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“I’m home!” Shouyou cried, toeing off his shoes after he shut the door behind himself. There was no instant response which had Shouyou feeling a bit anxious since Tobio usually got home a good half hour or so before him. The advantage of their apartment’s location was that it was a mere ten-minute walk to Schweden Adlers’ gym whereas it was a fifteen-minute bus ride for Shouyou to get to where MSBY’s training took place.
“Tobio?” He tried again, wandering into the kitchen. Any small worries he had immediately disappeared when he found the man in question standing in front of the fridge.
So that’s why he couldn’t answer me, Shouyou thought fondly, watching with an amused smile as his husband downed roughly half a gallon of milk.
Tobio held up a finger, silently telling Shouyou to wait as he determinedly chugged down the drink, a far too serious look on his face. When he finished, he gasped for air, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand and chucking the now empty bottle into the recycling.
“Welcome home,” he said when he finally looked at Shouyou. Shouyou’s eyebrows raised questioningly and Tobio shrugged, stating simply, “It was going to expire tomorrow.”
Shouyou walked over, lightly chuckling as he wrapped his arms around the taller man’s waist. “Oh, well if that's the case, then who am I to judge?”
Tobio dropped his head on top of Shouyou’s, embracing him back. Shouyou pushed his face into Tobio’s neck, inhaling his post-practice musk and the lingering scent of air salonpas on his workout clothes.
“I’m dirty,” Tobio protested, though Shouyou knew the setter was doing the same thing with him, his nose buried in Shouyou’s hair.
“You are,” Shouyou agreed, though he made no move to pull away. “You reek, Tobio.”
“So do you, dumbass.”
Shouyou laughed, drawing back to gaze at Tobio with a contemplative look on his face. Tobio half-heartedly glared. “What? You tryna pick a fight?”
That earned a snicker out of him and Shouyou leaned forward again, gaze lowering to Tobio’s lips. Tobio—ever in-tune with his spiker—instantly caught on, his own eyes becoming half-lidded as he bent down to meet Shouyou in the middle.
They shared a gentle, chaste kiss, refamiliarizing themselves with the shape of their partner’s lips and easing any remaining tension from their long days. Shouyou felt Tobio’s big hand cup his face, the callouses and heat emitting from it caressing him like a dear friend. He sighed happily, opening his mouth to slide their tongues together.
Abruptly, Shouyou broke away to laugh.
Tobio full-on glared at him this time, irritation written all over his face.
“What?” He snapped.
Between peals of laughter, Shouyou managed, “You…You taste like—like milk!”
Tobio looked like he was trying his best to keep his frown pasted on, but his lips betrayed him, the corners slowly lifting until he was smiling as well, though he rolled his eyes at Shouyou.
“You’re such an id—”
Shouyou crashed his lips back onto Tobio’s before the other man could finish his insult, his hands snaking up the setter’s chest to entangle themselves in his hair. Tobio was caught off-guard for only milliseconds and then a deep grumble vibrated from his chest as he hurried to match Shouyou’s enthusiasm.
He bit at Shouyou’s bottom lip and Shouyou instantly granted him access as Tobio set on to dominate the kiss, tongue exploring Shouyou’s mouth with a fervor that wasn’t there in their earlier embrace. Using the strands of hair he had wrapped around his fingers, Shouyou tugged Tobio further down, angling his head so they could press even closer together. Tobio grabbed at Shouyou’s hips, helpfully lifting him up just the tiniest bit, just enough so that their height difference wasn’t as prominent.
After many moments, Shouyou pulled back again, but this time due to the lack of oxygen in his lungs and Tobio chased after him with a disgruntled whine. Shouyou slapped a hand over his mouth, forcing him to wait as he caught his breath.
“Tobio,” he panted, pressing their foreheads together after he removed his hand from Tobio’s mouth.
Tobio made a noncommittal noise at the sound of his name, eyes locked on Shouyou’s mouth, and already leaning in once more. Bending to the side, Shouyou dodged his attempt to resume their kiss. Undeterred, Tobio dipped his head lower and lower, until he could mouth at Shouyou’s neck, the hands he had on Shouyou’s waist tightening almost unconsciously and hoisting him up even higher.
Shouyou laughed as he enfolded Tobio’s head in his arms. Turning his face so his mouth was placed right next to Tobio’s ear, Shouyou tried to grab his attention again. “To~bi~o~,” he whispered, tone playful.
Tobio’s eyes met his gaze, his pupils so dilated that only a thin ring of royal blue remained. “What,” he grunted.
Shouyou lowered his eyelids and a mischievous smile danced across his lips as he invaded Tobio’s personal space. He heard Tobio’s breath hitch and his grin grew wider.
“Tobio, I….” Shouyou paused, making sure Tobio’s eyes refocused on his lips before he murmured, “I…call dibs on the first shower.”
In a flash, Shouyou broke free from Tobio’s arms, bolting out of the kitchen and towards the only bathroom in their apartment.
