Chapter 15 Breeze
Tetsuro eventually stopped crying. His tears died with the last rays of daylight. He was now indulging in his new favorite activity: ceiling gazing.
Everything in him had deflated. The tears had soothed his body but drained his emotions.
All the events that had taken place in the afternoon felt distant to him now, almost unreal; like images of a dream that were starting to wear off. Maybe he overreacted, yeah? He felt like the world had just collapsed when it happened, thinking back on it, he could clearly see that it wasn't that bad, and the way he reacted was pretty ridiculous. Pathetic really, and for nothing.
"It's not nothing," said the voice in his head.
The voice was right.
His emotions resurfaced. They were no longer as poignant and painful as before, but they were heavy, having to bear the load of regret and melancholy. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to distance himself from himself and his consciousness. He finally managed to reach a state of soothing inertia. He returned to reality when he heard his phone vibrating. Oikawa was calling. Kuroo hesitated but eventually answered:
"Hello?"
"Kuroo, do we have any homework for tomorrow's biochemistry class?"
Kuroo did not get why Oikawa had to call him to ask that… After further investigation, he noticed the 3 unread messages Oikawa had sent. Yep, okay !
"Hmm... But it's not Biochem tomorrow, it's APBioS."
"What ? What's that?"
"Applied Physics to Biological Systems."
"I don't have that as a class."
Kuroo frowned. He moved his phone away from his ear to check his schedule.
"Oh, I didn't see that we had Biochem in the morning, my bad… Well, it's the first class of the new block, right ? Guess we have nothing to do then."
"If we still have Nobishi, I doubt it."
"Hmm... yeah…"
Kuroo let the silence settle, not really in the state to worry about Biochem exercises.
"Kuroo?"
"Hm?"
"You're okay?"
The interested party straightened up, surprised. He wouldn't go so far as to say the question was unfounded, but he was almost sure that the tone of his voice hadn't betrayed him.
"Yeah, why?"
"I don't know, you sound weird."
Damn it.
Now that Oikawa asked the question, he felt the urge to burst into tears. But he held back, and tried to evade the question:
"No, I'm fine."
And damn... his voice cracked on the last word. Even he didn't believe that lie.
Oikawa chuckled:
"You're such a bad liar."
"Yeah, right... But really, I'm fine, it's just that..."
Just shut up already!
"That?"
"No, nothing serious... I swear, it's stupid!"
"Kuroo, I talk to you every day, I'm used to your stupidity," his friend replied sarcastically.
This managed to make the brunet laugh.
"But..."
"Oh my god! Spill the beans already!"
"Ok, ok... Well, I saw Bokuto today."
"Oh... well, you're not wasting your time, right? And ?"
"He texted me this morning to go for a jog with him… Well so far so good but… forget it, it's really stupid."
"Go on."
"Pff... Just that... Well, at some point, I tried to suggest a date..."
"Oh, and?"
"Well, for one, he didn't get it."
Oikawa burst into laughter.
"Okay..."
"And then… I understood that… well he brought up that… he has a mate."
Silence.
"Oh."
"Yeah, I just feel dumb for not getting it before... Anyway, it's stupid, but it hurt, just a little bit but well... But it's okay, I can handle it."
"Kuroo, you really suck at lying."
He laughed.
"Yeah..."
The silence stretched again. He heard Oikawa moving away from the speaker to address someone, probably Iwaizumi.
"Kuroo, do you want to come over to my place?"
Kuroo, surprised by the offer, didn't react immediately.
"Uh, but... We have class tomorrow. And you live far away, man."
"No problem, you can crash on my couch. And we can drive to uni tomorrow."
"Oh, uh..."
"Unless you want to stay alone and brood like the massive piece of shit you are."
Kuroo laughed.
"Come on, bring your ass over here, we're going to watch a crappy movie and eat junk food."
