Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

Thursday, Sep 20—Nine days after the incident

Shoyo hummed lightly under his breath as he walked side by side with Kageyama. One hand was intertwined with his best friend’s and the other was hauling his bike up the mountain.

He and Kageyama hadn’t talked much the entire walk, not since they left the school, but Shoyo didn’t mind. He found it sorta strange that Kageyama was so quiet, but he easily filled the silence himself.

It was starting to get cold at night—cold enough for Shoyo to shiver as the breeze hit him, and so now the hand holding felt a little like a necessity.

Personally, Shoyo liked how warm Kageyama’s hands were at all times. He didn’t know what voodoo crap he’d done to have such a warm body temperature, but it worked wonderfully to warm up the ginger through their practice kisses—when Kageyama cradled his neck or waist—and hand holding, so he couldn’t be too envious.

Eventually, the two boys reached the fork in the road they sometimes parted. One led to Kageyama’s home, the other to Shoyo’s. They hadn’t discussed what they were doing yet, so Shoyo let Kageyama’s hand go and turned his body toward him. 

“Are you coming tonight?” he asked. He wrung his hands together, feeling a strange urge to do something with them. “You know Mum and Natsu love you to death. Pretty sure they’re starting to like you more than me,” he admitted with a pout he tried to hide.

He was honestly offended that the two of them looked so much happier to see Shoyo getting home whenever he had a certain grump accompanying him. It was just plain unfair in his opinion.

Kageyama stared at him with drawn eyebrows and a jutted lip. He glanced down the road that led to his house, then at his hand. "Maybe they like me because I’m more likeable?" he suggested in a deadpan manner.

Shoyo blinked at him before scoffing with a frown. Seriously, the guy that was flinging out insults every chance he got thought he was more likeable than Shoyo? "There’s literally no way you believe that, Idiot-yama," he retorted indignantly. 

To his confusion, Kageyama’s features shifted into something much more pleasant the next moment, his mouth quaking a bit in the corners.

For some unexplainable reason, Shoyo’s stomach did a strange fwooping thing when he realised Kageyama was just teasing. The thought of him playing around without any prompting made his chest tingle. He scratched it in a poor attempt to get it to stop.

He didn’t really understand why he was still experiencing side effects to their kisses—rushes of adrenaline, an insane desire for more than just one kiss, a giddiness he was unable to explain, and he was never able to sit still beforehand—but it was leaking into other parts of his life now, too. 

He was starting to feel fidgety around Kageyama even when he wasn't about to practice kissing.

He didn’t know why his heart was always playing tricks on him, skipping beats, being loud and just annoying him in general whenever he was with Kageyama, even when they weren’t kissing. Was that normal? Shoyo felt a little in the dark.

"I’ll pack some clothes. Come with if you want, but I’m not waiting for slow-pokes."

Kageyama’s words shot an arrow through Shoyo’s thoughts, and he immediately sputtered to catch up to an already walking away meanie. They both knew he was being serious when he said he’d leave Shoyo. 

"Dude, you’re so lucky your parents let you go to other people’s houses all the time," the ginger commented, grunting a little when his bike nearly slipped out of his hold. He turned to set it right again. "Mine would freak if I constantly left without saying anything."

He didn’t get a reply, so he glanced over his shoulder to find Kageyama looking at him weirdly. He’d stopped walking to stare. So much for not waiting for slow-pokes.

“What?” Shoyo asked. “Is there something on my face?” He put a hand to his cheek and felt around. Then he thought of something else and quickly jumped back, putting his free hand up in a fist. “You wanna fight? Come at me, let's rumble!” He was ready for whatever it was!

Kageyama wrinkled his face at him. “God, you’re such an idiot. Are you ever not yelling?”

Shoyo lifted one side of his mouth in offence. “Don’t be a jerk, Meanie-yama.” He manoeuvred his bike one last bit before setting off again. “Why are you even packing clothes, huh?”

“Because it’s easier to shower at your place so I don’t wake my parents up when I get home.” That prick gave Shoyo an unprompted nasty look that translated to ‘are you stupid?’ “Besides, they don’t care that I'm out all the time because they think it’s good for me to be social.”

Shoyo was a little jealous. He wished his mum encouraged him to be social by letting him stay out late, too. But then again, he was already as good at making friends as he possibly could be. He was an extrovert through and through, just like his younger sister.

He blew raspberries and gripped his bike a little tighter when his fingers started to freeze up. “Are you telling me you’d rather walk home in your pj’s than shower at home, Dummy-yama?”

Kageyama rolled his eyes. “Enough with the stupid nicknames, shorty.”

“Oh, I get it,” Shoyo drawled sarcastically. He pointed an accusing finger at his friend. “It’s only okay when you do it, is that right?”

“Look at you go, picking up context clues.” Kageyama’s dry tone ticked Shoyo off.

“You didn’t even know what context clues meant until like last week!” Thanks to Tsukishima, but he didn’t mention that.

Kageyama bared his teeth and looked a little close to hitting Shoyo, who quickly jumped over his bike to walk on the other side of it. “Neither did you, dumbass!” he snapped.

Shoyo made an annoyed sound in the back of his throat. He wasn’t the dumbass that thought walking home in the cold in pyjamas was a better idea than waking up his parents by showering at his own goddamn house.

It honestly just sounded like an excuse of some kind.

Even though he was thinking that, and besides the clothes situation, Shoyo did feel a little bad for making Kageyama walk home in the cold almost every day. His own fingers were already freezing and they only just stopped holding hands. He couldn’t imagine walking outside later at night, when the temperature was at its lowest.

He looked at Kageyama sideways, making sure he wasn’t still angry before clearing his throat. “You... do ya wanna just stay the night?” he offered quietly. “To save you the trouble of walking home.” It was a little on the nose, but he seriously doubted his mum would care. He knew Natsu, for one, would be overjoyed.

Shoyo's heart was being a bit of a menace again, beating so loudly and intensely he could hear it in his ears. He tried to ignore it, but unfortunately it grew more insistent as a moment of silence passed between them.

"As in, just me and you?" Kageyama asked, sounding a little quiet. 

Shoyo risked a peek. Was it mean to say he was relieved when he saw Kageyama just as uptight? He was pointedly looking straight ahead, shoulders bunched up to his red ears. He couldn’t hide his flusteredness with that threatening scowl as much as he tried. It made Shoyo feel better about his own rapidly heating face. 

"Yeah. Natsu may wanna bunk with us, so we'll probably end up in the living room."

It wouldn't be the first time Kageyama stayed the night at his place. But usually, they had the other three first years with them (much to Tsukishima's hilarious demise). It would be the first time they were alone. Well, if Natsu didn’t count.

"Yeah, I guess. I don't see why not." Kageyama looked away. 

Shoyo felt his cheeks grow warmer and he stared at the ground. He wondered if everyone had the same moments between their best friend as he and Kageyama did. He hoped so. He hoped whatever they were doing wasn’t as strange as he felt.

Monday, Sept 24—Thirteen days after the incident

Shoyo had noticed Kageyama seemed a bit off during training. He was snappy, more so than usual, and his bickering with Shoyo seemed more personal than usual. It kinda hurt to be yelled at like that again, he thought they were past that stage of their friendship now.

Shoyo wasn't the only person to notice.

Tsukishima had made more than one inappropriate comments about Kageyama being a king. It nearly resulted in a one-sided fist fight, but Tanaka had put an end to it before it started.

Yachi had been giving that jerk anxious glances all session, and the dude ignored her completely! Seriously, he was acting like a total buttwad.

So, Shoyo took one for the team. He figured he had the best shot on finding out what the hell was going on, considering he knew how to push his partners buttons until he broke.

Shoyo jogged off the court, ignoring the multiple calls for him to stay there, and headed straight for coach. He bowed slightly in an apology for disrupting a conversation Ukai was having with Takeda, but his confident expression didn't waver.

"...Little red," Ukai greeted warily. He placed a hand on his hip and regarded the student with calculating eyes. "What can I do for ya?"

Shoyo clenched his fists and spread his feet apart like he was planning to declare a battle. "Let me speak to Idiot-yama. Trust me, coach, I'll whip him into shape!" He swung one of his arms repeatedly in a punching motion.

"You better not actually throw hands, Hinata," Ukai warned, but he had a pleased look that told Shoyo he had permission.

"Sir, yes, sir!" He saluted. Then he turned on the balls of his feet and bounced back onto court. Except, instead of lining up for drills, he kept going until he was toe to toe with Kageyama.

The taller of the two sneered at him. "What do you want, idiot?"

"Let's go outside for a minute. Coach says you have to," Shoyo replied airily, only half lying.

Kageyama stared at him, dumbfounded. "What? Why?"

Shoyo didn't elaborate further, already moving toward the door to change into his outdoor shoes. He couldn't help the smirk he wore when he heard Kageyama begrudgingly do the same.

The coach had so much power! All he had to do was say his name, and Kageyama followed everything he said. He was a little envious.

--

Hitoka stared at the door leading to outside as she worried at her bottom lip. Hinata and Kageyama were yet to return even though it'd been nearly ten minutes—long enough for them to sort out whatever was going on, and she was admittedly nervous.

Kageyama had been in a bit of a mood all afternoon.

Hitoka hadn't been there to witness how he was at the start of the school year, but she picked up a couple offhanded comments from the other boys about him reverting back to his old ways throughout the training session, which wasn't a good sign.

She shifted from foot to foot, trying hard to watch the team train but unable to keep her eyes away from the door. Unfortunately, her brain loved to make her life hard. She was imagining the worst of the worst.

What if they were fighting again, but this time throwing real punches rather than just charging at each other? What if one of them got seriously hurt and had to sit out for the Spring Tournament?

What if they were caught and got suspended? Or... what if they moved off school grounds and got caught by a police officer and arrested?! Oh, no. Oh, no no no.

