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“Bakeyama,” Hinata said and pouted.
“You just say that ‘cause you know I’m right,” Kageyama said.
They were arguing about who had won their race this time. Both were certain that they had won, as always.
“If you don’t behave, you won’t get any dinner,” Kageyama threatened.
“Don’t you ever joke about something that serious!” Hinata responded.
He was staring at Kageyama now. Refusing to give in, Kageyama continued to look ahead. They would arrive at his home in a few minutes and dinner should be already on the table by then. His stomach was growling.
“Who said I was joking?”
“Bakeyama”
～
“Urgh I hate this. Do you think it is possible to die of boredom? I feel like I will die any second,” Hinata complained.
“Nothing is impossible when it comes to maths,” Kageyama replied.
They were sitting in the living room, doing their respective maths homework. Well, they were attempting to at least. Both had their calculators out and some calculations written down, most of them had been crossed out sooner or later.
“Why do you have to be bad at maths too? If you were good at it you could help me at least!” Hinata said.
“Oi, be nice or we won’t have these study sessions anymore. It’s not my problem you have a pea-brain.”
To be honest, these studying sessions would probably never be cancelled. Kageyama knew that they were the only thing keeping him from failing right now. Even if doing this once a week on Fridays wasn’t the most effective, it was still better than nothing.
“Pfft, you wouldn’t dare.”
“Watch me.”
Kageyama stood up. He didn’t have the patience to continue with his homework anyway, so this was a welcome excuse to stretch his legs.
“Oi Kageyama, where are you going?”
Kageyama didn’t slow his steps and just continued walking to his room. He heard Hinata shuffle and his rushed footsteps behind him.
Arriving in his room, he quickly grabbed his volleyball and turned around. Mouth open, eyes wide Hinata stared at him. His eyes quickly jumped between Kageyama's face and his hands, holding the volleyball. Hinata's fingers twitched.
“Set for me?” he asked.
“Sure,” Kageyama replied.
～
“Hinata-kun! It’s late, don’t you have to go home?” Kageyama's mother asked as she entered the garden.
“Oh right, sorry for staying until this late!” Hinata said.
He quickly went to the living room to grab his schoolwork, not even half done. Kageyama saw him take a pained look at it, grab it and stuff it into his bag.
“You could stay the night if you want. You have to take the bike over the mountain, don’t you?” Kageyama's mother said.
A few seconds of silence passed. Hinata was looking at both of them when he said:
“It’s alright, I’m used to it. And I wouldn’t want to impose.”
“No no, dear. You’re always welcome. I’ll grab my phone and call your mother, I’m sure she’ll be fine with it,” she said.
Without taking another look back she left the room, the two boys rendered speechless.
“Well, that’s my mom for you,” Kageyama mumbled.
“You sure it’s okay if I stay?” Hinata asked reluctantly.
“Yeah sure. But you don’t have any overnight stuff, right? I’m sure we have a spare toothbrush and you can have some of my clothes. We could finish maths tomorrow too,” Kageyama said.
He was saying this stuff as if he didn’t feel his heart speeding since his mother had proposed Hinata stay the night. He hadn’t had a friend stay over since… well he couldn’t even remember.
Being friends with Hinata was something he was just getting used to. Having him sleep over felt like a huge step and Kageyama didn’t want it to go wrong. What if Hinata thought he was weird and didn’t want to be friends anymore?
No, that wouldn’t happen. He took a deep breath.
Hinata had stayed friends with him for this long, a sleepover wouldn’t change that.
Probably.
“Yeah that’s actually a good idea. I don’t think I would finish it at home to be honest,” Hinata said.
He smiled at Kageyama and packed his bag, now a lot slower than before. They walked to Kageyama's room and tossed the ball back and forth for a while and chatted. They stopped when they heard a knock on the door.
“Yeah?”
Kageyama's mother opened the door and stuck her head in.
“Hinata-kuns mother said yes.”
Now adressing Hinata directly she said: “She just told me you need to be home in the morning since she needs you to look after Natsu.”
“Alright, thank you so much!”
“No worries. Just don’t stay up too late boys,” she said as she closed the door.
Hinata proposed that they could watch a rerun of a volleyball game he had missed. Kageyama agreed instantly and they turned on the little TV in his room.
