"Tetsu, I really don't think it's a good idea," Aomine said after Kuroko's suggestion.
"Why not?"
Aomine looked bewildered at his spouse. He held up the flier Kuroko just handed him. "It's a 15k run. You may've been playing basketball since middle school, but your stamina is still awful."
"But it's for charity," Kuroko reasoned. "And look, Kazuki loves the idea."
Aomine looked over the table at his son on the other side. The little 2-year-old was gleaming at him.
"Isn't Kazu too young for that?" Aomine asked, eyes glancing back and forth between Kuroko and Kazuki.
Kuroko pointed to some texts on the flier. "All ages are welcome. And I already checked online; strollers are okay."
"Dad! Dad!" Kazuki chirped, hopping off his seat. "I wanna run! I run fast!" The child began running in circles, Nigou perking up and joining him soon after. Kazuki giggled in glee.
Aomine sighed, turning back to Kuroko. "Tetsu…"
"Don't worry about me, Daiki. I can manage a 15k. I survived both Akashi-kun and Aida-san's training regimens, haven't I?"
"Barely." Aomine took another breath, giving in. "Alright."
"Yay!" Kazuki cheered.
Kuroko smiled.
That was how Aomine got roped into something he knew was going to be a long morning. Sure they were all athletic, even wee Kazuki, and well in shape. And sure it was for a charitable cause with nothing to lose. It was just as Aomine had said before: Kuroko's stamina was not good. Aomine was just worried for his husband.
The worrying at the back of Aomine's head did not stop nagging, not even until the fated day came.
The morning was perfect for a 15k run, sunny and nicely temperate. The family of three stood waiting for their group to start.
"So much people!" Kazuki said in wide eye awe. "More than 10!"
Aomine laughed. "You're not wrong, Squirt. Liking the view?"
Kazuki nodded his head enthusiastically from his spot on Aomine's shoulders.
"Okay, Kazuki," Kuroko started, reaching for his son, "let's get down. We don't want to tire Dad out before we even start, do we?"
"But Dad's tough and can do anything," Kazuki talked back, still letting himself get carried down. "Like a super hero!"
Aomine ruffled Kazuki's hair. "Again, you're not wrong." He turned to Kuroko. "Are you still sure about this, Tetsu? It's not too late to switch to the 5k side."
Kuroko rolled his eyes. "Yes, Daiki, I am sure. You don't believe I can do 15, do you?"
"That's what I've been saying for the past two weeks."
Kuroko swatted Aomine's arm.
"Would Group 5 please start at the starting line!? Group 5!" the overhead announcement called.
"That's us! That's us! We're in 5!" Kazuki cheered, hopping in circles with excitement.
"Oi, don't use up all your energy before we even start," Aomine said, taking Kazuki's hand.
"Dad's right, Kazuki," Kuroko agreed, pushing the boy's stroller beside his son and husband as they got ready.
"Then let's start already!" Kazuki whined right as the starting signal went off. "Go!"
"Kazuki!" Aomine yelled as little Kazuki took off, letting go of his hand. "Wait for Dads!"
Both Aomine and Kuroko chased after their son.
"Daiki, you go after him. I'll catch up with you two."
Aomine nodded, maneuvering through the crowd faster. They both knew Aomine was the faster one of the two of them and it was also more difficult for Kuroko to maneuver through the crowd with the stroller.
"Kazu!?" Aomine called, maneuvering through the runners. "Kazuki!?" Luckily, it didn't take too long for him to spot his son. Usually it was impossible to find Kazuki, having Kuroko's low presence, but when the boy was actually making noise, it wasn't too hard.
"Kazu," Aomine called again, now behind Kazuki.
Kazuki turned. His smile grew. He then turned back forward and started running even more. In his mind, a game of tag was going on. "You can't catch me, Dad!"
Aomine couldn't help but laugh. "Wanna bet?"
With Kazuki laughing nonstop, all the runners were aware of where he was. They all smiled at the child, being sure not to bump into him.
Right as Kazuki was running out of breath, Aomine scooped him up. "Got you."
Kazuki shrieked in glee. "We went far!"
"Yeah, we did," Aomine said for the sake of agreeing. He didn't actually notice that they did run a distance until he looked at which street they ended up by. "We really did…" Kazuki definitely had his speed, even at the age of 2.
Aomine set Kazuki back down, still holding onto his son's hand. "Let's slow down a bit. We have to wait for Dad."
"Okay!" Kazuki cheered, though still jogged as he pulled Aomine along with him. He was just a bundle of energy and excitement.
Until a while in and Kazuki started feeling worn out.