Hitoka shrieked loudly when someone's gentle hand laid on her shoulder. She huffed and puffed, clutching her notebook so tightly to her chest she could hear a page slightly tearing.

"Yachi?" Kiyoko called quietly. "Are you okay? I've noticed you look a little pale."

Hitoka couldn't have been more embarrassed at that moment. "No, no! I'm fine," she laughed awkwardly, hanging her head to stare at her shoes. "Just a little worried about Hinata and Kageyama, I suppose."

Kiyoko smiled warmly in understanding. "Yeah, I get that. I'm pretty sure coach Ukai is starting to feel the same way. Why don't you and I go look for them?" she offered sweetly.

"Yes!" Hitoka shouted before she could stop herself. "I- I mean..." she trailed off, cheeks warming. She hadn't meant to sound so excited. "I'd like that," she amended sheepishly.

"Alright, let's go quickly, then. They couldn't have gone far," Kiyoko said.

Hitoka nodded and walked by her side to the pile of shoes waiting at the door. She plucked her own up and toed out of her volleyball shoes, quickly slipping into her outdoor pair.

Then she turned to her upperclassman, "Shouldn't we bring someone with us? Just in case they are fighting?"

Kiyoko shook her head. She finished up changing out of her shoes, the indoor pair hanging on her fingers. "Don't worry. I doubt they're fighting, but if they are, I can run fast to get help." She flashed Hitoka a grin, who smiled back.

They started their walk in peaceful silence, the only sound between them the crunch of their shoes on soil.

Despite herself and her friend's reassurance, Hitoka still nervously peeked around every corner they checked just in case she saw anyone being spear tackled or strangled. She whipped around from where she was hovering behind a vending machine when she heard voices nearby.

"—normal to be scared, shitty-yama. We already established that when you came back from spying on the Great King. It's not normal to explode on everyone because of it, though."

That was Hinata's voice! Hitoka grinned at Kiyoko, who returned it. She sighed in relief and released the death grip she had on her poor notebook. "Looks like they're close."

"I know that, I can't help it! Just—the thought of Oikawa standing on the other side of the net has been getting to me. I dunno why, but for some reason knowing he's better is seriously bugging me."

Hitoka frowned a little as they started to walk to where they heard Hinata and Kageyama arguing, which was near one of the school's courtyards. She wondered what they were talking about.

Kiyoko put a hand out to stop her from walking when they finally spotted them. They were sitting side by side on the ground, their backs against the wall. Their knees were touching, and Hinata was leaning close to Kageyama.

"Kiyoko?" Hitoka prompted quietly.

"I don't think this is something we should interrupt," she replied smoothly, looking serious. Hitoka swallowed and glanced back at the boys.

Kageyama was speaking again. "I don't know how to stop," he groaned.

Hinata pursed his lips at him. "What'dya mean you don't know how to stop? Just don't be a jerk." He yelped in surprise as he dodged a punch. "I mean it, Kageyama! Instead of growling at Tsukishima to do better, just move on, idiot! It's not that hard."

"Easy for you to say, dumbass. You get along with everyone."

Hinata scoffed, poking Kageyama's cheek. Hitoka's jaw dropped when Kageyama didn't react beyond a glare. "Not with Sucky-shima, I don't. But even I know when to shut my mouth once and a while."

Kageyama rolled his eyes... teasingly? Fondly? Was she seeing things? Must be, since she was still pretty far away. "Once and a while, maybe." Now that was definitely fond teasing!

Hitoka glanced at Kiyoko, relieved to see she wasn't the only one confused. Kiyoko's eyebrows were all the way up, her eyes slightly wide behind the glasses starting to slip down her nose.

Hinata squawked in loud offence, echoing across the empty school building behind them. "Whatever, jerk face! You don't have to be mean." He sighed, then deflated in defeat. "We have to go back soon," he added almost disappointedly, looking up at the fading sun.

Kageyama glanced at him sideways. "Yeah," he replied dryly, looking bored.

The two of them sat in silence for a couple of moments. Hitoka was just about ready to announce her presence and pretend she hadn't seen any of it, when something otherworldly happened.

"Feel better now, Grumpy-yama?" Hinata slowly slid the hand closest to Kageyama over his lap, his fingernails gently scraping across skin. Hitoka thought it was strangely intimate, but it didn't stop there. He kept going until he reached Kageyama's hand and pried his fist open, forcing their fingers to interlock.

Hinata's knee started to bounce slightly, and his cheeks got a little redder. Hitoka wondered why he was suddenly so fidgety and touchy.

“Mmhm,” Kageyama grunted in reply. His ears were as red as Hinata's hair. He responded to Hinata joining their hands together by rightening the hold, settling it into a comfier position as if it was something they did all the time.

Hitoka made a small sound of disbelief in her throat, and it was lucky neither of them heard.

Kiyoko was in a trance of her own, staring at them like she was looking at a chicken with a cow's head. Hitoka thought they might as well be. She never thought she'd see those two holding hands.

And as if that wasn't enough, Kageyama slowly turned his head toward Hinata, who didn't have to same patience and surged forward, his free hand instantly finding Kageyama's neck and—

The moment their lips touched, Hitoka slapped a hand over her mouth to muffle her gasp. She whipped her head toward Kiyoko, whose face was crimson, and decided she definitely wasn’t imagining things.

Kageyama and Hinata were actually kissing.

She risked a glance back and saw they were still going. Kageyama was leaning over now, one hand braced against the floor, while Hinata toyed absently with the hair at the back of his neck and—

She could not handle being there for another moment.

Hitoka insistently tugged on Kiyoko's sleeve, who blinked and reeled back a little. They stared at each other for less than a moment before coming to a silent, mutual agreement they had to run away.

Unfortunately, Kiyoko was a much faster runner than Hitoka, who lagged behind a little. She was running so hard her legs and lungs were aching, and she collapsed at the doorway when she finally reached the gym.

She stayed there for a short while, watching while trying to catch her breath as Kiyoko explained to coach with flushed cheeks that Hinata and Kageyama should be making their way over soon.

Tanaka and Nishinoya swarmed Kiyoko the moment she stepped away from coach, peppering her with questions about why she was red. Hitoka herself got a couple curious looks from various team members, including Kinoshita, who helped her to her feet.

"I know this may sound strange, but is there a reason you two are so red?" he asked politely. His hands were on her elbows to keep her from swaying, dizzy from the lack of oxygen.

Even so, she found it in her to sputter and make a fool of herself. "I- I... uh, no! We aren't red, it's just hot out!" she blabbered, looking anywhere but Kinoshita.

He made a small sound of disbelief and slowly released her as she steadied her footing. "Yachi, it's like fifteen degrees. No where near hot enough to make you so flushed, even if you ran here." He raised an eyebrow.

Hitoka flinched. Fifteen degrees Celsius was too chilly to blame for her redness. Damn it. "Uhm, it's hotter outside?" she tried. She quickly fumbled out of her shoes to have an excuse for blatantly avoiding eye contact.

Kinoshita sighed. "It's okay if you don't wanna tell me, you know. I won't push, unlike those two idiots." Hitoka looked up and saw him pointing at Tanaka and Nishinoya, who were still practically begging Kiyoko for answers.

"Please, just at least confirm it wasn't some other guy!" Tanaka insisted, waving his hands around frantically.

"Yeah! You can't leave us here, imagining the worst, Kiyoko!" Nishinoya yelled, his whole face screwed up in an expression of betrayal.

"Stop being ridiculous, you two," Kiyoko responded dryly, motioning at Daichi to collect them.

Better her than me, Hitoka thought guiltily. Still, she felt bad—for Kiyoko of course, but mostly for Hinata and Kageyama.

She hadn’t meant to spy. It was an intimate moment, and she’d just stood there watching like some kind of creep. Even before they kissed, Hinata had obviously been helping Kageyama sort through some complicated thoughts and feelings, yet Hitoka had listened in.

She pressed her hands to her cheeks. She didn't know if she could ever forgive herself! She intruded, even if the boys themselves didn't realise.

Just then, the two culprits of Hitoka's internal war walked into the gym.

They called out to announce their presence as they swapped out their shoes, and Hitoka was amazed at how normal they seemed. No blush, their lips were only a little red, and they even shoved each other while exchanging insults on their way to coach Ukai.

Just how long had they been together to have such blatant secrecy? Did everyone else but Hitoka know, since she came to the club late?

No, they didn't.

She could tell by the way Kiyoko quickly turned away the moment she saw them start to approach, blinking rapidly. If Kiyoko was just as taken aback, it was safe to assume Hinata and Kageyama hadn't told anyone.

Hitoka's guilt worsened when she realised she knew about them before they had the courage to tell everyone, but she wouldn't tell anyone else. It wasn't her story to tell.

Though she couldn't help it if she was unable to look either of them in the eye for the rest of the day.

Wednesday, Sept 26—Fifteen days after the incident

Shoyo rocked back and forth on his heels, waiting impatiently for when he was finally feeling refreshed enough to get back on the court.

He and Kageyama were on fire, every single one of their new quick attacks was succeeding!

Usually, they still had one or two times per half an hour where Shoyo missed or Kageyama set the ball too short, but they hadn't failed a single time in the past two hours. Consequently, Shoyo's arms, legs and lungs were running out of steam.

He wasn't himself, though. He didn't want to stop, he'd keep going until his body gave out if coach let him.

He was addicted to the sight of the ball stopping right in front of him, being able to make the decision of where the ball went. He loved getting to see the view of the summit every time now. But even more than that, he adored the look on Kageyama's face whenever they did it right.

His eyes lit up every time without fail, shining with pride and triumph. His grin would stretch wide, and his small hisses of victory got Shoyo just as hyped. Sometimes they would even high five, though Shoyo's hands were usually throbbing after because of how rough the big idiot was.

No one else on the team shared their excitement about the new quick anymore. If they were doing practice matches against each other, the other team got annoyed whenever they used it (Tsukishima still tsked every time), and someone on their side would always shout 'nice kill.'

