Work Text:
It’s a slow day today. Kenma shifts a little on his wobbly stool, pushing his bangs out of his face and frowning down at his 3DS. The battery light is blinking at him, and he’s only just had lunch. At this rate, he’s not going to have anything to do for the rest of the day. Reluctantly, he folds it closed and drops it into his lap, leaning forward over the counter and staring out at the water.
He hadn’t wanted a summer job. He tucks his chin over his arms, letting his hair fall into his eyes again. He’d been looking forward to sleeping in, no deadlines and no classes, and then Kuroo had happened, as he always does, and now Kenma is here, stuck in this boring little shack, nothing to do.
Kuroo, of course, isn’t having the same problem. Kenma can see him out on the beach, talking to a couple of girls and striking a pose with his surfboard. He’s too far away to be sure, but Kenma is pretty sure that he’s flexing. Kenma smiles a little. Typical.
At least he’s got something to do, though. The day is muggy, but not sunny, and the beach isn’t nearly as busy as it should be. Kenma’s only rented out equipment once today, to one white couple with flowery shirts and broad, floppy hats, and the rest of his morning has been spent unsticking his shirt from his back and swatting at flies while he works through the next chapter of his game. He’s trying to remember that he’s getting paid for this, but it just doesn’t seem like a good use of his time. Kenma exhales in a huff, his bangs fluttering upward feebly before falling again. It’s going to be a long day.
He’s staring down at his 3DS in his lap, trying to calculate battery life (maybe if he turns down the backlight, it’ll last longer), when there’s a resounding smack. He flinches, looking up to find two hands pressed flat against the counter. They’re attached to a guy his age, no taller than he is, with a mess of red hair and a broad, eager smile. “Hi!” the guy says. He’s got a smear of white sunscreen across the bridge of his nose and he’s pale, a sure sign of a tourist. “Is this where you rent scuba gear?”
Kenma glances pointedly up at the bright sign above his head proclaiming as much. “Yes,” he says. He taps his fingers against his legs.
The guy’s eyes get enormous. “Whoaaaaaa!” He’s so excited and noisy. He peers around Kenma’s shack, looking at all of the gear hanging up behind him. “This is so cool! I’ve never been scuba diving before.” He leans over the counter, so far that he’s almost in Kenma’s face, and Kenma has to scooch backwards. “Is it hard? What do I need? Oooooh, what are those for?” He points at a couple of harpoons on the wall.
Kenma feels a faint sense of alarm. “I don’t think you want those,” he says. It suddenly feels very crowded in here.
“Are you from around here?” The guy is already veering away, picking up a set of goggles far too large for his face and pressing them to his eyes. He turns back to Kenma and he grins, his eyes enormous behind the plastic. “I’m Hinata Shouyou. Do you know where the good places to dive are?”
There is something a bit charming about Shouyou, if overwhelming. “No,” Kenma says. He only really goes out when Kuroo drags him out. He’s got more experience. “But there are maps over there.” He gestures vaguely at the rack on the wall and Hinata immediately hangs up the goggles and runs over to examine them.
Kenma watches Shouyou as he stretches open one of the maps, making little noises of fascination as he traces his fingers from location to location. His shirt is a couple sizes too big, the neck hanging low enough to expose the knobs of his spine, already freckling under the summer sun. “Do you know when the best time is to dive?” Shouyou asks, turning back to face Kenma. “I’m a good swimmer but my mom keeps worrying about me being swept out to sea…” His smile slips a little. “That won’t happen, right?”
“Probably not,” Kenma says. He tucks his hair behind his ear. “It’s not that dangerous.”
“Good,” Shouyou says, and he beams. “I want to see fish, but I don’t want to be dead.” He takes the map in his hand and flattens it out on the counter in front of Kenma. “There are so many spots.” He sighs, propping his chin up in one hand. “I wish I had someone to go with. I’ve only got Natsu and mom won’t let her go anywhere without water wings.”
Kenma doesn’t know what to say, and he’s not sure that Shouyou even needs him to say anything, so he just hums and nods.
“Kenma could go with you.” Shouyou spins around and Kenma stiffens at the sound of Kuroo’s voice at the door. He glowers at Kuroo, but it’s been a very long time since that had any effect on him, and Kuroo just smiles, propping himself up against the doorway. “Things are slow, I can watch the place.”
“Could you?” Shouyou asks breathlessly, and he looks so hopeful.
Kenma clenches his hands up into fists against his thighs, his hair sliding back into his eyes. “No,” he says immediately, a sense of dread settling in his gut. Kuroo has that smirk on his face, the one he gets when he’s about to drag Kenma into something he doesn’t want to do. “I just rent out the gear. I don’t teach.” He sends a glare Kuroo’s way, but he just crosses his arms over his chest and quirks an eyebrow up at him. He can be such a pain.
“Oh.” Shouyou’s shoulders drop. “Well, okay! I understand.” His chin tucks in as he stares down at the map again. “You’re busy and stuff.” Kenma feels inexplicably guilty.
“What a shame,” Kuroo says, utterly unphased by Kenma’s expression. “I guess you’ll just have to take a raincheck.”
Shouyou’s phone rings, and his whole face screws up in a grimace. “Yeah,” he says. “Raincheck.” He folds up the map again and answers his phone. “Hi, mom,” he says, and he holds the map out for Kenma to take. “No, I know, I’m coming!” As soon as Kenma takes it, Shouyou is gone at a run, blowing past Kuroo and disappearing from the beach, headed up towards the tourist cottages on the hill.
“What are you trying to do?” Kenma asks Kuroo, frowning. He carefully straightens the folds in the map with his thumbs. “I’m not an instructor.” He’s pretty sure he’d be a bad teacher, anyway. He doesn’t have the type of patience that it would require, especially not around a guy like that.
“No,” Kuroo agrees. “But I think it’d be good for you.” His eyes are doing that soft thing that they do when he’s trying to push Kenma, like a wayward child. It makes Kenma simultaneously fond and irritated. Kuroo is always convinced he knows best.
Kenma sighs. “I wish you wouldn’t do that,” he says, and Kuroo smiles at him. It’s not far into summer, and Kuroo is already getting tan, shoulders and chest turning golden, and it suits him well. He’s probably very pleased with himself.
“Do what?” Kuroo asks, his lips turning up in a very familiar kind of sly smile. Kenma’s mouth draws into a tight line, exasperated, and Kenma’s grin broadens. “Come on,” he says. “Isn’t it about time to take lunch?”
