Spark | Kuroko no Basuke x OC

The Calm Before the Storm

"I got a cherry... Oi, the stem is still on this!"

"Is this a whole peach?!"

"What a pit surprise, huh?"

-----

Kagami stepped out into his balcony to get some fresh air as the rest of the team were finishing up with the hot pot. The game today was still fresh on his mind; he may have beat Aomine today, but like Hyuuga said, there was no time to stop and celebrate. They had another game in a day and soon after that Seirin will face more Generation of Miracles.

"Hello."

He turned at the sudden greeting and nearly lost his balance when Kuroko looked back at him. "H-How long have you been here?!"

"A while," Kuroko replied. Apparently, the boy had slipped out before he did.

"Damn it. I haven't felt that in a while..." he grumbled.

"Kagami-kun. Thank you for today."

The redhead stared blankly at the sudden gratitude. Why was the shadow thanking him again? "Ha? Where did that come from?"

"I don't know," Kuroko admitted as he looked out into the distance. It was peaceful out here, a contrast from his boisterous team inside. He didn't mind it either way, though. "The thought just came into my head. I'm really glad I met you, Kagami-kun," he said.

The sliding glass door suddenly opened and Tomoko's head poked out. "Sorry, am I interrupting something?"

"We were having a moment," Kuroko said with a straight face.

"Ohhhhhh," she mused. "Should I leave you two then? I'll tell the others to keep out—er, in."

Kagami's face contorted incredulously and he pulled the girl outside. "Sheesh, it's nothing like that! Kuroko's always saying such embarrassing things," he said with a small flush across his cheeks. "You guys are too carefree. Winter Cup is just starting, but we've already shown everyone almost all our cards. Our future battles will only be more difficult. Aren't you guys at least a little bit concerned?"

"No," Kuroko replied with his usual blank face, "We'll work to become stronger."

"And it's not like we ever back away from a challenge," Tomoko stepped between the two, her hands behind her back. She looked up at him cheerfully, "Like you said, the Winter Cup is just beginning."

Kagami stared at the two before letting out a small chuckle. He should've guessed that this was going to be their replies. Looking at it from a different perspective, having both of them being carefree wasn't necessarily a bad thing.

"I hate that you guys are always right—" Before he could finish his sentence, however, he felt Tomoko slump against him and soon Kuroko followed suit. "O-Oi, what's wrong?!" he cried in surprise.

They both knocked out in his arms.

-----

Thunder rumbled.

Kagami turned towards his apartment in hopes of getting the others to come and take a look at the two who suddenly came down with something, but to his horror, his entire team was down on the ground. Sheer panic ran through his body.

What the hell is this?! It's like they've fallen victim to a slow-acting poison. Was it Riko's cooking? Was that possible?!

"Taiga-chan..." Tomoko groaned softly. "We should check on the rest..."

Kagami nodded, opening the door to guide her in and pull Kuroko inside as well. If it was the foulness of the hot pot, then what was in it that delayed the effect? Suddenly, he felt a wave of nausea hit him as well. He stumbled forward and caught a glimpse of the opened cans of protein powder on the counter.