Marriage Of Convenience [Part 4]

word count: 1569 || avg. reading time: 7 mins.

pairing: post-time skip!Kuroo x chubby!Reader

genre: fluff, friends to lovers, slow burn, slice of life

warnings: spoilers

synopsis: Marriage is not a big deal, right? Anyone can do it and it comes with a whole lot of benefits! That's why your friend proposes to you one morning with all the elegance and romance of an empty pudding cup.

[Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3]

He knew it was only a matter of time until his wedded bliss would encounter its first stumbling block. And it would only take two months for it to return from a business trip. 

“Did you put sprinkles in your granola?”

“I’m an adult with free will, what are you gonna do about it?” “You know what, you’re so right. Can I have some?”

Tetsuro pushed his bowl closer to you so that you could, with a superior smile, add some of your advanced granola to the rest of his plain yogurt. 

Asana watched it all unfold, a knowing squint darting between the two of you over lunch at the office cafeteria, “You guys are cute together.”

You looked offended, but Tetsuro noted, “Honestly, I agree. We’re so good at marriage. I don’t understand why not more people do it.” 

“Lack of convincing PowerPoint presentations, probably.”, you said wisely, and Tetsuro shrugged in agreement, then finished his bowl and got up, “I gotta run. Meeting with Maeda.”

“Enjoy.”, you said unenthusiastically and Asana waved. 

“We should go by that Italian place tonight on the way home.”

“If you manage to get out of that meeting without another double date invite, I’ll even pay.”

“You’re on.”

As he walked away with his tray, he halted for a moment to talk to someone, greeting him happily, and then that someone came to your table. 

“Hey, long time no see.”, the newcomer said, brightly. 

“Oh! Welcome back!”

The young man took Tetsuro’s empty seat next to you and as he dug into his rice bowl, he asked, “Anything happen while I was gone?”

Asana exchanged a meaningful look with you that silently pleaded if she could be the one to tell him. You smiled and nodded, and your friend leaned casually back in her chair and announced, “Nothing much, just a whole wedding.”

“A wedding?”, the man asked, surprised, “Who?”

“Kuroo.”

“Kuroo? Wow, I didn’t even know he was seeing anyone.”

“And y/n.”, Asana added as if in afterthought. 

The man turned to you in disbelief. 

“You got married, too?”

With leisurely grace, Asana sat back up, elbows propped on the table and her chin resting on the back of her now entwined fingers, savoring the moment when she said, “To each other.”

You still chuckled to yourself at Hayato’s reaction. The shock and stuttering congratulations the news were usually met with, hadn’t gotten old so far. You were standing in the break room later that day, tapping around on the coffee machine for your afternoon special - hot chocolate with an espresso shot. 

“Hi again.”, Hayato said and joined you, grabbing an empty cup from the overhead cabinet, waiting for the machine to finish your drink. 

“Hi. I’m so glad you’re back, actually. I have a proposal I could use a second pair of eyes on, please?”

“Sure thing.”, he replied. 

“Thanks! I’ll wait at my desk.”

“Y/n.”

“Hm?”

You turned back around. The earthy smell of his freshly brewed coffee slowly streaming into his mug and the low hum of the machine filled the space between you. 

“You’re really married?”

Tilting your head a bit in surprise at the question, you confirmed. 

“You’re not wearing a ring. And I never knew you guys were… you always said you were just friends.” He didn’t sound accusatory, just confused, and you didn’t understand why until he said, “Guess I missed my chance with you, huh?”

“What?”

He took his full cup from the machine. 

“I even brought you something back from Italy. But with your husband… I don’t know now if it’s appropriate to give a gift to a married woman.”

He rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand while you were too stunned to speak. 

“Of course you can, I don’t mind. That’s super thoughtful of you, thanks, man.”

Tetsuro came up behind him and patted him on the shoulder. The impact or possibly the embarrassment of being overheard made Hayato startle. 

“Ain’t that nice, darling?”

Tetsuro looked from Hayato to you. He seemed and sounded relaxed so once you’ve gathered your thoughts into a neat little stack after it was pushed over like a wonky Jenga tower, you nodded and said, “Very nice. Thank you, Hayato.”

Tetsuro followed the two of you back to your desk where he busied himself with Asana, most likely pretending he was working, because Asana was clearly not paying attention to what he was saying, opting to eavesdrop instead on the conversation that now turned to the aforementioned gift. 

Hayato reached into his pocket and held out his closed fist to you. When he opened it, you noticed Tetsuro and Asana behind him craning their necks to see. 

It was a keychain. You figured it was supposed to be cute. It was a pink, round little piggy with rosy cheeks and a wide smile. 

“I saw it, and it reminded me of you.”, Hayato said, trying his hardest not to sound flirtatious - not that he needed to worry. You couldn’t suppress your frown completely and asked, only half jokingly, “I remind you of a pig?”

“No!”, he called out immediately, “That’s - I mean. No. I just… it looks so cute and happy and -“

Kuroo and Asana watched him fumble from one desk over, clearly giddy with barely contained laughter. 

“Hey, we have to go this way to the restaurant.”, you said, catching the strap of Tetsuro’s bag to halt him in his long steps. 

“I don’t really feel like Italian anymore.”

“Alright.”, you said slowly, letting go again, “What else are you in the mood for?” 

