Archive of Our Own

✯ Ojiro Aran and Kita Shinsuke ✯

Atsumu first became aware of love languages because of Aran and Kita-san. However, by that time, he was not even aware it was called that, or that there was a term for it. He just figured out, from watching his senpais, that everyone has a different way of showing their love and that everyone also has a different way of recognizing it from others. 

Even before they started dating during Atsumu’s second year, everyone had already seen and recognized them as the parents of the team and everyone knew that if they ever dated, they would make the perfect couple.

When they did get together, a perfect couple was indeed formed. But, like every other couple out there, there were times where Atsumu could sense a small bit of tension between his senpais. 

Atsumu is sure that Kita-san is a firm believer that ‘actions speak louder than words.’ He was blunt and precise with his words, and he always uses stone cold logic in conversing with everyone. Atsumu knows this, but he still has a hard time sometimes accepting the fact that Kita-san cares for him and everyone on the team. Kita-san may be blunt, but he knows that he cares for them. 

It can be seen in how he makes sure that each care package that he gives his teammates when they get sick is tailored and customized according to their liking, and it serves as a balm that soothes the sting of his scolding on not taking care of themselves. It can be seen in how he arrives first, before everyone else, to morning training greeting everyone. It can be seen in how thoroughly Kita-san cleans their clubroom, the gym, and their equipment. He cares, he truly does. 

Aran, on the other hand, says everything he wants to say. Aran has always been genuine and he was good at giving pep talks. Atsumu had known Aran ever since they were kids and he was always known as the encouraging senpai, saying words that he thinks everyone should hear. 

✯✯✯

No one is safe from Kita-san’s stone cold logic. Everyone knows that. Atsumu understands that even though Kita-san and Aran are dating, sometimes Aran is still subjected to their captain’s harsh but honest words. 

Most of the time, Aran can just brush it off, but it seems this is not one of those times as he sees, from afar, Aran and Kita in what seems to be a heated discussion.

Practice started already a few minutes ago, and Oomimi asked Atsumu to try and look for them. They were only doing serve practice for that afternoon, and Atsumu figures he can always ask to stay a little later if he feels he wasn’t able to practice enough.  

He is currently unsure if he should actually approach them or if he should go back around and just make an excuse for them. Atsumu waits for a few seconds, but even though he can’t actually hear what they were saying, he can see that it is not going to end anytime soon. 

Atsumu makes a move to turn back around, but stops when he sees Aran just turn around and start to walk away. Kita is still standing there, and he sees the usually proud silhouette, slightly hunched while Kita-san is just staring at the direction that Aran had walked away to. 

Atsumu is sure that he isn’t supposed to witness that. He can simply walk away. It’s normal for couples to fight; hell, he’s seen his parents do it too, but they always talk it out and they get better. He knows Kita-san and Aran will do the same.

He should walk away, but Atsumu feels his stomach drop at the thought of just leaving his usually stoic captain still standing on the same spot, unmoving. He bites on his bottom lip, trying to decide on what to do next. 

What’s the worst that could happen? Kita-san can just tell him that it’s none of his business. Osamu does that on the daily, so it would be fine, he was used to it.

“Uh, Kita-san,” Atsumu steps next to Kita, and it takes a few beats before Kita finally turns his head to acknowledge Atsumu.

“Atsumu. Sorry, I din’t see ya there. Is there somethin’ ya wanted?” 

“Uh, are ya okay? I mean are ya ‘nd Aran-san goin’ to be okay?” It is not Atsumu’s business at all, and he knows that, but he isn’t the sort to sit at the sidelines and just wait for things to fix by themselves. He acknowledges very well that it can be as much a strength and weakness at the same time. 

Kita focuses all his attention onto Atsumu, and he can feel the heavy pressuring weight of Kita’s stare. Kita sighs and smiles slightly, “Atsumu, ya know no one’s perfect, right?” Atsumu just nods, unsure where this conversation was headed. “And no one is the same. Ya know this more deeply, because ya have a twin. Ya know that even though you ‘nd Osamu might look the same, you are still entirely different persons.” 

Kita pauses, breathing deeply, and Atsumu has no idea where his senpai is heading with this.

“Kita-san?” 

“Relationships are the same. People involved in the relationships even more so,” Kita sighs, “It’s okay Atsumu. I just said something to Aran that I didn’t think through enough.” Kita frowned slightly, “No, I thought about it, but I just didn’t think of the impact that it would have after I said it.” Kita sighs, “Atsumu.” 

“Uh, yes? Kita-san!” 

“Learn from this, especially with how loosely ya talk. There are things that yer okay hearing, but others are not.” 

Atsumu just nods, hearing the words, but not fully understanding what they meant. 

✯ Oomimi Ren ✯

Morning training has just finished and Atsumu finds himself going through the motions in a hurry. He changes into his school uniform quickly, rushing through his usual routine, knowing that he had homework that was due during the second period that he still wasn’t finished. 

But it was as if all of that didn’t matter once he saw Oomimi standing in front of his locker holding a pink letter that he had obviously just pulled from his shoebox. 

He screeches to a halt at the unusual sight of his senpai. He knows that Oomimi was stoic, and he is second to Kita-san in terms of showing no emotions at all, and knowing all of that, no one can blame Atsumu as he stops at the sight of a small smile that was pulling on his senpai’s lips as he gazes at a baby pink letter that looked so tiny in comparison to his large hand. 

“Oomimi-san?” His senpai turns in surprise at Atsumu’s voice. 

“Atsumu, din’t ya say that you had homework due? What are ya still doin’ here? Shinsuke will scold you later if he finds out that you weren’t able to pass it,” and this is the senpai that Atsumu knows, not the weird person from a moment ago that was smiling because of a baby pink envelope.

“Yeah, I can do that later during class,” Atsumu waves the issue off and Oomimi frowns slightly. It was obvious to Atsumu that he’s about to start lecturing him so he quickly directs his senpai’s attention by pointing at the peculiar envelope and asks, “What’s that?” 

Oomimi blinks at the change in subject, and glances at the envelope he was holding, “It’s a love letter.” 

“A love letter?!” 

Okay, in his defense, Atsumu knows what a love letter is. He has received numerous of them during his time here in Inarizaki, and even more when he was still in middle school. What isn’t clear, however, is why his senpai is  receiving one. 

That sounded bad. What he’s trying to say is that everyone knows that his senpai has a girlfriend and that they are, as Aran said, ‘very cute together.’ He is confused as to why Oomimi-san was receiving one, even with that common knowledge, and why  Oomimi-san is smiling blissfully (in Oomimi-san’s standards at least), as if he was happy that he received one. 

“Don’t you already have a girlfriend?” 

Oomimi blinks again at the question, “I do.” 

Atsumu scrunches his forehead, “Why are ya happy that yer receiving a love letter from someone else then?” 

Oomimi blinks a few times, before realizing what Atsumu is thinking. He smiles slightly, “Atsumu, this letter is from my girlfriend .” 

Atsumu’s expression does not light up with that explanation, “Why is she still sendin’ ya love letters then? Can’t she just text ya?” 

