Breaking Us Both ~ Kuroo Tetsuro x OC
Chapter Two: What Happened Seven Years Ago?
"Yeah, I couldn't get my eyes off her back then..." and my heart till now. He almost blurted out the last part and sighed.
It's been six years and yet the memories were so fresh like it was yesterday when he first laid eyes on her peculiar dark auburn locks and her steely gray eyes. The way she regarded him with distrust and annoyance... and curiosity. She should have just run instead of facing him head-on. Maybe they could have saved themselves a heartbreak.
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I DO NOT OWN THE ARTS IN MY COVER. ALL CREDITS BELONG TO THEIR RIGHTFUL OWNERS.
S E V E N Y E A R S A G O
Several reactions were heard once the news was announced. Kuroo grunted at the noises that echoed around them. Nekomata just announced that another team of volleyball players was going to join them.
Now, normally Kuroo would be thrilled or excited to have another one in their training camp but when his coach popped out the news that it will be a group of girls, his thrill deflated and replaced with confusion. It was the second and last day of the training camp before the other teams will go back to their school.
"I know this came out as a shock to all of you but let's just consider this a very valuable lesson. We needed some new perspective," Nekomata advised, eyes scanning the room before his eyes landed on his hazel orbs and gauged his reaction.
Kuroo stared back at his coach, he didn't try to hide the displeasure written on his face at the news. One thing for sure, he was not looking forward to having the girls joining them. He turned his eyes back to Karasuno's group when Nishinoya and Tanaka started talking loudly.
"That's so cool!" Nishinoya exclaimed; a dreamy look written on his face. "Ryuu, can you imagine it? We can finally play a match with girls!"
"You're right, Noya-san! It's a dream of mine to be able to showcase my skills in front of them but to be able to awestruck them with it as we play is a heaven-sent opportunity!" the bald-headed teen answered back; his eyes twinkling like the stars that crept out the other players, especially the managers.
"Nishinoya! Tanaka! Urusai!" Daichi, Karasuno's Captain, scolded when the two started bawling at their imaginations and "so-called dream".
"You looked piss, Kuroo," Kenma noted but his eyes were not leaving his phone. He wondered how he saw his reaction if his eyes were glued to his phone. Well, Kenma knew him very well to know what's he's thinking without looking at him and that same goes for him too. Since they spent most of their lives together as neighbors.
"Ha? Wouldn't you be if you were up against girls?" Kuroo remarked to which Kenma only shrugged his shoulders.
"I really don't care who we're up against as long as I don't get tired."
Kuroo puffed a breath at his remark before he sighed. "There's no helping it, I guess."
Nekomata cleared his throat catching all of their attention once again. Everyone stopped what they were doing and gave their attention to the coaches in front.
"They will be arriving soon so I expect all of you to be in your best behaviors." His eyes glancing quickly at the two players of Karasuno team namely Nishinoya and Tanaka. "Kamiyama is one of the powerhouse schools in the female volleyball league; a prestigious one, if I may add. We're lucky enough that they accepted our offer. Just recently, they won this year's Inter-High. Even though they are girls, do not hold back. Resume warm up."
Everyone went back to warming up once the coaches took their leave to discuss something about the new set up.
"What's with the frown for, Kuroo?" Bokuto asked when he walked over to him with Akaashi in tow. "Don't tell me you're afraid of girls now?" he asked and chuckled at the annoyance on the rooster-haired captain's face.
"Oh, shut up, you annoying owl!" he retorted as he rolled his shoulders back and forth. "Don't you think it's a bit weird?" he voiced out.
"What is?" asked Daichi who was just coming up to them to join them for stretching. "You mean playing with girls?"
"It doesn't have to sound weird, Daichi-san," commented Akaashi from the corner and Daichi blushed, realizing his comment.
"I mean, Coach Nekomata doesn't even looked faze about the whole situation," Kuroo answered and his gaze landed on the said coach who was in deep discussion with the other coaches. "Not that I'm complaining or anything but does he really mean it that we get to play against the girls?"
