Would you dare?

by Sonya06

What if Kagami Taiga had a twin? And what if that twin happened to be a challenging girl, who decided to attend Touou Academy as the second manager of the basketball team... Is she capable of managing the problematic ace? And is he capable of handling her?

53. Chapter 53: Thank you

A/N: Thank you to everyone who followed, favourited and reviewed! It makes me very happy :) More or less on time again. I'm really grateful for my Beta readers, who always find the time to check my chapters.

Enjoy!

---

This is love, she thought, isn't it? When you notice someone's absence and hate that absence more than anything? More, even, than you love his presence? ― Jonathan Safran Foer, Everything Is Illuminated

If you opened the dictionary and searched for the meaning of a Goddess, you would find the reflection of a dancing lady. ― Shah Asad Rizvi

You don't have to disrespect and insult others simply to hold your own ground. If you do, that shows how shaky your own position is. ― Red Haircrow

Even if you cannot change all the people around you, you can change the people you choose to be around. Life is too short to waste your time on people who don't respect, appreciate, and value you. Spend your life with people who make you smile, laugh, and feel loved. ― Roy T. Bennett, The Light in the Heart

And once the storm is over, you won't remember how you made it through, how you managed to survive. You won't even be sure, whether the storm is really over. But one thing is certain. When you come out of the storm, you won't be the same person who walked in. That's what this storm's all about. ― Haruki Murakami

Last night I lost the world, and gained the universe. ― C. JoyBell C.

---

Aya's phone lit up and she checked the message immediately, earning a glare from Katsunori. He hated when she did that during his classes. Chemistry wasn't her favourite subject, although she somehow managed to get above 90% from all the tests and assignments.

Sorry. She mouthed with a sheepish smile.

The teacher sighed and turned a blind eye. She'd been paying attention and taking notes until then and would continue once she cleared whatever it was that caught her interest. Besides, she wasn't the only one who wasn't paying enough attention. The class just before lunchtime, full of hungry and bored students was almost always like this. Long and torturous. Especially on Friday. Aomine was seemingly nodding off, Ishii too. They had rather harsh morning practise, so Katsunori couldn't blame Ishii, but he was very tempted to throw a piece of chalk at Aomine. Kano was trying to pay attention and so was Sakurai, despite discreetly yawning. Some guys from the volleyball, track and field and soccer clubs he recognised seemed dead tired too. All the competitions were approaching, and everyone was trying to practise as much as they possibly could. We sure drive them hard… He thought.

He caught Aya's eyes once again and she knew they'd talk outside. So when the bell rang, she got up and followed after him.

"I'm listening." She smiled and stretched her back.

Katsunori raised an eyebrow at her. "Texting during my classes, really? What was that about?"

"Sorry, I had to." She grimaced. "An S.O.S. from Thalia. The poor thing took over my report responsibilities. It was a stupid formality, but I can't blame her for freaking out when she submits it to father directly. And a little warning from Senri."

"Miki?"

"Yeah. Apparently we're switching to standards form Monday."

Katsunori chuckled at that, leaning against the window, shifting papers in his hand. "So Taiga went with you yesterday?"

"Mhm, he'd been coming with me the whole week. I don't have any other partner after all. But she's been trying to humiliate him. The woman's unbelievable… In the end… she stepped on his feet a couple of times, although his lead was perfect, and she embarrassed herself. She probably thinks I suck at standards, as I'm not often seen dancing it. Can't wait for her face when she realises how wrong she is. Urgh, why is she so unbearable?"

"She probably feels threatened and insecure." He shrugged.

"Do you need something, or you just wanted to check my messages?"

"Prelims of Junior high and middle schools are starting in about three weeks. 1st October. I'd like you and Satsuki to go through the participating teams. Go watch at least the final matches and final league. I'll get you a list of schools and players. But pay attention to everyone. Some good guys might be suffocated by their teams."

"Haaaaaah, scouting starts already? Isn't it too soon?"

"Better sooner than later, it's good to have a basic idea of what we will be working with next year. I'll leave it to your judgement. Then I'll look at those you two will find suitable. If you want to see some of their practises, I don't mind freeing you from ours."

"Okay." She nodded. "We should get more practise matches scheduled too. Since we're not in the prelims, we might use that to keep sharp."

"Mhm, accept all matches you feel can be valuable to us. And reach out to schools you find interesting; might be teams out of our prefecture too. No research though."

"Sure. I'll tell Satsuki. And we'll go through it with the guys during practise. We could spare 15 minutes enlightening them about everything. Especially Imayoshi."

"Sure. It's good to have everyone involved. Do you feel like leading afternoon's warm-ups? Wakamatsu was actually running a fever and went home already. Kiryuu-sensei had Tada take him home after the third class."

"Oh." She nodded seriously. "So he was running a fever! He didn't let me check it in the morning. Of course, I'll take care of it."

"Don't kill them."

"No worries, but I'll make them run for it."

He chuckled. "Thanks. Go have lunch."

"You too. I hope you're not eating only junk food."

Katsunori shook his head and walked away. Not like there was anyone to cook for him and he sure as hell wouldn't ask her to do it.

No one in the class questioned her talk with Katsunori. Everyone already knew the two were family and there was the club. Of course they always asked about tests and pop quizzes from Chemistry, but Aya never knew about those. Surprisingly no one seemed interested in gossiping about the 'new' relationship between her and Aomine. The girls had told a few people and they had asked Aya about it, but the reactions were more like 'finally'; and right after the summer break, students rather shared their own stories from holidays and training camps, or discussed upcoming festivals, than gossiping about someone else's relationship which had been obvious for weeks.

Aya couldn't have been more content.

She sat down with a sigh which came with ensuring everyone that there was not going to be a test next week (though she'd have to beg Katsunori to not give it, because she had no idea what his plans were).

"Don't tell me you got scolded." Daiki hummed from behind, already eating his lunch he fetched from her bag. Of course he'd seen her texting and he was curious. He liked sitting behind her, so he could look at her, even though most of the time he pretended to be sleeping or half-sleeping.

"I see you've helped yourself." She ignored his half-question with a smirk and took out her own bento. "Kiku, do you have any plans in the afternoon?"

"I wanted to stop by the bookstore, but otherwise, no. Is there something you want me to do?" She asked.

"Sort of… Do you know where Wakamatsu lives?"

Kiku blushed but nodded. She hadn't really been inside yet, but she knew.

Aya smiled. "Then, I'd like to ask a favour. Wakamatsu went home with a fever, Tada went with him, but I guess he won't come back. And they'd need a copy of notes. I can ask Yori-senpai for a copy of his notes, but I have individual dancing practise today, so I thought if you could go deliver it." And take care of your man in the process…

Kano laughed. "So getting drenched in yesterday's downpour wasn't as cool as he said."

"Taiga and I ran home in that too. There's nothing wrong with us though."

Aomine snickered. "Idiot's don't catch colds."

"It surprises me that Wakamatsu caught it." Ishii mused.

"Apparently he is just a loudmouth, not an idiot." Aya chuckled and turned her attention back to Kiku. "If you can't it's fine. I'll take it to him tomorrow, or I'll ask someone from the second years in the club."

She blinked, processing this. "Uh, n-no… I'm fine. I'll take it." She nodded. He was her boyfriend now, she should be able to do this much. Besides, she was worried. "I'll stop by your practise?"

"Sure. I'll do warm-ups and stretches in Wakamatsu's stead." She couldn't help a teasing grin when she noticed how the boys paled. Even Kano, who couldn't really practise.

"Please, don't kill us." Ishii begged.

She laughed. "Katsu asked me the same thing, so don't worry. You have the coach on your side. And there will be a small club planning;" she winked at them and turned to Daiki, "which means you're coming too. At least for those 15 minutes."

He looked up from his bento with his cheeks stuffed and gulped down his mouthful. There was a second lunch from his mom already in front of him. "Me? Attending some sort of a meeting?"

"Scouting starts in three weeks. You might have an idea where to start looking, Ace." There was a curious glint in her eyes as she was observing him; like she'd give anything to read his mind.

He snorted, but stared back at her; thinking about the possibilities, trying to remember school names he remembered from Teiko's at least a bit interesting matches. He had been scouted, but he'd never been involved in the process on the other end as it was solely the domain of coaches. That Harasawa got the team actively involved… It could be interesting. He shrugged. "Fine. I'll be there."

######

"What magic are you doing on him, Aya-chan?" Satsuki asked cheerfully in the changing rooms.

She raised an eyebrow at the pinkette. "On who?"

"Oh, come on, Aomine-kun of course." She giggled with an eye roll. "He's been here last week and he stopped by a couple of times to watch from above a bit… even though he said he wouldn't."

"He isn't practising."

"But he's here. I couldn't get him to come at all." She pouted.

Aya smiled softly. "I think the whole scouting caught his interest. And I'm more than happy he's willing to at least consider joining us."

"Mhm." She sat on the bench, waiting for Aya to get changed. "I'm surprised we're all involved in this. I helped a bit with scouting at Teiko, but the coach didn't listen to me that much."

"Katsu is great in this. A bit lazy to do it himself, but on the other hand, the boys will most likely get teammates they chose themselves. That way, I'm not surprised the team functions without much teamwork." She leaned down to tie her shoes. "You think we should look for some guys from Teiko, or not at all?"

