Work Text:
A clutter of cables, chargers and all kinds of devices were scattered everywhere in the small room, that consisted of a couple of tables and a long counter in front of the window. The many boxes stacked in the shelves were filled with every imaginable device, ranging from long and short keyboards, printer ink, headsets, laptop bags, adapters to a large variety of mice, that had accumulated in a huge crate under the counter.
Each narrow working space the room provided had at least two screens, flickering in the dimmed sunlight that fell underneath the blacked-out curtains. Metal rods gave room to stack a few shelves above the main table, on which a couple of devices were blinking and shining, living their very own cycles in a world made of zeros and ones.
The analogue clock was the only thing that didn’t remind of the super-technology, which was the main business of this office.
"What is this?"
Hinata’s voice sounded heavy, the disbelief in his question was all too obvious.
Tobio scowled and looked up at his boyfriend, who was standing in front of his working place, staring down at the label Tobio had just handed him. There were three others in the room typing away on their laptops and ignoring the conversation that was about to develop between the two.
"It’s a label," Tobio replied.
It was painful to see Hinata’s face, which normally lit up so easily around him, distort like this. Normally he was a soft ray of sunlight beaming at everyone; now, however – and it wasn't Hinata’s fault – his expression had darkened.
"No," Hinata said. "What is this?"
Tobio’s scowl buried a little deeper into his forehead. "It’s the label of my computer. I just peeled it off from the bottom of my laptop; you saw it!"
A pause followed during which Tobio could literally watch how his boyfriend’s expression darkened as he continued to stare at the sticker.
"This is all I get?"
Not that Tobio had expected him to be excited about it, but now that he saw his reaction, he felt bad and scolded himself for this idea, that had come over him.
"I’m sorry. I know today is the last day before your flight, but–"
"It’s just a sticker," Hinata simply stated, ignoring Tobio.
"It’s the serial number of my laptop, it’s important!"
Hinata raised an eyebrow. "It’s a number, Kageyama-kun."
Tobio shrugged, but when he started speaking again, he lowered his voice so that their co-workers couldn’t hear them. If they were perceptive enough, they had already noticed they were heading for an argument anyway, at least if neither of them prevented it; and as it seemed it was Tobio’s job to do it this time.
"Sorry, Shou, just…"
"You better make it up to me."
Tobio nodded immediately. "I will."
But it didn’t seem to be enough since Hinata frowned suspiciously.
"What?"
"It’s just…" Hinata shrugged. "I won’t be here on my birthday, you know? I thought… I thought… I just!"
For a moment Tobio considered his boyfriend, then he let out a small sigh, got up and took Hinata by his elbow to guide him a little to the side, where they would be undisturbed.
"I’m sorry, Shou, I can’t give you more right now," Tobio said slowly, considering his words well. He didn’t want to spoil what he had actually planned, and he knew that his boyfriend liked surprises. It was just difficult to keep a secret. Though, he had to agree that he should’ve thought this better through. The label was a spontaneous and stupid idea, and he really hoped he wouldn’t regret this later.
"So I get a sticker?" Hinata’s deadpan voice brought him back to where he was.
"First of all, it’s a label," Tobio corrected him. "And it’s important."
"U–huh."
"It’s the serial number of my laptop!"
"Yeah. Great," Hinata responded, utterly lifeless as he gazed down at the white label showing a code, the logo of their company and a row of numbers.
Tobio’s shoulders slumped. He wanted to reach out for his boyfriend, but he reminded himself that they were still at work. Even though everyone knew they were a couple, he still didn’t want to make a scene.
"Can we… Can we talk later, maybe?"
Hinata raised his head, fixing him with a dark gaze. "I have to pack," he said, his voice sounded tight.
It made Tobio’s inside clutch to a ice cold glob and all he could respond was, "Ri–right."
The following pause felt horrible.
"When is your flight?" Tobio dared to ask after a few agonisingly long seconds had passed.
"5:30."
"In the morning?"
"Bakageyama, you know when my flight is! What’s the stupid question?"
