Kuroo leaned back in his chair, his arms branched out as he balanced all his weight on the back legs of the wooden seat.

He knew that he should probably be focusing on the lesson that was being explained on the board in front of the class. He knew there would probably be a test on the information being taught now quite soon. He knew that he needed to keep his grades up in order to be promoted to a third year with the rest of his classmates.

He knew. He knew. He knew. So maybe he should pay attention?

...Nah.

He eased his chair back down, the feet of the chair quietly connecting to the ground. He leaned forward and placed his head into the cradle he made with his arms by folding them onto each other. He yawned quietly into his arms, turning his head to face the wall of windows that was to his left.

'Class is so boring~” He thought to himself as he allowed his eyes to slide shut. His mind wondered, jumping from thought to thought until it finally settled on one thing. Or rather, person.

A certain blonde haired girl flashed into his mind, her dainty smile shaping her lips. She was a little tall for a girl, but had always been a few centimeters shorter than Kuroo. Something she has never been quite happy about. She had gentle green eyes and soft apricot skin with a light dusting of freckles stretching across the bridge of her nose. To everyone else, she came off as a kind, benevolent spirit. But Kuroo knew her better than anyone else, and she was, in fact, the complete opposite.

“I do it because I care, Kuroo-kun,” she would coo, before committing a heinous act towards the tall volleyball player. Which he, of course, forgave her for. Again, again and again.

It was a cycle that he somehow got into, but made no effort to get out of.

Kuroo smirked lazily at the thought of what she would do if she found him slacking off in class. She had always been like that, ever since elementary school.

It was one of the things about her that Kuroo came to admire. To love.

He snuggled into his arms more, letting out a calming sigh. Good thing she was in a different class.

Kuroo smirked to himself. A light nap wouldn't hurt, right? She'd never find out.

◦◦◦

Kuroo's cat like eyes fluttered open at the sudden flick of his nose. He blinked a few times, trying to focus in on the figure that stood to the left of him, just a few centimeters off.

“Mama?” Kuroo called out, knowing all too well who it was that stood before him.

Nimble fingers flicked his nose again for a second time before walking away to take the empty seat before him.

Kuroo pushed himself up, his eyes drowsy from his nap.

How long had he been sleeping for?

“You must have slept through the whole morning session,” a boy beside him commented quietly, answering his mental question. Kuroo looked over at him, and watched as his eyes were trained on the DSXL that was in his hands. The boy's honey colored eyes looked up at Kuroo from the edge of the screen before looking back at his game.

“Kenma!” Kuroo greeted, planting a friendly hand onto the shoulder of the first year. “What're you doing in here?”

“It's our lunch hour, Kuroo,” a voice answered from the seat before him. He cautiously etched his eyes to look in the direction that the voice came from.

His eyes met with soft green ones, although the emotion being portrayed through them weren't so nice.

“Ah, Noa-chan~” he greeted, his lips pulling back into a light smirk, “When did you get here-”

“You can't being sleeping during class like that, Kuroo,” she reprimanded, her hand reaching forward to flick him in the nose again, “Do you not want to play volleyball this year?”

Kuroo leaned back into his chair, pouting at the girl who just scolded him.

“It was only a nap,” he mumbled, looking out the windows that he fell asleep facing. “I'll be fine.”

“Your grades don't seem to agree with that,” Kenma mumbled earning a betrayed look from Kuroo.

“Tsk,” Noa sounded, leaning back into her chair, her eyes trained on the boy before her that suffered from chronic bedhead. Noa sat there silently, her lips pursed in thought.

“Oh!” she chimed, leaning forward towards Kuroo. “I know what we should do,” she said, looking over at Kenma before looking back at Kuroo. “We'll hold study nights at Kuroo's house. That way, he can make up for all the lessons he misses during class.”

Kenma remained silent, shrugging his shoulders in agreement.

“Alright, it's settled. Tonight, we're coming over to study Kuroo,” Noa announced, picking up the tan bag that previously sat at the foot of her chair.

“Wait! It's only the second week of school!” Kuroo called, throwing his hands palms down on his desk. “Are you even going to ask me? What if I have things to do?”

“Like what?” Noa asked oh-so innocently.

Kuroo went silent, maintaining the eye contact he had with Noa's emerald like eyes.

Kuroo knew he lost this argument already from the moment Noa flicked his nose. It was destiny, and she was the muse of fate.

He slumped into his seat. “Fine,” he mumbled, keeping his eyes trained on the blondette before him.

She smiled brightly at him. Kuroo's stomach tickled just a bit. It must have been because he hadn't had lunch yet, right?

“I'm proud of you, Kuroo-kun! You accepted it rather quickly.”

