Chapter Text
Kageyama Tobio knows he’s good-looking. He’s been on the receiving end of dozens of compliments for his round navy eyes and perfectly shaped peach lips. He has grown accustomed to the not-so-subtle glances people throw his way; glances that range from adoration to jealousy.
Tobio knows he’s hot, but never has he seen someone literally drool over him. He can’t say he’s pleased, but he’s not exactly appalled either, more like curiously concerned. The guy’s name, as he later learns, is Oikawa Tooru and he already doesn’t like him. He seemed like the type of person to brag about his dick that’s 3 inches.
Despite this though, Tobio is not going to deny that the man was very handsome. His slightly tanned skin complemented the earthy brown of his hair and eyes and Tooru’s tall but narrow nose brought out his high cheekbones. So yeah, he was objectively handsome. He would’ve taken Tooru up on that offer if it wasn’t for his shitty impression.
He refused to fuck with a guy with that kind of confidence.
After the interesting encounter with the brunette, he made his way to his apartment. It was a short 10-minute walk that allowed Tobio to take in the rare silence of the usually lively town. His blue gems are soaked in the golden streaked trees and asphalt lanes. He breathed in the fresh scent of petrichor radiating from surrounding fields of grass that lined the road.
He barely registered that he had reached the old but large apartment complex before pushing the doors open with a tiny grunt at the unoiled hinges. Tobio trudged past the cream-colored popcorn walls and wooden security desk. The security guard was asleep on the chair and prompted Tobio to go on an internal rant about how much the owner of the complex cares for them.
He lazily entered an empty elevator and pressed on the button for the 4th floor. Once reaching his floor, he dragged himself towards his apartment and banged on the door.
“Open up!”
No answer.
“OPEN UP!”
Still no answer.
“FOR FUCKS SAKE OPEN THE DOOR YOU DICK!”
The door swung open in one pull to reveal a blond male taller than Tobio.
“Thank you very much for asking politely.”, the male mumbled.
“You’re very much welcome, bitch.”
“You appall me.”
“Nothing new!” Tobio smiled sweetly at the male in front of him, “Now let me in before I cry.”
The boy inside the apartment widened the entrance before stepping aside and making their way to the small kitchen on the left of the entrance to settle down on the stool.
A range of light yellow and deep crimson stringed LED lights greeted Tobio warmly after he pulled his shoes off. The heat of the pot of butajiru on the stove washed over him in comforting waves and invaded his nose with its familiar aroma. He silently thanked Kei for cooking the warm soup today.
“Aren’t you too old to be making those types of threats?”
“Come on Kei, no one can ever be too old to use crying as a threat.”
“This is why you got expelled, honey.”
“HEY, THAT’S A SENSITIVE TOPIC YOU ASSHOLE!”
Kei grumbled, “Mhm, sure.”
Tobio ignored the dismissal and walked into his bedroom. He collapsed onto his smokey grey sheets as he threw his head back onto the white wall behind him. He pulled his tank-top and jeans off with idle struggle and made himself comfortable with a pair of sweatpants conveniently laying next to his bed.
He heard Kei shout that he had a long time to sleep before dinner was ready and Tobio found himself smiling to no one as he fell into a light slumber.
Tsukishima Kei.
He’s who Tobio likes to believe is his platonic soulmate. They have been together since the beginning of the whole shitshow known as life; their parents were frequent business partners and with their overlapping schedules, the two boys spent those downcast days together. They formed a bond over their absent parental figures and found solace in knowing they weren’t alone in such a shitty lifestyle.
They figured out their math problems together. They pecked each other’s bruises. They cried and sobbed on the other’s shoulder. They tore down every wall of struggles as a pair with an everlasting bond stronger and more beautiful than any diamond known to humanity.
They had long since known that their relationship was not like other best friends. Other best friends didn’t have the suppressed urge to coddle each other at midnight. Other best friends didn’t want to kiss each other to distract themselves from the crash site of problems closing in on them. They had long since learned to ignore the judgmental stares of their friendship.
