Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Welcome to Wada Flower Shop. May I help you?” Mayuko looked up and greeted her first customer of the day.

Wow.

Today must be her lucky day because this customer was super handsome. A young man, probably in his mid-twenties. His hair and eyes were red, he wore a gray shirt that fit his figure just right, and the vibe he gave off was just so.. cool. He was perfect.

Oh no, Mayuko might be crushing a bit. She was just a high schooler but she was already eighteen! So if this gentleman didn’t mind-

Mayuko blushed. What the hell is she thinking?

“Sorry, is Wada-san around?” The man asked politely.

“I’m Wada,” Mayuko answered, still a little starstruck.

The man blinked, “Er..”

Mayuko gasped, flustered, “Oh you must mean my uncle! I’m so sorry, Sir! No, he is sick. Since yesterday. So, I’ve been covering for him.”

It was silent for a moment before the man chuckled, “I see. Okay then, the other Wada-san. Can I have a bouquet, please?”

The man was even more handsome when he smiled, Mayuko was in trouble, “Right away, Sir! Any special request?”

“No, just make it beautiful.”

Mayuko smiled, rolling up her sleeves, she was so going to impress him alright, “Leave it to me!”

Mayuko got to work immediately. As a part of a florist family, she had been handling flowers since she was a little girl. She was very confident in her ability. It was like, the number one thing she was proud of.

When it was all done, she gave the man the bouquet, smiling wide.

“Thanks,” The man nodded.

“Is this to your liking?”

The man just hummed, looking a little sad.

Oh no. The man didn’t like it, did he? Mayuko started to panic. This wouldn’t do. She just brought shame to the Wada family. What would her father say?

Before Mayuko could spiral any further, the man spoke again, “Yes, how much is it?”

Mayuko gulped, that was a lie, “You don’t like it, do you? I- I can try again, if you want.” She offered.

The man’s eyes widened slightly, seemingly not expecting the observation, “Sorry, I don’t mean to offend you but,” the man paused, hesitating, before he let out another chuckle, “I actually really hate flowers.”

Mayuko’s heart felt like it was getting stabbed.

“I despise them, in general. I can’t see past my hatred so I never find them beautiful. It got nothing to do with this particular bouquet.” The man smiled, clearly trying to be reassuring, “My boyfriend adores them though. Even though he probably shouldn’t,” he mumbled that last part to himself, before continuing, “So I’m sure he will love this.”

Mayuko found the whole statement heartbreaking but also kind of confusing? First of all, the man was taken, something that Mayuko didn’t even consider (it was dumb, in retrospect, the way she didn’t think about that, of course such a fine man was not single). Her heart shattered, as predicted, but hey, it was still a pretty good 15 minutes, delusional as it was.

And the last one, he apparently hated flowers and thought his boyfriend should too. What does that even mean?

“Why do you hate flowers?” Mayuko couldn’t help but ask. She hoped she wasn’t being too rude.

“Because they almost killed my boyfriend.” The man answered, smiling sadly.

10 years ago, summer

It was a fine Friday evening when the text that would change his life came in. He just finished with his practice of the day and was on his way to his dorm when his phone pinged.

Kuroko : Akashi-kun, for the meeting tomorrow, can you arrive 30 minutes early? I want to talk to you privately

Akashi looked at the text, frowning. Tomorrow was their scheduled monthly Teikou get-together and this was the first time Kuroko ever requested such a thing. He was very much intrigued, so he easily agreed.

When Kuroko finally arrived at Maji Burger, their usual meeting place, he immediately sat down opposite Akashi. Instead of exchanging their usual greetings, he asked, “Akashi-kun, can I ask you for a favor?”

Akashi observed Kuroko carefully, trying to figure out what was happening, and was surprised to find the usually expressionless Kuroko looked openly troubled.

“What kind of favor?”

Kuroko took a deep breath before answering, “Can you go on a date with Furihata-kun?”

Akashi blinked, not expecting that response at all, “Furihata-kun?”

“Yes, Furihata Kouki, Seirin point guard, number 12. You know him, right?”

Of course Akashi knew him. They talked on and off the court a few times. In fact, it was Akashi who usually initiated the conversation. Mainly because he wanted to change the impression. He knew Furihata was kind of scared of him.

Now that they were in their third year, Akashi could only say that he was partly successful. Furihata still blushed and stuttered around him, but it was definitely not that bad compared to, say, a year and a half ago.

“I know him, yes. Why do you want me to go on a date with him?”

“Because he likes you.”

Akashi’s eyes widened. What? That was unexpected. And kind of a big deal, right? Akashi needed a few seconds to process it.

In the end, he could only ask, “How come?”

Surprisingly, Kuroko scoffed, “I wish I knew.”

Akashi just stared at Kuroko for a long minute. For some reason, he looked bitter.

“Did he ask you to ask me?”

Kuroko shook his head, “No, never.”

Akashi squinted his eyes at Kuroko. He wondered what kind of state Furihata must be in for Kuroko to actually take the matter into his own hands.

Truth be told, Akashi never thought much about Furihata. He was just some acquaintance in basketball, and Akashi was definitely not interested in him in that way.

The image of Furihata pining over him to the point Kuroko couldn’t take it anymore suddenly came to mind, so he joked to lighten the mood,

“He is that desperate, huh?”

“Worse. He is dying.” Kuroko answered, deadpan and serious. He clearly didn’t appreciate the humorous tone Akashi was aiming for, “He got hanahaki and will die in 6 months if you don’t return his feelings.”

Akashi needed to grip the table to ground himself. He was shocked beyond words. All the words he was about to say died in his throat. He was rendered absolutely speechless.

“Ha- hanahaki?” He managed to stutter after a few minutes of silence.

“Yes,” Kuroko nodded, expression slowly changed to grief, “for some reason, in Furihata-kun’s case, the hanahaki spread so quickly to the point it was instantly on the last stage. It was too late to operate at this point. The chance of him dying on the operating table is close to 80 percent.”

Akashi gulped. Furihata got one of the rarest conditions imaginable. If he remembered correctly, the chance of someone getting hanahaki is one in fifty thousand. And it spread so quickly to the point of a small chance of survival? How unlucky he must be to be the one who experienced all of this.

Kuroko continued, “Even if by some miracle the operation was successful, he will lose most of his emotions. He will no longer feel anything. Just-” he choked up, “Just living. You know, like a robot. Because the hanahaki not only attacked his lungs but also his brain and heart.”

Suddenly, he felt like the worst person in the world to even attempt to joke in this situation. Granted, he didn’t know anything when he did that, but he still felt horrible. He should’ve never attempted to do it, when he knew he was never good at it in the first place.

“I’m sorry..” It was all Akashi could manage at the moment.

“Furihata-kun requested us not to tell anyone, especially you,” Kuroko said, dismissing his apology, “because he didn’t want to bother you with his feelings. Because he knew you don’t feel the same,” he paused, lips trembling, “he wanted to go quietly, and wished you never noticed. Even as far as preparing a lie for us to tell you, in the small chance you asked. He said, ‘Tell Akashi-kun or anyone who asked about me that I died suddenly in my sleep. Don’t make a big deal out of it.’”

Akashi bowed his head. That was the saddest string of words he’d ever heard in recent memory.

“He quit basketball because of this. Some days, he couldn’t even go to school.. I can’t-” Kuroko sniffled, “I can’t let him go without a fight. Even if it means breaking our promise. He is my dear friend. There’s just no way-” he rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand, clearly preventing the tears from spilling over, “Please help him, Akashi-kun.”

Akashi nodded without really thinking. For some reason, the thought of Furihata dying upset him greatly. He didn’t know how he could help, but he’d figure it out, “I’ll try. Give me his number.”

-

Akashi closed his book and sighed heavily. This was the first time in a long while that he had a hard time concentrating on his studies. His mind was full of the whole ‘Furihata got hanahaki’ thing.

He grabbed his phone and tapped on his contacts, looking at the newest addition in hesitation. To be able to help Furihata was to fall in love with him. Could he do it?

The thing was, Akashi didn’t know how it felt to be in love with someone. Romantic love was not something he was interested in. Sure he knew about the concept, in theory. Some of the books he read include this specific theme. He also saw how his non-single friends interacted with their partners. But since he never experienced it himself, it still felt.. abstract. He just couldn’t imagine it. Him being in love with someone.

Him being in love with someone he barely knew.

Regardless, he was willing to try. He was basically a blank canvas when it came to this sort of thing. If something actually came out of this, he didn’t mind. Furihata was likable enough, he supposed. It was going to be fine.

He tapped on the message icon and began composing a text.

Me : Hello Furihata-kun. This is Akashi. It’s been a while, isn’t it? Hope you’re doing well. Sorry if it seems sudden but I’m going to Tokyo next Sunday and wondering if you’re free on that day? There’s something I want to discuss with you. Is it possible for us to meet? Please let me know

Akashi sent the text and put his phone down. He felt a little anxious all of a sudden. In the end, he decided to do some research to kill the time while waiting for Furihata’s reply.

He opened his laptop and clicked on his browser. Then, he typed a question on the search engine.

How to fall in love quickly

The number one result was a love consultation website called ‘Love Doctor’. Akashi scoffed. He couldn’t believe such a thing actually existed. He was intrigued though and about to click on it before he heard a knock on his door.

“Seijuurou-sama,” It was Komuro, one of the maids.

Akashi closed his laptop and opened the door, “Yes?”

“Sorry for the intrusion,” Komuro bowed, “Your father is looking for you.”

Akashi sighed, what did his father want from him now?

“Where is he?”

“In his office.”

“Tell him I’ll be there shortly.”

Komuro bowed again and left.

Akashi went back to his desk to check on his phone. Still no reply. He rubbed his face with his hand, his anxiety returned. He then put his phone in his pocket, and left the room to meet his father.

-

As it turned out, his father just wanted to lecture him about the importance of staying on top since he noticed a slight dip in scores on his latest report card. Honestly though, talking about staying on top when he was still number one in the entire school? What kind of top was he even talking about? The old man just became more insufferable as he got older. Thankfully, Akashi learned not to take everything his father said to heart anymore. Life has been more peaceful since then.

When he arrived back at his room, he immediately lay on his bed and checked on his phone. This time there was a new message. From Furihata.

Furihata-kun : Hello, Akashi-kun. I’ve been well, thanks. I hope you are too. May I know what it is that you want to discuss?

Akashi hummed. Based on Kuroko’s story, Furihata actually seemed reluctant to have business with him. If he told Furihata what he wanted to discuss with him, he might not want to meet at all.

Also, he’s been well, huh? What a statement.

Me : I’ll tell you when we meet

Another fifteen minutes passed before Akashi got a reply.

Furihata-kun : Okay

Akashi sighed in relief. Thank god Furihata agreed to meet.

Me : I’ll be waiting at Maji Burger near Seirin around lunchtime

Furihata-kun : Okay

Me : Thanks. Have a good evening, Furihata-kun

Furihata-kun : You too

Ah, Akashi probably shouldn’t have ended the conversation so fast. Oh well, it was too late now. He was sure they would talk more when they met.

-

Akashi’s heart sank when he finally saw Furihata again. He wore a black shirt and a gray light jacket. He got a messenger bag with him. He looked so pale and thin, his cheeks slightly hollowed, his eyes dull. He almost looked like a different person. It was such a devastating sight.

Furihata nodded at him in greeting, his smile tight, “Did you uh.. wait long?”

Akashi shook his head, “Not at all. Please sit, Furihata-kun.”

Furihata then sat down opposite Akashi, not looking at him at all.

“Do you want something? Let me buy it for you,” Akashi offered.

“No- no, thanks. What is it that you uh.. want to discuss?” Furihata asked, still not looking at Akashi.

