Summary: "I'm here for Aomine-kun, actually," the really cute stranger corrected her. Satsuki's hopes sank faster than her pitiful swimming skills. T.R.C.S. looked past her, to where her best guy friend was glaring obliviously at the ocean's horizon, and added, "His po- people want him to come home." Her hopes for a summer romance experienced a swift and joyful revival. "He's never talked about his family much," she prodded curiously. T.R.C.S. seemed briefly pained, and Satsuki immediately felt terrible for making such a pretty person unhappy. "Well, he did leave us for a reason, I suppose." [merfolk!au] [gen, with hint of momoi/kuroko]

Disclaimer: I don't own KnB or the cover picture.

Satsuki had no idea how she'd managed to convince Aomine-kun to rent a beach-house with her for summer vacation, but she had, despite his fear of the ocean, and she was understandably proud about convincing her headstrong best (guy) friend to change his mind about anything.

It was weird how a lazy, apathetic guy like Aomine was afraid of the sea, though. Of course, he'd always denied being scared of it, and had actually laughed when she first brought it up, but he had definitely been adamant about not going near it before. He'd even passed up plenty of bonfire invites that were on the beach bordering their college, which was shocking, considering his fondness for partying.

Actually, she thought, she didn't really know anything about him, beyond how he acted at college, where they met, and what he'd let slip during their friendship.

Three years, Satsuki had known his stubborn, strange (and hot, but not really her type) ass, and all she knew was that he and his past friends had had a disagreement about his wanting to go to college, he slept and sunbathed with religious fervor, he didn't want to go near the ocean, he was freakishly smart at his major (marine sciences or whatever) even without ever studying, and he was really good at basketball, after learning the rules.

Still, they were totally tight and rocking that platonic bromance.

That didn't stop Satsuki from yearning for an actual romantic relationship of her own, though, even if Aomine seemed content with chasing every pretty face and fine pair of legs (along with, well, a big bust) for casual sex. He didn't do attachments, apparently, and she was constantly reminded by how her best guy friend was easily mistaken as a giant douchebag jock.

Okay, no, so maybe he was kinda really a giant douchebag jock, but he had his moments. Moments such as agreeing to her pleas for a shared beach-house she couldn't afford on her own, but which he could with his sponsorship deals, and moments such as agreeing to cart in all the luggage from his prized sports car.

For that matter, moments such as paying for the entire gas bill of the prized sports car he'd insisted he drive them in. Or was that just decency? Decency counted as a moment against being a giant douchebag jock, didn't it?

… so, back to the summer romance Satsuki hoped for.

As she perched on the tiny lawn of their modest rented lodgings, she admired the beautiful view of the glimmering waves ahead. The view, the location on a more isolated, private part of the beach, and the two-minute walking-distance proximity to the shore were what had ultimately driven up the price of the rent. It was, she felt, worth it, and even Aomine had seemed to agree. His way of agreeing meant that he paused halfway to the door with an armful of boxes, and stared at the coast with a softer look in his eyes, before continuing to the house, his expression practically wistful.

Satsuki also admired the beautiful view of the boy who was walking up to their house, his bare feet padding noiselessly on the sand underneath.

He was the prettiest boy she'd ever seen, period. At 21, Satsuki considered herself somewhat of an expert in pretty boys, but this one took the cake. Even without shoes, and wearing a very faded and loose shirt-shorts combo, his delicate features were doll-like, his movements careful, his height petite, his lips utterly kissable…

Her hopes for a summer romance didn't just rise, they leaped upwards like a startled cat who sat on a pin.

She kept her expression open and smiling as he drew within speaking distance, and prayed desperately that he didn't see how badly she wanted to squeal right now. It would probably scare him off. Satsuki had a tendency to fall fast and fall hard, and she didn't want the really cute stranger to think she was some… some floozy.

At college, she had enough of those kinds of preconceptions because of her chest and her bubbliness, as if a cheerful girl with a big cup-size couldn't be smart and pragmatic as well.

'Please, please don't be a jerk… or gay… not that I have anything against gay people, but if you are, please-please-please at least be bi…' she mentally chanted.

"Hi! Can I help you? My name's Momoi Satsuki, but you can call me Satsuki; what can I call you?" Satsuki beamed brightly, and inwardly winced at her uncontrollable nervous rambling.

