He's not falling in love, but actually falling.
"Shit." Oikawa thinks as he plummets, arms out in an attempt to catch himself. Hopefully he wouldn't stiff arm himself-
He jolts as an arm catches him before he crashes on the ground. He looks up and finds Iwaizumi staring at him with an almost pitying expression. Their faces are inches apart and he realizes that Iwaizumi has full power over him. If he chose to, he could drop Oikawa on the floor, finishing what God and gravity intended a few seconds ago. This makes Oikawa feel oddly angry and he abruptly gets up, dusting himself off.
Iwaizumi puts his hands up in surrender when Oikawa turns as if he were leaving. Instead, he gets into Iwaizumi's space, making the other half-step back, but Oikawa bridges the gap, closing Iwaizumi in before leaning into his ear.
"Can't dance, huh? I'll show you." He mutters darkly and starts grinding on Iwaizumi, much to both their surprise. Before he can back off the other pulls him closer, keeping a firm hand on Oikawa's back.
Oikawa's movements are unsure at first, but he soon starts moving to the beat of the song, mimicking what he saw the others doing earlier. The longer they dance the quieter the music seems. Eventually the music fades out of Oikawa's mind and he doesn't care about the other people watching. At the moment, he doesn't care about anything. There is a haze around them, a fog that won't clear, blocking out anything other than the feel of Iwaizumi against him.
His face must betray his emotions because Iwaizumi has a knowing smile. "Where'd you learn to dance like this? Didn't know private school taught these moves," but his voice isn't as harsh as earlier. His eyes aren't as judgemental either, they scan over him with more than the disinterested look from before.
Oikawa's still too caught up in dancing to answer, instead he gives a brilliant "uh huh" before pressing his hips closer to Iwaizumi, who gives a light chuckle and holds him even tighter, which seemed impossible until now.
Suddenly, it's Oikawa's goal to wipe that smile off his face. He grabs Iwaizumi by the back of the neck and turns his body around, Iwaizumi letting out a huff of surprise, pressing his back against Iwaizumi's chest. They move like this for a while, Iwaizumi's breath against Oikawa's ear and leaving him dizzy.
They move to the music, the familiar fog settles in his brain. He can't shake it off, just presses as close as possible, feeling Iwaizumi's every reaction against him. The shift of his hips, press of his chest, hitch of his breath, all of it drives him mad. It causes Oikawa to turn into putty in his arms, twisting and moving under his will. Previously, that would have ticked him off, but now he craves the sensation.
Finally, his goal is accomplished. He glances at Iwaizumi, who is so focused on Oikawa's body that his cocky smile has disappeared. Oikawa doesn't know which one is more intense, his smile or that look, which leaves him breathless and leads to a not entirely unwelcome feeling pooling in the pit of his stomach. He decides to turn around, face Iwaizumi again to hide the inevitable blush on his face, holding onto the fabric of his shirt without stopping his movements.
The song transitions, and only then does Oikawa realize what they were doing.
"Fuck you," Oikawa breathes, hands still tightly gripping onto Iwaizumi's shirt.
"No thanks, pretty boy," Iwaizumi replies, as he pushes Oikawa away. Oikawa wants to follow him, instead he just watches him leave. Watches him twist his way through the mass of bodies, all moving together as the beat picks up.
The rest of the night passes in a blur, as if Oikawa is drunk- his body still buzzing with adrenaline until he leaves, albeit a little regretfully, a few hours before dawn. He creeps in quietly through the back door and makes his way up the stairs, heart beating fast, but this time for an entirely different reason. His parents would kill him if they knew what he was up to, but it helped that Koushi snored very loudly while Daichi either slept with a few pillows over his head or became a heavy sleeper during the nights when he didn't have a shift. Tadashi is thankfully passed out as always, curled up in the fetal position as his blankets are all over the place, spilling onto the floor.
Oikawa gathers the blankets and spreads them over Tadashi, smiling as he did so, before he goes to bed himself.
The next day Oikawa finds himself by the lake. He managed to drag himself out of bed at an acceptable time, even if he was only able to sleep one or two hours. Luckily, the rest of his family is in a similar state.
Although it was originally Koushi's idea to go to the beach, Oikawa found himself alone. After leaving Koushi at the hands of Mr. Takeda and Sawamura, he went to the bar. In the morning he could hardly get out of bed without cursing and whining. Usually Koushi is the first one up in the mornings, waking up his grouchy family.
Not today. Today, Sawamura volunteered to help him through the morning. Another example of Koushi's notoriously terrible hangovers.
To make it worse, Oikawa woke up to see Tadashi missing. His younger brother typically slept in later than everyone else, making it hell to wake him up at a reasonable time. Yet, when Oikawa texted him, he said he was busy. It was suspicious, but not unheard of. Oikawa only hoped that he wasn't with Tsukishima.
So, Oikawa sits on the beach, watching families play in the water. He smiles at two kids playing volleyball, trying not to be bitter that his family ditched him. He and Tadashi both play volleyball but hardly ever get a chance to practice together.
Luckily, there were random activities the staff put on every day so he wasn't as bored as he could have been; it also took his mind off being alone. He decided to enter a sand castle building contest, thinking it was an easy way to pass time, only to realize that sand is the devil. It only took a few seconds for his clothes and skin to be covered in the pale powder. After kicking down his sad excuse for a sand castle he walked away, cursing the sand, the beach, and everything that tries to make his life miserable.
He walks for a few minutes with his head held low, trying to burn holes in the sand with his eyes. When, suddenly, he finds himself walking into something solid. He looks up, afraid he's run into an angry father. Instead he's face to face with Akaashi, who flinches upon contact.
"Oh, I'm so sorry Akaashi," Oikawa exclaims in shock, causing multiple families to turn around and sneer, as if they were angry that other people dare make noises while in a public area.
"No, it's fine. Oikawa, was it?" Akaashi asks, stopping to talk to Oikawa despite being in a hurry a few seconds ago.
"Yeah, are you going to a lesson?"
"It starts at one so I have a bit of time," Akaashi gestures for Oikawa to walk with him, never bothering to take his sunglasses off. Oikawa also notices that his shirt is also buttoned all the way to the top, but he assumes that it's part of the dress code. "Are you thinking of learning? I saw you dance with Iwaizumi yesterday." He gives Oikawa a knowing look, as if insinuating something Oikawa isn't aware of.