Akashi cleared his throat, “Right. So I was thinking. We’ve known each other for more than a year but I realized I don’t know much about you. And I’d like to know more.” He quickly said all the words he already rehearsed before.

“Oh..” Furihata mumbled before he blushed. It was honestly such a good feeling to see color on an otherwise pale face.

So Furihata still blushed and stuttered around him not because he was scared of Akashi but because of something else. Akashi wondered when it all changed.

“Um.. why do you want to know more about me.. suddenly?” Furihata asked shyly, “Are you maybe in- interested in me?”

Say yes, Akashi told himself. But somehow, he couldn’t. He stayed quiet, thinking hard of what to say which didn’t involve him lying. Also something that wouldn’t hurt Furihata’s feelings.

Akashi could literally see the gears turning in Furihata’s head in regard to Akashi’s silence. His shy expression vanished, his face now completely closed off, “.. Oh.”

That was definitely a different ‘oh’ than before. A bad kind of ‘oh’.

Furihata chuckled bitterly, “Right, how could I even entertain the idea-” he mumbled, “Who told you? Was it Kuroko?”

Akashi was conflicted but in the end, he nodded, “Yes. But-”

“Don’t listen to him, I’m fine,” Furihata waved his hand in dismissal, interrupting Akashi. He looked so troubled to the point he actually lost his stutter. A few seconds passed, then his expression changed again. He now gave Akashi the fakest smile Akashi had ever seen in a person, “It’s not that bad, so don’t worry about me- about the whole thing really.” Furihata started to stand up and once he did, he bowed and turned around.

Akashi caught Furihata’s wrist just when he was about to leave, “Wait, Furihata-kun,” Furihata stopped, but he didn’t turn back around, “I still have things I want to say. Questions I want to ask. Offers I want to make,” Akashi tightened his hold, “Can you please stay and listen to all of those before you leave?”

“No,” Furihata answered curtly, trying to break free.

Akashi let him go, and decided to execute another strategy, “I spent fifteen thousand yen on shinkansen just to meet you, you know,” he guilt-tripped Furihata. It was dirty but he really had no other choice.

It worked. Furihata instantly turned around, looking guilty.

“Sit,” Akashi doubled down, now giving Furihata an order, injecting a little bit of authority into his voice.

Furihata sat back down without question, his shoulders hunched, “I’m so- sorry,” he muttered.

“It’s okay,” Akashi sighed, “Okay so. I’m going to be honest with you. Yes, I know about your condition, and as of right now, I don’t return your feelings,” Furihata flinched, bowing his head in disappointment. Akashi gulped, “The most obvious reason as to why, is because I barely know you. I can’t have feelings for you if I don’t know you, Furihata-kun,” he paused, “which leads me to my question. You barely know me too, how come you have feelings for me?”

Furihata glanced at Akashi, before ducking his head again, “I- it’s supposed to be-” he stammered, “Because you’re kind to me.”

Akashi’s eyes widened.

Furihata continued, “Someone as amazing as you shouldn’t have bothered and yet.. you always try to talk to me whenever you see me like- like we are equal. Like we are actually.. friends.”

“We are equal, Furihata-kun..” Akashi commented, a little sadly.

Furihata chuckled, “Not- not in basketball..” he paused, “I kept thinking about it, you know. I was scared of you, I kept stuttering in front of you- still do- I even- I even passed out when I saw you that one time. If I were you, those things would probably irritate me and yet.. And yet somehow, those things didn’t seem to bother you? You still greeted me, you still smiled at me, you were still kind to me- even now.”

Furihata took a deep breath, he glanced at Akashi again, giving him a small smile, “Next thing I knew, I developed a- a crush on you. I think you’re really, really awesome. On and off the court. Even if I don’t know much about you, I’m a fan.”

Akashi bowed his head, processing all the words. He was so incredibly touched. He was no stranger to praise. But as far as he remembered, Furihata was the first one who complimented his kindness.

“It was supposed to be a quiet crush that I would get over eventually. I never planned to act on it or anything, be- because let’s be real here..” Furihata chuckled again, “but the universe apparently had other plans, and decided to turn it into my cause of death.”

Akashi felt like he was being punched.

Furihata swallowed thickly, “Apologies for the uh.. use of extreme words. I assure you that nothing is your fault.”

They were both silent following Furihata’s explanation but then..

Then Furihata started coughing.. flowers. Flowers and blood.

Furihata tried to catch everything with his hands but some still slipped and dropped to the table in front of him.

Akashi finally saw the extent of the disease. Furihata not only coughed petals but the whole flowers. Roses mostly. Red roses..

Wait.

It was white roses actually, the red color that was covering them was from Furihata’s blood.

The sight was harrowing. And Akashi’s heart ached seeing it.

Furihata reached for his bag and took out a pack of wet wipes and a paper bag, and began cleaning up the mess, “Sorry you had to see that. The uh.. the paper bag is usually already in my hand so I’m always ready to catch them all, but I was distracted a moment ago.” He then looked Akashi over, “Did my blood get to you, somehow? So far I haven’t seen-”

“No,” Akashi cut him off, even though he hadn’t checked it himself, “Don’t worry about that. Are you okay though? Do you want me to buy you a drink maybe?”

“I’m okay, thanks.”

“Furihata-kun,” Akashi began, “I’m serious about getting to know you better, let me help-”

“Are you really okay with that?” Furihata interrupted him again, tone surprisingly stern, “Are you certain you want to- to start something this way? It doesn’t feel wrong to you? Doesn’t feel weird, or- or shady?” He bit his lip, looking a little frustrated, “Surely.. surely even you know you deserve better than this?”

Akashi stayed quiet, partly because he didn’t quite know how to respond to that, and the other part because he knew Furihata had more things to say.

And he did, “Give it a rest already, Akashi-kun. I assure you that I’m fine. I already accepted it- everything. It’s unfair but so what? That’s life. We’re all gonna die anyway. It’s just a matter of how and when. I’m just-” Furihata choked up, “It just so happens that I’m leaving early. That’s all.”

Akashi blinked. He was surprised by how much he resonated with Furihata’s words. That didn’t mean he wouldn’t challenge it though, “How about the people you left behind? What do they think about this kind of mindset?”

“I told them that I’m tired,” Furihata answered, looking genuinely, well, tired, “It hurts to breathe, it’s hard to function, and it’s a struggle to.. to live. I don’t have the energy left to deal with anything else.”

But you said ‘it’s not that bad’, Akashi couldn’t help but think mournfully.

“The only thing I can do is to be as happy as I can be. To create as many happy memories as I’m able to. Hoping that- that those actions could help ease the pain whenever the grief becomes too much for them.” Furihata finished, tone resigned.

Akashi’s breath stuttered trying to take everything in. It was just.. so much. But strangely, he actually got it. He completely understood now, why Furihata did what he did.

It all came down to that one word, which was tired. Furihata was too tired to deal with anything else. And if Akashi had to guess, including the activity of pursuing Akashi and making Akashi fall in love with him. Which was actually the key to his survival.

Akashi tried to imagine being in Furihata’s shoes. Trying to flirt, trying to be charming, trying to gain Akashi’s attention. And since they were barely friends, the possibility of success was, well, small.

And what would happen if Akashi ended up rejecting him? Furihata needed to deal with a heartbreak when he was already coughing flowers. The worst possible situation.

Just thinking about it made Akashi sick to his stomach.

All in all, Furihata’s decision actually made sense. Instead of spending his already little energy doing such demanding things filled with uncertainty, he chose to do something else that he knew would bring him happiness.

It was surprisingly mature of him. And as out of place as it was, Akashi was impressed.

Now..

Now he was officially interested.

In the end, Akashi decided to change course, “Okay then, let’s create happy memories together, since I might need them too.” He gave Furihata a genuine smile.

Furihata blinked, clearly not expecting that response, “.. What?”

“I want happy memories with you, you’re okay with that right?” Akashi repeated, “I’ll take care of everything, let me carry the burden of being tired. Your job is to enjoy everything and be happy.”

“That’s- are you sure you want to do that?” Furihata asked, unsure. But Akashi could see that he was intrigued by the offer.

A good sign.

“Yes, I’m sure. Also, if everything goes well, who knows.. right?” Akashi added with a wink.

Furihata blushed.

Akashi chuckled, “Of course the main objective is to create happy memories for me!” He emphasized once more. Honestly, the whole thing wasn’t all that different from his original plan, but Furihata seemed to prefer doing it with this mindset. So he would go with that, “In fact, let’s hang out now- definitely not a date! Would you like that?”

Furihata still looked troubled but there was a shift in his.. vibe. A positive shift.

Another good sign.

Akashi smiled to himself, because he was now fairly certain that Furihata would say yes.

Chapter Text

Just like Akashi predicted, Furihata did agree to hang out, in the end (albeit reluctantly). When Akashi asked where he wanted to go, Furihata only answered, “It’s up to you.”

Very well then.

So here they were, in the arcade. Because this was the very place where boys usually ‘hang out’. Akashi himself rarely went to one, usually being too busy with other activities.

Akashi made it clear from the start that he would pay for everything because this was his idea (though he still would pay for everything even when the activities were Furihata’s idea). Furihata agreed (also reluctantly).

Akashi observed Furihata’s reaction when they strolled around the arcade to find out which game he was interested in (because Akashi had a feeling Furihata wouldn’t tell him). So far, Furihata seemed to be interested in claw machines.

Claw machines it is then.

“Let’s try this claw machine first,” Akashi suggested, echoing his thought.

Furihata glanced at him and was about to say something before he suddenly looked alert and quickly brought the paper bag closer to his mouth and coughed into it. After he calmed down, there was still a little trace of blood around his mouth. Furihata then took out a wet wipe he already used in Maji Burger from his jacket pocket to wipe his mouth.

It was such a small thing but Akashi couldn’t help but wonder how often Furihata needed to wipe his mouth throughout the day, that he used one wet wipe multiple times to presumably avoid using them up too quickly.

It was painful to watch. It was painful to think about. Akashi couldn’t imagine how it must have felt for Furihata who experienced this 24/7.

“Yeah, sure,” Furihata answered curtly. He got closer to one of the claw machines and looked at all the items intently.

“Have you decided on what to get?” Akashi asked.

Furihata nodded.

Akashi inserted the coin into the machine.

Furihata failed at the first try but he didn’t react much. He was just so.. quiet.

“Do you want to try again?” Akashi offered kindly.

Furihata glanced at him, blushing a little, “Um.. no, it’s okay. Thank you.”

It seemed that Furihata was still uncomfortable about the whole thing. Which was understandable.

Akashi smiled warmly, hoping that it could ease the tension, even for just a little, “Let me try, what is it that you want to get?”

“That uh.. that lion keychain,” Furihata answered meekly, pointing at the item that was located further in the back.

Akashi then tried and succeeded. No surprise there. He gave Furihata the keychain which he received with his two palms facing up. He looked at it fondly like it was something precious, and smiled.

“Thank you, Akashi-kun.” He said, looking very grateful. Akashi nodded and smiled too, considering this as a win.

-

Over the course of two hours, they played a lot more games, and in those two hours, Furihata started to relax and warm up to Akashi. Akashi finally saw what this Furihata guy was all about. He was surprisingly easy to talk to and actually quite witty. In the sense that, his humor was the kind of humor Akashi enjoyed. Not cringy or rude, just genuinely funny. He made Akashi laugh a few times. It was fun.

They decided to play one more game before leaving. It was a first-person shooter game where they needed to shoot as many zombies as possible. Instead of a battle, they would be teaming up in this one.

Three minutes in and Furihata’s character was already dead, leaving Akashi to fight alone.

