Only for You

Fandom: Kuroko no Basuke

Rating: Pg-15/T—R (?)

Genre: Romance/Friendship/HC?

Pairing: Kagami Taiga/Kuroko Tetsuya

Summary: Getting sick in your own birthday sucks. But being alone in it is worse. It's January 31st, and Kagami thinks he has forgotten something really important despite already being prepared for it for months. Luckily, GoM saves the day… or supposedly, Kuroko's special day.

Disclaimer: Kuroko no Basuke belongs to Tadatoshi Fujimaki-sensei. Luna only plays with the characters.

Warning: slight AU, shounen ai/yaoi, slight oOC, possible spelling mistake and grammar errors.

A/N: I've been uncreative and unproductive lately…. Maybe because I'm so busy with marriage life (and work *meh* It's always about the damn work! X_X ). Anyway, HAPPY (early) BIRTHDAY KUROKO TETSUYA! (31/1) XD. I'm going to draw a PIC for your birthday too, Hon! Just wait for it~ *love-love*

Now, readers, please enjoy this (not exactly) small gift!

Only for You

(Part 1)

Kuroko Tetsuya could vaguely hear his alarm clock blaring on the nightstand. He knew he had to open his eyes and get up since it was probably morning and even though it was in the middle of winter season and what the sky-blue haired teen wanted to do is just to stay curled inside his warm, comfortable futon to sleep in, he couldn't afford to skip school and practice.

Kuroko had to wake up.

He forced open his pale blue eyes slightly and could feel his eyelids heavier than usual. Thus, he sighed tiredly. Why was it so difficult to stir up today? He blinked several times to chase out the remnant of sleep from his swarming vision.

Wait, swarming vision?—Kuroko tried to sit up, but his body felt really sluggish somehow, and there was an itch at the back of his throat that forced him to cough out dry air several times. Then suddenly, his head throbbed as well.

Oh no…—Kuroko had to lay back down quickly because his surrounding started to spin, and was afraid he would lose balance and collapse with his head hitting the floor first if he hadn't, so…

Kuroko couldn't exactly think straight with all the severe poundings inside his skull, but he hazily recognized all the symptoms that he was experiencing at this moment.

I have caught a cold.

Kuroko sighed again, deeper and longer this time because he felt rather pathetic for getting sick like this. It had been years since he caught a cold this bad. He wouldn't be able to go to school let alone attend basketball practice. Damn. And it was in the middle of Winter Cup too. Granted, Seirin had no match today, but still…

Another heavy sigh escaped Kuroko's lips. He clutched at his blanket and pulled it up until it reached under his chin. It couldn't be helped. He couldn't do anything productive with such terrible condition. Forcing himself to go out of bed would further inconvenience his classmates and his teammates later, so he figured he could just sleep in for today to take some needed rest until his cold went away.

Ah, but I have to inform the teacher that I won't be able to attend the class... and Coach Aida for having to skip practice today… oh, and Nigou. I have to feed Nigou…

Kuroko tried to wake up once more, but his sight blurred instantly and his strength left his body quite unexpectedly that he slumped weakly even before he could raise the upper half of his body. He couldn't help groaning slightly as he closed his eyes rather painfully.

It seems getting out of bed is out of options… I hope mom at least tends to Nigou… and checks on me before going to work today… huh?—Kuroko forced his lethargic body to move again so he could position his head back on top of his pillow properly. He lifted his rather shaky (and damn weighty) hand and arm up to rub at his eyelids to at least clear his sight for a moment.

Kuroko blinked once again and glanced at the digital clock at the nightstand. It was still beeping and he barely could reach it up with how heavy his limbs felt at that moment before he grabbed and put it off. He stared at the digital calendar beside the clock-screen.

January 31st… it was Kuroko's birthday, today.

How depressing. Getting sick in my own birthday…—Kuroko let out a suffering sigh for the third time in the past five minutes now. Yes, he was counting.

It sucked, really. Kuroko had hoped that his birthday this year would be special, since Seirin basketball team consisted of a lot of lively caring people. Coach Aida said they celebrated all the members' birthdays. Although, Kuroko hadn't yet informed her when his birthday was because it slipped out of her mind when she asked the other first years about their birthdays….

Alright, I'm at fault too for not reminding her that I was there…

Well, that was fine. It wasn't like Kuroko thought his birthday was essential. He was used to celebrate it alone since his mom and dad were very busy. Moreover, added with his unnoticeable presence most of the times, they tended to forget if he didn't remind them. Yet, Kuroko never tried to because it wasn't that important for him anyway. He treasured the occasional days when his parents were home with him more than only for birthdays or special occasions.

Ah, but Kuroko celebrated his birthday with the GoM in Teikou. At the first and the second years, his birthday was quite vibrant with all the GoM members trying to give him a surprise party, but they didn't know that he already noticed since Kuroko were there when they planned it. They just didn't see him there. In the end Kuroko pretended to be surprised since he didn't want to waste their effort.

However, at the last year, the GoM was facing a lot of things in the team and the school that they completely forgot about it until the day passed. Kuroko didn't feel bitter about it since he himself also forgot before his parents greeted him the next day, apologized for forgetting and then brought him out for a family trip.

Kuroko was pretty much consoled. Even though his relationship with his friends in the GoM was quite rocky at that time, his parents were there with him and spoiling him rotten a day after his birthday. It was quite a happy memory in the last days of his middle school year.

