Akashi tapped his finger impatiently against the shiny countertop, as if the action would somehow urge the barista to hurry up and finish his order. With a sigh, he glanced down at his watch. Between waiting in line and now waiting for his drink, he had already wasted almost ten precious minutes of his time. He had known he was short on time, but the thought of having to attend a long and boring meeting such as the one he was on his way to without having a large amount of caffeine on hand to keep him conscious was not a pleasant one. So, even though he was on a very tight schedule, he made the decision to stop by the first coffee shop he came across, which- as he glanced down at his watch once again- was a choice he was beginning to regret. At this rate, he was going to be late for his meeting, and Akashi Seijuuro was never late. When his large, hot beverage was finally placed down in front of him, he took a handful of bills from his wallet and slammed them down on the counter, not particularly caring that he had overpaid, and turned to leave without a word.

If he hurried, he could still make it on time.

Akashi reached out to push open the door so he could exit the shop, but just as his hand was about to touch the door, it was ripped open and a young man burst through, colliding with Akashi and causing his not-even-sipped drink to fall from his grip and tumble towards the ground. The cup exploded upon impact and coated both the stranger's and his own shoes with hot brown liquid.

Akashi was frozen out of complete rage, and even felt his face twitch as he tried to keep his composure.

"I-I'm so sorry!" the man before him stuttered, pushing the large sunglasses he was wearing back up the bridge of his nose, as they had slid down when the two had crashed together. The man was trembling out of what Akashi assumed was nervousness and ran a hand through his wild brown locks. "I wasn't paying attention! C-can I buy you a new drink?"

Akashi sighed, he really didn't have time for this.

"That won't be necessary," Akashi snapped. "I'm in a hurry."

"Oh," the man said. "I-I'm really sorry!"

Akashi sighed and made a move to go on past him, but the man hadn't moved out of his way yet.

"Excuse me," Akashi said irritably, rudely pushing past the other man. "It would be wise for you to watch where you are going from now on."

The man's face heated up at Akashi's comment, and he opened his mouth to reply, but Akashi had neither the time nor really the desire to hear what he had to say. He had an important meeting to get to, and now he had no coffee to help make it bearable. With his mind filled with curses and irritated thoughts, Akashi left the shop, his expensive shoes squeaking ever-so-slightly due to their sticky wetness, and abandoned the confused looking man in the doorway.

He had barely managed to arrive on time- exactly to the minute- and just as he had expected, the meeting was less than thrilling. He quickly found himself struggling to stay focused on the discussion, and even caught himself nodding off a time or two. He didn't particularly care about the company and only attended these kinds of meetings because of his father's insistence. If Akashi could have his way, he would much rather spend his days playing Shogi or something else of the sort. He found work at the company excruciatingly boring, and would honestly rather be doing just about anything else instead of listening to the other big-wigs and investors discussing this and that- he had tuned out long ago and was no longer aware of what exactly was being talked about.

Akashi stifled yet another yawn and allowed himself to sink a little further down in his chair. He wasn't going to last much longer at this rate. He let his mind wander, hoping that thinking could keep his brain stimulated enough to keep him from falling asleep, or at least keep him somewhat entertained.

To his surprise, he found his thoughts setting themselves on the young man he had quite literally run in to earlier; that is to say, who had run in to him. Akashi felt the smallest tinge of remorse at how he had treated the man, not a very large amount- it was rare for him to feel guilty over any of his actions- but enough that it caught his attention. He conjured up an image of the man in his mind; his unruly brown hair, his blushing embarrassed face, all of it somehow seemed eerily familiar, but Akashi couldn't exactly pinpoint why that was. It was entirely possible that they had once passed on the street or in another shop, but Akashi felt that it was something more than that. The tingle of recognition in the back of his mind was much too strong for it to have been something as trivial as that.

The thought continued to pester him until the meeting finally reached its close. Akashi was grateful that he had managed to distract himself for the remainder of the meeting, but he now found himself haunted by the fact that he just could not remember where he had seen that man before. He was bothered for the remainder of the day, and even late into the night. Perhaps if he saw the man once more, it would help jog his memory and he could finally be rid of the annoyance he was feeling.