They’re supposed to stay on the beach during the day, eat here, but if they head up to the shops, Kenma might be able to charge his 3DS. “Hmm,” he says. “I don’t know if I should leave the shack…”
He’s not at all surprised that Kuroo sees right through him. “My treat,” he says, like an offer of peace.
Kenma graciously accepts it. “I guess I can go, then,” he says, and Kuroo rolls his eyes, stepping back so that Kenma can gather his things and close up. It only takes a moment, and then they’re headed up to the shops, companionably, side by side.
“You know, you’d probably do better at renting out equipment if you went out diving sometimes,” Kuroo tells him.
“I really don’t care,” Kenma says, and Kuroo throws back his head and laughs.
Shouyou is there the next morning when Kenma arrives to work. “We’re not open yet,” Kenma tells him, like opening up shop takes more than propping open the door and unlocking the register. The nice thing about working in a tourist town is the late mornings, but it’s still surprising to find Shouyou there, bouncing on the balls of his feet, hands tucked into his shorts’ pockets. “It’s a bit early for diving.”
“I know,” Shouyou says. He waits patiently for Kenma to open the door and then follows him in, like a lost puppy. “But I thought I’d catch you before you got busy.” Kenma settles his bag under his stool but before he can reach inside and find his 3DS, Shouyou jumps up to sit on the counter. “Your name is Kenma, right?” he asks. His heels bump noisily against the wood. “This must be a pretty great job. What a nice view.”
“It’s okay,” Kenma says. He pulls out his game system and slides onto his stool, letting his hair fall into his eyes. He wishes that Kuroo had come this morning, but he’d been up at the break of dawn when Bokuto had hammered on their door, bellowing about ‘ultra sick waves, brah!!!’ Kenma had emerged just long enough to glare at him for being so noisy and exchange long-suffering, commiserating looks with Akaashi.
Shouyou frowns for a moment, maybe unsatisfied with Kenma’s answer, but he plows on. “I wish I had a job like this. It looks perfect.” He leans back on the palms of his hands, looking all around the scuba shack. “Summer sun, you get to see lots of people. I bet you have so much fun!”
Kenma flicks open his 3DS and hums vaguely. “It’s okay,” he says again. He’s sure that if his boss caught sight of them now, Shouyou right up on the counter, he’d be in a lot of trouble. He considers telling him to get down, but he watches the way that Shouyou’s heels kick against the counter and shrugs, turning on his game.
“Oooh!” Kenma flinches backwards as Shouyou sticks his head right in his face, peering down at the screen. “What are you playing?”
This is far too much excitement for this early in the morning. Kenma straightens and pushes his hair behind one ear. “Just a game,” he says. He’s used to people making fun of him for always having his nose in a game, never talking much.
Shouyou smiles at him. “It looks cool,” he tells Kenma, completely earnestly, and Kenma feels a little rush of warmth in his chest. “I had a Vita but then I dropped it and my mom won’t let me get another one.” Shouyou settles back and sighs a little. “I wasn’t very good anyway.”
“That’s too bad,” Kenma says, voice neutral, but his mouth pulls up at the corners. Shouyou’s eyeing the game in Kenma’s grip a bit hungrily, but he keeps his hands to himself, and Kenma likes that.
“Do you want to get lunch with me?” Shouyou blurts out. He sits up straight and rocks a little from side to side, his eyes fixed on his hands. “I mean, it’s early, but -”
“It’s ten in the morning,” Kenma points out.
“I know,” Shouyou says immediately. “But I just thought I’d ask early. So you don’t make any other plans with your surfer friend.” He looks up again, eyes big and hopeful. “Did I beat him?”
It surprises Kenma, that there’s a part of him that actually wants to say yes. And to Shouyou’s credit, Kenma does think about it for a moment, turn the idea over in his head thoroughly until he puts it away. After all, the only thing he knows about Shouyou is that he’s a tourist who talks too much. But he seems…nice. “I’m not supposed to leave the beach,” Kenma says, shrugging a shoulder.
Shouyou so visibly wilts that Kenma feels almost guilty for turning him down. “Oh,” he says. “I just thought -” Guiltily, Kenma thinks about Kuroo and their lunch trip yesterday, and stares down at his hands. “Never mind,” Shouyou mumbles. He smiles at Kenma. “Just a suggestion!”
Kenma taps his fingers against his handheld like his game isn’t on pause. “It’s okay,” Kenma says, because Shouyou is so droopy and he looks sad. It’s strange, but Kenma doesn’t want that. “It’s just - work.” He gestures at the shack. Shouyou nods at him, and Kenma hesitates before he speaks again. “Maybe some other time.”
It sounds like the platitude that it is, and Kenma’s got the feeling that Shouyou knows that. “Yeah, sure,” Shouyou says. His hands are still knotted together in his lap. “I get it.”
It’s shaping up to be a slow morning. The skies are overcast and the only people already out on the beach is a handful of overeager teenage surfers and an elderly couple parked under a massive sun umbrella. A day like this, without customers or Kuroo to fill the time? Kenma lifts his 3DS up out of his lap and holds it out. “Do you want to try?” he asks. He hopes this isn’t a bad idea.
“Okay!” Shouyou says brightly. He pauses. “Wait, how do I start a new game? I don’t want to mess with yours.”
A little smile creeps across Kenma’s face. Okay. This kid isn’t so bad.
Kenma wipes at the sweat collecting at his hairline and frowns. His luck has run out, and today has not only been stiflingly, awfully hot, but he’s had customer after customer since open. He thinks wistfully of his parent’s house back in Tokyo, of their air-conditioning and his nice cool bed. He still hasn’t decided yet if this was the right choice.
He reevaluates when Shouyou charges into the shack, dropping a basket in front of him. “Look!” he says.
Kenma blinks at him. “Yes?” he says. He was off yesterday, passing his scuba shack duties off to Inuoka, so it’s been a while since he saw Shouyou. It’s weirdly relieving to see him here today.
Shouyou’s starting to get a sunburn now, red skin to match the red of his hair, and freckles are popping up across the bridge of his nose and the jut of his collarbones. He still hasn’t found a shirt that fits him, though. “I brought lunch!” he says excitedly. He flips the basket open to reveal a little stack of tupperware containers and a couple of drink cans, dripping with condensation. “You said you couldn’t go anywhere, so I’m bringing the food to you!”
