Originally published on 2014-09-04.
Updated for style and consistency on 2020-06-24, six years later. :)
I threw every piece of fluff known to my teenage self for this, my first ever fanfic. As cringey as rereading this is, I have so much love for this story, this pairing, my younger self moved to write something for kagehina. I think I turned it from something that I couldn't bear reading today to a story I could reread fondly. Mostly.
Thank you for all the love I've received for this story over the years. I sincerely hope you enjoy the exact same story but with more consistency, more natural transitions, two filled-in words that were missing (seriously, past me?), and better style!
I would lastly like to note that this was written when only the first season of the anime had aired. If the dynamic between the two seems strange or the season one terminology is nostalgic to anyone else, you're not alone.
Once more, please enjoy!
You're Like Lightning
Hinata Shouyou could not wait for volleyball practice.
To be completely honest, he was starting to feel fidgety from just sitting and waiting. There was time to kill before after-school volleyball practice started. And with classes already over for the day—his homework pushed far aside—it's not like he had anything to do as he waited.
In the end, he found a shady spot in the schoolyard, grass dancing at his feet as he sat with his legs splayed out in front of him. It was relaxing to sit outdoors and feel the light breeze on his skin for once. Still, he was eager to serve, spike, receive, and anything and everything related to volleyball. Hinata suppressed a pout as his agitation resurfaced.
Soon enough, Hinata stopped and looked at his hand, unconscious of the small smile he was wearing. With this hand, he would play volleyball. Surrounded by his teammates—the boys' volleyball team of Karasuno High School. He would spike the ball to the best of his ability, trying to get it to go over that net.
With this hand, he would hit Kageyama's toss.
The grin he wore spread across his face.
He would never forget that moment when Kageyama first tossed that ball to him, their first ever quick combo.
("Awesome! Awesome! Hey, what was that? What was that? It hit my hand! Right then! Hey!")
That direct path in the perfect moment. That toss was for him. Hinata would close his eyes with nothing but utmost trust in Kageyama. Then, as if by magic, his hand would meet the ball and it would sail over the net and into the opponent's court.
("Hey, you! Why did you have your eyes closed?!")
The reminiscing just made him even more restless—he wanted to play volleyball! Hinata glanced at the clouds in the sky, wind brushing his bangs calmly in complete juxtaposition to the impatience he was feeling. Hmph. When will practice start?!
("You told me not to watch the ball! When my eyes are open, I can't help but watch the ball.")
Checking his phone, he was happily surprised to find that enough time had passed while lost in his volleyball-filled fantasies. Hinata jumped up like he was about to spike right there, then, and now. Before he knew it, he was sprinting towards the gymnasium, grass soon fading to familiar orange dirt.
("I said that, but...")
("It worked though, right? What's wrong with that?")
He was there before he knew it when he heard the familiar voice. A voice struggling to form a sentence broken up by sharp intakes of breath.
("Sure, but who trusts anyone 100 percent?")
"Oi, Hinata! Jeez, what are you trying to do... tire yourself out before practice... even begins? Dumbass."
("Well, I have no choice but to trust you right now!")
He definitely knew who that voice belonged to. "Hey!" Hinata yelled, spinning around to face Kageyama.
Kageyama's hand was on the wall, the taller boy still trying to catch his breath. As for Hinata, he was so into running to the gym that he didn't even notice that Kageyama had joined him. The run had turned into another one of their competitions. The rest of the volleyball club found them silly or just plain Hinata-and-Kageyama-like, but they were very important.
Well, Hinata thought so anyway.
"I won't get tired... that easily!" Hinata protested although he stopped to take a breath in mid-sentence as well. "Besides, you didn't need to run after me! Why did you anyway? Another race?" he asked, grinning, although he already knew it was.
At his smile, Hinata swore he saw Kageyama's eyes widen slightly, but he couldn't be sure since the latter turned away as soon as the words left his mouth.
"...Don't think you can beat me to the gym," Kageyama muttered finally.
Hinata blinked. That was odd, he thought. Never once had Kageyama turned away from him during a conversation. He never had a reason to. 'Whatever. He's probably just catching his breath in a weird Kageyama way or something,' Hinata decided. Simple thoughts, simple thoughts.
The orange-haired boy turned away to walk inside the gym, making a hmph sound as he did so. "I probably just did," Hinata replied. When Kageyama turned to glare at him, he couldn't help but think that that was the usual Kageyama he knew. "Don't just stand outside then, will ya?"
"I don't need you to remind me!" Kageyama yelled back, following him in.
Ignoring him, Hinata entered the gym with another characteristically bright smile on his face. Many of their teammates were already there (how was that possible when he came as soon as he could?) setting up the courts. "Hello!" he called out. Kageyama stopped beside him with his regular neutral expression.
Sugawara smiled at them, making his way towards where they were standing as he pulled the cart of volleyballs behind him. "Hey," he greeted with a nod in their direction. "You two made it here on time," he gestured at the two of them, "together as always."
