i; One.

Part 1: Getting the girl. 

The sound of the ball hitting the polished floor echoes around the empty gym. He has one hand in his pocket while the other hand is dribbling his worn-out basketball. It was his personal favorite because they, he and his teammates, had made so much scratches on it during the times they played, and he could still remember the reasons behind every single one.

Half-heartedly, he smiles to himself before he shots the ball with only one hand. As expected, it goes in the net with ease. His smile turns into a smirk. He looks around the empty gym, and sighs to himself. "I'm feeling sleepy again." he says as his eyes began to feel heavy. 

He thinks it's time for him to go. He grabs his backpack and slung it over his right shoulder as he strides over to the doors, the sound of his sneakers against the floors was the only thing he could hear. 

Before leaving though, he takes one last look at the gym. The empty bleachers, the stage, the perfectly polished floor, the balls that were scattered everywhere, the scent of sneakers and sweat around.. everything, all this, had started with her. 

He wouldn't of been a member of Teiko without her.

He wouldn't be part of the Generation of Miracles without her.

He wouldn't of loved basketball if it wasn't for her. 

Smiling to himself, he realizes something. "I owe Satsuri more than I think." he mumbles, shaking his head. 

"Eh?! Dai-chan?!" 

He flinches. That voice, that oh-so terrifying voice that he had still not grown accustomed with, even though they had known each other for more than half of their lives. But Aomine Daiki only looks back, obviously a little annoyed and surprised by her. "Oh, Satsu-Ouch!"

Without warning, she had slapped him on the arm. Hard. "Dai-chan, what are you still doing here?! I told you to go home hours ago! Adn what's this?! I put back the balls in the store cupboard! Aomine Daiki, you-"

"Satsuri.." one groan from him was all that it took for her to shut up, but it didn't stop her from glaring at him. "I didn't want to go home yet. I was waiting for Kise and Tetsu, but they both left without me. Those bastards.. I'll get them at practice tomorrow." he smiles to himself, just the thought about playing with them made him a little giddy inside. 

"Aish, Dai-chan!" another harsh slap from her. "Why are you always-ugh! Never mind! Let's go home." her voice was softer and more tender at the last words of her sentence, which made him smile even more. 

"Whatever you say, Satsu-chan." he carelessly places his hands behind his head as they walk side by side, heading for the school gates. 

"Satsu-chan? Hmm, that's new." she remarks, tapping thoughtfully on her chin. 

Daiki only nods his head and says nothing. He always had liked to look at her and admire her in silence, without the two of them talking. Tonight, with the moon's beams shining down on them, Daiki could not think of a time where he had seen her this pretty. She had her hair tied up, which was quite rare, and it showed off her high cheekbones and beautiful face. She was still wearing her uniform and even at the end of the day, it was clean. Not a single dirt on it. 

Daiki smiles even more. "Satsu-chan?" he breaks the silence. 

She turns to look up at him. Literally, since Daiki is a good head taller than her. "Hm?" she hums with a smile.

"Why did you come home so late today?" he asks. 

"Oh, well, we had a club meeting." she says before looking away. "It was longer than I expected." 

"I keep on forgetting that the basketball team isn't the only club you've joined." he says, more to himself than to her. 

Satsuri only smiles at him and they walked through the streets of Tokyo in silence again. Daiki liked the silence, but he couldn't really tell if Satsuri felt the same about it. He never really bothered her to ask. 

Beside him, Satsuri sneezes. "Oh," she says, reaching in her pocket for her handkerchief. 

Daiki frowns and only thinks of about one thing. "Are you catching a runny nose?" 

Satsuri wipe her nose with her handkerchief, and her eyes were closed as she did so. "No, it's just a little-" she opens her eyes and removes the handkerchief from her nose before she looks up at Daiki, a little surprised. ".. cold." she finishes off her sentence just as he places his Varsity jacket around her shoulders and he was smiling as he did so. The jacket was big but immediately, Satsuri felt snug and warm when he had put it on her.

Satsuri was surprised. Daiki had never did anything like that to her before. If anything, he'd probably tease her. But now.. "Dai-chan.." she looks up at him with her perfectly green eyes. 

