How We Began

Part One (cont.)

"Can I help you?" Tsukishima repeated, looking slightly irritated.
"Sorry, sorry," Kuroo replied, blinking out of his semi-trance. "I'm Kuroo Tetsuro. You bought a raffle ticket from my aunt earlier today."
"Oh, yeah. Right." He scrubbed a hand through his hair, messing it up.

Kuroo grinned, biting his lip a bit to keep from saying, "adorable." Instead, he brought the bag over to where Tsukishima had stopped behind the counter. Placing it between them, he pushed it toward the shop owner.

"We won 1st prize."
"We did? Wait... what do you mean, 'we?' "
"Just like I said. We won."

Tsukishima simply stared at him. Kuroo's grin turned into a full smile and he stared back. The former was the first to look away with an irritated tsk.

"I thought prizes were just for one person," he said, peeking into the bag. He looked at Kuroo with the question in his eyes.

Kuroo nodded, and the bag was upended, the quilt and envelope falling out onto the counter. He watched Tsukishima as he admired the quilt, his long fingers slowly tracing the stitches between color patches. It was obvious that he thought the quilt was the biggest, and best, prize.

A shiver snaked up Kuroo's spine, imagining those fingers tracing anywhere along his skin. When he looked back up, his eyes clashed with Tsukishima's. As before, the latter was first to look away, breaking the connection. He shuffled his feet, and then held up the red envelope.

"What's this?"
"Open it and find out."
"Why can't you just tell me?"
"It's a surprise."

Tsukishima squinted at him. Kuroo's smile stretched wider.

"You don't know, do you?"
"No." He shrugged. "And yes."
"You're irritating."
"So I've been told."
"You're not going to tell me, are you?"
"Nope!"

With a disgusted look aimed at him, Tsukishima finally opened the red envelope, pulling out two bullet train tickets to Kyoto, a reservation receipt for the hotel they'd be staying in, several coupons for shopping and food in Gion district, and a suggested itinerary for each day, featuring some of the most popular sight-seeing spots in the city. He laid each item out between them.

"A trip to Kyoto."
"Yep!" Kuroo picked up one of the tickets. "Looks like we go in two weeks."
Tsukishima's eyes narrowed. "How much do you know?"
"Only that it's an all-expenses paid trip, and that we're the recipients of said trip."
"Okay, but, why?"
Kuroo sighed. "I really wish I knew."

Kuroo watched Tsukishima as he rocked side to side, toyed with the corners of the tickets, and generally looked like he'd rather turn the whole thing down. If he were totally honest with himself, he'd thought the same way; until he met this prickly, yet gorgeous, bookshop owner.

"Why does this feel like a set-up?"
Kuroo shrugged. "Probably because it is, though I have no proof, and not likely to find any, either. I only heard a couple questionable phrases from my aunt."
"Your aunt?"
"Yeah. She said it was an elaborate set-up for a date, though she tried to cover her tracks after saying that. And then she said something about it being for our own good. But I haven't figured that one out yet."

Kuroo saw the refusal in Tsukishima's eyes before he started to speak. Quickly, he leaned across the counter and gently placed a finger against his lips.
"Look, I don't know why she set us up, but why not just make the most of it? If nothing else, it's a free getaway for a little while."

Tsukishima glared at him, tilted his head away from Kuroo's finger, and took a step back. But not before Kuroo felt a slight shiver, and a shaky breath.

"I shouldn't," Tsukishima said quietly.
"Why not?"
"My shop..."
"You're the owner, right?"
A tiny nod. "Yeah, but..."
"You could close for a few days, right? The trip is set for Thursday through Monday. Basically a long weekend."
"I can read, you know." The sarcasm was thick with that reply.

Kuroo almost called him adorable again. Time to try a different tack.

"When was the last time you actually went on a vacation?"
"I don't have to tell you."
"Last year? Two years ago?"

If looks could kill, he'd be obliterated. Kuroo tried not to smile, but failed.
Abruptly, Tsukishima gathered the tickets and papers, stuffing them back into the envelope and leaving it on the counter. Then, he picked up the quilt, wrapping his arms around it. 'Oh, to be that quilt,' Kuroo thought distractedly.

When his eyes met Kuroo's again, he looked annoyed, apologetic, and determined. It would have been amazing, but Kuroo already had an inkling that he was in trouble, somehow.

"I'm not going," Tsukishima said firmly as he turned and walked away. "Find someone else to go with you."
'Damn,' Kuroo reprimanded himself. "Tsukishima, wait!" The younger man stopped, but didn't turn around. Kuroo felt relieved he even got that much.

"What?"
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to tease you so much," he started. "It might sound like an excuse, but I tend to tease the people I like."
"You don't even know me."
"No, I don't," he agreed softly. "But I want to."

They stood unmoving for several minutes, or maybe hours, Kuroo couldn't tell. But, even in this short span of time, he knew he really wanted Tsukishima to go to Kyoto with him. He shifted nervously, and put his hand on the nape of his neck.

"Look, you don't have to go if you don't want to. I'll give the tickets back to my aunt."
"But don't you want to go?"
"Not by myself, and call me crazy but I don't want to go with anyone else."

Tsukishima turned around to face him. Kuroo couldn't be sure, but he thought he saw a tiny smile on his face. Maybe it was a smirk. Whatever it was, it made his heart beat just a little harder.

"You really want me to go?"
"Yeah."
"With you."
"Yeah."
A slight tilt of his head. "Why?"
Kuroo wasn't quite sure if he could be any clearer than he had been. But then, maybe he'd jumbled it all up and it only made sense to him. Still...
"I like you, Tsukishima. I'd like to get to know you."

Slowly, Tsukishima returned to the counter, his eyes never leaving Kuroo's. He put the quilt down, and picked up the red envelope.

"I'll go," he said quietly. "On one condition."
"Sure."
"We leave the minute I'm not having fun."
"Done." He breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you."
"But don't go out of your way to force it, either, okay?"
"Okay," Kuroo nodded, even if he wasn't quite sure what Tsukishima meant by that.
"I'll meet you at the train station in two weeks on Thursday."
"Two weeks. Thursday. Bright and early."
"Ugh, god no. Make it noon."
"Sure. Noon it is."

They stood staring at each other for a few moments before Tsukishima moved out from behind the counter. He was halfway to the door when he turned to face Kuroo.

"It's past time for me to close," he hinted, pointing toward the door.
"Oh. Yeah. Right." Kuroo moved to leave.

But then he stopped, and reached back to take the quilt. With a wink, he resumed his route to the door, walking close enough to Tsukishima that his arm just barely grazed the man's cashmere sweater. He told himself not to react when he heard Tsukishima's stifled gasp.

Opening the door, he took a step outside. Unable to help himself, he turned to look at Tsukishima over his shoulder, and winked. Then, he nearly tripped over his own feet. Embarrassed, he laughed it off, saluted awkwardly, and then walked away.