Little Moon

“Dinner smells wonderful, already,” Kei said by way of greeting as soon as Daichi answered the doorbell.
“Come on in,” Daichi replied, moving aside for them to enter. Kei grinned at him and walked in, Eru’s little hand holding onto his fingers. “Koshi’s in the kitchen,” he said, taking Eru’s bag from Kei, and crouching down to Eru’s level. “Did you pick out your dress yourself?” he asked gently, smiling as she held out the hem of her purple and white gingham pinafore.
“Daddy helped!” she exclaimed proudly. “Eru picked shoes!” and she lifted one foot to show him her favorite pair of hot pink sparkly sandals.
“Very pretty!” Daichi praised her, looked up and winked at Kei, who was pulling a tiny pair of pink panda slippers out of her bag. “Do you know what we do before stepping up into the house?”

Eru squealed, turned and held up her hands for the slippers. She turned again, gingerly sat down, and began to attempt taking off the sandals. Daichi and Kei chuckled as she struggled with the little buckle. Moments later, Koshi poked his head out from the kitchen.

“Oh good, you’re here,” he said and gestured for Kei to hurry up. “Dinner’s mostly prepped, but I still need help with dessert. And then we need to get cooking.”
“Right.”

Kei toed out of his dress shoes and stepped into one of the pairs of slippers offered to visitors. He bent to kiss Eru’s head, and then stepped up into the house, leaving her with Daichi. Following Koshi into the kitchen, he went to the table and sat down. Koshi quickly gave him a cutting board, a knife and a vegetable peeler, and a large bowl each of veggies and fruit.

“I need the baby potatoes cut in halves, the carrots and parsnips cut into inch-and-a-half pieces, and the zucchini peeled in ribbons.”
“Yes, sir!” Kei saluted, and started with the potatoes. “What are we having, anyway?”
“Pot roasts,” Koshi answered. “Which are already in the roaster.” He opened it, and steam rose out of it, filling the kitchen with a lovely, beefy smell. He checked the roasts, and then replaced the lid. “Still need a little bit longer, and then once you’re done with the veggies, we’ll pop them in the oven for roasting.”
“I can’t wait to dig in,” Kei told him, slicing another potato.

The Sawamura’s house was like most Japanese homes, except in the kitchen. Unlike most homes, Daichi and Koshi had bought a western convection oven and had it installed. They did this mostly because it made cooking for their large family much easier. And because tonight was their night to host the old team for their monthly dinner and get-together, the oven was seeing a lot of use.

Kei quickly finished the potatoes, and handed them off to Koshi, who sprinkled in herbs, spices, and drizzled olive oil over them. That’s when he noticed the glass bowl with a damp towel over the top.

“Fresh bread, too?”
“Of course! Gotta have bread to sop up the gravy.”
“Sure, sure. But also just eating bread.”
“That, too.”
“I’ll need your recipes before we leave.”
“They’re written for six to eight servings.”
“I can redact them.”
“Oh, shoot! I forgot to ask: will Eru eat any of this?”
“Koshi, she’s been over here since she was a baby. You know what she likes and doesn’t like almost as well as I do.” He grabbed a bunch of carrots and started halving them. “Why are you even asking me that?”
“I mean, I do know, but I couldn’t remember about the parsnips.”
“She’ll eat them. She likes your food.”
“Okay. Crisis averted.”
Kei snorted. “Some crisis.”
“Anyway,” Koshi said as Kei chopped the carrots into the required size. “I invited Kuroo for dinner.”
Kei almost lopped off a finger. “What?”
“I invited Kuroo. He’ll be here at seven.”
“Koshi…”
“In my defense, I did try to stop him,” Daichi said as he stepped into the kitchen and joined Kei at the table, taking the bowl of fruit from him. Koshi handed over another knife and gave his husband instructions.
“Clearly, not hard enough,” Kei muttered. Finished with the carrots, he handed them over to Koshi. “Did you not think I could do it myself?”
“Do what, talk to Kuroo? And when were you going to do that?”
Kei growled. “I’d have done it. Soon. Maybe.”
“Uh huh. You’d have dragged your feet and found any possible excuse to postpone telling him everything. Tell me I’m wrong.”
“You’re…” Daichi leveled a look at him. “You’re not wrong. But Koshi…”
“I invited him here because he’s our friend, and you know how much our team has been friends with Nekoma. Since he’s in town, it only made sense to have him join us. As for your part, that’s still up to you. But I strongly suggest you take the opportunity being presented. You don’t know when you’ll see each other again if you don’t.”

Kei didn’t say anything to that, and began work on the parsnips. He was about half-way finished when Eru ran in looking messy and bedraggled. She held out her dress, stained with… well, he hoped it was just water, and her twin tails had all but come down. One ribbon was missing. She wasn’t crying, not yet, but she was clearly about to start wailing. Koshi took the veggies from him. Kei stood and went to pick her up.

