Kuroko no Basket x Reader One Shots

Nijimura x Reader

I tensed up my muscles and jumped, shooting the basketball like I had seen so many times before, but it just bounced harshly off the rim and to the side of the empty gym. I sighed and sat down, pulling my knees together, not even bothering to get the ball back.

The gym doors creaked open behind me and soft footsteps padded on the floor before I heard the voice of my friend Kuroko.

"(L/n)-san," he said gently, crouching down next to me, "Nijimura-san wouldn't have wanted this."

"This is the only thing I can do for him," I said. The sport that Nijimura loved was the only thing left of him. I had to honour it for his sake.

Kuroko was silent for a while before he spoke up. "Basketball should be fun."

"How can anything be fun anymore?" I asked. I rested my chin on my knees and hugged myself into a tighter ball. "He's gone."

"I know (L/n)-san." He put his hand on my shoulder and gave it a light squeeze. "But this won't help you."

"But what else am I supposed to do?" I whispered.

My question was met with silence. I knew that Kuroko was trying to find a comprehensible answer that would reassure me, but I was just grateful for his presence. He didn't need to say anything to comfort me, not that there was anything he could say. We sat like that until the bell rang, shrilling loudly to tell us that it was time for our next class.

As we got up, Kuroko looked at me, his eyes a sea of sympathy and worry. I gave him a small smile and nodded once to him to show my gratefulness for him sitting with me. Kuroko was easily my closest friend, right after Nijimura. But with him gone, Kuroko had become the only person I could confide in about his death. The others on the basketball team were also heavily affected, but they were grieving in their own ways. And sometimes that meant moving on and pretending it never happened in the first place.

After school Kuroko said goodbye to me and headed off to the gym for basketball practice. Ever since the. . . incident. . . happened, I had been avoiding going there. It wasn't right to see everyone playing without him. I walked out of the school gates, taking in a deep breath of fresh air as students around me started walking home or invited each other to hang out somewhere. I wasn't sure where I wanted to go. I wasn't in the mood to go to a store or café, and I didn't want to go home and be depressed for hours. Instead I let my feet guide me to where they wanted to go, not that concerned about my destination.

The sky was bright for this spring day. Young kids bicycled past on the small street while I walked on the sidewalk. I turned onto a small stone path that led through a small wooded area, the leaves of the trees gently rustling in the wind. As the trees thinned out and I walked into the clearing, I realized where I had come. It was the cemetery. Nijimura's cemetery.

My hand trembled slightly as I undid the latch of the rusty black gate. I walked in and looked around at the familiar and very depressing sight. There were gravestones everywhere, with dying flowers in the little holders in front of each one.

I walked carefully through the small rows, my muffled footsteps on the dirt seeming to pound in my ears. It was towards the middle where I saw his gravestone. The flowers in the holder were slightly fresher, only the edges browning and curling. I sat down in front of it and took a deep breath.

"H-Hi Shuzo. . ." I mumbled awkwardly.

This is so embarrassing! What if someone hears?!

I looked around the cemetery as if I expected someone to be watching me, but all was quiet and empty. I relaxed and turned back to the smooth stone. The words written on them came naturally to me. I had read them so many times that I knew them by heart; I didn't read them anymore, simply saw them.

Nijimura Shuzo: The brightest rainbow we could have asked for in our lives. Taken too soon, but valued for a lifetime. XXXX-XXXX.

I smiled bitterly. Lifetime. . .

"Tha-That's how it was supposed to be Shuzo," I said out loud, my voice faltering. "You're supposed to be here for a lifetime you idiot, not there."

I pursed my lips together before continuing. "We still miss you. Akashi's been a great captain so far but. . . it's just not the same. You should still be here." Scuffing the dirt with my foot, I whispered, "We needed you."

But I knew that no words or hoping could bring him back. I stayed like that for a long while, imagining all the could-haves and would-have-beens if Nijimura hadn't passed on. There were too many; he deserved so much more than what he got from life. It wasn't fair.

I sighed and got up, grabbing my bag and dusting my uniform off. Why did I even come here? I wondered as I went back to the entrance of the cemetery.

Just as I walked out and latched the gate, the sharp call of a bird made my head snap up, alert to the sound as I searched the sky for it. The bird wasn't there, but something else was. The sky was stained with a vibrant rainbow, stretching across like a bridge from one side to the other. The colours were so bright I had to blink a few times to adjust my eyes, not used to looking up after keeping my head down for such a long time. Giving the rainbow a small smile, I continued my walk home.

The rainbow was a gentle reminder. Nijimura may no longer be in this world, but he still lived on in other ways.

A/N: I'm honestly shocked. We just finished the 1K special one-shots and we hit 2K views already. I don't even know what to say. I wasn't expecting 1K this soon, much less to reach 2K right after finishing the 1K specials. You guys are just amazing. Thank you so much for doing this. I hope we'll have an amazing year of one-shots and memories. I'll do my best to keep giving you guys the writing you all deserve.