Oomimi lets out a small laugh that shocks Atsumu, “This is just how she is Atsumu, and I love her for it.” 

Atsumu doesn’t know if he wanted to say ‘aww’ or ‘ew,’ and it obviously shows in his facial expression, as Oomimi shoots him with an amused look.

“She went out of town with her family during the weekend, and she told me she had a gift for me and that she left it in my shoebox.” 

“How did she tell ya that?” 

“She texted me.” 

“Then why didn’t she just include all the shit she wrote in there?” 

“She wanted to make her gift extra special.” 

Atsumu is still confused, but Oomimi has already turned to see what his girlfriend has actually given him, and he peeks over his senpai’s shoulder to also see what it was. He’s already invested, sue him. 

“Oh it’s tea. What do you think is a good thank you gift for this?” 

Atsumu gets even more confused, “Why can’t ya just say ‘thank you’?” 

Oomimi smiles in a way that reminds Atsumu of a teacher exasperated with their student, but still patient nonetheless. 

“What you’ve got to understand, Atsumu, is this is how she shows her love. Her way of saying ‘I love you’ to me.” Atsumu scrunches his face in disgust at the sweetness in his senpai’s words and voice. “And if this is her way of saying that, then I have to make sure that I say ‘I love you’ to her in the same way as she does to me to make her feel it even more.” 

“That sounds so complicated,” Atsumu whines. “Why can’t ya just say that to each other?” 

Oomimi laughs and pats Atsumu’s head, “Everyone’s just different. When you get older you’ll understand.” He says before walking away.

Atsumu takes a second to digest Oomimi’s words, and then he yells, “Ya can’t say that! Yer just one year older than me!” 

Atsumu feels a sharp pain on the back of his head, and he turns to see his brother with his hand still in the air. It was obvious that he had just used that hand to slap Atsumu’s neck from behind. 

“Stop yelling in the hallway, ya dumbass!” 

“Did you just hit me?!” 

Suna steps in view, frowning at him, “Keep it down, will you?” 

Atsumu scoffs, not even sparing an effort to reply. He turns around to rush to class, because, after all, he still has homework he has to do, and that weird conversation with his senpai just settles on the back of his head. 

✯ Akagi Michinari and Ginjima Hitoshi ✯

Atsumu looks at Gin in baffled confusion. He can hear snickering from one corner of the locker room, and glances to see Suna filming while Osamu was snickering at Gin’s unnaturally red face. 

“Why is yer face red?” 

Atsumu’s question somehow makes the situation worse as Gin’s blush spreads further down his neck, while the ones on his cheek darkens to almost a cherry color.

Suna puts down his phone, “Are you serious?”

“What?!” 

Osamu just shakes his head, “Don’t even bother. Atsumu might be able to read people well on the volleyball court, but outside of it, he’s as dumb as a bag of bricks.”  

“‘Samu, yer the dumbass here!” 

✯✯✯

Atsumu looks on bewildered once again at the sight of the blush growing on Gin’s face that was becoming increasingly obvious even though they are currently standing on opposite sides of the court. It doesn’t look like anything’s out of the ordinary except for the fact that Akagi-san is currently hanging on Gin’s back. 

Akagi-san seems to think it’s fun to pounce on unsuspecting kohai as they were cleaning the gym and to hang on for his life, wrapping his arms around Gin’s neck. 

The smile on Akagi’s face along with the weird flustered expression on Gin’s slowly makes it dawn on Atsumu that there might be something going on there. He’s seen enough to know how some romantic relationships start, but this one has got to be the most peculiar one he’s seen so far. Kita-san and Aran did spend some time before they actually got together skirting around each other shyly and awkwardly, but if this is the way that Akagi wooes Gin, then Atsumu will just have to believe that each romantic pair has their own special brand of ‘courting ritual’ that they follow. 

For the next few days, Atsumu observes Akagi and Gin’s peculiar ‘courting ritual’. What immediately catches his attention is the fact that Akagi seems to go out of his way to be able to touch Gin. It wasn’t obvious at all if he wasn’t observing them closely, but he was sure that Akagi didn’t have to walk on that side of the locker room just to get to the door. The other side of the benches were perfectly empty where there was little to no chance of brushing against your teammates. 

Now that Atsumu is well aware of what Akagi is trying to do, he notices more of the peculiar things that he does. Mundane things, such as handing out water bottles suddenly become extra interesting as Akagi hands Gin his water bottle, making sure that their hands brush each other during the transfer. 

What’s even stranger is that Atsumu catches them leaving the campus together, walking so closely that their arms brush with every swing as they walk away. Atsumu stands at the school gates frowning at the scene, and that was how Osamu and Suna found him a few moments later, still staring at the space where Akagi and Gin occupied a few minutes ago. 

“What is up with ya?” Osamu pushes him slightly to make him start walking. 

“There’s something going on between Gin and Akagi-san.” 

Suna snorts, “Of course there is. It’s been going on for months already.” 

“What?! Why didn’t I know then?” 

“It’s because they didn’t tell anyone. I think they’re trying to keep it a secret.” 

Osamu snorts at that, his mouth full of the onigiri that he was munching on. “Not that they’re succeeding. They should really stop with the PDAs if they don’t want people to think there’s somethin’ going on between them.”

“If they’re together, why is Gin blushing so much then every time they touch?” 

Suna shrugs, “I don’t know. Maybe he’s not used to it yet.” Atsumu hums at that, lightly accepting but still contemplating Gin’s weird behavior. 

It’s the next day, and Atsumu is quieter than usual as Kita steps next to him. 

“What are ya thinkin’ so hard about?” 

Atsumu jolts at the sudden voice, only noticing now that Kita has sidled up next to him. “It’s nothing important, Kita-san!” 

Kita only narrows his eyes slightly, a clear indication that he does not believe the bullshit that came out of Atsumu’s mouth, and that he’s expecting the truth in the next statement. 

Atsumu coughs and clears his throat for a moment, trying to relieve the tension and pressure Kita was emitting. “It’s just Gin. Suna told me that he and Akagi might have been in a relationship for a few months now, but Gin keeps blushing and getting flustered everytime Akagi touches him.”

“Hmmm. I did notice that they’ve been acting peculiar the past few months around each other.” 

“Ya did? Why was I the last one to see it?” Atsumu whines.

“I think it’s because they’ve really been doing a good job hidin’ it before. But the secretive glances they send to one another was makin’ it obvious, and also the fact that they go home together even though Gin usually goes home with ya, Osamu and Suna.” 

Atsumu’s eyebrows fly up at that. How could he not notice that Gin was in fact not walking home with them anymore? He must have been really into volleyball not to notice anything else. Osamu’s words about him being ‘dumb as bricks’ outside of the volleyball court echoes back to him, and he resents the fact that the statement might be slightly true. 

✯✯✯

Atsumu is so confused. Akagi and Gin were obviously dating. He had even caught them hugging in the shadows once. He wasn’t seen and it was a good thing he was able to backtrack quickly when he realized what was happening. 

