Chapter 3: Confession and Bread
Moping up the stairs, I rub my eyes tiredly. When I got home yesterday, Satsu-chan was surprisingly back to her normal, bubbly self. She was just happy to have me home. I wanted to tell her all about Aomine-kun, but first I had to hold down her food and in the end, I received no time to spill about the mysterious man. Instead, Satsu-chan kept questioning me about Kuroko-kun and was making sure no girls were on him.
As I climb the stairs to the roof, I almost feel Satsu-chan's food rising back up. Looking further up, I wasn't sure if I'd make it without making a mess.
Still walking, I hear urgent footsteps from behind. Looking behind me, I find that it was a distressed Kagami-kun.
"Kaga- G'ah!"
Kagami-kun grabs my hand, pulling me with him as he races up the stairs, throwing us both onto the roof.
Laying on my back in front of everyone, I cover my mouth, trying so hard to hold the food down.
"Well, well. I didn't think you two would make it," says Riko-senpai, as she stops the stop watch in her hands.
Mitobe-senpai and Koga-senpai help me up, as Izuki-senpai and Hyuuga-senpai pull Kagami-kun off to the side.
It didn't make much sense considering we all could still here their conversation.
"You little brat, just what the hell did you do to our imouto (little sister)?" threatens Izuki-senpai as Hyuuga-senpai shakes a dazed Kagami-kun over the railing.
"Ah! Please-"
"Let them be. Anyways, I've gathered you all here for a reason. As you can see, the opening ceremony is taking place. Here, I will give you the opportunity to state your name, class and reason for playing basketball. Your answer cannot be of the following "To impress a girl". I want it from the heart! Now, we did this last year and did get in trouble. So we only have a few minutes for you all to do it. Now, who'll be the first?" says coach, as she crosses her arms over her chest.
Looking around, no one volunteers until Kagami-kun does.
I watch in amazement as he easily states the will of his heart, as if it was something he did daily.
Jumping off, he walks pass everyone with a light smirk. Getting fired up by his attitude, I too stand at the railing and admit my desires.
"...I want to be that inspiration to girls everywhere that no matter what race, size, person you are, you can do it!"
Stepping down from the railing, I'm attacked by the brotherly love of my senpai's.
"Our imouto is growing up!" they cry, as they continue to hug me.
I then notice that Mitobe-senpai isn't anywhere to be seen in this onslaught of love. Instead, I notice him off beside Kuroko-kun as he begins to wipe away his fake tears.
"That's a little much, Mitobe-senpai!" I yell in embarrassment.
Really, my senpai's were a lot to handle.
"So you want us to get the bread?" says Kagami-kun, as Hyuuga-senpai hands him the money.
"If you can do that much, then the Seirin basketball team is set."
The last and final challenge into officially becoming part of the Seirin team once and for all.
The first year's all follow Kagami-kun out to the canteen. We're all amazed to see the crazy bustling over this unappealing bread.
One by one, they all take turns throwing themselves into the crowd. I stand back quietly, not wanting to draw any attention to myself.
But that all fails when Furihata-kun comes up with a fool proof plan of putting me on top of Kagami-kun.
"T-That's impossible! What if I fall?" I yell, as I shyly yank my skirt down. Truth was, the idea of my legs around anyone's head made my heart skip a couple of beats.
"Yuki, come on. This is our only-"
"I got the bread."
Looking behind me, Kuroko-kun stands with the famous bun in his hands. Startled out of my mind, I lean helplessly onto Furihata-kun for support.
"I I can't go on," I moan, my voice eerily deathly.
"Hang in there!" he yells, as he supports me on his body.
"Just how did you get the bread?" asks Kagami-kun, as he examines the contents of the bread.
"The flow of the crowd pushed me further up and I was suddenly in front of the bread. I took one and left the money and came back."
We all stare at Kuroko-kun, amazed at how one's invisibility always managed to come up as a plus.
"Here's the bread," says Kagami-kun, as he hands the bag to Hyuuga and Riko-senpai.
"It's fine. You guys deserved it so enjoy it yourselves," he says, as he gives us all a friendly smile.
One by one, we all at first attentively begin to eat the bread. Miraculously, it had to be the most delicious bread I had ever eaten.
"Eh, slow down imouto. You might choke," says Koga-senpai, as he pats my back, causing me to spit some of my food out.
Mitobe-senpai hands me a juice box with little kittens adorned all around.
This this was crossing a line.
During practice, the boys were now beginning to open up to my presence and starting to pass to me. A few like Mitobe and Izuki-senpai still had a hard time using all their force against me.
Now in the middle of a game, I'm running towards the hoop, waiting for a pass by Kuroko-kun to Kagami-kun to come my way. But instead, Kagami-kun throws too hard and the ball flies past me. He had no idea how to pass to me. Sometimes it was too light and the other times it was too forceful like this.
