A/N: Thank you all for your reviews, faves and follows!

Chapter 21

To the ball with Reiko.

…

"So, you can't decide between these two, right?" Kenji asked as he looked at the two sheets of paper before him.

It's been a couple of days since Kise and Takao were tasked with designing their logo and so far, so good. However, there was one small problem ―Catal Rhythm couldn't choose which one to use. There were a total of six designs, and they've only managed to narrow it down to two. So, seeing that they were so conflicted, Kise had come with the idea of letting Kenji choose as well. Which brings them to the current situation: Kise and Takao sitting in Kenji's living room.

"That's right." Kise nodded, Takao was sitting beside him.

"Yu-chan and Tai-chan are crazy over this one." Takao said, pointing to the design on the left. "Tetsu-chan and Ryou-chan loves the other."

"What about you?" Kenji asked him with a raised brow.

"Well, I like them both. I didn't want to be the one who has to choose our logo. So I decided to let our dream team vote." the hawk-eyed boy grinned.

Kenji sighed. "Alright. I'll get it to the others tomorrow. You better not complain when the verdict is out."

Kise and Takao laughed. "Of course not! Either of the designs are awesome, so there's no way our logo will be terrible."

Kenji nodded. They were right, these designs were really something. To be honest, he had thought that it would have ended in a disaster as he knew that the five were nothing but basketball idiots. When the blond and raven-haired boys left, Kenji let out a chuckle as he's realized that in the instances that he doubts their ability, Catal Rhythm ends up blowing him away.

"Mah, I guess I need to stop then." He laughed.

Kise and Takao skipped to their house, since they had visited Kenji in his. Opening the door, their eyes caught the usual sight of a weekday ―Kagami in the kitchen, Kuroko sitting on the sofa reading a novel (both boys keep wondering just how many books he has) and Kasamatsu strumming his acoustic guitar while humming and jotting down lyrics that goes with the chords.

This has become the norm and the other four boys (and Akamine) could see his apparent talent in songwriting, not that the older teen would admit it. As Kise and Takao removed their shoes at the genkan and walked past the kitchen, Kagami asked,

"So how'd it go?"

In that moment, Kuroko peeked over the top of his novel and one of two things happened with Kasamatsu ―either he was so immersed in his playing and scribbling that he's tuned out his surroundings or he's ignoring them. In Kise's eyes, it's probably the latter.

"We'll know tomorrow," Takao replied as he made his way to the living room and sat beside Kasamatsu.

"Oh, okay." Kagami replied without a care in the world, Kuroko went back to reading. Kise noticed their behaviours and felt that something was wrong. Everyone was acting out of character and the blond felt disturbed.

"Kagamicchi, Kurokocchi, Senpai..." he started, "...are you alright?"

"I'm reading, Kise-kun." Kuroko deadpanned.

"Oi, what? Can't you see that I'm cooking?" Kagami retorted from the kitchen.

"Oh, you came back." Kasamatsu said without taking his eyes off his acoustic guitar.

With an eye roll, Kise headed to sit beside Kasamatsu, peering at his lyric sheet. Takao did the same, and nodded his head when he read the lyrics. But his hawk-eyes didn't miss the heap of crumpled papers on the floor beside him.

"Yu-chan," Takao started, "You like writing songs, don't you?"

Kasamatsu's head snapped up as though he was frightened. "Ah, yeah. It's fun." Then he sighed, "But I can't seem to write pop songs for five vocalists."

"But you're able to write rock songs for a single vocalist, right?" Kuroko joined in.

Kasamatsu chuckled. "Yeah, that's about it."

"So, what are you going to do with your songs, Kasamatsu?" Kagami said as he made his way over. Seeing the looks on their faces, he quickly said, "Our food is in the oven. Obviously I'm not going to stay in the kitchen until it's done."

"Oh." Kasamatsu nodded. But then he answered the redhead's question, "I don't know. Probably I ―"

"What do you mean you don't know?!" Kise and Takao screeched in anger, slamming their palms down on the table.

"Senpai, you can't let your talent go to waste!" Kise shouted.

Kasamatsu's expression changed to a deadpan. "I prefer to write rock songs, Kise. Who's going to sing them?"

"We can!" the blond screeched, causing Kagami to choke on air and Kuroko's book to fall out of his hands. But when he saw the look on the other's faces, he quickly said, "Or Senpai himself."

