Hey guys, Oh my god! I wanted to say thanks for my 100 followers~! I'm so excited! That means so much to me! I hope I'm not boring you with all these flashbacks! I swear this is the last one. (For now) so enjoy chapter thirteen!
All the rights belong to, Tadatoshi Fujimaki.
Chapter Thirteen, My Friends, (Part Three)
And finally, Murasakibara Atsushi.
'I just can't believe you made the team, and you haven't even tried out.' Kuroko was saying as they walked through the dorms.
'I don't know, the captain saw me playing and told me to come to the first practice next week.' Aomine replied, shrugging.
'But, the basketball team. I heard that it's really hard to get on the team at all, so for a first year to get invited to the second string is amazing!' Kuroko said, his expressionless eyes sparkiling.
'First string...' Aomine muttered, a blush on his face.
'The first string?! That's amazing, Aomine-kun!'
The tanned boy shrugged again, 'It's only because Kise told them about my file...'
Kuroko turned towards the blonde who had been walking silently behind them. 'His file?' He asked.
Kise looked up. 'Oh, did you not know? Aomine-chii got into school because of his talent in sports. He went to finals regional tournament.' Kise said, tapping his chin, 'And didn't you win?'
Aomine nodded, 'Yeah, we did.'
Kuroko's eyes were as big as saucers. 'That's amazing! My best friend is famous!'
'Best friend?' Aomine asked, his blush getting deeper.
'Mm-hm!' The small boy nodded, 'No offence, Kise-kun.'
'None taken.' The golden-eyed boy said, smiling.
'We're here...' Aomine said, stopping in front of their friend, Midorima's room.
Kuroko went to knock when they heard a loud noise on the other end. He glanced at the other two as they heard a second thump.
'Would you stop running around and come to class!' They heard Midorima's voice yell.
'I'm not coming! And you can't make me!' A voice shouted back.
'The teacher said you had to!' They heard Midorima yell again.
'No! I don't want to!' The other voice replied.
'You have to!'
'I'll come to class as soon as you take off that stupid scarf!'
'It's not stupid, it's my lucky item!' They heard their green-haired friend shout, clear anger in his voice.
'It's my lucky item...' The voice mimicked.
Kuroko glanced at Aomine and nodded. Aomine turned the doorknob and shoved the door opened.
Midorima was standing in front of a boy who was six feet easy, but he was glaring daggers at the taller boy.
And Midorima was in fact, wearing a scarf.
The tall boy was glaring down at their bespectacled friend.
Kuroko glanced at Kise, they both knew that if this boy wanted to, he could crush their green-haired friend.
'Oh, there's people here...' The giant said, turning around, 'Hi people.'
Kise weakly lifted his hand, 'You must be Murasakibara Atsushi-san.'
'Mm-hm.' The boy named Murasakibara nodded. 'How'd you know...?'
'My mother is the Headmistress, so I heard rumours about a gian- er, a unusually tall boy with interesting talents coming to attend school here.' Kise said, putting a smile on his face.
'Oh... Okay, I don't care, and you talk too much... so stop.' The purple-haired boy said, scratching the back of his head.
A surprised look passed over Kise's pretty features. He wasn't use to people talking to him that way.
'Can we stop talking and go to class? We're going to be late.' Midorima said, annoyance flickering over his face.
'Yes, let's go, we don't want to be late.' Kuroko agreed.
Midorima sighed in relief. 'Finally, someone agrees with me!'
Kise smiled, 'Well, shall we go then?' He asked.
They all agreed, and started for the door, Midorima looked over his shoulder at the other boy. 'If you don't start coming to class then you'll get kicked out.'
The bigger boy stuck out his tongue. 'Go away. I'm not coming.'
Midorima slammed the door shut behind him. 'Oh, that guy bugs me so much!' He growled as they walked down the hall.
'Is he your roommate?' Kuroko asked, curiously.
'Unfortunately. But he's really immature and spoiled.' Midorima answered stiffly.
Aomine nodded, 'That doesn't surprise me, I know who that is, his team was the team I played against in the finals at the regional tournament, the brat sat out though.
'I wonder why,' Kise said, 'I hear he's very good at sports.'
'Well, obviously, since his team made it to regionals.' Aomine replied.
'I think he's lazy. End of story.' The green-haired boy huffed.
'Oh well, let's not worry about it right now, I'm sure he's perfectly nice. It's not good to judge a book by its cover.' Kise said, walking into the classroom.
'Or by it's content apparently.' Midorima muttered.
Kuroko smiled at him. 'I'm sure he's not that bad.'
Midorima shook his head, 'Trust me, I share a room with him.'
They all took their seats, with Midorima still muttering under his breath.
