Chapter Text
“Alright, so how are we gonna do this?" He said, his headphones nestled comfortably in his wild black hair.
"I mean like- Okay yes , we could go into this absolute deathtrap with nothing but a crucifix and hope. Orrrrrr…” He drawled. “Akaashi could shell out some of his THOUSANDS of DOLLARS so we don't die painful, gruesome, deaths."
Kenma snorted at the glowing screen in his hands.
"I already said no." Akaashi responded. The man whined in response."But whyyyy, Akaashi? You're level 234, please spare us some of your literal pocket change." Kurekoma looked into his computer screen pleadingly, as if asking the audience to back him up.
"No, Kure.” Akaashi deadpanned. “I'm playing with my...friend, later and he's going to need all the help he can get."
"Ohoho?” A devilish smile creeped across Kurekoma’s face. " A friend you say? And what kind of friend might we be talking about here,’Kaashi? Hmm?" His voice lilting and teasing. Akaashi sighed. "just a friend. I knew him well in high school, and we're catching up."
Kurekoma nodded his head in fake understanding. "Suuuree- But If that was the case then you’d spend money on me too Akaashi!” Kurekoma pouted. “We’re friends too ya know.”
“When was that established?” Akaashi deadpanned, and sent Kurekoma sputtering. “Besides, shouldn’t you fill your audience in on what's happening right now? You’ve been ignoring them for at least 15 minutes.”
Kurekoma gasped in mock offense."Lies and slander, Akaashi Keiji! I would never ignore my beautiful chat!" He turned slightly in his seat, facing the camera head-on.
"Hey guys! As you probably noticed, because you're the smartest, most beautiful and amazing people ever, we're going to be playing Phasmophobia today! I am thrilled to be joined by the incomparable-" Kurekoma did a fake drumroll on his desk. "Akaashi Keiji! Lev will probably join us soon as well, but for now it's me and ‘Kaashi!" Kurekoma smiled blindingly at the camera before turning slightly sheepish. "I really want to thank you guys for coming to join this stream today, and for all the love on my last video. Oikawa's seriously been bugging me to do a video with him for ages." He fake sighed.
"Hey guys!” A new voice appeared. “Sorry I'm late, ugh, my dentist keeps texting me." Lev9000 sighed. "Anyway, what're we playing?”
Kuroo’s face stayed in a very odd expression.
"Your...what?"
The video descended into chaos, and Kenma just laughed along.
-
Kenma’s favorite excuse for watching Kurekoma’s videos was that he works for a gaming company.
..
…
….Okay, so maybe he kind of owns the company.
Reviews of games, guides for games, blogs about the games, interviews with the game creators- they had sponsored and endorsed small indie developers, and they had even made some of their own games. Well…they’d made a LOT of games.
And Bokuto Koutarou is his partner.
(Bouncing Ball Corp. was a brainchild born from a messy college dorm at 4AM. A confused Koutarou trying to beat Animal Crossing was helped by Kenma info-dumping for one of the first times in his life. It ended up in friendship, a company name, and Bokuto realizing that there were some games you didn’t have to win.)
Either way, it’s good that he watches Kurekoma’s videos because it’s helpful to gauge people’s reactions to games.
Kenma stared at Kurekoma’s face on the screen, twisted in concentration. His tongue stuck out of his mouth, but just barely.
Seeing through the eyes of a game developer will only get you so far; You have to be able to see what your audience wants, and how a variety of players will react.
Kenma watched as Kurekoma screamed in horror, his character on screen brutally decimated. His headphone slipped in the chaos, revealing a pierced ear.
It's good for the business, and good to be in touch with the community.
Kenma studied the way Kurekoma’s eyes crinkled as he laughed like he was dying.
If I didn't watch these, Kenma reasoned, I wouldn't know what alpha male meant.
Kenma shut his phone off and stared at his ceiling. He thought he saw Kurekoma's face in the glow in the dark stars Koutarou had stuck up there.
He squinted.
This time he knew it was Kuroo's face staring back at him, his pink lips, sharp jaw, and red headphones nestled in his fluffy black hair.
The crooked smile that Kenma totally didn’t want to kiss off his lips.
Kenma slapped a palm on his face, sighing.
It’s a dead end crush anyway.
.
Kenma woke up with crust in his eyes and Super Mario’s voice in his ear. He groaned and picked up the phone.
