Chapter Text
The students fling their caps into the air. The hundreds of caps bounce against each other midair and fall back down. Everyone scrambles to grab what they believe is their own cap (hint: it probably isn’t considering how many people there are). Amidst the cheering and celebrating Iwaizumi Hajime stands still.
His tan skin and dark hair are highlighted by his teal gown. His cap is perfectly placed on his head. His hands hang limp to his sides; one hand holds a diploma while the other is curled into a loose fist. Hajime looks to his left, searching for something. An arm is flung around him and a high five is offered. A small smile forms on his face. He knows he should be celebrating with everyone else but he has to do something else first. He has to find-
“Hajime!” he turns around just as his dumbass best friend comes barreling towards him. Hajime is hit by the full weight of Oikawa Tooru. The taller child wraps himself around Hajime and squeezes. Hajime can barely breathe and Tooru’s hair is in his mouth but he hugs back just as hard. After a few seconds of losing oxygen they both let go. Hajime can feel his heart beating twenty times faster than before. He knows to ignore the feeling by now.
Tooru grabs Hajime’s shoulders and places their foreheads together, staring into Hajime’s eyes. Hajime stares back into his best friends eyes with a “We did it,” his voice has gone quiet, so only they can hear it, “we made it.”
Someone calls Oikawa over and he leaves Iwaizumi’s side with a squeeze of his shoulder and ruffle of his hair. Hajime watches him move effortlessly through the crowd and pull someone into a one-armed hug for a selfie. He can’t help but smile when Tooru almost trips on a gown that has been left on the floor.
Matsukawa and Hanamaki chose Iwaizumi’s momentary distraction to throw their arms around Hajime, dragging him away from the crowd and towards the exit, as if Hajime hadn’t just been waiting for Oikawa to stop being the social butterfly that he is. Hajime fake struggles against their iron grips before settling for a variety of strongly worded phrases against his old teammates.
“Looking sharp Iwaizumi, where’d you get your gown?” Matsukawa asks smartly.
Iwaizumi pretends to give it a moment of thought before answering. “From your mother Mattsun. She’s a wonderful woman.”
Matsukawa fakes a distressed look before settling back into his casual smirk. “Looks like we made it Hajime, my man.” Mattsun says, throwing a high-five over Iwaizumi’s head.
“My boy.” Makki says as his hand meets Mattsun’s with a loud slap.
“Didn’t even get suspended this year.”
Hajime sighs. “Mattsun, If you’d gotten suspended you would’ve been kicked off the team and then what would Makki have done without your shitty memes?”
“Iwaizumi you say this as if I wouldn’t have gotten suspended as well.” Makki frowns and loosens his grip on Hajime’s shoulder, “Mattsun, you wouldn’t get suspended without me right?”
Mattsun starts to say something before Iwaizumi decides he’s had enough and places a light punch on Mattsun’s ribs. With a groan Mattsun lets go of Hajime and he escapes their grasp, sliding into the crowd and away from their dumbass comments.
“I’ll find you Iwaizumi Hajime! You’ll have to pay back for this!” Makki screams into the crowd as he fusses over his friend’s lightly bruised side.
Hajime laughs and slips off his gown and pulls out his phone, sending Tooru a quick text. They’d meet up at Oikawa’s house to get ready for tonight.
They had finished high school. About damn time.
---
All over town similar scenes unfold. Daichi Sawamura and Koushi Sugawara envelop a crying Asahi Azumane as the rest of their friends cheer from the stands. Bokuto Koutarou headlocks Akaashi Keiji and kisses both his cheeks before running away out of embarrassment. Kuroo Tetsurou runs over to the stands, picks up Kozume Kenma, and flings him into the air as Kenma squeals, holding onto his phone for dear life. Kuroo carefully puts Kenma back on solid ground and pulls out his phone. He taps around until he reaches the group chat he made weeks ago and sends a single word.
>> Today.
---
“I don’t know what to wear,” Oikawa whines.
Hajime looks up from the spot he’s taken on Oikawa’s bed and sees a distressed and very shirtless Oikawa running his hands through his hair as he looks through his closet. He answers with a mindless response and rests his head back on his folded arms, staring at the stupid glow-in-the-dark stars Oikawa had taped up there during one of their elementary school sleepovers.
