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It wasn’t like Shouyou had never seen Kageyama interact with kids. It wasn’t unexpected, seeing their line of work, but it still left him baffled most of the time. When he was in Brazil, he watched every single one of the Adlers’ games and, being it before or after the game, whenever the camera panned to the setter surrounded by adoring children, he felt himself grow fond at the sight. He had also been, on multiple occasions, on the receiving end of distressed texts from his friend, bemoaning his incapability to interact with kids. It was amusing at first, but Shoyo could see, even through a screen, that Kageyama was trying very hard at not being intimidating and, with time, he started to look more comfortable around his small fans.
Then Shouyou came back to Japan and started playing with the Black Jackals. The first match against the Adlers proved to be the reward to everything he had worked so hard for and more. One of the unexpected perks of being at the top, however, was watching live Kageyama offer his hand to the kid standing next to him in line, stiffen at the kid’s loud cheering but still hunch over so to reach the kid’s hand. Shouyou saw the small, satisfied expression on the setter’s face, felt his body flush with excitement when Kageyama turned that same satisfied look on him.
At the end of that match, when Kageyama smiled bright and pure, and every single one of his fans went crazy over it, Shouyou felt like seeing him for the first time. He had lost, against Shouyou nonetheless, and he looked nothing like he did in high school. He looked free, at peace. It made Shouyou’s heart jump in his throat at the sight. And then Kageyama picked up a kid to balance on his hip, still smiling that sweet smile as the kid’s mother took a picture of them, and Shouyou had to run back to the changing rooms before he did anything stupid like kissing Kageyama on national tv.
It wasn’t anything new. He had known in high school, but he had been afraid. He was leaving for what was probably going to be the most difficult journey of his life and, even if he had always had the most optimistic of attitudes, at the time he hadn’t been ready to face his growing affection for Kageyama. So, that last day at graduation, in the same gym where it had all started years before, he kept his mouth shut. For a moment, he thought he’d seen the same doubt and fear in Kageyama’s eyes across the net, but then he smiled and Shouyou let it go. He knew in that moment they both did.
Shouyou wasn’t a kid anymore. He hadn’t had the courage back then, but now at the age of 22, he wanted nothing more than correct his past mistakes. Easier said than done. Of course, the moment he wanted to spend every moment with Kageyama, they found themselves on opposite sides of the country. Shouyou could say it was better than opposite sides of the planet, still, now more than ever he felt the distance between them. It was frustrating.
One night, after a particular tough home game, he found himself in the communal area of the Black Jackals dorms, together with Atsumu and Bokuto. In the few months they had played together he had come to trust them deeply, had found in them the perfect companions. They usually had good fun. That night though, they were all in low spirits because of their recent loss. Bokuto less so, as he insisted that a good ace had to support his team and face loss with pride. He was animatedly talking about the new interview he did with Akaashi when suddenly he quieted down.
“You know, I always love when we play home games because it gives Keiji a reason to come all the way here in Osaka. I miss him so I’m happy whenever I get the chance to see him.”
It was said in such a genuine tone that both Shouyou and Atsumu perked up. They knew that feeling. It was hard being away from the people they loved. Shouyou knew that Atsumu hadn’t seen his brother in months, ever since the game against the Adlers, him being in a similar situation with his mother and sister. After two years in Brazil, he thought he had gotten better at handling the distance but faced with having his loved ones right there and still not being able to see them brought Shouyou to a new level of frustration. He needed to meditate on it.
“How about you Sho? Don’t you miss Kageyama?” Bokuto asked.
It wasn’t that weird of a question, everyone knew that the two of them had a particular type of friendship, but it still took him by surprise.
“Uh, we still hear from each other ones in a while, he’s really bad at texting.” He laughed at that, remembering the one-word texts he had been receiving for the last 6 years. “I guess it’s been a while since we played together though, I kind of miss it…”
He laughed at Atsumu’s screams that his tosses were way better than Tobio’s, downplaying how much he really missed the other setter and not just playing with him (even though he missed it so much he ached for it). Bokuto on his side didn’t look convinced at all.