Akashi sipped at his beverage, inwardly cringing a bit when the hot liquid singed his tongue. He wasn't required to be at the company until much later that day, so he thought that perhaps if he went back to the coffee shop around the same time as the previous day, he might again encounter the man that had been bugging his mind. He had chosen to sit at a small table situated about midway between the door and the counter, it gave him the perfect vantage point from which to keep a lookout for the other man.

Time passed slowly, and as it continued to get later and later, Akashi found himself more and more willing to give up and leave. What difference did it really make if he had actually met this man before? Why exactly was it bothering him so much that he couldn't remember? Akashi was certain that if he just got up and left, the man would eventually fade from his mind. He was just about to do just that when he heard the door of the shop open. Akashi's eyes immediately trained themselves on the man's face as he came in.

It was definitely the man from the day before; his hair was still a mess and his sunglasses started to slide down his nose again. Akashi guessed that they must have been too big for his face.

"Furihata-kun!" the girl behind the counter called when she saw him approaching. "Are you having the usual today?"

"Of course!" the man- Furihata, apparently- replied.

"Go on and have a seat and I'll bring it right out to you!"

Furihata nodded and sat down in the nearest chair to him, which was a few tables away and directly opposite of the one Akashi had chosen. Although they were a few feet separating them, they were facing head-on, and Akashi wondered why Furihata had not acknowledged him yet, especially after their encounter yesterday. Akashi continued to stare in Furihata's direction and was beginning to get irritated at the fact that the other man continued to ignore him.

With a huff, Akashi stood and made his way over to Furihata's table. He stopped when he reached the edge of the table and silently looked down at the seated man. He hadn't even looked up at Akashi, he merely sat and twiddled his thumbs and paid Akashi no mind whatsoever. Akashi found himself very annoyed and loudly cleared his throat.

"Excuse me," he snapped.

Furihata visibly jumped when he was spoken to. "I-I'm sorry! I didn't notice you were there!" He finally responded, but still had yet to spare a look in Akashi's direction.

"May I sit here?" Akashi asked in such a way that made Furihata feel as if he didn't actually have a choice, so with a small nod he silently agreed.

Akashi roughly tugged out the chair and sat himself down, immediately returning to staring Furihata down. It was impossible to get a good look at his face with those huge sunglasses in the way, and Akashi briefly wondered why someone would even wear those indoors. He was about to question Furihata when the other man suddenly spoke up and cut him off.

"You were the one I ran into yesterday, right?" Furihata asked.

Akashi silently nodded his response.

Furihata sat quiet for a few seconds, and the expectant expression on his face had Akashi baffled. He looked as if he was waiting for something, but Akashi had no idea what it was Furihata wanted him to do.

"Um, I'm really sorry about that, if it's really you," Furihata eventually apologized. "I get kind of zoned out sometimes. Even though it's probably a dangerous habit for me, I just can't help it, you know?"

Akashi hummed in reply, although he was not exactly sure of what Furihata had meant by that.

"Can I buy you something now, if you have time?" Furihata offered.

"I'm fine," Akashi replied shortly.

Furihata nodded and seemed to deflate a bit by Akashi's rejection. They sat in silence for a few minutes, the only sounds coming from behind the counter where the barista was finishing up Furihata's drink.

"Have we met somewhere before?" Akashi asked abruptly, to both Furihata's and his own surprise.

"Uh," Furihata's mouth contorted into a confused frown, "I guess it's possible? What's your name?"

The question caught Akashi off guard. He found it to be a rather peculiar inquiry. Why would his name matter when all Furihata had to do was look at his face?

"Akashi Seijuuro," he replied anyway.

Furihata's cheeks filled with color and his mouth flapped open and closed. He seemed completely surprised.

"A-Akashi?!" Furihata finally managed. "Like 'emperor eye, former captain of Rakuzan, heir to a huge company' Akashi?"