～
“And he went like “pow!” and it flew right past the blocks!” Hinata reminisced as he brushed his teeth.
There were little drops of toothpaste flying around him but Kageyama didn’t mind.
“I know, I watched it too,” he deadpanned.
“It was so amazing, we need to try it out on Monday,” Hinata continued, completely ignoring Kageyama's remark.
“You suck too much for it to work. You’re receives are too sloppy, you need to fix them first,” Kageyama said.
“Hey, that’s mean!”
“It’s true,” Kageyama simply replied.
He wasn’t wrong, Hinata did need to work on his receives. But he had gotten better by a lot since they started highschool. Not that he would ever admit that, of course.
“But we can try anyway,” he finally said.
Hinata was glowing. His smile lit his whole face up, Kageyama ogled the toothpaste in his mouth.
“Really?!”
“Only if you finally spit that toothpaste out. It has been flying everywhere.”
Quickly complying Hinata started to hum a little song, one of victory perhaps.
～
He was rolling out a futon when Hinata walked in. Kageyama was scanning him starting from his feet, up to his knees, to the hem of the shirt he was wearing, hanging around his thighs, over his torso swallowed up by fabric and finally arriving at his face. It was a little red, only highlighted by his orange hair.
“Not. A. Word.”
“I didn’t say anything,” Kageyama said sweetly. The corners of his mouth quirking up ever so slightly.
The shirt Kageyama had given him was too big, that much was clear from the start. But did it really have to be the biggest he owned? Yes, that was absolutely necessary, in Kageyama's opinion at least.
Not looking away on purpose, Kageyama's eyes followed every one of Hinata's movements. He turned his back, grabbed his phone and walked toward Kageyama now.
“Alright, this is your futon. I’ll sleep here,” Kageyama gestured to his bed. “If anything is wrong just wake me up.”
And at that he walked over to turn the light off.
They both slipped into their respective beds and stared at the ceiling. A few minutes passed in silence.
“Psst, Kageyama”
“No”
Hinata paused. After a few seconds he picked up again.
“Will we really try the move from the game on Monday?”
“Sure, I just can’t promise it’ll work.”
“Thanks. And we will just practise until it does,” Hinata concluded.
He rolled on his side, his back turned to Kageyama.
Kageyama was still staring at the ceiling. Hinata always was the pure embodiment of optimism and enthusiasm. No wonder he wanted to recreate the move he saw a national volleyball player perform on television as soon as he laid his eyes on it. That was just in his nature.
It was just as much a part of him as his never ending social battery and the ability to make friends wherever he went.
Kageyama let out a quiet sigh. He would never understand how the little tangerine did that. He himself had barely learned how to do a high five and Hinata had already gathered the emails of half of the Nekoma volleyball team.
Well, Kageyama had never been good at making friends. He didn’t really mind that much, he had been alone most of his junior high time after all, but seeing the others be so relaxed and happy with each other was like a tiny needle straight to his heart every time it happened- not much by itself but over time it got unbearable.
His biggest issue was that he didn’t know how to fix it. He was told that his smile was creepy and that he was rude. The boys from his former volleyball team had given him his hated nickname for a reason.
Oh, the Kitagawa-Daiichi volleyball team.
Kageyama shuffled under his covers, he didn’t want to think about them. Sometimes a memory of him screaming at them would rise up and he felt a pang of guilt in his chest. For a while they had been friends, he remembered clearly.
Kindaichi had slept over once, right at the start of their second year. But once Kageyama was the regular setter the relationship between him and his teammates only got worse. Kindaichi hadn’t stayed over again after that.
God, what if it would be the same with Hinata?
No, he couldn’t let that happen, he wouldn’t lose a friend again.
He grabbed his blanket. Why was he still so hung up on this? It was junior high after all! He wasn’t the person he used to be anymore, he wasn't… he wasn’t the “king of the court” anymore.
But what if Hinata left regardless?
Kageyama stopped himself and forced his eyes closed. Why did he even care that much? He was fine by himself, he always had been. So why was he so afraid of losing this tiny bouncy ball?
He laid there for a while, listening to Hinata's even breathing while mulling it over. Why, why, why?
