Ratings: PG13
Warnings: Violence, Swearing
Genre: Angst, Romance, High School, Drama, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters in this story, living (or passed) human beings or fictional characters. These events never happened, according to history or as the original author intended them. This is a work of fiction and is not intended to offend. For entertainment purposes only. Thanks.

Also, the original characters developed in this story are that of the author's creation. They are not to be copied without written permission.

Author's Note (October 2018):

This is the first of the previously unpublished chapters and I admit I am both nervous and excited to finally release it. This chapter in particular was half-written and sitting in my documents for the past three, maybe four, years. The ideas were all outlined, but the time and dedication just went missing. I sincerely want to thank all my readers and everyone that commented on this story, followed it, messaged me and asked for updates once again. I want to give a very special shout out to Dragonblaze66 and Poseidon321 for directly messaging me and requesting that I return to finish this story. Seriously, you two lit a fire inside me to finish this story and I really am touched by how much you've enjoyed it. So thank you, thank you, thank you so, so much! And I really hope that you enjoy how this story unfolds.

- EruriFiction

Chapter 9 - Your Darkness Calls Monsters:

Wednesday, October 19th - Late Morning (10:00 am)

Akashi had taken his time to get ready before leaving the house. He was meticulous in the washroom, making sure he washed his hair and would have a dazzling, welcoming smile. After his usual warm shower, he shaved his cheeks, chin, and throat with his new, sleek five-blade razor - as had recently become a new part of his daily routine. Then he used a hair dryer and a vented hairbrush to style his crimson strands in a loosely flyaway look. Afterwards, he had used his best cologne, and - still getting used to the slight sting - he dabbed on some aftershave, before leaving the bathroom.

Finding an outfit proved to be more challenging than his routine in the bathroom. He wanted to meet Nijimura in something that was elegant and attractive, but not something that screamed 'business only.' He bit his lower lip as he stood gazing around at the various options he had to choose from in his large walk-in closet. It was dissatisfying to him each time he pulled out the exact pair of pants that would be stylish and casual, or the perfect dress shirt, only to find that he had grown either too tall or too broad to fit it comfortably. Frustrated, he threw the outgrown clothing on a spare shelf at the back of the closet, intent to remove it later. After he had narrowed down his choices, he decided to find something that was more casual to wear and decided to pair his comfortable white jeans with his cloud-grey long sleeve shirt. It was a rather stylish outfit, being various shades of white, and he decided to add a black leather belt, a hounds-tooth patterned scarf, and a black blazer overtop to create a startling contrast. As a finishing touch, and a last minute thought, he grabbed his pair of rectangular, matte black sunglasses from his glasses rack and his crimson leather dress shoes, and then collected his phone and wallet and left to meet Haizaki.

He spent the hour preparing to leave, so by the time he left the house he hadn't had time to stop by any of the shops and pick up a gift for Nijimura. He frowned, realizing he would either have to buy the gift with Haizaki or simply make the thug wait for him to be late. But being late wasn't a professional image, and Haizaki wasn't the type of man that would be very patient. He decided to go to the arcade first and then visit a few gift shops with the man before they headed to the airport.

The arcade was busy, despite it being Wednesday morning. Akashi was amazed by the amount of kids that should have been in school that he could see inside the arcade, playing games and interacting. It was understandable to him now that Haizaki was easily tempted to skip middle school classes and basketball practice in order to spend time at the crowded arcade. Akashi had lost himself for a moment watching them all, wondering what their backstories were, how they met, and why they were there, when Haizaki approached him.

"Akashi." Haizaki greeted him. He usually would greet old friends by sneering at them and taunting them, maybe even being bold enough to reach out and push them around a bit. But with Akashi he was careful, approaching him with his hands in his pockets and simply stating his name in a wavering voice.

Akashi turned and, for a moment, he seemed lost for words. He hadn't expected Haizaki to have altered his appearance so much. The silver-haired man had braided all his hair along his scalp in tight rows, creating the impression that his hair was darker and shorter than it actually was. Outside of his school uniform, Haizaki wore a jet black, zip up hooded sweater and dark grey-washed ripped jeans. A heavy grey chain hung on his left hip and a thick silver chain hung around his neck. His earrings were the same thick silver one he had worn to Teiko, matching the necklace, but they were more obvious now with all his hair braided back and worn neatly out of his face. He still wore his basketball shoes, and he had grown taller than Akashi last remembered him to be, but his hand at his mouth was the same habit Akashi had known him for and gave him the same, unique aura that identified Haizaki as a one-of-a-kind troublemaker.

