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“Hey, are you free on the 31st?”
A simple question.
“Yes, I’m free.”
A simple answer, but that’s what Kuroko Tetsuya was known for. The amount he spoke was almost as little as the boy’s presence, but Kagami had grown used to how straight to the point Kuroko could be since they had become partners. He still had a long way to go when it came to deciphering the deeper meanings of some things his shadow said, but overall, Kagami Taiga was pretty darn proud of his understanding of his friend.
The shorter male turned his head slightly toward the taller, glancing up at him. “Would you like to play basketball that day, Kagami-kun?”
“No time, we gotta prepare for your—” He started coughing before he could finish his sentence, caught off guard by Kuroko’s proposal. He almost ruined everything! “A-Actually, I’m... going some place... with Tatsuya! Yeah, I’m hanging out with Tatsuya on the 31st.” Good save, good save. Exhaling a breath of relief Kagami eyed Kuroko, hoping the other hadn’t realized what he was initially going to say.
Kuroko himself simply returned Kagami’s gaze before looking back forward. “Ah, that’s too bad then. Maybe some other day.”
“Of course! Any other day, partner.” Kagami barked out a laugh, shoving his hands into his pockets as they continued walking down the sidewalk. He’d have to make sure not to let the others know he almost spilled the beans, lest he get a good beating from the ringleader.
“I’m gonna take Nigou back to the gym now, see you later Kuroko!” And with that the redhead took off, the small pup running after him, panting happily. Kuroko stopped to wave, before his head cocked to the side slightly.
Did Kagami think that he was stupid? It was obvious that the other was hiding something, or else he wouldn’t have come up with some sort of excuse on the fly. Though seeing Himuro wasn’t unlikely, due to how close he and Kagami were, but Kuroko knew that some planning would have to go into them meeting since they weren’t exactly nearby, and there’s no way Kagami wouldn’t have been gushing to Kuroko about how excited he was leading up to their meeting.
And him leaving with Nigou—Kuroko had almost felt a laugh bubble in his throat at that. It was more than obvious that Kagami had something he was hiding. But that wasn’t what was causing the frown on the boy’s face at that moment. If Kagami had something he didn’t want to tell Kuroko then he could easily respect that. Everyone had things they’d rather keep to themselves then tell others. But the fact that he had so blatantly lied to his face…
He took a long breath, standing still for a long moment before continuing down the sidewalk. He needed to head back to the gym too, funny enough. He couldn’t exactly go home without his bag, and found it a bit frustrating that Kagami had took off without him when he knew they had the same destination in mind.
The walk was long and quiet, leaving Kuroko with nothing to do but think. It had been disappointing to be turned down by Kagami, because there really was nothing more that he wanted to do on the 31st than play basketball. Spending his birthday with his partner, playing the sport he loved… that’s all Kuroko wanted.
Why had Kagami even asked him in the first place? Did he even know the significance of that day? Kagami was obviously the type to really cherish his friends, if him wearing the ring necklace which matched with Tatsuya every day said something. Had Kuroko ever even mentioned when his birthday was though? But Kagami-kun specifically mentioned the 31st… Oh well.
There was no use dwelling on it. Kuroko wasn’t the type to expect much, or dwell on such things, so he did his best to push the fact that Kagami had lied to him to the back of his mind.
He was walking through the school gates before he knew it, breathing a bit heavily as he had been a bit farther away than he had thought. With a sigh, Kuroko dragged himself toward the gym, ready to round the corner to the entrance before stopping short upon hearing the voices of his teammates.
“Are you guys free next Saturday?”
“The 31st?”
It had definitely been Furihata who had spoken first, Kuroko didn’t need to use misdirection in order to figure that out. Kiyoshi had been the one to reply, and through context clues Kuroko was able to assume that the other senpais were there also. He made quick work of heading toward the other entrance, not wanting to eavesdrop. Luckily the gym was empty, as was the locker room, and Kuroko made quick work of changing in case any team members were lingering. Not like they’d be able to see him with how low his presence was, but Kuroko felt a bit too strange to be around them at that moment.