A faint movement right beside him caught his attention. Did Kageyama really tense up? Hinata laughed, somewhat shyly, putting a hand on the back of his head. "Yeah, well... We ended up racing to the gym again"
Tanaka appeared from behind Sugawara,finished with setting up the net Hinata saw him working on moments ago. "Again?" He approached the two, gave them a gentle pound on the back—it still caused Hinata to stagger—and grinned. "Those are my two energetic juniors, alright! Active as ever even after school! Don't you two ever get tired of competing against each other?"
"Not really," Kageyama replied. He pointed a finger at the smaller boy beside him. "Besides, it's not like Hinata poses much of a challenge."
"Hey!" objected Hinata, raising his voice once again. "I totally beat you today. Don't even try to deny it!"
"It was a draw, idiot."
"No, it wasn't! I clearly got here first!"
"And I clearly saw us arrive at the same time. You probably didn't see anything because you were so focused on running to the gym!"
"If you got here first, I would've seen you in front of me, but I didn't even notice you at all!"
Kageyama opened his mouth, retort at the ready, but then stopped and made a tch sound. "Whatever. Waste of time arguing with you."
The orange-haired boy made a noise of annoyance before furrowing his brow. Kageyama said he didn't get tired of competing with him but bickering with him was a waste of time? 'Kageyama is weird,' he concluded.
Daichi, clearly in the middle of setting up the gym with the volleyball pole he was holding, paused before he passed the group. "Already fighting," he observed, shaking his head. That his exasperation was false was given away by the small smile on his face. "It's probably best if you use that energy during practice. Go get changed and help set up, will you?"
"Yes!" they replied in unison. Together, Kageyama and Hinata walked towards the locker room.
As Tanaka and Daichi went back to preparing the gym, Sugawara continued watching them. His quizzical expression cleared as a smile grew on his lips. "Totally oblivious, but they're cute."
Daichi stopped and turned around, aware of Sugawara just standing there. "Suga? What's wrong?"
Sugawara stopped staring and laughed. "Nothing. Don't worry about it," he reassured. "Here, let me give you a hand with that," he offered, walking over to where Daichi was reaching for a second volleyball pole. With one last glimpse at the first-year duo, he shook his head. 'I hope they work it out. Those two are a troublesome bunch, but they have unlimited potential after all.'
-/-/-/-
The aforementioned duo was nearly at the locker room when Hinata spared a glance at Kageyama. He looked completely at ease, absentmindedly staring at the space ahead. Nothing out of the ordinary.
Unfortunately, it was at that time that Kageyama glanced over and saw Hinata watching him. He jumped, causing the smaller boy to startle as well. "W-what?" Kageyama said, evidently caught off-guard under Hinata's watchful eye.
Hinata blinked, regaining his composure before promptly losing it again and looking away. He would never admit it but he was embarrassed—and somewhat scared—to be caught staring at Kageyama. He brought a finger up to scratch his face, nervously. "Eheh... nothing."
Kageyama looked unamused. "You can't say that when you were just staring at me."
"It's not like you really need to know!"
"Saying that just makes me even more curious, you idiot!"
"That's not my fault!" But as Kageyama narrowed his eyes, Hinata averted his.
A pause. Hinata looked back to see blue-eyes still firmly trained on his own. "Fine," he conceded before mumbling, "I was just wondering if you were okay, that's all."
"Eh?" Kageyama was taken aback. "Why wouldn't I be?"
Despite his question, Hinata thought Kageyama looked slightly nervous. It was exactly this sort of reaction—one that conveyed timidness instead of the irritation that Hinata was used to—that made him wonder if the setter was unwell in the first place. The words timidness and usual irritation bounced around in Hinata's mind before he decided it was probably best not to voice the thought.
"It's just that you were acting kind of… strange?" Hinata ventured, carefully. He didn't want Kageyama to get the wrong idea lest he return to his intimidating self. "You looked away while we were talking, and you tensed up as well! You know, when Suga-san saw us arriving together?"
Together...
Hinata's observations seemed to fluster Kageyama for reasons that Hinata couldn't understand. At his words, the other boy flushed red and turned away—before turning back after presumably remembering how Hinata noted him doing exactly that earlier.
Instead, he looked down. "I don't need you watching me. You're not in charge of me or anything like that."
"Yeah, so?" Hinata squinted at him. "I still care about you. You're a teammate, as well as a friend!"
Another heartbeat passed. It took a few seconds for him to realize what he said—that Kageyama and him were friends. "A-ah! I..." He scrambled, trying to fix his slip-up. He didn't even know if Kageyama thought of them as friends. They never really confirmed it, but Hinata supposed they were. Maybe Kageyama thought differently?
"Y-yeah... Well... uhm—" Kageyama stammered, seemingly at a similar loss for words. Eventually, he seemed to give up trying to remedy the conversation. Kageyama turned and continued walking towards the club room, but Hinata noticed that the tips of his ears were reddened slightly.
