Work Text:
The izakaya rattled again from the sound of Koganegawa's rambunctious laugh. Across the table, with little of Kahlua left in his glass, Tsukishima scowled.
"Tsukki! I can't believe you got roped in for extra practice with them just like that!" Koganegawa laughed again.
"It's not just like that. I had to bribe him first-"
"Telling me to practice with one of the top five aces in the country is hardly a bribe, Kuroo-san," Tsukishima brought his drink to the tip of his mouth, downing the rest of it while still maintaining his eye contact with the man. Kuroo snickered.
Tsukishima felt his throat burn. Part of it because of the alcohol and most of it because Kuroo Tetsurou's eyes were following the bob of his Adam's apple as he swallowed the drink.
Earlier, Kuroo had went up to Sendai, making a visit for the JVA project of promoting the second division. The Frogs had been in the gym, taking group photos and promotional ads which Tsukishima had a hard time with maintaining the small smile on his face. Kuroo walked in with the coach and had personally requested Tsukishima to pose with Vabo-chan for the JVA official Instagram post.
Instead of smiling, a small pout decorated his face and he was determined to let Kuroo know of his displeasure.
"Come on, Tsukki! We finally made you fall in love with volleyball, cut me some slack," Kuroo whined before he plastered his usual mischievous grin, just to make the veins on Tsukishima's forehead popped.
Yeah, true. He even said it as well when Kuroo was on the other side of the net during their match in the Nationals. He said that thanks to him, every once in a while, playing volleyball was fun. But what he didn't say was, thanks to him, Tsukishima had realized that he was nowhere near the straight and narrow.
Tsukishima had his first crush on the former captain of Nekoma at the young age of fifteen after they spent their time together at the summer camp. Now, at twenty-three, having dinner at the noisy izakaya, soy sauce stain on Kuroo's white button up shirt, it looked like Tsukishima hadn't gotten over that stupid crush yet.
He groaned low in his throat at his pathetic self.
The drop of heavy head by his right shoulder pulled him out of his misery. Kyoutani had fallen asleep and was snoring softly against his neck.
"Oh! I think it's time we leave. I'll send him home," Koganegawa, blessed his kind heart, offered to Tsukishima. He moved across the table, taking Kyoutani from him and tucked one of his hands under the man's arm. He balanced his body at the side of the table and eyed the jet-black raven, "Are you going back to Tokyo tonight, Kuroo-san?"
Kuroo shifted on his seat and looked at his leather watch. "Oh, it's still early. If I take off now, I might reach Tokyo before midnight."
"Then, drive safe, Kuroo-san." Koganegawa left with a sleeping Kyoutani and a skip on his feet.
For a while, the table was filled with silence. Tsukishima played with the rim of his glass, Kuroo cleared his throat after each gulp of his beer. It was... pleasantly comfortable.
"You don't want to go back to Tokyo yet, do you?" Tsukishima asked with an eyebrow raised.
"Nope. No," Kuroo breathed. "Not yet."
"Well, let's get out first before I sweat myself to death."
The izakaya was full of people, but that's natural due to the fact that it was the end of the week and people were planning to get themselves drunk for the weekend. Tsukishima was just looking for an excuse to be somewhere less crowded because right now, he was suffocating with each glance Kuroo threw his way.
"You wait outside. I'll pay first."
Tsukishima was ready to decline the offer, thinking it was better for them to split the bill before Kuroo stood up promptly and made his way to the cashier. He watched the sway of Kuroo's hip and had to forcibly peel his gaze away at the man's wide back. Tsukishima ruffled his hair, making it fluffier than it was necessary and pushed the chair back.
He walked passed Kuroo who was making small talk with the cashier-- who ever does that?-- and mouth for him to make it quick. Kuroo's wrinkles around his eyes were delightful as he nodded.
The chilly night air that caressed his face afterwards provide relief and Tsukishima only pray that he could survive the night. He felt his jacket was tugged lightly and Kuroo stood by his side. He folded his work blazer and hang it on his arm.
"Where do you want to go?" Tsukishima asked when Kuroo only looked at him softly.
"Anywhere. I don't mind."
And Tsukishima cursed his mind for supplying with the added phrase of 'as long as I'm with you' which Kuroo probably hadn't thought of.
"Let's go to the convenience store first. I'm thinking of buying dessert."
"It's your town. Lead the way, Tsukki," and Kuroo's smile after was just fucking blinding.
