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shoichee · 2 years

Text

Paradox

[Kise x f!Reader]

Chapter 1-2 can be found here!

Chapters 3-4

Word Count:

Part 3: 3740 | Part 4: 2913

soulmate!au, enemies to lovers!au, manga!kise, cursing!kise to bits, LONG SERIES FIC

Hana is the name I decided to give to the brunette who flirted with Haizaki in s3

Synopsis: Kise despises people like you more than anyone else, the type of people who are shallow, coquettish, and so high-strung on acquiring a soulmate more than anyone else. Nothing good ever comes out of someone who hangs out with the brunette girl along with Haizaki.

You despise two-faced people like him... that's what you like to tell yourself. After all, you're only honest about what you want with people, and if it can help you get a soulmate faster... Where's the crime in that? High-and-mighty people like Kise who didn't believe in soulmates were pretentious, and he was no exception. And you'll do whatever it takes to get what you want, even if it means throwing away your heart in the process, because happiness will come to you once you're with your soulmate... you just know it.

current 🏷: @nadav-ii @carinacassiopeiae @kendrex13 @roppongiperfume @thesongstressayre @kimigiri09 @takatul @evierena @one-one-one-one @seijurosempress @inum4k1

Chapter 3, Kise’s POV

———

“Wh-Wh-Wh-What?!” Kasamatsu sputters, with the brightest crimson on his cheeks. You only give a lopsided smile at his reaction, but your eyes show that you weren’t joking in the slightest. “Wh-What the hell?!”

Moriyama only bemoans the development, arm slung over his face in such a dramatic way that Kise completely ignores him to focus on the back of your head.

Is she fucking serious? There’s no way…

“Yet another cute girl escapes from me—my soulmate is still out there waiting for me to rescue her…!” Moriyama cries out, though still, no one bothered to heed his words at all. “Surely, you must have mistaken our captain for me? I sense a connection between us!”

You merely turn to Moriyama before you smile that uncanny grin. “Sorry, sorry! I think Kasamatsu-senpai is the one, though!”

Ouch. Kise looks to see Moriyama absolutely heartbroken from your words. She definitely pulls some punches of her own.

Kasamatsu, frozen this entire time, barely recovers with a cough. “... H-Have we met before?”

You laugh, mirth seeping into the sound as Kasamatsu turns redder, clearly affected by your reaction to his dumbfounded question. “Well, it’s fine if you don’t remember me, but last week, we briefly talked… And, I accidentally bumped into you when I tried leaving in a rush!” You stop dramatically, holding your finger up for effect. Clearly, Hayakawa was buying your theatrics. Kise rolls his eyes. “Then you made the effort to run all the way to me, tapped my shoulder, then shyly gave back my notes. And like, that’s totally unlike the you from your matches! And I thought… ‘oh my gosh, I think he might fulfill my requirements from my soulmate letter!’ So the next week came, and here we are! I was hoping to find you guys at practice… lucky me!”

Kise stops listening to you halfway to pick up a ball across the court. Everyone else remains stuck in their spot, as if you had somehow forced them under a spell to listen to you ramble.

“Uh… yeah…” Kasamatsu clears his throat, before he whips his head around to shout at everyone around you two. “Well, what are you guys waiting around for?! Unless you really want me to kick your ass, then get moving!” Instantly, everyone scrambles to do something and to look busy, but every now and then, they steal a few glances while the captain’s attention is on you.

“Look…” he turns back to face you, voice instantly turning into more of a mumble once more. “W-What’s your name…?”

You beam at him. Kasamatsu bursts into a flurry of nervous coughs again at the sight.

“I’m (l/n) (y/n), ehe!~ ♪ It’s nice to meet you!”

Shut the hell up already, Kise groans in his mind. He dribbles faster to block your presence out, racing down the court to deliver a punishing dunk and letting the rim go with a rattle. How much can one person talk this much anyways? Kasamatsu-senpai, you’d kick me in the face right now if I did the exact same thing… you go way too easy on girls. He stops to look up in thought after the ball bounces unceremoniously away. Then again, I guess I go too easy on them too.

“R-Right.” Kasamatsu clears his throat. “So…” He averts his gaze, thick brows furrowed. “C-Could you… just… Could you wait here until we’re… done, so—”

“Sure thing!” You lean forward to catch his gaze, but Kasamatsu shrinks even further at your forward gesture. You even make the effort to pout at him, reducing Kasamatsu to nothing but a puddle. Kise turns to look at his captain, before he sighs.

Kasamatsu-senpai might need a bit of help here…

“Hey,” Kise briskly jogs over to the two of you, putting on a friendly smile to ease any tension. “Sorry about him. He’s not really used to this type of thing. Can you ease up on him?”

“You—!” Kasamatsu does a 180, ready to whoop Kise into oblivion, but you speak up before he grabs for him.

“Oops! Sorry, sorry! I’ll sit right over here… Don’t mind me! I won’t disturb any of you guys.” And you do exactly that, sitting on the raised platform of the stage overseeing the gym, dangling your legs and crossing them primly with your hands on your lap. You still had the same huge closed-mouth grin on you, though.

Her smile is… so weird.

Kise merely raises a brow, trying to get a good read on you. Something about you irritates him, and he knows plenty of reasons why. But before he can list them out in his head, Kasamatsu interrupts his thought process as he kicks him to get back on the court.

“O-O-Ow!! Kasamatsu-senpai?!”

“If you have time to ogle at someone, then you sure as hell have more than enough time to do eight laps around this perimeter!”

Kise glares at his captain. “I wasn’t ogling!!—erk—okay, okay! I got it, I’m running…!”

———

You sit there patiently, watching everyone nearly barf their lungs out from the drills and practice one-on-ones, but your expression hasn't changed for the most part. Kise can’t help but glance at you every so often. He can’t help it—not when you’re eyeing every single person on the court with scrutiny that doesn’t really suit your facial features. Worst part is, you keep your body near immobile, and you don’t blink much either. It’s off-putting—especially when only your pupils trail after Kasamatsu for extended periods at a time… It’s that unsettling and invasive, the way your gaze has that knowing, expecting glint to it. He looks around to see everyone doing the same thing he was, and hopefully, thinking the same sentiments.

So it’s not just me that feels off about her.

Still, he can tell that everyone’s trying to be polite and disregard you as much as they can, trying to ignore the fact that you’re a distraction. It’s probably because the Kaijo team has never had a girl like this up close to them.

But finally, grueling practice thankfully ends with no real casualties from Kasamatsu’s discipline, and everyone wearily begins to move to refresh, change, and pack up.

Of course, Kasamatsu immediately goes to check up on you even despite his obvious embarrassment. Even through great reluctance, his pride of having great responsibility overrides that hesitancy. While Kasamatsu stumbles over his words, Kise continues to stare at you suspiciously.

… What’s her plan here?

You were clearly friends with that girl from Teiko and somehow even on friendly terms with Haizaki. This can’t be good, not with you showing up out of nowhere and declaring such a bold statement to someone like Kasamatsu… and Kise had plenty of experience with girls who've done that to him… like that girl—Hana, was it?… who just happened to be past friends with you. Which makes a full circle. Who knows what you want from his captain?

It’s troublesome to go out of his way and interfere, but seeing Kasamatsu tripping over by being just in your presence… there’s no other answer than to figure you out and warn his captain of your true intentions. As he sorts out his next plan of action, he watches you give a coy smile and then even giggle when you see Kasamatsu’s reaction. His gaze sharpens.

The captain says something to you despite his shy stupor, and you reply something cheekily. Kise squints his eyes and strains his ears to try to eavesdrop in some way, but he sighs after a few seconds, deeming the effort fruitless. So he opts to wait outside the gym, leaning against the wall next to the door. While he waits, he ignores his teammates exiting the gym, too busy wracking his mind in trying to recall anything he knows of you back in Teiko. Luckily for him, it’s dark enough outside for him to be hidden in plain sight from unsuspecting people. Unfortunately, Kise was never someone into gossip or rumors (rightfully so), so any information in his brain about you is nearly nonexistent. He groans into his hands at the realization.

