Work Text:
The success of Osamu’s onigiri shop was absolutely one of Atsumu’s most bragged about pride and joys. As much as they fought throughout the years, few things meant more to him than his brother’s shop, and the list of things he’d do for its success was longer than one might think. If Atsumu had the time, he would be an extra server, buy needed ingredients, or sometimes even open or close the shop if Osamu had a bit too much on his hands.
Atsumu would give an arm and a leg for Osamu’s success and well-being, and he rarely ever regretted his own charity. But not always. Sometimes there were times like these. Times like these, where there was nothing Atsumu wanted more than to shake his twin by his shirt.
“Shit! Dammit, Osamu, I’m never helpin’ yer ass again,” the grumpy man grumbled to the No answer screen on his phone.
His muttering continued as he fumbled with the keys to the door, phone pressed between his cheek and shoulder as his hands trembled in the cold. No answer at the door, no answer on the phone, and either Osamu gave him the wrong set of keys or the frigid cold was making the lock impossible to deal with.
Atsumu loved Osamu and was endlessly proud of his restaurant, but sometimes there were times where Osamu sent Atsumu out to check on the shop in the middle of a terrible snow storm. A snow storm, that Atsumu’s scrappy european car nearly stopped running in more than twice, and that he was less than prepared to stand in for.
“Just make sure the water’s still runnin’, he said ,” Atsumu mocked, “It’s stopped snowin’, so it shouldn’t be too bad, he said. What a load of bullshit, I’m almost dyin’ out here.”
Atsumu gave one final defeated kick to the door before trudging back to his car, fighting against the ice to open the door again. The engine turned one, two, six times before turning on again, warmth finally pushing through the icy air. Atsumu sighed a breath of relief, shoulders unfurling slightly in the comfort.
The peace didn’t last long however as a rumbling came from the ground, a sound just at first but soon began shaking the floorboards of his tiny car. Headlights flared into the rearview mirror, blinding Atsumu in his seat. A large, sturdy truck pulled into a smoother area in front of Onigiri Miya, opposite Atsumu, who appeared to be stuck in the smallest of snowdrifts. Atsumu waited with bated breath as the car came to a stop, headlights remaining on. Who the hell was making an onigiri run during weather like this?
Atsumu nearly hid below the window when the driver’s side door finally popped open, but blinked multiple times when a towering figure emerged, only to seemingly shrink once they hit the ground. The person looked like a walking marshmallow with how puffy their pants and jacket were, earmuffs failing to cover their also white hair. Rugged boots crunched their way to Atsumu’s car, the character stopping about half-way and tilting their head.
Atsumu finally emerged from his own car. “Uh… hi,” he started with an awkward wave.
“Hi. You alright? Ya look like ya could use some help there,” the mystery figure spoke, sounding masculine. They nodded toward Atsumu’s car.
“Ahh, well… this isn’t her ideal weather, that’s for sure. Um, shop’s closed though, sorry.”
The other nodded before gazing over Onigiri Miya, seeming to be in thought. They wore some sort of snow goggles however, so it was hard to properly judge.
“I see. I’m not here as a customer, I drop off supplies for Osamu usually. I didn’t get any kind of warning, though…”
Atsumu sighed then shivered, looking over the silent building forlornly as well. “Yeah, I think the storm took out some towers or somethin’, I can’t get a hold of him right now.”
The figure approached Atsumu then, holding out his hand, “I’m sorry, I don’t think we’ve met. I’m Kita, I supply the rice and such. You talk like yer familiar with the place, you an owner as well?”
Atsumu shook his head as he took the extended hand, enjoying the brief protection from the cold. “Nah, I’m just the owner’s twin. My name is Atsumu- Miya, obviously.”
Gloved hand back at his side, the figure- now named Kita- moved to push his goggles up. He grinned, one that crinkled his cheeks and closed his eyes, and Atsumu couldn’t help but admire the revealed face in all its glory. When his eyes opened however, Atsumu’s breath hitched in surprise.
He had two colorless eyes.
“Pleasure to meet ya. So, what are you out here for, then?”
Kita continued as if nothing had happened, as if he didn’t just reveal to Atsumu one of the most striking rarities imaginable. Everyone had at least one colored eye, it was the soulmate quirk. But no eye-color whatsoever? Atsumu had only ever heard rumors.
“Oh, uh, I’m,” he faltered, blinking repeatedly and looking around, “He sent me out here to check on the shop, basically. But I can’t even get the damn door open, and he’s not here, either.” Atsumu jingled the keys between his frozen fingers for emphasis, glaring at them.