“That’s great! But don’t you miss spending time with him outside of volleyball? What I miss the most is wrapping Keiji in my arms and relax on the couch. We used to do that all the time when I lived in Tokyo, and he was still in university. He used to say it was the only time he could fully, truly relax.”
Bokuto had this sad look in his eyes while talking, but it wasn’t the same as in high school, it wasn’t a dejected look, it was more like a soft blanket had covered his whole expression. Nostalgia, Shouyou realized, it was nostalgia. It still didn’t make sense to him though. He wished he had those kinds of memories with Kageyama, but they haven’t had the time yet to do anything of the sort. For them it was always volleyball first, anything else second.
“Well after I came back from Brazil, we didn’t really have the time to do anything outside of volleyball so…” He trailed off, unsure of where that conversation was heading.
“What?! That’s awful Sho! But I guess you and I are the same, right? Our boyfriends are living their dreams in Tokyo and we in Osaka, nothing we can do about it.”
Wait. What?
“Kageyama is not my boyfriend.”
At that both Atsumu and Bokuto turned their surprised eyes on him. Shouyou couldn’t believe it. Was he so obvious? What if Kageyama had heard of this, then what? Shouyou wanted to do things right, he wanted them to have a beautiful day together, go somewhere nice to eat and at the end of the night confess. He thought Kageyama deserved that much. He couldn’t let these rumors spread all the way to Tokyo.
“What d’ya mean you’re not together? Haven’t ya been a couple since high school?” Atsumu asked when Shouyou didn’t explain further.
“High School?! No! No way! We, uh, we’ve always been just friends…”
His teammates gave him a look by which Shouyou knew he wasn’t fooling anyone. He shook his head, defeated. He had to trust them.
“It’s true that we’ve never been more than friends, but I…I guess I wouldn’t mind. Being more, that is. And I think Kageyama wouldn’t mind either.”
The truth was he didn’t know that. He knew two years back, in the Karasuno gym on graduation day, but now with how their life kept them apart he didn’t know anymore. He hoped.
His confession was met with cheers and whoops from his friends, who encouraged him to not waste any more time and go get his man. It helped a lot to raise his spirits and soon he found himself gush over Kageyama with Atsumu and Bokuto, like a schoolgirl gossiping with her friends. It was genuinely one of the most embarrassing and yet exciting things he had done ever since coming back to Japan (God had he missed this level of comradery when he was in Brazil; he never had difficulty making friends, but there was something different in a bond between teammates).
The next morning, he felt ready to face the day with a renewed energy that he had felt he lacked in the previous months. He meditated and then got ready to go on his morning run. He reached the park just as the sun started to shine high in the sky. The weather was still cold enough to run without sweating too much, so he kept his step steady and light and enjoyed the feeling of early morning sunlight on his face.
He stopped at the fountain in the center of the park for a brief break. He liked it there because it was near the kids’ section and Shouyou enjoyed seeing families spend leisure time at the park, kids having fun and laughing. It was still a little early for that, so he didn’t expect to see that many people, maybe other runners like him. He could have never predicted what he saw when he reached the benches on the edge of the playground.
“Kageyama?”
The setter was hovering over the playground, arms outstretched and back turned from Shouyou. He jumped at hearing his name and took a step back. With that Shouyou could see the focus of his attention: sat on the playground was a small child, chewing sleepily on a toy, a mop of black hair and big round eyes poking out of the scarf around their neck. Shouyou was utterly confused, he looked up from the child to an increasingly irritated Kageyama.
“Hinata what the hell are you doing here?”
“Me?! I live here! What are you doing here?”
They weren’t really shouting, but their voices were still a bit too loud for the quiet of the park and apparently also for the child, who sensing their irritation started to tear up. Suddenly alarmed at the child’s distress Kageyama bent down and picked them up, making soothing sounds and bouncing them in his arms.
Oh God. That was too cute for Shouyou’s poor heart.
“So…. You have a kid?”
Kageyama’s head sprung up, wide eyes focused on Shouyou, who wanted nothing more for the ground to open and swallow him whole. The thing was, he wasn’t expecting to see Kageyama so soon, what more acting all thoughtful and affectionate with a squirmy baby in his arms, who looked exactly like him. So really Shouyou had every reason to ask. It didn’t stop him from turning red under Kageyama unrelentless glare.