But Shoyo and Kageyama were still feeling it, still revelling in their new move like they only just nailed it yesterday. It was just so... so uwah! Like bam and pow, like they were unstoppable!

Shoyo couldn't help it if he wanted that to last a little longer. He couldn't help wanting to stay on the court, even when coach and Takeda Sensei told him to rest. Just thinking about doing it again had him restless.

He wanted more. He wanted to do it again and again, forever if he could. He wanted to continue to be able to celebrate with Kageyama every time, even when they were third years. He was addicted to it all.

He felt like he was falling in love with volleyball all over again.

"Hey, ginger!" Coach Ukai's loud snap cut through Shoyo's thoughts. He flinched and turned toward the man. "Don't think I don't see you bouncing around over there. Get that yearning look off your face, you aren't getting back on the court until you sit your ass down and rest!"

Shoyo deflated and slowly sunk to the ground with a pout. He glared at a sniggering Tsukishima as he drew his knees under his chin and wrapped his arms around his legs. He didn't see what the big deal was. If he could still jump, why shouldn't he?

He just... he really wanted to keep playing. A five minute resting period could be spent hitting more sets, getting better at receives, seeing Kageyama's expression, moving around freely.

Besides, he was sure anyone would feel the same in his shoes. Kageyama was always scowling and yelling and being mean, even when he was trying not to. The only time that jerk face vanished was when he was on the court. It was a rewarding expression to see.

It kinda felt like gwaah, and ba-dum! Shoyo's heart leaped like fwoosh just thinking about it!

Shoyo's head snapped up when coach declared a ten minute break for everyone. He gaped in betrayal. "Coach!" he whined indignantly. "You said I could go back on the court soon!"

Narita gave him a look of disbelief. "Hinata, you've barely stopped moving for the past two hours! How on earth do you have more energy?"

Coach Ukai nodded in agreement. "It's good to see you eager, kid, but you'll overwork yourself if you don't chill out." He raised a silencing finger when Shoyo moved to retort. "No. Drink some water, cool your head. You can practice more in ten."

"Damn it," the redhead murmured, slumping against the wall.

"Tsukki, do you think that's healthy?" Yamaguchi inquired. He was leaning against the wall not too far from the redhead. "To be running around so much? I get tired just watching him."

Tsukishima shrugged with disinterest from beside him as he took a sip from his water. "Some people are just natural born freaks, Tadashi. Ignore him."

Shoyo sputtered in offence, slapping his hands on the floor in annoyance. But his retaliation died in his throat when his ears pricked, and he caught the tail end of Tanaka's sentence from a few metres away.

"—trust in me, it'll get you all the cute girls, Noya!" Shoyo was no detective, but he could tell right away his upperclassman was handing out some more terrible advice.

Nishinoya nodded enthusiastically at Tanaka's words. "Right!" He reached out to fist bump his friend, wearing matching grins with him.

Shoyo watched with morbid curiosity when Tanaka's turned sly, and he staged whisper to Nishinoya. "You know, if you really wanna send it home, you have to compliment her mouth after kissing!"

To his disbelief, Nishinoya made an 'ooh' of agreement.

"What?!" Shoyo snapped. He was pretty sure he would boke if Kageyama ever did that to him. No way would that ever work on someone.

They both immediately turned to him and exchanged a glance of glee before bounding up to the first year.

"Were you listening in, Shoyo? You naughty boy!" Nishinoya laughed heartedly, crouching down beside him to give him a few firm pats on the back. Shoyo was jostled forward with each one.

Tanaka snorted into his hand, crinkling his eyes at Shoyo like he knew something no one else did. "It's okay if you want some advice, Hinata!" he crowed loudly, gaining the attention of their other teammates. 

Shoyo shrunk, giving him a weary look. "I'm good, but thanks."

"Ahh, come on!" Tanaka grabbed onto his wrists and yanked him onto his feet in one tug. "Ask your friendly upperclassman for some tips! It'll get you far one day!"

Shoyo yelped as he nearly fell forward from the force, but Nishinoya planted two hands on his shoulder to steady him. "Yeah, you never know when it may come in handy, Shoyo!" he beamed.

From the corner of his eye, Shoyo saw Yachi, Suga and Asahi shaking their heads exasperatedly. He agreed with the sentiment. "Yeah, right," he said sarcastically. "Tanaka's totally setting Noya up for failure."

Someone laughed and tried to cover it up with a cough. "I mean..." Ennoshita started. "We're all always thinking it, but Hinata's the first to actually say it."

Shoyo gulped when he saw Tanaka's eyes cloud over with irritation. He grabbed two fistfuls of Shoyo's shirt, who let out a small 'eep!', and shook him around. "What'd you say to me, punk?!" he demanded.

The redhead quickly got dizzy, but thankfully Tanaka stopped in order for Nishinoya to say, "Besides, what would you know about kissing, Shoyo?" 

Tanaka huffed and let him go, placing his hands on his hips. "Yeah! Do you even have room to talk, smartass?"

Shoyo put a hand on his head, trying to settle the whirls his vision was doing. "Well actually, I—," he blinked, wide-eyed as he realised his mistake. Whoops. He quickly looked away and shuffled a couple steps back like nothing had happened.

It took about two seconds for his upperclassmen to process what he said before they simultaneously screamed. If they didn't have everyone's attention before, they sure did now.

"You had your first kiss before me, Shoyo?!"

"The twerp has game?! Since when?"

The boy in question felt the boiling heat of embarrassment travel from the base of his neck all the way to his forehead. He sputtered, suddenly on the spot in front of so many people. "I don't wanna talk about it!"

Nishinoya looked genuinely surprised. "Why not? This is the type of thing to brag about, Shoyo!"

"Yeah!" Tanaka shouted. "Come on, tell us the longest it's ever gone on for!"

If he had to guess, the longest they had ever gone for was around ten minutes. It was the first time they kissed at Kageyama's, and they had been going slow because there was a zero percent chance of being caught.

Shoyo tried not to think about either of them using what they learned from each other on other people because it made his heart go fwoop. They were just practising, just gaining some new skills for when they got in relationships, and they both knew that. But even so, Shoyo hated thinking about it. 

To avoid that, he got completely lost in their kisses every time. Nothing existed but his friend's lips, hands, soft sighs... ahem, anyway. That was why Shoyo let it go on for so long. It was the first time Kageyama reciprocated his slowness, though.

Tanaka didn't need to know that. It really wasn't his business that he and Kageyama once made out for ten minutes. He'd sooner die than admit something so... so uwaah! 

Shoyo shook his head vigorously, feeling his cheeks heat up even more. "No way! It's way too embarrassing!" he told his upperclassman, who rolled his eyes like he was the inconvenienced one.

Tsukishima groaned. "I'd like to remind you idiots I don't want to hear any of this, and I doubt anyone else does." He scratched his head in a frustrated action, glaring at the group. 

Suga laughed quietly. "I dunno, I'm kinda curious!" Seriously, even Suga? Everyone was ganging up on him! "I can't imagine the little guy with anyone." He shot Shoyo a half apologetic look, who didn't get to defend himself because a major freaking butthole was speaking up.

"It's because you're an insufferable dumbass. No one would ever put up with you." Kageyama apparently couldn't help himself and just had to chime in with an insult. He narrowed his eyes at Shoyo over his water bottle as he took a sip. 

"What?!" Shoyo snapped. He growled and pointed an accusatory finger at Kageyama. "What'd you say to me? Big talk for someone who's never been in a relationship!"

Kageyama scoffed and slapped his finger down roughly. "Neither have you, dimwit! Don't try and act all high and mighty." He turned around to flip Tsukishima off when he muttered something about royalty under his breath. 

"Wait, what?" Yachi spoke up, glancing between Shoyo and Kageyama with a confused look. Even Yachi was listening? What was this, a reality show? "But I thought..." she trailed off and looked at Kiyoko for help.

Kiyoko shrugged, looking as put together as always. But if Shoyo squinted, he could see the lightest bit of colouring on her cheeks. "I doubt it'll be much longer." She smiled knowingly at Yachi, who nodded. "There's obviously something going on."

Nishinoya slapped Shoyo on the arm, who yelped and pouted as he rubbed the sore spot. "Dude, if you've never been in a relationship, how have you had your first kiss?"

"Oh, my god. I do not want to hear this!" Tsukishima snapped, putting his hands over his ears like it could block out the noise. Yamaguchi, who was completely red in the face, quickly followed to do the same.

Shoyo raised his eyebrows in confusion. "Do I need to be in a relationship to kiss someone?" he asked. People in movies and comics kissed without dating all the time, so he had just assumed it was normal.

There was dead silence for about five seconds before chaos erupted from every corner of the gym.

Asahi looked like he was struggling with second hand embarrassment. Suga and Daichi had their mouths open, staring at Shouyou blankly like they didn't know what to make of him.

Tanaka and Nishinoya started running around slapping each other while yelling nonsense. Ennoshita and Narita were staring at each other in disbelief, grinning like it was confusingly funny. Kinoshita looked impressed, giving Shoyo a thumbs up.

Shoyo took a couple quick steps back. "What? What'd I say?!" he questioned, looking at Kageyama for help, who shrugged with a dumbfounded expression. He was of no help, then. Seemed like Shoyo was going into this battle alone.

Yamaguchi put a hand over his gaping mouth, slapping Tsukishima's shoulder with the other repeatedly. "Woah! Tsukki, I had no idea that Hinata's a playboy!" Clearly, the hand-over-ear method did not work. Tsukishima's face of disgust and misery confirmed.

Hang on. 

"A what?!" Shoyo screeched. "I'm not a playboy!" He grabbed onto Kageyama and shook him back and forth a little too desperately. "You don't think I'm a playboy, right?" he demanded.

Kageyama grimaced and shoved him off. "Don't be a dumbass, of course not! You don't have the balls." He pressed a palm to Shoyo's face when he went to latch onto him. 

