Beta: Jess
Warnings: fluff & pinning, slight AoKaga (don't blink or you'll miss it!)
A/N: Written for Kyouka (kyoukasetsura. tumblr. com) for KnB Secret Santa 2014.

There aren't enough words to describe you

Kuroko likes working at the library. It may not look like the job of dreams to most people but for him it's enough. Here, surrounded by books and silence, he feels like he's at home. He has always loved books, their smell, the soothing weight of them in his hands, all those wonderful worlds and people he was introduced to.

And now he has a job where he can read books throughout his shift – as long as he completes all his tasks first that is. There aren't many of them: put the data for new books into the online database, write down who borrows which book and who brings which book back. Many of the readers actually talk with Kuroko about what they read, recommending their favorites. Kuroko loves it; loves the passion in people's eyes and the fond tone of their voices when they talk about the books they love as if they were talking about someone they love.

Yes, this is a job made for Kuroko. He has enough time to study for his classes at the university – he majors in Japanese Literature at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies – but enough work to do to not feel as if he was being lazy and got paid for doing nothing.

His boss, an older man named Takeda, often lets him go before the end of his shift if there aren't many people in the library, the employees from the other shifts are nice and fun to be around (even if Kuroko got slightly creeped out by Kiyoshi at first; who sneaks up on people in the evening in an empty library to say 'hi'? In a second Kuroko remembered every horror movie he had ever watched and Kiyoshi's stomach learned just how strong Kuroko can punch).

All in all everything is great and the afternoon's shifts after classes is something Kuroko looks forward to.

Then mister Takeda decides to hire someone to help Kuroko because there are exams coming and there are too many people in the library to handle all of them quickly enough. Kuroko doesn't mind this decision – it's not his place to complain – but almost runs away when he sees who mister Takeda hired: the person has light blond hair, warm brown eyes and the biggest smile Kuroko's ever seen.

"Hello, Kurokocchi! We're going to work together." The blond smiles at mister Takeda. "We already know each other. I often borrow books from here, right, Kurokocchi?"

"Yes, Kise-kun visits the library very often," says Kuroko, thinking it's goodthat he has greatcontrol over his emotions. Otherwise everyone present would see how much he dislikes the idea of working with Kise.

If possible Kise's smile grows wider, his eyes are practically shining.

"I hope we'll work well together, Kurokocchi." Kise bows to him.

"Likewise." Kuroko bows back, thinking only two words 'I'm doomed'.

You see, when Kuroko tells people about his job, he rarely mentions the biggest obstacle in said job. So far only three of his friends know about it: Akashi, because he discovered what bothers Kuroko, and Aomine along with Kagami because they overheard Kuroko and Akashi's talk. This is not something Kuroko likes to talk about – and honestly, it isn't anyone's fault that he doesn't find the blonds' behavior bearable.

Kise Ryouta, because this is the name of the biggest annoyance Kuroko has ever met, is the most loud person Kuroko knows. He seems to attract people to himself and even when he doesn't speak he isn't silent. This is surprising considering that Kise is a model and probably has to stand still when photographers take pictures of him. Every time Kuroko sees him reading books he is doing something: playing with his necklace or tapping the table top with his fingers.

Kuroko doesn't mind that Kise makes noise even when he's quiet – otherwise he'd never survive any studying with Kagami and Aomine. Those two can't keep quiet for too long either.

It's just that Kise is annoying, demanding Kuroko's attention but he does it in a charming manner which leaves everyone thinking that he really wants to know more about books, that he genuinely likes Kuroko and it's only worse for Kuroko because he can't bring himself to answer Kise's enthusiasm about books with the same passion – and doesn't it shows that there is something wrong with Kuroko? He loves books as much as he loves basketball.

Maybe it's because Kuroko feels as if Kise's enthusiasm is fake. He talks about stories he has read but there is something off about it. He sometimes sounds more like he was talking to a teacher about why this and that book is good – his speeches are sometimes emotionless as if he learned what to say.

The only thing that is genuine about him is the way he smiles when he sees Kuroko and okay, that is flattering. Kuroko's presence isn't the strongest, people sometimes don't even notice him but being noticed and acknowledged by a popular, handsome model who wants to talk with him… Well, Kuroko would lie if he said it wasn't flattering.