"But Kise-kun, rock songs require instruments. I don't think Aihara manages rock bands as well." Kuroko sighed. Then, he froze when he realized what he just said. Living with them for as long as he did, he's bound to know what they're like.

"So why don't we play the instruments then?" Kagami said without taking his eyes off the lyric sheet. "This is good stuff, Senpai."

Kasamatsu reeled from the shock, Kuroko face-palmed not because of the suggestion, but due to Kagami being the one who suggested it. He had expected Takao or Kise to come out with it instead. Kise, however, seemed impassive and Takao was roaring with laughter.

"What? Did I say something?"

"Kagamicchi, you do realize that Senpai's songs would require awesome instrumentals, right? It can't be wishy-washy. What can you guys do?"

"I know. So how long does it take to learn an instrument?" Kagami shrugged.

"Ten thousand hours for mastery, although it varies depending on how often you practice and go to classes and the whatnot." Kise replied. "But of course, you never really stop learning. You'll stumble upon something that you never knew could be done and you'll end up wanting to do it too."

Everyone froze and gawked at the blond teen. They weren't staring because of the astronomical number Kise stated, it was the fact that the blond sounded as though he knew how to play an instrument.

"How do you even know that, Ryou-chan?" Takao asked.

"Uh, it's just that my soon-to-be brother-in-law is a master on the drums and was even in a band."

Hearing this, Takao, Kagami and Kuroko's subconsciously eyes travelled to Kasamatsu who was just as surprised as they were.

"Oi, don't look at me. I've never played the drums." he defended. But then, he realized what happened. His face reddened from the embarrassment. "I'm not his "soon-to-be brother-in-law"!"

"Right..." Takao nodded, inwardly chuckling. "I never knew Ruiko-san was engaged. To a former drummer to be exact. How did he pass your hellish screening? How old is he anyway?!" he swiftly changed the subject.

Kise snorted. "You obviously didn't notice the huge ass engagement ring on her finger. He passed it quite fine and he's twenty-five."

"I hate to ruin this moment," Kuroko started, "But Kagami-kun, please check the oven. I don't want to starve today or eat take-out."

"Shit!" the redhead shouted and bolted for the kitchen.

xxxx

The days passed before the five boys could realize, being that they were surrounded with activities. At school, they had basketball practice, and after that, they'd have Foreign Language with Ichinose-sensei, songwriting with Akamine-sensei, practicing their new song with Nobuzane to get the notes right etc. These times always ended up being hilarious ―either Kise biting his tongue in trying to pronounce the words properly, Kasamatsu getting teased about writing songs for Reiko by the others etc...

Now, everyone except Kuroko and Kagami had a graduation (or two in Kise and Kasamatsu's case) to attend. Shutoku's was the same time as Kaijou's, so even if the hawk-eyed boy wanted, he wouldn't have been able to attend Kaijou's or vice-versa. But Kasamatsu and everyone else got a first-hand experience on how the Kise family manages to be at the centre attention without even realizing.

On this day, all five boys were heading to Reiko's graduation at Horikoshi High School. It was a morning ceremony, so everyone could be in attendance. That said, the entire Kise family was out in full force, Ryouhei and his family were a given, but even his older brother Kouhei and his family were here as well and a bunch of other people who were related to the Kises in some way.

Ryouhei was dressed in a purple suit. The open blazer was cuffed up to his elbows to reveal his silver wristwatch. His white shirt had a few buttons undone and wore no tie. His eyes were concealed by his shades.

Kise walked stride for stride with his father, and wore his suit in a similar fashion to Ryouhei. Unlike Ryouhei however, Kise's suit was lavender, and his watch was golden. He even wore shades as well, and looking at the two, one would believe that they were an older-younger brother duo.

On Ryouhei's left was his wife ―Ritsuko. She knotted her arm with Ryouhei's and like her husband and son, she was stunning like the sun. She wore a purple laced top off-the-shoulder high-low dress to match her husband. Her earrings matched her dress while her necklace was silver. She did her own make-up and it was absolutely beautiful. Before they left their house, the moment Ryouhei saw her, he instantly started drooling.

Ruiko was behind them with her fiancé ―Sugimoto Makio (Makki for short) with his hand on her waist. She was in a beautiful olive-green hestia double high slit dress with spaghetti straps. Her long blonde hair was styled with a centre part and curled ends. Her make-up was done by Ritsuko to blow the entire world away.

