Chapter Text
"Are you sure that you've got everything?"
Chiba pitcher Sawamura Eijun pushed open the door of the airport arrivals, turning to glance back at his companion doubtfully. "You really did sleep in pretty late this morning, Kazu-san. I'm amazed you remembered to brush your teeth. What were you doing last night? I thought we went to bed at the same time! You can't have been reviewing game videos - not in the off season, and not the night before we fly out of the country for our reeeeally amazing couples trip!"
"I have everything," the other man, Tokyo catcher Miyuki Kazuya sighed heavily, shouldering the door with his left arm and pulling his battered suitcase through into the lobby area behind his partner. "And nothing in particular. I just overslept. It happens, sometimes. It is the off-season. I don't have to be up at the crack of dawn every day."
"No...but..."
Eijun pursed his lips, his brow scrunching into a displeased frown.
"It's a good thing that I decided to stop at yours last night," he decided finally. "If not, we might never have got here in time. I told you the flight was eight thirty. I told you it would be an early start! We have to check in before that, though. You can't just walk onto a plane ten minutes before it leaves, you know!"
"Look at you, Mr World Traveller," Miyuki rolled his eyes, but there was amusement glittering behind the lenses of the black rimmed spectacles, and Eijun snorted, releasing his hold on his own case handle and folding his arms across his chest.
"I have travelled to America and back a few times, actually," he said self-importantly. "And I know all about airports."
"Amazingly, so have I - and so do I - especially the fact I dislike them," Miyuki replied smartly. "Meanwhile," he gestured to the suitcase. "Your case is going to check in by itself. Did you train it to do that, or did you pack Kai in there by accident this morning?"
"I wouldn't do anything so horrible to that poor cat!" Eijun was indignant, swinging around and then letting out a yelp as he realised his case was indeed rolling merrily in the direction of the check in desks. He lunged to grab it, almost toppling over on top of it, and Miyuki sighed again, adjusting his own hold on his case and moving to gaze up at the screens.
Sydney. Eight thirty. Check in desk 17A. Baggage Drop - Open.
"We need desk 17A," he said, as Eijun righted himself and his case, brushing himself down as though trying to regain some of his composure. He was still not used to it, Miyuki reflected, eying him out of the corner of his gaze. The fact that, now he was a well known figure on the mound for the team in Chiba, sometimes people would recognise him in unexpected places. Whether an image of him falling over his case in the middle of Narita airport would be trending on social media within the hour or not was unknown, but somehow, Miyuki felt sure that it would probably not cause a scandal. For some reason, everyone loved Eijun even more when he did something stupid, and in the twelve months he had played for Chiba, he had already amassed a cult following.
Well, I'm no different, really.
Miyuki chewed on his lip, returning his gaze to the screen.
I fell in love with that idiot, so I can't judge other people for doing so. Although I really hope nobody is that interested in us today. It's been a while since our relationship broke in the press, and most people in Tokyo are probably used to it now...but...still...
He grimaced inwardly to himself.
It's not like I'm worried about the press. I've worked on that a lot this year, and I know I'm handling it more rationally these days. But there are moments...like this...where I still feel vulnerable. Not that I can tell him something like that. He might think I've got cold feet about this trip, and it's not that. At least, I don't think so. It's more...wanting it to be our trip. Not something the media are tracking, but just...ours. And if he knew that I didn't get to sleep till some horrible hour worrying about how to keep a low profile, he'd laugh at me. I should laugh at me. I mean, I'm with Eijun. He's at his most conspicuous when he's trying to be discreet.
He allowed himself a smile at this thought.
"What are you grinning at?" Eijun voice startled him from his thoughts, and the catcher turned, offering his companion an impish smile.
"I was thinking that I should've made a bet with myself as to how long it would take you to do something ridiculous on this trip," he teased. "Only I'd have lost the bet, wouldn't I? Being that you've done it before we've even left."
"Stop being mean," Eijun pouted. "It's a new suitcase. I've not travelled with it before. My old one got beaten up coming back from Los Angeles, and so I bought a new one for this trip. I'm not used to it yet - it moves really easily if I'm not paying attention to it."