"Don't tell me you're against the idea of girls playing against us, Kuroo-san? You're being sexist about this whole situation," Akaashi pointed out with raised brow.
"That's not my point and I'm not being a sexist," Kuroo's frown deepened. "First of all, women and men volleyball play differently. According to the book, the net in men is higher than the women's since we are clearly much taller and jump higher than them. And lastly, if you didn't notice, most of us here play brutally," he explained, his eyes landing on Bokuto who was grinning at him like an idiot that he was.
"Kuroo-san has a point," Daichi intervened as he put a hand on his hip. "Women's volleyball tends to play with more finesse. Whereas, we men, put our heads in scoring and playing brutally."
"I don't think that's going to be a problem at all," Bokuto piped and shrugged his shoulders. "I mean, they won the Inter-High. That's got to mean something."
"Don't you get it, idiot?" Kuroo rolled his eyes. "They won the Inter-High in Women's volleyball league and not Men's!"
Bokuto tilted his head to the side, his face sporting a frown. "Well, I still want to play with them!" he grunted; clearly disappointed that his friends have a different perspective from him.
Kuroo sighed and put a palm on his face. "Even if they could keep up with us, we'll end up hurting them badly," he added. "The difference in stamina could hold us back. We can't give our best shot in this! We'd break them!"
"Oh, please. It's the opposite if you ask me. I'd be very glad to break every single one of you."
The four teens jolt in surprise at the voice who suddenly spoke behind them. Slowly, they turned their heads warily to see two girls wearing a navy-blue tracksuit with black linings on the side. Their sleeves were white and on their chest, a logo of Kamiyama was engraved on it.
Kuroo caught sight of the one who spoke. A pair of steely gray eyes met his hazel ones.
He noted the newcomer's eyes were unusual and wondered if she was a foreigner. She sported dark auburn locks that came out like waves. Her mouth had a little bit of gloss and was pursed to form a thin line to match the displeasure written on her face.
Besides her, a dark blue-haired girl cackled over their surprised expression.
"Do you smell that, Machi-chan?" she asked the dark auburn-haired maiden; merit was visible in her golden-brown eyes
"Do you smell that, Machi-chan?" she asked the dark auburn-haired maiden; merit was visible in her golden-brown eyes.
"You mean the crappy smell of sexist pigs in here, Tsumi?" the one named Machi asked with a raised brow. Her eyes slowly regarded each guy gawking at her for her chosen words.
The four boys were left speechless at being overheard; their mouth hanging open in shock. Akaashi and Daichi wore ashamed expression. But Kuroo, on the other hand, couldn't help the grin that spread on his face after he regained his composure. A woman with a feisty attitude was just exactly his type.
The one named Tsumi gasped when her gaze landed on Bokuto. "Machi-chan! Machi-chan, look! It's Bokuto from Fukurodani!" she squealed and pointed at the Fukurodani's ace.
"Eh?" Bokuto rose up, having overcome his shock, and grinned at the two of them. "You must be a fan?" he beamed confidently that made the side of the auburn-haired lady's lips turned up in amusement.
"Not really, no!" Tsumi answered giddily making the said ace looked dumbfounded by the sudden rejection. "I saw your last match with Itachiyama! Sakusa-kun spiked the ball at your face really hard!" She turned to Machi who's face morphed into recognition and was peering over Bokuto's face, too. "I told you it didn't leave any bruises or his face getting deformed!"
Kuroo's brow rose in amusement at their conversation. He could feel the annoyance building upon his best friend's stance.
"Hm, I was so sure it deformed. That spike from Kiyoomi-kun was massive," Machi muttered under her breath and cursed; Kuroo noted the accent confirming his suspicions of her being a foreigner. "Ah, I lost the bet, did I?" She peered over the blue-haired lady beside her.
"Yeah! You're going to treat me at the new café you promised!" Tsumi pointed out gladly; a wide, victorious grin was visible on her face.
