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The shopping cart hit the shelf with a clang, and Tendou covered his ears, groaning at his inability to handle it as he reached for the pancake mix on the top shelf.
“Shit,” he hissed, pulling the cart back over, moving it into place against a stand of chip containers.
I’m tall, he thought, are the shelves just getting higher?
“Jeez, this is annoying,” he growled, stretching his arm up to reach for the pancake mix once again. Why would you even put pancake mix on the top shelf?
He lowered his arm, wiggling his fingers, frowning at the fact that he was six-foot-two and still couldn’t reach the top shelf in the grocery store.
He turned around quickly at a low laughter coming from behind him, a chuckle, barely even noticeable, but Tendou wasn’t one to be humiliated. Another man, probably around his age, close to his height as well— perhaps taller— stood with his cart, eyebrow raised in amusement at Tendou’s pathetic failure at reaching the pancake mix.
“What’re you laughing at?” He shouted, a blush spreading across his face.
“Do you need some help there?” The other man asked, quite sincerely.
Tendou frowned. “I’m fine, I can do this by myself,” he reached up again towards the boxes and let out a groan upon coming to the realization that his arms might be too short for this task.
The other man had stepped a little bit closer to get a better look, and Tendou felt his his breath hitch as he turned back around towards his shopping cart, with the other man much close to him. Tendou narrowed his eyes, observing him carefully for a few seconds.
Holy hell, he’s got nice arms, he thought. They literally stretch out his tee shirt. That’s kind of hot. He thought the other man had pretty eyes, too, maybe even a cute haircut?
He was about to ask for help, opening his mouth slightly speak, but the other man cut him off.
“If I get the box for you, will you make me some pancakes?”
Tendou is not normally very quiet.
Tendou went completely silent. Not a chirp.
“Sir?”
He blinked at the man in from of him. “Is that... like... a date thing? Or like, a hangout thing? Or do you want pancakes? Please tell me,” Tendou waved his hands in confusion. Am I secretly hoping it’s a date thing? This guy is seriously hot.
“It can be a date thing if you want it to be a date thing,” he responded, reaching up to the shelf and pulling the pancake mix off with ease, placing two boxes into Tendou’s shopping cart.
“Ah...” Tendou sighed, “so I guess we’re going on a date?”
“If you’re that eager.”
Tendou groaned. “You’re so indecisive.”
“I could say the same about you,” he held out his hand to Tendou. “Ushijima Wakatoshi, nice to meet you.”
He took Ushijima’s hand and shook it once in a wide motion. “Tendou Satori, and you too.”
They stood like that for a few moments, hands interlocked, staring intensely into each other’s eyes, Tendou desperately attempting to read Ushijima’s blank expression.
“Give me a second before I answer your question on whether I’ll go on a date with you or not,” Tendou declared, pulling out his phone and opening a text conversation with his best friend.
To: Semi :^)
<image attached>
should i date him
From: Semi :^)
sure ????? go for it ?????? nice arms lmao
Tendou looked back up at Ushijima, putting his phone away and shrugging his shoulders.
“Alright, it’s a date. Let’s do this.”
Approximately three hours and twenty-five minutes later, Tendou Satori stood in front of his bathroom mirror, hairbrush in hand, debating whether to keep his hair like it normally is— fluffy and sticking up in random directions— or to brush it down, to actually style it. He sighed at the fact that he even bothered to put any mind to it, that he felt the need to look nice for a date literally to just make pancakes and hang out with a guy he’d met at the grocery store earlier that day.
He’d exchanged numbers with Ushijima, as well as flat addresses, and Tendou had read over the address probably forty times already and nearly memorized it.
I haven’t been on a date in two years, he thought, I’m twenty-five. It’s about time.
He decided against doing anything fancy, pulling on sweatpants and a tee shirt, shoving his phone into his pocket, and reciting Ushijima’s address in his head as he grabbed the pancake mix from his pantry and heading down the staircase in front of his flat.
He was thankful that Ushijima’s flat was walking distance from his own, and for some reason, he wasn’t surprised that the flat was painted maroon. For some odd reason.
He knocked on the door twice, and was greeted by Ushijima in sweatpants and a tee shirt— much to Tendou’s relief— and a Pomeranian puppy in Ushijima’s arms. He smiled gently, and beckoned Tendou inside, and Tendou accepted willingly.
The inside of Ushijima’s flat was very nice, Tendou concluded, looking around at white furniture and dark, wooden floors, and he could see the frying pan sitting on the stove already. Tendou wondered if he’d done that in preparation or if he’d just left it there.
“About those pancakes,” Tendou started, “are you going to help me?”
Ushijima nodded. “Yeah, that’s fine.”
He followed after his date into the kitchen, watching as Ushijima pulled things from the cabinets left and right, setting them down on the counter next to the frying pan and the stove.
Tendou made a mental list as he stood there with Ushijima.
Things that make me happy: The fact that Ushijima has a tiny dog even though he’s such a beefy guy, Ushijima’s little smile, and these sweatpants. Quality sweatpants.
