Hey, hey hey, everybody! How you doing during this time? :D Anyways, this is a chapter update that you've been probably waiting for. I kinda got burned out by the last monster of a chapter (stares at the word count of Chapter 16 and cries), but hey, I'm back!
To the people that reviewed, followed, and favorited the story, I'm so pleased that there's people reading this, even though the fandom hasn't been super active in years. I still find it fun from time-to-time, but I'm not as obsessed as I used to be.
JDominique37: I seriously enjoy reading your reviews because you hit the nail on the head for how I feel about this time period. XD I tried to find merch, but alas, I couldn't find any. :( It was amazing to be there though. It felt as if I was in an anime or something. I got inspired to write about it into the story, although it took me a while to find a good reason to do so. Seriously though, I was surprised by the figurines and toys in Akihabara though. It was pretty cool.
Mary kitten heart: I can't really say. They finally have a reason to talk to one another, I suppose. :D
With that said, let's enjoy the chapter!
Dear Mayuzumi-sama,
You know, I never expected to be interrogated during dinner, but that seems to be a thing: being interrogated, that is. Granted, the person wasn't bad about it, but it was kind of off from what I was expecting. It's been a crazy time in our lives. I demand a refund from all the bullshit that's been happening! Even though it's pretty much done and over with, I just want a summer vacation! Beach birthdays, fireworks, and fun! Ah, I can't wait for summer!
Also, I sent you some US candy because my dad sent too much of it through the mail. Hope you enjoy!
From,
Sake
P.S. As I'm writing this, I'm packing for the trip to my mom's hometown for the summer! We're holding our family reunion as well as my birthday there. It's pretty as hell.
Dear Sake,
You being interrogated over dinner sounds like something in a spy movie, except a more low budget version. Probably in a ramen shop or a sushi bar.
I hope that you covered the damn candy because the last time you sent something, it melted into the letter and made it sticky.
From,
Mayuzumi
P.S. You have family other than your mom, dad, and that cousin with a knife?
Dear Mayuzumi-sama,
Hey, don't talk smack about Akashi like that!
If anything, it was super fancy and bougie as hell! I bought clothes in a fancy dress place the same day that we went there. Granted, he paid for it and I died on the inside because of the price, but it was pretty. We even got to sit outside where there was a garden and the moon overlooking everything. That part was extra surprising because the city has a lot of air pollution and crap, but there it was, hanging in the sky like nothing big was going on! The food was amazing, we managed to talk about things, and it was super nice! I even got to take home some mochi! That was honestly the 2nd best part of the day, besides the stationary shopping.
It's exactly that cousin that I'm talking about. She's my cousin on my mom's side. Granted, she hasn't had the time to shove any new romance novels into my face because of high school and personal stuff, but other than that, she's pretty cool. Funny thing is, she's also into basketball, which is pretty on-course for all the people that I meet up with all the time nowadays.
Even my mom and dad have an interest in it, and that was way before Midorima and Kise came around the house! It's a long sappy story about basketball, summer love, and a bundle of a cute, candy-loving baby (in that order), but it's so weird that freaking basketball is the reason why I exist in the first place. Honestly, I don't like to imagine what would life be like without me because that's a scary thought to think about. Shoving that away for now~
Yes, I did the candy wrapping thing you told me to do.
From,
Sake
P.S. I swear to Kami-sama that I am being tested for all things basketball- I SWEAR!
P.S.S. Here's the address that I'm staying at for the summer. It'll take a while for the letters to reach you. God, we need a better way to communicate. It takes forever to talk to one another.
Dear Dumbass Sake,
...You do know how that first part of the letter sounds right?
Also, what the hell happened at the end there?
From,
Mayuzumi
Dear Mayuzumi-sama,
I know, it's such a nice thing for someone to do! I was surprised that he was willing to spend that much money to ask about our friends, but friendship is powerful in that sense. I do need to pay him back somehow, but that's a thing that might be close to impossible.
Also, sorry for the late response because the mail takes forever to get here. The positive is that you get to read all these pages! Isn't that fun?
Ok, so you already know that I packed my bags to the beautiful seaside town where there's a ton of sunshine and beachy fun right? Well, my dad rented out a place for us to stay because my aunt's place is small. We brought a lot of crap with us for the reunion and my birthday, so it was the best option. Guess who was right next-freaking-door?
THE RAINBOW CREW THEMSELVES WERE IN THE CABIN BESIDE US LIKE WHAT.
I literally could not comprehend how the hell they found this place, but they did it! Worst of all, my mom let them stay over for dinner and is basically going to cook for them for the duration of their summer training camp. Honestly, I saw some of them crying tears of joy when she said that. Momoi would be the only one left to cook, and I feared for their lives because the last time I tried to help her cook, the kitchen nearly caught on fire. I banned her from the kitchen, and even though she was in tears, it was for the best.
I'm starting to believe that I'm the only one who can cook in this group, besides Murasakibara with his sweets.
