A/N:

I'm sorry that the update is so late, I've been reaallly busy! Well, its only a few days late, but still, I apologize. This chapter also isn't as long as others, but I hope you enjoy it anyway. As always, please let me know what you think! :)

(Oh, and P.S. I don't know when the next update will be, since Christmas is coming up and all. I will try my best to stick to the deadline, but I will make no promises! If I don't, I hope everyone has a very merry Christmas, a happy Hanukkah, a great Kwanzaa, and a happy New Year!)

All the blood rushed from Akashi's face as the words slowly played on repeat throughout his mind.

'A man…with red hair…that looks like me?'

Akashi wished that those words didn't strike a cord in him. He wished so dearly that he didn't immediately know who that man was, or why he had taken Kuroko. The fact that he was so jaded that it was his own father who instantly appeared in his mind's eye crushed the red-head. It was a horrible feeling to know that the person he loved with all his heart was probably suffering at the hand of the man who assisted in his creation.

How would he ever look Kuroko in the eye again; that is, if he even could?

All the voices that had been invading his ears were now drowned out and muffled as he stood perfectly motionless. How could this have happened? Wasn't Akashi accompanying the bluenette to school for this exact reason? How useless could he be if he couldn't even protect his own boyfriend? This makes it twice now that Akashi has failed to keep Kuroko safe, and the feeling wasn't pleasant.

"…!"

"OI!"

Startled out of his stupor, Akashi turned to face an annoyed and confused Kagami. Since the red-head was lost in his own self-pity, he must not have heard what the taller boy had been saying. Realizing that not only had he just spaced out in front of the whole Seirin basketball team, but he was also fretting and pitying himself rather than jumping into action. Akashi was ashamed that he had let himself be shaken so easily. If he already knew who had Kuroko, then wouldn't it be easier to get him back?

"Hey! Are you even listening to me?" A loud voice sounded next to Akashi's ear, only increasing the ire that was steadily rising within him.

Sporting an icy glare that would rival his Tetsuya's very own, the red-head hissed out a reply. "What is it, Taiga?"

Akashi's expression probably caused the taller boy to falter, but he still bit out what it was he was trying to say.

"Geez, what climbed up your ass? What's your problem? You were spaced out like some doll or something, it was creepy."

While there was a hint of concern laced in Kagami's tone, Akashi was not pleased. "It would be mindful of you to watch your vulgar tongue around me, Kagami Taiga. Your concern, while not unappreciated, is unnecessary. Now if you'll excuse me, I must be going."

Leaving the stumped red-head in his wake, Akashi quickly entered the locker room and changed back into his uniform. His heart momentarily clenched at the sight of Kuroko's clothes and bag, but he couldn't let himself be bothered too much. If he ever wanted to get his Tetsuya back, he'd have to be calm, cool, and calculating – his father would expect nothing less.

…..

When Kuroko finally came to, he discovered that he was robbed of his vision. By the feeling and pressure on his head and face, the bluenette hazarded a guess that a cloth had been tied around his eyes. To be completely and utterly honest, it was totally infuriating! Kuroko was far from stupid, so it wasn't hard to fathom who it was who had, well…kidnapped him.

Besides the glaring fact that he was indeed kidnapped from school in broad daylight during practice, Kuroko was vexed that he was actually knocked out; and just to rub salt in his wounds, the bastard hadn't even been considerate enough to use chloroform or anything! The jackass had actually smacked the bluenette in the back of the head with who knows what, and was the reason that Kuroko literally had a splitting headache. He could feel a warm liquid seeping out of his torn skin, and the wound was currently drumming a major beat.

While it was irritating that he had been snatched in the middle of the day, Kuroko was especially irked that it happened so easily! To think that he hadn't even managed a fight, well that sure afflicted his mind…

So, here he was, blinded and disorientated after being kidnapped in broad-fucking-daylight! Like, seriously. Absolutely nobody noticed his limp body being stuffed into a trunk or something? Was this a TV show? It was ridiculous…

"Haaahh…"

Sighing, Kuroko became slightly depressed. He wasn't so much worried for his safety as he was for Akashi. The bluenette knew that this would be beyond a difficult situation for him, especially considering that this involved his father. Kuroko couldn't even imagine what it would be like if his father kidnapped his lover…partly because he knew his own father didn't give enough shits about him to pull a stunt like this…

Anyway, point was, Kuroko's heart truly went out to Akashi. Now just because the bluenette wasn't as concerned for his safety as he was worried about the red-head didn't mean Kuroko was completely comfortable in this situation. To begin with, the bluenette was never a huge fan of Akashi Masaomi, and after he was caught in Akashi's bed – you know, with Akashi – it was safe to say that their next encounter would be equally or even more unpleasant. Besides the older Akashi being a 100% purebred tight-wad hard-ass, he was also very closed-minded and unaccepting, especially with things concerning the younger red-head. For some reason, ever since Akashi Shiori died, Masaomi had been increasingly anal and pigheaded about everything Seijuurou did. Nothing was ever good enough. An A should be an A+ and a 100-20 win should be a 100-0 win. Perfect scores on tests were only to be expected, and becoming the youngest student council president was already a foreseen event.

Deep down – very deep down – there was a part of Kuroko that was jealous of Akashi. No matter what Masaomi said or did, the fact still stood that he cared about Seijuurou. Even if most of the time he was a complete asshole who never accepted anything Akashi did, at least he looked at him. He acknowledged his presence and deemed him acceptable enough to name the younger red-head his successor to his multi-billion-dollar company.