Then, this spring Kuroko enrolled to Seirin. He met all the members of the basketball team, getting to know them one by one… and he met Kagami.

Kagami Taiga. Obnoxious, temperamental, brave, reckless, idiotic most of the times, but he was actually a soft-hearted person deep inside despite his rough exterior. He could be very thoughtful and perceptive when it mattered, and he… illuminated Kuroko's world as his new light.

New light… that wasn't quite accurate. Kagami didn't replace Kuroko's former light. Aomine would always have a place in Kuroko's heart as his light, but he wasn't the right one. It was Kagami… Kagami was the one. He was Kuroko's true light.

Why do I feel the need to think about that right now anyway…?—Kuroko marveled, trying to fight the sleepiness which was creeping up on his consciousness. He felt the need to stay awake, but he wasn't sure why.

Maybe it was because Kuroko didn't want to fall back asleep restlessly when all the issues of why he was alone and sick in his birthday were bound to give him nightmare. Still, the thought of Kagami lightened his gloomy mood slightly.

Kuroko didn't know since when he felt this strong attachment towards his red haired partner. It hadn't even been a year since they knew each other, but from the first day he saw Kagami, the first night they exchanged skills in the street basket court after Kuroko witnessed how passionate Kagami was playing basketball… Kuroko thought that he felt the slight strange attraction.

It was a magical feeling. Somehow, Kuroko had a hunch that he and Kagami could be very compatible as partners both on and off court. After that first training match between the second and the first years… after Kagami slam-dunked the ball Kuroko had passed to the ring in a blind faith that Kagami would get it in… the peculiar feeling just got stronger, plus, added with admiration.

That's why Kuroko decided to make Kagami his light. He suspected that he already fell for Kagami's basketball style. He liked how he played with all of his heart. His determination to never give up until the end of the match… his amazing hard work and more importantly, how much love and dedication he poured towards basketball, made Kagami shine so brightly on court.

Then, Kuroko's suspicion was confirmed after the training match between Seirin and Kaijou. After Kise asked him about why Kuroko disappeared at their last tournament and why it was Kagami that he chose to be his light. At that time, Kuroko hadn't yet figured out the answer, but now… now he was certain.

At that time, Kuroko fell for Kagami's basketball, but after he saw how bright Kagami was when he said he would need Kuroko to defeat the other GoM… yes, Kuroko was sure he had fallen in love with Kagami himself.

It was a sense to give his all to Kagami. A determination to support the tall red head to be number one in Japan, just like his promise; a resolution to stay beside him no matter how hard it would be for Kuroko or for the two of them… He wondered if that was counted as a romantic love.

Kuroko wasn't sure.

It was almost the same feeling Kuroko had for Aomine during their Teikou days, but there was a significant difference. Just a little… Kuroko desired for him to be seen as an equal by Kagami. Of course, he would always support Kagami unconditionally as a shadow to his light, but not just that. In his heart, he wanted that light to shine on him and on him only.

A possessive feeling… something that Kuroko hadn't felt for anyone else, not even for Aomine. Kuroko wondered if such feeling was a side effect of being in love. He needed to find out more, but he knew that this kind of feeling was strongest when it was about Kagami, when Kuroko thought of him only.

"Kuroko, when is your birthday? Let's celebrate it together next time."

Kuroko opened his eyes difficultly and sighed again. "I am sorry, Kagami-kun… it seems I cannot fulfill that promise this year…" He tried to say with rough voice. His throat hurt slightly when he talked, so he ended up only whispering it.

Kuroko had really wanted to celebrate his birthday this year because Kagami had asked him to celebrate it together since August last year, just a few days after the team celebrated Kagami's birthday. It was a promise that he had wanted to keep no matter what, but….

Another sigh escaped him and Kuroko suddenly felt dejected. It was awful and it wasn't because of the headache or the fever or even the nausea. He felt sick because he would let Kagami down.

I just hope he will not be too angry about this…—Kuroko closed his eyes then, hoping and praying that his cold would get better soon so at least he could grab a phone and call Kagami to apologize personally.

However, the exhaustion of being sick got the better of Kuroko and he could feel his consciousness slowly departing as he fell asleep once again in a restive slumber.

~Kagami x Kuroko~

Kagami arrived at the morning practice earlier than all the first years and some second years. There were only coach and captain inside the gym as he opened the door and entered. "Os!"

"Yo, Kagami, you're quite early," Hyuuga greeted with a raised eyebrow, looking mildly surprised.

"Morning, Kagami-kun!" Coach Aida greeted as well, right after she looked upward from the small wooden board she was holding.

"Yeah, somehow I woke up early and couldn't go back to sleep so I thought might as well come here to practice since I didn't have anything to do at home," Kagami shrugged nonchalantly as he put down his bag and stretched his arms up his head and yawned.

"Oh, then you can do some extra laps before the others come," Riko grinned devilishly at him and Kagami groaned. Seriously? She still wanted to make him train harder than Kagami already had done?

Kagami stared disbelievingly at Aida who was now giggling at Kagami's supposedly priceless look and Hyuuga who obviously was trying very hard not to snicker. Kagami immediately realized that the coach just teased him. "Jeez, coach, I almost believed that order, ya know?" he muttered a protest while sighing feebly, a bead of sweat rolling down his cheek.

