Author's Note: To answer a question, yes this story will be following the manga/anime. I hope you enjoy this chapter, and thank you all so much for the lovely reviews! ;A; Also a big thank you to the people who helped make this chapter possible, you lovely people know who you are.
between the black and white, where everything goes grey,
and everything's unsaid, undone, and the negative bleeds away
chapter two
Glazed, unfocused eyes peer vacantly over her. "Who are you?" There is an emptiness to his voice—he almost sounds as though he is dazed. He is looking in her direction, but she is not sure if he is really looking at her.
Her hands clutch the hem of her skirt, the fabric balling up in her trembling fists. Fear courses through her like a poison, and she seizes up under its influence. Bowing her head, she fumbles with the words that she wants to say. She came here without any plan, waltzing right into his hospital room thanks to his permission—which she had never hoped to receive in the first place—and now she has to try to think of some apology adequate enough for everything he has gone through.
"Your uniform," he remarks. "You're from Kirisaki Daiichi."
Her face blanches, eyes going round. Tomoe does not have the courage to chance a glance at him—too afraid that his gaze will be full of hatred and resentment. Cowardly, she collapses onto the ground, her legs giving out beneath her. "I'm... s-sorry," she chokes out in a strangled voice.
"Sorry?" he echoes back.
Of course he's not satisfied with a mere apology, and while she does not deserve the chance to explain, she tries to anyways. "What happened to your knee—I'm so sorry. I'm so very, very sorry." She bends her body forward until her forehead is nearly touching the ground.
"Why are you here?"
Still gripping her skirt tightly, Tomoe struggles to come up with a solid reason that won't give him the impression that she is only here to soothe her own ego. "I... I know my apology... won't take it back. I know that I can't do anything, but... what happened on the court yesterday—it was wrong. My team was wrong."
There is a moment of silence, but she dares not look up to see why. Then, finally, he speaks again, "Did you know that would happen?"
She swallows hard—that is the question she feared he would ask the most. "I... I know my team has a rough, unfair playing style. I... I didn't think it would get this bad." It still sounds like an excuse, she realizes bitterly. But it's better than the absolute truth—that she has always known, always feared, and yet never done anything because she has been too afraid to ever oppose Hanamiya. Tagging along behind him like a lost puppy has only ever been for her own protection. This is the first time she has actually been brave enough to take a stand.
"Does your 'coach' know you're here?"
Another hard hitting question. Tomoe wets her lips as she tries to formulate an answer, but she suspects any lies will be easily seen through. "N... no. He said not to come here. But... I had to come anyways."
"Why?"
"Because... it's the right thing to do," she says with conviction, finally peering up at him. Tears have welled up in the edges of her eyes, though through great effort, Tomoe has managed to hold them back.
What is especially surprising is the smile she finds herself met with. "Do you want some?" he asks, holding out an open bag of caramel popcorn. It's clear that he has already been munching on them for some time.
"A-are you supposed to be eating that?" she hesitates.
"No," he answers thoughtfully, shrugging as though he doesn't mind defying the hospital's orders. "So you should eat some with me before a nurse comes by and sees me." A grin cracks on his face as he shakes the bag at her, as though encouraging her to approach.
Hesitantly, Tomoe peels herself off the floor. It doesn't seem right to waltz up and carelessly stick her hand in the bag. Honestly speaking, the whole situation still feels pretty surreal. Is he forgiving her? No, how can he? But she cannot find the courage to ask whether he is or not.
So she ends up advancing toward him with short, tentative steps, reaching a trembling hand out toward the bag. Tomoe keeps her only visible eye trained on his face, as though watching for any sudden movements. She acts much like a scared animal, approaching on behalf of the temptation of food—not because she holds any manner of trust for the person offering it.
Yet for as paranoid as she is about him making a sudden movement, he remains still the whole time. And she does manage to dip her hand in and take a small handful out. It seems impolite not to show her gratitude, so she mutters a small, "Th-thank you," before eating one piece.
"Do you like it?"
The sweetness of the caramel melts onto her tongue. To her surprise, despite the fact that she has no particular affinity for sugary foods, it's actually really enjoyable. A small smile tugs at her lips. "Y...yeah."
"Doesn't it make you feel better?" he says with a smile, taking a handful out for himself. This man seems to have an incredibly easy-going nature, especially for someone who is in a hospital.
"Are you forgiving me?" she asks in disbelief, blurting the words right out. Almost as soon as they have been spoken, she shamefully lowers her head.
"Is there something to forgive? Did you do something wrong?"
Somehow, she feels almost indignant at the insinuation in his words. It's almost as though he is saying that she is innocent—and she doesn't want him to take pity on her and sweep the problem under the rug. "But I was there at the game, I saw. I watched—"
His eyes soften as he interrupts, "I don't have many visitors. My team is still busy with the competition."
"...huh?"
"I'll share my popcorn with you." He shakes the bag and holds it out toward her again, giving her another grin.
"You... want me to come back here... again?"
"Mm," he gives a sharp nod. "It's boring just sitting around. And since you don't believe me when I say I don't blame you, then that can be your proof."
"Proof?" she echoes again, her face riddled with confusion.
"Yeah. When we become friends, that will be your proof."
