Visibility

By: Aviantei

Chapter 15: Equilibrium

Airi smoothed out the skirt of her uniform then put out a hand on Youta's arm, hoping to stabilize him. He had been fidgeting at the outskirts of her senses for a while now, and it only made her more nervous. They had survived everything so far—his suspension, the accident, the first day back at school, their parents—so this shouldn't have been anything more.

And yet he was shaking under Airi's fingers as they stood before the door to the Seirin High School gymnasium.

"Don't be nervous, Nii-san," she whispered. It was an almost vain request, but she hoped that it worked anyway. Youta turned towards her, not saying anything. "Don't push yourself into doing this if you're not ready. We can go home today and try again tomorrow…"

Still more silence. Airi wondered what Youta was doing, what he was thinking. As far as she could tell his expression was blank, but she was probably missing most of the details anyway. She wanted to put her hands to his face, to figure out if he was staring or not. The bandages had come off before she had left the hospital. There were a few scars, but the doctors said they would fade in time.

Airi wasn't sure if she wanted them gone soon or if she wished they would always stay as a reminder, as an affirmation of this period of time.

"No," Youta finally said, his voice moderate. It didn't sound strong, but it wasn't weak either. "We've come this far, no time to wuss out now. Just… Just wait with me for a bit, okay, Ai-chan? I'll be ready to go in soon."

"Of course I'll wait," she said. "There's no need to be so silly, Nii-san. I'm your sister, so of course I'll stay by you, as long as you need me." Airi moved her hand down his arm, taking hold of his hand. He was still shaking a bit, but Youta squeezed back.

"Thanks," he whispered. It was almost a rasp. Airi stayed silent and waited in front of the door with him. Muted by the door, she could still hear the sounds of sneakers against the floor and Aida's whistle blowing commands. She imagined them practicing, imagined Tetsuya smiling at his teammates.

She imagined Youta was on the court with them, even if the rhythms inside were all wrong.

"Okay," Youta breathed. Airi smiled at him in encouragement, letting him open the door and take the first step forward. She didn't relent her grip on his hand, and she didn't let him get ahead of her. They walked together, stopping at the point Airi knew as the edge of the court.

Practice continued for a few seconds until there was a shout of recognition—Koganei-senpai, perhaps?—and then there were so many voices at once that Airi couldn't tell them apart. There were hugs and pats on the shoulders until everyone was a circle around them, and even Nigou brushed against Airi's legs, his tail tapping against her as it wagged.

"Okay, come on everyone, back up a bit," Aida called. There was a shuffle of sneakers as everyone shifted, and Youta's grip on Airi's hand tightened. Satisfied, the Seirin coach stepped forward so that she was standing in front of them. "Watanabe-kun, what the hell were you thinking?"

Youta flinched, but didn't run away. Airi knew he could have if he wanted to, but he didn't. "I…" he started. From how his voice projected, Airi was sure he was looking down.

"Listen, I know everyone has their troubles, but you can't shut us out like that. We're your teammates, and we're here to help you, even if it's not on the court," Aida continued. "Sure, you haven't played in a game and skipped for weeks, but your name is still in my registrar, so you're one of us. If you still wanted to change something after we lost at the tournament, you could have just asked again instead of running away!"

Airi wondered just how much the basketball team knew. She had told Tetsuya her theories, but none of those were solid, and even then, he probably hadn't told anyone else. But then again, Youta had asked Aida for help in the first place, so maybe the Seirin coach knew more than Airi did.

Regardless, Youta was shaking.

"Hey, come on, we're not mad at you for that," Aida said, trying hard to add a comforting tone to her voice. "Well, kinda annoyed, but we forgive you. However…" The emphasis hit Airi hard, causing her to shiver as well. "You still skipped practice for two weeks, Watanabe-kun and that's a big no."

"O-oi," attempted Hyuga, the first one to speak besides his coach. "Watanabe was suspended for half of that. You can't blame him for it…"

"No excuses!" Aida objected, and Airi felt the entire population of the gymnasium jump at once. "While that may not be his fault, Watanabe-kun is still guilty of not having practiced at all since he ran away. It's in his best athletic interest to make him do extra training until he's back in shape." Turning back towards the twins, Aida asked, "What do you think, Watanabe-kun. That sound fair enough?"

