Archive of Our Own

The fall shouldn’t have happened.

Suna was a seasoned rider, one of the best in the Inarizaki kingdom. He had won dozens of championships and was respected all over the continent. A mistake like that shouldn't even have been an option.

Yet, here he was, falling fast to the ground because he was stupid enough to mess up a rudimentary spin descent.

It was a rookie mistake, his foot had slipped out of the stirrup and he wasn’t able to get it back inside no matter how much he struggled. This caused his dragon to take a sharp turn, projecting Suna into the air. Only reflexes honed by years of practice made him grab the saddle, saving him from instant death. 

However, with Suna dangling from one side of his dragon, it was impossible for his mount to restore their balance.

He was thus holding onto dear life, trying to stay in contact with his dragon by whatever means possible, arms burning. From the corner of his eyes, he could see the ground coming fast. It was going to be a brutal fall, one he’d have trouble recovering from if he ever survived it.

Bracing himself for the impact, Suna closed his eyes and started praying to all the deities he knew to make it a painless death and for his dragon to be alright. Damn him, it really was the worst moment to die. He had had an ongoing bet with Motoya that he was confident in winning. Motoya always had too much faith in his cousin, no way was he ever gonna be the one asking Hinata out. It was sad to think he never was going to reap the benefits of such an easy bet.

“It is sad to die.” thought Suna.

When he made contact with the ground, Suna felt all of the air coming out of his lungs. Miraculously, it seemed like Suzie had managed to somehow land without killing them but it hadn’t been a smooth landing either. Suna was hurting everywhere, his head was spinning, bright light blinding him, and he wasn’t sure whether the pain in his arm was real or if he had just completely lost it.

Amongst the chaos that was ringing in his ears, he heard an enticing voice calling out for him. When he painfully turned his head to locate the source of the voice, he saw the most beautiful man he had ever seen. Shining blond hair, deep honey eyes, and…  Oh? Were those wings behind his back? Maybe he was dead after all.

“Wow… That’s my first time seeing an angel. Soooo preetttyyyy…”

At these words, he passed out.

***

Suna was feeling numb. He felt like all of the sensations in his body were muted. He also was feeling really thirsty, his mouth was dry as rocks.

When he opened his eyes, he was greeted by an unfamiliar ceiling. He tried to push himself up but quickly realised that his right arm was immobilised. The room he was in smelled like a mix of various plants and quickly looking around he saw strange liquids neatly aligned on different shelves.  Deducting that he was in a healer's office of some sort, he wondered what was going on.

As he closed his eyes to try to recall anything, he heard someone clearing their throat.

“Hey, sleeping beauty. Finally wakin’ up? That’s a pretty tough fall ya had there. Ta be honest it was a surprise seein’ ya only came out with a minor concussion and a broken arm. I found ya in a haystack. Yer pretty dang lucky man ‘cause it surely saved yer life.”

Suna blinked at the man, his straight face not showing the confusion and panic that was rousing through him.

“I am quite in the dark here. Can you tell me what happened? And who are you?”

“Oh man, I’m sorry. I’m Miya Atsumu and ya crashed on my property with yer dragon.”

Flashes of the earlier -how long was he unconscious- events bolted through his mind. He cringed when he remembered calling the man an angel. 

‘But that was just in my mind right?’

“Oh yeah, thank you for rescuing me. How long have I been out?”

“Fer three days straight! I was lucky ta catch ya when ya woke up! Well, it’s not that much luck if I’m honest. With yer dragon pacing around and scarring all my sheep, it’s not like I have a lot of work. Though I’m kinda scared if I’m being honest. I need my sheeps alive and yer dragon has been looking at them pretty weirdly earlier today. Can ya make sure it doesn’t eat any of them? Well, no, maybe I can feed it Margaret. She’s a bitch anyway, she’s got it comin’. She’s always strayin’ apart from the herd so I have to go and catch her. It’s not that bad ya might think. But no! I swear to all the gods that she has an evil eye. She looks at me like she knows what she is doin’ and she knows it’s making me mad. She might as well shit on my boots so yeah. I would have no regret feeding her to your dragon.”

Oh god, Miya might have been the prettiest human being he’d ever seen but he also was one of the most talkative. And that’s saying a lot considering Hinata and Bokuto's existence. Why would Suna care about some sheep getting fed to a dragon because she’s a-

“Wait a minute! Is Suzie okay? Is she injured? By the gods! She hasn’t been fed in three days? Tell me she’s okay please?”

“Wow… So ya do have feelings. Seeing how calm ya were to everythin’ I was startin’ to think that ya were a statue!”

“Miya, please! How is Suzie?”

“Oh god, please don’t call me Miya. Just call me Atsumu, I have a twin it’s confusing”

“Atsumu.”, Suna inhaled, trying to stay calm, “Suzie?”

“Well I would like to tell ya, but who’s Suzie?”

“Fuck. Yeah. My bad. She’s my dragon. White and gold? You said she was still at your place?”

“Hey calm down now. Panic is not a good look on yer pretty face. She’s fine. As I told ya I’m more concerned about my herd than her. She seems to be the sturdy one.”

