Disclaimer: I do not own Slam Dunk and its characters; Takehiko Inoue does.

Hisashi Mitsui stayed with Rukawa Kaede the whole day because, when the older boy explained his plans for his departure, Rukawa's eyes, with all the lack of harmony with its owner, were so despondent he couldn't hide them.

'That's gonna take long. How do we make it?'

'Look, it's not like I'm gonna be gone forever. It'll just take me three years-four at most. You're just thinking that way because we've never been apart but you'll manage. I swear. Besides, I'll come around every two months. In a word, it's not that bad.' Mitsui told him reassuringly, flashing his handsome smile as though that alone could've altered anything. As for Rukawa, he wanted to say more, if only to reach a finality some sort. But, as his conducts required, he would rather sulk later than show his boyfriend how actually troubled he was.

Rukawa's thoughts ventured deep down inside him. Presently, it was unbecoming of him to be so paranoid, especially when it was common knowledge he wouldn't mind half as much as he should if Mitsui were being hounded by women like a pack of wolves should surround a hare. In his hopeful belief, surely Mitsui would miss him and would never trade him for anything.

The harrowing truth was, it was fear of an unknown catastrophe that was pushing him to uneasiness whenever the other mentioned about leaving. He wasn't exactly sure what was there to worry himself about, yet nevertheless something which delivered a lurid feeling was there all the same.

When the day came when Mitsui left for college, Rukawa marked the date on his calendar as the beginning of his Dark Ages. God must have gone on vacation, he thought.

'Heya kitsune, you alright?' Sakuragi asked. It was worth mentioning they had grown warmer towards each other before their first year ended. Becoming friends, so it appeared, was quite inevitable if you were to spend four or more hours with one another in every waking day of your high school life. To add on that, the redhead was notoriously acquainted with almost everyone in school and it was high time to break the animosity between them. What was odd was that before they knew it, they were holding each other for a deeper intimacy so seldom found between mere acquaintances, without really noticing. The flow of their conversations was rather casual so when Rukawa told Sakuragi that Mitsui was his boyfriend, it proved to be a not very exceptionally difficult admittance.

Initially, the redhead didn't take the information seriously. Perhaps it was something which only needed official confirmation, if one would bother to look at it.

'Yeah, I'm fine.' Rukawa lied. For the first time in his life, he didn't want to talk about his blue-eyed prince. He had been overly sentimental during the past few days therefore, for what it was worth, it had to stop if he wanted his sentiments to accord with the Ice Prince that he was.

Now resolute, he decided to get on his own and take whatever the day had to offer.

Sakuragi joined him the whole day. Rukawa couldn't understand it but his spirits couldn't help but lift when the redhead offered to walk with him on his way home. Of course, it owed much to the fact that their houses were two blocks apart. However, up until now, Sakuragi had never gone straight home after practice, because his Guntai were always waiting outside the gym to fulfill their nighttime adventures. This time, though, he chose to break his usual chain of actions.

'Well, see ya.' The redhead said when they reached the intersection in which they should part.

Rukawa nodded in response and was about to turn toward the other direction when,

'If you need something, or someone to, you know, talk to, just call me.'

'Fine'

The weeks passed pleasantly, during which he would receive calls from Mitsui from time to time. His proximity with the redhead had grown enormously, so much that sometimes he would make him forget about the senior. He felt guilty, as his conscience would have it, but feelings didn't give way. Indeed in like manner they just sprang out of nowhere, giving him no choice to feel otherwise.

He started to feel uncomfortable in many ways, especially when the redhead asked him to go out and check out the new arcade one day. It was uncomfortable because he was giving him no time to think about being guilty. It was disturbing because he wasn't thinking of Mitsui at all. It was sad because he was convincing himself that it was normal to feel that way. It was wrong because he was ecstatic when Sakuragi asked him out.

It wasn't a date, but still it was fun in a carefree sort of way. Conclusively, the redhead was clearly trying to cheer him up, else something else was perhaps taking place. But then he wondered, boys were, in fact, incapable of being sensitive much less concerned. As to what could have made Sakuragi act this way Rukawa didn't bother to ask, for the sole reason he didn't want to break the moment.

It came to pass that Rukawa was more looking forward to chancing upon the redhead down the school corridors than the basketball practice itself. And always did he get a good output from this mild expectation. In mutual exchange, Sakuragi would always beam at him at first glance, or perhaps he thought that much; either way his lips would curl on their own, taking no heed to the orders of what probably was his brain.

But his worrisome musings would always fall short of making him abandon his hopes whenever Sakuragi met him outside his classroom to attend the practice with him.