"Sho-Shogo." he greeted him, stammering for once. "I...I didn't recognize you."

Haizaki grinned proudly, taking Akashi's words to be a compliment. "Really?" He asked, "It's the hair, right?" He removed a hand from his pocket and ran it over his head, his fingers running over his tight braids and showing off the thick silver rings he was wearing.

Akashi smirked, not wanting to tell Haizaki it was his entire appearance. "It is." He simply agreed.

Haizaki smiled awkwardly. He usually would pull a 'stop gawking' comment at this point, or flirtatiously try to make a move, but this was Akashi – and he was always weary of Akashi.

"My father wouldn't approve of me associating with you now." Akashi stated coolly, "Or ever. More so now. But I think that you look really nice, Shogo."

Haizaki hadn't expected the compliment from Akashi. His cheeks tainted the faintest shade of pink and he rolled his eyes. "Thanks Akashi," He mumbled, "I wouldn't really care what your pop thinks, but it's kinda nice to know you aren't totally ashamed to be seen with me."

Akashi chuckled lowly and stepped closer to Haizaki. "Well, as long as it makes you feel comfortable." he shrugged. He didn't want to admit it, but Shogo's appearance reminded him of Atsushi's recent makeover: dark colours, heavy metal, and an intimidating, almost-violent aura. It thrilled him, and he struggled to keep his attraction for this new dangerous man to a controllable level.

"Well, that's...that's rather compassionate of you." Haizaki replied, "I thought you would be personally offended or some shit." he chuckled, trying to keep their conversation as natural as he could.

Akashi smirked, "It would be appropriate for me to be. But there's something about bad boys..." He didn't finished his sentence, letting the words hang themselves in the air between them.

Haizaki was nervous, not sure if he wanted to prompt Akashi to finish what he was going to say or not. There was a unique energy between them now, similar to an electric charge, and it made Haizaki feel awkward. He gave his head a small shake, licked his thumb, and then motioned for Akashi to follow him. "Have you eaten yet? I'm starvin'."

Akashi followed him, easily stepping up to match his pace so they were walking side-by-side. "Have you got anywhere in mind? I could go for something light, actually."

Haizaki grinned, "There's a great little place around the corner from here. I used to go a lot when we attended Teiko."

"And Nijimura-sempai would find you there a lot and beat you up before bringing you back to practice, right?" Akashi teased him.

"I guess you could say that." Haizaki shrugged and a cocky smile. He found it odd that hanging out with Akashi was actually quite relaxing, and he could be his usual selfish-self without worrying about hurting the redhead's feelings or argue with him. Akashi didn't seem to take anything Haizaki said personally. "But sometimes he would join me there."

"Really?" Akashi asked. This information surprised him. "And do what?"

"Drink tea, they have a lot of kinds there. Or he would check his phone. He was nice enough to let me finish eating or watching my videos or something before he would kick my ass back to school."

Akashi chuckled. "What kind of food is there?" He asked, trying to think ahead of time as to what he would want.

"Mostly sushi, some salads. It's not really a cafe." Haizaki replied. "It's right here."

Haizaki pointed out the small building, and he was right, it was indeed close by. The venue was small, but cozy looking, and it was very adorable. Painted in light pastel colours and displaying a variety of frosted cupcakes in the glass window, it was hard to imagine Haizaki would frequent such a shop. But Akashi wasn't stupid; he could tell that the motivation for Haizaki to be in such a place wasn't the shop itself, but rather the clientele that it would attract.

"Oh, I've been here once." Akashi admitted, "Atsushi-" he paused, realizing it was one of his favorite memories from his last year in Teiko. "-brought me here after we qualified for the championship in third year." he mumbled.

Haizaki smiled at Akashi, then held the door open for him. "Good, then you should know the menu a little." he replied. He recalled the conversation he had with Kise earlier and felt oddly grateful for the blonde's gossip; without it he would have been terribly confused and probably overstepped boundaries by teasing Akashi. But he knew that it wouldn't be fair or wise to make fun of him, especially when he was helping him find Nijimura.

Akashi nodded and entered, then stepped up to the small counter. It wasn't a bakery, but rather a small lunch place that happened to serve baked desserts as well. He ordered himself a chicken teriyaki bento box, with a strawberry macaroon for dessert. It surprised him when Haizaki stepped forwards immediately afterwards, going to place his order as well.

"I'll pay for the meals, Shogo." Akashi informed him in a soft but firm voice, not wanting the man to pick up the bill himself when he was done ordering.

"No, it's fine, Akashi. I'll pay." Haizaki replied.

