Dilemma - Chapter 4
Disclaimer: Slam Dunk and its characters do not, in any way, belong to me.
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Swinging his Nike bag over his shoulders, Rukawa sauntered into the classroom with his other hand tucked warmly into his pocket.
The room was empty except for a couple of girls who were gossiping among themselves but his entrance managed to make them drop whatever conversation they were having.
Ignoring the blushing girls as usual, Rukawa allowed his sapphire eyes to roam across the room for a split second before he gracefully made his way over to a seat beside the window at the back of the room. Placing his nearly-empty bag on the table, Rukawa sat himself down and took a glance at his watch. He was early by 10mins. He never liked being late, unlike someone he knew. He had always hated the additional attention he got whenever he walked into a class late. The two girls in the room were now talking louder than before, throwing glances every now and then towards his direction. But the young man paid no heed and looked out the window, hoping to drown out their shrill voices.
It was a beautiful day. The sky was fully lined with white, fluffy clouds and the bright rays of the morning sun seeped through them, casting a warm glow onto the garden. Birds were flying high in the sky, from tree to tree, their little voices tittering as they flew, as if beckoning the start of a new day. The school garden was empty and peaceful, with only stretches of greenery in view. A light wind started to blow, swaying the branches of the tall trees. Rukawa closed his eyes and allowed the wind to sweep his silky black bangs out of his flawless face. He opened his eyes lazily after some time and looked up into the sky and saw that the wind had shaped the white clouds into that resembling a horse.
As a child, he had always enjoyed looking up into the sky on a windy day, fascinating himself as he watched the clouds formed themselves into numerous shapes. He remembered how his parents would bring him out into the garden and watched the clouds with him. Life back then was simple and blissful. Hence, watching the clouds somehow served as a feeble attempt by him to hold onto those memories and feelings which seemed so distant and out of reach now………
He had no idea how long exactly had he been staring out the window but it must had been pretty long because the next thing he knew, the class room was fully seated and every single pair of eyes was on him.
He had been so engrossed in his thoughts that he did not noticed his history sensei had long entered the class and was now looking straight at him as if waiting for something.
Figuring that the young man must had missed her question, the sensei repeated with a small smile although she was slightly irritated by his lack of attention. "It's your turn to introduce yourself now. Maybe you like to start with your name and which high school you came from and any hobbies that you might have."
Nodding, Rukawa pushed his chair back and pulled himself to his full height, causing his raven black hair to fall forward, half obscuring his striking blue eyes. Ignoring all the stares, he looked straight in front at the lady teacher and spoke in his deep, monotonous voice.
"My name is Rukawa Kaede. I am from Shohoku High School and I like playing basketball." His introduction was short and crisp.
Those girls who previously managed to keep their cool at the sight of the dashing young man immediately found themselves melting upon hearing his voice. His voice was deep and smooth, the monotony of his voice only served in adding a mysterious edge to it. His alluring voice, together with his outstanding appearance and cool demeanor was simply irresistible.
"Well, I presume you must be in the Varsity Basketball Team then, given your height." The lady sensei smiled, noticing the excitement this young man had managed to stir up.
"Hai" Rukawa nodded slightly.
Collective gasps erupted from around the room, followed by "He is also from the basketball team, same as Mitsui-sempai and Sendoh-sempai."
Unknown to him, basketball is the most popular and supported sport in the varsity because of their yearly achievements and selection into the team was strict. Being recruited into the team as an actual member put one in a higher league than others.
Anxious to prevent the class from being overly-excited, the lady sensei tried to divert their attention. "Ok, next student please." She said as she motioned for Rukawa to take his seat while at the same time, pointing to a bespectacled boy sitting at a table next to him.
Taking a slight bow as a form of courtesy, Rukawa took his seat and sighed inaudibly. He could not understand what all the fuss was about. The boy next to him was now introducing himself and the earlier excitement in the class was beginning to wane. Not seeing the need to acquaint himself with his classmates, Rukawa chose to look out the window again.
The mention of Sendoh earlier reminded him of their one-one practice later in the afternoon and Rukawa's heart instantly felt lighter. He had always looked forward to these sessions with the older boy where they could peacefully play some solid basketball. Glancing at his watch, Rukawa sighed softly again. He realized it was going to be a long while before he could see Sendoh.
