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

[yellowcopycat]

"I won't," Kise promised, smiling confidently at his friend. "And I'll have plenty of time to rest up." The rest of Kaijou was probably still up, nervous and excited about tomorrow.

"I'm going to win tomorrow. For you. For Kasamatsu-senpai and the others who graduated last year. For my family. And for me. For my basketball."

The one Kuroko taught him.

[misdirects]

"Rakuzan is strong, but I believe your basketball will prevail."

He means it in mostly jest, because he knows Kise would never, but just a bit of teasing can't hurt. "Don't let your crush on Akashi-kun get in the way."

[yellowcopycat]

“I won’t,” Kise promised. Mostly because he didn’t have a crush on Akashi.

Aomine was the only person he subconsciously let beat him. And that wasn’t going to happen again.

”Do you wanna get something to eat? I have about an hour before I have to get to bed.”

[misdirects]

He nods, unwrapping himself from the towels, sufficiently warmed up now, and folds them neatly.

"I'll treat you this time, so your choice."

[yellowcopycat]

"You don't have to. You know I eat at least twice as much as you do. Probably closer to three times," Kise said with a grin.

"But there's a ramen place next to the hotel I'm staying at. I could probably use the carbs."

[misdirects]

"At least for stomach isn't as bottomless as Kagami-kun's." He rolls his eyes a little as he gets up. "I'll pay for one bowl and a noodle refill, then. You're on your own after that."

[yellowcopycat]

"Kagamicchi's stomach scares me. I know most people would just say it's because he's from America, but I've met Americans other than him, and they don't eat nearly as much."

He shakes his head as he leads Kuroko out of the locker room and out of the doors of the building. "My hotel's this way," he said. "Are you in the same direction?"

[misdirects]

He shivers a bit as they step outside, rearranging his scarf. "Your hotel isn't that far, is it? I'll be fine."

[yellowcopycat]

"Just two blocks from here," Kise said as he started walking in that direction. "Maybe, ten minutes if we take it easy?"

[misdirects]

Kuroko nods, keeping pace with him. "That's fine, the train station is still rather close."

The streets are largely quiet and devoid of people, everyone having rushed out as soon as the match ended. It's a little weird to see when the gymnasium was typically such a bustling place.

[yellowcopycat]

"Creepy," Kise murmured as he looked around. "We weren't in there for that long, maybe like a half hour at most. It sure did empty out quickly."

Quicker than Kise thought they would. He puts a knit hat on his head and pulls it down over his ears, then shoves his hands in his pants pocket. "It's really cold tonight."

[misdirects]

"The main event has ended, after all... I rather like it this empty." But he was probably in the minority with that.

Kuroko looks a little amused at his hat of choice. "Kise-kun, stop for a moment and bend down, please."

[yellowcopycat]

"Huh? Okay?"

Kise stopped and bent slightly so he was looking Kuroko in the face. (It wasn't that much of a bend because while Kuroko always looked shorter than he actually was, he wasn't short by the national standard.)

"Are you going to make fun of my hat? It's cold out."

[misdirects]

"I don't believe I have the credentials to call KiseRyo unfashionable," he teases as he unwinds the muffler from his neck. Even if Kuroko wasn't that short, there was still about a 20 centimeter height difference between them, so he tiptoes up to wrap it around the taller boy's neck.

[yellowcopycat]

"Contrary to popular belief, I'm not fashionable all the time. Like, I don't wear designer underwear as much as people think. They're really expensive, so they are impractical to wear for practice and games. And my pajamas are my dad's hand-me-downs."

Okay, not the time to talk about his underwear.

His face turns pink when Kuroko wraps his muffler around his neck. "Won't you get cold?" he asked softly.

[misdirects]

"I'd rather you not catch a cold," Kuroko says nonchalantly, even as his nose is already turning pink. He pulls the end through the looped scarf and pats it against his neck when he's satisfied that it's secure. He moves to walk down the street again, looking back with a smile. "And I know, we did spend two years changing in the same locker room."

[yellowcopycat]

"Thank you, Kurokocchi," Kise said as he straightened back up. "I'll give this back to you after I win tomorrow for you."

Kise can't help but let out a laugh. "That's true, but they weren't plain either! I had really cute designs on them! I didn't know you looked!"

He quickly falls back into step with Kuroko. "You can see the place now. Looks like they're still open."

[misdirects]

"I wasn't looking on purpose," he huffs a indignant breath into his hands to warm them and certainly not to hide a blush or anything.

He beelines for the appointed ramen place, eager to get out of the cold.

[yellowcopycat]

"It's okay, Kurokocchi. I get it. Not only did I have the most interesting underwear, but my butt was also the nicest out of all of us. It's only natural."

Sometimes, Kise can give as good as he gets. Not all the time, but still.

He follows, and he's welcomed by the hostess, who missed Kuroko entirely. It's not a traditional ramen stand, more like a resteraunt but Kise's thankful because it's warm.

They're taken to a table and she leaves with the promise of a waiter being there soon.

[misdirects]

"You're too confident." He rolls his eyes, jabbing an elbow casually into Kise's side before going up to get wholly ignored by the hostess. Business as usual and she's a bit spooked when she realizes his presence only after she's seated them. "Thank you very much," he intones, shifting to hang his bag off the side of his chair and start browsing the menu.

[yellowcopycat]

"I'm exactly as confident as I need to be," Kise said. "I'm a model, after all. I'm proud of my body. I worked hard for it."

And yeah, genetics play a big part in it. But he works to maintain his image; salons for hair, nails, and eyebrows.

He opens the menu, going to the vegetarian section as he's in the mood for tofu. And tofu is cheaper than meat. Kise doesn't want to be a burden on Kuroko's wallet.

[misdirects]

"Somehow, that part of you is annoying," but Kuroko says this very casually and without any bite as he flips through the pages, despite already knowing he'll likely get the most popular item in the smallest portion.

[yellowcopycat]

Kise still pouts. "It pays the bills," he said in his defense. Not that he has many bills, but still. He has a job, most people their age don't. He's a responsible, tax-paying member of society!

He puts the menu down when he decides on tonkatsu ramen with tofu and looks at Kuroko. "Will you be at the game tomorrow? I'll understand if you're not up for it."

[misdirects]

Someday, Kise will figure out it's because Kuroko likes making him pout that he says things like that.

He looks up from the menu. "Of course. I wouldn't miss it for the world. Well, unless a meteorite crash-landed into my train on the way over."

[yellowcopycat]

Kise knows the reason; Kuroko, like Aomine, is a sadist. And Kise is pretty when he pouts (he doesn't know if he cries pretty, but Aomine is weird.)

"I'm glad," Kise said. "I'd feel better if you were there. Winning for you and the rest of Seirin."