so it's been over a year.. but hello again! this chapter was about 80% done the week after i published the first one and 2021 wasn't a great year for me but! the teaser for the movie lit a fire up my ass so here we are :) more notes after the chapter! i hope you enjoy ^^
There are three fates, three goddesses named Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos.
Their role is to play with the "thread" of human fate, determining their destinies and the path which they take, earning them the name 'Fates'.
Each of the fates has her own task: Clotho spins the thread around, Lachesis dispenses the thread, and Atropos cuts the thread. One's thread being cut, of course, signifies the end of their life.
Rukawa's read before that they're not bad; they're literally just three women doing their jobs. And to some degree, he can see that and he agrees.
But whatever they're doing with Rukawa's thread makes him think that maybe they're not very good at weaving people's fate.
He's sure that somewhere up in the skies, the three goddesses were just bored and one day one of them just went, "You know what we could do?" and another replied, "What?" and the first one that spoke suggested, "Well… we could make a kite."
And of all the billions of threads they could choose from, Rukawa's sure his thread was picked out. And now instead of being woven properly like every other thread, his is probably up in the air, sinking into the dirt, hitting trees and other debris.
Rukawa does not like the fates.
"Rukawa," Ayako approaches him suddenly, tapping his shoulder to get his attention. Rukawa nearly jumps and turns around. Ayako's wearing a surprised expression on her face, not expecting the reaction from the first year.
He looks down at her, forcing himself to keep his heart rate at a normal pace. Ayako shakes her head.
"Are you feeling okay? You're looking a bit pale." Rukawa doesn't reply immediately, and Ayako quickly adds, "If you ever feel sick, let me know immediately. We can't afford to let you sit this game out."
"I'm fine, senpai," he assures her. His reply came out quicker and faker than he expected, and now he sounds like he just lied.
Rukawa looks back at Ayako's suspicious glare.
All that because of poor timing. Way to go, Rukawa.
As much as Rukawa wants to feign some sort of illness - pretend to look queasy and sit down and hide for the rest of the match - he can't. This is Shohoku's first game of the year, and the last thing he wants is to miss out because of some guy.
(Rukawa wants to smack himself when he realizes that he's having… boy issues.
The mortification.)
Ayako doesn't look fully convinced but she walks back to her seat anyway.
As soon as Sendoh gets in his jersey, the match is going to start immediately. When the man was told that he didn't have time to do some warm-ups, he just replied, "Oh, it's fine. I ran here, anyway."
Someone whistles loudly. "What happened to your leg? That's some bruise you're sporting"
Rukawa stills. There's only one way that man can get a bruise that's easy to notice. But... Surely it couldn't be-
"Ah, this? It's nothing. I was rushing to get here so I ended up hitting this door on the way."
"A door?"
"Yeah, it opened and it nearly hit me in the face so I'm pretty happy it was just my thigh they hit."
("Should've gotten your face," Koshino mutters.)
Rukawa feels a bit calmer now. Sure, it was on his thigh, but it could be from another incident entirely, something that Rukawa is not guilty of because of course why would Sendoh cover for hi-
"It looks about a couple hours old, are you sure?"
No, yeah, Rukawa's fucked.
"Definitely," comes the easy response.
Liar, thinks Rukawa. He got that from me last night when I hit him with the bike.
Sendoh gets asked again several times if he's sure of playing, to which he answers all positively, that he couldn't be in better condition. Except of course, the big bruise on his leg.
Coach Taoka looks close to thanking the gods. Rukawa wouldn't be surprised if he started cryi- wait, there are tears on his eyes.
"So Sendoh's injured, huh?" Akagi mutters to no one in particular. Rukawa rips his gaze away from their opponent's coach and watches their captain and he crosses his arms, a few feet away from Rukawa and facing the bench.
Ayako hums from next to him, mouth forming a tight line. "A bruise, it seems. But since he can still play and coach Taoka has no plans of benching him, we're still in trouble."
In trouble. Rukawa frowns, curiosity starting to overlap his guilt.
Sendoh must be good.
Moreover, he wonders how Sendoh will react to seeing him so soon again. Rukawa sighs, thinking about his words last night. He was alluding to meeting him again after a couple weeks or months.
Not the day right after, but sure. Fine.
And they're walking towards the court to meet with the members Ryonan, who are all standing proudly. Surprisingly but maybe not really, Sendoh stands at the front of the group like he was the captain and Ryonan was his little crew boarding his ship.
(Rukawa doesn't know how to feel about naming a ship Ryonan of all things. Personally, he'd call it something like Death Defier or Fate Eater, or maybe The Roaring Sun.
Something metal, because he's sixteen and that's cool.)
Sakuragi has little flames in his eyes, happy to finally meet face to face with who he knows as the genius and ace of Ryonan: Sendoh Akira. He's the one leading Shohoku's crowd, but his smile is devilish, unfriendly compared to Sendoh's calm one.
Rukawa follows Shohoku, lagging behind just slightly.
He knows it's pointless. They'll be seeing each other because in this case, their meeting is absolutely inevitable, but part of Rukawa is…
Would the best word be shy? Perhaps a bit bashful?
(Rukawa wants to set something on fire. And perhaps jump in the burning flames.)
Sakuragi claims loudly that he'll be the one to defeat Sendoh. There were perks to coach Anzai saying that he was the secret weapon, but Rukawa forgets. Sakuragi's big head keeps getting in the way. Rukawa rolls his eyes at the entire thing, honestly just seeing Sakuragi as another bratty kid.
Everyone around them panics, acting as if Sendoh was some sort of prince. As if you, a lowly guest, were expected to kiss his shoe as some sort of greeting.
(Rukawa feels especially weirded out seeing him treated as someone to be feared, or highly respected when Rukawa's first impression of him was a clumsy fool with a dick on his face.
And that he hit him with his bike. If Ryonan finds out, they would probably submit Rukawa to execution. "Off with his head!" they say.)
When Rukawa takes a peek at Sendoh's reaction, all he has on is plain amusement, like Sakuragi was some dog that approached him from the side of the street.
Sendoh does what he does best and gives the redhead a friendly smile, taking his hand and shaking it.
Wait.
He lets go and his eyes briefly scan Shohoku's team.
No no no no no no no-
Then Sendoh freezes, he can barely mutter, "Rukawa?"
Oh no.
Everyone turns to look at him, confused by Sendoh's unexpected reaction. And now Rukawa's the one panicking.
(Fuck you fuck you I hope you sleep tonight with fire ants in your bed and you writhe in pain as they bite all your limbs in multiple places. Rukawa curses in his mind vehemently, not knowing whether it's for Sendoh or for the fates.)
There are multiple eyes on him, the most prominent one being the soft blue he remembers from last night.
Sendoh looks genuinely surprised, still unaware of all the attention he's casted on Rukawa because he said his name in front of two crowds when this was what was supposed to be their first meeting.
He's not Sendoh. He can't charm his way out of all this attention by laughing and being charming. He's Rukawa, so the only way to get out of this is to be an asshole.
Before he can really do anything, the ace of Ryonan seems to have found himself. He snaps his fingers, his mouth forming a little 'o' shape. "I read about you in Hikoichi's notes!"
