A/N: Thanks to everyone who followed, favourited and reviewed! It makes me very happy.
I'm still managing to update on time! I'm surprised myself.
Enjoy!
Holy shit! Where's a cell phone camera when you need one? ― Simone Elkeles, Perfect Chemistry
Go and play. Run around. Build something. Break something. Climb a tree. Get dirty. Get in some trouble. Have some fun. ― Brom, The Child Thief
It was the kind of kiss that made me know that I was never so happy in my whole life. ― Stephen Chbosky, The Perks of Being a Wallflower
And the stars blinked as they watched her carefully, jealous of the way she shone. ― Atticus Poetry, Love Her Wild
Lust starts with chemistry. Love starts with trust and respect. ― Marian Lanouette, If I Fail
Love is an irresistible desire to be irresistibly desired. ― Robert Frost
Aya was nastily woken up by Kaito's hand hitting her in the eye. There were certain drawbacks when sharing a narrow single bed with a kid. She sat up and rubbed her eyes. Kaito was sleeping like the dead, so she crawled out of the bed and stood at the window watching the morning mist covering the surrounding hills as it was slowly rising up. The predawn light illuminated the moist meadow.
She stretched. With a giddy smile she remembered the first kiss with Daiki. My boyfriend, huh? She thought and traced her lips with her finger. Warmth spread through her veins and charged her with energy. Now she wondered how she'd even fallen asleep, but she had to admit she'd been exhausted and the stories she'd read to Kaito lulled her to sleep just like him.
You need to cool off. It would be chilly, but she could head out for a run and be back in time to help with breakfast. Sun would rise soon enough anyways.
She kissed Kaito's forehead and headed to her room to change.
The door on her room was left ajar and she pushed it open without a single worry. Something spilled on her. "Oh, what the…" The sudden 'shower' was cold, sticky and smelled weird. It completely soaked her hair and t-shirt all the way through to her undershirt. She wiped her face and turned on the light to see, what the hell it was.
She studied the liquid mass with disgust. It was some mixture of beer, water, eggs, flour, fine sawdust… She turned around to study the trap, rage rising in her.
There was a trap wire attached to the door and a bucket was fastened above it, so it would spill, but not fall on her head. And there were her pointe shoes bathed in that disgusting hotchpotch, now hanging above her door like mistletoe. There was only one person capable and daring enough to set this up. And yes, she'd forgotten what he could and would do, given the chance.
Oh, she was furious! She jumped up and snatched her shoes.
"My pointes, how dare you?! SHIRANUI KOUTA! YOU'RE DEAD!" Aya's enraged roar at about four in the morning woke up everyone in the main house.
In a second she barged into his room, almost taking the door out of its hinges; hoping to shock-awake the sleeping beauty who plotted all this. But Kouta was standing near the window, already waiting for her.
"Oh, hey." He grinned broadly in provocation. "I thought you needed a reminder." He winked. She looked spectacular! Covered in the mass, her hair stuck and glued to her smudged face and oh those poor clothes. He was very pleased with the result of his hard late night work.
Needless to say, now she was demanding his head. Good he'd left the window open; he wouldn't get past the goddess of wrath.
"You're so dead now." She growled, slapping the pointes against her palm, ready to use it as a weapon.
"First you have to catch me, Monkey." He stuck out his tongue and in a second he jumped through the window, slid down a narrow shingle roof protecting the porch and he was on the run. Barefoot. Wearing only his pyjama bottoms.
"HEY! WAIT!" She followed after him, legs first. The short slide down the shelter hurt, like burning her bare skin, but it soon ended and she fell on the grass like a cat. Barefoot; only her toe with missing nail was wrapped in a bandage. In her knee-high shorts and totally dirty, she chased after the hightailing prankster.
There were another high pitched screams heard from the main house. Followed by Katsunori's really infuriated stream of insults and curses. Followed by another angry voice cursing in English.
The predawn light illuminated the meadow enough to see the two chasing silhouettes as they slipped and tripped on the moist grass in their neck breaking effort to run and catch.
She slipped and rolled over, quickly scrambling back to her feet. Kouta, looking over his shoulder, laughed. "COME ON! YOU SLOOOOWPOKE! CLUMSY!" He called, hoping the anger would slow her down. Despite her fall, the head start he got was being slowly eaten away. And she only added to her efforts.
"SLOWPOKE?! JUST YOU WAIT, BASTARD!" She yelled swears and curses as she chased after him.
That definitely worked as an alarm clock for the boys, contently sleeping in their private houses. They crawled out to their porches and squinted in the weak light to see what was going on.
Kouta looked over his shoulder again, which caused him to trip and roll over. It only shortened the already reducing gap between him and Aya. Then another small missile bolted out off the main house and joined the hunt on Kouta, shouting nasty insults at him.
"Whoa." Tatsuya hummed rubbing his eyes.
"Uuuhm…." Daiki blinked. "What the…?"
"I'd say, Kouta pranked them." Tatsuya said through laughter. "Uh… Fukui-senpai, are you sure you won't go catch Sumire-chan? If she catches him…"
Fukui raised an eyebrow at him. "Won't you go catch your Ex?"
Tatsuya laughed. "It's unwise to get in her way when she's furious."
"Same here." He shrugged. "If they catch him, then he deserves whatever he gets."
"Does someone have a phone?" A boy from Yosen asked, this was hilarious.
"In this poor light you won't get much~ And if you did, we'd have to snatch the phone to delete it." Imayoshi said wickedly. "Things like these stay in the camp."
Kouta suddenly turned and headed into the forest, hoping to get lost in the trees.
"OI! NOT THERE!" Hero screamed, but followed nonetheless. She was starting to feel her operated Achilles tendon and she knew she couldn't run for much more. She wouldn't manage a chase in the uneven terrain of the forest. "AYA! GIMME THAT SHOE!"
"Huh?" Aya turned her head to look at Hero close behind her. Because of that she failed to see a hollow in front of her and she tripped again. "Fuck." At least the grass was soft enough to cushion the impact with the ground.
"The shoe!"
"Here!" She thrust the shoe into Hero's hand and quickly got up again.
"Was 'bout time." Hero muttered. Then she aimed at Kouta's legs and threw the shoe with all her might. It hit. Kouta stumbled and crashed to the ground with a loud grunt.
"Urgh! Ouch. Go get 'im. I can't sprint further." Hero sat down heavily and started massaging her leg. She'd be lucky to walk properly for the rest of the day after this crazy, albeit short, chase.
Aya got to him before he managed to scramble up and disappear into the tree line. He got hit by the remaining shoe couple of times. Then Aya took off her completely ruined top shirt and smudged the sticky mass all over Kouta's face and hair – knowing it'd be hell to wash the sawdust out of his dreadlocks. But being so close to him was peculiar.
Kouta fought back. "No you don't!"
"Nooo!" She squealed when he rolled them over several times. They turned into a ball of tangled arms and legs each was trying to get up and get away.
Inevitably, Kouta kicked her injured thigh making her yelp in pain and he stopped fighting for a moment. "Sorry!"
It wasn't nice, but she used it and kicked him into stomach. "Urgh!" He groaned and rolled off. Aya's aim could be freakishly accurate if she got serious.
She scrunched up the t-shirt and threw it at his chest, where it made a nasty splat sound.
"I warn you, don't do it again." She said icily, anger still burning in her eyes.
"Oh, come on, Monkey. The morning run wasn't that bad, eh?"
She stared at him for a moment, and then she smirked victoriously. "I caught you."
"With help. Next time –"
"There won't be a next time!" Taichi's voice bellowed over the meadow. "Get your asses here! Both of you!"
"Well shit." Kouta frowned and stretched his hand towards Aya. "Did you have to make such a ruckus?" Well, I pranked them all…
"I'm not helping you up." She stuck out her tongue and ran to face her grandpa.
Both trouble makers got hit on their foreheads by the edge of Taichi's palm. "You, for making such a ruckus." He frowned at Aya, but understood her reaction and she wasn't the only one pranked. "And YOU!" He glared at Kouta, "for wasting our food! And making a mess in MY HOUSE!"
"Sorry!" The young man bowed deeply.
"Don't sorry me! You'll clean up the mess, apologise to everyone you made fun off, you'll chopping the wood in Keiji's stead for as long as you'll stay and no more pranks inside the houses or the gym!"
"But –"
Taichi's eyes were throwing daggers. "Do it again and you're sleeping on the porch. UNDERSTOOD?!"
"Yes, sir!" Kouta shouted loudly, fairly chastened. But I can pull pranks outside, right…?
