"You guys really should head home for the night, it's getting late."

Kageyama looked up to see Tanaka standing by the door of the gym, shrugging on his coat and a gray knit hat. Other than Kageyama and Hinata, he was the only one left. And Kageyama had the nagging suspicion that Tanaka had stayed just to keep an eye on them and remind them to go home and eat. Guilt flared up in Kageyama's stomach as he straightened, wiping sweat from his forehead. Hinata hovered nearby, volleyball pressed between his palms. He made a face that screamed he wasn't ready to call it quits yet. Kageyama's expression softened at the sight. He wasn't ready to call it a night yet, either.

"We will. Just a few more minutes, I promise."

Tanaka sighed dramatically, and tossed something small toward Kageyama; he caught the set of keys, grinning gratefully.

"Just a few more minutes," Tanaka reminded him, eyeing the duo with suspicion. "It's late and cold as hell out there, and a holiday weekend-so get home to your families soon, jeez." Under his breath he added, "still can't believe you two are more excited about practicing than presents."

"We will!" Hinata called over, expression breaking into a bright-as-sunshine smile. "Promise! Just a few more minutes and we'll go home, Tanaka-senpai!"

Tanaka's chest puffed out a little at being called senpai, and his frown shifted into a grin as he opened the door. A gust of biting cold blew into the gym, and the older boy waved as he stepped out. "Stay safe you two troublemakers! And have a merry Christmas!"

The door slammed behind him, leaving Kageyama and Hinata alone and pleasantly cooled off after hours of rigorous spiking practice. Hinata ran back into position, practically vibrating with excitement. "One more!" he demanded, as if he hadn't said that every time for the past hour.

"Obviously," Kageyama retorted with a small grin. He waited for Hinata to lift the ball into the air toward him, watched the smaller redhead move as fast as lightning. Hinata squared up to the net and crouched low before jumping straight up—to those amazing heights that still gave Kageyama butterflies to see up close. Kageyama's arms rose automatically, and he pushed up, fingertips firm enough against the ball. He took it exactly where it needed to go, touch soft enough to give it just the right spin—just the right velocity, so that the backspin would give the ball that sweet hesitation right by Hinata's hand and open up a world of opportunities for him. Not that long ago, Kageyama thought a toss like this was impossible. A toss that stopped? Kageyama wasn't great at science or math by any stretch, but even he knew that defied the laws of physics. And yet, here it was. The ball's spin slowed it just right; the momentum died as it paused in front of Hinata's waiting hand for just a split second—and the redhead slammed it down with power that belied his slight build. And he had that look on his face. That look of pure exhilaration, of unbridled joy and triumph. Light pooled in his eyes as they crinkled, and his smile pulled wide as he haphazardly returned to earth.

Hinata was always beautiful. It was hard for Kageyama to admit it, but it was true. He was beautiful in a way that was soft and fierce all at once, warm eyes capable of glowing with boundless happiness and kindness, or hardening with near-murderous intent. Hair a shock of bright color and always unruly, but fluffy and unique, and surprisingly soft. His smile contagious, pure, and unrestrained. And, despite how petite and admittedly adorable he was, or how nervous he got, he could be amazingly fearless, incredibly strong and—more than anything—FAST. There were a thousand reasons for Kageyama's affection for Hinata. The redhead had trusted him, reached out to him, when no one else had. He'd been there when Kageyama had felt more alone than he'd ever thought possible. But in moments like these, expression lit up in sheer delight as he cried out, Hinata was the most beautiful.

"One more!" Hinata called back, already pulling out another volleyball from the nearby cart.

"Yeah," Kageyama agreed, even though he knew it would be more than just one. He was more than okay with that, though. And by the time the freak duo had worn themselves out, the wheeled cart empty and the gym strewn with wayward volleyballs, Kageyama had lost track of how many tosses he'd sent his boyfriend. It had definitely been more than a few minutes, and more than a few tosses, though. Panting, Kageyama reached for the last of his water.

"All right, come on. We're seriously going to be in trouble if anyone finds out we stayed this late." Not that anyone would find out, but Kageyama could tell it was time. Hinata's bangs stuck to his forehead with sweat, and he slouched with exhaustion, breathing too ragged, face too flushed. He needed rest. They both did.

