Chapter 16

January 2017- Tampa Bay

Rukawa was nervous. After six and a half season, he was used to his fucked-up arrangement with Sendoh, but something felt different now. Maybe it was because he had finally spoken aloud to someone about his...possible preference. Or maybe it was because of the weird way things were left the last time he and Sendoh had been together, in Sendoh's apartment. Or maybe Rukawa just felt surer of what he wanted now, after walking away from a relationship that had been almost perfect.

Almost.

He wanted to see Sendoh this weekend. He wanted to be with him, alone, behind closed doors; he was tired of lying to himself about it.

This year, finally, Rukawa would know what it felt like to play with Akira Sendoh. Six All-Star Games and this was the first time they had been placed on the same team. Injuries and weird, gimmicky team arrangements that the league kept coming up with had prevented it from happening before.

He wasn't the only one who was excited about him being Sendoh's teammate. The press was having a field day writing about this monumental event where Rukawa and Sendoh would have to put aside their supposed animosity and learn to work together. Was it even possible, they wondered?

Rukawa smiled to himself as he hung up his suit in the hotel room closet. If they only knew.

But, truthfully, if he only knew what Sendoh was thinking these days. He wasn't sure if Sendoh wanted to end things, or if he wanted to push things further. He really had no idea what to expect from his temporary teammate this weekend.

He glanced at his watch. The team meet-up downstairs was starting in a few minutes.

Rukawa blew out of a breath, then checked himself in the mirror.

Let's do this.

Sendoh hadn't texted Rukawa in over two months.

Not that they had ever regularly contacted each other before, but this silence had been particularly deafening. The past few weeks had been the first time that Sendoh felt sure that, if he texted him, Rukawa wouldn't reply.

Rukawa would probably show the text to his super-hot model girlfriend, and they would laugh at how pathetic Sendoh was.

No. That wouldn't happen. Of course Rukawa wouldn't do that.

Maybe.

Sendoh fumbled his package of nicotine gum out of his pocket and popped a piece in his mouth. Had Rukawa brought his girlfriend to All-Star weekend? Would he introduce Luna to Sendoh?

God.

Sendoh ran out of time to fret, because at that moment, Rukawa walked into the bar. Every head turned. Some guys actually stood up, for fuck's sake.

Sendoh leaned against the bar and watched Rukawa shake hands and the guys clap him on the back. He watched him smile and talking with everyone. He looked relaxed and confident, like a man who had gotten his life together. Like a man who didn't question himself anymore. He looked...

Damn, he looks so fucking good.

Maybe Luna had taken him shopping or something. Suddenly he was dressing like the millionaire he was. He had on a white, button-up linen shirt, open at the collar, with the sleeves rolled up. They were in Florida, after all. It was tucked into state blue pants that fit him perfectly. The outfit was finished with a woven belt and some stylish gray sneakers with no socks.

Sendoh was wearing shorts, and a shirt that was covered in palm trees because he'd thought it would be relax. Now he felt like a fucking idiot.

He ordered another drink just so he'd stop staring at Rukawa.

He cursed himself for feeling so gloomy. It should be a fun weekend; the hotel was a fucking beach resort.

Someone moved into the space next to him at the bar. Without looking, Sendoh knew it was Rukawa.

"Hey, teammate," Rukawa said.

"Hello, Captain," Sendoh said, because Rukawa had been selected as the captain of their All-Star team. Of course.

Rukawa flagged the bartender down and Sendoh noticed the expensive watch on his wrist. A gift from Luna, maybe?

"So this should be fun, huh?" Rukawa said. "Always wondered what it would be like to play on the same team."

"Have you?"

"Nice that it's in Florida this year, rarely, eh?"

Rukawa's beer arrived and Sendoh watched him take a long haul off the bottle. He watched his throat work as he swallowed.

Sendoh couldn't take it anymore.

"Did you...bring anyone? With you?" Sendoh asked.

Rukawa shook his head. "No. I mean...my parents thought about it, but they've been to so many of these things and they're already going to Mexico next month, so..."

"Ah." Luna Yumilee must be busy photoshoot somewhere.

Rukawa's tongue darted out to lick his upper lip. Sendoh could have sworn it happened in slow motion.

"Nice shirt," Rukawa said with a smile.

"Thought I'd get in the spirit. You know."

"You can pull it off." He raked his eyes over Sendoh's body, and Sendoh's heart sped up. "Looks good."

Sendoh probably could have said something similar in return, but he was too busy staring at the hollow of Rukawa's throat.

"Damn, look at this! Fucking beautiful!" A pair of arms landed heavily across the shoulders of Sendoh and Rukawa. The intruder, Tohru Hanagata- a center from Shoyo- pulled Sendoh's and Rukawa's heads together. "This is what it's all about! Fucking Rukawa and Sendoh working together! Love it!"

Rukawa had managed to pull his head from Hanagata's bicep, and gave the taller guy a cool looked. "Should be fun, yeah," he said.

"Don't listen to a word this fucker Sendoh says, though," Hanagata said, elbowing Sendoh roughly. "Can't trust this asshole. Whatever he tells you, he's probably fucking with you."

