The Transfer Student

Chapter 44: The Orchid

I looked at him, impressed, "Wow, you're on the team?".

He nodded smugly.

"Well, then...may the best player win" I said with just as much confidence.

He tossed the ball to me, "You can have first ball, ma'am" he smirked, hunching over into a ready position.

"You don't know who you're messing with!" and I started off with the ball, feigning left and right like a spark jumping through a circuit.

"Just an over-confident chick!" he hollered in response before easily stealing the ball from my hands.

The ball was smacked out of my possession as I was dribbling towards the net and bounced between my legs. Hidan's long reach allowed him to reach back in time to grab the ball before it could get too far and in one swift movement, he brought the ball up over his head, much too high for me to reach even if I jumped. Without a second's hesitation and a perfect posture, he shot the ball through the hoop hanging over the door to the garage and it slid through with barely any resistance.

No doubt my jaw was hanging open by now, "What the hell was that?!" I demanded.

Hidan stretched his arms that rippled with muscle, "Ah, that was nothing" he said modestly.

"What did you eat as a kid? Steroids?!" I was still in shock at how easily he had scored a net against me even if he was a few years older than me.

He threw back his head and laughed and it was a deep, booming laugh that seemed to echo up and down the whole street. When he was finally able to compose himself somewhat, he looked at me with an amused expression.

"You know, you're much cuter than the blonde. She doesn't know anything about...anything, really" he chuckled.

I froze, Did he just say I was cute? Please, please, please just let it be that I heard wrong...

I swallowed hard and found my voice again, "U-uh yeah! Ha ha, she's absolutely hopeless! U-um, well I'm not gonna let you win that easily! Let's, um, rematch sometime soon!" I said as I began to back away towards the house again.

I didn't want to get caught in another one of those situations again.

"Hey, where do you think you're going?" he gave me a stern look, "I still need to score twice more on you!" he protested.

"U-uh, I-I think we both know who'll be the winner today" I said nervously, still backing up.

"Aw, come on! You're such a chicken!" he whined, dribbling the ball idly.

"N-no! Really! I think we should, um, wait for a day where I've had, um, a few more energy drinks...I, uh, stayed up all night last night and, uh, I really don't have much energy..." I hurriedly tried to explain.

He tossed the ball to me, which I caught though I was still backing up, "And you're gonna come all the way up here when you're tired just to see the brat?" he questioned, stopping once I had my back against the door and no where to go.

"Uh...I just..." I was finding it hard to explain myself.

He put one arm up against the wall and loomed over me, "You just what? If you find it so hard just to find a real excuse to see him, shouldn't you be reconsidering?".

I stiffened, my knuckles were already white from holding onto the basketball so hard. He put his hand on the ball and swiped it from my hands, letting it roll over his wrist and on his arm expertly.

"You know, that blonde chick is always getting on my nerves...and me and Sasuke were pretty tight before she came up but lately...even he's been hanging out with her and it creeps the hell outta me. She's not what real men go out looking for" he said firmly.

"Uh...I...I really don't know what you mean..." I said, not meeting Hidan's eyes.

He chuckled light, shaking his whole muscular frame, "I'd congratulate the brat for finding such a cool girl but since he's become such an idiot now...I guess I could always thank him for introducing me..." he hummed.

I fidgeted nervously, "Yeah, it's cool hanging out and shooting hoops and all that but...I really, um, I'm really not-".

His hand came up to my chin, dropping the basketball and forced me to look into his purple eyes.

"Make a comparison now. I have much more promise and experience than the brat. What do you say?" he asked.

"W-what? I-I mean, y-you're...wait! N-no, i-it's not like that!" I panicked, trying whatever I could to get myself away from his approaching face.

I even went so far as to put my hands on his chest, trying to push but he grabbed my hand and held it there.

"Do you feel my heartbeat? All this could be yours if you just tell me so now" he said in a husky voice.

My head spun, how could he expect anyone to make such a brash decision so abruptly?

"N-no! You d-don't understand!" I insisted, "I'm not interested! I'm really not! P-please!" I cried, still trying to push him away.

Just when it seemed too late to do anything, the door I was pressing myself against opened and I lost my balance, falling backwards.

"Hidan. Lay off. Can't you see the girl's already rejected you?".

I had fallen right into the waiting support of Sasori. Hidan glared up at Sasori as I straightened up quickly.

"S-sorry" I muttered, bowing my head.

But Sasori paid me no attention. It seemed as if he was having a silent conversation with Hidan.

"You could at least wait until I got to the good part" Hidan grumbled, also straightening up from his leaning posture.

Sasori snorted, "And let you get away with it? You won't be the only one who winds up dead" he said so quietly that I had barely managed to hear it.

Hidan pouted, "Party pooper".

Sasori turned to me, "Come on, Elvira. You don't want to hang out with these two pushovers. Let's go. I'll show you where Sasuke likes to spend most of his time" he said, gesturing to the stairs.

I hesitated, that'd definitely be a bad decision to make.

"Ah, no, it's alright. Really, I actually have some homework I need to finish up and-".

"Great. I'll help you" he said immediately, grabbing my hand.

"No, no! Really, it's fine! It's just math! I understand it!" I insisted desperately.

"Just come on" he said exasperatedly and I was dragged along behind him up the stairs towards the study.

Well, at least it wasn't the bedroom.