Over the night they slept tight. For once more Rukawa let Sakuragi sleep on
his bed while he spent the night on the sofa bed. Well, if it wasn't
because of the leukemia maybe he would've forced the redhead to sleep on
the carpet instead.
The sleep wasn't comfortable for Rukawa. It was cold and he got no blankets. As soon as the morning light landed upon his face he gradually opened his heavy lids. He stretched and yawned as he breathed in the fresh morning air. Winter is getting near and now the cold air is throbbing his chest. However, it's Sunday morning. As planned before, he was going to go downtown to the streets of Kanagawa with Sakuragi.
Rukawa walked into his room to find Sakuragi still sleeping like a baby. Geez, maybe t hat's why he is always tardy to school. "Aho," he kicked the bed gently with his bare feet. Sakuragi only mumbles a few words and then rolled to the side of the bed to continue his nap. Oh well... maybe he should just go down and cook some instant noodles. He didn't have dinner last night. The two of them were busy talking they forgot the time. "Hey Aho... what do you want for breakfast?" Once more he nudge the bed with his toes. No reply. "Well then you won't get any."
Just when Rukawa turned his waist to walk away Sakuragi grabbed his sweaters. "French Toast," he mumbled the words. Rukawa paused for a moment and then continued walking. "Alright..."
It feels good to have someone to talk to in the morning right after you wake up. All these times Rukawa never opened up his mouth to speak. He didn't have anybody to talk to except for himself. That's why he was never good in socializing with other people. Deep inside he wanted to have a lot of friends, but he isn't used to having good conversations and he didn't have the slightest idea of showing his feelings to others.
Rukawa opened the cupboard and pulled out a cup instant noodle and a few loaves of bread. In the fridge there was only 2 eggs left. He was always running out of food. Well he never buys much food cause there's nobody to eat with. This time was the first time of his life that he had to cook breakfast for someone. Even though it has to be Sakuragi, he was quite happy to cook for him.
When the thought comes back to Sakuragi, he shook his head. No way, there's absolutely no chance that the guy is dying. Maybe it's a made up game just to trick him for the next April fool's Day. Well... This time all he could do was just shake his head and threw the thoughts aside.
"Oi is the breakfast ready?" Sakuragi asked aloud as he was walking down the stairway. He was dressed in Rukawa's blue sweaters and sweatpants.
Rukawa was sitting on the dinner table all by himself. He was munching on his instant ramen. Beside him was a plate full of French toasts. "Yea... it was ready way back before you woke up, Aho..."
To his surprise Sakuragi wasn't mad this time when Rukawa called him Aho. He just smiled sheepishly and sat down on the vacant chair before Rukawa. "Thanks," he said as he pulled the plate to his chest. As he took the first bite he whimpered. "I hate to say it, Kitsune, but your French toast is better than mine..."
"D'uh..." Replied Rukawa between his slurps.
"Hahah... such a shame..." He snickered. "Yours are better while these are all I can make every single day."
"Go buy a recipe book, Aho." Rukawa had finished his ramen. He placed the wooden chopsticks on top of the bowl and then grabbed himself a glass of mineral water from the tap.
Sakuragi paused to reply. His mouth was still filled with food. "Well... I did but I still cant..."
Rukawa shrugged. "Tough luck." He gulped down the water down his throat. "Finish your food. I'll take shower. After that is your turn."
"Hey Kitsune..."
"What?" Rukawa looked back.
"Can I borrow your clothes again?" A wide sheepish grin came across his face.
Rukawa let out a sarcastic laugh. "D'uh? What else will you be wearing?"
"Thanks."
It was still quite young in the afternoon yet the streets were filled with pedestrians. The first objective was to catch a movie in the cinema but then it seemed like there was nothing good on the shows this week. So then they had no choice but to watch a crappy thriller horror movie just to kill the excess time. Right after the movie had finished both of them were starving again. So they immediately hit Danny's to grab a late lunch for two.
Rukawa ordered a Fish n Chips while Sakuragi ate a grilled BBQ steak. Suddenly Rukawa's cellphone rang.
"It's good to see him devouring his meal..."
It turns out to be her again. Why did she have to nag around every time every day? She was stalking on him. "You again?"
