sorry for the delay of this chapter- I was busy with assignments and I did sorta procrastinate on this...OTL
well...I'm not that good at romantic scenes so I apologize if you didn't like the lack of romance?
this marks the end of this story~ (?)
Thanks for reading! ^^
It was only 2 days since she stayed in the hospital but the doctor already permitted her leaving since her wound healed faster than expected. Akashi came by and together they left the building after doing the necessary things only to be greeted by Mibuchi, Hayama & Nebuya.
"congratulations on finally getting discharged, Shizu-chan~"
"thanks, Reo-senpai"
"a re? Why is Shizu-chan calling Reo-nee 'Reo-senpai'?"
"Can't I?"
"no one said you can't…"
"ara Sei-chan. Is this jealousy I sense?"
"no. It's just your imagination."
"tsundere Akashi…."
"did you say something, Shizune?"
"nothing important…~"
Hayama saw the opportunity to have some fun and playfully slung an arm over the girl's shoulder before suggesting them to go on a little trip down town to get their stomachs filled with ramen. Nebuya immediately agreed and Shizune, who was feeling very hungry because the hospital food never really filled her up, looked at the other three boys who weren't in the mood for ramen with puppy dog eyes— which she perfected just in case —to make them agree.
First to fall was Mibuchi who did all he could to persuade Akashi— who was sort of fuming despite that poker face of his —& Mayuzumi to go grab a bite outside. The look of satisfaction made its way on the raven haired male's face when his junior and senior reluctantly agreed to the idea and they started to head off to the nearest ramen shop.
"A-Akashi…?"
"come on, Kotarou. Open wide."
"b-but that's the super spicy ramen—"
"Open wide, Kotarou. That's an order."
"uh..f-fine…"
A scream was soon heard after Hayama swallowed the spicy ramen which Akashi purposely ordered and forcefully made him eat. Call it revenge for touching what was his. The blonde hurriedly gurgled the glass of water next to his bowl of miso ramen and let out a relieved sigh when the pain from the spiciness of the ramen subsided.
He knew Akashi would get pissed off and give him some kind of punishment but to think that he would go to that extent. Well, there was a way he could do to get back at the redhead and he wasn't afraid of using it. Hayama hid himself partially behind the brunette and pretended to be a scared child.
"Shizu-chan, Akashi's being a meanie…"
"Akashi. Stop it."
Though she scolded him (or attempted to), her attention was more to the bowl of spicy ramen— but not as spicy as the one Akashi fed to Hayama —in front of her. This made the blonde puff out his cheeks in protest and sulking-ly eat his ramen. Mibuchi chuckled fondly and gracefully took a sip of his tea.
"you should go easy on him, Shizu-chan. He still has the mentality of a child~"
"Reo-nee!"
"haha…true"
"not you too, Shizu-chan!"
"oi, can you guys shut up? Tryin` to eat here"
"Eikichi should at least try to take my side!"
"fuckin` bastards so noisy I can't even enjoy my food…"
"geez, Chihiro…."
He whined, pretending to tear up. Akashi, who was silently eating the super spicy ramen without breathing out fire like a dragon, watched the four continue their little childish play. A hint of nostalgia hit him as the scene reminded him of his days in Teiko. Back when they were still playing basketball just for fun…When they were all just normal kids…
{{ "you should stop picking on Kise-kun. He's still immature after all."
"Kurokocchi!"
"ahahaha! I agree with that Tetsu!"
"Aominecchi, not you too!"
"could you guys be a little quieter? I'm trying to concentrate on my next move here…"
"Midorimacchi should at least help me here!"
"mm…Kise-chin…you're so noisy…"
"Murasakicchi…."
"now, now. Do not be so rowdy. You will ruin Midorima's attempt to win against me."
"what's with that way of saying it, Akashi…?!"
"my, forgive me"
"but what Akashicchi said was true. Midorimacchi might never be able to win against him"
"Kise. Today's lucky item is a container of earthworms, might I remind you."
"gek. Gross…"
"Midorima-kun, you have been walking around with worms…?"
"yes."
"..."
"oute."
"ah!"
"Akashicchi wins again~"
"dammit Akashi…"
"calm down, Midorima. There's always a next time" }}
.
.
.
"next time.."
"hm? Did you say something, Sei-chan?"
"ah, it's nothing."
There was never a next time. After they changed, all the activity they used to do together ceased. Though they sometimes took contact with each other, they weren't as close as before. Akashi shook his head slowly, stopping his thoughts. Did he miss the days they spent in Teiko? If so, why does he feel it now?
Tsk..how bothersome…
"oh that's right. Sei-chan, make sure you keep your schedule for this weekend open"
"..what for?"
"the Christmas party, remember?~"
"ah, yes..I'll do so"
"also," the raven-haired male held the female beside him by the shoulder and smiled. "I'll be borrowing Shizu-chan until the day of the party if that's fine with you~"
"you do not need to ask permission from me. If the person herself agrees then do as you like."
""cold…."" Shizune & Hayama muttered to themselves.
