Everyone had laughed at the idea when Kise first brought it up. "You?" Aominecchi had asked, barely holding in his guffaws. "The guy who stresses Kagami out more than anyone else in the entire city of Tokyo? You want to be his stress-relief coach?"

Kise pouted. "I don't understand why everyone thinks I'm so stressful to Kagamicchi. We get along fine."

"In your eyes, maybe. Believe me, everyone else can see very well just how stressed out you make him."

"But all the other positions are taken," Kise whined. "Akashicchi is tutoring him in math and Midorimacchi is tutoring history and Coach Riko and Hyuuga-san are doing Japanese and Momoicchi is doing science and Himuro-san is doing English..." Kise ticked each one off on his fingers, and Aominecchi blinked as if astonished at Kise's memorization skills. Which was ridiculous. Of course Kise knew exactly what all of his friends were doing at all times. This was very important. "It's a very tight schedule! Kagamicchi needs to wind down whenever he can. And I'm exactly the person to help him to do it."

Aominecchi snorted. "Whatever you say, idiot. Try if you want. It's your funeral. I guess you could ask Hiroshi-san and Tetsu if it's okay to take Kagami out to spend time with you on the weekend. For 'de-stressing.'"

Kise had beamed as if Aominecchi had just given him a ringing endorsement and encouraged him to go full out. "I will! Thank you, Aominecchi! I'll be a fantastic de-stressing coach, you'll see."

Aominecchi laughed again, loud and hard. Which was a little mean, but whatever. Kise was used to it.

Unsurprisingly, Hiroshi-san was totally on board with Kise's plan. That is to say, when Kise mentioned it to him after they had all had dinner together Friday night, he blinked and stared into the distance for a moment with his eyebrows raised, then looked back to Kise and said, "I hadn't even considered that."

"Well, you should!" Kise said enthusiastically. "Kagamicchi has been under a lot of stress lately! That's why you are making all these changes. I want to help too! Let me remind him of the fun things about living in Tokyo. He's spent too much time cooped up in the hospital, and since then he's barely set foot outside of school and this apartment besides physical therapy sessions. Tetsuyacchi told me so. He needs to get out and live while he's young!"

Hiroshi-san laughed, but it wasn't as mean as Aomine. It was just a sound of surprise, almost wonderment. Kise could hear the kindness in it. "Ah yes. I suppose you're right. Thank you, Ryouta-chan. That's very thoughtful of you. Maybe you and Taiga could do something together tomorrow. Do you want to bring Tetsu-chan with you too?"

Kise was tempted. Strongly tempted. He loved spending time with Tetsuyacchi, and here was Hiroshi-san encouraging him to do it. But no. He had to stay focused on the task at hand.

Kise shook his head, if a bit slowly and reluctantly. "No... Not this time. This is for Kagamicchi. I think it will be distracting for him to have his precious little brother around. De-stressing means de-stressing. He shouldn't be allowed to worry about anything, and that includes Tetsuyacchi."

"Ah." Hiroshi-san nodded slowly. "That's wise." He grinned, sudden and wide. "I suppose you think that you'll be a good partner for this exercise because Taiga is unlikely to worry about you, then?"

Kise wrinkled up his nose. That was one way to look at it, he supposed. "No," he said earnestly. "I think I should do it because I'll be the best de-stressing coach ever. I know everything about how to relax and have a good time."

"All right, Ryouta-chan." Hiroshi-san clapped his shoulder. "Have it your way. Take Taiga out somewhere tomorrow and show him how to have a good time. I agree that he needs to get out of the house and spend time in new surroundings. If he resists, I'll force him."

Kise grinned back and patted the hand on his shoulder. "No worries! I'm sure Kagamicchi will agree as soon as I tell him the plan. It's such a good idea, how could anyone refuse?"

Hiroshi-san laughed. "How, indeed?"

