Many thanks to my friend/tumblr user, somnimouse. I couldn't have finished without your help.

Pairing: AoKise

Series: Kuroko no Basuke

Disclaimer: Characters are not mine. I own nothing but the blood, sweat, and tears I put into this story. Oh and the story of course.

Status: Complete/one-shot

Systematized

"Geez you guys are so rough with each other," Momoi chided, snapping a picture of them. She watched her two best friends with amusement as they fought over who got to sit on the swings.

"H-hey, no pictures!" Kise cried trying to stop the girl from taking embarrassing photos of him and his boyfriend's mischiefs.

"My swing now!" another voice announced as the guy plopped down on the seat and tickled Kise, who was hanging onto the chains of the swing-set to keep his balance, into a giggling mess.

"You're hogging the swings!" Kise whined, and tackled his boyfriend off it and onto the ground. They wrestled with each other playfully in the grass, their laughter ringing in each other's ears. They bumped their noses, holding each other closely in each other arms as the world revolved around them.

Kise woke up with a start. The blond gasped as he brushed aside hair strands from his teary face. His breath was unsteady from his dream. Kise leaned over towards the other side of the bed and grasped at the comforter. There was no one there to plant kisses into his blond hair, and no one there to nestle and hold him close. It was frightening how he missed those simple loving actions, and it was depressing to feel this lonely.

Kise grudgingly readied himself for the day. He unconsciously made breakfast for two. Disheartened, he sighed to himself, wrapping up the leftover portions. Maybe he will have breakfast for lunch later. When he was done with his morning routine, he headed outside bringing only a basketball with him.

Kise would play basketball by himself with the appearance that he was practicing on his own in the court every morning. In reality, he was there always waiting. Always waiting for him to pass by. Kise bounced the ball without much rigor and tossed it towards the hoop. It hit the rim and bounced off into the sidewalk.

"Your shooting hasn't gotten any better," a low voice chuckled. Kise wiped off his sweat, and sent a grin towards the owner of the voice. He held up his arms, ready to receive the ball.

"Hehe, I guess not Dai—Aomine-san," Kise laughed back. "Thanks," he replied as he caught the ball without effort. "Patrol today?"

"Mhm," Aomine nodded. He took off his cap and ran his finger through his navy hair. The policeman waved his cap like a fan and frowned at the sun. "It's early in the morning and it's this hot already," the bluenette complained. Aomine appeared amused to Kise. "You're pretty dedicated to practicing aren't you?"

Kise didn't answer. His lips curved upwards but there was a lack of expression in his eyes. His grip on the ball tightened as much as his chest did.

It hurt so much.

The first time Aomine had passed by the basketball court right outside his complex, Kise was astonished. The last he ever had contact with Aomine was about six months ago. He had to blink a few times to make sure that the person walking right past him was really Aominecchi. It was only for a split second that he caught the other's face, but he recognized that perpetual frown anywhere. Realizing that he was staring, the blond quickly shook himself out of his delight. Without even thinking, he threw the ball into the back of Aomine's head.

"Ow!"

"I'm sorry! My aim was bit off!" Kise exclaimed, running up towards Aomine who was rubbing the back of his head.

Aomine hissed a bit before looking at the ball, then at the hoop, then at Kise. "Yeah. Way off," the policeman grunted as he tossed the basketball back at Kise before his eyes lit up. "You're—"

Kise looked at Aomine with anticipation, only to be disappointed. "You're that model, Kise Ryouta!"

Rushes of thoughts and emotions flashed through Kise's mind as he tried his hardest to keep his composure. First he felt surprised, then hopelessness, and then pain. He stared a ground for a moment and sucked in his breath. The blond let out a shaky sigh before turning up at Aomine with a weak smile on his face. "I sure am," he affirmed. He trembled and gripped the ball tightly until his fingers went pale from lack of circulation. "Are you new here Officer…?"

The other returned an expression that made his heart clench. It had been a while since he had seen Aomine look so warm and comforting. "Aomine. Aomine Daiki. Actually, I don't live to far from here, so I thought I would enjoy a morning walk before work."

"I see…" Kise's hopeful expression faltered a bit as he averted his gaze. He didn't want to see Aomine this way. Not in such an oblivious state.

The bluenette cleared his throat, feeling the conversation running dry. "Well, Model-san. I have to be on my way now," Aomine smirked. "And work on that shooting of yours! It's terrible," the policeman laughed and walked off into the distance with a wave.

The basketball gave an empty thud as Kise dropped it and crouched down, feeling discouraged from his encounter with his former lover. "Just what am I doing?" he cried, tears brimming in his eyes. He felt like such a coward.

As he suspected, Aomine passed by the basketball court every morning. Kise made it his resolve to wait on the policeman. Kise would always miss the basket before he greeted Aomine. The first few encounters were formal. Days and days went by, and Aomine would always greet Kise the same way. They would have the same short conversation about the weather, Kise's bad shooting, and other things that didn't matter.

One morning, there was a change.

"Good morning, Aomine-san," Kise chimed optimistically.

"Ah, mornin' Model-san," the policeman teased. Amused eyes landed on the ball on the sidewalk. Aomine's voice boomed. "If only you were as good at basketball as you were with modeling, you'd definitely be my type."

