Change [ A Slam Dunk Fanfiction ]

Chapter 15

Hana's POV

"Coach, shall we start now?", we heard Akagi-san ask Coach Anzai as we were running towards them.

"Wait a minute!", Michi shouted from beside me as the two of them ran faster, slightly leaving me behind.

With a worried look, Akagi-san noticed Mitsui-san's injuries, "What happened to your face, Mitsui?"

As Mitsui-san explained the earlier events to the Coach, I didn't notice the members' bags that were lying on the floor as I was hurrying causing me to trip over them.

Ow..

"Are you okay?", I heard Rukawa-san ask with a slight hint of worry in his voice as he helped me up. I nodded as a response and dusted the dirt off my pants. He was looking me over to check if I had any other injuries as he heard what happened.

"Rukawa-san?", I called his attention as he was spacing out, "Is everything all right?"

"Kaede.", he muttered and walked off to join the others.

Kaede?

What does he want me to do with his name?

I swear that guy is so confusing.

~

Shohoku have scored more than a hundred in their three consecutive wins. In their match against Tsukubu, one of the best eight last year, said school led the game with several three-point shots. However, Michi did a great job with rebounds as well as Miyagi-san with his steals.

This set the momentum for Shohoku and they became faster and faster. Tsukubu couldn't keep up with the speed and began to make mistakes. But in their 79 - 110 mark with the score in favor of Shohoku, Michi made his fifth foul and thus, thrown out of the game once again.

"We won!", my fellow first-years cheered as we were on our way out of the stadium, "We're in the best eight now."

Best eight.. how wonderful!

Knowing that we were now one of the best eight basketball teams in the prefecture made me beam with pride. I took notice of Rukawa-san who was walking a couple steps ahead of me and caught up to him.

"You were great today, Rukawa-san."

"Kaede."

"Huh?"

"I told you to call me Kaede."

Was that what he meant before?

He wants me to call him by his first name?

What progress!

I might just have a chance with him...

I hope.

"Then.. You were great today, Kaede-kun.", I tried again and gave him a smile. He responded with a nod and patted my head.

Feeling his warm hand on top of my head calms me down for some reason. Maybe because his touch made me feel safe? Whatever reason it was, I hope he'll continue to do so. It also makes me feel closer to him.

Their next game was against Shoyo, who was known as the second best team, after Kainan.

~

Everyone was obviously very nervous as Shoyo was known to be the second strongest team in the competition. With their match about to start, Coach Anzai gathered the starting players and gave them insightful encouragement.

He's right. Even if they are up against the #2 team, Shohoku has their own strengths.

"Ahh!! Hanamichi's a starting member!", Takamiya-kun said with his mouth agape, not believing the coach's decision.

"Have they given up?", Ohkusu-kun seconded.

I looked at them harshly and placed my finger in front of my mouth, gesturing for them to quiet down as Michi can hear them.

It was an unexpected choice for my brother to be a starting player but it can actually help him shine more.

He just needs to not be fouled out during the first half.

"Kogure-san, is that man the coach of Shoyo?", Kuwata-kun asked the bespectacled vice captain.

"The coach of Shoyo is a team member as well.", Kogure-san then pointed towards a pretty boy with light brown hair standing in front of his team, "Fujima Kenji."

The coach is also a player?

Not to mention, he's also just a student!

He must have exceptional skills for him to be a coach at a very young age then.

At the signal of the umpire, Shoyo's cheerleading section began shouting cheers of encouragement to their players. They were indeed somewhat intimidating in terms of numbers but I know Michi and the others weren't affected at all by such trivial things.

"The game between Shoyo High versus Shohoku High will now begin!"

~

Hanagata-san, the opposing team's center seems to be the same height with Akagi-san. And upon closer look, almost every member of Shoyo are very tall that it made Michi's height seem normal.

Looking over to their side of the benches, Fujima-san seems to not be playing during the first half. He was sitting with his jacket draped over his shoulders with a serious look on his face.

He turned his head towards our side and my eyes accidentally met his. I thought it would be a brief eye-contact but he held on to it for a couple more seconds than I expected. Sending a smirk over my way was the signal for me to drop my gaze as I was already too flustered.

Stupid! Why did I even stare back?

Coughing lightly to regain my senses, I quickly turned my attention towards the court as the sound of the umpire's whistle rang.

I looked over to see Michi holding the ball.

Oh no! Did he commit a foul already?

"Jumper violation, white #4!"

What? It was the captain's foul?

It was rare of Akagi-san to make a mistake during matches. This just showed that even he was feeling the pressure of going up against a team like Shoyo.

That call of the jump ball violation, partnered with the loud cheers of the Shoyo's cheering squad certainly dampened Shohoku's energy. But seeing our players s continuing as if nothing happened, I felt somewhat relieved.

That's right! It's just a small violation. You can do it Shohoku!

"Everyone's shorter than them, except for Akagi-senpai.", Ayako-san told Coach Anzai, "Not to mention Ryota. Shoyo's players are at least 10cm taller than our players."

"Is that really a problem, Ayako-san?", I asked.

"In most cases, of course not Hana-chan, for basketball is a sport where the game is dominated by those who have great skills in handling the ball.", she sighed, "but being tall definitely has its advantages. Both in offense and in defense. Especially if they are trained to use their height exceptionally well like Shoyo in this case."

Okay, now I'm worried.

You got this, Michi!

and Rukawa-san.