Akashi's heterochromic eyes widened and he shook his head. "No, no. In that case, I'll pay my own."

"Ar-Are you sure?" Haizaki replied, surprised. "I mean, it's the least I could do since you're helping me out."

Akashi nodded, "It's alright. Though, I do appreciate the gesture."

Haizaki nodded and stepped back to let Akashi pay, not wanting to argue with him. He felt bad that Akashi would pay for his own food, especially since eating out was his idea, but he was also glad. Usually he would have commented that it was less money for him to spend and shrug it off, but he felt that was strangely uncalled for, especially since Akashi and him were oddly bonding.

When Akashi had paid, Haizaki stepped forwards and placed the exact same order of him, then paid for himself. They waited in an awkward silence as their food was prepared and placed on a single large tray. They both reached to take it and the backs of their hands brushed against each other's, causing an electric charge to rush through them both. They both pulled away at the same time and jumped, meeting each other's eyes in surprise.

"Um," Haizaki blushed.

"You can take it." Akashi replied, turning and pointed out an empty table near the back of the shop. "I'll get us some tea."

Haizaki nodded and brought the tray with him to the table. He placed it down, then took a seat and picked up his chopsticks, rubbing them between his hands briefly before he began to eat.

"I actually wanted to go see if I could get Nijimura a welcome back gift." Akashi began, setting down two cups of complimentary green tea that was available for the cafe's guests. Then he sat down as well, picking up his own chopsticks and glancing up at Haizaki, "But I didn't want to make you wait for me. I had a hard time finding clothing that I didn't grow out of, so I was late leaving the house. We're going to have to stop by one of the contemporary shops before we head to the airport to pick him out a gift. I hope you don't mind."

"Not at all." Haizaki replied around the food in his mouth. "Actually, could we go half-ers on that?"

Akashi placed some food in his mouth, trying to conceal the fact that he was frowning. This was unexpected. He wasn't sure if he wanted the gift to be from both of them, and he didn't understand why Haizaki would even bother to give Nijimura a gift. At the same time, he didn't want to discourage him if that was what he wanted to do. "Sure." he replied, "I don't mind. Do you have any idea what he would like?"

Haizaki snorted, "I wouldn't really know, Akashi. Maybe a punching bag?" he laughed.

Akashi smirked, "I don't want to get him anything too ritzy." He explained, "So anything like jewelry would be too...much." he reasoned.

Haizaki nodded. "Well, should we get him something that he wouldn't have had in America?" He asked, raising one eyebrow. "Like...I dunno, something geeky?"

"I liked your idea of a punching bag better."

"Well, we ain't putting a bow on me and calling it a day, so don't give me any funny ideas."

Akashi laughed. "We can always check the shops when we get there."

"Better to narrow it down now." Haizaki reasoned.

They continued to eat, discussing an idea for what the gift should be. It was a surprisingly easy-going hang out, and both men were pleasantly surprised to have actually enjoyed themselves. Akashi was surprised by Haizaki's calm attitude, having heard from others that he was quite aggressive recently and had a direct and unrelenting disrespect towards any authority. He wondered what it was, and how much it involved Nijimura, to have changed Haizaki's attitude today.

They were both careful as they finished their food and rose from their seats, each reaching out for opposite ends of the tray. Haizaki easily took it out from in front of Akashi and carried it back to the counter, then met Akashi outside the shop.

"Where to?" He asked, checking the time on his phone. It was eleven o'clock now, so they had just under half an hour before they would have to start heading to the airport.

"Heaven's Bells?" Akashi suggested, not sure if it was the right place to shop for Nijimura or not. Still, it was a rather classy store with many different gifts for this type of situation.

"Are we gettin' him a teddy bear?! C'mon, Akashi! That's for little girls." Haizaki complained, "Let's go to Sportz, there's got to be something like a wrist band or a new hat or something we can get him instead."

Akashi nodded, "That sounds good." He replied. Now that he knew how Haizaki would behave, he was glad that Haizaki was coming with him to get Nijimura the gift. That way they could get him something that was more likely to be appreciated and used rather than something that was just be treated as another desk ornament.

They headed to Sportz quickly, taking the bus to shorten the trip. Haizaki felt weird having Akashi by his side, having obtained a lot of dirty looks from people that were assuming he was stalking him or being watched by his school sempai for misbehaving. Akashi seemed to gloat about this, finding an odd satisfaction in being seen as the dominant one in the relationship.