"Oh, and you'll go buy the food you've wasted." Hanae added to his punishment. Then she looked at Aya with pity in her eyes. "Go clean yourself up, Robin, those eggs are drying up in your hair."
"Yeah. We've made quite a show for them…" She pointed at the boys with her head, thankful for the tricky dawn light. Then she shivered. It was truly a chilly morning.
"They'll soon forget it." Masako walked outside with her shinai tapping against her shoulder. She, Kaito and the grandparents, were the only ones who had been spared the sticky shower. She assumed that Shiranui didn't want to be beaten by her shinai, and again, she proved to herself it was a good weapon. "But I must admit… Seeing Katsunori like a wet chick made my day. Good job, kid." She almost patted Kouta's shoulder but seeing the sticky mass and his sweat she changed her mind.
"Masako-chan." Taichi warned her. "Don't praise him."
"Yeah, yeah…" She waved her hand, and then turned to the boys. "Okay! I see you're all up! Get changed and go for the run! To the village and back! Twice!"
"Eeeeeh?! But Keiji-kun isn't here to take our water bottles there…" Someone protested. Keiji always took their water bottles to the village where they'd turn, so they could drink.
Masako shrugged. "You'll drink here after the full first round!" They complained quietly. "ANY COMPLAINTS?!"
"NO!" They responded and ran inside to quickly wash their faces and change before Masako decided that pyjamas were good enough to run in.
"Nee-chan!" Kaito's whimper sounded from above their heads. The boy was holding onto Kouta's window frame by his fingers and trying to find a support on the steep shingle roof. It wasn't that steep, but with the morning dew it was slippery and hard to find enough support.
"And what are you doing there?" Taichi asked in disbelief.
"Wanted to help Aya-nee-chan."
Taichi frowned at Aya and Kouta. "Did you have to use the window?!"
Kouta shrugged. "Fastest way out."
"Shut up." Aya muttered. Arguing with Taichi wasn't the wisest thing to do.
"I'm scared…" Kaito said with tears in his eyes, feeling embarrassed and helpless. He didn't have enough strength to pull back up into the room, because the window was a bit higher than his head and he was scared to slide down. It was too high for him to just jump down like Aya and Kouta.
Aya made a guilty grimace. She didn't like that Kaito was stranded there because of her. "It's okay. I'll go up and pull you inside, okay? Just a second." She said in consoling voice.
"NO!" Kaito protested immediately and almost slipped. "Don't leave me!" Somehow he thought that once she was out of his sight she'd be gone and leaving him to his fate.
"I won't I'll be up there right away."
"No. Don't leave." He repeated.
"Hmmm…" Aya was looking at the roof trying to find a way up there from where she stood.
"Don't even think about it." Taichi shook his head.
"Why not? The eaves should hold my weight and I can pull myself up."
"But it's damp and if you slip and fall you might harm yourself, and unintentionally pull him down with you."
She sighed. "Kaito, do you trust me?"
He nodded vigorously.
"Then let go and slide down. I'll catch you. Like that time on the water slides." She tried to persuade him. He was small and light, she could catch him just fine.
"I'm scared." He repeated.
Aya looked at Kouta. "Go in and pull him up from the inside." She was starting to feel a slight panic squeezing her insides. She needed to do something.
"He'll make a scene if it's not you." Kouta pointed out. The little boy was too set on being with his big sister; being saved by her too. He feared the boy might wiggle of his grip and fall down anyways.
"Damn." She cursed under her breath. "I'll have to go up from here." She decided.
"And what about me, Risu-chin?" Atsushi drawled, using Hero's nickname for the boy. He overheard the last bits of their conversation as he was heading towards the others to go for the run. He didn't interact with the kid much, but he didn't mind him. And he understood the feeling of being left alone at a scary place. He wanted to help him, and Aya-chin.
"Look." The giant walked right under the roof and raised both of his arms. Without standing on his tiptoes, almost his entire forearms were above the edge of the rooftop where Kaito could see them. "I can reach up here and take you down. But you have to let go and slide to me."
Atsushi took a few steps back to look at the boy. "I won't let you fall."
Kaito gulped looking at the giant. Somehow he felt he could trust him. It comforted him that someone reached all the way up. Then he looked at Aya.
She nodded. "You can sit and slide like on a water slide. Atsushi will catch you. Like Taiga would."
"Like daddy would?" Kaito peeped.
"Haaai, whomever you think about." Atsushi assured him.
The boy gave a short nod and lowered himself to sit, slowly letting go of the window. But then he slipped and with a loud shriek he rolled and slid down.
Thankfully, Atsushi's reflexes were the real deal and just as the boy came to the edge of the roof his hands were there to catch him. He held Kaito up until the boy opened his eyes in surprise he wasn't falling anymore.
"You're fine, Risu-chin." The giant said slowly and a small smile appeared on his face. Then he turned to Aya and shoved Kaito into her arms. He didn't know what else to do with the kid.
"Neee-chan!" Kaito hugged her around her neck and started crying for real. Now when he was safe and sound.
Aya squeezed him tightly and rubbed his back in a comforting gesture. A huge weight fell off her. She was glad Atsushi had been there to help. Otherwise they'd have to pull Kaito in from inside and the kid would be offended and angry for the whole day.
"Thank you, Atsushi. I don't know what I'd do without your help." She smiled at him kindly.
The giant nodded. People usually didn't thank him.
"Murasakibara!" Masako called out his name in annoyance. "Come on!"
With a colossal sigh and eye roll he jogged after the others. But he felt good about himself; his height helped someone today.
######
The pranked girls had to help each other to get the sticky hotchpotch Kouta had prepared out of their hair. Using the outside showers while the guys were away was the best timing for this type of unwanted bonding.
The showers were placed behind the houses and ran around with over three meters high thick wooden walls. They walked in through a narrow sliding door, which Aya closed and locked behind them. There was a sort of spacious front room with numerous racks to store their clothes. The floor was pawed with dark flat rocks and a short path led towards the open showers. There were 8 showers at each side and the floor sloped towards a drain running through the middle. A small bamboo stool was standing under each shower.
Despite its outside character, the showers were kept clean and could be roofed during the winter or strong storms.
Kiku wanted to avoid the whole situation. She stayed in the 'clothes room' on her own, stalling with getting undressed. Her hair only reached her shoulders, she didn't need help, and going to the showers naked with the other three girls… She wouldn't mind Aya… But…
"Come on, Butterfly-chan." Hero called out ready to go and fetch Kiku. "We don't bite."
"Hero." Aya stopped her with a warning in her tone. "If Kiku doesn't want to, then that's that. No reason to force her."
"Hey! I'm only B-cup too! No worries!"
"She's C-cup." The redhead corrected Hero nonchalantly.
"WHAT?! Okay, now ya have to come! In ya'r underwear if ya want!"
That's not a problem… Aya thought gravely.
"I-I-I'll go…" Kiku peeped from the dressing space. "B-b-but… P-please, d-d-don't tell a-a-anyone…" Her voice was barely audible and she was stuttering again. This whole time, the three girls had never done anything to hurt her. Even the wild midget was trying to be as compassionate and polite as she could be. Kiku wanted to trust them. Because… how was she supposed to try dating Wakamatsu, if she'd be constantly scared of showing herself to him? How could she hope for a good relationship if she couldn't trust him? She had to test it, she had to…
With trembling shoulders and lots of self-denial, she walked in after the girls. They went silent. All of them. Kiku was looking at her feet. Without her glasses she wouldn't see their face that well anyways. They were staring at her scars; old cuts, scratches and cigarette burns, which were marking her torso and thighs.
Satsuki gasped. She'd never expect something like this. True, she only knew about Aya-chan's shoulder scar, and two minutes previously she'd counted four more – older ones and two new – or would be new in a couple of weeks, maybe. And even Hero had a scar from her surgery. But Kiku was… It was terrible.
"Who the fuck did that?!" Hero flared up.
"Huh?" Kiku looked at the midget, surprised. You should've learned your lesson already. They're your friends. She thought.
"Really, who? I'll tear their heads off! Hurtin' a cute lil' butterfly like ya."
"That's terrible." Satsuki breathed out. "I'm sorry, I didn't know." What was she supposed to say?
Aya sighed sharply to get their attention. "Bullies. And staring won't help it, neither would pity. Like Kaito said yesterday: scars are beauty marks of strong people. Now, shall we get to washing this shit out our hair?"
"He said what?" Kiku asked; she was close to crying after that. The kids were priceless, she should know.
"Yeah." Hero nodded with a grin. "If that's true, than ya'r' the strongest woman I've ever seen. Believe that, Butterfly-chan."
Aya coughed with a teasing grin.
