Author's note:

I've increased the rating to M due to the first paragraph I've written for this chapter. I'm still trying to build up their relationship so all I have to offer for now is more feels and angst. (︶︹︶) By now, Kise should be aware of his true feelings and Aomine is still dense as ever. They are the baka couple after all.

Events in this chapter are set in June.

Summer: Drifting Apart

Aomine was seated on the edge of his bed and feeling really good.

Turning down his head to look at the source of his pleasure was Kise's head bobbing and taking in Aomine's length hungrily.

"Shit, you're really good at this Kise," groans Aomine.

"Mmm hmm," moaned Kise as a response.

"Ah—haaaa, I think I'm going to come now, com—ing, ngghhh–shit," curses Aomine as he released his load into Kise's mouth and felt a great sense of relief overcome him at the same time.

"Huh? Mmm hmmph," Kise moaned as he caught the cum in his mouth and tried to swallow all of it down into his throat.

Aomine was breathing heavily as he stared back at Kise who looked both dazed and satisfied with his lips moist and swollen from the mix of drool and cum.

"Ah— Aominecchi is still hard— I think you can put it in me now."

"Put… It in you? Put it—where?" asked a confused Aomine.

"In my slick, greedy hole," cooed Kise with an insatiable lust in his eyes.

Aomine woke up with a shock and found himself staring at the empty ceiling of his bedroom.

"Shit," Aomine thought. "Not another wet dream."

Forcing himself to get up, he cursed the stickiness in between his legs. He hasn't been with a girl for so long that he was starting to have Kise in his wet dreams instead of the usual beauty with huge boobs. I haven't had much time to jerk off lately too, he thought sadly to himself.

Grabbing his phone, he scrolled down the list of contacts before selecting 'Mai' to send a text message to. "Wanna do something later after work?" he typed out before hitting send. 'Something' meaning have sex of course. Mai is a colleague based at another station and she had always had a thing for Aomine back in their days at the police academy. Aomine has never refused an offer to get laid even if it meant nothing to him.

Just as Aomine was about to use the bathroom, a message came in and he opened it to read "Ahhh—I'm so sorry Aomine-kun. I actually got myself a boyfriend last week so I can't do you any favours now. Do you want me to give you my friend's number?"

Aomine deleted the message and cursed his bad luck even more.

After thinking it over, he thought that his best option was to take a cold shower before heading out to work.

Kise woke up that same morning to the sound of the front door slamming shut as Aomine left for work.

They haven't been on talking terms ever since they got back from Osaka almost a month ago. For unknown reasons, Aomine would no longer talk to him unless it was absolutely necessary and he has also been turning down every invitation from Kise for an outing together. A week ago, Kise had cornered Aomine in the kitchen demanding an explanation for his strange behaviour but Aomine only brushed him off, telling Kise that there was nothing wrong and that he was just imagining things.

Aomine's cold attitude was a mood breaker for Kise. He felt that he was better off avoiding Aomine grouchy mood nowadays. He decided to spend more time outside the apartment either taking extra shifts at his bartending job or hang out at his model agency, lounging around and hoping that some work would be thrown onto his lap.

Kise was about to get some more shut-eye after a late night shift at his bartending job when his phone buzzed with a message from the agency, telling him to come over quickly for a last-minute photo shoot for a fashion magazine. Kise stretched himself before heading to the bathroom for a quick shower. He wasn't exactly in the mood to do anything that day but any distraction from his current dilemma is more than welcome.

Kise's photo shoot took a much longer time than expected. Kise wasn't able to give his best and halfway through the shoot, his manager called for a time-out and pulled him aside for a brief scolding.

"We're not getting enough good shots Kise-kun! You look like you hate wearing the clothes on you right now but unfortunately, you don't have much choice but to sell them! Our client actually asked me if I have any other male models on stand-by just in case they don't plan to use any of your pictures!" Reina yelled at Kise behind the set with Keiko standing beside Kise to defend him.

"Maybe Kise-kun needs a short break? The photographer said that he's willing to wait for Kise-kun to get it together while he convinces the client for a change of concept. The client is also at fault here for such a terrible photo concept request—like how can you take good pictures while hanging upside down over a monkey bar?" Keiko pleaded to Reina.

"That's NOT my problem! He's the model and he should just work it!" Reina snapped back.

Kise wasn't really paying attention to what Reina and Keiko were arguing about as his mind started to wander off again until Reina smacked his head lightly with a magazine.

"Are you having the same problem as the last time you came to my place in tears?" Reina asked. "I thought that it was already resolved. Is it happening again Kise-kun? This is why work and personal matters should not mix. It's not professional at all."

"Ah—right, sorry Reina-san, Keiko-san… I guess I do need to get some fresh air. When I come back, I promise to put my all into the shoot," Kise grinned even though he was falling apart inside.

