Sunnyside Down [Kise Ryouta]

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CHAPTER 2: Defensive Mechanism?

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Kise Ryouta had his hands in his pockets the whole time as he stalked around the corridors of the lodge they were staying in. Looking side to side, he noticed the looks the girls were giving him.

Seriously, even with a sour expression that spells 'Stay Away', they still find him that attractive.

It must be a crime being him.

Smirking to himself, he headed to his room and changed into a loose, black tee and faded khakis.

"Kise-kun,"

Said blond looked behind him to see Kuroko peeking from the door, "Whadya want?"

"We're having another practice game. We were wondering if you-" Kuroko stopped mid-sentence when he saw Kise raise a hand.

"Tell the runt I'm not going," He huffed out and took his wallet from the dresser, "Oh, and to Kasamatsu too."

Kuroko stepped back a bit to let him walk out from the door, "Are you sure?I mean... There's gonna be-"

Kise stopped and shot a sharp glare at the teal haired boy- A glare that says every evil words there are, effectively silencing him, before walking away.

Kuroko didn't notice he had held his breath, but when the blond rounded the corridor and left his field of vision, that's when he exhaled, suddenly feeling tense and sweaty. His heartbeat was pounding too.

And that was just from a mere look.

"Oi, Kuroko! Took you long enough," Kagami called when he caught sight of his shadow walking towards him, "Where's Kise?"

The redhead saw an obvious gulp from his shadow but chose to ignore it, "He said he's not coming..." Kuroko replied.

"Did he say anything else?" Midorima asked.

Everyone in the gym looked at Kuroko expectantly but he only stated, "He told me to tell Akashi-kun and Kasamatsu-san..."

Kaijo's captain gave a grunt, "Augh, that brat..."

"Well, given the current situation now, there's nothing we can do," Takao stated as-a-matter-of-factly.

"Aside from beating some sense back into his skull?" Aomine drawled out while spinning a basketball on his finger, "He's full of himself already-"

"Look who's walking," Momoi murmured.

"I mean- Hey!" Aomine growled at the pink-haired manager but she managed to shake him off.

"I think you guys are misunderstanding the situation," Himuro said, a small smile on his face.

"No we're not."

This time it was Akashi's turn to speak, "Then please clear things up then, Himuro-san," He eyed on the other teen carefully, "Ellaborate what made Ryouta feel much more superior,"

Takao snorted, trying to hide his laughter. He hopped over to the bench where Himuro was at and casually slung an arm around him, "For a bunch of Basketball geniuses, they're kinda thick aren't they?"

Akashi was really close to throwing his scissors at the Hawk-eye user's forehead if it wasn't for Midorima glaring at him from the bleachers.

"It's not that he's full of himself, guys," Himuro started.

"All of you had that in the first place, so no surprise there," Takao chimed.

Himuro laughed a bit before continuing, "It's just that after all you've done to abuse him, in all aspects possible, he probably had enough,"

"Enough? So he snapped like that?"

"Snapped like that, yes. But it's more of a defensive mechanism to protect whatever is left of the kid's pride."

Midorima readjusted his glasses as he made his way to the group, "So are you implying that this is our fault, Takao?"

"I'm not implying. I'm saying it is your fault, Shin-chan," The hawk-eye user laughed, but there was a hint of bitterness in the tone, "I guess that's what's gonna happen to me soon too,"

"Like hell would we be afraid of you,"

"You're afraid of Kise now. What more with me?"

"Who said we were afraid of him?!" Kagami growled out, voicing out the thoughts of the rest of the players in the gym.

"It was obvious."

Kagami and Aomine were almost close to charging towards the raven-haired male if it weren't for Momoi blowing the whistle.

"Okay! I think the discussion is already getting out of hand." She clapped her hands together then pointed to the court, "Resume practice!"

"Kise!"

Kise looked back rather sluggishly when a familiar voice called him. He was currently slumped on the bench, listening to his Ipod, when Aomine came running towards him.

"What is it now, Aomine? I told you guys I'm not going..." He drawled out, waving his hand around for emphasis.

Aomine raised a brow. It was weird not having to hear 'Aominecchi' from the blond, not that he misses it or anything, but knowing that there's no more '-cchi' added, does that mean he acknowledges him no more?

"Hah," Aomine retorted, "Bet you're scared I'll beat you countless of times on a 1-on-1,"

Well, it was Akashi's idea to use Kise's weakness of a 1-on-1 from Aomine. But the blond's reply was far from what he imagined.

"Whatever. Leave me alone,"

"Ah? Hey, I'm asking you for a 1-on-1 here..." Aomine stated, crossing his arms, "Usually it's you who's practically begging for one,"

Kise chuckled darkly, eyeing on Aomine through the fringes of his hair, adding a bit more malice into that stare, "So? You going to beg then?"

Aomine's cobalt blue eyes widened and with sheer instincts, he grabbed the front of Kise's shirt, pulling him up close.

"What's the big idea, Kise?!"

"Oh, it's nothing, Aominecchi~" The way Kise said his nickname was different from the usual one. It was bitter. Taunting.

"You guys wouldn't want a burden around now, would you?" Kise promptly pushed the tanned man's arms away and skipped back.

Aomine blinked, trying to hide the shock in his face, "Uh.. What?"

"You should go back to your practice." Kise smiled, waving his hand with the Ipod, "If I go there, you'd be distracted with all the 'mocking me' stuffs right?"

Then before Aomine could say anything else, Kise had walked away, leaving his line of sight.

Aomine stood there, frozen in disbelief. No, not in disbelief. It was something else. Something heavy.

Was it guilt? Had Kise just speak out his mind? Did he really think that everyone only viewed him that way?

It wasn't for Aomine to have a heavy heart, but it sure felt that way when he went back to the gym with no accomplishment.

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TBC