Catal Rhythm sans Kise trailed behind them, Kagami and Kasamatsu feeling uncomfortable with all the stares coming their way. Takao didn't mind, and they doubted that anyone noticed Kuroko. Kenji hummed in joy, since he had gotten to take their pictures before they left. They made it to the auditorium and took their seats and a couple minutes later, the ceremony began.

xxxx

Catal Rhythm returned home looking drained, well, all except Kise. After Reiko's ceremony, Kise's family went on a photographing spree. They took so many pictures (dragging Catal Rhythm with them), the photographer's memory chip had to be changed twice. It was there that the boys found out that taking pictures is a part of the Kise gene.

And after that, they went out to a restaurant, Kouhei ―Ryouhei's older brother nearly murdered Kagami for eating so much, saying that his sons and Kise were already enough. He had lost to Ryouhei in janken, so he had to pay the bill. Of course, Ryouhei laughed at his demise, knowing full well that Kagami was a monstrous eater.

By the time evening time came around, the five were off again, this time to different graduations. Kasamatsu, Kise and Kagami went to Kaijou's graduation while Takao, Kuroko and Kenji headed to Shutoku's. And of course, Seirin were split between the two schools.

Both ceremonies went smoothly, over by Shutoku, Takao tore up seeing that his Senpai were leaving. Midorima was in attendance as well, but he behaved like his usual self, trying to hide the fact that he would deeply miss them.

At Kaijou, Kise was a bawling mess, Moriyama and Kobori had to console him by saying that they'd drop by every now and then whenever they had the time. Kasamatsu seemed normal, but he did admit that he'd miss them, especially Moriyama and his jokes and his irregular shooting. Hayakawa, as usual, couldn't form his sentences properly and sounded like a baby trying to talk. Nakamura promised Moriyama that he'll be the best shooting guard that they'll have.

Then, everyone met up to hang out but when they reached at a restaurant Kobori chose, due to them being rowdy, Kise, Kagami and Midorima arguing, they were thrown out. Rest assured, Riko "punished" them accordingly, but, the night still managed to turn out quite well with a heated basketball match at a random street court.

xxxx

"Senpai, aren't you getting up?"

Kasamatsu snorted as he cracked open an eye. He was being shaken awake by none other than his (sometimes) irritating ace. With a grunt, Kasamatsu turned his back to the blond and covered underneath his sheets.

"Come on, Senpai." Kise whined.

"What for?"

"Have you forgotten what date is today?"

"Yes." he grumbled sarcastically, fighting down the urge to kick Kise through the window. He knew for a fact that it was no one's birthday and they had the day off since they attended two graduations yesterday, so he didn't see what Kise was going on about.

Kise let out a gasp, clearly, he didn't pick up the sarcastic tone Kasamatsu had used. "Today is the day that you take Reiko-nee to her ball!"

"Of course." the older teen drawled with an eye roll. "So what's the rush, isn't it at 7 o'clock tonight?"

"Yes, but you have to do your hair, get dressed by Onee-chan, and Kenji-san has to drive you to the venue. What if there's traffic?"

"And what time is it now?"

Kise fumbled, "Minutes after twelve o'clock..."

"Eh?!" he screeched as he jumped up. "You're lying!"

Kise then jabbed a thumb over his shoulder in the direction of the clock. Kasamatsu gasped in shock.

"You fool! Why didn't you wake me up earlier!? I don't want to get mauled by your family, you know?!"

Kise laughed. "They'll do no such thing. I smoothed out everything for you. They'll just look at you with sympathy."

The captain was tired, last night, he couldn't sleep and ended up staying up until late hours (more like early morning), strumming his guitar and singing. Somewhere along the line, the others joined in, and before he knew it, their conversation had taken a turn to centre on rock music and bands.

Kasamatsu dashed to the bathroom, but by no means was he rushing...that much. Kenji was supposed to bring him to the hair stylist by 1:30 and it was just after twelve. By the time he was done, it was fifteen minutes to one o'clock. He dressed himself simply ―black jeans with white v-neck t-shirt and matching sneakers.

"Looking good, Yu-chan." Takao teased.

"But it's just jeans and t-shirt." Kasamatsu shrugged.

Kise smirked. "It comes with the territory. No matter what we put on, we'll still look damn good."

"Uh-huh." the captain nodded and headed into the kitchen to fix himself a sandwich. There was deadly silence for a while, until Kise broke it.