"I'll keep that in mind," Rukawa said.

Hanagata left, with departing arm punches to both of them.

"I think we can expect a lot of that kind of thing this weekend," Rukawa said. He turned so he was leaning back against the bar on his elbows.

"They should give us a chance to get to know each other," Sendoh said. He leaned in and dropped his voice. "We might even have something in common."

Rukawa smiled at the floor, the color rising in his cheeks.

"You looks so good," Sendoh said. "Someone take you shopping?"

Rukawa looked at him. "If I tell you something, do you promise not to tell anyone? Or make fun of me?"

Sendoh felt an icy stab of dread in his stomach. He braced himself, and said, "Sure."

"I, uh..."

Sendoh waited for the words. I'm seeing someone. I'm engaged. I don't need you anymore.

"I hired a personal stylist."

For a moment, there was silence. Then Sendoh burst out laughing. "Fuck off!" he said, delighted.

"I shouldn't have told you."

"No! I love it! Got tired of looking like shit?"

"I didn't-" Rukawa was trying to look angry, but Sendoh could tell he was fighting a smile. "I just mostly wore, you know, athletic stuff. I guess. Track pants and T-shirts and stuff. Some guys in the league are so fashionable and I just thought... I could use some help."

"This has nothing to do with Luna Yumilee?"

"What? No. I mean...yeah, her friends were all really well dressed all the time. I guess maybe I felt like a slob when we went out together. I've never really cared about clothes and I thought... I don't know. I just want to present myself better. Not always dress like I'm heading to the gym."

Sendoh didn't miss the talking of what Rukawa was saying about going out with Luna. "Are you and her not..."

Rukawa shook his head. "We're not. No. It was just a short thing. She's great. We just weren't, um...compatible."

He looked seriously at Sendoh then. Sendoh wanted to kiss him.

"Anyway," Rukawa said, gesturing toward the room with his beer bottle, "I should met to everyone." He stepped away from the bar.

"Right."

Sendoh put his hand over his mouth to hide his ridiculous smile.

It was a fun weekend. Everyone had a lot of free time on Saturday, before the Skills Competition that night. A lot of the guys lounged around the pool, soaking up the Florida sun, or headed to the beach. Rukawa spent some of the afternoon by the pool.

The league had asked the fans to vote for the All-Star team captains this year, and they had chosen him. Rukawa felt a little embarrassed about it because, even though he had been the captain of the Shohoku for two and a half seasons now and this was his sixth All-Star Game, the honor of being named All-Star team captain normally went to one of the most senior players on the team. Rukawa was only twenty-five.

But being named captain over Sendoh had felt pretty sweet.

Sendoh was in the pool with a couple of other players and their kids, being loud and goofing around. Rukawa was sitting on a deck chair with a bottle of water, shaking his head and smiling as he watched him challenge the kids to a swimming race. He would lose every time, and then he would act outraged and accuse the kids of cheating. The kids were laughing so hard Rukawa was worried they might drown.

"Last race!" Sendoh announced. "Championship match. Winner takes all! No other races count!"

"No way!" one of the kids yelled at him.

"Come on. One more race. If I lose... I will buy you candy bars from the machine."

That was enough to get the kids to line up across one end of the pool.

"Hey! Rukawa!" Sendoh called suddenly. Rukawa nodded at him.

"You gotta watch, okay?" Sendoh said. "Make sure none of these cheaters cheats."

"Okay."

"You kids know who that guy is?" Sendoh asked.

"Kaede Rukawa!" most of them said at once.

"Really?" Sendoh said, feigning shock. "You've heard of that guy?"

They laughed. One of the braver ones said, "He's the best player in the Japan!"

"Okay, you're out of the race. Out of the pool. Out of Florida. Goodbye. Where's your dad?"

The kids laughed more. Rukawa laughed too. He wondered if Sendoh ever thought about having kids. He was good with them.

Finally the race began. Sendoh took an early lead, then pretended to have been attacked by a shark.

"You gotta buy us candy bars!" one of the kids said.

"Aw, damn. Hey, Rukawa! I need, like, ten bucks!"

Rukawa almost flipped him off, but then remembered the kids. "Did Ryonan stop paying you or something?" He smirked.

"I forgot my wallet!"

"Of course you did."

Sendoh hoisted himself out of the pool. Rukawa's breath caught a little as he watched him make his way over to his chair. His wet swimsuit clung to his thighs and his crotch, and water ran a little rivulets down his chest. When he reached Rukawa's chair, he shook his head violently so water flew all over Rukawa's dry clothing.

"Ah! Fu-" Rukawa stopped himself. "Knock it off!"

Instead, Sendoh swooped down and wrapped his arms around him. Rukawa's eyes went wide.

"Get off! What the-" He was shocked that Sendoh would do something this...public. Shocked and a little thrilled.

But to everyone watching, this was just typical Sendoh being a playful asshole. Everyone was laughing as Rukawa squirmed in a halfhearted attempt to free himself.