Hinata still gave a soft complaining whine, as if he didn't know they were both completely exhausted.

"Come on, help me pick up." Kageyama frowned at the hopeful look that Hinata gave him. "You need rest. I'm not going to let you get hurt, damnit."

Hinata complained more loudly, but to his credit he did start picking up volleyballs. The two of them filled the cart back up, brought the net down, packed everything back into the supply room, and after awhile, had the gym clean and empty once more. The two stripped out of their sweat-soaked practice gear and into warm, dry clothes; Kageyama couldn't help casting a glance over at Hinata to admire the other boy, even if his cheeks burned at the sight. As he pulled off his shirt he couldn't shake the feeling of being watched, too. At least he wasn't the only one sneaking looks. And, well, they were dating—even if it was still new and Kageyama still couldn't believe his luck—and it wasn't like they hadn't seen each other in the locker room before, right?

"Kageyama?"

Kageyama jolted upright, sweater half-way on as he whipped around to look at Hinata, face heating up. "What?"

"You were spacing out. Ready?"

Kageyama could swear Hinata's grin was just a little too knowing. The setter scowled despite his burning face. He shoved his sweater the rest of the way on, pulling on his coat and gloves in a hurry. "I'm ready, I'm ready," he lied, throwing his bag over a shoulder as he stalked toward the gym doors. Soft laughter followed him. He was ready to give Hinata an earful for teasing him as he opened the doors, but ended up with a mouthful of cold fluff as a blast of snow caught him halfway out the door instead.

"Woah…! Kageyama, it's snowing!" Hinata jumped past Kageyama, laughing as he looked up at the sky.

"I noticed," Kageyama grumbled, wiping some of it off of his face. Hinata seemed undeterred. He caught a few snowflakes on his tongue, and many more collected in his hair and shoulders in glittering white. "You're going to catch a cold, dumbass," Kageyama pointed out, though the words held no venom. He took off his scarf and draped it around Hinata's neck a few times.

Hinata got a funny look, watching Kageyama more closely than usual.

"What?"

The redhead didn't answer though. He reached up for Kageyama's collar and pulled Kageyama close with it. On his tip-toes, his lips met Kageyama's, leaving the setter breathless. Despite the chill of the snow and wind, the kiss was warm and soft, and Kageyama's arms slid around Hinata instinctively. He pulled him closer as he returned the kiss. Hinata's breath puffed gently against his skin between kisses. Kageyama's hand found his way into the shock of red hair, and snow drifted down from where it was disturbed, settling on Hinata's shoulders instead.

Kageyama lost himself in their shared kisses, in the warmth between them as they stood in a curtain of white with the moon's light obscured above, arms around each other. It wasn't until he felt the smaller boy shivering that he remembered his own warning. It was cold, and after practicing hard for hours, the biting wind seeped into them even faster. "It's freezing out here," Kageyama reminded him, cupping Hinata's cheek in his hand. He rested his forehead against Hinata's, just for a moment. "You're going to freeze. Come on."

Hinata wrinkled his nose. "I'm fine," he grumbled, pressing a small kiss to Kageyama's jaw before grabbing the setter's hand and leading the way over to his bicycle. "You're gonna freeze."

"I'm fine." Kageyama rolled his eyes. At least he'd dressed warmly. Hinata looked like his light coat was thrown on as an afterthought, and he wasn't even wearing gloves.

"Stupid—bike—come on," Hinata dragged his bike through the thick snow on the ground, fighting a losing battle.

"Hey." Kageyama frowned.

Hinata ignored him, pulling harder on the bike and leaving a deep trail in the thick snow as the tires caught and resisted.

Kageyama's eyebrow twitched at being ignored, and he stepped closer. "Hey."

Hinata let out a yelp as his feet dug into a patch of sheer ice and flew out from under him. Kageyama jolted forward to catch him—almost falling himself. Now that they were off of the grass, the ice was bad. Really bad.

"Thanks," Hinata gave him a sheepish grin.

"Yeah," Kageyama mumbled, pulling Hinata upright. "Just—leave it here, okay?" He leaned down to pick up the bike lock, and locked Hinata's bicycle back into place.

"Hey! I need that to get home Bakageyama!" Hinata grabbed his arm, yanking at it and scowling with displeasure.