"Senpai, you need to tell me everything when you come home, okay?" He grinned.

Kasamatsu snorted. "As if. And You're too nosy!"

"Hmm...is that so?"

But hearing that tone and seeing the smug look, Kasamatsu prayed that they didn't plan on stalking him. He knew that they (Kise especially) were crazy enough to do it. Not wanting to stay there any longer and probably murder them, Kasamatsu bade farewell and headed over to Kenji. Luckily, he was home and not at the office, so the captain was able to calm himself before tonight.

Although it seemed to be far away, he knows that before he realizes, it'll be time for Kenji to pick Reiko up. He imagined what the Kise family would be like, since Kise informed him that they have two-faces ―a normal, happy-go-lucky and by extension, airheaded behaviour, but on the other hand, the Kise family can be pretty deadly, almost like a mafia. Kasamatsu recalled a story Kuroko told them about what happened in middle school when Kise was being picked on by some older students.

He got chills from it, and he was just hearing the story. He couldn't even imagine how the students involved felt.

"So, Kasamatsu-kun. Are you ready?" Kenji asked, taking him out of his thoughts.

"Yeah, let's just get this over with." he responded. "I think I'm getting nervous."

Kenji laughed out loud as he made his way to the door. "Loosen up, boy! You've performed in front of a crowd of thirty thousand, and looked like an idiot on national television. What's there to worry about now?"

Kasamatsu shook his head. "The Kise family is frightening. I don't want them to disapprove of me or something."

Kenji was confused and froze momentarily. "Tell me something, are you proposing to Reiko or just accompanying her to her ball?"

Kasamatsu face-palmed.

…

The captain of the Blue Elites was a nervous mess.

He was sitting in the passenger side of the car, Kenji humming one of their songs without a care in the world. They were currently on their way to Kise's house to pick up Reiko. Like with all other girls, Kasamatsu was extremely nervous, add to that, he's about to face her family. While he's met them before under different circumstances, he's pretty worried about the outcome of this evening. When Kenji pulled up at the gate, Kasamatsu inspected himself to see if there was anything out of place although Ruiko was the one who dressed him so there's no possibility of that happening.

He was dressed in a wine-red three piece suit ―wine-red blazer over a buttoned up vest of the same colour and white shirt and tie. His pants matched as well, his shoes were brown. Kasamatsu's hair was done in the stylish fringe-up. Although he looked handsome (he always was), he had gotten the fright of his life when he sat in the chair and saw some of his hair falling to the ground. The stylist actually had cut his hair! The crown of his hair had a light perm to give his hair more volume and texture (not that his hair needed any more volume), the sides were taken in lightly, not cropping too close to his scalp. For the finishing touch, the stylist used some wax and hair spray to fix the shape.

In short, he was absolutely stunning.

Finally, Kenji pulled up at the gate and Kasamatsu hopped out. The manager was evil enough to send the boy into the lion's den alone, but he knew full well that he'll be fine. When Kasamatsu reached up to the door, he pressed the doorbell and waited for a second. The swung open to reveal Ryouhei who looked like he'd been through hell and back.

Mortified, Kasamatsu could only manage, "Good evening."

With a smile rivalling Kise's, Ryouhei said, "You're here early..." the older Kise trailed off, his eyes scanning Kasamatsu. "...and looking good too. Damn, are you trying to steal my daughter's heart or something?" he chuckled.

"Well Sir, it was your elder daughter that dressed me, so ask her."

Ryouhei laughed out and threw an arm over Kasamatsu's shoulder leading him inside. At this moment, Kenji trudged up to them. Greeting the man, the trio went into the house, Kasamatsu feeling a lot better.

"Reiko won't be down for a while, my wife wanted to go all-out on her daughter." Ryouhei said lightly as he took a seat on the sofa. Kasamatsu was itching to ask the man about his look, but he kept his mouth shut.

"That's to be expected." Kenji nodded. "Females always tend to take forever to get ready for some reason."

"Because they're so damn indecisive." Ryouhei said with an eye roll. "You see how I look? Rei and Ritsu have been stressing me out because Rei is unsure of what to wear. And apparently, she changed her mind from the dress that she had originally intended to wear."

"Isn't it because they have a wider wardrobe to choose from?" Kasamatsu piped in unwittingly. The other two men looked at him with raised brows. "I mean, for men, all we have to do is choose the colour of our suits, whilst they have to choose between different styles of dresses, length, colour, jewellery and such."

