Prompt: You and I
AU Where Kenma is Kuroo's adopted kid
Set during the current arc where Hinata and Kageyama are finally facing off each other for the first time since middle school. By the time I write they haven't start the game yet, the latest was Chapter 379
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Kuroo yawned as he fixed his hold on Kenma. Snuggling close with the child as the train slowly stop on the train station. He used one hand to pick up his bag and slung it over his shoulder, he made sure Kenma's bag was still attached to his back before slowly standing up and wait as the door open.
"Where are we?" Looking down, he met Kenma's eyes, still sleepy and exhausted from the train ride. Kuroo couldn't blame him. They almost never travel that far so early in the morning, but Tokyo to Miyaji was really far and they had to wake up early so they could make it to the game.
Yes, the game. Who knew Chibi-chan will be facing Kageyama in an official match. Those two together were famous for their Freaky Combo, moving along with the rest of their team like one connected chain that grew stronger every time you faced them. To see them in different teams with people that used to be their rivals sure was interesting. Man, Kuroo would pay to play on that game.
"Tetsu?" Kenma's voice snapped him out of his thoughts.
"Sorry, buddy," he answered, "we're in Miyagi now. Go back to sleep for a bit, I'll wake you up when we arrive."
Kenma nodded weakly. He snuggled up to Kuroo, burying his face at the crook of the man's neck and fell back to sleep.
Yeah, no, Kuroo from four years ago would pay to be on that match. But this Kuroo, would pay to watch Kenma grow up with a proper figure to look at.
Kenma come to Kuroo when he was two years old. The black haired boy was on his way to a zoo, a family recreation time when whoever up there decided 'well, how bout we give a little twist?' and the next thing Kuroo knew he was pulling a boy out of the back seat of a crashed car. People around him screaming orders for someone to get help the driver and the woman sitting beside him but all Kuroo heard was the heart shattering cry from the black haired boy on his arms. It wasn't until a woman pulled him aside, told him with a smile to calm the boy down that Kuroo started to do something. He held him close, whispering assurance that everything will be okay and no, you will never be alone, you don't have to be scared, it's going to be alright.
But it wasn't. Everything was not alright.
The two people at the front, his parents, didn't survive the crash, so was the driver of the other car that crashed them. To make it even worse, the boy he pulled out, Kenma, didn't have any relatives that can support him. So the decision for him to adopt Kenma as his own came rushed and unplanned.
Yaku had actually sat him down, looking at him straight in the eye and every carefully said that a child is a big responsibility, especially when that said child wasn't yours to begin with and you were just starting college. But Kuroo answered him with the same level of serious, yes a child is a big responsibility, but the look on Kenma's face every time he met Kuroo since that day told him everything he needed to know.
So now, six years later, Kuroo led a life his 18 years old self could not picture. He's a single father, working as a web designer and published a few short stories, and had completely left volleyball. But well, leaving volley doesn't mean you can't watch it, right?
Kuroo woke Kenma up when he could already hear the faint noise of a crowd. He could see the gymnasium from where he was standing, but waking up Kenma in a place filled with people will only cause the boy to be distressed. Heck, Kuroo was pretty sure waking up a kid so he can watch a match wasn't a good thing from the start, he could already imagine the glare Yaku will proudly gave to him if he were here.
Kenma was a shy boy from the beginning. He was quiet and mostly kept to himself and really lazy. But sometimes when you knew what he liked, you can grab his attention in a split of a second.
The black haired boy didn't even look tired at all when they reached the gymnasium. Although he still has his arms wrapped around Kuroo, his eyes peaked up to catch everything he could see. Kuroo thought it was adorable. The fact that Kenma also seemed to love volley made his heart did a backflip in the air.
"Well, look who we got here." He couldn't help but smirk as soon as he entered the gymnasium. At the side, behind a stall with delicious onigiri on a table, Miya Osamu stood. His voice seemed to caught Kenma's attention, because the boy soon turned to look at Miya Osamu before darting back to his hiding place.
"You're from Nekoma," Miya Osamu said, "Kuroo was it?"
"That's me," he grinned, looking at the onigiri, "how much for one?"
Miya Osamu listed of the prices for his onigiri, known to be really good if Kuroo wasn't mistaken.
"What do you think, Kenma," he nudged the boy a bit, "which one do you want?"
