They arrived at Oikawa's house soon after they started walking, which surprised Kageyama. He must've run further than he thought. Or maybe Oikawa had actually been telling the truth about living close to Tobio. He hadn't been paying much attention on the walk back from school, more focused on trying (and failing) to back Oikawa into a corner.

But now he noticed the walk was considerably short. They were back at Oikawa's house within a few minutes. "Okay, so, the story is we ran into Tobio-chan who got lost while trying to walk home, and since he doesn't have a phone, he couldn't call anyone. In come the saviors, Iwa-chan and I, and we so graciously offered—"

"I'm pretty sure I was the one who offered."

"—to let Tobio-chan spend the night. We used Iwa-chan's phone to call his parents, because Tobio-chan knew the number, and they said it was fine. Pretty believable story, huh?" Oikawa crossed his arms, looking smug.

"It's actually not bad." Iwaizumi said.

"You're so mean! Stop acting so surprised, I'm smarter than you anyway!"

Iwaizumi snorted, "Maybe at school, but what I lack in academics I make up for with common sense, which you don't have a lot of."

"That's not true, Iwa-chan!" Oikawa complained, pouting.

Iwaizumi shrugged, "Whatever, we can argue about this later, let's just go inside."

Oikawa grumped about the argument getting cut off, but Iwaizumi ignored him and opened the front door.

The house was as warm as Kageyama remembered, and he was pretty sure he could smell a candle maybe. It was cinnamon or something of the sort.

"I expected you boys to take longer, you're never home at a reasonable hour." Tobio heard a voice from around the corner.

"Mom, your reasonable is like four p.m."

"No, it's like eight, which is what the time is right now."

"Fine, I guess it depends on your mood."

Oikawa's mother came in from the other room, "That's actually true-oh, Tobio! I thought your parents wanted you home."

"Tobio-chan got lost. And he didn't have a phone to call his parents. Luckily we found him. Can he stay here for the night? We already used Iwa-chan's phone and asked his parents and they said it's alright as long as it's alright with you."

"It's fine with me. Are you hungry dear?"

Kageyama didn't usually like to eat so late, but he'd had nothing to eat since lunch, he hadn't eaten in so long his stomach was starting to hurt. "If it's no trouble."

"It's no trouble at all, sweetie!" she guided him by the shoulder into the kitchen and took out some food from the fridge.

Tobio realized how much of a burden he was being right now, and he realized how much he was imposing on them. Oikawa didn't even like him. "So, Tobio, Tooru talks a lot about his teammates but I've barely heard anything about you. What do you like to do other than volleyball?"

"Uh…" Kageyama sat down at the dining room table, "I like to study."

Oikawa's mother smiled, "I wish Tooru liked to study."

"Studying is nasty," Oikawa pouted.

"Do you like anything else?" she asked.

Tobio tried to think about what he liked to do, but couldn't come up with much else. "I like to eat." He tried to think harder.

"Do you like to spend time with your friends?"

"I don't have any friends." Oikawa gave him a sharp look. "I mean… I don't usually hang out with my friends. My parents like me to be home right after practice."

"On the weekends?"

"I have to study."

"Oh… so you don't see anybody at all?"

"I see people at school. And at volleyball." Kageyama defended himself, although he didn't know why he was defensive, and he probably wouldn't have the second thing for much longer.

"I see. But your parents were okay with you staying over?"

"Oh… yeah, they um… decided it was okay." Another lie. Kageyama bit his lip, and glanced up at Oikawa's mother, wondering if she could see straight through him.

She didn't press it further, however, and simply smiled at him. Normally, he would've thought the smile would seem threatening, but Oikawa's mother was very nice to him. He wished her son would be more friendly like her.

When he was done eating the three boys went upstairs into Oikawa's room, and Oikawa shut the door behind them.

Oikawa let out a breath before whisper-screaming, "Holy shit, I thought she was going to find us out!"

"Maybe your mother is smarter than you think." Iwaizumi said, smirking.

