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The rain was incessant, pounding Yaku’s body with cold pellets as he sprinted through the school yard, Lev following close behind. It was soaking him from all directions, the splashing of puddles like shrapnel on his exposed legs. The two ran, panting and shivering through the haze as they made their way down the street, weaving through the few pedestrians also foolish enough to be wandering about in the onslaught. It was currently 6:04, and their bus was going to be arriving at the bus stop at precisely 6:05. Yaku was hoping that the rain would have delayed it at least a few minutes, but as they rounded the corner, his stomach sank.
“Wait!” Lev called out, but it was no use, and the two boys watched pitifully as their bus sped down the road, around the corner and out of sight.
“Dammit!” Yaku shouted, though it was mostly drowned out by the rain. The two ducked into the bus shelter, finally getting coverage from the storm.
“What time is the next bus coming?” Lev asked, running his hands through his wet hair, dishevelling it even more.
“Half an hour.” Yaku huffed, dropping himself down on the bench with an audible squelch. His muscles were burning from the exertion.
“Should we walk home instead?” Lev asked. The two stared out at the torrent, the rain clattering loudly on the metal roof.
“No, it’s too dangerous. We should wait. God we’re drenched.” Lev shuffled over to the bench, slinging his soaking bag off his shoulder.
The two had discovered that they lived in the same apartment complex pretty quickly once Lev had joined the volleyball team, which in itself had its ups and downs. On the upside, Yaku wasn’t lonely on his commute to and from school anymore. On the downside, Lev took their close proximity as an excuse to bug him for help every chance he got. “Yaku-san! Can you help me study for my maths test?” “Yaku-san, can you help me practice my receives?” “Yaku-san~”
“I could have sworn rain wasn’t predicted today.” Lev said. Yaku peeled off his volleyball jacket, attempting to ring it out before giving up and dumping the wet clump of fabric on the bench beside him. The two fiddled around with their clothing for a minute, attempting to get a little more comfortable before giving up and settling into their seats.
“God it’s freezing.” Yaku muttered, rubbing his arms aggressively. He could almost swear his bone marrow was freezing over.
“Do you want my jacket?” Lev asked. Unlike himself, Lev had been wise enough to put his jacket in his bag before the sprint to the bus stop, so despite the bag itself being soaked, the garment was relatively dry.
“No, it’s fine.” Finding the friction rather impractical, he settled for curling his arms against his body.
“Are you sure?” Lev asked, peering at him with concern. He had a few specks of water clinging to his eyelashes, which glittered in the streetlight. “You’re shivering.”
“Yeah. Besides, I don’t want you to get cold.”
“I’m Russian, that makes me immune to the cold!” He declared.
“You’re half Russian.”
“Okay then, I’m half immune.” Yaku smiled and shook his head, though his body stiffened as the wind picked up. “At the very least…” Lev slid closer until their shoulders and thighs were pressed against each other, before resting his arm across the back of the bench.
“For warmth.” He clarified when Yaku gave him a funny look, though he didn’t complain, and instead leaned into his body.
“You’re really warm.” He said quietly, his head rested against Lev’s shoulder. Lev chuckled, angling his head away slightly.
“You feel like a corpse.” Yaku slapped his knee. “I’m kidding, I’m kidding! You feel frozen though.” After a moment’s hesitation, Lev wrapped his arm around Yaku’s shoulder, pulling him closer, and in turn Yaku curled into his side. To keep warm, Yaku reminded himself, though he couldn’t help but think how nice the arrangement felt. The thought itself concerned him slightly, but he was wet and freezing, and Lev was soaked, and he could feel the first year’s warmth through his shirt. Despite the horrendous weather, and their sticky clothing, and their aching muscles, it was a nice moment. The two stayed like that, silently cuddling, until the bus arrived.
-----
After a very cold wait, and an even colder bus ride, the two boys finally arrived at their apartment complex.
“I cannot wait to get changed out of this.” Lev said as they quickly strode across the lobby.
