I am back with another chapter!
Ok, so very important question to ask all of you who like this story: which victim should I do next? Tell me in the reviews and I might even make a poll for this thing. Thank you! (Oh, and no GoM and Seirin just yet. I'm planning on having them cameo later on. I'll make sure to warn you if I'm thinking of adding them :))
So, without further ado, here is the next chapter!
HEADS UP
1. This will completely ignore the time schemes. I'm going to upload the characters the order in which I want to write them at. So, for example, one chapter could be after the winter cup, and the next could be in the time when Seirin beat Kaijo at a practice match. I will put the time in which the chapter will be at, but I'm saying this now so you guys don't get confused
2. It is highly likely that the characters, aka victims, will be out of character. One because the plot demands it, and two because I just can't get out of my comfort zone to write really mean characters (cough cough Hanamiya, Haizaki etc) So, forgive me if I can't really write these types of characters well and let us hope that i will be able to write them better in the near future
3. The portraits/paintings that I will mention in each chapter are pictures I found on the Internet. To give you guys a better perspective on what the victims will be witnessing, I'll put the links up both at the end of the chapter and at my profile. Just remember to take away the spaces if you're too lazy to click on my profile and find it there. There will sometimes be more than one painting the character will witness, so heads up
Title: A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words
Rating: T
Pairings: implied Gom X Kuroko
Time frame: A few days after Haizaki VS Kise match
Warning: Implied thoughts of suicide
Second Victim: Haizaki Shougo
He assumed that it would be another boring day, just like always. A day where he would wander around the streets of Tokyo while visiting his annoying relatives and sometimes get into fights where he would win victoriously. Today was no different except for the fact that this fight he got into left him with some scratches and bruises. He had realized later than sooner that his opponent for the day was a black belt at karate and was ridiculously good at fighting. However, Haizaki was at advantage; he knew that the opponent had never been street fighting before and therefore did not know the rules to it.
"Rule number one idiot: there are no rules in street fighting." He had said before walking out of the alley, successfully winning this battle.
His face had evidence that he was out being rebellious again and he knew that his parents and relatives would not shut up about it if he went back home, so he started walking around the city, trying to find something to amuse him.
And then he found it.
A flash of a familiar teal colored hair.
Haizaki smirked before pinpointing to where the sky blue hair had gone to. It was weird, being able to see Kuroko. Normally, he would have lost sight of him the moment a crowd appeared but today was different. The small boy seemed to be carrying something big over his head, not that that made it easier for others to spot him, which was just madness.
He caught up with Kuroko easily and started following him quietly. Shadowing a shadow was truly a fun experience, not that Haizaki would admit it to anybody. While following him, he started to ponder about his revenge. He knew that all the Generation of Miracles had a special place in their hearts for the phantom player and that they were all protective, whether directly or indirectly, of him as well.
What better revenge was there than to beat up their most cared friend and make sure they all saw it?
With that idea in mind, Haizaki couldn't help but smirk madly. It would be very easy to break Kuroko. He was fragile, like a baby bird that had just been hatched. He was daydreaming for sure now. Just the mere thought of seeing the Generation of Miracles reactions was both hilarious and addicting to him.
So, because he was so caught up in planning the whole event inside his mind, he did not notice
that Kuroko had stopped in front of a house and Haizaki just kept going his way. And then he heard someone call out his name.
"Haizaki-kun?" He turned around in shock to see Kuroko staring right at him and it was then that he realized that his cover was blown. However, he got over the shock quickly and put on an easy-going smirk.
"Well, well, if it isn't Tetsuya?" He said casually and gave him a menacing smile. It didn't seem to affect Kuroko in any way.
"What are you doing here?" The teal-haired boy asked in a stoic voice.
"What do you think?" He asked vaguely, licking his thumb with the tip of his tongue. Kuroko furrowed his eyebrows for a split second before opening the gate that led to an enormous mansion. For a moment, Haizaki had no words and only looked at the boy going in with immense surprise. And then, Kuroko spoke again.
"Haizaki-kun, please come in." He couldn't move as the shock was still with him. What the hell was Kuroko doing, barging into such a rich house as if it were his own?