"Wait, what?" Did Aomine just flirt with him?

Aomine raised his eyebrows and observed the flustered Kise. As expected of a model, he really did have an attractive face. The model's hair looked incredibly soft and his figure wasn't bad either. Aomine's blue eyes roamed a bit, ogling the model a bit more. Just, "Lacking on the boobs though…" he murmured to himself.

Was Aomine just checking him out? "What do you mean by that?" Kise questioned baffled, feeling his face grow hot.

"Who knows?" Aomine joked. With a smirk he tossed the ball back to a bewildered Kise, before adding, "You interest me." Kise was flabbergasted at how blunt the other was, as his complexion darkened another shade of red. The bluenette barked with laughter, seeing that his words had an effect on the poor model. Sparing Kise any further embarrassment, he gave the blond a wave. "I'll see you tomorrow, Model-san." There was a twinkled in his eye has he left Kise gaping at him from a distance.

Kise's heart wouldn't stop hammering in his chest after that encounter.

There was an ominous overcast the next day. Kise stared up at the sky and wondered if the weather was mocking him.

Aomine caught Kise off guard, appearing in gym shorts and a T-shirt. "A-Aomine-san?" Kise tilted his head. "It's rare to not see you in uniform." The blond looked into Aomine's piercing gaze before turning away shyly. Kise tugged on the hem of his shirt nervously, still remembering their encounter from the day before.

The policeman cleared his throat, as if to apologize for making the other feel uncomfortable. He gave the model a grin. "It's been a month, Model-san. You can just call me Aomine," he held his arms up, asking for Kise to toss him the basketball.

"Okay. Then, Dai—Aomine," he corrected himself. Kise hesitated for a moment and passed the ball to Aomine. He gave the other a cautious look. "Then… you should call me Kise. 'Model-san' is a terrible nickname," he griped.

"Alrighty then, 'Kise'," Aomine sighed with faux sadness. The policeman bounced the ball a few times before his lips quirked upward as his dark blue eyes challenged Kise. Kise took the hint and began trying to block. "And even I get days off from time to time," he added. Aomine easily broke past Kise. "I've wanted to play basketball with you for a while and show how it is really done."

Kise gave a breathy laugh at Aomine's arrogance and awkwardly shifted on his feet to watch Aomine. The bluenette dribbled the ball and easily made the basket. No matter how many times he's seen it, Kise was always amazed by the formless shot.

Aomine caught Kise watching him and raised an eyebrow. He may not pay attention to detail quite often, but after seeing Kise everyday for the past month, he had picked up on some things. For one, there was the fact that the model's pretty face was lackluster when he smiled, as if he was forcing himself to it. It was kind of a sad smile, and Aomine can't help but to place the thought that he had something to do with it. Secondly, Kise always seemed to correct himself in addressing him. He could have sworn that Kise nearly called him by his given name a couple of times.

Thirdly… "Kise." Aomine confronted. Kise flinched at the way Aomine said his name and clenched his eyes shut. Did he know? "Kise," he repeated with an exasperated sigh. "You weren't even trying to block were you?"

Kise's eyes snapped open. "H-huh? O-oh," he rubbed the back of his head, perplexed. "Ehehe, I guess I wasn't really into it huh?"

Aomine clicked his tongue disapprovingly. "Let's try that again."

They played a few more rounds until they felt a few raindrops, and deemed that it was probably time for them to stop.

As the bluenette caught his breath, "There was something I wanted to confirm, Kise." Aomine used the hem of his shirt to wipe off some sweat. Aomine looked at Kise as he searched the other's faded-honey eyes.

The blond felt exposed and averted his gaze. He didn't want all of his emotions for Aomine to see. Kise gripped his arm, as if he were holding himself, trying to keep composure. He side-glanced at Aomine with tired amber eyes. "What do you mean?"

"You are always here every morning. Your shooting is just as terrible as the day I met you." He placed the basketball between his hip and arm. "But you can actually play pretty well can't you, Kise?" Kise stayed silent as Aomine continued. "Sometimes, you would look at me with this sad expression. You're definitely keeping something from me."

No reply.

"Kise…?"

"You didn't just take today off just to play basketball with me did you, Aomine?" Kise trembled as Aomine approached him. The gears turned in Kise's head as he looked up at the sky and readied himself to leave. "We should probably head home soon! It's going to storm and—"

Kise was cut off as Aomine grabbed his arm, preventing him to leave the court. Aomine looked into Kise's fleeting golden eyes with worry and confusion. "We're friends now right? If there's something bothering you, you'd tell me right?"

"Friends?" Kise repeated with a shaky laugh. "You're being really cruel." Aomine loosened his grip in confusion but patiently waited for the blond to continue; his blue eyes watched the other intently. Kise lost himself in those stormy blue eyes as tears began falling down his own cheeks. "Huh… what? What am I crying for? What am I—?" Kise panicked and broke free from Aomine.

Thunder clapped as rain poured down furiously. Kise didn't get very far as he slipped and fell onto the pavement. Kise hissed at the pain on his knee. Aomine quickly ran to the model's side. "We need to get that cleaned up or else it will get infected," Aomine inspected the minor wound. He managed to get Kise to sit up on the ground, rubbing the blond's back.