"Ah… I doubt they'd want to be on the teams with the five…" She sighed and looked at the ceiling. "For three years, except two or three lucky guys, no one else got to play in a single official match. The motto 'ever-victorious' was taken much too seriously. Many boys quit, because of the punishments and even practise matches had to be won. I'm not saying they have a weak team now, but they didn't get through prelims to the Interhigh. The boys lack experience; they never got a chance to acquire it. And then… I don't know how Aomine-kun would react to it. I mean, that rude withdrawn personality is or was partly the coach's fault. Heck, I don't feel like babysitting another guy from Teiko."

Aya processed it for a moment. "I'll go see their practise. I'll ask Daiki to come with me and I'd like you to come too. If you say no, I can go alone or ask Model-kun or Kuroko-kun to be my guide. I want to meet the coach."

"Uff, then good luck. Anyways, want to go shopping with me tomorrow? I desperately need a new pair of shoes." Satuski's eyes twinkled at the idea of spending some time in a strictly girly company. "I'd also like to get my nails done, you know, I'd like to try something new… Oh… if you don't have plans with Aomine-kun…" She trailed off, reining on her excitement.

"No plans with Daiki there... I'll gladly go shopping. I need some things too. Besides, father's not home for now and Taiga will probably have a Saturday practise."

The door opened and Daiki's head appeared at the door, peering inside quite boldly. "You two ever comin' out?" He grumbled, disappointed that Aya was already changed and ready to go.

"Yes, yes." Satsuki chuckled. "Not like all the guys are ready yet."

"We still need to prepare water and towels and all." Aya sighed and pushed her way out. "Come on, let's get it done."

During the task, they discussed possible practise matches, making sure they could work it into the schedule. Kano wanted to help them carrying water bottles from the taps but Aya stopped him saying: "If Ishii saw you carrying water while you asked him to do various odd jobs, he'd kill you." to which Kano paled and hid in the gym, patiently waiting for the practise to start.

Surprisingly, upon hearing about the scouting, Imayoshi divided work among the boys he felt were interested in it. They'd take a look at schools in particular areas and help the managers by pointing out players or whole teams they'd find interesting. That way the girls could focus on specific boys or teams once the middle school prelims started.

As Imayoshi had a good heart and kind personality, he assigned only one team to Aomine. Teiko.

A shadow passed across Daiki's face but he shrugged and agreed with a yawn. Then he upped and left, asking Satsuki to go home alone, because he'd promised to go to practise with his dad.

They also discussed upcoming practise matches, asking the girls to reject some and consider some others instead. Susa and Imayoshi decided to take on more defensive teams, as that was what they needed to improve the most. And there were options to face teams from other prefectures, so it was all good.

Then Aya took Wakamatsu's role and the boys cried bitter tears, calling her a demon in some cases. She just grinned at them and added a drill until they had no energy to call her anything weird.

---

"Oh… I didn't know there was a shop like this." Satsuki looked around the shop specialised in dancing goods, shoes, dresses, anything a dancer could dream of. It wasn't in the mall where they'd spent their day, but a bit further and well hidden. She'd probably not notice it even if she passed by it.

"It's the best I found in the whole of Tokyo." Aya smiled and headed towards the ballet section. She needed new pointes as Miki had thrown away the ones she'd left in the gym's changing room. Aya was honestly getting tired of this war Miki was waging against her. The woman was doing anything in her power to annoy, upset and offend the twins; but she was failing to understand that Aya had her limits.

"Welcome back, Kagami-chan." The shop assistant greeted the regular customer with a broad happy smile. "What do you need?"

"Pointes. The ones I bought the last time. I'd take two pairs again. Do you have my size?"

The tiny girl serving them whistled. "Of course. You sure practise hard, destroying two pairs in a summer… Are you planning to pursue the ballet career?" She asked curiously. It was strange, especially because she already knew Aya wasn't practising ballet regularly.

"Oh, no." Aya waved her hand and chuckled. "It was my mom's thing. I destroyed one pair though, the other one got lost. We practised a bit in the club and I forgot my pointes in the changing room and someone probably took it by accident. I'm not going to investigate it though."

"Oooh, I see." She nodded and took out two boxes for Aya. "Are you trying them on?"

"No. These always fit. And I need to customise them a bit myself."

"Mhm," she turned to Satsuki, "is there something you'd like, customer-can?"

"Uh," the pinkette blinked at the shop assistant and shook her head, "no, thanks. I don't dance." She said, but she couldn't take her eyes off the displayed pointes. She'd always found ballet so elegant and beautiful. The feeling of ribbon securely tied around her ankles, she still remembered that, although it was the only thing she remembered. It was nostalgic.

"Anything else you'd need?"

"Another practise shoes… Probably two pairs… The ones I have will be useless in one or two more practises." The summer camp took its toll…

Aya chuckled at the bag she added to her stack. She always bought too much when it came to dancing. Two pairs for practising should last her for four to six months. A year ago, it was normal she needed one pair for a month, or three weeks. So many things had changed since then…

"What are you thinking about?" Satsuki asked curiously.

"How everything has changed… Wanna grab a cake for dinner?" She asked suddenly. She was having a great time with Satsuki and she wanted to chat more. Once Satsuki got over her issues of being left behind – which Aya got out of her head rather quickly – she was an awesome girl to be around.

The pinkette smiled brightly "that goes without a question!" She wanted to chat with Aya-chan more too.

######

Satsuki had to call Aomine-kun in the evening, just to share her awesome day with him. He sounded bored and uninterested like usual, but there was a certain softness in his grumpy voice, so Satsuki knew he was fine with it.

"I should thank her she saved me from this torture…"

"It's not a torture! And you should see the red nail polish she got! It is absolutely amazing!"

"Red, huh?"

"Mhm, I was the one picking it." She said proudly and then frowned. "You have to like it! I'll ask Aya-chan tomorrow."

"Tomorrow? It's Sunday…"

"Aren't you supposed to have one proper date a week?" She raised an eyebrow, but when she thought back, Aya hadn't said anything about plans with Aomine. Maybe she wrongly assumed they'd have a date tomorrow?

"Not this weekend." He said with a frustrated sigh. "Dad has a jiu-jitsu seminar in Tateyama and apparently; I've been signed up since last year."

Satsuki laughed. "Sorry for the provocation then." It was obvious he'd gladly ditch it, but it was his dad, so at the end, he'd go with a lot of complaining and grumbling, but he would.

"Nah… The seminars are always piled up at this time of the year. Not like I can avoid it…" He sighed heavily.

"Does Aya-chan know? Or are you waiting until she can read your mind?" She could almost hear him rolling his eyes the moment she finished the sentence.

"Tch, of course I told her."

---

Lindsay returned to the office with her arms full of papers. With a sigh she dropped them onto Haruka's desk. It was late at night and she felt her brain was burning from all the information Haruka had bombed her with ever since he'd arrived.

Somehow she'd expected him to come back from his kids quickly and stay. She'd supported him, or bullied him into going and trying, but she didn't think he'd take it this seriously. More importantly, she didn't think he'd ever give the CEO's responsibilities to anyone beside himself. Least of all to her. Sure, she probably knew about everything going on in the company, in one way or another, she knew all the managers and team leaders and even the interns as she was usually the one dealing with all their requests and questions. She could take his place for a couple of days too, but this… This was happening so fast and it was such a huge responsibility.

And not everyone would see it keenly. There were always bad tongues saying she'd gotten there through bed. But Haruka claimed she'd do alright. And she actually believed him. He'd always been honest when judging someone's abilities. No sugar coating. There was also a slight change in him, a change that made her feel better in his intimidating presence. Something softer and kinder was resurfacing, and she was glad to see it.

"So?" She raised an eyebrow at him and pointed at the papers. "I got the records of all the property your family owns. You, your kids, your brother, even your parents. I pulled out the list of property Keiko-san owned and signed off to Aya-chan and Taiga-kun. This," she pulled out a stack wrapped in a red cover, "is your property in Japan. Why do you need it?" She asked curiously. After the days of studying everything about the company and business, this was surely a strange request.

"I need to see if we do or do not own one gym, but I don't remember the exact address. I hope I can find it here." He took the stack from her. "And when we're at it, we can make some lists out of it. It's difficult to remember it all."

She blinked at him and shook her head, mumbling: "Sick rich folks and their whims."

"Hm?" He raised his head.

"No, it's nothing. I just… why do you have this much? You can't possibly use it all."

"Majority of it earns… rents and such. And it's an investment. Speaking of which… are you still searching for a new apartment?"

She blinked at him. How did he even know? "Uh, what?"

His eyes looked up and he stared at her. "If you're still searching for a rent, I have a proposition for you."

"You can't possibly be suggesting that…" She knew about his plan to rent out part of his house, but…

He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "I'd rather rent it out to someone I can trust. The price would be symbolic and you can ask someone else from the company to be there with you. I believe there are others searching for new rents."

Yep, he lost his mind… "People will talk."

"Let them, not like any of it is true. And no offence," a small smirk appeared on his face as he looked at her, "you're a bit too young for me, Lindsay."

