Chapter Text
Staring up at the ceiling, Bokuto sighed as he squished himself deeper into his futon.
Hinata slid open the door from the bathroom, toothbrush in hand as he glanced at Bokuto. He chuckled at the sight of his slouchy friend and took his toothbrush out of his mouth.
“What’s wrong Bokuto?” Hinata questioned.
“Mehn-” Bokuto grumbled as he turned toward the window, facing away from Hinata.
Hinata sighed. He wasn’t used to dealing with Bokuto when he was in a crummy mood. Akaashi was usually the one who was able to handle Bokuto and cheer him up when things got bad like this.
“Do you wanna talk about it? I know it has to do with something that happened during truth or dare, but if you don’t wanna discuss it then that’s totally fine!” Hinata quickly reassured.
Silence.
Hinata gulped. “Well I’m just gonna tell you about how I felt about it because I wanna fill the silence, but if you want me to stop talking just tell me, okay?”
When no response was given, Hinata took that as a sign to start talking.
“Okay, so I know that I’m dumb, like really dumb. But I kinda noticed that you had a crush on Akaashi, cause of the way you acted earlier when we ran into him.” He sat down on his bed and looked out the window, noticing how the fireworks were still going on from earlier. “It’s gotta suck to see your crush make out with another guy, trust me I get it. But you can’t lose hope yet dude!”
Hinata noticed Bokuto shift a little on the ground, so he continued. “I know this sounds kinda weird because we both saw them make out, but are we sure that Akaashi likes Iwaizumi? LIke a hundred percent sure?” Hinata popped the question in the air. “For all we know maybe Suga was just trying to annoy Iwaizumi, because we know how riled up he gets sometimes at parties with Suga and Oikawa.”
“I know I’m not great at giving advice and stuff like that, but I do really believe that you shouldn’t give up on Akaashi. You didn’t see it, but Akaashi looked pretty jealous earlier when Oikawa was tending to your bruise.” Hinata giggled while he recalled the face Akaashi made. He never knew that Akaashi’s eyebrows could've arched that way!
Bokuto turned towards Hinata with a glimmer of hope in his eyes.
“He looked jealous?” Bokuto exclaimed. “You mean he looked like he wanted to be the one to take care of me?!”
Hinata nodded his head. “Yeah! I know that Akaashi isn’t like you where he’d state his feelings outright. He seems more like a kind of person to show their affection through small actions and gifts.”
He slid off the bed and reached for Bokuto’s hands, grasping them tightly in his own.
“I know that tonight was a rough night for all of us, but mostly for you.” Hinata started. “But guess what? You can blame everything on the alcohol!”
Bokuto had to crack a laugh at that comment.
“I’m serious!” Hinata stuttered. “Tonight was bad, but tomorrow’s a new day! Both you and Akaashi will have an alcohol free mind, and you can just talk out everything that happened yesterday.I promise that it’ll go well, cause Akaashi doesn’t seem like the kind of person to blunty reject you and everything you say.”
“Are you sure though?” Bokuto questioned. “What if he avoids me tomorrow morning?”
Hinata shook his head. “Akaashi wouldn’t do that, it’s not like him. I bet he wants to talk everything out right now, and if he can’t find you tonight he’ll be waiting for you at your dorm tomorrow. I guarantee it!”
“Are you like sure, sure though? I really don’t want him to not talk to me, I don’t think I could handle that.”
Giving him a supportive glance, Hinata looked Bokuto in the eye. “I’m one hundred percent sure that he’ll want to talk to you when he first sees you tomorrow. Akaashi’s not the one to leave people hanging, and I know that you’re one of his closest friends.”
Hinata embraced him in a warm and tight hug. Bokuto thought the sight must’ve been ironic; a tall broad senpai being embraced by his tiny kouhai. He wasn't gonna complain though, Hinata’s hug felt really nice, especially at a time like this.
“Both of you will get the closure you need on this whole situation tomorrow.” Hinata firmly stated. “So please don’t worry too much about this Bokuto. I can promise you that if Akaashi hurts you, I’ll beat him up with my own fists!”
