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"Ya know, you would suck at proposing, Tsumu," Osamu states as he picks up a rock and throws it across the grass.
"Oi! Where the heck did that come from?!" Atsumu exclaims as he shoves Osamu, making the other twin stumble a little.
Osamu shoves Atsumu back even harder and Aran makes a noise of discontent as he also falls victim as Atsumu tumbles into him. "I was thinking about that movie we watched today. The guy sounded so charming and stuff that the girl cried. And then I thought of your ugly mug trying to propose and it made me laugh."
Aran sighs by their side. "You two have the same face..." he mutters softly.
Atsumu and Osamu seem to ignore him as Atsumu thinks about the movie. It was some cheesy romcom that Aran picked out. He's quite the fan of the romance genre even though he watches it quietly with only slight gasps of interest periodically. So since they let him pick out the movie, the twins got to watch some guy fall in love with some girl and propose in the end. Atsumu didn't really pay attention to the plot, he was too busy commenting on how pretty the actress was with Osamu. But he does remember the proposal. The woman got all weepy eyed and the man was saying some dramatic speech and as that scene happened Atsumu distinctly remembers Aran making a pleased sound while clapping his hands.
All in all, the proposal seemed like a good time and an easy task. Say some sappy stuff and 'will you marry me' and then boom! You got yourself a fiancé. Or at least that's what Atsumu thinks. Which is why he is very offended now that Osamu thinks he wouldn't be good at it. He's good at many things and saying some simple stuff to some girl would be easy.
"And why do you think it's so funny, huh?!" Atsumu exclaims, ready to get extremely defensive.
Osamu shrugs. "You'd probably choke up and stumble over your words then just look like an idiot. You'd probably get rejected or make the girl cry from how awkward you are," his brother teases which earns him a swift punch to the side.
"No I wouldn't! I'm sure I'd be better at proposing than you would be. You'd sound all boring and stupid," Atsumu snips back.
On Atsumu's other side, Aran sighs heavily. "Here we go..." he says, loud enough for both of them to hear as he walks to the top of the hill and takes a seat on the ground.
Osamu scoffs at Atsumu while crossing his arms. "At least I wouldn't stutter the whole time like an idiot. If you even got the chance of getting a pretty girlfriend you wouldn't be able to ask her right because you'd be a mess. Remember when you tried to talk to Yumiko in our class and you bit your tongue and turned red—"
"Shut up!" Atsumu yells, getting flustered as he covers his face. "I wouldn't do that while proposing because I'd already be close to her."
"Hm, well I still think you'd still make a stupid proposal," Osamu notes as the two finish their walk up the hill and stand in front of Aran.
Atsumu pouts, upset that Osamu has made such a claim against him. Does Atsumu know if he would actually be good at proposing? No. Is Atsumu mostly just bitter about this argument because Osamu is the one telling him this information? Yes, definitely. So now Atsumu knows he has to prove his pesky twin wrong... somehow. He thinks for a moment before hitting his fist against his hand excitedly.
"I got it! I'll show you!" He shouts before scurrying over to a group of dandelions, snatching one out of the ground. As he crouches down to fiddle with it he can hear the other two behind him whispering.
"What do you think he's doing?" Aran asks.
"Probably something stupid..." Osamu replies.
Atsumu huffs and puffs out his cheeks, not appreciating the judgement from his so called brother and friend. He grumbles under his breath 'I'll show them' as he finishes up his little dandelion project and stands up with his hands behind his back. Osamu is now sitting on the ground with Aran, both of them staring expectantly at Atsumu. Straightening his posture, Atsumu walks over in front of Aran.
"Aran, could ya please stand up?" Atsumu asks with a smile.
Aran stares at him for a moment before tilting his head. "Why do I have to get involved with your antics?" He crinkles his nose, showing he really doesn't want to get involved.
"Ugh, Aran please," Atsumu whines in return. He just needs a little cooperation from the other. Is that too much to ask?