After not getting to a satisfying answer he dived face first into his pillow. This was useless. He was probably just getting weird ‘cause it was late. After he slept everything would go back to normal and he could stop overthinking. Yes, that had to be it. He took a deep breath in and rolled on his side.
Lying there, watching the shadows the moonlight made until he felt sleep tugging at his eyes. He already felt himself slipping away when he heard something rustle. His eyelids didn’t cooperate and decided to stay closed regardless, he didn’t fight it, slipping into a light slumber.
～
“Wait no, Hinata stop!” Kageyama screamed.
No, this couldn’t be happening. Please this was all wrong.
“No Kageyama. I thought you had changed but you are still the person from when I first met you. Or am I wrong, king?” Hinata sneered.
The cold in his voice made Kageyama shiver. This was so unlike he had ever seen Hinata.
“Please, this was a mistake. I’m sorry! I’m so sorry!” Kageyama pleaded.
“It’s too late for that now. Goodbye Kageyama,” Hinata said.
Tears rose up in his eyes and his throat was suddenly so tight. He couldn’t make another sound and then Hinata was gone.
He felt the first tear fall, then another and another. His hands were shaking and his head was hanging hopeless. He had done it again. He had driven his last friend away.
The tears were dripping down his nose and falling to the ground when he heard someone call his name.
“Kageyama”
Huh? He looked around, he didn’t see anyone.
“Kageyama!”
The voice sounded urgent, was someone in trouble?
“Kageyama wake up!”
Suddenly he opened his eyes to complete darkness, gasping for air.
“Finally, you’re awake!” Hinata said.
Kageyama could only make out a vague shape in the darkness but it was definitely Hinata, standing over him.
“I think you were having a nightmare. Are you alright?”
Kageyama, still trying to even his breathing, willed his eyes to focus.
“Well, I’m awake now so better. Sorry for waking you up.”
God, had he made noises in his sleep? How much had Hinata heard? He wanted the ground to open and swallow him whole.
Hinata was shifting his weight from one foot to another, finally deciding to sit down on the edge of Kageyama's bed. He reached out and brushed his fingers against Kageyama's shoulder.
He did his best to not flinch under the touch. Now he was seeing Hinata more clearly. There was a worried look on his face. For a few breaths no one said anything. Then, Hinata removed his hand and Kageyama briefly thought he would probably go back to sleep now.
Instead, he was moving toward Kageyama, not away.
Instinctively, he moved back until his back was pressed firmly against the wall.
“What the hell are you doing?!” Kageyama whispered angrily.
“Don’t worry, I get them too sometimes,” Hinata said.
He was looking at Kageyama with expectancy in his eyes. What was he waiting for?
“I’m… sorry?” Kageyama replied.
Hinata snorted.
“I meant by that, that I get it. If you wanna talk about it I’m here.”
Oh.
Oh
“There… is nothing to talk about, Hinata,” Kageyama said.
He wasn’t looking at Hinata anymore, his eyes focused on the little bit of collar bone peaking out of the shirt he was wearing. His shirt, he remembered.
“Kageyama,” Hinata sighed, “I… You were talking in your sleep for a bit.”
Fuck, that was it, the moment in which Kageyama would officially burry himself in his garden. Where was the shovel again?
Kageyama didn’t say anything after that, he didn’t know what to. Hinata was just looking at him with these eyes he had. He looked like he had an especially difficult opponent in front of him and he was trying to figure out how to get past him.
Kageyama swallowed.
“What did you hear?” he asked.
He dreaded the answer but he wanted to know. He needed to know.
“Not that much, I heard you say “no” multiple times and I heard-”, he stopped for a second, seemingly collecting himself, “and I heard you call my name”.
Hinata was looking at him directly now, searching for something in Kageyama's eyes.
It wasn’t like it was a surprise but Kageyama was still taken aback.
“Well about that. I-”
“Wait, just before you start: You don’t have to tell me anything. Just please don’t lie, okay?” Hinata asked him.
Kageyama considered this. He already had an easy excuse on his lips but he couldn’t lie to Hinata now, could he?
“Okay”, Kageyama said.
He took a deep breath in.
“So you remember, when I was in junior high I had this nickname.”
“King of the court, right?”
Kageyama cringed.
“Yeah, that.”