Oikawa scowled, "She just got lucky because Tobio-chan was giving too much information!" he turned his glare on Tobio, who crossed his arms and huffed.

"I was just trying to answer honestly." He grumbled.

"Honesty is how you die." Oikawa said.

Kageyama didn't know that. "Tooru, don't teach him bad things." Iwaizumi glared at him.

"I'm just saying honesty isn't always a good thing. Lies aren't always a bad thing. Especially if they help people. Like not telling my mother about Tobio-chan's situation."

"Maybe that was a good thing. But don't tell him to make a habit about it."

"No such words came out of my mouth." Oikawa lifted his nose. "He can interpret something how he wants."

Iwaizumi rolled his eyes.

"So I should… lie more?"

"No!" Iwaizumi said quickly. "Just… keep being you."

"Don't listen to Iwa-chan. Being yourself is a horrible idea."

"You literally give the shittiest advice I've ever heard in my entire life!"

"Don't shoot the messenger. I'm just being honest."

Kageyama was a little confused. Should he lie more or not? Be himself or not? How did he not be himself? Oikawa was being confusing, and then Iwaizumi contradicted everything he said so Tobio was doubly confused.

"So um…" Tobio started, wanting to change the subject because he didn't want to let the two older boys know he was confused, "what do people do at sleepovers? I mean, they sleep right? Just at someone else's house. A sleep… over?"

"You're hilarious Tobio-chan. Everyone knows you don't actually sleep at sleepovers. I mean… you do… sort of."

Kageyama was confused again.

"Well, at sleepovers you plan to stay up all night, but usually you fall asleep." Oikawa explained at last.

"Oh, okay."

"Speaking of which, we only have one futon…"

"I'll take the floor." Iwaizumi said.

"No, Iwaizumi-san, I should take the floor." Tobio was the one who'd just barged in after all.

"It's alright, you're probably tired. And it's only for one night. I'll take the floor."

Tobio didn't like arguing, and this wasn't too important of a matter, so he agreed. "Alright."

"Aww, you two are so cute." Coming from anyone else, it would've sounded affectionate, but out of Oikawa's mouth, it sounded like a taunt.

Iwaizumi picked up on it too, "One more word, Shittykawa and you're taking the floor."

"Mean, Iwa-chan!

Iwaizumi rolled his eyes and went to Oikawa's closet, getting the futon down and setting it up for Kageyama. "Do you want help?" Tobio asked.

"It's alright."

Nobody ever needed his help. "I need your help, Tobio-chan." Oikawa gave him a pout, "My feet are sore, massage them."

"Okay."

"You, are a horrible senpai." Iwaizumi said, glaring.

"Iwa-chan! I just asked, he wants to!"

Iwaizumi sighed and grumbled about how Kageyama was a guest, but kept working on the futon while Tobio gave Oikawa a foot message.

"Okay, it's ready." Iwaizumi said after a couple more minutes. "I'm just gonna get some extra blankets and pillows. Oikawa, be nice."

"Why do you assume it's me!" Oikawa wrinkled his nose and crossed his arms. Iwaizumi didn't answer him, and left.

Maybe he should've kept quiet, but after being around the two soulmates for so long, he had to know. "Oikawa-san um…" Tobio started almost as soon as Iwaizumi had left, "You and Iwaizumi-san are soulmates, right?"

"Yeah, I showed you my arms that day, didn't I?"

Tobio barely stopped himself from flinching at the memory, "Yes, you did. But um, do you and Iwaizumi-san like each other? Like each other?"

"Yeah." Oikawa said bluntly.

"But how come you don't kiss?" when he was younger and got to watch movies, the characters always kissed to show they were in love. But Kageyama never saw his parents kiss, though they said they were in love. He'd never seen any couple kiss besides the ones on TV.

"Silly Tobio-chan," Oikawa said in that condescending voice he always used with Kageyama, "you don't have to kiss to be in love. Iwa-chan and I don't feel comfortable kissing yet."

"Do you go on dates?" characters in the movies always did that too.

"I guess so. We hang out a lot."

