Disclaimers: Kuroko no basuke belongs to Fujimaki Tadatoshi. This is just fanwork.
-x-
Stay
Little, bright green leaves had sprouted up on the branches of the trees that lined the street. Down on the ground, there were still small white mounds of snow on the lawns and a few patches of white here and there on the sidewalk and on the road. Tiny yet colorful buds have grown on the flowering bushes and plants. All of these were signs of Spring, and yet the chill brought by the cold wind every time it blew made a young man of sky-colored hair and eyes shiver.
'It's already March, why is it still freezing out here?'
He hastened his pace into a brisk walk. As much as he wanted to just run home, he couldn't while balancing three big boxes of New York style pizza and a paper bag with a liquor store's logo containing a few cans of beer inside. When he finally got home, he got his key and ever so quietly unlocked the door, hoping his dog Nigou wouldn't notice. The last thing he needed was a full grown husky jumping on him in excitement while he's carrying all those things.
He had to bite back saying "I'm home" out of habit as soon as he got in. He made it to the kitchen safely, but just as he was a meter away from the dining table, he heard running footsteps coming in from the bedroom. He wondered if it was either because of the simple fact that Nigou was an animal, or because they've been living together for years now, but for some reason, Nigou was just completely immune to his lack of presence.
As he hurriedly set the pizza boxes and booze on the table, he looked back on the day's events. Kagami had called him earlier and said he had freed up his schedule to drive Kuroko to the airport, as the latter was to fly back to Japan the next day. Kuroko then invited him to come over for dinner as thanks, but most of his things were already either packed in boxes and sent to his parents' house in advance or given away. He had nothing else left at his place other than the furniture the apartment provides and the luggage he was going to bring on his flight, so he had to go out and buy dinner.
Nigou came running, and Kuroko was barely made it in time to say "Nigou, sit!" before the hyperactive dog jumped on him. Nigou was much bigger- and heavier- now, that Kuroko's lithe figure can no longer stand getting squashed by an adult dog. "Good boy", he ruffled the head of the sitting Nigou whose tail was happily wagging.
Then the doorbell rang.
"Ah, must be Kagami-kun."
He sauntered over to the door to open it and let his visitor in. As soon as Kagami closed the door, he barely even had time to take off his shoes at the entrance when he heard rapid thuds coming from the kitchen. Kuroko managed to step aside just in time, thanks to his sharp peripheral vision honed by his basketball days.
Kagami frantically waved his arms. "Wah! Nigou, si… Waugh!"
Too late. Nigou had already jumped right into Kagami, bringing them both down to the floor. "Owowow…"
Kuroko chuckled, earning a scowl from Kagami.
"Kuroko you bastard. You dodged, didn't you?! You dodged!" Kagami yelled accusingly.
Kuroko avoided Kagami's eyes. "Don't know what you're talking about."
Kagami got up, nursing his butt. "Still… can't believe this guy's grown so much since you two first came to America."
"That was five years ago, Kagami-kun. I'd be worried if he didn't."
"True…" Kagami then turned to Kuroko and gave him a long, hard stare. "Mm, good good" He grinned boyishly.
"What?" Kuroko asked with a clueless face.
"You look like you've also grown a bit. Well, can't really do anything about the height, but you look like you've gained a bit of weight at least. And your face certainly has much more color now, compared to when you first came. That time, you looked like the wind could easily blow you away."
Kuroko pouted. "Not a bit. I dare say I've gained a lot! My biceps look bigger now!" As if trying to prove it, he flexed said muscles.
"Whatever. I'm starved, let's eat!"
So the three went on to the living room, ate dinner and drank the night away. At least, Kagami did. Kuroko never did like the taste of beer, so he settled for the last thing he had on the fridge- a bottle of Calpis.
-x-
They got up long before sunrise the next day, as Kuroko's flight was in the morning. Kagami loaded the luggage to the trunk at the back of his German sports car while Nigou sat on the back seat. Kuroko took one last look at his apartment before switching off the lights and locking the door and handing the key over to Kagami.
"All yours."
"Yeah. I'll drop it off at the landlord's office on the way back. Let's go."
They got into the car and drove on. There wasn't much traffic on the roads, and when they got into the highway, there were still only a few cars so they were peacefully cruising along. The drive was so steady, Kuroko had started to feel himself nodding off.
"It's okay, you can sleep. You've been so busy with the preparations this past month, you probably haven't been getting enough rest. I'll wake you up when we get there."