Daiki smiles, his eyes turning into crescent moons. "I don't want you to catch a cold, Satsu-chan. Please take care of yourself." 

She smiles at him. "Dai-chan.. thank you, you're the best friend ever."

And then, the second before she turns away from his face, his smile falters at the words she used. Friend. Daiki had to suck in the harsh reality of what they were. They were just friends after all. He was just her friend, nothing more and nothing less. No matter how many times he showed his affection towards her, that's what he'll always be in his precious Momoi Satsuri's eyes; just a friend. 

Daiki's eyes, that showed another kind of pain, follow her as she skips happily through the streets, holding his jacket in place, preventing it from falling off her shoulders. It was pretty big on her. 

Satsuri looks back when she notices his presence is gone behind her. Tilting her head to the side, she looks back at him. "Dai-chan? What's the matter?" 

He forces a smile, one that even Satsuri or Kuroko can't see pass through. "Nothing, Satsuri." he rubs the back of his head while he's walking towards her. "Let's just get you home, eh? Your mother will be worried." 

"Oh yeah, come to think of it.. I haven't asked for her permission to go home late." 

Daiki couldn't help but laugh. "You're in big trouble, Satsu-chan." he teases her.

---

Daiki could hear the yelling, even from outside and the door wasn't even half-open. Strings of insults and profanity came out of Satsuri's mother's mouth, but Daiki needed not to worry about Satsuri.

She was always unfazed by her mothers angry outbursts.

Daiki only chuckles to himself as he leans against the wall of the house, listening to their conversation.

It was Satsuri who was speaking. "How many times do I have to tell you, mother? I was with Aomine Daiki, does that name ring a bell to you? No?" he then heard her sigh.  "Dai-chan, come in because mother won't believe me."

Daiki walks inside their house, but only up to the front door. He didn't want to remove his shoes, and he wouldn't there for long anyways. When he's seen by the two women, the younger one smiles faintly at him; letting him know that she was okay and that she was used to her mother's nagging. But she didn't need to do that, Daiki knew her better than anyone. 

"Hello, auntie." he waves his hand half-heartedly at Satsuri's mother. "Everything Satsuri said was true, by the way." he adds, smiling. 

"Oh, Aomine-kun, well, since you have never lied to me, Aomine.." her mother snaps her head to face Satsuri, who had an annoyed expression on now. "I'll reduce your time, you're only grounded for three days. No TV, no desert and no leaving the house except for school. Curfew is at 5 in the evening." she says before walking away from her. "It's nice to see you, Aomine-kun." 

Satsuri's eyes widen. "Mo-mother?! Th-th-three days?!" she was practically wailing.

Daiki leans by the doorframe and chuckles. "Oi, Satsuri.. it's okay. I'll.. I'll treat you lunch tomorrow." he says, trying to cheer her up. 

She was pouting, and she looked cute. She turns to Daiki with big, watery eyes. "Oh, Dai-chan.. will-will you?" 

He nods. "Of course."

In a heartbeat, her arms are around his neck as she pulls him for a hug. "Aomine! You're the best!" she squeals, hugging him tighter, and it made his face flush red. Because of their height difference, Daiki had to crouch down for her to hug him. Every time they hugged, it was always Daiki who was crouching and Satsuri who was on her tiptoes. Even so, Daiki couldn't help but blush a bright red every time they did. 

This time was no exception. Satsuri let's go of him, and instantly, he wishes her arms were wrapped around his neck again. Daiki only sighs before he smiles, his face still red. "Um, see you tomorrow.. Satsu-chan." he says.

Sh enods, unaware of the butterflies she was giving Daiki. "Yeah, I'll give you your jacket by tomorrow, is it okay?" she asks, grinning at him.

Daiki nods. "Of course." he says before he leaves her house.

He looks up at the starry night sky above, and he smiles to himself again before he continues to walk the streets alone. He already missed Satsuri's presence. 

It wasn't long ago that he realized, it's actually been a while now. There was another thing he realized that was related to Momoi Satsuri; he was completely in love with her.

A U T H O R ' S   N O T E S ;
Chapter one is UP! ^o^ Please comment
and tell me what you think. Also, please
note that my chapters aren't quite that long.