Disclaimer: I don't own slam dunk or its characters.
Chapter 4: Early Morning Conversations
Tapping her foot lightly against the parquet floor, a young woman in her twenties tried to ignore the insistent growl in her tummy. Grimacing slightly, the curly haired brunette tried to tuck in her stomach in an effort to quiet or at least reduce the growing rumble emanating from that area. The young woman carefully averted her gaze away from the surrounding diners who were happily digging into their morning meals, and the busy waiters who kept bringing out trays after trays of hot steaming food. She chose instead, to focus on the human traffic outside, all the while making a silent prayer for him to come quickly.
She frowned as a loud rumble erupted from her tummy, but quickly assumed a nonchalant stance when some nearby patrons threw questioning glances in her direction.
"Damn you Mitsui, you had better come soon before my stomach roars this entire building down," Ayako muttered. Just then, the man in question entered through the gleaming glass doors of the café. An easy grin now graced the lips that previously held a frown.
"Sorry, things were pretty rough this morning," Mitsui said wearily, running a hand through his short jet black hair. Ayako nodded sympathetically and gave his free hand a quick squeeze.
"Have you ordered yet?" Mitsui asked whilst waving his hand in the air to attract the attention of a nearby waiter. Ayako shook her head, smiling slightly as she recalled the number of times her stomach had growled throughout the 'waiting period'.
"It's ok, I don't need the menu," Mitsui said, shaking his head as the waiter offered him the long brown book with gold lettering embossed on its cover. "I'll have Jimmy's Special, with hash browns instead of mashed potatoes and I would like my eggs to be..."
"... sunny side up and black coffee with no sugar," Ayako finished for him, smirking a little when Mitsui raised his eyebrows.
"I had no idea I was that predictable." Mitsui quipped.
"Only because you've ordered the same thing the last 8 times we've eaten here," Ayako said before turning her attention to the waiter. "I'll have..."
"Toast with jam and butter, whole wheat bread for the toast and chamomile tea to drink" Mitsui guessed. Ayako's eyes widened as the waiter furiously scribbled down their orders.
"I'm not the only predictable one around here it seems." Mitsui said and leaned back in his chair.
"I guess not," Ayako murmured softly. The waiter's eyes darted from her face to his, and after ascertaining that neither was going to continue with any more orders, he quietly took his leave.
"So... what's going to happen between you and Sheryl?" Ayako inquired, wasting no time at all in bringing forth the subject of main concern. She took a sip of water as she waited for Mitsui's reply, her eyes carefully watching his face for any signs of distress or discomfort, over the raised glass.
Sighing, Mitsui sat forward in his chair.
"What else? It's over between us. I told her the truth that I was unable to say the same three words to her because I honestly wasn't sure of how I felt towards her."
"And?"
"And she freaked out. She said stuff like how she gave up so much for me and I still wasn't sure? She wants to settle down and start a family, but she doesn't want to do that with someone who isn't sure about the status of their relationship... i.e. me" Mitsui replied.
"And how do you feel about this?"
"What? Her leaving me? Ambivalent, indifferent, confused. I am hurting a little, I mean we've been together for some time, I did develop some feelings towards her... I'm just not sure if those feelings are love," Mitsui confessed.
For a while, the two of them sat in silence. Yet Mitsui felt that the silence brought more comfort than actual words could.
"Well I think it was good that you told her what was on your heart. You shouldn't lie or keep things secret from each other." Ayako said finally. Mitsui smiled sadly.
"Too bad she doesn't see it that way. Hn... maybe I should adopt your policy and just stay single all the way," Mitsui joked, trying to alleviate their sober mood.
"Ha, you wouldn't be able to survive." Ayako declared confidently. Mitsui raised an eyebrow but was prevented from refuting her comment as the waiter arrived with their dishes and drinks.
"And just how do you survive then? I don't believe that you don't need anyone."
"I don't."
"Right... I don't buy that. Someday some guy's gonna come and knock you off your feet. And on that day, I'll be there to remind you who came up with this amazing prediction first." Mitsui said and began to devour his meal.
Ayako merely smiled and shook her head as she buttered her toast. Their early morning banter ceased there and the two remained in companionable silence as they hungrily consumed their meal.