"Yes," Akashi replied. Why was this so shocking? Akashi was very well known and recognizable after all. "So you do know who I am. But that does not answer my question. Have we met before?"

Furihata answered with a small nod. "O-only once though. Back in high school. I guarded you briefly in the Winter Cup finals during our first year. I played for Seirin."

Akashi felt his eyes narrow a bit. That sounded vaguely familiar. "What is your name?"

"F-Furihata Kouki."

Akashi hummed. The name didn't ring any particular bells, but he still couldn't shake the feeling that he knew Furihata. Those huge sunglasses were still making it hard for Akashi to see his face, and he was started to get irritated by the sight of them. Without thinking, he reached out and tugged them off of Furihata's face.

"W-wait!" Furihata yelled, but he was too late. Akashi had already taken them and caught sight of what was hiding beneath them.

Furihata's eyes were unfocused, not looking at any one particular thing, and his irises were covered by a milky film. His expression was one of horror, and he reached out his hand in an attempt to locate his stolen glassed. Akashi almost couldn't stop his gasp.

Furihata was blind.

That realization hit Akashi a lot harder than he expected it to, and he started to feel a slight sickness in the pit of his stomach. This explained everything: why Furihata had so easily run into him, why he hadn't acknowledged him when he was standing right before him, why he had looked like he was waiting for a reply to his question when Akashi had only nodded. Furihata couldn't see, and yet Akashi had still treated him horribly.

The amount of remorse Akashi was feeling was unlike any he had ever experienced before. He had even told Furihata to "watch where he was going." This guilt that was weighing him down was so foreign and Akashi hated it, but he didn't know what to do about it.

"C-can I please have those back?" Furihata asked quietly, snapping Akashi out of his reverie.

Akashi couldn't find the words to say, so he simply handed the glasses back to Furihata, who looked relieved and quickly slid them back on his face.

Akashi felt his lips forming an apology- another thing that was strange to him- when the barista suddenly appeared and set a steaming drink down in front of a blushing Furihata.

"You better not be bullying Furihata-kun!" she warned, giving Akashi a pointed glare.

"I-it's okay," Furihata muttered. "He didn't know."

The barista huffed and sent Akashi one more look before returned behind the counter.

When she was gone, the two men fell into an uncomfortable silence. Neither really knew where to go from there. Akashi sighed and felt the apology returning to his lips, but Furihata once again cut him off.

"Don't worry about it," he said softly. "There's no way you could have known."

Akashi hummed, disagreeing with that because now that he looked back, it was so obvious. He felt awkward, and was still unsure of what he was supposed to say. He did however, after removing his glasses and getting a good look at his face, feel like he remembered Furihata a little better now. The fact that he was now unable to see when he had obviously been capable of sight back in high school was bothering Akashi though. Thankfully, Furihata seemed to read his mind.

"You're probably wondering how it happened, right?"

Akashi was taken back by the sudden question, but still managed to give his response. "Yes."

Furihata chuckled sadly. "I figured you did. I guess this means you must remember me then?"

"Yes," Akashi replied. "Just a bit, but I do seem to have memory of you from that game."

Furihata's expression lightened slightly at that. He chuckled again, but this time it was a lot more pure. "I'm glad, I honestly didn't think you would." He sighed. "That was my last game, so I'm happy I could make at least a small impression."

Furihata fiddled with the coffee cup in his hands and fell silent. Akashi wondered what he was thinking about and wanted to urge him continue.

"I have something called acute glaucoma," he said finally. "It's a disease that causes the pressure in my eyes to build up really fast, especially in times of excitement, and when that happens, it damages the nerves that allow me to see. For me, that excitement was when we beat Rakuzan in the Winter Cup." He paused again to take a small sip of his drink. "I had been feeling weird pains in my eyes for a while before then, but I didn't really think much about it. It got really bad after that game, and the pain didn't go away for hours. If you catch the disease before it does too much damage, you can help prevent it from getting worse, but by the time I got it checked out, it was already too late. I lost my vision completely just before the beginning of my second year."