It takes him a few seconds for to fully understand what he was saying, "Oh, that. Don't worry, I was just proving something to him after he showed me some stuff, nothing else. I swear we weren't doing anything else."
"Why should I worry?" Akaashi asks, lifting an eyebrow with an amused smile on his lips. Though it's hard to tell with Akaashi- his face is usually void of expression.
"Well, aren't you two, you know, together?" He stops to turn to Akaashi, fidgeting with the bottom of his shirt and avoiding eye contact.
Instead of answering, Akaashi just smiles. One of the first real smiles Oikawa has seen him make. "Not for ages, we grew up together though."
This is surprising to Oikawa. They seemed so close yesterday he could have sworn they were married. Although it seems inevitable considering they'd known each other for so long.
"So, are you thinking about it?" Akaashi asks, breaking Oikawa out of his thoughts as they continue up the grassy hill.
"What?"
Akaashi rolls his eyes with a small smile. "Taking lessons," he reminds him.
"Oh! I don't think so," he rubs the back of his neck and smiles politely.
"You can take them from Iwaizumi, if you don't kill each other first."
Oikawa doesn't answer, just thinks about Iwaizumi touching him, lifting him up and twirling him around. He remembers dancing with Iwaizumi yesterday and thinks back to what he did when they were together. How tight he held him, how close their faces were, everything was so surreal he couldn't believe he did it. He burns with embarrassment at his brash actions, all because he wanted to prove Iwaizumi wrong. He's so wrapped up in thought that he doesn't realize the awkwardly long pause.
"Oikawa?" Akaashi asks, once again pulling him out of his thoughts.
"Oh yeah, sorry, just got distracted." He tries to stop an instinctive blush from spreading across his face, failing miserably.
"You can even do private lessons, I bet he'd love spending time with you."
It takes a while before Oikawa realizes that he's being sarcastic. His tone hardly changes when he talks, but, unlike Tsukishima, it doesn't piss Oikawa off.
"Shut up." He turns his head away so the other won't see his blush deepening, and lets out a snort. Akaashi just laughs, walking up the concrete steps leading to the recreation room.
"Well, this is my stop. I'll see you later Oikawa," He waves him off before stepping inside a two-story building, never taking his sunglasses off. Oikawa doesn't think to be concerned until later in the day, especially since it isn't particularly sunny.
"Tooru." Koushi waves a hand in front of his face. "Tooru!"
Oikawa falls back into reality with a startled jerk of his body. "Yes, dad?"
"I was asking you where you go off to so often." His dad looks at him with some concern, as do his other family members.
He'll be barraged with questions and comments- both unnecessary and unwanted- if he admits he's been stalking the dance instructor. After last night's incident he's been doing his very best to annoy Iwaizumi. Cornering him after each lesson and poking fun at him mercilessly. Although Oikawa has never thought of himself as a sadist, he's definitely enjoyed watching Iwaizumi's angry expressions. He's even picked up a new name, 'Shittykawa'.
"Tooru? Are you with us?" Koushi asks.
His mind goes blank as he nervously fidgets with the folded napkin in front of him. "Um." His eyes dart around, looking for a hint when his eyes land on the bathroom sign. He takes a deep breath to steady his nerves before he tells a blatant lie.
"I think I might have constipation." Although he says it with a straight face, it comes out a little too loudly, drawing the immediate attention of neighboring families in the dining room. Nailed it, he thinks sarcastically, cursing himself for being such an idiot in public.
"Tooru, did you forget that I am literally a doctor?" His father questions him, giving him an unimpressed look. Oikawa looks at Sawamura and blanches. He actually did forget.
"No, father, I didn't." Another lie. He braces himself for light teasing from Tadashi, but instead sees him trying to make eye contact with Tsukishima from across the room. Annoyed, he tosses the napkin in his brother's face, effectively distracting him.
He waits for some kind of reaction and instead gets something that he doesn't expect. Not only does Tadashi place the napkin back on the table, but doesn't say a word about it. His eyes continue to follow the waiter's every step. Oikawa suddenly feels ill as he watches his brother go through the process of getting a crush.
His parents share a look that is a combination of concern and exasperation. Rather than questioning their son's odd behavior, they decide to leave it alone, changing the conversation.
The rest of dinner is relatively painful as Oikawa wants to go back to his room and practice before everyone else goes back, or something. Anything that will spare him the lovesick look on his brother's face. His parents try to initiate conversation by commenting on the quality of the food but end up talking with each other not so subtly about the struggles of raising not only one, but two teenage boys.
"I'm tired," Oikawa announces, and excuses himself from the table. Tadashi absently waves him off, never looking away from Tsukishima, who had just returned from his break. He fakes going to his room and heads to the kitchen, hopefully finding some peace and quiet there.
"Where did you go off to yesterday?" Ushijima comes up silently next to Oikawa, his voice echoing in the empty kitchen. Oikawa almost screams, whirling around and slamming the refrigerator shut. He'll be damned if he tells Ushijima what really happened last night, and besides, it's not his business anyway.
Oikawa shrugs. "I saw you walking with one of the staff," Ushijima presses.
He hopes that if he ignores Ushijima then he'll go away, or at least stop talking. Instead, he suddenly seems to be aware that they're alone, pressing himself closer to Oikawa as he steps over a discarded pot. Oikawa doesn't shy away because, although an asshole, Ushijima would never make a move. He may hide it, but he's awkward when it comes to anything sexual. Oikawa had learned that a few years earlier when he had a first hand experience with Ushijima's attempt at flirting, which was laughable at best, but mostly pitiful.
Ushijima clears his throat and Oikawa half expects him to start flirting, but to his horror he just says this, "I know I've said it before, but I really think you should come to Shiratorizawa."
Oikawa just sighs, and although appearing to be calm on the outside, on the inside he's strangling Ushijima. He wants to act on these thoughts but all that comes out is a cold, "So I've heard."
"Hey, I mean it, I don't want to watch you waste your talents with those types of people." Oikawa has to stop himself from laughing. Arguing with Ushijima is pointless because he only has one counter argument, which consists of the same six words Oikawa's been dreading since the start of high school. The same words that follow him around in his nightmares, causing him to cringe every time he even hears the name 'Shiratorizawa'.
