x
BANDS OF black AND blue
x
x
x
2o : a practical solution
It's a very practical tradition, Kuroko thinks, as he's dribbling the ball from left to right. Playing with an opponent after having beaten, that is. Kise was the first person; entirely by accident. But the thing was: he found that he enjoyed playing with his old teammate, marvelling at how easily the other caught his passes, how effortless it was to coordinate their styles once more.
Momoi was delighted when he called, making sure to note that Aomine was - quite frankly - happier than he had been in years, after he got over the initial bitter taste of defeat. And so, here he stands alone, halfway between Seirin and Touou, wondering if Aomine will show up this particular day. His wristwork needs to be faster; his arms are splaying at his sides too much and his gait is all out of rhythm. And all the same, the feeling of concrete beneath his feet, the coolness of the shade, the laugh of other people - somehow or another, the outdoor basketball courts draw him in everytime.
Oftentimes, the people practicing will not even notice him, going about with his Seirin-issued basketball and practicing his faster passes against the chain links of the fence.
He's in the middle of varying the angles of his acceleration pass when a familiar tan arm loops itself around his neck.
"Tetsu!" Aomine grins, slapping him on the back and stealing the ball from him. Kuroko twitches, but ends up smiling fondly at the other. "Satsuki said I could find you here today," he said as a ways of explanation, eyeballing the basket - which was easily ten meters away - before carelessly tossing the ball in its general direction. Kuroko snickers when the ball doesn't even hit the backboard, sailing right between the poles and bouncing its way to the other end of the fence.
"Good enough," Aomine retorts, rolling his eyes and sticking out his tongue. "At least I'm not as nitpicky as Tarou." Kuroko walks with the other as he goes to retrieve the ball, Aomine mimicking Midorima's strange style of speech, "Oh no! A chip on my nail! That means that my shots will be two millimeters off today! I must go buy another ugly cat figure!" It is, he must admit, a decent parody, especially when Aomine flutters his laughably short eyelashes before stooping down to pick up the basketball.
"Aomine-kun," he jokingly reproaches, "If you continue acting like that, it's no wonder you'll never be able to make a three-pointer."
"Oh yeah?" the other retorts, eyes sparkling with the thought of a challenge. He passes a glance through the people playing, before taking note of a relatively decent team of five (assumedly) high school boys. "Oi! You!" he calls, interrupting their three-on-two game to beckon them over. "My friend here doesn't think I can make a three-pointer in a real game so do you want to play the two of us and help me prove him wrong?"
"...Where's your friend?" is the obvious first question. Aomine rolls his eyes, jabbing a thumb at Kuroko.
"Ohhh..." was the general response, along with a couple murmured whispers of, "I didn't even notice him!" and "Is he even tall enough to reach the basket!"
Kuroko twitches, he particularly resents the last comment (moreso because it is - more often than not - true but it's not as if he's not trying to improve!) and grabs the ball out of Aomine's hands. Aomine looks surprised for a moment, before breaking out into an even wider grin. "So?" he asks, eyes taunting, "What do you guys say to a friendly game?"
"Five against two?" the apparent leader of the group of boys asks, raising an eyebrow.
"We play competitively," Aomine replied - as if that were any explanation at all.
"Well... alright..." the leader responded, pulling off his sweatshirt to reveal a jersey underneath that read 'Shinsenkan'. There was a wicked gleam in his eye. "Aomine Daiki of the Generation of Miracles, right? I've heard all about you... how your team lost to some dark horse in the Winter - woah!" His exposition is cut short when Kuroko finds that the ball has slipped out from his hands and accidentally bounced a bit too close to the other basketball player's shoes.
"Still as irritable as always, eh?" Aomine notes, laughing and patting him on the back as the other five players assemble themselves on the other side of the court. "Psh, come on," he grumbles, shaking his shoulders and stretching out his arms, "It'll be just like old times," he assures the other, tossing up the ball. The seven players are then off - it is, Kuroko admits, a once-common sight, where all five players would guard Aomine, letting him steal ball after ball and make pass after pass.
It's strange, Aomine thinks, as he's first zig-zagging through three outraged Shinsenkan regulars and jumping up to make a dunk and slamming the ball resoundedly into the basket, that Tetsu and him still manage to coordinate, even though he's clearly improved and Tetsu's style has changed. But then again, he rationalizes, smiling widely at his old teammate as they thump fists like middle school all over again, Tetsu's style is - first and foremost - complementary.
"Aomine-kun lost," Kuroko blandly states, even as he's showing his rare little smile and bending down to pick up the ball.
"Huh?" Aomine exclaims, pointing to the soundly-beaten team, "But the score was thirty-two to eight!"
"And you didn't make a single three-pointer," Kuroko pointed out, giggling.
"Whaaaa - ?" the other complains, before grinning and grabbing the ball from Kuroko once more. He spins it and the afternoon sunlight hits the basketball and makes it shine in an almost enchanting manner. "Well then," he concludes as the two of them make their way out of the courts, "I guess we have to play again so I can show you a three-pointer, right?"