Chapter Text
Kuroo shifted nervously, looking around the cafe. People milled about, completely unaware to the anxiety ridden teen standing in their midst.
applepi: omw too many people T^T
Kuroo stared at the message, heart pounding. Even a stupid emoji was enough to make him blush at this stage. He wasn’t sure he’d survive their meeting.
After his graduation, Kuroo had continued to play Fourth World whenever he had free time. Despite volleyball practice and summer school, he made time to complete Keiz’s main quest and, of course, talk to Kenma. They were on their second expansion pack DLC, struggling to sneak through Pirenhoen, when it happened.
“Kuro… You’re free tomorrow, right?” Kenma asked, in a carefully monotone voice. Kuroo smiled to himself. Kenma only spoke like that when he was trying to mask some other sort of nervousness.
“Well, I had some pretty important plans to talk to my favorite kitten,” Kuroo coyly responded. Kuroo smirked at the exasperated huff he received through his headset.
“I’m going to be around your neighborhood tomorrow. My dad got a job offer near where you live,” Kenma revealed, ignoring Kuroo’s flirting.
Kuroo felt his heart stop.
They had revealed where they lived to each other a short while after confessing, but Kuroo hadn’t dared bring up the idea of meeting in real life. Kenma was such a private person and he hated social interactions so much that Kuroo didn’t want to bring it up too fast. He hadn’t even considered the possibility of Kenma bringing it up himself.
“W-What?” Kuroo asked dumbly.
“And I thought that it’d be nice if we met up,” Kenma continued, completely aware that Kuroo was in the middle of some sort of mental breakdown across the line.
“Are you sure? You’re ok with that?” Kuroo hurriedly asked, mind racing in time with his poor heart. There was nothing he’d like more than to meet Kenma. He had dreamed of the day for ages.
“Well, it’s about time, isn’t it?”
“I just, you’re comfortable with that?” Kuroo asked, some sort of cross between starstruck and mindblown.
“I think I’m comfortable meeting my boyfriend, yes,” Kenma answered dryly, clearly having fun with Kuroo’s stunned response.
“Boyfriend?” Kuroo almost yelled into his mic. He had wanted it so bad, but he was so afraid of being rejected. He knew that Kenma liked him, and they had both confessed, but Kuroo didn’t want to push. Maybe Kenma had just wanted to be romantic pals online or something, Kuroo didn’t know!
“Are you going to be this stupid when we meet?” Kenma teased.
“Probably,” Kuroo apologized, completely serious.
“I’ll be there around noon. Where’s a good place for us to meet?”
“There’s a cafe that has really good apple pie. Unless that’s too cliche,” Kuroo suggested, biting his lips as he tried to contain the excitement welling in his chest.
“There is nothing cliche about apple pie,” Kenma answered soberly. “Tell me the address and I’ll see you there.”
“Ok. I can’t wait,” Kuroo said, grinning.
“Me neither,” was Kenma’s shy response.
The next day had Kuroo standing in front of the cafe, thirty minutes early, staring at Kenma’s text.
Kuroo scanned the crowd, despite knowing that Kenma had texted him a while away. They had tried to video call once, but the resolution had been grainy and the connection had been so unstable that they had dropped it. Kuroo wasn’t quite sure what to expect.
Kuroo took a deep breath and closed his eyes to try and calm himself. He liked Kenma so much. He liked him so, so much. He liked him so much that it almost scared him.
Breathe in. Breathe out. In. Out.
“Kuro?” A familiar, soft voice said. Kuroo’s eyes flew open as he stared at the boy in front of him. He drunk in the sight like a dying man in a desert.
Blonde hair with black, grown out roots hung loosely to frame the prettiest face he had ever seen. High definition, this time. Dark, mesmerizing cat eyes stared at him, filled with the same nervousness that had flooded Kuroo. The boy in front of him was the most attractive person he had ever seen and-
“You’re shorter than I thought you’d be,” Kuroo let slip out.
Those mesmerizing cat eyes narrowed. Kenma frowned and made to turn away as Kuroo almost tripped to grab the younger boy’s arm.
“Wait, no. That’s not- I mean. You are short, but not that short. Well, kind of. But that’s not- I shouldn’t have! I mean, you’re really attractive. And I’m just nervous. And, I mean. I’m sorry. Please don’t leave,” Kuroo rambled, desperately staring at Kenma as anxiety coursed through him at the idea of messing everything up. He watched as Kenma’s mouth quirked into a smile.
“I was just joking. Anyways, you warned me that you were going to be a total idiot, so it’s ok. I know I’m short,” Kenma reassured the older, eyes dancing with mirth. Kuroo wanted to smack his head into a concrete wall for being such a bumbling fool, and then collapse into Kenma’s eyes and embrace and God, he was so embarrassing.
“I am so embarrassing,” Kuroo muttered, staring in awe at Kenma. Kenma . His boyfriend .
“I know.”
“Can I- Can I hug you? Wait, no, we’re in public. I mean, unless that’s ok? With you? Sorry, uh, do you want to shake hands?” Kuroo’s hands flew this way and that as he fought through gestures, much to Kenma’s amusement. Kenma stared at the proffered hand in front of him before shaking his head fondly and bringing Kuroo in for a hug.
“A hug is fine, Kuro. People hug all the time,” Kenma assured the taller. Kuroo almost collapsed, relishing the feel of the smaller boy in his arms. They fit together perfectly.
Kuroo held on with all his might, trying his best to convey how much relief and adoration he held for the other. He had been afraid it’d be awkward, and it was, but only in the way that every young couple was. All his anxieties washed away as he thought about Kenma, a dream that was finally real. The past year had been filled with so much turmoil and confusion, and finally Kuroo had something real and stable in his arms.
The pair stood there hugging, a tad longer than maybe societally acceptable. Kenma pulled away first, albeit reluctantly.
“You promised me apple pie,” Kenma reminded the other, eyes sparkling. Kuroo smiled at him.
“Yeah. It’s really good. Just as sweet as you,” Kuroo answered. Kenma rolled his eyes, but Kuroo could finally see the smile that he knew Kenma hid every time he used a cheesy line on him.
And together, they walked into the cafe.
“You know, our love must be bound on equip.”
“Shut up, Kuro.”
“My love for you is like a quiver of arrows in Fourth World. Endless.”
“We’re in public.”
“What’s the drop rate on your heart?”
“I don’t know you.”