"Aomine-cchi~"

Aomine turned his apathetic gaze to find Kise running toward him full speed, an aloof grin on his face. The blonde didn't slow at all as he leapt onto the dark skinned male, earning a grunt in response.

"Aomine-cchi~ I had such a long day at work! I think I need a hot bath."

The bluenette raised a brow, halfheartedly pushing the blonde away. "Then take a bath."

Kise pouted, falling away from him. "I want you to share it with me~"

Aomine sighed, rubbing at the back of his neck. "Eh, I don't want to, Kise." Seeing the blonde's eyes sadden, he was shocked to find a large grin on his face.

"Oh, okay. I understand, Aomine-cchi has had a long day too, right? You probably need some sleep~"

The tanned man looked at his boyfriend curiously, in silent awe, before grunting, "Yeah, sleep sounds nice."

Kise nodded, leaning up to give a quick kiss to his beloved. "Then sleep, love~ I'll be in as soon as I'm done with my bath~"

Aomine watched in silence as the blonde danced his way to the bathroom, humming as he always did.

The bluenette sighed, taking in his empty apartment. He felt that if he stood in this very spot, replaying that encounter in his head once more, the bubbly blonde would appear- jumping into his arms just as he always had.

Shaking himself from his stupor, Aomine shuffled on to the bathroom, glancing in the doorway. He half expected to find Kise sitting in the tub, surrounded by his many precious bubbles as he hummed to himself. His heart clenched when he found nothing but a dark, empty room.

"Ne, Aomine-cchiii, it's so cold~"

Aomine lifted his head to look over his shoulder, finding Kise curled up next to him with a familiar pout on his lips. "Tch, you're hands are freezing!" he whispered as the blonde's fingers sneaked their way around his torso.

Kise flinched back from the outburst. "Sorry~" he whispered back.

Sighing, Aomine flopped his head back onto his pillow. He lay still, trying to sleep, as Kise folded himself around him, being careful not to let his fingers touch the tanned skin again. The bluenette was almost asleep when he felt Kise's breath on his back, and he flinched away.

"Oi, Kise, you know I can't sleep with you breathing on me."

The blonde shrunk back into his original spot, a good space between them. "Sorry, Aomine-cchi."

Grumbling, Aomine closed his eyes once more.

Aomine clenched his hand into a fist as he stared at his bed, at the place where his beloved blonde should be. He could still hear Kise's soft moans as he bit back the cold, afraid to touch him again. He could still feel his legs inching closer to his own, in the hopes of intertwining them to obtain some warmth, as well as simple affection. He could still hear his soft whispers of apologies and final 'I love yous'.

Aomine ran his hand along the blonde's designated space, itching to touch Kise himself. But he was only left with the feel of starched sheets beneath his fingertips.

"Ne, how do you like it~?"

Aomine looked up from the food he'd been eating, blinking at the blonde's expectant smile. He'd been so hungry he hadn't even registered the taste of his meal. He chewed for another moment, letting the flavors sink in.

"It's good."

He watched Kise's shoulders visibly relax a little, though he seemed like he was still expecting something.

"… Anything you like more? Or less, even?"

The tanned man blinked, looking from his almost cleaned dish to his smiling boyfriend. "Eh, no, not really."

Kise nodded, his smile still intact, though Aomine did not miss the flash of uncertainty in his golden eyes. The dark skinned male had the urge to rephrase his words, to tell him, "It's all wonderful, baby. Delicious as always."

But he grunted to himself at the mere thought. Kise didn't need to hear such things, did he? He should know that if Aomine was eating the food he cooked, it was good enough. Right?

The bluenette stared at the empty table for a long while, trying to remember some of the things Kise had eagerly placed before him. He tried to remember how they smelled, tasted. In the end, the only thing he could remember clearly was the blonde himself. Sitting across from him with his excited, expectant smile, never wavering even after Aomine had shot him down so many times.

It had been so long since Aomine had eaten a proper meal. He didn't know how to cook for himself, and going out was such a pain. Besides, he was hardly hungry anymore anyway. The only thing he truly hungered for, was the feel of his blonde in his arms once more.