It seems everyone on the team has something to do on the 31st .
He hadn’t expected more, he really hadn’t. But the more he thought about it, the more Kuroko thought that having company on his birthday would be more enjoyable than spending the day alone. But it seemed his teammates were all out of the question.
Kuroko’s mind paused on that thought, giving him a nice reprieve from feelings he didn’t quite understand as he made his way home. Seeing as it was the end of January, there was a comfortable chill in the air, especially during the night, and he let himself simply enjoy the sound of the soft breeze as he made his way home.
Pulling his keys out from his bag, he pushed open his front door, glancing down to take notice that there were no shoes resting at the entryway, once again. He sighed, slipping off his own shoes and making sure to lock the door behind him before he made his way into his home. Kuroko’s parents had told him earlier that week that they would be getting home late for a while, as work was picking up and they were required to work overtime. He didn’t particularly mind, because it wasn’t anything new in the Kuroko household.
“I guess that means boiled eggs for dinner tonight.” That thought definitely made him excited.
Dinner was slow and uneventful, the only sound being the television, set to a fairly low volume so it simply provided background noise. Kuroko liked the quiet, but not 24/7. There were times when even he didn’t enjoy being in an empty, soundless home.
Maybe I could give Aomine-kun a call. That would definitely provide some noise. Maybe too much noise, but that didn’t stop Kuroko from reaching for his phone and dialing his old friend’s number. He made sure to mute the television as he waited for the other to answer, a small smile gracing his lips at the sound of the call connecting.
“Tetsu? What’s up—Yeah it’s Tetsu now get off of me!!”
Kuroko blinked and pulled his phone back from his ear slightly to avoid his friend’s yelling. Of course Aomine would be loud, and he was already regretting calling him.
“Aomine-kun?”
“Tetsu! Sorry, Satsuki heard your name and practically pounced on me to get to my phone.” The tanned male sighed, and Kuroko could hear Momoi whining in the background. He could imagine Aomine rolling his eyes in response, and a small laugh slipped from his lips.
“Are you two having dinner together?”
“Hah? Not really, she just made the team go out together and I got dragged along.” Aomine yawned, and Kuroko suppressed a yawn of his own.
“I see.”
“So what’s up?”
“Would you like to play basketball with me on Saturday?” As per usual, Kuroko got straight to the point. Even if he had initially called Aomine because he wanted to hear someone’s voice other than his own and the man on the news, deep down he had called to ask the other this very question. Kagami’s rejection had made Kuroko slowly start to realize that he really did want to spend time with someone on his birthday, and he knew that being with Aomine would be a very welcomed experience after all their time apart.
“Ahh, the 31st?”
“Yes.”
“I really would Tetsu, but actually I…” He trailed off, and Kuroko furrowed his eyebrows slightly. He was ready to tell the other that it was fine when he heard a female voice instead.
“Dai-chan’s going to be busy tasting my newest recipes!”
“Like fucking hell I will—” Aomine suddenly sounded like he was choking, and Kuroko could only blink, not knowing what exactly was going on.
“Ohhh yes you are! Sorry Tet-chan!”
“That fucking hurt!!”
And before he even knew what was going on, the line went dead. Kuroko simply stared at his phone for a moment before placing it down on the table and unmuting the television, the more rational side of him telling him to simply forget about what had just happened.
But the more emotional side, the side he could usually keep in check, was still in turmoil over Kagami’s lie earlier, and Kuroko stood and walked over to the couch before throwing himself down onto it, expression blank but emotions running high within.
Did Aomine-kun and Momoi-san just lie to me too?
Again, Kuroko wasn’t stupid. He could understand them both already having plans. It’s not like he was asking them with weeks in advance—it would be Saturday in only a couple of days, so it was perfectly reasonable that they would have already committed to other things. But Kuroko knew Aomine, probably better than most people (save for Momoi, probably), and there was no way that Aomine would willingly give up his health and sanity in order to help Momoi by tasting her cooking. If one could even call it that. Aomine himself constantly declared how bad Momoi was in the kitchen, and he had pretty obviously denied being involved in such a thing during their brief phone call. And he knew that Momoi could be pushy about it, but the fact that she had simply hung up on him, when she had seemed excited to talk to him only minutes prior, didn’t sit right in Kuroko’s mind.
