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Ever since Kourai made the JPN National team, Sachirou's gotten pretty used to the Haneda Airport.
The coffee's excellent, the observation deck is always fun, and the little teahouse in Edo Koji at terminal 3 has put up with him overstaying his welcome more times than he can count. At least he's not always alone—Akaashi Keiji often meets him for tea while they wait, and they laugh over his boyfriend having the same name as Sachirou's dog. It's nice, for both of them, being able to say 'boyfriend' so easily, to just exist in a space where that's okay.
He doesn't have to meet Kourai at the terminal, and sometimes, he can't. Veterinary work can be unpredictable at times, and some days—especially around the holidays—he just can't get away. Not when he's constantly fielding 'cat got into the KFC party bucket bones' or 'dog expelling tinsel from both ends'. At least, from his experience, nationals trips are usually later in the season.
No, this time, Kourai's flying back on New Year's Eve for an entirely different reason.
It would be nice if he'd actually told Sachirou what the reason was. It's not like he doesn't trust him, Kourai's made it abundantly and excruciatingly clear that Sachirou's the only one he'll ever like, let alone love, but… he probably wants it to be a surprise. He loves surprises, loves getting them, but far and above more he likes to give them.
Sachirou tries to be patient. On Christmas Eve, he gets called back to the clinic right as he unlocks his door, one of their overnight patients took a turn for the worse. The next day, he's working as usual, but ends up staying two hours late because his replacement calls out, her kid has a fever. Rinse and repeat, all week long.
He's exhausted. He misses his partner. He did promise he'd be back for New Year's, but not soon enough for the party the day before, the one his parents throw every year. That, he's fine with missing. He loves his family, but… they sure are a handful.
"Sa-chi-rou!" his sister crows, already tipsy and giggly from what he can see on the screen of his phone. At least the signal's decent at Haneda. "Where are youuu? Where's Kourai??"
He's explained this at least three times already. "He's on a plane, neesan. I'm picking him up from the airport. Please drink plenty of water."
Sachirou checks his watch. This, too, was a gift from his boyfriend, an international watch that tracked timezones across the globe all in one. It was definitely neat, though he couldn't exactly wear it at work—too much danger of it getting peed on. Or worse.
No delays have been announced. The flight's still an hour out. He's just early, and anxious.
Fukurou takes the phone out of his sister's hands. "You still have no idea what he's up to?" he asks, and there's just the hint of a smirk on his face that Sachirou only picks up from years of being his baby brother.
"Yeah… hang on, you know where he went??"
Busted. Fukurou tries to hand the phone back, and the screen blurs and shakes as the siblings shove each other back and forth.
Sachirou props his chin on his hand. So, if Fukurou knew… it was definitely something volleyball-related. Not a hard guess, given that Kourai really only cared about two things in this world. But it was right in the middle of the V-league, so what—
Wait. No. He wasn't trying to guess, he was going to let Kourai surprise him.
He could count on one hand the number of times he'd actually been able to do so. He'd known Kourai was going to ask him out… probably before he'd even made the decision to, he hadn't been subtle about his crush in any way. At graduation, he'd made a big show of revealing his offer letter from the Adlers, but Sachirou had already heard from his brother and been sworn to secrecy about it. Fukurou was a snitch, really, so Sachirou knew first about Kourai making the starting lineup, the National team, qualifying for Tokyo… that was all Fukurou's fault.
But even the little things. Presents, trips, dinner dates… it wasn't that Kourai was bad at keeping secrets, Sachirou just knew him so well. How could he not? They've been attached at the hip since middle school, and he wouldn't have it any other way.
The last real surprise he'd had… well, it wasn't a good one. No vet wants to have their receptionist barge into the office, only to say… "Hoshiumi-senshou's bringing Koutarou in," in that voice. He knew Koutarou was getting old, they both did, and at the very least, he'd chosen a time that they could both be there for.
It gave him more free time to wait around in airports, he supposes.
So no, he's not going to think this to death. Kourai wouldn't do this to him, wouldn't disappear over the holidays if it wasn't for a good reason, and he's made it this far without any idea. He's not going to—
"Do you know what flight he's coming in on?" Fukurou asks, still with that laugh in his voice.
"Nope." Sachirou's own voice stays steady, faking disinterest. "I said I'd be waiting at the restaurant in Edo Koji. He knows the one."
"Right, right." The look on Fukurou's face is… hard to describe. "I dunno if that's… you know what, never mind," and he cuts himself off. "Happy New Year, little brother."