"I just want to make sure you’ll be at the airport in time, dumbass!"
"So what, you’ll call me at five in the morning to make sure I’m past security?" Hinata asked, sounding exasperated.
Tobio evaded his eyes and shrugged, striving casually, and mumbled, "What of it."
He could feel large brown eyes staring at him with a totally different kind of disbelief than before. The longer his eyes were fixed on him, the more uncomfortable Tobio became.
"So we can’t… meet later?" Tobio asked.
One second passed. Two. Three.
"No."
"Wha– Shou, wha–"
Hinata waggled with the label sticking to his finger and gave him a grim smile while he turned to the door, about to leave. "I’ll see you in a month."
"Shou, please."
"See you later, Kageyama-kun," he said, walking away.
"Shouyou!"
Tobio had followed his boyfriend onto the bright floor and blinked against the sunlight flooding the space. Maybe it was the desperateness in his voice or the soft plea in it that made Hinata turn around.
"Text me once you’ve arrived, yeah?" Tobio asked, quieter than before.
Hinata considered him for a few seconds, which felt incredibly long for Tobio. But then a small smile tugged at his lips and he nodded.
"Yeah, I will."
They exchanged a look, much softer than before, then Hinata turned around and walked towards his own office.
Tobio gazed at his broad back and the short-cut hair dancing a little with each step. It took the voice of his co-worker from behind to break the trance.
"Kageyama-senpai, we have an incoming call. Your line."
"Wha– Yes. I’m coming."
* * *
Hinata Shouyou [2:20]: i’m in rio now
Hinata Shouyou [2:29]: it’s hot
Hinata Shouyou [2:30]: i correct that
Hinata Shouyou [2:30]: it’s VERY hot
Hinata Shouyou [2:30]: why is it so hot here?? (；′⌒`)
Hinata Shouyou [2:31]: anyway, i’m on my way visiting our customer so i’ll be busy today
Hinata Shouyou [2:31]: i just wanted to make sure yu know i’m here
Kageyama Tobio [2:44]: Shouyou, for the gods’ sake, yu kno that time zones exist???
Kageyama Tobio [2:44]: don’t wake me up in the middle of the night!
Hinata Shouyou [2:46]: why isn’t yur phone muted during the night?
Kageyama Tobio [2:46]: …
Hinata Shouyou [2:46]: ohhhhh
Kageyama Tobio [2:46]: don’t say it
Hinata Shouyou [2:46]: Kageyamaaaa-kuuuunn
Kageyama Tobio [2:47]: don’t you dare
Hinata Shouyou [2:47]: yu were sooooo worried ‘bout me that yu had yur phone unmuted? （￣︶￣）
Kageyama Tobio [2:47]: ugh
Kageyama Tobio [2:47]: and that’s what I get?
Hinata Shouyou [2:47]: yu get to know that i made it safely all the way from Tokyo to Rio in one piece
Hinata Shouyou [2:47]: i don’t miss that plane food tho
Kageyama Tobio [2:47]: Shouyou, no
Hinata Shouyou [2:47]: Shouyou yes! i was right, plane food is even worse than yur selfmade jam
Kageyama Tobio [2:48]: oi, nothing against my selfmade jam!
Hinata Shouyou [2:48]: yeah sure, protect yur awful rights
Kageyama Tobio [2:48]: can i go back to sleep now?
Hinata Shouyou [2:48]: didn’t yu say yu wanted to call me at 5 in the morning just to make sure i didn’t sleep through my alarms to get to the airport and catch the flight to Rio in time?
Kageyama Tobio [2:49]: …
Kageyama Tobio [2:49]: why don’t we live together anyway?
Kageyama Tobio [2:53]: Shouyou?
Hinata Shouyou [2:55]: DON’T SAY STUFF LIKE THAT SO EASILY!!
