Chapter Text
Tuesday, technically
Kenma had bought a much larger bed than he needed. It hadn't taken much convincing, though. He knows the kind of trouble Kuroo had with beds: he didn't fit into most of them. The volleyball player's strife. But Kuroo spent as many nights with Kenma as he didn't and they still shared a bed so when Kenma bought a house and began filling it with things, he made sure they were things that would fit Kuroo. Which led to Kenma lying in the dead center of a very large bed whose edges he couldn't even reach if he stretched out, trying to pin down the nebulous feeling growing in his chest.
He was blaming it on the bed, it was too big. But the size of the bed fit the size of the room, so honestly it was fine. The room was big too. All the rooms in this place were big. He wanted to blame Kuroo for that, too. He'd spent too many years surrounded by giants in volleyball uniforms and there always needed to be more space for them than most people. Which meant now an adequate amount of space seemed too small. So he bought a giant house without realizing it. Now he was realizing it. The bed was big and the room was big and the house was big and it was all empty.
That's what it was. The house was empty. Too quiet. He had slept alone his entire life (aside from the occasional Kuroo), and up until college where he shared a dorm he hadn't even shared a room. And then the moment he started sharing a room, he realized he needed to get out of those dorms immediately. Space and quiet were normal, what he wanted even, this should be fine. But it wasn't. There was something missing he couldn't pinpoint and now that he realized that's what he was feeling, he recognized it in retrospect. He had been feeling this way since he bought the house, since he moved in. Knowing this did not make it better.
He was happy to live alone, but he also missed the reassurance of another living body in the house. He should call Kuroo, make him come over even though he had work in the morning. Kuroo would come, too. Drop everything and come at his call. He always had. But in the morning he would leave and go back to his own apartment, and Kenma would be stuck here again. Kenma lay in the too big bed in the too quiet dark and ached in a way he didn't have words for.
And then suddenly in the still darkness, Kenma gasped.
"I can get a cat."
__
Tuesday, later
Kuroo used his phone as his morning alarm. A bad habit that he had never actually tried to stop. He’d then spend the first few minutes of his day reading messages and catching up on things he missed while he slept and for whatever reason the people who knew him did not. His father always sent messages first thing in the morning when he woke. Bokuto could be relied on to send him long, stream of thought messages after games. The group chat with Kai and Yaku always hit sometime around eleven every night, and Kenma, the occupational night owl, was guaranteed to send him things into the wee hours of the morning.
This morning though, everything else was completely overshadowed by what Kenma had sent him. He had notifications from three social medias, texts, and a messaging app all from Kenma. Kuroo tried to wade through the deluge of what looked to be nothing but cats. Profiles of cats from shelters with funny names and cute faces. A few social media posts, a video of a cat bouncing after a feather wand, a funny one about a cat commiting crimes. Kuroo noticed these were sent in the middle of the night. He responded to a few, liked a few others as he tried to work his way back to the beginning. He opened the texts.
Kitten 12:51 AM: I CAN GET A CAT
Kitten 12:52 AM: No roommates no rules no allergic mother I can get a cat.
Kitten 12:52 AM: We can have a cat now
Kitten 1:13 AM: Kuroo wake up, I am sending you cats to pick from
Kitten 1:45 AM: Kuroo! There's an adoption fair tomorrow!! Kuroo!
Kitten 1:46 AM: TETSURO
Kitten 1:46 AM: WAKE UP
Kitten 1:46 AM: I'm getting a cat!
Kuroo lay staring at his screen.
"Oh my god."
—
The route to Kenma's new house was something they both calculated while shopping for houses. There weren't any houses in his budget around Kuroo's apartment, so they settled on something that was easy to get to from work. From locking his apartment door to opening Kenma's (of which he had a key), it was twenty-eight minutes. Too far for people who could shout at each other from their bedroom windows growing up, but not bad considering the size of Tokyo. From Kuroo's new office building, it was only thirteen. If Kenma couldn't live next to his best friend, he had decided next to his workplace would be good enough. Which led to Kuroo going to Kenma's house more often than his own. Being incrementally farther made it inconvenient enough that it was as good an excuse as any to simply stay with Kenma. So he did. Kenma's neighbors knew him. He had his own side of the closet. He did grocery shopping with Kenma on their days off, which they coordinated their schedules to coincide, and would come over after work when he did not want to go home. Which was often. They weren't neighbors anymore, but they still lived in each other's pockets.
