Work Text:
Kuroko Tetsuya is a shadow. Almost invisible.
He never raises his voice, never does anything to draw attention to himself. He barely even reacted when he hit his head during their first practice match as a team, trying to walk it off as blood dripped down his forehead. He may be weak and prone to exhaustion, but Kuroko is incredibly determined.
So, when he hears a thud from behind him and Kuroko screams, Kagami feels like his stomach drops. Because a loud noise escaping Kuroko Tetsuya sounds so unnatural.
Kagami spins around as the whistle blows, a player on the other team receiving a foul. Said player stares down at the floor, his eyes wide and his shoulders hunched in horror, his gaze never once leaving the boy who lies crumpled on the ground. Kuroko slumps on the ground, a loud, agonized cry bursting past his lips. His whole body trembles as his left hand clutches his right shoulder, tears streaming down his cheeks.
"Oh shit, I'm so sorry," says the boy who fouled Kuroko. "I didn't mean to. I, I just didn't see him and..."
As someone calls for a medic, Kagami strides across the basketball court, just wanting to get this boy away from Kuroko. He doesn't care that it was an accident. He just grabs the boy by the back of his shirt, dragging him backwards before shoving him away. The boy cowers, expecting to be hit, but Kagami just stands with his back to his crumpled teammate, keeping the boy away from Kuroko. Kagami folds his arms across his chest, staring down anyone on the other team who looks over at Kuroko. He doesn't know what else he can do. He certainly can't put Kuroko back together. So, he just keeps everyone away from Kuroko.
The rest of the Seirin players hover around Kuroko, who keeps sobbing in agony. As basketball players, none of them are unused to people getting injured. But Kagami would wager that everyone is equally freaked out by the sound of Kuroko, their small, quiet, invisible player, screaming and crying as he slumps on the floor.
As everyone stands around Kuroko, unsure what to do, Coach Riko snaps into action. She jumps up from the bench and runs onto the court, shoving her teammates aside in her haste to kneel at Kuroko's side. Kagami doesn't see what she does, too busy glaring daggers at the other team, but he imagines Riko holding out her hands, trying to soothe Kuroko but not daring to touch him. She must be terrified of accidentally making him worse.
"Hold on, Kuroko," Coach Riko says, her voice soft yet a little shaky. "It's gonna be okay. What's hurting?"
"My shoulder," Kuroko gasps. "I... I felt it... pop."
Kagami grimaces. That sounds like a dislocated shoulder. He has never dislocated a joint, but he saw it happen to a teammate back in America, and it looked incredibly painful. He can't even imagine how much pain Kuroko is in right now.
"Just keep breathing for me, okay?" Riko says as Kuroko whimpers and sobs. "A medic is coming. I'll get them to call you an ambulance. You're gonna be okay."
"Thank... you, Coach," Kuroko says, still so polite and formal even with his shoulder slipped out of its socket.
And as they wait for help to arrive, Kagami tries to resist the urge to throw up, and prays that Kuroko will be okay.