It's been awhile! (University kidnapped me) So, hi guys! Anyway, just want to pop in and say thank you for all this tremendous support. With readers like your guys, I don't think I'll ever get tired of writing!
Warnings: bad language (3 effers), threats of violence, anddd terrible (terrible) editing.
Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroko no Basuke
The Aftermath
After much consideration, Hana divided her life into three separate problems.
Currently, she was working on problem number one.
Herself.
With the help of her friends, the first step to reclaiming her past attitude was done after she'd pulled herself out of the pity-party she'd managed to fall into. Now it was time for the good stuff. This is what I goddamn deserve. Twenty-four hours after her friend's departure, steam filled the bathroom as Hana relaxed deeper into the bathtub. From the facet, bubbles built into a tall, strawberry scented heap, covering her from head to toe. This is the life, man.
Barely skimming the surface of the water, her right hand held her phone and mindlessly scrolled through an assortment of online videos. Since leaving her friends yesterday afternoon, Hana had been hit with a revelation. A come to Jesus moment, if you'd prefer. One second she'd been sleeping and the next she'd been throwing the covers off with her enlightenment. Because yesterday had been awesome.
To be frank, Hana couldn't really remember the last time she actually liked basketball the way she had then.
After coming to Seirin, she'd lost track of what really mattered and being the manager became a struggle. It wasn't supposed to be that way, but with the Miracles popping up every damn second and drama coming from each direction, Hana had pushed herself to work harder just to stand up to them. She stopped looking at the big picture and began hyper focusing on the little details, things she couldn't even control.
And well, that needed to stop. Like now.
Honestly, it was a shame she was only learning this lesson now. Middle school wouldn't have been such a bitch. Basketball wasn't life or death, it was a hobby. Something meant to be enjoyed, and damnit, she wouldn't ruin the only constant she'd had in her life just because everyone else was being a sour ass.
The video on her tiny phone screen changed, pulling up an interview with an American basketball player. Wiggling her toes in the soapy water, Hana's lips curled into a smile. This is what she enjoyed. Learning, planning, scheming, all of the above and more. This is what she never wanted to lose, the drive for information and the courage to keep pushing forward.
Now, she just needed to find a way for everything to work together. Somehow, she needed to combine her interests into the rest of her life, without allowing herself to get overwhelmed again. She needed a balance. The easy answer was simply setting a schedule, but that didn't sound nearly as entertaining as the other ideas floating around her cortex.
And, if there was anything Hana learned from her oldest friends, it was that she'd really missed having fun.
"Well," she reclined into the water and clicked the next video, "Let's do this shit."
Head sitting on the rim of the bathtub, Nūdoru snorted.
Rude. Hana flicked some bubbles in his direction, "Don't be an ass. I feed you."
x
x
With the first step of her three-step plan in progress, it was time to tackle the second issue of her life.
Her team.
As a manager, her teammates were supposed to be a priority. Maybe she'd slacked behind a bit on the whole taking care of them thing, but she was going to resolve that little problem. After the shit they'd gone through last week, the Seirin players weren't quite up to their normal functioning levels. Hell, even Hana herself couldn't remember the details of their last practice due to her own troubles. They all deserved a goddamn break.
So, with a skip to her step, Hana made her way to the gymnasium the next Monday afternoon. In her arms, she carried a slightly smushed box of cupcakes. Sugar solves everything, right? She hoped so. Hana would be a bit pissed if no one appreciated the effort she'd gone through to bake these diabetic devils. I don't care if they taste like shit, they better eat every single one of these.
Five minutes and a short walk later, Hana arrived and pushed the large metal door open with her hip, "Hellllooo?"
It took a second, but eventually someone replied to her yodeling.
"Imamura-chan?" Riko was the only one there and she'd already changed into her practice attire. When the coach met Hana's gaze, there was a surprising amount of relief in there, "You're here early, is everything okay?"
"Absolutely spectacular," Hana chirped as she stepped inside. Okay was an understatement. At this point, the only thing that could bring her down was probably an alien invasion, "I've awakened. My true form is coming to light and I'm ready to take on the whole damn world. Like a… butterfly or something."
The coach paused, "… what?"
"Yeah, that was a little dramatic, wasn't it?" a flush crawled over her cheeks, but Hana paid it no mind as she showed Riko the cupcakes, "I just meant I'm ready to get back to business. See, business cupcakes."
The following silence became suffocating, but Hana continued to grin awkwardly. Please do not continue this conversation—
"Not to be rude," Riko stalled, gaze flickering from the cupcakes and to Hana respectfully. The relief in her earlier tone faded into something wary, "But the last time I saw you, you weren't quite this… happy?"
And the conversation is sadly… continued. She'd admit the coach had a point though. The last week had been filled with tense silences, nervous glances, and stepping on eggshells. Not only had Hana worried about her own temper, she'd been overly careful in minding everyone else's and it all meshed into something uncomfortable. Definitely not happy.
"I guess so," Hana admitted after a moment, "Tōō really kicked my ass."
Watching the manager, Riko made a concerned noise, "What changed?"
A whole lot. Hana walked toward the stage at the back of the gym and put the cupcakes down before turning her attention back to Riko, "I had some help and well…" her grin became genuine as she repeated Futabatei's words, "I'm not going to give up on the thing I love just because losing hurts like hell."
And wasn't that something? But, seriously, she was damn tired of losing stuff. It was like a never-ending cycle. She'd lost her mentor, the friendship with the Generation of Assholes, and she'd even lost contact with her mother of all things. So, in the face of a couple shitty games, Hana would rather take those odds than losing grip on the other important things in her life.
"Really?" following after Hana, Riko's lips quirked into a smile, "I'm glad to hear it. We were all a bit worried after you skipped last practice."
"…" Wait, back up and let's go over that again. Hana's bright attitude flattered, "I skipped last practice?"
"Yeah, on Friday—" Riko's smile fell at Hana's continued lack of understanding before a small tick blossomed on her forehead. The coach made a nifty imitation of a snarl, "Did you even know we had practice?"
"I came on Thursday," she wasn't sure the facial expression she wore, but the painful furrow between Hana's brows lent itself to confusion, "I thought that was the last one?"
No… I'm sure. I wouldn't forget something like that. Due to her shitty mood from last week, she couldn't really remember what happened… but Hana was almost positive that had been the last one—
Riko deadpanned, "No."
Shit.
"Well, that puts a damper on things," leaning against the wooden stage, Hana rubbed a hand over her now aching temple. Apparently, the loss had effected more than just her attitude, "What a bitch. Did I miss anything important?"
"Other than practice," breaking her scowl, Riko appeared to think for a second, "Teppei is coming back today—"
Wait, wait, wait! Green eyes widened into dramatic portions and Hana tried to recall what'd happened at Thursday's practice. I hope I'm not losing my mind— that would suck ass. She remembered one itsy-bitty little mention of the forgotten upperclassmen, but other than that… na-da.
"He's coming back? Today?" Hana repeated Riko's admission with an added level of exasperation, "Why does no one tell me these things? Why didn't he tell me? Since when was this a thing?"
Eyebrow raising dubiously, Riko countered, "Well, if you came to practice."
Huh, that's a fair point. Didn't make things much better, but it was a fair point.
"Touché," Hana moaned, "I don't have to run laps, do I?"
"For now, no," Riko allowed. Crossing her arms over her chest, Riko moved her gaze out to the empty basketball court, "We really were worried. You'd been acting strange all week and when you didn't show up, I'd assumed the worst."
The worst? That sounded a tad too solemn for an after-school conversation. So, with a smirk, Hana joked to hide the strange feeling in her chest, "That I got abducted by a cult? Don't worry, you're in my will—"
"That you quit," the coach's voice was quiet and Riko didn't turn toward her with the admission, "I know the games have been rough on everyone and it's going to take a while to build morale up. I could use your help."
Well, that went from zero to a hundred real quick. She understood where Riko's concerns came from, but Hana's expression still pinched, "Hate to tell you, but I'm not much good with the helping thing. Why haven't people realized this yet?"
"Teppei would say differently," Riko glanced toward her, small smile gracing her face. I hate that smile. She liked it even less when Riko continued, "You may not be the most tactful person, but you know how to get what you want."
How kind, coach. Hana snorted at the implication, "Was that an insult? It sounded like an insult."
"It wasn't," Riko shook her head while her expression remained thoughtful, "Your methods are a bit manipulative, but you know how to get people to understand you. Kagami-kun and Kuroko-kun…"
"Everyone needs to hug it out," the gym door opened and Hana watched Hyuuga walk in. Knowing their conversation was about to be cut short, Hana nudged Riko in the shoulder, "Trust me, it works wonders."
Riko hummed as she straightened up, "I'll leave it to you then."
