Vicious || Aomine D.

Thirty

"Coach, I think I can do it now," Kuroko said, his tone level and certain.

He was talking about his new vanishing drive that he'd been working on for weeks now. It could change the tide in Seirin's favor. For a little while it did.

The game ended in a tie. 104-104. It wasn't what they'd hoped for but it wasn't so bad as to kick them out of the competition.

After the game when the players disappeared into the locker room for showers and a post-game strategy meeting, Riyo roamed the stadium, killing time and waiting for them to finish. A flash of pink caught her eye in the crowd.

"Suki-chan!" Riyo called out and the pink stopped moving.

A familiar face appeared in her view as Satsuki peeked at her from behind some guy. A bright smile lit up her face as she recognized Riyo.

"Riyo-chan!" Satsuki called back, darting to her and giving her a quick hug.

"Huh? Miyocchi?"

It turned out that the guy with Satsuki was Kise. He walked over to the two girls, saying hi to Riyo.

"You two came to check out the competition?" Riyo asked, flicking her gaze between Satsuki and Kise.

"I wanted to see Tetsu-kun's new move in action. I tried to get Aomine-kun to come too but that idiot refused. He still thinks he's invincible on the court," Satsuki explained, letting out an exasperated sigh at the mention of Aomine.

Riyo and Satsuki shared a commiserative look, both knowing exactly how difficult it was to get him to do anything other than play basketball.

"My teammates didn't want to come with me so I had to watch the game with my enemy," Kise said with a nonchalant shrug.

Riyo quirked a brow. "Your enemy?"

"Well, we're both going to the Winter Cup where we're gonna be competing against each other," Kise explained.

"Right. Does that make me your enemy too?" Riyo asked, placing a hand on her hip.

Kise hesitated. "Uhh... No...?"

Riyo and Satsuki exchanged another glance before they started laughing.

"What?" Kise asked, confused.

"Nothing. You're too cute," Riyo said after they calmed down. "But just so you know, we're gonna kick your ass in the Winter Cup."

"You think so? Big talk from someone who doesn't have a guaranteed spot in the Winter Cup," Kise threw back lifting his chin a little higher.

"Hah, if you think we're eliminated before the Cup, you've got another thing coming," Riyo said, her lips curving into a smile.

"Woah, slow down. Touou obviously has the competitive edge in the Winter Cup. If there was a poll, we'd definitely be the fan favorite," Satsuki piped in, smiling smugly.

Riyo tilted her head at the pinkette. "Oh really? People love a good Cinderella story, and that's us, for sure."

"Oh please, Seirin's a newer team. You've got a long way to go before you can win national competitions," Satsuki argued.

"We'll bring it in the Winter Cup. Be prepared to lose, Suki-chan," Riyo boasted. She'd missed her friends.

"Don't count us out either," Kise said.

Satsuki shook her head at them, a smile on her lips. "We'll see you both there. And we will win."

***

Later that day Riyo and Kagami took Iverson out for a walk. The sun was setting but the night air was still warm. Iverson kept sniffing at the grass without doing his business like the stubborn dog he was, looking for the perfect spot.

"Who's your next opponent in the preliminaries?" Riyo asked Kagami as they passed another promising-looking bush that Iverson rejected.

"Kirisaki Daiichi," Kagami replied, his tone strained.

The way he said it had an uneasy feeling settling in the pit of Riyo's stomach. "What do you know about them?"

"I know that every team that's played against them has had players get injured. Usually their aces or other important players," he explained.

Riyo halted mid-step. "What?"

He shrugged. "They probably play dirty. And they threw the game they had against Shutoku. Their best players were in the stands."

Iverson started tugging at his leash to get Riyo moving again and she did, though her gaze was still on the redhead. "That's awful."

"Yeah."

"You're gonna have to beat them, Kagami-kun. Show them that cheating isn't gonna win them the game," she paused and then added, "but be careful, okay? I don't want you to get hurt."

He nudged her with his elbow lightly. "Are you worried about me?"

She nudged him right back. "Of course. You're my friend and roommate."

Iverson finally found the perfect spot... right next to some pretty flowers that were definitely a part of someone's garden project. Riyo felt a tinge of guilt but didn't pull him away. It had been a long day and she was tired. Besides, if she pulled him back now, who knew how long they'd have to walk before he found another garden he could soil. She was eager to get to sleep, not walk around town for the rest of the night with an elderly dog who'd probably refuse to walk on his own feet the rest of the way, forcing her to carry him home.

"One more thing," Riyo said to Kagami. "Look out for Teppei, too. I'm worried he'll push himself too far."

"Of course."