Chapter 3: When two bakers traded buns, they had a roll reversal
The life of a superhero is not a luxurious one and is rather mundane. Unless you are Akashi or Kise, the life of a superhero practically consists of nothing but constant vigilance and a lot of waiting. Tokyo is not some dystopia with criminals and the ilk running amok. The next catastrophe is not going to strike anytime soon, so this opens up a lot of free time for the Generation of Miracles.
Akashi Seijuuro, the seemingly impeccable leader of their mismatched bunch, inherited his father's company after his untimely death and continues his legacy as the head of the corporation. He created and opened the Superhero branch as a place where many individuals such as himself could thrive within their community. With his insurmountable donations, researchers far and wide have been able to use their progressive technology to provide the public further understanding of the origins behind the powers that mysteriously cropped up many years ago. This is only a snapshot of Akashi's success, and with great power, comes great responsibility. If he is not manning the team with his insightful calculations, he would be running executive meetings back to back. If he is doing neither, he is probably avoiding assassination attempts left and right.
Kise Ryouta, when he is not actively working as a hero, works in the entertainment industry as a distinguished model, the type designers would gratuitously pay thousands for him to appear in one of their fashion shows. As the team's driving force of their popularity, he continues to preserve his role as the adorable, happy-go-lucky character of the group. With his celebrity status, he has the world eating out of his hand.
However, not every member of the Generation of Miracles has the freedom to reveal their identity to the general public. Some cannot afford the consequences, and some prefer a more private life.
Midorima Shintarou, for instance, is an anomaly. Due to his past, he is under constant surveillance by the government, and up to this day, he is still not fully trusted by the officials who observe his every move. He is an agent who occasionally participates in a wide range of missions, but if his presence is leaked to the people of Tokyo, problems would only pop up like daisies. Before, he could not even step out of government grounds until a certain Takao Kazunari took him in under his watchful eye. His recent involvement with the superhero team became a controversial issue within the higher ranks, but with Akashi's insistence, Midorima can loosen the noose around his neck as long as his identity is kept secret.
Murasakibara Atsushi, in Kagami's eyes, is an even bigger enigma than the villain who kidnapped him yesterday. There are rumors of the purple-haired man running a bakery, but there is no proof, no evidence of this absurd fabrication. All he sees is a giant, gluttonous child.
Not surprisingly, the most discreet of them all is Kuroko Tetsuya. He is a man who lurks between the shadows and kills when necessary. Excluding the Generation of Miracles and a selected few, Kuroko is only perceived as a myth, a legend, which is why it is so strikingly hilarious to see him helping out at the café whenever he is waiting for his next mission, but Kagami can empathize with the young assassin.
Unlike the rest of the team, minus Kagami, Kuroko was not inherently born with his powers. Though it is not an uncommon situation for a regular person to suddenly acquire them in the middle of their lives, it does not change the fact that Kuroko now has the ability to make people forget the past five seconds with a snap of his fingers. The redhead does not want to seem too presumptuous, but maybe this side job is somewhat the phantom man's desperation to cling to his once-normal life, the life he had before it changed forever, because working here is, not surprisingly, normal.
Last but not least is Kagami Taiga, the newest member of the team. Fresh from his mentor's arduous training regime, he is ready to save the day alongside his teammates. Jump Squared is a brash and boisterous hero, but when he sheds off the uniform and puts away the mask, he is only Kagami Taiga, an average man with an average job. There are some troublesome complications, however, whenever an average man like Kagami Taiga wants to maintain an average job, because a superhero's schedule is not fixed. Akashi, from the goodness of his heart, offered Kagami a position at one of the numerous businesses he owns, which explains why he is now working at the Kiseki Café.
One benefit he gains from this part-time job is its flexibility whenever the city is in peril. He doesn't have to worry about leaving his workplace without a notification because his coworkers are aware of his identity and his responsibilities. Initially, he was skeptical about the schematics, but Akashi assured him that these people are trustworthy. His coworkers are people who were hired after intensive screenings and background checks. Their interviews are monitored by those having the ability to detect lies. Not only that, these people signed a legally binding contract in the event that one of them decided to become a backstabber. Kagami wants to be distrustful, but he has a hard time to find a hole in Akashi's reasoning, especially when the system is set in stone.
Moreover, if he didn't work here, he would have never met Aomine Daiki.
"Introduce me to your friends, Kagami-kun."
He instinctively jolts, still unaccustomed to his friend's tendency to give him a heart attack.
He quickly whips his head around.
"Stop doing that!" he growls.
Kuroko tilts his head. "What do you mean, Kagami-kun?"
"You know what you did!"
Kuroko gives an impish smile in return, well aware of his actions. Then he redirects his eyes to the customers and reveals nothing about his inner emotions, especially his burgeoning interest in his partner's friends. Even though it is not impossible, it is rare to have normal relationships outside of this super-powered world.
Kuroko looks from one person to the next. "What is your name?" he innocently asks.
The woman with hair as pink as cherry blossoms gets out of her seat and extends her hand toward Kuroko for a formal handshake.
"My name is Momoi Satsuki," she introduces herself.
"Kuroko Tetsuya," he answers her unspoken question with gentlemanly taste, and firmly grasps her hand.
Momoi can't help but giggle and blush when he leaves a chaste kiss on her fingertips, and the gesture leaves both Aomine and Kagami to roll their eyes and make gagging noises. The unsuspecting woman has melted into flustered goo.