He remembers when they had started playing volleyball. Oikawa couldn’t even hit the ball over the net and had sunk down on his knees in frustration before getting up and dragging Iwaizumi home. He’d told Iwaizumi that he’d be the very best player to ever exist. Back then it had seemed like child’s talk but now there he was- recipient of a sports scholarship at one of the best universities in the states, a genius setter, their high-school’s poster-child, and a proud teen heart-throb. He achieved his dream and that’s what the world saw when it laid eyes on Oikawa Tooru.
Hajim sees all of this greatness but he is also privy to the other side of Oikawa Tooru. The borderline obsession with aliens and conspiracy theories, the late nights spent replaying old tapes of their opponents, and the fear that he’d fail. Years spent by Oikawa’s side meant nothing was hidden between them. Almost nothing.
Hajime sighs and looks back towards Oikawa.
“Iwa?” Hajime is brought back to the present by Oikawa’s face and more importantly a toned chest. “What’s wrong?”
We’re Friends. Best friends. Just friends. Hajime reminds himself. He swallows and stares down Oikawa. “Nothing now get out of my face Shittykawa.”
Oikawa pouts, “then help me pick out an outfit or we’ll just be here forever.”
“Fine, fine.” Hajime pushes himself off the bed, his arms effortlessly holding up the rest of his body. He walks over to Oikawa’s mess of a closet and digs around until he finds the one pair of pants that highlight all the right places and a random plain black shirt. “You look good in those.”
When Oikawa doesn’t make a move Hajime rolls his eyes and shoves him towards the bathroom. “Hurry up or we’re gonna be late and Kuroo will kick my ass even though everything is your fucking fault.” With Oikawa finally in the bathroom Hajime heads back into the bedroom to change.
Just as he’s pulling on a clean shirt a light cough lets him know that Oikawa is finally ready. He looks over his shoulder and gives Oikawa a once over. As expected the pants look great and in a pleasant surprise the shirt Hajime had randomly handed over is the same shade of grey as his own. Somehow Oikawa has managed to make his hair look even better.
Oikawa hesitates by the door before pulling on a smile and throwing a wink at Iwaizumi. “Looking good.”
“Save your flirting for Kuroo,” Hajime throws back immediately, “I’m sure he’d appreciate it more than me.” He says nothing about the sudden hesitation coming from Oikawa but tells himself to bring it up later.
“Lets go.”
Hajime heads downstairs with Oikawa at his heels. He throws Oikawa house keys and they head out to celebrate the end of the school year.
---
They arrive fashionably late, as is expected. Hajime sighs but is not really surprised. Trying to get anywhere other than games on time with Oikawa is borderline impossible. Something about his “need to give the people what they want to see”.
By the time Hajime is done locking up the car, Oikawa is already knocking on the door of Kuroo’s house. The pristine white house with its perfect front lawn is a sight Hajime is well acquainted with. Cars are parked up and down the street, a small hint of the size of Kuroo’s graduation party. Hajime walks up and stands behind Oikawa, not wanting to get hit with the initial storm that is Kuroo Tetsurou.
As if he can be summoned by mere thought, the man himself throws open his door and pulls Oikawa into a hug that looks too tight to be comfortable. Kuroo winks at Iwaizumi before pulling away from the hug. “Greetings,” Kuroo bows and his dark hair falls over his eyes. “Welcome to casa de Kuroo.”
“You two, are very late.” Kuroo turns his dark stare towards Hajime. “I expected better from you Iwaizumi.”
“Shut up. We both know who’s at fault here and it definitely isn’t me.” Iwaizumi motions towards Oikawa. “I think this guy cares more about his hair than being on time to your party.”
Oikawa pushes Iwaizumi aside and comes to stand in front of Kuroo, ready to defend his pride. “I’ll let you know, I only took so long because someone wouldn’t help me pick out an outfit.” Oikawa waves his hands in a dismissing gesture. “Nevermind that though. We brought you a gift!” He holds out the small bag he’d gotten from Iwaizumi earlier that day.
Kuroo makes an excited noise and grabs the bag before shepherding the other two into the house. Inside the house resembles the outside. White, clean, and ultimately, very not Kuroo. That’s not to say the house isn’t nice. Kuroo’s parents were ridiculously rich and had spent thousands of dollars on the house. The two story home had a completely renovated basement, a beautiful pool, and was large enough for Kuroo to host a party inviting just about every single other volleyball team in the district.