“You brought me a picnic?” Kenma asks slowly. He lifts a hand up to cover the way his mouth is curling into a smile. He’s not used to someone being this...persistent.
“Yep!” Shouyou says. He pulls out a can and holds it out for Kenma to take, grin bright and hopeful. “I hope that’s like, okay, I mean, I know you said no last time and I don’t want to be weird -” He freezes suddenly. “Is it weird?”
“A little,” Kenma tells him, but he lets Shouyou see his smile. “But it’s nice, too.” He takes the drink, rubbing his thumb through the drops of condensation beading up. “Thank you.”
It’s incredible, the way that Shouyou just lights up, and it takes Kenma a minute to realize that he’s staring at him. “You’re totally welcome,” Shouyou says. He pops the top on his own drink and jumps a little at the snap it makes. “I told my mom I had plans so she wouldn’t make me look after Natsu again.” He huffs a little. “Like, I love her, but I didn’t know that going on vacation would be like babysitting with no pay.”
Kenma tips his head. Like this, Shouyou sounds young. “How old are you?” he asks curiously. At Shouyou’s urging, he reaches into the basket, poking through the food before he decides on a sandwich and pulls it into his lap.
“Don’t say it like that,” Shouyou says. There’s nowhere else to sit in the shack, so Shouyou just hoists himself up on the counter again. “I’m not that young. I’m going to be in university next year!”
Kenma carefully opens the container and takes out his sandwich. “It’ll be my second year,” he tells Shouyou. “That’s why I’m here. Kuroo said he could get us both jobs, and the extra money will be nice.” He leans in to take a bite, and he’s surprised by how much he enjoys it. Shouyou’s done a good job with these.
“You’re my senpai, then!” Shouyou gasps, and Kenma can already see him backpedaling, bowing his head in apology.
He purses his lips. “I don’t care about that,” he says. He frowns down at his sandwich, and he hesitates to look up at Shouyou again. Shouyou has never been even a little bit intimidated by him, and he would really, really hate to lose that now.
When he does, Shouyou is beaming at him. “Okay!” he says. “Cool.” He tilts his head, wiggling a little on the counter. “The guys on my volleyball team were like. Really into the senpai thing.” His eyebrows fold down in thought. “Actually, it’s a little weird.”
Kenma snorts a little as he bends over his sandwich, and Shouyou takes it as encouragement to fill Kenma in on his whole team, especially his sullen, genius setter best friend. He’s noisy in everything he does, his heels against the counter, slurping from his drink, scattering crumbs all over the place, but Kenma doesn’t mind. Too much. He brushes the crumbs off the table top and Shouyou flushes, hurriedly tidying the rest and pulling an apologetic face.
“I played volleyball in high school,” Kenma starts, and Shouyou’s smile turns full-watt, back straightening so fast that he drops his sandwich in his lap. “It was okay.”
“What position did you play?” Shouyou demands, practically climbing across the counter in his excitement. “I’m a middle blocker, because I can leap really high -” He illustrates with his hands, swinging them into the air.
Kenma pulls the basket out of Shouyou’s way so it doesn’t end up on the floor and props his chin up on one hand, letting Shouyou’s voice wash over him. He’s got a lot of words in him, and he doesn’t seem to really need Kenma to say anything, which is kind of the way that Kenma likes things.
Over Shouyou’s waving arms, Kenma catches sight of Kuroo, standing in the doorway. He raises his eyebrows, lips curling up in that smirk of his, and Kenma’s eyes slide away, pointedly ignoring him. Kuroo can be so infuriating when he’s right.
His gaze shifts back to Shouyou. “I was a setter,” he offers, and Shouyou’s jaw drops open in delight.
“Could you toss for me sometime?” Shouyou asks, his eyes wide and hopeful. “I mean, if you’re still into that.”
Kenma considers. Kuroo talked him into joining a recreational league in university, but he doesn’t keep up with training the way he used to. But maybe, with Shouyou, it might be fun. “Okay,” he says after a moment.
Shouyou whoops and punches his fists into the air. “I can’t wait!” he tells Kenma. His sandwich has been completely forgotten by now and Kenma smiles at him over his drink can. He’s kind of looking forward to it too.
“So.” Kuroo’s voice is heavy with meaning, but Kenma just shifts his feet out of the way so that he can sit down next to him. He could prompt Kuroo to continue, but he’s just going to talk anyway, so it’s easier to just keep playing his game, curled up at his end of the couch. “You stood me up at lunch.”
“We didn’t have plans,” Kenma says. Once Kuroo’s settled down next to him, he folds his feet back over his lap. He’s almost leveled up and he really doesn’t care for a distraction in the form of Kuroo trying to have a Talk.
Kuroo’s hand falls to curl around Kenma’s bare ankle and squeeze. “We always get lunch together,” he points out.
Kenma knows exactly what Kuroo’s angling towards, but he doesn’t want to talk about it. His feelings towards Shouyou are easy and uncomplicated and he’d rather not dig them all up and make them complicated. “Maybe I wanted a break from your face,” he mutters.
It doesn’t fool Kuroo, but he just raises an eyebrow and lets it slide. “You can’t get sick of my face,” he protests. “You’re practically blood at this point. You’re contractually obligated to tolerate this face.”
“Hmm.” Kenma’s eyes flick up from the screen of his game. “I never signed up for this.” There’s a tiny smile pulling at his lips, and he sees it mirrored in the pleased quirk up of Kuroo’s mouth. “I think I want to opt out.” It’s a patent lie, of course. Kenma spent a lot of his childhood watching the other kids play and trying to figure out how to interact with them. With Kuroo, he’d never had to think. He’s the only person that Kenma has met who has had the patience to sit down and wear down Kenma’s walls until he’d woken up and realized that they were best friends. He’s definitely not about to let that go.
“We’re in this for life,” Kuroo intones, and Kenma rolls his eyes.
“So corny,” he sighs, and Kuroo just grins and jostles him a little.
Kenma fidgets with his phone, glancing around furtively as he waits. This is his day off, and he really should be at home, curled up with his Vita, not standing around on the corner and hiding from the sun.
