falling back into knb phase bc currently rewatching it
and i think izuki pairings are very nice,,
i am falling into izutaka/takazuki hell
AND LIKE THIS TIME ROUND I’M ALSO THINKING ABT THE POSSIBILITY OF IMAYOSHI X IZUKI AND I RLLY LIKE IT??? LIKE YES HAND IT OVER BUT THERE IS LIKE NO CONTENT ABT THEM ☹️
Yeah yeah it's the Not Equal one XD I was just randomly looking up BLCDs with Takao's VA and found it and was like WHOA TAKAO x IZUKI??? SIGN ME UP. Aaaaaand now I ship them. But their ship just makes sense, since they both have the same ability. I want more content of them. And they're both really playful so they'd work well together. *sighs happily*
THEY’D BE SO GOOD TOGETHER!!!
AND THERE’S ACTUALLY A DRAMA CD WHERE TAKAO CALLS IZUKI BEAUTIFUL/HANDSOME AND AMAZING AND LAUGHS ABOUT HIS PUNS AND IT’S BEEN OVER TWO YEARS SINCE IT CAME OUT BUT I STILL CAN’T BELIEVE IT ACTUALLY HAPPENED!!! HERE’S A LINK TO THE TRANSLATION! AND YOU SHOULD DEFINITELY CHECK OUT @paintandfury‘S ABSOLUTELY STUNNING IZUTAKA FANARTS!!! AND MY AMAZING GIRLFRIEND’S FANFICS!!!!!! and maybe if you want to you can check out my own fanfics too but that’s not as important lmao
I actually wrote this story a while ago but since it was meant to be a collaboration work with @paintandfury. Unfortunately, she’s been so busy lately that she couldn’t get the time to work on anything for it (I hope you’re still not overworking yourself!) so that’s why I decided to post it now.
This fic is set during the last OVA, the one with Kuroko’s birthday. Hence, most characters show up in this, but it’s really about the birbs.
Ship: Izuki Shun/Takao Kazunari
Word count: 4k
Find it here on AO3.
"Hey, everyone in Seirin! How are you guys doing?"
Shun's stomach drops when he hears the cheerful voice that sounds from the living room door. All eyes in the room are set on the new arrival. Shun tries to look calm but he still can't completely get rid of the stutter when he asks, "Eh? Takao? Why?"
Shun's heart starts wildly hammering in his chest, especially when Takao directs his flashing smile directly at him. With red cheeks Shun averts his gaze and takes a few deep breaths while the room's attention now is on Himuro. Takao is considerate enough to stay by the door.
After Takao and Himuro have taken off their coats (and hat, in Takao’s case), however, the point guard joins Shun where he is still putting up the last decorations.
“Hey, Shun-chan. How are you?”
Shun has seen him coming thanks to his Eagle Eye but even then it hasn’t been enough time to brace himself.
“Hey, Takao. Good, I guess,” Shun replies. He pretends to be very much focused on the paper doll chain in his hands that Hyuuga made just a few minutes ago.
They are silent for a moment—awkwardly silent—before Takao says, “Oh, really? That’s good.” A little quieter he adds, “I was a little worried, you know. Since we haven’t seen each other for a month.”
Out of the corner of his eye, Shun can see the meaningful look Takao gives him. He doesn’t return it. Instead, he keeps watching the little paper humans in his hands with unyielding determination and remains silent.
After a minute or so, Takao sighs and leaves him alone to offer his help to Kagami and Himuro in the kitchen—not that they need it, but he stays to watch them anyway. Shun takes another deep breath and finally puts up the paper doll chain, now receiving help from Kawahara who glances cautiously between the two point guards but doesn't say anything. Shun is grateful for that.
It’s not that Shun doesn’t want to spend time with Takao—on the contrary. He loves few things more than spending time with his fellow point guard. That is, he used to, until he made things horribly awkward between them a month ago on New Year’s Day.
Shun was going to his first shrine visit of the year with his family. His grandparents had insisted to visit the shrine together so they chose the closest one there since his grandfather couldn’t take long walks anymore. With beet-red cheeks Shun prayed for help with his crush on Takao, because he had started thinking that only the Gods could resolve that problem for him.