Kuroko turns to the black-haired man, who he assumes to be named Aomine since Kagami yelled out his name earlier, and quirks his eyebrow when he sees the man present his whiteboard to him. His full name is written in bold.
"This guy here is Aomine Daiki," Kagami says while wrapping an arm around his broad, sturdy shoulders. "He's alright. He looks like he could kill you, but actually he's a cinnamon roll inside," he laughs and softly kneads Aomine's temple with his free hand.
Aomine scrunches up his face and scowls, unhappy to be compared to some freshly glazed pastry. He doesn't even like cinnamon rolls. If he had a say, he would be something with Nutella.
He expresses this discontentment through his whiteboard, which showcases a poorly drawn middle finger, but in Kagami's honest opinion, it looks like a sad attempt of a boob with stretch lines. The sentiment is still taken to heart, so he sticks out his tongue in return.
A tongue should not seem so aggravating to the villain in disguise, but Aomine would beg to differ. He hastily erases the board with his sleeve and uncaps his marker with his mouth, prepared to scribble down more venomous words until Momoi snatches the writing utensil out of his hands.
Aomine is shocked that she interrupted his fun.
"I warned you, Aomine-kun," she chides, "I told you to not draw or write anything inappropriate, but you did." She wrings the whiteboard from his grasp. "Because of that, you just lost your whiteboard privileges."
Kagami and Kuroko are amused.
Aomine is not.
As Kagami stifles his snickering, obviously not showing an ounce of guilt, Kuroko scrutinizes the strange, tanned man with a critical eye. His disposition is peculiar: There are not many civilians who communicate this way unless-
"He's a power user, too," Kagami explains, as if he just read his mind.
Maybe he can.
"His power involves speech, based on what Momoi told me when we first met," he clarifies.
"Yes," she says. "It's too dangerous for him to speak nowadays, so Dai-chan chose silence."
Kuroko nods in understanding and carefully glances at Aomine. The man seems unaffected by the topic of his circumstance, but it could all be a ruse. After all, there was a time when he was in his shoes, and whenever the subject was mentioned, Kuroko would detach himself from the conversation and turn numb.
"He just moved here a few months ago, around the same time he discovered his power," Kagami elaborates.
Then he puts his hands on his hips and scoffs, "But this idiot is too stubborn to learn sign language even though I offered to teach him."
The black-haired man is either too lazy or lacks the motivation to learn, but this does not discourage Kagami nor dampen his passion to help those in need. It is an admirable trait, but it boggles Momoi's mind to see this man so insistent to help somebody he just met a couple of months ago.
"It's nice of you to help, but why are you so adamant about this, Kagamin?" Momoi inquires.
There is a prolonged silence on Kagami's part. At first, he recollects his thoughts because the way he wants to describe these feelings are stuck at the tip of his tongue. Then images of a young boy with raven black hair and a mole under his visible right eye flash through his mind as he reaches the core of his intentions, the true reason why he wants to help Aomine so much. His brain short-circuits, the memories too painful to linger in. His breath stutters, and his hand instinctively creeps up to his chest to search for his anchor, the ring that is supposed to be dangling from his neck, except that he forgot it at home.
He takes a deep breath. That's right. He can't always be dependent on a piece of jewelry.
"I don't know about your hardships," he starts, "But I knew somebody who experienced the same process."
There is a raw earnestness within those fiery, impassioned eyes of his, the sort that can inspire others to do better. He may not be Kise, who can woo the female population with a winning smile, or Akashi, who can intimidate practically anybody to do his bidding, but he exudes this magnetic radiance that somehow attracts others to him. And sometimes that is all he needs to persuade Aomine.
"You don't have to do this alone," he mutters awkwardly and looks away.
The tables look very intriguing today.
"We don't have to meet every day… I'm willing to go at your pace as long as you want to learn…"
Kagami also has a severe coughing fit at the moment.
As the redhead coughs away his short-lived embarrassment, Aomine is diagnosed with a disease, and that disease is named guilt. His lies have already piled up into a mountain, and the amount will only increase from here on out. Alarms are ringing in his head, but it's too late to back out. The guilt is consuming his crumbling resolve to keep his stance, to distance away from this strange man. He slaps his hand against his forehead and slides it down his face.
He nimbly steals the whiteboard back, writes down his answer in lightning speed, hands his message to Kagami.
This is a charade he is willing to play until the end.
Kagami reads his words, reads it again, and smiles the biggest smile Aomine has ever seen on a twenty-three year old man. His forked eyebrows make no difference on how cute he is. Actually, it may have heightened it.
"So, I think I've kept you waiting long enough," Kagami says with a skip in his step, "The usual, right?"
"Yup!"Momoi cheers.
"I'll be right back. C'mon Kuroko, stop stalling."
Kuroko makes no comment even though it is Kagami's fault. He has a lot to share with his teammates in the future.
The two return to the kitchen and Momoi cups her cheek with a sly smirk planted on her face.
"So what did you write?"
Nothing, he thinks.
He just left his number.
And a note that might have said, "Call me so that we can arrange our first meeting."
A/N: Hello! Thank you very much for reading this chapter! If you have any confusion about anything (I mean, it is a lot of stuff in this AU), I am free to answer any questions!