“Well, well, well. If it isn’t Iwaizumi Hajime. You have some explaining to do.” Hanamaki is leaning against the wall just on the other side of the door. He has a long finger pointed at Iwaizumi. Oikawa looks between the two men in confusion. Makki tilts his head in acknowledgement but keeps his eyes trained on Iwaizumi.
“You hurt my best friend.”
“I elbowed him in self-defense.” Hajime argues.
“You don’t know your own strength, Iwaizumi.” Makki insists. “We want payback.”
Hajime pretends to give it some thought before asking “what do you suggest?”
“We get to throw you in the pool.” Matsukawa walks through a door nursing a bright drink.
“Absolutely not.” Iwaizumi shoots back. He throws a hand to point at Oikawa who is still standing behind him watching the exchange silently. “Throw him in. I promise I won’t interfere.”
Oikawa’s mouth drops open and he walks away looking unimpressed. He stops by Makki and Mattsun and whispers something that Iwaizumi can’t quite catch. The terrified looks on their faces say it all though. They walk away, leaving Hajime alone with Kuroo.
“So,” Kuroo raises a thin eyebrow, “did you pick out Oikawa’s pants? Because let me tell you something–”
Hajime holds a finger up to Kuroo’s lips, barely touching them. “I would shut up if I were you.”
Kuroo lifts his hands in defeat. “He looks good. Makes me question my sexuality.”
“Kuroo we all know you’ve been gay for Kenma since middle school so don’t give me that shit. Aren’t you fucking Oikawa anyways?”
“No strings attached.” Kuroo shrugs, “no need to get defensive. If you want me to lay off Oikawa just tell me and I will.”
“I don’t care.” Hajime says. Truth is he does care but one summer is not enough time for him and Oikawa so he’s given up on anything happening. He decides to give Kuroo a small piece of the truth. “In the end we’re just two aces who are too dumb to tell their setters how we feel.”
Kuroo’s smile falls and he nods solemnly at Hajime’s words. For a second they both stand in the hall, looking at their feet. Kuroo breaks the silence. “Well, we better go find our stupid setters and make sure they’re not being overly charming.”
“Oikawa charming? Never.”
Iwaizumi follows Kuroo through the house. They make a quick stop by the kitchen so Kuroo can grab a bottle of beer and get Hajime a glass of fruit punch. Hajime splits off from the taller man to go find Oikawa. He finds his setter cornering Kageyama Tobio outside.
“– and you better become the best damn setter in the district or I’ll come back and kick your ass.” Oikawa finishes saying pushing a finger into Kageyama’s shoulder in time with his words. Kageyama nods along to every words his senior says.
Kageyama is the young prodigy of volleyball in their hometown. He had been in the same middle school as Oikawa and Iwaizumi and learned everything he knew from Oikawa. Only when Kageyama’s team beat Oikawa’s at the district tournaments did Oikawa begin resenting him. Now that they were free from high school sports Oikawa seemed to want Kageyama to succeed.
Pleased at Kageyama’s understanding Oikawa turns to walk away only to crash into Hajime. “Iwa! I was just talking to Tobio here and giving him some words of encouragement! Did Tetsurou like his gift?”
“I don’t know.”
Oikawa makes a strained noise at Hajime. “Iwa you didn’t even wait and see if he liked it?! That’s no way to treat our host.” Oikawa chastises him.
“Oikawa it was a damn cat calendar of course he’ll like it.”
---
The party is uneventful until the sun begins to set. Iwaizumi spends his time talking to some of the people he knew from other teams, specifically Sugawara Koushi, Sawamura Daichi, Akaashi Keiji, and Kozume Kenma. The four have been good friends with Iwaizumi ever since they first met on the court their freshman year. They have a sort of laid back attitude that Iwaizumi appreciated, a nice change of pace from Kuroo and Oikawa’s loud personalities.
Hajime excuses himself from their hushed conversation to go find Oikawa. He gets to the pool just as Mattsun and Makki are executing their ‘throw Oikawa in the pool plan’. Oikawa shrieks as his two friends grab his arms and drag him over to the pool. Oikawa struggles against their tight grips but it’s unavoidable.
Before he’s thrown in Oikawa starts to beg. “Please don’t–” They throw him into the pool before he can finish. Apart from a few laughs and a surprised looking Kageyama nobody around the pool pays much attention to the prank, being used to team roughhousing themselves.
