A/N: Here's a tip: if ever you find yourself in the same situation as Kagami, do as he did. Press on that wound as if your life depended on it. Especially if it was an abdominal wound. However, if there's something sticking out of it (e.g. a knife), DO NOT remove the knife. Instead, remove your shirt, twist it until its long and thin, and then carefully wrap it around the exposed part of the knife. Again, DO NOT REMOVE THE KNIFE. It might feel counter-intuitive, but the knife is actually working as a cork or stopper, keeping the blood from spurting out of whatever arteries were hit. It will buy you precious minutes before the ambulance arrives.

Now that we've clarified that part, here's the next chapter for your continued reading.


CHAPTER 2

"Can you keep pressure on the wound?" One of the paramedics asked him, and Kagami nodded, replacing the man's position with some difficulty due to his big size. He was given gloves, but it did nothing to protect him from the sensation of warm fresh blood that squeezed out of his fully soaked varsity jacket when he pressed downward. There, inside the brightly lit ambulance, the color was even brighter, almost fake. Kagami noticed for the first time how stained his own clothes were, the crimson color aggressively standing out from how white the fabric was. Somehow, he found himself incredibly jealous of the stark black jerseys of the Touou High team.

Kuroko had said nothing else while they were in the ambulance, and Kagami didn't say anymore during the ride. He just quietly stared at Kuroko's face, watching his eyes droop then flutter back open, blue eyes blank and still unfocused. Beside Kagami, the paramedics worked quietly but with experienced speed, cutting the upper half of Kuroko's shirt with a pair of shears in order to expose his chest and attach a bunch of monitors on him. It was only when the ribbon had been cut that Kagami finally noticed the gold medal that still hung from Kuroko's neck. His eyes followed it as the paramedic placed it inside a clear plastic bag, the inside smearing red as the medal slid to the bottom. No wonder he didn't notice it back in the alley. It was heavily stained with Kuroko's blood.

One of them had inserted a needle into Kuroko's arm, and Kagami barely registered the movement of multiple bags of fluids and blood being hung on hooks attached to the roof of the ambulance.

The monitors beeped ominously. Kagami had no idea how to read all those lines and numbers, but Kuroko looked too weak, too pale, for everything to be okay. Even his chest was rising too slowly with every breath, despite the oxygen mask supposedly helping him breathe. The paramedics had solemn expressions, but Kagami didn't want to read too much into them. They always looked so serious in those TV dramas too. Doesn't mean that everyone died all the time. Being in an ambulance wasn't a death sentence. Going to the hospital wasn't a death sentence. Nothing was set in stone yet. Kuroko could still be okay.

Kagami heard a gurgling sound and looked down to see blood pooling into one of the creases on the jacket, then spilling over his hand. Kagami almost released the pressure in disgust, his stomach churning at the unwelcoming sensation. One of the paramedics quickly dumped a fresh set of gauze over his hands to catch the blood. "It's okay now boy," the man said sympathetically, as he gently edged Kagami's hands off Kuroko's stomach and replaced them with his own. "Thank you for the help. You did well."

Kagami only nodded, eyes staring at the blood over his gloves. When he removed them, he saw his own hands clearly for the first time, and saw them just as tainted with the same bright hue.

Red was his favorite color. He had always liked his hair and his eyes because they were red. Red was supposed to be an awesome color. So powerful and imposing. Passionate and unyielding to other colors.

But right now, it was the last thing he wanted to see.

There was just too much. Too much red.

The ambulance arrived at the hospital in less than five minutes due to the lack of traffic at that hour. When they arrived, an entourage of doctors and nurses greeted them at the doorway, and Kagami barely had time to register most of what was happening. Medical jargon was exchanged between urgent voices, and there was a flurry of movement that followed. The adults were clearly in charge now, and Kagami numbly ran after the gurney as they rushed Kuroko into the hospital, like a scrap of paper pulled along the wake of a speeding car, unwilling to be left behind but unsure of what he was supposed to do now.

Hands suddenly grabbed him and pushed him away from thick metal doors after the gurney pushed through. "Please sir, you're not allowed inside," a female voice urged him further away from the double doors that were still slightly swinging from the storm of staff that had just pushed through. "There's a bench there," Kagami blinked and barely turned his head to where the nurse was pointing, his attention still set on the two doors. He felt small hands push him along, and his body, growing too exhausted from all that happened, decided to comply this time. Soon, Kagami found himself seated alone on a bench.

Now on his own, Kagami had the full liberty of finally diving into the swirling mess that were his thoughts. Was any of this real? He wondered, blankly staring at his tainted hands, the blood beginning to set and dry on his tanned skin. Was any of this actually happening? He felt numb and sensitive at the same time. The light was too bright but as bleak. The chatter from other patients and medical staff were too loud but at the same time, muffled in the background. He wanted to throw up, pass out, scream, cry, punch someone, something, anything… What on earth...was this?

