A/N: Sorry for the late update! School is taking over my life u_u And to reply to some reviews:

Orangetabby101: He was a Teiko regular before Kise showed up :) He's a punk so Nijimura beat him up a lot, and he was kicked out of the basketball club after Akashi became captain. In the Winter Cup, he and his team went against Kaijo

Guest: Nijimura was a power forward before he named Akashi captain! He was considered the best power forward in the league, and then Aomine took his position, and Nijimura then became the small forward :) It says in the KnB wiki and the manga too

GuessWhat: thank you! I'm definitely not giving up on this! I'm just really busy and can't update that often u_u

booklover1209: Hahaha yess such a party. And yess Nijimura is superman

Fiammie: 'Beloved' is right! You'll see it here in this chapter! And the coming chapters ;)

jazzmonkey: Thank you so much! I'm flattered *u* There'll be lots more interacting with all these brats here and in the coming chapters!

R3iga1004: Thank you! Yes they are such a family those guys

Guest: Nijimura is the ultimate leader haha. And yeah, there will be moments and bonding time with each of the former Teiko babies! Look forward to the next chapters, they're all going to have some quality time with their middle school captain!

Thank you also to AspergianStoryteller, setsuko teshiba, Schwarzien.D'Seventh, and tobogan for reading and reviewing!

In any other circumstance, a gang of tall, athletic, bordering-on-threatening high school adolescents would have been a natural, if not homely sight and setting for Haizaki. Even the backdrop of a hospital was one that the notorious basketball player was well acquainted with—at least in terms of the number of people he's sent there (and to a lesser degree, the number of times he's needed to go there).

This time though, aside from the fact that he was in the hospital completely unharmed, the gang of tall high schoolers he was faced with was not a welcome sight for him, and though he should have expected them to be there, the appearance of his colorful middle school teammates caught him off-guard.

Then again, the fact that he was visiting was unusual in itself.

"I'm out," Haizaki simply said, already turning to leave.

"Oi oi, what's with that," Daiki barked, putting a solid hand on Haizaki's shoulder.

"You came here to visit Nijimura-san, didn't you?" Kuroko asked, his expression blank but his eyes almost sparkling.

"What?—No—why would—"

"Aominecchi, Kurokocchi, wait I'm coming with you—" Kise announced, walking into view of the doorway. He stopped when he caught sight of Haizaki, then surprisingly lit up. "Ah! You came!"

Haizaki flinched, feeling the firm weight of Daiki's hand on his shoulder, and a ghost pang on his jaw. He gulped, "Ryouta."

The other basketball players crowded around the room looked towards his direction, and Haizaki felt his temples start to sweat. He did not expect to be so horribly outnumbered like this, and the shift in expressions of Kise's teammates flipped a switch in him that warned him of complete danger.

"Who else came?" a voice then called out.

And that voice seemed to pierce through Haizaki's brain, sending a wave of nostalgia through him, reminiscent of a past long gone and yet seemed like just yesterday. Despite the various alarms that went off in his impulses, Haizaki felt like he couldn't leave—he had come there on his own to visit someone.

"It's Haizaki!" Kise beamed. "He's come to visit you, Nijimura-senpai!"

Haizaki froze after hearing that name, feeling like it had grounded him to where he stood. He didn't know what to think or feel of his past seemingly trying to bite him in the ass, so he barely put up much resistance when Daiki and Kuroko (who had somehow appeared behind him) pushed him into the room. Haizaki did not mean to be there, but he couldn't bring himself to turn back.

"Hai—?" he heard Nijimura say, pausing before he said: "No. Really?"

Haizaki felt all the gazes of the basketball crowd fall on him, settling over him like a heavy air that threatened to crush him with sheer pressure. He felt like it was going to poison him when Ryouta approached him with a smile, open and friendly and definitely not what Haizaki expected to be greeted with—his teammates from Kaijo seemed to zone in on him, glaring at him and watching his every move. When he got out of the short hall and into the room, he instantly picked out the distinct colors of Midorima, Akashi, and Atsushi—and other familiar faces like the redhead from Seirin, and the prettyboy with the mole. But what completely froze him on the spot was the hospital bed where his former captain sat, and seeing him felt like a punch in the gut. There was an IV drip connected to his wrist, dark circles under his eyes, and all the indications of being sick and exhausted, but it was—is—Nijimura. Right there on the hospital bed, surrounded by all the people who've come to visit him and smother him with gifts, was the one guy who managed to consistently beat Haizaki up without restraint and toss him into basketball games fully expecting him to perform. He could practically feel the strength of Nijimura's hand firmly smacking down on his head and locking it in a vice grip, and he was sure his indignant glare had faded when their eyes met, and all at the same time Haizaki felt relief.

