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822; and it begins
Oh well. At least it was all over. For now.
The elevator bell dinged, prompting him to scoot over to the side as the door opened, a couple of people went out before he and a few coworkers got in. He glanced to see if the letter G had been pressed on the control board--it had--so he slid uncomfortably to the corner of the small, cramped room, tapping his fingers to his thighs. A third sigh escaped lips, quieter but shaping his lips more and more into an inverse crescent. He really couldn't wait to go home.
It was finally over! Kuroo would go up the table and shout a loud ‘hooray’ if he could, but he didn’t even have the energy to anymore. Not even if he were to be allowed to. The long, ridiculously complex, big project was finally over! With so many hands in the project, complications happened and they had to go through waves after waves. But finally they were here, at the finish line! He was so touched he could tear up. At least for some time, there wouldn’t be that much of all-nighters anymore. After exchanging numerous ‘great work today’ with his coworkers, he tidied up his desk slightly, just so that it looked decent enough for a human being to sit at. Okay. That was better. He’d do the rest on Monday. All he wanted now was to have some good drink, then sleep through the weekend. He needed to pay back all those rest he owed to his body.
It didn’t take him long to get into his coat and jog towards the elevator, following quite a number of people inside the opening door. The journey to the ground floor was strangely quiet. Everyone must be too exhausted to socialise, not to mention the cramped space. He closed his eyes, hoping to reach their destination as soon as possible. Thankfully, there were no more stops after his floor. It might be just him but he felt like he could hear everyone heaving a sigh of relief simultaneously as the elevator door opened. Oh, how he feel all of you. Internally putting his hand on his heart, he nodded sagely. Alright, let’s get out of the way and out of the crowd. Yep. Fresh air. Sigh. What bliss.
And he thought that was all he needed when he spotted a certain slender figure walking past him. Ah. What nice scent. What cool breeze. His face melted into some soft squishy looking thing as he stared at the back of said man. The lovely green locks with red highlights were tied up in a bun today and that looked really adorable. Quickly catching up, Kuroo gave the man a gentle pat on the back. “Shima-san, great work today!” The fatigue he had a few seconds ago felt like a lie, he could smile with all his might right now. “I’m really indebted to you and your team. We couldn’t have made this without your help.” That was the truth. Without all the researches and strategies Makishima’s team built over the months, he was sure his department wasn’t able to progress much at all. “Would you allow me to treat you for a drink or two? Let’s have some refreshment!” He wasn’t sure if that was too much to ask after all what they had been through, but he wouldn’t know if he didn’t try. This might be a chance to spend some time with his senior.
Oh goodness, Makishima could almost feel his temples drooping down when he closed his eyes for a few seconds, trying to clear his mind as the elevator made its way to the ground floor. What was probably less than 30 seconds felt like a quarter hour, and all Makishima could think about was going home straight to his bathroom, having a relaxing bath, and maybe watching one or two movies before heading to bed.
With that in mind, his feet were pacing faster by every step toward the exit, whether he realized it or not. They, however, were halted promptly when he felt a light tap on his shoulder. He felt his body jumping a little in surprise, but that emotion quickly turned into a 'oh no please spare me from some afterwork chit chats' face as he was turning his head. It changed again into a relieved smile when he saw who it was--Kuroo, a coworker from the sales department who had been incredible during the entire project for the last few months. The way he and his team sealed the contract today was flawless and Makishima couldn't help but quietly admire the way he handled others. People were really born with different talents, and it was quite mesmerizing to see how good the black-haired was at his. If it were Kuroo, Makishima would happily spend some time to say three or four sentences, maybe even five. For a start, he bowed his head a little forward as he said, "You too, sho."
But apparently, Kuroo wasn't going in for a chat, rather extending an offer that Makishima had used to refuse had it been coming from almost anyone else at work. Kuroo was kind of different, maybe it was his charming smile, maybe it was the fact that never once he'd judged Makishima no matter what he did or wore. The green-haired was not uncomfortable in Kuroo's presence, though it may not show from his attitude. Like right now. "Um," he managed to say after a few seconds. The hand that was previously at the side of his leg moved to scratch the side of his neck, unsure what to say. He wanted to go home to a relaxing bathtub, yes. But maybe delaying it for an hour wouldn't be so bad? At least he wasn't totally opposed of the idea… Maybe. But well, he kinda had a problem. "I don't drink, sho." He stopped for a moment, eyes shooting open. Oh, no. That sounded like he flat out rejected the offer, didn't it? That wasn't his intention! "I mean… Um. I don't mind going out, but I don't drink." Did it sound better? He hoped it sounded better.
If the sight of Makishima made Kuroo’s fatigue flew away earlier, the way his eyes were meeting with the other’s had made him feel so energised he could probably play some volleyball this moment. Not that he would. He was clinging to a little hope to spend some more time with the senior that had captured his eyes for a while now. Being in a different department, there weren’t exactly a lot of instances where they worked together, or even see each other’s faces. Maybe sometimes when making coffee at the pantry. Or during lunch breaks. To have this big project where they actually collaborated and worked together a whole lot, was a blissful experience for Kuroo.
Blissful, and a little troubling.
It would be a lie to say that Makishima didn’t stand out. He surely did, especially with his hair. But not only that. His quirks and preferences were a little unusual to others. Like, how quiet he was compared to how he presented himself ー wearing vibrant coloured neckties at times was one, but even without that, the unique statement just exuded out of him. He was just different. Different in such a good way that Kuroo was having problems to keep his eyes away from the man. He’d like to say that it was a love in the first sight like the romantic he was, but it wasn’t. It took a while for Kuroo to actually be captivated. Makishima was two years Kuroo’s senior, so naturally when he first joined, he was there. Kuroo’s first impression was ‘wow, that’s some hair colour’ and soon after, he forgot about Makishima’s existence with them being on a different floor and department. There were many moments of them walking past each other and Kuroo would think ‘oh yeah, that person’, but it slipped out of his mind as fast as it appeared.
It wasn’t until a year after, when the fateful encounter took place. Kuroo was getting himself his dose of caffeine in the pantry of a different floor in hopes of some tranquility, as everyone in his department seemed to be in a tense atmosphere. A year of research had given it to him that this floor was the quietest of all, but unfortunately, that day wasn’t the day for it. Just outside the pantry, he heard people talking. They weren’t loud, but the tone on each of their voices wasn’t pleasant. That, actually was worse. He’d leave sooner, but it would be awkward to walk past them, so instead he waited for them to be done. While he had no intention of eavesdropping, out of the other unpleasant sounding people, there was one voice that stuck out. Neutral, a little soft but firm on his stance. “I don’t see what’s wrong with wearing what you want to wear, sho.” The rest sounded like muffled noises to him, but that one voice pierced through. Later before he left, he caught a glimpse of the green-haired near the pantry. Since then, he tried many ways to hear the voice of Makishima to make sure of it. But world was cruel. The more you tried to do something, the more difficult it would be. He asked around for his name. He even tried to call Makishima’s desk, using the plan of being quiet just to hear the voice, only to be answered with silence. Before he knew it, he started to learn a lot about Makishima and his habits. Kuroo’s eyes could easily pick Makishima out in a crowd. Before he knew it, feelings started to bud after their first few conversations. Before he knew it, he had forgotten what his goal was in the first place. In fact, he had forgotten how that voice sounded like, but just like that voice, Makishima’s was sharp and clear in his ears. It all stopped mattering much when his heart was skipping a beat faster every time he talked to him.
Needless to say, when the collaboration work announcement came, he was very happy. But at the same time, troubled. Would he be able to handle seeing Makishima so frequently? Fortunately or not, he didn’t get to watch Makishima in leisure as much as he had thought, as it was an intense, taxing project. They did, however, worked together and discussed things over the course of three months. As the number of times they conversed increased, the fond feeling he had of his senior continuously grew. But he was content at where they were now. He could even call him ‘Shima-san’. He couldn’t ask for more from this strange crush he was having. It might be a phase he would get over eventually. Maybe.
