AUTHOR'S NOTE:

I think I wrote this about a week in advance because somehow, this chapter flowed really nicely with my brain. Wish I could say the same for chapter 5. Anyways, this chapter doesn't really follow Orange canon, in case you were wondering (although there is one major Orange parallel in this chapter). Chapter 4 and 5 of the Orange manga will end up squeezed into chapter 5. I hope you guys aren't disappointed in waiting another week for cute, fluffy, romantic ships. However, this chapter does include another major plot point (or six, who knows?). Those of you who are curious as to when the next letter is reveal - chapter 8 is probably the answer. 75% sure right now. We'll see where this fic takes me.

In terms of feedback, you guys make me blush so much in class (because I actually write and read/answer comments during the school day)! That is such a good thing in my life, and I love you all for making me feel this way! Keep up the fantastic work! If you haven't noticed, I'm doing polls now to keep up with the "who do I think is dead" concept. This is an incredible important poll to answer because it actually helps drive where the fic goes (although it lead to the same ending). Please answer the poll - it's located on my profile. If you don't want to log in to answer it, just leave a review below with your answer. However, if you answer the poll, you can see the result. That way, you know what your peers are thinking. Of course, they shouldn't be affecting your response.

*Psychological Conditions: Anxiety, Hints of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

MAY 5

Much to the Generation of Miracles's shock, Akashi Seijuro had been asked out by one of the girls in his class, Araki Masako, and accepted her offer. The Miracles knew their fearless redhead captain to turn down many offers of romantic relationships, so this came as a surprise for them. Nonetheless, they were congratulatory about it.

"Congratulations, Akashicchi!" Kise went in for a hug, but Akashi avoided it at the last possible second. Kise pouted, whining about how much his captain didn't care about him.

"Thank you, Kise," Akashi said, ignoring his whines. "But please don't try to hug me. It's uncomfortable."

Kise burst out in fake tears, while Aomine tried to comfort him. He was failing miserably, though. Momoi had to insult Aomine in order for him to stop trying. Somehow, Kise collected himself as soon as he noticed Kuroko walking by the first string gymnasium. He hadn't attended practice that day either, and Kise hasn't seen him in weeks.

"Kurokocchi!" he squealed, running towards him.

Kuroko, shocked at how he noticed him so easily, took off in a run, trying to avoid the Miracles. Momoi had kept track of the teal haired kid's attendance, and so far, he hasn't shown up again to the gym. She supposed he wasn't ready yet, and she wasn't going to push him to attend practice. However, he had to come back soon, the Inter High preliminaries were beginning Monday.

"Ki-kun!" Momoi called out. "I have a new brand of perfume I'd like you to sniff test for me!" The goal? To distract him from Kuroko so that she could talk to him later in private.

Luckily, the aversion reached Kise and he came straight back into the gym. Momoi pulled out the bottle and extended it to him. The blonde was more than happy to sniff the new scent, and he was absolutely in love with it.

"Momoicchi, this smells fantastic! Is it the new bottle they came out with?" he asked.

He was about to spray the perfume all over himself when Midorima scolded him and told him to go outside if he was going to do that. Kise was more than happy to go outside, and by now, Kuroko will have left the school. All would be okay.

Kise bounded back into the gym, smelling like the cherry blossoms blooming last month. Momoi thought the scent reminded her of home (Japan was home, after all). He gave her the bottle back, and Momoi tucked it away in her school bag. Murasakibara complained about how it didn't smell like food, and therefore he disliked it. Midorima complained about his addiction to food, and the two ended up bickering.

"Now that practice is over, let's go celebrate Akashicchi's new relationship!" Kise announced, dragging Aomine already by the forearm. Aomine grunted and protested, but Kise didn't let go of his grasp. Momoi agreed readily with Murasakibara.

Midorima sighed heavily. "I suppose I will come as well, since you all need a babysitter."

"Pft, that's tsundere talk for 'I wanna come too'," Aomine translated for everyone else. Midorima had to hide the redness on his face. Akashi seemed to be debating the pros and cons of coming with them, but he couldn't deny them, since it was about him after all.

"I don't want to walk there, Satsuki," Aomine complained. "It's raining outside."

Momoi glanced out of the window in the locker room. "That's true, Dai-chan. I guess we'll have to improvise."

