Chapter Text
Astumu and Sakusa have only been dating for awhile but Sakusa knows Atsumu well enough by now to know that something’s wrong. Incredibly wrong.
The concern for his normally energetic and loud boyfriend was sparked one morning when he woke up to find Atsumu still fast asleep beside him. Sakusa sure thought that it was strange that Atsumu wasn’t up already and in the kitchen, humming to another stupid Taylor Swift song as the smell of burnt toast took over their apartment.
Sakusa had decided not to overthink it until it started to become a regular occurrence. Atsumu had stopped waking up at 7am to go on his morning runs and when Atsumu would wake up, Sakusa wouldn’t be met with a big grin and an exclaimed “Good morning baby!” like he usually would. Instead, he was met with tired, dark eyes alongside a very groggy and forced “Good morning baby”. The sudden change in Atsumu’s voice and attitude made Sakusa’s stomach churn. Why the sudden switch?
--
Atsumu has felt like he hasn’t been himself lately and he can’t comprehend why. It’s a feeling that he’s struggling to get rid of. You could say that he’s like a tree, still standing tall in the roughest conditions but is gradually losing parts of himself one by one as time passes. But, recently, the leaves on his branches haven’t been falling off very swiftly.
Even the sport that Atsumu puts his heart and soul into is no longer giving him as much serotonin as it used to. ‘What’s not connecting?’ ‘Why is the ball no longer so easy to control?’ So many questions are running through his head but little answers accompany them.
Atsumu and his teammates are halfway through a practice match when their coach puts the game to a halt. Everyone around him is wondering why their match has been interrupted until they hear the sounds of extreme inhaling and exhaling. Atsumu’s crouched down, legs parted with his hands on his knees, severely breathless and panting hard. “Tsumu, do ya need a break?” Osamu asks as he quickly moves over to Atsumu and places his hand on Atsumu’s back.
“Nah. Nah Samu. I-It’s ok. I’m ok.” He chokes out in response, looking up to see his teammates all exchanging glances back and forth at one another in confusion and concern.
Meian grabs a towel and places it on Atsumu’s shoulder. “Sure seems like it. Go take a shower, you’ve done enough today.”
“AH!? THE GAME’S BARELY STARTED!” Atsumu protests as he stands up, His feet nearly losing balance as he does.
“I know so tell me why you’re already sweating like crazy.” Meian replies.
Meian’s right. Atsumu looks down at his shirt which just so happened to be drenched in sweat. Before he even has the time to process what the hell is going on with him, a familiar and soft hand gently takes his and leads him into the locker room.
“Atsu. You’ve got to tell me what’s going on.”
‘Oh Omi’ he thinks. ‘If only I knew.’
--
Sakusa’s in the kitchen making fatty tuna and rice for Atsumu when he hears the front door opening followed by the irritating sound of keys being jangled (deliberately because Atsumu knows it tends to annoy Sakusa). Atsumu kicks his shoes off, throws his keys on the table and walks up to Sakusa, wrapping his arms around Sakusa’s neck and softly digging his face into his boyfriend’s back. The pair stay silent for a while until Sakusa has to move from the counter over to the sink in order to drain the rice. Atsumu huffs at the sudden loss of warmth and comfort. “You’re such a child.” Sakusa laughs as he turns his face away from the excessive amount of steam escaping from the heated water.
“Omi, I’m tellin’ ya, nothing has managed to shock me more than the fact that you think I’m Samu” Atsumu retorts as he slumps against the fridge, impatiently waiting for Sakusa to make his way back over to him.
“Oh please. Anyone could tell you two apart just by having a conversation with you for five seconds.”
“Ouch babe, ya really are hitting it where it hurts!”
“I’ll hit you some place where it really does hurt in a minute.” Sakusa jokes as he walks back over to the counter, truly unphased by the sudden bodyweight being dropped onto his back.
“So… the doctor’s appointment? What did they say?” Sakusa asks as he slightly turns to face Atsumu.
“Turns out that we were all over-exaggerating. My doctor said that I’m just vitamin D deficient which explains my high temperatures and body aches.” Atsumu smiles.
‘Surprising’ he thinks, considering he only learnt about the deficiency and its symptoms from a quick Google search on his short bus ride home and managed to 1. Remember the symptoms and 2. Make it sound believable enough. Also, as Sakusa is a Sports Science student, he is all too familiar with nutrition and the consequences that follow from poor nutritional intake.
Sakusa feels relieved as now thinking about it, it makes sense.
Atsumu takes both of Sakusa’s hands and places them in his own before intertwining their fingers. He softly, but guiltily, kisses Sakusa on the back of his hand, receiving a soft smile in return.
‘He’s going to hate me.’ He tells himself and gulps.
--
Atsumu wakes up in a heavy sweat. His skin is hot to the touch and his pillow is a damp mess. He flips the pillow round, hoping that the unused side would greet him with even a hint of coldness – No luck.
Atsumu kicks the duvet off of himself, almost whacking Sakusa in the face with the tip of the duvet but luckily misses him by an inch. ‘Phew.’ He slowly leans up against the headboard and admires a sleeping Sakusa. He smiles to himself as he internally fights off the urge to wrap a glossy black curl around his finger. ‘How did I get so lucky?’