Sakuragi then lifted his chin and looked at his friend. He wanted to catch the conversation between Rukawa and the caller.
"I'm sorry to keep bothering you... But can you tell Sakuragi to avoid drinking soda?" Said Mifuyu. Rukawa looked around the dining place to spot her. However she was nowhere to be seen.
"Where the hell are you?" He shot a question with a harsh and strong voice. It irritates him to receive phone calls from her asking about her son's being. Hell, even though he is concerned about Sakuragi's health he is not his babysitter 24/7 a week.
"Who is it, Kitsune?" Sakuragi's curiousness grew. Who could be bothering Rukawa this much?
"I am... in Starbucks on the right-hand side of the restaurant, Kaede-kun... I'm sorry to keep bothering you."
Rukawa rose from his seat and then walked over the narrow hallway to the edge near the restrooms. He wanted to speak clearly without Sakuragi being able to hear about it."Whatever, miss... if you ARE concerned about him you should stop following us around and just show yourself. I'm getting sick of this hide and seek thing. Your son's life is in jeopardy here and you cant continue doing this, okay? I cant watch over him all the time... He needs you, for God's sake..."
Mifuyu paused for a moment. "Suman..." Her voice was trembling. "I know I am a selfish person... But I need your help for the time being... I... I'll find a way to reveal myself to him soon but in the mean time... I..."
"...You should... I'll help the best I can but I can't do everything by myself, Mifuyu-san..." He then hung up. And then as he turned around he saw Sakuragi standing just a few feet away.
"Who the hell is that? Mifuyu-san?!"
Rukawa looked aside and then narrowed his eyes. "It's my goddamned tax attorney... It's nobody..."
Thank goodness Sakuragi wasn't curious about anything. He smiled and then just walked out the dining parlor. "In case you're wondering the lunch's on me. Just to appreciate your help back then..." He put an ear-to-ear smile on his face. "But don't expect me to pay for you any other time later!" He snickered.
Rukawa only smiled as he placed his cell phone into his pocket. "Thanks," he said lazily. "What are we going to do now?"
With his sneakers he kicked the dry leaves from the pavement and then turned around. "I don't know... Play basketball?"
Rukawa looked down as he watched his feet digging his way into the piles of the dry autumn leaves. "No." He shrugged. "I'm... not in the mood..." He lied. He just didn't want Sakuragi to get wasted for he knew he wasn't fully recovered from the last time he fainted.
"Since when are you not in the mood for a one-on-one game?" The redhead raised an eyebrow. "Oh well... I guess I'm in the mood for a coke." He then began to run towards a canned drinks machine vendor right in front of a bookstore.
Seeing him run Rukawa's eyes snatched wide open and then he also began to run and followed him. He got to the vendor before him. "No!" He took Sakuragi's arms abruptly.
"The hell?! You're hurting me!" Quickly Sakuragi pulled his arms from Rukawa's grip.
"You cant drink Coke or any other soda." He quickly informed.
"The hell? Where did you get that from?"
Rukawa looked aside and sighed. "Umm... the doctor..."
"Oh..."
"And... are you okay? You can't really move a lot you know..." Rukawa bit his lower lip.
Sakuragi shrugged. "I walked all the way downtown. That means I moved a lot, right?"
"Yeah... but you can't really run..."
Sakuragi cussed beneath his breath and kicked an empty can right beside his shoes. "The fuck?! It's just a frickin' pain in the chest it is nothing!! I only fainted once and what the hell does that supposed to mean?"
The raven-haired boy took a deep breath and slid his hands into his pants' pockets. "You fainted twice, not once. That means more than nothing."
"Now what else did that Doctor tells you? I got a fucking heart attack or something? Geez... She's making things up... I don't give a shit... Why didn't she just tell it to me, huh? What kind of a doctor is that? Where did you get her, the streets?"
"...Cause she's not a doctor and if she tells you the whole thing you'll..." Rukawa whispered to himself.
"What?!" It seems like Sakuragi happened to hear a part of what Rukawa had said. "What did you say?"