That actually made her blush and look away. She wasn't that young, she was almost thirty already, but compared to him, 17 years younger, yeah, maybe she was a kid.

He chuckled. "Consider the offer. Gabi would be delighted to have you around and I'll be off in Japan. We wanted to expand there anyways, so I'll have plenty of responsibilities soon enough."

She nodded. The offer sure wasn't bad. The mansion was amazing, super comfy, someone would cook for her and if the price wouldn't be too high… "…is it okay to make it obvious we're expanding, you know, regarding Fairchilds?" She changed the topic. If she'd agree to the rent offering, she'd have to think it through properly.

"The little incident at the party rubbed the Akashis the wrong way, so Fairchilds lost that opportunity. I broke the contract they wanted and without us, they have no reason, no support and no connections there. It'd be foolish of them to try. But we need it. If we sever the ties with Fairchilds it won't destroy neither of us but it'll cost us, for that, it's good to get some fresh air and new contracts."

"Uhmmm… I meant it more like... is Aya-chan going to be safe if they know where exactly she is?"

"Yes." He said surely, but he had a worried frown on his face. There was still so much he didn't know. "I won't let the Fairchilds do anything to them. Anyways, can you make us some coffee?"

"Right away." She smiled and went to get it.

"Urgh, let's get to this…" He muttered under his breath and refocused on the papers in front of him.

---

"She really thought we couldn't handle standards?" Taiga asked in disbelief when they were walking home long after the practise had ended.

Aya shrugged. "Obviously and I'm glad we proved her wrong. I'm just sorry she's taking it out on those who want to learn." Once again they had stayed longer to give better explanations and lead to those who asked them. Especially the kids. The twins didn't mind that. And Taiga was glad for any practise he could get.

"With the attitude, a little bit more and she's out. She's been at it for two weeks already. And Senri's patience is not infinite. You saw it didn't you? That 'fuck off' look in his eyes?"

"Yep, reminded me of a seriously pissed off Kouta. If you see that, it's better to run and hide."

He laughed. "Sometimes I forget they are related, but when you mention it… Yeah, they have that in common."

"They are brothers through and through." She chuckled too but then she frowned. "I thought there was something behind her behaviour, but… I'm starting to think she's just that, a bitch who actually enjoys degrading others."

"There are people like that too." He shrugged, he couldn't care less. As long as Miki didn't try to stab him with a knife, he had no problem shrugging off her biting comments and insults.

"I guess so; I was just hoping that with some time, we'd be able to at least function without all that hassle. She drains my energy for nothing and the kids are starting to hate the practises. In two weeks, when the monthly fee ends some of them will either quit completely or look for another club. I don't like that."

"That is mainly Senri's problem. If he lets her be like that, while everyone can see the difference in attitude and skill, it's his fault when people start leaving."

She sighed. There was no point in discussing the topic further. Taiga was right. It was up to Senri to make some final decision. "You think Haruka's coming back?" She changed the topic. Two weeks. Their father was already gone for two weeks, while he'd said he should be back in maximum 10 days.

"Are you actually worried?"

"No, it's just… I thought he'd keep his word for once."

"He didn't specifically say he'd be back in ten days though. He said seven to ten, but something could've gone wrong and he had to prolong it. It's not unusual."

She sighed. "Maybe he decided we're not worth the effort after all."

"Okay, we're stopping by the convenience store to buy tons of chocolate to make that dark mood gone." He decided and turned right, pulling her by her elbow.

"Hey!" She protested but laughed.

"You know him. He's a stubborn idiot, and once he makes up his mind… there's no reason to worry about that. Besides, I'd be pissed off if I was getting the cold shoulder all the time. I'd want to change that."

"…you're actually glad he's around again…" She knew Taiga had her back, and was on her side in the relationship with Haruka. But she also knew that Taiga never had an all out argument with him. And while Taiga was protective of her, he probably wanted to reconnect too. Maybe even more than her, given that Haruka had once led the national team.

He shrugged and scratched his cheek sheepishly. "He's someone who could help me get better… So… I sort of am glad he's around. But I won't ask or beg or anything, it's just… Finally having the opportunity feels kinda nice."

Aya could understand that. During her competitions she'd wanted Keiko to be around so damn much… For Taiga, it didn't have to be just a pious wish, it could be a reality. She smiled at him and he knew she got it. "So, how's your practise going?"

"Riko is savage with the one-handed practise and I'm not the only one undergoing it."

"That's good then. I gave the idea to Katsu, but I think he'd forgotten…"

He narrowed his eyes at her. "You guys don't need to get too far ahead."

"Daiki's not practising, don't worry. The others can and want to get better, so there's that. And you still have plenty of time."

"Plenty of time, eh?" He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "I think it'll pass in the blink of an eye."

Blink of an eye, huh? She thought and looked at her nails. The nail polish was still looking as good as new. She wasn't used to that.

The time was sure flying by. And she was quite unable to spend some alone time with Daiki. It was getting on her nerves, but there was so much going on with checking the possible younger teammates, her dancing, and his practises. Even the weekends seemed packed. She fully understood he had some responsibilities and seminars with his dad; he'd seemed really excited about some of it. By all means she could find hundred other activities for herself, but she'd really love to have some real make-out sessions instead of the occasional kisses and safe touches they managed to steal here and there during lunchtime or right before practises he skipped. She was thankful for that too, but they hardly kissed properly for almost two weeks, and the weekend plans were once again nonexistent.

She sighed. There is no opportunity for that in sight either…

The worst thing was that she was starting to feel like Daiki was pulling away from her. And she had no idea what was happening.

---

"I knew it!" Haruka slammed the papers against the table victoriously. His suspicion was correct.

The sudden loud sound woke up Lindsay who had fallen asleep on the couch in his workroom. For some reason she decided to take his offer and move into the mansion. Surprisingly, Thalia and one more colleague, Sasha, moved in with her. First two days were awkward and stiff, but the women got used to the fact that there was one more young man with pink dreadlocks inhabiting the house and that Haruka was a human who could wear sweatpants too.

"W-what is it?" She yawned and glanced at the clock showing it was 3 AM in the morning. Does he ever sleep?

The gym where the Shiranui's dance club practised was Aya's. It took some days until he and Lindsay went through all those papers. Among other things it delayed his flight home even more.

"It's theirs. I damn knew something was off with Senri owning the gym…" So Keiko bought it and made sure it was being paid for after all… He rubbed his eyes to ease the strain of staring into papers for long hours.

And as he checked all the papers and all the bank transfers, all energies and water expenses, even insurance was being paid from one of their accounts. It was an account he had no knowledge about. His banker had never told him, and he doubted Aya knew about it either. Except the automatic regular inflow of money from him (he hadn't really noticed as the sum wasn't sticking out) and the outflow to pay Senri's gym expenses, the account was dead. The inflow was higher than the regular payments, so the amount that had piled there during the years wasn't negligible at all.

"My wife sure took care of everything…" He chuckled and shook his head.

For years, he'd been refusing to believe what doctors had told him after the autopsy; the last stages of untreated cancer that had spread to Keiko's bones. After some more digging, he'd learnt that she'd known and that the disease had been sudden and rapid. She'd gone from completely healthy to the last stages in three months, four? And knowing how fast it'd been spreading, she had decided to give all of her remaining time to her family, without freaking them out, instead of torturing herself with a treatment that, in her case, would've had at most 15-20% chance of working.

He hadn't wanted to believe she had kept him in the dark. He couldn't understand it and for years he'd been feeling betrayed.

But he kept on finding little things she'd left behind. Just like this account. And he had to admit the reality. His wife had known. And for the first time, this finding didn't make him angry or hurt. The time to let that feeling of betrayal and uselessness go was here. Unlike all the other times, now he felt like she was still watching over them.

He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply through his nose, stroking the medallion on his neck. He should visit the grave and then dip into the ocean. Yeah, I'd do that before going home…

Lindsay just blinked in surprise and then smiled. "So that means Aya-chan probably has her future paved out."

"I don't know about that." He hummed. If Aya was half the person he and Keiko were… she wouldn't like the news. If she didn't know already… He was tempted to take pictures of the papers and send it to her, but he decided it would be better to talk about it personally. "Can you book plane tickets for Thursday morning? For me and Derek. I have some more things to deal with, but it's time to head back."

"Right now?" She asked automatically and he glanced at her as if saying 'seriously? it's a deep night!', which in itself surprised her almost as much as the idea of him rolling his eyes. She blushed and looked away.

"I'll do it tomorrow then." She mumbled. Then she got up and left for her room. She really wasn't supposed to start liking him as a man, because she knew she had no chance. And he was really too old for her.

######

The next morning, Haruka was sitting by Keiko's empty grave. He brought a huge bouquet of flowers she loved. There was one more thing he needed to make right. He picked up his phone and dialled his brother.

"What's up? Woke up from the dead, brother?" Kyou teased him in his usual cheerful voice and Haruka knew there was no scolding coming from him. "What can I help you with?"

"I need you to help me find someone."

"Ohooo? And what makes you think I haven't already started?"

"How do you know who it is?"

Kyou laughed heartily. "I'm your twin. I know you better than you'd like and I stepped on Robin's foot regarding Seth, so… I made her a promise to find him."