"What? You actually wanted to do that for real?" Aida's grin turned into an evil smirk and Kagami paled, shaking his head curtly, totally fearing that he might have to do those laps because his mouth was too big for his own good. "Just kidding, Kagami-kun. Sheesh. You can change now and do some stretching on your own then," she said, chuckling again and shaking her head before going back to her board.

Apparently, coach was discussing some strategies with Hyuuga and the captain was listening to her plan while giving some suggestions here and there sporadically. Seeing that his seniors were rather preoccupied, Kagami didn't feel the need to interrupt them with small talks, so he retreated to the locker room to change like the coach told him to.

Today was rather weird to say the least. Kagami kept thinking that he had forgotten something important when he got up this morning. Then he couldn't go back to sleep because the thought bugged him. When he made breakfast, he saw his calendar in the kitchen and wondered why the date was circled in red.

It must have been important if Kagami marked the date, right? But what? Kagami couldn't remember when or why he put the mark on.

During the warming up process after everyone came to practice, Kagami asked Furihata who was stretching beside him. "Hey, what day is it today?"

"Huh?" the brunet turned to face Kagami with a question in his eyes. "Friday?"

"No, I meant the date," Kagami cleared his question.

"January 31st. Why?" Furihata asked further, seeming rather curious.

"Is there any event happening today?" Kagami added his inquiry and Furihata frowned slightly, looking thoughtful as he was thinking, before he shook his head.

"I don't think so. What's wrong?" Furihata answered before throwing another query.

"Hmm… I can't shake this feeling that I have forgotten something today… but I can't remember what. I circled the date, so it must have been necessary," Kagami scratched his head slightly, feeling unsure.

"Maybe you're supposed to do something today?" Furihata seemed to bait any recollection to surface by throwing random question, but Kagami only made a face at that.

"I think I'd know if I had to run errand or something like that. It's not that," Kagami huffed before mulling over it again.

Furihata shrugged. "Then it was probably not that crucial if you forgot, right?"

"Yeah, but then I won't be this bothered if it's insignificant…" Kagami couldn't help arguing half-heartedly because he himself was uncertain.

Though, since the main training started a short time later, Kagami couldn't help suppressing the subject at the back of his mind to concentrate, or coach would have his head if he was caught getting distracted. An unhappy Coach Aida wasn't good for Kagami and the team after all.

Then, it occurred to everyone, including Kagami, when they were about to do another mini game between the first and second years, that the first years was missing one person.

"Huh? Where is Kuroko?" It was Izuki who asked after he counted that there were only four people on the other side of the basketball court.

"Eh?" Then beads of sweat rolled down everyone's respective cheek.

"No way! He's not here?!" Apparently, coach was the most shocked about this revelation. The others were surprised as well, so was Kagami.

"I thought he was just being invisible as usual…" Kagami couldn't help feeling bad for not noticing quicker. He got very used to having Kuroko around that he automatically assumed that the bluenet was there, somewhere near him even though he didn't see him.

"Now that we realized, Nigou isn't here as well," Koganei noted as the gym lacked of dog bark too (which Kagami didn't miss at all).

"Kuroko is skipping practice?" Hyuuga sounded dubious when he asked and Mitobe looked rather worried at this point.

"Maybe he has something to do?" Tsuchida speculated.

"Then he should have at least called or emailed me," Aida huffed, checking her cell phone just in case she didn't hear the device ringing or beeping during practice. "Nope. No call or text message or email. Sheesh, what in the world is he thinking? It's not like him at all," she was fuming now, while placing her hands on her hips.

"Maybe he's too tired or gets sick and too weak to make a call," Kiyoshi piped in and the others looked at him with a varying degrees of shocked look.

"Senpai, please don't jinx Kuroko like that. That's cruel," Fukuda said with a horrified face.

"But he did look paler than usual yesterday, right? He said he wasn't feeling well too after practice," Kawahara reported, looking concerned.

"Hmm, still, he should at least inform the school or a friend if he's going to miss school…" now Aida looked bothered as well, apparently unable to chase out the dreadful possibility Kiyoshi had carelessly spouted out. "Kagami-kun, did he contact you?" she turned to face Kagami afterwards, to Kagami's surprise, but he could only shake his head since Kuroko didn't call him or anything.

"Maybe the others?" Now, Hyuuga turned at the other first years and second years and they shook their heads as well, mimicking Kagami's gesture.

"Huh, that's worrying," Izuki sighed with a frown on his face and all the Seirin basketball members exchanged looks with slight unease in their eyes.

~Kagami x Kuroko~

After the morning practice, Kagami headed to class with a pondering mind. He couldn't stop thinking about the possible reasons of why Kuroko skipped practice, and actually tried hard not to think if something bad had happened to his partner, all the way until he reached the class room and the home room started.

Then the teacher came and checked on the students' attendance. "…and Kuroko Tetsuya is here, right? Alright, it's complete again today," after reading the list out loud for a full three minutes, the homeroom teacher nodded, looking satisfied, before he closed the attendance book.

Kagami's sweat dropped. Great. It wasn't just him that believed Kuroko was there even though they didn't exactly see him. Sheesh, how lucky Kuroko was. He would always be off the hook when he was skipping, this way.

Kagami sighed deeply, partly annoyed and partly disturbed, before raising his hand to gain attention from the teacher (and the class). "Sensei, Kuroko is absent today," he informed and the middle aged male teacher quickly turned to face Kagami with wide eyes.

"Eh?! He's not here?!"