After the six finished eating, Mibuchi and his two juniors parted ways with Akashi & the other two and they headed off to the raven-haired male's place after taking a pit stop at the store. Unknown to Akashi, there wasn't a Christmas party happening. It was a different event. An event that Akashi might not even give much attention to.
"Shizu-chan, have you told them about it?"
"yup. And they all said they'd come"
"that's great~ I was worried whether if they would decline…"
"it's their captain's special day. Why would they?"
"I guess so" he chuckled.
"Reo-nee! Everything's set!"
"ah, good work, Hayama"
"say, don't you think we're setting up things a little too early?"
"oh hush. It doesn't hurt to be prepared. Besides, it's only 2 days away"
"hmm~ Guess so!"
"hello, father."
"yes, about what you requested a few days back…"
"I forgive you."
"yes..un."
"I'll see you in a week's time then..bye."
20/12
The day that Akashi really didn't find to his liking came. It's the day where those he know get to excited and start giving him text messages congratulating him. Sure he was happy they remembered but to him it was just like any other day. He always thought he could get away from ever having the need to celebrate but the strange glint in the cerulean eyes of hers when she came that evening made it certain that it was quite the opposite.
"Akashi. Come."
"explain why I should—"
"just come"
The redhead was dragged off by the rather excited brunette out of the comfort of his warm room to the cold streets of Kyoto. Akashi had always made a point to stay inside the mansion during the holiday season so that he could avoid any 'fun' vibes from the surrounding. A certain blonde had commented that he was being unreasonable but hey, between the freezing outside atmosphere and the warmth of your room, you'd choose warmth, yes?
"Reo's…"
He muttered when they arrived at a huge residence with the nameplate 'Mibuchi' on the front gate. He knew that the senior lived in a large place but it was larger than he expected. Akashi was about to inquire why they were here when the man of the house came out of the place and excitedly grabbed his hand.
"Sei-chan! We've been waiting~"
" 'we'? "
Not answering his question, Mibuchi gently pulled Akashi in and instantly towards the living room. He was at the point to demand what was happening but ceased when multi-coloured hairs sitting together, circling the dining table, caught his eye.
"Akashicchi/Akashi-kun, happy birthday!" yellow and pink chimed.
"Happy birthday, Akashi" dark blue and green said in monotone.
"Happy birthday" sky blue, dark red and purple joined in.
Akashi was obviously dumbfounded by what he was seeing. His past comrades were right in front of him. All wearing smiles— excluding certain ones —and the room was decorated with colourful balloons, streamers and a big happy birthday banner.
"you guys…"
"Happy birthday, Sei-chan~"
"Reo…"
A short silence from him before laughing silently, earning some puzzled looks from the GoM.
"There was no need for you all to do this. Today is just another day."
"eeeh? But today is Akashicchi's birthday! Of course celebrating it is a given"
"…."
"Reo-nee~ We got the cake!"
Hayama called out as he skipped happily to where the others were, Nebuya and Mayuzumi obediently tagging behind him. Mibuchi nodded and requested him to put the cake on the table as he gently pushed Akashi to it. After lighting up the candles, the basketball players grouped together with the redhead in the middle with the cake in front of him and Shizune switched off the lights, making the room lit up by only the candles.
After Kise's cheerful signal, they started to sing happy birthday, ignoring the way Akashi was desperately trying to figure out how to react. He then blew the candles and once the lights were turned back on, everyone popped the crackers and the overly enthusiastic ones started cheering. As a choice of entertainment while feasting on the cake and other available food, Momoi suggested on doing karaoke which was agreed in a blink of an eye.
First to go was Kise and Kuroko who both did a duet on "tsugi au hi made". Kise was one thing but Kuroko's voice was so angel like that someone had to make sure Momoi didn't die from blood lose by just hearing it. Aomine and Kagami was next and sang "ultimate zone" like two rivals on a battle field. Murasakibara was Murasakibara, avoiding singing and just munching on the mountains of snacks he grabbed beforehand and Midorima was all "today's Oha Asa horoscope said that I shouldn't sing" and everyone knew better than to argue with that.
A few persuasions from Mibuchi was needed before Shizune reluctantly agreed on singing, but not without a warning on how she couldn't. Of course at first they were all thinking that she was being modest and such but when their ears were on the verge of bleeding, she was instantly separated from the mike. The Rakuzan second-year trio then did a energy filled song of their own while Mayuzumi & Akashi silently enjoyed their cake, successfully managing to avoid doing some karaoke-ing.
"Mido-chin…truth or dare?"
"dare."
"n'jya…you have to say umaibo at the end of every sentence~"
"…fine. Umaibo."
The futile attempt of holding back laughter by some in the group made Midorima slightly irritated and he glared at the next truth or dare victim.
"Kagami. Truth—"
"dare"
"I dare you to hold hands with that cat eyed blonde over there for the whole night. Umaibo."
"haa? Midorima you—"
"it's Hayama! Geez…at least call me by my name…" he sulkily complained.
The two did so and Kagami turned to Shizune. "truth or dare?"
"dare."
"I dare you to, uh…" Kagami thought for a while before a light bulb flashed. "I dare you to lock arms with Mayuzumi until your turn comes again!"