Because streaming and video editing was Kenma’s job, Kuroo didn’t usually stay with him on the nights when he had to stream. But today was obviously an exception. Kuroo’s not sure Kenma slept the previous night— he spent the morning sending Kuroo more posts about cats and gauging his opinion on various cat furniture. The posts were mostly from local rescues doing great PR (Kuroo followed them immediately), and the furniture was hotly debated. They were both in stark agreement that boring cat furniture wasn’t allowed in the house, however. By the time Kuroo was packing up to leave, Kenma had ordered several items and sent a blurry picture of a cat paw poking out of a cardboard carrier.
How simple a thing picking furniture was. Kuroo had picked out Kenma’s couch, and now he was picking out a cat tree. His fingerprints were all over Kenma’s home and his life. How many times had they talked about having a life where they could have pets? And now here it was. There was the petty glee of it, but there was also the acknowledgement that it was a part of their lives that they were finally on the cusp of. A cat was adding something new to their lives that would change the shape of it. A new step in a new direction, and Kenma wanted Kuroo there by his side for it.
Kuroo opened the door to the sounds of clanging dishes that heralded a clean kitchen. Kuroo had complained enough that Kenma was now starting to get the kitchen clean before he got home. If preventing Kuroo from nagging was what got Kenma to take interest in taking care of his surroundings, then Kuroo would nag and wheedle and bother.
"Kitten?" Kuroo said, tossing off his shoes in the genkan.
Kenma leaned out of the kitchen doorway holding a pot.
"Yes?" he said, confused.
"I mean the actual kitten," Kuroo said with a grin. “Where is she?”
Kenma rolled his eyes and went back into the kitchen.
"She's ten years old, she's not a kitten anymore. Unless you're going to stop using that nickname for me?"
"Absolutely not."
Kenma came out of the kitchen as Kuroo approached it. He was drying off his hands, and tossed the towel somewhere over his shoulder.
"She's sleeping in the cat tower I put together for her."
"The blue one, right?"
"Yes, Kuroo, the blue one."
The blue one had been Kuroo's choice.
Kenma led him to the cat tree, a blue and pink towering jungle gym of carpet and rope, hung with pom poms. It was next to the biggest window in the living room, which cast a warm glow over it. They crouched down in front of the small house at the base, in which they could see a large mound of black and grey fur, indistinguishable from a pillow.
"Which one was this one?" Kuroo asked, poking a finger in and gently stroking the soft fur.
"Michiko, I renamed her though," Kenma said, also reaching in to pet her gently. "Her profile online was— hmm— not great. So I didn't send it to you. I didn't even look at her twice online."
"Yeah, I for sure thought you were going to go with Nana— Nanako? The one that's a criminal mastermind."
Kenma chuckled. They had both been sending videos back and forth of the little calico with an appetite for hair ties.
"I really thought I was too, but this one reminded me of someone."
Kenma gave Kuroo a pointed look. Kuroo, shocked, put a hand to his chest.
"Me? Little old me?" He asked with mock concern.
He looked back into the dark recesses of the hidey hole the cat occupied. Not much of the cat could be seen except the dark fur that poked out. She was still deep in sleep.
"Is it the fur? She does seem to have the Kuroo family hair."
Kenma made a soft humming noise in agreement. He reached into the fur and poked a little. The cat gave a soft mrrrp and popped her head up, looking around blearily. Kuroo gasped.
"She has one eye!" Kuroo said softly.
"I renamed her Ana," Kenma said.
"From Overwatch?" Kuroo asked.
Kenma nodded and stroked her head between her ears.
"But is she a sniper?" Kuroo asked.
"Apparently she's uh, cranky."
Kuroo laughed, loud and sudden. "Good for her."
"She likes me though."
Kenma reached in again and laid his hand gently on Ana, who was watching them warily. Kenma withdrew just as gentle.
"The workers said go easy on her, and give her a lot of time to adjust," Kenma said as Kuroo reached his own hand in.
Ana sniffed him, but didn't react. Kuroo put his hand on her side, and let it rest there. Kenma leaned his head against Kuroo's shoulder and they both watched as Kuroo pet Ana gently.
"I'm glad you're here," Kenma said softly.
Kuroo removed his hand from Ana's fur and put it into Kenma's hair instead, scratching at the scalp.
"Me too."
