|| KUROKEN ONESHOTS ||

Bet

"Are you gonna give me your stupid sweater or not?" Kenma asks petulantly. It's Monday and he's half hanging off of Kuroo's bed, looking at him while he stops doing his stupid homework to consider for the third time today, whether or not he's going to give Kenma his stupid sweater.

"Not," Kuroo says good naturedly. Kenma feels like maybe Kuroo is getting a little too comfortable in his teasing since this nameless game they've been playing has become more explicit. It truly was an inconvenience to like him that much. "Why do you even need it?"

Kenma huffs. "I don't need it. I want it. Why do you need it?"

Kuroo just hums and taps his pencil on his desk. Typical of him, Kenma thinks fondly, playing hard to get.

Kenma's phone buzzes in his pocket. Kenma ignores it – it's probably his mom asking if he'll be back for dinner or Fukunaga sending some cryptic meme – and stares at a large, heart-shaped mole near Kuroo's thumb. He lamely thinks that he probably has a Kuroo-shaped mole on his heart.

The phone buzzes again and Kenma says, "Ugh."

There are two unanswered texts from Yamamoto Akane.

They read, kenma I need help with a stupid thing, and, ASAP!!!

Tora's sister is ten times more annoying and ten times less boring to talk to than her brother, so he replies, can't kill a boss?

yeah, comes immediately Akane's reply, the boss is my undying love for this boy

"Who are you texting so eagerly?" Kuroo asks. Kenma eloquently tells him, "Shh!"

This boy turns out to be Lev Haiba. Akane wants Kenma to help her confess.

"Oh, fuck," Kenma says and shows the text conversation to Kuroo.

Kuroo smiles. "Aw. Young love. Why is she asking you? You're not exactly the good-at-romance type."

Kenma tries not to read it as the accusation it clearly is. He fails. He spends thirty seconds inside his own head getting mad at Kuroo for calling him bad at romance when he's been flirting with him for the past three weeks. Then he gets an idea.

"I'm not bad at anything. They're going to be dating by next week," Kenma promises. "Bet you your sweater."

"You can't bet something that doesn't belong to you," Kuroo says in a not-fully-annoyed, possibly-partly-charmed voice. "What do I get if you lose?"

"Anything you want," Kenma replies. "Because I'm not losing."

Kuroo looks at him, all pensive. "You can't give me that. But you can come close."

"So?" Kenma asks. His phones buzzes again. Akane texts: don't tell tora. "Oh, fuck."

Kuroo just smirks. "Okay."

                                        _

On Tuesday, Akane comes looking for Kenma at lunch. She grabs him by his uniform sleeve and wails, "You promised you'd heeeeelp."

"You pest," Kenma replies kindly. "I can't make you a love potion. Have you two ever even talked?"

"Yes!" she says, and Kenma is immediately impressed. He had assumed this was a little kid crushing on an acquaintance because she had seen him sweat and run and pant on a volleyball team. "We talk all the time. After your matches."

"About what?" Kenma asks. He didn't know Lev could hold conversations.

"Mind your own business! Don't anger a witch in training." Kenma has no idea what this means. He's immensely amused by this girl. He lets her go on. "How do I ask him on a date?"