Kita chuckled seeing the keyring and offered a hand out in silent permission. “Yer tryin’ the wrong door, that’s why,” Atsumu dropped the keys in his hand and he began walking towards the store, heading to a side that Atsumu had never paid attention to before.
In his heavy-duty snow boots and pants combo, Kita easily trudged through the snowdrift to a side door, Atsumu daintily stepping in his (much smaller) footprints behind him. He cursed under his breath as Kita easily slipped a key in, fighting just a little to turn it in the cold. A good bodyslam later and the door was opened, embarrassingly faster than any progress Atsumu had made, and revealed a quiet and snow-less sanctuary within.
“Well,” Atsumu muttered, taking the keys back from Kita’s slightly teasing smile. “After all I do for this jerk and he doesn’t tell me there’s a whole ass ‘nother door.” He kicked his boots off and stood inside, stomping more snow away as he turned back around to face the helpful stranger. “Uh, thank you very much, Kita-san. I think I would’ve died out here without ya,” Kita chuckled again at that, and Atsumu was starting to grow familiar with the sound. “You came out here for somethin’ though, right? Can I help ya with anything?”
“Ah,” Kita said, patting his pockets. “I was gonna see if he wanted another load of rice while I grabbed some empty boxes, but it doesn’t look like they’ll be put to use anytime soon.” Kita paused for a moment, assessing Atsumu, “What about you? You don’t look like yer goin’ anywhere in that little thing, are ya staying here then?”
Atsumu, honestly, hadn’t even considered that yet. He blinked again, looked around the shop, then back outside. “Uh. Well, I suppose I am. They’ve got a little place upstairs, I can crash there.”
Kita nodded, “Alright. I’ll stop by tomorrow if the roads are still bad and drop ya off some supplies. Don’t wanna look suspicious if they find a dead body in here come snowmelt.”
The lack of a laugh was what made Atsumu look back to Kita’s face in a panic, but what he found instead of murderous, bleak eyes was actually a playful and mischievous glint in their colorless hue. Atsumu grinned after a beat, letting out a hearty chuckle.
“That’s real nice of ya, clever too, but ya don’t have to, really. I should be all good.”
Kita nodded and stepped back into the snow, “Alright, I’ll see you tomorrow, Atsumu.”
“Mhm. Wait, no-” Atsumu started, but Kita was already walking away, knowing smile on his face.
As Atsumu set his stuff down and settled in, more than his absent brother or the mountains of snow, he could only think of the blank-canvas eyes that bore into him earlier.
Atsumu’s own eye glittered in the shop’s yellow lights, which flickered on from the storm. The glow accentuated the golden tint to his iris, the other merely dark and reflecting the lamp. In terms of soulmate biology, Atsumu was a little bit of a unique case. Well, it was quite normal actually, but society-wise, a little concerning. When coming into the world, everyone is born with fully functioning vision, mutations be damned. Those two eyes, however, do not begin with matching irises. In fact, only one is colored, that one being your true and intended eye color. The other is colorless, along a greyscale, and remains that way until one meets their soulmate. Once the person realizes their love, the colorless eye will soon match the wearer’s other original iris color.
Now, this is where Atsumu diverged a little more than others. Of course, there are many types of soulmates in the world, friendships and familial bonds, for example. Once those bonds are realized, the colorless iris will change, but adapt the bondee’s eye color instead. This change is not permanent, either, and will eventually fade.
A color change or two is quite normal, as most people don’t run into their romantic partner early or easily in life.
Miya Atsumu held one brown eye, tinted golden in the right light. The other has changed four times in his 22 years of life. Unheard of.
The first was shockingly not long after being born, throwing his parents into a panic. They calmed, however, when their (just barely) second son also filled both eyes not long after birth, a very similar eye color on them both, but tinted differently if paid attention to. Atsumu’s first (and perhaps longest) soulmate was Osamu, his twin.
The second was in junior high, when he and Osamu ran into Ojiro Aran again, proving to be a valued senpai in Atsumu’s (now oppositely colored) eyes.
The third was in high school after returning from a camp where he met Sakusa Kiyoomi, one of his most prominent crushes and now one of his most valued friends. Atsumu’s other eye had been dark for a long time after they met, coming in second to he and Osamu’s twinned eyes throughout their childhood.
The fourth was late high school and early into his professional volleyball career, when opertuned to work more and more with Hinata Shouyo. It had since faded,
Osamu was a little bit of his own special case as well, living very little of his life half colorless, from growing up with Atsumu to finding his soulmate in high school. He and Suna Rintarou were practically always together from the moment they met, though it took their third year before their eyes changed, revealing beautiful pools of green and brown.
