"Can you guys help me with my drive, please?" Kuroko asked Kagami and Sasaki. It was almost nightfall and they were just about to head home from Seirin High when the blue phantom had stopped them. "I've gotten as far as I can by myself."
"Sure thing man," Sasaki agreed readily, glancing at the redhead for his confirmation. He also nodded. "No time to waste, let's go!" He grabbed Kuroko's hand along with Kagami's, dragging them to the nearest streetball court.
The next hour or so was spent going one on one with Kuroko, the other running around behind the phantom to get Kuroko used to directing eyes to them. Once he was satisfied, Kuroko saw Kagami off before walking Sasaki home.
"I'm kinda nervous, not gonna lie," The white haired boy confessed as they walked hand in hand. "The next games are ones that might be interesting and I don't know if I'm ready for that."
"We'll be fine," Kuroko told him. "It will be challenging, but as long as we work together, I don't think we can lose."
"You're right about that," Sasaki chuckled, "But what I'm worried about is Kagami. He's been known to be quite the hot head, and I wouldn't trust him to hold my drink if I was a girl at a bar."
"Wow, that's low."
"It is," The two shared a smile before they realized they were already at his house. The lights were on, signaling that someone was there. "I'm glad I gave everybody keys to my house, but at the same time, they should at least warn me."
"You turned your phone off this morning, so they probably did but you didn't get it since you haven't touched your phone yet today. I would know, I've been with you all day," The phantom surmised, making Sasaki grimace since he was right.
"That would explain it.. Are you staying the night?"
"I would like to, yes, but I already asked my parents and they'd like me home tonight," He replied. "But I can stay for dinner. Shall we go in?"
"Yep!" Sasaki unlocked the door, then threw it open. "I'm home, whoever's here!"
"Hello Hayate," Akashi greeted, glancing at him from the kitchen where he was working on preparing dinner. The smell immediately made Sasaki drool.
"Aya, you sucked today!" Aomine shouted from the bathroom. All in the vicinity sweat dropped.
"Don't mind him," Kuroko said as he closed the door behind him, setting his bag down beside Sasaki's. "Though, I was surprised that he came to the match."
"I was also there," Akashi casually added before pecking Sasaki's lips. "Is curry okay?"
"Mhm, sounds great. As long as it gets in my mouth and doesn't taste like whatever the hell Riko made," The white haired bottom shivered at the memory and drawing a chuckle out of the Rakuzan captain.
"I'll do my best."
"Hey Aya!" Suddenly Aomine was picking him up, transporting the confused Sasaki over to the bed and throwing him down. "What was that today? You weren't doing anything," He cocked his head to the side.
"What do you mean?" Sasaki blinked rapidly, trying to wrap his mind around what was happening.
"Everyone always tells me go all out, but you, you weren't even trying during that game, were you?" The dark haired male demanded, then paused as he remembered something. "Well, you did try a bit in the beginning, but once the score gap got wider, you stopped and just focused on passing."
"That's right," Sasaki sat up, their faces now millimeters apart as they looked each other dead in the eye. "I'm all about competition. I either lower myself to someone's level or elevate so that the game can be fierce and fun instead of bland."
"Huh," Aomine pursed his lips before he was suddenly pushed away by a phantom.
"Stop being mean to Hayate-kun."
"Ahhhh, come on Tetsu," Aomine groaned on the floor, "I didn't do nothing!"
"Telling anyone they suck isn't exactly nice."
"Oh," He frowned, sitting up and looking at Sasaki guiltily. "Sorry about that."
"It's fine, I don't mind," The white haired boy smiled before kissing Kuroko on the cheek. "Thanks for defending me, Tetsuya."
"You're welcome," He replied, glancing away to hide his blush. Aomine and Sasaki shared a grin.
"Dinner's ready," Akashi called, so everyone darted over to the table. "Hayate, Tetsuya, you need to wash your hands."
"Nah, I'm fine," Sasaki clapped his hands together. "Thanks for the food!"
"Hayate," Akashi caught him before he could chow down. "I don't want you to get sick."
"I'll be fine!" He assured him.
He was not fine.
In the middle of the night, Sasaki was bent over the toilet bowl, puking his guts out. Since he had sprinted to the bathroom from the bed, the two who had stayed over woke up. Akashi immediately figured out what was going on, and went out to get some medication since Sasaki didn't have any stocked up. Before he left, he instructed Aomine not to reprimand him and to instead make sure he was as comfortable as possible.
"We aren't going to be getting any more sleep tonight. If you want to leave, go. But if you're staying, you're going to be monitoring and helping Hayate."
"Like I'd leave," Aomine scoffed. Sadly enough, when Akashi returned with the meds, Aomine was fast asleep leaning on the bed. Sasaki, meanwhile, was curled up in a chair with a blanket around him, a cup of hot chocolate in his hand.
"Feeling any better?" Akashi asked as he closed the door behind him.
"I'm not puking, but my stomach is saying that can change at any minute," Sasaki replied weakly, definitely not feeling good. Sighing, the Rakuzan captain went over to the counter and opened the medication, handing two to his lover.
"This should help you go back to sleep, you need to rest. Aomine and I will take care of everything else," He told him, so with a nod and no complaints, the sick boy took the meds and was herded back to bed, this time in his room instead of the living room.
Turning up the thermostat, Akashi placed a bell on Sasaki's bedside table just in case one or both of his caretakers weren't in the room when he needed something. Going to find Sasaki's phone, he opened it and texted the coach of Seirin, saying that Sasaki was sick, including his symptoms and that he wouldn't be available for the next few games until he recovered.
Making a note to call the school to let them know about it as well, Akashi returned to Sasaki's side. "Next time, I won't tolerate your defiance, Hayate."