More students milled in the room, talking to each other as they took their seats. Kuroko instantly recognized Murasakibara as he entered the room. He smiled to himself, the purple-haired boy must have taken Midorima's threat seriously after all.
The purple-haired glanced at Midorima and put his head down. He headed to what must have been his seat, he put his bag on the hook and went to the front of the class to speak with the teacher.
A few more students came into the class as Murasakibara made his way back to his desk.
One of the students walked by Midorima's desk. 'Nice scarf, freak,' He hissed as he went by. Kuroko hearing this, turned to say something but much to his surprise, someone else got there first.
'You know... that wasn't very nice... don't you think you should say sorry?' Murasakibara said from behind the boy. Threat laced in his words.
The student looked up behind him to see the giant standing behind him. His face paled and he let out a small squeak that could have made a mouse jealous.
'Sorry.' He squeaked and made his way to his desk.
Murasakibara watched him go, glancing at Midorima he opened his mouth, then seemed to change his mind and hurried to his desk.
Midorima stared at the bigger boy's retreating frame in awe.
He looked at Kuroko, who smiled and mouthed, 'I told you so.'
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The four walked down to lunch, talking about the day's events.
'I'm just saying, it was very nice of him to stick up for you like that. You should thank him.' Kise was saying.
Midorima's ears burned red. 'I know, I will. Just stop telling me please.'
'There he is, why don't you thank him now?' Kuroko said, pointing towards the tall figure outside of the lunchroom.
Midorima sighed, 'Alright, I'll go... But I want you guys to come with me.' He told them.
They all agreed and made their way towards the tall figure. On closer inspection they saw that he seemed to be crying.
Aomine exchanged an uneasy look with Midorima and they both started to back away. Kise, noticing that they were leaving, reached out and grabbed both boys by the collars of their shirts. 'Where do you think you're going?' He asked in a falsely sweet voice.
'Well... he's cryin' so I thought he'd like to be left alone...' Aomine said, uncomfortably.
Midorima nodded in agreement.
Kise glared at them, 'How could you be so cruel? You should be ashamed.'
Kuroko nodded, he grabbed Kise's hand and started walking towards the crying boy. 'Come on, Kise-kun. We'll go see what the problem is.'
'Okay, we're comin'.' Aomine said, dragging Midorima behind him. 'But it better be serious.'
'He's our age, most kids our age don't tend to cry for no reason.' Kuroko said reasonably.
They approached the crying boy, Kuroko put his hand on the other boy's upper arm, 'Excuse me, is there something wrong?'
Murasakibara jerked in surprise. 'No... well... yes... I dropped my food... and it got ruined...'
Kuroko stared at him silently for a minute. He was crying over dropped food? 'Well, why don't you just get more?'
The purple-haired giant wiped tears off his face. 'Because, it won't be enough. And then I'll be hungry anyway!'
Kuroko glanced at Kise. 'Well... how do you know that you'll still be hungry?' The blue-haired boy asked.
'Never mind... If I stay here I'll get in trouble again...' He turned to leave. 'Bye.'
The blue-haired boy watched Murasakibara walk down the hall, his head hanging low.
'Get in trouble, again?' Kise said, tapping his chin.
The smaller boy shook his head. 'I don't know, maybe he's had trouble in other schools.'
'Maybe... I guess it's none of our business...'
Kuroko stared after the retreating boy, a curious look on his face.
'What'cha thinkin' 'bout Tetsu?' Aomine asked, walking up to the smaller boy.
'I don't know, he just seemed... a little too upset...' He started to play with his tie. 'I wonder why...'
Aomine put his hand on the smaller boy's shoulder. 'I'm sure he`ll be okay.'
Kuroko shrugged, 'I guess, I just wish I knew what was wrong...'
'Well, why don't we follow him?' Kise asked, already heading after Murasakibara.
Aomine glanced at Kuroko, who shook his head. 'I don't know what has gotten into him lately.' Said the expressionless boy.
'Come on, we don't want to be left behind.' Midorima said, quickly walking after the blonde.
The two boys stared after Midorima in shock. 'What's wrong with him?' The tanned boy asked, shaking his head in amazement.
'I really don't know, Aomine-kun.'
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Aomine and Kuroko found the other two crouched and peeking around a wall.
'Shh,' Kise said as they walked over, 'something's going on.' He pointed to where Murasakibara was standing, he was talking to a teacher, looking miserable.
'What's going on?' Kuroko whispered, crouching as well.
'We aren't sure, the teacher's acting weird.' Midorima said, pushing his glasses up.
'Shh.' Kise said again.
'Now, Atsushi-kun, you don't have to lie, are you lost?' The teacher said in a child-like voice.
'No...' Murasakibara mumbled. 'I'm not lost, and I'm not lying...' He clenched his fist.
The boys all looked at each other.
'Why is she talking to him like that?' Kuroko mouthed at Midorima.