Still, everything Kise does when he is in the library is making Kuroko's life more difficult: he wants to know everything about the books he wants to borrow (which isn't bad) even if there is a long queue behind him (which is bad), he often calls Kuroko to help him look for books which – after checking in the online database after an hour or two of searching for them on bookshelves – often turn out to not be in the library. After third time Kuroko has started to check the database first when Kise asks him about a book which he knows "is definitely in the library".

Kise monopolizes Kuroko's time greatly but he's so nice about it, Kuroko isn't exactly sure he does it on purpose.

It'd be a lot better if Kise didn't ask so many questions about Kuroko's personal life and didn't listen to it as if it was one of the most interesting things in his life. This isn't something Kuroko is used to and it makes him feel… weird. Like happy-but-I-am-not-sure-why and why-do-you-even-find-my-life-interesting?

Oh, and fans. Kise has a lot of fans so every time he is the library, there is a lot more giggling and whispering and Kuroko kind of lost a lot of his hope in humanity when he saw girls hiding behind the bookshelf who were observing Kise and who later made a high-pitched noise when he saw them and waved to them (and Kuroko still doesn't understand why he felt a bit sad, because Kise can leave the library with girls, right?).

And now they work together. Fantastic.

Kuroko mentions that he works with Kise the next day at a basketball street court where he meets with Aomine and Kagami. It's a sunny, beautiful Saturday morning and Kuroko's first free Saturday in a month. He doesn't need to study for exams (yet) so he decided to meet with his friends and play a little.

Both Kagami and Aomine are studying to be PE teachers but they don't hide the fact that as soon as they get invitations from NBA's teams, they're going to move to the States. For now they're too young to do that but they've already gotten a few calls from teams interested in them, so they make good use of the sports scholarship they got at the end of high school and use it to polish their skills at theuniversity's basketball team.

Both of them are amazing players and it's easy to see why overseas teams are interested in them – they can both surpass the limits of ordinary players. Watching their games is something different. Every time Kuroko sees them playing against each other he waits for sparks to start flying.

"I don't get it," says Kagami unscrewing the bottle of water. He and Aomine just finished playing and are now sitting on the bench next to Kuroko, sweaty and panting. "Kise is a freaking model. He doesn't need job."

"Didn't he say last week he has so much work it's hard for him to find time for practice?" asks Aomine, drying his face with a towel. Another thing about Kise: not only is he a popular model but he's also a talented player – just like Aomine and Kagami he could choose any university with a basketball team and ended up in the one with Kuroko's friends. "I thought Riko was going to kill him when he said that. You know how serious small boobs is about practice." And Aomine knows better than everyone else after Riko banned him from playing in official matches four times in a row because he didn't want to attend practice. For outsiders they look as if they don't like each other: Aomine calls her "small boobs" and Riko calls him a savage. But everyone close to them can see that the player respects Riko as a good coach and she respects him too, sometimes letting him skip practice or just slack off a little.

Kuroko frowns.

"He said one of the magazines canceled so he has free time till next month." He'll work only during exams period so that's enough. "Aomine-kun, Kagami-kun, did Kise-kun say why he needs a job?"

Aomine takes a big gulp of water before answering, while Kagami is looking for another bottle in his backpack.

"He said something about saving his "model money"" Aomine makes quotes with his fingers "and that he needs a small job. Plus…" The teenager hesitates, pulling a face.

Kuroko knows this face; it's the face Aomine makes every time someone asks him if he dates Momoi or when he saw her with someone on a date. She is like a little sister to him (and this is how Aomine called her when he hugged her at the airport before she left to study abroad in France and everyone pretended to not hear that) so the sheer disgust on his face doesn't surprise anyone.

"Aomine-kun?" Kuroko's voice is a little impatient. For some reason he needs to know why Kise chose that library to work in.

Aomine shakes his head, obviously thinking about what to say when Kagami raises his head from above his backpack and looks at Kuroko with a strange gleam in his eyes.

"He told us he met someone nice at the library and he wants to know that person better."

Kuroko thinks about the petite blonde he sometimes saw talking with Kise or that tall black-haired girl who, too, plays basketball and discussed books with Kise a few times. "There are a few girls who Kise-kun may like."

It doesn't really makes sense for Kise to start working in the library instead of asking that person out… Oh, maybe that person isn't around that often and Kise wants to get to know her better?