"We're still going to the temple tomorrow, aren't we?" Sachirou points out. Their parents' house in Nagano is only a three hour drive away; he hadn't been planning on sleeping, just reuniting with his partner and heading out.
"Uh… yeah," Fukurou says, entirely unconvincingly. "Totally. See you then."
See, this was why Kourai could never fucking surprise him. Fukurou was the worst liar.
Sachirou narrows his eyes. "…Right. See you then."
✈️
He checks the flight schedules. He promised he wouldn't, but the more he tries to focus on his book the harder it is to avoid curiosity. What did Fukurou even mean? What reason would they have to not spend New Year's with family?
There are a handful of flights arriving around the time Kourai said. Bangkok, Paris, Shanghai, Rome… it didn't really narrow things down at all.
Well. He knew at least two of those cities had volleyball teams.
Was Kourai thinking of playing overseas? That would be… well, he'd be happy for him, of course. He knows Kourai misses Kageyama and Ushijima; playing with them in the VNL wasn't the same as being part of the same local club. Kageyama was signed with Ali Roma for another year, and Ushijima was moving to Paris Volley, so…
He braces himself already. He will be happy for his boyfriend. He will. He must. He has to be. They'd be apart… basically the whole season, but it would be fine. Either Kourai would hate it overseas and come home, or he'd love it, and Sachirou would start looking at what he'd need to do to practice vet medicine in a new country.
(I don't want to leave, he thinks, in the tiniest corner of his brain that he crushes down ruthlessly.)
He will be happy for him. He will.
✈️
Kōrai 🌟🌊
— ur at the restaurant right?
— we just touched down
— cant wait to see you im so excited
As always, just seeing that text box light up brings a smile to Sachirou's face.
— Can't wait to see you, too.
— You could always tell me what flight, and I'll meet you?
He's not expecting much. Kourai had been cagey as hell about this whole trip, but…
— yea ok
— ca6671
Sachirou scrambles to his feet, tossing the empty coffee cup and crumpled receipt. He heads for the gate, not running, but putting his long legs to use for sure.
He checks the flight schedule again. CA… 6671…
…Shanghai?
Okay, that was. Not what he expected. Of course, it could just be a connecting flight, there were a million places he could have come from, really, and if he—
Sachirou stops at the meet and greet, only a little out of breath. He may not be an athlete anymore, but he's on his feet all day. A little airport power-walking shouldn't be too bad. His height puts him at a great vantage point, and he's used to this, hunting for Kourai's bright white hair in the crowd. Usually, though, it's Gao and Hyakuzawa that stick out first, or any number of the ludicrously tall team members that Kourai might be flying with.
So, you can forgive him if he misses it at first. If he's lowkey waiting for Bokuto's loud voice or Hinata's orange mop bouncing up over everyone as he jumps.
But when he looks back down, he's suddenly face to face with Kourai's soft white hair, big, gold-green eyes, and his custom cloud-print facemask.
He sees none of it. All he sees, in fact, is the squirming bundle of white fluff he's got in his arms, two little black eyes and a big wet nose.
A puppy. Kourai's got a puppy.
"Surprise," he says, taking one of its paws and waving with it. "Say hi to your other papa, baby girl."
Her tongue lolls out of her mouth and tail starts to wag.
Sachirou wouldn't say he's an… emotive sort of person. Even during his occasional breakdowns, he rarely cries, just sits silent and sad and struggles in the dark until his bright star reminds him how to find his way up. Immovable, they called him, and they weren't wrong.
But now, his eyes immediately fill with tears.
"Kourai," he says, voice thick and shaky, but his boyfriend talks over him, bursting at the seams with how much he's wanted to share.
"So yeah you've said you wanted a Tibetan mastiff like your whole life, and you're picky about breeders, so I talked to your coworkers and we did all the research and I found out there was this couple in Wuxi that has a line of white ones and I lost my mind and they wanted a whole week of acclimating and vetting before they let their precious babies out of their sights and that's so valid but I knew you'd be busy as hell this season and I—"
Sachirou kisses him. Leans right over their new puppy (!!!), yanks their masks down and kisses him, in full view of all of Haneda Airport and the world. He can feel Kourai smiling into it, even as he practically vibrates with the need to continue yammering. Sachirou really loves him, so, so much.
Their lips barely part before Kourai's talking again. "…I brought some of your clothes so she can used to both of our scents," he blurts out, which definitely explained where his favorite Adlers sweatshirt went. "But she's so sweet, even Jin-shushu said she was the best of the whole litter."
Sachirou takes charge of Kourai's suitcase; they start heading out to the parking garage. "Jin-shushu, huh?"