Hinata Shouyou [2:55]: I GOT A HEART ATTACK
Hinata Shouyou [2:55]: PEOPLE MAY THINK I HAVE A HEAT STROKE
Kageyama Tobio [2:55]: people would think you’re simulating because you look like a tourist
Hinata Shouyou [2:55]: oops
Hinata Shouyou [2:55]: didn’t mean to shout all the way
Hinata Shouyou [2:56]: i’m no tourist, i’m on a business trip
Kageyama Tobio [2:56]: yeah. you still look like a tourist
Kageyama Tobio [2:56]: why is our customer in Brazil anyway?
Hinata Shouyou [2: 56 ] : ╮(╯▽╰)╭
Hinata Shouyou [2:56]: because he likes it here?
Hinata Shouyou [2:56]: i can understand, the nature is beautiful and once gotten used to the weather, i think i’d like to try some stuff here, like hiking and seeing this giant stature on the mountain or volleyball!
Hinata Shouyou [2:56]: they have so many beach volleyball fields here! i wish yu were here
Kageyama Tobio [2:56]: well, sorry that i’m not in customer service
Hinata Shouyou [2:56]: pff, we’ll make it work
Kageyama Tobio [2:56]: yeah okay. it’s not that it wasn’t on purpose to choose the safe indoors
Kageyama Tobio [2:56]: anyway, can i sleep now?
Hinata Shouyou [2:56]: yeah, go take yur previous hours of the day and sleep
Hinata Shouyou [2:56]: precious*
Kageyama Tobio [2:57]: 눈_눈
Hinata Shouyou [2:56]: :D
Kageyama Tobio [3:02]: Shouyou
Kageyama Tobio [3:02]: i’m sorry about your present
Kageyama Tobio [3:02]: i will make it up to you, oaky?
Kageyama Tobio [3:02]: okay*
Hinata Shouyou [3:05]: promised?
Kageyama Tobio [3:05]: promised
Hinata Shouyou [3:05]: okay
Hinata Shouyou [3:05]: i’m looking forward to it
Hinata Shouyou [3:05]: Tobio
* * *
Tobio stared at his laptop.
Nothing.
The computer didn’t respond to anything he was doing. The battery had been alright, the charger was connected, there had been no errors the day before, there was no visible damage anywhere and still… no response of the laptop.
He had wanted to switch it on, but the usual blue LED hadn’t lit up, the fan stayed silent and the screen black.
Just nothing.
Tobio swallowed dryly and it took him one more minute to regain his composure and fumble for his phone with clammy fingers. He opened his files and checked the documents, but as it had to be expected, the one he needed wasn’t there. He had only saved them on his computer. A very stupid idea, he realised in retrospect.
He looked back at his computer and pressed the power button again. Since this didn’t help, he felt all sides of the computer, did every trick he knew how to get a machine back to work and even opened the slots at the side; nothing.
He needed his computer, otherwise his well thought plan wouldn’t be realisable and it pained him to imagine the disappointment on his boyfriend’s face.
Fiddling with his phone, he opened the contact list and scrolled to the support responsible for his laptop, then – out of habit – turned his unresponsive laptop upside down to read the serial number, but…
An ice cold shudder ran down his spine once he realised that what he needed simply wasn’t there.
The code.
The serial number for his laptop.
Where was it? Where!?
Tobio needed the number to call the support, otherwise they wouldn’t be able to help him and fix his laptop.
Where was it, where was it, where was it…
In his panic, Tobio tried to remember where he had put the label. It used to be at the bottom of his laptop, it had always been there, where would he–
Realisation hit him like lighting a tree.
Shouyou had his label.
He had given the label to his boyfriend, who was on the other side of the world in fucking Brazil.
Not restraining from cursing, Tobio switched to a browser on his phone to check the current time in Rio de Janeiro. It was midday in Japan, which meant…
Great.
Just great.
Tobio considered for a few long seconds, then – after he realised that he simply couldn’t help it – he cursed some more, fucked those stupid time zones and speed-dialed an all too familiar number.
The waiting was horrible. Nearly two minutes past and just when Tobio feared that he would be directed to voicemail, someone took up.
"To? Wh’si’t?" The slurred voice was all too well-known to his ears.
"Shou? Are you awake? Sorry that I call now, I need your help."
