Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

Tuesday, Sep 11—two Days before the incident

Shoyo sighed in exhaustion as he collapsed against the floor, arms and legs spread out like a starfish. His chest heaved as he gulped down air, sweat dripping into his eyes. He closed them to get some relief and instead made them sting more.

Thirty straight minutes of spike–receive drills had left him buzzing with adrenaline but completely wiped out. Whenever it was just him and Kageyama, he could go at least forty-five minutes without more than a five-minute break. But training with the relentless coach Ukai had him run down to the bone sometimes.

He propped himself up on his elbows, tilting his head back with a groan. He’d be ready to go again in no time—he always was—but for now, the floor felt like the best invention in the world.

Something cold pressed against his cheek. Shoyo flinched, then cracked one eye open. Kageyama stood over him, holding out a water bottle with his usual scowl.

Shoyo sat up fast and snatched it. "Thanks," he grumbled before gulping down a mouthful.

Kageyama slid down the wall beside him, legs crossed, his own water bottle dangling loosely from one hand. A towel hung crooked around his neck. He’d been jumping around just as much as Shoyo, but he didn’t look nearly as tired. That was just unfair.

"What?" Kageyama questioned. "What's with that stupid look on your face?"

Shoyo flinched and glared at the ground. "Nothing," he muttered. Stupid Kageyama. How did he manage to look so composed, even after thirty whole minutes of constant movement? Argh, seriously, where was the justice?

"Whatever, shorty."

"Shorty? Shut the hell up, you're the freakin' beanstalk!" Shoyo scoffed. Kageyama hmphed and turned away.

Across the gym, Nishinoya and Tanaka were nearing the end of their resting period. Shoyo listened with half interest as Tanaka loudly explained to Nishinoya how to get a girl in the mood to kiss, hand gestures included. He listened for about ten seconds before deciding it was terrible advice.

Shoyo had no experience whatsoever in that department, but even he could tell what Tanaka was suggesting was horrible. Seriously, sticking out your nose and declaring the scent of love and passion was in the air? Talk about tacky! Whatever poor girl fell victim to that was sure to run away.

He watched Tanaka eagerly return to the court then, already shouting for tosses to be sent his way. How he managed to maintain an ego so large was a mystery to all. A sudden thought intruded Shoyo's mind when he saw Nishinoya seriously considering the advice.

"Oi, Crappy-yama."

"Hah?" Kageyama turned and gave Shoyo his signature irked stare, the kind that made him want to bite back at him. "What now?"

Shoyo rolled his eyes, then scratched the back of his neck. "I just..." he trailed off, wondering how he could word his question. Anticipation and nervousness clawed his chest, increasing when Kageyama's eyes narrowed dangerously. "I was wondering, you know, if you've ever kissed anyone?" His voice got quiet toward the end.

The question had already seemed stupid in his head, but it sounded ten times worse out loud! He definitely just sounded super lame, but he refused to back down. He continued to look at Kageyama expectingly.

Kageyama stared at Shoyo dumbfounded for ten seconds before he half jumped onto his knees. "What? Where the hell is this coming from, you weirdo?!" He pointed an irritating finger at Shoyo's chest. His ears were pink at the tips.

Shoyo flushed, his whole face warming considerably. He had sat down to cool off, but now he was heating up all over again. Why was that jerk getting so worked up? Could it be that Kageyama had actually had his first kiss already?! To Shoyo's horror, he warmed even more when he accidentally imagined Kageyama with a girl.

Damn it.

"It's not weird, it's just a question! Jeez, you're so uptight." He took an annoyed gulp of his water.

Kageyama made an aggravated sigh and settled back down into his previous position. He glared at Shoyo as he visibly struggled to answer. "No. I've never taken an interest in someone; I've only ever had a heartfelt interest in volleyball."

"You don't have to say it with that face, you know."

"What face?"

"This one," Shoyo answered smugly. Then he flattened his hair to make it like Kageyama's and wrinkled his entire face into a glare.

Kageyama's jaw dropped then snapped back up into a teeth-bared snarl just as quickly. He made a swipe at him and Shoyo laughed as he dodged. "Quit it! I don't look like that!"

Shoyo's smile dropped a little when he considered Kageyama's reply, continuing to dodge being hit as he did so. Only ever had a heartfelt interest in volleyball, huh? He could relate to that pretty heavily. Nothing got him happier or more excited than being on the court, hitting the ball perfectly, scoring a point...

Shoyo shivered at the prospect of relating to Kageyama of all people. Talk about unnerving.

Kageyama made an angry, animalistic sound and made another swipe, but this time he got what he wanted and yanked the front of Shoyo's sports bib toward him. "What was that? Did you seriously just shiver at my answer you little turd?"

Shoyo yelped and tried to scramble away, but Kageyama's grip was firm. "Do you have to add an insult at the end of every sentence?" he demanded. He squirmed again but got no results. "Besides, I just got a little freaked out at how similar we are. Total chills, you know?" He leaned as far back as he could at Kageyama's glower.

The taller of the two finally released him, but the relief was short lived. Kageyama was grabbing a fist full of his hair the next moment, his eyes clouded over with frustration. "Something wrong with being similar to me?" he questioned.

"Ack! Stop taking everything as a personal attack, stupid! Ow, ow, ow! And stop giving me the iron claw! You're hurting me!"

Kageyama's grip tightened. "You were personally attacking me, short stack!"

"Lay off about my height, butthole!"

"Oh, real mature—,"

A sharp clap cut through their bickering. Both froze, turning to see Daichi glaring like a storm cloud. "If you two idiots have the energy to fight, you have the energy to train! Get back here!" Daichi was scary when he was angry.

Kageyama and Shoyo both scrambled onto their feet.

Shoyo eagerly dashed back onto the court the next moment, his energy already back in full force and nearly completely forgetting his conversation with Kageyama. He caught Sugawara chuckling behind them.

"I don't think they're ever out of energy, to be honest," he remarked. Shoyo struggled to stifle his goofy grin at the thought of such an amazing upperclassman talking about him. "They're always the last to leave."

"It's kinda scary," Asahi acknowledged. "They're like boundless balls of movement. Both of them."

Shoyo openly grinned at that, but it was quickly shut down when Kageyama's smug grin was sent his way. "You wanna fight, huh?" He quickly threw his karate hands up just in case, ready to go at a moment's notice.

"He was totally talking about me, dimwit."

He scoffed and went back into his receiving position. "You're so annoying."

Thursday, Sept 13—three hours before the incident

Shoyo dove across the ground, reaching his hand out as far as he could. He heard Kageyama give a telltale groan from behind him just as his fingertips touched the concrete of the pathway. He stayed like that for a few long moments, regaining his breath before bouncing back onto his feet.

He pointed a victorious finger at a sweating, red-faced Kageyama. "That makes it forty-two to forty-four! I'm.. hah.. catching up, Tired-yama!"

Kageyama scowled, breath coming out in sharp bursts. "Tch. I'm still.. hah, hah.. two points ahead, idiot."

Shoyo stuck his tongue out mockingly. "Blehhh! You're more out of breath than me, too! Loser!" He grinned, his cheeks already sore. It was far too early in the winter morning to be running for his life, but the look of defeat on his teammate's face was worth it.

