Title: TIES THAT BIND
Series: 2
Chapter: 2 of 8
Author: Mist
Genre: Yaoi
Pairing: RuHana/HanaRu
Rating: R
Archive: SD Fic ; Fanfiction.Net
Email: myst_sg@yahoo.com
Disclaimer: SD characters belong to Inoue Takehito
Warning: Bad Language!
Note to readers: This is a series of shounen-ai/yaoi fiction. Hence if you decide to read it, I think that you (the reader) are receptive towards homosexual fan fiction. So please do not email flames to me (the author) ... For those who have other comments & opinions, I welcome your feedback ... Thank you ... ^_^ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[Shohoku High School - 22 November]
The Mathematics teacher frowned at the sight of a red head staring listlessly out the window. Though Sakuragi was definitely awake, he was obviously not paying any attention to what was being taught. The boy had not even bothered to open his textbook for the subject that was being taught. There was nothing on his desk. The man really felt like shaking some sense into the boy, but he did not dare to do so. Every teacher in the school knew that it was best to leave such fellows alone. The bespectacled man shuddered as he recalled one of his past attempts to discipline another problematic student. That was the first & last time that he tried to punish Rukawa Kaede for sleeping during lessons.
DING DONG!!!
The bell rang to signal the end of the fourth period for the day. There were smiley faces all around for it was also the start of a fifty-minute lunch break. Mito Yohei said something to one of the boys & put away his books. Then he caught sight of three familiar faces. It was Akagi Haruko & her friends. The girls smiled when they saw him looking at them.
Yohei "Pssst! Hanamichi!" pokes Sakuragi's arm "Someone is looking for you"
{Your Princess is here}
Hanamichi "Huh?" sighs
Haruko "Sakuragi-kun" puts a box on the red head's desk "I baked this for you"
Hanamichi "Oh ..." blinks
Yohei "........." stares at his friend "Waaa ... strawberry cheesecake"
{What is wrong with you?}
Hanamichi "Thanks" smiles
Haruko "Let me know if you like it. See you later" runs off to join her friends
Was Sakuragi sick? The boy asked himself. As the fellow showed no signs of moving, he took matters into his own hands & dragged the red head off to the canteen. The cake looked really nice, but it was not filling. Teenage boys needed proper food such as rice or noodles. After placing the cake box on a table, the boys went to queue for food. Mito Yohei smiled as his friend's eyes regained their usual sparkle. The smell of good food was the best medicine for a simpleminded guy like Sakuragi.
Hanamichi "Nice" looks at the dishes on his tray
Yuki "Hi guys!" walks up to the table with a bowl of noodles in hand "Sakuragi-kun, are these seats taken?"
Hanamichi "No" attacks a plate of curry rice with gusto
Yuki "Thanks" sits "I am lucky to find a seat. All the other tables are full"
Yohei "........." grins
Yuki "Are people are avoiding this table?" notices that no one else is asking if the other seats are available
Yohei "They are afraid to sit near him." points at Sakuragi with chopsticks
Yuki "Afraid?" blinks "Why?"
Mito eyed his friend as he started talking about an incident that happened during their first month at Shohoku. A couple of pompous third year students had told the red head to look for a sit elsewhere as they wanted to sit at the table where he had been sitting. The boy's angered response was to bang his super-hard forehead against each of those five faces. Needless to say, all the five recipients of the Sakuragi headbutt had fallen backwards in a faint. Then everyone else watched in horrified amazement as the red head ate & drank everything that had been on the trays of those five victims. Subsequently, the only people who dared to sit with the red head were either people from the basketball team or the Sakuragi Army.
Yuki "........." blinks "Are you serious?"
{You must be kidding me}
Yohei "Just ask him" shrugs "Hanamichi, do you need help finishing the cake?"
Hanamichi "........." considers his friend's question "You can have a slice"
Yohei "What is the meaning of that look on your face? Are you thinking of finishing all this by yourself?" scolds
Hanamichi "........." pouts
Yohei "Okay. Okay. I am just joking" pats his friend's shoulder
Yuki "........." looks at the two boys
{These two are really close ...}
What was he doing with them? Rukawa asked himself this question as he caught sight of Yuki sitting alongside Sakuragi & Mito. As there was only one way to find out, he walked over to the sunlit table by the window. He calmly placed his plate of fried rice on the table, pulled out a chair & sat down beside the red head.
Yuki "Hi Rukawa! Why the glum look on your face?" stares at the boy "Did you have a bad morning?"
