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“Oi, minna-san, listen up! We’re having a practice match against Too in four days, so you better train extra hard!” yelled Seirin’s third year coach, Aida Riko.
“Eh? Coach, isn’t this a bit too short of a notice?!” asked Kawahara and several other second years. “Whatever! That just means I can play against Ahomine soon!” Kagami said, grinning in anticipation. “Yosh! I’m all fired up! Oi, Kuroko, let’s practice some more- Urk!” He doubled over, clutching his side, which Kuroko had jabbed. “Kuroko, you bastard-” “Kagami-kun, we just had six hours of practice. If you tire yourself too much, you won’t be able to play properly during our match.” “But-” “Listen to Kuroko, stupid Kagami. After all, we all know he’s the brains in the duo,” Yuu piped up, smirking.
“Oi, you brat-” Kuroko jabbed Kagami again, before turning to the black haired first year. “Yuu-kun, let’s go.” “Hai.” The tealnette and black haired teen began leaving the gym together, headed to Maji Burger, where they and Kagami always went after practice. “Oi, you two shitheads, wait up!” Kagami shouted from behind them, running to catch up. The rest of the team could be heard laughing from inside the gym.
***
“So, this Aomine guy...is your former partner?” Yuu asked. Kuroko had just finished talking about the Too team and explaining a short version of his past with Aomine. “That’s correct,” Kuroko responded, sipping his milkshake with a blank face. “He sounds like a jerk,” Yuu said, glaring lightly at the chicken nuggets in front of him. “Yuu-kun, he’s-” Kagami looks up from his pile of burgers to interrupt. “Nah, Yuu’s actually right for once. Ahomine’s a total jerk. Well,” he frowned in thought, “he’s not as bad as he used to be.” Kagami swallowed down another burger. “Still don’t like him that much though. He can get way too full of himself.” “Kagami-kun,” Kuroko said in a chastising tone. “Aomine-kun is your rival and our friend, you shouldn’t say such things about him.” “Hmph. I never said he was bad. Just that he’s an idiot.”
Kuroko sighed. The two had argued on this several times in the past, and he knew it was pointless trying to change Kagami’s mind on it.
“So, what else do we have to look out for at the match?” Yuu asked. “Ah, Momoi-san and Aomine-kun both mentioned something about them having a new assistant manager. He should be the same age as Yuu-kun,” Kuroko said. “Yeah, Ahomine mentioned it at our last streetball match, I think. Miko Shino, or something,” Kagami piped up. “His name is Mikaela Shindo,” Kuroko corrected. “They didn’t say much about him, but Aomine-kun seems to have at least some respect for him. Apparently, he defended Momoi-san from guys who were bothering her, although he did end up getting his arm broken for that... And he plays basketball too, but is an assistant manager because of the injury.” Yuu furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. “But if Momoi and that Shindo guy are managers, why do we have to watch out for them?” Yuu asked in confusion.
“Momoi-san collects data on and analyzes all her opponents, so it’s nearly impossible to surprise their team. And since Shindo-kun is her assistant, she likely taught him a few things like that too. Momoi-san’s teachings, and his skills as a basketball player, probably make him a formidable strategist. That’s why, in this upcoming match, you’ll play a very important role to the team.” Kuroko responded.
“Me?” Yuu pointed to himself, unsure. “Hai,” Kuroko nodded. “You’re a first year, so they won’t have as much data on you. Also, you’re not particularly tall or as obviously muscular, so they won’t expect you to be as good of a player as you are,” Kuroko finished, blank faced as ever.
‘Erm… was that supposed to be a compliment or insult?’ Yuu wondered to himself. “...thanks?” Yuu muttered. “Wild black panthers and data-analyzing managers...seems like this’ll be a tough match…”
A big hand suddenly roughly ruffled his hair. “Don’t worry ‘bout it so much,” Kagami said, grinning. “We’ll beat them for sure. Just focus on playing your heart out!” Yuu smiled slightly at Kagami’s not-so subtle attempt at making him relax, before suddenly launching up in his seat and shoving Kagami’s hand off his head. “Oi, Bakagami, don’t mess with the hair!” The two continued to shove and jokingly insult each other, while Kuroko watched with a hint of amusement in his teal eyes.
