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The pressing feeling Bokuto had been feeling in his chest was unfamiliar to him and sometimes it even felt a little uncomfortable. Perhaps it had been the past few years of pushing himself to get better, the countless hours of practice as he continued to strive to be the best ace he possibly could. Or maybe it was all the extraneous work he had put in during those years that was finally catching up to him and his body, he hadn’t quite figured out what the contributing factor was just yet. But the main thing he couldn’t quite wrap his head around for the life of him was why he only felt that same unnameable pain whenever he was around you. Like right now as he sat in the driver’s seat of his car with you in the passenger's side.
Driving around aimlessly while enjoying each other’s presence was nothing new and out of the ordinary for you both. Windows down, the summer wind freely blowing through your hair as you softly sang the words flowing through the radio effortlessly. Bokuto could swear this was definitely one of the moments you looked most beautiful. Peaceful and carefree as the pale light of the moon illuminated your face vibrantly, highlighting the features he adored about you.
His free hand was gently intertwined with yours, comfortably resting atop your thigh as you rubbed smooth circles on the back of his thumb. Taking a quick glance at you, his breath hitched as he took in the sight. You looked angelic as you rested your head against the headrest, eyes closed with a soft smile gracing your face. Though Bokuto couldn’t figure out what the tightening pain in his chest was or why his heart was pounding so fast, he could worry about that later. Right now, there was only one thing he was definitely sure about.
He has never felt this way before and he couldn’t get enough.
❖
“Bokuto, at this rate I’ll never be able to start with dinner.” You giggled as you tried pushing the tall man aside but he wasn’t budging. Instead he opted to hug you tighter to his chest, nuzzling his head into the crook of your neck as he placed a single, gentle chaste kiss to the juncture between your neck and collarbone.
“That’s okay with me,” he voiced gently, “I wasn’t that hungry anyway.” Yet right as he finished his sentence, his stomach grumbled loudly which caused you to laugh loudly.
“Sure you aren’t Bo.” You spoke, carefully unwrapping his arms from around your waist as you pulled away. A little pout formed on his lips upon feeling the lack of warmth your body radiated leaving him once you pulled away. Noticing his pout, you laughed softly once more as you cupped his face in your hands gently, bringing him closer to you so you could give his lips a small peck.
“I’ll be quick babe. Then I’m all yours once I’m done, okay?” You smiled at him, stepping back as you returned to the prior task at hand of getting tonight’s dinner started. Leaning against his kitchen counter with his arms crossed over his chest, he took this time to admire you. You moved diligently, pouring all your concentration into whatever it was that you were doing. His face broke into a smile as he noticed you were sporting one of his t-shirts, the piece of material a tad too big for you as it enveloped your figure.
Not only were you wearing his sweater, but those gym shorts you were wearing were definitely his too by the way you had the drawstring tightened at its max and had them rolled up a few times to fit tighter against your waist. His face flushed at how incredibly cute you looked right now and you probably weren’t even aware of it. Pushing himself away from the counter top, he made his way to you.
“Let’s get takeout tonight. I just wanna be with you right now.” He whispered, bringing you into his body once more while his arms circled around your waist comfortably and his cheek rested on top of your shoulder. He felt his heart compress again, the unknown feeling settling deep in his chest as he tried to calm his racing pulse.
Furrowing your eyebrows, you stopped what you were doing and placed your hands on top of his that were resting on your tummy. Bokuto being affectionate was nothing new in your relationship. You had quickly found out that physical touch was one of his love languages and the ace wasn’t shy to make that very fact known, not that you minded. So him saying something like that didn’t worry you, but rather it was the way he voiced it.
“Everything okay Bo?” You asked as you shifted in his embrace, turning around so you could be face to face with him instead. He nodded wordlessly, a shy smile making its way to his face.
“Dance with me.” He finally voiced, swaying back and forth with you in his arms as you laughed and shook your head at his change in mood.
“There’s no music babe.” You pointed out but still let him away with you, encircling your own arms around his waist as you placed your head on his chest.
“That’s fine. At least the kitchen light can act like a disco ball.” You hummed in agreement, paying no mind to the forgotten vegetables you were cutting up. At this very moment, everything else ceased to exist but you and Bokuto as you swayed with comfortable silence in the kitchen.
At that moment, Bokuto knew that nobody could ever take your place.
-
Bokuto found himself missing your presence as he sat down on his couch in his living room, mindlessly watching the screen of his tv as it played a long forgotten show he had put on a while ago. While he had mentioned many times before that he didn’t mind having you over at his apartment at all times, you still had things to tend to at your own place that you shared with a roommate. He didn’t mind of course, knowing you both had separate lives, errands to run and things to get done. But that didn’t stop him from missing your company and the warmth you provided in his life as well.
This was one of those moments where his mind kept him up at night just thinking of you.
Instead of sulking, his mind recalled how you had entered his life and suddenly, his body was encased in a feeling of warmth.
✰
It was the summer after Bokuto had graduated from Fukurodani Academy and he now found himself adjusting to life after that and having recently joined the MSBY Black Jackals team. Though the ace never had trouble making friends before, he found himself having a bit of difficulty adapting to a new environment where he hardly knew anyone.
Sure he remembered a couple of players he had seen during his high school years, but they weren’t Akaashi, Kuroo or even Tsukishima. He found himself wishing he had one of his close friends here with him at the moment to experience this new chapter of his life with him. Alas, it was only him for now. That was until he first saw you and little did he know that you would soon become a huge part of his life.