Kise breath became short and shallow, and his shoulders trembled. The model blinked back a few more tears through his lashes before completely losing composure. He could feel his face burning as tears freely slid down his face. Aomine looked at him with a mixture of confusion and patience, wonder and compassion. "I didn't want to be selfish," Kise started with a sob. "Without you remembering me or us, you can live your life the way your parents would have wanted. You could have married a nice woman, have a kid, and treasure that family. With me, that can't happen... and yet—" He looked into Aomine with desperate eyes, "—Yet, I wanted you to remember me." Kise choked and hiccupped through his tears, letting his self-control completely waver. "I wanted you to remember us!"

Aomine was in shock. Before he could process the information, he felt Kise pull down on his shirt, muttering, "I've waited so long…" and crashed his soft lips into his.

Kise didn't care for logic anymore. He didn't care if Aomine would be disgusted. He let his actions and overwhelming feelings take over completely.

For a moment, Aomine didn't move. He was still stunned from Kise's confession and revelation. Slowly, Aomine used his hand to support the small of Kise's back, while the other hand reached up towards the nape of Kise's neck to bring the other closer. Aomine kissed back. It was strange. He knew almost nothing about this person and yet he didn't question anything. Somehow, it felt right.

They stayed kissing in the rain for what felt like forever.

The rain fell like it did on that terrible day.

"I'm going to work. We are not speaking of this right now." Aomine slammed the door shut as he left Kise's place. For a while, both were on edge on the disapproval of their engagement from their families. It wasn't surprising though. No one saw it coming. Both of them lived in separate apartments, had different jobs, and kept their relationship a secret, with the exception of a few close friends. That kind of news would have shocked anyone outside their realm of friends.

Kise thought the two could get through anything together, but Aomine was completely stressed from the situation. He was the only child in the family; it was no wonder that his parents would be upset.

Kise took off his ring and flung it at the glass window with a loud click. It bounced off somewhere, but he didn't care. Kise sat on the couch, to gather his thoughts, his breath ragged from the argument he had with Aomine.

That was the last conversation Kise had with Aomine.

The storm outside was heavy that day. Driving with little visibility was dangerous, especially with the amount of ice starting to freeze over on the roads. Aomine got into an accident during a high speed chase.

Kise had been pacing outside Aomine's room for hours, trying to avoid Aomine's parents. He did not want to deal with them at the moment. Kise patiently waited for his chance to speak with Aomine alone. When the opportunity came, Kise took advantage of it. "Daikicchi!" Kise anxiously rushed over to his fiancé's side. The bluenette was dazed and disoriented after the accident. Kise gave a sigh of relief and linked his arms around his lover's neck, seeing that the other was alright despite the few injuries he had sustained. "Daikicchi?" Something was wrong. Kise pulled away from his lover to assess him.

Aomine gave him a look of puzzlement, and harshly pushed away Kise's touches, nearly knocking the blond off balance. "Who are you? Do I know you?"

Panic ran through the model's mind. "W-what do you mean? It's me, Ryouta."

"Ryouta?" Aomine repeated with befuddlement in his voice.

Kise gasped at the gauze around his fiancé's head. He tried to collect himself from the initial fright that maybe Aomine had a case of amnesia. Footsteps approached the room, and two knocks were given as Midorima entered to check up on Aomine. Said person groaned at the doctor. "Hey Midorima, when can I get out of here?" Kise glanced over at Midorima desperately.

Daikicchi has amnesia, but he knows Midorimacchi? What is going on?

Midorima simply pushed up his glasses, reprimanding Aomine's behavior, as well as scolding the blond while he was at it. "Kise, visiting hours are limited to family only, you shouldn't be here, nanodayo."

Aomine was confused again. "Midorima, who is this guy?" he pointed at a disheartened Kise. Midorima tensed and turned towards Kise. "Kise, don't tell me he—"

Kise avoided looking at the other two.

He couldn't handle the situation so he turned on his heels and left Aomine's room. "Oi, Kise! … Tch." Midorima had a bad feeling about this.

Kise returned later after regaining his composure only to overhear Aomine's parents quietly discussing amongst themselves as their son as he slept. They decided that they were going to take care of him until Aomine was well enough to be back on his feet. When it came to the subject of Kise, they paused.

From just one look into their faces, he knew. Kise knew they heard everything from Midorima and were secretly glad that their son couldn't remember him. Kise, offended by their actions, left the hospital without another visit to Aomine.

Kise spent the first few weeks after the accident moping. He shut off his phone, and didn't answer to anyone who came to visit him. He just needed time to himself. What should I do? After that brief period, he came to the terms that it was probably for the best that he and Aomine went separate ways. The engagement was probably going to be called off anyways, and their relationship probably would have fallen apart if that had happened. They were bound to go their separate ways.

Somehow that resolve was not as satisfying as he had thought it would be.

Kise started to put a lot more effort into his jobs. He had flown in and out of the country countless times to get away from Japan, away from the fact that Aomine probably had a better life without him. On his return from his flights, he would receive countless worried messages from his friends and family. Kise would delete them all, and shut off his phone again. He internally debated whether or not he should text or call Aomine to see how he was doing, but decided against it when he felt nauseous at the thought of Aomine not being able to remember who he was.