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"Sendoh Akira!" The patience of the sensei finally snapped after twenty minutes of tolerance.
Gulping back his laughs and trying his best to keep a straight face, Sendoh flashed his sensei one of killer smiles before coolly replying, "Yes?"
Sendoh was in the middle of his economic class. Being the last class of the day, he was getting restless and bored and had been talking to Ishi, his teammate, for the past twenty minutes. However, his sudden laughter in class at a joke by Ishi was the last straw for his sensei.
Further incensed by his indifference, the sensei tried to cool herself by taking a huge breath before drawling dangerously, "Maybe you like to share the joke with the class OR solve this question using the Lagrangian method." Her eyes shifted over to the economic question on the whiteboard while one of her hand was outstretched with a black marker in it.
Looking at the way she held out her marker, as if summoning him to go up, Sendoh knew that she wasn't really giving him a choice. Deciding not to piss his teacher further by choosing to go with the joke, he casually stood himself up from his chair and strode over to the whiteboard.
Smiling while retrieving the marker from her hands, Sendoh looked up at the question poised before him and paused, twirling the marker with his fingers at the same time. After a few seconds of thought, he began to write his answers on the whiteboard, his smile never once left his chiseled face.
After less than three minutes, he had managed to cover three-quarters of the whiteboard with the correct answers.
The rest of the class was impressed, so was the sensei. She knew that Sendoh was an intelligent boy and had a track of excellent academic records but to solve the question in such a short time was indeed remarkable. Looking at the grinning boy standing in front of her, she found her anger dissipating.
//It's hard to stay angry with this young man.//
"Ok. Now get back to your seat and stop disturbing the class with your constant yakking." The sensei chided and dismissed him with a wave of her hand.
"Hai. Gomenasai, sensei." Sendoh grinned even wider, glad that he had been let off the hook.
Walking to the back of the room, Sendoh was greeted by a 'Thumbs-up' from Ishi in which he coolly gave one back, along with a playful wink before settling down into his seat.
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"Bye!!" Sendoh called out to Ishi and a few others from his earlier class before he turned and made his way down the hallway.
It was the end of the day for him and he was to have a one-one session with Rukawa in the afternoon. But the rumbling from his stomach suggested that he had better get something from the cafeteria before heading down to the usual basketball court for he knew it was going to be a strenuous match, it always was.
Humming softly to himself, Sendoh slipped his hands into his pockets and turned right into another hallway which led to the cafeteria.
//Wonder if that boy has had his lunch? He always…..//
His thoughts were interrupted by an irritated female voice. He turned towards the source and saw the Soccer Team's captain talking to a familiar girl, who was carrying a volleyball under her arms. They were standing a good few metres away from him.
//It's that volleyball girl from yesterday.//
Sensing something interesting was about to happen, Sendoh paused in his tracks, wanting to witness whatever was coming. After all, he never did like the soccer captain much. He was too conceited and pushy.
"No. I am not free." The girl answered flatly, her beautiful face carrying a hint of annoyance. She was about to turn and leave but the guy who was clearly asking her out stopped her in her tracks by blocking her path.
"Why not?" The soccer captain demanded, not exactly pleased that he was being rejected straight in the face.
Yuki's face changed from one with a hint of annoyance to one which was fully lined with anger. She was appalled and furious at the audacity of the guy but before she could say or do anything, a deep smooth voice came from behind her.
"So here you are, been looking all over for you. It's time to go for lunch."
Startled, Yuki turned and saw a handsome tall man walking towards them with both his hands tucked into the pockets of his jacket, his blue eyes looking straight into hers.
//It's that baka. Is he talking to me?//
As if reading her thoughts, Sendoh smiled and nodded. Upon reaching them, he looked at Yuki and totally disregarded the soccer captain before he continued "Went to your class but they said that you had already left."
Yuki was stunned for words. //Just what does this guy thinks he is doing?//
Recovering from his shock, the soccer captain asked in an incredulous tone "You are dating Sendoh?"
Turning his head to face the soccer captain, Sendoh feigned surprise as if he had just noticed his presence for the first time.