"Shut it, birdbrain! I'm still ahead!"

"Not for long!" Shoyo sang, bounding up the stairs toward the club room. His legs screamed, every step sending fire through his calves, but he loved it—the burn felt like proof of how hard he was pushing. He even started whistling just to rub it in.

Wait... but, if Kageyama got his first kiss before Shoyo did, then the scores would be forty-two to forty-five! He could not let that happen. No way could he let that smug, infuriating buttwad get three whole points ahead.

Shoyo stopped walking and clenched his fists. He turned on the balls of his feet and stared at Kageyama with fierce determination. Kageyama blinked in confusion before his face drooped into something judgemental. Ugh. "You'd better not go around kissing anyone, you hear me?"

Kageyama recoiled, eyes wide. "What the hell are you talking about, you moron?!" His ears were pink again. They always were when he was flustered.

"I mean it, Kageyama! I won't let you beat me!"

Kageyama narrowed his eyes for a few moments. But then his expression turned cocky, and he placed a hand on his hip. He tilted his head and raised an eyebrow, looking a little too similar to a certain Tsukishima that Shoyo despised. "Oh yeah? I won't let you beat me, either."

Shoyo pulled down one of his lower eyelids with his middle finger and wriggled his tongue around.

Kageyama wrinkled his face at him. "You're so gross."

"Pshh. Yeah, right. I'm awesome."

"You're such a freaking idiot."

"Wha- hey!"

Thursday, Sept 13—One hour before the incident

Shoyo found himself face down on the cold floor, huffing so much that he was beginning to grow lightheaded. It was no secret that he absolutely sucked at receives, especially the diving ones. He had bumped his chin on the ground at least six times already.

Coach Ukai was relentless. Every time he failed, the man already had another ball hefted into the air for him to dig.

"What's wrong with Hinata?" Takeda had asked after his fourth fail. "He had gotten so good at pancake and diving receives from all of those flying laps! I thought for sure he could do a little better."

"Everyone has their off days, Specs," Coach had said in his defence. Only to hit a particularly brutal ball towards Shoyo a mere moment later and completely crush what little hope he had been given.

Still, Shoyo didn’t mind much. It was volleyball, after all—he always had fun, even when it was kicking his ass. But jeez, it sure made him work up a sweat. He slowly scooted his way across the gym, lifting his butt then putting it back down caterpillar style.

By the time he had reached the side, he was super thirsty. Lucky for him, he had just wormed his way up to the water bottle crate. He happily snatched one up and flipped onto his back, taking big gulps of the cold water. He felt a little like an overcooked sausage.

He winced when his stomach growled in response to the image of meat on a grill. He sighed deeply and regretfully sat up. He slowly crossed his legs, wincing at the ache spreading through them.

Kageyama plopped down next to him, sweaty hair sticking to his forehead, glaring at the floor like it had personally offended him.

Shoyo tipped the water bottle to his lips again, then froze mid-sip.

A thought crashed into his brain, completely derailing whatever else he had been thinking about. If he wanted to get his first kiss before Kageyama, he would need a girl to kiss! But he couldn’t just ask anyone. The only girl he would even consider was Yachi—and there was no way she’d let him.

Besides, asking such a nice girl like Yachi for a kiss just to spite a tall jerk like Kageyama was cruel. And embarrassing.

Shoyo closed his eyes and tilted his head in thought. His index finger tapped on his chin seven times before he finally found a solution. He hesitantly turned to Kageyama, who was already staring at him curiously. "What?" he questioned.

"You tell me. You're the one with that stupid thinking face."

"Wha- it's not stupid!" Shoyo slammed down his water bottle, some of the water splashing onto his lap. He ignored it in favour of his glaring match with Kageyama. "I came up with a brilliant idea, thank you very much!"

Kageyama rolled his eyes. "Do I get extra points if I pretend to care?" he asked sarcastically.

"Ouch. That was mean, Kageyama."

His jaw visibly clenched, then released. Shoyo watched with half fascination as the process repeated three times. "Go on then," Kageyama grumbled, his voice way softer than it had been a moment ago. "Spit it out already."

Something strange and entirely unfamiliar rose in Shoyo's chest. He swallowed the feeling down as he grinned. "We need a tie!" he declared proudly. "For our first kisses, I mean," he elaborated sheepishly, glancing away when Kageyama's eyes went wide.

He could feel Kageyama's judgemental stare; it pierced the back of his head violently. "Seriously, you weirdo... What the hell is up with you and kissing?" For a guy that was a genius on the court, he sure did struggle to come up with creative insults.

Shoyo sputtered, his entire body picking up a tide of heat and embarrassment. "Don't make it sound like I'm some kind of obsessed freak wanting to know where your lips are going—,"

"You're a what?"

"—it's all so you don't beat me! But the problem is, I don't have anyone to kiss." Shoyo crossed his arms and furrowed his brows. "You don't either. Obviously, the only way to settle this is with a tie!" He glanced over at Kageyama, half expecting to get punched or something. Instead, he found his teammate's mouth had popped open and his eyes were a little fuzzy. He groaned at the dumbfounded look. "I'm telling you it makes sense!"

Kageyama shook his head in disbelief. "How the hell are you in high school?" Shoyo made a humiliating sound in the back of his throat. "You do know we don't have to get points straight away, right?" He pulled a face when Shoyo hung his head. "Right?"

"But that's lame!" Shoyo yelled. "And I don't want it to take ages for the score to be settled, considering neither of us have anyone right now and all."

Besides, they both knew Kageyama had way more of a chance when it came to getting a girlfriend. Or a boyfriend, he thought with an internal snicker. Come to think of it, he'd never seen Kageyama so much as get flustered around Kiyoko, and she was the hottest girl in school! Either way, Shoyo was at a major disadvantage.

Kageyama crossed his arms, closed his eyes and scrunched his ugly face in consideration. He pulled some other unfortunate looking expressions before he landed on cautious and cracked one eye open. "How do you propose we tie, then?"

Shoyo threw his head back. "Come onnn, ju—wait, what?" He sat upright and stared at Kageyama, confused. "Are you actually agreeing to tie in something other than volleyball right now? Are you feeling okay?"

Kageyama’s face clouded with intense anger. "Forget it then," he huffed. He even went as far as to scoot away from Shoyo a little. Jeez, so dramatic.

Shoyo wailed and latched himself onto Kageyama’s arm, who sputtered and tried to shake him off. "Wait, I didn’t mean it like that, I swear! It’s just that normally you take ages to even consider anything I say!"

Yamaguchi happened to walk by then, and he smiled a little nervously at the two of them as he continued on. "I dunno, Hinata. Kageyama has definitely mellowed out a bit since the training camp with the Fukurodani Group."

Shoyo paused, glancing between his red-eared teammate and Yamaguchi’s retreating back. When he gave it some thought, he realised Kageyama had been less of a jerk lately. He was still yelling all the time, but he seemed… meh about it all. He used to be more kaboom and bam whenever he got aggressive or pissed off, but he now was more like whoosh.