"What, Koutarou."
He could hear his friend laugh into the microphone. "Morning Kenma~ Hey, do you think you could come into the office today?" He pleaded . "It's really, really urgent!"
Kenma grumbled, rubbing his eyes. "What happened now?"
"I'll tell you when you get here!" Koutarou's voice sounded tinny through the phone.
"D'ya think you could pick up coffee on the way in too please? From Suga’s Cafe?" Kenma attempted to shuffle out of his sheets, but instead just kicked them around so he was more tangled.
"Don't we have assistants for that kind of thing?"
He could practically hear Koutarou’s pout through the phone line. "Well yeah, but I gave Yamaguchi the day off, and when I asked Iwaizumi he told me to go do it myself."
“Kou.”
“Yah?”
“That’s literally their job.”
Bokuto just whined again.
"Fine," Kenma said. "I'll stop by. Shouyo might want to come visit you anyway." Hinata Shouyo was Kenma's favorite most tolerable barista at Suga’s , and one of his few friends. (He also had an admiration-based hard on for Bokuto, and was incredibly in awe of anything related to Kenma and his work. Go figure.)
Bokuto cheered loudly through the phone. "YAY! Thank you, Kenmaaaaaa~!"
Kenma grumbled before hanging up and flopping back down.
Kenma tried to go into the office as little as possible, but even as he loathed to admit it, he’d always make an exception for Koutarou. He wasn’t about to let his friend down, or have him suffer when he needed Kenma.
So, he hopped semi-gracefully out of his large bed, only barely tripping on his sheets before stretching his arms up to the ceiling. His hoodie rode up his hips, tickling the skin, but when he eventually lowered his arms, his hip still tickled.
Kenma looked down at his body quizzically before pulling up the hem of his hoodie to inspect the ticklish area. It felt like the soft touch of someone's fingers, ghosting over his right hip.
And then he saw it.
Ugh. Please remind me to never stay up that late again.
Kenma smiled. Just a little bit. He walked the two steps over to his bedside table, taking out a large black marker before responding. There were smudges of ink all over the side of the marker, a testament to how often Kenma used it.
What did you do this time?
He wrote it above his hip, towards his stomach. Koutarou could wait a little longer for his overpriced coffee.
Okay, so, as it turns out; Scary movies? not the move. Scary games? DEFINITELY Not the Moce.
Kenma giggled.
Moce.
The response was quick.
SHUT ur mouth it was scary T-T
A beat. Another message.
Either way, I couldn't sleep- I'm telling you, all i
heard last night was weird shit in the ceiling
Lol. Did momo get in the vents again?
....
OKAY MAYBE
Lololol.
anyway, where are you off to today :p
Work. my partner called me in for an 'urgent thing'
but he probably just wants me to bring him food.
thank god, i was getting worried.
Kenma's entire midsection was piling up with black and blue inked messages.
? Wdym.
well, since I'm not there to kick u out of the house
someone has to >:)
Kenma sighed. What was wrong with staying home? He wrote as much, scrawling up his chest. It was a little more difficult than it needed to be.
why does everyone want me out of the house
it's nice here
it should be, with how much i pay for it
But if you stay inside all the time,
I can't find you ;)
Kenma's golden eyes widened and his face grew impossibly warm. He thought of a million responses- That's fair, or Come find me then, or Not if I find you first and then we can be inside all the time.
...But none of them really fit.
He was a wimp.
He uncapped the marker once more;
Dork.
Was it possible to love someone you'd never met?
.
Kenma felt another tickle on his arm as he walked through the doors to Suga’s Cafe.
You know you love it ;P
He’d never understand why his soulmate insisted on writing actual emojis-He didn’t mind it though. A ghost of a smile crossed Kenma's face before he gently tucked his sleeve back over his arm.
"KENMA!" Kenma's eyes darted to the front of the shop, jolting slightly. Hinata Shouyou stood at the cash register in his white uniform, waving frantically at him, his orange hair bouncing with every move. "Hi, Shoyou."
"Are you going into the office today Kenma? Does Koutarou want anything? Can I come?!" Kenma physically restrained himself from just slumping on the counter and taking a nap. It’s definitely too early for this. Shoyou's fingers were already tapping away at the cash register, having memorized Kenma and Koutarou's joint order a long time ago.