Shoyo groaned and smacked him away. "But your opinion doesn't count," he realised miserably, leaping away when a foot tried to connect with his butt. Kageyama wouldn't know considering he was in the same predicament!

"What?" Kageyama bristled, going in for another kick. Shoyo rolled his eyes and stuck his tongue out mockingly. That big jerk was always taking things way too personally. 

"Kiyoko!" Shoyo called, swatting another one of Kageyama's hits away annoyedly. "You don't think what I'm doing counts as being a playboy, right?" he asked hopefully. He could feel Tanaka and Nishinoya's warning glares pierce him. 

Kiyoko shook her head lightly. "You would never have the heart to be that kind of person, Hinata," she assured plainly. "Besides, it's good to let out your frustrations sometimes." She glanced away then, her cheeks slightly pinker than before.

Shoyo whooped, throwing a victorious fist into the air. "Hah! Take that, Yamaguchi!" he yelled, grinning triumphally.

Kageyama slapped the back of his head and called him an idiot. Always ruining the moment, that one.

"Man, what the hell," Yamaguchi muttered, a dry look of disbelief on his face. Tsukishima gave Shoyo one last disgusted look before finally throwing on his headphones. 

Tanaka openly stared at Kiyoko with tears glistening his eyes. He threw an arm around an equally teary-eyed Nishinoya. "Kiyoko thinks kissing before being in a relationship... is okay?"

"Bro... do we... have a chance?"

Daichi shut down that train of thought before the two second years could entertain it. "Absolutely not," he barked. "She definitely just means in Hinata's case."

When Kiyoko nodded in confirmation, Tanaka and Nishinoya fell to their knees in despair.

"Wait, do you know who this mystery person is, Shimizu?" Asahi asked. He pointedly avoided looking in Shoyo's direction, which kinda sucked. He seriously didn't get what the big deal was.

Kiyoko nodded. "I do," she said quietly. Shoyo blinked at her. Huh?

Suga walked up to her and offered one of his best charming smiles. "Mind letting us in on this juicy gossip?" he requested.

She shut him down immediately with a firm shake of her head. "No way. I don't think either of them would appreciate that." Suga deflated.

Shoyo wasn't really too sure how he felt about it.

On one hand, the entire team knowing could lead to endless teasing. On the other... Shoyo wouldn't mind people seeing him and Kageyama as super close. Maybe he even wanted it, just a smidge.

"How do you know?" Shoyo asked, furrowing his brows. He didn't think he and Kageyama had ever gotten physical around her, and he knew for certain he hadn't told anyone.

Kiyoko pursed her lips and gestured him to walk over to her, then leaned toward him slightly to murmur quietly into his ear. "Do... do you remember two days ago, Kageyama was a bit snappy and you took him outside? Yachi and I went to find you when you took too long."

Shoyo made eye contact with Kageyama as he tried to decipher what that meant. 

Two days ago Kageyama was snappy? Shoyo briefly remembered that, but the details weren't crystal clear.

He kept barking at everyone for every little mistake, so Shoyo asked coach for permission to give him a talking to. He ended up discovering Kageyama was just nervous about facing Oikawa and was taking it out on everyone like an emotionally constipated jerk.

Shoyo was pretty sure they even kissed for a short while just before they returned to the gym. 

If Kiyoko and Yachi went to go find them, but he didn't remember them being there... oh no. Shoyo felt his entire body begin to vibrate with embarrassment, his face going so hot he felt like an overcooked sausage. He probably looked like an overcooked tomato, if that was a thing.

The managers must have seen them kiss and ran away. 

Shoyo put a hand on either side of his head and let out a wail of mortification. Kageyama jolted, staring at him like he'd grown a second head. "Uwaahhh! I'm so sorry!" he yelled, running in a small circle of panic.

Kiyoko held a hand up. "It's okay."

"I'm so sorry! I—I'll never live this down!"

"It's fine, Hinata."

"Oh, god. You probably hate me now! I'm sorry!"

"If anything, I should be apologising."

Kageyama grabbed Shoyo by the back of his shirt and hoisted him into the air. "Would you just shut up for five seconds and tell me what happened?!" he demanded. Shoyo flailed in his hold, his whole body burning with shame and embarrassment. 

He couldn't believe he accidentally made them watch! He slumped in his friend's hold and hide his flaming face in his hands. "I'm sorry," he mumbled one last time for good measure. 

"Ah, it's okay, Hinata!" Yachi's kind voice filtered through his haze of panic. "We're sorry for not telling you!"

Kageyama dropped him onto his feet and gripped his hair so tightly Shoyo squeaked. "If you don't start talking right this second, I'm going to kill you and hide your body where no one could ever find it."

So much for just wanting to get back on the court and play a little more with Kageyama. Shoyo wasn't going to be able to look anyone in the eye for the next three years.

Friday, Sept 28—Seventeen days after the incident

Shoyo was bouncing through his steps, grinning ear to ear as he swung his and Kageyama's joined hands between them. There wasn't anything particularly special about today, but he felt cheery anyway.

Kageyama, ever the mean prick that had to rain on everyone's parade, had commented on it multiple times throughout the day. Shoyo didn't let it get to him. He was more than used to Kageyama being an idiot when it came to Shoyo's joy.

"Oi," Kageyama interrupted Shoyo's humming.

Shoyo paused and turned to him with an eyebrow raised. He found his partner had his usual scowl, and Shoyo was immediately struck with the urge to argue with him over it. He couldn't help it! It was such a punchable face that he couldn't resist riling up the owner.

"Why are you so... whatever this is?" Kageyama gestured to Shoyo's general direction with his free hand. "You look like you're about to puke rainbows and shit."

Shoyo's jaw dropped. Did he have to be so vulgar about it? "It's called happiness, Stupid-yama. You should try it sometime, you'll get wrinkles from frowning, you know."

"People get wrinkles from smiling too much, too," Kageyama snapped back.

He laughed and twisted his hand a bit in Kageyama's hold to poke the back of Kageyama's with one of his fingernails. "You're just a jelly belly your permanent frown can't do this." He forced his grin wider, his cheeks burning a little.

Kageyama squinted slightly. "Why would I be jealous of looking like such an idiot?"

"Well that's just rude," Shoyo sniffed. He considered chucking his bike at that sour butthole. "I'm just having a good day! Nothing wrong with that."

Kageyama rolled his eyes, clearly not understanding the premise of having a good day just because. "You're so weird."

"I'm weird?" Shoyo echoed. "You wanna fight, punk?"

"Stop trying to sound like Tanaka, you sound stupid." Shoyo squawked in offence as Kageyama pulled out his phone and gave it a once over. "You wanna head down to coach's shop? It's late though, so we'll probably be the only ones there. And he may be out of meat buns."

Kageyama's offer hung in the air for a short moment while the smaller of the two thought it over. It was a bit out of the blue, but a very tempting offer.

The moon wasn't at its highest peak in the sky, but it was close. Coach Ukai's shop would be closing soon, and Shoyo could definitely go for some meat buns to warm him up in the cold autumn night.

"Meat buns?!" Shoyo echoed excitedly. His stomach rumbled on cue. "I love meat buns! Quick, let's go now!"

"Stop jumping around," Kageyama grumbled when he started to bounce through his steps even higher. "If you get a cold I'm kicking your ass."

"Aww, does Yamayama care about little ol' me?" He couldn't help but tease, smirking proudly when Kageyama's ears immediately gained that pretty colour. "I'm very flattered."

"Shut the hell up, you dumbass. I just don't want you sick before the training camp. See if you get anything at all if you keep talking like that."

Whoopsies, he got Kageyama mad again. "Don't be like that! I didn't mean it, I was just joking around!" Shoyo panicked and ditched his bike in favour of flinging himself into the air to latch onto his partner.

Kageyama shouted in surprise, grunting when he was met with Shoyo's full body weight on his left side. "Get the hell off me you little fucker!"

"Ahh, that's vulgar! Your mouth is gonna rot! Vulgar-yama!" Shoyo twisted around in multiple directions to keep his hold on a squirming Kageyama. "C'moooon, let's go get some meat buns from Sakanoshita! I'm so freaking hungry! I'll starve!"

"When are you not hungry?! Hinata, let—go—you'll—rip my hair out, moron!"

"No, I want the meat buns! Or-or something else to eat, at least!"

"Then get the hell off!"

"No!"

Shoyo clung tighter, a familiar stubbornness thrashing around in his chest.

They must’ve looked ridiculous—two idiots half-wrestling under a streetlight, a bike abandoned not too far away—but Shoyo didn’t care. He was laughing too hard to stop. The familiar chaos between them, the tugging and shouting. It always made him feel alive.

Then something weird hit him. A weird, warm feeling right in his chest, and it gave him the strangest urge. He realised with a slight jolt what it was. He didn’t want to let go at all. Not to tease, not to fight—he just… wanted to stay there.

He wanted to hug Kageyama. Not just throw himself at him and dig his nails in while hoping for the best, but actually hug him. 

That thought had him recoiling from Kageyama like he'd been electrocuted. He panted, but he wasn't out of breath from attempting to tackle Kageyama into agreeing with him. Something else was going on.

He couldn't believe he just wanted to give Kageyama of all people, the jerkiest jerk of all the jerks in the land of jerks, a hug!

Everything they had been doing had some kind of explanation. Kissing—they needed to get good at it. Hand holding—at first Kageyama needed help, but now it was too cold at night not to do it.

But hugging? Where on earth had that come from? 

Kageyama stared at Shoyo with his typical grumpy look, but a bit of confusion as mixed into it. "What? You finally give up, short stack?" His eyes narrowed.

"No!" Shoyo's mouth trembled as he tried to come up with some sort of excuse, or explanation. "I—um, aren't you supposed to be glad I stopped? Why the hell are you questioning me?!"