When the blond finally tired himself from piloting, he went back to modeling. There he could mask his true feelings. He beamed at the camera and charmed readers on the glossy magazine covers as if to shout out to the world that he was fine.

"Kise-san, I really like you!" Who was this girl again? Ah… she was from the costume department right? Kise gave one of his usual smiles and held up a hand, to ready for the rejection speech that he had used many times.

"Uh… thank you. I appreciate it, but I can't return those feelings. Please understand," his voice calm and soothing like honey.

With a gasp, the girl bowed, before inquiring, "Could it be that Kise-san doesn't feel ready?" Kise's smile faltered and the girl realized she had crossed her boundaries. She gave another bow before she apologized and scurried off. Is this how he wanted to live his life from now on?

Kise's lonely days turned into weeks, weeks turned into months, and before he knew it half a year had passed.

As the sunlight warmed up the bedroom, Kise woke up with a start from his nightmare of the night of the accident. Kise groaned, and rolled over trying to avoid the sunshine, only to come face to face with—

"Daikicchi…" he whispered softly. Aomine had stayed the night with him. Kise was flustered. Where does this put me and Aominecchi now? His heart swelled as tears begin to develop in the corner of his eyes, overwhelmed with mixed feelings of happiness and security. He sniffled and reached for Aomine's sleeping form.

"Kise…" the other mumbled softly, and the blond hesitated. Aomine blinked his blue eyes open and stretched. Kise retracted his reach and tucked himself under the covers, carefully watching Aomine by his side. The bluenette seemed to have also recollected his thoughts and his whereabouts as he turned his head towards Kise. Aomine pulled down the comforter as his hand felt warm against the blond's face. He wiped off some of Kise's stray tears with his thumb. "… Kise, you're crying again."

"I'm just… really happy…"

"Yeah."

They stayed like that for a while.

"Ryouta, did you lose weight? Those clothes don't seem to fit you." The television was low in the background as Aomine eyed his boyfriend from the couch, and noticed the other tugging on the waistband, trying to keep the article of clothing from slipping.

"No, these are yours," Kise giggled, shuffling closer to his boyfriend.

Aomine scoffed. "Idiot, you haven't done your laundry again haven't you? Why bother using my clothes; you know they're too big. And what do I wear then?"

"Mmm…" Kise hummed, leaning over Aomine's shoulder to wrap his arms around the other. The blond cradled his chin on his lover's shoulder. "Does it matter Daikicchi? They'll just be discarded by the time we get to the bed anyways," he whispered huskily into the other's ear.

Aomine growled, his dark blue eyes giving off a mischievous glint. "Ryouta…"

Kise let Aomine use the bathroom first with a fresh set of clothes to provide for the other.

Aomine eyed the clothes, noticing that the set was the perfect size for him, but a bit too big for Kise. The clothes Kise had lend him this morning were the exact same size as the ones he changed to yesterday after getting out of the rain. He accepted them anyways. The bluenette opened his mouth to say something, but decided against it when Kise averted his gaze. The tips of the blond's ears were slightly pink. Aomine put two and two together and wondered if these were his clothing sets that Kise had kept.

The blond made breakfast for two again, only this time, he actually had company. They ate quietly with just their forks clinking against the plate being the only sound in the room. Every now and then, Kise snuck glances at Aomine, wondering if the bluenette had remembered anything at all about the past.

Aomine broke the silence. "How's the scrape on your knee?"

"Hm? Oh, It's fine Dai—Aomine."

More silence.

"The first day I saw you, I actually recognized you, Kise." Kise's fork dropped with a loud clank, his heartbeat thumped loudly in his ears. Could it be that all of this time…? Aomine explained himself, "You were the guy from that one time at the hospital."

"Oh. Right." Kise was a little dissatisfied with that explanation, but he let the other continue as he clenched and unclenched his fists.

"When my parents brought me back home they told me all of these stories about me. They told me that I was a police officer, so I sort of took on that persona. They showed me all of these pictures to jog my memory. I recalled mostly everything except for one person." He glanced up at Kise who was listening intently. "You."

"S-so, what did you do?" Kise asked with a shaky voice, feeling his stomach knot up.

"Your injuries are healing up just fine, nanodayo," Midorima assessed, before leaving Aomine's side to type up a report on the computer. "Do you have any questions?"

Aomine pulled down his sleeve on the arm Midorima checked. "Just one."

The clacking on the computer stopped. The doctor pushed up his glasses. "What is it?"

"It's um," Aomine tried to remember the name, "Kise." Midorima was all ears. "I didn't recognize him when he visited me at the hospital. From the looks of the pictures I have of him, he was someone important, wasn't he?"

Midorima paused. It wasn't his place to say, but he hesitantly nodded anyways.

"I thought so. My parents avoid talking about him when I bring him up."

Midorima gave a frustrated sigh. He really wasn't good at these things. "I wanted to run some tests when I saw a problem between you two, but your parents didn't think it was necessary."

"What? Why would they—" Aomine exclaimed, and silently cursed his parents."Why didn't you tell me?"

"The consent was with them, since you weren't completely able to make decisions after your accident. I'm sorry, Aomine. I did what I could to convince them, but I had to follow hospital protocol in the end."

