Disclaimer: All identifiable characters belong to Fujimaki Tadatoshi. The plot and story are mine.
Commission for Beverly. This got way out of hand compared to what I had originally planned, but I still hope it's to your liking. Also, I don't know how Akashi managed to slip into this fic, but here he is.
You can read more about my commission info by visiting me at ceallachs on Tumblr. Please enjoy!
Raising Dandelions
Ceallach Rion
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"Kise Ryouta?"
"He doesn't have much time left. You will see to him until then."
"Understood."
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"Kurokocchi."
Something delicate rains upon Kuroko's head when he looks up from the pond before him — yellow petals, small and frail, flutter over his eyelashes and against his cheeks. The ripples they cause distorts his faint reflection on the surface of the water, until all that's left is the misshapen image of the canopy above them.
"What was that?" he asks, clearly unimpressed. He brushes off the remaining petals on his hair, yet Kise just smiles, in that same way that makes the sun pale in comparison to his zeal; he is bright, but unlike a glaring sun that obscures his view, he glows.
"A dandelion shower." Kise lowers himself beside Kuroko, runs his fingers through his hair, and Kuroko cannot help but to lean into his palm. He tends to wonder how such calloused hands can be capable to hold him so gently — it submits him to the fragile nature of being worth more. "Well, what's left of them, anyway."
Of being precious.
Kuroko sighs because Kise acts like a child sometimes. There aren't many things Kise considers worth his attention, yet those that do fall under this category come to earn it undivided, wholly unmatched from the rest of the world.
"You shouldn't destroy flowers, Kise-kun," he says and turns his eyes back to the pond. "Please have some compassion."
"C-Compassion?" The noise that slips out of Kise's lips is a mix of shock and offense, his eyes widening in incredulity — Kuroko can almost predict this by now even without witnessing it directly. "Are you really scolding me, Kurokocchi?! I was just trying to be romantic, you know!"
But Kuroko hears none of it, only waits out the ripples to calm until he can make out his reflection again.
The string of protests doesn't take very long anymore. Kise puts an end to it and puffs his cheek akin to a child throwing a tantrum, then plops himself down defeatedly on the grass littered with petal confetti. Silence stretches between them with nothing but the cicadas resounding from undetectable locations, until Kuroko reaches over to the lone dandelion that had kept its form amidst what had chipped off and gone.
"Don't pick them next time," Kuroko adds and tucks the flower behind Kise's ear.
If Kise looks unbelievably flustered by it all, Kuroko fails to see, because Kise tackles him full force and they both unceremoniously topple into the pond.
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"It's a nice view, isn't it?"
"I suppose so, but it's nothing special to me."
"Really? I think it's amazing to see the world so small underneath me!"
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People are very fragile beings, and Kise is no exception to that reality.
Kuroko confirms this days later after Kise calls in sick over the phone. Kise advises him not to worry and asks to postpone their meeting for tomorrow under a gruffly voice, but Kuroko slips into Kise's apartment unannounced that afternoon, finding him curled up in bed, all disheveled and gloomy.
"I told you not to come, Kurokocchi!" Kise berates him, but there is no bite in his tone, not when a sneeze interrupts his sermon and he has no choice but to collapse back on the bed. A part of Kuroko aches to see Kise so out of life, lacking the vigor he has come to know. "I didn't want you to see me like this…" he mumbles as he pulls the covers over his head, his voice too hoarse and too weak that Kuroko feels discomfort at the weight of those words alone.
Instead of being overcome with guilt, Kuroko sits on the edge of the bed and places a hand on where he approximated Kise's head to be under his cocoon. "I won't have to if you get better quickly."
This helps Kise regain some rationality, just a bit, shown with how he peeks out of the blanket at last, and Kuroko slips his hand through the opening to feel the direct temperature of the burning skin.
"Where's your medicine kit?"
Though there's a long pause to Kise's answer, he resigns to Kuroko's care and points to the shelf at the corner of the room, earning him a gentle caress on the cheek before Kuroko quietly gets up to retrieve the necessities.
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"Hey, Kurokocchi. What if I told you something crazy?"
"I wouldn't be surprised."
"I'm serious!"
"Alright, what is it?"
"I think... I found something else that's even more amazing than the view beneath our feet."
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"It's strange," Kise muses aloud, staring up into the sky where Kuroko's hair blends with the hue. After being bedridden for days, he forces himself to break out of the stuffy confines of his room, welcoming fresh air in his lungs from a wide rooftop view. The days prior seem to pass by with barely any recollection of what his life had been before he knew of Kuroko's touch. "I keep having these dreams."
Shifting his gaze, Kuroko turns his attention to Kise on his lap and adjusts his legs slightly so they can properly cushion his head. "What kind of dreams?"
"Dreams… about falling. Like, literally falling from the sky." Kuroko tenses, but Kise's too lost in his own thoughts to notice the apprehension, the fear, and something more. "I'd be falling… infinitely, then I'd wake up and that's it. When I open my eyes… you're always the first person I see."
