LOVELESS
Akashi's mansion is insanely beautiful.
I had never seen anything like it before. It was exactly the kind of mansion I'd seen in pictures from fairytale books when I was younger. The chauffeur had been driving for quite a while until he steered us away from the main roads of the city, dealing with our non-stop bad carpool karaoke. Then we entered the countryside, and again, he steered off the main paths and drove down a desolate road and we were informed that this was a private road belonging to Akashi's family and could only be used by Akashi's family solely. Soon, the desolate private road led us to a large estate surrounded by massive, Olympic-sized swimming pool gardens. This was Akashi Seijuuro's home and we were on territory that I had never believed would exist nor would I have ever the privilege to step foot into. Everyone was stunned; even Aomine was astounded to a great deal. He was silent the entire journey as our car entered a path along with other black cars that was similar to ours. They must also be carrying Akashi's guests.
It was getting dark and the cars stopped one by one before the massive manor that was awaiting us. It was a beautiful building that oozed grandiose, having been designed by many architects of different cultures. There were many butlers and other servants that could be seen scurrying around, tending to the guests as they left their cars one by one and were escorted individually inside. I think my jaw dropped by the professionalism of it all. It didn't feel like a show at all...I knew he was rich, but...this was seriously something else.
Once it was our turn, Momoi and Kagami's date got out of the car together, followed by Kagami and Kuroko. Aomine carried me out of the car again and the driver had my wheelchair unfolded and waiting for me. I guess it would be more convenient to just use the wheelchair than the crutches, so they were taken away by a butler. We awkwardly joined the rest of Akashi's party patrons who all seemed to be middle-aged couples and professionals; maybe they were Akashi's father's business partners...
Nevertheless, they seemed engrossed in their own affairs whilst we entered the hall to see Kise, Midorima and Murasakibara waiting inside with their dates, standing in a small group in one corner. How cute; Midorima's girl was standing by his side, wearing a dark green dress whilst Murasakibara was standing beside a girl who was half his height with an equally petite frame. She was also dressed in lilac. Meanwhile, Kise appeared to be the only one who didn't have a date but I noticed a few well-dressed ladies in the opposite corner eyeing him up and down.
"Kurokocchi! Momocchi, Aominecchi, Kagamicchi, Nanacchi!" Kise squawked; good lord, not this again... Kise pounced on Kuroko as soon as the smaller boy was in arms' length of him.
"Ohayou, Kise-kun." Kuroko said whilst blinking blankly, and Momoi looked on with a bemused expression and Aomine and Midorima glanced tiredly at the display.
"Kagamicchi has brought a date!"
The red head gestured to himself since he was now the centre of attention. "Hah? Oh, yeah...this is Alice, Alex's niece." Kagami introduced the girl who politely bowed at us.
"Ahhh, doozo, yoroshiku, onegaishimasu, Arrisuchi! Kise Ryouta desu!" Kise was shaking the girl's hand feverishly and Kagami's date smiled in response and muttered something in English. Turning to us, Kise greeted Aomine and myself warmly. "Eh? What happened to Nanacchi?"
"Just an accident." I said as I glanced up at everyone from my seat in the wheelchair. It feels weird...everyone seems so super tall now...
A few more conversations later and everyone decided to split up into their respective pairs. Aomine naturally kept close to me, and being on wheelchair duty, he steered me towards the awaiting buffet where numerous guests moved out of our way to let us in. Aomine and I stared at the drool-inducing food on display with our mouths hanging open before he grinned and turned to me.
"Nana, are you hungry?"
"Yeah, but remember this is Akashi's party, so we must look posh and polite so not to embarrass him." I said.