Kuroo pondered. He desperately wanted to stay alone. However, he was aware that it wouldn't help improve his state. He didn't know Oikawa for his talents in moral boosting, but the offer was sincere. Well, and Kuroo was also bad at lying to himself, he didn't really want to be alone.
"Okay, I'll pack a bag and come over. Do you need me to bring anything?"
"No, it's okay, don't worry. We're all good."
"Okay... I'll be there asap then."
"See you."
He hung up.
He glanced up at the ceiling one last time and got up.
-/-
It was pitch black when Kuroo arrived. The bus trip hasn't been that bad really, or maybe he was just getting used to Tokyo transport rodeo by now
"You have reached your destination," announced his GPS.
He looked up, recognizing his friend's house, a narrow cube squeezed between two significantly taller buildings. The windows illuminated the street with a soft orange hue. He lowered his gaze, reading the names on the mailbox; he had indeed reached his destination. He hesitated for a moment. The ground floor led to a garage door, and on the side, a narrow staircase led to the first floor. He climbed the stairs and pressed the doorbell. He heard footsteps approaching, and the door opened. Kuroo stifled a laugh when he saw Oikawa in the doorway, dressed in green alien-patterned jogging pants, a "I believe" T-shirt topped with a loosely knit cardigan. On top of that, he wore his big round glasses, giving him the charming look of an old grumpy librarian. As the chestnut-haired was about to greet his friend gently, considering the emotional distress of the latter, he changed his mind when he heard the brunet chuckle. Oikawa frowned and asked hostilely:
"What ?"
"Nothing, nothing!" he laughed again "It's just... cute."
"What?"
Kuroo pointed to his little green men jogging pants.
Oikawa raised an eyebrow and closed the door in his face. Kuroo burst into laughter again.
"Don't leave me outside! I'm going to be abducted by Martians, I'm sure they're after my virtue!"
"Pfft, what virtue?" Oikawa replied from the other side of the door.
"Hmm... you're right, I left it with my honor."
Oikawa laughed and opened the door again.
"Acting tough, huh? Wait until I become a renowned exobiologist and make contact with the first extraterrestrial life form. I'll ask them to come and pick you up and take you to their planet to make you their slave."
Kuroo burst into laughter.
"Indeed… I'm not sure I'd be of much use to them, though."
"Why? You're well-built; you can build things for them."
"Hmm... yeah, I guess I could always serve as a sex slave in the worst-case scenario."
Oikawa looked at him, apparently puzzled by the direction this conversation had taken. He finally smiled.
"Come on, get in, you noodle-head."
Kuroo greeted him with exaggerated politeness and entered.
"Ojama shimasu."
He took off his shoes and put on the sandals his friend handed him, and together they entered. The place was quite charming and remarkably well-arranged despite the limited space. The room opened into a small living room separated from the kitchen at the back by a wooden bar. Above the kitchen was a mezzanine leading to what must be their bedroom. The wall facing the windows was adorned with a bookshelf made of dark wooden cubes of various sizes intertwined with each other. Even the ladder leading to the floor had been designed in such a way that it could serve as storage. The entire apartment was populated with plants of various sizes and a myriad of colorful shades.
"Wow, your place is nice !"
"Thank you, Iwa-chan made it."
Kuroo took a few seconds to try to make sense of this statement.
"What do you mean he made it?"
"Well... the coffee table, the bookshelf, the bar, the kitchen, the mezzanine, the bed, the ladder..."
Impressive indeed.
"Oh woah! He's really good with his fingers, damn," joked Kuroo.
"Thank you, Kuroo, I appreciate the compliment," replied a voice behind him.
Oikawa chuckled, and Kuroo turned around, discovering that Iwaizumi had subtly appeared behind him.
Kuroo had only one solution to ward off his discomfort: make it worse by sinking deeper.
"You must do wonders," he whispered with a sly smile.
"You're an idiot," laughed Oikawa.
Iwaizumi smiled.
"No, but seriously, I'm impressed!"
Iwaizumi shrugged:
"It's my job, after all."
