Vicious || Aomine D.

Nineteen

[ Watch out! ]
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"Watch out!"

Riyo barely had enough time to duck out of the way of a stray basketball that had slipped out of Furihata's hands in the middle of their practice. The ball wooshed by her head and hit the wall behind her with a deafening clang before falling into her lap.

Had he tried to take her head off?

An eery silence fell in the gym as all eyes were on the dark-haired girl with unnaturally fast reflexes. She had had to dodge a ball or two growing up with Aomine. He had rarely slipped up but had instead been quick to anger and Riyo had always been excellent at pushing his buttons. Only Kuroko seemed unsurprised by her fast reaction.

"OI!" Hyuuga was the first to snap out of his daze and scold the first-year who had paled immensely. "You need to be more careful!"

Hyuuga's shouting seemed to help the others recover as well. Kiyoshi jogged over to Riyo to retrieve the ball.

"Miyoshi, are you alright?" he asked, his eyes filled with the warmth of an older brother. Or at least that's what Riyo thought. "The ball didn't hit you, did it?"

She shook her head. "No, I'm fine." The corners of her lips tipped upward slightly. "Thank you, Kiyoshi-san."

"I've told you to call me Teppei. Or at least drop the -san." An awkward smile appeared on his face as he scratched the back of his neck.

She had forgotten. Again. "Right. Sorry. Kiyoshi." Her expression became less rigid, and this time her eyes reflected the smile on her face.

She handed the ball back to him and Kiyoshi jogged back to the others while Hyuuga dragged poor Furihata to the bench by the back of his collar to apologize, which he did. Profusely. Reminding her a little of Sakurai and the time he'd accidentally walked into her in the hall. He had been mortified.

"Really, it's okay. You missed," Riyo told him with a small chuckle. "It's not like you meant to attempt murder, right?"

The first-year's eyes widened in horror before words started rushing out in a panic-filled haze. "Of course not! It was an accident I swear! I would never--"

She couldn't help the laugh that bubbled out of her. "Don't worry about it. I'm fine. It's basketball, it happens." She waved both of them off.

The two returned to their practice. On their way, Hyuuga shot one last glance her way. A glance she didn't know how to interpret. Not unlike the one Aida was aiming her way.

No more than ten minutes passed when another ball ended up on a trajectory that would've ended at Riyo's face. This time she caught the ball in her hands since she'd been paying attention to their practice and seen it coming. She turned the ball around, feeling the seams under her fingers.

"If you want me to leave so badly, I'll go. There's no need to throw balls at my face," she teased standing up.

Aida looked torn between wanting to laugh and planning new ways to torture the boys with neverending drills. A crease formed between Hyuuga's brows that probably wouldn't go away any time soon and Kiyoshi seemed ready to start convincing Riyo that she wouldn't have to leave. Kagami tilted his head trying to figure out what she was playing at, knowing she wasn't being serious. Kuroko, on the other hand, just nodded. It was a slight dip of his chin that everyone else missed but Riyo.

Riyo smirked and took a step away from the bench. Then she lowered herself a little before jumping and throwing the ball toward the hoop at the other end of the gym. She took the shot from outside of the court, well behind the halfway line, and from a weird angle. And yet, the ball fell through the hoop with ease.