"Whatever." He grunted, and Aomine started stacking food for me on a plate whilst I measly clutched a shimmering golden fork and knife in hands. No surprises here, but Murasakibara and his date were at the buffet table too. Huh, so his date seemed to have an appetite to match his despite her tiny frame; she too, like the purple-haired giant, was scooping spoonfuls and heaps of food into our plate. Smiling at each other when their plates were full to the brim, I watched them dawdling off to a table where the rest of the Generation of Miracles were seated. I smiled fondly at the display whilst Aomine returned to my side.
"Hey, look what I got for you." He proudly dumped the plate of food into my lap. There seemed to be an assortment of mini quiche, lasagne, pasta, lobster meat, sushi, sashimi and exotic looking cheese, vegetables and others which I couldn't really tell what it was.
"Thanks, Daiki. Ooh, looks so good." I said. Akashi must have 5 star chefs to cook these gourmet delicacies...
We made our way to the table once we had our food, glancing over to see Kise occupied with chatting to a few ladies in one corner. Momoi was busy feeding Kuroko food (even though he didn't seem interested) and Midorima's girl was glancing giddily at Midorima from the corner of her eye whilst their lucky items stood stiffly on the table – a garden gnome and a can of beans. Everyone began eating and there was some good conversation now and then ranging from topics such as school, basketball, teachers, my bad legs and how it happened, Aomine's new Air Jordans which I bought for him, Murasakibara and the time when he got asked by an old lady to save her cat which was stuck in a tree and the upcoming distribution of Kise's new photobook combined with his autograph session until the lights in the entire hall suddenly began to dim.
A smartly dressed, and extremely well-groomed man entered the room and immediately the guests around us stood up in their seats and started clapping. Taking the hint, our group did the same.
"What's going on?" asked Midorima's girl. "Who is that man?"
"That is Akashi Masaomi." Midorima replied.
"Uh...somehow I don't think we were meant to eat the food just yet." I added, noticing that the other guests only had champagne flutes in hands. Indeed, no-one had really retrieved any food except from us...
"Mukkun, don't eat when he's talking!" Momoi hissed, as Murasakibara stuffed a fancy-looking egg tart into his mouth.
"I can't help it...I'm hungry..."
Akashi's father took center stage and glanced around. He reminded me of my mom in some way...stern faced and...he looked strict... "Good evening and welcome to you all, thank you for your attendance today. If you are not familiar with myself, I am Akashi Masaomi, and I am humbled by your presence. Today, we are celebrating my son's engagement – " He paused when the crowd broke into applause once more, and from the left hand side, we could see a familiar red-haired young man with a beautiful girl approaching the stage. Akashi's father added, "Seijuuro, Katsumi, please come forwards."
We watched as Akashi was summoned and he stood in front of his father, dressed in an equally expensive and smart suit with red tie. Katsumi followed and stopped beside him also, and both, did a deep, very deep bow... a precise 90 degree angle. I wondered if they'd rehearsed and practiced because I'd never seen a bow as perfect or anything like it before. But after that quick bow, they rose and turned to the crowd, then also bowed. Wow...I wish I looked like Akashi's fiancée... she's so beautiful and classy. She's also very skinny and tall, so she must be that kind of person who can wear anything and look good. I could see this beautiful necklace on her neck and matching earrings. Akashi and her really suit each other... God, maybe I have a slight girl crush on her. I watched as Akashi and his fiancée returned to their spots behind the father.
Akashi's father spoke for a while longer and it was all about his business which I didn't understand much of, but the older guests were either nodding in agreement and clapping, so we did that too in the end. Finally, everyone was released to eat the food – half of which was gone by then thanks to us...as we watched the chefs and waiters hurriedly replenish the food, Aomine and I exchanged a few awkward glances whilst Murasakibara rose in his seat again.
"...Mimi-chan, I'm going to get more food...do you want to come with me?" He announced.
"Yeah, sure!" Murasakibara's date grinned and followed after him to the table the entire time.
Aomine and I continued to eat until we saw Akashi and his fiancée approaching our table. Immediately, everyone stood up once more and Akashi offered us a polite smile. "Thank you for coming today."
