To a child, parents are the ones they can turn back to whenever the world feels scary and cruel. For little Seijuurou, the case would be different since his father, Masaomi Akashi, only cared about him being the best among the best kids. The only way for him to get his attention was if he received a perfect score in school, abled to play a complicated classic music which impresses his sensei, or when his father needed to show him off as his sole heir who was perfect in everything.

Seijuurou did not hate him for that. No, he tried his best to be what his father wanted him to be. Even if it often made little Seijuurou exhausted and burdened. That was when he was glad to have his mother, Shiori Akashi. He could relax with her. He could actually be a child with her. And whenever he showed her his exhaustion of all the expectations put on his shoulders, she gave him strength, gave him kisses and compliments that could make him feel appreciated, loved, and safe.

However, lately, his mother's condition made him worry. Sure, his mother told him that she would be alright soon enough. His father, who rarely talked to him unless it was to tell him he must always be victorious, even told him the same thing. But even in their words, his mom's words especially, he could sense a hint of lies in it. Being top of his class, of his school even, made the young Akashi able to notice these things. He had read more books than kids his age, be it fiction books or non-fictions. He surely had read books on how to read people's expressions. His sensei -not the ones from school but the one his father ordered to teach the little redhead more knowledge- did make him read those books, saying it was for improving his knowledge about manners.

Nevertheless, as a naive child who loved his mother so much, the redhead boy still believed in those words. He went to sleep with no worry in his mind, only the reassuring words that his mother would recover. Thinking that soon enough she would be able to go to his matches again, to take him to parks to play with other kids, to read him stories before he sleeps, to accompany him to play piano duets, to be there again for him whenever he needed her.

So when on that day, the little boy was confused when his teacher at school told him to go to the headmaster's room. There he met his sensei saying he needed to come home with him. Still not knowing what was going on, the boy obediently followed him home.

"Okaasan desu ka?" asked the redhead as soon as he got in the car.

His sensei gulped at his question.

Naruhodo

"Seijuurou-chan, sugoku gomen ne," muttered his sensei finally after a full minute of silence with that sad look in his eyes.

With a straight look, young Seijuurou replied to his sensei, "Soudesu ka."

He rushed out of the car as soon as it stopped and hurried to his mother's room, ignoring the pitiful look the maid gave him when they saw him arrived. He stopped in front of the door of his mom's room, taking a deep breath to try to not think of that possibility.

I will open this door and she will be there. The young Akashi thought while taking another deep breath, still trying to be hopeful despite everything. That was just how much he loved his mother.

As soon as he opened the door. His father was there, sitting in a chair next to his mother's bed. Hesitantly the boy walked up to his father. And there, he saw his mother. Laying on her bed, eyes closed and pale skinned, more pale than this morning when he last saw her before going to school.

"Otousan…" hesitantly he murmured, hoping his father to notice the longing in it. But instead, his father rose from his seat and left the room hurriedly after saying he needed to settle down the matters with the funeral and all without giving the boy what he needed, a father's warmth.

The boy could only watch his father leave the room. It was disappointing that he did not get what he wanted from his father. But he was too shocked at that moment to dwell about it. Instead, he sat on the edge of the bed with tears beginning to soak his cheeks.

"Okaasan?" His little hands grabbed the hand of his mother which was no longer warm like this morning. That was when it hit him. His mother had gone. His best friend, his safe place, his reason to stay sane in this house, had gone.

Blank, darkness and emptiness. Those were what fill in his mind.

The only person he trusted, the only person he could find warmth in the big mansion that was filled with his father's freezing aura, had gone. He had lost the only place he could turn to whenever he's sad or exhausted from all the expectations burdened on his shoulders as the sole heir of Akashi company. He had lost his everything. His world had fallen apart and there was no one he could turn to.

After the whole funeral and cremation, young Seijuurou was forced to go back to his routine. His father did not allow him to grieve. He did not let the boy have free time to properly deal with his loss. No, if any, he became even stricter with Seijuurou. He ordered Seijuurou's sensei to make the boy read more books, study more languages, study more complicated music pieces.

As a good son, he followed everything that his father wanted, of course. Knowing that getting attention from his father was only possible through achievements, the young Akashi studied more diligently. He still could not really get by with losing his only place to share his thoughts, so he needed his father's attention, he needed to be able to talk to him. He needed a parent's acknowledgement.