"You're so considerate." Ryouhei said. "I've never thought about it that way, but females are still indecisive creatures."

"Right?" Kenji agreed.

The two men continued their chat for a while longer, occasionally dragging in Kasamatsu as well. It wasn't long after that Reiko descended with Ritsuko behind her. To say that the younger female was beautiful would be an understatement. Kasamatsu couldn't even find the right words to describe her.

She wore a wine-red cross-neck long dress with a slit-leg and open-back. Her blonde hair was curled and side-swept to fall over her shoulder and down to her abdomen. There was a beautiful pearl clip at the side part, that matched her pearl earrings and bracelet. Her make-up was perfect, her eyeshadow and lipstick matching her dress.

"Look at my Princess." Ryouhei sniffed in joy, even wiping away the tears with his index. "She's beautiful."

Kasamatsu stood there in shock. He knew that Reiko was beautiful from the first time he saw her, but this was...breathtaking.

"Kasamatsu-kun! You're here!" she perked in joy. "Thank you!"

But the captain couldn't respond. He was dumbstruck by her beauty, and he could do was gawk in awe at her.

"Oi, boy," Ryouhei said, nudging him back to reality. "What's wrong?"

"Oh!" Kasamatsu was a bit startled. "Sorry, it's just that she's so beautiful I couldn't say anything."

Ryouhei grinned at his honesty.

"Alright, enough of this, time for some pictures!" Ritsuko chirped. She pushed the two close together, and both she and Ryouhei and even Kenji had their phones poised and ready. But knowing Kasamatsu and his shyness, he was a bit...nervous and a bit far away.

Seeing the distance, a dark aura seeped out of the two parents, which scared the captain into pulling Reiko close to him and forcing a smile.

"Yas! Cute!" Ritsuko screeched as she snapped. "Another pose! Come on!"

And for five minutes, Kasamatsu was subjected to torture of the Kise family, and Kenji just allowed it to happen.

After everything was done, Kenji drove the two teenagers to the venue, which seemed like one of the famous hotels in Tokyo. Kasamatsu wouldn't know much in this area. Kenji stopped at the porte-cochère to drop them off and then going to park. Kasamatsu got out first and aided her out.

"Well, let's go, Reiko-san." Kasamatsu said while extending a hand out to her. He was still a bit nervous, and when he tried to take Takao's advice, he realized that imagining Reiko as her little brother would be...disturbing.

They entered into the lobby through the pristine twin doors, every step they took echoed on the marble-tiled floor. A golden chandelier hung from the middle of the ceiling, but strangely, it's use was not to provide light, but for decoration. Luxurious sofas were found in patches across the grand space, the reception desk was made out of wood, a light brown colour.

As Reiko and Kasamatsu continued to walk, they noticed paintings hung from the cream walls. They navigated around the people there, it was clear that most of them present were for the ball. Some took pictures in the far corner, some sat in the sofas, some just walked around looking at the paintings.

As they made it to the reception desk, the two showed their tickets, and proceeded to the ballroom. Kasamatsu was glad for this, as he could feel the stares the moment he and Reiko stepped in. Reaching the ballroom, they were stunned.

The two entered into a candlelit room full of silver candelabra and gorgeous soft blooms. Silver chiavari chairs surrounded the tables with linens of white silk and tall centrepieces atop a mirrored base with candlelight around it. There was a warm yet romantic feeling coming from the room and surprisingly, given the amount of people present, Kasamatsu thought that the room would be flooded with boisterous chatter.

They then made their way over to a free table, Kasamatsu was a little bit uncomfortable when he saw the seating amount. Six people per table. Excluding Reiko, the other people who will come to sit are going to be complete strangers to him. Oh goodie.

"Kasamatsu-kun," Reiko started with a bright smile. Kasamatsu looked at her and realized that Kise and his sisters' smiles were inherited from Ryouhei.

"Hmm?" he replied.

"Thanks for accompanying me!" She perked. "I honestly was at a loss because I didn't know who to bring. For a while, I was tempted to dye Ryoucchi's hair and have him wear contacts. You're a life saver!"

Kasamatsu laughed at that. "Seriously? It couldn't be that bad."

Reiko gave him a look. "Until you have a brother and a father like mine, then come back to me with that argument."

"Case closed. My family isn't like that ―" the captain abruptly stopped before starting up again, "―well, I haven't introduced any girl to them so, I don't know how Dad will react."

