Betrayal in its simplest form

Chapter 8

Seirin's basketball team crowded at a small table in a comfy restaurant. Each player was jittery, nervous, and expectant. They were expecting Shogo Haisaki.

After Riko's expert researching, they had managed to track down Haisaki from Teiko. Apparently, he was attending the high school they would be competing against, soon. The picture they found of him was frightening. A tall, grey-haired teen that looked violent at first glance. His past records show that he had been expelled from a number of schools for fights.

Kuroko was hanging around a guy like that? They all wondered.

Haisaki had replied hours after Seirin's coach emailed him. He agreed to meet at this small restaurant.

"He's late!" Teppei exclaimed.

"By an hour," Kagami grumbled.

Hyuuga glowered. "Be patient."

Suddenly, Koganei jumped up and pointed, "Hey! Isn't that him?" Everybody turned to the front door.

Sure enough, Shogo Haisaki appeared at the doorway, clearly intimidating the stuttering waiters. He glared at him, and they quickly shooed away with a squeak. The violent teen scanned through the crowds in the restaurant, until he landed his eyes on them.

"Are you guys Seirin?" he growled.

~Setting Skip~

Kuroko stared at the meal before him in disgust. Though the aroma around the room smelled delicious, the contents told a different story. It was an American meal: A fat, juicy steak cut into small pieces, a serving of spinach on the side, a small portion of mashed potatoes, and a cup of iced water. That's right; there was no tea, which was usually served with lunch or dinner, which was supposed to help with digestion! On a small plate beside the disgusting main dish, broccoli and peas were served.

Akashi stared amused at the expression on the smaller boy's face. He sat on the edge of the bed, Kuroko in the middle of it, with his arms and legs crossed. A large tray sat on top of Kuroko's lap. "I've heard American food helps you gain weight," he said, "While I disagree with some of the food selection, I do see how this can be more nutritious than a standard Japanese meal."

Kuroko pushed the tray away from him. The sight of it made him nauseous. "I don't want to eat it," he muttered.

Akashi narrowed his eyes and forced the tray back onto his lap. "You will eat everything," he commanded. "No excuses."

Kuroko almost pouted. "Everything?" he touched the foreign meat to see if it would move. It didn't.

"Yes, everything. I expect not to see a single crumb on both those plates." He glared at Kuroko. "It is also part of your . . . punishment for disobeying me."

Kuroko's face pinked and he looked off to the side in shame. When he had woken up this morning, Akashi had been waiting at the foot of the bed. He had immediately gone into detail what his 'punishments' were for going against his orders and sneaking out. He was to not, first of all, under any circumstances, get out of bed unless if it was for the restroom. It didn't matter if his legs were numb, if his muscles ached, or if he was simply bored, Kuroko was not to get out of the bed. If he did, one of the Generation of Miracles would drag him back.

Akashi stayed true to his word. Just two hours ago, when Kuroko was feeling restless from simply staying in bed all day, tried to sneak out of the bedroom just to get some fresh air. Unfortunately, before he could even make it to the living room, Akashi appeared behind him and carried the poor boy all the way back to bed.

Then, an hour later, Kuroko tried again when he was sure Akashi had gone out to go grocery shopping. It was Murasakibara who stopped him that time.