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Tooru stares down at the conversation he had last night with Hajime and resists the urge to stamp childishly.
Iwa-chan~~ <3
Anyways, you’re free tmro right?Shittykawa
yep!! why, does iwa-chan have time to hang out~
Iwa-chan~~ <3
Ugh if only. Med is killing me, I have classes back to back for the next two days
But nationals started this week, you know. Karasuno's playing
Shittykawa
good for them, but it doesnt have anything to do with me °˖✧\(⁰▿⁰)/✧˖°
Iwa-chan~~ <3
They’ll be at the tokyo metropolitan gymnasium in the afternoon
You should go
Shittykawa
nope! noooo way ;PP
id rather puke than see tobio-chan again
He'd said that, but when Tooru glances up from his phone, the huge dome structure of the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium gazes back at him, almost mockingly. His face breaks into a scowl, and he mutters a cursory 'stupid Iwa-chan' before pocketing his mobile.
Tooru's not here to see Karasuno. He's not. The gymnasium is just fairly close to his dormitory, and between navigating volleyball and his first year of university, he hasn't had a chance to visit it yet. He also wants to use his discount coupon for a nearby sushi restaurant before it expires, never mind that he doesn't particularly care for copious amounts of fish.
My presence at the gymnasium is simply coincidental, Tooru concludes with satisfaction, and continues murmuring this to himself as he approaches the team brackets posted on the large signboard.
The notice says that Karasuno's competition today is a team called Nekoma. Tooru vaguely remembers watching the two schools play against each other live last year as well, though he was half-delirious from a fever. Although, barely ten minutes into the broadcast, Hajime had angrily barged into his room, forcefully shoving Tooru into bed and demanding him to rest properly. Needless to say, his details on the match are quite fuzzy.
As he heads into the arena, he catches a glimpse of a person with silver hair sitting near the front of the bleachers, flanked by someone with whose brown hair is tied into a messy knot. Tooru can't see past the crowd, but he's willing to bet that he would find Sawamura in the next seat, and perhaps even Karasuno’s pretty ex-manager.
Tooru can’t think of anything worse than exchanging pleasantries and explaining his presence at the game, so he finds himself sitting in the next set of seats. He’d arrived just in time to see Nekoma step into the arena, accompanied by the yells of their cheering section. Tooru watches as Chibi-chan starts jumping in excitement, waving exuberantly and shouting something at the opposing team. A tall boy with silver hair begins flailing his arms in response, promptly smacking the shorter boy with blond hair and dark roots standing next to him, who shoots the other a dark glare.
Nekoma begins their warmup, and Tooru turns his attention back to Karasuno, now milling around and stretching on the sidelines. For some reason, both Tobio and the shrimp are yelling at the tall blonde blocker, whose smirk is clearly visible even from the bleachers. This time, their fight is broken up by the freckled pinch server, who forcibly pushes the freak duo towards the rest of the group while berating the blocker, who doesn't look sorry at all.
Tobio was manhandled by someone in his own year, Tooru thinks, eyes narrowed. By someone who was terrified out of his mind at last year's Interhigh, no less.
"Keep glaring like that and your forehead will crease permanently," says an unknown voice from beside Tooru.
He jerks his head up in time to see a man with cat-like pupils and a terrible case of bedhead slide into the seat next to him. He seems to be around the same age as Tooru, and also looks annoyingly familiar. For some reason, the other's demeanour irritates Tooru – perhaps it’s the smirk that seems to have permanent residence on his lips, or the way he lazily carries himself despite his sharp gaze.
Tooru adopts a wide smile that he knows doesn't quite reach his eyes. "First of all, that's quite a rude thing to say, you know!" he proclaims lightly. "Second of all, hi? Do I know you?"
The man gives him a lazy grin, unaffected. "Sorry, that was impolite of me. Kuroo Tetsurou, nice to meet you." he says, extending a large hand. "I'm friends with Iwaizumi, we're on the same volleyball team."
"Oh," Tooru responds, relaxing marginally. "Oikawa Tooru." Kuroo's hand is rough, calloused in the same areas as Tooru's, which earns him a bit of grudging respect.
