Teal.
It wasn't like he started playing basketball because he was talented at it.
He started because it seemed like fun, that was all.
Mayuzumi had many things he liked, and almost all of them were solitary activities. He liked Solitaire card games, reading books, finding new novels that interest him, watch TV for interesting things and that was pretty much it.
Until he watched an NBA game in one of the local television.
It was quite an ordinary game, nothing special. There wasn't anyone strong or magnificent dunks or anything, but it caught Mayuzumi's eyes and fancy. So he thought he would try it.
From his first year to third in Middle School, he only played in a few matches as a substitute. He never even played in finals, but he liked it, so he stuck with it.
Then came Rakuzan.
At first, he thought he would stay completely the same. Play in the third-string or second a few times before finally retiring for his final exam as nobody even remembered him. He wasn't desperate for acknowledgement. As long as he had fun, he would go with it.
But then there were three members of Crownless Generals who entered the team and rose to the regulars almost immediately. That, he could tolerate. He still had fun. But the moment the captain of the Generation of Miracles entered their school, most people just couldn't handle the pressure.
Mayuzumi was one of these people. He started to feel taxed, and he absolutely abhorred the fact that he would just work so hard for something he wouldn't be able to enjoy anymore. He would just force himself and stay on the bench. What was the use of that?
Nothing. Absolutely nothing.
So he decided to withdraw, it's not like anyone would notice that he was gone anyways. He could return to his easygoing life. Back to his Light Novels, back to his TV shows, back to how it was before he had a sport he took up as a hobby...
Although, that was before he met with one Akashi Seijuurou.
Mayuzumi had thought that he was odd, actually. He heard that Teikou was full of geniuses, won't those kind people be hard to control? Even Hinata had a really tough time during his captaincy with those Crownless trio, how was he able to control all those geniuses unless he was much more than any of them? Or, was he more than any of them?
He didn't care, after all, he had found someone during the time he had submitted his letter and stopped coming to practice. His head was always shadowed by that teal-haired boy whose name he still didn't know.
He didn't care about Akashi or how he was a genius.
There was something that slightly bothered him, though. After all, Akashi had said it himself. The only reason he remembered Mayuzumi was because he was similar to the redhead's acquaintance. A lingering question entered Mayuzumi's head, but was discarded to the back of his mind almost immediately. Who was this acquaintance? Who was this 'Tetsuya' whom Akashi spoke about with such high pride?
But he accepted his offer nonetheless. As long as he liked playing basketball, he couldn't see any demerits in it. He was happy, so everything was all right.
Though, it never occurred to him that his Kuroko would be Akashi's Tetsuya.
After all, there were hundreds of people named Tetsuya, it wasn't such a rare name. But, of all people- of all people-!
"I will miss the last train if I don't hurry up." Kuroko stood up from his seat next to Mayuzumi, his fists clenched to his sides as his eyes went unusually blanker than usual. Neither Mayuzumi or Akashi made a move, both still shocked over their sudden meeting.
Kuroko was slightly trembling, Mayuzumi could see from how his fists were actually moving instead of its usual silent grace. He stood a little bit more rigidly and bowed to Akashi in perfect ninety-degrees bow. "It was nice meeting you again, Akashi-kun." His words were perfectly clear of emotion, but Mayuzumi could still hear an underlying tone of sheer hurt and disappointment. It made him wonder. Just what happened between the two of them?
"Oh, I'll walk you to the-" Mayuzumi was about to stand up when Kuroko turned 180 degrees to see him. His blank azure eyes met with his soulless slate grey in one of their usual intimate stares before his lips melt into a very kind-looking smile. "Thank you for the date, Mayuzumi-san. I had lots of fun." Then Kuroko leaned down and kissed him.
It was... not awkward. It felt like those kisses he had seen on his light novels. It tasted sweet, just like the vanilla they had in Maji burgers. Kuroko's lips were soft as cotton, although a little bit cold and dry. Scents of his favorite cocoa and Kuroko's favorite vanilla intermingled as they let their lips touch in a moment of intimacy. Mayuzumi forgot the tealhead's name for a split second. He forgot all about Akashi, he forgot his own name as he indulged in their scent mixing together...
It all stopped when Kuroko pulled away from him, face slightly red from his own actions. There weren't any emotions on his face, just like there were none on Mayuzumi save for the slightly agape mouth, but they understood one another.
Those silent interactions they had for the last two months weren't just coincidences, they were here now, feeling the chemistry that had brought them together.
Mayuzumi thought that the time was really short, and he would have given so much more just to freeze it on this moment and never watch his... Kuroko leave.
Akashi Seijuurou thought that the gods of time must have something against him for letting the clock run so much slower than it should be.
He stood, frozen on his place as he watched his Tetsuya kissed his new phantom sixth man. Could it be that this was some sort of karma that happened because he was trying to replace Tetsuya with someone else?
Tetsuya, dear sweet Tetsuya, the one who had noticed the difference between him and the former Akashi and received the highest impact from it than the others...
He used to think it so deeply that it hurts. So deeply that his head seemed to refuse to just forget about it. It kept on reminding him of things he had had. Things he couldn't ever recover. Things he thought he had abandoned...
Tetsuya.
But it was never true, wasn't it? After all, his mind kept on shifting back to its previous axis. His mind refused to think that there was a better solution than Tetsuya. And frankly, Akashi had believed it. That was why he approached Mayuzumi Chihiro in the first place, because he had reminded him of Tetsuya while his mind was bordering on insanity trying to accept that he no longer have a phantom sixth man...
That must be why he felt absolutely revolted at the sight of the phantoms- his phantoms kissing. No, it couldn't be. This was out of his predictions. And most of all, there was no way that Tetsuya would betray him. Tetsuya, dear sweet Tetsuya, had always been too loyal, too attached. That was why he could never ever let go of Aomine. So there was no way he could ever betray Akashi Seijuurou...
How about Mayuzumi, though?
He didn't have the same conviction he had to Tetsuya to Mayuzumi, after all. So Mayuzumi must have been the one who swayed Tetsuya into this.
Because Tetsuya could never betray him.
And Akashi almost wanted to thank gods of time above for letting the clock run again as he watched his phantom sixth man ran away from them. Tears glistening on his eyes as he tried to remain emotionless.
Another cold wind blew between the two Rakuzan regulars. And Akashi was about to get some answers. After all, he who never lose was always right. His orders are absolute.
Okay, I dunno where to go from here. Do you have any suggestions?