What confused both of them was that they were not romantic feelings. Despite being in middle school at that time, they both knew that those urges were not romantic and completely platonic. Just before this, Tobio and Kei had accepted themselves as being pansexual and gay respectively. They saw couples around them kiss, like they wanted to, they saw them cuddle on TV, like they wanted to, but they didn’t see any friends do that. They shared hugs and fleeting pats on the back but none of them shared the intimate press of lips.
This was the precise reason why they were so happy when they found out about the existence of queerplatonic relationships.
The pair immediately knew this was what their friendship was.
That was the day they shared their first kiss; the kiss was the best thing that happened to them after meeting each other. It was brief but held the fresh taste of oranges and their lingering citrus tang. Tobio’s fingers were clutching Kei’s hand and the blond’s other free hand rubbed circles on his best friend’s knee as they leaned into each other on the matted floor to share a clumsy kiss.
It was imperfect, but it was precious.
After that, they didn’t hold back on the affection, they enveloped each other in comforting hugs and short pecks to hold their (platonic) better half together. Tobio and Kei always found themselves seeking out one another for everything.
Kei was Tobio’s support in the hardest of times and so was Tobio to Kei, they were each other's pillar of steel always there to hoist the other up and push them forward.
Tobio was 2 hours into his nap when he choked awake. His eyes shot down to his body where he found Kei idly laying down.
“The hell Kei?”
“Evenin’ King.”
Tobio stared at the blonde before brutally kicking him off and shouting, “Don’t call me that- and- I ALMOST DIED!”
Kei only scoffed as replied, “Stop overreacting King, I merely woke you up for dinner like the good person I am.”
“You can stop with the bullshit for now.” Tobio scowled.
Tobio followed Kei out his bedroom door to the kitchen and made himself snug on the cushioned stool situated under the marble countertop they use as a dining table. He watched as Kei poured ladles of the soup to pour it into large bowls. The bowls were placed on the counter as Kei sat opposite Tobio to pass him the spoon.
Tobio visibly drooped at the comforting taste of the pork butajiru.
“Shitty day?” Kei asked.
“Oh my, you know me so well, Kei.” Tobio snickered, “But yeah, I’ve been to every university in the city and none of them will even let me take the test after seeing my record.”
“Tobio, you don’t have to search for a university okay? We both know you have no intention of doing anything other than music. Even if you find a university with a performing arts course, the same thing will repeat."
"Kei stop-"
"We can do this with the gigs. The band is there to help all the time-"
"Kei-"
"-so don’t worry about university okay?!” Kei was distraught at Tobio’s mindless searching and gripped his black glasses in a tight grip.
“KEI! I think it’s fairly obvious that we can’t sustain with just the gigs at those shitty clubs and pubs! Think about it! IF I DON’T GO TO UNIVERSITY ALL THE WORKLOAD IS GOING TO BE ON YOU AND I DON’T WANT THAT FOR YOU, KEI! I WON’T BE ABLE TO GET A JOB TO HELP OUT!” Tobio screamed in frustration as he pushed the bowl of soup away to pull at his hair in distress.
“Tobio,” Kei sounded so gentle,
Ah, I said something wrong.
“Don’t beat yourself up. I know I’m the one working but it’s only going to get harder if I lose you to all this, so please Tobio, just listen to me,
We can do this, just like we always do, Tobio.
We will do this."
The shorter male reluctantly nodded his head before opening his mouth to say, “Br-”
“King I don’t want to hear any more arguments-”
“I swear it isn’t Kei!”
Kei raised his eyebrow.
“French fry?” Tobio murmured.
Kei only stared at his best friend as if he had personally grated dead skin onto his ice cream. “What?”
“Kiss.” It was all Tobio said and he pushed his lips into a pout.
Kei’s eyes softened at the blue-eyed boy in front of him. He sighed and leaned across the counter to press sugary kisses onto Tobio. From his nose to his bare neck, and down his pale arms to the tips of his fingers. Kei finished off his onslaught of affection with a slow but heavy kiss full of smooth motions and tender touches. As they rested on each other’s forehead, their eyes found themselves soaking in honey-like gold and deep-sea blue.
“Love you, Tobio.”
“Love you too, Kei.”
They smiled.