“What happened, Eru?”
Tears started falling, and she started fisting her eyes. “Twins played in water.”
Cue Daichi also rising from the table. Kei followed him out, but turned down the hall toward the bathroom, Daichi would have already left her bag in there.
“Eru, didn’t I tell you to try and stay clean?”
“Yes, Daddy.”
“But you didn’t.” She shook her head and started sniffling.

Kei set her down and knelt on the floor, picking up her bag and fetching the spare dress out. She took one look at it and almost started to protest, but Kei gave her a stern look. He began to change her clothes. When he was finished, he gently cleaned her face, and restyled her hair into a french braid. Finally done, he turned her around to look at him.

“Try not to get messy again, okay, Eru?”
“Okay, Daddy.”
“You can still play, just be very careful.”
She nodded calmly. Kei smiled and tickled her, and then opened the bathroom door so she could go back to play with the twins. As he closed the door to change his shirt, he heard her little voice say, “You’re Kuroo-san! Daddy likes you!”

Kei decided he was never leaving the bathroom ever again.

~*~

[A few minutes earlier]

While Kei was in the bathroom tending to Eru, Daichi had answered the doorbell and welcomed Kuroo inside. The two shook hands, squeezing as hard as they could (for old times’ sake, of course). When they let go, Kuroo exchanged his shoes for slippers and followed Daichi into the kitchen.

“Hope you like pot roast and veggies,” Koshi said as he oiled and seasoned a mix of what looked like carrots and parsnips.
“If it tastes as awesome as it smells, you’ll have to keep me from making a pig of myself.”
Koshi and Daichi laughed. “There should be plenty for everyone. Most of the team is already on their way.”
“Cool! Who’s coming?”
“Let’s see,” Daichi said from his place at the table. He started rattling familiar names off, as well as children, and grinned at Kuroo. “Everyone except Hinata and Kageyama, Noya and Asahi.”
“Understandable for Hinata and Kageyama, but what about Noya and Asahi? Didn’t they come back from their travels abroad?”
“They did, but took off again when Noya’s granddad gave them tickets to England.”
“I should have gone traveling,” he said a little wistfully.
Koshi snorted. “Between me, you, and Daichi, we all know you wouldn’t have stayed away for long.”

Kuroo had to admit he was right. Now that he’d caught up to Tsuki, he knew that if he traveled anywhere, he’d be coming back home as soon as possible. He smiled sheepishly and shrugged guiltily, and that when he heard the shuffling sounds of little feet. He turned to see which one of the Sawamura brood had come to check on things, but was surprised to see Kei’s daughter standing there instead. She was dressed in a pastel pink pinafore dotted all over with little strawberries. Her blonde hair was done up in a french braid, and tied at the end with a pink ribbon, dotted with tiny strawberries. Clearly, she was Kei’s child dressed up like an adorable little strawberry. She probably loved them as much as her daddy did, which wouldn’t surprise him in the least. Kuroo smiled at her, and crouched so he would be on her level.

“Hello,” he greeted her.
“Hello,” she repeated.
“Is your name Eru?”
She nodded vigorously, causing a few blonde tendrils to shake loose from her braid. Then, before he could say anything else, her eyes widened and she pointed a little finger at him.
“You’re Kuroo-san! Daddy likes you!”
He acted surprised. “You know my name? Who told you?”
“Daddy did!” and she giggled. “Eru saw picture.”
“A picture? Of who?”
“Kuroo-san!”
“I hope it was a good picture.”

Eru giggled again and nodded. Then, she took a few steps closer, until she was right in front of him. She reached up hesitantly, and then touched his face. Kuroo stayed as still as possible, rooted to the floor. He never expected this. Most children hid behind their parents’ legs playing shy when they first met him. This little girl, Kei’s daughter, Eru Tsukishima… she placed her little hands on his face, with the most angelic little smile he’d ever seen.

“Eru likes you, too,” she said, patting his face lightly. Then, she turned and ran to whatever part of the house the twins were in.
“Well, that was a first,” he heard Daichi say, amazement in his voice.
“No kidding,” Koshi added. “Kuroo, clearly your gift for charming people also extends to children.”
“Not really,” he said quietly, still stunned. “She’d be the first to do something like that.”
“Interesting,” Koshi replied. “Well, maybe you’re just blessed.”
“Yeah. Maybe.”

Kuroo blinked out of his semi-stupor and slowly straightened up. He put his hand on the back of his neck, still not sure what to make of all that. He was about to turn around when he heard a door clicking shut, and saw Kei standing there, his face mirroring what Kuroo felt. There was no mistaking it; Kei had seen everything and was just as surprised, if not more so, than everyone else.

~*~

Later, after dinner was finished, people were beginning to leave the table and mill around, talking and catching up with each other. Kei was still seated at the table, drinking what was left of his soda. He’d already released Eru to go play again, making sure her face and hands were clean before she ran off. Now, he had a few minutes to himself before someone else came to talk to him. He’d need as much time to himself as he could get to prepare for later.