"Wha’sit?" Hinata asked again and cleared his tired-sounding voice.
"Stupid time zones," Tobio sighed into the speaker, then he said louder, "Shou, I need this stupid serial number."
"Wha– What number?"
"The code. The serial code. It’s on the label I gave you before you left."
A few more seconds passed. Tobio listened to the rustling of fabric and imagined that his boyfriend probably propped himself on his elbow while staring into the dark of his hotel room.
"Ah," Hinata finally said, sounding a bit more awake now. "That pre-birthday present you were too lazy for, huh?"
"Shou, please, not now. My computer broke down and I need the code to get it fixed. Now."
"You realise it’s the middle of the night and I was finally cured from jetlag?"
"Yeah, yeah, I know." Tobio refrained from rolling his eyes and continued with a softer tone, "Please, Shouyou."
But Hinata had no intention of letting him go yet. "Who was the idiot giving this to me instead of a real present, huh?"
Tobio exhaled deeply and nudged his phone against his head before pressing it back against his ear. Why must his boyfriend be resentful right now?
"Shouyou, I’m really sorry, but please, can you give me the code now? I’ll explain later, promised."
"You promise a lot, you know?"
"Have I ever failed to keep a promise I ever made?"
Hinata grumbled something intelligible.
"Shouyou."
A deep sigh. "You’re calling me in the middle of the night, knowing that I’m sleeping and resting from a long working day after travelling to the other side of the world to deal with annoying customers, just to ask for that stupid code you gave me instead of a real present one day before my flight?"
Tobio stayed silent. No response would have been sufficient, for neither of them.
"And, as I may quote you, you realise that time zones exist, right?"
"Shouyou, I’m sorry for waking you up. But to be fair, you did the same when you–"
"You asked for it!" Hinata’s exasperated voice came through the speaker.
"Because I wanted to know whether my boyfriend didn’t drown in the Atlantic Ocean or not!"
"So you’re finally admitting that you were worried?"
"I’m still worried, Shou," Tobio replied, ignoring the heat spreading across his cheeks. "You’re all the way over there with a nasty customer, who had moved to Brazil for a godforsaken reason!"
"I told you, it’s beautiful here, you saw the pictures I sent, right?"
"I did, I did, it is beautiful."
"We should go here together."
"We would get lost."
"I didn’t get lost, though."
"Guess we only ever can travel together then!"
"Yeah!"
"Yeah!"
Tobio huffed and Hinata sighed into the speaker.
"Shouyou."
"Hm."
"Could you please tell me the serial number?"
Another sigh. "Yeah."
"You took it with you, right?"
"Yeah, no idea why, though. If I had left it home you could just use the second key to my flat."
Tobio nodded; realising that his boyfriend couldn’t see it, he grunted a confirmation. "Where did you put it anyway?" he then asked.
There was silence on the other side of the line and Tobio glanced at the screen out of the corners of his eyes.
"Shouyou?"
"I… I don’t know."
"Shou!"
"Cut me some slack, it’s the middle of the night. I barely unpacked anything yet."
"Seriously, why did you take it with you?" Tobio sighed.
"I can do what I want with my birthday presents, can’t I?"
Tobio bit his lip and scowled in frustration. "Could you please search for it?"
"I’m trying to remember," Hinata mumbled and Tobio could hear him throwing the covers away, stumbling and walking over something soft, a carpet perhaps.
"Can I do something to help you remember?" Tobio offered.
"Yeah, stay silent for a while."
Grumbling, Tobio scowled at his broken laptop and waited patiently while he listened to his boyfriend rummaging through his belongings.
"Oh…" The background noise stopped.
"Oh, what!?" Tobio’s eyes lit up.
"I remember where I put it."
"Yeah? Great, tell me, dumbass."
"Can’t you ask a little nicer?" Hinata asked with a voice Tobio knew he was glaring. "I’m not the idiot, who gave away his serial number of a device he needs for work! Who does it anyway!?"
"Shut up, you’re just angry that I didn’t get you a real present before you left." At the moment the words had left his mouth, Tobio knew it had been a wrong decision to say them.
