Summary: Midorima recalls his meetings with both Akashi and Kuroko.
Takao, Kise, Midoima and Mayuzumi make a morbid discovery but they are too late to turn back now.
Notes: So, hello there another chapter of this because my brain goes brrr with the ideas for this story.
So, content warning: I guess you can say it's self-harm or rather indirect self-harm I don't know the term there are also mentions of Suicide and different forms of abuse.
The fluffy MidoTaka mellows this out...
I think...
I hope you enjoy
"Oh, Shintaro-chan it's you! good heavens, I wondered how Sei-chan's number hadn't been reclaimed yet, so you were the one keeping up with payments I thought it would be considering it was prepaid and all."
"Yes Mibuchi-senpai it's me…"
"What is it you wish to ask?"
Midorima gulped, "You see… it's I… I wish to get in contact with Mayuzumi-san…"
"Oh…" Mibuchi pauses, even with the limitations of not seeing their face he can tell Mibuchi is quite pensive on the idea.
Midorima hears a sigh on the other end.
He opens his mouth but Mibuchi cuts him off just as he was about to tell them to not bother.
"This is because of Tet-chan and Sei-chan is it not? However, you wouldn't be asking for Chi-chan if Tet-chan was not involved yes?"
He immediately tenses up.
"I am no Sei-chan, but the tenseness of your breath, how shaky it has become is my proof alone… I take it that Ryouta-chan is there with you too, yes?"
"Yes…" he says.
"So it was Ryouta-chan he decided to give it to after all…" it was a rhetorical question but Midorima would be lying if he said it hadn't piqued his interest.
Rather had Akashi considered giving the phone to him instead and if so why Kise?
Was there something he wanted to say that he just couldn't tell him?
Mibuchi sighs "Very well then..."
He calls out the number Kise diligently writes it down.
"Why did you give us the number?" Midorima asks.
"For Chi-chan's sake, he needs to let this out, he lost his cousin Tet-chan and as much as he didn't want to admit it, he did care for Sei-chan."
Midorima huffs affirmatively, "Thank you Mibuchi-senpai…"
"Chi-chan will have an interesting day tomorrow, so I really should be thanking you~ Good night Shintarou-chan and Ryouta-chan of course Kazu-chan."
"Thank you very much senpai..."
"Oh, one more thing..." Mibuchi nervously chuckled "Chi-chan he can seem a bit cold on a bad day he just might insult you... he didn't have a good time on the basketball club... I'm partially responsible for that... please be patient with him yeah?"
"Alright senpai."
They hear an affirmative hum.
He hangs up.
Akashi's father decided to help start up the Midorima chain of hospitals, unbeknownst to Akashi his father was fulfilling his mother's dream.
Akashi Shiori would entrust the Midorima family with her dream of accessible health care in the countryside.
Japan had already paid eighty percent of health care but even so, some providences in Japan were too far away from a hospital.
It was a private hospital but the Akashi family had built up a foundation that would receive traction and funds from the government.
'The families that run Japan are scary.' He thought.
According to Akashi Masaomi, public companies and their CEO's reputation is very important and scandals can tank their stocks. He didn't know what he meant but either way, it meant the hospitals would get funding whether it was from company CEOs trying to look good or a CEO doing damage control and their fathers' constant collaboration that meant he had met up with Akashi Seijuuro and just hang around together, awkwardly.
"Do you play shogi?" Akashi asked.
"Well, I do… I never entered competitions though…"
"I didn't ask that did I?"
He grunts nonetheless he replies "I guess not…"
Akashi looks him in the eye and smirks, "Let's play a match."
He nods.
Admittedly he had regretted agreeing it was a particularly long match but rather, Akashi had planned ahead, he didn't see the importance of him moving silver general. He had honestly thought it would've been an easy checkmate.
Until he realised that he had planned to promote his rook, he had also in the most awful way taken his gold general and used it against him. Placing it in a checkmate position.
"I concede, I have lost."
"You did well Shintarou, I must admit not many people actually are capable of entertaining me in shogi they are usually enraged thank you for this match."
He nods again, there is stinging at his eyes, the burning at his gullet as if someone were trying to push down on it. Defeat, he had known the feeling, whoever said that losing while knowing you gave it your all will fill you with pride was a loser his whole life and a liar.
Midorima hated lairs.
"Shogi is a game where you must always plan ahead without the opponent's knowledge. You had thought I was opening myself up. In reality, that move was to take your Golden general."