Lost in his thoughts Kuroko completely misses the knowing gaze that passes between Kagami and Aomine and Aomine's soft 'and it's me who is emotionally blind, huh?'.

Despite all of Kuroko's worries, working with Kise isn't as bad as he thought it would be. Even the most impatient people can suddenly wait much, much longer when Kise flashes them his model smile, asking sweetly to be patient for a few more minutes while he goes searching for their books. Kise actually looks like an airhead but he quickly memorized all the data about the books and people's names, always using them when he greets them.

There is also one more advantage of having Kise around, even if Kuroko will swallow his tongue before he admits it. Let's just say this instead: Kise is tall and when you work in a library this is a good thing.

"Here you go." Kise puts the last book from the box on the highest shelf, his shirt raising up a little, showing his flat stomach and the curve of his hipbones; Kuroko tries not to look too jealous. It's simply not fair how tall (and attractive) Kise is. "Can we go on a break now, Kurokocchi?"

They've been arranging the new books for a few hours now, using the fact that there aren't a lot of people around in the morning. Kuroko can feel that his arms are going to be very sore tomorrow and he thinks that even Kise, despite being more muscular than he himself is, will have problems with his arms from carrying all those boxes with books around.

"I don't think this is a good idea, Kise-kun," says Kuroko, taking the now empty box. "We shouldn't be taking breaks together."

"But Kurokocchi," Kise whines, a pout already forming on his lips. "We deserve it! And we can stay behind the desk to help readers when they come to us, mister Takeda won't mind. Don't tell me you wouldn't want to eat something, Kurokocchi." In a dramatic gesture Kise puts a hand over his stomach and whines some more "I'm close to dying."

Despite being called that irritating nickname, Kuroko smiles softly at the other teenager's behavior.

"I guess we both deserve a break, Kise-kun."

For a moment Kise looks as if something struck him; his gaze is so intense that Kuroko starts to worry if there is something with him or with Kise. But in the next moment Kise laughs happily, ignoring the "Hush!" coming to them from the other side of the bookshelf, puts his hand on Kuroko's arm and leads him to their desk. He's suddenly looking a lot happier and less tired. Just like Aomine and Kagami when you promises them food for doing something, Kuroko thinks fondly.

There is no-one waiting for them at the desk so they both pull second breakfast from their bags and start eating. The first bite tells Kuroko just how hungry he was but didn't realize it. Yet, instead of devouring his meal like the starving person that he is, the teenager can't stop himself from throwing glances at Kise. The model seems to be completely absorbed in checking his phone; so much that he smears a bit of yogurt on his cheek before putting the spoon in his mouth. Kuroko hides his smirk behind a sandwich – the more he gets to know Kise, the less he looks like a perfect model. This is somehow nice.

"Excuse me? I'd like to borrow these books."

Surprised, Kuroko looks at the boy standing at the other side of the desk. When did he come? Usually Kuroko notices everyone around himself…

"Of course, let me do it." Kise stands up before Kuroko has a chance to open his mouth.

"I can do it, Kise-kun, you almost didn't eat anything." Kuroko wants to stand up too, but Kise waves his hand at him.

"I'm sitting closer so I can do it, Kurokocchi. No biggie." With that Kise turns to their customer, apologizing for making him wait.

This is another thing about Kise which Kuroko discovered: he likes to do Kuroko's favors. The blue-haired boy knows better where to look for which book since he has been working in the library much longer than Kise and it's usually him who people ask for help. It seems like because of that Kise wants to help Kuroko with other things; things he can actually help with.

Kuroko can't stop himself from thinking that this is cute. Kise is like an overgrown puppy who needs attention but also tries to help as much as he can – just like a puppy who wants to please its owners.

Only much later, at home, Kuroko realizes that the whole time when Kise was talking to a person who interrupted their breakfast, he was staring at the model and can't explain exactly why.

For the next weeks Kuroko starts getting to know Kise more. He likes to listen about the model's job and his classes. It doesn't surprise him when he learns that at first Aomine completely refused to play against Kise, saying he doesn't have time for weaker players. Kuroko winced at that in sympathy. Not so long ago Aomine wasn't… as nice as he is now, to put it lightly.

"But it's okay now!" tells him Kise, gesticulating lively. They're both at the back of the library, looking for the box with bookmarks mister Takeda left somewhere over there. "He changed his mind after the first time Aidacchi made us split into two teams during practice. That, and having his ass kicked by Kagamicchi surely helped too."