He’d gotten a handful of texts this morning from Shouyou, when he’d realized that he wasn’t at work, and it had all somehow ended up with Shouyou talking him into hanging out together. It’s not like it’s a bad idea, really, but Kenma’s just...not sure what they’re supposed to be doing. He prefers the kind of hanging out he can do with a group of people, so that he doesn’t have to carry a conversation.
“Sorry I’m late!” Shouyou bellows as he barrels down the street. Kenma looks up as he approaches, and it’s a good thing that he does, because otherwise, he might’ve been taken out by a stray elbow. “I was so excited to meet up with you that I got nervous and then I got lost.”
Kenma snorts and ducks his head. This town is barely big enough to get lost in. “You must’ve gotten really nervous,” he says, and he means it to be a little bit teasing, but then Shouyou is turning pink and Kenma feels his own cheeks heat in response. He taps his hand against the back of his neck. “So,” he says.
“So!” Shouyou echoes. He presses a palm to his chest and drags in a great big breath, trying to slow his breathing. “Are you going to show me around?”
“Show you around?” Kenma blinks at him, raises an eyebrow. Shouyou’s been here for nearly a week now and honestly, he has to have already been to just about every place that’s interesting. Kenma isn’t really a great tour guide, anyway. His favourite places to spend time are the ones that have wifi and convenient power outlets. “There’s not much to show off.”
Shouyou laughs. “Okay, then.” He presses his fingers against his mouth. “Hmm. How about some place with air-conditioning and food?” He tilts his head, eyes wide.
Kenma likes how Shouyou thinks. “Yeah, I can do that.” He turns and gestures up the street with a twitch of his chin. “I know a place.” He’s startled when Shouyou slings an arm around him for a moment, squeezes his shoulder, and then lets it drop. Shouyou doesn’t look at him, just marches straight ahead next to him, chin pushed up. He just looks happy, like sunshine written all over his face. It suits him.
They end up at the town’s one decent cafe, and Shouyou is delighted. He slaps his hands down on the counter and gazes up at the menu, eyes big like he’s overwhelmed by the list of choices. Kenma gives a little wave to Yaku behind the counter and then he slides into a booth to watch Shouyou choose.
Shouyou makes little noises as he peers in at the flavours of ice cream, taps his fingertips against the glass like he’s looking at fish to buy. He’s got the enthusiasm of a kid, lighting up when Yaku offers to give him samples. “Which one do you like?” he asks Kenma over his shoulder. He’s got a daub of something strawberry flavoured at the corner of his mouth. “They’re all so good!”
Kenma laughs a little, his shoulders jumping, and swipes his hand across his lips to tell Shouyou. “I like the cinnamon one,” he says. Yaku is already scooping him out a cup, and Kenma gives him a nod of appreciation. There are a few pluses to being a bit predictable. “But I bet you’ll like the bubblegum.”
“Bubblegum? There’s bubblegum?!” His head pivots until he spots it in the case. “I want that one.”
At the counter, Yaku props his chin up on his elbow and meets Kenma’s gaze and raising his eyebrows, trying not to laugh. “One bubblegum, coming up.” Shouyou claps his hands and grins.
Shouyou brings their cups of ice cream to the table, and he sets Kenma’s down carefully in front of him. “This is a great tour,” he tells Kenma around his plastic spoon, and under the table, his toe bumps up against Kenma’s shin. “A plus.”
“Hmm.” Kenma tips his head to the side. “Maybe if you’re really lucky I’ll take you to the place where Kuroo buys his surf wax.”
“Whoa!” Shouyou exclaims, eyes mischievous, and he licks the back of his spoon. “How exciting!” He beams at Kenma and Kenma ducks his head and laughs into his ice cream.
Kuroo stops dead when he sees Kenma. “I don’t believe it,” he says, a smile growing slow across his face. “Can it be?”
“Shut up,” Kenma tells him. He holds out a diving mask for Shouyou, leaving his own so that he can pull his shirt up and over his head. Shouyou snaps the mask on and blinks a few times, his grin squashed a little by the press of the rubber. Kenma laughs and flashes a tiny thumbs up. It’s a good look.
“You’re going diving,” Kuroo says, drawing out his words like he didn’t watch Kenma head out the door this morning wearing his swim trunks. “You’re going diving.”
His disbelief isn’t entirely unfounded. The last time Kuroo had managed to talk him into going diving, he’d had to bribe Kenma with an exchange of a day doing nothing at all. “Thank you for stating the obvious,” Kenma says.
He hunches his shoulders a little, now that he’s shirtless, but Shouyou pays him no mind, fiddling with his snorkel. “This is exciting,” Shouyou says, voice nasally in his mask. He’s already wiggled into his flippers, flopping them against the sand although they’re still a fair few metres away from the water. “I bet we’ll see all sorts of fish!”
Kenma watches him, kicking sand around, and he can’t help the smile on his face. There’s something very infectious about Shouyou’s enthusiasm. Kenma shouldn’t be so charmed by how noisy Shouyou is. “Let’s hope we will,” he says.
He’d dug out one of their own pamphlets this morning, sat elbow to elbow with Inuoka while he’d suggested locations to him. There was no point in going out if you weren’t going to see anything cool, after all. Kenma lifts his hands to tie his hair back and gestures towards the surf with his chin. “Ready?” he asks.
“I don’t get to come?” Kuroo asks. It’s not a serious question, and Kenma knows it - Bokuto is in town again and neither of them really want to leave him to his own devices. But it’s nice that he offers.
“No,” Kenma tells him. He gathers up his flippers and snorkel. “You’ll just scare the fish away.” He turns to look at Kuroo, flicks his chin up, and then twists away again. A part of him wants to say yes, just to have Kuroo there. He’s always been better at these social things. The thing is, a bigger part of him just wants to be with Shouyou. “Go busy yourself flexing on the beach.”
Kuroo laughs, pushes him away with a gentle hand. “I will,” he says, and Kenma favours him with a small smile before turning back to Shouyou.
Shouyou is splashing in the shallows, laughing with delight at the noise it makes. “Let’s go, Kenma!” he calls, and Kenma pulls his goggles over his head to hang around his neck, obligingly wading into the water. “Show me the fish!” He glances back at the beach and Kuroo waves at him.
Kenma draws himself up just a little bit taller and catches up with Shouyou. “Let’s go,” he echoes, the water lapping at his knees, and Shouyou whoops and throws himself into the surf.