But what could he do? Simply sitting here thinking about it wouldn’t change the fact that they obviously were not available to meet with him on the 31st.
Momoi-san would always remember my birthday though. Maybe she’s forgotten since we haven’t seen each other in so long…
It was a reasonable explanation that made Kuroko sigh. There was no use in getting upset over things he couldn’t help. They couldn’t meet with him. They had obviously lied about why, but that still meant they couldn’t meet with him. That was that, and Kuroko was getting tired. Without making a sound he pushed himself off the couch and up the stairs, leaving the television on behind him. Even if the sound was fairly low, it helped to keep him at ease. Kuroko quickly got ready for bed, and as he found himself staring up at the ceiling, willing himself to fall asleep, he couldn’t help but feel a certain way. Disappointed? Upset? He couldn’t put his finger on it, but Kuroko drifted off to sleep as he mulled over just what exact emotion was consuming him.
By the time he woke up bright and early the next morning, Kuroko had managed to push his excess of thoughts to the back of his mind. He dressed himself and made his way to the school’s gym as he did every morning, participated in morning practice as usual, and even made small talk with Kagami as usual. The taller male had seemed to have forgotten the events that transpired the previous day, and Kuroko didn’t feel it was necessary to bring them up either.
The day passed with ease and suddenly it felt like deja vu as he found himself walking along the sidewalk with Kagami at his side, the other telling him that he had something to attend to and rushing off ahead of him once again. Kuroko breathed a sigh, but was happy that he at least got to keep the company that was Nigou this time. The small dog trotted beside him, quickening his pace at times, then slowing down when he got too far ahead of Kuroko.
Once again he arrived back at the gym to change and collect his things, this time none of his teammates having a conversation around the corner. That at least made Kuroko feel a bit better. If things were too similar to the previous day he feared he’d get whiplash. Deciding that he might as well change things up a bit to break from yesterday’s routine, Kuroko made his way to Maji Burger after feeding Nigou his dinner.
Whenever Kuroko was feeling… abnormal , he knew that a vanilla shake was necessary. And boy was he not feeling like his normal self the past day. He made his way into the fast food restaurant and waited in line, having to mumble a small excuse me when the cashier failed to notice him right away. He almost grimaced when the woman jumped in surprise, but simply ordered his shake and handed her the money instead. Misdirection was fun at times, but not every single time .
Once he had his vanilla shake in hand, Kuroko found himself seated at a booth by the window, one hand holding the drink up so he could reach the straw, the other resting against the table. He simply watched the many people pass by the establishment, not necessarily paying all that much attention to any particular individual though. Kuroko was clearing spaced out, his straw still caught between his lips but he had long since stopped trying to suck up more of the sweet drink. Yesterday’s events were affecting him too much, making him too conscious of the growing emotion he hadn’t been able to name.
What am I feeling? Could it be..?
His eyes trailed away from the window and toward the other side of the booth, when, probably for the first time in his life, Kuroko jolted slightly at the sight of someone else. Seated across from him, glancing at his phone as he chewed on a french fry, was none other than Kise.
Who apparently hadn’t noticed Kuroko yet.
“Hello Kise-kun.”
Said blond’s reactions always amused Kuroko, and this time was no exception. Kise practically hopped out of the booth as a not so manly squeak slipped from his lips. Kuroko just sipped more of his milkshake as he watched the other try and calm himself down.
“Kurokocchi! How long were you there??”
“Not that long. I didn’t notice you arrive either.”
“Oh!” Kise grinned widely. “Does that mean I surprised Kurokocchi ?!”
Kuroko’s nose twitched, not liking the tone of Kise’s voice. “Of course not. I simply hadn’t noticed you sit down.”
Kise’s excitement simmered at the other’s words, and he leaned back with a sigh. “Someday I’ll get you! It’s a promise!”
