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Akaashi walked into the cafe 20 minutes later, but during that time the group staged a caffeine intervention for Atsumu. The amount of coffee he had drunken in one sitting was alarming. Atsumu had gone through at least three cups of coffee at that point and Hinata eyed him warily. Kiyoomi ended up being the one to cut him off when the table noticed his unsteady hands.
“I’m fine!” Atsumu insisted as he downed his last sip.
“Tsum, you need sleep, go home.” Bouton frowned.
“Are you a caffeine addict?” Kuroo cocked his head to the side quizzically, “I might be able to help you kick your addiction.”
“Oh my God,” Kenma groaned, “Kuro, because you made me quit drinking coffee does not mean that you are qualified to counsel through addiction. I wasn’t even addicted to coffee.”
“Are you sure?” Kuroo sent a raised eyebrow to Kenma, obviously recalling something that the rest of them didn’t know.
Atsumu frowned in his general direction.
“First of all, Bokuto, I’m fine. Second of all, even if I wanted to go to sleep now, I wouldn’t be able to. Third of all, Kuroo-san, what the hell? No, I’m not a coffee addict. I had a late night. Also, Omi, how are ya awake right now? Ya stayed up just as late as I did.”
Kiyoomi shrugged and took another sip of his tea, “I’ve done this a few times before. It’s not that bad.”
Atsumu narrowed his eyes, “I’m seriously begin’n to wonder if ya even sleep.”
“Of course I sleep, I am human you know.”
“Are ya? I’m not sure I believe it.”
“You’re an idiot,” Kiyoomi grumbled dismissively.
Kuroo stared at the two of them, and Kiyoomi tried to avoid his gaze by looking anywhere but at him. It almost felt scrutinizing.
“Wait,” Kuroo started, and Atsumu looked up from his empty cup, ready to answer whatever question he had, “So you two aren’t dating?”
“We’ve been over this,” Kiyoomi pushed away his now empty cup, “We aren’t dating.”
Atsumu shook his head.
“Then why did you two stay up together?”
“Well-” Kiyoomi started but Atsumu swooped in to save him.
“Omi-Omi’s got insomnia. I couldn’t sleep because my neighbor’s damn dogs wouldn’t stop barking. We ended up calling each other until we fell asleep.”
To save them from anymore questions from a very confused Kuroo, Akaashi ran into the store looking very flustered. Quickly spotting them, they made their way over to the table and Bokuto began getting ready to pack up his stuff. Mostly they were in the cafe to wait for Akaashi and now that they were here, the group was probably going to go back to Bokuto and Akaashi’s joint apartment.
Bokuto seemed genuinely upset when Akaashi sat down at the table. Akaashi, noticing their boyfriend’s souring mood, sent a couple quick glances around the table trying to figure out what was upsetting him. They didn’t seem to realize it was something they did.
“Akaashi,” Bokuto folded his arms.
Akaashi knew what was upsetting him now. The tension around the table began to build as an unfamiliar scene emerged. They had all been under the impression that Akaashi could do no wrong in Bokuto’s eyes, but that wasn’t the case.
“Yes, Koutarou?”
“You aren’t wearing a suit to our wedding.”
“And why not?”
“Because you don’t want to wear a damn suit.”
Everyone but Akaashi and Bokuto was silent.
“Well, how do you know that?” Akaashi had grabbed one of the straws off the table and was now twirling it between their fingers, a tell-tale sign that something was bothering them.
“Keiji,” Bokuto’s hand twitched to reach out to them, but didn’t, “You’ve been telling me that you hated them for years, why would you want to wear one to our wedding?”
“I don’t know.”
“Yes you do, why are you trying to wear a suit?”
Akaashi ran their fingers through their hair, “Can we talk about this somewhere else,” They whispered, “Please?”
Bokuto reached out a hand to Akaashi. Akaashi took it without hesitating, and he pulled both of them up, “Excuse us.”
Koutarou led Akaashi to the back of the cafe to a quiet hallway leading to the bathrooms. Akaashi kept their eyes on the wall, watching and taking in all of the pictures. With two hands cupping their face, a pose that he often took when he realized something was bothering them, he waited for Akaashi to open up.
He ran a thumb over Akaashi’s cheek, back and forth because over the years he found that slow rhythmic movements kept them calm.
Akaashi laughed a little, “I-”
Koutarou waited patiently.
“I never tried to be feminine, or even androgynous, you know this. Dressing masculine was comfortable, I didn’t have to change anything to be comfortable, but I just fucking hate suits.” Akaashi cracked a smile up at Koutarou, and Koutarou couldn’t help but smile just a little.
He cocked his head to the side, “Then why were you looking at them earlier?”
“Yes, I’m non-binary, but I dress masculine. If I get married in a dress, wouldn’t that confuse people? Wouldn’t they talk? ”
“You don’t want people to talk about your dress?” Koutarou had seen his fair share of rom-coms and most people getting married wanted other people to talk about their outfits. He didn’t really understand why Akaashi didn’t want people to talk about their dress, but he did want to understand.
