When Kuroko had called people up and suggested a day at the beach, no one had argued much. They had all just returned from various basketball and fitness camps and everyone was feeling the need for friends, fun, and relaxation. He had even convinced Kagami to put the lunch baskets together, earning a couple snide remarks from Aomine about the red-head making a 'wonderful wife'. Kagami had blushed and growled, but the argument was quickly dispelled by Akashi.

"I know a lovely ring shop if you're interested, Daiki."

"Gah, what the hell, Akashi?!" Aomine's dusky skin was flushed as he glared at his ex-captain.

"Well, that certainly sounded like a proposal to the rest of us… and you have put on considerable weight since you and Taiga started… practicing together."

Everyone laughed as Aomine spluttered and Kagami blushed brighter. However… Akashi did get a larger portion than everyone else, making his heterochromatic eyes sparkle with amusement.

After lunch was a mini-volleyball tournament that Satsuki and Riko had easily dominated – the guys all blamed it on Aomine's distraction with bikini covered chests, but the girls had picked their way through the guys and chosen the best stats for their team beforehand.

"Aaah, not fair, Momoicchi! You and Rikocchi cheated!"

"How exactly did we cheat, Kise? We all got to pick our own teams." Momoi gave him a sweet smile that Riko mimicked behind her.

The blonde pouted. "You got all the good players before we even decided to play – ssu! You totally used your information gathering unfairly, both of you!"

A cold presence behind him was the only warning he got before Kasamatsu punched him in the back of the head. Hyuuga stood behind the slightly shorter Kaijo captain, his clutch time grin on his face. "I hope you're not calling us cheaters, you blonde dipshit!" Kasamatsu punched him again for good measure as Kise scrambled backwards.

A volleyball flew across the sand and landed directly in the black-haired captain's chest, slamming him back into Hyuuga. "If you hit Kise-kun again, Kasamatsu-kun… I will become irate." The blue-haired shadow stepped up behind Kise, his eyes blank and staring directly at Kasamatsu.

"Aww, Kurokocchi protected me!" Kise's eyes shone and he tackled the smaller boy, hugging him tightly.

"Kise-kun, that hurts. Get off me, please."

"B-but… Kurokocchi…"

Kagami had stopped that argument, by offering to teach Aomine and Kise to surf. They were making use of the smaller waves closer to shore to learn their balance, laughing and swearing as they figured out the dubious grace of the boards he'd brought for them. The redhead swam out farther with his bright yellow and black board, finally leaving the shouting laughter of his friends behind and enjoying the gentle peace of the ocean before getting himself ready for the next wave. He enjoyed the challenge of swimming against the powerful waves and then riding them back in.

A scream of panic hit his ears and he spun in the water, trying to pinpoint where it came from. Farther out than even he had ventured; a flash of pink ruffles was quickly sinking below the surface. Abandoning his board, he dove into the water and cut through the surf cleanly to get to the little girl the ruffled swimsuit belonged to. He grabbed her and surfaced, gasping for air and glad to hear her sudden gasp and soft cry as well. A frantic man who looked to be her father was treading water about 25 feet away, and Kagami got his attention with a loud, 'OI!' He swam over, tears in his eyes as he took the little girl and offered the redhead a quick word of thanks before taking the girl back to shore.

As he turned to swim back to his group, Kagami felt something tug sharply at his ankle and swore just before being drug back under the water. He barely had time to catch a quick breath, and his strong legs weren't helping him in the least; he had been rolled and tumbled and wasn't even sure which way was up. The ironic thought that he'd played hero only to become a victim ran through his mind as blackness started eating away at what little vision he had. One last desperate kick and he felt his hand break the surface before sliding back under as the darkness overtook him.

Kuroko was standing on the shore, a towel and book abandoned as he shaded his eyes and looked out towards the water. As Aomine and Kise rolled back onto the sand, he looked over at him, his large eyes full of concern.

"A-aomine-kun, Kise-kun… Have you seen Kagami-kun recently?"

"He was riding larger waves a bit further out, Kurokocchi, why?"

"No… have you seen him recently?" Kuroko looked back towards the water, biting his lip. "He hasn't been back in a bit and I don't see him at all anymore."

"Bakagami's a good swimmer, Tetsu, I don't think you need to worry." But Aomine was scanning the horizon too, thinking the shock of red hair and the dark-colored surfboard wouldn't be hard to miss.

"Aominecchi! Isn't that his board?" Kise was pointing towards a section of shallows where Kagami's board was floating on its own, apparently caught on some rocks.

"Kagami-kun…"

Aomine was already wading back out. "I'll go find him. Kise, get that board and then you two let the others know what's going on… get Midorima and Murasakibara out here looking too!" That idiot would NOT have just let his board float away… where the hell was he? Aomine dove into the waves, not waiting for their acquiescence. That damned Bakagami…

Kise quickly complied, grabbing the board from the rocks as Kuroko ran up the beach. It didn't take long for everyone to surround him, his urgency apparent for once. Not only Midorima and Murasakibara, but Hyuuga, Takao, and Himuro ran for the water, diving in and separating as Momoi shouted to watch for stray currents. Riko and Izuki quickly threw towels just back from the waves – somehow, they all knew that Kagami wasn't coming out of the water on his own power. Akashi put an arm around Kuroko, silent and comforting as they stared out at the multi-colored heads and listened to the frantic yells of Kagami's name.

