Chapter Text
„Holy shit you look like you haven‘t slept in days.“ Noyas voice sounded weirdly pitched and a little shrill, thanks to Asahis garbage phone speakers. Nothing like his actual voice, which, despite the never lowering volume, always sounded warm and powerful.
„Yeah that‘s because I haven‘t. Hold on let me get my headphones really quick“
Asahi rummaged in his bag, successfully securing his headphones after a second and connecting them to his phone.
„Okay you‘re good, we can talk now.“ Asahi gave Noya a thumbs up through the video.
„Perfect, now let me yell at you for not sleeping.“
He could see worry in Noyas face at his earlier remark. Asahi groaned.
„You don‘t need to yell at me, my mom does that enough over LINE already.“
„And she is damn right!“ Noyas voice rose again.
„I know I know, it‘s just when I go to bed I either can‘t sleep because I‘m too anxious to calm down, or I have a new idea for the project I need to try out.“
„You know sleep deprivation stuns your creative drive correct?“
„I have about 3 years of fashion school under my belt that have taught me the opposite thank you very much.“
Asahi knew he was in the wrong here, he owned a mirror okay? It hadn‘t passed him by that he wasn‘t looking particularly stunning these days. His hair had gotten longer than he was used to and his beard definitely needed a trim. His skin was crying and the dark bags under his eyes almost reached his cheek bones.
„Have you at least made progress, so the sleepless nights aren‘t in vain?“ Noya asked.
Asahi jumped on the shift in topic, however small it was.
„Yes, actually! I finalized all of the designs!“ he was very excited about this, because that meant that he could get to the making part very soon.
„Oh that‘s super cool, show me!!“
Noya had been along for pretty much every step in his fashion school journey, had seen and more or less approved every project Asahi ever handed in. Not that he could offer much informed criticism, but the thought that Noya approved his design always made Asahi a little more confident.
„Actually about that…“
Come on, be brave now.
„How about you get here and model it for me?“
Asahi had been fretting over how to phrase his offer to Noya for the past week. Last night he had settled on this question, but now that he spoke it out loud he was sure the cringe was visible on his face.
Noya took a second to register it and for an agonizing second Asahi debated hanging up to avoid facing rejection. Then Noyas face lit up.
„Seriously? You want me to model for you? I‘d love to! Tell me when and I‘ll be there“
Asahis heart jumped and the anxiousness immediately left his body.
„I‘d love that, too.“
They shared a sweet smile until Asahi snapped back to reality. He busied himself with his calendar.
„I guess the making will take 3 to 4 weeks. So somewhere around then. I‘ll have to arrange a date with the guy who will be taking the pictures. I‘ll give you a heads up in the next few days tho. I have to ask Kiyoko and Suga for their schedule too, so yeah“ he nervously scratched the back of his head.“
„Cool it‘ll be a mini reunion! Can‘t wait.“
After a few more minutes of catching up, they hung up as Asahi had 3 outfits to get too, but they left with the promise of seeing each other soon.
Asahis heart fluttered at that. Last time he had seen Yuu in person was during their annual team meet up at the Sakanoshita store about 8 months ago. They kept in touch pretty regularly, but the time differences sometimes just were too much. Currently Nishinoya was bouncing around somewhere in Europe, Spain if Asahis hazy memory served him right, and so the eight hours were really brutal. Not that Asahi had had much time to spare next to designing his graduation pieces, but he always made time for Yuu. Always.
But now it was time to get going. He had a final project to finish and a tiny man to impress.
Just as he got up a wave of nausea hits him and he has to steady himself. Could be from the lack of sleep or the stress, but he also doesn‘t remember if he ate yesterday. Well, time for a trip to the cafeteria first then.
While munching on a sandwich he started typing out his messages to Kiyoko and Suga.
When both confirm that they will model for him he creates a group and promises them updates soon. A rush goes through him and it suddenly feels like his motivation is too big to contain. He hastily packs his bag and runs off to look at some fabrics in his favourite fabric stores.