Furihata smiled, but it was filled with sadness. "It's been years since then, so I've pretty much accepted it now," he said. "I just wish that I could've played basketball with everyone again. I joined the team to impress a girl, and I was never very good, but in the end, I really grew to love it, you know?"

Akashi found himself staring at Furihata once more. He had never expected the young man's story to affect him as much as it had, but he couldn't ignore the sting he felt in his chest when Furihata finished. He wanted to say something, anything, but he still just couldn't find the right words. He wasn't used to feeling like this, or to really feeling anything even akin to concern for someone else, but something about Furihata's story struck a chord somewhere deep inside of him, and he wondered if it was perhaps the fact that he had for so long treated basketball like a casual pastime; something he could always go back to and participate in whenever he had the whim to do so. He took it for granted, but hearing how much Furihata wished he could play just one more time hit him hard. He felt guilty for his ability to play, and in that moment, despite the fact that he barely even knew him, he truly wanted nothing else but to allow Furihata another chance.

Akashi felt his phone buzz in his pocket and knew that the time had come for him to leave, and he couldn't deny that he felt a little saddened by that. With a sigh he started to stand.

"I'm afraid I have to be going now," he explained as he pushed in his chair.

Furihata's face fell slightly. "Oh, okay."

Akashi looked at him for another long moment before deciding to speak again. "Will you be here tomorrow?"

Furihata's face twisted in confusion, but he still replied. "Yes, why?"

"May I join you again?" Akashi asked.

The bright smile Furihata flashed then went straight to Akashi's heart.

"Of course."

The two of them had fallen into a routine; they would meet at the same time every day, sit at the same table, and exchange small talk until Akashi had to leave, because he was always the first to go. He wasn't sure what it was that Furihata did with the rest of his day, and it had never been able to bring himself to ask. Days turned to weeks, and weeks to months, and before either of them knew it, almost half a year had passed. They had become incredibly close during that time, but had never met each other outside of that small coffee shop. It was like their own little hideaway from the world where they could forget about their struggles and tough times and just enjoy time together. Akashi found himself constantly looking forward to it.

With a small grin lacing his lips, Akashi pushed open the door to the shop and stepped in from the cold.

"Akashi-kun!" Furihata called as soon as he entered. It amazed Akashi how, despite his condition, Furihata always managed to know when it was him.

Akashi chuckled as he sat down (the barista had long memorized their orders and started preparing them as soon as they came in) and greeted Furihata. "How is it that you can always tell when it's me?"

Furihata smiled mischievously. "That's a secret!" he replied playfully.

Akashi rolled his eyes with a snort. Furihata had become a lot more animated as of late, and Akashi couldn't help but find it to be rather cute.

Their hot drinks were delivered to them shortly after Akashi had arrived, and they sat in a comfortable silence as they sipped at them. Akashi took advantage of moments like this to really study Furihata. Since that first time that had sat together, Akashi had found him to be increasingly intriguing, and he would be lying if he said he wasn't becoming fond of him. Furihata, despite everything, always seemed to exude this warmth and joy that Akashi found both infectious and addicting. He had come to cherish these moments spent with Furihata, almost as much as he had come to cherish Furihata himself.

"You're awfully quiet today, Akashi-kun," Furihata spoke up. "Are you alright?"

Akashi smiled softly. "Yes, I'm fine. May I ask you something, Furihata-kun?"

Furihata nodded. "Sure. What is it?"

"Would you go somewhere with me tomorrow?"

Furihata blushed, and Akashi swore he had never seen anything more lovely in his life.

"O-okay," Furihata replied. "Where are we going?"

Akashi smirked. "That's my secret."

"No fair, using my own words against me!" Furihata complained impishly.

Akashi chuckled and finished up his beverage. "I need to get going now," he said once he set the empty mug back down on the table.

Furihata pouted, another expression that Akashi found inexplicably adorable. "Really? Okay then."

Akashi placed a few bills on the table- purposefully leaving extra to cover Furihata's drink as well- and buttoned up his jacket.

"Let's meet here tomorrow, and then I will take you to where we're going," he suggested. Furihata nodded in understanding.