The real problem was my dad because he's a total basketball junkie. My dad actually played with them, wearing one of his old jerseys, which apparently was the famous jersey of a young basketball player who disappeared after playing five years in the league, which leads me to discovering my dad's past of being in said-basketball league.
My mom sat on the sidelines and cheered for a while. If I'm going to be honest, it was a little embarrassing to see him like that, but I'm happy that he was enjoying himself for once. His work wasn't the easiest to complete and asking for a vacation was harder because of how hard he worked at his job. For him to spend time with us at all was a miracle. That basketball match lasted for a good chunk of time. When the game was over, my parents reminiscenced about how they met at the basketball court and how talented they thought the other was. As corny as it seem, they were in their own little bubble at that point with sparkles and hearts coming out of them like a shojo manga.
Sunshine found it amazing how I wasn't a huge basketball fan in a basketball-based family. I agreed with him. It was weird. Aomine wanted a rematch against my dad, but it was getting late at that point. When dinner was made and given amongst the others at our dining table, my cousin came around at this time and asked me if I wanted to join her basketball group for the local basketball tournament that was being hosted by the town. I figured that it would be fun to play against people that weren't super overpowered and said yes. Because of that, she went on to ask the others about their team, and I zoned out after a while when she was asking about colors.
WELL.
When that day came, my team's jersey was white and light blue with the number 4 while the others had jerseys that were dark blue outlined in white. My cousin deemed me as captain because-
"Why? It's because our captain has to have spirit, guts, and be adorable- you've got that in spades, Aki-chan!" What the hell type of answer is that?!
The worst part is that everyone else agreed, though they said different things like I had charisma, I was pretty decent with passing and running, and that the captain should either heal their teammates in various ways. That last part I think refers to a healing happy halo, which I definitely don't have. To put this into perspective on how young I was in comparison to the others, two members on our team were entering college next year and two were still in high school (1st and 2nd year). The second youngest member was a third year middle schooler, so yeah, I'm the baby of the group at second year middle school.
The games leading up to the finals were okay, although it was pretty close at times with how some players nearly knocked me down. The finals were brutal, and the other team was equally as brutal. I'd heard rumors about the things that they did during their matches, and I didn't like any of them. Most of them were how they used violence against the team in a way that the referee couldn't see. People complained about them, but... well, let's just say that there's definitely going to be more referees next time around if they decided to host this event again. The captain of the group tried to hit on my cousin, which obviously ended with him in pain. He even called our group a bunch of idiots for following a kid around.
I told my team that he wasn't worth listening to because honestly, he was such a paper cut-out villian that it was a wonder that he was a person. My team laugh-cried.
In the first three minutes, no one was getting any points because the ball alternated between the two teams so often that it was like we were playing Pong instead of basketball. However, the captain of the other team was skeezy enough to try and trip me when I went for a lay-up. I began to fall. My body reacted faster than my brain. I twisted my body to shoot. Somehow, in some freaking way, the ball curled upwards, spun, and fell into the hoop. That was the first of our points. The pain on my back was small in comparison to the surprised shouts of the crowd.
From then on, the match was heated and angry. Angry for the other team because they felt cheated, even though they were the ones to cheat first. Our team was angry because they decided to pick on the youngest member. Points after points, the tension between our groups began to burn hotter than the sun beating on our backs. The whole time, I was silent and weaved through the other players. It was as if they were so caught up in the fight that they didn't notice me at all. As the match went on, we switched players, but it didn't help us at all. My body was screaming for rest, hoping that the match would finally stop. The score was 50-47 in their favor. In the last twenty seconds, the ball was passed from my cousin who rushed forward, only to be stopped by two other players, to me who was left unguarded.
My vision went blurred. Something pushed me.
I shot the ball, desperation crawling up my throat.
It arched up so high that it was a miracle that it went into the hoop. A three-pointer.
I felt as if Midorima was watching over me, pushing his glasses up while saying, "Man proposes, God disposes" with the echo of the ball passing through the net.
50-50, a tiebreaker with less than ten seconds left on the clock.
They had the ball. We stole it and ran like hell, except there was no time. I had the ball again.
Fuck it all, I thought.
I threw it towards the hoop, knowing that aftertime would kill us. I probably just shot my chances at winning, but it was fun.
It went in. We won.
I don't remember being picked up and hugged by my teammates nor do I remember how the crowd practically screamed our team name, Eclipse. As much as I hoped that the Rainbow weren't watching the match, they stormed their way through, carrying all sorts of things like bandages, medicine, and ice for our bruises. Kise tried to help, but Midorima basically pushed him away before he could hurt me any further. Momoi was seething at those guys, and I have a hunch that they're going to face retribution in the form of Momoi's networking. I still shudder whenever I think about the look on her face and how it darkened at the bruises that I had on me.