The two stare at each other for a few more seconds before Aran sighs and stands up. Atsumu smiles, glad that Aran has gone along. A part of him knows that his friend only plays along sometimes because it's easier than arguing with the twins but he's still delighted. Atsumu shoots Osamu a triumphant look, making his twin furrow his eyebrows in confusion. Atsumu is about to make him eat his words.
As gracefully as a kid can muster, Atsumu kneels down on the ground on one knee and brings his cupped hands in front of his body. He looks up at Aran who rolls his eyes as recognition of what's happening flashes over his face. Atsumu clears his throat before opening his hands up like someone holding a ring box. In the palm of his hand sits the little dandelion he was playing with, tied to look like a ring.
"Why do I always get wrapped in your guys arguments somehow?" Aran says with a look of discontent.
Atsumu clicks his tongue. "Oh hush and let me propose to you to prove a point," Atsumu snips towards Aran. His friend just shuts his mouth and gestures at Atsumu to get on with it. Once again, Atsumu clears his throat. "Ojiro Aran, you've been my friend for at least a year now and you have made me super happy," he starts before his brain comes to a halt. Atsumu didn't think about how much stuff he has to come up with on the fly for a proposal speech. This is going to be hard. "And uhhh, you're like, the coolest person I've ever met! Your spikes are super strong and you're gonna be like... one of the best volleyball players in the future!"
"How're you gonna involve volleyball in a romantic proposal?" Osamu mumbles.
"Shut it, Samu!" Atsumu shouts, cheeks heating up a little as he looks at his brother who's obviously holding back laughter. He didn't expect this proposal thing to actually be hard.
Aran clears his throat and Atsumu's attention snaps back to him. "Are ya done with your proposal yet? I wanna sit back down." Now Atsumu is no expert at romance and stuff but he doesn't think the person he's proposing to is supposed to look so... bored during it.
"Ah, sorry! I got rudely interrupted by somebody." Atsumu glares at his brother and Osamu holds his hands up in mock surrender. Now with that nuisance silent, Atsumu can properly finish up his very good, very romantic proposal.
Once again, he dramatically clears his throat and focuses all of his attention back on Aran. "Anyways, you make me super happy and I think you're really awesome and you're nice to me. And even when you're not looking too closely at me and Samu you can tell us apart which is a pretty cool thing so I never have to worry about you cheating on me with my brother on accident!"
Aran pinches the bridge of his nose and shakes his head. "Why is this proposal all over the place?"
"Just give me a second!" Atsumu exclaims and he watches Aran remove his hand from his face and stare down at him. His expression is the same as ever, that uninterested look that Aran tends to get when he's tired of the twins antics. His face rests like that a lot when he's around them but Aran swears that he actually likes them despite it. Maybe no one else sees it but despite how annoyed and out of it Aran looks all the time, there's still a spark of interest in his grayish blue eyes. Which is why Atsumu has gained an interest in looking into them just to check that Aran isn't completely tired of him or Osamu quite yet. That he still finds interest and entertainment and genuinely enjoys them as friends. It makes Atsumu's chest feel a little funny as he tries to finish his proposal. "Well... uhh... w-will you marry m-me?"
Aran blinks slowly twice before shrugging and holding out his hand. "Sure."
"How anticlimatic," Osamu points out and Atsumu huffs.
"You're anticlimactic!" Atsumu retorts, not even wanting to consider how stupid his comeback is. He pouts, cheeks red and chest still feeling funny as he slides the dandelion ring onto Aran's ring finger. A little voice in his head offers up that he kind of wants to hold Aran's hand a little longer but he ignores it and drops Aran's hand from his hold before smiling up at him. "There! Now we're getting married!"
Aran snorts before plopping down on the ground. "No we're not," he holds his hand out in front of himself, observing the "ring" on it with a judgmental look. "I would never marry someone who gave me such a crappy proposal and ring."
Atsumu flushes more as he moves to sit by Aran's side, elbowing him as he does it. "I was working with what I got! I didn't know proposing was gonna be so hard!"
"Tsumu, you're such an idiot." Osamu looks at Atsumu from around Aran with a little smile. "You were stuttering at Aran and he isn't even a pretty girl. Imagine you actually proposing to someone."