“Well, well! Look what we have here!” Your bright voice cuts through the still of the night, even louder than the incessant cicadas. He jolts, his face suddenly rising from his hands to stare at you. Has he been mulling over this for that long? How did you manage to spot him? Though, granted… he was standing near the door. He looks behind you to see that you’re the only one left; it looks like even Kasamatsu went home on his own.

You shoot him what he assumes a concerned look and walk to him, but he only gives you a raised brow, still debating whether or not to put on a cheerful front to dissuade you. But before he can stand up completely straight to face you, you suddenly jump to his side and sling your arm over his neck to further bring him down to your height.

“Ehhhh? Now what seems to trouble you?” you muse, giving a little laugh. “Kise-kun, right? I remember you. Quite a reputation you’ve got for yourself all these years, huh?” He immediately glares at your face—unbelievably close to his, by the way—and roughly shakes himself from your grasp to step away from you. He gives you a pointed look, that arrogant aura he’s so acquainted with using for people he knows doesn’t deserve his respect.

“What’s your deal?”

You only blink at his question and tilt your head, crossing your arms to mull over his words. He doesn’t know if you’re doing this to mock him or if you’re that slow.

“My deal?” you inquire. “Eh… well, I guess I like communicating with people so openly. Oh—oops, that’s a scary look on you! My bad, my bad! I won’t throw an arm over you anymore—”

He gives a frustrated quick huff, deciding to get to the point. “What are you planning to do with Kasamatsu-senpai? You think just ‘cause you’re a girl, you can push people around like this? You don’t just go up to anyone and declare that they’re your soulmate or whatever.”

“Ohhhh. You’re concerned about your captain, aren’t you?” You smile at him, but Kise doesn’t like the implications of your “epiphany.” Did you just completely ignore what he said?

Yeah, I’m more concerned about the shit YOU might pull on him, rather than Kasamatsu-senpai himself. But he keeps that thought to himself. Saying that to you may cause you to get the further wrong idea. Besides, he supposes there’s some merit to your words… he does care for his captain, even if what Kasamatsu does is his own business.

“Whatever you’re doing…” Kise says, trailing off to watch your face. “You better not plan anything fucked up, or I’ll be there to pay it back tenfold before you know it. Better watch yourself.”

“My gosh!” you gape comically at him. “Are you really threatening a girl? Honestly, you’re such a brute! I haven’t done a single thing, and you’re getting on my case…” Even despite your words, your facial expressions remain quite placid, though Kise can see a slight furrow of your brows to show that his warning actually does hold some water.

Kise only rolls his eyes as he decides to walk past you. “Look, whatever Kasamatsu-senpai does is none of my concern, but you…” He turns around to briefly face you. “People like you who like to take advantage of the idea of soulmates to manipulate others like that—I don’t like your kind. You might’ve fooled the entire team, but I know who you really are.”

You finally give a real reaction, jumping at the spot and staring at him with genuine widened eyes of surprise. There it is, he thinks. But he puts his guard back up when he sees your next move. You give a crooked grin and that irritating titter that sounds unbelievably ingenuine.

“The ‘idea of soulmates,’ you say…” you repeat what he said, sounding almost offended somehow. “You say that as if it’s not a real thing in our lives. Like it’s just some concept.”

“Don’t twist my words,” he says evenly. “You know what I mean.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” you reply. “You’re, like, so weird, Kise-kun. I just want to look for my soulmate… that’s not malicious in intent at all, is it?”

“You don’t need a soulmate to do what you want,” he coolly counters. “Ever thought about that?”

You give him an unreadable look before morphing your features into an exasperated smile. “Haha! Sounds like someone’s a miserable man! Cheer up, Kise-kun! Surely, someone as well-loved as you can find anyone with your preferences to take as your soulmate~ The rest of us normal folks actually have to try to look for ours. Woe is me, especially!”

Kise hardens his glare at you, clearly having a nerve touched by your words. You’re the umpteenth person out there constantly telling it to his face how his search for a soulmate is as easy as he breathes air. Easy? Yeah fucking right. You think you have me all figured out, don’t you?

“I’ll have you know that I don’t care for the soulmate shit. Don’t impose your values on me.”

“Well, then…” You lean forward with your arms crossed, giving him a wink. He scowls. “Don’t ‘impose your values’ onto me either. You’re just as suffocating as the people you look down on, you know.”

You then turn around, back to him but your face is still turned to the side to face Kise to stick out your tongue almost provocatively, as if to piss him off on purpose. And it’s working. “How about you keep your nose out of this? Honestly, people like you who act like they’re better and more righteous than everyone else are the worst.” You finally turn around completely to depart in the opposite direction of Kise, as if you had the final say.

He stands there to watch your back (oh, he’s boring holes into your back) as you skip away, not in the least reassured that you’d refrain from trying anything starting tomorrow. Especially from how you responded to him.

You’re even worse than that Hana chick.

———

“Kasamatsu-senpai…” Kise calls out, looking over to see Kasamatsu in deep thought. Another day, another practice, he would have thought, but immediately walking into the gym today, Kasamatsu isn’t at his usual spot of critically eyeing his teammates before practice. In fact… he’s distracted by a creased piece of paper. “... Don’t tell me that’s…”

“Huh? Oh, it’s just you.” The Kaijo captain flits his eyes from the paper to look at the 1st year before he goes back to concentrating on whatever’s written on the sheet. His thick brows knit together as he goes over the same line over and over, judging by how his pupils were moving back and forth. Kise cautiously walks to his side to try to get a peek… and every other team starter coincidentally has the same idea.

Kasamatsu doesn’t even bother to kick them off to practice, and everyone looks at each other with immense concern and confusion before Kobori is the one to call out his oddities. “Captain, is there something wrong? You’ve been a bit too quiet. You’re unnerving the team a little.”

“Yeah…” was all he absentmindedly said, and Kise shared a knowing look with his upperclassmen. Is it that bad…? Kise flanks on Kasamatsu’s right while Moriyama settles himself on the left, both peering over his shoulders to read the letter as fast as they humanly can:

Addressed to Kasamatsu Yukio:

Your soulmate has been to places you’ve never been before, yet you two will meet for the second time in a place they’d never normally wouldn’t be in. You will ironically meet them the first time in an ordinary commonplace where people utilize to travel about. The place is never a means to the end of a destination and is always bustling with eager activity of all kinds. You will accidentally encounter someone that is completely unlike you among a particularly busy crowd. The floors will be cold and gray, and the walls will be modern. It is long vertically but does not have much depth widthwise. Many doors are located in these types of places as a must. Your fated location, in particular, has many windows and plenty of sunlight shining in with ample ventilation. You do not—should not—think much of this location, like anyone else normally does not. Do not try hard to look for them, or you will certainly miss your first encounter with them. This location is not at the ground floor.

Kise only gets through half a page before Kasamatsu breaks through his stupor, doing an insanely quick prep before he lands a shoe on his cheek.

“K-K-Kasamatsu-senpai?!”

“Idiot! Who said you can snoop around?!”

“What?!” Kise rubs his cheek sullenly before he points an accusatory finger at the other team starters. “They were looking too!! How’s that fair?!”

But when Kasamatsu menacingly spares a glance at where Kise was pointing, the rest of the players already had the keen idea of feigning warming up, putting themselves a fair distance from the captain to avoid retributions. Kise merely balks at the turn of events.

You guys… You guys are so mean…!!

———

After many hours of kicks and spartan orders, Kise somehow finds himself trapped between Hayakawa and Moriyama when he starts heading for home. How do these things always happen to me? He inwardly groans, but truthfully, it’s not so bad with them… you just… need to get used to their quirks. VERY strange quirks. And Kise thinks he’s somewhat grown used to them. Somewhat.