“This is my niece, dum-“ He stopped, glancing at the child watching him intensely. “My sister’s daughter, Aiko. I came to visit, but today my sister has a fashion show, and her husband is on a business trip, so they asked me to babysit.”
It wasn’t new for Kageyama to keep his family life private, even from his close friends, but Shouyou was having difficulty squashing down a surge of irritation at finding out that, not only Kageyama’s sister lived in the same city as him, but that Kageyama came to visit and didn’t even think to come say hi. He did it anyway, not wanting to sound like a petulant child.
He stepped closer, looking at the small girl who was pushing her little chubby fingers through Kageyama’s hair. Now that he knew he could see the resemblance with Miwa. It had been long since he last saw her, before he left for Brazil. She had come to graduation day, taking pictures of everyone. Shouyou still remembered the look on Kageyama’s face, embarrassed yes, but as his sister had fussed over him Shouyou could tell that he had been glad she had been there. He had even bowed over so that she could adjust his bangs.
“She looks a lot like your sister.” He said, wiggling his fingers in front of the child.
Kageyama had to tighten his grip on the girl when she, laughing, tried to jump from his arms and catch Shouyou’s fingers. The motion made them both step forward, so when Shouyou raised his head, he found himself way closer, his arms hovering over Kageyama’s in a weird almost hug. He coughed and stepped back, giving the kid a sheepish smile when she still tried to follow him. At that Kageyama decided to put her down and suddenly she ran into Shouyou’s leg, pulling on his shorts. He crouched down to be to her eye level.
“Hi Aiko! I’m Shouyou, I’m a friend of your uncle.”
“Shouyou! You’re pretty. Tobio your friend is so pretty!”
The child took his hand and dragged him at Kageyama’s side again. Shouyou blushed at the compliment, remembering that kids so young tended to be brutally honest. Kageyama kneeled to ruffle his niece’s hair, seemingly unaffected by the child’s words. Like he would ever call you pretty.
“You just learned that word, doesn’t mean everyone is pretty.”
Aiko squealed indignantly, batting away Kageyama’s hand. She turned her back on him and reached out for Shouyou’s hand. He took hers and followed the little bossy child to the nearest bench, where she motioned for him to sit. She climbed on his lap and settled down to glare at Kageyama, who looked seriously ready to argue with the child.
“Don’t be mean Tobio. Shouyou says he is your friend. Tell him he’s pretty and maybe I’ll let you sit with us.”
Kageyama sighed. He met Shouyou’s eyes over his niece’s head, pleading. Shouyou snickered behind his hand, amused at seeing the mighty Kageyama defeated by a toddler.
“You really take after your mother.” Kageyama said, stepping closer, cautious like he was facing a spooked animal and not a kid barely tall enough to reach his knee. “I’m not going to call Hinata pretty because it would only inflate his ego and there are enough people doing that.”
The confused expression on Aiko’s face told Shouyou she still struggled to understand words like ‘inflate’ and was getting progressively more restless with every step Kageyama took forward. He decided to intervene and calm the waters. He raised the child off his lap and put her down on the bench so to talk to her face to face. He smirked at Kageyama behind his shoulder.
“Don’t worry Aiko, your uncle is too big of a meanie to compliment me, but that’s because he’s jealous of us. We are so much prettier than him.”
The little girl giggled and looked up to Kageyama. He scoffed, watching both of them on the bench with his arms crossed in front of his chest. Shouyou loved seeing him like this, irritated slightly but only because he was embarrassed and didn’t like it, red in the cheeks. It was different though from when it was Shouyou who made fun of him. He could see it in Kageyama’s eyes, the challenge, the years old competitiveness that would always spur between them. The years apart only heightened the feeling of that stare on Shouyou’s skin. It felt like coming back home, like they were back in high school, racing to the gym and pushing each other through doors to get there first. And yet, it also felt different. They weren’t fifteen anymore, they were adults with responsibilities and different lives. Shouyou didn’t like how nostalgic that thought made him feel.
“It’s okay Tobio, not everyone can be pretty like us. I forgive you.”