Kaede "........." ignores Yuki
{None of your business}
Hanamichi "Hahaha! Have you not noticed that he always looks half dead?" laughs
Kaede "Do'aho" gives the red head a hard look
{You can be a real ... a cake? What is a cheesecake doing here?}
Yuki "Sakuragi-kun is sooo lucky" flashes a smile at Rukawa "This delicious-looking piece of art is from Haruko"
Kaede "........." refuses to pay any attention to Yuki
{Shut up! Nobody is asking you anything}
Hanamichi "Stupid Kitsune!" glares at Rukawa
A potentially fiery situation was prevented when Mito Yohei reminded Sakuragi that he needed to finish all the things on his tray within the next ten minutes. After a quick glance at the wall clock, the red head started shovelling food into his mouth at the shocking speed. Yuki paled as he stared at the boy. The relative newcomer was equally appalled & fascinated by the sight of this person who was gulping down mouthfuls of food.
Yuki "Sakuragi-kun" clears his throat "Eat slowly or you may choke"
{Amazing ...}
Yohei "No need to worry" grins "He is fine"
Yuki "Poor Rukawa. Are you sick? You have not touched the food on your plate" makes a snide comment
{You are staring at the cake}
Kaede "........." glares at Yuki finally
{Are you trying to provoke me?!}
Yuki "Sakuragi-kun, you are such a lucky guy" smirks "Haruko must have spent a lot of effort to bake this for you"
{I hear that you like her}
Hanamichi "Hahahaha! Do you really think so?" rubs back of neck sheepishly
Yuki "Of course! I can tell that she likes you" glances at Rukawa
{I would rather let that girl have him ... then you}
Kaede "........." crushes his can of drink into scrap metal
{Shut the fuck up! What the hell are you doing?!}
Passing people stared at Rukawa's hand. Green-coloured liquid gushed out from the crushed can. It flowed over the boy's slender fingers to the table. There was no doubt about it. Rukawa Kaede was very angry. What sparked him off? People assumed that the red head was the cause of it. Yuki grinned as he placed a paper napkin over the blue-eyed boy's wet fingers.
[Shohoku High School - 24 November]
Just as the boys were about to finish their warm-up exercises, the team from Shoyo arrived at Shohoku. Girls sighed as they gazed at Fujima Kenji's face. The boy did not have the height of Sendoh Akira from Ryonan High. The boy did not have striking looks like Rukawa or Sakuragi. Yet he was nice-looking in an almost feminine sort of way. Everyone looked as the pretty boy walked over to greet Coach Anzai. After a proper exchange of greetings, Fujima shook hands with the new Captain of the Shohoku team. He had known about Akagi Takenori's choice to retire from the basketball club.
Kenji "How is it like being the new captain?" asks with a smile
Ryota "Okay" replies with a sigh
{You will never know how tough it is to keep Sakuragi & Rukawa under control}
Toru "It is a pity that Akagi has chosen to retire this early" comments
Hanamichi "What do you mean?" fumes "Are you implying that Tensai is not as good as Gori?!"
Toru "I also see a new face" notices Yuki
Hanamichi "How dare you?!" stomps foot "HANAGATA TORU! Are you ignoring Tensai on purpose?! Answer me!!!"
WHACK! WHACK!!!
Hanamichi "Ooowww" holds head in pain
Ayako "Sakuragi!" warns the boy to behave or else
Yuki "Sakuragi-kun, let me take a look at that bump" blows lightly on the steaming bump
Hanamichi "Yuki, you are so kind" sniffs
Kaede "Do'aho ..." glares at Yuki
{GET YOUR HANDS OFF HIM!!!}
Hanamichi "Stupid Kitsune" sticks a tongue out at Rukawa "Are you jealous that Yuki is nicer to me than to you?"
Kaede "........." shakes head
{Of course not! I am only jealous because you are so friendly towards him!}
Yuki "Maybe Rukawa is ill ... he did not even manage to finish his lunch" pats the red head
Hanamichi "Good guess, but you are wrong" smirks
Yuki "Oh?" smiles "So what is the real reason?"
Hanamichi "The stall ran out of soba noodles, so they sold him a bowl of curry udon. Although I am not sure why, but Tensai knows that Kitsune does not like udon noodles in curry" states confidently
Yuki "Wow! Did Rukawa tell you this?" crooks an eyebrow
Hanamichi "Of course not! Bwahaha! This is Tensai's power of observation! I have been watching ... him" blushes
Oh no! The boy covered his mouth with both hands as the implications of what he said hit him. Now the Fox would know that he had been watching him. He took a step backwards as Rukawa whispered something into his ear. The blue-eyed boy told Sakuragi that he could watch him all he wanted. The poor boy was rooted to the spot for sometime as his mind reeled from the shock of Rukawa's response. Yuki gripped his fists in anger as he tried to imagine what the boy said to Sakuragi. Rukawa was feeling rather pleased that the red head knew about his dislike of curry udon.