Hearing that, Suna relaxed his shoulders and let out a sigh before composing himself back again. 

“Right. She is. When do you think I can leave? And do you think I can get some water? I’m very thirsty.”

“Crap! Of course! Where are my manners? I’ll be back in a sec’ with Kita-san and a glass of water.”

After Atsumu left the room, Suna asked himself what was gonna happen to him now that he basically was stuck here (where?) and hoped that he would heal quickly so that he could go back home.

Five minutes later, Atsumu came back holding a tall glass of water with a short silvered-haired man in tow. The man introduced himself as Kita Shinsuke and apparently was the one who treated him.

“Thank you for treating me.” Suna bowed his head, “I am very grateful for your help.”

“Don’t thank me please.” replied Kita “It’s my job to take care of injured people. You should be thanking Atsumu, he’s the one who brought you here and kept checking on you.”

“Oh is that so? In this case, thank you Atsumu for probably saving my life.”

“Nah, don’t worry yer pretty little head over it. When can he go out Kita-san?”

“If everything is good for him, he can go now.” Kita turned towards Suna, ”I’ll give you some herbs in case you feel any pain, but you’re all fine. I’ve secured your arm with a wooden cast and you’re gonna have to keep it for the next six weeks and after that, you should have no sequel whatsoever. Please avoid strenuous activities for the time being as you’re also suffering from a minor concussion. I have to tend to other patients but please don’t hesitate if you have any questions.”

Suna grimaced, “I reckon dragon riding is not on the recommended list of activities right?”

“Yes, no dragon-riding until the cast is removed. It should be fine to do so in about three weeks if you’re not the one holding the reins. But overall, please remain careful.”

“Very well, thank you very much Kita-san.”

“My pleasure.” he bowed, “Atsumu don’t injure yourself.”

“Kita-san, I’m not a kid” whined Atsumu while the man was leaving the room.

“You surely do sound like one” snorted Suna.

“Hey!” he spluttered, “Where is yer “I’m so polite, thank you Kita-sama” attitude now? I’m the one who saved you ya know?”

“Oh, I’m sure you would really love to be called Miya-sama right?”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever. Are ya ready to go now?”

“Yes, Miya-sama. Please allow me to follow your noble steps.” teased Suna

“Oh my god, stop that already. Follow me lovely and respectful stranger-sama.”

Suna laughed at that. He totally forgot that he never introduced himself. Atsumu literally had more information on his dragon than on the man that was following him.

“I’m Suna Rintaro by the way. Where are you taking me, Atsumu? You’re not planning on kidnapping me and finishing me off in some dark alley I hope?”

“My… This makes no sense Sunarin, if I wanted ta kill ya I wouldn’t have gone through the trouble of carrying yer ass all the way to Kita-san. We’re going to my house.” Atsumu said while laughing.

“Sunarin?”

“Yeah. Gotta have a cute nickname for such a cute face doncha think?”

There was no way Suna would be able to handle the flirting of such a gorgeous man for too long. Was it even legal to flirt while being this handsome? Telling by the way his face started to redden, it couldn’t be safe. Thankfully, Atsumu had turned around to start walking, he didn’t see Suna’s face after his compliment.

Walking with Atsumu to his house was very pleasant, and the conversation flowed easily (minus some flirtatious comments he had to watch out for from time to time). He learned that he was currently on the island of Hyogo, a faraway territory that had little to no connection to the capital apart from the monthly carrier pigeons. He was gonna have to hurry to write a letter to the capital since the mail was gonna be collected at the end of the week. He didn’t want his friends and family to worry about him. Maybe they could also send someone to get him.

Atsumu told him he was living with his twin brother, Osamu, and that the both of them were taking care of a small farm they made a living from. While Osamu was in charge of their crop fields, Atsumu was in charge of the livestock: chickens and sheep. He learned that Atsumu despised the sheep -especially Margaret- and that generally, both of the twins didn’t like working at the farm but they had no other choice but to take care of the family heirloom.

To get to Atsumu’s house, they crossed a village where it seemed like everyone knew Atsumu. Everyone saluted him with a smile on their face, some even giving him gifts. Suna was feeling very out of place in this environment so different from the city. There was no carriage running down the road you had to be mindful of, dragons flying around, or busy shops on the streets. Only stalls from farmers and hand-pulled trolleys could be seen, the town not very populated in general.

After getting out of the center, they walked a bit to arrive in front of a little house with a run-down facade that seemed to have seen better days.

Inside the house were a rudimentary living room with a table and some chairs and a tiny kitchen where Atsumu's twin brother, Osamu, was cooking.

“Hey, scrub! Back already from visiting Mr.tall, dark and handsome?!”

Oh? Tall, dark, and handsome? Him? Suna raised a brow. Judging by the way Atsumu reddened and jumped to attack his twin, it was indeed him he was talking about.

“Yer the scrub! Don’t embarrass me like that in front of a fuckin’ guest!”

After successfully immobilising Atsumu, Osamu looked up at Suna and smiled.

“So yer the one Atsumu rescued the other day and wouldn’t shut up about? What’s yer name?”