The setter raised an eyebrow, deeply unimpressed. "Do you think I'm stupid or something?" Shoyo crossed his arms and didn't bother answering that. "Just tell me what happened, dimwit!"

"Nothing happened! And calling me names isn't gonna make me want to tell you, stupid!"

"So something did happen!" Kageyama accused, smirking like he just won something, which he hadn't.

Crap, Shoyo thought. He totally got me. "Oh, whatever, leave it alone! Jerks like you don't deserve to know what goes on in my head." Shoyo huffed and took a step back to pick his bike up.

"Fine. Probably nothing but air in there since you're such an idiot, anyway."

"Excuse you?! I'll have you know I have a fully functioning brain!" At least he hoped he had one. He hadn't looked inside his head before.

--

"Heyya, Coach!" Shoyo shouted as he walked into the store. The scent of cigarette smoke assaulted his nose, but he was so used to it he didn't even bother wrinkling his face.

Coach Ukai looked up from where he was lounging behind the register. He gave Shoyo an unimpressed look. "You're here too, little red?" he questioned. 

"Sure am!" Kageyama was already somewhere in the store; Shoyo would have to go looking. He had to stay behind for a moment to settle his bike into the racks outside the store. "Seen any grumpy, stupidly tall guys around lately?"

"Oi!" came Kageyama's shout.

Ukai pointed down a random aisle. "He's lookin' at snacks. Be quick, knuckleheads. There's five minutes until close and there's no way I'm letting you stay here any longer than that."

Shoyo squinted. "...No meat buns left?" he realised disappointedly. 

"Nope. Soccer kids came right after school and took the whole lot."

"Damn it." Shoyo clenched his fist and silently vowed revenge—he'd find a way—when a sudden sting to his forehead made his yelp and scramble away from his attacker. He glared at Kageyama as he rubbed the sore spot. "What the hell?!"

"Careful, idiot. Your mouth will rot if you keep talking like that." Kageyama's smug smirk told Shoyo he thought he was being clever, using his own words against him. 

Shoyo scoffed. "You be quiet," he huffed, then turned back to his coach. "Can't you, like, whip some up or something? My stomach is eating itself!" He wrapped his arms around his tummy in emphasis.

Ukai didn't buy it, giving his student an annoyed glare. "Fuck you think I am, twerp? A wizard? Pick something else or go away!" The man stood up and put out his cigarette before heading over to a stack of boxes in the corner.

Shoyo whined as his stomach actually began to cramp. He should have packed a heavier lunch. Kageyama called him an idiot—rude—and dragged him by his shirt to the snack aisle, where he perked right up again.

"Ooh! Is this your treat, Grumpy-yama?" he asked, already bounding forward to look for something.

"Keep calling me stupid nicknames and it won't be," came the gruff reply, which Shoyo didn't take personally. He knew if Kageyama actually cared, he would be a lot more insistent about it. Like how he smacked Shoyo every time he let a king insult slip.

Which he barely did anymore, mind you.

Shoyo didn't end up finding anything particularly interesting—at least not anything cheap. Contrary to popular belief, he wasn't mean enough to make Kageyama buy expensive snacks. He sadly told himself he could just wait to eat at home.

He turned his head to announce this and realised Kageyama wasn't at his side.

He found the setter standing in front of the cartons of juice a few paces down, looking strangely focused. Kageyama's concentrated face looked very similar to his irritated one. Lucky for Shoyo, he'd been around the grouch for long enough to tell the difference. There was a bit more of a pout when he was annoyed.

"Whatcha looking at?" he prompted, clasping his hands behind his back with a teasing smile. He was more than ready to make fun of his partner for looking so serious while choosing which juice to buy.

"We're heading back to yours, right?" Kageyama asked.

"Yup," replied Shoyo.

"What juice does Natsu like?"

That wasn't anything he had expected. He thought for sure Kageyama was just pulling that face because he was being picky, like whenever he had to decide between plain milk or a yoghurt drink at school.

Something big and unruly unfurled itself inside Shoyo's chest, spreading through his body as if he'd just popped a balloon full of fondness. He failed to hold back his beaming grin when he realised Kageyama was looking for a gift for his little sister. He was very quickly becoming a part of the Hinata family.

"She likes anything with peaches!" 

Kageyama nodded and shuffled a little further down the aisle in search. When he saw what he wanted, he picked it up, flipped it over in his hand a couple of times to inspect, then moved on. 

Shoyo's cheeks hurt from how wide his smile was as he fell in step with his best friend. He couldn't believe the big, bad Kageyama was going out of his way for Natsu. It was so sweet! Shoyo would have never imagined him doing something like that, but it was more than welcome.

The only downside was that he would have to listen to Natsu gushing about Kageyama even more now. She was worse than Shoyo, honestly.

Still, he felt a raging fire of satisfaction and—against his will—adoration light itself in his belly, consuming his whole being. It spread from his head to his toes, from his right fingertips to his left.

Something else, something not entirely unfamiliar but without a name slipped in beside those emotions.

It was a warm, fuzzy something between exhilaration—Tsukishima taught him that word two days ago! He was proud of himself for remembering—and anticipation. He couldn't say he hated it. 

Shoyo paused a little when he watched Kageyama walk in front of him with clear purpose. His hands reached out to grab something on the shelf as he walked past, then continued on his way without looking back.

Shoyo hadn't even seen him really look at it. He glanced at where he just saw Kageyama snap his hand out, and he felt that unnamed feeling expand by a thousand. 

Kageyama had grabbed one of Shoyo's favourite snacks. The one he had mentioned maybe twice to his partner in the past month. It was an expensive snack, one his mum didn't buy often. The fact Kageyama had remembered...

Shoyo placed a hand over his heart, wondering if it was going to rip its way out of his chest. What was he feeling? Why did it only ever come up around Kageyama? He didn't understand why it was happening. 

He stared at Kageyama's retreating back, completely consumed by this train of thought as he tried to remember every time he'd gotten that fuzzy feeling.

It usually popped up whenever they were alone and hanging out, or when they were holding hands, or kissing... That seemed like a vaguely familiar theme; like he should be able to name what it meant but couldn't think of it.

Shoyo also always got fidgety around Kageyama, and sometimes even when he was just thinking about him and his grumpiness. His heart always did jumps whenever they held unprompted eye contact, the kind that usually ended in vicious staring contests.

He realised that when he was with Kageyama, Shoyo felt so seen. He wasn’t just some random middle blocker, or the kid that made friends effortlessly because of how much he smiled and talked.

With Kageyama, Hinata was seen for who he really was—faults and all. Every really cool and embarrassing thing Shoyo did, Kageyama had been there for it all since the end of July, when they started to actually get along.

Kageyama knew he liked, what he didn’t like, how to rile him up and how to make him laugh. He knew all of it. He always wanted to be with him, and Shoyo felt the same. There was a joy that came with being with Kageyama he couldn't get with anyone else.

They were around each other so often they had memorised each other's favourite things.

For example, even though he couldn't remember when he learned any of it, Shoyo knew Kageyama's favourite colour was a dull orange with a yellow undertone, his favourite drink was the yogurt one he could only find at school, and Shoyo had the way to his house engraved in his brain. He knew for a fact it was mutual.

Shoyo clenched the hand over his heart so tightly he could hear the fabric squeak. 

He had loved volleyball for four years now. Four whole years, and his love had only grown stronger since he got to Karasuno. Being a starter, hitting the ball perfectly as he soared so high he could see over the summit, scoring the perfect point...

The aspects to volleyball that got him the most pumped up and excited wouldn't be possible without Kageyama. 

Shoyo realised he would never kiss anyone else. He wouldn’t kiss any of his other friends, not even Yachi. Not even if he was called a wuss for the rest of his life. There was no appeal, no reason, no desire behind the thought of his lips pressed against anyone else's but Kageyama.

And he hated the thought of his setter, his Kageyama with anyone else, too. 

He only wanted—

Kageyama must have realised that Shoyo wasn't following, because he got to the end of the aisle and turned around on his feet to give him an unimpressed, questioning look. "Hurry it up, or I'll leave you here."

Even though he knew from experience the threat wasn't empty, Shoyo held his free hand up and made him wait. "Gimme a moment, I'm having an internal crisis."

Was what they were doing considering dating? Always together, introduced to family, hand holding, kissing. The reason it all sounded familiar was because it was straight out of a romance.

Shoyo didn't think they were dating, but... would he mind? Would Kageyama? It wouldn't be the worst thing.

Kageyama scoffed, then smirked smugly like he figured something out. "What now, loser? You know, if you keep using big boy phrases like that, you'll get sick." He looked so proud of himself for coming up with that stupid fucking insult.

When Kageyama tilted his head goadingly, obviously fishing for a comeback of some sort, Shoyo felt a strong, profound revolution come over him, hitting him so violently he let out a winded breath.

That unnamed, half unfamiliar emotion he had been feeling on and off for a few weeks now was affection. The romantic kind. Shoyo liked this moron. He liked his bestfriend, he liked him so much it hurt. 

"Kageyama?" he called out a little quietly, still half unsure where he was going with this. 

"Uh, yeah?" Kageyama frowned a little, his smug smirk fading. "Dude, what's going on with your face? You look shaken up. Need the toi—,"

"Kageyama!" he shouted. Shoyo swallowed, then felt a sudden wave of confidence crash through his body. He spat out the words before he could overthink them, "I think—no, I know I like you!"

Kageyama dropped everything he was holding in shock. His entire face was red, and Shoyo knew for a fact he didn't look any better. He could feel his cheeks burning, and the rest of his body quickly grew hot, too.

In the distance, he heard something crash and a man yelping, but he tuned it out in favour of dashing up to Kageyama, who took a half step back.

"I like you," he said again, louder and more certain than before.

Kageyama pulled such an expressive face Shoyo wasn't sure he was okay. "You— I don't even— Idiot! Do you even know what you're saying?!"

Shoyo nodded. There was no backing down now. "I do, and I mean it! Think about it, we haven't been doing normal friend stuff!"

