Hey guys, sorry I wasn't able to post when I said I would. My life hit another low point, but it's A-OK now! So happy belated birthday to our resident 3-point shooter, I guess.

Chapter 12

Awkwardness vs. Admiration

Zaizen Hikari was, in every essence of the word, a worrywart. She worried so much that she'd started graying at twenty-five, when her precious Kouki was just two years old. Often Zaizen wondered if she was just paranoid, but it didn't matter as long as Kouki was safe. When he asked to study in Tokyo, she nearly fainted and her husband was left to speak to her son on the matter. In the end, it seemed to be a good thing. Kouki made friends in the basketball club and even had a crush on some nice girl named Satsuki. (Not that she'd bless their relationship, though. Her Kouki deserved better than just "nice". Much better.) He was doing well by himself in the apartment she had rented under the company name and was keeping up in his studies.

The only thing he'd done in the past year to worry her was bring home Kimiko.

How could it be that her darling boy was a father at sixteen? To someone who, in a manner of speaking, was only three months younger than him? And her baby had birthed Kimiko not by a wife, but by a husband?! Zaizen was absolutely furious at the man who had left her son to care for their child alone.

Zaizen didn't care much for formalities. It was one of the reasons Zaizen had kept her last name instead of taking her husband's, one of the reasons Kouki was raised outside the corporate world, and one of the reasons why she had accepted Kimiko. After her own parents disowned her when they learned about Kouki, Zaizen decided that whatever eccentricities her son had would not be shunned. (Having a baby out of wedlock at twenty-three was not eccentric, especially when the wedding to the child's father was just the next month, following a 2-year engagement.) And if her son claimed that Kimiko was his biological child from a different dimension, then who was she to turn away her granddaughter?

The only thing that really concerned her was the matter of Kimiko's father. Neither of them would give up a name (knowing that Zaizen would unleash hell for making her little boy raise another teenager alone). Kimiko became nervous at the mention of her father. Kouki would blush inadvertently, but seemed a little peeved when his husband came into question.

And if Kouki blushed about another boy, then what had happened to Satsuki?

The brunette woman sighed. Her precious baby was growing up fast and falling in love with a man that had left him a single parent! Sure, she'd never approve of Satsuki, but she outright denied the male that dared abandon her Kouki. But what could she do if Kouki still wanted him?

Chewing her lower lip nervously, she phoned an old friend from her high school years.

"Yeah, Arisa-chan? This is Hikari. I don't know who else to talk to about this. It's about Kouki…"

6:07 PM

Furihata checked his tie in the mirror and smoothed down the lapels of his coat. Another sigh crept past his lips as he studied his appearance.

"I heard that, Kou-san!" Kimiko called from the living room. She walked into Furihata's bedroom and gave him a once-over. Clucking her tongue, she moved to straighten his tie. "You shouldn't be so nervous about meeting Akashi-sama."

"That's coming from the girl who couldn't stop calling her own father 'sir' yesterday. Very convincing, Kimiko." The auburn-haired girl shot him a look and stepped back to admire her work.

"But you really should do something about your hair, Kou-san. It's…"

"Atrocious?" he offered.

"Completely."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence. But I don't know how else to fix it! I would have done something about it by now if I knew how." He caught himself before another sigh heaved.

Kimiko tapped her chin, regarding him carefully. "How much time until you have to leave?"

Furihata glanced at his watch. 6:09 PM. "About twenty minutes. Think you can do something about…this?" he asked, gesturing to his head in general. Kimiko smiled slyly.

"Do you have a pair of scissors, a comb, and a spare blanket?"

7:00 PM

Akashi sat at the table the waiter had shown him, idling with the water glass and watching drops condense on the translucent surface.

7:01 PM

Furihata Kouki was officially late. The Emperor was acutely aware of the commotion at the front desk, where the little Chihuahua was asking for his table. Surprisingly, the brunet seemed to have no trouble being believed. Unimpressed, Akashi traced the path of a falling water droplet as it made a spot on the otherwise pristine tablecloth. He didn't look up as Furihata seated himself, sounding a little out of breath as he apologized.

"Sorry I'm late. I got held up at home."

Akashi winced; clearly, that was a jab at him for leaving the two of them in the hospital the day before. But his sympathies had died a bit the moment Furihata was late and his answer was just as curt.

"As the one setting the time and date, you should at least have the courtesy to arrive before your guest, Furihata Kou…"

Akashi swallowed dryly. Furihata had cleaned up nicely. He had cleaned up very nicely. The brunet was dressed in black slacks and a matching coat, the stark whiteness of his pressed button-up accented by his tie and the handkerchief peeking out of his breast pocket, both of which were bright red. Where the captain expected to see messy, unruly locks was a slick, spiked wave of chestnut hair. It had been trimmed down to accommodate the gel, but…

"Akashi-san, are you okay?"

The captain cleared his throat and reached for his water glass and sipped before replying. "I'm fine, thank you," he choked out, clearing his throat. "What, pray tell, did you wish to meet me for?"

The answer was predetermined. Of course, Furihata wished to talk about either the merger or Kimiko or the reason for Akashi's early departure—

"I just wanted to have dinner with you."

Akashi stared at him a few moments in order to determine if having dinner with this boy was a way to redeem himself for his actions or if this was the boy's roundabout way of asking for a date. Seconds later Furihata blushed, apparently coming to the same conclusion the redhead did.

"I-I meant so we can get to know each other better since we're going to be together a lot in the future… because we're… you and I are… this does not in any way sound how I wanted it to! I'm so sorry!" He bowed his head low, almost knocking over his own water glass in the process.

The Emperor thumbed the napkin ring in front of him, trying to figure out what he had done to make this boy so nervous in a matter of less than five minutes. "No need to apologize, I understand what you're trying to say. But if the slightly inarticulate heir of a rival company just wants to get along, what reason did he have for picking a high-end restaurant? One-on-one at any street court would have sufficed."