Dear lord, I can't get over how proper and polite this guy speaks. I was a blushing mess whilst Aomine was staring at Akashi's fiancée – she was wearing a wine red satin dress and had her beautiful blond hair fastened in a bun with loose hair over one shoulder. "Yes, thank you for coming." Katsumi echoed Akashi's words with a mesmerizing smile.
"No, no, no, thank you for inviting us! Let's do a toast!" Momoi said with a wide smile, and everyone grabbed their glasses full of orange or apple juice or milk and held it up in the air. "To Akashi-kun's engagement! Let's celebrate! Kanpai!"
"Kanpai!"
Once everyone finished clinking glasses and took sips, I nudged Aomine in the thigh, noticing that he'd been staring at her for a long time since they'd come over. Akashi exchanged short words with us before attending to other guests with his fiancée. It seemed he'd have to go around every table to thank them for coming even though he may know or not know them very well... I tried to look at his expression but he just seemed...blank.
As the rest of the evening went on, I finally saw Akashi and Katsumi finish their task of speaking to all the guests; Akashi went to join his father at the head table and Katsumi disappeared off somewhere. Meanwhile, Kagami and his date were chatting, employed in hushed tone, and most likely in English too. Ohhh, I'm so jealous of her; wish I could talk to Kagami like that too... I averted attention from Akashi to Kagami and I think Aomine noticed me staring again because he pinched me in the arm and I jerked in my wheelchair.
"Ouch, that hurt." I hissed.
"Then stop looking at that guy when I'm right beside you." He said with a scowl. "Could you not make it anymore damn obvious?"
Aomine's mood seemed to have done a complete 180 degree turn. "You were staring at Akashi's fiancée the entire time when they were talking to us." I pointed out, as he crunched on a piece of roasted prawn.
"Didn't mean anythin'." He grunted sourly.
"What the hell!" I barked, fuming. "This isn't the first time this has happened – god, I've seriously had it with you!"
I am so glad there are two sets of handlebars on this damn wheelchair – the ones behind me which are used by others to steer me around, and the ones by the wheels for my own use. I wheeled myself away from the table as quickly as I could. Stupid Aomine... I didn't want to look over my shoulder, but I couldn't hear him follow after me anyway... all I heard was a disgruntled snort and I knew he was equally as pissed as I was and wouldn't be chasing me. It was better that way; I wanted to be on my own...
I wheeled myself out of the hall and down an empty corridor, grumbling under my breath until I thought I heard a noise and stopped –
A few feet away, a door was slightly ajar, and I could hear someone talking.
"...You missed the speech, but so far, nothing else has happened. The marriage preparations will be scheduled soon."
Huh, that voice sounds a lot like Akashi's fiancée... is this where she disappeared off to? Is this her room?
I could hear her sighing now. "Yes, I know. I know I just need to put up with it for a few years, but - "
What in the world is she talking about, and to who? Since my curiosity usually gets the better of me, I wheeled myself quietly towards the door.
"No, mom, I will never like Akashi Seijuuro."
What.
What the...
I whipped out my phone from my clutch and immediately set it to record a video. I don't know why, but it's the first thing that occurred to me...
"Try to?" I heard her scoff next. "I don't like him and I never will, and I could hardly care less about his annoying family. I'm only doing this because you told me to. Aside from that, I guess it's not that bad, since I have access to all his money and as much money as I want – "
"Nana?"
Oh fuck!
Aomine! Oh god! What terrible, abso-fucking-lutely horrendous timing! The room went silent. I could no longer hear Katsumi speaking. Aomine's pounding footsteps could be heard approaching me from behind. As I hastily put my phone away and wheeled myself towards him, the door opened and...
"Who are you?"
Oh shit. Oh fuck. Fucking hell. I turned round slowly, and she was standing there... Akashi's stunningly beautiful fiancée... eeep. She doesn't recognize me? Typical, I guess. As I opened my mouth -
"Nana! There you are!" Aomine finally stopped before me and grabbed the handles of my wheelchair before glancing over at Akashi's fiancée. "Uh... were you two in the middle of somethin'...?"