“If zombies were real, I think this is what will happen to me too,” Furihata commented.

Akashi frowned, “What do you mean?” He asked while still shooting as many zombies as he could.

“I would be one of the first people to get bitten,” he paused, “Actually, I might offer myself to them, like, straight up.”

Akashi was a little taken aback by the statement but he didn’t want to assume, “Explain.”

Furihata seemed to realize what his thought might be interpreted as and was quick to clarify, “Oh, I don’t mean it in a.. dark way or anything. I just thought it would be more fun to be a zombie than a survivor. Because their only problem is they are hungry all the time while the survivors will be anxious and scared and all the other uh.. bad emotions.”

Akashi snorted, that was such an interesting perspective, “And hungry too, usually.” He added.

This time it was Furihata who snorted, “Right? Doesn’t seem too fun to me.”

Akashi smiled to himself, because what he was about to say was brilliant, in his humble opinion, “I’ll keep that in mind, Furihata-kun. If I were to become a zombie, you'd be the first one I bite.”

Furihata chuckled, “Please do, seriously. I can’t even imagine dealing with the zombie version of Emperor Eye and Zone and.. what’re your other tricks again?”

At this, Akashi actually laughed to the point he was killed in the game. He still made it to the top 5 best scorers though, surprisingly.

“I just can’t be bothered, you know.” Furihata finished with a grin.

Akashi couldn’t help but grin back.

So much fun.

It was afternoon when they finally exited the arcade. Since Furihata still left the decision to Akashi, he suggested they go bowling, to which Furihata easily agreed, this time.

On the way to the place, Akashi offered something a little controversial to Furihata, “If you want me to bite you, just ask though, zombie or not.” He smirked.

Furihata blushed bright red.

-

As it turned out, Furihata was very bad at bowling. They were halfway through the game and Furihata didn’t manage to knock down a single pin while Akashi already managed to score a strike and a couple of spares.

Furihata looked a little embarrassed every time he failed but he always cheered for Akashi no matter how much he scored. Of course Akashi did the same to him. Though so far, it didn’t seem to make a difference in Furihata’s play.

But it was okay. Furihata looked like he enjoyed the experience, and that was the most important thing.

When they entered frame 6, Furihata accidentally coughed flowers when he was about to roll the ball. Akashi immediately came to his aid, bringing his paper bag and wet wipes.

One of the flowers managed to slip from Furihata’s hold, again, and drop to the floor. It was a peony, Akashi realized. And it was, of course, bloody.

Akashi was never going to get used to this.

Furihata immediately crouched down, put the ball gently on his side, and picked the flower. Akashi crouched down as well, bringing Furihata’s items down with him. Akashi was about to open the paper bag so Furihata could throw the flower into it but Furihata instantly snatched it away from him.

Akashi blinked.

“Never open it and look inside. It’s disgusting.” Furihata whispered, smiling sadly.

Akashi’s heart sank, hearing that. The image of a lot of bloody flowers came to his mind unprompted. And yeah.. it must be awful, both the sight and the smell.

But so what?

“I don’t mind,” Akashi said, trying to be reassuring, “I told you I’d help carry the burden, didn’t I? This included.” He smiled, “Next time, let me help.”

Furihata looked at him, eyes wide. He looked like he couldn’t believe what he just heard. He ducked his head, and Akashi could see how red his ears were, “I- I’ll keep that in mind.” he responded quietly while finishing his task of cleaning up the floor.

Once everything was done, Furihata picked up the ball once more. Since Akashi was still nearby, he decided to observe Furihata. During his observation he realized something.

Furihata’s hand that held the ball was trembling.

Akashi bit his lip, the bowling ball was indeed quite heavy, but how severe was Furihata’s condition to the point even bowling was too much for him to handle?

Apparently more severe than Akashi initially thought. He started to panic. This was a bad idea and he felt like a failure.

Calm down Seijuurou.

Akashi took a deep breath and thought hard about what to do next. Stop everything abruptly? He didn’t think Furihata would appreciate that to be honest. So maybe..

“Furihata-kun,” Akashi called and walked closer, “try using two hands when you roll the ball.” He instructed.

Furihata looked visibly confused.

Akashi decided to just show him. So he picked up another ball and rolled it with his two hands with a posture he thought would yield the best result.

It was a strike.

“Oh, that was unexpected,” Akashi commented, surprised.

Furihata gasped, genuinely in awe. He then looked at Akashi and beamed, “You’re really amazing.”

That was.. one hell of a good expression, Akashi couldn’t help but think.

He cleared his throat, “Now you try.”

Furihata nodded and proceeded to mimic Akashi’s pose as best as he could.

He wasn’t quite successful, in Akashi’s opinion. So Akashi helped by fixing his posture. He started with Furihata’s shoulders..

Only to come in contact with bones. It was just skin then a little meat then bones. It caught Akashi off guard.

And It was upsetting. Because Furihata was not supposed to be this thin. Furihata was supposed to have an ideal build. He played basketball, for god’s sake.

Furihata was supposed to be thriving.

Hanahaki was such a cruel disease. And Furihata didn’t deserve any of this shit.

Akashi gulped, trying not to make a sound. Because he almost did that out of frustration. He continued correcting Furihata’s other body parts until he was satisfied. The last thing was just to fix Furihata’s hands, so he came up to face Furihata and moved his hands to the correct position.

“There you go,” Akashi looked up to Furihata, smiling.

Furihata didn’t look at him. His face was as red as a tomato, “G- got it, thanks.” He stammered.

Oh.

Akashi withdrew awkwardly. Instantly.

He cleared his throat again, “Sorry, please roll the ball now.”

What the hell was that?

It was odd. Akashi felt odd. There was an odd sensation coursing through his body that he couldn’t quite explain.

His musing was interrupted by the sound of pins falling. Akashi looked at the end of the lane. Furihata managed to knock down pins, for the first time.

“Se- seven! Not bad right?” Furihata lit up.

Akashi chuckled proudly, his earlier dilemma forgotten, “Not bad at all! Good job, Furihata-kun!”

Since then, Furihata managed to always knock down pins every time it was his turn. And his face would light up every time without fail. Akashi relished all those moments, his heart filled with nothing but joy. He didn’t know making anyone happy could feel like this.

It felt right.

-

“In the end, I didn’t manage to beat you in anything,” Furihata sighed.

It was dark now and they were on their way to Furihata’s house. Akashi decided it would be best to walk Furihata home at this time. Furihata had refused at first, but Akashi insisted. And he was really persistent, that Furihata ended up with no other choice besides saying yes.

“A lot of people shared the same fate, I’m afraid,” Akashi responded, a little smugly.

Furihata rolled his eyes and Akashi chuckled. They were closer now, somehow, and Akashi was glad for it.

“Let’s hang out again next weekend.”

Furihata stopped walking abruptly. He looked surprised, “You want to do this again next weekend?”

“Yes. I had fun. I’d very much like to do this again,” Akashi said honestly, “Only if you want to, of course.”

Furihata didn’t react for a few seconds, before he nodded and smiled, bright and blinding. He looked happy. He.. kind of glowed?

For some reason, Akashi felt that odd sensation again, looking at him. He brushed it off though, and focused back to Furihata, returning his smile, “Great. I’ll text you later then.”

-

On their second ‘not-date’ (it was ‘hangout’, Akashi kept reminding himself), Akashi decided they would watch a movie. He learned his lesson and would no longer include physical activities in the itinerary besides walking around.

Akashi didn’t want to accidentally choose a movie that Furihata would find boring or unenjoyable. So he requested him to choose what they were going to watch.

Furihata chose a horror movie, which was an interesting choice. Akashi was not exactly a fan of this particular genre, oftentimes finding it too corny for his liking. But in this case, he of course didn’t mind.

So now here they were, at the movies. Akashi noticed that Furihata looked worse than last week. His cheeks were even more sunken now. It was heartbreaking. Akashi needed to take a deep breath to ease the soreness in his heart.

In the end, Akashi decided to focus on something else. He offered to buy Furihata some popcorn and drinks but he refused, saying he would be ‘too busy being scared in there’.

Akashi chuckled. What an interesting thing to say.

Ten minutes into the movie, Furihata already curled up to himself, looking tense and scared. Akashi could only see so much under the dim light, but it was enough to conclude that Furihata’s many reactions were more entertaining than the movie itself.

There were times that Akashi had a strange urge to hold Furihata’s hand if only to comfort him. But the urge vanished just as fast as it appeared.

At one point, there was an interesting scene that was clearly a build-up to a jump scare. Furihata had a pretty bad cough episode on that one. Akashi looked at him to make sure he was okay.

Apparently, he was not the only one. Because the guy who sat beside him looked at Furihata too. But instead of making sure Furihata was okay, the guy whispered irritably, “Dude, you ruined it.”

Akashi couldn’t believe what he just heard.

“So- sorry, Sir,” Furihata bowed a little, clearly embarrassed.

Akashi clenched his fists angrily. How dare he. He gave the guy the dirtiest look he could muster while remembering his face. The guy didn’t notice him.

After that, Furihata was kind of distracted. It was obvious he no longer enjoyed the movie as much. He looked a little withdrawn.

Oh, that guy would pay. One way or another. Akashi would make sure of it.

Several minutes later, Furihata suddenly stood up and left. Probably went to the restroom. He was back, like, two minutes later.

Akashi blinked. That was fast. Too fast.

Around twenty minutes later, Furihata did the same thing. He stood up, left, and came back so quickly, it threw Akashi off.

What happened?

The third time it happened, Akashi decided to go after him.

Only to find him outside the theater, coughing.

“Oh, are you going to the restroom?” Furihata asked, wiping his mouth.

Akashi bit his lip, feeling a sting at the sight, and at the implication, “No, just checking on you. You’re going outside just to cough?”

“Yeah. Should’ve done this from the beginning probably,” he answered sheepishly, “Really thankful I sat close to the stairs, so I don’t bother anyone else.”

So, watching movies was not a good idea either. Akashi gritted his teeth in frustration.

“Thanks for bringing me here Akashi-kun. It’s been ages since the last time I went to the movies. This is nice,” Furihata smiled genuinely.

Akashi stilled, at a loss for words. It was so nice for Furihata to say. He wondered if Furihata could sense his frustration, somehow? If that was the case, that meant Akashi was being more obvious with his feelings than he originally thought. Or Furihata was simply more sensitive to his change of mood. Either way, it was a sign that they got even closer now.. maybe.

Akashi didn’t mind that, strangely enough.

Those words successfully calmed Akashi down so he returned Furihata’s smile, feeling fond for some reason, “I’m glad to know that. Shall we go back?”

So they both went back, now clearly in a better mood.

-

Once the movie was over, Furihata excused himself to go to the restroom. Akashi used this opportunity to hunt the rude guy from before. He found him walking with, what Akashi assumed was, his girlfriend, laughing together.

Akashi immediately got closer and moved his foot to create an obstacle on the guy’s walking path. The guy tripped over Akashi’s foot, and fell to the floor with a satisfying thud. A lot of eyes were instantly on him.

The guy looked embarrassed, and positively livid, but before he could do anything, Akashi beat him to it.

“Watch where you’re going, dude,” Akashi said coldly, eyes glinting dangerously.

The guy shuddered in fear before he stood up and just walked away, leaving his girlfriend behind.

Deserved, Akashi thought, satisfied.

When Furihata finally came up to him, Akashi asked, “Do you want to grab lunch?”

Furihata nodded.

“Where do you want to eat?” Akashi, of course, already had a place in mind, in case Furihata left the decision to him again.

“Ah, I was thinking W Shabu-Shabu,” Furihata answered, half sheepish, half excited.