Oh no. Makishima didn’t seem too keen on the idea. But wait, it was always hard to read the other’s expression, there had been times when the answer was actually pleasant compared to how he was looking like. Kuroo jammed his hands in the pocket of his trousers to keep his fingers from moving too much. It was silly how nervous he was right now compared to how he was when meeting clients. He felt like the time had travelled back and he was a teenager again. His shoulders dropped when he heard the magic word ‘I don’t drink’. Oh. Well, he did think it was too much to ask after such an exhausting period. He was ready to pull a business smile and say that it was fine, but quickly noticed that Makishima wasn’t done. Closing his mouth back, he eagerly waited for what the other had to say. “Oh,” was the only thing Kuroo could manage for a moment, but his lips were obviously struggling to break into a wide, stupid grin. He really wanted to try to keep them contained, but he couldn’t. So... that wasn’t just a way to politely reject him. Makishima really didn’t drink! “Um. What kind of place is good for you? Do you mind if I drink a little?” Ah, whatever. He was happy, so be it! So much for trying to look cool. What was the problem of looking stupidly happy? Letting his muscles relax and grin it all out, he anticipated Makishima’s reply with doe eyes.
Well, that was a reaction Makishima didn't expect. He'd honestly thought Kuroo was only offering out of courtesy, just because he happened to see Makishima on the way home and decided to ask or something. But the smile Kuroo was forming on his lips was a little too wide… or was it? Come to think of it, although Makishima did not feel uncomfortable around Kuroo, it wasn't like they were close either. Their interactions were mainly professional, plus a few other times in the common areas--pantry, elevator, lobby, corridor, copy machine, bathroom (it was kind of unsettling how much of a social place the office's bathrooms was)--and that was basically it.
Makishima didn't remember when exactly it was that he'd met the other. Well, the very first time would've been when Kuroo's first day at the job since he would've been toured around the building, but Makishima had very little memory of seeing the slightly-younger there. He didn't remember what had happened afterward either, all he knew was suddenly he'd started seeing Kuroo here and there, started hearing his voice saying 'good morning' and 'good work today' to others and sometimes to him too, started being called for small talks whenever they'd met. He didn't know what exactly it was that first made him intrigued, but somewhere along the way he'd started to feel so at ease around Kuroo. Maybe the fact the the smile the black-haired was giving him always felt so sincere, despite the fact that he was a person in sales who was used to giving business smiles. Maybe it was the passing compliments that would make Makishima (attempt to) smile and proceeded to have the expression on his face for the rest of the day. Either way, it felt nice and he liked the feeling. He did know that Kuroo was pretty much like that to everyone else, but that was even better, right? That meant that Kuroo, despite of what some people said about him, was a really good person.
So yeah, for all Makishima knew, maybe that would be Kuroo's reaction to anyone who agreed to go out for a drink with him. That didn't stop him from feeling a little sheepish inside, though he was pretty sure his face probably said different. He'd gotten used to people telling him that his words and his expression sometimes didn't match each other. "Um," he started to reply, though fell silent for a few seconds. What kind of place would be good for him? Home, actually, but even Makishima knew that would be a very weird reply. "Well, I don't mind any place as long as it's quiet." He wasn't really against loud places, but he'd found himself preferring to stay in a more quiet environment most of the time, even more so now that he'd just gotten off from a very tiring work. "Sure, whatever, sho." Goodness, that sounded so much better in his head. He really didn't know how words worked sometimes, how a sentence that was okay in his mind could come out cold and distant or even hurtful sometimes. He hoped it wasn't, but that didn't stop his fingers from playing with each other, trying to ease off his uneasiness.
Man, oh man, Kuroo was a little too excited right now. He hadn’t expected Makishima to give him the green light at all he could feel himself floating a little. The silence didn’t bother him either, he patiently and eagerly waited for what words Makishima would utter. “Quiet,” he echoed the reply, nodding in agreement. Winding down was needed for the two of them, somewhere noisy definitely wasn’t what they would be looking for. He watched the slight changes in his senior’s expressions, chuckling quietly at himself when he realised he couldn’t figure it out after all. “Anything works?” The smile in his face never left his face all these time. He couldn’t help it, he was elated. “In that case, I shall lead you to my secret hideout.” His eyes met Makishima’s, giving him a meaningful stare. “So it’ll be just between you and me, Shima-san.” The serious look he had for a brief moment broke into a toothy grin, as he held the door open for Makishima. “After you,” he did a slight bow, with a hand over his chest like some butler.
Oh, thank goodness Kuroo didn't seem offended by what Makishima had said. A nervous grin splashed his face as he nodded at the younger's question, which turned into a look of a piqued interest when 'secret hideout' was mentioned. That sounded intriguing. For a few seconds, his mind wandered to a cave hidden inside the woods that looked dark from the outside, but there would be fire torches on the walls to guide Kuroo to a secret space inside. Or it could be a secret room in Kuroo's house where he would open by pulling a certain book from the bookshelf--yeah, he could really see Kuroo in that. Alternatively, it may also be a small bar hidden in a dark alley just around a corner of a busy street. The bartender would know Kuroo personally, and would probably know what the black-haired would order before he said it. He would sit a little to the side but not too far away from the center of the counter, giving space for new customers to sit beside him had they wanted to. He would start up a conversation with them that started with something like 'long night?' or 'I've never seen you around here before', then offer to buy them a drink. Somehow all the scenarios fit well with Kuroo, and Makishima smiled secretly at the thought.
He gave a side of his face a scratch as he looked away from Kuroo's stare, never getting used to straightforward gazes no matter how many times he'd faced with them. He frowned nervously at the younger's words, releasing a quiet huff in relief when they turned into a grin. Leaning himself for a little bow, he let himself out of the door before stopping for one second to wait for Kuroo. He started walking when the other did, staying in silence as he wasn't sure what to say, fingers playing with each other.
Watching the constantly changing (even if slight) expressions of Makishima, Kuroo couldn’t hold his lips from curving up in bliss. It was hard to take his eyes off the older, too much mystery and quirk that made Kuroo want to know more and more. Like what was he thinking about? What did he feel about this? Did he enjoy daydreaming? What kind of things would he imagine about? Questions popped up like bubbles on the sides of Kuroo’s head, but burst rather quickly the moment he saw that Makishima actually waited on him instead of walking off first on his own. Kuroo was an easy man, little gestures like this was enough to make him feel chirpy. He caught up on his senior in no time, steps a little jumpier than before.
Every now and then, he’d spare a glance or two on Makishima with the corner of his eye. Any more than this would definitely get him caught with their proximity. All the topics and questions he had wanted to talk about earlier poofed like they were never there before. It might be his nerves, it might be his bliss. He didn’t mind that though. They could talk later when they were drinking, he didn’t mind the silence they were having. After all, Makishima had always been someone he could have comfortable silence with, something that he really appreciated and treasured.
Snap. As he happily led the way, he nearly didn’t catch himself humming Family Mart’s jingle song. That was embarrassing. He cleared his throat to alleviate the feeling. Must have been a habit he picked up from hanging out too much with his university friend. The loud friend who used to be his rival back in high school. How nostalgic. He hadn’t contacted that owl guy since the big project started. Oh well, he could do that later when he get home after this. Pushing all the nostalgia off his mind, he made sure they weren’t going off track. It was easy to miss the corner they had to turn into to get to his ‘secret hideout’. Gosh, now he started to regret saying it all grand and mighty. It wasn’t even a stylish or classy type of place. Silently, he hoped that Makishima wouldn’t get disappointed upon seeing it.
“Oh. This way, Shima-san,” he finally spoke up, upon seeing that one corner he was thinking about. It led them to a rather quiet alley, which could be a little spooky despite being well-lit. Realising that, Kuroo attempted to convince Makishima. “Don’t worry, I’m not bringing you to some weird place.” He grinned, jamming his hands into the coat’s pocket. “Cold though, isn’t it?”