Kagami snorted slightly at the comical look his teacher gave him before he fixed his glasses position and narrowed his eyes at the seat behind Kagami, probably trying to clear his supposedly deteriorated sight and to make sure that Kuroko really wasn't there.

Of course, the seat was empty.

"My, how unusual… I thought he would just pop up in front of my face out of nowhere if I didn't call his name and mark him present," sensei said, rather nervously as he opened the attendance book to give a proper absent mark on Kuroko's name today.

True, Kagami couldn't blame him. He also thought that Kuroko was there this morning after all. That guy was so easy to miss most of the time, but once you got used to it, you would just assume that he would always be there around you even though you didn't see his nose.

"Do you know why he's absent, Kagami-kun?" the teacher then asked the red head and Kagami just shrugged.

"He also skipped basketball practice this morning," then he answered, relatively telling his teacher and classmates that Kagami also didn't know why Kuroko skipped school.

"Well then, I'll check with his parents later. Now, let's begin our lesson."

Kagami tuned out the teacher's voice as the older man was instructing them to open their book at a certain page, before he glanced out of the window. The thought that he had forgotten something important today was back on the center of his mind while the idea of how weird it was for not having Kuroko around him trailing closely behind.

~Kagami x Kuroko~

After the morning lessons ended and lunch time arrived, Kagami's cell phone beeped when he was about to bite down at his super long sized bread.

Kagami fished the phone out from his pocket and checked for a new message, silently hoping it was from Kuroko, but he frowned at the ID that showed up on the screen. He still opened the message, though.

"Kagami-chi! Where's Kuroko-chi?"

A vein of annoyance popped on Kagami's temple as he texted back. "Kise! You have Kuroko's number, you idiot! Text him yourself!" and he huffed as he pushed the send button.

Kagami was about to slip the phone back to his pocket when it vibrated and rang now. Seriously, what the hell?

Kagami picked up the phone with a snippy "What?!"

"Kagami-chi! Is Kuroko-chi there?! I've been calling him since this morning, but he didn't pick up! I texted him too, but he didn't reply any of my texts!"—Kise's voice sounded strained and worried and it piqued Kagami's concern as well.

"Wait, but he skipped school and practice today," Kagami said, frowning.

"Eeeeh? That's bad! What if Kuroko-chi gets sick? His parents are hardly at home because they are busy! What if he's alone and feeling miserable right now? And it's his birthday too!—now Kise sounded apprehensive and whiny as he spoke. In fact, it was rather maddening, but Kagami had to admit that it was a worrisome matter...

Eh?

Then the realization slammed into Kagami's head like a sledge hammer, the moment he heard the blond model's last line. "AAAAAAAAAAAAH!" Therefore, he yelled in shock as a reaction while standing up so abruptly, sending his chair to the ground with a loud clatter and spectacularly startling all the other students inside the cafeteria.

"W-what?! WHAT?! What's wrong, Kagami-chi?!—Apparently, Kagami caused Kise to panic with his sudden earsplitting bellow because Kise cried back on the phone.

T-that's right! Today is…KUROKO'S BIRTHDAY! Holy shit! How the fuck did I forget after months of nightly thinking what to give Kuroko on his birthday?!

Kagami mentally berated himself for being so stupid, ignorant, idiotic, insensitive, and… and every insult he could think of about himself at that moment. He circled the date in red because he didn't want to forget, but since the Winter Cup started, everyone including him was very busy preparing themselves for every match.

Kagami tried to prepare early, even two months before New Years because Kuroko's birthday was in January 31st! However, it completely slipped out of his mind since last week because of the upcoming tests before winter vacation started, and everything else between study and matches that preoccupied his mind.

Aaaa! This is a disaster! And Now Kuroko isn't even at school!

"Ka-Kagami-chi? Hey, Kagami-chi, what happened?! Are you still there? Kagami-chiiii?"—Kise's voice picked up pitch in anxiety.

"S-sorry, Kise! I have to hang up now! I have to find Kuroko!" Kagami immediately hung up the call before Kise could say anything else and he immediately ran like a mad man to his class to pick up his bag, and then bullied a classmate to make excuse for the teacher later that Kagami had to go home early because of family emergency.

~Kagami x Kuroko~

Kuroko was woken up with a series of coughing fit that hurt both his throat and chest and he truly needed to rise up to get some water because he felt very faint, probably from dehydration because he hadn't taken anything since morning.

At least I have to drink something…—Kuroko forced his body to cooperate with his mind. However, it didn't seem that luck was on his side because his mom didn't check on him before she went to work.

And Kuroko indistinctly heard the barks and the whines of Nigou, scratching at his room door. Ah, his mom must have forgotten to give the dog water or something. Ugh—Kuroko groaned inwardly. He had to do something for himself (and for Nigou) or his cold would get worse and it wasn't funny if he had to be hospitalized because of a mere cold, right?

Kuroko tried to stand up gingerly and barely lift his body that weighted like a ton hammer. He tried to walk with shaky legs and despite the pounding headache (it didn't get any better than this morning at all), he traced the wall of his room to the door as leverage since he didn't trust his own strength to support him.

When Kuroko opened the wooden door, Nigou yapped happily and immediately entered the room to attack his master, but Kuroko couldn't exactly respond to its jollity, so the mutt stared up at him while whining again, this time looking concerned.

Kuroko smiled weakly as the dog snuggled his clothed feet for awhile before it stepped back so Kuroko could walk out. At least Nigou seemed fine and healthy. So he must have eaten and drunk. The dog probably wanted Kuroko to take it out for a walk or something.