“What was up with that ®ette(l)!?” Hayakawa exclaims, damn near shouting into his own eardrums even if he wasn’t trying. He never needs to try anyways. Kise winces at the sudden volume, putting his fingers into his ear holes to help alleviate the burst of pain. “The captain… he was acting ve(l)y st(l)ange, wasn’t he?!”

“Hayakawa-senpai… you’re a bit… too loud.”

Always too loud.

Moriyama answers the question as if Kise never spoke up to begin with. “Our captain was merely experiencing the awakening of the ultimate blessing… unforgettable romance!! Oh when will it be my turn…!”

And here, Kise thought he was the dramatic one. He merely gives an awkward, polite smile at the woe of his senior. “Though, Moriyama-senpai, the content of the letter was very simple and to the point… It’s not something to freak out over, anyways.” He shrugs with a heavy sigh. “Is it really that bad for Kasamatsu-senpai?”

“... We shou(r)d encou(l)age him to do his best!”

Unsurprisingly, both Kise and Moriyama squint at the offensive rebounder to decipher his words. There’s a moment of uncomfortable silence while the trio walks down the smooth concrete, dappled by the sunset rays filtered through the trees in the neighborhood. As if on cue, gentle wind tousles through their hair strands to emphasize the unnatural… silence? Lack of response? Kise opens his mouth.

“... Anyways. We should mind our own business. It’s his to deal with, you know?”

“I agree!” Moriyama nods aggressively, holding his chin with his forefingers in a “thoughtful” way. “This is the only way Kasamatsu can truly become a man and lead the rest of us! Then, we can utilize his newfound experience to help us all get a cute date… yes, yes… It’s truly a win-win situation!”

“... Right, Moriyama-senpai. Exactly what I said…”

———

Kise knows that he said to mind his own business… regarding Kasamatu and life in general. Definitely more of the latter than anything else.

But what the hell is going on?

Another day, another lifetime of mental toil arrives as he deftly avoids mobs of heads bobbing around him, his mind blurring voices of nauseating adoration as a form of his psyche’s first line of defense to protect the remnants of his sanity. He yawns, faintly registering more shrieks of devotion at the mundane action as he steps past Kaijo’s gates to face another army thrown at him—who, no doubt, were all at his beck and call if Kise truly wanted to take advantage of their blind loyalties. He could’ve been a great general of some sorts, using the crowds to fulfill the desires and whims he sometimes cooked up in his mind, but that idea itself—to use them how he pleased—is also equally revolting. They are always his enemies, so naturally, he never wanted anything to do with them. These are things he’s accepted long ago (actually recently, but that’s besides the point), but what he witnesses at this moment is something he definitely can’t bring himself to ignore and “mind his own business.”

Somehow, your giggle manages to pierce through the disorienting fog of all the censored murmurs and coos of everyone around him—grating and coquettish. He could’ve ignored it all the same—you weren’t the first (and certainly not the last) person to act in such an unashamedly way. But the sight of Kasamatsu with you completely forces Kise to focus his attention on you.

What the fuck is she doing?

Your arms are wrapped around his left arm, pushing yourself up to his side as your lips form a pout with a practiced innocence that Kise recognizes all too well. He’s pissed—no, terrified for his captain, but most of all, he feels sick. But Kise isn’t Kasamatsu’s caretaker or father—hell, he’s not even an upperclassman. He’s more than capable of shrugging her off if she goes too far, he reasons, even if he knew that line of logic is a pile of shit. And if he really needs help, the other senpais can help him out of there. He will mind his own business. For now, he finishes his thoughts with finality. With that note, he briskly walks to his first class of the day, relieved when you and Kasamatsu are gone from his field of vision. His shoulders relax and he releases a steady stream of air, closing his eyes for a momentary recovery. There are too many things to worry about right now, but for now, he’d rather focus on his upcoming English quiz than the what-if’s of your motives with someone like his captain.

You’re just like everyone else, after all.

Chapter 4, Reader’s POV

———

They say that when your soulmate is close within your proximity, your mood begins to lighten up substantially as a sign. It’s just a dumb rumor people spread around, you knew, and yet…

You want to believe in it so badly.

What’s the truth? What’s the lie? All you know is that your soulmate letter is the truth, and all the kisses you shared with countless people ended up being lies on top of lies. You want to believe that your emotions are telling you the truth for once, and that he isn’t like the others. Why would Kasamatsu look so genuinely surprised? Genuinely flustered? Genuinely trying to be nice to you? Why else has your heart begun to beat so fast around him—the first time it’s ever happened to you?

Turning to your side, you curl up your body, clutching your blanket closest to you in the hopes that you can force your body to fall asleep. Ever since you got that momentous letter, sitting daintily on top of the table two years ago, things haven’t been the same. But that should be a good thing, right?

Your fingers automatically move to touch your own lips, tingling at the memories of other countless lips it had already firmly locked with. Your heart just keeps sinking further down the more you run through every single moment.

I have to keep going, you insist, tossing to your other side to dispel those memories away into the backburner of your mind. I have to find my soulmate, I have to…

Otherwise, I…

“You don’t need a soulmate to do what you want…” You subconsciously conjure up an image of Kise back at the gym, eyes cold and brows harsh with a ferocious frown. At the intrusive thought, you form your own fierce frown. “Ever thought about that?”

That stupid ass motherfucker—you curse at him as if he was really there in person—I’ll show you…! When I get my happy ending, I’m gonna rub it in that ugly smug face of yours.

I’ll prove them all wrong, I’ll prove them all wrong, I’ll prove them all…

Somehow, through the cacophony of mantras to yourself, you fall into a deep, dreamless sleep.

———

[Your soulmate is of similar age.]

You sigh to yourself as you recall the contents of your letters again, mind so distant from the current reality of your situation. But you’ll never sigh outwardly; instead, you give a placating smile to the people around you as you walk down the hallway, then up a floor to continue down another corridor. Because people always like girls who are friendly, sweet, and outgoing… Those girls are what draw in people the fastest. It’s quite a huge generalization, and you’re aware of that fact, but you also consider that it does hold some truth to it. Your face twitches with a familiar discomfort, but you refuse to let your smile fall, letting your eyes crinkle in an inviting, sweet manner that no person would ever have the heart to deny you a friendly greeting. The brightest flowers always attract the bees, so to speak. Naturally, you have to do your best to attract as many people as possible to you. How else would you find your soulmate?

[You will finally meet them when there is a fresh start—a new chapter—in your life.]

It’s midway through October, approximately six months since you became a 1st year at Kaijo. There must be something wrong… shouldn’t your “first chapter” happen when you first graduated out of Teiko? Or maybe around the time of Kaijo’s opening ceremony? The demoralizing realization almost makes you drop the grin, and to compensate, you grin even wider. Just in case.

“Ah, (l/n)-san!” a classmate called out, catching up to your skipping stride with hurried steps. “You’re so cheery today! Woke up on the right side of the bed today?”

“Awwww, Saori-chan!~” you chime without missing a beat. “Aren’t I always cheery? You’re teasing me, aren’t you!”

“I’d never!” She gave a mock gasp, but her slight giggle after the last syllable immediately gave her away. “I’m just pointing out the truth! It’s really refreshing whenever I see you happy… I think I can speak for most of us when we’re near you… I must be sounding super strange, huh?”

The truth… you wonder about that often.

“Honestly, it really does sound all weird, ehe! Buuuuut…!” you pause dramatically, pleased to see her leaning in out of anticipation. “Hearing that from you makes me happier, of course~” You playfully pinch her cheek with a wink, and you skip away when she immediately blooms a cherry red. You debated whether to blow her a kiss too, but if you were going to win over Kasamatsu’s heart, then you needed to remain steadfast. Of course, it’s a nice change of pace that you don’t have to do anything drastic for once to get someone’s heart beating. For once… you feel a great weight lifting from your shoulders at the realization. No more of any of that anymore—the kisses, cuddles, the games you force yourself to play to find the one. After all—

“W-whoa—!”