His family was just about to head home when his grandparents ran into a couple of neighbours and Shun suddenly ran into Takao.
He did so quite literally—walking a few steps backwards he bumped into someone and when he wanted to apologise, that someone turned out to be Takao.
For Shun it was the sign of the Gods that he had just prayed for.
So, while Shun's grandparents had a chat with their neighbours, his and Takao's parents and sisters got acquainted with each other and the two boys retreated to a slightly less busy area next to the shrine.
They started with smalltalk and Shun's heart hammered in his chest like the droning echo of the New Year's bells.
Takao was in the middle of telling him about the lucky item gift he had gotten from Midorima for Christmas when Shun finally took all his courage and blurted out Takao's name.
“Takao!”
The other boy looked at him with wide eyes—mouth still hanging open mid-word—and squeaked out, “Yes?”
“I like you!” Shun said before his nerves could get the better of him. With eyes wide in fear and surprise over his own spur of courage he stared at Takao and waited.
He waited for two seconds before his brain decided that this had been a terrible idea.
But then Takao began laughing and slung his arm around Izuki's shoulders. “What're you talking about, Shun-chan? Of course I like you, too,” he giggled. “What're you talking about?”
Shun's eyes widened even more and his breath stuttered. His flaming cheeks quickly paled as the realisation dawned on him that Takao had never even considered thinking about him in a romantic context.
He quickly joined Takao in his laughter but it must've sounded so fake that even he picked it up. Takao fell silent. He watched Shun for a moment or two in which Shun pointedly looked everywhere but his eyes and then his cheeks flushed a deep red.
“Shit, Shun-chan, I'm sorry! Did you- I mean, do you-” Takao spluttered but before he could form a coherent sentence Mai's voice interrupted them.
“Shun-nii? Ah, here you are.” She eyed the two boys carefully for a second before she continued, “We're heading back home now. But you can stay for a bit longer if you want to, mom says. We'll just go ahead.”
Shun shook his head and could just keep a relieved sigh from escaping his lips. “No, it's fine. I'll come with you.”
Before Takao even had a chance to say anything else, Shun quickly got to his feet and joined his sister by her side. He only nodded as a good bye to Takao.
That was the last time they had seen each other before today.
Of course things are still awkward between them. Shun doesn’t give Takao any chance to talk to him because he's not ready for the rejection. That Takao could accept hasn't crossed Shun's mind ever since he heard him apologise when he'd realised what exactly he had meant.
He lets his eyes wander around the room one last time and grumpily notices that he's satisfied with the decorations now. Which means no more distractions and excuses to stay away from Takao.
At this moment Hyuuga calls him over. Izuki has never been more relieved to have his friend close-by.
He sits down next to Hyuuga on Kagami’s couch and waits for him to start talking. The brows pulling together in a frown and the way he looks at Shun tell him clearly that something is on his mind.
“So,” Hyuuga finally starts and his voice is so quiet that only Shun can hear it. He suddenly feels like he's not going to like where this conversation is headed. The living room is empty except for the two friends, the first-years off to finish whatever preparations still need to be finished. “Did anything happen between you and Takao?”
Shun’s eyes widen. Hyuuga usually isn’t the type of person who concerns himself with other people's businesses. Shun forces out a laugh that sounds so fake he wants to skip back in time to redo it.
“I have no idea what you're talking about.”
His friend's face turns into an expression of pain. Then, Hyuuga sighs.
“You know I'm not the biggest fan of you getting along so well with your direct rival,” Hyuuga starts and Shun can hear how he probably meant to say ‘enemy’ instead. “But I can also tell that you're happy around him and that he motivates you.” He sighs again and concludes, “Man, I know I'm not the best at it but sometimes I feel like I've failed as a friend.”
Shun is speechless. Of course he's aware that Hyuuga is bad at expressing his feelings, especially with words, but he wasn't expecting him to be so worried. He leans back against the back of the couch and stares up at the ceiling.
He's about to confess something that he really can't anticipate how Hyuuga will react to but he feels like it's something he owes him, especially after that somewhat awkward confession on his part.
Shun takes a deep breath and exhales as long as he can drag it out before he finally says, “I know you, Hyuuga, and you didn't fail as a friend. Actually, I might need you more than ever after this day because, you see, Takao kind of has a special place in my heart but I might've fucked up.”