"You're still very talented Hajime," added Oikawa.
Kuroo just nodded to affirm his friend's words.
"Are you... a carpenter then?"
"Cabinetmaker."
"Nice, when I have the money, I'll place an order; this bookshelf is really catching my eye."
"Hey, that's my bookshelf! Get yours!" protested Oikawa.
"Noted," replied the cabinetmaker.
They chatted for a few minutes before Iwaizumi finally turned to go to the kitchen.
"Well, then, tell me everything!"
Surprised by this sudden attack, Kuroo protested:
"Whoa, okay, you don't waste time, straight to the point! I not even sat yet!"
"I'm not going to talk to you about my kitchen walls for fifty years either!"
"No, but wait, you haven't even introduced me to your plants!"
"Cut the crap; we both know why you're here, Kuroo. Spill it!"
"Uh... Iwaizumi doesn't know, we shouldn't..."
"Oh, I know," interjected the brunet from the kitchen.
"Oh..."
He turned his eyes to Oikawa, who pretended to be sorry.
Oikawa sat on the couch and invited his friend to sit beside him. Kuroo complied.
"I've already told you over the phone."
"No, but I want details!"
Kuroo frowned. He wasn't sure if he could give more details without revealing things that Bokuto wouldn't have liked to be known... Then again, he was here to gossip about his failed love story, was he really at the point of holding back sensitive information? Was it really that sensitive... Not really, especially if... Oops, he was starting to go off course... Oikawa brought him back to the surface by directing his question:
" Ok, first thing first, why Bokuto? Yesterday, you didn't know where to start, and now you're all over him?"
"I'm not all over him!"
Oikawa raised an eyebrow, far from being impressed.
"For real! It's just… Well when I came back this morning, I thought that it wasn't a big deal, and I could just… go with the flow, you know ?"
"You thought you could play the Bachelor without them knowing, right?"
Kuroo looked at him, surprised:
"It sounds so bad when you say it like that..."
"Yeah ok... But hey, you don't have any bad intentions, do you ?"
"No… And thanks for trying to reassure me about my integrity."
"You're welcome."
They both chuckled.
"Anyway, and?"
"Anyway... I hadn't planned on getting into this kind of thing today,but I got a text from Bokuto asking if I was on campus and if I wanted to join him for a jog."
"So far, so good."
"Yeah... So I joined him, it was great, and as usual, I couldn't stop laughing the all time, and... We even played a bit and..."
"Played?"
"Hmm, we found a volleyball, he used to play in high school too..."
"How come we all played this sport in high school and never crossed paths?"
Kuroo paused, genuinely considering the question. He shrugged, not quite sure what to answer.
"Odd really... Anyway, what happened next?"
"We went to shower, and at the moment we were supposed to part ways, he grabbed my arm to come with him..."
Oikawa widened his eyes in surprise:
"Oh!"
"Yeah, that what I thought at first."
Oikawa nodded.
"Anyway, we sang, and it was great, and I thought, 'ask now or forever hold your peace'."
"And you asked..."
"Yeah... But I wasn't clear enough, I think..."
"Anyway, I gathered it didn't go well."
Kuroo nodded.
"Well, I realized he's mated, and I was just imagining things really... But chill..."
His friend gave him a sympathetic look but didn't add anything more. His mate, on the other hand, didn't hold back:
"Well, that's not really a big deal."
Iwaizumi was returning from the kitchen with a cast iron teapot and three small cups arranged on a wooden tray—most likely handmade as well. The dissonance between his words and his courteous attention left Kuroo deeply confused. He quickly understood that the comment had been more directed towards his mate than him, judging by the amused glances they exchanged.
"You're silly," Oikawa said with a smile as he poured tea.
They continued to exchange sweet and amused looks until Oikawa's gaze met Kuroo's, who clearly wasn't following the conversation for obvious reasons but had the courtesy not to intrude.
"It's nothing, just that..."
"I am kind of a 'match wreaker'."