In the midst of their breakfast, Ayako thought she spotted a familiar hulking figure enter through the glass doors. He was quickly attended to by a cute brunette waitress who seated him at a table not too far from where Mitsui and Ayako were situated. Ayako's sharp ears picked up the man's gruff orders for "the usual vanilla latte" and she nearly spat out her drink as recognition dawned upon her.
"Akagi Sempai?!" Ayako called out from their table. Mitsui stopped eating and dropped his jaw open in shock. With his fork dangling in mid-air, Mitsui followed Ayako's gaze and sure enough, he found himself staring at his former team captain who strangely, looked embarrassed at being caught in the same café as them. Before Mitsui could say anything, Ayako had already invited Akagi over to their table.
"Sempai! I didn't know you ate at Jimmy's too!" Ayako said excitedly.
"I, um, enjoy the coffee here," Akagi said. Mitsui shook his head. Perhaps it was his imagination, but he couldn't shake the feeling that Akagi was mortified that Ayako and Mitsui had spotted him.
"So what is up with you these days?" Ayako said, oblivious to Akagi's discomfort. Then again, that girl had a tendency to play on other peoples' uneasiness and assume a mask of ignorance when she was actually aware of the other's feelings.
"Uh well... Haruko and Sakuragi are getting married, and she wants you to be one of her bridesmaids," Akagi said and then turned to Mitsui, "and Sakuragi wants you to be his chauffeur."
"NANI?" Mitsui exclaimed. Trust Sakuragi to give him the unglamorous menial jobs. Mitsui silently swore under his breath. Just then, a pretty waitress came by.
"Ah, Takenori-san, here's your latte." She said sweetly. Mitsui blinked as he noticed how Akagi's face turned several shades redder. It was impossible after that for him to miss the lingering gaze Akagi held at the waitress' retreating back.
It was then that Mitsui understood the reasons for Akagi's earlier embarrassment and for the first time, Mitsui conceded that Akagi Takenori was human after all.
A/N: I apologise for the lengthiness and amount of dialogue in this one. Thanks for the reviews by the way! They're greatly appreciated and fuel for me to write more!
Chapter 4: Early Morning Conversations
Tapping her foot lightly against the parquet floor, a young woman in her twenties tried to ignore the insistent growl in her tummy. Grimacing slightly, the curly haired brunette tried to tuck in her stomach in an effort to quiet or at least reduce the growing rumble emanating from that area. The young woman carefully averted her gaze away from the surrounding diners who were happily digging into their morning meals, and the busy waiters who kept bringing out trays after trays of hot steaming food. She chose instead, to focus on the human traffic outside, all the while making a silent prayer for him to come quickly.
She frowned as a loud rumble erupted from her tummy, but quickly assumed a nonchalant stance when some nearby patrons threw questioning glances in her direction.
"Damn you Mitsui, you had better come soon before my stomach roars this entire building down," Ayako muttered. Just then, the man in question entered through the gleaming glass doors of the café. An easy grin now graced the lips that previously held a frown.
"Sorry, things were pretty rough this morning," Mitsui said wearily, running a hand through his short jet black hair. Ayako nodded sympathetically and gave his free hand a quick squeeze.
"Have you ordered yet?" Mitsui asked whilst waving his hand in the air to attract the attention of a nearby waiter. Ayako shook her head, smiling slightly as she recalled the number of times her stomach had growled throughout the 'waiting period'.
"It's ok, I don't need the menu," Mitsui said, shaking his head as the waiter offered him the long brown book with gold lettering embossed on its cover. "I'll have Jimmy's Special, with hash browns instead of mashed potatoes and I would like my eggs to be..."
"... sunny side up and black coffee with no sugar," Ayako finished for him, smirking a little when Mitsui raised his eyebrows.
"I had no idea I was that predictable." Mitsui quipped.
"Only because you've ordered the same thing the last 8 times we've eaten here," Ayako said before turning her attention to the waiter. "I'll have..."
"Toast with jam and butter, whole wheat bread for the toast and chamomile tea to drink" Mitsui guessed. Ayako's eyes widened as the waiter furiously scribbled down their orders.
"I'm not the only predictable one around here it seems." Mitsui said and leaned back in his chair.
