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“Kuroo, we have to leave now,” Kenma’s exhaustion is evident in his voice. Kuroo wipes at his face and calls back, letting Kenma know he’d be out in a minute. Kuroo gathers his belongings, chances one last glance at his puffy face in the mirror, and heads out to meet Kenma. Kenma glances in his friend’s direction but knows not to let his eyes wander for too long, lest he make Kuroo uncomfortable.
“Got everything?” Kuroo questions. Kenma nods and reaches down to pull his bag up and over his shoulder. The two boys make their way out to Kuroo’s car, strolling side by side silently. They stay silent the entire way back to their shared apartment, it helps them unwind from the day’s events and keeps Kuroo from getting distracted. Kenma takes the time to finish another shrine in Breath of the Wild. When Kuroo pulls into their designated parking space, turns off the car but makes no move to get out yet, Kenma turns off his switch to sit in silence with Kuroo.
“Is it bad?” Kuroo finally asks after several minutes of silence. Kenma turns to look at Kuroo’s face and his brows knit together ever so slightly. His right eye is swollen beyond belief with a large bruise accompanying it. His nose still has some dried trailing out and there's a nasty scrape on his forehead.
“Just a little. You can probably cover it up with concealer until it goes away,” Kenma suggests quietly. Had it been anyone else, they would have thought Kenma’s tone of voice too detached but this was Kuroo, he knew Kenma better than he knew himself. He could tell Kenma was worried, from the way he squinted his eyes to the way he let the silence fall over them comfortably. Kuroo sighed and leaned forward to rest his head on the steering wheel.
“What do you wanna do?” Kuroo turns his head to side to look at Kenma. The mid-afternoon sunlight filters in through the passenger side window and carves out Kenma’s figure. The light curls around his body and bathes them in a beautiful orange. For a second, Kuroo thinks Kenma looks like an angel. But as quick as the thought popped into his mind, he forced it away. His mouth goes dry and he can feel his face warming more and more by the second. Kuroo turns his gaze back down to his lap and brings his arms around his face to shield it from Kenma’s eyes.
“Kuroo?” Kuroo exhaled with a groan. He pulled himself back up and looked at Kenma again, watching the sun’s rays bend to frame Kenma’s tilted head. Kenma narrowed his eyes at his friend, doing a quick once over of Kuroo before shaking his head and getting out of the car. Kuroo smiled fondly and pushed open his door before following Kenma up to the apartment. After taking care of their bags, Kuroo has Kenma get him an ice pack for the swelling and he drops onto the couch.
“I assume you’re not gonna tell me off for fighting back then?” Kuroo asks tentatively. Kenma raises his brows and frowns.
“Why would I? He deserved it. Plus, you were just standing up for yourself,” Kenma adds nonchalantly. He takes the spot next to Kuroo on their sofa and leans his head on Kuroo’s shoulder. Kuroo leans his head on Kenma’s and let’s himself bask in the warmth that floods his system.
Physical intimacy is nothing new between Kenma and Kuroo but lately—see: after he realized he’s crushing—Kuroo gets embarrassingly red in the face and he always wonders if Kenma can tell. (Spoiler alert: Kenma can tell, he just thinks acting oblivious is funny.)
So when Kenma reaches over and taps Kuroo’s palm, it’s not entirely a shock. But why today of all days? What’s so special about today? Kuroo opens his palm for Kenma to interlace his fingers with Kuroo’s. Kuroo tilts his head just enough to nose into Kenma’s hair and feels his body shake with a laugh against the couch.
“Why today?” Kuroo voices his thoughts aloud.
“Because why not?” Is Kenma’s giddy response. Kuroo chuckles at that and sets the ice pack on their coffee table. He turns to Kenma and lifts his eyebrows with a smirk.
“Why not, huh?” Kuroo leans in and presses a quick kiss to Kenma’s cheek, pulling away just enough to stare into his eyes. Kenma smiles a genuine full smile with red tinted cheeks, and his hands in Kuroo’s but he thinks he wouldn’t want it any other way.