Kageyama's mouth opened and closed a few times. "Wait, hold on, Hinata—" 

He refused. "I've been doing all these things with you because I like you! I like your stupid face, your lips, your sets, your laugh, even your mean jokes." The words fell out of his mouth faster than he could think them. "I want all of it for myself. I don't want to gain experience for other people, I want you."

Kageyama stared at him for a long moment, long enough for Shoyo's heart to sink and wonder if he was going to be rejected. But then he turned his head and stared at him warily from the side.

"...You're sure?" he croaked, sounding like something was lodged in his throat.

Shoyo furrowed his eyebrows and pursed his lips in offence. He could he say all of that and not be sure? "Yes, Idiot-yama!"

"Super duper sure?"

"One hundred percent!"

Kageyama stuck his nose into the air. "Even one million percent?!" he challenged. 

Shoyo gasped a little, trying to envision how many zeros that was before focusing again. "Even one billion percent!" he shouted because he knew that was a higher number.

"Then, I guess we're dating." Kageyama turned his head forward again, a pleased and surprisingly non-threatening smile on his face.

Shoyo whooped loudly and jumped in the air in celebration, spreading his limbs in every direction. "Whoo-hoo! So, does that mean you like me too? It does, right?" he asked when he was back on the ground.

"It does."

"You're sure?" Shoyo couldn't help but tease, poking one of Kageyama's cheeks.

Kageyama took it in stride, swatting his hand away but never breaking his pretty smile. "Absolutely."

"Uh-huh. Even one billion percent?"

"One trillion percent," he responded proudly, grinning down at Shoyo victoriously. 

"Wha- hey, that's higher than mine!" Shoyo sputtered. He hadn't thought to go that high!

Kageyama shrugged indifferently as if he hadn't planned that, the jerk. "I'm taller than you, of course I have more percentage to give."

Shoyo thought about it for a second. He wasn't entirely sure that was how percentages worked, but it sounded legit enough for him. He grinned widely and stuck his hand out between them in offering.

Kageyama took it without further questioning and picked up the snacks he dropped, then handed the food to Shoyo but kept the juice in his own hand. "For you." Shoyo glanced at the food and shivered from all the emotions he got looking at them. "Do I get a point for getting confessed to first?"

If ever asked, Shoyo would deny getting giddy over the fact he was the first person to confess to Kageyama. "Only if I get a point for confessing first!" he sang, giving their joined hands a squeeze.

"Hn, m'kay deal," Kageyama said, squeezing back. But he couldn't hide how flustered he was behind casualness when his ears were bright red. Shoyo tugged him forward with a teasing grin.

He couldn't believe it.

Shoyo Hinata had a real life boyfriend. He liked someone, and they liked him back. He couldn't wait to tell his mum! She would probably like Kageyama even more now. And Shoyo doubted Natsu would care as long as she got to see Kageyama more often.

As the two of them—who were now boyfriends, holyshit—turned the corner, Shoyo was taken aback when he was met by the image of his coach surrounded by tipped over boxes and products on the ground. He looked quite exhausted.

Shoyo distantly remembered hearing someone shout and something crash while he was confessing, but he was a little too preoccupied to really process what that had been. 

"You have got to be kidding," coach Ukai muttered, dragging a hand down his face. His other hand was planted on his hip, and he stared at his players like a tired dad. Heh.

Kageyama squeezed Shoyo's hand, the only warning he got before he was speaking. "Coach, me and Hinata are dating!" he said proudly. Shoyo smiled brightly up at him. 

That's right. Shoyo Hinata and Tobio Kageyama were boyfriends. Not just partners, or friends. Dating. Wasn't that insane?

Would Shoyo get to call Kageyama by his first name, Tobio? He kinda hoped so. Even just thinking those three syllables in his head, imagining they were escaping through his lips had him buzzing. 

Then, for a split second, Shoyo imagined Kageyama calling out his first name, and that was a whole other can of worms he should not be opening in front of anyone. Especially not his freaking coach.

Ukai rolled his eyes exasperatedly. "Yes, you knuckleheads. The whole store heard, I'm sure."

"There aren't any customers right now," Shoyo pointed out quickly, his cheeks burning again. He was glad for that fact, just thinking of a stranger, or worse: someone Shoyo knew hearing what had just happened was embarrassing.

"But I'm here!" the man snapped. "And now I’ll be haunted by this sappy, icky memory for the rest of my existence! Don't think I didn’t hear what Hinata said about your lips. Eugh!" He shivered and glared at them.

They both opened their mouths to mumble out apologies, but Ukai put a silencing hand up first. 

"Listen, I don't give a damn what you two do," he said carefully. "But you do understand what this means, right? If you idiots have a fight or worse, you'll need to suck it up. We can't risk poor playing. We're too close to the Tournament." 

Shoyo felt a sound of offence and confusion bubble into his throat. "Coach, Kageyama and I have thrown actual punches at each other and we still managed to keep it together on the court!"

Though admittedly, he had had a hard time finding motivation to do their quick attack knowing Kageyama was mad at him for wanting to improve. He still got a little upset every time he thought about that, but he knew Kageyama didn't care anymore.

Coach shook his head in dry disbelief. "I guess so, huh," he muttered. "Anyhow, what the hell were you weirdos doing kissing before dating? You started more than one argument between yourselves and the second years over this, you know."

Shoyo flushed, ducking his head down. He tried it pull his hand away but Kageyama's grip was too firm. "I didn’t want Kageyama to get his first kiss before me so I convinced him to tie with me," he admitted sheepishly. Suddenly, the floor looked very interesting.

"I should have known it was something stupid like that," coach sighed. Shoyo frowned. He didn't think it was that was stupid. A little immature, sure, but not stupid. He got a whole boyfriend out of it! "This better not have happened here, in my goddamn store."

They were both quick to shake their heads.

"…Or school grounds." They tensed. Ukai’s eyes narrowed and he crossed his arms. "Or somewhere to do with volleyball, where your teammates and I go everyday." Shoyo rubbed his neck with his other hand, the packet scratching his skin slightly. "Alright, lovebirds. Spill."

"The clubroom was where we had our first," Kageyama admitted through clenched teeth. Shoyo glanced up at him and smirked a little at how red he was. It made him feel better about his own warm cheeks.

"Well, that's certainly a choice. Real romantic," Ukai deadpanned. "Don’t let your captain find out. He’d take your key away and ban you from the club room for at least a month."

Shoyo shivered at the prospect of facing Daichi's wrath. "Definitely not," he agreed. "But coach, aren't you... angry?" he asked, unsure how to phrase it.

"At you two for being together or the location of the kissing?"

"Both?" Kageyama suggested. Shoyo felt him shrug.

"Puh-lease!" coach scoffed. "What you teens get up to is none of my business. I will punch you in the face if I ever walk in on you or have to hear any details of any kind, though. Without mercy," he added, completely serious.

Shoyo didn't doubt that for a second. Even so, he felt his shoulders droop as his tension bled away. Having his coach's approval felt oddly comforting. "Yes, coach! Um, could you do us a favour and not tell anyone?" he asked.

"I wouldn't anyway, so sure." 

Shoyo nodded thankfully and grinned up at Kageyama, who stared at him strangely. "What?"

"Why not?"

"Don't you think it’ll be more exciting if we just don’t say anything?" Shoyo asked, bouncing on his feet. "We’ll be spies on an undercover mission!"

Kageyama rolled his eyes at him. "That's not what being an undercover spy is, moron." Of course he added an insult in there. "Don't you read hundreds of manga in your free time? You should know this."

Shoyo scoffed. "Well, I haven't been able to recently, I've been preoccupied."

"Doing what? You don't study."

"Hey! I could be studying!" he retorted. "Even though I'm not... anyway, not important. I don't read much anymore because I've been hanging out with you, doofus."

Kageyama swallowed and looked away. He cleared his throat before speaking, "So, we won't be a couple in front of everyone?"

Shoyo shook his head. "Nah, we’ll just be normal. And if anyone notices a change, then they can either ask or just never find out." He smirked, wondering how long it would take everyone to notice. This was going to be fun!

"Fine by me."

"Good."

"Tch. Don't 'good' me."

"Don't 'tch' me!"

"Shut the hell up, you freaking—,"

"Hey!" Ukai snapped, glaring at them. "Buy your shit and get out. I won't be having any fights in my store!"

Saturday, Oct 6th—Twenty-five days after the incident

Shoyo felt adrenaline surging through his body, dancing across his skin and encouraging him to jump higher. He shared a grin with his boyfriend, Kageyama, when their new quick attack landed again.

Kenma, who was across from Shoyo on the other side of the net, tsked and pouted. "Shoyo, that quick attack is insane."

Kuroo laughed heartedly from the sideline, "Don't be a jelly belly, Kenma!" he shouted, cupping his hands around his mouth to make his voice louder. 

Kenma pulled an irked face at his friend, wrinkling his brow and sticking his chin up at him. Kuroo took no offence and continued snickering with Yamamoto, who was standing with him on the sideline. 

Shoyo smiled brightly at Kenma, his cheeks stretching uncomfortably from the force. "Thanks! We've been working on it a lot. Right, Yamayama?" He turned to Kageyama, who gave a quick but relatively respectful nod to Kenma. Shoyo's smile quickly turned knowing.

He knew how badly Kageyama wanted to get to know Nekoma's setter, but every time he tried to go up to him, Kenma went pale and ran off to find cover behind someone from his team.

It might have been a little bit of Shoyo's fault for calling Grumpy-yama a sabre-tooth tiger the first time he met Kenma, but Kageyama also needed to learn how to fix his concentrated face. It looked scary from an outsider's point of view.

Therefore, Shoyo refused to take any of the blame.

A loud whistle snapped him out of his thoughts, and he quickly bounded over to his spot. 

The resounding match went by quicker than Shoyo would have liked. 