'This girl just grins too much,' Kuroo mused and turned to her other companion. 'The other one looked like smiling is a taboo to her.'
"Wait, what?! Did you bet on my face?! How rude!" shouted Bokuto as he pointed at the two girls; his face fuming red in anger and humiliation. "Akaashi, tell them to stop!" But Akaashi just shrugged his shoulder making the ace more pissed.
"Well, at least your face didn't get deformed. You're still handsome as ever," Tsumi said nonchalantly and winked at Bokuto who looked flustered all of the sudden.
"That's true," agreed the auburn-haired lady.
The sudden compliment of his looks made the Fukurodani's ace all fluffy as he turned towards his vice-captain with an elate face. His hand rubbing the back of his hand as a blush formed on his cheeks. "A-Akaashi... I'm handsome?"
Akaashi sighed, ignoring the ace to stop the growing ego.
Even Kuroo knew Bokuto was a piece of meat that ladies would cat-fight for, of course, he doesn't plan on saying that out loud. He doesn't need an extra boost of ego, anyway.
He glanced back at the grey-eyed beauty and caught her staring at him with a stone face.
"Hmm?" Kuroo's grin widened as he regarded her with a wink.
A sweet smile appeared on her face that startled him all of the sudden. "Kindly refrain from grinning. It can really ruin anyone's day," she requested sweetly yet her tone was sarcastically rude.
Silence descended upon the group before a series of guffaw erupted.
"W-What did you just say?!" Kuroo growled, face flushed from embarrassment. "Urusai, Bokuto! Daichi!"
"You should've seen your face, Kuroo!" Bokuto taunted as he wheezed while Daichi snickered beside him. "I can't believe someone just called you ugly indirectly!"
"This is priceless," Akaashi said sporting a small smirk at the troublesome teen before he turned back to the two ladies and bowed down; a gentleman that he is. "I apologize for their rampant behavior. We didn't mean to offend you."
"None taken, cutie pie," the dark blue-haired maiden purred and wink at the flushed Akaashi. "We're already used to it. Proving them wrong is the best part."
Akaashi blinked at her in confusion as the two shared an amused look.
Before any of them could say anything, a shout erupted from the hall startling the newcomers and the four gents.
"Machi-senpai! Tsumi-senpai!" a blonde-haired guy with thick round glasses wearing the same navy tracksuit the girls wore appeared behind them and grabbed them by the shoulder pulling them back. "What do you think you're doing going off on your own?! Arai-sensei is furious!"
He, then, bowed down to Akaashi several times making the latter raised a brow. "I'm sorry if these two made you uncomfortable! I'm so sorry!" he repeated and bowed down in front of Kuroo and the others.
"I'm sorry if these two made you uncomfortable! I'm so sorry!" he repeated and bowed down in front of Kuroo and the others "Sato-kun," Machi called out sweetly at the blonde-haired mess and leaned down near his ear.
Kuroo noticed how stiff the blond guy suddenly became as the feisty teen whispered something to him. "Why are you apologizing to them? You're making it sound like we're troublesome."
"M-Machi-senpai." His lips trembled in fear and Kuroo thought he saw the poor boy's soul left his body as he turned to look at his senpai's glare.
"Stand up, boke." Tsumi pulled him up and put an arm around his shoulder. She flashed him a grin for comfort. "We're not even doing anything, Sato-kun."
"Gray, Fumiya." A voice spoke behind them that startled the small group.
When they turned around, they saw an elegant woman in her mid-20's glaring at them When they turned around, they saw an elegant woman in her mid-20's glaring at them. Her voice had a hint of a threat that made the three squirmed from where they stand. Behind her appeared a group of girls wearing the same tracksuit.
The woman looked forward when she noticed Nekomata coming up to them. "I apologize for my students' behavior, Nekomata-sensei. Thank you so much for accepting us on such short notice," she greeted politely and elegantly that some of the coaches, as well as the other players' face, reddened at the sight.
"It's been a while, Arai Kimiko-san. The pleasure is all mine," Nekomata said and chuckled. "How's your grandfather doing?" he asked with a kind smile.
