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Kazuya has a problem, and it’s staring him in the face.
Sawamura flutters his lashes, hands clasped in a show of plea, like that’s somehow going to make Kazuya change his mind. He says, “Please, Miyuki-senpai. Pretty please?”
Kazuya is fully aware of the fact that Sawamura only uses honorific during games; or when he has an ulterior motive that’s serviced by Kazuya’s inability to say no to him.
“No,” Kazuya tries to sound stern and unmoving.
Sawamura pouts, and Kazuya narrows his eyes suspiciously at the boy in front of him. He’s cute, and he’s Kazuya’s boyfriend, which means Kazuya has literally landed himself in this situation. And yet, Kazuya is determined to stand his ground this time.
He turns to his homework with an exaggerated show of ignoring Sawamura. Anyone else would have excused themselves then, taken the hint that it’s time to leave. But Sawamura doesn’t do that. He steps into Kazuya’s personal space like it’s the most natural thing and peers over at Kazuya’s textbook, forehead wrinkling.
Kazuya leans back in his chair to stare up at Sawamura’s confused face. “Like what you see?” He wiggles his eyebrows suggestively.
He’s addressing the equations on the page, really. But then Sawamura has known Kazuya long enough to pick up on the innuendo. He scowls and Kazuya reaches up to poke at the underside of Sawamura’s chin.
Sawamura catches Kazuya’s hand in his own before Kazuya can torment him.
“It’ll be fun!”
Kazuya sighs. They’re back on the topic of Sawamura’s terrible plan to visit Shibuya. He didn’t explain why, largely because Kazuya hasn’t given his any time to do so before immediately saying no. Kazuya spent the better part of the week telling Sawamura no, and Sawamura spent the rest of the time trying to convince Kazuya that it will be fun.
Now, Kazuya finds his resolve waning.
He knows he’s lost the argument when Sawamura’s eyes squint into little crescents, a full smile stretched across his face. He’s truly beautiful like this, and Kazuya is truly, incredibly fucked.
“Sawamura,” his shoulders slump defeatedly, “get out of my room.”
Sawamura huffs, but he knows he won because his voice lilts pleasantly as he says “thank you, Miyuki-senpai!” He gives Kazuya a grin then skips towards the door.
***
That weekend, they step into the bustle of Shibuya, Sawamura almost getting lost in the crowded intersection. Kazuya loops an arm around Sawamura’s shoulder and drags him along, even though it makes his heart skip a beat.
“I don’t know why you’re complaining. It’s not like you have much to do now that you’ve retired from the team,” Sawamura huffs like he’s annoyed, but he leans ever-so-slightly into Kazuya’s side.
Kazuya doesn’t reply. He has things to do. Kazuya needs to study for the university entrance exams, now that he’s decided on going to university before trying for the professional league. But he doesn’t say it because he still hasn’t told Sawamura about his plans after high school.
Instead, Kazuya simply pulls the printed directions out of Sawamura’s hand. “Two kilometres?” One look at their destination has Kazuya annoyed to extremes. He should have known better than to let Sawamura navigate because the stupid store isn’t even in Shibuya. It’s closer to Harajuku Station, as any self-respecting Tokyoite would know. “And why are we going to Kiddy Land of all places?”
“Because Nobu’s mom just gave birth to a baby, and I want to get her something.”
“I’m sure Nobu’s mother doesn’t need a toy.”
“I know that! It’s for his newborn sister.”
“Obviously,” Kazuya intones and Sawamura rolls his eyes skyward.
At the store, Kazuya makes his displeasure known. He examines a brown plush he finds on display, nose wrinkling at the embroidered expression that look back at him. The thing looks too happy. Kazuya hates it immediately.
“Oh that’s actually perfect!” To Kazuya’s horror, Sawamura’s lithe arm extends over his shoulder, fingers closing around the toy Kazuya had just been examining. “She’s going to love it, and she can cherish it as she gets older too. Teddy bears never go out of style!”
“I don’t think ugly things are ever in style,” Kazuya retorts as he follows Sawamura towards the register. He watches Sawamura hand the cashier a wad of cash, all folded and bent in weird angles.
In the crisp winter air outside, Kazuya rubs his palms together to warm them as they wait for the crossing. Sawamura looks around at the shops, mouthing the words scattered on billboard signs silently. It strikes Kazuya that Sawamura may have never seen such bustle before.
