Chapter Text
Tetsurou was drowning.
He could see the light and he swam towards it pushing and pushing but the current dragged him down further until the light became a distant speck in his vision. He breathed in, unable to handle the burning in his lungs and his vision darkened as a heavy weight settled in his chest. He felt...at peace? The light rushed at him suddenly as he was pulled to the surface.
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He awoke with a start to find his limbs pinned down. There was a large weight on his chest. Had Kenma had another nightmare? It had been so long since his last that he had forgotten the feeling of another person's weight on his bod--this was...not Kenma. There was a much heavier weight on his body, much heavier than his best friend. What was going on? He slowly cracked his eyes open in the low light, trying to figure out what was going on.
Holy fucking---
All of the blood in his body rushed to his hips as he came to the stunning realization that Tsukishima Kei had his limbs pinned down and was sitting on his stomach. In his bed. And was staring at him with a sneer that could probably kill a weaker man.
Kuroo Tetsurou was most definitely into that.
"Tsuk--"
"Shut up, Kuroo."
Tetsurou felt like the wind was knocked out of him.
Tsukki's face was inching towards his, there was a hitch in his breathing and he pulled his lower lip between his teeth only slightly as he ground his hips gently against the boy below him.
Tetsurou felt his lungs begging for air; his brain was screaming for his attention but he couldn't seem to draw a breath. He was on fire.
Tsukishima bridged the gap between their faces until scarce centimeters remained, and as Tetsurou struggled to make his lungs work Tsukki blew a gentle puff of air towards his lips and then sneered, "What's wrong, senpai? Has a cat eaten your tongue?"
He had felt like he was helplessly drowning under the intense pressure of Tsukishima's gaze. But as his lungs filled with air something rabid ignited in Tetsurou.
He was on fire and this little bird was going to pay for making a mess out of him.
Tetsurou craned his neck upwards and pushed his arms free of Tsukishima's hold. He threw Tsukishima off balance and pulled his legs towards his body; Tsukki was effectively trapped in his lap. What Tetsurou lacked in height he made up for in muscle mass, and in that area he had the lightweight Tsukki completely beat. He held him tight; his arms were held pinned to his sides. Tetsurou growled in his ear, "You picked the wrong day to test your provoking skills on me, little bird."
And he froze there.
This wasn't how he wanted this to happen.
His confession was supposed to be sweet and maybe silly, if Tsukki hadn't returned his feelings. He could just laugh it off. It wasn't supposed to be sweat and awkward arousal and Tsukki's erratic breathing.
This was probably the worst confession in human history.
He pulled his head back from Tsukki's neck, and rolled his neck back, not wanting to make eye contact with the boy he had trapped in his lap. This really didn't reflect well on Tetsurou's character. Here he was ready to tear into his friend like a wild animal.
Tetsurou sighed softly. He lifted his head back up, daring to sneak a peek at the blonde's face. Tsukki had a look like he had touched a live wire, and his breathing was still panicked and shaky. He probably thought Kuroo Tetsurou was a pervert and a loser and a jerk and now he could throw assailant onto the list--
"Kuroo...can I have my arms back?", Tsukki softly exhaled. He sounded pissed. Fuck.
"S-s-s-sorry...Tsukk-- Tsukishima."
"You know, you're not really in a great place to be using such formalities."
God damn it how was he still getting under his skin? All he had to do was draw his voice out like that and he was reduced to a puddle of mushy Kuroo. He felt itchy all over, his heart was pounding, and he could feel the fire building inside him again.
Tetsurou smiled wryly and promptly buried his face in his hands. Now was probably as good a time as ever, considering how his night was going.
"Tsukk-....Kei. I like you. A lot"
"Thanks...Kuroo. I'm glad you like the people you're friends with." He lifted his head and peeked through his fingers, terrified of what he would see on his friend's face. Was that a smile forming? And as soon as it appeared it was gone. "But do you treat all of your...friends...like this?"
"Ahh...no. Not...exactly," Tetsurou whispered, he could feel his face heating up again. He fell backwards onto the bed and buried his face in his elbow. He'd made a fool of himself and had probably fucked up the only other friendship he had held dear. Tsukki probably wouldn't ever want to talk to him again or ever hang ou--wait... Tetsurou realized that Tsukki hadn't moved from his perch on Tetsurou's stomach. He was looking down at the older boy with a curious expression. He cautiously rested his hands across Tetsurou's abdomen.