Haruka sighed; he didn't deserve a sibling this perfect, although idiotic at times. "Thanks for looking out for them."

"…I shouldn't have gone away for so long, but… make sure you talk with them properly. And careful about Robin's boyfriend. He seemed ready to tear the throat out of anyone who'd dare to hurt her."

He groaned in annoyance. "So you've met him too? Why am I the only one who hasn't?"

"What do I tell you, I've always been the luckier twin…" Kyou teased with a cackle. "But don't chase him away, he's a good guy, a great talent, he's strong enough to handle a Kagami offspring and they do need each other to be the best versions of themselves."

"And how do you know that, Mr. Luckier twin?" He snorted.

But his brother's answer was like a blow to his face: "…they reminded me of you and Keiko."

---

Daiki kidnapped her to the rooftop during the lunch break. Despite their promise, it was the first time in over two weeks, as everyone was too excited about being together again and the whole scouting, and discussing different schools and their summer matches. Of course Aya and Satsuki were in the centre of it all in the past week as they were answering all the possible questions they could and served as a source of information too. They spent most of their free time researching.

With all that and practises she had, and he had, it was almost impossible to have some alone time. Not to mention two cancelled weekend dates. Not one, two. And he was the one who had had to cancel because of seminars he hadn't remembered signing up for (he doubted he'd had done it himself). And even though he really wanted to go and see her dancing practise, his dad totally dragged him to jiu-jitsu practises. And he was supposed to participate for the next few weeks as well. Plus the dogs...

It was way too hectic. And Daiki didn't like hectic.

With all this it was difficult to find some minutes alone with her, and he was getting desperate. He hadn't kissed her properly since… his birthday? It was getting on his nerves. And sitting behind her the whole time, seeing her almost the whole day and be unable to touch was frustrating. He was past frustrated. Originally he liked it, but now he felt like a dog that's been given a taste of a delicious treat and then had to sit and wait, all the while having it in its range and staring at it. Then he found it unbelievably difficult to control himself if he was allowed to kiss, and getting hard-ons in school was really not something he'd enjoy. So in the end he ended up cutting their alone even more.

Aya didn't protest one bit. She missed him. Even though they talked and worked on class assignments, she missed the alone time. And the more they kept promising 'next time', the deeper his frown seemed to be getting. She didn't like it, but it couldn't be helped, especially if he had responsibilities to meet. For once he wasn't avoiding it, so she wouldn't complain.

"Hmmm… Thought you'd kiss-attack me right away." She teased with a coy smile and leaned against the wall next to the door, while letting Daiki check if they truly were alone (he was more than ready to kick anyone out of his rooftop).

"That was the plan." He admitted impatiently, but the smirk saying he got the teasing wasn't there. He physically needed to kiss her properly this time. "But I value our privacy."

She raised an eyebrow and leaned down to set the bentos on the ground to free her hands. "I guess it's private enough." She mumbled and then she straightened up reaching out to him.

He didn't need any other invitation. Two fast steps and he was cupping her cheeks, leaning down to ravish her lips. Oh man, how he'd wanted to do just that the whole time. He knew he probably poured all of his annoyance and frustration into the kiss and he wasn't sure it was okay, but he couldn't help it. He loved her so much. He wanted to touch her so much and do all sorts of things… Yet he was shy about it at the same time and annoyed by that fact. He hated not having enough time because she could make his brain short circuit without even trying and he was just…

His frustration was so obvious; she was taken aback, but at the same time, not at all. She felt the same. And so she kissed him back with just as much urgency. The wall behind her back gave her enough support to stand on her toes to make it a little bit easier for him. His hands wandered down from her cheeks to her waist, brushing sides of her breasts shyly in the process. She moaned softly against his mouth, inviting his tongue in.

He gladly received the invitation.

Just kissing her felt unbelievably good; it was addictive. And he wanted to feel her more, closer. He loved her hands caressing his chest, shoulders, neck, and he hated the fabric of his uniform being in the way. He too, allowed his hands to wander around her torso trying to find a way under her shirt, but it was tucked in her skirt. With a sigh he gave it up and loosened her braid, diving his fingers into her hair. She appreciated it with another delighted sigh and traced his jaw with kisses.

He could feel his blood rushing to his crotch, warming it up, but not yet making him hard. With a certain idea, his hands settled low on her hips, his fingers digging in her flesh a bit too firmly. He wanted more. He wanted to lift her up. He'd dreamt about doing that at some point…

But… suddenly he remembered they were at school, during a lunch break and he should not get too excited. And having Aya's legs wrapped around his hips in the current situation would mean an instant boner for him. A little more kissing and he'd have one anyways… Given all that, there was almost no chance of taking care of it and waiting until it'd pass would kill him for sure this time.

It soured his mood.

"No." He breathed out heavily when he stopped, parted from her lips and straightened up, loosening his grip on her hips.

"Hm?" She tilted her head to a side curiously, looking up at him. She had her fingers intertwined at the back of his neck and she didn't seem willing to let go anytime soon. They were finally alone, even if it was just a lunch break. She wanted to be close.

He waited a bit for his breathing and heartbeat to settle down. Then he shook his head to at least try getting that annoyance off his face. She did nothing wrong.

"Daiki?" She asked to get his attention. She wasn't sure if she should worry about something or not. She was aware of their surroundings and situation too, so she didn't protest when he decided to stop. If it hadn't been him, it would've been her any minute… But she felt something was wrong.

He looked down at her, catching that curious, but still very hot look in her eyes and averted his eyes immediately, not letting her go yet. He probably should tell her why he had stopped. The words just didn't seem to come to him. Great job… really… He thought bitterly. Suddenly he felt angry with himself, stopping like that, again, when Aya was obviously wanting more. All the while it'd been him who dragged her here for the little make-out session.

She didn't protest, she never really did, but her kiss was just as desperate as his, so he knew she was feeling frustrated too. It made him wonder for how long she would take this non-existent intimacy before sending him on his way… Hell, he hadn't even found the time to stop by her place for that permit, yet. He was angry and beyond furious at himself. And there he'd originally thought it'd be her who would be overly busy…

"Let's eat." He grumbled and let go, sitting down and taking his lunch; letting his mood shift completely. He didn't really feel like eating.

"O-kay…" She blinked in confusion. Did I do something? Shaking her head to clear it too, she sat next to him and unwrapped her lunch.

They ate in silence. It wasn't uncomfortable per se, but it felt really heavy. While she knew he wasn't that talkative during meals, the sudden long silence was bothering her. And that really angry frown he had even more so.

She bit her lip, getting irritated by her hesitation to speak up. "Daiki, talk to me." She said and stared at him. She didn't want to push him too much, but… she had a very bad feeling he was overthinking something and starting to drift away. She didn't want that to happen.

He glanced at her and finished the last bite from his bento. "About?"

It was difficult to word her worry in a way that wouldn't annoy him. "What are you thinking?" She tried.

"Nothin'."

She stared at him, trying to read his mind; it was futile. With a sigh she gave up. He obviously didn't want to tell her and if she said anything more she felt he'd snap at her, no matter the words. And she didn't want to argue after the first month or so they were dating. Although there weren't many dates happening.

She got up to head back. There was no point bothering him if he wanted to be alone. But she changed her mind about not saying anything. She took a deep breath and stared at him, until he looked up at her too. "Okay, I don't know what's sitting on your nose, but don't overthink anything just because we're a bit too busy now. It will ease up eventually. I can't read you mind. So when you decide, talk with me."

"Tch." For some reason it made him feel even more frustrated.

When she got no other answer, she sighed again, then shrugged and left. She felt like punching something, or having a cigarette.

"Fuck." He swore in a few minutes and leaned against the wall. He needed to put his shit together, or he'd hurt her with his stupid behaviour, just because he was angry at himself and found it hard to control himself or talk about it. It was not her fault…

He skipped the rest of the classes that day.

---

"Don't ask me, I don't know." Aya raised her hands in surrender when she and Satsuki were changing before the practise. "We didn't go anywhere and it looks like he's been avoiding me since Monday and I have freakin' no idea what I've done wrong. And unless he speaks to me, I won't know."

Satsuki frowned and bit her lip. "He's not avoiding just you… but I wonder what's up with him."

She sighed. "I'm not sure I want to know. But we're obviously skipping the honeymoon phase of the relationship where we should be on cloud nine for a few weeks…"

The pinkette smiled at her sympathetically. She understood the frustration a bit. "He'll come around."

"Oh, if my patience runs out first, I swear I'll drag him somewhere and do things to him you don't want to hear about."

######

"You miss-stepped, Kagami." Miki barked at them. They were dancing foxtrot that week and she forced the twins to do everything as the others. That meant Aya had no time to help the kids and because Senri hadn't given her an 'okay' to do as she pleased, she didn't want to start another argument with Miki. Not in front of everyone. "That's 100 jump squats for both of you! And you and you too!" She pointed at two other couples. The elders didn't get such harsh punishments, but kids…

She glowered at Miki for this. The dance was something Aya had in her muscle memory already, but she worried about Daiki and ignored Taiga's lead for a second. Yes, she made the miss-step, she knew herself! But that punishment…

"Sexually frustrated?" Taiga teased her in whispers while doing his squats. He hated Miki's approach, but Aya's mistake interested him more.