The moment they stepped out of the end of the alley, a completely different atmosphere engulfed the space. It was like a small town hidden in the depth of the city, one that was filled with only bars and restaurants. Warmth filled Kuroo, despite the cold air. That was he liked about this space, they had a very welcoming atmosphere, something close to home. Probably because they didn’t look like bars at the first glance, had there been no signboards nor barrels of wine. From the outside, they seemed like normal one-storey houses, like those from Edo period. But some had modified their entrance to be of those resembling western saloons, cowboy style; or even had put blinding lights on their signboards to make them look more flashy. Of course, that wasn’t what the two were looking for.
Kuroo followed the street, took a left turn, headed towards what looked like the back of a store. He gestured for Makishima to come closer and to be quiet, looking around before pushing one side of the wall. Like what you’d see in ninja movies, it was actually a hidden door that opened after a good push, bringing them towards a descending stairway to the basement. Just after a few set of steps, bossanova music could be heard, albeit softly. Warm yet dim light filled the bar, as they were all set to be hidden ー on the sides of the stairs, the space between the wall and the floor. Despite how western that sounded, the interior betrayed it with izakaya-styled furnitures covered in woods. Personally, Kuroo wouldn’t call it a great mix, in fact it was probably a reckless one. But the atmosphere it brought upon being seated was what charmed him. There were surprisingly a good number of customers there, but as if there were unspoken rules, everyone drank moderately and spoke in a hushed tone. Maybe, everyone seeked the same thing as what Kuroo and Makishima did here. Another reason that made Kuroo pick this place was that not just the drinks, all the cuisines were made by their own recipes, making it taste a little different than others, but at the same time a little nostalgic. What was it with him and nostalgia today? After waving to the master on the counter, Kuroo led Makishima to sit on a table towards the corner of the space, where there were less people.
Moments like this were what Makishima liked about spending time with Kuroo. While the younger did like to talk to him, there were times that they just spent together in silence, but oddly it didn't feel awkward at all. It was comfortable and he didn't feel the pressure of having to say something, and while they never spent so much time alone together, Makishima had a feeling they could do that for hours. Well, he was unsure if Kuroo would actually stay silent for such a long time, though… Or himself for that matter, because he would probably start complaining about something really soon. He sighed quietly at himself while glancing to the torso of the man beside him--Kuroo was tall, incredibly tall, Makishima wasn't exactly short but he had to look up a little when talking to the black-haired. His suit today was a tiny bit messy compared to usual, most probably from all the work they had to do today.
While Makishima was in the middle of his thoughts, Kuroo suddenly started humming, to his surprise. He turned his head with his eyebrows raised, but his lips turned into a wide grin, for his expressive face made it hard for him to make any smaller reactions, not that he wanted to. The jingle Kuroo hummed sounded familiar, where had he heard it before? Hmm, hmm, before he knew it, Makishima started humming along, albeit very quietly. A commercial? A TV program? No… Oh wait, was this a store's jingle? Yeah, that actually sounded like it! But which one? Before he could place a name on it, Kuroo had stopped and cleared his throat, seemingly a bit embarrassed by what he'd just done. Looking at him, Makishima frowned slightly, for some reason starting to feel embarrassed too that he'd joined in earlier. Perhaps the feeling was contagious.
...Oh. He couldn't believe that one of the things he'd imagined earlier was really true, that Kuroo was taking him into some kind of a dark alley. His lips curved into a grin, probably a rather eerie one, as he turned his head slightly. "Don't worry, I figured as much when you told me you're taking me to a secret hideout, sho," he said mysteriously. He subconsciously mirrored Kuroo's action, putting his hands into his coat's pocket as he answered with a short, "Yeah, it is."
A short while later, they walked into a place Makishima had never seen before, and boy was he surprised! He didn't know such a place existed in town. He had heard that Tokyo had all kinds of places to satisfy all kinds of things, but surprisingly it was the first time Makishima ventured to a corner of the city hidden from plain sights like this. He looked around, fascinated at everything but especially the Edo-style houses, some with a Western touch on it. It was a strange mix, but it worked and Makishima started to take a liking on it. Some had flashy lights, and he started to wonder which one Kuroo was taking him into.
Quite curiously, Kuroo led him into a… back of a store, and gestured for Makishima to be quiet? The green-haired blinked his eyes, for one moment actually worried that he was taken to a casino, a drug house, or worse, getting kidnapped and sold into some sort of human trafficking network. But no, this was Kuroo we were talking about, he wouldn't do something like that… right? But then again, it wasn't like he knew Kuroo very well… Just in case, Makishima's hand reached into the cellphone in his pocket, ready to press 110 if the situation called for it.
Well, he felt silly now after they took a few steps down the stairs, because what awaited them was a bar with quite a number of people, yet interestingly quiet. He wondered if it was some sort of a rule there? Or maybe it was the atmosphere, he thought as he looked around, intrigued. The lightning and room were fairly Western, but the interior was mostly Japanese, and he couldn't help but wondering if it were a thing there, remembering a few bars up that had a similar concept on their front doors. He followed Kuroo to the table on the corner, sitting down as the younger did, but eyes were still swimming around. "It seems to be a nice place, sho," he said in almost a whisper. Just as he turned his eyes back toward Kuroo, a man, seemingly older than them, was walking briskly toward their seats with a smile on his face.
Kuroo grinned at the way Makishima lowered his volume down. It was cute, actually. “You don’t have to be that quiet, Shima-san. Please just talk on your normal volume.” His attention was snatched away as the master walked up towards them with the menu. “Master, it’s been a while! This is my senior at work, Makishima Yuusuke,” he began to introduce Makishima. “Um, aren’t I interrupting your work?” A subtle attempt to voice out his curiosity. It had been always the floor runners who’d deliver the menu to the guests, and he’d never seen the master leave the counter before. This was a rare sight to him. Well, probably because they were pretty close, after all?
“No, no. You’re a special guest of ours, Kuroo-kun. I’d like to at least greet you.” The smile didn’t leave the 40-year-old man’s face for even a split second, one that could be seen as really friendly or a little suspicious. He pushed his glasses up before bowing his head a little at Makishima. “So you’re Makishima-san. Nice to meet you! I’ve heard quite a bit about you from your junior here. He’s been in your great care.”
“Master!” Kuroo elbowed the man, albeit not seriously. “I-I didn’t say anything weird, I swear, Shima-san!” Oh no, he was getting a little panicked now.
“Oh, don’t worry, Makishima-san. He said nothing but praises of you. Like, ‘Shima-san’s hairdo looks really nice today!’ orー”
“Alright, that’s enough!” Shit, he could feel his face heating up even before taking some alcohol in. He grabbed the master’s arm, dragging him off Makishima’s side. “We… We’re gonna read the menu now, so go awaー don’t distract us!”
The master chuckled joyfully. “Oh, Kuroo-kun? Showing your true colour so early?”
Huffing in annoyance and embarrassment, Kuroo gestured for the master to leave them alone, which the master finally did after waving a little at Makishima. “Sorry about that. He’s… a strange old man,” he said, scratching his nose. “Um, please have a look and see if anything catches your eyes. They recently added some western dishes as well, like doria or paella, if those interest you?”
Makishima had been right, the master did know Kuroo personally. He was smiling to himself at the realization, wondering how many more points in his imagination earlier that he could cross out tonight? He leaned down a for a little bow when Kuroo introduced him, observing the exchange between the younger and the master… Huh. Kuroo had talked about him? His eyes shot open a little, somewhere in the middle of surprise, disbelief, and curiosity. Not just talked, but praised him? Makishima's cheeks started to color at the information, unsure how to respond. Apparently he didn't have to, because Kuroo was already doing it himself and was that a… flush he saw on the black-haired's face? He totally got you, Kuroo, getting found out talking about something like that would make Makishima's face heat up, too. But don't worry, Makishima didn't think anything of it! If anything, it made him feel a little happy inside that Kuroo had been talking about him outside work. Really happy, actually.