“I’m Suna Rintarou, sorry for intruding and crashing onto your property,” replied Suna, amused by the twin’s antics.

“Nah don’t worry ‘bout that, yer good. Tell me, yer not from here are ya? Ya got that all fancy accent from the mainland.”

Before Suna replied, Atsumu punched his brother's stomach, successfully breaking free from his brother’s chokehold.

“Are ya really from the mainland Sunarin?” Asked Atsumu. Osamu seemed to struggle to catch his breath.

“Yeah,” snorted Suna, “I come from the capital actually, working as a dragon racer and everything you know.”

“Shut up!” Shouted Atsumu, “No way! Yer like a very real breathing dragon racer?!”

“Here we go…” sighed Osamu.

“Um. Well, yes I am. Been racing for about five years now, started straight up after turning eighteen.”

“That’s like! So cool dude! Are ya any good? Oh! Oh! Can ya show me how ya ride? Ah. I guess ya can’t with the cast and all. Man, I’ve been watching y’all lot flying over our town for years now! Well, when I’m lucky enough to catch ya that is. Ya don’t really come here that often. Anyway, I’ve never really seen any races up close but that’s my dream! Oh man, can’t believe yer really a dragon racer! Would ya show me yer dragon? Oh! And tell me what a race‘s like! And-”

Osamu interrupted Atsumu's rambling by muffling him with his hand.

“Calm down ya scrub! Yer gonna scare him away with all of yer questions. Suna, I think you’ve realised but this idiot becomes really excited when it comes to dragons. Especially dragon racing.”

Suna laughed. “I think I gathered that. I can’t ride at the moment but I can take you both to see her.”

“Will ya? Really” said Atsumu with stars in his eyes, “I mean I watched her from afar but I didn’t go too close ya know?” he gasped, “Could I touch her?!”

“Sure, no problem. What about you Osamu–san?”

“Just Osamu, please. And nah I’m good thanks. I’ll leave ya two to it. By the way, do ye have a place to stay while you get all fixed up?”

“Oh my god, Sunarin! I totally forgot about that! I meant to tell ya that you can crash at our place while yer arm is still all broken.”

“What?” said Suna, baffled, “No, you already did too much for me, I can’t ask you for that. You barely even know me.”

“What, no way man. Yer like, super cool. We don’t mind, really. Can’t leave ya out on tha street while yer still all wounded. Right, Samu?”

“Yeah. It’s no problem Suna. If I can cook fer two, I can cook fer three!”

“I’m-” stuttered Suna, moved by their generosity. It wasn’t often that he met such charitable people in the capital. It was clear that the twins weren’t rich but seeing how they welcomed him into their home, Suna was really touched.

“That’s way too nice of you. I’ll forever be in your debt. I’ll also pay you back when I am healthy again!”

“Tsk. Don’t insult us like that. Ya owe us nothin’! Of course we ain’t gonna leave ya to die, who do ya think we are?”

“Right, sorry.” apologised Suna, “So, can you show me where I’m gonna sleep so I can introduce you to Suzie?”

Atsumu beamed. “Sure thing Sunarin! Come on hurry up! Let’s get ya settled so we can go! I can’t believe I’m gonna see a real dragon up close!”

Suna waved at Osamu, before promptly following his twin. While Osamu shook his head at his brother’s antics, Suna found Atsumu’s buzzing excitement endearing. While being a dragon racer was his dream, he could rarely witness such genuine wonder back in the city. Dragon racing was so popular it became an ordinary sight, people used to see dragons fly around in the sky on a daily basis. He too tended to forget what made him love it sometimes, numbed by the strategies, the sponsorships, and the repetitive training. He loved his dragon and the sport, but the excitement he felt right now at the prospect of just spending time with Suzie was out of the ordinary. Atsumu’s joy truly was communicative.

“Well, here ya are Sunarin. Since yer all broken, yer gonna take my bed and I’m stoppin’ ya right now because it’s not negotiable.”

“Thank you so much Atsumu. You’ve been so nice to me, I don’t know what to say.”

“Naaahh. Don’t mind, just show me yer dragon and we’ll be even. Ya have no idea how long I’ve wished for this. Well, actually my whole life. Whatever. Let’s just go. Come on, pretty boy!”

Suna’s heart skipped a beat at that “Pretty boy?”

“Duh. Of course, I’m just calling it as I see it. Yer real pretty Sunarin.”

The tone Atsumu used, as if he was stating an obvious fact, made Suna flustered. How could he be so casual about it? But truth be told, if Suna wasn’t such a coward he could probably have said that Atsumu was the most charming man he ever met. Maybe another day. For now, Suna just followed Atsumu outside silently.

On the way, they started talking again and Suna asked Atsumu why he was so obsessed with dragons.