(Koshino scoots away from the crowd to whisper with Hikoichi, who looks confused. Thankfully he doesn't have that big of a presence so no one noticed and Sendoh's lie hasn't cracked yet.
"Hikoichi," Koshino whispers, "Isn't Rukawa's entry on your notes empty?"
Hikoichi frowns. "Yes, I'm sure. I don't know how he could hav-"
"Could you write something down? Even big, tall, and dark would work. Maybe pepper in a couple compliments here and there."
Koshino earns himself a look of disbelief. "Huh?"
"Just- Just trust me."
The younger man nods, albeit hesitant. Koshino walks away, forming his hand into a fist, a grin on his features.
Mission Accomplished. Koshino knew it would be easy, Hikoichi was gullible and a pushover to a fault, but still, Mission Accomplished.)
Notes? He glares at this so-called Hikoichi, who seems to be furiously scribbling something down on his notebook. This man has notes about me?
Rukawa couldn't even begin to think what he would write about if it weren't related to his skills on the basketball court.
Sendoh lets out an uncomfortable laugh, scratching his head. He looks at Rukawa, apologizing. "Sorry about that, Rukawa-kun. Just surprised to see you in the flesh, that's all."
Well he's not exactly lying about the last part.
The blue eyed Shohoku player swiftly ignores the '-kun' and just nods, dismissing it all. Thankfully, everyone finally gets back to normal, and the tension from before comes back as if nothing had happened in between.
(Koshino whistles lowly with his eyebrows raised. Sendoh turns to him.
"You look like you want to say something. Spit it out, Kosh."
"Ohhhhh, it's nothing," Koshino's voice gets louder and takes on a haughty tone just to annoy Sendoh, "You see, I am simply aghast, utterly troubled that our future captain is unaware that Rukawa's section in Hikoichi's notes is absolutely devoid of any information."
"What."
"Exactly. You owe me by the way.")
Rukawa gets into position which, as discussed this afternoon with the rest of Shohoku, would be close to Sendoh. His job was to guard him, something he's slightly nervous about. Considering even Akagi's nervous about facing him, who knows how the game will go?
As he walks over, he sees Sendoh standing on his spot, seemingly waiting for Rukawa, the bruise on his leg clearly visible. It's turned into an ugly shade of purple.
"Hi again," he greets, a grin on his face when Rukawa's close enough.
Rukawa keeps his eyes on Sendoh's bruise, not able to look at Sendoh in the eye now that he's seen how ugly it looks. "I'm sorry," he says, voice quiet.
"Sorry?" Sendoh still doesn't notice and asks, "For what?"
"Your leg."
"Oh." The smile is wiped off of Sendoh's face, replaced with guilt. He awkwardly huffs out a weak laugh. "This is- it's nothing. You should know how many bones I've broken when I was seven."
Sendoh does look like someone who would find a way to break his arm while ambling on a sidewalk in an empty street.
Rukawa scoffs at his attempt to lighten the mood, but he wouldn't say it didn't work.
He switches topics. "You didn't have to cover for me," he says, ignoring Sendoh's reply and referring to his little story of getting hit by a door from a while ago. "You could have just said the truth."
"And let people know I didn't dodge an incoming bright red bike on an empty road?"
Rukawa looks at him incredulously before he shakes his head and lets his mind wander off, trying to hype himself up in his mind. "Fair."
Their conversation seems to end there, with both of them keeping their eyes on the ball in the referee's hand.
He tries to steal a glance at Sendoh once more, whose eyes rip away from the ball and land on Rukawa at the exact same time. Something crackles between them, sheer intensity that seems to have gotten Sendoh, too.
They both end up looking away, Sendoh with his ear tips red.
What the hell was that?
Rukawa grits his teeth together. It's not like he's flustered or embarrassed or anything of the sort. Something about what just happened makes everything in his body want to run around until he's tired and he can shake off the lightning strike.
It makes him feel like some sort of hamster on a wheel.
He wants to go back to bed. For fuck's sake, all this and the match hasn't even starte-
"Tip off!"
Rukawa sprints.
Muscles burning and heart racing a mile a minute, Rukawa stands in court, defeated.
He stares at the scoreboard, eyes sharply zeroing in at the 87-86 printed on the pages.
(Did he slaughter a village in his past life?)
It was amazing, how Sendoh went from being just another pesky point guard into a monster in court, basically, with just a few minutes left in the match. He sensed that they were going to lose, and he very quickly led them to victory, jumping out of his laid-back shell and quickly turning into Ryonan's star.
(No, a village would be too small. A kingdom?)
It hit Rukawa. So that's why he was so looked up to - why everyone called him the ace. For him to stay so calm and level headed even during high pressure situations required a lot of talent and a certain amount of reliability.
At that very moment, Sendoh Akira became Rukawa's target, a man he wanted to surpass in skill and talent.
The raven haired player catches himself looking at Sendoh curiously, seeing that he's already calm enough to joke with some members of Ryonan. He looks tired, from the way he holds himself up, but not as much as everyone else who are already sitting on the benches, panting heavily..
Definitely not as much as Rukawa. If a strong breeze came in, he wouldn't get swept away, but he would probably just let it knock him down.
That two minute break during the match did absolutely nothing.
Sendoh catches Rukawa looking at the corner of his eye, and he does a little wave with his hand.
Rukawa stills. He looks down at the floor, contemplating his next move. He could just ignore him, since it was what would be expected of him.
But also, he can be nice. Maybe he could wave back a little.
Should I…
He thinks about it.
A little bit harder again.
When he finally musters enough courage to wave back, he does. But when he looks up, Sendoh already has his back turned and is laughing with other Ryonan members.
Rukawa quickly sinks his hand in his hair, pretending to scratch his head. Hopefully no one saw that.
(Koshino did. The rest of Ryonan side-eye him when he snorts loudly over Uozomi's lame speech.)
After Sakuragi's little outburst that left Haruko crying and shaking like a leaf, everyone's changed out of their jerseys and are forming a little gathering outside. Rukawa hangs back, looking to see if he can find Sendoh in the crowd.
Sendoh seems to have found him first and walks over calmly. They're both a few feet away from everyone else, so they have a bit of privacy.
Still, they speak in slightly hushed tones. Sendoh started it, Rukawa just followed along.
"Hey - properly this time," Sendoh greets him in a friendly manner. "What happened back there was a nightmare."
Rukawa sighs, looking down at the ground, knowing well that Sendoh's referring to that little bit back at the gym. He still remembers the multiple eyes on him, the pressure.
"You tell me."
"I'm sorry," the taller man apologizes. Rukawa isn't sure what for exactly. Sendoh gives him a nervous glance, "I just didn't think I'd see you again so soon."
"Me neither," Rukawa does everything but make eye contact with the older man. His intention had been to avoid Sendoh completely, but the man is now standing in front of Rukawa, looking all calm and decent and laid back in a white shirt and a pair of joggers.
Sendoh frowns in thought, shoulders deflating just slightly. Suddenly, he looks at Rukawa, a wicked glint in his eye.
"You know, for all that talk about meeting again at some point in court…" he trails off. There's something teasing in his tone, earning him a glare from the younger.
Rukawa feels stupid about it, even if he couldn't have predicted it happening so soon after. "It's not what I was expecting."
"This wasn't high up on your list?"
