Chapter Text
“Oi, Tetsu.”
“Hm?” He leaned down to get his face level with yours – a little closer than it should be.
You shoved him away by his shoulder, glaring at him. “You know, you’ve been doing a terrible job at being subtle.”
He grinned, straightening up and ruffling your hair. “What’s wrong?”
“Are you sure it’s a good idea?” You asked, eyes flicking over to the rest of the team. The two of you were courtside as Kuroo took a quick ‘water break.’ You had a feeling that his increasingly frequent breaks were less about keeping his hydration up, and more about gazing at you with a touch too much affection.
“What, telling them we’re together?” He asked, raising an eyebrow at you.
“Sh!”
He chuckled, resisting the urge to poke your nose. “You think we shouldn’t tell them?” He smirked. “Ever?”
“That’s not what I meant, and you know it.” You rolled your eyes, crossing your arms over your chest. “It’s just that… you know. The gym isn’t exactly neutral ground.”
He snorted. “Neutral ground, huh?”
“You know what I mean,” you huffed.
“Can’t say I do.”
“You’re so mean,” you whined. If you were alone, you might’ve buried your face in his chest. But, you couldn’t really do that now.
“I’m sorry,” he grinned, ruffling your hair yet again. “But we should tell them. And soon.”
You pouted at him, trying to make your eyes as endearing as you could manage.
“Nice try,” he chuckled. “But not gonna work.”
“Can we at least tell them when the coaches are gone?” You frowned petulantly, stuffing your hands in the pockets of your jacket. “That’ll make it a tad less embarrassing.”
“Ashamed to be with me?” Kuroo grinned, raising an eyebrow at you.
“No! I just—”
“I know,” he cooed, his fingers finding their way to the your shoulders and giving them a gentle massage. You would’ve melted into that touch, had you been alone.
“What did I say about being subtle?” You glared, but made no effort to whack his arms away.
“Gotta go,” he smirked, tossing his bottle at you before dashing for the court. You had half a mind to call after him, but you thought better of it.
You conceded, propping yourself against the wall as you glared at your obnoxiously tall boyfriend as subtly as you could.
Practice was over much too quickly. You’d almost wanted it to go on forever, given what you were about to do. You knew you had to tell your kids at some point, but the thought was still frightening. What would they think? Would they disapprove?
Kuroo had said it was better to tell them sooner rather than later, and you’d begrudgingly agreed. It’d be worse if you just kept putting it off, and you were sure your kids would feel like that was a betrayal.
But the logic of it didn’t stop you from being any less nervous.
So when everyone was packing up and the coaches had made their exit, Kuroo ambled over to you with a concerned look on his face.
“You sure you’re okay to tell them tonight?” Kuroo asked, tilting his head at you.
He was far too good at reading your emotions. Perceptive bastard.
You nodded, casting your eyes to your kids. “Yeah.”
“We don’t have to tell them if you don’t want to,” he murmured, zipping up his bag. “At least, not here.”
“It’s okay,” you smiled, trying to quell the hammering in your chest. “It’s like ripping the bandaid off, right?”
Kuroo snorted. “Really? That’s what you’re going to equate our relationship to?”
“Not our relationship, but—”
He held back a cackle as he stood up, turning to face the rest of the team.
“Everyone!”
The other boys turned to look at him, expressions ranging from confusion to annoyance.
“So,” Kuroo said, slinging an arm around your shoulder. You took a deep breath as you tried to look as unbothered as possible. “We have some important news for you.”
“You’ve actually become a competent captain?” Yaku snorted.
“Great guess, but no,” Kuroo grinned, looking at you. “We… are finally together.”
“Huh?” Lev tilted his head to the side, looking between the two of you. “Together?”
“Yes,” Kuroo nodded slowly. “Together… romantically.”
“You’re dating?” Inuoka blinked, looking between the two of you.
Kuroo resisted the urge to sigh. “Yes. We’re dating.”
“No way,” Yaku shook his head. “Nuh uh. No way you grew balls and asked her out.”
“Who said I asked her out?” Kuroo gasped, looking down at you.
“She’s too good for you,” Kenma shrugged. Some nods rippled through the rest of the team, the general consensus being one of agreement. You bit back a laugh. That, at least, made you feel a little less nervous.
Kuroo stared at him for a moment, looking between his once-trusted childhood friend and you.
“Then how do you explain this?” Kuroo asked, gesturing between the two of you, pointing specifically to the arm wrapped around your shoulders.
“Explain what?” Lev asked, tilting his head at the two of you.
“Well, this is… a thing couples do,” Kuroo murmured, bewilderment working its way into his expression.
“Not necessarily,” Lev piped up. “I put my arm around her all the time!”