If he had to pinpoint when it happened, he supposed it was right around when Kageyama threw that curve ball rather than the falling set in the practice match against Fukurodani. After that, he started to blow up a lot less, instead taking the time to talk about, like, reasons and stuff.

Shoyo didn't really understand it exactly, but he knew Kageyama had changed beyond his playing style. He evolved as a person too! Shoyo never thought the day would come when he could say such a thing. To be honest, he scarcely believed it. But even Yamaguchi had sensed it.

That being said, he still got mean and violent a lot. It just wasn't his first resort anymore.

Shoyo narrowed his eyes in suspicion, half wondering if the real Kageyama was still in there or if he had been replaced. "He’s right. Are you feeling okay?"

"You already asked that, idiot! Get the hell off of me!" Shoyo continued to hold onto him, half dangling every time Kageyama lifted his arm in an attempt to shake him off. He didn't look like it, but Kageyama sure had some strength!

Shoyo ignored the strange tingling in his chest at that thought. He grinned widely. "Aww, is Yamayama getting all soft on me?" he teased, cooing loudly.

Kageyama's ears went redder. "Drop it. Answer the question already; how are we supposed to tie?" He stopped moving around so much and stared expectantly at Shoyo, whose eyes went a little wide.

"Oh, yeah, right," he said a little distractedly. He hadn't actually thought that far yet. He had assumed he had more time to come up with a game plan considering Kageyama usually took days of convincing to do anything Shoyo asked.

"Well?"

Shoyo jolted. "J-just give me a minute!"

Kageyama looked down at him with a brooding expression. "You've done all this nagging and you don't even have a plan? What kind of moron are you?"

Shoyo tugged on his arm a couple times, throwing his head back and groaning. "Gimme a break, you're normally such a jerk that I have a couple more days to come up with something! Uwah!" He yelped when his teammate grabbed another fistful of his hair with his free hand. Shoyo scrabbled to try and get him to release him.

When Kageyama finally let go, Shoyo jutted his lips out, mumbling under his breath about how annoying he was.

But he really didn't have any idea on how to tie. Well, he didn't have much of an idea, unless...

Shoyo risked taking a peek at Kageyama through his orange bangs. He recoiled a little when he saw Kageyama already staring at him, his mouth dropped open and his face twisted into an awkward grimace. His cheeks were just as red as his ears now.

Ah, jeez. Shoyo could tell just from how flustered Kageyama looked that they came up with the same idea.

The only way they could really tie was by having their first kisses at the same time. With each other.

He was positive that his face was even redder than Kageyama's, his cheeks flaming hot and his sweat dripping down them. The heat felt different to the kind he experienced after running around. Shoyo twisted his lips down. "No way!" he shouted. Then he squinted and leaned forward. "Right?"

"Obviously, dumbass," Kageyama snapped. He seemed to be looking anywhere but at Shoyo's face. That was strange, to say the least. "Why the hell would I want you as my first?" Wait, there was an accusatory undertone hidden in there!

"I-it's not like I want you to be my first either, Kageyama!" Shoyo defended, waving his arms wildly in denial. "But then how do we tie?"

"I don't know, damn it." Man, there he went again, getting all moody in the blink of an eye.

"What are you guys arguing about?" Yachi bounded up to them, a bright smile on her face and her book hugged close to her chest.

Shoyo and Kageyama froze for a moment before diving another thirty centimetres apart.

"Nothing!" they shouted in unison.

Shoyo was unable to look their manager in the eye, his heart pounding in his chest. He hadn’t been worried about Yamaguchi hearing anything because he tended to block them out unless he was close enough to respond. Yachi, however, hadn’t learned to do that yet. She may have actually heard something!

Shoyo let out a small sigh of relief when Yachi didn’t push any further. That meant she really didn't hear anything. He could tell by the look on her face that she didn’t believe them, but that was fine. She moved forward and leaned against the wall between the boys with a fond expression.

"I think the only reason coach Ukai is letting you guys take such a long break is because you’ve never done this before, right? Usually you’re both back on your feet in two minutes, tops." She tilted her head and flashed them a cheerful grin. "I’m so glad you two are talking so freely again!"

Suddenly, he was very, very sure he could absolutely never do her dirty and ask her for a kiss. She deserved way better than being dragged into some dumb competition.

"Uh... yeah," Shoyo responded stupidly. He brightened at her and scratched the back of his neck awkwardly, ignoring the dry look Kageyama was giving him. "Everything's good now. Right, Kageyama?"

Kageyama's back straightened in the blink of an eye and he stared at Yachi for a few moments. "Right. Yeah, we're good now."

Yachi laughed, slapping her notebook through her chuckles. "You guys really know how to crack me up! Oh, Kiyoko's calling me." She turned on her heel and took off, waving a goodbye over her shoulder.

Shoyo waved back even though she couldn't see him. He sagged in relief once she was out of hearing range. He scooted back over to Kageyama, who leaned away like he was diseased. "We haven't been sitting out for that long, have we?"

Kageyama shrugged. "I don't know. I haven't been paying attention."

Shoyo placed his finger on his chin in thought. "Me either." Based on how Yachi had worded it, he guessed it had been at least five minutes. The thing is, he still felt out of breath and hot. He hadn't cooled down at all. Normally he only took about a minute to reenergise.

Time was always flying by whenever he was on the court with Kageyama. It was part of the reason he was always confused whenever the captain lectured them for practicing for so long, long after everyone else had called it a day. He truly lost track of time.

But... maybe time flew by whenever he was on the court because of Kageyama. Not because of the ball; because of the boy.

That made sense to Shoyo. When he gave it some thought, he often ended up losing track of time whenever he and Kageyama raced, argued or hung out. More than once Shoyo hadn't even realised the sun had set while he was with Kageyama. Actually, that was kinda a weekly thing now.

"Don't try too hard to use your brain, Hinata, you'll give yourself an aneurism." Tsukishima sniggered with Yamaguchi as they walked past. Shoyo blew raspberries as aggressively as he could at them.

He glanced over beside him and saw Kageyama glaring fiercely at Tsukishima with the same intensity that had Shoyo bolting whenever it was directed at him. Shoyo grinned widely, his cheeks stretching all the way from it.

Yeah, it was definitely just because of Kageyama, not volleyball.

"W-what?" Kageyama questioned, looking unnerved. "Why do you look so awestruck all of a sudden?"

Shoyo laughed heartedly. "You really are one of a kind, Kageyama!"

The same redness from earlier returned to his teammate's cheeks, and he clutched his chest with one hand and shoved the other in Shoyo's face. "You... shuddup, you say that about everyone."

"Just take the compliment!" Shoyo's breathy voice was muffled by Kageyama's very warm hand. "It's not every day I give you one, loser."

Thursday, Sept 13—Twenty minutes before the incident

Shoyo had thought over what Kageyama had told him, like, a million times. Obviously, there was no way they were going to kiss just to put an end to the competition Shoyo had started. Right?

But then, the more he thought about it, the more plausible it became! Seriously, he was considering going over to that buttwad and forcing their lips together once and for all.

"Hey, Hinata, could you get the rest of the balls?" Suga asked. Shoyo jolted in surprised, having been too lost in thought to realise his upperclassman was right there.