"Really," Oikawa replies with raised eyebrows. "What makes you the judge of that?" He snaps.
There was a time when Oikawa considered going to Shiratorizawa, but even Sawamura has given up since then in trying to cajole him into attending. The moment Oikawa heard that Ushijima was attending the school he promptly burned all the pamphlets advertising the school and abruptly became deaf when the school's name was spoken in his vicinity.
He applied to Aoba Johsai instead, another private high school that was not as good as the other, but as long as it was away from Ushijima, that was all that mattered. Besides, he would rather burn in hell for all eternity before he lets maroon and white touch his skin. Plus, his school's colors of turquoise and white complement him better, in his opinion.
Oikawa tunes Ushijima out as he goes on a long-winded explanation on why it would be better if they were at the same school and opens the door of the refrigerator again. Doing this effectively makes a barrier between them as he tries to drive the point home that he doesn't want the other near him. He eyes the nearly empty carton of eggs, a few tupperware containers of soup, and some shriveled apples from God-knows-when in the corner of the fridge before closing the door. Before it closes all the way, he catches sight of something on the other side of a shelf. Once he looks back he sees Akaashi curled up in the corner, hands over his mouth to stifle any noise.
Oikawa tries his best to look normal and pretends he doesn't notice the other figure. "Wakatoshi," Oikawa says sweetly, aiming to distract Ushijima. "You must be so tired, and I appreciate your concern, but you should go to sleep." He promptly shoves him out of the kitchen, pushing him past an array of fallen pots and pans. "Good night."
Ushijima opens and closes his mouth, looking confused at first, but is used to Oikawa's antics by now. Instead of questioning the other boy, Ushijima walks back to the hotel while Oikawa walks back over to Akaashi, nervously hovering over the hunched figure before he decides to get Hinata.
It doesn't take him long to run back into the staff building and just as quickly he finds Hinata, who is messing around with the same watermelons as the day before. Oikawa decides to not ask any questions, instead he just yells over the pounding music about what he saw into Hinata's ear. The younger boy drops the watermelons and rushes to Iwaizumi. It's only a matter of seconds before the three of them run back to the kitchen.
Oikawa isn't surprised when he's told that this isn't the first occurrence of the sort. The sunglasses, the buttoned up shirt, the fallen pots, all of it suddenly make sense.
And it breaks his heart.
"He did this to you again, didn't he?" Iwaizumi's voice is unusually gentle as he speaks to a seated Akaashi.
He's been like this since entering Akaashi's cabin, standing around Akaashi like a prisoner surrounded by interrogators.
"No," Akaashi says defensively, although his voice lacks conviction.
"He?" Oikawa asks, but gets no answer as Iwaizumi speaks again.
"Take your shirt off," Iwaizumi instructs. "And the sunglasses."
Oikawa stares at the two of them, confused.
At first Akaashi doesn't move, just bites his lip and remains where he is. Iwaizumi only watches him, arms crossed and waiting patiently, eyes holding a gentleness that Oikawa has yet to get used to. Akaashi eventually breathes out and shoots Iwaizumi an exasperated look with something akin to a bemused smile before doing as he says.
The first thing that Oikawa notices is that his abdomen is marked with many bruises, all in various stages of healing. The stark contrast between his pale skin and the purple to yellow-green bruises makes Oikawa breathe in sharply. The sunglasses come off too, revealing a purple eye and a lightly bleeding scratch. On further inspection, a fading handprint is also on Akaashi's cheek.
"How did you know?" Akaashi slumps in his seat, not bothering to hide the marks as he tosses the glasses to the side.
"You think that I wouldn't notice if my partner was suddenly flinching every time I touched him? And wearing sunglasses when it's not even that bright out?" Iwaizumi laughs drily. "Keiji, we know each other too well for this. Tell me, what did he do?"
Akaashi looks at a spot on the carpet as he starts talking, "He asked me to meet him in the kitchen," Akaashi begins, "He was angry but it was hard to tell at first- you know how Tsukishima is- and then he pushed me."
Akaashi finally meets Iwaizumi's eyes, "He said I wasn't enough for him, so he started kicking and shoving me around until he reached the point where he crashed from drinking too much. Then he left, and Oikawa found me a few minutes later," Akaashi sounds like he's reciting the information, complete with a blank face.
"What do I keep telling you?" Iwaizumi says, exasperated. "I've said-"
"I know!" Akaashi yells, his voice suddenly getting louder, stopping Iwaizumi before he can continue, "I know," he repeats calmly, "but I can't. You know that." He sounds helpless, breaking eye contact to look at his hands.
"And that's what makes it even worse. The fact that I can't take care of someone who means so much to me." Iwaizumi clenches his fists, quickly standing away from the circle and running his hands through his hair in frustration. He goes further into the room before punching a nearby wall, breathing heavily. "Damn it!" He yells, causing the other three to jump slightly.
Hinata rushes over to his cousin and places his hand on his shoulder, but Iwaizumi angrily shrugs him away. The wall is now sporting a small cracking hole while Iwaizumi's hand is rapidly turning red and swollen.
Oikawa isn't that surprised about the information. He already had a bad feeling about Tsukishima but he didn't think that he'd go that far, and now the evidence is right there before him. He burns with anger, hoping that Tadashi won't get caught in this mess either.
"Akaashi," Oikawa says tentatively, "I have something that you can use to cover up the bruises."
During breakfast, Oikawa sees Tsukishima eyeing his brother again. He wants to play the overprotective brother, the way he used to when they were kids, to put Tadashi behind him as he insults Tsukishima to his face. He knows that Tadashi would stop him if he even tries. They aren't kids anymore and Tadashi can take care of himself, or at least he thinks he can.
Of course his father doesn't say anything bad about the tall blond, how could he? The young, aspiring doctor from an affluent family. Probably someone that would be sought after by fathers and their daughters alike.
If only his family knew what Tsukishima is really is like, what he's capable of. Tadashi is currently trying not to look at Tsukishima as his eyes dart to every corner of the room, but they eventually rest on the other briefly. Tsukishima has something reminiscent to a sneer on his face as he takes in Tadashi's discomfort, almost as if he enjoys seeing it.
