Unrequited Love?

[yellowcopycat]

Kaijou and Seirin had just had their first practice match, which was shaping up to be a tradition of sorts. This time, Kaijou had gone to Seirin. The gym was nice, newer then Kaijou's but maybe not as big. 

 

He was breathing heavily, but smiling broadly. It always felt good to play, even if it was just a practice match and they weren't going all out. After all, he wanted to keep some of his new tricks up his sleeves, just like he was sure Kagami and Kuroko were hiding some of their new tricks too. This year's match had ended in a draw. Better than last year's practice match, which had ended in Kaijou's loss by two points.  

 

Just thinking about Kuroko made Kise look over to the Seirin team, focusing in on the smaller boy. 

 

For awhile now Kise had realized that he had feelings for Kuroko. Kise had looked up to Kuroko for awhile, but it wasn't really until after the Winter Cup that Kise realized he was probably in love with Kuroko. 

 

He took a towel that one of the first years offered him. "Thanks," he said absently. He scrubbed at his face, his thoughts racing. He had been thinking about Kuroko a lot lately, and seeing him only brought those thoughts back to the surface, only pushed aside when the game had begun. Now with the game over he couldn't focus. The warm glow in his chest that came whenever he thought about Kuroko was back with a vengeance.

 

The Kaijou team was gathering their things and getting ready to board the bus. He told the first year that he'd be along in a bit and began to head over to the Seirin team. 

 

"Kurokocchi~" he called out. No time like the present, he thought. He didn't know if Kuroko would return his feelings, but he was hopeful. The time Kuroko had cheered him on while he went up against Haizaki stood out in his mind. 

 

"Kurokocchi! You got a minute?"

Comments

[misdirects]

Kuroko's a sweaty and tired mess, like he is after every match, but it's a good sort of tired— the kind that sinks into his bones in a pleasantly warm way. He always enjoys playing against Kaijou, whom Seirin looked forward to even the score with, given their very first practice match and subsequent rivalry. (He'll never tell Kise, but he thinks their teams suit each other in a strange way.)

He looks over at the call of his name, a bit surprised as he expected the other team to be well on their way. Kuroko hasn't taken a towel like the others headed for the locker room, instead wiping some of his sweat away by pulling his jersey up.

"Oh, Kise-kun. Is something wrong?"

[yellowcopycat]

"Nothing's wrong Kurokocchi~" Kise said cheerfully. "I just wanted to talk to you before we left."

He took a moment to enjoy the view of Kuroko pulling his jersey up to wipe the sweat away. Kuroko might not be the most muscular boy in the sport, but he was nicely toned.

"Walk with me to the bus?"

[misdirects]

"Ah, alright. Give me a moment."

He catches up with the rest of his teammates and tells them he'll be a moment, so they don't worry, and grabs a towel as well. Kuroko wipes off some more as he makes his way back to Kise's side, still a bit breathless from their game.

"What is it that you wanted to talk about?"

[misdirects]

Seirin High's yearly training camp is not split into two for once - after their Winter Cup win, the school increases their budget and they can afford a relatively nice hot springs resort out in Yokohama. Everyone suspects the choice of location is because Coach doesn't want to run into Touou and Shuutoku once more, but she surprises the team when she reveals it's an semi-official joint training camp with Kaijou. Training sessions are done at separate gyms, but they've already had a couple practice matches testing various team compositions during the day.

Now that it's night... it's time for the test of courage. The inn they're staying at is not far from a set of abandoned Shinto shrines and Kaijou's managers have taken up the task of setting up a few paths for groups to wander along. Everyone has been split up into mixed pairs to encourage inter-team collaboration.

Naturally, Kuroko ends up with Kise, who he hasn't seen in quite a while before this trip began. He offers a small wave of his flashlight when they meet up at the beginning of their trail. "It seems our mission is to retrieve a mask and place a seal on the door once we've left."

[yellowcopycat]

Kise wonders if the reason Kaijou and Seirin are so buddy-buddy is because the likelihood of a fist fight between their Miracles and Kagami is the lowest. Granted as much a of jerk as Aomine could be, he wasn't the type punch people unless he was super pissed and someone threatened one of his friends.

