Chapter 4: Blossom

A warm, inviting sun shone over the expanse of Tōō Academy. Kagome breathed a satisfied sigh as she stretched out her limbs as she took in the sun's rays.

"Thanks for inviting me up here, the view is wonderful," Kagome smiled appreciatively. From the rooftop, one could see the entirety of the school's grounds. Small figures dotted the lawn as students sat down to eat.

"Of course! Now, let's dig in!" Momoi grinned back ten fold as she revealed a teddy bear bento. A few paces behind her sat Aomine, who loudly snorted at her statement. Momoi sent a small glare his way and promptly turned her back to him. Kagome couldn't help but roll her eyes. Though she could have done happily without him there, but luckily his back was towards them as he seemed to be occupied with something else.

'If he knows what's good for him, he'll stay quiet,' Kagome thought with a pointed glare at the ace-hole's back. She lowered down next to the pink haired girl with a snort.

As the three settled into an amicable silence, Kagome noticed a distinct change in Momoi's features. From the first bite of her bento, the manager's normally bright expression dulled significantly into a grimace. A bead of sweat fell down Kagome's head as she watched Momoi's hand shake tremendously as she raised another bite to her mouth.

"I can't do it!" Momoi cried, gently setting down her bento. Kagome blinked at the girl, after all she had only taken a bite out of the teddy bear's ear. Looking closer, the bear seemed very ominous as the rice forming the body appeared very undercooked and the blackened pieces of katsu. Up close the bento emanated a miasmic aura.

'Positively inedible!' Kagome thought, absently scooching away from the bento.

"How am I ever going to impress, Testu," Momoi lamented, her face hidden in her hands. Kagome looked at her in confusion, unaware of who this "Tetsu" was.

"Obviously not with your cooking, Satsuki," Aomine teased, his back still towards them.

"Be nice, Ahomine!" Kagome scolded. With a sigh, she tucked away her chopsticks and handed Momoi the bento she was eating.

"Here, Momoi, have mine," Kagome handed the box to the girl who stared with wide eyes. "Don't worry, it's not fancy. I made it." Ever since Sota started middle school and Kagome high school, their mom was busier than ever. She thought it would be nice for her mom to have a little bit of a break.

"B-but Kagome!" Momoi started to say before the priestess cut her off promptly.

"Nope! No buts! I had a big breakfast this morning so I'm not even hungry," Kagome said feistily, leaving no room for further argument.

Momoi's eyes watered, her heart blossoming with warmth. She grasped one of the hot dog octopus with some rice and tentatively ate them. Bursts of flavor shocked through Momoi's mouth as she let out a noise of content.

As Momoi continued to eat away the edible bento, a broad hand came from behind and swiped an octopus.

"Hey, this is actually pretty good," Aomine said, plopping another one in his mouth. "Who knew you could cook, Higurashi."

"The heck is that supposed to mean, Ahomine!" Kagome growled.

The ace met her glare with a smirk and another octopus in his mouth. Even though her mouth was turned down in a frown, the way her sharp blue eyes pierced through his very being thrilled him. Plus the dusting of rose across her cheeks was cute. Oh yes, he thoroughly enjoyed getting on every single one of Higurashi's nerves.

"Don't steal the food Kagome gave me, Dai-chan!" Momoi complained, cradling the almost finished bento away from her childhood friend. Ever since she and Kagome had started to spend more time together, his childhood nickname had resurfaced. Momoi couldn't explain the feeling, but she felt that Kagome would be the last person to judge her for it.

"Don't blame me for eating stuff that's actually edible, Satsuki," Aomine scoffed as he missed his chance to eat the last octopus. As he slunk back to his spot away from them, the comment immediately deflated the joy Momoi had from eating the bento. How could she ever hope to cook as well as Kagome?

"Please teach me how to cook, Kagome!" Momoi asked suddenly, her face alight with determination.

"I don't know, Momoi," Kagome started, obviously caught off guard by the sudden request. "Aren't you busy with basketball practice most nights?"

"We could do it after!" Momoi clasped her hands together, eyes sparkling with watery tears. "Please, Kagome, I'll do anything! Especially since this is for my love!"

Kagome's eyes softened at Momoi's plea. She wasn't a great cook herself, but if it could help Momoi and her endeavors towards love… who was she to deny such a thing?

"If you're that dedicated, you're on," Kagome said, placing a hand on Momoi's clasped pair. "Just warning you though, I'm a tough teacher!"

Momoi squealed in absolute delight as she lifted Kagome into a bear hug. Aomine watched quietly as a smile tugged on the priestess's lips even as she wiggled out of the manager's grip.

He watched with interest at the scene, knowing his childhood friend had struggled to make female friends. Back at Teiko, the girls largely ignored her or teased her because they were jealous. Seeing Satsuki smile like that, Aomine felt a stirring in his chest. He wouldn't outwardly show it, but he was happy that she had found Higurashi. But that wasn't going to stop him from pushing her buttons.

After being set down, Kagome took notice of the terrifying teddy bear Momoi had concocted. Curiosity had always been her most deadly sin, the priestess thought vaguely as she picked up the abandoned bento.

'There was no way that it could be nearly as bad as it looked, right?' Kagome thought resolutely as she took a bite out of the rice. The texture of the uncooked rice made her stomach churn, but it was the flavor of it that put the final nail in her coffin as she promptly fainted.

"I killed Kagome," Momoi wept as she held Kagome's prone body. Luckily, Aomine's quick reflexes had him grab the back of her uniform helping her gently lower to the ground.

Bells resounded signaling the end of the lunch period. Soundlessly, Aomine propped an unconscious Kagome onto his back. The display earned him and Momoi a variety of odd looks and stares, but his mind was preoccupied by the sensation of the tiny girl hanging on his back.

'Her boobs are totally digging into my back right now,' Aomine thought, trying his best to prevent a blush from tinting his face.

They finally made it back to the classroom. The ace helped Satsuki settle a dazed Kagome back into her desk, as he was about to leave he felt a tug on his shirt sleeve.

"Thanks, Aomine," Kagome whispered with a weak smile. The ace muttered something along the lines of "you're welcome" as he hastily exited the classroom, the blush now blossoming full force on his face.

Momoi hid a smile behind her hands as she watched the interaction.

A/N: Aomine's such a dork.

Thanks for reading! 3