Work Text:
“Dear passengers, there’s a bit of a storm approaching us so please stay in your seats and keep your seatbelts on.”
Hirano set down the microphone, steeling himself to focus on getting the plane through the ominous dark clouds that were closing in on them. Dammit, he bit the inside of his cheek to keep himself from cursing out loud - the last thing he wanted was to alarm the passengers. We’re behind schedule…
The weather earlier that day had been perfectly fine: clear skies and the usual white clouds. The forecast had also not mentioned anything about a possible storm. But Hirano supposed that if anything could change within the next second, then the weather could too. Storms didn’t really bother him. Flying into storms wasn’t something new to him either; he had weathered plenty of storms during his time as a pilot - dare he say that he pulled out of each one with more confidence than the last.
Today, however, was different.
There was an event he absolutely could not risk missing. He could not afford to be the slightest bit behind schedule but here he was now - running late because of the damn storm.
He had even made sure to be extra punctual to the airport earlier that day so there would be no delays. The flight took off on time, and there were no problems with the fuel and the machinery, and the weather had been perfectly fine.
But of course the universe decides to fuck him up and send a storm his way. It was almost as if the world was asking for his wrath.
Hang in there, he held the control, carefully guiding the plane through the storm, making sure to give the passengers updates and reassurances. I’ll be there soon. Silently, he hoped that he would be able to make it in time.
‘Soon’ happened to be a good two hours later. The plane he was piloting was scheduled to arrive at twelve-thirty in the afternoon. It was now two-thirty in the afternoon and there was a very high chance that the event had already started.
“Good work today,” a colleague told him as he rushed to head out of the plane, suitcase in hand.
“Thanks, you too.” He responded briefly, hurrying past the staff and towards the security checks.
He was continuously checking the watch on his wrist as he waited in the lines for the security checks and immigration, flexing his fingers to release the nervous energy that had built up. He was speaking in a hurry, cutting people off if they tried to approach him with a ‘sorry, I’m in a rush’ and speed-walking past them. It didn’t help that Narita airport was always crowded so it took him an extra thirty minutes to get out of the airport.
He called a taxi over, opening the trunk, stuffing his suitcase inside and pulling out his phone as he slid into the back seat.
The driver began driving, taking the exit that led away from the airport and towards the highway used to enter the main city. “Ariake arena, please.” Hirano answered immediately without looking up from his phone, not giving the driver a chance to even ask.
“Alright, it’ll take around fifty minutes,” the driver said, switching to the highway lane that led to Tokyo.
I’m definitely missing the first half of the game… “Thank you,” Hirano said, typing out several messages on his phone.
Sorry, Kagi-kun, I’ll miss the first half
The flight was delayed a lot more than expected
I’m on the way now
(seen)
Hirano didn’t think too much about being left on seen. Kagiura was busy and he respected that At least now he knew that Kagiura was aware that he’d be running late.
In retrospect, he should have expected the traffic jam. They were driving on a highway on a weekend for fuck’s sake. Of course there would be a traffic jam. Of course the universe wouldn’t want him to have his way for once.
The driver seemed to have sensed his frustration. “There’s a shortcut,” he said, swiftly changing lanes to follow the road that led towards Komatsugawa. “You’ll be there soon,”
Hirano was no expert on the road so he simply nodded, deciding to trust the driver’s words. The driver stayed true to his words, taking the road to Komatsugawa, exiting the highway on the Funabori exit and managing to get onto the Shuto Expressway in record time. From there, the drive to Ariake was a breeze, though they did get caught in traffic again at the Ariake IC exit and the Tokyo Bay road.
“Here we are, Ariake Arena,” the driver pulled over, parking the car in front of the entrance of the arena.
“Thank you very much,” Hirano pulled out his phone to pay the fare electronically, feeling relieved that he managed to get to the arena in under forty minutes. He pulled out his suitcase from the trunk and bid a goodbye to the taxi driver before turning to the large building in front of him.
He pulled out his phone, sending a swift text to say that he had reached. He took a step forward and another before he was running up the steps leading into the entrance, suitcase in hand and barrelling through the sliding doors. He stuffed his suitcase in the first locker he found that could fit it before checking the arena schedule for the day.
Center court, his chest filled with pride when he saw the schedule, a smile on his face as he checked the map for directions. I hope I’m not too late.
He couldn’t feel the ground under his feet as he ran to the center court, shoving the door to the bleachers open, unaware of the few pointed stares he was receiving from the people watching.