"But I thought that was different from a date."

Oikawa sighed and withdrew his feet from Kageyama's hands. "I'm going to tell you something, Tobio-chan. Come here." Kageyama crawled over closer to Oikawa and waited, "My love life isn't any of your business. There's this thing called the internet, and it'll help answer your questions, okay? We aren't friends."

"I know." Kageyama had never asked if Oikawa wanted to be his friend, so they couldn't be. But Tobio had thought maybe they were growing closer like Iwaizumi had said. He supposed he was wrong.

"Great. Then stop acting like it. I lied for you and let you into my house because you were scared and upset and I was being a decent person. Don't mistake that decency for friendliness, got it?"

"I won't." Kageyama said but he couldn't help feeling hurt. He hadn't thought of him and Oikawa as friends, or even himself and Iwaizumi as friends, but Oikawa's tone hurt. It always did.

Iwaizumi came back with pillows and blankets, setting them up. "You're such a mom, Iwa-chan." Oikawa switched back to being annoying.

"And you're such an asshole."

Oikawa huffed and plucked Tobio off his bed, setting him on the futon. "Fine, gang up against me then."

"Kageyama literally hasn't said anything

"Okay, Tobio-chan, pick a side."

"You're an asshole." Kageyama said bluntly, and he meant it. Maybe Oikawa wasn't the best person to look up to after all. He was a good volleyball player, but Kageyama was beginning to see his soulmate was a mean person. He still craved acceptance and love, of course, but maybe it was time to close himself off. Maybe his parents had been right. Was Oikawa the kind of bad soulmate they were talking about?

It didn't make sense in his head, because Oikawa was relatively nice to Iwaizumi. They both had a good relationship, a relationship where they didn't even need to kiss to show love.

Maybe his parents had been wrong about his soulmates. Maybe they weren't bad, maybe he was. What if he was the bad soulmate his parents always told him existed.

Kageyama pulled back the covers and crawled into the futon. Iwaizumi went and turned off the lights, plunging the room into complete darkness.

Kageyama's breath caught in his throat when the darkness consumed him, and he searched for any smidgen of light at all. He found none. He'd grown too comfortable lately, with Oikawa's nightlight that he'd given him.

Now it was like a heavy blanket of weight on top of him, the darkness straining.

He shifted over to the edge of the futon, as close to Iwaizumi on the floor as he could get.

"Kageyama?"

Tobio jumped, "Yes?"

"You okay, you're breathing heavy."

"Um… I'm fine."

"No you're not." A different voice, not Iwaizumi, spoke this time. "I forgot baby Tobio-chan is scared of the dark."

"Am not!"

"Should we get a flashlight or something?"

"I don't know where my mom keeps flashlights, and she'll be annoyed if I bother her this late."

"I'm fine." Kageyama insisted. It wasn't as if he hadn't dealt with this for several years. If anything, it was embarrassing how much it still affected him. He shouldn't feel this way, it was silly and childish to be afraid of the dark.

"It's okay to feel afraid, Kageyama."

"I know." It was okay to be afraid of things like death and murder and fire and such. But things like being afraid of spiders and the dark and clowns and heights weren't okay to be afraid. Especially since he was so old now. These things shouldn't scare him anymore. It was so embarrassing that they did.

"Is there anything I can do to make you feel less afraid."

"I'm not afraid of the dark." Kageyama said firmly.

"Yes you are." Oikawa said.

"Oikawa, shut up. Everyone was afraid of the dark okay!"

"Yeah, when we were five." He heard the sneer in Oikawa's voice even if he couldn't see his face.

"When I was afraid of something, my dad would help me through it. When I was scared of the dark, he got me a nightlight, and he would sit with me until I fell asleep."

"My parents don't do that." Kageyama admitted.

"Would it help, if I stayed up until you fall asleep."

"No, you shouldn't do that," Kageyama said quickly, "we have school tomorrow."

"I know. But you need to get some sleep too."

"I'm used to it."

"That doesn't mean it's good. Just lay down and try to get some rest."