“So ya’ve probably realised that this island is not very big right?” started Atsumu, “All my life, I’ve lived here, between crops and sheep. Every day is the same, everyone's the same. Don’t get me wrong, I love Samu and all my friends! But sometimes it just feels… boring ya know? I feel like I’m trapped here, with no way to escape, seeing the same goddamn sheep every day. It’s like, I’m outside but I can’t breathe, like some other piece of me is just out there, free, discovering the world and everything. But I can’t. So, seeing people like ya, flying freely all over the sky just feels like a dream. Some days I just lie down there and watch over the horizon wishing to just see one dragon. Just one dragon so that I can escape for a few seconds. And also dragons are pretty fucking cool aren’t they?”

Suna struggled to get his reply out, he was feeling winded, not expecting Atsumu to be this honest with him. He could understand the frustration Atsumu was feeling. He always felt free while flying with Suzie, problems and duties left behind him when he took off. Just the thought of being trapped on the ground was suffocating.

At loss as to what to say, Suna just softly said: “Yeah, they’re pretty fucking cool.”

After a few beats, he grabbed Atsumu’s hand and added, “Let’s get you acquainted with the coolest dragon to ever exist.”

The smile that lit up Atsumu’s face was the brightest he’s ever seen.

***

Suzie was a very special dragon to Suna. They grew up together, learned, won, and lost together. There wasn’t a time in Suna’s life when Suzie wasn’t present, both of them living in each other’s pockets. The three days that Suna spent at the hospital made up the longest time they had spent apart for probably the last ten years.

Needless to say, Suna was dying to reunite with his best friend. And he really was looking forward to introducing Atsumu to her. She’ll probably like him right away, they weren’t so different after all.

“What if she hates me?”

Atsumu had been slowly getting more and more anxious as they were walking. The initial excitement had given place to stress, which was understandable. It’s not every day that you could make your lifelong dream come true.

Knowing that, Suna told him not to worry about that and squeezed his hand tighter. They hadn’t let go of each other's hand the whole way. It was making Suna weirdly happy, they had known each other for the better part of five hours at most but Atsumu truly was lovable.

When he saw Atsumu perk up, he knew that Suzie was probably in sight, and she was. Lying down on the ground was his dragon, imposing in size, about seven meters long, and even more in wingspan. She was shining under the sunlight, her gold scales littered amongst the snow-white ones catching the sun's rays in a regal way. Seeing Atsumu gape at her sight, he felt proud. People usually were amazed by the sight of Suzie but knowing that it was Atsumu’s first time seeing a dragon up close and that Suzie was going to be the first one to make him feel so much excitement made him weirdly happy. 

The fact that other dragons that he’ll see will probably pale in comparison made him also feel a bit proud and smug. 

“She’s the prettiest thing I’ve seen in my entire life.” breathed out Atsumu, “How is she real?”

“I know right?”

Smiling at Atsumu, he let go of his hand and walked closer to Suzie. 

“Hey darling, how are you? I missed you.”

Hearing Suna’s voice, Suzie perked up. Her missing friend was here! She thought he was gone forever!

“Chill girl!” laughed Suna at Suzie who was rubbing her head against Suna’s body like a cat, “you’re gonna finish me off at this rate.”

Suzie calmed down and laid her head next to Suna who had fallen on the floor. He then started to pet her.

“Listen, love,” he sighed, “I’m very sorry for putting us in this situation. I never should have committed such a mistake and I’m so proud of how you managed to save us both. I’m also sorry to have left you without news for so long. Do you forgive me?”

Suzie nudged him and started purring softly to tell him that there was no resentment and that she was glad to have him back with her.

Suna chuckled.

“Thank you, Suzie. Ah! I have someone I want you to meet, it’s the man who saved me.”

He signed Atsumu to join him and Atsumu approached them slowly, shy and unsure of what to do.

“Suzie, this is Atsumu. Atsumu, Suzie, my dragon.”

“Nice to meet you, Suzie, it’s an honor,” said Atsumu breathless and in awe.

Suzie didn’t move an inch and eyed Atsumu suspiciously, analysing whether or not he was a threat.

“Atsumu, try bowing and then extending a hand to her. You need to show that you’re a friend and not a threat. Dragons have strict introduction protocol.”

When Atsumu followed Suna’s advice, Suzie stood up and started to approach him.

“Don’t be afraid. She’s just gonna try to catch a whiff of your scent.”

Atsumu didn’t look afraid when the massive dragon approached him, he just looked like a child, full of wonder and admiration towards such a mythic animal. It was endearing. Probably sensing that, Suzie relaxed and, after a thorough sniffing, she started licking Atsumu all over. Now that was unexpected, she wasn’t usually so affectionate with strangers, preferring to refrain from too many interactions with people other than Suna.

“Sunarin,” squeaked out Atsumu, “is she gonna eat me?”

Suna laughed so hard he started clutching his stomach.

“Sunarin? Why are ya laughing?” Atsumu asked, clearly at a loss as to what to do with the giant animal socking him in saliva.

“She likes you a lot, Atsumu, don’t worry. But did you truly think dragons ate humans?”

“I mean, I guess so? It’s not like I’ve got a lot of information on dragon layin’ around here.”

Suna gestured at Suzie to leave Atsumu alone and she stopped coating him in saliva but didn’t leave his side either.

“Right. Dragons are piscivorous, you don’t have to worry about her eating you or your sheep.”