Ryota "Line up! It is time to start the game!" calls out to his team members
{I wonder what did Rukawa say to Hanamichi}
Kenji "Shoyo!" shouts "Line up!"
{Interesting ... I never seen anybody blush this red before}
Hanamichi "........." blinks
{I ... I ... you ...}
Kaede "The game is starting" drags the red head to the line-up
{This is a good way to shut him up ... cute response}
Hanamichi "Okay" follows docilely without realising that Rukawa is holding onto his hand
Dozens of jaws dropped wide open in disbelief. They could not believe what they were seeing. A number of female supporters from both the Sakuragi camp & Rukawa camp had fainted from shock. These girls could not accept what they had seen. Members of the Sakuragi Army leaned both hands against the wall as they took deep breaths to clear their heads. Mito Yohei felt his heart clenched painfully as he stared at Sakuragi Hanamichi.
Hisashi "I must be dreaming" pinches himself
{Sakuragi & Rukawa holding hands? Oh! They have held hands before}
Ryota "Mitsui, kick me ... I must be dreaming as well" knocks himself on the head
{I cannot decide which is more surprising ... Hanamichi allowing Rukawa to hold his hand or Rukawa wanting to hold Hanamichi's hand}
Yuki "Fuck you, Rukawa!" stares at the boys who were standing next to each other
{DAMN YOU!}
Confused tears pooled at the corners of her eyes as she stared at the boys. She should be feeling happy that Sakuragi & Rukawa had resolved their differences, but she was not. She should be feeling relieved that a fight did not break out, but she was not. Haruko looked sadly at the girl who was holding her. Fujii was asking why was she crying. She only shrugged in reply. Matsui said nothing, but she was looking at the boys with a strange expression on her face.
Ten minutes after the start of the match, Akagi & Kogure joined Ayako at the sidelines. They came to watch the match. Both seniors were happy to see that Shohoku was leading the match by twelve points. Kogure smiled. He was glad to see that the boys were playing well without them. Akagi commented that he would thump Miyagi's head if Shohoku lost for the opponent was playing without Fujima & Hanagata. The first half of the match ended with Shohoku scoring thirty-eight points & Shoyo lagging at twenty-six points.
Kiminobu "Fujima & Hanagata have decided to play in the 2nd half of the match" points at the pair of Shoyo students
{They do not want to lose the match}
Takenori "Good! This is what I want to see" nods
{Can Sakuragi manage Hanagata?}
Eight minutes into the second half, the score became forty-six versus forty. While Shohoku was still leading the match, Shoyo had narrowed the score differences. Shoyo students cheered as their Captain successfully stole the ball from Miyagi. Fujima feinted a move & ran away from the Shohoku Captain.
Kenji "GO!" makes a quick pass
Toru "........." speeds away with the ball
Hanamichi "WAIT!" runs after Hanagata
Kaede "Do'aho ..." sighs
{If Hanagata listens to you, he is the bigger fool}
Akagi could feel his heart beat faster as he witnessed the clash between Hanagata & Sakuragi. The former jumped up to shoot a two point shot. The latter jumped to smack the orange ball away before it came too close to the hoop. Two boys collided in mid-air & lost their balance. The aerial challenge ended with Sakuragi landing on top of Hanagata in a rather compromising position with his legs spread out straddling the latter's hips. Amused laughter erupted from the male audience. Poor Sakuragi did not move, as he was too embarrassed. Poor Hanagata could not move with a heavy weight pressing down upon him.
Ryota "Hanamichi! Are you injured?" looks worriedly at Sakuragi
{Oh no! Disaster ...}
Hisashi "Miyagi, I think that you should be more worried for the other guy" grins "Hahahaha!"
Kenji "Hanagata! Are you okay?" gazes down at his team-mate
{Hahaha! What an interesting position ...}
Mitsuru "How can he be okay when that red-head lummox is sitting on top of him?" comments
Kaede "Do'aho" kicks Sakuragi off Hanagata
{ARRR! How long do you intend to sit on him? ... with your legs spread out over his ...}
Hanamichi "Teme Kitsune!" jumps up & glares at Rukawa
{That hurts!}
Droplets of sweat of all sizes appeared behind everyone's head. Mitsui tried unsuccessfully to stifle a giggle attack. Fujima looked at Sakuragi & Rukawa speculatively. What was going on between the two boys? The match ended with Shohoku being the champions. The score was sixty-two versus sixty. Both teams bowed, expressed thanks & shook hands. The Shoyo Captain also thanked Coach Anzai before leading his team out the door.