Furihata sighed and picked up his head. "Just… trying to make a good impression, I suppose. Though I'm pretty sure it didn't go over so well."

Red eyes looked up at chestnut ones briefly before a noncommittal hum was given. "It's too early to say, truth be told. I, for one, would like to see how it turns out. Now, do you want to order appetizers or jump to the main course?"

7:42 PM

Furihata Kouki seemed to be enjoying himself and was trying to hide it, although he did so poorly. He dug into his dish quickly and savored the taste briefly before shoveling in more. Akashi wanted to chuckle and sigh at the same time. The little Chihuahua was amusing, but they were at a high-end restaurant. Hell, the redhead even had to order for the pup. (Most of the cuisine was listed in Italian, which Furihata didn't understand a lick of. Akashi had the boy tell him what food he liked and then picked an appropriate dish.)

Nevertheless, the Seirin player was good company and (surprisingly) skilled at small talk, no matter how trivial the conversation.

"So… what's your favorite color, Akashi-san?" he asked, swallowing.

Akashi considered the question, a bit lost. They'd just been talking about the additional uses of empty ink pens. "Neutral colors and earth tones, actually. They're pleasing to the eyes. Why do you ask?"

Furihata shrugged and gulped down the bite in his mouth. "Part of getting to know people is learning about their likes and dislikes. Sometimes, it's the only thing you can do to let them know you care. It also lets you know what you can talk about in the future." Akashi nodded in understanding.

"Does that include recreational activities and movies?"

"Um, yes."

"I see. Now I know why Eikichi keeps whining to Reo about a show called Close Your Eyes." The brunet choked on his food and chased it down with some water. "Ah, you're familiar with it?"

Furihata blushed minutely. "Y-yes. You're talking about Nebuya-san, r-right? I'm surprised he watches it, too…"

The little Chihuahua and a Crownless General shared interests? "What is it about?"

"P-please don't laugh, but… It's a romantic comedy drama. A boy named Tai is born blind and wears sunglasses to hide the fact that he's blind. His dad homeschools him, but he gets a job at a public high school and enrolls Tai.

"Tai doesn't know how to tie the uniform tie or how to fix his hair and doesn't write notes, so everyone thinks he's in a gang. They all think he sleeps during class and pass notes about him, but they get caught by the class president. Her name is Yuna and she shows him the notes, but he tells her he can't read, or write for that matter. Yuna's surprised, since Tai's pretty well off in the class standings. Tai tells her he's blind and that's why he wears sunglasses, and she starts defending him when she hears stuff about him in class. But that just makes them spread rumors, and Tai gets angry about it and that gets Yuna angry about it and—"

Furihata cut himself off suddenly, blushing and looking down at his mostly empty plate. "I-I'm sorry, I'm rambling! This must be boring for you." Akashi shook his head in response.

"On the contrary. It's nice to hear about. Please, continue."

The redhead wasn't lying. Furihata had some nervous tics he needed to work on, but the overall quality of his voice was soothing to the ear and he had a certain knack for storytelling. If he could overcome his timid nature, he would be a formidable businessman.

A small grin crept onto the brunet's face. "Um, okay then. Uh… the series hasn't gotten very far since it's still new, but so far Yuna is being challenged by the class. They say that if Tai can answer all the questions they ask about what they've learned in class, then they'll stop. But if he messes up, he gets moved from the class and Yuna loses her title as class president."

"Hmm. It sounds like quite the predicament, actually. But does the class know that Tai is blind?"

"No, he made Yuna promise not to tell. He doesn't want them to have the advantage over him."

"Tai made a wise choice." Akashi made a note to look up the show online and read the synopsis of each episode. He couldn't be bothered to watch the entire thing, but he could be bothered for a good story. A realization hit him then: what the Chihuahua had said about getting to know people was fundamentally correct. The next time they met (which hopefully would not be at an Italian restaurant) they'd have a chat about the proceedings of the series.

The food from his plate was gone. Akashi hadn't even noticed, being too wrapped up in the other boy's tale to pay attention, though it appeared that Furihata's plate was also clean.

"If you'd like some dessert, I'd recommend cannoli."

"Um, o-okay…"

The waitress was called over and the Emperor relayed the order. Once she was gone, Akashi very nearly cursed under his breath. Furihata's reverted to the timid manner he had at the beginning of the evening. The redhead knew he was a force to be reckoned with, but this was a casual event by his standards. He'd done nothing in particular to make the brunet cower like this… had he?

Well, he couldn't exactly discount the numerous run-ins he's had with the boy. For example, when they first met before the Winter Cup, he did demonstrate how he trusted Kagami Taiga's instincts by shoving a pair of scissors in his face. And during the Championship game, Furihata had had a three-minute showdown against the Emperor that had left him completely drained afterwards. Not to mention Furihata had probably heard of all the redhead's misadventures during his Teikou days… Now he had to add yesterday's encounter to the ever-growing list of possible offenses.

"Furihata Kouki, I'd like to take this time to apologize for my actions yesterday," Akashi sighed, "and for all the instances since the time we first met. It just now occurred to me that I have given you reason to fear me, though my intentions were aimed specifically toward the court and my opponents. Outside of basketball, I can assure you my actions are… normal, for lack of a better term.

"And regarding yesterday, I chose to not involve myself because of my family name. The Akashi household cannot have another scandal dragging its integrity through the mud. I should have told you as much before leaving, however, and I apologize for any negative impressions you have of me now."

The heir of Zaizen Corps studied him carefully, making sense of the information he'd just been told. "I understand. Thank you for telling me, but… What do you mean by another scandal?"

Akashi pursed his lips. "It was a slip of the tongue. Please don't concern yourself."

"I-I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to pry, I was just— I'll shut up now." He folded his hands quietly in his lap and busied himself with the state of his fingernails. The lion sighed to himself; he hadn't meant to worry the pup or cause him discomfort.

"I suppose I'm not very good at this. Holding a conversation, that is." Chocolate eyes peered up at him tentatively.