"Let's go. We're going to be late for practice if we don't hurry and change."
"E-er, right!" Hinata ran to catch up, an energetic bounce returning to his step.
If he wasn't paying attention, he would've missed the soft words spoken by Kageyama of all people.
"...And thanks. For saying that we're friends, I mean. It's nice to confirm where we stand for once."
Hinata blinked as he found himself being the one taken aback this time. "Well," he started, "...it's nothing. I just said what I thought we were."
Kageyama made a sound of acknowledgement and that was that. He still didn't meet Hinata's eyes, but that was fine. Even if he did, Hinata wasn't sure he would be able to hold his gaze, although he wasn't completely sure why he couldn't.
The oddball duo changed without further incident and headed back to the gym. Hinata smiled as the desire to practice resurfaced. Mixed in with the tosses and new moves were funny jokes and bouts of laughter. Overall, he thought that the experience of being part of Karasuno's boys' volleyball team was shaping up to be a memory that they would all look back on fondly.
As they walked over to where everyone was gathering, Hinata ran through a list of non-volleyball related things that usually occurred during practice in his head. There were his and Kageyama's competitions. Tanaka and Nishinoya proclaiming their undying love for Shimizu. He felt like something obvious was missing from his list when his eyes scanned the room and landed on the tall, blond, glasses-wearing first-year.
Oh right! That dumb Tsukishima's insults.
As if on cue, Tsukishima turned. His neutral expression morphed into one of amusement as he took in the arriving pair. "Oi, I see the "royal couple" has finally arrived!" he called, his ever-present smirk on his face.
Kageyama must actually be sick—or so Hinata thought because instead of countering with an insult, Kageyama's face flushed red again and he turned away. Odd, but Hinata didn't have time to focus on that because of what Tsukishima said.
"Haa?! Royal couple?" he exclaimed.
Tsukishima just continued smirking. "Why, of course. If he's the king, you must be his queen, correct?"
Contrary to popular belief, Hinata was not oblivious about love despite what many people seemed to think from his happy, energetic, ball-of-enthusiasm-and-never-give-up personality. Why people associated his personality with child-like innocence was beyond him. Perhaps he was oblivious to his own feelings at times, but certainly not love in general—he was a high schooler, wasn't he?
Again, he did have Tanaka and Nishinoya as his seniors. And Shimizu was their manager.
The point was: Hinata knew about love. To some extent at least. He understood that Tsukishima was implying that he was Kageyama's queen. That they were together as a coupl—
And he wasn't entirely sure what to feel about that.
So, he blurted out what was on his mind. "B-but, that's ridiculous! How can that even happen?!"
Yamaguchi's eyes flitted back and forth as he took in the escalating scene from his place beside Tsukishima. The taller boy sighed and shrugged dramatically. "Is it not obvious?" He gestured vaguely in their direction. "You two do everything together. The term 'royal couple' seems quite fitting since he is the king." Tsukishima glanced at Kageyama, the challenge clearly written on his face. "Wouldn't you agree, King?"
Kageyama glared at him. His immediate reaction seemed to have passed. "Why, you..."
"You should honestly treat your queen better. I doubt he even knows he's your queen."
"He's not a queen, least of all my queen! And I'm not a king!"
"Ahhh, really? Are you sure? Or maybe, you just want to be his king instea—"
"Alright, first years. That's enough of that now, don't you think?" Sugawara said with a smile, walking over.
"Eh?!" Tanaka exclaimed. "But Suga-san, it was just getting heated up! The brawl of the first-years"—Yamaguchi smiled wryly, realizing that he was somehow dragged into this—"Plus, the nickname is kind of cool, don't you think?"
"We are not a royal couple!" Hinata and Kageyama protested at the same time.
Nishinoya, who was walking by and overheard, commented, "Queen... It's okay, but what about "knight"? Shouyou could be a knight, right?"
"Oh! That's good, Noya-san!" Tanaka agreed as he high-fived him.
The whole scenario seemed to be getting more and more out of hand. Kageyama looked uncomfortable, yet only slightly as he levelled a glare at a confident Tsukishima. His discomfort was slight enough that no one else may have noticed except for Hinata, due to him knowing more about Kageyama Tobio than others—more than he'd like the boy to know lest he call him something along the lines of "stalker" or "dumbass". Hinata bristled as well, but truth be told, it didn't bother him that much. It was just Tsukishima, after all.
Tsukishima wore an expression that said Well, it's true, isn't it?. Beside him, Yamaguchi had grasped the situation and remained quiet, but he was failing to hide his amusement from showing through the gleam in his eyes and smile on his lips. Sugawara tried to reign in Tanaka who was involved in an increasingly animated discussion about the so-called "royal couple" with Nishinoya who listened and nodded along. Asahi tried to help, but he looked like he was at a loss of what to do.
The commotion might have gone on for quite a while if Daichi didn't show up. "You guys!" he yelled, volleyball between his hands. "We have practice to engage in. Use your energy during practice and save your discussions for after it!"