Though Kagami and aomine could probably get into some super comeptive BS and hurt themselves. So maybe that was a factor. And as much as he liked Midorima (not that he would admit it) the green haired Miracle coudld be... a bit much for everyone. (And he called himself the the sanest!)

But it's all good. Kise likes Kuroko's teammates. Furihata was surprisingly cool despite having the energy of a nervous puppy, and as always Kagami is fun to tease and go up against on the court.

And there's Kuroko, of course. Kuroko who Kise is trying to get over. It's not as easy as he thought it would be. So he's trying something his eldest sister suggested; pretend to like someone else until you're over them. The problem is, who could compare to Kurokocchi?

So far during the joint training everything's been pretty chill between them. Hadn't really had a chance to talk with him one-on-one since he confessed. "Okay," he said nervously. He didn't do well with dark creepy places. He shivers when there's a rustling in the trees. The air late autumn is cool and Kise is looking forward to taking a dip in the hot springs later.

There was more rustling in the trees and Kise automatically grabs onto Kuroko's arm. "Let's hurry. Please?"

[yellowcopycat]

Kise had hoped he could spend the next day away from Kuroko, but somehow they ended up helping Coach Aida and the Kaijou managers in the kitchen. He had meant what he said about Kuroko probably being his best friend, but sometimes even best friends needed a break from each other. (And he was sure he wasn't Kuroko's best friend; that was probably Kagami. But that really didn't matter in Kise's worldview. He could share Kuroko with him.)

Kise, having heard from Aomine, who heard from Kagami, just how awful Aida's cooking could be, managed to distract her with vague promises about doing a photo shoot for her father's gym if she stayed out of the kitchen. She looked put out, but Kise decided that pissing a girl off was the better option to food poisoning. And, apparently, unlike her team, wasn't afraid to say it.

"How'd we get roped into this?" he complained as he pulled out his phone and looked up 'how to cook for a banquet' on YouTube. Perfect Copy had other applications aside from sports. Too bad it didn't help with his studies. "We could be using this downtime for other things." He wasn't exactly sure what other things they could do, but he knew he could think of something. Tease Kagami, probably.

"Why isn't Kagami here? He's the expert. That's what Aominecchi says anyway," he asked, looking around for Kuroko before finally finding him.

[misdirects]

Kuroko had been spending the better part of the last two hours helping the newbies get used to the rhythm of his style of passing. His own training is done for the day and he's fresh out of the shower, his hair still a little damp when Kise finds him.

He blinks in surprise, before schooling himself into a more neutral expression, and raises a hand to greet him. "Are you looking for Kagami-kun? He's still busy training with Asahina-kun."

[misdirects]

It's been a while since Kuroko's properly seen his middle school friends, given the increase in training to prepare for the Interhigh. It's shortly after tournament closes out that most of the Miracles meet up for some casual street basketball (Murasakibara refuses on the basis of not wanting to travel back to Tokyo so soon), under the premise of celebrating Kagami's birthday.

After a long day of bickering and banter between the eclectic mix of personalities that is their group, the sun has set and the others start to depart - Kagami is having dinner with his parents for once, Akashi and Midorima cite needing to get an early start the next day, Aomine and Momoi have family obligations. Their group is whittled down to only Kuroko and Kise lingering on the court.

Kuroko, for his part, is absolutely exhausted, but very clearly happy from a day spent with friends. He turns to the blond as he wipes away some lingering sweat with his wristband, bangs sticking haphazardly against his forehead. "I don't know if you're busy, Kise-kun, but if not... would you like to stop by Maji Burger with me?"

[yellowcopycat]

It was nice hanging out with everyone again, even if Murasakibara decided not to come. But it worked out, as they could go three-on-three with Kagami.

He's idly dribbling as everyone leaves, his golden eyes following Akashi as their former captain leaves with Midorima. "Sure," he said, shifting his focus to Kuroko.

