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Akaashi Keiji looked outside the window of the Jeepney, his legs impatiently bouncing as he counted the amount of trees they passed by trying to take his mind off the fact that this Jeep is moving too damn slow for his liking. It had been an entire week since he had seen his boyfriend, getting caught up with college, his org activities, and internships—he just couldn’t find the time to escape even for a second with Bokuto. The bi-colored hair boy refused to go out the entire time too, putting his foot down and stressing the importance of his dear ‘Kaamshi getting enough rest.
Keiji looked up from his laptop screen, eyes burning from hours of work and fingers aching from continuously typing. In front of him was his phone, he was on a call with Koutarou, doing so everyday to make up for the fact that they hadn’t met up in days. Catching sight of the confused and deflated look on the ace’s face, Keiji couldn’t help but chuckle quietly.
“What’s wrong, Mahal?” the dark haired boy asked, taking a sip of tea from his steaming cup. Letting the warm liquid go down his throat, seeds of stress slowly dying inside him.
“Wala lang, asawa ko, wag mo na ko alalahanin,” Bokuto grinned at the camera, fiddling with the pen in his hands, though Akaashi wasn’t that easily convinced. “Okay lang, Kou, just tell me what’s wrong,” he softly insisted, smiling at the sight of his usually confident boyfriend’s face flush red with slight embarrassment and that feeling of kilig at Keiji’s bare minimum affection.
“Di ko kasi gets ‘tong calculus, babe,” Bokuto pouted, lifting up his notebook almost childishly, Akaashi had to admit it was a very adorable sight.
Slowly, the restless feeling in his chest disappeared once his gunmetal eyes started catching sight of familiar landmarks and buildings, reminding him that he was close, that he only had to wait a few more seconds until Bokuto was back in his arms and he’d feel the warmth of being loved yet again. He was so close, he could feel Kou’s muscles on his fingertips.
A steady gust of wind flew his hair back, the usually bright blue sky of Manila was covered by white fluffy clouds. Summer was fleeting and Autumn was just around the corner—well, whatever fragments of Autumn the Philippines had.
Time was passing by fairly quickly, just a little too quickly for Keiji’s taste, he felt as though his life was just flying by and wasting away days in front of his desk, doing work, when he could be enjoying his youth, when he could be exploring, chasing sunsets, chasing falling leaves as it leads him to where he should be and where he could be.
There was a sense of hesitance and regret, even though Akaashi knew well that time wasn’t in his hands, he knew it wasn’t his fault the seconds were ticking by, he knew the world would never and wasn’t waiting for him but he wished it did.
As soon as the jeep stopped, Keiji was the first to jump up from where he sat and down the vehicle, walking briskly down the familiar road and towards the UST campus. It was still morning, the cold barely penetrating his black sweater, his arms automatically wrapping themselves around his torso.
Winds played with the green leaves on trees, clouds started graying out, and Keiji cursed under his breath—he didn’t bring an umbrella. It wasn’t supposed to rain, was it? Akaashi Keiji always checked the weather app on his phone and he was pretty sure it was supposed to be fairly cloudy today.
A few minutes of walking, there sitting on a bench, was his boyfriend, fresh out of biology class. Keiji took a few moments to stop and gaze at Bokuto’s beautiful figure, he was such an Adonis of a man, he was built like a literal Greek God and Akaashi would forever be confused as to why the volleyball player chose him.
Keiji just didn’t understand why—why him? Keiji believed he wasn’t special, that he didn’t stand out from the crowd and he was okay with that, he was content with that. The problem comes when Bokuto and Akaashi’s feelings came into the picture. The dark haired boy just couldn’t fathom in any way, shape, or form how Bokuto Koutarou, built like a damn Dorito and a mountain, also fell for him. He just couldn’t see it, he genuinely couldn’t.
Pero sino ba siya para itanggi pagmamahal ni Bokuto? Oo, hindi makapaniwala si Akaashi na minamahal siya ng isang Bokuto Koutarou pero hindi rin siya maarte. Once in a life time na pagkakataon ‘to, kaya sino pa ba siya para itaboy ‘to?
As if on instinct, Bokuto raised his head, bright eyes locking with gunmetal blue ones. The color people usually described as cold and aloof but to Bokuto, they were the color of the deepest parts of the ocean, they were the color of the sky moments before sunset, when the sky wasn’t orange, red, or purple yet but that dark blue-ish green that never failed to awe him. They were the color of the man he loved.
Jumping up from where he sat, the bi-color haired boy waved enthusiastically at his boyfriend, all sense of weariness and exhaustion left his body. Love is magic, Bokuto had decided one day, it was magic and it was beautiful. He decided it was the closest thing to magic, he decided that it was the best feeling he could ever have felt in his entire human life.
It was enchanting, it was addicting, how easily everything fell into place just at the sight of his Keiji. His Akaashi Keiji.
A smile found its way onto Keiji’s lips, hands rising to return Bokuto’s wave with less energy but with the same amount of butterflies in his tummy.
