InsaneJournal

[Slam Dunk] untitled drabbles
fandom Slam Dunk
characters Miyagi, Sakuragi, Rukawa


Things were meant to be easy this year. After all, they’d made the nationals the year before, and while they hadn’t won, they’d beaten the unbeatable and practically become heroes overnight. On the first day of club activities, they had more first years wanting to join the club than in the three previous years combined, and there were even some talented players in the bunch.

Miyagi looked over them with a critical eye, taking note of who squirmed under the scrutiny and who didn’t, and decided that these first years -- the ones who’d stay, anyway -- would be much easier to handle than last year’s recruits. He was very aware of the fact that he didn’t have the height, the intimidation, or the sheer strength that Akagi had, and all he could really count on to control them was Sakuragi’s friendship and Rukawa’s respect. And hope -- he hoped that would be enough.

Sakuragi stood against the wall, his fingers itching to pick up a ball and maybe run down the length of the court as fast as he could and then dunk the ball as hard as he could. Maybe he’d bring down the ring, though that would probably be a bad thing; Ayako wouldn’t stop hitting him until either her fan or his head broke. He could almost feel the leather beneath his fingertips, the air beneath his feet as he jumped, and he could hear the doctor’s warning in his ears, bringing him back to earth -- he wasn’t going to be jumping like that for a while yet.

Rukawa sat on the floor next to Sakuragi, his eyes closed, pretending to sleep while feeling intensely, uncomfortably aware of the person beside him. Last year he’d called it annoyance, maybe even hatred, but this year he didn’t know what it was, this itching, burning feeling in his chest trying to claw its way out. It was a distraction, but he wouldn’t let it affect what really mattered -- his goal was something bigger than this place, bigger than the nationals, and bigger than his rivalry with Sakuragi. He couldn’t let Sakuragi matter.

Nobody said it, because it felt like one of those things that could easily be jinxed, but everybody thought it -- things were meant to be easy this year.


fandom Slam Dunk
characters Rukawa, Sakuragi


Sakuragi finally gets a girlfriend in the spring of his second year of high school, and everyone knows because his friends scatter cherry blossoms down the hallways in celebration. He walks around with a big grin on his face and doesn’t headbutt people no matter what they say to him, and during training he doesn’t even pick fights with Rukawa. This makes Miyagi and the rest of the team sigh in relief, though it makes Rukawa feel oddly neglected.

It’s not that Rukawa wants Sakuragi’s attention, exactly; it’s just that he’s always had it, and now that it’s gone it’s like he’s missing a pinkie finger. Or maybe a pinkie toe. He feels off-balance, like something in his world has changed and he doesn’t know how to fix it, or even why it matters, really.

It doesn’t matter, he tells himself, and it’s not like he deliberately goes out of his way to annoy Sakuragi with insulting comments and sharp glares. He’s just acting like normal, and it’s completely normal to feel satisfied when a flicker of anger crosses over Sakuragi’s face, displacing that stupid smile even if only for a moment.

So life goes on peacefully for about two months, until the day Sakuragi kind of limps into the gym and bursts into tears on Miyagi’s rather alarmed shoulder.

“She… dumped… me!” Sakuragi sobs, and for maybe the second time in his life, Rukawa finds himself wanting to smile. He doesn’t actually smile, because expressions hurt his facial muscles, but inside, it feels like the pieces that were dislodged are clicking into place again.

“Um,” Miyagi says, looking desperately at Ayako because he doesn’t know what to say, then looking desperately at Rukawa because Sakuragi is really heavy. Ayako just shrugs, having no idea what to say either, while Rukawa decides that it’s also completely normal to want to remove Sakuragi from Miyagi’s arms.

“Stop snivelling already,” he mutters, just loud enough to reach Sakuragi’s ears. This has the intended effect of making Sakuragi shoot up, glaring daggers at Rukawa before stalking over and slamming him into the wall.

“What did you say?!” Sakuragi shouts, his face only inches apart from Rukawa’s.

“I said, stop snivelling already,” Rukawa repeats, saying each word slowly and clearly. “You’re acting like a girl.”

“Oh yeah?” Sakuragi says. “You’re the one with the girly face!” And he throws a punch at that face for the first time in over three months.

Rukawa punches him back, almost enjoying the feeling of pain radiating from his knuckles when they make contact with Sakuragi’s hard head, and as he watches the next punch come flying towards his nose, he smiles.