The arcade is incredibly noisy when I walk in, as it usually is. The sounds of fake gunshots and electronic whines intermingle with the yells of excited students and the sighs of weary adults. The lights from various machines cast strange shadows on their respective players' faces, giving them an overly-mask-like appearance that looks unusually unnatural. The windows are all blooming with light that doesn't reach deeper than a few feet from the glass itself due to the obnoxious mash of moving bodies. Some strange crappy rock plays from the ceiling.
I always end up getting lost in the arcade. Daiki might be tall, and if he were with me I'd be able to follow him with ease, but I'm shorter than many of the people who frequent this place. The scent of fast food and sweat taints the air. It's time for the afternoon rush, I suppose, when students file in to drain their wallets of their money. Daiki's a pretty frequent customer here on weekdays, although he doesn't like this place on the weekends. He claims it's because all the girls come in with their boyfriends and make the place reek of cheap perfume, but I think it's because we always get separated until I'm hopelessly lost or because I'm always at work when he'd rather go here. It's not really any of my business.
"Hey, girl! Got a few spare tokens?" I turn to the offensive voice, eyeing the man who looks to be a bit too old for the crowd here. My lips twitch into a scowl.
"No." I reply politely. "I'm not here to play. I have no tokens." The man gives me a disbelieving look.
"Nobody comes here without the intention of playing." He says dubiously, coming a few steps closer. I face him a little more. He's definitely shorter than Daiki, but still taller than me, with broad shoulders and long legs. I narrow my eyes slightly.
"I do." I say flatly. "Excuse me." I dip my head and push my way into the crowd again, weaving between some slightly buzzed adults and a few hyper teens. I scan the crowd for Daiki, knowing he'll be somewhere since it has that racing game he's so fond of. Unfortunately, my search is interrupted once a hand grabs my wrist. My head snaps about fast enough to cause whiplash. I'm almost certain it's Daiki- until the unwelcomed face of the older man comes into view once I rake my gaze up the unwelcomed arm. "Please let go."
"You have a few tokens. Give me one." The delusional man insists, gripping my wrist in his painfully tight grasp. I try to tug my arm free. My gaze darkens with rage.
"I do not. Let me go. I'm becoming very angry." My eyes are narrower now, slanted with fury and darkened with irritation. The group of students behind me mutters about how they can't focus properly on their game. I resist the urge to call Daiki and instead glare at the guy who just won't stop asking for things I don't have. My temper threatens to flare.
"All I want is one token!" He says loudly, causing several heads to turn and a flurry of disgusted whispers to follow after. My lip curls in distaste.
"I don't have any tokens, man. Go buy yourself some more. I would've given you one by now if I had any on me." The man grumbles something I don't catch before lurching toward me. My eyes widen rapidly before I drive myself through the crowd, texting a hurried message to Daiki. By the racing games. Strange man won't leave.
My phone doesn't inform me of any replies as I continue to try to shake this guy. Just as I'm just about sure he's ready to drag me back to the games I'd just left, I run straight into a tall male. More specifically, one with blue hair and rather irritated eyes. Aomine Daiki. He looks really irritated, actually.
"Someone's bothering you?" Daiki asks, glancing down at me. I turn and point at the startled looking man. "What do you want?"
The man opens and closes his mouth like a fish out of water; his eyes are round in surprise and his brow is drawing into a frown. "Token." he squeaks. His voice has raised several octaves, and I can't keep a thread of amusement from curling in my stomach. Daiki looks at me.
"I don't have any! I told him that twice!" I say determinedly. "He won't believe me."
"She doesn't have any." Daiki tells the man, glaring down at him. "How about you leave her alone?" Daiki's "suggestion" is more of an order with no wiggle room. I would personally recommend not pissing the blue-haired prodigy off. His temper is nothing short of terrifying. The man grimaces and nods.
