Kuroko's POV
We are on a road. The road of which all life begins and when walked on long enough, it is the road of which all things end. We do not know where the road will take us but we continue to walk blindly, filled with hope, almost stupidly. Many stray from the road but we all know shortcuts will still lead to the same end. The same road.
I walk alone. Isolated, solitary, too stubborn to follow orders from someone. I met people along the way of course. There was Aomine, Kise, Midorima, and Murasakibara. They all walk on the same road as I do; sometimes they're a little forward, sometimes farther back. But we're happy to have crossed paths and met.
From behind, I often here a voice calling out my name. A faint "Tetsuya", but when I turn around. I see nothing but the blank faces of others who walk the same road.
It gets louder every day until finally I see him. A boy with fire for hair and blood for eyes. I can't tell if he was the one calling for me but nonetheless, I wait.
From that day on, we walked together. If he was a bit forward, he would wait for me and if I was a bit forward, I would wait for him as well.
Love. Maybe that's what this was. Or maybe we were lonely souls who simply tried to fill the void with company.
Our first kiss, we were still young. I was only 23 and he was only 24. A light touch of warmth as his lips covered mine. A jolt of energy as his fingers ran through my blue hair. A feeling of love and passion as we drew each other closer.
A mistake.
It was a mistake. The feeling didn't stay for long as months passed and the amount of time we spent yelling at each other grew. He was controlling and I simply couldn't deal with it.
We left each other. Each of us going on our own shortcuts in opposite directions.
Pain blossomed in my chest as we parted ways and I always wondered if maybe he would wait for me. I met more people on my shortcut. Specifically a best friend named Kagami. We understood each other or at least complimented each other. We walked together.
It wasn't the same though. Kagami wasn't the same as the boy with fire for hair. It was a long road. I met most of my friends again and grew as a person. But somewhere deep inside me, I knew I wanted to cross paths with him again.
I walked and walked, and finally at the age of 33, I saw a man at the fork in the road. His hair red and eyes tired but holding a faint red glow.
He looked at me and smiled softly, "I was almost wondering if you were ahead. I'm sorry Tetsuya, for everything I said to you. For everything I did to you. The truth is that I need you and there is not a day that went by since the day we parted that I didn't regret my actions."
Words don't come easy. I stood in front of him at that spot for what seemed like days. But in the end, I walked into his embrace and cried tears of joy because I was given another chance to love him again.
We walked together for years. Sharing each other's secrets and stories and creating more as well. We picked up past memories on the way and were more than surprised that we had actually broken up during our lifetime. But getting through rough patches made us even stronger.
The tattoo marks on our backs grow in number with each lifetime that ticks by. Like a clock, we both know that there will be a day when the battery stops working. But until then, we continue to live through each life loving each other.
We got our 43rd tattoo when I turned 43 years old because it just seemed that hilarious to us at the time. We lived completely blinded by love. Which wasn't a bad thing.
We just didn't realize how close we were to the end of the road.
You reach the end before I do and you tell me that you'll be waiting for me there. But in truth, it feels like I'm waiting to arrive. It feels like I'm waiting to finally reach the end.
I walked and walked and walked, all alone.
I waited and waited and waited, until one fateful day, I finally saw the end of the road.
Author's Note: Prompt for AkaKuro week = Road
See you in the next life! Tomorrow is language!