Since Akashi's limousine ride was also here, he offered it up to the Miracles as a ride somewhere to celebrate. Aomine liked this idea, and the other Miracles agreed. Kise volunteered one of his favorite restaurants to celebrate, since he was a longtime regular there and hasn't been there in a couple weeks. The restaurant wasn't expensive either, and everyone seemed okay with the idea of going there. After all, their food was tasty enough, even for Akashi.

Everyone departed the gym, and Midorima locked it up with the key. Coach Shirogane, luckily, was still in the area, talking to another coach, so Midorima gave the key back to him. Then, he rejoined the Miracles, who were waiting inside of the limousine already.

"Midorin, hurry up!" Momoi yelled out of the window.

Midorima picked up the pace, and carefully got into the limo, making sure that he didn't track too much dirt inside. Aomine pointed out that he didn't have to be careful about tracking mud inside, but Midorima argued that since it was a high class vehicle, he had to at least be respectful and make sure he tracked in the least amount of dirt inside. Akashi glared at both of them, almost as if he was telling both of them to shut up. They both caught the aura of an angry redhead sitting nearby, and they both zipped their lips immediately.

Momoi stared at her phone constantly throughout the entire trip. Unknown to the other Miracles, she and Kuroko were talking frequently through text messages. Kuroko had trusted Momoi, and was somewhat comfortable with telling her what was going on lately. Momoi had insisted that if wasn't feeling up to it, he didn't have to talk to her at all. However, Kuroko talked to her anyways, and it made Momoi happy to hear and see that he was coping.

Kuroko: Today went well. My therapist wants me to start going back to practice, but I'm afraid.

Momoi: Afraid of what?

Kuroko: It happening again, or a flashback happening.

Momoi: You never know until you come. Akashi-kun will appreciate your presence regardless, and so will the rest of us.

Kuroko: That is true, Momoi-san. I suppose I can try to come Monday and see what happens.

Momoi: You don't have to play if you don't want to.

Kuroko: Actually, I've been itching to play lately. I miss the feeling of a basketball on my hands. It's the outcome that worries me.

Momoi: You can do it, Tetsu-kun. We're here, after all.

Kuroko: Thank you, Momoi-san.

Momoi shut her phone and stuck it back in her school bag. A smile was creeping its way on her face, but unbeknownst to her, Murasakibara was watching her. It almost felt like she was being watched, but in a stalker-like way. It felt creepy and made someone want to run away. But Momoi knew better.

"Sacchin, who are you texting?" Murasakibara asked curiously. "Why is it making you smile?"

Now everyone's attention was on Momoi. Though many things can make the girl smile wide (and the list is long), the source wasn't usually through a phone.

Forgetting about whatever unsaid secret pact she had with Kuroko about not telling the Miracles anything about their text messages, she jabbered, "Tetsu-kun's coming back to practice Monday!"

"Eh? Kurokocchi's coming back to practice Monday?" Kise asked, surprised. "I'm glad he didn't quit, but what's with the long absence?" A couple nods were earned in Kise's direction. The Miracles wanted to know, even Midorima and his tsundere self. Momoi noticed Akashi's eyes, which were more rounder than usual. Yup, he's interested as well.

There was a long silence after Kise's question. Momoi didn't know how she could properly respond to it. Of course, she didn't want to break any promises she made with Kuroko; his problems were his story to tell, not hers. However, she could not leave Kise in the dust, nor could she lie.

Jabbing her two index fingers together like a normal nervous person would do when they were about to tell a white lie, she said, "How do I put it? Tetsu-kun hasn't been feeling well lately, so I told him not to show up until he feels better."

Some of the Generation of Miracles did not buy the story because they had all seen Kuroko during school at some point over the last couple weeks. "But Tetsu's been going to school," Aomine mentioned. "So he's not contagious or anything."

"In fact, there are other illnesses that are not contagious, yet they would keep you from doing activities for a period of time, nanodayo," Midorima stated. "It is just a matter of looking into what he might have."

"Should we ask Kuro-chin what he's sick with?" Murasakibara asked.

"No," Aomine said out flatly. "Tetsu will be suspicious."

"What is this, a secret promise that we all share and can't tell others?" Kise asked. Midorima wanted to hit him in the head for that poor analogy, but refrained.

