Kuroko continued to practice his shooting with a slower pace due to fatigue. Aomine choose to sit down on the floor and small dribbling the extra ball. Sitting down, Aomine just noticed how big it was Teiko’s gym room. It was so wide and vast, but does not feel as lonely as he thought it would be despite its size. He wondered why.

One of Kuroko’s shots finally went in, the boy’s face brightened and let out a small smile. The taller certainly did not missed that scene which led to his heart beating quadruple times faster. He felt comical. What the hell he thought. Its freaking Tetsu! Not some girls with big s or anything. This denial continued long enough apparently until it earned the pale boy’s attention.

“…-kun….Aomine-kun….” a soft voice calling out to the tan boy. The pale boy’s face was close enough to widen the other’s eyes not allowing it to blink for a couple of seconds.

“W-What!? Why are you so close!?” Aomine replied unnecessarily loud and startled the other.

However, Kuroko did not seem like he wanted to budge from where he stood. “Are you okay? I was calling you for like 10 times already, Aomine-kun.”

Kuroko’s eyes were as straight forward and keen as ever. Aomine may thought he was a bit wacky but he was sane enough to see that there was a slight hint of concern expressed by the small squint in the shorter’s eyes. “I-I’m fine” he scoffed hastily. “Now back off.” Again, his words seemed to lose their charm toward Kuroko. There was no hint of maneuvering from the pale boy.

“Your face is very red now.” Kuroko observed thoroughly and could not hid his curiosity as can be seen from his dilated pupil. “Do you mind?” Without leaving any chance for the tan boy to reply, he put forward his cold hand against the tan boy’s forehead.

Even with Aomine’s agility that tops the other generation of miracles, he simply failed to react the second the hand reached him. Like the warmth of summer, the color of Akashi’s hair, his face turned scarlet. Before the stuttering managed to turn into words, the pale boy removed his hand. He could not believe that he allowed his heart to expressed a dim feeling of disappointment.

“You seem fine. But are you really okay Aomine-kun?” the pale boy questioned persistently and the sign of concern grew stronger. “You have been remarkably quiet today, for your level.”

No. I’m not. “I-I’m fine” denial. Humanity’s greatest weapon, he thought.

Kuroko hesitated for a while and gave up. “Alright, if you say so.”

“What!? You give up just like that!?” Aomine was not even sure why would he say this out loud.

“Hm? You said you are fine. I believe you.” The paler now sat next to Aomine and drank the water nonchalantly after finishing his statement.

Believe me.

What could you possibly understand? What can a guy like you who can’t do anything by himself, understand?

Aomine felt like a huge rain fell on him untarnished by his guilt.

“Aomine-kun, I felt really happy today, playing with everyone. I felt like we have renewed our friendship, with you, Akashi-kun, Kise-kun, Midorima-kun and Murasakibara-kun”

I don’t even remember how to receive your passes anymore.

“Thank you, Aomine-kun” a warm smile was formed from the pale boy’s lips. Such warmth, Aomine used to see that often back then, until it was taken abruptly by him and the rest of the team. The dark-skinned boy finally understood the pain, ache and guilt overcame him today.

Your basketball would never win.

Tetsu..

The navy blue haired boy clenched his fist hard and looked down in frustration. I took a while before he managed to collect the pieces of his mind and gathered the courage to speak.

“Tetsu...”

“Yes?” the pale boy stopped dribbling and direct his view to the taller although he was not able to see his eyes since he bent down his head so low.

“I had a lot of fun today you know.” He continued in a deeper voice “I do not remember that it was that much fun, playing with you guys…and with you” finally he glanced toward his right side where Kuroko was, and with a weak smile he continued “basketball become even more fun, I don’t know how.”

“I also felt really happy” Kuroko let out a warm smile toward the taller.

There was a moment of silence before the taller continued. “To enter zone level 2..” He exhales heavily now spare an empty gaze across the court. “Do you know…the gatekeeper, the key for me and Kagami to enter direct drive zone?”

Kuroko waited for Aomine to finish his sentence because it seemed like he would want to answer his question himself. Not that he had any answer in mind.

“It was you, Tetsu.”

There was a complete silence inside Teiko’s gym. “You are the one that open the gate so that I can reach my teammate’s power. It was you all along, Tetsu.”

His deep and hoarse voice echoes loudly inside the gym that is now as tranquil as a forest.

“The moment I realized that, unlike Kagami, it was never intended for me to open the gate…because…” there was a long pause and his voice fell even deeper “Because I threw my teammates away back then. I threw you away, Tetsu.” His jaw clenched.

“…Aomine-kun..”

His face now seemed to dwell in a deep sorrow, with a painful smile formed at the corner at his upper lip he continued, “I-I have degraded you. I was blind. I was too proud to notice that you never left my side.”

Kuroko waited for a moment before he replied rather breezily “So it was because of this that you acted strange the whole day?”

Aomine failed to hide his shock to hear Kuroko’s light answer, formed his eyebrow in confusion and unintentionally slightly parted his mouth.

“Someone told me before.” The light-blue haired boy inhaled and uttered a familiar statement and now looking intensely at the other’s pair of dark blue eyes “Anyone who loves basketball, cannot be a bad person”.

Aomine’s eyes were never as wide as it is now. Stinging sensation creeped up to his eyes. Burning feeling in his chest becoming more apparent. Like there was a lump stuck on his throat, he breathes heavily. Altogether, as if it was derived from all of those, a touch of warm drops stream down through his cheeks. He could not comprehend the sensation he was feeling now. All that he knew, is that he felt hurt and letting the tears streamed helped him to weaken the pain.

Kuroko that was still immersed in his own empty gazing, not looking at Aomine, was taken aback when a broad, reassuring hand, held his hand tightly. Tears are betraying him as it fell down to the paler’s delicate hand.

“Tetsu…” in a deep husky voice he blurted out the two words he felt should have been pronounced ages ago “I’m sorry.”