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“Kenma didn’t show up today.”
The words catch Kuroo off guard. He stops in his tracks, looking down to where Yaku was walking beside him. His brows furrow. He hadn’t heard anything about him calling into school, and he was the first one to know about something like that. Kuroo shrugs at the thought, ultimately unbothered by it. “I doubt it’s anything to worry about. Kenma said he wasn’t feeling too well the last few days.” He replies, jamming his hands into his uniform pockets.
Yaku hums in response, offering a shrug of his own. “I just figured you’d be the one to know if anything was going on with him.” It’s a very typical conversation topic between the two of them. Yaku would fuss consistently over one of the younger players, Kuroo would tell him to calm down, and he would, in fact, calm down. It’s routine by now.
They continue their walk down the silent school halls, heading towards the gymnasium. Its right after school; time for the volleyball club to start practice. Kuroo needs to make sure these little shits are doing what he’s told them. Lev is the newest first year on the team, and he’s a walking disaster before anyone even puts a ball in his hands. Yaku is the one responsible for him, and even Kuroo could tell the short libero’s patience was beginning to wear thin. Both he and Yaku had already agreed to work on the first years today, to help them improve.
The closer they get to the gym, the more at ease Kuroo feels. Already he can hear the distant shouts of his vice-captain getting everyone into their warmups, directing the first years that need it and making sure the second years don’t slack off. Their warmup music is already blaring through the doors, the loud booming basses and soaring melodies mixing wonderfully with the reverb of Kai’s voice. Kuroo can feel his blood begin to pump even harder with every step they take. As they finally approach, the captain pushes hard on the gym doors, throwing them open with a wide grin on his face. “Goooood afternoon children, it’s time to suffer.” His voice is miles removed from its usual tone, snark being replaced by an air of authority only he can pull off.
The other players look up to him, expressions ranging from welcome smiles to slight terror. Though he’s pretty sure the look on Lev’s face is more for Yaku’s appearance than his own. The sandy haired libero settles onto the floor next to him, immediately falling into his own warmups. Lev scoots away a little bit in response.
Good, Kuroo thinks as he strides over to where Kai was sitting. He knows Yaku will succeed in putting a decent amount of fear into their rambunctious first year. Kai gives him a welcoming smile as he settles down into place.
“I don’t think I saw Kenma this morning.” Kai remarks, switching from one leg to the other for his stretches. “Is he skipping again?”
There it is again. Everyone is so concerned on whether or not Kenma had shown up to practice. Kuroo understands why, Kenma is the only setter in the club. But he knows everything that’s going on with said setter. If something is wrong, he would be the first to know.
But it doesn’t sit right with him now. This is the second time someone’s brought it up, and while it’s perfectly normal to be worrying about their teammate, something feels unsettled in Kuroo’s gut. He does his best to forget about it as warmups end, and the drills begin.
----
It’s close to six o’clock by the time practice finally winds down. Kuroo dismisses them all at long last, reminding them to do their cooldowns before leaving for the night. They all shuffle towards the locker room, and within seconds the air is thick with the smell of sweat and spray deodorant. Most of them opt to head right home rather than take a shower at school- A good call, considering how humid it still is outside. The sounds of eight very different voices bounce around the room, and Kuroo does his best to block them all out. That knot of anxiety is still firmly rooted in his stomach, and it churns uncomfortably when he glances at his phone. It sits benignly atop his school uniform, and the longer he stares at it, the more his gut flips. The little green light is flashing, indicating a missed message.
Long fingers pluck the phone from its resting spot, and Kuroo easily flips it open with his thumb. The front screen shows five missed messages, and his heart immediately drops into his feet. He had only expected one.
NEW MESSAGE (5)
Kenma
*Are you still at practice? (3:02)
*Kuro (4:10)
*I need to talk to you (4:26)
*Soon (4:51)
*Please (5:13)
It’s nearly six o’clock now. He’s way too late getting to these messages.
That knot in his stomach rises into his chest and settles there with a newfound burning sensation. His fingers shake slightly as he opens a new reply to the messages. Before he can even type up a reply, his phone begins to ring. It displays a rather unflattering picture of his sister and the name “Firstborn”. While normally this would have amused him to absolutely no end, the timing of the call with Kenma’s texts is just too coincidental for him. His shaking begins to intensify.
“Misao, what’s up?” He wedges the phone between his shoulder and his ear, already beginning to jam things into his training bag. He has no time to dawdle now, he can already feel it.
“Is Kenma with you?” Her voice is forced, hurried in a way he isn’t used to hearing from her. Kuroo’s heart jumps into his throat this time, before settling back down into the pit of his stomach.
“No, he stayed home today, but he’s been texting me. Why?” He’s honestly pretty proud of the way his voice doesn’t shake when he speaks. He thinks he pulls off a calm exterior pretty well. Then again, he’s always been a great liar.
Misao huffs on her side of the line. “Because, his mother just came by looking for him. Says he hasn’t been around since he left for school this morning.”
“I didn’t see him.” Suddenly everything that’s been said to him throughout the day clicks into place, and he feels absolutely wretched. “I thought he called into school this morning since he didn’t show up.”
Why would Kenma do that? It isn’t like him to ditch school, even on his worst of days. It was even more unusual for him not to contact Kuroo about it. So much for being the designated best friend, he thinks. “Well, you need to figure out where he is, because she’s throwing an absolute shit fit on our doorstep.”