"What about now?"

"You can make your own decisions."

"Then I'll do those tests. I want to know what is wrong with me."

"It's not really my department, so I'll recommend you to a psychologist." The bluenette raised his eyebrow. "It's not the type of tests where they poke or prod you. It's an assessment of your cognition…" Midorima sighed again, feeling that he lost the other with his medical terminology. "They're just going to ask you some questions and talk to you, that's all."

"Oh."

Aomine groaned. "You have no idea how boring those tests where Kise. I felt like I was answering the same survey for hours." A smile tugged on Kise's lips at the thought of Aomine concentrating at a desk with a pencil and paper. Aomine continued, "Midorima thought it was some type of rare amnesia that causes me to forget a single person or something like that. After all of those questionnaires the psychologist told me the same thing."

Aomine paused, thinking of what else to say. "Not remembering such a huge part of my life was really starting to bother me. I figured that I should probably take matters into my own hands so I asked for help from Satsuki."

"I'm so happy Dai-chan finally asked me about Ki-chan. I was pretty worried."

"He must be really important huh? Midorima didn't tell me much." Aomine frantically flipped through the album Momoi brought over of pictures she'd taken of them, varying from the time they were middle school to recent years.

"Some things you just have to discover for yourself Dai-chan. I can only tell you about him, but your feelings for him and the memories you both shared are all up to you," Momoi proposed.

"I didn't quite get it at the time, but that girl was persistent." Aomine's expression lit up. "I think I understand a little of what she was saying now though."

Kise thought for a moment. Come to think of it, Momoicchi did try to text him a whole lot within the past few months or so. He mentally apologized to the girl for ignoring her the entire time while he was in a slump. She tried her best to get the two together the best way that she could.

"Even though they weren't memories of my own, I already made up my mind that you were someone I needed in my life." Aomine's lips curled. "Funny though, on my first day back here, I was actually roaming the neighborhood as if I never left. Then you hit me with the ball and I remembered why I came here in the first place."

"…"

"I realized, 'ah it's him,' and I just knew that you were something more than just basketball partners in middle school and rivals in high school," Aomine gave Kise a soft look. "What was I supposed to say? 'Hi I don't remember you, but I think you know me?' I probably would have scared you off with that. You were a model, I knew about that much, so I thought it would be a good start to address you that way. I think my plan backfired a little since you acted like you met me for the first time, so I humored you." the bluenette scratched his cheek with a finger sheepishly.

"Then yesterday and the day before that…?" Kise's pulse beat furiously in his ears.

"I got bored after a while, since you seemed pretty determined to keep your distance from me, so I began to mess with you a little bit. You know the saying, old habits die hard or something like that. I feel like you were the type of person that got teased by me a lot," Aomine smirked.

"So mean!"

"Ahh… looks like you are finally honest with your feelings." Aomine gave a hoarse laugh. "Ironic isn't it? Until I seriously looked, the very person who I am supposed to deem important, I had forgotten altogether. You must have been pretty lonely all this time. I'm sorry."

"Yeah…" Kise's shoulders slumped, focusing his eyes on anywhere but the person in front of him. "Aominecchi's terrible."

"Aomine…'-cchi'? Is that what you used to call me?"

The blond shyly glanced from his plate and nodded.

"What other things did you used to call me?" the policeman mused, waving his fork around teasingly.

"Daiki…cchi…" Kise replied hesitantly.

"A-ah…" Aomine flushed. It was the first time he ever heard his given name since he had met Kise. "Then, did I call you R-Ryouta?"

Kise blushed at hearing his name by that familiar voice again. His amber eyes avoided Aomine out of embarrassment. "You did…"

"Did I…" Aomine was pressing his luck. "…used to stay here often?" he tugged on the neckline of his shirt, questioning the blond.

Kise quickly excused himself. "Going out for a walk."

Aomine's smiled at himself when he heard the door click. "I guess that's a yes."

Kise leaned outside his door. He placed a hand on his chest and took in deep breaths. This was too much for him to handle. Everything he had kept from Aomine was open for discussion. He had simulated thoughts in his mind many times of what to do in this situation if it ever came to be, but right now he was drawing a blank. There was something unquestionably different, yet the same about Aominecchi. It was like meeting a stranger, yet it was someone he knew. Kise was confused. He wasn't going to lie; he enjoyed Aomine's company again, yet there was uncertainty. Where does he even begin? He needed more time to think.

When Kise returned to his apartment, he didn't really expect to see Aomine still there. The breakfast dishes were cleaned and Aomine sat up on the couch, waiting on the blond's return. "Welcome back," he said, his blue eyes full of warmth.

"I'm back," the words rolled off of Kise's tongue.

Aomine's curious eyes focused their attention from Kise to the apartment. The place was dusty, as if it hadn't been cleaned in a while, and the room was a little gloomy. The bluenette went to pull on the blinds to let in a little light into the room. He coughed at the amount of dust that he released. "Kise, when was the last time you vacuumed or dusted the place?"

Kise felt his shoulders relax, appreciating the fact that Aomine didn't press on from their conversation from breakfast. He approached Aomine's side and sighed. "The last time you were here in this apartment."