"Oh! Sure, no problem." he said. He turned around to do as he was told.

If he and Kageyama k-kissed, just once, Shoyo would finally be able to say that he had done it. And so would Kageyama, but that didn't really affect Shoyo. Obviously, neither of them could say who their first kiss was unless they wanted to be teased until the end of time.

Shoyo placed a couple of balls into the cart, then paced back to where the last of them were.

Just one peck was all he wanted.

That wasn't too bad, right? He should still be able to look his friend in the eye after that. Maybe. Well, if anything it was worth a shot. He and Kageyama's friendship was too strong to be shaken by a little kiss.

"Whoa!" Asahi yelled, jumping out of the way when Shoyo nearly bumped into him. Shoyo quickly bowed in apology and picked up the last ball, then he was on his way. "Uh, hey are you—nope, he's walking off again."

Besides, Kageyama's lips looked really... what was the word? Tempting? Alluring? It was kinda embarrassing, but Shoyo had actually forgotten to jump once because he had been staring a little too much at them. He got yelled at for a while after that.

Worth it.

Shoyo placed the last couple of balls into the cart and then started walking it into the storage room. His concentration didn't break once.

How would Kageyama react to Shoyo pouncing on him? Probably not well. He may have to dodge a punch or two. But he could totally do that, no problem! He had been every day since he joined Karasuno's volleyball team.

Shoyo was fairly certain that if he got the jump on Kageyama, he wouldn't tell anyone. Both of their reputations among their teammates were at risk here, not just Shoyo's.

In conclusion, there were more pros than cons to kissing Kageyama. It was only going to be once, and it was just so that pretty faced jerk didn't sweep the rug out from under him.

"Oi," someone called from behind him.

Shoyo shrieked and turned around with his fists up, ready to fight whoever had snuck up on him. "Oh, it's just Kageyama," he realised. He put down his hands sheepishly. "What is it?"

"You tell me. You were just in such deep thought that you basically ignored Asahi. And you collected every the balls at a snail's pace compared to usual. You didn't run once." Kageyama placed his hands on his hips and glared accusingly. Shoyo took half a step back. "You better not be getting sick. We have that two-day Tokyo camp coming up in three weeks."

"Are you seriously accusing me of getting sick just because I was thinking?" Shoyo demanded, puffing his chest out like Tanaka did.

Kageyama raised a finger, then poked it into his chest to deflate it. Shoyo wouldn't admit it, but it hurt. "Not just that. You forgot to jump at one of my sets today, didn't you? Normally you're so eager to play that you're jumping for other people’s!"

What he was saying sucked because he wasn't even saying it to be mean for once. He was just stating facts.

Shoyo sputtered. "That- that was something else entirely!" Then he hung his head a little. "Kinda," he whispered, clenching his jaw as his cheeks heated.

"Man, what is up with people and having fights in the storage room?" Sugawara inquired, appearing from behind Kageyama. "Can you guys do this outside, maybe? I don't want another broken mop."

"What? We aren't fighting," said Kageyama, looking genuinely confused at Suga's question. Shoyo hmphed. It sure seemed like he was picking a fight.

Suga didn't look convinced either. But he pretended he was and patted Kageyama's shoulder like he was comforting him. "Sure. Whatever it is you two are doing in here, wrap it up. Daichi's locking up soon anyway."

Shoyo and Kageyama nodded. That satisfied the third year enough and he soon left. Then it was just the two of them left alone.

Shoyo took this as his golden opportunity. He grabbed a fistful of Kageyama's shirt and yanked him down to his level to murmur into his ear. "I've been thinking about our competition. I think... we should give it a shot."

Kageyama was silent for an agonising five seconds. Then he stood up and gave Shoyo the judgiest look in existence. "No." His ears were pink again. Shoyo couldn't remember the last time they weren't.

He should have seen that coming. God damn it, he knew he should have pounced. Now he was all jittery and embarrassed and second guessing himself.

"Dude, don't be like that! I've seriously been considering it; it's the only feasible option!"

"No way. There has to be something else! If this is what you've been thinking so deeply about, surely you came up with a better plan!" Kageyama turned his body like he was about to storm off.

Shoyo slapped his arm and made him whirl around to face him. "I'm telling you there isn't," he insisted.

The sound of Kageyama's heavy breathing filled the room, and Shoyo watched with fascination as the colour from his ears slowly transferred to his face. He made an audible swallow and tensed like he was about to go face to face with Ushiwaka again. "Then—then what? Are we seriously going to k-kiss?"

Oh. Oh, wow. Shoyo had never seen Kageyama so visibly nervous! Shoyo put a hand over his racing heart. He was... kinda looking forward to it, beyond tying with him.

"Hey, firsties!" Tanaka hollered. "Get your scrawny asses out here or Daichi's gonna get pissed!"

Shoyo shrieked and bolted out of the storage room, his entire body trembling and on fire. What the hell had he been thinking? That he was excited for it to happen? Oh, man, he hoped it hadn't been evident on his face.

Thursday, Sept 13—The incident

Shoyo had cooled down a bit by the time he was all finished changing. He had a clear head now, and there was no way he was going to let this go. Not when he had gotten so close to his goal.

"Kageyama," he called at last, his voice ringing across the room.

Kageyama's sharp intake of breath was heard. His body tensed like he was bracing himself, but he didn't turn around. "What?" he muttered, sounding as angry as usual.

"You scared?" Shoyo teased, grinning ear to ear. If it were anyone else, he would have been just as nervous as the King. Maybe even more. But it was just Kageyama. "You a Scaredy-yama now?"

Ennoshita gave Shoyo a warning look. "You two better not be about to do something stupid."

"It's not stupid," Shoyo shot back.

That of all things got Kageyama to whip around. "It's incredibly stupid, you moron!" he practically spat. "Seriously, is this all that's going on inside your tiny brain now? Aren't there better things for you to dwell on?" he demanded, his entire face contorting into something ugly and mean looking.

Shoyo brought a hand to his mouth and snorted. "Oh my, Yamayama. You are scared!"

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

Off to the side, Asahi buried his face in his hands. "They're definitely about to do something stupid."

--

Shoyo didn’t leave with the others. He pretended to fumble with his shoelaces, pulling at the knots and tying them again three separate times just to have something to do while the sound of chatter slowly dwindled from the club room.

One by one, the team drifted out, their voices fading down the walkway until it was only him and Kageyama, tension humming thick and heavy in the air.

Shoyo tapped his foot. Hummed under his breath. Picked at a loose thread on his bag then emptied it just to put all of the stuff back in. Anything to keep his hands busy, because his chest was starting to feel tight for reasons he didn’t understand.

"Are we really gonna, you know, kiss?"

Shoyo seemed to remember Kageyama asking that exact question, like, twenty minutes prior.

He straightened up and stood toe to toe with Kageyama. "Seriously, what's got you so worried? It's just me!" He waved his hand in front of his face enthusiastically. "Hinata, remember? We're just settling the score."

He may be being a tad bit of a hypocrite since he was also nervous. But he was used to feeling nervous, it was a part of his daily routine. He wasn't used to the giddiness or adrenaline alongside it, but it was relatively easy to ignore in favour of challenging Kageyama.