“How about some nice seared pork, hm?” With that he led you determinedly down a side street crammed with different BBQ places, walking straight into the next best one advertising pork, leaving you to follow with a shaking head. 

He didn’t say anything about the incident until the dessert came. You were just admiring the beautifully plated mochi and berries, when he muttered, “It’s odd, right?”

“What is?”

“He clearly knew you were married, and yet he still confessed to you. What’s that about?”

“I didn’t see it so much as a confession as more …”, you paused, looking for the right word.

“A sneaky seduction attempt.”

You snorted, “No. I think he was just trying to be nice while also sort of… clearing his conscience, I guess? Plus, what does it matter anyway? Before we got married, we agreed that if one of us finds the one, we’d just get divorced again, no hard feelings.”

“He is the one now, is he?”

“No, you know what I mean. I’m saying that we specifically agreed that dating isn’t prohibited.”

“You wanna date him? Pig guy?”

“Tetsuro.”

“Y/n.”

“It was just… nice to be wanted, that's all. It was nice to know someone liked me.”

“I like you.”

“You know that’s not the same.”

He sighed. “I just think it’s sleazy to hit on someone married.”

“And with that, you’d be very correct.”, you raised your glass to toast him, “Come on, Tetsu, let’s not fight. Please?”

“Fine.”, he clinked his sake to yours. 

“One more thing.”, Tetsuro came to lean in the open bathroom door while you brushed your teeth. You had made it all the way home, watched some TV for a while, then each of you took a shower, all the while being almost back to normal. You should have known it wasn’t over yet. Not stopping your brushing, you turned to him, arms crossed as much as possible, ready to spit your toothpaste at him if he was being an idiot again. 

“I don’t think you should date him. Think about it. At the office, we’re very clearly and indisputably married. It would look weird if either of us”, he made sure to highlight that part, “would date around within the company.”

He had a point, annoyingly, so you nodded. 

“Okay.”, you mumbled through a mouthful of foam. 

“Okay?”

“Yeah, okay.” 

“Alright then. Sorry about earlier. About my…”

“Temper tantrum?”

“Misplaced reaction.”, he preferred. 

“Uh-huh.”

“You know I just wanna look out for you, right?”

“Yeah, I know.” 

“Good. Hug?” He opened his arms questioningly, and you took your sweet time to rinse your mouth and toothbrush, putting it neatly into your cup and drying your face before you accepted. 

“Come on, I’ll walk you to your room.”, he said, and gently wrangled you a few steps down the hall before you managed to escape his bear hug. 

“Night.”

“Sleep tight.”

Tetsuro made to leave to go to his room, and his eyes fell on the key hooks by the door across from your room. 

“You should put the pig on your keys.”

“Nah.”

He turned around to look at you. You casually hung at the door, swinging it a little from side to side, not meeting his eyes but staring at the hooks instead. 

“I got my keys sorted just right, and I don’t want it too cluttered. And it’s such a pain to attach things to a key ring, you know. Just got my nails done and everything. Wouldn’t make sense.”

“Of course.”, he grinned, “By the way, be ready tomorrow at 9 am sharp. We have to go somewhere.”

And he walked off. 

“Go where?”, you asked, leaning out of your room to watch him. 

“Ring shopping!”, he announced before closing the door to his bedroom behind him.

art: @freaka_loonyz on Instagram, X, Pinterest and TikTok

taglist: @etsuniiru @nocaffeineallowedtome @princessshart @aldebrana @grassbutneo @melimelisworld @yatoatyourservice @ranscutedoll @remiratboi @armeenix

Marriage Of Convenience [Part 3]

word count: 1749 || avg. reading time: 8 mins.

pairing: post-time skip!Kuroo x chubby!Reader

genre: fluff, friends to lovers, slow burn, slice of life

warnings: spoilers

synopsis: Marriage is not a big deal, right? Anyone can do it and it comes with a whole lot of benefits! That's why your friend proposes to you one morning with all the elegance and romance of an empty pudding cup.

[Part 1] [Part 2]

The night was exhausting before it even started, but now, one air hockey match and half a wine tasting later, you felt your social battery blinking in alarm. The other couple went back and forth between bickering and focusing all their attention on you and Tetsuro in an attempt to hide their arguments. They were leaning as far away from one another as possible while also resting their elbows on the table to be closer to you, holding onto the conversation like a lifeline. It was very clear they depended on your presence to remain somewhat civil amongst themselves.

“There is this pottery class that I’ve wanted to try out for so long.”, Mrs Maeda said with an all too telling sidelong glare at her husband, “And now that we’ve found another DINK couple we can even do the 6-week course, what do you say? - I’m so happy that you two are finally official. It was so obvious you were in love. I remember telling Satoshi that I knew there was something going on between you last year.”

This was beginning to feel awfully reminiscent of the company dinner where the consensus seemed to have been divided into “never saw that coming, I didn’t even know you guys were dating” and good-natured “oh my god, you were so obvious about it! I was thinking just say it already!”. Tetsuro and you had tried your best then to be polite and not look completely confused about your colleagues and even your boss having suspected you two to be involved. You were doing the same now, but Tetsuro had other questions, “What’s a DINK couple?” He frowned in your direction, hoping you could spare him having to ask the others but Mrs Maeda had overheard and grinned and with a casual wave of her hand she said, “Double income, no kids.”