After heading into the store, they decided it was best to split up and combed through the entire store by dividing it in two, then meet in the middle and go through the list of things they had come up with to buy Nijimura. They were both rather fast about it, meeting up five minutes after entering with a short list of items each. They quickly discard all idea of water bottles, sports bands, and other small items he could have gotten just anywhere. As a result, they were left with the idea of buying him a shirt, which Haizaki struck down immediately. "Clothing is too personal." he reasoned, "And he could get it in America too."

Having not found anything they were happy with, they left Sportz rather discouraged. Acting on impulse, Akashi decided to grab Haizaki's hand and dart across the street suddenly, spotting a music store that looked hip and trendy. Haizaki was surprised by Akashi's boldness and his brash idea to cross the roadway without an official crosswalk, and he found himself smiling at the sudden disregard for the rules.

"You're not as prim and proper as I thought you were." He told Akashi as they entered the store, grinning down at the redhead.

Akashi smirked in return, "You're not as misbehaved as I thought you were." He retorted, teasing the thug.

They began to walk through the music store, pointing out t-shirts and various movie-inspired collector's items. Haizaki pointed out a functional pair of handcuffs inspired by a recently popular criminal action movie, but Akashi pointed out the sexual innuendo that would accompany it, surprising Haizaki with his knowledge on BDMS culture. They decided that the best thing to get Nijimura would be food, but on their way to the checkout counter with some of his favorite chocolates, Haizaki pointed out a playful table tennis paddle to Akashi. Nijimura was known to play the sport as his hobby, a means for him to combine his strength and his agility without getting too heated with drives or martial arts, so the boys both agreed that it would be the best gift they could give him since it was close enough to be friendly but not intimate. The paddle was a traditional colour scheme with a warm wooden handle, but it had a large, yellow comic balloon on it with spikey corners and the work "Slam!" in large green letters printed on the flat of the paddle where the ball would hit. As an afterthought, they added a pack of six tennis balls to their purchase, each reading a different funny thing, such as 'catch this' or 'hit me with your best shot.' They split the bill between themselves and requested that the cashier would place the items in a gift bag, rather than anything tacky and cheap, like a disposable plastic bag.

Haizaki let Akashi take the gift bag as they left the shop. He checked the time and then pointed out to Akashi that they should take the bus to the airport now. They were lucky to not have been too far away, but the trip to the airport still felt like a long one. They were quiet for the first half, not sure of what to talk about, but then Akashi had began to tell Haizaki about his horse, Yukimaru, for no reason in particular and it had worked to create a conversation.

The conversation did little to relieve them of the tension between them. Rather than feel suffocated by each other's presence due to their differences, Akashi and Haizaki were overwhelmed by how well they had gotten along. Haizaki found himself clenching his hands into fists inside his zip up sweater's pockets, and Akashi was visibly holding the gift bag handles in tight fists, as if both boys were trying to keep from reaching out for the other.

As they exited the bus at one of the busiest stops, Haizaki found himself reaching out and taking a hold of Akashi's hand to avoid losing him as they headed out of the depo. He had done it without thinking, just as Akashi had when the redhead had pulled him across the street to the music store. However, unlike Akashi, once they had cleared the crowd, Haizaki didn't release his hand. They walked towards the airport with their hands clasped together and it wasn't until they had arrived at the public side of the terminal gate that they released each other. At this point, neither was speaking and both were avoiding each other's gaze. Haizaki forced himself to break the awkward silence they had found themselves in.

"Look, uh, Akashi, what happened just now," He began, trying to find the right words to express himself. His mind felt like a heavy cloud had descended inside it, making everything seem hazy and unclear. "I...I don't really know what happened just now, or why, but I just...wanted to make sure you feel...what do you feel? I'm not sure if you think it means anything." He continued awkwardly, trying to express himself.

Akashi lifted his face to gaze up at the taller man, biting his lower lip. "Um," he mumbled, "I'm not...I'm not too sure either, Shogo." He replied honestly, feeling guilty about how he honestly felt."I am...confused as well. I just...I enjoyed it."

It was true. Akashi had liked how his hand felt in Haizaki's. For some reason it felt safe and comfortable. He still felt in control, he still felt dominant, but for some reason he also felt like he would be opposed as well, and opposition always secretly aroused him.

Haizaki's eyes narrowed slightly at Akashi's response, and then, without warning, he leaned down and pressed his lips against Akashi's. The redhead jolted away for a second, surprised by Haizaki's sudden kiss, but before the thug had a chance to pull away and realize his kiss had been rejected, Akashi leaned in and closed the gap between them once more, kissing Haizaki back.