"Of course I am! I got a sticker with a code. How stupid is that!?"
"Shou, I swear, you’ll get the best present for real, but could you please give me the fucking code now?"
Hinata mumbled something Tobio couldn’t make out.
"Where is it anyway? You said you remembered?"
"Yeah, it’s… Uh… At the back of my phone."
Tobio removed his own from his ear to stare at it, not sure if he had understood it correctly. Then he put it back against the side of his head. "What? Why?"
"Well, you said it’s important so I kept it where I knew it would be save," Hinata argued. "And my phone is important because sometimes people call me at a godforsaken hour to ask for stickers they gave away because they didn’t have a better present at hand," he added and this time Tobio rolled his eyes for real, lucky that his boyfriend wasn’t able to see him.
"Can you please get it then?"
"Yeah, just a second. I need to put you aside. Wait, I’ll put you on speaker."
"Okay."
Tobio listened to the sound of plastic and white noise while Hinata fumbled with the phone case. There were a few curses and the repetitive scratch of short fingernails over plastic while Hinata tried to peel it off.
"Why didn’t you take a picture of it?" Hinata then asked. His voice sounded a little far.
Tobio blinked and stared at his laptop. "… Well, I didn’t."
"I noticed," Hinata replied quietly.
The fumbling continued; Tobio hoped that his boyfriend wouldn't accidentally cut the line.
"Normally those codes can be found in the operational system, right? Somewhere on the computer," Hinata said.
"Well." Tobio considered his dead laptop with a long look. "My computer is broken, I don’t have access anymore. That’s why I need the code to call the support and ask them to–"
"Yeah okay, I get it."
Tobio huffed, but told himself to be patient. He waited and waited, and then, finally, a relieved sigh echoed through the speaker.
"You got it?"
"Yeah," Hinata replied and there was a smile in his voice.
"Then read it!"
"Okay, okay, geez. Here we go." Hinata cleared his voice; for dramatic purpose, probably. "It’s H K 0 9 2 0 1 0 2 1."
Tobio, scribbling the code on a piece of paper, sighed in relief. "I can finally call the support, thanks. Thank you so much, Shou."
"Sure!" Hinata quipped in the phone. "Any time. And with any time I mean you better not call me when I just found my deserved rest."
"I know, I’m sorry for waking you. I’ll make up for it."
"Yeah? Promised?"
Tobio smiled softly. "Promised," he replied, his voice quieter now. Now where he had his code written out in front of him and knew that his boyfriend could go back to sleep, he could relax.
There was a long pause in which neither of them wanted to hang up yet.
"I hope you didn’t mean giving me my actual present, did you?" Hinata asked warily.
Tobio sighed. "No, I’ll get you something else. By the way, a sticker is a real present, you’re just not satisfied with it."
"Excuse me?! I know a present when I see it."
Snickering, Tobio leaned back in his chair and gazed up into the bright blue sky and the rays of sunlight shining on the tips of the trees in the nearby park.
"Shou," he said softly, "it’s late, go to bed. Your words don’t make sense. I hope you read the numbers correctly."
"I’m still able to read, even if I’m tired, y’know?"
"That’s good to know. Now go to bed, Shou."
"Yeah." Hinata let out a sigh. "You can call the hotline now or whatever."
"Mhm, I will. See you."
There was a chuckle on the other side and then, "Night, Tobio-chan."
And Hinata hung up before Tobio had the chance to argue about it.
* * *
Shouyou had just stepped out of the bathroom door when the doorbell rang.
He frowned in confusion, wondering who it might be. The room service usually came in after he had left his key at the reception desk and it wasn’t that late yet.
Still a little tired from the night – he had wild drams of codes and numbers – Shouyou rubbed his eyes and walked to the door. After he had made sure that he was dressed appropriately, he unlocked the door and pulled it open.
A young man clad in the blue and white uniform of the hotel stood in front of him. He carried a huge package in his hands and a wide smile stretched on his lips. He opened his mouth and said a few words – non of which Shouyou understood except for his name – and finally handed him the package.