Upon hearing that challenge, Bokuto imagined small Hinata trying to land a punch on Akaashi. The thought of it brought a small smirk to his face.
Bokuto hugged Hinata back, his head resting on Hinata's shoulder. While snivelling a little, Bokuto voiced his thanks to him.
“I really, really appreciate your help on all of this Hinata. Man, I don’t know what I’d be doing tonight without you.” Bokuto stammered.
“You’d probably be crying over Akaashi in your room.” Hinata drawled.
Bokuto fake cringed. “So mean Hina-chan!”
Hinata giggled. “Are you trying to impersonate Oikawa? Because you kinda sounded like him a little!”
Releasing himself from the hug, Hinata stood up and turned toward the window. Bright bursts of pink and magenta soared through the air, leaving imprints of hearts and stars all throughout the sky outside Hinata’s dorm.
Eyes widening in excitement, Hinata dragged Bokuto over to the window by his bed. They both sat in front of the glass pane, mesmerized by the firework display going on outside.
“Wow!” Hinata exclaimed. “I always knew they had their annual Valentines firework show downtown, but I never knew that I could see it from my dorm! Jeez, I’ve been missing out on a lot of great views.” He sighed as another firework exploded in a medley of red and pink, leaving trails of sparkles outside.
“They’re so pretty...” Bokuto murmured quietly. Akaashi popped up in his mind again as soon as he thought of the word “pretty”.
Fuck, I’m so in love with him to the point where I think of him all the time.
“OH MY GOD IS THAT WHAT I THINK IT IS!???” Hinata screamed while wildly pointing at the window.
Startled, Bokuto jumped and fell off the bed with an unsatisfying thunk ! As he picked himself off of the floor, he heard a faint voice calling from inside the apartment.
“Shoyou, please quiet down.” The quiet voice asked. “I know you’re excited about the fireworks, but I’m trying to sleep.”
Hinata looked startled. “Ah of course! Sorry Kenma!”
“It’s okay, don’t worry about it.” Kenma quietly slipped away from the door.
Bokuto assumed that Kenma was Hinata’s roommate. His attention turned back to the orange-haired boy on the bed, as Bokuto tried to decipher what he was so excited about a moment ago.
“Hinata, what did you see just a second ago? The thing you were screaming about?”
Hinata lit up with excitement as he pointed it out to Bokuto.
“It’s the rose ball!” He pointed out a large pink ball that was barely visible from their point of view. “Every year on Valentines day, they launch that ball up into the sky and it explodes with a shower of rose and flower petals! I heard from Kenma that it’s a myth that if you wish for the love of your life to notice you, you have to think of them while the ball is launched, and whisper their name when the ball explodes.”
Hinata grabbed Bokuto’s hands and held them tight. “We should do it together! It looks like they’re about to launch it!”
Bokuto nodded, and they both glanced toward the rose ball as it soared into the sky in a flurry of magenta and white. As it climbed higher and higher, Bokuto thought of Akaashi. His small smile he made whenever Bokuto complimented his diligence, or his look of exasperation whenever Bokuto fell into trouble and called for Akaashi to lend him a hand. As the rose reached its peak, Bokuto thought of Akaashi’s little laugh he heard once when Bokuto handed him a handmade cake for his birthday, and how he said it was perfect because as long as it came from Bokuto, he was happy with it.
The rose ball reached its climax, and exploded in a glory of pink and magenta. Hundreds of rose petals floated to the ground, decorating the night sky in a blanket of red.
It was time.
Bokuto and Hinata leaned against each other as they whispered the names of their admirers.
“Akaashi ”
“Kageyama”
They stayed like that for a while as the night sky returned to its normal self, dotted with the stars from all around the universe.
~~~
Akaashi woke up with one of the worst headaches he’d ever had. Jesus, it felt like his skull was going to explode out of his head if he moved his body one inch.
As his eyes adjusted to the bright light seeping in through the curtains of his room, he slowly began to realize two things.
One, Akaashi knew for a fact that he didn’t have white lace curtains over his windows. In fact, he didn’t have curtains at all, he just had simple blinds.
Two, the bed he was in was queen-sized. His bed was a small twin bed he squished against his wall, so this and the curtains could only mean one thing.