Now 22, working alongside his brother, and Sakusa the fourth pillar to their friend group, Atsumu’s eyes had returned to the colorless stage, still waiting for the permanent fix. Osamu had poured his time, money, and effort into starting his own restaurant, roping Sakusa and Suna in occasionally as well.
Two colorless eyes… It wasn’t entirely unheard of, but a rarity to be sure. The memory of Kita’s eyes fell asleep with him as he borrowed the guest bed,
The next morning started with a squabble of a phone call with Osamu, phone lines finally repaired. They grumbled and argued at each other, Osamu telling him to do this, Atsumu responding he’d already done that, but in the end, they just huffed and sighed.
“‘M sorry, ‘Tsumu. The roads are just too bad here. I’d come as fast as I could, really.”
“I know, I know,” Atsumu sighed, rubbing his face as he plopped onto a bar stool. “I’m not too great either. Think I’m stuck here for another day, actually.”
On the other line, Osamu’s sigh could be heard as well. “I’m real sorry. Thank you so much for even comin’ out there, I appreciate it. Seriously.”
“Yeah, well, ya owe me big time after this. Say, do you have a business partner or somethin’ who-”
Just then, another rumbling sounded from outside the building, and when Atsumu looked out the front windows, a familiar grey truck pulled into view.
“Speak of the devil.” Atsumu whispered under his breath.
“Huh? What are you talkin-”
“I’ll call ya later, ‘Samu, somethin’ just came up.”
“What? Atsumu, wait-”
“Don’t worry, it’s fine,” Atsumu cut off the call, attention already elsewhere and legs already carrying him towards the door.
Hurrying to grab his boots from the side door, Atsumu fumbled to turn the locks on the front entrance and swung it open just as the same man from yesterday shut his car door.
“You really did come back,” Atsumu spoke with disbelief.
Kita trudged up the front steps, hair and scarf dusted in snow. “What? Did’ja think I was just gonna leave you abandoned in here?”
Atsumu stepped aside to hold the door open, spying a few bags in Kita’s hold as he walked past. He couldn’t fight the smile that rose to his lips from Kita’s hospitality. “Even if the power was out and there wasn’t a rest area upstairs, I’m sure I woulda made it.”
Once the bags were set down on the counter, Kita finally unwrapped his scarf and pushed up his goggles, same as yesterday. And same as yesterday, Atsumu was met once again with a mischievous, colorless glint. “Your police case, not mine. Besides, I don’t know how well ya can cook, I know Osamu’s got straight ingredients here but not much more than that.”
As he spoke, the man pulled various things out of the bags, including hand warmers, a bottle of tea, and a small box. He handed the box to Atsumu, who took it only after looking from him to the container a few times before gently accepting it. A smile slowly spread across his face when he found it warm to the touch, and cracked the lid to find a very basic but well made classic bento meal.
“Did you eat?” The question broke through Atsumu’s distracted train of thought.
“Not yet today, really. An apple. Leftover onigiri yesterday, though.”
Kita nodded, wordlessly returning to the entrance to slip his shoes and other layers off before heading back into the kitchen, coming out a moment later with two cups in hand. “Sit,” he motioned to a booth, “Let’s get you fed, then.”
They spent the next while talking, sharing the tea and, by Atsumu’s insistence, the bento meal as well. Atsumu told him of his volleyball career, talking briefly about his and Osamu’s relationship and the toll their decisions took on them. In return, Kita told him about his farm and business, but never once were soulmates, or even eye colors, brought up.
On another day Atsumu came by the shop to help, the door jingled before opening officially to the public. It had been a few weeks since Kita had saved him in the snowdrift, and the shop was well back on its feet and prepared for the winter months.
Atsumu was putting things away in the back of the kitchen; growing up with a chef-in-training had made him honorary sous chef and keeping kitchens organized was now a welcomed habit.
He heard Osamu talking to someone up at the front but paid no mind, assuming Suna had come in for a hand as well. When he stood however, a familiar glimpse of white peeked out from behind his brother's looming figure, and Atsumu perked up immediately.
"Kita-san!" He called, jogging up to the counter.
Said man blinked in surprise, eyes still colorless but as expressive as any other. "Atsumu, hello. I didn't know you were in today."
"You know each other?" Osamu asked as he stepped aside, making room for his twin. Beside him, Atsumu beamed.
"I woulda died in yer sad little parking lot without him, yeah. 's been a while, how are ya?"