"W-well, I got nervous! You kept interrupting me," Atsumu cries out. "If I had the time, I would make a great proposal!" He grabs Aran's hand and looks him in the eyes. "The next time I propose to you I'll make sure to have a nice ring that matches your eyes and a speech at the ready! I promise!" The words are out of Atsumu's mouth in a flash. He pinches his lips, trying to figure out why he said something so... so stupid.
"...next time?" Osamu asks while quirking an eyebrow at his twin. Atsumu knows the look Osamu is giving him, some twin telepathy is telling him that Osamu is definitely going to bring this back up later.
Atsumu let's go of Aran's hand and begins to wave his hands around as he stutters. "I-I mean... well... n-not next time... I mean..." What does he mean? He doesn't even know but a swift flick to the head breaks him out of what was soon going to be a spiral. "Ouch! What was that for?"
Aran sighs at Atsumu as he lowers his hand. "Next time you propose, I hope it's to someone you love and I definitely hope you actually got a good speech and ring for that person." There's that expression again, tired of Atsumu but a light of amusement still shining through.
"Y-yeah... someone I love..." Atsumu mumbles, trying to not look at Osamu who's giving him a wide eyed look. He's going to get hell for this embarrassment later but for now he's focused on how Aran is fiddling with the fake ring with an amused smile. "Next time..."
Next time will be different.
~*~
"We're here!" Atsumu exclaims as he sets the picnic basket down and puts his hands on his hips, breathing in the nice cool air. He spins on his foot and faces Aran who looks around the area with a soft smile.
"God it's been a while since we've came up here. Last time I remember was when I graduated and you and Samu cried like babies because I was going to be moving," Aran teases while going to kneel by the basket. He pulls out the blanket and begins to lay it out on the ground. "I thought I'd never get you two to shut up."
Atsumu chuckles and sits on the blanket, smoothing it out with his hands. "Hey, I was very worried about our friendship falling apart or something! It was an emotional moment."
Aran smiles at him, soft and understanding as he reaches out and grabs Atsumu's chin, leaning forward and placing a gentle kiss to his lips. "And look at us now," he whispers softly.
"Sappy and in love," Atsumu retorts, pinching his lips to hold back the tears that are already trying to come for him just from how in love with this man he is. Those ninjas really are chopping onions around him a little too early. "Now stop being so gross and in love with me and take out the chocolates and stuff. I brought us out here to enjoy sweets and the sunset. Not to be emotional."
"Bossy," Aran says while leaning back. He drags the picnic basket in front of himself and Atsumu watches him carefully.
Atsumu's hand goes into his jacket pocket for a moment and he drags his thumb across the soft velvet of the box he's keeping on him. He takes a deep breath and lets his usual carefree look fall over his face as Aran pulls out a box of chocolates. Then a container of macaroons, then a package of mochi. As he gets to the bottom of the picnic basket, Aran stops, his eyebrows furrowing as he stares into it.
"Atsumu, why the hell are there so many dandelions in here? People typically gift their partners pretty flowers like roses and daffodils. Not weeds," Aran jokes while pulling out one of the crushed dandelions.
"Aww, so you didn't like my little surprise?" Atsumu teases, his thumb sweeping over the box again.
"If this is your 'surprise' that you've been hyped up over all day then I'm a little concerned. You've been basically bouncing off the walls over a few little dandelions?" Aran tilts his head as he pulls the drinks from the picnic basket and sets them down.
Atsumu smirks, tilting his head to the side. "Do you really think that this is it?"
"Not really," Aran replies while shaking his head. "But with that look, I'm a little scared of what else you have planned. You've been acting weird all day, I don't know if this surprise is gonna be nice or a damn prank."
Atsumu tilts his head towards the basket. "Well maybe if you looked a little closer at the dandelions you'll get a clue to the rest of your surprise," he offers.
Aran squints at him before reluctantly looking back into the picnic basket. He gently runs his hand along them, moving them around until he stops, eyes going wide with recognition. Slowly, Aran pulls out a little dandelion tied up to look like a ring. He stares at it for a moment before looking at Atsumu.