It was Karasuno's serve, and Tanaka delivered well. Nekoma received it easily, and before anyone could react, Inuoka was already spiking. Well, before anyone normal could react. However, the freak duo was used to speed; they easily got a soft block.

"One touch!" Shoyo yelled.

He huffed a delighted laugh when Noya called it, effortlessly getting it back in the air. Shoyo took a couple steps back when he saw the ball flying straight to Kageyama.

He had room for a four step run up, and there was extra space if he needed to dash around. More than enough to get the right speed and height.

Suga shouted encouragements from behind him on the sideline, which got him even more hyped.

Inuoka and Kenma were staring at Shoyo intensely on the other side of the net, waiting for him to make a move. Though Inuoka had managed to keep up with their previous quick attack, he had yet to catch up to the improved version. 

It didn't matter how prepared they thought they were, there was no stopping numbers nine and ten.

Shoyo, Tanaka and Daichi all ran up at the same time, the other two jumping before Shoyo as they were in the back.

The redhead waited; he waited until Inuoka and Kenma doubted he would get the ball and started their block, then he launched. He pushed off his right toes, throwing himself onto the left side, away from the blockers closest to him. 

The summit had never been clearer.

Their libero was in the centre, having moved there when Shoyo delayed his jump, and the latter got to see his ticked off expression in slow motion as he realised he made a mistake.

Ahh, I freaking love volleyball!

Shoyo knew instinctively that Kageyama would set him the ball, but it didn't dull the joy he got when he really did. Their new quick insisted of Shoyo opening his eyes and Kageyama delivering the ball to the exact point that would give Shoyo complete control. 

However, as Shoyo swung his hand down, he realised there was something different about where the ball had been set. It wasn't just in a good position, it was in the perfect position for a move he hadn't consciously tried before!

Shoyo hit the ball as hard as he could, an open-mouth smile splitting his face when it slammed down as a line-shot. It was so fast, it went ka-bam against the floor! The sound echoed across the gym.

He felt the soft breeze from outside hit him as he fell back to the ground. It almost felt like he had wings.

No one else but Kageyama and Shoyo knew how amazing that set had been. Their teammates yelled in triumph as they got one point closer to victory, but Shoyo was too busy staring at his boyfriend in awe to join in.

"What?" Kageyama asked, giving him a perplexed look. 

Shoyo glanced down at his red, throbbing hand, then back at him. "Kageyama, you really are amazing," he breathed out. "That set was just... it was flawless! It went wa-shing, I didn't even have to do anything!"

"It didn't look any different to me," Inuoka said, looking between them confusedly. He went ignored.

"Dude, what's going on with your face?" Kageyama was looking increasingly awkward, his hands twitching at his sides like he didn't know if he should do something. "You better not be about to cry."

Shoyo felt a little bad when all of the pride from his expression vanished, replaced by confused concern. He was still a little surprised every time he was reminded Kageyama liked liked him, that he actually cared about him a little more than a friend would.

"Bro, there are so many better ways you could have worded that," Tanaka chastised, slapping Kageyama on the back. He glanced over at the redhead with curiously. "He's got the right spirit, though. Everything okay, shorty?"

"Kageyama," he breathed out. He replayed the spike over and over in his head, each time with more adoration. "Seriously, you're so talented it's terrifying! I could kiss you!" he blurted out before he could stop himself.

Tanaka's jaw dropped, then transformed into a grin as he laughed in delight. Kageyama's ears instantly went bright red, and he sputtered in embarrassment.

Shoyo grabbed onto his shoulders and shook him back and forth repeatedly. "Where have you been hiding those sets, huh, Yamayama?! That was brilliant! Stupendous! It was like you read my mind, like you knew exactly what move I wanted to make!"

Daichi laughed awkwardly. "Woah-ho, settle down now. Please, uh, don't."

Tsukishima made an awful sound that was in between an annoyed groan and a tired sigh. "If you idiots kiss, I swear to god I'm going to throw up all over you." Stupid butthole.

Shoyo was about to make a snarky retort when Kenma's voice cut through. "What?!" he yelped.

Shoyo's head whipped around, and he was puzzled by the look of shock the setter was giving him. "What?"

"That's kinda insane, huh?" Inuoka whistled, staring at Shoyo with astonishment. It only confused him further. "I would have never seen it, considering how often they're at each other's throats."

"Seen what? What're you talking about?" Shoyo asked, thoroughly in the dark. He wasn't acting any differently with Kageyama than usual. He was well known for shouting random stuff around him.

"Hey!" Ukai yelled from the bench. "You better be keeping it in your pants, ginger!" he snapped angrily, scowling at him with an accusing finger pointed. 

"Hah?! What the hell is he talking about?" Shoyo murmured. His cheeks went so warm he wondered if they were at risk of catching on fire. He quickly turned back to Kageyama and gave him another shake. "Why is everyone ganging up on me?"

Kageyama glared at him and made him let go of his shoulders by latching onto his hair, lifting him up and putting him back down a few centimetres away like a claw machine. How rude. "I don't know. Just ignore them and get back in position."

"Right," Shoyo said. They were still in the middle of a practice match.

Asahi sighed from behind him. "It baffles me how clueless they are. You think they're doing it on purpose?"

Ohh. Shoyo understood what was going on now, the teams were just confused on what he and Kageyama's dynamic was. He sent his partner a proud smirk, who returned it instantly. 

Apparently, they were better at keeping things on the down low than he thought! It wasn't like they were even trying to hide it.

Tanaka laughed loudly, and Shoyo heard slapping noises paired with Asahi's groan. He had a habit of smacking people while laughing. "Nah, I'm pretty sure they're just oblivious! It's like they're in their own world!"

Shoyo was not oblivious. A bit slow, sure, but not clueless. He knew exactly what everyone else was thinking, and they were right. However, he was neither going to confirm nor deny their suspicions. 

After all, he and Kageyama had bets placed on who would call out their relationship first. It was only a matter of time.

"I can hear you!" he shouted anyway, because he still had dignity left.

Sunday, 7th of Oct—Twenty-six days after the incident

Shoyo yawned as he stepped off the bus, trailing Kageyama with his arms stretched all the way above his head. The entire bus ride back from the training camp had consisted of him switching between sleeping and snacking on Kageyama's granola bars, who growled at him but didn't actually stop him.

It was dark out and the moon was nearly at its peak in the sky.

"Shoyo!" 

Shoyo's eyes snapped open as the familiar voice hit his ears. He whipped his head around in every direction until he finally laid eyes on a certain tiny redhead running his way. He barely had time to brace himself before Natsu was leaping into his arms.

"Heyya, Natsu!" he greeted warmly, embracing her as they both laughed. "What are you doing here?"

"We came to pick you up! Mum said it wouldn't be nice to make you bike over a mountain after training for two days!" Natsu leaned back at looked her brother in the eye, her own sparkling with excitement. 

"Who's this cutie?" Suga asked, coming up on Shoyo's left. Natsu regarded him with curious eyes.

"This is my little sister, Natsu. I guess my family came to pick me up?" Shoyo laughed a little awkwardly. He hadn't prepared for his team to meet his sister or mum. 

Natsu beamed, twisting around in Shoyo's hold like a worm trying to get a look at everyone else. "Wow! So many people!"

Tanaka snickered into his hand when Noya made a comment about seeing the resemblance. Shoyo flushed. 

"Sorry, Shoyo," another voice popped up from behind him. Shoyo turned around and smiled brightly when he found his mum standing a little way behind the bus. "I couldn't stop her from running up to you, you know how excited she gets around you boys."

Oh, yeah. Kageyama was still here. Now Natsu looking around was making sense, she was trying to find her friend. "Where is he?" she asked, as if reading Shoyo's mind.

" 'm here," Kageyama mumbled, understanding he was who she was referring to. Shoyo turned his body to let Natsu look at him. Kageyama yawned loudly. "Hey, Natsu," he greeted.

"Tobio!" Natsu squealed excitedly. She started moving around even more, and Shoyo released his hold on her. She instantly found her way onto his shoulder, then leaped off in the same moment.

Kageyama grunted as he seemingly caught her. Shoyo turned around and smirked at the awkward expression on his boyfriend's face as Natsu settled into his arms. 

"Wow, I'd never think Kageyama was good with kids," Ennoshita commented, not unkindly. Suga smiled. 

"I know. He's doing better than me, and I'm going into childcare!"

Shoyo snickered. "Believe me, it was like fighting tooth and nail to get him comfortable around Natsu." He poked Kageyama's arm teasingly, knowing he couldn't fight back with his mum there. He poked his tongue out in response to the glare he earned.

"This is comfortable?" Asahi questioned. "He looks like he's fighting against the urge to drop her."

Kageyama sputtered. "This is just my face!" he snapped. His ears went red when Natsu giggled at him. 

Tobio sighed and booped Natsu on the nose, ignoring the looks of disbelief his teammates were giving him. That being said, he was not fighting the urge to drop her, he just wasn't sure what to do with a small child in his arms.

Mrs Hinata walked up to them and began to great everyone, shaking hands with the third years and smiling at the rest. She gave Hinata a hug, who melted into it easily. 

Tobio ignored the feeling in his chest at the sight. He didn't think he had ever enjoyed a hug as much as Hinata was right now. He wondered if one day he was going to be in Mrs Hinata's position, cradling his boyfriend so warmly in his arms.

He shook his head to get rid of that strange thought. Natsu wriggled around until she was balancing on his hip, and Tobio supported her as best he could. He was still a little unsure on how to deal with her, but thankfully he wasn't as clueless as he had been a few weeks ago.

"Tobio," Mrs Hinata called softly. He looked up and saw her smiling at him in such a caring way it made his heart crumble a little. "Would you like to stay over?"

Tobio had never met a woman like Mrs Hinata. She was so effortlessly kind and welcoming, even when Tobio was accidentally rude or messed up in some way. She treated him like her own son. She treated him better than his own mum.

