Kise could tell that the words didn't sit well with Aomine the moment he noted the unpleasant expression on the other's face. And despite himself, he could help but feel his heart quicken at the notion that he still had a hold on Aomine. That hearing Kise going out with someone else didn't sit well with the power forward.
He quickly said goodbye to Haizaki before ending the call, waiting for the other to say something, but all he received was a cold silence.
"If you're wondering if I told Shougo about what really happened, I didn't." Kise explained knowing that was the only reason Aomine bothered to call him up in the first place. Despite what happened earlier, it was clear the other only cared about his reputation, and if their arrangement ever got out it would definitely affect him. Why else would he question if Haizaki knew anything?
"What?" Aomine asked.
"You called me up here to talk about him right?" Kise asked and this time Aomine seemed to catch on what Kise was referring to. "I didn't tell him about our deal. But he did have some assumptions about me being with someone. All he did was put the pieces together when he saw you today."
"You and him seem close." Was all the other said at first, and Kise could hear the underlaying accusation, as if he knew what was really going on between them. But the model didn't bother to deny anything, letting Aomine assume what he wanted. He didn't need to convince the other teen of anything anymore.
"He's a good friend." Kise admitted.
"As good as me?" Aomine asked, slowly clenching his fist, but the blonde didn't seem to notice. The tanned teen hadn't liked the conversation between Kise and his friend earlier and although he knew nothing about the type of relationship they had, he couldn't help but let him mind wonder. Clearly, the other guy wasn't afraid to flirt the blonde, even with a girl hanging off his arm, and even though most people would brush his words off as teasing, Aomine could tell there was something more there. And he wondered if Kise was playing hard to get or was just oblivious about his friends advances.
Because even if he claimed he would move on, Aomine doubted it would be so fast. Kise couldn't forget about him so easily, not when he was clinging onto him moments ago. But despite the reassurance that the model was still his, it annoyed him to think the blonde alone with that guy. If Haizaki came onto him, leaned close to kiss the model or place a hand on his thigh, would Kise push him away? Or would he try to move on by messing around with someone else? Would he wrap his arms around the other and let the teen have his way? Aomine wasn't sure, but hearing Kise easily accept a date with Haizaki didn't sit well with him.
"I'm not sure I would consider us friends, Aomine-cchi." Kise spoke up, suddenly disrupting his train of thought. "We barely know each other. In fact, even though I haven't know Shougo-kun as long as I have you, he probably knows me more."
"Well clearly you seemed interested in doing something else when we spent time together." He quipped.
"You're right." Kise admitted, knowing that he couldn't blame Aomine for not getting to know him. They had been too preoccupied. But now Kise wondered if all the lies had been worth it. Sure, they had had certain moments that didn't involve them all over one another, but he didn't fall for Aomine because of his looks, or the sex. He had fallen for the other because Aomine didn't treat him like the others. He went through life the way he played basketball, unforgivingly. And for some reason Kise admired that.
For someone that had only every done things because others wanted him to- whether it was modelling or playing sports, he had done them because he was told he would be good at it, and he was, even coming to love modelling over time, but it wasn't until he moved to Tokyo did he really find what it meant to do something for his own sake. Loving Aomine had been that.
It had been a risk, from the very start. But maybe Kise loved the challenge of chasing after someone like Aomine. Someone that was lusted over by countless girls but was never tied down, as if none of those girls were worth the effort. Kise had hoped he was. Keyword hoped.
"But maybe you didn't want to know me." Kise finally spoke up. "Like everyone else, you wanted something from me, and once you got it you moved on. I don't blame you for that-maybe I would have done the same thing if I hadn't fallen."
Kise clenched his fist as he felt his throat begin to close up, as if it was hard to admit those words. He wanted to be as indifferent as Aomine and move on, but he couldn't help but feel like a fool thinking back at how naïve he had been.
"I'm not someone for you, you know." Aomine said. "You should've known that from the start."
The words seemed to cut through Kise like a knife, and as he felt humiliation wash over him, he quickly pushed past Aomine. "I know that now."
As Kise walked toward the front gates, he tried his best to calm his heartbeat.
"Hey, you ready?" Haizaki asked as he walked towards him, a small smile on his face as he drew closer. He rose his eyebrows a few seconds later as he took in the other's face.
"What happened now?" He questioned as he noted the blush that was slowly fading from the blonde's cheeks from his earlier embarrassment. Coupled with the furrowed eyebrows and shirt that was buttoned all the way up, Haizaki could connect the dots.
"Nothing." Kise answered, clearly sounding like he didn't want to talk about it. But the gray haired teen wouldn't let him go that easily.
"Was it that guy? That one from earlier?" He asked, watching the other intently as the model's eyes widened ever so slightly that if Haizaki wasn't standing so close he would've missed it. "What happened?"
"It's a long story." Kise answered as he avoided eye contact. Haizaki noting the way the other fidgeted where he stood, as if he wanted nothing more than to change the topic.
"Good thing I have time." He said before suddenly grabbing the blonde's hand and pulling towards the gates. Kise was stunned for a few seconds as he was dragged along, but eventually as the crowds thinned out and they were far away from the school festival he felt the other let him go. Slowing down to walk next to the blonde he finally spoke up again.
"I don't care what the fuck happened between the two of you." He said suddenly, "But if you don't want people to ask about it, you shouldn't look like a kicked puppy every time I ask."
