Another rainy day. Hinata sighed as he stood just outside of his office building. It had been raining on and off for the better part of the week, and he was ready for a little sunshine. As he pulled his dark gray sweater tighter around him, he was reminded once again by the ill-fitting looseness of it that it wasn't actually his. It belonged to some other guy. A guy whose name he didn't know and whose face he barely remembered. Though, to be fair, their one and only encounter had coincided with a near-death experience, so Hinata had been a little distracted at the time.
It had happened in the spring of his junior year of college. Finals week had been rough, and he'd overslept after a late night of cramming. In his rush to get to the campus and take the final he'd nearly killed himself studying for, he hadn't exactly been obeying the crosswalk signals.
Weaving through yet another group of people waiting to cross a street, he was about to dart across to the other side when he was abruptly yanked backwards by the back of his t-shirt. He was still choking on the shirt collar that had been pulled against his throat as his backwards momentum made him fall against someone and sent them both to the sidewalk pavement.
Even though his scraped palms stung from the rough landing, all Hinata's brain was really registering was the way a bus had whizzed right past his face as he was pulled out of the street. He'd almost been his by a bus. When his first coherent thought was whether or not claiming near death trauma would get him an extension on a final project, he realized that he really needed the semester to be over. It wasn't until he heard mumbled cursing that he looked beside him and noticed someone else on the ground with him.
"You saved me!" He yelled in shock only to have the guy glare at him.
"What? Well, I wouldn't have had to if you weren't a dumbass that would run out into traffic," his rescuer griped as he looked at the spilled contents of his bag.
Hinata was about to snap back at the grumpy reply when he noticed the guy's obviously prosthetic leg and his agitation started to be replaced with a little guilt. Now a little uncomfortable, he rolled onto his knees and started picking up the stuff that the guy had dropped while pulling him back. "I, uh…sorry," he apologized as he handed back a few books and a pen case.
"Yeah," the guy answered as he stuffed his belongings back into his bag.
Even though is acceptance of his apology didn't sound anywhere near sincere, Hinata stood before offering a hand to pull the other man to his feet. He got another glare at the silent offer, but his downed savior quickly gave in and reached up to grip his hand. Trying to get enough leverage to get the larger man back on his feet almost sent them both back to the ground, but they eventually managed. As they let go of each other, Hinata caught a glimpse of his watch and realized how much valuable time he'd lost.
The crosswalk signal was blinking it's warning to get out of the street as the redhead took off running again as he called over his shoulder, "Sorry again, but I really gotta go!"
He barely made it across his classroom's threshold before his professor closed and locked the door with a disapproving look. And it wasn't until he was taking his seat that he noticed he still had grumpy guy's sweater draped over his bag, remembering that he put it there to keep it off the ground while he and grumpy guy picked up the res of his stuff.
Years later and he still had that sweater. He kept it with him for a long time, always hoping they'd run into each other again in the same area, but he never saw the guy again. It wasn't until the weather started to turn cold that he even contemplated wearing it, and that was only when he'd gotten desperate on a day with a particularly bad cold snap. After a while it had just become part of his regular wardrobe, even after graduating and getting a job at a nice company. He still thought he might run into that tall guy again.
Running out into the rain, Hinata was luckily able to flag down a cab before he got too wet. He was just about to slip into the backseat when someone called out and he stopped dead.
"Hey, you! Dumbass crosswalk guy!"
He hated rainy days. He'd come to hate a lot of types of weather, but rain always seemed to be some of the worst days. Kageyama grit his teeth as he shifted his weight and reached down to rub his leg for what little good it did.
He'd acclimated to his prosthetic quickly, mostly through determination and stubbornness, but there were still plenty of things that irked him about it. Years ago, he'd started college on an athletic scholarship. Then there'd been a blood clot in his lower leg. He hadn't recognized the pain for what it was at first, and by the time it was bad enough for him to seek help, it had been too late. Amputation had been necessary, no way around it.