It's... weird. He hasn't seen Kuroko since the joint training camp, where they had two unfortunate encounters involving Kise's dick having a mind of its own. The first was more innocent, as they had collided with each other in the baths, and, well, teenage bodies turn on so easily. The second was much more embarrassing as Kuroko caught him jerking off.

They're pretending the second one didn't happen. Kise's one-sided feelings for Kuroko only made things more embarrassing for both of them. So far, with basketball and through texting, things have gone back to normal. And Kise's gone onto his 'Get over Kurokocchi' plan. By pretending to have a crush on someone else. He chose Akashi to pretend to have feelings for and told him what was going on, to Akashi's confused amusement. It's pretty easy to pretend to have a crush on Akashi. He's handsome, well-mannered, plays a killer game of basketball, and Kise's concluded he likes guys shorter than him, which Akashi is.

He stops dribbling the ball and tucks it under his arm. "Lead the way. I don't remember where it's at."

[yellowcopycat]

The Winter Cup's semifinals were done. Touou vs. Rakuzan, with Rakuzan winning. And Seirin vs. Kaijou.

It was close. One point. 108 to 107, Kaijou's win. His win. He scored a three-point shot at the end after stealing the ball from Kuroko, finally copying one of Kuroko's famous steals. The three-pointer had been a desperate move; he was only fifty percent sure he could make it, even though he had been in the zone and using perfect copy throughout the last quarter. But unlike Aomine and Murasakibara, who went one-on-one with Kagami last year, nearly forgetting about Kuroko, Kise was going one-on-two against Kuroko and Kagami. And it had been exhausting.

But he did it. With the last of his energy, he had done it.

Kise stared at the scoreboard, not quite believing it. It was over. It was the best game he had ever played. It was the most fun he had. And he won against Kuroko. He turned, ignoring the screams of the crowd, "Kurokocchi-" was on his lips before pain-in-the-ass Masaki body slammed him in a big bear hug. Soon, he was being dogpiled by the rest of the team.

It was a haze after that. The bowing to each other, thanking each other for the good game. He kept an eye on Kuroko, but the other was harder to focus on than usual. Was he too revved up? Or was Kuroko's lack of presence tied to his mood?

He knew Kuroko had to be hurting from this game. It consumed his thoughts as he let himself be guided back to the locker room. "I'll catch up," he told the Masaki twins, who were his roommates in the hotel the team was staying for the Cup. "I wanna shower and find Kurokocchi. I wanna make sure he's okay."

The twins shared a look, gave him identicle looks of sympathy, and left him.

He took the fastest shower in the history of the Kise family, really more of rinsing off of sweat, shoved himself into clean underwear and his warmup suit, and went outside to look for his friend.

It took fifteen minutes, but he finally found him. He didn't speak, just quietly sat down next to him.

[misdirects]

The final minutes of the game are electrifying - the energy and ferocity from all players on the court unmatched. Riko knows Kise would become even more a threat with another year of refining his Perfect Copy - she saves Kuroko mostly for the last half of the game, letting the light and shadow duo lead the way, but it says a lot for Seirin's future prospects that he was unneeded earlier. They really hold their own through the start and it makes him so proud to see the fruit of their hard-won labor. But he also isn't surprised when the buzzer rings out to signal the end and Kaijou is the victor.

Typically, Seirin leaves together after showering, but Kuroko isn't feeling up to it today, not after such an intense and shocking match. He also rushes through his shower, hair still a little damp as he says his goodbyes and uses his misdirection to disappear before any of the upperclassmen can protest.

He's sitting on the steps leading up towards the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium, a scarf wrapped haphazardly around his neck, every breath a visible puff in the chilly air. When Kise sits down next to him, he doesn't turn to acknowledge him, gaze fixated on the darkening winter sky stretched about above. A few moments of silence stretch between them before he offers a quiet, "congratulations again, Kise-kun. You were really spectacular out there."

[yellowcopycat]

Kise kept his promise, and Kaijou beat Rakuzan. It was super close, one point, just like the match against Seirin. 100-99. It was hard, but it wasn't as much fun as the match against Kuroko.