“How should I get this to Nobu?” Sawamura waves the bag in Kazuya’s face like he hasn’t already seen it.
Kazuya gently pushes the offending object out of his face and back to Sawamura’s side. “Put it on the Shinkansen, and make sure it knows to transfer at Nagano City.”
“What? You can do that?”
“No, dummy. Mail it to his address.”
Sawamura blinks. “Obviously.”
“Obviously,” Kazuya agrees.
***
Kazuya misses Sawamura.
With baseball season back in full swing, Sawamura has stopped his daily visits to Kazuya’s room. Kazuya barely sees his boyfriend anymore, aside from running into him occasionally in the hallways. Sawamura smiles whenever he sees Kazuya, and he makes a point of texting Kazuya daily, but he’s still busy with training and Kazuya misses him.
He begins to scheme new ways to spend time with Sawamura, and so he rises from his seat at the start of lunch, fully intending on dropping by Sawamura’s class if only to see the other boy’s face. But Kuramochi is in Kazuya’s class and he never makes things easy for Kazuya. He says, “what the hell? Miyuki Kazuya got up from his seat?”
“Shut up!” Kazuya lies, “I’m going to the bathroom.”
“Then I’m coming with you.”
“I don’t need a babysitter or an escort,” Kazuya shoves at Kuramochi’s shoulder playfully as they head out the classroom door.
He makes a detour to the bathroom to cover up his earlier lie, and he comes up with an excuse to duck away afterwards. Kuramochi stops by one of the other third year classes to talk to some of their former teammates. Kazuya leaves him to it and heads down the stairs to the second year classrooms.
He stands in front of classroom 2-B, momentarily distracted by the sight of Sawamura seated at a desk, flipping through a magazine. Next to him are two girls from his class, pointing things on the page to him as all three of them ooh at the content.
Sawamura is incredibly focused on the conversation he’s in, and it strikes Kazuya that this is one of the things he loves about him. Sawamura gives his undivided attention to people when he’s with them, so much that he leaves people feeling cherished. Kazuya leans against the doorframe and watches.
He’s interrupted by Furuya, who sees him in the doorway.
“Miyuki-senpai,” Furuya says, “are you ok? Did you need something?”
Kazuya thinks he isn’t ok. He’s entirely, deeply in love with Sawamura Eijun.
“Oh, Furuya. No. I just need to talk to Sawamura about his numbers.” The lie slips easily out of him.
Furuya must take it to mean Kazuya is practicing with Sawamura today because he fixes Kazuya with a stubborn look and says, “catch for me today, Miyuki-senpai.”
Kazuya laughs, “No can do. I’m not on the team anymore, and I promised Nori that we’ll study for the upcoming exams together.” The bit about studying is a complete lie. Kazuya promised nothing to anyone, he simply didn’t want to end up spending time in the bullpen with someone that wasn’t Sawamura. If he was going to help the current pitchers train, he’d be selfish and help his boyfriend.
“Catch for me anyway,” Furuya says and Kazuya laughs again as he tries his best to escape his current predicament.
Sawamura must have seen them then, because he calls out a loud “Miyuki Kazuya!” Kazuya looks to see him smiling brightly, waving with both hands. Kazuya gestures for him to come over and Sawamura excuses himself from his present company.
Sawamura approaches with a toothy grin that steals the air right out of Kazuya’s lungs. Kazuya throws an arm casually around his boyfriend’s shoulder and leads him out the door. He says, “I ran into Coach earlier and he said he needs to talk to you.”
Sawamura jumps a little at that. He buries one hand into his hair and messes the brown locks a little. “Is it because I slept in class?”
“You did what?” Kazuya asks.
“I…didn’t sleep in class?”
“You’re a bad liar.” Kazuya knows his pitcher did, in fact, sleep in class. “Whose class did you sleep in?”
Sawamura puffs his cheeks stubbornly and refuses to answer, so Kazuya pokes him in the stomach a few times before the pitcher gives in, hands swatting at Kazuya’s. “Ok fine! I fell asleep in science class.”
Kazuya laughs. “I don’t think Coach Kataoka knows about that.”
“You won’t tell the coach when we see him, right?”
“Huh?”