A month passed in a blur. Between arranging the photoshoot, actually making the clothes and coordinating with the three busy schedules of his models, Asahi barely found time to breathe let alone think and so he was standing at Narita airport when it truly hit him. He was gonna see Noya again. Not over his shitty phone screen with the connection cutting out every two minutes, but in the flesh. A wave of giddy excitement washed over him, closely followed by a cold shower of fear. Did he look okay? Did he brush his teeth this morning? His hair was open and semi freshly washed, but should he have done something with it? Thank god he had it cut by a friend recently who was doing practice cuts for her final exam as a hairdresser. He tried to reason with himself, by saying that it wouldn’t do to worry now as he could do nothing about it in this situation, but he was unsuccessful in keeping himself from fretting.
And suddenly the arrival door opened, a Nishinoya that seemed tiny in comparison to his huge backpack walked out and just as their eyes met all of Asahis negative thoughts were gone. Replaced by a radiating warmth and sense of calmness, that rapidly spread through his entire body.
Noya hastily shuffled over and without much preamble landed in Asahis open and waiting arms. The two hugged for what seemed hours on end, not bothered by the people passing by and the general airport bustle.
When they finally managed to peel themselves from each other Noya launched into excited shatter of his flight and how happy he was to see Asahi.
“Yes, yes I'm also really happy to see you again, but we should get you to my place so you can get rid of that giant backpack.” Asahi chuckled.
“Oh it’s fine, I barely notice it anymore” Noya proclaimed loudly.
Asahi was inclined to not believe him as the shift in balance almost made Noya topple over, but he knew better than to say something.
“Okay but I still need to make adjustments on your clothes before tomorrow and I’d like to get that done as soon as possible.” He reasoned instead.
“Then to your place we go!”Noya exclaimed and started confidently walking ahead. In the completely wrong direction.
About an hour later, they finally stumbled through Asahis front door.
“Welcome to my humble aboard.” Asahi gestured comically. He had panic-cleaned two hours before going to pick Noya up and he was sure he had done a good job, but remained nervous. After all this was the first time Noya was at his place, since he had moved to Tokyo.
Noya seemed to notice none of the anxious energy, marched right into the living room and sat down at the table like he had been there a million times already and knew his way around.
“Wow, you have a really nice place, Asahi-san! It’s so well decorated. It seriously feels like this is so you!”
Ah, Nishinoya was always so quick with his praise.
“Thank you, I’m glad you feel that way.”
Maybe you’d like to stay a while?
Asahi stopped himself from saying unnecessary things. To not let any awkwardness spread between them he offered to get them some drinks.
“I’ll take anything you have, I really don’t need anything fancy!” Noya smiled brightly.
This was truly gonna be a tough week.
With drinks set before them they went over their schedule for the coming days.
“So tomorrow there will be the photoshoot with Kiyoko and Suga and then the photographer will edit the pictures. He said it’ll take about 3 days. I’ll have to get them printed and then hand in the whole thing.”
“So in the three days the pictures are still being edited you have time?” Noya asked his eyes sparkling
“Uh yeah I suppose. Is there anything you wanna do?”
“I want to see Tokyo of course! We’ve only ever been here for volleyball so show me the city of cities!!”
“Okay okay we’ll do some sightseeing then. Should be fun. Actually, I haven’t seen most of the sights myself. Living here makes you less inclined to go see them, honestly.”
“So now that that’s settled,” Noya spoke with gravity in his voice, “show me the goods.”
“Is this supposed to be a gangster impression?” Asahi laughed.
“Did it look cool? I saw a gangster movie on my flight back and thought, maybe I could look tougher and cooler too if I did it like them.” Noya explained excitedly.
“You’re plenty tough and cool already, y’know?” Asahi said as his hand messed up Noyas spiked up locks.
“Asahi-saaaan,” he whined, “I can’t be that cool if you do this to me without hesitation.”
Noyas voice remained level, but Asahi spotted a light redness on his cheeks and the tip of his ears.
“A trick of the light? Just my imagination running wild?” Asahi thought.
“It’s just because I know you, but maybe putting on the clothes I made will make you feel more cool.” Asahi tried to shift the conversation. He hadn’t stopped himself in time and now he had ruffled Noyas hair. Proximity was more dangerous than he thought.
“Really? Did you make something tough looking for me?” Noya was practically bouncing.
“Well, you were the inspiration so anything not tough looking was out of the question.“ Asahi chuckled, „although I‘m sure you could rock anything, even a frilly Lolita dress if you really wanted to.“ As soon as the words had left Asahis mouth he pictured it. Noya in a pink frilly dress. The thought was as quickly banished.