He nods. Pressured into silence he can only grit and grind his teeth.
Losing hurts.
Coming back home, he had come back to an empty house, his sister had practice with her volleyball club and championships were just around the corner, his father had an operation for a heart transplant, his mother had to perform laser surgery on a patient at the optometry section. No matter he had to leave home soon anyways.
He turns on the T.V.
"Now time for Oha Asa's daily Horoscope."
"Good news for you Cancers you come in fourth today, today will have its ups and downs ah but worry not you will be getting some affection from your partner today, things should work themselves out as long as you have your trusty wallet."
"Now for Scorpios, unfortunately for you, you are in last place, you may hear something or experience something that may make you upset, and you may even cry, as long as you have a friend or significant other to talk to and a Piyo-chan keychain you will be fine keep those heads up!"
The program is now over and switched on to show whatever anime would be airing that day.
"Today will be a long day," Midorima says to himself.
Kuroko was supposed to have music with him, it was redundant now that he had thought after he had learnt that the boy was one of his idols, the young prodigy Yoshikage.
He had been constantly reminded of that fact after he had threaded through the plethora of rhythm games Takao made him play.
There were five groups of four the group project assignment needed them to compose a song, every other session the groups would be able to use the different music rooms around the school.
He had grown tired of waiting for Takao, making his way towards building five's music room a shout rang out
"That's why you'll never understand Kuroko!"
"I don't know what you mean..."
"You piss me off!" The voice continuously boomed, "You're so damn talented yet all I see you do is hang out with Aomine and Kagami!"
Kuroko's voice was muffled but he was near enough to hear what he was saying.
"I like watching them play... is that so wrong." His tone, never changing
"If I had your talent, I'd be the happiest person alive, you are blessed by music and you do nothing!"
"I'm sorry Hiiro-kun but I see nothing wrong with me liking a sport over music."
"It takes me forever just to put together a bar it annoys me because I love music and you..."
"So that's what this is about?" His voice holding a frosty note making Midorima shiver, "You hate me because I choose to like something else rather than what I'm good at? I'm sorry that I have feelings and can be drawn to something else," Kuroko had abandoned his polite speech his words digging into the latter, Takao had told him that Kuroko was quite different when angry, that he was a force to be reckoned with but he didn't believe it, "Don't get me wrong I like music but don't condemn me for choosing something I love or having friends that play the sport I love just because I am good at something that you love."
"Just shut up what do you know!"
He hears a yelp.
He shakes himself out of his stupor just as he was about to rush in to stop whatever was escalating.
"Do it." Kuroko's voice trembles.
His blood runs cold.
"If I don't have these fingers life would be easier."
"Just do it. I'm tired."
"What the hell is wrong with you?" Hiiro screams.
He hears a fist colliding with something and several keys being pressed down making an undesirable sound.
If Midorima wasn't shocked he would've asked the same.
"You are not the first to try to break them or curse them so do it, make it that it will never heal again break it worse than the last time make sure I can't feel anything after it heals, make it hurt in the worse possible way."
"You're a freak."
"Maybe or I'm tired..." Through the crack in the door he sees Kuroko's exasperated face, the altercation must've drained him, no surprise there he had been sick all week only staying home once because his father was back from his trip, "The song is finished… Hiiro-kun can make the lyrics…"
Kuroko opens the door a bit more and he meets his face.
"I apologise Midorima-kun but may I pass please?"
He moves out of the way, and Kuroko nods to him to thank him.
Midorima makes no effort to go to comfort him, he has been told that he was not good with situations like that, he had lacked subtlety but perhaps that person can help.
"You ready Shin-chan?"
Takao's voice is like the crisp Winter morning, it blows unto him and fills him with the awareness of his surroundings, was it his voice or was it dread concerning what they were probably going to find out? He didn't know.
Takao makes no attempts at jokes.
"I was just thinking, it's not like I care or anything but that day after I told you about Hiiro, how was Kuroko?"
Takao frowns, "Shin-chan I know you, you do care."
Midorima shouts in retaliation.
"Tet-chan's cheek was a bit swollen, we put an ice pack on as soon as I saw him... I don't remember what he said exactly but one thing stood out to me... he said 'I don't regret what I said to Hiiro-kun...' man we teenagers are so dramatic." He says with an awkward grimace and a pat on his shoulders.