They were obviously officially together. The amount of times Atsumu caught them holding hands on their walk home and on the bus on the way to games was just the cementing evidence he needed. But what he did not understand is why they were acting as if they were not, although, as Osamu had pointed out, they suck at it. 

Atsumu is still so confused as to why Gin keeps blushing like that everytime Akagi brushes— brushes! Their arms just barely touched for not even a second— against him. He’s pretty sure Akagi’s doing this on purpose now. He spies the tiny little smirk that was playing on Akagi’s lips as he lightly glances back to see Gin’s reactions. 

As to why Akagi does it, Atsumu honestly has no idea. Until one day, he was running late because a teacher had to speak to him about one of his class projects and so it was expected that when he arrived to change to his training clothes, most of the team would have been done already and the locker room vacated. As he arrives, he catches Akagi holding on to one of Gin’s hands as they were sitting on the benches, talking. 

At the sight of Atsumu, Gin steps away so quickly that he almost trips over his own feet, he glances back and forth between Atsumu and Akagi a few times, before he stammers out, “P-practice! Yes, I—I’m goin’ to go to practice!” And then proceeds to run away. 

Atsumu looks at Akagi in bewildered confusion at what exactly happened only to find his senpai trying to suppress his laughter, his face flushed. A few seconds after Gin hightailed out of there, Akagi lets himself finally laugh out loud.

“He’s so fuckin’ cute.” Atsumu just stares as Akagi smiles so sweetly towards the direction Gin has run off to, still sitting on the bench. 

“Everyone knows yer together, ya know.” Atsumu blurts out. 

Akagi looks at him and laughs, “I know. Don’t tell Gin though, he thinks we’re doing a good job hidin’ it.” 

Atsumu tilts his head, “Why are ya guys keen on keepin’ it a secret?” 

“Hmm?” Akagi humms, leaning back on his arms. “Gin, mostly. He thinks ya guys wouldn’t accept us or somethin’.” 

Atsumu scrunches his eyebrows. “What? He knows Aran-kun and Kita-san are datin’ right? Also my brother and Sunarin? Why wouldn’t we accept ya or anythin’?” He asks, genuinely confused at the thought.

Akagi smiles genuinely at Atsumu, “I know, but Gin worries.” 

“Is that why he keeps blushing everytime you touch him?” 

His senpai laughs again and stands up patting Atsumu’s shoulder as he passes by him on his way to his locker to put away his things along with the things Gin left in his hurry. “Everyone has different measures of intimacy, and for Gin it happens to be touch, something I discovered after spending a lot of time with him. He’s a cuddler ya know?” 

“I know.” Atsumu grumbles as he changes, “I saw ya guys hugging once. In public.” 

Akagi laughs, “Yeah, it’s his way of saying ‘I love you’, and so every time I touch him, it’s my way of saying ‘I love you’ back, and he gets so embarrassed because we are in public. It’s so cute.” Akagi finishes putting away his things and heads out. “Hurry up. Shinsuke will not hesitate to make you run laps if you’re late.” 

And that warning makes everything that Akagi-san had said fly out the window as he hurriedly puts his volleyball shoes on.

✯ Miya Osamu and Suna Rintarou ✯

When Osamu and Suna finally got together, it was not at all noticeable to the rest of the team. They did not act differently towards one another in public, or do anything in particular to change how the rest of the team perceives their unusual relationship . 

This, however, doesn’t mean that their so-called friendship was ever considered as normal by the rest of the team. Even before, they had different guesses of what they’re exact relationship really was. The most common guesses being that they were either oblivious idiots, pining idiots, or in a secret relationship idiots. 

Or just plain idiots, Atsumu thinks.

It’s not like they were acting like usual friends would towards one another. Osamu and Suna, being in the same class, had always spent a lot of time together. It was a normal sight to see them arrive on the roof together for lunch. A normal sight for Suna to give Osamu the rest of his lunch once he figured that he’d had enough. A normal sight for Suna to flatten Osamu’s thighs to the floor and use it as a pillow. 

Atsumu merely rolls his eyes as Osamu lets Suna direct and shift his body around while he  continues eating. At least, Atsumu was pretty sure that this was not how usual friends acted towards one another anyway. Suna and Osamu don’t act this way with the other members of their team, and Atsumu was sure that they do all of these things unconsciously. 

Atsumu doesn’t know when they’re relationship officially gained the title of dating, but he was sure that the only thing that the title added to their relationship was the kissing. Atsumu denies anything else has been added, even with the amount of times he’s found Suna in his and Osamu’s shared room and on top of his brother. 

The rest of the team had only been alerted by the shift in their relationship during the qualifying match for the Spring Nationals during their second year. 

Osamu was not allowed to play because he was sick. Atsumu had scolded him and had tried to force him to stay home, but Osamu was stubborn. He wanted to watch their game and wanted to keep it a secret from the rest of the team knowing that Kita-san would most likely stare disapprovingly at him until he went home. Atsumu would most likely be stared at as well for allowing that to happen, and that would not be fair to him at all.

So Atsumu played, though a little stiffly, knowing that his brother was not there to cover for him in case something went wrong. Atsumu had never known that there was a peace of mind that Osamu brought to him when they’re standing on the same court, even though they didn’t have a particularly strong opponent.

When they won, it seemed like everything that Atsumu worried about was moot. They won in straight sets even without Osamu there. The relief Atsumu felt after was a new one as well. 

What was new as well was that after the game, the team caught sight of Osamu in the stands, and that it wasn’t Kita-san who walked towards him and started scolding him. Suna marched up there and had started berating Osamu while also tightening the scarf around his neck, fixing the face mask on his face, and making sure that he was kept warm by the jacket he had on. 

The team looked on as Osamu just smiled fondly at Suna’s words and actions. Suna, seeing that Osamu was not taking him seriously just flicked his forehead and, to the surprise of the team, laid a kiss on it as well. 

✯✯✯

Nothing changed after that. Atsumu refuses to think that something changed after that, and sometimes Atsumu thinks that nothing really was going on. Atsumu often sees Sunarin over at their house just sitting and leaning on Osamu while watching movies in the living room. Atsumu is happy for his twin, but sometimes, he feels jealous of what Osamu has found with Suna. 

The best memory he has of the both of them is of Osamu cooking in the kitchen while Suna is just there sitting on one of the barstools on their kitchen island scrolling through his phone. They’re not even talking. 

Atsumu was not sure how long he was standing in the doorway of their kitchen when Osamu turned around with a spoon, blew on it, and placed it in front of Suna. Suna, who was staring at something on his phone, just opened his mouth and took what Osamu was offering with a hum and a comment that it tasted good. 

It was the interaction after that had Atsumu clutching at his heart. Osamu just looks at Suna with a really soft adoring look in his eyes, the softest that Atsumu has ever seen on his brother’s face. Suna just looks up and stares at Osamu with the usual Suna blank look, but Atsumu was sure he could see his cheek twitch with a small smile.

Atsumu left them alone after that, and it didn’t matter anymore how hungry he was. That moment of intimacy was already too much for him, but as he goes up the stairs he wonders to himself if he will ever be capable of looking at someone the same way his twin looks at Suna. 

