3Free for the first time since moving to Tokyo, Kageyama is already bored and the sun hasn't even risen yet. With stores closed and practice cancelled for the holiday, Kageyama goes on a long run, showers, attempts to make breakfast, fails, walks to Lawson to buy a new breakfast, and then returns to his apartment. He feels accomplished until he checks the time and realizes less than two hours have passed and Hinata still hasn't even left for Sendai Station. Kageyama still has most of the day left to kill, alone.
Whenever school or practice isn't around to keep him busy, Kageyama relies on Hinata, but Hinata abandoned him for the weekend to visit his family in Miyagi. Selfish Hinata didn't even think to leave him an itinerary of things to do in his absence. At a loss, Kageyama clicks on the TV and flops down on the couch with a frown. The TV quickly reveals itself to be a loop of annoying bullshit, some fake doctor feigning interest in the relationship problems of couples while clearly goading them into fights for the sake of drama.
It's garbage but it helps Kageyama realize his sour mood might have less to do with boredom and more to do with missing Hinata. They haven't been apart this long since moving to Tokyo together for university; even before that, they'd been inseparable for years. Kageyama sits up a little straighter, watching a sobbing woman chuck various heavy items at her cheating husband's face. He snorts, amused, recalling the only time he ever saw Hinata that jealous. Kageyama had been giving extra lessons to a new member of Karasuno at the start of their third year, Yamaguchi's orders, when Hinata found them. To this day, Kageyama believes he would've been less upset to have caught Kageyama actually cheating.
The next couple's fight strikes a nerve and Kageyama is reaching for the remote before he even realizes it. 'He doesn't appreciate me,' the woman is sobbing. 'All he wants to do is have sex.' Kageyama scowls at the TV, his finger hovering over the power button.
Hinata's never accused him of anything like that, because they aren't like these lunatics, but he knows Hinata's classmates got in his head about it once. Kageyama overheard a group of girls insisting that their relationship should be more than just two people 'using each other physically'. Hinata never said anything about it, but the next day marked the beginning of a new phase in their relationship, with Hinata planning elaborate outings: fancy restaurant meals, romantic movie nights, dates to festivals and theme parks, none ever complete without conspicuous hand-holding and purikura to show everyone the next day. Kageyama was never super comfortable with these public displays of affection, but something about this show was obviously important to Hinata, so he tolerated it. Even if Kageyama preferred to keep certain feelings secret from the outside world, he would do anything for Hinata.
Lost to his loneliness, boredom, and immobility, Kageyama starts to spiral. Even the innocuous Lawson bag starts to taunt him. You couldn't even cook yourself eggs this morning, it mocks. Why is that?
"Because Hinata always cooks me breakfast," Kageyama mutters back in response, before kicking it to the floor.
In the background, women are still sniffling and hiccuping through accusations of being taken advantage of and neglected. When was the last time he cooked breakfast for Hinata, rather than the other way around, or even thanked him for it? When they'd first moved to Tokyo, Hinata had insisted on visiting a new restaurant or bar every weekend, to explore and get to know their new home, but they'd stopped almost immediately. Now they mostly just stay in and… well. Kageyama flushes and squirms. No, Hinata is not just sex to him.
Why did they stop going out? Was it because the last place they went, Kageyama complained too loudly about the guy smoking next to them? Would Hinata have preferred Kageyama allow a stranger to damage their lungs and decrease their athletic potential?
His phone ding!s, snapping him out of his thoughts. Hinata, informing him that he made his shinkansen and is on his way.
Kageyama cracks his knuckles, making a decision. He stands, turning off the TV and chucking the remote into a far corner, not wanting to see the damn thing again for a long time. His burst of energy falters almost immediately, as he searches around for inspiration. Hinata is the romantic one… but Kageyama has a phone and with Google's help, he finds a blog to guide him through setting up an impromptu date night with only three thousand yen and two hours. Hinata is appreciated, and Kageyama will make sure he knows it.
Back at Lawson, Kageyama risks going over budget right away, because apparently you can't have a proper date night without alcohol. He ends up leaving with an arm-full of nikumon, one small package of birthday candles, some chocolates, and one unreasonably expensive bottle of plum wine, Hinata's favorite.
