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Hinata’s nose was running, his fingers freezing and his teeth chattering. He had been waiting here in the frigid temperature for what felt like hours, but he knew that in reality it could’ve only been a few minutes. In a fruitless attempt to warm up his icy digits a little, he wriggled them inbetween his thighs and the cold bench he sat on.
Why did he absolutely have to forget his gloves again? Especially today, too.
Trying to distract his mind from his numbing fingers, Hinata decided to focus on the colourful display of lights before him. Dressed in a warm sweater, thick winter jacket and his favourite knitted hat he sat on a bench at the edge of the festival, right where the stalls thinned out and the hustle of the crowd was muffled to a comfortable chatter in the background. The varied shapes and colours of the lights stood out against the dark sky, and together with the overhanging weeping willows they created a whimsical atmosphere. This has always been his favourite time of the year, he felt like he entered a completely new world full of fairies, spirits, ghosts and gods. A world where every wish was heard. Even a small red-head with grand dreams and a racing heart‘s wish for his love to be reciprocated by a certain dark-haired individual.
Hinata was shaken from his peaceful reminiscing by a tap on his shoulder.
“Oy, are you cold?”
He looked up into a pair of dark eyes and exclaimed: “No! But it sure took you long enough!” then his eye fell onto the two clouds of pink, sugary fluff on sticks Kageyama held in either hand.
“Anyway, I got some cotton candy, the meat buns were sold out.” Kageyama said, huffing slightly, and sat down beside Hinata. Not too close, they were far from touching, but not too far either, the distance between them implying only a little more than solely friendship.The red-head wearily eyed the cotton candy still in Kageyama’s tight grasp. How can he survive in this cold without gloves anyway? Maybe because of his ridiculous scarf, so long it wrapped almost six times around his neck.
“Aren’t you gonna give it t’me?” Hinata mumbled, disgruntled.
Without moving his gaze from the spectacle of lights splayed out before him, Kageyama offered one of the pink clouds to Hinata. The small boy reached over to grab his share of cotton candy and purposfully made their cold fingers brush, lingering only a second too long to be able to pass it off as accidental, silently thanking his past, forgetful self.
Pulling back, he looked at Kageyama out of the corner of his eye, and chuckled when he noticed the slight shade of red creeping up Kageyama’s face.
“We’re in public, dumbass.” Kageyama half-whispered, pulling a small fluff from his cotton candy, glaring intently at nothing. He put the puff in his mouth and licked the sticky sugar off his fingers.
“But you’re so adorable when you’re flustered!” Hinata snickered, and took a rather ungraceful bite of the spun sugar. There really is no dignified way to eat cotton candy, is there?
At this, Kageyama reddened some more. “M’ not adorable.” he mumbled.
Hinata raised an eyebrow, retort prepared.
“You are.” he added in a small voice.
Hinata froze mid-bite. It was rare for Kageyama to compliment him. Even more so on anything other than volleyball, and it never happened in public. He shimmied a little closer and turned to look at Kageyama with a fond smile on his face and a slightly surprised look in his eyes.
At that moment, it was as if the winter cold had frozen time itself, the soft glow from the festival lights illuminating their faces, a gentle breeze stirring the branches of the weeping willows behind them, the rustle of leaves drowning out the chatter of the crowd.
In that surreal moment, Hinata couldn’t resist it.
He held up their remaining cotton candy to hide their faces from onlookers, and kissed Kageyama gently, tasting pure sugar.
“I’m glad I made that wish last year.”