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Aoyagi looked out the window at the growing barricade of snow before turning back to Teshima with a look that clearly meant, I thought you said it was supposed to snow “just a little” today.
Teshima shrugged and smiled apologetically. “Sorry, Aoyagi. I would have told Tadokoro-san we weren’t coming if I thought we had any chance of getting stuck here.”
After taking one more forlorn look outside, Aoyagi sighed and went to sit next to Teshima. He knew he felt more guilty about it than he let on. They were only supposed to be at Tadokoro’s house for a few hours to have a “strategy meeting,” of sorts. When the snow started falling, they had stayed longer, hoping to wait it out and go home when it was clear. But by the time they realized the snow wasn’t going to let up, they couldn’t open the front door to leave. Even with Tadokoro’s full strength, it barely budged against the packed snow. Teshima had continued trying everything he could to wedge the door open but only succeeded in cracking it open just enough to let snow pour in onto his feet. He’d kept trying until he realized that his socks were soaked and freezing and that he was chilled to the bone. After that, the three of them resigned themselves to their fate.
The rest of Tadokoro’s family was supposed to be returning that day from a weekend trip, and when they called to say they decided to stay longer to avoid the bad weather, Tadokoro got their approval to let Aoyagi and Teshima stay the night. After that, Tadokoro had made them a rather disorderly but enormous dinner. Aoyagi had somehow managed to down nearly as much as Tadokoro as Teshima looked on in amazement after finishing his comparatively tiny portion. But it wasn’t long before Aoyagi started regretting his decision and Tadokoro went to make some tea to calm his stomach, leaving him and Teshima to look out the window futilely while they waited.
After sitting beside Teshima, Aoyagi gently took his hand--which was quite a bit colder than his own. Concerned, he let go and instead took the edges of the blanket that was draped around his own shoulders in both hands. He then wrapped his arms around Teshima, holding him close to share warmth within Aoyagi’s blanket. Teshima hugged Aoyagi back and shifted slightly so they could be as comfortable and close to each other as possible.
They weren’t worried about Tadokoro coming back and seeing them like that. They had always been very close, so the decision to start officially dating was a natural one--and once Tadokoro found out, he was their most vocal supporter. As it turned out, the only ones who seemed even the slightest bit surprised they were dating were Aoyagi and Teshima themselves. Their relationship had evolved so gradually and effortlessly that they hadn’t even noticed what was going on until it had grown into something romantic, too.
Aoyagi could feel Teshima starting to warm up, and as he did, he began rubbing Aoyagi’s back. With a soft sigh, Aoyagi let his muscles loosen and leaned more against Teshima.
“Are you feeling better? You did eat a lot more than you usually do.”
Aoyagi shrugged, which Teshima knew meant, I’m feeling a little better, but I could still use the tea.
“I know you want to get stronger, but you’ll get there. You don’t have to rush.”
Aoyagi nodded slowly, and Teshima turned to kiss his cheek lightly. With a small noise of surprise, Aoyagi buried his face against Teshima’s shoulder while Teshima laughed softly and stroked Aoyagi’s hair. Aoyagi sighed and relaxed in Teshima’s arms for a minute before moving back a little, keeping his arms and blanket wrapped around Teshima’s shoulders.
At that moment, Tadokoro returned with a tray that had three cups of tea on it. Though Tadokoro was giving them that particular proud smile he always did when he saw them doing something romantic, they quickly moved away to sit next to each other rather than in each other’s arms. Aoyagi situated the blanket so that it was around both of their shoulders equally.
“I made enough for all of us so we can warm up.” He set the tray down and sat across from Teshima and Aoyagi. They drank their tea quietly, and the unease gradually dissipated from Aoyagi’s face. After they finished, they talked for a little while, and Aoyagi started looking more like himself--until Teshima began shivering. He seemed to be trying to ignore it and apparently didn’t notice that the other two had seen it. Aoyagi looked at Tadokoro pleadingly. Tadokoro thought it was no wonder Teshima was so devoted to Aoyagi--who could bear to see a look like that and not respond?
“Why don’t we take a bath? It’s big enough for all of us, so no one has to rush.”
“That sounds great, Tadokoro-san. Thank you.”
“Thank you,” Aoyagi echoed quietly, but with no less enthusiasm than Teshima.
Shortly afterward, they had all showered, and Tadokoro was the last to get into the bath itself. By the time he did, Teshima already looked to be much more comfortable. Aoyagi sat next to him and gave Tadokoro a grateful smile as he got in.
“Sorry for imposing on you like this, Tadokoro-san. Thank you for doing all of this for us.”
Tadokoro laughed cheerfully and made a dismissive motion. “It’s no problem. And this has been an excuse for all of us to spend some time together outside of practice.” He reached out to clap them both on the shoulder. “You two work so hard, but don’t forget to relax a little, too. It’s good for you.” Teshima and Aoyagi nodded, and Tadokoro smiled back at them, glowing with pride. He remembered how they had been when he first met them: driven, but unable to succeed on their own. They reminded him of himself in the past, and he couldn’t help but want to see them improve like he knew they could. But in the end, he felt that their belief in him had done just as much to motivate him as his belief had motivated them.