Opening his mouth, no sound left Bokuto’s mouth when he felt small droplets of water drop onto his cheeks. “Huh?” Koutarou looked up and so did Keiji, seeing dark gray clouds rolling in, covering what was supposed to be a perfect blue sky. It didn’t take too long for the rain to start picking up, people walking around started moving faster, some even running to a dry place.
The smell of petrichor filled their senses, green leaves swayed swayed with the wind. The ground was getting damp, grass releasing that familiar scent, that familiar scent that anyone could pick out from anywhere. You know that earthy smell while and after raining? Slightly argillaceous, scent rising up from the undergrowths, that one smell that you could just never describe. An indescribable, if you will.
Looking back down, their eyes meet, both blinking for a moment, and as if they had some sort of telepathic connection, they exchanged grins, knowing well that they had the same idea running through their minds.
At the exact same time, they both ran towards the other, uncontrollable grins on their faces, the light behind their orbs lit up the darkening rainy skies. Without any care in the world, they let giggles escape their lips when their bodies finally met in a quick hug, pulling away just to intertwine their warm hands with each other.
Keiji smiled in content, letting his energetic boyfriend pull him away from where they met, soaked sneakers padding against the wet pavement, splashing through puddles.
The world faded into the background and everything blurred out, all of Keiji’s attention was on Koutarou and the secure grip he had on his hands, Keiji’s attention was on the way Koutarou’s hair slowly started losing its shape, the rain washing away his favorite bench hair wax.
“Take my hand, take a breath,” Bokuto abruptly stopped in a walkway lined with lampposts that glowed a warm orange light, if you looked closely by the light, you could see outlines of the rain falling, though the harsh feeling of them colliding with your skin would be enough of an indicator just how hard of a downpour it was. Akaashi swore his cheeks were starting to hurt from how hard he was smiling but God, how can he when his Bokkun was being such a dork? Singing to him in the middle of the rain and all?
“Pull me close and take one step,” Koutarou sang in a deep baritone, leading Keiji into a slightly clumsy spin, their worn out Adidas and Nike shoes admittedly weren’t the best choice for slow dancing on pavement in the middle of a rain storm. Completing one turn, Koutarou pulled his boyfriend close, just like what was described in the song.
“Keep your eyes locked on mine,” with one hand holding Keiji’s own and another resting on his waist, Bokuto led their little dance through the rain, his singing and the rhytmic crashing of the rain against the stone walkway were their music, it was their guide. “And let the music be your guide,” the two didn’t have the care in the world—no care if passers by looked at them weird, no care if they caught a cold, no care if the tripped and fell. All they really cared about was the way the other held onto them tightly and the way they both just looked so pretty in the rain.
“Won't you promise me?” Keiji shyly continued the song, countless movie nights spent re-watching old Disney movies finally paid off, the entire high school musical discography seared into his brain. He would never say it out loud but it wasn’t in the voice of the original cast, no, when he listened to the songs in his head, he only ever heard Bokuto singing ‘Breaking Free’ imagining him with messy hair and baggy shirts, hands full of popcorn, and ready to engage in debates on why Sharpay was the best character in the entire franchise.
“That you’ll never forget,”
“We'll keep dancing, wherever we go next,”
It was exactly like a daydream. This was a daydream. Storm or not, it was magical and it was so so beautiful. At that moment, at that second, in that pocket of space where their bodies danced along to music in their minds—they were living a moment romance movies only wished they could capture.
“It's like catching lightening, the chances of finding someone like you,” without hesitation, Bokuto held Akaashi’s waist with two hands and lifted him up with ease, letting him step on top of a bench, continuing to dance with and spin him.
It was the exact same choreography in the movie, the same intimate sway Troy and Gabriella had done, the same scene they’ve watched a couple hundred times.
“It's one in a million, the chances of feeling the way we do,”
A sudden flash of light was followed by a loud thundering sound only a second later, the sound made the ground rumble ever so slightly and yet, the two lovers never faltered in their singing, they never failed to continue their little moment.
“And with every step together, we just keep on getting better,”
Koutarou’s finger rubbed soothing circles onto the back of Keiji’s hands, swinging both their arms slightly.
“Can I have this dance?”
Keiji laughed freely, he laughed loudly, he laughed, and he let the stress and the thoughts and the responsibilities of this week disappear, he let them melt away.
Laughing always came easy around Bokuto, everything came easy—loving always came easy. It was as natural as breathing in and Akaashi Keiji, with all the novels and poetry he has read, couldn’t fine any passage or even a single word to describe this phenomenon and he was alright with that, he was content with just feeling that feeling.
“Lika na, Asawa ko!” Bokuto grinned, watching with endearment as Akaashi adorably hopped down from the bench, meeting the ground with a wet splash. “San ba tayo pupunta?” the setter pushed his hair back, holding back a sigh at the feeling of the almost ice cold water on his scalp. It was cold, so very cold but it was the refreshing kind of cold.