“Obviously.”, you muttered sarcastically under your breath so only he could hear and Tetsuro pressed his lips together, clearing his throat to hide a chuckle.

“Ah, I see.”

“Unless of course, you are planning to have kids. Or are pregnant already?”

Mrs Maeda looked at you and her eyes insistently flicked down to your belly that sure enough looked plush and round bulging in the sitting position like this and back up to your face as if wanting you to confess. You didn’t feel the need to point out to her that you were on your second glass of wine and chose to answer with another demonstrative sip of alcohol.

She seemed to have noticed the mistake or just didn’t care for a reply when she changed the topic, “Do you guys have pictures of your wedding?” There was no pause for you to possibly answer - she went on, ”I remember ours was so magical. We had two separate wedding singers because I just couldn’t decide and Satoshi only wanted me to have the best. We had a large buffet and a champagne tower like in the movies. Our cake was a simple vanilla sponge with fresh strawberries and a champagne buttercream…”, she trailed off, hands clutched in front of her chest while she stared at a point somewhere near the door, “I wore this elegant dress with a long train and a veil that was clipped into my hair with a tiara. I felt like a princess.”

Mr Maeda plopped an olive into his mouth, not taking part in this stroll down memory lane.

“What was your dress like?”

“We didn’t have a big wedding.”, you said, “We just went down to City Hall.”

“But… the dress…”, the other woman’s shoulders sagged in disappointment.

Luckily, her husband and the overall crumbling economy came to the rescue, “Those weddings are free, right? Very smart. Saving the money for the future and not wasting it all on one silly day.”

Mrs Maeda snapped her head to her husband, a definite twitch in her brow.

“Silly day?”

While the other relationship slowly imploded in front of your eyes, you threw a look to your left and you relaxed a little. At least you had Tetsuro there.

You hailed a taxi just as the rest of the group spilled out of the restaurant behind you, some less sure-footed than others. It was unsurprising that after Mr Maeda’s comment, the mood had turned from awkward to icy, and the last twenty minutes were spent watching two of your colleagues downing significant amounts of wine. With Tetsuro’s assistance, you helped the other couple into the car, waving uncomfortably before signaling for your own ride.

You both sighed in unison as you slid into the backseat and gave the driver your address.

“That was…”

“Yup.”, you said, really emphasizing that p.

“Did you hear, Satoshi said we should do this again as we were leaving.”

“God no!”

He chuckled, nodding.

You looked out the window onto the other cars and city lights going by, deep in thought.

“We’re not gonna be like this, right?”, you asked suddenly.

Tetsuro started, surprised at the question.

“Like what?”

“So… bitter and resentful to each other.”

He offered a small smile and squeezed your hand that rested on the empty seat between you, “Of course not. Don’t worry.”

You returned the gesture, before slipping your left hand out of his warm palm. He pulled his right back to his lap and followed your example of calmly watching the outside pass.

“Are you hungry?”, you asked after a red light, turning to him again. The “dinner” at the wine bar mostly consisted of a few pieces of cheese and olives. You had never made it to the steak course after all.

“Starving.”, he grinned.

“How about pasta? Or - ooh! - curry? Or maybe sushi? Hm, definitely taiyaki, though.”

Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced at you and asked with a playful smirk, “Pregnancy cravings?”, then had you join in his laughter when you slapped his arm.

Kuroo felt a familiar itch in his hands as he watched the practice from the sidelines. Hinata sure had grown - maybe not exactly in physical height, but in his abilities. With an almost proud expression, he watched his former rival easily receive spikes and feints his other team members threw at him and all too happily would Kuroo have taken off his suit jacket to join them. But he came with a different agenda.

“Did you see that last one?!”, Bokuto called excitedly as he and Hinata jogged over to him during a short break. The blonde setter joined them curiously, resting his arm on Hinata’s shoulder.

“I did. You’re getting more dangerous by the day.”

Bokuto flexed, very satisfied with his friend’s answer.

“So, not that we’re not pumped to see you, but what are you doing here?”

“I wanted to confirm the dates for the training camp.”

“That could have been a text, bro. Or an email if you wanted it official. Why make the trip?”

“Cause I wanted to see your face in person when I tell you I got married.”, Kuroo shrugged.

Silence.

Then, “WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAH!!!” Hinata obviously short-circuited.

“You WHAT?!”, Bokuto yelled.

Kuroo was pleased - definitely worth the two and half hour trip by train.

Although he would have loved to fool his friends a bit longer and maybe even pretend to be deeply hurt that they hadn’t cared enough to come to the wedding, he told them the whole story. There wasn’t much to it other than bureaucratic gain, so they were quickly caught up.

“I didn’t know you could do that.”, Bokuto said thoughtfully, “Just marry someone like that. I thought there’d be a quiz beforehand or something, if you’re compatible and happy and stuff. And how well you know each other.”

Kuroo shook his head. “If you ever get tired of dating you should try it. Saves a lot of taxes, too. Marrying your friend is the best, I’m telling you.”

Atsumu had listened intently and began eyeing his teammates at those last words.

Bokuto and Hinata were already sizing each other up as if silently trying to decide which one of the two would be responsible for the dishes and who for the laundry. The setter turned on the spot, his eyes finally focusing on Sakusa who only stood a few meters away, water bottle in one, phone in the other hand.