It really was good to see everybody, even if he saw them every month. Several of his friends almost always came to these get-togethers. Some only made it when their schedules allowed. Tonight, it seemed everyone had come by; even Coach Ukai and Takeda-sensei stopped by (within the last few minutes, but still), even though they couldn’t stay long. He lifted his glass to his mouth, and realized it was empty. Chuckling, he set it down again.

“Need a refill?” Kuroo’s deep, rusty voice came from beside him. Kei looked up, smirked at him and shrugged.
“Sure,” he replied. Kuroo set a frosty can of strawberry soda in front of him, and Kei opened it up, pouring the drink into his glass. “Thanks.” He held his glass up in silent toast, and took a sip.
Kuroo sat down in the chair next to him. “How are you holding up?” he asked, obviously trying to start a conversation.
“I’m alright,” he answered honestly. “Just watching everyone and catching bits of conversation.”
“You always were the quiet sort,” Kuroo smiled at him. “You were like this at camp, too.”
“Kinda surprised you remember that,” Kei grinned. “It wasn’t like I was anti-social or anything.”
“No, but you’d only engage with others if they started first. If invited anywhere, you’d go, but only if you were invited personally. Blanket invites didn’t count.”
“How would you…”
“I invited everyone in the 3rd gym to go out after practice. Hinata declined, as did Lev. You didn’t say a word, so I assumed you were coming.”
Kei blushed. “I didn’t know.”
“It’s fine. Turns out we didn’t go anyway.”
Kei huffed. “Did you just come over here to remind me of my awkward former self?”
Kuroo shrugged. “Have you really changed that much?”
“I like to think I have.”
Kuroo smiled. “Actually, I came over because you looked like you could use some company.”
“And you volunteered yourself?”
“Yep. Plus, you needed a drink.”
“Quite the gentleman.”
“Ah, yes… you’re still prickly and snarky, too. I like that about you.”
Kei raised an eyebrow, and Kuroo’s face took on a rosy hue.
“Finally confessing?”
“Finally…? Wait. Did you know…?”
Kei nodded and nearly laughed when Kuroo looked irritated and pouty at the same time.
“Who told you?”
“Kenma. Said he was tired of your pining, so he told me to do something about it.”
“That little…”
“What? Getting angry at your best friend now? After several years?”
“This has got to be the least romantic confession ever,” Kuroo muttered. Even so, he looked directly at Kei. “It’s true. I had the biggest crush on you since that first practice match. And after seeing you again at the park the other day, I realized it never really went away. I like you, Kei Tsukishima.”
Kei turned so that he was fully facing Kuroo. He couldn’t help himself; he did exactly what his daughter did a few hours earlier. He hesitantly lifted his hands to Kuroo’s face, patting it gently.
“Kei likes you, too, Kuroo-san.” He patted Kuroo’s smooth face once more, and then leaned in to kiss him on the cheek. “Kei likes you, too.”

He then stood up and left an absolutely stunned Kuroo in his wake.

~*~

While Kei helped Koshi, Kiyoko and Yachi with the dishes, Kuroo pitched in with a few others to help Dachi put away the tables and chairs. He couldn’t help noticing a few sly grins in his direction, nor could he possibly miss the congratulatory slaps on the back. Obviously, Kei’s entire team had been watching them.

“About time, Kuroo,” Tanaka said with a laugh. “We thought we’d have to do an intervention or something.”
“Good lord,” Kuroo muttered. “Did everyone know?”
“Well, yes and no,” Kinoshita answered, joining the conversation. “We knew Kei had a crush on you, but we kinda figured it was mutual when we caught you looking at him at camp.”
“Wait. How was I looking at him?”
“Like Daichi looks at Koshi,” Tanaka answered promptly.
“Like Hinata looks at Kageyama,” Narita chimed in.
“Like Noya looks at Asahi,” Ennoshita added wisely.
“Like Bokuto looks at Akaashi,” he said quietly, watching everyone around him nod their heads.
“Lovestruck, I think the ladies would call it,” Tadashi said as he came over with Daichi. “What we couldn’t figure out is why neither one of you did anything about it?”
“Both of them were just oblivious,” Daichi said, and everyone went “OOHH!!” at the same time.

Kuroo was jostled around by an obviously still rowdy murder of crows. This is why he’d always liked them, and stayed in touch as much as he could. These guys might scrap and pick fights with each other, but when it came down to it, they’d always have each other’s backs. And that also included a small litter of cats.

“Yeah, yeah, alright,” he grumbled good-naturedly as they started messing with his hair. “So now what? What do you guys do at these things after dinner?”

That question seemed to put a damper on everyone’s spirits quickly. No one said anything, but Tanaka turned as soon as Kiyoko came out of the kitchen. They walked over to the far end of the living room. A few minutes later, Kei appeared from the hallway, with little Eru on his hip. He looked like he was collecting himself, and then started to walk, finally joining the Tanakas.