At first their kiss was experimental, shy, and awkward. They both seemed to be holding their breath, their eyes gazing into each other's, trying to read the other's emotions. But then the energy between them seemed to increase, as if the kiss had activated a fuse and charged them with the electricity that had consumed the environment between them. Akashi closed his eyes first, then leaned in and began to let the kiss guide itself, his lips moving in synch with Haizaki's.

Haizaki groaned softly, his hands leaving his pockets as his arms wrapped around Akashi, holding him firmly. He breathed heavily against his lips, beginning to roughly move against Akashi. His arms pulled the smaller man closer to him, and Akashi wrapped his arms around Haizaki's waist in return. They kissed passionately for a moment, then pulled away.

Akashi wiped his lips with the back of his hand, feeling the heat in his cheeks and an odd euphoric rush of satisfaction. Haizaki's kiss was so different from all the kisses he had ever experienced in life so far, and he was thrilled to finally feel the passion behind a kiss. It made him feel guilty recalling all the kisses Murasakibara and him shared, and it reminded him of the one passionate kiss they shared at his house almost two years ago, in which Atsushi had been hesitant to grab him and kiss him the way Haizaki just had. He bit his lower lip, trying to figure out if he was attracted to Haizaki or if he simply was attracted to the aggressive, challenging attitude Haizaki embodied.

"Akashi,"

"Haizaki,"

They both tried to speak to the other at the same time, their voices both holding the same confused but attracted tone.

"You first,"

"Go ahead."

They both paused, having given the other the moment to speak. They both clearly felt something towards the other, the problem was they were both confused as to whether it was a serious feeling or just a side effect of not having their poor expectations of the other fulfilled.

But they were never given the chance to discuss their newborn feelings since the glass doors at the end of the terminal parted and a steady stream of people began to file out, carrying backpacks and dragging suitcases behind them. They checked the board, skimming it quickly to find out if the passengers on Nijimura's plane would be part of this crowd. To their surprise, his flight had landed several minutes ago, so it was most likely that he would have had the time to check in, collect his luggage, and be a part of this crowd.

And just as they realized this, they spotted their ex-captain's tall, toned frame walking out of the crowd. He was fast and stepped with purpose, and a wide grin crossed his face as his eyes landed on Akashi, spotting him first because of his vivid red hair.

"Akashi!" He beamed, rushing over to him. His voice had dropped lower since the last time Akashi had spoken to him and the dark-haired man was quick to let go of his suitcase handle in favour of wrapping his arms around the smaller man. "How are you?! I'm so glad to see you again!"

Akashi sighed happily against Nijimura's chest, his arms wrapping around the older man. It wasn't professional to hug his ex-teammate in the airport, but at this point Akashi didn't care; Nijimura and him had history, and he was glad to be able to hug him once again. "I missed you." He replied, "I'm alright, I've been good. How are you? How was your flight?"

"Boring." Nijimura replied with a chuckle. He had caught Haizaki's eye as he spoke to Akashi and turned to face him. "Haizaki?" he asked, his mouth dropping open in shock as he noticed his least favourite team player had grown up in his absence. "Is that you?" He asked. His tone of voice was full of disbelief and recognition, and he seemed confused as to how Haizaki could have turned into someone so devilish.

"Damn right, captain rainbow." Haizaki replied, giving Nijimura a saucy smirk.

Without any warning, Nijimura pulled back a tight fist and slammed it into the side of Haizaki's head. At the last minute, as his knuckles made contact with Haizaki's temple, he restrained himself – something Nijimura hated to do – so that his punch wouldn't knock Haizaki out cold, but still shake him up a bit. "For old time's sake." he explained, then reached out and wrapped his arms around Haizaki too, pulling him into a tight hug. "I missed you, you pain in my ass!"

Haizaki couldn't help but smile as Nijimura struck him, and he waited a moment, hesitating, before he wrapped his arms around Nijimura in return after the black haired man hugged him first. He blushed, meeting Akashi's eyes over Nijimura's shoulder as he embraced the older man as well, then stepped back and looked him up and down, sizing him up and checking him out. "I guess I missed you too, captain." he replied.

Nijimura grinned proudly. "I wouldn't have guessed." He replied, "I have to admit, I am shocked to see you here."

Haizaki rolled his eyes, toeing the carpet . "Like I'd miss this." he replied shyly.

"I like what you did to your hair. Your head looks like a basketball now." Nijimura continued, reaching out and placing a hand on Haizaki's head, laughing. He smiled warmly at him afterwards and his eyes sparkled with the knowledge that he was only joking. "No, in all honesty, I think those braids look really good on you."

Haizaki's cheeks turned pink again and he looked down, surprising Akashi with his smile of pride. "Yeah, well, they better look good on me, or else." he mumbled.