“Trust me, I know,” Kuroo seethed, pulling you a little closer.
You bit the inside of your cheek to stop yourself from smiling too widely. Kuroo had never said that Lev’s affection towards you was a problem, but you had caught your boyfriend pouting in your general direction whenever the younger boy got a little bit too close.
“So… you don’t believe me at all?” Kuroo frowned, looking between all the faces in front of him.
“Nuh uh.” Several of the boys shook their heads.
“But… why would we both be standing here, telling you all that we’re dating?” Kuroo asked, trying to grasp at some logical argument. You could tell that his frustration was already growing. You, on the other hand, were having a great time.
“You offered to pay her five thousand yen,” Yamamoto shrugged. “Only scenario that makes sense.”
“She’s right here, you know.” Kuroo jerked his head at you.
“Did he offer to pay you, like, five thousand yen or something?” Yamamoto asked, looking you dead in the eye.
“Yes.” You were nervous – but teasing Kuroo seemed like the perfect outlet.
Kuroo’s head whipped around to look at you, aghast.
You grinned up at him.
“Sorry,” Yaku shrugged, taking a large swig of water. “We’re not just going to believe you without proof.”
“Oh?” Kuroo raised an eyebrow, a grin spreading across his face. “So you want proof, then?”
The team looked amongst themselves, nodding. “Yeah, actually. We do.”
“I see,” Kuroo hummed, turning to face you. You complied, a small knot of anxiety tightening in your stomach. What was he planning to do?
You caught a glimpse of Kenma’s face. Anticipatory discomfort. Oh, no.
Kuroo’s hands came up to cup your face, as they had many times this month. But, you trusted him; he wouldn’t do anything to make you comfortable. At least, not without checking with you first.
He leant in, his breath tickling your ear. “Can I?”
You nodded, a smile tugging at your lips. You knew the team was watching with rapt attention. And you knew that your boyfriend could be a petty little shit.
His lips met yours as he moved his hands to your waist, holding you flush against his body. Your arms found their way around his neck instinctively as you stood on your tiptoes, leaning against him for balance.
Oh.
He meant business.
He hummed, parting your lips with his. Of course he wouldn’t just go for a chaste peck. But, you’d let him get away with it this time.
Your face was burning; you were barely used to him touching you like this in private, let alone in front of your entire team. But you weren’t about to stop him. Your kids said they wanted proof, after all.
You weren’t sure who started it. But someone started screeching.
You could hear Lev screaming, shouting something about ‘betrayal.’ Yamamoto was full-on hollering, the sound ringing through the gym. Was the screeching… Fukunaga, then?
“Alright, that’s enough!” Yaku bellowed, grabbing Kuroo by the collar and yanking him away from you. Kuroo cackled as he stumbled back, arms still reaching out for you.
“You are disgusting,” Yaku cawed, looking between the two of you.
“You said you wanted proof!” Kuroo snickered, hands on his knees as he keeled over.
“Yeah, proof!” Yamamoto shouted. “Not a demonstration.”
“You’re just jealous,” Kuroo snorted, stumbling towards you. You reached out for him, planting your hands on his shoulders.
“Wait, wait, wait,” Inuoka held up a hand, looking between the two of you with wide eyes. “How long has this been going on?”
“Yeah!” Yaku huffed, hands on his hips. “How long have you been keeping this from us?”
“None of your business,” Kuroo grinned, wrapping his arms around you and pulling you into his chest. You laughed, letting yourself fall against him.
“They’ve been dating for about a month,” Kenma murmured, hands dug deep in his pockets. If he felt any remorse for outing you two like that, he didn’t show it.
“A month?” Various sounds of indignation rose up in a racket, and you knew that you had a lot to answer for.
“You!” Yaku gasped, pointing a finger at you. “You’re complicit in this!”
“Sorry,” you giggled, slipping your arms around Kuroo’s waist. Even you had to admit that the look of absolute betrayal on the boys’ faces was pretty priceless.
“Aren’t you happy for us?” Kuroo snorted, looking between the team. “Your beloved manager and your captain—”
“Of course we are,” Kai chuckled, raising a hand. “We’re just surprised.”
“I, for one, thought you had better taste,” Yaku grumbled, jabbing a finger at you.
“Look, dumbass—”
“If you’re dating him out of pity, blink twice,” Yamamoto asked, looking you straight in the eye.
“Don’t you dare,” Kuroo huffed, pressing a kiss to the top of your head.
Another round of yells from your kids, mostly consisting of ‘gross!’ and ‘get a room!’
You elbowed Kuroo in the stomach swiftly before he could say ‘oh, we intend to.’
