A/N: So sorry this took so long to get out! Shattered had school exams (she's a senior) and Destiny had to put in over-time at her job (and she was in a contest this past month). Hope you can still enjoy~

[DISCLAIMER] We do not own KnB characters!

[[ 06 : Helpful Advice Goes A Long Way ]]

The dribble of a basketball against asphalt could be heard in the stillness of the slightly forested area. Aomine had brought his own basketball and changed into his basketball jersey since he planned on heading over to the main gym once the 'relax period' was over.

He effortlessly shot the ball and watched it go in. Once he got it back, he started dribbling past invisible opponents as his mind raced with thoughts and memories before all clearing to one.

To one single heartbroken face streaked by rain as it pelted him from above.

"Dammit!" Aomine stopped as he lost control of the fast-paced dribbling he was doing and the basketball caught the toe of his shoe and bounced away. He breathed hard until it steadied as he shook his head at the remembered memory of a horrible time. A horrible time when he became a horrible person. To the one he should have never turned his back on.

"Aomine-kun." The sudden soft voice had Aomine jumping in fright and surprise as he wildly looked around before finding the one his thoughts focused on the most.

"Tetsu." He felt his heart beat faster when their eyes met.

.:{Tetsuya's POV}:.

It had been too stuffy within the dorm, so I decided on some fresh air. The break the superiors gave us before practice started was a generous one so I should have time enough to scout out the nearest outside basketball court...

To my surprise, the sound of a basketball bouncing against said court reached my ears. Someone was already using it. The hard-working notion brought a smile to my face and I kept walking in the direction I knew it to be in. It was slightly obscured by the forestry, but I liked the quietness.

My whole being stilled when I took in the sight before me. It was Aomine-kun, practicing by himself and so determinedly — I was instantly reminded of the time when we used to practice together all of the time...

The way he moved was fluid and lethal on the court, he really reminded me of a big panther, especially with Touou's jersey on him. I noticed his eyes seemed dazed, as if he were lost in his thoughts and that troubled me. What could Aomine-kun be thinking of so deeply that would have him distracted? He wasn't really one to think about something for very long — he was more of a person who would approach the problem that ails him head-on instead of waiting.

Suddenly, I heard him curse out loud and the ball bounced in my direction and I caught it before it could wind up in the forest. Aomine-kun fumbled? What really could he be thinking about? Now I was curious...

"Aomine-kun," I addressed loud enough for him to hear me, but not too loud to disrupt the serenity of the nature around us.

I watched in fond amusement as he flailed and looked all around before he finally saw me. My heart seemed to pick up when our gazes locked and I could already hear the whispers in the back of my mind starting as if to ask, 'what are you doing here?'

"Tetsu." Aomine-kun seemed to have calmed down enough to level his gaze with me and I saw it travel to the ball in my hands. "So what're you doing here?"

"I came out for some fresh air and to check out this place and found you." I calmly replied as I dared to take a few steps closer. The feel of the hard asphalt against my feet made me feel my weight more.

"Heh, so you had the same idea as me huh?" Aomine-kun grinned a bit to himself and I was pleased to see no malice behind it, it was purely genuine as he looked off to the side, scratching the back of his head in what I knew to be a nervous gesture of his. What would he have to be nervous about though?

"Yes, I suppose so though I didn't bring a ball with me..." I gazed down at the basketball in my hands.

"Tetsu," I heard Aomine-kun say and I looked up to see him smiling openly at me as he raised his hand out for the ball.

I found myself entranced by the smooth outlines of his face, how much more younger he seemed and back to his original self. It really made my heart skip a beat in happiness. Wordlessly, I passed the ball to him and as soon as he did the first dribble, we both fell into a natural stance. It reminded me of our first one-on-one.

And just like the first one-on-one, Aomine dribbled to the side to feint and my eyes watched him. Pulling from the feint that would trick most players who did not know Aomine-kun very well, he pushed into a great speed to go into what should be an opening on my left side.

I followed his movements with my eyes as I went to block him from charging through. He smiled as he pulled back slightly, and I knew what he didn't say in the moment. Nice block, Tetsu.

That's how it's always been with Aomine-kun and me. We communicated so well when it came to basketball. We both continued on with our one-on-one until we worked up a light sweat and realized that practice would be called soon.

I shared the water bottle I brought with me with Aomine-kun and he greedily took it as he chugged some of it down. I briefly wondered if he cared if I already had drunken out of it, but quickly dismissed the thought as Aomine-kun never really cared about that since middle school.

"Thanks, Tetsu. I'm glad you came out here, it was a nice match." Aomine-kun stretched his arms out in a customary method that signaled he was 'warmed up.'

"Yes it was," I spoke as I stared ahead before the troubling thought came to me that I had before. "Aomine-kun, what were you thinking about before?"

Our gazes met, and I knew he couldn't hide anything from me even as he tried to look away and stammer. Aomine-kun was like an open book for me. He seemed to want to hide whatever it was from me, but soon I saw a face of past pain and knew that whatever he was thinking about was a burden of causing him a lot of pain. Why did he look so guilt-stricken? I was concerned about whatever may be eating him up.

But I also knew that whatever it may be, a pressured Aomine-kun would not tell me.

"You shouldn't think so heavily, Aomine-kun." I rose to stand up beside him and offered a small smile of encouragement. "It doesn't fit you. and I think you should face whatever it is head-on. You can't go wrong since it's you."

Aomine-kun made a strange shocked face as he continued staring at me before he started rubbing his head again and looked away. "But what if it's a pain I caused somebody? Someone close to me... How can they really forgive me?"

I was amazed by how open Aomine-kun was being with me, but I noticed it was steadily getting easier for the two of us to be open with each other ever since Touou's defeat at the Winter Cup. It was almost like our past close friendship was being mended little-by-little. I could only hope that it would remain strong and unbreakable.

I stepped closer to Aomine-kun and offered a fist to him, a fist-bump that Aomine-kun himself said we would never share again.

He looked at me with pained shock before smirking slightly and bumping my fist with his. I smiled despite myself. "I believe if Aomine-kun just be's himself and apologizes, then forgiveness should be there for him. Especially if this person is close to Aomine-kun."

Aomine-kun's face seemed to lose its usual smugness as he took in my words. I was shocked by the gratifying grin I received in return. "Thanks, Tetsu! You always know just what to say." And then our fists pulled back at the same time we heard the sound signaling that practice was starting.

We shared a look before running toward the towering building. I felt euphoria swell in my chest, it was enough to keep the voices away and I was relieved. Relieved from their darkness, and relieved that I could help an important person in my life.

...Even if they could never fully help me, that was okay for moments like these.

Destiny: That was the little bit of AoKuro moment~ Hope you all enjoyed!

Shattered: Thanks for reading and see you in the comments~ :D

Destiny: We're working on the next chapter now so hopefully it'll be out soon~

Shattered: Along with some one-shots of different pairings!