Kogure was ecstatic that Shohoku had won the match. Everyone had done well. It would have been a perfect performance if the red head had not landed on top of Hanagata. Then he shrugged off the thought & laughed to himself. The taller boy begrudging agreed with his bespectacled friend. It was a good thing that Rukawa & Yuki were able to cover the gaps in Sakuragi's defence. Akagi did not say that the red head had become the force that drove the team forward. Sakuragi Hanamichi was the emotional pillar that supported the boys.
Hisashi "We have beaten Shoyo!" cheers
Anzai "Hohoho! Good work everyone!" smiles
Ryota "Aya-chan ... did you see my brilliant leadership that led to Shohoku's victory?" sings his own praises
Hanamichi "What?!" huffs "Do you think that Shohoku could have won the match without the Tensai Rebound King?"
{I am the saviour}
Hisashi "What Tensai Rebound King?" smirks "I only saw you sitting 'comfortably' on Hanagata"
Hanamichi "Micchy! How can you say that?!" blushes pink "You .. you are only jealous of me"
{Oh no! I hope that he does not ... ARGH! What am I thinking?! I should be more worried about Haruko's response}
Hisashi "Jealous?!" laughs "Hahaha! You must really enjoy being on top of him"
Hanamichi "Micchy! You HENTAI!!!" turns red
{ARGH!!! Why am I thinking about that STUPID FOX?!!!}
WHACK! WHACK!!! ... WHACK! WHACK!! WHACK!!!
Hanamichi "OOWW! Ayako-sempai!" looks at Akayo pitifully
Hisashi "OOOWWW!" moans "You hit me three times"
Yuki "Poor dear, why does this sort of thing always happen to you?" pats the red head "We should celebrate this victory"
Kaede "........." stares at Yuki's hand that was resting on Sakuragi's shoulders
Yuki "Sakuragi-kun, where would you like to go?" smiles
Hisashi "Yuki! Why are you only asking Sakuragi?" frowns
Yuki "Sorry" grins "I was planning to ask everyone "
{Stupid question! The answer is clear ... if you can just use a bit more of that grey matter in your skull}
Then Ayako asked the boys if they were interested in going for a barbecue by the beach. She told them that her parents had paid for a weekend at the beach, but those plans fell through as something had cropped up at their workplace. As it would have been a pity to waste the booking fee, her Mother said that she could invite friends to the beach house for some fun & relaxation before the start of the school examinations.
Ryota "Aya-chan, what a magnificent idea!" nods
{Midnight stroll down the beach}
Hisashi "Great! It has been a long while since I have been to the beach" rubs hands together enthusiastically
Hanamichi "Waaa! Grilled sausages, grilled seafood ... here I come!" jumps around merrily
Ayako "Sakuragi, if you want to eat sausages & seafood, you will need to bring it" reminds the red head
Hanamichi "Huh? I thought that the host has everything prepared" pouts
Ayako "No. I have the place but everyone has to help bring the food & drinks" waves her fan menacingly
Anzai "Hohoho! I will ask my wife to prepare some crabs & prawns" smiles
Hisashi "I will get the beer" volunteers
Ayako "I have fish & calamari at home, but someone needs to help me" looks around for helpers
Ryota "Aya-chan, I will be most happy to help you" raises both hands excitedly
Yuki "Okay! I will bring the sausages" waves "See you"
As she looked through her list, Ayako saw that everyone had offered to bring something except for Sakuragi & Rukawa. The two boys were keeping so quiet for the last ten minutes that she had failed to notice it earlier. She shot a meaningful look at the red head.
Ayako "Sakuragi, what about you?" writes the boy's name on the bottom of her list
Haruko "Sakuragi-kun, can you help me carry something?" looks at Sakuragi shyly
{I will tell him that I like him}
Takenori "Haruko, there is no need to ask for that monkey's help" pulls a face
Kaede "Do'aho" takes three steps backwards
{Are you going to listen to her?}
Hanamichi "Kitsune! What is the meaning of this?! How dare you insult me?!" grabs hold of the boy's bag strap
Kaede "........." tugs at his bag
{Come with me ...}
Ayako "Rukawa! Sakuragi!" chews her pen in frustration
Kaede "Ayako-senpai, I will take care of it" assures the lady manager of the team
Ayako sighed as she looked at Rukawa walking off with a very noisy red head in tow. She hoped that there would be no fighting between the hotheads. Then Mitsui asked if anyone wanted to bet on which of the two boys would turn up with the greater number of plasters on his face. Ayako frowned. When Miyagi placed a 6,000 yen bet on Rukawa. She scolded the boy soundly for being a bad example to the rest.
