Chapter 1

"Hyuuga, could I borrow you a moment?"

The captain of Seirin's team looked up perplexedly at the coach's call, but obeyed after a moment, wiping sweat from his forehead as he moved off the court to the sidelines.

"What's up?" he asked, taking off his glasses to clean one of the lenses on his shirt before replacing them on the bridge of his nose.

"Take a look at Kagami for me…" Riko said, not glancing at him, her eyes focused calculatingly on the player in question as he evaded his opponents - which were, at the moment, merely other teammates - taking a flying leap and delivering the ball like a lethal weapon to its goal.

Concerned for a split-second, Hyuuga tensed and turned his gaze to Seirin's ace as well, but relief loosened his features just as quickly, "He's playing just the same as he always does, what's the problem?"

Riko waved off his casual dismissal quickly, "No, look at his neck."

Hyuuga was, if possible, even more baffled, but he conceded once again and studied Kagami as he sent a blistering pass to one of his allies, turning his head and baring the side of his neck for a moment. At the base of it, just above the juncture of his shoulder, and also just below his ear, were darkened, reddish areas of skin, circular and rather faded, but still visible.

"Are those…?" Hyuuga began.

"Hickies." Riko nodded seriously.

The captain blinked and gave a rather nervous chuckle, "Uh...I was just going to say bruises."

Riko looked at him as if he'd announced that he was going to quit basketball and take up competitive squirrel wrestling. "Who gets bruises that shape - not to mention that dark - in a place like that?"

"...Fair point," Hyuuga muttered, not pleased by the exasperated glare he'd been given, "But what does that have to do with anything? I mean...why is it our business if Kagami has a…?"

"Aren't you curious?" Riko interrupted, tilting her head slightly, "If he's got a girlfriend or something, why hasn't he mentioned it? The guy's not exactly tight-lipped."

"But he can be shy," Hyuuga pointed out, impatient for this bizarre conversation to be over so he could go back to playing and save his teammates, who were currently getting flattened by the unstoppable natural disaster that was Kagami on a roll….mysterious new relationship or no. "Maybe he's embarrassed. What, are you going to ask him who it is?"

Riko looked thoughtful for a moment, tapping her pencil against the side of her clipboard, "Nope," she finally declared, "You are."

"M-me?" Hyuuga stammered, affronted and sure a flush was creeping up his face, "No! I-I don't want any part of it. What do I care if Kagami's hooked up with someone?"

"Well he's the first one of you miserable eggs to actually manage that feat, isn't he?"

Hyuuga found he was questioning the sanity of his coach more with every word out of her mouth. "...This is sounding an awful lot like something that'll only spark gossip to me. That could ruin the trust between team members. Besides, it's not a big deal if Kagami doesn't want to share."

Riko gave a disparaging sigh, "I knew I should have asked someone else...you boys wouldn't get it; even Momoi might have been a better choice."

"Fine, alright?" Hyuuga grumbled, "I'll ask him who it is. Once. I'm not going to hound him, and if he doesn't want to answer, that'll be that."

To his surprise, Riko's face lit up, "Great! Be sure to report back to me with anything you find out."

She's treating this like some huge mystery that's vital to all of our survival to uncover. Hyuuga thought, with an edge of something like mortification.

"Well, what are you standing around for?" Riko said briskly, "You don't have time to chat, get back out there and help your teammates."

….Really? Deciding not to argue, Hyuuga just heaved a sigh and did as he was told, wondering why he subjected himself to this madness when he could play streetball against himself and avoid all the drama.

.

.

Kagami was exhilarated, and couldn't stop smiling to himself as he toweled the sweat from his neck, pleased by how the practice match against his seniors had gone. Thanks largely in part to him, his senpais had been utterly trounced, but that was no easy accomplishment, especially considering he did most of the work himself. Sitting down on the locker room bench, he took a gulp of water from his bottle….and then promptly almost spat it everywhere when Kuroko spoke from right next to him.

"Kagami-kun?"

Recovering from near cardiac arrest at his sudden appearance, Kagami swallowed and turned to face his "shadow", "Yeah?"