To his credit, he was self-respecting enough to try to play it safe and to keep his hopes down- in case he was on board to fall harder. This effort however, could not prevent his stomach from giving a lurch whenever the redhead flashed him a smile. That's not mentioning the sleepless nights.

Practice had never made him feel this good. Apart from the fact that Sakuragi would no longer feel insecure even if Rukawa outplayed him by miles, he was playing better than ever.

'Can I have a word?' It was Sakuragi who first brought it in, thinking that the raven-haired boy would never take the initiative to put an end to their pretenses, to their dancing around each other. 'You know what this is all about. It's been weeks, months maybe, but let me tell you I'm not trying change whatever's happening-I just wanna hear it from you… ' there was a long pause, then, 'd-do-damn it's hard-do you want me? Because I'm damn sure I want you like snakes like rats-I'm no good in poetry but what the hell-I'm good at all things else.' He finished breathlessly.

'…'

'Say something. Whatever, just not nothing.'

Rukawa stared somewhere else, as if he would find his voice somewhere the horizon.

'It's like this;' he started slowly and heaved a sigh, 'you enter the gym; my eyes fall upon yours, yours upon mine. You smile, to which I smile back, involuntarily if you must know, because if it isn't obvious enough, I don't really smile. Would you believe my nerves are completely disobeying me? Sending my lips orders to curl and voice out the sort of pathetic things I'm saying at this very moment? But that's beside the point…you come in, smiling at me, then you proceed to the locker and come out all dressed up for the game. In my mind, damn it, you're still smiling at pull up jump shots the way a player does but tell jokes to freshmen like one among them should. In the process, I start to flatter myself because whenever you guys explode with laughter with those corny, shallow-humored jokes of yours, your eyes dart toward me, as if checking to see if I find you funny. Do you judge the quality of your puns by my inconceivable reactions? You're showing off, more like. Moving on, you give me high fives whenever I make a shot, even though we're never in the same practice team because, as we are in fact the team's best forwards, Miyagi-taicho thinks it fit to separate us. You wait for me outside the gym and you hold out your hand and I, not knowing how it will make me look, take it. And that's supposed to be a way of congratulating me after a great game. And only when I lie in bed at night and think of the day's events do I realize that it's not fucking normal to shake hands with teammates after practice games, and even more startling is that it's not shaking hands that we're doing; we're actually holding hands. It's just that I don't realize it because it's a feeling so heavenly it leaves me nothing else to think about, thus its abnormalities seem to me altogether trivial. But it doesn't end there. We walk down the school grounds, occasionally running in to friends of yours, girls especially. Imagine how revolted I feel inside when you hold out your hand to them just as what you always do to me. Worse still, you smile at them as brightly as you smile to me. That is when I realize you are just being friendly with me. But, to my mortification, it still doesn't end there. I walk alone to school, trying to erase you from the surface of my mind; surface, because try as I might it appears I truly can't get rid of you, even given serious efforts were involved. So, quietly I collect myself and put my feelings in order. And then, here comes the genius. You inch right in. And I start to think, nothing you have is for me. But you inch even closer. And when we are skin to skin, everything turns into a whole different story. A piece of your heart is for mine, or so it seems. With the absoluteness of all my worries being gone, it so happens that it's just you and me, walking down the street. And here I am, telling you my story, how my head goes into circles over you.'

'…' Sakuragi stared but said nothing.

'Who's lost for words now?'

'You-you don't understand-I mean you misunderstand-it's- they're nothing, girls; they're props, it's…Kaede, if you would-hell, why would I even hold out my hand to you every day if that's just being friendly? Why are you so insensitive?' Sakuragi asked in what sounded like panic. In all assurances, this response was to clear almost everything.

'Because I have to. Mitsui's probably-' Rukawa was cut off.

'Enough of Mitsui. Don't be a hypocrite. You don't even think about him anymore.' Sakuragi's voice was calm. On the whole, he wasn't intending to provoke Rukawa. He was just being honest. He continued, 'I have arrived in this conclusion by my practical reasons. If you really cared about him you, The Ice Prince, wouldn't smile back at me, or take the hand I offer you, at least not every so often.' The redhead's voice broke off, noticing he was perhaps asking for too much.

'I—I don't really know. Even Einstein would be confused if he was in my shoes right now.'

'I'm here, and you're here too but he's over there. Worlds collide. You're not even sure if this is enough to tear you apart. I'll accept whatever you come up with, alright. But this I tell you; all I want is you.'

They stared at each other for the longest time. He held out his hand and he, not knowing the best course of action as of the moment, took it for the hundredth time.

-END-

A/N: Pardon me for the grammatical errors and thanks for reading.