"Of course. My apologies." He says suddenly, his demeanor changing completely in a matter of seconds. My eyes narrow in irritation before I look away and risk a glance at Daiki. What I see actually shocks me this time around. Daiki looks completely livid. Angry, narrow eyes with burning coals instead of blue. A frown so intense it puts all his previous ones to shame. Daiki looks like he's on his way to a grade A temper tantrum, and judging by the audible grinding of his teeth, it's gonna get messy if he doesn't calm down.
"Daiki." I say quietly, "Let's go, okay?" The bluenette appears not to have heard me. "Daiki?" I tug on the hem of his shirt carefully, trying not to risk any unintentional damage to my face. With a huff, the tall boy grabs my wrist, turns on his heel, and storms away, dragging me with him as I struggle to keep up. "D-Daiki..."
For such an angry expression, Daiki's grip is surprisingly gentle. Sure, it's firm and doesn't let me escape, but it isn't tight enough to hurt at all, or twist my skin uncomfortably. I guess he's grown a bit. "You really just attract trouble, don't you?" Daiki says, glancing back at me as we continue forward. I shift uncomfortably.
"It's not like I mean to. I stand out here since I'm not Japanese." I reply, glancing away. Daiki's sigh is audible even in the din of the arcade.
"Be more careful, Alex." A feeling of embarrassment creeps over me with incredible speed, making my face redden.
"Sorry."
"Stop apologizing."
"Sorry."
"Alex!"
"Sor-" Daiki spins around faster than I can track and clamps a hand over my mouth, looking both amused and annoyed. My face reddens even more as he leans closer to me.
"Seriously, Alex." Then Daiki flicks my forehead and I jolt backward, rubbing the offended spot.
"Fine, fine. I get it." I reply with embarrassment. I try to get my face to return to a normal color. "That guy was really persistent though..."
"That guy was a creep that kept staring at your boobs." Daiki says flatly, dragging me at a more humane pace. I feel my cheeks flush once more. My mind races for something to say, but my tongue won't form the words. I say nothing and listen to the buzz of afternoon life. The noises of the arcade push the encounter to the back of my mind.
"You looked really pissed back there." I say carefully, wondering if broaching the subject is conversational suicide.
"Why wouldn't I be?" He says, raising an eyebrow. I frown up at the tanned boy.
"Why would you be?" I say with a slight scowl. "It's not like he was staring at you. Are you pissed because I probably ruined your game?" Daiki stares at me with shock written all over his face. Then he laughs, a low, rough, happy sound.
"You're really an idiot sometimes." He says, wiping tears from his eyes. "I am never letting you live that down." I look at him in confusion before rolling my eyes.
"Whatever." I mutter, glancing away. My cheeks redden once more, irritating me. Daiki laughs once more before grinning down at me. "What do you wanna do?"
Daiki looks thoughtful. "Have you eaten?" I shake my head. "Let's grab something, then." My lips curve into a smile.
"Sure." Daiki's hand slips onto my wrist again as I walk beside him once more. "Have you been here long? Sorry if I kept you waiting."
"Nah, I got a game in just before I got your text." Daiki replies, glancing at me. "You look like you just played."
"Kagami asked for one on one. It took longer than expected." I respond, stifling a yawn. "It got interesting for a while, but I got bored in the end, like always." Daiki glances at me with a strange look on his face.
"Why bother playing?" Daiki asks, his voice tight with something rather dark and rough. I sigh.
"I saw how excited he was and couldn't help it." I reply with hooded eyes. "He has potential... but I don't know if he'll tap into it." I can't help the disappointment that taints my words. Daiki glances at me with yet another strange look on his face. Silence pursues us for a while longer.
I grab a burger and a soda from the arcade snack bar and join Daiki at the tall tables with their fancy-schmancy swivel chairs that don't adjust properly. My stomach rumbles appreciatively. "Anyway," Daiki says with amusement as I sip my altogether too icy drink, "you still have your bobby pins in." I blink with surprise before laughing.
