The last time I updated this was in 2008. At the end of my last chapter (unfortunately there are only two), I had promised another chapter the next day or sometime soon. We all see how that turned out. I know what you're thinking; I myself admit that I am a dirty liar.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Misao huffed in time with the beat of her heart. It kept her in rhythm and kept her from thinking about the burning in her legs and the pain in her side. The minute she felt her run becoming sloppy, she would take deeper breaths and push herself to show more grace. For some reason, thinking of the anaerobic processes now going on in her body helped her concentrate.

"Thirty seconds!" Coach Gathes yelled, looking at her watch for accuracy. Misao was thanking the gods for her fortune when ten minutes ago she was cursing them for her misfortune. It was only the second week of their workout plan leading up to basketball season and they were running for ten minutes straight. The first week was five, this week was ten, next week would be five again, and the week after that would be fifteen and so on and so forth. Misao was dreading the weeks she would have to run thirty minutes to an hour at a time, although, Coach Gathes had promised them short breaks when that time came.

"Anyone jogging will have to do extra drills after practice today." Coach Gathes said, adding more weight to the team's heavy load. All the girls broke out into sprints. Misao forgot about her heart beat, she forgot about anaerobic respiration. Instead she focused on the wondrous movement of her muscles. Muscles had always fascinated her; the way they contracted and relaxed at the will of her brain. They didn't question, however, they often protested, as they did right now, begging her to stop. But, until she allowed them to, they wouldn't, and that's what kept her going. She surpassed all the other long-legged girls, pushing her lithe body around the basketball court.

"Time! Hands on your heads." Gathes commanded. Misao immediately started walking, her fingers laced on top of her head. She breathed into her nose and out of her mouth. All the girls grouped together, walking in a herd towards their water bottles and towels.

"I hate…my life." Doran said in between breaths. She was obviously breathing very hard, her face red and sweaty. Cathy leaned up against the padded walls under the goal and sipped her water. Misao was walking around trying to calm her heart down.

"You okay there, Makimachi?" Miranda asked, walking in behind her to pat her on the back.

"Yeah, I'm good." Misao said with a weak smile. "My heart's just beating really fast." She laughed.

"It gets better once you get in shape." Miranda said. She walked off to talk to the other seniors who also didn't seem to have a problem with the ten minute run. Misao felt pathetic. She wasn't in terrible shape. She looked at Miranda's strong, shapely legs that carried her from one end of the court to the other and her lightly muscles arms that let a ball fly from the three point line. She had long fingers that could grip a ball tightly and swift feet that carried her quickly over the slick floor. Yet despite her athletic qualities, she still had curves. Misao envied her. She only wished she had to wear a padded wire bra under her sports bra. She scowled and kept walking no longer thinking about Miranda.

"Get in line for lay-ups!" Coach Gathes yelled, working on her strict time schedule. She was counting down the seconds until she heard shoes squeaking and hoops swishing; the music to her ears. Misao grabbed her water bottle, quickly took a sip, and got in line with a basketball.

…...

After school practice was tougher as far as how hard they worked, but it was lenient on showering afterwards. The girls only got fifteen minutes at the most to change and make sure they didn't kill flies with their smell as they walked down the hall. Now, they could take their time, or even head home to take more relaxing showers.

As Misao was changing her shirt to a less sweat soaked one she heard the girls talking and giggling as they walked into the locker room. She stood up and smiled as they waved to her.

"Aoshi Shinomori is sitting on the bleachers out there." One of the girls informed her. "He is so hot." She rolled her eyes heavenward and fanned herself with her hand. The girls behind her giggled and blushed.

"I love looking at him; just so manly. I wonder what he looks like with his shirt off." One of the other girls said.

"Ya'll are crazy." Misao said, grabbing her Nike bag with her basketball shoes and clothes in it, along with her water bottle. "He's my ride home." Explaining why he was there. She started heading towards the door.

"You might be waiting a while." The third girl said with a smirk. "Miranda was walking towards him, waving him down when we were walking this way."