He didn’t even look up when he said, “Forget it. We’re not even friends.”

The apartment was already dark when he returned that night and he was careful not to make too much noise when shrugging off his coat and putting away his bag. He flinched when his phone dinged in his pocket and the sound echoed through the hallway. It was a text from you. “Is that you? Did you just get home? Or are we being burglarized rn?”

A smile spread across his face at the thought that you waited up and he walked to your door to knock. Dim light emanated from the narrow gap at the bottom and he opened it when you called for him to enter.

“Hey, how was the trip?”, you asked, clearly tired. Tetsuro leaned in your doorway, hands in his pockets, taking in the sight of you sitting up in your bed with a book on your lap.

“Very good. Bokuto says Hi.”

“Hi back, even though we’ve never met.”

“Should rectify that these days.”, he said more to himself than to you, then added, “I brought you something.”

You sat up a little straighter, most of your fatigue gone. “Is it a puppy?”

“Close. It’s cake. I’ll put it in the fridge for you to have tomorrow.”

“Why wait?”

“You stay in bed.”

“But… but cake. It could feel abandoned, all alone and cold amongst the vegetables and fish.” Your eyes turned round, along with your pout.

“I’ll bring you a fork, alright?”

You nodded excitedly and smiled. “Share it with me?”

“Lemme take a shower first. - I’ll be quick, I promise.”, he said upon seeing more pouting, “And you have to catch me up, okay?” He pointed at the book in your hands, earning a cheerful salute.

With a towel still around his neck to catch any remaining droplets from his damp hair, Tetsuro hopped into your bed next to you, long legs on top of your comforter, cake and two forks in hand. As you detailed the current plot twists of your book between bites he thought again how this marriage thing really was the best decision he had ever made.

art: @freaka_loonyz on Instagram, X, Pinterest and TikTok

taglist: @etsuniiru @nocaffeineallowedtome @princessshart @aldebrana @grassbutneo @melimelisworld @yatoatyourservice

a/n: Thank you to @haikyu-mp4 mp4 for allowing me to talk at her about this continuously. And thank you so much to the people who have been so sweet in the comments and reblogs - it means a lot 🫶🏻

Marriage Of Convenience [Part 2]

word count: 1926 || avg. reading time: 11 mins.

pairing: post-time skip!Kuroo x chubby!Reader

genre: fluff, friends to lovers, slow burn, slice of life

warnings: spoilers

synopsis: Marriage is not a big deal, right? Anyone can do it and it comes with a whole lot of benefits! That’s why your friend proposes to you one morning with all the elegance and romance of an empty pudding cup.

[Part 1]

While it was Tetsuro’s turn to host lunch the following Saturday, you sat at his kitchen island on his laptop, pouring over yet another form. 

“Who knew marriage came with this much bureaucracy?”, you huffed out. 

This one was from JVA’s HR department who wasted no time wanting you two to update your name, emergency contacts, marital status, and home address. 

He hummed in agreement as he diced an onion, trying his hardest not to breathe and just squint at the vegetable to avoid any sting in his eyes. 

After successfully transferring it into the hot pan without a single tear, he turned to you, wiping his hands on the front of his apron. You were still filling in boxes here and there when he stepped behind you and studied your entries thus far. 

“Why did you put your apartment as our home address?”

You swiveled your stool, challenging eyebrow raised. 

“Because my place is better.”

“And how do you figure that?”

“Because you come over every morning for breakfast, that’s why.” You began listing, counting on your fingers for emphasis, “It has a balcony, a great kitchen, big friendly windows,”

“You make it sound like my home is a prison.”

“Mine is closer to work-“

“By like three minutes!”

“Our favorite bakery is right across the street and the rent is just about the same. There is no contest, really.”

“I have an extra room.”, he said simply, walking back to the stove and stirring the onions now with a wooden spoon. Your eyes followed him as you spun back around. 

“Why would that be a good argument? I’m not planning on reproducing with you.”

“Okay, rude. And also, so you want to sleep with me in the same bed, is that it?”

Your fingers froze over the keyboard and your superior smile, formed by sure, premature victory, fell and a pout took its place. 

“Man…”, you tapped the backspace repeatedly to clear the designated line, muttering, “I didn’t wanna move, it’s so much work.”

“That’s what you have such a big, strong husband for.”, he grinned and straightened up to showcase how broad his shoulders were, then kind of deflated back into his normal posture as he peeled potatoes, “And besides, we can do that during our honeymoon.” 

You shrugged and nodded in defeat as you put down his address. Upon learning of your marriage, the company had swiftly provided three extra vacation days for this coming week as a gift to the newlyweds - this was no surprise to you as it had been one of the highlights in the marriage presentation. 

With an overly loud groan, Tetsuro placed the last box on the floor by your bed, only to immediately collapse onto your mattress. It was still wrapped in heavy plastic to protect it during the move and crinkled when he sat up on his elbows. 

“You know, I think now is a fantastic opportunity to revisit our plan for the office.”

You pulled a couple of books from a box, thinking if maybe it was time for a new sorting system of the shelf.

“Wifey? You there?”

“You really gotta stop with that.”

He smirked when you rolled your eyes, “But why, if it annoys you so much?”