"It's too dangerous, damnit!" Kageyama snapped back.

"I can't walk home, stupid!"

"I know that!" Kageyama grabbed Hinata by the shoulders and met his gaze with a half-glare. "Listen to me for a damn minute, will you? It's way too dangerous for you to be biking down a goddamn mountain in this weather. You can barely walk. You—you're going to get seriously hurt if you try to bike home in this blizzard!"

Hinata glared back defensively, but his eyes shone with the threat of tears. He knew Kageyama was right. "I don't have any other way home! My mom—she won't get home until later tonight and tomorrow is Christmas eve—, it's the only way, I have to—"

"For fuck's sake… I said listen! You can stay the night with me, okay? It's not far. You can get a ride tomorrow morning. You're not riding down the mountain in this! I…!" Kageyama felt the blush creeping over his cheeks. "I'm just worried, okay? I don't want anything to happen to you, dumbass!"

Hinata blinked up at him, silent for a moment as he processed everything. "Stay with you?"

"Yeah," Kageyama sighed. "I know you want to be home with your family, and it probably sucks, but at least this way you'll be safe and warm. And it's just for a bit, I'm not going to hold you prisoner. I just—I want you to be safe."

Hinata's eyes widened, and it was hard to tell in the dark but his face looked pinker. He fidgeted, struggling to figure out how to speak, before looking up at Kageyama, eyes wide with… excitement? "I—Is that really okay?"

"Of course it's okay," Kageyama told him, reaching over to brush some of the snow out of Hinata's hair. "My parents aren't even home, not like they can complain."

"Okay! I'd like that. Kageyama—" Hinata slid his hand into Kageyama's, smiling up at him. "Thanks,"

"'f course," Kageyama mumbled, giving Hinata's hand a light squeeze as he started wading through the snow in the direction of his home. He let Hinata's hand go—to loud complaining—just long enough to take the glove off of it and push it onto Hinata's free hand before their fingers intertwined once more.

Hinata grinned, looking like he was actually enjoying the walk, even though the snow was several inches deep already and still coming down hard. Most of the landscape was lost in the white haze, and a soft, frozen halos glowed around the light of the few streetlamps they passed.

"Are your parents coming home tomorrow?"

"No."

"But tomorrow is Christmas Eve, isn't it?"

"Yeah." Kageyama turned away. He couldn't face Hinata's worried confusion, focusing instead on familiar street signs as they turned onto his block. "They're on a business trip. They'll probably be back sometime next week before they head out on their next one."

"What…?"

Kageyama ignored the soft, shocked tone. He pulled Hinata toward a small house at the end of the block. Grabbing his keys, he shoved them into place, turning the knob.

"They're not coming home for Christmas at all? And they left you alone for a whole week?"

Kageyama shrugged, kicking the snow from his shoes before he pulled them off and stepped inside. "They're usually out of town for work. I don't see them much anyway, it's not a big deal."

"Sorry for the intrusion," Hinata called into the empty house before pulling his shoes off and following Kageyama in. The two hung up coats and left their bags by the door, and despite his polite entrance, as soon as Kageyama clicked on the lights, Hinata ran off to look around the small house in something approaching wonder. It wasn't big by any stretch, but the house was warm, well-kept, and neat, and the fridge and pantry were stocked.

"Oh! This must be your room!" Hinata called out from where he peeked through the door at the end of the hall. "Your house is really nice! It's kind of empty, though," he poked at the lone orchid that sat on the table and inspected the two couches. "Did you guys get a Christmas tree? We got one a few days ago—it's just a small one but it's pretty exciting!"

Kageyama sighed and opened the fridge. "No, we don't have one." He pulled out milk and poured some into a small pan, turning on the stove. Sugar and cocoa powder followed the milk shortly, stirred in until all the clumps dissolved and the comforting smell of hot chocolate filled the small home.

"That sucks," Hinata leaned over backwards from where he'd sprawled onto one of the couches. "did they at least leave you some presents to open while they're gone?"

Kageyama hesitated. It was a loaded question, and he knew it. He pulled out a couple mugs, poured hot chocolate into each and topped them with whipped cream. Walking over to the couch, he pressed one mug into Hinata's hands. He sat down next to the redhead. "…no," he murmured, nursing his hot chocolate and avoiding the redhead's gaze.