"Gomen…….did not notice that you were having a conversation. Oh, by the way……..do I know you?" Sendoh asked innocently.
That did the trick. The soccer captain had just openly admitted that he knew the great Sendoh Akira but the acknowledgement was not mutual. He was indirectly insulted and his ego took a blow. He mumbled something incoherent before he abruptly turned and left, leaving Yuki and Sendoh behind.
"Why did you do that?" Yuki shot him a glare, although she was grateful for the interference.
"Well, it's the least that I can do for you after the bruise I gave you yesterday. And honestly, I can't stand that guy."
Yuki's eyes softened at the harmless response and mumbled a soft 'thank you' before she turned and head in the direction heading towards the cafeteria.
"Hey, where are you heading for?" Sendoh asked as he caught up and fell into steps with her. He had not expected her to leave so suddenly.
"Cafeteria" came the cold reply.
"Same here! We can lunch together then!" Sendoh suggested cheerfully, choosing to ignore the coldness of that earlier reply and the current glare he was receiving from the girl at the moment. After all, he was used to such cold behavior.
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"One Katsu-don please." Yuki frostily placed her order and ignored Sendoh who was standing behind her. He had been following her despite her obvious attempts to exclude him from her lunch.
"Make it two" Sendoh casually ordered his together with Yuki's as he placed a 1000 yen bill on the counter, before adding "I will pay for the meals this time."
Yuki turned and gave Sendoh one of her iciest stares which read 'back off' but Sendoh just returned the stare with one of his trademark smiles. They continued looking at each other in that manner. A cold glare against a warm smile.
//This guy is so infuriating!//
Yuki was so concentrated in glaring at Sendoh that she did not noticed that their orders were ready until Sendoh broke their gaze and gently bent over her shoulders to collect the two bento boxes.
"Let's not argue here ne? We will be holding up the queue." Sendoh said as he jabbed a thumb behind him, emphasizing his point.
Yuki looked over his shoulders and saw that there was indeed a long queue. Not only that, she realized that most of the surrounding people in the cafeteria were staring at them.
After collecting his change, Sendoh gently nudged her out of the queue and led her by her elbow across the cafeteria towards the garden, attracting lots of surprised stares along the way. Everyone in the cafeteria was clearly shocked that Sendoh was actually eating lunch with a girl. Though Sendoh was extremely popular with girls, he was never seen hanging around with a single one in school.
"Let's eat in the garden? It's more peaceful there." Sendoh suggested. He was well aware of the excitement that he was creating by eating lunch with the new girl.
Standing in the cafeteria with Sendoh at her side, Yuki felt that her every single movement was being scrutinized and recorded. She was a veteran in such situations for she had always attracted lots of attention from guys and sometimes from girls, but the amount of attention directed to them now was of another level, something in which she had never experienced before and it was making her feel extremely uncomfortable and suffocated. Anxious to get herself away from all the prying eyes, she nodded.
Smiling warmly at her, Sendoh led the way into the garden. Whispers of "Sendoh is finally dating a girl" and phrases like "She is so lucky" could be heard as they passed by the tables.
Yuki stole a glance at the tall young man walking slightly ahead of her and saw that he was relaxed and appeared unfazed by all the attention, it was as if those attentions were part of his everyday life.
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Stepping into the garden, a peaceful and quiet atmosphere greeted them. Sendoh made his way over to an empty table-bench with Yuki following closely behind. He sat himself down, took out the bento boxes and handed one of them to Yuki.
"Thanks." Yuki said coldly and sat herself down opposite Sendoh.
Sendoh was amused by how fast she had managed to regain her composure. Just a while ago in the cafeteria, she had looked like a helpless lost lamb.
Chuckling to himself, Sendoh dug into his lunch. He was very hungry.
"What are you laughing at?" Yuki demanded. She had a feeling that it was about her.
"Huh?? Nope, nothing at all. By the way, I have yet to know your name. Mine is Sendoh. Sendoh Akira."
Yuki rolled her eyes.
//As if I wouldn't know by now. I must have heard your name a dozen times since yesterday.//
Choosing to keep her thoughts to herself, in case she inflated his ego further. Yuki calmly introduced herself "Yuki. Yuki Hamasaki". With that, she opened her own bento box and began eating her lunch.