Kenma leads Shouyou far out past the swimmers at the beach to a spot Inuoka had reminded him of, tucked past a cove. It’s close enough to get to without a boat, and kind of private, since technically speaking, it’s sort of on private property. Kenma would feel guilty, but the owners are rarely around, and it’s not like they’re going to be doing anything wrong. They’re just looking for some fish.
Shouyou is so excited. “I see something!” he whispers, like the fish would hear him shouting from where he’s bobbing around on the surface. “Look!”
Kenma slides his mask down over his eyes. “We could look a lot closer if you want,” he says. They’d spent a minute near the beach, walking through the basics so that Shouyou could learn to clear his snorkel and dive under the water. He’s a fast learner. “Ready?”
He can’t tell in the gentle rise and fall of the waves, but he’s pretty sure that Shouyou is wriggling with excitement. “Yes,” he breathes, eyes big behind his goggles. He stuffs his snorkel in his mouth and carefully checks the seal around his mask before he flashes Kenma a thumbs up.
Giving him one in return, Kenma smiles around his own snorkel, and then they dive.
It takes them a moment to get down close over the reef, especially when Kenma has to keep tapping Shouyou’s hip to remind him not to splash his feet around, but once they do… Shouyou clutches at Kenma’s wrist, pointing at the slow pulse of underwater plants in the surf. His hair is still so bright even underwater. Kenma wishes he could see him smile.
A fish peeps out from behind a branch of coral, and Kenma uses Shouyou’s grip on his arm to point him in the right direction. Shouyou’s fingers tighten but he doesn’t surge forward the way that Kenma was halfway expecting he would. He watches as the fish swims out lazily, scales flashing in the sunlight as it noses through the water.
Kenma can feel his pulse against the press of Shouyou’s thumb, and if the snorkel wasn’t in his mouth, he’d smile. Even here, floating just under the water’s surface, he’s just like a kid. Tentative and nervous but he just wants to get close to the fish. Kenma swims forward with long slow pulls of his flippers and tugs Shouyou with him. It's a sunny day, and the water is so blue and clear here. Inuoka had been right to suggest this place. As the fish get used to their presence they start to swim out, and Kenma remembers why Kuroo has always liked to go snorkeling. It's beautiful down here, the bright reds and oranges still vivid through the water, the fish curling in languid little circles, in and out. Kenma twists his hand so that he can link his fingers between Shouyou's and squeezes tightly.
Out of the corner of his eye, he sees Shouyou stretch out a hand, slow, cautious. The fish scatter at his approach, and if Kenma could, he'd laugh at the crestfallen drop of Shouyou's shoulders. He tightens his grip on Shouyou's hand and smiles around his snorkel. He tugs Shouyou a little closer, to grab his attention, and then reaches out himself. They stay motionless for nearly a minute, moving only with the wash of the surf like a couple of otters worried they'll get lost and then -
Shouyou's hand twitches in Kenma's as the fish emerge again. A little orange one is braver than the rest, coming right up to Shouyou's hand and nibbling on his fingertips. For a moment, Kenma is afraid that Shouyou will do something in his excitement, but he just holds still, arms rigid with happiness, and he watches.
They float around for a while longer, until the sun starts to drop in the sky, and then Kenma tows a willing Shouyou back to shore. "Did you see?" Shouyou bursts out, as soon as they've broken the surface and pulled their snorkels down. "Did you see it? It was so close!" He yanks off his mask and he's got stark red lines all around his eyes, his red hair sticking up in weird little spikes, and Kenma finds himself grinning. "Wow! I can't believe it!"
"I think they like you," Kenma says solemnly. Shouyou rolls his eyes, his enthusiasm entirely undampened. "You must be very tasty."
They slog up out of the water, and Kenma drags his flippers off. Shouyou opts to leave them on, walking up the beach with a noisy slap against the sand. "They were so close!" Shouyou says again, and he leaps surprisingly high into the air, barely catching himself when he lands. "Wowwww. They were so pretty. Did you see me touch the big one? Wait until I tell Natsu!"
Kenma only flinches for a second when Shouyou throws a wet arm around his shoulders. "Very cool," he tells Shouyou, and Shouyou beams at him, pulling him in close.
Maybe, it turns out that all Kenma needed to actually like diving was the right company. He smiles back at Shouyou.
Kuroo drops the tray down on the table between them, and Kenma only pauses his game long enough to reach for his burger and fries. "I like that Hinata kid," Kuroo declares. He leans back in his seat and points at Kenma with a couple of fries. "I've decided it."
Kenma raises his eyebrows, favouring Kuroo with a long look. "Well, that's good," he says. He's not certain where Kuroo's going with this, so he'll let it play out. "And interesting, because you don't know him at all."
"I know that you like him," Kuroo says, and he's smirking now. "And that's good enough for me."
Kenma's heart does a complicated maneuver, an odd backflip of affection and embarrassment. "Aren't you thoughtful," Kenma says. He's aiming to sound bored and uninterested, but Kuroo's grin just widens. A sad side effect of knowing each other as long as they have.
"You're not arguing," Kuroo says, taking a triumphant bite of his burger. "You do. You like him."
It's been years since trying to lie to Kuroo was anything but a lost cause. "I suppose," he says evenly. It's an understatement, of course. He likes Shouyou, likes his irrepressible enthusiasm and his easy smile. It's probably a bit egotistical too, but Kenma likes how much he likes him, too. He's determined to be friends, and that, well. It feels nice.
Kuroo's eyes are soft. "Good," he says. He tips his head. "I think he's good for you."
Heat creeps up Kenma's throat. "You sound like my mother," he accuses. "Do you have to do this every time I make a friend?" He knows what Kuroo is saying, though.
"Yes," Kuroo tells him, completely unabashed. He reaches for more fries. "You should bring him to the party on the weekend.
Kenma considers this. The beach party is a yearly tradition, and it'd be kind of nice to have someone else there to talk to. He does like their local friends, but some of them can be, well. Draining. He's not really sure how Kuroo can spend so much time with Bokuto without wanting to kill him. "Maybe I will," he says.
"Good." Kuroo smiles. "Maybe that way you won't try to disappear when I'm not looking."
"I don't disappear," Kenma clicks his tongue. He returns to his game. "I just go home early." Last year, he'd called it a night as soon as Lev had dragged out his guitar and dropped to his knees in front of Yaku in the sand. That was a moment best left to them, he'd decided.