He had just entered the gym for summer practice. Though the season hadn’t technically started just yet, the coach liked to start during the summer in order to get the team better acquainted quicker and still be able to put some workouts in. As he stepped foot inside, he noticed a few players huddled around something, or rather someone.
The closer he got, the clearer he heard a sweet voice talking excitedly as they waved their hands around for extra emphasis on whatever they were saying. Finally reaching his destination, he peered around his new found teammates in order to get a closer look at who they were all intently paying attention to. As soon as he locked eyes with yours and saw a smile grace your face, he felt the wind knocked out of his lungs and his mind went blank. God, you were beautiful.
He didn’t know how long he had been staring before he felt someone push his shoulder slightly, causing him to be brought back to reality as his eyes remained on your face. You were speaking yet no sound came out past your lips, his brows furrowed as he tried to concentrate on whatever you were trying to say.
“I’m sorry what was that?” He asked shyly, his cheeks reddening as he scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. Instead of laughing at his response like he expected you to, you gave him another warm smile before voicing your sentence once more.
“You must be Bokuto. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” You bowed slightly to which he returned quickly.
“The pleasure's mine. Sorry if I kept you all waiting long.” He replied, scratching the back of his neck as he smiled bashfully.
“It’s alright. We were just going through introductions.” You beamed up at him and he swears he felt his heart skip a beat upon seeing your smile.
“I’m (l/n) (y/n) and I’ll be your manager for this upcoming season.”
Though Bokuto had yet to make any real friendships with the rest of the guys, he knew he wouldn't have to worry or try too hard now that he knew you.
-
It was now nearing the end of the year and Bokuto had finally gathered the courage to ask you out on a date. Today happened to be one of those dates, your third one to be precise, and if Bokuto was being completely honest with himself he was having butterflies in his tummy. You both had just finished up your evening over a cup of hot cocoa and were now making your way back to his car.
Throughout the night, Bokuto had so desperately wanted to hold your hand but found himself shying away from following through with the action at the last second. It’s not that he didn’t want to, because trust him he really did. The thing that stopped him though was the possibility of you shooting him down and potentially ruining the friendship you two had.
Little did he know you were having the same thoughts about reaching for his hand but stopping yourself in fear of rejection.
Shaking his head, he pulled himself away from his thoughts and focused on you instead. Here you both were, walking down the freshly snow coated sidewalk as the street lights illuminated both your figures. You were in the middle of retelling a story about how you came to be the manager for the men’s team, your hands moving around enthusiastically as the grin on your face seemed to grow as you kept going. The snow was gently falling and the street lamps not only highlighted the gentle snowflakes but your features as well. The smile on your face was something Bokuto knew he could never get tired off and to him, you looked like an absolute angel.
Bokuto gave you all his attention, listening to your story with his own smile gracing his face. He noticed how you rubbed your hands together, bringing them to your mouth to briefly blow a puff of hot air into them. This was the perfect opportunity, he told himself.
“Are your hands cold? Here, I got you.” He voiced softly, reaching to envelop both your hands in his. The sudden action caused you to stop in your place as your cheeks reddened. He rubbed the pads of his thumbs over your hands, staring intently at them in concentration.
You tried to form words but they seemed to get caught in the back of your throat. All you could do was try to calm your pounding heart in hopes that Bokuto wouldn’t notice how this simple action had you completely losing your composure. Though it was probably nothing more than an innocent gesture, you couldn't help but think about how his hands enveloped yours and how warm his skin felt against yours.
“Maybe I should get you back home. Wouldn’t want you to catch a cold now would we? The guys would kill me.” He chuckled and shifted his gaze from your hands to your face and was met with your eyes locked on his. He tried to read for any signs of discomfort but couldn’t find any. Instead, all he saw was the way your eyes shifted from his down to his lips and back up to his eyes. His own cheeks reddened as he contemplated on inching closer to you.
“Can I?” He whispered gently to which you nodded. His hands let go of yours and instead came up to rest on your cheeks, cupping them as he lowered his head a bit to come face to face with you. Closing the gap, your lips met his softly and it felt like pure bliss. His lips moved against yours gently, the feeling becoming something you never wanted to end.
Bokuto broke away from the kiss, a soft chuckle leaving his lips as he rested his forehead against yours.
“I can’t believe I didn’t do that earlier. But I’d definitely do it again.” He smiled cheekily, his hand moving down to hold yours again as he led you back to continuing your walk to the car.
“Bold of you to assume I’d let you.” You poked at his chest jokingly, smirking to yourself as Bokuto feigned being hurt at the comment. You laughed at the face he made, slipping in a quick ‘kidding’ as you both continued to joke around on your walk back. He was beyond happy with the way the evening had turned out and he couldn’t help but notice the way your hand seemed to fit in his perfectly.
✰
All the reminiscing Bokuto had been doing made him realize he was truly grateful to have such a strong person like you in his life. He admired your strong character, the way you were kind to others and always had the best interest at heart for your friends and loved ones. But most importantly, he loved the way you were unapologetically yourself through it all.
The feeling in his chest seemed to grow as he continued thinking of all the things he loved about you. His eyes widened in realization, his hand clutching at a piece of his shirt that rested right above his heart. Though this feeling was something he never truly experienced before, Bokuto was completely certain about one thing.
Though his heart hurts so good, he loves you so bad.