Meeting Aomine

2

Another day dawned upon the basketball club, the subtlety in the zephyr blew my tresses behind my ears. Upon entering Seirin's vast gym, Riko and the rest of the team stood around each other. "You guys start way too early." I groan through a lengthy yawn, speaking to none other than myself, almost inaudible.

"All right, looks like all the first years are here!" A voice exclaims through the echoes of the walls. How can you be so loud this early too? Mentally scowling, I was never a morning person, some suffered the aftermath of getting to know that.

"Hey, isn't the manager cute?"

"She's a second year, right?"

"If only she was a little sexier..."

I overheard the conversation between two first years, smirking as I close my eyes. Got a bunch of perverts this year, good luck Riko. I thought to myself with an internal chuckle. "3...2...1..." I begin counting, Hyuuga's fists fly into the back of the students craniums, like clockwork, I smile at my perfectly timed routine count.

Hyuuga protected Riko as though he was her guard dog. Sometimes, he'd pique my curiosity, I'd always been suspicious of their relationship. They were impossible, the patent interest in the way they looked at each other, it was plain to see that a relationship was par for the course, but it was always dismissed as a close friendship. Could have fooled me.

"Morons, you're wrong." I spy through my peripherals with a fatuous smile that had grown on my lips. "Hadn't known jealousy was among your many emotions, Hyuuga-kun." I continue to look through the blurriness of my right. "You can be quiet too, (y/n)." letting a laugh escape once more, I raise my arms in surrender. "My apologies, jealous-kun." momentarily receiving a glare of death from behind Hyuuga's glasses frames.

Riko ceases her conversation with Izuki to approach the line formation of first years before her. "I'm the boys' basketball club coach, Aida Riko. That woman over there, (l/n) (f/n), is assistant manager, she deals with computer related duties. Nice to meet you, boys." I nod my head in agreement and confirmation.   

The boys veer their widened eyes between I and Riko.  "What! So, he's not the coach?!" they all screech in unison as they point to the elderly male seated across the room, walking stick in hand.

"No. That's our advisor, Takeda-sensei." Riko plainly explains.

"Seriously, you've got to be kidding..." the male replies through an exhalation.

"Now that you're acquainted with Takeda-sensei. I'll have you guys first...take off your shirts!"

The best part of the day that I had been waiting in sweet, timely anticipation for. The moment worth waking up at 6:00am for. Any chance to ogle at a bare, chiselled torso and I was on it faster than a speeding ticket.

They all pounce back in panic. "What?! Why?!" They question simultaneously. Riko forces me a scheming and guileful simper, to which I slyly return .

A few moments of consistent complaints lands the boys at their feet in nothing but a pair of basketball shorts. Rubbing my hot palms together as they burn from chafing.

Riko goes to work, leisurely pacing up and down the court in observation of their athletic performance. What a job to have, huh? She stops at a member, "you. You're not very explosive, are you? I bet you can only do fifty side jumps in about twenty seconds, right?" reading his body with a mere look. "You'll need to do a little better for the basketball team." the boys gasps, as she continues down the line, pointing and addressing the rest of them. "You're too stiff. Do some stretches after you bathe."

The male she approached earlier begins speaking under her superior voice. "Seriously? she's right." The male to his right replies, "What do you mean?" as the guy to the far left also chimes in. "How'd she know that just from looking at us?" The three males, Koichi Kawahara, Hiroshi Fukuda and Koki Furihata gaze at her in astonishment.

"You, you should strengthen up a bit. Try some sprints on your own." Riko's voice drones off in the background at their amazement.

"Her dad's a sports trainer. Collecting data and creating a training regimen. It's a skill she picked up from observing bodies and data every day at his workplace since she was a child. When she looks at your body, she sees all of your physical abilities in numbers." Hyuuga describes.

I enjoy my mouth watering view from the benches across the room, until my eyes meet Riko's body almost trembling at the lofty figure in front of her. Kagami.

He bluntly asks "what?" as she takes a brief step backwards. I amble my way over to her open-mouthed, sweat dropping face. "You'll catch flies, Riko~" I sing through a short laugh. It was evident from the impression of his burly build that she saw his numbers shoot through the roof and penetrate the beyond. "Coach! What are you staring at?" Hyuuga shouts with impatience lacing his voice. "Sorry, uhm..." she trails, her large eyes battling between me and Hyuuga.

"You looked at all of them. Kagami's the last one." he refers to the group, landing his gaze on Riko once more. "Really?" she questions in confusion, as though expecting more. "Is Kuroko-kun here?" She calls out in the confines of the gym. "Oh, the kid from Teiko?" Hyuuga asks. Riko's eyes move around the room in the depth of her thoughts. "Looks like he's not here today. All right, lets get started with practice!" She urges with a forceful point of a finger, until a head of baby blue meets the alignment of her eyes.

"Uhm...Excuse me, I am Kuroko." he introduces himself, as Riko screams, her shout bounces off of the walls, all but me startled within the room, I shove my fingers into my ears in an aggravated attempt to stop the tinnitus attack infiltrating my canal.

"What?! How long have you been there?!" Hyuuga's pitch rises as he asks through a half squat.

"I've been here the whole time." He replies with simplicity, Riko's colour draining in her disbelief.

"What, this guy was part of the Generation of miracles? He couldn't have been a regular, could he?" Koganei throws questions about the room, as Hyuuga replies with a statement, and question of his own, still astounded of his transparency. "Of course, right, Kuroko-kun?"

"I played in games." Kuroko's stoic expression didn't waver, funny kid.

"Right!" Hyuuga sighs in relief, his face transfiguring to seriousness at the speed of a buttery bullet. "What?!" both Hyuuga and Koganei roar in bewilderment.

"T-Take off your shirt." I giggle at the suspense in Riko's voice. Leaning against Kawahara, I fold my arms as I watch the scene ahead, unfolding.

Although Kuroko slightly stutters, he obliges the request without any further complaining. "What? Okay." Slipping the white fabric over his baby-like visage.

Riko pants at the sight before her, but this time, I wasn't sure what numbers she was seeing, whether good, or bad.

-

That day ended in mystery for everyone, much more, the expression Riko left with was uncertain, a rarity that took me aback. Upon exiting the gym, I take my leisurely pace homeward, spotting a court occupied by familiar heads of red and blue. Kagami and Kuroko. Sounded like quite a nice duo, to me.

They exchange unheard words, as I wasn't within earshot, but inspecting from afar. They both engage in a one-on-one game under the darkness of the late sky. Witnessing both of their play; Kagami, powerful, with a forceful body. Kuroko...well. Kuroko. Retracing my mind back to that expression of unpredictability on Riko's face, I now understood what she saw. But, I was wiser than to make assumptions before knowing the facts, he partook in the Generation of Miracles for a reason, right?

Shaking the remainder of thoughts from my head, through unknowingness, but mostly tiredness, I did rise early after all!

My steps thud against the asphalt in configuration as I withdraw from the court, wending down the familiar streets to the awaiting warmth of my apartment.