Breaking Through - A Kuroo Tetsurou Fanfiction

Chapter 2

Normal POV

A week has passed and I'd submitted my daily reports to my team back at HQ via our team file. I'd gathered the gardening club members' information and teacher in charge schedule. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary; the teacher in charge would come in at the end of the day to lock up. But, he would always come out with his hands in his pockets. I didn't overthink that action but I wrote it down in the records anyway. It could be because of the cold.

"Yo!" A deep voice rang out behind me. I jumped a little, not expecting anybody to call out to me. Had I been found out? I was just scouting the neighborhood for possible "in the dark" activities. Would my job end right here, right now? I turned around, ready to confront whoever it was. To my surprise, it was Kuroo Tetsurou and Kenma Kozume from the volleyball team. How did I know? Of course I would; I'm meant to scout the school anyway.

"Can't help but notice a deer caught in headlights. Do you need any help, new girl?" Kuroo, the guy with the extreme bed hair spoke confidently. Kenma seemed to be glued to his mobile device. "No... thank you," I answered him softly. "You know, none of the girls stick around to look at us practice for more than a week. But you don't come to see our practice, do you?" Kuroo stepped up and gave me a questioning stare.

I narrowed my eyes, "I just like to study there." He leaned back and placed his hands on his hips. "You're kind of weird, you know that?" He teased. "You're weird with your rooster-like bed hair," I retorted and immediately regretted by cupping my mouth. Did I just say that? Dumbass, don't attract attention! Kenma looked up from his game device and looked at Kuroo. He gave a laugh and Kuroo gave a soft hit on his head.

"Not bad at all. My name is Kuroo Tetsurou, and he's Kozume Kenma. I think it's only fair that you tell us your name since you've been using our gym as your personal library," he extended his hand toward me. I raised my hand and shook his, "I'm Kageyama Amber. Thank you for lending me your gym." His hand was HUGE and rough. Well, they were expected since they're volleyball players. Those spikes gotta do some damage, right? But his touch was soft in a way, and warm.

I quickly extended my hand toward Kenma and he shook it gently. Cute... Wait what? I mentally slapped myself. "We can walk you home if you're lost. Where do you stay?" He asked as he held his gaze on me. "Not that far, I can find the way back myself," I quickly shut down his offer. "If you'll excuse me, I'll be on my way. My mother would be expecting me home soon," I lied. I gave a slight bow and escaped both of them.

-JW-

Kuroo's POV

Well, that's a start. I can't believe she just teased about my bed hair right off the bat. The way she regretted it right after was kind of adorable, though. Her cheeks went, poof, pink under the streetlight and winter night sky. "Let's go," Kenma spoke softly and turned around in the direction of our houses. I looked after Kageyama's silhouette and saw her turn the corner.

That weekend, I spent an unusual amount of time thinking about her. Was it frustrating? No, not really. I rarely think about any girls at all. What was about her that made me so interested? She was mysterious. I knew that. I'm not even the type to be reeled in by that. I leaned back in my chair and contemplated.

"Thinking about her?" Kenma said as he suddenly barged into my room on Sunday afternoon. I jumped from my seat, shocked at my door slamming open. "Are you trying to give me a heart attack? Learn to knock!" I scolded him and settled back down. "You do that to me all the time. Why can't I do it to you?" He laid on my bed naturally as we'd grown up together.

"I'm not wrong, right?" Kenma looked up from his game console. I pressed my lips and mumbled. "I can tell when you're interested in somebody, Tetsu," Kenma gave me his annoying straight face. "How so? I've dated girls before; why does this stand out so much to you?" I crossed my arms, waiting for his answer.

"Firstly, you've never dated a girl that lasts more than three weeks. Secondly, those girls came to you. You accepted them just for the sake of it. Thirdly, you're genuinely interested in her. The way you look at her is different," Kenma explained systematically, surprising me a little. Well, he was right. I sighed. "So? What should I do?" Feeling stupid that I just asked this game fanatic about how to approach a girl.

"Hmm? You're asking me? You've lost a screw in your brain," he said as he rolled over and focused on his game. "Why you!" I tackled him and stole his game console out of his hands. We battled back and forth after that.

Well, he's right about something. I am interested in Kageyama Amber. And I'm going to find out what and why.

-JW-

Monday came and there she was, sitting in the corner of the second floor and looking out of the window as usual. It seems like she was here earlier than expected. Did something change? I looked at her as we did our warm-ups. This time, she turned around and looked at me. Unconsciously, I averted my eyes and I mentally screamed. Why the hell did I do that? Focus on the practice match later on!

Our guests came in later in the afternoon and we quickly started our match. "Center center!" My teammate called out during the game. "Kenma!" I shouted for a toss and my best friend gave me the spike. "Yes!" I shouted almost too enthusiastically. I gave my setter a high five and carried on with the game.

Ahhh, we were on the second set and we were three scores behind. I sighed, we won the first round but I don't think I'm satisfied. I glanced up and was surprised to see Kageyama standing up and looking at the match now. She looked at me and gave a wave. "Oh! Did Kageyama just wave?" Yamamoto came up beside me. "If you knew her name, then say so from the beginning!" I scowled. "I'm her classmate, of course I knew. I just don't talk to her because she's quite distant from us," he said as a matter of fact. I forgot the fact that she was a first-year student, like Kenma.

"Oi! Focus on the game!" Our team captain scolded, "especially you, Kuroo, future captain!" "Yes, yes!" I responded. I looked up to see Kageyama again. This time I couldn't believe what I was seeing. She was signaling me, a volleyball signal. "A-quick? Followed by broad...?" I contemplated. It might just work! I smiled at her and rounded up my team. I have to ask her how she knew about these later on. They weren't special signs, but they were the standardized signals used in volleyball practices. This just makes me even more interested in her...

Twenty minutes later, "We did it! Kuroo! Your tactic worked! That's expected of the future captain!" My team huddled around to celebrate. Well... it was Kageyama's idea. I looked back up to the second floor and she was back in her usual position, looking out the window. But I could see her smiling. My heart thumped excitedly.