Being identical twins, they spent most of their formative years establishing their differences from each other and, for once, Atsumu wishes that he will look exactly like Osamu just did if he ever finds someone.

✯✯✯

Every relationship has its ups and downs, Atsumu knows this. He’s seen it in every relationship he has observed in the past years, whether platonic or romantic.

He was just not ready for the gut-wrenching sobs that his brother is currently gasping out. Atsumu tightens his grip around his brother as Osamu also tightens his grip on Atsumu’s shoulders while they were both on the floor of the genkan in Atsumu’s apartment. Osamu’s head is tucked in Atsumu’s shoulders and he could feel the tears seeping through his shirt as his twin continued to cry. 

He does not know what brought this on. All he knows is that it is one in the morning, and he is supposed to be asleep. He remembers waking up to a phone call, struggling against his covers, trying to find his blaring phone, and squinting against his phone’s bright light only to see that it was Osamu. 

“‘Samu, this better be an emergency, ya scrub. Do ya fuckin’ know what time it-”

“‘Tsumu,” Atsumu stops his rant when he hears Osamu’s quiet voice. 

Osamu has always had a softer voice than him. Everyone knew that, but what other people don’t know is that Osamu can be as loud as Atsumu if it were only the two of them, especially if it was only the two of them. But Osamu’s tone of voice sounds wrong. His voice was muffled as if there was something in his throat and all he could gasp out was his name. 

“‘Samu?” Atsumu tries to rub the sleep from his eyes, “Wha—What’s wrong?” 

“Are ya in yer apartment?” 

“I am.” Atsumu shuffles out of his bed, this time sure that something really is wrong. He puts on a shirt and some jogging pants while still holding the phone to his ear, “Where are you? I’m goin’ to pick you up. Are ya in yer apartment? I’ll be there in 30 minutes, tops.” 

Atsumu grabs his car keys and his wallet, before opening the door and recoiling at the surprise sight in front of him. Atsumu blinks, unsure if what he is seeing was a product of his sleep-addled brain, but Osamu launching himself towards him is an enough indication that this is real.

“‘Tsumu!” Atsumu has just enough time to support the both of them as they fall to the ground to make sure that he falls sitting upright. Atsumu winces at the impact of both of their weights on his butt, and he is sure that it is going to bruise tomorrow. Atsumu uses his foot to close the front door, telling himself that he would lock it later. 

Atsumu is about to scold Osamu for making them fall to the floor when Osamu lets out his first sob, and Atsumu can finally see, at close proximity, the tear stains that are on his brother’s cheek. 

“‘Samu?” Osamu nuzzles in closer to him, pressing his face into Atsumu’s shoulder. “What happened?” 

Osamu just grips his brother tighter, his arms that were initially wrapped around Atsumu’s waist, now crawling up to grip his shoulders as he continues to cry. 

Atsumu has never seen his brother like this. He is not sure what could make his brother cry like this. Atsumu just hugs his brother back tightly, sure that he would find out later. 

After all, they tell each other everything. 

Osamu fell asleep in Atsumu’s arms, and Atsumu does not blame him one bit. He tired himself out from crying and gasping, and it is almost 2 in the morning, meaning they had to have been sitting on the floor for almost an hour. His butt is numb due to not moving for so long.

Atsumu, however, curses him for being heavy as fuck. After a few minutes of struggling, grunting, and leaning on walls and everything he can use as a support as he pauses and rests, he finally drops his brother on his couch. Osamu doesn’t even stir slightly the entire time. He must have been really tired. 

Atsumu stands next to the couch as he observes and looks him over. The dark shadows beneath his eyes were a clear indication that he has not had enough sleep for the past few days. He sighs, getting an extra pillow and blanket from his closet. He also takes a moist towel to wipe off the tear stains on his cheeks, making sure to not wake him up. 

He locks the door, and makes sure to text his captain and his coach that he won’t be able to attend training tomorrow. 

He debates going back to his bedroom to sleep, but he’s afraid that if Osamu wakes up first, he might leave without saying anything. Osamu has a bad habit of running away from confrontation. 

Atsumu shrugs and instead of waiting up until his brother wakes up, decides to just take every bit of way Osamu can escape. He frisks ‘Samu’s pockets for his phone, wallet and keys; also making sure that he brings his own wallet and keys to his room. He can worry about this tomorrow.

✯✯✯

The next morning, he wakes up to find Osamu sitting on his dining table nursing a cup of coffee. As soon as he sees Atsumu, he sends him a glare, which Atsumu merely rolls his eyes at. Atsumu’s too tired to start a fight with his brother with only so little sleep.

“Where are my things, dumbass?” 

Atsumu just raises an eyebrow at the fake hostility that his brother is giving out. “I hid it. That way, you won’t run away before givin’ me an explanation for what happened last night.” 

“I don’t want to talk about it.” Osamu mumbles as he lowers his gaze, concentrating all of his attention on his coffee mug in an attempt to hide his expression. 

“I don’t care. You have to talk about it. It doesn’t have to be now, but ya are not leaving my apartment until you talk to me ‘bout it.” 

“I have classes and ya have trainin’ ‘Tsumu.” 

Atsumu shrugs as he pours his own coffee and sits across from his brother, “Good thing it’s the weekend then. You have plenty of time to get it out before you have to go back to uni. As for me, I can simply ask to skip training, and they’ll let me, because I never ask for time off.” He feels his stomach grumble, not used to him waking up later than usual. “Cook us some breakfast ‘Samu. I’m hungry.” 

“I’m only making myself breakfast, cook your own food, dumbass.” 

Atsumu watches Osamu stand up to go to the refrigerator to survey what he can make with Atsumu’s available ingredients, and he suppresses a smile as Osamu still takes out ingredients enough to feed the both of them.

They spend the whole day avoiding the elephant in the room. Well, Osamu was doing all the avoiding, and Atsumu was just happy to let him be. They bicker, share stories of what they have missed since they last saw each other, and generally just bask in the presence of their literal other half.

It is late afternoon when Osamu finally decides to talk. They are currently on the floor leaning on the couch as they watch a movie that Atsumu had picked. As soon as the credits start rolling, Osamu speaks softly, “I think Rin and I broke up.” It was so soft, as if speaking the words out loud means he would finally acknowledge it. 

Atsumu’s eyes widened, not expecting that piece of news at all. He assumed it was something to do with being overwhelmed in college, but he had never thought that it had anything to do with Sunarin. 

Atsumu frowns at his brother’s choice of words, “What do you mean by you think you and Sunarin broke up?” 

“We had a huge fight last night.” 

“Okay?” Osamu stays quiet, and Atsumu is getting more incredulous by the second, “Wait. That’s it? You guys had a huge fight last night, and now you think you broke up?” 

“It wasn’t the fight itself. It’s just been hard lately.” Osamu pauses, and sighs deeply. “No, it’s always been hard, but lately he’s been busy, I’ve been busy, and somehow our free time just doesn't coincide with one another at all. We can’t have a phone call for more than 10 minutes without getting interrupted, and we haven’t seen each other in months.” Osamu pauses and looks away for a second. “I know that this was to be expected when we decided to push through with a long-distance relationship, but I did not expect it to be this hard ‘Tsumu. I want to be there for him, and I want him to be there for me. I miss him. I miss him so bad, and I don’t know what to do.” 

