Disclaimer: The absolute undeniable fact that cannot be doubted is this: I do not own Slam Dunk. Pero pwede pa rin akong tumingin diba?
Calliope Medina Erato: that's right! Hehehe.. well I mean, she's not only talking to Miyagi, there's some others too… hehehe… but still the same… heheh… I like the guntai… hehehe… well it's like they're the fun whenever Kiyota's not around… hehehe… thank you for the compliments!
Sheryl: thanks for the review! yeah, that's why I paired them up (MitxAya). Well, Mitsui and Miyagi will eventually, calm down… hehehe… but now, there's still some tensions, as to what happened in the train…
Simmic: thank you… yeah… well she's the violinist one, but she's not the one Mitsui cried over… hehehe
The Writing On The Wall
"Karin! Come here!" What now? I'm sweeping the floor aren't I? I'm just keeping my eyes on the TV instead of the floor, that's all. It's called doing two things at the same time for your information. "Karin!" I started to walk backwards, eyes still glued to the screen. When I hit my lower back on the dining table, it made me run for my aunt seeing it had switched to the commercials. I wasn't about to miss anything yet.
"What's this?" My aunt held up a shirt and a pair of pants in mid-air, in line with my face. "Do you see that?" Yeah. They're both soiled to death. How could I miss something like that? "What were you doing that you got your clothes into this shape? It was as if you had swum on a sea of dirt." The rain fell in a torrent; it's sound pushing all others from my ears. It's coldness locking out the warmth in me. "I-" My aunt gave me a stern look. She wasn't in the mood to buy anything. "You better tell me the truth Karin." I was cornered, and the only way out was through her. "I – was in, the rain." The first was out. "Let's sit down and talk." There was no going back.
After a lengthy and detailed explanation, silence had enveloped the room for a few seconds. "So, did you thank him?" I could only nod my head at her question. "So, what did you give him in return?" A simple thank you. Isn't that counted? "None." At her raised eyebrows I added, "as of the moment." She rested her forehead on her palm in disappointment.
"Go." It was not a request, more of an order. "Go and do something for him. It's called a proper thank you for accepting someone's help." Here we go again with tradition. "In my time…" allusions from the past again? "Ok, I'll go." She stopped at once, maybe she was just threatening. I don't know. I didn't bother to know.
"What should I give him?" I shut the door to my room and leaned heavily on it. "I'm on a tight budget so I can't afford to buy him a good gift." I gradually slid down its length, ending up sitting on the floor, hugging both knees. "I should cook for him instead. It's one area I'm confident I'm good in."
I stood in front of the kitchen, gazing into nothingness as the faucet dripped. "What should I cook?" I tightened the handle. "I have no idea." I looked inside the refrigerator. "I guess all I can do is prepare an ordinary but wonderful meal." I started with the tofu dengaku miso soup, some salad, and then moved into the ebi and yasai tempura, then Mizu yokan, and finally Tori no mizutaki, and of course, rice.
I arranged the food neatly, pouring in the tea in a separate container to keep it warm. After the wrapping and the clean up was done, the next bubble burst in my head. "I don't even know where he lives!" I was at the brink of trashing the kitchen, though I stopped since I might ruin the food I worked so hard to cook.
I sat down on the sofa to think, and primarily to calm down. The directory lay across off me on the table. I picked it up, started to flip through the pages, looking for the surname Souichiro. When I did find it, it had not been the only, but a quite a number. I didn't know any of them. I didn't even know who was Jin's dad. I wasn't going to leave it up to chance.
I'm not deaf. I ran back to my room. Looked in my caller id for the caller who called that day. As soon as I found the unknown number, I wrote it down, the phone in my hand. I tried to make a call, but I couldn't even get past dialling the numbers. It would always end up in me returning the phone down. Taking one last breath, I raised the phone from its receiver and started to punch in the numbers.
I could hear the phone ring on the other side. I was just contemplating whether I should just return the phone back to its receiver. As my fingers struggled to do so, my arm remained firm in its resolution. It didn't move, it was held there between two opposing directions. The phone was picked up. "Souichiro residence."
"Um, good morning. Um, can I speak to, um, Jin-san please?" My heart was racing while my cheeks were burning. "I'm sorry, but he's not home right now." What? But what about the food I laboured on to prepare? "Though I'm quite sure he's at the basketball gym right now. Can I know who's calling please?" Dodge it. "A friend." That was vague. "A friend with no name?" Such persistence, but with reason. How would Jin know which friend anyways? "Karin." I admitted defeat. "Well, Karin, would you like to leave a message?" A debate ensued in my head: to leave or not to leave. "No. That's all right." The verdict was in favour of the opposition. "Ok then, I'll tell him you called, good bye." I could only reply the same "goodbye," as the phone was set down.
I set out from our house towards Kainan. Getting there was fairly easy. I just had to ride the same bus I got lost in. Upon arriving at the school was a different question. I headed for the main entrance. As soon as I entered it, it felt like I had entered the room of mirrors. The halls seemed to stretch forever, the classrooms loomed from both sides, and aside from that would only be another set of stairs.
"Hey you!" I would've run if it were not for that awfully familiar annoying voice. "It's you again." Nobunaga walked away from the drinking fountain. "What are you doing here?" I hid the bento box behind me. "Do you know where Jin is?'