Their train ride was as quiet as it could be, Takao had never been an early riser they shared earbuds as he dozed off on his shoulder. He smiles.
"Shin-chan I like you."
He just couldn't get that out of his head, it was swirling around, bubbling over and filling his mind with cotton candy, his heart thumped to a lovesick rhythm, while his stomach is infested with butterflies, every time his mind replays Takao's reddened face and his shameless declaration on a warm Saturday afternoon, as he trotted off to play in the glistening water illuminated by the sinking sun, as he is left to process whatever in the world Takao Kazunari had said with his aching muscles at the mercy of his training regiment set by Akashi.
"Midorima-kun is quite smart but he's awful at emotions."
It was a Monday morning in which he had several due assignments, because sitting down for just a second, he sees Takao's face calling 'Shin-chan~' and now here was Kuroko, with his ever-blunt articulation.
He grumbles, in obvious displeasure, but just what was Kuroko doing in his classroom anyways?
"Midorima-kun you can do it, are the feelings mutual?"
"What in the world are you saying I do not like him, he's loud, he's a complete fool that laughs everywhere, and he calls me 'Shin-chan' with his infatuating voice, who the hell does he think he is, I didn't ask him to try and cheer me up, how in the world can he just smile like that? I mean doesn't he see that I don't need it," his chest was protesting for him to just stop to breathe, "he deserves someone more open than me, someone, who isn't a freak, I know what people say about me, I don't deserve to like him, I'll just be a bother." He huffs.
"Midorima-kun is selfish but is not prideful I see..."
He scowls at him, truly Kuroko should truly learn to mince his words but alas Kuroko gives him an expression akin to disappointment
"Has Midorima-kun actually considered that maybe Takao-kun likes going around picking out lucky items? you both have been on rendezvous for how long now two years? How long has he stopped complaining?" Kuroko smiles at him, "Besides you haven't answered my question yet Midorima-kun, do you like Takao-kun as well?"
'Did he?'
Takao was annoying, clingy even, boisterous, almost unfiltered, outgoing to the point it was endearing and yet he just couldn't help but feel like something is missing whenever he was not around, if he didn't see his insufferable face, he didn't feel complete, just what the hell happened to him? Two years ago, he was just fine, he was a weirdo with a stick up his ass, his body ever-compelling him to be ever so conscientious with everything he did, he was fine by himself. He was fine alone but now his solitude is constantly sucking him into an abyss of despair, he hates the sinking feeling in his chest as if his heart just couldn't stand the solitude he had grown so accustomed to.
Takao was just as hard as a worker, he practices until he vomits, and every Saturday he pulls a rickshaw hardly to make ends meet but rather for leg training all in the name of 'I'm gonna make you acknowledge me Shin-chan'
Every time he smiles, every dumb way of trying to make him laugh if for just one day he went without it he felt like just dying.
He doesn't want to see him hurt, he doesn't want to see him cry, he doesn't want to hurt him, he doesn't want to make him cry.
"Midorima-kun seem to have understood the feeling of love but doesn't know it is love."
"I..." he is speechless, Kuroko terrifies him being able to read him like a book, "I can't bear to be without him anymore..."
Kuroko nods, "then I suppose you should be careful not to leave him hanging on like that Midorima-kun, unrequited love is painful."
"You sound like you speak from experience."
"Perhaps..." the corner of Kuroko's eyes pooled with unshed tears, "or rather the person I love doesn't know who I am, they had never seen exactly how I look they do not remember my voice."
If it wasn't for Kuroko, he wasn't sure if they'd have a relationship, he was slow on social cues, and he was not the most straightforward person.
"I wish to reciprocate your feelings, Takao, no Kazunari."
Takao goes wide-eyed as if his life's wish came true.
He gives him a cheeky tearful smile, "Thank you, Shin-chan."
He scoffs at himself, he's still not good at admitting to the fuzzy feelings he gets, and he still is obsessed with many things he does simply because he cannot control it but he curses himself, just over a year ago, he was going to leave him hanging despite clearly loving him.
'Thank you for putting up with me.'
"Midorimachii!"
Of course, the awful shrilling was Kise, honestly, if he could just punch him, he would but he is no brute.
"Over here!" He hollers to them.
He groans but conforms nonetheless.
"Oh, is that Mayuzumi-san? He looks like a washed-out version of Tet-chan... it's almost surreal..."