"Barely. This seems..." Kageyama trailed off, chewing his bottom lip. "Like a bit of a reach compared to our usual competitions."

Shoyo's jaw dropped. "I don't believe my ears! Kageyama is wimping out on me!" Was he missing something? It was just a smooch!

"I am not!" Kageyama snapped at him, pushing forward and leaning down until their chests were touching.

Shoyo realised they were both breathing pretty heavily. He felt like he was in a match, high on adrenaline and not entirely aware of his own body. His palms were a little sweaty and his vision was kinda blurry. Was that normal?

"I want you to be absolutely certain you want to do this. With me." Kageyama's pupils were so dilated they swallowed his blue eyes completely.

Shoyo gaped at him. "It’s just a kiss. Jeez, talk about dra—whoa-ho-ho!" He didn’t get to finish his sentence. Kageyama grabbed the back of his head and yanked him forward.

Their faces smashed together, their noses and lips crashing painfully. There were no sparks flying like in movies, no fireworks going or intense music flowing into their ears. It was real, and it was intense.

Shoyo had been pulled onto his tippy toes, straining in his attempt to keep himself as such. Kageyama was making weird sounds in the back of his throat for the whole six seconds they stayed like that. Then he pulled away just as aggressively as he had dived in.

"There," he said, his cheeks and eyes alight. He sounded victorious, his voice cocky in the same way it was whenever they finally nailed down a new move.

Shoyo now understood why Kageyama had been so against kissing. He was having terrible aftereffects.

His chest was aching from how many emotions were swirling around in his head, working his heart overtime. His breaths were coming out as squeaking wheezes, the shock taking his lungs hostage.

Holy shit.

Holy shit! He and Kageyama actually did it! Shoyo had been wanting it, yes, but there was always that doubt that it wouldn't really happen. But it had, and it was as amazing as it was terrible.

"Dude," he breathed. He felt a little lightheaded. "What... the hell was that?! That wasn't a kiss!"

Kageyama's mouth popped open. Shoyo stared at his mouth without any shame now. "Huh? What do you mean? Yes it was, our lips touched!"

Shoyo laughed, feeling a little crazed from all of the adrenaline. "That was an attack, idiot. You just faceplanted onto me! Kissing is way more than just lips touching, they have to connect!" He pressed the back of his hands to his cheeks in an attempt to cool them.

"Th-they did connect!" Kageyama insisted. He took a couple of steps back and his wide-eyed gaze kept falling back onto Shoyo's lips. Hah.

"God, haven't you ever watched a movie?! You aren’t ‘spossed to slam into each other."

His mouth opened and closed a few more times. He ran a visibly trembling hand down his face and his breathing wasn't any better than Shoyo's. "I've never seen a movie with kissing in it," he bit out.

Shoyo covered his mouth. "You poor thing."

He could tell Kageyama was just as flustered as him. But Kageyama was famous for how poorly he handled his emotions. He was probably thinking it was the end of the world. Shoyo thought it was just the beginning of his.

"Shut up!" Kageyama threw his bag over his shoulder and stomped out just as Daichi came around the corner to lock up.

The captain stared down the walkway for a short while, then he turned to Shoyo. "Is everything okay? He seemed... hang on, you're red faced too. What did you do? You didn't fight again, did you?"

Shoyo grinned so widely that his cheeks ached. He let out a breathless laugh and threw his own bag over his shoulder. "Everything's great."

He was no longer a kissless man! Was that a word? Oh, whatever.

Friday, Sept 14—One day after the incident

Shoyo had been in an amazing mood all day.

After he and Kageyama shared their aggressive kiss—well, 'kiss' might’ve been generous, since it had been more of a facial collision, but Shoyo had decided it counted, damn it. No takebacks.

He was getting distracted. Anyway, he’d been so lost in thought on the way home afterward that he nearly collided with three separate light poles, swerving at the last second with no grace at all and infinite gratitude no one was around to see.

And then, when he finally reached home, everything really hit him.

If he’d been giddy before it happened, he was downright floored after. He kissed someone. Him. Shoyo Hinata. His heart had started pounding all over again, his hands sweaty like he was lining up for a match.

The memory played in loops: Kageyama yanking him close, their lips and noses smashing together, both of them gasping afterward. Kageyama’s face—oh, that dumbfounded face, red as a stoplight, eyes wide with something Shoyo couldn’t even name.

Shoyo thought over every last detail until his brain was practically vibrating.

Natsu had banged on his door at least five times that night, telling him to shut up his screaming, but how could he?

That same ecstatic feeling had carried him all the way through the next day.

He stayed awake in every class despite basically pulling an all-nighter, ate double his usual amount at lunch and still raided the vending machines with some of his friend's money, and at practice he even managed to spike one past Noya—something that made him whoop with triumph.

Had he been able to look Kageyama in the eye, though?

Nope. Not once.

But that was normal, right? According to a magazine he’d read early that morning at Coach's shop, everyone got a little weird after their first kiss. So it made sense.

Tanaka, Yachi, Noya, even Coach had hyped him up during training, claiming his enthusiasm was leaking and encouraging everyone else to get just as excited. Shoyo had soaked up the praise like a sponge, grinning ear to ear.

Kageyama, meanwhile, acted like his usual self, which was unreal, unfair, but not totally unexpected since he was usually a cool cucumber when he wasn't yelling his head off.

Except Shoyo had caught him spacing out a couple of times. And once, Kageyama had thrown him a glare that looked nasty at first. Suga had nudged Shoyo, who was just about ready to say something, and whispered that it looked more baffled than angry. Like Kageyama wasn’t sure what to do with himself.

Shoyo, of course, figured he’d get over it soon enough. After all, Shoyo had gotten over it pretty quickly, so why wouldn’t Kageyama? So he went on about his day, beaming the entire time.

--

He hummed a soft tune as he started to climb the stairs toward the club room. The very same one he had kissed Kageyama in. His heart still raced thinking about it.

"Hey."

Shoyo jolted and whipped around towards the voice. Kageyama was staring at him with an indescribable expression. He looked almost constipated. "What?" he demanded. Then he gasped and put his karate hands in front of him. "You wanna fight?!"

Kageyama pressed his lips into a thin line. "Don't yell so loudly. We may be the last ones here, but I don't want anyone turning around and coming back because your dumbass doesn't know how to be quiet."

Oh, yeah. That was another thing. The captain gave Shoyo the spare keys to the club room because they were always the last ones there. Every day without fail, he and Kageyama waited until the last possible minute to pack up.

Sometimes they stayed way later than they ever should and ended up having to change in the gym. Daichi found out and gave them the keys after yelling at them both.

"I can be quiet," Shoyo huffed, trying desperately not to pout too obviously. "Hurry up and tell me what you want, Crappy-yama."

Kageyama balled his fists and hung his head. There was a faint hissing sound that coming from him, but he was too far away for Shoyo to hear what it meant.

He walked down a couple of steps and placed his hand around his ear teasingly. "Huhhhh? Speak up, I can't hear you," he sang, grinning ear to ear.