A breath passed, then Ana bolted out of her cat tree. She bounced off the collective bodies of Kuroo and Kenma, and they fell apart as she rocketed off the wall and sped into the house. They both lay in shocked silence for a moment. Then they both sat up.
"What the fuck," Kuroo said.
Kenma hunted Ana down. She had hidden in a pile of Kenma's clothes and was wary, but began to purr up on seeing him. Kuroo let Kenma shower her in attention while he ditched the vest and tie he normally wore for work. Kenma said she needed time to get used to Kuroo's presence, so Kuroo dragged Kenma by his sweater into the kitchen to cook and let Ana have her space.
When she finally wandered back into the living room, Kenma quickly abandoned Kuroo to play with her. He produced an assortment of toys and began to try out each of them with her. Kuroo dragged him back to the kitchen again to cut some vegetables, but he finished and returned to Ana and her pile of toys. Kenma finally sat down for a few minutes when Kuroo put a plate into his hands, but left the clean up to Kuroo to give Ana dinner of her own. By that point Kuroo had given up on Kenma entirely, and went through the motions of readying for bed while Kenma played with Ana. Kuroo fluffed up some blankets and Kenma pulled out a kicker toy shaped like a red fish. Kuroo got a glass of water, then two, and Kenma waved a laser across a wall.
Kuroo huffed.
"Come to bed," he said at last.
Kenma dangled the feather wand above Ana and wiggled it back and forth. Ana watched with her one eye, tracking its movement through the air.
"In a little bit," he said absently.
Kuroo, standing in his boxers and nothing else, put his hands on his hips. He watched them a moment longer before crossing the room to where Kenma sat in front of Ana. He knelt behind Kenma and put his chin on Kenma's head.
"Hey princess," Kuroo said, voice low. "Wanna come to bed?"
The feather wand stilled in the air. Kenma perked up, attention instantly on Kuroo for the first time since he showed up. Kuroo ran his hands down Kenma's sides and Kenma responded by pressing himself back into Kuroo, shoulder to hip. Kuroo liked the way they fit together. He moved his chin from Kenma’s head to his shoulder, nosing the hair coming loose from his sloppy bun. Freed, Kenma twisted himself to get a better angle and leaned in for a kiss. Kuroo stood up.
Kenma caught himself before he toppled over backwards and frowned up at Kuroo who smirked down at him on the ground. Kuroo jerked his head toward the bedroom and Kenma abandoned the wand at Ana's feet to follow him.
The first time Kenma and Kuroo had sex they were 16 and 17, respectively. It was shortly after Kenma started at Nekoma and Kuroo had convinced him to keep playing volleyball through high school. Practice was harder and longer for them now, which somehow only made Kuroo hornier than normal. Neither can remember who suggested it, only that they both instantly liked the idea. It would be with each other, it couldn't be awkward, they’d already experienced every form of awkwardness possible around each other. And they were already so close, what did it matter, adding this new thing to the list of stuff they did together?
They were right for the most part. The first time was embarrassingly short, the second time was fine, but it was the third time that discomfiture hit like a speeding train. It was as if all the embarrassing first time jitters and nerves and confusion had been lying in wait, building tension until the two of them let their guard down. And as they laid there after, each staring off into the distance, refusing to look at the other, worrying if they had just fucked up their friendship, they decided to do the impossible. They talked about their feelings.
No, this was fine, they didn't think badly of each other for this, they didn't think badly of themselves for this either. They already knew what the other looked like naked anyway. Kuroo knew Kenma was trans before they climbed into bed with each other, and too many hot Tokyo summers spent stripping down to next to nothing had ripped that bashfulness away a long time ago. And they weren't in love with each other. No lying, absolutely no lying about that. They weren't in love, this was just a thing they did together. And then it was fine again.
And it was fine, and there weren’t any feelings unless there was. The day before Kuroo left for university they shut themselves in Kuroo's room for hours. The Kuroo family would take him to the train station the next day for a tearful send off, so this was Kenma's goodbye. Kuroo cried and Kenma didn't bring it up after. But it wasn’t always tearful. Sex after the nationals match Kuroo's third year was intense. With a quiet word, Kenma pulled Kuroo away from plans the team made and they spent the whole day in Kuroo's bed. Kuroo almost sent Hinata a gift basket in thanks afterwards. Kuroo had never seen Kenma so worked up, so bossy and demanding. Telling Kuroo where to put his mouth, how to hold him, how long and how fast. Kuroo loved it. Something changed for them after that. As if some sort of dam had broken. Where it had been almost desperate touches in between quick moments before, now they both had started to figure out what they liked, and what each other liked. It had started as a way to blow off steam, and now was something they realized they could be good at.