"Maybe you do need to give it some training." Miyuki's eyes twinkled, and Eijun snorted.
"Oh, so now you're gonna be the asshole, huh?" he demanded, though his expression belied his apparent annoyance. "Well, I guess asshole is better than cocky smugface. I've had enough of that already - and it's banned, by the way, on this trip. Got it? You're not allowed. Not even once."
"Not even once?" Miyuki arched an eyebrow. Eijun shook his head emphatically.
"Not. Once," he said warningly. "You know what will happen if you do."
He twitched his fingers meaningfully in the direction of Miyuki's free hand, and Miyuki glanced at it, before sliding his hand very pointedly into his trouser pocket out of reach.
"You really are a sore loser," he reflected heavily. "Fine. I get it. I won't mention it. Not while we're in Australia, anyway."
"Good," Eijun looked satisfied. "Then I'll behave myself as well. As promised, no public shows of affection in transit. Well? Why are we still standing around here? You said 17A, right? That's over...there, I think?"
He swung his arm in the direction of a queue to the left, and Miyuki turned his head to look in the way his partner gestured. He nodded.
"Guess so."
"I wonder if we can skip the queue, being that we're flying business class this time?" As they made their way over to where the massing crowd was gathering, Eijun was almost bouncing along with excitement. "I've never done that before. I feel all important. Do you think that will be allowed? Do you get special favours like that, if you fly business class?"
"If you carry on like that, they'll mistake you for my puppy and put you in the hold," Miyuki joked, and Eijun grimaced, rolling his eyes.
"Stop it. I can tell you're on edge, you're snarking all over me, but it's going to be fine," he said softly. At the tone in his voice, Miyuki faltered, biting back the cheeky retort that had been forming on his tongue, and meeting his partner's gaze full on. "I know you don't like flying. I know you don't like airports. I know you don't like other people poking themselves into your space. Besides, it's not just that. I also know this is the first time we've flown together, anywhere. I know, okay? I wasn't going to say anything, but you're prickling all over the place and I can sense it."
"Sense it?" Miyuki looked troubled. "Am I that obvious, or are you channeling Kai's cat senses on this trip?"
"I know you pretty well, but it's not obvious. Probably not to anyone but me," Eijun assured him, "That's the main reason we're flying business, right? Because you get twitchy and it's ten hours to Sydney direct."
"I'm not twitchy," Miyuki knew he was lying, but the response came automatically anyway, and Eijun rolled his eyes.
"You are," he said matter-of-factly. "I've been good and I haven't asked questions. You know I haven't. But I know you asked for us to fly this way because it still stresses you out, the thought of being trapped in there with someone who might recognise you and ask you questions. You might think I'm stupid," he added, as Miyuki arched a quizzical eyebrow in his partner's direction. "And before you say anything to that, I'm gonna remind you that I'm not. Not when it comes to you. I'm a bonafide Miyuki Kazuya expert, and I know that you didn't sleep much last night because you were worrying about this. Don't think you can fool me!" As Miyuki's eyes widened in surprise. "Ahah! See. I knew it. That's why you were so sleepy first thing. You were worrying about the flight!"
"Not so much that," Miyuki offered a rueful smile, inwardly acknowledging his defeat, but somehow not minding much. "I'm not going to freak out. I just didn't know if there would be press, here. Or fans. Or whatever. And I never much liked flying, but I suppose I did feel a bit claustrophobic about this one. And I was thinking about a lot of logistical stuff last night, which is really why I didn't get to sleep right away."
"You think too much," Eijun said frankly. "You should just go with the flow more. Like me. Believe it will be fine and it will. You'll see." He slid a reassuring arm through his companion's. Miyuki gazed at it pensively, and Eijun sighed.
"Aw, come on. That doesn't count, does it? That's just friendly, surely? It's not 'hey, look at us, we're sleeping together - right?" he pressed. "Kuramochi-senpai grabs you by the arm all the time, and you're not sleeping with him." He paused, arching is eyebrows, "Are you?"
"What is that meant to mean?" Miyuki's eyes widened in dismay, and Eijun chuckled at the look on his partner's face.