Kageyama’s niece had one of the proudest looks on her face as she patted the space beside her, telling her uncle to sit down. With Kageyama sat on the bench, Shouyou realized the situation he was in and remembered that he was supposed to be angry at Kageyama for not even telling him he was going to be in the city. The truth though was that, with a child between them, while admiring Kageyama in all his glory in the warm light of morning after months they were apart, the city waking up around them, Shouyou couldn’t find it in himself to feel anything but contentment.
They stayed there for a while, Aiko between them chatting their ears off. She had apparently just learned how to speak in full sentences, so it amused her to do so continuously. She told Shouyou about school, about her parents and her friends. It had been her birthday the week prior and if he understood correctly, it was the reason why Kageyama had gone all the way there.
“I couldn’t come here last week because we had an away game against the EJP Raijin.”
Shouyou had seen that game and, now that he knew, he thought he had noticed Kageyama dash out of the court without stopping by the railings with his other teammates.
“It’s okay, Tobio. Shouyou look! Tobio gave me his volleyball t shirt as a gift.” Aiko exclaimed.
She jumped down from the bench and unzipped her coat to show Shouyou said t shirt. It was the white Adlers’ jersey, sporting a big 20 on the front and probably, even if he couldn’t see it, a ‘Kageyama’ on the back. It looked a little big on her small frame, but Aiko had one of the happiest expressions Shouyou had ever seen. He nodded enthusiastically at her and turned to face Kageyama to tease him for being such a big softie but stopped in his tracks.
Kageyama wasn’t looking at him, he was looking at his niece, face leaning on the palm of his hand and like that Shouyou thought he resembled one of those old, sad paintings, depicting the meaning of life and all that. It was such a discordant image from the one of a smiling child in front of them that Shouyou had to rip his eyes from it.
Seemingly some time had passed, because the playground started to fill with other kids. Kageyama was the first one to notice. He got up and ushered Aiko closer. He zipped up her coat, resettled her scarf right around her neck and ruffled her hair once more, enticing another squeal from the young girl. For all good measure, it looked like he was a young dad sending his daughter to school and Shouyou’s heartbeat sped up.
“You wanted to come here so early to play with the other kids. Now they’re here. You can go but you have to stay where I can see you.” He pulled on her scarf one more time and then let her go, straightening up. Aiko didn’t wait to be told twice. She waved Shouyou goodbye and sprinted to join the other kids.
Shouyou waved back weakly, he was still thinking about Kageyama’s earlier look and now that they were alone, he felt compelled to ask. Still, the atmosphere was a little bit awkward for that and he didn’t know how to clear it.
“So…you don’t think I’m pretty?”
Kageyama’s head whipped around so fast Shouyou thought it would snap. Okay maybe it wasn’t the right thing to say and Shouyou could feel his cheeks burn with shame, but it relieved him to see that Kageyama didn’t looked troubled anymore, just irritated by Shouyou's usual dumbassery.
“I mean, I’ve never really pictured you as a doting uncle,” He felt the swat for his head coming before Kageyama even raised his hand. “Ouch! I meant it’s cute when you act like that around children!”
Kageyama’s hand was still on his head and Shouyou could feel it weight him down. It wasn’t the strong grip it used to be in high school, it was more like Kageyama was just holding him. He looked up to the setter’s face and was surprised to see it was flushed, not looking down at Shouyou at all.
“Shut up, dumbass. It’s not cute.”
The pout on his face just contributed to prove him wrong. He still had to let go of Shouyou. it seemed it provided him with some kind of comfort because, when he turned around still visibly embarrassed, he set his eyes on his own hand on top of Shouyou’s head. For a moment there Shouyou saw the same tormented look pass over Kageyama’ features, but as quick as it came it passed. It was starting to really bother Shouyou.
“Hey, um, is everything alright? You had this look before like you were going to cry or something…”
At that Kageyama released his hold on Shouyou’s head, pulling his hand in front of his face like it had all the answers to questions Shouyou didn’t even know existed. He watched as Kageyama sighed and turned around to sit on the bench. He hung his head back, put his arms around the back of the bench. When he noticed that Shouyou was still standing he sat back up and nodded once at the space beside him. Shouyou moved like on autopilot, sitting down without taking his eyes off Kageyama who, as soon as Shouyou was next to him, turned his back to the sky.