"Yeah, no," denying the accusation, Hana followed Riko's steps to the center of the court, "Come on, coach! I'm shit with the emotional things. Like absolute shit—"
Hana's sentence was untimely interrupted when Hyuuga laid his eyes on her. I swear they have this planned. It took a moment to register, but when it did, the flash of his glasses was Hana's only warning. Shit, shit, shit. Beside her, Riko made an amused noise and took the few steps needed to safety. Well, there goes backup.
"Imamura!" Hyuuga's finger was suddenly pointed in her direction. When Hana shot Riko a pleading look, the coach simply smiled before pretending Hana ceased to exist, "Where have you been!?"
Oh, dear. Hana took a step back toward the stage, "Uhm, I thought we had Friday off?"
"…" Hyuuga's brow twitched as he continued his advance, "You're just as bad as Kagami."
No! It isn't true! Holding a hand to her heart, Hana took another step back with her retort, "Don't compare me to him! I actually came most of last week!"
Still stomping toward her, Hyuuga's glower grew behind the sheen of his glasses, "What is with you shitty underclassmen and excuses? Show some respect!"
"It was one day!" Hana countered, "It wasn't even on purpose!"
"You still skipped!"
"On accident! Woah— chill! I brought cupcakes!"
"I don't want a cupcake—"
"That's not true," reaching behind her, Hana retrieved the cupcakes with a shaky smile. Flipping the lid up, she showcased the little basketballs she'd, oh so lovingly, painted on, "How can you not want one of these beauties?"
Come on. Take the bribe. The captain's eyes narrowed on her face before slowly falling to the cupcakes. A beat of silence passed, when finally, Hyuuga pushed at the bridge of his glasses and looked away, "… shitty brat."
Hana forced herself not to cackle in victory when he took a cupcake.
A long fifteen minutes later, the whole team was assembled. Even our guest star, Kagami! The redhead managed to sneak in at the last possible second, looking all things aside, like he never left. That extra week of downtime he'd taken sure didn't change much. The only unusual aspect about him was the potent layer of aggressiveness that still hung about.
Sitting on her perch at the edge of the stage, Hana kicked her legs out as she watched the group chatter, her gaze lingering a bit too long on Kuroko and Kagami. The shorter player caught her eyes at the motion and a moment of anticipation passed through them until Hana turned away. The movement stung in her chest, but she wasn't sure she had the balls to speak to them today.
It'd be a shame for her newfound happiness to get stubbed out so quickly.
I'll deal with their drama later. Hana decided as she nibbled on her third cupcake. Despite the lingering tension between her two friends, a fast building excitement crawled upon her. After all the drama since the Shutoku match, Hana hadn't been able to visit Kiyoshi the way she once had. I'm such a shitty person. Now, with him finally returning, she was hoping to restore some of their comradery.
Or at least snag some more fruit cups.
So, when the long-awaited newcomer stepped through the door, Hana wasn't quite sure why she was so surprised. Actually, scratch that, she knew why. Because Kiyoshi Teppei was another goddamn giant. After only seeing him in a hospital bed for who knows how long, Hana forgot that the older boy even had legs. It sounded terrible, but it's true.
"Guys," Riko called as she stepped toward the new player. When she gained everyone's attention, she motioned to Kiyoshi with a proud smile, "This is Kiyoshi Teppei."
It took another moment for Kiyoshi's attire to be noticed. The upperclassman was dressed in his former Seirin uniform and when Hyuuga saw, it didn't take long for him to call him out on it. Captain's a little exuberant today. The thought was registered indifferently, Hana still not over the shock of the new height difference.
"You're tall again," Hana grumbled as she jumped off the stage. When she stood in front of Kiyoshi, she blinked up at him, "I don't like it. Go back to being my level."
Two fuzzy eyebrows quirked and Kiyoshi's turned down to her, "Imamura? It's been a long time."
"I know. My bad," bringing her hand up to scrub at the back of her neck, Hana coughed, "I meant to visit you more— but well, yeah. Shit happened."
A massive hand fell on her head and Hana jolted. The action reminded her a bit too strongly of Futabatei's. Ignoring her flinch, Kiyoshi cracked a grin, "Don't apologize. I'm just glad to see you in one piece."
She opened her mouth to reply to his teasing, only to be beaten to it by Kawahara, "They're so familiar… but if Kiyoshi-san is an upperclassman, how does Imamura-san know him?"
That seemed to be the question of the year, as even Kagami displayed a bit of curiosity at the answer. It's really not that interesting. With a huff, Hana pouted when all the upperclassmen exchanged fond looks. Eventually, it was Riko who broke the silence, "We actually met Imamura-chan last year, during one of our tournaments."
"Met?" Hyuuga snorted in the background, crossing his arms over his chest, "More like she broke into his hospital room and never left."
Oh, bullshit. Hana straightened, "I resent that."
"She brought something every visit," Izuki added, exchanging a look with Mitobe at the memory. They both disregarded Hana's glower, "There were a lot of very strange cupcakes…"
"Hey, come on! I didn't visit that much. Besides, why are you complaining?" Hana retorted as she threw her hands up, "You guys loved those cupcakes."
Ignoring the last comment, Hyuuga raised a brow, "You came twice every week."
"I needed something to do back then. Visiting was a lot more fun than sitting on my ass," she steadily avoided looking in Kuroko's direction. Hana could feel his eyes bleeding into her skin, and by god, it was not a pleasant feeling, "Kiyoshi didn't mind."
"That's true," Kiyoshi made an appraising sound before Hyuuga could reply, "Well, I could have done without you stealing my fruit cups."
You're not getting an apology. Hana shrugged the accusation off, "Those things were heavenly. Speaking of that, did you bring one?"
"They didn't let me take any home. Sorry," with a laugh, Kiyoshi patted her head before removing his hand. With one large step back, his attention went to the rest of the Seirin teammates, mainly the underclassmen, "As you know, I'm Kiyoshi Teppei and I'm risking three years of consecutive wins by coming back here, so I hope you guys don't let me down. Now— when's Inter-high?"
The noise level dropped dramatically. After a second, Izuki's face fell as he answered, "We already lost."
Kiyoshi blinked, "What about the Winter Cup?"
Hyuuga's brow ticked, "In the winter."
"Huh," Kiyoshi rubbed at his chin, "Where is it this year?"
"Tokyo!" while the rest of the team exploded into a barrage of disbelief, Hana took a step back, "It's always in Tokyo!"
And this is where I tune out. Giving Kiyoshi one last fond look, Hana turned on her heel to head back to the stage's edge. I've claimed my new territory. What she hadn't been expecting was for Kuroko to suddenly appear in her line of sight, centimeters away from her path forward. What's a better wake up call than a damn heart attack?
"Imamura-san," blue eyes scanned over Hana's shell-shocked features before Kuroko inclined his head, "Are you alright? I didn't see you at our last practice."
That was… unexpected. Hana blinked, "Uhm, yeah. My brain was all screwy last week and I accidentally skipped practice. No biggie."
Eyebrows flicking down the slightest fraction, Kuroko frowned, "If you're sure."
Yep, totally do not have the balls for this. Kuroko's features didn't look any different than how she'd last seen him, but there was something off about his presentation. Hana couldn't put her finger on his tone and in response, a fight or flight response grew. Kuroko was just so… difficult. She'd already lost him once and if she spoke out of turn, history might repeat itself.
"Absolutely positive," Hana raised her hands. I don't know how to do this. A slightly strained smile pulled at her lips, "Don't worry about lil' old me. But hey, you should go practice."
Tilting her head back to practice, Hana brought Kuroko's attention to the court and subsequently, Kagami. His earlier aggressiveness had yet to fade, apparently ramping up after Kiyoshi's appearance and now Kagami was stalking under the hoop like a caged lion. That comparison is probably not far off the mark.
Despite this, Kuroko tried again, "Imamura-san—"
"I made cupcakes," the subject change wasn't subtle at all, but it ceased whatever he'd tried to say, "Might want to grab one before Koganei eats them all."
When Kuroko transferred his attention to the upperclassman shoving a pastry into his mouth, Hana took that time to escape. Who knew cupcakes could be so useful? It didn't take long before she felt Kuroko's stare return to her back, but she'd already put a good bit of distance between them. The feeling only faded when Riko's whistle rang across the gym and Hana returned to her seat.
A deep sigh escaped when the pressure faded. What do I do with him?
The question was left without an answer when practice started minutes later. The layout remained the same, except now Kiyoshi stood off to the side, deceptively kind eyes scanning the proceedings. Probably doesn't like what he sees. Hana would agree to that. A good bit of pressure still existed in the team's movements, mostly focusing between Kuroko and Kagami.
While it wouldn't be a huge deal otherwise, Seirin's playing style relied almost unhealthily on the duo's combined force. To further cement that notion, Kuroko misjudged his next pass and after a few bounces, the ball leisurely rolled off court. There goes teamwork.