"Good. I will see you tomorrow then, Furihata-kun."

Akashi turned to leave when Furihata suddenly spoke up.

"Y-you can call me Kouki, if you want…" he muttered.

Akashi didn't even bother trying to stop the wide smile from spreading across his face.

"Alright then," he replied, "but only if you call me by my first name as well."

Furihata's blush deepened in color, but he still gave a nod in agreement.

"O-okay… S-S-Sei."

"Sei?" Akashi teased.

"Seijuuro takes too long to say!" Furihata replied. He was so red that Akashi briefly wondered if his cheeks had been replaced with plump, ripe cherries.

"If you say so," Akashi continued teasing. "Well then, I will see you tomorrow… Kouki."

"Goodbye for now… Sei."

"Where are we going?" Furihata asked for what seemed like the hundredth time. He had been pestering Akashi about their destination ever since they had left the coffee shop.

"It's a secret," Akashi would reply each time, much to Furihata's disappointment.

"Well, are we almost there then?" Furihata tried a different question.

"Almost."

Furihata pouted and decided to remain silent for the rest of the journey, which Akashi would admit he was a little grateful for.

Akashi tightened his hold on Furihata's hand as they passed through a crowded area. Akashi had insisted that holding hands was necessary so the two would not get separated, and even though Furihata had protested and told him that he would be fine on his own, Akashi would not listen and grabbed his hand anyway. Akashi was actually a bit thankful that Furihata couldn't see how his face became just a bit red at the contact.

Akashi could see their destination growing closer, and he sped up their pace just a bit.

"We're here," Akashi said once he had finally brought them to a stop.

"Aka- Sei," Furihata began, "you know I can't exactly tell where we are…"

"Give me a moment," Akashi replied. "Stay here."

Akashi released Furihata's hand and disappeared, leaving the other man standing alone in an unfamiliar place. Furihata was beginning to feel a bit anxious until Akashi finally returned.

"Hold out your hands," Akashi instructed.

Furihata looked confused. "Why?"

"Do it."

Furihata slowly lifted his hands and held them out towards Akashi. He felt something large and rough being placed in his hands, and it was a feeling he would know anywhere.

"Sei, this is-"

"A basketball, yes."

Furihata frowned a bit. "But you know I can't-"

"Kouki," Akashi interrupted, "just trust me."

Furihata sighed, but decided to give it a try. To his surprise, when the ball left his hand and bounced against the pavement, besides the normal soft dribbling sound, a distinct jingling could be heard.

"What the?"

"It's a specially made basketball," Akashi explained, "for you. There are bells inside to make it easier for you keep track of the ball."

Furihata felt a small smile form on his face. "Wow, Sei, that's amazing. Than-"

"Wait," Akashi interjected again, "there's something else."

Akashi disappeared once more, and after a few moments, Furihata could hear a buzzing sound coming from somewhere to his left. Akashi rejoined him shortly after.

"What is that noise?" Furihata asked.

"The basketball hoop. You should be able to locate it now, correct?"

Furihata rubbed a hand across the rough surface of the ball. "Sei, I don't really think that-"

"You can do it."

Akashi's firm tone left Furihata with no other choice but to try.

He dribbled the ball a few times, the soft jingle of the bells helping him easily keep in in his control, and he focused in on the buzzing sound coming from the net. He took a few hesitant steps to the left, and when he thought he was in the right spot, he got into position and sent up a shot.

Akashi watched in wonder as the ball soared through the air and bounced right off the backboard and fell through the net, which also had a noise maker attached to it to signify when a basket was made.

Furihata stood frozen in place, his mouth hanging open and his arm still dangling in the air from his shot.

"You did it, Kouki," Akashi said, taking a few steps closer to Furihata.

"I-I did it," Furihata muttered quietly, his voice laced with shock. He lowered his arm. "I did it." The biggest and most beautiful smile Akashi had even seen spread across his face. "Sei! I did it!"

Akashi allowed an equally large smile upon his own face. "I knew you could."

