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A loud clap of thunder wakes him with a start. At first, he ignores it because he’s tired and wants to sleep, but the continuous beat of thunder in the sky, rain pounding against the window, and lightning illuminating the whole room makes it impossible.
It’s not like Oikawa is scared of thunder or anything. He’s seven years old now, and seven year olds aren’t scared of something stupid like that.
(The way he practically jumps out of his tangled mess of blankets at the next loud clap of thunder and his racing heart don’t count as being scared. No, not at all. Definitely not.)
Just because Oikawa may shiver the slightest bit, may clutch his blankets tightly and pull them over his head as he hopes to fall back asleep, may try to smash his pillows against his ears so he can’t hear what sounds like the world ending outside doesn’t mean anything.
But…
What if it is? Maybe the world is ending, is the first thought that fills his mind. And maybe that incites a little bit of panic in him because suddenly with every loud clap of thunder that shakes the house he wonders if each breath will be his last.
There’s probably no chance of going back to sleep at this point. Unless…
Of course! He’s at Iwaizumi’s house, is spending the night there. Problem solved.
“Iwa-chan,” he whispers, finally leaving the security of his blankets and crawling over to shake his sleeping friend awake. “Iwa-chan, wake up!”
He really is envious that Iwaizumi can sleep through almost anything. As if the loud and possibly earth shattering storm isn’t bad enough, shaking him awake is no good either.
Another boom from the thunder, another flash of lightning and Oikawa’s attempts to wake him are even more frantic. He shakes his shoulder harder, pokes him in the side, slaps at his cheek. “Iwa-chan, get up!”
It’s when there’s an angry slap to his hand and a loud groan that he knows he’s succeeded. “What do you want?”
“I wanna sleep over here with you.”
“No way. I’m not moving, stupid. Go back to sleep.”
Oikawa frowns when Iwaizumi rolls away from him and realizes that he’ll have to pull the last trick he has. So he grabs Iwaizumi’s blankets and rips them away.
But Iwaizumi is just as quick. It’s as if he’s expecting it, and he pulls the blankets back.
“You’re so mean, Iwa-chan,” Oikawa whines, pulling as hard as he can, struggling to rip them from Iwaizumi’s grasp. “You’re horrible!”
“And you’re a baby!”
Oikawa is about to protest with what he thinks is a very witty jab, but the loudest clap of thunder yet causes him to let go frantically and squeak in fear.
Iwaizumi rolls over to face him as soon as the struggle stops. He’s more awake now, aware, is looking at Oikawa with concerned eyes. “You really are scared, huh?”
“No I’m not! I was just cold and—” Jumping at more thunder doesn’t do anything to help hide it.
Iwaizumi sighs and lifts up the blankets. “Come here.”
For a moment, he’s surprised, and it must show because Iwaizumi’s telling him that if he doesn’t hurry up the offer is gone.
But he doesn’t mean that. Oikawa knows he doesn’t. The concerned look in his eyes from before says enough.
“Thanks, Iwa-chan!” Oikawa scrambles under the blankets, grabs onto Iwaizumi and hugs him tightly. “Even you can be nice sometimes.”
Iwaizumi flicks his cheek. “Shut up or you can leave.”
“How do you go from being so nice to so mean that quickly?”
Iwaizumi ignores his comment, rolls his eyes. “If you kick me in your sleep you’re out.”
“You’d kick me out? Even after getting to experience my cute sleeping face this close?”
Iwaizumi snorts. “Cute. Yeah, right.” Still, he settles his arms around him, settles back down.
“Iwa-chan—!”
“Go to sleep, Oikawa.”
He mutters something under his breath, but listens. He’s tired, wants to sleep again. And even though the storm is still just as strong and maybe a little scary, being next to Iwaizumi—holding onto him and hugging him tightly—makes him feel safer.
If the world is going to end, maybe an end like this wouldn’t be so bad.
…
Years later, it’s almost the same exact same situation all over again. It’s got a weird sense of nostalgia to it that he’d appreciate if he hadn’t been woken in the middle of the night from a loud and violent storm.
He happens to be spending the night at Iwaizumi’s house. Oikawa isn’t scared. He really isn’t, but feeling a little more secure, safe, wouldn’t be so bad, would it?
“Iwa-chan, wake up.” Oikawa nudges him, and it’s definitely a lot easier to wake him now then it was back when they were children.
For a second, Iwaizumi looks confused at being awoken so suddenly. There’s a question forming on his lips, but he gets his answer in the form of the almost deafening bang of the thunder before he can even ask. And he knows, just knows without Oikawa even having to say anything and opens his arms for him.
“Come here.”
Oikawa smiles and settles into Iwaizumi’s arms, relaxes when Iwaizumi wraps his arms around him. “Thanks, Iwa-chan. Don’t ever let anyone tell you you’re horrible. You’re not so bad. You can be nice.”
Iwaizumi kicks his leg. “Go to sleep, dumbass.”
Oikawa leans forward and kisses Iwaizumi gently—a thank you and a goodnight—the storm outside suddenly not seeming so loud.
Some things never change, he thinks as he drifts off to sleep, the sounds of thunder and rain seeming much further away when he’s wrapped in the safety of Iwaizumi’s arms.