Akashi grinned. Furihata started voicing what he wanted, even more surely today. This was a nice change. Also, W Shabu-Shabu was a beloved chain restaurant that served good quality beef. Akashi thought it was perfect for Furihata who clearly needed it.

Let’s put some meat in his body.

On their way to the place, Furihata told Akashi he found a dipping sauce mix that complemented the beef perfectly, that he wanted Akashi to try. He was so excited about it, to the point he kind of.. vibrated? Akashi thought it was cute of him.

When they finally arrived, Akashi ordered several plates of the most expensive beef available without Furihata’s permission. Furihata gaped at him but before he could protest, Akashi mouthed, “Too late,” and gave him an evil smirk.

The unique thing about W Shabu-Shabu was that this restaurant had a dedicated condiment buffet. There were a lot of condiments, like, maybe over twenty? The customer could mix their dipping sauce however they liked. It was part of the experience and their selling point. Akashi had been here a few times before, but he never once experimented with the sauce thing, opting to just go with the basic or the recommendation.

Furihata then excused himself to do his ‘saucy mission’ while Akashi decided to read an ebook on his phone to pass the time.

The beef and Furihata ended up arriving at the same time. Furihata gave Akashi the small bowl of the dipping sauce he personally mixed. They started to dig in and once Akashi tasted the beef with the sauce that Furihata was so hyped about, he instantly understood.

It was delicious. Like, devastatingly.

“Wow,” Akashi quietly exclaimed.

Furihata only grinned at him, his expression smug.

“I need to know the recipe,” Akashi demanded.

“Of course! I’ll text you later!” Furihata said cheerfully.

They fell into easy conversations after that. They talked about their friends, basketball, school, everything, and nothing. Furihata looked almost normal, like this. He ate well and he was happy. Even if he coughed bloody flowers every once in a while, it didn’t phase him. They talked and ate and laughed in what seemed like hours.

Akashi enjoyed it of course. He enjoyed everything so much to the point he wished the time stopped ticking so they could stay like this for a long time.

Because this was the thing that was supposed to happen. Furihata was supposed to have fun without the threat of death looming over him. He was still young. He was still a teenager, for god’s sake. This was not normal. Everything that happened to him was not normal.

Furihata ended up eating too much beef to the point of bloating. Thankfully, he seemed okay in general. Akashi knew one very good lunch was unlikely to do much to improve Furihata’s condition, but he liked to entertain the idea that it helped somehow.

At the end of their hangout, Akashi made sure to let Furihata know that they were going to do this again next weekend. Furihata lit up and easily agreed.

“Do you have something you want to do?”

Furihata nodded, “Trainspotting. Only if you want to, of course,” he glanced at Akashi, unsure, “It could be pretty boring, if you’re not really interested in trains, I suppose.”

“Oh right, you did mention you love trains,” Akashi paused, remembering their conversation in the restaurant, “And yeah, sure.” he smiled genuinely, “I’m going to do it with you. I doubt it will be boring, honestly.”

Furihata’s eyes widened before he gave Akashi a grateful smile, a lovely blush on his face.

Akashi thought he could get used to this.

-

Akashi originally thought they would do the trainspotting at Shimogoinden Bridge, also known as the Train Museum, a famous spot to watch trains. But Furihata asked him to meet at KITTE Garden. Akashi wasn’t exactly familiar with the place but apparently, it was an observation deck that overlooked Tokyo station.

When he arrived at the place, Furihata was already there, waiting for him. He looked even worse today, if it was even possible. He now had giant dark circles under his eyes.

Akashi was absolutely devastated.

He swallowed thickly, trying hard not to let this affect him too much. He nodded in greeting, giving Furihata the warmest smile.

Despite everything though, Furihata looked happier today. It seemed that he really loved trains.

There were quite a few people roaming about but overall it wasn’t crowded, so Akashi and Furihata could look at and talk about trains relatively in peace.

And Furihata sure did talk a lot about this topic. About the history, the technologies used, the random facts. And Akashi was fully engaged. He liked listening to Furihata rambling like this. He also didn’t know much about trains? So this was practically perfect.

Furihata showed him the notebook he used to note all the things related to trains. He flipped through the pages until he stopped at one filled with doodles of a train from various angles. They were pretty good.

“You draw?” Akashi asked, a little surprised.

Furihata chuckled, a little sheepish, “Sometimes. I mean, I’m no Norman Rockwell or anything-”

Akashi raised his brows, “You know Norman Rockwell?” This one was even more surprising, actually. He read about him before, when he was tasked to write an essay in English about Western artists, back in middle school (he ended up writing about Pablo Picasso, in the end). He thought this American painter was not really popular. But maybe he was wrong?

Furihata laughed easily, “Only because of that meme, you know which one, right?”

Akashi snorted and nodded. He knew exactly what Furihata was talking about. One of Norman Rockwell’s paintings gained popularity recently because it was used as a meme. He supposed both he and Furihata were more ‘online’ than he originally thought.

“Okay so you’re not him but these are not bad,” Akashi commented.

Furihata snorted, “Thanks for the compliment, I guess,” He paused, “This is your train actually.”

“Oh?”

“The N700 Series, the one that served the Tokaido Shinkansen line. Obviously, I don’t know which exact variant you rode from Kyoto today, but yeah, this is one of them.” Furihata explained enthusiastically.

Akashi smiled to himself, Furihata was really endearing when he was like this.

Furihata then drew a stick figure inside the train, “This is you.”

Akashi chuckled, “Okay. How do I know this is me?”

Furihata drew an arrow pointing at the stick figure and wrote ‘Akashi-kun’.

Akashi laughed, “Fair enough.” He looked at the drawing and suddenly felt an urge to own it, somehow, “Can I have this page?”

Furihata looked at him, puzzled, before he tore the page from the notebook and gave it to Akashi.

“Thanks,” Akashi accepted the paper and folded it carefully, before putting it in his jacket pocket.

They continued to talk while occasionally admiring the trains and the scenery in front of them until Furihata requested they move somewhere else. Apparently, there was one other place he wanted to visit today.

-

The place that Furihata wanted to go turned out to be the park near his house. They went there by bus. They sat at the very back, side by side, naturally.

They didn’t really talk on their way there, opting to fiddle with their respective phones. Akashi randomly looked out the window and accidentally caught Furihata’s phone reflection.

He froze at the sight.

Furihata was looking at urns. He looked at them in the online marketplace. He was shopping. For urns.

Akashi was absolutely speechless. He couldn’t say anything. It felt like he had something stuck in his throat.

In the end, he could only suffer in silence.

He didn’t know how much time had passed, too caught up in his own thoughts, when suddenly, he felt a weight on his shoulder.

Furihata had fallen asleep there.

Akashi could see everything, like this. The dark circles, the sunken cheeks, the overall sick appearance. And he grieved.

A moment later, Furihata jolted awake, coughing. It was too late to catch the flowers so they all dropped to Furihata’s lap.

Akashi’s eyes widened when he saw a whole ass sunflower among the flowers. How is that even possible?

Furihata sighed tiredly, “sorry,” he mumbled before proceeding to clean up the mess.

But Akashi beat him to it. He snatched Furihata’s paper bag from his hold, grabbed the bloody flowers with his bare hand, and threw them away into the bag.

Furihata gaped, “A- Akashi-kun..” he said quietly.

“I told you that I’ll help. Where’s your wet wipes?”

Furihata gave him a tight smile, “No, this is enough, thank you.” He then took one wet wipe and started cleaning Akashi’s bloody hand.

Akashi looked at both of their hands. One was normal and one was bony. And the contrast sickened him.

Next Furihata wiped his pants. Thankfully, the color of it was black so the blood was pretty much unnoticeable.

“I’ve done a lot of research when choosing all of these items,” Furihata started, clearly trying to be casual and not making this a big deal, “I was searching for the best wet wipes to clean blood and the best paper bag that was waterproof, or should I say, bloodproof,” he chuckled, “and could contain items without leaking their smell too much.” He paused, looking nostalgic for some reason, “I literally cried tears of joy when I finally found the brands that suited those criteria,” He finished with a grin.

Honestly, Akashi didn’t feel any better hearing all of that. In fact, he felt worse.

Because Furihata was not supposed to be looking at urns or searching for wet wipes and paper bags that could handle blood. Furihata was supposed to play basketball and think about what he would do after graduation.

Akashi bit his lip. He almost couldn’t bear it anymore.

“Ah, we’ve arrived,” Furihata commented. He stood up and left, with Akashi following him. And once Akashi saw the park, he immediately felt a sense of déjà vu.

Strange. He didn’t remember ever going here.

They both continued walking down the path surrounded by rows of ginkgo trees.

“I wish we'd met here before,” Furihata mumbled to himself.

“Sorry, you were saying?” Akashi asked. He heard what Furihata said but it was so faint, he was not sure he heard it right.

“Ah, nothing,” Furihata said, a little sheepish, “Anyway, the ginkgo leaves are still green.” He changed the topic swiftly.

Since Furihata said it was nothing, Akashi decided the previous sentence wasn’t important and chose to respond to the latest one, “Naturally. It’s not autumn yet.”

Furihata chuckled, “You’re right,” he paused, “I wish I could see them turn yellow, this year.” He said solemnly.

“And you will.” Akashi assured Furihata, because he’d always been an optimist, “In fact, let’s go here again in autumn, together.” He offered kindly.

Furihata glanced at him sadly before giving him a weak nod.

Not the most convincing agreement, but I’ll take it, Akashi thought to himself.

There were no words spoken between them after that. And Akashi was surprised by how much he actually enjoyed the silence. The park was beautiful. It was comforting. It was peaceful.

When they were about to reach the end of the path, Furihata stopped walking abruptly. Akashi, who was about two steps in front of him, turned around, puzzled, “What’s wrong?”

“Akashi-kun, do you maybe.. love me now?” Furihata asked, looking straight into Akashi’s eyes, hopeful.

Akashi froze, the question caught him completely off guard.

Do I? Akashi asked himself the same question. He supposed he liked Furihata now, to some degree. They were close. He felt comfortable being in Furihata's presence. He had fun hanging out with him. And he definitely cared about him. But love? That was a big word. Even if Akashi didn’t quite know what it felt like, he knew it was a big deal. He could see it though. Him being in love with Furihata in the future. Everything was going in the right direction so far. All he needed was more time.

So he told Furihata as much, “I don’t think so.”

Furihata’s face fell. He bowed his head in disappointment, similar to the first time Akashi rejected him in Maji Burger.

Akashi swallowed thickly, he was not finished, “I mean I- I haven’t-” he started stuttering for some reason, “but- you know, but maybe-”

“Then, I’m afraid this is goodbye,” Furihata interrupted him, smiling now. Warm and understanding and completely at peace.

Akashi stilled, a chill running down his spine. What?

Furihata continued, “Starting tomorrow I will be admitted to the hospital until.. you know..” He trailed off, “The truth is my condition has been getting worse these past few weeks and the doctor said I.. maybe only have less than a month left.”

Akashi stopped breathing. His mind replayed all the things he noticed the whole time they hung out. The decline of physical condition. The bigger flowers that came out from Furihata’s mouth. The shorter pause between his coughs.

Oh God. Akashi was-

Akashi was too slow. And now it was too late.

“Also I haven’t been able to sleep much this last week and I really want to,” Furihata chuckled, “the doctor said he could help with that if only to provide some relief for me. I needed to be injected with a bunch of medication though, hence the decision to stay at the hospital.” He finished, his smile still intact.

Akashi was rendered utterly speechless. His mind blanked. He didn’t know what to do. And he was panicking.

Before he could spiral any further, Furihata spoke again, “I have a request.”

Akashi could only nod numbly.