"I know," Kuroo says, grin growing larger.
Tooru feels himself perk up against his will. "Iwa-chan talks about me?"
"Nah, I've seen you in Monthly Volleyball. And who doesn't want a chance to meet the person dubbed Japan's prettiest setter?" Kuroo must see something in Tooru's face, because he follows up with, "Iwaizumi does talk about you, though. He called you 'Trashykawa' when he mentioned that you'd be here today."
Tooru huffs, because of course Hajime didn't believe the messages he sent yesterday. He reaches for his phone, ready to complain to Hajime about his lack of trust in him, before he catches Kuroo watching him keenly with a smirk still on his lips. Tooru huffs again and leans back in his seat. God, I hate types that are similar to me.
"You're here for Nekoma, aren't you?" Tooru says, when it becomes clear that Kuroo doesn't have anything else to add.
"Oh? How'd you figure that out?"
"Well, if you were from Karasuno, I would've remembered your disastrous rooster hair from last year's qualifiers," Tooru sniffs.
"Ouch, that hurts." Kuroo doesn't look offended in the least. "But you're right, I was Nekoma's team captain last year. Course I had to come support them for the next Battle of the Trash Heap."
Suddenly, an image of the leering boy in Nekoma's uniform from last year's match comes back him, and Tooru's almost embarrassed he didn't realise earlier. He doesn't let this show, of course, and instead asks, a tad incredulously, "You guys have a name for your matches?"
Kuroo smirks. "Jealous, are you?"
"Over something as lame as that? No way," Tooru shoots back, never mind that he is, a tiny bit. He can hear a voice that sounds suspiciously like Makki's laughing at him in his head.
The referee's whistle blows before Kuroo can continue, and they watch as Karasuno and Nekoma bow to each other from opposite ends of the court. Observing Kuroo through the corner of his eyes, Tooru's willing to bet that Nekoma is a fairly tight-knit team, if the way Kuroo gazes proudly at the red jerseys is any indication.
"You're cheering for Karasuno, right?" Kuroo asks, as the captains on court shake hands.
Tooru scrunches his nose. He's not here to cheer on anyone, to be honest – he just wants to see Tobio lose. (Sort of. Not really. He doesn't want to think too hard about that.)
"I guess I'll be cheering for Nekoma," Tooru replies casually. "Since you're here, it'd be rude not to, and it's not like I'm from Karasuno anyways!"
He half-expects Kuroo to question his presence at the game, but the other man just nods and flashes another grin. "Honoured to have such a genius setter on our side," Kuroo teases. "Although, our setter is pretty good at well."
Tooru follows the direction of Kuroo's finger to the blonde-haired boy with dark roots he'd noticed earlier.
"That's Kenma, a third year," Kuroo tells him. "He's really good at observing others and comes up with most of the team's strategies."
Subconsciously, Tooru notes that Kuroo's eyes are softer as he stares down at Kenma. Tooru hums in acknowledgement. "Let me guess, the ace is the tall silver-haired one? No, wait – it’s definitely the mohawk."
"Hah, yeah. Yamamoto, the mohawk guy, would've had your head if you stayed with your first guess. The silver-haired one is Lev, he's a middle blocker." Kuroo looks down at his old team with an almost wistful looking smile, and Tooru's starting to think this guy and himself are alike in more ways than one.
The whistle blows again, and the game starts in earnest. A powerful serve from baldie has Nekoma's libero diving to receive the ball, sending it to Kenma who quickly sets it up for Lev, whose spike is touched by tall blonde, which is then picked up Tobio and then - ah, there it is. The upgraded freak quick.
Tooru sneaks a glance at Kuroo, who doesn't look bothered at all. "Don't mind!" he calls down to Nekoma, and Tooru swears he sees Kenma tilt his head towards their general direction.
And Kuroo's right to be unfazed. Nekoma quickly gains the point back and begins gaining momentum, thanks the team's solid receives and a brown-haired boy who is seemingly able to keep up with Chibi-chan's movement.
But Tooru watches Karasuno, and sees when Tobio almost, but not quite, smiles, under the barrage of head-scrubbing for hitting a perfect straight. Tooru’s not sure why his eyebrows pinch together in vague annoyance.