Airi wished she knew what Youta was thinking. She knew what kind of person he was when trouble happened—he always blamed himself, even if there was nothing to be done about it. Everything in the past few weeks couldn't have been any different. Airi squeezed at his fingers even though hers were numb.

"Nii-san," she said, even though she knew Youta was about to speak. It was selfish, but Airi felt like she needed to say something. "Nii-san, please stay on the team. I know a lot's happened, but you still loved basketball after all this time. So surely you still want to keep playing even now, right?"

"Of…of course I do!" Youta said. He turned towards Airi, putting his hands on his shoulders. She let out a gasp, but didn't protest. "Listen, Ai-chan, I figured some stuff out. I was being selfish, and that's self-evident. Beyond that, I still really want to help you. But now, I realize that's not just my responsibility. Everyone else here is willing to help, so if I do some things for myself, that's okay, right?"

Airi let out a small laugh. "Don't be silly, Nii-san. I've always been telling you that."

Youta let go of her shoulders, turning back in Aida's direction. He was still close enough to touch, though, just centimeters between their shoulders. "Everyone, I'd like to apologize for all the trouble that I've caused. I know that it's enough to ask, but I'd like it if you could please consider forgiving me." With that, he dropped down into a bow.

Airi bowed alongside him. She knew Youta would probably protest later, but for now she could deal with it. After all, this was their joint responsibility, and Airi would beg if that was what it took for everyone to accept Youta again.

Aida sighed. "Come on, I already said it was okay, didn't I?" she groaned. Youta straightened up, and his sister followed suit. "Geeze, you two are so uptight sometimes. You should be celebrating! Airi-chan just got out of the hospital and Watanabe-kun gets to come to school again. So you two smile, got it? 'Cause we're going out to dinner today!"

"A dinner party?" Airi asked, her voice overlapping with Youta's. She started to giggle first, then Youta laughed, louder, the sounds echoing off the gymnasium walls and into the ceiling. The rest of the basketball club joined in, mixed in with cheers about going out and getting changed.

"You ready to go, Nii-san?" Airi whispered, just loud enough for her twin to hear.

"Yeah, I'm ready," Youta replied. Airi responded to the smile in his voice with one of her own.

Airi clutched her hands into the sheets, biting her lip. The text had come through from Youta half an hour ago, and she had been waiting with Tetsuya ever since. The rest of the Seirin Basketball Club had left, saying that they didn't want to make the room too quiet once her parents showed up. Tetsuya had stayed because Airi had asked, because she didn't want to be alone.

She had tried calling Youta's cell phone back, but it went straight to voice mail. She didn't dare leave a message on the home answering machine in case her parents heard it first.

"You shouldn't be scared," Tetsuya said, keeping his voice steady. "They're your parents. I'm sure that they just want to make sure you're doing alright."

"I'm not ready to see them," Airi admitted. "I never really thought… I mean, they haven't been around for all this time, and with everything that's happened, I didn't consider the fact that it was about time for them to finally make it home."

Footsteps approached the door, loud and heavy. When they were at home, Eiko always made sure to take lighter steps so that she didn't disturb Airi. Whenever she left, though, she always put on heavy boots, ones that echoed out of the entryway and into the kitchen in their last home. That hadn't changed in the month that had passed, and Eiko entered the room, Noboru's tennis shoe squeaking against the floor as he attempted to catch up with his wife.

"It's been a while, Otoo-san, Okaa-san," Airi said, mainly because politeness and formalities where the only things she could think of at the moment.

"It has," Eiko responded. "How are you feeling?"

"I feel alright." Airi didn't mention anything about her cluttered thoughts, about the feeling of being sick brewing in her stomach. She just focused on the information, on what her mother would want to know in a situation like this. "It's been a bit hard on my eyes, but it doesn't really hurt anymore."

"Oh, thank goodness…" Noboru breathed in relief. Their voices had gotten closer, and there was an adjustment of chairs as Airi's parents sat down. "We were worried. When are you able to discharge?"