"How did I forget to take them out?" I say with equal amusement, pulling out the bobby pins and my ponytail carefully.
"Four." Daiki stares at the number of pins. "He was a four-pin problem?" My lips curve into a smile.
"Yeah, before he tired out. After than he dropped down to a two-pin problem." I clip the pins to my shirt collar. "That determination of his almost makes him a five-pin problem." Daiki sits back and smirks lazily.
"Now I want to test him out." Daiki says with an interested gleam in his eyes. "Of course, it's your first game coming back from what, a month without moving much? Your standards are skewed." I sigh.
"Yeah, they are. I got tired too easily, so I need to take up running again. Before he would probably be a three-pin problem." I say with a sigh. "Oh, well. I'll get back into the groove of things pretty quick. I always do." Daiki nods slightly, wincing visibly.
"Anyway, you didn't have any problems coming over here?" I shake my head a couple times, wondering why Daiki's acting out of character to this degree.
"Did ya wanna play any games?" I ask, balling up the wrapper my burger came in and continuing to sip my drink. "You normally play a few, don't you?" Daiki shrugs.
"I'm not really interested in playing any games today." He says lazily. "The people are really annoying today." I give the bluenette a small smile.
"You always find them annoying." I reply easily, laughing slightly.
"Fine. More annoying than usual." Daiki corrects, giving me an amused glare. "It's boring, though, when it's like this." I nod my head slightly, scanning the arcade for anything that might capture our interest.
"Hey, aren't those games supposed to be impossible?" I ask, pointing at a crane game. "I don't think I've ever seen someone actually get anything out of those stupid things." Daiki follows the direction I'm pointing in and gives me a crooked smirk.
"Ready for a challenge?"
"Look- dude no- I'm- done! I'm so done!" I yell, kicking the side of the machine as I drop the stupid stuffed animal for what feels like the millionth time. I grind my teeth and try to suppress an angry growl. "It takes my money and promises me the damn thing before dropping it right before I get it!" Daiki laughs sadistically behind me.
"Outta the way, short stuff. Time to let a professional play." I swallow my irritation and bang my head against the glass.
"Fine. You do it." I throw my hands up in the air and walk away a couple steps before coming back to observe Daiki's so-called 'playing skills.' His first try goes as anticipated. The claw reaches down to grab an especially interesting stuffed animal I don't recognize, and gives us false hope as it whines its way over to the drop area. Halfway there, the animal slips, falling awkwardly onto the other toys as it smiles at us creepily. Daiki curses.
The second try is a near-perfect repeat of the first, only we get slightly closer to the drop area. The third try is a complete and utter failure as the crane fails to pick anything up. The fourth try is by far my favorite. Up goes a yet another animal, this time a bear. The crane grasps it firmly, whirring and whining with hidden malice as it approaches the drop zone. The bear makes it halfway over the barrier. Halfway. Half the bear is tangled in some stuffed octopus, and the other half reaches over into the abyss. We both groan and swear at the machine in response.
We're down to our last hundred yen when we try for the last time. "Don't fail me now." I warn, rubbing the coin between my palms. "This is the last of my money." Daiki nods.
"Same here." He says with a groan, pushing the coin into the slot forcefully. "Gotta get it this time." I watch Daiki's turn with every fiber in my body. Down goes the crane claw, three-pronged and rubber tipped. It picks up a rather adorable animal this time, but the smudging of the thick glass doesn't let me see what it is very clearly. Up it goes, dangling precariously from the grasp of the machine. A tail and two hind legs swing from side to side.
When I look at Daiki for the first time in three tries, I see nothing but concentration. He must really want to get this, huh? My lips curve slightly in a smile at his strange boyish determination. I go back to watching the crane. I cross my fingers on one hand and watch as the small, slightly squished animal almost drops. It barely manages to cling to the crane. My eyes flicker between the animal itself and the mirror behind it that holds Daiki's reflection. I haven't seen Daiki look this determined since the last time we played one-on-one. It's really an expression I enjoy. Intensity suits Daiki better than anyone else.