“Can I kiss you? Like, on the cheek? Feel free to refuse though, if you’re not comfortable with it, I won’t get offended.” He said, still smiling.

Akashi clenched his fists, trying to calm his irregular breathing, and nodded again. Of course he could. Akashi was willing to do anything for Furihata.

Furihata came up to him and kissed him quickly before he withdrew, his cheeks pink.

That’s it? Furihata barely touched him but his cheek burned.

It fucking burned. Why did it feel like that?

“Thank you very much for uh.. everything,” Furihata bowed, “You made me happy- still do,” he grinned, “I wish you all the happiness- all the best in the world.” He finished with another bow, and left, just like that.

No. No. Wait. Akashi needed to say something.

“Furihata-kun!” Akashi called, too loud.

Furihata instantly turned around, “Yes?”

“I’ll visit you. In the hospital. Can I?” It was all Akashi could manage at the moment.

Surprisingly, Furihata looked troubled, but it only lasted for a second before he smiled again, “Yeah, sure,” he nodded, before he turned back around and continued leaving Akashi behind.

And in less than a month, he would leave Akashi behind for good, forever. And this realization shook Akashi to the core, leaving him in absolute shambles.

He was in distress. He was a mess. And it felt wrong.

Everything felt wrong.

Chapter Text

It had been a week since the last time Akashi saw Furihata. After he learned about Furihata’s condition and how his life would end soon, Akashi felt like living on autopilot. He felt oddly numb. It was weird.

They didn’t contact each other anymore. Akashi had the urge to text Furihata multiple times during the week but he didn’t know what to say.

“Sorry I rejected you again.”

“Sorry I didn’t manage to love you on time.”

“Sorry I couldn’t save you.”

As if Furihata needed that. As if Furihata needed to be reminded of a person who failed him. As if Furihata needed to be reminded of the cause of his death.

This was what Furihata was afraid of since the beginning. He already predicted this. That was why he didn’t want Akashi to know, and yet..

And yet Akashi forced him to try anyway. Only to end up making it worse.

Akashi rejected someone who had a hanahaki. Twice.

That was the very definition of fucked up.

Throughout the week he kept asking himself, why couldn’t he return Furihata’s feelings? Why couldn't he love?

What is love anyway?

As he rode the Shinkansen to Tokyo to attend another monthly get-together with his Teiko friends, he remembered about Furihata.

Furihata and his love for trains. Furihata and his never-ending train trivia. Furihata and his little notebook and his train doodles.

He wondered if Furihata had ever ridden a Shinkansen before? If not, he would love to buy him a ticket to ride one. Maybe the one bound for Kyoto so Furihata could visit him. They could hang out again. Visiting temples.. or drinking matcha maybe? It was very ‘hip’ to drink matcha nowadays for some reason.

Or maybe he could buy him another train-related stuff for a gift. A birthday gift?

Wait, when is Furihata-kun’s birthday?

Akashi bit his lip, his heart started to ache again. He never knew that.

.. What was his favorite food? Did he have any siblings? What kind of music did he usually listen to?

He realized how little he knew about Furihata. And he realized how much he wanted to know.

But he also realized none of these mattered in the grand scheme of things, because Furihata was going to die soon.

Akashi rubbed his eyes, feeling tired all of a sudden.

That’s not good.

They mattered. Furihata was still alive, and Akashi would ask him those questions.. today.

Yes, he’d visit Furihata today. A good idea.

Hopefully, this could ease the soreness deep inside, even for just a little.

-

Akashi and his Teiko friends decided to go bowling today. The Interhigh was coming up soon and they didn’t want to risk revealing their secret weapons to each other by playing basketball like they usually did.

It was the same bowling place that he visited with Furihata just a few weeks ago, and Akashi felt nostalgic all of a sudden. Even when he could barely knock down pins, Furihata looked happy here, back then.

Akashi would do anything to be able to see him being like that again.

He glanced at Kuroko who sat beside him. There were only the two of them on the sofa, since everyone else was busy hyping up (and tearing down) each other near the lanes. He was exceptionally quiet today. Akashi, of course, had an idea as to why.

Still, he asked, “You okay, Kuroko?”

“No,” Kuroko answered curtly, not looking at him.

Akashi felt nervous, somehow, but he decided to ignore it and continued, “What happened?”

Against all odds, Kuroko scoffed, “My best friend is going to die, thanks to you, by the way, and you expect me to be okay?”

Akashi’s eyes widened, he was offended, “What’s that supposed to mean?”

Kuroko finally looked at him, full of disdain, “What is it that he lacks that makes you unable to love him?”

Akashi started to get angry now. He took a deep breath, trying to stay calm, “Do not say that. Furihata-kun doesn’t lack anything,” he paused, taking another deep breath, “he is wonderful.”

“Then why!” Kuroko demanded. Akashi was a little taken aback. This was the first time Kuroko ever raised his voice at him.

He was also surprised he had no answer to that. He searched through his mind and kept drawing a blank.

“Do you know why he got worse?” Kuroko continued, lips trembling, “Because during the time you two got closer, his feelings for you got deeper. He liked you- loved you even more. But since you didn’t return his feelings- since he loved alone, the hanahaki got even more aggressive. We couldn’t even see his lungs in the scans anymore. They were completely covered by roots and flowers.”

Akashi froze. The news felt like a punch in the gut. It hurt.

It fucking hurt.

Kuroko glared at him, sad and angry and disappointed, “You’re always like this. You always hurt my friends. What is wrong with you!”

Akashi saw red.

He harshly grabbed Kuroko’s collar and dragged him upward, forcing him to stand up. Faintly, he could hear a confused ‘Kurokocchi?’ in the distance but he didn’t care.

“How dare you say that to me? How dare you bring up the past that we all agreed to leave behind? I apologized to everyone- to you. You forgave me. Why are you-” Akashi paused, his breath stuttered. But Kuroko didn’t back down, his gaze on him hardened, as if daring him to say more. The rational part of Akashi’s mind knew that Kuroko probably didn’t mean any of it. He was just frustrated, and blinded by grief. But Akashi was-

Akashi was grieving too.

So he doubled down, “If anything, you’re the one who is at fault here. This was all your idea- to get me involved in the first place. You’re the one who is responsible for shortening Furihata-kun’s lifespan!” He spat.

Slap.

Kuroko slapped his cheek, powerful and hard. He let Kuroko go and held his cheek, wincing. It stung. Akashi was shocked beyond words. Though he probably should’ve seen this coming, in retrospect.

He chanced a look at Kuroko, only to find him crying. No surprise there, actually.

Akashi didn’t care.

“Tetsu-kun!”

“Aka-chin!”

All of their friends instantly gathered around them. All of them were puzzled.

“What the fuck is happening?” Aomine asked, half panicked, half confused.

Akashi would let Kuroko explain everything then, because he was definitely done here.

“I’m leaving,” Akashi informed before turning around to leave, only to be stopped by Midorima who caught his wrist.

“Talk.”

Akashi easily broke free, “No,” he said coldly, not looking at his best friend and continued to walk away, just like that.

No one dared to stop him again after that.

-

Akashi went straight back to Kyoto after the confrontation. His mind was in chaos. He was in no condition to meet Furihata like this, so the visit would have to be postponed.

He finally started to cool down once he was on the Shinkansen. He repeated the incident in his head, now realizing how hurtful his words were to Kuroko.

Akashi sighed. The guilt started to creep in. He must apologize to Kuroko soon.

.. Not too soon though, maybe tomorrow? He felt like he needed to give Kuroko some time too.

Once he was done thinking about Kuroko, he thought about Furihata again. About the new information he just gained.

Akashi closed his eyes.

He liked you- loved you even more. But since you didn’t return his feelings- since he loved alone, the hanahaki got even more aggressive.

He opened his eyes and looked out the window, and wondered.

Did Furihata know about this? About the fact that he might die sooner if he loved Akashi even more? Did he hang out with Akashi with this knowledge in mind? If that was the case then..

Then this must be the most heartbreaking thing ever.

Akashi swallowed hard. His heart felt so heavy and sore. The situation was so very devastating, that he almost couldn’t bear it anymore.

He bit his lip. He didn’t know what to do. It was rare for him to not know what to do. He was absolutely clueless.

“Guh..” Akashi pulled his hair out of frustration.

What should I do?

-

That night, Akashi was already in bed, staring at the ceiling because he couldn’t sleep, when he got a call from Kuroko.

Akashi stopped breathing. Kuroko very rarely called him, unless to deliver him some important information. The last time he called was to tell him one of their Teiko teammates had passed away because of a traffic accident. Akashi knew the guy. He was from the second string. It was the first time Akashi experienced a death among his peers.

It was a gloomy day. Akashi came to the funeral with all of his Miracle friends. He saw Nijimura there. Even Haizaki came too. He witnessed how the father looked broken beyond repair and the mother looked pretty much dead on the inside.

Death was that scary. He knew how it felt when he lost his mother, but to lose a child like this..

No parents should bury their kids. It was the cruelest thing. And the sight was absolutely harrowing.

Kuroko told him the news also around this time of the night. A sudden, unwanted image of two older people looking like Furihata crying entered his mind. He accepted Kuroko’s call with a trembling hand. Desperately hoping this was not another death announcement.

“Yeah?” Akashi greeted nervously.

“Akashi-kun, we need to talk about what happened this afternoon,” Kuroko said, straight to the point.

Oh. Akashi breathed a sigh of relief. Thank god.

“Okay.” Akashi agreed, now fully relaxed.

“I'm sorry for slapping you.”

Akashi smiled, eternally grateful for the apology, “It’s okay, I deserved it. I was out of line. I’m sorry too, Kuroko.”

“It’s okay. I said some hurtful things to you as well, so I apologize for those too.”

“Okay.”

It was silent for a moment before Kuroko spoke again,

“You’re right though, I shouldn’t have told you anything. I should’ve listened to Furihata-kun. I should’ve known love can’t be forced. I understand now. So, I’m sorry again for bothering you with this.”

Akashi’s eyes widened, he clenched his fist.

Please don’t say that.

“Please don’t say that,” Akashi echoed his thoughts, “It wasn’t a bother. I.. I failed. But I was happy it happened. I had a wonderful time. I regret nothing. I.. I know this sounds incredibly selfish but thank you for telling me, Kuroko.”

Another silence, before Akashi heard, “Understood.”

“How’s Furihata-kun doing by the way?” Akashi couldn’t help but ask.

“Keep declining physically, but I’d say he is doing well emotionally? He thanked me for the opportunity to get close to you. He was happy he could spend some time with you so at least there was some mutuality between the two of you there, I guess.”

Akashi closed his eyes. That was surprisingly painful to know.

“I need to visit him soon.”

Kuroko didn’t say anything for a long while.

“Akashi-kun, allow me to be selfish this time.”

Akashi frowned, “Huh?”

“Please don’t show your face in front of Furihata-kun again.”

Akashi stilled. What the fuck?

“I- we want to keep Furihata-kun alive as long as we can. We want him to stay a little longer. I hope you understand.”

Akashi exhaled shakily. Right. Kuroko was being reasonable. His concern was valid.

It didn’t stop Akashi’s heart from breaking though.

Fuck.

“.. Understood.” Akashi finally answered, trying hard to keep his voice from breaking too.

“I’ll keep you updated and send you some pictures, if you want.”

Okay. Okay. Good. He was okay with whatever crumbs he was allowed to have.

“Please do.”

Another awkward silence stretched between them.

“Alright then I-”

“Kuroko?”

“Yes?”

Akashi gulped, “Did he- did Furihata-kun know that loving me even more would worsen his condition?”

“.. No. I believe he just found out about it a few days before your last outing.”

Furihata could’ve- should’ve canceled their last ‘hangout’ and yet..