"What do you think?" Rukawa grumbles, slightly annoyed but not with Sendoh, or anyone in particular.
"I was thinking maybe during the nationals, like maybe from across the stadium, we would have been walking in different directions but I just somehow, some way caught you in my peripheral."
Rukawa rolls his eyes. It sounded cheesy and corny. "Sure."
"Don't you think it's kind of funny that this is how things turned out?"
"You're the only one laughing."
"You aren't?"
Rukawa doesn't reply, glaring at him instead.
Sendoh pouts, "Boo, you're no fun."
(There's some comfort in knowing that they both had the same idea of their next meeting - one in a far more professional and serious setting, something that's more logical than chance.
At least Rukawa doesn't feel like he's the only one being toyed with by the fates. Sendoh's thread might be up in the air with Rukawa's.
Maybe next to his.)
The younger shakes his head, looking out at the trees bathing in the comforting glow of the sunset. Sendoh follows, sinking his hands in his pockets. In probably an hour or so, it'll be night and then of course, a brand new day.
The rest of the crowd is still talking with each other lightheartedly. Despite losing, most of Shohoku were calm about it, acting mature. Thankfully, Ryonan isn't rubbing their victory in their face either. Everyone acting civil meant no headaches, a blessing after the ruckus.
That would start a brawl, and Rukawa can't promise he won't be involved.
Rukawa suddenly scoffs, surprising Sendoh. "So you're the ace of the team."
"I am." Sendoh looks away from the tree he was staring at and blushes, laughing instinctively, "Was I, uh, up to your standards?"
Yes. Rukawa thinks, Probably even better. But of course he doesn't say that.
"You were okay."
"Oh," Sendoh mutters, shoulders deflating slightly. "Well, thanks, but don't leave yourself out. I thought you were pretty great."
Pretty great, he says, and yet. Rukawa sighs, eyes locked on to a random tree from far away.
Rukawa doesn't preen at the compliment, seeing as it's one he's quite used to receiving. He's well aware he's done his best in that match, he knows that at the very least.
Still, the feeling of defeat hums clear.
He mumbles bitterly, "We still lost, thanks to you."
"But we had a pretty difficult time, no thanks to you."
Rukawa snorts, "You're welcome." He tries to stay calm around him, and is fairly surprised when he doesn't have to put that much effort into doing it. Something about Sendoh makes it easy for Rukawa to somewhat feel at ease around him.
Not completely, but hey, there's something there at least.
Of course, the silence is broken yet again.
"Rukawa," Sendoh calls him randomly. Rukawa turns away from the random greenery he's looking at, only to see that the man is already turned to him, hands in his pockets, eyes facing downward, keeping in some apprehension.
He looked small, vulnerable - an odd description for a man standing over six feet.
"I was thinking," Sendoh starts, unsure. Rukawa can see that his ears are red. "When you're free and stuff, do you maybe want to-"
"Sendoh!"
Both men turn their heads to see none other than Sakuragi approaching, his face brimming with a warning calm.
That's my cue.
Rukawa quickly nods to Sendoh as a brief goodbye before briskly walking off. Sendoh looked lost, like he didn't know if he should gently pull Rukawa back or perhaps get him to stay, but in the end he did neither and he just let Rukawa walk away..
For the younger, the thought of being in the same talking circle with both Sakuragi and Sendoh gives him a headache. The redhead is bad enough on his own, what more his rival? And so he felt like he just had to go. Sendoh wouldn't mind. Probably.
Rukawa wonders what Sendoh wanted to say.
He's sure he'll see him again anyway. Rukawa wouldn't say he's looking forward to it, but if he's being honest, well…
He's not opposed to it.
As long as it's in better circumstances - no penis on the cheek, no one nearly getting run over by a bike, and maybe no surprisingly daunting basketball skills.
He can hear Sakuragi cursing Sendoh from far away. Rukawa wonders what Sendoh said to make Sakuragi fume so much after he parts with the older man to meet with Shohoku.
(Though, Rukawa's sure that no matter what Sendoh says, Sakuragi will see it as some sort of taunt or insult. The redhead had been especially upset about losing, so he's sure Sendoh, the one who turned everything around at the last minute, no longer had any hope of being seen as something good in Sakuragi's eyes.
So yes, boo hoo. But once again, Rukawa and Sendoh are in the same boat.
At least it's not lonely.)
Akagi looks at the redhead, confused, before he turns to Ryonan's coach and says his final thanks.
Rukawa curiously looks behind him and at the long line of players. He sees Sendoh, but Sendoh doesn't see him. He seems to be a bit too busy arguing with Koshino. The shorter man's getting red in the face, Sendoh just looks frustrated.
It's an odd expression on him, Rukawa thinks.
("What do you mean eleven laps? I'm going to die out there!"
"That's your fault! I don't care, I have more important things to do–"
"Like what? Watch the weather foreca–"
"SHUT UP!" Koshino nearly screeches. "Whatever, you dick. I'm not going to wait till you're finished."
But of course, a few hours later, Koshino is sat on the ground waiting for him, stomach growling loud enough for both of them to hear.)
Sendoh sighs, looking away. Koshino kicks him on the calf, and the taller man nearly falls over.
Rukawa looks away right as Sendoh turns from Koshino to scan the crowd and look for a specific person. By the time he finds the familiar mop of black hair, he's already walking away.
Sendoh never got to say goodbye.
Not that it really matters. Rukawa's convinced they'll see each other again. The fates like Rukawa far too much to just let it end here.
Then Rukawa and the rest of Shohoku are finally back at the station. Thankfully, it wasn't too bothersome of a walk and Rukawa could actually sleep on the train ride home, seeing as everyone was too exhausted, either by the match or from plain defeat to bring out Shohoku's usual lively energy.
(He may have looked at the mirror once or twice after he woke up. No, he wasn't checking himself out. How dare you. He just wanted to see if he was going to wake up with something graphic written on his face.
Thankfully he doesn't, unlike some people.)
On his way home, his mind drifts off to Sendoh again, but he tries to not let it. Because then, he would go from thinking about how unbelievably skilled the man was to how attractive he looked making his shots.
And it's only 7pm. Far too early to drown in thoughts of another teenage boy just like him.
But.
He looked so focused, so different from the Sendoh that Rukawa had been getting to know these past two days. It was interesting to see him playing in such a laid back manner to suddenly switching to this unstoppable scoring machine.
It was intimidating. Even then, Rukawa tried his damned best to keep the same focus on the game, but it was so hard when Sendoh would just randomly pull up his jersey to wipe the sweat on his forehead, and Rukawa could see-
Oh my GOD.
Rukawa nearly chokes. Anyway…
It didn't help that Sendoh was quite easy on the eyes. It was almost distracting.
He says that as someone with eyes.
He passes by shops, the cold air being his only company during the bike ride. It's quiet, and so his thoughts run free. Rukawa can't keep himself from wondering when he'll see Sendoh again.
He finally gets home, his face uncomfortably warm.
Knowing his luck with three goddesses upstairs, he's sure it won't be very long till then.
Well, this is new.
It's been two weeks, and he hasn't seen Sendoh since.
No, Rukawa's not upset. Not feeling antsy either. But he is concerned. Something about bumping into Sendoh four or five times in the span of three days to dead silence for two weeks is a bit suspicious.
