Dreaming On - Kuroko no Basket

Being Free

A/N: IT'S MY BIRTHDAY TODAY!!! AHHH! I'M SO HAPPY AND ECSTATIC. But I still have Applied Physiology and Kinesology Lab today for three hours :'( and then I have a Career Show Case that I have to attend until 4pm.... So I still have so much to do on my birthday D:

Anyways, I got so excited that I'm posting this chapter up because you guys have all been patiently waiting for me to finally upload this!!!!

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"Make us free na Splash! Kasaneta hikari no KONTORASUTO no naka/

Itsumademo owaranai natsu ni me wo kogorashite yeh/

Omoi omoi ni sei! sei! sei! a-oh/

Jibunrashiku kick! kick! kick! a-oh/

Mabushisa e to pull! pull! pull! a-oh/

Te wo nobashita deep! deep! deep! Splash Free/

Muki ni naru hi mo aru daro back & forth ni tadayotte/

Rakkanteki na uwabe toka/

Urayandari shite"

I sighed, leaning my head backwards. I could feel the exhaustion settling in my body from the relentless basketball practices, ballet practices, and piano time. My back was stiff, my legs and toes were bruised and threatened to give out at any time, and my fingers were cramping badly. Hitomi-sensei threatened to have a talk with Otou-san about my lack of attention in class.

"It wasn't my fault," I quietly huffed. "Well, I guess it is because I'm doing three things...But they're my dreams! I can't just give one up like that." I rested my head on the piano keys, creating a disharmonious sound. After seeing Kuroko practice his new drive, it made me want to practice more. It sparked the feeling of wanting to win, of wanting to be number one. I didn't want to lose to anyone. It was a selfish feeling, but I wanted to excel above the Generation of Miracles; however, I couldn't do that if I sat on the bench during the majority of the games.

Sure I respected Riko, but I had the feeling that she just didn't want to put me in unless they were pretty desperate. She had a good reason to, although it made me feel as if I was just a last resort. I knew I couldn't complain because I had more playing time than the three other first-years. I should be grateful to Riko because it gave me more time to work on ballet and playing the piano - I just couldn't find it within me to feel happy about being a bench-warmer in a sport that I loved so much.

"Mo i," I muttered. "I'm done with practice piano for today. I should get ready for tomorrow's game against Mido-kun."

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Within the first minute of the game, everyone could feel the intensity brewing. The ball was being heatedly passed within teammates and stole by opponents. The air was suffocating. I leaned forward, resting my elbows on top of my knees, lacing my fingers together to make a rest for my chin. No matter how many shots Midorima can make, Kagami will block them, but the ball will always go out of bounds and into the hands of Shutoko. What is Midorima up to? I know he's up to something, but what is it?

I then caught segments of Midorima's conversation with Kagami, making me sit straight up in shock. That's it! "My shots aren't so cheap that I need a stopgap for you." Midorima also said he's been doing endurance training this whole time...

"He plans to wear Kagami out by letting him block! Mido-kun has been doing endurance training this entire time. It's true that he uses his entire body's strength to take the shots, but now he can make more than last time," I murmured. Riko glanced over at me, nodding in affirmation.