“God I need a hot shower.” Yaku grumbled as they stepped into the elevator. Lev hummed in agreement, pressing the button for Yaku’s floor, and then his own.
“Sounds nice, though honestly I think I’m a little sick of being wet today.” Yaku nodded.
“Fair, you look like a drowned cat.” Lev squawked in offence as the elevator doors opened on the fourth floor, and Yaku stepped out. “I’ll see you Monday.” He said in farewell.
Lev stuck his tongue out at him, before breaking into a grin and waving as the doors shut. Yaku smiled, shaking his head at his antics as he made his way down the hall. He stopped in front of his apartment, slugging his bag off his shoulder and sending droplets across the tiled floor. The bag sagged pitifully as he opened it, and Yaku began to riffle through it for his keys. His eyebrows began to knit together the longer it took, before he froze. His keys were in his wallet, which he kept in his gym bag… which he left in his school locker.
“Fuck.” He groaned, hitting his head on the door with a gentle thud. Fantastic. He slipped his phone out of his pocket and thumbed the keypad. It dialed a few times, before his father picked up.
“Morisuke?”
“Hey dad.” He said. “I left my keys in my locker at school, what time are you going to be home tonight.” There was a long sigh through the phone, and Yaku’s stomach knotted with guilt. He sounded exhausted.
“I’ve still got quite a lot of work to finish off in the office, and there’s a lot of delay with the rains in this weather… I’m sorry Mori, I don’t think I’m going to be home for another two hours or so. Is there somewhere you can go in the meantime?”
“No, it’s fine. I don’t want to drag you away from your work. One of my kouhai is in the building, so I can probably stay at his place.”
“That’s good then. I’ll see you tonight Morisuke.”
“Get home safely.”
-----
By the time Yaku had made it to Lev’s floor, his teeth were chattering painfully in his mouth. His clothing, though no longer soaking, was still plastered to his skin, and the chill of the building’s hair conditioning sent painful shivers through his muscles. His hand shook as he raised it to knock. There were a few moments of silence before he could hear footsteps towards the door, and briefly, he wondered what he would do if Lev’s parents answered instead. Standing in the doorway, shivered from head to toe and explaining his situation would be awkward, to say the least. Thankfully, Lev answered, albeit with a perplexed expression.
“Oh, Yaku-san,” Unlike himself, Lev had gotten changed out of his wet uniform, sporting a pair of sweatpants and a long sleeve short. To Yaku’s envy, he was noticeably dry. “Is everything alright?”
“Yeah, just, I left the keys to my apartment at school, and my father isn’t getting home for another few hours. Would I be able to hang out at your place for a while until he arrives?” He tacked on quickly, “That would be fine with your family right?”
“Yes, of course! Come in!” Lev stepped aside and practically herded Yaku inside. “My family won’t be home tonight anyway. You’re still soaking though, I’ll get you a towel, and a change of clothes – actually, would you like to take a shower?”
“Please. That would be great.” He licked his icy lips, the thought of a warm shower sounded heavenly.
“I’ll be back in a moment.” Lev disappeared down the hall, and Yaku took the opportunity to examine his surroundings. Despite Lev harassing him for help every other weekend, study sessions always took place at Yaku’s apartment, so he had never actually seen Lev’s home before. He was standing in the entryway, which led into an open-plan kitchen, living room and dining room area. The design was modern, very similar to his own apartment, but more homey, with several photographs and other memorabilia decorating the walls. Across the room, situated in the living room area, was a large window spanning across the wall, showcasing the heavy storm outside. Lev appeared a moment later, a towel and a change of clothes nestled in his arms.
“Here you go! You can just leave your shoes and bag right here.” Yaku dumped his bag and kicked his shoes off, before eagerly grabbing the items out of Lev’s hands. “Down the hall, the bathroom is the second door on the left.
“Thanks.” Lev gave him a grin, before turning and heading into the kitchen, whilst Yaku made his way through the apartment.
