Kuroko's Secret

Yosen High

A few weeks after the sleepover, a certain giant was sitting in class. He had abandoned the bag of snacks in front of him, opting instead to stare into space in front of him. Being together for one weekend had been more of a tease than anything. He was grateful that he got to be with them, but he missed the days when they were all together. Every day they had seen each other, only for it to get cut down to almost never. It was too much.

"Atsushi, why aren't you eating?" a voice broke him out of his thoughts. He looked up to see Himuro staring at him with a genuinely worried expression.

"Hm?" Murasakibara wasn't hungry for once. He wanted to see the others more. His food could wait.

"Atsushi, it's lunchtime. You need to eat something. You're starting to worry me, this isn't like you," Himuro said. He had also noticed that the other hadn't been eating as much lately, not just today.

"Not hungry," Murasakibara murmured, looking away from his friend once more. Himuro's eyes widened. Since when was he not hungry?!

"Why aren't you hungry?" he asked gently. Murasakibara turned his head slightly to look at the other boy out of the corner of his eye, but he didn't respond. Himuro sighed at the lack of response. He knew he had to do something.

Murasakibara glanced down at this bag of candy, sighing when he saw a vanilla candy sitting on top. His eyes closed as he immediately thought of Kuroko, who loved anything vanilla. He wiped a tear away from his eyes before it could fall down his cheek.

Himuro, meanwhile, was texting his brother.

'Hey, do you know Akashi Seijuro's number? I need to talk to him.'

It only took a few minutes for the redhead to respond.

'Why do you need to talk to him?'

Himuro sighed and shook his head. Couldn't the other boy ever just answer his questions?

'Atsushi is acting weird. He's not eating. I'm worried and I don't know what to do.'

Himuro waited a few minutes for a reply, but it never came. Himuro sighed and was about to put his phone away before an unknown number was calling him. Was it Akashi?

"Hello?" he asked as he answered the phone.

"Himuro Tatsuya?" the voice on the other line was somewhat familiar.

"Akashi-kun," Himuro said, sighing in relief. "I need your help with Atsushi. He isn't eating and says he isn't hungry. I don't know what to do."

"Ah, I'm surprised it took this long. I'll take care of it. Thank you, Himuro-kun," Akashi said. Before Himuro could respond, the line went dead. The boy sighed before turning back to see Murasakibara hadn't moved.

Murasakibara's phone went off in his pocket, and he pulled it out. His face lit up when he saw it was from Akashi.

'Eat for me, please, Atsushi. I promise I'll think of a solution for all of us soon. I'll see you at your practice. Love you.'

The purple giant smiled at the phone before getting up to get lunch, absently replying an 'I love you too' as he walked. Himuro sighed in relief, before following him to the food line.

The rest of the day passed by much the same way it did in the morning, though Murasakibara at least tried to pay attention to his classes. When the bell rang, he got up and followed Himuro to the gym.

"Are you ready for practice?" Himuro asked him as he walked by his side. The purple giant only shook his head.

"No. I just want to see Aka-chin," he responded. Himuro sighed but didn't comment further. The purple giant was always attached to Akashi-kun. It was slightly frustrating for him, but he understood that they were close friends. Or at least he thought they were only close friends.

When they made it to the gym, Himuro walked in first. He froze, however, when he saw Akashi standing next to their coach. The other players were surprised as well and were staring at the boy. They were huddled together in the middle of the gym, not doing anything.

"Atsushi," the red-head called out. Murasakibara finally looked up from the floor with wide eyes. A smile slowly broke over his face as he locked eyes with the redhead.

"Aka-chin," the other replied, admiration laced in his tone. It was painful for Himuro to watch, and he started to suspect that they were closer than they let on. Why else would the former captain come to the school?

"Come with me, Atsushi," he demanded. Said boy only nodded, abandoning his friend without a second glance, which sent another stab of pain through his heart. Himuro followed them silently, making sure to not be seen by either boy.

"Sei-chin, I can't do this anymore," the purple giant said, reaching over to hold the redhead's hand. Himura's eyes widened at the display.

"I know you can do it, love. I know it's painful, but we're getting there. I'll have a plan soon for us all. I promise," Akashi said, glancing up at the other. Murasakibara simply nodded, knowing that the other wouldn't lie about that.

"I love you, Sei-chin," the giant said quietly. Himuro almost revealed himself when he started to choke on air. The stab of pain that went through his heart made the other ones seem like a pin. This one felt like a bullet. He watched with tears in his eyes as they embraced each other, Murasakibara burying his face into the redhead's shoulder.

"I love you, too, Atsushi," Akashi said. The giant lifted Akashi, causing the other's eyes to widen at the sudden change and wrap his legs around his waist.

"Sei-chin is a bad boy for skipping practice," Murasakibara mumbled into the other's neck. Akashi's eyes closed at the vibrations from the other's voice. "Do I need to punish you?"

"N-no," Akashi stuttered out, giving a faint whimper. He let his chin rest on the other's shoulder staring at the wall, eyes starting to get teary. He didn't want to disappoint any of them! Suddenly, his red eyes locked onto Himuro's. Teary eyes widened before they narrowed.

Himuro gulped at the sight, confused. What was wrong with Akashi? Wasn't he usually the dominant one? Despite the tears, Akashi still managed to put a warning those red eyes of his. Without a word needing to be said, Himuro simply nodded and disappeared down a hallway. His heart had already shattered, but there was nothing else he could do about it.

Murasakibara, not knowing of what had just occurred behind his back, hummed in response before speaking up once more, in the hallway. He rubbed comforting circles in Akashi's lower back, knowing the other had tears in his eyes.

"We should all play basketball again, soon," he said, distracting the other for a moment. Akashi nodded and took in a shaky breath.

"Yes, Atsushi," he replied. His legs tightened around the waist he was sitting on, and he almost felt like a small child compared to the other. It made him frown at the thought for a moment.

"Sei-chin, you should stay over my house tonight," Murasakibara said, though Akashi knew he didn't have a choice either way. Not that he would've said no.

"Yes, Atsushi," he said, hiding a huge smile in the other's shirt.

~O~