“E-eek?!”

Of course, you get distracted when you think too hard about these types of things. Saving a mental berating for yourself during class starting in half an hour, you immediately focus your attention on the poor person you accidentally manage to assail. But your eyes widen when you register a stuttering, comically red captain.

“… Kasamatsu-senpai?”

… After all, he is someone who can have blood rushing into his cheeks from just a simple gesture like a wink and a smile. He is an anomaly—a one-of-a-kind person who you’ve never seen anyone like before. Isn’t he also around your age?

[You will meet them once again when they are most unlike themselves…]

“S-S-Sorry…” He’s already stuttering before he can even face you, and you figure it’s because he recognizes a female-sounding voice coming from you. You quietly watch him pick up the stray papers that manage to flutter out of his binder from the untimely collision, and after he straightens himself, he cranes a neck, rubbing the back of it with his free hand. On second thought… you note. It may actually be harder to win over his affection if he can’t even look at me. And to think he was able to talk to me with such authority in the gym a couple days ago. Oh, what will I do with him…

“H-Huh…? Y-You…?” Kasamatsu finally brings up all of his nerves to at least hold proper eye contact for a solid four seconds before he darts his gaze back to the gray floor. There is no way for him to properly lead the conversation, from the looks of him cowering in your presence, so you decide to speak instead.

“Ah, sorry, sorry!” you say, hoping to break the ice with him. If you are more “normal” with him, as opposed to being your usual outgoing self, maybe he’d see you in a better light? “I wasn’t completely paying attention to my surroundings, and I really messed up, huh? Totally my bad!”

“I-It’s…” Kasamatsu dares to sneak a glance at your face before he turns away again. “... f-fine.” You open your mouth to perhaps talk about the weather or perhaps his class schedule for you to memorize later, but you falter when you see him glancing at you again before averting his eyes. Was there something on your face? You owlishly blink before a flirtatious grin finds its way onto your face again, and immediately, his cheeks predictably lights up a bright pink again.

“Wahhh…!” You lean forward up to his face, hands held together in a gesture of being in love. “You’re really adorable, did anyone tell you that before?~ I’m definitely the first, aren’t I? Right—right?”

“I—!” He’s balking at the shameless assumption, mouth half-opening… half-closing… his mind is in a state of limbo, and he’s being sent into overdrive. “I-I’m… I… mm… nn…” Instinctively, he stumbles a couple steps back, clutching the fabric in the front of his shirt in an attempt to calm himself.

“And wow!” you continue. “Didn’t we also have the same type of run-in the first time we met? I don’t think this is just a coincidence…” You stick your tongue out playfully, fully rendering him speechless and robbing him of any chance to recover his voice.

“N-nn…”

What are his habits? What are his likes? Dislikes? What are his passions and hopes and dreams? You wonder about the countless things you can elicit out of him. Any tidbit about him would be a good start in getting to know him—you tilt your head at him cutely while you continue to assess your options—but how do I ask for it when he’s constantly stuttering or avoiding girls in general? After all, you tried to charm him the other morning, but it was apparently too much for Kasamatsu to even think of any coherent response.

“There you are.” A flash of yellow catches your eye as swoons of mainly women follow close by. “Kasamatsu-senpai! Kobori-senpai has been looking all over for you… you’re going to be late at this point if you don’t hurry up, you know!” Almost as if his voice is a trigger, Kasamatsu whirls around to hurl the usual serving of insults.

“Hah?! Since when were you so confident to tell an upperclassman what to do again? You really want to have your ass kicked again, huh?!”

“Like I said—! They wanted me to go look for you! Not like I had a choice!”

Damn, way to ruin an opportunity like that. You give a quiet sigh as Kasamatsu waves at you shyly before he storms off to find his other teammates to berate them, though you know it was more out of politeness than care from his end. Interestingly, the ace of Kaijo remains behind, watching his senior disappear before he seemingly remembers that you are also here. Flashing a breezy smile at you, you resist your instinctive reaction to twitch an eye as screams fill up the hall in response. But of course, you deliver your own captivating curl of those lips, and suddenly, you sense an aura of hostility spiking towards your end. Ah… so it appears that they view me as a rival, hm?

“Ah… (l/n)-san, right?” Kise laughs, fiddling with a few strands as he tucks them behind his ear, revealing his piercing. “Are you alright? You look like you woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning.” Try as he might, but his cheeriness wasn’t able to hide his voice from slipping into a steely tone. … Is he taunting you?

This guy!—you give an airy laugh in response—He’s the fakest asshole I’ve ever seen! Who the fuck is buying this discounted act of his?! When you dare to look around casually though, everyone is hanging onto his every word.

“I guess it’s been getting chilly lately!” you reply. “Maybe I should see the infirmary later for a check up… Thanks for the concern though, Kise-kun!~ But um… shouldn’t you also head to class, too? The warning bell’s gonna ring soon, right?” Even with the friendly tone, you place your hands on your hips while raising a suspicious brow, making sure to jut out your dominant hipbone to emphasize your figure. There’s only so much patience you have in trying to be diplomatic with someone like him. You see no benefit in doing so either, but then again, maybe being on good terms with Kise would allow you to get closer with his captain. Still, Kasamatsu doesn’t hesitate to dropkick him and knock down his ego a notch at all… maybe it wouldn’t matter as much if you just openly hate him. Options, options… Perhaps for now, you’ll see what Kise’s up to.

Ah… You slowly blink. What if he was actually trying to get Kasamatsu away from me just a moment ago? Wouldn’t his upperclassmen classmates come get their captain themselves instead of sending a 1st year to him? Either possibility can happen, but logically… the first option would’ve been more convenient and probable to happen. You scowl at the realization, but just as quickly, you form a tight-lipped smile in an attempt to recover. I warned his ass to stay out of my business too! And to think he’d try to butt in…

“You’re definitely right!” Kise interrupts your train of thought with a bright affirmation. “So I’ll be going on my way to class. You should go too, before you end up late!” You don’t miss the way his eyes go flat on you before he turns to walk away, back to you, immediately pulling away the entire crowd along with him.

“Kise-kun!! Who was that?!”

“Please look at me!”

“No, me!!”

“She’s nothing special at all!”

While it doesn’t hurt to think about his motives, there’s only so much speculation can do within a situation like this. Being openly hostile in front of everyone would serve no one good, and your reputation would tank. And if you lose your reputation, finding soulmates would end up being more difficult than necessary. Besides, if Kise wants to keep playing this farce of roleplay game of “shining knight,” why not join him as another player of “femme fatale sorceress”? Two can play this game.

Don’t worry, you muse to the mobs ahead. That imposter’s all yours.

———

Obviously, anyone can see just how passionate Kasamatsu is about basketball… more than anyone else. Probably even more than the Generation of Miracle guy, Kise. You giggle to yourself, ecstatic to have some type of progress in getting closer. If I learn about basketball, you reason, then maybe he’d have an easier time talking with me? You knew what the “Generation of Miracles” were all about; you’d have to live under a rock to not hear a single thing about them. They’re on the local news, the latest mags, and on the biggest media trends. Many people constantly speculate about their potential soulmates and what they’d be like, even going so far as to associating their known ideal types as holy decrees. But you don’t have a single inkling about what basketball truly entails, and that’s where you’ve been going wrong this entire time.

Nowadays, you find your eyes constantly scanning out in the crowd for a certain individual with cropped black hair, thick brows, and impossibly striking blue eyes. He probably doesn’t even realize just how charming he is. But maybe that obliviousness is also part of his overall charm. But before you can even hit on him, you really need to overcome the obstacle of his stuttering; after all, that was the main aspect that prevented every other girl from being able to talk to him in the first place. You take out a beginner’s guide to basketball rules and guidelines from your bag and lay it out on your desk, not caring about the teacher droning on about the necessity of Japanese literature. You turn to page one and settle yourself into a comfortable position, careful to hide the booklet from the prying eyes, yet you swear you feel a prickling chill down your spine from a piercing stare two seats behind you to your left.