“You said the coach wants to talk to me?”
Kazuya laughs, “I don’t know if he’s actually looking for you. I was making excuses to see you.”
Sawamura pulls away, blinking twice at Kazuya before his confusion melts into giggles, “Miyuki Kazuya, that’s not very senpai-like of you.”
Kazuya simply flashes a mischievous smile as he leads Sawamura towards the far end of the hall. Sunlight filters in through the window, and Kazuya watches in awe as Sawamura tilts his face to warm, yellow rays.
Sawamura chatters about the baseball season and his numbers and working with Okumura. He complains about all of Kanemaru’s alleged failures as captain and how Kazuya was better but not by much. Kazuya feigns hurt.
“Okay,” Sawamura says with a grin some time later, as they watch students begin to return to their classes. A few second-year students wave at Sawamura and he waves back enthusiastically. He looks at Kazuya. “I’ll see you later!”
“Wait!” Kazuya calls out as Sawamura begins to walk away. The pitcher comes to a stop, looks at Kazuya with innocent wonder, head tilted a little to the side.
Kazuya clears his throat. “There’s another few minutes until break is over.”
Sawamura smiles, he walks back to the window and leans next to Kazuya. “You really shouldn’t encourage this type of behaviour. As an upperclassman, you should be telling me to go back to class,” he teases.
Kazuya leans his forearms against the windowsill, and he turns to look at Sawamura. “Yeah,” he says, “but I’ve never been a good senpai, and I’m asking you to stay.”
“As my senpai?”
“As your boyfriend.”
Sawamura flushes and looks away, up at the bright sun and the blue skies beyond the glass of the school window, and Kazuya looks at him with a growing smile playing at his lips.
***
It takes Kazuya an embarrassingly long time to muster up the courage to tell Sawamura that he’s planning on attending university, that he’s not putting his name forward for the draft.
Sawamura listens patiently. He squeezes Kazuya’s hand in support and says, “thank you for trusting me with this.” And then leans in and presses a chaste kiss to Kazuya’s cheek.
***
“Why are you always around Sawamura these days? You talk to him every lunch hour and after class.” Kuramochi’s eyes are full of suspicion.
“Is there a law that says I can’t?”
“I just find it suspicious, ‘cause you’re not on the baseball team anymore so what are you talking to him about?”
“I mean, what can I say? I’m so popular and well-liked, my former battery partner just loves to spend his free time with me,” Kazuya sing-songs the words lightheartedly.
Kuramochi ignores the bait, and doesn’t get riled up by Kazuya’s unabashed self-praise. “Miyuki, what are you hiding?”
“Okay fine!” Kazuya throws his hands up in the air. “If you really need to know, I’ve been working with Sawamura on his numbers.”
The lie comes out so smoothly, so easily, Kazuya almost feels guilty.
“Isn’t that Okumura’s job?”
“I’ve been helping Okumura too. He still has trouble catching all of Sawamura’s breaking balls.”
“I think you’re lying.” Kuramochi narrows his eyes at Kazuya suspiciously. “I’ve seen Okumura catching during their games, he’s caught everything.”
“I have no reason to lie to you, but if you don’t believe me, go ask Sawamura,” Kazuya huffs. He makes a show of flipping through his textbook.
“Oh I will.” Kuramochi rises from his seat and walks out the room.
Kazuya swears under his breath. He pulls out his phone and texts Sawamura as he speed-walks after Kuramochi.
To: Sawamura Eijun
SOS!
Kuramochi inbound.
Tell him we’re working on the numbers.
By the time Kazuya makes it to Sawamura’s class, Kuramochi is standing over Sawamura’s desk questioning the pitcher. There’s a small crowd around Sawamura’s desk too, Kazuya recognizes Kominato and Kanemaru, but not the rest of the students.
“Miyuki Kazuya?” Sawamura wears a look of pure innocence on his face. “He’s been helping me and Wolf Boy with the numbers.”
“That doesn’t make sense. He retired.”
“Yes but he also loves baseball and he offered to help. He did create the numbers in the first place,” Sawamura says, “so it makes sense he wants to keep working on them, no?”
“Didn’t you create the numbers?” Kominato asks.
“No! I was just testing out different grips while trying to learn the changeup. Miyuki-senpai came up with the numbers. Both the actual pitches I use and the naming system. Oh! He also came up with the signs for each number!”