"I-it's no big deal, it… It means a lot that you're making an effort anyway. And that you actually listen to me. It's hard at first, to get to know people, but it gets easier the more you try."

The remainder of the evening followed with little else spoken between the two. They ate their desserts in silence (with the exception of Furihata repeatedly remarking how good the cannoli was) and finished the meal. Akashi reached to his back pocket to foot the bill, but the brunet stopped him, assuring the Emperor that he'd already taken care of it. They finished up and got ready to leave, Furihata escorting Akashi to the valet, where a car was waiting. Goodbyes were short and a little stiff and the Chihuahua couldn't help quivering a little as he bowed the redhead goodbye.

"One last thing, Furihata Kouki," Akashi called through the lowered car window, smirking in a non-sarcastic manner. "Let me know when you're free for one-on-one."

The brunet smiled and watched as the car pulled away.

9:16 PM

Kimiko was curled up on the couch when Furihata got home, eagerly awaiting news about the dinner.

"It was fine," he commented dryly. Kimiko gave him a pointed look.

"Aw, come on, Kou-san. There's got to be more than that! What did he wear? What did you eat? What did you talk about? Did he like the way you dressed?"

Furihata's ears reddened at the last question. "He wore a suit, nothing out of the ordinary. We ate Italian food. We talked about… stuff? And how would I know if he liked how I looked? I didn't ask him!"

Kimiko pulled him to the seat next to her, shaking his arm relentlessly and whining. "Kouuuuu-saaaaaaan! Tell me tell me tell me tell me tell meeeeeee!"

"Wh-why should I?!"

"Because I know you have a crush on Akashi-sama!"

The brunet's face flushed entirely and he started sputtering denials. "I-I do n-n-not! Wh-where did you e-even get th-that idea?!"

"First of all, whenever Akashi-sama is mentioned, you do that, and second of all, I was going through your bookshelf while I was waiting and found this," she held up a bookmark, "in the middle of a sappy love story."

This time, Furihata's face paled. He thought he'd lost that bookmark shortly after the Winter Cup, when he'd first developed his crush. At the time, the only thing flooding his thought process wasn't their victory over Rakuzan and the fact that they were the Champions Seirin, but the scarlet-haired Emperor with a golden eye. As such, he'd spent the day staring at the same page in his book, rereading the same paragraph as he scribbled the name Akashi Seijuurou all over the placeholder. With hearts.

"Kou-san, you can't hide things from me. I'm an Akashi, you know."

The Chihuahua took a shaky breath. "…Fine," he conceded. "You're as bad as your father, Kimiko. What do you want to know?"

"Everything that happened between you and Akashi-sama!" she exclaimed.

"Well, okay… But don't expect anything romantic to have happened! It's not like I actually have a chance with him." Furihata loosened his tie and took off his coat. Dress clothes, for all they were worth, were extremely uncomfortable.

"But you do want to be with him, at least."

"Kimiko, it would take a miracle for that to really happen. More than a miracle, even."

"Kou-san, stop being so pessimistic! Akashi-sama is the captain of the Generation of Miracles, the best of the best. That counts as more than a miracle, I think."

Furihata stared at her, unable to keep up with her enthusiasm. "You know what, I'm suddenly tired. This conversation is over, get some sleep, and good night. We're going shopping tomorrow." He got up from the couch, only to be pulled back down by his daughter.

"Kou-san, I know you've got a chance. After all, I exist because the Emperor found his Empress, right? And besides, the new episode of Close Your Eyes is on in ten minutes."

He offered a grin. "How'd you know?" She rolled her eyes, twisting the ends of her ponytail between her fingers.

"It doesn't matter in what universe, but you're not you unless you're a hopeless romantic."

"Have it your way," he sighed. "But I still don't have a chance. And you keep all of this a secret, alright?"

"Whatever you say, Kou-san."

9:21 PM

Akashi shifted in his seat. They were still quite a ways from home, and until then he couldn't stop thinking about the dinner. He hadn't expected the little Chihuahua to be so… presentable. Expectations about working with the coward weren't high, but perhaps he could be shaped into a competent leader, with Akashi's help.

He pushed a hand through his hair, letting the strands flop whichever way they pleased. The evening had gone better than he had originally anticipated, and the brunet readily accepted his apology and justification. Perhaps he could lend some financial aid as retribution…? Of course, it wouldn't compare to having him act as a member of the tiny new family, but he couldn't think of much else to pay recompense. And financial aid would likely be of no use, since Furihata's family was rather well-off, being a corporation.

The captain heaved another sigh to himself. He couldn't help them, he couldn't be with them, and overall, he was highly unfit to raise a family (no matter how grown-up that family already was). Akashi felt… inadequate.

Furihata was right. In this case, getting to know his new family was the only was Akashi could show he cared. Besides, he wouldn't mind seeing that little Chihuahua more often.

Sunday morning was where things got really weird for Himuro.

He adjusted himself on the cold plastic of the hospital room's chair. The paper bag that rested in his lap held a change of clothes for Kagami and his small blue-haired crush. (Himuro had a spare key to Kagami's apartment in case of emergencies, and some of Kuroko's clothes were in one of the dresser drawers. Himuro didn't know how they weren't going out yet—they practically lived together.)

The Shadow had gone to change while Kagami watched Naoya, and Himuro kept them both company. The reality-jumper's condition had stabilized. The emergency room staff reported that not much work had to be done, just some stitches and clean-up on the scratches. Naoya had a mild concussion that he was sleeping off. There was a nasty gash on the left side of his forehead that went into his hairline, and the staff had to shave off the whole lot to keep the wound sterile and inspect for further damage. The worst injuries were on Naoya's arms, which had kept his face otherwise untouched, and a broken rib. Just one. They were all surprised he had gotten away with so little, but also glad. No one wanted to say how much worse it could have been.

Kagami and Kuroko had been somber for most of Saturday, only feeling relief when Naoya reportedly regained consciousness around 2 in the afternoon. Their son had whined about the forming scab on his forehead (it was itchy) and mumbled a few apologies before drifting back to sleep.

