:: With Eyes that See ::

[Chapter Twelve]

[Melted Ice]

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



Author's Notes: Thanks for reading and reviewing! Love you all!

Replies:

Keax-XV: *breathes sigh of relief* Thank goodness you don't mind the pairing…anyway, I don't believe you've got that many siblings…do you really? Hope this chapter wasn't too sappy for you…

Cookies: I wish I were Shika too! But I'm happy being me…

Anduril: Wow, you've actually got the honour of meeting one of those beautiful dogs…*turns green with envy*… Are you from Germany? That's halfway around the world from me! Anyway, I loved the Toyotama game too…

Nellie: That's where OOC comes in…

Nicki: Yup, love has no boundaries…anyway, two years isn't a lot…just look at Kenshin and Kaoru from Rurouni Kenshin, though Kenshin is older, of course…





Rukawa dribbled the ball in the basketball court. Its steady rhythm matched that of his racing heart. It had been a long practice.

Inter High had come and gone for Shohoku.

They had lost.

But they had won.

Sannoh had been overthrown. By a minnow in its first Inter High. By Shohoku.



Rukawa made a shot.

And heard the satisfying swish. Nothing but net.



Apparently, someone else had heard it too.



He turned around and saw her.

Satomi Shika.

Clapping.



"Rukawa-kun," she began, "great shot!"

How did she know that it was him?

He was left to wonder.



"I heard you were selected for Japan's Youth National Team. Congratulations! Train hard."



Rukawa recalled learning of his selection. He was happy, naturally, but did not show it. His face remained cool and passive. But his heart was leaping with joy.

Be the best in Japan. Then go to America.



Shika walked toward Rukawa. With her was the ever-present Seiko. Who greeted Rukawa with a gentle lick on his hand. Seiko had become good friends with Rukawa, who had, on many occasions, walked Shika home.



"Play hard."



Her voice was so soft that it was almost inaudible.

Rukawa looked at her. She seemed teary, about to cry.



"Shika-chan, I will."



Shika let the tears come.

She was crying. For the life she had lost. For the life he had lost.



Then she felt Rukawa's hand on her shoulder.

Maybe he had not lost his life. Maybe in that cold, calm, passive Rukawa was a heart after all, an essence of humanity.



The moment he reached out to touch her, Rukawa felt a jolt of electricity in him. Life, as some would call it. A forgotten feeling of compassion, of love.

He had been a withdrawn child, not hard to believe when one learnt that his parents hardly cared about him, preferring to party the nights out. He had forgotten the power of a human touch, the power of a love that coursed through his body. He had become akin to a machine.

But Shika had found him. His small dark cave in which he had imprisoned himself. And had helped him reach the light.



She had lost so much.

But she had helped him find so much.



"Shika-chan."

His voice, suddenly choked with emotion, made Shika stop crying.

She was stunned.

Rukawa?



He brought her close to him. Felt her head nestle in his chest. Felt her heart beating against his chest. Felt the warmth of a human body against his own. A warmth he had never known.



Rukawa?

Shika's unvoiced query remained unvoiced as she felt herself being drawn to him.



"I can feel your heart," she murmured.



"It's alive, thanks to you."



Shika closed her eyes in contentment.

She had helped him find himself after all. He would not be another lost to the maniacal life of someone possessed.

Rukawa was out of character, different from the Rukawa she had thought she knew.

But Rukawa Kaede was himself. Not the cold machine he had become, and as of now, ceased to be.



Rukawa Kaede.

Standing in a basketball court with the ball all but forgotten.

In its place was a girl.

A girl with a dog.

An amazing girl.

A girl he had come to love.