"Kagami-kun had wanted to beat Aomine-kun since high school. I heard he was delighted." Kuroko stands on his tip toes to check if the box isn't lying at the top of the one of the shelves. "Do you like playing with them, Kise-kun?"

"They're a challenge and I like challenges." Kise's voice is suddenly very close and Kuroko turns quickly to him. He didn't hear Kise coming closer. "They will both get into famous teams after they finish college." Kise raises his hand and takes the box they were looking for from one shelf above the one Kuroko was checking, giving it to the other teenager, his eyes not leaving Kuroko's face.

It's suddenly very quiet in the room. They're standing so close to each other that Kuroko feels Kise's body warmth, could count his eyelashes if he wanted to.

With all of sudden dry lips, Kuroko starts speaking. "I heard you're great too, Kise-kun. Surely there are teams interested in you." He's not one to babble but this… this atmosphere is getting on his nerves and he's definitely reading everything wrong. Plus, he saw one of Aomine and Kagami's official matches, he witnessed jut how great Kise is on a court moving like an unstoppable force, scoring point after point.

Kise's eyes darken, his voice lower than usual when he answers quietly "I wouldn't leave the country leaving someone close to me behind."

Kuroko opens his mouth to speak, to break this almost intimate atmosphere when they both hear Takeda asking loudly if they found the box. Blinking rapidly Kise moves away from Kuroko

"Yes, mister Takeda, we're going to you now." Throwing a glance at Kuroko, Kise walks away from him towards the main room of thelibrary.

Calming his racing heart, Kuroko is surprised to discover he held his breath waiting for… for… Kuroko has never been so grateful for learning to control his blush – he hopes Kise didn't notice it.

The next couple of days are weird.

They are weird because Kise behaves just like he was before the Incident (even in Kuroko's mind that word is spoken with a capital letter) and every time when Kuroko convinces himself he must have read the situation wrong, Kise looks at him just like he was looking at him then and Kuroko is back to wondering. It's killing him slowly. Even more than it should because he realized one important thing he was missing, an answer to his questions about why he felt sad at the thought of Kise going out with other people, why he sometimes can't stop looking at Kise, mesmerized by his voice and whole persona.

Kuroko has started liking Kise.

He can't point out the exact moment when it happened. Was it when they started talking more? When Kise tried to help him with everything in the library? When he was asking questions about Kuroko's life, his dreams and things he wants to achieve, focusing on him and on him only as if Kuroko was the most important person in the world? Was it when he gently pried books from Kuroko's hands, helping him carry them even if he was already holding a lot of them? When he sat quietly next to Kuroko, leaning against his shoulder and listening to the teenager's whispering words?

When did Kise go from being an annoyance (to be honest he can still be annoying but much less) to someone Kuroko looks to meet during his shift? To someone close to him?

All these questions make Kuroko's head hurt and while you can say many things about him, "coward" isn't one of them. So the next time they are together working at putting books on shelves, Kuroko musters all of his courage and asks.

"Kise-kun?"

"– and then I…" Kise stops in the middle of the sentence, raising his head to look at Kuroko standing next to him. "What is it? Do you need me to put them higher?" He points at the books in Kuroko's arms.

"No, Kise-kun, I thought we should talk." Kuroko kneels on the floor too, putting books down. Looking straight into Kise's eyes, he adds: "About last week. When we talked at the back shelves."

In silence Kuroko is observing as Kise sits on the floor in a more comfortable position, looking somewhere above Kuroko's head.

"Are you… Are you angry at me, Kurokocchi?" he asks quietly and it's so different fromhis usually loud persona that Kuroko doesn't know how to react. "I didn't want to scare you, Kurokocchi. I just…" Kise rubs his face, tired. His expression is pained and when his gaze finally lands on Kuroko's face, the other boy can see how worried Kise is, how fear is hiding in the small movements of his body: clenched fist, slightly shaking thighs. "I really like you, Tetsuya."

He looks away, as if ashamed, leaning his head back against books on the bookshelf. "You seemed so nice and lonely every time I visited the library and I wanted to get to know you better so I started to read all those books even if I'm not a fan of reading." A sad chuckle.

"Aomine and Kagami talk about you a lot and I thought I should find a way to talk with you more so when I heard about this job I just… and… and you're so amazing, Kurokocchi." Kise turns his head towards Kuroko, raising his hand and slowly tracing the blue-haired boy's cheek with his fingers.