Just beside Kuroko's room door was a dispenser (thank god he didn't have to walk to the kitchen or he would pass out on the hallway and his house was cold because the center heater was turned off. He really didn't want to freeze to death in his own house), and Kuroko tremblingly took a plastic cup to fill with warm water from it before greedily drinking to ease the parching throat and mouth.

Kuroko took a deep breath before exhaling slowly; relishing in the slight relief the warm water granted him. He still felt dizzy, though, and he'd really like to go back to bed. However, since he had woken up now, he might as well take some medicine before sleeping some more.

But the drugs cabinet was inside the bathroom… and to go to the bathroom, Kuroko had to at least walk a few more meters and he wasn't exactly keen to waste more energy he barely had.

Kuroko let out a weedy, long suffering sigh. He wished someone was there to help him. It didn't have to be his parents. Anyone would do at this point…

Especially if it's Kagami-kun—Kuroko blinked once at the fleeting thought before he could feel his face warming up at that despite his already feverish condition, feeling a tad embarrassed.

It was definitely a moment of weakness that Kuroko unconsciously wanted a company, especially from Kagami. Maybe he should call someone. But he really didn't want to trouble anyone with his problem. But, if his cold got worse, it would probably be very bad for him, and maybe for everyone as well….

Kuroko made up his mind a few second later. Get a grip of yourself, Tetsuya. You can walk a few meters… just a few meters away and you will be fine after drinking the medicine.

Yes, Kuroko Tetsuya didn't like to be dependent. And he hated losing even more. He wouldn't lose to that kind of cold because he could face it himself just fine. He carefully and oh so slowly walked towards the bathroom then, Nigou trailing behind him, still looking worried over its master.

~Kagami x Kuroko~

"Coach!"

Kagami slammed open the door to class 2D, Riko and Hyuuga's class, successfully shocking the still drinking female senior and making her burst out the warm white liquid right onto Hyuuga's face.

"Yuck!" Hyuuga groaned in disgust trying to wipe the milk off his face as Riko coughed repeatedly with tears in her eyes.

"Ah, sorry," the tall red head apparently had a decency to feel rather guilty for causing the older girl to choke on her own drink.

"What the –coughs- hell are you –cough-cough- doing, BAKAGAMI?!" Riko then managed to yell albeit difficultly, at the very rude underclassman.

"I-I'm so sorry, coach! But do you know where Kuroko lives?" Kagami was clearly frantic as he rushed to ask the question.

"Huh?" Riko frowned, totally puzzled.

"I need to go to his house! I made a very important promise to him today and I forgot, but I remembered now so I need to see him. Still, Kuroko didn't pick up his phone no matter how many times I dialed his number! And-and, Kise said that Kuroko might be sick and need help since his parents are very busy and rarely at home and I don't know where his house is and today is actually Kuroko's birthday and—"

"SLOW DOWN!" Hyuuga gave Kagami a hard chop on the head to make the red head pause his torrent speech (after he finished cleaning his face with tissues), since both Riko and Hyuuga couldn't understand a single thing if he spoke that fast without any punctuation.

"Speak more clearly, Kagami-kun," Riko sighed exasperatedly.

"A-anyway…" Kagami grunted slightly in pain as he nursed his abused top. "I need Kuroko's address," Kagami said, after he filled both the upper classmen with the clearer information.

"We also want to know how he is," Riko was thoughtful as she answered. "But none of us know where Kuroko's home is. Why don't you ask Kise-kun if he knew?"

Kagami seemed reluctant. He looked away for a moment, mumbling something intangible before facing his senior again. "I kinda hope we knew more about Kuroko compared to his old team…" he muttered lowly while gritting his teeth, looking like a petulant child.

Riko blinked twice before chuckling and Hyuuga snorted immediately at Kagami's reply, looking amused, obviously thwarting Kagami since his face turned rather pink. "What's so funny?!" he protested boisterously.

"No, well… we understand that feeling quite well, Kagami-kun, but still…" Riko giggled some more.

"Having you say it is quite entertaining," Hyuuga shook his head at that. "But, we haven't known Kuroko for long, and we don't want to pry about his private life, so we never ask too many questions about his family and home before. Since we need to know where he lives now, there's no harm in asking someone who knows, right? Go and ask Kise, or Momoi if you have to. Since she likes Kuroko, she's bound to know where he lives," he continued sensibly.

Kagami looked dumbfounded for a moment before blinking. "Okay," he nodded then before excusing himself from the seniors' class with that awkward and weird Keigo he tried to use every time he talked to them.

"Really, Kagami-kun grows so much closer to Kuroko-kun this past year, huh?" Riko smiled fondly as she resumed her drink.

Hyuuga set a small smile on his face as well, completely agreeing. "So, about Kuroko's birthday… should we ask all the basketball members to come to his house after practice to celebrate together?" he suggested.

"Ah, but if Kuroko-kun is really sick, we'll just bother his rest, right? Let's call Kagami-kun before we go to ask if it's okay to stop by Kuroko-kun's house this evening, just in case. If not, we can always celebrate it tomorrow after Kuroko-kun goes to school again and joins practice," Riko lifted her thumb up at that and Hyuuga just let out a small laugh at her optimistic gesture.

~Kagami x Kuroko~

Kagami grudgingly glanced at his cell phone. He really hated that he had to ask one of the GoM members about Kuroko while Kagami was supposed to be the closest person to his shadow now. Well, since it was an emergency, he couldn't really do anything about it. Kagami just wished that he had been nosier in regard of Kuroko's private matters.

