The breeze rustled past, leaving the bright autumn leaves to swirl in its wake. Akashi walked alone, eyes sharp and calculating. Flickering street lamps led him through a stone filled path as he strode back to his dorm.
"Those imbeciles," he grumbled, grinding his teeth angrily. "I'll kill them for leaving me behind." Akashi clenched his jaw, hands squeezing the fabric of hiscoat. He smirked, eyes glinting dangerously. "I can't wait t—"
With a grunt, Akashi came to a stumbling halt. His sentence was left unfinished; abandoned for the wind to carry through the cold air. If it wasn't for his quick reflexes, Akashi would've come crashing down. The same couldn't be said for the other party.
Akashi's attention shifted downwards to a figure sprawled out on the rough stones. He could hear him sigh before slowly lifting his head to meet Akashi's smoldering gaze. His breath caught in his throat. The boy was beautiful.
The first thing Akashi took notice of was his abnormally colored hair. The soft, baby blue locks fell messily into wire-rimmed glasses that were perched atop his small, button nose. His skin was a creamy, white color that made his cerulean orbs appear
strikingly ethereal. Long eyelashes fluttered against his flushed cheeks as he winced inpain.
"Are you alright?" Akashi asked after a pauseof silence. He held out a hand for the boy to grasp. After an exasperated glance, the stranger took it gratefully and stood. Akashi couldn't help but notice the warmth that spread through him as they
touched.
"I'm okay." He said softly, brushing soot off his pants and coat. "I'm sorry. I wasn't paying attention." Those intense blueeyes met with Akashi's once more. He could feel his heart begin to beat unnaturally fast. For the first time in his life,
his confidence began to waver. To maintain reputation,he kept his cool facadeandsmirked.
"No need to apologize. I was pretty careless myself." He smiled reassuringly for extra measure, tucking his cold hands back into his pockets. "Where were you heading to?" Akashi asked, continuing the conversation as subtlyas possible.
"I'm trying to find the dorms." Heanswered with a frown. "I was supposed to meet my friend there, but I got lost. The campus is enormous, and my phone died."
Akashi almost laughed. "Oh? What a coincidence. I was on my way there." The other visibly brightened. "Would you like to walk together?" With little hesitation, he nodded.
"Thank you for the offer…" The sentence dragged on, inquiring the redhead for an introduction. "Akashi Seijuro." He nodded his head gratefully. "Thank you, Akashi-San."
"It's no problem." They began to walk as he continued. "You don't have to call me so formally."
"Okay, then—Akashi-Kun. My name is Kuroko Tetsuya, but you may call me whatever you'd like as well." Kuroko smiled briefly before following after him. Swiveling his head forward, the taller tried to convince himself the flutter in his heart was due to
the unrelenting cold.
They fell into a comforting silence, listening to the wind that blew and the tapping of their footsteps. It was peaceful. A few minutes later,theyarrived.
"Here we are." Akashiannounced. Kuroko looked around for his friend, feeling relief as he spotted a familiar figure standing by the entrance. He turned to face Akashi, bowing politely. "Thank you for walking me here, Akashi-Kun. I hope to see you
around campus."
Akashi hid afrownof disappointment. "Yes; I hope to see you as well." Kuroko nodded, pivoting on his heel to greet his companion. It was hard to excusethe sadness he felt as he watched Kuroko's back slowlyfadeinto the background.
Akashi sighed discontentedly before a smile made its way onto indifferent feautures.
"Maybe I should let the boys off the hook...I was pretty late after all."