"Right. Of course you're not. I know that," he replied honestly. "Wakana'd be pissed at you if you were, anyway. But it got your mind off the flight. And besides, this is just friendly. I said I'll behave so long as we're in public here, and I will. Just, I don't like it when you're worrying about something. It doesn't usually end well. You put on the poker face to max level, but I can see through it, now, and I'm trying to be that awesome supportive boyfriend who sweeps in to rescue you before things get out of hand. Besides, your poker face is a bit creepy to me now," he added pensively. "At least, not creepy, but it makes me uneasy. It doesn't fool me these days, so when you try and use it around me I know something is up even more. Call this my intervention, if you like. The flight may be a pain, but you should focus on the destination and what we're gonna do when we get there. I want this to be a fun trip, but I want us both to enjoy it, and not just me. It was your idea, don't forget."
"Yeah, I know it was. I don't regret it," Miyuki smiled faintly. "I'm looking forward to some time away, just the two of us, after the crazy season we've both had."
"Good," Eijun nodded approvingly. "Then don't worry, huh? Everything is going to be just fine. And if anyone gets in your face, I'll deal with them. We may be flying business class, but we'll still be together. And you can take the window. I'll take the middle. That way, I can be your bodyguard against any intrusive fangirls. Or fanboys. Whichever." He puffed out his chest. "I'm equal to both."
"You really like that idea, huh? Protecting me from the hoardes?" Miyuki eyed Eijun in resignation. "I know what you're thinking, but I'm all right, you know. Yeah, I don't like the whole flying thing, especially since I became enough of a household name to get press in my face here. But I am better at handling it now. I've worked hard at that this year too, and I'm a lot more equipped to deal with things than I was before. Even if we haven't discussed it in any detail, you do know that, right?"
"I know," Miyuki did not have to specify what he meant, for Eijun had quickly nodded. "And I'm glad. Even if Hara Teitou is banned from your ground and hasn't dared to come near you for the whole of the last year, I know that you have got better with the press and being in the spotlight for things outside a baseball game. You even did that ad campaign, and that was all right, wasn't it? I mean, nobody died!"
"Yeah..." Miyuki glanced down at his shoes, kicking them absently against the ground. "Well, I got these out of that. I have to admit, they are great shoes. It hasn't been hard to promote the brand, because I literally do wear their stuff all the time now, on and off the field. But if I hadn't felt like I owed the club something after all that crazy in the Spring...they've been putting more pressure on me to do something more in that vein, because it's good publicity for the team as well. On the back of that pre-season match and all the hype surrounding it, the owner and my agent both had some calls about it, and I didn't think I could really say no, not after everything they'd done to support me. So..."
He shrugged.
"Though it wasn't just me," he added. "Ienaga-san was involved as well. It was a whole main battery deal. Two for one or something."
"Yeah, but you still did it," Eijun was not to be gainsaid. "So you can deal with the attention and the cameras. Right?"
"I can, but it's not my favourite thing, not outside of the game," Miyuki owned. "You're right that it's another reason I agreed to do it, to push myself and make myself deal with the attention, but I don't know if I'll ever really enjoy being photographed or written about for something other than baseball. But that's that, and this is this," he shot Eijun a sidelong grin. "We are going to have a fun trip. I hope. It's a bit of an experiment for both of us, but I think it will be all right. I am looking forward to it, as well. I hope that people will be less interested in us in Australia, anyway. Except as another couple over there for a few days."
"That will be nice. Not to mention, there's the beach!" Eijun's eyes sparkled again, and Miyuki laughed.
"Yeah. Maybe I'll buy you a bucket and spade and you can build a sandcastle," he suggested. Eijun poked out his tongue.
"I might make you," he retorted. "Then I'll bury you up to your neck when you fall asleep, and take photos of you as a sand mermaid."
"Ah, we're so immature," Miyuki stretched his arms over his head. "Here we are, two grown professionals, bantering about beach pranks."
"Great, isn't it?" Eijun reflected pensively. "We can be grown up on the field. But this is the off-season. And it was a long season. I love playing baseball, but I understand for the first time now how crazy it is to go through a whole season of fixtures. Even if I only played maybe a fifth of the innings overall, it was still pretty intense."