"Aomine is correct in his thinking," Akashi inputted. "It sounds like he only contacted Momoi when he said that he would be away from practice. Therefore, he is hiding something from us that we do not know about." He looked at Momoi. "Are we allowed to know the exact reason of why he was away from practice for an extended period of time?"

Momoi shook her head. "I promised that I wouldn't say. Plus, it's Tetsu-kun's story, not mine."

Bells rang in Midorima's ear. Just from those words, he deduced what Kuroko might be suffering from, and considering the recent events, he believed it to be a real possibility. However, he had no evidence to support his theory, so he couldn't confirm his suspicions.

"Akashi-sama and company, we have arrived," the chauffeur announced. The Miracles waddled out of the limousine slowly, though Aomine had half a mind to push some of them out of the vehicle without a care for the consequences. "Have a good meal, sirs."

"Thank you, Mayuzumi-san," Akashi said to his chauffeur, bowing. "I will be in contact soon for pickup." Mayuzumi nodded and drove away from the restaurant.

The restaurant, called Maji Burger, turned out to be a fast food chain. It was also the most acceptable fast food chain for Midorima and Akashi, having grown up in a well off household. The food was decent and the service was excellent. It was ideal in a situation like this, when they had no reservations and they wanted their food instantly.

Murasakibara pulled into one of the booths, and the others slid in. All six of them fit into one big booth in the back of the restaurant. Kise collected everyone's money and orders, since he was designated to do so because he chose the place, and disappeared to go order the food and drinks. It relieved everyone of an annoying blonde for a while too.

Akashi, on the outside of the Miracles, observed his surroundings. Though he had been in this restaurant before, something about the place was eerie to him. Most of the paintings were in the same place as they were last time, and the posters haven't been placed in an awkward angle or anything. One of the posters was crooked, and he knew Midorima would be ticked off by that. However, he couldn't do much about it. Sure enough, Midorima was glaring intently at the opposite side of the restaurant, trying to ignore the crooked poster. Akashi could tell that he wasn't succeeding. On his direct right, however, sat a certain someone, and the two of them locked eyes.

Kuroko's powder blue eyes were staring right into Akashi's pure red ones, but the former's eyes were as wide as saucers. Anxiety rippled through the tealnette's body over the fact that he wasn't prepared to talk to him at all, the fact that he had actually run into his teammates at Maji Burger, and other things related to them.

"Kuroko, it's good to see you again," Akashi said, though the wording made it seem like they were old friends rather than current ones. "What have you been up to?"

Kuroko felt like crying over the kind smile Akashi was giving him. It almost felt like there had been no time between the last time they had spoken to each other. "It's good to see you too, Akashi-kun," he replied, hoping that no one could hear the odd jump in his voice, nor could anyone see him twitching in his seat. His mind was telling him to leave, to run, but instead, Kuroko felt like he was frozen there, unable to move except for the twitching that wouldn't stop. "I have been babysitting a lot lately."

Akashi recognized the lie right away, especially since Momoi had given them a hint on why he hasn't shown up to practice lately. However, noticing the higher pitches in his voice, Akashi decided to leave the other matter for a different time. "Oh? I thought you said before that you were an only child."

Kuroko blinked, not remembering that he had once told Akashi that small detail. That meant that Akashi knew he had been lying to him, and he would eventually be punished for committing that one sin. His mind was spinning in all different directions, unsure of what to do next. His legs felt like jelly and wouldn't budge anywhere, while his mind was urging him to run now, before it was too late. Mentally, Kuroko cursed himself for his inability to do anything. Was his only option now to tell him a half truth?

However, things like the pregnant pause didn't escape Akashi's notice easily. Perceptive in many areas, he picked up on the pitch change and now the silence. Kuroko didn't look like he was visibly shaking, but Akashi noted his pale, white face and how he hasn't moved an inch.

Midorima stood up almost too quickly for his own liking, and he announced that Kise was having some troubles with the food up in the line. Everyone's attention was redirected to Kise, who was indeed struggling to carry everyone's food and drinks back to the table. Either feeling overly nice and helping Kise, or to get away from the awkward environment Akashi might have caused, Aomine, Momoi, and Murasakibara rushed to help Kise. Akashi and Midorima were left, but Midorima whispered to him that he'd handle the rest. Nodding silently, Akashi allowed him and went to help Kise.

