Work Text:
Seven years. Seven years since he last messaged me. I glanced back at my phone. Message from Sugawara Koushi.
6:34 PM From: Sugawara Koushi To: Sawamura Daichi Hey, Daichi. It's been a while. We should grab a meal -- I'm back in town for a bit.
I stared up at my phone from my bed, at a loss. It turns out answering a message from someone you haven’t talked to in seven years is really hard. I spent the majority of the two hours after work trying to figure out just what the hell to say back. I ended up fumbling out a response and sending it off.
9:56 PM From: Sawamura Daichi To: Sugawara Koushi it has definitely been a while. good to hear from you again! i hope youve been well. unfortunately the store has me bogged down for most of the week but its closed on sundays, we could meet up then?
He responded more quickly than I hoped.
9:57 PM From: Sugawara Koushi To: Sawamura Daichi A lot has happened and I can't properly explain over text. Want to meet at the ramen shop downtown at 2pm Sunday?
I was immensely curious to find out how he'd been, but I knew I wouldn't get any info until then.
9:57 PM From: Sawamura Daichi To: Sugawara Koushi sure. see you then!
I set down my phone with a sigh. After seven years, only three more days. A glance at the clock told me it was already 10 PM (which I should have realized from being on my phone, but I was, um, a little distracted). I jumped out of bed. I needed to open at 5AM and should've been in bed an hour ago. I ran to the bathroom, brushed my teeth, jumped into bed, and flicked the lights off.
-----
Suga and I hadn't talked in years, but we harbored no ill will for each other. He had moved to Tokyo for school and stayed for work, while I inherited my parents' store. We texted normally at first, then progressively less as school and work became more demanding. Our interactions were reduced to infrequent messages asking how the other was doing and occasionally hanging out when Suga returned home.
Eventually we stopped messaging. No hurt feelings, just a lack of communication. Or at least, that's how I saw it, and it's how I expect Suga saw it too. The only communication was his wedding invitation -- he invited the team from our third year. As the store's only caretaker, I couldn't step away for three days. It was probably better that I didn't, anyway.
Little nagging doubts remained. I definitely had a crush on him in high school. I've had a couple girlfriends and a boyfriend after graduation, but the thoughts were always there. I wonder what my life would have been if I had asked him out... would pop into my head, but I would quickly box that away and return to the other worries preoccupying me.
Suga's text caught me off-guard, and reminded me of the thoughts and feelings from when I was younger. I was seeing him for the first time in seven years, which was exciting enough. But other stuff that could crop up? I didn't have feelings for him, but I thought about them again. But since Suga got married, I couldn't imagine having any issues.
It'll be fine, I told myself.
-----
I opened the door to the ramen shop, and asked the waitress if she had removed a Sugawara from the list. Yes, a party of three but they're waiting for one more, she said. That must be you. I couldn't see him, but waitresses were buzzing around and obscured the customers in back.
Wait. Three? Right. His wife. Duh. I didn't mind -- it made it easier to avoid awkward topics, but his texts gave off a different vibe. I mentally shrugged. The waitress rounded the corner of the bar and he came into view. As did his son. Huh. Didn't know that. He was leaned over, trying to get his son to eat some naruto.
"C'mon, Daisuke. It's tasty! Watch, Daddy'll try some." He put some in his mouth from his own bowl and made an exaggerated mmmmm noise. "See! It's delicious!"
"No," Daisuke insisted, as only 4-year-olds can.
I awkwardly sat down next to Suga.
"I, uh. Hi."
He turned around and beamed. "Daichi!"
He didn't look quite the same as he did in high school -- his shoulders had broadened, and he had both the confidence of maturity and bags under his eyes from raising a small child. But the light in his eyes was the same. I smiled back.
"How've you been? I can tell a lot happened in the last few years." My eyes drifted towards Daisuke. Suga's eyes followed mine, and he laughed.
"Yeah, I had a kid." He ruffled Daisuke's hair. "I've been working in Tokyo for a design company for the last... six years? We’re a bit tight on money and none of our projects start until next month. We're on our own for the next couple weeks, so I came home. Between work and taking care of this one I'm usually really busy."
Suga smiled and cut off his train of thought. "Sorry, rambling." He perked up a bit. "I haven't properly introduced you two, have I?" He leaned down to help Daisuke with the noodle he was fighting, and then raised the pitch of his voice in order to get Daisuke's attention more wholly. "Daisuke, this is my friend Sawamura-san."