Himuro was worried. He hadn't seen the boy awake yet and was worried about his surrogate nephew. He was also getting more concerned about his own supposed son and daughter. Shaking the thoughts away, he focused on his baby brother, grieving over his own child.

"Naoya will be fine, you know. If he's anything like you, the worst he could do is cry over having his hair shaved off. Keep frowning and you'll look older than me."

Kagami turned to him, scowl deepening. "What do mean 'if he's like me'? I didn't cry over my hair!"

"But you did cry over falling off the jungle gym that one time at the park, even if you only got a scratch on your nose," the raven smirked, tossing his bangs. "I broke your fall and got a broken arm, and you were really heavy for such a dumb, short kid."

"Being heavy had nothing to do with my being dumb!" he shot back. "And I wasn't dumb! And I was only shorter than you because you're a year older than me!"

"Doesn't change the fact that you bawled your eyes out while I was getting my arm set in the hospital. Alex couldn't get you quiet until she put that band-aid over the bridge of your nose and told you the pain would go away if you stopped crying."

"Hey, I was just a kid! I would have believed anyone who told me the moon was made of cheese!"

"Which goes back to my point that you were dumb, Taiga. She didn't even put the band-aid on the scratch! And after that, you kept wearing band-aids on your nose because you thought it made you look cool."

"I was the coolest kid on the block because of it! Everyone picked me first for basketball, and you got stuck on the bench because of your cast!"

"And whose fault was that?"

Kagami huffed in his chair and leaned back. "…You're a real dick sometimes, you know that?"

Himuro leaned back also, mimicking the redhead. "Takes one to know one."

"You little…!" The ace punched him in the arm lightly, smiling nonetheless. "Thanks for cheering me up, Tatsuya."

"Any time, Taiga."

The door opened and Kuroko stepped in. "I hope I'm not interrupting something," he said, approaching his partner.

"Not really," the Light replied. Kagami got up and ushered the Shadow to the chair, going so far as to push it under as Kuroko sat down. (Seriously? Himuro thought. Taiga's even doing boyfriend stuff and he doesn't even realize.) The Light took the paper bag from Himuro and scooped out his clothes, offering it to Kuroko after. "Use this so you don't have to hold your clothes. What took you so long?"

"Unlike some people, I like to wash my hair for hygienic reasons," Kuroko stated, rolling a damp tendril between his fingers.

"It doesn't need a lot of washing if it isn't as long as yours!"

"Even short hair has to be washed regularly, Kagami-kun. And I was interrupting something, wasn't I? You didn't even notice Naoya is already awake."

Naoya groaned from the bed, upset at having been outed. Kagami let out an indignant squawk and Himuro blinked. The raven had known Naoya was awake from the get-go. "Aww, why'd you have to ruin it? I was going to scare Dad."

"Maybe later," Kuroko promised, not letting Kagami argue. "Himuro-san… er, Aunt Tatsumi is here to see you."

Naoya turned to Himuro. "Right. Hi, uh… What do you want me to call you? Mom was fine with me calling him Mom, but you might not be okay with being Auntie Tatsumi."

"Just Himuro is fine, if you don't mind. How are you doing?"

The reality-jumper shrugged. "Okay, I guess. I didn't even know I was bald until you said so earlier. I think I'll whine about it later."

Kagami paled. "You heard that? How long have you been up? How much did you hear?"

"Been up since after Mom went to change. I was going to scare you, but then you guys started talking," Naoya smirked, looking at Kuroko. "Did you know Dad used to wear band-aids on his nose?"

Kuroko furrowed his brows. "Band-aids?" he asked Taiga. The latter blushed at the inquiry.

"It's not something you need to know about, I was a dumb 10-year-old kid!" he answered.

Naoya grinned brightly. "And Dad even said he would have believed anyone who told him the moon was made out of cheese, too." Kagami's face reddened further and he glanced at Himuro for help.

"Don't look at me, Taiga, you set yourself up."

The redhead grumbled, gathered up his spare clothes, and headed for the door. "This family is out to get me, I swear. Naoya, I'm telling the nurses you're up. You need your meds. Kuroko, you want anything for breakfast?"

"Anything," the blunet agreed. "But at least take the bag with you, Kagami-kun. You look like a hobo." He doubled back and grabbed it from Kuroko.

"Thanks. I'll try to something about my hair, alright?"

"Alright. See you later."

Kagami exited and Himuro sighed to himself. The raven thought the scene he just saw was refreshing, very natural, but lacked a quick peck on the cheek from either of the boys. He just really did not understand how they weren't going out.

"Yeesh, Mom! Can you not do that in front of me? I know you love each other, but eughh, tone it down."

"We're not in love, Naoya. And can I not do what?"

"The whole… married couple thing. Don't tell me you didn't notice." Kuroko stared back at Naoya blankly. "Wow, you really didn't notice. Did you notice, Himuro?"

"Like a married couple with kids," he affirmed. "Although I guess that's true, in a sense."

Kuroko flushed a shade of pink and glanced at the door. "But I don't—"

"Don't what? Don't love him?" Himuro asked. "Kuroko, of course you don't. That's because it's not love yet. It's like."

The Shadow glared at him pointedly, growling, "What do you know about me? Or how I feel about Kagami-kun?"

"The way you look at him now is different from the way you looked at him when I first saw you," Himuro offered, counting on his fingers. "You stare longer than you used to. You guys hang out a lot more. The vibe you two give off is beyond friendship. Taiga's even got a special drawer for your clothes! You guys even flirt without realizing. Am I missing anything, Naoya?"

"Oooh, I remember!" the reality-jumper exclaimed. "Last night, Mom and Dad slept on the chairs, and Mom got cold, so Dad pushed their chairs together and held Mom in his arms until they both fell asleep!"

"Wow, really?" Himuro said, genuinely surprised. "Even Atsushi and I haven't gotten that far yet. You guys almost are married. Platonically. And obliviously."