As Kuroo continued to gloat about his relationship to a wailing Yamamoto, you began apologising profusely to Lev and Yaku.
Kai, bless his heart, was doing his best to help you contain the chaos, but to no avail.
Kenma had very decidedly kept himself out of it, instead absorbing himself in whatever game he was playing on his phone.
Poor Inuoka still looked confused, but Shibayama was so red in the face that he had to be cognizant of what was going on.
Fukunaga and Teshiro just watched on, one amused and the other bewildered.
Somehow, after all that mayhem, you managed to calm the racket down. One by one, everyone began to make their way home.
You personally wanted to get into the warmth of a home as soon as possible, cold as a winter night in Tokyo could be.
As usual, you and Kuroo walked with Kenma. The only difference these days was that now you and Kuroo walked hand in hand. Kenma had been the first person to find out about your relationship, and much to your relief, it hadn’t changed how he interacted with the two of you.
If anything, he seemed quietly grateful that it gave him an opportunity to rag on Kuroo.
“That was childish of you,” Kenma sighed, his hands dug in his pockets as the three of you trudged down the street.
“They were insulting my honour,” Kuroo grinned, placing a hand to his chest. The other was wrapped firmly around one of yours.
Kenma gave him that look, the one that’d make anyone crumple up and feel like a total idiot. But Kuroo was undeterred, that childish grin of his growing bigger.
“What was I supposed to do? Let them tell me that my girlfriend is too good for me?”
“Your girlfriend is too good for you.”
“Thank you, Kenma,” you beamed, peeking around your boyfriend to catch a glimpse of the second year.
“The disrespect!” Kuroo scoffed. “To think, I put so much time and effort into being a good captain, and this is–”
“Goodnight,” Kenma cut in, waving a hand at the two of you. You looked over to see that you’d arrived at his house without even noticing. Kenma scuttled towards his front door, hunched over like a little gremlin with his hands stuffed in his pockets.
“Don’t stay up too late!” Kuroo called after him. “And make sure you eat a good dinner!”
Kenma shot him a dithering look, but Kuroo remained undeterred.
“And don’t play video games after ten! It’s bad for your eyes!”
Kenma said nothing as he shut his front door with a resounding ‘thud.’
You raised an eyebrow at your boyfriend, who turned to you with a grin.
“He’ll thank me one day.”
“You sure?” You smiled.
“He may not say it,” Kuroo tsked, “but I know he’s grateful deep down.”
You rolled your eyes at him, but he knew you didn’t mean it. He gave your hand a squeeze as he stepped forward.
“Alright, let’s get you home,” he sighed, his breath billowing in a little cloud in front of him.
“Wait,” you said, tugging on his hand.
“Hm?”
“I’ve got a question.”
“Huh?” He tilted his head at you, his nose a little red and shiny from the cold.
“Can I come over?” You hummed, giving his hand a squeeze.
Kuroo gazed at you for a moment, his heart thrumming in his chest. It wasn’t a strange question, or one that should’ve given him reason to pause. But he still wasn’t used to this sort of thing. To you asking to hang out with him, all of your feelings out in the open. He got to spend time with you without having to hold things so close to his chest that it hurt. You could do everything together, now; talk, laugh, tease, kiss. And somehow, that was all wrapped up in one little question.
“You just want to see my grandma,” he grinned. Sure, he felt all that sentimentality, but he wasn’t about to say it.
“Oh, of course,” you nodded. “And don’t forget the dog.”
He looked at you, your cheeks bitten red by the cold on this early December evening, your eyes shining with a pure and wholesome joy. The warmth of your hand was tucked safely in his, your bodies pressed together as you walked down the street. There was no strange tension between you anymore. No fear that either of you might ruin this precious thing you shared.
“I guess I can live with that.” He smiled, giving your hand a squeeze.
He’s just happy. Content. Maybe even blissful.
And for the second time in the past five minutes, Kuroo found himself at the mercy of his own fondness. He gazed at you, the softest of smiles on his face.
He really was lucky to have you.
“Don’t look at me like that,” you whined, pressing your face against his arm in an attempt to hide it.
“Like what?”
“Like… Like…” You grasped at the words, trying to think of anything that wasn’t some form of ‘like you love me.’ You gave up pretty quickly. “Like that!”
You may not have said those words, but Kuroo knew you well enough to glean what you really meant.
“I’m your boyfriend!” He chuckled, leaning back and tucking an arm around your waist. “What am I supposed to do?”
“I don’t know,” you whined, covering your face with your gloved hands. “It’s just… you… you’re embarrassing me!”
“I’m sorry,” Kuroo laughed, pressing a kiss to the top of your head. God, you really were too cute. “Let’s go home.”