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Ennoshita cursed as he stumbled again, losing the beat of the music and stubbing his toe on the parquet dancefloor.
“Fuck!”
He sighed, walking over to the laptop that was plugged into the surround sound speakers and pausing the song. He wiped his brow on the fluffy white towel beside his laptop and took a drink from his water bottle.
Running a hand through his hair Ennoshita restarted the video and took up his position again.
Now, I’ve had the time of my life, no I’ve never felt this way before.
Ennoshita tucked his arms under each other, crossing them and uncrossing them. He never knew what to do with his arms. It was a dance for two, after all. He stepped forward, once, twice, three times, shimmying back two steps and forward again.
He continued to move in time with the music, grinning and growing in confidence when he didn’t slip up where he had previously.
But his self-assurance was short lived, he reached the chorus only to slip up again.
“For fuck’s sake!”
“Chikara-san?”
Shit.
“A—Akaashi-san.” He bit his lip, how many times had he told Akaashi to drop the -san honorific? “When did you—”
“Just now.” Akaashi said, taking off his coat and draping it over his forearm. He was wearing a smart forest green tuxedo with cream ruffled shirt, undoubtedly for the Christmas dance taking place in the main ballroom. “I saw you dancing, isn’t that usually a couple’s dance?”
“Aha…” Ennoshita laughed awkwardly, “uhm, I don’t have a dance partner, nobody wants to attempt such a routine with me.”
“Why ever not?”
“Please, you teach me because I suck at dancing.”
Akaashi hummed thoughtfully, “then I’ll do it.”
“Do what?”
“Be your partner.”
Ennoshita could feel his face heat up at the prospect, lifting Akaashi… “Really?”
“Of course, why wouldn’t I?”
“I don’t even trust me to lift you without hurting you.”
“Well you should. And, also, who said I was being Baby?”
Shit.
“Uhm…”
Akaashi laughed, eyes crinkling in the corners and Ennoshita’s heart picked up pace at the sound. He was perfect.
“Catch.”
Ennoshita had barely any time at all to react before Akaashi was running forward, arms outstretched as he grew nearer and nearer until Ennoshita caught his waist and he vaulted into the air, bracing himself on Ennoshita’s shoulders.
He’d done it.
He’d successfully done the lift on his first try—
But fate wasn’t that kind.
Akaashi’s weight fell too far forwards and Ennoshita’s arms trembled, Akaashi dragged Ennoshita backwards and all he could do was pull him close to his chest as they both fell into a heap on the floor.
“That was my fault.”
“That was my fault.” The both said in unison, bursting into laughter at the coincidence. “Are you okay?” He asked.
His cheeks were warm and judging by the colour high on Akaashi’s cheekbones he was faring no better as he smiled from his position above him, “Never better, Chikara-san. You can let go now.”
But I don’t want to.
“Right, sorry,” Ennoshita apologised.
He let go of his hold on Akaashi’s hips, only then realising just how bruising his hold had been.
Akaashi climbed to his feet, looking down and offering his hand to Ennoshita, the latter took it and Akaashi pulled him into a standing position.
“I have an idea,” Akaashi stated, “like in the movie, let’s make use of the school’s pool.”
Ennoshita only needed a moment to realise what Akaashi meant, “but we don’t have swimming trunks, and you’re dressed to the nines.”
“I can easily get changed into my dancing gear, as long as we wash them afterwards then we should be fine.”
Ennoshita smiled at that, “okay, let’s go.”
“I’ll meet you there, I’m just going to get changed.”
Ennoshita waited for Akaashi by the poolside, looking between the spare clothes he’d brought – neatly folded on the bench beside him – and over to the heated waters, his eyes finally falling onto the black abyss of the outside world, a thick blanket of snow covering the ground.
He sighed.
How long had it been since he’d began feeling this way towards Akaashi?
Akaashi had been his tutor for close to four months now and he felt like he was letting the other young man down. He just couldn’t pick up certain dance techniques.
Not to mention the way he now felt about Akaashi, something burning slow inside him, yearning for more until there was nothing left.
He couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt this way; if he’d ever felt this way before.
He sighed again.
“Sorry to keep you waiting.” Akaashi spoke as he entered the pool house. “I had a mishap with my leggings.”
“That’s fine, are they sorted now?”
“Yes.”
Ennoshita watched Akaashi wade into the water, shirt and pants quickly becoming sodden. He tried not to stare at the ribbed texture of Akaashi’s shirt plastered to his toned stomach, but he found himself distracted, nonetheless.
He climbed into the water after Akaashi and paddled over to him.
“So, do you just want to focus on the lift for now?”
“Yeah, I think that’s where I’ll struggle the most.”
Akaashi nodded with a smile, “then let’s begin.”
Ennoshita nodded, his hands tracing Akaashi’s hips as he braced his knees. He could do this.
He could do this!
He’d done lifts before, granted it was on the ice and not dancing, but how different could it be?
“Try not to be so rigid,” Akaashi encouraged.
