Work Text:
“What is the most embarrassing thing your boyfriend has ever done or what is the most embarrassing thing about your bf?” Kenma read the question out loud, then eyed the camera.
Judging by the way chat was speeding up, his viewers were loving the question already.
Different situations were already flashing before his mind’s eye and he groaned, hiding his face behind his hands. Ingame, his character died, mocking him, but he didn’t really care. Kenma did not have to check the chat to know it was exploding.
It took Kenma some time to open up about his relationship online and even more to start relating stories, but his viewers took up on it frighteningly quickly. Clips of absent comments Kenma had made, compilations of Kuroo bringing him food or just Kenma telling stories of their everyday life were immensely popular and made Kenma open up more as time passed. His viewers continued to be supportive.
Kenma contemplated how to answer the question for a beat, regaining his composure and picking up his controller once again.
Since he was re-playing super mario galaxy, he knew the levels well enough to be able to only half-heartedly pay attention to it. He still managed to expertly maneuver his way through the levels anyway.
“There is too much to pick from. Kuro can be a huge embarrassment, you know?” Kenma started, purposely vague. He could already feel a smile tug on his lips.
The chat cooed.
“Just pick the first thing that pops up in your head!!” One of his mods said - or rather typed - and the other comments rallied behind it.
“The first thing I thought of?” Kenma repeated, once again thoughtful as he was finishing the level.
Then, he chuckled again, laying the controller down once again. Just thinking about it made his skin crawl from embarrassment. He took a deep breath.
Then he began slowly. “I used to be called apathetic a lot - well, I guess I still do sometimes, by people that don’t know me. Kuro always got super affronted by it - even before we were dating. Like, it really gets him worked up. I never understood it.”
His chat already knew that they had been friends for about fifteen years before they finally managed to fess up and confront their apparent feelings for each other. They often joked about it, too - all in good humor, thankfully. In fact, Kenma was immeasurably thankful by the way his chat had openly accepted Kuroo. They soaked it up anytime Kenma mentioned him.
“I think I mentioned before that Kuro went around talking about me alot.” While Kenma’s face usually remained unchanged, the tinting of his cheeks while he was talking now revealed more. “And he made it a mission to prove people that said I was emotionless or expressionless wrong.”
Kenma stopped now, internally cringing, but also incredibly endeared. Even though this had started years ago, Kenma was never able to forget. “He made a list, you know? A list of my expressions. Used to carry it around to prove his points, too, you know?”
He could tell his chat was losing it. The custom emoticons of a calico cat holding hearts or even more cooing passing by so quickly he could barely read it.
“I guess it kind of makes sense - that he gets so worked up about defending me about not being emotionless. He hates me being perceived in ways that just aren't true. Maybe because he knows it bothers me sometimes. So he just - wants everyone to know." Kenma paused.
"Kuro can read me better than anyone else, even my parents. He put a lot of effort into it, too. Then again, interestingly enough, he always liked watching me, and I didn’t mind if it was him watching me.”
Before, Kenma had also opened up about his history of social anxiety. He had opened up on how he had felt burdened by people and how picking up YouTube had helped him a lot. His chat understood what Kenma meant.
“Anyway, when I mean list, I don’t mean like a mental list or anything. He had an actual, physical notebook where he kept track of the expressions I made, what they looked like and what had caused them. I think he still has it but I’d rather not talk about it.”
While he had been talking, his hand was raising again, shielding half of his face as he averted his gaze from the camera. He took a moment to calm himself and then continued, amused. “You know how there are tons of ‘kodzuken being expressive’ compilations out there? I wouldn’t be surprised if Kuro actually made one of them. I am pretty sure he has at least watched them. I caught him making screenshots once.”
Now, Kenma had to interrupt himself to laugh at the memory, staring at the ceiling. His ears were burning. “He was unapologetic about it. Saying he needed it for his notebook, so I think it’s still a thing.”
Kuroo had never been quiet about his not quite normal obsession over Kenma. Not only to Kenma, but also to their highschool teammates and nowadays players from the volleyball circle. It never stopped embarrassing Kenma, but seeing the way Kuroo lit up when he was talking about him, Kenma had no heart to stop him.
Burrowing his face in his hands, he murmured. “I just hope I never get to see it.”
His chat was having a field day - they got much more than they had expected. It took Kenma a moment to regain his composure and to continue with his stream, his cheeks burning but trying to ignore it.
When he ended his stream, he realized #expressionsforkuro was trending. And Kuroo was encouraging it, too.
Kuroo Tetsurou @kur00tetsurou
thanks for the food ;) but this one is and will forever be my fav, always proud to be responsible for it #expressionsforkuro
[ photo: a candid. Kenma was laughing, his eyes crinkled and shining in fondness. His lips were curled and his posture relaxed. There was a weak blush on his cheek and the picture gave the impression that Kenma was only seconds away from hiding his face. ]
(And yet, Kuroo was active for at least a few more hours, liking tweets under the hashtag. Kenma didn’t even fight him for it, recognizing a lost case.)