Oikawa chuckled at the remark.
"You… you were mated when you two met ?" asked Kuroo, surprised.
"No, no, but let's say I was promised to someone else."
"What!"
"Yeah… I ran away with the only beta from the Sô-shi clan around."
Kuroo smiled, amused by the anecdote and the triumphant look on Iwaizumi's face.
"Is it because you were so skillful with your hands that you charmed him?" Kuroo asked mischievously.
"Partly, yes," intervened Oikawa.
"Well calculated, now you live in a hobbit house."
"I love my hobbit house!"
"I didn't say it was a bad thing."
Oikawa still slapped his shoulder which only increased Kuroo's hilarity.
The conversation deviated from its main topic and naturally lightened. After a good ten minutes, silence fell.
"Well, I'm gonna work downstair for a bit," announced Iwaizumi. "Excuse me, Kuroo."
The concerned one nodded to let him know it wasn't a problem.
"But it's already late," protested Oikawa.
"It's not that late."
That was his only argument. Iwaizumi collected the cups, arranged them on the tray, and returned to the kitchen. Oikawa, who was pouting, followed him. Kuroo stayed alone in the living room, watching them from the corner of his eye. They were talking quietly, and Kuroo couldn't distinctly hear what they were saying. They moved together in this confined space, without either of them feeling crowded, like a modern ballet that was pleasant to observe stealthily. They eventually got closer. Oikawa, who was taller than his mate, pulled him toward him by the arm to place a kiss on his temple. Kuroo looked away but couldn't help but smile.
He had grown up in a society where expressing emotions or showing affection was taboo. He couldn't recall seeing his parents manifest affection overtly. In the past, he had been around individuals who had started to break free from these tacit prohibitions, but no one had completely shed them. Kuroo had to meet the CATO gang to begin letting go of them himself, and even if it had been somewhat alienating at first, it felt almost natural to him now. Seeing the freedom with which Oikawa and Iwaizumi acted with each other was deeply endearing.
He snapped out of his thoughts when he saw Iwaizumi crossing the room again. Their eyes met, and they exchanged a greeting. The host eventually looked away to catch his mate's gaze:
"Okay, I'll come back up in a bit, Tōru, don't forget your meds."
"Hmm..."
And Iwaizumi left. Oikawa seemed to be listening attentively, which intrigued his friend. The moment he heard the door slam, he let out a mischievous smile. Then, he saw him take out two beers from the fridge.
Kuroo chuckled.
"What are you doing?"
"Shh!"
Oikawa hid his beers again, and waited for a moment.
"Where did he go?"
"Garage."
"Oh."
Once he was sure he had left, the diva took the beers, grabbed a bag of chips, and returned to Kuroo with his loot.
"Ugh, do you have to hide to drink? Are you afraid of getting scolded?"
"Totally. He doesn't want me to drink when I take my suppressors. Supposedly, I have to wait at least an hour, blah blah blah."
Kuroo let out a laugh.
"You did some pharmacology; you know he's right."
Oikawa clicked his tongue.
"I've been taking them for almost ten years; I've got it under control."
"If you say so."
Oikawa opened the beers and handed one to his friend.
"Come on, to your love failures."
"Ugh, 'my failures', are we already using plural?"
"Well, your failure if you prefer."
"You're really good at cheering up people, you know ?"
"Yeah, I know."
They clinked bottles and gulped down the first sip. Oikawa stood up again and returned with two med tubes that he placed on the table. The brunet was surprised to see so many pills scattered on the table.
"Oh, woah!"
"That's fine.", said Oikawa before putting the pills in his mouth all at once and gulping down a big sip of beer to wash it down.
Kuroo looked at the tubes on the table; they piqued his curiosity as a chemist.
"Can I take a look?" he asked.
Oikawa nodded positively.
Kuroo grabbed the tubes, but his enthusiasm waned when he realized they didn't know these molecules at all.
