Pairing: Ritsu Kageyama x Reader

Genre: fluff

Warnings: none

Extra: small spoilers from S3 ep12
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Y/n's POV

"Y/n, can I talk to you for a second, please?" Shigeo's voice is really quiet-- almost like a whisper-- and he appears to be really nervous.

"Yeah, I can talk," I reply.

"Let's go somewhere a little more private." Shigeo leads me to the park that's near both our houses. Thankfully, no one is around.

We both sit on the swing set, despite having to ignore the freezing feeling of the cold, metal chains against the palms of our hands.

"So, what is it you wanted to talk about?" I inquire.

Shigeo's face has gone pink, either from the bitter winter cold or from sudden embarrassment. He fiddles his fingers around for a while before looking me dead in the eye.

"I need you to pretend that you're my girlfriend."

I stare at him in shock. "Huh?"

"The thing is... my parents have been worried about me socially, and they've asked me several times if I'm ever going to start dating," Shigeo explains. "Yesterday, I accidentally blurted out that I have a girlfriend-- even though I don't-- and they wanted me to invite her to our house this Christmas."

"Why don't you take Tsubomi?" I suggest.

"That's another issue," Shigeo sighs before continuing. "Recently... I asked Tsubomi out before she moved away."

"Really? What'd she say?"

"She's not interested in dating me."

"Oh..."

Now I understand his dilemma even more. He can't ask Tsubomi for a pretty good reason.

"Y/n, you're the only other girl I can think of that'll be perfect for this kind of thing." Shigeo's eyes were pleading with me. "Please, Y/n, I--I don't want to disappoint my parents any more than I regularly do."

I want to help him-- I really do-- but there's a small problem with this plan.

Shigeo doesn't know this, but...

I have a massive crush on his younger brother, Ritsu.

There's no way I can do this without giving Ritsu the wrong idea or crushing his heart! Ritsu's more sensitive than he appears.

But...

Shigeo's panicking about this even more than I thought he would. Normally, he would keep calm like always, but he's been more open about his feelings lately. Plus, it's not like I'll have an opportunity to make Ritsu a little jealous. He'd probably spark a little more interest in me if I follow through with this plan.

"Alright, I'll help you," I agree. "From now on, we're boyfriend and girlfriend in front of your family."

Shigeo's eyes light up like an excited puppy. "Thank you, Y/n! You won't regret this, I promise."

I really hope so.

Time Skip

Ritsu's POV

Ever since Brother told Mom and Dad that he had a girlfriend, I can't help but feel suspicious. Brother has never seemed to have interest in girls other than Tsubomi.

Mezato or Emi or Tome maybe??

I have no idea who else he could possibly want to go out with. It's so frustrating!

"Hey, Brother," I ask him as we're cleaning the dishes. "Who's that girlfriend you mentioned to Mom and Dad earlier?"

"Why'd you ask?" Brother looks at me weird and momentarily stops washing a plate.

"Oh, no reason. I'm just curious," I reply casually. I don't want to make Brother feel like I'm pressuring him.

"Oh, it's Y/n." Brother resumes in washing the plate.

I almost drop the cup I'm washing and gag on my saliva. "Wha? Did you just say 'Y/n'?"

Brother nods. "Yes."

He can't be serious! That's the girl I've had a crush on since grade school! I internally shout.

My throat starts to choke up. "I, uh, didn't know you had any interest in Y/n. I thought you were so focused on dating Tsubomi."

"Well, since Tsubomi rejected me, I figured I could try giving other girls a chance. Y/n happened to be the first girl on my mind at the time," Brother explains.

"Oh, I see." The two of us remain silent while washing the rest of the dishes. This conversation was getting a little too awkward for my liking.

As soon as we had finished, I wished my brother a good night and rushed upstairs to my bedroom, shutting the door quickly. There's no way he should see me when I'm emotionally vulnerable.

I spend that night reading through all of my past text message conversations I had with Y/n, which I find difficult to do without crying like a toddler. This is all too much to handle right now.

Time Skip To Christmas Day

Y/n's POV

Christmas Day arrived and Shigeo invited me to his home earlier in the morning. I'm feeling nervous, despite knowing the Kageyama family very well and there being no real reason to be afraid of them. Maybe I'm too worried about how Ritsu will think of me "going out" with his brother. I think this may have gone too far.

I get a text from Shigeo that reads:

Shigeo: You can come over now. My parents are ready

After putting on the right winter clothes, I head out and walk slowly towards the Kageyama's house. I was breathing rapidly and I could tell with the winter steam exiting my mouth. I am not ready for this at all. I wish Shigeo didn't come to me for this, but I reminded myself that this is for a good cause. I have to do this for him.

When I arrive, I knock on the door and wait for someone to answer the door. I tap my foot anxiously and immediately stop when I hear the doorknob twisting. Mrs. Kageyama opens the door and wears a huge smile.