Kise bawled his eyes out in the men's room for a good 10 minutes feeling sorry for himself. His mood was only lifted up when he found Keiko waiting for him outside with a gentle smile, hugging him while giving him death threats for ruining the makeup she had put on him earlier. After a quick fix, Kise was back in working mode without any more issues. The client was more than happy with the final shots and booked Kise to do two more photo shoots for them that month.

Kise returned home to find a note from Aomine saying that he was staying over at a friend's place for the night. Being by himself in that apartment reminded him of how lonely he felt when he first started living out on his own without his family as he cried himself to sleep remembering how badly he missed them.

Aomine was leaving for work when he glanced at Kise on the sofa, sound asleep. He has been doing a lot of late night shifts for his part-time job lately, Aomine thought to himself.

He opened the front door just in time to reveal the landlady standing in between two blonde beauties. The first one was a beautiful lady with long, wavy hair and was dressed elegantly in branded clothing. Aomine took notice of her huge boobs but flinched when he felt her commanding presence. The other one was slightly shorter than the former with her hair tied into a cute bun and looked much friendlier than the first blonde. Everything about her is cute from her accessories to her ruffled, pastel-coloured dress which made Aomine wonder if this is what Momoi meant by 'Sweet Lolita' fashion. The same girl was also carrying a large sketchpad in her arms.

"Aahhh— Kise must be having another one of his wild parties and this stripper police officer is just about to leave. I guess we arrived at a good time," said the smaller blonde as she grinned at Aomine.

"Huh? What are you talking about? I'm a real police officer."

"Who is this?" the first blonde turned to ask the landlady.

"This is Aomine-kun and Kise-kun is living in his apartment," the landlady replied with a wide smile.

"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO MY PRECIOUS RYOU-CHAN?!" the first blonde turned to Aomine in horror while the other one was no longer smiling.

"Wha—I don't understand… Who are you people?" Aomine asked although he has a feeling that he might know the answer to that question judging from how much these two resembled Kise based on their looks.

"Sorry for the intrusion Aomine-kun. My name is Rika and this is my elder sister, Ryoko," said the smaller blonde politely. "We're looking for our little brother, Ryouta… Is he around?"

"WHAT IS GOING ON? We were here when we helped him move in the first time! Isn't his apartment downstairs? How did he end up living with you instead? What is your relationship to Ryou-chan? How come we were not told of this?" Ryoko bombarded Aomine with questions.

"Kise's sisters? Umm, he's still sleeping inside…" Aomine answered nervously to Rika preferring to respond to the less crazy one.

"Hmm… Ah—Aominecchi, why is it so noisy outside?" a sleepy voice called out before Kise came to the front door in just an oversized T-shirt in place of his usual pyjamas.

"KYYYAAA! Ryou-chan is wearing a boyfriend shirt! Kawaii-desu! I am sooo drawing this hot scene for my next doujinshi release!" Rika squealed as she started fanning herself with her sketchpad. "Did he use handcuffs on you last night?" she asked innocently.

Shit, they're both crazy, Aomine thought.

"Oneesan? What are you two doing here?" Kise asked in a surprised tone.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY RYOU-CHAN!" Rika announces as she jumps onto Kise to give him a bear hug.

"We took the day off so we can come here to check up on you. Mom and dad sent their birthday wishes. We haven't heard anything from you at all ever since you started living on your own…" said Ryoko as she glared suspiciously at Aomine.

"Sorry Oneesan! I've been so busy lately that I haven't had the time!" Kise apologized as he glanced at Aomine nervously.

Aomine could guess that he didn't belong in this family reunion and mumbled an "okay, they can come in and I have to go to work now" to Kise before he took off in a hurry.

As soon as Aomine was gone, Rika quickly asked Kise gleefully "Is that Ryou-chan's new boyfriend?"

"No, no. We're not like that. I'm just staying at his place temporarily until my apartment is fixed," Kise replied.

"Speaking of your apartment Kise-kun, the repairs has been completed about a month ago. I thought you would know. You should tell me if you don't plan to move back in so you can stop paying the rent and I can find a new tenant," said the landlady.

"Ah—sorry Obaasan! It hasn't crossed my mind all this while! I'll let you know soon," Kise replied.

The landlady nodded and wished Kise a Happy Birthday before she left Kise and his sisters on their own.

"Aiyaya, Ryou-chan seems to be living with a scary-looking guy. He wasn't very friendly no?" Rika asked.

Kise didn't answer and muttered something about wanting to take a shower first.

Aomine made it just in time for work despite a late start to his day. He had just received a message from Momoi asking him if there was any chance that Aomine and Kise could come down to Osaka to celebrate Kise's birthday together. Just as he was about to text Momoi that he was working that day, Aomine received another message from Kuroko asking what Aomine has planned for Kise's birthday and if Kuroko can be part of it.

"I'm surprised Aomine-kun didn't take the day off today. So there's no birthday celebration for Kise Ryouta today?" teases Wakamatsu.

"Shit, how come the whole of Japan knows that its Kise's birthday today except for me?" snaps Aomine.