Kuroko mumbled something unintelligible, wringing his hands together nervously. The raven asked him to repeat what he had said, so the Phantom took a shaky breath and asked: "…is it that obvious?"

"To the trained eye, it is. You're lucky Taiga isn't so smart about being crushed on, otherwise he would have jumped you."

"I… What?" The Shadow blushed furiously, bothered by the insinuation.

Himuro sighed. "A match made in heaven. Both of you are dense. Taiga has a crush on you, you know. If he knew you liked him, too, he'd have you wrapped in his arms all the time. He likes to cuddle."

Kuroko thought about this intel for a bit, then asked: "How did you and Murasakibara-kun start going out?"

A thin stream of air hissed through the raven's lips. "Well, it wasn't all that romantic, if that's what you were hoping for. And it's probably not going to help you much anyway. Besides, I'm pretty sure Taiga will get the balls to ask you. Eventually."

The blunet sighed, "I'll take your word for it, Himuro-kun. But… Where is Murasakibara-kun, anyway? I haven't seen him yet. Did you come here alone?"

"I was just here to drop off the clothes and see Naoya. Make sure to tell everyone else he's okay. They were probably worried."

Silence followed a nod from Kuroko. Naoya stared at the two others in the room and quickly gave up trying to decipher what wordless conversation they were having. Their telepathy skills were obviously much more advanced than his, seeing as how they simultaneously pulled out their phones and exchanged numbers.

The door creaked and Kagami waltzed in, bag slung on his elbow and a few take-out boxes balanced on one hand. He noticed the weird connection between his brother and his best friend, then set down his load on a table.

"Why's it so quiet in here? Were you guys talking shit behind my back?"

"Yes," Kuroko affirmed, "Himuro-kun and I became best friends over your young misadventures in America. We bonded as we laughed at your childhood idiocies. You know, most people tend to grow out their stupidity, but yours seems to be one-size-fits-all."

"I can't even tell if you're being sarcastic or not right now," Kagami groaned. "Naoya, what happened while I was gone?"

Kuroko shot the reality-jumper a warning glare; the conversation between him and Himuro was strictly to be kept a secret. "I… I don't… They were… Can I get an undercut?"

"That's what I thought," Himuro hummed, glad that the Mom Stare still applied to Kuroko's male form. Naoya knew better than to tell the idiot tiger about the topic, after all, unless he wants a Phantom at his throat. "I'll be on my way, then. Take care of yourselves. You" —he pointed at Naoya— "pick a hairstyle that doesn't look ridiculous. You" —he pointed at Kuroko— "just be patient. And you" —he pointed at Kagami— "are a hopeless case. Good luck, Taiga." With that, Himuro got up and began to leave.

"Wait, what does that even mean?" Kagami asked. "What are you talking about?"

"Naoya wants to get an undercut when his hair grows out, and Himuro-kun does have his own life to get back to," Kuroko said, waving the tear-moled boy goodbye.

"For that matter, don't you two have lives to get back to, too? …Also?" Naoya asked, picking at some scabs on his arms. Kuroko frowned.

"Don't touch those. You'll bleed more, and it was a miracle you didn't need a transfusion. And staying with you is only right, since we're your—"

A green-haired man—the nurse?—knocked and came in with a tray of Naoya's medicine and another one of hospital food. "Naoya-san, it's time to take your painkillers, but they have to be taken with food, so I have to make sure you eat first. You haven't been giving your parents a hard time, have you?"

"I… what? These are m-my… friends? And you are?" Naoya panicked, narrowing his eyes.

"Midorima," the nurse replied. "My wife already told me about you boys and your odd happenstances. By the way, Kagami Taiga-san, I saw your game against Shuutoku a while back, when you beat Shintarou's team. You Seirin guys are really something, huh?"

"Uh, thanks," Kagami mumbled. Meeting his friends'… rivals'… (What were the Miracles to him now that he'd beaten them?) Meeting the Miracles' parents wasn't an event he ever thought about. (Aside from Kuroko's. Occasionally.)

"You boys have been here since Friday afternoon, right? You should go home for the day, get some rest. Naoya-san will still be here tomorrow."

True, both Kagami and Kuroko were tired, but was it okay to leave Naoya by himself?

"You really should go home, you know," Naoya said, wrinkling his nose. "You both are starting to smell. Besides, Mom, Great-Gran's gonna miss you, isn't she? And Gran Alex might eat all of Dad's food and stock the fridge with beer if he's gone too long."

Kagami sighed and rubbed the back of his neck thoughtfully. "He does have a point, Kuroko. But Alex is into vodka right now, which is worse."

"I suppose…" Kuroko trailed, looking to Kagami. "If you insist, Naoya. But then what do we do about the take-out?"

The redhead turned to his Shadow and shrugged. "We can eat it at home, or we can feed it to Nigou. Or Alex. Take your pick. Either way, you can shower at my place before I drop you off."

Kuroko pursed his lips to bite back a blush, but hid the fact under the premise of scratching his nose. Luckily, Midorima's father was too preoccupied with getting Naoya's bed to an upright position to notice. "W-we could just give it to Alex. I haven't had any of your cooking in a while," the blunet muttered.

The way home was silent between them. Few words were spoken, and those were only nicities required by social convention. Perhaps it was for the better, though; both Light and Shadow were emotionally drained. So much had happened in a week, so much had changed. Only seven days ago, their biggest concern had been surviving the spring training camps Coach definitely had planned. Now they had a wayward son in the hospital and a missing daughter.

It wasn't long before they reached Kagami's apartment. Kuroko immediately set what he was carrying down by the coffee table and flopped onto the couch in the manner he had established shortly after Winter Cup. The redhead sighed knowingly to himself and puttered into the kitchen.

"If you shower now, I can have pancakes and a shake ready when you're done," he bargained, goading the Phantom off the couch. Kuroko managed to grumble something (however unintelligible) and heave himself onto the floor, where he half-crawled, half-rolled his way to the bathroom.