It was a good thing that Midorima had been raised with medical texts decorating his living space, so medical knowledge had somehow seeped into his brain. Another bonus was him becoming a doctor in the future, so the medical texts were resourceful and enjoyable to a certain degree. He knew the signs of anxiety, and he had a vague idea of the treatment.

Very quietly, he whispered to Kuroko slowly, "It's Midorima Shintaro. Kuroko, you need to listen to me. Can you hear me? Just nod your head for yes." Kuroko jerked a head nod. "Count in your head with me. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten."

Kuroko struggled to count with him. In his mind were raging thoughts about odder things, and he couldn't focus in the slightest. However, Midorima kept counting, and he could hear a pulse in his counting. It was slow and steady, and somehow, it was all he could concentrate on.

Wasn't this exactly what his therapist had said about anxiety attacks? Focus on something?

"You're doing good, Kuroko," Midorima said. "Can I touch you?" he asked hesitantly. Though it wasn't something he was fond of doing, he would endure it for Kuroko's sake. Kuroko nodded. "Thank you. We are going to go outside, is that okay with you?" Kuroko nodded again. "I am going to pick you up and take you outside."

Kuroko somehow found it odd yet relaxing that Midorima was saying his every action as he performed them. As his muscular hands were secured around his waist, he carried Kuroko outside. Kuroko could almost smell the fresh night air, but somehow outside, breathing was easier. Outside didn't feel stuffy, but it didn't feel stuffy until he locked eyes with Akashi.

"Kuroko," Midorima said, interrupting his thoughts. "Do you feel better now?" Kuroko nodded, not trusting himself to speak yet. "Keep counting, and try to count out loud, nanodayo."

Five minutes ticked by until Kuroko began to say his numbers out loud. Midorima noticed how high the number was (291), but his breathing was much more even across the board. His facial complexion was healthier as well.

"I'm sorry, Midorima-kun, for bothering you," Kuroko apologized minutes later. "Your food is getting cold now."

"It's doesn't matter," Midorima said, "I wasn't in the mood for greasy burgers."

There was a bit of silence before Kuroko kept the conversation going. "I only order vanilla milkshakes here. Their milkshakes are wonderful."

Midorima arched an eyebrow. He was fully aware of Kuroko's obsession with vanilla milkshakes, and it was what his meals consisted of sometimes. Of course he'd only order milkshakes. "Such a thing cannot be healthy if taken five times a week."

Kuroko pouted. "Midorima-kun, you are intelligent, but sometimes, you can be dumb."

Midorima stared at him, horrified at what he just said. "Huh?" he sputtered.

The door behind him opened, revealing the other Miracles. Momoi was leading the pack, carrying a bag of food and a takeout cup with a vanilla milkshake inside. "Midorin, Tetsu-kun, I brought your food and drink." She handed it to them, which they graciously accepted.

"Thank you, Momoi-san," he said. "I am sorry to have bothered you about it."

Momoi waved it off. "It's okay, Tetsu-kun," she whispered in his ear. "You can tell them. All they know is that you've been skipping because of other issues, but they've been formulated their own theories. Please, Tetsu-kun." Kuroko could see her pleading almost.

"Sacchin, hurry up," Murasakibara whined. "I want Kuro-chin time too." Momoi gave him a sulky look, but she moved on to Akashi.

Murasakibara walked closer to Kuroko, offering him some sweets to munch on. Kuroko accepted them as well, thanking him for his kindness. Aomine and Kise then surrounded Kuroko with their presence, talking about basketball and the Japanese National Team. Kuroko, slightly interested, listened in on their bickering about the better forwards.

"As a matter of fact, you both are stupid fools," Midorima interrupted them. "Aida Kagetora is obviously the best."

Now there was just complete bickering between the three of them. As much as Akashi would have liked to shut them up all, he noticed Kuroko's face, happy to be around them and no longer panicked. A sudden thought hit Akashi, and at that moment, he decided to head home in the limousine.

The Generation of Miracles bid farewell to each other, as they went their separate ways to go home for the night.

Akashi's date the next day apparently went very well, for on Monday, the Miracles were hearing about romantic stuff from the fangirls. Araki Masako was spreading rumors about their successful fate, and the girls were fawning over their love, saying how great of a couple they were. Aomine was pretty sure some of them were harboring jealous feelings towards them, but couldn't show them because of their status.