Kuramochi grumbles about how none of it makes sense and Sawamura huffs in annoyance. “‘Mochi-senpai if you don’t believe me, you can ask Wolf Boy.”
Kuramochi stomps out the room, narrowly missing Kazuya. Kazuya waves goodbye at Sawamura then rushes after Kuramochi. Kuramochi stops at the first year classroom to ask Okumura.
“Miyuki-senpai is helping Sawamura-senpai and I with the numbers.” Okumura deadpans. “He knows them best,” he adds, mouth moving around the word like they taste bad. He looks angry.
Kazuya doesn’t comment, but he breathes a little easier when Kuramochi seems to finally believe him.
Later that night, Kazuya gets a text from Sawamura.
From: Sawamura Eijun
Oops just saw this but I think it worked out? I told him we work on the numbers :)
Kazuya chuckles to himself. They really do think alike.
***
Sawamura cries during Kazuya’s graduation, but he swears up and down that he isn’t crying as he wipes the tears away.
“Are you going to miss me?” Kazuya teases and Sawamura huffs.
“No.” He crosses his arms in front of his chest. “I’ll be too busy winning nationals with my battery partner Okumura. I won’t have time to think about you.”
“Liar. You’re already crying because you’ll miss me.”
“I won’t miss you because I’ll still see you. I’m not letting you just disappear.”
“I’m not going anywhere, Sawamura,” Kazuya promises. He pulls Sawamura into a hug. “And I’ll be at your games, all the ones you play at nationals, and as many other ones as I can.”
Sawamura buries his face in the crook of Kazuya’s neck, and Kazuya leans further into the embrace.
“Thank you,” Sawamura’s breath is warm against Kazuya’s skin, it makes Kazuya feel alive in a way he’s never felt before, like he’s suddenly become aware of every nerve ending in his body. “For teaching me about baseball, and for catching for me when I asked even when I was annoying.” He says the last party quietly, shyly.
“You were never annoying.” There’s a thousand things he thinks of saying, thinks of doing, to show Sawamura how important he is; how thankful Kazuya is for Sawamura coming into his life.
He doesn’t get the chance.
Sawamura pulls away, flashes a wide grin that has Kazuya marvelling on how much Sawamura resembles the summer sun. “Good luck with university. I’m… going to miss you.” And then he turns and runs off towards the dorms.
Kazuya is about to follow him when he’s assaulted. He receives a well-aimed kick on his ass and a slap against the back of his head.
“What the fuck is this?” Kuramochi howls from behind Kazuya.
Kazuya has just enough time to give Kuramochi a dirty look before Maezono is screaming in his face. “Are you trying to take advantage of Sawamura?”
“I’m not!”
Kuramochi kicks Kazuya again. “Then why are you hugging him and whispering like he’s your husband?!” Kazuya tries his best to dodge and ends up with Kuramochi’s shoe print on the back of his blazer.
“What the fuck are you on about?”
“Miyuki,” Nori’s arms are crossed in front of his chest, his mouth pulled down in a frown as he looks at Kazuya. “We saw you. You made Sawamura cry, then you capitalized on his sadness and hugged him against his will.”
“It’s not my fault he was crying!” Kazuya pleads. “And I didn’t do anything against his will. What do you people take me for?”
“Then what were you doing to Sawamura?”
Kazuya half laughs and half cries as Maezono grabs a fistful of his shirt and shakes him.
He promises again that he hasn’t done anything to hurt Sawamura, except graduate high school. Nori accused Kazuya of not having a heart, and Kuramochi kicks Kazuya again for good measure. “That’s for making my kouhai cry.”
***
In the time between the baseball draft and the start of the university semester, Kazuya receives a ridiculous number of questions about what his plans are. Mei especially does his best to find out, and he messages Kazuya about it daily. Kazuya contemplates blocking Mei’s phone number.
From: Narumiya Mei
So
Ur going to Waseda?
To: Narumiya Mei
No.
From: Narumiya Mei
dont lie
ur either going to waseda
or keto
keio*
To: Narumiya Mei
You got me. I’m going to Keio.
From: Narumiya Mei
Why not waseda
u should come
We can b best battery
In the big 6 :D
To: Narumiya Mei
Because you’re going to Waseda. And I’d rather beat you again.