It earned him a glare nastier than Miki had gotten. But he wasn't blind; he could tell something was off. Then to his surprise, Aya sighed. "…and pre-periodic." She grumbled.

"Ayyy… Not a good combination… When?" He asked, though he was pretty much aware of her cycle.

"Tomorrow."

"Better than today… But don't look so chilling, or the kids will be scared of you too."

"Right. I'll finish this fuckin' squats, go wash my face and I'll be the usual cheerful Aya they know."

"After practise you can chew her all you want."

"I think I'll do that…" She really loved her brother.

######

"Daisuke-san!" One of the younger policemen attending the practise ran up to them at the end. "Could I ask a favour?"

Daisuke stopped lecturing Daiki about his aggressiveness during the sparring, or he could get someone, or himself, seriously injured and looked at his colleague. "What is it, Saburou-kun?"

Daiki nodded to the man working under his dad, happy for the interruption. Like he'd tell his dad he was absent-minded and angry because he couldn't get a proper make-out with Aya for weeks and as a result of his frustration he was actually avoiding her to the point of skipping classes. All because he couldn't find the words to tell her that he was actually furious with himself and his packed schedule. He felt like an idiot and took it out during these practises on whomever he could. Although more than anyone it was him who ended up grounded, bruised and immobilised.

"Uhm… could you give me a ride? Nana-chan just called me, asking if I'd forgotten to get her at her dancing practise." He was staring at his feet desperately. He did. Again. "I don't have a car here and if I go get it or go by train it'll be too late. She said Aya-sensei stayed there waiting with her, but… Damn, I'm a terrible father." He sighed and rubbed his face.

"You're not terrible, you're a man. We sometimes forget." He chuckled and patted Saburou's shoulder. Then he clapped his hands. "What are we waiting for? Let's get changed. You coming too, Daiki? Or would you prefer walking home?" He asked, knowing very well how far from home they were.

"I'm coming with." Daiki grumbled. He didn't want to go, but the dancing and Aya-sensei in that plea caught his interest and he didn't want to walk home.

In less than five minutes they were in the car driving towards where Saburou navigated them. It took them about fifteen minutes by car to get there. Daiki knew the neighbourhood. Aya lived somewhere close, but he hadn't wandered to these parts of the city yet. There was a big building; probably filled with old apartments. A car could pass the entrance, but there was a garden with two big old trees and several flower beds. So they parked on the other side of the road in front of a chocolate shop.

"Thank you for a ride, we'll take a train home." Saburou bowed and exited the car.

"Nonsense." Daisuke shook his head and crawled out of the car too. "I want to meet your kid again, and I'm curious about the flowers. Michiko would love a picture."

With a sigh Daiki followed. He was sore all over, but he wanted to stretch his legs. And he wondered how his parents managed to function with their, sometimes impossible, schedules. Maybe he should just tell his dad he needed a free day to be with Aya.

The door to the gym was on the right, slightly elevated, and there were three wide metal steps leading up to it. The wide door was made of glass and currently open, letting in the evening's breeze. The gym seemed quite big with big reflective windows facing the small garden.

The music was softly playing on the inside and a muffled voice could be heard. It sounded like instructions, or counting and the voice was supportive, kind and warm. Daiki had no plans on going in, but that voice... He'd recognise it anywhere. Some part of him wanted to run away, but he was drawn to it like a moth to a candle light. And when he walked in, following after Saburou, he saw something precious.

He blinked to make sure he saw right. It was Aya dancing with a little girl. Counting out loud, calling steps and figures for the girl to follow. He had no idea what dance it was, but it seemed much stiffer, classier than what he'd seen Aya do before, but it still flowed nicely. He didn't get it. He could say that Aya was dancing the man's role. Despite that, she was graceful and elegant as ever. She moved around with such an ease. And that huge smile on her face… If he could fall in love all over again, it would be at this moment. In this light, his worries seemed like complete nonsense. All he needed to do was make the free time he wanted.

No one paid any attention to them. The little girl was focused on their movement, and Aya had her eyes closed, doing everything by heart. She was so familiar with the space, she didn't need to look around. They were alone, and she felt everything Nana did.

Taiga was sprawled on the ground nearby seemingly asleep; his t-shirt totally drenched and he looked dead. But then he lifted his arm and blindly changed the song, pressing a button on the player next to him.

"We wanted to finish that one, you know." Aya protested, but when he didn't reply she sighed ready to accommodate the music. Then she felt Nana's slight panic and tension at the completely new song. So she looked at the girl. "It's still foxtrot, a beat faster, but nothing you can't handle. Miki's at the back." She winked in reassurance. "And hey, I'm leading. You're safe and sound."

To that Nana chuckled nervously but followed.

And the three guys watched in content. "Wow… Didn't know she knew that… Or that she was this good…" Saburou muttered, observing his daughter.

"Hmmm, I think it's because of the lead." Daisuke hummed from behind, it was his first time seeing Aya dance live. "Shouldn't we greet or something?" He glanced at his son and pushed his jaw back up. "Please… keep it closed." But he totally understood the awe. Especially when Aya wore tight black t-shirt with semi-long sleeves and mesh capri leggings.

Saburou cleared his throat which got the attention of people in the gym. "Good evening. I've come to get Nana. I'm sorry for being late!"

"Oh." Aya blinked at the door and the girls stopped. She let go of Nana, who ran to Saburou.

"Daddy! You're late!"The girl accused him, but jumped into his arms nonetheless.

"I'm sorry munchkin, I got held up." He made a lousy excuse, but he couldn't just admit he'd forgotten.

Aya was staring at them. She couldn't believe Daiki and his father were there. Daiki… What were the odds they'd just show up? She quickly snapped out of it and smiled at the young father she was seeing for the first time. "Good evening. It's alright. We were practising and I would've stayed behind either way." She glanced at Taiga who remained playing dead.

"Thank you very much." He bowed deeply. Then he smiled at Aya and looked her up and down. "So you're the Aya-sensei she's been talking nonstop about?"

She raised a curious eyebrow. "Sensei?" She looked at Nana and sighed. "Well, I suppose, although there is someone who would disag–"

BLEAAAAT!

The sudden loud and deep sound of a foghorn startled everyone.

The music changed. And that was how the song started. It made Aya jump and turn to Taiga who immediately tuned it down, but didn't turn it off. He'd almost gotten a heart attack too.

"Geez, what's this doing on your flash drive?" He grumbled and turned his head to her. The guests didn't interest him one bit, but when he spotted Aomine he rose from the dead, sitting up without using his arms (it looked rather disturbing) and he rested one arm on his bent knee. He measured the tanned ace for a moment, and then turned back to his sister.

"Oh, you haven't heard a third of all that's stuffed on that thing." She made an innocent face and shrugged. "That's why you do not let it play on random here."

He looked at his sister doubtfully. "But glitch-hop? You?"

She rolled her eyes. "Kouta. But I like the lyrics! It's TheFatRat's Monody. And we had fun making a choreography to that one."

Taiga wanted to continue their sibling exchange, but the back door leading to the changing room and office opened and slammed shut. Aya groaned quietly. Miki was the last person she wanted to crawl out. The woman should've been long gone. Ah, here we come…

"What is that terrible noise?!" She glared at Taiga angrily.

He shrugged nonchalantly. "Sorry, I tuned it down already." He said flatly and got up. Miki made him feel like she could run to him any moment and kick his ribs or something, while he was idly sitting on the ground defenceless.

Then she noticed the three men and Nana watching them and she turned to face them. "Who are these? And why are you still here, kid?" She glared at Nana. "My class ended hours ago."

Yours?! Aya blinked and glanced at Taiga. He was just as annoyed by that. And it ended 90 minutes ago, not hours…

Nana quickly slipped behind her father; her previous good mood was gone. She didn't like this scary woman. And everyone noticed this small gesture of a frightened child.

"This is Hazuki-san, Nana-chan's father." Aya introduced him calmly, trying to keep the situation from spiralling out of control, though she didn't really know his name as this was their first meeting. "And these two are Aomine Daisuke and Daiki, if you need to know. I believe they did come together for some reason."

"I gave Saburou-kun a ride." Daisuke said with a smile, talking to Aya, but he wasn't pleased by the woman's behaviour. She changed the mood in the room by 180°. She seemed rude, unpleasant and even her voice was screechy.

Miki nodded sharply, her eyes boring into Saburou. She was thinking of an attack, he could say.

And he wouldn't give it to her. "And you are?" He asked with his chin stuck out. He had no idea who this terribly annoying woman was.

"Soon to be Shiranui Miki. I'm the sensei and this is my club. I hope you didn't mistake her," she threw her arm in Aya's general direction, as if pointing at some dirt, "for a sensei. I couldn't possibly leave a mere high-schooler with no proper knowledge and dubious background teaching here. I apologise for her."

There was a moment of complete silence.

"Uh, what?!" Aya barked, slipping into throats tearing mode. Not because she'd been insulted, that too, but… "It's Senri's club. Shiranuis' club. And you're not a Shiranui yet."

Miki smiled, as if she was enjoying riling the redhead. "Doesn't change the fact that I am the sensei here. Not you."