All three of them were quiet for a little while as the warm water eased their tension. But as soon as Aoyagi covered his mouth with his hand to hide a yawn, Tadokoro started getting out of the bath.
“I’ll go get out our extra futon. It’s big enough, but you’ll have to share.”
Teshima’s cheeks reddened slightly, but Aoyagi just nodded and started getting out of the bath, too.
“No, you two stay put. It’s been a long day for you, and this isn’t a three person job--I can manage.” Tadokoro grinned, and Aoyagi reluctantly sat back down. “It won’t take long, but you don’t have to rush.”
Once Tadokoro had left, Teshima sighed and leaned against Aoyagi, putting his head on Aoyagi’s shoulder. Aoyagi wrapped his arm around Teshima’s shoulder and rested his cheek against Teshima’s hair.
“You’re tired?” Aoyagi phrased it as a question, but he already knew the answer--he just wanted to ask aloud.
“Yeah. Who knew all this would happen?” Teshima laughed uneasily. “I’m still sorry about everything, Aoyagi. I thought--”
“It’s ok. Tadokoro-san liked spending the day with us, and I don’t mind as long as I’m with you.”
Teshima didn’t say anything, but he put his arm around Aoyagi’s waist. From the way he shifted slightly, Aoyagi could tell he was probably blushing.
Aoyagi kissed the top of Teshima’s head before both of them got out and went to use the hair dryer Tadokoro had shown them when they came in. Teshima dried Aoyagi’s hair first, tousling it gently as he did so to help it dry faster. Teshima’s curls took quite a bit longer, but Aoyagi took his time doing it carefully, running his fingers through it to keep the increasingly springy waves from tangling. Since they hadn’t been prepared to stay the night, Tadokoro brought them some of his own clean clothes to use as pajamas--the shirt he lent to Aoyagi even reached his knees.
Earlier in the day, Teshima had persuaded Tadokoro that it was ok for him to sleep in his own bed while they used the futon, but Tadokoro had accepted it only with substantial reluctance. They came into the room to find that he’d rearranged some furniture to fit the futon in comfortably and that everything was ready for them. As soon as they saw the soft futon and thick blankets, they realized how tired they were. They were too exhausted to thank him as profusely as they wanted to, but he could see the gratitude in their expressions and laughed.
“Just go to sleep. We can worry about other things tomorrow--I’ll make us a big breakfast to start the day.”
Aoyagi and Teshima quietly thanked him in unison before getting into bed. The futon was large enough to accommodate both of them with some space in between, but they still couldn’t bring themselves to look at each other while they were that close. After lights were off and all three of them were settled in, they said good night and laid there quietly until Teshima asked, “Do you really think we can make the Inter-High team, Tadokoro-san?”
“I know you can. Just keep training hard, and you’ll get there, no problem. I’ve told you… both…” Tadokoro trailed off, and the booming of his strong voice in the small room was soon replaced by steady snoring. Teshima and Aoyagi finally turned to look at each other and smiled before closing their eyes.
Teshima was nearly asleep when he heard Aoyagi continually rolling over and shifting uncomfortably. He recalled the first time Aoyagi had spent the night at his house when he’d done much the same thing. So, Teshima thought, if he did the same thing he did then (with some adjustments, now that they were together), Aoyagi might be able to get to sleep.
“Aoyagi…” At the sound of Teshima’s voice, Aoyagi rolled over to face him. Teshima moved closer until his head was resting on Aoyagi’s pillow. Aoyagi tensed slightly at first, unsure of what Teshima had in mind, but as Teshima smiled at him and reached out to stroke his cheek, Aoyagi relaxed almost immediately. They shifted themselves until Teshima was on his back with Aoyagi’s chest pressed against his side.
Then, Teshima started doing what he’d had in mind: counting sheep. Aoyagi was just as embarrassed as he was when he was too nervous to sleep while staying over at Teshima’s house, and he took advantage of Teshima’s proximity to bury his face against his chest. Teshima kissed into Aoyagi’s hair as he continued. Aoyagi wrapped his arm around Teshima’s waist and, as the embarrassment subsided, situated himself so that his head rested comfortably on Teshima’s chest, in such a way that he could hear Teshima’s heartbeat.
Teshima’s scent and warmth and the sound of his heart and voice surrounded Aoyagi, and he began to gradually relax and start falling asleep. As he did, Teshima kissed into Aoyagi’s hair before stopping his counting and wrapping both arms around Aoyagi’s small frame. It felt so good to hold him close, and as Aoyagi’s tension eased and his breaths got slower and steadier, so did Teshima’s.
When morning came, Tadokoro couldn’t bear to wake Teshima and Aoyagi. He’d never seen them look as peaceful and content as they did cuddled under the blankets together. They’d be back to working hard as soon as they woke up, so it wouldn’t hurt to give them a little more time to rest.