From: Narumiya Mei
U already beat me tho???
:(
To: Narumiya Mei
I know. But I want to do it again.
In the end, Mei goes to Keio, and Kazuya to Waseda. Mei calls Kazuya on the first day of Keio’s practice demanding to know why Kazuya is no where in sight. Kazuya promises he was at practice that morning, but he doesn’t clarified which team’s.
***
With Kazuya away at Waseda and Sawamura in the Seido dorms, they mostly text or call each other. Sawamura hasn’t told the team at Seido about his relationship with Kazuya, but he confesses that word got out that he’s seeing someone.
“They probably think I’m dating Wakana,” Sawamura says into the phone one day.
“They better not,” Kazuya warns. He can almost see Sawamura’s pout like his boyfriend is in front of him.
There’s shuffling noise from the other end of the phone. Then Furuya’s voice says: “is that Miyuki-senpai?”
“What?” Sawamura’s voice is a little further away now, though still loud. And panicky. “No! It’s just my boyfriend!”
Kazuya stifles a laugh. He hears Furuya speaking into the phone, voice clearer now. “Hello Eijun’s boyfriend.”
“Hello Furuya,” Kazuya says through laughter.
“You know me?”
“Of course, Sawamura complains non-stop about you.”
From the other end of the line, Sawamura yells, “Miyuki Kazuya, I do not complain about—”
It’s interrupted by Furuya’s own, “Miyuki-senpai?”
Kazuya nearly topples over from how hard he’s laughing. Leave it to Sawamura to accidentally reveal his own secret. He hears the tell-tale sounds of a fight between Furuya and Sawamura as they grapple over the phone. Then Furuya’s voice: “Catch for me Miyuki-senpai.”
“I can’t.” Kazuya lies smoothly. “I’ll get into trouble with the federation.” He doesn’t really know if there are rules around university students practicing with high school students, but he says it anyway.
“Do you catch for Eijun?”
“No, because I’d get into trouble with the federation.”
Somewhere from near Furuya, Sawamura is yelling, demanding his phone back. Furuya seems entirely unaffected by the yelling. “Okay then. You don’t have to catch for me,” says Furuya, “have a good talk with your boyfriend.” And then he hands Sawamura his phone back.
“Sorry about that, Furuya has no manners,” Sawamura says loudly into the phone, so loudly Kazuya is sure he wants Furuya to hear him.
There’s a thudding sound followed by Sawamura’s muffled yelp. Sawamura must have dropped his phone because there’s a clatter on the other end of the line, then, from further away: “You did not just throw a pillow at me!”
Kazuya doesn’t need to see what’s happening in Seidou to know that Furuya threw that pillow with all his might, or that the pillow had hit Sawamura square in the face.
When Sawamura finally returns to the phone, he says, “anyway, as I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted. I hate school. I’m barely getting through it as we speak.” He huffs, “I’m sorry but you’re doing varsity baseball alone.”
Kazuya snickers. “Not like I need your help to with the Big6.”
“Oh shut up!”
“Haven’t you heard? Mei’s switching into Waseda so it’ll be me and him taking the league by storm as a battery.” Kazuya teases. Mei might have grumbled about Kazuya tricking him into going to Keio but he was committed to the university now.
“He better not!” Sawamura yells into the phone.
***
Kazuya stretches out on the couch in front of the TV. He rests his back against the armrest, his head supported by his left hand. He looks up at Sawamura when he emerges from the bathroom, hair a little damp at the edges. He still can’t believe Sawamura was able to take the day off to visit.
Kazuya holds his arms open in an invitation, and Sawamura indulges him by sitting in the V of his legs, back against Kazuya’s chest and head resting on his shoulder.
Kazuya presses his nose into the top of Sawamura’s head as he wraps his arms around Sawamura’s torso. He feels incredibly happy like this.
“Comfortable?” He asks and Sawamura sighs a pleasant yeah in response, left hand finding Kazuya’s right so he can cradle it gently. Kazuya intertwines their fingers together and relishes the squeeze that Sawamura gives back.
“I saw your game last week,” he says. “You pitched exceptionally well.”
Sawamura stills a little as he waits for Kazuya’s next words. He says, “You and Okumuura make a good battery.”