The moment Kazuki started getting crabby as toddlers get, Aomine picked him back up. Kazuki whined about wanting to walk like a big boy, but Aomine only brushed off his whining until he fell asleep. He and Kuroko knew Kazuki wouldn't last the 15k; that was what the stroller was for. However, Kuroko never met up with Aomine and Kazuki after they split.
"Really, Tetsu?" Aomine mumbled to himself, grabbing his phone to call his husband. Sadly, his phone wasn't on him. He forgot he left it in the stroller basket. No wonder he never got a call from Kuroko. "Really?"
Deciding it'd be best to really wait for Kuroko, Aomine started walking his normal pace. He walked glancing back most of the time, hoping to spot his husband. It was just like before with Kazuki, only Kuroko wasn't giggling like his son before, more impossible to find.
Aomine signed, now deciding to wait on the side for Kuroko. He sat on the curb with Kazuki still resting his head on his shoulder. He had no idea when Kuroko would show up, but was sure if Aomine didn't spot him himself, Kuroko would see him. It was hard to miss a tall man cradling a sleeping toddler on the curb. One of the volunteers even set up a parasol they had at the volunteer booth for him and Kazuki. Impossible to miss.
"Exhibit A on why this wasn't a good idea," Aomine said to his sleeping son through a sigh. When Kazuki shifted a bit, Aomine did as well to make it more comfortable for them both. Turning back to the shallowing crowd, he finally spotted Kuroko.
Kuroko seemed to have spotted Aomine and Kazuki at the same time, trudging up to the two of them.
Aomine stood, noticing Kuroko's heavier breathing. "Did you actually run?" he asked, bewildered.
"I huff needed to huff catch up huff with you," Kuroko wheezed, using the stroller as a support.
"You didn't have to run though," Aomine said with a laugh, placing sleeping Kazuki in the stroller. He took the handles so his husband didn't need to work more. "It makes you give out faster. I wouldn't have minded waiting."
"But I would," Kuroko said, leaning against Aomine a bit. It was nice getting a break. "I didn't want to keep you two. Maybe 5k would've been a better idea…"
"Come on," Aomine encouraged. "We'll get there. Then you can laze around the house for the rest of the day."
"That sounds nice," Kuroko breathed, following beside Aomine.
The two of them continued their 15k, walking instead of running until Kuroko caught his breath and jogged. Kazuki woke from his nap as they were nearing the finish line. He was upset that he fell asleep, but quickly shook off his pout to race his dads the rest of the way. A bright smile shown on his face when he passed the finish line before his dads.
"Now," Aomine began as they were on their way home, "what did we learn from this?"
"That we need to hold onto Kazuki's hand tighter," Kuroko answered, purposely avoiding the answer Aomine wanted.
"Tetsu."
Kuroko gave a small pout. "My stamina is still awful, so only 5k."
Aomine smiled, planting a kiss on Kuroko's temple. They ignored the sounds of disgust coming from Kazuki.
~omake~
A few months later, Kuroko found another flier for a 15k. Learning his lesson, he steered clear of participating in it. However, it was for a really good cause: animal rescue and care. So he had someone else take his place.
"How come I can't run, too?" Kazuki whined for the umpteenth time.
"Don't you want to see Dad and Uncle Kagami's faces when they cross the finish line?" Kuroko asked his son. The two of them were waiting at the end of the route.
"But I wanna run, too!"
Kuroko only smiled at Kazuki's pout. His son had so much energy like his husband.
"The first participants are arriving!" a volunteer called from the side of the finish line.
It had been a while since the first group started. Curious, Kuroko took Kazuki to see who was the first to cross the finish line, holding up the 2-year-old. His expression went blank at what he saw.
What seemed to be a giant cloud of dust was heading right towards the finish line. The cause of the cloud: two idiots.
Aomine and Kagami were sprinting, side by side, neck and neck. Neither of them were letting up, sparks clearly in their eyes.
"It's Dad and Uncle Kagami!" Kazuki cheered, waving to his dad and uncle.
Kuroko sighed. He wasn't surprised the two ended up racing each other, but they were with Group 7. That meant they had to pass everyone before them to get to where they were.
Before Kuroko could inwardly question it even more, a strong gust of wind blew by.
"Eat that, Bakagami! I won!"
"In your dreams! I won, Ahomine!"
Kazuki laughed at his arguing dad and uncle while Kuroko just sighed. Three children. He was raising three children.
Inspired by this one time I volunteered at a 15k run. I was suffering through the cold rain and thinking about AoKuro helped the time pass by.