"Yeah. He's in the gym, practicing his shots." Why would he even need to practice? He's like, that good. "Anyways, let's go, I'll take you to him, as long as you share what's inside that bento box after." How'd he know?
The gym doors opened to reveal Jin dribbling the ball three times before he bent his knees, and bounced back again, his feet half-lifting from the floor for a nice, clean shot.
"Jin." Jin smiled as he turned around, though it changed into a look of surprise when he saw who was beside Nobunaga. "You again. Sorry for calling you, you, but I don't know your name." He doesn't? Oh yeah, I didn't mention it to him. "I'm sorry I haven't introduced myself." I bowed to apologize. "I'm Takahashi Karin." He held out his hand for a handshake. "Souichiro Jin." I already know. The basketball team made everyone know who you are. And due to my sources, that part of the news didn't fail to reach me. "Nice to meet you." Now, on to what I came for.
"Hey Jin, how about a one on one?" Nobunaga challenged, his right hand already twisting the ball with one finger. "I'm not yet finished with practicing my shots. Maybe later." Nobunaga did a jump shot. "Fine." He chased after the ball and passed it to Jin. Before he could start to dribble, he remembered my existence. "Oh yeah, why were you here again?"
"I'd prefer to leave it till later." Jin started dribbling the ball. "Ok then, can you wait for a while? I just have to finish my shots. I only have 15 more to do." After I nodded my head in approval, "Great then, you can just take a seat in the bleachers."
I watched as he moved in different angles from outside the three-point line. After every shot dropped in with a swish, Nobunaga took another ball and then before the first one could reach the ground, he was already throwing another one at Jin. Jin wasn't taking the whole ordeal lightly either. He wasn't smiling like he usually does, and remained focused entirely on the ball. He didn't hesitate nor take too much time in positioning himself for a shot.
He was finished quicker than I expected. I couldn't help but express my amazement and started to clap thunderously. He responded with a humble smile as he wiped the sweat from his forehead.
"Oh, I have to buy this game, it's on sale right now, so see you later Jin." He gave Jin a pat on the back before he left, and a peace sign to me.
"Wait here while I get changed." I stood up from the bleachers and looked around the court. I grabbed a basketball and started to dribble it in the way Mitsui had taught me. "You play basketball?" I didn't hear him come out from the locker room. "No." I was just returning the ball when, "Would you like to try a shot?" The free-throw line is even far for me. "Come on, just try." I guess he wasn't really going to allow me to back down. "Ok then." I replied, hesitation written all over my face.
He picked up the ball and placed it in my hands and asked me how would I position my hands and arms. "I don't know." He let out a small laugh before letting my right hand hold the part of the ball that was facing me, my left hand resting on the down left curve of the ball. On practicing how to shoot the ball, with my elbows in an angle, he taught me that I should flex my right hand back, my left hand sort of following through. "Flick your wrist when you release it." Then, I bent my knees, practicing that almost springing movement with the feet.
"There. Try it." I did, though I greatly missed. It was an air ball. "Told you." Though he didn't seem discouraged at all. "Let's do it one more time." I took the ball, and went back to the free-throw line. "This still isn't going to work." He stood behind me, held my hands just like how kids were first taught to write - with something guiding them.
We went through the whole process and it seemed like I was a puppet for I followed in his movements, though I was a bit stiff. And upon the release, the ball went in.
"Though it had not been me who shot it." He still clapped his hands to congratulate me. "It was your hands that held the ball, so it was your shot." What a weird logic.
As we sat under the shade of the tree, I decided to take out my bento box. "It's for you." I said, opening it and handing him the chopsticks. "What for?" Should I say as repayment for his help? "Just to thank you." He began to eat vigorously, it being likely that he was hungry from his practice. "This is really, really good!" He almost choked on the ebi-tempura and I rushed to pour some tea for him, which he eagerly drank. "The practice made you hungry eh?" He nodded enthusiastically, still engaged in eating. From the smile that he acquired with every bite, I should add that he was enjoying it. "Everyday, I practice to maintain my shooting skills." Since he said it, "I don't think you need to, at least not everyday." He placed his chopsticks down, fully stopping for the first time.
"When I joined the team, I wasn't really strong, or very fast, or that good at breaking through the other team's defence. It seemed as if I didn't have a position that I could fit in. But I wasn't also willing on letting the coach's criticism of me hinder me from doing what I wanted to do the most. So I started to practice long-range shooting. Luckily, it worked for me." It was a side of him I didn't know about. He laughed again, picking up his chopsticks and resumed to eat.
I didn't bother him with any other questions after that. Nor did I say anything. We continued to sit there, under the sun, hidden beneath the shade of the trees, and it remained so until the chopsticks were placed down with finality, and the bento box? Empty.
Ok… not been able to review for a few days, cause well, had exams… so I made this kinda long, to compensate a bit hehehe… anyways, hope you liked it! Oh and I haven't been putting in some like explanations for the Japanese words… didn't think it'd be important… unless, it would be in a conversation. But if you're wondering… don't hesitate to ask… next chapter… um… what would you like to see in the next chapter? joke… hehehe… um… a bit of miyagi again… a hint of Mitsui, a dash of Sakuragi taking what Karin said the last chapter too seriously, and um, some more rebuilding and healing… hehehehe…