"Yea, yea, ya too, Booby-chan. But don't get too flattered."
They all laughed at that. And Kiku felt lighter. Maybe Wakamatsu would accept it too? Eventually… Eventually she'd show him if she wanted to… She blushed furiously.
"Thinking about Wakamatsu-senpai?" Aya asked and pulled Kiku under a shower.
"No! How could he… No!" She shook her head still blushing.
"Heeeeeee…" Hero grinned and aimed her shower at Aya's face. "How come ya know and I don't?"
"Because you're in Akita?" Satsuki said and rubbed huge amount of shampoo into Hero's hair.
"Phones exist, Pinky-pie." The girl lamented.
The pinkette ignored her. "Aya-chan?"
"Hm?" She looked up from Kiku's hair she was trying to free of all the sawdust.
"I bumped into Aomine-kun yesterday night. Late night. He seemed… Overexcited? And a bit worried, or out of his usual brooding-frowning self? Is there something going on?" She asked and her eyes were shining with curiosity, hoping for juicy news. She'd been shipping those two for months, well… if it weren't for her meddling, but that wasn't important now.
Aya blushed, remembering the kiss again and looked away.
Hero was sitting on her stool with her head tilted down while Satsuki was brushing the mess out of her hair; she didn't see Kiku or Aya. "Okaaaay! That silence is suspicious, Booby-chan."
"So what happened?" Kiku joined the three. She was curious too, and she knew a bit more of Aya's feelings.
"So we kissed." Aya blurted out. "And are dating. Officially… Apparently."
That caused an official squealing of all three girls.
"So wait!" Hero stood up and dramatically threw her hair backwards. "Ya tellin' me it was yar first kiss?!"
"We weren't dating before, so yeah?"
"Huuuuh?! I'd swear ya did all sorts of things before."
"Sumire-chan!" Satsuki punched – or tried to punch – her shoulder. "Aomine-kun is not like that. He's actually shy."
"That guy?! No. He ain't shy. I've seen those magazines." Then she gasped. "Ya'v' seen 'em right? Booby-chan? Don't ya mind?"
Aya rolled her eyes. "I've seen them. I don't really care much. Trust me; your Fukui-senpai definitely hides a couple of those too. You just haven't sniffed them out yet." She had a brother and cousins. All the Shiranuis were like her brothers. She grew up with boys and she wasn't naïve and she didn't consider it a threat to her relationship. Taiga would never admit to having magazines like that either… She thought.
"Ken-kun would never…!" Hero protested with something close to adoration in her voice.
Kiku got up and freed her stool for Aya-chan. "You think Wakamatsu-senpai…" She was thinking out loud.
Aya sat down and shrugged. "Dunno, maybe not. He seems too pure for his own good." Then she sighed contently when Kiku dove her hands into her thick hair and decided not to think about anything unnecessary; it wasn't everyday that someone was washing her hair and Aya just loved the feeling.
######
"All cleaned up?" Daiki smirked when Aya put his breakfast in front of him. He couldn't help but feel giddy when she was close. Her hair was still wet, held symmetrically and loosely from her face by a small jaw clip. It wasn't her usual hairstyle, but he liked it too.
She smirked too. Those mischievous eyes of his… And those lips. No, she shouldn't behave like an idiot. "I've had help." Then she turned to Atsushi. "Thanks again."
The giant nodded and then frowned. "They've been making fun of me." He was very much capable of protecting himself, but the verbal insults were still unpleasant. And sometimes Atsushi's teammates forgot he could be vengeful, especially on the court, where he liked to even things out.
"Huh?" She looked over to the table with Tanaka and the rest, who were quietly laughing at something. Me, most likely.
"They are our team, but we're not on good terms with them." Tatsuya admitted. "And Kaito comparing Atsushi to his daddy, was kinda… You can imagine…"
"Oh?" She raised an eyebrow. Good that Kaito was eating with grandma back in the kitchen. "And I bet the two of us were proclaimed parents at some point?"
Tatsuya's eyes widened. "How…?" He had it difficult to pretend in front of her.
By Tatsuya's reaction she knew she hit the nail. "Interesting bullshit, and that guys don't gossip about stupidities. Wasn't it like that when Kaito was an infant and we took him out for a walk? When was it… Like five years ago or something?" She snorted at the memory.
Tatsuya had already forgotten. But now that she mentioned it… "Oh… You chased them up a tree like a personified wrath. The first time I was actually scared of you." He laughed. "We didn't even understand the concept of dating back then."
"They wouldn't shut up. And my fuse was much shorter back then." She shrugged. "But I guess I've always been a mother hen hating badmouthing pricks, who hurt others." She said it louder and glared towards Tanaka's table. The boys sitting there went silent and their cheeks heated in embarrassment. "Tch, idiots."
The next set of full plates she served to the boys at that table. "You know guys…" She was slowly setting the plates, looking at each one of them. There was a dangerous light in her eyes. "You don't have to like me. But don't turn me into your enemy. This is my homeland after all." She smiled at them with a cold, chilly smile and left to take out the last set of plates. They gulped and stared at one another for long seconds before they started eating.
When everyone had their food served, Aya came out of the kitchen with her own plate, looking for a free seat.
"Aya-chan." Satsuki motioned her to come to them. "You can sit over here. I'm finished already. I can get another chair for myself." She said with a sparkling expression on her face, sending 'good luck' signals.
Satsuki's cheeks were flushed and Aya wondered what the hell Satsuki was thinking about. It wasn't hard to guess though; the pinkette was observing Daiki and her to the point it was unpleasant.
Daiki groaned in annoyance. Satsuki couldn't be more obvious.
Aya felt like she was under a microscope and she sat down with a sigh. She turned to Satsuki with a raised eyebrow and stared at her for a moment, but the girl stared back without blinking, clearly ignoring Aya's 'stop it' message.
"If you stare at me like that I'll probably choke with the food. You too." She snapped her eyes at Tatsuya, who was now staring too. Satsuki's expression gave away there was something going on and he wanted to know.
Daiki glanced between the three. He knew that expression on Satsuki's face. Oh god… She was told. He thought desperately. "Tch, that wasn't smart, Sweetheart." He grumbled quietly.
Aya's agreeable nod told him he was right. "My mistake. Please, Satsuki, don't make me regret it."
That was enough for Tatsuya to understand. "So you…" He pointed between Aya and Daiki. "Finally?"
Aya blushed but then she shrugged. "Any problem?"
"…not at all. Congrats." He said, but it sounded a bit forced. Aya acted like she didn't notice it and he wasn't sure if he was glad or jealous. Honestly, he was feeling both.
"Huh?" Atsushi was looking around not understanding what the hell was going on. "Muro-chin? What's up?"
"Well–"
Aya started eating. Ignoring everything and everyone. Well, this was going to be a little awkward with the others, but nothing they couldn't get used to. She and Daiki had functioned like a weird couple for some time after all.
######
The day's practises consisted of running and drills of fundamentals. It was nothing interesting for Daiki, so when he heard it, he turned on his heel and left the gym. The matches were planned for the next day.
"You can take some time off, if you want." Katsunori said to Aya, who stared after Aomine until he disappeared. "I bet you don't get to enjoy the holiday. You've been practising for three full weeks and you led the yesterday's practise. Momoi-san can handle everything just fine."
"That wouldn't be nice of me, would it?"
"None of them gives a damn, Robin. With Kaito and all, they expect you to ditch too for some time…" He scratched the back of his head with a slightly uncomfortable expression.
"Huh?" She looked up at Katsunori, not getting it.
"The word's been around… You two are dating right?" It wasn't really surprising; for no one in the team. They'd been just waiting when it would be official. Katsunori would give a neck there were some bets among the boys.
"Uh, yeah, so? Doesn't mean I should ditch my responsibilities. He's not a kid I need to take care of 24/7."
The coach raised an eyebrow at her. "Don't you want to though? Show him around and such? You won't get back here anytime soon."
She blushed and bit her lip. "Maybe…"
"Then go. Just don't do anything… you might regret, okay?" 'Stupid', he wanted to say.
Aya chuckled. "Don't worry. I promised I'd try to not cause you trouble. And I'm not stupid."
"You're in love, which kind of equals that." He muttered with a frown.
Her eyes narrowed. "Thanks for your trust." She said ironically. Then she turned to a small group of boys from her team and smiled at them. "If you're still alive in the evening I'd like to have a little match with you."
"Okay!" The first years nodded and with a short salute she left the gym.
Tada nudged Wakamatsu with a frown. "See? You should do something about Kiku-chan while you're here. Once we're back at school you'll keep finding excuses."