“Piscivorous?” asked Atsumu.

“They only eat fish.”

“Oh… Oh! That’s good then! Won’t have to give up all of my herd.”

“No,” he laughed, “you won’t. Speaking about that, she probably didn’t eat the whole time. I’m gonna let her go on her own. Would you wanna go watch it?”

“Can I?! That’d be so great Sunarin!”

Smiling, Suna told Suzie to go feed herself. She had probably been starving because as soon as Suna said that, she spread her wings and flew towards the cliff to go catch some fish in the sea.

“Now that was somethin’. She’s incredible.”

“Even though she drenched you in saliva?”

“Yeah.” Atsumu smiled, “I probably stink now don’t I?”

“Ew.” snorted Suna, taking a step back, “You stinky man, don’t touch me.”

“Aww… That hurts my feelings ya know? Let me hug ya to make up for it!”

Suna widened his eyes, surely Atsumu really wasn’t planning on- Seeing how he opened his arms and started to approach Suna, he probably was. Not wanting to be in contact with Suzie’s saliva -it did actually stink-, Suna started running towards the cliff to avoid Atsumu who started chasing after him.

While chasing each other and laughing like kids, they arrived next to the cliff where Suna had to stop. To Suna’s horror and Atsumu’s delight, Atsumu used this opportunity to engulf Suna in a tight hug, effectively coating him in smelly liquids.

“Atsumu,” whined Suna, “this is gonna be a nightmare to get off…”

At Atsumu’s lack of response, Suna turned his head to see Atsumu staring at the sea wide-eyed. The sight that welcomed him took his breath away. His eyes were catching the light way better than any of Suzie’s scale would ever be able to and up close his features seemed to transcend the spectrum of human beauty. Catching his thought and realising how close they were from each other (Atsumu’s hand on his waist!!!), Suna’s face flared up and his heartbeat increased at least tenfold. Quickly turning his head to face the horizon again, Suna tried to compose himself again and calm his heartbeat to avoid getting caught. 

“I think I’ve never seen such an amazing sight in my whole life”

With the image of Atsumu still printed into his retina, Suna croaked out an affirmation, not really thinking about Suzie.

“Dragons, really, are amazing. Thank you so much Sunarin.”

Right, dragons, that’s what was amazing, not Atsumu’s eyes or nose or lips or jaw or- Fuck.

“Don’t fret about it. You’re the one who saved my life, remember? Do you wanna sit down and watch her fly around?”

He needed to escape these strong arms yesterday or he was going to implode.

“Yeah, let’s do that! Man, I think I could stay there watchin’ her for hours.”

Atsumu moved away and went to sit down on the edge, his feet dangling. Suna mourned the loss of Atsumu’s arm around him and went to sit down next to him. Suna was quickly realising that being in the man’s orbit was as addictive as it was dangerous, the possibility of the crash omnipresent and Suna wasn’t sure he would survive the landing this time. But as terrifying as it was, Suna found himself not wanting to let go.

“You know,” he started, unsure as to what the consequences were gonna be, “since I am gonna stick around for a while and you’ve been so nice and it also could be a way of somehow making myself useful. I was thinking, I mean, I would love to, I mean, I think you’d like it. Probably.” Oh god, he was embarrassing himself, why did he not think this through before speaking?

Atsumu was now looking at him, with unconcealed curiosity. Suna caught a breath.

“Maybe, you’d like it if I taught you how to fly ?”

“How to fly?” asked Atsumu, unsure of what it meant.

“Yeah like, teaching you how to ride a dragon.”

The silence that followed his proposition was the loudest sound he had ever heard. Should he-

“Y’er kiddin’ right?” Atsumu had his mouth gaping, not believing the proposition Suna made.

Of course, Suna found it cute.

“Not really? I mean you’ve been helping me so much and you seem so passionate about dragons that I thought it would be a good way to repay you. But tell me if you don’t want to of course.”

“No take-backs!” shouted Atsumu, “There’s no way I’d pass up such an offer! Do ya have any idea what yer offering me right now? With that and the way ya fell down from the sky, I’ll start ta think yer an angel ya know?”

Would this man ever stop flirting so shamelessly? And would Suna ever stop falling for it?

“That’s weird because with the way you look and how generous you’ve been so far, I started to think you were.” Not his best comeback for sure.

Atsumu snorted, adorable. “Stop being such a flirt. But really, thank ya so much for that!”

“How could I when you look like that?” said Suna dramatically, “But seriously, this is no big deal. It’s starting to get late and the sun is gonna set. How about we start tomorrow?”

“I can’t wait! Let’s go home! I can’t wait to tell Samu! Ahhh I’m so excited!!”

Maybe Suna wasn’t gonna ask someone to help him get back home just yet.

***

After that, the duo fell into a routine pretty quickly.

Atsumu woke him up every day at an hour that shouldn’t be made for being awake and dragged him around until he was ready to leave. They would go outside and Suna would watch Atsumu take care of the basic needs of the herd and get bullied during most of the process. After a grueling morning (for Atsumu, Suna always had the time of his life watching him), they would go by the cliff and eat lunch while talking about everything and nothing while overlooking the ocean.

