The Shape of Silence || Tsukishima Kei x Reader

Chapter One: Where To Start?

You really don't think about sound much. You brush it off. It's an everyday thing. Sheets rustling, music playing, birds chirping, trees rustling–etc.

You always take it for granted.

"Ey, Tsukki!" A glass bottle knocked against his own, making a clinking sound, and the blonde blinked up to look who it was. He really didn't need to, but he did anyways.

Kuroo grinned, and slid into the booth beside him. Bokuto and Akaashi sat down across. Akaashi didn't like drinking much, so he had some sort of iced juice instead.

"How's the kids?" Akaashi was the first to speak, jumping in before Bo could. "I heard you've taught them Moarse Code."

"Hm. It seems like some of my classified information got leaked." Tsukki drawled, his eyes flashing a milky gold as he cast an annoyed side glance at Kuroo. He put his hands up in slight defence. The blonde drew out a sigh. "Kids are great, thank you for asking. And yes, I helped teach."

"Helped?" Bokuto highlighted on that word, arching an eyebrow. Akaashi busied himself with trying to fish out an ice cube from his drink.

Tsukishima twirled the dink in his glass, the ice clinking on the edges. "Of course. I'm hopeless at it. Holding a tap for a certain length of time then pausing for another length of time just isn't my way of communication. I've never really found it worth my while."

"Those taps on the table say differently." Kuroo commented, and the three fixed their eyes on him questioningly. Kuroo looked at them all in disbelief. "Tsukki, you're tapping on the table right now. It's obviously Moarse, judging from the pattern."

The blonde caught himself just as his pointer finger struck the table. He flushed a little, and frowned at Kuroo.

"No worries, I'm not fluent enough yet. Can't decipher it." The bedhead shot him a wink.

"Not fluent enough?" Tsukki emphasized, but Kuroo was already yammering with Bokuto about the latest volleyball game.

Akaashi finally got the ice cube he was fishing for, and flicked it at Bokuto. The bi haired boy paused his conversation to give Akaashi an offended look, placing a hand on his chest.

Akaashi only flicked another ice cube at him.

Just as Bokuto was about to defend himself by getting some ice from his own drink, Kuroo turned to Kei with a mischievous gleam in his eye.

"You never really told us." He said.

Tsukki blinked. "Huh?" Was his lame reply.

"How'd you meet your one and only, exactly?"

The other two quit their child play immediately, twisting in their cushioned seats to fully face Tsukishima with interest. Tsukki gave them all a disgusted look and a scoff.

He adjusted his glasses–making them gleam in the dim light the window provided. It was raining out there, water running down the glass. "What makes you think that this time you ask will be any different from your previous time asking?"

"We've got you cornered." Kuroo smirked, perching his chin on his hand.

Ah, they got him there. He was, indeed, cornered by the three. He stirred his drink around, and took a small sip. He knew this was going to be a visit longer than the others.

Akaashi made a slightly impatient sigh. "Any day now. We're in no rush for snails like you."

"Love struck snails." Bokuto added, his yellow eyes gleaming with amusement. Kuroo let out a hum of agreement.

"Oi!" The blonde snapped. "Do you want to hear this or not? Because I'm perfectly willing to text her and pick me up."

"Wait, wait, for real?" Kuroo asked in disbelief. "We were just teasing, but now that you've agreed to this, I actually want to know."

Kei turned to Akaashi–the only sensible one there–for assistance, but the steel eyed boy just grinned a little.

"All night." He reminded Tsukki, which didn't improve his feeling of being attacked at all.

"Fine!" Tsukki sighed, putting down his drink and lifting up his hands in surrender. "Fine. I'll tell you guys. Just–ah–don't mention it to her. Or anyone else."

"What about Tadashi?" Kuroo questioned, clearly trying to annoy Tsukki. However, the little plan the bedhead has failed.

"He already knows."

Bokuto huffed. "Of course he does."

"Do you even want me to tell you?"

"Kou, shut up!"

"Sorry! Go ahead, Tsukki."

"Please don't call me that." Kei muttered. "Now..."

Where to start?

Oh, yes. Of course.