"W-what are you talking about?" Wakamatsu stuttered with a terrified expression.
"I've noticed she always disappears for an hour or so after lunch. I wonder where she goes, or with who~" Imayoshi hummed.
"Just kiss her already, man. You've been on three dates. Three. And nothing. The girl must be disappointed too."
"That's not true. We're just… taking it slow."
"Mhm, does she see it like that too? And are you sure you don't mind it~?" Imayoshi had to be the one getting into Wakamatsu's head and teasing him even worse than Tada would.
"Aren't you supposed to lead the warm up?" Ishii patted Wakamatsu's shoulder to remind him. "We're waiting, Romeo."
"AAARGH!" He slapped his hands against his cheeks, leaving too red marks there and started running around the gym. "COME ON!"
######
Kaito and the dogs found Daiki immediately, demanding some chasing game. With those two giant dogs Daiki was glad he was there to keep an eye on them, so they wouldn't unintentionally hurt Kaito in their overexcited-puppy-mode.
"What are you two up to?" Aya asked them, immediately getting the attention and affection of both dogs, which almost flipped her over. "Urgh, hey girls, uff, see you have heaps of energy."
"Hey! Why do they like Aya-nee-chan more than me?" Kaito protested with his arms crossed on his chest.
"Because I don't suffocate when they jump at me." She chuckled and shook them off, but continued scratching their heads and necks. "Didn't you ask Kiku-chan to help you bake cookies for Atsushi?"
"Huh? What?" Daiki raised an eyebrow at the two. "Why not y–" you? He wanted to ask but Aya elbowed him, knocking out his breath.
Kaito blinked and nodded. "Oh, yeah! I'll give you some too, nee-chan!" He waved them and ran towards the house to look for Kiku.
"Now, care to join me for a run with the dogs?"
"Huh? Wait, what? Did you just…?" He pointed between Kaito and her. Truth to be told, he was feeling a bit awkward. He was unbelievably happy, but also a bit embarrassed, and he wasn't sure what would change now. And Satsuki's long lecture after breakfast didn't help at all; it'd implanted worries into his mind that hadn't been there before.
Aya shrugged and averted her eyes. "Yeah. I love Kaito, I really do, but I want to be with you too." She admitted, peeking up at him. "And there's someplace I want to show you while we're here, so…Are you comin'?"
He blinked at her and then rubbed his face to hide a blush. She wanted to be with him alone? He wasn't dreaming. This was for real. Really real. "Yeah."
"Good. Oh," by the corner of her eye she noticed someone passing through the meadow. It was Keiji, carrying timbers towards the workshop. There was something she needed to ask him. After Kaito's little adventure in the morning, she'd been thinking about a new addition to the tree house. "Kei-chan! Wait up!" She caught Daiki's wrist and pulled him with her.
"Hm?" Keiji stopped and looked at her. For a moment he was balancing with the heavy timbers on his shoulder. Daiki and Aya automatically caught the timbers and helped Keiji to stabilise, taking some of the weight off him.
"I've been thinking…" She started with a thoughtful frown.
"Always a dangerous pastime." He quoted one of the books the two loved, and judging by Aomine's surprised expression he'd guess the guy knew the books as well. Aya rolled her eyes and smirked. With a chuckle, he continued; "What is it?" He knew that look in Aya's eyes. She had some crazy idea and she was going to involve him.
"You've surely heard about our morning adventure with Kaito, right?"
Keiji nodded. "Poor kid. I feel sorry for him. And for Kouta-san."
"-san? What the… He deserved all he got." She shook her head. "The thing is I can't take Kaito up into the tree house if he got scared of that roof's height… He wouldn't be able to get down on his own and if I tried to somehow take him down myself, it could be dangerous for both of us. Maybe he wouldn't even climb all the way up."
"Eh? But Kaito's been so excited to go up there, waiting for you and all… Wait, how can you stall that?"
"I have my ways with Kaito. But… Could you come up with an idea how to get Kaito up and down to the tree house safely? And he shouldn't be able to get there by himself."
Keiji blinked and Aya could almost see the cogs in his head started spinning. "… You mean something like a primitive lift?"
Aya nodded. "Something like that. And not everyone should be able to run it… I'm not really sure about the technical part, but I thought you could figure that out."
"Hmmmm…." He rubbed his chin. "Give me 'till evening. Taichi-sensei is preoccupied with Kouta-san, so I have time to think about it. But it'll definitely be a two or three-men job to make it work."
"That's not a problem, right?" She glanced at Daiki.
Baffled by the whole conversation he nodded. Would he need to help? He didn't mind, but... "R-right…"
"Okay then, we'll have a meeting in the evening." She glanced at the timbers. "Are you holding it?"
Keiji shifted and took the weight off of them, well, Daiki mostly. "Yeah, thanks. And Aya."
"Hm?"
"Have you read the instruction Taichi-sensei left you for your birthday?"
"Not yet. Not for the past three years, why?"
He grinned mischievously, not willing to give out what he knew. What surprise would that be? "All three years' worth of gifts are still out there. And if I'm right where you're heading... Keep your eyes open."
"I will." She agreed and turned towards the forest. She looked at Daiki and the dogs, which were expectantly waiting for her. "Can you keep up?" She asked with a grin.
Daiki smirked at her. "Lead the way, Sweetheart." There were dozens of things he wanted to ask, but it could wait until they'd get wherever she wanted to show him. He couldn't wait to see it.
He had no idea where they were heading, or how far she would take him. They passed under the tree house and through some bushes. Running on the uneven terrain of the mountains, he had to watch his feet. There were some nasty roots willing to trip him. He wasn't used to running in the mountains anymore and a few days at Koh Yao Noi running around with Klahan didn't really count. But Aya looked like she didn't have to focus on the ground that much. She moved through the forest with certainty, like she knew every root, bump and hollow on the small, barely visible path. And she didn't seem to be getting tired. She was keeping a steady pace and he had a suspicion she would run faster if it weren't for him and his occasional cursing the tree roots crossing which tripped him. Where does she get the energy? He wondered, but he'd never admit he was getting tired.
The final climb was the steepest.
They were both sweating, and he thought his thighs would burst after this terrible last climb. He needed to stop to catch his breath and tell her something about that crazy uphill run, but when he got to her side, stopped and finally looked up, all he could say was: "Whoa. It's…" He blinked at the beautiful view extending in front of them.
The air was cooler up here than in the meadow, but the sky was clear and the sun was warming everything up. The summer breeze was gently blowing through their hair and Aya was by his side. And there were dogs… There was nothing at the moment he'd like better than this place and this atmosphere. He felt as if it was the top of the world, although it surely was just a random hill with a pretty view.
Aya was slightly out of breath too. She smiled kindly and waited for Daiki to look all around him. She loved this place, it made her feel better, it cleared her thoughts and she could relax here. Alone. Taiga knew it too, of course, but she preferred to climb up here on her own. But sharing it with Daiki felt like she showed him a part of her soul and he seemed amazed by it.
She chuckled in delight.
"What?" He asked her with a raised eyebrow. His usual frown was gone and there was a swirl of emotions in his eyes she couldn't quite grasp.
"Nothing. I'm just happy." She was smiling brightly, then her eyebrows knitted as she remembered something, "Oh, if you're thirsty, there's a spring just a bit lower behind that bend." She pointed a bit further ahead. "It goes down the other side of the mountain and joins with another... It's safe to drink from it." She almost blabbered about the whole stream's route all the way to the village. She was slightly nervous and incredibly giddy and happy. She felt like bursting, or flying, or she didn't even know.
"Really?" He'd do anything for a nice big gulp of water now. Realising his childish glee, he frowned and cleared his throat. So she's happy… He was too. And he doubted he could behave normally, but he was trying to. "Yeah, right… Of course there is." He mumbled and followed the invisible path towards the water. Now, when it was pointed out to him, he could actually hear it.
Aya ran past him to drink herself. The dogs followed after her. With their thick fur, it could be dangerous if they overheated and they were Newfoundlands, they loved water.
"This place is awesome." Daiki said truthfully and sipped water from his hands. It was cold and fresh, and it tasted really good. "I never thought something like this was here."
She was smiling at him. "I love it here. This," she pointed at the view, "is just one of the reasons. There's also a natural hot spring but we'd have to take a different path."
"Seriously?" He stared at her for a moment. It was unusual for her to speak so much. He didn't mind though. He wanted to know everything.
"Yeah. It's a small paradise. There's something similar for me in France, with horses and wine and all… DON'T!" Aya raised a finger at Yui, which rolled in the water and mud and wanted to cuddle. The dog looked at her with sad puppy eyes, but stayed down.