The game is tense, and Kuroo inadvertently pulls Tooru into the rhythm of it, giving insider narration on Nekoma's players. Kuroo is a bit of a dork, Tooru begins to realise, as he watches Kuroo rave enthusiastically about Nekoma's strategies and plays. He gives his own snarky commentary on Karasuno in return, and they fall into a sort of camaraderie, bonding over their shared struggles fighting Karasuno.
Nekoma wins the first set, and Karasuno barely manages to win the second. Tooru ends up whooping for Nekoma a bit more than he intends to, and Kuroo shoots him a smug grin when Tooru automatically grips his arm in excitement, Nekoma having just stopped the freckled kid's jump serve with an impressive receive.
Karasuno calls a time out, and Kuroo leans back into his seat. "Argh, this is so stressful," he complains. "I'd rather be playing on the court."
Tooru agrees, but that's partly because he wants to defeat the new and improved Tobio, so he keeps it to himself. Instead, he asks, "You're a middle blocker, aren't you, Kuro-chan?"
"Nicknames already? I was under the impression you found me annoying," Kuroo teases.
"Friends of Iwa-chan are friends of mine," Tooru replies flippantly. "And you didn't answer my question."
"Yeah, I am," says Kuroo. "How'd you know this time?"
"You seemed pretty excited whenever the blonde Karasuno blocker stopped a strong spike." Despite the fact he's on the opposing team went unsaid. "I thought maybe you respected him, blocker to blocker, you know?"
Kuroo scoffs light-heartedly. "I helped Tsukishima with his blocking technique at our joint training camp, the little shit," he says, in a tone Tooru would describe as fond. "I guess I'm happy that he's grown stronger."
Tooru feels very slightly chastened, suddenly, as he remembers the blurry picture of him and Tobio he still has on his phone. "Even though he's from another team? Kuro-chan, I didn't know you could be so kind!"
"I am always very kind," Kuroo says solemnly, hand against his chest. Tooru stares at him blankly, and he gets a jab from Kuroo in retaliation.
"Rude," Tooru gasps, clutching his side dramatically. "I can see why you and Iwa-chan are friends, now." Kuroo just bursts into laughter.
"No, but seriously, we all wanted to compete against Karasuno at Nationals, that's all," Kuroo continues, after he finishes snickering. "Although Tsukishima was a pain in the ass about the extra practice at first."
"With Tobio and Chibi-chan dashing around him like that, I can kind of understand why," Tooru says.
"Please, you seem exactly like the type of person who does extra practice," replies Kuroo. "Am I wrong?"
Tooru gives him his best pout in response.
The game starts up again, with both teams being unable to grab the momentum. They've reached 28-27, Karasuno to Nekoma, and Kuroo is literally on the edge of his seat. The rally is intense – both teams have attempted to attack twice already, each time foiled by desperate saves.
But Karasuno's libero manages a clean receive, sending the ball directly to Tobio, and Tooru can almost feel the atmosphere around the team shift. The players move as one, blending in together, until Karasuno's captain emerges from the back row to slam the ball past Nekoma's blockers, sending it ricocheting off Lev's arms. The audience is silent as they see the ball fall outside court boundaries—
And everyone yells, accompanied by the shrill whistle of the referee and the taiko drums hollering their approval.
"Argh, that was so close!" Kuroo exclaims, slamming a fist down onto his leg and falling back into his seat. "Damn, I was so sure that Kageyama would set to Hinata."
Me too, Tooru thinks sullenly, but doesn’t express it. "Nekoma fought well," he offers instead, even though he's not sure if Kuroo wants to hear it. After games against Shiratorizawa, Tooru always hated being congratulated.
"Yeah, they did." Kuroo sighs, and scrubs a hand agitatedly through his bedhead, observing the downtrodden Nekoma players as they left the court. Suddenly, Kuroo sucks in a loud breath, and in an instant, his smirk falls back into place. "Well, I better go greet them," he says, standing up.