---
Tsukishima placed the red velvet ice cream cone on the counter. He fished his wallet from his back pocket when the cashier, a young boy in his late teen by the looks of it, stopped him with a hand on his arm. Tsukishima had half a mind to shrug the hand off but halted when the young boy removed his hand first.
"Uh, it's okay. It's on the house," the boy said with a red face.
Tsukishima had his quota of people paying stuff for him full for the night. He looked around the convenience store, a chain store as it seemed and deemed that the boy probably was making a minimum wage. "No, it's only an ice cream. I'll pay for my stuff."
"You don't have too," the boy spoke a little too loud and paused when Tsukishima grimaced. "It's just, I have always been watching you whenever you came in, and I want to treat you something, at least once."
If the boy was red before, he turned scarlet afterwards.
Oh?
It's true that he often came into the store right after practice for his daily sugar sustenance. He never particularly paid any attention to the people around him and he preferred not to be perceived anyway. But the tilt of the boy's voice screamed admiration and interest. Not cutting the boy some slack, Tsukishima asked, "How long have you been watching me for?"
The boy sputtered. "I- I'm not a stalker or anything like that! It's just...," the boy sighed, "you're pretty."
It was Tsukishima's turn to feel his face burn. He cleared his throat and decided to face his admirer like an adult.
Not only he had been perceived by a stranger, but that stranger had even called him pretty. Of all things, pretty? He shook his head and snorted softly, not wanting to offend the boy. "Thank you," he said, "but I'm a horrible, pretty person. I'm not worth it for you to spend a couple of yen even if it's just ice cream. So, please, let me pay for it and be on my way."
"Well, can I at least have your number?" The boy wasn't about to give up.
It's a good thing that there wasn't anybody else in the store and Tsukishima wasn't holding up the line or something. He was tempted to leave his ice cream on the counter when Kuroo sidled up next to him. Kuroo placed a tub of cookie and cream ice cream, one packet of chewing gum, one can of cold canned coffee and two sports magazines.
"I'm with him," Kuroo pointed a thumb at Tsukishima, "are these on the house too?"
The boy's eyebrows arched at the array of items on the counter. Kuroo picked the expensive ice cream tub and that alone was more than what the boy was being paid for an hour. His mouth was gaping and Tsukishima felt a bit sorry to witness what's happening.
"Well, kid. It's great that you're being a gentleman to the person I assume you like," Kuroo's arms flexed on the counter, "but words of advice, learn to observe if that person came in with anybody else first."
"You with him?"
The boy asked Tsukishima and Kuroo left an indignant squawk at being ignored. Was Tsukishima with him? He and Kuroo definitely entered the store together. But were they together together? Because he could tell that that's the direction of the question the boy posed. And Tsukishima was taking a bit longer than necessary to answer.
"Yes, he's with me. My boyfriend is visiting and we're planning to spend the night together as long as we can," Tsukishima could tell that the boy's shocked expression was mirrored by the man next to him, "so, could you please ring all of these stuff as quick as you can. Thank you."
The next bit passed by in a blur. The boy rung all of Kuroo's items and put them all inside one plastic bag. He's pretty sure the magazines would be drenched by the time the tub of ice cream and the cold coffee getting warmer. Kuroo stuck his tongue out when the boy frowned as he handed him the bag.
"Come on babe, let's get out of here."
Kuroo walked fast without any backward glance. Tsukishima reddened at the endearment used in an instant. The boy deflated. Although, he placed Tsukishima's red velvet ice cream in his hands just after he paid for the stuff they bought.
"If you ever feel bored and have enough of him, I'll be here waiting for you," the boy sniffed and Tsukishima felt bad that this was how he let the boy down. With a lie.
"Why would you think I'm going to ever have enough of him?" Tsukishima asked anyway.
"He looks like he hasn't got a clue of how much you love him."
In a way, the boy wasn't wrong. Kuroo looked like he hadn't got a clue because Tsukishima was never intended for Kuroo to know about his feelings. Kuroo deserved someone better. Someone who could bring so much more fun in his life compared to what he had to offer. Tsukishima was fine just like this.
"I doubt I'll be getting enough of him," he said finally, "but thanks for the offer anyway."
The bell rang as he exited the store with slowly melting ice cream in his hands. Kuroo was sipping on his coffee, eyebrows furrowed as he stared into the distance. His jet-black hair was swerving slightly following the gentle graze of the wind. There were puffs of breath coming out of his mouth after each sip.