Aya's fists clenched, but she was much aware of Nana in the room. "Yeah, can't wait till you actually teach me something else then jump squats, sensei." She jabbed, with a huge self-denial, knowing all too well she was far above Miki's level.

Taiga let out a sigh of relief. Aya was on the other side of the room, if she decided to knock out Miki's teeth, he wouldn't be in time to stop it. Although he doubted he would want to stop something like that.

The woman grimaced, and didn't know how to retort to that. But she had to say something. "Anyways," she turned back to Saburou with hands on her hips, "this is not a day care or a night care or a charity, if you can't pick up your kid on time don't bring it. I have better things to do than waiting until you deign to show up."

"Excuse me?!" Saburou raised his voice, "have you just called my little girl it?!"

"Well, you put her here, and then leave her behind for hours…" She retorted with a nonchalant shrug. "Forgetting, probably."

"That's enough, Miki." Aya snapped. The words Miki was saying were hurting Nana the most. That was something she couldn't ignore. "You should've gone home. No one, literally no one asked you to stay at the back. I have my keys, and Senri was staying because of the paperwork."

"Stop addressing us so familiarly!" Her face turned red and her voice jumped up. That was a landmine. "What are you to my man anyways?! Don't think I don't know you're a little whore!"

Aya blinked at her in shock. She hated, HATED, that reputation that was based on lies and rumours! And she'd hoped Senri had not told that to Miki… I was wrong… She wanted to leave. Or disappear, but that would be like admitting defeat. She refused that. A crooked smile twisted the corner of her lips. She wouldn't just take that.

"Oh, so you heard that too? Congrats. But I have to disappoint you; I'm like Senri's kid sister. As his fiancée, shouldn't you know that?"

"Y–"

"We, are his family." Taiga jumped in with a dark, furious undertone, before Miki could utter another word. She wouldn't insult his twin like that. "Not that you would understand what that means – Nana-chan, please cover your ears –" he glanced at the girl, who immediately complied, even closed her eyes, "because you're just a self-absorbed bitch feeding on Senri's work, club and heritage. Fucking up the reputation they worked years to build, and scaring the shit out of all the kids we have here, making them feel small, stupid and clumsy and demotivated by all the shitty punishments you give them instead of showing them how to do it right. And when my sister does your job in your stead, you diminish all her efforts. And throwing away Aya's pointes? What are you a five year old kindergarten bully or a thirty year old adult woman? By the way, the pointes cost around 10 000 yen and a time of customising." He breathed out with a satisfied nod at her shocked expression. He'd wanted to give her a piece of his mind for some time. And of course she had no idea of prices of goods she didn't need, or maybe she knew it very well. "So if I were you, I'd march back to the office and dig a hole to hide in, so we can all forget this wonderful scene of yours." He finished.

"You –! You –! You bastards!" Miki's face went burgundy from rage and she was sticking a finger in Taiga's direction. She was speechless, offended and pissed beyond herself. She was not thirty yet! There was no self reflexion. She just hated it. Feeling inferior. And these two made her feel like that. They seemed to be better in everything. "You damn little bastards! How can you show up and take everything I've built?! This is mine! Mine! Years worth of effort!"

The back door flew open and Senri strolled out. He had that dangerous glint in his eyes. He's heard everything through the thin door. He'd been hoping she'd get a message and leave it. But now he's had enough. The worst thing was that there were the other people still watching in a mixture of shock and amusement. "What is going on?!" He thundered. Miki had crossed all the lines there could be.

For the first time in her life Miki felt intimidated by her man. She shut up immediately. "It's nothing, Sweety. They were rude to me again." Tears sprang to her eyes almost immediately and her voice was shaky. "But… It's fine, really. They're just teenagers."

Aya and Taiga rolled their eyes like one. "Again?! Really?" They said in perfect unison looking at Senri.

The man groaned at his woman's act, feeling humiliated. He pinched the bridge of his nose and then glowered at her. "Miki, you do know I've heard everything through that paper door, right?"

"But it's true! Ever since I've returned here they've been stomping down on me, refusing to respect my lead, my position. How's that fair?"

"No one's stomping down on you. Least of all Robin. But she's been dancing longer than you. That's a fact, and I'm thankful–"

"Well, I'm not! I don't want them here! Just listen to me for once!" The broken voice was gone and she was all demanding again. "You'll–"

"No! You listen to me for once!" He flared up. "None of this is yours! Not a single plank in this gym belongs to you. Not this, not my club, not my apartment and certainly not my name! And you know what? We're done. I've had enough of yours scenes and rudeness and manipulations. Years of your effort? How many? Two? Don't shit with me. This," he threw his hands up pointing at the gym, "is my grandfather's effort. Decades! Decades of his hard work and diligence. Keiko-san's effort, to keep us from disappearing! And my effort to do everything in my abilities to keep this running despite your constant bitching!" He shouted back, he'd had enough. He'd loved her at some point. He had. He'd wanted to marry her even, but this… The problems had been there, but he kept ignoring them; warning signs, people telling him... Hoping she'd change. Now he saw clearly. She wouldn't change. Ever. And he wouldn't allow this woman to destroy his reputation, his family's reputation. She would not insult his family.

Miki was staring at him as if he slapped her. She was speechless.

Senri shook his head to calm down. "We're done. And now, what you'll do is take your stuff and get the hell out of here. You have a week to get out of my home. I don't care if you find a rent or go to your parents. I. Want. You. Gone. Understood?"

Her chin trembled. "…y-you can't throw me out! You can't abandon me! Y-you… that's how you treat your woman? Where's the respect?"

"I've respected and tolerated enough. But I won't let you ruin me." He saw she was about to attack so he decided to land the final blow he knew would have her running. "Besides, the ownership of the gym… It's not mine. I don't own this place. I just have permission to use it."

She paled. "Then whose…" She turned to the twins who meanwhile moved to stand near each other. "No. No, no, no. You can't be serious."

"Oh, yes. But you never asked." Senri smiled with a satisfaction for which he'd surely burn in hell someday. He saw the wheels spinning in Miki's head, calculating.

"Yes, we're done! I'm not going to marry a liar and loser who has nothing!" She shouted, and ran to get her stuff to the back and then out. "Don't ever contact me again!"

"Be gone from my home in a week." He sang with a smile.

"Three days! Bastard! I can't believe I've let you deceive me for this long!" And gone she was, but she didn't forget to yell: "You'll regret it!" on her way. She just had to have the last word.

Everyone was stunned and frozen by the drama.

Then Aya whistled. "This was the most dramatic break up I've ever witnessed." It was kind of amusing, but the banter with Miki drained her energy. She was tired, annoyed and generally in a bad mood. She just wanted to go home and be alone.

"Hell hath no fury…" Taiga recited and sighed. "She could've thrown the ring at him, to make it juicier." He added in disappointment, which earned him a jab to his ribs from Aya.

"That ring was worth a little fortune and she chose it herself," Senri sighed, "no way would she return that." Then he looked at the witnesses. "I'm really sorry you saw my personal drama." He bowed deeply with a blush on his face. He felt mortified. "I promise you it's not always like this. And I'm really sorry for what that person told you, Nana-chan. She will not be coming back here. Ever."

Daisuke cleared his throat. "Well, it was unexpected. But we saw nothing." He winked at the man in Saburou's age. "And if she causes some real trouble, like property damage or theft, tell Aya-chan. We are policemen, we can deal with it." To him, the woman seemed like the type who could cause some real damage.

"Oh, you know each other?"

Aya sighed. "I told you already, Aomine Daiki is my man." She pointed towards him. "This is his dad, Daisuke-san."

"Riight…" He rubbed the back of his neck. "Uhm…"

Daisuke got the message and smiled kindly. "We'll be on our way! Sorry for the interruption." He turned around and Saburou and Nana quickly followed.

"Dad," Daiki stopped him outside, "uhm, could I…"

"I don't think you should. Call her later if you want, but she seemed like she wanted to be left alone."

He clenched his fists but nodded. There was probably not much he could do and with the company he wouldn't even be able to hug her.

When they were passing the gate a huge bear of a man appeared walking opposite them; taller than Daiki and bulky, but older than any of them. All three straightened up automatically. The neighbourhood was calm and safe but it was already dark and they felt a little alerted by the man's size.

When Daiki saw the face he stopped with his mouth slightly open. It was Kagami Kyou. No. The hairstyle was different. And no stubby beard.

"Anything you want kid?" Haruka stopped too and looked at the boy in front of him, looking him up and down. The boy… well the young man would be more fitting; Daiki looked older than his age, and he had quite an intimidating figure too.

He even sounds like Kyou. "You're Kagami Haruka…" He blurted out staring at the man. This was the last place he'd expect to meet him.

"And you–" Haruka narrowed his eyes, but he already knew, "Aomine Daiki." He snorted; at least Kyou had been kind enough to send him a picture. And then he could do his own research. "Well, good to finally meet you." He outstretched his hand to Daiki.

He accepted, but he felt Haruka was not friendly. Not at all. The squeeze almost crushed Daiki's bones but he refused to let it show on his face and squeezed back. "Nice to meet you too." He said sternly.

Haruka smiled icily and he couldn't omit a jab. "I'm surprised I'm not chasing you out her bed right away."