His teammates all arrived barely minutes later, all of them out of breath and sweating profusely, as if they had all run there by foot.

Perhaps they did.

"Kagami!"

Kagami raised his head at the sound of his name being called, eyes clouded over. He didn't even attempt to stand as he barely registered the presence of his peers who had gathered around them, their faces a whole kaleidoscope of emotions alternating between shock, disbelief, anger, despair, and most of all, fear.

"How is he?" Hyuuga started as he stepped closer to him. Kagami just blinked at him for a few seconds, unable to comprehend. "Oi, snap out of it!" Hyuuga grabbed his shoulders, shaking him. "How's Kuroko?"

"Hyuuga, calm down!" Kiyoshi ordered, stepping forward and grabbing his friend's wrist.

"How the fuck am I going to calm down?" Hyuuga roared, letting go of Kagami's shoulders as he slapped Kiyoshi's hand away. His captain was trembling, Kagami could see that even through the haze that clouded his mind. "My kouhai was...Kuroko was…" He could barely get the words out of his mouth. Kagami just kept staring at him wordlessly.

He was waiting, Kagami realized. He was waiting for someone to break the awful tension in the air, to tell him that this was all just a joke. He was waiting for someone to start laughing, to tell him, point blank, that this was not real. How can it be real? What are the chances that this would happen to them today, of all days? And to Kuroko, of all people? Of course it can't be real. It's not possible. That would be just too sick. Too cruel. Too unfair.

"Kagami-kun." Kiyoshi planted himself on the seat beside him, his voice soft and careful. Kagami felt a hand press gently against his arm. "Just breathe, okay? The trip going here must've been difficult, I understand that. So just take your time, okay? And when you're ready, we'll still be here."

Kagami didn't really understand what his senpai was saying, but he nodded slowly. Kiyoshi's presence was like a cool balm to an open wound and he found the strength to talk. "I don't really know," Kagami finally replied, eyes still on his hands. He didn't notice it before but they were shaking. "He was...awake in the ambulance. They got some blood into him there I think...I didn't really understand it, but they attached these stuff on his chest and the monitor was beeping. The paramedic told me that was his heart, and it was still beating."

At that, all his teammates visibly relaxed a little bit. While everyone was still on edge, it was a relief to know that their friend was still alive, even if the prognosis was still unknown. Kagami could only imagine the thoughts in their head as they all ran to the hospital like their lives depended on it, probably running faster than they'd ever ran on polished wood floors while playing the sport that had brought them all together.

"I'll ask one of the nurses for more details," Coach Riko volunteered. She had arrived just a bit later, having taken a cab with her father. "I had my dad call Kuroko's parents. They're both out of town, but they're on their way."

Kagami's ears perked at that detail. Kuroko's parents? Kuroko had never really talked about his family that often, besides the fact that they weren't home most of the time. From what Kagami could surmise, they obviously loved him though. It was quite apparent in the rare times that Kuroko talked about them. His eyes would soften fondly, he mouth curving just to give a hint of a smile. It made Kagami want to meet them, but he never imagined to meet under such circumstances.

"Also, I called Momoi-san on the way here," Riko added with pained eyes as she bit her lower lip. That had obviously been a terrible conversation. "She said she was going to go and get Aomine-kun, and they're on their way here now. She's going to inform the other members of Kuroko's old team as well."

Kagami's hands stopped trembling abruptly. The Generation of Miracles. He remembered how happy Kuroko had looked by the end of the game, how he shined with so much joy, he was hardly recognizable to Kagami. He remembered feeling a little jealous at the way Kuroko had been pulled into a group hug as his original team finally reconciled, but that possessiveness was short-lived when he caught a glimpse of the boy's smile.

Kuroko's dream had just come true that day.

He was at the happiest he's ever been, smiling the biggest smile Kagami had ever seen on his usually stoic face.

So then...why did this happen?

The tears came before he could stop them, and Kagami threw his hands over his face, desperately trying to hold himself together. Everything rose up inside him all at once, gaining momentum from everything he pushed down, everything he had been denying to feel, to accept, since the moment his eyes saw the unnatural red color of the ground back at the alley. He could see it in his mind's eye, that towering wave about to crash, and he knew there was no way to stop it. He was going to drown in it, to be crushed under its full weight. It was going to destroy him.

First it was just the tears streaming out of his eyes with full abandon - then he felt a cry rise from within, easily slipping through his frantic efforts to stop it. His heart hammered against his chest with so much force that Kagami felt unable to breathe, and he gasped with the desperation of a drowning man fighting from one breath to another. His body, his entire body, started trembling violently as he collapsed under the onslaught of emotions he had been denying for the past half hour.

Kagami broke down completely, finally, in front of the teammates he had learned to trust, and not a single one of them turned away.