***
“Momoi-senpai...what’s wrong with Aomine-senpai?” a blonde teen hesitantly asked. “Eh? What do you mean?” Momoi looked at Mika questioningly. “He’s here. And warming up. Don’t you usually have to kick him off the roof for him to get him to practice?” Momoi stared in confusion, before suddenly perking up in realization. “Ah! We haven’t filled you in on our personal connections to Tetsu-kun and Kagamin, have we?” “Tetsu-kun, and Kaga... Kuroko Tetsuya and Kagami Taiga from Seirin? The team we’re playing against in two days?” Momoi nodded. “Kagami Taiga and Kuroko Tetsuya...Seirin’s 10 and 11. The ‘light and shadow’ partners. Kuroko Tetsuya attended Teiko junior high, where he played basketball with Aomine-senpai. He’s one of the generation of miracles too… and he, together with Kagami Taiga, beat Too in the last Winter Cup, right?” Mika recited from memory, looking at Momoi for approval.
Momoi smiled. “Yep! I see you’ve done your homework, so I probably don’t have to explain too much on who they are.” She giggled softly. “Dai-chan always gets like this before we play against them,” she smirked, before leaning in and whispering conspiringly. “I think Dai-chan is still sulking a bit from when we lost against them in the Winter Cup, and he’s definitely jealous of how close Tetsu-kun and Kagamin are.”
“Oi, Satsuki, what are you telling Mika?” Aomine yelled from across the gymnasium. “You better not be telling him anything dumb!”
Momoi sighed, before turning to scream at Aomine. “Dai-chan, get back to practicing!”
Aomine glared back lazily, picking up a ball and shooting it in perfectly without even looking. “Oi, Mika, Satsuki’s probably saying bad stuff about me. Don’t listen to her!”
“Dai-chan, get back to practice you stupid ganguro!”
Mika smiled softly at the childhood friends’ interaction.
Momoi turned back to Mika, done yelling at Aomine. She sighed. “Mou, Dai-chan is always such an idiot.” She looked at Mika. “You read all the data on all of Seirin’s members, right?” “Yeah. Although there wasn’t much to read on the first years.” Momoi frowned. “Mm. That can’t be helped though...after all, we won’t be able to see them in action much until the Interhigh begins and they participate in official matches… Well, for the upcoming practice match, I want you to focus on certain first years in particular, alright? We can split them up and gather more detailed notes that way.” “Which ones should I look for?” Momoi crossed her arms in thought, before perking up. “Here!” She handed him a file, which he opened. “Hyakuya Yuichirou. He’s one of their most promising first years, they’ll probably put him into play more since they know we don’t have that much information on him. Make sure to keep a close eye on him.” Mika nodded, determination in his eyes. “I’ll do my best.”
Momoi smiled at him. “I know you will.” She patted his shoulder. “You’re doing wonderful. I know you’re insecure sometimes because of your arm, but…” Mika subconsciously pulled his right arm, encased in a black cast, closer to his chest protectively. “...but, believe it or not, you’ve been a great help.” Mika bit his lip, looking down at his arm. Momoi stared at him for a little longer, before gently ruffling his hair. “Don’t worry about it. Once you’re recovered, I’ll help you make a training regimen to get you back into top form, so you can join the starters right away!” The two shared a smile, before separating to do their own tasks; Mika went off to supervise the first years’ warm ups, while Momoi went to scold Aomine for not taking training seriously.
***
“Oi, Bakagami, you’re late!” Kagami’s eyebrows twitched in irritation. “Shut up, Ahomine! It was only ten minutes anyway!”
Seirin had just arrived at Too’s gym, and of course, the first thing Aomine and Kagami did was confront each other. The second and third years sighed in resignation, already used to their behavior. The first years, on the other hand, were surprised. “You weren’t kidding when you said they’re rivals,” Yuu said to Kuroko. “They’re really similar. Two hot-headed idiots, huh? Is that a requirement for being an ace?”