The bastard.
Oikawa holds onto his fork like a lifeline as he resists the urge to stab Tsukishima with it. The metal grows warm in his hands as the minutes pass by and he angrily spears his fried eggs, the tines screeching against the plate.
Koushi is the only one who notices, though he's too hungover to comment, just twitches every time the fork hits the ceramic plate. Oikawa doesn't care, just watches Tsukishima bitterly as he and Sawamura small talk.
That's another thing Tsukishima is good at, being exceedingly boring. It angers Oikawa more, already grouchy from the previous day's encounters. He hates that everyone- Akaashi, Hinata, even Iwaizumi- acts too normal now, as if nothing happened the day before. The only evidence of the previous night are Tsukishima's bloodied knuckles, which match Iwaizumi's.
The concealer that Oikawa brought with him proves to not be enough a few days later; the shade is too dark and doesn't blend well, and it eventually runs out too soon, which is when the bruises show through.
They're all back in the cabin, thinking of a way to help Akaashi, who has a show in a week.
"It's in another hotel a few miles away," Hinata explains, "Akaashi can't dance without flinching, so they'll probably have to cancel."
"I'm sorry," Akaashi says to Iwaizumi, who is pacing the room before kneeling next to Akaashi.
"It's not your fault, I'll explain it somehow." Iwaizumi's voice loses its regular aggression, which still sounds foreign to Oikawa.
"I'll do it, it's my mess," Akaashi sighs, looking away from Iwaizumi and back to the spot on the carpet. He probably knows the pattern by memory. Unlike the guest rooms, the staff rooms are old and many of the decorations are donations from years back. This one was filled with mysterious stains that circle around a tacky pattern in the center.
"Keiji," Iwaizumi says firmly, waiting until Akaashi looks at him until he talks again. "We're in this together, we'll get you out of this. I promise." Oikawa doesn't miss how Akaashi's shoulders relax. He doesn't blame him, even Oikawa feels comforted by Iwaizumi's words.
Oikawa likes watching them interact. Although he won't admit it, he's been watching them since he'd seen them dance together. He enjoys seeing Iwaizumi's gentle side, which is strictly reserved for either Akaashi or Hinata. Still, he likes to know that it's there, that even the strong Iwaizumi Hajime has a soft spot.
He wracks his brain for a way to help, trying to remember how else he covered up his bruises in volleyball. Suddenly, he gets an idea.
"I can learn," he says quietly, more to himself than anyone else. He wants to help, especially since the performance will affect their jobs at the club. Although he doesn't think he can get away with grinding this time.
"You think you can fill in for me?" Akaashi asks shakily, tears starting to well up in his eyes. His bruises have multiplied, making them too hard to conceal with buttoned up shirts and sunglasses without raising suspicion. However, the appearance of Tsukishima with a slightly bruised jaw at their dinner table a few hours before was an immediate cause of concern, Tadashi almost jumping at the waiter to ask who did it to him, Sawamura frowning in concern. Oikawa pretended to look like he cared, but on the inside, was cheering. He deserved it and more, after what he did to Akaashi.
"Of course," Oikawa says with conviction. "Just tell me what to do."
The next thing he knows he's wearing compression pants and a crop top. He feels oddly vulnerable, even more so when he sees Iwaizumi eyeing his figure with an unreadable expression on his face.
Akaashi, on the other hand is delighted that his shirt fits Oikawa. He was skeptical at first, vaguely aware that most shirts cover his stomach, but Akaashi assured him that it's supposed to look like that. Unknown to him, Akaashi and Iwaizumi share a knowing smile.
They step up to each other and, as Oikawa places his hand on Iwaizumi's shoulder, he notices how toned the other is. He then looks down at their hands and sees how his own is almost enveloped by Iwaizumi's. Although he was much closer the other night, Oikawa was too occupied to notice.
They start out slow, or as slow as Iwaizumi will allow. He's a strict teacher, constantly stopping mid step to criticise the other. Oikawa hopes that he can learn the dance, and fast. Akaashi is almost always present at their practices, keeping both him and Iwaizumi from killing each other.
"Don't step on the one!" Iwaizumi nearly screams at Oikawa as they restart the music again for the umpteenth time. He points emphatically at the sign hanging over the floor-to ceiling mirror that says the same thing, "Don't Step On the One!" in all capital letters.
Oikawa bites his lip so that the curses wouldn't come out, stung at Iwaizumi's reaction. He wants to stomp his foot on the ground like a child as he pouts, but he doesn't. He pushes his sweaty hair back from his forehead and grits his teeth. He has already had enough of Iwaizumi; first impressions could go die in a hole. Wrapped up in his anger, he doesn't care that the other is reasonably more attractive and more muscular than anyone he knows. Right now, Iwaizumi's the sweaty, pissed off instructor who's burning holes into Oikawa, not even breathing heavily after an hour of dancing.
In contrast, Oikawa, who has had his fair share of light exercise, is learning that dancing is not light at all, but as intense as any other sport. His hair sticks to his forehead annoyingly and tangles in his eyelashes. He wishes that he has a hair tie or something but quickly abandons the idea when he sees Iwaizumi tapping his foot impatiently on the floor. He steps up again and they take their places, Oikawa willing his arms to stop shaking from exhaustion. If Iwaizumi notices, he doesn't say anything, choosing to look intently into Oikawa's eyes. The music starts, and Oikawa finally remembers not to step on the one.
After an hour, Oikawa looks longingly out the window; hopefully they could finish in the next five minutes because his whole body is aching. He slumps, and Iwaizumi immediately corrects his posture impatiently, and thankfully, Akaashi has changed the record.
He raises his foot as the music starts its first strains, and Iwaizumi makes a noise. Oikawa puts his foot down, only to raise it a second later.
"No." And again.
"Not yet." A few moments later, "Okay."
When he is not doing anything, Oikawa practices the steps by himself, in the shower, his room- when no one is around-, any place where he can do it unseen and uninterrupted. Ushijima is thankfully out of sight since the night he was unceremoniously shoved out the door by Oikawa, something that he counts as a blessing.
However, his impromptu dances has caused several guests to eye him suspiciously. Rather than running like a scared child down the hallways like he used to, he now dances down the red carpet, pretending that Iwaizumi was leading him through the steps. This only caused him to shudder at the thought of him criticising his posture. Even in his imagination Iwaizumi is strict, calling him 'Assikawa' among other insults.
