Coming Back [Kuroko no Basket]

Can I Still Join?

Nakamura sat at her desk with her left arm propped up to support her head while she held a pencil in her right hand. All she could do was stare at the piece of paper in front of her, at a loss for what she should write.

"Nakamura-san, you should eat your lunch if all you're going to do is stare at the paper."

".........I know Tetsuya but it's almost the end of the month and I still haven't joined a club."

"Hah? You still haven't joined a club yet? It's almost been a month though."

"Thank you for that Captain Obvious -.- That's why I'm trying to fill it out now but I'm struggling."

"Why not join basketball? I heard from Kuroko that the senpais invited you on the day of the entrance ceremony. You should just become the manager, right Kuroko?"

"I would like Nakamura-san to join the basketball club, but there's no point to it if we force her to join. She should join because she wants to."

"That's true. But man, is that all you're having for lunch? Can't believe you don't eat more."

"This is a normal amount Kagami-kun. What I can't believe is how you can eat so much."

Nakamura could only sigh as the conversation between the three of them wasn't going to help her decide on a club. As she unwrapped her sandwhiches, she thought about the basketball members and what Riko had told her about them.

Hyuuga Junpei: a normal guy, but when he gets going, he's amazing and scary, he should be nicer to his kouhais

Izuki Shun: calm and collected, never losing his cool, but with also a strange sense of humor, his puns aren't bad but he shouldn't say them so often

Mitobe Rinnosuke: the hardworking and unsung hero, with the voice no one has ever heard, I wonder how such a quiet person deals with such rowdy people

Koganei Shinji: he can do everything and do nothing, a jack of all trades and a master none, kind of reminds me of a cat

Kagami Taiga: has jumping power and the ability to turn a game around, all I see is a hot headed idiot though

She snapped out of her thoughts when she realized that Kagami and Kuroko had both ceased their conversation. Turning her head to face them, she noticed that they were both staring at her. Uncomfortable with the stares, she told them that they were being rude and that if they had something to say to her, then they should just say it. They both continued to stare, making it even more awkward for her, until Kuroko shifted his gaze to her hand, causing her to look down at her desk too. Without realizing it, she had her pencil in her right hand and saw the words basketball club written on the piece of paper. Slightly shocked that she had written it without realizing, Kuroko was even more shocked that she wasn't erasing it from the paper. Does that mean that she does want to join?

Nakamura could only shove the piece of paper into her desk as she finally picked up her sandwhiches to eat. Not wanting to discuss it with Kagami and especially Kuroko, she focused only on eating and didn't say anything else to them. Kagami opened his mouth, wanting to ask if she was joining, when Kuroko suddenly poked him and brought a finger to his mouth. Despite his curiosity, he knew it would be better to listen to Kuroko, since he knew Nakamura much longer than the red-haired boy did and was closer to her. The lunch break ended with awkward silence between the three students, no one daring to open their mouth.

~Time Skip~

As the bell rang, signalling the end of the school day, all the students started putting their things away, getting ready to head home or to head to their club activities. As the three of them were putting their stuff away, Nakamura broke the silence by asking Kuroko what he was hoping to hear. "Nee Tetsuya....is it alright if I went with you and Kagami-kun to the gymnasium for today's practice?" Kuroko smiled and didn't hesitate to answer, "Of course you can. Don't forget anything you might need." As all three of them headed to the gymnasium, Nakamura couldn't deny that she was still nervous about joining the club, however she's seen the members in action and learned what kind of people they were. Even if it didn't end well, she decided she could always quit and join the ochestra club.

As Kuroko and Tetsuya walked to the locker room to change, Nakamura walked to the gymnasium in hopes of finding Riko to pass her the club sign-up form. Seeing the coach standing next to the stage, shuffling through some paper, Nakamura slowly approaches her as she could feel her stomach tighten. "Ano.....Aida-senpai?" Riko turned her head to find a girl her height, fidgeting and clutching a piece of paper to her chest. "Yes? Your Nakamura-san right? Kuroko-kun's friend that accompanied us to Kaijo's practice match a few weeks ago." Nakamura nodded, confirming that she was, and continued, "I was actually wondering if I could join the basketball club as a manager. I have experience from being a manager for Teiko's basketball team, although that probably doesn't mean much since I'm not a player. But I have experience treating sports injuries and making team strategies, if that helps."

Riko drops her clipboard, shocked that another person from Teiko had chosen an unknown school like Seirin. "Of course! Of course! We'll welcome you with open arms! I'm glad that you decided to join the team! It'll be nice having another girl around here for once. I'll introduce you to the team once they all gather." Nakamura thanked Riko for accepting her as a member, helping her pick up her dropped papers and passing her own form to Riko as they waited for the members to change. She stood next to Riko, playing with the edge of her sleeves, hoping that the members would accept her into the club. Once all the members had gathered, Riko began the announcement. 

"Okay listen up everyone! We have a new member joining today. This is Nakamura Yuyan and she'll be joining the basketball club as a manager. I hope you all treat her well."

"Hello everyone. I am Nakamura Yuyan. Please take care of me."

Everyone welcomed her to the team, saying it would be nice to have a manager for the team. As the members were getting excited and getting off track, Riko blew her whistle to get their attention back on her.

"Okay guys you can continue your conversations AFTER practice. Right now, we need to start preparing for Inter-High! Are you guys ready? It won't be an easy path to becoming number one in Japan!"

"We can do this! We just gotta ballieve in ourselves!"

"IZUKI SHUT UP RIGHT NOW!"

"It'd be nice if you'd call that a nice shot."

"........Senpai, would you be offended if I wanted to resign right now?"

"Honestly I would resign with you."

"OI KOGA YOU'RE GOING TO BE A STARTER NOW!"

"EHHHHHH?!?!?!?!"