Cue an ice cold glare from a certain red demon and Mayuzumi muttering "it's Mayuzumi-senpai you bastard". The brunette just shrugged and did as dared. The senior junior pair wore deadpanned expressions as they sat beside each other.
"Aomine..truth or dare"
"eh. Dare"
"you have to ask for permission from someone before doing something. Minus the truth and dare questions"
"tsk, fine….Kise, truth or dare"
"dare"
"I dare you to wear Midorima's sweater for the whole night"
"Aominecchi, the heck is that?"
"I could make you hold a container of worms—"
"Midorimacchi, hand over your sweater." A serious face which is a little too serious for the model.
"wha—" he groaned and reluctantly took it off, giving it to the blonde for him to wear. "here."
After he put it on, the usual smile returned to Kise's face and he turned to the bluenette beside him. "Kurokocchi, truth or dare?"
"..truth"
"if you were a girl, who would you date among those here?~"
Kise you idiot-!
"hm…Akashi-kun? Because he seems like the considerate type…"
"I'm honored, Tetsuya."
"if only it were true…"
"did you say something, Shizune?" a rather frightening smile.
"nothing of your concern." She nonchalantly answered looking sideways.
"it's Tetsu-kun's turn to ask!"
"let's see…Kudo-san, once again, truth or dare?"
"ah..truth"
"are you dating Akashi-kun?"
Silence.
"…..pardon?"
"ah, she switched to English." Momoi pointed out.
"Tetsu, you should tone down your bluntness y'know"
"ah, I apologize. It's just that I was just a little curious…"
"but, is Kudocchi and Akashicchi really dating?"
"Kudocchi?"
"yes we are."
Cue another silence.
""""WHAT!?"""
"you heard me."
"congrats, Akashicchi!~"
"thank you, Ryouta."
"Shizune, you okay?"
"just leave me to die…"
"trying to hide your face against Chii-chan isn't really going to help though…."
"hmm….Kuro-chin, what is dating?"
"it's when a boy and a girl get together because they like each other"
"aah~ I see..~"
"hmph. To think that Akashi would go after romance. Umaibo."
"Can't I, Shintarou?"
"I didn't say that you can't. Umaibo."
"nee~ how about we put an end to the game and take a picture together?"
"ah! Nice idea, Momocchi!"
"everyone, get in front of the camera~ Sei-chan, you too"
They all got into their positions according to their heights and Momoi hurriedly rushed to her place in the group right after she pressed the timer button. "Cheese~" was cheerfully said by some and the flash from the camera indicated it was okay to scatter. The pink haired girl checked the taken picture and smiled fondly at it. It has been a while since she saw her boys in Teiko together once again.
"really…I missed all of your smiles…"
"Dai-chan, Mukkun, Tetsu-kun, Midorin, Ki-chan, Akashi-kun…I'm glad everything is back to normal…"
"today was rather fun, don't you agree?"
Shizune asked on their way back to the Akashi mansion after the party. She received a slight nod as a response from the male but it was more than enough. She could see how happy he was once again seeing his old friends coming to celebrate though he tried to hide it. Just like how he could read her like a book, there were times she could too.
"did you talk to your dad already?"
Bad timing to ask but when else is a better time?
"yes..he sounded happy when I told him my answer"
"that so…"
"by the way, I didn't know you were acquainted with the Miracles…"
"isn't it a little too late to ask that? well, I got to know them when I invited them over to Kyoto. That's all.."
"I see…"
Like they normally do, the two continued to walk in silence. That is, until they reached the park where they did their little chit chat. It looked so much more quaint in the night than in the day that the two decided to stop by for a while.
"Which reminds me…" she suddenly muttered. "I haven't given you anything yet, huh…"
"there is no need for it. You being here by my side is all I can ask for"
"don't go saying stuff from out of a shoujo manga….anyways, I'm still going to give you a present so, close your eyes."
"Shizune, you—"
"just, do it…"
Complying with her request, Akashi closed his eyes, having an idea of what she was going to do and that it was usually the male who does so.
The sensation of warmth on his lips confirmed what he was thinking. He could feel her hand gripping onto his coat to pull him down slightly to her height though there wasn't that much height difference between them. He could also feel her heartbeat pounding fast because her chest was gently pressed against his. He held onto her hand that wasn't on his coat and returned the kiss she was giving him. There wasn't anyone around so they need not to worry about being sighted.
Slowly, the female backed up, breaking the kiss after deciding they were at it long enough. It took a minute for her to return her beat red face to normal and she gave him a grin right after.
"Happy Birthday, Seijuro"
Akashi smiled at her calling him by his name and brushed away some of her bangs to give a gentle kiss on her forehead accompanied by a soft 'thank you'. Hand in hand, the two resumed their walk back home to the mansion. Though they have no idea of what is going to happen in the future and perhaps more twisted incidents are going to happen, they'll just get through it like how they usually do. Somehow, someway.
The beautiful snow falls gracefully from the sky
But the you who is beside me decorated by them
Is much more beautiful than any snowflake I've ever seen