Kageyama flinched a little and Shoyo stopped his pose. He could see Kageyama's teeth grinding. "—et better."

"What? Seriously, why are you being so quiet? This isn't like you at all."

His head snapped up and he stomped one of his feet. "I said help me get better, damn it!"

Shoyo's eyes widened at the same time Kageyama's did. They stared at each other in tense silence for a few moments. Kageyama's words echoed slightly and he got a little redder with each passing second that he didn't get a reply.

Shoyo squinted and tried his best to assess the situation. Kageyama's fists were shaking from how hard they were clenching, his cheeks were a bright red, and he quickly looked away.

Wait.

Wait wait wait wait, it wasn't what he thought it was, right?

"Get better," Shoyo repeated slowly, tasting the words experimentally. He wasn't entirely sure he heard him correctly. His cheeks puffed out and his whole face went scorching hot. Oh god. "Get better," he repeated a little louder.

Kageyama shuffled awkwardly on the spot. He clutched the strap of his bag so tightly his fingers were white. The other hand remained clenched at his side. "Yes," he muttered. His eyes were so intense Shoyo thought he might evaporate.

"At what? Volleyball?" he asked, just to be sure. "We have that training camp coming up, if you're so desperate you can get better there."

"No you idiot, at... at..." Kageyama's hands fwooshed around like he was trying to catch the right words to say. "At that. You know what I mean, Hinata!"

Shoyo shuffled from foot to foot. "You mean kissing? Smooching? Chu? Mwah?" His words came out in rapid fire, his brain unable to keep up with his mouth. "You want me to help you get better at kissing?!"

Kageyama jolted, then dashed up the stairs faster than Shoyo had ever seen him. He slapped a clammy hand right over his mouth. "Shut up, you moron," he hissed. His head whipped in every direction like he was expecting someone to pop out. "Don't yell it!"

Oh, wow, Shoyo had heard correctly. He wasn't certain he hadn't teleported into another dimension. Kageyama asking such a favour of him would have never in a million years crossed Shoyo's mind as a possibility.

"Don't look at me like that!" Kageyama snapped, yanking his hand away.

Shoyo sputtered. "This is just my face, you stupid piece of crap!"

"No, it is not! Your eyes got all—all sparkly and shit! Quit it!"

All sparkly and shit?! What the hell was that supposed to mean? Shoyo huffed in disbelief and crossed his arms. "You want me to let you borrow my mouth—,"

"For the love of god, do not say it like that."

"—and you say my eyes are shitty? Man, you're totally hopeless."

Kageyama groaned in irritation. His face was a little less pink now, which was almost disappointing. A flustered Kageyama was fun to look at. "You're the one that said it was bad, and it's not like there's anyone else that can help me! Besides, don't you want the extra experience?"

Shoyo frowned. He closed his eyes and thought about it for a moment.

He had a feeling that if he declined, not only would he get his ass kicked, but he might even regret saying 'no' later.

If he agreed, he would get to have his second, maybe even third kiss. He would get his experience up, too. That meant if he ever dated someone, he wouldn't act like a total loser and mess up. But then again, he would have to kiss Stupid-yama. He might even lose a few teeth in the process considering how aggressive the big idiot was.

But... man, the thought of kissing that big idiot had Shoyo's heart racing in excitement. He couldn't find it in him decline, which was a lot less embarrassing that it should have been.

"Alright," Shoyo decided. "I guess I can help you out, Kageyama. You really should be thankf—ouch! Okay, okay! Ow, cut it out!"

Kageyama grabbed Shoyo's face with one hand and squeezed with brutal strength. Then he lifted him up like he weighed nothing and had him squirming in the air like a child. "Watch your tone, shrimp." His voice was low in clear warning, and Shoyo realised that was Kageyama's version of mercy.

Shoyo flailed. "Put me down, you brute!" When Kageyama finally set him down after a few agonising seconds, Shoyo gasped for air, wheezing. "Seriously, you’re gonna kill me one of these days."

"What was that?"

"Nothing, you're hearing things."

Kissing practice. With Kageyama of all people. Not for their competition, but to get better. He wasn't exactly sure what that meant, but he didn't care all that much.

Shoyo couldn't get changed fast enough. It didn't help that Kageyama kept kicking his ass—literally—for the 'stupidly smug' grin on his face.

--

Shoyo let out a shaky exhale as he and Kageyama made their way down from the club room. His feet moved mechanically, his brain too occupied trying to figure out how he was going to survive what he was about to do.

Would he use tongue? No, that was a stupid idea. He barely had any idea how to kiss normally, let alone with an extra muscle involved. Would he embrace his friend? Well, that seemed pretty logical. At least he thought it did.

He wasn’t sure if he was excited or about to puke.

Shoyo flinched when Kageyama grabbed him by his sleeve and hauled him in the opposite direction of where he was planning to go. When he led him to behind the club room building, Shoyo realised they were going to be doing it much sooner than he mentally prepared himself for.

He had assumed they were going to one of their houses or something. Guess not.

"Okay," Kageyama said. He stopped walking and let go of Shoyo. "What happens now?"

Shoyo shuffled on the spot. He pursed his lips, trying hard not to make it obvious he was looking at Kageyama's, and set his bag down. Kageyama did the same. "Have you really never seen someone kiss before?"

Kageyama glared. "I've walked past people kissing," he muttered. "It's not like I'm gonna stare." Shoyo rolled his neck and bounced on his feet with a grin. "Whoa, hang on, why are you prepping like that?"

"Hm? Because I have a lot of energy right now. You know how I get, I can't stop moving when I get hyped. Every nerve is zooming around right now."

Kageyama stared at him disdainfully. "Why are you excited for this?"

Shoyo rolled his eyes. "I'm not, I'm just high spirited. And quit the tough guy act, Yamayama." He laughed as he dodged Kageyama's attempt to grab his hair. "Your ears get red whenever you're flustered. I can tell you're nervous."

Kageyama sputtered and put his hands over his ears like a child trying to block out a lecture. "I-I do not! And I'm not!"

Shoyo snorted. "Then why are you covering your ears? Seriously, dude. It's just me, it's not like anything bad's gonna happen."

"You know what? You're really starting to piss me off." Shoyo gaped, but Kageyama put up a silencing hand to stop him from retorting. "Why the hell are you so calm about this? I thought for sure you would freak out at least once. It's your whole thing."

He thought about it for a moment. "Do I have a reason to? I mean yeah, it's nerve racking. But it's just me and you, why should I get embarrassed or scared? Maybe I would be if you were someone else. But you've seen me butt naked at every training camp. Nothing worse than that."

He had also seen Kageyama butt naked, but he had forbidden himself from ever staring or trying to recall any details.

"I guess, but bathing and making out are different."

Shoyo shook his head and grinned at him. "How many times do I have to say, 'it's just us'? Unless..." He put a hand in front of his mouth scandalously. "Kageyama's flustered because it's me?" he teased, laughing through his words.

"What?! Don't be an idiot!"

Shoyo huffed and put his hands on his hips. "Then man up already! Jeez, I've never heard you whine like such a wimp before."