Kagami smiled as he pulled out eggs and flour, among other things. Kuroko liked pancakes with his morning shakes, and it was getting easier still to read his Shadow's thoughts. The blunet had tiny quirks the ace could pick up from across the room: if Kuroko adjusted a sleeve or his wristband, it meant he needed backup in whatever way Kagami could provide it. Dipping his head to the right meant he had failed to hide something (usually, it was about oversleeping in the mornings). Furrowed brows indicated teasing. A hand in the pocket warranted the end of a conversation.

Lately, however, there had been signs he couldn't decipher: the left corner of Kuroko's lips twitching, or the way he recently began to purse his lips and cover it with a hand. And how Kuroko looked down at the floor whenever he talked to his partner.

But their friendship was stronger than ever, and Kagami wondered if these habits were a recent development or if he was simply slow to recognize them.

The ace flipped a circle of batter in the pan and sliced a thin piece of butter on the golden-brown surface. Kuroko liked his pancakes heavily laden in the stuff.

("You're going to get fat and Coach will yell at me for putting so much butter in everything."

"Well then, it's Kagami-kun's fault. You know better than to feed stray animals."

"Stray my ass. You fed Nigou, didn't you? And both of you are too pampered to be strays."

"It's still Kagami-kun's fault for adopting us in the end."

"You're such an ass."

"I know.")

There were many things Kagami had learned about Kuroko in a single year (a year? Already?) and he pondered on how much he really knew about the small blunet. Favorite color? Mystery. Birthday? January 31. Favorite food? Vanilla shakes. Long walks or candlelit dinners? Long walks, especially on the beach—

Kagami stopped what he was doing. Literally. He froze and stared at the ground in front of him, glancing at the suburban housing all around. How had he reached that bit of information? How had he ended up outside of his apartment? How had he gotten here at all, in love with his best friend who was also the mother of his children and who he had kissed albeit briefly at the Labyrinth while Tatsuya watched—

"Ohhh my god," Kagami groaned, burying his head in his hands. A blush crept onto his cheeks and the desire to drop dead crept into his head.

He had kissed Kuroko. The memory was almost, almost out of mind, but Kagami's train of thought had crash-landed on a panic attack and he could feel the palpations wringing his heart. It hadn't even been a proper kiss! There was skin-to-skin contact for all of half a second before they'd gotten interrupted.

But it was still a kiss.

This needed to be fixed. Kagami needed to redo his first kiss with Kuroko, or at least make it more special. Did Kuroko even want to kiss him? Were his feelings one-sided? Maybe he'd come off as creepy and ruin the start of their mutual parenthood and—

"Kagami-kun!" The sound of his name jarred him back to reality. "Are you okay? You seem a bit preoccupied. Perhaps it would be more convenient if I walked myself home?"

The redhead shook his head vigorously. "Of-of course not! I was just… thinking."

"A dangerous pastime for you, it appears." Kuroko's eyebrows wrinkled above his nose. Meaning: I'm teasing you.

"Ah, shut up," he shot back jokingly, grinning. Kuroko looked down. Meaning: unknown.

The next few minutes continued in silence (again?) and they trekked to the front door of the Kuroko residence. It was a little cliché, but maybe now was a good time to tell Kuroko about how he felt before he went off the deep end of a broken heart.

"Kagami-kun?" The blunet had beat him to a conversation.

"Yeah?"

"Do… do you think I'm qualified?"

"Qualified? For what?"

"For… being a parent, I mean. I'm afraid I won't be able to provide Naoya-kun with the affection he seeks. Or his sister, for that matter. I'm not good at handling my emotions or showing them. That might prevent me from fulfilling their wishes, or caring for them adequately."

Kagami shrugged. Pep talks were not his forte for a reason. "Uh, probably. I mean, you kind of act emotionally constipated most of the time, but it's not… Not a bad thing, per se, it's just… Hard to talk about things with you sometimes…?"

"Oh." Kuroko's lip twitched. Meaning: unknown. "Thank you for your honesty, Kagami-kun." He pocketed a hand. Meaning: this conversation should end.

"Oh, wow, I just really can't talk right now, can I?" the redhead sighed. "Let's try this: don't take it the wrong way, but why did you accept Naoya all of a sudden?"

"…I… It wasn't sudden, Kagami-kun. I have cared for Naoya-kun from the start, but I was afraid of disappointing him. What kind of parent would I be if I caused my… our son to be unhappy? I didn't want to risk that happening because I didn't want him to leave. I don't want Naoya-kun or his sister to be discontented with my performance, so I pretended not to care… for his sake, and for mine. But that was selfish, and I see that now. I'll do my best to make it up as his stand-in mother, if he lets me."

Kagami ruffled the Shadow's hair reassuringly. "There's your answer. Being a parent probably isn't the easiest thing in the world, but trying your best counts for something, doesn't it? And Naoya wanted you to try from the beginning. He doesn't think you're qualified, he knows. You'll do great," he spewed. Periwinkle eyes stared at him intensely and oh crap they were so close right now. "I, uh… I-I think…"

I think you're cute. I think you're perfect the way you are. I think you should kiss me.

"I think y-you…"

And Kagami saw it. Kuroko's mouth pressed into a straight line, covered by his free hand. There was something else, too, a miniscule detail Kagami hadn't noticed before: the shade of pink on his Shadow's ears.

Meaning: unknown.

Was Kuroko… blushing? Was this his way of hiding it? Was he flustered over Kagami's praise?

Only one way to find out.

Kagami cleared his throat, gently palmed the back of Kuroko's fluffy head, and stooped to press a gossamer kiss to the corner of his mouth. "I think you're doing fine, sweetheart."

Without waiting for a reaction, he stepped away, stomach fluttering and cheeks aflame. The anxiety was killing him, though, and he snuck a peek backwards. His adorable Shadow had a blush that spread wide from ear to ear, lips slightly parted, eyes half-lidded and dazed. Fingertips crept up to brush lightly over the corner of his mouth.