The most interesting thing, though, was to see Kuroo seemingly losing his cool for a moment there. Had he even seen Kuroo getting nervous before? No, not even before a big presentation or an important client meeting, one thing that he'd always admired about the younger. Seeing another side of the man made him smile a little too wide, though both of his eyebrows were still furrowed. He scratched the side of his cheek and bowed once again to the master as he'd walked away, leaving him, Kuroo, and their menus alone. Playing with his fingers a little, a part of him wanted to say 'thank you' or 'I didn't know you pay attention to my hair', but man, just thinking of it already made made him feel embarrassed. With a little bashful flush on his face, he'd decided not to.
The long-haired pulled a smile close to a smirk when Kuroo apologized, and he said nothing but letting out a quiet, soft chuckle. He listened closely to the recommendations and nodded slightly as his eyes skimmed through the list of food. Truth to be told, he wasn't very hungry despite being so busy with work today, so he would probably go against ordering a main dish. "Um," he started after he finished looking through the side dishes. "I'm getting gyoza," he continued while scanning through the drinks pages. Oh, quite a number of good wine here, his brother would probably love to try some of these. Not for him, though he thought as his eyes skipped to the mocktails. It seemed like they had a number of the non-alcoholic beverage as well… Oh, strawberry cucumber limeade sounded perfect for him right now, such a refreshing drink! He smiled a little, satisfied with his own choices, as he turned his head back to Kuroo. "Um, I've decided, sho," he said, glancing back to the menu and decided to try some of the others later as well.
A wave of relief surged towards Kuroo upon hearing Makishima’s chuckle. Relief, and… well. The heat on his face wasn’t going away yet, making him feel a little warm. Clicking his tongue quietly, Kuroo loosened his tie, proceeding to fan himself with his hand. His glance kept shifting between Makishima and his own menu, at one hand he wanted to properly look at his senior since he didn’t get to during their walk, but on the other hand he was feeling kind of really embarrassed from what just happened. Oh well, he had at least the next… two hours? For that. He hoped he could hang for a longer time with Makishima, but who knew what would happen.
“Alright! I’ll order then,” he said, raising his hand up to wave at the runner ready to serve them. “Oh, Masaru-kun, doing good?” It happened to be a part-timer Kuroo had seen every now and then whenever he came over to this bar.
“Never better! I’ve never seen you bring someone over here before, Tetssan. Your friend?” The fresh young man smiled brightly at both Kuroo, then at Makishima. “Good evening! Can I have your order?”
‘Friend’. Oh how Kuroo wished he could say that they were, but they weren’t… probably not yet to Makishima. “My senior at work. Doesn’t he look really cool?” he boasted, while his hands mindlessly found the edge of his shirt. “Can we have two plates of gyoza, two servings of nankotsu, and this five piece mix yakitori set… What would you like to drink, Shima-san?” But they were quickly taken away as he gestured the numbers and pointed the pictures in the menu.
Makishima caught a glance of Kuroo fanning himself with his hand, and for a second he looked up as if he could check the room temperature by doing that. Maybe they had slightly different sense of temperature because the room felt just right for Makishima--not too cold and not too warm. Kuroo's voice and gesture calling to order, however, blurred his thoughts. Oh, Kuroo knew the runner as well, he really didn't betray Makishima's expectations. The older couldn't stop a small smile from forming on his lips as he looked over to Masaru for a little bow then listened to their conversation… Huh? The runner had never seen Kuroo bringing another person before? Now that was surprising, because he seemed to be one who would casually invite his friends for a drink there… Heck, he even invited Makishima there who was just a senior at work. Huh. Maybe the runner didn't see him on the days he brought friends?
A pair of surprised eyes shot up on Makishima's face hearing the praise. It wasn't the first time, but still it surprised him every time. People had talked about him so many times about how scary or how strange he looked, and while he didn't really care about it, it certainly felt drastic when someone suddenly complimented him like that. He could feel his cheeks turning a little pink as his eyebrows furrowed. "A--ah, um," he stuttered, was a bit dazed before he realized that he hadn't said his order yet. "Um, the strawberry cucumber limeade, sho," he answered before his lips turned into a frown as he was debating inside his own mind, looking at the menu. He nodded to himself after two seconds, looking up to the runner as he said, "Can I get a vanilla ice cream and some wasabi on the side as well?"
Masaru nodded in agreement. “Absolutely! You have a really cool hair colour. Pardon if this sounds rude, may I know if that’s natural?”
“Hey, don’t trouble him,” Kuroo started again with his elbowing. “Don’t ask if you think it’s rude!”
“But I’m curious!”
Strawberry cucumber limeade! Vanilla ice cream! Wasabi! Kuroo had to bite his lower lip to refrain from grinning wide but that made him look like he was making some weird creepy face instead.
“Vanilla ice cream, and wasabi, alright.” The youngster darted his eyes from his notepad to Kuroo, subsequently sending him a frown and a creeped out look. “Tettsan, you’re looking scary.”
Crap, don’t point that out, Masaru! Kuroo couldn’t help it, alright? That combination of order were just too cute! It was just too cute! Did Makishima like colourful drinks? Different kind of tastes together? Why was he so interesting? Why?! “S-Sorry, I was just.” Come on, think of something. “Remembered something funny, that’s all.”
Masaru gave an eyebrow lift at that reasoning. “I’ll repeat your order. Two plates of gyoza, two plates of nankotsu, mix yakitori set, ginger highball, strawberry cucumber limeade, vanilla ice cream, and wasabi. Is there anything else?”
“Not at the moment. We’ll call you again!”
“Roger that. Oh, feel free to use the menu stand if your menus are in the way.” Masaru was ready to turn away from them, but decided to stop on his steps and say what was in his mind at the moment. “Kuroo-san, if you keep grinning like that, he will get scared, you know? Master told me you don’t have many friends, you’ll lose another tonight.”
Kuroo laughed. This was probably why he got along with this part-timer very well, even if they didn’t meet all that much. “Shut up. Run along now, little one.” Said person sighed at him, before disappearing towards the kitchen. Truth to be told, this had certainly helped him to relax from all the excitement and bashfulness. Guess he had to thank Masaru, sort of.
Makishima couldn't help but be swept by the atmosphere created by Kuroo and Masaru, chuckling at the exchange between the two as he scratched the side of his cheek. "It's not, sho. But I've had this color since high school," he answered, subconsciously tucking a few loose strands of hair behind his ear. His hair was something he'd always been proud of and he would probably never change it. The combination of colors as well as all the possibilities he could do with its length was something he'd become too attached for ever since he'd dyed and grown it over the years. Smiling at the thought, he had his shoulders relaxed as he gazed and listened to the runner repeating their order… that was, until he mentioned Kuroo.
The green-haired turned his head and was, to put it simply, quite amused at the face Kuroo was pulling right now. It was similar to the one he'd shown earlier when Makishima had agreed to join him for a drink, but it seemed that this time the younger was trying harder to suppress it. Makishima covered his smirk behind his fingers though it was apparent that they weren't doing a very good job at it. As he heard what Masaru had said before going away, the smirk on his face widened and his eyebrows started to furrow further, making his expression more and more unreadable. A quiet snort followed by an amused sigh escaped Makishima's lips at Kuroo's reply, as he watched the runner disappearing behind the kitchen doors.
"Don't worry, I don't think you'll lose me tonight," Makishima said with a smirk after Masaru had left, a smirk that quickly turned into a small frown after realizing how strange it sounded… Ah, whatever, Kuroo probably knew what he meant--well, he hoped so. He then proceeded to loosen his tie a little as he opened his shirt's top button and let out a sigh in relief, ah, that was more like it. He usually had no problem with ties and collars, but today it felt a little stifling after the long day, well, months they'd had. He closed the menu in front of him and tapped it twice on the table before putting it into the stand, all his attention to Kuroo now.
It was indeed difficult to read Makishima’s expression, but Kuroo would like to believe that his senior wasn’t at all uncomfortable. If anything, the tone of his voice sounded normal. It was embarrassing to examine his face too much, you know. That was what he initially thought, but the other Tetsurou in him begged to differ. ‘Are you some high school girl in love or something? Stealing glances, really? Man up and just look at him, Kuroo Tetsurou!’ Now that Masaru had left them alone, it was his chance!