Kagami sighed before dialing Kise's number. Even though he should know that it was in the middle of the class, but surprisingly, Kise picked up the phone. "Ah, Kagami-chi! How mean! You hung up on me earlier!"

Kise immediately cried noisily the moment the line was connected. Kagami had to bring the device away from his ear to avoid damage that shrill voice would surely cause to his hearing. "Chill! I just want to go to Kuroko's house as soon as possible, Kise! Shut up already," he huffed.

"So, are you at Kuroko-chi's house now?"—Kise sounded calmer few seconds later, although Kagami could still hear some sniffles in between the blonde's words. It honestly increased his irritation level, but he refrained himself from growling in favor to ask Kise a question.

"Not yet. But I'm on the way. I just need to know where the heck Kuroko's house is before I can stop by there, so… do you know where he lives?" Kagami asked grumpily.

…

…

There was a long pause in the phone before- "WHAT?! Kagami-chi, you don't know where Kuroko-chi's house is?!"—yes, Kise squawked piercingly and unhelpfully, his tone obviously accusing, and Kagami could almost picture his stupid face gaping in disbelief.

"Would you STOP shouting in my ear?!" Kagami roared back, totally aggravated this time. "Well, sorry if I don't know where he lives! You know how reserved he is, right? I just don't want to be pushy by asking too many personal questions about him, ya know!"

"Even so, aren't you currently his closest person? He has ever stayed over at your house. How come you don't know where he lives?"—Kise seemed to be wound up, asking with such patronizing tone that Kagami considered just hanging up again because he really didn't have time for a lecture right now, more so from Kise of all people.

"You're so noisy, Kise! Can you just tell me where he lives?! Did you know it or not?!" Kagami was losing patience, and he really would hang up and call Momoi if Kise didn't shut up bitching about pointless things and started to tell him what Kagami wanted to know.

"Unfortunately, I don't."—Kise answered sulkily and Kagami almost tripped on his own foot at that answer.

"The HELL!?" Kagami yelled at Kise, totally incensed. Did Kise want to make fun of him or what?!

"Kuroko-chi's personal information is guarded pretty tightly. Unless Kuroko-chi really-really trusts the person, he won't tell a soul where he lives. We, the GoM, tried to follow him home a few times out of curiosity, you know… but we always ended up distracted on the way and lost him before we could see his house,"—Kise explained, sounding pretty crestfallen himself. Kagami imagined that he was pouting with teary eyes at this point. "That's why; as far as I know, the only GoM that knows where Kuroko-chi lives is just… Akashi-chi."

Kagami winced at the mention of the psychotic ex-GoM captain's name. "You're kidding me, right?"

"Nope. Akashi-chi is the only GoM who had ever set foot inside Kuroko-chi's house. As for the others… well, Kuroko-chi occasionally stopped by our houses and stayed over a few times,"—Kise sounded attentive for a moment before adding, "Ah, but Kuroko-chi stayed over at Aomine-chi's house most of those times. Maybe he at least knows a thing or two."

I don't want to ask Aomine of all people! But maybe he's better than having to beg for Kuroko's address from that lunatic red head… AAARGH! Both are so UNPLEASANT!

"Kagami-chi? Earth to Kagami-chi! Are you still alive there?"—Kise's high-pitched voice snapped Kagami's back from his self-lamenting.

"Ah, jeez…! Whatever! Give me Akashi's number! I'm going to call him!" Kagami decided. If both choices were distasteful no matter what, why didn't he choose the most challenging one? It was bound to be out of the ordinary anyway.

"Okay, I'll text you his number. Ah, you might want to try to ask nicely since Akashi-chi is very anal about proper greeting and everything that goes with it,"—Kise warned.

Who the hell does he think he is?!—Kagami couldn't help seething as he mumbled an 'okay' through his gritted teeth.

…

A text message and some fumbling of his cell-phone later, Kagami was ready to phone Akashi's number. He took a deep breath before pushed the call-button and then waited for the line to connect.

It didn't take long for Akashi to answer it because it was only the second dial-tone before his voice emerged from the device. "Akashi Seijuurou."

Ugh, his voice sounds cold as always.

"Hello, it's Kagami Taiga," Kagami paused and there was a side conversation from the other line, plus a sound of metal hitting something before Akashi spoke.

"Where did you get my number?"

Kagami almost froze as he felt a chill just from hearing it. Even though the tone was calm, there was something scary and sinister in his voice that Kagami couldn't explain. It was honestly creepy.

"Kise," Kagami didn't need to lie about that and judging from the long pause in their conversation, Kagami could imagine that Akashi was planning something horrid to punish the blond for giving out his number without permission.

"Look, I don't care if you want to murder Kise later, but I need your help right now," Kagami said again, not giving Akashi any time to mule over his psychotic ideas. Although it was very painful for Kagami to speak humbly, it was for Kuroko, so he would relent.

"What makes you think I will help you willingly?"—Akashi asked sharply, obviously not wanting to entertain Kagami at all. "I'm in the middle of a lesson. I'll hang up."

"Wait! This is about Kuroko!" Kagami shouted rather frenetically in order to stop Akashi from hanging up.

There was another pregnant silence before Akashi spoke again. "Talk."

