Disclaimer: I do not own Slamdunk. I know that. This is just for formalities.. hehe.. Libre naman ang mangarap diba?


First and foremost, setting aside the disclaimer, I would like to sincerely thank Jwei Lih and hybrid priestess for reviewing… good guess by the way hybrid priestess… and for ivy poison, I will only say that ayako and ryota will play a huge part on this story… I shall close my mouth now… hehe

oh yeah, the story will follow the pattern present, past, present, past… It is like the intertwining of time, and well the past will help to explain things a little, and I hope that I will be successful in helping it catch up with the present… ;) anyways, enough of my rambling, on with the story…


Do You See Me?

Flashback

Class had already ended, notebooks were closed, pencils tucked away, heavy books inserted into the folds of the bag that was immediately zipped up, anchored to both shoulders, and exited class.

The school corridors were almost bare, a few students were left behind for clean-up, and from the second floor a clear view of students indulging themselves in a game of basketball could be seen, the ball not nearly reaching the rim of the net most of the time, and if it did, it almost never went in.

I sat on an empty swing and held its handles with both hands; it creaked softly as I rocked myself back and forth with my feet. "That is not the way to do it." A boy not much older than me sat on the empty swing beside me and began to swing himself back and forth, starting out slow, then gradually gaining speed, until I had to crane my neck up to see him; the wind as he waved with each swing fluttering a few strands of my hair.

Then, as he reached his maximum height, he swayed past by me, I followed him and saw his hands let go of the handles and reach for the sky, jumping off the swing, soaring through the air before landing quite roughly on the grass, rolling until he stopped beside a sign that read, "Keep off the grass". He laid an arm on his stomach as he breathed in deeply and as I came forward to see how he was, he closed his eyes, appearing quite dizzy to me. It was then that the sprinkler started to spin, and water sprayed on him. I could not help but laugh as laughter had invited me to. "Who are you?" I managed to splutter out in between laughs.

"Why should I tell it to someone who laughed at me?" He scowled and immediately helped himself up, dusting his uniform of the grass and the few loose soil that clung to his white shirt and black pants. He breathed in; relishing every piece of air entering his lungs, it was as if he could smell its fragrance.

I dug onto my pocket for the handkerchief that I always kept, but as soon as I offered it to him he closed my open palm and pushed the hand that I offered, back to me. "You do know you're gonna catch a cold with that do you?" Instead, he adjusted his collar and wiped his face with his sleeve. "Nah, unlike you," He pointed a finger at me, "I'm invincible." I smiled as I pocketed my handkerchief. "We'll see." With my forefinger I tapped his nose playfully.

It was there in the presence of the falling cherry blossoms, the cool air that brushed against my cheek, of the last warmth's of the retreating sun, that we first treaded the path that would become a path that we would cross for days, months, and years after that. Our footsteps one after the other, out of synchrony, but at the same time creating a melody of an irregular beat of drums. Followed by a series of sneezes and sniffles that still echo with the wind, whispering, "Didn't I tell you so?"


Well, another short chapter… hmm.. please do review! And as always, I hope that you do enjoy it.. it's not much in size.. hehe.. Thanks again!