"Aomine-kun… Doesn't know? Hahaha. Kise Ryouta is a popular idol, of course that kind of information is available to the public. So now that you know, do you plan to skip work and leave me here all on my own?" he asked with a pout.

Aomine only grunts as a response and started to clear the paperwork on his desk, determined to drown himself in his work and nothing else.

Kise was glad that his sisters came to spend the day with him. He had nothing special planned for that day so he was cool with anything his sisters wanted to do in Tokyo. They started out in Ginza where Ryoko spent hours shopping for branded goods before they took off to Shinjuku for lunch at a high-end sushi restaurant. They then made a quick stop to Ikebukuro for Rika who needed to look for more doujinshi to add to her massive collection at their house followed by a trip to Sumida Aquarium to watch cute penguins do backflips in the water. The siblings had one hell of a day just being silly and having fun. Their final stop was Murasikabara's café for afternoon tea and cakes while they rest their tired feet from walking all day.

"Ryou-chan still seems down no? It's your birthday, cheer up a bit," said a worried Rika as she pushed a cupcake towards Kise, gesturing at him to have it.

"Has Aomine-kun mistreated you Ryou-chan?" asked Ryoko suspiciously.

"Oneesan! There's no such thing! I'm just feeling tired from working too much lately! Aominecchi isn't a bad guy so stop putting him down!"

"Hmph. I doubt it. You weren't even this upset when Haizaki Shougo dumped you last year," Ryoko continued.

"There's nothing wrong with me Oneesan! Stop asking!" snaps Kise as he slammed down his fists onto the table while trying to hold back the tears forming in his eyes.

Ryoko and Rika only looked at each other and sighed, giving time for Kise to collect his thoughts.

Kise only spoke after he finally managed to get a hold of himself.

"I… I really like Aominecchi… He was good to me in the beginning but… But now, he seems mad at me for some reason. I tried asking him about it before but he said that it was nothing… I… I don't like this…"

"Do you think you have overstayed your welcome Ryou-chan?" Ryoko asked.

"Over…Stayed?"

"I think what Ryoko meant was that you have been taking advantage of Aomine-kun's kindness for far too long and now that he feels that he has done enough, he's sort of trying to send you a message that it is finally time for you to move on," Rika explained.

"I… I've never thought of that… He could have just told me directly…"

"Maybe he didn't want to be seen as the bad guy if he asks you to leave. It would be much easier if you leave on your own accord," said Rika.

"And since you're not in any sort of relationship with Aomine-kun, that means he is as straight as it gets right? Maybe with you being there, he hasn't been able to have his privacy and have his own fun… Like bringing a girl over," Ryoko added.

That does make sense, Kise thought. He has a feeling that Aomine has been meeting up with girls from time to time but he has never actually brought one over to the apartment.

"So… If Ryou-chan needs help moving out, we're both here to assist! It'll be much quicker that way," said Rika.

Kise bit his lower lip, thinking hard on whether he should be discussing this with Aomine first. But then again, they haven't exactly been on good talking terms lately and Kise worried that Aomine will just ignore him again. Maybe Aomine has been acting the way he is because he is starting to find Kise to be a burden to have around. Kise knew that it doesn't take much to tick Aomine off and he mentally scolded himself for being so selfish the entire time.

"Right… I guess if Oneesan still has time before catching the night train to Tottori, both of you could help me carry my things back to my old apartment."

"Anything for our beloved Ryou-chan—" both sisters answered in unison.

It was almost midnight when Aomine finally returned home from work. He was ordered by his superior to go to one of their stations in Yokohama late in the afternoon to help them out for a bit since they were short on staff for that evening. At least I'll be getting some overtime pay this month, Aomine thought to himself.

The first thing he noticed was how neat and tidy his apartment is before it hit him that Kise's stuff were no longer around. He scanned the apartment just to be sure when he saw his spare key taped to a note on the dining table.

Aominecchi,

Thanks for looking after me this whole time. I'm moving back to my apartment downstairs. Feel free to drop by anytime.

Ryouta

Aomine dropped himself on the sofa while reading Kise's note over and over again, trying to make sense of it. It never crossed Aomine's mind that Kise would move back to his old place this soon. He did say it was for a couple of months, Aomine recalled. But it still bothered Aomine that Kise would have just left without at least giving him the heads up.

Aomine was about to check up on Kise right then when he realized that it was already past midnight and Kise might have already been asleep. Plus, his sisters might still be with him and they didn't seem to be too fond of him. As he picked up the remote control to switch on the TV, he remembered that he bought a birthday cake for Kise on the way home. It was something that he thought of at the very last minute since he didn't get the chance to wish him a happy birthday earlier during the day. Annoyed that he no longer had a use for the cake, he decided to finish the cake off by himself while watching TV since he was still hungry anyway. Despite having the TV on, it was only then that Aomine realized how quiet his apartment is without Kise.