Kita pat the rice bag beside him on the counter, "I'm good, nothing quite as exciting as that. Helpin' out today?"
Atsumu bumped Osamu’s shoulder, earning a hip bump back, "This guy can't do anything without me, clearly-"
"I keep yer lonely ass out of trouble, you little shit-"
Kita watched as the two bickered back and forth before shaking his head, tapping the counter to get their attention again. "Good to see ya lookin’ after each other. Let me know if there’s anything you need, Osamu. Bye, Atsumu.”
Both Miyas waved as he headed back to his vehicle, Osamu raising his eyebrows to Atsumu while Atsumu raised his shoulders in a shrug back, coy smile not missed even as he turned around.
It continued like this intermittently weeks later, on the days Atsumu and Kita ended up at the restaurant on the same day. Which, was becoming a more and more likely experience, as Atsumu was offering his help with the shop more often than he ever had since its opening. He’d lean over the counter whenever the rice farmer made a drop, smiling widely as they chit-chatted about this and that. If Atsumu came in on supply days more frequently than any other, that was his little habit and Osamu’s mystery to ponder. And on days Kita delivered but Atsumu wasn’t around, he never once failed to ask about Atsumu.
Some time after that, their friend group got together after closing- Sakusa, Suna, Osamu, and Atsumu. This was a routine of their friend group, coming together after practices to drink in the comfort of either Osamu’s shop or the Miyas’ home. Today, they sat in front of a quiet fire at Atsumu and Osamu’s shared apartment, catching up with the latest winter stories and laughs.
Later, Atsumu would blame the alcohol for the fake sense of comfort, but in the moment he felt personal. “Sooo… maybe I like someone.”
The room fell into silence.
“OHHHHHH SHIT WHO IS IT??”
“Oh boy, not again.”
“Is this the return of lover-boy?”
Atsumu grumbled and buried his face in his elbow, immediately regretting saying anything. With a track record of four eye color changes under his belt, his love life was a constant joke within the group. “Aw, c’mon guys, lay off.”
“You’re the one who brought it up, dumbass. So? Who is it this time?” supplied Suna helpfully, wiggling his bottle of Sapporo in Atsumu’s direction.
“And are ya f’real this time, or is this just another ‘Atsumu thing’?” Osamu asked, tone on the edge of accusing.
“Shut up,” Atsumu responded in reflex, “you guys are the worst, I don’t know why I ever talk to ya.”
“Neither do we,” Suna muttered, before being smacked by both Osamu and Sakusa.
Sakusa lolled his head towards the blonde, propping his chin in his palm. “C’mon, we know you can’t keep quiet about it even if you wanted to. We’ll listen.” Sakusa shot a warning glance at Suna as he finished.
Atsumu’s eyebrows squished together as he pouted at his alcohol bottle, weighing his outcomes. Obediently, the rest of the group sat quiet, waiting for him to speak.
“Well… y’know that farmer guy, the one that ‘Samu gets his rice from?”
“Oh, Kita-san?” Osamu asked, and received a nod in return.
“Yeah, well we met on that day you sent me to the shop after the storm hit. And, I dunno, since then we’ve been gettin’ along real well.”
“I figured you two talking out of nowhere every time he stops by was sus,” Suna added pointedly.
Sakusa’s eyebrows knitted, frown quickly forming, “But, Atsumu… doesn’t he have two colorless eyes?”
A beat of silence fell over the group, the elephant in the room being unveiled. Two colorless eyes… may be a cause for concern, as it definitely wasn't normal. Sakusa explained further.
"It could mean he doesn't have a soulmate. Which means, he's not your soulmate," Sakusa's voice quieted as he continued, "Do you really want to take that risk again?"
As one of his previous and longest eye share-ers, then turned best friend, Sakusa’s advice was typically taken to heart by Atsumu. Sharing so much, including volleyball teams, had brought them closer, but evidently not as each other’s romantic soulmate.
Instead of sitting and pondering the advice, Atsumu spoke immediately and without an ounce of doubt. He huffed and pouted as he looked Kiyoomi confidently in the eye, saying, "I've never regretted a single ‘risk’ I've taken, including you, soulmate or not.
“Kita-san has been so nice, and he’s really fun to talk to. I like spending time with him. What’s that gotta do with what kinda eyes he has? He’s good company.”
The rest of the group still sat quiet in the awkward silence, Atsumu included. He shifted, looking down at his Sapporo bottle before adding, “Anyway, I brought it up mostly to ask if, well. How ya can tell if it’s yer soulmate or not. I don’t mind havin’ another friend, but. I’m startin’ to get confused, y’know.”