“Oi, who the hell are you, mouthy brat?” Aomine turned to glare down at Yuu. “You’re so short, can you really play?” Yuu felt his eyebrow twitch in anger. “Hey, I’m not that short, you’re just a ridiculously tall ganguro! And I’m taller than Kuroko, who beat you guys last Winter Tournament!” He retorted. “Yeah, Ahomine. You shouldn’t talk, when we all know both Kuroko and that Akashi freak can both kick your butt. They’re both shorter than you!” Kagami added. Ahomine turned his glare to Kagami. “Bakagami-”
Kuroko sighed, walking unnoticed between the two aces, before jabbing them both at the same time. Both doubled over, clutching their sides.
“Kuroko, you bastard-”
“Oi, Tetsu, what the hell-”
“Aomine-kun and Kagami-kun should stop arguing as soon as you see each other. You need to be good role models for the first years.”
Momoi nodded at Kuroko’s words, pouting at Aomine. “Tetsu-kun is right, Dai-chan.” She slapped him upside the head. “What if Mi-chan became like you?”
Aomine clutched the back of his head, glaring at Momoi. “Hey, he probably dreams he could be as awesome as me!”
“Actually, that’d probably be a nightmare, Aomine-senpai.”
Seirin turned to where the voice came from. They had been so preoccupied by Kagami and Aomine’s interaction that they hadn’t noticed Mika’s arrival. Momoi smiled, grabbing Mika by the shoulders and dragging him in front of her. “Seirin, this is Too’s new assistant manager!” “I’m Mikaela Shindo, first year.”
“I’m Kuroko Tetsuya. Nice to meet you, Shindo-kun.” Kuroko introduced himself. The rest of Seirin followed his example...except for a certain black haired teen.
‘He seems kinda cold and distant…’ Yuu thought to himself. ‘But…’ his face flushed. ‘He’s really good looking. His hair is really shiny and soft looking, and his eyes-he’s got the ocean in there...no, the ocean is nothing compared to his-”
“-kun. Yuu-kun!”
Yuu snapped back to focus. Based on all the attention on him, he’d been spacing out for quite a while, a realization that caused his face to turn even more red.
“Oh! Um, eh...what?”
“Yuu-kun...are you going to introduce yourself?”
“O-Oh, um, right! Uh...I’m Yuichirou Hyakuya. But everyone calls me Yuu.” He scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
Mika stared at him for a bit, before nodding. “...Nice to meet you too, Yuu.” He promptly turned around and went back to help the members warming up for the match. The rest of the teams went to the lockers to get changed, although a few were trying and failing to cover up snickers at Yuu’s flustered behavior.
Yuu sighed and facepalmed. ‘Nice going, Yuu. You just embarrassed yourself in front of the cold cutie,’ he groaned to himself, before following his team.
***
Inside the empty Too locker room, Mika was cursing himself for his aloof behavior earlier.
“They probably all think I’m some stuck-up or rude brat now...but I’m not sure how to act around such a big crowd of strangers...plus, that guy kept staring at me…” muttered aloud.
He pulled out the information Momoi had given him earlier. ‘Yuichirou Hyakuya, huh…?’ he thought. ‘There’s not much here...height, weight...above average offense and defense…’ He suddenly buried his rapidly heating face in his hands. ‘But Momoi-senpai didn’t include that he’d be so hot…why did he stare at me like that…?’ Mika’s eyes snapped wide open. ‘Is there something weird on my face?’ He quickly ran over to a nearby mirror, checking himself over. He looked normal, in his opinion…
‘Ugh, this is ridiculous! It’s not like me to feel so self-conscious,’ Mika thought to himself, pinching his cheeks. ‘But that guy…’
“Mi-chan! Are you here?” Momoi asked from outside the locker room entrance.
Mika immediately straightened out, standing up and brushing imaginary dust off his clothes. “I-I’m here, Momoi-senpai!”
Momoi popped her head into the locker room, frowning when she noticed Mika’s still red face. “Are you okay? Your face is red...you’re not feeling sick, are you?” Mika shook his head. “No, it’s just, um...it’s nothing. Did you need something?” Momoi surveyed the room, noticing Yuu’s file open on the bench next to him, and the fact that Mika was next to the mirror. She smirked, putting two and two together. “Alright, Mi-chan, the match is starting in fifteen, so hurry up and get to the bench, ok? I’ll leave you to...get yourself together. Don’t forget to bring Yuichirou-kun’s file with you.” “Hai, Momoi-senpai.”
