Disclaimer: I can't be bothered to write any more disclaimers, haha. But for the last time I don't own KnB.. keep that in mind, kay :L

-Blackmail-
A Kuroko No Basket Fan fiction
Written by anniee-chan

An invisible red string connects those who are destined to meet,
regardless of time, place, or circumstance.
The string may stretch or tangle,
but it will never break

-Chapter Four-

There was a thunderous cheer that erupted from the gym, but for two certain people, the outside world was silenced as something inside them started to shift, and slowly make itself noticed as a strange feeling near their hearts.

Piercing blue eyes had tried to mask the fear away, staring defiantly into the red, merciless ones. The teal haired girl found herself trapped, as the dominant other refused to move. The longer she stared in the red-heads ruby eyes, the more she could sense that dreaded feeling. Emotions that were buried in the deepest of her soul were starting to ignite, like the cold fire in his eyes. Something was happening, but to the bluenette, it had felt like everything wrong.

She tore away and broke the eye contact, staring at the floor, as the sounds of the cheers from the gym started pouring in the second her eyes left his. Why was he so close to her in the first place? How did she let him get this far?

"Get away from me." Kuroko whispered, mustering all the force into those words. She knew what had happened to herself, and the last thing she wanted was contact with strangers, with relatives, with anyone. Her one intention was to isolate herself with other people, having no contact meant nothing would happen. Nothing at all.

It didn't matter who she hurt in the process. It didn't matter whether the person had ill intentions talking to her, or they were genuinely concerned. She pushed them all away, without a second thought, without caring how they felt after she used whatever methods to get them to leave her alone- permanently.

She attempted to shove him, but a hand come out and tightly grasped her slim, pale wrist.

"No."

It was a one-syllable word, yet it was filled with so much power and authority, it made Kuroko flinch. Images filled her head, blanking out the male in front of her. Her waking up in a hospital, only to find out that her parents had gone on a supposed 'holiday' from the nurses. The throbbing pain in her body kept her from noticing the regretful expressions on the nurses faces. When Kuroko was discharged, she expected to be greeted home, meet her parents and shake off that nightmare she had. It would be alright, everything would be fine again when she embraced herself in the comfort of her parents.

But instead she found an empty shell that used to be called 'home.' All the lights in the mansion was closed, curtains drawn, large doors tightly locked. Her parents never returned, she had found out they had died- driving a car on their way to the hospital before getting involved in an accident. The thought that the nurses in the hospital had lied to her didn't even cross her mind. As soon as she was told the real news, it felt as if something had snapped within herself. They had died, and she had killed them. Kuroko's mother, the loving, gentle, ever-so-supportive figure that had promised to be always there for her. They had pinky promised when it was young Kuroko's seventh birthday, just them two lying on a field of green grass, with the blue sky and fluffy clouds overhead. Her mother had said she would be with her forever.

It was a lie.

She was gone. Kuroko tried to hold on to her warm smile, but it was disappearing from her memory, like wisps of fog evaporating, leaving only blankness behind. She had clutched her frantically beating heart, placing her hand over the left side of her chest as the last trace of warmth from her mother only left the child a bitter longingness.

Her father was the humorous and smart man that had taught Kuroko all the things she was supposed to do in life. He had given her challenges, like building a bridge out of two pieces of paper, or trying to drop a raw egg from a certain height without it cracking. There were lessons on school subjects, where he would answer all the questions she didn't understand. When Kuroko encountered problems with her friends, she would go to her father, who would carefully explain why her friends acted like that, and what faults she had. He had taught her gentleness, sympathy, understanding, forgiveness, the feelings of generosity and the meaning of sacrifice.

But he never taught her how she would cope once they both left her.

The emptiness in her heart filled her up again. It was ironic. Sometimes the only feeling she felt was a hollowness within herself. A small choke came out as she blinked away unneeded tears that slid down her alabaster cheeks and shattered on the ground.

A commanding voice had then broken her out of the chains that were holding her prisoner of her past memories.

"Follow me." He said, a rare gentleness displayed in his voice.

And like a lost sheep, Kuroko willingly tread behind his footsteps. She had no reason to trust him. She had no reason to trust anyone again. As the school grounds started to blur away and turn into unfamiliar ground, she couldn't help but think once again of taking her own life.

It had first been the unbearable pain in her heart, the dreaded feeling in her guts that had surrounded her. Everything had seemed to remind the bluenette of her parents, there was a trace of them everywhere. She was reminded of her parents In the small restaurant they always liked to dine in, in issues of her mothers favourite magazine, or a random stranger on the road that just happened to look like her father from behind- everywhere she looked, she was pained with the burden of the past. There was denial, too. Sometimes Kuroko would pretend that her parents were still there with her, she would imagine having dinner not by herself, facing into the darkness of her small apartment, but rather with her parents again, their laughter and joy echoing and providing comfort. The tears came rather easily when the tugging and dull pains in her body started again. She was not only bearing the mental burden of the loss, but her body was reacting physically as well. The longing emptiness, the frustration and regret, a pain that was like knives stabbing every part of her body when she wanted her parents with her so badly that she wished she could give up on everything.