Kourai lets out a bright laugh. "Oh my god, you don't even—I show up the day before Christmas, my hotel was all the way across town, and the Jins just insist I stay with them for the holiday because their two-year-old son thought I matched their dogs."
Sachirou shakes his head. Somehow, he isn't surprised.
"So I ended up just canceling the reservation and staying there, aaand Jin Ling wants to play volleyball when he gets older now."
It's such a… Kourai series of events. He makes friends wherever he goes, what once was an abrasive honesty has matured into genuine, open friendliness that unlocks something in people's hearts. Oh, he's still full of himself, that hasn't changed, but he pulls people along in his wake, and they end up falling for his energy, his charm.
"Does she have a name yet?"
"Sacchan." Kourai sounds aghast. "You think I would name our daughter without you? You really think I'm that selfish?"
They've reached the car now, a white SUV covered in shiny stickers from all the places Kourai's traveled to. He puts the carrier behind the driver's seat, and gently feeds their puppy back into it, before buckling it up properly.
Sachirou's hand rests on the gear shift, leaving it in park still. "…I don't think you're selfish," he says quietly.
Kourai pauses on his way to buckling himself in. "…Really? You'd be the only one." He smirks as he settles the band against his chest.
"Kourai." He reaches out then, touches his partner's face, and leans across the center console to press a kiss to his lips. "You flew to China over Christmas to get me a dog."
"She's for both of us," he points out.
"She's a Tibetan Mastiff."
"She's white," Kourai tries to qualify, but Sachirou shakes his head.
"I'm the one who likes white things," he murmurs, running a hand through Kourai's snowy hair.
"…Doing things for you feels selfish," he finally admits. "I like making you happy, that makes me happy. Isn't everyone selfish, at the end of the day?"
There's a little yip from behind them, and Kourai glances back, a smile on his face. Maybe that was true. Sachirou felt selfish all the time, clinging to his middle school crush with both hands, but the one time he'd tried to be the bigger man… Kourai had made it abundantly clear that that wasn't necessary. His selfish request—to keep Sachirou forever, and all Sachirou wanted was to be kept.
"Kira," he says quietly, as they pull onto the highway to get out of town.
"Hm?"
"Let's call her Kira." Sachirou squeezes his hand. "With the same kanji as your name. Incoming light."
"That's…" Kourai sputters a little. "You can't just—"
"If everyone's a little selfish," he interrupts, "then let me have it. You bring that light to me, Kourai, you always have."
✈️
They do not, in fact, make it to New Years with the Hirugamis. They make their own tradition, cleaning their house and yard and setting everything up for their new daughter. This, too, is family.
"I thought for a minute there you were going to tell me you were signing with a foreign team," Sachirou says, as he unpacks a whole box of puppy clothes that Kourai had brought back from China.
"Oh." Kourai blinks up at him from where he's sprawled on the rug, Kira sitting on his chest. "Wow, that would be a terrible surprise. No way."
"Are you saying you don't want to?" Is that… dog hanfu? Oh my god.
"No?" Kourai blinks at him. "I mean, it'd be nice to play with Tobio or Ushiwaka more often, but… I could never ask you to leave your job. Dick move. Or we'd basically never see each other? And that's illegal."
Sachirou chuckles. "I don't think that's actually illegal, Kou."
"It is! It is. Hinata's friend's a cop, he told me." Kourai picks up Kira's paws and taps with them, tap-tap-tap on his chest.
Sachirou props his chin on his hands; he's leaning on the counter island, of the home they bought during quarantine so Kourai didn't go insane. There's a dirt court marked out in the massive yard, one that was just… waiting for a dog. Waiting for this dog.
"…Kourai?" he says, casual as anything.
"Hmm?"
"…Marry me."
Kourai freezes, Kira's little paws in his hands. "What?"
"Marry me." Sachirou lets out a helpless laugh. "Sorry, I know that's out of the blue, but—"
"YOU COULDN'T HAVE WAITED?!"
Kourai gently moves Kira off his chest, then jumps to his feet and runs over to Sachirou, grabbing his shirt. "You couldn't have fucking waited?? A day?? A few hours, even?!"
"What are you talking about, Kou," he breathes out, chuckling.
"I'm talking about the fucking surprise party that's coming to the house so I can fucking propose to you! I cannot! Fucking! Believe you!!"
Oh. Oh.
So that was what Fukurou was being so cagey about.
Kourai stuffs his face into a couch cushion and screams, something about surprises ruined, again. Kira pads over to him and tucks her wet nose into his armpit.
Sachirou cannot wait to spend forever with this man.
"…Is that a yes?"