To be continued ...
Series: 2
Chapter: 2 of 8
Author: Mist
Genre: Yaoi
Pairing: RuHana/HanaRu
Rating: R
Archive: SD Fic ; Fanfiction.Net
Email: myst_sg@yahoo.com
Disclaimer: SD characters belong to Inoue Takehito
Warning: Bad Language!
Note to readers: This is a series of shounen-ai/yaoi fiction. Hence if you decide to read it, I think that you (the reader) are receptive towards homosexual fan fiction. So please do not email flames to me (the author) ... For those who have other comments & opinions, I welcome your feedback ... Thank you ... ^_^ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[Shohoku High School - 22 November]
The Mathematics teacher frowned at the sight of a red head staring listlessly out the window. Though Sakuragi was definitely awake, he was obviously not paying any attention to what was being taught. The boy had not even bothered to open his textbook for the subject that was being taught. There was nothing on his desk. The man really felt like shaking some sense into the boy, but he did not dare to do so. Every teacher in the school knew that it was best to leave such fellows alone. The bespectacled man shuddered as he recalled one of his past attempts to discipline another problematic student. That was the first & last time that he tried to punish Rukawa Kaede for sleeping during lessons.
DING DONG!!!
The bell rang to signal the end of the fourth period for the day. There were smiley faces all around for it was also the start of a fifty-minute lunch break. Mito Yohei said something to one of the boys & put away his books. Then he caught sight of three familiar faces. It was Akagi Haruko & her friends. The girls smiled when they saw him looking at them.
Yohei "Pssst! Hanamichi!" pokes Sakuragi's arm "Someone is looking for you"
{Your Princess is here}
Hanamichi "Huh?" sighs
Haruko "Sakuragi-kun" puts a box on the red head's desk "I baked this for you"
Hanamichi "Oh ..." blinks
Yohei "........." stares at his friend "Waaa ... strawberry cheesecake"
{What is wrong with you?}
Hanamichi "Thanks" smiles
Haruko "Let me know if you like it. See you later" runs off to join her friends
Was Sakuragi sick? The boy asked himself. As the fellow showed no signs of moving, he took matters into his own hands & dragged the red head off to the canteen. The cake looked really nice, but it was not filling. Teenage boys needed proper food such as rice or noodles. After placing the cake box on a table, the boys went to queue for food. Mito Yohei smiled as his friend's eyes regained their usual sparkle. The smell of good food was the best medicine for a simpleminded guy like Sakuragi.
Hanamichi "Nice" looks at the dishes on his tray
Yuki "Hi guys!" walks up to the table with a bowl of noodles in hand "Sakuragi-kun, are these seats taken?"
Hanamichi "No" attacks a plate of curry rice with gusto
Yuki "Thanks" sits "I am lucky to find a seat. All the other tables are full"
Yohei "........." grins
Yuki "Are people are avoiding this table?" notices that no one else is asking if the other seats are available
Yohei "They are afraid to sit near him." points at Sakuragi with chopsticks
Yuki "Afraid?" blinks "Why?"
Mito eyed his friend as he started talking about an incident that happened during their first month at Shohoku. A couple of pompous third year students had told the red head to look for a sit elsewhere as they wanted to sit at the table where he had been sitting. The boy's angered response was to bang his super-hard forehead against each of those five faces. Needless to say, all the five recipients of the Sakuragi headbutt had fallen backwards in a faint. Then everyone else watched in horrified amazement as the red head ate & drank everything that had been on the trays of those five victims. Subsequently, the only people who dared to sit with the red head were either people from the basketball team or the Sakuragi Army.
Yuki "........." blinks "Are you serious?"
{You must be kidding me}
Yohei "Just ask him" shrugs "Hanamichi, do you need help finishing the cake?"
Hanamichi "........." considers his friend's question "You can have a slice"
Yohei "What is the meaning of that look on your face? Are you thinking of finishing all this by yourself?" scolds
Hanamichi "........." pouts
Yohei "Okay. Okay. I am just joking" pats his friend's shoulder
Yuki "........." looks at the two boys
{These two are really close ...}
What was he doing with them? Rukawa asked himself this question as he caught sight of Yuki sitting alongside Sakuragi & Mito. As there was only one way to find out, he walked over to the sunlit table by the window. He calmly placed his plate of fried rice on the table, pulled out a chair & sat down beside the red head.
Yuki "Hi Rukawa! Why the glum look on your face?" stares at the boy "Did you have a bad morning?"
