Sakurai Ryou.
1. Ryou wasn't exactly open to people.
When Ryou allows people into his life, it was always a slow, unconscious thing. The first person whom he ever lets into his life, is Aomine.
It's not that Ryou doesn't let people in, he's just not very comfortable with the process of befriending people, it's just his luck that Aomine is the pushiest bastard in the world. He doesn't mean to let Aomine in, Ryou thought his life would be far better if he didn't push his burdens upon others, so he was usually very reclusive. Which is why he finds it weird that he and Aomine start acting like real friends.
He's not sure how, but somewhere along the food stealing, the light bantering and the late night practices, Aomine worms his way into Ryou's defense. That's how he finds himself in his current predicament and it's this moment, he realises that yes Aomine Daiki is his best friend.
Aomine has him cornered in the locker room after another late-night practice, his navy eyes peering down at Ryou in a terrifyingly intimidating way. Ryou's panicking, his words stuck in his throat. His eyes dart, trying to find an exit but failing terribly, Daiki's broad frame blocking him completely in the corner.
"Don't give me this blatant bullshit, Ryou!"
"D-d-d-daiki..."
"Fucking answer me Ryou, who the fuck is hurting you!"
"N-no one, Da-"
Ryou's excuse is cut off by the fist slammed right next to his face and Ryou looks up at his seething best friend. Daiki's face twisted in anger and, underneath that anger, Ryou catches sight of pain. Shocked at that pain, Ryou examines Daiki and gasp at the tears in his eyes.
"Daiki... You're... there are-uhm..tears in you're...e-e-eyes," Ryou whispers softly.
"Of course there are.." He mutters angrily. He continues before Ryou can question why, answering Ryou's unasked question.
"Four month Ryou... You've come to school with bruises, hand shaped bruises Ryou! I'm not dense, somethings up. Trust me Ryou, tell me who's doing this to you. Why won't you trust me..." His anger fizzled visibly towards the end of his sentence, morphing into pain.
"Daiki,-I. Sumimasen Daiki, I'm being such an idiot and... Sumimasen, but it is none of your business. Sumimasen, I must leave!" Ryou attempted to push past Daiki, a vain attempt.
"Ryou... Ryou, please, aren't I your friend? Goddammit Ryou, what the fuck do I need to do for you to let me in!?"
"Sumimasen, you needn't worry over my burdens. Sumimasen but I must leave."
"Ryou, just fucking tell me!"
"There's nothing to tell."
"Like hell there isn't, tell me who's hurting you!"
"There is nothing to tell!"
Bang!
Daiki's forehead pressed against Ryou's, his anger evident in every step. His lips pursed before a torrent of anger overcame him. Fist curled up he repeatedly punches the wall, a dent getting deeper with every hit. Something wet hits his face and Ryou looks up. The tears previously restrained fell slowly down Daiki's cheeks.
"Daiki, don't cry, I mean er-" His sentence becomes a muddle of garbage and he can't describe what he wants to say, but he really needs to calm Daiki down.
But, Daiki just clings to him and it hurts, because his ribs are still blue and Daiki's accusations aren't false, Ryou is pretty beat up. He gasps in pain and Daiki's hold becomes harder, more forceful. Ryou feels like shit, because it hurts, not just the bruises, but this is the first time he's been hugged since he was five. Eleven years without a hug and it feels like the worst and best thing to ever happen to Ryou.
Ryou's shoulders tremble, he feels so confused. But, maybe he can trust Daiki, because Daiki cares and that is so much more than what his sister shows him. He clings to Daiki just as hard and it probably looks really wrong, two boys holding each other so intimately but it doesn't matter. Gasping through his tears, Ryou mutters three words.
"It was Okaa-sama."
Daiki tenses, then releases an over held breath, because finally Ryou let him in. And yes, it might have taken a year and a half of coaxing, but they were finally friends and Daiki promises to help his friend.
2. Yes, of all people, he falls in love with a possessive, egotistical idiot.
While befriending Daiki is a long, overdone journey, falling in love was just as long and lot more tedious. It doesn't help that he falls in love with the epitome of a bad boy, complete with delinquent tendency and looks. No one agrees with their weird love affair, disapproving of his boyfriend's obsessiveness.