"So they're gonna give you presents when they get back?"

"No."

Even without looking at him, Kageyama could feel the change in Hinata's demeanor. His voice grew softer, almost pained. "Kageyama…. What about yesterday? They were gone then, too?"

Kageyama looked down at the whipped cream as it melded into the hot chocolate, becoming a frothy, ivory streak. He had stayed late to practice yesterday, too. Even if they did it all the time, extra practice with Hinata was still nice on his birthday. And the team had surprised him with well-wishes, cupcakes, and few small gifts. Hinata was no exception—even if he had gotten frosting on Kageyama's nose by messing around, he'd made up for it with kisses, had treated them both to meatbuns after they finished for the night. He'd even given Kageyama a few small gifts. Nothing fancy, knee pads and a cute water bottle, but they meant Hinata had noticed enough to see the frayed edges and mended spots of Kageyama's knee pads, or the way his old water bottle leaked. And they were things Kageyama would really actually use. Even if they were simple, they meant the world to him. And made it a little easier to come home to an empty, dark house and the knowledge that his parents wished they had no children after everything that had happened.

"Yeah." He took a sip of his hot chocolate and pulled the decorative throw blanket down. He wrapped it around himself and scooted closer to Hinata, wrapping an arm—and half of the blanket—around him, too. "They don't really celebrate my birthday or Christmas anymore."

"…what?" Hot chocolate forgotten, Hinata looked up in shock.

"They stopped a couple years ago."

"But… but it's your birthday. I mean, I guess if they don't like Christmas that's fine, but—"

"They like Christmas just fine." They just don't like me. The words almost slipped out, but he stopped abruptly to prevent their escape. "They're just… usually out of town on business trips, it's normal. I'm used to them not being here."

Hinata looked up at him, frowning deeply, and making it very, very hard not to look back at him.

"A couple years?"

"Yeah."

"Since junior high then?"

"…yeah."

"…oh…." The rosy color drained from Hinata's face, and he reached out to touch Kageyama's cheek. He flinched, eventually meeting Hinata's eyes. Hinata looked devastated. Pain etched between his knitted brows. His eyes searched Kageyama's, hoping, probably, that he was wrong.

Kageyama hadn't told him much about what he'd gone through at Kitagawa Daiichi. But Hinata knew enough to know that the scars ran deep; enough to wonder what Oikawa had done that woke Kageyama up in a panic, night terrors clinging to him in the small hours of the morning at training camp. Or wonder why Kageyama struggled to look his old teammates in the eyes.

"Kageyama…"

"It's fine." Kageyama stiffened.

"Is that… why they never come to our games? Are they ever even home? Is it really just you, here by yourself?"

Kageyama grit his teeth and pulled Hinata close with his free arm. "It doesn't matter."

"Come home with me tomorrow. For Christmas."

"What?" He pulled back to make sure he'd heard Hinata correctly. "Isn't that—I'd just be imposing, and besides, shouldn't it just be you and your family? Don't worry about me, I'm fine. I have food, and a warm place. It's enough."

Hinata's eyes flashed with anger, "just accept my invitation, Bakageyama! I—I care about you, and—and it would make me really happy if you joined me for Christmas! Besides, you are letting me stay here for the night—so I can let you stay with me tomorrow night, it's only fair! Come on! I want you to!"

Caught off guard by the outburst, Kageyama stared down at Hinata, not sure what to say. He settled on "…are you sure it's okay?" It did sound nice. Even if he would be imposing, the thought of spending the whole weekend with Hinata filled him with warmth and joy in a way that had nothing to do with his hot chocolate.

"I'm sure! I'll even call my mom to make sure, and to let her know that I'm staying here for the night and stuff, okay?"

"All right, all right." Kageyama leaned down to steal a kiss. The taste of chocolate clung to Hinata's lips, just slightly. "…thanks."

Hinata laughed and kissed him back, jumping up (and nearly spilling his hot chocolate) to go make the call. "I'll call right now! I can't wait!"

"I'll make some dinner then. And be careful with your hot chocolate, damnit! Drink it, don't spill it."

Hinata stuck his tongue out and retreated into Kageyama's room to make the call, leaving Kageyama smiling down at his own hot chocolate. He felt, for the first time in a long time, excited for Christmas.