Kageyama clenched his jaw and bared his teeth. Shoyo shuffled back until he felt like he was out of the danger zone of getting hit. "I don't know how to do this," he spat.

"Yes, we've established you're a clueless dummy." Shoyo warily walked back in front of Kageyama, who leaned back like he was the one in danger. "We've gotta figure this out before anything else. First, you have to come closer. My lips don't stretch that far."

His heart stuttered a little when Kageyama actually listened. He stepped forward, close enough that their chests were nearly touching. Shoyo hadn't really gotten a look at his face last time they kissed, but there was a light post right next to them, so his face was illuminated even in the late evening.

Kageyama looked pretty. His eyes were still in slits, like they were every time he scowled, but the blue seemed more prominent for some reason. His good looks were just unfair against normal people.

Shoyo swallowed.

He had seen this in movies plenty of times. The lead character would lean in, all smooth and confident, and the other person would melt right into their arms. Easy. Simple. Totally natural.

Okay. I’ve got this.

With a surge of recklessness, he wrapped his arms around Kageyama’s neck. He had to step onto his toes to do so given their height difference. Shoyo could smell Kageyama's cologne from how close he was, prominent and overwhelming in his nose.

Kageyama froze completely, his face muscles doing something strange.

Shoyo thought it was pretty funny how he visibly struggled trying to figure out what happened next. He had to bite down hard on the inside of his cheek to stop himself from bursting out laughing. The King of the Court, the same guy who could bark orders with the deadliest glare, was standing there helpless.

"Um, just, put your arms around my waist. Or your hands, it doesn't really matter which."

Kageyama let out a tiny groan, his eyes flicking between Shoyo’s mouth and his own twitching fingers. "Do I have to?" His voice cracked like he was in middle school again.

Shoyo shot him a look. "What, you want me to topple over?"

"...No." Despite his hesitance, Kageyama managed to do it like a normal human. His hands wrapped around Shoyo's waist, his fingers twitching and slightly tickling him.

"Oh, wow." They were a lot bigger than he had realised, and they nearly swallowed Shoyo's waist. It was a weirdly comfy position. "I'm leading this time. And you're not allowed to rush me, Stinky-yama."

Kageyama gave him a look that probably translated into something like 'what the hell are you talking about,' but Shoyo decided to ignore that.

He was acting pretty confident considering he didn’t actually know how to kiss, he knew that, he was just copying what he had seen on TV. But he couldn’t help it. Usually, on the court, he was the one freaking out over every little mistake while Kageyama remained perfectly stoic.

He'd gotten better ever since he trained with the old Ukai a couple weeks back, but he still slipped up every now and then.

He was a little glad the roles had reversed. He knew that Kageyama would not be anxious, his fate in Shoyo's hands for once, like this ever again. Seriously, Shoyo could tell him to jump and he'd ask how high. This was a once in a lifetime occurrence and he wasn’t going to let it go to waste.

Shoyo took a deep breath, staring deeply into Kageyama's wide eyes. Then he closed his eyes, pursed his lips the slightest bit, and leaned in.

He gently pressed his mouth against Kageyama's for a brief moment, then pulled away. The sound their lips made when he moved back echoed in his ears.

His heart continued race, but it felt different now. He felt the same way he did whenever he landed a perfect spike, the same way he had when he and Kageyama had finally perfected that new quick attack of theirs.

He felt alive. He felt better than alive! He wanted to feel that again. He wanted to feel it all the time.

Fuelled by that fierce want, Shoyo dove back in and tried his hardest to do exactly as he'd seen in the movies.

He closed his eyes and stretched on his toes even more to perfectly align his top lip between Kageyama's, his jaw slightly hung so his bottom fit under. Then he closed his mouth, kneading their lips together, and repeated the action.

The sound it made had him a little lightheaded. But he quickly realised he was doing all of the work and pulled back.

Shoyo hesitantly opened his eyes and gasped. He reeled back a little in shock when he was met by shining, blue eyes. But Kageyama's hands kept him in place, so he couldn't move far even if he tried.

Kageyama’s face was blazing red and his ears were practically glowing. His mouth was parted just slightly, and the tiniest bit of moisture caught the light. Being so good looking had to be punishable by law. No way he was just allowed to be in public. It was unfair!

Shoyo squawked and smacked his shoulder as hard as he could. "You didn't close your eyes?! Dude!"

Kageyama's eyebrows shot up, then all the way down just as quickly in confusion. "Wait, am I supposed to?"

"That's like the first rule to kissing!"

"Then you should have said so, dumbass!"

Shoyo slapped a hand over his face. Sometimes he wondered if Kageyama had been dropped on his head as a kid. "It’s common knowledge! And for the record, kissing involves two people, not one person and a statue, idiot."

Kageyama flinched like he’d just been called out by Coach, his grip on Shoyo’s waist tightening. Shoyo froze for half a second, startled by the heat of his hands, before forcing his grin back.

Whoa. This was actually amazing. For once, he was the one in charge. Kageyama—the guy who never bent for anyone but his upperclassmen—was floundering in the dark, and Shoyo was the one holding the torch. He felt powerful.

"Come on, let’s go again properly this time!" Shoyo challenged, bouncing on his feet despite still being in Kageyama’s hold. He rewrapped himself around his neck. "Didn’t you say you wanted my help? This is a two-man job!"

Kageyama gritted his teeth. "Alright, fine. Settle down, would you?"

Shoyo could hear his own heartbeat pounding in his ears, loud as a drum. His grin wavered into something smaller but still determined. This time, when he leaned in, Kageyama did too. He didn't have to go onto his tippy toes this time, as they met in the middle.

Their lips connected again, faster and more confidently this time. Shoyo pressed, then drew back just enough to try again, repeating the gentle movement.

Then finally, finally, he felt Kageyama respond. It had the same vibe as a kid trying hard to copy someone else's drawing. But at least he wasn't frozen anymore.

It was a strange sensation, having soft, moving lips responding to his. But Shoyo found himself smiling into it.

They kept going with their little movements and little nudges. Shoyo’s nerves were on fire, every inch of him alive and buzzing, but he couldn’t stop. Eventually though, he recognised if he didn't stop, they were going to be there way too long.

When Shoyo pulled back, he was breathless. He could tell Kageyama was too, and that really only made it worse. "Alright," he said. "That’s enough for today. Mum would want me home by now."

"Right."

Kageyama released Shoyo, and he was weirded out by how quickly his stomach got cold. He unravelled himself from Kageyama’s neck at the same time. He tried to calm his breathing as he picked up his bag and threw it over his shoulder. His hands were sweating and he fumbled to wipe them off.

He wasn’t sure if he liked the fuzzy feeling in his chest or not. It kinda bugged him, but he wanted to welcome it for some reason.

Shoyo coughed, grumbled goodbye, and dashed away. He couldn’t look Kageyama in the eyes at the moment.

"Hey—wait, you little moron!"

He skidded to a stop right as he was about to turn the corner. Shoyo swallowed and turned around slowly, wondering briefly if he was about to be hit.

Kageyama was in a bracing position like he was about to get lectured by Daichi. Shoyo tilted his head in confusion and gestured for him to go on. "Are we going to keep going?" he asked in a raised voice. He was being loud for someone that had been shooshing Shoyo earlier.