No one moved for a second, all eyes simply watching the ball roll away in a moment of reverence.
"…" Hana's shoulders slumped, "This is going to be a bitch."
xXxXxXx
It was, in fact, quite the bitch.
Glowering at Kiyoshi's back, Hana tightened the band around her ponytail. She was a bit miffed, to be honest. She should have known things wouldn't progress easily. The earlier practice had hardly lasted fifteen minutes before Kiyoshi challenged Kagami to a one on one for the starting position. Ugh, male dominance.
See, that wasn't really the problem though. Due to his stomping elephant impersonation, Hana wasn't that happy with Kagami at the moment. Additionally, the time in which they hadn't talked to one another had only made the grudge grow sour. She figured losing would be a good wakeup call for the ace.
So, it was safe to say, Hana wanted Kiyoshi to win.
Which he didn't.
"Your shoes," Hana huffed under her breath for the umpteenth time, "Why couldn't you have just changed your damn shoes? You would have won, man."
Walking on Kiyoshi's left, Hyuuga snorted, "Complaining isn't going to change anything, Imamura."
She sniffed, "It might."
It wouldn't, but who cared about common sense? Not me, that's for damn sure.
Silence grew around the little group of three as the moon peeked through the clouds, illuminating the sidewalk with the aid of several streetlights. Lately, due to Kagami's lack of presence at practice, Hana had the joy of taking the walk home alone. So, it came with great surprise when Kiyoshi offered to walk with her. She wasn't quite sure how Hyuuga got dragged into it though.
"I was under the impression you and Kagami got along," hands placed behind his head, Kiyoshi paused in his steps to shoot her a confused look, "When did that change?"
"…" Hyuuga stopped, giving his friend a disbelieving gape, "Who said they got along?"
Kiyoshi tilted in head in Hana's direction, "Imamura."
"Yeah, nope," following in her companions' footsteps, Hana ceased her movements, "I never said that."
"Huh," Kiyoshi blinked before shrugging, "My mistake."
Uh-huh, I'm sure it was. Still standing still, Hyuuga and Hana exchanged dry looks. That tone sounded scarily similar to the one he'd used earlier with Kagami. As Kiyoshi got further and further away, Hana broke their hush, "He's doing that thing. You know, where he hides his scheming with stupidity?"
"That's one way to put it," scoffing, Hyuuga pushed the bridge of his glasses up before stomping after the other upperclassman, "He always does that."
Don't tell me. Hana narrowed her eyes as she jogged to catch up to her captain. The undertone of his statement made something bing in her mind, "Is that why he offered to walk me home? Am I in the middle of an intervention? Wait— are we in the middle of an intervention?"
"Who knows?" shoulders lifting in a shrug, Hyuuga shook his head in denial, "There's no telling with Teppei."
"…" her steps wavered, "Yeah, because that makes me feel better."
Despite that, the rest of their walk continued in relative ease on Hana's part. While Kiyoshi and Hyuuga chattered, her mind was working in overdrive. There was still so much she didn't know how to fix. Putting all the problems of her teammates into a neat and tidy little box wasn't possible. There were just too many technicalities involved. Too many assholes to handle.
So, when their group came to a stop at the next vending machine, Hana decided to do the proper thing and ask her elders for advice. Even if they are as eccentric as these two. When Hyuuga ventured closer to the machine, Hana turned her attention to the other upperclassman. The lesser of two evils.
"Hey, Kiyoshi," Hana's voice came from the side of the nearest wall, halting the conversation around her, "What do you think about everything?"
Both boys paused, Kiyoshi turning around to address her, "Everything?"
"The team," Hana elaborated as she kicked against the sidewalk, "How are we doing?"
It took a moment for Kiyoshi to form a response, "It's interesting…"
"Interesting," her shoulders fell, "That tells me so much—"
"You're talking about Kuroko and Kagami," also turning, Hyuuga rejoined the conversation after inserting his money into the vending machine, "Aren't you?"
When Kiyoshi nodded, Hana's nose scrunched with her reply, "Oh. Well that's easy, they're both being dumbasses."
"Both?" Hyuuga's attention fell onto her, "I thought Kuroko was fine. It's Kagami that's acting up… his playing style is becoming a lot like the Generation of Miracles."
"A little bit," Hana shrugged. Sure, there were comparisons, but they weren't identical anymore, "He's more… impulsive. Everything the Generation of Miracles do is calculated. Kagami plays with pure reaction."
"…" resting on the opposite side of the wall, something flashed in Kiyoshi's eyes when he acknowledged Hana's statement, "Imamura's right. If anything, I'd assume Kuroko resembled their playing style more so than Kagami."
"Ew," Hana argued. She could agree, but she didn't want to insult Kuroko that way, "Don't do that to Kuroko. Poor guy doesn't need that shitty comparison."
Kiyoshi hummed, "In some ways, it isn't a bad thing."
Eh. After a moment, Hana squinted, "I guess. As long as it's not Akashi or Aomine, that's fine. Those two suck the most ass."
"I didn't know you were so close with them again," Kiyoshi's brow rose, "I thought—"
"Nope," Hana made a slashing motion with her hands. We do not talk about the unholy glory that is middle school, "We— some of us— I don't know. Three of the six are okay, that's all."
"I've been meaning to ask about that," Hyuuga finally reached down to retrieve his drink. When he straightened back up, he gave Hana an annoyed look, "You hate them one second, then the next time you see them you're all buddy-buddy."
"It's complicated…" Hana stalled at the invasive question, barely avoiding Kiyoshi's knowing stare, "I should say the same to you and your stupid clutch mode! Talk about a personality shift."
Hyuuga twitched, "What does that have to do with anything? Don't change the subject!"
"I didn't! You did!"
"… You're still changing the subject, Imamura."
"Yeah, well," when Hyuuga raised a dubious eyebrow, Hana stuck out her tongue in childish retribution, "You changed it first."
Relaxing against the wall, Kiyoshi's mouth jerked into a small smile as he watched. The two continued to bicker between themselves, unknowing of the calculation that entered the tallest boy's eyes at the familial undertone. When Hyuuga took a threatening step toward Hana, Kiyoshi chose that moment to clear his throat and regain the attention.
"What made you ask for my opinion, Imamura?" Kiyoshi's gaze narrowed in on the moment her shoulders tensed, "It looked like you were thinking about something."
Can everyone read minds? Is this just a skill only I lack? Even Hyuuga paused at Kiyoshi's question as Hana shuffled out a response, "I was just wondering."
Kiyoshi's eyebrow rose, "About what?"
"It's nothing important," Hana's eye twitched at his insistence. Move on already, "I'm just trying to figure out how to help. What I'm supposed to do and all that therapeutic bullshit."
"You're the manager," Kiyoshi's response was quick and to the point. Obviously, he wasn't understanding her issue with it all, "The best thing for you to do is continue supporting us."
Wait— Support. Old advice from an asshole long gone rang through her mind. You're supposed to support us, in any way you can. Hana's brow creased uncomfortably, "What do you mean by support?"
"Whatever you feel is best," unknowing of the relief the words brought on, Kiyoshi gave Hana a reassuring smile, "It always helps to have someone encouraging you."
"And by encouraging…" Hana trailed off, switching her stare between the two upperclassmen, "You mean to help you guys develop. Or, push you to succeed, right?"
"That's the technical definition, yes," tilting his head, Kiyoshi finally nodded in resolution, "Both of those would work."
Well, pushing people's buttons tended to be one of her better talents. Push them to succeed…I like that. Energy buzzed in the base of her heels and Hana lifted herself off the wall, "Yeah, I can do this shit."
"Imamura," Hyuuga stepped in front of her and merged into the conversation, voice wary with apprehension, "Just… Just don't do anything crazy."
Brows furrowing, Kiyoshi questioned, "Crazy?"
"I'd never do anything bad," Hana was already stepping away from the group, eyes intent on the sidewalk leading toward her house. Plans began to race through her mind and she was not letting Hyuuga's paranoia ruin them, "But hey— thanks for walking with me, I've got the rest of it covered though."
"…" Kiyoshi blinked in tandem with Hyuuga, "Alright? Goodbye, Imamura—"
The parting fell on empty air since Hana was already jogging down the sidewalk. With an air of confusion, Kiyoshi stared after her back only to be broken from his trance by an untimely groan. When he peeked toward Hyuuga, he frowned at the look of annoyance that adorned his face.
"You have," Hyuuga pinched the bridge of his nose when he met Kiyoshi's stare, "No idea what you just did."
"How so?" Kiyoshi looked back after Hana's back, "Imamura isn't that bad—"
Hyuuga deadpanned, "The last time I saw her that excited, she broke into Kaijo. She's been calmer lately, but…"
After a moment of silence, Kiyoshi coughed, "Kaijo?"