Seriously, the second Noya was in the room with him Asahi just lost all handling of his thoughts and senses.
Noya barked out a laugh that got Asahis mind back to the issue at hand.
„Okay let me get the clothes and we‘ll see if you think they‘re tough enough.“
The clothes were handed over and Noya quickly slipped into them. Changing in front of each other for years in the club room before volleyball practice should have desensitized Asahi to seeing Noya half-naked. However volleyball practice ended years ago and Noyas body had changed since then.
Asahi almost choked on his drink when he saw the lean muscular frame, the toned arms and defined calves that were previously hidden away by Noyas baggy sweater ensemble to provide comfort during the 10+ hour flight.
He had gotten Noyas measurements, sure, but that didn‘t mean it translated to this figure in his head.
Noya twirled around none the wiser of Asahis inner turmoil and beamed.
„Asahi-san, this is the coolest thing I‘ve ever worn!!“
Noya was wearing a basic but sleek black suit-pant and a black polo-shirt with an orange collar that hugged his upper body just right. It had three strategic ink splashes, also in orange, that adorned the shirt. Asahi had taken inspiration from the self-made three-kanji-composition-shirts Noya used to make and wear during highschool, even if no one but himself noticed it. It was exciting to hide references of his friends, his main inspiration in the things he designed. He even got praised for some of the designs he had included this way over the years by some teachers. It always felt extra rewarding.
Over the whole ensemble the crown piece of Asahis collection really got to shine. A black leather jacket with white stitching. Across the back burst a pair of orange crow wings that looked as though they were painted on and still dripping with colour. Asahi was super proud of how paint-like it looked, despite the design being embroidered on. The hours of slaving away, almost wanting to quit and crying himself to sleep were worth it over this.
Noya looked cool, there was no other word for it. It was an elegant ensemble with just the right touch of rebellion with the jacket. A pair of sunglasses and some combat boots were sure to finish it off really nicely.
Asahi should get a move on and do the last few adjustments, but he was rooted in his spot. Noya looked just like he had envisioned it and he felt tears prick in his eyes.
„Asahi-san?“ Noyas voice sounded so soft.
“Wow, you look just like I had pictured it.“ Asahi choked out. He started busying himself with some pins to cover up his outburst, till he suddenly felt himself being hugged from behind.
„I love it, Asahi-san. You did so well and you‘re gonna do even better in the future.“
Well, no stopping it now.
And Asahi sobbed. He cried in soft little sobs and Noya held him. For a while they just remained like that.
It felt good to let go of all this. The frustration, the stress, the joy, it all poured out of him as if this was his last day on earth.
Noyas hand in his hair quietly soothing him, whispering any rendition of „It‘s okay“ and „You‘re safe“ that existed. If Asahi wasn‘t so preoccupied with feeling everything else, he would have felt bad for this, but Noya didn‘t seem panicked or annoyed. On the contrary Noya seemed at peace and content. So Asahi cried until he couldn‘t anymore.
Asahi blew his nose.
“Sorry you had to see this.“ he sheepishly said and took a sip from the glass of water Noya had gotten him.
“No worries. I‘m sure this is a really emotional moment for you! Actually I‘m happy to be here for it, Asahi-san." His voice was softer than usual and his presence radiated comfort rather than the explosive energy it usually did. Asahi felt himself being pulled into his presence much stronger than usual.
Daichi really wasn’t lying when he called him a god.
Noyas hand moved to take Asahis and his warmth seeped into Asahis. He felt it spreading in his body and his face started to heat up. He looked up into Noyas eyes and almost started crying again by the overwhelming emotion in Noyas eyes.
„Asahi-san, I actually -“ A sudden burst of music from Noyas phone shattered whatever atmosphere they had built in between them.
A flash of annoyance passed Noyas face. Then he sighed, dropped Asahis hand and answered his phone.
„What?“ A clipped response and Asahi wondered what he had been about to say, that he was so irritated for being cut off.
„Sorry, it‘s Gramps, this‘ll only take a second.“
Asahi nodded quietly. The hand Noya had held still felt tingly and he squeezed it with his other hand. He wasn‘t sure if it was because he wanted it to stop or because he wanted to keep the feeling there forever.
“Yeah, yeah I‘ll see you in a few days then.Ok. Bye.“ Noya let his phone drop to the ground without much care. Asahi could see a few cracks on the screen already. Noya still looked irritated.