Before Kuroko can interject with a comment, Kise chuckles out of his pensive state and reaches for Kuroko's face. It serves to both annoy and relieve him, for Kise never truly suited to be so serious.
"What do you think, Kurokocchi?" The warmth of Kise's hand brushes the side of Kuroko's head, and though Kise masks his emotions with humor, Kuroko can tell he's the one needing the comfort from the gesture. "This only happens whenever I'm with you. Do you think it's a sign? Some sort of foretelling?" He grins. "A sign that I'm falling for y—OW!"
Kise scrambles from his position until he's sitting upright, groaning and nursing his cheek that stung with the pain after Kuroko had pulled too hard.
"It hurts! That really hurts!"
Complaint after complaint comes, but no words are uttered on Kuroko's end as he stands up and dusts off his pants. He silences Kise in the only way he knows how, when he leans forward and descends to Kise's lips for the very first time.
"It has been a month since the appointed day. What are you doing?"
Kise has solidified in his place in what can only be described as sheer shock, so Kuroko moves his mouth to his assaulted cheek as if the action will compensate for the physical pain. The touch lingers for a few more seconds, but even then Kise has yet to speak.
"We should get back inside," is all Kuroko says when he finally pulls back. He turns around immediately because the temperature has risen a couple degrees in the peak of autumn, and as he tugs on the collar of his shirt, he tells himself the weather is simply rebelling against his favor.
In an attempt to exercise the steam out of his head, Kuroko briskly walks ahead to the rooftop exit with only one destination in mind. Kise clambers after him, and when he grabs Kuroko's arm and whips him back around, Kise dives in again to finish what they had started.
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"I can't stay."
"Why? I t͏̡h͏̧̕o̡u҉̷̴ģh̶t I meant s̨o̶m͏̸̶et̴͢hin̶̨g͘ to you!"
"There's somewhere else I have to be."
"Just... let me go."
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"You haven't graced these lands in a while."
On mornings too early to rise, Kuroko finds himself wandering the meadows. He walks the familiar area in silent, practiced steps, cautious to even the slightest rustle and breeze with the entity trailing his path.
The patch of land he has left behind many months ago is now flourished with a bounty of flowers, assorted in their size and kind.
"Tetsuya," Akashi calls with an unmistakable tenderness that would have shown had it not been masked with faint accusation. "How much longer do you plan to stay with that boy?"
Kuroko doesn't look at Akashi, refuses to acknowledge his concerns when he crouches down to the dainty dandelions swaying along the breeze beneath. It reminds him of the beginning, of the fragile life force keeping them vibrant and alive.
"Will you truly continue laying a protective hand on him?"
But he also knows Akashi has other plans because he would have not come here if he did not anticipate this much. The crunch of grass grows louder at each slow approach, and once Akashi's black cloak comes to view, shadowing over the blossoms that wilt at his presence, Kuroko is once more reminded that all beginnings have endings too.
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"Í ̨don̢'̀t̛ u͝n҉dèrst̡a҉ņd̶.̢.̴."
̡"̧͠͞P̧le͏̴ás̸̀e҉͜..̵͜. ͡ṕ̨l̨͘eas̡e̛͜,̕͜ c̶͜óm͏e ́ba͟ck."
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"It's a pity." Akashi cups his cheek, and Kuroko feels an ominous force fill his being, tearing away at his insides and filling it with dread until he can barely breathe. "I had high hopes for you. But no matter…" His thumb brushes over Kuroko's cheekbone, but it only intensifies the already sinking feeling pooling in his gut. "My regard has not waned."
Kuroko gasps out a heavy breath once Akashi withdraws his hand. Akashi maintains his calm yet prompt tone, even when the life around him wilts and disintegrates at his feet.
"The order of things will be restored soon enough."