"Oh." They turned away from each other, leaving an uncomfortable silence. "Well, we should probably tidy up this place a bit don't you think?" He walked towards a lonely countertop. "Huh?" Aomine noticed a picture frame place down so he lifted it up. Preoccupied with what the photo depicted, he held it in his hand. Aomine brushed at the picture affectionately. Satsuki showed me a photo album that had a picture just like this. Kise placed his hand on Aomine's shoulder.

"Kise," he turned his eyes into the other. Kise's grip on his shoulder was firm, yet tentative. "Kise," he repeated, "I want you to help me remember." Aomine was unsure of what he was doing. Kise frowned. Aomine noticed the hesitating expression on Kise's face, so he quickly added, "But somehow I feel that everything was going to be alright as long as it we work things out together." Aomine's blue eyes traveled back to the picture of Kise, and a person that was him, but not quite him. They were both laughing in each other's arms in the picture, full of happiness and bliss in their own little world.

Kise bit his lip and reached out for Aomine's hand. The gesture was returned as they locked fingers. One look into Aomine's confident eyes, and he knew there was nothing to be afraid of. "Mmm," he nodded.

"Thanks for all of your hard work," Kise chimed as he left the studio. Kise picked up his phone and dialed a number he thought he would never be able to call again. "Aominecchi?" They had made plans to see each other more often in between their schedules, taking baby steps in rebuilding their relationship. When Kise finally came to terms that he had a second chance with Aomine, he had a few goals in mind. He wanted to patch up any loose ends from the relationship they once had (mainly trying to get Aomine to remember as much as he could), as well cherishing the Aomine he knew and cared for now.

Kise first went to the place where it all started. Midorima was a bit taken back by Kise's enthusiasm, but helped out nonetheless. "Taking him to places that you guys have gone to might help trigger some memories, nanodayo. Ah but don't over-do it. Oha-Asa says to try new things. Also, your lucky items for today are…" Kise couldn't thank Midorima enough for that tidbit of information. It was a good place to start.

Kise suggested to Aomine that they stop at the convenience store they often visited after practice, back when they were in Teikou. "Aominecchi, do you remember the popsicles we used to get here?" Aomine wrinkled his brows. "Mmm… I remember going with Satsuki and Tetsu…" He gave the blond an apologetic look. "Sorry."

"That's okay. I know you are trying," Kise squeezed Aomine's hand.

The next few weeks of show-and-telling were a total bust. Aomine couldn't remember the places where they first held hands or even where they first kissed.

"You mean to tell me that our first time was here in the grass by this dumpy lake?" the bluenette exclaimed incredulously.

Kise threw up his arms. "It was sparkling and romantic that night! Besides, it was your idea." The model puckered his lips into a pout and muttered something about "sexy" and "getting caught." Aomine snorted.

When he felt that he was out of options, Kise turned to the one person who knew Aominecchi just as much as he did.

"Only Ki-chan knows the special places he and Dai-chan have gone to," the pink-haired girl suggested. She giggled Kise being upset over the fact that Aomine couldn't even remember their first times. "He'll remember eventually with time," she murmured softly.

"I never thought I would get Ki-chan to talk to me again. I was afraid I had lost my best friends. Did you see the messages I sent you?" Kise shook his head regretfully. "Well I was upset with the way Obaa-san treated you. I think they finally realized that they can't control Dai-chan's life so they let him live on his own. Whether or not they had come to terms with his relationship with you, they were willing to let him go, knowing that the chances of him running into Ki-chan were high. When I heard about that, I wanted to let you know that Dai-chan was back and that he was probably looking for you. But you guys found each other, even without my help," Momoi praised.

"Thanks, Momoicchi."

"Also, Ki-chan. Since you and Dai-chan are together again, don't just think of the past. Now is the time to make new memories to treasure as well," she patted Kise's shoulder.

Kise blinked back his tears, feeling comforted. "Thank you for everything."

After a long day out, the two returned to Kise's apartment to prepare dinner together. The blond headed towards the sink, letting the water run. Aomine sat at the kitchen table, contemplating something. "Hey Kise. Let's take a break from doing this and go to an onsen."

"Hah?" Kise dropped the colander he was holding, a bit taken back from Aomine's out of the blue suggestion. He reached down to pick up the fallen item. "Where is all of this coming from?" Up until now, Kise had been the one in charge of where he and Aomine went. It was surprising for the bluenette to take the initiative.

Aomine handed over vegetables for Kise to wash. "Just for this weekend. I need to clear my mind."

"Okay," the model understood, taking the vegetables to the sink. He turned back with his golden eyes to glimpse at Aomine, who looked a little bit discouraged. I wonder if he's alright...

On the way to the hot springs, Aomine didn't say a word. The blond would throw Aomine a worried glance every so often, but he didn't press further.

The silence continued through dinner and the evening. Aomine would give a strained smile at Kise every so often, but that was it. Kise sulked throughout the day, patiently waiting for whenever Aomine was ready to talk.

Kise felt his muscles relaxing immediately after he entered the hot springs. He scooted next to Aomine until he was close enough to rest his head on Aomine's shoulder. The blond hummed appreciatively at how comfortable it was.

Aomine finally spoke. "It's frustrating, not being able to remember." Aomine leaned against the rocks, and stared at the night sky. "Maybe we should stop doing this."