Tooru stands up as well, and belatedly realises that he doesn't want 'goodbye' to slip past his lips just yet, much to his own disdain. But even as he's opening his mouth, Kuroo's already looking at him, and says, "Hey, if you have time, do you wanna grab dinner?"
He beat me to it! Tooru's inner voice screams childishly. "You're not going to stay with Nekoma?" he asks lightly.
"They should rest after such a long match," says Kuroo. "And they'll be heading back to their accommodation, anyway, it'd be weird for their ex-captain to hang around."
"Alright, then, since you can't seem to get enough of me!" Tooru singsongs, throwing up a peace sign for the sake of it.
"Don't kid yourself, you want to continue hanging out too," Kuroo fires back, and throws him a lazy grin. "I'll meet you at the main doors soon, 'kay?"
Tooru feels his cheeks rise in response, and mock salutes. "Take as long as you need, Kuro-chan!"
Kuroo departs quickly, and Tooru is left to collect his belongings at his own pace. He heads towards the arena exit by himself, but startles when he makes eye contact with the ex-third years from Karasuno (which indeed includes the captain and manager), who are approaching from the opposite direction. And I thought I could avoid them, too, Tooru huffs silently.
Sawamura looks surprised to see him, but offers him a large smile. "Hey, fancy seeing you here, Oikawa."
Tooru lets his lips tilt into a wide grin to match. "Just thought I'd pop by and check on our Miyagi representative!" he says cheerily. "Congratulations on Karasuno making it to the next round!"
"Oh, thank you, but that's all on them and their hard work," the grey-haired setter says, waving a hand modestly.
"Still as refreshing as ever, Refreshing-kun!"
The ex-manager slips on ahead, but the rest of them walk out together, and Tooru has to admit it's interesting to hear about their lives outside of high school volleyball. While their former ace (Azumane, that's right) is now studying fashion in Tokyo, apparently Sawamura and Refreshing-kun both ditched their classes back in Sendai to make it to this match, and Tooru finds great glee in admonishing them over this.
"Anyways, I'm surprised you haven't gone pro, yet," Sugawara remarks. "Last I heard, V-League was basically dying to snatch you up."
Tooru can feel his pulse quicken slightly, but pretends to preen as he says, "Well of course they were, who wouldn't want to have the amazing Oikawa Tooru on their team!"
"You don't have to tell us if it makes you feel uncomfortable," Sawamura interjects kindly, and Tooru hates how perceptive everyone around him seems to be today.
"We-ell, I did get various offers, yes," Tooru tells them, then wonders how much he should say, considering that this is technically the first time they've interacted off-court. "I'm just trying my hand at university, first! Since I got a volleyball scholarship, anyway."
"That's pretty cool," Azumane comments, and the way they all grin warmly at him makes Tooru feel bad for wanting to avoid them before.
"Wait, Oikawa, we're going to go the other way to visit Karasuno," Sawamura says, as Tooru turns towards the main exit. Tooru sees the way he shares a quick glance with the other two, silently asking 'Do you think Oikawa wants to come, too?'
Definitely not, Tooru thinks, and quickly jumps in before anyone else can add anything. "Of course, you have to go congratulate them! I'm meeting someone soon, so I'll head out first."
"It was nice talking to you properly, Grand King," says Sugawara, teasingly but genuine.
The smile on Tooru's face as he bids them farewell comes naturally.
After loitering at the entrance for a while, Tooru decides to duck into the washroom, figuring that Kuroo will still take more time to arrive. He's heading out of the bathroom exit when he makes direct eye contact with none other than Kageyama Tobio, who looks just as gobsmacked as he feels.
This is exactly why Tooru had quickly parted from Karasuno’s ex-third years.
He recovers before Tobio, though, and draws himself up to his full height. "Congratulations on winning the game, Tobio-chan," Tooru says, grinning imperiously.
"Ah," Tobio replies succinctly. "Um, thanks. You were watching."
It's a statement, not a question, and it makes Tooru want to grind his teeth together. "Yes, the freak duo is still doing as well as ever, I see. Although I also saw the botched toss for the tall blond blocker as well, of course!"
Tobio doesn't look fazed at all, and merely bobs his head in acknowledgement. God, Tooru really wants to crush him in a match. The thought crosses his mind just as Tobio sinks into a bow, much to Tooru's abject horror.