'Was that coming on too strong? That was totally coming on too strong. Ahhh!'

The really cute stranger blinked his pale, rounded, wide fish-like (but still cute) eyes, and tucked a strand of light blue hair behind his perfectly shaped ear with his gorgeously slim fingers, that same carefulness of movement causing his actions to appear slowed, as if he were faintly unsure of how to use his limbs. In her opinion, it just made his… his aura of serene, unshakeable calm more apparent.

"Greetings. I do not know if you can help me, but you may be able to. You can call me whatever you'd like, Satsuki-san."

She sighed, out loud.

She couldn't help it! He was just too adorable! And curse (or bless) it all, he was the opposite of Aomine, and therefore just her type. Dainty where he was bulky, polite where he was brusque, mysterious where he was… well, okay, so Aomine was mysterious a lot, too, but he was an irritating kind of 'just-give-me-a-straight-answer' mysterious, whereas this guy was just made even cuter.

Satsuki clasped her hands together and leaned forward, eager to be of use and maybe score some more goodwill points with the really cute stranger, or as she was beginning to think of him as, T.R.C.S.

"So! Help? Me? Um, I mean, what did you need help with? Were you looking for someone? Maybe me? Just, you know, in case you needed… well, something. I'm good at finding things," she babbled, inwardly wincing once more.

"I'm here for Aomine-kun, actually," the really cute stranger corrected her.

Satsuki's hopes sank faster than her pitiful swimming skills. 'So he is gay… or, no, he could still be bi. I always thought that Aomine was straight, though. Maybe he was waiting for T.R.C.S.? Did he know that he frequented beaches, and that was why he avoided them? But that would mean he wasn't waiting for T.R.C.S. Was Aomine just in denial of his bisexuality, and thus only picked up girls, and avoided beaches in case T.R.C.S. found him?'

The notion of anybody not wanting to shower T.R.C.S. in love and adoration was so bizarre, however, that she simply gave up her wild theorizing of the relationship between T.R.C.S. and Aomine. He (either 'he') would eventually tell her the truth, anyway, and jumping to inaccurate conclusions was what created love triangles. And this definitely wasn't a love triangle, because that would mean that Aomine was crushing on her, which was never going to happen, since they were, like, bros. If anything, it would be a love ray, which was more mathematically correct, as it went on in one direction…

But that was wild theorizing again, because she didn't even know for sure if she was misinterpreting T.R.C.S.' statement of being "here for Aomine-kun." It could not be the obvious conclusion of romantic intentions.

T.R.C.S. looked past her, to where her best guy friend was on the second-floor balcony, glaring obliviously out-of-earshot at the ocean's horizon, having clearly not seen T.R.C.S. yet, and added, "His po- people want him to come home," thus proving the obvious conclusion obviously false.

Her hopes for a summer romance experienced a swift and joyful revival.

'What was he about to say instead of people, though? Nevermind, it doesn't matter.'

"He's never talked about his family or friends much," she prodded curiously, setting aside her raging infatuation for a minute to fulfill her obligatory best-friendship and bromance duties. Aomine never talked about much, full stop, which she'd already pondered on the ride here.

T.R.C.S. seemed briefly pained, and Satsuki immediately felt terrible for making such a pretty person unhappy.

And he was really, really, really pretty.

"Well, he did leave us for a reason, I suppose."

.

.

.

~Who do you think T.R.C.S. is?

~What do you think T.R.C.S. was about to say instead of 'people'?

~Do you think Momoi's narration is in-character?

~Do you think Aomine and whoever-you-suspect-T.R.C.S.-to-be are in-character?

~How do you feel about this story so far?

*Please review with any other thoughts.

As I'm on spring break, and this is actually something that I have plotted out a little, it will be finished within a few more chapters and a few more days, instead of going on at a glacial pace like my other stories, which should always be presumed to be WIPs. It's inspired by 'Cake by on the Ocean' by DNCE, who I was listening to on the radio, and originally wanted to write an AkaKuro story for, with Akashi being dragged to this beachside bonfire by Aomine, and seeing Kuroko walk very carefully and unfamiliarly on land. However, I thought I'd botch a good interaction between them, but I liked Momoi, and wanted to see how she thought of things.