Dreaming On - Kuroko no Basket

To Protect Them All

A/N: Haiiiiii minna! Happy early Easter!!! Sorry I haven't updated in a while. I've been swamped with picking out my Fall semester's classes for next year, studying for my upcoming finals, and just stuff. I can't believe I'll be done with my first year of college in four weeks!! Gahh! It's so soon!!

4/7/15 - Thanks to "MizzOtaku" for being the 270th follower! <3 <3 

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By the end of the second quarter, we were winning by five points. However, it felt as if we barely made it. Hanamiya's maniacal laughter caught my attention, my gaze flying to meet Kuroko's stunned look of disbelief. I growled under my breath, taking a step towards Kuroko when Izuki stopped me, his hand firm on my bicep.

"Let me go, Izuki-sempai!" I demanded, determine to run to Kuroko's side. Izuki's grey eyes hardened to steel, effectively stopping me in my tracks.

"Have you forgotten that Hanamiya will resort to dirty tricks to get things his way? Just because you're a girl doesn't mean that he won't target you, Masami-chan." My resolve slipped away, causing my shoulders to sag. He's right. Hanamiya will do anything to break us. Teppei and me especially. I have to be on my guard. When Hanamiya leaned forward, invading the bluenette's personal space, the fire ignited inside of me again. I lunged forward, breaking out of the eagle-eyed sempai's hold.

I ran up to Kuroko and pulled on the back of his jersey, causing him to stumble slightly backwards away from the leering creep.

"What I did to your seniors last year was my masterpiece," Hanamiya continued, his murky olive eyes flitting towards me before turning his attention back to his original victim. "I hope you don't think that's the end of it."

"Tch!" I spat out, clenching my hands into tight fists. "You dirty, manipulative piece of shit! You better watch your back, you bastard. Your plays may just backfire on you." Hanamiya only laughed, walking away.

"You're next, Fujioka. I'll do you a favor and let you meet your brother early," he leered.

"Why, you - " I lunged forward, hand outstretched to grab the disgusting green jersey. However, Kuroko's quick thinking allowed him to throw his arm out, creating a barrier that prevented me from pursuing the foul-mouthed second-year.

"Masami-chan," Kuroko's lips lowered themselves next to my ear. "He makes me angry too, but you have to stay calm. Don't act irrationally." Furious, I pushed my teammate away, scowling as I went back to the locker room. As soon as I entered the cool room, I drove my fist into a locker, relishing in the slight throbbing of my knuckles. It distracted me from the anger that was building up in my core, fighting for release.

"Damn it! Damn it all!" I snarled, driving my other fist into the same locker. Just as I was about to aim a high-kick at another locker, a bucket of cold water met my face. I yelped in shock, whirling around to find the perpetrator, only to find Riko holding an empty bucket. The ice-cold water continued to drip off my hair and clothes.

"Are you calm now?" Riko questioned. "Jeez, don't take your anger out on stuff. We have to repair that locker now. You can pay me back."

"Tch! I know that," I mumbled, averting my gaze from Riko's analyzing eyes. My cherry-colored eyes met a pair of warm brown eyes. "Teppei, are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine!" He replied back cheerfully. How can you say that with a smile on your face when you're in so much pain? Riko left my side to go over to Teppei. I watched as she scanned Teppei's noticeable black and purple bruises, assessing the damages to his muscles and outer skin. Feeling the bile rising up in my throat at the thought of Teppei being in so much pain, I quickly moved to the other side of the locker room, where Kuroko and Kagami were sitting.