Right now, Aomine was strutting the hallways with Kise by his side. The bell for the first class hasn't rung yet, which meant that girls were flocking to them. Damn that Kise. Aomine wanted a decent chat with him without the annoying fangirls of his.

"Oi, Kise, are you paying attention?" Aomine asked, waving a hand in front of his face. As much as Kise paid attentions to his fans, Aomine wished that the blonde would pay him some attention too.

"Yeah, Aominecchi," Kise said. Looking at all the starry eyed girls, he winked, "Hey ladies, I have to go take care of some private business. Mind waiting until a later time?" The girls shook their heads and scurried off to a classroom to hang out until first period.

Aomine led them both onto the staircase and he leaned against the window. Staring out of the window, he spoke of his fears to Kise. "Kise, what do you think of Tetsu?" he asked, not looking at him.

Kise cocked his head to the right, pondering over why Aomine has asked such a question. Honestly, the events of Friday had baffled him. "Kurokocchi's my best friend and instructor," he replied. "Aominecchi, are you worried over him?" he asked in a quiet, sad tone.

Aomine flinched, and Kise took that as a sign that he was, indeed, worried. "Tetsu's been acting weird for a while. I can't have my partner disappearing every day."

Kise stood next to Aomine, peering out the window. He saw many students passing through the gate, most of them in their normal friend clumps. Others were bringing their bicycles through and locking them up at the bike rack. Nothing special was going on outside. "Kurokocchi's coming back to practice today, Aominecchi. Maybe it'll be okay now."

"Sure," Aomine said, trying to dispel the uneasy feeling in him. "Kise, don't you feel like there's something wrong somewhere?"

Kise grunted. "Yeah. It frustrates me that I don't know what's irritating me," he answered. "I feel like it began with the Kirisaki Dai Ichi match, and things ended up going downwards." Aomine nodded silently, still staring outside when the bell finally rang for class.

The final bell rang, signaling the end of another long school day. Students, boys and girls alike, filled the once empty halls as they hurried down to the locker room to switch shoes and go home. Other people were hanging around in their classrooms, waiting for the hallways to clear before they made their move. Another group of people headed to their respective clubs for their meetings.

Momoi, Akashi, and Midorima headed to the gym together. Since they shared a class together, they figured that it was easier and more comfortable if they walked to the gym as a group. Sometimes, the other Miracles would join them if they weren't delayed or rushed ahead.

Inside the gym, the three of them found Aomine already lying on the ground, tuckered out from classes that day. Momoi immediately approached him and stepped on his stomach as if she was claiming him to be hers in cliche movies. Aomine opened his eyes and stared at Momoi, who was not budging from her position.

"Satsuki, I can see your underwear," Aomine lied, unamused. Honestly, all he wanted was for Momoi to get off of him.

Momoi sprang off of Aomine, glaring at him furiously while hiding her blush. "Dai-chan!" she yelled, putting her hands on her hips. "Stop being a pervert!"

Aomine shrugged, getting off the floor. "Where's Tetsu?" he asked.

The Miracles scanned the gym, looking for their sixth man. The Inter High preliminaries were beginning today in a couple of hours, and they weren't sure if they could secure victory without their phantom sixth player on the court or on the benches, cheering them on. Akashi ordered Midorima to handle the first string players and get them on the bus, ready to leave.

Midorima looked at him, unsure if this was the right approach. "Akashi, are you sure?"

Akashi glared at him, his right eye almost brightening in color. It honestly scared Midorima whenever this happened. "Of course. Why wouldn't I be?" Midorima gulped and nodded, following his captain's orders. Then Akashi walked away, joining the search for Kuroko.

Midorima found the reserve first string members and gathered them up, talking to them about the itinerary set up for the next few hours. He sent them to the buses a few minutes later with their uniform and bag in tow. He followed them, supervising them the whole way with Coach Shirogane alongside him.

Meanwhile, Akashi had to take a bathroom break in the midst of his search for Kuroko. Disappearing into one of the locker room bathrooms, he emptied out his bladder and exited the stall. When he came out of his stall, he noticed a blue haired kid staring in the mirror in front of one of the sinks. The light blue hair and Teiko uniform gave it away. He had found Kuroko.