He feels like he should be worried, but on the other hand, it's entirely possible that the fates are done playing with him. Maybe they finally got tired with their kite and began packing their things.
(Rukawa's not sure if he's too happy about it, but he's a bit relieved knowing he wouldn't have to worry about turning a corner and crashing into Sendoh again.)
Currently, he's leaning on the dining table, arms crossed. He's not particularly angry, just a bit tired. He can feel his legs getting numb from the position he's holding, but he'd rather not move, especially not when their chubby cat is sleeping and using his feet as a cushion.
(He used to be so small, and now…
It looks like someone spilled tar all over the floor.)
"Grandma's coming over?" he asks, surprised at what his mother had just said. He almost missed it, he was far too preoccupied with staring at the rhythmic pattern of Colas breathing.
"Mhm, later for dinner," replies his mother. She has her back turned to him, and she's crouched down, digging through a drawer. Rukawa assumes that she's looking for the pretty plates she always keeps hidden and only ever takes out for important guests.
Rukawa could help, but he has a cat sleeping on his toes. He would rather not move.
He's sure his mom understands.
(And also despite living in this house for over a decade, he has no idea where the fine china could possibly be.)
"Is Kanzaki-san coming over as well?" Rukawa asks, referring to his mother's girlfriend. There must be a reason for his grandmother coming over so suddenly.
His mom blushes, holding a white plate to her chest. "Well… I thought mom could meet her over some good food."
"I see," replies Rukawa. "I hope grandma likes her."
"Me too," her mother sighs wistfully. "Thank you Kaede."
Silence. Nothing but the sound of objects being shuffled and hitting other things. Rukawa stares at the sink, waiting for a command of some sorts. There's a reason why his mom called him downstairs, after all. She wouldn't just let him watch her look for pretty plates.
"Kaede," his mom starts without looking at him, "if you're not too busy, could you pick some things up from the store shortly? Hold on, I can make a list."
Rukawa's mother paces around the kitchen shortly before she finds a notepad and starts furiously scribbling on the paper, taking her eyes off the list and opening the fridge some moments.
"For dinner?"
"Of course. I have to pull out my yearly specials just so they're comfortable. Some dishes require a bit more work than others but I'll try to pull it off."
Rukawa could say something corny like, 'You don't have to, everything you make is already the best I've had.' But he doesn't, instead he says, "I'm sure things will go fine."
"Let's hope so."
Rukawa takes the list his mother hands to him, reading it over blankly. His mom gives him a little eco bag and some money before he's pushed out the door to the discomfort of the cat that was sleeping on his toes. He silently walks over to his bike that's leaning on their empty dog kennel.
The nearest store is a six minute bike ride from his house. It'll be a short trip.
And yet Rukawa doesn't know why he's so worried.
He brushes aside his worries and bikes off towards a specific location. Unlike what he had been dreading, the ride goes fine, thankfully.
The lights turn on and the circus music starts when Rukawa's lining up towards the register.
He hadn't been paying much attention to his surroundings aside from picking up the things in the list (and glaring this one middle aged woman down when they reached for the same watermelon), and only bothered taking notice when he heard a familiar voice going, "Oh, it's you."
Rukawa looks up, recognizing it immediately.
(He really should have considered shoplifting.)
Koshino stands there in his work clothes. A plain white shirt under a blue apron with a large smiley on the chest. It's quite good at contrasting the expression on the wearer's face, who looked like he would rather be anywhere but here.
The man doesn't look friendly, and he's not exactly trying to. He resumes checking out Rukawa's items with a thoughtful frown. He's not talking, so Rukawa's just hoping it'll end there.
But it doesn't.
"Sendoh's told me a bunch about you," Koshino says randomly, not looking at him. Rukawa stands still, trying to appear calm and waiting for him to continue. "Most of them I forget, but one thing he keeps saying about you is that you're pretty."
Rukawa nearly drops the can he's holding, but he manages to keep his composure and keeps it from tumbling and crashing. "Pret-"
"Pretty mean." Koshino quickly adds.
Oh. Rukawa frowns, eyeing the smooth metal counter. Of course. Koshino nearly drops the small container of minced garlic. He can feel Koshino sizing him up, then the sound of someone inhaling deeply.
"Honestly I'm just going to say this because there's a large counter between us so I have time to run in case you try to strangle me but." Koshino pauses for a brief moment. "I thought you were an asshole in the beginning."
Rukawa blinks, not really knowing where it's coming from. He replies, unsure, "I see."
"A dick."
"Okay."
Koshino glares at him, slightly ticked by the other man's reaction, "I still kinda think you are."
Shocking, Rukawa thinks to himself sarcastically. He's not exactly known for being warm, friendly, or open. Maybe in another world, but definitely not this one.
(Does other world Rukawa have friends outside of the basketball team? That's hard to wrap his head around.)
"But Sendoh likes you."
Rukawa stills, wondering what Koshino meant by that. He could ask Koshino to elaborate, to tell Rukawa what type of 'like' because it could be so many things, from friendships to, well.
Something else.
(He doesn't really care about it being one or the other, but he still can't help curling his toes in his sneakers from nervousness.)
"He does?" Rukawa asks lamely.
Koshino looks at Rukawa like he's stupid.
"Duh," he retorts as if it's the most obvious thing in the world, and maybe it is. "He literally made us wait outside the café so he can help you clean up and also talks about you all the time like I said. You have to be blind to not notice that he's extra friendly with you especially."
Rukawa keeps his mouth in a firm line, muttering, "I guess."
Friendly. Friend.
Good. That's fine.
(Anyway, Rukawa supposes you have to like someone a certain amount to treat them to ice cream after they nearly run you over with a bike.)
The cashier eyes Rukawa suspiciously. "Do you always give two-worded replies or do you just dislike me?"
Rukawa shakes his head, answering, "Neither."
"Oh, nice - one word. It gets shorter every time."
The man is slowly but surely getting on Rukawa's nerves.
Rukawa gives him a sharp glare and Koshino just rolls his eyes, no longer afraid of him. There's a brief moment of silence before Koshino speaks again, this time a bit gentler than before.
"About Sendoh," he starts, "he's a pretty soft guy, so uh. You can be a dick to me, like as much as you want, as often or something. Just don't be one to him."
Rukawa understands, but also he has to bite his tongue from going, 'You're the one who put the dick on his face in the first place.'
He blinks. "I'll try."
"Good enough," Koshino shrugs. He suddenly picks out a random chocolate bar from the side, putting it on the counter and scanning it after the green onions.
Rukawa thinks back to his budget. He scowls. "What was that for?"
"Sour gummies," the cashier answers. "Give it to Sendoh. He's been feeling kind of down lately."
"Down?"
The word 'down' could mean two things: Down as in sick maybe with a cold, or down as in emotionally, maybe Sendoh hasn't been in a good mood as of recent. Both certainly look weird on him.
(Rukawa can think of a coach that would be especially upset about both.)
And although Rukawa knows that it's not really any of his business, he can't help but feel a bit concerned.
"Yeah, but he's not sick so don't worry about that."
Way to ease my worries. I am no longer worried. Sarcasm swims free in Rukawa's mind.