Upon returning, Kageyama attempts to at least arrange the meat buns into some Hinata or love-shaped design, but that fails, so he goes with a 'volleyball' (circle) and sticks one birthday candle in each bun, careful only to use the pink and red ones. Flanked by two of their nicest glasses, freshly polished, Kageyama stands back and admires his work.
When Hinata steps inside and sees the display of wine and food, his reaction is not exactly as Kageyama had fatantsized.
"You're breaking up with me?" Hinata asks, face stricken. "No, you cheated on me. No," his face scrunches up into what must be maximum potential devastation, "You found someone else to be your volleyball partner?" he guesses, his voice sounding like a very tiny mouse getting stepped on.
"No!" Kageyama shouts, almost too stunned and confused by Hinata's reaction to answer. "Wait, is playing volleyball with someone else really worse than cheating to you?" He feels like maybe they need to talk about this, if so.
"Oh my god," Hinata mutters to himself, sinking into the couch and clearly not listening. "I knew I shouldn't have left you alone for three days! Tokyo is too full of tall, jacked, tempting volleyball players…"
Kageyama looks around, wondering how he managed to mess up so badly. He followed the blogger's advice! He should leave a negative comment. He's gonna make her cry for this.
"I did this for you, because I thought you liked this stuff," Kageyama says, deflating fast.
Hinata looks up from his heart-clutching fetal position, "Huh? What stuff?"
"Romantic girly crap," Kageyama mutters. When Hinata just looks even more confused, Kageyama elaborates. "Like in high school, all those dates you planned for us."
"Oh!" Hinata says, remembering. "Yah, those. That's just 'cuz I didn't want anyone to think we were just f—uh, s—, um," Hinata struggles to get out the words, instead punching the flat of his palm with his fist, in a gesture meant to represent sex. "We're dating, we're boyfriends, random people don't get to just go up to you and demand one-on-one volleyball practice," he says, his voice growing louder and angrier with each word. It's obviously it's not a euphemism, either; he's still jealous about that one time in high school.
"The captain told me to," Kageyama says, defending himself not for the first time, and clearly not for the last.
Hinata lets out an angry little noise, but he's also looking around, finally starting to seem to take in the effort Kageyama put into the food, the wine, the music, even if it's exceptionally pathetic by non-Kageyama standards. He softens, a little.
"So, you're not breaking up with me?" Hinata asks.
"No," Kageyama says.
"And you didn't cheat on me?" Hinata clarifies.
"Of course not," Kageyama answers, getting annoyed.
"And that includes—"
"—no, I didn't play volleyball with anyone else."
"'Kay," Hinata says, seemingly convinced. He stands up and steps around the table, touching the candles and biting back a smile. "So, you sure you did this for me? You're not trying to tell me you miss our dates?"
"No," Kageyama answers, and he means it. "I only ever did that stuff because it was important to you." Perhaps he shouldn't say this, but Hinata is more than someone he can just use physically . He's the only person he can be completely honest with.
"Yah, I always knew that," Hinata sing-songs back, leaning over to flash a toothy grin. "And I appreciated it!"
"I'm still willing to do it," Kageyama offers reluctantly.
"I know, and you're not off the hook forever!" Hinata says. "But right now, I dunno, I'm excited just to be living with you. We wake up together and walk back from practice together and all our clothes are mixed up—" This is actually a problem for Kageyama; he's had to cut himself out of two of Hinata's shirts after accidentally putting them on, but perhaps that's a discussion for another day. "—Just the everyday stuff is exciting for me! It's like, every day is our date night right now. Sorry, was that too girly?"
"Yes," Kageyama says, teasing, and he pulls Hinata in close when he tries to pout and stomp away. He thinks about how it feels to go grocery shopping now, to bicker over the shopping list, splitting the bills, and even the tiny shiver when Hinata reaches for the eggs, Kageyama knowing he'll get to wake up to Hinata frying them up, probably wearing nothing but one of his oversized shirts. Why go out when they can just stay here?
"Welcome home," Kageyama adds, now unapologetically crushing Hinata against him.
A/N: Thank you for reading! If you enjoyed, please consider leaving a comment or following me on Twitter at dayoldcupcake!