"Still." Kuroo nods. "Bring your little friend. I want to get to know him." He takes a long drag of his drink. "And if you won't, I will. It's not like he's hard to find." He arches an eyebrow and Kenma rolls his eyes, trying not to think about how Shouyou shows up at his shack every shift like clockwork, smile stretching wide across his face.
"Fine," Kenma sighs. "Don't get all excited about it, though."
Kuroo knocks his foot against Kenma's ankle, and grins around his straw, pleased with himself as usual. "No promises," Kuroo tells him, and Kenma rolls his eyes again, all fond.
"I have to tell you something," Shouyou whispers as they approach the bonfire.
It's late enough that the sun has set, and the most of the light provided is from the roaring fire that Bokuto has set up in a firepit on the beach. They're still far away that Kenma can't discern who's already there, but he can definitely pick out Bokuto and Lev’s voices. The sand beneath Kenma's feet is still warm from the summer sun, but the breeze is cooling the air down. "What is it?"
Shouyou licks his lips. "I've never been to a real party before," he admits. When Kenma's brows flick down in confusion, he hunches his shoulders and stares at the sand. "Like, with drinking and stuff."
Ah. Kenma favours him with a little smile. “Don’t worry about it," he says. He shrugs. "This is just supposed to be fun." Shouyou, relieved, nods.
After some long, lonely years as a kid, it sometimes surprises Kenma how many people he has that he can call friends. "Kenma!" Lev yells, as soon as he spots them approaching. "Kenmaaaaaaaaa!"
Here it comes. Kenma stops and braces himself, and he's still not prepared for Lev to scoop him up off his feet and spin him around. "Hello," he grits out. He's not sure he'll ever be truly ready for Lev's affection.
Lev sets him down carefully on the ground again. "I missed you!" he says. He spots Shouyou and his eyes get wide, but Kuroo steps between them, cutting Lev off before he can speak.
"This is Shouyou," Kuroo says, and when Shouyou reaches out blindly for him, Kenma takes his hand. He gets it. Between Bokuto performing drunk backflips for Akaashi and the sheer size and noise of Lev, he knows that they can be kind of overwhelming. "A friend of Kenma's. Try not to scare him off."
"I'm not scary," Lev says indignantly.
"He's really not," Kenma agrees, looking sidelong at Shouyou and relaxing a little when Shouyou laughs. That's better.
"Beer?" Inuoka calls from across the fire. He holds up a couple of bottles and wiggles his eyebrows in question.
Kenma glances at Shouyou again and shakes his head. "Not tonight," he says. "What else do you have?"
They end up planted on one of the logs by the fire, plastic cups filled with juice in their hands. Lev's brought his guitar again, but he's got a bit more skill this time around and the beer has talked Bokuto and Inuoka into singing with him. "I used to play volleyball with these guys," Kenma says, waving at them. "Most of them. They're good." He points at Yaku, small against Lev's side. "He's my old libero."
"Wow!" Shouyou says, and it makes Kenma laugh a little. "You're all volleyball players? Whoaaaa..."
Kenma looks at Shouyou, weighs his words before he speaks. "Maybe we can get a game together sometime," he suggests, and for the first time tonight, Shouyou forgets himself and lights right up.
"Can we?" he asks. He looks like Kenma has just promised him the world, and Kenma feels a little like melting. "That'd be so fun!"
It's never hard to talk Lev into anything, and Kuroo will say yes. It wouldn't take much to get the rest of them, too. "Yeah, I think so."
Shouyou curls his fingers into Kenma's and across the fire, Kuroo grins at them. "That's so great," Shouyou says. "Your friends seem cool."
You’re cool, Kenma thinks, and he’s immediately embarrassed. It’s not even true, either - Shouyou is too loud and too shamelessly enthusiastic to really be cool, but Kenma likes that about him. “Don’t let them fool you,” Kenma says, and Shouyou drops his chin to Kenma’s shoulder, yawning like a kid kept up too late. “They’re all losers.”
“Except me!” Lev protests, indignation written all across his face. When Kenma doesn’t correct himself, Lev pouts a little and strums a dischord.
Kenma can feel the warmth of Shouyou’s cheek through the thin material of his sweatshirt, and he draws his toes slowly through the cooling sand at his feet. He’s never been very good at physical affection, and sometimes he feels like he missed a vital class on how it works and he’s going to get it all wrong. It's easier to busy his hands with his phone, avoid eye contact.
But Shouyou doesn't seem to mind at all that Kenma can't quite figure out what to do with the weight of his head on his shoulder. "No," Shouyou insists. If Kenma looks down, he can just see the pale flutter of Shouyou's eyelashes in the firelight. "No. They're all cool. You're cool too."
Kenma snorts and across the fire, Lev's whole face folds up into a smile. "He can stay," Lev declares. That feels good too.
"I'm glad they like me," Shouyou whispers, and Kenma squeezes his hand.
"Me too," he says.
"Don't you want to go out?" Kuroo calls from the door.
Kenma can hear Bokuto whooping about something out in the hallway, and when he looks over at the other end of the couch, Shouyou shrugs. "Not really," Kenma says. It was hot today, and the scuba shack did little to shield him from the heat. He's finally starting to get a bit of colour now, starting midway down his arms all the way down to his fingers and leaving his nose just a little too red, and he figures that's about enough sun for him.
He holds up his controller and waves it a little, and Kuroo shrugs and gives him a salute. "Suit yourself," he says. "See you later, Shouyou."
Shouyou bends backwards over the arm of the couch to look back at Kuroo. "Bye!" he calls around a mouthful of Cheetos. The weird angle makes him cough, sending orange crumbs everywhere, and he has to straighten fast to catch his breath. "Sorry," he mouths, wiping the back of his hand across his lips.
It can be cleaned. Kenma waves it off. "Thanks for hanging out with me," he says. He turns back to the screen, neatly dodging Shouyou's car and heading off into the lead. He's probably got an unfair advantage, a lot more hours of practice under his belt, but Shouyou can win it next time. "I know it's not as exciting as snorkeling."
"Are you kidding?" Shouyou scooches over on the couch until his knees bump up against Kenma's thigh. "I like hanging out with you. I always like hanging out with you." There's something a little bit shy about the way that he says it, and it sets off a spread of warmth in Kenma's chest.
"Even if I'm kicking your ass at Mario Kart?" He glances over at Shouyou, eyes sly.