“Yeah,” Sawamura replies, his voice lilting with something like disappointment that has Kazuya wondering what he said wrong. “I think he got a lot better at game calling, so it’s much easier for me now. I don’t feel like I have to guide a kouhai so much as simply trusting my catcher.”
Kazuya silently notes Sawamura’s use of the word catcher instead of partner, and the way he danced around the word battery like it meant something special. “You’re not happy about something,” he muses.
“Sometimes I hate that you’re so preceptive.” Sawamura laughs a little. “Okumuura is a great guy and all, but pitching to him just isn’t the same. Even though he makes me feel like I’m his first choice of pitcher, it’s still not the same.”
“Who’re you comparing the poor guy to like that?” Kazuya asks teasingly. He probably should have done the math himself, because it’s embarrassingly obvious when Sawamura tilts his head to give him a look of disbelief, like he’s asking Kazuya if he’s serious.
Sawamura huffs at Kazuya in annoyance as he looks away and back to the televised show they’ve both ignored so far. He grumbles, “Who do you think? It’s obviously you.”
Kazuya presses his face into the top of Sawamura’s head to hide the rising blush, but Sawamura picks up on it anyway because he laughs. “Why are you so embarrassed?”
“I…” Kazuya clears his throat as he searches for an answer.
“I know it’s not fair for Okumuura, but I can’t help compare you two. I mean, you completely shaped my baseball career. I went to Seidou because of you, for you, and I spent two years chasing you, trying to be worthy of you. And… us dating aside, I don’t know if I ever really felt like I met your expectations of what a pitcher should be.” He sighs, “or maybe they were just my own ideas of what your pitcher should be. What I’m trying to say is, for so long I felt like I wasn’t really your battery partner, you know? That your real partner was Furuya and I was secondary, even when I became the ace, it felt like we weren’t the main battery.”
There’s a momentary pause, then Sawamura continues. “It’s not like that with Okumuura, though. He has a way of making pitchers feel like they’re the centre of the universe. It’s nice, but… actually I don’t know why I’m complaining. I’m just a little upset you graduated before I got to really be your battery partner.”
Kazuya listens silently. He hadn’t thought of his battery with any pitcher that deeply. He’d only tried to keep his personal feelings about each of his pitchers aside when on the field. “I’m sorry. I had no idea you felt like that.” Kazuya winces at his own words. They sound lame to him.
Sawamura doesn’t reply for a few minutes, but eventually he sighs. “Sometimes I keep thinking maybe it’s karma getting me back for how I treated Chris-senpai at first.”
Kazuya laughs. He hadn’t expected Sawamura to say that. “I’m pretty sure you’ve done more good for Chris-senpai than bad. Sawamura, you remember when you met him, how dead his eyes looked? He’d been like that for a year, but then you came along and made him see the good parts of life again.” Kazuya strokes a hand through Sawamura’s hair lovingly. “You saved the guy.”
Sawamura hums, “yeah but still… sometimes, I wish I was as important to you as he was to me.”
“You’re so much more than that to me.”
“Okay,” says Sawamura and Kazuya can hear the smile in it.
Some time later, Sawamura falls asleep to the soft hum of the TV and Kazuya’s fingers gently carding through his hair. Sawamura’s breathing is deep and even, when Kazuya gently tucks him into bed. He phones Seidou’s baseball team to tell the coach that Sawamura is, in fact, perfectly safe, but he’ll join practice tomorrow when he’s awake.
In the morning, Sawamura rubs away the remnants of sleep in his eyes, as he smiles at Kazuya. He says, “I wish I didn’t have to go back.”
Kazuya’s gaze softens. He holds his arms out to Sawamura, and the younger boy runs into them to press himself into a tight embrace.
“There’s only a few more months,” Kazuya says, “then you graduate. And I can see you every day if you’d like.”
“University students don’t get that much free time,” Sawamura mumbles.
“No. But if you want, and if your parents are okay with it, you can live with me,” Kazuya mumbles, swallowing the embarrassment that rises to his cheeks. “Then I’ll get to see you everyday.”
“Really? I’d like that.”
***
The team hoots and hollers when Sawamura returns to the Seido dorms. Sawamura yells at them to stop, and though Kazuya keeps a polite distance between him and Sawamura at all times, it doesn’t save the ace from being teased.
