Work Text:
Iwaizumi's humidifier must have turned off while he slept, his throat was dry.
His eyes were screaming at him not to open, but there was an agitating noise coming from his bedside table.
Weird.
He didn't remember setting an alarm for this morning, he could have sworn today was Saturday. No uni. No need to be awake. Though waking up this early on a weekend was oddly nostalgic, waking up to brown eyes, a smile telling him that they'd agreed to jog together before they both had to start their part-time jobs and then Iwaizumi throwing his pillow whisper-shouting saying he gave him a house key for emergencies not to harass him at ass crack in the morning.
He tried not to think about how much he missed the intrusion.
He picked up his phone and it read 6.17 am. Oh. It wasn't an alarm.
Why is Oikawa calling him?
"Um hi?" He answered.
"Good morning Iwa-chan!" Oikawa's bright voice rang through the speaker with far more chirp that was necessary for this time of the morning. Then he remembers the time difference, I probably wasn't that early for him in Argentina. It's been 6 months he doesn't know how he keeps forgetting.
"It's like 10 right? Shouldn't you be training or something?" Not that he wasn't glad to hear his voice but, it was so strange to see him not keep to his regime that Iwaizumi was half-convinced that he was dreaming.
"Hmm, actually it's 6:18 and I won't be training today."
Iwaizumi was wide awake. They were in the same time zone. He tried not to get too excited that could mean anything they could have travelled for an away game, oikawa could be anywhere; he could be in Canada He doesn’t want to get his hopes up, he could be in Mexico or Canada Iwaizumi tried not to let the excitement fill him too quickly, lest he be disappointed. “Did you have an away game or something? You didn’t put it in the google calendar.”
“I’m in Califonia Iwa.”
Iwaizumi felt like he couldn’t breathe. He’s here, the same time zone, the same country, the same state. He was so close. Iwaizumi was wide awake stumbling to the bathroom. “R-really? Um, you're here?"
"I'm at the airport, just waiting for my bag… surprise."
Iwaizumi almost couldn't hear him over the sound of his heart beating.
"Come get me?"
Of course. Obviously. There was nothing Iwaizumi wanted to do more. "I'll be there soon." Hanging out quickly to get himself ready.
It was going to be a good morning.
—----
Driving was always a struggle for Iwaizumi, most people seem to trust him with a car. And then they rode beside him. You had the perfect mixture of anxious and reckless driving even down the streets he had known so well in Japan.
Now add terrain he was only just getting used to. Add driving on the opposite side of the road and driving next to him was an experience.
Iwaizumi would admit that he wasn't the best driver but he personally believes that everybody was exaggerating. Oikawa seemed perfectly fine with his chauffeuring. So that was all that mattered.
He had managed to hit every green light on the Freeway towards the airport in Santa Ana. This was a good sign, the months you'd been who he had never managed to drive up so smoothly.
He couldn't wait to drive with Oikawa.
Had reached the airport without a hitch he waited by the arrivals looking for the luscious brown hair he knew so well. Several people run into each other's arms with the drawn-out hellos and welcomes. He witnessed people awkwardly wave and fumble with their bags politely before being escorted out. He saw all these things but no Tooru.
He didn't think much of it, maybe he was in the bathroom. Yeah, that was probably it it would be so like him to want to look presentable stepping into a new city for the first time.
Each minute felt longer than the next, how long had he been waiting? Where was he?
His phone rang.
"Haji-chan are you coming? I know this is really late notice. Hell, you can have plans bu-"
"I'm at the airport." Iwaizumi cut off the rambling.
"Okay, where? I'm at arrivals. I'm wearing that kaiju t-shirt that you lent m-"
"You mean that you stole."
“schematics.” He brushed it off. “I’m wearing my glasses? Honestly, Iwa are you sure you’re here, there’s no one looking remotely as grumpy as you would.”
Iwaizumi scanned the space again as people came and left but no sign of his Tooru.
Ah. After the months apart it has started proving more and more difficult to just refer to Oikawa as his best friend, so he mentally began calling him ‘his Tooru’ as it was the only thing that could even scratch the surface of what Tooru meant to him.
Maybe they should talk about when they see each other. When they find each other.
Wait. “Where are you?” It was just a thought but Iwaizumi felt like he knew the answer already.
“The airport?”
“No dumbass, which airport?”
“LAX?” There it was. He’s already started walking back to his car outside.
“You know the closest airport to Irvine is in Sanna Ana right?”