Yet, his partner isn't the only problem Oikawa faces with dancing. He collapses, panting, against the doorway of his shared room and groans. His hair has been bothering him more as of late, and he decides it's high time he does something about it.
After taking a quick nap, he trudges over to the front desk, not bothering to change out of the crop top and shorts.
"Excuse me, do you have one of those things for your hair?"
The clerk looks at him in confusion. "You mean like a shower cap?"
"No, the things that girls put in their hair."
"I have no idea what you're talking about," the man says, confusion and irritation seeping into his voice before he adds a polite, "Sir."
Oikawa grasps at a lock of hair and twists it, hoping that his pantomime would make things a bit clearer.
This time, the clerk makes a face of realization and goes to a backroom, coming back a few minutes later.
Oikawa looks down at the overly pink and bejeweled box that is placed on the counter.
"Um."
"Is this for your girlfriend? I'm sure she'll love it; this is one of our most popular items, as it contains a set of hair ties, barrettes, and other accessories." He sounds rehearsed saying it, the peppiness in his voice not quite reaching his face, making him sound like a robot.
Oikawa nods dumbly at the barrage of information and pays for it without thinking. He staggers under the weight of the box, which proves to be much heavier than he thought. After making his way up the stairs, only falling four times during the journey, he opens the box.
He is met with ribbons, bows, and an overabundance of sparkles. Upon opening it he has to stop the supplies from overflowing. Still, a few clips and brushes fall to the floor, leaving a trail of sparkles on the carpet.
All Oikawa wanted was a hair tie. He rummages around and eventually finds a black one. Although simple, there are small rhinestones glued to it, still, he prefers it over the others that are tied with ribbons.
He ties his bangs back at the top of his head, leaving the rest of his hair alone. He looks at himself in the mirror, grimaces, and takes it out before going over to close the door. After an hour of wrangling with his hair, he finally manages to tie it correctly, admiring the mini ponytail in the mirror. The sound of footsteps outside the door makes him rip the hair tie out, taking out a considerable amount of hair with it. Maybe he shouldn't have tied it more than three times, he thinks as his eyes water.
Tadashi opens the door and jumps, clearly not expecting his brother to be there. "Tooru, what are you doing here?" He asks, closing the door quickly behind him.
"I was just picking something up." He says, trying to push the pink box away from Tadashi's view with his foot.
"Oh, well," Tadashi plays with his thumbs, a nervous habit he picked up from Sawamura, "Are you going back soon?"
Oikawa just eyes Tadashi, who's acting suspiciously, "I haven't decided yet," he says, not missing Tadashi's panicked expression. "Maybe I'll take a nap or something."
"You sure?" Tadashi winces, noticing his lack of subtlety. "It's a nice day."
"Positive."
"Good, well, I'm gonna head out in a sec." He pulls out his phone, sending a quick text before heading into the bathroom. Oikawa sincerely hopes that Tadashi doesn't have Tsukishima's number.
"Hey Tooru?"
"Hmm?"
"What's this box?"
Shit.
"It was here when we got this room, so I'm just, you know…" Oikawa trails off uncertainly, but luckily his brother has lost interest. He sighs and collapses into bed, body relaxing after Tadashi has left the room.
A few hours later Oikawa finds himself awoken by a door slamming open. "Father and dad wants us to come to dinner as a family because we 'haven't been eating together as much,'" Tadashi says in obvious disappointment, looking disheveled and irritated.
"Interesting." Oikawa is surprised at his brother's almost abrupt tone and appearance. He would bet his whole life's savings of 20 dollars and some cents that Tadashi is being influenced by Tsukishima. Before, he wouldn't even have come in unannounced, but would have knocked on the door or something.
Oikawa cleans up, trying to hide the sore feeling in his muscles. He feels exhausted, not feeling any better from his nap before Tadashi came in. He doesn't comment as Tadashi tries to fix his own appearance. He's wearing a collared shirt, which is unusual in itself, and popping the collar, which Tadashi despises.
Oikawa knows what Tadashi is hiding. He tries not to ball his hands into fists as he fixes his hair, eyes averting to his brother's neck with obvious distaste. Tadashi only sticks his tongue out at his brother, fixing his shirt to hide the marks.
Oikawa wants to talk about Tsukishima, to tell Tadashi what he's seen, but then he'd have to tell them about Akaashi and Iwaizumi, something he isn't prepared for. Instead he hides his disgust by making rude comments later to Tsukishima whenever he serves them, which go ignored by his family. Still, he can sense their growing irritation with him.
After a few minutes of fixing up they go downstairs, surprised to find their parents away from their usual table and instead spot them at the bar, Daichi sipping periodically on water, Koushi fiddling with his drink's coaster.
"Koushi, I don't think you should drink any more. This is your third drink in an hour." Sawamura says with a concerned voice, letting his professional side take over.
Koushi spins around in his stool to face his husband. Unfortunately, he miscalculates and over-spins, giggling as he does so. He's late to notice his sons standing awkwardly together and waves them over, nearly falling out of his seat with excitement.
Oikawa steals a look at Tadashi, who looks equally as mortified as he does. His dad only drank in times of dire need, and he guesses that this is probably one of them, while his father never drank. Oikawa hopes this was also not caused by his father and Mr. Ukai again.
"What's this one called, dad?" He asks Koushi before an uncomfortable silence sets in.
"Sex On the Beach," he replies simply, taking the pineapple slice off the rim and sucking on it meditatively as his husband chokes on water.
"Sounds...great?"
"I know, you should try it sometime," Koushi says nonchalantly as he takes out the slice and waves it in the air. "Once, your father and I-" Three hands simultaneously clap over Koushi's mouth before he can elaborate any further.
Tadashi looks slightly ill, Oikawa is beyond grossed out, and Daichi looks absolutely mortified. If this was their parents' idea of a family dinner, it is far from it.
They stay at the bar, all three of them acting as babysitters to Koushi as he threatens to throw the pineapple slice at a passing waiter. Instead he settles for throwing it at Sawamura after he tells him again to stop drinking.