"I think Hyuuga-kun wants to speak to you,"

Kagami blinked, "What makes you think that?"

"Well," Kuroko said slowly, "He keeps approaching you and opening his mouth, but then he'll go kind of red and close it again. He seems to be conflicted."

Sounds like it…

"I'll talk to him."

"I think that would be wise," Kuroko nodded, "That kind of rapid blood flow is probably not healthy for him."

Always the observant one. Kagami smirked just slightly, but when he turned to answer his teammate, he'd vanished as suddenly and silently as he'd appeared in the first place. Sighing, he got to his feet and changed quickly into his street clothes, glancing at his watch. Forty-five minutes...I'm cutting it close…

"Hey, Hyuuga-senpai?" he prompted dutifully, catching the captain just as he was edging toward the door, looking like he was retreating.

Hyuuga jumped, and turned to face him, "What is it?"

"Er….I was just wondering if...there was something you wanted to...tell me, or ask me, or something?"

"Wh-why do you ask?" Hyuuga stammered.

Kagami shrugged, "It just looked that way." To Kuroko, but that's not the point.

"Well there was...something I'd been meaning to ask."

"I'm all ears," Kagami muttered. For about ten minutes, tops.

"Well Riko was watching us play today. I mean...she always does, of course but...she was watching you and...she seemed to be under the impression - and this is her talking, not me - "

I've never seen him so nervous… Kagami thought to himself, scratching the back of his neck.

"...That you'd...I dunno….started dating? Gotten into a relationship?" Hyuuga looked at him expectantly, but also as if he was afraid of being zapped by a bolt of lightning Kagami would wrathfully send down on him.

But Kagami did not feel wrathful. The exact opposite in fact, he was taken aback. Was I seen? Were we? Did she hear something from…?

"Uh…" he stalled, considering bolting...or changing his name and fleeing back to America where he would be safe from the revenge of Riko….maybe.

"So I mean, I was just wondering if you wouldn't mind...telling. Who is she?"

Relief washed through Kagami, so powerfully that he almost laughed out loud. "No one. I don't have a girlfriend."

For a second - so briefly that Kagami wondered if he'd imagined it - Hyuuga's eyes narrowed skeptically...stark contrast to his stammering and flushing a moment ago…but he just straightened his glasses and gave a sheepish smile, "Hey, my mistake then. Or...coach's. Sorry for the confusion!" And with entirely too much haste and good cheer to be believable, he clapped Kagami on the shoulder and left.

Kagami waited until after he was out of sight, or hearing distance, and then let out a deep sigh. Well that was weird…

Gathering his things, he followed after, departing from the locker room, and then the school, breaking into a jog because man, was he late. The sun was going down, but it wasn't as cold as it had been the past week - thankfully, as that made running much easier - but he could still see his breath. Winter had not quite loosened its grip yet. To his dismay, when the street corner finally came in sight, the bus was already braking at the stop. Sprinting frantically, he managed to catch up just as the doors were closing, forcing himself between them. Taking a step back so he could dig in his pockets for change, gasping for breath from the exertion of running so quickly, he only managed to fish out a single coin.

"That's not enough fare," the bus driver grunted, eyeing the measly offering.

"Please sir…" Kagami panted, holding out the coin, "I have to be on the other side of Tokyo in twenty minutes…!"

"Sorry, kid, I can't help you…" the man sighed, turning the lever to close the doors again. Kagami started to protest again, but had barely gotten a word out when he was drowned out by a crackle of thunder, rain starting to spatter on his head.

The man looked at him helplessly, switching on the windshield wipers, which promptly flicked more water at him as it started to pour harder. Kagami had resigned himself to either going the shorter distance home to get dry, and calling to apologize...or slogging through the downpour for miles and putting himself at serious risk for pneumonia, when the driver seemed to sigh and the doors sprung back open.

"Alright fine, hop aboard."

Kagami blinked and looked up, "Really?"

"Yeah, but I'm writing you an IOU….as long as you'll stop giving me those puppy-dog eyes and making me feel heartless."