Nijimura looked at him straight on, a hint of surprise on his face, and blinked. "What did you do to your hair?"

Haizaki's eye twitched, feeling a nerve flare up. To the side, Daiki and Ryouta snorted, holding back their laughter. "Hah?! You got a problem with it?" Haizaki spat.

Nijimura's eyebrow twitched. "Looks like you're still an insufferable brat, punk," he growled, and it was all so familiar to Haizaki that he flinched back. The others blinked in disbelief at how tame—and…scared?—Haizaki was when faced with Nijimura: they were so sure he'd start picking fights at every turn, especially against someone snapping at him.

Then again, they never expected someone like Haizaki to visit anyone.

While the others regarded Nijimura and Haizaki with wonder and disbelief, Kuroko and the Generation of Miracles looked smug and content.

"T-tch, looks like you're still a reckless overworking idiot," Haizaki snarled, finding it safe to bite back while Nijimura's stuck on the bed.

"Aw, you do care," Ryouta snickered.

Haizaki flushed, staggering back. "Why you—"

"Hey," both Daiki and Kaijo's captain suddenly snapped. Haizaki stiffened, remembering his cracked jaw at Daiki's blow and how badly surrounded and outnumbered he was, and he gritted his teeth. He may be good at fighting, but he wasn't stupid. Besides, it took him most of the week to manage to haul himself over there, and he had decidedly thought 'Fuck it' and trudged to the hospital, determined to—to visit. He just hadn't really thought of what he'd do when he actually got there—nor did he expect to find a horde of basketball players waiting inside.

"Ngh," Haizaki grunted, eyes darting around and finding Kuroko's expectant stare, Midorima's ill-concealed care, and Akashi's straightforward and confining watch. Nevermind the fact that there was some muscular giant behind Akashi, or Atsushi chomping down on snacks to one side, or Ryouta's teammates looking like they each wanted to step on both his feet for revenge.

All Haizaki's half-panicked thoughts were interrupted then by a fit of ragged coughing, and he almost winced at how rough and raw it sounded. Everyone else's attention shifted to Nijimura, who clutched his chest painfully, expression struggling to keep from crumpling. Haizaki's hand jerked forward, involuntarily reaching out and stepping forward before he caught himself and froze, and instead watched as Akashi swiftly handed Nijimura a glass of water while Midorima's hand flew to Nijimura's back, rubbing gently to calm his cough. Kuroko and Daiki had somehow disappeared and reappeared with a refilled pitcher of water, and both Ryouta and Atsushi tugged on the blankets to loosen it away from Nijimura's chest.

The reactions of the former-Teiko players all happened so simultaneously, so naturally, that it looked like, well—a team, Haizaki included. Their movements looked like an old habit, like muscle memory, all when it concerned their former captain, and it was then that the rest of the crowd felt like they were seeing a past that was happening in the present—something that they all thought the former-Teiko members had lost, yet now seemed to have simply just buried deep in their pasts and hearts. Being together in one place, and with their former captain, seemed to revert them back to that past, as if it were just yesterday.

"Ugh," Nijimura groaned. "This sucks."

"Like we keep telling you, you're not fine, see?" Ryouta scolded, rubbing one side of Nijimura's back at the same time as Midorima. "So stop trying to leave, please?"

"Fucking knew it," Haizaki blurted out, feeling his annoyance stepping over his uneasiness. "You almost die and you try to get out of confinement, huh?"

Nijimura's eyebrows furrowed. "I didn't almost die—"

"Like I'd believe you," Haizaki snarled. "I heard you were out for days. Saeko and Shin are fucking stressed out with worry over you."

"Saeko and—you saw my siblings?" Nijimura shifted when he heard their names.

"Tch, they saw me," Haizaki grumbled. "Wouldn't stop nagging me to go here and tell you off."

Worry creased Nijimura's brow. "How are they? Are they doing fine?"

Haizaki felt another pang of annoyance and—he didn't know what else, but it felt something like a muffled understanding. Respect. "They're fine, dammit. Worry about yourself for once, useless-captain."

