Beauty in the Darkness, a Slam Dunk oneshot

He told her.

He'd told her he loved her.

She'd smiled at him, that angelic smile; and told him that she loved him too. As a best friend.

Sakuragi didn't say anything more. He turned on his heel and left, leaving the younger Akagi alone and confused.

He felt empty, the familiar feeling creeping into his gut. He'd been rejected by fifty girls before, but this one was the most devastating. She wasn't just any other girl - Akagi Haruko was different. She was all he'd ever dreamt for in a girl.

He'd built the courage and finally poured his heart out to her; and the rejection was painful. Now, he was left hopeless and loveless.

Even though the sun was shining, and the spring flowers were blossoming, Sakuragi's heart was experiencing winter. Cold, dark and lonely.

"So you told her." Yohei Mito's voice floated out from nowhere. Sakuragi's best friend since childhood, he knew how much the redhead liked Haruko; and he felt his friend's misery, too.

Sakuragi didn't reply, his head hung over.

"Sakuragi-kun, I love you too! You're my best friend!"

Wrong. Yohei was his best friend. And now he left his best friend with no explanation, walking away in no particular direction. He was numb, devoid of any emotion....just like that tricky fox Rukawa Kaede.

Yohei knew better than to chase after the heartbroken Sakuragi. I'm sorry, Hanamichi. But you're resilient. I hope your fighting spirit returns...

*****

Sunset. The world was turning to darkness; the brilliant orange sky slowly faded away, as the sun slipped beyond the horizon.

"That's beautiful, ne, Sakuragi-kun?" A soft-spoken female voice whispered into his ear. It was Fujii, the shy, gentle girl who constantly watched the after-school basketball practice with Haruko. She smiled at him, nodding to the sunset.

Sakuragi realised he'd been sitting there for hours, alone, brooding. Just as he thought the loneliness had faded away, it crashed over him once again like a tsunami. Fujii painfully reminded him of her - they were always together, yet this time was an exception.

The reason he'd picked the loneliest bench facing the brilliant blue sea was solely because it was the most isolated one, yet somehow this girl managed to find him....

"Can I join you, Sakuragi-kun?" Fujii asked softly, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear with such feminine grace.

Sakuragi simply nodded, barely looking at the girl. She sat on the farthest end of the bench, almost dwarfed by Sakuragi's ginormous athletic frame. The odd pair sat in silence, witnessing the sun slip even further, and soon, darkness descended.

Fujii let out a satisfied sigh once the sun had completely set. "Always the best show on Earth." A tiny smile played on her delicate lips. "I used to be so disappointed once it's all dark."

"The sun, it's a symbol of hope and happiness. And sunsets are always as magnificent, every time you witness it, it's like the first time." Fujii's soft voice seemed so distant, like a voiceover. A slight breeze blew from the sea.

But the sun was already gone. All he saw now was darkness. The exact representation of his emotions.

"So beautiful... but after that it turns dark. Pitch black. So eerie and disorienting. I used to be scared of the dark, until one day I learnt to love it."

"Because you see, there are also beautiful things in the dark." Fujii tilted her head up to the heavens, and Sakuragi followed suit.

The sky was a deep blue with remnants of orange from the sunset, and twinkling in the distance, were stars. There was just one or two at first. But as the canvas of the sky gradually turned into darker hues, there were more of them. Shining in the darkness; little dots of hope.

Sakuragi marvelled at the night sky. The little things he'd never appreciated. The stars. How insignificant, yet beautiful.

"And if you wait a little longer..."

The stars slowly came out to play, its individual brightness blinking against the dark sky. Soon a smattering of stars decorated the heavens, invoking wonder in the red headed athlete. The same feeling when Fujii had discovered beauty in the darkness for the first time.

"The moon, Sakuragi-kun."

There it was, hanging up high in the sky. A crescent moon, almost shaped like a toenail, outshining everything else that surrounded it. Its halo seemed to radiate pure hope; an ember in the darkness.

"There are beautiful things in the dark." Fujii breathed, completely relaxed as she admired the moon. Sakuragi watched her dainty movements in the low light.

Then it hit him.

Haruko had been the sun, and he was the Earth, revolving around her. Like the sun, she was cheerful and warm. Her smile, her laugh - the qualities that captivated him - radiated to those around her. And like the sun, Haruko had a burning and passionate fire within her: for basketball, for her family, for her friendships. There was nothing else in the world that she appreciated more.

And in her shadow was Fujii, the moon. Quiet and shy, she was never one to attract attention to herself. Like the moon, Fujii reflected off Haruko. Hidden in the sky in the broad daylight, but shining brighter than the sun in the midnight sky.

Just bright enough to light the way home.

Sakuragi was in the darkness. But now Fujii was his light.

"The darkness doesn't last forever, because tomorrow will be a new day. Full of hope and brightness." Fujii sighed. The mismatched pair sat in comfortable silence, both admiring the glorious night sky.

There is still light in the darkness, Sakuragi thought. Even if you get lost, the stars and the moon will lead you home.

Sakuragi stood up abruptly to his epiphany, his heart racing in overdrive.

"Fujii-san, it's getting late. I'll walk you home." Sakuragi said out of nowhere, not recognising his own voice.

The petite pixie-haired girl looked up at him, slightly shocked by the sudden change in his character. She blushed in the darkness. "It's okay, Sakuragi-kun. My house is just nearby."

The redhead insisted, and Fujii finally gave in. After all, she'd be a fool to turn down his gentlemanly offer.

They left the bench, walking at a leisurely pace, each wrapped up in their own thoughts. The artificial lights of the Kanagawa streets greeted them, a stark contrast to the natural lights they'd both been enjoying earlier.

Truth be told, Fujii was disappointed when they reached her home all too soon.

"Thank you for walking me home, Sakuragi-kun." Fujii bowed her head slightly, hoping to hide her burning face.

"No problem, Fujii-san. I'll see you tomorrow." Sakuragi grinned at the petite girl.

Tomorrow...a new day. Full of hope and brightness.

-owari-