"NO!" Daiki raised his finger at the other too. The dogs were ready to try to cuddle both humans they liked. "They're trained well, for pupps."
"They're two years old already. I wonder if they're still pupps."
"Oh, then they shouldn't be. Maybe this is their nature, but they seem to obey Kagami-san's every word. Shiro and Kurome are like them. They obey, and you expect them to be smart adults, and then they do something totally stupid." He sighed and followed back to where they could see the awesome view. "What were you supposed to look for up here?"
She followed after him, scanning their surroundings. "Well, I don't know. The birthday gifts from grandpa… it's basically treasure hunting. Ever since we were four, he's always been hiding our birthday presents and giving us some clue or clues, of where to find it. The gifts are small; books, socks, anything that can be carefully wrapped and hidden. The whole process of finding it is more fun than the gift itself. But it taught us a lot and I remember the excitement of searching for it. For example, when we were seven we got coordinates, map and compass and we had to figure it out. The gifts were at two different locations but we could look for it together." She chuckled at the memory. "I haven't really read the clues for the past three years. Taiga for six. Maybe I could go look for it now." Suddenly she blushed and looked at her feet. "Sorry… I'm rambling…"
He chuckled and ruffled her hair. "I don't mind. But that sounds like fun." Her grandparents sounded awesome. Heck, they were awesome and his girlfriend was a badass. A smart and cutely nervous badass. "Could I help?" He offered, thinking about the gift he'd forgotten at home.
"If it's a poem, I doubt it. You don't know the surrounding forests. But you can join me." She smiled and sat down, leaning against a huge trunk of an old oak that was watching over the whole valley. Calm down, stupid. She growled inwardly at her heart. The dogs repeated her action, they were glad for the break.
Daiki did the same.
Their shoulders were touching and they were finally alone, enjoying this place and each other's presence. He'd missed her so much. And now she was his girlfriend. It was a new concept to him. He could feel he was grinning like an idiot, staring at the beautiful valley in front of them.
"So my girlfriend, huh?" He said out loud without intending to. "Tch…" He clicked his tongue and didn't dare looking at her.
"Yep." She nodded.
Encouraged by her answer and the fact she didn't tease him, he asked; "What now?"
"What what now?" She asked curiously, glancing at him. She wasn't sure how the things would work out either, but she was happy. Everything seemed brighter, warmer, better.
"Tch…" He turned his head to look at her and regretted it immediately. She was so close. Those big red eyes – they were surprisingly red in this light – were staring right at him with a question mark in them. And he was forced to answer. "We're dating…" He mumbled.
"Yeah, so?" She asked, still not getting where he was heading.
He averted his eyes. "Uh… so… What changes?... How… What - what am I supposed to do?" It was rare that he felt insecure about something. Only she could make him feel strong and weak at the same time. Who else could tell him if not the girl herself? "I don't know that." He admitted. He didn't want to disappoint her; she'd had enough of that. You haven't told her you liked her, yet…
"What changes?" She repeated the question and looked at the valley then back at him. "Uhm… Nothing? I don't know… Weren't we sort of a couple before? I mean, now, we can spend more time together without looking for an excuse, go on some dates… I don't know. What do you think should change? I just want to be with you more." Honestly, she'd never thought about dates. She loved him and she was happy to be around him just like that, without a set purpose. "…holding hands, hugging, kissing and all." She rambled out and blushed. She'd love to kiss him again. "And-"
His hand found hers, he intertwined their fingers, which stopped her rambling and she blinked at him. "You are unbelievable, you know that?" He asked and his eyes threatened to drown her.
She wouldn't mind it. She really wouldn't mind it. "Aren't you too?"
Her lips curled into a something between a smile and a smirk and he just had to lean down and taste them again. She met him half-way. Her lips were just like the other night; soft, welcoming and responsive. His heart was still not used to this rush, but he felt braver than before, which inevitably made the kiss wilder, more desperate.
Daiki was never good at voicing out his feelings and emotions; he'd act rather than talk. But he loved her, trusted her, respected her, he wanted to protect her. Maybe he wanted to convey everything through that kiss, everything he couldn't say.
And she responded to it equally. Almost like she understood his wordless confession. She shifted to be in a more comfortable position, which allowed him to cup her cheek and trace her cheekbone with his thumb.
The moment they parted to get some air, she rested her forehead against his and sighed contently. She kept her eyes closed and she turned to fully face him. She'd love to straddle him, to be really opposite him, but she didn't want to test her luck. Odds were he'd freak out.
She brought her hands to his face and traced his cheekbones, his jaw, his lips, which parted under her fingers. He closed his eyes and let her. It felt strangely good when she was touching his face. She pressed her lips against his again in a short butterfly kiss.
"I love you so much." She breathed out naturally, without thinking. It was the truth.
His eyes snapped open and he froze for a moment.
Her breath caught in her throat. She pulled away, still cupping his face. Did she do something wrong? She needed to see his expression.
It sounded so easy when she said it. His cheeks were red and even his skin tone wouldn't hide it. His expression was dumbfounded. He knew he needed to say something, or do something, or she'd totally misunderstand. A frown settled on his face. "I was supposed to say it first." He grumbled.
She blinked. "Huh?" Then she laughed quietly. Nothing was wrong, she was relieved.
"What?"
She shook her head and her eyes sparkled. He'd never seen them shining like that. "Didn't you? I'd swear I heard you say it…"
"Eh?" He was puzzled. Then a soft chuckle shook his ribcage. She was truly unbelievable and he couldn't imagine the world without her. Maybe she didn't need to hear it like that, maybe he was bad with words, but what was so hard about it anyways? If she could say it, so could he. And he felt he needed to word it. It was a commitment; he wanted for this to work out for the best and it would be unfair if he got away without actually saying it.
"I love you too." He said quietly, and his heart almost jumped out.
She leaned towards him to drown his embarrassment with another long, deep kiss. And he was more than glad, she didn't pry or stare... They'd both sweated during their uphill run, but he could only smell the usual scent of apricots and something that he could only label as 'Aya' and he really liked it.
In that kiss, was everything they had just said. When her tongue found his, he let out a surprised, but content grunt that vibrated through his chest. Their lips and tongues moved in a dance both of them instinctively knew.
His hands found her hips and ran up her waist and back. Her t-shirt rolled up slightly and he ran his fingers on the bare skin of her back. It surprised her and she hesitated for a second, but she didn't stop kissing him. She let out a quiet moan, which only encouraged him, because he certainly wasn't sure what he was doing. But damn, he was enjoying it. Her skin was soft and smooth and he could feel the firm muscles on her back and sides and he wanted to touch her more. He wanted to know every part of her, but he didn't have the courage to explore past the safe zones.
If she didn't know him, she wouldn't believe he'd never kissed or touched a girl like this before. Daiki seemed to have it all figured out, and she surely didn't protest. His calloused hands sent electricity through her whole body and she pressed against his chest. She loved his hands on her. Despite his callouses he was so gentle, it was driving her crazy. She wanted him to touch her more, to test more. She wouldn't stop him. She shifted so she could free the hand she was using as a support and she almost lost balance and fell into him, but he stabilised her and they both chuckled, which made the kiss clumsy.
From the corner of his mouth she traced his jaw and neck with butterfly kisses. A soft groan escaped his lips and Aya couldn't help a smile. So he liked it. She didn't dare driving her hands under his t-shirt, thought the temptation was strong. When have I become so… hungry? She couldn't find a better word to describe the almost desperate desire to love and be loved.
Her kisses, her hands… The sensation was unlike anything he'd felt before. It was driving him crazy. She was driving him crazy; so beautiful and hot and his. Before he knew it, blood rushed into his crotch and he faced a problem. He clasped her hand travelling down his chest.
"Enough." He said through heavy breaths. His voice sounded strange to his own ears, deep, rich, hungry… He bent one leg closer to his chest to hide the embarrassing bulge in his shorts. He'd thought it wouldn't happen so soon. But they'd been circling around each other for so long, it wasn't that surprising. Well, shit… He thought and took a deep breath. Calm down.
Aya stopped and quickly glanced at his crotch. She felt embarrassed herself. She should've known better. But it just felt so natural, so easy to make out with him. She loved it. She loved him. Everything about him.
"Sorry."
"Sorry."
They blurted out at the same time, their faces were burning red. He didn't want her to feel bad because he stopped her so abruptly. And she felt guilty, because she should've stopped herself. She didn't want to make him feel uncomfortable or ashamed, yet a part of her was pleased by his physical reaction. She chuckled at the situation and leaned back to sit at her heels and looked away. Then she shifted and sat on the ground crossing her legs. It was considered ungirly – as Satsuki had told her – but it was comfortable for her.