Well, by being Kagami Taiga, that was how. Kise found a moment when Kagamicchi was alone in the kitchen, rinsing some dishes in the sink, to approach him and reveal his amazing plan. And Kagamicchi laughed like he was going to die.

"You?" he half-howled, half-shrieked. "You want to help me 'relieve my stress?'"

Kise narrowed his eyes. This was becoming a pattern, he could see. What was wrong with everyone he knew? They should all be much smarter than this. "Yes. I don't just 'want to,' though. I'm going to do it."

Kagamicchi's laughter cut off abruptly. He put the dish he'd been holding down in the sink, then turned to face Kise head on. His eyes were wide. "You're serious about this."

Kise nodded. "I am."

Kagamicchi stared at him for a moment longer, then looked down at the floor and shuffled his feet. "Um, you know..."

Kise tilted his head. "What?"

Kagamicchi glanced up at him, then looked down again. "You know I don't really...like you. Right?"

Kise blinked. "Like me? You mean...as dating material? No, I know that. This isn't a date. It's a manly outing in the heart of our great city to reconnect to what makes life worth living."

Kagamicchi rubbed the back of his head. "No, not as dating material... I mean, I don't really like you. As a person. You just...rub me the wrong way."

"Oh, that." Kise nodded easily. "Yes, I know. Our friends say that you're like a cat and I'm like a dog, and I get too friendly and eager and annoy you too much." He smiled, wide and effortless. "But I don't mind! I'm sure you'll like me better once you get to know me."

Kagamicchi stared at him in astonishment again, his mouth hanging slightly open. "We've had almost three years to get to know each other. If I don't like you after all this, what makes you think that I'll ever change my mind?"

Kise shrugged. "I'm sure you just haven't spent enough time with me in the right context." He spread his arms. "So of course we have to try harder! We have to go to all sorts of places and try all sorts of things, so you can finally figure out what an awesome person I am and how much fun it is to spend time with me."

And now Kagamicchi laughed again. It was loud and boisterous, but not as incredulous and hysterical as before. "Okay, okay. Fine! Have it your way. We'll go somewhere tomorrow and you can try to teach me how to 'de-stress.'" He glanced at the living room, where Hiroshi-san seemed to feel the attention and turned around to give his son a little wave. "Besides, I get the feeling that if I don't go along with you, Dad will just make me. He's been very forceful lately."

Kise nodded. "Yep. He thinks it's an awesome idea. So we'll go! I have so many ideas."

Kagamicchi groaned. "I'm sure you do. Geez, what am I getting myself into?"

"Only good things, Kagamicchi," Kise said cheerfully. "Only good things."

Unfortunately, the first couple of tries did not go as well as Kise had hoped. The first thing he did was take Kagamicchi out to do the activity he himself found to be the most relaxing in the world: shopping. Kise loved browsing the racks looking for a shirt that would bring out his eyes or a pair of jeans that would accentuate his butt. He could spend hours doing it. And he did. Everything faded away when he could just focus on colors and styles and what looked good and what didn't (almost everything looked good, mind you, but very few items were perfect). Sometimes he didn't even buy anything. He just enjoyed the experience.

With Kagamicchi along, though, it turned out to be not relaxing at all. He was not the type who enjoyed just looking around. "When can we leave?" he asked at least five times. In the first half hour. "You want a shirt, right? Let's just find a shirt and leave."

"I don't want something for myself," Kise explained as patiently as he could. For the fifth time. "We're looking for something for you. Come on, let's try on these three shirts and see which one you like the best."

Kagamicchi stared at him like a scandalized aunt. "They're all fine. I don't care."

"How can you know that? You haven't even tried them on."

"I don't have to. They're just...shirts." Kagamicchi grabbed one of them out of Kise's hands, seemingly at random. "This...this one good. It's red. I like red."

Kise hummed thoughtfully. "Yes, I agree that it's a nice shade, and the style looks okay. But you need to try it on. It might clash with your hair. And we need to make sure the fit is right."