"Thank you for giving me advice on how to deal with Hinata last year, Oikawa-san!" the younger boy practically yells. "I haven't had a chance to talk to you until now, but it was very useful and allowed both of us to grow! Thank you very much!"
Tooru, still utterly horrified by the turn of events, forces himself to pull it back together. He cocks a hand on his hip, and says as sweetly as he can, "There's no need to bow, Tobio-chan, I just gave you advice that any good setter would know!"
Tobio straightens up, and Tooru dearly wants to take a photo of his constipated expression.
"Besides," Tooru continues flippantly, "You knew exactly what you had to do already, you were just being a stubborn baby."
Heat colours Tobio's cheeks, but he moves his head in a stiff nod. He still looks like he wants to say something, but honestly, Tooru doesn't think he can deal with any more awkward admissions today.
"Now, if you wouldn't mind..." Tooru looks pointedly behind Tobio, who's still blocking the bathroom exit.
Tobio starts, and steps out of the way silently, allowing Tooru to brush past him. He can feel the other boy's eyes on his back as he moves away, and Tooru hates himself, just a little bit.
Before he can think better of it, he twists abruptly to meet Tobio's wide-eyed stare.
"Also, Tobio-chan?" Tooru says pleasantly.
Tobio tenses warily but waits for him to continue.
"Make sure Karasuno wins this year." Tooru knows his tone is steely, but he thinks Tobio will understand regardless.
Tobio's eyes turn as sharp as flints, and it almost looks like he's smiling. His voice is firm as he replies, "Of course."
Tooru grins, fierce and aggressive. "I'll be waiting." He throws the words carelessly in Tobio's direction, turning to leave.
He thinks he hears a quiet 'I'm looking forward to it' as he strides away.
"You look like you just stepped in dog shit," Kuroo remarks matter-of-factly when he catches up with Tooru again. Tooru doesn't think he looks that displeased, but his eyes were narrowed as he scrolled angrily through his Instagram feed, so maybe Kuroo has a point.
"I may as well have," Tooru mutters darkly.
Kuroo's eyebrows raise in interest, but thankfully, he doesn't comment. "Maybe we should go grab a few beers after dinner while we're at it," Kuroo offers instead.
Tooru has never heard a better idea in his life.
They find themselves at the sushi place Tooru planned on going to, because Kuroo's also a broke student who hates seeing discount vouchers going to waste. Tooru's secretly glad that Kuroo's with him, since the other man seems to like fish significantly more than he does, so they can make proper use of the coupon.
The restaurant is warm and lively, and conversation between them flows just as easily as it had during the match. He tells Kuroo about his volleyball team, both old and current, and Kuroo gives anecdotes about his as well.
Their stories of their volleyball journeys are surprisingly similar – they were both inspired by a match they saw on television and dragged their childhood best friends to play with them from elementary to high school. And Tooru was right, Kuroo's eyes do become softer when he talks about Kenma, and he thinks that they might share the same unrequited pining story as well.
But unlike Tooru, who joined his university volleyball team alone, it turns out that Kuroo still plays with one of his high school teammates, Yaku, much to Tooru's envy.
"Yaku was super pissed when he found out that his exam was today," Kuroo says with a sigh. "I mean, Kai was disappointed too – he was also a Nekoma regular – but at least he expected it, since he's studying overseas."
"You two should drop by practice one day," is Tooru's mild suggestion.
"Yeah, we're planning to. Yaku was the one who whipped Lev into shape last year, so I think he'll be happy to knock some more sense into him."
"Their relationship sounds pretty kinky," Tooru says conversationally, and almost cries from laughter at Kuroo's horrified expression.
Tooru also finds out that Kuroo studies advanced science, double majoring in mathematics and chemistry because he couldn't decide which subject he liked better, and he doesn't waste time in delightedly calling Kuroo a nerd to his face.
"Like you're one to talk, Mr Binges-alien-documentaries-in-your-free-time," Kuroo scoffs.
"That's not true!" is Tooru's indignant reply. At Kuroo's pointed gaze, Tooru feels compelled to mutter, "I watch Star Wars sometimes, too."