"Yeah," with a sigh, Hyuuga lifted his hand to bring his drink to his mouth only to pause. At the lack of cold beverage, a tight grin stretched across his cheeks and a glance at Kiyoshi confirmed his suspicions. There was only one culprit, "That little shit."
"Hmm?" Kiyoshi tilted his head over his shoulder before faltering, "Oh. She took it?"
A dark aura began to build over the captain, "I'm going to kill her."
"… Let's not go that far."
x
x
With the easiest of her problems confronted, Hana now had to deal with the most difficult.
Her friends.
And their stupid ego dominated mindsets.
After Kagami's return, Hana kept a careful eye on the separated shadow and light duo. Despite her habit of rushing into things, she decided to take the cautious route on this issue. Her feelings were still a bit hurt by their last conversation and running into this would only promise more issues. There was a time and a place for everything, and so far, the ideal time hadn't presented itself.
Until it had. Kiyoshi said I should support them. While tension still cloyed the interactions between Kagami and Kuroko, something was beginning to ease and a day after their last practice game, she made her move. Well, it's time I start supporting. She'd avoided Kagami long enough and now, it was time to make her stance clear—
With a goddamn bang.
"Open the door!" Her fist rammed into the apartment door again, "I know you're in there, Kagami!"
There was a noise that sounded suspiciously like a plate breaking, "… Imamura?!"
"See!" Hana attacked the door again, subsequently cursing as the wood dug into her knuckles, "Open the damn door!"
"… You've got to be kidding," his voice was muffled from the other side, "What the hell are you doing here?"
The door is still shut. Glaring at the tiny peephole, Hana hissed, "I'm here to talk. Now, if you'd please—"
A pause, "No."
Two trembling fists clenched and, if possible, Hana's eyes narrowed into even sharper slits. No? That's all you've got to say. A goddamn no?! Shaking her head out, she took a deep breath. Anger wouldn't open that door. No… she needed to be smart about this. What's Kagami's weakness? There were a couple, but one offered the fastest response.
"Huh…" clearing her throat, Hana resumed her yelling, "You can't just ignore me! After all those nights we spent together?!"
A loud crash echoed from the other side.
It's working! A sly grin pulled at her lips as she rested her forehead against the door, "How can you do this to me?! You promised— and you're leaving me! For that harlot!"
"You're absolutely crazy," Kagami's groan followed another clang, "Go away!"
Oh, no. I'm just getting to the best part. Letting a healthy amount of sniffles work into her tone, Hana went for the finale, "But— but— what about the baby, Taiga?!"
The door flung open and a massive hand latched onto her shirt collar, pulling her into the apartment. It didn't take long for her to be further tugged into the home and shoved onto the closest couch. Jeez, ever heard of being gentle? When Hana's whiplash faded, she was greeted by the sight of a furiously blushing Kagami.
"You," Kagami practically spat the word out, "are insane! I have neighbors, Imamura!"
"I mean, you opened the door," Hana blinked as she poked the couch cushion. Leather? Fancy Americans, "I would have been chased off eventually."
For a moment, it looked like Kagami was seriously going to kill her. The flush on his face began to creep into his eyebrows and as he stood above her, muscular shoulders started to quiver. Well, Hana swallowed as Kagami's glare narrowed, this is a hell of a way to die. Seconds ticked down in a stalemate when finally, Kagami took a deep breath.
Slapping a hand against his face, he groaned, "You— you're a conniving bitch."
"Awh, missed me?" the words left her mouth shakily. I'm just glad I'm alive. Heart racing, Hana distracted herself by inspecting Kagami's apartment, "Man, you are living the life. You live here alone?"
Sinking down onto the couch, Kagami muttered, "I'm not even going to ask how you know that."
"Research," Hana shrugged. Looking away from the window and tilting her head to the side, she raised an eyebrow at Kagami's state of undress. Clad in only a pair of navy sweatpants and an apron, he looked like the perfect house wife. "I think you're missing some clothes."
The movement was slow as he looked down at himself. I'm almost feeling a bit sorry for him. When his bare chest greeted his vision, he cursed, "Goddamn it, Imamura."
"You can't blame that on me," Hana refuted, "I'm not the nudist here."
A hand flashed out in her direction and Kagami growled when she dodged the attack, "You're the one that showed up so early."
"Oh, poor you," It's only six, stop being a baby. As he shoved himself off the couch, Hana smirked, "Leaving me alone? Brave, aren't you?"
"…" Kagami paused in his exit to glower at her, "Don't touch anything."
Yeah, like that was going to happen. Still, Hana nodded her head in agreement. Her good behavior lasted until Kagami vanished from sight. Adventure time. Sliding off the couch, Hana meandered over to the stack of movies laid out beside the television, "You've got shit taste in movies. Hey— weren't you in the kitchen?"
"I told you not to touch anything! I was cooking breakfast—" Kagami barked as he came out of his bedroom. It took a moment for the statement to register, but when it did, he hauled ass, "Damn it!"
Racing down the hallway, Kagami's shoulder clipped the wall's corner as he flung himself into the kitchen. The action almost sent him sprawling to the floor, but he caught himself just in time. Smooth. Hana brought a hand to her mouth, attempting to hide her laughter. It didn't work.
Run, Kagami, run!
Ten awkward minutes later, Kagami slammed a plate of food in front of Hana before he collapsed into the chair on the opposite side of the table. Uhm… His shoulders resumed their earlier trembling and Hana watched him with a wary eye, slowly reaching out and pulling the plate closer to her. It looks edible. She sniffed it once before saying to hell with it and digging in. Kagami wouldn't poison me. I hope.
Of course, Kagami chose that moment to speak, "You never told me what you're doing here."
Let me eat, man! Swallowing down the food, Hana coughed before she explained, "To talk. Obviously."
"You could have done that at school," stabbing a fork into his breakfast, he scowled at her, "It would have been better than breaking into my apartment—"
"Yeah, and you would have ignored me," Hana deflected, "Like you're doing to everyone."
In response, Kagami raised an eyebrow, "I could say the same to you."
"You haven't tried to talk to me, dumbass," when his mouth opened again, Hana promptly cut him off, "I know Kuroko has, but I'm letting him figure his shit out first."
"You're a hypocrite," Kagami spoke with a mouth full of food and Hana's nose wrinkled at the bits of egg that fell out, "You shouldn't have waited this long."
What? See, now Hana was beginning to get a bit pissed. He's not turning this around onto me. Her hand clenched around the edge of her fork, "Like you? You two still haven't talked and you've been doing this shit for weeks now."
Kagami only shrugged, "There's nothing to talk about."
Honestly, his nonchalance infuriated her. Especially when he damn well knows he screwed up! They'd all screwed up, but at least Hana was willing to admit it. Mostly. Sure, she cared about his stupid hotheaded ass and his lack of social awareness… but this healing process would go a hell of a lot smoother if Kagami would talk! I'm trying here!
"There's a shit ton to talk about!" Hana's hands slapped into Kagami's table, breakfast forgotten, "You just left Kuroko at the end of that game, it was a dick move—"
"I didn't leave him," placing his fork down with enough force to rattle the table, Kagami glared back at her, "You don't know what you're talking about, Imamura."
I'm going to scream. Her left eye twitched, "I was right there. You know, right there? Maybe five feet away from you?"
Kagami's head lowered as he snorted, "You wouldn't get it—"
Great, here comes this shit again.
"Because I'm a manager? Oh, I know that. You made that abundantly clear," nails digging into the finish of the table, Hana plowed on, "I'm not on the same level as either of you two and I don't getit. Because I see more than you! All you see is your head shoved up your ass—"
"Shut up!" The following reply was quite in the aftereffects of his explosion, "Just— shut up, Imamura."
"No!" Hana swallowed the sting those words brought on, "Everyone tells me to shut up and I did! I let you guys handle your shit, but you aren't handling it! You're just… gah! I'm tired of keeping my mouth shut when you idiots keep being so goddamn stupid!"
It always came back to that. Either she said too much or she said it wrong and Hana was so goddamn tired of it. You're annoying, Imamura. Shut up, Imamura. You don't know what you're talking about, Imamura. Well, screw that. She had a damn awesome voice and he better listen to it well, because she had some shit to say.
"You just," taking a long breath, Hana released her death grip on the table, "You just gave up. What the hell happened back there?"
Arms shaking, Kagami's hand splayed out across the table and a moment of silence passed. With his focus still fixed downward, he began again, "I couldn't do it. I couldn't stand up to Aomine. Even with… even with Kuroko, we were no match."
"Kuroko can't hold you up, idiot," voice still raspy from her outburst, Hana sighed, "And you can't hold Kuroko up. Look past basketball for a second—"
"You don't get it," a weak huff crawled out of Kagami's throat, "I couldn't do anything against him."
Would you stop saying that?! Even at the risk of ruining the mood, her face fell into a deadpan, "That is exactly how I feel. All the time."