Everyone paused. "Yes, captain!" they called.
With that, the discussions dissolved although the charged atmosphere remained. A still-glaring Kageyama and a still-smirking Tsukishima walked onto the court. Kageyama seemed so annoyed with Tsukishima that Hinata was worried it might affect how he played during practice. That wouldn't be good. 'Maybe I should say something to him...'
Hinata walked up to the scowling Kageyama. "Hey! Why're ya still looking upset for? It's not like you actually believe we're the "royal couple", right? Are you actually that dumb?" He snickered behind his hand, hoping to spark something.
He succeeded. Kageyama stopped scowling and turned his head towards Hinata, looking slightly... embarrassed. Then the annoyed expression returned although it was less menacing than before. "Of course not, moron! How could I...?!"
Kageyama swiped at Hinata, but he laughed and jumped away before the hit could land. "Oooh, you're back to normal now!"
He took off.
"Hinata, you bastard... Get back here!" yelled Kageyama who started to chase him. He narrowly avoided running into Ennoshita who jumped then chuckled at the two retreating forms. The two ran around the court with yells of "Never!" and "When I get my hands on you...!", seemingly forgetting where they were and successfully earning both sighs and amused looks from their fellow club members.
"Does their energy ever run out?" Daichi murmured. His sigh was chased away by a worn-out smile.
"Doesn't seem like it when it comes down to the two of them," Nishinoya answered with a grin. Sugawara and Asahi could only nod in agreement while Tanaka laughed and rooted them on, yelling, "Go, Hinata!"
-/-/-/-
They managed to start practice which then proceeded to go by quickly and without any more fights. Kageyama played normally as if the whole "royal couple" issue never occurred, so Hinata did too. Still, he couldn't help but think.
'Royal couple...'
Like that could ever really happen. Right?
Hinata wanted to enthusiastically agree but he couldn't because, honestly, it made sense! The two of them were always together—that was a fact. And although Hinata had to fight the flush from rising on his face, it also explains why Kageyama was acting strangely.
Truthfully, he was also caught up on the idea. Lingering on the subject caused Hinata to become flustered to the point of his face heating up. Could he… Did he?
Hinata lingered on it as they packed up the gym, nearly getting hit by stray volleyballs aimed at the cart in the process ("Hey, you guys!" Daichi reprimanded. "Put the balls away properly!"). He continued to think about it as they walked to the club room and was still thinking about it when they left and Sugawara locked it up.
Being as distracted as he was—simultaneously fixated on the idea yet trying not to think about it out of sheer embarrassment—was the primary reason for his accident. To be fair, the orange sun was beginning to dip below the horizon, replacing the warm glow on the road with a dark gray. They were on their way to buy pork meat buns when Hinata overlooked a crack in the asphalt. Sure enough, his right foot caught in it and he stumbled, knees crashing against the hard ground.
Something twisted as he fell. "Ow!" he exclaimed as the road scraped against his legs. But his hands immediately went to his ankle.
Karasuno's boys' volleyball team stopped to look at their strongest decoy, rushing over when they took in Hinata's crumpled form on the ground.
"Are you okay, Hinata?" asked Sugawara. The concern was evident in his voice. "Can you walk?"
Hinata tried getting up before a stab of pain in his right ankle caused his legs to buckle. Asahi was able to grab him before he hit the ground. "Thanks," Hinata muttered. "And no."
Yamaguchi shot Hinata a concerned look. "I'm glad you didn't bring your bike, Hinata," he commented, "because I don't think you could ride it now." His look of concern was redirected to the other members as he looked around. "What should we do?"
Tsukishima's expression seemed to convey that it was obvious. "Well, clearly I think someone should carry him—"
Oh no... I think I know where this is going...
"—And I nominate Kageyama."
Hinata exhaled slowly. I knew it. Today was obviously just the day where Tsukishima noticed that Kageyama was acting weird and decided to torture him for it.
Kageyama started at that. "Now listen. If you used your brain for once, you'd realize that there are better people to hold him! I might drop him just from hearing him whine about his ankle."
"Hey!" exclaimed Hinata."I would so not do that!" However, another stab of pain in his ankle made him reconsider his words, at least internally.
"It's true that there might be better people, but why don't we just save time and nicely ask Kageyama to do it?" Sugawara suggested calmly. He turned to the setter. "You don't need to accept, Kageyama, but could you carry Hinata? We can switch later if it's too much."
A pause and a shuffle from Kageyama. "...He's not too much, at least for me. I mean, he's tiny." Hinata pouted at that. "I'll do it," said Kageyama.
Tsukishima snickered. "Tsukki, shush. You don't want to have to carry Hinata, right?" Yamaguchi said. The blond shrugged in response as if he didn't care.
Kageyama crouched down to where Hinata was still holding his ankle, trying to ease the throbbing pain. First, he looped Hinata's bag over his shoulder with his own. Then, with one scoop, Kageyama picked him up. Hinata jolted—as much as he could in this situation—but Kageyama's hold on him didn't budge. Hinata supposed Kageyama didn't notice that he was holding him bridal style.