Kuroko just stood in front of the gate, waiting for him.
"Haizaki-kun?" He asked and finally, Haizaki could feel his legs moving unconsciously towards the smaller boy. It was completely unlike him, to be following someone without knowing what their plan and/or objective was. Normally it would be Haizaki leading the people to where he wanted to go. It seemed he was getting all kinds of experiences in this supposedly average day.
As they walked up to the door, it was magically opened and when Haizaki peered inside the house, he saw that various maids were lined up, bowing formally.
"Welcome back, Tetsuya-sama." They all said in sync and it took Haizaki a few moments to connect two and two together.
There was only one Tetsuya he knew in this entire place and the servants inside the mansion all bowed when Kuroko Tetsuya had come in.
His eyes grew wide as the realization punched him in the face. This really was Kuroko's house. Kuroko owned a fucking mansion.
Kuroko had already started moving inside the house and Haizaki couldn't think of anything other than to trail behind him. The smaller of the two put down the object he was carrying next to the white and gold stairs - white and gold - and called for a person with the name Nakashima. A petite woman with her brown hair locked tightly into a bun came into and bowed. Kuroko hastily pulled her back up and she laughed at the slightly distressed face Kuroko was making.
"I always keep forgetting that Tetsuya-sama doesn't like to be bowed to." Nakashima commented and Kuroko turned away to keep the people from seeing his face.
"Nakashima-san, please." He said impassively as he turned back to the maid. "Would you mind getting the first aid kit? It seems my friend is hurt." He then said and Nakashima took one good look at Haizaki's dazed face before nodding and heading off to find the medical tools needed. It was now just Kuroko and Haizaki at the main entrance.
Haizaki, finally out of his trance, glanced at Kuroko with unbelieving eyes. How the fuck did a guy like Kuroko be one of the rich? Just the idea of having the weakling be in one of the richest families in all Japan did not coincide one bit. Judging by the size of the house, it seemed the money Kuroko's family had could rival that of Akashi's.
"Haizaki-kun, how did you get hurt?" Kuroko suddenly asked and at that moment, Haizaki remembered who he was.
"Hah? Why do you care? I was out, having a bit of fun." He replied, his usual smirk returning to his facial features. Kuroko looked at him with his unnerving eyes and even he had to admit that those eyes would make anyone break.
Nakashima entered hurriedly with the first aid kit and Kuroko thanked her. Just as he was about to take the kit from her, she swung her arm away from him.
"I will take care of the wounds, Tetsuya-sama." She supplied but Kuroko gave her his version of a stink eye.
"I can do it myself. He is my friend." He insisted, though Haizaki wanted to snort at the word 'friend'.
"I will do it." She said strongly and Kuroko looked at the maid for a second before sighing.
"It seems I can never win with you, Nakashima-san. I will be right back. I need to put the canvas I bought to my room anyways." And with that, Kuroko took the object, now identified as a canvas, and started walking up the glittering stairs.
After seeing the boy leave, Nakashima gestured Haizaki to follow her into one of the rooms.
"Oh, and where are we going?" Haizaki asked seductively. Nakashima ignored him and ordered him to sit on one of the chairs that was inside the room.
"Normally, it would be the guy telling the girl to sit on the chair, wouldn't it?" He tried to seduce but failed when Nakashima glared at him fiercely. She opened the kit and started to put antiseptic onto a piece of cotton.
"You're pretty cute, by the way. How old are you?" Haizaki tried once more, leaning over the table to get closer to the maid. He was instead met with a face full of antiseptic cotton and it burned like no tomorrow. He shrieked in pain as he pulled away from the cotton.
"Don't touch your face or it'll only make it worse." Nakashima said coldly before getting another piece of cotton out. Haizaki tried to quickly recover from the pain that diminished slowly. He sat back down - he had stood up when the cotton was in contact with his face - and decided to stay at a distance where she wouldn't attack him again with the antiseptic. This, however, did not stop him from harassing her with his vulgar comments.