Sendoh looked at her between bites of food and decided she looked really pretty with her small, straight nose and high cheekbones. Her jet-black hair was gleaming under the sun and her eyes were something else…..they are bright green but cold. Her eyes together with her attitude reminded him of Rukawa. But then, on second thoughts, Sendoh decided nobody could beat Rukawa in terms of coldness. He was one in ten million.
"You know, you really remind me of a good friend of mine. He behaves just like you, speaking only when spoken to and in monosyllabic answers too. But then he is much colder than you. Speaking to him in the initial stages is just like talking to an ice block. He still doesn't talk much even though we are good friends now. I think I should introduce you to him some other time." Sendoh laughed as his mind conjured up the image of the two, locked in a glaring contest. Blue fox eyes against green almond-shaped eyes.
As much as Yuki hated to admit it, she felt herself warming up to the guy laughing in front of her. He was unlike the rest of the guys he had met before. Most of the guys around her were either too shy and timid, not knowing how to react in front of her or too showy and arrogant, trying their best to impress her. But this guy was different. He was confident without being overbearing and yet he made you feel at ease with his constant smiles and disarming laughter.
Taking a closer look at the young man who was now concentrating on his food again, Yuki could see why girls were crazy over him. He was extremely handsome. He had sparkling, dreamy eyes that were as blue as the ocean. His straight manly nose was sculpted to perfection on his chiseled face. But what was most attractive about him was his laid-back confidence. The way he carried himself seemed to tell the world that he could handle anything and everything that came his way and that nothing would ever faze him.
"Oh…you play volleyball right?" Sendoh suddenly raised the question. He had noticed the volleyball on the table and decided to start another conversation.
Caught off guard, Yuki was unable to turn her gaze in time and found herself staring straight into the blue eyes. Blushing slightly, she lowered her gaze before replying softly "Hai."
"My Oneesan used to play volleyball too." Sendoh casually continued, as if he did not notice her blushes at all. "She graduated from Kanagawa University two years ago, you might have heard about her from the seniors in your team. Her name is Sendoh Yumeru."
Yuki's eyes widened at the mention of that name. Of course she knew who Sendoh Yumeru was. She was the captain of the volleyball team two years ago and had led the team to the glory of being national champions. According to her seniors and sensei, she was the best volleyball player in the history of Kanagawa University.
"She is your Oneesan?" Yuki asked incredulously. She could not help but be impressed.
Amused at her sudden change in expression, Sendoh smirked before replying "Yeah. Talent runs in our family."
Yuki rolled her eyes and frowned slightly at the bravado of this young man but she knew that his claims were in a way true. After all, she had heard from her friend that he was the ace player in the basketball team and she knew that the team was one of the finest in the country.
Suddenly, Sendoh's face contorted into one lined with concern. Without warning, he stood up slightly from his seat and leaned forward across the table towards Yuki, peering closely at her forehead. Yuki's breath got caught in her chest as she found herself staring into those blue eyes again but from a much closer range this time. His face was just a mere few inches away from hers, he was so near that she could catch a swift of his light cologne.
"Is your forehead better? I am so sorry about yesterday." Sendoh apologized genuinely as he inspected the small bump on her forehead.
Regaining her equanimity, Yuki leaned backwards as she replied composedly, "It's just a small knock. Don't you have anything to do now?"
For some reasons she didn't understand, she wanted him to go.
"Oh shoot!! Yeah! I got a one-one match with the 'Ice Block' I mentioned to you earlier. It nearly slipped my mind!" Sendoh exclaimed as he quickly finished his last bit of food and tossed the empty bento box into a waste bin a few feet away. It went in with distinctive accuracy.
Pulling himself up, Sendoh looked at his watch and realized that he was late, his watch showed 1.40pm now.
"Got to go, Yuki. Enjoyed my lunch today tremendously. Hope to see you around in school tomorrow." Sendoh flashed her one of his charming smiles and before Yuki could even mumble a 'goodbye', he had already darted across the garden.
//Wonder what is Ru doing now? Hope he has not been waiting for too long.//
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TBC