Some of the others did. "Are you sure you want to hold him like that?" asked Daichi, uncertainly.
"Why not? It's easiest for me. I don't see what the problem is."
Tentative chuckles, looks of here-we-go, and small smiles passed through the group. Tsukishima rolled his eyes, evidently feeling as though his point had been proven. Hinata wanted to cover his face which was probably blushing—after all, bridal style!—but that would draw attention to his embarrassment and make the whole thing even more unbearable than it already was. Instead, as he was already naturally in the position to do so, he buried his face in Kageyama's chest, noticing when he felt the latter tense up again.
"Sure, Kageyama. Whatever you say," Nishinoya replied. A grin appeared on his face. "Let's go!" he shouted, throwing his fist in the air and continuing to walk down the road.
The rest of the team followed except for Kageyama (and as a result, Hinata). "Actually, I'll carry him home," said Kageyama. "It's probably better for him to rest plus then we won't have to carry him back later on in the night."
Hinata stilled. It was new for Kageyama to genuinely look out for him like this.
"Are you sure, Kageyama?" Daichi asked.
"I don't mind."
"Well... Then I guess you can go. Good work today." Daichi smiled as Tanaka flashed them a thumbs up.
"Thank you," they replied simultaneously. With waves from several of the club members, Kageyama turned around with Hinata in his arms and walked away.
Given his current position, Hinata had nothing else to do but think. Just his luck, to be stuck doing what caused him to end up like this in the first place. Being carried bridal style was unfamiliar but he didn't find it bad. It was actually quite comfortable to be carried by Kageyama like this...
…which was really awkward to think about. He continued hiding in Kageyama's chest to avoid him seeing his reddened face.
He didn't know how long he stayed like that, drowning out the world, but soon it was sure to have been several minutes. After a while, Hinata broke the silence. "...Aren't you tired of carrying me?" Yamaguchi was right. He was grateful that he didn't have his bike with him. It would've caused more trouble to have to bring it as well.
Without hesitation, Kageyama responded, "Not really, idiot. I said I didn't care, didn't I?" Hinata turned to look briefly at the setter whose gaze was determinedly focused straight ahead.
"Just rest once you get home," he continued, briskly, "and don't jump off walls or do any other stupid things you might be tempted to try."
It did sound like Kageyama cared about him—he was just hiding it behind his usual insults and sarcasm. Kageyama caring for him so deeply was new, he supposed, but not totally unwelcome given recent developments.
If anything, it was enlightening.
To stop his thoughts, Hinata tried to rest in his arms, but unfortunately, it felt like only a second had passed before Kageyama spoke again.
"Oi, Hinata. We're here."
Hinata looked up and realized that they had indeed arrived at his house. Kageyama walked up to the front steps, his grip around Hinata still tight despite the minutes they had spent walking. He gently lowered him down—the orange-haired boy taking a seat on the steps—followed by their bags before joining him in the space by his side. Both of them seated in silence, Hinata gazed up at the night sky.
That was how they ended up stargazing. The sky was dark, but the white lights in the sky were numerous. A myriad of brightnesses and sizes. For the second time that day, Hinata glanced at Kageyama. To his surprise, Kageyama was also looking at him. Given the two times earlier that day, he expected him to look away, but Kageyama kept his gaze.
Hinata scanned his face, trying to read the emotion displayed there. But Kageyama's expression was neutral even if his eyes suggested that there were many thoughts swirling in his mind. So Hinata looked back at the stars before asking, "Hey, why were you acting weird today?"
There was a moment of pause. Maybe Kageyama was thinking of what to say. Or maybe he just didn't want to answer. "I... realized some things last night."
At least he didn't deny it. The statement caught Hinata's attention. "And what sort of things were they?"
Kageyama shook his head. "You probably don't want to hear it."
"Don't worry, I can handle it."
He received a pointed look. "Being able to stomach something isn't the same as wanting it," said Kageyama. "And I don't think you want to hear it." He looked back at the stars. "It's sort of hard to say as well."
Hinata stuck out his tongue. "I feel what you said earlier today. I just want to hear it more now!" He smiled. "You never know until you try, so just tell me! Plus, when have you ever found words hard? It's not like you've had trouble saying your opinion abouts things related to me. I mean, how many times have you insulted me?"
Another surprise for Hinata because Kageyama laughed hollowly. "Criticized constructively, but okay. Are you sure you want to hear this?"
"Did you not hear what I just said?"
He heard the other boy exhale. Then, "Well, here goes nothing." Kageyama looked briefly at Hinata. "I've been thinking. About you. You and me."
That seemed obvious and didn't inherently suggest any sort of problem."I think about us all the time," Hinata replied. "What's wrong with that?" Kageyama was his partner. He thought about his tosses while waiting for practice today, didn't he?