'As if I had a choice.' He thought to himself.

“Maybe this year will go pretty smoothly for you.” She added.

Kuroo watched as she reached into the small bag that she had carried from her class to his own. She pulled out two wrapped anpan breads and set them on Kuroo's desk. He continued to watch as she pulled out a melonpan and placed it onto her lap, putting the bag on the floor beside her chair.

When she finally looked up and met Kuroo's eyes, he looked down at the two breads and back to her green eyes several times before she rose a dirty blond eyebrow.

“They're for you and Kenma-kun. Since I know you two rarely bring lunches for yourself,” she explained, before taking a bite of her melonpan.

Kenma finally looked up from his game at Noa. “They're for us?”

She shrugged her shoulders. “You guys never brought lunches with you in middle school. I brought them just in case,” she replied with a small smile.

Kenma's honey eyes looked down at the wrapped bread while he set his game onto the desk, before reaching forward to take one. “Thanks,” he uttered while unwrapping the pastry.

Kuroo scoffed. “I only eat homemade pastries,” he joked, his face set in his usual smirk.

Noa ignored him, deciding to ask Kenma about his game.

Pouting, Kuroo reached forward to take the last anpan, unwrapping it before taking a bite of the sweet pastry. He watched quietly as Noa and Kenma discussed the first year's new game – something they've done since they were in elementary school.

It always used to be just the three of them. All up until last year. Noa began dating someone she met through her parents who ended up being a student at Nekoma, although he was a third year.

'Rich bastard,' is the only way Kuroo could describe him. Noa's parents approved her relationship with him more than they approved her friendship with himself and Kenma.

Admittedly, it rubbed him the wrong way.

“Why aren't you eating lunch with your love?” Kuroo asked, his smirk easily hiding the frustration behind his voice.

It was an uncommon sight to see her here during lunch, as that time (and the rest of her free time) seemed to be dedicated to her lovely -

“Tohru?” She clarified, “He has to do some things for the basketball club, but he said he'll text me when he's done,” she answered, a light smile gracing her lips.

“Ah,” Kuroo began, throwing the last piece of anpan into his mouth, “Well, thank you for gracing us with your presence, Noa-hime~.” He taunted.

The very thought of Tohru rubbed him the wrong way.

Noa shot him a dirty look before Kenma's light voice caught her attention.

“It's good that things are going well between you two,” he commented, his eyes trained on the game that seems to have jumped back into his hands.

“Thanks, Kenma-kun,” Noa replied happily, “You guys should come have lunch with us some time,” she invited, taking a bite of her melonpan.

Before Kenma could reply, Kuroo snorted. “And do what? Bow down to the prince?”

Noa gave him a sad look. “He's not that bad.”

“You have to say that, you're his girlfriend,” he retorted. He flinched at the tone he used and scrambled for a way to recover. “Besides, Kenma isn't really interested in that stuff.”

The two second years looked over at their younger friend who kept his gaze trained on the bright lights and moving figures on the screen of his DS. He knew from experience that he should touch this subject with a ten meter pole. Especially when it had to do with Tohru.

The attention of the three childhood friends was shifted onto Noa's pastel pink cellphone. It chimed twice, notifying her of a new message that waited to be read.

She pick up the small device from her lap and read the message, a smile growing on her face. She twisted to her left side and picked up the small bag that she carried in with her. Picking up the bread wrappers, she stood up and smoothed out her navy skirt.

She looked over at Kenma who's eyes were now back onto the screen of the DS, then over at Kuroo who has his gaze adverted to the clouds that floated outside the window.

She walked in the space of Kenma's and Kuroo's desks. Placing a light hand onto the heads of her two best friends, she ruffled their hair slightly before walking forward.

“Don't fall asleep again, Kuroo. I mean it,” she warned over her right shoulder, “I'll see you two later.”

She caught onto the light nod that Kenma used as a response, then on the lazy wave that Kuroo threw up without looking her way.

Kuroo let out a sigh when she finally left the class room.

Kenma looked over at the boy, who's eyes were fixated on the clouds that floating in the sky outside. “You could just tell her,” he suggested, shutting his DS before slipping it into his pocket, taking out his red cellphone instead.

“Tell her what?” Kuroo spat, knowing that Kenma knew of situation better than anyone. “It won't make a difference, will it?”

“It's better than keeping it to yourself,” Kenma paused, “Although, you haven't been doing a good job at that.”

Kuroo slumped into his chair, his hands raising to cover his face.

Kuroo knew. He knew. He knew. He knew.

But he also knew that Noa was desperately in love with Tohru and that wouldn't change.

Even if she came to find out that Kuroo was just as desperately in love with her.