You ignored him and pondered, weighing a book in your hand, “Okay. Office. Hmm… To be fair, what is there that we don’t do already? We go for lunch together most days, we talk, we joke, we go home. It’s not like Japan is known for its PDA.”

“True true. But instead of walking in as per usual, we could hold hands. I really can’t have people think I’m not affectionate with my-“, he paused upon your glare before ending with, “oh so lovely wife.”

“Okay. Hand-holding is permitted. - What do we say to friends?”

“You can tell them whatever you want.”

“Even Asana?”

She was your best friend in the entire world after all and even the one who introduced you to the recruiters at JVA a couple of years ago. Now she sat at the desk next to you in the office. 

“Sure, as long as you swear her to secrecy.”

“I’ll even pinky swear if that makes you feel better.”

“Actually a lot better, thanks. - Ugh.”, he dropped back down with an exhausted sigh to fully starfish on the mattress for a moment, then sat back up, “Alright. Imma take a shower and then be a good hubby and get started on dinner. Just tell me, if you need any help.” He got up and walked towards the door, then stopped and flexed unnecessarily, “Especially with building stuff or changing light bulbs.”

“All good, I can manage.”, you replied without looking up. 

Tetsuro tilted his head, “Over dinner, we’ll need to have a serious conversation about your aversion to this whole marriage role-play.”

You laughed and used the door in his back to push him out. 

On Thursday then, the first day back at work, you tried your best to peek around the giant gift basket your coworkers had gotten you. To not look ungrateful by putting it below the desk on the ground, you had resigned yourself to push it as far to the table’s edge as possible, but it was simply so big that it was still somewhat in the way. At least now, it was only slightly limiting your ability to do your job. The huge flower bouquet that had accompanied the basket was no longer covering half your screen since Tetsuro, under many bows and thank yous, placed it in a pitcher with water on the window sill. 

“Here.”, Asana said, rolling over a little cabinet that previously had stacks of important documents on top of it. Those documents were now precariously placed by an already wonky mountain of binders. 

Together with her, you heaved the basket onto the cabinet where, although centered, it hung over on all sides. 

“I’ll never get this back home on the train.”, you observed, while Asana leaned against the corner of your desk. 

“Don’t you mean we, darling?” Tetsuro just came back from the break room and replaced your empty cup of coffee with a new, steaming cup of tea. You rolled your eyes and Asana laughed - you had filled her in the moment she came into the office that morning, pouting that she hadn’t been invited to the wedding. Safely hidden in the supply closet, you had explained to her in urgent whispers, how the whole situation came to be in the first place and detailed how just that morning you and him had stood in front of the office building, looking up at the many windows reflecting the early light. After a moment’s silence, Tetsuro then adjusted the bag that hung over his shoulder and held out his hand to you expectantly, and you had taken it with minimal hesitation. You had held his hand before a few times when you two maneuvered a crowd at a fair or in a shopping mall, but this was definitely not the same. And he wasn’t satisfied with just holding your hand, but instead slipped his fingers between yours. Apparently, he had read somewhere that couples in an equal, loving relationship held hands this way. You felt your palm getting sweaty, nervous about the impending charade. It was a perfectly valid, legal marriage, of course, but you knew that if anyone found out about the motive behind it, raised eyebrows would be the least of your worries. You told Asana how you thought everyone you passed was staring (they were not) and how people must be whispering about you to one another (they weren’t). In reality, no one even noticed until you reached your department, and that’s when the party poppers and cheers erupted. 

Now, Tetsuro fished a stray piece of confetti from your hair and balanced it on his fingertip in front of your nose. 

“Make a wish, darling.”

You cocked an annoyed brow, a gesture that had risen exponentially in use ever since you’d moved in together. 

“That’s for eyelashes, you dork.”

“If my wife wants something, she shall not be limited by arbitrary things like eyelashes and shooting stars to wish on.” 

You sighed and unceremoniously puffed the confetti off his finger. 

“Go away.”

Under another snort of Asana, Tetsuro bowed and as he did, began walking away backwards. 

“As you wish.”

“That’s who you married.”, Asana pitied with a chuckle. 

Under your breath, you muttered, “Don’t remind me.”, sending both of you into another wave of silent laughter. 

“Miss L/N. Oh! Apologies, Mrs Kuroo. - Ha, that will take some getting used to.” Your boss sauntered over, causing Asana to quickly detach herself from your desk and return to her own seat, pretending to be busy while listening in, “I was just talking to your husband.” He unnecessarily waved in Tetsuro’s direction a few meters away, and he waved back with a wide smile, “I suggested to him that to properly celebrate these wonderful news, we should all go out tonight for a drink. And he told me to ask his wife for permission.” You threw a quick glare past your boss to Tetsuro, who was still waving idiotically. 

“Of course, sir. That… that sounds nice. Thank you very much.”

“Wonderful. I’ll make reservations right away. Don’t you worry about a thing!” And with that, he practically skipped away. 