Rukawa didn't reply. He just looked at Sakuragi straight in the eye. Pissed because of the response that he got, Sakuragi grabbed Rukawa's shirt and pushed him onto the vendor machine. "Answer me, bitch?! Are you hiding something from me?!" Again, Rukawa didn't answer. He just looked at the ground as the cold air was stinging the tip of his ears. This time it really pushes him through his patience. Sakuragi cursed aloud and swung his arms. His clenched fist hit Rukawa's jaws, causing a few drops of blood trickling down to his chin.
Rukawa's ego didn't let him stay calm after he was hit. He knew that the Sakuragi was weak in a way that he was dying but he couldn't let him beat him up. So then he punched him back straight in the face and Sakuragi rolled to the floor. Before he could manage to get up Rukawa grabbed his sweater and pulled him up. This time it was his turn to pin Sakuragi to the vendor machine. On the state of being nailed Sakuragi couldn't move both his arms. He tried to fight with his legs but Rukawa's also nailed them. He then spat on Rukawa's face.
Angry, Rukawa banged the back of Sakuragi's head onto the machine. "Bitch... if only you weren't..."
"Weren't what, asshole?!"
Rukawa threw him to the floor. "I hate to tell you... but since you want it bad... You'll have it..."
Sakuragi got back on his feet and dusted the leaves off his trousers. "What? What is it that is hard for you to say? Sheesh!"
Rukawa's face expression changed. He looked aside as he gathered up the words in his mouth. "What's so hard for me to say... to you..." With his fingers he wiped the trickling blood from his chin. "You..."
Sakuragi was puzzled as he saw the expression on Rukawa's face. It looked painful and sad. "...I am... what?" His curiousness helped his temper to calm down.
Finally Rukawa looked up and then his eyes met his. He took a step closer. "You are..."
"Stop!!!" Sakuragi's mom came rushing from the end of the pavement. She cried out aloud and ran towards their directions. She stumbled a few time due to the knee-rise leather boot with heels that she wore.
"...Suffering Leukemia..." Rukawa closed his eyes as the last words escaped his lips.
:: To Be Continued ::
a.n :: long time no update, huh? The usual readers might've been bored of Slam Dunk but oh well... I guess I'll finish this fic for the sake of those who WILL eventually read and review... =)
The sleep wasn't comfortable for Rukawa. It was cold and he got no blankets. As soon as the morning light landed upon his face he gradually opened his heavy lids. He stretched and yawned as he breathed in the fresh morning air. Winter is getting near and now the cold air is throbbing his chest. However, it's Sunday morning. As planned before, he was going to go downtown to the streets of Kanagawa with Sakuragi.
Rukawa walked into his room to find Sakuragi still sleeping like a baby. Geez, maybe t hat's why he is always tardy to school. "Aho," he kicked the bed gently with his bare feet. Sakuragi only mumbles a few words and then rolled to the side of the bed to continue his nap. Oh well... maybe he should just go down and cook some instant noodles. He didn't have dinner last night. The two of them were busy talking they forgot the time. "Hey Aho... what do you want for breakfast?" Once more he nudge the bed with his toes. No reply. "Well then you won't get any."
Just when Rukawa turned his waist to walk away Sakuragi grabbed his sweaters. "French Toast," he mumbled the words. Rukawa paused for a moment and then continued walking. "Alright..."
It feels good to have someone to talk to in the morning right after you wake up. All these times Rukawa never opened up his mouth to speak. He didn't have anybody to talk to except for himself. That's why he was never good in socializing with other people. Deep inside he wanted to have a lot of friends, but he isn't used to having good conversations and he didn't have the slightest idea of showing his feelings to others.
Rukawa opened the cupboard and pulled out a cup instant noodle and a few loaves of bread. In the fridge there was only 2 eggs left. He was always running out of food. Well he never buys much food cause there's nobody to eat with. This time was the first time of his life that he had to cook breakfast for someone. Even though it has to be Sakuragi, he was quite happy to cook for him.
When the thought comes back to Sakuragi, he shook his head. No way, there's absolutely no chance that the guy is dying. Maybe it's a made up game just to trick him for the next April fool's Day. Well... This time all he could do was just shake his head and threw the thoughts aside.