He gives Hyuuga some time to come to the right conclusion and then waits some more for him to figure out the right reaction.
Hyuuga blinks at Shun several times before he asks, “So, you're saying--”
“That's exactly what I'm saying,” Shun says to take the burden off his friend to put the thing into words that he's expressed to dislike before. He closes his eyes and waits some more.
“Did he reject you?”
Shun cracks open one eye to watch Hyuuga. He looks genuinely concerned and ready to fight if given the cue. Shun smiles. “Nah, not yet. I haven't really given him the chance.”
Hyuuga’s face immediately turns from concern into rage. “You haven't given him the chance? Are you dumb?”
Shun quickly sits up straight and clasps both his hands over his friend's mouth. He shushes him with worried glances back to the open door and the kitchen corner. Takao is still watching Kagami and Himuro as they're working their magic on the food and the first-years are out of sight. Maybe Hyuuga told them to clear the room for a few minutes, Shun wonders.
When Takao turns around and their eyes meet, Shun whips his head back around to face a still angry Hyuuga. “What're you getting all gloomy over if there's still a chance? And a not-so-small one at that, I might add!”
“Quiet, Hyuuga, he's right there.” Shun tries to silence his friend again but knows it's not going to work.
“Are you talking about me?” Takao's voice asks cheekily from the kitchen counter where he turns to them on his stool. Shun swirls around and feels as if he's just been caught red-handed doing something forbidden. As Takao walks over to them Shun wonders how much he has heard but then he thinks it won't matter much anymore anyway.
“We were,” Hyuuga states bluntly and Shun can feel his cheeks heating up. He still locks eyes with Takao, though. In the end, the younger boy is considerate enough to take a seat at the other end of the room on the floor.
Being this close to Takao immediately makes Shun think how much he regrets confessing. He would love to just talk to him like they used to and he's sure that Takao could pretend that nothing has happened because they did have a special connection and even Takao couldn't deny that—that time he sheepishly called Shun “something like his soulmate” had its own effect.
But Shun is not ready to pretend nothing happened just yet. So he avoids Takao until he's ready for any kind of answer.
Hyuuga gives him another look but Shun ignores it and instead starts talking about their training regimen.
They all help Kagami and Himuro putting the food out in the living room and not much later the doorbell rings. Furihata goes to open the door.
Shun expects their remaining teammates to arrive—so do Kagami and Furihata, apparently—but it turns out much worse when suddenly the whole Generation of Miracles is standing in the hallway of Kagami’s apartment.
There's no one left in the living room who isn't surprised. The reunion with Akashi seems to have hit Furihata the worst because he's hanging in Murasakibara’s arms like a corpse.
Shun forgets to breathe for a moment when Takao and Midorima greet each other.
“Takao? What are you doing here?”
“Shin-chan too. Haha, this will be exciting!”
Takao has assured Shun many times that he's not playing favourites between him and Midorima because they're important to him on completely different levels. Shun wants to believe him and he does, he really does.
The jealousy he feels towards Midorima isn't one of a potential romantic rival. It's more of a jealousy aimed at all the things Shun can't have; high school time spent together, goofing around at practice until they get yelled at by their coach, going home together from school and graduating together.
For some reason, even though he was avoiding him, Shun was hoping that this was one of the situations that he could have but Midorima couldn't.
When Shun pulls himself back to reality, Takao gets up from his spot on the floor to make room for the new arrivals because, “Now that all the members of the Generation of Miracles have gathered you guys should sit together and chat some more.”
He walks over to the Izuki and Hyuugas’ couch but before he sits down he seems to reconsider and instead leans against the backrest.
Just a few moments later, Akashi joins them to have a chat with some fellow point guards.
It's surprisingly easy to talk to Akashi when he's not being a psychopath, even when Takao joins in, and Shun almost forgets about avoiding and ignoring the other boy. Things feel much too natural between them, but that only makes it hurt even more.
Not much time passes and the doorbell rings again. Sure enough, this time the remaining Seirin teammates arrive, together with Nigou.