Of all of the things Tendou was expecting from his date, it was not for him to be such a romantic. He had turned on a nice radio station and handed Tendou a spatula, while he gathered the ingredients into one spot, setting the stovetop to a preheating temperature.
They worked together to make the mix, adding eggs, reading over the directions again and again, adding milk, stirring with a whisk.
“You have a lot of house plants,” Tendou stated, collecting data subconsciously about his date. There were a lot of house plants, though, one on every countertop, one on the kitchen table, one on every windowsill.
Ushijima nodded. “It keeps me occupied,” he began, “I work at home on most days, so I take care of the plants and the dog. It’s good enough for me.”
“You work at home?”
Ushijima dropped a pat of butter into the frying pan, the two of them watching as it dissolved from the heat, then locked eye contact for a short moment.
“I’m an author,” he answered. “What about you?”
“I’m illustrating a sports manga,” Tendou responded. “I could do an illustrated novel for your book someday.”
“That’d be nice.”
Ushijima poured some of the mix onto the pan, looking back up at Tendou to cue him to flip the pancake in about a minute. They sat on the countertop next to the stove, both of them completely silent. It’s not uncomfortable, Tendou thought, no, not at all. It’s nice, being together with someone again.
Ushijima nudged his shoulder, and he snapped back to reality, remembering that he had to flip the pancake. It flipped nicely, only a little bit of the batter splattering away from the round form of the pancake.
“Have you ever been on a date, Tendou?” Ushijima pondered, looking at the cabinets across from him.
“Yeah, few in high school, one or two in college,” he replied. “It’s been two years since I’ve gone on a date. To be honest, I don’t think any of them really counted as a date. They were more like hanging out to study, or something.”
“Hmm,” Ushijima mumbled. “I went on one in my second year of college. A girl asked me to get ice cream with her, but I didn’t really get anything from the experience.”
“Was the ice cream good, at least?”
Ushijima smiled. With teeth and all, he smiled, and Tendou’s heart went all fuzzy.
“Yeah, I think so. It was chocolate.”
“Oh, hell, now I’m jealous,” Tendou groaned. “Chocolate’s my favorite.”
“I’ve got some in my fridge, if you want some with your pancakes,” Ushijima offered.
“I love you already,” he sighed.
“Oh.”
“Oh,” Tendou flipped the pancake to check if it was the nice golden-brown color of a well-done pancake, and with confirmation, he put it onto a plate they’d set aside. Ushijima proceeded to pour more batter onto the pan.
“Sorry, it’s just been a while since I’ve heard that from someone,” Ushijima stated.
“It’s been a while since I’ve said that to someone.”
After the second pancake was finished, they began taking turns asking each other little questions about themselves. Ushijima apparently was an only child, his favorite food was rice (hayashi rice, specifically), and he was left handed. Nothing too abnormal. On the other hand, he’d asked Tendou about favorite books and bands and how many pets he had.
“Favorite color?” It was Tendou’s turn to ask. Flip.
“Green,” Ushijima responded after a short pause.
“Mine’s red,” he added. “I need to stop dyeing my hair, though.”
Flip.
“When’s your birthday?”
“May twentieth,” Tendou replied. “I’m twenty-five.”
Ushijima raised an eyebrow, pouring more batter into the pan. “You’re three months older than me. Mine’s August thirteenth.”
Tendou chuckled, more to himself than to Ushijima. Hah, I win, he thought, followed by, what am I, seven? It doesn’t matter if I’m older than him.
Flip.
“Finally,” Tendou gaped at his stack of pancakes, four for each of them, set down at Ushijima’s kitchen table. The dog was sleeping on its bed, and it calmed Tendou to her the soft snores of the little animal.
“Oh, your ice cream,” Ushijima remembered, right before he sat down. He turned around and walked back to the fridge, opening the side door with the freezer attachment and pulling out a little tub of chocolate ice cream. He pulled a scoop from a nearby drawer and brought the tub back to the table where Tendou sat, waiting patiently for Ushijima to start eating.
Ushijima scooped out the ice cream onto each of their plates, and Tendou couldn’t help but laugh.
“This is probably the most unhealthy dinner I’ve ever had in my life,” he snorted.
“Well, then, let’s at least make the most of it,” Ushijima responded. “Right?”
“Yeah,” Tendou began. “I mean, I’m still mad that I couldn’t reach the pancake mix on the top shelf, but, I wouldn’t be on the best date I’ve ever been on if that hadn’t happened, right?”
“The best?” Ushijima’s eyes widened. “You’re really having fun?”
“You would definitely know if I wasn’t having fun, trust me.”
Ushijima sighed. “Most people find me sort of boring, though.”
“Most people need to shut up, then.”
In sync, as if a miracle had just occurred, both of them began to laugh, and Tendou swore that he’d never felt more happy in his entire life. Ushijima’s shoulders bounced when he laughed, and Tendou couldn’t help but stare. His cheeks even looked a bit rosy, an his even, pearly-white teeth were completely visible. Tendou grabbed his chest in awe at the wondrous sight that sat, laughing in front of him.