“No,” Akaashi blushed and looked away, “No, not like that.”
“So,” Koutarou was starting to get it, “You don’t want people to be confused by you?”
“Uh,” Akaashi cast his eyes to the side, “I guess so, yeah.”
“So then we just don’t give them the chance to be confused.”
“Wait, Tarou, hold up.”
“I need to talk to Tsum-Tsum. I think Osamu got married in a dress, and we have similar builds. I need to find out where they got it from.” Koutarou pressed a quick kiss to Akaashi’s head and tried to find Atsumu.
Akaashi grabbed his hand, “Wait, you don’t have to-”
“‘Course I do. You don’t want to confuse people, so I’ll do it for you. Oooh I think Hinata would be down to wear a dress. He’d look so cool! I know Kenma has done it a few times before, and I’m sure if we got Kenma to ask Kuroo, Kuroo would say yes. Wait, Tsum-Tsum would look good in a dress, and Sakkun is peer pressure’s bitch, I’m sure we could get him to do it as well!”
“Koutarou.”
He turned around to answer Akaashi, “yea-”
Akaashi pulled him closer and pressed a soft kiss against his lips. There was a lot of meaning behind the innocent gesture. Mostly Akaashi was just stunned out of their mind. It wasn’t as if it was unthinkable that Koutarou would offer to do this for them, it wasn't like that at all. In fact, this was possibly one of the most predictable moves Koutarou could have made. Koutarou wasn’t giving up much, not in the slightest. He had always believed that masculinity was fluid, and that had been apparent for years. It was a simple gesture, but it was the entire world to Akaashi.
Akaashi remembered that summer before their second year, it was the most terrifying time in their life. So many life altering changes happened. Akaashi realized that they were attracted to men. No, not men, not really, just Koutarou. They realized that they wanted to replace the friendship between the two with a relationship, and all that was well and good. Crushing on a friend was something most everyone would face in their lifetime. Akaashi knew that the Bokutos were some of the most accepting people they had ever met, so Akaashi took these realizations with ease.
The one that shook them the most was realizing that they were non-binary. Akaashi was scared for weeks. In their head they knew that it wouldn’t matter to Koutarou in the slightest, but the doubt that seeped into their thoughts kept them from sharing. They remembered the panic they felt well, and now they were here, planning a wedding with him. He had always been there for them, he will always be there for them, starting with the first volleyball practice of their second year where he accidentally ensued panic in most of the Fukurodani Volleyball Club, and ending with whatever the last thing he would do was.
“I love you.” Akaashi whispered against his lips.
“I love you too,” Koutarou whispered back before pulling away, “Now, I need to talk to ‘Tsumu about that dress.”
This time it was Akaashi who led Bokuto back to the table. Kiyoomi had been listening to Hinata, Atsumu, and Kenma argue over videogames for the past few minutes. He would input things when asked, but really he just wasn’t too passionate about videogames.
Bokuto sat back down, a smile returned to his face. Akaashi took a seat next to him, face flushed, and Atsumu laughed a little.
“Enjoy yer little make-out session Bokkun?” He asked.
Bokuto’s face grew red quickly, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“What about you, ‘Kaashi?” Atsumu turned to Akaashi who was busy trying to hide in their coat that they had neglected to take off.
“Same with Bo, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Boring.” Atsumu frowned.
“Did Osamu wear a dress to their wedding?” Bokuto pushed a long since neglected scone that Akaashi had been eyeing since walking into the cafe towards them.
Atsumu shook his head. “‘Samu hates long dresses, always thinks they're gonna trip, but thought the pictures wouldn’t look good if they wore a shorter dress.”
“Damn,” Bokuto cursed.
“Akaashi probably has to get the dress tailored, though. I mean, even people with conventional body types fer dresses usually get their’s tailored so it fits ‘em right.”
“I think Keiji already has a dress picked out, right?” Bokuto turned for confirmation, Akaashi nodded, “I was thinking more for me. But you’re right, Tsum-Tsum, tailoring is definitely the way to go for this.”
Atsumu blinked, surprised by the way the conversation turned, “Yeah definitely.”
Kiyoomi sat in silence, he was kind of surprised at first, but the more he thought about it, the more it fit. Bokuto was just the kind of person to do that sort of thing for Akaashi.
“Wait, you guys are gonna be wearing dresses?” Hinata asked, already looking forward to the prospect, “Can I wear one? I’ve never done it before!”
“Go ahead, Shokun!” Bokuto smiled, his plan already falling into place.
“What about you, Kenma?” Hinata turned, excited about the date, to Kenma.
Kenma shrugged his shoulders, “I was already planning on it. I like them better than suits anyways.”
“I knew I liked you for a reason, Kenma,” Akaashi smiled into the remainder of Bokuto’s drink that he had successfully thieved without Bokuto noticing.
“Thanks Keiji.”
Kuroo frowned, “You only like him because he bullies me.”
“Well, there’s that too.”
“Well Akaashi,” Kuroo leaned back in his chair, “You’re kind of a brat sometimes, but I can say that you will look kick-ass in a dress.”