"With what?"

Kageyama gave him a condescending look of disbelief. "With-with this! Are we going to keep going until we get good enough for others?"

Shoyo’s stomach lurched and he slapped a hand over his chest. "Right, others," he muttered resentfully. He clutched the strap of his bag and shook his head. He needed to stop being stupid. He looked Kageyama in the eye with a grin. "Ohh, I see how it is. Look who keeps talking about kissing now! You gonna get distracted, Kageyama?"

Kageyama scoffed, his lips pursing. "Yeah, right. Why the hell would I?"

"Then I suppose we might as well!"

He nodded tensely. "Okay then."

Monday, Sept 17—Six days after the incident

So, as it turned out, Shoyo found a lot more joy in him and Kageyama’s little arrangement far more than he would have ever predicted.

For one, sneaking around before and after school to find a spot felt like playing an extreme version of hide-and-seek, where the loser got detention. The rush of the adrenaline made him giddy every time.

Not to mention Kageyama had finally gotten the hang of it. It took their fourth kiss for him to actually relax into it, and ever since that had happened, Shoyo was hooked.

He could tell they were getting a lot better, mostly because they were learning to breathe while it happened and it wasn’t just a mess of pressing lips together anymore. They were finding their rhythm.

Two days after that first kiss, Shoyo had even worked up the nerve to invite Kageyama over. They just watched movies the whole time, including one with a kiss scene Shoyo bullied him into watching, and did spike-receives with Natsu in the yard. It was stupidly normal, but Shoyo liked it.

It’d been the first time they were there alone, without the other first years, and not for studying.

Kageyama left after dinner, and Shoyo had admittedly been a little disappointed. Natsu had been equally bummed out and demanded to know when he was coming back. Shoyo had an answer for her soon enough when Kageyama messaged him asking if it was okay for him to visit the next day.

Shoyo had also gone over to Kageyama’s since then, at least three times. He even popped by in the early morning once, just because why not?

It had been a little awkward at first because of how silent his house was, as his parents worked from early morning to late night. Shoyo only got to meet his mother once, but she was nice to him.

Meanwhile Shoyo’s mum loved having Kageyama over. Something about how polite he was? Shoyo didn’t see it. Kageyama just seemed like an awkward mess trying to not screw anything over, but he might have been a little prejudiced.

Other than that, things between them looked the same. They still raced to school if they were both on time, and more often than not they ended up walking at least halfway home together. The only thing that had changed was that sometimes, they never parted ways.

They hadn't gotten to the overnight stage, at least not when they were alone, but that was perfectly fine with Shoyo. It wasn't like they were dating, so he wasn't allowed to be upset at it.

So, colour him absolutely flabbergasted when that evening on their walk over to Kageyama's house, Shoyo felt him grab his hand and squeeze.

Shoyo's feet stopped mid-step and he nearly tripped over himself. He looked down at his hand, completely enveloped by Kageyama's, then up at said Kageyama, who had his face turned in the opposite direction.

"Uh... can I help you?" Shoyo asked, feeling like he was the butt of some joke. He wriggled their hands around in emphasis.

"Don't think too hard on it, you'll burst your brain." Kageyama sounded a little tense, and he turned his face away even more when Shoyo squawked in offense. "I just... I felt like it. It's not a big deal."

Shoyo would beg to freaking differ. "What's going on? Why are you holding me hostage?" He gasped and tried to leap away but alas, his hand was still in someone else's too firm grip. "Are you gonna kill me? Come at me then!" He put his free hand up in a fist.

Kageyama whipped around then, his whole face screwed up, red in embarrassment and anger. Whoops. "Would you stop it with that?! Just-just think of it like more practise, okay? It's just us, remember? Don't get weird!"

Shoyo's whole face caught fire. "This is totally different! This isn't harmless mouth touching, this is hand holding!" He jiggled their hands again. "This is, like, so much chummier and familiar!"

"Its just harmless hand touching, idiot! Stop trying to read into things, everyone knows you're borderline illiterate."

Tsukishima had taught them what borderline meant, but to be honest, Shoyo had forgotten. But he knew from Kageyama's tone of voice it wasn't anything nice. "Okay, then why my hand? There are other people's!"

"Because we're already making out every day." Kageyama waved his free hand around like he was trying to summon Shoyo's understanding. It wasn't working. "Oh, for fuck—I don't know why you or right now. I just know I wanted to do it, and since you were so chill about kissing, I figured this was fine!"

Shoyo look a long, silent while to process that. "So, since we're comfortable kissing, you think we should practice holding hands like we're in elementary school?" He snorted into his palm.

"Big talk for someone who hasn't tried to leave," Kageyama huffed.

Shoyo froze. His hand twitched. He could pull away, just to prove a point. But he didn’t. "Big talk for someone who doesn't even know why he wants to hold hands with me."

"Oh, whatever. Let's just go. And hurry it up, at this rate we'll be getting there later than my parents."

"You know it's gonna be slower now that I only have one hand to drag my bike, right? Also, you're not even holding my hand. You're just grabbing it."

Kageyama paused and gave him a sideways glance, his ears bright red. "...I don't know the proper way."

Shoyo gaped at him. Maybe it wasn't such a bad idea to hold hands once and a while considering Shoyo had to teach Kageyama how to lace fingers with someone.

That being said, Shoyo knew that Kageyama wasn't used to physical touch. His parents were never home and his older sister was moved out. He also never voluntarily touched other people.

Or, he never used to.

Recently Kageyama had started to respond to Tanaka and Nishinoya's high fives like a normal human, and he didn't shy away from claps on the back anymore. He didn't seem to mind their team giving him playful punches or nudges either. He even participated in a group hug not too long ago instead of just standing there.

But when it came down to him and Kageyama... well, Shoyo had always been a bit of an exception, even before the jerk turned into a team player.

He could shove him, yank at his sleeve, smack his shoulder, hang off his back whenever he was hiding from someone, and Kageyama never really shut him down. Not to say he was ever ignored, he usually got hit back twice as hard, but he still mostly got away with it.

Kageyama also initiated it just as often as Shoyo, yanking him by his shirt and throwing him around, smacking the back of his head, gripping his hair, flicking his forehead.

So to say their touch was usually violent. But recently, it had evolved into something a little different. Over the past week, Shoyo had noticed that they brushed against each other a lot.

Sometimes during lunch, their knees or elbows touched. Kageyama's hands also lingered a little while longer whenever he grabbed his hair in anger. Yesterday when Shoyo passed Kageyama his water bottle, Kageyama's fingers had wrapped around his as he grabbed it.

Clearly, Kageyama had been getting more into physical touch than anyone realised. July-Kageyama wasn't used to physical touch. But apparently September-Kageyama leaned into it.

It was a strange thing to think about. But it also wasn't some mystery Shoyo felt like diving into.

Honestly, there was a pretty big chance Shoyo really was reading into things. And like Kageyama warned, all that thinking was starting to give him a headache.

Besides, Kageyama was right about how they'd been kissing, so what was a little hand holding? And, well, if they did so on their walk home every day after school after that, that was their business. After all, practice made perfect.