"It isn't the same—"
Raising a hand to cut off his incoming denial, Hana continued, "It's not the same, sure, but you think I didn't beat myself up over losing to Tōō? I was supposed to know better, I mean I knew them, but I still couldn't do anything."
"…" lifting his head completely, Kagami stared at her across the table, "What'd you do about it?"
"I had some help," her lip pulled up a bit, "I won't lie, it was a bitch to move past it, but I'm not letting a prick like Aomine beat me."
A hush fell over the tiny four-seater table. For a second, Kagami didn't make any motion to show he acknowledged her. Instead, he continued to eat and glare down at the table. It could have been seconds or minutes before he finally released a rumbling sigh. With that action alone, all the tension in the room seemed to seep away.
A few minutes of comfortable hush passed, broken only by the occasional chewing.
"Huh," pausing in his digesting, Kagami poked at his breakfast. The past silence vanished with his thoughtful grunt, "Hey, Imamura?"
Stalling with a bit of food hanging inches away from her mouth, Hana raised an eyebrow, "What?"
"Why'd you come here?" he finally allowed, "Why me and not Kuroko—"
Damn. She'd hoped he'd drop that. Hana shrugged a bit, "You're easier."
"Bullshit," Kagami even managed a little laugh at the statement, "Tell me the truth."
"Don't be sassy. You really are easier," she lowered her gaze to the half empty plate of breakfast. Well, she had technically sabotaged his breakfast, might as well explain a bit, "Me and Kuroko… we've been through some shit. That's why I'm letting him figure it out."
One red eyebrow quirked, "You're scared?"
"Well…" when he puts it that way. Clicking her tongue, Hana peaked back up at her companion, "I guess. It's just— this little sob fest hit a bit too close to home. I don't want to screw up our friendship again."
"Really?" Kagami rolled his eyes with an untimely snort, "I doubt Kuroko—"
I do not need your snark, mister. A sharp finger pointed in his direction, "See, now you're the one that doesn't get it. They're sensitive, man. Push the wrong button and woo, drama."
"… they're?"
"Don't look at me like that. Not… all of them," her hand waved about in frantic denial, "Just the tolerable ones. Anyway, I've worked my ass off to rebuild shit—"
"Wait," Kagami deadpanned, "Kise is tolerable? What the hell, you've dealt with Midorima and you're worried about Kuroko?"
Is it really that simple? She'd like to say no, but it might be. Their dispute during middle school never really lingered long between Kuroko and herself. Yet, on the other hand, that only offered more complications. What if she did say something to him and proved every paranoia filled hypothesis correct?
"Erhm," she stalled, "Okay… looking past the Kise and Midorima comment, you've got to understand, Kuroko's difficult. He's a wildcard."
"You're crazy," with the simplicity only a male could offer, he continued, "Just talk to him. You don't need to worry about Kuroko."
Yeah, not that simple. Despite Kagami's amusement, Kuroko really was a wildcard. Due to the finely crafted mask of apathy he wore, there wasn't a concrete way to understand his motives or thought process. Like jumping into the deep end without knowing how to swim. So, Hana needed plans before she ventured into the pit of Kuroko's emotional state. Lots of plans.
"Oh, damn," Hana's eyebrow rose dubiously, "Look at that. I knew you hid a soft side, I just didn't think it'd be this sappy."
"It's not like that!" choking, he shook off his embarrassment with a timely cough, "I'm just saying, you should talk to him."
Yeah, no thanks. It's time we move on from this little heart to heart. Propping her chin on her palm, she drawled, "Wow, thank you for that advice. You're so smart. The smartest man I've ever met, maybe you should follow your own advice?"
"…" Her sarcasm offered the desired effect and Kagami's fork stopped centimeters away from his mouth. Two crimson eyes narrowed on her, "Get out of my apartment if you're going to be a smartass."
"Nah."
"Imamura—"
"Come on," sticking out her lower lip, Hana gifted him her most potent pout. Time for the killing blow, "I thought we were bonding?"
Her statement worked wonders and Kagami choked again, slapping at his chest, "No. We're not—"
"You know, denial doesn't change anything," she sang despite the dropping temperature of the room, "… Taiga."
"No," Kagami snarled, "No."
"So rude, Taiga," she looked away before the laughter escaped, "We've really got to work on those manners."
It seemed Kagami was rendered speechless as his face flashed through several charming shades of color. Pink, red, purple, and blue. Kagami's making his own rainbow! Blinking innocently at his chagrin, Hana plopped another bite of food in her mouth. One second passed, then another before Kagami finally managed to screech out a reply.
"Don't call me that— It's too familiar!"
"Eh," Hana shrugged, "Systematics."
Another growl escaped his chest before a thump echoed from the other side of the table. Startled, Hana glanced up just in time to see Kagami plant his face into its surface. She blinked at the melodramatics twice until she eventually snorted.
Success.
xXxXxXx
That afternoon, Hana still held on to a pretty good endorphin rush.
After their little heart to heart, Kagami ended up walking with her to school. It honestly didn't take much convincing, you know, since she was already in his house and eating all his food. Which was damn tasty. Truthfully, he might have just agreed so she'd get the hell out. Which was too bad. She'd really wanted a chance to explore his bedroom.
Even the school day passed by calmly. There were a couple of interesting moments in her chemistry lab and getting to know her new table partner, but other than that, everything was great. Further cementing the greatness, practice went along smoothly too. While Kuroko and Kagami still didn't exchange words, they at least looked at each other. Everything is awesome. Everything is cool—
Or it was.
That opinion got stubbed out mighty quick when Riko dropped a pile of laundry in Hana's unsuspecting arms. Hana blinked, "… What?"
"You're on washing duty," Riko chirped, stepping past Hana to retrieve her schoolbag, "Punishment for skipping practice last week."
Oh, come on! Hana couldn't stop the resulting foot stomp, "But you said—"
"That you wouldn't have to run laps," with a sneaky little grin, Riko patted Hana's shoulder on her way out the gymnasium's door, "Which you didn't."
Why did that have to make sense? Damn loop holes. Narrowing her eyes on the pile of sweaty jerseys in her grip, Hana grumbled, "Fine."
For the sake of her dignity, Hana pretended not to see Riko's victorious smirk. She wasn't quite sure when it'd happened, but sometime during the spring semester, both girls had gotten involved in a little competition of sorts. Hana liked to call it, who had to deal with the pile of decay known as the boys' laundry. So far, the score was in Hana's favor, with only three points to Riko's seven.
Judging from Riko's smugness, that advantage wasn't going to last.
"Good luck, Imamura," waiting at the exit, Kiyoshi raised a hand in parting when Riko joined him, "Don't stay out too late."
"See! Even you know this is disgusting," with an accompanying goodbye, Hana lumbered toward the dressing room, "You guys smell like death. Learn to wear some deodorant."
On the other side of the gym, Hyuuga snorted. The captain didn't pause from collecting the basketballs as he replied, "You're one to talk."
Oh, everyone's a comedian, aren't they? Trying to balance the laundry on her hip without getting a face full of nastiness, Hana shot him a glare, "Are you saying I smell? I'll have you know that's bullshit… I'm a lady."
Hyuuga dribbled a rouge ball against the floor, "Huh, I couldn't tell," he bounced the ball again and a furrow built between his brows, "When's the last time we put air in these?"
"Don't know. Ask Furihata, he did it last," the doorknob twisted between her palm, "You got all the shit out of here, right? If I walk in there—"
"Yeah," rolling the ball between his hands, Hyuuga's paused before shooting it into the closest net, "Check with Kuroko though and see about his uniform."
Damn it all to hell. I forgot about him. With a grimace, Hana stopped halfway through the door, "Where is he?"
"I'm not sure," jogging the catch the rebound, Hyuuga shrugged, "I think he took Nigou out."
Helpful. With an annoyed huff, Hana pushed the rest of the door open with her hip. The darkness inside made her squint due to only a few rays of late afternoon sun filtering in through the window. Plopping the laundry basket on the floor, Hana's hand flashed against the wall in search for the light switch.
"Stupid laundry," the florescent light flickered on and she blinked, "Stupid boys and their stupid sweat. Stupid Kagami for leaving me. Stupid Kuroko for being difficult. Stupid… stupid."
It only took two minutes tops before Hana gathered her backpack. Shoving the escaping papers back into their pocket, she slung the bag over her shoulder and grabbed the edge of the laundry basket as she walked back out the door before jerking to a stop. Oh shit. She'd been expecting to see Hyuuga…
Kuroko though, he was an unexpected variable.
Palm latching around the doorknob, Hana softly pressed it shut. Laundry can be done later. So far, her entrance hadn't been noticed. The two boys stood only a few feet apart and whatever conversation they were having appeared to be somber. I can practically feel the angst. Scooting down the wall, Hana tried to subtlety eavesdrop on their chat.