Momoi left the still blushing blond alone in the locker room, giggling to herself as she made her way back to the court.
***
“Alright, so, we’ll begin with our regular starters and see how that goes, but during the second quarter, we’re going to try subbing in Yuu-kun, got it?” Riko said, looking down at her clipboard. The team nodded, all filled with anticipation for the game about to begin.
Yuu gripped his wrists, nervous. This wouldn’t be the first time he played in a match, but the team they were against...based on what he’d been told, and what he saw during warm ups, Too was strong.
‘And I don’t wanna mess up in front of Mikaela. My introduction was embarrassing enough!’
He looked over to the Too bench, where Momoi and Mika both seemed to be giving advice or instructions to their team. Mika’s cold gaze was replaced by fiery determination and focus. He was wearing glasses while looking down at his clipboard. ‘Those glasses make him look so cute…’
A hand suddenly smacked the back of his head.
“Stupid Yuu, don’t ogle the enemy! Save that for after we win the match!” Riko yelled. A few of the other members muffled snickers, while Yuu’s face flushed, resembling a bright red tomato. “I-I wasn’t-” “Hai, hai. You’re not fooling anyone,” Riko replied, waving him off while turning to make sure the starters were all prepared.
Yuu looked over to the Too bench, and realized that several of their members, excluding Mika, had noticed the commotion at the Seirin bench and were watching them.
He groaned and buried his face in his hands.
***
The first quarter finished, with Too in the lead, 26-21. The point gap wasn’t too large, but it was clear that Kagami and Kuroko’s partnership alone wouldn’t be able to carry them through the game. “Alright, Yuu-kun, you’re going in. Make sure you pace yourself, since you’ll likely be playing till the end of the match,” Riko ordered.
Yuu nodded, nervous excitement pumping through his veins. He wouldn’t be confronting Aomine directly, but the rest of Too were all strong too.
And he’d be lying if he said he didn’t want to impress their assistant manager.
“Yuu-kun, are you ready?” Kuroko asked as the two of them walked over to the edge of the court. Yuu nodded. “As ready as I’ll ever be.” “You better be. Go out there and kick Too’s butts, got it?” Riko shoved Yuu’s back. Yuu knew that was her way of encouraging him, but that didn’t make it hurt any less. “Geez, coach, don’t break his back before he steps on the court!” Kagami called out from the bench, where he was drinking water. Riko huffed in irritation. “I’m his coach, I know he’s not that fragile, Bakagami!”
The buzzer went off, signaling the beginning of the second quarter.
***
‘Wow, he’s...really good,’ Mika thought, staring at Yuu. From the moment he entered the court, Yuu had been running all over the place. Mika looked down at his laptop, quickly scanning the information he had gathered so far.
Yuu made up for what he lacked in height by moving faster and having better reflexes than most of the players. He didn’t seem to specialize in any shot in particular, having successfully pulled a few lay-ups, jump shots, and even fadeaways. His arms had pretty well tuned muscles, although he didn’t seem to be able to shoot a three pointer. He was capable of jumping pretty high too. He had clearly worked hard to develop his leg muscles…
Mika looked up from the screen, staring at Yuu again. ‘I’m doing this because Momoi-senpai told me to. It’s not like I like looking at him…’ he told himself. Despite this, he could feel his face slowly but surely turning red. ‘He looks really happy when he’s playing, even if he doesn’t get to handle the ball as much as Kuroko-san or Kagami-san.’
Yuu passed the ball to Kuroko, who passed it to Kagami, who was waiting under the Too net. Kagami quickly jumped and slammed the ball into the net, while Aomine cursed aloud, just a couple seconds too late to stop them. Yuu’s laughter and bright smile...he’s so brilliant…
Mika cleared his throat, before looking back at his laptop. “Coordinates well with Kuroko-san and Kagami-san…” he muttered while typing. ‘I have to stay professional and just take notes. Can’t get distracted looking at him, although he is admittedly very attractive…’ He nudged up his slipping glasses, coughing into his fist and trying to clear his head.