“How about this Saturday?” Again, here he was, asking for company. This time had been completely coincidental, and Kuroko wasn’t sure if he actually wanted Kise’s company for the whole day (Kise was enjoyable in doses but very tiring all at once) but it was too late to take back his words. Kise was practically beaming.
“Kurokocchiiiiiiiiiii!” Was he crying? Kuroko swore he heard a sniffle at the end, but Kise quickly covered his face before Kuroko got the chance to see whether he was tearing up or not. “Are you perhaps… asking me on a date??”
“No.”
“Ah!” Kise dropped his hands to clutch at his heart, definitely sniffling now. “So blunt! But that’s what I love about you Kurokocchi!”
“Would you like to play basketball with me on Saturday, Kise-kun?” Kuroko simply asked, ignoring the blond’s previous words. He was incredibly used to Kise’s antics, and had no problem whatsoever with not bothering to give him a response.
“Ehhh, that’s not the date I wanted…” Kise pouted for a moment, before an awkward smile spread across his lips. He leaned his elbows on the table and let out a heavy sigh, much to Kuroko’s surprise. “Why did you have to ask!” And now Kise was whining, forehead pressed to the table as his hands gripped at his hair. He was clearly distraught, and Kuroko, not knowing how to respond, continued to drink his vanilla shake.
“It’s alright if you don’t want to, Kise-kun.” Kuroko spoke, glad that he had actually been able to say those words before Kise rejected him, which he had a sneaking suspicion was about to happen.
Kise responded with a bitter laugh and lifted his head slightly, locking eyes with Kuroko. “Oh I want to. I really want to. But…” And he sighed again. “I’ve… already made plans with Aominecchi…”
That’s not what I heard.
“I see. Well, it’s too bad then.” As if Kuroko was about to call Kise out on the obvious lie. If this hadn’t been the third lie told to him by one of his friends, he definitely would have. Kuroko was never the type to tolerate such unnecessary lies. But the fact that these lies corresponded with his birthday had Kuroko feeling a bit sensitive, and a bit too saddened to actually force the truth out of them.
“Maybe another day!” Kise suggested, his cheerful disposition back at full force. “You know I’d give anything to play basketball with you again Kurokocchi!”
“I know.” He mumbled around his straw, the corners of his lips turned upward ever so slightly. Even when Kise was lying to him about something, he still managed to make Kuroko smile. How did he do it? Kuroko really never understood that about Kise. The bubbly male was so different from him, yet he liked him so much. He didn’t understand it at all, but appreciated it nevertheless. “Is Kise-kun on his way home from a shoot?”
Now that Kuroko had gotten past the part of the conversation that caused the most uneasiness, he took a moment to actually look at Kise, noticing that the other wasn’t wearing his school uniform like he himself was. He wore casual yet stylish clothing, his hair looking nicer than usual (not that it didn’t look nice normally).
“Correct! Do you like my clothes?”
“Mm, you look very cool.”
“Kurokocchi said I’m cool!!” Kise was practically swooning now, absolutely overjoyed with the compliment. “This is one of the best days of my life! Only second to the day that we met!”
“I said that you look cool, Kise-kun. I was referring to your clothing.” He paused, staring at Kise’s pout before exhaling a heavy sigh. “But you do look cool. Very cool.” Kuroko wasn’t really sure why he was boosting Kise’s mood when the other lied to him earlier, but he couldn’t help it when the blond looked at him, reminding him of Nigou in a way.
Pushing himself up from the booth, Kuroko took his vanilla shake in one hand, the other waving to his friend. Kise looked up at him with slight confusion. “I’m going to head home now Kise-kun, it was nice seeing you.” He offered the blond a smile, and Kise was quick to return it, standing up also.
“Mind if I walk with you part of the way?”
Kuroko quickly nodded. “Sure, I’d like that.”
The walk back to his home was much louder than it had been the previous night. Kise spent almost the entire time telling Kuroko about how his photoshoot had gone, ranting about how he preferred to model solo than with a partner (throwing in that he wouldn’t mind modeling with someone though if it was Kuroko). He then went on to say how happy he was that he had decided on getting something to eat instead of heading straight home, because that had allowed him to run into Kuroko.
