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“Akashi-kun, please. No more.”
“But Tetsuya, I’ve only gotten through half the list. I must finish.”
Akashi could have sworn he heard a small sigh from Kuroko, but his expression hadn’t changed a bit. “What does a clock do when it is hungry?”, he asked. This time Akashi definitely saw Kuroko narrow his eyes, even if just slightly.
“What?”
“It goes back four seconds.” Akashi eagerly awaited the giggle he’d been trying for, but instead what he got was Kuroko staring blankly (as he’d done with every joke prior). As an added bonus to this joke however, he also got Kuroko standing up and walking out of the room.
“Tetsuya, what are you doing?”
“Making tea.”
“But I’m not done with my jokes yet,” he protested.
“Maybe you’re not, but I am.”
Akashi knew full well that Kuroko wasn’t being mean, and in all honestly he could hardly blame him for being done. Akashi had been practicing his jokes with Kuroko practically since the day they’d moved in together. He’d confided in Kuroko that jokes were not his strong suit and he’d like to practice his comedic timing. Kuroko had said it wasn’t so much his comedic timing that needed work, but pretty much everything. He’d also said that it was perfectly fine for Akashi to be weak in something, but Akashi just wasn’t having it.
Akashi rose from his seat on the couch and joined Kuroko in the kitchen. “So tell me, what was it this time? Have I made any improvements?”
Kuroko didn’t look away from his tea preparations while he answered, “Akashi-kun, as I’ve said each time we’ve done this, it’s pretty much everything. Especially the jokes, though. They just aren’t great.” His voice was clear, yet gentle. Truth be told, Kuroko always enjoyed these times with Akashi because they were hilarious, but for all the wrong reasons.
Akashi’s jokes were corny or just not funny, his delivery was usually stiff, and his just didn’t have timing down at all. They weren’t always puns he told, some were lengthier. Either way, he just didn’t have any of it down. Kuroko had no idea how entertainingly bad it would all be when he initially agreed to provide feedback on Akashi’s jokes, but he never let that show. He always sat there with a polite expression and gave his most sincere comments on each new joke.
Kuroko genuinely felt sorry for his friend; he wished it were easier for him to make jokes. He never imagined that joke telling was such a fine art, despite hearing it from Izuki over and over again…
“Oh!” Kuroko suddenly exclaimed, looking at Akashi with wide eyes.
“Hm?” Akashi tilted his head, mildly concerned.
“I know what can help you,” Kuroko said with a small smile. After months of doing this he couldn’t believe he hadn’t thought of this sooner. “Stay here,” he requested, walking out of the room. “Oh, and please finish making my tea.”
Akashi waited, eager and curious. Several minutes had passed and an uncharacteristic giddy impatience bubbled up in his chest. Not that he didn’t experience impatience, it just wasn’t usually… giddy. He was an adult now and that sort of thing was for kids, right? He shrugged at his own thoughts while he poured himself a cup of tea.
Not long after, he heard Kuroko’s footsteps fast approaching and he looked up just as Kuroko walked through the door frame holding what appeared to be three small notebooks, worn and well used.
Akashi took a sip of his tea, trying to maintain the appearance of cool aloofness, before asking, “What are those?”
Kuroko smiled a bit, seeing right through Akashi’s act. He held the books out showing off the title of the one on top.
“Pun Book vol. 13?” Akashi asked.
“I’m not sure if you remember Izuki Shun, he was the point guard on my high school team, but his hobby was pun making. He recorded all of his jokes down and after the graduation ceremony in his third year he gave the remaining team members a volume of his pun book collection to ‘keep his pun spirit alive’.” Kuroko handed the books to Akashi. “Furihata-kun and Kagami-kun gave their copies to me after looking through the books as they didn’t feel they needed them,” he remarked, shrugging a bit.
Akashi flipped through the top book, examining the scrawled jokes on each page. Plays on words, puns, wordy jokes, the book had them all. More than that though, there were notes in the margins and around each joke on timing and delivery and everything else imaginable. There was even a short grocery list, but Akashi was sure that wasn’t necessarily intentional.
Kuroko watched Akashi leaf through the book, hoping that it could help. He recalled that Izuki’s jokes weren’t all that great but there was no doubt Akashi could learn something from someone who considered himself to be well versed in joke telling.
Kuroko grabbed his tea and moved to sit at the kitchen table with Akashi quickly following suit. They drank their tea as Akashi looked through the books, his eyes lighting up brighter and brighter with each passing page. Kuroko watched him read, pleased that he could help even in such a small way. He hated to see Akashi disappointed and he wanted nothing more than to see Akashi accomplish even the smallest goals he set for himself. Plus, he knew how hard it was for Akashi to admit he was bad at something and accept help from others, even after all this time.
However, to Akashi this was no small gesture. Even though it might just seem like he’d been given a few joke books, it was the steadfast help he received from Kuroko that truly touched him. “Tetsuya, this means a lot to me.” He knew those words weren’t enough, but he wasn’t sure how else to phrase it. He was incredibly grateful. Kuroko had done a lot for him over the years, both intentionally and unintentionally, and Akashi still didn’t know how to properly express the gratitude he felt. He admired Kuroko’s kindness, selflessness, loyalty, and unfailingly generosity. Akashi wondered if he’d ever be able to fully express just how deep that admiration ran, because he knew that Kuroko deserved to understand it.
Kuroko let out a quiet laugh, pulling Akashi out of his own head. “Did you say something?” he asked, clearing his throat and shaking his head a little.
“I said you can consider this an early Christmas present.”
