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Kiyoomi has made a mistake. A terrible, horrible mistake. It’s a huge lapse in judgment on his part. What part of this did he ever think was a good idea? No stupid boy is worth this torture. He needs to get out of here before he completely loses it.
Kiyoomi tries to shuffle his way through the crowd, cringing at all the bodily contact. It’s suffocating. He can’t escape. With his breathing becoming erratic, it’s harder to focus. Even though he towers over pretty much every here, there’s no sign of anyone familiar. Why, why did he agree to this?
“What d'ya mean ya’ve never been to a festival? Ya grew up in Tokyo, there’s one right there! Come with us to the Chichibu Night Festival, Omi-Omi! It’ll be fun!”
Right. Atsumu had asked him with that stupid look on his face that Kiyoomi is somehow becoming less and less immune to. And then he had just said, “Okay.” like an idiot. So he ended up in Chichibu with Bokuto, Akaashi, Hinata, Kageyama, and Atsumu like some kind of triple date. It’s not even like they’re dating! No, Kiyoomi is just a giant imbecile with a stupid crush on Miya Atsumu of all people.
Of course, it would be crowded, it’s a festival. But this? This is too much. People are touching him from all sides, he can’t move; he's crammed in like a sardine. His hands shake and his legs feel unsteady. The sound around him flows like a dim echo in his ears, ebbing in and out of his conscious state. The world around him twists and turns, unfocused with edges of black creeping in creating tunnel vision. It feels like he’s going to pass out. Or maybe he’s dying.
Kiyoomi thinks he sees someone pushing through the crowd towards him, but he can’t be sure. Then the person stops in front of him - places a gentle hand on his arm.
“Omi? Hey Kiyoomi! Can ya hear me?”
Sound crashes back into him all at once, and it’s overwhelming. He doubles over, breathing heavily, unable to answer the person he now recognizes as Atsumu.
“Shit. C’mon, Omi. I’ll get ya outta here.”
He takes Kiyoomi’s hand and begins pulling him through the crowd. Atsumu is not being gentle with the people he pushes away to clear a path. The only thing he can do is keep moving his feet forward and not let go of the man in front of him.
Suddenly, they’ve stopped walking. Kiyoomi has lost track of time and space, he has no idea how far they walked or where they are. His body shakes and his heart pounds in his tight chest.
“Hey, focus on me, okay? Let’s sit down and focus on breathin’.”
Atsumu helps lower Kiyoomi slowly to sit on the ground. He vaguely notices that he’s sitting on a jacket and digs his fingers into it for comfort. His other hand still holds on to Atsumu. He guides Kiyoomi through calming his breaths, and hiss vision starts to come back into focus.
After sitting there for a few more minutes, Kiyoomi thinks he has it under control. Taking in their surroundings, he sees they’re on some grassy hill that’s a little away from the main town. The sound of taiko drums boom, audible in the air. They’re situated on Atsumu’s coat, which the idiot took off to keep Kiyoomi off the dirty ground like some chivalrous knight. It’s December. He’d better not get sick.
Now he just feels exhausted. Episodes always take a lot out of him. Atsumu sits quietly next to him, and Kiyoomi hates how weak he feels right now. Why can’t he just be normal? Why can’t he go out to a festival with his friends and crush and have a good time, maybe watch the fireworks and see the wonder in Atsumu’s chestnut brown eyes? He wants to, he really wants to. So why can’t he?
“Omi-kun? Hey, it’s alright. Are ya feelin’ better?” Kiyoomi nods. “Good. What do ya need? Are ya thirsty? Hungry?”
Kiyoomi tilts his head up to look Atsumu in the face properly for the first time. He can see the genuine worry in his eyes. It’s not a common emotion to see on Atsumu, and it’s for him.
“Just stay here.” His voice comes out much softer than intended. Atsumu tries to move his hand away, but Kiyoomi tightens his hold. He needs this right now.
“Shit, I’m sorry Omi-kun. I didn’t even think ‘bout all the people that would be here. And like, it’s so obvious, right? But then ya accepted, and I wasn’t expectin’ that and I was just excited and now yer havin’ a bad time and…” He trails off and runs his free hand over his face.
“It’s fine. I’m just tired now. Where are we?”
“Just a few blocks from City Hall. Do ya wanna leave? ‘Cause we can. I’ll go with ya.”
Kiyoomi shakes his head. Now that he’s away from the crowd and the noise isn’t in his face, he’s fine. Plus, he really doesn’t want to try to stand right now. He’s not about to let Atsumu see him stumble like some newborn fawn. And out of this shitty night, can’t he have this one thing?
“I want to see the fireworks. They start soon, right?”
“Yeah, lemme check.” He pulls out his cell phone with the screen illuminating a picture of Bokuto, Hinata, Kiyoomi, and himself as the lock screen. They’re doing the stupid little jackal claw thing. “Yeah, they’re startin’ in a few minutes. I’m gonna let the guys know not ta look for us.”
Once he puts his phone away, Kiyoomi notices he's shivering. “Are you cold?”
“What? No, no. I’m fine!” He waves Kiyoomi off with a smile, “A little chill doesn’t bother me!”
Kiyoomi isn’t fooled by this display. What he’s about to offer can go one of two ways. It can lead them to finally confront that they’ve been dancing around each other for months, or it can be completely awkward because Kiyoomi has read everything wrong.
“Atsumu, come here.” Kiyoomi pats the spot in front of him.
Atsumu gives him a wide-eyed stare. “What?”
“Did I stutter?”
With the same expression on his face, Atsumu crawls to situate himself between Kiyoomi’s legs. He's stiff like he’s afraid he’s doing something wrong. Kiyoomi supposes it may seem a bit out of character, but he wants this. He wants it so badly. Gently wrapping his arms around Atsumu’s middle, he pulls him into his chest.
“Better?” he asks, bringing his masked face close to Atsumu’s ear. He gets a stilted nod in response. “Relax.”
At his words, Atsumu settles comfortably against Kiyoomi. He isn’t sure who the pounding heartbeat belongs to, maybe both of them.
The boom of a firework going off in the sky draws their attention. Flashes of light crackle in the sky. Gold sparks explode into fiery particles before draping down as they fizzle out. Greens, reds, and blues reflect in Atsumu’s eyes just like he imagined; but in real life, it’s so much more. He’d take a picture to encapsulate this moment - keep it safe for later, but right now he wants to experience it.
Taking one of his hands, he brings it to his mask, pulling it down. Then he slowly moves it to Atsumu’s face and turns his head to the side. He’s looking at Kiyoomi with a sense of wonder in his eyes, lips slightly parted. And Kiyoomi wants nothing more than to feel that wonder too.
When he presses his lips to Atsumu’s, it’s one of those moments he knows he’ll never forget. It’s just a small sweet kiss before they pull back to look at each other. But Atsumu has always had a hunger for more. Atsumu's own hand makes its way behind Kiyoomi’s neck to pull him in again. Warm presses and pulls of lips warm them on the cold December night. The fireworks in the sky all but forgotten as they make their own.