“Di ko rin alam,” a daring grin plastered itself onto Koutarou’s face.
“Isa,” the energetic boy started counting.
“Dalawa,” Keiji quickly caught on.
“Tatlo!” they said in unison, running towards the same direction, hands clasped tightly.
Clean white shoes carelessly stepped and splashed on deep puddles, shirts clung onto their body as they were soaked to the bone, not a care in the world as they played in the rain. For a moment, Keiji felt at ease, even if he knew it was far too risky to be running around in the cold storm, he just didn’t care. All he could focus on was how good it felt to finally let go, how good it felt to finally focus on his own feelings.
The rain was cold and it felt so good.
Seeing a vendor on the side of the street, Bokuto bopped his head to the side, indicating to Akaashi that they could take cover there for a moment.
Finally out of the storm, they could hear just how hard it was actually raining—rinig nila kung gaano kalakas tumama ang ulan sa yero. It was almost deafening. Through the chills running down their spine, the temperature finally registering in their bodies, they got distracted by the aromatic smell of whatever manong was selling.
“Kumain ka na ba, asawa ko?” Bokuto asked, mouth watering at the sight of the freshly cooked isaw and french fries. “Di pa, sabay sana tayo,” Keiji’s gaze softened, adoration spreading through his chest. If he could describe it, it was like ink being dropped into a glass of water. Even the slightest amount could completely darken out the translucent liquid, even the smallest of actions Bokuto did, completely melted Akaashi’s heart.
And they stayed under there, eating away as they talked on and on about their entire week. It was simple. The date was simple, street food and good talk. It was simple but it was more than enough. Yeah, they were dripping wet and it was a quote on quote “gloomy day.” But they didn’t care. They didn’t care if it was the sunniest day with the most beautiful sapphire sky or the shittiest one, all that really matters is the fact that they were there, side by side.
It was only supposed to be a few minutes, they were only supposed to stay under there for a few minutes but as usual, they were distracted by the other, eyes never leaving one another’s moving lips, enchanted by the way the simplest words sounded so lovely when it was them that was talking. A few minutes became 15 minutes, 15 became 30 minutes, 30 became 50 minutes, until it was an hour and 12 minutes.
“Tapos pagka-uwi ko kahapon, nalaman ko na lang, sila na!” Bokuto recalled, “’Di talaga ako makapaniwala kasi, parang ang opposite nila?”
The spiker innocently munched on his isaw, savoring the taste with every bite.
“Bo, you do realize we’re exactly like them, right?” Akaashi asked, amused. Sakusa and Atsumu weren’t really far off from how Bokuto and Akaashi were, if you really think about it. There was a serious, dark haired one who took care and controlled their energetic light haired boyfriends.
“Huh?” Koutarou blinked, “Pero I thought we were special!” he pouted and Keiji melted.
“Hm, you’re right,” he smiled, “We’re one of a kind,”
To be honest, Keiji didn’t really know how to describe their whole relationship, it wasn’t quiet but at the same time, it wasn’t as crazy as, say, Hinata and Kageyama’s relationship, nor was it complicated as Oikawa and Iwaizumi’s. It was indescribable, it was unlike any other but it was theirs.
“Hey,” Bokuto hesitantly called out, something uncharacteristic of him.
“Can I,” he paused, looking up to gaze deep into his favourite gunmetal blue eyes, linking their hands together once again. “Can I do something, please?”
How could Akaashi Keiji say no?
With a nod from the setter, Koutarou quickly dragged his boyfriend from underneath their temporary shelter and down the stone path, taking that familiar route to their secret place, just a few steps from where they were previously standing. The grasses were wet, the smell of petrichor was intense, and it was beautiful.
Stopping beneath the large old tree, Bokuto didn’t waste any more time before he crashed his lips onto Akaashi’s, almost sighing with content at how right it felt. It always felt right kissing Keiji. His lips were always soft, they were always so warm.
Bokuto’s hand released their hold from Akaashi’s hands, choosing instead to rest behind Keiji’s neck while the other one wrapped itself around the setter’s waist, pulling him impossibly closer, the kiss deepening even more.
It was such a cliche, to be kissing in the middle of the rain. It was such an overused trope. But no matter how many times actors have recreated that scene, no matter how romanticized it became, it was still better when it actually happens to you.
Pulling away, Koutarou couldn’t help but chuckle under his breathe, “I always wanted to do that,”
Keiji shook his head in playful disbelief, still breathless from that sudden mini make-out session. Bokuto smiled, loving the way his heart started to beat slower, a sense of serendipity washing his whole body. Resting his forehead against Akaashi’s, Bokuto closed his eyes, basking in the silence and warmth of Keiji’s body.
This was one of a kind. They were one of a kind.
They were stars of their own world, they were the protagonists of their own story, and now matter how quiet or loud the words on the pages become, or how complicated and convoluted the plot became. It was theirs and it will always be theirs.
“We’re one of a kind,” Keiji whispered.