It’s Kise, isn’t it? You can’t help but let out an inaudible chuckle, hand pressed over your lips as you continue to voraciously take in all the information in the book. Weeeell, he can look for all I care. I’m gonna get the last laugh when I play my cards juuuust right…

You manage to reach the last page before the bell rings for the next period, slightly jolting you out of your concentration, and after closing it and placing it back into your bag, you finally decide to turn and spare a look to the model student behind you. He’s putting most of his body weight on the desk, propping the side of his head up with a hand, elbow on the table. Although his body is facing forward to the blackboard, his eyes are honing in on you.

“What?” You stick your tongue out at him. “Can’t resist me after all? You’ve been staring at me all period—gosh, why didn’t you just tell me? You know I’m not someone who’d judge others at all~”

Unlike you.

Your own beam begins to grow at the sight of him gripping his pen so hard that it almost seems like it’s going to snap in half. You knew he couldn’t snap back—not when there were twenty pairs of eyes on him. Imagine your surprise when he barely manages to conceal his revulsion at you… whether he’s disgusted by your words, the way you provocatively stick out your tongue, your delighted smile, or all of the above… you don’t know and you don’t care enough to find out.

“What can I say?” He starts, lips twitching up to force a friendly smile. “I’ve never met anyone like you.” Everyone but you appears to buy his shoddy act, turning to face the front when the next teacher enters the classroom for the next lecture. You shoot one last wide grin at him to signify your triumph, but Kise unapologetically returns a freezing stare… the staredown only lasts for a few seconds before the teacher claps her hands to begin the session, both of you simultaneously breaking eye contact.

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shoichee · 2 years

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Can i get a soulmate fic for kise please? What i was thinking was that they have this "hate" relationship (where they passed the line between love and hate, but they just don't know it yet). Like they argue because it's like routine for them already. Manga (and jealous?? but doesn't know that what he's feeling is jealousy :P) kise please!! It's up to you what kind of soulmate thing, but maybe something that takes time to show since they've been interacting and all that. Thanks so much!!

Paradox

[Kise x f!Reader]

soulmate!au, enemies to lovers!au, manga!kise, cursing!kise to bits, LONG SERIES FIC

Hana is the name I decided to give to the brunette who flirted with Haizaki in s3

Word Count:

Part 1: 3386 | Part 2: 2131

A/N: This post includes both chapters 1 and 2! Well, it's here... I have the entire brainstorm of where I need this plot to go, but writing it out in fic form as opposed to long headcanons? ... Not my strongest suit but here I go? Please support this series through reblogs/likes and comments! I'd love to interact with everyone!

current 🏷: @nadav-ii, @carinacassiopeiae, @kendrex13, @roppongiperfume, @thesongstressayre, @kimigiri09, @takatul, @evierena, @one-one-one-one @seijurosempress

Chapter 1, Kise’s POV

»»—————　☼　—————««

Addressed to Kise Ryōta:

You will meet your soulmate in a place where there are many other people. You will have your first real encounter with them in a place where you always spend your time through the years. Be careful to keep track of where you are at all times. Your soulmate is always with company, and they are never lonely. You must be careful to not actively seek out for your fated encounter, for you’ll certainly miss them. You must remain committed and seek out things that keep you steady and motivated. Only then is it possible for your soulmate to come to you instead.

Kise would like to think he’s a romantic at heart—cheesy guy even, but on the other hand, he actively scoffs at the letter’s content… that he’s had memorized for years now. He has no choice on the matter of whether or not he’ll remember it. Not when his “letter” was just a measly paragraph. He remembered being awfully jealous and whiny of his past classmates bringing their 2-page letter to class to show off and getting the “ooh’s” and “ah’s” from everyone else. That was one sure-fire way to distinguish yourself from the crowd and make a name for yourself. Over the years, Kise’s learned that it would become a separate type of “popularity hierarchy,” whereas those with the most elaborate, mysterious, or unique soulmate letters are the ones at the top of the social ladder. Bonus points if it somehow involves all three factors.

And somehow, he also ended up at the popular side of that hierarchy too. Not like he cared, but it’s wildly convenient sometimes to get what you want from people. Still, no benefits from being popular this way could ever outweigh the massive inconveniences; he made the grievous mistake of revealing his letter contents to a casual friend in “good-natured fun.” And before he knew it, the entire school ended up knowing about it too… and then the entire neighborhood… and somehow, it went even into the ears beyond that.

Thus, it started his chronic illness of being tailed after by girls of all backgrounds. With no cure in sight for the ailment that he certainly didn’t ask for. It’s almost terrifying how a single day transformed every single girl into a parasitic bee on a search for the brightest, most colorful flower. Kise, already popular for his looks to begin with, suddenly was shoved under a more blinding spotlight of public scrutiny. If he was going to be completely honest… he liked it… at first. The newfound attention was euphoric and foreign, and he relished in it. But just like anything else, it got… boring.

Some might call it the ultimate blessing: it could make searching for a soulmate much easier and less effort on his end, they’d argue. Kise had come to beg to differ. Not when hundreds of the same faces with hundreds of clamors claimed and cried that they were his soulmate. How do fourteen girls suddenly have the “other half of the puzzle” to his own letter when there were… thirteen other girls claiming the same thing?

See, one soulmate gets a letter describing a general location of where they’d meet their soulmate. The other soulmate gets a letter describing a general timeframe of when they’d meet. Not like it actually helps narrowing down the process of pairing up people. Because he knows this shit can take years—decades, in fact—before he can even get a first glimpse of his soulmate. And the ordeal of people constantly screaming in his face that the time they’d meet their soulmate is now and hence, “it must be Kise” got old really quickly.

It’s utterly stupid. Who does this sender think they are to decide how Kise gets to live his life? What type of sadistic game were they playing by forcing the other soulmate to have the other half of the information, which would be, no doubt, just as annoyingly cryptic?

He stopped denying all the rumors of a girl claiming to be his soulmate; for every rumor he clarified and quashed during his naive youth, three more sprung up the next week. Ignoring them sounds counterintuitive, but when he allows the many rumors and girls to multiply and fester, the number of annoyances are still relatively the same: nearly infinite.

Such has become the life of Kise Ryōta.

Worst part of this whole damn thing was, he won’t be able to know when he’d meet his soulmate, not until he shares a “kiss of genuine integrity” with them… and he doesn’t even know where to begin with that requirement. Supposedly, after you kiss the right person with the right intention, something changes in the mysterious letter that would indicate he found the soulmate. Problem is, it’s different for everyone: some get a drawing of their soulmate at the end of the letter; some simply have the name of their soulmate written at the end; some get an engraved stamp; and the list goes on and on. The main takeaway from it all is that his letter should have a visible change at the end… if he could even get to that point at this rate.

“Oh my gosh…! Is that—That’s Kise-kun!!”

“Eh?! Where, where?! Let me see!”

This is ludicrous. What kind of deity up there decided to put a twisted spin on this sappy, fairy tale trope? He gives a harsh exhale before he puts up a polite smile and continues on with his day. His first day at Teiko.

“Please join our club…!” Several girls huddle around the table, eager to show the good-looking boy their information trifold-cardboard and flyers. Unsurprisingly, every single one of them had eyes of ulterior motive. At the sight, Kise resists the urge to roll his eyes at them. He stands there for a bit, watching their mouths move, but in truth, he’s not hearing a single thing out of them.

This girl looks decent… her hair is a bit weird, though.

Oh, she sure has a strange accent… and this girl has odd eyebrows.

Ugh, this one talks too much at a too-high pitch.

