Chapter Text
There’s something incredibly bizarre about the situation– Shoyo Hinata, the 5 foot four middle blocker who he was sure he hated– and hated him– clinging on to him after fully well dissing him. What else could he have called it? It’s not like Kei was expecting the redhead to bring up the nosebleed, but wasn’t it obvious that he was embarrassed about it? No. Embarrassed was the wrong word. Tsukishima didn’t get embarrassed. Nosebleeds happened all the time, to most people. Even him. And right now, he almost felt one coming on. If Shoyo could just–
“Let go of me! ” Tsukishima yells, as he attempts twisting out of Shoyo’s grip around his waist. He’s actually managed to stand up, and the positioning is too awkward. Any moment now, someone is gonna come back. Nishinoya or worse– Kageyama– and they’re gonna see them like this and start asking questions and he’s pretty sure his ears are burning–
“Uh. What’s going on?”
Just as Tsukishima hears those words, Shoyo lets go, and Tsukishima gives them ample space as Sugawara comes into view. He’s off balance, but he manages to keep upright, and Tsukishima lowers his gaze and prays to God that he didn’t just see Shoyo’s little outburst as he tried to stop him from walking away.
“Nothing. We were just heading out,” He says quickly, and finally steps out of the gym so Suga can lock up. He knows he’s looking at him. And at Shoyo too, but quite frankly, Tsukishima is far too gone in thinking about the events of the past forty-eight hours to care. He doesn’t bother looking back.
✧✧✧
That night welcomes some uncomfortably vivid dreams that feature red hair and a sharp smile and brown eyes that glisten brighter than moonlight. Tsukishima, of course, gets little sleep.
Come morning, Tsukishima spends the first half of the school day sorting out his thoughts, and mostly trying to avoid thinking about how Shoyo had slammed their lips together again.
There’s things that are already clear to him. The shorter boy had told him at least that much– that he liked him. That he was aware Tsukishima held some sort of feelings for him in return. (And, Tsukishima was still trying to figure those out himself, admittedly.) But the big question at the back of his mind was why.
Quite honestly, Tsukishima hadn’t always treated Shoyo with the most kindness. And it’s not like it was personal either. Tsukishima had a– Daichi had called it an “evil” personality. But less about him, it was more, why Shoyo had chosen to lie to him, to get him alone, instead of someone else that he’d admired so much. Just on their team alone, Kageyama seemed like the most obvious candidate out of the first years, wasn’t he? Despite his obvious hotheadedness and stupidity, Shoyo did spend a lot of time with him. So really…?
Tsukishima exhales deeply through his nose, the thought making an unfamiliar emotion twist in his gut.
That pretentious dictator. Selfish and annoying. What the hell did he know about friends, much less dating? Why would anyone…
Tsukishima stops that line of thought before he can finish it, startled by the viciousness behind it.
No. No, it wasn’t… He wasn’t jealous of… of The King. He was just the setter. And Shoyo was his favorite spiker. It meant absolutely nothing…. Yet.
Tsukishima lets his eyes close, then opens them again to focus on the blackboard in front of him. Well, he was discovering all sorts of things this week, wasn’t he? And he had convinced himself that his hate for Kageyama was purely volleyball-related. God damnit.
But anyways. The important thing was Shoyo. And how Tsukishima felt about him.
Bright, blinding, Shoyo.
The mental image of him is like a smooth balm over his jealousy-infested heart.
✧✧✧
Luckily, he doesn’t have to wait much longer to see Hinata again. Actually, he usually saw him during their break period, while he and Yamaguchi walked to the library or took a casual lap around the school, but today, it looked like his friend was in a hurry to be anywhere else but near him.
Tsukishima doesn’t wait around to find out just why that is. As routine, he heads over to where they usually congregate, until there’s light, bouncy footsteps following behind him in the hallway.
“Tsukishima! Hey!” He hears, and of course it’s the Shrimp.
He should be annoyed. More annoyed.
Tsukishima only does him the favor of almost half turning around to face him.
“What?”
“Let’s go eat lunch together!” Shoyo hops like a loose spring, until they’re side by side.
“I’m not buying you anything,” Tsukishima quips, noticing the lack of a bento in his hands.
“Let’s go get yogurt!”
“I’m actually not that thirsty,” He lies.
“Well you should eat anyway!” Shoyo grins up at him.
It’s infectious, so Tsukishima looks ahead of him.
All at once, his mind reels with their prior conversations, their kisses , and it makes him feel… stiff. Nervous , in a way he isn’t accustomed to. God, he needed to relax. This was Shoyo.
“How do you have so much energy?” He finds his eyebrows knitting together. “Don’t you have an off switch?”
It’s supposed to be an insult, of some sort, but it doesn’t really come out that way.
“What do you mean?” Shoyo asks innocently. “I eat a big breakfast.”