Kise tilted his head up with inquiry.

Aomine sighed and turned his head to look at Kise. "You're going to tire yourself out doing this for me. Just how many places have we gone to already?" He flicked Kise on the forehead.

"Ouch!" Kise splashed, shifting away from Aomine.

"I'm starting to see wrinkles."

"That's a harsh thing to tell a model, Aominecchi," the blond whined, rubbing at his forehead. He gave a sigh a relief, knowing what was bothering the bluenette. "Then, what do you suggest we do?"

"Dunno." Aomine shifted in the waters and turned his body until he was face to face with Kise. His blue eyes gazed into Kise's honey orbs. "Kise, do you accept me as I am now?"

Kise's eyes widened. "Of course I do!"

"Even… even if I don't remember anything about us, but you do?" Aomine's face was pained.

Kise's expression softened as he gingerly reached for Aomine's tanned hand. He brought it towards his pale chest, right where his heart was. Kise's voice was shaky. "E-every time I'm with Aominecchi, my heart thumps wildly." The blond closed his eyes, as if he was in peace. "As long as you are by my side, Aominecchi is still Aominecchi, regardless if you remember the past or not." Kise opened his golden orbs, his expression warm. His voice got softer and softer, "I miss the old Aominecchi I once knew, but I cherish the Aominecchi of the present all the same."

Aomine could feel Kise's erratic heartbeat. Was it like this all the time? Everything Kise had confessed was felt so raw, and full of emotion.

Aomine's body moved on its own. He lifted his hand from Kise's chest, to pull the blond closer to him, until the other was practically sitting in his lap. Aomine was in awe at the sight in front of him; he couldn't even begin to describe Kise right now. There was a prominent blush across the model's face, his lips parted, as if a little embarrassed by their current position. Aomine brushed aside a strand of Kise's blond hair, tucking it behind his ear. He paused to thumb at the blue piercing the model wore. Kise nestled into his touch, as he looked up at Aomine with half-lidded honey eyes. The model's long lashes tickled the bluenette's face as he leaned in closer. "Daikicchi…" the blond whispered. Aomine gave Kise a heated gaze before he closed the gap between them and kissed the blond hesitantly, and gently, as if the other was a porcelain doll.

Kise wasn't as patient as he kissed back intimately, with vigor, as if to put all of his feelings into a single action. Kise's frantic hands ran through Aomine's hair. He trembled as Aomine's free hand snaked around his back, bringing the blond forward until their bodies pressed together. Kise gasped at the contact, as Aomine slipped his tongue in, exploring Kise's mouth cautiously and slowly. The blond moaned into the deep kiss, feeling their tongues dance with each other. Aomine grunted, as he nibbled on Kise's bottom lip, causing the blond to whimper.

They broke from the kiss, panting, as Aomine leaned over to taste more of Kise. He affectionately kissed Kise's forehead, then eyelids, trailed his lips down Kise's nose, and ended with a peck to Kise's lips.

Kise was entranced from the kisses, as he let out a giggle, bringing Aomine into a tender hug, his arms circling around the other's neck. He had never felt so joyous in his life.

Aomine tightened his arms around the Kise's waist, pulling them close enough so that their noses bumped.

He realized he had fallen for Kise a second time.

After their trip Aomine was determined to remember everything about Kise. As for Kise, he noticed Aomine working hard, and it was just the motivation that he needed to rid himself of the doubts and uncertainties that he had been plagued with. He was not going to let Aomine get out of his life ever again.

Kise continued to show Aomine around more places they had been to together. Unfortunately they didn't have too much luck with Aomine's memories. Kise saved one more place for last: the stadium where the Winter Cup was usually held.

Aomine's blue eyes flickered at a certain location just outside the stadium. "Hey I punched Haizaki here!" The bluenette chuckled pointing at the exact place where he knocked the guy out.

The model shook his head. "Geez, you remember stupid things like that, but you can't remember anything else? So mean," Kise moped dejectedly.

Aomine stroked Kise's hand with his thumb. "Sorry." Aomine shrugged. "If it makes you feel better, I more or less remember doing it for you."

"Really?" This was the first time Kise had heard of Aomine remembering anything.

"Well, bits and pieces of the situation, but I'm certain I socked Haizaki since he hurt you."

Aomine wasn't too far off from the truth." He stepped on my foot to gain leverage during our game, and caused me to get benched for most of the match against Kurokocchi," Kise groaned tiredly.

"Tch… I see." Aomine growled, squeezing Kise's hand with his own.

They continued to look at the stadium as memories began to flood through Kise. It was right after he had lost to Seirin, and Aominecchi had been waiting for him after the game. It was completely unromantic, being confessed to in a locker room while he was still crying and full of snot over a losing match. He remembered the way Aomine had softly kissed his blond hair and nuzzled his ear with his nose, while patiently calming him down. Well… maybe it was little romantic after all.

"Kise, I like you."

"Eh?" Kise snapped out of his muse down the memory lane and couldn't believe his ears. Did his memories manifest themselves? Surely he heard wrong. Aomine repeated himself. "I like you," and looked at Kise with adoration. Aominecchi was confessing to him. Kise's golden eyes widened, as he felt his face grow hot. Of all times, now he's embarrassed?