"Tch, I didn't… There's no–… Shit." He swore, covering his face with one hand, trying to hide his furiously blushing face. His other arm rested on his bent leg.
She looked away to give him some negligible feeling of privacy and took a deep breath herself. "It's, it's fine. Sorry I didn't stop myself sooner. I just…" didn't want to. She bit her lower lip and looked everywhere but Daiki.
Honestly, she wouldn't mind taking care of what she'd caused, but he wouldn't have stopped her if he'd wanted her to. You need to take it slower, Aya, dammit. She cursed herself inwardly. With his confidence and teasing and kissing, she kept forgetting he'd had no previous experience and that he could be quite shy.
He peeked at her. Now that she was a meter away, he was slowly calming down. It wasn't that bad yet. "…wait you… too…?" He looked her up and down; his blush didn't seem to be going away anytime soon.
She rolled her eyes with a crooked smile. "…'f course. I'm not a saint. You just can't see it." She admitted with a slight mortification, but it was only fair.
"Oh…" He looked away again. Really?
With a grunt she stood up. Yui and Ai followed her example; they were watching the two teenagers the whole time. It was a miracle they didn't want to join the make out session.
"I'll be back in ten minutes." She said, already decided they wouldn't test their boundaries further that day. "When I get back… could we try acting normal?"
He nodded. She already was acting normal. And he'd like those few minutes alone. And if they didn't act normal when they'd return, everyone would guess…
She went to the water spring and washed her face with the cold water. The view here was not as grand, but it was still pretty. She squatted down and hid her face in her hands. She felt she'd melt and butterflies in her stomach were untameable. A cigarette would help her to calm down quicker, but she didn't have one with her and Daiki had no idea about her bad habit. For some reason, she didn't want him to know.
After a few minutes when she returned back Daiki was on his feet, obviously calmed down and staring into the tree. He heard her and glanced at her. "What's that?" He asked pointing at a thick rope tied four times around a wide bough about three and a half meters above the ground.
She frowned. 'Keep your eyes open.' Kei-chan said… "I don't know… It wasn't there when I was last here. I think…" She bit her thumb nail in thought. "Hn, only one way to find out." She started circling the tree to find a good way up.
"Is your leg fine enough?" With her running around, he'd forgotten about it.
"Yeah." She assured him. "If someone put it up there, it was Keiji. And if he could climb up…" I can too.
"Is he your… friend?" He probed with a frown.
"He's the one who taught me how to climb trees. Helped us retaliate Kouta's pranks… So yeah, we're childhood friends."
"You seemed to handle Kouta's prank fine on your own today."
"It wasn't that easy when we were kids. And Kouta usually had Hikaru's help. Taiga didn't really count as a fellow fighter back then, he was..." She realised she probably shouldn't tell Daiki about Taiga's past weaknesses, or they could become a good teasing material for the ace. And Taiga would kill her for it. "…well, we had to join forces." She said as she was climbing up carefully. There weren't many footholds, but once she reached the first branch it was easier. "Grandpa really hated when we did pranks inside the house and we always risked it. Needless to say, the pranking stopped when Kouta unintentionally set the porch on fire. Thankfully it was only a small fire and it was stopped before spreading. We slept outside for three nights after that. And even our mom couldn't persuade Taichi-ojii-san otherwise. We totally deserved it." She nodded; she finally reached the bough with the rope and she straddled it, slowly moving towards her goal.
She was good four meters above ground but she wasn't scared the bough was as wide as a smaller pony and certainly strong enough to hold such a pony.
He laughed. "I don't want to imagine that."
"What? You've never did anything that stupid?" She asked and studied the rope. There was nothing underneath but the rest of the rope, at least 6 meters worth of it, was neatly tangled in the branches. Like a thread leading her towards something hidden higher up in the tree.
"Not me. But Kise did. He threw something into a bonfire in one of the Teiko's summer training camps. It was supposed to change the colour of the flame and make it larger. When nothing happened in a few seconds he leaned over the fire to study it and then it burst up, scorching his eyebrows and fringe… He got detention and had to wear a wig during his photoshoots."
She laughed, happy she stopped her climbing until he'd be done with the story. She could totally imagine Kise doing something so stupid to show off. "He should be glad it didn't burn his skin or something."
"It's Kise. He's a lucky bastard."
"When we're at it, where did you burn your hand?" She asked curiously.
It wasn't that obvious anymore, only the skin on the outer side of his palm had slightly different colour and the top layer of skin was peeling off. He was sure it wasn't that visible. She probably felt it… He though remembering her skin under his hands and he blushed again.
"Helped out at grandma's diner and I caught a frying pan when it was falling."
She continued her climb, following the rope. "Why would you catch it if it was hot?"
"Out of reflex."
She shook her head. It was obvious. She'd done that once too and regretted it immediately. "Ha! Found it."
"What is it?"
"No idea." She was staring at the wooden box wrapped in a waxed waterproof cloth, with no obvious lid or lock. It was probably a riddle, or maybe the gift itself? Nah, it wouldn't be so easy. She thought, but she had to find a way to open it. "Can I throw it to you?"
"Yeah." He was looking up, through the thick branches and leaves he couldn't see he and was only guessing where she was, but once he'd see the falling box, he'd catch it.
She shifted her weight to look down; putting more weight on the branch she was standing on.
CRACK.
Whoah! She grabbed a hold of the branch where the box was attached, She was half hanging on the higher branch and half standing on the branch that cracked dangerously. But it didn't break. Yet. She couldn't put her whole weight down on that branch anymore, and she hoped it would hold until she'd get to the trunk.
"You okay?" Daiki asked and worry laced his voice. The sound was fearsome, but she didn't come crashing down. That was probably a good sign.
"Fine. Catch the box." She threw it down, without checking his position.
"Got it… What is it?" He was turning it in his hands curiously.
Aya didn't answer. She was searching for a safe route down; splitting her weight between the two branches, praying it wouldn't break completely. Another branch that could support her was about 60 cm below the one that cracked and it was only a few centimetres wide. Carefully she tiptoed closer to the trunk. The branches were sturdier there. But the branch under her feet decided to break before she could reach it.
"Shit!" She let out as she lost support from beneath her legs. It was so sudden her hand slipped too and she fell through a few branches scratching her arms and legs, until she managed to grab a hold of another one. The bark bit into her palms and she hissed at the stinging feeling.
"Oi!" Daiki avoided the falling branch and was staring at her from below. "You alive?" He asked, really worried now. If she'd hit her head...
Her feet were dangling just a few centimetres above the wide bough where the rope was firmly tied around. The rest of the rope was hanging down, coiling at Daiki's feet.
"Want some help?"
"No. I have to get down myself." She thought he could climb up to help her, but he'd probably make it worse or get hurt himself.
If she jumped from there she'd probably hit the bough. "Tch." She clicked her tongue. The fall frightened her too and she had to do something before her arms would start hurting too much. She pulled herself up and sat on the branch for a moment. "Yeah, fine." She smiled.
In another three minutes she was down the same way she climbed up. She'd slipped on a branch before, but it was the first time that one broke under her like that. It wasn't rotten, it didn't look that weak.
She stared up at the tree and wiped her dirty, bleeding hands into her pants. "Damn. That scared me."
Daiki pulled her into his arms, squeezing her tightly. If fear had some scent, he could smell it on her. "You crazy woman. Do you want to kill me?"
She stayed there for a moment and then pulled away, taking the box from his hands. She smiled at him apologetically. "Sorry? I didn't know it'd break. And nothing happened."
His stomach rumbled and Aya laughed. "I guess it's time for lunch. Come on." She cocked her head in the direction from which they came and set off.
If the uphill run was difficult, the downhill one was near impossible. There were sections where they should slow down and walk, but instead, the two idiots slid down on dry needles, leaves and dust. It was a wild and liberating feeling, filling their veins with a different kind of adrenaline than kisses. And there was no one else who would do this with him than Aya. Maybe Kise or Klahan, but not another girl.
"Holy cow!" Hanae covered her mouth when the two invaded the dining hall.
Everyone was staring at them. They were covered with dust and mud and scratched from bushes. Aya had leaves and small branches tangled in her hair – Kiku had so carefully washed that very morning. And Daiki's bottom was green from when he'd slipped down the hill. But their eyes were shining with excitement and adrenaline rush the downhill run provided.
"Where have you been?" The old woman asked.
Aya grinned and showed her the mysterious box. "By the spirit oak." She said; her grandparents knew the place well. They were the ones who named it the 'spirit oak'.
"Did the branch break?" Keiji grinned, eyeing her up and down carefully.
