Ball No. 24
Fandom: Kuroko no Basuke
Character(s): Mayuzumi Chihiro, Kuroko Tetsuya, Akashi Seijuurou
Pairings: Mayuzumi/Kuroko
Notes: This story is set in an AU where Mayuzumi Chihiro is a bodyguard hired to keep the young master named Kuroko Tetsuya away from harm's way.
Entry for BPS Rarepair Battle 2015. Special thanks to Rika tone for being a patient beta with me.
This story has crack. I'm sorry I don't know what I'm doing.
Thirty-three minutes and forty-four seconds.
That was how long Mayuzumi waited in the shadows, scanning the slowly thinning sea of students. The young master may lack presence but being his bodyguard for three months, he could pick out a strand of baby blue hair in a bustling crowd. However, Kuroko was nowhere in sight.
He grunted, turning a page in his light novel. Where was that kid? Kuroko might use this opportunity to leave without him just like what happened last time. The memory only made him pissed off. The temptation to cut off the vanilla milkshake daily intake tickled his mind. Well, waiting for another fifteen minutes wouldn't be bad. The new light novel he bought yesterday never failed to entertain him.
Flipping another page, a baseball caught the corner of his eye with only a few centimeters before it could reach him. His honed instincts kicked in, one swift movement of his arm and he swiped the ball away from him.
The ball changed its trajectory and bounced towards a passing student. It hit him on the head with an ominous crack, sending him tumbling like a runaway ball with a smoke of dirt trailing behind. Then the body slid to a stop.
The appearance of what seemed to be a dead person in the middle of the school grounds was the least of Mayuzumi's concerns, nor the terrified screams and shouts calling for a doctor.
His hands shook, fingers tightening around the light novel.
The light novel was bent.
The light novel with the limited cover that only had five hundred copies all over Japan was bent.
"Um, mister?" a meek voice of a student reached his ears. "Are you all right?"
Mayuzumi cast a glance over his shoulder, making the student to yelp in fear and bumbled away lest he become another casualty.
Everyone in the vicinity shivered, turning their eyes away from the corpse to focus on the black energy swirling around the man. They stood and watched in silence as Mayuzumi stalked off towards the school building.
They prayed whoever's soul that this person intended to kill would continue to see the light of the day.
"H-help…" the small whimpers of the victim were unheard.
—
Kuroko felt a cold shiver run down his spine. His pulse quickened and whipped his head to glance behind him only to see a grand bookshelf looming over him.
If it were an ordinary bookshelf, he wouldn't have minded too much, but it contained thick and complicated books he never heard of. The mahogany desk was neat. Papers were stacked properly; no speck of dust could be found on the surface. Kuroko could imagine the potential 'Do Not Touch' sign on top of it. The ivory colored walls reminded him of a first class office, worthy of a CEO or president.
Even the sofa he was sitting on was immaculate. Its softness would drown you in comfort but it only made him vigilant. The red plush cushions could swallow him up and never let him out of dreamland. It would be rude to doze off while waiting.
The student council president's office was definitely on another level. It even surpassed the school principal's office which was no surprise considering to whom this office belonged to.
Which reminded him, where was Akashi?
He had been in the office for the past thirty minutes and finished the work Akashi asked him to do not too long ago. No doubt Mayuzumi was getting impatient but knowing that he had a new light novel in his hands, he was safe for another fifteen minutes.
The door creaked open to reveal Akashi holding a tray full of teaset.
"Sorry to have kept you waiting, Kuroko," he said with a smile.
"Ah, Akashi-kun, let me help you with that." Kuroko stood up and walked up to him, taking the tray before making his way back to the lounge area.
Akashi chuckled, his red eyes watching Kuroko place the cups and teapot one by one on the coffee table.
"There's no need for you to do that," he said, taking a seat on the sofa. "I already asked enough of you."
"But Akashi-kun has already enough work in his hands. And pouring tea isn't a difficult task."
"Say Kuroko," Akashi started, accepting the warm tea from Kuroko. "What do you think of your new bodyguard?"
Kuroko sat on the other end of the sofa, lifting the tea from coffee table. He stared at the oozing steam before taking a sip. "He has been with me three months now."
Akashi hummed. "That's a new record."
If Kuroko could, he would have snorted. "He is stubborn,"—he placed the cup down and counted off his fingers—"sarcastic, rude, mean, threatened to cut off my daily intake of vanilla milkshake, and he gets mad if I point out details about his light novels. I don't understand why Father hired him."
Placing his hands on his lap, he continued. "He once told me that he won't care if I get kidnapped."
The clink of the teacup called Kuroko's attention.
"And you did, didn't you?" Akashi commented, crossing his legs. "A careless action is unbecoming for a bodyguard."
The tone laced with danger that Kuroko knew too well. "Mayuzumi-san is capable," he said without thinking, catching himself off guard for a second. "And it is my fault that I got into that mess."
Akashi leveled his gaze at him. "But he led you to that mess."