“‘You’re going to fry your small brain if you continue thinking too much.” Osamu punches him hard on the arm. “Oww! Damn you, I’m trying to help you here!” 

Osamu glares at him, “I don’t see or hear any helping.” 

Atsumu just rolls his eyes, “It’s simple ‘Samu. Which do you think is more painful, what you have going on now or not having Suna at all?” 

“What do you mean?” 

“Well, ‘Samu, ya were sayin’ how hard maintainin’ your current relationship is right now, at this point in yer lives. Right now, the only alternative ya have is cuttin’ it off completely.” Osamu looks away at that. “I’m asking ya right now if you think the highs in your relationship are still worth all of these lows.” 

Osamu went silent. It was at this moment when Atsumu’s phone starts to ring from the bedroom. Atsumu stands up to get it, “Think ‘bout it ‘Samu.” 

Atsumu grabs his phone and checks the caller id.

Sunarin

Atsumu rolls his eyes, “Sunarin?” 

Atsumu hears harsh breathing from the other end and some shuffling, “Atsumu. Do you know where your brother is?” 

“Yeah, I do. Why?” 

Suna lets out a sigh, “Is he at your apartment? We had a huge fight yesterday and he’s not answering his phone.” Whoops, that is probably Atsumu’s fault. He peeks at his brother’s phone and, sure enough, it is filled with Suna’s missed calls.  No way was he telling Suna that though. 

“Yeah, he is. He arrived around one this morning.” 

Atsumu hears more shuffling, a zipper, rushed footsteps, and a door being open and closed. “Okay. Don’t let him leave. I’m headed towards there right now.” 

Atsumu raises an eyebrow at that, “Don’t ya have trainin’ today?” 

“I do, and I could ask you the same thing.” Atsumu rolls his eyes at the deadpan tone, but he understands what Suna is trying to say. 

“Okay. See ya in two hours then.” Suna relays the same sentiment and they both hang up. Atsumu debates giving Osamu back his phone, but decides not to. He can wait a little longer. 

Atsumu comes back to the living room to a pensive Osamu. He sits next to him on the floor and softly hits his brother’s head with his fist to get his attention. Osamu just glares at him.

Atsumu rolls his eyes, “What are you thinkin’ so hard ‘bout?” 

“I’m thinkin’ that someone must ‘ave replaced you with a better prototype since you actually said somethin’ smart.” Atsumu squawks at that. “I’m also just wonderin’ if I should tell our, well, my mother, or just let her think that ya actually got smarter.” 

“I’m tryin’ to help ya here!” Atsumu yelps, but stops as he sees the small smile that was playing on his brother’s lips. 

It is a small smile, but it tells Atsumu so much of what he needs to know. 

“Thank you, ya brat,” Atsumu rolls his eyes at the insult, but smiles at his brother all the same. 

“I’m just glad ya came to me last night.” 

They spend the rest of the time waiting for Suna—not that Osamu knows that they are—watching television, eating, and just being plain annoying to each other. 

“Why can’t I fuckin’ leave ‘Tsumu?” Osamu glances at the clock, “It’s going to be rush hour soon and I don’t want to be stuck in traffic.” 

Atsumu just rolls his eyes, “Sleep here then. I don’t care.” 

Osamu glares at him, “Ya just want someone to cook for ya.” 

Atsumu shrugs as if to say ‘oh well’.

The doorbell rings, and Atsumu ignores it, choosing to just focus on the volleyball match that is playing on the television. The doorbell continues to ring, each time with a smaller interval in between, as if the person was getting impatient. 

Atsumu smiles to himself, wanting so hard to laugh out loud. Osamu just stares at him, with his eyebrows scrunching, from where he is sitting on the couch, as if waiting for him to actually get up from the floor. 

After two more very angry doorbell rings, Osamu has had enough and kicks him, “Are you deaf? Why are ya not answerin’ the door?” 

“Hmmm?” Atsumu looks up and when the doorbell rings again, says, “Oh, can ya get that, please?” 

Osamu narrows his eyes at him, and Atsumu thinks that maybe the ‘please’ was an overkill, but it’s enough to pique Osamu’s curiosity all the same. 

His brother gets up, muttering, “Why the hell am I the one openin’ yer door. I don’t fuckin’ live here,” and Atsumu waits until he is fully turned away from him before he props himself up on the couch to watch the ensuing action.

Osamu opens the door and is greeted by a yell of, “Atsumu, you brat! Why did you wait-”

Suna pauses as he sees that it was not, in fact, Atsumu who opened the door. He tilts his entire upper half, not unlike how he does when he spikes, to see Atsumu smiling gleefully to himself on the couch. 

“Rin?” Osamu sounds shocked, and looks back to see Atsumu watching them from the couch. “What are you doin’ he-” Osamu is tackled down into a hug by his boyfriend who has dropped his bag at the doorway in his rush to pounce on his unsuspecting boyfriend. 

Atsumu winces as he hears the resounding thump, watching them both go down. He sympathizes with Osamu’s butt, at the same time laughing at the quick karma, but at this rate, he would have to say goodbye to his security deposit. He is sure that his floor would have a dent in it if this happens one more time. 

Atsumu turns around and places all his attention on the television trying to ignore the sound of conversation and tears coming from his brother and his boyfriend. His work here is now done, after all. 

✯✯✯

“So, how are you?” 

“Hmm? What are ya talkin’ ‘bout?” Atsumu rolls his eyes as he tries to cook his dinner, while his brother is on loudspeaker. 

He hears a rustling of papers, and he knows that his brother has also put him on loudspeaker in an attempt to continue studying. 

“I’m askin’ how are ya and Sunarin? If yer all okay now.” 

There is a pause on the other side, and Atsumu hears Osamu’s voice get louder, signifying that he is placing his phone to his ear.

“We’re okay now. I guess we never really thought it was going to be this hard.” Osamu sighs, and Atsumu lets his brother continue talking. “It was just such an adjustment from being together all the time in highschool to being more than two hours apart.” 

Atsumu hums to let his brother know that he is still listening.

“I guess, we’re now makin’ a conscious effort to actually see each other and talk to each other more.” 

“That’s good.” 

“I guess we just really really missed being around each other, and we were just too slow to realize that.” 

“Yah. The both of ya are dumb.” Osamu snorts at that.

Atsumu just smiles, glad that everything’s now resolved and his brother is still happy. 

✯ Miya Atsumu and Sakusa Kiyoomi ✯

Atsumu didn’t know exactly when his feelings for Sakusa Kiyoomi evolved from being annoyed because he’s such a difficult opponent—and they are situated on opposite sides of the net—to wanting to be around him all the time now that they are now on the same side of the net. 

He remembers ranting to his teammates about the Itachiyama spiker that has such annoying hits, hits that just spin out of control when you were so confident that you’ve received it perfectly. 

