"So you got invited by Kasamatsu to watch their practice tomorrow?" Kuroko poured hot water on a glass carefully as he moved along the kitchen. Gale sat on the floor, her legs under the coffee table and her head on top. She looked dead-tired, as if she didn't get any sleep. "Yes, Ya-chan…" She groaned. Kuroko set the glass carefully on the table and sat on the floor, opposite of her with the table between them. "That's good." Kuroko smiled with kindness.
Gale looked up at his face, her head still resting on the table. She then sat upright and began to drink her milk quietly. Kuroko watched her wipe her mouth carefully. She coughed hard and sneezed, making Kuroko narrow his eyes. "… You caught a cold." He said. "I fainted on the cold floors of the Kaijo changing rooms." Gale grinned as if it wasn't a bad thing. "You were tiring yourself too much, that's why you fainted." Kuroko looked straight into her eyes, their blue eyes blending together. Gale shook her head in disapproval, wondering why she's not as hyper and annoying when at home with her cousin.
She knew Kuroko was the type to keep his cool even when angry. She didn't really like it when he's angry, though. "Ya-chan, while it is true that life is cruel, it doesn't mean I just have to waste away my energy. I have a weak body, Ya-chan, but I am still alive. So why not just live?" She smiled, standing up and taking her glass of milk with her to the sink. "How can you even live if you don't know your reason for living?"
Gale chose not to say anything anymore.
He could not focus.
Actually, none of them could focus. They had no idea why they were winning. It was the regulars against the newbies. It was unfair, but at least the newbies could get trained well with powerful opponents. They couldn't focus, because they knew that a huge fan was watching them from afar. They were still winning, anyway. Kasamatsu drove past one tall newbie, as he struggled to keep the captain on his post but failed. The captain was then guarded by two experienced trainees. He quickly passed the ball to Kise. The blonde dribbled past them, knowing that their opponent made a terrible mistake not to keep him in check and dunked. Their score rose. The girls were heard screaming and yelling Kise's name. Kise turned his head to look at his audience, showing them his sweet smile which only made their hearts melt due to utter perfection.
Gale was on the bleachers, tilting her head in wonder and confusion. "Is it normal for dozens of girls to be here while there are practice matches?" She asked herself. Her eyes watched Kise, noticing his appearance for the first time. She encountered him four times, even to the point of being against his chest twice, and she never noticed how good-looking the guy really was. "… But, he looks like he's so full of himself…" She sighed, wondering where he got all those girls and why does he have to keep on smiling and waving at them every single shot. "Geez, doesn't that make him too much of a ladies' man?"
She then decided to ignore Kise's play because it was slightly annoying her every time he has to smile like an idiot at his team mates or at his audience. Gale is childish, too. She smiles like an idiot at time, too, but she knew when she needed to stop and observe her surroundings carefully. She realized that some people are already engulfed by their idiocy. She then turned to Kasamatsu, who was perfectly doing his turn-around drive. "He sure is as great as Ya-chan described him as." She found herself smiling. She obviously had great respect for the Kaijo team's captain, although not to the extent of liking him as more than that.
Her eyes gazed at Hayakawa. He was great in retrieving the ball. She remembered how Kuroko used to steal the ball with his "invisibility". Moriyama caught her attention as he performed his perfect unorthodox shot right in front of her eyes. She saw him look at her and wink. She tried to stop herself from laughing right there. "Same with Kise. Ladies' man. I just don't get why Kise's the only reason why there's such a noisy, annoying audience here." Gale absentmindedly remarked, unaware that she, herself, is a "noisy audience" when she's alone with the Kaijo team. She then looked at Kobori, who was defending the posts. "His large build makes him a great center." She mumbled to herself. If anyone could hear her right now, they would have thought that she's a rare fan. She's very unlike those other girls who only scream and shout when the team takes the scoreboard. Gale was the type to analyze the players' movements and see their capabilities.
"The regulars win!" Genta announced, blowing the whistle.
Gale stood up, ready to leave the gym. A small smile can be seen on her lips. "They really are the best." She laughed to herself as she turned around. "Gale-chan!" Moriyama's voice echoed along the gym, surprising Gale. She looked down at the court and saw him urging to her to come down. "… I have to go home. Ya-chan will kill me." She nervously chuckled, waving her hands at the tall young man.
She was distracted, however, by the fangirls' screams. "Kise-kun was so hot!" One said. "Kise-kun is amazing! Kise-kun, I love you!" Another yelled. "Kise-kun, please marry me!" Well, that was an awkward proposal. "Kise-kun! Take me to your bedroom!" This was getting really disturbing and that statement just gave Gale the shivers. "The heck is wrong with those girls?" She sighed.
Moriyama was watching her in awe, wondering why she was looking at Kise in an annoyed kind of way. As far he knew, girls never look at Kise that way. "… She really is unusual. Plus, she's not that hyper today." He muttered under his breath. Gale turned to Moriyama once again and grinned like the usual idiot she always was. "Sorry! I have to go. Tell Captain to rest well since I know the match today was tiring!" She bade goodbye, quickly running to the exit.