“It’s nothing terrible or scary. It’s actually pretty good, everything I’ve ever wanted. I received an offer to play in Italy next year.”
Shouyou felt his eyes widen. Italy? That was a goal any respectable player dreamed to reach in their career, playing in the European league against the strongest opponents. It was more than ‘pretty good’. Shouyou couldn’t comprehend the hesitation. Kageyama never hesitated in anything, or at least nothing that had to do with volleyball. He took a minute to really look at the other and think. It was the first time Kageyama would have to be away from Japan for a very long time, living abroad. It never occurred to Shouyou before that that would be reason for sorrow to the setter, but one look at the young girl playing with other kids in the sand told Shouyou things were different than when they were in high school.
“I’m going.” Kageyama said, distracting Shouyou from his reverie. “I’m going to Italy and I’m going to play volleyball against even strongest teams. I’ve always wanted that, and I still do, but it’s going to be difficult to come back home for birthdays and…I never thought about it, but I’m going to miss it, times like these.”
They both turned to the playground. It struck Shouyou in that moment that, in less than a year, Kageyama was going to leave. He was going to be on the other side of the planet. Again. If they couldn’t see each other when they were a half a day train ride away, with him in Italy the only option left was to revert to too short video calls and stale text messages.
A wave of panic washed over Shouyou. He couldn’t let any other unnumbered years pass between them without knowing. Without knowing if the tension they had back in high school was all inside Shouyou’s head; if that moment back in the Karasuno gym on graduation day had meant to Kageyama what it did to Shouyou; if during the two years he was in Brazil Kageyama had longed for Shouyou with the same passion Shouyou had for him; if now that they were back in Japan he ached to be by Shouyou’s side, to be his partner again, not on the court, but just being everything to each other like they were once, spending time with one another just because they wanted to. Without knowing if Kageyama wanted to kiss him like Shouyou wanted to kiss him.
He was staring, he knew he was. He couldn’t help it. In that still cold enough morning, on a random jog around the park, he had stumbled across the perfect opportunity to confess. Should he, was the question. He had told Bokuto and Atsumu that he thought Kageyama felt the same, he hoped he did. Would him going to Italy change things? Would it be hurtful for him knowing about Shouyou’s affection and having to leave? Or would it be worse to stay silent and never giving them the chance to be together before he had to leave? Shouyou’s head hurt. He wasn’t used to overthink things; he usually did what he wanted and then dealt with the consequences.
“Aren’t you going to say anything? Not that I expect some kind of comforting or bullshit like that, but I thought you would be excited or something. Not that you have to be, I mean that just proves that I’m still ahead of you so work harder, okay? We’re not done yet.” Kageyama, still looking at the kids, had one of those pinched expressions on his face like when he didn’t know if the things he was saying were the right ones, uncomfortable. It was such a distinctive characteristic of his that Shouyou couldn’t help but smile. Kageyama still wasn’t looking at him. “God, I still have to tell Miwa. She better help me break it to Aiko before I go. I don’t know how it happened, but she likes me and-”
“I like you.”
It came out too fast, too soon. It stumbled out of his lips before he even knew he wanted to say it. Kageyama stopped talking and finally, finally, looked at him. Shouyou’s words hung in the space between them, loud among the busy morning’s sounds that surrounded them. It felt incredibly awkward, but they didn’t avert their eyes. Shouyou could see Kageyama’s widen just a tiny bit when he realized that Shouyou was not taking it back and he was surprised to realize that, no, he didn’t want to take it back, play it as a joke. He was one hundred percent serious, and he needed Kageyama to know.
“I like you, Kageyama. I’ve liked you for so long. Ever since I came back to Japan all I’ve wanted to do was be with you, so I was planning on telling you as soon as I could see you. I wanted to do things right, ask you on a date and take you out somewhere nice, but when you said you were going away, I realized I couldn’t wait anymore.”