"Soon," she answered. "I'm not supposed to do anything strenuous, but that was a given anyway. I should be able to get back to school, and my classmates have been helping me out with my homework, so I should be caught up."

Noboru was smiling—Airi just knew it. Her father always shifted in a way that made her feel relaxed when he did. Eiko tapped her fingers against the armrest of the hospital chair. "Airi, what happened?" the woman asked, and Airi swallowed.

What could she say? Everything was still theories. Not the truth. Not until she had talked to Youta and they had figured things out. "There was a car accident down the street," Airi said. It wasn't lying. It was still the truth. "I went out for a walk and got caught up in it." She wished she could add something else. That's about it, she could say. But that wasn't true at all.

Eiko pursed her lips. Airi just knew it. "And where was your brother?"

Airi took a breath, the air making a sharp noise in her throat. She thought of Youta, fighting for her, trying his best to make something about the situation change, anything.

"Nii-san," she said. "Nii-san was there. He helped me." Another sharp breath. "He did everything he could." That was all Airi could manage before she started crying.

"Ei-chan," Noboru urged, and Eiko fell silent.

It wasn't anything too special, just some diner that had been willing to host a party of twenty. Somehow, Airi and Youta fit at the front of the table, surrounded by the Seirin Basketball Club. Kise had apparently been invited and brought a girl along—Mayurama Natsumi, or at least that was what Airi thought she had heard—and even Miura had been invited. Youta was silent toward the other boy, but didn't object to his presence.

It was a start, at least.

It took some time, but small talk bridged the gap between ordering and their food arriving. Airi mostly listened, responding when people asked her questions but not much else. Just hearing everyone enjoy themselves was enough, especially since she had Youta at one side and Tetsuya at the other. If it wouldn't have gotten in the way of eating, Airi would have insisted on holding both of their hands.

"Okay, everyone," Aida called once most of their plates had been cleared off. Their waiter approached, a plate in his hands that he sat down on the table. "It's time to say congratulations for Watanabe-kun and Airi-chan getting out of the hospital."

Airi blushed a little, sitting back in her chair. She had been trying to get a smell of the dish in front of her, but hadn't gotten close enough. Both Tetsuya and Youta leaned in at her sides. "It's a cake," they whispered in unison.

"Okay, get ready! Se no!"

"Congratulations!" the group cheered, even tossing in smatterings of applause. Even some others in the restaurant clapped a few times, and Airi smiled.

"Thank you, everyone," she said.

"Not so fast," Aida interjected. She started reaching around, the rustle of paper reaching Airi's ears. "We know it's not enough to cover all the expenses you'll need, but we did our best to pull together at least some money." Youta inhaled as he took the money from the coach. "No need to be so surprised, Watanabe-kun. Like we said, we take care of our teammates, right, guys?"

There was a collection of affirmatives, and Airi reached out a hand to put on Youta's shoulder. He was shaking again, and she moved her hand up to his face. His breathing was fine, but there were tears forming in the boy's eyes. "I… I don't deserve everything you've done for me, for us. But thank you for helping Ai-chan."

"Nii-san," Airi said, putting the minimum force needed to scold without yelling into her voice. "You don't need to think like that. You did everything you could have." Youta looked up, uncurling from leaning over. "So be happy right now, Nii-san. After all, we're fine and we've made such wonderful friends…"

"She's right," Kagami added from the other side of the table. "So stop your blubbering and eat the cake we got you, you big idiot."

"Kagami-kun," Tetsuya reprimanded.

Youta shook his head, and Airi lowered her hand. "No, it's fine. Kagami's right," he said. The redhead made a sound of surprise. "No more crying. Go ahead, Aida-senpai, cut the cake. Just make sure that Ai-chan gets the biggest piece!"

A debate quickly ensued over who would be the one to serve the cake—something or other about not letting Aida do it, for whatever reason. Airi did her best to raise her voice over the chatter. "Um, please don't take Nii-san seriously. I won't be able to eat too much…"

"It's okay," Tetsuya said. "Why don't we just split a piece? I'm pretty full, too." Airi smiled, nodding in agreement.