'Grandfather?' thought Kuroo before it hit him. He remembered Nekomata telling them a story once of his two volleyball buddies, Arai-san and Ukai-san.
"He is very much enjoying his retirement," the Kamiyama coach replied and smiled at the older man in front of her. "He also sends his regards."
"Ah, that old geezer!" he said with a grin before he turned towards the group of girls behind her. "Anyways, these are your girls?"
"Yes, they can be a handful sometimes but they are very powerful when it comes to playing volleyball," Arai boasted; a proud smile was on her face as she looked at her team.
Nekomata hummed in approval before he regarded the group. "I am glad you all made it. In the short amount of time that you spend here, I hope we all get to learn much more in Volleyball."
Kuroo saw Machi took a step forward. "Line up," she ordered. He noted as the girls formed a straight line in front of the coaches that the auburn-haired lady was the captain.
"Thank you for having us!" Machi greeted and bowed her head in respect.
Following her actions, the girls bowed after her. "Thank you for having us," they all said in unison.
Nekomata chuckled in delight as he waved them off. "I am so glad one of the powerhouses of girls' volleyball team is finally joining us. We hope we can learn from each other."
"This is Machi Gray, our captain," Kimiko introduced as the said girl stepped up and offered her hand to Nekomata who gladly took it.
While introductions were being ensued, an unexpected voice called out for the Kamiyama captain.
Machi jolted, surprised to hear a familiar voice in a crowd of strangers. Her eyes wildly glanced over the crowd until it landed on a pair of blue eyes.
"Tobio-kun?!" she gasped and sprung up on her feet towards the boy and engulfed him in a hug, forgetting the others and her manners.
"Nani?!!!!" Every boy in the gym reacted. Well, no one was expecting to hug the King of Court anyways, let alone a girl. "Kageyama is being hugged by a girl?! That is so unfair!"
"Machiko!" Arai-sensei scolded scandalously at her behavior.
As if just realizing her actions, she quickly pulled away from him and grinned sheepishly at the frozen first year.
After muttering an apology to their coach, she turned back to Kageyama and saw his face flushed red. A small smile appeared on her face.
"Gomen, Tobio-kun! How are you?"
"Uh... nuff... k-knife... nice... Machi-senpai..." he stuttered earning a guffaw from the orange-haired kid from behind him.
"Boke! Hinata, boke!" he growled and was about to punch the daylight out of him when she reached out for his hair and ruffled it gently.
A giggle escaped her throat when he suddenly calmed down and turned into a melting mess. "You haven't changed a bit, Tobio-kun. But you did grow taller! You're way taller than me, now!"
Tobio covered his reddening cheeks as he looked away from her but leaned his head into her hand that was ruffling his hair. "I'm always taller than you, Machi-senpai," he pointed out.
Machi's sincere smile turned into a snicker. "Yes, but never better," she taunted as she let her hand fall back to her side. A smirk appeared on her lips when Tobio looked taken back by her words. "Am I right, Tobio-kun?" she said, her tone going back to being sweet but laced with poison and threat. The same tone she used when she asked why their manager was apologizing.
He opened his mouth to retort but felt the words stuck in his throat when he saw the threat in her eyes. The same grey eyes that always haunt him whenever they play against each other. The same fear he felt towards Oikawa was resurfacing at the sight of his former senpai.
The others could only look in amazement as the King of the Court was left speechless by a girl smaller than him.
"See you at the other side of the court, Tobio-kun," she said and turned her back to him, walking back to her group.
After the introductions were made, Nekomata informed them of the set-up of the practice matches and how the penalties will be made to which Arai-sensei deemed fair and shrugged her shoulders as if the penalty wasn't that much of a bother to the girls.
They were going to practice with them today and tomorrow they're going back to Kyoto for the midterm examinations. This will be exciting.
A/N: Please support this story in Wattpad! Chapter six is already up there! Still, will be posting the story here. Thank you!
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