Just when he decided on that, Makishima had to send a K.O. punch to Kuroo’s puny heart. His eyes dilated, heat shot straight up to the top of his head. His face turned a darker shade of lurid red as his mouth gaped, in search of words to respond to that, but there was nothing. Nothing. He wasn’t prepared for that. He wasn’t prepared for Makishima to say something like that. Yes, he was well aware his senior most definitely didn’t mean anything with his words, but that was still a surprise attack he couldn’t counter.
Shit, shit, say something! His eyes darted to his left, then right, before finally hid behind his own hands. “T-Timeout, please,” he stuttered out. Holy crap, he could feel that his face was burning. He ought to make up some reason for his strange reaction, but before all… he needed to calm down.
It was one of the more rare instances that Makishima did not avoid eye contact with the person he was conversing with, which was why he was able to notice Kuroo's reaction right away. Huh? His eyes shot open at Kuroo's noticeably beetroot face, eyebrows furrowing at Kuroo's gaping mouth. Huh? What? Did Makishima say something? He tried to remember his words, the gap between his brows narrowing by every second. His sentence did sound strange, but did it warrant this reaction? Was it because he loosened his tie? Was Kuroo sensitive to the sound he made when he tapped the menu into the table? Or was it something else that he didn't know he'd done just now? Which one was it?
What Kuroo had said afterward did not help the state of confusion Makishima was in. Scratching the side of his cheek, he felt his back stiffening into a straightened back. Blinking in confusion, curiosity, and a little excitement to see something that he never would've even imagined, Makishima stared at Kuroo's face as the younger's eyes were darting left and right. It took no time for him to notice that even after a while and with the not-so-bright lights, he could still see the dark color on Kuroo's cheeks, and that could not mean well. Kuroo, however, hid the color pretty quickly with his palms. Huh. Timeout? Timeout from what? "Um, okay, sho," Makishima replied because, well, what else could he say in response to that? Makishima stared at the man in front of him one more time, trying to make a decision to speak up or not while looking at his face--well, the back of his hands. The fingers on both of his hands found one another, tips starting to touch and tangle around each other as his mouth curved into an unintentional frown. "Um, are you okay?" he finally decided to ask, carefully.
Kuroo kept his eyes shut behind his palms, trying to calm his loudly pounding heart. Oh yeah, a highschool girl he was indeed. But seriously, who would see that coming? He took a long, deep breath that he eventually huffed out.
Hearing Makishima's words, his brain started racking for something, anything to respond with. "Um, yes," his hands slid down to cover his nose and mouth area instead, revealing his eyes and parts of his rosy cheeks. "Sorry, I just didn't see that coming." While he wasn't able to see Makishima in the eyes just yet, he realised it was weird to stay the way he was. "Don't mind me, I'm just..." No wait, he gotta lighten up the mood! Where did he keep the salesman Tetsurou file at again? Put those hands away and look him in the eyes! Like how you face those businessmen and big CEOs! "Man, Shima-san. Don't do that to my heart, okay?" There you go. Now onto some believable reasonings... "If you say cute things like that you'll steal my heart away." Shit. The hell was he saying? Was he some dude working in a host club? Mentally punching himself in the face, Kuroo tried to pull his best grin. Forgive him, Makishima.
"Um, the drinks sure are taking a while," he looked away, hoping to catch a glimpse of Masaru to get the salvation he needed from the hole he digged on his own.
As soon as Kuroo's hands slid down, Makishima was exposed to Kuroo's red cheeks again, though the color had toned down from earlier. "Well… if you say so," he mumbled under his breath, fingers hadn't stopped playing with each other all the while. He eyed Kuroo curiously as the younger had begun to start what seemed to be an explanation, or well an attempt at it.
Had Makishima mentioned how much he admired Kuroo's speaking skills? (Yes, yes you had many times now.) He'd never seen the taller stuttering nor being hesitant before, everything he'd said was said with such confidence and charm and everyone seemed to have no other choice but to willingly go along with him. A perfect salesman. This was actually the type of person Makishima would usually not get along with, but Kuroo… Kuroo was kind of different. Different as in he felt like Kuroo's confidence wasn't too overwhelming, his charm was subtle but enough to attract Makishima. He always spoke with such ease like words were air and talking was breathing. That was why, he really should feel bad when he felt like smiling as he saw Kuroo stuttering and seemingly having difficulties with words for a while now. No, not the way that he looked down on Kuroo, of course! It was just… interesting and unexpected, and if there was one thing to know about Makishima Yuusuke, he really loved seeing and experiencing the interesting and unexpected.
But huh, okay, wait a second there. What? Makishima scoffed a little at the words leaving Kuroo's mouth, scratching his cheek rather sheepishly, chuckles following not a second later. He was starting to get comfortable in the atmosphere and the distance between him and Kuroo, enough for him to voice out his thoughts, "Do you say that to everyone, sho?" The words weren't meant to be accusing, though, it was just one of his usually hidden snarks under his quiet nature. Hopefully the smirk on Makishima's face was enough for Kuroo to notice it wasn't a serious question.
Makishima almost raised an eyebrow at Kuroo's statement--it had only been maybe three, four minutes since the runner had taken their order, it could hardly be called 'a while'. But maybe the service was usually fast here, and maybe Kuroo really wanted that drink. Makishima didn't blame him, though, he really wanted something to freshen up his mind right now as well. His eyes glanced toward where Kuroo was looking, then slowly exploring the interior of the room as he admired it again, what a nice choice of decorations, he thought with a smile. What he felt was a few seconds were actually probably a lot longer, because as soon as his gaze reached the kitchen door, it caught a glimpse of the runner walking with a few drinks on a tray in his hands.
On a normal day, Kuroo would’ve been able to catch the snark as something that Makishima jokingly did, with the visible smirk and all. But today wasn’t a normal day, nor was he on his normal state either. Flustered, worried, panicked, and now that was another critical hit. “Iー Whatー Noー O-Of course not, I would only say this to you!”
Shit.
He had gone and done it. Over. His life was over. Freaking hell Kuroo Tetsurou, why should you be so useless at such a grave situation? Oh no, he did well, he digged his own grave. Darn it! What to do now? “I meanー” Crap. What to do… He had to change the topic somehow. His eyes darted to his right and left andー thank goodness, the saviour was coming! “Great! The drink is here!” Very unnatural, even he was cringing at how terribly orchestrated this whole sequence was, but he was just going from bad to worse, and desperate to somehow pacify the situation.
Well, that was a response Makishima didn't expect. He would've thought Kuroo was joking back at him if it hadn't been for the stutter and the panicked expression on the junior's face. If Makishima hadn't known better, he would've guessed that... He snorted at his own thought. Nah, there was no way that Kuroo was actually serious, was there? But still, the thought, as ridiculous as it might have been, made him feel a little ticklish inside. Kuroo was one of the few 'okay' people in the world to him, and the thought that he might like Makishima even a little made him feel both happy and embarrassed.
The green-haired could feel the tenseness in Kuroo's voice as he was panicking next. Seriously, if Makishima hadn't known better—he sent another small scoff at himself, slightly shaking his head. Seriously, what were you thinking, Makishima Yuusuke. As the thought passed by his mind, Masaru had arrived at their table with their drinks among others' on the tray in his hands. "Sorry to keep you waiting! Here's your strawberry cucumber limeade," the runner said, flashing a smile toward Makishima's direction, which the long-haired answered with a small bow. Masaru then turned his head to Kuroo, putting the taller's drink in front of him, "Ginger highball for yo—" he stopped mid-sentence, raising an eyebrow at Kuroo's current expression. "Tettsan, what's up with you today? You keep making weird faces..." Nice, Masaru! Makishima was getting kind of curious, too. Stirring his drink with the straw a little, he turned his head back to Kuroo, waiting for a reply.
Thank you, thank you, Masaru-sama. From now on you are dubbed the saviour and the guardian angel of Kuroo Tetsurou. Thank you for gracing us with your presence. Thank you. Sigh, if only Kuroo could say this aloud, he’d give Masaru some back pats or something if it wouldn’t be too weird at this moment. That was what he thought when suddenly the attention was back to himself with the question that Masaru launched.