When he finally let go, Rukawa shoved him and tried to look annoyed, but he knew his face was flushed and he couldn't help smiling. Sendoh straightened up to full height, looming over Rukawa with the sun behind him. Every inch of him was glistening gold.

It took every ounce of Rukawa's willpower to stop himself from reaching out for him. He looked magnificent.

He was looking right back at Rukawa with his wet hair falling into his eyes, and Rukawa followed his gaze down to his own chest. His shirt was wet and clinging to him. It was a white and blue gingham checked shirt, and parts of it were transparent now.

"You wrecked my shirt," Rukawa said.

"Sorry," Sendoh said. He didn't sound sorry.

Rukawa licked his bottom lip.

Sendoh quickly turned away from him. "Hey! Maki! I need ten bucks! Rukawa's a cheapskate."

Sendoh moved from small forward to point guard for the All-Star Game so he could play on a line with Rukawa. He was happy to do it; he'd been waiting a long time for an opportunity to play with Rukawa.

And playing with him was everything he had imagined it would be.

He actually felt bad for their power forward, Tsuchiya, because as far as Sendoh was concerned there was no one else on the court. Rukawa could actually keep up with Sendoh, and it was like they were reading each other's minds when they passed the ball. They had barely had any time to practice together; they just clicked in a way Sendoh never had with any other player. It was exhilarating.

Sendoh took a pass from one of the defenseman and he took off. When he glanced to his left, he saw that Rukawa was right there with him. He crossed the free line throw, fired the ball over to Rukawa, Rukawa passed it back to him, and Sendoh returned it at the last second. Rukawa shot it cleanly into the top of the hoop for his fourth goal of the game.

Rukawa raised his arms in celebration and he just looked so happy. He was beaming and his eyes were crinkled and his cheeks were flushed. Sendoh embraced him, and Rukawa wrapped both of his arms tight around him. Sendoh felt a puff of Rukawa's hot breath on his neck, and he could see the glisten of sweat on his skin and Sendoh kissed him, hard, on the cheek. He was sure, to the crowd, that it looked like Sendoh's usual obnoxious shenanigans, that the kiss was just another way of annoying Rukawa. But the truth was Sendoh simply couldn't help himself. He had seen an opportunity, and he had taken it.

"What the fuck?" Rukawa laughed.

Sendoh felt his own cheeks flush, which was a rare and uncomfortable feeling.

"Nice goal," he said.

"Nice assist," Rukawa said, shooting him a weird look.

Sendoh grinned and shrugged. He thumped Rukawa on the back in an overly macho way and walked toward the bench.

On Sunday night, after the game, a bunch of the guys went to a Mexican restaurant that one of the Tampa Bay players claimed had the best food in town. A few others just drank at the hotel bar. There was several room parties happening too.

Rukawa was sitting on the beach, alone. It was dark, but there were still quite a few people out walking in the moonlight. He supposed that was exactly what you came to Florida for.

He just needed an hour or so to himself. The weekend had been challenging for a lot of reasons. He had tried to keep some distance between himself and Sendoh, both because he couldn't trust himself not to touch him in some telling way, and also because the media was so obsessed with the two of them playing together despite hating each other that he didn't want to give them any fuel. And, he supposed, he didn't want to change the narrative either. The rivalry was good for the league, good for their careers, and, most importantly, it was a very good cover for the truth.

He dug his toes into the cool sand. He listened to the waves that he could just barely see in the darkness. This was nice. So much of his life was spent indoors. Court and gyms and hotel rooms and airports and planes.

Someone sat beside him, a few inches away. He didn't even need to look.

"Found you," Sendoh said.

"You were looking for me?"

"Of course not."

They sat in silence for a while. Sendoh planted his hands behind him, next to Rukawa's in the sand, and stretched his long legs out. His feet were bare, like Rukawa's. "I looked up the word," Sendoh said. "Compatible."

"What?"

"I thought I knew what it meant. But I wanted to check."

Rukawa thought for a moment, then realized what Sendoh was referring to. "Oh."

"You and Luna Yumilee..."

"Yeah. Not compatible. Not in that way, anyway."

Sendoh was quiet. Rukawa looked around to see if anyone was close enough to hear them. They seemed to be alone.

It was very dark.

"When do you fly out?"

"Early," Sendoh said.

"Me too. Aichi."

"Osaka." Sendoh said again.

Without warning, Sendoh moved his hand until it was right next to Rukawa's, and then he hooked their thumbs together. Rukawa's first instinct was to pull away, but he resisted. Instead he closed his eyes, and tried not to hope for impossible things. He also resisted the urge to rest his head on Sendoh's shoulder.

"What room are you in?" Rukawa whispered.

"Twelve seventeen."

"I'd like to talk. Somewhere private."

Sendoh pulled his thumb away. Rukawa wanted to grab it back.

Sendoh stood and said, "See you soon," before walking back toward the hotel.

TBC

Girl: The moment you're waiting for, came soon! I promise! It's time for starting revealing the lovey feeling's. Hehehe. Aw, TQ so much Girl Sweety...muah.