It took about two more weeks for the excitement around the newlyweds to die down. Gradually, people stopped emphasizing your new surname or ooh-ing whenever you two went to lunch together, now awkwardly holding hands. Day by day, normalcy returned to the JVA headquarters and even casual closeness to Tetsuro came much easier to you. The performance was mutually dropped as soon as you left the company parking lot, and you hardly missed your apartment anymore - only when Tetsuro loudly sang in the shower. One Friday evening, you shuffled home alone, having had to work overtime for a project you were in charge of. After reassuring him you had it under control, you sent Tetsuro off to his workout routine, promising to meet him at home with dinner ready. For once, he spared you an overly teasing comment about how domestic this was of you and instead left with a simple, “Thank you. See you later, darling.”

You couldn’t wait to be home and slip into something more comfortable than the tight pencil skirt you wore today, the waistband of which always pressed uncomfortably into your handfuls of tummy chub, especially after spending so many extra hours hunched over proposals and schedules. Letting the sweatpants snap into place, you let out a happy sigh and made your way to his - to your - kitchen to see if you could find something to snack on while cooking. 

The string cheese was slowly getting hoovered into your mouth while you poured the marinade over Tetsuro’s beloved mackerel when keys jangled at the front door. 

“Kitchen!”, you called before he had a chance to look for you. Shoes were kicked off in the entryway and a moment later Tetsuro rounded the corner, taking a seat at the island. 

“I have good news and bad news.”, he said instead of a Hello.

“Oh no.”

“The good news is, I met Mr Maeda at the gym and can easily outlift him.”

You snorted, almost losing your cheese, and frowned. Your snack safely tucked in the corner of your mouth, you asked, “And the bad news?”

“He invited us to a double date with his wife.”

art: @freaka_loonyz on Instagram, X, Pinterest and TikTok

taglist: @etsuniiru @nocaffeineallowedtome @princessshart

a/n: Once again, thank you to @haikyu-mp4 for keeping me sane while working on this and for helping me edit.

[Part 3]

Koko's new birthday outfit!!!

dis u @ranscutedoll

NEW TOKYO REVENGERS ANIME IMAGE RELEASED!!!!!

The season is in progress rn

When your husband’s knee got worse again, you didn’t hesitate to push him towards physiotherapy. Oikawa might huff and puff at the idea of adding “useless” training to his already packed schedule, but he did enjoy you fussing over him - almost as much as you coming along to the gym.

While he endured various stretches and bends and holds under his therapist’s constant instructions, Tooru opted to distract himself with a much more welcome sight, blending out the ever-persisting encouragement from the man next to him.

To offer your husband something to focus on other than the dull throbbing pain that he was usually so good at ignoring, you made sure your own little workout always brought you close to his current exercise. He greatly enjoyed watching you work up a sweat, bopping your head to your shared playlist, your tight gym outfit showing off all the plush curves and rolls he never stopped worshipping. Once he finished up his sessions he would always miraculously appear by your side to hit on you as if you’d never met.

xavier | 11:53 PM

"Xavier, is that you?"

"Yeah."

You hear the front door close gently, and it's immediately followed by the shuffle of heavy footsteps heading towards you. You look up from your phone, which you had been scrolling mindlessly on for the last hour, to see Xavier, still in his uniform, standing at the end of the sofa.

Before you can greet him, you see his knees buckle, and he falls face first onto the sofa, his face just landing next to your thigh, his long legs dangling from the arm rest.

You gingerly place your hand on his head, your fingers finding their way into his light hair.

"Xavier," you whisper his name, trying to stop him from falling asleep.

He grunts, the few syllables he tries to say muffled by the leather of the sofa. Then, you start to hear him snore.

"Xavier," you say, a little louder, giving the hair in between your fingers a soft tug.

He rolls his head to the side. "Tired," he mumbles, his eyes closed. "Sleep now."

"I know," you say, starting to get up from the sofa. "But you're still in uniform. Can you at least take a quick shower, get into some comfortable clothes and then go to bed?"

He gives you no answer. Instead, another soft snore escapes his lips, and you roll your eyes to yourself, before walking off.

What you are looking for is right in front of you, go and get it ✨

😐😐😐😐😐😐😐😐

a precious treasure

—

Sylus holds you securely against his body with one arm under your butt while his other hand carries your purse and heels. Your own arms are wrapped around his neck as you nuzzle into his neck, sleepy but trying your best to stay awake. Sylus drops your heels and purse on the floor with a soft thud, before he tucks you in his bed, his black blanket covering your entire body leaving your face sticking out from it.

echo park be reading your soul sometimes

Marriage Of Convenience [Part 1]

word count: 1705 || avg. reading time: 7 mins.

pairing: post-time skip!Kuroo x chubby!Reader

genre: fluff, friends to lovers, slow burn

warnings: spoilers

synopsis: Marriage is not a big deal, right? Anyone can do it and it comes with a whole lot of benefits! That’s why your friend proposes to you with all the elegance and romance of an empty pudding cup.

The honey drizzled in deep golden ribbons onto the still warm buttered toast. The first signs of spring were in the air and the thickly plumed sparrows chattering on your balcony outside the kitchen window, hopping from railing to empty plant pots, almost drowned out the noise from the busy road down below. In typical Monday morning fashion, you only half-paid attention to your breakfast while you scrolled through your emails, picking out the important from the irrelevant and barely took note of the front door opening. Shuffling footsteps hurried along the short hallway. A few moments later, Tetsuro plopped down across from you, snatching a grape from your plate.

You looked up from your phone with a cocked brow when he took a second one, and he held your eyes questioningly, the grapes still bulging out his cheeks like a hamster, “What? You want them back?”