"You kids wanna drink too?" Koushi asks, but is quickly shut down by Sawamura. Once again he is ignored as Koushi tells the bartender to give them whatever.
"I'll have an Arnold Palmer," Tadashi says, after a moment of thinking.
"That's weak, son," Koushi pouts, looking slightly disappointed. "Tooru?"
"Koushi, he's seventeen-"
"Shh, it's just one drink, Daichi. Plus, you'll take care of both of us since you're the doctor." Koushi points out.
Tooru decides to get a real alcoholic drink, ignoring his father's protests. Koushi, being as drunk as he is, throws his hands up in celebration. Watching as Tooru takes his first sip of alcohol, or so Koushi thinks.
As it turns out he's never been properly drunk. He's had a few sips of beer before, but nothing harder than eggnog. One drink turns into two, then three, and before he knows it he's had four drinks and is talking far too animatedly.
After his sixth drink he's talking nonsense, "But what if we could hear colors?" Oikawa says passionately. Beside him, his dad nods along.
"I absolutely agree," Koushi pats his son on the shoulder. A little further down, Tadashi and Sawamura try to make idle conversation, pretending they are not related to the pair.
Oikawa's head is spinning, a million thoughts pouring into his head as he loses track of the conversation. He's pretty sure they were talking about UFOs, yes, definitely UFOs. "Aliens, dad. Aliens. They're out there and they're real."
His dad stops for a few minutes, contemplating the idea before he finally starts nodding his head, "Yes, Tooru, they're out there," he slurs.
"They have to be!" Oikawa yells, knocking over his drink. Rather than cleaning up the golden liquid he just moves over, hoping that no one would notice it was his.
He didn't fool anybody.
The bartender begrudgingly cleans up his spill, shooting him a nasty look before turning away. Oikawa just continues where he left off, "Do you think aliens have visited Earth?" He asks no one in particular, "Or are we the aliens?" He later throws a tantrum about this, dimly aware that his brother is laughing and recording the whole thing on his phone to be later used as blackmail.
Oikawa rolls out of bed the next morning feeling as if he can conquer the world. The only problem stopping him was that the floor was shifting alarmingly with every step. Other than that, he feels perfectly fine after what, six drinks? Was that even legal? Thankfully, he hasn't died, so he decides not to stress too much about that.
Luckily his family is still asleep. He quickly writes a note that he's going to the lake, adding a smiley face at the bottom before he goes into the bathroom. Although he feels fine, his reflection reveals last night's events. His eyes are red and his hair a mess, he smells like alcohol, probably due to the spilt drink. He doesn't even want to know what his breath smells like. Due to his hungover state it takes an extra ten minutes to clean up.
Before he leaves he waves to his sleeping brother, who is snoring slightly. As he goes to Iwaizumi's studio he runs down the hallway, still afraid of imaginary twins that may try to kill him. Once he reaches the stairs his breathing evens out, pretending that he wasn't just running for his life.
At the bottom he's met with Tsukishima, who gives him a questioning look before turning away. Oikawa sticks his tongue out at him, suddenly aware that running while hungover is one of the worst decisions of his life. He staggers out of the room, walking in the straightest line he can.
He rushes into the dance studio and is met with Iwaizumi stretching. "You're late, Shittykawa."
"Beauty sleep, Iwaizumi. Something you're obviously unfamiliar with."
Iwaizumi gives him an unimpressed look, matched with his permanent scowl, "Let's go."
He does half of the dance perfectly until he twirls clumsily, face hitting Iwaizumi's upper arm, bungling another spin as he missteps and loses his balance, crashing into the other's chest. He feels too tense and maybe a little hungover, but it's also not really helping when Iwaizumi is constantly judging him.
"Can you...stop that?" Oikawa asks, after a particularly bad turn.
"Stop what?"
"This." Oikawa motions towards his face and pulls an expression to mirror Iwaizumi's.
"My face, you mean."
"That. I mean- yes, that."
"I'll try to fix my face if you try to fix your dancing- at least try to remember the steps," Iwaizumi mumbles, making an even angrier face than before.
"Rude, Iwa-chan."
Iwaizumi makes another disgusted face at the nickname. "Again," is all he says, forcing them to start at the beginning.
They dance for what feels like hours, never going more than a minute into the song. Oikawa is starting to think he may throw the stereo out the window if he has to listen to that song again.
Luckily, the stereo is saved when Akaashi comes in. Every once in awhile he comes in to check on Oikawa's progress or dance with him when Iwaizumi takes a break. He doesn't know how, but Akaashi makes him feel more at ease, going through the steps palm on palm, or when the other guides him from behind as he dances with Iwaizumi, hands firmly on his hips. Akaashi hums softly along with the music as he smiles encouragingly at Oikawa.
He is careful not to touch Akaashi too much, the bruises still tender as they go through the last stages of healing. He doesn't say this to anyone else, but the only thing that keeps him going through the grueling hours of dancing is Akaashi.
"Stop." Iwaizumi growls, annoyed for the umpteenth time as Oikawa starts shaking with laughter. There is the one move at the beginning of their dance in which Iwaizumi's hand brushes along his arm, but every time they practice it, Oikawa always bursts out laughing.
"I'm sorry," Oikawa giggles, trying to keep a straight face, biting his lip as they go back into position.
"Again, then."
The same thing happens, and Iwaizumi looks like he's about to lose his shit.
"Oh my god, I'm sorry. I won't do it again. Just.. give me a minute" Oikawa is trying not to laugh, his lips twitching at the effort to suppress it.
"Dead puppies." Iwaizumi says suddenly.
"What?"
"You're laughing, so think of dead puppies or something. I don't know."
"Iwa-chan, that's so morbid."
"It'll help though, just think of something sad."
"Hmm, dead puppies," he tries, "Dead puppies." He feels sad, obviously, but not sad enough to ignore the brush of Iwaizumi's arm, which causes him to giggle again.
"Jesus Christ," Iwaizumi mutters, "Think about something sad! Think about your brother."
"Tadashi?"
"Yeah, he's with Tsukishima right?" Iwaizumi paces the floor, the same thing he does when he's angry. "Think about what happened to Akaashi, imagine finding Tadashi in the kitchen all bloody and bruised. Imagine somebody else finding him and not knowing what happened, God knows he wouldn't tell them, he probably wouldn't tell you anyway." Iwaizumi says. At this point he's ranting, unaware of the horror in the other's eyes.