“Ah… well…” He puts up a chagrined smile, not knowing where to look before he smoothly waves goodbye. “I have something else to check out. Keep yourselves well, ladies!” With that, he immediately prepares his ears for shrieks of admiration and lovesickness.

Good riddance.

———

As much as he hates to admit it, he still doesn’t know what that letter exactly means to this day. Some of the sentences that consider themselves as “hints” or “instructions” are way too vague to be considered such.

He begrudgingly opens up the envelope containing the letter for the umpteenth time again. Kise sits on his desk in his own room, illuminated by the sunlight filtering through the glass pane. Floating dust particles are instantly revealed where the light hits, but he doesn’t care, his attention only on what’s important. Chin on his desk, Kise lays the envelope and letter on the flat surface, trying to see what he could be missing. By now, the paper is slightly worn out from years of Kise thumbing, flipping, inserting, folding, unfurling—you name it, in hopes of finding any hidden clues as to who’s the sender and how to solve this “riddle” that ultimately determines the rest of his life. The seal wax on the envelope is beyond recognition, cracked and no longer aesthetically pleasing to look at.

An unassuming creme-white envelope laid tactfully on top of the same desk years ago, the light from his room window shining on it like a natural spotlight. Stray dust floated around, acting like confetti to announce its unexpected, (yet important) quiet arrival. Adorned with a wax seal, the middle of it was impressed in the center of the seal with a perfect copy of his “hanko” that clearly had the kanji for his name. Which was weird… wasn’t counterfeiting hankos illegal? Being beyond skeptical even for his young age at the time of the discovery, Kise thoroughly checked every crease and fold of the paper. Yes, he even dared to open the window and looked around in case someone had the gall to play a prank on him. Opening up the envelope did nothing to calm him down as soon as he realized it was the infamous “soulmate letter.”

So God help him.

“Well…” he sighs, picking up the letter closer to his face, chin still firmly on the wood. “It wouldn’t hurt to double-check one more time, right?”

[You will meet your soulmate in a place where there are many other people.]

He frowns not even a second into the letter. Well that’s not EXACTLY helpful, is it? he ruefully thinks, recalling the constant faces surrounding him with hopeful, shining eyes. How am I going to figure out which of them is the right person? He groans in frustration before reluctantly moving on to the next part.

[You will have your first real encounter with them in a place where you always spend your time through the years. Be careful to keep track of where you are at all times.]

This also makes no damn sense. He blows a strand out of his hair in annoyance, but he stops at a realization. I guess I’ve been in the studio for a long time… It has been a couple years since he started out as a casual model, so perhaps he’s on the right track. He allows himself a small grin of triumph.

[Your soulmate is always with company, and they are never lonely. You must be careful to not actively seek out for your fated encounter, for you’ll certainly miss them.]

His grin grows wider. This is it…! It only makes sense that they’re also involved within the modeling industry. Are they a photographer, makeup artist, stylist… or even, are they also a model like him? It would only make sense if they’re never alone like he is. And maybe trying to seek them out when they also attract other people to them would make it harder to face them alone? He frowns. Or maybe it’s because they’re one of my many admirers? That one is still a bit muddy. But he remains hopeful.

[You must remain committed, and seek out things that keep you steady and motivated. Only then is it possible for your soulmate to come to you instead.]

The most cryptic part of the letter. If he’s going to try to base this off of the premise of his soulmate being near his modeling job, maybe he should pursue the pastime beyond just a hobby and turn it into a career? But other than that, all the things he’s tried out, especially sports, have gotten boring and thus, been abandoned. He bangs his forehead on the table, grin wiped off of his face realizing how he instantly got kicked back into square one.

This… this doesn’t make any sense!

———

It’s been two years at Teiko. Still no sign of this soulmate. He’s not surprised that by now, nearly the entire school somehow caught wind of the contents of his letter…. though, rumors have been getting wilder and wilder as days pass.

“Kise-kun.”

“Ee-ee-eeeee!!” The sudden voice makes him jump out of his skin before he whirls around in a panic. “Kurokocchi!! Could you stop doing that??”

Kuroko merely gives his signature blank look before he continues walking on like nothing happened.

“Y-You’re really gonna ignore me?!”

“It’s almost time for practice,” he says, turning back to face him expressing theatrical tears. “We don’t want to be late, or Akashi-kun will find out.”

At the mention of the captain’s name, Kise merely gulps before he catches up with Kuroko’s stride with no further complaints.

“But did you have to pop out of nowhere?”

Honestly, I still don’t get that part about him.

“I can’t help it,” he deadpans, as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world. “It’s not much different from your popularity.”

“When you put it like that,” he sighs, putting his arms behind his head. “I guess I can see it.” He eyes the back of Kuroko’s head—who’s been walking ahead—for several minutes before he finally musters up the courage to ask.

“Say, Kurokocchi…”

“Yes?” Kuroko continues keeping up his pace, but he slightly looks back to Kise in acknowledgment.

“Did you get your soulmate letter yet?”

At the question, Kuroko merely blinks before he replies. “I received an envelope in my locker yesterday. I thought it was strange since no one ever notices me to begin with, so I thought someone must’ve mistaken my locker for someone else’s.” Kise waits with bated breath for him to continue.

“And?”

Kuroko looks away for a second. “Yeah, it had my hanko on it. I opened it to make sure it wasn’t an error on the sender’s end. Sure enough…” he nods before finishing his reveal, “it was in fact, about my soulmate.”

“What did it say?!” Kise nearly jumps on Kuroko out of anticipation, but he barely manages to keep himself in check.

“That I’ll find my soulmate when I’m 17 to 18,” he says matter-of-factly. “So that means… I’d be a 3rd year in high school. But it also said I would already encounter them at several points in my life prior.”

Kise face-palms at his answer. “What the hell? How come yours is so straightforward?”

He only shrugs as a response, because they were already at the front steps of the gym. It looks like they got here on time. Kuroko announces the two of them before he helps pull out the ball carts. As shoe squeaks and ball dribbles echo throughout the interior, Kise stands there mulling over Kuroko’s information.

So Kurokocchi had the part of the soulmate information that only told the approximate time frame… Still, his was way too simple… or did he somehow decipher it really easily?

Kise makes a loud noise of frustration as he grabs and shakes his head, completely ignoring the concerned looks from the other first-string players.

Eurghh!! Why is mine too complicated?!

———

Kise looks at the letter in his hands again. Looking at it sort of pisses him off at this point, the wrinkled font clearly mocking and challenging him to solve it… if he could even do it to begin with. He holds the top of the paper with his two hands, his thumbs and forefingers gripping tighter. He can just rip it. He really can… who’s stopping him?

Actually, has there been anyone who ripped their letter like this before?

He intensely stares at it for a few moments, juggling his options and weighing the consequences if he did choose to shred his fate into pieces. He gives a resigned pout when he comes to the conclusion that maybe it’d be best if he didn’t test that theory out. With a huff, he roughly folds up the paper and shoves it into the envelope before tossing it haphazardly onto a low shelf.

“That’s it,” he declares out to the room. “I’m not going to bother with this soulmate shit. I’m going to live my life however I want, and no one can stop me otherwise.”

And suddenly, he feels ten times better, like a weight was lifted from his shoulders. I should’ve done this sooner, he thinks, yawning as he gets ready for a good nap in his bed. Thinking about this is way too tiring and troublesome. Why should I even care about it anymore?

———

Somehow, his admirers became bolder and bolder, realizing that they should try to push his boundaries and see how much they can get away with. It started with tentative brushes of his shirt and his arms, thinking he didn’t notice. Of course he fucking noticed, when ten other girls had the same idea. Birds of a feather flock together—something he remembers, snorting derisively in his mind yesterday. But what does he do? Put some distance between them and himself with a cheery smile and a fastbreak walk. And then today, they have the audacity to actually grab him?

You’ve got to be kidding me.

“Is it true that your soulmate letter told you that you’d meet someone so beautiful in a place no one goes to?”