The little dog soaks in all the attention—Shun suspects that Nigou knows perfectly well just how cute he is and uses it to his advantage—until everyone gives Kuroko their birthday wishes again.
The whole bunch of teenagers sits back down to finally eat all the delicious food served. Shun notices grumpily that Takao sits down next to Midorima this time until he remembers that this is what he wants. Or what he feels he should want. It feels horrible.
The more people have arrived, the easier it was for Shun to avoid Takao while simultaneously looking less suspicious. Even during their meal it’s easy for him to talk to others and to laugh, but from time to time his eyes would still seek Takao. More often than not he catches the other boy looking right back at him.
With 20 hungry teenagers around—though to be fair the girls are much more civil in comparison to all the boys present—all the food is gulped down in an instant. Somehow, everyone still ends up with full stomachs but enough room for more snacks.
But now that Shun’s spent a few hours in Kagami’s apartment—it is big, but still not made for almost two dozen teenagers—the air is starting to feel used and heavy in his lungs.
Shun needs some fresh air. He excuses himself from Hyuuga and Kiyoshi and steps out onto the balcony. He takes a deep, deep breath and sighs.
Meeting Takao tonight really wasn't part of the plan. Shun knows that eventually they will have to talk about his confession but he'd rather do it after some mental preparation and with much less people present.
He doesn't hear the balcony door when it quietly opens and closes again. That's why when someone steps up next to him he jumps a little.
“You already have your Eagle Eye, you should have your guard up more,” Takao says as naturally as if Shun hadn't been avoiding him for the past month. It feels nice and he even giggles at the pun.
Soon, a bittersweet smile appears on Shun's lips. “I didn't think I'd have to keep my guard up in a situation like this.”
Takao smiles back at him and Shun sighs again. He leans on the rail and waits a few more minutes before he finally says, “Look, Takao, I'm sorry about what happened. But please give me some more time to prepare myself for your rejection, okay? Knowing you you probably want to stay friends and I need to get used to that idea again.”
He turns around to watch his friends laugh together inside Kagami’s living room and before Takao can give any sort of reaction, Shun says, “I'll call you, Takao, I promise. As soon as I'm ready. I'm gonna go back inside now.” He swallows hard to not start crying.
Suddenly, Takao grabs his wrist and swirls him around. “Just listen to me for a freaking second!”
Shun's eyes widen in shock. He stares at where Takao's hands now hold both of Shun's.
“Listen to me, okay?” Takao repeats and his voice is so loud that Shun’s head spins around to check that no one is paying attention to them
Kagami is crossing the room just then—probably to get more snacks—and all the others have gathered around Kuroko. Shun's eyes meet Kuroko's for a second and he whips his head back around to face Takao.
“They'll see us!” he hisses and tries to wriggle out of Takao's hands but the younger boy doesn't loosen his grip. “Takao, please.”
“So what if they see us?” Shun flinches and only looks back up when Takao releases his wrists.
He has less than a second to take him in though, because suddenly Takao's hands are back on his body except they're holding his cheeks and pulling him in this time. Shun doesn't even have the time to gape properly before soft lips press against his own.
Shun's eyes can't decide whether they want to widen in shock or close with pleasure but Takao pulls back before they settle on either. He's distantly aware of the missing light that's not illuminating the balcony from inside anymore, but he's far too focused on the other boy to fully register it.
Takao's hands are still on his cheeks when he steps back and forces Shun to look at him. What Shun sees is a brightly flushed face with dark red cheeks and slightly wet, uncertain eyes. Shun can't tear his own eyes away.
“Do you,” Takao eventually breaks the silence, “have any idea how hard I was trying to do this over the past month and you just wouldn't let me?” Shun suddenly wonders just what he was so afraid of.
Takao continues, “Do you know how many times I've wondered if I still misinterpreted you? If you had just said things on the spur of the moment and not meant them? If you had only made a joke but ran away when you realised my feelings?”
Shun swallows hard. He feels like hitting himself in the head with a basketball several times. Or maybe have Takao do it for him. Instead, he lets his forehead drop against Takao’s shoulder. The younger boy’s hands fall next to his body but they’re holding Shun’s just a second later.
He starts giggling but soon enough it turns into a mix of that and sobbing. Shun wants to apologise for getting Takao’s shirt wet but all he can choke out is, “I’m sorry, I should’ve trusted you.”
