Work Text:
kuroo 10:32am
You’re late again
you 10:32am
shut up
save me a seat or else
kuroo 10:32am
Already did
you unplugged your phone from its charger and scrambled to get your water bottle and backpack before heading out the door in a hurry. it wasn’t the first time you’ve been late to economics but this certainly was the first time you’ve been late because of someone occupying your mind— specifically kuroo.
you’d been consumed by your thoughts all morning that you didn’t even notice time pass by quickly. before you knew it, there were only twenty minutes before your class started so you had gotten ready in a frenzy. strangely enough, caring more about your appearance than ever before. a little voice inside your head said it had something to do with kuroo, but you just weren’t ready to accept that.
you were actually kind of impressed that you managed to get yourself out the door in twenty minutes (although you were still late to class and kuroo’s text definitely proved that).
you exited your apartment building and made your way towards campus. the peaceful noise of cars and people passing by giving you time to mull over the same thoughts that had you late in the first place: kuroo and your theory that he might like you… it was a mess (enough of one to keep you up mostly the entire night).
but what started this theory in the first place was yesterday night after both of you finished your study session.
kuroo was in two of your classes, economics and physics. so your usual study time at starbucks was from the evenings until late at night.
a starbucks employee had recently kicked both of you out which led you to sit in kuroo’s passenger seat playing super smash bros on his switch. he placed it on top of the car dashboard as he hummed some random tune.
you couldn’t shake off the smile on your face which wasn’t rare whenever you were around kuroo. he always seemed to know how to make you laugh the loudest. you never really thought much of it though, you simply chalked it up to something platonic, nothing more.
after the fourth round of smash you started to have an inkling suspicion that kuroo was letting you win on purpose. “kuroo,” you let it drag on, “i’m starting to think you’re letting me win cause you feel bad.”
kuroo let out a dramatic gasp, “i would never do that,” he said while smashing a bunch of buttons, “i’m an honest man, (y/n). you should know this by now.”
“so you just suck at the game is what you’re telling me?”
“maybe you’re just good. ever thought about that?” he shot a quick glance at you before focusing back on the screen.
you stared at your joycon. you had no clue which buttons were for attacks. kuroo had explained it in a rush before diving into the first round so you had to adapt quickly, but it didn’t take a rocket scientist to tell you had no clue what you were doing and kuroo was simply letting you win.
after it finished, he let the controller drop on his lap while he leaned into the driver's seat and stared at you with a soft smile, “okay… so maybe i was letting you win on purpose. you caught me.”
you shifted your body to face kuroo and then you playfully pouted, “am i not a worthy challenger?”
he stared up at his car ceiling as if he was truly thinking through his answer and then he directed his stare back at you. there was a small pause where a smile gently reached his lips and he let his eyes drag down your face. you’ve seen this smile before on many of your exes. the very one that made you feel loved and it made you wonder how he’d react if you grabbed his hand and laced your fingers together but before you could really consider what it all meant, he shrugged and said, “seems kind of unfair to beat a noob.”
and just like that, the moment was ruined and completely forgotten (until later that night).
you punched his arm while he snickered. he put his switch away and started the engine, taking you the familiar route to your apartment.
“once i learn how to play, it’s over for you. then you’ll be impressed.”
kuroo smirked, “you’re trying to impress me? aw, i’m honored.”
you rolled your eyes, “you know what i mean.” you looked outside the window and noticed both of you approaching your apartment building. you gathered your things ready to head out.
once kuroo parked, there was a moment of silence and then his stare lingered on you before saying, “do i really?”
there was a double meaning in his question making your heart skip a beat. you noticed that he had lowered the music a little and his stare didn’t waver. the familiar soft smile from before graced his lips yet again. his hand fidgeted a little with the steering wheel while the other laid on his lap clearly nervous. you felt like something was supposed to happen and kuroo only confirmed that by the way his eyes quickly dropped down towards your lips
“do i really know what you mean?” kuroo repeated in such a soft tone it made you feel sweet and warm inside. you had a feeling that his double meaning had something to do with the way you guys constantly flirted. perhaps he wanted to know what your actions truly meant?
you knew that ball was in your court now. whatever you would say or do would determine everything. your heart was rapidly beating and the urge to lean against the car console and close the small space between you guys was incredibly tempting. you assumed he wouldn’t make the first move in fear it would startle you, but it had you doubting whether there was truly something going on between both of you. maybe you had just imagined the tension? maybe he was simply being his usual flirty self and you had just looked too deep into something that wasn’t to begin with.
your doubts led you to swerve the conversation back to something more innocent. you laughed nervously, “duh.” was all you could say as you swallowed your nervousness down. in a hurry, you try to grab your things, not wanting to make the situation any more awkward. you reached for the car handle before throwing one last glance at kuroo, “thank you for the ride. text me when you get home?”
“i will,” there was a hint of disappointment in his smile.
as you got out of the car, you could have sworn you heard kuroo say “so close.” but maybe it was your imagination.
so yesterday’s events were the reason you were up the entire night. you often found yourself replaying the few minutes before leaving his car. you wondered how yesterday would have played out if you had leaned against the console and kissed him. would he have rejected you? what if he didn’t? multiple questions swarmed inside your head to the point where you regretted leaving his car in a hurry.
as you entered the econ building, you came to a sudden revelation: you should have kissed kuroo yesterday. even if he would have rejected you or not, the moment was simply too good to pass by. as a result, regret ate at you more than doubt did.
after this realization, you figured you needed a do over. one that could get you and kuroo alone with the same tension from yesterday. the only idea you could think of was if kuroo drove you home again. it’d get you enough privacy to possibly set the mood (you cringed at this thought, but you were willing to embarrass yourself if it meant kissing kuroo).
so it was set, you were going to confess.