Reiko laughed, her beautiful face seeming to light up the place around her. She then looked down and fiddled with her thumbs. "Just to let you know, I can't dance but I'll be dancing anyway." She sounded shy here.

"You can't dance?"

"Nope!" she said as she formed an "X" with her arms. "So I'm just letting you know that your toes may end up destroyed tonight."

Kasamatsu shivered. "Please step lightly."

Reiko chuckled at his expressions. "Don't worry, I won't be dancing in my shoes. I can't afford to sprain my ankle." Kasamatsu involuntarily exhaled a sigh of relief.

A couple minutes passed by and the two were engaged in friendly chatter. Kasamatsu realized that Reiko wasn't that much of a talker compared to Kise who seemed to be a parrot. Also, he found that she was into basketball, because of Kise, as according to her: "Watching Ryoucchi slaughter anyone in his way is quite exhilarating". The captain didn't know what to make of that statement and brushed it off as a quirk of the Kise gene. Apart from basketball, Reiko inquired about his idol life, and asked why hadn't he been in a band before since he had wanted to be a bassist.

"Ah, I only did music as a hobby, so it didn't cross my mind." Kasamatsu had replied honestly.

"I see."

Aside from him, Kasamatsu got to know Reiko a little bit better, and found that she wanted to become a teacher and that she volunteers her time at orphanages to teach the children there how to read, kanji, math and other various subjects.

Kasamatsu nearly fell out of his chair.

He knew that Reiko was smart, being that she went to Horikoshi High. The Horikoshi High. He applauded her on that, while he wasn't a dunce, he doubted that he'd be able to teach all the subjects that Reiko did. But one thing bothered him, why was the Kise siblings so different? Ruiko was like a yakuza boss ―instilling fear and ordering people around with an iron fist, Reiko was the calm and modest individual and Kise was...the two-faced bastard who only showed his happy-go-lucky side to those who earned his respect, but looks down on those who don't.

Such a disparity between them.

"Rei-chan!" he heard a shout coming from the door.

"Ayaka-chan! Mai-chan!" she greeted with a chirp. "Takeru-kun! Asao-kun!"

There were two other girls making their way over to them, both with their dates. The one ―Ayaka ―Kasamatsu presumed, was dressed in a green off-the-shoulder mermaid dress and straight black hair done in a pretty updo style, and the other, Mai was in a long yellow strapless dress.

The two girls took their seats beside Reiko on her left since Kasamatsu was on her right. The dates followed suit, greeting them as they sat. The males were in generic suits, however, Ayaka's date ―Takeru was in a light blue suit while Mai's date ―Asao was in a dark purple suit.

"So, who's the date?" Takeru asked, glancing in Kasamatsu's direction. He felt so uncomfortable being that he's the youngest at the table.

"I was getting there." Reiko said with an eye roll. She introduced the four to the captain and vice-versa. Takeru and Asao had looks of shock and joy on their faces when they heard his name, leaving confused.

"You're Kaijou's Kasamatsu?" Asao asked. The captain nodded his response. "Oh great! I play the same position, couldn't you give me some tips!? I still remember the Touou match, you know?"

"Right?" Takeru joined in. "Your ace is a flipping monster!"

Kasamatsu grinned, glad that he's found kindred spirits.

And so, more people strolled in, the chatter in the room rising considerably. Mai and Ayaka were the ones who spoke the most, Reiko putting in her bits every now and then. Soon, the programme started, the host doing a good job in getting the students in the mood.

"So let's dance!"

"Whoo!"

And so, music started to play and the students (most of them) flooded the dance-floor. Reiko viciously dragged Kasamatsu out there, Ayaka and Mai following close behind with Takeru and Asao. The six took their places on the dance-floor and were having fun, Kasamatsu was appalled at Reiko. She couldn't dance, but she was moving.

As the music continued to play, it seemed as though gravity became non-existent. The rhythm and beats spun around Kasamatsu and Reiko, making the two feel like they were the only ones on the dance-floor. Reiko laughed as they danced, the joy and excitement evident on her face. She had even lost track on how many times she's squashed Kasamatsu's foot, but being the gentleman that he is, he still smiled brightly at her as they danced over the ballroom floor.

