Disclaimer: Don't own them sorry…

Warning: I already warned you guys in the previous numbers ne?

Notes: this isn't following any REAL story line… it's a bit of AU except for the fact that they are still them! Ooh! I want to join your group thing! Just tell me HOW:) Woah/huggles all reviewers/ Thanks!

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Italics are thoughts or dreams… it's pretty obvious which is which ne?

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7: That Forever You'll Be

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"You…" muttered Rukawa darkly, giving Saki an icy glare.

Saki smirked and idly placed a hand on the Shohoku ace's arm. "It's been a while, ne?"

Rukawa immediately jerked his arm away as if it was burned and walked off. She's back to haunt me… Why couldn't she just let me be?

"Rukawa," she called.

Rukawa still ignored her. Don't look back… you know what happened the last time you did…

"Rukawa," she called again.

Rukawa was a good ten meters away from her. I can't afford to be hurt by you— not again…

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Saki sighed.

I guess I deserved it, she thought miserably, not that I regret what I did to him…

"Sendoh?" she heard someone say. She realized that the speaker was just somewhere near her— under the tree.

"Yeah?" Sendoh had replied.

"Why me?"

"Because…"

Saki approached them and almost dropped dead— her Sendoh and her!

Haruko.

She was pretending to be a friend— all along, she's been taking Sendoh behind Saki's back… that was something Saki Fuyu couldn't allow.

Once she recovered her wits, she ran away from the park and into her house (which was easily across the park) and sobbed in her room.

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"Kaede… we need to talk," muttered Saki, interrupting whatever Rukawa was about to say.

They were in one of their 'fake dates'… February 14…

"…?" Rukawa merely looked at her with a blank expression.

"I… I fell in love with someone…"

"…"

"He's someone who's better in basketball…"

"…"

"He's a freshman in Ryonan…"

"…"

"Actually… He's the reason why I'm going to study in Ryonan… My mom says that since I'm pretty smart, I can be accelerated…"

"…"

"So, I can be in the same class… as him…"

"Why are you telling me this?" asked Rukawa.

"… I'm breaking up with you…"

"We were never official from the very beginning," Rukawa muttered.

Only, it wasn't the only voice he heard… Saki said the exact same thing.

Rukawa wanted to jump for joy. HE WAS FREE! After many weeks of torture…

But then… there was something nagging at his supposedly stone-cold heart.

"I'm sorry Kaede…"

"Don't be," muttered Rukawa, "don't ever say sorry to your toys…"

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"Did you hear that?" asked Haruko, nervously glancing around.

"Hear what?" asked Sendoh.

"Voices…" she muttered in a hushed tone.

"You've been hearing voices?"

Haruko nodded glumly.

"That's not a good sign Haruko…"

"What's not a good sign?"

"Hearing voices," Sendoh muttered in a hushed voice, nervously glancing about, "it's the first sign of insanity…"

"Baka!" said Haruko, ruffling Sendoh's hair affectionately, when she realized that he was making fun of her. She laughed, leaning against one of the Ryonan ace's broad shoulders.

"How do you do it Sendoh?"

"Huh?" asked Sendoh, looking at the top of Haruko's blankly.

"How do you make me forget myself?"

"Huh? You have amnesia?"

Haruko laughed nervously. She sweatdropped. Sendoh could be strange sometimes… but it's cute… he looks so child-like… and innocent…

Sendoh suddenly became serious, "do you think you could fall in love with me?"

Haruko looked taken aback and just stared at the spiky-haired Ryonan ace. I think I already have… but… I…

"That's a strange question Sendoh-kun…" muttered Haruko.

"Yeah… I don't know… it's just that— I'm afraid…" Sendoh couldn't believe that he admitted his fear to a girl from a rival school.

"Afraid? I thought the great Sendoh Akira was fearless…!" said Haruko, hoping to steer the conversation into a better, less-awkward topic.

Sendoh azure eyes looked into Haruko's cerulean ones. "Not this Sendoh Akira…"

Haruko's heart skipped a beat at this. She just let out a nervous laugh, "ah ha… ha! I must have had the wrong Sendoh Akira then!"

Sendoh suddenly wrapped his big strong arms around Haruko's lithe form and held her close. He was actually quite nervous, expecting Haruko to do something drastic like slap him on the face or something. He closed his eyes, waiting for the moment a palm or a fist collides with his face, while silently praying, please, Kami-sama… don't make her reject me… if she did… I…

Haruko relaxed against him. She didn't know why— she just did…

Neither of them knew what to say—

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Monday morning…

Haruko walked to school as usual.

As she was nearing the big gates, she saw Saki approach her. Haruko furrowed her brows, looking at the Ryonan girl's expression.

There was something in the latter's eyes… anger? Can't be… Saki looked pretty happy the last time I saw her…

"Hi Sa—" Haruko said.

Smack.

Saki's palm collided forcefully with Haruko's pale face. She looked like she was ready to kill something— or someone… she had that murderous stare and those vicious eyes…

Haruko was surprised… She felt her cheek with a trembling hand. she hadn't expected it—

What did I do now?

She was about to tell Saki so, when a cold voice behind her interrupted her thoughts.

"What are you doing?" asked Rukawa, his eyes flashing like blue flames. In a second, he was in front of Haruko, as if he wanted to protect her.

Stupid thoughts Haruko… Rukawa-kun would never protect you… he just helped a Shohoku girl, who looked like she needed help…

Nobody has ever seen him like that… and it was, to be utterly honest, scary…

Saki glared at the Shohoku ace and spat, "it's none of your business Kaede…"

Kaede? Haruko thought, not many people I know of calls him that— did they know each other way before this?

"You hit a Shohoku student… you're from Ryonan… yes it's my business…"

A long sentence? From Rukawa? What is the world coming to?

For a full minute there was silence, Saki and Rukawa were silently taunting each other with their deadly glowers. Then, Saki decided to speak.

"If you must know… little miss Shohoku here— was flirting with my Sendoh…"

"Your Sendoh?" one… two… three voices asked in unison.

One from Rukawa…

The other from Haruko…

And the last from… Sendoh himself.

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Please review! Sorry if my elements are short and cliffy but I still have a test to study for… I'll reward you guys with a long and juicy element up next:) until February eight or something… :) but only if the numbers of review reaches 30!