He closed the bathroom door behind him, quickly stripping off his sodden clothes and jumping into the shower. The hot water was euphoric on his cold skin, and he closed his eyes, sighing contently. Yaku stood under the steam motionless, allowing the warmth to ebb away at the tightness of his muscles and seep into his bones. Once the numbness had faded and his limbs had thawed, he grabbed the bottle of soap and began washing himself.
The soap smelt of lemongrass and lime, so distinctly Lev that it took him off guard, though the thought was somehow comforting, instead of weird. He let his thoughts carry him. The scent reminded him of the sun, of countless warm days spent in the gym playing volleyball. Of the crisp air, and morning jogs to school with Lev, who’s hyperactivity was quelled by the exercise and instead of making boisterous conversation, he would simply smile down at him. Yaku turned off the water, pursing his lips at where his thoughts had brought him. It was true that he had been spending a lot more time with the fair-haired first year recently, with them commuting together, hanging out on the weekends and spending time after volleyball practice to work on Lev’s receives. Yaku wondered when it was he stopped thinking of Lev as irritating and instead thought of him as… rather pleasant, he supposed.
Dismissing the thought, he stepped out of the shower, and immediately regretted it as he was met with the cold air. He dried himself and changed, though noticed an apparent issue. Right, Lev was tall, so of course his clothing would be massive on him. He fixed himself up as much as possible, at least, until he was mildly presentable, and left the bathroom.
“I’m out.” Yaku said, leaving the hallway and entering the kitchen. Lev turned from where he stood at the stove, apron tied around his waist, and froze. He stared at Yaku, his expressions shifting from shock, to confusion, to… something else, before finally landing on amusement. He laughed.
“Come on, it’s not that funny.” The sweatpants Lev had provided had ended way beyond his feet, resulting in them needing to be folded a considerable amount and causing two lumps of fabric to accumulate at his ankles. The shirt, which sat unevenly on his shoulders and reached his thighs, had been tucked into the tightly tied waistband. To say he looked rumpled would be an understatement.
“Sorry, just – you look like a cute little kid in my clothes.” Yaku glared at him, but the shower had relaxed him and he was too tired to retaliate. He was also choosing to ignore the strange swell he felt at the word “cute”
“I’m not cute, and I’m not a little kid. I’m older than you, remember.” He grumbled. Lev looked like he wanted to say something mischievous, but held it back, instead replying
“Of course.”
“What are you cooking?” He asked, moving on. Yaku could smell the spices from out in the hallway.
“Just some curry. Are you going to be staying for dinner?”
“Yeah, if that’s alright?”
“Of course!” Lev beamed, “There’s heaps anyway, I wouldn’t be able to eat all of it on my own.”
“Cool. Anything I can help with?” Yaku peered around his body to the stove, where a pot sat simmering. There was a rice cooker steaming off to the side.
“No, thank you, I’ve got it handled. You can just sit around and relax if you’d like.” Deciding not to contest against Lev’s cooking abilities, which, if he was being completely honest, he didn’t have much faith in, he made his way into the living room. Yaku picked up the remote and turned on the TV, but was met with a wall of static.
“Oh yeah, I tried that earlier.” Lev called out from the kitchen. “I think the weather has messed with the connection. The wind has really picked up outside.” Glancing towards the window, Yaku could confirm that, yes, miraculously, it seemed to be storming even harder.
He turned off the television and instead began investigating the room, drifting towards the bookcase in the corner. He assumed it belonged to the rest of his family, as Lev wasn’t really the reading type. Only a few weeks ago, Lev had been complaining about the assigned book he had to read for English class, and after much harassment, the issue ended with Lev and himself sprawled out on Yaku’s couch as he read the first few chapters to him. Lev was a handful, that was for sure, though comparatively, he wasn’t the worst kouhai in the world. Yaku and Sugawara-san didn’t text very often, though from their few conversations, Yaku had heard just how illiterate the Karasuno first years were. He was thankful Lev wasn’t that stupid, the thought bringing a small smile to his face.