Kuroko wanted to scream. How could memories of things from the past which had brought her so much happiness become something that caused her this agonizing pain? She was so alone, spiralling into a whirl of darkness that was hidden behind a mask of indifference. There was no one to help her because she let no one in, the despair and desperation slowly devouring her from the inside.

Kuroko had considered ending her life. It would be quick, it would be painless. It would free her from everything she had to endure. She didn't want to live a life without her parents in it, she didn't want a life where everything that she saw sparked overwhelming memories that sent her on the verge of tears because what she had before- she had no more. She didn't need to be reminded of that. When everything in one's life disappeared, did they have a reason to live anymore?

Yet, she could not take away her own life. Her parents were on their way to visit her in the hospital, when the accident happened. Her parents had wanted to make sure she was alright.

How could she give up the last thing her parents were trying to protect?

How could she forfeit her life when it costed theirs?

Kuroko couldn't live with half her soul missing. But she couldn't bring herself to end it all.

She was torn. She faced two decisions, but she couldn't bring herself to do either.

For her, it was long since she had become an empty shell, opening her eyes only to endure the seconds that ticked away, repeating the same things she did every day.

But then he appeared. His intrusion into her life had started to shed light on the darkening world before her eyes. She didn't need to closely inspect the red-haired boy at all to know at once it was him.

She knew. It took less than a glance for him to evoke the supressed emotions within her that had kept her qualified as a human.

Now she was walking behind him. She had to push him away before it was too late.

The figure in front of her stopped walking abruptly, and Kuroko looked up. It felt like she couldn't have been walking for more than five, maybe ten minutes. However, the loud, noises of civilisation- cars on the roads, pancakes sizzling and waiting to be flipped, people chatting, talking, laughing- it all suggested they had walked quite a while. They had stopped in front of a small restaurant that had a small glass door with a sign claiming the shop was in service. The red-head pushed the door open with this left hand, as the air-conditioning inside blasted full force at the bluenette.

"Welcome to Keiji's Noodle Shop!" A chirpy, young waitress greeted. She had auburn hair tied into pigtails, as she escorted the two to a table near the window. Her eyes had flashed curiosity for a second, no doubt wondering what two high schoolers were doing during school hours, but nonetheless bit her tongue and said nothing.

"A couple, yes?" She asked, as she clicked a black pen in her hands while holding out a notepad expectantly. After receiving no response from either of the two, the waitress quickly scribbled down something that she deemed suitable.

"I'll get you the newest dish in the couple's food section. Our chef only made it up this morning, so you'll be the very first couple to try it!" The waitress announced, her voice boasting the new dish, as she excitedly went to the kitchen at the back of the restaurant and handed a chef the order.

As soon as the waitress had left, Kuroko shuffled uncomfortably in her chair. They were seated at a small, square table and Akashi was sitting directly opposite her. It was such a strange feeling, having someone to actually sit within such close proximity, sharing your presence and acknowledging it.

A small, excited emotion caused an erratic pulse in her heart at this new experience, but it was quickly forced away and ignored. Her expectations were starting to get too wild if she was starting to enjoy this.

I want nothing to do with other people. The bluenette thought inside, trying to convince herself. She had no problem doing this before, so why was she struggling when it came to him?

Akashi remained calm, yet his eyes were observing every action of this girl. She had intrigued him. He knew that everyone had problems in their life, but this girl seemed desperate- broken, far beyond what she should be experiencing at her age. The girls at their school were always talking and giggling about boys, smiling, laughing.

She was the complete opposite.

And that was what kept his interest in her. Her teal eyes would convey such a mixture of emotions whenever sparkling tears were threatening to pour downwards, it produced something within him. He would have to figure out what the sick feeling in his lower abdomen is, as it only happened when he was with her. This girl- Kuroko Tetsune, would be a useful something to pass the time. His priorities were straight, the basketball winter cup would further prove himself and his abilities. Then he would be taking over Akashi Corporation as heir, slowly devouring other, weaker companies later in the future. This girl would be something he kept around, until he figured out what made her tick, then he would discard her away, when she no longer interested him anymore and would only prove to be a hindrance to his future plans.

But, although he was unwilling to admit, there was also something else, a nagging feeling that he just couldn't let go. A sense that he had met this girl from somewhere, but no matter how he tried, he couldn't quite pin it down from where he had seen her.

For the record, that was extremely odd. Once Akashi saw a persons face once, he would be able to recall it. But there was nothing. Not even a trace of a flashback that would've proved their meeting in the past. His phenomenal memory was something that everyone knew. His father had discovered his son's extraordinary quality as he excelled at memorising and analysing things at a young age. Once he was taken to specialists, all they did was watch in amazement as the future heir of Akashi Corporation exceeded their expectations in strategic plans and his memory had never failed him in any sort of tests he was given.