He received a half-hearted glare as Kageyama shook his head, face a bit red. "No, not like that."
Hinata replied, naturally, "Then what?"
…
Realization dawned on Hinata. Considering what had happened today, maybe he was a bit oblivious. "Oh."
"Yeah."
There was a charged pause. It seemed to unsettle Kageyama. He heard the setter take in a deep breath. "So—" Kageyama began.
But Hinata didn't let him finish.
He moved, ignoring the twinge of pain he felt in his recently twisted ankle, tilted his head, and leaned in towards Kageyama. Kageyama's eyes widened at the sudden movement and the disappearing space between them.
As for Hinata, he didn't know what to say or think when he figured out what Kageyama meant. Complex thoughts often came out unintelligible from him without further forethought, so he used actions instead. He did the thing that felt totally right: this.
They were both in no way experienced but it didn't matter at all. What mattered was the two of them, lips pressed together silently as their eyes closed. At some point, Hinata's arms wrapped themselves around Kageyama's neck. If Hinata could freeze the moment, he would.
He would freeze the two of them together under the night sky, holding onto each other with their lips touching and nothing in the world that could bother them.
Hinata felt Kageyama's arms wrap securely around him and a gentle tug closer. They stayed like that until they had to take another breath. Hinata felt like someone had snatched away his breath (probably because someone did) and a warmth in his cheeks. He covered the lower half of his face with his hands and stole a glimpse at the culprit. By the dazed look in his eyes, Kageyama appeared to feel the same way.
He wasn't sure what there was to say. Likely a lot of things. But the two of them decided to preserve the comfortable silence that hung in the air. They each knew that the other was there and in wake of Hinata's very telling response, reassurance didn't seem necessary.
At least for a while. Their eyes met and Hinata lowered his hands from his face, revealing a timid grin. "I didn't hate it."
A breathless laugh. "Same here, stupid."
"It was my first kiss."
"Mine too."
Hinata laughed lightly at that while Kageyama allowed himself a small smile. "Hinata, also…"
He said it softly, right there with no hesitation. But to Hinata, it seemed like it took an eternity for Kageyama to say the three words that suddenly changed everything.
"I like you."
Then he shrugged, most likely trying to play off his embarrassment. "I think it needed to be said."
The confession made Hinata Shouyou smile as bright as the stars twinkling in the night sky. Kageyama would have said it was brighter but would never admit that out loud. The smaller boy grabbed Kageyama's hand and joined their fingers together, an air of timid happiness surrounding them.
His response should have been obvious. I mean, didn't he just…
Still, he thought about it. Hinata didn't form his answer right away, but he did realize:
He likes his tosses.
He likes that they have their own quick together.
He likes his fiery passion for volleyball that mirrors his own.
He likes their little competitions and even though he doesn't exactly know why they spark up, he likes them nonetheless.
He likes how he's said things to him that have been so much more meaningful than he even knows. As long as I'm here, you're invincible.
He likes how even though people may not notice it at first, he really does care about the people closest to him.
He likes how even though he insults him all the time, he hasn't left his side.
He likes a countless amount of things involving him.
And he won't deny it. You could say he likes Kageyama Tob—
Hinata turned to smile at him. "I like you too."
In retrospect, it might have been odd for Kageyama to blush so much. One would suppose, given the day's happenings, that he would probably stop doing that already. However, Kageyama blushed deeper than he already was (which caused Hinata to blush harder too).
At first, Kageyama froze at his words but soon let out a sigh. "...Dumbass. You didn't have to say that."
"I figured that I should respond to you, right?" Hinata commented rather bashfully. He gave their hands a squeeze and was surprised when the other boy jolted as a response. He peered at Kageyama and noticed that he was looking down—both literally and emotionally. "Why are you still so flighty?" he asked. Certainly, someone who's just learned that their feelings were reciprocated should be more at ease than this.
Yet Kageyama seemed worried. The stars were still shining but he was looking at the ground with a bittersweet smile plastered on his still reddened face. Given what had just transpired with their feelings out in the open, Hinata felt a lightness in his chest. He wanted to share that with Kageyama, the person who gave him that feeling in the first place.
Moving according to his whims, he poked Kageyama in the cheek and the boy looked over at him. He returned Hinata's grin with a small smile. "You said you'd tell me what you realized last night," Hinata demanded. "If that wasn't all it was, you better not back out now!"
"Of course not," Kageyama replied, the implicit challenge returning confidence into his voice. "Now you know that I—" he levelled him with a half-hearted glare. "—that I like you. Don't make me say it again."
That was more of the Kageyama he knew, Hinata thought. His mind couldn't help but also supply the idea that he was the reason for Kageyama's flustered state. The thought made him become flustered.
Oblivious to Hinata's internal dilemma, Kageyama continued. "I don't know. We seemed like we were getting closer."
Well, yes, they were. Their quick was getting better with each practice and they were becoming increasingly in sync with each other.