This wasn’t his room!?
Wait, did he fall asleep yesterday at the party? Or did he pass out on the bus ride back to his dorm? Did someone drug and kidnap him? He had a morning lecture today, and he had to get kidnapped? God, the day after Valentines sucks.
Just as he was reaching the climax of his crisis, the door to Akaashi’s mystery room opened with a sudden slam and in pranced none other than the Tooru Oikawa. Oikawa ran over to the bed and leaped on top of Akaashi, crushing him under his weight.
“OOF”
“Sorry Aka-chan!” Oikawa playfully apologized. “But you’re finally awake! I thought you were dead by the way you looked last night!”
Last night? Ah, he must have passed out at Kuroo and Oikawa’s apartment. Well, at least he wasn’t drugged, that was definitely a plus.
“How long was I out?” Akaashi questioned.
Oikawa scratched his head as he thought about it. “Well, I remember carrying you to my room around midnight? You were super drunk though, it was kinda funny not gonna lie. You swayed around like you were ice-skating or something!” Oikawa teased.
Akaashi scowled and decided to ignore Oikawa’s comments, seeing as he did let him stay the night. “What time is it right now?”
Oikawa glanced down at his watch. “It’s almost 7:30, so you have time. Your class is at 8:30 right?”
Akaashi sighed with relief. Thank god he had about an hour to get ready. But then he realized something very, very awful.
Akaashi was at Kuroo and Oikawa’s apartment.
None of Akaashi’s stuff was at their apartment, it was all sitting in his room back at his dorm.
Would he have enough time to run back? Were the buses running this early? Even if he ran, he would have to worry about icy roads and sidewalks. He didn’t want to slip and twist his ankle or injure himself in any way. What if-
“Aka-chan, I can hear you thinking from all the way across the room!” Oikawa drolled. “Don’t worry, me and Kuroo can drive you to your dorm. We have to head that way anyway to go grab breakfast with Iwa-chan!”
Akaashi looked up in surprise. “No, you guys don’t have to do that!” He nervously waved his hands in front of him. “I already intruded way too much, I can just take the bus-”
Oikawa sauntered over to where Akaashi was sitting in bed and shoved his finger in front of Akaashi’s mouth.
“Quiet child!” Oikawa shrieked. “Me and Kuroo are driving you, and that’s final! We really don’t mind, right Kuroo?” Oikawa shouted towards the living room.
“Yeah, really Akaashi it’s no problem.” Kuroo chimed from the common room where he was drinking a cup of coffee. “It’s on the way, and that way you don’t have to pay for the bus. Also, me and Oikawa would feel hella guilty if we just left you to fend for yourself in this freezing weather.”
“Okay, if you’re really sure.” Akaashi spoke hesitantly.
“Of course! Now c’mon Aka-chan, we gotta get going so you can get your stuff and run to class!” Oikawa yanked Akaashi up from bed and dragged him out to the living room. “Grab a water bottle and your shoes and let’s roll!”
“You’re not the one driving.” Kuroo quipped at Oikawa.
“Oh my god, shut up!” Oikawa shrieked. “At least I’m getting everyone ready so Aka-chan can get to class on time!”
Kuroo laughed. “Dude I know, I’m just joking. Let’s roll.”
They all walked out of the building, faces flushed and breath showing as the frigid air hit them. Akaashi stuffed his hands into his jacket pockets, wishing he brought a pair of mittens with him yesterday.
Hopping into the car, Oikawa cringed as his butt hit the cold seat. Turning towards Kuroo he shouted, “You forgot to turn on the car!?”
Kuroo frowned. “If you wanted a warm car, you should’ve turned it on yourself. I’m saving gas and money this way.”
Oikawa huffed and slouched down in his seat. Akaashi chuckled at the sight, he reminded him a lot of a petulant five year old.
They pulled out of the parking lot and drove downtown while the sun rose above them, bringing new light to the new day.
~~~
Bokuto stood in front of the door to his dorm, contemplating what could happen when he stepped in.