As he spun her, he caught how her lush blonde hair bounced as though matching the beat. She wasn't shy or anything, as a matter of fact, she didn't care about her surroundings. Pointed and rehearsed moves didn't matter at this moment, she could crush his feet all she wanted, she could stumble and fumble all she could, she could flail around like a small bird learning to fly all she wanted ―all that mattered to Kasamatsu was that she was having fun. And because she was having fun, he was too.

How infectious she was.

He had long forgotten about his shyness and whatnot...he'll admit that he was comfortable with Reiko. While she was bright and perky like Kise, there was a part of her that was mature and serious, not airheaded and whiny like his ace.

But he was taken out of his thoughts as Reiko's pace quickened, her dress getting in the way of her heels making her look even clumsier than she already was. Kasamatsu chuckled and took over. He pulled her close to him and used a stance to make it easier for her to follow.

He twirled her around, and when she felt like it, she hopped and jumped and whatever, dragging him in her embarrassment as well. It was amusing, but he admired this about her. She danced ―although she was just doing random shit most of the times ―as though no one's watching. She was fearless.

At one point, she took off her shoes and placed them under their table before dashing back onto the ballroom and into Kasamatsu's waiting arms.

Suddenly, the music changed its pace to a slow and relaxing song. The slow music weaved around them, the soft melody of the piano setting the perfect atmosphere. Kasamatsu held Reiko gingerly ―one hand on her back and the other clasping her free hand. She was standing on his feet since she didn't have on her heels, and rested her head on his chest allowing him to sway her body 'round and 'round.

Kasamatsu was glad that she couldn't see his face because he was as red as a tomato or even redder. He was never this close to a girl, and he was probably fretting since she could possibly hear his raging heartbeat.

As if on cue, Reiko started, "Kasamatsu-kun, if you don't calm down, you'll get a heart attack."

"R-right…" he stuttered out.

But unbeknownst to them, Mai had been videoing them for the longest while.

Sadly, the evening wouldn't go smoothly. At one point, a pompous male had the audacity to demand Reiko from Kasamatsu, disrupting their flow.

"Excuse me?" Kasamatsu asked, trying to sound polite.

"I said ―"

"Scram Nishida!" Reiko spat cutting him off. "I'm never dancing with you!" She then dragged a confused Kasamatsu away from the black haired male. However, Nishida's face twisted with anger.

"What was that about?"

"He's a popular guy that most girls throw themselves at." Reiko said as she rolled her eyes. "And he's rich, so he gets anything he wants. So, he thinks that I would do his shitty bidding as well."

"Oh." Was all Kasamatsu could utter.

But now, she was royally pissed and her mood ruined. So, she returned to their table with a sour look on her face.

"Man, Nishida sure knows how to ruin people's moods." Takeru said with a drawl. "If I could just kill him and not leave evidence..."

"I know right?" Asao agreed.

Just then, the music changed and so did Reiko's mood. As a matter of fact, the three girls dashed out onto the dance-floor, screaming in joy and leaving their dates looking confused. Reiko, Mai and Ayaka danced together, looking like three idiots. They were having fun so they didn't care what others thought.

Asao videoed them with a grin on his face, but that was when disaster struck. Nishida, who was still peeved that Reiko turned him down (and has been ever since first year), made his way to the dancing trio.

"Kise-san," he started, holding his hands behind his back.

"What?!" Reiko snapped. Ayaka and Mai were emitting dark auras behind Reiko.

Asao, who had been videoing could see what was going to happen, so he quickly shouted, "Run, Kise!"

However, it was too late. Nishida threw his cup with punch or whatever directly at her dress, effectively ruining it. Everyone seemed to have stilled, ignoring the music playing.

"Oops." Nishida said with a sinister smirk. "My hand slipped."

While Kasamatsu never cared about Horikoshi's school drama, this was something that he couldn't let pass. As if on automatic, the captain bolted out of his chair towards the older male, and gave him a kick that sent him flying. It was reminiscent of how he kicked Kise for being an idiot, but this time, his kick held no mercy. Asao and Takeru had to act quickly to restrain Ayaka and Mai.

"My dress..." Reiko whimpered. "...Onee-chan made me this dress..."

"Come, let's head to the bathroom. I'll see what I can do about it." Kasamatsu said.

"I have to kill him first." she hissed. She spun on her bare foot and as soon as Nishida was getting up, she used a spinning kick, sending the heel of her foot crashing into his left jaw. Before things could escalate any further, Kasamatsu grabbed her (he was thankful that she was smaller than him) and bolted for the bathroom.