Kagamicchi gaped at him. "It's in my size. I'm sure it's fine."

"That's only the beginning. Come on, Kagamicchi, the fitting room is right over there." He put his hands in the middle of Kagamicchi's back and began to push.

In the end, Kise had to bully him through the entire process. By the end of the afternoon, Kagamicchi looked sweaty and harried, and the white around his eyes was permanently visible because his eyes were so wide. It was not, Kise had to admit, the most successful de-stressing outing he'd ever taken someone on.

The stopped for burgers on the way home, though, and Kagamicchi seemed to regain his footing. But Kise felt bad. As they rode the bus back to the Kagami apartment, he reflected on the afternoon and felt worse and worse. He had spent the entire time trying to force Kagamicchi, and it hadn't worked. Kise should have given up after the first hour, when it was clear that it wasn't relaxing him at all. He had been selfish, or perhaps stupid, refusing to understand that his tastes differed from his friend's. What Kise found relaxing, Kagamicchi had found stressful. He'd had exactly the opposite effect he'd intended. Surely Kagamicchi would never want to go on an outing with him again.

So when he dropped him off at the apartment, Kise stopped in the doorway. Kagamicchi treaded slowly inside and took off his shoes, then turned back when he realized Kise wasn't following him. "Aren't you going to come in and say hi to Dad and Tetsu-chan?"

Kise shook his head gloomily. "No. I'm very sorry, Kagamicchi. I wanted to help you relax this afternoon, but instead I only made your stress worse. I was a terrible coach. Please forgive me."

Kagamicchi looked surprised. "Oh, you noticed that I didn't enjoy that? I thought you were too caught up in your own fun to realize."

Kise grimaced. "I noticed. I just kept trying to force you, anyway. I thought maybe you would like it if you gave it a proper try. I should have left you alone."

Kagamicchi looked away, a thoughtful expression stealing over his face, then looked back to Kise. "It wasn't all that bad. I knew you were trying to help. And I did...want to try. It turns out that I don't find shopping relaxing, but it was interesting to see something about why you like it so much."

He turned and faced Kise fully, then spread his hands. The gesture was open and accepting, as if he was inviting Kise in. Into the apartment, into his life. It was so shocking, such a huge departure from Kagamicchi's usual attitude, that Kise blinked and almost took a step back.

"Come in and see Tetsu-chan and Dad. They'll be disappointed if you don't. I'm not angry at you. Maybe we didn't find the perfect activity to help me de-stress, but I didn't hate it. And anyway, I didn't think about any of my troubles all day long. That's a win."

Kise grinned. "Then you'll come out with me again next week?"

Kagamicchi hesitated, his forehead wrinkling. But he nodded. "Sure. Let's try again."

"Great! I'm so glad! I have so many ideas!"

Kagamicchi rubbed the back of his head. "Right. You said that."

So they kept trying. Some attempts were more successful than others.

Kise had thought the pop concert would surely be a winner. He knew that Kagamicchi liked music—sometimes he sang random lyrics while he was moving around in the apartment, and it was rare for the radio not to be on while he was working in the kitchen. But it turned out that Kagamicchi was not a fan of big, enthustiastic crowds. Halfway through the concert, he turned to Kise and yelled over the ear-splitting noise, asking if they could leave early. His voice was almost desperate.

Kise turned to him in alarm, saw that Kagamicchi looked like he was about to collapse, then grabbed his arm and hustled him out as quickly as he could. He shoved through the crowd with little regard for anyone else's feelings, ignoring the outraged exclamations that surfaced in their wake. Outside the auditorium, Kagamicchi leaned back on the wall and panted. Sweat was pouring down his face, and his eyelids fluttered.

Kise apologized, but Kagamicchi shook his head and waved a hand. "It's not your fault," he said. "I used to like concerts. At least more than I do tonight. I think I'm just...still not one hundred percent, physically. It's too exhausting for me right now. Give me...give me a few months, and we can try it again."

