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Maybe using Google to research his
symptoms hadn't been a good idea.

‘Sudden nausea, headache,
dizziness, sensitivity to food smells.’

Just reading what he had typed
down made him realize that
it was pretty obvious.

Well, the search results.

They were obvious.

The problem was that it wasn't
just the headache, it wasn't just the
nausea nor only the dizziness.

It was the combination of all these
things that led to quite clear results.

“No fucking way..”

Kenma whispered to himself
as he scrolled yet through another
article in hope to get any other
possible explanation for the weird
things he had been experiencing
the past weeks.

He couldn't be, there was no way.

And he tried so hard to push this
rational thought far away in the
back of his brain, somewhere so
deep that it'd hopefully never
come up again.

The rational thought that was trying
to tell him that it was indeed possible.

It was the middle of October and
Kenma knew too well how Kuroo
and him had spent the past weeks
of the summer break together.

Well, it wasn't like they had been
constantly all over each other,
they aren't rabbits.

But Kuroo could be quite seducing
and convincing if he wanted.

A heavy sigh escaped the pudding
head as he closed the article and
deleted his search history before
he put his phone away, feline eyes
closing when he felt the sting again.

If he cried now,
his boyfriend would
immediately notice.

He was probably already wondering
why he was taking so long but the last
thing he needed right now was for
someone to ask him if he was okay.

Because he wasn't and he knew that
he'd either snap or burst into tears the
moment anyone would speak to him.

Maybe even both.

Convincing Kuroo not to walk him
home had been almost impossible.

They lived right next to each other,
they always walked home together
after practice and especially since
the incident in the changing room,
the ravenette was even more
protective over his small boyfriend.

“But I need to stop at the store,
my mom asked me to
get a few things.”

“Then I'll come with you.”

“Kuroo. You're tired and sweaty,
go home or you'll get sick. I'll be fine.”

“But you are already sick.
Let me come with you so I
can carry the stuff home,
I really don't mind.”

The ravenette whined as he tried
to convince Kenma but there was
simply no way he'd allow Kuroo
to accompany him.

But he couldn't just say
‘Let me buy some pregnancy tests alone, I don't want you to know.’

That sentence itself didn't even
make any sense, so he'd have to fight
harder for a different, better excuse.

“I think one guy buying women
hygienic products is awkward
enough, there's no need for two
young guys to do that together.”

Kuroo visibly tensed at his
boyfriend's words, his face
freezing just for a mere second
before he nodded quickly.

“I- I think so too!”

“Great!”

Maybe his reaction had been a
little too enthusiastic but at the
moment Kenma couldn't care less.

If his boyfriend thought that he
enjoyed shopping for his mom's
hygienic products, so be it.

Still better than finding out
about his actual plan.

“Then.. I'll pick you up tomorrow
as always? Don't forget to bring

something to share for the
barbecue in the evening.
I still don't get who thought that
barbecue in October is a good idea
but I guess it's even more difficult to
find a restaurant for so many people.”

But Kenma only nodded
absentmindedly, his thoughts
already far away again.

“See you tomorrow,
text me when you're home, okay?
Love you.”

The ravenette leaned down to press
a soft kiss on his boyfriend's forehead
like he always did and gave their
intertwined hands one last
squeeze before he let go.

“Love you too.”

Even now with everything that
was going on in his head, he still
couldn't help but smile just
hearing the older's words.

And although it had taken a while
for the blonde to say it back, to voice
it out so naturally just like Tetsuro,
he truly meant it and he knew that
his boyfriend knew it too.

Shopping as an introvert was
already hard enough but buying
pregnancy tests gave Kenma a
whole new level of anxiety.

No matter how many snacks
he bought to hide the tests between
them on the cashier's counter, he

felt like he was about to lay himself
naked on the counter for a full
body examination.

He wasn't going to buy a whole 5kg
container of pickled ginger where
people would look strangely and
wonder what he'd need so
much ginger for.

He was buying some tests that
had just one simple function and
people would look strangely,
wondering how that could
happen at his age.

‘Irresponsible teens these days.’

Kenma could practically hear it
as he hastily placed his things
on the counter.

The cashier hadn't even said
anything but was waiting patiently
as his customer unpacked, watching
every single product that was placed
on the counter with a neutral look.

Still Kenma thought that if he'd do
just one wrong move, the cashier
would immediately address the two
little packages from different brands.

Good thing that once he's home,
he could just go shower and hide
under his blanket with his snacks.

Maybe play something on his
Switch to busy his mind with
something else and cuddle his
cat plushie for comfort.

Maybe cry a bit,
he'd decide on that later.

“That'll be 1200 yen.”

Kenma pulled his purse out to
hand the cashier the money with
shaky hands, avoiding eye
contact at all costs.

He already had his hood pulled
over his head and the jacket closed
as high as possible to hide his face
a bit so nobody could recognize
him in case there was anyone
who knew him.

But fortunately even in the
suburban areas of Tokyo there
were enough mini marts and
supermarkets that it was quite
unlikely to meet someone he knew
as long as he chose a mart in
a different neighborhood.

The pudding head bowed slightly
as he thanked the cashier before
he rushed outside, feeling like he'd
suffocate any second if he stayed
in there just a bit longer.

He could only hope that he'd
never see the person behind
the counter ever again.

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