Hajime approaches the pool with a smirk and kneels over the edge to watch Oikawa surface. His friend comes up sputtering. His hair is plastered over his face. His eyes find Iwaizumi at the pool’s edge and they thin out in an almost angry expression. He clearly blames Hajime for this and he’s gonna complain about this for ages. Hajime holds out a hand and grabs onto Oikawa’s hand to pull him out of the pool. Oikawa tightens his hold on Hajime and pulls him forward to talk into his ear.
Hajime suppresses a shiver as Oikawa breathes onto his neck. “I’m gonna fucking kill you Iwaizumi Hajime.” His tone is serious and Hajime nods, unable to say anything in response to his friend’s threat.
“Lets get you upstairs Tooru. You need a change of clothes.” Oikawa relaxes a little when Hajime uses his name and lets Hajime pull him out of the water. His wet clothes hang heavy on his strong frame. Hajime quickly finds a clean towel and throws it at Oikawa, who slings it around his neck. Hajime motions to Kuroo to let him know they’re going upstairs and the man has the audacity to wink at him in response.
They walk up the stairs into Kuroo’s room. Oikawa strips out of his pants and shirt the moment Iwaizumi closes the door behind them and then sits down on the bed. There is a clear pout on Oikawa’s lips, making Iwaizumi snort.
“My misery in exchange for your safety must be pretty great Hajime,” Oikawa mumbles as he looks around the room.
“You’re such a baby sometimes. Where does Kuroo keep his clothes?” Iwaizumi asks, well aware that Oikawa has spent more than a few nights here. Oikawa points towards a dresser next to Kuroo’s desk and then blushes. Hajime ignores how good that looks on Oikawa’s face. He shuffles through Kuroo’s drawers in search for an acceptable change of clothes until he finds a white shirt. “Just dry yourself off and put this on. I’ll find some pants.”
“You’re so mean Iwa.” Oikawa complains before dragging himself off Kuroo’s bed. He pulls the towel around to dry his body. Hajime lets his eyes trail down Oikawa’s chest, over the curves and– Stop it Hajime, Stop it. He turns around and goes back to rummaging through the drawers. He throws the first pair of pants at Oikawa and storms out of the room in a worse mood than before.
It’s stupid. He’s stupid but he couldn’t be in that room with Oikawa looking like that. He couldn’t be there and imagine all the things Kuroo had done instead of him. Stupid, stupid stupid.
Hajime is barely aware of Oikawa calling after him before he walks down the stairs. He runs into Bokuto on the way out, grabs his drink, and walks away wordlessly. He downs the fruity drink in seconds and sits down at the closest empty seat. He rests an elbow on the table and places his head on one of his hands.
Around him, the party is at full swing. Someone has brought out their portable speakers and is blasting some mindless pop music. Kuroo is standing behind the small bar he has set up outside, pulling out more drinks for his guests. Kenma is standing nearby with his head down, fingers moving quickly across his phone screen. When Iwaizumi looks at him his large gold eyes look up, aware that he’s being watched. Kageyama jumps into the pool, followed closely by his smaller equally talented friend, Hinata Shouyou. They splash Hajime’s face.
Oikawa stumbles outside as he dries his hair with the towel he’d been using to dry the rest of himself off. Hajime watches as light eyes bounce around the backyard until they meet his. Oikawa purses his lips before heading towards Kuroo and grabbing another drink. Then he walks towards Hajime.
“What’s wrong?” Oikawa doesn’t bother with small talk. Instead he chooses to stand across the table from Hajime. “Don’t tell me everything is fine because you just ran out of that room.”
Hajime looks into his empty cup and counts to ten in his head then looks up at Oikawa. He says nothing and meets his friend’s eyes.
“Hajime please you’ve been weird all day…”
Hajime finally grabs onto Oikawa’s wrists and pulls him across the yard towards the fence. He takes a second to unlock the door leading out of the yard and into the woods behind Kuroo’s house and drags Oikawa behind him, letting the door slam behind them.
He keeps walking until the house is barely visible in the twilight and then stops. He turns around and looks at Oikawa. Before he can think too much about it, Hajime moves up and places a light kiss on Oikawa’s stunned lips.
“That’s what’s wrong.” Hajime states and then walks back to the house.
---