“I’m going to miss this.” Atsumu whispers as he cautiously gets out of bed, trying his best not to wake his boyfriend up. He tiptoes to the bathroom and then looks up at the clock. It is 3AM. Atsumu grunts as he struggles to take his clothes off. His clothes are stuck to his body like they have been adhesively glued there.
He’s so wound up by his clothes refusing to budge that he fails to notice that Sakusa is right behind him, watching him in both confusion and amusement. “Atsu… What in the world are you doing?”
“My clothes won’t fuckin’ come off!” Atsumu whines. “Ya gotta help me babe, I’m trapped!”
Sakusa lets out a tired laugh as he goes over to his boyfriend and forcefully pulls at his soggy t-shirt. “Geez Atsu, you really are a walking water fountain.” He jokes as he manages to get the t-shirt off.
“A fountain!? More like a fuckin’ waterfall at this point.” Atsumu huffs, getting into the shower and setting the shower valve to the coldest temperature.
Sakusa laughs and looks down at the small pile of wet clothes on the floor. ‘How can a vitamin deficiency cause this much sweating?’ he asks himself.
Sakusa walks back into their bedroom as he waits for Atsumu to get out of the shower. He sits down on the side of the bed where Atsumu sleeps. The side which feels completely damp beneath him, making him gulp.
Atsumu finishes his shower and wraps a towel around his waist. He picks his clothes up off of the floor and walks back into their bedroom. Sakusa looks up at him, his jaw gaping but he quickly closes it before Atsumu notices. It isn’t just the attractiveness Sakusa has towards his boyfriend that made his jaw drop but also the unexpected change in Atsumu’s body shape. He isn’t as muscular as he used to be, his collarbones are much more revealing and his thighs have slimmed down.
Sakusa’s baffled. Atsumu did not look this different several weeks ago. His eating patterns haven’t changed either because if they did, Sakusa would’ve noticed by now. However, Sakusa knows better than to comment on peoples weight so he remains silent.
Once Atsumu has finished changing, the pair change their bed sheet so that Atsumu can sleep comfortably – If he doesn’t excessively sweat again that is. They both lay down and Sakusa’s the first to put his arm around the other, squeezing him lightly and showering him with kisses all over his face.
‘I hope he’s ok.’ Sakusa frowns as he watches Atsumu drift off to sleep against his chest.
--
“Omi. Omi. Omi. Omi! Omi! OMIIIIII-“ Sakusa puts his hand over Atsumu’s mouth. “Finally, some peace.” Sakusa jokes as Atsumu says something inaudible into his hand.
Sakusa moves his hand away and the peace is instantly broken. “Can we go on an aquarium date!? I’ve never been to one!” He asks enthusiastically whilst looking at Sakusa with big, shiny gold eyes (Intentionally, in the hopes that it would be persuasive enough). How could Sakusa possibly say – “No.”
“HUH!? WHY?” Atsumu retaliates and Sakusa smirks as he expected this exact reaction. “I’m joking baby, of course we can. When was you thinking of going?”
“Today!” Atsumu grins, clearly already excited but that’s unsurprising since he continuously acts like a child anyways.
Sakusa slips his bookmark back onto the page he was just interrupted from reading and closes the book, placing it onto his nightstand and then getting up. “Well as we’ve got nothing better to do, how about we leave now? We can grab lunch on the way?” Sakusa suggests and Atsumu immediately springs himself off of the bed.
“Someone’s got their energy back.” Sakusa laughs and Atsumu just responds with a grin. He loves going on dates with Sakusa. He could be having the worst day ever until he goes out with Sakusa. His boyfriend always succeeds in enhancing his mood.
After spending roughly an hour in a coffee shop indulging on baguettes and coffee, the pair finally arrive at the aquarium. Atsumu is holding Sakusa’s hand and Sakusa’s letting him drag him over to different tanks – one by one. Atsumu points at different fishes and gives each and every one of them a name. Some were even given a little back story which makes Sakusa chuckle. His boyfriend is so stupid.
“See this one Omi?” Atsumu points at a Blowfish. “Yes.” Sakusa answers.
“He kind of looks like you.” Atsumu laughs and Sakusa ‘kind of’ wants to push him into the tank.
“Oh really?” Sakusa points at a Monkfish. “This one reminds me of you because you both can’t keep your mouth shut.” Atsumu bursts out laughing, causing them to receive a few sets of eyes on them, not like either one of them cares.
Atsumu walks over to another tank with Sakusa. This particular tank contains a set of Guppies and the brief description on the tank states that ‘Guppies are more at peace when they are kept together.’
“Y’know Omi, these little fuckers are kinda like us. Firstly, their scales are multi-coloured, like the pride flag, so they are gay. Secondly, they are cute, just like us! Well… mostly me.” Atsumu jokes. “And… lastly? They are more at peace when they are together. Like… how I’m always at peace when I’m with you. When I’m with you Omi, all of my problems just… fade away.”
Sakusa cups Atsumu’s face with his hands before leaning forwards. “I think this is the most accurate thing you’ve said today.” Sakusa says as he goes to kiss him.
Atsumu kisses him back and then looks at the multi-coloured guppies again. “Hmm… Can we pick one up, put it in a bag filled with water and then take it home?”
“Don’t push your luck.”