Disclaimer: Rukawa Kaede, the other recognizable characters and the anime Slamdunk belong to its creator Takehiko Inoue. Yui Hiroyuki is a made-up character by yours truly. No profit is gained from this fanfic, and I have no money so don't sue.
Summary: Rukawa's childhood friend is back in Kanagawa, and he is torn between anger and happiness on her return. Yes, this is another one of those Rukawa-romance-fanfic. If you don't like romantic fanfics, I suggest you not read this...but do give it a try ^_~.
Author's Note: Italicized words means characters' thoughts and capital letters means emphasized words. The -- part means sound effects(ex. --KABOOM!--) or unfinished sentence/thoughts. 3 * means an end of a part of that chapter while 6 * means an end of a chapter. Please review...nice comments are accepted, and so are, erm, constructive criticisms. For any suggestions, commendations, recommendations, etc., please e-mail me. No flames please, this is all just fiction, anyway =^o^=. Enjoy! ^_^
Prologue
The house across the street was empty. It will always be, though Rukawa cannot give up the habit of looking at the house every night, hoping that a light somewhere, in any room, would turn on and the house would be full of life again. It had been six years now...
Rukawa sighed. The house will always be empty. He have to move on.
Chapter 1: Surprise Return
It was another rough day for Shohoku. the games are approaching, and Shohoku were practicing every afternoon. They were in the middle of a practice game when the gym door burst open, and a girl with shoulder-length black hair and hazel brown eyes entered the room. She was in civilian clothes, meaning she wasn't a student of Shohoku High.
"Kae-chan!" she shouted, ran towards Rukawa and hugged him tightly, almost knocking him over. "I'm so glad to see you!"
Rukawa was caught off guard. Who the...
"KAE-CHAN?!" almost everyone in the room shouted in unison, confused. All of them turned to look at Rukawa.
"Cute nickname, Rukawa..." Hanamichi began, trying his best not to laugh but failed. "Who's she, Kae-chan, your girlfriend?"
"Moron." Rukawa replied and looked at the girl. Only one person in the world would call him 'Kae-chan'...
The resemblance of the girl to his childhood friend was unmistakable. Both had the same black, straight hair, except that the girl's
was shoulder-length, not a boyish crop...those eyes...and that smile...
"Yui?" he asked.
The girl smiled and hugged him more tightly. "You remembered! For a second there, I thought you forgot who I was!"
How can I forget, Rukawa thought. For six years I've waited...
Rukawa's emotion was a mix of gladness, confusion, and anger. Gladness, for his childhood friend was back. Confusion, for why did she came back, after all these years? And anger for...
"It's been long, Yui. Too long." Rukawa blurted out. He removed the girl's arms around him and turned his back at her. "We have
basketball practice. I'll see you later."
***
Basketball practice was finished, and the boys were in the locker room now. They were all talking about the girl who hugged Rukawa earlier, arriving at too many bizarre conclusions.
"I'm telling you! That girl is Rukawa's 'secret girlfriend'! " hanamichi declared. "It's obvious! The silent mood, the 'I-don't -care- about-girls' attitude! It's one of those 'conspiracy theories' so girls won't bug him anymore!"
--BLAG!--
Hanamichi was hit by a water bottle in the head. "Moron." Rukawa said as he entered the room. "Stop messing with my life."
Everyone in the room fell into hushed whispers. It was Ryouta who had the courage to ask Rukawa what really was going on.
"Er, Rukawa..." he began. "Who was that girl? We heard you call her 'Yui'...is she your...um...you know...?"
"No."
"Then who is she?" Mitsui butted in, emerging from behind a shower curtain. "If she's not your girlfriend, I'll give her a shot. She's pretty hot!"
--SPLAG!--
A towel went straight at Mitsui's face. "HEY--!"
It was Akagi who threw the towel.
"Rukawa's right. Stop messing with his life and instead focus on how to improve yours." he said in a teacher-like tone, but his reminder was no use.
"If she's not your girlfriend, then who is she?!" Hanamichi asked again. Akagi sighed. There's just no way of shutting Hanamichi up. "AHA! She's your SISTER?! Your STEPSISTER?! Your MISSING TWIN?! Your..."
"Just shut up, moron." Rukawa replied through gritted teeth. "She's just my friend."
***
The cool breeze was blowing, and it felt good against Rukawa's flushed skin. He was so tired, he wanted to sleep in the concrete pavement, but fought the urge to. The sun was setting at the distance, and he was walking towards his bike.
"That was awfully rude of you back there." someone said. He turned around to find Yui standing under the shade of a tree.
Her dress was swaying with the wind, and Rukawa wondered why she was wearing black...
Yui approached him, still smiling.
"I knew you'd be a great basketball player, Kae-chan. Look at you now...you're a super-rookie and a LADIES' MAN." she chuckled at what she said as she tapped Rukawa's shoulder.
Rukawa shrugged. "Why are you here?" he asked in a hard tone. Yui just smiled again.
"Still cold as ice, I see...seems like you haven't changed at all."
"How would you know? You were never here."
Rukawa untied his bike from the bicycle rack and began walking, leaving Yui behind. He stopped shortly after, his back still turned at Yui.
"C'mon, it's getting dark. I'll walk you home."
