Haruko twisted her hands together as she waited outside the hospital ward. Within, the doctor was getting Rukawa ready to leave the hospital. His leg, she was told, would remain in its cast for another three weeks, by which time it would be the new school year. Still, his laryngitis had run its course. Since his parents were still overseas, he would be staying at Miyagi's house. However, at this time basketball practice was underway, so she had been tasked with taking care of Rukawa and bringing him to Miyagi's home.

"All done," the doctor announced, leaving the room. He held the door open for Rukawa, who clacked through with a crutch. Haruko picked up his lone suitcase- he could hardly be expected to carry it in one hand and manage everything else when he was gripping the crutch with the other- and hurried after him. Even temporarily crippled, he moved quickly.

Once both were settled into the cab, Haruko was practically squirming in her seat. Her eyes were cast downwards, her cheeks reddening.

Rukawa paid no attention to her.

A few minutes on, Haruko had calmed herself down, and glanced at him occasionally.

It was a long cab ride, but before Rukawa could be lulled to sleep, Haruko chose to speak.

"Um… did you like the chocolates, Rukawa-kun?"

He turned his head.

"The… the ones from Valentine's Day," she clarified.

"…got a lot of chocolate," he muttered. His voice was huskier than usual, from disuse.

"Mine was the pink one with the music notes?" she tried, her voice becoming a nervous almost-squeak.

"…was okay."

"The others were actually for Sendoh-sempai but he said that since there were too many why didn't we have some of them, so-"

"Sendoh?" He had reached out and was gripping her arm painfully.

"Ru-Rukawa-kun, that hurts-"

His grip only tightened. "What do chocolates given to me have to do with Sendoh?"

"S-Sendoh-sempai had too many chocolates so he came to- please, Rukawa-kun, you're hurting me-" She choked back a sob and there were tears in her eyes and at last he released her, but he was still staring at her, with anger and something like hurt in his eyes.

"I'm sorry." His words seemed meaningless, but he went on, "Explain."

So Haruko poured out the incident of the previous Valentine's Day, at which practice he'd not been present. When she was done, she leaned back and stared out the window. Her heart hurt. Rukawa… He had been distressed at the mention of Sendoh and chocolate. He had hurt her. He hadn't cared about her enough to not hurt her in his distress-

No. She bit her lip, bit back tears, stared out the window.

It wasn't her fault.

It wasn't her fault.

Nothing was her fault.

Nothing.

When she glanced at Rukawa, he was merely staring into space, straight ahead. For once, he did not have his coldly attractive expression that so many of her peers swooned over.

He had the same expression that she had been fighting seconds ago.

The revelation that her beloved did not love her, cared nothing about her. The clinical fact that there was nowhere to go in this fallacy of a relationship. The sharp incision through the lies she had told herself to the plain truth that all she had thought of him was in her head.

When the cab pulled up in front of Miyagi's house, Haruko helped Rukawa out, got his suitcase out of the trunk and unlocked the door with the keys loaned her. She got him settled quickly, and then returned to the cab, to go back to Shohoku.

Maybe Ayako had thought she was doing her a favour. A little meeting with her crush to cheer her up on her birthday.

Worst present ever.

Still, she put on a brave face and smiled sunnily at the team, who had split in two and were practicing against each other, offense against defense. Sakuragi returned her smile with a big grin and a wave.

Afterward, (because, after all, it was still White Day) he handed her a small box, and blushed goofily, and grinned. She thanked him for the gift, and even (rather daringly) kissed him on the cheek.

And yet, all the while, her heart ached and ached and ached.

At least, she consoled herself unconsciously, he was going through the same turmoil as herself.

-

FYI, White Day is when boys who have received chocolates from girls on Valentine's Day reutrn the favour.