Mentioning Kuroko's name is really handy sometimes, huh…?—Kagami almost felt bad that he was sort of using Kuroko's name to get what he wanted, but since it concerned Kuroko himself, he didn't dwell on it for long.

Well, all the GoM members seemed to be obsessed with Kuroko to some degrees. That much, Kagami noticed.

"I need Kuroko's home address. He seems to be sick at this moment, and he was alone at home, I think. Everyone tried to call him already, but he didn't answer. I got worried and wanted to check on him. Besides, today is-,"

"Tetsuya's birthday, I know."—Akashi seemed to stress his last word.

Well, that went well. Akashi was apparently thoughtful enough, despite his initial uncaring tone. Kagami heard hummed sound from the earpiece as the other red head was thinking.

"Alright, you might want to note it down. Get a paper, I'll illustrate the map."—Akashi spoke again and Kagami almost couldn't believe that he would even get a map. Lucky him!

"Thanks a lot, Akashi." Kagami grinned gratefully now.

~Kagami x Kuroko~

A few pointers from Akashi, starting from the train Kagami should take from the nearest station until the last turn he had to pass to get to Kuroko's house later, finally Kagami stood in front of an ordinary looking house. Kagami had thought that Kuroko's house would be as mysterious looking as the owner, but he was rather disappointed that it actually wasn't.

Kuroko's home was relatively normal in that suburban area. The building was made from bricks, not too big and not too small. A warm looking garden was at the front yard, even though there was no flower blooming since it was winter. Some small trees filled the side of the walls that separated the house from the neighbor's and there was a snow-covered path from the low gate that brought Kagami straight to the house terrace.

Kagami looked at the house. There was no one around since at this time, people were at work while the kids and teens were at school. He took a deep breath before he pushed the metal gate. It was surprisingly easy to open despite the piling snow. It wasn't even locked. How careless.

Kagami entered the property and walked towards the terrace slowly. Arriving at the front door, Kagami pushed the bell. No one answered even after a minute and Kagami thought that there was probably no body at home, but his worry that Kuroko was hopelessly sick inside his house, alone, made Kagami hesitant to just leave without proper checking.

"What to do now…? I'm already here, but if I can't get in, there's no point…"

"Ah, but Kuroko-chi stayed over at Aomine-chi's house most of those times. Maybe he at least knows a thing or two."

Kagami's mood darkened slightly as he remembered his conversation with Kise at the phone. Aomine might know a thing or two, huh? But Kagami reaaaaaally didn't want to ask for Aomine's help. Still, if it could help Kuroko then…

Ck. Sometimes I don't know why I'm so devoted to do things for Kuroko—Kagami grumbled before sighing in defeat. Right, Kagami wondered why, but the thought of letting Kuroko down terrified him. He had felt something similar before… like when it was with Himuro, but this was even worse than that time.

With Tatsuya, I hoped for reconciliation, but this… I don't even want to think if I have a fall out with Kuroko. Imagining that guy making a painful expression like after Touou kicked our ass last summer already makes me sick…! I will never repeat the same mistake. I will never do something that cause Kuroko's grief like what Aomine had done.

To be frank, Kagami still resented Aomine for that. Even though he didn't see the fall out with his own eyes, he just knew that the dark skinned ace had been a special person for Kuroko by looking at his shadow's dedication to make Aomine smile again. He didn't know if Kuroko still had that feeling for Aomine, but Kagami was quite sure that the bluenet was with him now.

Well, Kagami wasn't exactly sure if it was an exclusive relationship, but they did sleep together that one time*. Kuroko said it was his present for Kagami's birthday and nothing major actually happened after that. The bluenet never brought that thing up in conversation and Kagami wasn't exactly active in wanting to figure that out since their minds were focused on training and studying and some more training for Winter Cup.

Anyway! Now is not the time to give myself a headache with something I don't understand. Kuroko comes first!—Kagami shook his head and made up his mind before he dialed Aomine's number.

The call went into voice mail at the first try, but Kagami didn't give up and dialed a second time. It was picked up at the third ring this time. "What?"

Aomine sounded lazy as he spoke. Kagami thought the guy was probably skipping class and lazing around somewhere in the school vicinity right then. "Aomine," he greeted.

"Kagami?"—now Aomine sounded slightly taken aback, "Well, well, what a rare occurrence. What did I do to earn this unexpected call even before school ends, huh?"

"Tell me about it," Kagami rolled his eyes at the pathetic attempt to jeer. "Look, I was in front of Kuroko's house right now," he could hear a scoff from the phone, but ignored it even though it goaded him very much. "I think Kuroko is sick at home since he skipped school and basketball practice today, and he didn't answer his phone. I'm worried because Kise said Kuroko's parents were rarely at home, so I came to visit, but… I can't come in since no one answers the door."

"Heeh, surprisingly, you are so concerned about Tetsu. Are you this thoughtful about your other friends or it's just for Tetsu?"—Aomine's tone was suggesting something and Kagami didn't like the allegation at all because it was as if Aomine was mocking Kagami's feeling.

"Isn't it clear? Of course because it's Kuroko," Kagami didn't even want to go with denial anymore because what he felt for Kuroko was indeed real, and he would throw that at Aomine's face if he had to because Kuroko had moved on and was his now, instead of Aomine's.

Wow, that's a really possessive thought. I can't really call myself and Kuroko best friends anymore after realizing this, can I?—Kagami just got an epiphany that indeed, he wanted Kuroko as a special someone for him.