“Can you believe my luck? I get to see you before everyone—uhh, before ever.. you… before you even said it was okay!” An awkward laugh followed Kise’s words, his eyes on anything except Kuroko as he scratched at the back of his head. Kuroko paused, not that Kise noticed, and simply watched the other walk off in front of him, obviously experiencing some sort of inner turmoil.
Did Kise-kun just lie again…?
Kuroko started walking again, moving a bit quicker to catch up to Kise. By now the blond had seemed to get over whatever had troubled him and was back to telling Kuroko all about the photoshoot once again. Kuroko simply tuned him out this time, his mind blank as he robotically made his way down the sidewalk, not even bothering to look up when he turned a corner, walking the path every day helping him to memorize it completely.
When they reached his front door, Kuroko glanced at Kise. “Weren’t you only going to accompany me part of the way?”
“Oh!” Kise was surprised, also not having realized until just then that he had walked Kuroko all the way home. “Sorry Kurokocchi, I just was so happy to be with you that I didn’t even notice!”
“It’s alright.” Kuroko pulled out his key, shoving it into the doorknob before turning back to Kise. “Thank you for walking me home.”
“It’s no problem! I wish I could do it every day!”
“That would be very troublesome.”
“Ohh, you’re just being shy.” Kise really was a master at not being affected by Kuroko’s blunt rejections. “I’m gonna head home now! Happ..Have a good night, Kurokocchi.”
Kuroko did not in fact have a good night, no matter how much he tried. As soon as Kise had left and he had gone into his empty home, what had just happened hit him like a truck. Kise, the one who practically worshipped Kuroko, had lied to him. Twice . Kuroko had no idea what to make of this, and eating dinner didn’t even register in his mind as he dragged himself up the stairs and to his bedroom. He was barely functioning, but still managed to change out of his uniform and brush his teeth before throwing himself down on his mattress.
“Today turned out pretty much like yesterday, I guess.” He mumbled, pressing his face into the closest pillow. Even if he had gone out of his way to change things up in little ways, he still ended up with the same result. Rejection and lies.
First Kagami, then Aomine and Momoi, then Kise. Kise, of all people, rejected spending time with him. With a sigh he reached out to grab his phone, which he must have set down on his nightstand before changing. He opened it up, having to squint slightly as the light from the screen flooded over him, his eyes needing a moment to adjust. Kuroko stared at his wallpaper, at one of the only photos he had of his middle school days. Momoi had been the one to insist they take a photo together, and Kuroko hummed as his eyes scanned over Aomine, his smile genuine and wide. It had been taken before he had lost his way.
His gaze then shifted to a different face in the photo.
I wonder if Midorima-kun... Kuroko quickly shook his head. No, no.
Midorima was most likely busy, and even if he wasn’t, Kuroko easily assumed that Saturday would not be a good day for Cancers and Aquarians to meet. So Kuroko quickly decided against calling Midorima and moved to the next face.
Murasakibara-kun? Now that was impossible, even if the giant did say yes. Akita was much too far from Tokyo for Murasakibara to be able to find some way to travel there by Saturday. And besides, Kuroko did not have enough snacks with him to keep the other satisfied. Definitely a no.
The last face for Kuroko to look at belonged to the one he least expected a yes from. Akashi and him had found a sense of peace and understanding after the Winter Cup finals, but that didn’t change the fact that aside from Aomine who he had been the closest to, when the Generation of Miracles had split, he had felt the largest change from Akashi. Kuroko had even felt fearful of him on multiple occasions. But after his defeat, Kuroko knew that Akashi had started to change once again, but this time back into the person he had originally known. But that person was still terribly busy, and didn’t often go out of his way to do things that didn’t provide some sort of benefit for him. Akashi-kun would scold me if he knew I was thinking such things.
He decided against asking Akashi also, moreso because, similar to Murasakibara, he was quite a far distance away, but also because he didn’t believe Akashi would feel any reason to say yes.