From across the court, a certain black haired teen was looking at him and blushing.
***
They were almost done with the final quarter, and the scores were tied at 94-94. Yuu chugged down his bottle of water, wiping away at sweat with an already half soaked towel. “How do you and Kuroko manage to keep going the entire game?” he asked Kagami, who was sitting next to him, downing his third bottle. Kagami shrugged. “With a game as intense as this, is there time to feel tired?” Yuu nodded. “Yeah, I guess I get what you mean.” He shivered slightly when he felt a now-familiar tickling sensation on his back. He felt his face flushing. “Oi, what’s wrong? Your face just got really red,” Kagami pointed out. “It’s uh...Too’s manager.” “Momoi-san?” Kuroko asked, sitting down next to them. “No, uh-” “Oh, the blonde dude you were ogling earlier,” Kagami filled in. “Bakagami! I was not-” “Shindo-kun keeps staring at Yuu-kun, right?” Yuu turned to look at Kuroko. “You noticed it too?” Kuroko nodded. “Hai. He seems to be trying to be discreet about it, but I’ve caught him several times already.” Yuu blushed. “It’s probably ‘cause of Momoi, right?” Kagami piped up. “Data collection and all.” Kuroko’s eyebrows furrowed slightly in thought. “That’s a possibility… although…” he didn’t finish his sentence.
Yuu looked down. ‘So it’s just because he was assigned to do it, huh? Wait, why am I feeling disappointed? It’s not like I wanted him to be...checking me out, or something…’ The mere thought had his face turning even more red.
Riko came over to give them last minute advice before the game resumed. “Alright, you guys, your coordination it good. Keep it up. Our main goal is to keep Too, Aomine especially, from scoring more, so everyone, defend them even if it kills you. They’ll probably tighten defense on Kagami, so Yuu-kun, any opportunity you have to score, take it.” The team nodded, fierce determination in everyone’s eyes.
A loud whistle signaled the end of the time out.
“Alright, let’s go!”
***
The buzzer sounded, marking the end of the match. Too won by a single point, with the score being 109-108, thanks to Aomine going into the zone for all of the remaining time. Still, everyone present had to admit it was a good game. Aomine reluctantly congratulated Kagami and Kuroko at the end, and the teams mingled, having grown closer over the past year. The second and third years reassured the first years that, despite the loss, they still all performed well.
Yuu himself was downing his third bottle of water. The loss left a bitter feeling in his chest, but he did have fun playing his heart out. He looked over to the Too bench, where Mika was sitting alone, scanning through something on his laptop. The Too manager was currently latched onto Kuroko’s arm, chatting away with a blank faced Kuroko and an irritated looking Riko. Kagami and Aomine were engaged in their usual trash talk, already eager for the next time they faced each other. Everyone else seemed to be engaged in conversation or goofing off, so he decided he might as well go speak to the cute blond.
Mika didn’t notice his arrival until he cleared his throat. Mika visibly jumped in his seat, face heating up in embarrassment at being caught off guard. The two stared at each other in awkward silence. ‘Okay, maybe I should’ve thought this out a bit more…’ Yuu thought to himself. Well, it was a bit too late for that.
“So...hey.” Yuu said, scratching the back of his head.
“...Hey,” Mika replied.
The two continued to look around awkwardly before Mika finally decided to try to start a conversation.
“...good game.”
Yuu smiled, happy to have a topic he was comfortable talking about. “Yeah. Same to you. I mean, well, you didn’t play on the court, but I can tell that you and the other manager are important to the team too.”
Mika blushed, thinking of what his task for this match was. “I-I don’t do that much. Momoi-senpai still has to take on a lot of the work...but thanks, I guess. You’re good. You’re really fast, and you’re offensive and defensive abilities overall are above average.” Mika looked away, trying to keep up a mask of cool indifference, although his stuttering and red face ruined the effect.
Yuu felt his heart speed up at Mika’s adorable expression. Seeing him act flustered broke the distant, cold mental image he had of him, and Yuu was tempted to see what he could do to make Mika react even more.