It was Suna’s favorite moment of the day, being able to share a moment completely alone with Atsumu. They would talk about their lives, Atsumu sharing stories about his twin and his friends, and Suna retelling stories of his races and travels. They were both very open and vulnerable with each other and after about three weeks spent together, they had the feeling that they had been friends for their whole life. It felt for both of them as if they were fated to meet, never lacking in conversation and always on the same wavelength.

After lunch was dedicated to Atsumu dragon training, Suna would teach him the basics, the theory, his insight on equipment or strategy, and talk to him about the major competitors in the league. He would also teach Atsumu how to behave with a dragon, teaching him the protocols he had to follow when being with one. They tried to experiment with Suzie at first but quickly gave up. When Suzie was with Atsumu, the protocols didn’t exist. She was totally smitten with the man. Probably just as much as Suna. If it was even possible.

Over the course of the weeks, Suna had felt himself falling deeper and deeper for Atsumu. What was at first just a simple crush based on physical appearance and first impressions became real, genuine feelings. It hadn’t been hard to fall for Atsumu, with his personality that shone so bright, his kindness, the way he was funny, flirty and so interesting, Suna stood no chance. And Suna didn’t mind those feelings. They felt natural, ineluctable, and warm, just like coming home.

Keeping up appearances was harder. Their dynamics were based on a lot of talking, joking, and to Suna’s misery, flirting. Atsumu would never stop flirting, complimenting Suna’s appearance, calling him pet names, and taking care of him. Atsumu was so attentive, always watching out for him, helping him with everything, just by saying “But yer the dyin’ patient sweetcakes.”. Suna was gonna implode. He had to argue for over an hour to avoid having Atsumu help him bathe! (to this day he wasn’t sure if he regretted not taking him up on the offer)

Of course, Suna was not backing down from flirting. Even if his heart was racing, his face flaring and his palm sweating, he replied word for word, flirty sentence for flirty sentence. It always had been a sort of battle between them, who could make the other one stutter first, who would be the reddest in the face. It was relentless. 

For Suna, it was both a blessing and a curse. As hard as it was to control himself and not spill his feelings over, he also took it as an opportunity to express his feelings, because as much of a game it was, Suna’s words rang with truth every time.

***

Four weeks into their dragon lessons, Kita gave his approval to ride a dragon as a passenger. It was time for Atsumu’s first ride.

Suna didn’t tell him anything, wanting to keep the surprise until the last minute.

After having lunch and chatting about how Atsumu had wanted to try to become a fisherman before he realised he was extremely seasick, they packed their stuff away to get ready to get on today’s lesson.

“Okay, Atsumu! On today’s agenda, your first dragon ride!”

Atsumu dropped the bag he was holding and gaped at Suna.

“Yer serious?” The tone in which he murmured these words gave away the emotional state he was in.

“Yes. Kita-san told me I could ride as a passenger again and I think you know more than enough to be able to handle a basic flight.”

“Sunarin.”, Atsumu said, his voice wavering and a tear slowly going down his cheek “Yer the best thing to have ever happened to me.”

Suna’s heartbeat increased tenfold. He tried to stay calm but the genuine gratefulness Atsumu was gracing him with was stirring up his feelings to the surface. It was an internal battle that he was fighting, trying not to vomit the confession of his love that was sitting at the tip of his tongue. If only Atsumu knew what he was doing to him. If he knew that his presence was the best gift Suna ever received… But he couldn’t say it, no matter how hard it was to keep up the facade, he couldn’t do that to Atsumu, to their friendship, to his dreams. Right now Atsumu needed him to achieve his lifelong dream of flying and becoming a dragon racer. If Suna were to mess that up with a confession that would leave things awkward between them, he would never be able to forgive himself. He would do anything for Atsumu, no matter how hard it was.

“Don’t be such a sap,” he choked out even though he knew that, between them, he was the bigger sap, “you don’t have to thank me, we are friends Tsumu. Besides, riding a dragon has always been the goal, right?”

“Ah,” wetly laughed Atsumu, “Ya have no idea how precious what you're giving me is.” 

Suna knew too well. That’s why he had to keep all of his feelings hidden inside his chest, to stop them from breaking out of his ribcage.

“Don’t mention it Tsumu. Let’s just get it going.”

Atsumu wiped his tears with the back of his hand and let a smile spread over his face.

“Okay, Sunarin! Let’s go! I’m so excited!”

Suna took his hand, (something the both of them had started to do recently that never failed to make him feel lightheaded) and pulled him towards Suzie.

“So Atsumu, I’ve gone over all of the theory over the past few weeks and I’m pretty sure that you’ll manage perfectly fine. However, I’ll be behind you to guide you through everything so don’t worry. The only thing you have to remember is to not panic, there is always a solution you can find but if your head is not clear you won’t be able to react properly.”

“Sunarin,” scoffed Atsumu, “who do ya think I am? I’m not the type to stress that easily ya know.”

“Sure buttercup. We’ll see about that.”, teased Suna.

