Gut Instinct [Romantik/Intimität - Gefühl vs Vernunft - für mich]

[rolly-chan.livejournal.com]

Titel: Gut Instinct
Team: Weiß (Titanic)
Challenge: Romantik/Intimität - Gefühl vs Vernunft [für mich]
Fandom: Kuroko no Basuke (Monster-AU)
Charaktere: Riko Aida, Satsuki Momoi und Taiga Kagami
Wörter: 984
Sprache: Englisch
Warnungen: alles tame in diesem Teil
Inhalt: Riko wants to talk to Momoi, but everything seems to be set against her.
Anmerkungen: Ich hab knapp an der Challenge vorbeigeschrieben *hust* Es ist ein wiiinzig kleines bisschen drin. Das zählt doch, oder? orz


When they got the call, Riko thought it would be the perfect opportunity to talk to Momoi, seeing as they would have to work together. That hope was slightly diminished when she tried to call Momoi and only got her voicemail.

Then, when they arrived at the hospital and Momoi was miraculously already there, Riko was determined to get that clarifying talk no matter what. The only problem that remained was that Riko just couldn’t find an opportunity to talk to Momoi privately.

The ride to the crime scene had been uncharacteristically quiet. Momoi hadn’t tried very much to entertain some small talk, and Kagami had proved rather untalkative as well. Riko, being the driver, hadn’t wanted to risk hitting a nerve with any of them, so she hadn’t asked any of the questions that she was dying to ask about the case.

She had realized quickly that all of them knew each other, except for Kagami. Momoi, the victim, Kuroko, and those two police officers. They were all mutants, and Riko had a suspcicion that they were Monsters, like Momoi. Her ex-teammates. That suspicion gave Riko a rather nasty and complicated feeling.

She thought she was past her prejudice for monsters, now that she had relized where it had come from with Momoi. She thought she could handle it. But seeing Momoi with her former teammates made Riko queasy. They seemed to be so… familiar with each other, acting in a way that was only possible after years of being in each other’s lives.

Riko gritted her teeth and pushed the realization that threatened to come to the surface back down into the deep recesses of her mind.

The street Kagami had talked about was indeed uninhabited. The houses on either side looked run-down, the greenery unkempt, and some windows were even broken in. There was a sign saying the whole block was acquired by Yamamoto Inc. and soon to be torn down to be replaced by office buildings. The perfect place for a hitman to strike.

“Kuroko-san didn’t usually go this way, did he?” Riko asked as she inspected the dumpster Kuroko most likely collided with. There were a couple smudges that looked suspiciously like blood on it.

“No. He walks past this street. The hitman must have dragged him here,” Kagami answered, his voice breathy. When Riko looked at him, he was scratching his left arm as if nervous, but the expression on his face was angry, ready to fight.

“Tetsu-kun isn’t very strong…” Momoi added, “but he doesn’t back down.” The look on Momoi’s face was soft, fond, and a little bit nostalgic. Riko really wanted to know if she was right, but she was also afraid of finding out more than she was ready to bear.

“Momoi,” Riko started, after all, because this was her job, and she took it seriously. And right now, they needed to solve this case of a runaway hitman. “How do you know Kuroko-san?”

Momoi gave Riko a long look before answering. “He was my teammate back when… I was still a Monster. Aomine-kun and Ki-chan - the two men with the police - were part of the team as well.”

Riko kept looking at Momoi, not knowing what to say. Her gut was telling her this was the perfect opportunity to break the ice and talk to her, but her voice of reason stopped her from spreading it all out in front of a stranger. She wanted so badly to make it up to Momoi, because now that she had thought about it and worked through it, she could see how sad Momoi seemed. Sad did not suit her, and Riko didn’t want to be the reason for it.

But before she could finally let her gut feeling win, Kagami beat her to it.

“You were a Monster? Cool! I wanted to be one, too, but when I came back from America I was already too old. They have really strict age restrictions.”

Both Momoi and Riko blinked slowly at Kagami. If Riko wasn’t mistaken, this was the first time she met someone who thought Monsters were cool. It wasn’t uncommon for people to admire some of their qualities - because they were very efficient - but usually, with any admiration, there was also a sense of fear and distrust, sometimes spoken out loud, sometimes only thinly veiled in the speaker’s gestures and voice.

But Kagami didn’t exhibit any of that. He was a hundred percent admiration, complete and utter respect. And just like that, Riko found that she liked him. If not for her own sake, then for Momoi’s.

“Yes,” Momoi replied slowly, “that’s because they believe the older you get, the slower you learn… and the earlier you get trained, the better you will be.”

It was apparent that she wasn’t saying all ther was to it, but evidently, it was something she didn’t want to talk about more than she just had. It was just one more thing that made Riko feel for her teammate.

“You must be good. I’m sure you all will figure out what happened.” Riko could see how Kagami set his jaw. Surely, he would have liked to help, and to be honest, Riko thought a were-tiger like him might be huge help in cracking this case.

“I’m sure we will, but I also think we might need your help again,” Riko offered and was proven right from Kagami’s happy grin and how he crossed his arms in front of his chest in pride. Riko had noticed it was something were-people did. She didn’t know why.

Riko’s and Momoi’s eyes met then, and if Riko wasn’t completely delusional, there was a small smile around Momoi’s lips. Riko’s chest felt tighter, somehow, and she couldn’t but smile in return.

Maybe she could really fix this, even if they didn’t talk right now.