No kidding, Tsukishima thinks, and the thought almost has him cracking a genuine smile.
He hasn’t even realized he’s followed Shoyo outside to the vending machines until he feels warm sunshine on his skin, on the back of his neck.
Shoyo presses an index finger to the machine’s buttons, and when he stands up, he offers Tsukishima a drink as well. It’s orange-flavored. And Shoyo’s is yellow– a lemon soda.
Tsukishima takes it gingerly from his hand.
“Thank you.”
He doesn’t think much about it– just opens the fizzy drink to take a sip, and the taste is refreshing on his tongue. It’s been a while since he’s had something carbonated, but it’s actually nice.
When he lowers it, he finds Shoyo wiping his mouth and chin with his white sleeve.
Tsukishima opens his mouth to comment about how gross that is– how it’s gonna stain his clothes– but Shoyo beats him to speaking first.
“Y’know, in the sunlight, your hair looks really glowy! Like a thousand fireflies in a golden meadow.” Shoyo says, gesturing with both hands open wide. It’s a little difficult with the soda can in one hand, but somehow he manages, and Tsukishima feels his throat swallow thickly at his words.
They’re not… kind. It’s not a compliment, is it? But, a thousand fireflies… the sentiment could almost make him blush. His face feels a little warm .
“What are you even talking about?” He drones, through the shyness he’s definitely feeling.
But hides behind another sip of his orange soda, and Shoyo only laughs at him, all crinkly eyes and white teeth. His joy feels… infinite.
Tsukishima isn’t sure how long they stand there, sipping on their sodas. It could be five or ten minutes, but he knows that as soon as Shoyo is done, he throws the can away, and then a warm hand is tugging on the edge of his sleeve.
“Hey. Let’s go over here for a sec,” He says, and Tsukishima’s not even done.
He pulls back, a little.
“Over where?”
“Just around the corner! Don’t you trust me?”
Tsukki makes a face.
“Don’t answer that. C’mon, let’s go!!”
And the way he can barely budge him forward– it’s cute. So Tsukishima lets his feet follow Shoyo, to the corner of the pathway, no longer bathed in sunshine. There’s a bathroom here that usually nobody uses– because of the broken AC, but Hinata pulls him inside anyway.
There’s no door. The entrance is just a zig-zag path to block out any peering eyes from outside, but as soon as Hinata deems it’s enough, he’s pushing Tsukishima up against the nearest stall, until it opens a little and they’re snug inside.
There’s a tug at the front of his shirt. It’s delicate, but desperate, and Tsukishima gets the message, letting his head drop so Shoyo can press their lips together once more.
For not the first time, he takes into account just how hot Shoyo’s mouth is. He also tastes of lemon, but it’s sweet, and Tsukishima lets his eyes flutter closed as they slide their lips together.
Shoyo is also grabby. He’s worming his hands up everywhere he can reach– his chest, under his sleeve, and Tsukishima is just barely in the state of mind to take a hold of his little wrist– to stop him from getting carried away. Hinata’s such a little brat. He’s so needy, but it lights a flame inside of Tsukishima that was barely just an ember before.
A chorus of drunk-sounding giggles reaches his ears, and Tsukishima breaks the kiss to glare at Hinata in front of him.
“What–”
“You taste like oranges. It’s so sugary.”
“You’re the one that bought it for me,” Tsukishima hisses.
“Well, you didn’t have to drink it.” Shoyo cocks his head to the side, and it’s stupidly adorable.
Instead of arguing more about it, Tsukishima leans their faces together again, until Shoyo gets the message and kisses him again.
It is sugary. But soft and warm all the same. Tsukishima could be melting right now.
There’s definitely heat stirring somewhere in his gut. The fingers on the buttons of his shirt are not helping that any.
“Hey, hey,” He drones, standing up to full height so Shoyo can’t reach him anymore.
“I wan’ see you,” Shoyo coos.
“In the school bathroom?” Tsukishima gawks, almost laughing.
“It’s not technically in school,” Shoyo bites the inside of his cheek, clearly perturbed.
“You’re insane, you know that?”
“That’s not a no…”
Shoyo’s hands look so tiny, fiddling in front of him, and Tsukishima is almost overwhelmed by the very sight of it, a surge of affection and something he can’t decipher rushing through him like electricity.
Suddenly, he finds he doesn’t need to figure anything out. Everything Shoyo’s shown him– everything he’s done in response– it’s evident in what they want. In what’s going on between them. And it doesn’t need to be more complex than that. Tsukishima does like Hinata. And Hinata likes him back.
He’s gotta own up to those feelings. Just like Shoyo had said the night prior.
“Hinata,” He says, and those brown eyes stop to face him. Curious and attentive and oh so Shoyo.
Tsukishima lets his hand curl over a smaller one, and he lowers his voice.
“I want to take you out on a date.”