“No, that’s wrong! I’ve heard that he’s looking for someone in a place where he works.”

“Should we also apply there then…?”

Kise drops his sunny disposition like a drop of a hat, and those who had their eyes and hands on him immediately flinch at the sudden change. All the loud whispers cease.

“K-Kise-kun…? Is there something wrong?”

“Is there someone bothering you?”

How do you guys have no self awareness?

“Ah, sorry…” Kise gives a placid smile that doesn’t quite reach his eyes. “You see—”

“Oh!!~ Ryōta-kun!!”

Everyone jumps at the sound of his first name used so familiarly, but Kise is more shocked than the rest of them because he doesn’t recognize the voice one bit. What the hell is going on?

A girl ruthlessly pushes through the crowd before she bounces to his side with such a saccharine smile that Kise is almost impressed by the feat. But his thoughts short-circuit when she comfortably wraps her perfectly-manicured hands around his left arm, her brunette hair swept across her shoulder and touching his sleeve. He gets a full whiff of her fragrance, and he slightly grimaces before his thoughts finally catch up to register what just happened.

What the f—

“Everyone is so touchy today!!” she declares with a slight pout, ringing her voice loudly for everyone nearby to hear on purpose. “Don’t you guys know Ryōta-kun is my soulmate?”

“O-Oi—who said—” Kise immediately tries to jump in, but the girl is quicker to cut him off.

“He’s mine! Sorry girlies!” she says with a playful innocence before narrowing her eyes maliciously at the crowd. “... So you’ll have to leave, ‘mkay?” No sooner she speaks those words, the group disperses, and for the first time, Kise’s relatively alone in broad daylight in the middle of a public space. Though, he now has a bigger issue at hand. This girl.

There’s no doubt the entire school would talk about this the next day and weeks to come… probably months too. He drops his nice facade completely with her. “I don’t know what you’re trying to do, but stop it. The shit you’re doing right now isn’t cute in the slightest.”

“Oh! Ryōta-kun… don’t you know how attractive you are when you look at me like that?” She leans forward with a sneer of her own. “But you should be thanking me, no? I got rid of the pests for you, didn’t I?”

“I didn’t need your help,” he scoffs, beginning to turn away to walk. “If anything, you sound more desperate than I am.” There’s only one reason why she’s here.

He fumes to himself. She’s annoying, trying to use me for my status as a model to boost her own reputation in a hopeful “scandal.” Fucking hell. I’ll have to ask my manager about this later for rumor control… He clicks his tongue, making it loud enough for her to hear.

At least he knows 100% that she isn’t his soulmate. That’s one girl down out of infinity.

He walks with such controlled anger brewing within him that he almost didn’t notice another girl walking past him. Almost.

“Hana-chan!” a voice called out. He presumes that the brunette is who the voice is looking for. “Why’d you ditch me like that? You left me with these boys all alone! You know how starved they are—They totally looked at me like a piece of meat!”

“Aish, (y/n)-chan!” He hears her annoying voice echoing behind him. He walks faster. “Don’t you know you have that charm? Can you blame them?~ I wouldn’t, hehe.”

“Mou—! Hana-chan!” You speed to Hana, completely ignoring Kise as you storm past him. “You’re mean!”

He takes a quick side glance at you before his scowl turns harsher.

Who the hell in their right mind is friends with that bitch??

“Sorry, sorry!~”

But Kise can obviously tell she isn’t sorry in the least. He’s even more pissed off when he hears you pleasantly laugh with her, completely accepting her half-assed apology.

Chapter 2, Kise’s POV

———

“Huh? What’d you say Ryōta?”

“I said I want to play for the starting position.” Kise’s voice takes on an arrogant tone, dropping all polite facade—a rare occurrence, especially around so many people. The other first-string players watch the interaction anxiously, tension building in the gym.

This guy isn’t taking me seriously at all, is he?

Haizaki merely gives him a condescending look when he turns to face Kise. “You just joined the team. Hah—don’t be stupid.” He cocks a brow to taunt him further. “Besides, you can’t even beat me at practice. What do you think you’re doing, eh?”

I know what I’m doing, and you damn know it.

Kise merely gives a cocky look of his own. “I may not stand a chance against the other four, but I think I’m ready to take you.” More than ready. The mentioned Generation of Miracles stand aside to watch Haizaki’s response, not making any particular move to interfere.

“Heh, you must not think much of me.” Haizaki puts his hands casually on his hips. “It’s obvious I just don’t take practice seriously.” He licks his thumb as another taunt. “Fine. I’ll give you a taste of what I can really do.”

Honestly… what type of sick guy even does that? I can’t stand him.

. . .

A dunk there.

Another dunk.

Steal.

Backtip.

“Uh-oh. Kise-chin’s getting destroyed,” a lazy voice rings over the shoe squeaks and echoing ball bounces in the one-on-one match.

Damn it, you didn’t have to say that out loud, Murasakibaracchi… Damn it.

“More! I’m not done yet…!” Kise breathes hard, wiping sweat off his chin with the back of his arm and takes on a defensive stance.

“It’ll end the same way every time.”

“W-Wha—!”

“You and I…” Haizaki deals the finishing blow with a brutal dunk. “... are cut from different cloth.”

Ah… shit. Damn it, I thought I had it this time… I thought… damn…

“Shōgo-kun!” a feminine voice calls out from the doorway. A brunette girl pops her head to peep in. Hana. “Are you done with practice?”

Ugh… not her. Kise inwardly blanches at hearing her nauseating voice filling up the room and remembering the stunt she pulled the other day. Of all people to see me like this too…

“Yeah, sorry. I just finished,” Haizaki calls out, voice turning casual. He walks to her with an outstretched arm, eager for a touch before she recoils in disgust.

“Eurgh—!” she shrieks. “You’re still drenched in sweat!”

“Pft, I’ll take a quick shower.” He leans forward to her face, hands on his hips. “Do you wanna come with me?”

“Oh, come on!” she chastises him with that sickenly sweet voice, knowing fully well of his implications.

Kise huffs a small breath of annoyance, though it doesn’t do enough to convey his irritation for her. What a fake. People like her are so unbearable—the worst.

Aomine sighs, watching from a distance away. “That bastard…”

“Hey,” another player calls out. “Isn’t that… That’s Kise’s new girlfriend. Are they soulmates?”

Bullshit! She’s not—

“Ryōta-kun?”

Don’t use my first name like we’re familiar—

“Yeah.” Haizaki turns back to stare down at Kise, still on the ground with his hands and knees. “This guy just challenged me and lost.”

“Seriously? Talk about lame~”

“Anyways, that’s that.” Haizaki prepares to leave with the brunette. “Later, Ryōta-kun.” He adds an emphasis on the honorific to further humiliate him as he turns around.

Kise begins to tremble, fists tightening. All of you piss me off. He grits his teeth, willing himself to get up from his total loss and stand on his feet again. His hands are hanging loosely at his sides—stance relaxed, but no one around him can tell what he’s actually feeling from the way he hides his face under his bangs. But he can’t blame Haizaki… that’s the most infuriating part. He’s right… I challenged him and didn’t stand a chance—That can only mean I have to get stronger.

“Hey, wait!” Another voice cuts through his thoughts when more running footsteps echo down the gym hallway. Kise looks up with a disinterested expression at the source of the noise. “There you are! I’ve been looking for you! Aren’t we going to the arcade together?”

Haizaki merely smirks at you, giving you a once-over before flicking his hand towards himself to beckon you over. “The more the merrier, eh?”

“Oh, Shōgo-kun! You’re so sly!”

“Ehhhhh?” You dramatically gasp, turning to Haizaki. “But you agreed on going on a date with me today, didn’t you?” Haizaki stops with a raised brow to try to recall before his grin grows wider at you.

“My bad. So I did,” he hums. “Then,” he turns to the brunette, “After the shower, I’ll be with (y/n), yeah? You’re more than free to join, though.”