But that doesn’t meant I can’t communicate with him…
He navigated to his contacts and selected his former captain, breathing a soft breath before his fingers glided over the keys.
[ Hello Akashi-kun. I’m sorry to be texting you so late, but I was wondering if you had anything planned for the 31st? ]
Not quite asking if Akashi would spend his birthday with him, but still leaving the possibility open if it turned out that Akashi had no plans on that day. But Kuroko really had grown to not expect anything at all. He sighed, rolling onto his back to stare up at the ceiling. He was still feeling that unnamed emotion, and it was slowly driving Kuroko crazy. Luckily the buzz of his cell phone pulled him from such thoughts. He held his phone up to read the message.
[ Greetings Kuroko, I hope you’ve been well. I do in fact have plans on the 31st. Was there something you wanted to ask? ]
Of course Akashi would catch on, Kuroko should have known. Even without any prior knowledge of Kuroko asking the others, of course Akashi would be able to figure out that he had wanted to ask for his company on that day.
[ Not at all, Akashi-kun. Have a good night. ]
He did not want to deal with Akashi’s subtle teasing any more than necessary and simply placed his phone back onto his nightstand, crawling under his covers in an attempt to block out the outside world. The house was quiet, Kuroko having forgotten to leave the television on to provide some sort of background noise. His breathing was steady, but his mind sure wasn’t.
Thursday… Only one more day to go until the 31st.
Kuroko fell asleep to the memories of his past birthdays, of his parents not being able to come home until late, of his friends drifting apart and having no time to celebrate the fact that Kuroko had been brought into this world. And he felt a bittersweet sadness wrap around him as his consciousness drifted off.
Friday came and went, and Kuroko felt like he was simply moving on autopilot. He felt no desire to go to practice and class, but he would be there before he knew it, and it would be over before he was able to realize he was enjoying himself. Kuroko hardly interacted with anyone either, which Kagami seemingly noticed and tried to bring up, but gave up when his phone began to buzz in his pocket. Kuroko wondered who it was, but didn’t linger on that thought.
Throughout the day he received texts here and there from Aomine, Momoi and Kise, all about trivial things which only served to make Kuroko feel more and more emotional as the day went on. He had figured out what emotion he had been feeling by this point—loneliness. The one thing he wanted was to have company on his birthday, yet none of his friends would be able to be with him. They were there, so he wasn’t lonely in the sense that he didn’t have them at all, but nobody had acknowledged his birthday yet, and it was tomorrow.
Kuroko felt lonelier than he ever had before, and he hated it.
It was a bit petty, but Kuroko felt he had the right to be petty when nobody remembered his birthday, so he chose not to reply to the texts he received throughout the day. He’d reply on Sunday. It was justified for him to distance himself a bit at this point.
And that’s how Friday passed for Kuroko. Uneventful, because he didn’t allow anything to happen. As he woke up on Saturday, the 31st, his birthday, he hoped that this day would pass like the last. Quick and painless.
Sitting atop his nightstand was an envelope, which Kuroko knew was a birthday card from his parents before he even opened it. For the past couple of years, his parents had already left the house for work by the time he woke up, and to make up for not being there to tell him happy birthday right away they would leave him a card. He felt no anger or disappointment over this, because he knew that they were just doing what they could. They couldn’t help the fact that work called them in, and Kuroko completely understood that.
He took a look at the card, a smile on his lips, before heading into the bathroom. There was no school and no practice, thankfully, so Kuroko decided to take his time and hop in the shower in the morning instead of at night like he usually did. He didn’t really need to, because he didn’t exactly have any plans, but he didn’t want to feel messy all day.
However long it was that he stood under the water, Kuroko could only assume it was a bit too long, because when he finally decided to step out, he had to hold onto the shower curtain to maintain his balance. Getting lightheaded from a long hot shower wasn’t exactly one of his crowning achievements, but it had happened to him more times than not.
He moved at a drastically slow pace as he dried himself off and hobbled into his room, pulling on some clothes. Letting the towel rest atop his head, Kuroko sat himself down on the edge of the bed and exhaled, hands resting in his lap.