Sometimes he agrees with them, because his boyfriend is easily provoked. A glance too long from a stranger can incur his wrath. Ryou has bills and broken ornaments to prove the extent of said wrath. Plus, usually Makoto is aloof and never spares a single compliment for Ryou, so there isn't much keeping Ryou from leaving. But there's something, something is enough.
Something like the tacky basketball piñata that is on Ryou's desk, which Makoto refills with Ryou's favourite sweets. Something like the nights they spend watching basketball on each others beds. Like when they're in between a game or a practice match and Makoto decides to kiss him, even if it fouls him. Something like the fact he is Hanamiya Makoto, who can attract so many more talented people and when reminded of this fact all Makoto replies with is, "Why have anyone, when there's Ryou."
Things, pointless and small things like this, are the reason he stays with his idiotic, possessive, egotistical, completely unreasonable boyfriend.
3. He's addicted to sweets.
Honestly, he thinks it's only Touou's ridiculous training that keeps him so fit. See, whereas other people, like Daiki are obsessed with Basketball, Ryou has one thing in mind, usually. Sweets. Pocky. Ramune candy. Kasugai candy... Ugh, the sight makes him drool. It is of course, not an encouraged habit by his teammates, particularly his Coach and now Kosuke-Taichou. Everyone tries to get him to cut down, but when he pouts at them, they quickly give in.
So really, they only have one solution.
They all set up an inter-pool betting system. Choosing one player from the team and that player has to convince him not to eat sweets for at least four days, if they succeed, they get the yen in the pool, if they don't, it stacks up. The bet started during their first lost against Seirin. No one has won the pool yet, but Aomine is determined to win it before their third year starts.
Half way through third year, the bet is still going and they have nearly two-hundred and sixty-three thousand yen.
Third year ends and they all agree to put the funds into the basketball team, not being able to separate the funds equally.
Ryou never found out about the bets.
4. So... It's rather embarrassing, but his parents expected a girl and with all the clothes already bought, they couldn't just throw them away, so...
Imayoshi-Taichou is the first to see the photos. Promptly Ryou's forced to attend Touou Gauken, to save himself from having a tarnished high-school début.
Next to see them, is Susa, happily all he does is chuckle lightly.
Wakamatsu... Howls, rolling on the ground, unable to shake the seizure-like laughter. Tears spring from his eyes and Ryou blushes, eyes down cast.
Aomine... Aomine misunderstood and asked Ryou where he was in the rare portraits hanging around his house. Ryou kicks Aomine from the house when after explaining it was him in the photographs, not a non-existent younger sister, Aomine proceeds to accuse him of really being a girl, not a boy.
Momoi gets an evil glint in her eyes and promptly drags him to go shopping with her.
Makoto, the most evil, sadistic, baka, baka, baka to ever walk on planet earth, post the pictures online.
5. Sometimes he rubs it in Makoto's face, because honestly, it's funny that he's a better dart player than 'Bad-boy Hanamiya'.
Who wouldn't rub it in Makoto's face? Honestly, it's ridiculous. Makoto tries hard to beat Ryou at a game of darts, after all it is his, 'specialty'. But, Ryou is a shooting guard, of course his aim is perfect.
There has only ever been one time where he gets a shot worse than Makoto and that's only because Makoto turns him aroun mid throw, and pins him to his couch, muttering about show off boyfriend, idiot, soft, pathetic. Is cute, so will stay. Ryou's not sure whether he should feel complimented, with the whole, still cute thing or annoyed that being cute is the only good thing Makoto says about him.
Years later, he still laughs at those innocent memories, even if he wants to cry at the same time.
6. Nigou, Ryou concludes, is the cutest dog in the world.
When he developes a thing for Furihata-san, obviously he tends to spend more time at Seirin, it only helps that Daiki's mind consist of ten things. Basketball. Kagami. Tetsuya. Momoi. Boobs. Ryou. Sleep. Food. Kise and Shoes. Happily enough Ryou can supply three of the ten things, himself, food and basketball, plus, Tetsuya-san won't protest too much to their presence, Kagami-san won't care, Satsuki will also come under the pretense of 'researching', meaning researching Tetsuya-san and Kise-san might be there, depending on the day. So really, conning Daiki into go isn't exactly hard.