“Everything okay with your grandpa?“ Asahi tried to sound positive, but it came out a little worried.
“Hm? Oh yeah, he‘s still kicking it, don‘t worry. He just wanted to know if I had landed yet and wanted to ask when I would head down to Sendai.“
“You‘re visiting Sendai after this?“
“Yeah, it‘s been a while since I‘ve been in Japan and I wanted to meet some of the old gang y‘know?“
“Oh actually that‘s convenient! Daichi and Suga invited us to dinner at their place when I‘m done with the whole project. I wasn‘t sure what your plans were, so I haven’t confirmed yet, but if you wanted to…“
“Are you kidding? Amazing! Hey, let‘s ask if Kiyoko-san and Ryuu can come too!“ Noyas spirits seemed restored and Asahi could breathe a little easier now.
But now a weird quiet settled over them. The tension from before hadn‘t quite dispersed, but Asahi had a feeling that whatever Noya was about to say, he wasn‘t gonna say it now. So he jumped on the safest topic.
„Are you comfortable in the clothes? Anything that‘s too loose or too tight?“
“Hm, I don‘t know. It all fits rather well, to be honest.“
“Okay, could you spread your arms? I‘d like to check the final fit of the jacket.“
And so they busied themselves with the final touches. The atmosphere from before evaporated and a small part of Asahis head yearned for it back.
What had Noya tried to say back there?
But he shouldn‘t press the issue, Noyas good mood just came back. And he was here for leisure and fun times, dammit! So Asahi was gonna give him fun times.
With the last few final touches done and Noya changed back into his sweat ensemble they now had the whole day left.
“So what do you say, to finally seeing the actual Tokyo Tower and not just some steel tower?“ Asahi joked.
“I say let‘s do it!“ And just like that they were out the door.
Hours later they collapsed back into Asahis flat. A little bit of sightseeing had turned into a how-fast-can-we-hit-all-the-major-spots-footrace and Asahi was exhausted. Noya still pretended to be fine, but even he seemed to breathe a little harder and walk a little slower on the way back. They had barely managed to pick up some dinner form the convenience store.
„Oh wow, I don‘t think I‘ve walked that much since…“ Asahi wracked his brain to finish his sentence while tugging into his pre-made bento dinner, but came up empty.
“Since our volleyball days, maybe?“ Noya laughed. „You should exercise more Asahi-san, it‘s good for mind and body alike!“
„I know, i know, you‘re starting to sound like my mom again.“
“I‘m sure there is a volleyball club that could take you in!“ Noya continued, pretending not to hear Asahis snide remark.
Asahi thought for a second.
“Actually that sounds nice. Maybe I should look into it. Since I‘ll be done with my studies in a few weeks if all goes to plan, I might have a bit more time on my hands.“
He hadn‘t thought about the after much, because his final project had taken up all the space in his mind. He already had a job lined up, so if he didn‘t fail the final project he was set, but there would be no more late night crunches for projects, no more block-seminars, no more student life. What a bittersweet feeling.
Asahi glanced over at Noya, who was happily stuffing his cheeks like squirrel. Maybe he even had time to travel now and then…
He shook his head slightly. He could think about this later. If he asked now and Noya said no, the whole atmosphere would become awkward and Asahi couldn't even bear the thought.
„We should head to bed soon. Suga and Shimizu will arrive pretty early, so that I can check the outfits one last time and I want to pick them up from the station.“
“You got it, boss! Where do I sleep?“
The dreaded question.
„Ah, well I have a futon I could either place in here or in my room. Depends on what you wanna do.“ Asahi fidgeted with his hair. He wasn‘t sure himself what the better option was.
“I think I‘ll take the living room if you don‘t mind. I‘ve been told I snore pretty loudly.“ Noya laughed a little and scratched the back of his head.
Asahi felt a pang of disappointment in his chest, but made sure to hide it on his face.
„Of course, let me just get it out for you.“
They set out the futon and took their turns in the washroom. Conversation was light but felt superficial to Asahi. He didn‘t want to overstep Noyas boundaries, though and just bid him good night.
He spent a lot of that night longingly staring at the door to the living room.
His last thought before exhaustion took over and he drifted off was that he didn‘t hear any snoring whatsoever.