"Come on, how about you and me have a little fun while we're at this? I'm pretty rough but I can go soft on you if you want." Nakashima looked absolutely disgusted and tried to cover his face with the cotton once more but he dodged it swiftly. He stood up from the chair and moved over to her side. She tried to escape but he caught her arm by the last second and pulled her towards him.
"Come on, baby, it'll be really fun. I promise." He whispered and he felt Nakashima shiver profoundly. He took this as a good sign and smirked. He slowly opened his mouth and started to stick out his tongue when he felt a sharp stab on the side of his stomach. He curled over immediately, releasing Nakashima from his grip, and doubled over. He looked up painfully to see Kuroko with a very angry face. In fact, he looked so angry that Haizaki suddenly regretted his actions greatly.
"You are not allowed in any way to harass the people here. You are a guest but even then, if you cross the line, I will be merciless." Kuroko said in a cold voice that Haizaki had never heard before. Haizaki couldn't say a word, more out of shock than pain, and he heard Nakashima's footsteps fading away. When the pain from his stomach subsided, he stood up and grinned at Kuroko, recomposing himself.
"I was just teasing for a bit, Tetsuya. Loosen up" Haizaki shrugged but his eyes said differently. Kuroko looked unaffected by this and started to leave the room. Haizaki casually started to follow him out and stopped when two very buff people stood in front of him.
"Hah? What's this?" He inquired aloud as the two people crossed their arms, preventing Haizaki from taking another step.
"Haizaki-kun, apologize to Nakashima-san immediately." Kuroko ordered but Haizaki wasn't fazed at all. He dealt with these kinds of people before and he always won. This would be easy as well.
"Really, Tetsuya? You want me to apologize?" He sneered as he looked at Nakashima, who was peering from behind the men with a glare. "Well, you're going to have to defeat me first!" He yelled as he ran to make the first punch.
When Haizaki woke up, he first felt very disoriented. He felt like the world was spinning out of control. After blinking a couple of times, he could finally stopp the dizziness, if only slightly, and the next thing that occurred to him was that he didn't know what happened.
He remembered challenging the very buff men with the intention of winning. Next, he only remembered getting punched in the face and seeing black.
Ah. Now he remembered. He got knocked out from one single punch. That was a new low, even for him.
"Are you awake, Haizaki-kun?" He heard someone ask and he couldn't pinpoint where the person was. Then, he refocused his eyes and saw that Kuroko was standing right in front of him. He yelped in surprise before composing himself.
"What do you think, dipshit?" He sneered but his head was still pounding. Kuroko stared for a second before kneeling and taking out a drenched cotton. Haizaki knew exactly what the cotton had and was about to move away quickly but failed when he got another mouthful of the antiseptic. He howled in pain but that didn't stop Kuroko from rubbing more.
After what seemed to be hours, the cotton stopped touching his face and the pain, which he was getting used to, stopped entirely.
"What the fuck, Tetsuya? That fucking hurt!" Haizaki yelled as Kuroko put the antiseptic back into the kit, not saying a word. Haizaki snarled to make Kuroko feel intimidated but got no response. It was then that he looked at his surroundings.
The room was filled with paint and canvases.
"What the hell…?" Haizaki muttered as he slowly stood up from the bed. Kuroko just looked at him impassively as he started to walk around.
"Where are we?" He asked as he passed a painting that was painted completely black except for the middle, where there stood a ray of light.
"We are in my room. After Kida-san knocked you down, I asked him to carry you up to my room." Kuroko explained but it looked like Haizaki wasn't listening to anything. He just kept looking at the paintings with a pained look on his face.
He saw portraits of people he didn't know and people he did, all faces vibrant and cheerful. It made him want to rip the paintings out bit by bit.
Why can't I be this happy?
He walked towards the painting of Kise and Kuroko standing next to each other, laughing.
Why can't I have this?
He then saw the painting Kuroko was currently working on. It pained him greatly to see it - see them - and he turned away before he did something he would regret and walked to the next portrait.
He stopped dead in his tracks.
"Wh - What is this?" Haizaki asked with a cracked voice. It seemed like his throat was burning and dry. Kuroko looked at him intensely.
