KISE

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"'I'm proud of you, Ryōta.'"

Kise starts crying after the practice match and it tugs at a few of Kuroko's heartstrings.

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Kuroko could feel the despair of losing rolling off Kise in waves. A part of him told himself that he should just leave Kise to Kaijō. The other part of him saw the look on Kise's face and felt a twinge of protectiveness. There was something so frail about the river of tears falling from the younger's eyes that made Kuroko walk back onto the court; back to Kise. Kuroko could only guess what his friend was feeling; Kise was used to winning, this would probably be his first loss in a while. The sinking feeling of thinking that if you had done something else, something different, then you would have won. Kuroko was familiar with this feeling. All he wanted was for someone to tell him that he was good enough, to tell him that it wasn't the end of the world. He decided long before he joined Serin — even when the Generation of Miracles began to change — to be that person. He promised that he would always be there for them. So Kuroko supposed it was a sense of duty that forced him to proceed to walk towards his friend, who was now on the floor with his head down. Both teams stared at Kuroko who was walking over, unbeknownst to Kise. They were even more shocked to see Kuroko lift his hand to ruffle his yellow hair.

Kise, who was now out of his thoughts, looked up with wide eyes as Kuroko ran his hand through his hair, "K-Kurokocchi...?"

Kuroko lifted his hand and successfully pulled Kise from the floor before looking him straight in the eyes, "I'm proud of you, Ryōta." Kise's eyes widened. Everyone who knew the blue-haired boy well knew that he rarely used anyone's given name. So, yeah, the use of his first name was a shock to him. "You've exceeded every expectation set out for you, and that alone is something you should be proud of. Don't let this loss hold you back, use it to further better yourself for the next time that we play on court."

Kise roughly wiped the tears away from his eyes and smiled, "We'll get our revenge on court!" Kuroko's lips quirked up in a small smile at the mention of 'we'. Kise, on the other hand, was filled with joy. There was something about having your former teammate and someone you greatly respect tell you they are proud that made him feel all warm inside. He remembers when he thought of Kuroko as insignificant when they first met. Now, he wouldn't exchange their friendship for the world. Kise is grateful to Kuroko for all he had done for him, it just took him a little longer to realize that himself.

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