“Happy birthday.”
Kuroko wished it had been his friends telling him this, instead of himself. He was lonely, so painfully lonely, and Kuroko realized that he had been feeling much lonelier as of late, not just the past few days. He had a wonderful partner in Kagami, and he loved his teammates at Seirin so much, but since the Winter Cup, since all of his previous teammates had seemingly returned to who they were before their talent had isolated them, Kuroko had longed to be with them again. Not necessarily on a team together, but just get to play with them all again. His happiest memories were full of playing basketball with the five teammates who had changed his life.
That’s why Kuroko kept the last photo of them, the last happy photo, as his phone background.
The sudden urge to see that photo prompted Kuroko to grab his phone, biting his lip as he flipped it open. But the photo wasn’t what greeted him—instead he saw notification after notification of texts he hadn’t opened. He blinked and went to view his messages, pausing to take note of the fact that it was well into the afternoon already. Had he slept in, or had that shower really been way too long?
[ Kurokocchi! Vanilla is your favorite, right? ]
[ Kuroko. Your lucky item today is a pair of socks. Don’t forget to bring them with you. ]
[ Kuro-chin~ I want special Tokyo snacks. ]
[ Tetsu, what’s up? ]
[ Tetsuuu, did you sleep in again? ]
[ Tet-chan! Don’t eat a big breakfast today, okay? ]
[ You should have asked what you had wanted to ask the other night, Kuroko. ]
He simply blinked, reading over the texts multiple time and tilting his head, the towel slipping off and falling onto his bed. It was incredibly rare for all of his old teammates to text him on the same day. Aomine, Momoi and Kise texted him often, but Akashi? Midorima? Murasakibara? All at once? He really didn’t understand, and when his phone vibrated in his hand he all but dropped it as he jolted in surprise.
[ Kuroko! I accidentally grabbed your wristbands at practice the other day. I’m busy but can you come over and get them? I know how much they mean to you. ]
Kuroko blinked once more, before a sigh spilled from his lips. It was a bit strange that he wouldn’t notice his wristbands missing, but he wouldn’t put it past Kagami to not notice packing up gear that wasn’t his own after practice, especially with how quickly he’d been leaving the last couple days.
“Well, it’s not like I have much else to do.” Kuroko hummed, fingers pressing the keys of his phone to type up a response.
[ I’ll head over. ]
With nothing better to do, Kuroko stood up from the bed and pocketed his phone. He stopped in his bathroom for a moment to attempt to tame the wildness that was his hair, but that was obviously a lost cause and he gave up relatively quickly.
Kuroko made his way downstairs and pulled his shoes on, before heading out the door. Kagami’s home wasn’t close , but it wasn’t far by any means. It would probably take Kuroko around ten to fifteen minutes to walk there, not that he minded. He did wish he had thought to grab a jacket before he left the house though, because it was a bit chillier than he had expected it to be.
Rubbing his hands together, the boy pulled his sleeves down slightly in hopes that they’d keep his hands warm. At least he’d bothered to wear a long sleeve shirt. Now that he was on his way down the street, Kuroko wondered what exactly it was that Kagami and the other were doing. He’d been so stuck on the fact that they had all lied about what they were doing, that he hadn’t thought about what it was they could actually be doing.
Whatever it is, I obviously wasn’t meant to know.
He could feel the bitterness growing, and Kuroko quickly shook his head in an attempt to disperse it. He couldn’t let such feelings take over. Even if they had lied, they must have had a reason to. Kuroko liked to believe that he knew his friends well enough to know that they’d never lie to him without good reason.
He needed to have more trust and faith in his friends, but the lies definitely were not helping.
They care about you. Just because they forgot your birthday, doesn’t mean they care any less about you.
He didn’t feel good about the fact that he had to reassure himself about this, but Kuroko had more faith in his friends than he did doubt, especially since they had all found the joy of basketball again.
Being lost in his thoughts, Kuroko made it to Kagami’s front door in record time, flipping his phone open to let his partner know of his arrival.