"Can I do it again?" Furihata begged, and Akashi chuckled. He looked like a puppy like that.

"Of course," Akashi agreed as he walked over to where the ball had fallen and scooped it up in his hands. "But this time, you have to get past me."

Furihata smirked. "You're on."

The two of them spent the rest of the day like that, and while Furihata struggled at first, he eventually got the hang of it, and Akashi was surprised at how quickly he was improving. He loved seeing Furihata like this though, laughing and full of life and joy; he could tell just how much Furihata loved basketball. It reminded Akashi of how much the game had meant to him once, back when he was small and all he cared about was having fun and enjoying the game. He wanted to watch Furihata shoot baskets forever, but when it began to get late, and the temperature began to drop further, both of them knew it was time to head home.

"Sei," Furihata spoke up just as they were about to head out. Akashi had already grabbed hold of his hand. "Thank you for letting me play basketball again."

Akashi turned to take in the expression on Furihata's face. He was smiling, but those huge glasses were obstructing Akashi's view of the rest of his face again. So, tentatively, Akashi reached out with his free hand and slowly slid off Furihata's glasses.

"Sei, what are-"

Furihata was cut off when a pair of warm lips were pressed first against the lid of his right eye, and then again against his left.

Furihata's face exploded with color, and Akashi found it- found him- to be so incredibly beautiful then that he almost couldn't bear it.

Furihata mumbled something softly, and Akashi could barely hear him.

"What was that?" he asked.

"…you missed…"

It took Akashi a moment to decipher what Furihata had meant by that, but when he finally did, a smirk settled itself on his lips.

"Hm, it seems I did," Akashi replied teasingly. "Would you allow me to try once more?"

Furihata nodded and felt a soft, warm hand rest against his cheek as he was pulled forward to meet an equally soft and warm pair of lips.

Neither knew exactly how long they stood there with their lips intertwined, but neither of them particularly cared, for the moment which they were in was one that would live on with them for eternity, and that was more than enough.

"Sei!" Furihata greeted almost the exact moment Akashi walked through the door.

It had been almost a month since their first trip out to the basketball court, and they had gone back a handful of times since. They still continued to meet up at the coffee shop on a daily basis, although their meetings were much more intimate now than they had been before. That kiss had only been the first of many, and Akashi would gladly take one any chance he could.

He was smitten, and he wouldn't even deny it.

Akashi reached their usual table and pulled out his seat. "I still wish you would tell me how you do that," he said as he sat down.

Furihata chuckled. "I don't know if I want to tell you," he replied. "It's kind of weird, and I don't really understand it myself."

"Come on now, Kouki," Akashi urged.

"Well," Furihata began, "I don't really know how, but ever since we started spending time together, you've started to give off a color."

"Are you saying you can see me?" Akashi asked.

"No, it's not that I can see you, per say. It's more like, when you're around, my world doesn't seem so dark." Furihata reached across the table and took Akashi's face in his hands, his thumbs tracing across his cheekbones. "It's red. When you're here, I can see red." Furihata grinned. "I guess that means I must love you a whole lot, huh?"

Akashi allowed himself to smile as well, one of his rare, wide, pure smiles. He lifted his own hands and placed them on top of Furihata's, which were still resting against his cheeks.

"Yes," Akashi replied, leaning in to press his lips against Furihata's and not giving a care who saw. "I guess it does."

A/N:

While my next multi-chap fic is in the works (it's still in the very, very early stages because I'm lazy), I decided to whip out another little oneshot to tide you guys over until I can get my butt in gear and finish getting the other one ironed out. I started writing this to be kind of angsty, but somehow it ended up fluffy again? Oh well. Fluff is nice. Also, I don't know what to do with the title or the description, so who knows? They may change.

I wrote this in third person for no particular reason, I just felt like it. Haha.

Also also! I've actually read about this blind basketball stuff before, and there are some places that do it. I thought it was interesting, hence this fic.

Anyway, that's all from me for now. New fics are on there way! And as always, I'm on Tumblr as chasingstarfall if you ever need/want to discuss anything.

Seeya later, alligator!