Kaede "........." ignores Yuki
{None of your business}
Hanamichi "Hahaha! Have you not noticed that he always looks half dead?" laughs
Kaede "Do'aho" gives the red head a hard look
{You can be a real ... a cake? What is a cheesecake doing here?}
Yuki "Sakuragi-kun is sooo lucky" flashes a smile at Rukawa "This delicious-looking piece of art is from Haruko"
Kaede "........." refuses to pay any attention to Yuki
{Shut up! Nobody is asking you anything}
Hanamichi "Stupid Kitsune!" glares at Rukawa
A potentially fiery situation was prevented when Mito Yohei reminded Sakuragi that he needed to finish all the things on his tray within the next ten minutes. After a quick glance at the wall clock, the red head started shovelling food into his mouth at the shocking speed. Yuki paled as he stared at the boy. The relative newcomer was equally appalled & fascinated by the sight of this person who was gulping down mouthfuls of food.
Yuki "Sakuragi-kun" clears his throat "Eat slowly or you may choke"
{Amazing ...}
Yohei "No need to worry" grins "He is fine"
Yuki "Poor Rukawa. Are you sick? You have not touched the food on your plate" makes a snide comment
{You are staring at the cake}
Kaede "........." glares at Yuki finally
{Are you trying to provoke me?!}
Yuki "Sakuragi-kun, you are such a lucky guy" smirks "Haruko must have spent a lot of effort to bake this for you"
{I hear that you like her}
Hanamichi "Hahahaha! Do you really think so?" rubs back of neck sheepishly
Yuki "Of course! I can tell that she likes you" glances at Rukawa
{I would rather let that girl have him ... then you}
Kaede "........." crushes his can of drink into scrap metal
{Shut the fuck up! What the hell are you doing?!}
Passing people stared at Rukawa's hand. Green-coloured liquid gushed out from the crushed can. It flowed over the boy's slender fingers to the table. There was no doubt about it. Rukawa Kaede was very angry. What sparked him off? People assumed that the red head was the cause of it. Yuki grinned as he placed a paper napkin over the blue-eyed boy's wet fingers.
[Shohoku High School - 24 November]
Just as the boys were about to finish their warm-up exercises, the team from Shoyo arrived at Shohoku. Girls sighed as they gazed at Fujima Kenji's face. The boy did not have the height of Sendoh Akira from Ryonan High. The boy did not have striking looks like Rukawa or Sakuragi. Yet he was nice-looking in an almost feminine sort of way. Everyone looked as the pretty boy walked over to greet Coach Anzai. After a proper exchange of greetings, Fujima shook hands with the new Captain of the Shohoku team. He had known about Akagi Takenori's choice to retire from the basketball club.
Kenji "How is it like being the new captain?" asks with a smile
Ryota "Okay" replies with a sigh
{You will never know how tough it is to keep Sakuragi & Rukawa under control}
Toru "It is a pity that Akagi has chosen to retire this early" comments
Hanamichi "What do you mean?" fumes "Are you implying that Tensai is not as good as Gori?!"
Toru "I also see a new face" notices Yuki
Hanamichi "How dare you?!" stomps foot "HANAGATA TORU! Are you ignoring Tensai on purpose?! Answer me!!!"
WHACK! WHACK!!!
Hanamichi "Ooowww" holds head in pain
Ayako "Sakuragi!" warns the boy to behave or else
Yuki "Sakuragi-kun, let me take a look at that bump" blows lightly on the steaming bump
Hanamichi "Yuki, you are so kind" sniffs
Kaede "Do'aho ..." glares at Yuki
{GET YOUR HANDS OFF HIM!!!}
Hanamichi "Stupid Kitsune" sticks a tongue out at Rukawa "Are you jealous that Yuki is nicer to me than to you?"
Kaede "........." shakes head
{Of course not! I am only jealous because you are so friendly towards him!}
Yuki "Maybe Rukawa is ill ... he did not even manage to finish his lunch" pats the red head
Hanamichi "Good guess, but you are wrong" smirks
Yuki "Oh?" smiles "So what is the real reason?"
Hanamichi "The stall ran out of soba noodles, so they sold him a bowl of curry udon. Although I am not sure why, but Tensai knows that Kitsune does not like udon noodles in curry" states confidently
Yuki "Wow! Did Rukawa tell you this?" crooks an eyebrow
Hanamichi "Of course not! Bwahaha! This is Tensai's power of observation! I have been watching ... him" blushes
Oh no! The boy covered his mouth with both hands as the implications of what he said hit him. Now the Fox would know that he had been watching him. He took a step backwards as Rukawa whispered something into his ear. The blue-eyed boy told Sakuragi that he could watch him all he wanted. The poor boy was rooted to the spot for sometime as his mind reeled from the shock of Rukawa's response. Yuki gripped his fists in anger as he tried to imagine what the boy said to Sakuragi. Rukawa was feeling rather pleased that the red head knew about his dislike of curry udon.
