The Man Who Ran Off With The Moon - [ Tsukkiyama Art Thief AU! ]

Remarkable

Tsukishima awoke once during the final hours of night to see that Yamaguchi was no longer beside him. He scanned the room, but the man was nowhere to be found. The light of the camera was still off.
When morning arrived, he opened his eyes to see him sitting at the foot of the bed, lacing up his shoes.
Yamaguchi looked strange in suits. Older.
"I'm going to have breakfast with Goda. I'm sure food will be brought over for you" , he said, curtly. Tsukishima watched as he left the room.
No food came. The sun was pulled higher into the sky. At some point, the cameras light was reignited, but he didn't care that he was being watched. Tsukishima put back on his clothes from the day before. He went through Yamaguchi's things, finding nothing interesting, flipping through books and shuffling papers. Eventually, he gave up, leaning against the glass of the window.

Tsukishima Kei did not feel like a man facing his own death.

Death, maybe, was the kindest way for someone to be lost. It left nothing unsaid. He felt his eyes open more as the day continued to pass,every moment marked in finality. Tsukishima thought that maybe life held two deaths, the physical one, and the one when you are forgotten by those most important to you.

Yamaguchi had forgotten him so long ago, maybe Tsukishima was already one foot from the door of the living.

It doesn't matter much.
No, I really just can't care anymore.

The only place in him that burned was when he thought of Kenma and Kuroo, who were waiting in the same way that he was, though they did not know what they were waiting for. It gave Tsukishima a morbid peace to know that when they would go, they would go together. Kenma and Kuroo. Kuroo and Kenma, as it always had been.
At least he wouldn't have to carry the guilt of their involvement for too long.
Eventually, the men came for him.
Yamaguchi was back in his unreadable state, accompanied by the guards from the day before. He flicked his eyes towards the floor. "Get your jacket."
"Why?"
"It'll be cold."
"So?"
"Just get your jacket."

Kenma and Kuroo were pulled from their room, looking sleepless. They grasped each other tightly as the trio was marched through the hall. "Do you know where we're going?",Kuroo muttered. Tsukishima didn't want to inflict panic on him, so he forced his shoulders to shrug, "On a boat."
"Maybe they're gonna throw us on an island, and it'll be like Lost. Or Lord of the Flies. We'll use rocks to spell out HELP in the sand, and then they'll make a documentary about us when we're rescued."
Kuroo chuckled slightly, trying to alleviate the tension. Kenma smiled weakly, but when Tsukishima caught his gaze, the painted grin quickly disappeared. Kenma's eyes reddened and he quickly turned away, making the smallest sniffling noise that he quickly covered up with a false cough. His husband had either not realized, or refused to realize the truth of their situation. Tsukishima could tell, though, that Kenma knew exactly what was about to happen to them. A subtle understanding passed between them that they would not speak of it.

It's the last time we'll ever have.
Let's not ruin it.

They were shuttled into a car, Yamaguchi in a different vehicle. His strange words from yesterday ran circles around Tsukishima's head. "I do love you...I never wanted to drag you into this... Things you don't understand."
Ignore, ignore. Those words held a strange hope in them, a hope Tsukishima did not wish for. Yamaguchi would never cease to be misleading. It was unwise to place trust in strangers.
It was mid afternoon when they walked up the ramp to Mr. Goda's sleek yacht. Besides them, the wharf was empty. Not a savior in sight. The man himself sat at a small table on the top deck. Yamaguchi hovered around him like a fly, refilling his glass of champagne. It was not a large boat, but it was well maintained.
"I'd offer you some, but it seems you three have your hands full.", Goda laughed, pointing out their bound wrists. The case containing the Eye of the Moon rested beside them. Kuroo glared.
Tsukishima turned as the boat pulled out into the ocean. The sea breeze made his hair whip wildly about. To him, the light reflected by the water was a thousand times more precious than any gemstone. The world looked so beautiful, spread out in front of him.
Tokyo disappeared behind them, the city a mere island within haze.
The boat slowed to a stop. Yamaguchi looked stoic at the bow of the ship.
"Get the jackets", Goda ordered. The guards returned, grunting and heaving, with three vests that had great metal weights attached to them. They were dropped on each of their shoulders, staggering under the weight.
"What's going on?", Kuroo mumbled. He took a step forward, but was met by a guard with a gun. "Kuroo..", Kenma said, warningly, as he pulled his husband back. He wrapped his arms around Kuroo's waist, leaning into his chest. Kuroo placed his hand on Kenma's head, a pained look settling over his face.
"Oh."
Tsukishima looked away. He didn't want to see them.
Goda clapped his hands, causing him to jump from the sudden sound. "Alright, no dramatics. If we want to be able to enjoy dinner, we need to wrap this up."
The guard closet to Kuroo pulled Kenma off of him and a mild burst of chaos erupted. Kuroo lunged at the guard, as Kenma went to kick his assailant. Tsukishima placed his body between the two, hands up, accidentally receiving Kenma's kick in the back of his leg. He crumpled slightly, "Fuck, Kei, sorry-"
Tsukishima ignored the apology, turning to face Goda. "Let me go first!"
Goda shrugged, "I don't care."
The guard brought Tsukishima to the edge of the boat, up to the railing. Yamaguchi crossed downwards, placing a delicate hand on the man's gun. His eyes never left Tsukishima's.
"Can I? It should be me, I think."
Goda waved permission, watching with a morbid curiosity.
Yamaguchi moved quickly, leveling the gun against his head. Tsukishima was pressed against the railing at the front of the ship.
Yamaguchi took a breath, "Try to fall backwards. It will be easier."
The ship rose and fell against the small movements of the waves. The wind moved in patterns, the whole wilderness of water rippling beneath them.
He tried to reflect on what life had been, but there wasn't much too it.

Tsukishima Kei had always been unremarkable.

That's how he had always thought of his own life, but in that singular moment he realized he could not have been more wrong.

The rare wonders of living flashed before him, almost like a montage.
It was remarkable that he had had such a happy childhood, a caring family, good food. It was remarkable that he had been able to play a sport he enjoyed for so long. It was remarkable that he had had close friends that stuck by his side since high school. He thought about every text and call he had received from his Karasuno companions, those who had wanted to check in and reach out. He looked at Kenma and Kuroo, their determined and tear stained faces. He had worked at a zoo, lived on his own, he had stolen the most valuable artifact in the known world. If anything, he had experienced too many fantastic things.

Tsukishima looked at Yamaguchi, his grim face, the gun leveled in his hand.
Maybe he hadn't know him.
But there had been an intimate trust between them. He knew, even now, he did love Yamaguchi. So much pain had passed between them, because they were painful people. There was a happiness in the belonging they had briefly found in one another.

How remarkable, Tsukishima thought.
that I've lived my life knowing what love is.

He looked at Kuroo and gave him a brief nod, before turning back to Yamaguchi.
Freckles. Amber eyes.
"You're- you're the worst, you know that?"
Yamaguchi nodded, smiling softly.
"I'm sorry, Tsukki."

Tsukishima smiled back. He closed his eyes, tilting his head to the sun.

BANG.