So, yes, Akashi Masaomi was a huge dick with a superiority complex that needed to be knocked down several pegs, but at least he accepted Akashi as his son. Kuroko, on the other hand, was even lower on the totem pole than a fly in his parent's eyes. To them, he was just consuming valuable oxygen and didn't even deserve to have food in his stomach.

Although the bluenette knew it was horrible of him, that ugly, jealous feeling was still present in the recesses of his mind. He knew Akashi's situation was far from pleasant, but Kuroko couldn't help it, and he felt like shit for it. Perhaps he had a complex he never knew about as well…

"Haaaahhhh…"

Another heavy sigh fell from his lips as he derailed that train of thought. Akashi probably felt a thousand times worse than he did right now, so there was no reason for this pity-party. Kuroko did say he wanted to stop being so weak, right? So, wasn't now the time to be strong, when Akashi wasn't here to protect him?

'I can do it…I'll definitely escape and get back to Akashi-kun…'

As Kuroko began his inner dialogue, his ears perked up at the creak of a metal door. The bluenette immediately slowed his breathing to feign unconsciousness, though he knew that if this person was who he thought it was then he would instantly be found out. Kuroko Tetsuya was far from stupid, but so was Akashi Masaomi. Even though the bluenette didn't care much for the older red-head, it was shocking how similar the two Akashis were. Masaomi was basically an aged Seijuurou, besides the fact that he was an asshole; oh, and the fact that Kuroko was head over heels in love with Seijuurou. Other than that, the differences between the two red-heads were very slight.

"You are fooling no one, Kuroko-kun."

The steely, cool voice that suddenly penetrated the silence was not surprising, and the bluenette had a difficult time not sighing again. He was in deep enough shit as it was, so he didn't need to irk the man any further.

"I believe the one that is fooling no one is you, Akashi-san."

Kuroko felt a deep sense of pride when all his words came out steady and controlled. There wasn't even so much as a hint of hesitation in his tone.

A deep chuckle was the next sound to pierce the bluenette's eardrums, followed by the rumble of Masaomi's baritone voice.

"I see that you fancy yourself clever, don't you Kuroko-kun?"

The question was obviously rhetorical, but Kuroko felt the need to speak up anyway. He was still rather heated about being kidnapped and all, and he wasn't about to let this man walk all over him. Akashi Masaomi had caused both him and Seijuurou so much pain, he didn't deserve to have an easy time with this…abduction.

Though he couldn't see the man's expression, Kuroko still cocked his head to the side purely for the effect. "I've no idea what you mean, Akashi-san." The bluenette was most likely walking on eggshells right now, but who cares? If Masaomi had already planned to cause him bodily harm, then it wouldn't matter much if he fought back – no matter the method – right?

The silence seemed to draw on forever, but Kuroko didn't mind. Whatever expression Masaomi was wearing had no effect on him, and he wasn't a very talkative person anyway.

Before long, a curled fist connected squarely against the bluenette's jaw, propelling his head to the side. With a little grunt, Kuroko could taste as a metallic liquid seeped from the cuts in his mouth. When the amount became too much, the bluenette spit out the sticky blood. To be honest, the whole situation was actually quite laughable. This was so very cliché, it was basically the storyline of a tv show.

You know, character A and character B love each other despite the many obstacles separating them. Character A's family is rich, the complete opposite of B's. A is an heir whose father is adamantly against their relationship, and kidnaps B to break things off between the two. Now if Akashi burst in guns blazing and saved Kuroko, the whole thing would be completed.

A small snicker escaped the bluenette's lips because of his thoughts. Biting his bottom lip, Kuroko cursed himself.

'Oh shit…I just screwed myself, didn't I?'

To be fair, the bluenette couldn't help it; the whole plight really was perfect for TV. It was a Romeo + Juliet, star-crossed lovers situation, complete with a rich, asshole father who didn't want his son with a "commoner". Even if he tried to explain things to Masaomi, Kuroko had a feeling he would only be in more trouble.

Though he couldn't see the older red-head's expression, Kuroko still turned his head away, trying to avoid the inevitable.

"I see that you find this situation to be amusing, Kuroko-kun."

'Well, duh…'

Rolling his eyes, the bluenette kept his mouth shut. Whenever he opened it, he tended to get himself in deeper shit.

"If physical wounds are of no use, perhaps it would be more advantageous to attack your mindset?"

The statement itself had Kuroko thinking. Besides Akashi, what subject could Masaomi possibly broach that would inflict any damage to the bluenette?

Letting his curiosity get the better of him – as usual – Kuroko once again opened his mouth. "Oh? And what could that topic possibly be?"

Despite his lack of sight, Kuroko could physically feel the deranged smile that appeared on Masaomi's lips. It was eerie and ominous, unsettling the bluenette greatly.

"Since you asked, I believe you would be interested to know why you are here."

Masaomi's words were perplexing, as Kuroko was pretty sure he already knew the reason he was here. Attempting to settle his frayed nerves, the bluenette supplied an answer.

"Isn't it because of Akashi-kun?"

A loud cackle escaped the man's lips as he corrected his prisoner.

"Oh, how wrong you are, Kuroko-kun…The reason you are here, child, is because your dear parents needed money for a new fix."

As the words left Masaomi's mouth, a feeling of dread pooled in the pit of Kuroko's stomach.

"Does that mean…" The bluenette couldn't bring himself to continue his sentence, but the red-head helpfully finished for him.

"Yes, indeed. Your parents sold you to me for drug money, which also means your fate rests solely in my hands. I'll be looking forward to it, Kuroko-kun."