“Wh—SHOUYOU!”
Shouyou cackled as he heard Tobio swear and crash against the table in the living room. He always stubbed his toe on the piece of furniture when he was in a rush.
His sock-clad feet skidded against the hardwood floors of their hallway and Shouyou barely managed to stumble into the bathroom and close it before Tobio had caught up with him shouting, “Shouyou, you little shit! I was home first so bathroom rights are automatically mine!”
Shouyou reached out to lock the door, but he was a second too late—Tobio twisted the doorknob so he couldn’t turn the lock. Shouyou threw his back against the door to prevent him from coming in, heart racing from the brief little sprint and Tobio evasion.
“Shouyou!” There was loud banging and Tobio began pushing back on the opposite side of the door. Unfortunately for Shouyou, Tobio outweighed him by a good fifteen kilograms and his anger at Shouyou’s head start fueled his strength until finally the door was forced open.
Manic laughter escaped out of Shouyou as he swiveled on his heel, trying to get out of his clothes and into the shower before Tobio could beat him to it. He was only able to throw off his sweater before he yelped as strong arms encased him and lifted him clear off the ground, effectively trapping Shouyou’s arms by his side.
“Thought you could get away, huh, punk?” A menacing voice growled into the side of Shouyou’s temple. He shivered as a pleasant chill ran up his spine. Tobio’s deep timbre never failed to make Shouyou want to rile up his husband even more.
He adopted his most innocent expression, pouting. “You always go first because you always get here first. Can’t I shower before you this once?”
Tobio’s face was unimpressed. Shouyou switched up tactics when that didn’t work, wriggling his arms out of Tobio’s grip so he could turn and loop them around Tobio’s neck. Though his eyes were wary, Tobio still loosened his hold until his hands rested on Shouyou’s hips.
“Come on, Tobi,” he pleaded.
“If you had asked before you ran I would’ve said yes, but you used unfair tactics to get here so no.”
“Tobio—!”
“Don’t Tobio me, you know you cheated.”
“What if we shower together?” Shouyou suggested, slyly grinning and batting his eyes in a hopefully seductive manner. He felt ridiculous, but Tobio always seemed to cave just a bit faster whenever he did that.
Sure enough, Tobio’s stern look softened. He clicked his teeth, but Shouyou could tell he wasn’t actually annoyed.
“Whatever. Just quit making that face, you look stupid,” Tobio muttered, pushing said face away. He was never able to meet Shouyou’s eyes whenever he lied, so Shouyou knew those weren’t his true feelings.
More than used to his husband’s tsundere demeanor, Shouyou cheered at somewhat getting his way, quickly stripping out of the rest of his clothes, lest Tobio changed his mind. He adjusted the water temperature to his liking as Tobio pulled off his own workout attire, grumbling the whole time.
Tobio stepped inside the stall while Shouyou just started to get under the shower nozzle.
“Shou!” Tobio hissed, pulling Shouyou against his chest and out of the direct spray of water. “The water’s too cold, dumbass! You’re gonna get sick like this!”
Rolling his eyes, Shouyou obediently stayed tucked into Tobio’s side as Tobio tweaked the temperature to one far too hot.
“Now I remember why we don’t shower together more often,” Shouyou said, the heat from the water already steaming up the bathroom.
Tobio glared down at him as he nudged Shouyou forward, finally allowing them to get under the stream of water. “We don’t shower together because you can’t stand the water being a normal temperature.”
“Two degrees away from boiling is not a normal temperature!”
Ignoring his remark, Tobio reached around Shouyou’s head to grab the shampoo, handing it to him. “You also take years in the bathroom which is another reason why I prefer showering first.”
Shouyou gasped indignantly, though he immediately closed it when he accidentally sucked in some water. He stepped back from the spray to talk and Tobio followed. “You spend at least half an hour longer because you take forever to blowdry your hair!”
“I do not!”
“You do so!”
“Do not!”
“Do so!”
“Fine!” Tobio fumed, snatching the shampoo bottle out of Shouyou’s hand.
“Hey—!”
“I’ll fucking show you that the way I shower is way more efficient than yours and that it’s faster as well!”
Shouyou paused his attempt at retrieving the stolen item, one hand on Tobio’s shoulder as he stood on his tip-toes because Tobio—the bully—held it far over his head with his stupidly long arm.
“And just how are you going to do that?” He asked, resting back onto the balls of his feet, hands rising to his hips.
Tobio obviously hadn’t thought that far if the slow way he blinked and went quiet was any indication. “We…can race,” he eventually settled on.
Shouyou mused over the idea. “But what if we finish at the same time?”
“Then it comes down to efficiency.”
“But if we’re washing ourselves, we can’t really judge the other person’s efficiency without being biased.”
The semi-surprised look Tobio gave him showed that he hadn’t expected such a logical counter from Shouyou and he scowled at him.
“If we wash each other then that takes care of that problem.”