“So...did you like what you saw?” he asked, grinning. “Huh?” Mika hoped that Yuu hadn’t actually noticed all his staring…
“Well, I figured that, with how much you stared, you probably saw something worth looking at.” Yep, teasing Mika was definitely worth it. His blush was reaching the tips of his ears now. ‘How cute,’ Yuu thought to himself.
Mika looked away, embarrassed at his inability to conceal his expression. “I-It was an assignment! To gather d-data!”
“So you don’t think I’m attractive?” asked Yuu, smirking slightly.
Mika glared at him, before muttering something under his breath. “What was that?” Yuu said aloud.
“You don’t look bad…” Mika’s face was a bright red tomato at this point. ‘Argh, I’m usually so good at concealing my emotions. Why can’t I control myself?’ Mika thought.
“I’ll take that as a compliment,” Yuu laughed. He decided to stop teasing Mika before he fainted from all the blood rushing to his head. “For that, how about I treat you to chicken nuggets sometime?” He wasn’t sure where the sudden self confidence had come from, but strangely enough, he found himself feeling more and more comfortable with the blond teen. Maybe it was leftover adrenaline from the game?
“I-Is this a normal thing for you? Taking people you just met out for nuggets?” Mika tried to sound as calm and composed as possible.
“Nah, I usually don’t share my nuggets. But then again, the people I’m usually around are my friends or teammates, who either don’t understand the awesomeness of the nugget, or are jerks unworthy of sharing with.” Yuu smiled.
“So I’m not a jerk?” Mika asked, returning the smile. His face was returning to it’s normal shade.
“Nope. You’re pretty- erm, I-I mean, pretty cool. Pretty awesome. Yeah. Not a jerk.” Yuu felt himself flush a little at the slip up, but hoped Mika didn’t notice.
Mika definitely noticed. His eyes widened slightly, his face returning to it’s former reddened state. However, he smirked and tried to play it cool. “Alright then. Since I’m chicken-nugget worthy, when do you want to go?”
Yuu shrugged. “How about now?” he offered.
“Now?” Mika didn’t think he had anything else to do. The match was over, and evening was fast approaching…
“Go ahead, Mi-chan! I’ll wrap up whatever work we have left here, just go and enjoy your date!”
Both boys started, turning to the pink haired girl. “W-What date are you talking about?” Mika stuttered.
Momoi giggled. “Mi-chan, I’m a data gatherer and analyst, there’s nothing I can’t figure out. Plus, I have excellent woman’s intuition.” She patted his shoulder. “There’s not much left to do anyway. Go and grab your stuff from the lockers.”
Mika hesitated for a few seconds, before nodding, his face flaming, and hurrying off to the locker room.
Momoi turned to look at Yuu. She was still smiling, but it looked...hostile.
“So...Yuichirou Hyakuya-kun, right?” Yuu looked slightly scared by her sudden switch in demeanor, but nodded. “So, Yuichirou-kun...I’m sure you’re a good kid. Although you do have a tendency to get in arguments and pick fights. Oh, and your grades could use some work, especially math and chemistry. After all, wouldn’t want Seirin to have to call Guren and Shinya again, right? As a police and a nurse, they’re probably really busy. Considering the location of your home, they both have to travel nearly an hour to get to work, don’t they?”
Yuu stared at her, freaked out by the way she was easily throwing around information on his life. ‘What the hell...we just met today! How does she…’
“Anyways, that’s beside the point. Yuichirou-kun, you are a good kid overall. Because of that, I will be so kind as to give you a warning.” She dropped the threatening smile and instead shot him a glare. “If you hurt Mi-chan in any way, be it physically, emotionally, mentally, or any other, you will be hunted down, tortured, and killed in the most painful way possible. I have connections to a scissors wielding son of a billionaire. Mi-chan is a precious member of Too, and my friend, and I will not let harm befall him.”
Momoi switched back to her sweet smile. “I’m just a concerned senpai looking out for her kouhai. You understand all that I just said, don’t you?”
“Oi, Satsuki, what are you doing, terrorizing the other team’s first years?” Aomine yelled. He, Kagami, and Kuroko were approaching. By now, most of the players went home, leaving the gym empty save for them and Mika.
