The enemy passes the ball to his teammate; he steals it.
Thirty seconds until the end of the game.
He dribbles the ball from the opponent's court towards theirs.
The power forward, a huge number 37 guy, blocks his way.
Seventeen seconds to go.
He halts in front of the man as he continues to dribble the ball. He can feel the beads of sweat hanging on his blonde lashes as his eyes briefly caught sight of a certain brunette who cheerfully yells for his name. Seated beside her is her raven-haired boyfriend, who is also his best friend.
The best friend meets his eyes and gives an assuring nod. A small smile makes its way to his face as he nods in response.
Twelve seconds.
He immediately regains his focus at the man in front of him. He decides to make a spin, countering the defender, and dashes towards the center.
The opponent's center blocks him.
He makes a quick side step and proceeds go for a fake shot. The opponent jumps with a smirk plastered on his face, clearly taking the bait. He smiles in return, as his feet remains on the ground. The smirk immediately disappears as the realization hit him.
Six seconds.
He takes the enemy's moment of confusion to his advantage and proceeds to cross-over the ball.
Three seconds.
He shoots.
Two seconds.
A score.
One second.
A whistle.
Loud, enthusiastic cheers echo throughout the place. Amidst the noise, his ears catch the sound of a familiar voice who cheerfully calls for his name. He shifts his gaze towards the advancing petite brunette.
"Ruka!" Her face beams as she closes the distance between them and envelops him in an eager embrace. "You did it, you won!"
He returns the embrace for a brief moment then releases her. She shifts her attention to her boyfriend behind her and she clings to his left arm, all giddy from the excitement, "Natsume, Ruka's team won! He made it possible! They won!"
Ruka blushes. Natsume smiles.
With his trademark smirk and his undeniable pride for his best friend's accomplishment, he extends his free arm and taps Ruka on his shoulder, "Congrats, national champ."
The blonde sheepishly grins at the gesture, gratitude evident on his face. "Thanks, Natsume," he says. "And to you, too, Mikan."
"So how does it feel to become number one in Japan?"
"It's alright, I guess," Ruka laughs. "Actually, it's still kinda hard to even believe it until now."
Mikan grins at this. "I'm really happy for you, Ruka! You're were the best out there. I'm really proud of you."
Ruka's laugh turns into a smile full of honor and affection.
"I'm really happy, too, Mikan. I'm really happy, too."
Because for the first time in a very long time, I became number one in your eyes.
Dedicating this one to Prose Vanity. It's not much, but with everything that has been happening right now, I hope you feel better even at the slightest with this. :)