She didn't notice the pair of golden eyes watching her disappear from his sight.
Of course, she lied.
She was in that fast food chain again where she and Kise met for the fourth time. She was always eating alone there and preferred it that way. "… Basketball.." She sighed. She blindly watched the cars go by the window where she was sitting beside on. She preferred her table just next to the window so she could at least watch the sunset in the afternoon until there was nothing left but the dark sky.
"Snowy!" Her thoughts were interrupted by a familiar, slightly annoying voice. She looked up at the person, her eyes wide and emotionless. "Kise?" She asked, still unable to believe he's alone. The blonde smiled and rubbed the back of his head. "Uhh… can I sit here with you? If you don't mind…" He suggested, unable to get in contact with her eyes. He was afraid that if their eyes met, ice and fire would definitely clash between those gold and blue orbs. She nodded, finally smiling. Kise sat down and set his tray on the table. Gale just went back to staring at the sky outside. "You like the sky?" Kise asked, catching Gale off-guard. "H-huh? W-well…" She stuttered, unsure.
She didn't know if she liked that sky or anything. "Well, you obviously do, Snowy!" The young man enthusiastically commented, his eyes shining like sunshine. Their eyes did meet, causing them both to shake in bewilderment. Gale saw perfect light in his eyes. Kise saw aurora beams in hers. "Nobody's asked me that question, Kise. You were the first one, you know!" She admitted, her face blushing from embarrassment. "Eh? But… it's pretty obvious. I mean, whenever I see you, you always look at the sky randomly." Kise remarked, rendering Gale speechless.
She found herself laughing loudly. Her laugh was so unladylike that everyone was looking at her. "Ah! S-Snowy! This is embarrassing!" He tried to scold her, since he obviously didn't want people to think that an idol like him is like babysitting some girl who had blue and purple aurora beams in her hair. "I-I'm sorry! But, you know, Kise… Ya-chan was right about you. You really are observant! Well, I wouldn't be surprised because you are the copycat after all, but… I only look at the sky for brief moments in less than a second and you still notice?" Gale finally started talking to him, Kise thought.
He knew that this was the Gale that Kasamatsu met in front of the bulletin board. "So you know me as the copycat?" He was flattered, and he didn't know why. It was normal for him to hear people comment about his ability, but this was the first time Gale has actually acknowledged him. The first time they met, she only described him as a member of the Kaijo team. Gale blushed, which only made Kise smile.
"Of course! Ya-chan told me! I know all the abilities of the Generation of Miracles, but I didn't actually know who they are. It took me a while to find out that you were one of them." Ouch, that was what Kise wanted to reply. "You don't really look like a player, if you ask me." Another arrow was struck through his heart. This girl is trying to drive him insane. He let out a fake laugh, unable to decipher what she's trying to tell him. At that moment, he knew that he was having trouble trying to read her. "You haven't seen me anywhere else? Magazines, billboards…" He tried asking, but Gale only stared at him and blinked innocently. "Ha? Why would you be in magazines?" This time, Kise was definitely falling over and dying in his mind. HOW COME SHE HAS NO IDEA WHO HE IS?
He massaged his temples, still trying to plaster on his fake smile. "… I am a model, Snowy." He finally admitted to her, wondering if there would be a change in her reactions. "REALLY?" Her eyes finally gleamed in admiration. Now that was what he was expecting since the start of this conversation. "But, you know, I don't really care about showbiz or what lies beyond magazines or who the models are, though." There was the painful fact again. "Besides, Kise, I think you look like a normal high schooler."
Kise slammed his hands on the table out of frustration, surprising Gale. "SNOWY! You're too blunt!" He cried out, before sulking. To his dismay, Gale only laughed at him. "Sorry. I'm sorry, Kise! But you can't really blame me, right? I mean, I'm the type of girl who doesn't bother finding out famous people's names!" She yelled, standing up and striking a finger at his forehead. "W-what? You're a girl, Snowy! A girl! You're supposed to be interested in those kinds of things and not just staring at the sky all day!" Kise complained, standing up. "Why did you stand up? You're making me look really small, you know!" Gale complained back, setting up another topic which caused Kise to get pressured. "That was a random topic, Snowy! You're too random!" The customers inside the fast food chain were now watching the both of them argue about silly things. They were quite amused.
Gale reached out to pinch Kise's cheek. "You were the one who started going berserk just because I had no idea who you really are!" Kise held her wrist, preventing her hand to reach his cheek. "But you said I looked NOTHING like who I really am! That was cruel, Snowy!" Their argument was reaching the point of nowhere and none of them even realized it. They were both just annoying each other without any reason at all. "I wasn't cruel! You have to prove to me how great you really are as your fans say!" She pulled out her hand and took four steps backward. She pointed at him and smirked. "I'm your fan, Kise. I'm only your fan because you carry the Kaijo pride like the rest of the team does. But as an individual, you have to prove to me who Kise Ryouta really is!"