"Oi is the breakfast ready?" Sakuragi asked aloud as he was walking down the stairway. He was dressed in Rukawa's blue sweaters and sweatpants.
Rukawa was sitting on the dinner table all by himself. He was munching on his instant ramen. Beside him was a plate full of French toasts. "Yea... it was ready way back before you woke up, Aho..."
To his surprise Sakuragi wasn't mad this time when Rukawa called him Aho. He just smiled sheepishly and sat down on the vacant chair before Rukawa. "Thanks," he said as he pulled the plate to his chest. As he took the first bite he whimpered. "I hate to say it, Kitsune, but your French toast is better than mine..."
"D'uh..." Replied Rukawa between his slurps.
"Hahah... such a shame..." He snickered. "Yours are better while these are all I can make every single day."
"Go buy a recipe book, Aho." Rukawa had finished his ramen. He placed the wooden chopsticks on top of the bowl and then grabbed himself a glass of mineral water from the tap.
Sakuragi paused to reply. His mouth was still filled with food. "Well... I did but I still cant..."
Rukawa shrugged. "Tough luck." He gulped down the water down his throat. "Finish your food. I'll take shower. After that is your turn."
"Hey Kitsune..."
"What?" Rukawa looked back.
"Can I borrow your clothes again?" A wide sheepish grin came across his face.
Rukawa let out a sarcastic laugh. "D'uh? What else will you be wearing?"
"Thanks."
It was still quite young in the afternoon yet the streets were filled with pedestrians. The first objective was to catch a movie in the cinema but then it seemed like there was nothing good on the shows this week. So then they had no choice but to watch a crappy thriller horror movie just to kill the excess time. Right after the movie had finished both of them were starving again. So they immediately hit Danny's to grab a late lunch for two.
Rukawa ordered a Fish n Chips while Sakuragi ate a grilled BBQ steak. Suddenly Rukawa's cellphone rang.
"It's good to see him devouring his meal..."
It turns out to be her again. Why did she have to nag around every time every day? She was stalking on him. "You again?"
Sakuragi then lifted his chin and looked at his friend. He wanted to catch the conversation between Rukawa and the caller.
"I'm sorry to keep bothering you... But can you tell Sakuragi to avoid drinking soda?" Said Mifuyu. Rukawa looked around the dining place to spot her. However she was nowhere to be seen.
"Where the hell are you?" He shot a question with a harsh and strong voice. It irritates him to receive phone calls from her asking about her son's being. Hell, even though he is concerned about Sakuragi's health he is not his babysitter 24/7 a week.
"Who is it, Kitsune?" Sakuragi's curiousness grew. Who could be bothering Rukawa this much?
"I am... in Starbucks on the right-hand side of the restaurant, Kaede-kun... I'm sorry to keep bothering you."
Rukawa rose from his seat and then walked over the narrow hallway to the edge near the restrooms. He wanted to speak clearly without Sakuragi being able to hear about it."Whatever, miss... if you ARE concerned about him you should stop following us around and just show yourself. I'm getting sick of this hide and seek thing. Your son's life is in jeopardy here and you cant continue doing this, okay? I cant watch over him all the time... He needs you, for God's sake..."
Mifuyu paused for a moment. "Suman..." Her voice was trembling. "I know I am a selfish person... But I need your help for the time being... I... I'll find a way to reveal myself to him soon but in the mean time... I..."
"...You should... I'll help the best I can but I can't do everything by myself, Mifuyu-san..." He then hung up. And then as he turned around he saw Sakuragi standing just a few feet away.
"Who the hell is that? Mifuyu-san?!"
Rukawa looked aside and then narrowed his eyes. "It's my goddamned tax attorney... It's nobody..."
Thank goodness Sakuragi wasn't curious about anything. He smiled and then just walked out the dining parlor. "In case you're wondering the lunch's on me. Just to appreciate your help back then..." He put an ear-to-ear smile on his face. "But don't expect me to pay for you any other time later!" He snickered.
Rukawa only smiled as he placed his cell phone into his pocket. "Thanks," he said lazily. "What are we going to do now?"
With his sneakers he kicked the dry leaves from the pavement and then turned around. "I don't know... Play basketball?"