"Th-thank you! I'll pay you back tomorrow, I promise!"

"Yeah, yeah, get out of the rain and sit down before you catch your death."

Kagami nodded rapidly and almost tripped over himself climbing aboard, taking a seat and hugging his soaked, thin Seirin jacket about himself in a futile attempt to get warm.

The ride was short enough, or it seemed that way, and it only rained more viciously the longer Kagami was aboard, sheets of it streaking down the windows as thunder and lightning raged overhead. It was only a matter of time before he had to get off and face the storm, and as the bus driver gave him a curt farewell, he trudged down the sidewalk, shoulders hunched against the wind and driving rain, grumbling to himself about the benefits that would have come with buying a decent umbrella.

When he finally reached his destination, he was completely drenched to the bone and shivering violently, certain he had enough water in his shoes to fill several swimming pools. He raised his hand and knocked on the apartment door, immensely grateful for the balcony above shielding him from getting more wet….though really, it was a moot point. The only way he could be more wet would be if he drowned.

After a minute or two, the door jerked open, at the same time that an irritable voice addressed him through it.

"About time! Every day, somehow you manage to be later than -" Aomine broke off, looking Kagami up and down, something akin to sympathy coming into his dark eyes, "Well shit, you're soaked…"

"Thank you, Sherlock." Kagami quipped dully, "Are you going to let me in, or just admire the scenery?"

"Alright, no need for sarcasm, sheesh." Aomine muttered, stepping aside to invite Kagami into his abode.

"This coming from the king of sarcasm himself. Can I take off my shoes?"

"I should hope so. You'll be lucky if you can save them, they're so waterlogged….and I am not lending you mine again."

"Relax, I'm not touching your precious Jordans again." Attempting to wring water from his hair, Kagami stepped out of his shoes, noting the puddles accumulated in them.

"You didn't have to walk through all that rain just to come here, you know…" Aomine said after a moment, in a noticeably softer tone.

"Yes I did," Kagami sighed, "We both know you would have gotten pissy and started suffering withdrawal if I didn't show up."

"Hey, I am always pissy. And I would not suffer withdrawal after just one day -"

"Alright, then I could just leave." Kagami said casually.

"Don't -!" Aomine objected, before seeming to get ahold of himself.

"Thought so."

Aomine snorted dismissively, crossing his arms and sitting on the arm of his sofa, "I just meant you shouldn't have to go back into that storm; if you caught a cold you wouldn't be able to play one-on-one against me for awhile. And then what would I do?"

"You would be very bored, and would have no choice but to feed me chicken soup and read me bedtime stories until I was well again." Kagami teased, taking off his jacket, as it was serving its opposite purpose right now and was just making him colder.

"You'd like that wouldn't you." Aomine rolled his eyes, "You know you'd be lucky if you didn't catch a cold already."

"Do I look like I'm sneezing to you?"

Very slowly, Aomine smirked and stood up, striding over to him, "No, but you are a shivering mess. You look pathetic."

"I'm flattered." Kagami said sarcastically, trying not to let his teeth chatter as it would only prove his rival's point.

"I think we should fix that," Aomine continued, as if he hadn't spoken, moving closer until they were nose-to-nose, "And I know just what will warm you up."

Before Kagami knew what was happening, his legs had been tripped out from under him, and he fell to the floor, Aomine falling with him in a tangle of limbs, pinning him down on the carpet and snatching his blue lips urgently, pressing between them with a domineering tongue. Kagami gave in and let his eyes flit closed, surrendering to the heat, the familiar tang he'd quickly grown addicted to, and the overwhelming muscle and strength that was Aomine. He would have walked for days and nights through a full-blown monsoon if this was his reward.

TBC

((New story, new shipping...what a concept. Not sure yet what the plot for this one is going to do, so we'll see how it goes. Updates for both this and Ice are impending, but I needed to try a different tone for Aomine since I realized he's really just a big occasionally-vicious puppy.
I dunno reviews would be much appreciated and stuff I guess.

-Shinsun))