"Huh?" Aya turned to him. How could he know? She frowned. 'Keep your eyes open.' Maybe it wasn't just a clue, but also... a warning…? "Why d' you? Wait…was it set up to break?"
Keiji shrugged. "We thought you already knew better than to fall for it."
Aya opened her mouth to say something, but–
"WHAT?!" Hanae roared and turned at her husband, who was slowly shuffling towards the kitchen through which he could pass and disappear outside. The scoop in her hand suddenly looked like a very dangerous weapon. "Are you trying to kill her?! Do you even know how dangerous it could've been?"
"Dear, she's like a monkey. There's no way she'd kill herself by falling off a tree. It was just a reminder to keep her alert…" He tried to defend himself.
"A reminder?!"Hanae threw her arms into the air in anger. "She had one when you were repairing that damn tree house?! I was surprised she didn't break her ribs! You reckless old man! The gift hunting is done! This is the last year."
"But dear–"
"No!"
There was a spark of annoyance and anger burning in Taichi's eyes too. But he knew there was no point in arguing further. Maybe once Hanae would cool off a little. He shuffled out of the dining room, not hungry anymore.
Aya was looking at his slouched figure guiltily. Shit… I should've been more careful. "I'm fine, Baa-chan, really."
"Don't try to make it better." She glared at her granddaughter. "Reckless like her father." She shook her head. "Go get changed. You're not getting lunch looking like this."
Daiki turned on his heel and went to the outside showers and Aya quickly vanished inside the house. It was the second scolding she got that day. A reminder it had been, but she should've noticed it… She was sure her grandma would be huffy 'till evening.
######
Kaito clung to her the whole afternoon practise. She decided she should go there. If grandma saw her with that box, she'd probably burn it, so Aya acted like it didn't exist. She apologised to grandpa for not cleaning up before entering the dining hall, but he just waved his hand at it. It was Keiji who had said out loud… The important thing was that Aya was safe, and that it'd been her and not Daiki who fell. If something had happened to the boy they'd be in much bigger trouble. That was a heart warming information for her, but she let it go.
Daiki hid in the gym too. He showed a very small attempt to practise and the majority of the time he was barking orders at Kano, Arai and Sakurai. It was unusual for the ace to try teaching someone.
Atsushi stopped by Aya and Kaito. "Why's Mine-chin teaching?" He asked lazily. If he remembered correctly, Aomine'd avoided practises like a plague.
"They asked him to."
"Hmmm…" His amethyst eyes narrowed as he observed them carefully. He'd never faced Aomine's streetball head on and he wondered if he could cope with it. There was no way Aomine could be better than him, right?
"Atsushi! Come on!" Tatsuya called him back and the giant complied with several complaints.
"So?" Satsuki and Hero popped out at Aya's sides with really gossipy grins. "How was yar lil' adventure?"
With similar expression Aya replied. "That's a secret."
"Oh, come on, Aya-chan! I want to know." Satsuki pleaded. "I need to add it into my file."
"That sounds disturbing…" Aya frowned. "All the more reason to not tell you." She caught Daiki's freaked look. He knew the girls were demanding detailed descriptions. And thinking about that, he almost got hit in the face by the ball.
"What was that?!" Ishii laughed at him. "The ace almost caught the ball with his face."
"Tche, shut up." Daiki growled and glared at Ishii.
"Makes us wonder what happened~" Imayoshi sang, joining the group.
"Okay, vultures." Katsunori put his hands on Hero's and Satsuki's heads. "Go to your places and take notes, managers. You can gossip all you want after dinner."
"Haaaai." Hero sighed and turned to go to her place.
"Be more careful, Robin." He told her with a sigh. "We don't want any injuries here."
"Yes. I'm sorry. I really didn't notice." She mumbled looking at her feet.
At the end of the practise Masako whistled sharply and all the boys assembled around the coaches and managers.
"Tomorrow is the fourth day of the camp. The best time to have all out matches between our teams. It'll determine the form of our practises for the last three days. The matches will be three quarters long and the first match will start at 10. Yosen players will be, Murasakibara, Okamura, Lui, Muri and Suzuki. For Touou…" Masako looked at Katsunori to name his players.
"Wakamatsu, Aomine, Kano, Tada and Naito." He looked at every one of them. Kano and Naito were surprised that they'd been chosen; the rest was more or less expecting it. "We decided that we won't let all of the regulars clash in this camp. That'll be reserved for the Winter cup."
Daiki and Atsushi measured each other. They'd never faced one another in a match. They wanted to figure out who was better. But they kind of expected the coaches wouldn't allow it. And yet…
I won't lose. They both thought.
######
In the evening, Aya was playing basketball with Daiki, Kano and Arai. She and Arai against Daiki and Kano. It was fun. Her two man team was losing spectacularly, and Kano hardly ever got the ball, but it didn't matter. Those matches were slow, casual. They were fooling around and no one took it seriously. It was just a nice pastime with the setting sun warming their backs. Kaito, Tatsuya and Atsushi and some others were curious observers and Keiji was scribbling something into his notebook.
She was facing Daiki, and he had to admit, she'd gotten better. And not only her. Those two as well. He couldn't take as easy as before. Her speed matched his own and she was more certain with the dribbling. She kept her distance, and tried several fakes, carefully watching his every step. Then she doubled her speed, going in one direction, making him believe that was where she wanted to go. Once he shot out after her, she reared back and he almost lost his balance.
Almost.
He blinked at her; speechless for a moment, then he smirked. The new trick? "I don't fall for ankle breaks, Sweetheart."
She shrugged, like she'd expected it. She wasn't disappointed. "It was worth trying."
Daiki won.
Next match, when she did the same to Kano and he sat on the ground in disbelief. She passed by him, trying to go for a dunk, with only a tiny chance she'd get it. Daiki slapped the ball away before she could get close enough.
But Arai caught it and shot. He surprisingly made it.
Kaito cheered. He liked Daiki, but he wanted his nee-chan to win.
Tatsuya got up and walked towards them. "I see you've been playing with Zack and the rest." He praised her with a smug smile.
"Naturally, they send their regards." She smiled at him.
"Play against me." He said, staring at her with those grey eyes.
"Hmmm… How about… Me and Daiki, against you and…?"
"Atsushi?" He glanced at the giant.
"Do I have to, Muro-chin? I have the morning match tomorrow." The giant complained. He was contently munching on the cookies he'd gotten from the kid and that small shy girl. It would hurt to put them away. What if someone stole it?
"Only five minutes. You don't have to move around if you don't want to. Just guard the basket."
"Well, we're fucked." She muttered to Daiki.
He smirked, but he had to agree. He could handle Tatsuya just fine, but both of them… He wasn't sure the set up was safe for Aya. "It was your idea."
"Didn't know he'd choose Atsushi."
"Who else would he choose?" He raised his eyebrow and sighed. "Murasakibara won't actively play. Unless you provoke him, so… I'll handle the ex, you don't get trampled, Sweetheart. I've had enough seeing you in that tree."
"I can handle myself. Wouldn't hurt if you actually teamed up with me, you know."
"I don't pass." He grumbled stubbornly.
"Make an exception?" She asked with a smile. "If we win, Atsushi will play for real tomorrow."
He narrowed his eyes at her. She had a point…
"Okay, lovebirds. Are you gonna play, or what?" Tatsuya asked loudly, interrupting their strategy discussion. "Didn't know you'd listen to anyone's advice when it comes to basketball." He was purposefully looking down on Daiki, he wanted to provoke him. The two were a dangerous combination, and he hoped Daiki wouldn't agree with the teamplay, because he wouldn't handle both of them at once.
Tatsuya had the first ball. And since they were playing on one basket, the only thing he needed to do was pass to Atsushi. Well, it wasn't as easy as Tatsuya anticipated.
Daiki was guarding him tightly, and more than see, he could feel Aya was paying careful attention to any slip he might make. And Atsushi wouldn't help him with this. Daiki was reacting to his fakes, as if he was reading them. The ace's focus was tremendous and Tatsuya had a hard time coping with it. It was different than the other day. And Aya knew those fakes, she could fall for them, true, but she knew them.
Tatsuya needed to either pass, or score, because sooner or later the two would steal from him. They were like vultures. No, like hungry wolves.
Tatsuya was forced to shoot.
Daiki wasn't sure if it was a normal three pointer or the mirage shoot. But somehow he stopped it. Aya caught the ball and headed towards the basket. She had no chance against Atsushi, so she passed back to Daiki. It was a good, clean pass.
Daiki smirked. That was his girlfriend. He wanted to dunk, but Atsushi was already there.