"Hold it right there, Kuroko!" Youta interjected, leaning across Airi's lap and into the other boy's face. Tetsuya moved back a little, just avoiding their heads colliding. "I don't care if you two are dating now, that doesn't mean you get to try and do stuff like couples in front of us! I'm her brother, so we'll share it!"

Airi blushed, not knowing what else to say. She hadn't meant to keep their relationship a secret from Youta; there just hadn't been a good time to bring it up. Airi wanted to maybe tell him with Tetsuya, but not in front of everyone else like this. Even if the rest of the Seirin Basketball Club knew already, that didn't make it any less embarrassing.

"Don't look so confused, Ai-chan," Youta said, turning back to his sister. "Of course I figured it out. You've been talking about him, and Kuroko here's been giving you glances all day." Tetsuya made a small noise of surprise, blushing as well. "I'm okay with it, but can you just give me a little time to adjust? I…I'm not ready to admit that I'm not the only one that Ai-chan needs just yet."

Airi nodded again, despite Kuroko shifting towards her. "So then why don't all three of us split the piece then? As a transition celebration?" she suggested. Youta retreated to sit properly in his seat, and neither boy gave a protest.

"Hey, Kurokocchi, that's no fair!" Kise whined. "You didn't tell me you and Airicchi got this close already! I was totally cheering you on before, too!"

"Just what do you think you're calling my sister? Huh?" Youta asked, turning his frustrations on the blonde.

"To be fair, Kise-kun, you didn't tell me about Mayurama-san," Tetsuya responded, not once breaking his tone. This made Kise whine to the girl in question, and finally Kagami was the one to place the piece of cake in front of Airi.

"Eat up," he said, retreating back to distribute the rest of the cake. Airi scooped up two mouthfuls—one to silence Youta and the other for Tetsuya—before getting ready to take a bite of her own.

It didn't take long for Airi's tears to subside. After all, she had figured out how to stop crying a long time ago, and this was no different. Her parents had started talking in the corner, trying to keep their voices low. Airi could still hear them, though, and they were discussing things like hospital bills and how much money they would have to work around to do it.

Airi couldn't help but feel guilty. She hadn't considered any of that. She had been worried about Youta and everyone being fine, not how they would handle the costs. Let alone how they were going to handle Youta's situation. They would have to talk about that soon, or else nothing would get solved.

"Airi-san," Kuroko whispered. "Airi-san, it's going to be okay. Please don't worry. I'll help you in any way I can, so please don't give up."

It was almost clichéd, but Airi realized she had never believed anyone more.

Hey, I was able to update on time! My computer was being so silly I thought this might have to be late again...

Thanks to kaira2004, DearestELFriend, CherryPop0120, Tamani, frickbl1, My Name is Alice, TarundoruSlap, Kaori (Guest), Mikotsuki, trollypop, mati903, Killerddj, xxseijuuro, RichesToDitches, and xenocanaan for your respective reviews, favorites, and follows! I hope to hear from you all again, because your support is amazing!

Also to answer a frequently asked question about this story, I will reply to Kaori's review here:

Thanks for the support, and I'm glad that you're enjoying the story. However, Momoi will not be appearing in Visibility.

As I've told others, I try to make the flow of my stories work as naturally as possible. Airi and Youta's journey had a lot going on. If I could have found a rational place for Momoi to show up other than just having her show up for the sake of her reaction, I would have. However, I was unable to find such a place, and as such have not put her in, because I respect Momoi as a character and don't want to make her appearance contrived.

The same goes for the rest of the GoM. Kise's appearance didn't happen because I wanted to write him. It happened because when I planned out the charity tournament, I could reasonably see him being there. (Fun fact: the original idea involved Rakuzan also competing in the tournament. The reasons I came up for were ridiculous, and was eliminated as I revised the plans for Reliability, so Akashi's appearance was taken out.)

But don't fret! Since everyone seems interested, I've been trying to set up the sequel to this story so that all of the GoM's will show up.

[End rambling]

That being said, though, updates will now resume as usual. I'll see you on this story in two weeks!

[POST] 091714