seen playing basketball again... until that faithful day when he came back...
"Mitsui?!" Kogure asked himself, "he's back?"
The long-haired guy became a gangster in the years he didn't play basketball. Now, he's treating the game as something worthless. Kogure was angered for the first time. He grabs Mitsui by his shirt and cries in front of him.
"Mitsui! I thought you're goal was for us to be National Champions? Now look at you!" Kogure shouted.
Mitsui had a feeling of regret, but it didn't last long. He slaps Kogure with his right hand, which was so hard... so hard that Kogure was pushed backwards, and his glasses fell right off.
Anzai walks into the door. At Mitsui's sight of him, he cries tears of regret.
*E-N-D---O-F---F-L-A-S-H-B-A-C-K*
"Kogure," Mitsui mumbled, "He wanted what's good for me. I didn't listen to him, and even hurted him so much. The pain much have been very terrible."
Kogure remembers the same things as the ball travels it's way in the air to the hoop.
"Mitsui was so stubborn then," Kogure thought, "and it was the first and only time I was ever angered so much..."
The ball continues to move in the air...
"What must have been the reason? I shouldn't have even gotten into that much trouble..."
Everyone was staring at the ball as it moves freely in the air. In in a few moments, the ball went down, right into the hoop, not even touching any other thing. Kogure was stunned for a while.
"I... I did it," Kogure thought, "And I thought only Mitsui can do those kinds of shots..."
Ryonan had a charged time-out.
But the loud noises of the audience filled the court. Shohoku is now four points higher than Ryonan's, 68 versus 65. The Shohoku students were cheering at their best, Rukawa cheerers standing like posts, Sakuragi and Mitsui gundans cheering for Kogure, the players congratulating Kogure for the shot, and Haruko's tears wet her eyes.
"We're gonna win..." Haruko said as she wiped the tears, "Sakuragi-kun knows to whom to pass now."
Sakuragi gives Kogure a strong pat on the back to congratulate him, which pushed Kogure forwards to Mitsui.
"Mitsui-kun!" Kogure said with a touch of red on his face.
"You were so great! You did your best, I know! Nice three-pointer!" Mitsui told Kogure one hand holding Kogure's hand, and another ruffling Kogure's hair.
"Thank you, Mitsui," Kogure said, looking away, trying to hide his reddish face.
"Megane! Megane!" the Sakuragi gundan started their cheering for Kogure and his glasses.
The game continued again after the time-out. The Ryonan players are much eager to win in a minute and a few seconds. As they walk side by side, ready to go to the top.
"We'll get this point!" Koshino said. He hurriedly passed the ball to Sendoh, who was being guarded by Rukawa. He does the same thing as before, faded in the eyes of Rukawa, running as fast as the wind. He gets passed Rukawa, then Akagi, then Sakuragi, and he makes the most beautiful shot he ever makes.
"The ball is spinning?!" Mitsui said, eyes widened, sitting still.
Two points again was regained by Ryonan, two points left and they are tied. A few more seconds and the game is over. Miyagi holds the ball and passes it to Sakuragi then to Akagi.
"We'll win. Whatever happens, I know our team can make it," Ayako said.
Akagi makes his shot, twelve to eleven seconds before the time ends.
Fukuda does his move. He jumps and tries to block the ball. Akagi was having no chance against the block.
"Rebound!" Akagi shouted.
And in the eyes of everyone, Sakuragi gets the rebound and shoots it.
"He did it!" Haruko exclaimed and continues to cry her tears, "Sakuragi-kun!"
"Hanamichi!" the Sakuragi gundan shouted as loud as they can.
And in five, four...
The ball falls back into the hands of Ryonan. Uozumi gets the ball.
Three... two...
Shohoku goes into their places at the other side, Ryonan standing still on the other.
One... Zero!
The game has ended! Uozumi drops the ball. After the long match against Ryonan, Shohoku finally won, 70 versus 66. Mitsui stands up rejoicing with the other members. Ryonan starts to cry their eyes out with their four-point loss.