Atsumu’s voice grew quieter as he spoke, staring off into his lap. They knew. “Get confused” was a cover up for “lose hope.” As much as they teased, Osamu, Suna, and Sakusa knew very well how Atsumu wore his heart on his sleeve, how he was never afraid of his feelings, and how that led to growing doubt in his fate. As his closest friend group, they knew very well and did their best to take care of him.
They each shared a look as he continued to fiddle with his bottle, Suna and Osamu nodding to each other.
“Well, I haven’t had any other soulmate besides Osamu, but I could just… feel something was different? It felt like another pull was there, whether I was actively thinking about it or not.”
Osamu nodded, following up, “I don’t super remember what ours first felt like, ‘Tsumu, but I did feel somethin’ stronger with Rin. Like… you and I had some kinda mental pull together, but with Rin,” he glanced over to Suna, as if looking at him would give him the answer, “With Rin, it does feel like somethin’ more physical, stronger.”
Atsumu nodded absently, face downturning in thought. “I think,” he began, the struggle clear on his face, “I think I’m going to have to think about it for a while.”
Now established friends, Kita and Atsumu sat at a cafe after Atsumu’s practice. They met like this a few times, to be able to talk better than over the bustle of Onigiri Miya.
“What?! How did we go to the same high school and not see each other?” Atsumu asked incredulously over his hot chocolate.
They had just talked about their childhood passions when Kita mentioned he went to Inarizaki for a year.
“So, why didn’t ya stay at Inarizaki?”
Kita sighed, taking a sip of his coffee before answering. “Ah… I’ve had to move multiple times, actually. I don’t usually make many friends, what with my eyes. People usually avoid me.” He smiled softly then, but Atsumu could sense the bit of sadness behind it.
Atsumu frowned, resting his elbow on the table. “That’s stupid. Yer a perfectly fine person, yer eyes don’t change a damn thing.”
The smile Kita uses is much more genuine, reaching up to his uncolored eyes. “I wish there were more people who thought like ya. I might’ve had an easier time growin’ up.”
“The whole thing’s crazy, anyway. My eyes’ve changed what, four times? Since I was born. Fate only brings ya so far and it’s up to you to do the rest, but damn, I guess I always go the extra mile,” Atsumu joked.
Kita blinked as Atsumu shook his head, surprised by the other’s situation. Then, he started laughing, earning a quirked brow from Atsumu.
“What’s so funny?”
“Nothin’, nothin,” Kita managed before grinning, “It’s just that, we’re like opposites, ain’t we? You’ve got too much of it and I don’t have enough, somehow.”
It took a moment to process before Atsumu laughed into his cup, but he did, unable to suppress his grin, “Yeah, that we are.”
As their cafe hang out went on, Atsumu thought back to what his friends had said. He felt pulled into his and Kita’s conversation, but that was just a good conversation, wasn’t it? There wasn’t anything life-changingly special about two friends who could keep up a natural flow. A little disappointed again, Atsumu went to bed that night still unsure.
Osakan winters weren’t truly over till the spring came, much to the misfortune of Atsumu’s tiny, European car. The winner today was somehow, yet again, the stubborn baby snowbank in the corner of Onigiri Miya’s parking lot. It was embarrassing, especially when the shop was still in full operation and half full with customers.
A rumble sounded behind Atsumu as he sent a final kick to the bumper, the sound of snow crunching under the tires followed by a door slam and footsteps giving him a feeling of deja vu. A feeling not so far off when he turned around, a now very familiar Kita-san stationed behind him, hands on his hips and a smirk on his face.
“Well, look what the snow dragged in. This yer second hobby or somethin’?”
“Ha-ha. Sorry I’m just a volleyball player with no need for a souped-up all terrain vehicle like you, Mr. Successful Farmer Man,” Atsumu teased back, imposing his height advantage on the other.
Kita raised his eyebrows in amused offense, already making his way towards positioning himself behind the car. “That’s an impressive attitude for someone utterly helpless right in front of the only one who can help,” Kita kneeled down, settling his shoulder into the trunk and his hand under the bumper before looking up again at Atsumu, “And it’s just a Silverado.”
Atsumu followed suit, rolling his mismatched eyes playfully while getting a good grip on the car. "Ready?"
Kita nodded, "1, 2, 3…!"
The car moved, but not in any direction that helped. Atsumu huffed and stood up, kicking away snow around each of the tires in hopes of it helping.