"Atsumu... is this..." He whispers, looking like he's holding back excitement and tears at the same time.
"I don't know, what do you think it is?" Atsumu asks, a genuine smile breaking over his face as his heart begins to thump hard in his chest. It's time. "Stand up for me."
Aran gently sets the dandelion ring onto the blanket and stands up in front of Atsumu. With a deep breath, Atsumu kneels in front of Aran and gives the box in his pocket one more firm squeeze before he pulls it out. He opens it slowly, revealing the ring. It's a silver band with a vine with leaves engraved in the sides going towards the middle which has a beautiful blue gemstone sitting in a flower. Atsumu spent hours on hours looking for the perfect ring and checking in with Osamu over it.
Atsumu clears his throat dramatically, looking up at Aran. His boyfriend at this point looks close to crying and Atsumu has to use all his willpower to swallow down his own swell of tears. "Aran, you've been my friend for way over a year now and I can say without a doubt that you've continued to make me happy since the day I've met you." Atsumu has to take a deep breath, still fighting tears. "I know you've been wondering what's up with me today and I can finally explain. On this day, many years ago, I asked you to marry me as kids. So, I thought it'd be fitting if I gave my second shot at it today. I promised you a next time, didn't I?"
At that, the tears begin to actually begin to fall from Aran's eyes. "Well, to quote my younger self, you're still the 'coolest person ever' or whatever I said back then. But it's not only because you're one of the most skilled volleyball players I've had the pleasure of playing with. But it's because you've stuck with me for all these years. Whenever I need you, you're always there. If I'm feeling down, you'll go through hell and back to try and make me feel better. Even when I'm being annoying or an asshole, you always stay with me."
Atsumu sniffles a little, the burn of tears in his eyes getting a little too hard to fight off. "When you were graduating I was so afraid of losing you. I knew I wasn't going to have Osamu by my side for much longer and with you leaving... I was scared I was gonna be alone. But you never truly left because you came to my matches and cheered for me louder than everyone else. You called me often even though you had your own things to do. It felt like you were barely gone. I'm so thankful for having someone like you in my life, Aran," Atsumu chokes on his name as a few tears roll down his cheeks. "You can't even imagine how happy I am. You're so special to me and I want to spend even more years with you, making jokes and smiling and laughing. I want to watch more sappy romance movies with you that make you clap at some points and cry the next. I want to be able to say 'my husband' when I refer to you just so I can show you off even more than I do now. I want all of that and more. So that's why I'm on my knee today doing this whole speech, trying my best not to stutter like an idiot, and asking you this question. Will you marry me?"
Aran seems to hold back a sob as he tries to settle his tears. "S-sure," he mumbles, lips turned up into a big smile.
"How anticlimactic," Atsumu whispers before he's surging up to stand and swooping Aran into a kiss, wrapping his arms tightly around his waist while snapping the ring box closed. He holds him close, feeling his heart swoop in his chest as his boyfriend turned fiancé wraps his arms around his neck.
After a moment they part, looking into each other's eyes silently for a moment. Unlike as a child, Atsumu can see the amusement and interest in all of Aran's face. But he does still focus on how it looks in his eyes. Atsumu hums to himself as he draws back his empty hand from Aran's waist and uses his thumb to wipe away some of his tears on his cheeks.
"You're anticlimactic..." Aran whispers to him after a moment. "You didn't even put the ring on my finger, you doofus."
Atsumu blinks for a moment before cursing under his breath and pulling back from Aran, untangling the arms from around his neck. He then opens the ring box again and pulls the ring out, mumbling under his breath as Aran presents his hand to him. "'S not my fault. You looked so gorgeous and I love you so much... I couldn't think for a moment..." he mumbles as he slides the ring into place. "There ya go."
Aran sniffles a little and stares at his hand, reminding Atsumu of how he looked that day years ago. But instead of looking at the ring with judgement, he looks so very pleased. "It's beautiful, Tsumu," he says softly while moving it around so the light from the sunset reflects off of it.