Akashi’s heart clenched painfully, thinking about the implication. And he didn’t know how to make it better.

They said their goodbyes after that and once Akashi threw his phone onto the nightstand, he knew there was no chance of him getting a wink of sleep tonight.

-

On Thursday the following week, one of his teammates came up to him when they were all about to start practice.

He brought a bouquet with him.

“Captain, you just received this from your um.. fangirls? They wish you luck in the Interhigh.” He gave the flowers to Akashi.

Akashi looked at the flowers. White roses, peonies, sunflowers, and whatever the fuck else.. and they made him angry for some reason.

They were absolutely revolting, they made him sick.

“Keep it,” Akashi ordered, turning around so he didn’t need to see them.

“Captain?”

“I hate flowers.” He spat.

-

The next afternoon, Akashi received a picture from Kuroko. It was a photo of Furihata with his third-year basketball friends. Including Kagami, who was supposed to be in the US right now.

He was probably here to say goodbye then.

Furihata practically looked like a skeleton. It was insane how thin he was in the photo. And he was already so thin the last time Akashi saw him.

Akashi thought there was no way it could get any worse. He was wrong.

Despite everything though. Furihata looked so happy. His smile was wide and his eyes crinkled at the corners. Akashi thought it was such a stunning expression.

He randomly remembered Furihata’s many expressions throughout the time they spent together. He was the most expressive when they were watching that horror movie.

Suddenly, Akashi had the urge to rewatch it, if only to relieve the experience he had with Furihata. He checked the schedule and decided to buy the ticket for tonight's late-night screening.

-

As it turned out, the movie was so bad. Like, extremely bad. It was strange. Akashi didn’t remember it was this bad before. Especially when Furihata was so excited with his review. He kept retelling his favorite bits in such a funny way. Akashi even entertained the idea of watching more horror movies because this one was not bad at all.

So why was it bad now? This was the same fucking movie.

It was super late but Akashi didn’t want to go home just yet, so he told his driver to take him to W Shabu-Shabu. There was one branch in Kyoto that was open 24 hours.

Once he arrived and placed his order, Akashi went to the condiments buffet. He took his phone out of his pocket and opened his chatroom with Furihata. He scrolled up until he found the recipe for his dipping sauce. He made sure to follow the recipe down to the T.

Once the beef and the broth and the dipping sauce were all ready, Akashi dug in immediately. Finally some delicious food.. only to find it not so delicious now? He tried dipping his beef in the sauce once more and no, it was still wrong. He then tried only the sauce, and was hit with disappointment because it only tasted okay. It was supposed to be super delicious.

.. Why?

And this place was supposed to be the OG branch. W Shabu Shabu was founded right here, as far as he remembered. If anything, the taste of the food here was supposed to be superior compared to the one in Tokyo.

After that, he tried making the sauce two more times with no improvement whatsoever. He lost his appetite and continued eating just for the sake of it.

He went home in the worst mood, knowing another sleepless night awaited him.

-

The next morning, Akashi decided to skip weekend practice, for the first time ever. He informed his vice-captain, trusting him to handle everything. The reason Akashi gave him was that he wasn’t feeling well.

Well, physically he was fine, but emotionally, he was a wreck. So.. he wasn’t entirely lying, he supposed. Also, he was already home and not in his dorm, it would be such a hassle to go back to school again (usually it wasn’t a problem, but today, he decided that it was).

Akashi felt like going to the arcade this afternoon so that was what he was going to do.

-

Of all the things that he had been doing alone, going to the arcade without friends surely felt the loneliest. It was too loud here and Akashi didn’t like it. He didn’t remember it being this loud, when he went with Furihata, even though the one in Tokyo was more crowded.

He tried to ignore it and focus on the games. He looked at the row of claw machines, searching for the ones with lion-related things in them. He wanted to get them for Furihata. It seemed that it was his favorite animal. Akashi would send them over of course, since he was forbidden to meet with Furihata now.

Akashi scanned all the items in all the claw machines carefully and found no lion-related things at all.

Just his luck.

Fine. Train-related things then. He scanned everything once more and instantly lit up when he found a thousand-piece train-themed puzzle in one of the more expensive claw machines. He immediately got to work, and managed to obtain it on the first try, naturally.

With a puzzle box in his hand, he left the arcade in a better mood, a rare occurrence these days.

The next destination was Shuugakuin Station. He was going to watch trains today, on the platform in one of the quieter stations in Kyoto. The platform also had benches that he planned to sit on for.. probably a long time.

Obviously, there would be no fancy trains passing through over there, just small, community-focused trains, but it was enough. They were still trains.

Once Akashi arrived at the platform, he sat on one of the empty benches. It was quiet, as predicted. He was really glad about it.

When a train finally passed through, he remembered about Furihata. He wondered if Furihata would like it. It was no Shinkansen but it was still pretty, in Akashi’s opinion.

If Furihata liked it, would he draw it? Hopefully, he would. Akashi could almost imagine it. Furihata sitting beside him. His face lit up, and his eyes twinkled. He doodled in his notebook while he told Akashi all about the small, community-focused trains, because he knew everything about trains. He would talk as fast as the Shinkansen because he was so excited, but Akashi wouldn’t mind it one bit. He would still understand because it was Furihata. Because they were friends. Because they were close.

Speaking of, where did Akashi put the paper with Furihata’s doodle in it? It was still in one of his jackets' pockets, wasn’t it?

He looked down at the jacket he wore today. This was the one actually. So he reached into the right pocket. Only to feel crumbs.

His heart dropped to the pit of his stomach.

He took out the tiny pieces of paper, the one he asked for, the one Furihata gave him, now destroyed beyond recognition. Because he forgot to take it out before washing the jacket.

Akashi bit his trembling lip. Maybe these weren’t that? Maybe the paper was in the left pocket? He then reached into the other side, desperately hoping he was right.

He was wrong. But there was something else in there.

He took out a small ginkgo leaf. That somehow found its way to his pocket. Akashi knew this one was from the park near Furihata’s house, because he hadn’t seen a single ginkgo tree since then.

It was green.

I wish I could see them turn yellow, this year.

Apparently, the memory of Furihata wishing to see yellow ginkgo leaves was Akashi's final straw. A single tear dropped from his eye, then another.. before it slowly turned into a full-blown breakdown, because he couldn’t hold it back anymore.

It hurt. He had been hurting for quite a while, actually, but for some reason, he refused to fully acknowledge it.

He was sad. He was devastated. He was heartbroken.

He didn’t know how to make it better, so for now, he sobbed, as quietly as he could, hoping against hope that no one would notice.

Chapter Text

Akashi woke up late. Another first-time thing. All the sleepless nights had finally caught up to him, it seemed.

He sighed. Even after almost half an hour of crying, and many hours of sleeping, he didn’t feel fully rested.

He glanced at his phone. 12.30 PM. He already skipped dinner and breakfast. He really needed to eat. And shower too, probably. Hopefully, it’d make him feel better.

-

As it turned out, food and showers did help. Only slightly though. Still, he was grateful.

Now feeling refreshed, he walked slowly to his desk. He opened his laptop and began searching for a place that he wanted to visit today.

A park with rows of ginkgo trees. Hopefully, there was one in Kyoto.

The first result was an Instagram page of a park with a familiar name. It was the name of Furihata’s neighborhood. This was the park he visited with Furihata two weeks ago.

Which was strange. He clearly searched for one in Kyoto. For the first result to be the one in Tokyo instead, the park must be more famous than he originally thought.

He clicked on it.

He scrolled through the page and yep, this was the park. No doubt about it. He randomly clicked on the pictures. They were mainly photos of the park from many different angles, in different seasons. It was indeed the most beautiful in autumn.

He scrolled up again to click on the only photo that the account pinned. It was a selfie of a couple, with the girl showing off the ring on her finger. A proposal then. The caption read,

First meeting here. Proposing here. It’s only right. Just like the legend of the park.

Akashi frowned. Legend? The park had a legend?

He opened another tab to do his research. He found an article about the park, and true to the caption, the place indeed had a legend,

If a couple’s first meeting happens here by chance, under the ginkgo trees, they’re destined to be together.

Akashi blinked. Wow. That was very romantic. And incredibly specific. That meant, in order to meet the condition, the couple had to have randomly met in the park, before they knew each other?

What were the chances of that happening? That couple in the picture surely was a rare case.

Akashi paused, suddenly remembering something,

I wish we'd met here before.

Furihata had said that, back when they first arrived at the park. Akashi was a little confused by the statement then, but now he knew that Furihata was talking about the legend.

Furihata.. really loved him, didn’t he? Akashi knew Furihata was reluctant about the whole thing, but deep inside, it seemed that he did wish they could be together.

Akashi’s heart squeezed painfully at the thought. If only he could love Furihata..

He went back to the Instagram page and looked at the picture of the couple again. He frowned when he noticed something in the background. He zoomed in on the picture and squinted his eyes.

His heart skipped a beat. No way.

Akashi gulped. His pulse quickened at what he saw. He never really believed in something like legend or destiny or fate, but the thing he just saw.. there was no way it was a coincidence. This was the universe telling him not to give up just yet. He was sure of it.

He opened another tab and typed the keywords ‘love doctor’ in the search engine, the love consultation website he discovered the first time he did his research about love. He thought it was such a silly thing back then but now..

Desperate times call for desperate measures.

So he clicked on the first result. He was instantly redirected to a simple website, with an empty form in the center.

There were only two fields that he needed to fill in.

Your name:

Akashi typed his name.

The name of your partner/lover/crush:

Akashi cleared his throat and typed Furihata’s name. He clicked on the button and waited.

Thank you. The Love Doctor will reach out to you soon.

Queue Number: 42

Akashi clicked his tongue. Seriously? So many people had love problems today, huh?

He scrolled down and saw a big green button.

Don’t feel like waiting? Pay only 2500 yen for a one-time premium love consultation right now!

Akashi scoffed. What kind of scam-

He clicked on the button and paid quickly. Then he was redirected again to a chatroom.

Love Doctor: Hello, Akashi-san. How can I help you today?

Me: How to fall in love very quickly?

Love Doctor: Can you tell me the reason? Why do you want to do that?

Me: Someone loves me and I need to return his feelings, otherwise he dies from hanahaki. I’m running out of time.

There was quite a long pause before the Love Doctor replied.

Love Doctor: I’m sorry to hear that, Akashi-san. Are we talking about Furihata-san?

Me: Yes

Love Doctor: May I know what is your relationship with him? Are you friends?

This time, Akashi was the one who paused. Well, they weren’t exactly friends originally but now..

Me: He used to be an acquaintance, I guess, but because of this, I tried to get closer to him. Now we are friends, I’d say.

Love Doctor: Why do you get close to him? Did he force you?

Akashi felt a little annoyed at the questions. As if anyone could force him into doing anything.

Me: He is dying. I want to save him. He didn’t force me. He didn’t even want me to know. Our mutual friend was the one who told me.

Love Doctor: Understood. So you want to save him. Okay. Do you realize you can save him without having to fall in love with him?

.. What?

Me: How?

Love Doctor: By making Furihata-san fall out of love with you

Akashi’s eyes widened. The Love Doctor was right. How could he not think of that?

Me: That’s not possible. There’s not much time left

Love Doctor: I have several ideas that might work even with such limited time. I’ll personally help you execute them if you choose this route

No. What the fuck. Akashi didn’t want Furihata to fall out of love with him.

Me: No. I don’t want this route

Love Doctor: Are you sure? You don’t even want to know what my ideas might be?

Not five minutes in and Akashi already regretted his decision to use this service. He was tempted to end the chat right then but managed to hold himself back in the end.