It was a little bittersweet knowing it was the first game he'd play that Kuroko wouldn't be part of the competition.

Kuroko's birthday was pretty much a repeat of last year, only more crowded because there were more Seirin boys, and Kise had brought the Masaki twins with him because, apparently, Masaki Hayato had developed a friendship with Yagi, Kuroko's protege, despite the two having opposite personalities. Masaki Takeshi tagged along because Kise wanted someone else to ensure the pain in his ass behaved himself.

He had also also invited Kikuchi so he could meet Furihata, but Kikuchi had claimed prior commitments in a tired tone, which Kise knew meant family.

Kise was talking to Furihata, who was much less nervous this year than last year when he got a ding from his phone. He laughed at Furihata's anecdote and pulled his phone out to look at the text, thinking it was one of his sisters. It was Kikuchi. You made the news it said, followed by a link. This was published 20 mins ago. Thought you might want to know.

Kise opened the link, brow furrowed. And there was a picture of him and Kuroko huddled together against the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium; it was apparent Kuroko had been crying, leaning into Kise's hand, and had been taken the exact moment Kise had kissed Kuroko's forehead.

He scanned the ariticle. It was actually pretty nice, talking about good sportsmanship, and the friendship that goes beyond being on opposing teams, using him and Kuroko as a example. The author had dug up that Kuroko was the phantom sixth man from Teikou, and that he and Kise, according to sources, including his coach, that the two had always been close and enjoyed challenging each other to push past their limits. The article continued, talking about other friends on seperate teams, including a pair of brothers.

Okay, that wasn't bad. But the picture was ... something else. The caption was neutral, 'Kise Ryouta puts friends before celebration' but the photo was... it was.

It looked romantic. With the way Kuroko's face was flushed from crying, the way Kise cupped Kuroko's face.

"Oh shit," he said. He looked around for Kuroko, hoping he could tell him about the aritcle before someone else did.

[misdirects]

The final match had come to a thrilling conclusion - just as close as the match prior, Kuroko watched on with baited breath, especially given how much stronger Rakuzan had grown after Akashi's change. He can still remember the feeling of immense pride filling his chest when the ending buzzer rang out and cemented his friend's victory. If he teared up a little over it - well, Kagami has been sworn to secrecy to not tell Kise. It was a magnificent ending to his last official tournament.

Just like last year, Kuroko hadn't expected another party for his birthday, used to small and quiet celebrations - but it makes sense with how it's positioned shortly after the competition. It lends itself too easily to be a rather fun way to close out the Winter Cup. With how crowded it was, pretty soon, they'd have to graduate from hosting it in Kagami's apartment.

Their two newbies, in particular, were a little overwhelmed. Yagi was always of a nervous disposition, especially since he was the least experienced member of Seirin, but clearly his friendship with Hayato has bolstered his confidence a fair bit and he had been very excited to see the twins. The rest of the team seemed to encourage the inter-team friendly rivalry, and Kuroko doubted that would end anytime soon. It made him feel warm.

Kuroko is in the middle of defusing yet another minor argument between Aomine and Kagami when he catches Kise's gaze, greeting him with a bit of an exasperated smile and wave from the other side of the room.

[misdirects]

The cherry blossoms are in full bloom as the school year starts anew. Tearful goodbyes were shared with the founders of the Seirin Basketball Club only a couple weeks ago and now it's fully in the hands of new third years. Kuroko is carrying out his first big duty as the team manager by establishing the Kaijou-Seirin practice match, which is starting to become something of a tradition between the two schools.

He's talking over the details with Coach Takeuchi on the sidelines of the gym, but his gaze is repeatedly drawn over to the practice that's starting to slow down. Takeuchi's eyes are instead lingering over the large bandage taped to Kuroko's left cheek as they finalize dates.

[yellowcopycat]

Kise's distracted, trying his damndest not to be, though.

Things are good! He has a boyfriend! Akashi Seijurou and Kise Ryouta are offically boyfriends. Sure there was distance was a bit of problem, but it was only a two trip by train, and Kise was out in Kyoto for the occasional photoshoot.