Ryota "Line up! It is time to start the game!" calls out to his team members
{I wonder what did Rukawa say to Hanamichi}
Kenji "Shoyo!" shouts "Line up!"
{Interesting ... I never seen anybody blush this red before}
Hanamichi "........." blinks
{I ... I ... you ...}
Kaede "The game is starting" drags the red head to the line-up
{This is a good way to shut him up ... cute response}
Hanamichi "Okay" follows docilely without realising that Rukawa is holding onto his hand
Dozens of jaws dropped wide open in disbelief. They could not believe what they were seeing. A number of female supporters from both the Sakuragi camp & Rukawa camp had fainted from shock. These girls could not accept what they had seen. Members of the Sakuragi Army leaned both hands against the wall as they took deep breaths to clear their heads. Mito Yohei felt his heart clenched painfully as he stared at Sakuragi Hanamichi.
Hisashi "I must be dreaming" pinches himself
{Sakuragi & Rukawa holding hands? Oh! They have held hands before}
Ryota "Mitsui, kick me ... I must be dreaming as well" knocks himself on the head
{I cannot decide which is more surprising ... Hanamichi allowing Rukawa to hold his hand or Rukawa wanting to hold Hanamichi's hand}
Yuki "Fuck you, Rukawa!" stares at the boys who were standing next to each other
{DAMN YOU!}
Confused tears pooled at the corners of her eyes as she stared at the boys. She should be feeling happy that Sakuragi & Rukawa had resolved their differences, but she was not. She should be feeling relieved that a fight did not break out, but she was not. Haruko looked sadly at the girl who was holding her. Fujii was asking why was she crying. She only shrugged in reply. Matsui said nothing, but she was looking at the boys with a strange expression on her face.
Ten minutes after the start of the match, Akagi & Kogure joined Ayako at the sidelines. They came to watch the match. Both seniors were happy to see that Shohoku was leading the match by twelve points. Kogure smiled. He was glad to see that the boys were playing well without them. Akagi commented that he would thump Miyagi's head if Shohoku lost for the opponent was playing without Fujima & Hanagata. The first half of the match ended with Shohoku scoring thirty-eight points & Shoyo lagging at twenty-six points.
Kiminobu "Fujima & Hanagata have decided to play in the 2nd half of the match" points at the pair of Shoyo students
{They do not want to lose the match}
Takenori "Good! This is what I want to see" nods
{Can Sakuragi manage Hanagata?}
Eight minutes into the second half, the score became forty-six versus forty. While Shohoku was still leading the match, Shoyo had narrowed the score differences. Shoyo students cheered as their Captain successfully stole the ball from Miyagi. Fujima feinted a move & ran away from the Shohoku Captain.
Kenji "GO!" makes a quick pass
Toru "........." speeds away with the ball
Hanamichi "WAIT!" runs after Hanagata
Kaede "Do'aho ..." sighs
{If Hanagata listens to you, he is the bigger fool}
Akagi could feel his heart beat faster as he witnessed the clash between Hanagata & Sakuragi. The former jumped up to shoot a two point shot. The latter jumped to smack the orange ball away before it came too close to the hoop. Two boys collided in mid-air & lost their balance. The aerial challenge ended with Sakuragi landing on top of Hanagata in a rather compromising position with his legs spread out straddling the latter's hips. Amused laughter erupted from the male audience. Poor Sakuragi did not move, as he was too embarrassed. Poor Hanagata could not move with a heavy weight pressing down upon him.
Ryota "Hanamichi! Are you injured?" looks worriedly at Sakuragi
{Oh no! Disaster ...}
Hisashi "Miyagi, I think that you should be more worried for the other guy" grins "Hahahaha!"
Kenji "Hanagata! Are you okay?" gazes down at his team-mate
{Hahaha! What an interesting position ...}
Mitsuru "How can he be okay when that red-head lummox is sitting on top of him?" comments
Kaede "Do'aho" kicks Sakuragi off Hanagata
{ARRR! How long do you intend to sit on him? ... with your legs spread out over his ...}
Hanamichi "Teme Kitsune!" jumps up & glares at Rukawa
{That hurts!}
Droplets of sweat of all sizes appeared behind everyone's head. Mitsui tried unsuccessfully to stifle a giggle attack. Fujima looked at Sakuragi & Rukawa speculatively. What was going on between the two boys? The match ended with Shohoku being the champions. The score was sixty-two versus sixty. Both teams bowed, expressed thanks & shook hands. The Shoyo Captain also thanked Coach Anzai before leading his team out the door.