Takao encircles Shun’s waist with his arms and whispers, “Yes, you should have,” into his ear. Shun can hear nothing but fondness in his voice.
“You know,” Takao muses after a while, “you could make up for it by kissing me.”
All Shun lets out as a warning is a soft hum and then he climbs up Takao’s neck with feather-light kisses. He continues on over his jaw and chin and finally, finally, presses his lips against Takao’s.
Both boys sigh into the kiss as if they’ve been starving for it—and they have. Tentatively, they move their lips together, testing and tasting the territory that they would have enough time to explore later.
Shun's fingers twitch to get out of Takao's grip, to move his hands over his friend's torso and just touch. He doesn't, but he slides his own palms against Takao's until their fingers are intertwined and they hold onto each other for support, for encouragement, for contact.
They spring apart when the noises from inside the living room get louder and Shun suddenly remembers that they're very much not alone. He feels like he should care more the he actually does but being watched by a dozen teenagers still doesn't fit with his sense of romance.
When he turns to the balcony door with a look of horror, however, he notices that the curtains are pulled closed. With raised eyebrows he turns to Takao, but the other boy just shrugs. Shun thinks he probably owes Hyuuga a thanks.
They're still holding hands.
Shun leans in for another peck and pulls his fingers out from between Takao's. “We should probably get back inside,” he says and breathes one last kiss against his friend's—boyfriend's? They'd have to talk about this later—lips for good measure.
Carefully, Shun pushes open the balcony door. Only a handful of the teenagers inside the room look up at them—one of them is Hyuuga—the others are gathered around Kuroko as he opens his presents.
Hyuuga raises a subtle eyebrow at him and Shun silently replies with a smile and a curt nod. It seems like Hyuuga isn't sure how exactly he's supposed to react so he just nods back.
Shun sits back down on the couch next to his captain. Just a few seconds later Takao leans over the backrest dangerously close to Shun's ear and asks, “Is the seat next to you taken?”
Takao is so close, in fact, that his breath tickles goosebumps onto all over Shun's neck. He can feel his cheeks heat up and quickly shakes his head before he embarrasses himself.
With Akashi still there, the couch is a bit small for four people but Takao makes up for it by sitting extra close to Shun while there's still some distance between the two teammates. Shun's thigh feels like it's on fire where it touches Takao's.
When Kuroko is done with unwrapping his presents the voices in the room swell up again. Shun takes the chance to lean over to Hyuuga and whisper, “Thanks for earlier.”
Hyuuga pulls his eyebrows together in an unspoken question and Shun specifies, “The curtain. Thanks for closing it.” Shun blushes again.
Hyuuga, however, shakes his head. “Nah,” he says, “no need to thank me. That was Kagami.”
“Kagami?” Shun's eyes scan the room until they fall on his team's ace. Kagami glances over at him and Takao but as soon as their eyes meet, he quickly turns away again and his skin flushes. Shun is certain Kagami saw them but he'll still have to thank him. As well as Kuroko, if Shun interprets the smile correctly that tugs at his lips upon Kagami’s reaction.
Shun suddenly feels a wave of fondness for his kouhai wash over him. He can't express it in that moment, however—he'll make sure to send them a mail later—so instead he presses his thigh closer against Takao's.
It's late on the afternoon when all the teenagers clear Kagami’s apartment one after the other. Silently, Shun and Takao have agreed earlier to leave alone so it's just past 5 when both of them pull on their shoes and coats.
They say their goodbyes and climb down the stairs side by side. When their fingers brush gently Shun's heart starts hammering in his chest. Carefully, he reaches out, stretches his fingers and sure enough they meet Takao's halfway.
“When're you supposed to be home?” Takao asks casually, as if he's got no further intentions but Shun knows better when he answers, “It's a school day tomorrow so not after 9.30 but I told mom I'd call.”
Takao's grip on his hand tightens a little and even though that's agreement enough, the younger boy still confirms, “So, how about you have dinner at ours?”
Shun mutters, “Sure,” but it's only half-hearted because he's distracted by the thumb that starts rubbing circles over the back of his hand.