The scores were displayed brightly on the scoreboard: fifty-two to forty-eight. And fortunately for Hirano, it seemed that the second half had just started. He didn’t hesitate, he rushed to the front of the bleachers, leaning over the railings, eyes eagerly scanning to find the player he was looking for.
His heart rate sped up for a brief second as he spotted the person he knew better than himself - untucked jersey, drops of sweat glistening as the light hit him, amber eyes appearing sharper than that of a hawk’s.
Hirano opened his mouth to call out but shut it, not wanting to mess with Kagiura’s focus. Instead, he leaned against the railing, watching intently as the ball was passed to Kagiura who swiftly dribbled it up the court, passing and receiving with ease.
Hirano rested his arms on the railing as the ball got passed to Kagiura. That’s my Kagi-kun. He thought fondly as Kagiura performed a lay-up, bringing the score up to fifty-four to forty-eight.
Kagiura and the team cheered - that’s when he saw Hirano. His amber eyes widened at the sight of the blonde, grinning brightly and celebrating while still in uniform.
He found himself slowing down unconsciously, still wrapping his head around the fact that Hirano managed to make it to the game, even if he was still in his pilot uniform. The whistle of the umpire brought him back to reality, forcing him to focus on the game rather than on the blonde on the bleachers.
Even so, there was a stupidly wide grin on his face as the rest of the game went on. Kagiura found himself making cleaner passes, moving about on the court even quicker than he usually did.
He always played at a higher level whenever Hirano was around.
If the court was the universe, then Kagiura was Sirius, shining so blazingly bright that it was blinding. Hirano watched from the bleachers, cheering loudly whenever Kagiura’s team scored and even louder when Kagiura was the one to make the shot.
He didn’t think he had ever felt this much pride and joy before in his life.
Kagiura wasted no time in dragging Hirano to a secluded corner and pouncing on him, wrapping his arms tightly around Hirano’s shoulders.
“Taiga-san, I’m so happy that you could make it.” his words were muffled from where he was pressing his face into Hirano’s shoulder. “I thought that you wouldn’t be here,”
Hirano wrapped an arm around Kagiura’s back, using his other hand to gently pat the taller’s head. “Wouldn’t miss it for the world, Kagi-kun,” he spoke softly, pressing his face to Kagiura’s hair, taking in his scent - sweat and the usual melon soda.
“I’m glad there were no problems with the flight,” Kagiura lifted his head away from Hirano’s shoulder, arms still firmly wrapped around the shorter. “I kept looking up and I was about to give up on you showing up until I saw your messages during the break,” he paused for a second. "Though I didn't expect you to show up with your uniform on you. Looks good as always."
“Sorry for the wait, the storm was a pain in the ass,” Hirano apologized, ruffling Kagiura’s hair. "I didn't have time to change,"
“Either ways, you’re here now,” Kagiura grinned, letting go of Hirano to take one of the blonde’s hands in his own, thumb rubbing over the silver band around the ring finger.
Hirano smiled, looking down as Kagiura squeezed his hand. “I’m really proud of you, you know that?”
“You tell me that after every game,” Kagiura said in a matter-of-fact way.
“Because it’s true,” Hirano retorted, intertwining their fingers tightly together. “You’re the best player in the team.”
“Now you’re just being biased,” Kagiura snorted, thumb continuing to rub the ring on Hirano’s finger. He brought the hand to his face, kissing the metal band.
“It’s not bias,” there was a faint dusting of red on Hirano’s face.
“I love you so much,” Kagiura murmured, pressing a tender kiss on the back of Hirano’s hand before letting go.
If Hirano was faintly blushing before, he was definitely blushing now. “I love you too, Kagi-kun.” Hirano wondered how, after being married for a few years, these declarations still managed to make a mess of him.
“You’ll be staying right?” Kagiura asked as they walked to the locker where Hirano had shoved his suitcase into.
“I’ll be here for a good week,” Hirano reassured, unlocking the locker and grabbing his suitcase. “Come on, let’s go home. I miss having a bed.”
“You can just sleep on me,” Kagiura suggested - a joke, a bad one but Hirano laughed nevertheless.
“I’d break my back if I did that,” Hirano said as they walked down the road, heading towards the station. “I’ll cuddle with you, though.”
Kagiura took Hirano’s hand in his again, with a tighter grip, unwilling to let go. “Good enough,”