The bespectacled boy shrugged. 'We don't know, but she's also calling him Atsushi.' He whispered back.
Aomine shook his head. 'She's treating him like a toddler.' He whispered.
Kise nodded. 'Midorima-chii says it's because he acts childish sometimes. But that doesn't make it okay.'
'Sensei... can I go?' Murasakibara asked, twirling his long hair around his finger.
'Of course, I'll walk you to your class.' She said in her falsely sweet voice.
He opened his mouth and closed it again, tears welled in his eyes for a minute before he blinked them away. 'I can go myself. I'm not a baby...'
'I know, but maybe it's better if I go with you, this can be a really big place.' She said, putting her hand on his upper arm.
'No. I can go alone.' The purple-haired boy said, anger flashing through his eyes, his fist clenching tighter.
'Atsushi-kun, you calm down now. Maybe you need to take a nap.' The teacher said in a voice that a mother would use on a misbehaving toddler.
Blood started to stream down his clenched fist. 'I'm not a kid, I don't need a nap! Just let me go to class!' His voice cracked as he tried to keep his temper in check.
A group of students walked by, hearing a piece of the argument they started to snicker. 'The baby sounds tired, maybe he does need a nap.' One of them whispered.
'Yeah, maybe you should listen to your mommy.' Another one hissed.
Murasakibara glanced at them, and back at the teacher. 'I'm going now.'
'I'm not sure that's a good idea...'
'If I'm late I'll get in trouble again... so let me go...' He replied.
'Excuse me, I think you've done enough, he obviously doesn't think that he needs help.' Kise said, stepping out from behind the wall.
Murasakibara stared at the blonde boy, a blush creeping on his face. 'How long have you been there...?' He mumbled.
Kise smiled at him briefly. 'Goodbye, sensei.'
The teacher bowed. 'Of course, goodbye Kise-san.' She hurried down the hall.
'My goodness, some people.' The blonde said, shaking his head in disgust.
They all came out of hiding. 'What was that all about?' Aomine asked, running his hand through his already messy hair.
'I don't know... teacher's always do that to me. They think I'm a little kid...' Murasakibara said, playing with his hair again. 'And then the other kids hear and think it's funny. So they start picking on me too... it's not fair...!' He said, stomping his foot.
Kuroko put his hand on the other boy's arm. 'It's alright, sometimes, people are mean, and sometimes we can't do anything about it, but other times we can turn around, walk away and be happy in our own way, because sometimes, actions speak louder then words.'
The tall boy looked down at the small one, tears welling in his eyes again. 'But, why does it have to be that way? How come we're expected to be the bigger people? How come we have to walk away and act like nothing happened? How come they can't just say sorry?' Murasakibara asked, wiping at his eyes.
'Because, the people who bully others are too little to be big.' Kuroko answered.
'Too little?' The giant said, sounding confused.
Kuroko nodded. 'Everytime you say something mean to someone, you shrink just a little bit. It's not noticeable to everyone, but if it's noticeable to you, then you'll see just how small they've become.'
Murasakibara looked around at the four boys, 'Are you sure?' He asked, sounding uncertain.
Aomine nodded, 'Yeah, but more importantly, how come you wouldn't play against me?'
He smiled, 'So that was you... I saw you play before, and I could tell we were going to lose if we played against you, you looked really determined. Also, they would have blamed me for losing.'
'So, you just didn't play?' The tanned boy asked, sounding aghast.
'Yeah...' The giant answered, a blush rising to his face.
'Well, that's stupid!' Aomine said, punching the taller boy's arm.
The purple-eyed boy rubbed his arm. 'Ow... that was mean...'
'You should have played me!' Aomine yelled.
'Sorry! Stop yelling!' Murasakibara said, putting his hands up in surrender.
'I have an idea, after class, why don't you two play one-on-one, and then we can get supper?' Kuroko said, putting his hand on Aomine's arm.
'Together?' Murasakibara asked.
'Of course.' Kuroko replied.
He stuck out his fist, closely followed by the other three. 'I think we could be really good friends.'
The giant stared at their outstretched hands. 'Really?' He asked.. They all nodded. He tapped Kuroko's fist, followed by Aomine's, Kise's and finally Midorima's.
'This will be so much fun! Don't you agree Aomine-chii?' Kise said, grabbing Aomine's arm.
Aomine nodded, a smirk sliding on his face. 'I just hope you don't cry when you lose.'
'Cry? I'm not going to lose.' The giant replied, looking down at the other boy.
Aomine laughed, 'Sounds like a challenge. You're on.'
'After supper I think we should head back to our room and all study together, since one of us has missed everyday of class so far.' Midorima said, pushing his glasses up.
Murasakibara blushed. 'Okay...'
Kise smiled, 'That's a great idea! That way we can help each other out!'