He did tell his agent to cut back on shoots, so he does have more weekends now.

It's been kinda whirlwind since their big splashy reveal. Kise's dad had framed every photo of Kise, including the kiss he and Akashi had shared, though Kise had gone into his dad's office and took it down and hid it in his bedroom. His dad went in and got it back, and it's been a near daily game between the two of them.

But that wasn't the reason he was distracted. Kuroko was distrating him. To be more accurate, he was distracted by the bandage on Kuroko's face. As soon as the game ended, Kaijou winning against the visiting team by a point, Kise made a bee line to Kuroko.

"What happened?" he asked in lieu of saying hello.

[yellowcopycat]

Soon, Golden Week was upon them, and Kise headed down to Kyoto to spend the weekend with Akashi. He's excited and nervous. They've mostly done the long distance thing. And since they were mostly using each other for various reasons, Akashi to defy his father, Kise to get over Kuroko, they made it work. They enjoyed each other's company, and Kise would be lying if he said he didn't like kissing the other boy.

They were fond of each other. Their relationship had deepened because this. And they were openly calling each other boyfriends. It was nice. Really nice.

Doesn't he look great?

[misdirects]

Kuroko has been quietly enjoying his own break all the way down in Ehime, idling away his time with his head buried in books when not out with family. He is a little surprised when he sees the text from Kise - he expected he'd be too busy.

That's a very nice yukata.

Tell Akashi-kun I said hello and that he looks very handsome.

[yellowcopycat]

Kuroko suggested the small get-together of the Miracles for his birthday. This led to some confusion from Aomine and Murasakibara because he had never invited them to anything before. Kise explained it was usually a family thing for him, but since it was their last year of high school, he was all for this!

So here they were, having a bit of a picnic of sorts. They camped out on the benches next to the basketball court.

Kagami had been dragged along and provided entertainment along with Aomine by their bickering and trying to one-up each other by making increasingly impressive dunks. Kise then showed them up by copying them and then combining some of their moves together. Some were better than others.

Midorima snarked at them and made his three-point shots; Muraskibara blocked as many dunks as he could, which was about half, annoying Aomine and Kagami, but making Kise laugh. Akashi had more or less assumed the referee role but occasionally stole the ball from them and made two-point shots.

Needing a drink, Kise walked over to the water fountain, took a drink, then splashed his face before looking back at the court, his eyes pausing on Akashi, enjoying his boyfriend's handsome figure, before he looked for Kuroko. Their relationship was still the same, not quite romantic, but very close. They enjoyed each other's company, and Akashi was surprisingly cuddly in private.

"So, are you going to insist on this for everyone's birthday this year?" he asked Kuroko when he found the shorter boy, who wasn't far away. He lifted the bottom of his shirt and wiped extra water from his face. "It'd be nice since half of us are leaving."

[misdirects]

Of lower stamina than everyone else, Kuroko is resting on the bench and refueling with one of Kagami's generously-sized onigiri. His eyes notice Kise's exposed stomach before drifting up to his glistening face and feels a pang of annoyance at his beauty. He pointedly distracts himself with a big bite before answering.

"Don't you think it's a good excuse? Our birthdays don't overlap too closely."

It was true that Kuroko is feeling a bit melancholy at the idea that they were already close to halfway through their last year - he knows he would regret it if they didn't encourage more meetups before distance made it difficult. While summer is full of birthdays, the later ones are a bit more spaced out, at least, to balance it out.

And it's been a while since he's played basketball with a larger group - Kagami plays street ball with him after practice if he isn't already wiped out, but he's much too busy supporting Seirin to indulge often. He misses it and it's obvious how much Kuroko is enjoying himself, a soft glow from within manifesting in a brighter than usual smile on his face.

[misdirects]

The days pass by quietly with first semester exams coming and going at the end of the June. Kuroko is eager to help Seirin craft a more intense training program now that exams are behind them and Interhigh looms on the horizon. It'll be the first major tournament they play without him and it's a little painful, but he hopes he can help lead the team to victory, even if it's from the sidelines.