With pursed lips, you pushed your plate to the middle of the table and bit off a corner of toast, still scrolling.

“Did you see the email from Mr Maeda?”

Testuro nodded, “That guy really has nothing better to do on a Sunday than count coffee filters and complain about the office’s excessive caffeine consumption.”

You got up to quickly reheat the kettle for a second cup of tea, “I’ll have to go to the downtown office this morning, but I should be done by lunch. Wanna meet up at that new sushi place?”

“Sure thing. - Oh! Also, I went down quite the rabbit hole last night and I wanted to run something by you.”

“Is this a “I can’t believe pandas ever made it this far” or more a “we should totally start our own quilting business” kind of rabbit hole?”

Steam rose from the spout of the kettle, and you began pouring it over the loose green tea you knew was his favorite.

“How would you feel about getting married?”

You almost broke your neck, snapping your head around to look at him, “What?”

“It’s not weird, I promise. I saw this video of a couple yesterday who talked about how they were tired of dating and annoyed that they were getting overlooked on apartment hunts, perks at work, always being hounded by their families about when they’d finally find someone etc. and so just decided to marry their best friend. And I looked into it, they’re completely right! The amount of benefits married couples get is insane! And don’t even get me started on taxes.”

The cup was by now overflowing, and hot water trickled steadily from your kitchen counter onto your house slipper. You didn’t notice it because you were still staring at him.

“You’re dripping.”, he informed you, helpfully.

With a little shake of your head, you returned to reality in which Kuroo Tetsuro, local office dork, just casually suggested marrying him over a half-eaten slice of toast and remnants of grape stalks.

He went and grabbed the dish towel from the hook by your sink and crouched down to wipe up the small puddle. As he did, he looked up at you, continuing, “Anyway, I figured since I’m not seeing anyone, and you’re also nowhere near close to marriage-”

“Hey!”

“I thought I’d ask.”

“Are you gonna randomly propose to other people if I don’t say yes?”

“I dunno, actually. - Don’t think so. Why?”

You took a deep breath and accepted the wet towel he held out to mop up the rest from the counter.

“Alright. I’m not saying yes, yet!”, you clarified quickly as he was about to raise his hand for a high five, “I’m saying: bring me some actual facts about this, not just social media hearsay, and then I’ll decide.”

“You got it. I’ll present my findings to you by tomorrow night.” He ended with his most professional nod, then smiled and began clearing your table so you could head to work together.

After the morning meeting, you heavily neglected your tasks to sort your thoughts. A spreadsheet was made and pros and cons began slowly filling in either side of the neat list.

You paused and looked at a small plant pot on your desk, deep in further consideration. Then you took to your keyboard again.

Your fingers stopped typing and after a heartbeat or two you deleted the last line, writing instead:

Much to your surprise, he didn‘t address the elephant in the room over lunch right away. Instead, you talked as per usual about this, that and everything, pulling small plates with bites of sushi from the conveyor belt in front of you. He had his tie flipped over his shoulder and the JVA lanyard was safely tucked in the breast pocket of his shirt to not accidentally dunk it in the little dish of wasabi and soy sauce in front of you. In your mind, you quietly added “good table manners” to the pro list.

“What’s up?”, he asked as he stacked an empty plate onto the ever-growing dish tower.

“Nothing.”

“Yes, there is.”

“Nope.”

“Come on, I might be your husband soon, we should be able to tell each other everything.”, he grinned.

“You’re very on board with this whole idea.”, you noted after a short pause.

Tetsuro made that smile he always did when he was about to deliver an awful pun, “One could say I’m pretty married to it, yes.”

You continued, unperturbed, “What about your dad? What would you tell him?”

“He likes you.”

“That doesn’t answer my question.”

“He’s gonna be fine as long as I am.” Tetsuro dipped the salmon of a nigiri in soy sauce and held it out to feed you - a poor attempt to distract.

“Don’t worry so much about it.”, he said to his very worried friend with a reassuring shrug when you took the bite, “He knows you make me happy. And that’s all there is to it.”

“I make you happy, do I?”

“Yeah, of course. What - don’t I make you happy?”, he grinned.

“Well.” With a raised brow, you pulled out your phone and, after a bit of tapping, turned the screen to show him your list.

Squinting a little, he produced his glasses from his pocket and put your phone on the table to scroll through the bullet points.

“Okay, first of all, I can’t see anything on here about my looks. That should be a major pro. Just look at these glasses.”, he gestured to the dark frames, “Don’t they scream office siren? That should definitely go into the pro column. You should write that not only am I gonna be an amazing husband but also some real eye candy”, under his breath he added, “which one might argue is the healthiest kind of candy.” He smirked at his own joke.

“That’s not relevant, though.”, you countered.

He disagreed, “It’s very relevant for bragging rights. I know, I’ll brag about you non-stop. Just look at how you did this Excel spreadsheet. Dream girl right there.”

“I know you’re joking, but I’m actually very proud of my skills, thank you very much.” You snatched the phone away again and answered his smile with your own. Maybe it really wouldn’t be so bad after all.