Akashi slipped in behind him, hoping to frighten his sixth man with his presence in the mirror. Kuroko, however, was not fooled for an instant. He had known that Akashi was in the bathroom for a couple minutes now, having been in here prior to his arrival. Kuroko had deliberately chosen to exit the stall he occupied in order to have his private, one on one conversation with his captain. As a bonus, it was far, far away from Araki Masako. She didn't need to know about this confrontation.

"It's been a while, Akashi-kun," Kuroko said monotonously, looking at his captain through the mirror. In his opinion, Akashi thought that this was the most normal looking he has ever been for the past couple weeks.

"It's good to see you too, Kuroko," Akashi answered, a small smile creeping its way on his face. "Feeling better now?"

"Yes, Akashi-kun," Kuroko replied, still without feeling. "Are you feeling better?"

"Yes, thank you for asking. However, I am still banned from playing basketball for another few weeks," Akashi sighed at the reminder. He was practically ready to play on the court again, but his doctor had given him a firm no when he asked Saturday at his appointment.

"Is Akashi-kun sad about that?" Kuroko asked, noticing the frown forming.

"Of course, Kuroko. I enjoy playing basketball. Not being able to play is quite a depressing event," Akashi answered, finally noticing how Kuroko wasn't quite meeting his eyes through the mirror. More than ever, his eye contact level was around his chin level and below, which displease Akashi since it wasn't normal for Kuroko to do so. "Kuroko, look at me," he ordered.

Kuroko, not for the first time, defied him. "Akashi-kun, I cannot do such a thing."

Akashi raised an eyebrow. "And why is that, Kuroko?"

Kuroko turned around, looking at Akashi properly for the first time in weeks. He took note of the almost completely gone bruise on his forehead and his sharp, piercing red eyes. Akashi's signature smirk was displayed on his face, and Kuroko had already known that he lost against him.

However, what Akashi saw surprised him. Instead of the normal, bright, and happy that he used to know, he saw the sunken cheeks, indicating that he hadn't been eating well lately. The dark circles under his eyes showed that he hasn't been sleeping either. The paler than usual face looked like he was sick. Akashi tilted his head, wondering if it was a good idea to let Kuroko even play today, especially since he hasn't practiced in weeks.

Kuroko glanced at his cell phone, which was in his hand. Flipping it open to read the time, he told Akashi, "It's time, Akashi-kun. Let's go," he urged.

Akashi didn't say anything except for a mere, "Yes."

The first match of the Inter High preliminaries was won successfully, 103-53. Everyone in the audience was not just wowed at the Miracles' plays, but they were fascinated by how they carried themselves. People believed that they were already professional basketball players.

Even at the preliminary stages, reporters came by to interview each of the Miracle boys on the court, including Akashi, who still led the team through his expertise in leadership and his battle tactics. Kuroko, unsurprisingly, managed to evade the reporters and not get interviewed, even though Akashi unwillingly let him on the court to unleash his power. Kuroko thought it was little mean to let him play against a weak team (Aomine's words, not his), but he didn't mind the moment he touched the ball for a pass.

"Kurokocchi, don't ever skip practice again!" Kise whined, clutching the tiny boy by the wrist.

"Kise-kun, you're being annoying," Kuroko deadpanned.

The Miracles were now in the locker room, discussing some of their bad plays (Aomine got three fouls this game - how in the world he managed them, Kuroko didn't want to know). Midorima was sitting on the bench, holding his lucky item in his right hand. Murasakibara was shoving squid into his mouth and down his throat (the smell reeked, and they were forced to pretend that it didn't bother them). Kise was holding Kuroko's hand, thinking that if he let go, he'd never see Kuroko again. Momoi was sitting on the other side of Kuroko, but reprimanding Aomine for his three fouls.

When Akashi had wrapped up his speech, he pointed at Takao, Midorima, Aomine, Kuroko, and Murasakibara. "You five are starting the next match against Kamizaki."

Aomine blinked at him. "We're playing another game today?" he asked.

Haizaki hit him on the head. "Yes, you dummy. Pay attention to the schedule, and not to your boyfriend."

If looks could kill, Haizaki would have been dead meat. "I'm not gay, you idiot!" he sputtered, making a leap at Haizaki. If Momoi hadn't held Aomine down by the collar of his sweatshirt, Aomine might have been expelled from the next game for attempting a fight against his teammate.