you walked inside your economics class and your confidence wavered a little. your eyes landed on kuroo who was staring intently at the board as your instructor described exchange rates, kuroo acknowledged your entrance by giving you a lazy smile that made you swallow hard. you considered forgetting the plan. seeing kuroo in real life was different than thinking about him. your doubts and fears were dormant during the night, but as you approached your seat next to kuroo, they slowly crept up on you, almost making you disregard your plan and simply leave yesterday’s events as history.
you sat down next to kuroo and fished inside your bag for your notebook and pen. you retrieved your notebook, but you were struggling to find a pen.
kuroo offered you his pen with a slight smirk on his face, “forgetting things now are we?” he whispered, trying not to disrupt the lecture.
you felt a little at ease after this, taking his pen and rolling your eyes, “shut up.”
you paid the instructor no mind, writing down what she wrote on the board without a single thought. instead you focused on figuring out how to get kuroo to drive you home. you decided to write it on the margin of your notes:
‘ can you take me home’
you then slid it towards kuroo who stopped taking notes in order to read your message. he gave you a quick glance as if assessing you before writing:
‘ Sure,’ kuroo paused, ‘ but what do I get in return?”
you glared at him,
‘you always want something in return can’t you do it out of the goodness of your heart?’
he snickered a little,
‘No’
he moved the paper towards you before sliding it back to write,
‘I believe it’s called the barter exchange…. So what are you willing to give?’
you lightly smacked him across the head,
‘my precious time’
kuroo feigned excitement,
‘How precious! In that case yes!!! ’
you tried to contain a grin, but it proved to be difficult, instead you let out a quiet giggle while you stared at your lap.
the remainder of the lecture went on slowly. you were anxious as it approached the end and your shaking leg showed that. kuroo glanced at your leg before raising an eyebrow at you.
you shook your head and controlled the jitters. he went back to paying attention to the board, occasionally running his hands across his lap. after a year of taking classes together, you learned what it meant when he’d set his pen aside and start running his hands through his lap, he didn’t understand the subject and needed time to process. it was crazy how you managed to learn little tidbits about him, like the way he often rested his head on his hand usually meant he’d either pulled an all nighter or he simply knew the material being taught and was bored.
before you knew it, class ended and the room was lessening by the second. kuroo gathered his things at a slow pace, clearly waiting for you.
kuroo’s car keys jingled as both of you exited the classroom, “so what’s the occasion?” he asked.
“huh?” was all you could dumbly say.
he shrugged, “why the sudden need to get a ride home? you always refuse everytime i ask.”
“not true! you gave me a ride yesterday,” you said, “maybe i wanted to hang out. you ever thought about that?”
kuroo fake gasped, “you never want to hang out though! this must be a dream.”
you rolled your eyes, “are you gonna take me home or not?”
kuroo stopped in his tracks, “how about i take you to that new sushi place?”
bingo. that’s exactly what you wanted kuroo to suggest. it would give you guys more time alone rather than him just dropping you off and calling it a day.
“you know what? that’s not an awful idea,” you try to control your smile.
“yeah? well, i’m full of great ideas. but you just wouldn’t know since you never want to hang out.”
“are you whining?”
kuroo shrugged, “maybe a little.”
both of you entered the car, as you put your seatbelt on, “a little? agree to disagree. you got it wrong. i always want to hang out.”
kuroo raised an eyebrow, “yeah?” he turned on the ignition, “with me?”
you thought right now could be your chance and your heart nearly jumped out of its chest at that thought. you weren’t expecting it to happen right off the bat. had he always been trying to shoot his shot with you and you were just oblivious to it? you tried to think back at all the times you were together. all the times he stayed up late with you to figure out accounting problems and all the times he’d say something you interpreted as friendly. you came to the conclusion that yes, you were oblivious.
kuroo stared back at you with a raised eyebrow as he lowered the music. you took a deep breath and decided it was your turn to throw the ball on his side of the court. “yeah, with you,” you could only pray he heard the intimacy and got the message. yeah, with you dumbass. i want to do more than hang out.
kuroo blinked as if not expecting such a bold answer, but he quickly regained his composure.
“so why don’t we?” clearly what he said had a double meaning and you knew exactly what he meant. why weren’t you guys more?
he grew a little closer. you wouldn’t have noticed if you weren’t so hyper aware of everything going on. the tension only grew thicker and your heart raced faster inside your chest. you considered backing down but quickly changed your mind at the sight of kuroo’s small smile. the familiar sight you’ve seen in many of your past exes.
you grew closer as well and kuroo took this as a sign to glance down at your lips. this was your only chance to confess. you were afraid if you rejected him right now that he’d move on from playing this whole cat and mouse thing and onto better things. you swallowed down your nervousness as his eyes traveled up to your eyes. You mustered up the courage to say something flirtatious back, “that’s a good question. why don’t we?”
all it took was for you to glance down at his lips after saying that and before you knew it, he closed the distance between you two. all past lowkey flirtatious comments and the constant tension between the two of you all in one kiss. he withdrew after a moment to which you had to stop yourself from chasing after his lips and looking as dazed as you felt.
“you have no idea how glad i am that you didn’t push me away,” kuroo let out a sigh of relief.
you only let out an airy laugh, “whaaat, why would i do that?”
kuroo tried to contain his smile, “cause you’re the most skittish person i have ever met,” he moved to grab one of your hands before placing a kiss you could only describe as gentle on your lips. “the amount of times i tried to give you a hint only for you to run away…”
“hey! in my defense it’s your fault for being flirtatious with everyone. i couldn’t tell if you were being for real or not.”
kuroo playfully rolled his eyes before placing a small kiss on the back of your hand, “i’m willing your look past your obliviousness.”
you let out a grin.
you could get used to this.