It was warm that day and Kogure kept flapping his collar to get some air under his already sweaty shirt as he walked with Akagi that morning to their classroom. The tall captain was also affected by the heat but he didn't show it except for the small flush which nearly covered the tall boy's face.

"It's damn hot today," Akagi finally complained and Kogure nodded in acknowledgement. Both didn't want to speak much because it seemed a chore to do so in the heat.

At that moment, coming from the opposite direction were Sakuragi and his gundan. The redhead looked up and his and Kogure's eyes instantly met. The two smiled shyly as they passed each other, not really hearing Akagi give a small growl to the four other juniors who were trying to look angelic.

"Boy, you must really feel hotter than I am. Your face is all flushed," commented Akagi suddenly, looking at his friend's face.

Kogure clapped his palms to his red cheeks and stammered in embarassement, "O-Oh, y-yes. It's really hot today."

"Hey, Hanamichi! Why is your face all red?!" remarked Takamiya loudly

"Yeah! I don't see any chicks hanging around here," said Noma twisting his head around to look for any cute girls.

"U-Urusai! I-It's just hot today, that's all!" sputtered the redhead, walking quickly away.

"What? The tensai can't stand the heat?" teased Yohei.

"I said shut up or I'll knock you guys down!"

"AHAHAHAH!! You're as red as a tomato!" laughed Ookusu.

"That's it! C'mere!! Don't you run away!!" cried Sakuragi angrily as he chased his friends around.



****

That afternoon in the gym, the sound of dribbling balls and squeaking soles carried across the court as the Shohoku basketball team busied themselves with the usual practice session. Kogure was talking with Kaede as the fox-eyed boy drank his water when the redhead strode over with a smile on his face. It wasn't the usual playful grin that he always wore but a small shy smile as he walked up to the two siblings.

"Uh, I'll wait for you outside the school gate later, okay?" said Sakuragi to the senior, his hands fidgeting inside his shorts.

Kogure blushed and nodded, "Hai."

"Uh, yeah," said the redhead, scratching his head before he walked away.

Kaede arched an eyebrow, "And what was that about?"

Kogure cleared his throat and pushed his glasses up, "What does it look like?"

"It looks like he wants to walk you home... oh..."
Kaede's dark blue eyes settled firmly on Kogure's face to wait for affirmation.

"Yeah, oh," said the senior cooly.

Kaede just nodded and Kogure thought he looked smug.
"He finally got the idea," said Kaede, taking another draught from his bottle.

"What?" asked Kogure, puzzled.

"Nothing," said Kaede flipping his water bottle closed before jogging back to the court to return to practice, leaving his bewildered brother behind.



****

"What's up?"

Kogure looked up at the redhead and shook his head, "Nothing. I'm just thinking about what Kaede said."

"What was that?" asked Sakuragi as he walked beside the senior, his gym bag slung over his shoulder.

"It was... about you getting an idea..." said Kogure, wrinkling his nose, "I think that's what he said..."

Sakuragi scowled. "Baka kitsune," he growled lowly but Kogure heard him.

"What?" said the spectacled boy in exasperation. /Are they talking in codes or something??/

Sakuragi waved his hand carelessly, "Nothing important. So, what does he think about us?"

Kogure shifted his eyes to the ground and smiled, "I thought it might be weird for him because he's your friend and all but he doesn't seem to mind at all."

"That's good," said Sakuragi, his smile also with a small measure of warmth, "Yohei's ok with it too."

The third year blinked in startlement, "When did he find out?"

"During lunch time," mumbled the redhead, "He cornered me when he saw me acting all weird when I met you in the corridor this morning."

"Ah," grinned Kogure, touched that the redhead did not deny his moment of embarassement. Kogure was relieved that at least he wasn't the only one affected by this new relationship. "He's a nice guy."

"Yeah, he is," nodded Sakuragi.

And then Kogure's voice took on a grim tone, "But there are other people who might not feel the same way when they know about us."

"I know," sighed the redhead. In that silence of serious thought, Sakuragi stopped in front of a vending machine and proceeded to feed it coins to purchase a drink.

Without turning around the redhead spoke to the other boy, "Take care ok? I don't want you to get hurt."

Kogure felt his inside flutter at those caring words though he wished he could have seen Sakuragi's face when the boy said them.
After Sakuragi attained his drink from the machine, did he then turn around to ask the spectacled boy, "Want something to drink, Min-kun?"

Kogure, surprised at the name that Sakuragi used for him, stared at the redhead for a moment before shaking his head, "Iie. That's ok."

"What's the matter?" asked Sakuragi as he popped open the tab of the can.

Kogure gave an amused chuckle, "It's just that it feels weird hearing you call me that."

"Oh?" said the redhead tilting his head, "How about Min-chan? Or itoshii if you want?"

Kogure blushed and laughed weakly, "No, Min-kun is fine. Thank you."
The redhead laughed as well, loving how cute the spectacled-boy looked when he was embarassed.

Kogure coughed in his hand trying to regain his dignity and asked, "So what shall I call you then?"

"Hmm..." the redhead thought aloud as he touched the cool can on his cheek, "How about Hana-kun?"

Kogure thought about it for a moment before he tried it on his tongue, "Hana.. -kun...."

The redhead grinned, "Ok, say it faster."

"H-Hana-kun?"

"Come on! I'm supposed to be your boyfriend here," teased Sakuragi.

"Hana-kun," tried Kogure again firmly and he was all smiles when he said it but his cheeks still held a bit of the redness from his earlier fluster. The redhead thought the boy looked lovely.

"I love it already," drawled Sakuragi, making the flush from Kogure's cheeks come flooding back anew.



****

"Tadaima!"

"Okaeri nasai!" replied his mother, her smiling face peeking past the doorway from the kitchen.

"Where've you been?" asked his father as Kogure slipped on his indoor slippers before entering the hallway.

"I was walking with my friend," answered the 3rd year Shohoku student, proud that his voice sounded normal even when he felt guilty lying to his father. Well, it wasn't actually a lie. Just a less specific answer.

Kogure made his way to the stairs when he heard his father speak again, "Kaede! Have you done your homework yet? You're always leaving your school work at the last minute! Don't you want to succeed for your future?"

"Basketball is my future," Kaede answered without haughtiness. Only a firm commitment - and that made his father to shout, "Basketball is not a good future! You think you can be the best with all those talents out there?! Even if you will be, it'll mean nothing in Japan. You confusing this country with the US, son!"

Kaede stomped up the stairs in silent anger and he came across his older brother who was sitting on the steps with his chin on his hand.

"Oniisan," said Kaede, "You better keep your relationship with Sakuragi a secret especially from Otousan. He won't like it if he knows you're dating a guy 3 years younger than you are."

Kogure sighed before Kaede continued, "And Sakuragi loves basketball as much as I do. It's his life."

The spectacled-boy's face grew from serious to worry as he thought in silence. Kaede looked at his brother and said softly, "I'm just telling you what I think."

When Kogure didn't answer, Kaede continued his way up the stairs and disappeared into his room.


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