The kid responded adorably, full of energy and corners of his mouth wide. "Hello, Sawamura-san!" He had much darker hair than his father -- not typical jet-black, but dark brown. He had his father's eyes, though, warmth hidden under dull grey-brown.
"A pleasure to meet you." One of the things I'd learned from running the shop was that kids loved being treated like adults. I offered a friendly smile. "I hope your father hasn't been giving you too much trouble." I smirked playfully at Suga.
Daisuke smiled again. "Nope! I have the best daddy ever!"
"I'll bet. Where's your mom at?" If I hadn't seen Daisuke's eyes, I wouldn't have assumed he was Suga's but... Suga must've made this one. Suga paled at my question. Before formulated a response, Daisuke beat him to it.
"She's in Tokyo!" He was clearly proud of his mother. "She helps design cars."
Suga scratched the back of his head nervously. "We haven't been together for a couple years now." Oh, I thought instinctually. I figuratively shook my head to clear my thoughts. He continued. "It was fine at first, but the pressure of both of us working full-time and raising a kid eventually made it unenjoyable. So we divorced. I take care of him weekdays since her work days are longer. She watches him on weekends."
"You've done an excellent job raising him. Even if he doesn't like naruto." I elbowed him lightly in the ribs. Daisuke made a face at me.
"Thanks." Suga smiled slightly, but pressed onwards. "So... how've you been? I imagine you've had things going on too."
"Not particularly. Still working at the store."
He rolled his eyes. "I knew that. I mean like... have you done anything fun? Seeing anyone? Anything at all?" Daisuke happily munched on the egg in his miniature ramen and watched us talk.
"I went to Kyoto when my parents were still healthy enough to watch the shop for me. Now I don't get to go places, but it's okay."
He returned my elbow from earlier more forcefully than mine. Ow. "Okay?! Daichi, you need to get out more! We'll figure out a way for you to come down and visit. Is that okay with you, Daisuke?" Daisuke nodded vigorously.
I chuckled. It was nice to see him again. A lot had changed, but the familiarity built from years of closeness in high school remained. "That'd be nice. We certainly have a lot of catching up to do." I remembered the store. "But I don't know if I'll ever be able to get away from the store for too long. So I'll have to politely decline."
"No worries. But you're still more than welcome to come visit."
"Thanks, Suga." We ate in silence briefly before he reiterated himself. "So what else is going on? You going on any hot dates, Daichi?" He laughed a bit to himself at his own question.
Does this count as one?, I pondered. "Haha. But no, not right now. You knew my ex-girlfriend from when you were in college. I also have another ex-girlfriend and an ex-boyfriend."
He took a bite out of the pork from his ramen, and shot me a quizzical look. "Do I know either of them?"
"Remember the Seijoh ace?"
"Iwai... Iwaizumi?"
"Yeah, him. Nice arms."
Suga laughed. "I can't disagree with that."
Another awkward pause. Daisuke had conked out over the last five minutes and had his head on the bar, chopsticks loose in a half-grasp.
"I don't know if I ever told you, but I had it pretty bad for you in high school." The words jumped out of my mouth before I could catch them. I instantly regretted saying it.
Suga laughed. "It didn't take a genius to figure it out, Daichi. There were the small hints, like the little smiles you'd give me here and there. There were the big hints, like the fact that I'd mess with you and you'd blush. To be honest, I took advantage of it a bit. But only to give you a good elbow when you needed to clear your head." He giggled infectiously and I felt a soft nudge in my side. "Not that I minded. I'm just surprised it took you a decade to admit it." All the tension in my body melted away. Thank god.
I laughed nervously. "When you put it that way, you make me sound really pathetic."
"Well..."
"Hey! That's mean." Suga snickered some more at me. As it subsided, his face melted into the smile that helped me fall in love with him ten years ago. Ahaha fuck, I thought. Here we go again.
Suga checked on his son again. Still conked out. He sighed. "Well, I suppose it's probably time for me to get going. Naptime." He turned back to me, looking into my eyes. "But -- it's not too late, if you'd like. I'm in town for the next two weeks. I could swindle Asahi into watching this rapscallion if you're interested in going on a date."
I mentally stuttered, but years of speaking to customers (and leading a volleyball team) made my response clear. "I'd like that a lot. Next Sunday?"
"Yeah. I'll text you the details."
We quickly paid our bills and Suga shuffled out to his car and lowered Daisuke into the rear seat, still sound asleep.
-----
Sure enough, Asahi agreed to babysit Daisuke. Suga picked me up from my apartment en route to dropping Daisuke off.