Before they unlock Takao's bike, Shun pulls the other boy in a narrow alley next to the building with Kagami’s apartment. Takao gasps in surprise but he's effectively shut up by Shun's lips on his.
On their way to Takao, Shun rides the rickshaw for the first time.
my friend was sad the other day so i wrote her rare pair fluff
Kazunari blinked open his eyes.
Through the blinds shone the first sunrays of the day, drowning the whole room in an intense orange, reminding him of his old high school team.
From behind him Kazunari could hear even breathing that sounded in sync with the movement against his back.
With a small smile on his lips, he let his fingertips glide over the skin of the arm draped over his waist. He watched as the soft hair on it prickled up in goosebumps. The grip around him tightened and Kazunari couldn’t keep a small chuckle in.
As careful as possible, Kazunari turned around. He only stopped when he lay completely facing the man next to him.
His eyes softened even more. The hand that had stroked the other’s arm just seconds ago now moved up to slide a tender thumb across his lover’s cheek.
No matter how many years they’ve been together already, Kazunari still found himself being drawn to the beauty of the man in front of him. The silky, straight hair, the watchful, dark eyes that usually sparkled with glee, the quick-witted humour, the hands that had held him and basketballs so perfectly as if they were shaped for just these two purposes.
Kazunari pulled his thumb back when his body reminded him of the early hour; his eyes shut tight as his mouth widened in a long yawn.
When he opened his eyes again he was greeted by another pair staring back at him.
“Wow, that was one jawsome yawn,” Kazunari heard his lover say and couldn’t help a laugh when he softly pressed his lips against the ones that had just made this morning a perfect one.
Kazunari was going to reply when the sun rose high enough to climb over the rooftop of their neighbours’ house. The light shone right into their faces, momentarily blinding the other man and making Kazunari grin as he said, “Good morning, sunshine.”
He leaned in for another kiss and was met by soft lips midway.
We are finally allowed to post out Kagakuro Fanbook works so here I go~
It was much fun and an honour to be able to participate in a big fandom thing like this and I hope everyone who ordered one enjoys their copy while I’m still waiting for mine cause I fucked lmao good job, me!
Word count: 2056
Rating: G (General)
Pairing(s): Kagakuro (main), Takazuki (secondary, but still pretty strong)
Summary: Kagami and Kuroko go on a walk with Nigou and meet someone unexpected.
Find here on AO3.
Nigou is nothing short of ecstatic when he runs outside into the first snow of the year. Kuroko has a hard time keeping the puppy on the short leash because he uses a strength no animal his size should have—Nigou's grown quite a bit over the past year, but he still is a puppy after all. Actually, Kuroko thinks, Nigou's strength isn't all that surprising if his reaction to the fallen leaves at the end of summer was an indicator for what was to follow now and from now on.
They meet Kagami at the entrance to the dog park they like to frequent. The big teenager tries to hide behind a signpost and glares at all the happily yapping, passing dogs with so much suspicion in his eyes that Kuroko can't help but let Nigou run the remaining few metres freely.
With his tiny bark Nigou greets Kagami who jumps in shock, almost kicking him in the process. Kuroko steps up next to him.
"Hello, Kagami-kun," he greets and fails to hide a smile at the way Kagami clutches his chest.
Kagami takes a few seconds to calm down before he yells, "Kuroko, dammit! I told you not to do that anymore."
Kuroko shushes him with his index finger and then takes one last step to rest his head against the taller teen's chest. He looks up at Kagami with his big eyes and says, "I'm sorry, but when Kagami-kun reacts so cutely every time, I can't help but bully him a little."
Kagami tries hard to glare at Kuroko the way he did with the dogs earlier, but a blush quickly creeps up his cheeks and in the end he covers Kuroko's eyes with his own hand. "Don't say stuff like that while looking at me with those eyes."
After a few seconds, Kuroko puts enough distance between them again so he can shake the hand off. He considers asking what kind of eyes Kagami is talking about, but eventually decides he's teased him enough. The small smile that's playing around Kuroko's lips makes it impossible for Kagami to stay mad at him.
He turns away slightly to stay side-by-side with Kuroko and mumbles, "Let's go already."