"Kise, please say something or I'm going home."

"No, don't!" Kise panicked. "I just… didn't expect Aominecchi to tell me that."

"Why not?" Aomine huffed. "Didn't we like each other before?" Kise grinned and playfully gave his new, yet familiar boyfriend, a soft punch to the shoulder. Aomine laughed, teasing Kise, and poked the blond's puffed cheek.

It was like building a puzzle. For every place Kise showed Aomine, Aomine would respond lovingly towards Kise, whether he remembered the places and events, or not. With the time they spent together in the past few weeks, they created new memories together, discovering a newfound love for each other. In retrospect, Kise didn't think that was too bad.

Kise gave Aomine a swift kiss on the lips, letting out an embarrassed laugh. "Thank you, Aominecchi."

… … …

I like Aominecchi too.

They stopped by a ramen place for dinner. Aomine ordered Kise's favorite bowl without the model telling him what he was about to get. It surprised the blond.

"We've only eaten here once together, which was the last time we came here," the blond tugged on Aomine's sleeve. "Heh… Aominecchi's a quick learner. I'm impressed."

"Shut up," Aomine retorted, but lacked menace in his voice. "I'm seriously trying here."

"I know you are," Kise grinned, placing a peck on Aomine's cheek.

At the end of the day Aomine would walk Kise home. Sometimes he'd spend the night. On nights that he stayed over, he'd asked Kise to tell him stories before they slept.

"Kise, could you tell me about the time we first met?"

Kise paused for a moment before giving Aomine an affectionate look. "Of course."

Aomine expressed amusement at the fact that their first meeting in Teikou wasn't too much different than him meeting Kise in his amnesia state. "… Only it sounded like I really didn't mean to whack the back of your head with the ball, Kise. But you, on the other hand, actually threw one at me on purpose!"

"I didn't know how else to get your attention!"

"A simple 'hello,' would have been fine, Kise. You're lucky I didn't press charges for another head injury."

Kise grimaced at Aomine's choice of words and rolled his eyes. "Don't say that." Kise pouted and turned under the covers, so that his back was facing Aomine.

"Sorry…" Aomine massaged Kise's back with a finger, causing the blond to shudder to his touch.

"Hey… that first game we had at Inter-High… I caused you to be upset didn't I?" Kise turned on his side again to face Aomine who was staring at the ceiling in deep thought. It was unusual for Aominecchi to talk this much, especially about him. Up until now, it had been "yes I remember" or "no I don't remember". More of the latter. That game at Inter-High was always a touchy subject, even for the Aomine that he once knew. Kise was a bit taken back that Aomine was even bringing it up in the first place.

"Aominecchi…" he simply replied, snuggling closer to the other. Slowly with time they will be able to discuss all that they had been though. Someday, he would have enough confidence remind Aomine that they were once engaged. With time, they would call each other by their given names again. And someday he will be able to tell Aomine about all the rough times as well. Will Aomine accept them, or will he get angry? Before the accident, he and Aomine weren't exactly the happiest couple. Right now, Kise didn't want to think of all of that. He just wanted to be in the warmth of Aomine's arms. Kise closed his eyes, letting sleep take over him.

Kise woke up mumbling to himself. "Maybe we should go there… no maybe that place? Ah, I don't know!"

His bedside neighbor let out a groan. "Ryouta… you're always so loud in the morning."

"What did you just say?" Kise turned over, surprised at the outburst.

Aomine blinked opened his eyes with some confusion. Did he used to say that out of an old habit? When Kise saw that Aomine was just as perplexed as he was, "Your personality is getting worse," the blond joked. "Where was the nice policeman I met the other day?" The bluenette grumbled as Kise laughed at him.

The bed made a creak when Kise sat up. "What do you want to do today?"

"I don't really care."

When Kise hopped into the shower, Aomine took the time to look around the apartment again. He smiled at the picture that Kise finally let to stand, the one with them together and laughing their hearts out. He still couldn't remember details of that day, but slowly and surely the memories will come back. His eye caught something shiny on the floor and he picked it up. It was a simple silver ring. At closer glance, he read 'Never To Part' from inscription inside.

Aomine's deep blue eyes sparkled as he set the ring down next to the photo.

When Kise emerged from the bathroom, he found Aomine rubbing away some tears from his eyes. "Aominecchi? What's wrong?"

Aomine collected himself and looked up at Kise with a comforting smile. He approached the other and embraced his lover close to him, breathing in the familiar scent. He gave Kise's hair a small peck, and brought his nose towards Kise's ear and nuzzled at it. Kise froze at the memorable touch before nestling his head on his lover's chest in a tight hug, and felt himself tearing up as well.

Everything was going to be alright.

A/N:

Omg it's finally done ahhhh

I like sad stories with a happy ending

This is my contribution to my OTP AoKise /blows kisses at the awesome fandom

I apologize for inaccuracies on systematized amnesia… somehow I managed to write such a this monster fic out of it…

I'm sorry for any mistakes in the story orz

The story made sense in my mind, so I'm sorry for the ridiculous amounts of page breaks/lines, and flashbacks /sighs

I put a lot of love into this hehe I hope you all enjoyed this as much as I enjoyed writing it