"I guess not," Ayako murmured softly. The waiter's eyes darted from her face to his, and after ascertaining that neither was going to continue with any more orders, he quietly took his leave.
"So... what's going to happen between you and Sheryl?" Ayako inquired, wasting no time at all in bringing forth the subject of main concern. She took a sip of water as she waited for Mitsui's reply, her eyes carefully watching his face for any signs of distress or discomfort, over the raised glass.
Sighing, Mitsui sat forward in his chair.
"What else? It's over between us. I told her the truth that I was unable to say the same three words to her because I honestly wasn't sure of how I felt towards her."
"And?"
"And she freaked out. She said stuff like how she gave up so much for me and I still wasn't sure? She wants to settle down and start a family, but she doesn't want to do that with someone who isn't sure about the status of their relationship... i.e. me" Mitsui replied.
"And how do you feel about this?"
"What? Her leaving me? Ambivalent, indifferent, confused. I am hurting a little, I mean we've been together for some time, I did develop some feelings towards her... I'm just not sure if those feelings are love," Mitsui confessed.
For a while, the two of them sat in silence. Yet Mitsui felt that the silence brought more comfort than actual words could.
"Well I think it was good that you told her what was on your heart. You shouldn't lie or keep things secret from each other." Ayako said finally. Mitsui smiled sadly.
"Too bad she doesn't see it that way. Hn... maybe I should adopt your policy and just stay single all the way," Mitsui joked, trying to alleviate their sober mood.
"Ha, you wouldn't be able to survive." Ayako declared confidently. Mitsui raised an eyebrow but was prevented from refuting her comment as the waiter arrived with their dishes and drinks.
"And just how do you survive then? I don't believe that you don't need anyone."
"I don't."
"Right... I don't buy that. Someday some guy's gonna come and knock you off your feet. And on that day, I'll be there to remind you who came up with this amazing prediction first." Mitsui said and began to devour his meal.
Ayako merely smiled and shook her head as she buttered her toast. Their early morning banter ceased there and the two remained in companionable silence as they hungrily consumed their meal.
In the midst of their breakfast, Ayako thought she spotted a familiar hulking figure enter through the glass doors. He was quickly attended to by a cute brunette waitress who seated him at a table not too far from where Mitsui and Ayako were situated. Ayako's sharp ears picked up the man's gruff orders for "the usual vanilla latte" and she nearly spat out her drink as recognition dawned upon her.
"Akagi Sempai?!" Ayako called out from their table. Mitsui stopped eating and dropped his jaw open in shock. With his fork dangling in mid-air, Mitsui followed Ayako's gaze and sure enough, he found himself staring at his former team captain who strangely, looked embarrassed at being caught in the same café as them. Before Mitsui could say anything, Ayako had already invited Akagi over to their table.
"Sempai! I didn't know you ate at Jimmy's too!" Ayako said excitedly.
"I, um, enjoy the coffee here," Akagi said. Mitsui shook his head. Perhaps it was his imagination, but he couldn't shake the feeling that Akagi was mortified that Ayako and Mitsui had spotted him.
"So what is up with you these days?" Ayako said, oblivious to Akagi's discomfort. Then again, that girl had a tendency to play on other peoples' uneasiness and assume a mask of ignorance when she was actually aware of the other's feelings.
"Uh well... Haruko and Sakuragi are getting married, and she wants you to be one of her bridesmaids," Akagi said and then turned to Mitsui, "and Sakuragi wants you to be his chauffeur."
"NANI?" Mitsui exclaimed. Trust Sakuragi to give him the unglamorous menial jobs. Mitsui silently swore under his breath. Just then, a pretty waitress came by.
"Ah, Takenori-san, here's your latte." She said sweetly. Mitsui blinked as he noticed how Akagi's face turned several shades redder. It was impossible after that for him to miss the lingering gaze Akagi held at the waitress' retreating back.
It was then that Mitsui understood the reasons for Akagi's earlier embarrassment and for the first time, Mitsui conceded that Akagi Takenori was human after all.
A/N: I apologise for the lengthiness and amount of dialogue in this one. Thanks for the reviews by the way! They're greatly appreciated and fuel for me to write more!