"I told ya I was gonna get a ring that goes with your eyes when I tried again." Atsumu grabs Aran's hand, observing the ring on him. It looks even more beautiful on Aran than he expected. "So, how was this proposal? Less crappy?"
Aran smiles wider, lighting up so gorgeously that Atsumu almost kisses him before he can even answer. "It was perfect."
~*~
"So, how'd it go? Did he dump you on the hill because of your bad proposal?" Osamu asks over FaceTime, smiling wide.
"Oi! Don't be dick to me in front of your future brother-in-law. You're making a bad impression," Atsumu gripes as he grabs for a macaroon, waiting for his brother's response. He watches as Osamu whoops and hollers.
"Good job, Tsumu! You finally fulfilled your promise of another proposal," he teases before settling into a soft and genuine smile. "I'm proud of ya."
Atsumu wrinkles up his nose. "Sorry, I can't accept you being sappy right now. I've already had enough of that from the proposal, thank you very much!"
"Don't be like that when I'm trying to be nice to your mean ass," Osamu retorts.
Aran sighs through his nose as he grabs a piece of chocolate. "Here we go..." He pops the sweet into his mouth.
Osamu chuckles a little. "You better get used to this, Aran. You signed up for years of this shit by deciding to marry this guy."
Aran shrugs, finishing up his chewing before speaking. "I've been doing this shit for years already. I think I'm pretty used to it." He has his 'tired of the twins' look on his face. "But despite that, I still love y'all both."
"God, I didn't know proposing would make everyone so sappy," Atsumu whines playfully. "Samu, you're gonna have to hold back and maybe never propose to Akaashi. I don't need anymore of this super sweet stuff. If y'all keep this up I might get diabetes."
"You know, Nana had diabetes so it wouldn't be unlikely," Osamu points out.
Atsumu bites into his macaroon and grimaces. "Let's not talk about worrying about blood sugar levels while me and my fiancé are eating far too much sugar than we should be, thank you."
"You're gonna milk fiancé for all it's worth, huh?" Aran points out.
Atsumu giggles and presses a quick kiss to Aran's cheek. "All the way until I can call you my husband, future Mr. Miya," he coos happily.
Osamu makes a dramatic gagging noise on the FaceTime and Atsumu looks back at his phone to watch his brother look at him with disgust. "You're right, no more proposals this sappy shit is too much to bare."
"Well, hang up then if you hate to see happy couples in love," Atsumu teases with a smirk.
"Whatever, asshole. I love you both and I'm glad you're finally getting married," Osamu calls through the phone. "Talk to you later, Tsumu."
"Awe, love you too, Samu! Bye!" Atsumu waves at his phone, smirk still in place while Aran leans over and waves as well.
When Osamu hangs up, Atsumu sets his phone down and turns to face Aran. He gently places a hand on his cheek and presses a brief kiss to his lips, then to both of his cheeks in giddy excitement. The high of the proposal still hasn't worn off.
"You're gonna be my husband," Atsumu whispers as he peppers two more kisses on Aran's cheeks.
Aran chuckles softly as he wraps his arms around Atsumu. "Mhm, and you're gonna be my husband." He gives Atsumu another quick kiss on the lips before leaning back and looking up in though. "Now, what flowers would look good at our wedding? I'm a fan of peonies."
Atsumu chuckles and shakes his head. "Already thinking about the aesthetics of our wedding, huh?"
"Of course I am! You got past not having a crappy proposal, now you gotta make sure we don't have a crappy wedding."
"So high maintenance," Atsumu teases playfully as he kisses Aran's nose.
"You're the one who proposed to someone who watches romance films," Aran brings up with a raise of his eyebrows.
"I know." Atsumu grabs a piece of chocolate from one of the boxes and puts it up to Aran's lips. His fiancé lights up and quickly opens his mouth to be fed the sweet, making Atsumu chuckle. "And I wouldn't have it any other way."
And as Aran makes some silly little happy noise while he finishes his chocolate and cups Atsumu's face with both of his hands, letting that cool metal of the ring rest gently on Atsumu's cheek. All Atsumu can think about is how happy he is for going for the 'next time' like he promised.