Masaru! How could you betray your designated human! You were supposed to be a guardian angel! (No, Kuroo just decided that on his own.) Damn, he couldn’t keep this up. Well thanks to the shock he became much calmer right now and he’d believe he was slowly turning into his normal face? Probably? Okay, chill Kuroo Tetsurou, chill. “Weird? What are you talking about?” Feign the innocence, feeeeign it. Right now Kuroo couldn’t decide if he wanted Masaru to stay here longer with them or leave the two of them alone. Because Masaru might ask questions like what he asked just now, but if it were to be just the two of them Kuroo wouldn’t know what blunder he would make again. Crap.
“So how have things been here? Business been alright?” Okay yes good, steer the topic away, get Masaru’s attention off it.
Huh, had the reaction earlier only been Makishima's imagination? Because Kuroo was now already back to his normal face, well, still a bit different than usual but closer to normal. He gave Kuroo a glimpse before he glanced back to the runner, who still had an eyebrow raised at the answer. "You definitely had a weird face just now," he said, but seemingly decided to shrug it off as he eyed Kuroo, then Makishima, then Kuroo again in silence, face slowly getting back to his normal expression. The black-haired's next question, however, made him furrow his eyebrows again. "Tettsan, it hadn't been that long since the last time you came here..." he said a little suspiciously. "But it's been as usual, there are busy nights and not-so-busy nights, same old same old," he answered anyway, though his face seemed like he was in the middle of thinking of something right now. Hmm.
Makishima sipped a little of his drink with his straw, watching the conversation happening in front of him. Okay, that wasn't only his imagination, then. Kuroo really was acting weird... Hmm. He wondered why. Was he tired?
Just as Makishima thought of that, a customer from another table raised her hand toward Masaru, and the runner seemed to be reminded again of his own job. "Be right there!" he said to the customer, then held the tray back up as he turned his head back to the pair. "Sorry, gotta go. Enjoy your drinks," he paused, then took some time to look at Kuroo's face and Makishima's again. "I'll be back," he said somewhat mysteriously before going away to fulfil his duty.
"It feels long, okay," Kuroo argued. "I’m sure it was at least two months when I last came." Well, a month to be exact, but the project must have made him feel the time was much longer. The face Masaru made was kind of bothering him, though. That was some serious look. Was he going to ask some questions again? But Kuroo was soon relieved from his worry as Masaru was called over to another table. "O, oh, yeah." Right, drinks! He hadn’t even had a sip of his ginger highball. Thank goodness, he now could calm dowー Wait. The last words Masaru left them got Kuroo worried again. What? He’d be back? Why did that sound very suspicious? What was Masaru planning? Kuroo knew he was a mischievous one but…
Aaaah, whatever. Kuroo chugged his highball in a go, finishing half of the glass in no time. "Phew, that was good. How’s your drink, Shima-san?" He would deal with the worry later, right now it was just him and Makishima, he couldn’t afford being weird for the rest of the night. Stay calm, Kuroo Tetsurou. You weren’t some high school boy anymore.
Makishima thought Masaru's last words were a little strange—well the way he'd said it was a little strange—but he shrugged it off though his eyes were still following the runner as he'd walked away. Kuroo's sudden movement in reaching and chugging his drink, however, made Makishima's attention turn back to the junior again. He smiled secretly at the way Kuroo was drinking, maybe the guy had really been tired that day. He nodded slightly to respond to Kuroo's question as he tugged some strands of hair to the back of his ear—something that he very rarely did despite the length of his hair—then leaned down to take a few more sips. "It's good, sho," he answered, eyes glancing at Kuroo for one second before he looked at the glass again, stirring it slowly and for some reason a bit nervously. It seemed that the thought he'd had for a flash second earlier had made him feeling a little more embarrassed than usual.
Good. That was natural. Great! Kuroo internally sighed in relief that they were returning to the pace and feel of their normal conversation. The edges of his lips curved up in bliss. “That’s great to hear,” he said, while half of his attention was caught by the slender fingers of Makishima tucking his hair behind the ear. Oh. Oh. This wasn’t the first time Kuroo saw his senior in this kind of hairstyle, but this was his first time paying attention to the exposed ears. Wow, why didn’t he ever take note of them before? Man, they’re cute.
...Wait, no, no. He shouldn’t stare too much, that would be creepy. Come on, if you have time to do that, think of something to talk about. A topic, a topic. Ah! Kuroo slid his glass towards Makishima’s direction, smiling. “Do you want to try a little?” Makishima did say he didn’t drink, but maybe he’d like to taste a bit of it! In fact, Kuroo was curious as of why he didn’t drink, not that it was a weird thing or anything. “I like it because it makes me feel all warm inside. Like, a comfortable type of warm.” It seemed like when he didn’t try to find it, Salesman Kuroo file would just pop up by itself. Or was it simply an occupational disease? “Oh but, just, if you’re interested to!” Hope he didn’t come off as insistent ー he wouldn’t want to force Makishima into anything.
The stare Kuroo was giving him made Makishima becoming a bit conscious, was there anything on his face? He rubbed the side of his cheek in reflex, the left one then right, but seemed like there was nothing. He glanced back at Kuroo, who had stopped staring and was instead offering him his drink. Makishima scratched his neck briefly, eyelids batting slowly at the half empty glass in front of him. If he were to be asked whether he liked alcohol or not, he would probably answer yes, yes he liked it. He especially liked it mixed into something else, chocolate or coffee or tea for example, but alcohol by itself was good, too. The reason why he refrained from drinking in general was because he was very, very weak toward them. He got so easily light-headed just after barely a glass, plus he'd heard a few... stories from people who had to deal with him when he had too much to drink. While Makishima kind of liked the taste of alcohol, that feeling of like wasn't strong enough for him to want to experience that again.
But you know what? It had been a while since the last time he drank something. He kind of missed the taste and hey, who knew? Maybe he'd become more tolerant after not drinking something in a long time now (no, Makishima, it was the other way around... Well he sort of knew, but he wanted an excuse to have a sip of Kuroo's drink). "Oh, um. I'll have some, then," he replied, slightly nodding as he reached for the glass. He stared at it for a little while before he put the rim of the glass on his lips, slowly taking one gulp of the beverage. He took his time before he let the alcohol leave his taste bud and into his throat. Ah, right, this was how it tasted. Just like Kuroo had said, it was warm, of course the alcohol too but the ginger played some part as well. Okay, now put that glass down. And so he did, sliding the glass back to Kuroo. "Um, it's pretty good, sho," he said with a lack of descriptive words. "Do you, um, want to try mine as well?"
Kuroo was getting ready to say ‘please don’t worry about it’ when Makishima’s totally unexpected answer came, leaving his mouth slightly open. With that atmosphere just now, he was sure a rejection would come, but nope. On top of that it didn’t sound like Makishima was forcing it ー well, at least Kuroo felt and hoped so?
Needless to say, Kuroo kept his eyes on Makishima’s every movement. He’d like to be extra sure that his senior was feeling comfortable. Yeah. That was his only intention initially, but... man. He really was deeper in these affection than he thought. A little late to realise but indeed, he was finding every little gesture Makishima did endearing. Gosh, he really was gross, he admitted that to himself. Covering his hand around his own mouth to refrain himself from looking like a creep, he could feel the vibrations of his own lips trying to hold back a stupid smile. There were hints of awkwardness, but also elegance in the way Makishima consumed the drink, even when he put the glass down. Bea… beautiful.
No, no, no. Come on, snap out of it already, Kuroo Tetsurou! "A-ah, it is? I’m glad! Feel free to drink more, Shima-san. I’m sure I’ll order more of this anyway," Kuroo gestured his hand. However, it didn’t take long until his business smile was wiped from his face. What did Makishima just say? He froze on the spot for a couple of seconds, before voicing out a rhetorical question, "I can try?" Well, Makishima wouldn’t offer it if he didn’t want Kuroo to, and while Kuroo was fully aware of that, he felt it was right to ask anyway.