"Here you go." The waitress said, appearing at the table and putting down a golden platter with red noodles. "The chef named this dish The Red string of Fate. It's a couple dish because it's one long, red noodle, so in the end, after starting at the ends, the couple would kiss."

The bluenette stayed still, her blue eyes reflecting the red colour from the noodles. She had requested chopsticks instead of a fork, and so the waitress had placed it in front of her.

Red seems to compliment the colour of her eyes. Akashi commented internally, before he dismissed that irrelevant thought from his mind.

He glanced up, finding the waitress looking at him, before she frantically tried to pretend she was interested at the blank wall behind him and an obvious blush decorated her face.

"I'll leave you two to it, then." The waitress giggled awkwardly, before walking away hurriedly towards the counter.

When they were left to each other's company again, a tense silence had settled. Kuroko was dimly aware that they had skipped school, but her mind was more focused on thinking of ways so that she could prevent meetings with him in the future.

"Well? Aren't you going to eat?" The masculine voice proposed, sending visible shivers down her body. The voice had definitely changed now. But it was only the pitch. The feeling of authority had not lessened a bit, instead it managed to do be even more demanding than before.

Kuroko used the chopsticks and attempted to bend the noodle and shorten it.

"Didn't you hear the waitress? It's one noodle. I forbid you to break it."

Her eyes shot up, surprised and wary, only to meet a face completely devoid of emotion as always, although his heterochromatic eyes were burning with something she realised as curiosity.

He stabbed one end of the noodle, and started eating it from his side while keeping up his table etiquette, his back straight and fork neatly beside the napkin where it had belonged.

Kuroko used the black chopsticks, her fingers quick and placing her side of the noodle into her mouth, politely eating it.

It was a few minutes later, when the bluenette realised she had to lean forward in order to continue her consummation of the rather delicious noodle. Her eyes followed the thread of the red rope, which was now a straight line, to another pair of lips.

She looked up, slowly continuing to eat the noodle while staring into the red and orange eyes of the male. He was inching closer, and Kuroko could now closely stare at his regal features. She remembered meeting him when they were both significantly younger and never forgetting what he looked like afterwards when he walked away. He was the first one to come to her after she had been violated, he had been supporting her, but she would push him away. It was almost certain he couldn't remember what had happened, he showed no obvious recognition when he first met her.

Several instances Kuroko had wondered what would happen if she had told him to not go, to stay with her the first time. Then she wouldn't have been dragged away by the woman and led to something that would alter her entire world forever.

If she had stayed with him, refused to go with her parents downstairs the second time she had met him, she wouldn't have been sent to the hospital. Her parents wouldn't have died.

Why was it that every time when something was going to destroy her, this boy was always there?

The obvious strain from the noodle made her shift her attention away from thoughts in her head. As the two both ate their noodle, they were inevitably drawn closer.

Their breaths mingled, and both sides shivered from the close proximity of each other, never experiencing anything quite like this before. Hetero eyes stared into the blue ones, daring her to stop eating, knowing full well what had happened to her before, knowing that she would eventually bite her noodle to stop what would surely happen if she didn't.

But to both of their surprise, the bluenette kept eating. She had accepted the silent challenge issued between them.

They were both close to each other, and in this moment, nothing could be heard anymore, except for two hearts that were beating frantically, yearning for something, yet afraid at the same time. A few more bites.. and surely that something was going to happen. They both knew it, but neither of them stopped, both were completely trapped in a new, wild sensation that made their whole body tingle with nerves.

Snip.

The red noodle between their mouths was cut in one fluid movement. But it wasn't just the noodle, both sides had felt something internally within them had snapped as well. The bluenette and the red-head turned simultaneously, their eyes filled an impossible mix of emotions swirling in them, only to find a girl with golden hair and a triumphant look on her face, as she twirled Akashi's red scissors in her hands, before slamming it on the table, darkening yellow eyes thick with rage.

A/N: ARGHHH… okay firstly sorry for slow updates XD recently theres something stressful going on in my life I'm going in a test/audition kind of thing and the chances of me making it to the finals is decent, but im only stressed because I really, REALLY want to win. It's kinda my last chance to enter this comp and it will change my life completely if I do.. results come out next month so if I do make it in I'll be sooo happy and ill probably do an extra-long chapter but if I don't make it in ill probably be like, super, super depressed for a while :( just a warning..

I know I said the main plot would begin this chapter, but I kind of pushed that back a little because this scene took unexpectedly long, lol. Anyways, thanks for having so much patience, and this chapter is dedicated to everyone that favorited/followed/reviewed. :)

Let me know if I made any typos, I know how frustrating it is when that happens, and trust me, I hate it too, but sometimes my eyes just die on me and I read the mistakes but somehow the lazy brain I have doesn't want to command my hands to change it. I hope you guys got to understand Kuroko's character more in this chapter ^^ And also sorry for having such long authors notes.. im sure you'd all prefer if I used this time on writing up the next chapter, bwahaha. Btw, do you guys like the new title? :D

As always, thanks for reading!
Anniee-chan ^-^