"Daddy, what are you guys gonna do on your playdate?" I stifled a laugh.
He took it in stride. "We're gonna go watch a movie! I've heard it's got superheroes in it! I'll tell you how it is and maybe we can go see it, if it's not too scary."
Daisuke shook his carseat in excitement. "Oooh! I hope it's good so we can see it too, Daddy!"
Suga laughed. "Yeah, me too."
We left him, full of energy, with a slightly terrified Asahi. He shot us a mortified look as we got back into the car. We laughed and closed the doors without saying anything, just to mess with him a little more.
"He's great with kids," Suga said as he started up the car again. "He always has been. Kids love gentle giants."
"He's also got patience to deal with them. Dealing with Noya for as long as he did; living for five years with the guy would teach you all kinds of patience." Suga chuckled in agreement.
We spent the rest of the car ride talking about the fates of our former teammates. Ennoshita was the captain the year after us, of course, followed by Yamaguchi. Hinata and Kageyama actually ended up playing professionally, and also starring for the Japanese National Team. It was good earnestly catching up with Suga, without the pressure of having not talked for years looming over us.
After arriving at the theater and grabbing some popcorn, we settled into our seats. I didn't go to movies often so I didn't have a preference, but Suga really likes superhero and action films, so we decided to see the new Avengers film.
I thought it was okay. Well-written, with good acting, especially compared to the other films of its genre. I enjoyed myself. We discreetly held hands underneath the seats so other people couldn't see. It was nice. It was a less comfortable when he squeezed my hand during the emotional bits, but all things considered, I was more than okay with that. I could tell he had a good time.
We walked out of the film groggy from sitting down and staring blankly at a screen for two and a half hours. I yawned and shrugged off some of the sluggishness. "That was pretty good," I intoned.
Suga was still adjusting to the brightness outside the theater, but he nodded in agreement. "I liked it a lot!" he said, as enthusiastically as he could while fighting temporary blindness.
Without missing a moment, I responded. "I like you a lot." I beamed. It felt good to say that. Suga snorted.
"You are sooooo cheesy, Daichi." He paused briefly to let out a couple more snorts. "But it's why I like you." He fumbled in his pockets to find the car fob. He unlocked the door and I sat down in the passenger's seat.
Once he settled in the driver's seat, he sat for a minute before talking again. I tried to look as presentable as possible. "It was kind of mean of me to make fun of you last week for not telling me. Especially since, well... this probably would have blown your 17-year-old mind, but believe it or not, the feelings were mutual. I was crushing on you pretty badly." He exhaled sharply in a half-laugh. "Not that I could've said anything. I liked you a lot then and I like you a lot now. But we moved away and drifted apart and then I got married. I didn't think about it because I didn't need to but now I'm single and..." He was rambling again. I cut him off.
"It's okay. We're here now. Do you want this?"
He paused for a moment. "Yeah. Yeah, I do. Although I come as part of a package deal now."
"You're a good dad, Suga. And Daisuke's a good kid. I'm not worried at all. I'm happy with things as they are now."
"Me too."
Letting the situation take over, I did a half-second scan of the surrounding parking lot, and finding it empty, I leaned in and kissed him. He drew back at first, but then leaned forward again to compensate.
We sat in silence for a moment after we withdrew. It was interrupted by Suga's giggle. "Can you imagine how bad that would've been ten years ago?"
"Both of us, never having kissed anyone? Good grief. I don't want to even think about that."
"It would've been awful. Honestly, it's better this way, after we’ve both had some, uh. Practice."
I looked up, laughed a little in relief, and sighed. "Yeah. Although it could've come sooner." I straightened a bit as my mind restarted again. "Hey, so, uh. Last weekend, before any of this, you invited me to Tokyo. I said I was busy but, uh. Things have changed. I think I could probably make it down if I pulled the right strings."
Suga smiled. "I'd like that."
-----
I clutched Daisuke's hand in mine as we squeezed onto the 5:30 train headed back home from his piano lessons. I grumbled to myself as we were pushed by the crowds of the evening rush.
"You don't like crowds, do you, pop?" Damn kid was perceptive. Always was. Got it from his father.
"No, I don't." I reassuringly laughed a little. "It's okay, though, I'm used to it. Just grew up somewhere where it wasn't quite so crowded. Plus I wanna make sure you get to and from your lessons safely!"
He smiled sweetly, and wrapped his arms around my lower torso. "I love you, Pop."
I leaned down and hugged him back. "I love you too."