"Kur--Tetsu...rou...I think...I need you to explain how you feel...to me"
Tetsurou flushed at the use of his given name. What did this mean? Tsukki had never used his first name before today. Did he do it out of guilt because he had used his given name first? Oh god, how was--
"Kuroo I asked you a question you could at least acknowledge me"
Shit.
"Ahh...I guess you just make me really...ahh...uncomfortable..?"
FUCK. IT.
"That's not what I--"
Tsukishima snorted.
"I meant to say...I dunno. I really like spending time with you, and I always want to rile you up. I like seeing your face when you get angry at me, or when I do something stupid and you look like you want to laugh but you just smirk instead."
Tetsurou gulped for air. This was harder than he thought it would be, and Tsukki was just sitting on top of him, regarding him thoughtfully. Tetsurou thought he could feel Tsukki's fingers tracing small shapes across his abdomen. He felt the heat starting to build in his belly again. (Even now he's trying to provoke me? I must have taught him far too well.)
"And I meant you make me...uncomfortable...because it feels like you keep sliding under my skin. Like every time we talk or see each other you leave a little sliver of yourself behind and I can't stop thinking about you. And it's been like this since we first met and I understand if you think I'm a gross old man ("Kuroo," Tsukki whispered) or a pervert and you should probably just call the cops on me ("Kuroo!" He barked) or someth--"
Tsukishima slammed his hands down, one on each side of Tetsurou's head. There was that killer look again, but much closer this time. He could see the burn of...anger? (It had to be) behind Tsukki's eyes.
"Shut. Up. Kuroo."
Tetsurou closed his eyes and felt water building in the corners and felt his stomach dropping into the couch again he couldn't believe he had just ruined everything and--
His eyes shot open as he felt a small pressure on his lips.
What?
Instead of Death reaching out a hand for him, he realized (after a few seconds of his brain hard resetting) that he was seeing...Tsukishima Kei...kissing him?! Was he seeing this correctly? He wasn't already dead and having one final, cruel trick played on him?
The warmth spreading from his lips across his face told Tetsurou that no, this was no trick. He was definitely getting kissed. He raised a tentative hand to Tsukki's face, cupping the blonde's face in his hand and gently running his thumb across his cheek. A blush spread across his cheeks and nose, which was reflected on the other's face.
This was definitely real.
Tsukishima broke the kiss first.
He bopped his nose against Tetsurou's and closed his eyes.
"I... I think I might feel the same way a-a-about you...Ku-Tetsurou"
Tetsurou couldn't stop the joy bubbling up inside him. He started to giggle, which he realized was very difficult with another person on top of him. He couldn't help it. He didn't care if it hurt. He hiccupped out, "T-tetsu...please call me Tetsu... Kei" as he pulled the blonde's face back towards his own and kissed him like he'd been dreaming of for these past few years.
It was messy and he couldn't stop his giggling but he heard a few small noises and felt what suspiciously seemed like a smile against his lips that told him Tsukishima Kei was just as happy with how they were evolving.
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Kozume Kenma peeked out from his door and was greeted by the sight of Tsukishima Kei sprawled on top of his best friend: they were both sound asleep. He hadn't seen Tetsu smile like that in ages, and he didn't think he had ever seen the blonde smile...at all. He thought maybe he could see some of what Kuroo saw that made him fall so hard.
He crept out quietly to the side of the couch and took a quick picture of the pair's faces. He needed it for evidence. Padding back to his room he dialed his own crush's number. Despite the hour, he was probably still awake playing video games with Kageyama. He heard a muffled noise as the other end was picked up.
"Keeeenmaa! Wha'dya want izzsooo late?"
He couldn't help but blush at the way sleep sounded in his voice.
"You owe me a trip to Tokyo, Shou," he whispered low.
"WHAAAAT IT REALLY HAPPENED??! NO KENMA I DON'T BELIEVE IT, I WANTTHA EVIDENCE!"
"I've got a picture and everything. I'll send it to you tomorrow. Go back to sleep."
There were a few soft grumbles from the other end, and then soft snores. He was reluctant to hang up. He settled into his bed with a small grin on his face.
Kuroo would never hear the end of this.
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