He thought his days as an athlete were over until he'd been pointed towards a nonprofit that provided blade prosthetics for those who plead their case and proved they'd be willing to put in the rehab work. And he'd worked his ass off after getting his new leg. He took time off from school to dedicate himself to it, and he was eventually able to return to the sport he loved. And class. But he was happier about being back on the team.
But for all of his progress, the weather still took its toll. Kageyama readjusted his umbrella so that he and his bag could stay dry and cursed the loss of his favorite sweater yet again. He'd had the thing for years and took it damn near everywhere only to have it run off with some little redhead before he realized what was happening.
The twerp had run into him to get to the street and Kageyama had yanked him back to give him a piece of his mind. The saving-him-from-a-bus thing had actually been an accident. And while the kid had apologized for falling into him and knocking them both down, he never actually thanked him for pulling him out of the street. It was made a little better when the smaller guy helped him get his scattered stuff together and then helped him back up. But then things had gone straight to hell again when the guy ran off, without a "thank you" and with his damn sweater.
Willing and able to hold a grudge, Kageyama still cursed the loss of that sweater and the name (or face) of the guy that ran off with it.
Kageyama shifted his weight yet again and watched the traffic flow as he waited for his bus, and his eyes caught the bright yellow of a cab that pulled over a little ways down the block. He was about to ignore it when a very familiar person and sweater caught his attention. Rationally, he knew that hundreds of other people in the city could have the same kind of sweater, but how many short redheads would have that exact sweater in a size that was obviously several sizes too large for them?
No longer caring if his umbrella completely covered him, he jogged down the wet sidewalk, ignoring the splashing puddles, and yelled, "Hey, you! Dumbass crosswalk guy!"
Hinata's jaw actually dropped when he saw who was running towards him. That face, with the dark hair and the blue eyes, that had started to fade in his memory came back with complete clarity. "Holy crap," Hinata breathed, almost unbelieving that they'd come across each other again after so much time had passed. "It's you! I looked for you forever."
"Yeah, same here," Kageyama said as he felt some relief that this kid had actually kept his sweater. He'd thought about what he wanted to say in this situation so many times, but instead of any of his pre-planned rants, he bruskly asked, "Can I have my sweater back now?"
The sudden question caught Hinata a little off guard but he quickly snapped back to the moment and flailed a little in his hurry to remove the damp and oversized sweater. "Here," he said as he held it out, not really caring that he was getting wet anymore. The moment seemed a little surreal now that it was happening, and he was honestly a little taken with the man in front of him. Their first meeting had been so crazy and rushed that he hadn't really paid attention to what the guy had looked like. Tall with dark hair was about as much as he knew. He thought he remembered blue eyes, but he really wasn't sure. Either way, he wasn't bad to look at.
Kageyama took his sweater back and fought the urge to put it on right then. Looking back to the guy he'd saved years ago, he was a little surprised. The last time they'd seen each other the little redhead had been in a worn t-shirt and jeans. Now he was in a nice suit that seemed a little weird when combined with his bright shock of wild, orange hair. He was trying to think of a good excuse to leave without being outright rude when he heard his bus approaching the stop behind him. "That's my bus," he explained before nodding in a half-hearted thanks and turning back the way he'd come.
Still speechless as the guy he'd spent so long looking for turned and walked away, Hinata finally found his voice long enough to call after him, "Thanks for saving me!" The only acknowledgement he got was a slight wave, but he wasn't sure what more he'd been expecting. By the time he finally climbed into his cab with a now very impatient driver, he was sufficiently soaked.
On the bus, Kageyama was looking over his sweater for any rips or stains, but it seemed to still be in very good condition. At least the little guy seemed to have taken care of it. He was trying to brush off some of the water that hadn't quite soaked into the fabric yet when his hand bumped against something in the pocket. Frowning, he reached into the pocket and fished out a brown wallet. "You've got to be kidding me," he muttered to himself as he opened it and saw the ID of a now-familiar redhead. "Damn it!" He swore, startling several of the people sitting around him.
It seemed like they weren't rid of each other quite yet. At least this time he had an address of where to find this Hinata Shouyou.