Rukawa looked down as he watched his feet digging his way into the piles of the dry autumn leaves. "No." He shrugged. "I'm... not in the mood..." He lied. He just didn't want Sakuragi to get wasted for he knew he wasn't fully recovered from the last time he fainted.
"Since when are you not in the mood for a one-on-one game?" The redhead raised an eyebrow. "Oh well... I guess I'm in the mood for a coke." He then began to run towards a canned drinks machine vendor right in front of a bookstore.
Seeing him run Rukawa's eyes snatched wide open and then he also began to run and followed him. He got to the vendor before him. "No!" He took Sakuragi's arms abruptly.
"The hell?! You're hurting me!" Quickly Sakuragi pulled his arms from Rukawa's grip.
"You cant drink Coke or any other soda." He quickly informed.
"The hell? Where did you get that from?"
Rukawa looked aside and sighed. "Umm... the doctor..."
"Oh..."
"And... are you okay? You can't really move a lot you know..." Rukawa bit his lower lip.
Sakuragi shrugged. "I walked all the way downtown. That means I moved a lot, right?"
"Yeah... but you can't really run..."
Sakuragi cussed beneath his breath and kicked an empty can right beside his shoes. "The fuck?! It's just a frickin' pain in the chest it is nothing!! I only fainted once and what the hell does that supposed to mean?"
The raven-haired boy took a deep breath and slid his hands into his pants' pockets. "You fainted twice, not once. That means more than nothing."
"Now what else did that Doctor tells you? I got a fucking heart attack or something? Geez... She's making things up... I don't give a shit... Why didn't she just tell it to me, huh? What kind of a doctor is that? Where did you get her, the streets?"
"...Cause she's not a doctor and if she tells you the whole thing you'll..." Rukawa whispered to himself.
"What?!" It seems like Sakuragi happened to hear a part of what Rukawa had said. "What did you say?"
Rukawa didn't reply. He just looked at Sakuragi straight in the eye. Pissed because of the response that he got, Sakuragi grabbed Rukawa's shirt and pushed him onto the vendor machine. "Answer me, bitch?! Are you hiding something from me?!" Again, Rukawa didn't answer. He just looked at the ground as the cold air was stinging the tip of his ears. This time it really pushes him through his patience. Sakuragi cursed aloud and swung his arms. His clenched fist hit Rukawa's jaws, causing a few drops of blood trickling down to his chin.
Rukawa's ego didn't let him stay calm after he was hit. He knew that the Sakuragi was weak in a way that he was dying but he couldn't let him beat him up. So then he punched him back straight in the face and Sakuragi rolled to the floor. Before he could manage to get up Rukawa grabbed his sweater and pulled him up. This time it was his turn to pin Sakuragi to the vendor machine. On the state of being nailed Sakuragi couldn't move both his arms. He tried to fight with his legs but Rukawa's also nailed them. He then spat on Rukawa's face.
Angry, Rukawa banged the back of Sakuragi's head onto the machine. "Bitch... if only you weren't..."
"Weren't what, asshole?!"
Rukawa threw him to the floor. "I hate to tell you... but since you want it bad... You'll have it..."
Sakuragi got back on his feet and dusted the leaves off his trousers. "What? What is it that is hard for you to say? Sheesh!"
Rukawa's face expression changed. He looked aside as he gathered up the words in his mouth. "What's so hard for me to say... to you..." With his fingers he wiped the trickling blood from his chin. "You..."
Sakuragi was puzzled as he saw the expression on Rukawa's face. It looked painful and sad. "...I am... what?" His curiousness helped his temper to calm down.
Finally Rukawa looked up and then his eyes met his. He took a step closer. "You are..."
"Stop!!!" Sakuragi's mom came rushing from the end of the pavement. She cried out aloud and ran towards their directions. She stumbled a few time due to the knee-rise leather boot with heels that she wore.
"...Suffering Leukemia..." Rukawa closed his eyes as the last words escaped his lips.
:: To Be Continued ::
a.n :: long time no update, huh? The usual readers might've been bored of Slam Dunk but oh well... I guess I'll finish this fic for the sake of those who WILL eventually read and review... =)