Chapter Text
Bokuto and Akaashi sat under the tree next to the entrance to the gym. It was lunch, and it was nice to get away from the chaos of the lunch room and spend some time outdoors. Bokuto uncapped his plastic water bottle and took a sip. He began to fiddle with the plastic ring that wrapped around the nozzle of the bottle, pulling and wiggling it around, but his eyes were fixed elsewhere. The scattered sunlight that filtered through the leaves danced on Akaashi’s face, his gunmetal blue eyes sparkled ever so slightly. Akaashi had to close one of his eyes so that the sun wouldn’t blind him. Bokuto felt the breath in his throat catch.
He was so beautiful.
No one in his life had ever made his heart clench like Akaashi. Maybe it was the way his gaze felt like the inside of a new hoodie, fuzzy and warm and comfortable and soft. Or maybe it was because his black hair shone in the light and looked almost blue, like the color of the sky past evening but before it got too dark to see anything. Maybe it was the way he listened to Bokuto’s rambling with small nods, humored his jokes with small smiles, or how he never treated Bokuto like his energy was too much. Bokuto was tired of feeling like too much. Sometimes he wanted to scream and jump and yell and cry and he wished that everyone would understand that like Akaashi did. He felt his heart twist as he continued to stare at Akaashi, before quickly realizing that Akaashi was looking right back at him.
Bokuto felt his ears heat up and he turned his head down to the plastic water bottle that was squeezed between his palms. The coldness of the bottle was gone by now, a fat droplet of condensation dripping down his right wrist. He rolled the bottle between his hands, feeling the plastic crinkle under the pressure. He began to pull at the plastic ring again and stretched it until it slid off the top of the bottle and into his hand. Bokuto let out a small gasp.
A chuckle escaped the boy sitting next to him. “Be careful Bokuto-san, that’s sharp.”
“I know, I know. I’ll be careful.” Bokuto held the plastic ring up to his eye, inspecting it for sharp edges and putting his thumb through the opening. Suddenly, an idea came over him. Was it stupid? Most definitely. “Hey, Akaashi?”
“Mmhm?”
Bokuto swallowed hard and continued to look down. “Have you ever thought about getting married? Like in the future?”
“Mm, not really. Why?”
“I don’t know. I’m just thinking about what it would be like to propose, I guess.”
Bokuto looked up at Akaashi and they locked eyes; Akaashi seemed to soften.
“I’m sure you’re going to marry a very beautiful woman, Bokuto-san.”
Bokuto’s heart squeezed and he bit his lip, gripping the plastic ring tighter between his fingers. “I um…” He sucked in a deep breath. “Yeah, I hope so.”
Bokuto felt like his body was sinking into the ground. Now was not the time to tell him.
After a bit of silence from Bokuto, Akaashi tilted his head. “What do you think your ideal proposal would be like?”
Bokuto felt his face warm and he smiled. He held the ring and turned his body toward Akaashi’s, still sitting criss-crossed on the ground. “I was thinking it would be kinda simple. Y’know, maybe take a walk in the evening and then go back and eat homemade dinner. I feel like public proposals are too much usually. And then after dinner I could tell…” He turned his gaze up to meet Akaashi’s and felt his smile become a little heavy. He hoped Akaashi didn’t notice. “... her. I could tell her how much I love her and put the ring on her finger like this.”
He lifted Akaashi’s left hand gently and slid the plastic ring onto his ring finger. The weight of Akaashi’s palm in his felt so right. It was cool to the touch, his fingers long and delicate and beautiful. Bokuto felt his hands get clammy as they held Akaashi’s, so he quickly let go of his hand and wiped them on the thighs of his shorts. His face was so hot. No way Akaashi didn’t notice this time. He really was screwed.
“You’d better make sure you propose with a real ring though, she might get upset.” Akaashi let out a breathy chuckle and twisted the small plastic ring around his finger slowly, inspecting the small bumps and smooth texture. He grabbed Bokuto’s hand and tilted his palm upward (worry not, Bokuto’s heart was indeed hammering in his chest at this very moment) and pulled the ring off, placing it is his palm.
Akaashi’s hand was so warm. All Bokuto wanted was to grip it tight and lace their fingers together and never let go. Each second longer that Akaashi’s hand touched his it felt like electricity was shooting through his veins. He curled Bokuto’s fingers over the stupid plastic ring, letting his closed hand rest in between his palms before letting go. Akaashi’s warmth escaping. Oh yeah, Bokuto’s heart definitely could not take much more of this.
“Yeah, heh.” Bokuto gripped tighter around the ring, his fist clenching. He scratched the back of his neck and let out a short laugh. “I’ll keep that in mind.”