Even with all the hubbub of drawing up exercise programs and new strategies, he needs to find time to visit his prospective schools. His mother was the one who thought it was a good excuse to tie both his visit to Ryuuzaki University with a sidequest to the famous Shonan Hiratsuka Tanabata Festival.

The weekend of Tanabata starts off sunny and pleasantly warm and is the perfect weather to tour the university in. Kuroko makes sure to send off a text in the morning that details the time and place they should meet later in the evening. Later in the day, he sends off another text: Sorry, my parents will be joining us briefly at the start.

When the appointed hour rolls around, Kuroko is waiting across from the intersection where the festival starts, dressed in a white yukata with a simple pattern, tied off with an obi that matches his hair. He is flanked by his parents: his father, a side-swept gray-haired bespectacled man who is only slightly taller than he is, wrapped in a dark navy yukata in a white obi. His mother, a petite woman with a bob the same color as Kuroko's, wearing a white yukata decorated in sweeping visuals of indigo spider lilies. Her obi also matches Kuroko's, but it's tied elaborately in the shape of a flower.

[yellowcopycat]

Don't apologize! I've been wanting to meet them!

Kise's yukata was a cute thing, a birthday present from his sisters, who for some reason decided that he needed penguins.

He beamed at the Kuroko family when he saw them, waving his hand. "Kurokocchi!" he shouted as he headed over. "Over here!"

[yellowcopycat]

Unfortunately, Kise never got the chance to get back with Kuroko. Things ramped up for Interheigh for both schools, and between practice and his job, Kise couldn't find time before he would be flying off to the US with his dad to look at the schools that had expressed interest in him.

Kaijou won theirs, of course. And tomorrow, he'd be in another country without talking to Kuroko. He had tried! He did! They just never had time off at the same time.

He was all packed. It wouldn't be the first time he went to the US, though it had been a while, the break between first and second year, before he confessed to Kuroko.

In retrospect, it was that trip that spurred him on to confess to Kuroko. He leaned back against his case, listening to his father walk outside his room, talking to his mom and sister about the trip. He was nervous. He had never been to Texas or Ohio.

He pulled out his phone and texted Kuroko.

Going to America tomorrow. I'm nervous.

[misdirects]

He understands why Kise doesn't reach out. It really is easiest to throw himself into preparing for the Interhigh with all his might. In turn, devoting every free moment to strategizing and making sure Seirin does their best... it's worth it in the end, when against all odds, they end up second against Touou.

But without basketball to preoccupy his thoughts, they wander. Even books can't hold his attention as well as they usually do, but he's in the middle of one when his phone pings.

You shouldn't be. I'm sure you'll be well-received.

[yellowcopycat]

Kise had been home about a week before he had the time to set up a time to hang out with Kuroko.

Now that things had settled, he met Kuroko at a little cafe near Seirin. He had gotten there earlier than he thought he would and was idly slipping his bubble tea.

He wasn't exactly sure how this would go. A lot of things have come out in the last month. Kuroko liked him. He liked Kuroko, and he was with Akashi. He liked being with Akashi. And as much as he would have liked to be with Kuroko and Akashi simultaneously, he knew that wasn't possible. Kuroko wouldn't be happy with it and didn't know how Akashi would have felt about it. He didn't ask because it wouldn't happen.

He allowed himself the luxury of a sigh and shut his eyes. Maybe he and Kuroko would hang out and not talk about any romantic tension between them. That'd be nice.

[misdirects]

Most of their summer vacation passes without much fanfare for Kuroko, the majority of it spent studying and every moment where his head wasn't in the books was instead used on street ball. He feels less guilt about roping the others into joining him when they aren't busy preparing for tournaments.

He doesn't expect Kise to really send out an invitation given how busy he is, but it is nice to squeeze in some time before school starts up again. He arrives at the cafe a few minutes before their designated meeting time and notices the blond already seated.

He takes the chance to slip into the seat across from him, fully expecting his misdirection to work at full power due to Kise's lack of exposure to him and idly waits for him to notice.