After a pause in speech, Hyuuga bounced his basketball against the flooring, "I can't force you to do anything. I think you should talk to Kagami first, though."
"…" Kuroko's tone hinted toward shock, "Kagami-kun?"
"Yeah," the captain dribbled again before shooting into the net, "He believed in you."
Despite her ever-increasing closeness, Hana still couldn't hear Kuroko's reply or the rest of the conversation. One second Kuroko was standing there and then the next, jogging out the door in a blur of turquoise. Well, she blinked as the door slammed shut, that was anticlimactic. That didn't stop the cocktail of guilt bubbling in her gut. If I hadn't avoided him…
Instead of thinking on it, her gaze transferred back to the distracted captain as he walked after the rebound, "Hey—"
"What?" with an unmanly yelp, Hyuuga stumbled forward. Barely catching himself before his face planted into the floor, his now ashen features turned to gape at her, "Imamura! You're still here?"
"Pfffft," bringing a hand to her mouth, she tried to stop her giggles. She hadn't mean to do that, but Hana would totally take the credit for it, "Yeah."
Still kneeling on the floor and fighting to regain composure, Hyuuga glared at her, "That's all you have to say?"
"It's the nicest response," her shoulder lifted in nonchalance. Now that their little bout of humor was over, Hana looked back toward the door Kuroko vanished out of. She really should talk to him, "Hey, what'd Kuroko want to talk to you about?"
Placing his hands on the court floor, Hyuuga pushed himself up to his feet, "Not that it's any of your business, but why are you interested?"
"It's some complicated bullshit," still staring after her friend's path, Hana's nose scrunched. I know I've hit rock bottom when I listen to Kagami, "Do you know where he's headed?"
"Probably to find Kagami," now standing at full height, the captain brushed a few specks of dirt off his shorts. When he refocused back on the unruly manager, he frowned, "You shitty freshmen really need to talk to each other— wait— Imamura! Don't just walk off!"
What now? Only a few feet away from the exit, Hana stopped to give him a clueless look, "You said we should talk."
"What?" Hyuuga's eye twitched behind his glasses, "Now you'll listen to my advice?"
"Well, yeah," edging her foot closer to the awaiting door, she blinked, "It was good advice. For once."
"…" with a sigh born of pure defeat, the captain pointed one long finger at her, "Don't move."
Now, Hana was the confused one, "Huh?"
"You're a girl," the reply was tossed over his shoulder as Hyuuga jogged to retrieve the last few balls. Because of that, he missed the way Hana's eyes flashed in murder. What's that mean? When he shoved them into the ball rack, he raised a dubious eyebrow in her direction, "Teppei would kill me if I let you walk around alone this late."
"That's bullshit," tracing her captain's movements as he walked into the dressing room, Hana rolled her eyes. Stupid chivalry. Why do you have to be nice about it? When he returned, she finished, "Kiyoshi wouldn't kill you. You should be worried about Riko, she's the scary one."
"I'll agree with that," school jacket slung over his shoulder, Hyuuga deadpanned as he walked up to her, "But you obviously haven't seen Teppei mad yet."
Shooting him a bland side glance, Hana's hand grabbed onto the door. Took you long enough. Propping it open, she motioned Hyuuga through, "Why'd you add the yet?"
"Because it's true. Knowing you, it'll happened sooner rather than later."
"Really? That was rude."
Walking past her, Hyuuga snorted as he merged down the hallway, "It's not rude if it's true. Now come on, you've got to hurry up if you want to catch him, Imamura."
For a second, Hana's mouth gaped open. Since when did captain get so sassy? Still holding onto the door, green eyes narrowed on the Hyuuga's back. He would not beat her at her own game. So, he wants me to hurry up?
The door slammed shut behind her.
Fine. Let's do this.
X
It was the blur of blue that caught their attention.
Pausing in their meal, the two upper classmen watched Kuroko run past in fond approval. Their earlier concerns about teamwork and game play seemed irrelevant as they observed one of their younger teammates chase after friendship.
With a grin, Riko perched her chin on her palm, "Boys are so nice."
Kiyoshi opened his mouth to agree, only to stop when his eyes landed on another figure through the window. Actually, make that two figures. A confused noise echoed from his mouth and caught Riko's attention, urging the coach to look in the same direction. This time their pause wasn't exactly due to fondness.
"What?" hazel eyes flying wide, Riko choked on a sip of her drink, "What are those two doing?"
Kiyoshi didn't respond.
Instead, he simply chose to watch the spectacle in silence… and what a spectacle it was. Between the two people, one small hand was latched around the taller figures shirt collar as they dragged the male down the road at speeds Kiyoshi would only attempt to copy on the basketball court. When the smaller figure picked up pace, the male's arms flapped in the wind and his mouth opened in a constant stream of complaints.
"That…" Kiyoshi blinked before shooting Riko a concerned look, "That was Imamura, wasn't it?"
Mouth in a permanent gape, Riko nodded, "And Hyuuga-kun… what're they doing chasing after Kuroko-kun?"
With a wince, Kiyoshi watched their path until they were gone. He knew from experience that Hyuuga's language wasn't exactly the kindest. Though, on that topic, Imamura might have him beat. Maybe the team should invest in a swear jar… With a thoughtful hum, Kiysohi plopped a fry into his mouth.
After chewing for a moment, he finally smiled in reply to Riko's question, "I'm not sure I want to know, but I trust Imamura to keep an eye on Kuroko."
Crickets rang in the distance before Riko's face finally fell, "Don't you mean that the other way around?"
"Not really," smile gleaming in the bright atmosphere of Maji, Kiyoshi let out a minuscule laugh, "I'm not sure why Hyuuga's there though."
"Hyuuga-kun's such a sap," ducking her head, Riko tried to hide the blush that stained her cheeks, "He's so protective. I bet he didn't want Imamura-chan wondering around by herself."
Catching the emotion flickering in her eyes, Kiyoshi's brows rose, "You two have become really close since I've been gone, haven't you?"
"Don't— don't say it like that!"
"It's not a bad thing. It's kind of cute—"
"Teppei!"
xXxXxXx
Of course, they found them at the basketball court.
Where else would they be?
Peeking around the neatly-trimmed bush they were hidden behind, Hana squinted as she tried to understand what was happening. Their voices didn't quite carry over to their location and the sound of the basketball going through the hoop didn't help matters. Though, there was another issue adding to the interference.
Looking away from Kuroko and Kagami's face off, Hana raised a brow at Hyuuga's hunched over form. I might could hear them if he stopped breathing so damn loud.
"How do you do that?" her captain's voice was a harsh whisper in the silence of their hiding place, "You ran so fast…"
"You told me to hurry," ducking her head back behind the bush, Hana shushed him, "Besides, the quicker you run, the shorter the torture lasts. Now be quiet. I can't hear."
"Respect—" he took a deep breath, "Your seniors—" another breath, this time more collected, "Brat."
"You'd think you really were a senior with such crap endurance."
"… Imamura."
"Sorry," standing on her tippy toes, Hana looked for a proper viewing spot through the plant, "You walked right into that one though."
"I'll give you that, just don't start taking after Izuki," straightening up to full height, Hyuuga rubbed a hand over his forehead. After a moment's pause, he looked at the bush separating them from their target, "Why are we waiting? I thought you wanted to talk to Kuroko?"
"I do," sticking her hand into the vegetation, Hana pushed a few branches out of her way. The sight that greeted her consisted of Kagami staring down Kuroko as he dribbled, something eerily similar to their first confrontation at the beginning of the school year, "Buuut, I want to listen first. It might give me an upper hand."
She could feel her captain's annoyance radiated through his reply, "You're horrible."
"Thank you. I try," Kagami's mouth opened and Hana waved her hand, "Okay, they're talking. Shush."
"Don't tell me to—"
"Shush."
Sensing the same atmosphere she did, Hyuuga silenced himself. Now that their practice game ended, the two boys began to speak to one another. With an aura of resolve, Kuroko lifted his head to meet Kagami's encompassing stare, "I have to apologize to you, I lied. In Middle School I received a uniform as the sixth man—"
"I know that," Kagami huffed, "You were the trump card of the Generation of Miracles."
"That's not true," Kuroko refuted, gaze never wavering, "They may have believed in me, but they did not trust me."
What? Hana breath whooshed out of her chest at his admission. It was sort of a taboo topic between them, so she never knew the extent of Kuroko's issues with the Generation of Miracles. She'd always just assumed… but hearing him speak so plainly, on an issue she damn well knew hurt, Hana felt her chest ache.
Because Hana had trusted him.
But she didn't anymore.
"Shit," Hana had to take a step away from her peek hole to recollect herself, "I'm such a bitch."
Turning away from his own view point, Hyuuga raised an eyebrow, "What are you talking about?"