“Sawamura-senpai stayed at his boyfriend’s house overnight!”
“Shut up!” Sawamura yells at a group of first-year students that Kazuya doesn’t recognize. “You guys are making this so awkward.” Sawamura breaks into a run after his teammates with a laugh.
***
“Sawamura,” Kazuya whispers into the darkness of his room, “are you asleep?”
There’s a momentary silence that has Kazuya convinced his boyfriend is asleep. Then Sawamura’s voice says, “no. I’m dead.”
Kazuya sits up and whacks at Sawamura’s blanketed form.
Sawamura stifles a yowl. “What’s all this aggression for?”
“For being a smart-mouth,” Kazuya huffs. He decides to ignore Sawamura’s mumbled I learned it from you. Instead, he says, “have you decided on what you’re doing after high school?”
Kazuya doesn’t need to see Sawamura’s face to know he’s scowling, brows knitted together. “Not yet. I’m still trying to decide between the pros and university.”
“Which one do you want more?”
“I don’t know. A few years ago, I never thought I’d go to university, but now you’re at Waseda and I keep thinking maybe I should go to university too.”
Kazuya lays back down and stares at the ceiling. Between the darkness and his myopia, he can barely make out where the overhead light is located. He ponders at Sawamura’s words for a moment then asks, “because you want us to play on the same team again?”
“Is that so obvious?”
“Only to me,” Kazuya smiles fondly. He hears Sawamura shift beside him, and he turns his face to see Sawamura lying on his side facing Kazuya. Kazuya shifts to do the same, he drapes one arm across Sawamura’s shoulder.
“Sawamura. Eijun. You said you chose Seidou because I was already there. Don’t choose university because that’s where I went.” Sawamura pouts, but Kazuya continues anyway. “I want you to choose for yourself. Not for me, not for your family or friends, just yourself. Go where you really want this time, and trust that I’ll follow you. Trust me to choose you.”
***
“I love how I said you can move in with me,” Kazuya looks around the empty space of the apartment. “But now I’m the one moving in with you.”
Sawamura shrugs. He lifts himself up and sits on the kitchen island. “I have money.”
Kazuya walks around the apartment slowly, enjoying the way his footsteps echo against the hardwood floors. He especially likes the floor-to-ceiling windows that extend along an entire wall. Sawamura picked a beautiful apartment.
“How much are they paying you, that you’re buying an apartment straight out of high school.”
“Technically, my dad bought it. I’m too young to buy real estate.” Sawamura grins. “And that’s confidential.” Kazuya rolls his eyes. “But since you’re not going to tell anyone…” Sawamura taps along his phone screen for a few moments before turning it around for Kazuya to see. Kazuya walks closer, peers at the number that Sawamura seems to have pulled out from his pro-league contract.
His mouth drops open.
“I know,” Sawamura says happily. “They really wanted a southpaw pitcher.”
“They really wanted you.” Kazuya shakes his head with disbelief. “What are you going to do with all that?”
“Pay your tuition?”
Kazuya splutters indignantly. “I’m on a scholarship.” He looks at Sawamura and sees the teasing smile on his boyfriend’s face.
“Well if you ever wanted to slack off, you can now.”
“I’m not going to slack off,” Kazuya huffs. “I promised to catch up to you in the pros.”
Sawamura smiles. He leans over and wraps his arms around Kazuya. “Yes, you did.”
***
From: Kuramochi
Are you and Sawamura dating?
To: Kuramochi
Where is this coming from?
From: Kuramochi
https://www.loremimpsum.jp/dolor/%20%sit%20amit
Kazuya clicks the link and is not too surprised to find an article about him and Sawamura. There’s a somewhat blurry photo of the two of them outside that cafe they’d gone to a week ago, fingers intertwined as they stepped out of the building. The masks and baseball caps they wore clearly didn’t hide their identities as well as they thought they would.
Kazuya rolls his eyes. Well, the cat is out of the bag now. While he and Sawamura had agreed not to advertise their relationship, they’d also agreed not to deny it once the world caught on.
Kazuya hits the call button. Kuramochi picks up right away.
“We’ve been through this,” Kazuya says in lieu of a greeting.
“What are you talking about? And what happened to hello? Hi?”