Kuroo's subsequent guffaws almost make up for his comment. Almost.
After inhaling possibly a bit too much sushi, they end up in the cosy izakaya next door, sitting comfortably on tatami in front of a low table. Tooru's already beginning to feel warm after downing two beers, but Kuroo barely looks affected at all, and continues sipping on his third drink.
"How was Nekoma, anyway? Post-match, I mean," Tooru asks, and regrets it a moment later when Kuroo grimaces. "Sorry, you don't have to answer—”
"Nah, it's fine, they were just upset," Kuroo says. "Not sure if I was helpful, to be honest. They were glad to see me, but I sort of felt like my presence reminded them of last year's defeat as well."
"I know the feeling," Tooru replies, because it's true. When he'd greeted Seijoh alongside Hajime, Makki and Mattsun after their most recent loss to Karasuno, the team had looked regretful even as he'd praised them.
"Yeah, I figured you'd get it," says Kuroo. "I offered them praise and such, but still, it's harder to address them now that I'm not part of the team."
"But their ex-captain giving encouragement will help regardless," Tooru reasons, thinking about the way Kindaichi had teared up and thanked them for coming.
"Jesus, I made Lev cry, though," Kuroo mutters. "When I told him that I was proud of how much progress he'd made. Actually, nearly all of them looked like they were going to properly start bawling when I walked up to them, goddammit."
"I miss my team too," supplies Tooru, because that's what Kuroo is getting at, isn't he? "Even though they bullied me into paying for their food when I missed a jump serve and laughed when Iwa-chan hit me."
Kuroo exhales through his nose. "Well, they're not our teams anymore. Our year has left, they've all grown stronger, and their rivalries are their own and shit."
"Kuro-chan, how depressing," Tooru hisses. He sighs and cups a hand on his chin. "I hate how I couldn't take Seijoh further," Tooru confesses. "Even though everyone was strong, and we worked so hard."
Kuroo raises his glass of beer in a show of solidarity and finishes the rest in one gulp.
"But also, they didn't make it further without me," Tooru admits softly in one breath. He must be more drunk than he realises, if he's saying something that he hasn't even told Hajime yet to someone he only met today, no matter how familiar Kuroo feels now. He laughs self-depreciatingly, staring into his drink. "I'm a pretty horrible person, aren't I? Since I'm glad that my role wasn't overshadowed by someone else."
"Well, shit, same," Kuroo says with a snort, then looks a little surprised at his own admission. "I guess we can be horrible humans together, then."
Tooru presses his face to the cool surface of their table. "Kuro-chan, you and I are weirdly similar, you know?"
"Please, I'm better looking," Kuroo quips, but Tooru can tell his heart isn't into it.
"What's your relationship with Kenma?" Tooru asks instead of retorting, since they're already tipsy and depressed anyway.
"Urgh, you can probably already tell I'm into him, do I really have to say it," Kuroo complains. "Wow, I need a stronger drink."
Kuroo orders a sake bomb this time, while Tooru gets another beer.
"So? Are you going to tell him?" prompts Tooru, when they've both downed half their mugs.
"I dunno, are you going to tell Iwaizumi?" Kuroo counters, too quickly for someone who has consumed the amount of alcohol that he has.
Tooru groans. "How can I, when we're in different universities? I always figured we'd do everything together, so it'd work itself out, but now he's your ace. We barely get to see each other anymore!" His voice definitely doesn't rise to a whine as he talks.
"Well, at least you're in the same city as him," Kuroo says.
Tooru pouts. "So's Kenma, but I don't see you confessing to him either."
Kuroo throws his hands up in defeat. "I can’t, I’d die. Last year, after the Karasuno match, he smiled and thanked me for getting him into volleyball, and I almost combusted on the spot.”
“Whipped,” Tooru snickers, attempting to disguise his words as a cough.
Kuroo valiantly chooses to ignore him. “Besides, Kenma's never expressed interest in anyone before! For all I know, he could be like, aromantic, and then I'd really stuff up our friendship by telling him."
"Or he could've only liked you this entire time," Tooru points out.