"Kaga-kun!" I whine, as I shoot him a look before running to grab the ball. Instead, a tall, blonde haired man in a striking suit snatches the ball into his hands.
He looks at everyone, his eyes almost snake like.
Afraid, I begin to take a step back but his attention suddenly snaps towards me. The man slams his body into me, pinching my cheeks.
"Waaaah, how cute!" he laughs, his voice shockingly friendly and gentle. As he continues to pinch my cheeks, he reminds me nothing more than an innocent, Labrador puppy.
"Hello, Kise-kun," says Kuroko-kun, as this Kise-kun let's go of me. I take a few steps back, giving them some room.
"Kurokocchi! Did you miss me?" he asks, as he rubs the back of his head shyly.
"Riko-senpai, who is he?" I ask my coach, as I keep my eyes on the two in front.
"I'm not sure."
After a few moments, Kuroko-kun and Kise-kun walk towards the group.
"Everyone, this is my team mate from Teiko, Kise Ryouta," introduces Kuroko-kun, his voice far from happy.
"Eh, Kuroko-kun, at least act like you missed me!"
"Sorry, Kise-kun."
We all remain silent, sizing up the member of the famous Generation of Miracles. He was amazingly handsome, but what else did he have that made him so special? Kuroko had his misdirection, but what about Kise-kun?
"Oi, you're one of the Generation of Miracles, eh? How about we go one on one?" asks a voice from behind. Turning, we all look at Kagami-kun with a shocked expression. Taking on the Generation of Miracles as a team would be hard enough, but what was Kagami-kun thinking about going head to head?
And surprisingly, Kise-kun agrees to the match.
But before they start, I wish to give Kagami-kun my lucky basketball to play with. Running to my bag that was in the girls' locker room, I almost cry as I realize that I had forgotten to take it back from Aomine-kun.
Moping, I drag myself back out in time to watch the two begin.
Standing back from afar, I watch as Kagami-kun had the built and height, but did that really matter when up against Kise-kun?
Soon enough, it proved to be nothing.
"H-He's just copying Kagami!" states Koga-senpai, reading all of our thoughts.
"Just like I use misdirection, Kise-kun's skill is the ability to make a perfect copy. His style of basketball is his opponents'," says Kuroko-kun, as he just as intently watches Kagami and Kise-kun go at it.
In the end, Kise-kun came out as the winner.
"Neh? You'll have to do a lot better than this, Kagami-kun. That is if you wish to beat the Generation of Miracles."
With a few last parting words between Kagami, Kuroko and Kise-kun, I wander off to go sit on the bench.
There, I think about what I had just witnessed. Kuroko-kun had mentioned that Kise-kun wasn't a candidate from the start. He was merely the person their captain had realized to fit in for the 5th player they had kicked out. There were four more stronger than Kise-kun and the thought of that frightened me.
"Don't look so worried," says Riko-senpai, as she takes a seat beside me.
"B-But look at him! Do you think we'll be enough to-"
"I know we will. This year we have all you first years. Plus, your senpai's from the year before wouldn't still be here if they didn't think they'd be enough, right? Have a little faith, Yuki-chan," she says, as she consoles me with her powerful leadership skills. From her reassuring words, I watch as Kise Ryouta, the 5th member of the Generation of Miracles walks out of the gym. With the help of everyone, we'd all stop him and the other 4.
About to enter the gym of Touou, Satsu-chan was supposed to come to Seirin so the both of us could walk home, but it seems that both schools had practices after the end of the day. Satsu-chan had said for me to walk home but she immediately took her words back when she recalled the lectures she had been given from my brothers the day before. Instead, she ordered for me to come to Touou where she would walk me home until I had memorized the correct streets and paths.
Walking into the gymnasium, I see that their practice is still going strong. I find Satsu-chan with the schools coach. She waves at me and ushers for me to come to her.
"How was practice?" she asks, her voice very sly.
"If you're wondering about Kuroko-kun, he's fine. Kise-kun paid him a visit though," I say nonchalantly, as I begin to rummage through my bag for that sweet, red bean bun I had been saving for later.
"H-He did? I wonder if Ao- Yuki-chan, those are really bad for you!" she nags, as she snatches the bun away from my grubby hands.
I give her a pleading look, asking for it back.
"Imayoshi-kun!" she calls out, turning to look over her shoulder.
In comes running a tall player wearing glasses. I believe that this was the captain of Touou's basketball team. There was something very displeasing about the happy look on his face.
"Make sure Yuki-chan doesn't get a hold of this."
Tossing the heavenly bun like a mad woman into his hands, Imayoshi-kun holds it above me.
"Th-That's not fair!" I whine, as I jump up and down like a child.
Suddenly, an idea pops up in my head. I quickly search for a player who's taller than Imayoshi-kun.
Spotting one, I slowly walk up to him, tugging on the back of his uniform like a lost child.