The familiar pulse of adrenaline that Shouyou’d feel right before a match shot through him, his competitiveness rising to the surface over even a stupid contest like this.
“Deal,” he nodded, swiping the bottle from Tobio while his guard was down. “Hold out your hands.”
He squirted some of the shampoo into Tobio’s cupped hands and then onto his own. Shouyou’s eyes narrowed as he scrutinized his rival and Tobio analyzed him back just as seriously.
“Ready…”
“Go!” They cried in unison, arms flying towards each other.
Shouyou let out an undignified squeak as Tobio’s hands yanked at his hair a little too hard, eyelids squeezing shut to prevent the suds from getting into his eyes. He was fairly sure he had aimed too low at first and had smacked Tobio in the nose.
“Tobi!” he gasped, a laugh bubbling out of him as rapidly as the shampoo bubbled out of his hair. “You’re too tall!”
“You’re too short,” he heard Tobio snicker.
Shouyou eventually managed to get his hands into the familiar strands and he began vigorously massaging in the shampoo as fast as he could without ripping out his husband’s hair.
“Rinse!” Tobio suddenly yelled, pressing Shouyou back under the spray.
Unprepared for the sudden shift, Shouyou spluttered as water and shampoo alike ran into his mouth and nose when he tried to breathe.
“Hey! I wasn’t done!” He protested, harshly jerking Tobio’s hair.
“It’s a race, that’s the point—”
“Ugh, just bend your stupid head so I can rinse your hair!”
After a lot of grumbling from both of them, they finished rinsing and stepped back out from the water to repeat the process with the conditioner.
“Wait!” Shouyou said, halting Tobio mid-reach. “Let’s start after we get our hands in each others’ hair so we don’t accidentally stab each other in the eye or something.”
Tobio huffed but relented, moving until they were nearly chest-to-chest. Shouyou reached up first and Tobio copied him. “Okay, ready…”
“Go!”
Things went much smoother this time since they didn’t have to grope around to find the other’s head and Shouyou was crying ‘finished’ before he knew it.
Hesitantly, he blinked his eyes open and he laughed at the sight he was met with. Tobio’s normally straight hair stood up in erratic tufts, his bangs in complete disarray. Paired with the disgruntled look on his face, he resembled a drowned porcupine. “Y-You look ridiculous!”
Tobio scowled, but his eyes were filled with mirth. “At least my hair doesn’t always look like this. Can’t say I see much of a difference with yours.”
Shouyou stuck his tongue which actually got a small chuckle out of Tobio, his crinkling eyes and soft laughter an experience that never failed to make Shouyou’s heart stutter for how rare it was.
The need to win faded (it didn’t completely disappear—Shouyou still planned on proving just who was the faster showerer (was that a word?)) as he chose to close the physical distance between them instead, wrapping his arms around Tobio’s waist and propping his chin on his broad chest.
“This better not be a ploy to get another head start,” Tobio warned, his hands hovering by Shouyou’s arms.
Shouyou sighed dramatically. “Can’t a man adore his own husband without his motives getting questioned?”
“Sh-Shouyou,” Tobio wheezed, unused to Shouyou praising him out of the blue, even after all these years. He really was too cute for his own good. Sometimes Shouyou still couldn’t believe that Tobio was his husband. That his greatest rival and his best friend since high school was his, in every sense of the word. Shouyou must have been a saint in his past life to deserve this luck, this happiness.
A grin grew across his face and, unable to resist Tobio’s inadvertent allure any longer, Shouyou tipped his head up to connect their lips. He felt Tobio’s grasp at his biceps and that encouraged him to lean more into him, his fingers tracing the muscles that covered the entire expanse of Tobio’s back.
There wasn’t much in the way of friction because of the water, but Shouyou was still able to enjoy the pleasant warmth that started in his toes and spread throughout the rest of his body from the kiss.
Tobio drew back slowly. “That’s another reason we don’t shower together,” he murmured fondly against Shouyou’s cheek. “At this point, we both could have finished showering had we done it alone. We’re wasting water.”
Shouyou opened his eyes and broke out into another fit of laughter when he saw that Tobio’s hair hadn’t moved at all during their kiss.
“Yeah, yeah, laugh it up, dumbass. We still need to clean our bodies, so let’s hurry up and rinse this stuff out.”
They both stepped into the cascade of water and helped each other wash all the slickness from the conditioner out their hair. In contrast to their earlier urgency, they were far more gentle this round, all caressing fingers and lingering strokes.
Shouyou made sure his face was outside of the stream when he expectantly tilted his face up. Tobio—who always knew what was on Shouyou’s mind, therefore, making him the best husband ever—obliged, leaning down to join their lips.
It seemed that they didn’t thoroughly rinse off all the shampoo, the blooming bubbles on their heads making that evident, but they were too absorbed in each other to notice the suds dripping down their faces. Had they did notice, the two probably wouldn't have minded—their eyes were closed anyway.