“Oh shut up, ‘Tsumu! It’s not like ya were the one who was receivin’ them. Yer a setter, ya get the second touches.” Osamu yells at him when he won’t shut up on their way home and everyone just wants to sleep.

He remembers getting frustrated when he found out that Sakusa was heading off to college instead of going pro. 

“Komori says that it’s because his parents wanted him to have a degree to fall back on just in case something untoward happens,” Suna tells him when they met up in one of their first games against each other in the professional circuit. 

“Untoward? The hell is that? Omi-kun is one the best spikers in highschool in all of Japan.” 

Suna just rolls his eyes at him, “They mean if ever he gets injured, dumbass ‘Tsumu.” Suna’s eyes glint and Atsumu has to suppress his urge to run away from there, because Suna’s eyes glinting is never a good sign. “Omi-kun, huh.” 

Atsumu rolls his eyes, “I’ve always called him that.” He breathes out a sigh, “‘Have you thought about it? What yer goin’ to do after all of this?” 

Suna tilts his head, observing Atsumu for a second before replying, “Unusual for you to bring that up.” 

Atsumu shrugs. It’s not like he hasn't thought of it before, but he has always imagined that it would be a long time before it actually matters. 

“I’m going to work at Onigiri Miya.” 

Atsumu feels everything stop for a second, and he blinks at Suna’s impassive expression as he tries to register what he has actually said. “Wha—! What! You can’t cook for shit, what are you going to do there once it’s built?” 

Suna shrugs, “I’m marrying the owner, might as well help out as a waiter or something.”

Atsumu scrunches his eyebrows, “Ew. What are you even talking about? We’re 19! Why are you already thinking about marriage?” 

After that conversation got derailed, he can no longer feel irritation at the fact that Sakusa chose to go to college. In fact he felt the irritation alleviated later on, once he was told by Suna that Sakusa was still playing volleyball in the college circuit, so there was a huge chance of him continuing to play in the pros. He doesn’t understand why he felt that way, and so he does what he does best in these situations. He compartmentalizes it. 

A few years later, he remembers walking inside the MSBY gym the day after the final recruits were decided, only to see Sakusa standing there next to Hinata. It’s as if all the light around him was sucked out, and the only remaining thing in his vision was Sakusa. Good thing Hinata’s loud greeting was able to take his sight away from Sakusa, or else the first thing that he would have done after years of not speaking to each other aside from the occasional hi and hellos when the bump into each other during EJP games, would be him making a fool of himself. 

“Hello Shoyou-kun! Omi-kun! Fancy seein’ ya here!” 

“Atsumu-san! I can finally get you to set for me!” Hinata beams up at him as Bokuto places an arm around his shoulder.

Atsumu laughs and teases, “If ya hadn’t gone to Brazil, I could’ve set for ya sooner!”

“Don’t forget about me, my disciple! We finally get to be on a team together!” 

Atsumu smiles widely, trying to hide the fact that his heart’s beating fast as Sakusa turns to him slowly and nods in greeting. “Miya.” 

“Omi-kun! Ya don’t have to call me that! Just call me Atsumu.” 

Sakusa shrugs, and Atsumu is sure that he won’t actually call him by his first name. 

✯✯✯

Atsumu calls his brother as soon as he gets home. Osamu answers after the second ring, as usual, “What? You know I’m still at the restaurant right?” 

Atsumu pauses for a second, “Oh. Are you busy?” 

“Are—am I busy?!” Osamu sounds outraged over the phone. “Who are ya and what have ya done to my brother? Because I’ll pay ya.” 

Atsumu rolls his eyes hard at that. “This is what I get for tryin’ to be polite and considerate.” 

“Don’t bother tryin’. It doesn’t fit ya. So, why are ya callin’ this early?” 

“Sakusa’s here.” 

“Sakusa? I thought ya called him Omi-kun or somethin’.” 

“That’s not the point.” 

“Whatever. So? Why does it matter that he’s there? Isn’t that great? He’s a good spiker right?” 

“Good spiker? ‘Samu, he’s one of the best!” 

Atsumu hears Osamu huff, and he’s pretty sure that Osamu is rolling his eyes at him, even though he can’t see his brother—maybe twin telepathy is really real. “Okay. So what’s yer point?” 

“My point is that,” Atsumu breathes in and out slowly. “I think I might like him.” 

“Oh. Is that it?” 

Atsumu pauses at the almost disappointed tone, “What d’ya mean ‘ that’s it ’?” 

“Well, I already knew that.” 

“What?!” 

“‘Tsumu, the amount and length of time you’ve talked about him since highschool is immense. I thought ya knew, but I should’ve known that the dumbass follows you until adulthood. I mean ya somehow still manage to talk about him even though ya haven’t seen each other while he was still in college.” 

“So what am I supposed to do?” 

“What are ya askin’ me for?” 

“Well, yer the one in the relationship here, ‘Samu!” 

“Well, duh! You ask them out!” 

“I can’t ask Omi-kun out!” 

Osamu huffs, “What? Why?” 

Atsumu sinks into his couch with an audible oof, “ We haven’t seen each other in years! We just met again today, it would be too weird to just suddenly ask him out on a date!” 

“Oh. Yer right. Befriend him first then. Get him comfortable bein’ around ya. Though that would take a while, yer not really likeable.” 

“What are ya talkin’ about?! Bokkun and Shoyou-kun like me plenty!” 

“Bokuto and Hinata are personifications of the sun. I don’t think they are ever capable of hatin’ someone.”

✯✯✯

Befriending someone. 

It sounds easy, and he’s pretty sure he can do it. Damn that ‘Samu, making him doubt his friend-makin’ skills.

He does what any person would do first when  trying to make friends: research. He thought about asking Suna to ask Komori what Sakusa would like, but he places that option at the bottom of the barrel. Suna’s teasing is a cost too high to be outweighed by the benefit of some possible information that Komori would be willing to cough up. 

He observes Sakusa for the first week of their practices with the new recruits, where they are trying to assimilate the new recruits smoothly into the team. 

“Atsumu,” Inunaki calls to him once practice has finished. “Please stop staring at Sakusa. It’s making him and everyone else uncomfortable.”

“Wha—!” Atsumu sputters, “I wasn’t starin’ at him! And if, if , I was, why would that make ya uncomfortable?!”

Inunaki shrugs and smirks, “Everything you do makes me uncomfortable.” 

Atsumu huffs and stomps to the direction of the locker rooms. If only Inunaki was a spiker, he could have just threatened not to give any tosses to him. He’s muttering under his breath on how he could stop Inunaki from making fun of him, but stops in his tracks when he sees Sakusa in front of the door to the locker room. 

Atsumu tilts his head, puzzled at what the hell he’s doing, just standing there, staring at the door knob. Atsumu is unsure what he’s trying to do. Either he wants to destroy the doorknob, or he wants it to open by itself. 

Atsumu steps next to him, “What are ya doin’, Omi-kun?” 

Sakusa glances at him then turns his attention back to his one sided staring contest with the door. “The doorknob is wet with sweat, and I’m not sure if I could take a bath directly after touching it since no one has come out of the locker room since a while ago, so the shower stalls might be full.” 