There was a pause. “I’m sorry where?”
“ Sanna Ana. ”
“Say that again.” This was going to get tedious.
“ Sanna Ana. ”
“Spell that. I want to note it down, you know, for next time.”
“ S A N T-”
“There’s a T?” By this point Iwaizumi was standing in front of his car, confused as to what was going on.
“Well yeah…”
“Why weren’t you pronouncing the T? So it’s SanTa Ana?”
“Yeah, but I'm saying it the Californian way.”
“Iwa we were speaking Japanese, and isn’t that a Spanish name?”
“I’ll be at LAX in an hour.”
“Iwa wait.”
Iwa hung up and started his drive to Oikawa. On the freeway he hit most of the red lights.
——
Oikawa found himself a corner to sit while he waited for Iwa to come get him, a little embarrassed he’d come into the wrong airport, though granted if he asked Iwa it would’ve ruined the surprise.
But he supposes the surprise is slightly ruined.
He wanted Iwa to come pick him up in a rush of adrenaline, being able to see each other in person for the first time in months giving them both the push they needed to tell the other how they feel. Oikawa was fairly certain he felt the same way but the small sliver of doubt kept him from ever saying it lest he was wrong and warp the friendship they spent their lives building.
He knew he wouldn't be abandoned in this friendship if his feelings weren't reciprocated, Iwaizumi wasn't like that. And Tooru knew his worth and knew he was a valued part of Iwaizumi's life even if not in the way that he wanted.
But god that would be embarrassing, to come all this way, arrive at the wrong airport, profess his love, and then get rejected.
He didn't think his pride could take it.
So for now he was sat. Waiting. Watching as people had their own long-awaited welcomes, hoping that his would go well.
—---
Iwaizumi made it to LAX, it took more willpower than he was willing to admit to stop him from breaking out into a full sprint.
He made it to arrival, looking for the fluffy brown hair he'd known all his life.
And the corner head leant against the wall, eyes closed, and glasses askew due to the angle. He was sat on his suitcase and like he said he was wearing Iwaizumi's T-shirt.
He didn't realise how tense he was until he felt the knots in his shoulders untangle as he watched the rise and fall of the sleeping man's chest.
Iwaizumi moved quietly not to wake Oikawa too suddenly, he shook his shoulder. "Hey, you're drooling on my shirt."
A pout marred Oikawas features, "I don't drool Iwa-chan." His voice sounded completely awake, but that wasn't out of the usual Oikawa was an extraordinarily light sleeper.
"You came all this way to see me, and now you won't even open your eyes." He scalded light-heartedly.
"Aww miss me?" His eyes still closed.
"Yeah, I did." Iwaizumi shocked himself with how earnestly he said that. It seemed he shocked Oikawa too, his eyes breaking open staring at him with a soft smile.
Oikawa threw his arms around a crouched Iwaizumi and held him tight, and Iwaizumi held him just as tightly. He could hardly believe they'd ever been apart with how at home he felt with him.
"What? you didn't miss me?" Iwaizumi teased.
Oikawa inhaled. "Not at all, I just knew you'd have a breakdown if you had to spend another minute without me."
They released each other and walked towards Iwaizumi's car.
Oikawa had put himself in the passenger seat while Iwaizumi put his suitcase in the boot.
"It's weird being in a car with and not driving." Oikawa said absentmindedly.
“Doesn’t matter, you can’t drive here.”
They started going, Iwaizumi was being extra cautious while driving whether or not, he was conscious of it, it seems he was trying to impress with his skills behind the wheel.
“Wow Iwa, I’m not fearing for my life once. You have gotten better.”
To this Iwaizumi intentionally swerved a little, jolting Oikawa in his seat.
“Okay, maybe not.”
They continued to drive in comfortable silence, which wasn’t uncommon for them. When they both first got their licenses Oikawa would take them out on drives, though most of the time at night. The radio on a low volume acted as their soundtrack as their presence gave the other respite they needed from whatever irked them in the day.
Contrary to what most believed when they were alone, Iwaizumi initiated most conversations. With Oikawa he could speak his thoughts so freely that sometimes he didn’t realise he was doing this, of course, this went both ways but most didn’t seem to think of Oikawa as such an attentive observer.
“Why are you here?”
Oikawa turned to Iwaizumi. “Hmm? Do you want me to go?”