"Hm, Aomine-cchi? What time is it?"

Aomine was just stumbling into the bedroom, at half past two. The blonde had tried to stay up for his love, but had fallen asleep just an hour prior. The bluenette, realizing Kise was now awake, clicked on the bedside lamp.

Kise cringed away from the light, hiding his face in his pillow. Aomine smiled softly at him, finding him undeniably cute in that moment. Sighing to himself, he quickly undressed and lay beside his lover.

"Did you have fun at Kuroko-cchi's?" Kise mumbled, his voice distorted from the pillow's surface.

Aomine didn't speak again until he'd turned the light off, and unusually faced the blonde. He watched as Kise's head turned back toward him, his golden eyes shining in the moonlight as he waited for a response. Aomine briefly wondered why Kise cared so much, as he stroked a strand of his blonde hair.

"Yeah, we played basketball for a good three hours straight."

Kise smiled sleepily, his eyes fluttering as he tried to keep them open. "That's nice," he whispered, yawning.

Aomine nodded, leaning forward to lightly place his lips on Kise's. He pulled back as quickly as he had leaned in, moving to turn onto his opposite side, when Kise's hands suddenly stopped him. The bluenette raised a brow as Kise's grip tightened on his arms, the blonde's head buried in Aomine's chest.

"Oi, Kise, what's-"

"Please don't leave me…"

Aomine paused, his expression softening. He didn't move, neither to turn away nor to return Kise's ever tightening embrace. He simply lay there, muttering, "I'm not going anywhere, dumbass."

Aomine walked the streets now, hands shoved deep into his pockets. His expression was more hostile than ever, formed in the hopes that familiar faces around him wouldn't attempt conversation. He was not in the mood for uninteresting small talk or forced smiles. He had somewhere to be, and he wasn't going to let anyone stop him. Not now.

Kise sighed to himself, his golden eyes darting around the street, searching for his familiar bluenette. The blonde had been waiting for a good hour now, though he had arrived early. Aomine was supposed to meet him at nine, so that they could catch a late night showing of the new romantic comedy the blonde had been so excited for.

Looking to his watch, Kise found it to be 9:42. He smiled softly to himself as he realized they wouldn't be making the movie. His heart clenched in his chest. After all he'd done for Aomine, always putting him first, he'd only asked for this night. It was the first night in a long time that Kise could stay up, having no appointments the following day. And when he'd mentioned to Aomine that the two hadn't been on a proper date in nearly seven months, the bluenette had promised him this night, to do whatever he wanted.

Kise was being put first. Or so he had thought. Startled by the vibration in his pocket, the blonde pulled out his phone. He opened his newly received text, biting his lip as he read it. Tears threatened to form in his eyes as he snapped his phone shut, shoving it back into his pocket.

'Hey baby, sorry about the movie. Tetsu and Kagami came by, and I forgot the time… I guess I'll see you when you get home.'

Aomine didn't know why he was still upholding his façade. He was all alone now, the cold wind biting at his face as it blew his hair about wildly. He slowly released the tension in his body, his seemingly permanent scowl fading as if it had never been in place. Sinking to his knees, Aomine's dark eyes began to well with tears. He didn't even bother wiping them away, having held them in for so long.

"I love you, Ryouta," he whispered, his voice trembling both from the tears and the cold. "I'm so sorry I never told you, how much I loved you. Or how flustered you made me. I'm sorry I didn't hold you as often as I should've, that I didn't appreciate you the way you deserved…" He paused, choking back a sob. "I'm sorry I didn't show up… And I'm sorry I never told you all the things you made me feel…"

The tanned man hiccupped loudly, his voice breaking as he pounded his fist into the ground. He stayed like that for a long while, until his tears were almost dried.

"I'm sorry I'll never get the chance," he mumbled, lifting his gaze. His hand raised to the tombstone before him, fingertips lightly grazing along the name etched into its surface.

"Ryouta."