Ennoshita relaxed his knees and began the lift, not putting enough power into his arms and Akaashi simply jumped into the air and back down again.
“Fuck, sorry.”
“It’s quite alright. This is why I suggested this, so we can practice without hurting ourselves.”
Ennoshita knew what Akaashi meant by his words.
So I don’t hurt myself.
He gripped Akaashi’s hips again, putting more strength into the lift this time.
Akaashi went flying over his head and into the water behind him.
“I’m—”
The sound of Akaashi’s laughing left him with butterflies in his stomach.
He was drenched. Ebony hair plastered to his high cheekbones and the nape of his neck. Water droplets cascaded down his face and piercing hunter green eyes crinkled in the corners. Fuck.
Ennoshita felt his face heat up and he quickly averted his gaze.
“It was a good idea to come to the pool.” Akaashi laughed, graceful peals of laughter filtering through the empty pool house, he wiped at his eyes with the palms of his hands.
“Yeah…” Ennoshita blushed.
They continued to practice, albeit with plenty of distractions. Ennoshita finding that more and more the seriousness of the evening dissipating and being replaced by fun.
“So,” Akaashi started, “you don’t fancy going to the Christmas ball?”
Oh, right, that had been where Akaashi was heading in his tuxedo, but instead he stayed with him…
“Uhm, dances aren’t really my thing. Too much pressure.”
“I see…”
“Sorry,” Ennoshita said, “you can still go if you want.”
“Nah, I don’t mind staying with you.”
Ennoshita smiled, blushing. “Shall we call it a night? I started getting pruney half an hour ago.”
“That sounds like a plan.” Akaashi chuckled. “A shower then get changed?”
“Sure,” Ennoshita couldn’t believe he was about to say this… “Then we can go dancing.”
Akaashi looked up in surprise, “are you sure, Chikara-san?”
Ennoshita nodded, “I wanna go dancing.”
Akaashi beamed a smile and began wading to the side of the pool, Ennoshita following him.
They climbed out and Ennoshita gathered his fresh clothes, Akaashi doing the same and they headed towards the showers.
Ennoshita stripped off down to his underwear, being copied by Akaashi. Even his grimace at the feeling of the clothes sticking to his body was copied by the other young man. They stood under separate streams of water in the same communal shower room, close but not close enough for Ennoshita’s liking.
“My shower is freezing,” Akaashi complained, moving out of the cascade of water and shivering.
“Wanna use mine?” Ennoshita found himself asking before he could think any better of it.
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah, of course.”
Akaashi smiled, approaching Ennoshita and slipping under the water with him.
Ennoshita’s face quickly heated up from the close proximity, looking Akaashi’s form up and down.
“Like what you see?” Akaashi teased with a gentle curve of his lips.
“I—”
Akaashi chuckled.
“I’m actually a little jealous.” He admitted, looking at his own, less defined stomach.
“Why?” It seemed like Akaashi realised just moments later what he meant, “oh… Chikara-san…you’re fine.”
“I don’t feel it when I see everyone else in our dance class.” He hid his middle with his arms.
Akaashi couldn’t see the problem, Ennoshita was perfectly healthy, just not as toned as the other dancers.
He was perfect.
He drew closer to the other man, throwing caution to the wind and answering his feelings for the other. He closed the distance between them and locked lips with Ennoshita.
His heart raced in his chest and as he brought one hand to Ennoshita’s chest he could feel the latter was faring no better. He brought his hands up to fist in Ennoshita’s hair and deepened the kiss.
Ennoshita was thrown into a loop, what was happening?
What was actually happening?
He began to kiss back in earnest, licking along Akaashi’s well cared for lips and asking for entrance. Akaashi obliged, allowing Ennoshita’s tongue to meet his own.
Ennoshita forgot how to think, his mind going blank at the way Akaashi expertly kissed his chapped lips, rough skin on supple flesh. He should really take better care of his lips if this was going to become a regular thing.
He could smell the pool chlorine, taste the lingering spice from the curry Akaashi had eaten for dinner that night. He didn’t dare open his eyes out of fear that it was just a dream.
Ennoshita couldn’t believe this was happening. It left him breathless.
He gripped Akaashi’s hips and pulled him impossibly close, their lips clashing again and again and their tongues battling for dominance with each and every meeting.
He finally pulled away to look into Akaashi’s hazy eyes. Reality quickly followed.
“I—I’m sorry!” Ennoshita struggled to catch his breath, the steam from the shower combined with Akaashi’s expert lips making it hard to regain his breath.
“You need to stop apologising.” Akaashi’s lips ticked up in the corners, leaning in to kiss him again.
This time it was sweeter, smiles on both their lips as the kiss left them both breathless despite it being chaste, Ennoshita sighed into the kiss, chasing Akaashi’s lips. His cheeks were dusted with a deep crimson blush.
Akaashi kissed the corner of Ennoshita’s lips.
“Wow.”
They pulled apart, startling at the new voice.
“Kuroo-san—”