The Cat and the Crow

It's Too Late... I'm Too Far Gone

"You came," Kuroo spoke quietly. He hadn't been completely sure blondie would even agree to this meeting. But there he was, looking nervous and determined at the same time. A light flush colored his cheeks. Kuroo couldn't look away. Not that he wanted to, anyway.

"Yeah," came the response, a slight shrug included. Then, to Kuroo's surprise, he bowed. "It's nice to meet you, again, Kuroo," he said politely.

"Oh, uhhh, yeah. Nice to meet you, too," he replied. Blondie knew his name? He glanced over toward Akaashi, who merely shrugged. Guess he really couldn't blame his friend for giving his name first. Returning his attention to blondie, he took a step forward. "What's your name?"

"Tsukishima Kei." After a moment, he also took a step forward. They were close enough to touch fingertips, if they stretched their arms out. Kuroo chuckled a bit, and Tsukishima looked confused. "Is my name funny?"

Caught, Kuroo took another step closer. "No no no, I wasn't laughing at that," he said gently. "I was just thinking that, if we stretched out our arms, we'd be close enough to touch fingertips." This time he only took a half step. Tsukishima remained where he was. They were less than two feet apart. "Closer now, though," he said with a soft tone. "Want to try?" He reached out his right hand, as if to shake hands.

Tsukishima's face flushed once again, his eyebrows lowered a little over his beautiful golden brown eyes, and he bit the corner of his lip. Clearly, he wasn't too sure how to respond. Kuroo hid his disappointment. Maybe it was too soon? He wasn't too sure, himself. But just when he started to lower his hand, Tsukishima reached out to take it.

A bolt shot up his arm, and sent a shiver down his spine. Kuroo gasped; he couldn't help it. His eyes met Tsukishima's; they were wide and shocked. It lasted but a moment, and yet he knew he'd remember this forever. Tsukishima tried to let go, but Kuroo squeezed a little tighter.

"Tell me you felt it, too," he quietly demanded. Please tell me I wasn't the only one to feel that. He needed the confirmation like he needed his next breath.

Tsukishima nodded once. "Like electricity," he answered. "Only, it felt ... good."

"Yeah, same."

They stood there staring at each other for what felt like hours, until a familiar voice cut through the silence.

"Food's getting cold, guys!" Bokuto said loudly. "And you both need to eat!"

Both of them jumped, as if they'd completely forgotten they weren't alone, and Kuroo reluctantly let go of Tsukishima's hand.

"Friendly reminder that the afternoon sets start at 2:30pm," Akaashi added.

Kuroo looked over at the clock on the wall. 1:15pm. All that happened in 15 minutes? Well, they still had some time left. "Let's go," he said, tilting his head in the direction of his two friends.

[Question/Answer]

It was almost 2pm, and Kuroo still hadn't asked Tsukishima if he wanted to join them tonight. Maybe he was nervous about the answer; maybe the timing wasn't quite right. Bokuto did kind of run away with the conversation multiple times, with Akaashi calmly trying to rein him in. His poor Tsuki looked like he would take flight in the beginning, so Kuroo did his best to keep him there. Overall, the dynamics of their little group somehow clicked, and Tsuki was now chatting with the rest of them. His temperament matched Akaashi's in that they were the calm, thoughtful ones, compared to Bokuto's and Kuroo's more out-going personalities.

I guess opposites really do attract, he thought with a pleased smile.

"What are you smiling at," both Tsuki and Akaashi asked him. Of course, they were the first to notice. And, as expected, both of them glanced at each other and smirked.