And he went on to explain the origins of the name as briefly as he could. Maybe that would distract Hinata enough, so that he forgot about the dream.
“Alright, I get it. But what has that to do with the dream?”
Fuck.
“Well, so I was friends with the guys from my old volleyball team until like second grade.”
Hinata nodded.
“And then, after I got the starting setter position, it went bad. I was too harsh on them and after a while, they didn’t want to put up with it anymore. We… stopped being friends I guess.”
Kageyama took a few deep breaths to steady himself. The feeling of loneliness and isolation had never really left him, that much he realised now.
“But why were you calling my name then? In your dream I mean”, Hinata asked sheepishly.
There was compassion on his face. Kageyama furrowed his brows. It was his own fault that his friends turned his back on him, so why was Hinata so understanding?
Before he could think about that further though, he needed to find an answer to Hinata's question.
“Um, I’m kindofafraidthatwillhappenwithyoutoo”, Kageyama pushed out.
“Wait… what?”
Kageyama sighed and tried again: “Well, after what happened in junior high I-”
“No, no I got that part. But why the hell do you think that that would ever happen again?”
Speechless, Kageyama was now the one staring. Was he serious?
“I know that you're an asshole sometimes. I mean, you kick me all the time, but that doesn’t mean that I don’t want to be your friend all of a sudden.”
Kageyama was searching for any sign, any hint that Hinata was lying, that he was only saying that to make him feel better. He didn’t find any but he already knew that Hinata wasn’t the kind of person to lie about something like that anyway.
“And the team knows too and we still want you as our setter! Why the hell would you worry about stupid shit like that?!”
Hinata was getting louder with each syllable and Kageyama had to remind him to be quiet.
“It’s not stupid”, he said and pouted.
Hinata pocked Kageyama's stomach.
“Is so”
“Is not”
Kageyama responded immediately by poking back, only with more force. Hinata gasped theatrically.
“Is-”, Hinata bored his finger into Kageyama's side, “so”.
And that was it, Kageyama threw the blanket back and went at him. His sides were easy to access and Hinatas hands didn’t do much to block it.
“No, please don’t!” Hinata pleaded, some tears of laughter already forming in the corners of his eyes.
“You did this to yourself,” Kageyama responded and accentuated his words with little pokes to Hinata's stomach.
Hinata was letting out gasp after gasp and Kageyama was smiling. Hinata was now near to hysterical laughter. The sound was hilarious.
Suddenly there was a loud knock on the door.
“Quiet in there!”
Oops, that was his father.
Hands frozen Kageyama was still leaning over Hinata, they locked eyes. Kageyama slid to the side of the bed next to the wall and Hinata gave him some space. For a while, they just layed there, breathing heavily next to each other.
Kageyama let out a loud yawn that even surprised him.
“We should go to sleep,” Hinata said.
There was still a hint of laughter in his voice but he seemed to have calmed down sufficiently.
“Yeah, you’re probably right. But… thanks.”
Kageyama felt his ears heat, he was grateful for the cover the darkness provided. Hinata just mumbled a response and laid there. Wasn’t he going to get back to sleep?
Well, it didn’t really matter, he would get back down as soon as he calmed down completely, Kageyama thought. He rolled over and was facing away from Hinata now, already closing his eyes.
He felt him shuffle, he was getting up, finally . But no, suddenly he felt something at his back move and then he felt warmth. Hinata was… lying right next to him?
He didn’t dare move and just waited for a few seconds. What was he doing?
The seconds turned into minutes and Kageyama started to relax. The body warmth at his back felt reassuring as he was pretty sure Hinata was already fast asleep.
“Hey Kageyama,” Hinata whispered, “just so you know, I’ll always be there, no matter what.”
And then he felt Hinata shift again, suddenly the connection disappeared and his back was cold again. He felt his heart squeeze, had he waited there just to say that?
Intuitively, he turned around, threw an arm out and caught Hinata by the sleeve.
“Hey, um, you could stay just for a little while. If you want to.”
Hinata stilled. Oh no, he had made a mistake, Hinata would find that weird and-
And then Hinata sat back down and turned toward him.
“Okay,” he said.
He laid back down, now facing Kageyama and pulled the blanket over them. Their faces were placed on the same pillow, their noses only a few inches apart. Kageyama could count each individual eyelash.