"Yes, yes, and sure, if you want." Kenma shrugged half-heartedly as he pulled several crumpled bills from his pocket.
God, I really shouldn't have watched that whole stream... He glanced down at his clothes; Kenma dressed for comfort above all else, but since he'd be visiting the office today, he put more effort in.
...More effort being a fresh hoodie and not-too-old joggers (in comparison to his beat-up Nekoma sweats). He'd probably get an earful from Iwaizumi about it later, but he could care less at the moment. He'd probably get an earful from his soulmate about it too- If he could see him.
Small victories. He supposed. It wasn't that Kenma didn't want to meet the absolute nerd who had been writing messages on his skin since he was 8- He was just a little nervous about it.
It was easier to think of them as some kind of entity than an actual person, sometimes. Easier because then Kenma wouldn't worry as much. If they would like him, if they wouldn't; If they understood games, if they would understand him and his everything.
Just…It was easier.
"Wait." Shouyou said, his hand stilling around the money Kenma had handed him. He braced for impact. " REALLY?!" Shouyou yelped at the top of his lungs, a level of volume fit more for a sporting event than a small cafe at 9 in the morning. With Kenma standing right there. Having gotten no sleep.
He may or may not be regretting several life decisions. Kenma just stood as Shouyou rattled on about how excited he was, how much he wanted to see the office, how he heard they had a cafe in the basement and "was that true?"
(" No, it's on the sixth floor." )
Kenma's mind just kind of drifted after a while. Eventually, Shouyou decided that working and talking might be best, and he began to make his and Koutarou's drinks. (A caramel frappuccino with extra whip and sprinkles, and a pumpkin spice latte. Respectively. They were both sugar fanatics, and Koutarou frequently stated that that's why they get along so well.)
His friend flitted expertly around the counter, mixing and shaking and pouring. He was like a hummingbird, chirping all the while.
Hmm, that could be a good idea for a game... The thought floated through Kenma's half-asleep haze.
Bird baristas... he was so tired that he didn't even hear the entrance jingle behind him. He just stood at the register and watched Shouyou dance around, simultaneously trying not to fall asleep on the glass counter of baked goods.
That is, until someone coughed behind him.
Kenma turned around slowly, blinking at the amount of sunlight streaming through the cafe's large windows. There was a tall guy standing behind him. He couldn't see much of his face, what with the glaring sun and the odd combination of baseball cap/sunglasses/facemask this guy was sporting. He had a navy blue windbreaker draped over his broad torso, his tall frame probably somewhere in the toned and lanky department.
Kenma just blinked at him, his face expressionless.
The man let out an odd sound.
"...Do you need something?" Kenma asked, straight to the point.
The guy coughed again. "OH! No- No, you're good, I'm fine, just waiting in line," The tall man laughed, a nervous twinge in his deep voice. He seemed flustered, and his voice was hoarse. Like he'd been screaming a lot or something. Kenma would know what that sounds like; He's seen enough Shouyou VS Koutarou Mario Kart Tournaments in his lifetime.
"Sorry, sorry, I just have uh, a cold I think." The stranger continued, coughing once more.
Kenma softened by a fraction. The stranger seemed like he genuinely didn't feel well, not like he was making an excuse for being impatient.
There was another moment of silence before Kenma decided to speak.
"Their Honey Time Tea is good for sore throats.” He said quietly, looking up at the tall man.
“You should get one." He finished and walked to the opposite end of the counter, where the pick-up station sat. If the man looked at him again, it wasn't for very long because Kenma soon heard Hinata's voice asking the man for his order.
And if Kenma was a little happy when he said "The... Honey Time Tea , please."
Well. That was his business.
He pulled out his phone as he waited for Shouyou to finish up with his order- The younger man had quickly pleaded with the other barista on staff, Kageyama, to cover him for "Just an hour or two!!! Pleaseeeeee Kageyama!"
After a deal of trading chores was struck over the mixing of hot and cold beverages, Shouyou was free for the morning.
"Just let me get my coat, Kenma!" Shouyou had said, rushing towards the back room. Kenma had just nodded and pulled out his phone, quickly texting his partner.
kenma /ᐠ_ ꞈ _ᐟ\
shouyou just finished the drinks.
he's just getting his coat now, then we'll see you.
Sent, 6:30 AM
Kenma sighed, rolling up the sleeves of his hoodie slightly. The cafe was so damn warm, even for winter. Kenma was melting just a little bit.