"Mayuzumi-san?" He asked "I only saw Kise..." he does not jump but is startled when he saw the male, his presence was lacking, not to the extent of Kuroko's but it was still just as unnerving.
Mayuzumi scowls at them both as Kise nervously laughs telling him that Takao didn't mean what he said.
"Congratulations you found out that this dumb shit is a family trait." Mayuzumi was purely sarcastic, not that he hadn't made that observation when they called him, Takao was right it was surreal watching someone with such a similar face to Kuroko hiss and growl at them, if Kuroko was a bland serene monotone of a lonely beach on a spring evening, then Mayuzumi Chihiro was akin to the monotone grey sky, compacted anger, ready to burst at those who didn't notice him.
"Your hour starts now." He says with the dominance and intensity of a poltergeist.
Kise places the journal and Akashi's phone on the table in which Mayuzumi's eyebrows raised just a bit.
"This is Tetsuya's journal and that gremlin's Akashi's phone." He says taking them both, "if I remember the password for this thing is Axium Crisis."
"How do you know Mayuzumi-san?"
He scoffs at the question, "That guy would not shut up about it, apparently rhythm games posed a challenge unto him or something, the arcs using index and middle fingers are tough on that song, and he put his password in right in front of me." Mayuzumi then pulls out another phone, one that made Takao's breath hitch, "It's just what Hawk eye over here thinks, this is Tetsuya's phone."
Kise stays unbelievably quiet, until, "Uh can I just get a minute..." he did not wait for any nod or words of understanding before retreating to the washroom but Mayuzumi nods nonetheless.
Midorima and Takao ask to be excused as well, ensuring him that they will be back. He says nothing to them.
They meet him in the washroom pacing up and down outside of the stalls.
"This is too real I can't... I can't do... this... God Kise fucking Ryouta you're such a petty good-for-nothing coward, this is what you wanted... you wanted this why are you running?" He reprimands and curses himself, his trembling fingers, his busy steps and unrest breathing, Kise was on the verge of an anxiety attack, Takao was no better, he didn't look that well that morning and unfortunately, he is influenced much more than him by other's emotions.
Midorima probably thinks he's a bad boyfriend, Takao puts a hand on his shoulder, "I'll be okay Kise looks like he'll spiral, once he calms, I'll be okay, do what you need to... Shin-chan."
He nods, "just listen to me..." he says, trusting that Takao will follow along.
He observes out of the corner of his eyes as he is guiding Kise's breath, making aware of mundane things, such as the colour of the walls, or perhaps the smell of the soap, or the different appliances in the room, he sees Takao following along, he is ever careful not speaking too quickly or too loudly.
It's about ten minutes, he finally asks "Do you think you can handle talking to him today?"
Kise's eyes do not meet him, he understood why, they had one chance, they were unsure if Mayuzumi would even meet with them again, Kise cared not if he was ready or not, he will find out the meaning of the cypher, whether it kills him or not. Such a thought process terrifies him but he digressed.
"Welcome back," Mayuzumi says.
"I'm sorry..." Kise says, Mayuzumi nods.
"Do you have your questions?"
"Well... I guess my first question is one I had the very day I met you Mayuzumi-san." Kise's eyes seemed to burn with the determination of a thousand suns. The ruminants of his breakdown fading with every passing minute, no fear, no hesitation, he will find out what Kuroko meant. "Why didn't you and Kurokochii talk like cousins?"
He gives them all a painstaking sigh, "Well, it's complicated, I'm sure you're aware Tetsuya's father was an abusive asshole, rather than not communicating like cousins, he wasn't allowed to, my side of the family had been cut off over something as stupid as a house, Aunt Tsubaki and Tetsuya weren't happy about it but Kuroko Aoi-kun would make it clear if we were caught communicating something bad would happen."
"That's horrible!" Takao exclaimed.
"It only got worse, our grandmother or honestly everyone he was sheltered from, Tetsuya from a young age had shown great prowess in music, his 'father' If you could call him that guilt tripped him by telling him that he was the reason why their business was failing, you know a freaking seven-year-old." Mayuzumi pauses as he takes several sharp breaths, clenching and unclenching his fists, calming himself, "eventually after a year Tetsuya gave him the idea of monetizing his playing, in hopes of being useful to his father, instead of being a waste of time and space that leeches off him, his words not mine, Tetsuya would talk to me but only through texts or number to letter cyphers, so example '1' is 'A' '2' is 'B' '3' is 'C' you get it, whenever his father was in the country you can bet that spies were watching him making sure he was constantly walking on eggshells."