"But, last night, I unexpectedly thought, maybe this was as close as we can be. We don't really have anything else other than volleyball. We aren't even in the same class." A shuffle. "I'm happy just being near you, but it's haunted me ever since I've thought about it."
A surprised look passed over Hinata's face. He was startled to find that Kageyama was thinking about things like this. Who knew that he thought about things other than volleyball? Turns out he did. And some of those things included him.
"I mean, I think it's normal to be happy when you're near your crush," Hinata said. Kageyama looked down and bit his lip at the mention of the word 'crush'. "And, you said... You said you're happy being near me. Not that it's not the same for me! But you're just fine. Why worry about a limit?"
"I don't like not getting the things I really want," Kageyama mumbled. "And I really want... you. Just being near you is like—it's like, you're right in front of me, but I'll never be able to catch up with you. You'll never be in my reach."
Kageyama catch up to him? In his opinion, Kageyama was the outright amazing one in the duo. "But, I'm not that great at anything!" Hinata protested. "Not in the naturally talented way you are. All of your volleyball skills are well refined. Your tosses are amazing!"
Kageyama looked at him like he had suggested that they take a break from volleyball for a day. "Your jumping skills are amazing. And your reflexes. You're the middle blocker for Karasuno despite your height. You're the one everyone notices when we play."
"That's not true and you know it. Everyone notices all of Karasuno when we play!"
"You're still out of my reach. I didn't even know if we were friends until earlier today." Kageyama appeared slightly irritated. "I don't get how I can use words to make you understand how I feel, but damn if I don't try." Kageyama took a deep breath, trying to soothe himself. There was a pause. And then...
"Hinata, you're like lightning."
Hinata blinked. What was he trying to say?
"It flashes, blindingly bright, and it illuminates everything. It stays long enough for you to notice it, but vanishes before you can truly capture it. You get a single glimpse, and it's dazzling, before it disappears once again."
A sigh. "And that's like you," Kageyama concluded. "You're right there, and I can see you and how amazing you are, but it's as if you'll disappear before I can ever truly capture you." He smiled bitterly. "Why stay still when you can continue moving, being as great as you are?"
It seemed like he would never stop being shocked by Kageyama. Hinata supposed that wasn't too hard to believe—Kageyama had been surprising him ever since they met (his volleyball skills, meeting him at Karasuno again, their quick, how closely their lives became intertwined—the list goes on). Could he even be described like that? He didn't know, but Kageyama seemed to think so.
Hinata looked at him, eyes bright. "I didn't know you could be so... poetic."
"Shut up. It's not like I meant to be," Kageyama muttered in response.
"I understand what you're trying to say though, at least the gist of it! And all this was undoing you?"
A small nod. "I usually keep all my feelings in check. I don't know why this is so unsettling."
"It's because you care!" Hinata exclaimed as he suddenly jumped up and wrapped his arms around Kageyama's neck, causing them both to stumble.
Kageyama had to put his hands down on the steps behind them so they wouldn't fall. "H-hey, Hinata! I said not to jump!"
"No, you said not to jump off walls!" Hinata countered, laughing. He looked Kageyama in the eyes. "Now listen here. This time, don't make me say it again! We don't need to have things in common to be close. We're close right now, aren't we?"
"You did just jump on me," Kageyama conceded, nodding solemnly.
The smaller boy gave him a light shove before continuing since he was sure Kageyama knew what he meant anyway. "Sure, having similarities may be what's considered "normal" or something, but since when have we been normal?"
Kageyama tried to hide his smile. "That's true."
The two of them might not fit under the category of typical high schoolers. They were the King of the Court and the person he'll make invincible.
"Our friendship may be weird and different, but it's working, isn't it? We're getting along just fine by being ourselves. So let's not change!" Hinata's eyes gleamed with optimism as he continued. "We'll see where we end up. What matters is that we'll be together the entire time. And your lightning thing." A sweet smile as hazel eyes met blue. "...Thanks for that by the way."
Kageyama averted his eyes although they softened considerably.
"Lightning may vanish," Hinata said, "but you still see it. Some people may be afraid of it or ignore it, but not you. You appreciate it. You think it's dazzling." Hinata fought his rising embarrassment. He really couldn't imagine being described in such a beautiful and expressive way, but he continued for Kageyama.
"You have one thing wrong though—I'm not going to disappear! I'm going to stay right here with you."
He emphasized the last two words. Kageyama looked at Hinata, and this time, it was Kageyama looking shocked. Hinata looked back up at him, and seeing his surprise, grinned. "Oh, and last thing. When Karasuno gets on the court, they notice me and you and all of us. We're all super-duper awesome!"
As Kageyama beheld the smiling, vibrant orange-haired boy in front of him, sitting on the stone steps leading up to the doorway of his house, for a fleeting second, he thought, 'What a Hinata-like thing to say.'
Everything about Hinata—his personality, his words, his actions—was so characteristically him. Hinata was completely out of place in the darkness of the night, but that just made him all the more unique. He didn't just blend in and become covered by the darkness; instead, he overpowered it and stood out. To Kageyama, Hinata was the brightest light he's ever encountered as if the sun was shining right in front of him.
