:: With Eyes that See ::

[Chapter Ten]

[A Time of Reflection]

Disclaimer: Slam Dunk and its characters do not belong to me…

Author's Notes: *breathes sigh of relief* This chapter is longer…but still reminiscent of my short style…*grin*…enjoy it!

By the way, it's going to be Rukawa X Shika…*ducks blows, rotten vegetables and the like*… hope it won't bring on flames – I don't taste good barbecued! :P



Replies:

dre@ms of Akira: Torture? You torture me by not updating your fics fast enough! *grin*

Keax-VX: 25 sentences…I didn't realise that myself! Well, this one's longer, if you're counting! What's ROFL? Sorry, I guess I got carried away by the human relationships…will try to expand more on Shika's relationship with Seiko…don't expect too much though…

Nellie: Okay, here's more!







"You did it." Her words held some sort of finality, some sort of conviction.

"Yes."

Rukawa looked at the girl in front of him. She was blind. But sometimes, he had a feeling that she did see. Not in the physical sense, but something beyond that. Perception, maybe. Very good perception.

"Thank you."



Satomi Shika looked at the boy opposite her at a table in a small café. He looked back at her.

And the corners of his mouth tugged upwards slightly in a smile.



Rukawa Kaede.



He had taken her out to lunch the day after Shohoku had emerged winners.

He had taken her out to lunch to thank her for her encouragement.



So there they sat, two people who could not be more different.

One, a blind, cheerful girl.

The other, a basketball ace, almost similar to a block of ice.



Shika thought back, while sipping her tea, to the days when she too was a fanatic, a basketball fanatic.

She had been like Rukawa.

Now, she didn't want to be. Neither did she want Rukawa to be so caught up in basketball like he was now, to forget that he had to lead a normal life.

The question that had struck her when Rukawa had first walked her home still remained: Would she had been like that?

She had no answer.

She only knew that she was not like that now, thanks to her accident.

She only knew that she wanted to help Rukawa as well. Help him find himself again.

Find his other self, apart from the game.



She thought of her accident. How it had helped her regain a proper perspective on life. How it had led her to the love of her life – her dog Seiko. Seiko was a match for human company, he was so understanding and affectionate.

Seiko's quickness at forming a relationship with Rukawa was also apparent to her. It made her wonder if that was what Rukawa craved: companionship.

As far as she knew, he was a loner. He even seemed to live alone, not mentioning his family or relatives even once in all the time she had known him.



Rukawa sat at the opposite end of the table, looking at the girl, oblivious to her thoughts.

She was a good player. He admired her for that.

She was a great player.

It was high praise indeed, coming from Rukawa.

"Want to play a game?"



He challenged her the only way he knew how.



She looked back at him. Was it an expression of sadness he saw on her face?



"Maybe later. First, let's take a walk. Seiko's getting bored. Okay?" she replied.

Rukawa shrugged, then remembered that she couldn't see, and grunted an affirmative.



Both of them left the café, with Shika holding on to Seiko's lead, and Rukawa walking next to her.