“I’ll show ya baby. Let’s get this rollin’!”

What a sap Suna had become. If you had told him a month ago that he would find these stupid nicknames adorable, he would have laughed at your face. He was gone deep.

Used to mount Suzie, Atsumu quickly got into position. Suna quickly followed and, after having taken place behind Atsumu, he realised that the next few hours were going to be the longest of his life. You see, Suna was no stranger to Atsumu’s build-up body. He was able to witness his chest on a daily basis (and thanked the gods every night for this opportunity). However, with the bulging thighs in between his legs, the muscular back against his chest, and his hand clutching on hard abs, Suna was extremely aware of their proximity. Trying to control his respiration to avoid looking like he just ran a marathon, he gathered all of his self-control and assisted Atsumu with the takeoff.

The sensation of being able to fly again should have been overwhelming yet, as it has become usual with Atsumu, he couldn't concentrate on anything else other than the man he was holding in front of him.

Atsumu was screaming, leaving no room for breathing. He was shouting with so much glee, that people on the mainland probably could have heard him. Atsumu was currently living what people seldom experienced in their whole life, he was realising his dream. At this moment, Suna knew that he was witnessing something unique, something life-changing, the birth of something unnamed, something that he couldn’t quite describe. He was grateful to be able to stand this close to the sun, to his sun, when it was shining at its brightest.

Over the next hour, they didn’t do any practice or exercise. They didn’t talk, both of them basking in the moment, Suna holding on to Atsumu as if he would lose himself if he let go. They roamed around the sky, letting Suzie choose her path, taking in the infinity of the ocean, going so far that they couldn’t see anything from miles away. They were experiencing the truest form of freedom, with no binding or expectation, just them and the sky.

When the horizon started to take on orange and pink hues, Suzie lazily made her way back home. With the coastline in sight, Suna felt a pinch in his heart, already missing this unique feeling, already itching to take off with Atsumu again.

“I’ve never felt so complete in my whole life.” softly said Atsumu when they set foot on land. It was the first words any of them said since taking off a couple of hours earlier, and nothing had ever sounded so true before.

Wanting to keep this moment going a little longer, Suna didn’t reply and just focused on Atsumu to try to commit this image into his memory. He was reminded of the first time he saw Atsumu when he had just fallen. He remembered how he mistook him for an angel, and right at this moment, he thought that maybe he hadn’t mistaken it after all.

Going home in silence, Suna couldn’t wait to be able to stand so close to him and true happiness again.

***

It quickly came to Suna that Atsumu had talent. A tremendous amount. Usually, people would take years to reach the level Atsumu was at and it would be a shame to see such a gift come to waste. Thoughts about racing and competing against Atsumu began forming in his head. With them closer than Suna had ever been with someone else and with the end of his convalescence and consequently his stay in sight, he couldn’t do anything but entertain this idea. It was selfish and he knew it. Atsumu’s life, his brother, and friends were here, how could he dream of Atsumu giving that up for him? But at the same time, Atsumu was such a free soul, dreaming of adventures and new horizons. Racing with Suna would be a life he would love, he was sure of it.

Suna’s dreams became plagued with images of them competing on the same stage, coming home to each other at the end of it all. He dreamt about confessing his love and being reciprocated. He dreamt about domesticity, sharing a house together in the capital. He dreamt about them getting married.

Waking up became much tougher. He couldn’t just have everything he wanted during the night just for it to be taken away right after. He stopped flirting as much, he became gloomy and kept to himself to avoid the hurt of leaving without Atsumu that was coming at tremendous speed. Atsumu, of course, noticed. Why was Suna feeling so down all of a sudden? Everything was going so well, he even thought his dragon-riding abilities were progressing at a good rate. He thought they were close. He thought maybe he could- Had he been misjudging the whole time?

Everything came to a head two or three days after the start of this suffocative state of unease. Osamu, having been the witness of the relentless flirting between the two, their odious complicity, and the sickening way they were clearly in love with each other, broke down seeing everything unfolding this way. He couldn’t bear to think that all of his sufferings had been for nothing. He was all for supporting his brother and Suna, but he wasn’t gonna stand by and watch them fuck everything up. How could both of them be so stupid? They were more flirty and touchy-feely than Aran and Kita for fuck sake! And they had been married for years! If he had anything to say in this matter, he wouldn’t let these two idiots fear away from each other. And say something he would! He wasn’t gonna let his brother give up on the man who made him the happiest he’d ever been so easily!

"Okay idiots,", started Osamu, staring at Suna and Atsumu who he got to sit in front of him, "this is an emergency situation, 'cause yer both blind morons."

"What the fuck Samu?! I'm not gonna stay there to get insulted! Do ya have a fucking point to make?!"

Suna nods, he would like to finish this quickly and go cry alone on how close yet so far Atsumu is, thank you very much.

"Shut up Tsumu. I ain't gonna want to hear from ya now." fumed Osamu, it was confusing for Atsumu and Suna who didn't expect such anger from Osamu. He usually was calm and collected. What had happened to make him this mad?