Haizaki almost smacked his hand over his mouth, mentally kicking himself for letting slip something he hasn't said in more than a year, but came out so naturally that they just spilled over. The others noticed, and got even more befuddled—they definitely did not expect Haizaki to act like he was then.

"I've been here to long," Nijimura grunted, thinking of his siblings and his work and his school. "I need to go—"

"What, go back to work and then overwork yourself to death?" Haizaki snapped, irritated. "Are you an idiot?"

"H-hey, hey," Ryouta started, looking back and forth between Haizaki and Nijimura. "Calm down—"

"All you ever fucking do is think about others and forget about yourself, and look what that's done," Haizaki clenched his fists, his whole body going tense, almost shaking. "You were lucky now, but if you don't fucking learn then who's going to take care of Saeko and Shin when you're not as lucky, huh?!"

"O-oi," Daiki mumbled, but he couldn't stop Haizaki. None of the other former-Teiko players could, not when they felt the same way (albeit a little less angrily, perhaps), and seeing their hesitation made the others stay silent as well.

Nijimura looked serious, and he let out a breath. Haizaki grit his teeth, looking Nijimura straight in the eye. "Have you heard of karoshi?"

The former-Teiko team all turned to look at Haizaki, eyes filled with a hidden understanding known only to them. On the bed, Nijimura flinched, not breaking eye contact with Haizaki. He inhaled before setting his brow straight, expression serious and straightforward.

Haizaki continued. "It's 'death by overwork', and it's fucking real here in Japan."

Nijimura's eyes turned downcast for a moment, and then he looked back up at Haizaki. "…I know."

There was a pause before Haizaki huffed, looking at Nijimura and remembering all the times he'd been smacked, pummeled, punched, dragged, kicked, and all sorts of other damn painful and violent attacks because Nijimura had it out for him. But Haizaki knew that Nijimura just cared too much. Despite being in a place like Teiko's basketball club, he wasn't selfish, and Haizaki knew that that was what made him the captain of such a team that only valued victory—it's what set him apart, and made him a worthy captain.

"You kept beating me up in my dad's place," Haizaki said without really thinking, looking down. "And now you're gonna end up just like him."

Nijimura looked straight at Haizaki, a tinge of realization in his expression. After a pause, he spoke, "I won't. I'm not leaving."

Haizaki's head snapped up, eyes meeting Nijimura's in an instant, and for a second, Haizaki looked hopeful. He took it as a promise, and he believed it to be true. It was only a brief passing of hope in his expression before his face crumpled up into an annoyed glower, and he looked away, unable to keep eye contact. "Tch, do what you want," he grumbled, stuffing his hands into his pockets and turning around. "I don't care."

Nijimura's expression softened, the corners of his lips quirking up just slightly. Haizaki trudged away from the hospital bed, ignoring the others around him. When he reached the hall leading to the door, Nijimura called out, "Haizaki."

He paused, not turning to look at his former captain, and not wanting to see the smile that was undoubtedly on his face.

"Thanks."

Haizaki stayed silent, jaw set, and he gave a small nod before walking out.

The room was silent for a few moments until Nijimura gave a sigh. "Man, he hasn't changed."

"Nope," Kise smirked. "He's an even worse tsundere than Midorimacchi."

"What," Midorima pouted.

"I didn't think Haizaki would care so much," Moriyama noted, stroking his chin.

"He's still got a crap attitude about it though," Kasamatsu grunted.

"He's only like that with Nijimura-senpai," Kise pointed out, grinning at Nijimura. "I think I saw tears in his eyes."

"He looked really concerned."

"What was that about his dad?" Hayama butt in, to which Mibuchi instantly elbowed into his stomach for.

"Have some tact, stupid," Mibuchi scolded. "It isn't something you should just ask lightly!"

"It's alright," Nijimura said, leaning back on his pillow, eyelids getting heavy, feeling a weight settling over him. "I was a lot like Haizaki once. Probably even worse."

The others looked at him in shock. "What, really?" Takao said, surprised.

"Yeah, you can't really tell, huh?" Himuro commented, giving a chuckle. "When I met Shuu—Nijimura in LA, he was surprisingly used to fighting."

"Why was there fighting in the first place," Kagami squinted at his brother, who grinned sheepishly.