There was a brief silence on the phone before Aomine scorned. "What a simpleton,"—he almost sounded pitying but it just fueled Kagami's annoyance even more.

"Shut up!" Kagami raised his voice, but not much because he didn't want to make a scene in front of Kuroko's house. "I don't want to be told that by someone like you, Ahomine! Anyway, do you know how to enter Kuroko's house?"

There was a terse pause before- "What in the HELL makes you think I know something like that? I don't have a 'breaking and entering' hobby, asshole! Besides, I don't even know where Tetsu lives! Did your head break or what?"—Aomine groused resentfully, probably a little jealous because Kagami was given a chance to actually see Kuroko's house while he wasn't.

Ahem, let's not mention that I got help from Akashi, then.

Kagami furrowed his brow at the way Aomine insulted him, but the Touou's ace got a point about the breaking and entering thing. Kagami sighed before explaining some more. "No, I don't mean it like that. Not picking locks or anything illegal, stupid. I meant… like when people intentionally keep an emergency key outside his house in case they lose it on the way and can't enter their own home. Kuroko seems to be the type to take precaution like that, right? Do you have any idea where he could have hidden the key?"

There was another pause, longer this time. Apparently, Aomine agreed to help Kagami albeit rather unwillingly. He seemed to consider it in his silence anyway. "Fine," Kagami straightened his back as he heard Aomine's grunt, "He had ever mentioned that his mother was quite clumsy, so they had to keep a key outside in case she lost it. Uh… try something that's strange, or not supposed to be there."

Kagami looked around, but he didn't find anything odd on the terrace. "Can you be more specific about it?"

"I don't know what it is, Bakagami. He didn't tell me to that extent, you idiot. Just look around. Maybe there is a fake plant or maneki-neko or something,"—Aomine growled then, sounding irritated.

What does he think Kuroko's house is? Midorima's closet?—Kagami couldn't help musing ridiculously. Did he seriously say maneki-neko? Is that guy's head alright?

Still, Kagami only muttered grudgingly as he looked around once more. Then, his eyes came across a big rock.

Okay, there was nothing strange about a big rock by itself. It was the place that didn't cut out, since it was placed on the porch, near an outside table and two bamboo chairs. He approached the rock and then squatted to pick it up with both hands as he supported his cell-phone by sandwiching it between the right side of his head and shoulder.

Kagami found a silver colored house-key and "Bingo," he couldn't help exclaiming gladly as he put down the rock and took the key while once again standing up. His other hand immediately held the cell phone again while he stared at the key.

"Found it?"—came Aomine's drawl from the earpiece.

"Yep. Thanks for the help. Gotta go now," Kagami was about to hang up when Aomine spoke again.

"Say hello to Tetsu from me. Ah… and Satsuki said 'Happy birthday, Tetsu-kun!'"

Kagami snorted and erupted in a strangled laugh as he heard Aomine's attempt in mimicking Momoi's voice, which failed splendidly, making him sound very odd and funny and totally preposterous.

"You sound like a cat getting choked," Kagami commented.

"Shut up." And that was the end of the conversation because Aomine immediately hung up right after. The bastard just wanted to have the last line, huh?

Well, at least he remembered Kuroko's birthday. He probably wanted to say that by himself, but he was embarrassed about it—Kagami shook his head at Aomine's antics. What a dishonest guy.

Kagami put back his cell phone inside his pants pocket before he went back to the door and immediately tried the key. As predicted, it worked. Kagami entered the house quietly while greeting. "Excuse me!"

As expected, no one answered the greeting. "Hello! Anybody here? Kuroko?" Kagami called again, louder this time. He paused to hear any answer, but nothing.

Well, there was no sound in the house until Kagami heard a thumping sound, followed by some clatters and a series of yaps of a dog. Kagami jumped at the last sound and was about to get the hell out of the house (because a dog's barks were his cue to run away), before he remembered that it was probably Nigou. Moreover, judging from the loudness of the barks, the mutt seemed to be panicking.

Kagami was alerted at that thought and immediately ran to the source of the voice while saying "Sorry for intruding!", not even caring that the door was still open. He ran past the living room to a corridor that led him straight into Nigou who was barking facing an opened door. Nigou seemed to notice his arrival at once and ran to him before yapping at him loudly.

Kagami flinched and started to shiver as the trauma resurfaced. He was still very wary of the dog despite Kuroko's stupid attempt to get him used to the puppy, but his worry for Kuroko won out as Kagami jumped over the dog's body to look at the opened door.

It was a bathroom, but Kagami's eyes were immediately zeroed on the teal haired boy… lying motionlessly on the cold tile floor inside.

That's…

"KUROKO!"

End of Only for You Part 1

Tbc…

Additional Note:

*That time here refers to that time in 'A Special Present' fic, Kagami's birthday present from me (Kuroko). lol

A/N: Alright, I'll stop here since the word-count is getting ridiculously large. This was supposed to be a one-shot, damn it! Why do their conversations and my need to explain everything always ruin the intention? *sighs* Well, since this is not over yet, and since I actually started writing it for Kuroko's birthday, I'll post the second half of the story in Kuroko's birthday (31/1). Now, I need to update my other fic before a month of hell started… right after the next two weeks, actually.

On the side note, I didn't even think that this would become an early birthday present… anyway, HAPPY BIRTHDAY KUROKO TETSUYA~! XD See you guys at the next part! (Hope I can finish the pic as well by that time for cover story).