Oikawa's eyes involuntarily water and the next thing he knows, he's crying.
"Oh shit. Was that too far?" Iwaizumi rummages in his pockets and takes out a handkerchief. "Fuck, I'm sorry."
Oikawa tries to speak but instead makes undignified squeaking noises, further embarrassing himself in front of Iwaizumi.
They sit in silence for a few minutes, Iwaizumi awkwardly trying to comfort Oikawa. The latter attempts to stop crying but he can't, the thought of Tadashi getting hurt is too much. He's known that he can't protect Tadashi forever, but now he's actually facing a situation where Tadashi won't come to him for help, or even want to. He's always been the strong older brother, but now he's just useless.
It takes a few minutes for Oikawa to calm down. Somehow Iwaizumi took his biggest fear and made it real. It did, however, make him stop laughing when they started up again. They did the first step effortlessly, actually managing to get through most of the song before Oikawa trips.
"I'm sorry," he says, still sniffling.
"It's fine, you did great today."
Oikawa stops to look at the other. "Iwa-chan," he starts, "Was that a compliment?"
Iwaizumi's face flushes as he looks away, "Shut up, Oikawa."
Oikawa doesn't hide his smile as he continues to poke fun at Iwaizumi, enjoying the blush that spreads across his face.
"I bet Iwa-chan thinks I'm a great dancer."
"I do not, I think you dance like a squirrel. No, someone with constipation."
"No, you're lying. You think I'm the best dancer you've ever seen."
"Shut up, Trashykawa," he says, punching Oikawa's arm, "Plus, you're an ugly crier."
"What does that have to do with my amazing dancing skills? I bet your face looks even worse when you cry. Even worse than what it looks like now, which is saying a lot."
This earns him another punch on the arm.
They go through the next hour without further comment, dancing skills or otherwise.
Today is not going to be a good day, and Oikawa can feel it. Before he even came into the studio the clouds were building up in the horizon, rapidly darkening the sky. He zones out more than once while dancing, and Iwaizumi is trembling with anger.
"Eyes on me," Iwaizumi snaps, motioning to Oikawa's eyes and to his own.
"Okay," Oikawa says meekly, and looks up, meeting Iwaizumi's gaze. And promptly steps on his foot.
He hears Iwaizumi take a deep breath in and exhale loudly, pinching the bridge of his nose. Akaashi was busy today, unable to calm either of them down in moments like this.
They finally get the steps down until the end, when they both fling their arms back. Oikawa, however, does it too quickly and too much, causing Iwaizumi to lose his balance and almost wrench his back.
"What the hell are you doing?" Iwaizumi yells, finally snapping.
"You know what? Screw this! Screw you!" Oikawa yells back. "You're not doing anything to help me, and we have to perform in a few days!"
Iwaizumi exhales loudly while running his hand through his hair. "Let's leave."
"Leave? Leave where?"
"You'll see, we're getting out of here before we actually hurt ourselves," Iwaizumi puts on his jacket and motions for Oikawa to follow him outside.
They run outside, battered instantly by the pouring rain, Iwaizumi leading the way to his car. He fumbles around as he looks for his keys, then looks through the window. He curses loudly and jiggles the door handle to no avail. Oikawa watches a few feet away, shivering in his wet clothes.
"Missing something?" Oikawa asks, hiding his smile.
"Shut up."
"Come on Iwa-chan, don't let lost keys stop you from following your dreams." Oikawa proclaims in a sing-song voice.
"My dreams hardly consist of getting in this car," Iwaizumi growls in reply, searching his pockets again.
"Well, looks like we'll still have to practice indoors today, like normal people." Oikawa starts walking away, looking back to see that Iwaizumi hasn't moved, "Iwa-chan?"
"Like hell I'm going back, I said we're leaving so we're leaving," Iwaizumi quickly takes off his jacket and puts hit over his hand, which is balled into a fist. Before Oikawa can stop him he punches the window, breaking the glass and opening the door.
"Iwa-chan!" Oikawa starts, running to see if his hand is injured, "You're such a brute." Fortunately, his hand is fine, the thin layer of jacket proving to be enough protection.
It feels liberating to leave the club, the same feeling he got when he first left the city. Oikawa heaves a sigh, leaning back in his seat as he looks over at Iwaizumi, who is gripping the steering wheel tightly with one hand, the other tousling his wet hair.
They continue driving for a few minutes until they reach the end of the club's property. The downpour has slowed down into sprinkling, and so they walk down a path, trying not to slip too much on the leaves, until Iwaizumi stops right in front a log suspended over a small creek. Oikawa watches as the other steps onto it confidently, not wavering when the log starts to shake, and takes off his shoes.
"What the actual hell," Oikawa breathes out, and sits down on the ground. He lays back and closes his eyes, relaxing as the sounds of the creek and the smell of wet undergrowth overtake his senses. He listens to Iwaizumi maneuver his way back and forth on the log and tenses when he feels his presence over him.
Oikawa cracks open an eye to see Iwaizumi beckoning to him and quickly shakes his head, waving the other off to leave him alone.
"Get on."
"What? No."
Iwaizumi rolls his eyes, "Do you wanna do lifts or not? It's all about balance, see," he emphasizes his point by jumping on the log, which causes Oikawa to squeak in fear, although Iwaizumi lands perfectly, smirk on his lips.
"You're not going to take 'no' as an answer are you?" Oikawa sighs.
"Nope, now come on."
Oikawa groans as he gets up. He didn't have plans for dying today, he just wanted to learn the last of the dance. He definitely didn't sign up for this.
Oikawa stands on the other side on the log, taking a shaky step forward, hands outstretched on either side. He takes another step, now three feet away from safety. He keeps walking, looking down at his feet as he walks across nature's deathtrap. He flinches at the sudden dip when Iwaizumi comes over-no, strides over- never really looking down.
"Dance," Iwaizumi says, and places his hand on Oikawa's waist, just like they would if they were in the practice room.
This is too much for Oikawa, who looks down and up constantly at the distance between the log and the creek- about a 6 foot drop- and back up at Iwaizumi's face. The constant swaying of the log unnerves him, and he all but clings to Iwaizumi in his terror.