Ayako walks towards Rukawa and does the high-five thing.
"We made it," Ayako said.
"Yes," Rukawa said in a low voice as usual.
Miyagi and Sakuragi are slapping each other's hands again and again, laughing like freaks. Kogure pats Sakuragi's back, congratulating him for his finishing shot. Then he looks at Mitsui, who also looks at him, standing a few meters away. Kogure turns his whole body towards Mitsui, and Mitsui did the same.
Kogure and Mitsui walks towards each other, shyly but with courage, they make their own rejoicing at their corner. One touch of their right hands.
"My first time to touch his hand, even though it's only for a short time, I feel its warmth," Kogure thought.
"It's a great success. We'll report this to Anzai-sensei!!!" Mitsui told Kogure with his widest smile, holding Kogure's right hand as if he doesn't want to let him go.
Kogure blushes. This time, Mitsui sees the red hint on his face. The two just stared into each other's eyes until Sakuragi shouts his victory over Ryonan with his high jump.
"Yeah~!" Sakuragi shouts for a few seconds, as Miyagi walks towards Ayako and Rukawa, Mitsui's hand on Kogure's shoulder, and Sakuragi calls for Akagi to line-up. Akagi remains silent, sniffing. He holds up his hand, wiping his tears away.
"Oniichan..." Haruko whispered, crying with her brother.
"Akagi," Sakuragi says and puts his hand over Akagi, "Let's line-up now, ok?"
They all walk towards the center, towards the lined-up Ryonan players. The other teams get ready for the awarding ceremony. Fujima and Maki of Shoyo and Kainan respectively, look at Sendoh and praise his talent on basketball.
"Sendoh," Fujima mumbles and at the other side, Maki does the same.
The referee does what he should do, and the players too. It was quite obvious that Ryonan are crying their sadness out. But still, determined to win the next year. Akagi and Uozumi walk towards each other and hug and make-up. Their faces turn into happy crying monkeys...
As the awarding procedes, the two people in front of Shohoku team were Kogure, left, and Akagi, right. Behind Kogure was Miyagi, then Rukawa, and behind Akagi was Mitsui, then Sakuragi. The others on bench were behind.
Kainan gets their trophie for the seventeenth time, in the past seventeen consecutive years. And it's now time to award the second best. Kogure walks straight. Sakuragi shouts non-sense stuff while Akagi does his walking.
"Shohoku! The best! Number one!" Sakuragi shouts while Mitsui blocks his two ears with his fingers.
"Stop that! You're humiliating our team!" Akagi shouts, as a blushing monkey, to the red-haired monk.
Shohoku receives their certificate, and they can finally enter the inter-schools competetion. Kogure and Akagi walk back in line.
The next awards were the MVP, Maki, and the top five, Maki, Jin, Akagi, Rukawa and Sendoh.
Mitsui switches places with Miyagi, so that he'll be behind Kogure for a while. With that formation, Kogure and Mitsui tell each other comments on the games.
"Mitsui, you could still have been the MVP now," Kogure said, looking downwards on the floor.
"You could also be there if you weren't on bench for the long time," Mitsui said with a soft chuckle.
"Akagi and Rukawa are great players, ne?" Kogure asked.
"That, I can't answer," Mitsui said, "because..."
"Because what?" Kogure asked smiling sweetly at Mitsui expecting for an answer.
"Uhm, maybe I'll just tell you later," Mitsui said hiding his blushing face.
It was obvious to Kogure that Mitsui was hiding something. But he didn't mind. He knows everything will get better soon between them. Mitsui was thinking otherwise, his problem of telling Kogure what he feels. And with that, the regional game has ended.
Hehe, now I don't you don't wanna watch SD anymore because you read it... anywayz, this isn't the real this that happened. It's an "episode edition" gets? Anywayz, this is my first edited episode, I think it's as lame as my first fic anywayz. I'm still not tha good... *sweatdrops*