“Ah, yes. Christmas is fast approaching isn’t it.” Akashi knew that Kuroko’s comment was in jest, but it reminded him of the holiday. He hadn’t really given it much thought because this time of year wasn’t his favorite. Not that it was particularly unpleasant; it just hadn’t meant much to him in a long time.
They hadn’t discussed whether they’d decorate their apartment or exchange gifts, but Akashi was suddenly very sure that he needed to make the holiday a special one for Kuroko— a Christmas he would hopefully cherish and remember for a long time to come. It wouldn’t be the kind of gesture that would fully express the feelings Akashi had for Kuroko, but it would be a good start.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
In the days leading up to Christmas Kuroko had noticed that Akashi was busier than usual. Well not necessarily more busy, it was just that he seemed to be rushing around quite a lot. Akashi was very good at maintaining many activities while appearing very collected and well balanced, but as of late he seemed… frantic? Kuroko wasn’t sure if that was the right word for it, but either way it was odd.
Akashi had been out shopping, making many phone calls, sending lots of emails, writing lots of notes to himself… he just didn’t stop. Even though it was midday on Christmas Eve, he still wasn’t stopping.
“You really should sit and relax, Akashi-kun. All this rushing around isn’t good for you. And it is nearly a holiday, the time when you’re supposed to relax the most.”
Akashi made a comment, but it was muffled by the pen he had hanging out of his mouth. His eyes were fixed on his phone screen and his fingers were typing a mile a minute. Kuroko frowned, but let it go. He was sure that whatever Akashi’s time was being occupied with was important.
“So what does Akashi-kun have planned for tonight?” Kuroko asked. In all the haste, neither one of them really had a chance to discuss their plans.
Instead of answering Kuroko’s question, Akashi replied with a request. “Tetsuya, would you mind running out to the shops for me? There’s a few things I need and I’m quite busy here…” He trailed off, leaving a pause before politely adding, “If you cannot, that’s fine as well.” Akashi felt bad making the request, but he needed Kuroko out of the apartment for a couple hours.
“Of course. I don’t mind at all,” Kuroko replied in a kind, albeit mildly confused, tone.
Akashi handed him a list, helped him get his coat on, and saw him to the door. Kuroko was out in minutes. “Show time,” Akashi whispered to himself.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
The list Akashi gave Kuroko wasn’t very long, but it seemed like none of the items could be obtained at the same shops and there were so many people out and about that it made the trip all that more tedious. Kuroko genuinely didn’t mind, but he was very curious as to why Akashi needed such random items… and why he hadn’t asked for this to be done at a less busy time.
It only took a couple hours and soon enough Kuroko was on his way home. He sent Akashi a message saying that he’d be home in a few minutes to which he got a ‘Perfect!’ in reply. He pocketed his phone and made his way up the steps to their third floor apartment. When he got to the door he heard faint Christmas music playing from within and smiled, hoping that Akashi had finally taken his advice and pumped the brakes on all the things he was doing to take a break and relax.
Upon opening the front door Kuroko was met with a very different scene.
He was greeted with the scent of freshly baked cookies, the sight of beautiful homemade Christmas decorations and a small table top tree, the sounds of Christmas music and quiet chit-chat, and the warm feeling of happiness and familiarity. He took a moment to hang up his coat, then he silently entered the living room. He stood there for a moment taking it all in. There in his living room were the faces of his friends. Aomine, Kise, Midorima, Murasakibara, Momoi, Kagami, and Akashi. Even Takao was there (he had probably insisted on joining Midorima in the festivities), who was actually the first to notice him.
“Oi! You guys, look who finally made it to the party,” Takao exclaimed cheerily.
Everyone turned in Kuroko’s direction, a moment of shock crossing their faces (how long had he been standing there, Kuroko was sure they were wondering). Everyone was grinning suddenly though and yelled “surprise!” but Kise and Momoi broke into a fit of giggles, knowing it wasn’t really that much of a surprise anymore. “Kurokocchi! You should make more noise when you enter a room!” Kuroko shrugged at Kise, and then turned in Akashi’s direction.
“Is this what you’ve been doing these last few days?” Kuroko asked, his surprise and happiness displayed across his face.
Akashi tried to stifle a grin, and Aomine beat him to the answer. “Yeah, he’s been emailing us all week making sure we’re coming and asking us to bring food and decorations. It was so bothersome.” Kuroko knew that Aomine was putting on a front, so he flashed him a small smile which Aomine returned by making a face.
After greeting and chatting with the others for a while Kuroko joined Akashi in the kitchen where he’d skittered off to while everyone was talking to make sure the cookies didn’t burn.
“I invited your old teammates from Seirin as well, but they’re all running a bit late,” Akashi remarked as Kuroko entered. “I hope its okay that I did this…”
“Yes, this is great. Akashi-kun did a very nice thing,” Kuroko said, smiling. “I appreciate it very much.”
Akashi turned towards Kuroko, his face sincere and a faint blush coloring his cheeks. “I just wanted to do something nice for you, Tetsuya. You’re always so good to me, I want you to know that I also appreciate you.”
Kuroko chuckled, walking up to Akashi and wrapping his arms around the boy in a warm hug. “Of course I know you appreciate me,” he stated simply as he rested his head on Akashi’s shoulder.
Akashi hesitated for a moment, taken aback by the sudden hug. Soon though, he was hugging Kuroko tightly. He felt his heart swell with happiness to hear that Kuroko knew he was appreciated, but Akashi felt that he never wanted to stop doing things to show Kuroko that he was not only appreciated, but also loved. Because, as Akashi was learning, these things start out with even the smallest of gestures.