"This trust bullshit," Hana swallowed, tuning out the words of the boys just beyond them, "The whole reason I left them all in middle school was because they broke my trust— so hearing this shit, I don't know, it just sucks because—"
"Don't worry about that," Hyuuga scoffed, but the look on his face betrayed his kindness, "It's in the past. I doubt Kuroko's even talking about you."
"I guess," despite the words, Hana already knew the truth of the matter, "Thanks though."
The tone of the boys' conversation changed and exchanging a look, Hana and Hyuuga both turned back to their eavesdropping position. By now, both Kuroko and Kagami's shoulders morphed into tension coated mountains as they stood in front of one another. Oh god, I hope they don't start punching again.
"The truth is," Hanan leaned closer to hear the words leaving Kuroko's mouth, "I've been using you to force the Generation of Miracles to recognize my style of basketball."
With a soul deep sigh, Kagami tilted his head back, "I had a feeling you were going to say this."
At the untimely plot twist, Hana felt her eye twitch. How the ever-loving hell did you expect that? She thought she heard an accompanying sigh from Hyuuga's side, but she didn't focus too hard on it. Her only focus remained on the conversation between the shadow and light duo. Listening to Kagami compare himself to the Generation of Miracles, hearing Kuroko deny him, and finally as they promised to become stronger.
Together.
"Oh my god," Hana whispered as they bumped fists with one another, "It's like watching a soap opera. Dramatic little shits. They— oh my god, it's almost cute."
"Don't do that," The captain deadpanned, "You've got a weird expression right now. It's creepy."
"It's cute!" Her whisper picked up volume with the explanation, "How can you not have a weird expression? It's like watching Nigou play."
"… Kagami?"
"Yeah, that comparison could use some work."
The sound of a ball swooshing through the net brought their attention back to the two. As Kagami jumped down from his grip on the hoop, the basketball conveniently rolled toward their hiding place. Both pairs of eyes darted down to it with varying levels of alarm. Oh, hell no. Don't do this to me fate. I've done nothing to you—
"Oi," Green eyes flicked back up to Kagami as he spoke. Two muscular biceps were crossed behind his head, "Did Imamura talk to you yet?"
Don't bring me into this shit!
"She hasn't," Kuroko's response was neutral in its finish, but the furrow of his brow highlighted his confliction, "Have you spoken to her?"
"Yeah," there was a scoff, "She broke into my apartment this morning."
Kuroko paused for a moment, "I'm not sure if you're asking me to apologize on her behalf—"
"Not really. I doubt you could stop her," Kagami threw the comment over his shoulder as he walked toward the rouge basketball, "Just wondering," Kagami was only a hairsbreadth away when he bent down and retrieved the ball, "Are you using her too?"
"Yes."
Well, Hana nearly fell backwards with the bluntness of his answer, fan-freaking-tastic. Her heart picked up speed as a chilled knife skirted her chest. That's just what I wanted to hear—
"I'm using her to remind me of what I don't want to lose," Kuroko's voice broke her rambling thoughts off before she could register them. After a second, he tacked on a follow up, "And the friendship we once all shared."
Hana wasn't sure what it felt like to be engulfed in molten lava, but she was pretty sure it felt like this. Every blood vessel in her face decided they wanted to change into an unflattering shade of pink and Hana clapped a hand over her face. Nope, I'm not happy. This isn't happiness. Beside her, Hyuuga coughed into his fist.
It was totally happiness.
"You should talk to her," that was the only warning the manager and captain were given with a quick moment of oh shit before it was too late. One second Kagami remained cool and collected, then the next, he was launching the basketball into the safety of their bush, "Since she's right there."
Holy mother of god! Who does that?!
"…" Hana stared through the circle shaped hole to meet Kagami's glare, "Hey there, Taiga."
At least she was lucky enough to avoid the assault. It was too bad she couldn't say the same on Hyuuga's behalf.
X
Five minutes later, the whole group was assembled.
Well… it was more like Hana and Kuroko stood on the sidelines as they watched Kagami flounder about. His movements were laced with an underlying frenzy as he offered the upperclassman a towel from his bag. It was a good thing she'd avoided that basketball. I can't believe he threw it that hard. Because Kagami's aim had been off, Hyuuga was pelted with the ball and he now sported the nose bleed to prove it. And man, that shit looks like it hurts.
While they waited, she steadily avoided looking in Kuroko's direction and he seemed of the same mindset for the moment. Time and a place for everything, right? With the subject of her issues standing only inches away from her, Hana didn't know whether to laugh or cry. My life is such shit.
"Imamura," Hyuuga tilted his head back, pinching the bridge of his nose to halt the blood flow, "I can't believe you dragged me into this. I told you not to do anything crazy."
That makes two of us. Licking her lips, she offered a shaky laugh, "Uhm, my bad? I've got to say though— I didn't think there'd be any casualties."
"Of course," the captain offered a wet huff, "I should have known better."
"Sorry," Hana shuffled a bit, "I'll buy you lunch tomorrow?"
Hyuuga opened one eye behind his, thankfully still intact, glasses, "I want a sandwich. Three of them."
"I'll get you one," she allowed before motioning to the still wary Kagami. He's not getting out of this, "He has to buy the other two."
"Deal."
Just now catching the conversation, Kagami choked, "What?! Why am I a part of this—"
"You threw the ball," Hana combated, shooting the ace a sickly-sweet grin, "You get to pay the consequences. Think… what would happen if you'd hit me in the face?"
Mouth forming a line as thin as paper, Kagami deadpanned, "I don't think anyone would have cared."
"I would," motioning a hand over her face, Hana snarked, "All this beauty would be ruined."
Despite trying to ignore the awkward layer resting between all four of them, Hana could only avoid it for so long. I wish I could teleport. When Kagami rolled his eyes, Hana made the mistake of looking away from the redhead and to her right, gaze meeting and staying on Kuroko. Yep, either die on command or teleport. His shining blue gaze was already fixed on her with something unnerving. Both would work too.
Eventually, Kuroko blinked and some of the unknown emotion faded from his face, "Have you two been here the whole time, Imamura-san?"
"Not the whole time," Hana offered, "Just long enough to… you know…"
Brow raised, Kagami deadpanned, "Hear everything we said?"
"Not all of it!" waving a hand about, she tried to deny the accusation, "Only the Generation of Miracles stuff and the using thing… and everything else. So— yeah, mostly everything."
There was an expected snort and attention turned toward the captain. Fingers still pinching his nose, Hyuuga explained, "We only heard some of it. We weren't close enough to hear everything."
"…" Kagami narrowed his eyes, looking between Hana and the upperclassman thoughtfully, "I can't believe she got you to do this."
"Me neither," Hyuuga offered only to groan as another bout of blood escaped his nose, "Oi, Kagami? Can I get that shirt now?"
"Yeah, here," breaking off from their group again, Kagami walked closer to Hyuuga, "Where do you want it?"
"… just give it to me, idiot."
Of course, this left Hana and Kuroko alone in tense silence. Moving from one foot to another, Hana whistled a little tune under her breath as she steadily avoided conversation. If I pretend the awkwardness doesn't exist, it'll go away. By now, that saying was practically law in her book. Did that make it a Murphy's law?
Since it seemed things never worked out in Hana's favor anymore.
I really need to work on my damn karma, this is ridiculous.
"Imamura-san?" Kuroko ventured, breaking the silence between them, "Are you alright?"
Huh? She stopped humming to shot him an incredulous look, "Why wouldn't I be?"
"After everything I've said," he explained, gaze observing each minuscule expression she wore, "I didn't mean to offend you."
"You didn't," she definitely wasn't going to venture into how his admission made her feel. Hana kind of figured gooey wasn't the correct adjective to use. Instead, she poked him in the leg with her foot, "It kind of cleared shit up actually."
In the background, Kagami pressed on the towel a bit too hard and Hyuuga groaned. Kuroko ignored it in favor of replying, "How so?"
"The trusting thing. How you said they didn't trust you," Hana allowed, staring straight ahead. Emotional bonding time, yay. "It's kind of screwed up, but I didn't trust you either. After everything—"
Tilting his face away from her, Kuroko interrupted, "You don't have to explain."
"I kind of do," bringing a hand up to her cheek, she scrubbed at the leftovers of her blush. Come on, if Kagami can do it, so can you. "It wasn't like basketball trust— jesus, why is everything about basketball with you people? Anyway," Hana coughed before continuing, "I didn't trust you not to like… leave again."
"…" she could practically feel Kuroko freeze, "I'm sorry?"
She wanted to take it back, but her heart was already on the table and there was no point in taking it back. Might as well say to hell with it and throw it all out there. You know, like confetti.
"We fucked up in middle school. I didn't stand up for myself until it was too late and…" her shoulders fell as she finally spared a glance toward her friend, "I trusted you guys even when I shouldn't have. I don't want to deal with that shit breaking again."