“Oh.” Atsumu, of course, is well aware of Sakusa’s clean freak tendencies. So, he just pushes open the door, keeping it widely open so Sakusa can walk in without them touching each other. 

Sakusa blinks at him for a second, as if surprised that Atsumu has merely opened the door for him. “Thank you.” 

Atsumu just nods at the muttered gratitude and follows him into the locker room. It seems that their teammates were mostly done with their showers, but they were all gathered around a volleyball magazine, explaining why no one has since come out of the locker room yet. 

✯✯✯

“So, How’s it goin’?” his brother’s obviously fake cheerful voice asks. 

Atsumu just groans as he sits on one of the barstools of Onigiri Miya, his face smushed into the countertop. “I hate you.” 

“Hmm?” Osamu just hums in response, not even for a second, sounding like he cared. “Why is that?” 

“Ya were the one who told me to ‘ ask them out’ . Why couldn’t ya have just told me to get over it?” 

Atsumu isn’t looking, but somehow he felt his twin roll his eyes at his words. “Ya asked me what you should do when ya found out you liked Sakusa. This crush ya ‘ave has been goin’ on since high school, even if I told ya that you should just get over it, I don’t think ya can.” 

“Whatever. Just feed me so I can forget all about this shit.”

“No wonder ya don’t have any more money.” 

Atsumu just glares at him over the onigiri he serves.

✯✯✯

Atsumu thinks it’s been going well. Befriending Sakusa, that is. 

Though it might be a tad too optimistic, and it’s been going more than just ‘well’. He feels like Sakusa is just sticking to him now, because out of all their teammates, Atsumu might be the one who’s most accommodating to Sakusa’s clean freak tendencies. Everyone understands, of course, but sometimes he still has to tell Hinata or Bokuto to move a little so he can sit next to them without touching them. Atsumu just does it subconsciously now, like he’s attuned to what Sakusa needs from him, without actually saying anything. 

They’ve been teammates for a few months now, and Atsumu can truly say that he’s succeeded in befriending Sakusa. In fact, he’s so good at it, he’s rocketed himself straight to friendzone. 

He’s adapted some of Sakusa’s cleaning habits having been over a few times in his apartment, and Sakusa making him clean his own apartment when he wanted to have their weekly movie nights there instead because Sakusa, as someone who lived in dormitories most of his young adult life, doesn’t know how to cook, and therefore does not keep ingredients in his apartment. Atsumu has to do something to preserve his wallet’s thickness as much as he can, and as this goes on, Sakusa’s hesitation to touch him lessens. 

The first time their shoulders brush, Atsumu jolts and immediately steps away from Sakusa, and Atsumu waits for the inevitable negative reaction. But to his surprise, it doesn't come. He blinks at the peculiarity of the situation, but forgets about it until the instances of their shoulders, arms, and even their hands brushing are normal now and Atsumu barely even reacts when it happens. 

His easy acceptance of Sakusa’s touches was put to test when, one day, Sakusa suddenly grabs his hand. It was for a good reason as they were suddenly swarmed by a crowd and, Sakusa—with all of his disdain of dirt, crowded places, and human contact— chose to seek comfort in Atsumu, suddenly grabbing his hand. Atsumu freezes for a second and glances back at Sakusa only to see him very much uncomfortable and glancing everywhere, unable to see the rising heat in Atsumu’s cheeks. 

He despairs at the fact that he’s still so infatuated with the guy, and there’s nothing he can do about it. He values the easy friendship that they share, and Atsumu is sure that this is enough for him. 

Being friends is enough for him.

He repeats this mantra as he wakes up from his nap, only to find his head leaning on Sakusa’s shoulder. That’s not the worst part, as Sakusa has also fallen asleep, resting his head on Atsumu’s head. It is comfortable and warm, and all he wants right now is to curl into Sakusa’s body, stealing more of the warmth that he is exuding, as the bus was so cold, and just to nuzzle his nose into Sakusa’s neck. 

He’s glad that at least everyone else was asleep too, so he can panic by himself. He’s torn, wanting to stay there and enjoy the few moments where he can pretend to himself that there’s something more, and in the end, he lets the situation dictate for him, as he can’t move anyway without waking Sakusa up. So he stays. 

✯✯✯

The overhead bell rings as Atsumu pushes open the door to Onigiri Miya. He spots his brother at the counter look up when it does.

“Welc—oh, it’s you.” Osamu’s customer service smile dissolves to form a sneer when he spots Atsumu at the doorway. 

Atsumu scowls, “Is that how you greet all of your customers?” 

“No. Only the freeloading ones.” 

Atsumu rolls his eyes, and he doesn’t see the way Osamu’s eyes widen slightly when Atsumu turns towards his companion. He was following slightly behind Atsumu, so it is entirely possible that Osamu wasn’t able to see him at first sight. 

“Ya see how he treats me Omi-kun? My own little brother?” Atsumu whines. 

Osamu rolls his eyes at his brother’s dramatics, while Sakusa snorts lightly. “He has a point. If you’re not going to pay him, why bother being nice to you?” 

“Omi-kun! So mean! He doesn’t treat Sunarin the same way, and I’m pretty sure he hasn’t paid for anythin’ ever since ‘Samu opened the shop.” 

Sakusa just shrugs at that, “Suna is pretty.” 

“Are ya sayin’ I’m not pretty?!” 

“Yes.” 

Before Atsumu can whine even more, Osamu snaps a dish towel towards him, “Oy, dumbass, keep it down. Yer disturbin’ my actual payin’ customers.” 

Atsumu harrumphs and turns to Sakusa, “The bathroom is that way Omi-kun, and don’t worry, ‘Samu really values cleanliness so it should be fine.” 

Sakusa nods and bows his head slightly to Osamu in thanks and Osamu just smiles back in response. 

“Oy, ‘Tsumu, you goin’ on dates with Sakusa Kiyoomi already?” 

Atsumu scowls as he takes wet wipes from his pocket, and starts cleaning the chair and the counter next to him. “We’re friends. We hang out sometimes. Don’t say anythin’ weird, okay?” 

Osamu is too focused on what his brother is doing to bother replying, his eyebrows raised, baffled. “What are ya doin’?”

Atsumu looks up in surprise, “Cleaning. Omi is really particular about these things. Oh, can you wear gloves when you prepare his onigiri?” 

“... Sure.” Osamu just snaps the gloves on as he starts preparing the food that Atsumu likes. “If yer not goin’ to pay for these, I’m billing Sakusa.” 

Atsumu rolls his eyes, sitting down on the barstool after disposing of the wet wipe. “I will, I will.” 

When Sakusa comes back from the bathroom, he takes out a similar brand of wet wipes that has Osamu raising an eyebrow in Atsumu’s peripheral vision. 

“It’s already okay Omi-kun!” Atsumu pats the wet wipe packet that he placed down on the countertop. “I already cleaned it for ya.” 

Sakusa blinks at him and says, “Thank you.” He sits down just as Atsumu stands up to go behind the counter to get them some water. Sakusa looks at Osamu and is about to open his mouth to say something, but stops when he glances down to see Osamu’s hands. 