"But"
"I'll be fine. You don't need to talk to me to keep me awake. Besides, your voice is so soft it will just make me sleepy." Kagami snorted.
"Idi… ot…"
And Kuroko conked out.
-x-
It was so dark. He was feeling pain all over his body. His eyelids felt so heavy and numb, and even after ever so slowly getting them to open, everything around was blurred by the moisture in his eyes. Kuroko remembered this sensation all too well. And he also remembered that it was five years ago, which meant he was once again dreaming about the past.
That time, Kuroko had just woken up at the hospital after being in a coma for months. He got hit by a car that was supposed to run over Aomine, who he pushed out of the way. Luckily, he had survived and was told that he had a good chance for a full recovery.
When he started his rehabilitation sessions, Aomine helped him through it, knowing Kuroko drew strength from him, and he was the only reason Kuroko was working so hard to recover. They had been going out for years, and to Kuroko, he was someone he'd be willing to risk everything for, even his life.
After he got discharged from the hospital, he went back with Aomine to the house they have been renting together since they got into university. However, Kuroko had started to notice that something was off. Aomine was taking good care of him and was being very supportive during his rehab and recovery, but there were times he avoided Kuroko's eyes and was being distant. Kuroko thought at first that maybe it was just guilt for being the cause of his accident, so he did everything he can to close the distance between him and his Light.
And yet, it felt like the harder he tried to get closer, the farther Aomine pulled back from him.
Eventually Kuroko discovered that Aomine had been going out with Kise. Their relationship, ironically, had started from the time when Kuroko got into an accident and fell into a coma. Aomine was in shambles, drowning in so much self-guilt. Not knowing when and if Kuroko will ever wake up, he was constantly on edge, dreading how he could lose his most important person anytime. Kise couldn't bear to see him like that, and helped Aomine get back up on his feet while he himself was still recovering from the hurt of losing Kuroko to Aomine back then, and was facing the possibility of losing his beloved Kurokocchi forever.
Their relationship had evolved in the process of licking each other's wounds.
At that point, the only reason Aomine was still staying with Kuroko was because he knew that if he was there, Kuroko will be motivated to recover. He was terrified of the consequences of what might happen should he let go of Kuroko at such a crucial time- and dreaded that Kuroko might just give up. Having lost the right to stay, Aomine left, his only consolation was having known Kuroko for such a long time- having known that his Shadow is a lot stronger than he seems.
On that fateful night, without saying another word to each other, not even a final goodbye, Aomine walked out the door as Kuroko walked back into the bedroom- their room- and collapsed on the bed- their bed. As though the timing couldn't have been any worse, memories of their first time starting flooding into his mind.
'Tetsu… Your hands are trembling. Are you scared?'
Kuroko laughed at himself derisively. He had given Aomine everything- his heart, his body, his very own life. And yet, it wasn't enough. He was still thrown away.
Getting up from the bed where Aomine's scent lingered, he sat on the floor and hugged his knees. Looking around the room, his eyes fell on picture frames hung on the wall, of different shapes and sizes, with pictures of him, of Aomine, of their respective high school basketball teams, and of the two of them… happy, content, and together as if being by each other's side was their rightful place.
Unable to bear looking at reminders of something that will never again be, he forced himself up, grabbed his crutches and went to the living room where his puppy Nigou was waiting. When he sat down on the sofa, Nigou climbed right up and sat beside him. As if waiting for permission, the little dog stared at him. Kuroko tapped on his lap, and Nigou saw this and sat on top of him. Kuroko carried Nigou into his arms and as soon as he felt the little one's warmth, something within him gave out and he hugged the dog close as he let his tears flow freely.
By the time he stopped crying, he didn't know how much time had passed. It was already bright, and the rays of the sun were already filtering in through the gap in the curtains. He felt completely lost and didn't know what to do, but there was one thing he was sure of. He grabbed the phone and dialed a long distance number. A couple of rings later, the person on the other end of the line picked up.
"Yo. It's been a while."
"Kagami-kun, if it's all right, I need to ask you a favor."
-x-
"Kuroko, Kuroko. We're here."
Kuroko felt someone gently shaking his shoulders. He opened his eyes, and looking around him told him they were already inside the international airport's parking lot. He blinked and felt something slide down from his eyelid. His cheeks were wet, he was obviously crying in his sleep and was quietly grateful to Kagami for not bringing it up.