Me: No. I want to fall in love with Furihata-kun

Me: Please

Love Doctor: Got it. We’ll work on that instead then

Love Doctor: First of all, tell me how you feel about Furihata-san right now, in detail

So Akashi told the Love Doctor about everything that happened in the past month. How Furihata made everything fun. How he made Akashi smile and laugh. How comfortable it was to be with him. How happy and content he made him feel.

Akashi also explained that he was pretty certain he could fall in love with Furihata in the future, if only he was given more time.

Next, he typed how it felt when he found out Furihata was going to die sooner than he expected. He was numb. He couldn’t sleep. He was restless. He snapped at multiple people. He hated the sight of flowers.

He also added that he redid everything he once did together with Furihata and didn’t enjoy them as much. The movie was bad. The shabu-shabu sauce tasted different. The arcade was not fun.

He finished his long paragraph with how much the thought of losing Furihata hurt and devastated him to the point he actually cried in public. How all that crying almost didn’t help at all. How clueless he felt right now.

Love Doctor: I see. You’re feeling all of these and Furihata-san still has hanahaki?

Me: Yes

Love Doctor: Are you sure?

Akashi clicked his tongue again. So annoying.

Me: Yes I’m sure. What are you getting at?

Love Doctor: I just thought the hanahaki should’ve disappeared by now, because you already love him, Akashi-san

Akashi stopped breathing, his eyes wide.

What?

Me: What?

Love Doctor: There’s no need to try to fall in love. You are already in love with Furihata-san right now, as we speak

Love Doctor: The problem is why the hanahaki is still there. We should focus on figuring that out

Wait a minute.

Me: No. Wait. Hold on. I already love him? How? I don’t think so

There was another long pause before the Love Doctor finally responded,

Love Doctor: Akashi-san, have you ever loved someone romantically before?

Me: No

Love Doctor: What do you think love is? What do you think it feels like?

Me: I don’t know. I’m not sure. Butterflies in the stomach, fluttering heart, racing pulse maybe?

Me: I don’t remember feeling any of those when I was with him

Love Doctor: I see. Yeah, it could be those things, but I’d argue that what you feel for Furihata-san is actually more love than what you think love is

Love Doctor: Your feelings for him are deeper. If I don’t know any better, if I only read your description about your feelings alone, I’d assume that you guys have been in a relationship for a long time

Akashi swallowed hard, still not quite believing.

Me: But that’s not possible. I only went out with him three times

Me: It seems too easy

Too simple. Too convenient.

Love Doctor: Yes, when it’s with the right person, it could very well be the case. Falling in love could be that effortless

.. Oh my god.

Me: I don’t know what to say

Love Doctor: Understood. Do you need more proof that you love him maybe?

Me: Sure

Love Doctor: Okay. Imagine if the hanahaki magically disappears right now. You no longer have the moral obligation to save Furihata-san, so to speak. Do you still want to be with him or do you forget about him and move on with your life?

Akashi’s heart started hammering against his ribcage. The question actually shook him to the core.

And yet, the answer was crystal clear.

Me: I want to be with him

Love Doctor: There you go :)

Now.. now his heart fluttered. He could feel it. The excitement of knowing that he was in love.

It felt right.

Me: I should tell him

Love Doctor: Yes, that’s what I thought. This is the first time I've handled a hanahaki case so I’m not an expert, but I’m pretty certain the reason why Furihata-san is still sick even though you return his feelings is because he doesn’t know about it

Akashi immediately ordered a Shinkansen ticket bound for Tokyo once he finished reading the latest chat from the Love Doctor.

Me: I need to go now. Thank you

Love Doctor: You’re welcome. I’ll end the chat here. Good luck!

He looked at his email and saw his ticket had been successfully issued. He closed his laptop, grabbed the puzzle box he got for Furihata, and ran.

-

When Akashi finally arrived in front of Furihata’s room, sweaty and out of breath because of all the running, he heard a faint sob from the inside.

Someone was crying, but it wasn’t Furihata.

Akashi opened the door slightly to take a look, before he jerked back, because that sob suddenly turned into a wail, it knocked the breath out of him.

“Time of death, 5.47 PM. I’m so sorry for your loss, Furihata-san.”

That wail then turned into a scream, making Akashi take another step back.

No. No. This can’t be real.

“Kouki, wake up! Kouki, please! KOUKI!”

Akashi fell to his knees for the sheer pain he suddenly felt, while the world around him crashed down.

He was too late.

-

Akashi jolted awake with a loud gasp. He panted hard, clutching his chest.

Where am I?

He blinked and looked around, finally realizing that he was still in the Shinkansen, on his way to Tokyo.

“Are you okay?” The old woman who sat beside him asked, a frown on her face.

Akashi nodded at her and smiled, thanking her for her concern. Thankfully it was enough. She didn’t question him any further and got back to her phone.

Akashi sighed. What a nightmare. That was so vivid- too vivid for his liking, honestly.

It wasn’t true though, right? Furihata was still alive.. right?

He checked his phone. 4.53 PM. No new message. Should be safe for now. Akashi was sure he would be notified if anything happened.

But also..

Furihata died at 5.47 PM in his nightmare and it was around an hour away from now and..

No. It was just a dream. Nothing was going to happen. Everything was going to be okay.

Still, as soon as he finally got out from the Shinkansen, Akashi broke into a run once more.

-

When Akashi finally arrived in front of Furihata’s room, sweaty and out of breath because of all the running, he didn’t hear anything. He checked the time on his phone. 6.17 PM. This was either a good sign or.. Furihata was already in the morg-

Enough with the grim thoughts already, Seijuurou.

He knocked on the door.

“Come in.”

It was Furihata’s voice. Thank god. Akashi was so relieved. He opened the door and entered the room slowly.

Furihata was currently sitting on his bed, looking exactly like what he saw in the photo that Kuroko sent to him a couple of days ago. His face instantly lit up when they made eye contact.

Akashi missed him so much.

“You came!” Furihata said cheerfully, a little surprised. Unlike the time at the park, when he looked troubled when Akashi mentioned about visiting him, he looked genuinely happy now.

“Of course,” Akashi responded, feeling happy too. He walked closer and sat down on the chair beside the bed, “You think I won’t come?” He asked teasingly, raising his brows.

Furihata smiled sadly, “Yeah.”

Akashi lowered his head, feeling bad, “I’m sorry.”

Furihata chuckled, “There’s nothing to apologize for, Akashi-kun. I completely understand if you don’t come, truly.”

Akashi didn’t respond to that for quite a while before he stared at Furihata, who had this peaceful expression on his face. He looked serene.

“I missed you,” Akashi said softly.

Furihata looked a little taken aback before he slightly blushed and smiled again, “I missed you too.”

They stared at each other for a long time after that, no words were spoken between them. It was rare for Furihata to hold eye contact this long, so he decided to comment on it, “you stared too much,” he joked, when he clearly did the same.

“Yeah, just trying to memorize everything,” Furihata responded solemnly.

Akashi’s heart clenched painfully again.

Furihata jolted, “What am I saying? I’m so sorry for being creepy,” he blushed bright red, obviously realizing that he was being weird.

“It’s not creepy, I’m doing it too!” Akashi reassured, not entirely sure what else he was supposed to say.

Another awkward silence stretched between them.

“I have something for you,” Akashi finally broke it first, giving Furihata the puzzle box, “I went to the arcade to hunt for lion-related things to give you but they were nowhere to be found, so I got you the next best thing.”

Furihata accepted the puzzle box gratefully, “Thank you very much, I love this!” He grinned.

“I’m still a little disappointed that I couldn’t get lion stuff though, it seems that it’s your favorite animal.”

“Don’t worry about it! It’s not my favorite animal.”

Akashi furrowed his brows, “Huh?”

Furihata looked embarrassed when he said, “Lion just reminds me of you.”

Akashi blinked, “.. Excuse me?”

“I overheard Aomine-kun say that we looked like the lion and the chihuahua when we faced each other on the court, a long time ago. And I kind of agreed?” Furihata laughed.

Akashi frowned, “Well, that was quite rude of him.”

“Not at all! He got a point, I think. You do give off a ‘lion aura’.”

“Er..”

“Like powerful? In every sense of the word. It’s admirable.”

“I don’t know about that..”

Furihata chuckled, “It’s a compliment, I promise!”

Akashi hummed, “Then I guess you indeed kind of look like a chihuahua.”

Furihata’s face fell slightly before he let out a little laugh, “Well, with how much I trembled-”

“In a sense that you’re cute.” Akashi cut Furihata off, not giving him a chance to be upset any further.

Furihata instantly got quiet before slowly lowering his head, face red, “Oh that’s- uh- um-” he stuttered.

“You’re very cute,” Akashi repeated.

It was true. Now that Akashi realized he had feelings for Furihata, he also realized other things about him. Like how attractive he actually was, with his endearing little stutters and adorable little blushes.

“I- well.. maybe back then- certainly not now!” Furihata tried to dismiss the compliment.

“No, right now too.” Akashi insisted.

Furihata suddenly grabbed the paper bag on the bedside table and coughed into it. And Akashi was instantly reminded about how the person he loved was currently dying.

But before Akashi could say anything, Furihata beat him to it, “Anyway, thanks again for the puzzle. I don’t think I'll be able to finish it but I’ll make sure my brother continues it in my place.” He grinned while wiping his mouth.

Akashi needed to say it, now.

“I love you.”

Furihata froze, looking like he’d just been slapped. Akashi didn’t know if it was a good thing or a bad thing.

Furihata gulped, looking conflicted, “Thanks?” Then he coughed- no- he vomited a bloody chrysanthemum. It was big.

A funeral flower.

Akashi stared at it in horror. It doesn’t work?

His confession didn’t work? Why?

“Not long now, I guess,” Furihata mumbled, “Th- thank you for saying it, Akashi-kun. Thank you for trying to- but um.. I don’t think you want to see- you need to leave- I have to call my mom-” he stammered, reaching for his phone beside the paper bag with a trembling hand. He looked absolutely frightened.

Akashi’s eyes widened when he came to a realization that Furihata didn’t believe him.

He caught Furihata’s wrist, preventing him from taking his phone, “You don’t believe me.” He stated, “Why?”

“Because you.. don’t love me?” Furihata responded, confused, “You said you don’t, just two weeks ago, so why- how do you suddenly-” he stopped himself, trying to smile somehow, “I understand the need to try though, and I appreciate it, and I think-”

“Kouki,” Akashi interrupted his rambling, getting closer, causing Furihata to shut his mouth in shock at the use of his given name, and at the proximity, “I was wrong,” Akashi said, before pressing his lips against Furihata’s, kissing him.

Furihata smelt like, well, flowers and blood. His lips were dry and chapped, but Akashi didn’t mind it one bit. It still felt wonderful.

“Hmph,” Furihata froze again. His lips were completely sealed and unmoving, but he didn’t pull away either.

Kissing Furihata felt so.. Akashi wasn’t quite sure how to describe it, honestly. It felt like the most natural thing in the world. It felt right.

“I love you,” Akashi murmured against Furihata’s lips, “You have to believe me,” he held Furihata’s face firmly with both hands and kissed him again, opening his mouth, hoping that Furihata would follow him.

And Furihata did, finally. But when he was about to start kissing back, he suddenly coughed, straight into Akashi’s mouth.

Furihata pulled away immediately, “Oh my god, I’m so- sorry Akashi-kun,” he panicked, looking like he was about to cry, while reaching for his wet wipes.

Akashi tasted blood.. and something else. He took it out. It was a tulip.. petal.

A petal?

It was no longer a whole flower. It was working. They both looked at the petal and then at each other. Akashi was excited while Furihata was dumbfounded.