"Welcome, Y/n! Why don't you come in and have a seat? Shigeo will be so happy to know that you're here." She leads me inside. "Shige, Y/n's here!"

A few light thumps coming from upstairs follow Mrs. Kageyama's shout, and Shigeo peeks his head down the stairs before coming down to join us.

"H-hi, Y/n," Shigeo shyly greets. "It's-- It's so good to see you again."

Remember, this is just an act! I reminded myself.

I intwine my fingers with his. "It's nice to see you too, Shige."

"Oh, aren't you two just adorable?" Mrs. Kageyama gushes. "I'll go get the cookies and we can all chat together."

After she leaves, I blush a little at the sight of Ritsu standing by the kitchen doorway.

"Hi, Ritsu." I smile awkwardly.

Ritsu gives a little wave and joins me and his brother. "I didn't know you liked Brother like that. Congratulations."

"Thank you."

I really wish this wasn't happening. I really wish this wasn't happening. I really wish this wasn't happening. I really wish this wasn't happening!

"Let's go to the living room," Ritsu suggests and we both follow him.

I can't help but feel really awkward around Ritsu now. I can feel some sort of strange energy coming off of Ritsu, but I can't quite put my finger on it. Maybe he was getting jealous after all.

Soon, Mr and Mrs. Kageyama enter the room with a big plate full of Christmas cookies in their hands.

"You can help yourselves," Mrs. Kageyama offers kindly. "We just want them all eaten so we won't have leftovers."

We all take some.

"So, how did Shigeo ask you out?" Mr. Kageyama asks.

I froze. I should've been expecting these kinds of questions, but Shigeo and I had forgotten to rehearse our fake love story. I know I'll just have to make something up now.

"We were behind the school and Shige approached me with a bouquet of flowers and a nice box of chocolates," I lie. "He then poured his heart out to me and now we're here."

I hold Shigeo's hand awkwardly to sell our performance.

"You're so classy, Shige," Mrs. Kageyama bubbled. "That's my little boy growing up."

Shigeo's face went red. "Mom..."

"There's no need to be embarrassed." Mrs. Kageyama patted Shigeo on the shoulder. "I'm just so proud of you."

During the really embarrassing interview with Shigeo's parents, I couldn't keep my eyes off Ritsu. He just looked so... uncomfortable.

I hope he's feeling ok.

"Shige, do you want to help me put away the dishes?" Mrs. Kageyama asks.

"Sure, Mom." Shigeo stands up and follows his parents to the kitchen, leaving Ritsu and I alone.

"Hey, Y/n, do you really love my brother?"

I'm shocked at hearing Ritsu's question. He looks really bothered.

"Do you want me to tell you the truth?" I inquire."

Ritsu nods. "Yes."

I take a deep breath and proceed to tell him everything. "Shigeo asked me to be his fake girlfriend so your parents wouldn't worry about him."

"That sounds like him," Ritsu laughs sadly. "Always trying his best to please others."

We go quiet.

"Um, Ritsu, there's something I need to tell you," I mumble.

"What is it?"

My heart suddenly skips a couple of beats and my heartbeat increases by a lot. I'm starting to feel nervous and really scared-- terrified even. I clench my sweaty hands together and I take a shaky breath this time.

"I don't like your brother like that. I like you," I confess.

Another moment of silence passes.

I carefully glance up at Ritsu. My face is bright red like a cherry and I'm sweating like crazy. I don't get an initial response from Ritsu, but I do start to notice some changes. He's trying to repress a smile and he's starting to blush too.

"You... You really mean that?" Ritsu asks.

I nod eagerly.

Ritsu lets out a soft gasp before covering his mouth with his hand. Suddenly realizing what he's doing, he allows his hand to fall back down to his lap.

"I-I really like you too, Y/n. I wasn't sure how you'd feel after thinking that you and Brother were dating," Ritsu admits.

"Really? You like me?" I gasp.

He nods in response.

"What're we going to tell your parents?" I wonder.

"It's ok. The jig is up." That was Shigeo's voice. He had returned from the kitchen with his parents. "We were talking and I stopped the whole act once I saw you and Ritsu talking."

I smile warmly. "Thank you, Shigeo."

"I'm sorry for getting you mixed up in this," Shigeo apologizes. "I should've guessed that you wanted Ritsu."

"It's ok. We're still friends." I hug Shigeo and turn to the parents. "Are you mad at Shigeo?"

"No," Mr. Kageyama laughs. "We just think it's so funny he'd try something like this."

"I think you'd be perfect for Ritsu, so don't worry about it," Mrs. Kageyama adds.

I smile at them before turning to Ritsu. "Do you want to be my boyfriend? Like, real boyfriend?"

"Of course. As long as you'd want to be my real girlfriend," Ritsu smirks.

"I'd love that."

Word Count: 1829