The memory of Kuroo sipping canned coffee after Nekoma lost to Karasuno at the Nationals played at the back of his eyes. He'd always been watching from afar. There's no point to think that he could do something more about it.
Yes, Tsukishima was fine just like this.
---
The creaking noise of the swing accompanied their silence through the night. The playground was empty, Kuroo's car was long abandoned outside the izakaya in the first place. After the trip to the convenience store, Kuroo had walked ahead of him, strong shoulders gleamed under the moonlight and Tsukishima had no choice but to commit the view to memory.
Even now, the way Kuroo's nose twitched slightly at the sudden brain freeze he got when devouring the tub of ice cream was just another screenshot Tsukishima saved and stored at the back of his mind.
"There should be a time when you realize you won't finish that tub of ice cream by tonight," Tsukishima laughed softly.
"I panicked and it's already too late to put it back in the freezer," Kuroo pouted. He poked the plastic spoon begrudgingly into the melting dessert.
"Here, give me that. I'll help you finish it," Tsukishima held out his long hands, fingers almost grazing Kuroo's chest where he kept the ice cream close. Slowly, the tub was handed over and the tip of their fingers touched.
Kuroo threw his gaze on his polished shoes and Tsukishima smiled at the man's adorable stance. "Can I use your spoon?" He asked when he failed to locate any extra spoon to eat the ice cream with.
Kuroo grunted but said nothing else and Tsukishima took it as permission. He scooped a generous amount of ice cream and swirled his tongue around the spoon and realized too late that the same spoon had been in Kuroo's mouth.
Great! Now Tsukishima thought that he should combust and die quietly.
The ice cream was not too bad and before he knew it, he'd consumed almost half the tub while Kuroo was quietly whimpering by his side. By the time Kuroo rubbed his face far too many times already, Tsukishima decided to break the silence.
"You should go back to Tokyo now if you have had it for tonight. There's nothing interesting to do here anyway."
Sure, Sendai as a whole was quite the tourist attraction with a lot of scenic view to see and shrines to visit. But where they were right now, the only scenic view was the light illuminating the nearby apartment building and the only thing worth visiting was the one tree where locals would hang charms and amulets for fun.
Here was nothing like Tokyo where even as late as three in the morning, there's still a club or a diner open somewhere, cars were still on the road and people were still living their day.
"You know that you're more than what you see yourself as, right?"
Instead of nodding along to Tsukishima's suggestion of ending the night, Kuroo asked him a question which honestly came out of the left field.
"It's fine if you don't wanna go back now. No need to get personal. Jeez," Tsukishima scoffed and barreled another full spoon of ice cream into his mouth.
"Tsukki, I don't think I like what you said to that cashier boy before," Kuroo held his gaze after spending some time watching the ground.
"Oh, you're angry at me calling you my boyfriend?" Tsukishima heart ached at the thought. He toughened it out a bit more, "Sorry about that."
Kuroo looked at him quizzically before he shook his head. Jet-black hair falling more around his face. "No, I'm not talking about that, Tsukki."
Tsukishima pinched eyebrows were made more evident when the next scoop of ice cream was actually the last one. He savoured the last of it, leaving room for Kuroo to continue whatever it was he's going to say.
"You're not a 'horrible, pretty person'. You're not that kind of a jerk you always make yourself believe. You're nothing like that at all.
You're a nice person. You're blunt and can be rude at times, but you care about others. There's not many people who'd accompany an average salaryman who refuses to go home, eating ice cream late at night, you know."
Tsukishima knew Kuroo was talking at a normal volume people speak when it's night. But the words spilled from his mouth were so genuine and honest as though Kuroo was whispering them by the shell of his ears.
"And you said there's nothing interesting in Sendai, nothing to do, nothing to see, but I don't really care," Kuroo breathed through his nose. " It's you, Tsukki. You're here. Spending a bit of time with you is worth more than anything else you think I might be interested in."
Like Tsukishima already stated, Kuroo's smile afterwards was just fucking blinding.
"Don't sell yourself short Tsukki. I don't date someone horrible and uninteresting, even if it is just theatrics."
After, Kuroo had his hand on his own nape, playing with the shorter strands and looking away, red dusted his cheeks and the tip of his ears.Tsukishima's hold on the tub of ice cream was lax and the tub fell to the ground with a dull thud. His breath hitched as he contemplate the meaning behind Kuroo's bashful smile and hopeful glance.