“Hello to you too.” Kazuya’s greeting drips sarcasm. “I’ve told you Eijun and I are dating.”
“When did this happen?!”
“High school graduation.”
“You did not!” Kuramochi has the memory of a goldfish if he’s already forgotten. “And when did you start calling him by his first name?”
“I did tell you. You just kept accusing me of making Eijun cry, and for the record, he was crying because he was sad we’re graduating.” Kazuya huffs.
“Wait, wait, wait! How long have you two been dating?”
“Since the beginning of our third year of high school, why?”
“Miyuki you fucker! You are so lucky that I’m not physically next to you right now—”
“Yes, yes, I know. You’d have put me in a choke hold,” Kazuya drawls. “Or tried to. I don’t think you’ve grown tall enough to reach my neck.”
Kuramochi yells from the other end of the line as Kazuya snickers at him.
***
The day Kazuya turns twenty-two, Sawamura surprises him yet again.
“I have something for you,” he says as he hands Kazuya a wrapped box.
Kazuya unwraps his gift and is surprised to find a new phone within it. It isn’t any random phone either, it’s a new smartphone that Kazuya is fairly certain is the latest release in store. He’s heard his classmates discussing how much they wanted it, and how much it had cost.
“My rich and successful boyfriend bought me a new phone.” Jokingly, he adds, “you know, you’re practically a sugar daddy.”
Sawamura’s brows knit together, the corners of his mouth turning down. “Wouldn’t I need to be older than you for that?”
“Nope. I’m pretty sure it’s just about money.”
“Okay,” Sawamura stretches his arms up above him, then he plops onto the bed. “You should call me daddy then.”
Kazuya shoots Sawamura a look that says how much he hates the idea, and Sawamura grins at him in return.
***
“Who is Miyuki Kazuya’s favourite pitcher?” Kazuya turns the card in his hands towards the cameras to show the words he’s just read. He slips the card back onto the stack of questions he and Sawamura already answered for their episode of 60-Minutes with the Mi-Sawa Battery. “I’m going to have to think about that one.”
From the seat next to him, Sawamura says happily, “that’s easy! Mines Sanada Shunpei.”
Behind the studio lights and cameras, a few staff members stifle their laughter. Kazuya swats playfully at Sawamura’s shoulder. “The question’s for me to answer.”
“Are you going to?”
Kazuya harrumphs. “I’m going to say Sawamura because he’s my battery partner.”
“Now I feel guilty! ” Sawamura gasps. “I didn’t say you were my favourite catcher earlier!”
“I know. Even after three years of being in a pro-league battery with me, you still prefer Chris-senpai.”
Sawamura turns to the director from where she stands behind the cameras. He asks, “can we edit the video from earlier so it looks like I said Miyuki Kazuya?”
The director shakes her head. Kazuya capitalizes on it by sighing loudly, “damage is already done, Eijun. My heart is broken.”
Sawamura begs and pleads for forgiveness until the director instructs them to move on. Then he takes a card from the pile and reads the question out loud.
“What do you do for fun?” Sawamura barely takes a breath before he’s answering. “Running! I love running! I run all the time!”
“Yeah, just not bases,” Kazuya snickers. While Sawamura’s batting had improved drastically in the professional league, he was still far from the best, and he didn’t often find himself on base.
“Please stop,” Sawamura says defeatedly.
When they read the last question, Kazuya is surprised by it. It says: where do you hope to be in five years?
It really isn’t the type of question Kazuya expected in an entertainment interview. Sawamura easily answers it with a “still playing baseball!”
Kazuya ponders the answer for a few moments before he announces. “I want to be married.”
His answer piques the interest of Sawamura and the crew. Sawamura cuts a sidelong look at Kazuya. “Oh? Anyone in particular?”
Kazuya replies cheekily. “It’s a secret.”
“I can keep secrets!”
“But if I tell you, it would turn into a proposal.”
“You’re no fun!” Sawamura whines.
When the episode airs, it includes behind-the-scenes footage of Sawamura trailing Kazuya around the studio, whining about how Kazuya should tell him who he plans to marry in five years. And it ends with the moment realization dawns on Sawamura. “I thought you trusted me! What kind of person doesn’t trust his boyfriend with a secret because it’ll turn into a—wait! Miyuki Kazuya!”