"Oh." Misao said, stopping briefly. "It's whatever." She said finally. "They probably won't talk for long."

"Not right now anyway." The three girls smiled knowingly.

"What do you mean?" Misao asked, letting the door fall shut and turning towards them. Apparently, she seemed a little menacing because the girl's smiles vanished and they backed up a little, looking at each other.

"Well, you know." The first girl answered. "They're the best players on the girls and boys team. And Miranda's so pretty and well, Aoshi is ridiculously good looking. It's natural, you know." She said, quietly. "Do you have a crush on him or something?" She accused. Misao could see how ready she was to spread the gossip. She cocked her head in an annoyed way and looked the girl straight in the eye.

"Look, I've lived across the street from him my whole life; our father's work together. He's driven me to school ever since he got his license. And since you're wondering, yes, he looks amazing with his shirt off." With that she stalked off, extremely pissed.

….

Misao approached Aoshi and Miranda. The girls were right. Even after sweating off all her makeup and her hair tangled from being up in a ponytail, Miranda was gorgeous. Aoshi, sitting forward with his elbows on his knees the way he was, which Misao knew was how he naturally liked to sit in bleachers, but what Miranda probably saw as interest in her, was enticing as always. As she strutted forward, Aoshi looked up. Miranda followed his gaze to see a young sophomore in her squad approaching them.

"What do you need? Did you lose something?" She sounded more annoyed since Misao was interrupting her flirting with Aoshi than when she did during practice.

"You okay, kiddo?" Aoshi asked, concerned. He could tell when she was upset. Miranda looked at him surprised that he knew Misao's name.

"Oh, that's right. You two were sitting beside each other that one day. You aren't related are you?" She asked.

"We're neighbors." Aoshi said.

"I'm ready. Let's go home." Misao said quickly. Her stomach was starting to hurt and she was getting hot.

"Okay. Let's go." Aoshi said, getting up and following Misao out of the gym. He knew Misao was a hot head but even this seemed a little unusual for her. If she was mad she would just go off on someone and then it would be done with. She rarely held anything in, but apparently now she was trying to.

"What's wrong?" Aoshi asked when they got in his truck.

"It's nothing." Misao said. She ripped the ponytail holder at the end of her braid out of her hair and let her tresses fall around her face to hide how upset she was. Aoshi took that as a definite sign that she was lying and more than likely about to cry.

"It's something. Did something happen?" he prodded.

"No. Just…tired." She said lamely. In truth, she really could use a nap, but that wasn't the reason she was acting so childish.

"Misao…" Aoshi was getting frustrated at her obstinance.

"Leave me alone." She said pitifully. If Aoshi kept trying to talk to her she would definitely start crying. If she could just breathe, and think clearly about happy thought, and calm down then maybe she wouldn't start bawling.

Aoshi gripped the steering wheel harder, making the leather squeak. "Fine. I'm sorry for trying to help you." He growled.

Misao sank down into the seat, trying to make herself as small as possible. Aoshi pulled into his driveway. Misao jumped out before Aoshi could say anything or shut the garage door. Usually she would barge inside the house before him, getting a coke out of the fridge and saying hi to his mom. Her parents didn't come home until later in the evening. She had a key to her house but, even so, she would hang out with Aoshi before going home, especially if she needed help with homework or basketball. He watched as she walked across the street with her head down, wiping at her face what he was sure was tears. He felt bad, wanted to console her, but if she was going to be stubborn then he wasn't going to beg her to confide in him. Aoshi turned and walked up the garage steps into the house.

…...

Misao dropped onto her bed, sobbing. Why did it hurt her so much to see Miranda and Aoshi talking to each other? She knew it would happen eventually. When she was a little girl, she would imagine that Aoshi would fall in love with her, that her first kiss would be from Aoshi. She soon realized that all that was, was a fantasy. Aoshi saw her like a little sister; a kid, and he saw Miranda as datable. That, if anything, was the most unbearable part.