"Kagami! BAKAGAMI! Where the fuck are you!?" Aomine dove again after catching his breath, shooting back and forth. Red red red… no other color mattered at the moment; he had to find that shock of red hair. A glint of silver caught his attention and drew his eye. THERE! Almost hidden in the shadows, Kagami was slowly sinking. Aomine dove forward and grabbed his arm, dragging them both to the surface with a violent gasp. He wrapped his arm around the thick chest and started swimming backwards towards the shore. The bastard wasn't breathing… "C'mon, Bakagami… we're almost there… don't do this now…"

Turning his head, he saw how close he was and started yelling. "I've got him! Get your asses in! I've got him!"

Word passed among the other searchers and hands reached out to grab both of them and drag them away from the water. Aomine and Kagami were settled on towels and Akashi quickly took over, barking out orders.

"Shintarou, Kazunari, he's not breathing. Tetsuya, Ryouta, help Daiki. Everyone else, get back."

Midorima and Takao dropped to either side of the Seirin player. Long, bandaged fingers tilted his head back and Takao nodded, pressing against his stomach to try and expel the water from his lungs. When that failed to produce a breath, Midorima leaned forward, plugging his nose and forcing air into him with his own breath. Sitting back up, he watched in approval as Takao pushed against his chest again in quick motions.

Aomine leaned against Kise's shoulder, shaking with fatigue. He didn't even notice that he was muttering under his breath, a soft mantra of 'breathe, dammit… you stupid moron, breathe….' as Kuroko rubbed his back.

Himuro buried his face against Murasakibara's chest, unable to watch as the purple-haired giant's arms wrapped around him. He could hear the worried mutterings around them and couldn't stand the sight of his brother against the ground.

A shout of relief went up as Kagami gasped. Midorima dove slightly to the side, leaning into Takao as the redhead spewed water and bile onto the sand. He continued to gasp loudly, shaking as he was laid back against the towel. "Wh-what…" He looked around, confusion and then understanding dawning on his face, just before Aomine dove for him.

"You damned stupid Bakagami, what the fuck were you thinking?!" The dusky teen's sharp words were softened by gentle hands running over Kagami's shoulders and sides, checking for injuries they hadn't seen before. The group moved away slightly, all pretending not to see the over-brightness of Aomine's eyes as he looked down at the redhead.

"Oi, calm the hell down…" Kagami's voice was rough from coughing and he slowly sat up, trying to fill his lungs again. "It couldn't be helped… There was a little girl out there." He wasn't going to say anything, but the look in Aomine's eyes needed to be soothed away. He leaned forward, resting his head on a broad shoulder. He didn't even notice that he was shaking until tanned arms wrapped around him.

"Idiot… you scared me."

The soft whisper was meant only for his ears and he nodded in acknowledgement, closing his red eyes with a tremulous sigh. "Yeah… scared me too. Sorry."

The group left them like that for a few minutes before Kise's soft cough brought them back to reality.

"Kagami-kun… if you do that again, I will be vexed with you." Kuroko's flat voice made Kagami look up from Aomine's embrace, blushing slightly.

"Oi, Kuroko… it's not like I did it on purpose." But he nodded slightly, knowing that his best friend was more worried than actually angry.

"Kagamicchi!" Kise whined and draped himself across both power forwards, mock-sobbing into his shoulder. "You scared us, you oaf! No more swimming for you! Maybe ever."

"Kise, get the fuck off!" Aomine tried to shove him away, but suddenly Momoi and Himuro were there, hugging them as well. Murasakibara, never one to pass up a chance to cuddle, engulfed them in his large arms and then everyone was laughing and falling over and swearing at each other.

Takao laced his fingers with Midorima, watching the green-haired shooter's lips arch upwards in a slight smile. "You did good, Shin-chan."

"Idiot." It came out fonder than he intended as he looked down at him. "You were also… satisfactory in performing your duties. I was… impressed." A blush spread across his cheeks and he looked away as Takao's face lit up at the compliment.

Akashi cleared his throat from the sidelines, a small smile playing on his lips. "I believe we've had enough beach time, Tetsuya. And since it WAS Taiga who caused such drama… I believe he should treat us all to dessert."

"Oi, Akashi, you bastard! What're you yapping about now!?" Kagami's voice was still rough, but he managed to make himself heard as the dogpile moved away from him.

"I believe you and Atsushi can come up with a suitable arrangement for dessert." Akashi's grin widened.

"You… I… ugh, whatever." Kagami started to throw his hands up, then sighed and leaned into Aomine's warmth. "My place is bigger… we'll make something there." He glared at Akashi, though there was no heat behind the gaze. "After I shower."

AN: I'm so sorry for this garbage. lol I don't know what possessed me... but the idea of Kagami needing to be saved and everyone being all worried and Aomine being sweet... I couldn't resist it. *falls over*