They tried again.
It didn't.
"Okay I can feel it this time," Atsumu said, face red from effort and looking absolutely ridiculous in his "power stance," "One more time!"
On the count of three, they pushed and pulled, until suddenly Atsumu lost his footing. Slipping on the very patch of ice he revealed behind a tire, he flipped backwards and into a snowpile with so much speed, he was only a blur.
"Ugh…" he grumbled, sitting up in the snow. There was a moment of silence before the tell-tale pfffft of the beginning of a cackle, and Atsumu looked up to the other.
Kita stood well above him now, perhaps karma for his earlier teasing, one hand on his thigh and the other covering his mouth as he laughed, hard .
Atsumu couldn't help beginning to laugh as well, brushing off the snow dolloped on top of his head.
"'m sorry," Kita managed between laughs, eyes still squinted from grinning, "Are y- are ya alright?"
Atsumu was cold, wet, and bruised, but it really wasn't so bad. Here he was, sitting in a snowbank like a duck, his car even more stuck than him. He had never felt more like an idiot in his life.
But, that was okay. Kita was here and he was laughing harder than he'd ever heard, and for some reason Atsumu felt okay with slipping a hundred more times like this to hear that laugh.
"Oh yeah, I'm great," he mused confidently while flinging snow off him, "I think I'll just stay here, actually."
Kita stifled another laugh to hold his hand out for the disgruntled man in the snow, "C'mon, I'll help ya up."
Wiping off more snow with his free hand, Atsumu reached up for the offered hand and finally looked at Kita properly. Suddenly, he froze.
It seemed like slow motion, Kita opening his eyes fully from laughing, still wrinkled at the edges. The blank canvas irises Atsumu had grown used to, the ones that practically matched his hair, were instead replaced by the warmest shade of brown Atsumu had ever seen.
Some would say brown eyes were nothing special, the most common eye color, the most boring. Commonality be damned, no eyes had ever taken Atsumu’s breath away like the brown ones in front of him. A perfect mocha, a Hershey's kiss, the logs of a cozy fire- they were like the missing piece to a puzzle, pulling Kita’s entire being together in the most perfect and complete way. Atsumu couldn't imagine a better color on him, there was something about those pools of color that made him feel complete, made Atsumu feel complete- something like coming home.
The revelation was one sided, however, and time and the world were carrying on as they always did. The world was currently Kita helping him out of the snow, so with Atsumu frozen in surprise, that clearly didn't work well with physics.
Kita blinked as Atsumu started falling back just as their hands brushed, and jolted forward to catch him by the wrist. Atsumu was, however, much heavier than Kita was prepared for, and with the momentum of gravity already pulling him down, Kita toppled down on top of him.
"Ow… ah, shit, shit, sorry Kita-san, are you alright?" Atsumu asked in a panic, worried he crushed the smaller man in the fall.
Kita landed on top of Atsumu instead, cushioned by his winter jacket. He lifted his face from being buried in Atsumu’s chest, trying to puff hair and snow out of his face. "I'm fine, are you? I think I hit yer chin…"
Atsumu’s chin did ache, but it was forgotten the moment Kita looked up to see if he was alright. Those eyes, for so long blank and concerning, now shown as strong and warm as if they had always been there, as if there was nowhere else they belonged.
It was a captivating thing, and now so up close and personal, Atsumu couldn’t resist. He reached out and gently brushed the snow and hair out of the way of those boldly colored eyes, allowing them center stage. He didn’t say anything, only staring in wonder as his hand came to rest softly against Kita’s temple.
“...Atsumu, ya alright?”
Kita’s voice broke through his trance and he blinked twice before truly processing their position.
“Oh! Yeah I’m okay! I’m sorry, shit, let’s get outta here…”
Getting up again was another awkward tussle, Atsumu almost slipping once again and cursing out loud as he grabbed onto Kita’s arm. They decided to abandon the car, and went back inside Onigiri Miya after the fiasco for a warm cup of hot chocolate, after both of them sat in snow for the better part of five minutes.
“Well, I hate to say it, but I don’t have my towing gear on me. I don’t think yer gettin’ that thing outta here tonight,” Warmed up with a drink, Kita looked back at Atsumu’s car in the snow. He continued, though, cutting off Atsumu’s opening mouth with a raised eyebrow, “I can take ya home, though. Me and my souped-up all terrain vehicle.”
Color now breathed into his eyes, Kita’s smirks were even more dangerous, but still Atsumu laughed into his own cup. “I’ll take ya up on that, actually. There’s still like six hours till closin’ and honestly I don’t wanna wait that long.”