"Relax. Look at me." Iwaizumi tilts up Oikawa's chin, preventing him from looking down.
Oikawa sucks in a breath as he starts dancing, trying not to glance down as they move across the log. Oikawa turns, keeping his feet planted where they are, when he feels as if he's going to fall Iwaizumi catches him, planting his hands on Oikawa's waist. He unconsciously latches onto Iwaizumi's neck, looking down at their feet.
When he hears Iwaizumi laugh he looks up at him, about to complain before he notices how close their faces are. It's strange to see Iwaizumi this relaxed. He has a lazy smile on his face, as if he wasn't about to fall to his death. Oikawa just blushes, protests dying in his throat as he backs away.
"Understand now?" He asks, sitting on the log, one leg dangling over the side as he looks at Oikawa.
"I guess," he says, still a bit unsure about the whole thing. "Iwaizumi, can I ask you something?"
The lack of nickname causes him to look up, eyebrows raised in suspicion. "Is it something stupid?"
"Probably," Oikawa says without thinking, "Why'd you get into dance?"
Iwaizumi looks surprised at the question, unusually serious for Oikawa. "It was a few years back when I'd just started working. There was a temporary instructor at the club I was working at and they needed someone to cover for them after they left. Akaashi was already working at a different club then, but he made good money so I agreed." Iwaizumi says, tone changing as he starts speaking again, "They taught me all the steps and I actually liked doing it- Akaashi helped me learn when we weren't working and I managed to convince the club to hire him too."
Oikawa nods along to the story, sitting down opposite of Iwaizumi with his legs crossed. "At first I did it because I didn't have anything better to do, you know? But I started to actually like it, after learning all the dances I started to make up my own, and obviously the club didn't approve, but I kept working on them."
"Show me."
"What?"
"Your original ones," he says, standing up and approaching Iwaizumi, "Let's do them."
"Hell no." Is all he can say before Oikawa pulls him up.
"Come on, Iwa-chan."
"Fine, but you gotta show me what you've got," he grabs Oikawa's hands, humming an unfamiliar tune. He starts dancing, guiding Oikawa as he walks backwards on the log. The steps are simple, much more impressive on a log than anywhere else. He lets go of one of Oikawa's hands, letting him move on his own. Soon they're dancing to an imaginary rhythm.
Oikawa smiles, laughing as he twirls on the log, diverging from what Iwaizumi taught him.
"Trust me," Iwaizumi says simply, and crouches down with his arms outstretched in the grass.
"What if we fall over?"
"Just do it, it'll be fine."
Oikawa backs up and starts running to Iwaizumi, involuntarily letting out a yell as he jumps and is lifted. At the last second he stops, only lifted up a few feet before falling back to the ground.
"Don't get scared. Again."
They try several times, each time Oikawa stops at the last second, nearly going above Iwaizumi's head before he chickens out. On the last try they nearly have it, Iwaizumi lifts him up before Oikawa starts laughing, causing them both to fall.
Suddenly they're both on the ground. "I'm sorry," he says in between laughs, rolling off Iwaizumi to look at him properly.
Iwaizumi looks calm despite having Oikawa fall on top of him. He's smiling, making this another one of the rare moments when Oikawa can see his real emotions. It's refreshing to have Iwaizumi trust him rather than keeping himself closed off like he usually does.
"Please don't make me do it again, Iwa-chan. Let's accept our failure."
"Is the almighty Oikawa giving up?"
"Yes, I relinquish my title. Failure is inevitable," and he promptly rolls into the grass, lying face down on the ground as Iwaizumi laughs at his deplorable state.
They stay like this for a few minutes, thinking of a new way to fail. "This isn't gonna work, I have a better idea." He pulls Oikawa up as they clean the grass off them, both have green stains on their clothes, but neither seem to care.
A short drive later Oikawa finds himself at the lake. They're a few feet in the water practicing lifts in a way that won't kill them. Neither bothered to change or brought a change of clothes, which has left their clothes soaking wet. Luckily, the water isn't freezing.
Oikawa has to admit, this idea is far better than the field. He's now able to jump freely. This, unfortunately, causes him to over jump, being lifted by Iwaizumi for a second before diving into the water.
"Again."
"Iwa-chan, are you trying to kill me?" His whining goes ignored by Iwaizumi, who goes back into position.
After many failed attempts he goes back, breathing deeply before splashing comically towards Iwaizumi, who lifts him up over his head. His arms lock and Oikawa is suspended in the air, trying to ignore the urge to jump into the water.
"Hold it, hold it. You're doing great Oikawa." He can hear the smile in his voice. He's smiling too, finally doing the lift after days of failed attempts.
However, he sees something that makes his blood run cold. "Iwaizumi." Panic starts to creep into Oikawa's voice. "Stay right where you are."
"Oikawa? We just finished doing the lift-"
"I said, stay right where you are." He feels absurd as he is still suspended over the water, but he can't let them get near him. 'Them' as in a family of ducks, swimming closer to the pair. He starts to sweat profusely despite being completely drenched and feels Iwaizumi's arms start to tremble with his weight. He gets ready to wrap his arms around Iwaizumi's neck, but with the combined factors of sweat and weight, the two fall backwards- Iwaizumi- and face first- Oikawa- into the lake.
"What the fuck!" Oikawa screams, frantically splashing around in the water after he surfaces. After living in the city most of his life Oikawa hadn't learned to properly swim. Or maybe it was because he once accidentally drowned himself somehow at the three foot end of the pool when he was younger. It could have also been when he got kicked off the swim team because he mysteriously disappeared halfway through practice every time. Either way, it hasn't registered that panicking in the water makes the situation a lot worse.
"Calm down!" Iwaizumi yells, right in his ear.
"You're not doing too well yourself!" Oikawa, in his panic, somehow points at Iwaizumi's floundering.
"Shut up!" Iwaizumi retorts.
"You guys done here?" Hinata calls out to them as he suddenly appears by the shore.
"No!" The two say at the same time, then furiously glare at each other.
Hinata raises his eyebrows as he takes a look at the pair, eyes scanning the lake. "Stand up," Hinata says, bemused.
"It won't work!" Oikawa wails, until he does what Hinata suggested. His feet touch the rocky bottom at the depth of around four feet. "Oh."