The slight jab seemed to catch Kise's attention as he turned his head to glare at the other. "I do not look like that."
"Clearly you haven't seen yourself then."
"Hmph, well at least I don't look angry all the time." He retorted.
"Oi, I don't look angry all the time." Haizaki defended, before adding. "That's just how my face is."
Kise couldn't help but laugh at the comment. "Whatever you say."
"Oi, I'm serious. I can't change my face."
"Fair enough." Kise admitted as he smiled slightly.
"So, are you going to tell me what happened? Or do I have to assume you somehow look like that on purpose." Haizaki asked again, and although Kise wasn't sure why the other care so much, he figured the teen was just looking out for him.
Besides, it wouldn't hurt to talk about it to someone. He didn't have many people to talk with when it came to Aomine, especially since most of his friends were Aomine's friends as well. And although Kise knew he could always talk to his sisters, he didn't need another lecture about making good decision.
Because in the last month he clearly hadn't.
Not only had he lied in order to get Aomine's attention, but he had even lost his virginity to someone that clearly hadn't cared about him. And that was only the jest of it. Not to mention, messing around at school, getting drunk at a party, giving the other a blowjob in an alleyway... The list went on.
So, as much as he loved his sisters, there was no way he would go to them with something like this. But Haizaki was different. He didn't look like the type to judge him about the decisions he had made. And if he did, Kise knew it wouldn't be the way his sisters would, because he could tell they would want him to stay as far away from Aomine as possible if they really knew what happened. Haizaki was someone he could trust and maybe by telling him he could start to move on. Even if his heart was still confused about where he stood with Aomine, he needed to pick himself up and start worrying about himself.
"Let's get something to eat. I'll tell you." He said finally, and the other nodded before heading towards a nearby shopping center.
Aomine frowned as he watched the blonde leave, waiting until the other was out of his site before he let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. He wanted to punch someone. He knew what he had pulled was idiotic. Especially since he had practically thrown the Kise's face afterwards that he was still clearly with Misa.
But Aomine wasn't going to let the blonde go yet. Even though he should be happy that Kise wasn't taking the rejection hard, he couldn't help but feel a little annoyed that the model had been able to move on with his life so easily. Call him sadistic, but he had hoped to see the blonde at least a little heartbroken after the weekend. Even if that meant of the blonde avoiding him, at least Aomine would understand that. But as he watched Kise easily make friends with his classmates only a few days later, it made him more than a little annoyed.
Wasn't Kise supposed be heartbroken?
He didn't doubt the other had developed feelings for him over the past few weeks. Especially after the confession, but that didn't mean Kise was the type to let his feelings affect him for long. He could just as easily fall for someone else if Aomine let him go, and the thought pissed him off more than anything.
Kise was still his.
As selfish and possessive as it sounded, he wouldn't let the other go. Especially not to that guy from earlier. But as Aomine walked towards the window, looking down to see the courtyard of the school filled with people going from booth to booth, a mop of blonde hair caught his eye. Kise was walking slowly, pushing through the crowd until he was a few feet away from the front gate.
The teen from earlier approached the blonde, coming close enough look into the other's eyes and Aomine clenched his fist as he saw how close they were. Clearly, Kise didn't mind how familiar the other was being. He watched for a few minutes until suddenly the gray haired teen grabbed Kise's hand and pulled him towards the front gate, quickly slipping out of slight a few seconds later.
Aomine frowned at the action, annoyed that Kise hadn't pulled away the moment the other touched him. The sense of familiarity was clearly evident and although he knew that that didn't mean anything more was going on, he couldn't help wonder.
The following day Kise spent most of the day avoiding Aomine. Luckily, aside from the shifts he had with the other, they didn't really see one another. In fact, Kise knew the other was too busy with his girlfriend as Misa had arrived a few minutes after their shifts had ended and dragged him off somewhere. Kise had pretended the scene didn't bother him, but there was something about seeing the happy smile on the girl's face that made him want to leave the room.
He knew he didn't have any reason to have anything against the girl-if anything he should be mad at Aomine, and he was- but he couldn't help but feel a little off when he was around her. She seemed superficial, if Kise was being honest. When he looked at her when she was with Aomine it seemed that she was more concerned about the watchful eyes of their classmates than the teen.
Moreover, she didn't look like the time that would have anything in common with Aomine. All in all, despite her pretty face and obvious well-endowed body, she didn't seem like Aomine's type.
So why was the power forward dating her?
Did he really only care about the sex? Kise probably figured that was one reason because clearly they were compatible. But, couldn't Aomine get that from anyone? He only figured there were plenty of girls willing to try their luck and sleep with him. So besides sex, what else did he like about her? Kise didn't know, and he knew he shouldn't care, but for some reason he couldn't help but wonder if he was missing something.
"Oi, Kise-kun, did you want to go now?" Someone called out and the blonde turned to see the boys he had befriended walking over.
"Yeah, let's go." He answered. They were nice and as they quickly headed out to visit the different classes, he finally begun to feel a little bit better. Before, his life was so deeply intertwined with Aomine's that he couldn't think of a day he hadn't gone without talking to the other in some way. But now, he was making friends, getting to know other people in his class and starting to enjoy his school life a little more.
Which made his day a little easier.
Unfortunately, Kise didn't realize that although things were looking up now, by the end of the week they would be anything but good.