Out of all the people, Aomine was asking me about the shots that I did and how the hell I pulled them off. All I could say was, "I did it because I felt like I could," but he respected my answer before asking about the actual match. I think it was the real first conversation that we had with one another. Sure, we talked in the past, but they were more to fill the awkward void of Momoi wanting us to get along. Now that I think about it, that was probably the first time Aomine had seen my Bullshit Shot.
Murasakibara, the lovable, candy giant that he is, gave me chocolate fudge ice cream in a large cup. (He knows that I only eat out of cups because it holds all the ice cream in one place without any worry of it dripping.) When I said that the match made me want to sleep for a week, he said, "Same, Saka-chin, same."
Our prize for winning the tournament were booklets for each of the members, serving as coupons for the restaurants and the other local activities during the festival and the rest of summer. Basically, it could mean reduced prices for food or even better, free chances to win prizes at the stalls! And I can't believe I almost forgot this, but holy cow, Akashi practically demolished the stalls by winning practically all of them. At one point, he gave me a cute, penguin plush with gold eyes.
"Since you worked hard during that match, you deserve to have something like this" was his reasoning.
My cousin happened to be around when he said this. For some reason, she was smiling so cheerfully that I feared for my life. She even said, "Thank Aka-kun for the color ideas and numbers! He told me that your school's number 4 is for the captain, so I went with that!"
He acted as fine as one could be in the face of my cousin who was happy about her meddling. "It was a surprise when you came dressed in that jersey, but it was a pleasant surprise."
"So, you're not mad that I took your number, Akashi?"
"You're not a bad captain, but you looked good out there."
"Aw, thank you."
My cousin weirdly looked towards the sky, resembling Midorima who would often do that whenever he was around Kise, me, or the both of us. At the end of the day, Akashi and I wandered around the place to try and find the others, but we heard the tell-tale sign of a whistle in the distance before seeing the fireworks in all their glory. It was so pretty to see them going off in the night.
From,
Sake
Dear Sake,
...I stand corrected when I say you're not aware of things. Please make sure not to fall because the repercussions might be too hard for you to deal with.
It's good that you're enjoying yourself, but did you seriously sent me over six pages of paper to just tell me this.
From,
Mayuzumi
P.S. Congratulations on the win. Those assholes deserve to be kicked in the nuts.
Dear Mayuzumi-sama,
I know, I know! I should be careful not to trip over myself, but when you're running super fast, it's kinda hard to stop. I think that's the Law of Inertia, or something?
The thing that I didn't expect was that the crowd wanted our autographs and we even got a trophy! There's a bunch of photos of us in our jerseys and we even made the local newspaper! Kise kept making me pose with him, which was pretty fun to do at that moment. We even got Midorima into a few of them once we bribed him with his lucky item (the trophy, which we managed to keep).
Get this: our team name Eclipse comes from my cousin's suggestion on using my name as inspiration. The kanji in my name means sun and moon, which, when combined, means "light coming from the sun". Realistically, when the sun and moon combine means there's an eclipse happening. Still, it's kinda embarrassing...
When it was my birthday party, my parents decided to get me a basketball pinata. That was the first instance of the others seeing my destructive combat skills. I've never seen Murasakibara move so fast in my life when the pinata exploded. Hell, Aomine tried to catch the pinata like it was the real ball. It was hilarious. Once again, Midorima nearly got smacked in the face with the pieces of the candy while the others watched on the chaos.
But the best part of the day was when I got to play with the neighbor's baby. She was basically a doll, only alive. Wait, that sounds like Chucky, but it's true. Her name was Rei, by the way. Total cutie with big eyes and smiles. She loved cuddling with me and loved the fact that the plush penguin from Akashi was soft, so we were just a cuddle party because I was exhausted. Momoi had joined in some time later. My cousin said, and I quote, "I've never been so healed in my life. Ah, you were so cute and adorable that I was about to die."
Honestly, I don't know what she sees, but I had a good birthday.
From,
Sake
P.S. Trust me, they got a lot of that from the Rainbow Crew and more.
Mayuzumi rubbed his eyes.
The fact that her cousin, who had only seen them interact in this one scene, react that way and her responses made it more apparent than ever that his kouhai was an idiot in more ways than one. Still, he knew that she wasn't looking for anyone romantically, but that didn't mean that other people would know that about her. Isn't that why the situation from before blew up as badly as it did? Granted, knowing how she acts, Sake definitely would say that aloud without any remorse.
Dear Sake,
For the sake of everyone around you, grow some brain cells.
From,
Mayuzumi
Huhum, this chapter is done! :D
I figured that it was time to write this up given the fact that we have time on our hands.
Anyways, the chapter is full of happy summer memories and all that jazz because I know that we know, things will go down like a house of cards. I love developing relationships and stuff, but this time period is always hard.
EDIT: Had to fix some minor things.
Well, if you have anything to say, please leave a review and I'll see you guys in the next chapter of From Letters to Skype.