The following night, you settled in on his couch waiting for him to make his case, although, if you were honest, in your mind you were already picturing what life with him as a glorified roommate would be like. Tetsuro tipped on his laptop for about a minute, then rolled up his sleeves and turned on the TV. It showed the title card to a PowerPoint presentation by the name of Why You Should Marry Me. The next slide, reached by the click of a button from the little black remote in his hand, let you know that it was sub-sectioned into Perks, More Perks, Possible Issues and Even More Perks.

“Do you have any questions?”, he asked once the final slide read Thank you for your attention.

You took a deep, quiet breath, looking down at the empty notepad in your lap and back up at him.

“Nope. Let’s do it.”

He beamed and clicked the remote again. It jumped to a new title card: Guidelines For Our Happy Marriage.

Thanks to Tetsuro’s extensive research you had a list of needed paperwork ready to go and after a quick trip to your country’s embassy you soon stood in line at City Hall on Friday afternoon, both still in your office clothes, to get married. It felt much more like an errand than anything else, like popping into a convenience store on your way home from work because you forgot the milk on your last trip to the supermarket. Stacks of documents were signed and stamped, and once you were done, you received a coupon for a nearby restaurant as a gift. When you stepped out of the tall unassuming building, the last slivers of sunbeams peeked through the alleys and the streets were bathed in a subtle golden-gray glow. You came to a halt at the bottom of the steps.

“How do you feel?”, you asked.

He stretched his neck and rolled his shoulders as if looking for a crank somewhere. “No different. You?”

You shook out your body as well, more so to make fun of him than anything else, and shrugged, “Nope. All good.”

On your walk to the restaurant for your discount wedding dinner, you simply carried on your usual conversations about a book you were currently reading and thought out loud about what you would pick off the menu.

The only indication that anything had changed was that when you reached your table, he pulled up the chair with a slight bow saying, “Mrs Tax Deduction.” and you played coy and did a small curtsy before sitting down with the reply of, “Too kind, Mr Tax Deduction.”

art: @freaka_loonyz on Instagram, X, Pinterest and TikTok

a/n: sooo, here we are. I really hope you’ll enjoy this one ✨

Huge thank you to @haikyu-mp4 for listening to me ramble about this incessantly and for brainstorming and for helping me edit.

Bokuto Kotaro’s mouth was wide open as he stared at you and Kuroo, a couple of your shared friends scattered about the room. He was fighting against dropping the cake that he had just carried from the kitchen with the candles lit up for Kuroo to make a wish.

“I wish for things to stay like this, all of us together.” That was Kuroo’s wish, and saying it had made him automatically look to your eyes soft with something Kotaro wasn’t sure he’d seen in his best friend before. When you returned the lovesick smile with such rosy cheeks, your brother just knew.

“Wait, what?” Kuroo’s head snapped back to Kotaro holding the cake, smile not nearly as wide as it had been a second ago. “Are you two…”

When no one said anything except umm and ohh, Akaashi stepped in from the side. “Bokuto-san, I thought you knew.”

“You knew?” he whispered somewhat angrily.

Akaashi shrugged and pointed over his shoulder. “We all did.”

Kotaro’s lip wobbled. “I’m the only one who didn’t know my best friend is dating my sister?”

Kuroo put a hand on his shoulder, gesturing for Kenma to get the cake from Bo while he talked him off the ledge. “In our defence, they found out by themselves.”

Kotaro pushed Kuroo’s hand off, turning around and strolling down the hall. You took Kuroo’s hand instead, telling him to give the man five minutes to gather his thoughts.

No one knows your brother like you do.

“Mr. Bokuto?” you called through the crack in the door to the guest bedroom, your boyfriend standing by your side. “This is the FBI: Family of Bokuto Investigations. May I come in?”

Kuroo’s eyebrows were furrowed as he watched you, making you gesture that you’d tell him later, even though you couldn’t imagine how you’d explain this goofy thing you often did to cheer your brother up.

Kotaro’s head of hair was sticking up from beside the bed where he sat curled up on the floor. You spotted the tips of his hair and opened the door when he turned to look at you over his shoulder. There was a weak sniffle. “Yes, officer.”

“Thank you. I just need you to answer some questions for me about the incident.” Your stance was overly stylistic, and Kuroo had to cover his mouth so he wouldn’t laugh at how well you played the role. “Are you angry that Kuroo and I are together?”

Kotaro shook his head, arms still firmly locked around his legs.

“Are you angry we didn’t tell you?”

He nodded quickly, his facial expression getting even poutier.

“May I bring in my co-worker for further investigation?”

“Come in, Kuroo,” Kotaro sighed.

“Brokuto. My favourite Bokuto,” the charmer said as he came to stand beside you. After getting an elbow in his side at the favorisation, he squatted down to be closer to Bo’s height. “I should have told you, man. I’m sorry.”

He leaned his head back against the mattress to look at you, sniffling again. “I feel so stupid.”

You hummed, about to say you are a little stupid like the great sister you are, when Kuroo got ahead of you. “It’s all our fault; we were worried you wouldn’t like it.”

Kotaro blinked, lifting his arms in a gesture of disbelief. “Are you kidding? This is the best thing ever!”

You chuckled and kicked Kuroo lightly in the bum, making him trip forward onto Kotaro. This way, you could lean over and embrace both, pressing a kiss to each of their heads for good measure.

“Let’s stop all this pouting. We sillies need to stick together.”

masterlist

requested by @wordsofelie for my event, anything for you <3