Osamu must have seen the movement in Sakusa’s gaze and smirks, “Don’t cha worry, Sakusa-san. ‘Tsumu has already told me ‘bout it.” 

Atsumu puts down the glasses filled with water and sits back down next to Sakusa. Sakusa places his hand on Atsumu’s arm, softly squeezing it, and smiling slightly, mumbling, “Thank you.” 

Atsumu just tilts his head in confusion, “Huh? Omi-kun ya already thanked me!” 

Osamu, who was observing the interaction, just rolls his eyes. Atsumu catches the action and starts a fight with him, not noticing Sakusa just smiling softly right next to him. 

✯✯✯

“‘Samu? What’s up?” Atsumu clicks the loudspeaker button and sets his phone down next to him on the counter. He returns to stirring the pot where he was currently cooking pork curry. 

“What are ya doin’ right now?” Atsumu frowns at the strange question. 

“Why the fuck are ya askin’ me what I’m doin’ when yer the one who called?” A tired sigh that shouts to Atsumu as ‘you are so stupid’ sounds through the phone and the Atsumu scowls further.

“Can’t ya just answer questions like a normal person?” Atsumu can hear someone who sounds suspiciously like Suna snickering in the background. 

“I’m cookin’ curry,” Atsumu answers, taking a new spoon to get a small bit of the sauce out to taste. He can’t use the ladle he uses to cook the curry or else Sakusa will kill him. 

“Yer cookin’? Didn’t you just finish trainin’? Aren’t ya supposed to be tired?” 

Atsumu frowns at the barrage of strange questions from Osamu. “Is it so strange that I’m cookin’? Omi-kun’s comin’ over in a few and we taked about havin’ dinner here.” 

“Hmmm. Omi-kun’s comin’ over, huh.” 

“Okay, what is up with ya?” 

“Is that a date?” 

Atsumu blinks, taking a second to register the question. “Wha—What?! No!” 

Atsumu hears a tired sigh as well as a soft, “I told you. Did you really think your brother’s going to figure it out by himself?” 

“‘Tsumu. Why is it not a date?” 

“Because we are not datin’?!” 

“‘Tsumu. Why are ya not datin’? Why haven’t ya asked him out yet?” Osamu breathes out a ragged sigh. “Din’t ya tell me that the plan was to befriend him, and then ask him out?” 

Atsumu lowers the heat to let the curry simmer for 10 minutes. He covers it and then picks up the phone. “Yeah.” Atsumu looks up at the ceiling, “But then we really became friends, and I don’t know if I wanna make it weird when he rejects me.” 

“The heck ‘Tsumu. He’s not goin’ to reject ya.” Osamu pauses once again to let out a rugged breath. “I’m going to get grey hair due to your relationship. Just ask him out. I promise ya it will go just fine. If it doesn’t, I’ll let ya eat for one meal a day in Onigiri Miya for 3 months.” 

Atsumu feels his eyebrows raise at that. Osamu has always given him hell for not paying every time he eats there, and now here he was, giving it to Atsumu as a prize. 

Well, to be honest, it seems like a consolation prize. ‘Congratulations, Sakusa Kiyoomi does not like you back and now you’ve just embarrassed yourself in front of him. In exchange for the next few months of awkwardness, here’s some free onigiri.’

Atsumu lets out a ragged breath. “Okay. Okay. I—I’ll ask tonight. That way he can leave if it gets awkward.”

“It won’t. I promise.” 

Atsumu purses his lips. Osamu was being strangely nice for nothing. “What do you get from this?” 

“Wha—Why would ya even think I get something from this? Can’t I just try to be nice for once?” Atsumu doesn’t speak, just letting the silence say that he does not believe the bullshit that Osamu was spouting. Osamu sighs, “Okay, fine. Rin and Komori have a bet going on and Rin keeps pestering me to intervene to make him win.” 

“I trusted in you, Atsumu!” Suna says in the background. 

Atsumu rolls his eyes. Figures. 

✯✯✯

Sakusa puts down his spoon and stares at Atsumu. Atsumu, on the other hand, keeps his gaze pinned to his plate.

“Atsumu.” Sakusa calls his name. His first name. 

Atsumu didn’t know exactly when Sakusa had switched from using his last name to his first name, but it was such a natural change that he doesn’t even know when it really first started. He has been spending a lot of time with Sakusa after all. He doesn’t know when they watched the Shark Tale, if it was two weeks ago or a month ago, but all he remembers is that they watched it together.

“Atsumu.” 

Atsumu looks up from his plate and schools his expression to his usual one with a smile, “Oh, what’s up Omi-kun?” 

“I think the right question here is what is up with you. We’re almost finished with dinner, but you haven’t spoken at all. Is there something wrong?” 

“Nothing, Omi-kun!” Sakusa merely raises an eyebrow at that. Atsumu sighs, “Okay there is something, but there’s nothing wrong!” 

“Okay… Then what is it?” 

“Umm… Okay, before I say anything, I just want to tell you that you don’t need to feel obligated or feel like ya owe me anythin’.” 

“Atsumu, just spit it out.” 

“I like ya, Omi.” 

Sakusa blinks, and it was obvious even to someone as oblivious as Atsumu that that was not what he was expecting at all. “Oh.” 

“Yes. Ya don’t need to feel obligated at all to feel anything for me. I’ll be happy to go back to normal, as if I’ve said nothin’ at all.” 

“I—I like you too.” Sakusa mumbles back to him, and it was a good thing that Atsumu’s senses were on high alert for that specific moment because he was sure that he would have missed it otherwise. 

“You do?!” Atsumu asks, incredulous and unbelieving. Sakusa flinches at the sudden increase in volume but nods all the same, and Atsumu can’t help but think that Sakusa is adorable, especially with the blush that was dusting his cheeks and the tips of his ears. “Does this mean we’re datin’ now?” 

“I—I honestly thought we already were.” 

“What?!” 

Sakusa tries to defend himself, “Well, you were doing all these things for me! Like cleaning your apartment so I don’t feel uncomfortable when I come over, cooking for me because I honestly don’t know how, and you bring with you wet wipes and alcohol when you’ve never done that before!” 

“I-” Atsumu realizes something, “Huh, I actually really do those things.” 

“You do.” Sakusa nods. “And it was really sweet and accommodating. I—I’ve always liked you, but after getting to know you and getting to feel how thoughtful you are as a person, I think I just fell in love with you.” 

Atsumu’s face erupts into a smile, “I love you too, Omi-kun.” 

✯✯✯

Atsumu learns. Atsumu learns exactly how Sakusa likes his eggs in the morning. He learns the exact way Sakusa washes his dishes. He learns how to show his love to Sakusa more with each passing day they spend together. 

Atsumu is sure that Sakusa is also learning the way to love him. Sakusa learns that Atsumu likes to hold hands anywhere. He learns that Atsumu likes being wrapped into hugs when he’s happy and even more so when he’s sad. Sakusa also learns how to show his love to Atsumu with every fleeting touch and with every pressed kiss.

They know that not everyday will be perfect, but it doesn’t matter, because to them, it will just be another learning experience.