They learned Kuroo liked it loud, which meant he liked any and all noises Kenma would make. Then Kuroo learned exactly where to touch or kiss or bite to pull the most delicious of moans from Kenma. And Kenma let him, they learned he liked letting Kuroo do the work. He liked telling Kuroo what to do and then laying back to let it happen. The day Kuroo discovered the term pillow princess he teased Kenma with it until Kenma stopped talking to him out of protest. He eventually caved when Kuroo groveled on his knees, and then made it up to Kenma while he was down there. But Kuroo loved it. Loved taking Kenma apart, loved making him stop thinking for five goddamn minutes. Kenma loved setting a perfect ball for Kuroo to smash home; the set up was as enjoyable as the reward. Kuroo loved working Kenma to an orgasm that left him breathless for the exact same reason. They were in step and in sync even in this.
Kenma stepped out of his sweats on the way to the bedroom and Kuroo tugged at the sweater he wore next (It was Kuroo’s sweater.) to discard it alongside. Kuroo backed Kenma toward the bed, chin clasped in his fingers, holding his face and his attention as he lavished Kenma with deep, languid kisses. Kuroo abandoned his hold on Kenma's face to wrap an arm around his back, Kenma's knees hit the mattress and Kuroo was already there to lower him down.
They broke apart for the first time since entering the bedroom. Kenma taking the moment to scoot further up the bed. Kuroo crawled up after him, hooded eyes and devious grin set on Kenma who never once balked under that stare. His return look was equal parts calculating and hungry. Kuroo leaned over him, wiggling just a little from too much built up tension.
"What does the princess want tonight?" he asked. "My mouth somewhere? My fingers instead?"
"You're in a mood," Kenma said, amused.
"I'm happy," Kuroo said. He lowered himself onto his elbows and kissed Kenma in the same movement. He hummed against Kenma's lips.
"What do you want?" Kenma asked.
"I want to make you happy, too," he replied.
Kenma thought for a moment, then pressed the tips of his fingers to Kuroo's collar bone, leveraging him up.
"Lap," Kenma said.
Kuroo rose with a laugh, and tugged at Kenma's boxer briefs, tossing them away. He wiggled out of his own boxers as Kenma pulled a bottle of lube and a small vibrator from the drawer beside his bed, and crawled back to Kuroo. Kuroo was already half hard as he sat back, opening his legs for Kenma to join him. He leaned on one hand and held the other out. Kenma inched up between Kuroo's legs and let Kuroo run his hand across his chest and up his neck aimlessly. He popped the bottle open and took Kuroo's hand from his chest and poured a small amount into his open palm. Then he closed the bottle and sat back.
Kuroo took himself in his hand and slicked the lube along the full length, sighing and letting his eyes fall closed. He knew Kenma would be watching with rapt attention, if he enjoyed making Kuroo work that meant he enjoyed watching him do it. Kuroo palmed himself, working himself to hardness quickly but being a showboat about it; panting out breaths and letting out little noises. He cracked an eye open to catch a glimpse of Kenma. Kenma smirked at him, and Kuroo's pace increased.
"Just gonna watch all night?" Kuroo huffed out.
"Tempting," Kenma said. He paused a moment then, "But no. Just wanted to tease you a little."
Kuroo gave a half laugh, and stilled his hand on his cock, holding it tight at the base. He watched Kenma watch him with rapt interest, and held a hand out to take. Kenma put his hand in Kuroo’s and let himself be pulled, Kuroo twisting him around so he fell with his back against Kuroo's chest, mirroring their positions from earlier. Fitting together perfectly. He grabbed Kenma’s chin and held him in place as he kissed along Kenma's jaw and neck. Kenma shivered and Kuroo swallowed the shivers down, grinning into the skin of his neck at the sound of a soft moan.