"Diphylten and Prolysatine? Never heard of that!"
Oikawa seemed surprised; he let out a somewhat mocking half-smile but didn't comment any further than "Oh really?"
"What are they for?"
"Hmm... Diphylten is a VN receptor antagonist; it reduces pheromone reception, and Prolysatine is a pheromonal modulator."
"Oh, ok."
Kuroo immediately delved into his thoughts, leaving only a very unexpressive external facade, occasionally animated by the ripples of his reflection. Oikawa caught on and let out a smile.
"What's confusing you like that?"
"Hmm, nothing... I just don't understand the biological need, I mean... Pheromones are not a bad thing, right? Or is it like contraception?
"Hmm... Not really a contraceptive, but it helps regulate the appearance of cycles... But it's more for... comfort, I would say."
"Comfort?"
"Yeah, it's like wearing noise-canceling headphones... Otherwise, it would be a nightmare!"
Kuroo frowned.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, remember when we talked about olfactory communication?"
Kuroo nodded.
"Well, imagine having all that information with you wherever you go. It's a bit like hearing everyone's thoughts around you all the time. When you live in the middle of nowhere, it's manageable, but as soon as you're in a place with more than ten people, it starts to be annoying. Diphylten won't make the voices disappear, but it dulls them. And for the other one, um... It's more to control the volume of your own thoughts. Instead of shouting all the time, you can just speak softly and raise your voice if needed, but well..."
"Ah yes, the unfamous 'full alpha' thingy you played on me".
"Are you going to keep bringing that up?"
"Yes, until the day you die."
Oikawa let out a laugh.
"Well, okay, but did you get it?"
"Yes, more or less..."
"Really ?"
"Yes, yes... I was just thinking... Can you completely block out the thoughts?"
"Hmm, yes... But it's not necessarily recommended. First, because if you're used to hearing them, it would be like becoming completely deaf. And then, imagine when you have to reduce them pre-cycle; it would be like switching from birdsong in the tropical forest to heavy metal all of a sudden."
Kuroo chuckled.
"You think that's funny noodle-head? replied Oikawa in a conversational tone.
The remark made Kuroo laugh.
"No, I just like your choice of metaphor. But I get it!"
"Yeah, whatever..."
Kuroo retrieved his bag from the floor. While rummaging inside, he asked:
"Okay, okay, and can you completely block your own thoughts?"
"You can, but it's not recommended... Many omegas do it, though, but it's more to avoid getting bothered than anything else."
Kuroo stopped his search.
"Bothered by whom?"
"By shitty alphas most of the time."
"Oh..."
"Yeah..."
Silence.
Kuroo finally took out a piece of paper and a pen from his bag. He grabbed the box of Diphylten and began copying something written on the back.
"What are you doing?"
"I'm trying to draw the molecule from the chemical formula."
"You're really a nerd; come on, drop that and drink instead!" exclaimed the diva, grabbing the paper with one hand and insistently offering the beer with the other.
The brunet pouted, like a child seeing his favorite toy being taken away. He eventually gave in and took a sip of beer. The conversation resumed, lighter this time. They gorged on chips and eventually started a movie they didn't even follow because they couldn't refrain from discussing each inadequacy depicted by the fiction. Seeing that it was already late, they agreed to go to bed. Oikawa unfolded the sofa bed, but they continued to chat, now both sprawled across the mattress, forgetting all sense of time. The conversation eventually petered out, and they both silently looked at the ceiling.
Oikawa eventually turned to his friend:
"What are you going to do now?"
"About what?"
"Bokuto-san?"
Kuroo sighed.
"Well... nothing, I'm not going to be a match-wrecker... And besides, you've seen Bokuto; I can't even imagine the face of his mate. I don't want to get my head smashed on a wall by a jealous alpha."
Kuroo widened his eyes. Oops, he had precisely revealed what he was trying to keep under wraps. However, Oikawa didn't seem to react.