With a nod and a few more jokes to Atsumu’s unfortunate situation, they head out to Kita’s truck and headed home. The entire ride Atsumu tried to act natural, as if Kita’s eyes weren't running through his mind like a horse race. Should he say something? If Kita noticed, he definitely didn’t make a show of it. Did it mean something different for him than the average person? Atsumu couldn’t stop thinking of questions if he wanted to.
When they pulled into his and Osamu’s driveway though, all those thoughts suddenly ran dry when it came to his tongue.
“Well, here ya are, safe and sound,” Kita said, pushing the gear into park.
Do you want to come inside? Atsumu wanted to ask. He wanted to ask so bad. It felt right. But, maybe he needed time to clear his head, to think. Maybe Kita needed time. He was definitely making excuses, but suddenly this one request made him more nervous than anything in his life so far.
“Atsumu? You’re staring again. Sure yer alright?” Kita’s white locks shifted as he tilted his head.
Maybe I did hit my head, can you stay for a bit? “Oh yeah, sorry, thanks so much, Kita-san. I really owe ya one,” Atsumu answered with a smile.
“Don’t even worry ‘bout it, I’ll see you later, okay? And maybe in a moving car next time.”
Atsumu grinned back at that and waved as they departed, unlocking his front door and standing in the doorway for a while after it closed. The next few hours were spent pacing around the house, rethinking every thought, action, and interaction he’d had over the past month or so, and anxiously awaiting Osamu’s return.
By the time he finally did return home from the shop, Atsumu had well put all the pieces of his mind together, and stood in the entryway ready for Osamu.
Before he could even question his brother’s weird antics, Osamu’s words caught in his throat when he saw both of Atsumu’s eyes sparkling a deep amber, a color that hadn’t had a similar counterpart since their own eyes mirrored each other’s.
“Osamu,” he began, voice trembling a little as a smile started to climb his lips, “I think I’m in love.”
Once Kita entered his house and dutifully slipped his shoes off in the entryway, he called for his parents, as he did every time he visited home. “Mom, grandma, I’m home!”
“Welcome home, dear. How are the roads?” his grandma called from her usual spot on the couch.
“Just fine for me,” Kita answered as he set his things down in the kitchen, “My friend however, not so much.”
His mother turned to him from drying dishes, towel in hand as she replied, “ Well, that’s-”
Suddenly though, she dropped both the dish and towel as she looked at him, bowl bouncing on the ground. “Shinsuke, your eyes-!”
“‘Samu. I need Kita-san’s address.”
“Woah wait what? I know ya finally figured out ya like the guy but ya can’t just-”
It had been a few days since “The Incident” (as Osamu called it, “The most life changing and magical moment of my life,” as Atsumu did), and Atsumu felt restless with the weight of a revelation on his mind and the new lack of interaction with Kita-san.
“Or his phone number, I don’t care. ‘Samu please, I don’t know when I’ll see him again.” After more than a few decades of puppy eyes, Osamu could say they don’t work on him from Atsumu anymore, but he could see there was much more behind his newly matching eyes. He could tell that it was years of dwindling hope, of four color changes, of a special something meant just for him right in his reach. Osamu didn’t choose to point out how he was being dramatic, how “I don’t know when I’ll see him again,” sounded like a whiny girl in a fantasy movie and how he knows Atsumu knows when supply days were, so he’d see him just fine. Osamu knew his brother better than anyone else on the planet, and that was why he said nothing.
“Fine. Here it is, just don’t be creepy about it,” Osamu said as he slid his phone across the counter.
The softness in Atsumu’s eyes more than made up for his years of annoyance. With a quick thank you and nod, Atsumu dashed to his room.
To: Kita-san
> Hi Kita-san, it’s Atsumu. I asked Osamu for your number. I was wondering if I could come over today?
> Or whenever you’re free
> If that’s ok
> It’s totally ok if not
Atsumu slammed his head into his pillow repeatedly. What was he, a high schooler again? Why was he texting like an email to a professor? The phone dinged a few long minutes later and he held his breath.
From: Kita-san
< Hi Atsumu. I could always use some help around the farm, you’re more than welcome to come over. :-)
< When were you thinking? I can make us something to eat.
It took everything in Atsumu not to scream in excitement, so he muffled it into his pillow.
“Osamu!” he yelled from his room, “I’m going to Kita-san’s!”
Osamu smiled to himself as he heard the chaotic shuffling of Atsumu getting dressed and ready. “Good luck, dork,” he added over his shoulder when Atsumu struggled to put his shoes on.