"About this," Koshino raises the blue bag of gummies to eye level, "he likes this specific brand for some reason. It's way too sour so don't eat too much if you don't want to wake up with missing teeth."
That sounds painful. Rukawa thinks. He's thankful he didn't take a scoop out of Sendoh's lemon sorbet now.
"If you can't tell, I hate it. It tastes like ass." Koshino adds with a wince.
"Are you allowed to say that?"
"No, but the manager's out on an errand at the moment so I'm a free man." The shorter man sighs, "But anyway, give it to Akira when you see him. I'm sure he'll feel better after."
Rukawa takes the sour gummies before Koshino can slip it in the plastic bag, analyzing it. From the cover alone, he can tell it's sour - you have a kid wincing, holding his cheek. Aside from that, it's a simple little bag of sour devil circles.
(It looks like something not a lot of people would like, but Rukawa could easily imagine Sendoh pulling it out and just munching on it during timeouts or when matches reach the half point. He might have such a high sour tolerance that when people ask and he gives, he just watches their face wrinkle and scrunch up.
Sendoh would be confused. Maybe. Or he would be a little shit and laugh.
Rukawa could feel a twitch on the corner of his mouth, but he keeps it down.)
He eyes Koshino suspiciously, handing it back to the man who swipes it out of his hands. "Why can't you just do it yourself?" Rukawa asks.
"I don't really feel like it." replies the cashier easily.
Rukawa wonders why he bothered asking.
Koshino continues, "And besides, he'd like it more coming from you-" He sees the younger's expression and groans, "Oh come on don't look at me like that. Didn't I just say he talks a lot about you?"
Rukawa relaxes his features, sighing, "I don't even know when I'll see him again."
"Huh. I didn't think about that."
Well then why are we here? Rukawa doesn't even like sour things. What is he even going to do with it if he never sees Sendoh before it expires?
Well, he would obviously throw it out, but.
The shorter man grunts loudly, "Whatever, just hold on to that for his sake - not even mine. That loser and I go way back and even if it's just because of a little bag of… whatever that is from you," Koshino furrows his brows, his voice getting gentle, "I wouldn't mind seeing him happy."
Sendoh being happy. A friend being happy. Rukawa gets it, even if he doesn't have much experience in the friend area.
Despite his sharp words, Koshino's now stuffing the groceries in a large plastic bag with some fondness in his eyes.
Aside from it just being a funny sight to Rukawa - a man putting a container full of tomatoes fondly into a bag - it's clear that the shorter man certainly cares for Sendoh.
(They are friends. Caring whether your friend is happy or not is the least you can do.)
Still, Rukawa scoffs lightly, "Gross."
"Tell me about it. That'll be four thousand, by the way."
On the bike ride home, Rukawa's eyes keep drifting down to look at the chocolate bar Koshino slipped in. It's a bit of a common gift, and it's certainly not something Rukawa expected.
It expires in two weeks, it seems, which is slightly funny to Rukawa.
After all, it's also been two weeks since he last saw Sendoh. He wonders when that'll expire as well.
The fates chuckle. The fates giggle like schoolgirls. They probably gossip, too, and Rukawa's sure he's the one getting stabbed in the back.
"Ah, Kaede you've grown!" squeals the tiny old woman standing on the doorstop. Rukawa's dear old grandmother who he hasn't seen in a few months in a green dress with white flowers.
And yet Rukawa's eyes aren't on her.
Sendoh stands behind her, wearing the same surprised expression Rukawa's sure he has on right now. His mouth is slightly agape, posture stiff like he's just been shot.
Rukawa definitely feels like a bullet or two has been lodged in his skull.
"Oh, Kaede. This is-" Rukawa's grandmother turns, placing a gentle hand on Sendoh's arm. "Ah, Sendoh-san, this is my grandson, Kaede. He goes to Shohoku. Do you know each other?"
"Yes."
"No."
Jesus Christ.
The old lady looks perplexed, even a bit awkward. She chuckles, "Well if you say so."
Rukawa moves to the side and lets his grandmother pass by after she gives Sendoh a candy and thanks him again. She gives Rukawa a soft pat on the arm as she gets inside. He sees his mom rush over and give the old lady a big hug which was happily returned.
Considering how long it's been since they last saw each other, either woman couldn't look any happier. It's sweet to see them reunite after so long.
Then his eyes land on Sendoh. Unlike some.
Seemingly not knowing what to do, Sendoh kicks a pebble on the ground which flies off and hits the dog kennel. He flinches at the loud sound it made and gives Rukawa a sheepish grin.
Rukawa sighs. So this isn't a dream, and Sendoh is actually standing in front of his house.
The younger man scratches his neck. "Do you... want to come in?"
Sendoh looks slightly surprised at the question. Politely, he replies, "No, it's okay. I'm good."
Thinking back to how Rukawa's nearly a hundred percent Sendoh accompanied his grandmother to his home, he sure is.
Rukawa wasn't expecting him to say yes, so he nods his head in understanding. "Alright."
"Yeah I-" Sendoh nods his head at Rukawa's grandmother who's chatting with her own daughter excitedly. Both men can hear mentions of dogs and bingo. "I just wanted to drop your grandmother off - lovely woman by the way. I just really have to get home."
"Okay." Rukawa has no idea why the air is awkward between them. Sendoh doesn't seem like his usual self, or more like the usual self Rukawa knows of.
Koshino really wasn't lying about Sendoh not feeling the best, it seems.
"Do…" Rukawa starts but stupidly trails off, holding the doorknob tightly.
Sendoh stands there, looking at him expectantly.
"Do you want me to walk you back to the station?"
Sendoh halts, a smile growing on his features. He laughs, "Yeah, sure."
Well that was easy. Sendoh seems pleasantly surprised, and so does Rukawa with himself for being able to put the offer on the table in the first place. He doesn't always ask attractive guys if he can walk them back to the station during late.
"I… alright. Let me get my coat."
He quickly lets his mother know about his change of plans and lets him go easily but not before a quick "Be home before eight," as if Rukawa would lose track of time around Sendoh.
Yeah, that'll never happen. Definitely.
He walks out, slipping the jacket on as he does so. Sendoh doesn't miss a beat before commenting on the piece of clothing he's brought along with him.
"Your coat is your Shohoku jacket?"
"It was the closest thing to the door."
Sendoh feigns frustration, saying, "It doesn't go with your outfit," and looking up and down at Rukawa's long sleeved tee and pair of loose pajama pants.
Rukawa scoffs, "I'm not looking to impress anyone."
"What about me?"
"You're not worth impressing."
Sendoh merely chuckles in amusement, unaffected by the bluntness of Rukawa's tone. "You can be mean if you want to be, huh?"
Rukawa thinks back to what Koshino said back at the store. He forces himself to bite back an apology. "I can." Still, guilt starts to ride him freely so he quickly adds, "But anyway, I hope you don't mind."
The older man huffs, "Of course not. You can walk around in bright neon colors for all I care; it's none of my business."
Rukawa can imagine himself wearing a neon tracksuit, and he hates it. He nearly shudders.
Silence, just the sound of their footsteps hitting the path of the empty shortcut they find themselves walking in. It's only a little after 7PM, and Rukawa doesn't really want to walk through town where he's sure it would be crowded, or at least occupied by a decently large crowd.