Kagami unloaded the luggage from the trunk of his car. He handed the handle over to Kuroko and smiled casually as he said, "Well, this is it. I won't go in anymore, it'll probably be hard for Nigou to say goodbye to you there. Don't miss him too much, mmkay? We'll be following you in a month."
"Thank you, Kagami-kun. That should be enough time for me to find a new place. Hopefully I'll have settled down by then."
Kuroko cupped Nigou's face and kissed his furry forehead. "I'll see you soon. Be nice to Kagami, okay?"
As if in response, Nigou barked.
He then turned to Kagami and said, with a very earnest face, "And Kagami-kun, please don't make any trouble for Nigou, okay?"
"Hey now! Isnt' it supposed to be the other way around?!" Kagami shot back. His face then turned serious as he asked "Say, if, you know, you want to stay longer… Just sayin', if you're not yet ready, you can still change your mind."
Kuroko shook his head. He couldn't run away forever. Besides, if there was one good thing that came out of that accident, it was the lesson that it taught him about how short life can be. In a matter of seconds, you could be hanging on to life by a very thin, fragile thread.
"Thank you for everything, Kagami-kun. See ya." He said, as his face relaxed into a smile. He slung his backpack on, grabbed his luggage, turned around and started heading for the parking elevators, pulling his bag along.
After dropping off his checked luggage, he went straight to the boarding gate. The boy sitting next to him was playing with his PSP. Beside the boy, he noticed crutches.
'Just like me, that time…' Kuroko thought to himself.
-x-
After he decided to go to America and called Kagami to find a place for him, Kuroko went to renew his passport on that very same day. He didn't want to waste another second. He wanted to leave right away- leave his past, his country and everything behind. While he was sorting through his papers, the passport slid from his hand. Still in crutches and not even halfway done with his physiotherapy sessions, the simple task of picking it up was a huge ordeal for him. Luckily, somebody came and picked it up for him.
"Here."
"Thank you so…"
Kuroko's eyes widened when he saw the face of the one who had helped him. The intensity of his bright crimson eyes and matching hair has not changed at all.
"Akashi-kun."
"Long time no see, Tetsuya" Akashi greeted him with a relaxed smile.
It turned out that his shogi competition was to be held in that same building, so he was checking it out. After Kuroko was done, he was surprised to find Akashi waiting for him outside. His former captain said the last time he had seen Kuroko he was still in the hospital, so he wanted to catch up and chat. They went to a nearby café, where Kuroko told Akashi of his plans to go abroad. Akashi then asked when he was leaving, then up and offered- more like decided- to drive him to the airport. Kuroko refused at first, but Akashi easily shot it down by simply pointing out that he couldn't possibly dream of lugging around his baggage while still in crutches from Tokyo all the way to Narita airport.
Kuroko could only meekly stay quiet. Akashi was right. Besides, there was no way he'd have the money to pay for a taxi from his house down to the airport. Especially not after refusing to take money from Aomine who wanted to keep paying his share of the rent even after he left Kuroko, who was still paying for his medical bills.
On the day of his departure, Akashi and his driver picked him up from his house and took him to the airport. After checking the bags in, he went with Kuroko up until the furthest point he can accompany him to.
"Well then, have a safe flight. Let me know when you're back."
"I will. Thank you very much, Akashi-kun"
Kuroko tried to but couldn't really bow as much in his crutches. He straightened himself up and settled for a smile instead. But after everything that had happened, he highly doubted his smile didn't look too forced, especially to someone like Akashi who had a keen sight.
Akashi simply stared wordlessly at him. Kuroko was starting to think he would get scolded by his former captain. What he didn't expect, however, was Akashi closing the short gap between them and putting his arms around him.
"Take care of yourself, Tetsuya" He said softly.
Kuroko could only stand there, unmoving within his arms. He was surprised, confused, speechless… He didn't really remember much of what happened after that. What he did remember, up until this very day years later, was the warmth of Akashi's hug and how safe and secure he felt back then.
-x-
Kuroko smiled fondly at the memory. Even if it was just for a moment, he was thankful to Akashi for being there at a time he was most unsteady. He took out his tablet and started to type an email to let him know he was coming back.
TBC
-x-
Author's note: The prologue ended up being longer than expected. And yes, this will be my first AkaKuro multi-chapter fic. If you enjoyed it even just a little bit, I'll be happy. ^^