Miyuki sent Eijun a playful look, a smile twitching at his lips, and at the sight of it, Eijun frowned, shaking his head.
"I'll kiss you," he warned. "Right here, in front of the gate, where anyone can see us. I won't tell you again. This is your last chance."
"Tsch," Miyuki poked out his tongue, but his eyes were still dancing with amusement. "I did say I wouldn't mention it in Australia, remember? This isn't Australia, not yet."
"No, but it's part of the same trip and it's still banned!"
"Spoilsport." Miyuki was enjoying himself now. "Besides, you're jumping the gun. Maybe I wasn't going to say anything."
"Oh really?" Eijun arched an eyebrow, and Miyuki nodded.
"Really," he said innocently. "As it happens, all I was going to say was that at least you didn't have as long a first season as you could have."
"Mi..yu..ki...Ka...zu...ya!" Eijun's brows knitted together in annoyance, and Miyuki chuckled, pulling his arm free from Eijun's hold and spinning his black suitcase in between them before Eijun could make good on his threat. He offered his companion a sweet smile.
"I'm just concerned for your well being, after your first season," he said benignly, and Eijun sighed, shaking his head as if knowing he was beaten.
"Fine, I get it, but stop teasing me," he instructed. "I get that it amuses you, but right now is not the time."
"Then when is the time?"
"When I'm not there, preferably," came back Eijun's retort, and Miyuki sniggered at this quick reply. He shrugged.
"You really shouldn't take it to heart," he said honestly, reaching across to tap his companion on the shoulder. "All joking aside, it was unlucky. And believe me, I know more than most about unlucky ends to a season! But hey. In my first pro season, I didn't even play a first team game. You played in what - a fifth of the innings, did you say? You already have me beat there. And so what if your team didn't make it to the Series final this time around? You made the semi, and played in it, which is more than most draft rookies did this year. And this is the thing about losing in the semi. We were in that position last year and it sucks. It sucks so much that it just made us more hungry for it this."
"Yeah, and your team would so have been beaten if you'd had to play us in the final." Eijun muttered darkly. "One lousy run, that's all it was. You can laugh all you want, Kazu-san - but even if I shouldn't expect it in my first year, it still hurts. I wanted to play you guys again. I wanted..." he faltered, looking sad, and despite himself Miyuki felt guilty for all the teasing. He sighed, slipping an arm awkwardly around his companion's shoulders.
"Then come after us next campaign," he said softly. "We'll be waiting. You don't think we're going to make it a one off, do you? We worked hard for that, this season. And I don't know," he added, "what would have happened in the final if it had been against your team. Maybe it would've been harder. I don't know. But we're going to be aiming for the same prize next year. Come take it from us."
"We will," Eijun said firmly, meeting Miyuki's gaze with a resolute one of his own. "I've learned a lot this year, and I'll put it all into next year. I promise."
"Good. Then it's fine," Miyuki slipped his hand away, clapping it lightly between his partner's shoulderblades. "Onwards and upwards."
"I suppose so," Eijun acknowledged. "And I guess you are right. I mean, that I beat you in getting in the first team. So I'll take that and remember it next time you're annoying about the Japan Series. Although I am glad you won, since the opponent wasn't us," he added. "You beat those assholes who beat us, so it was almost like you avenged me."
"Are you going to say that's romantic?" Miyuki teased. Eijun grimaced.
"No, because you don't understand romance," he replied dryly. "But it's fine. Next year. Don't get complacent. We'll be back and sharper than ever." He flexed his arm. "Although honestly...while I'm looking forward to next year, I'm glad to have a break first. It is a long season, and intense, and that takes some time to process when it all winds down. Besides, this is for your birthday," he added. "Mine too, in a belated way, but yours especially. Seeing as it's tomorrow."
"Yeah. When we'll both still be jet lagged, probably," Miyuki snorted. "Considering there's a couple of hours time difference as well as a long flight. Don't expect anything too exciting. I'm happy to just chill."
"We can do that. On the beach. With the sand and crabs and stuff," Eijun said confidently. "All right. Let's go check in our luggage and see what perks business class gives us. I'm looking forward to the flight, even if you're not. It will be an adventure for me flying this way, so I can't wait!"