Dreaming On - Kuroko no Basket

Head-On

"W-was that a fade-away?!" The crowd roared with approval. I hid my grin by lifting up the collar of my jersey to wipe away at my dripping sweat. I can do this.

"Hey," Kagami's voice rumbled out from beside me. I glanced over at him to see his eyebrows furrowed in thought. "Leave Aomine to me."

My mouth opened and closed without a sound. I wanted to argue with Kagami, to tell him that I could handle Aomine. However, with reluctance, I nodded my head. As if sensing my displeasure, Kagami gently dropped his hand on my head, patting me. I bit back a grin at the action, schooling my features into one of a neutral expression.

The next play happened quickly with Aomine mowing down everyone blocking his path. Kagami swiftly blocked the incoming titan, staying on top of Aomine's every twist and turn. I could tell that Aomine was getting tired of trying to shake Kagami off; instead, Aomine pushed through Kagami's defense and leapt up, leaning backwards into a formless shot. Next thing I knew, Kagami had joined the Touou player in the air, his arm reaching upward to knock the ball out of its trajectory.

I wanted to breathe a sigh of relief, but I knew we were far from being in the clear. As predicted, the pace of the game picked up. My cherry-colored eyes narrowed in on the battle between Kagami and Aomine, waiting and watching for an opening. I found it when Imayoshi took a shot on the hoop but ended up bouncing off the backboard. Wakamatsu jumped up for the rebound and I quickly followed, waiting for him to catch the ball. When the tall blonde landed in a crouch with the ball in his grasp, I struck out with my hand. Neatly dislodging the ball from his clutch, I swiped it up and quickly tore down the court. Spotting Teppei who was mid-distance between me and the hoop, I hollered out, "Teppei! Bend a knee!" Footsteps thundered behind me as everyone quickly followed chase.

Without hesitation, he dropped down into a lunge, his muscular thigh proudly on display. My right foot landed on his thigh, immediately launching myself forward. Before anyone could process what was happening, I leaned backwards for a formless shot.

"2 points! Yosh!" I heard the rest of our team cheer from the bench as the buzzer went off. I glanced up at the scoreboard, eyebrows furrowing when I realized we were still two points behind at 46 – 48.

"We will now be taking a 10 minute break before the start of the third quarter," a woman's voice blared over the intercom. I quickly shrugged on my track pants and with a quick "I'll be back," to Riko. I escaped from the confines of the gym, leaving Riko and the rest of my team spluttering behind me. I ducked outside and wandered around before finding a secluded spot. Leaning on my forearms against the concrete wall, I finally let out a heavy sigh. I clenched my hand into a fist before whirling around and lashing out at the wall with my foot. The sole of my gray, teal and violet Nikes solidly connected with the wall in a burst of anger. I was knocked out of my trance when a jacket landed on my head, obscuring my vision for a moment.

"You'll catch a cold, idiot." My head whipped up in surprise as I quickly brought my foot down from the wall.

"Kagami?"

"If you don't get your shit together before the second half, we'll be in a bind," he replied with a stern expression. I glared down at the floor as I shrugged on my windbreaker. "Hey, what were you just thinking? It doesn't look like you need to be cheered up, but you didn't just come out here for fresh air."

I glanced away, turning around to face the open. "I wasn't thinking about anything complicated. I was just thinking that I'd do anything to win this game. I have my promises to keep, and I intend to carry them out."

Kagami took up residence next to me, resting his elbows on the rail as he faced the opposite way as me. "The only thing we can do is to play as hard as we can to win." All of the tension I had in me deflated.

"Heh," I lowly chuckled out. My forehead landed against his bicep as soft strands of my red wig covered the tears prickling in my eyes. Surprisingly, Kagami didn't say anything as he let me rest my head against his arm.

---------------------------------

"Izuki, switch out with Kuroko," ordered Riko. "Line-up will be Hyuuga, Kiyoshi, Kagami, Masami, and Kuroko." We all nodded our heads before heading back out onto the court. As I passed by Riko, her hand shot out and grabbed my arm, halting me.

"Be careful out there, Masami-chan. If you need to sub out, sub out." My eyes steadily met the coach's, concern swimming in her brown eyes.

"Don't worry, Riko," I grinned, patting her hand. I jogged back onto the court, taking up Izuki's spot as a point guard. At the start of the whistle, the ball was tossed up into the air. The ball was passed to Imayoshi, who was stopped by Hyuuga. The Touou captain kept his gaze on Hyuuga, faking him out before passing the ball to Aomine. I was nervously watching Kagami struggle against Aomine. Filled with anticipation and dread, my fear came true when Aomine broke past Kagami and headed for the hoop. I darted past Sakurai just as Teppei maneuvered around Wakamatsu.

I knew Teppei wouldn't be able to stop Aomine in time, which prompted me to throw myself in front of Aomine. Not noticing me until it was too late, Aomine's speed and weight forcefully knocked me down. I threw my hands out behind me to catch myself as my bottom collided with the wooden floor harshly. My expression twisted into one of a grimace with the pain shooting up my tailbone.

The referee's whistle blew as he called out, "Charging! Black No. 5!" A pale hand made itself present in front of me. I glanced up to see Kuroko's stoic face before taking his offered hand. Hoisting me up, I stumbled as the pain radiated upward. Concern flashed through Kuroko's blue eyes but I waved him off.

"I predicted his movements, so I took the best route to stop him."

"Don't be so reckless, Masami-san," Kuroko deadpanned. I grinned up at the teen.

"Let's go!" shouted Hyuuga, prompting us all to run down the court. Kuroko and I shared a glance, nodding our heads before ducking around our Touou guards. Hyuuga noticed this, swiftly passing the ball to Kuroko who had slipped past Susa, the small forward for Touou. I sprinted down the line, getting myself open for Kuroko's pass. I hurled the ball to Kagami, who passed it back to Kuroko. The Touou players had been so focused on Kagami, Teppei and Hyuuga that they had forgotten about Kuroko and me for a moment. Once the ball was back in Kuroko's hands, I was already past Touou's defenses once again and ready for a three-pointer.

The basketball roughly dug into my palms from Kuroko's Ignite Pass. Ignoring the stinging sensation, I swiftly jumped up and shot the ball for a three-pointer. The ball neatly slid through the net.

"Yosh!" I shouted, throwing my fist into the air. My teammates raised their fists in response, cheering with excitement as we headed down back to our side of the court.

"Alright, let's solidify our defense and make sure they don't get past us!" Hyuuga roared out an encouragement. Imayoshi started with the ball, dribbling it with ease. I took my position in front of him, analyzing his stance and taking in the rhythm of the ball. I watched as he suddenly gripped the ball with both hands, and I readied myself for a jump. With a sudden crouch from Imayoshi, I took the initiative to jump. My eyes widened with realization when Imayoshi stayed crouching. Crap! It was a fake! 

Imayoshi grinned deviously and threw the ball to Wakamatsu while still in his crouched position. The tall center easily tossed the ball into the hoop, earning two points, which brought the score to 49 – 50. Only 45 seconds into the third quarter and Touou was back in the lead.

"Damn it," I softly cursed under my breath.

"Don't worry about it, Masami," Hyuuga called out to me. "We're in control of the game."

Next thing I knew, Imayoshi's voice rang out from my left, "We're the ones in control."