"Friends..." the word sounds somewhat foreign when she speaks it herself. It is not something she has ever really had before. Hanamiya was always someone that she followed out of fear. Never before has she seen herself as an equal to someone. It creates a warm, airy feeling that swells in her breast. She can feel the smile spreading across her face.
"So you'll come?" he prompts her to answer.
Although she still feels a little hesitant, a part of her is a bit... excited. And she gives a short nod. "O-okay..."
"There is only one condition," he says, suddenly turning serious. The almost grim expression on his face makes her heart sink. "Don't let Hanamiya find out that you are visiting." It is an almost unexpected advisement, both because it's more than obvious that she cannot let Hanamiya find out, and because she is surprised that he actually goes out of her way to tell him as much.
"A-alright..."
"Sorry, I forgot to introduce myself," he says with a hearty laugh, changing the mood of the conversation as he awkwardly scratches at the back of his head. "I'm Teppei. Kiyoshi Teppei."
"Tomoe," she squeaks back nervously, "Kurosawa Tomoe."
"You're a second year?"
Tomoe gives a small nod, her bangs swaying over her left eye with the movement. "Yeah..."
"Then let's cut the formalities, Tomoe-san."
Her cheeks heat up instantly. It is a reaction that she can scarcely stifle, because she is caught by surprise at how he suddenly calls her name so familiarly. And at first, she hopes he does not expect her to do the same, but that look on his face tells her otherwise. He's waiting for her to call him the same way. "T-Teppei-san..."
"Good!"
—
A hand suddenly slams down against the table, making her jump in her seat. And when Tomoe peers over at the person that has managed to furtively sneak up behind her, she pales considerably the moment she sees his face.
"I think I'll sit here for lunch," Hanamiya drawls in a voice coated in underlying meaning as he slams his tray down beside hers. A few of his other teammates, seeming to have followed after him, quickly take up occupancy at the other vacant seats around the table.
It is not their usual seating arrangement, she knows—because she purposefully picked a table in the far off corner, the furthest from the one that Hanamiya and his teammates normally sit at.
Although she is not sure what his aim is, suddenly wanting to sit beside her when he has spent the past year largely ignoring her—save for the occasional coincidental confrontation such as the one in the hallway yesterday—she isn't about to find out. Grabbing her tray, she immediately starts to extract herself from the table.
At least until a fist slams down, rocking the whole table. Even Hanamiya's teammates stiffen at the show of raucous noise. Those menacing eyes of his turn up to look at Tomoe, a thin smile spreading on his lips. "Ah, there was trash here that I didn't even notice. Come to think of it, Yamazaki mentioned seeing you yesterday after school."
Tomoe blanches, and her grip on the tray tightens to the point that her knuckles go white. She tries her best to avoid his gaze, turning her face downward. She can already sense where this conversation is headed.
"A little strange for you to be... visiting a rehabilitation center."
Her blood runs cold. Rehab...? He knows...?
A heavy hand settles against her shoulder, forcing her back down into her seat. "Trying to leave?" he remarks, leaning in toward her face. "What's the hurry? You're being so cold, former manager." The words have a sweet tone to them, but they are coated in poison all the same.
Struggling anymore will only excite him, she knows. When Hanamiya senses resistance in his target, it heightens his sadistic tendencies. That is the last thing that she wants. So with a look of resignation, she forces her body to remain still, despite the voice screaming in the back of her head, telling her to run.
"That's more like it," he says encouragingly. "We were... concerned about you."
"I'm fine," she says stiffly.
Although her assurance is meant to be a deterrent to further conversation, his eyes seem to light up with intrigue. "Kurosawa," he hisses out her name in a whisper. "Is there someone that you're visiting at that rehab center?" On the surface it looks like an attempt to coax her into lying and contradicting what she just said. In reality, he's taunting her again—because Hanamiya is cunning. He's perceptive enough to guess why she would be going to such a place when she isn't the one receiving care. This is all merely a game to him.
"Yamazaki-san must have seen wrong," she tells him resolutely, forcing the words out while trying desperately to hide the tremor in her voice.
The man in question merely sits silently on the other side of the table, eating his food. He does not seem keen on the conversation. And the other players, in the meantime, seem intensely interested in the course of the conversation.
"I heard something interesting recently, Kurosawa. Seirin High apparently has some new members, and performed exceptionally well at Interhigh. Did you know that they'll be playing in the Wintercup preliminaries?"
There is an obvious reason in mentioning this, she can tell. But she is not about to bite into the bait that he is putting out for her. "I'm not really interested in basketball anymore."
"Oh? But what if... Iron Heart goes back onto their team? Will you be interested then?"
Tomoe blanches again, and she struggles to swallow back her own fear. Her hands are in tight fists on her lap, thankfully hidden beneath the table. "That has nothing to do with me."
The hand still perched on her shoulder suddenly tightens as Hanamiya leans in closer, that smirk spreading across his face—not unlike a cheshire cat. "Kurosawa, I think it's about time you returned to the team."
All semblance of courage disappears from her face, replaced by a look of horror mixed with despair.
"Ah, there. You look the best with that expression on your face," he whispers, his warm breath tickling the nape of her neck.