Why were they behaving like wasps to Aya? Miki, this man… It was infuriating him, when his woman was being labelled as a whore; all the while he hadn't even seen her braless. This comment angered and hurt him too. Every single one of them… "What's your problem?" He asked in a dangerous growl, he didn't mean just Haruka. "Every single one of you… Why do you enjoy hurting her with stupid words?! Because she won't punch? Because she's your daughter?! Bastards."

Haruka blinked in surprise. The rage and protectiveness in Daiki's eyes was a real deal. The youngster's muscles tensed, ready to attack at the slightest provocation. And he actually felt like stepping back under the glare, but refused to show weakness.

"Daiki. Don't." One of the men grabbed the boy's shoulder firmly and forced him to take a step back. He was shorter but there was undeniable strength in him. "Sorry, my son meant no insult."

"I have." Daiki mumbled under his breath, but his father's grip tightened, making him squirm in pain.

"Oh, I'm Aomine Daisuke." He offered Haruka a confident handshake. "Nice to meet you."

"Kagami Haruka." He accepted it with a nod. So, the boy was there with his father, and someone else and then he noticed a little girl in a skirt. He wouldn't question that, but Daisuke made him feel somewhat at ease. He shook off the insult like he hadn't heard it at all. "Nice to meet you too." There was that typical urge of his to devalue his kids and apologise for their behaviour, even if he had no idea how it'd been. This time he fought it and instead, he asked. "So you know my daughter?"

Daisuke smiled kindly, his eyes were warm, but piercing, observing, reading, judging... "I do. She's an amazing young woman, I'm glad I've had a chance to meet her and–"

"Ah, Daisuke-san, could we…" Saburou shifted on his legs nervously. "Uhm… My wife will kill me; we've already missed the dinner."

"Hai, hai. Let's go." He pushed Daiki in front of him. Just in case. "Argh!" He facepalmed. "We've missed mom! I wanted to show her the flowerbeds before she went to her nightshift." He complained grumpily to Daiki. But over his shoulder he couldn't not return Haruka the favour. "You've raised her well, Haruka-san. You should be proud." He jabbed with a polite smile.

Haruka's eyes widened and he stared at the younger man. How does he…?

"You're savage." Daiki muttered in the car.

"Returning the favour, without punching him. You'll learn that eventually too." He said and the engine hummed softly.

"Daddy?" Nana peeped up for the first time. "What's a 'whore'?" She asked innocently.

While Saburou was trying to find a way to explain it to an eight-year old, Daisuke clenched the steering wheel and growled quietly. "She doesn't deserve that…"

######

Back in the gym Aya leaned into Taiga and closed her eyes. "I've had enough. But you were amazing."

He hummed in agreement. "Let's head home. It's late."

"Robin, about the pointes. I had no idea. You should've told me, I'll pay you back!"

She chuckled humorlessly and waved her hand. "Please, it's just a pair of pointes. I already have a new one, and I don't want the money. It wasn't about that in the first place…"

"Miki was way over the line, and I'm sorry!" He bowed deeply. "I should've sent her on her way much sooner." He didn't even feel bad about the break-up. On the contrary, he felt like a huge burden was lifted off his shoulder.

"It's fine; there must've been something you loved." She smiled and headed to get a mop to sweep the floor.

"Yeah, the possibility she would, one day, become a better person under my influence. I was a fool." He went to help out, while Taiga decided to take care of the showers and changing room. "Anyways, the gym… I wasn't lying. This place belongs to you."

"And you're telling me that now? Just like that?" She raised an eyebrow at him, leaning against the mop. Usually they had fun, joking around, dancing with the mops... Today was not like that.

He bit his lip and shrugged. "I thought you knew."

"I did not. And I'm certainly not dealing with it now."

"We should talk about it."

"Yeah, we should." Haruka's voice reached them from the door where he was leaning against the frame.

"Ah, Haruka-san! Good evening!" Senri sprang up.

"Urgh! What have I done to deserve this day?!" Aya groaned angrily. She wanted to throw the mop to the corner and run away.

"Huh?" Taiga's head appeared in the back door and he rolled his eyes. The timing couldn't have been worse. "Stole my food." He filled in, trying to make her feel at least a bit lighter.

She glared at him, but the corners of her lips twitched in a small smile. "Most likely." She mumbled.

"We really have some matters to discuss." Haruka noted, ignoring Aya's desperate groan.

But she squared her shoulders and looked at both Haruka and Senri. "No. I'm not dealing with anything else tonight." She said firmly. "I've had a shitty day with shitty arguments, I was insulted and punished for stupid miss-steps. So please! give me a break! All of you!" With that, she really put the mop to the corner, took her stuff and walked out of the gym without changing, ignoring everyone's stares and questions. But for Taiga's sake she turned at the door, "I'm just going home first, don't worry."

Taiga sighed in relief as he watched her leaving silhouette. She would definitely smoke on the way home. He could tell.

"You took your sweet time." Taiga looked at his father with a scolding frown.

"I had responsibilities."

"Sure you had." Hostility was lacing his voice. Then he sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. "She was worried about you…" With that, he disappeared in the changing room again, leaving Haruka blinking in surprise.

Senri just minded his own business, sweeping the floor and acting like he wasn't surprised by Haruka after not seeing him for years.

In the end, Senri winded up crashing on their couch that night. He had his work stuff with him, Miki had taken his car and Hikaru had someone over, so he didn't want to interrupt his brother's love life. He discussed the gym with Haruka a bit, but without Aya it was pointless. And she was shut in her room, doing her homework and refusing to join them.

When her phone vibrated and she saw Daiki's name on it, she hesitated. And then she flipped it over and decided to ignore it. She couldn't… If she picked up and heard his voice, she'd probably lose her self-control and cry like a kid to vent out all the frustration, hurt and anger. And that'd freak him out over the phone.

It was better like this.

######

Daiki let the phone rest on his chest and sighed deeply. After the days of avoiding her, what did he expect? Of course she'd ignore him. With another annoyed groan he turned towards the wall and stared at it.

"Daiki?" His father knocked at the door softly. "Can I come in?"

"Sure."

He sat at the edge of Daiki's bed, thinking. It took him some time to realise it and now he felt guilty. "When was the last date you had with Aya-chan?"

"When she came here?"

"Damn…" Daisuke muttered, that was three weeks ago. He and Michiko had 'date nights' once a week or once every two weeks; and they were married for years, not horny teenagers in their first high-school relationship. "You should've told me you wanted a free day or afternoon… I'm sorry I haven't noticed."

Daiki sighed, not looking at his dad. "It's not like you could cancel the seminars." And if he was attending seminars with different senseis, he needed the practises too. Unless he wanted to embarrass himself, which was not an option.

"No, but I could've asked someone else to come and be my uke in your stead…"

"Whatever."

"I promise, this is the last weekend when I'm ruining your love life. There will be one more at the end of October, but until then you'll have your weekends completely free."

"Fine."

"…" He was about to get up and leave his son to his brooding, when Daiki shifted and looked at him; silent plea written all over his face.

"She won't pick up. I should've stayed. Damn it! I'm a clueless, useless idiot!" He groaned and covered his face in desperation.

Daisuke chuckled softly, oh how well he remembered the feeling. "No, you're not. You just need to communicate properly." He rubbed Daiki's shoulder, it was an encouraging gesture. "If she isn't picking up, maybe she can't, maybe she's sleeping already. Maybe she doesn't want to talk with anyone. She's had an emotionally heavy evening, and I can't tell what Haruka told her after we'd left."

"Tch. Are you still voting for the man?"

"I don't know. He was fighting the urge to snap at you after you blurted out all that. When he asked about Aya-chan, I believe his instinct was to say something like 'I hope she didn't cause you any trouble'… But he didn't. I don't think he is a bad person, but it's very difficult to change. And he's probably trying the best he can." He sighed.

"How can you tell?"

"Years of working with all kinds of people… I've always liked observing them and getting in their heads." His eyes glowed with amusement.

"...you're creeping me out right now, dad."

Daisuke laughed heartily. "A warning though, he doesn't and won't like you, be ready to receive jabs, subtle insults and tests… If I had a daughter I wouldn't let any boys within ten meter radius until she was like twenty or something." He chuckled softly, but this time it didn't quite reach his eyes.

Jabs and insults, yeah, he could see that coming too, but… "Tests?"

"They're rich, you know. He is a business man now; it's different how he sees things. And no matter how alienated they might be right now, she's his family; he'll want to test your worth somehow."

"I ain't in love with her money. I didn't even know about it for – HEY! Why do you look like you'd love to dissect his brain, and you're going to use me to do that?"

"I'm not. Geez, I'm not using you, I'm just curious how he'll behave with you around."

"I won't tell you."

"You don't have to, of course. But please, try to refrain from going into pointless conflicts with him; especially in front of Aya-chan. And be smart about how you talk with him. You can totally put him down, when he insults you; just think about how you word it before saying it." Haruka seemed intimidated by you too, but let's not boost your ego too much.

"I'm terrible at that."

"Time to learn. Aya-chan should be able to help you with that."

"Right…" He sighed again and looked at the ceiling. He wasn't happy about Haruka being back in the picture. It was an unknown force for him. He had no idea what to expect or how to deal with 'tests' his dad had mentioned, but he felt a bit better. His father could be a soothing presence anytime he needed.