"Aomine, sit down," Akashi said in the sternest tone possible. Aomine, out of fear and respect for his captain, sat down immediately. Midorima adjusted his glasses, noticing a slight difference in his voice just then. "Yes, we do have another match soon against Kamizaki. I believe this is the team that Inoue is on? Am I right, Aomine?" Aomine nodded, grinning over the fact that he would finally face a strong opponent on the court.

A couple of hours later, Aomine was in the middle of the second match of the night. The scoreboard read 150-81, in Teiko's favor. The ball was in his hands, and he dribbled down the court to reach the hoop. He passed by several members of the Kamizaki team as he did this, but to his anguish, they did not react to him scoring. Instead, they stood there like statues, not even able to try guarding him from the hoop. It looked like they had given up on trying, given up on victory. The sweat running down their faces, the long practices they probably had prior to the preliminaries, had that meant anything to them?

Aomine scored, but victory meant nothing if the other team forfeited the win.

To himself, he wondered why they had given up, especially the person that he had seen as a rival. Aomine had loved the way Inoue once pressured him on the court and brought out his very best. He had enjoyed playing basketball against him, but that was the past. This was no fun at all.

Inoue laughed. "You don't get it, do you, Aomine Daiki?" he asked, and Aomine could hear the regret in his voice. "Just how much of a monster you are. Of course nobody can go up against you."

Aomine, hearing these words, started running across the court, trying to get away from Inoue. He knew that he had "awakened", in the terms that the general population would use. However, he never wanted to admit he had become a monster on the court. He thought he was just a strong player, but he was proven wrong by the person he called a rival. Inoue showed him just how much of a monster he was, and no one could contest him in a match.

"Aomine-kun," Kuroko said, holding out his fist for the usual fist bump. Aomine noticed the smile on his face, and wondered if it was for him.

"Tetsu," Aomine sighed. "It was no good after all," he said, trailing off sadly. Kuroko's mouth hangs slightly open, remembering their conversation long ago about Aomine's need for a rival. "The only person who can beat me is me." With that, he raced ahead of Kuroko, not wanting to let him see him cry to himself.

Kuroko stood there, motionless, after Aomine told him that it was all for naught. Not only had his fist bump been rejected, but he had failed in finding him a rival that he could play against. Saddened, he continued to play for the remainder of the match, but he didn't pass nor receive any balls. Murasakibara was still scoring from under the hoop and Midorima was receiving Takao's perfect passes without the need for a third party. Kuroko felt alone and unneeded on the court.

After bowing and thanking each other for the match (Kise noted the tension in the atmosphere and the forced replies from Kamizaki while on the bench), the Generation of Miracles retreated into the locker room. They slid on their sweatshirts and sweatpants right before Momoi walked inside to see them all.

"Congratulations, everyone!" she said excitedly, but the only response was a 'tch' from Aomine. No one was really in a celebratory mood. After all, victory was ingrained in their very souls by now, and getting anything other than victory was forbidden.

"Satsuki, shut up," Aomine said, picking up his towel and slinging it across his shoulder.

Momoi huffed. "Aomine-kun!" she yelled after him, not even calling him Dai-chan like she usually does. Aomine refused to even look at her as he exited the locker room. Midorima and Murasakibara watched the exchange happen, but didn't stop him.

At that moment, Momoi knew that whatever she had been doing in an attempt to change the future was failing, and she had to pick up the pace. For the first time, it hit her that the letter was revealing the future perfectly, and the contents were real. Surely, if this was what the future held, then the outcome would not change at all. Someone was bound to die by the rate they were going. Momoi vowed to change that.

After all, with every day that goes by, the Winter Cup drew nearer.

May 5: We go to Maji Burger to celebrate Akashi's first relationship with a girl. Akashi and Kuroko confront each other for the first time, and it was disastrous. Is Kuroko sad about something else?

May 7: Teiko moves into the final stage of the preliminaries, but with a cost: Aomine begins to skip practice due to his monstrosity on the court. The Kamizaki match will prove it.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Question for you all to ponder over and maybe answer in your review: What kinds of romantic scenes do you like to read? Also, rank your Miracles please.

Thank you all for reading this chapter! If there are any inconsistencies, please notify me ASAP, and don't forget to leave a review below!