So Akashi kissed Furihata again, not caring about blood or wet wipes or whatever the fuck else. The most important thing right now was kissing the fucking hanahaki out of Furihata.

Akashi would never, in a million years, predict that his early kisses would be this bloody and messy, but honestly though? He wouldn’t change it for the world.

“I love you,” Akashi kept saying in between kisses, “come on Kouki.”

At one point, Furihata jerked back harshly to cough. It was clear he felt guilty about coughing into Akashi’s mouth before. After that, they both looked at Furihata’s palm which he used to cover his mouth.

This time, it was a sakura petal and a little blood. The petals were getting smaller, and the amount of blood was reduced significantly. They were so close.

Furihata blinked, “I-”

Akashi didn’t let him finish and kissed him again, “I love you,” and again, “You need to accept it,” and again, “Please Kouki.” He finished desperately.

When Furihata withdrew for the third time and coughed, there was no more flower or petal or blood or anything. There was nothing.

Furihata’s eyes widened, he was absolutely stunned.

Akashi couldn’t quite believe it either, “Try breathing, Kouki,” he instructed gently.

Furihata breathed deeply, “Oh..” he mumbled, and smiled at Akashi, letting him know that it didn’t hurt anymore.. before he choked up, and slowly sobbed.

He was overwhelmed.

Akashi sighed in relief. He held Furihata’s hand tight, before deciding that no, it wasn’t enough.

In the end, he climbed onto the bed that was definitely too small for two people. Furihata chuckled weakly, welcoming and letting Akashi hold and comfort him.

At one point, Furihata realized that he stained Akashi’s shirt with tears and snot and the remnants of his blood. He started to panic again, only for Akashi to chuckle fondly and tell him that he didn’t mind, that nothing was more important than Furihata right now.

Furihata was red all over and continued to redden after every declaration of love that Akashi uttered, because wow, now that he came to his senses, he actually had a lot to say to Furihata in regards to his feelings. Furihata’s response was to keep hiding in Akashi’s chest, and it was the cutest thing ever.

They fell into a comfortable silence shortly after, when Furihata suddenly said, “Oh right,” he paused, before he grinned, “I love you too.”

Akashi blinked, actually caught off guard, before he slowly smirked, “You know Kouki, for someone who is rumored to love me to the point of dying, this is the first time I actually heard you say the words.”

Furihata blushed, ducking his head, “I’m sorry.”

Akashi kissed his temple, “It’s okay you’re going to say it a lot to me from now on.”

Furihata lit up, “Yes!”

“You’ll be the one who finishes the puzzle, not your brother.” Akashi requested, a little out of place.

Furihata seemed to understand though, what Akashi was trying to say, “Of course!”

“You’re also going to be the one who makes my shabu-shabu sauce, because it tasted different when I tried making it myself.”

Furihata chuckled and agreed happily, “Okay!”

“You also need to draw more trains for me because the paper you gave me got destroyed in the washing machine.”

Furihata laughed now, freely and fondly, “Got it!”

“And when the ginkgo leaves turn yellow, we’re going to the park again, together.”

Furihata paused at this, looking like he was about to cry again. He buried his head in Akashi’s chest, and nodded, “Yeah- yes please.”

Akashi embraced him tight as a response, not planning to let go, ever.

So many things to do, moving forward. The doctor still needed to scan everything to make sure the hanahaki was completely gone. They needed to inform everyone about the good news. Akashi had to devise a plan to help Furihata get back on his feet.

But for now, Akashi was content holding Furihata in his arms, finally free from bloody flowers.

Mayuko blinked, “What do you mean flowers almost killed your boyfriend? Is he allergic or something?”

The man paused before he chuckled, “Something like that.”

In the end, Mayuko just nodded without asking any further. The man gave her his credit card, which Mayuko accepted politely.

She was about to handle the payment when her uncle suddenly barged in, “Mayuko! How’s everything going- Oh! Akashi-san!” He greeted the man cheerfully, once he caught sight of him.

The man, whose name was Akashi apparently, nodded and smiled, “Hello Wada-san, it’s nice to see you. I heard you’re sick?”

Her uncle waved his hand in dismissal, “Just a little cold, I’m fine now!” He grinned, before commenting on the bouquet in Akashi’s hand, “So.. it seems that Mayuko has been handling everything well.”

Mayuko blushed at the compliment.

“Yes.” Akashi agreed.

“Well, my niece here is next in line to inherit my brother’s flower shop in Kyoto, so there’s no surprise there.” Her uncle said proudly.

Mayuko lowered her head, getting even more embarrassed, “Oji-san..”

Her uncle chuckled, and proceeded to ruffle her hair, “Thanks for traveling all the way here to cover for me, princess.”

Mayuko chuckled too, “Anytime.”

“Kyoto is my hometown actually, we’ll make sure to stop by if we get the chance,” Akashi suddenly commented, “only if Kouki approves of this bouquet first, of course.” He finished with a teasing tone.

Ah so.. his boyfriend was named Kouki.

“I hope he does.” Her uncle laughed, “How’s Furihata-san doing by the way?”

Akashi actually lit up when the topic changed to things about his boyfriend. Mayuko was in awe. He must have loved him very much.

“He is doing very well, just got promoted at his job, hence this bouquet to celebrate.”

“Wow, he is amazing, congratulations!” Her uncle cheered.

“Thank you. I’ll let him know you said that,” he promised, “Anyway, you can call him Kouki again, if you want. I won’t get mad this time.”

Her uncle squinted his eyes at Akashi suspiciously, “Huh? What’s changed?”

“Because he will be an Akashi soon,” Akashi grinned.

It was silent for a moment before her uncle gasped, “Are you guys getting married?”

“That’s the plan, yes.”

Her uncle squealed, “Oh my gosh, when?”

Akashi cleared his throat, “Well.. soon, I have to propose first, obviously.”

Her uncle instantly deflated and slapped Akashi’s arm, “You haven’t even proposed? Jeez, I’m already so excited.”

Akashi laughed, “My bad.” He then addressed Mayuko, out of nowhere, “I’m thinking of having the wedding in Kyoto, so if Kouki agrees, we’ll contact you to handle the flowers.” He smiled at her, looking very excited.

Mayuko couldn’t help but smile too, her earlier heartbreak completely forgotten, “We’ll look forward to it, Sir.”

“Just don’t flirt with his cute boyfriend too much, otherwise you might not see them again.” Her uncle commented, half joking, “I called his boyfriend by his given name one time, and Akashi-san glared at me like he wanted to kill me.”

Akashi snorted.

“They didn’t come to the shop for quite a while after that, before Akashi-san finally gave up and came here again because apparently, Furihata-san loved my bouquet the most.” He added, looking smug.

“Well, a man gotta do what a man gotta do.. or something,” Akashi shrugged, defending himself.

They all laughed at that, before her uncle asked, “So.. when are you going to propose?”

Akashi hummed, looking out the window, his gaze far away, before he slowly smiled, warm and incredibly fond, “Once the ginkgo leaves turn yellow.”

10 years ago, autumn

“Pretty,” Furihata commented at the sight of yellow ginkgo leaves.

“Yeah,” Akashi nodded, squeezing Furihata’s hand, now no longer bony.

They’d been dating for a few months and Akashi couldn’t be happier. The first few weeks were spent on Furihata’s recovery, putting the weight and strength back, as well as catching up with all the lessons missed. Furihata decided to not go back to basketball, choosing to focus on his studies to prepare for uni. Akashi fully supported his decision, obviously, thinking that it was for the best indeed.

They met almost every week, with Akashi traveling to Tokyo every weekend. Furihata was worried at first, thinking it must be a hassle to do something like this so often, but Akashi assured him that ‘something like this’ was the highlight of his week. It made him happy to the point he actually wished he could do it on weekdays too.

Furihata could only blush at that, no longer able to question or argue.

Now that it was autumn, Akashi had been looking forward to going on a date at the park again, and once Akashi saw the color yellow on the park’s Instagram feed, he immediately asked Furihata to do just that.

So here they were, walking hand in hand, down the path surrounded by rows of ginkgo trees once more, now with the correct color.

Akashi looked at Furihata, a little surprised to find him looking troubled, “What’s wrong, Kouki?” He asked gently.

“Hm?”

“You look like you have something on your mind.”

Furihata stayed quiet for a few seconds, before he responded, “I do.”

Akashi raised his brows, “What is it?”

Furihata took a deep breath before answering, “Okay, but I’m just saying what’s on my mind, I hope it doesn’t offend you or anything.”

Now Akashi was nervous, “Go on.”

Furihata looked at Akashi seriously, “I don’t think the hanahaki will come back, so if you ever want to leave, don’t let the thought of hanahaki coming back be the reason that stopped you from leaving.” He gulped, “Obviously we’ll talk it out but if it’s the only reason you stay, I’ll let you go.” He paused and frowned, “does that make sense?”

Ah right, Akashi did have a hunch that Furihata might feel like this. Like their love started kind of wrong, like it wasn’t ideal. Like Akashi was forced into this relationship, because of the hanahaki. He might phrase it in such a roundabout way but it was clear to Akashi that it was what he actually meant.

So since this topic was brought up, maybe it was time to put this matter to rest once and for all.

“Yes, I understand your point. And I’ll get to that soon, but first,” Akashi began, “I want you to understand that whatever triggered this relationship in the first place, doesn’t change the fact that loving you was all me. It was my decision.” He paused, “Sure it started with the hanahaki, maybe not the most ideal thing to start a relationship.. but so what? It wasn’t like you held me at gunpoint and forced me to love you, was it? You didn’t even want me to know anything, if you remember,” he gave Furihata a half smile, “honestly, I’m grateful this happened at all. Loving you is fun. Loving you makes me happy. You make me happy.” He finished with a grin.

Furihata blushed bright red before he nodded, “Got it. I- I feel the same way.” He glanced at Akashi, smiling shyly.

What a cutie, Akashi couldn’t help but think, “Now about me wanting to leave.. I don’t think it’s going to happen? Because to do that means I’m going against my destiny.” He added.

At this, Furihata stopped walking, visibly confused, “Huh?”

Akashi took out his phone and showed Furihata a picture. It was the only pinned photo on the park’s Instagram feed.

Furihata was still confused, “What’s this?”

“A picture of a newly engaged couple taken in this park,” Akashi answered easily.

“O.. kay?”

Akashi zoomed in on the photo, “Look at the background.”

Furihata squinted his eyes before he gasped, “It was me, in my middle school gakuran.” He pointed at the guy who could be seen walking down the path. It was small but it was still recognizable.

“And this was me, in my Teiko uniform, walking in front of you, going in the opposite direction.” Akashi pointed at the other guy who also could be seen walking down the same path, “When we first arrived at the park months ago, I thought this park seemed familiar. Turns out I indeed have been here before,” He grinned, “And if you look closely, we actually looked at each other here.”

“Oh my god, you’re right!” Furihata exclaimed, absolutely in awe.

Akashi put his phone back in his pocket and got closer, touching their foreheads together, “So since we randomly met here before, back when we didn’t know each other, that could only mean..?”

“That we’re destined to be together.” Furihata finished with a grin, “You read about the legend, I see.”

“Yeah.”

Furihata smiled, more to himself, looking almost giddy, “This information makes me happy. Thank you, Sei.” He said gratefully.

Akashi chuckled, “The feelings are mutual, Kouki.”

It was silent for a moment, with both of them just enjoying each other’s presence, before Furihata withdrew and tilted his head slightly, “So it’s safe to assume that we’re going to visit this place again next year?” He asked, giving Akashi a crooked grin.

Akashi nodded, “Yes, next year,” he pressed his forehead onto Furihata’s again, making sure to look into his beloved’s eyes, and smiled, “And many years after that.”