AU: This story is an alternate universe and there are more differences than just merely the school.
Light
Prologue: Only One
They finally said it. It'd been obvious for a while. Their skill. Their potential. Their tremendous growth. The Generation of Miracles didn't need someone like him—a support player. A support player was unnecessary when they could fool around in games and still overwhelm their opponents. Victory—to win was the only thing they care about, after all.
Still, he thought that as teammates they had become friends. They trained together. They celebrated together. They had fun together. Those times were history now. They gradually practiced less. Even when they came to practices, they would all be off doing their own things.
Then there was Aomine who stopped attending practices long ago, only to be found at games. He could still recall the stabbing words he had been told before Aomine stopped practicing. The power forward didn't have a need for him anymore. He couldn't even remember how to catch his passes.
It was now time for the other Miracles to tell him the same thing.
No.
One.
Only one didn't say such hateful words.
Kise never told him that he wasn't needed. Kise never told him that he wasn't wanted. It was clear from his awkward jerky movements that he believed what the others said to be true—that there wasn't a purpose for him to play—but he had never said the words. More importantly, Kise never mentioned that he wasn't wanted.
Kuroko had been extremely happy when he felt needed, but there was a difference between being needed and being wanted. He had believed that he would still be wanted even if the team didn't need him, but they proved him wrong.
It destroyed him emotionally. They were his first friends. His only friends. Yet, they have all expressed either implicitly or explicitly that Kuroko wasn't someone they needed or wanted.
Only Kise. Only Kise hadn't expressed such thoughts.
Kise was as arrogant and condescending as the others. They didn't think all that differently. Kise may even be in the process of slipping through Kuroko's grasp too, but the blond model still wanted him around. Right. Right? Kuroko could put his hope into Kise that he wouldn't leave too, right?
"At your current level what can you do?" asked Akashi. This wasn't the Akashi he knew that respected every player.
"You should just quit basketball," said Murasakibara taking a bite of his pocky. He always did tell Kuroko that hard work meant nothing against talent. It was inevitable that things wound up this way.
"It's not like we need you to pass to us anymore," added Midorima who was inspecting his taped fingers. Even Midorima who never went along with the others' games.
Kuroko tried to ignore the tight clenching sensation he had in his chest and the prickling feeling present in his eyes. He bent down to pick up a basketball. He'd practice on his own then. Just like back then.
The point guard, shooting guard, and center left leaving the gym emptier than before.
Kuroko couldn't face the blond as he asked, "Aren't you going to leave too, Kise-kun?"
"I don't really need to practice anymore." He felt uncomfortable telling this to his once mentor. Once again Kise had no competition so it was just boring. He couldn't have an interesting match against Aomine since he stopped coming to practices. His time would be better spent modelling. He saw Kuroko shift as if he wanted to say something else; however, Kuroko remained silent. Well, there was no point staying there doing nothing. "Keep working hard, Kurokocchi. See you later." He left with a half-effort wave.
Kise left ignorant of the effect his words had on his mentor.
He would have stayed if he'd known that it wold be the last time he would see Kuroko.
.
"Where's Kurokocchi?" Kise asked. He looked around wondering if he just couldn't see Kuroko again. He was hard to spot.
They were currently in front of the Tokyo sports arena. It was their meet-up spot for the nationals.
"Tetsuya won't be coming." The red hair captain's response was blunt and to the point.
"Tetsu's not coming? That's not like him." Aomine turned to Akashi for an explanation. They didn't get along outside of basketball so there was a lot he didn't know about his former shadow. Akashi would know, though. Akashi always seemed to know these kinds of things, and it was especially odd that the fiercely determined Tetsuya would not show up.
"He resigned."
.
Kise was at a modelling shoot. His availability increased with the decreased time he spent at practices. With more work his popularity increased which only gave him more work. Not that he minded. There was nothing else to do with his new-found free time.
"Good work, Kise-san."
Kise walked over to his bag to grab his water bottle. Finally a break. Did this really have to happen back-to-back? He supposed it was better to do his jobs after one another rather than travelling more often.
He grabbed his phone to check to see if he'd gotten any messages after putting his water bottle back into his bag. There were a few. He skimmed through the senders of the messages. They were all from ex-girlfriends or fans. He read them out of courtesy. (Though he messages did boost his ego because he liked his popularity.) He was in the midst of putting his phone away when he felt the vibrate indicating a new message.
He blinked. Then blinked again. "Eh!" His loud reaction garnered the attention of the people around him. Most went back to what they were doing, but his manager asked him if everything was alright.
"It's fine. Just got a message from someone unexpected ssu."
"Do you always react that way?" She asked looking at the teenager oddly.
"No. It's just someone who I thought disappeared." True to his words, he got a message from Kurokocchi. He opened the message eagerly. He hadn't heard from him (or seen him) in a while.
Is playing alone fun?
Kise read over it several times. Kuroko disappeared for months and now he asks a question like this. Kise really didn't understand him.
I miss playing with Kurokocchi~
Kise stared heatedly at his phone as he waited to see if he would get another message.
Minutes passed, so he sighed in defeat. He placed his phone in his bag before he heard his phone vibrate again. His arm shot to retrieve his phone as if it were his prey.
Flipping it open, he pressed a few buttons quickly with practiced ease to open his latest message.
What high school are you going to?
Kise smiled. He had contact with Kurokocchi!
Kaijō
He pressed send. Then sent another message asking where Kuroko was going to attend. Except he got no answer. Even before he went to bed he checked his phone hoping for a reply but there was none. Kise had gone back to being ignored. With the contact he'd finally gotten from the once 6th player, he couldn't help but to wonder what happened to him.
.
Kuroko stared at his phone. Kaijō. He shouldn't have been surprised that one of his teammates was going to attend the school. They had a good reputation not only I basketball but across sports.
He had some thinking to do.