Had his secret been found out?
"How long?" He asked, taking a shot in the dark.
Kuroo's head whipped around at the sound of Tsukishima grinding his teeth. A tilted smile at the corner of his mouth.
"How long have you known about my eight years crush on you?!"
Tsukishima was alternating between mildly embarrassed and utterly mortified as he felt the question-- more like confession-- left his mouth. He was downright fuming when Kuroo had the gall to appear horrifyingly shocked.
"Oh, you dick! Just tell me who told you about it? Is it Kozume-san? I know he was a bit suspicious the last time I saw him with Hinata. Or is it Akaashi-san? I've never told him anything but if someone were to guess, I bet he'd guessed right. Did Bokuto-san say anything to you? Nevermind, not him. He wouldn't notice anything anyway," Tsukishima was rambling and Kuroo was still quiet by his side.
"Or- I don't believe he would ever betray me but you never know it with him, he can be a little shit sometimes. Is it Yamaguchi? Have you been talking with Yamaguchi? Did he tell you about me because he was tired of me ranting about my crush on you every time you visit Sendai?"
Tsukishima was frustrated at Kuroo's refusal to speak because his mouth was opening and closing, only air came out of it. He needed someone to blame, something to hold on to because right now, Tsukishima was clawing for air. The fear of being found out and rejection teetering at the back of his mind.
Then, something shifted in Kuroo's eyes. Tsukishima saw Kuroo's eyes became impossibly big, eyebrows arched beautifully and he knew in an instant that something clicked in his brain. An understanding of some sort.
"Tsukki! You have a crush on me?" Kuroo wobbled in his swing. "Eight years??!!" he took a deep breath and whisper-shouted, "TSUKKI, WHAT THE FUCK!"
Kuroo didn't know. His secret hadn't been found out.
But, Kuroo didn't know, and Tsukishima had willingly let the secret he guard with his heart bare. It's out in the open now.
Tsukishima clicked his tongue and scowled to himself. If he kept quiet a bit longer Kuroo wouldn't know and it wouldn't be as humiliating like this. He stood up with a huff. "It's nothing. Forget everything I just said."
Tsukishima let his long legs take him somewhere else other than here and now.
Kuroo dashed on his feet, trying to keep up with Tsukishima who was fleeing the scene. The dirt crunched under his black Mizuno sneakers. "Tsukki! Stop!"
"I'm not stopping. Just go! Go back to Tokyo!"
He listened as Kuroo gasped and turned around, picking up the empty tub of ice cream that Tsukishima dropped. Huh, add litterbug in Tsukishima's whole ass resume for all he cared, removing himself from Kuroo was the top priority. He saw the red playground fence first before he was yanked a step backwards by the sleeve.
Kuroo's warmth and smell engulfed him in careful embrace. His palms splayed wide on his stomach. Tsukishima was rooted to the spot as his breath was knocked out of his lungs. Behind him, Kuroo's lips quivered against his skin, his heart raced rapidly against his back.
"Tsukki, you can't just tell me that and expect me to forget it after." Kuroo sighed followed by a few soft chuckles. The hands around his waist tightened and Tsukishima's knees nearly buckled. "You know you can't tell me to go back and act like you never confess for having a crush on me."
"I never meant for you to find out," Tsukishima whispered.
"Why not?"
"Because it's stupid."
Kuroo hummed against his nape and Tsukishima shuddered at the warmth. "It's not stupid."
"It is."
"It's not."
"It is."
"Look, Tsukki. We can keep going at it until the sun comes up," Kuroo loosen his grip around him, turned him around so they were facing each other but Tsukishima still hadn't have the courage to face Kuroo. "Or we can talk about it. And by god, how I wish for us to talk about it."
Tsukishima nodded slowly as he felt Kuroo's stare burnt a hole on his skin.
---
His apartment living room was bare, only filled with essential furniture, just the way he liked it. Kuroo was seating on the green velvet couch, the only thing that he ever splurge his money on, watching him intently as he sipped his strawberry flavoured tea by his side. The only source of light coming from the kitchen, painting half of Tsukishima's face golden.
"Last day of summer camp. You told me to eat some vegetables and I've been crushing on you ever since." Tsukishima decided to rip off the band-aid and be done with it.
That's the answer for the first question Kuroo had asked when they were in the car. When exactly during the eight years long period, had Tsukishima realized his feelings for him. He asked that Kuroo send him home first because he was waiting for some miracle in which Tsukishima could somehow became amnesiac and he'd have legit reason to feign ignorance of the whole thing.