I couldn't even speak. What could I say to make this situation better...? Anything that I could say will just make things worse! I avoided eye contact with Akashi's fiancée and grabbed his arm. "Aomine, I'm glad you're here. Please take me back to the hall."
He gave a dull nod, looking slightly awkward. "Nana... You're not angry at me anymore...?"
I sighed. "Look, you can be a real asshole, but you're my asshole, okay?" I said, and Aomine let out a snort of laughter and quickly leaned down to peck me on the lips. Haha... 'you're my asshole'...oh my god, me and Aomine's relationship has really transcended into something else now.
"Wait." Akashi's fiancée suddenly said, in a sugar sweet voice and now I knew that she was nothing but a fake and a liar and it was making me sick in the stomach, especially with that disgusting pleasant smile on her face. God, I can't believe an hour ago I was thinking of how much she and Akashi suited each other and how pretty was and how good of a person she must be. "Nana-chan and I were talking. I'll take her to the hall once we're finished, is that okay, Aomine-kun?"
Flashing him a winning smile, I'm pretty sure I saw Aomine go a little weak in the knees until I elbowed him again. Don't be fooled by the facade! "No, we're done talking." I said sternly, and Aomine seemed a little confused but he started steering me out of the corridor anyway and back to the hall.
"Not so fast." Akashi's fiancée quickly sidestepped around us and stopped in front of us.
"What do you want?" I barked.
"What are you going to do? Tell Akashi everything you just overheard?"
My fists were curling but then I forced myself to smile. "I'm sorry; I don't know what you're talking about." I gave her a sweet smile in response. "Now, please excuse us..." There was nothing she could say to that. Once we were a safe distance away from Akashi's fiancée, I grabbed Aomine by the arm and he moved to kneel in front of me so we were at eye level. "Aomine, we need to talk to Akashi-kun right now!"
"What?" He grunted; he seemed annoyed again, "This party is boring... we don't know anyone else here and I've gone through the entire buffet already...I wanna go home."
"Focus! I just overheard Akashi's fiancée talking to her mom on the phone! I didn't hear much, but all I know is...she's a gold digger! Her family told her to marry Akashi-kun for his money!"
Aomine stared at me for a while, cocking an eyebrow. "Eh? Why are you saying that all of a sudden? Where's your proof?"
"Right here!" I took out my call phone and replayed the video.
"I don't like him and I never will, and I could hardly care less about his annoying family. I'm only doing this because you told me to. Aside from that, it's not that bad, I have access to all his money and as much money as I want – NANA? Oh fuck! – "
Shit... looks like I accidentally recorded Aomine on the phone and myself swearing...and this is all I managed to record until Aomine came. I seemed to have recorded a lot though. Aomine glanced away from the phone to me. "Kisama...that's screwed up." Aomine muttered under his breath. For once, he genuinely appeared to be contemplating deeply. "...Nana...did you record this just there?"
"Yeah."
"And she was talking to her mom."
"Yeah. She was in mid-conversation and I heard her."
"But she didn't say Akashi's name. She could be talkin' about anyone. And why were you recording her anyway?"
"Because you were being a giant jerkass to me as usual and I wheeled myself away in a huff all the way to here and there was this door which was ajar and I could hear her talking. She said his name earlier, and it was as clear as day." I said, "...She doesn't like him...she just wants his money."
"Tetsuya. Daiki. Nana."
At the sudden sound of our names being called, we glanced over to see none other than Akashi standing at the hallway. At that moment, I choked a little and Aomine stood up. Wait, he said Tetsuya too. Eh? Kuroko was here the entire time?! We turned to our right to see none other than the Sixth Generation of Miracles, the Phantom Man himself, standing by a plant.
