Ill-Fated Calf-Love

Akaashi

School wasn't the same without his friends there. Occasionally, Akaashi would hang out with Nishinoya or the cheerleaders, but he spent most of his time alone. Slowly, Akaashi fell back into his routine of skipping classes and making up the work later. He quit the cheer squad because what was the point if his friends weren't on the football team. He saw Kuroo as often as he could, but high school football was more demanding with longer after school practices and weekend practices. Akaashi also didn't care for Kuroo's new teammates.

The upperclassmen were bullies, picking on the freshman despite only being older by a year and putting them down continously. They also hit on Akaashi when he came to watch Kuroo practice on weekends, regardless of the fact that he and Kuroo were together. At first, Kuroo tried to stand up to them about it, but they would punish him with drills or laps around the field that left them alone with Akaashi. Eventually, Kuroo stopped standing up, and Akaashi stopped coming.

Their old group chat grew quiet. Occasionally, Oikawa would post a photo of him and Iwaizumi, but after a month, even the photos stopped coming. Yaku and Suga had broken up during their third year of middle school since Suga would be going to Karasuno, but they had remained friends. Akaashi was glad when Suga came with him to watch the matches between Karasuno and Nekoma. Though the upperclassmen hit on him as well, Suga fended them off with a smile and vaguely concealed threats.

Akaashi and Kuroo spent their birthdays together again, though alone now. Kuroo said he was too stressed about midterms to think about parties. Their dates turned into study sessions, Kuroo's pride no longer allowing Akaashi to tutor him because how could a high schooler take lessons from a middle schooler.

"Are you going to your grandparents for winter break again?"

Akaashi startled from the book he'd been reading. It'd been the first Kuroo had spoken to him in almost two hours, launching into his studies almost as soon as Akaashi had got there.

"Not this year. My parents are too busy with work to make the trip, so we're only going for Christmas Eve and day."

Kuroo was half turned around in his seat at his desk to face Akaashi. "We should go on a real date then. It's been too long since we did that."

For the first time since Kuroo graduated, Akaashi smiled. "Yeah, I'd like that."

"Perfect! I can't wait." He turned back to his desk, hand running through his hair as he propped his elbow on the desk and pressed his head into his palm.

"How's your studying coming along?"

"I'm going to fail my midterms at this rate for sure. Coach will bench me if I do. Why does this have to be so damn hard?"

Akaashi placed a marker in his book and made his way over to Kuroo, plopping down in his lap and looping his arms around his neck. "Take a break."

"I can't. I need to-"

"You need to take a break. You're too stressed to begin to figure this out. Let's grab some snakcs, curl up, and watch an episode or two of some random tv show. Then, I will help you figure this out."

"It's embarrassing for a middle schooler to tutor me," he protested, but his hands held onto Akaashi's sides.

"Says who? Your upperclassmen? They're jerks. Even Suga thinks so. You shouldn't care what they say. This is no different than last year and the year before. We just go to different schools now. You keep listening to those upperclassmen and pushing me away. Over Summer, I... I wanted to break up with you because I thought it would be too hard to date someone going to a different school."

He watched Kuroo's face fall. "And?"

"It is. You said you loved me, but you keep pushing me away. I'm supposed to be able to help you. I don't know if I can be with you when you keep shouldering all this stress yourself and pushing me away. Let me help you. You don't have to do this alone, so please rely on me when you're stressed. Please, stop pushing me away." Akaashi leaned his head against Kuroo's shoulder, tightening his arms around his neck and fighting back tears from the feelings he had let gush forth.

Instantly, Kuroo's arms were around him, hugging him closer. "I'm sorry, Akaashi. I do love you. I didn't mean to make you feel this way. Please, forgive me."

"There's nothing to forgive. Just fix it. Let me help you. I don't care how bad it is. Nothing is worse than you pushing me away."

"I promise. I swear I'll let you help."

"With everything?"

"Yes."

"School work, game stress, and stupid stuff that bothers you for no reason?"

"Yes, all of it. I swear I'll let you help, so please, stop crying." Kuroo thumbed away the tears from Akaashi's face despite his own rolling down his cheeks.

Akaashi wiped those away. "Thank you. I promise I will always be there for you. No matter what."