"It's a long story," Nijimura huffed, scratching the back of his head. "But yeah, I was a lot like Haizaki once. Had a rough, hot-blooded phase and everything. It was my dad who got me out of that rough spot."

"And well," Nijimura continued. "Haizaki reminds me of myself from back then, so I couldn't just leave him alone. Especially because he doesn't have a dad."

"And his dad…" Hyuuga said, looking thoughtful. "Died from—"

"Overwork," Akashi finished. "Officially, it was a stroke, but it was due to stress from work."

Silence fell over the room again, and even the Generation of Miracles stared at Akashi in surprise.

"So it's true, about his father," Midorima said, looking troubled.

"I didn't know about the overwork part," Aomine added.

"Well yeah, I was your captain, so I found out eventually," Nijimura sighed. "And like I said, I just couldn't leave it alone."

"So you're the one who sets him straight," Imayoshi finished.

Nijimura nodded. "Yeah. At least, I tried to. I know I couldn't do it in his father's place, but I tried to be someone close enough. He has a crap attitude, but he isn't a bad kid."

"Hah, if it weren't for you, I don't think he could have graduated middle school," Kise commented, chuckling.

Nijimura smiled, sighing with a nod. "I don't know if I was any help at all. And now look at me, giving all of you trouble."

"There's no trouble at all!" Kiyoshi piped up. "You're a good person, Nijimura-san."

"Yeah, like Haizaki said," Aomine poked. "Don't worry about us, you're the one hospitalized."

"Let others take care of you for once," Kise grinned.

Nijimura opened his mouth to gripe, but Akashi spoke first, "No 'buts', we're all here because we chose to be."

Nijimura let out a breath, deflating, and simply looked them all over. He gave another sigh and smiled, defeated. "Yeah. Thanks. All of you."

His former team grinned at him, Aomine giving him a light punch on the shoulder, and Kise laughing at the side, poking at his middle school captain. Midorima huffed, smiling, Murasakibara dumped some food over Nijimura's lap, and Akashi's expression softened. Nijimura laughed along with them, and all the tension in the room had gone as the team seemed to relive their pasts.

"Hey, where's Kuroko?" Kagami noted, squinting around the room.

"He's—wasn't he just here?" Takao said, confused and kind of annoyed that he didn't notice.

"Did anyone notice him leave?" Hyuuga asked, sighing.

"I see Kuroko's still good at doing that," Nijimura chuckled.

"Doing what?"

"Disappea—uwah! Kuroko!" Hyuuga exclaimed, almost jumping. By the side, Kuroko had somehow appeared, making the others around him jerk back in surprise.

Nijimura laughed, almost coughing. "Ah, I actually missed that."

"I'm sorry?" Kuroko tried, looking innocent.

"Where did you go?" Hyuuga sighed, trying to calm his surprise.

"I just went out for a bit," Kuroko answered, eyes flickering for a moment.

Hyuuga and Kagami raised their eyebrows in suspicion, but let it go. "Okay then," Hyuuga just said.

"Ah, it's getting late," Ootsubo noted, noticing the dark skies beyond the window. "We really shouldn't keep troubling you, Nijimura-san."

Nijimura shook his head. "No, no. It's fine." Nijimura said, looking around the room at the mess of people who had come to visit him. "Really. Thank you. For visiting. And for the food. And thanks for taking care of these brats, I guess."

"You 'guess'?" Kise complained, laughing. "Do you know how physically abused I get at Kaijo?!"

"Good job," Nijimura gave a thumbs up to Kasamatsu. "Don't let any of those fangirls interrupt practice."

"Yeah," Kasamatsu nodded, giving his own thumbs up. "So long as I avoid the face, I'm good."

"That's the way to do it," Nijimura nodded, approving.

"Senpaai," Kise wailed, slumping. Kasamatsu and his teammates laughed, ruffling their ace's hair.

"Well," Akashi announced. "It's been a rather…confused mess of a day, so I'm sure Nijimura-san's tired. We should give him some rest."

"..Yeah, sorry," Nijimura huffed, leaning back on his pillow. His voice was rough, laced with sleepiness and a tiredness that still latched onto him. "I'm beat."

"Please, don't mind us," Imayoshi said, nodding at the other captains, who all shared the same sentiments. "Focus on recovering."

"Yeah. Thanks. Again." Nijimura gave a small grunt, wincing slightly. To the side, Murasakibara lowered the bed's inclination. "I'll just be here this week, so I can tell you about the brats if you'd like."

