Betrayal in its simplest form

Chapter 4

"What are we going to do?"

"We are going to do nothing, Daiki. We will simply wait for Tetsuya's injuries to heal before we do anything else."

"But-!"

"Daiki."

There was silence. Kuroko tried to make sense of the conversation and where he was. His head was being supported by something warm, and a hand caressed his head over and over. A dull pain radiated throughout his body, but it wasn't anything major. He could feel a light blanket over his body. The hand that was running through his hair felt comforting, soothing, and he didn't want it to stop.

Unfortunately, it did stop. The hand stopped at the base of his neck, squeezing lightly in affection. "Tetsuya."

Kuroko knew he'd been caught. He obediently opened his eyes, squinted from the sudden light, and stared at the blank red-haired teen's face. A faint blush came onto his face when he realized he was lying on his past captain's lap.

"The fact that you're blushing means you're healing well," Akashi said, amused.

"Kurokocchi?" an uninvited voice cried.

"Tetsu!"

"Kuro-chin is alive!"

"Of course he's alive, baka."

"Eh-h? Why is Mido-chin so mean?"

Kuroko blinked and stared at the three colorful basketball players who loomed over him. The number-one-shooter sat at Kuroko's feet. "Everybody," he managed to croak. "You came."

An annoyed sigh came from Midorima. "Well, we were more or less forced to, but of course we came," then the annoyance turned into worry, "You've been out for a few hours. Are you all right?"

Everyone anxiously waited for the pale teen to answer. "Hai . . . It doesn't hurt as much anymore." There was an obvious sigh of relief in the room. Kuroko turned his gaze toward his 'pillow'. "Ano, Akashi-kun?"

"Yes?" The second shortest in the room answered indifferently.

"How . . . did I get here?" Feeling out of character, Kuroko turned slightly with a wince and started fiddling with the end of Akashi's shirt.

It was Murasakibara who answered, "Aka-chin carried Kuro-chin all the way to Aka-chin's apartment!" The tall teen paused, and then said, "Oh, but this isn't Aka-chin's real house. His house is too far away for him to carry you."

It was true. If Akashi took the smaller boy all the way to his house, he would have to take a four-hour train, and Kuroko would have been in danger by then. Since his parents could afford it, Rakuzan's ace had a complex in almost every city he usually visited.

"You carried me? I apologize for being such a hindrance," the polite teen said and struggled to get up. Twenty hands came to help. Kuroko fought the urge to flinch and reminded himself they were just helping. He managed to sit in an upright position without his wounds opening, and Akashi laid a hand on his shoulder, to steady him. The small boy looked blankly at the old first string of Teiko's basketball team and then reverted his eyes to the floor. "I'm sorry for causing so much trouble," he mumbled.

"Baka." Midorima's hand lightly smacked the back of Kuroko's head, but he made sure to avoid the injured area. "You're not causing that much trouble."

"Midorimacchi is right, Kurokocchi," Kise said loudly. "We want to be here!"

Kuroko surveyed in wonder the rainbow-haired people who had come from miles away just to see him. Each had a concerned expression on; even Murasakibara had stopped eating his chocolate bar. "Thank you, everyone," he thanked quietly.