And his head was cutely tilted to the right.

Sunday afternoon was turning out to be no better than Sunday morning for Himuro. He'd spent the long trip back to his parents' house thinking about how to confront Atsushi. Staring at the message Kuroko had sent him earlier wasn't exactly helping, though. The Phantom had suggested giving into Atsushi's blatant pining—which was what Himuro had told the boy to do himself—but the things was, he simply wasn't ready for it.

Still, he had to stop hiding from the giant. It made him look childish and immature, staking out in a bathroom to hide from his own boyfriend. A plan was required to be able to face the Miracle without fleeing, but alas, he was out of time. The front door was upon him, and he forged through without a second thought.

"…Atsushi?" he called tentatively. Only silence greeted him back, even as he traipsed through hallways in search of his significant other. His parents weren't home, as they spent Sundays tchotchke shopping in town. Murasakibara Atsushi wasn't exactly the easiest person to miss, either. So where was he? Himuro doubled back to the entrance and noted that the oversized jacket was gone from its spot on the coat rack.

Ah. So Atsushi was out, presumably on a snack run. Heaving a sigh, Himuro ran a hair through his bangs and moved to make some tea. Maybe a refreshing drink would keep him from having to tiptoe in his own house. Maybe it would help him look Atsushi in the eye without blushing for the first time since Friday.

With a cooling breath over the top of the mug, the front door creaked open and hurriedly slammed shut. Himuro figured his nerves were clam enough to say hello and he made his way over. Atsushi, however, was not so patient and was scrambling to the guest bedroom without so much as a glance. What was going on?

"Atsushi?" he called, padding over—calmly—to the room. "Are you okay?" The giant was curled up protectively against the headboard, still in his jacket, shoes haphazardly discarded on the floor. A plastic bag was clutched to his chest and he seemed a little panicked.

"Some strange people followed me here, Muro-chin," he reported, snuggling deeper into the covers as though they could protect against evil. "They were saying weird things."

Before Himuro could ask if it was just another passerby handing back a dropped handkerchief—it had happened once—the doorbell rang. He went to answer, despite Atsushi's protests. ("No, Muro-chin, dooooon't…")

"It's no big deal, Atsushi. I'll come back when I'm done, okay? I need to talk to you about something."

Himuro opened the door, mug in hand, when a girl only inches shorter than him forged past and set her own jacket on the coat rack.

"Excuse me, can I help you?" Himuro asked, shocked at her behavior. She turned to him with an apathetic reaction and then put her jacket back on, swiping her long dark hair under the hood.

"Sorry," she mumbled, a little embarrassed. "I thought this was Papa's house. Guess I was wrong." The girl turned to leave, but Himuro stopped her.

"Maybe I can help. What's your papa's name? He could be my neighbor."

She thought about it a while before answering blankly. "Murasakibara Atsushi."

At that, Himuro stiffened. "Do you know him?" she asked, mumbling into her reddening hands.

"Y-yeah. Come back inside and I'll go get him, okay?" The girl—his daughter, apparently—shot him a questioning glare and hesitantly shuffled back in, as though walking into the lair of a giant. (Well, that was kind of true in a way.)

Himuro blew a sharp stream of air through rounded lips, wondering how to coax Atsushi out from under the covers. And if the girl was here, where was her brother? Perhaps they'd gotten separated?

Three knocks rapped on the dark wood and the tear-moled teen swung the door open. "Atsushi?" he cooed. "I talked to the… stranger. You should come out and have a chat with us. It's really, really important, okay?"

Violet eyes stared him down from beneath the sheets. "…only 'cause Muro-chin said so." He lumbered up from the bed, wrapped the sheet around himself, and walked the living room. Himuro could see the girl's dark head of hair from over the top of the couch, noting how short it was cropped.

…cropped?

Himuro blinked a few times to ensure his eyes weren't teary, to clear the illusions from his head. He could have sworn the girl had long, sweeping locks. "Sorry for the delay," he said. "It took a while to get your father out from… hiding…"

The sentence trailed as Himuro approached, and for good reason. The person he'd escorted through the front door was female. The person sitting on the couch right now was male. Maybe he'd been imagining things…? The boy on the couch only stared blankly, waiting for introduction.

In any case, Atsushi still kept muttering about why Himuro would let the strange person in. "Atsushi, this person isn't weird. He's our son. Be nice, okay?" The boy opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off by the giant's fretting.

"Where the other one?" he asked warily, ignoring his boyfriend's request of niceties.

"There isn't another one, honey, just him," Himuro sighed. "Though I could have sworn his hair was longer…"

"I am your son," the boy confirmed at last, voice quiet and clear. Someone fell into place besides him.

"And I'm your daughter," said the girl, tying up her hair. "I snatched a scrunchie from the bathroom. I hope you don't mind."

Atsushi pressed closer to the raven, murmuring, "There's the other one…" Himuro figured the girl had let her brother in after he went to fetch their father. A thin stream of air hissed through his lips, a hand fussing his bangs. The boy and girl on the couch had the same expressions, the same dark hair, and the same dark eyes, so deep a purple they were nearly black. They were very similar. Identical.

"So. Twins. Please tell me I at least didn't name you anything stupid."

I'm not really sure what to say here, other than next chapter will focus on MuraHimu, with a side dish of AoKise and MidoTaka. I'm sorry it took so long! (AGAIN!) I might be able to update more, I hope… And the drawings will be posted if I can find my tablet. -_-" I'll see you soon again, my duckies!

-Randomness

Akafuri412: Yeaaaah I updated, but it took so long to do the next one it's like… Ehhh… Akashi has his reasons, but they're centered around him as a person and not him as himself. (If that even makes any sense.) The dinner was just AkaFuri (as seen in the chapter), but it'll happen more often if Kimi has anything to do with it. XD Thanks for all the concern, and I hope I can update more often in the future!