The former Teiko regulars looked at each other, all thinking what they think Nijimura just implied, and they shared a small, knowing smile.

"Oh, that would be great," Imayoshi grinned, glasses sparkling with intent.

"Very great," Wakamatsu added, his eyes also sparkling, tinted with wonder and hope.

Nijimura chuckled. "Just visit anytime. I know how hard it is to handle those talented brats."

"Oh yeah, we believe you," Miyaji commented. "After all, they were all in one team under you."

"I still can't imagine how you managed to do that," Kasamatsu muttered, letting out a breath.

"Seems like magic," Wakamatsu snorted, glancing at their own ace.

"What," Aomine grumbled. Wakamatsu and Imayoshi just shook their heads, sighing.

"I still can't get over how Haizaki was like that with Nijimura-san," Moriyama almost groaned, touching his head like he was straining it just thinking about it. "He's such a thug—I really didn't expect it."

"Yeah, I can't seem to stay mad at him like that," Kasamatsu huffed.

"What did Haizaki even do to you guys?" Nijimura raised an eyebrow, looking suspicious. "Did he pick a fight with you again?"

"Er, well, he targeted Kise's injury during a match once," Kobori offered.

A nerve seemed to flare up. "That punk—" Nijimura growled, brow furrowing as he made a move to sit up.

"No it's fine!" Kise flailed, putting a hand on Nijimura's shoulder to keep him from getting up. "It's okay! It wasn't that bad!"

"Yeah, I punched him before he tried anything worse," Aomine quickly added, and then he smacked a hand over his mouth, realizing what he just blurted out.

"You what?" Kise turned to him, surprised.

"Nothing," Aomine snapped.

"Well, good job," Nijimura snorted. "I'll go and talk to that punk again sometime."

"I'm sure you will," Kuroko smiled, clearing away the over bed table and setting the water by Nijimura's bed.

"But for now, get some rest," Akashi told him, pulling on the blanket.

Nijimura nodded, his eyelids getting heavier by the second. "Yeah."

"We're sorry for the bother," Ootsubo said, bowing slightly.

"Not at all. Really, thank you. Come by again if you want." Nijimura breathed a bit heavily, feeling a muted throbbing at his chest and abdomen. There was a pang on one side, but he ignored it, feeling a warm grogginess wash over him.

The other teams smiled at how Kuroko and the Generation of Miracles busied themselves with caring for their former captain, bowing and saying their goodnights and goodbyes as they made promises of visiting again. Eventually, Kise, Aomine, and Himuro stayed over, promising Akashi (who was taking his teammates back to Rakuzan) to keep an eye on Nijimura.

The night sky was completely dark when everything had settled down. Still not asleep, Nijimura stared at the ceiling, feeling a muffled throbbing in his head and torso. His body felt warm, almost feverish, but he paid little attention to it, instead thinking of those who had stayed to keep him company, and those who had visited him. It dawned on him how messy it was just a few minutes ago, and how there were so many people who had come. How all his junior brat teammates did so much for him the whole time he was there. How even that punk Haizaki came, and did a damn fine job of telling him off. It made a warmth bloom in his chest, and his vision blurred for some reason. He brought his forearm over his eyes and found that they were wet, and he gave a huff as he shut his eyes, breathing deeply, feeling the feverish heat spread throughout his body. He vaguely registered that something felt painful, but his head felt heavy, the weight settling all over him and making him unable to move.

He noticed the room darken—someone had turned the lights off—and breathed out, settling on the bed and relaxing as he allowed himself to drift off. And as Nijimura closed his eyes, ignoring the strange heaviness and stifled pain that he felt, he saw the faces of his friends behind his eyelids, just as they were today, and just as they were back in middle school.

And he fell asleep, feeling comforted in knowing that he'd see them again tomorrow.

[tbc]

A/N: Just a quick note on the lucky items Midorima brought for Nijimura: I completely forgot that Nijimura's birthday was changed to July, making him a Cancer like Midorima, so for this fic, I'm following his previous birthday which was on June, which makes him a Gemini and therefore have different lucky items from Midorima.

Also, please excuse Haizaki's french u_u

There'll be some one-on-one interaction/bonding with Nijimura in the coming chapters! Look forward to it!

Thank you again to those who are following this! Your faves and reviews are always greatly appreciated :)