"I'm gonna go straight to the point and say it. I don't know what the fuck is going on between ya two, but ya better solve it quickly. I haven't handled seeing ya both pining after each other for the past month for it to end up this way! There's only so much of Atsumu's 'I love Sunarin so much, he'll never love me back’ that I can take! So fucking communicate now, tell each other yer fucking in love and kiss goddamnit!"

Atsumu blanched, and Suna reddened.

"What the hell Samu! How can ya do that?! Suna I'm sorry he doesn't mean that, I- I mean, yeah I kinda got a crush on ya but- OH MY GOD SAMU I'M GONNA KILL YA!!"

Before Atsumu could reach across the table and kill his brother, Suna grabbed his wrist and looked him in the eyes, and softly said:

"Is that true Atsumu? Do you really love me?"

Atsumu deflated and a tear rolled down his cheek.

"I'm sorry Sunarin. I'm sorry to fuck it up, to fuck up our friendship but I can't control it. I tried, trust me. But yer the best thing to ever have happened to me and I told ya that several times already. I just can't control my feelings. Don't hate me please."

Suna felt the emotions he had kept hidden for so long bubble up in his chest. Atsumu loved him back! It was mutual! He couldn't believe it! He was so lucky!

"Don't cry Tsumu." he started, catching his tears with his finger, "I love you back. I love you so much I thought I was gonna explode.", he laughed, "Lord, I love you so much Tsumu. I can't believe it's mutual!"

Atsumu's eyes widened.

"For real?"

"For real."

Atsumu jumped into his arms to embrace him. He laughed with glee.

"Oh god. As much as I hate to say that, Samu's right, we're both morons."

"Damn right ye are!" said Osamu, relieved to see the two of them finally talking and expressing what they felt.

“Would you like to come live in the capital with me?”, blurted out Suna, “I know it's so sudden and we just confessed but I've been dreaming about it every day Tsumu. You would be able to truly develop your dragon-riding abilities, because trust me you’re gifted, and you’d be racing in no time. You’ve always dreamed of getting away and experiencing the thrill of a life like that. You’d be happy, Tsumu. And truth be told, I would too.”

‘I-”, stuttered Atsumu, "Wow yer so obsessed with me, ya dream about me, it's so cute!" He paused

"I would love that but- But how can I leave Samu behind? I can’t see my life without him, Sunarin. As much as I love ya.” he loves me

“Gross Tsumu. How are ya getting so mushy, I’m gonna puke”

“Shut up scrub, I’m trynna have a conversation with my boyfriend here.” my boyfriend

“Well, if yer tryin’ say that yer gonna stay behind ‘cause of me, ya can shut yer trap. ‘Cause I sure as hell ain’t gonna stay in this shithole when I have a free ride to tha capital.”

After Osamu said that, Atsumu stayed eerily quiet, which made Osamu a bit uneasy.

“Say something ya idiot. Yer making this weird now.”

“Samu”, sniffled Atsumu, “Ya, would you go and leave the island just to stay with me?”

“What the heck Tsumu!”, blushed Osamu, “I ain’t doing this fer ya scrub. I hate this place, that's just it. No other intention.”

“Just admit ya love me, ya bastard!” said Atsumu as he went to hug -or strangle- his twin, “Babe! We’re going to live in the capital! We’re gonna race against each other and I’m gonna crush yer ass!”

There was the man Suna fell in love with, a complete idiot who always thought about his loved ones and who had enough ambition to move mountains. And this man was his now. They were gonna live together and he couldn’t wait to see where it would bring them. It was probably too soon to think about proposing, right? 

“We’ll see about that sweetcheeks, you have a long way to go before you can even dream of catching up to me!”

“Don’t slack off on yer training or I’m gonna catch up to yer pretty ass in no time!”

“Oh lord,” sighted Osamu, “I can’t wait to stop living with ya two. I’m getting my own place as soon as I can. Being subject to yer flirting is unbearable.”

“Well, ya got it coming!” shouted Atsumu, who had grabbed Suna in his arms, “Yer the one who forced us together!”

“Yeah, yeah. I’m happy for ya or whatever” smiled Osamu, seeing his twin smiling brightly.

Yeah, Suna couldn’t wait to see what the future would bring.

***

Tonight for the finale of Inarizaki's championship we’ve got several serious competitors! From Sakusa Kiyoomi and his husband Sakusa Hinata to Kageyama Tobio or Ushijima Wakatoshi, it is guaranteed to be a pretty spectacular race! Will the two-time title holder Suna Rintarou be able to get first place again or will he get overthrown by his several serious rivals? It is said that Bokuto Koutarou and Komori Motoya are to be watched closely as well this year!

However, our eyes are turned to the underdog of this competition Miya Atsumu! He’s a rookie that took the competition by storm this year! Having only debuted two seasons ago, he quickly rose to one of the top spots in the kingdom with his wild but still overly precise moves! Will he be able to grab the extremely coveted title of kingdom champion? This will soon be answered tonight at Ohasuhigashi’s arena! Come along and support your favourite racer tonight! Don’t miss this once-in-a-lifetime occasion!

"Come on Tsumu. Let’s show them the way we fly.”