Eventually when they get to the main street, Rukawa only then realizes that they aren't really walking side-by-side. Sendoh is just half a step behind him.
He doesn't beckon him to come closer, because he doesn't really care. They're just two guys walking along the curb. He lets his eyes wander instead.
There's not a lot of people out tonight, he notices. It's quiet, peaceful, and they would sometimes pass by shops, some with obnoxiously bright lights, some with warmer glows, and it was comforting, almost like he was walking alone.
(It definitely helps that Sendoh hasn't said anything since that earlier conversation. The older man just follows him while humming a ballad Rukawa doesn't recognize. Rukawa expected him to ask at least one question, but here they are.)
It had Rukawa thinking: For some reason, all of his most peaceful meetings with Sendoh were during the evening, when it was just the two of them. Where all they had was, obviously the moon, but also each other's company, and-
"Rukawa."
Nevermind.
(With Sendoh, Rukawa's sure it won't be too quiet for long. He seems to be the type who would chatter nervously when things get awkward.
Now Rukawa wonders what the guy says to the dentist every time he visits.)
Rukawa doesn't reply.
"Do you want to play twenty questions? You know the game where y–"
"I know what it is, and no," Rukawa shoots him down quickly. He doesn't actually know what it is, but it sounds like a game with a lot of talking and he's not feeling particularly chatty at the moment.
Sendoh sighs, cleary having had expected this reply. "Why not, though?"
"It sounds boring, and it won't help us get to the station any faster." Rukawa has his hands stuffed in the pockets of his pajama pants, and he turns to see Sendoh who has the corners of his mouth raised slightly. It looks too soft.
"Come on, you know it's awkward if neither of us say anything," he says. While the awkwardness was one-sided in the beginning, the mention of it led to discomfort creeping up Rukawa's shoulder. It's unpleasant.
Still, Rukawa argues, "It's not that far of a walk."
"It's still a walk so why not?"
"Like I said, talking won't make us walk any faster."
"But…" Sendoh catches Rukawa's eye and trails off, sighing. "You're really stubborn, you know that, right?"
"I've been told."
The first time Rukawa was told he was stubborn was when his grandfather and he, at age seven, went fishing.
At the time, Rukawa was adamant that he could catch a fish on his own and pull it out of the water without his grandfather's help. Eventually, his grandfather got worn out by little Rukawa's whining and just sat back while Rukawa stands alone on the dock, waiting for a catch.
Lo and behold, the fish was far too strong for being such a small little thing and the day ended with him watching his grandfather's fishing pole sink into the water.
"What if we do rock paper scissors," Sendoh suddenly suggests after a brief moment of quiet, "and the winner asks the loser a question, any question."
Fishing poles and twig arms aside, Rukawa blinks. "You're annoying."
"Well…" Sendoh hums, thinking of a good reason. "You're the one who offered to walk me to the station. Humor me for a bit."
The shorter man looks back at Sendoh's easy gaze. He carries such a calm demeanor, Rukawa noticed, that it's not hard to lower your guard around him.
Well I guess it wouldn't hurt. And, well, Rukawa wouldn't mind getting to know a bit more about the tall point guard who just never seems to leave. Sendoh isn't too far from weird stains that seem to never wash away.
Like mustard. Or grease.
He sighs defeatedly, "Fine."
Sendoh's eyes twinkle, and he pulls a hand out of his pocket. Rukawa raises his, frowning slightly upon seeing that the older man's hand is bigger than is, even by a small margin.
"Rock paper scissors," Sendoh starts. His open palm is then raised against Rukawa's loose fist. He has a victorious grin on his face, akin to childish glee. "I win."
"You cheated," Rukawa accuses, glaring at the other.
"No I didn't."
He didn't, and Rukawa truly doesn't think he did, but he doesn't like losing in the first round. He lets his arm hang at his side while Sendoh thinks loudly, occasionally muttering something about fish and fruit.
"Okay, something easy but not boring… Do you have any pets?"
There are worse questions in the world. At least this one is harmless.
"A black cat named Cola," answers Rukawa, thinking of the chubby feline. A beat goes before he adds, "We used to have a dog, too."
"'Used to'?"
Rukawa frowns. "She died a few years ago but we still keep her kennel up."
(Sendoh winces, thinking back to the pebble he kicked not too long ago. Oops.)
"I see. I'm sorry."
Rukawa shakes his head. "It's okay."
Sendoh awkwardly coughs before raising a fist. Rukawa sighs before doing the same. Nothing like an ice breaker leaving you to drown in ice cold water.
It's not too long before the awkwardness dissipates and Sendoh wins once more against Rukawa's scissors. Sendoh doesn't seem to think much about winning again but Rukawa can feel an eye twitch.
"You're definitely cheating."
Sendoh looks at him with a slight smirk. "No I didn't, maybe you're just bad at this."
Rukawa scoffs, giving Sendoh a pointed glare, "How can someone even be bad at-"
"Favorite color?"
The younger man clicks his tongue before muttering, "Red."
Sendoh hums, satisfied. Rukawa frowns and tries not to look at him too much. It's hard to, admittedly. The post lights nearby have given him a gentle glow, highlighting the ridge of his cheek and the line of his jaw.
However, Rukawa ignores it in favor of their little game. At some point, it becomes a blur of different questions. Sendoh seems to prefer asking him the more basic questions - not that Rukawa minds.
("Rock paper scissors."
"I win." Sendoh hums before asking, "What's your current goal for the month?"
"To beat you."
"Me?"
"No, to beat Koshino- obviously you." Rukawa's eyebrows furrow in mild embarrassment. "You're the only one I haven't beat in court yet. This whole time. I've never faced someone like you."
"High praise."
"Shut up.")
Rukawa just wishes he were better at asking questions.
("Favorite insect?"
Sendoh stops walking just to stare at Rukawa in disbelief. "You know, I wouldn't mind getting asked something normal like if I believe in ghosts."
"Do you?"
"What?"
"Believe in ghosts."
"Yes."
"Of course you do."
Sendoh looks offended. "What's that supposed to me- Oh, whatever. Uh, ladybug.")
He really does.
("How many bones have you broken?"
"Again, with these questions…"
Rukawa gives him a blank stare and nothing else. Sendoh eventually cracks and sighs.
"Six- No, seven. But all of them were from years ago. The most terrifying one was when I broke my arm after I rolled down this small hill near our home. Not intentionally, by the way - I was alone and I was chasing my dog around, guess I slipped and lost my balance."
Rukawa nods along, satisfied. "Rock pap-"
"Are you really not gonna follow it up with anythi-"
"-er scissors." Rukawa ignores him.)
Rukawa doesn't really know how long it's gone on, but at some point, he finds himself relaxing in Sendoh's presence. They're walking side by side now, but they're far enough that brushing shoulders would be an impossibility unless someone were to shove either man closer to the other.
It's not enough for him to have his guard down, but for him to relax in someone's company is…
It's unfamiliar, odd. But he doesn't mind it.
He doesn't like the slight ache in his jaw, though. He's never talked this much in one evening.
Sendoh asks, "Favorite snack?"
Apparently Sendoh won, but Rukawa still has his fist raised. He drops it and replies, "I don't have any."
And surprisingly, the older man gives him a glare, a stern expression that nearly catches Rukawa off guard.