[ I’m here. ]
[ Doors unlocked, just come in! ]
Kagami’s reply came almost instantly, and had Kuroko been his normal self he most likely would have been much more perceptive of that fact. But emotionally burnt out Kuroko paid no attention to that and gripped at the door knob, pushing his way into Kagami’s home. The hallway light was off, and Kuroko reached for the switch as he tugged his shoes off, bent over slightly to do so. As his fingers found the switch and light enveloped the hallway, Kuroko was greeted to the sound of loud popping noises, causing him to almost fall over, hands pressed to the closest wall to keep himself up. As he looked up, eyes wide, various colors greeted him, in the form of both streamers falling in the air and heads of hair. Kuroko could only gape as the crowd of people rushed toward him with party poppers in their hands.
“Happy birthday Kuroko!” They all yelled in unison, and as Kuroko recognized each face in the crowd, he had to fight to keep his jaw from dropping. Aomine was there grinning at him, Momoi at his side with her arms thrown up in the air. Next to them was Midorima and Takao, the former looking less than happy to be there and the latter jabbing him in the side with his elbow. Kise was there, and then he was practically on top of Kuroko, calling out his name happily as he wrapped his arms around the smaller boy. Kuroko took a moment to steady himself and glance back at Kise in confusion before looking to the next familiar face. Murasakibara? How had he gotten to Tokyo? And beside him—
“Akashi-kun?”
“Happy birthday.” The redhead grinned at him and nodded his head. Kuroko simply nodded in response, too confused to utter a word. Behind them he saw his teammates from Seirin, in particular Kagami, who was pushing his way toward the front of the crowd, Himuro in tow.
“Surprise! We sure got you good, huh?” Kagami looked absolutely elated that he had managed to pull off a surprise party for Kuroko, but said birthday boy was still having trouble processing what exactly was going on.
“I don’t understand… Kagami-kun, Aomine-kun, Kise-kun and Akashi-kun, you all told me that you were busy today.”
“And we were!” Kise chirped behind him.
“Preparing for your party, Tetsu!” Aomine grinned and held up his fist, which Kuroko instinctively bumped his own fist against.
“Kagami proposed the idea.” Akashi informed, which caused Kuroko to shift his gaze back to his partner, who was smiling sheepishly.
“Yeah, I thought you’d enjoy getting to spend your birthday with all your teammates, new and old.”
“We had been planning stuff too, Kurokocchi, but Akashicchi decided that it would make the most sense to all come together and have a big party for you!”
“So, none of you forgot my birthday?” Kuroko trailed off, looking between all of his friends before looking down at his feet. He felt Kise tighten his arms around Kuroko, before he and the rest of the crowd broke out in laughter.
“How could we forget Kuro-chin’s birthday~?”
“Precisely.” Midorima pushed his glasses up. “It is a very good day for Aquarius today.”
“But you lied to me.” Kuroko deadpanned, not exactly talking to anyone specific since more than one of his friends had fed him a lie.
“You knew?!”
“It’s called a surprise party for a reason, Tetsu!”
“It was sooo painful to lie to you, Kurokocchi! I’m so sorry!”
“It’s okay…” Kuroko paused, and Kise took this chance to release the smaller male to join the crowd in front of him. Once again someone emerged from the crowd, and Kuroko realized that he hadn’t even noticed Momoi disappear until she was slowly pushing her way to the front, holding a large cake with lit candles.
“Don’t worry Tetsu, she didn’t make it.”
“Shut up Dai-chan! This is for you Tet-chan, make a wish!”
Kuroko simply stared down at the cake. It was obviously store bought, but the ‘Happy Birthday Kuroko’ written in the center was messy and obviously done by one of his teammates, which brought a warm smile to his lips. He inhaled, and looked up at the people in front of him. They were all there to celebrate his birth, with him. How could he have ever felt lonely? Kuroko had so many people who loved him right in front of him this entire time.
“I don’t need to make a wish.” He shook his head slightly, but still leaned in to blow out the candles. “Because this is the greatest present.”