His hand hesitated for a moment, before slowly reaching for the glass. “Excuse me,” he muttered with a slight nod ー subconsciously mirroring Makishima’s action from earlier ー as he brought the glass up to his lips. One gulp, two gulps. Ooh? He had never tried this before, what a refreshing taste! Down was the glass put with a quiet sigh leaving him. “You have a great taste, Shima-san,” he said, his usual grin making its comeback. “I should order this one later on too.” That made him feel a lot better, actually.
Yeah, he really missed this taste, Makishima thought as he let out a quiet sigh under his breath. But no he shouldn't drink more, nope, he told himself, forming a rather awkward grin toward Kuroo's direction. "Thanks," was his only short answer to Kuroo's offer. The green-haired nodded a little when Kuroo asked, and watched him drink from his glass. Makishima didn't even know why but he felt a bit... tense as he eyed the younger drinking his drink. He also didn't know why that tenseness turned into relaxed shoulders and a short, relieved sigh when Kuroo seemed to like the mocktail. He grinned sheepishly at the compliment as he reached for his drink again, one hand stirring the straw in his drink, the other tapping its fingers lightly to the glass. The liquid vapor wet the tips of his fingers, chilling right to his palms, and somehow it gave him a sense of calmness. He liked it.
Those slender fingers now found their way to his cheek, one scratching the side softly before trailing to his own lips, tracing them over absent-mindedly. He knew well that silence between him and Kuroo was always comfortable enough—it felt quite comfortable right now as well—but he felt like he wanted to talk some more with the junior. The problem was, he had no idea what to talk about as he was really bad at creating a topic or just... talking in general. Maybe he should just stay silent for a few more moments—"Uh." Ah, dammit, somehow his mouth decided to voice something out... It would be way too weird to stay quiet now. He scratched the side of his face once again before continuing after a pause, "Um, so... the project is finally over today, huh..." He tried.
Kuroo relaxed back to his chair as he continued watching Makishima closely, now that he regained some level of tranquility within himself. It was a little odd and surreal how while they were sitting on the same table, there was this mysterious aura oozing out of his senior like nobody’s business. There were a lot of curiosity, a lot of enchantment, a lot of something that disabled Kuroo from looking away. This had happened earlier too, but every single time he watched him, he would always get sucked into the world of Makishima, if that even made sense. Well actually, no, it didn’t, but it did in his mind. The serene look in his droopy eyes, the movements of his long pretty fingers, and his charming lips. They were all but a hand’s reach, yet he knew he couldn’t step over the barrier between the two. Not now. Not that he’d like to do that now, either. He wanted to stay in this calming silence forever. Though truthfully, at the same time, he wanted to know more ー learn more about Makishima.
Thank the heavens, though, that he didn’t have to break the silence. What timing! He had yet to muster up courage to do that. While the jitters and trembles he felt earlier had vanished completely ever since he had the drink, he could feel his heartbeat. Not too loud, but enough for him to feel it. Plus, he hadn’t even thought of what to ask yet. “Yes?” he responded promptly, maybe a little too quickly, and a little too eager. Makishima’s expression seemed to take an interesting turn, not that Kuroo could really tell what it meant, but there was some sort of… discomfort there? He blinked as he listened to what his senior had to say, eventually realising that they were on the same page. Okay, maybe what Makishima felt wasn’t as strong as his, but he was indeed trying to strike up some conversation, Kuroo at least could tell that much. Oh man, that made him really happy. “Yes!” he replied with a big silly grin on his face. Were those hymns that he could hear on his head? Hallelujah! “I couldn’t have made it if not for you, Shima-san. You’re a big time lifesaver. I could go on and on at how fast and detailed you were with your data compiling. Not to mention it was really easy to understand and was really organised. That really, really helped so much.” Before he knew it, he babbled through his fascination on Makishima’s work ethics. It wasn’t a secret though, his colleagues had heard him talk about it time and time again, it wouldn’t be surprising if Makishima himself had heard it from somewhere. The moment you activate that switch in him, he would go on and on. “I mean, you even made some cool suggestions too, I heard from the design department. The geometric shapes design was your idea, right? They should give you credits for that! I’m sure it went through because of that.”
The excitement Kuroo showed surprised Makishima a little as he made a small, weak attempt to smile back. Before he knew it, the younger had started wheezing through with a series of fascinated compliments that Makishima didn't even know where and how to begin reacting. He felt a flush starting to color his cheeks, shoulders tensing in surprise and awkwardness and probably a dozen other emotions that he could not pinpoint. There were some instances where he overheard his coworkers talking about Kuroo talking about him, and he really wasn't a fan of eavesdropping especially when people were talking about other people, himself included. Usually when it happened he would try his best to think of something else so he didn't have to listen, but when the words of Kuroo's reached his ears, it was very hard for him to ignore. While it wasn't the first time he'd heard of it, it was the first time he'd heard it directly from Kuroo himself, and it made him feel at loss of how to act right now. Where did he usually put his hands? Had he been leaning on the back of the chair or had he been leaning forward before this? Where should he put his gaze on? All kinds of things that usually would come naturally to him suddenly became so foreign that all he could do was scratching the side of his neck, eyes looking straight to the rim of the table in front of him.
It took a few seconds that felt a lot longer when Makishima finally let out a short snort with a grin that might seem too wide. "You're strange," he said without explaining what he'd meant by those words, sighing amusedly. It was true that he was always fast and detailed when doing his job, but he'd been told more than a few times that his reports were hard to understand. His dislike for writing was one reason, but it was also because his mind worked a little... different from people in general. Something that made perfect sense to him was often looked at with question marks by other people. He'd gotten better in compiling reports after years of working, but it was the first time he was told that it was 'easy to understand.' He scratched the back of his head when Kuroo mentioned about his design, nodding a little. "Yeah, but it doesn't matter. I like the end results, and it was everyone's combined efforts," he replied. He wasn't trying to be humble or anything, but he really didn't care much about things like 'credits' or 'being acknowledged by people.' It was the same as whenever he biked competitively, he didn't really care of being announced as the winner in public, all he cared about was he himself knew he was the one who won. "We couldn't have done it without you either, the negotiation was really smooth thanks to you," he said, meaning every word that he'd voiced out.
Even though Kuroo’s eyes were locked on Makishima, there were too many instances of them curving up as wide grin pulled his cheeks, sight blurring from the glee ー so thankfully for Makishima, the younger hadn’t noticed the uneasiness he might be showing. The remark made Kuroo straighten up and subsequently tilt his head, though. “Am I?” It’d be a lie if there was no curiosity behind his words, but he decided not to press further if Makishima didn’t elaborate. He gulped down the rest of his ginger highball with a loud satisfied sound, leaning back to his chair yet again. Ah, to be able to drink some good stuff with his favourite senior (read: crush) was driving him into a nearly giddy state. Okay, not too far gone yet, but he was happy. Very happy and content.
But it didn’t seem to take much effort for Makishima to violently jab another arrow to Kuroo’s maiden heart. Had this been a situation where Makishima couldn’t see what Kuroo was doing, he surely would have exaggeratedly grab his shirt and lament. Unfortunately, he had to keep his cool here. Well, he had at least (sort of) gotten the hold of not panicking and not getting unnecessarily red, but it didn’t stop tinge of pink creeping down his cheeks. “Shima-san, that’s,” he stopped midway, taking a deep breath. “That’s really cool, you know. You’re seriously cool.” Despite the fact that he had more control on himself (sans the lack of vocabulary choices), it couldn’t stop his feelings for Makishima to get affirmed yet again. He liked him. He really, really liked him. He respected Makishima so much in terms of work, but that wasn’t all. Beyond everything, beyond what was seen by the eyes, what was within Makishima attracted Kuroo so. Was he idealising Makishima too much? With how much he knew about Makishima at the moment, he couldn’t say for sure just yet, but even if he was and things changed, he knew this feeling would never change.