(But brighter.)
It was at that moment that Hinata realized that he still had his arms tangled around Kageyama's neck from his jump and was practically sitting in his lap. His eyes grew wide and he quickly scrambled down into the space beside him. "Eheh… sorry! I didn't hurt you or anything, did I?"
"No, you didn't," Kageyama said, amusement evident on his face. "I didn't mind, so don't worry about it." Appeased by Kageyama's words and having said his piece, Hinata relaxed, settling down beside him and leaning on the taller boy's side. "You're the hurt one anyway. How are you feeling?"
'Surprised. Content. Like there's a lightness in my chest that I never realized I could have—', Hinata's mind flashed to being mid-jump and soaring to hit the ball, '—even if it feels like I've been flying before.' He could pick many words to describe the myriad of feelings that the day of surprises and confessions had given him.
However, he knew what Kageymaa was asking about and replied, "I feel fine! It doesn't throb or hurt anymore but it feels sort of numb." Hinata tried to focus on the feeling in his ankle, assessing the damage and how confident he was in using it. "Eh, it might hurt when I start walking, but I can probably stand and walk okay, just wobbly or something!"
"Not taking the chance of you falling again." Kageyama stood up. "Come on, let's get you inside."
He knelt down to pick Hinata up but Hinata grabbed his sleeve. "Wait, we need to confirm something."
"Hm?"
Feeling his throat go dry, he let go of Kageyama to tap his two index fingers together, trying to dissipate some of his nerves. "Are we... you know... b-boyfr—are we dating?!" he blurted out.
As Hinata looked down, face burning red, Kageyama had a neutral, innocent expression on his face. Then he leaned down even further to peck Hinata on the cheek, startling him.
"Uwah! Hey, Kageyama!"
"Hm?" he asked again, innocently. Then he smirked. "Does that answer your question?"
Hinata paused, still looking startled. Then his face lit up in a bright grin. "Yup!"
Kageyama's expression softened. "Good. Now, let's get you inside before your mom or Natsu comes outside and gives us weird looks."
"They wouldn't do that!" Hinata said in protest as he allowed himself to be picked up by Kageyama. He grabbed their bags on the way up, bundling them on top of him, trying not to drop them as Kageyama walked.
"Or... At least, I think they wouldn't..."
Kageyama allowed himself a small laugh as he walked towards the door, Hinata in his arms.
End
Bonus:
Hinata walked to school with Kageyama. They met up somewhere along the way, and after waving away Kageyama's concerns about his ankle, there was no reason to split up after that.
"Oh, my mom helped me wrap these white bandages around it!" said Hinata, gesturing to the white lines that could be seen starting to creep up his leg. "I only twisted it, err, somewhat badly, so it still kind of hurts. These bandages are pretty tight though and it helps me walk, so I'll be fine!" he explained. "I didn't bring my bike, just in case."
"Does not bringing your bike really do anything? Wouldn't walking use your ankle more?"
"...I don't know, maybe? Too late now, anyway."
Kageyama sighed and they continued. The morning was peaceful in the silence. As always, the presence of the other was comforting.
As they reached the school gates, Hinata spotted two figures up ahead. One was tall and blond with white headphones around his neck. The other was smaller with dark brown hair and standing by his side. There were only two people they could be.
He nudged Kageyama. "Look," he said, pointing in their direction.
Kageyama's eyes followed. Then he sighed. "Great," he muttered. "Do we need to deal with this so early in the day?"
Hinata laughed as they continued walking towards them. They were in the way of where they had to go after all.
Their presence didn't go unnoticed by the other two. When they got close, Yamaguchi nodded at them in greeting, and Hinata waved back. Kageyama was too busy glaring at Tsukishima to notice. The latter was already smirking. Hinata mouthed to Yamaguchi, "Here we go..." and was given a smile in return.
"Oh, look what we have here. The royal couple doing everything together, as always, King?" Tsukishima started.
Hinata stuck his tongue out from his place behind Kageyama. Kageyama opened his mouth to snap back, but then closed it. It seemed like he had an idea. Hinata raised his eyebrows, waiting.
"Actually, yes, we are."
This time, Hinata's eyes widened in shock. He was shortly followed by Yamaguchi, looking surprised. Tsukishima blinked.
"We are," Kageyama repeated. "You can call us the royal couple or pairing or whatever. He can be my queen. Or my king. As a royal couple, there's no rule he can't be a king, right? I don't really care, as long as he's with me. I'll treat him like royalty either way."
Hinata, Yamaguchi, and Tsukishima were completely frozen. Tsukishima looked like he had nothing to say. 'I don't blame him!' Hinata thought. What Kageyama was saying was so unbelievable to him, and he actually knew what was going on between them!
Kageyama was unfazed. "If you'll excuse me."
And with that, he walked off, leaving the three of them gaping in the front of the schoolyard.