After another few minutes of snooping, Yaku settled himself down on the couch and gazed at the dark void of the window. Behind him, he could hear Lev shuffling around in the kitchen. He listened to the soft bubbling of the stove, the high pitched rustle of metal as Lev rifled around in a draw. He was humming some kind of melody as he cooked, though Yaku couldn’t make out the tune. A sudden wave of melancholy washed over Yaku, grounding him into the softness of the couch. There was something special about this moment, the complete calm and normality. It was a stark contrast to his usual nights, where for once instead of the silence and haunting loneliness of his apartment, he was met with the comfortable domestically of Lev’s home. It brought about a strange yearning inside of him that he couldn’t place. A deep tugging on his heartstrings which made him acutely aware of how significant this moment was, as it was the beginning of something big, and beautiful, and life changing. He wanted to cherish this feeling, to hold onto this strange comfort that he didn’t understand.
His thoughts were broken by Lev’s call for dinner, and he stood up, feeling quite disoriented, and joined him at the table.
-----
To Yaku’s surprise, the food was absolutely delicious, and inwardly he apologised for ever doubting Lev’s cooking abilities. As tactless as he seemed, the kid could cook. Yaku reclined in his seat, eyes closed, and enjoyed the warm sensation of a hot meal in his system. He felt absolutely exhausted, his muscles still sore from practice and the cold, but somehow, he felt extremely content. He opened his eyes to find Lev staring at him, cheek rested in his palm and a small, impossibly soft smile on his face. The sight made his chest flutter.
“What’s up?” Yaku asked, and Lev’s trance broke as he realised that he’d been caught.
“Oh! Nothing, just,” He sat back up in his seat. “You look really happy right now.” Before Yaku could even think of a response, Lev rose from his seat and began clearing the table.
“I’ll help you clean up.” Yaku offered, and Lev waved dismissively.
“You don’t have to do that.”
“But I want to. I’ll dry.” Lev didn’t disagree anymore, instead giving Yaku another of those abnormally soft smiles which sent his heart racing, and the two proceeded to clean the kitchen in a comfortable silence. Once they were done, Lev said
“I’m going to make a hot chocolate, do you want one?”
“Right after curry?”
“Yeah! Why not?” Yaku shook his head.
“I think I’ll pass, I’m not a big fan of sweets.”
“Oh come on.” Lev pleaded. “I make pretty amazing hot chocolates.” He stared at him with a small pout which Yaku found uncharacteristically endearing, and he couldn’t find the will to refuse.
“Okay, fine.”
“Yes!” Lev cheered, and got out the supplies for the drinks whilst Yaku watched with mild amusement.
The two of them settled down onto the couch with their hot chocolates, and Yaku had to admit, the beverage was pretty nice. He listened to Lev ramble on about some gossip with the other first years, something about Inuoka asking out two different girls, who both ended up being gay, which resulted in him setting them up. Apparently he was happy for the two of them, but quite sour about Lev and Shibayama teasing him about it. The conversation was quite meaningless, but there was something special about Lev’s company tonight, and Yaku was very much enjoying himself. Lev’s babbling was interrupted by a large crack of thunder, and they both looked up as the lights flickered.
“I hope the power doesn’t––” a sudden darkness enveloped them.
“Spoke too soon.” Yaku remarked.
“What should we do now? Should I go get a torch?”
“No, don’t bother, we have our phones anyway. I guess we can just sit and watch the rain?” Lev hummed in response, and the two shuffled closer to angle themselves towards the window.
It was pitchblack with the lights on, but in the dark they could see the surrounding city outside, the dull artificial light providing a small bit of illumination to the room. The world seemed quieter in the dark, though Yaku quickly realised that was due to the heater, which he had barely noticed earlier, being off now. Lev seemed to have come to a similar conclusion.