Hitomi65: Thank you~

Mandy1234: Thanks! I'm glad you like it so much! Hope the other chapters meet your expectations~

Rie-chi: Midorimama is so fun to write! She'll be a key part of the reality-jumpers' backgrounds and stuff, too~

Daydreamers15: Thanks~ Sorry I couldn't update faster, though.

Fantita: It took too long to update again, though… TT-TT Muro-chin (to me) is someone who needs to know the outline of events so he doesn't get fed up will all the weirdness that happens. (But it was also for you guys, so you don't get lost.) Muro-chin is kind of a slow burn relationship type, so he and Mukkun haven't done a lot so far. (Though that will change soon, ahahaaaaaa~) Naoya's doing well and he won't get an undercut. And AKAFURI FOREVERRR I just love them too much! I wanted to do something different with every character, make them something more than everyone expects.

Kagamine Hikari (guest): Thank you, duckling~ The story will get a lot more interesting (and hectic) once all of them get here. Only 3 to go~

Little Strawberry RiRin Chan: HEEEYYYY FRIEND I was wondering where you went! :D Don't worry about not reviewing; rather, I should be apologizing for not updating enough… I'm glad you like Akashi! (Though I'm not so sure what to do with him now after what happened in recent manga chapters…) And Kiyomi is named after Kiyoshi, but she's not KiyoHana's daughter. She's HyuuRiko's daughter, like you originally thought, but her boyfriend is… you can guess. XD

Lucky Kitsune 497: Uhhhhh god I feel terrible about not updating in so looooong blegh I'll try to update more often! I'm sorry for any unwarranted partial death on your account after a quarter of a year… Hope you continue to enjoy the story!

Crazy anko (guest): Yeah woot! I have successfully converted another AkaFuri shipper! And… yes, death by fangirl is not the way I want to leave this world. (I'll try harder!)

Sweetsmasher: Aww, thanks! Sorry I've been away for so long! -_-'

Akafurilover: Woot! Yeah, Furi is adorbs and totally in control! Akashi is going to be so whipped. XP

Princess Lady Subaru: Yup! All an accident. And the backstory for why she did it… That'll be tackled later. And thanks, I thought it would help to have a clear timeline for everyone! Muro-chin is probably the calmest about this whole thing, even if it doesn't entirely make sense. And Midorimama is one of my favorite characters to write! And AkaFuri… Ah, yes, I have plans for these two. And I can't help iiiiit I'm good at writing angst and fluff so why not do both? All the kids will be found soon, fret not!

Kroscetish: Woot! Squeal inducing! That's what I like to hear. I'm glad my fluff efforts are paying off! And I'd love to hear your theories about the story. And Kiyomi isn't one of the main 10 Jumpers since she's here for a different reason… But she's been here longer than they have. And ALL MY FEELS ABOUT MY OTPS I really just wrote this story to have all of them in the same timeline. A lot of stories I read will usually have just two or three of the main five I included here. The "date" didn't start out as one, but I like to think Furi imagined it was. And KAGAKURO INTENSIFIES

Guest (guest): I've never gotten such a raw review that was so friggin' awesome before! You're awesome and I'm glad you like the story so much! And I'm working on getting an AO3 account—maybe I'll get more new and totally rad people like you to read! X)

Shadow of the Angel (chapter 1): Thank you~ I'm glad you like the story! And… m-me? *blushing intensifies* Thanks, duckling!

Shadow of the Angel (chapter 2): YASSSS the AoKise children are absolutely beautiful. Damn those genetics.

Shadow of the Angel: LOL It's okay. That last line means that Akashi thinks Furihata might be the only person who has power over him and is completely under his command XD And I hope I can remember to post the pictures I drew of all the Jumpers…

Onizuka Audrey: Woot! Thanks so much for thinking so! I hope you look forward to the rest of it and I should have the pictures of the Jumpers posted to my tumblr account sometime… And don't worry, your English is just fine.

Lucysaionji: Aww, thank you~ Please look forward to the next chapters! :)

Blackcross27 (guest): Thanks! I should be able to post the pictures of the Jumpers soon. And KiyoHana? But of course! (They're one of my OTPs, too. XD)

Hika-Reenie00: In the AU? Uh, yes something did happen, but it's not so sad as divorce. (Or maybe it is—I don't know how you guys will react to it.) But there's no divorce! (I don't have the heart. I tried to do that as the backstory, but I ended up crying to myself and I changed it.) But you are correct in thinking that something happened, and they want to not really fix it, but make up for it. And don't worry, duckling, your English is actually quite good! *Mitobe hug*

Hika-Reenie00 (chapter 1): Don't worry about it! Even I make typos sometimes in the story and in the Author's Notes. (I should really get to fixing those…)

Doggoneit (chapter 10): OMG Haha! No, Aka and Mukkun are both still boys in the AU, so no children between them. There will be angst for everyone, however, so prepare the tissues and your practice your screams of frustration! *headdesks for feels*

Doggoneit: Thank you so much~ I'm glad it's believable, since I have trouble trying to get in tune with the characters sometimes. Sorry it took so long to update.

Meguri Sakuma: Woo~ Got another one addicted! *victory dance* But seriously, thank you so much for reading my story and liking it so much! Thanks for giving it a try. I'll try my best to keep it up and update more often! (And holy wow, you're not a native speaker? Your syntax is better than some of the people I knew spoke only English. *applause*)

Irma Arisa Laye: Aww, thanks~ I wanted to make the characters more than just what everyone makes them out to be, so I tweaked it a bit to make it interesting! I'm glad you like feisty!Furi. I'll try to write more of him in later chapters—he's the type of person whose anger works like baseball: three strikes, you're out! And yes, their children will be a HUGE part of feisty!Furi's return!

Guest (guest): Aw, don't worry! It takes a while to learn how to use this site. The first time I posted a story (which I deleted 'cuz I was eleven and an idiot) I didn't even know how to upload the nest chapter. I'm glad you like the story so much! (And ANOTHER person hooked on to AkaFui? I'm on a roll!) Please look forward to the next chapters as well!