"Try texting her?" Daisuke suggested. "And if she doesn't reply, you're always sitting behind her."

"Hmmm… I'll try that."

"And do have a sex talk. Really." He blurted out, to give his son different thoughts.

Daiki went red instantly, almost choking on his own spit. "W-what?!"

"You need to know how far you're both willing to go to avoid… disappointment in the best case." With a chuckle he got up and headed out. "Don't underestimate the importance of it. It's awkward, yes, but important."

"Get out!" He groaned, but knew his dad meant it seriously. "Crazy old man…" he mumbled under his breath and turned back to his wall, ignoring Shiro's attention seeking whimper. He needed ten more minutes to make up his mind. Then he'd play with the dog a bit, before she'd start attention-barking.

What should he even text her to make her feel better?

What's up? sounded totally inappropriate Are you okay? was also lame as hell, when he knew she probably wasn't. I'm not a goddamn Kise!

"Urgh!"

Then something popped up in his mind. He was embarrassed as hell when typing it. It wasn't something he'd normally do. But hell, nothing felt normal for him at the moment.

'The dance you did was amazing. Would you teach me once I finally get there?'

He didn't think she'd reply. But it didn't take more than a minute until his phone vibrated. Maybe she really just didn't want to talk. He was scared to read it, but he opened it right away.

'Give me a hug tomorrow first.'

He knew he should've stayed… And then he texted the cheesiest thing of his life:

'That's a given. I love you.'

This time it took a little while for a reply to arrive.

'Then stop avoiding me ;) I love you too, Honey-bun. But you know that.'

A relieved grin settled on his face. Damn, he was one lucky guy. Yeah, we do need to talk it out… And he needed to pull himself together.

######

Haruka woke up at 2AM. He was still far from being used to this apartment again. And there was that boy haunting his mind and dreams. The fact he actually wanted to avoid conflict with him… Shit, he does have some presence… He tried to stay in the bed and fall asleep again, but it turned into a futile effort, so he got up to go get some fresh air on the balcony.

He threaded his way carefully, to not wake up Senri sprawled on their couch and snoring softly.

To his surprise the balcony was occupied at this crazy hour. Aya was standing by the railing, tucked in Taiga's hoodie and observing the street below. All the hostile thoughts about Daiki were gone. The young man had only protected her. He couldn't blame him for that.

"Can't sleep either?" He asked quietly, trying not to startle her. It was his chance to talk with her. Maybe she'd finally listen? The evening events Senri had told him about were probably running in her head too. He hadn't noticed she was smoking until she turned around with a red burning cigarette between her fingers. "What's–" It angered him, and his voice rose immediately, but her hand stopped him. Katsunori had warned him, but he'd refused to believe…

"You have no right to scold me, so save your breath." She said coldly and turned her back to him again. "There must've been at least one bad habit besides being the 'whore' that made me the bad kid, no?"

He cringed, squeezing his eyes shut and inhaled sharply. That was a well aimed verbal slap. And he shamefully remembered what he'd told Daiki. Of course, the boy would snap at him. He would've snapped at himself. How could he even let that out of his mouth?! "… Robin–"

"You dare call me that?" She growled lowly. Talking to him wasn't something she wanted after the shitty day. But Daiki's texts worked some magic on her, because she decided to tolerate this and get it over with.

He had no right to call her that anymore, he knew. He had no right to preach, to complain… But… There was something he had to tell her no matter what. And he felt that this was the only moment he had. "I'm sorry. Will you… no… Can you, one day, forgive me?" His voice cracked and he bit his lip.

Aya shut her eyes and waited. There was more he wanted to say, she could hear that. And she'd already made up her mind about Haruka.

"There's no excuse for what I've done to you, now I know. You have all rights to hate me, curse me, throw me out even… You still can…" He touched his medallion that seemed to weigh a ton at the moment. "I've let go of what I should've treasured the most. Of what I should've protected, instead, I threw you out there to cope on your own; I've turned my back when you needed me; and I've pushed my role onto someone else, because I've turned into one weak-ass joke of a man and a terribly ignorant father. And then I got angry and threw him away. And that's… I want to apologise for all the pain I've caused you. Especially you." He took a deep breath and hung his head low. "What's worse, I don't know you anymore." He admitted, his voice not louder than a whisper.

"No you don't." She agreed quietly, but tears were welling up in her eyes, but she could still control her voice. She had a feeling that she'd end up crying that night. For one reason or the other. And when he said that, when he apologised, admitted all that, strangely, she felt she was being set free. Like the wings that were stuck and tied were suddenly spreading wider than ever.

"…will you grant me a chance to get to know you again?" He asked hopefully but he never felt this scared in his life. Maybe when he proposed…

Was she allowed to hope too? Could she try one more time? 'We don't know how much time we have, but we're certainly not here forever, and you understand that better than most kids.' Daiki's father had told her before. She'd been thinking about it a lot. Asking herself: 'Once he's gone and you hadn't given him the chance, won't you regret it?' She knew her answer – Yes. Yes I'd regret that. She knew what it felt like not having one more time, not having another chance. She hated regrets the most.

"In the end… Don't you always get what you want?" She asked, but there was a small smile in her voice. She turned to look at him, and to her surprise, the man had tears streaming down his face.

He couldn't see her expression that well in the darkness, but the tears in her eyes caught light. And then she turned back so quickly. It was easier that way. For him too. "…there's nothing I'd like more than that."

"…you've hurt me so damn much, so damn much. Do you even remember all that you've said to me? Because I do. I still get called a whore, by people I wouldn't expect it from… Do you have the slightest idea how that feels?" She said, barely keeping her voice together. "How I feel when Daiki witnesses it? I hate it." She took a deep shaky breath. He was finally listening. Really listening. And it was a time he knew and saw. "And I want to hate you. I really want..." She leaned her head backward, trying to keep her tears from flowing out. "But I can't…" She chuckled desperately. "I'm such an idiot."

He leaned against the wall and covered his face, biting into his lip drawing blood. He could hear the struggle. Once again, she was the one making a decision and risking heartbreak all over again. And he knew he failed as a father and as a man. He knew damn well. That was also why he so desperately wanted to make it up. He wouldn't fail her again. He was patiently waiting for her to continue, no matter the answer.

She crushed the cigarette in the ashtray. She'd already come to a decision. A long time ago. Unconsciously. When she'd started the e-mail thing…

"I'm not throwing you away. And I'm not going to trust you again just like that… but I do forgive you, because I wouldn't have met him or my team without all that shit happening. And for that, I'm grateful."

"You would." He said softly. "People who are meant to be do meet eventually."

At those words she let those annoying tears flow. She really needed it. "We wouldn't be the same…" She breathed out. They stayed like that, standing on the balcony in the middle of the night for minutes. And it was strangely comfortable.

"Where should I start?" He asked quietly after a while.

"Hmmm… Keep your promises, at least some. Call when you're late. Come to some of Taiga's matches. He'd like that, though he won't say it. You ignored me, don't do it to him too. And unlike me, you can actually help him, Ace."

"I haven't played in years."

"Muscle memory and experience are powerful stuff. And I think Katsu wouldn't mind some practice with you."

"You're cruel." He blurted out, but he was feeling unbelievably blessed to have a kid like this. Beautiful, smart, wise, kind hearted, and most of all, cheerful and thankful despite all the bad things going around. Like mother, like daughter...

"You want to be here, so be here." She looked at him, her eyes reddish from crying, but crystal clear. And piercing. "And maybe you could finally show your face at grandma's… While you still have a chance."

He shuddered at the thought of facing his own parents. "…mama will kill me with her slipper." He muttered, but he knew he should go there. While he had the chance…

She raised an eyebrow. "You certainly deserve it."

"I do, right?"

"Mhmmm, and just so you know, Daiki's not going away."

"I had the feeling when I met him by the gym."

They met already?! Shit... She blinked at him. "Well good, learn to tolerate him. He's the one I love. And you're not going to change that."

"I could try." He grumbled. But he could sense she was really in love. And the young man had protected her, tad aggressively, but it was a good trait. Though he certainly didn't like the idea of Daiki sitting on his couch, or hugging his daughter, gods forbid doing more than hugging.

"Sure you will~" She said with finality to their talk and pulled out another cigarette. The last one. She thought.

"Can I?" He cocked his head to the pack.

"I didn't know you smoke…" She pointed out but passed him the pack.

"That makes two of us."

They smoked in silence. When she crushed the cigarette butt, she turned and headed inside.

"Aya," he stopped her for a second and she turned to face him. There was one more thing he wanted to say: "Thank you."

Her eyes were burning with emotions, hope and worry being the strongest. She nodded. "Please, don't let me regret it."

---

A/N: So... As usual, I hope no one was too OOC. The chapter kind of wrote itself once I finally started, though I had a hard time finding a title for this chapter; it was my friends idea, so if you have any other title ideas, let me know :). And Daiki's texting abilities are beyond me, I'd say he's someone who has phone just for the sake of having it.

If I'm dragging it too much, sorry, but I just enjoy writing this humongous thing.

Let me know what you think and remember, reviews are appreciated, but never necessary.

S.