“Y-You’re giving me too much credit, Shima-san!” he chuckled after raising his voice a little in attempt to lighten up the mood. Or more like himself and his poetic (not) thoughts. “But, thank you very much.” An unforced, slightly bashful yet genuine smile formed on his lips. The kind words that Makishima uttered kept resounding inside him. They made him feltー “All the efforts feel worthwhile now.” ーyes. It really did. Kuroo quietly thanked himself for mustering up his courage to ask Makishima out for a drink. There were hiccups, and probably more to come, but this all felt really great now.
And with the ever-so-perfect timing, Masaru came with the dishes. “Here are your orders! Yakitori set, two gyoza, two nankotsu,” he called out each order as he gently arranged the plates on the empty spaces of the table. “Um, Makishima-san, would you like your vanilla ice cream and wasabi to be out now? If yes, I’ll bring them right away. I’m so sorry for not asking this beforehand.” He might be a playful one, but the reason Masaru was popular among the customers was his professionalism. He had to admit that teasing Kuroo was probably why he got distracted earlier. The particular regular patron had never been so flustered before, so Masaru couldn’t help but have a little bit of fun. Noting the empty glass of Kuroo’s, he asked, “Would you like more ginger highball, Kuroo-san? Or would you like something else?”
“You sure are very observant,” Kuroo beamed. “I’ll have gin rickey then, Masaru-kun. Thanks.”
Oh? Seemed like Kuroo had considerably calmed down compared to his weird way of acting earlier. “Gin rickey, alright. Going for all the highballs tonight, Tettsan?” A snicker left Masaru’s lips, before leaning to whisper at Kuroo. “I’m not sure what’s going on but, all the best.”
Kuroo’s own words seemed to be backfiring at himself as indeed, Masaru was very observant. “Eh?!” his voice flipped an octave higher from the surprise. Was he that obvious? Crap. He could only pray that Makishima was oblivious. Unsure of what to say, he just muttered weakly, “O-Okay...”
Like some smooth host, Masaru winked at Kuroo before turning to face Makishima. “Oh and, would you like anything else, Makishima-san?”
Kuroo had been giving him nothing but compliments ever since they came here, and as much as he'd already known how much the taller liked praising people, it still embarrassed him a little. Oh, what was he saying, it embarrassed him a lot. His hands on the table started to find each other, fingers tangling uneasily for a few moments before one hand reached to scratch the side of his cheek. A bashful smirk shaped his lips as he did so, his shoulders that were tensed from awkwardness started to relax again. "I don't know why you say that but, um, thanks, sho," he said quietly, taking another sip of his drink.
Makishima had no idea what was it, but there was something in the way Kuroo smiled and said his words that tickled him slightly inside. He knew he'd had a soft spot for the younger for a while now, but he didn't know that it was enough to make him feel... strange? He didn't know how to put it into words, really, but if there were anything one needed to know about Makishima Yuusuke, it was that he liked strange, and he liked it by quite much. Tapping his fingers a few times to the table, Makishima spent a few more seconds to stare at Kuroo before breaking into another smirk, settling his skinny back into the back of his chair.
Alright, to be honest? Makishima was a bit... not annoyed, okay, maybe surprised by the sudden appearance of Masaru, he was just beginning to let himself be flowed into the atmosphere, after all. But well, it wasn't bad that their food was there, he didn't know that he was feeling quite hungry until the whiff of the food Masaru was placing on the table reached his olfactory sense. Oh, that smelled nice, Makishima nodded to himself. The question from the runner blurred his thoughts as he turned his head, nodding to answer. "I'd like them now, please," he answered, then continued to reassure the younger, "Um, it's okay, sho. Thanks." He paused for a moment before asking again, "I'd like a small plate as well, um, please." He couldn't wait to try out the combination, he'd tried gyoza with ice cream and wasabi with ice cream before, but never the three at the same time. It ought to be interesting.
He watched the exchange between Kuroo and Masaru, noting of how good the younger guy was at his job, and then having his ears perked by the mention of Kuroo's new order. Maybe it was because he'd tasted it just now that he kind of... wanted to order a drink for himself. But no, who knew what would happen if he'd had a glass for himself, he didn't want to trouble his junior later on. But if just—no, if you wanted some drink, you could buy a bottle and have it home later, Makishima Yuusuke. Not here and not right now.
Alright, his determination had turned rock solid now, Makishima tried telling himself. Now time to—sho?! His eyes shot open at the sudden high voice from the man in front of him. His eyebrows furrowed and his eyes blinked, wondering what had just happened. From the way Masaru was leaning down to Kuroo, it looked like the runner had just whispered something to his junior? Kuroo looked kind of uncomfortable with it and for one second Makishima wondered what made him like that.
The question from Masaru, once again, stole his attention. "Ah—no, thanks, that's all, sho," he blurted out without much thinking. Aw, there went his chance to orde—oi, hadn't you said your determination was rock solid, Makishima. Masaru nodded at the green-haired's response and said, "Then I'll bring your ice cream and wasabi in a sec!", bowed a little toward the two, gave Kuroo another quick smile that could be read as both playful and encouraging, then turned his body to continue his job.
Darn it, that brat really knew how to rile him up. Kuroo waved his hand in a ‘shoo-shoo’ gesture at Masaru with an amused smirk, which eventually melt into a bright smile when he turned to look at Makishima. “Let’s eat!” Though he knew this already, the food here always looked and smelled so good! His stomach was growling now. After putting his hands together, he didn’t hesitate to grab a yakitori stick and hold it out to his senior. “Please try this one, Shima-san! I guarantee you, it’s super tasty. Like, seriously.” It was probably one of his favourites from here — so was everything else he ordered — but he wanted Makishima to try the one he found best for starters first. It probably would go well with Makishima’s drink, too!
Makishima scratched the side of his cheek, seemingly unsure by the offer. "Really? Um," he said, blinking. But seeing Kuroo's seemingly excited face, he averted his gaze a bit before attempting a smile, looking back to the younger as he took the yakitori from his hand, pinky brushing against Kuroo's fingers. "Thanks, sho."
He was just about to bite into it when all of a sudden, something in his pants' pocket startling him so much that his shoulders jumped slightly. Oh, it was just his phone... He sighed quietly, knowing all too well who it was from, but well he'd just check for the heck of it... Yep. Nope, he wasn't dealing with this right now. He closed his oldie flip phone again, putting it in his shirt's pocket this time, not rejecting but not accepting the call either.
"Oh, um, this is really good, sho," Makishima said after he took a bite of the yakitori, again attempting a smile although now it turned more into a smirk. He was about to take a second bite, but his phone vibrated again.... Sigh. Ignore, ignore... And again. This time he rejected it... But the call came in again before he could even close his phone. He sighed. It might just be faster if he'd received it. Makishima gave Kuroo a subtle nod to excuse himself as he pressed accept finally and— "MAKI-CHAN?! WHY DID YOU REJECT MY CALL?!" Holy shit, with that volume, Makishima was pretty sure even Kuroo could hear it. "You're too loud, sho!!" the green-haired, unfortunately, going with the flow, was also loud. Not so much, but he never let out a voice of that volume in front of most of his coworkers, if any. It seemed that his voice startled some people in their surrounding as they turned their heads toward Kuroo and Makishima's table, and the shorter's cheeks pinked in embarrassment and guilt.
Apologetically bowing toward Kuroo, Makishima turned his body away from the other patrons, hand covering his mouth and the phone's speaker. "What is it, sho?!" he hissed, followed by, "Yeah, yeah I know! Yeah, I'm eating well. I'm eating now but you called... Yeah. ...Yeah." The expression on Makishima's face, as well as his tone of voice, took a gradual change over a short period of time—from completely pissed off, to mildly okay, and now he was actually smirking quite fondly. "Kuha, alright. You too, sho. ...Yeah. See y— no." Aaaand we're back to irritated face. "I'm hanging up now."
With that, Makishima really pressed end call, turned off his phone altogether, then put it back to his pants' pocket. Turning his body back toward the taller, Makishima leaned his head forward a bit to apologize. "Um, sorry about that," he scratched the side of his cheek, then took the yakitori that he left thanks to his freaking 'rival.' "Thanks, sho. This is really good."