There was a reason Tobio was always over at the Hinata's house. It wasn't just because he wanted to hang out with his boyfriend, though that was a big part of it.

Their house was so different to his.

Tobio's house was so cold, as he was often the only one home. There were little to no family photos, nothing other than the professional ones they got taken every new year's. His parents were nice to him, but they weren't there often. They left for work early and got home late. Because of that, they didn't know anything about his life beyond his club and his grades.

They didn't know him like Grandpa Kazuyo did.

Mrs Hinata, though?

She knew everything about Tobio. She actually asked about his life and listened to his responses. She remembered everything he told her, even the little things. She was always cooking his favourite meals, and if not, then she whipped up a side piece she knew that he liked to go with dinner.

And nothing was one-sided with the Hinata's. If Tobio gave something to one of them, like a juice box or a couple of flowers, he often received gifts back.

To top it all off, there wasn't a single blank wall in their house.

There were countless photos of their family of three, mostly Polaroids of the Hinata siblings. There were paintings that were obviously done by children hanging everywhere.

Their fridge was covered in letters passed between them—there was even one from Hinata to his mum telling her how much he loved her dated back to when he was in kindergarten—and even more photos.

Tobio had spotted one of himself on there the other day.

It was just a silly Polaroid of him and Natsu making their designated plushies punch each other with Hinata laughing in the background, but man, the number of emotions he got from that—how would Hinata say it? It felt so budump and guwaah. 

That was when he had finally realised he was truly accepted, just for being there.

Despite how different he was to them, the Hinata's managed to fit him into their life effortlessly. He was never alone, he was never excluded or interrupted when he spoke with work calls or excuses of being 'too tired after a long day to talk, Tobio.' 

Well, his boyfriend still started arguments with him every three minutes, but Tobio kinda liked bickering with him. He had a relationship with Hinata he couldn't have with anyone else, beyond dating. They knew how to push each other's buttons, but also how to calm and cheer each other up.

So, yeah, Tobio loved being at their house. And to be honest, he kinda dreaded having to go back to his own cold, empty one.

However.

"I'm sorry, Mrs Hinata." He placed a hand on Natsu's back to balance her as he bowed. "But my older sister is supposed to be visiting tomorrow morning, so I have to be there."

Tobio hadn't seen Miwa in quite a few weeks. He wasn't excited per se, but he wasn't disappointed either. It would be good to catch up with her, maybe even tell her about his boyfriend.

Natsu squawked loudly in his ear, making Tobio wince. "You can't come?! But I even set up Mr Rabbit and Mrs Trunk for the sleep over!" Right. That was another thing.

Tobio, Hinata and Natsu always ended up on futons in the living room because Natsu threw a fit if she wasn't allowed to be with Tobio. She brought her stuffed animals, a rabbit and an elephant with her every time and made Tobio say goodnight to them.

"Sorry, Natsu," he muttered, wondering if he was ever going to get his hearing back.

Hinata stepped out of his mother's hold and whined loudly. "Seriously?"

Nishinoya gave Hinata a sideways glance. "Why are you sad about it? And why does it kinda sound like Kageyama sleeping over at your house is a regular occurrence?" 

Hinata crossed his arms and puffed his cheeks out in annoyance. "I was hoping to play some more when we got back, that's all." If you didn't know to look for it, Hinata's blush could be hidden by the darkness of the night. But Kageyama saw it clear as day.

He looked away awkwardly and refused to acknowledge his own heated ears.

Suga raised an eyebrow, looking mildly impressed. "Are you being serious? Where on earth do you get all of that energy from, Hinata?"

Daichi shook his head with an eye roll. "No one knows. Maybe he has a secret superpower or something."

"A superpower of unlimited energy? That's awesome, Shoyo!" Nishinoya gushed, throwing a thumbs up at a spluttering Hinata. Tobio smirked at his stupid expression of confusion.

Yamaguchi smiled wearily. "You mean lame," he amended. He looked away when he earned a glare from Nishinoya. "What? I'm just saying, if I got a superpower and it turned out it could give me energy, I'd be pretty disappointed."

Tanaka nodded his head in agreeance. "I'd definitely prefer something like invisibility." Tobio was nearly one hundred percent certain Tanaka would use that superpower to be a perv, jump scare people, avoid exams and get out of lectures.

Actually, those last two didn't sound so bad. 

"It's probably from all of those protein granola bars he took out of Kageyama's bag on the bus," Tsukishima piped up. He was leaning against the bus, tapping on his phone and pretending he wasn't interested in the conversation.

Tobio couldn't help pulling a face at him, even though he wasn't looking. It wasn't any of his business what Hinata ate. Why the hell had he been watching anyway?

Hinata made a weird shrieking sound. "You callin' me fat, Sucky-shima?!"

"How'd you get to that conclusion?" Yamaguchi asked, half smiling.

Mrs Hinata shook her head fondly. "Come on, Shoyo. Get your stuff in the car, I'd hate to hold up your friends any longer."

"Ahh, we don't mind, Mrs Hinata!" Mr Takeda chimed in, smiling pleasantly at her. "It's actually quite interesting watching Hinata's younger sister cling to Kageyama."

Was it really that strange? Tobio and Hinata exchanged a look as the latter went to follow his mum's instructions. 

Natsu leaped out of Tobio's arms then, rolling up her sleeves, flexing her basically non-existent muscles and declaring herself strong enough to help. A round of laughter echoed through the group at her antics.

As the two younger Hinata's set off to put everything in their car, which was parked along a nearby street, Mrs Hinata walked up to Tobio with another achingly warm smile.

She gently placed a hand on his cheek, and Tobio easily leaned into it. Her thumb swiped across his skin a few times as she spoke, "You be safe on your way home, okay Tobio? Tell Miwa I said hello."

"Will do," he croaked. He refused to accept the fact he was feeling emotional over Mrs Hinata remembering his sister's name, and that that was what it took for all of his remaining walls to crash down.

"Ehhh?" Nishinoya's smirk could be heard through his voice, and Tobio knew he'd been caught. "Don't cry, To-bi-o!" 

Tobio scoffed, and Mrs Hinata retreated with a sheepish grin. His cheek went cold instantly. "Sorry, dear. I didn't mean to make them tease you."

Just before Tobio could assure her it was fine, and that Nishinoya had a habit of picking on people, Hinata bounced over with his little sister on his back. "All done, ready to go!" he announced. "Oh? Tsukki's still here?"

"It would be rude for me to walk off with your mother here," Tsukishima answered with a scowl. "I happen to respect people older than me. And don't call me that." Yamaguchi smirked at his friend.

"Hah? You sure as hell don't respect me!" Nishinoya snapped.

"When have you ever earned my respect?"

"Oh, I dunno, maybe that one time I was your upperclassman? You're such a smartass!"

"Tch."

Mrs Hinata had made her way over to coach Ukai, Mr Takeda and Shimizu, making small talk with them as she gestured for Hinata to say his goodbyes. Natsu climbed off his back to join her.

Hinata did as his mother asked, high fiving Tanaka and Nishinoya, verbally announcing his upcoming departure to the rest. He had a three sentence conversation with Asahi about being excited about something—when was he ever not excited, though?—before moving on.

By the time he had finished, Natsu and Mrs Hinata were saying their own polite goodbyes. Natsu's were a lot louder, and she eagerly expressed her desire to be friends with them all before they turned to get into their car.

Hinata lagged behind for a moment, shuffling his way over to Tobio. "So, see you tomorrow?"

"Duh, moron. It's Monday tomorrow."

Hinata glared at him for a moment, but it quickly faded away in favour of grabbing onto one of Tobio's hands. They ignored the weird looks they were being given. "Text me when you get home?"

"M'kay," Tobio said. He glanced down at Hinata's mouth and quickly thought over the pros and cons of giving his boyfriend a kiss goodbye. Pros: Tobio would get to kiss Hinata before having to go back to his cold home. Cons: there would be no winner in the bet they had going over who would find out first about their relationship. "Tell Mr Rabbit and Mrs Trunk I say goodnight." Tobio smirked.

Hinata stared at him with sparkles in his eyes and a dopey grin. "Yes, sir!" He decided for him before Tobio really weighed his options, as Hinata reached up with his free hand to entangle his fingers in Tobio's hair and pulled him forward until their lips met. 

Tobio's shoulders drooped and he fell into the kiss easily, gently lifting his own free hand to Hinata's cheek while manoeuvring their joined hands into intertwining properly.

He kept the kiss sweet to appreciate the feeling of Hinata's slightly chapped lips moving with his just as relaxed yet hungrily. It wasn't by any means a peck, but it wasn't quite a make-out either. It was just in the middle.

Ukai's scoff and Mr Takeda's squeaking hit his ears, but they were nothing more than white noise.

They separated after no more than four seconds, which felt a lot longer with the added factor of numerous eyes on them, and Tobio was immediately blinded by Hinata's goofy grin. Tobio's hands were suddenly a lot colder, so he quickly shoved them into his pockets.

"See you later, Grumpy-yama."

"See ya, dumbass."

Hinata stepped away then, moving to join his family with a kicked-puppy expression. Tobio refused to feel bad for not going with him.

Hinata's feet dragged noisily against the concrete the entire way. He turned around multiple times during the short trip to frown exaggeratedly over his shoulder and make a tear drop motion. What a dork.

Tobio sighed and turned around after the fourth time. He had to make it out of range from his teammates before they all snapped out of whatever trance they were in and jumped onto him, demanding explanations.

He grabbed his duffle bag, bowed to his teacher and coach, then dashed away.

He could still hear Tsukishima's exaggerated gags and the second years' screaming long after he had gotten off school campus. He even heard Yachi shouting to Shimizu in triumph, for whatever reason.

His cheeks were warm, despite the cold air of a late autumn night hitting him as he ran.

Even so, he felt as if a weight had been lifted from his chest. He felt good. 

He never thought he, of all people, would get so lucky.