"Kise, you seem different."
"Mmm really?" He wasn't listening.
"Yes."
"Yeah...that's good.."
"You aren't even listening to me, are you?"
"Hmm. Wait what?"
"Kise..."
"Wha, did I say something wrong?" he slurred, shifting to his side but making sure none of the ivs moved too much.
After Aomine had left, Kise's blood pressure had rocketed up and soon he couldn't keep his lunch or anything else in his stomach. Even now at 2 in the morning he couldn't sleep, his aching muscles from the hours of nausea keeping him just far enough away from any kind of rest. Kuroko didn't sleep much anyway. Sometimes Kise would hear whimpering in the rare moments he did sleep, tossing over his bed in some nightmare the other boy couldn't begin to imagine. If neither of them could fall asleep they would spark sporadic conversation just like right now.
"Kise." Kuroko repeated, sheets rustled as he turned over to Kise's direction. "Before, before you got sick. Did something happen?"
To lie or not to lie. Either way, Kise knew Tetsu would figure it out somehow. He always had. That was one thing that made him uneasy about his friend: he could figure someone out down to their very last secret when given enough time. He was an amazing human observer.
"...No."
"Liar." was the immediate response.
Kise groaned because he was too tired to fight against the dishonesty anymore. He didn't know why, but something about Aomine Daiki and the events surrounding him almost demanded to be kept a secret, one that Kise had to keep for himself.
"Not tonight. Later, okay?" he said as he turned on his back and stared with half-lidded eyes towards the ceiling. He didn't expect his put-off to work but to his surprise Kuroko replied
"Fine. Later. I won't forget."
"Yeah, I know." Kise couldn't help but scoff a little. Of course he knew Tetsu would never forget a promise.
"But Kise listen." Kise waited for a few minutes, too exhausted to even make a sound of acknowledgement. Then Kuroko continued, "Today, I only noticed because something about you was so different. Kise today…you were glowing. I've never seen you like that before."
The air conditioner sputtered to live by the window.
Well that was not what I was expecting.
Kise shut his eyes and remembered the afternoon, how the light had filtered in through the blinds and cast perfect shadows across Daiki's face, the feel of his mouth against his, how when he touched him it felt like his body was breaking apart in the best way possible. In that moment it didn't matter that there were more tubes coming out of his arms than he could count or that even the sheets felt like stifling restraints against his skin. All that counted was Daiki and the fact that he was there: his chest and lungs, heart and tongue, everything about him was there. Kise felt a tear slid down his face but couldn't bring himself to hold it in anymore.
"Goodnight."
"'Night,"
When Aomine dreamed, the images and movements came through broken up and disconnected, like looking through a kaleidoscope. One moment it was there, the next it was gone, replaced by something else for just a second before it too disappeared. Sometimes it was hot, sometimes the leaves were falling, and occasionally the snow was just beginning to dust the ground with white. But always, always, he was there. Kise Ryota was always in every single one. Yet it wasn't the Kise Aomine had come to know in the past few weeks; this Kise was younger, his hair shorter and amber eyes wider. Sometimes all Aomine would see was the back of his head, an outreached hand, a gap toothed smile, but for some reason he knew they were all of Kise Ryota. Yet whenever he tried to reach out to grab that hand, smile back at that ridiculous grin, it was already gone. Every attempt he made to reach out slipped through his fingers like sand.
And sometimes, only sometimes, Aomine wondered why his dreams began to feel less like something his subconscious was making up and more like something his brain was trying to remind him of.
He didn't know whether to be annoyed that Kise had become all he could think about, or relieved that he finally had found something worth thinking of all this time.
The heat seemed especially unbearable today. It was only eleven and already the sidewalk was simmering with thick mirages from the sun. The air inside the hospital seemed like a breath of fresh air compared to the stifling humidity building up outside. Aomine scribbled his name on the sign in sheet and one of the nurses commented on his return (a comment he tried to ignore).
What am I even doing here again? I mean yesterday we…
Just thinking about yesterday was enough to make him shiver. What really had happened? Everything moved too fast; they talked and then he kissed him, then he really kissed him and…
Shit, this is bad.
He walked slower than he had the day before towards the elevators, sneakers squeaking on the polished tile floors. Reaching the end of the hallway he pressed the button and waited.
When Momoi had called, his mind was almost too disoriented to respond properly. All he could remember about that conversation was something about a school project and a due date but other than that he had retained nothing. He thought at first he had fooled her, but that was quickly proved wrong when the first words out of her mouth were: So, where were you really?
The elevators dinged lightly and the doors slid open. Stepping through he pressed the button for the fourth floor and stared at his shoes as the door finally closed again.
He had managed to stall Momoi off, for now. Of course he couldn't just say "Yeah Momoi I've been meeting with this guy for the past few weeks and I may or may not have sucked his face for more than ten minutes before you called did I mention he's a guy oh and by the way he has cancer". No. Never. She would either laugh and blow it off as an elaborate joke or not speak to him for a few days and right now he didn't really need either coming from her.
The doors of the elevator slide open again and just as he stepped out he found himself almost running straight into something bulky and metallic.
"Oh, excuse me."
Aomine shifted his gaze up and finally saw it was a wheelchair, and in it was a boy that must have been around the same age as him.
"No sorry. Go ahead." he maneuvered his way out of the elevator doors and around the wheelchair, watching as it rolled inside and turned around with amazing speed.
"Thank you."
What a weird voice, it's got no expression.
"Sure," he replied
The doors slide close, taking the boy in the wheelchair with them.
He seemed a little…off?
Maybe off wasn't the right word but he couldn't dwell on it now. Aomine turned and kept walking. He swept past the nurses station, thanking god that there was no one there from yesterday who would make another comment like the receptionist.
It's not like I have a choice. He asked me to come back so I did!
He turned down the hallway and spotted the door on the end. Room 411. He ignored the ball of nerves in his throat and swallowed them down, setting his feet in motion. Even now his feet kept wanting him to turn around but this time he wasn't afraid because he had seen it, he knew what awaited him on the other side of that door.
I have to do it, not just for myself but…for him too.
And this time, he pushed open the door without any hesitation.
Kise was awake, face buried in a book Aomine couldn't read the title of but dear god he looked so great with his legs sprawled out over the sheets and his tongue stuck out ever so slightly in concentration that Aomine just couldn't help himself. Almost all of the tubes from yesterday had disappeared and he looked almost completely normal. He felt the final bits of his fear evaporate as he heard the words,
"Dai-chan!"
And for the first time, he began to think maybe the nickname wasn't so bad.
ahh i'm sorry not much happens in this chapter besides the fateful aokuro meeting has officially begun (oh god) so yes next chapter i promise lots of fluffy happy aokise moments to make up for all the angst before (and the angst to come sorry not sorry)
I THINK I'VE MEMORIZED ALL OF EPISODE ONE I WATCHED IT MORE TIMES THAN I CAN COUNT TODAY OOPS (ESPECIALLY THE INTRO MY BABY KISE DEAR GOD AND LETS NOT FORGET HANAMIYA *casually drools on keyboard* ✿ ‿ ✿ )
thank you so much for the reviews Ｏ(≧▽≦)Ｏ you guys are so sweet thank for reading this thing seriously thank you!