Kuroo finally let go of his cock where it was trapped between their bodies and reached his hand around to slide it between Kenma’s legs. Kuroo had held an enthusiasm for Kenma’s cunt from the very beginning. He had always fucked Kenma like he was a dessert table and it was a joy to be there. He slipped his fingers into Kenma's folds, enjoying the sensation of the movement and the soft hitching sounds Kenma made as he spread the remainder of the lube. He slid his fingers further and let out a breath as he felt how slick Kenma already was. He dragged a finger through the wetness, then two, spreading him open and massaging the tender nerves there until Kenma was pressing up into the touch. Kuroo adjusted his free hand, sliding it down Kenma's chest to wrap around his ribs, holding him tight. Then he pressed his fingers into Kenma’s cunt and Kenma moaned high and long.
Kuroo didn't hesitate, he quickly began to work Kenma's hole with his fingers. Pressing him open, rubbing in the lube warmed on Kuroo's cock. Kenma arched back, one hand grabbing at Kuroo's arm around his waist, the other burying itself in his hair.
"Hnnmnf."
"Want just my fingers?" Kuroo asked in an almost whisper.
Kenma shook his head, then took a moment to get a breath in him, "All of it," he said, voice rough.
Kuroo shivered. He pulled his fingers out and grabbed Kenma’s hips to hold him steady as he leveraged himself up on his knees. Under him, Kuroo repositioned himself, took his cock in his hand again and guided Kenma down. Kenma let out a loud moan, drawing it out as Kuroo sank deeper into him. He grabbed at Kuroo's arm and wrist where it was gripping his hip but Kuroo didn’t let him rest, and pulled him the rest of the way down onto his cock.
Kenma let out breathy groans as they sat there a second, and Kuroo rested his forehead onto Kenma's shoulder, breathing deep. He was tense from anticipation, from restraining himself and holding Kenma in place. Kuroo moved, readjusting their positions so Kenma was fully sitting in his lap against his chest. He pressed his quickly drying hand between Kenma’s legs, tracing a finger around the entrance where it was stretched around Kuroo’s cock. Kenma shuddered almost violently and let out a desperate moan. Kuroo held him for a moment and took a steadying breath, then reached for the waiting vibe.
It was small and fit in the palm of a hand which made it perfect for what Kuroo was doing. He turned it on and the noise made Kenma whine and clench around Kuroo’s cock. Kuroo licked sloppy kisses up Kenma’s neck and captured his mouth in a kiss before letting him go again. Kuroo finally pressed the vibe against Kenma’s clit and he instantly let out a high, keening noise.
This position was a favorite of both of theirs because it was everything they loved. Kenma could let Kuroo work him to the edge, and Kuroo could hold him as close as he wanted. Kuroo would make Kenma’s pleasure his top priority, and in return, Kenma's mouth was right next to Kuroo’s to kiss and hear every soft sound that came out of him. Kuroo loved feeling Kenma pulse around him as he worked Kenma to his climax. Kuroo had come just from that on multiple occasions. This was a familiar favorite, a rhythm that they both knew well and loved doing. Kuroo dug his fingers into Kenma’s skin and drank up the noises that poured from his lips.
The door burst open, snapping back against the wall with a crack that caused both of them to flinch. A great, dark blur screamed into the room and exploded on the bed, tossing up blankets and pillows. The two of them fell apart with a shout and Ana raced across them then bounced off the wall to streak across the bed again. Kenma fell face first into the bed and Kuroo fell off the back with a thud. Ana yowled and hurtled back out of the bedroom through the still swinging door, leaving silence in her wake.
They both lay there a moment, and then distantly heard the sound of something falling over. Kuroo rolled onto his back and pushed himself up on his elbows. He looked up onto the bed at Kenma. Kenma looked back at him in shock and pain. He mouthed a silent ow and climbed off the bed. He hastily grabbed his sweats and tugged them on and stumbled out of the door.
Kuroo could hear Kenma talking, and some movement, a jingle of a bell from a toy. On the bed the vibe still whirred, the sound of the motor in the stillness of the aftermath was almost grating. Kuroo crawled back onto the bed and grabbed the vibe to turn it off. He flopped onto the mattress and took stock of his injuries. His back hurt like hell, as did an elbow. His ass also smarted something fierce. He contemplated going after Kenma but he hurt, his dick was soft, and he was a little crabby. And his ass hurt. He checked to see if he was bleeding.
Kenma came back into the room, and firmly closed the door, taking a quick look to see if the door had damaged the wall. He looked over at Kuroo who was looking back at him with no small amount of disbelief.
"Not for nothing Ken, but your cat clawed me on the ass."