Slowly, Kenma turned to look at the displayed onigiri. His eyes surveyed through each ones until he pointed at the ones at the very right, tuna filling then. Kuroo bought three of those, adding apple juice for Kenma and mineral water for himself.
Miya Osamu counted the price and put them all in a bag. "I guess I can see why you suddenly disappeared from volley."
Kuroo smiled, taking the bag from him. "Well, as you can see, I got my hands full."
* * * * *
To be honest, Kuroo was rather amazed with the numbers of audience. It was packed and Kuroo was lucky to find two seats in the middle. He put Kenma beside him, still silent as usual but he sat a bit closer to Kuroo and had his fist on Kuroo's pants that he knew Kenma was excited.
He managed to ask Kenma to finish his onigiri, prompting him a few times to remember that his won't disappear if he doesn't finish it before giving him the apple juice.
By the time Bokuto came into the court yelling, Kenma was on Kuroo's lap for better view and Kuroo's bag filled Kenma's previous seat.
"Do we go all the way here to watch Bokuto play?" He asked, nose scrunched in disgust.
Kuroo thought it was hilarious. Bokuto had fallen in love with Kenma since he met him, but the boy didn't share the same feeling and instead grew closer with Akaashi, who couldn't come today because of work.
"Partially," he said, "but mostly because I wanna see those two." He pointed at Hinata Shoyo, then to Kageyama Tobio. He went on a bit on his history with them, how his school and theirs used to be rivals and still are.
"Man, I would love to be on one of their teams."
Kuroo knew it was the wrong thing to say when Kenma suddenly stiffened. But before he could say anything about it, the game started and Kenma was engrossed in the game.
To say he was impressed was an understatement. Both sides had greatly improved then their high school selves. Each of them moved as if they were one big body, connecting the ball with each other. Kenma almost fell from Kuroo's lap when Kageyama set the ball.
On the first time out, Kuroo tightened his grip on Kenma. He put his head on top of the boy"s.
"Are they cool, Kenma?"
"Hu'uh."
"Which one is the coolest?"
Kenma pointed to Kageyama, but then he pointed to Miya Atsumu, but then back again to Kageyama and he soon gave up. "I don't know. Those two I guess."
Kuroo smirked. Setters, then.
"You know Akaashi played that positions once."
"Really?" Kenma looked at him with curiosity.
"Yeah," Kuroo grinned, "he used to be on the same team with Bokuto." When Kenma's expression changed Kuroo couldn't help but laughed.
"Akaashi-san said you used to play before," Kenma said when the players started to come back to the court, "do you miss it?"
Do you regret taking me in? went unsaid, but Kuroo knew it was what Kenma wanted to ask. God, for a seven year old he's really perceptive. Kuroo wished Kenma would be more relaxed.
"Saying I don't miss it will be a lie," Kuroo answered, "but I don't regret taking you in."
Kenma looked up at him, ignoring the game. "Really?"
"Yeah," Kuroo looked at him, "you like volley, right? Do you want to play it?" When Kenma nodded his head Kuroo couldn't help but kiss his forehead, "then that's ok. I wanted to go pro, but I have you. You're my son, Kenma--"
"On the papers."
Kuroo pinched his nose lightly, "Same thing, papers or not you're my kid, my responsibility. I wouldn't mind if you continue my dream. Only if you want it, though. Play as much as you want, if you think you don't like it, leave it for something else."
Around them, the crowd cheered. For whose team, Kuroo couldn't give a damn.
"I don't regret taking you in. If it means you can grow up raised by the greatest person ever--"
"You're not."
"Hush, Kenma," he laughed softly, "the point is, I don't regret leaving this behind for you. Got it?"
Kuroo kissed his forehead once again when Kenma nodded. "Good, let's watch the game, decide which position you want to try and make sure to pay attention if Bokuto messes up."
Kenma giggled. He leaned back to Kuroo and watched the game in silence, commenting a few times when something he didn't understand happened. At the end of the game, Kuroo met Sawamura Daichi and a few others, greeting each other like old friends and introducing Kenma to them until Bokuto came running screaming for his favorite 'nephew', asking if he did great but soon turned sour when Kenma looked at MIya Atsumu instead and shyly said his play was amazing.
And well, if later on Akaashi grumbled at him for making Kenma taking interest in being a setter and asking him to play with him all the time, Kuroo regret nothing.