He turns around for a second, completely ignoring me but has to do a double take. The boys around us also take notice of my presence.
"I-Imayoshi-kun took my my bun. Can you get it for me, please?" I innocently ask, as real tears begin to slide down my face.
Immediately I see the look of fire in all of their eyes'. They snap their heads towards Imayoshi-kun, who stares back in horror.
"Atta-"
Satsu-chan grabs my hand and drags me outside of the gym.
"Don't just use your looks to get what you want," she grumbles, as she begins to dig in the pocket of her blue sweater.
"You do the same thing!"
"Yes, but that's because everyone loves me," she laughs, as she hands me a few yen.
"What's this?"
"Up across the street around the corner, there's a convenience store. Go ahead and buy your-"
I knew it was rude to begin running as soon as she said convenience store, but skipping lunch had been a horrible mistake. I had been full from the earlier bread so I didn't think lunch was necessary. But after that grueling practice, I was so hungry.
"Wait for me there!" she yells, as she let's me leave.
I stand crouched down in the middle of an aisle, staring at a bag of chips with a scowl on my face. It was taunting me. All I could think about was ripping the bag open and stuffing my face. But Satsu-chan, being the cruel woman she was, gave me the exact amount of money for one apple. Even if she wasn't with me she wouldn't let me dare eat anything bad.
Wiping the drool from my mouth, I think about buying the apple, but suddenly the bag of chips has my attention again.
"Yukari?" says a familiar voice, very close to me.
Looking to my left, I see Aomine-kun is crouched down right beside me. For a second, it takes me a moment to register in his sudden proximity. Startled, I begin to fall back into the pile high of soda. Luckily, Aomine-kun grabs my arm, pulling me forward.
"Th-That was so scary," I breath, as I once again begin to physically beat my heart back to life. For a moment, I had seen my life flash before my eyes. Strangely enough, all I saw was Satsu-chan's cooking. Then did I know that that was a sign I was going to Hell.
I watch as Aomine-kun grabs two bags of the chips I had been glaring at. Grabbing my wrist, he drags me along to the register where he pays for a few other items as well.
The both of us stand in front of the shop, as I hungrily devour my second bag of chips. I couldn't have thanked Aomine-kun enough.
"I still have yer' ball, y'know," he says, as he nods towards his bag.
"I know. Thank you for holding onto it," I say cheerfully, as I crumple up the bag of chips. From there, I toss it into the waste bin, watching in shame as it misses. Heh, maybe if I had played in the Championship League, I probably still would have lost with my sorry excuse of a three pointer.
Picking the litter up and appropriately disposing it, I hear Aomine-kun ask what school I'm from.
"Seirin High," I say, as I rub my hands together, trying to rid free the evidence. Heh, now Satsu-chan wouldn't even know!
Turning around, I stop to stare as Aomine-kun continues to devour an already half eaten popsicle. It it had been so long since I had one. I quickly rub the drool away from the corner of my mouth. Unconsciously, I find myself shifting closer and closer to Aomine-kun.
Aomine-kun suddenly realizes my look and slowly turns to me, in fear of my face. Just as he thought, it was just as innocent and pleading as it would be.
Walking towards me, he asks if I want a bite.
Blushing, I quickly decline. Aomine-kun had already done so much for me. It'd be rude to also go ahead and eat his food.
"Don't look at me with that pathetic look if yer' not going to. Here, let me help you," he mutters lazily, as he gently cups my chin, prying my mouth open.
"Open wide. Tch, but that shouldn't be too hard, right?" he jokes, his voice definitely seductive and alluring. I go bright red when he forces me to take a bite. It didn't help at all when he said, "How does my popsicle taste?" It wasn't fair because this time, Aomine-kun was serious and then I just seemed like a pervert by taking it out of context.
Aomine-kun began to laugh as he watched me go a shade darker.
"YUKI-CHAN!" yells a familiar voice, and I immediately swallow the contents down. I begin to jump up and down as I get that annoying, numbing pain in my head.
Of course, there was Satsu-chan busting me for my eating habits once again. I had to wonder if she had planted some sort of device in my clothing.
"Sat-"
"And Aomine-kun! Why are you encouraging- EH? Your bag is full of junk, give me that!" yells Satsu-chan, as she reaches in to grab Aomine-kun's bag. All he does is stick the blue icy in his mouth and wave the bag tauntingly in front of Satsu-chan.
"I'll talk to you later, Aomine-kun. Come on Yuki-chan, we're going home!"
"Satsu-chan! W-Wait. I still need to grab my-"
"The ball was yours? I wonder why it said Princess Player on the bottom. Now that I think of it, it is something you'd-"
"I was 5 when I wrote that!" I argue embarrassingly, growing a deep red.
"Hai, hai. Don't worry. Aomine-kun can give it to me. First, we need to discuss how you know him."
As she continues to drag me home, I make a mental note to never eat secretly from Satsu-chan ever again.