Well yeah, Kuroo had not thought about that sooner but Oikawa had met Bokuto before, he probably already knew his secondary.
"Beside, I don't want to be a bitch about it all."
"Yeah..."
"Yeah..."
Silence.
"So... Are you continuing your Bachelor game?"
"Stop saying that, it makes me feel terrible!"
"Come on, you get it. Are you going to try your luck with someone else?"
Kuroo turned back onto his back.
"I don't know... I don't want to force things..."
"You're not going to give up immediately like that, are you?"
"I don't know..."
Oikawa smiled.
"You're making it way harder than it is."
"Maybe…"
They both sat up again when they heard the front door open.
"You're still up?" asked Iwaizumi when he entered the room.
"Well, you are too," noted Oikawa.
"Well yeah, but I don't work tomorrow morning; don't you have an 8 am class?"
"Yeah, but... Oh! Fuck!" exclaimed the Oikawa when he unlocked his phone, " It's 3AM!"
"Oh… Damn it…"
'Damn it' was the word. But their bitterness of this statement only hit them once they arrived in class the next morning, when they found themselves in the lecture hall with so few hours of sleep that their brains struggled to function properly, and the perception of noise and light was almost painful. Their state, already not glorious, worsened when their professor, the very sympathetic Nobishi-san, asked:
"I hope you've all read the first five chapters of the book and done the exercises."
Oikawa and Kuroo turned to each other, exhausted and panicked:
"Damn it..."
-/-
Kuroo had a peaceful week after that. Fortunately for him, he hadn't crossed paths with any of the charming young men who were out to harm his poor heart and his relatively fragile mental health. This isolation gave him the wonderful opportunity to relish in his denial state and illusive inertia.
On this Sunday afternoon, he had decided to join his friends at the Karasu. The place was relatively quiet, which was not good for business, indeed, but was quite nice for them.
Kuroo was in the company of his favorite redhead, continuing his sign language lessons. He was proud to be able to hold a simple conversation now and was able to understand when his friends were conversing at a faster pace. Sugawara eventually joined them, abandoning his post once again while Kageyama had to take care of everything (which wasn't much, but still).
"Yo losers," kindly greeted Oikawa as he approached them.
He removed his sunglasses like a movie star wanting to impress the paparazzi. Overall, something entirely normal for the individual in question.
"Hi, ugly face" Sugawara replied with a smile.
Oikawa didn't react at all.
"What are you guys up to?" he asked, putting away his things to join them.
"Ping-pong, wanna join?" replied the silver-haired one.
"Ahah, very funny. You're in a good mood today, you big jerk," his friend responded.
Sugawara chuckled.
"Nothing, just chatting... By the way, your scarf is nice," he complimented, pointing to the fabric.
"Thanks."
"Funny… I swear I had one like that… wonder where it went."
"Don't pull that one on me again!" protested the diva.
"Just saying, that's all," the silver-haired one replied with a mischievous smile.
Oikawa looked at him suspiciously but eventually let it go.
Kuroo, while eager to continue witnessing this lively interaction, had to step away momentarily to relieve his painfully full bladder. When he returned, his three friends were conversing in sign language. The brunet sat down and tried to follow the conversation. However, something was bothering him : they kept making a strange sign that he didn't recognize. He frowned and tried to understand from the context. Eventually, he mimicked the sign, asking for its meaning.
Hinata smiled at him and pointed at himself. Kuroo signed that he didn't understand.
"It's your name."
Kuroo looked at him, his features reflecting his candid disbelief.
"It's a mix of "rooster" for your hair and "black", like your name, kind of." Hinata explained.
Kuroo couldn't believe it; he felt deeply moved. Giving him a sign name was a great honor; it meant that Kuroo was accepted. He had just received his VIP ticket, the ultimate recognition! He almost had tears in his eyes.
The idea that they were discussing him in undetermined terms didn't bother him at all; the serotonin boost overshadowed everything else.
Hinata frowned, unsure of how to interpret his friend's reaction. As he was about to react, Kuroo intervened.
