You know the drill, just another short piece of fluff.

Chapter 8: KiKuro – Punctuated! For! Emphasis! – Part 2

Kuroko Tetsuna was, for lack of a better word, distracted.

Every single day for the past two weeks, Kise Ryouta of the Generation of Miracles had been coming to her workplace. Every time he entered the library, he would walk past the reception in a deliberate, slow stride; all the while waving with such exaggerated arm movements one would've thought he was signaling for a plane to land instead of a human being mere paces away. That, and the fact that he wore a perpetual smile bright enough to drown out the sun, irritated her to no end.

Indifference, it seemed, did not come naturally to Tetsuna when it came to Kise Ryouta.

"He's here again? Shouldn't he be training or something?" Aida Riko, a fellow librarian, asked as she adjusted her glasses.

"Apparently not," answered Tetsuna. She wore a detached look of her face as she went about her daily routine of checking out books for the patrons of the library.

The blonde kissing fiend of the arcipluvian basketball team had a seemingly endless amount of free time on his hands. Most of which he chose to waste away sitting at the table with the perfect view of the library's reception area. All because Tetsuna had gone off-kilter and done something she normally wouldn't have on New Year's eve.

"Well, are you gonna report him? He's technically a stalker," said Riko.

"Oh come on. He just wants to get to know Tetsuna-chan. He's a harmless, love-sick puppy." Momoi Satsuki, the bustiest librarian this side of Tokyo, said with conviction.

"Said every stalker ever." Riko gave her pink-haired colleague a pointed look through her glasses.

Momoi pouted in reply before she attempted to reason with Tetsuna. "Say Tetsuna-chan, you'll give him a chance right? He's been asking you out to dinner every evening for a fortnight. That's sincerity for you."

"A 'sincere stalker', does that qualify as an oxymoron?" Sarcasm was dripping from Riko.

"Oh stuff it with your cynicism, you dried-up sardine!" Momoi cried in a loud whisper.

"Love-sick puppy, dried-up sardine; what is it with you and animals?" Riko countered.

Momoi was about to reply when Tetsuna stood up from her chair and simply said, "I'm taking my break," before walking out the front entrance without another word.

"Do you think we made her mad?" Momoi asked Riko as the two of them watched Tetsuna's retreating back.

"All the better if she is. At least that'll mean she's not apathetic towards the puppy," said Riko to Momoi's surprise.

"Huh? I thought you were against Kise?"

Kise, ever the valiant suitor, got up and followed Tetsuna as soon as he saw her leave her station. This was followed by the cumulative sound of over 30 chairs synchronously being pushed back, courtesy of the legions of females who have made it their mission to stalk the stalker who was stalking Tetsuna.

Startled by Kise's abrupt departure, the rushing women were knocking books over and tripping over themselves in an attempt to keep up with the handsome athlete.

"Shh! Quiet!" Riko exclaimed before heading over to the mountain of fangirls in order to sort out the mess, effectively stopping any of the women from reaching Kise.

Momoi, who was not far behind, whispered to Riko with a satisfied grin plastered across her face. "What, you are a KisexKuroko shipper after all, you tsundere."

"Shut up, bb…bbb…baka!"

Outside the Tokyo Metropolitan Library, Kise Ryouta had finally caught up with the librarian, right at the spot where he had first fallen in love with her. He had been persevering, trying his hardest to control himself lest he decrease his chances with her even further. It was a tough task.

Kise wanted nothing more than to rush up to her, hug her petite frame in his arms, and twirl her round and round every time he saw her. He had visions of them walking together; with his arm around her shoulders, around her waist, linked with her own arm… The happy thoughts were endless in their onslaught. He was absolutely convinced that their time together would be pure bliss.

Now, if only he could just convince her to go out with him. Even a simple dinner would suffice for the time being, he wanted them to get to know each other better. One. Just one dinner, and he was sure that Tetsuna would realize that he wasn't a cad who casually went around stealing the lips of young women.

Still, it seemed like Kise had his work cut out for him. Never had he experienced such disinterest from a woman. Well, he had never had a woman run like the wind away from him post-kiss either.

Falling in love – genuine, unexpected, slap-over-the-back-of-your-head love – felt refreshingly foreign to Kise.

"Kurokocchi!"

"Kise-san," Tetsuna acknowledged Kise's presence.

'Good, at least she's not avoiding me anymore," Kise thought and smiled. They were finally getting somewhere!

"So, how's work? Did you get a lot done today?" Kise asked, suddenly feeling uncharacteristically shy in front of the reserved Tetsuna.

"We've been busier than normal. The number of patrons has increased, mostly because of your presence," Tetsuna said.

"Ahh… hahaha…" Kise laughed nervously. "Kurokocchi certainly doesn't hold back huh? Well, it's a big part of Tetsuna's charm." Kise smiled, "Let see, how about I take you out to a fancy schmancy restaurant tonight to make up for all the trouble I caused? I'm serious; you're such a hard worker. You deserve a special treat every now and then."

"I am honoured that you think about me this way, but I humbly have to refuse that proposal," Tetsuna executed a respectful bow.

"Doesn't that sound weird in that context!?" Kise said in a child-like manner.

"It does? I've always considered it a polite way to reject someone," Tetsuna wondered if she had hurt the blonde man's feelings. He seemed to be more sensitive than the regular male.

"You're rejecting me before I can even prove myself?" Kise wailed, his eyes watering in sadness.

'He has such a delicate little soul,' Tetsuna thought it contradicted with his tall physique.

"There, there…" Tetsuna said to the weepy Kise. She was unsure of what to do. She had never been pursued with such determination by a man before. Well, she had never driven a man to tears with her rejection either.

'Maybe one dinner wouldn't hurt.'

A few minutes had passed since Kuroko Tetsuna exited the library, followed closely by Kise Ryouta. Both Aida Riko and Momoi Satsuki were wondering if the pair had made any progress.

"I'M! SO! HAPPY!"

Suddenly, Kise's overjoyed yell reached the halls of the library, eliciting some confused looks, a few raised eyebrows, and a couple of happy smiles from the librarians on duty.

"Subtlety's not exactly his thing is it?" Momoi said.

"Talk about punctuated for emphasis."

My research project is now in full swing so I won't update for a while, but please suggest some baby girl names if you'd like a part 3.