Nijimura laughed.

"We got you a little something to welcome you home." Akashi rushed in to save Haizaki from Nijimura's embarrassment. He held out the gift bag to him, and Nijimura took it from him with a soft smile.

"You guys didn't have to, that's really sweet of you." He replied, but he was grinning in appreciation and excitement as he began to reach into the gift bag. He laughed as he pulled out the table tennis paddle, and he looked to Haizaki first, and then to Akashi. "Wow, guys! This is great!" He exclaimed, "It's like I'm a superhero every time I hit the ball!" He laughed, an oddly relaxed sound from the usually highly-stressed man, and then began to read the various ping pong balls through the clear plastic bag they came in. He laughed, then hugged them both again. "How about we break open the chocolate and head home now?" He asked, "I'm so tired from being in airports and flying right now. Walking quite a distance sounds like a great idea!"

"Is the jet leg kicking in already?" Akashi asked.

Haizaki grabbed Nijimura's suitcase handle and began to drag it behind himself as the three of them began to head toward the airport doors. Nijimura began to break up a chocolate bar into pieces, before unwrapping it and letting Akashi and Haizaki each take some.

"Not exactly, but the fatigue is unbelievable." Nijimura replied. "And the restlessness!"

"How was America?" Haizaki asked him, trying not to sound like he was forcing a conversation but also wanting to speak to Nijimura as well.

"It's great! Honestly, it's...it's a lot." Nijimura laughed, "It's fun and exciting, and it's different, really different! But I mean, its had its fair share of things I dislike too. So it's been interesting, to say the least. I really started to like the music there! I don't know if you'd like it, but I have some on my phone we can listen to."

Nijimura pulled his cell phone out of his pocket, scrolled through his various music, and then began to play the latest hip hop song topping the music charts in America at the moment. Haizaki smirked, nodding along to the beat, and Akashi tried to pick on the English spoken words, but some were spoken too fast for him. They listened to the music, discussing the difference in genre and styles between Japan and America and sharing chocolate as they headed back to Akashi's house to relax together.

Wednesday morning was busy in the Kise household. Ryota's sister, Rina, was following Atsushi around as he got cleaned up, and Fuji was taking every opportunity he could to talk to Ryota. Ryota was trying to compete with Rina to keep up with Atsushi, making sure his temper was in check and that his depression was at bay. And yet Ryota was sure he was forgetting everything he possibly could forget all morning. He had forgotten his wallet in his bedside table upstairs, then he forgot his coat. Afterwards he forgot to put the milk back into the fridge, and before leaving he forgot his phone on the kitchen counter in his attempt to follow the Murasakibara's out the front door at quarter after ten, already late since they had spent so much time eating. The entire opportunity made Ryota sympathize with Akashi; over the years he had somehow managed to get all the miracles – and the rest of the first string of Teiko regulars – up and ready to leave to and from training camps, and somehow the redhead had made it look so easy. Ryota was only dealing with two Murasakibara's and Rina fangirling all over the place, and it was already a disaster. He raced back inside to retrieve his phone, thankful he remembered it at the last minute, and then had to chase Atsushi and his elder brother down the street to catch up with them.

Still, despite remembering his phone and going back to get it, Kise felt as though something was horribly wrong. He ran over the list of things in his mind that he knew were important but he knew that hadn't forgotten any of them. Still, he double and triple checked mentally to make sure they had everything they needed. And yet he still found himself feeling incredibly uneasy.

He decided it was most likely from hearing from Haizaki again that had gotten him so worked up. Prior to Haizaki's phone call last night, he was concerned for his friends but not needlessly worried sick about them. And even in his sleep he had no relief from the silver-haired man's haunting voice, which Kise took to be the biggest sign that the disturbance he felt was from Haizaki. It didn't entirely phase him that Haizaki had called him when he wanted to contact Aomine, so he wasn't sure why the conversation had bothered him so much. As Kise followed the purple-haired brothers through the streets towards the train station, he replayed the conversation once more in his mind. There was something Haizaki must've said to him that subconsciously startled him, he just wasn't sure what.

"Yo, Ryooota." Haizaki had greeted him with the usual drawl he attached to his name. Kise hated it, he always felt it was because Haizaki was high on something – or at least attempting to appear that way – that he would speak like that to him.

After a short amount of mindless banter in which the pair realized fully who they were talking to, Kise had found himself confiding in Haizaki over Murasakibara. Going over this in his mind, he still felt relatively unbothered about the conversation, regardless of the whole comparison. What he had said was rather honest and based on blunt fact, so he knew he wasn't upset that he had told Haizaki any of it. Despite the taunting Haizaki had tried to throw at him, he wasn't scared of the man's humourous threats of on-the-court victory, so the entire conversation regarding Murasakibara seemed rather innocent, and oddly enough, relieving.