“I’ll find him, Misao.” He says hurriedly, already slinging his bag over his shoulder. His heart is thundering out of control in his chest, and it’s making a very honest effort to break through his ribs right now. He’s pretty impressed that it hasn’t yet. “Just tell her to calm down, he couldn’t have gone far.”
It’s a rich statement, coming from him. Kuroo is the absolute poster child of ‘not chill’ right now. A wave of panic ebbs in the back of his throat, and he has to swallow hard to keep it from getting any further. But combined with the cold, numbing sensation of absolute fear that follows it, he’s finding it very hard to keep himself calm. His best friend is missing. Kenma is missing, and he has no idea where to start looking for him. Their school is in the middle of downtown Tokyo; there are literally thousands of places he could be, and Kuroo has no idea where to start looking. What if something’s happened to him by now? What if he’s lost in lower Tokyo? That is not a place you want to get lost in. What if, what if, what if-
He isn’t aware of exactly how close to hyperventilating his breathing has become until he actually hears himself gasping for air. He stops in his tracks, right in the middle of the sidewalk, and forces himself to focus, to finally calm down. ‘This is not the time to panic’, he reminds himself. A flip of his stomach reminds him that yes, actually, this is the perfect fucking time to panic. But he can’t, he has to stay level headed for Kenma’s sake. First, he needs to regroup. He won’t be any use to anyone when he’s like this. ‘Think like a captain. Be in control of the situation. You know Kenma better than anyone- where are his usual hiding spots? Start from there.’
---
Easier said than done, it seems. He checks all of the usual hiding spots, twice. First, the café downtown, near the botanical garden. The back room is one of Kenma’s favorite places to go when he’s feeling particularly asocial. But he’s not there. He goes next door, to the garden itself, practically running to the rose-covered gazebo Kenma had taken so many pictures of last summer. It’s gorgeous, and the flowers are blooming so beautifully. But he’s not there. Kuroo huffs out an interesting hybrid of a sigh and a groan before turning on his heels to leave. He runs all the way towards the river docks on the other side of town. He holds out hope for just a moment that maybe he’ll be there, bare feet dangling in the cold waters of the Tokyo River. Maybe he’ll cast a look back to Kuroo, invite him to sit down as he explains why exactly he thought it was a good idea to run off in the first place.
But he’s not there.
Kuroo finally comes to a stop near the riverbank, doubled over and gulping in air. He’s sweating like a sinner in church, and it’s such an odd sensation. A clammy fear clings to him like a second skin, and he’s shaking despite how ungodly hot he is from all the running. He wipes a bead of sweat from his brow and the more he breaths in, the more his throat twists and tears prick in the corners of his eyes. He just wants to find Kenma. He wants to put his hands on his shoulders and shake the living shit out of him from scaring him like this. He wants to hold onto his little frame and never let go again.
Kuroo draws in a shaking breath, wiping the tears from his cheeks. He sinks into a crouch and then falls directly on his ass, too exhausted to really care if he gets covered in mud or not. His limbs feel heavy, weighed down by the crushing pressure of the day’s anxiety. His chest hasn’t loosened since he left school nearly three hours ago. The sun is beginning to dip below the horizon, painting the landscape around him in gorgeous shades of brown and gold. The ocean looks like a river of fire with the way it reflects the sun’s light.
Kuroo sits there for a long time, just staring at the shifting surface of the water. It looks like boiling glass, moving so smoothly on the banks before him. It helps him calm down, to regroup his thoughts as the sun dies below the horizon, giving rise to the cool, calming light of the moon.
When his phone dings, he’s only vaguely aware of it He glances dumbly down at his pocket before fishing it out, reminding himself not to get his hopes up as he flips it open.
NEW MESSAGE (1)
Kenma
*Minami Park (10:35)
Every nerve in Kuroo’s body is alight the second he reads the text. He springs to his feet, his body fueled into new movements by a wave of relief and anxiousness. Minami Park is a very long ways away, nearly an hour by train ride. How in the hell did Kenma get that far away, and why? No, there wasn’t any time to question this. He takes off in the direction of the nearest train station, nearly losing his footing on the slick mud of the riverbank. All he can think about is getting to Kenma. He doesn’t care what time it is, how much the ticket will cost, or even how they’re going to get home afterwards. He just doesn’t care anymore.
NEW MESSAGE (1)
SENDING MESSAGE ✔
Kenma
*Stay put. I’ll be right there. (10:35)
Far too long and too many train stops later, Kuroo finds himself hurting out of the gates of the Minami train station, scrambling to remember where exactly the park is located. He makes a hasty and hopefully correct decision, running full-tilt down the street now that he knows what he’s doing. His heart is hammering in his chest partly from the exertion, but mostly from the anticipation. God, he hopes Kenma was alright. Its pitch black outside and the only light comes in soft splashes along the sidewalk, so gratefully provided by the streetlights above. The night air is quiet, nothing but the distant clicks of the train breaking the silence. It’s returning to its home station for the night, but Kuroo doesn’t currently care about that. He’ll find a way home once he’s sure Kenma is alright.
He’s gasping for breath for the third time today when he finally reaches the edge of the park. It’s dead silent and the atmosphere settles over Kuroo like a blanket. A bated sense of relief plays at the edge of his nerves, the realization that he’s finally this close to finding Kenma. He allows himself only a sliver of hope when he finally spots the person he’s looking for. It isn’t hard really; Kuroo would know that head of hair anywhere. He really needs to bleach it again, Kuroo thinks as he stares at the black and gold locks before him.
But to be honest, he’s never been so happy to see those dark roots in his entire life.