"You won't Mine-chin." He drawled and jumped.
"I will." He smirked and changed the route of the shot. It hit the board at a weird angle; it circled the hoop and tipped inside.
Atsushi glared at Daiki. That shouldn't have gone in.
"Agai–"
"I've got it!" Keiji shouted suddenly. And looked at Aya with excitement. "I've got it! Security meeting in the tree house in ten minutes! You!" He pointed at Daiki. "You come too." He ordered and took off. After Aya's fall (which literally was his fault) he wouldn't let her climb up the usual way.
"What was that?" Daiki looked at her puzzled.
"Security meeting in ten minutes." She shrugged with a smile. "I'll go get the box. Keiji might now how to crack it." She jogged towards the house.
"I guess I can go finish my cookies, then?" Atsushi asked. He was displeased by Daiki's mid-air manoeuvrability. He decided he'd play as real as he could without hurting anyone. Against Mine-chin, he couldn't hold back that much.
"And me?" Kaito asked. Sadness and disappointment were obvious in his voice. He knew he'd gotten scared of that height, but… He wanted to see the tree house from the inside too. He felt forgotten.
Daiki crouched down to the boy. "You will get there soon, kid. Your sis' is figuring a way to get you there safely. Just wait a bit longer, okay?" Why was he consoling the kid?
"How about we play guitar?" Tatsuya proposed. He had no idea why he was helping them either. "Did you learn something new?"
The boy nodded.
"Then teach me." Tatsuya smiled and outstretched his hand to him. Kaito took it and started describing the song with his usual cheerfulness.
######
"You forgot about the kid." Daiki scolded her with a frown, but he didn't sound annoyed at all. He was waiting for her under the tree house, knowing that Keiji was up there, but wouldn't tell him how to get up. What a prick.
"No. I left him with you and Tatsuya. I've already explained it to Kaito."
"He still felt left out."
She sighed. "I know. Sorry. I didn't want to deal with his tears or puppy eyes. I can't resist them." She admitted. "I knew you'd handle him well."
"Wanna come up or what?" Keiji's head appeared over the railing.
"Throw us the ladder." Aya demanded.
"Hmmmm… I wonder." The boy was grinning at them from above.
"I'm still pissed off that you tried to kill me." She warned him. "Don't make it worse."
"It wasn't that bad." Keiji protested.
"Aiba Keiji!"
"Gee'. Hai, hai." He disappeared. There was a sound of a door opening, and then a square opened up at the bottom of the tree house. The ladder rattled down as it was uncoiling. The opening in the floor looked like a small tunnel.
"Is that a double floor?" Daiki's jaw almost hit the ground. It was like a well protected fort build in a tree.
Aya nodded. "The double floor wasn't there before and someone had to throw down the ladder, but we wanted to change it and changing just the door opening wouldn't do it… No one would want to the door to open up underneath them. Now, both of those 'doors' open outwards. And the ladder is coiled in the space between."
"So you can open the bottom 'door' from here?"
"Technically, yes. There is a long pole with a hook hidden somewhere here, and the ladder falls down once it's opened. We came up with it during the repairs. It's safer. I hope you don't mind the rope ladder." She said, already holding onto one rung.
"Not at all." He watched her climbing up and once she got there, he followed in suit. He was up in no time.
"Someone else has good muscle and coordination." Keiji praised him. "I bet you can climb trees just as well."
Daiki shrugged. "I try." He muttered and then looked around him.
They were on the deck; the front of the tree house with railing running around. It was wide enough for him to stick his legs out and lay down, and he wouldn't hit his head against the walls, or rather the sliding door that formed the whole front wall. And it was good five meters long. Like a balcony. The sliding door was wide open and there were mosquito nets covering the space.
"Come on." Aya probed him and move the nets to get inside.
"Whoa." He breathed out.
The space was much bigger than his room. And it had two storeys. Two wide branches were naturally passing through the opposite side of the tree house. There were supporting beams and six sleeping nets were hanging between them. And there was a flat ladder leading to the "second" floor. It was right under the roof and it covered only half the whole space. It was low and even Aya would have to crawl there.
There were several bookshelves – full and three massive wooden chests. A small square table was set in the middle with sitting cushions and there were colourful lamps hanging haphazardly around the room. They didn't seem to run on electricity.
The room had one huge and two smaller windows. They had shutters, but now they were covered with paper that let the natural light through. The orange light passing through those windows gave the room a special atmosphere. The dust particles were dancing in the light and the whole thing seemed really old. But very warm and cosy.
"It's awesome, right?" Keiji asked with his eyes sparkling. He was officially given the role of the tree house protector and repairer. "Now, sit." He ushered them and fished out three glasses and juice from one chest.
Daiki assumed that chest was his. Then he turned on several lights – they were surprisingly bright for something that didn't run on electricity.
And after that, Keiji presented them the plan of the lift. He had a detailed drawing with all cogs and the whole mechanism, using a removable winch with special ending like a key. The winch would be hidden inside the tree house and the whole lift could be run only form the house, not from the ground. The lift was basically one huge wooden box, and he'd already found a bough strong enough to make it work. He was so smug about it and he said it so cheerfully, that both of them were sure it'd work.
"Awesome." Aya said. "How long until you can build it?"
"Two days?" Keiji shrugged. "The winch has to be long enough so you could use it too. Then it should be possible to pull up a person up to… 100 kg, I guess."
"You guess?" Daiki asked with a raised eyebrow."
"Well, it's not certain. I did my calculation right, but there's always something that might go wrong. The box itself will be some 30kg. I'll recalculate it once I have all the parts ready."
"You'll need our help setting it?" Aya asked, she could wait.
"Of course, and I'd need you for the trial ride unless you want to use Kaito." He glanced at her.
"No. I'll do it."
"With a safety rope, if something goes wrong."
"Naturally." She agreed with a frown and Daiki wondered if there were some plans that had gone wrong. And if, he probably didn't want to know.
They talked a bit about their childish chase games and pranks they pulled. And the mysterious box, but Keiji refused to give her a hint. They told Daiki everything they knew about their tree house. It was an amazing thing, and the ace felt welcomed in their secret base.
Keiji yawned and glanced at his watch. It was past ten. "I should go. Ma will be worried."
"Don't you basically live here?" Aya chuckled.
"I promised to be home tonight. Besides," he grinned, "I should leave you to your business, right?" She exchanged glances with Daiki and they both blushed. Keiji laughed. "I knew it."
"Well, we'll go too." She decided. "You need to secure the ladder and climb down. I've had enough of adrenaline rush today."
"Sorry 'bout that." He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "I really thought you'd notice."
"Whatever, just don't do it again. It scared me there." She admitted. "And I don't need to be scared when tree climbing. It doesn't help."
"Yeah… I promise I won't. I got serious scolding from Hanae-baa-chan too. I really meant no harm."
She stared at him for a moment, and then she sighed and got up, turning off the lights inside. Keiji quickly packed the glasses and remaining juice into a bag and passed it to Aya. "Could you take it down?" He asked and turned on one light on the outside.
But it was Daiki who took it from him. "Yeah."
Keiji grinned at him. "You've found yourself a good guy, Robin."
"I know." She smiled at Daiki, who suddenly pretended he wasn't there, and shut the door. Then she threw her legs over the gap and found the ladder. She was down in no time.
Daiki jumped half-way down soon after.
They waited until Keiji got down safely too. Daiki wondered how he could find his way in the darkness. The guy was truly interesting. Their ways parted in the middle of the meadow. Keiji went to take the car and Daiki escorted Aya to the main house. But she didn't go in right away.
"I hope tomorrow's match will be okay." She said with a slight worry.
"Why wouldn't it be?"
"It's Atsushi against you. I can't help but feel uneasy."
"I won't lose." He assured her.
"That's not it. Just don't hurt yourself, 'kay?"
He smiled softly and ruffled her hair. There was no point arguing. "I won't." He kissed her forehead, surprised by how natural it came to him, when they'd had a really embarrassing situation before.
She nodded and stood on her tiptoes, tilting her head up, demanding a kiss on the lips. He leaned down for a swift kiss, they were outside and the grandfather might kill him for this after all. But he could get used to this.
"Good night." She smiled and kissed him once more.
"Good night."
She took the bag from him and vanished into the house.
A/N: Maybe I got a bit carried away with the prank and the tree house, but... I liked writing about it. And some fluff - I hope I'm still within the rating (?). Anyways, I hope no one was too OOC. :)
Next chapter will be a showdown between Daiki and Atsushi, I wonder how that will go... And someone else will appear...
Let me know what you think and remember, reviews are appreciated but never necessary.
S.