"What's that look for?"
"Ah, sorry–" Sendoh apologizes and his glare is gone as quick as it came. Weird. "I won't judge you for it obviously but well… it's weird. You have to like something."
"I like basketball."
"Basketball is not a snack."
They stare at each other before Rukawa sighs, submitting. He supposes any answer would appease the older man. "Fine. Popcorn isn't too bad."
"Never took you for the popcorn type." What's that supposed to mean? "At least yours is something sort of common." Sendoh laughs, "Mine is this bag of sour gummies that only I seem to like. Kosh hates it, everyone does."
Sour gummies. Rukawa puts his hand in his pocket and just then realizes that aside from having the sour gummies in him the entire evening, the station lights can be seen from where the both of them are standing and neither of them have really noticed.
He ignores it for now.
The shorter man pulls out the blue bag of sour gummies that was given to him no less than a few hours ago. "Like these?"
Sendoh's eyes widen at the (very lame and anticlimactic) reveal. "You-"
"These were rotting in my jacket pocket for a few days. You can have them." Rukawa lies, but he would admit to having forgotten about them.
He meant to keep this in the pockets of his Shohoku jacket just in case they met again through an arranged match. Clearly he was very ready for someone to take it off his hands and never see it again.
(Rukawa believes it's because he hates sour things, and not because he's looking forward to the prospect of bumping into Sendoh again anytime soon. For sure.)
"Is it expired?"
Rukawa hands it over to him. "See for yourself."
Rukawa's face definitely isn't burning just because Sendoh's hand brushed his for a split second. There's no way there's no way there's no wa-
Sendoh flips it around and finds the expiration date. He huffs out a relieved exhale that sounds almost like laughter. Rukawa simply watches him, not even thinking of a single jab.
"Thanks." Sendoh stuffs it in his pocket, smiling warmly at the younger. "I didn't think you were the sour candy type."
"I'm not. Someone told me about it and I got tempted to buy it. So I did."
"Really?"
Rukawa thinks about Koshino. "There was this bridge troll who told me my teeth would fall off if I ate them."
Sendoh snorts. "Bridge troll?"
"He was rude." Rukawa adds, "And short."
"Huh," Sendoh smiles, "But anyway, that sounds like something Koshino would say. He hates these with every bone in his body."
The younger man tries to push the corners of his mouth down as Sendoh looks away, finally taking notice of the station lights. "Oh, the station's pretty close now. How about one more round for the road?"
Rukawa looks ahead, and sure enough, there's no mistaking the clear view of the station. He looks at Sendoh, who looks slightly disappointed.
He briefly wonders if his own face is betraying how he feels at the moment.
"Sure," Rukawa accepts with a nod.
"Rock paper scissors." A beat later, Sendoh laughs, "I win again."
Rukawa lost to another paper. He shoves his losing fist in his pocket. "Cheater."
"You've been accusing me of that since we started playing but let me remind you: You can't cheat in rock paper scissors."
"That's what cheaters say."
"Or maybe I could just be lucky, ever heard of that?"
Rukawa glares at him, and Sendoh gulps, clearly intimidated.
"Anyway, uh." Sendoh looks nervous.
If he was going to ask Rukawa about anything stupid, he wouldn't have such a weird expression on him. Rukawa listens. It probably isn't going to be stupi–
"Would you be friends with me?"
Rukawa halts, and Sendoh takes a step forward before he stops. Rukawa can see him begin to panic, wide eyes and shoulders raised. He looks like he's getting ready to confront something terrifying.
But before that, Rukawa sighs and the older man stills. "Is that a request?"
(As Sendoh scatters for a reply, Rukawa's mind briefly wanders to those animatronic figures in the toy stores. The ones that say creepy phrases that even Rukawa finds unsettling. He's sure he's heard that sentence before. Maybe in a birthday party he got dragged to or one of his random forced family outings. A kid must have carried one of those toys and played it loudly.
He looks at Sendoh's pointed hair, can easily imagine a porcupine toy asking if he wanted to be Rukawa's most precious loving friend in the world.)
"Uh— That's up to interpretation?"
Rukawa stares at him. He doesn't know how to respond. He had been expecting another one of the ridiculous questions he's been targeted with since the start of their short trek to the station.
Sendoh must have seen the conflict that flashes through the younger's face because he quickly waves his hands in front of him, saying, "You don't have to ans–"
"I don't back down from a game."
Pause. Sendoh relaxes and lets out a chuckle of amusement. "Okay."
They both stand there for what feels like an hour (four minutes, says his watch), and he opens his mouth to speak.
"Do I have to answer?"
Sendoh shrugged. "If you want."
"Uh." Rukawa swallows. He's looking at the takoyaki stand in the distance, at the steam coming from the stall and he tries to let his hunger drown out his flushed state, anything but the scalding of his cheeks. "I guess you're alright."
Silence.
(Rukawa wants the ground to swallow him whole.)
"It's been six minutes and that's the best you can come up with."
Rukawa frowns, lips forming a hard line. He can feel a faint heat burn on his ears. "I wasn't finished. You're annoying but alright." Does he say it? … Fuck it. "I guess you make a good friend."
And nothing will ever beat the site of Sendoh, dumbfounded and slightly mesmerized, face burning red despite the calming bustle that surrounds them both.
(He wonders if there are people looking weirdly at the two men standing on the side for almost ten minutes now. Neither of them have moved from their spots, but Rukawa doesn't really care.)
It quickly disappears. Sendoh laughs lightly, " I'd be a lot more convinced if you didn't look like you were forced at gunpoint to say that."
"But I wasn't."
"You weren't."
They both stand there, the station lights blinking and time continues to flow. Rukawa doesn't know what to think, but he's mildly uncomfortable at the second wave of silence that washes over them.
He figures he should say something.
"I don't dislike you. I don't have many friends, I think they're annoying. I'm not used to them."
Sendoh looks like he was expecting the reply. He smiles. "Figures, I–"
"But like I said, I think you're annoying."
A beat.
Rukawa's sure he could hear his mom chopping leeks back at home with the wave of silence that has now engulfed their space (again).
The smile is completely wiped off Sendoh's face, taken aback by the reply.
"So we–"
Rukawa sighs, not seeing the big deal, "Sure." Then he repeats for good measure, "Sure.
And Sendoh grins. Wide, boyish, and (awfully) mesmerizing. His eyes are shining an electric blue and Rukawa startles.
He wonders if his heart has ever felt this full before.
"Friends," Ryonan's ace mutters, before his voice takes on a teasing tone. "I can't believe it, my friend Rukawa."
"No."
Sendoh laughs. "Don't like labels?" he asks.
It's not that Rukawa doesn't like labels, it was just corny, and Rukawa can only take so much humiliation in one evening.
"Just stop calling me that."
"Yeah yeah," Sendoh waves a hand and begins walking again, ahead of Rukawa so the younger couldn't really see the expression on his face. He thoughtfully says, "I knew you'd say that but…"
But…?
"I guess I'm just glad. I think you're interesting, fun."
And Rukawa nearly stumbles.
Sendoh must have been dropped on the head as a child because there was no way he would think–
Rukawa is many things, but fun is not one of them. Normally one would think back to being called such a thing but Rukawa does not have a single memory of being called 'fun'. He was a quiet child who kept to himself, he got into brawls in his later years, he didn't get along with most people.