"K-Kuroko-kun?!" I spluttered, whilst Aomine raised a brow.
"Tetsu, how long have you been standing there?"
"Ano, I have been here for five minutes." Kuroko said. Turning to Akashi, he added, "Akashi-kun. Daijoubou desu ka."
The red-head didn't say anything, but his gaze slid to the phone in my palm. "A-Akashi-kun." I stammered out. "...Did you just..."
"Could you replay that video for me, please?" He said, calmly.
I swerved my gaze to the phone, then to Aomine, and then to Kuroko, who nodded. I pressed the button and the video started playing once more.
"I don't like him and I never will, and I could hardly care less about his annoying family. I'm only doing this because you told me to. Aside from that, it's not that bad, I have access to all his money and as much money as I want – NANA? Oh fuck! – "
When the video stopped, there was no noise. Silence. It was quiet in the hallway, and Aomine, Kuroko and I exchanged concerned glances. It was the most horrid thing I could ever hear. Akashi did not ask for the video to be played again. He had been staring tentatively at my phone for a long time from the bottom of his eyes, but then he turned away.
"I see." He said, "Arigatou gozaimasu."
Eh? For what...?
"Please excuse me, I must speak to Katsumi." He said, and he offered us a light smile and made his way down the hallway, towards the direction of his fiancée's room.
Aomine and I watched his retreating back. "Will he be okay?" I asked, "What's going to happen? Is Akashi-kun going to call everything off?"
"Because Akashi-kun is from a well-known, wealthy family." Kuroko said, "And it seems the underlying agenda of their engagement... was to bring two business partners together...I doubt he will call off the wedding ceremony in that case."
"Eh? But why? This isn't right!" I said.
"Tatsuno-san... Unfortunately, the wedding is not about Akashi-kun."
"Let's go after him!" I exclaimed, and Aomine grabbed the handlebars and steered me towards Akashi's direction. I'm not sure if Kuroko followed us. This time, we found the door closed although the conversation happening inside was pretty much audible, and we could hear Akashi's fiancée very clearly:
She said, "That I don't love you and I never will? That my mom told me to do this, to go through with this, and that I only care about your money? Yes, everything you heard was true. What did you expect? This is an arranged marriage anyway! All those marriage interviews with those girls you only spoke to for less than half an hour...they only cared about one thing and that was your money. They didn't care who or what you are. So what difference does it make, marrying me? I passed all the tests and also gained your father's favor. My mom is also a conglomerate partner! I can at least bring some kind of honor to your family. And by the way, so many guys from other business partners are dying to be with me, so consider yourself lucky... marrying me is the best thing to happen to you!"
Holy crap, Akashi has definitely confronted her about this. How could she admit it so freely anyway? This girl, even if she is pretty and on the outside she appears to be nice and sweet, she has the worse personality ever...
Akashi could be heard saying: "Yes, that is correct. We may have had a few marriage interviews and you passed my father's assessments. It was inevitable we were to marry and that you would take on my family's name... Combining your mother's business and my father's in order to grow stronger...Regardless if you and I have feelings for each other, the marriage is something we are to uphold and honor...and you should know your place."
What the - ? Seriously...am I hearing right? He still wants to go through this? Just because of his dad's business? Everything Kuroko said is true...
"You have certainly earned your worth to be marrying into the Akashi family, Morimoto Katsumi." Akashi continued. "...However, I show no mercy to anyone acting against me or those who look down on me. The choice is yours. You may bear the Akashi name as you wish, but I will ensure you do not receive a single yen out of this."
Note:
...Usually I don't wanna write sad stuff, and I probably should've just kept this story as PWP or something since it's been like that for the past chapters and there is not much plot to this fic... but I already knew that Akashi's storyline in this fic will not be one that is going towards a happy direction. Although I wrote before that Akashi's fiancee is a Mary Sue, she's ended up the actual NON-Sue of this fic in a way.