Rather, he found it was the end of their conversation that had left him with a sour taste in his mouth.

"Annnyways," He had stated, dragging out the English word as a means to make it obvious that the silence was uncomfortable and he wanted to move on, "Why did you call me?" He had asked Haizaki.

Haizaki had laughed and then promptly asked Kise for Aomine's cell phone number. This was when the uneasy feeling began to return.

"No, I just want to order a pizza." Haizaki had teased him, joking when Kise asked why he wanted the number. "Baaaka. No, 'cause I saw him the other day and promised to call but I lost his number."

Despite feeling skeptical about Haizaki's reason when he was on the phone with him, Kise gave him Aomine's number, not questioning it. Sometimes Aomine and Haizaki would hang out, so he supposed this was one of those times Haizaki wanted to talk to Aomine about big-breasted women or the latest street-approved shoes. Looking back on it in hindsight, Kise wished he had pushed Haizaki for more information rather than the innocent, 'What happened to your phone, Haizaki?'

This question had taken them away from the uneasy feeling, so Kise had supposed that it was underlying concern for Haizaki that had made him feel disturbed by the phone call. While he didn't care if the man was in a fight or not, he still wouldn't wish him to be brutally injured or killed because of the image he was fronting or the people his brother was associating with. Knowing that he had gotten into a fight with his older brother's rivals made him feel less likely that Haizaki had started something he couldn't handle.

"Wait," the blonde had realized the error in Haizaki's story and called him out on it. "If you broke your old phone, how do you still have my number?"

Haizaki had chuckled. "I have it in the Teiko yearbook. Your's and a few of the other guys. Atsushi's, which I never tried. And Akashi's and Daiki's old numbers."

Those were his exact words. And at this point, walking alongside the Murasakibara brothers towards the train station, Kise felt as if he were punched in the gut by these words. And now he could realize why. At the time he had replied with a casual, "Oh. Right," merely accepting Haizaki's reasoning as it was given to him. But as he reflected back on those exact words, he realized what unsettled him.

"Atsushi's, which I never tried. And Akashi's and Daiki's old numbers."

"And Akashi's and Daiki's old numbers."

Haizaki admitted to not calling Murasakibara's number, but he had confessed in that moment to having tried to contact not only Aomine's old number, but Akashi's as well. His call to Akashi just hadn't gone through.

Kise felt himself shiver. Haizaki and Akashi hadn't gotten along much. In fact, when Akashi became captain, Haizaki had left the team, leaving his position of small forward open for Akashi to fill with Kise. It was out of Haizaki's nature to call Kise, let alone reach out to talk to Akashi. And – in this case – he had tried to contact Akashi before he had tried to contact Kise, or even Murasakibara. If he was really interested in Aomine's number, he would have called every other person possible before he would reach out to Akashi Seijuro.

Unless, he needed to speak to Akashi in regards to something that they had in common.

"Well, thanks Ryooota. You're not so much of a baaaka, I guess." Haizaki's words taunted him in his mind, reassuring him that he had discovered the reason for his uneasiness.

Rushing to keep up with the brothers, Kise pulled out his cell phone and scrolled through his contacts until he found Aomine's number. He didn't speak to him as much as he used to, so he had removed him from his speed dial, which slowed him down now. He impatiently waited for the call to be answered as the three of them were held by the pedestrian stop light at the corner of the street, not knowing what he would do if Aomine were to ignore the call or simply sleep through it. He was panicking as the call went to voicemail, Aomine's tired voice explaining he would call him back whenever he got the message.

Kise looked up at the street light, then back at his phone. They were close to the train station now, and he was racing the clock to find out from Aomine what it was Haizaki wanted from him. If he was lucky, Aomine would answer and be able to help put his mind to ease by informing him Haizaki had indeed wanted to talk about women or food or the latest NBA trend in America rather than something important and clandestine that had to do with Akashi.

He went to hit redial, contemplating calling Aomine's oldest friend Momoi if he failed to answer again, when Aomine's face lit up his screen. The bluenette was attempting to call him back.

Kise answered as quickly as he could, fumbling with his phone as his heart skipped a beat. The pedestrian light changed to walk and he hurried to follow behind the two purple giants as he answered the call.

"Aominicchi." He greeted him.

"That's my name-"

"Don't wear it out, yeah, yeah. I heard. Listen, I need to ask you something really important."