(He looks at Sendoh's broad back. But somehow…)
Simply enough, Rukawa and fun were never in the same sentence unless it had the main idea of Rukawa being absolutely devoid of fun.
Sendoh is ahead of him, his longer strides taking him to their destination faster. He can't witness the incredulous look on Rukawa's face, and that's fine.
Rukawa supposes he should say something nice back, so after he moves past Sendoh's comment, he goes, "I don't mind talking to you."
"Yeah? Cool," Sendoh says as calmly as he can with his voice wavering slightly and ears entirely burnt. "Cool cool cool cool cool."
Rukawa was about to resume walking when a cold breeze passes by. He sees the older man poorly suppress a shiver. Rukawa can see his jaw clench, his body trying to withstand the cold.
Rukawa frowns. (He hates to say this, but) Speaking of cool…
"Are you cold?"
Sendoh flicks his eye to his immediately, not expecting the concern in his voice. "No," comes the reply, but it comes out shaky.
Liar.
"Hold on," he mutters, stopping. Sendoh pauses and looks at him like a curious dog.
Rukawa glares at him before beginning to shrug off his Shohoku jacket. He's a bit hesitant to do this but it's all he has. He's not feeling particularly cold meanwhile the other man…
Sendoh looks like he was two seconds away from curling in on himself.
Rukawa hesitantly presents his jacket to him. "Put this on."
Sendoh looks down on it. The younger man can't comprehend the look on his face, but even in the dark he can tell that the other is incredibly flustered.
"What."
"Do it before I change my mind."
"Wait wait wait! You know we're from rival teams ri–"
Rukawa sighs impatiently, not caring for his little speech. "One–"
The jacket is immediately off his hands.
Sendoh puts it on, huffing. "No need to start a countdown! Jeez, I was just being cautious."
With the way the older man had eyed the piece of fabric like it was a dangerous substance and a threat to life, Rukawa finds himself thinking the same thing sometimes, especially when he gets the short stick after practices.
"But you really don't have t–"
"You're welcome."
They resume walking.
Rukawa can't keep his eyes from glancing at the other every so often.
It's weird to see the man in the colors red and black, especially with the large 'SHOHOKU' emblazoned on the back. Rukawa thinks he looks better in Ryonan's colors, the blues, whites, and yellows being what he's accustomed to, but Rukawa's not opposed to the change. At least Sendoh seems more comfortable now. His eyes drift down to his leg, and wondered how he has been since their match.
(Not that he cares.)
"How's your bruise?"
(Fuck, he kind of does. Just a smidge.)
Sendoh looks momentarily confused. "What– oh. It's practically gone by now. No need to worry about it."
"That's good." Rukawa nods, relieved that he was no longer responsible for some sort of injury. He glances at the station that was getting closer.
He stops by a small tree and asks Sendoh, almost teasing, "Think you can walk the rest of the way yourself?"
The ace of Ryonan scoffs. "I mean if you literally want to walk me home you can do that."
"Do you want me to?"
"I was kidding, Rukawa." (Rukawa's brow twitches. He knew that.) "Besides, you have a family dinner to get to. Your grandma was talking about it. Almost made me hungry with how she described the menu."
Rukawa nods stiffly, realizing that he would get interrogated as soona s he gets home. "Thank you for walking her home," he mumbles.
"And thank you for walking me home." Sendoh replies, then backtracks. "Well, not home but- You get it, right?."
"Return it when you can," Rukawa says instead, referring to the clothing item wrapped around Sendoh's torso. "As early as you can," he adds pointedly.
Sendoh tried to meet Rukawa's demanding stare, hands making a fanning motion. "Okay, okay, I'll take care of it. Next thing you know, you'll be receiving this washed, ironed, and folded."
Rukawa assumes that the good reply would be to intercept and say he doesn't have to, but he's Rukawa so he just replies, "Okay."
"Great!" Sendoh flashes him a pleasant but unnecessary smile. "I'm sure it won't be long till the next time we meet, anyway."
This piques the younger man's interest. "What makes you say that?"
Sendoh hums. "Not sure, but I'm sure there's a reason we keep bumping into each other like this." He looks back at the station and smiles softly at Rukawa. "Anyway, I should go."
"Have a safe trip."
"You too. Good night, Rukawa."
Rukawa doesn't even spare him a reply, turning around and walking back home.
As he listens to the crunch of leaves under his shoes, a thought occurs to him and he whips back around suddenly.
"Wait, back at Ryonan, you wanted to tell me somethi-"
But Sendoh's already left. Even if he's somewhere not visible, Rukawa's sure he's out of earshot.
Rukawa sighs. He's not too far, but the idea of chasing Sendoh down for one measly question sounds unappealing, friend or not.
Maybe next time.
When he gets home, he bumps into Kanzaki, who looks stressed. Rukawa opens the door for her and quietly tries to assure her that things will go fine.
Kanzaki doesn't look convinced until Rukawa's grandmother pulls her into a very big hug.
He can see his mom who's standing by the dining table let out the largest sigh of relief Rukawa has seen from her in a very long time.
Rukawa wonders when he'll get his jacket back.
Probably not for long, the district tournament is about to start in a few days after all. He'll see Sendoh again eventually.
He's sure the fates will guarantee it.
so i want to apologize again for taking so long again! i hope it was enjoyable at least hehe
the replies i got are like very very outdated now but i thought it would be nice if i still reply as if i got them yesterday and not over a year ago (haha...) i'm really really happy to receive comments though.. i never really expected any feedback shjhsd considering all the great fics that have been published before mine. i swear i was still getting all dopey and smiley even days after getting notifs for them
LexannH: i was worried at first when i hit the 12k mark because in my head i was like, 'oh maybe this would be too long and then i would sound like i'm just. rambling' but at the very least i'm so so glad you had fun with it! dialogue is one of my fav things to write and i'm glad you thought sendoh was charming i really wanted him to come off friendly and just like.. a good guy, like someone you'd wanna be friends with and stuff. again, thank you sm!
Star7: sjdjhsd aaaa i'm so relieved my jokes were enjoyable... i was worried if they would land, and while i'm sure not all of them did i'm glad they were entertaining at the very least ^^ thank you for reading and gracing my story with a comment as well !
akiraismylover: ngl i was sweating a bit because i'm... well, over a year late but hey, it came anyway! sdhjsd i'm really happy you liked it though! aaa tysm !
RokudaimeLove: yeppp! i'm trying to stick close to canon hehe i had to pick up the manga and reread a bit to get some details right in the first chapter but in this one as well! i'm glad you liked the scenes with the teammates and the humor too aaaa i just really wanted something easy to read because personally that's what gets me out of a bad mood and it's just...easier to consume i guess! i wanted something wholesome and i intend to keep that light tone and tysm !
Angel: aaa i'm glad you thought sendoh was charming! i was trying my best to make him likeable and so i tried to make him work well with rukawa as best as i could so i'm glad you liked that! tysm !
for the rest of the comments i want to say thank you for leaving comments! i really appreciated them as for the next chapter, i'm still unsure of when i can update this fic again but if anything, i really really don't want to leave this unfinished...
thank you for tuning in! have a good day everybody mwa :D