“Huh?”
“Nothin’. Drive safe.” Osamu smiled lovingly, unable to hide his care and equal happiness for his twin. “Don’t embarrass yourself.”
“I can’t do any worse than you!” Atsumu called back as he left, slamming the door closed in excitement.
Arriving at Kita's was like stepping into a different world. Atsumu took a deep breath as soon as he stepped out of the car, breathing in the brisk winter air, clear from pollution and laced with the crisp scent of nature. It was a bit of a drive to somewhere so far from the city, but damn was it worth it.
Atsumu knocked with a trembling hand, blaming it on the cold. Not even a minute later the door swung open, revealing Kita in much fewer layers, a wide smile, and of course, Atsumu’s newest favorite pair of eyes.
“Hi,” he said, stupidly.
“Hi,” Kita said back, chuckling at his nervousness, “Want to come in?”
“Yes, please,” Atsumu responded with a small blush, hurrying in the door. Once he slipped off his shoes and set down his stuff, Kita gave him a small tour of his place, ending them in the kitchen.
“I figured we could have lunch first. Ya hungry?” Kita asked motioning to the pots and pans on his countertop.
Atsumu rolled up his sleeves in readiness, “Yes! What are we makin’? Let me help.”
Kita eventually complied, defending that as a guest, he should be treated. Atsumu however wouldn’t want all that work to be placed onto sweet little Kita-san, and they both agreed to cooking together, despite the teasing. It was fun, and relaxed Atsumu’s nerves more than he realized. Both of them could hold their own in the kitchen, with Kita’s independence and Atsumu’s forced participation by his brother, and it turned out much more peaceful than Atsumu could’ve predicted. They worked well together, easily completing tasks independently and chit-chatting all the while before combining everything at the end. Kita’s warmth reached every corner of any space he occupied, and Atsumu couldn’t ignore the fact that he felt quite at home.
It was Atsumu who couldn’t hold back in the end. As they stood by the sink, just finishing washing the dishes, Atsumu leaned just a tad closer to Kita, “Your eyes are beautiful,” he said quietly.
Kita turned to face him, smile ever so soft. His eyes shined with a smile as well, “Same goes to you, they really suit ya.”
Atsumu felt his heart jump in his chest as they drew closer, voices softening, and glances flitting. If this was truly the power of soulmates, it all made sense to him now.
“Took the words outta my mouth, you-” Atsumu swallowed, throat failing him as their fingers brushed together, “I think yer amazing, Kita-san. Smart, caring, gorgeous, kind…”
Kita’s eyelashes fluttered beautifully, much longer than Atsumu’s. “Shinsuke,” he whispered, “call me Shinsuke.”
Atsumu could feel his heartbeat pounding throughout his entire being. “Sh-Shinsuke, can I kiss ya?”
“Please.”
Atsumu’s trembling hands settled on Kita’s waist and he leaned in, eyes squeezed shut. He’d kissed a few others before, but he felt like a naive teenager again pressing his lips against Kita’s waiting ones.
A press of lips was all it was, Atsumu freezing up as his mind went a million miles. When they pulled back however, Atsumu cursing himself for being so skittish, Kita’s chuckle brought him back in. "Why so light? I'm not gonna break, ya know."
Atsumu’s voice was strained as he responded, "You might not, but I will."
Kita smiled that caring and wide smile before taking another step forward and wrapping his hands around Atsumu’s taller neck, "I like crafts; I'll put you back together."
Oh, fuck, was all Atsumu could think as he positively melted at Kita’s words and into his warm hands. Kita’s nimble fingers tangled in the hair at his nape, pressing them into a better kiss.
Atsumu couldn't help but sigh into it, sinking into everything that was Kita- his hands, his body, his feels-like-home aura. When they pulled away, Atumu rested their foreheads together as they both took a moment to process everything that wasn’t said with words.
“I think I love you, Kita-san,” Atsumu finally whispered into the space between them.
“I know I love you, Atsumu,” Kita easily responded.
“I think yer my soulmate…”
Kita’s hands drifted down Atsumu’s front before wrapping around his back snuggly. Then, with another teasing smile, he said, “I know you're mine, Atsumu. Don’t know what the hell my eyes are doin’ if you ain’t.” The laugh Atsumu uttered reverberated through his chest, which Kita pressed against in a hug. “And, I told ya to call me Shinsuke, didn’t I?”
“Yeah,” Atsumu replied, squeezing the man back with a giddy smile, “My bad, Shinsuke.”