“Are you gonna wear one, Kuroo?” Hinata asked, peering over Kenma’s shoulder.
Kuroo blinked, “Wait-, me?”
“Yes, you.” Bokuto rolled his eyes, and silently thanked Hinata.
“Yes, Kuroo, that way you too can look ‘kick-ass’ in a dress.” Akaashi cocked an eyebrow and mocked Kuroo’s words from earlier.
Kuroo’s eyes narrowed, “I was trying to be nice earlier, Akaashi, but you know what. I take it back, you won’t look kick-ass in your dress. You’ll just look fine, I guess.”
“Oh no, whatever will I do?”
Kuroo, offended, looked over at Bokuto, “Divorce them.”
“We aren’t married yet,” Akaashi protested.
Bokuto just replied simply, “No.”
Kuroo rolled his eyes, “Kenma, if I end up killing Akaashi because Bokuto won’t divorce them, will you lie on the stand for me?”
“Maybe,” Kenma briefly turned back from his conversation with Hinata, “I’ll have an answer for you in 2-5 business days.”
“Goddamn, what’s it take to get some good allies around here?” Kuroo muttered at Kenma, but it was very clear that Kenma was no longer listening, “Atsumu-san?”
Atsumu put up his hands in surrender, “Yer look’n in the wrong direction, Kurokun. Akaashi is on the same level as Kita, which is ta say that they’re practically God.”
“Who is Kita?” Kuroo muttered to himself.
Kiyoomi, who had actually met Kita and could vouch that Kita and Akaashi were one of the same, laughed a little and accidentally drew attention to himself. Kuroo looked up and tried to make an ally of Kiyoomi. It didn’t work out so well for Kuroo.
“Sakusa-san, would you lie for me?”
Kuroo understood it was a longshot, but he was banking on some kind of unknown rivalry between Akaashi and Sakusa. No such thing existed so Kiyoomi responded, “I don’t know you Kuroo-san. Sorry.”
“Hinata?”
That was an even longer shot.
“Sorry, I have a duty to Bokuto as a fellow wing-spiker. Besides if Kenma says no then I really can’t do much for you.” Hinata tried to keep a straight face when delivering the news. He failed, very miserably.
“I’ll lie on the stand for you.” Akaashi responded.
“Thank you Aka-” Kuroo then actually took in the words, “wait-, YOU’RE GONNA BE THE ONE WHO DIED! You can’t lie on the stand if I killed you!”
Akaashi shook their head, “After I said I would lie on the stand for you,” They tsked, “You go ahead and kill me? That’s harsh Kuroo.”
“You would be dead before the trial even began?”
“That early, damn! Kuroo, you need to be nicer to me. Maybe kill me off halfway through the trial at least. That way it would be more interesting.”
“You’re the reason I would be on trial-, you know what, never mind.”
Bokuto intervened, “Alright, and that’s enough of that. Kuroo, stop trying to kill off Akaashi. You wouldn’t get away with it.”
“But what if I got Kenma to kill them, what if I just assisted?”
“Okay, I wouldn’t help you kill Akaashi. That’s too much work,” Kenma rolled his eyes.
“I’m glad I mean so much to you Kenma, truly, it’s heartwarming.”
“You’re welcome.”
“Maybe-” Bokuto tapped his chin.
“Alright,” Akaashi put an effective stop to the debate, “I don’t want to be dead anymore.”
“Then I guess we need Kiyoomi’s answer now,” Bokuto successfully turned the conversation over to Kiyoomi.
Kiyoomi, who was busy eating a scone, looked up to see the entire table looking at him. He swallowed heavily, “My answer for what exactly?”
“Are you gonna wear a dress to my wedding?” Bokuto asked as if the question was obvious. As if they hadn’t just been discussing whether or not Kuroo could get away with the murder of Akaashi. Kiyoomi was now aware of the pull of these three. They were complete idiots when they got together. Kiyoomi knew that Kuroo was a businessman, he didn’t know what he did exactly, but he knew he was important somewhere. Akaashi was an editor before they quit to write a novel.Those two were smart as hell. Bokuto, well Bokuto was just Bokuto, and Kiyoomi didn’t know how but he somehow infected the other two when they got together. Kiyoomi silently wondered where all their braincells went.
“Um,” Kiyoomi bit his lip, he hadn’t done anything like that before.
Just do it, don’t overthink it.
“You know what,” Kiyoomi exhaled, “sure. We can all go get something tailored one day.”
“Sakkun!” Hinata smiled widely, “I think the stick up your ass is gone!”
Kiyoomi’s eyes widened and then his face flushed, “I’ve never had a stick up my ass, Hinata.”
“Oh,” Hinata smirked, “maybe that’s why you’re no fun.”
Kiyoomi was sure his eyes were as wide as saucers right about now.
Bokuto stifled a laugh, “Ignoring that for your sake, Sakkun. Atsumu, what about you?”
“Um maybe, I don’t know, give me some time to think about it.”
He shrugged, “It’s fine, Tsum-Tsum, don’t feel pressured to do anything you aren’t comfortable doing.”
“I’ll think about it.”