Just then, Nigou nudges Kuroko's calf and the boy picks up his leash. Before Kuroko can even start walking, however, Kagami silently snatches it from him and gets a head start. A warm, fuzzy feeling spreads throughout Kuroko's whole body and the cool air around them suddenly seems to be just that much colder on his cheeks.
Kagami takes the leash in his left hand—which is further away from Kuroko—and patently obviously lets his other hand glide into his coat pocket. The fond smile appears back on Kuroko's lips as his own freezing fingers join Kagami's.
They stick to the outer, less crowded parts of the dog park. They know that even their little display of affection—as subtle as it may be—is annoyance enough for many of the few people who actually notice Kuroko so they tend to keep to themselves.
Nigou excitedly runs from one small pile of snow to the next, burying his tiny nose inside every once in a while and digging through others. Kuroko and Kagami are mostly quiet during the walk. It's a comfortable silence, however, as they just relish in each other's company.
Suddenly, Nigou starts barking like crazy, pulling on the leash and making Kagami stumble. Kuroko calls for the dog to calm down, but he's interrupted by another dog's bark in reply to Nigou's. Kagami tries to keep his balance but in the end he can't and falls flat on his butt. Kuroko quickly takes the leash from him because Nigou starts pulling harder in his excitement—his tail wags faster and faster by the second—and so Kagami can get back up to his feet, not without cursing under his breath.
Kuroko is very close to getting really angry with Nigou when finally two—no, three— more or less familiar figures turn the corner just in front of them; Izuki, Takao and what Kuroko assumes is Izuki's dog.
While their masters stare at each other dumbfoundedly, the two dogs jump happily around each other.
Then, skipping all formalities, Takao starts giggling, "Didn't you say she doesn't play well with others?"
Izuki blinks twice, getting over his initial surprise. "She really doesn't," he protests and turns a little so he can look at Takao and Kuroko both. "But it's not the first time she's met Nigou and it seems that he has the same talent of making friends as his master. ...Hm?"
His eyes trail to the side, right behind Kuroko. The younger boy turns the slightest bit, only to see Kagami cowering behind him, staring at the new canine arrival in fear. "Ah, I almost forgot Kagami-kun is still bad with most dogs," Kuroko muses.
Kagami tries to glare at him but it's impossible with the two dogs around. Izuki keeps his dog close to his side. Before an awkward silence can spread between them, Takao speaks up again and suggests, "Why don't we walk together for a bit? We were just about to head back home anyway, weren't we, Shun-chan?"
Izuki nods nonchalantly, but Kuroko can see the faint blush on his cheeks as he hears his nickname. He joins the other boys on Takao's side so that Izuki and Kagami are on opposite sides of their chain to ensure the biggest possible distance between Kagami and Izuki's dog.
They slowly stroll down the path that Izuki and Takao just came from. Izuki's dog seems to know that it's time to go home because it she leads the way perfectly with Nigou following close behind.
"So," Kuroko starts. "This is Izuki-senpai's dog, I assume? What's her name?"
They stop for a second when both dogs sniff at a seemingly particularly interesting bush, before Izuki answers, "She's called Shinu."
"Shinu?"
"Yes," Takao chimes in. "Cause she's a Shiba Inu." He grins from one ear to the other, either because he finds it hilarious or because he's happy he's in on the 'secret'. Kuroko thinks it might be a combination of both.
When the dogs finish their sniffing the group continues walking. Kuroko feels that fuzzy feeling again when he realises that Kagami is now walking closer to him than before. He's got his hand back in his pocket as well.
For a short while, Kuroko shifts his eyes between the pocket and the other two boys—in a way that he thinks is subtle—because he's unsure of whether it's okay to hold hands next to their upperclassman and a rival from another school or not. Takao solves the problem for him when he says, "Just go for it. It's not like we don't know."
It's Kagami who yelps at that and blurts out, "Izuki-senpai, did you tell Takao?"
Takao laughs out loud—so loud, in fact, that Nigou jumps and turns around for a second to see what the fuss is about. The puppy quickly realises that nothing exciting happened and closes the small gap that formed between him and Shinu.
Takao's laughter fades into a soft giggle. "He really didn't have to. I would've known even without my Hawk Eye," he says. "Though, to be honest, you guys didn't strike me as a pair to be so open about it even in full-public."
