Disclaimer: You should know this by now! Anyway, for formality's sake, Slam Dunk is owned by Inoue Takehiko and I'm only borrowing them for an unspecified period of time. Please don't sue, I'm just a struggling student fond of Slam Dunk!
Chapter 9: Go Fish
Author: Mitsui no Miko
Sendoh arrived at the park. He saw that Rukawa was already there. He waved him over and said, "Do'aho".
"Is that the only word you know?", teased Sendoh.
"No…"
Silence.
"You haven't been sleeping well last night," said Rukawa in his quiet voice.
Sendoh smiled and realized that his face showed the signs of how he was last night. His hair was less spikier than usual, his eyes were puffy and had faint rings under them.
"I… er… well… never mind," laughed Sendoh. "So, what about our basketball game?," he asked.
"Do you feel well enough to play," asked Rukawa with a hint of concern in his voice.
Sendoh was touched and said, "Well, I'm fine but thanks for asking anyway. So how did you sleep last night?"
"I did'nt sleep well either," he admitted.
"Why?"
"I was… you know… just thinking about…"
"…?"
"Stuff…"
"I see…"
The truth was that Rukawa couldn't sleep because he was thinking of Sendoh and how to deal with his current situation. He knew that he had to do something. Maybe it comes with his being a team captain and a competitive player. What he wants, he gets. And Sendoh is no exception.
A voice interrupted his thoughts.
"Ne, Rukawa, wanna go fishing for a while?"
Fishing. That didn't sound bad at all. Soon, he found himself riding in Sendoh's convertible on the way to his favorite fishing spot.
He didn't realize he was smiling.
"Why the smile, super rookie?"
"I was just thinking this was way better than riding in my bike," he replied with a little smile.