"You're not kicking my ass yet!" Shouyou declares, and he muscles over in front of Kenma, knocking his hands away from his controller. "It's not over until the fat lady sings!"
It takes Kenma a moment to gather himself, astonished that Shouyou would pull such a dirty trick. "That's cheating," he says, and then Shouyou's car is overtaking him, headed towards the finish line. "You're cheating!"
"All's fair in love and Mario Kart," Shouyou tells him solemnly. "Did no one ever teach you that?" He elbows Kenma again, and he cackles in victory when his car crosses the finish line.
Neither of them win, really, but Shouyou still beats Kenma, and it's enough to make Kenma push his hands away and square his shoulders, narrowing his eyes. "Oh, it's on," he says.
Shouyou's eyes get big at the edge of competition in Kenma's voice, the curve of his smile. "Let's go!"
Kenma might have an advantage with practice, but Shouyou refuses to stop interfering with his playing, shamelessly slapping Kenma's controller out of his hand or digging his elbow into his side. Kenma can't quite figure out how to defend himself against the assault, and that's how he ends up with his controller slipping out of his fingers as Shouyou leaps on him, fingers skittering down his side. Kenma gasps, breathless, and Shouyou freezes, hovering above him. "Sorry," he says. "Sorry. Sorry."
"No," Kenma says immediately, because it's not a bad thing. Just - strange. He's not used to anyone but Kuroo pushing his boundaries like this. "I forgot I was ticklish."
"You forgot?" Shouyou gapes at him. His hands are unfurling against Kenma's ribs until they flatten against him, like he's holding him steady. "How do you forget a thing like that?"
Kenma shrugs, his eyes falling from Shouyou's face. "I just did," he says.
Slowly, tentatively, Shouyou lowers himself down until he's tucked between Kenma's knees, his chin resting on Kenma's chest. "I should tickle you silly for that," he says, and Kenma relaxes under his weight, hands fluttering around to rest on Shouyou's shoulders.
It's just a fraction under too much, the warmth of Shouyou's skin combined with the summer heat, the intimacy of his body against Kenma's, but there's something kind of thrilling about it. Shouyou's eyes are fixed on his face, searching his face for something, half-tensed like he'll jump the minute Kenma asks.
But he doesn't. Kenma touches the soft hair at the back of Shouyou's neck instead. "Better not," he says. "You might fall."
It's strange and charming, the way that Shouyou melts against him as his tension fades. "Don't want that," he decides, scrunching up his nose.
"No," Kenma agrees.
They fall silent, the only noise in the room the cycling sound of the menu screen and the quiet pulse of the fan next to them, ruffling Shouyou's hair up so it tickles Kenma’s nose. He can’t remember the last time he was so close to someone like this. “I don’t want to go back home,” Shouyou says wistfully, and Kenma’s stomach clenches.
It’s only been a couple of weeks, but Shouyou's managed to wriggle himself into Kenma's daily life. It'll be strange to go back to spending time without him. "There's not much here," Kenma reminds him. "Not even a real volleyball court. I'm sure you'll get tired of ice cream and swimming eventually." His fingers feel twitchy without a controller in his hand, but when he traces a careful hand down the back of Shouyou's neck, Shouyou sighs, pleased.
"You're here," Shouyou says. He looks up at Kenma for a moment, mouth turned up only a little in a small, earnest smile. "So."
Warmth blossoms in Kenma's gut. "I'm going back to Tokyo in a month," he tells Shouyou. It takes him a second to suck in a deep breath, formulate his words. He's not really sure how this works. Most of the friends he's had have been close, classmates or teammates or neighbours. This, though, it's important that he get this right. "And there are other things, you know. Phones. The internet."
Shouyou pushes up again to stare down at Kenma, pressing too hard on Kenma's diaphragm and knocking the air out of his lungs. "Yeah?" he asks. He beams. "You wanna be long distance friends?"
I want to be any kind of friend with you, Kenma thinks. He reaches out to nudge Shouyou's hands off his belly. "Yeah," he says. "Why not?"
Shouyou pushes himself back onto his heels and waves his hands in the air in front of him. "I'm going to Tokyo too!" he exclaims. "What if - what if we meet up? And hang out and stuff."
Back at school, Kenma splits his time between class, the volleyball team, and his games. Maybe it'd be nice, to have someone to hang out with. "I like that idea," Kenma agrees, and Shouyou throws himself forward, squeezing Kenma's chest in a hug.
"I'm really glad I met you," he says, and Kenma settles a careful hand against Shouyou's spine and thinks me too.
"You should go," Kuroo says.
It's overcast again today, threatening rain, and that feels fairly appropriate for a day like today. The beach is empty, Kenma's already used up half his Vita's battery, and Shouyou's leaving. "I have a job," Kenma says instead. He presses his lips into a tight line and watches the water lap at the shore, dark and unsettled.
"Uh huh," Kuroo says. He steps forward, resting his elbows on the counter and looking pointedly around the empty shack. "You should go say goodbye."
Kenma frowns, but he doesn't say anything. He and Shouyou had already said goodbye, sort of. Yesterday, Shouyou had spent the day in and out of the shack, chattering about his first year of school and seeing his friends again, filling the awkward tension. They'd both been so conscious of the impending split and while Shouyou's mouth had run into overdrive, Kenma had fallen silent. He feels like that was a failing, now. Their last day, wasted.
"Kenma."
Maybe it's Kuroo who spurs him into action, and maybe it's guilt, but Kenma slides off his stool. "Shut up," he says, and heads out the door, ignoring Kuroo's pleased smile.
He doesn't come up this way often. He doesn't have much need to spend time around the tourist cottages, and he feels out of place. It doesn't take long for him to find Shouyou and his family, though. Shouyou's voice cuts through the muggy afternoon air, calling to his younger sister, and Kenma smiles a little to himself and approaches.
"Kenma!" Shouyou says. He's got a bag in his hands and he nearly drops it in astonishment, a grin spreading across his face like dawning sunshine. "What - what are you doing here?"
Kenma flexes his hands against his sides and shrugs. "I wanted to see you off."
Shouyou's mother is eyeing him curiously and Shouyou shoves his bag into the back of his car before he barrels over to Kenma. "I'm so glad," he whispers, throwing his arms around Kenma's shoulders.
Once he's squeezed the breath right out of Kenma, he pulls away. "Mom!" he calls, and he drags Kenma over. Kenma stiffens, swallowing hard. He's not really good with charming moms, not the way that Kuroo is. "This is Kenma. The one I was telling you about, remember?"