"Thank you, I love it!"
Hinata let his arms fall on the table and offered him a radiant smile. While they resumed their conversation, Kuroo proudly signed his own name, rehearsing introduction sentences, and imagining numerous scenarios. Sugawara eventually directed his attention towards him and burst into laughter.
"Hinata, I think you broke him," he said aloud while continuing to sign.
Hinata seemed deeply affected by this remark and turned to Kuroo with a sorry expression.
"He's lying; I'm just happy."
The redhead, reassured, smiled at him again.
"Well, I'm gonna piss off Kageyama. I'll get something to drink, be right back," the diva announced before getting up and heading toward the counter.
"Okay," Sugawara replied.
Hinata hurriedly followed Oikawa, apparently delighted at the idea of teasing his mate.
Once Oikawa was far enough, a sly smile formed on Sugawara's lips. While keeping an eye on his victim, he grabbed Oikawa's scarf and began rubbing his wrists on it. Kuroo watched him, deeply skeptical, unable to interpret the scene unfolding before his eyes. Sugawara placed the scarf back in its original place and tried to appear as innocent as possible.
Oikawa returned a few minutes later, continuing the conversation. Kuroo didn't listen to a single word he said, too preoccupied with wondering what had just happened and why Sugawara had done it. Finally, Oikawa stopped and sniffed loudly, visibly bothered. He grabbed his scarf, confirming it to be the source of the offensive smell. He turned to Sugawara, annoyed. The latter chuckled like a child satisfied with his prank.
"Fuck you Kōshi!" exclaimed the diva, throwing the scarf at him. Correction: smashing the scarf onto his face.
Sugawara burst into laughter.
As a revenge, Oikawa grabbed his friend's jacket, but Sugawara snatched it from his hands before he could do anything:
"Okay, okay, stop, it was just a joke!"
"Just a joke, my ass, now it stinks!"
"It doesn't stink!"
"It does, you jerk!"
The remark made Sugawara laugh. Oikawa pouted and gave up the fight. He sank into his chair and started rubbing his wrists on the fabric of his scarf.
"Damn it, now I'll smell like Sô-Shi!"
"Hmm, I think you should give it back to me then"
"But shut up, it's not yours!"
"Meh..."
"You'll pay for this!"
Kuroo's eyes darted between his two friends, incredulous.
"Uh... What's going on?"
"Nothing, just think it's funny to mark my clothes!" exclaimed Oikawa.
"What?"
Kuroo didn't get an answer; his two friends were too busy bickering. He sank into his chair and left them to their verbal sparring. It was around this time that Hinata appeared again, his mischief surely accomplished. He asked Kuroo what was going on, and the latter replied by mimicking the gesture Sugawara had made earlier. Hinata was initially surprised but ended up finding it amusing. Sensing the brunet's incredulity, Hinata tried to clarify the situation, but the sign he made was not yet in Kuroo's vocabulary. Noting his confusion, Hinata grabbed the sheet of paper they had been using since the beginning of the impromptu language lesson and wrote "to mark," then made the sign again. Kuroo imitated him.
" 'To mark' what?" signed Kuroo.
Hinata answered him with signs, but Kuroo didn't understand; once again, it surpassed his vocabulary level. The redhead took back the sheet, and next to the previously written word, he added, " = marking territory." Kuroo stared at the paper, more bewildered than before. The gesture he had witnessed earlier reminded him of something... He had to dig into his memory to find the source of that recollection. When it struck him, he appeared even more taken aback than before.
"What's wrong?" asked the redhead, tilting his head.
"Nothing... I remember seeing someone do that. He did it on his scarf and gave it to me..."
Hinata frowned:
"Who?"
"A-ka-shi-i," Kuroo signed.
"What?"
Kuroo jumped and turned to his two friends in front of him. Oikawa and Sugawara displayed the same look of profound astonishment. The brunet turned to Hinata, equally shaken by the revelation. Oikawa was the first to recover from it and burst into laughter.