One day, he went up to the dining room with a folder of his exam results as well as a medal from last tournament before his graduation from elementary school. There he saw his father, telling him to sit for them to have dinner. As usual the dinner went by with awkward silence. However, when the maids took away the plates and went to bring out deserts, the young redhead forced himself to start a conversation with his father. Usually, his mother would be the one to break the silence between the two during dinner and started a light conversation where she would help the boy to show up his grades and achievements and also encouraged the older man to compliment the boy. So this time it was hard for him to start off a conversation with his old man.

"Father," the boy began hesitantly, "I got perfect scores for my exams." Timidly he pushed the folder to his father.

Excited to know what his father would say, the redhead smiled proudly before taking out the medal from his pocket and lifting it high enough for his father to see. "And I won the tournament as well, otousan."

A little nod was what the senior Akashi gave to his son. This made the little boy slump back in his seat, his excited smile had gone and was replaced with a slight pout. He was clearly disappointed and also upset with that response from his father.

Seeing the displeasure in his son's face, Masaomi placed down the teacup he was holding. "You love basketball, don't you, Seijuurou?"

That question made the little boy turn his pout into a wide grin before nodding excitedly. "Yes, otousan. I love basketball." His eyes were glimmering with excitement once again. He was excited about learning why his father asked that.

"Good," the old man crossed his arms and nodded, "that means you must also win in every match. I will not tolerate it if you were to lose, Seijuurou."

Not only that he became stricter to his son, the senior Akashi also made his only son to also be victorious in the one thing he loved. Basketball. The only thing Seijuurou kept close for it reminded him of his mother. He must win in every match he took part in. Be it practice matches or tournaments, he must win.

The little redhead wanted to scream out and release all his frustration and grieve from his chest. He wanted his father to come up to him and wrapped his arms around him, holding him tightly and telling him that everything would be okay, that his mom was now no longer feeling any pain, that she would be healthy again and able to smile so bright that it warmed up the hearts of everyone who saw it. He needed his father to actually be a father to him. But no, the poor boy did not get that. He got distance as well as more burden from his father instead.

The redhead of course had no choice but to oblige to his father. Because if he did not, he would not be allowed to play basketball. He would lose the only thing that his mother left him. He would probably also be given less free time, meaning less time to spend with his friends. And his friends in elementary school were basically the ones able to make him forget about his burdens, even if it was just for a moment. Their laughs about stupid jokes in a recently released shounen manga, their ideas to prank a teacher, their excitements to play outside and enjoy the nice weather were all the ones to keep him stay sane, to keep him from acting all impulsively to stab his father for being heartless to his own child.

He had thought of that sometimes. All of the burdens and expectations for being the sole heir to the Akashi company, it was too much for a little boy. Not to mention that he just recently lost his mother and never really given time to grieve. All of those suppressed emotions stayed within him. Little by little and piling up to become a mountain, to harden like a stone in his heart that will suffocate him whenever his father gave him another lecture of how important it was for him to always be victorious. And once it reached his limit, it turned him into someone else. He did not realize it at first, for to him it always feels the same.

But then again, that person was within him and it scared him. He was worried that someday he would take over him, would control him. And eventually made him lose himself.

No, that must not happen. That will disrupt my study and everything. If I were to have my grade fall, otousan will be angry

[Who cares with otousan? That man has never been a father in the first place. We can just kill him if he ever forces us to do anything again.]

Wha-

Seijuurou quickly shook his head and slapped his cheek. "Nanda sore wa?" he mumbled and let out a sigh. He paused working on his homework and stretched his arms a little, his eyes landded its gaze to the picture of his mother on his desk. The rage that was clouding his mind disappears right away.

He reached out for the picture and mumbled, "Okaasan, anata ga inakute sabishii desu."

-fin-

First of all, this one was written for a canon character audition in an rp server. [those who know, shut the hell up :P]

Second, I apologize to all Masaomi Akashi stan out there for depicting him as this extremely rigid old man. I love him, okay. I just need him to be evil this once.

Last but not least, thank you for reading and please give an applause for those server admins who gave me the prompt for the audition. I love them and their crazy ideas. Hehe.