Disclaimer: The only thing I own is the story idea and only some of the witty remarks. I own so little; so please don't steal.

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[=]

The thing about Aomine and Kise is that they fight more often than not during the time they are together. Kise makes plans with Kuroko happily at ten o' clock in the morning and says Aomine would be happy to have dinner with him and Kagami and by seven at night, they're fuming at each other and refusing to speak at the table which makes conversation a little complicated.

"You two are always fighting," Kagami says, saying what everyone refuses to voice. "How can you be in a relationship?"

"We're not fight-" says Aomine.

"You're right," Kise interrupts, giving Aomine a meaningful and sarcastic sidelong glance. "We're always like this, so why are we together?"

"You didn't have to say that," Aomine says later when they're back at home and Kise is taking off his cufflinks. "Why do you always say things without thinking about it?"

"I always say whatever I think whenever I think it," Kise sniffs, practically ripping the cufflink through the cuff buttonhole. He wants Aomine to see this fit of frantic anger but Aomine is too busy setting an alarm for tomorrow. "You're fine to think whatever you want, the door's that way."

"I'll barely miss you," Aomine mutters in frustration.

They sleep on the same bed that night but the ice from Kise's side of the bed keeps the sheets too cold for Aomine to bother rolling over and saying sorry for being so careless with his words.

[=]

"I heard Kagami proposed to Kuroko the other day."

Aomine doesn't look up from the computer. "Men can't get married in Japan, you idiot."

"I know, all I'm saying is that Kagami proposed to Kuroko." Kise is washing the dishes noisily. Aomine doesn't think he would announce this any quieter even if he wasn't. "And Kuroko said yes, of course. So they're going to have this informal ceremony. It's not legally official, but it's basically as if they're tied for life."

"That's sappy and cheesy and very typical of Kagami," Aomine declares, continuing work on their budgets.

The clattering of dishes continues for a good five minutes without a word from either of them. "Well?" Kise asks, loudly and a little angrily.

"Well what?"

"When should I expect a marriage proposal or is this a relationship that's just going to go on statically?"

"I'm not Kagami," Aomine hisses, glancing up to bore a hole in Kise's back with his eyes. "And I don't believe in doing ridiculous sentimental things that have no meaning whatsoever."

"It's about the symbolism, you heartless asshole," Kise shouts, turning around and Aomine sees his face has gone dark. "And I'm someone who actually cares about 'ridiculous sentimentality'. I swear, you don't actually love me."

"How can I love you," Aomine says, turning back to his computer. "You're impossible."

Kise flings a glass at his head.

[=]

"I heard you're working with Mai recently," Aomine sniffs when they're sitting down at dinner together and Kise can just smell the fight brewing. "Have you fucked her yet?"

"No," Kise snarls. "I, unlike you, think with the head on top of my shoulders, not the one between my legs."

And just to get back at Aomine for questioning his fidelity, he sleeps with Mai the next Tuesday.

"Are you kidding," Mai says, not the least bit amused when Kise is gushing about Aomine angrily during their pillow talk. She puffs her cheeks and crosses her arms and Kise knows a woman scorned. "You slept with me for that? I guess my consolation is that you kind of suck in the sack."

"Shut up," Kise huffs, all playfulness lost from his voice. "I'm going to take a shower, don't jack my shit."

Aomine tackles him on Friday after he comes home from a particularly gruesome shoot and fucks him hard and mercilessly into the headboard without a bit of explanation. Naturally, Kise scratches him up a bit in the process and inquires about it later.

"I got a call from Mai late Tuesday night," Aomine says, matter-of-factly, as he inspects his wounds from Kise's hands. "Imagine - getting a call from my childhood idol and it's to tell me my boyfriend's cheated on me. You said you didn't sleep with her."

"Now I have," Kise grouses, daring Aomine to argue with him.

"It's also common courtesy not to spend the entire time after talking about someone else." Aomine gives him a long look in return and it almost makes Kise's resolve crumble. "It's the only thing really keeping you from killing you myself right now. Both for cheating on me and making Mai upset."

"I have no interest in old women," Kise sniffs, turning away and hearing Aomine mutter under his breath that Mai is only 32 and barely an old woman, "or stupid boys."

There's a pause and Kise thinks he's started another row, except he feels Aomine press a kiss against his bare shoulder. "Lucky enough for you, you idiot, I'm a man." Kise feels Aomine grin next to his neck. "Now if you'd like to join me in the bath, the offer's extended only once."

[=]

"What," Aomine says slowly, bringing a hand up to his nose, "the fuck did you just do?"

They both know what Kise did, and it's very simple. In the heat of their argument, Aomine leaned in and called Kise childish and Kise leaned back and punched him in the face.

"I'm not sorry at all," Kise growls, his fist reddening from the impact but he doesn't rub it. Aomine swipes a hand across his nose and feels blood.

"If you broke my nose," Aomine threatens, "I'm going to strangle you."

"You're so hardheaded I probably broke my hand instead," Kise shoots back. The blood is coming out so regularly that Aomine excuses himself from their battle zone that is their living room and retreats into the bathroom to try and stopper the bleeding.

Kise joins him fifteen minutes later when the blood is basically gone but his nose is smarting and Aomine didn't know noses could bruise. Kise comes in and shoves a bag of ice roughly against his face. Aomine hisses but the cold feels good. "I'm sorry," Kise says, his voice clicky and mechanic. "You make me so angry sometimes."

"This is domestic abuse," Aomine says, a little stifled from the ice around his mouth.

Kise shifts his weight on his feet. "It's nothing compared to how much you've hurt me in the past."

"I heard you cry all those times."

"Then you should know."

They stay like that for a while, Aomine perched on the toilet seat with a bag of ice against his face, Kise standing in front of him and ignoring how his fingers are freezing. "I'm sorry too," Aomine says finally. "I'm making you tougher, aren't I."

"I can't keep my baby face when I'm dealing with you," Kise admits, sighing, and Aomine knows he's forgiven - for the time being. "Does it still hurt?"

"Kiss it better, please~."

[=]

Kise threatens Aomine with leaving him at least fifteen times a week, either jokingly when Aomine is tickling him when he's trying to get dressed or when they're in the midst of a terrible spat where Kise is backed against the kitchen sink and slinging every hurtful thing he can think of as Aomine yells at him from the dining room. He follows through about five percent of the time, but almost always instantly retreating when Aomine looks at him and apologizes without meaning and offering to get back together. This time, he turns away before he can see Aomine's expression and runs out the door, hearing it slam behind him and taking the steps down three at a time.

He secludes himself in the middle of a close-by drug store's parking lot, squeezing himself between two cars and willing himself not to cry. He deserves so much better, really. Kuroko and Kagami have such a normal, functioning relationship and they always do nice, cute things for each other. He can't remember the last time Aomine made him smile and he curses himself for being in such a terrible situation and decides - this is the last time, he'll leave for good this time -

- except he remembers that Aomine did surprise him that morning with very tasty espresso before revealing the espresso machine in their kitchen that he bought after Kise voiced wanting authentically brewed European beans. And just a few days before, Aomine did sit close to him on the train and whispered in his ear how he'd never been in a relationship that lasted that long and thank you for putting up with me and that had been genuine because Aomine got up and moved and refused to look Kise in the eye out of sheer embarrassment. That had been cute, hadn't it?

Aomine answers the door after just a single knock. "I want you back," he says simply, and Kise wants to curse his name but falls into his arms all the same.

[=]

Note: Compilation from microfics on tumblr revolving around the domestic abuse!universe