A blush appeared on Kuroko's face. 'That would be nice...'
Midorima looked over at the small boy. 'What do you mean? Do you have trouble with your studies?'
Kuroko nodded sheepishly. 'I'm not very smart...'
'That's not true!' Kise said, surprised. 'You were the one who helped me when that guy was trying to...' He trailed off.
'And you saved me from those bullies.' Midorima said.
'You're a whole lot smarter than me, Tetsu.' Aomine said with a smile.
'And you told me it was okay to be myself, so I don't have to hide.' Said Murasakibara.
Kuroko stared at the ground, tears welling in his eyes.
'Besides. Who cares about that, you were my first real friend, and that means a lot.' Aomine said, sticking out his fist one more time.
'You were my first friend too.' Kise told him sticking out his fist as well.
'I think that if it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have any friends at all.' Said Midorima, sticking his fist out, matching the other boys.
'People don't usually like me, but you're different, thanks Kuro-chin.' Musakibara stuck his fist out, a grin on his face.
Kuroko looked at his friend's fists, the tears slid down his face. He lifted his fist and weakly tapped each of them with his own.
'Thank you...'
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'Hi sweetie, how are you?' Kuroko's mother asked over the phone.
Kuroko sat alone in his room, Aomine was at the gym with Murasakibara so Kuroko decided to call his mother.
'I'm good, how are you?' Kuroko asked.
'I'm fine, thank you. How was your first week at school?' She asked, light concern in her voice.
Kuroko thought about his first week at school, a smile spreading across his face. From his awkward meeting with Aomine, to saving Kise from a rapist and then turning around and stopping kids from hurting Midorima, that finally ended with helping Murasakibara with his insecurities. Kuroko was almost surprised that the week was over so soon.
'It's been very interesting.' Kuroko replied after a long pause.
'Did you make any new friends?' She asked. She couldn't tell if her son meant interesting in a good way or otherwise.
'Oh yes, after Aomine-kun, we made friends with Kise-kun...' He started.
'Oh, that's nice, he was a very sweet boy, and he seemed a little lonely.' She said.
'Yes, he's very kind. Anyways, we then met Midorima-kun and Murasakibara-kun. They''re all very nice.' Kuroko told her.
She smiled, Kuroko sounded very happy.
Kuroko continued to tell her about classes when his friends all came tumbling into the room.
'I won!' Aomine yelled as he stumbled in.
'Did not! I won!' Murasakibara yelled back.
'It was a tie!' Midorima shouted over them.
'Please just stop fighting, so we can deal with the problem at hand! Said Kise.
Kuroko looked confused. 'What problem?'
Aomnie smacked him on the back of the head. 'It's our first weekend after school!'
'So?' The small boy said, tilting his head to the side.
'So?! We have to hang out!' The tanned boy shouted.
The small boy put his hands up in surrender. 'Okay, calm down.'
'I think we should sneak out! Even Kise said that it sounded like fun, and his mom's the Headmistress!' Aomine said, waving his arms in the air.
They nodded and started talking at the same time.
'Shh! My mother's on the the phone!' Kuroko said, covering the mouth piece.
The four boys eyes all widened. 'Sorry.' Kise mouthed.
Kuroko put the phone to his ear. 'Sorry, mother. You don't need to worry, I'm not going to do anything against the rules.'
'What? I'm sorry, I didn't hear that. Did your friends say something?' His mother said, slight amusement in her voice.
'Oh, well, I'd like to keep talking but, my friends...' Kuroko looked around at his guilty-looking friends.
'I understand, I'll call tomorrow night... or you can call me, it seems like you boys are going to be busy tomorrow...' She chuckled quietly.
Kuroko smiled. 'Thank you, mother...'
'You're welcome. I love you, bye.'
'I love you too.' Kuroko mumbled.
He looked up at his friends and smiled. 'So, where are we going?'
They stared at him for a while before reacting.
Kuroko got shoved over by the force of Aomine and Kise jumping on him.
'Ow, what are you doing?' The small boy mumbled into one of their shoulders.
'Oh, Kuroko-chii, that was such a happy smile!' Kise said hugging him tighter.
Aomine nodded. 'I've seen you smile lots of times, but this time you looked... really happy.'
'Come on Mido-chin, you hug Kuro-chin too...' They heard Murasakibara say
The small boy heard someone stumble and felt someone else land on him.
'I don't really care but... I'm happy too...' Midorima said blushing.
The four boys were all lifted off the bed as Murasakibara hugged them too. 'I want a hug too...'
Kuroko started to laugh, causing everyone to join in, and in just a matter of seconds, no one could stop.
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'Kay, that's all, I hope you liked it! Next week I won't be posting a new chapter because I'll be out of town, But I'll be back in two weeks, see you then!