“I’ll go get a blanket.” He said, and disappeared from the couch for a minute, reappearing with a large cotton blanket to cover themselves with. After a few minutes of silence, Yaku asked
“Hey Lev, what’s your type?”
“My type?” He asked, seemingly caught off guard.
“Yeah, on the topic of dating.” Lev was silent for a moment, thinking.
“Well, I’ve never dated anyone before, but I’d say I like girls who are quite tall, and on the flip side for boys, um…” He paused for a moment “I think short boys are pretty cute.” there was a flicker of something in Yaku, a sudden nervousness that turned his mouth dry. He tried to swallow the lump in his throat.
“You like guys?” It came out stiffer than he intended. Lev hesitated.
“Yeah… that’s not a problem is it?” The insecurity sounded foreign in his voice.
“Oh! No–” Yaku realised how he had sounded. “Not at all, I’m gay.”
“Ah.” Lev replied, before breaking into giggles. “That kind of makes sense actually.”
“What? How so?”
“Nothing, nothing.” Lev shook his head of whatever he was thinking. “So what’s your type then?” The atmosphere felt heavy somehow, and Yaku wasn’t sure how to reply. What was his type? He supposed he liked guys who were tall, and lanky, and sweet and goofy, but how could he say that aloud when it sounded a lot like Lev and–
Oh.
Oh.
Shit.
The realisation made home want to slap himself, he was so fucking stupid. Huddled under the blanket, only a few inches apart from each other, felt suddenly intimate. He was aware of Lev’s body heat radiating beside him, of every small shift of his limbs. Yaku felt very small beside him as Lev stared down at him, expression masked by the darkness, with his head quirked to the side.
“Yaku-san?” He said questionably, oblivious to his inner turmoil, and Yaku realised how long he’d been zoned out for.
“I-I’m not really sure.” He stuttered out, but before Lev could say anything else, the chime of a phone interrupted their conversation. Thankful for the distraction, Yaku shuffled around in the blanket, trying to find where his phone had been wedged.
“It’s my father.” He explained once he found it, before picking up. “Hello?”
“I’m really sorry Morisuke.” His father began. “The weather’s gotten so bad that the trains have stopped. I’m going to stay at your grandmother’s house for the night, are you okay where you are?”
“I’m fine.” He replied. “The power’s gone out in the building, but we’re alright. Stay safe, I’ll talk to you later.”
“Bye Mori.” He hung up.
“Is everything alright?” Lev asked, his voice filled with concern. The tense atmosphere from earlier had dissipated, much to Yaku’s relief.
“The rain has gotten so bad that the trains have stopped, so my father isn’t able to get home. Is it–”
“You can stay the night.” Lev interrupted, a little too enthusiastically. “You can sleep in the guest bedroom.”
“Thank you.”
-----
“Does your father always work late Yaku-san?” Lev asked quietly after a long stretch of silence. The silences seemed to be getting longer between them, not that either of them minded. There was a certain comfort that came with sitting with someone else in the dark.
“Hmm? Yeah, always has.”
“What about your mother.” Yaku shifted in the blanket.
“She’s… out of the picture.”
“Oh, sorry.”
“No, it’s fine.”
“So, are you alone most of the time?”
“Yeah. When I was younger I used to get really lonely but I'm used to it now, so it doesn’t really bother me anymore.” Lev nodded.
“My parents are both working most of the time as well, though I’ve always had my sister for company. Now that she’s moved out, the apartment just feels… empty without her. And, well,” Lev began. “I guess I’ve just found out recently that I don’t like to be alone.”
The rain on the window punctuated the moment of silence. There was a familiarity in Lev’s words which made his chest swell, and Yaku was brought back to hollow nights in his empty apartment, a somber solitude that, as he reflected now, had never really left him, but instead had become an ever-present heaviness he stubbornly ignored.