"You trusted us," wide, blue eyes blinked back at her. You don't need to look so shocked, buddy.
"Yeah, for a while. Akashi's little backstabbing bullshit stopped that pretty quick," Hana amended before attempting to add a bit of humor, "I think I held on pretty long though, right? Five points for perseverance."
"You did," Kuroko appeared thoughtful as he dug through the undertones of her statement, "Are you saying you don't trust us now?"
"Not really," she quickly backtracked as the implications of her words registered, "I mean— not in the same way, more like, I don't trust you to stay? We fucked up once, and the Tōō game— we almost fucked up again. It's kind of why I haven't been talking to you lately."
"Because you're afraid I'll leave."
He didn't phrase it as a question, so Hana didn't answer it like one, "Yeah, but it's more like we'll go back to that awkward bullshit in middle school. I can't do that—"
With out a pause, he interrupted her, "The time you visited with Kiyoshi-san at the hospital?"
"Yeah…" one of Hana's brow rose at the subject change. Kuroko really needed to work on his tact, "Or more commonly known as third-year."
She didn't know what it was, but something she'd said brought a change to Kuroko's demeanor. The awkward, stilted tempo of their conversation filtered away to be replaced by a comfortable silence. As they both stood in relative peace, attention transferred back to Kagami and Hyuuga, both still wrestling with the towel and the ever-increasing nose bleed. Poor captain.
"You don't need to be afraid," Kuroko looked away from the spectacle as his hand reached across the distance to interlace with her own, "I will do everything I can from allowing the past to repeat itself. The Generation of Miracles—"
"Chill with the heroic shit. You're going to give yourself a stroke," allowing his fingers to tie with her own, Hana squeezed, "I get it. No matter what, I'm with you and I'm with Seirin."
"I know," his thumb brushed against her pulse point, "Thank you."
Unbeknownst to the pair, Hyuuga and Kagami managed to successfully quell the nose bleed. Without anything to distract them, both boys were stuck watching the awkward confrontation between the two freshmen. Thankfully, Hyuuga's phone pinged in his pocket and he coughed to break the silence.
Reading the text, the captain raised a brow in Hana's direction, "Now that you're paying attention—"
"Can we leave yet?" Kagami finished the sentence, crossing his arms over his chest, "I'm starving."
And there goes the moment. Releasing Kuroko's hand, Hana rolled her eyes as she moved to retrieve her forgotten backpack, "You eat more shit than anyone I know. Are you even human?"
"Kagami-kun is a growing boy," before Kagami could reply, Kuroko cut into the conversation with perfect accuracy, "He can't help it, Imamura-san."
Arms still crossed, Kagami looked between the pair suspiciously, "What are you trying to imply?"
"Oh, I don't know," scooping her bag up, Hana threw it over her shoulder with a grin, "I mean, you're already tall. What else could we be talking about?"
"…" Kuroko blinked, "That's not what I was referring too."
"What is she—" the flush that overtook Kagami's face meshed perfectly with his hair, "That's— Imamura! You're—"
"You're disgusting," Hyuuga deadpanned, finally rejoining the conversation. His hand still held his phone and he looked down at it thoughtfully, "Teppei and Riko are at Maji, if you're really hungry, Kagami."
"Yeah," Kagami grumbled through his mortification, "Are we going?"
Hyuuga nodded, "I am. You can if you want to. Kuroko? Imamura?"
"I'll join you," stepping away from the grouping, Kuroko moved to pick up his jacket from the ground. When he straightened, his head tilted in Hana's direction, "Are you coming, Imamura-san?"
Fiddling with the strap of her bag, Hana met Kuroko's stare head on. His face was open and inviting, nothing hidden in the recesses like the past times they'd spoken recently. Next her gaze landed on Kagami and Hyuuga, who while not as accommodating as Kuroko, both didn't appear to be bothered by her presence.
After all that, there was a sense of… familiarity between them.
We're a team, on and off the court.
"Yeah," her agreement came easily and Hana smirked, "Sounds great. Last one there pays?"
"No, we're not— Oi!" like she'd expected, Kagami puffed right up when she sprinted for the gate, "Don't try to get a head start!"
"Kagami-kun should pay," Kuroko offered before he followed Hana's path, "He eats the most."
"What are you talking about? You're damn milkshakes are more expense!"
The captain was the last to leave the outdoor court. Flipping his phone open, Hyuuga dialed Kiyoshi's familiar number. A fond grimace pulled at his lips as his friend picked up, "You still there? Yeah. We'll be there soon… first-years are crazy."
While it might not have been ice cream…
As Hana slid into the booth beside Riko twenty minutes later, she figured hamburgers could be the start of another tradition.
x
Reviews: (I love ya'll. So much)
KeioIsha: Thank you! Ohh, you lived in Phoenix? Awesome!
RainyDayRead116: Awwwh, thank you so much!
Mercuae: Glad to hear it!
Crystalviolet24: Your reviews are so detailed, I love them. You even manage to find more in the story than I do! I'm sorry last chapter was so angsty, but I'm glad you had that little hint of humor to hold onto! Regrading Hana's life outside of basketball, at the moment I'm not really sure she has one… opps. She's got school and basketball and friends and yeah… that's about it. I probably need to fix that, haha. Anyway, again, thank you! I truly do enjoy reading your reviews.
Miss-fora: Oh my gosh, thank you! That's great praise and your reviewwww! It was so long and detailed thank you! But no, Aomine will not stayed exiled, I promise!
JeyaMendoza: Don't cry friend! I'm not sure Uoya's jealous, I'm kind of thinking him as a wing man right now. Or a, stop flirting with my bestfriend, type of guy. Totally up to your interpretation though! And yeah, the game was rough on me too. It hurt my heart just as bad ): Aomine did make it worse… bad asshole, bad. Anyway, thank you for another long review! I love hearing from you!
SeereKlein: Uoya is an awesome boy. Best boy. AND I'M SORRY I MADE THEM ASSHOLEISH. IT'S JUST SO MUCH MORE FUN TO WRITE THEM THAT WAY. Thank you for your reviews!
ArchimedesAckerman: Ahh, thank you! Their differing opinions will take a while to pan out, but everyone needs a touch of reality during magic basketball games and I'm kind of hoping to turn Hana into that. We'll see how it goes though!
Saltqueen: Yes, yes she does. Thank you!
ADDBaby: ALL THE COMPUTER HUGS. I'm glad to hear you've got so many great friends and that your mom is a GREATMOM TM. Greatmoms are the best, I have one too. But ahhh, don't cry friend! Go get some icecream!
Naliyu: Awwwh, I'm so happy to hear that, thank you!
NotAnnie: NO Don't cry, it's okay! Aomine just needs a big old hug or a big old punch, one of the two. But yeah, hugs are the best. Everyone deserves hugs. You deserves hugs too reader-sama, thank you! No seriously, thank you for that review!
OneWhoReadsTooMuch: Yess, their bond is so much stronger. That's one of my favorite parallels in the story actually. Thank you for that wonderful review, I'm so happy to hear you loved last chapter! That's the bet praise I can receive!
Uqor: Awwwh, thank you! I love knowing that people can actually feel emotion while reading, it's a great achievement. Thank you so much for your review, I truly appreciate it! Thank you!
Xxjaelee: Yesss! I'm so happy that match is over too. I can't wait for Aomine's moment to shine either, it'll be so much fun! And winter cup! It's so close and it's so far and it's just teasing me because I've got so many ideas! Thank you, thank you, and thank you again for your review!
Corralinne: Wooo, that would a big ol' harem. I'm laughing just thinking about it, but it also makes me really happy to hear that because it means chemistry between them is good, so thank you!
Pinkdoughnuts: That she does! It's okay, I'm sure Midorima forgives you. Thank you for the review!
Red Raspberries: Awwwh, I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed it! Thank you! I love making you guys all emotional, it makes me super duper happy! Thank you again!
NinjaPenguinLover: I CAN 100% SAY IT IS ONE OF THE PEOPLE YOU LISTED. It will be fun though when the truth comes out, so I'm kind of excited. Thank you for your review, friend! I enjoyed your conspiracy theories!
Imbue-Numinous: AHHHH I'M SORRY FRIEND DON'T LET YOUR CHEST EXPLODE. BE SAFE. THANK YOU I LOVE YOU.
Chinchilladonut: Ahhh, thank you! Yeah, that's going to be a fun factor to play in to the story. Everyone's so intense about basketball in canon, I kind of wanted to explore the line between their real lives and their sports life. Kuroko probably did have something in store… sorry Hana's a terribly emotional person! Thank you so much for your review!
MaryKittenHeart: Awh! I'm so happy to hear that she's one of your favorite oc's! That omake would be amazing though. I kind of want to write it… you've got me thinking! Anyway, thank you for your reviews! They were great!