"Makes sense. You gotta eat your vegetables so you'd grow big and strong," Kuroo nodded wisely. His arms were crossed against his chest, eyes thrown on the soft grey mat, deep in thoughts.
"Thanks for the heads up," Tsukishima snarled. It's fifteen minutes to midnight and Kuroo was nowhere near Tokyo at this point. "Look, I already decided to not actually act on my silly little crush on you. You don't have to do anything about it.
You could've just leave me at the playground and it would've been fine. But no, you asked for us to talk," Tsukishima grimaced.
"Tsukki," Kuroo sighed long and deep, "did you know that I begged my boss for the opportunity to come here, today?"
Tsukishima saw Kuroo's smile wavered.
"Division 2 promotion was someone else's responsibility. I wasn't supposed to be here at all," Kuroo rubbed his face raw. "But I wanted to see you, so..."
'Here I am,' Tsukishima supplied in his mind.
"But that doesn't mean anything," his mouth stubbornly uttered. "You could've said that you wanted to see Koganegawa and it would've still meant the same thing."
"Well, I could never imagine myself spending half of the time delaying my return back home for Koganegawa could I?" Kuroo was calm while Tsukishima's heart was rattling against its cage. "I could never imagine to mindlessly buying a tub of ice cream which flavour I don't quite like because somebody else was hitting on Koganegawa and I was jealous, could I?"
Kuroo shifted in his seat, "I could never imagine, being told by someone whom I have admired for a long time , not Koganegawa obviously, and not be honest about how happy it makes me feel, could I?"
By the time Kuroo looked up to him, Tsukishima was closing the distance between them. He tried not to hold any hope, "When was it?"
"Summer camp, the first moment I saw you getting off the bus," Kuroo smiled against him. Their lips not yet touching.
"It was only the second time I saw you. You with your long legs and permanent scowl on your face, and I realized I was thrown deep into a fiery pit, nobody else can help me," Kuroo was staring into his eyes. "See? If you say your crush on me is stupid, then I'm the same too. Because till this day, I'm still in the same fiery pit."
Tsukishima chuckled against Kuroo's lips. That's so stupid. One look at his legs and Kuroo was wrapped around his fingers? Seemed like a recipe for disaster.
But for now, Tsukishima held his breath. For now he was holding to the fact that Kuroo was here, way after midnight, and he's glad he no longer have to keep a respectable distance whenever the JVA employee make his visit to Sendai.
"Seems like we're both dumbassess then," Tsukishima rolled his eyes, "Fucking eight years."
"Yeah," Kuroo muttered. "Tsukki, if you don't kiss me at this moment, I'm not sure I'm gonna survive until the morning."
Tsukishima licked his lips before placing them between the groove of Kuroo's mouth. The soft smooching sound their lips made send shivers down his spine. Kuroo chased after him when Tsukishima decided to grow some conscience and be bashful for a moment.
"You gotta be kidding me Tsukki. That's not nearly enough to make up for eight years," Kuroo whined, tucked between Tsukishima's neck and shoulder, strong hands holding Tsukishima's sides.
"Why didn't you say anything?" Tsukishima asked as fingers found the messy jet-black hair. It's soft. He'd never imagined the bird nest to be this soft. "I decided to keep it to myself because there's no way I'd do something as embarrassing as confessing my feelings to the captain of the rival team. And... I wasn't sure you wanted to hear a silly little confession from a rude kouhai," Tsukishima gulped.
"Also, Sugawara senpai wouldn't have allowed it," he chuckles as he remembered his former vice captain. "You know fraternizing with the enemy and stuff."
Kuroo was muffling his laugh against his skin. His warm breath was a welcomed sensation.
"You're too cool. There's no way I'm getting sassed after confessing to the snarky first year who would glare at me if he had the chance," Kuroo pushed himself off and thumbed him on the cheek. "I'm scared you'd reject me."
Tsukishima contemplated and wholeheartedly agreed with Kuroo. Fifteen years old Tsukishima would snarl and mock anything which had any resemblance of feelings. It's hard wrapping himself around the idea of playing volleyball for fun.
The idea of having the energy and devotion to spend on a relationship? Younger Tsukishima would rather dig a grave and lie in it.
Twenty-three years old Tsukishima said, "Yes, younger me would stomp your feet and walk away. Good job on making the call."