“I’m… glad we’re not alone tonight.” Yaku said, and he meant it more than he could put into words. Right there, in that moment, there was nowhere else he wanted to be. No one else he wanted to be with. Lev turned his head to look at him, and although Yaku couldn’t make out his features, he could feel his smile.
“Me too.” Yaku’s eyes were drawn to Lev’s hand, which rested on top of the blanket, and he had the sudden urge to grab it. “You know, back in middle school, I had a lot of friends, but I never really felt that close to any of them. But, now that I’m in high school and on the volleyball team, I kind of feel like I’m a part of a big family or something. Everyone’s been so nice showing me the ropes and teaching me how to play, even though Kenma doesn’t like me and I annoy you, I’m really happy.”
“You don’t annoy me.” The words slipped out on their own, and Lev huffed a laugh. Yaku tried to recover. “Okay, you annoy me a little bit. What can I say, you’re a handful.”
“But?”
“Who said there was a but?” He teased.
“Yaku-san!” Lev whined, and he laughed.
“But… the longer I spend around you, the less you annoy me and I discover that under that tall, lanky, dopey exterior you’re actually… really sweet, and nice, and kind of endearing I guess.” Lev looked at him for a long moment, his full attention on his words, before reaching out and wrapping his slender fingers around Yaku’s hand. He stilled, surprised by the sudden contact, before entwining their fingers. Lev’s hands were large, but delicate, not worn by years of volleyball practice like Yaku’s were.
“Thank you.” Lev whispered, and Yaku looked up from their hands.
“For what?”
“Just… everything.”
They stayed like that for a while, hands laced together as if it was the most natural thing in the world for them, though, Yaku reflected, a lot of things seemed to come easy with Lev.
The apartment felt small, disconnected from the outside world by the storm. Nothing and no one else existed outside of this space. For this night, it was only Yaku and Lev in the world, alone but together, and neither of them wanted it any other way.
“Yaku-san?” He pulled his eyes from the window and turned to see Lev staring down at him. Yaku was suddenly aware of how close they were sitting, shoulders pressed together, faces mere inches apart. It would be so easy to kiss Lev, here in the dark, isolated from everyone and everything, where nothing existed but the two of them. Lev seemed to have the same idea as he slowly lowered his head.
Their lips brushed gently, as if Lev was waiting for him to reciprocate, and he did, unravelling their fingers and gripping at his shirt collar, pulling him down further. Lev snaked his arm around his waist and they leaned into each other. It was a gentle kiss, soft and sweet, as Lev’s lips moved delicately against his own. Despite how inexperienced they both were, there was no hesitance from either of them, and instead they held each other with impossible ease.
A loud crack of thunder broke the spell and they fell apart, staring at each other in bewilderment before breaking into laughter.
“We should probably go to bed soon, it’s getting late.” Yaku said, a little breathless. He fought the urge to touch his fingers to his lips.
“Or…” Lev began, and he could feel the mischievous smile in his voice. “We could stay here for a while longer.” Yaku laughed, rolling his eyes as Lev cupped his cheeks and joined their lips once more.
-----
It was easy to lose track of time when kissing Lev. Moments seemed to blur into each other as he focused on the sensation of their brushing lips and the weight of Lev’s hands gently around him. Eventually though, sleep beconned them, and they couldn’t ignore it any longer. Lev stood, letting the blanket fall away and offered his hand to Yaku, which he took eagerly.
“Yaku-san,” Lev started, pulling him into a standing position. Yaku stumbled slightly, finding his muscles weak from exhaustion, and was thankful to have Lev holding him for support. “Do you want to sleep with me?” The question was quiet, bashful, and Yaku squeezed his hand tighter.
“Yes.” Lev led the way through the blackened apartment and into his bedroom, where they slipped under the covers once more. They embraced, Yaku’s head snuggled into his chest and Lev’s face resting in the crook of his neck, his hot breath grazing his sensitive skin. They laid like that, warm and intertwined, with the chill of the rain a distant memory, and drifted slowly off to sleep.