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“I’m going to tell Kuroo that I’m not interested in him.”
“But you are interested in him. Aren’t you?” Hinata says. His head appearing in Kei’s peripheral vision at the other side of Kozume. They are sitting very close together in the small couch near the window in Kozume’s apartment. One of the four couches this flat has. It isn’t the first time that Kei has been here and he is still very much amazed of how big the place is.
“Yes, I think so.”
“Wait, this is news to me,” Miya Two says from the floor, where he has been moping since he lost against his twin at DDR. Kei doesn’t even know where the idea for the tournament came from, though if he has to guess he would say probably from Nishinoya. Kei was drinking some lime juice sweet concoction in the kitchen, talking with Akaashi, when suddenly he was being coerced by Sugawara to participate in a dance competition. He didn’t have to though, because Kuroo saved him last minute swamping in his place instead.
Kuroo had shrugged saying he loved the song that was queued and that it was his chance of winning against Bokuto once and for all. Kei didn’t thank him yet. He will, eventually.
“Interested as in you want him to fuck you until you don’t feel your legs or interested in having his metaphorical children?” Miya Two’s voice carries on pretty far away with how very loud he gets after several drinks. Fortunately, everyone else who isn’t in this pathetic semicircle of shame can’t hear him over the music coming from the speakers. Or maybe it’s all the screaming and laughter that Ushijima dancing against Aone is provoking.
This was supposed to be a quite evening, some sort of ‘we played volleyball against each other in school’ reunion not a full-on college party. Most of them aren’t even in college anymore. Kei is also pretty sure that there weren’t many gin bottles in the kitchen table when he arrived. But if you put almost twenty —thirty? Kei is not drunk, but he is having trouble coming up with numbers now— young men together in a big flat, stocked to the brim with food and alcohol, it ends up being a big mess of a party, go figure. Kei is glad Yachi didn’t make it, all this testosterone together is making Kei want to change his sexuality to liking women.
Miya Two keeps asking which one of the two is it with some graphic hand movements while Kei tries to shut him up with a glare unsuccessfully.
“Aren’t both things the same?” Hinata asks.
“’dunno, it depends? It could be mutually exclusive. I know someone who doesn’t want to have sex with anyone, but they want a romantic relationship that could eventually end up with them having children,” Miya Two says. Then he tries to shrugs, but the effect is lose with his back on the floor. Also, Kei is sure Hinata can’t see him that well from where he is sitting.
“I think in this context they are pretty much the same,” Hinata clarifies. “Isn’t that true, Kenma?”
“Mm,” Kozume agrees. Kei looks at him sideways and feels like messing with him, so he does. He turns slightly to his right and with a quick movement steals the old 3DS Kozume has been playing with. “Son of a bitch.”
“I’m going to tell him I’m not interested in him, so he stops trying to make me jealous,” Kei continues, as if he hasn't been interrupted at all.
“He is? Where?” Miya Two rises his head, trying to look for Kuroo.
“There, next to the wall full of led lights. Jesus, Kozume-san can you be more of a stereotype?” Kei asks, ignoring Kozume’s attempt of getting his console back. Kei has it clutched in one hand very high above his head. He is a tall asshole, sue him.
“Fuck you.”
“Still can’t see him.”
“He is trying to act as if we both don’t know he is chatting up your brother, the second prettiest man in this place, just so I pay attention to him,” Kei says. Kuroo has the ‘I’m very interested in what you’re saying’ face on. Kei loves when Kuroo looks at him like that, like he is holding the most important piece of information in the universe. Though when Kuroo looks at Kei he usually also looks dumb as fuck, now he is even smiling a little bit at Miya Osamu. The bastard.
“You think I’m pretty?”
“Not you, your brother,” Kozume says. Hinata snorts loudly.
“We have the same face!”
“Irrelevant,” Kei says, smiling a little bit while he still hears Hinata laughing. “Earlier he tried to do the same with Bokuto, they started dancing some tango together in the middle of their game.”
Miya Two nods like that explains everything.
A crash can be heard from the kitchen along with a yelp that can only be from Asahi, followed by Kindaichi’s words, “Everything is fine! We are okay, nothing is broken!”
Kozume sighs, but doesn’t make any attempt of standing up.
After a few seconds of silence where the music changes for a song with a slower rhythm Hinata suddenly asks, “Who is the prettiest if not Osamu?”
“Akaashi,” an echo of several voices around replies.