"Obrigado," Shouyou said, as it was the only Portuguese word he had caught so far, and glanced down at the package, which had obviously come via airmail and had indeed his name on it.
He recognised the handwriting immediately and barely paid attention to the hotel clerk, but closed the door and carefully set down the package on the floor between his bed and the minibar. For a few moments he stared at it in awe, wondering why and how and what. The brown box was a bit worn already, the sides were scratched and a corner crumpled, but the overall form was still preserved.
With a sudden giddiness rushing through his insides, warming his whole body, Shouyou knelt down and started peeling off the duck tape. When he managed to open the lids, took a peek inside and dug his way through a pile of scrunched up paper and styrofoam, he found two things inside, a square box and a flat sheet of foil. None of these things were covered in wrapping paper, but Shouyou had known what this was at the moment he had seen the handwriting.
Slowly, paying attention to not damage anything, Shouyou opened the box and once he had registered what was inside, he turned it upside down so that the brand new beach volleyball rolled out of the box. The blue and white and yellow were sparkling in the morning light of Rio and when Shouyou touched it, he felt the smooth surface and seams running under his hand. The touch was satisfying, familiar in a way, and he couldn’t wait to go to the beach later, after his working day was over, and try this ball out.
He turned to the second package and after he had revealed its content, he smiled at the sports gear, which consisted of long tight pants, shorts, a long-sleeved shirt and a t-shirt. It was when he unfolded the shirt that a card tumbled out and Shouyou picked it up to read a simple From Tobio.
Shouyou, having his assumptions confirmed, squealed happily, and without paying attention to anything else, he fumbled for his phone to call his boyfriend right away.
It didn’t take long for Kageyama to pick up.
"Sho– Noooo, is this revenge? You know how late it is, right? You know it’s my day off, and even though I usually don’t mind you getting up at–"
"TOBIO!! THANK YOU SO MUCH!!"
Shouyou had held back, but he was barely able to contain himself. He managed to wait for two seconds, which gave his boyfriend the chance to say a startled "Wha–", before he continued.
"Thank you!! I love you so much, Tobio!!"
There was a rustle on the other side of the line and then there was Kageyama’s voice, thick with sleep, but obviously smiling, saying, "You got the package, huh?"
"Yes! Everything is amazing!"
"Thank the gods, just in time," Kageyama sighed.
Shouyou frowned. "What do you mean?"
"The code, remember?"
"Yeah?" Shouyou replied warily.
Kageyama cleared his voice and Shouyou could still hear the usual morning sleepiness in his voice and a sudden longing came over him, wishing to be where his boyfriend was, in a soft bed with his warm body to snuggle up to.
"I needed the code to get my computer repaired."
Shouyou blinked and focused on the words. "And did you?"
"Yeah. Just in time."
"What do you mean?"
"I sent a package to the address of the hotel before your flight. It had a tracking number, which I saved as a pdf, but… But only on my laptop. I got a notification via text that the package got stuck at the Guarulhos – I hope I pronounced that right – airport and so I needed the tracking number to know what was going on. I… I wanted you to have it today."
Shouyou blinked and turned to check the date on the small display next to the TV.
Right. Today was the 21st of June.
"Tobio…" he said and felt his voice waver.
"Happy birthday, dumbass."
Shouyou grinned and a haze veiled his eyes as he kept staring at the volleyball, which became a huge colourful blob. If he could, he would pull his boyfriend into a tight hug and never let go.
"Thank you," he mumbled and swallowed heavily. "Thank you, Tobio."
"Mhm."
"So… the code…"
"Yeah, I’m sorry. I promised you a real gift. I’ll take you out once you’re back, okay?"
Shouyou nodded; unable to say anything else he just hummed. "Mhm."
"Great."
If Shouyou didn't know otherwise, he could definitely hear his boyfriend smile through the phone now. He stroked the volleyball and pressed his thumb into the tight outer fabric.
"Video call later?"
"Of course."
Shouyou smiled. "See you then."
"See you later, Shouyou."