blurb… °❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･
where ~friend!kuroo has a crush on you
w: none wc:558 mlist
Kuroo Tetsuro had always been good at reading a game. As captain of Nekoma High Volleyball Club, he tracked every movement on the court,the angle of a spike, the shift of a blocker, even the way the ball bounced off a sweaty floor.
But when you were on the sidelines, quietly watching practice, something inside him stumbled. You didn’t play. You never touched the ball. You simply leaned against the edge of the stage, legs dangling, occasionally clapping or laughing at some minor mishap. Yet every spike, every block, every little flourish suddenly felt heavier, sharper, like it existed for your eyes alone.
He told himself it was coincidence.
It wasn’t.
Kuroo’s focus fractured in ways he’d never admit. He shifted positions so he’d be facing you more often. When he served, the ball thudded into place with extra precision. When he leapt for a block, he timed it perfectly, as if measuring his performance against your gaze. His movements were smooth, but in the back of his mind, he replayed every second where your attention lingered on him.
Kenma noticed first. “You’re staring again,” he muttered without looking up from his game.
“I am not,” Kuroo shot back, though his eyes immediately flicked toward you, catching the faint curve of your smile. He froze for half a second before throwing up a grin and diving back into practice.
Even water breaks weren’t safe. He’d linger near where you were sitting, stretching lazily or tossing a towel over his shoulder. Every movement was casual, but his gaze betrayed him. He wanted to see your reaction, even if just for a split second. That was enough to make his chest tighten, make him hum with satisfaction when you clapped or gave him a small thumbs-up.
By the end of practice, he was drenched in sweat, hair sticking to his forehead. His shoulders were heavy with effort, but he always turned toward you before leaving. The quiet of the empty gym, broken only by your soft movements on the sidelines, felt like its own kind of reward.
He didn’t need an audience. He didn’t want cheers or praise from anyone else. He wanted you.
Not loudly. Not with flashy confessions. Just subtly. In the way he showed off when you watched. In the way his timing sharpened under your gaze. In the way his smirk softened whenever your eyes met his.
Even now, as he slung his bag over one shoulder and started toward the locker room, his eyes flicked back to the sidelines. You were still there, scrolling on your phone, maybe only half-aware of the game you’d been watching.
Kuroo paused for a fraction of a second, letting himself enjoy the quiet. A strategy, a tactic, a small victory, but this one wasn’t for the team. It was for you.
And in that instant, he didn’t care that no one else saw it. The captain of Nekoma, master of reading the court, had lost focus entirely. Not because he couldn’t play, but because he couldn’t stop noticing you.
For him, that was worth every missed ball, every slightly reckless spike. He didn’t need to win the game. He just wanted you to see him.
And judging by the way you smiled, even softly, almost unconsciously, he already had.
ᥫ᭡.ִֶָ𓂃 requests open & i will gladly take any suggestions/shows
dividers: @strangergraphics, rest are tagged in intro & mlist
a/n: it’s been a beat since i’ve watched haikyuu so any notes are welcome <33
ᓚ₍ ^. .^₎ ©only4sukuna