He shuffled upward a few inches and reached his arm out, throwing it over Hinata lightly. The latter scooted closer and took a deep breath in, he was now completely buried in Kageyama's chest.
Kageyama tightened his grip around him a little and rested his chin on Hinata's head. He felt the other boy relax against him, Hinata reached one arm out, now hugging him at his waist.
Kageyama felt shivers run through his body, spreading from that one spot. He closed his eyes.
After a while Hinata spoke up: “This is nice.”
Kageyama's heart skipped a beat. It was more than just nice . It felt like home. It was everything. But instead of saying that he settled on replying with a simple: “Yeah”.
If Kageyama wasn’t so tired he would have thought about the implications of what they were doing. He would have sat there, for hours, trying to figure out what he was feeling, what the flutter in his chest meant, what Hinata was feeling. But he was so tired. He was so tired that he didn’t do all of that, instead he took a deep breath in and pulled Hinata closer.
～
“Urgh,” Hinata groaned. Why did the sun have to shine directly in his face? He squeezed his eyes close and laid his head back down, he heard breathing. Wait, what?
His head jerked up and he saw Kageyama, breathing evenly. His face was relaxed and he didn’t wear his trademark scowl. Hinata smiled, he looked at peace. He laid his head back down, listening to Kageyama's steady breathing as he tightened his arms around Hinata, he was now pressed completely against him. Not that he would complain.
Hinata let out a sigh and shifted slightly, tightening his hug as well. Nothing on this planet could force him to move right now.
Each rising of Kageyama's chest lulled Hinata deeper and deeper to sleep until he was in the land of dreams again. But he was sure, no dream could possibly compare to the reality he was living right in this very moment.
～
Kageyama felt something shift, suddenly he was cold. He opened one eye and noticed Hinata, lying next to him and hugging the blanket. That little thief.
Kageyama stretched an arm out and tugged at the blanket, Hinata gripped it harder. Kageyama sighed. He settled on grabbing Hinata by the waist and pulling him closer instead, his back now pressed to Kageyama's chest.
He closed his eyes and sighed again, if he had the choice between a blanket and this, the wouldn’t hesitate an instant to pick. Now deep in slumber he didn’t notice Hinata's hand, pressed over his mouth, desperate to not let a squeal out.
～
“Wake up boys, Hinata needs to leave soon!”
The voice of Kageyama's mother sounded, muffled by the door.
She knocked louder.
They both shot up, eyes wide. Kageyama pushed Hinata from the bed, the latter not pleased at that and voicing that instantly:
“Hey, what the hell?”
“We’re up mom, coming!” Kageyama answered his mom.
“Sorry, I didn’t want her to see,” he explained.
He was rubbing his neck and looking to the ground.
When he looked up Hinata was looking straight at him, his eyes shining. Was he waiting for something?
“Hey um…” Kageyama trailed off.
“Was last night okay?” he asked.
Hinata smiled and something in Kageyama's chest loosened.
“More than okay,” he answered.
Both boys were looking at each other, trying to assess the situation at hand. What now?
“I think we should get going, my mom’s waiting,” Kageyama finally said.
Hinata nodded and stood up. He straightened the shirt he was wearing. Kageyama liked seeing him in it.
“You coming?” Hinata asked.
Just now Kageyama realised he had zoned out. Quickly standing up he felt his brain slide back into place and his thoughts started racing. Oh god, what happened last night? That was definitely not a thing most friends did, even he knew that. Did he want it to mean more? Did Hinata?
Hinata turned back at him and smiled. His eyes were squeezed small, his hair was standing up wildly in every direction. Kageyama felt warmth surge through him. He reached out and ruffled his hair, attempting to manage it. Hinata stayed still and watched him silently, a pleased smile ghosting around his lips.
Kageyama felt calm cooling his heated head, his fingers stopped trembling. He didn’t know what last night meant for their friendship. He didn’t know what he was feeling or what Hinata was thinking. But maybe… maybe that was okay. Maybe he didn’t need to know for now.
He knew that Hinata wouldn’t leave, that he would stay no matter what. He knew that they would figure this out together, he wasn’t alone anymore. And that was enough.