Meeting a dog who played basketball well enough to have acknowledgement by Daiki, now that was pretty hard to grasp. But, Ryou takes a look into those precious cyan eyes and he's over. He loves the dog so much, he thinks maybe he'd rather steal the dog than Furihata-san's heart.
His love for the innocent bundle of joy increases, when after the more than slightly humiliating rejection, Nigou just strolls up to him, his nose rolling a basketball along. Really,if all of Seirin weren't keeping an eye on the dog twenty-four seven, he'd stolen it by now.
7. While Ryou's ranked number four in school, Momoi-san is ranked number three.
He tries really hard to get one over her, higher marks in anything just to beat her. Without fail, since their first assignment in Maths, the only class they have together, she has scored above him. It hits his male-ego too hard to just be satisfied with his grades, but no matter how hard he strives, she is always a step in front of him.
Maths: 4th. Momoi Satsuki: 401
5th. Sakurai Ryou: 400
Science: 1st. Momoi Satsuki: 440
2nd. Sakurai Ryou: 438
English: 4th. Momoi Satsuki: 411
5th. Sakurai Ryou: 407
Every single test, essay, report: she is step a head of him. When Daiki points out he's pouting about it, he denies it profusely, pretty useless considering he was pouting, but it was so unfair. He studies for hours on end, she reads a book twice and with her near perfect memory, remembers all the content within. He pouts more in the changing room, vindictively blaming basketball for his 'bad' grades.
8. Ryou owns a pair of yellow Pikachu boxers.
Ryou's actually not sure when he got them, whether or not he bought them, all he knows is that they are the softest of his boxers. So of course they're his lucky boxers. He could careless about the jeers he gets when ever someone might accidentally catch sight of them, because when he wears them, things always go his way. Like his first I love you was received when he wore them, he got scouted by both Rakuzan and Touou when he wore them, he met his best friend in them, they're lucky.
When Momoi finds out about them, her nose crinkled and she muttered something along the lines of, 'baka-basketball players, stupid superstitions' and 'honestly, they need to a reality check'.
He grins at her, when he finally beats her, being third ranked, while she is fourth. He feels absolutely smug, his voice draws out mockingly.
"How do you like my baka-baskeball player superstition now, Satsuki!?"
A blank look. A twitch of the lips.
"Baka."
He falls to the ground, in what Daiki happily dubs, the 'anime drop'.
9. He loves his Kaa-chan, he loathes his Okaa-sama.
As far as Ryou is concerned, they are two different people, with the same facial structure. Not face, because his Kaa-chan had lighter eyes, flawless, injection-less skin and a kind, inviting smile. Okaa-sama's eyes are perpetually glassy, her skin riddled with injection holes and red belt outlines.
Kaa-chan called him Ryo-chi, smiled at him brightly and was always attentive. She taught Ryou how to cook something, an art, not a pass time. How to appreciate what he has and not complain about things he doesn't have. She lit up his world, with knowledge and manners.
Okaa-sama only knows how to light her heroin. Okaa-sama only teaches him 'tough' love, meaning days without food if she felt he didn't deserve it, meant vases thrown at his back, kicks to his ribs and pushes down stairs. This woman looks at him with disgust filled eyes and calls him a useless gay, who doesn't deserve anything and should rot with his father.
But even though they are two different people, they're his mother and he can't bring himself to say a word against it.
Daiki had no such qualms.
10. Makoto kills himself.
The less said about that the better.
To: Sakurai Ryou.
From: Hanamiya Makoto.
Subject: N/A
I'm sorry, love you.
To: Hanamiya Makoto.
From: Sakurai Ryou.
Subject: Re: N/A
Huh? Makoto, are you sick?
To: Hanamiya Makoto.
From: Sakurai Ryou.
Subject: Re: Re:N/A
Makoto, this isn't funny, what's wrong?
To: Hanamiya Makoto.
From: Sakurai Ryou.
Subject: Re: Re: Re:N/A
Makoto, answer me! Open the door, this isn't funny!
To: Hanamiya Makoto.
From: Sakurai Ryou.
Subject: Re: Re: Re: Re: N/A
I hate you. How could you? You stupid, egotistical prick! How could you?
And on that note, I think I should change this to 10 facts about: Hanamiya Makoto, as he insisted to make his way into several of these facts. Well, anyway, thank you for reading.
3# Sakurai Ryou.