I'm shocked, very, very, very shocked, when the bundle of fur drops neatly into the drop box and doesn't hang itself on the edge to taunt us. My eyes widen, and my mouth forms an "O" of astonishment. I look at Daiki in awe. "You got it!" I say excitedly. "You actually got it!" The blue-haired wunderkind crouches to retrieve the animal toy and pulls out a very fuzzy, very huggable black cat. We both look at it in surprise for a few minutes.
"For you." He says, thrusting it into my hands. The taller boy looks away and turns beet red. My face flushes with equal vigor.
"T-Thanks." I try to keep from hiding my face behind my hands as I clutch the black cat to my chest. I glance up at Daiki bashfully. "It's adorable." My cheeks flame once more.
"Sure." He replies. "It's warm in here, don't you think?" I smile anxiously.
"Now that you mention it, I agree." I reply with ease. Daiki nods for a few seconds before grasping my wrist once more.
"Outside. Let's go outside." I nod again as he leads me through the larger throngs of people, keeping me from getting lost. We somehow manage to escape the clutches of the crowd. The air is cool and welcoming when I step outside. I take a few deep breaths, drinking in the scent of car exhaust and city parks.
"Heights." A voice says, with shocking amounts of surprise. I nearly jump out of my skin at the sound of Kagami's voice.
"Kagami!" I reply with surprise, turning to look at the taller redhead with shock. "What are you doing here?"
"I have to walk down this street to get home." He supplies. I frown slightly and peer down the street.
"Really? Where do you live?" Kagami rattles off an address pretty quickly, so it takes me a few minutes to understand. "Wha-" Daiki suddenly scowls at the redhead, who scowls back with equal vigor. "Kagami, you literally live one apartment down from me." We stare at each other with wide eyes.
"Wow. Okay." He says after a few moments. "Are you going home? I'll walk with you." I glance at Daiki.
"Sorry, Alex and I are gonna shoot some hoops." The bluenette says suddenly, tossing an arm around my shoulders. I don't bother to point out that we don't have a ball with us, and that we're completely out of cash once more.
"With what?" Kagami asks, raising a pronged eyebrow curiously. "You gonna shoot pebbles or something?" Daiki just stares at Kagami.
"Alex, let's g-" My leg does it's cute little I think I'll just collapse on you thing as a resounding crack sounds from my ankle. I flinch. "Was that...?"
"Yes." I say instantly, shifting all my weight to one foot as Daiki grabs the back of my shirt in an attempt to keep me from falling. "Landed funny during one on one. Forgot to stretch." Daiki sighs.
"C'mon." He says, crouching down. "Let's go." I crawl onto Daiki's back and hook my legs around his waist with my arms about his neck.
"Sorry, Daiki." I say with a long-suffering sigh. "I guess I went overboard during one on one today." Daiki grumbles something about me playing stupid games with idiots before I hiss a warning in his ear to be polite. Kagami glances at me with a frown on his face.
"What's wrong? Did you hurt yourself, or...?" I laugh slightly.
"I hurt my ankle a while back, and it hasn't really been the same since. When I overwork myself or don't care for it properly, it likes to give out and make me look stupid." I say with some more laughter and a rather self-deprecating smile. "Gets a good laugh, though, when it's timed right."
"I don't see how it's so funny." Kagami says with a scowl. "Didn't that hurt?" I shrug one shoulder as Daiki begins to walk, Kagami remaining side by side with him.
"Sometimes. Depends on what I did." I reply with a frown. "This one did just a little bit, since I think I got it when I landed from a jump or something." Kagami gives me a critical glance. "Don't look at me like that." I say, hiding my face in the side of Daiki's neck. "It's not like it's broken or something." Kagami doesn't reply.