Akaashi could be right in front of the door in the kitchen, or he could be in our living room. He could also be in his room, which would make it easy to sneak past him. AUGH! I know I need to talk to him, but now that the moment’s facing me, I can’t help but think about avoiding him!
He took a deep breath, remembering the pep talk Hinata gave him last night, and unlocked the door, stepping inside with a deep breath.
No one was home.
Bokuto breathed a sigh of relief. He was kinda disappointed that Akaashi wasn’t home, but at the same time he was ecstatic. He could just rush to his room, grab his backpack and laptop and go to class without running into him. Then during the day he could craft a response to Akaashi and confess to him later tonight! Yeah, that sounds like a great idea!
But while Bokuto was hyping himself up in his room, he heard the door to their doom unlock and open. Bokuto held his breath while he heard Akaashi’s quiet “Bokuto-san?”
Debating on whether or not he should respond to him, Bokuto decided that it would be better to get the whole confessing thing over with. Taking a deep breath, he grabbed his backpack and stepped out of his room.
“Hey hey hey, Akaashi!” Bokuto exclaimed. “Where were you last night? I missed you!”
Akaashi flushed at Bokuto's comment. “Ah, I was at Kuroo-san’s apartment Bokuto-san. I fell asleep there by accident and they let me stay the night.”
“Akaashi...” Bokuto drawled. “Weren’t you the one who gave me that huge lecture yesterday morning about not getting hungover and passing out? It’s so funny, the tables have turned now!”
“I guess you could say that Bokuto-san.” A small smile formed on Akaashi’s lips.
Scratching his head, Bokuto bashfully glanced away from Akaashi. Confused, Akaashi tilted his head to get a closer look at Bokuto’s face.
‘Bokuto-san, what’s wrong?” Akaashi inquired. “Don’t tell me you’re sad because you have a psychology lecture bright and early.” He teased.
Bokuto blushed and shook his head. “No, that’s not it Akaashi, I just wanted to talk a little bit about what happened... last night.” He avoided Akaashi’s eyes once more.
Akaashi froze. Last night? He really hoped that Bokuto didn’t think that he and Iwaizumi were dating, that would be a disaster.
Just please talk about me being drunk or you getting hit by a lamppost, just anything but me at last night’s truth or dare game. Please...
“About last night’s dare that Suga made you do-” Bokuto started.
“I’m not dating Iwaizumi-san!” Akaashi cut in. “Not even hooking up with him or anything! I promise! Suga just put that dare on us for no reason, I blame it on the alcohol.”
Bokuto’s eyes widened. “Wait. You aren’t dating Iwaizumi? Really?”
Akaashi nodded shyly. “Yeah, we aren’t dating or anything. It was just a spur of the moment thing that Suga put us onto.”
Bokuto paused and processed the information that was just given to him.
OH MY GOD. Thank god Hinata gave me that pep talk! And thank god Akaashi isn’t dating Iwaizumi! Wait, does that mean I can ask him out right here and right now? Would that be weird? Or wait, if I ask him right now, when he’s telling me all of this, maybe he’ll say yes? I wouldn’t want him to say yes to me out of pity or anything like that. Maybe if-
“Bokuto-san-”
Bokuto turned towards Akaashi and grabbed him by his shoulders. Leaning into his face, Bokuto popped the question.
“Akaashi, um, will you go out with me!?” Bokuto shouted out.
Standing in shock, Akaashi couldn’t believe his luck. Well, it looked like Suga’s plan had worked out after all, but not in the way they suspected.
Blushing fiercely, Akaashi let out a small squeak of affirmation.
“What was that?” Bokuto asked. Jeez, he really hoped that wasn’t a small sorry or no.
Akaashi made eye contact with Bokuto and shyly opened his mouth.
“Yes Bokuto-san, I’ll go out with you.”
With the morning sun glittering off the snow, several beams of glimmering light flashed through the kitchen window. It almost seemed as if they were providing extra flare to the already happy atmosphere. Bokuto decided to take advantage of the tranquil vibe that was created in their dorm, and leaned forward towards Akaashi.
Akaashi took this as his cue to lean forward as well, and as their lips touched, the sun and snow outside seemed to gleam in ratification; bearing witness to the end of a confusing but satisfying confession.