“Whaaaat?” You tilt your head at him. “We agreed to go alone together, geez…”

Kise merely tunes you out from that point on, no longer interested in you and whatever shit you were going to spew out. Anyone involved with Haizaki like that isn’t good to begin with. He slowly walks to use the exit on the opposite side of the gym to avoid the group for good measure.

She’s just like the rest of them. He yawns.

———

Another day, another practice. Even after Teiko destroyed Meiko in the national finals, there is no excitement buzzing among the basketball players from such an accomplishment, when such wins are simply obligatory and frequent.

“Midorimacchi? Where’s everyone else?” Kise enters the gym nonchalantly but stops to do a double take to see half the room empty. It’s supposed to be another regular day of practice isn’t it?

Midorima pauses, his hands on a plastic bottle before he narrows his eyes. “Those fools chose to ditch.”

Fools? Kise widens his eyes. “You can’t mean…”

“I don’t understand their way of thinking,” he continued, putting down the bottle before picking up the ball. “Those who don’t do everything humanly possible within their limits—I can’t be friends with such people. Luckily, my soulmate will not be the same.”

Soulmate?

“Aominecchi and Murasakibaracchi? And hey, where’s Akashicchi?”

“Quiet,” he says, going into a shooting position with the ball in his left hand. “You’re ruining my focus, nanodayo.” He shoots a half-court shot. All net, as always… nothing less from Teiko’s shooting guard.

“I’m serious,” he slightly sulks, eyeing the ball bouncing out of the court before looking back at him. “I don’t know what’s going on here.” Midorima, sensing the serious tone, turns back as he adjusts his glasses.

“Kuroko quit yesterday. Akashi is most likely gone regarding that. Though, I doubt losing Kuroko would make a huge impact to the starter lineup. Despite that, I believe Akashi wanted to be thorough and make sure there’s a temporary sixth man installed in the meantime.”

Kurokocchi quit? Well, it’s not a big deal. It’s almost the end of our 3rd year here anyways… before we graduate.

Kise further raises a confused brow. “And what’s with the soulmate comment? Did you already…?”

“Obviously not.” Midorima frowns at his insinuation. “It is far too soon for me to get one.”

“Then why do you sound so confident?!”

“Because I know,” he replies, closing his eyes briefly before looking down at the ball cart next to him. “… and trust that they’ll give me someone capable. Naturally, if I were to do everything possible on my end, that would only mean I would be granted someone of the same caliber in the future, nanodayo. There is no room for error or doubt.”

“Uh…” Kise merely gives a judgmental stare. “So I’m assuming you have a soulmate letter, and it told you this?” Midorima stops himself from shooting to stare at him incredulously, as if Kise was the most idiotic thing he’d ever laid eyes on.

“Of course not. I’m not opening that letter until the oha asa predicts the luckiest year for cancers yet.”

“I… wow.” That’s Midorimacchi for you, always the weirdo. Can’t believe he really thinks like that.

“You have no place to speak when you also are nowhere near to finding your soulmate, idiot.” He shoots the ball again. He grabs another one without looking at Kise, who’s currently no doubt giving him the look of a kicked puppy.

“I don’t believe in soulmates,” he grumbles. “Not anymore, anyways. It’s too annoying to think about.”

Midorima widens his eyes to stare at Kise, registering the foreign words coming from his mouth.

Midorimacchi, don’t look at me like that… can you blame me? It’s not that weird for a lot of people to think that, too.

Midorima merely sighs. “Say all you want, but you can’t deny the fates, nanodayo.” He goes back to ignoring Kise again, this time for good. I guess he finds that really strange on his end.

“Well…” Kise gives a heavy sigh of his own. “I guess I can get some drills in.”

———

Kaijo’s nice enough. Nothing’s really changed since becoming a 1st year here for a couple months. The campus might be twice the size of Teiko’s, and the basketball team isn’t that bad. Kasamatsu might be scary, though, but he has no real complaints about him. Well… he reconsiders the thought, feeling his lower back throbbing. Actually… he COULD try to lessen up on his kicks… But I guess he means well. He’s a bit too serious, though.

He still has plenty of complaints about girls following him around, but by now, he’s used to it. Call it a staple of Kise Ryōta, of some sorts. Kise of Kaijo… he thinks, remembering Kasamatsu’s lecture on his first day of scouting. It really does have a nice ring to it after all.

He smiles, recalling the new bonds he’s forged with his teammates these past matches. The Winter Cup is coming soon, so everyone’s buzzing with excitement and anticipation to take home 1st place this year. Kurokocchi might be right about doing what’s good for the team. I need to get stronger for our rematch. His simper only grows bigger.

Thinking about basketball and not worrying about the unnecessary things at hand is so liberating that he pretty much forgets the ordeal. (Like the business of soulmates, but he’s not thinking about that! That’s not even remotely in his consciousness, not one bit.)

Unfortunately for him, his smile is wiped from his face the moment he enters the gym.

“Heyah, heyah, heyah!” He furrows his brows in slight confusion at the voice, most definitely not belonging to any of his teammates. That sounds… familiar.

Your voice reverberates throughout the gym, but it seems like you have no regard for an indoor voice as your eyes sparkle (how creepy) at his teammates. And your own smile widens as seconds pass (definitely creepy). Kise’s frown becomes harsher when he finally recognizes you.

I don’t remember what she looks like… but that damn voice… wait a second—

Kasamatsu sighs at you, but he tries to keep a polite tone with you. Even so, anyone can sense how exasperated he is. “Sorry, look,” he says cordially, eyeing Kise at the door before turning his gaze back at you. “If you’re looking for Kise, he’s not here right now, and if you are going to wait for him, he’ll be occupied with practice from soon until hours later.”

You do that same head tilt you did back at Teiko. “But I’m not here for him.”

His teammates merely sweatdrop at your answer. Right, like anyone believes that. Kise takes a quiet step in to put his duffel bag on an empty spot, no longer even bothering to give you his attention anymore.

“Yeah, sorry.” Kobori steps in with an apologetic smile of his own. “If you want to leave any gifts, you can leave it with the coach.”

“No, no!” You widen your eyes theatrically, waving your hands around in front of your chest to emphasize your statement. “You misunderstand me, seriously!”

Kasamatsu, having enough of you, shoots an exhale before turning to yell to the other players, “Everyone! Start warming up! And don’t slack off, or I’ll kick your ass!”

“I’m not here for Kise,” your voice rings out loud and clear. “I’m here for Kasamatsu-senpai.” Everyone freezes at the mention of the captain’s name. What business did a 1st year have with a 3rd year? They spare a look in the captain’s direction, but even he’s caught off guard. Kise looks up at you from behind, a few meters away.

Does she even know that I’m actually here, or…?

“Because,” you say, a little too brightly. “I think you’re my soulmate, Kasamatsu-senpai!”

Said captain immediately chokes on air.

Every single person in the gym has their jaws dropped.

A few seconds of silence take over the gym.

“WHAT??????!!!!”

#kuroko no basket #knb x reader #knb #knb fic #knb fics #kise x reader #knb kise #kise ryota #kise ryota x reader #kise ryouta x reader #knb scenarios #the basketball which kuroko plays #kuroko no basketball #kise ryota x y/n #knb x y/n #kasamatsu yukio #kasamatsu x reader #kasamatsu yukio x reader

184 notes · View notes

shoichee · 2 years

Text

Paradox

[Kise x f!Reader]

soulmate!au, enemies to lovers!au, manga!kise, cursing!kise to bits, LONG SERIES FIC

Hana is the name I decided to give to the brunette who flirted with Haizaki in s3

Chapters 3-4 can be found here!

Word Count:

Part 1: 3386 | Part 2: 2131

current 🏷: @nadav-ii, @carinacassiopeiae, @kendrex13, @roppongiperfume, @thesongstressayre, @kimigiri09, @takatul, @evierena, @one-one-one-one @seijurosempress @inum4k1