…

"My dress is ruined. I don't think anything you do will be able to fix this. Let's just go home." Reiko said, sadly.

Kasamatsu shook his head and took off his blazer and vest. "I know a trick or two. And you can't let that bastard win. If you leave now, he'll rejoice."

Reiko kept quiet. "So what are you going to do?"

"You have to take off your dress." Kasamatsu said, "Don't worry, I'll turn my back."

Reiko did just that, but was curious as to what Kasamatsu had in mind. Then, he gave her his white button down shirt. She looked at it quizzically, wondering how will his shirt save the situation.

"First, wear the shirt under your arms like a strapless dress. Of course, you need to close the buttons to your liking." he instructed.

She followed what he said and at this, her interest was piqued. "I'm done."

"Good." He spun around to face her, and began adjusting the buttons and side seams to fit her body and folded the collar at the back. He then tied the sleeves once at the front as though she was wearing a jacket around her waist. This created a nice style at the front. He then brought the sleeves to the back and tied it in a bow. Again, he was glad that she was smaller than him.

"There. Take a look." Kasamatsu said as he spun her around to face the mirror.

Reiko's eyes widened at the sight. "How did you do this?!" she turned around to see the back, "Who taught you this?!"

"My mom. I always help her whenever she's indecisive and jumps into one of Dad's shirts."

"Oh." to say she was shocked would be an understatement. But then she looked at him. Thankfully, he had on a t-shirt underneath, so all he did was put on his blazer and folded his vest in his arms. Seeing a job well done, Kasamatsu stuck out his arm and Reiko took it.

"Now let's show that bastard that nothing can stop you."

Ayaka and Mai had been standing outside the door to prevent anyone from going in. It was the female restroom, so girls may end up freaked out if they saw Kasamatsu in there. They had brought her shoes as well, so when she emerged, the two girls were shocked.

"What-what-how…?" Mai couldn't form her words properly.

"It's his shirt." Reiko answered.

"We can see that!" They screeched.

"I'm asking how did you get it like that!"

"He did. I didn't do anything but stand there."

All eyes darted to Kasamatsu. He sighed and said, "Not now."

"That's right, we have a dance-floor to conquer!" Reiko screamed and sped off pulling Kasamatsu. He wanted to break out in tears now that she had on her heels. But he decided that he should be able to handle it. When they reached in the midst of the crowd, they were stared at, given that Reiko was in his shirt and his blazer was unbuttoned so everyone could see his t-shirt.

"Let's rock this crowd, Kasamatsu-kun!"

"Hai, hai." he ended up agreeing.

This was going to be a long night.

xxxx

By the time Kasamatsu reached home, it was minutes after one o'clock. He was tired, but he must admit that he had fun. He took off his shoes at the genkan and relished the silence as he walked to the living room. He took off his blazer and rubbed his feet, realizing that Reiko really loved dancing. Way too much.

"Ah...tonight was fun." he said as he sighed.

"Really, Senpai? Do tell!" he heard an all too familiar voice.

"That's right, Yu-chan!"

Kasamatsu wanted to scream. There the other four were, emerging from their room all decked out in their pyjamas. He thought they would have been asleep since it's after one o'clock in the morning!

"Why are you up?!" he asked in disbelief.

Kagami started, "Because this thing won't let me sleep." he yawned, referring to Kise.

"I need to know what happened with Reiko-nee." Kise said, plopping himself beside Kasamatsu on the sofa. He ignored Kagami's comment.

"I just feel uneasy knowing that someone is still out on the street. I couldn't sleep until you're back." Kuroko responded. Kasamatsu agreed with the light-blue haired teen. His mother at home was like that.

The captain then turned to Takao in which the boy replied, "Your warm presence radiates upwards, you know? My bed was cold."

Kasamatsu got up and was leaving when they asked, "Where are you going?"

He replied, "the shower. I've been dancing for far too long." he quickly headed to the shower before they made their comments. He had left his phone on the table and the moment he turned on the shower pipe, his phone rang. Hearing the ringtone, Kasamatsu broke out in tears. He could literally hear Kise's endless teasing for the weeks to come.

"Senpai~" Kise called in a sing-song voice, "Reiko-nee is calling~"

Kasamatsu turned his face upwards in the direction of the running water. "Give me the phone." he groaned out.

"Hai, hai...Onii-chan~"

At this moment, Kasamatsu wished the earth would swallow him whole at this moment.

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