Koutarou0O0O ⊚◊⊚
YAYYYY!! I"M SO GLAD HE COULD COME! did he rmbmr to put cinnamon!?
Sent, 6:30 AM
Kenma exhaled softly, a little puff of air akin to a laugh.
kenma /ᐠ_ ꞈ _ᐟ\
of course.
are you going to tell me what's so urgent yet?
Sent, 6:31 AM
Koutarou0O0O ⊚◊⊚
NOPE! :D
Sent, 6:31 AM
Kenma rolled his eyes, tucking his phone back into his pocket. He felt the pressure of eyes on him as he did, making him still.
Kenma's sharp eyes bounced around the room. Kageyama was making the strangers tea, and he could hear Hinata shuffling around in the back room ("Where is it?!"). His gaze flitted over the stranger before he suddenly paused.
He was looking straight at Kenma.
Huh.
He quirked an eyebrow at the stranger, trying to calm the anxiety settling in his stomach before Shouyou was suddenly bounding up next to him.
"Ready to go, Kenma?" Shouyou was next to him now, his orange hair glinting bright in the sunlight. Kenma's sharp gaze landed on the stranger once more before looking back at Shouyou. "Yeah."
He pulled his sleeves back down quickly, grabbing the set of drinks Shouyou had made. Caramel frappuccino, Pumpkin Spice latte, and a Strawberry frappe. He looked at Shouyou questioningly before the younger man took the strawberry drink, smiling around the straw as he sipped, walking to the door. "I paid for it!"
Kenma followed, one eye on the odd stranger before he crossed the threshold.
Maybe if the traffic had been quieter, or Shouyou hadn't been talking, or there hadn't been such a loud bell on the door, Kenma would've heard the aborted "Wait-" From inside the cafe.
.
.
.
So maybe Kenma was a little bit rich.
The walk through the building consisted of a few… events.
"WOW! Kenma, is that a water fountain?!"
"OH MY GOD, THERE IS A STARBUCKS! You didn't tell me about the McDonald's!"
"Kenma, that's you- Holy shit, I'm friends with a billionaire."
"Do you wanna get lunch later? Kageyama won't mind as long as we get him food too."
"WOAHHH- You have statues of your game characters?!"
"Kenma you could totally have a supervillain lair in here-"
"You have a secretary?!"
When they began construction on the building, Kenma had given Koutarou full reign on the designing process. Kenma would have been happy keeping their office in their little rented flat for the rest of his days. But they had employees now, and they had to make sure those employees were at least moderately comfortable.
Koutarou was good at his job, and he had created a clean, tasteful, and comfortable work environment with at least two restaurants. Kenma was still relieved when they made it to Koutarou's office- the building could get overwhelming so quickly, especially with the amount of people there.
"KENMA! HINATA!" Koutarou cheered when they walked into his office. It was pretty spacious, considering he was one of two heads of the company. It all still had Koutarou's touch- Framed volleyball jerseys on the walls, owl paraphernalia scattered across the room. Several random volleyballs were just kind of there. Koutarou didn't need much decoration; his personality was colorful enough to fill a room.
"Morning, Koutarou!!" Shouyou cheered, running up to give him his sugar-filled monstrosity; A pumpkin spice latte. Could you believe it? Kenma sipped his frappuccino silently.
Koutarou gasped and Kenma swore he could see tears in his eyes."You remembered the cinnamon!"
The younger grinned at him. "Of course! I made it after all!” Koutarou laughed before sipping his drink. He picked up a game case from his desk and handed it to Shouyou.
"Oh, Hinata; Would you mind taking this down to the vault? Iwaizumi can take you, he's right outside." Koutarou said, seemingly innocent. "I keep getting lost in it. I swear, the only one who actually knows how to find their way around that thing is Kenma!"
Kenma let out a snort. "You're the one that designed it, Koutarou." But Shouyou wasn’t paying attention- He looked at the game case like it held the secrets to the universe, and ran at top speed out of the office.
Koutarou smiled after the speedy red-head zoomed out, and sat on his desk. "Alright," Kenma asked, sitting down in a comfortable chair in front of his desk. "Are you finally going to tell me what this 'urgent matter' is?"
Koutarou sighed, swinging his legs in front of him like a petulant child- And the floodgates opened.