"Ugh, no way, don't get my hopes up. Also, if you can think that way, why don't you apply that logic to Iwaizumi too?"
Tooru lets his head thump on the table for the second time this night. "Iwa-chan's like a – a big brute. I'd know if he feels that way about me, he wouldn't be able to hide it.”
"Maybe he just hasn't thought about you in that way yet because someone won't confess," Kuroo suggests pointedly.
"Stop being reasonable, Kuro-chan, that's my job," Tooru responds, mock-snidely. “This is terrible. Why do I even like him? He’s brash and annoying and mean."
“He has some really good muscles,” Kuroo comments.
“Ugh, I know,” Tooru complains. “And even though Iwa-chan’s always so angry, his smile is so nice. I want him to smile more. The whole world would be a better place.” Tooru pouts.
“Now who’s whipped?” Kuroo asks, smirking. Tooru throws a napkin at him and sticks his tongue out petulantly.
They both take a moment to have a long sip of their drinks.
It's Tooru who speaks up first. "I actually... Sort of got an offer to go international last year. A chance to break into the foreign volleyball leagues, I mean. In Argentina."
Kuroo whistles lowly. "Congrats, dude. That's really big." His eyes ask the next question for him.
"It's just so scary leaving Japan!" Tooru bursts out. "I'm going to do it after the first year of university, anyway, so I've been studying English and Spanish to prepare, but still! Japan's my home, and I'm not sure how long I'll be in Argentina for."
"Shit, dude,” Kuroo says sympathetically. “It’s not a competition, but you've definitely got it harder.”
"Yeah," Tooru mumbles. He doesn’t want to dwell on his future, so he asks, "Where's Kenma going after he graduates?"
"Probably to a different university that specialises in technology." Kuroo runs a hand through his hair. "Though I don't think he'd be playing volleyball, anyway. He's told me before that he prefers watching to playing."
"And it's weird, because you've been playing with him your whole life," Tooru summarises.
"Yeah," says Kuroo, sighing. "It's selfish, but I kinda wish we could just stay together, you know? Live in a flat, get a couple of cats, make lazy Sunday breakfasts."
"Oh my god, you're a romantic," Tooru says, delighted.
Kuroo throws the paper napkin back at him. "Like you don't want that with Iwaizumi."
"Iwa-chan's allergic to cats, we'd get a dog," Tooru huffs.
"Well first, we'd need to tell them." Kuroo says, and Tooru groans.
They fall back into a contemplative silence.
Suddenly, Kuroo barks out a loud laugh, and Tooru almost spills his beer in surprise.
"Basically, we're both kind of hopeless," Kuroo concludes. Tooru vehemently agrees, and drinks to that.
"Also, Oikawa?"
Tooru looks over to see Kuroo staring intently at his mug. "I think I'm a bit tipsy," he states decisively.
Tooru giggles, because Kuroo looks funny when his eyebrows are pinched together, and he's suddenly aware of how bright the world is around him.
"I feel like I just graduated high school again, thinking about all this stuff,' Tooru says.
Kuroo snorts, raises his drink. "Here's to a night of ex-captain woes and pining like high schoolers."
"Cheers," says Tooru, clinking Kuroo's mug firmly with his own.
They leave the izakaya shortly after nine, a buzz flowing pleasantly through Tooru's body. Tokyo's nightlife is bustling around them, and he knows that this is something he'll miss when he goes to Argentina.
They walk to the station together, but on the way, realise that they're heading to different platforms.
"Your number, Kuro-chan," Tooru demands at the train gates.
"Of course, how could I forget?" Kuroo says, his grin easy and devoid of his natural smirk.
They make vague promises to hang out again soon, both aware of how difficult university schedules can be. By the time he reaches his dorm, Kuroo has already texted him two memes and an ugly photo he took of Tooru without him noticing. Tooru immediately replies with a photo of Kuroo stuffing himself with mackerel and an abundance of angry emojis.
And maybe Tooru hasn't worked out any of his problems yet, but venting is probably one of the first steps in finding a solution.
His life has revolved around walking steadily and surely towards his goals, but Tooru thinks that soon, he'll want to start running.