Kenma's mother is just what he'd expect her to be: small, red-headed, and with a very familiar smile. "I've heard so much about you," she tells him, and Kenma can feel the flush creeping up his throat to his ears. "Thank you for looking after Shouyou so well this summer."
Kenma clears his throat and stares at his shoes. "It was my pleasure," he says, because it was. Shouyou has managed to do the impossible and make Kenma's boring summer a lot more interesting. "I'm glad I met him."
"Oh." Shouyou is staring at Kenma, eyes big, and then he reels him in for another hug. "I'm going to miss you."
When they finally pull away, Kenma taps his fingers against his phone in his pocket. "We'll stay in touch," he says, though it comes out sounding more like a question than anything.
"Duh," Shouyou agrees. He grins.
Shouyou's mother closes the hatch of the car. "Time to go," she calls, voice gentle.
Shouyou hesitates in front of him for a moment, hovering like he wants to hug Kenma again but isn't sure whether or not it'd be okay. "Alright," he says. He settles instead for a weird one-armed squeeze instead. "Alright. Text me, okay?"
"Definitely," Kenma says. It's not like he's got any excuses, with how his phone is always glued to his hand. He shifts from foot to foot and musters up a smile. There's this kind of awful sinking feeling in his chest, and it's clogging up his throat and making words hard. "Have, uh, have a safe drive."
"Bye," Shouyou breathes, and then he climbs into the car. From the back seat, his little sister is staring at Kenma. He offers her a little wave.
Shouyou waves until they're out of sight, and Kenma waves back, until his arm aches as much as his chest does. When they're gone, he sits down on the curb and stares at the pavement for a moment, listening to himself breathe. He's not quite ready to go back to work just yet.
The train is moving too slowly. Kenma fidgets in his seat, glancing up from his 3DS to stare out the window at the moving scenery. He very deliberately doesn't check his phone. He knows he has no new messages.
"Relax," Kuroo says. He stretches an arm out to flick Kenma's 3DS closed, earning himself a glare in return. "I'm sure he'll answer soon."
"Who will?" Kenma asks, opening it again. Kuroo rolls his eyes.
It's not that Kenma is worried about it, really. He'd figured something like this would happen, as soon as Shouyou went home. It's always easier to keep in contact with someone when you can see them every day, and sometimes these things only last for a summer, anyway. And it's not like Shouyou's never messaged him, either. He just...hasn't replied. In a while.
"It's only been a week," Kuroo reminds him. He crosses his arms over his chest and shifts back in his seat. "He starts university soon. Be patient."
"I am patient," Kenma mumbles in protest. His game cycles through the menu screen and he can't be bothered to do anything about it. It’s not like he’s waiting on bated breath for Shouyou to acknowledge him or anything. He’s fine.
Kenma just. Well, he misses him. Isn’t that strange?
“Of course you are,” Kuroo says.
Kenma just exhales through his nose, ignoring Kuroo, and turns back to his game. He has a chapter to finish, after all.
They’re almost all the way home when Kenma’s phone vibrates in his pocket. He tries not to get too excited, because Lev has a habit of taking pictures with every cat he encounter on his walk home, but this time he’s lucky. all moved in!!!!!!! Shouyou tells him, followed by a flurry of pictures of a fairly dreary-looking room. isnt it cool???? this is really happening!!!!!
Kenma smiles down at his phone as Shouyou details the entire move-in process, from his new neighbours (a tall, silent man who’d looked terrifying but had offered Shouyou a plate of cookies) to his competition with Kageyama to unpack his things the fastest (Kageyama had won, but only because Shouyou had tripped on the doorstep and landed on his face). sounds like you had a good time. Next to him, Kuroo is smiling to himself. “Don’t say it,” Kenma warns him.
“I didn’t say anything,” Kuroo says, holding his hands up in protest. His grin doesn’t dampen.
are you home yet???? when are we gonna hang out???? Shouyou punctuates every message with a handful of emojis, some that don’t even make a lot of sense. It’s not the same, but it does make him feel a little bit closer to Shouyou again. It’ll do for now.
After a week full of classes, all that Kenma wants to do is go back home, climb onto his couch and play games for a few hours and unwind.
Naturally, Kuroo has other plans. Kenma frowns down at his ringing phone before swiping to answer and tucking it between his ear and his shoulder. “What?” he asks. “You can’t text like a normal person?”
“My hands are full,” Kuroo replies, like that’s an actual answer. “I forgot my bag for practice. Come get the door.”
Naturally. For someone who had kept an entire team of high schoolers in line, he seems to lose track of his things often. “I’m in the middle of a battle,” Kenma protests. He’s not. If he had been, he wouldn’t have picked up the phone.
“No, you’re not,” Kuroo says. “C’mon.”
Kenma heaves a sigh and pauses his game, climbing to his feet and heading to the door. “You’re lucky I’m here,” he tells Kuroo, and then he hangs up, flicking the lock on the door and swinging it open.
It’s not Kuroo. “Surprise!” Shouyou shouts, and he drops his backpack and tumbles forward, catching Kenma in his arms. It takes a moment for it to sink in, that Shouyou is here, for real, in the flesh, and then Kenma remembers to hug him back.
“What are you doing here?” he asks, taking a step back.
Shouyou’s hands don’t drop from where they rest, warm against his ribs. “I wanted to see you,” he says, and Kenma has missed that smile, only caught glimpses of it in poorly framed and blurry selfies sent late at night. “Is that okay?”
“Yeah,” Kenma says, without hesitation, and Shouyou hugs him again, tucks his chin over Kenma’s shoulder and rocks them back and forth. Kenma’s heart feels so warm right now. “I missed you.”
It’s the first time he’s said it out loud, and Shouyou laughs against his throat, delighted. “I missed you too,” he says, voice muffled against Kenma’s shoulder. Kenma makes a mental note to thank Kuroo.
Shouyou’s pressed so close that Kenma thinks he can almost feel his heartbeat through his shirt, and Kenma feels like all of his words are gone, locked up in his throat with how fond he is. He hadn’t realized just how badly he’d wanted this again. “I missed you,” he says again, and Shouyou squeezes him tight, rubbing his nose up against Kenma’s throat.
This is so much better than texts are. Kenma grins, and his heart feels so light.