Momoi turned to Aomine. “I’m just giving him advice on how to treat our Mi-chan.” She clung onto his arm. “Yuichirou-kun will be treating Mi-chan to chicken nuggets now, isn’t that sweet of him?” She was still smiling.
Aomine raised an eyebrow. “And Mika accepted? I thought he was smarter than that.” He glared at Yuu, staring directly into his eyes as if searching for something. “I don’t see anything good in him.” He glared at Yuu. “Listen up, brat, I don’t care what you do, but if ya hurt Mika…” his eyes were expressive enough that he didn’t need to finish the sentence for Yuu to get the message. Hurt Mika, and you’re in for a serious ass-whooping.
Aomine suddenly doubled over. “What the hell, Tetsu?! What was that for?”
Kuroko withdrew his hand from Aomine’s side. “Plus refrain from threatening other people’s kouhai. Also, Shindo-kun may have a broken arm, but that doesn’t make him a delicate flower.”
“I agree. Aomine-senpai, Momoi-senpai, as much as I appreciate your concern, it’s not necessary.”
The group turned to the blonde teen, who had just finished changing. He was in a light jacket and had a scarf wrapped around his neck, prepared to leave. He looked at Yuu.
“Are you ready to go, Yuu-chan?”
There was silence, before Aomine and Kagami both snickered.
“Pft-...Yuu-chan?”
“What are you guys? Little kids?”
Yuu was flustered, partly because of his senpais’ reaction, and because Mika was just too adorable. ‘That blush on his cheeks...the way he’s trying to cover his face with his scarf… his voice...too cute!’ he thought.
Yuu ran over to Mika, grabbing his free hand and tugging him to the gym exit. “Let’s just go. Bakagami and Ahomine are being as dumb as always.”
Mika smiled and giggled slightly, willingly following Yuu’s guidance.
***
The two had spent the past ten minutes walking in comfortable silence. Because of the late time, the streets were more or less empty.
Mika finally decided to speak up. “Just for warning in advance, if you really do plan on dating me, you’ll probably have to go through interrogations from Momoi-senpai and get challenged by Aomine-senpai a lot.”
Yuu blushed lightly, before grabbing and pressing a gentle kiss to the back of Mika’s hand. “Nothing I can’t handle, princess. I don’t know about you, but I’ve definitely faced my fair share of fights and people trying to stop me. Spoiler alert, I don’t give up.”
“Mm, that’s good to know,” Mika felt his heart pounding faster at the hand kiss. “Don’t let this fool you, though.” He waved his right arm, which had the cast. “I’m no flower. I’ll have you know I got this as a result of kneeing a jerk in a certain area. Said jerk just happened to have a bunch of lackeys.”
Yuu’s eyes widened in surprise, before he burst out in laughter. “Alright, I think I’m in love. You’re just too perfect.” He teasingly shoved Mika’s shoulder. “Remind me never to piss you off.”
The two shared a laugh. “I think nuggets can wait. I’m down for just chilling and cuddling at my place, if you’re fine with that.” Yuu suggested. Mika nodded in agreement.
“Sure. Going to tell you in advance though, I refuse to go further than making out until at least a couple of months as together.”
Yuu turned slightly red at the implications, while laughing. “Of course.”
Mika felt his face heat up as he uttered out the next question. “S-So, you really want to try this, right? This whole dating thing?”
“Definitely. I know we just met...I don’t know if this sounds weird or anything, but I just feel this instant connection to you.” Yuu frowned in concern. “Is this too soon? If we’re moving too fast, we can-”
Mika smiled sweetly at him and shook his head. “I’m happy, Yuu-chan. I feel it too.” He gently took Yuu’s hand. “It’s like…like we’ve known each other since forever, right?”
“Exactly,” Yuu nodded. “So, if that’s the case, I guess this makes us officially boyfriends?”
Mika giggled. “I like that.”
The two shared a grin, before Yuu suddenly bent down and slipped an arm behind Mika’s knees, lifting him up bridal style. Mika squealed in surprise, clutching onto him tightly.
“I think this calls for a celebration. Snacks and movie night at my place!” Yuu declared.
Laughing, the two took off running in the direction of Yuu’s home.