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.̴̛͉̦̤̞͓̬͇̬̻̼̱͎̮̱̲͕.̛́͠.̵̧͙̝̼͉͇́͞͝ͅͅÈ̵̵̠̲̺͖̹͚̺̮̺́͜v͔̠͇̝̣̳̣̹̀͡e͏̡͘҉̦̻͉̲̣̠͕̯̳r̴͎̺̬̱͕̟̰͓̝̺̹̤̯̗̙̭̙̜͇͘͡y҉̢̨̛̘͇̩̥̞̹̰͠t̮̬̻͚́͜͟͞͠h̵̢̨̗̖͖̥̳̙͎͜͜į̥̺̻͔̼͔͘n͜͏̱̰̯̫͔̝͚̣̙̱͔̦͠g̭̥͕̝̗̩͓̖͙̦̠͚̥͔̱̀ͅ ̡͈̪̼̻͘͟ͅi̷͏͕͚̣̮̘̦̟͕̹͙s̸̨̢̛̠͇̠͓̻̹̖͎̗͕͙̦̳͟ ̡̙͉̠̳̬̣͎̟̤͖̲͝m҉̶̡̛̜͓̣̱͚͔̮͔̣͈̳̖̯̟͎͉͠ͅe͏̡̺̼̰̤̦͈̱̬̝͓̯̞̗͎ͅą̡̤͕̦̕͟n҉̣̜̤̜̖̘̫̻̹̬́ì̧̢̮̳̙͈̺̪̫͔̫͍͈̟̗̹̹͘͡n̸̶̰̤̲̞͚̫̝͓̦̘̯̳̳̺̘̮̳̜͟ģ̝͓͖̫̟̱̙̟̹̪͓͞͠l̵͈̪̜̞͎͈̻̝͖̮̪͕̤͞͡ͅḛ̛͎s͏̡̠͔͚̙̻̱̣̩̫ś̵͙̤̣̫̬͕͓̬͓̺̜͚͕̥̫͙̭̰͠ ̴̛̰͙͖̠͙̲͈̗̬̬̩̹̥͕̪̘̩̗͟ẃ̵̧̡̻̪̘̫̼̹̰͍̰̥ì҉͏̟̣̠̫̭t̬̗̗͎̰͈̰͞͞ḩ͍̲̞͔̹́ơ̶̶̵̘̻̻u̷̶̸̱̱̹̯̜̹̯̳̮̦̬̺̜̺̜͔͓͡ͅt̡̛̠̬̖̱͍̼͔̺̮̹́̕͞ ̶̧͇̳̫̬̰͞y̶̡͍̗̮̲̪̠̳̦͡o͏̨̨̖̝̘͖̥̙̠͔͕͠͞u̸̬͖̞͎̠̟͉͙̕͟.̨̡̧͍̞̩͙̩̩͇́͢"̛͍͉̜̤͠ͅ
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Kuroko rouses to the shrill sound of shattering glass. The blankets are heavy on his body, his eyelids refusing to cooperate to the alert, and it's a miracle he manages to swim his way out from under the obtrusive weight.
The room is too adequately lit for his view when he stirs about; despite the curtains still drawn, a harsh streak of light peers from the seams and then over his eyes. The clock on the bedside table confirms it's half an hour past nine.
Aside from the shuffle of fabric, Kuroko hears a low moan coming from across the room, so he groggily hastens his escape from the tangle of blankets on his limbs.
Slipping his legs off the side of the bed and pulling on the nearest article of clothing he can find, Kuroko follows the noise and pokes his head through the opening to find Kise huddled over the sink.
The tap is still running, the rush of water drowning out the faint sound of cries.
"Kise-kun," he calls through a drowsy yawn. Kise jolts out of his stupor and turns to him with all the despair that one person can bear masking his features.
"Kurokocchi…!" Kise has grown a few inches, toned muscles clearly prominent and his hair trimmed at a shorter length just over his forehead. He likes to sleep with his shirt off — it's more comfortable that way, he once said — but Kise interrupts Kuroko's thoughts from slipping into another distracted haze. "Here! Do you see it?"
Kise bends down to Kuroko's level and picks out a single strand of silver from amidst the tuft of blond, and immediately Kuroko understands without having to communicate his worries. Twenty years have been no different; Kise fusses about the matters of the heart in ways only he can do.
And just as it has always been in those past years, Kuroko mollifies the situation in a matter of seconds when he plucks the offending strand that has been haunting Kise's mind. Kise yelps at the pain, but Kuroko easily soothes it with a few caresses on the scalp, before letting the grey hair fall aimlessly from his hold so he can trudge towards the sink behind him.
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"Cease this foolishness. You cannot save him; your only duty is to lead him back."
"No… No, you're wrong."
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Kuroko doesn't turn off the tap and opts to wash his face with the running water, pausing when he feels Kise's arms encircle his body for an embrace.
"Feeling better?"
Kise makes a quiet sound of affirmation, and Kuroko reaches for a towel to pat his face dry, watching the reflection of the unsuspecting blond already nearing his forties.
Yet age has yet to catch up to Kuroko, for time does not move for him in this world.
Setting the towel aside, Kuroko spins in place to properly return the hug, fingers threading through Kise's hair and ignoring strain of the weight caging his smaller form. All he does is close his eyes, and thinks there is no other place he'd rather be, even when their eternity will only last in these moments.
"Kise-kun, you should shave," Kuroko mutters when Kise buries his face on his neck and the prickling sensation rubs against his skin.
But Kise only laughs the rest of his worries away.
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"Where… am I?"
"In my home. You've been asleep for a while."
"Oh… But, w͏̵h̸o ̵a̷re ỳ̡o͘u̵?"
He smiles. "My name is Kuroko Tetsuya."
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Most of the story has been left for interpretation since I had very little wiggle room due to the word count. If it's too confusing... WELL, IN MY HEAD AT LEAST, Kuroko is a reaper-in-training under Death (in this case, Akashi).
This is honestly supposed to just be a happy fic, but if you want some pain, you can read my rambling about this piece for deeper context to walk you through it on my writing blog (ceallachs on Tumblr - post/152727956594).
It would be interesting to hear your thoughts regardless. Thank you for reading!