Kise murmured an agreement, his heart aching in his chest. He had forgotten to account for Kagamicchi's physical condition. Stupid.

The next outing, a nice walk-around in a botanical garden, went better. It was definitely relaxing. Maybe too much, though. Afterward, Kagamicchi admitted that he'd been bored. He hadn't hated it, but he had no desire to go again. So it wasn't Kagamicchi's perfect de-stressing activity, then. Kise was determined to keep trying until they found it.

Going to a cat cafe was a good idea, though. Kagamicchi liked that one a lot. "Next time I'll bring Tetsu-chan and Aniki," he told Kise afterward. "No offense, but going with just you felt too much like a date. At least we didn't order any food, just drinks, but it was still too close." Kise laughed and agreed, then couldn't stop grinning for the rest of the day. They were getting closer.

Today, they were going to an aquarium. Kagamicchi was skeptical when Kise stopped at the apartment to pick him up. "Looking at fish, really?" He put on his outdoor shoes and bumped his toes against the step. "It sounds too much like the botanical garden."

"I did research," Kise said cheerfully. "A lot of people on the internet said watching fish swim is very relaxing."

Kagamicchi huffed out a little laugh. "Yes, and you can always trust the internet."

"You liked the cats," Kise said. "Fish are animals, too. They won't be boring and just sit there like the plants."

Kagamicchi tilted his head in agreement, and they went.

The internet was right. Kise let Kagamicchi set the pace, as he had learned to do, and at first he moved quickly from tank to tank, glancing over the fish inside then moving on. But gradually as they moved further into the place, Kagamicchi's steps slowed. He spent more time looking at each species, watching them swim around, and even read some of the informative signs.

Then they came to one of the biggest attractions at this particular aquarium—a very big, very well-stocked tank dedicated to the coral reefs of Australia. It was huge, just an enormous wall of vibrantly colored fish and vibrantly colored coral as diverse and varied as the reef itself. As soon as they rounded a corner and saw the tank, Kagamicchi stopped still and stood there on the floor, his eyes widening and widening. "Wow. Look at that."

Kise smiled, though he tried to keep it to himself. "Yeah. It's pretty cool, huh?"

"It's amazing." Kagamicchi's eyes moved back and forth, following the movement of one fish, then another. He was still standing stock still in the middle of the path, and other patrons were having to maneuver to get around him.

Kise took his arm and gently tugged him over to the opposite wall, where the management had a set up a number of padded benches. Smart of them. Several of the benches were already occupied with people staring at the coral reef tank in avid fascination, but Kise found an empty one and guided Kagamicchi down to sit.

"I never knew there were so many pretty little fish," Kagamicchi said, his voice awed.

"I know, right?" Kise sat next to him and stared at the tank, too. Again, he couldn't stop smiling. "It's really cool."

They stayed there for a long time. Long enough for Kise to get bored and check his phone. It was starting to get late. Tetsuyacchi and Hiroshi-san would be waiting with dinner. Kise sent Tetsuyacchi a text to make sure they wouldn't worry.

After what felt like hours, but probably wasn't nearly that long, Kagamicchi finally stirred and turned to face Kise. "I want to come here again." His eyes were still wide with wonder.

Kise grinned. "Is it relaxing? Do you feel de-stressed?"

Kagamicchi blinked. Then he grinned back, wide and broad and joyful, wrinkling his eyes and puffing out his cheeks. "Yeah. Yeah, I do. Good job, Coach. I'm really happy."

Kise laughed. "Me too." He clapped his friend's shoulder, and Kagamicchi turned back to stare at the tank again.

"Me too," Kise whispered, just to himself. He'd never felt such relief.

It was good to know that he could help. Even if he couldn't tutor Kagamicchi, couldn't help him catch back up to where he should be, couldn't help him play basketball again. At least he could help him relax. It wasn't what Kise wanted (what he wanted was a magic wand that could instantly fix every problem for the people who were so achingly dear to him), but it was something.