"Are you kidding?" he asked between laughs.
"No... What does it mean?"
"Uh, well, normally, it means he's claiming you. Like, he's telling others that you're his."
Kuroo nearly choked on his saliva.
"What? But, we didn't even know each other yet! It was like the first time we saw each other! And I can't picture him doing that..."
Oikawa didn't know how to retort, seemingly bewildered.
"Oh, wait, I think I know why he did that," Sugawara intervened.
"Oh well, go ahead, enlighten us!"
"Kuroo, why did he give you the scarf?"
"I don't know... I was about to go home, and he gave it to me so that I wouldn't be cold."
"It might just be that," Oikawa said.
"Why would he mark his own clothes?" noted the silver-haired.
"Don't know, do you have a better explanation?"
"Hmm... He might have done it to mask Kuroo's scent. I've done it before..."
"What!"
"Sorry !But you're such a trouble magnet, I worry about you!"
Kuroo didn't know what to say and merely mimicked a fish.
"But why?"
"By wearing the scent of an alpha, either others think you are one, and they won't bother you, or they think you have an alpha, and they bother you less too..."
Kuroo remained silent, unable to decide how he should react, or even how he should feel.
"I swear, I did it once because you were walking home drunk in the middle of the night! I won't do it again!"
"Oh... No, it's okay, don't worry... Just warn me next time..."
"I promise, sorry..."
"But are we sure about this? Just because you played big mama hen once doesn't mean he did too," Oikawa interjected.
"It's the most plausible explanation I see..."
"But I'm not even sure if Akaashi is an alpha," the brunet added.
Oikawa raised an eyebrow, and Sugawara looked puzzled. They exchanged a glance. The diva was the first to speak again.
"Hmm... most likely, yes, I can't picture an omega doing that, and a beta? Forget about it."
"Why not?"
Oikawa shook his head, sorry for having to resort to these explanations:
"Well, Kuroo, you don't have pheromonal glands here," he affirmed, pointing at his wrist, "you're not going to rub them against whatever!"
"...That makes sense."
"As for wearing the scent of an omega, they get bothered enough as it is, they don't go around inflicting it on others, especially people they barely know, right?"
"Oh... yeah, that makes sense."
Silence fell. Sugawara still looked embarrassed and didn't say a word.
"Well... It's not very subtle, but it shows that he... cares about you? It's not a bad sign for your Bachelor game!
"His Bachelor game?"
"Oikawa is comparing my romantic suffering to a cheesy game show..." Kuroo explained.
"Your 'romantic suffering,'" the dive echoed, "And I'm the drama queen!"
"Hmm, I see," Sugawara intervened. "Well, then yeah, it's a good sign for you Bachelor game thing."
"Not you too!" Kuroo wined.
"I like this metaphor," Sugawara said.
Ô, misery.
"Still, whatever you want to call it, it's not a bad sign!"
"Hmm... do you think so?"
Oikawa nodded.
"And let's be honest, from what you've told us, he doesn't seem entirely immune to your charms either! Go for it," suggested the chestnut-haired, shrugging.
Kuroo wanted to remain pragmatic, but that simple suggestion had sparked hope within him, and the dopamine rush his brain had just released as a response dissuaded him from thinking otherwise.
"Or he just sees you as a lost kid, and you've been kid-zoned."
Kuroo jumped. He turned to find that Kageyama had made his appearance. Since when had he been here exactly?
"Yeah..." Sugawara and Oikawa replied in unison.
The dopaminergic relapse was harsh.
But the idea remained somewhere in his head, warm and comfortable, waiting to see what time would make of it.
-end of the chapter-
Next chapter: The violence of the trade winds
"What are you doing?" asked Oikawa.
"I have something to take care of..."
Suddenly, the bird broke eye contact and darted away at full speed.
Kuroo ran down the stairs and rushed toward his feathered nemesis."
See you