Takao flinches a bit as he mentioned cyphers, Midorima knows Takao knows something, he is no fool, when it's something this serious, Takao would rather gather as he possibly can, gather as many scenarios as possible and cross out the impossible, in the words of Sherlock Holmes, "Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how impossible must be the truth."
"The year he got seated behind Akashi, grandma died, and he wasn't even allowed at the funeral, Tetsuya protested it but from what I heard aunt Tsubaki got slapped in place of Tetsuya, his father from what I heard from what a maid told Honami-san, he told Tetsuya that his mother paid the price for him because he was 'bad child' and that he was disgusting." Mayuzumi grits his teeth, "I was only able to give him the funeral directory, that's all he saw of his grandmother who he had been so close to when he was younger."
"Why would he do that?" Kise asked for them.
"Have you ever heard the line 'you look most beautiful when you cry?"
Kise nods, Midorima and Takao stay still.
Mayuzumi sighs, "You ever wonder why American paparazzi are so inclined to sell negative news about celebrities?" Mayuzumi groans, "it's 'cause of that saying, we just love to watch the ones on cloud nine to fall hardest and struggle, you know the cliché tortured prodigy not that Aoi was adamant on trying to recreate that, not that he had to try too hard he was a total ass."
Takao decided that he'll finally say something, "Considering what you said about you two communicating through cyphers and texts, the numbers in the journal say to throw the book into the sea, my question is… why, is there some clue on his phone that could tell us the significance, it doesn't make sense if it was just some burial right."
Mayuzumi grimaces "I honest to God don't know the password, but if you said the sea was mentioned in the cypher then… perhaps…" he types in 'The sea."
The phone unlocks.
The phone continuously buzzes on the table, with every variety of messages there is.
'forum-chan/come find me.'
He feels his heart almost stop, Takao or Kise are not doing too good either, even Mayuzumi.
How could they?
When the most recognised Suicide prevention or Suicide awareness forum was on the front of his phone.
Akashi's phone lights up as well.
'Kage3101 has seen your message.' With the notification date being '5 minutes ago.'
Notes: Yes, imma take my bootleg r/suicidewatch and go.
The MidoTaka scenes in this were fun to write.
I apologise for not being able to flesh out the business stuff my knowledge is very minimal on that, I am however planning to probably do like Caribbean Principals of Business because knowledge and an easy thing to add to my passes.
Did I learn how to play shogi just because of Kuroko no Basket back in 2018 after I forked up the courage to finally watch the last game that's a secret I'll never tell... ahahaha
Yes, yes I did
As someone who grew up on chess because my family values were a lot like Akashi's, I like shogi a lot more the move sets are just more interesting and being able to take your opponent's pieces and just Uno reverse, then there's the fact that you can promote other pieces and not just the pawns. Biiiitch let me tell you, after playing shogi, chess feels so dull.
You thought I forgot about Mibuchi but you were wrong.
I love Mibuchi very much so yee, so it just made more sense to have Mibuchi's cameo when I wanted the story to focus on Midorima.
For those who wish to know yes this story's version of Midorima has OCD, I'm kind of tired of people generalising OCD like "Oh the boxes aren't laid out symmetrically I have to fix it". Like my aunt and I have OCD and I have ADHD my room is a freaking mess and My aunt's place can be a mess. The obsessiveness is really not all about cleaning, it can literally be me filing my nail down because it's too rough on the top and if there's just one rough spot it bothers me or the obsessive need to have a plate that looks even, I'm not kidding if there's one piece of lettuce too much it ruins my appetite, it can also the need to do something routinely example: you get up, you wash your face, brush teeth, iron clothing, bathe, get changed, eat breakfast, head out. Even if you will be late you have to do it you have to do everything on the list, sometimes you know that it's not necessary but you end up doing it anyways, the number of times I got yelled at because of that because we were running late and I had to do iron my clothing and ended up ironing it despite telling myself not to. Then there are times that I find myself rubbing the table and I'm telling myself to stop but I keep doing it. All in all, OCD is different for everyone.
The significance of adding the suffix 'kun' to Kuroko Aoi is a way of basically saying "You done fucked up." Sort of like when your Mom calls you by your full name including your middle name. It has the same energy as Shizuo calling Izaya.
As always thank you very much for reading.