“No!” The green eyed man blurted out. “It’s just- you’ve been so busy and I didn’t think-“
“I needed to see you Iwa.” He stated so simply. Iwaizumi wished he wasn’t driving, he wanted to look at Oikawa, search his face for any sign he meant it light heartedly, he sounded so serious. It made Iwaizumi blush, there were very few things that admitted he needed and to be only that list confirmed something he knew but it didn't dampen the feeling of actually hearing it.
"When do you leave?"
"You really must not want me here." Oikawa yawned.
"I do, I just. I just want to know how much time we have."
"We'll have enough."
"Guess that means you're staying."
Iwaizumi knew Oikawa was smiling at this, his smiles were so bright and warm Iwaizumi when a genuine one cracks through.
"Eventually."
That was a promise eventually he would stay but for now they both knew that these months apart may turn into years.
The thoughts with it were interrupted by a blaring ringtone.
"Do you mind getting that for me?"
Oikawa grabs the phone, makes disgruntled noise but answers and puts it on speaker.
"What do you want UshiWaka?" He says before Iwaizumi has the chance to say hello.
"Oh, Oikawa hello, I didn't realise you'd be in California."
Iwaizumi interrupted before Oikawa could say anything more.
"Hey Ushijima, what's up?"
"I was just wondering if you still wanted to go to the cinema this evening. I understand if not especially now you have a guest."
Iwaizumi glanced over at the brown-haired man whose face was passive, he made a vague gesture with his hand as if to say 'Do what you want.'
"Um, yeah we're still on. Oikawa's coming too."
"Okay, I'll see you later."
"Yeah, bye."
The line went dead, and Iwaizumi didn’t really know what to say. The silence was different than usual, not awkward, not bad but different.
“Aw, Iwa-chan's all grown up, making new friends looks like you don’t need me anymore.” He sounded happy. Iwaizumi wasn’t expecting that, but in truth, he never knows what to expect when it comes to Oikawa.
“I’ll always need you,” he spoke before thinking. Not an uncommon thing.
They fell quiet again, but there was bubbling anticipation between them. Iwaizumi felt his every move being examined under Oikawa's analytical eyes.
One minute the morning rush started to feel like an hour. There were things he wanted to say, things he wanted to do but it didn’t feel like a good time.
It never felt like a good time.
“I guess Now’s as good a time as any,” Oikawa spoke. “Iwa. Iwa-chan. Hajime.”
He was stalling, Iwaizumi knew this. He knew what he was going to say. He didn’t want to let himself believe it he didn’t when I get it up, so they could just be crushed God, he wanted him to finish talking.
“Hajime, I don’t plan on being your just friend after this trip.”
Iwaizumi stalled the car. He had to pull over how he was supposed to drive after hearing that. So this was a goodbye trip to make final memories and then drift out of each other's lives.
A moment to think about this wouldn't be enough.
"Are you being serious?"
"...yeah Iwa." He sounded so vulnerable.
"Can I know why?" He was doing his best to keep it together. Though it was proving difficult his voice was trembling.
"Because you're you…"
It sounded like Oikawa was searching for the right words but Iwaizumi didn't want to be there when he found them.
Iwaizumi got out of the car and started walking, not far behind him Oikawa was following.
"Wait! Please let me finish!"
"You don't want to be my friend anymore. Fine. but please give me some space to process this."
"No, Iwa wait. I'm not wording this right." He grabbed onto Iwaizumi's shirt. "I want to be so much more than a friend to you."
Iwaizumi's mind went blank.
Oh.
Honestly that makes more sense.
"Oh."
"I was kind of planning on telling you when you first got to the airport, some grand gesture moment."
"Oh."
"But then I went to the wrong airport and the moment kind of passed so I was planning on waiting a little bit."
"Oh."
"But I feel like we've waited long enough and now our time together is so limited that any second apart would kind of be a waste."
"Oh."
"So yeah."
"Yeah."
Oikawa was staring at him. Started chewing the inside of his lip. "Sorry I made this really awkward."
Iwaizumi started chuckling. "You scared me."
And pulled Oikawa into a hug wrapping his arms around the taller man. "So you like me?"
Oikawa whined.
"You flew all this way to tell me you like me."
Oikawa tried to break out of the hug. "Do you know now would be a good time to say it back."
"Of course, I like you, idiot."
"Beautifully done." He let himself relax into the embrace. Iwaizumi's arms felt as comfortable as they always did, between the two of them they both knew they would always have space for the other in their arms.
The time together would be precious needless to say, Iwaizumi canceled the cinema with Ushijima for another day.