Kuroko can only sits motionless, his eyes fixated on Kise's open, honest face. "You work so hard, you're so smart and always so polite to other people. I like your sarcasm, I like how you treat me like everyone else even if I'm famous; it's refreshing." This time the smile on Kise's face is sad, full of melancholy and regret. "I'm really sorry if I made you uncomfortable, Kurokocchi."

Kise takes his hand away, but Kuroko grabs it, holding tight onto it.

"You like me," he says, feeling himself tremble from emotions. Kise nods, hope slowly showing itself on his face. Kuroko licks his lips, taking a deep breath. "I like you too… Ryouta."

Kise's eyes are comically wide when Kuroko leans towards him, closing the space between them and cupping Kise's face with his hand before kissing the model. His lips are softer than any else Kuroko has ever kissed, moving gently against Kuroko's, slowly, like Kise wants to learn by heart every inch of the other teenager's lips.

When they part there is a delicate blush on the model's face and Kuroko knows his cheeks are red too.

"So you like me back, Kurokocchi." It isn't a question even if it sounds a little like it. When Kuroko nods, Kise's shoulders sag in relief and he pulls the other boy closer, wrapping his arms around him. With a smile Kuroko lies his head on Kise's shoulder, his arms around the blonds' waist – he's smelling like expensive cologne, ink, and paper and Kuroko just wants to drown in this smell, sleep surrounded by it and never wake up.

Kuroko remembers suddenly where they are and he sits straight quickly, startling Kise.

"Kurokocchi…?" Kise's voice is still deliciously low, his expression happy as if he was drunk on happiness. "What's wrong?" He loosens his hold on the smaller boy.

"We need to get back to work, Kise-kun." Kuroko stands up, already missing Kise's warmth. The blond pouts – adorable – and, after checking if no-one is looking at them, Kuroko leans and quickly lies a kiss on Kise's lips. "I'll kiss you again after we finish our duties, all right Kise-kun?"

Kise grins, standing up too.

"I'm counting on it, Kurokocchi," he murmurs, taking Kuroko's hand and bringing it to his lips.

The teenager feels himself blushing and he quickly takes his hand away, mumbling "Stupid Kise-kun" under his breath and backing away.

"Kurokocchi, where are you going? We haven't finished yet." Kise gestures at the books on the floor, confused.

"I'm going to check if there are people waiting at the desk, Kise-kun. I believe you can do the rest yourself."

"Whaaaat?" Kise whines, folding his hands on his chest. "That's not fair! Unless… Unless you wouldn't be able to focus on work now, Kurokocchi?" Kise adds half jokingly and in Kuroko's head appears an idea.

He ducks his head shyly, looking up at Kise from above his fringe and making his the best innocent face.

"Maybe."

This one word has an interesting effect on the model: he freezes in a second, his mouth opened, he's looking as if he doesn't know what to say and… yes, that intense gaze Kuroko saw during the Incident which he didn't know what was it, is now back again and this time Kuroko can say with it ease that it's lust.

Using the moment of confusion of his… boyfriend, probably, Kuroko escapes to the main path. Just like he thought, there is someone at the desk, turning her head around to find someone to help her. Ignoring more of Kise's whines about what an awful cheater Kuroko is – they'll have to talk about how loud people can be in the library – the blue-haired boy walks to the girl, putting on his best 'I'm sorry' expression. Helping her shouldn't take him too much time so he'll have to go back to help Kise… and maybe steal a kiss or two.

The girl looks at him weirdly when he suddenly flushes, but thankfully she doesn't say anything.

When an hour later Kuroko gets a text from Akashi with "Congratulations, Tetsuya" he isn't even surprised. He only leans more comfortably against Kise, enjoying the way his boyfriend (boyfriend, boyfriend, boyfriend!) slides his fingers in Kuroko's hair.

Everything is perfect.

Fin.

A/N: I'm not 100% happy with how this fic turned out to be. I imagined it slightly different but it was my first time writing a longer fic with Kise and Kuroko and they both had other ideas about what I should write.

To be honest I almost wrote Aomine/Kagami/Riko as second pairing o.O

1) The university Kuroko attends actually exists: en. wikipedia wiki/ National_ Graduate_ Institute_ for_ Policy_ Studies