Kageyama was still as a rock, eyes still comically wide, lips slightly pulled apart. I get the timing was bad, but it couldn’t have come as that much of a surprise, Shouyou thought. A couple of seconds passed, a minute, almost two and Kageyama still wasn’t moving, Shouyou feared he wasn’t breathing anymore.
“Oi, Kageyama. What the hell?” He waved a hand in front of the other’s face, who finally seemed to recollect himself, now looking more confused than surprised.
“You…like me? As in like me like me?”
“Yes, idiot. Haven’t I already said it like four times? Why are you so surprised, I thought you knew?”
“What?! How could I know that? You never said anything before.”
“I didn’t know how to say it! And I mean, we had chemistry, I thought it was obvious there was something between us. What about graduation? Don’t tell me you didn’t feel anything.”
“How could I know you felt the same, dumbass, you literally left the country the day after.”
“It’s not my fault you’re so slow.”
“You’re a moron.”
“Asshole.”
“Jerk.”
They were bickering. Shouyou had just confessed his long-time crush on his best friend and here they were, bickering like they were still fifteen. That’s why Shouyou had wanted to do things in order, so he could avoid all this unnecessary drama. They had waited long enough, and he just wanted to hear Kageyama ans-
“Wait. What did you say?”
Kageyama looked at him, eyes still aflame from their squabble. That fire died down the moment he took in Shouyou’s question, red spreading to his cheeks.
“What do you mean?”
“You said you didn’t know I felt the same. Does that mean…does that mean you like me too?”
Kageyama was still blushing, but he straightened his back and looked straight into Shouyou’s eyes. It was such an intense stare that Shouyou felt like pulling back from it, but he steeled himself and reciprocated it. After a bit, Kageyama seemed satisfied and averted his eyes from Shouyou’s face, blush still persistent on his.
“Obviously.” He grumbled. “Dumbass.” He added as an afterthought.
And that was it. They never needed words between them, but it was incredibly comforting to hear those come out of Kageyama’s mouth, and they made Shouyou’s heart race. It suddenly felt like the narrow space between their thighs was immense and Shouyou was conscious of every movement Kageyama’s hands made. It didn’t escape him either that they were in a very public area, surrounded by kids and parents who, most likely, wouldn’t want to see Shouyou climb on top of Kageyama’s lap and kiss him till they were both panting and avid for more, like he wanted to.
He inched closer anyway. Kageyama tensed when their thighs touched. Shouyou could feel the heat flow from Kageyama through his jeans, stiff against the thin material of his athletic leggings. No one was paying them attention, no one noticed the closeness of their bodies and the splash of red on top of their cheeks. They didn’t hear Kageyama’s little gasp when Shouyou reached for one of his hand and took it in his. They were hidden between their bodies, and nobody could see the gentle sweep of Kageyama’s thumb over Shouyou’s knuckle. They were the only ones able to hear how hard their hearts were beating.
It felt like the moment lasted forever. They didn’t say anything else, just kept their hands locked together, out of sight, finding comfort in the presence of the other. Shouyou wanted time to stop for a second so he could truly cherish this feeling, this deep, deep love that engulfed his very soul. He had doubted for so long he could have it that it didn’t seem real. He turned to Kageyama, noting the bright blush still present on his face, an adorable look completed by the small, sweet smile adorning his lips, the same he had seen on their last fateful match. Kageyama was positively one of the prettiest men Shouyou had ever seen and he felt the need to let the other know.
That was when they were interrupted by a child jumping on their legs. The bubble surrounding them burst and their joined hands broke apart with the force of reality crashing on them. Aiko was splayed on their laps, grinning up at them. Shouyou couldn’t find it in himself to be mad at the young girl when she looked so happy.
“Tobio you’re all red! Are you sick? Mom says that when you’re sick it’s good to eat ice cream.”
Kageyama rolled his eyes and hefted the kid off Shouyou’s lap, pulling her in a sitting position on his so he could give her his best judgmental look.
“No, she doesn’t. Is that what you want? Ice cream? You don’t look sick anyway.”
“Not for me, it’s you, you’re the one sick.” She pouted, but at the end, under Kageyama’s blank stare, she relented. “Then, if you get one you can buy me one too?”