“You can stay the night, if you want,” Ushijima offered after he calmed down. “There’s a volleyball game airing live tonight. Some high school championship game, I think.”
“The one between Fukurodani and Seijou? I heard about it this morning.” Tendou paused. “And thank you for the offer. I’ll.... I’ll stay. It’s nice here.”
It’s even nicer on his couch, Tendou thought as he sat with Ushijima on the couch, wrapped in blankets, eating chocolate ice cream from the tub, watching the volleyball game. He let his head fall gently against Ushijima’s shoulder, taking a bite of ice cream.
“Seijou’s gone far,” Tendou said, “but I think it’s kind of lost its touch since Oikawa left, don’t you think?”
Ushijima nodded. “Did you play? In high school, I mean.”
“Yeah, I went to Shiratorizawa. That’s where I met my best friend. He was the setter on the team. But, we didn’t have a solid ace for our team, and we didn’t do as well as we could have, y’know?”
The camera zoomed in on two guys in Seijou colors, waving flags and cheering.
“Former captain and vice captain Oikawa Tooru and Iwaizumi Hajime have returned to cheer on their high school team to victory,” the announcer spoke.
“Oh. There he is,” Ushijima said. Tendou laughed at how unsurprised he sounded.
Roughly four hours later, it was ten-o-clock, and Ushijima handed Tendou one of his tee shirts, a red one— Tendou wonders if he purposely gave him a shirt of his favorite color— and they lie down in bed next to each other.
Ushijima’s bed was warm and comfortable, and Tendou felt like he belonged in it. Ushijima was warm as well, and with the amount of space he took up in the bed, Tendou mentally compared him to a heater. He soon learned that despite Ushijima’s intimidating resting face, he was kind and gentle, and, Tendou’s newest discovery, his hands were softer than silk.
“Thank you for getting the pancake mix for me,” Tendou whispered, tightening his grip on Ushijima’s fingers.
“Thank you for making me pancakes,” Ushijima replied. “They were good.”
“They were, weren’t they? But personally, my favorite part was when you added the chocolate ice cream. Chocolate ice cream makes everything better.”
Ushijima just smiled gently at him, taking a heavy breath. The light from the moon and the stars glowed faintly, hitting the two of them softly, and Tendou sighed into the pillow he rested against. It was almost silent in Ushijima’s bedroom, with the exception of the comforter rustling as the two men breathed.
Tendou leaned over towards Ushijima, hovering above his face, and Ushijima’s eyes fluttered open at the sudden movement.
“Tendou,” he whispered, heavy with drowsiness. “I was almost asleep.”
“Yeah, but, I really feel like kissing you, so can I at least have that?”
Ushijima’s eyes widened, but he pulled Tendou’s head forward, their lips touching together delicately, and Tendou sighed, easing into the touch. He could tell that Ushijima had no experience with kissing— and he wasn’t much better— but it felt natural, it felt like what Tendou had hoped and dreamed of.
It never got any deeper, the kiss— but they stayed like that for a while, Tendou lying on Ushijima’s chest, lips neatly grazing against each other, tastes of chocolate and sugar and absolutely pure joy. Tendou felt his body relax against Ushijima’s, soft hands running down his sides on instinct, Tendou mimicking the motions.
“It’s late,” Ushijima whispered as they broke away, lips rosy, cheeks flushed, with slight grins on both of their faces. However, Tendou didn’t move, he just nodded, resting his head back down on Ushijima’s chest.
“Is this comfortable for you?” He asked. Instead of responding with words, Ushijima wrapped his arms around Tendou’s back and held him there, both of them drifting off to sleep.
Thank goodness for pancake mix, Tendou thought to himself as his thoughts transitioned into dreams.
Around twelve hours later, Ushijima woke up, and Tendou’s gone.
He’s wasn’t in the house, and he definitely wasn’t where he was the night before, draped across Ushijima like the blankets that covered them. His heart sinks a little bit.
He went to make himself a sad cup of coffee, adding way too much cream and thinking of Tendou with every scoop of sugar he added, how he lit up at the chocolate ice cream and the sweet pancakes.
He sat down at the kitchen table, at the— once again— empty chair, sipping his coffee slowly. A small piece of paper was laid neatly on the pot of the house plant in the center of the table, and Ushijima picked it up carefully and unfolded it.
Wakatoshi, it said, written in messy lettering, but nonetheless, it was Tendou’s. A drawing, of him, very well done, and by the looks of it, Tendou had only drawn it with a pen he found on Ushijima’s bedside table. Underneath the drawing, an address.
My place this time. Meet me at six-o-clock. Bonus points if you bring the chocolate ice cream. -Tendou
P.S. Thank you for yesterday. I haven’t been on a date like that in years and I plan on having many more with you.
A smile made its way onto Ushijima’s face once more, his heart filled with hope for himself.
Six-o-clock was too far away.