They both laughed.
"So, what's next?" Tsukishima braved himself and asked.
"Next, we figure out when and where we want to go for our first date," Kuroo gazed up at him sleepily.
"Hmm, how about we think about where you're going to sleep first because there's no way I'm letting you drive back to Tokyo in this state." Tsukishima had one hand supporting Kuroo's weight on his back. The other was brushing the hair out of his face.
"I'll sleep here. On your couch or in your arms, I don't care," Kuroo grinned and squeezed his biceps lightly. "I'm saying it'd be nice to have these strong arms holding me while I sleep. Not complaining if you don't wanna because it's too fast or anything."
Tsukishima scoffed, "Don't be stupid. You need to change into clean clothes first before you get into my bed. Come on, I'm lending you mine."
Kuroo perked up at the invitation. And Tsukishima decided to not second guess any of his decision regarding Kuroo anymore. Eight years of admiring from afar was already enough.
---
"Tsukki! Look at the promotional video we took last month!" Koganegawa shouted from his left. Tsukishima put the balls he picked into the trolley, Kyoutani raised an eyebrow as Koganegawa approached them.
Koganegawa played the video on his phone and immediately the sounds of electric guitar blared from the speaker. Tsukishima watched their captain tossed the ball into the air before jumping up for a serve. Next was the shot of the middle blockers jumping higher than the net before switching to Kyoutani's powerful spike.
"It seems like your boyfriend knew what he was doing with the promotional video after all. This looks great," he praised.
Tsukishima did a double take at the man blonde-dyed hair.
"What? You're dating him right? That shady looking JVA employee," the man continued.
They'd only been dating less than a month and Tsukishima had been careful to not let the info slipped so easily into any conversations he had. How could Kyoutani know about this?
"Yeah, Tsukki, it's too late to be embarrassed now," Koganegawa smacked him on the back flatly. The sound echoed throughout the gym. "Oh wait! Or was it just us who had been drinking too much when Kuroo-san asked us if Tsukki is dating anybody?" Koganegawa threw the question to Kyoutani.
"How would I know. I already thought they were already dating before with the way Tsukishima looks like every time that person is around," Kyoutani shrugged.
"Yeah, Tsukki! You guys should date by now if you guys haven't. It's painful to see you guys so close yet be so far from each other," Koganegawa chirped.
"What do you mean painful?" Tsukishima was like a toddler who needed to be guided with the way Koganegawa and Kyoutani were talking back and forth about him and Kuroo.
"Oh, you mean like how you guys' eyes sparkle when you see each other-" Koganegawa started.
"Like how you guys' weren't saying anything but understand each other anyway-" Kyoutani added.
"Or the way you guys' turn a shade darker when you guys call each other's name-"
"Or the way your playful banter is just borderline foreplay-"
"Or the way you guys undress each other with your eyes and think that all of us can't see-"
"Okay stop. I get it," Tsukishima said finally.
"I think Kuroo-san likes you Tsukki. You're blind if you can't see it," Kyoutani patted his shoulders before continuing his job of picking the volleyballs off the court.
Tsukishima whipped his phone out of his pocket.
To: Kuroo-san
Have you noticed if my eyes sparkle every time I look at you?
The reply came less than a minute later.
From: Kuroo-san
Your eyes always sparkle. Wdym?
To: Kuroo-san
Did you ever feel like when we were bantering, it was borderline foreplay?
From: Kuroo-san
Intelligence turns me on, Tsukki.
No, seriously. What's with the questions?
Are you breaking up with me?
I'm taking the day off to go to Sendai right now and I'm ready to beg!
To: Kuroo-san
Don't be ridiculous. I'm not breaking up with you, you dumbass.
Tsukishima's fingers hovered the keyboard as he thought about another follow up. He guessed that to others, their affection towards one another was quite evident. But somehow, because of their own lack of confidence and self awareness, they'd wasted years of being by each other's side and in each other's lives as more than friends. So, Tsukishima wasn't going to waste another second denying his feelings anymore.
To: Kuroo-san
I'm not going to break up with you for at least another eight years. You're stuck with me until then.
Gotta go now.
I love you.
He smiled as he received the response seconds later.
From: Kuroo-san
Already took a day off tomorrow. See you tonight.
I love you too, Kei.
That's settled it. He and his dumb boyfriend was going to be together for the next eight years. And maybe many more years after that.
Who knows?