Kuroko's cheeks get tinted in a light pink. It doesn't carry into his voice when he pointedly glances at where Takao's and Izuki's knuckles brush against each other between them and deadpans, "Neither did you and Izuki-senpai," with a small smirk on his lips.
"Touché," Takao chuckles while Izuki chokes dangerously. Takao pats his boyfriend's back soothingly and leans over to peck his cheek when Kagami—who turns around to look at them just a moment later—asks innocently, "By the way, how come you guys are here together?"
The remaining three boys gape at him and Kuroko is glad both his hands are occupied because otherwise he's sure he couldn't have stopped himself from slapping his own forehead. He loves Kagami with all his heart, but sometimes his social skills are just... lacking.
"You know," Izuki explains and seems to have trouble not stumbling over his words, "ever since I said I couldn't take in Kagami #2 because Shinu doesn't do well with strangers, Takao desperately begged me to meet her. When he first did she wouldn't stop licking his face so sometimes we go on walks together."
Kagami nods thoughtfully and they soon drift off into casual conversation about school and the upcoming Winter Cup. When they approach the next exit of the dog park, Izuki announces they would take their leave there and the two pairs say their goodbyes.
Before he turns away for good, however, Takao leans close to Kuroko and whispers, "I guess it's needless to say that the nature of this whole meeting stays a secret. Shun doesn't want to be public yet."
Kuroko has a hard time keeping a laugh from bubbling out at the serious tone Takao uses. Instead, he waits until he steps out of his personal space and replies as earnestly as he can, "Neither do we. Our teammates knowing was a necessity we felt we owed them but other than that we'd like to keep a low profile."
Takao glances at where Kuroko's hand is still buried inside Kagami's coat pocket. "We didn't expect to run into anyone we know," Kuroko says. "Other people rarely notice me anyway. Having close to no presence does have its perks sometimes."
Kuroko smiles and Shinu barks loudly before Takao has time to reply to that. Izuki calls for him as well, saying they'd have to hurry if they want to catch their bus. "Takao, are you coming?"
Takao waves goodbye to Kuroko and Kagami and jogs to join Izuki by his side. He doesn't turn back around when he says, "We should meet up again like this some time. And I'm not going to tell Shin-chan, don't worry." Then, he takes Izuki's hand and entwines their fingers in plain sight, which makes Izuki jump and blush, but not protest.
An annoyed crease forms between Kuroko's eyebrows and he squeezes Kagami's hand a bit tighter.
"Kuroko?"
"I feel like we just lost as a couple," Kuroko mumbles which ends in Kagami widening his eyes and gasping. Kuroko lets him have his moment of realisation and then simply turns around, pulling him behind by their joint hands.
"Let's go home," he says and Kagami feels like that's the end of the conversation.
They walk down the empty pathway they were following earlier with Izuki and Takao, stopping every now and then when Nigou still seems like he needs to explore his surroundings more.
A few minutes before they enter the main path, Kuroko slips his hand out of Kagami's grasp. Immediately, Kagami's face falls into something that Kuroko can only describe as a 'sad-puppy look'—but he thinks it's better to keep that thought to himself.
"My other hand is getting cold so I thought about switching sides," he explains and takes Nigou's leash in his left hand for emphasis. Kagami silently falls back a step only to rejoin him on his right.
Before Kuroko slides his hand back into Kagami's pocket a sly smile forms on his lips and he quickly smacks his boyfriend's butt.
Kagami lets out a high-pitched squeak that doesn't suit the size of his body at all. He turns to face Kuroko with wide eyes and his mouth gaping as their hand intertwine gently.
"What the fuck, Kuroko?" Kagami yells, finally getting his voice back.
Kuroko is still smiling when he says, "I simply wanted to check if Kagami-kun's trousers are still wet from when he fell after Nigou startled him earlier." He pauses, then adds, "They're, in fact, still damp so we should hurry home where you can take them off."
Kagami is about to protest but when he sees the hint of pink on Kuroko's cheeks, his heart beats faster and he lets it slide. Instead, he turns around to lean down for a quick kiss.
Nigou pulls on the leash then, and the two teenagers walk home quietly, albeit a bit faster than before.