Aomine seemed taken aback by the briskness Kise displayed on the phone. "Is everything alright, Kise?" He asked, "You seem…really overwhelmed."

"Look, I don't have time to explain." Kise pushed, silencing Aomine. He bumped into a business man and turned to wave an apology, huffing into the phone as he sprinted suddenly to catch up to Atsushi and Fuji. "Haizaki called you last night, he called me before to get your number. What did he want?"

"'Zacky?" Aomine replied, his voice a drawl. Kise knew from the tone that Aomine was still in bed, having skipped morning classes to sleep in. That was probably why he missed his call. He realized he must've woken Aomine up. "He called me to ask about Shuzo."

"Eh?!" Kise gasped, "Nijimura-sempai?!"

"Yeah. He wanted to know if I knew what day he was coming into town. I said I didn't know so I gave him Akashi's new number. Told him that if anyone would know when exactly Shuzo was coming for a visit, it would be him. Listen, Kise-"

"Th-Thank you so much, Aominiichi!" Kise rushed to cut him off, "I'll call you back later, but I really have to go now! Bye!"

He disconnected the call even though Aomine had begun to babble into the phone, calling Kise's name and asking him what was going on. He scrolled through the list of recent calls he had received and selected Haizaki's number, calling him as soon as he hung up on Aomine. The Murasakibara brothers and himself were entering the train station now, heading to the lineup to pay for their train tickets.

"Pick up, pick up." Kise murmured impatiently.

He was convinced it was going to go to voice mail, but at the last minute Haizaki picked up. "Ryooota," he greeted him, "What's up?"

"I was wondering if you got a hold of Aominicchi?" He replied, his voice sounding breathless and urgent.

Unseen by Kise, Haizaki's eyebrows lifted and he seemed taken aback. "Ye-yeah, last night. Look, Ryota, I appreciate your concern but I shouldn't talk on the phone right now, I don't want to be rude to Akashi."

"Eh?!" Kise gasped, reaching out to tap Atsushi's shoulder and get his attention as he was handing Fuji money to pay for his train ticket. "You're with Akashicchi?!"

Fuji turned to face Kise at that moment, their mouths hanging open in shock. He weren't sure who Kise was talking to on the phone, only that he had managed to locate the redhead they were in search of.

"Yeah, we're at the airport right now." Haizaki replied, as if this was obvious. "I don't want to make him wait alone."

"The airport?!" Kise repeated.

"Yeah, Nijimura-sempai's plane is coming in soon, so I'm gonna let you go now. I'll call you later, Ryooota. Thanks for everything."

The line disconnected and Kise was left staring at Fuji for a moment, completely astounded by what he had just heard. He turned to face Atsushi, only to find he was no longer beside Fuji.

"Murasakicchi!" He gasped, looking around immediately. He didn't want Atsushi to have run off somewhere in some desperate attempt to locate Akashi.

But Atsushi hadn't gone far. He was several feet away, head lowered, hair in his face, speaking to a black-haired boy. The boy seemed to be saying something rather aggressively to Murasakibara, and as Fuji and Kise approached they could hear him.

"He's already changed you so much! Don't you see that this isn't who you are?!"

"And how would you know that?" Atsushi snarled, leaning down and sneering at the man. "How do you know who I am? You weren't here! You didn't know me before we met at Yosen!"

"Your family is worried about you! Your parents told me that when they told me you ran off to visit a friend in Tokyo! I'm not stupid, I know you came here to see Akashi!"

"He came here to see me." Kise broke in, noticing how angry Atsushi was getting. "I'm Kise Ryota, I'm Murasakicchi's friend from-"

"I know who you are!" the beautiful boy sneered at Kise, eyeing him up and down as if he were a threat. "I know where you met."

"Don't be rude to Ki-chin!" Atsushi growled at the boy. "Don't mind Himuro, Ki-chin. He decided to stalk me down here after Aiko told him I came down to Tokyo for a bit."

"We don't have time for this!" Fuji exclaimed, easily stepping between Himuro and Atsushi and pushing them apart with his large frame. "Atsushi, we need to leave, now."

Himuro glared up at Fuji and took a step towards him, "I need to talk to-"

"Shut up!" Fuji shouted at Himuro, gaining several glances from people passing by to catch their trains. He turned his attention to his younger brother, "Akashi is at the airport, with Haizaki. Nijimura is-"

Atsushi's eyes widened and the look on his face expressed the urgency he suddenly felt to rush to the airport. He stepped around his elder brother, grabbed Kise's hand, and began to run out of the train station and towards the airport.