Kuroko winced. He couldn't deny that fact. Mayuzumi's words got to him so he threw a tantrum and slipped away. He planned to return after he cooled down but the kidnappers took that opportunity.
"Yes, that is true," he said, eyes downcast. "His words affected me and made me upset, but even so…"
The memory of that night flashed in his mind. The full moon revealed unconscious bodies on the ground, eyes became white and mouth gaping open. Police sirens were heard from the distance but Kuroko didn't pay attention to them. He sat there, almost forgetting how to breathe as he watched silver hair tousled along the breeze, the moonlight giving it an almost ethereal glow. A hand reached out to him, drawing him to those gray eyes that seemed to haunt his dreams since then.
"He still saved me."
A soft pat on his head startled him. He looked up to see Akashi giving him a small smile. "Which I'm glad he did."
Or else he will answer to me, were the unspoken words, making Kuroko nervous on what Akashi could possibly do to his bodyguard.
"I still haven't approved of him as your bodyguard, however, especially after that incident," Akashi continued.
Kuroko frowned at that. "Akashi-kun, you weren't the one who hired him."
"I can talk to Uncle and make him change his mind."
Before Kuroko could retort on that, the door slammed open. His eyes went wide in surprise once he recognized Mayuzumi at the door, his aura dark and menacing as if someone destroyed his light novel collection. His face remained stoic but that was enough to make Kuroko nervous.
Mayuzumi narrowed at the teapot and cups on the table and hurried towards Kuroko, pinching his cheek.
"You're enjoying tea while I wait outside. You have some nerve, brat."
"No, I was helping Akashi-kun—" Kuroko couldn't continue with how his bodyguard kept pulling his cheek. Mayuzumi turned his gaze at Akashi whose red eyes seemed to flash for a second. He broke contact and let go of Kuroko's poor cheek to seize his hand.
"Come on, you kept me waiting. Let's go." And without waiting for a reply, Kuroko was dragged to the exit.
He had no chance. Since Mayuzumi was stronger, he couldn't escape his grip. He looked over his shoulder to give Akashi one last look. "I'm sorry, Akashi-kun."
"It's all right. We can enjoy tea another time."
And they were gone.
Akashi took his cup and stared at his reflection on the tea. He tightened his grip.
"Mayuzumi Chihiro, huh?"
—
MajiBa bustled with customers. Smiles brightened everyone's face as they enjoyed their meal. Everyone except for one.
Kuroko frowned at the large class of cola in front of him. Mayuzumi sat across from him, drinking leisurely from his chocolate milkshake. He could feel his eyebrows twitching.
"Mayuzumi-san, what am I being punished for?" he asked.
"Because of you, a baseball hit my light novel. A limited edition one at that."
"You hit the baseball with it," Kuroko corrected, pushing the cola away from.
"It was self-defense. It wouldn't have happened if we left early." Mayuzumi pushed it back.
"You are being unreasonable."
"Drink the cola. That's the only thing I'm asking from you."
A vein popped out of Kuroko's head. This man knew fully well what soda could do to him. "I'm going to hit you, Mayuzumi-san."
"Do that and I'll cut down your intake of vanilla milkshakes," came the threat.
Kuroko blanched and focused on the cola. For the sake of his vanilla milkshakes, he scrunched his eyes closed and drank it. The strong sting attacked his throat but he drank everything to the last drop. Putting the glass back on the table, he fell on the table head first, unconscious.
"I guess he can't really handle soda." Mayuzumi poked at Kuroko's cheek, earning no reaction. "Are you dead?"
He returned to his milkshake, his mind reeling back to the incident earlier. It was no accident. The ball intended to hit him. Judging from its original trajectory, it came above.
And that student council brat. He didn't like the look on those red eyes, as if they were warning him. Not only that, there was something about his attitude that pissed him off.
A pained grunt took him out of his musing and saw the pained expression on Kuroko's face, possibly dreaming of a cola monster.
Even though no one noticed them because of their lack of presence, it wouldn't do good to let Kuroko be like this in a fast food joint. He took him by the arms and let them wrap around his neck before carrying the body on his back.
What a troublesome young master.
End.
OMAKE
"Hmm." A boy in light-blue-striped baseball uniform scratched his head. "We're missing one baseball."
"We have hundreds of balls already, Takeshi," his teammate piped in. "Don't tell me you've been counting them."
"But it's probably scared and missing his family!" Takeshi cried.
"Dude, what's with you and balls?" another teammate asked.
"Are you looking for this?" a smooth voice cut in, startling the three. Akashi was holding a baseball in his hand.
Takeshi brightened once he recognized it. "Ball number 24!" He beamed at the savior. "Thank you, Prez!"
"You're welcome." Akashi flashed them a smile. "Be sure not to lose it again."
Takeshi nodded furiously. "Yes sir!"
"Well then, I'll be taking my leave."
The three watched in awe as the president make his graceful exit.
"Huh?" Takeshi broke the silence. "There's something wrong with Ball number 24."
"What is it this time, Takeshi?"
"There's blood on it."