“As if using Bokuto would ever make me jealous!” Kei exclaims. His arm is starting to ache for having it in the air. He decides he has annoyed Kozume a considerable amount of time, so he drops the 3DS on his lap.
“For the record, I don’t know about previous encounters, but I’m pretty sure you’re wrong,” someone says from his left. Kei whips his head pretty fast, feeling dizzy for a few seconds —okay, maybe he is a little bit drunk— to see Suna standing there with a water bottle in his hands, back to the wall, legs crossed.
“Fuck,” Miya Two says. “How long have you been standing there?”
“I have been here the whole time, even before you collapsed in the floor like a sad puppy.”
“What do you mean I’m wrong?” Kei asks, trying not to think about how many people are now in the know of his pathetic ass. Three was a reasonable number of spectators, now four… seems like a problem.
“First, he hasn’t been trying to make you jealous this night at all. In fact, I think he has been trying to talk to you for a while. Two, and this one is pretty obvious, you are jealous.”
“I am not!”
“I think Suna-san has a point, actually,” Hinata adds, moving over Kozume practically laying all over his lap trying to pat Kei’s arm. “You’re very interested in him and you’re jealous that you can’t, like take your balls and, and grab the courage to go there, push the prettiest Miya twin aside and just tell him that you want to have his hypothetically babies after he fucks you very hard.”
“For fuck’s sake, can we stop talking about Kuroo fucking anyone?” Kozume says hiding his face in Hinata’s shoulder blades. How are they even sitting? Kei can’t understand the logistics to be honest.
“I am the prettiest twin.”
“You think I’m not brave enough to go there and tell him how I feel? Please, of course I am. Also, if Yamaguchi were here, he would tell me that I am right.”
“If Yamaguchi were here, he would have lock you two up on a closet already,” Hinata says.
“I’m pretty sure Kuroo doesn’t have the intelligence to make a plan like making you jealous work nor he has the dumbest brain to think it would work. I think it is only you who knows you are jealous and that makes you mad, because you are waiting here for him to make a move, and he is waiting there for you to make a move. If that makes sense,” Kozume says, still pushing his face against Hinata. “Also, I would like for this conversation to be over so I can pretend I don’t own this place so I can go to sleep like this because Shouyou, you smell very nice.”
Kei tries to come up with a reply to that argument, he is sure he is not that drunk anymore, but for the life of his he really can’t think of one. Instead, he focuses on the very bright blush that is flooding Hinata’s cheeks.
“That’s the first time I’ve heard this guy say that many words together and I follow him on twitch,” Miya Two comments. “But yeah, they’re right.”
“Grow some ovaries, man and go get the boy,” Suna says, pointing with his head to where Kuroo is standing. “Before is too late; Kuroo may not be trying to make you jealous, but let me tell you ‘samu has game.”
Kei follows his eyes, ignoring Miya Two’s groan, and there in his whole checkered shirt and ripped jeans glory, like the emo boy that he still is at heart, Kuroo is smiling wide. He is standing very close with his hand a few centimetres away of Miya Osamu’s face.
Kei looks green. His whole brain is in full grinch mode, not caring about anything else besides that he is the one that Kuroo usually gentle caresses.
Like that time when they were out walking around Sendai and they got caught by the biggest summer storm of the year. Kei holding his bag under his jacket to protect his books inside, Kuroo laughing at him, but gently trying to walk him to a covered part of the street. Pushing him towards the wall, his hands soft and cold against his cheek.
He is the one that Kuroo smiles so wide at, from the other side of the net, when they are playing stupid impromptu volleyball beach that Hinata makes them play.
He wants to be the one kissed by Kuroo tonight.
Kei doesn’t register when he stands up. Only hearing a very weakly ‘please don’t hurt my brother’ when he walks over Miya Two on the floor. He has a purpose, and that purpose is getting Kuroo for himself. He crosses the living room in very few steps, thanking his long legs in an afterthought and in seconds he is standing right in front of Kuroo and the copycat. They stop whatever they were talking about and just look at him.
“I’m sorry for the interruption,” he says not sorry at all and not even looking at Osamu. “I think Miya Two needs you somewhere else. So please, Miya-san, stop trying to take all of Kuroo-san attention, yes?”
Kei doesn’t wait for an answer and just gets in front of Kuroo, effectively moving the twin with a gentle push.
“Tsukki?” Kuroo asks, dumbfounded. He doesn’t have the right to look that good, honestly.