Kogure was ecstatic that Shohoku had won the match. Everyone had done well. It would have been a perfect performance if the red head had not landed on top of Hanagata. Then he shrugged off the thought & laughed to himself. The taller boy begrudging agreed with his bespectacled friend. It was a good thing that Rukawa & Yuki were able to cover the gaps in Sakuragi's defence. Akagi did not say that the red head had become the force that drove the team forward. Sakuragi Hanamichi was the emotional pillar that supported the boys.
Hisashi "We have beaten Shoyo!" cheers
Anzai "Hohoho! Good work everyone!" smiles
Ryota "Aya-chan ... did you see my brilliant leadership that led to Shohoku's victory?" sings his own praises
Hanamichi "What?!" huffs "Do you think that Shohoku could have won the match without the Tensai Rebound King?"
{I am the saviour}
Hisashi "What Tensai Rebound King?" smirks "I only saw you sitting 'comfortably' on Hanagata"
Hanamichi "Micchy! How can you say that?!" blushes pink "You .. you are only jealous of me"
{Oh no! I hope that he does not ... ARGH! What am I thinking?! I should be more worried about Haruko's response}
Hisashi "Jealous?!" laughs "Hahaha! You must really enjoy being on top of him"
Hanamichi "Micchy! You HENTAI!!!" turns red
{ARGH!!! Why am I thinking about that STUPID FOX?!!!}
WHACK! WHACK!!! ... WHACK! WHACK!! WHACK!!!
Hanamichi "OOWW! Ayako-sempai!" looks at Akayo pitifully
Hisashi "OOOWWW!" moans "You hit me three times"
Yuki "Poor dear, why does this sort of thing always happen to you?" pats the red head "We should celebrate this victory"
Kaede "........." stares at Yuki's hand that was resting on Sakuragi's shoulders
Yuki "Sakuragi-kun, where would you like to go?" smiles
Hisashi "Yuki! Why are you only asking Sakuragi?" frowns
Yuki "Sorry" grins "I was planning to ask everyone "
{Stupid question! The answer is clear ... if you can just use a bit more of that grey matter in your skull}
Then Ayako asked the boys if they were interested in going for a barbecue by the beach. She told them that her parents had paid for a weekend at the beach, but those plans fell through as something had cropped up at their workplace. As it would have been a pity to waste the booking fee, her Mother said that she could invite friends to the beach house for some fun & relaxation before the start of the school examinations.
Ryota "Aya-chan, what a magnificent idea!" nods
{Midnight stroll down the beach}
Hisashi "Great! It has been a long while since I have been to the beach" rubs hands together enthusiastically
Hanamichi "Waaa! Grilled sausages, grilled seafood ... here I come!" jumps around merrily
Ayako "Sakuragi, if you want to eat sausages & seafood, you will need to bring it" reminds the red head
Hanamichi "Huh? I thought that the host has everything prepared" pouts
Ayako "No. I have the place but everyone has to help bring the food & drinks" waves her fan menacingly
Anzai "Hohoho! I will ask my wife to prepare some crabs & prawns" smiles
Hisashi "I will get the beer" volunteers
Ayako "I have fish & calamari at home, but someone needs to help me" looks around for helpers
Ryota "Aya-chan, I will be most happy to help you" raises both hands excitedly
Yuki "Okay! I will bring the sausages" waves "See you"
As she looked through her list, Ayako saw that everyone had offered to bring something except for Sakuragi & Rukawa. The two boys were keeping so quiet for the last ten minutes that she had failed to notice it earlier. She shot a meaningful look at the red head.
Ayako "Sakuragi, what about you?" writes the boy's name on the bottom of her list
Haruko "Sakuragi-kun, can you help me carry something?" looks at Sakuragi shyly
{I will tell him that I like him}
Takenori "Haruko, there is no need to ask for that monkey's help" pulls a face
Kaede "Do'aho" takes three steps backwards
{Are you going to listen to her?}
Hanamichi "Kitsune! What is the meaning of this?! How dare you insult me?!" grabs hold of the boy's bag strap
Kaede "........." tugs at his bag
{Come with me ...}
Ayako "Rukawa! Sakuragi!" chews her pen in frustration
Kaede "Ayako-senpai, I will take care of it" assures the lady manager of the team
Ayako sighed as she looked at Rukawa walking off with a very noisy red head in tow. She hoped that there would be no fighting between the hotheads. Then Mitsui asked if anyone wanted to bet on which of the two boys would turn up with the greater number of plasters on his face. Ayako frowned. When Miyagi placed a 6,000 yen bet on Rukawa. She scolded the boy soundly for being a bad example to the rest.
To be continued ...