"Okay so, I went to hang out with my old friend Akaashi last night- You remember, my setter in high school?! God, he's the best- But anyway, he plays a lot of video games now- at least that's what he had told me- but then I went over to his apartment last night- which is like, huge, by the way- and we were gonna play that new ghost game?! And then I found out that he's actually Akaashi Keiji! Like, I knew he was Akaashi Keiji but I didn’t know he was Akaashi Keiji- Like THAT, Akaashi Keiji! Isn't that crazy? And so then I was like Oh my god I watch your streams all the time! and I had like, a feeling you know, because I recognized his voice, but I didn't know where, and honestly I was kind of hoping it was him because he's just the best, and I wanted us to be able to see each other again, and it was really convenient that we both like games so much, and he's SO GOOD at them?! Like, seriously Kenma, I know I watched him before but
seeing it in action is just - phew - it's crazy . But that's not even the craziest thing! He invited me to play on stream-"
"Koutarou."
"And then he- Oh, yeah? What's up Kenma?" Koutarou said, blinking at him owlishly.
"Was the ‘really important urgent thing happening with our company’ you wanting to talk about your crush?"
Koutarou paused for a second before answering.
"Uhhh...Yeah, why?"
Kenma sat very still for .3 seconds before getting out of his seat and turning to leave.
"Okay, I'm going back to bed."
Koutarou whined. "KENNMAAA NOOO- Come on dude!" He hopped off the desk and tried to drag Kenma back to his seat. He pouted. Kenma hated his pouts.
"Come on Kenma, that's not everything!" Kenma nearly hissed in retaliation but it came out as a really weird sigh. He was plopped back in his seat, and Koutarou sat down next to him.
"Okay, yeah, I kind-of-maybe love Akaashi and I'm pretty sure he's my soulmate but there's other stuff too! And if I tell you the other important stuff then you have to promise you'll listen to me after, because you're my friend and I want to talk to you about it." Koutarou fixed him with a much more serious look.
Kenma sighed.
"...Alright."
Koutarou brightened up immediately.
"Thanks, Kenma." He smiled. He couldn't let Koutarou do everything by himself, could he?
"So, you know that AGC is coming up soon, right?"
AGC was the All Gaming Convention - The biggest video game convention in the world. Companies from around the globe would be unveiling new projects, new platforms, new software, everything.
Seminars, after-parties, game testing, and endless promotions made up AGC. And, with Bouncing Ball Corp. going from an underdog to an industry behemoth in a few short years… they were obviously going.
"Yes, you sent me the details."
"Right!” Koutarou smiled happily before steepling his fingers like a comic villain. “This year’s going to be special though."
Kenma looked at him quizzically. "What do you mean?"
"So, apparently they're having a special... event at AGC."
"Event? Isn’t AGC an event in and of itself?" Kenma asked.
"Well, yeah, but this is like the event within the event. it's gonna be- Well, in their words at least-” Koutarou cleared his throat, reciting the supposed promotion.
“ A diverse gathering of people with an affinity and specialty in the field of video games, from executives to casual players.”
“It's also invite only." He added on.
Kenma squinted at him.
"So it's a party."
Koutarou sighed exasperatedly, throwing his hands in the air.
"Okay YEAH, It's a party- It's specifically like, a gala , but I knew you wouldn't want to go if I told you that." Koutarou frowned in disappointment.
"We'd have to dress real nice and everything, but it'd be really good for us both to be there. There's a lot of new games we could look at, and there'll be a lot of big names for us to make connections with,"
“And I just... want you to come. It’s weird that some people think it’s just me here. You should be recognized too.” He finished, crossing his legs like a child and fidgeting with his shoelaces.
Kenma looked at his dejected, pouting friend. He knew that some people- Some of their employees even, thought that Bokuto was the sole head of the company, kenma preferring to do his work from the shadows, and comfort of his own home. Bokuto took the highs and the lows of being the face of the company- And maybe it was a little selfish of Kenma to let him do so.
"Fine, I'll come." Koutarou looked at him in shock, his eyebrows skyrocketing. "REALLY?!"
Kenma made a face. "Eugh, yes. I actually kind of like the conventions anyway. Besides," He looked at his friend with a small smile on his face. "You're not the only one who runs this thing."
Koutarou leapt for joy, and Kenma almost managed to escape a bone-crushing hug.
Almost.
Kenma smiled.