She gave him the most impressive puppy dog eyes Shouyou had ever seen, and he could tell that Kageyama’s resolve was destroyed immediately by them.
“Fine.” The child cheered on his lap, jumping to latch her arms around his neck and peppering his face with tiny kisses. It was the cutest thing Shouyou had ever witnessed, he had to refrain himself from clutching at his heart.
“Do you want to come with us?” Kageyama asked him. He was still being attacked by the torrent of affection, but his eyes were on Shouyou’s face, lingering.
Shouyou was about to accept when he remembered that he was supposed to be on a jog and then go back home for practice. In a panic he fished his phone out of his pocket and looked at the time. It wasn’t extremely late, but with the time it would take him to run back to the dorm, shower and get ready, he would barely make it on time. He turned back to Kageyama, now having another set of eyes trained on him, hopeful for his answer.
“Sorry, but I can’t. I have practice and I should probably go if I don’t want to be late.” With that he stood up, taking in the crestfallen look on Aiko’s face and the understanding one on Kageyama’s.
“Aiko, it was a pleasure to meet you! We live in the same city so if you want to, we can see each other again!” He told the girl, cheerful. She smiled at him and jumped to her feet to hug him tightly.
Over her head he could see Kageyama looking at them with the same fond, sad look from before. It made Shouyou’s heart ache in his chest and he wanted nothing more than pull him into the hug and smother him with love.
When Aiko released him, Kageyama got to his feet and stood in front of Shouyou, watching him intently. Shouyou could feel the tension rising between their bodies and he could sense his eyes drop to Kageyama’s lips before they even moved. It took everything in him to take them back to Kageyama’s eyes, which sparked with a new light.
“I guess, I’ll see you.” Shouyou said, because really what else could he say? “Call me, okay?” He added.
He gave Kageyama one more look before turning around. He was stretching and about to start running when he felt a hand on his wrist. Kageyama was not looking at his face and the blush that still hadn’t left him had spread to the tips of his ears.
“I’m staying in Osaka for another couple of days. If you want to, we could…” His eyes shifted momentarily from his shoes to Shouyou’s face, his lips and then his shoes again. “…we could do go out one night. Do what you said before.”
It took Shouyou a second to understand but when he did, he felt the biggest smile ever stretch his lips wide. He looked around and when he could see no one looking at them, he pulled Kageyama closer by the hand on his wrist and planted a gentle kiss on his cheek. Kageyama immediately sprung away, hand flying to his cheek, which was redder than it had been all morning. He glared at Shouyou who instead gave him one of his cheekiest looks.
“You’re too cute.”
Kageyama’s dash aimed directly for his head, but Shouyou avoided it without problems, laughter flowing through the air.
“Dumbass.” Kageyama gritted out.
“Too bad you’re going on a date with this dumbass.”
With that and one last, longing glance at the other, Shouyou set himself on the road home. The last thing he could hear was Aiko’s high voice telling Kageyama “Tobio you said a bad word” And him replying “No I didn’t” before he lost their voices to the noises of the city moving around him.
The run back to the dorms felt like floating through the air. His teammates noticed immediately his elated spirit, commenting on how they thought it was impossible for him to be more ecstatic then usual. Shouyou really thought about it and it was true, he had been happy with his life and made sure to enjoy every single moment of it to the fullest. Still, with everything that happened that day, it felt like a piece of him had been put in the right place. Like, for the first time he could look at life and savor the significance of being alive to the fullest.
It should have been scary, to feel like that just from having his feelings reciprocated, but the truth was that what Shouyou was feeling was the unbroken weight of Kageyama’s presence in his life. Their journey together was finally coming to its culmination, the highest peak of their life.
It wasn’t scary. Shouyou was beyond excited. It took him long to get where he was and after all the effort and time and sacrifice, he had to put in, he felt like he deserved the love at the end of the road. And, of course, there was no one else he could share that love with except for the one who was always at his side, who supported him through all of it and who believed in him from the very beginning. His other half.
Or whatever. He was not going to overthink it even more. He had a date to prepare for and really, in the end, it all came down to Kageyama smiling sweetly at kids.