“And you,” Kei starts, getting his hands on him. “You dumb sexy bastard, how dare you? You are mine.”
His hisses the last word in Kuroo’s mouth. Kei kisses him with all the pent-up frustration he has been carrying the whole night. Hell, Kei kisses Kuroo the way he has been wanting to do for years, not holding back anymore.
For the most part Kuroo kisses him back with the same enthusiasm. His arms going to Kei’s waist, getting him closer. One of his hands venturing a little bit under his shirt. Kei feels his cold fingers against his warm waist and moans a little bit.
It may be the noise that makes Kuroo stop.
“No, no. Come back,” Kei whispers against a bit of stubble.
“Tsukki you are drunk,” Kuroo replies softly. So softly. Kei thinks he will melt as long as he keeps Kuroo close.
“I’m not… Ok, maybe I am.” Kuroo tries to step back, but Kei stops him. “Wait.”
“Kei, I won’t take advantage of you.”
God, Kei adores him. He allows him to get some distance between them, but still clutching his shirt with his hands. He won’t let him go.
“You wouldn’t be. I promise,” Kei says. “But I get it, even if this was sobering enough, I can wait a little bit more so I can convince you why this is the best idea I’ve ever had.”
Kuroo keeps looking at him with this wild look in his eyes, like he doesn’t believe what he is hearing. Kei thinks it is fair. He probably wouldn’t either, but he has been talking about this with four people and all of them made a valid drunk point.
“Just… stay with me until I am sober?”
“You mean until you regret that you kissed me in front of our friends and all their friends?”
“Did I tell you how much I love that you hate these parties more than I do?”
“I don’t hate them. It’s just… too many people. And we never played against Shiratorizawa; I don’t get why those guys are here.”
“But we did,” Kei says. Then he gets one of those epiphanies he usually gets around Kuroo. Because Kuroo always makes him see things that he can never see for himself. “Oh my god, you are still mad about the match that we had against them. The one where I was injured.”
“They hurt you,” Kuroo says with a petulant tone. “Of course, I’m still a bit mad.”
“You’re incredible,” Kei smiles. “Now, stay with me until I can kiss you again.”
*
It’s late. Most of the guests left already or are sleeping in the rooms and couches available.
Kei is very comfortable, not asleep, nursing a water bottle between his hands. The third he has drunk since Kuroo and him relocated to the couch in the balcony.
Seriously, how much money does Kozume makes with the gaming gig? They are there sitting in a set of garden furniture in a Tokyo apartment, overlooking the city lights in the distance. This is insane.
Kei is also thinking about Kozume’s income to avoid thinking about the pathetic role he played a few hours ago in the living room.
To his chagrin, one of the reasons he asked to go outside just appeared in his peripheral vision with a shit-eating grin in his face. He hides his face in Kuroo’s neck groaning.
“So…” Suna says. “Not jealous anymore?”
“Go fuck yourself,” Kei says against Kuroo’s skin. Suna can’t probably heard him like that, but he stands by his words anyway, refusing to look up.
“He says that he had a lovely evening.” Kuroo translates. He had, against his better judgement. He got cuddles with his friends, and kisses with Kuroo. He got Kuroo, evening couldn’t have been better. He won’t admit it out loud in front of others though. “Where’s Osamu?”
Kei can’t help it. He sits up more firmly and squints at Kuroo, he knows this jealousy isn’t healthy and he will try to be better at it, but he is still very much affected by the events of the night. It will take more kisses and sweet words whispered at each other to forget the idea of that guy near Kuroo.
Kuroo is smiling, his eyebrows doing something funny, like trying to contain his laughter while trying to look smugly at Kei, when Suna says, “Oh, you mean my boyfriend?”
At those words Kei turns slowly, looking between Kuroo and Suna, and his eyes focus in Osamu standing a few meters behind, not quite smiling but waving at him.
“Oh, fuck you,” Kei says. Then he elbows Kuroo in his ribs. “You knew!”
“Yes, I very much knew about them being together. And while I shouldn’t vibe that much with you doing that ‘You’re mine and I’m yours’ dance, I must say, I like you being a little bit jealous. Makes me feel hot.”
“I hate all of you.”
“Sure, sweet cheeks,” Kuroo replies, knowing that Kei will veto that nickname for sure in the near future. Kuroo puts his arm over Kei’s shoulder and bring him close to his chest again, kissing his temple.
Kei stays there.