"It is a picture of you, Haizaki-kun." Kuroko answered. Haizaki touched the canvas lightly, especially the light blue color that was dripping from the hair of the painting.
"Why?" He whispered. "I'm your enemy." At that, Kuroko tilted his head.
"Why would you think that, Haizaki-kun? I never saw you as an enemy. Only as a friend." He spoke softly and the horrible pain Haizaki was feeling in his heart burst.
He fell to the ground as his hand trailed down the painting of him. The colors that represented the Generation of Miracles as well as Kuroko's color dripped from his head and slithered down to his neck. His portrait face seemed lost, confused, but glad at the same time, as if he knew that it was for the best to leave the basketball club in middle school.
"Haizaki-kun?" Kuroko asked as he walked over to the kneeling man.
"I don't understand." He replied. I don't understand why I'm feeling this.
"You were part of the basketball club, and though we never interacted that much, I never thought of you as a bad person, Haizaki-kun."
"Why did you draw me?" Why did you draw me like this?
"Why not?" Kuroko answered simply and Haizaki put his head down. They were quiet for a moment before Kuroko walked towards the painting and took it off the wall. He came to Haizaki and put the painting down in front of him.
"Would you like to keep it? It is your portrait, after all." He explained and Haizaki looked at the canvas once more. The eyes were staring at him, as if into his black, rotten soul. They were assessing him, weren't they? They were asking why he was a fucking piece of shit for a human. That's what they were thinking, weren't they?
Before Haizaki knew it, He had punched through the canvas.
And for what seemed like a long time in years, he started crying.
He was just a shit face who didn't deserve to live, wasn't he? He was just a lowly excuse for a human being. That what everyone thought, anyways. The students, the teachers, his teammates… Hell, even his relatives and parents thought the same thing, didn't they? Why did he keep struggling like this if no one even liked him in the first place?
Why was he still here when he didn't deserve to?
"Haizaki-kun, are you ok?"
Ah. Those few words just killed him.
"I… don't really know anymore." He choked as tears kept trailing down his cheeks. And then he felt something touch his back in a soothing motion. He looked up to see Kuroko patting his back and he realized at that moment that this was the first time anyone had every comforted him.
Maybe someone does care for me, after all. He thought as he felt himself lean into Kuroko, wanting more of this warm feeling.
He liked it.
Maybe he would stay in this cruel world for a bit more.
"The painting…" Haizaki started but Kuroko shook his head.
"It is alright, Haizaki-kun. I was planning on giving it to you anyways. If you want, I can draw it again." Kuroko said and Haizaki just looked at the hole in the painting.
"I think I'm good." He responded and took the painting from Kuroko's hands. "I'll just keep this one."
"Are you sure? It really doesn't bother me."
"It's fine." And with that, the conversation ended and Haizaki got ready to go out of Kuroko's house. Before he stepped out, though, he looked back and spotted Nakashima mopping the floor but keeping her distance from him. Haizaki sighed mentally and shouted, "Sorry for being a douche, sweetie!"
It wasn't technically an apology, but Haizaki would get there, someday.
Kuroko smiled slightly as he went to Nakashima, who also seemed to relax.
"And here I thought you started making friends with, pardon my language, assholes like him." She said with her hands on her hips.
"Haizaki-kun is not a horrible person." Kuroko stated lightly and she laughed.
"No, it would seem that he's not."
So, what did you guys think? Good, bad, meh? Make sure to tell me in the reviews!
Portrait of Haizaki: www . zerochan 1770209
Portrait of KiseXKuroko: www . fujimochi . / post / 79701490374
As I mentioned in the beginning, I would love to hear suggestions from you guys for the next victim :) Tell me in the reviews and I might make a poll for it, so if you want me to make one, make sure to tell me!
I have absolutely no idea what I'm going to upload next week but eh, it'll come to me sooner or later.
Completely diverging from this, did anyone see the Teiko arc being animated? The new episode came out today and my heart was ripping to pieces. I really can't. The feels were to great for me.
Anyways, that's all for me and I hope you guys liked it :)
Peace,
FlyAndDontLookBack