Kageyama obeyed and laid down, feeling Iwaizumi's hand resting on his wrist. He shouldn't be so affected, but he couldn't help it. Iwaizumi's hand sent warmth through his body, and while it didn't get rid of the fear, it eased it. He wasn't alone. He could do it if he wasn't alone.

He didn't think he'd ever been this close to Iwaizumi. Sure there had been times when he was physically this close, like when they did a team huddle, or Iwaizumi patted his shoulder, but he'd never felt this connected with him.

His parents hadn't touched him like this in so long, no hugs, no cuddling, no hand holding. For a long time, Kageyama thought he didn't like to touch people, didn't like physical affection, thought it was for kids. But ever since he joined the team he realized he loved touching. It could be anything from a handshake to a hug, it didn't matter. He thought it was weird, how much he liked to be close to people, but it made him feel so warm. Warmth he hadn't felt in the longest time.

Tobio almost wished it could be like this all the time. Him, Iwaizumi, and Oikawa, just lying here. Even though Oikawa was a jerk sometimes, he was still Kageyama's soulmate, and Tobio cared about him, and wished he could be apart of his life. He wanted to feel this warmth from his soulmates being here with him all the time, wanted his soulmates to love and accept him, wanted to be able to have soulmates.

His parents said some soulmates were bad, but if anything he was the bad soulmate here, he didn't need to worry anymore. Iwaizumi was nice to him, and Oikawa, at the very least was decent. Some part of him didn't want to go back to his constantly freezing house. Some part of him didn't want to see his father's angry face ever again or see his mother's tired eyes staring at him disappointedly.

He just wanted to fade from them, even though he knew that was selfish and ungrateful just as his father said. It was a guilty desire of his. He wanted to be like this always, just wanted to be warm again, just like when he was a child and his mom would sweep him up in her arms and hold him. A memory he wasn't even sure was real because it seemed so unlike her now.

The warmth sunk into Kageyama's bones and he felt himself drifting off to sleep, his breath evening out, but he was kept from going to sleep by a voice on the opposite side of him.

"Iwa-chan…"

"Yeah?"

"Do you think Tobio-chan's okay?"

Kageyama felt Iwaizumi shift, sitting up. Tobio was careful not to move and to keep his breathing even.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean… I don't know, he just seems off. Or, I mean his family seems off."

"Tooru," Iwaizumi's voice was chiding, "it's not your job to come up with theories on Kageyama's home life. If he wants you to know, he'll tell you."

"I know that." Oikawa said indignantly, "That doesn't mean I have to ignore the signs around me."

"Oh? And what signs are you seeing exactly." Iwaizumi grumbled, unamused.

"Oh come on, Iwa-chan. Even an idiot like you could see. He said he doesn't hang out with any friends, and his only interests are studying, volleyball, and eating, what kind of interests are those? Doesn't he have a favorite book or movie? Shouldn't he actually have something fun to do outside of school like playing at the arcade or going to the park."

"Maybe he forgot about those things. He was on the spot."

"And another thing, he was frantic to get out of here earlier today, almost tripped going down the stairs in his rush. And then later we find him lost and in tears! If we hadn't found him, he could've gotten sick, or something worse could've happened."

"Your point?"

"That something's wrong with his fucking family." Oikawa hissed.

"I think you're reading too much into things. If something was there Tooru, he would tell someone about it."

Oikawa was silent, "Sometimes you can't tell, Haijime."

Iwaizumi sighed, it sounded tired. "What?"

"Some people don't always know, okay. They can't see like we can."

"See?"

Oikawa groaned, "Yes, see. Sometimes… sometimes the person in a bad situation is so busy just trying to survive the situation, that they can't even tell that it's bad."

Iwaizumi's hand left Kageyama's wrist and he heard the older boy move around to Oikawa's bed. "Tooru, I think you might be projecting your own experiences on to him. Kageyama isn't you. And his dad is not yours."

"I know… but I—"

"You're worried. That's okay, but please don't say anything because you might be completely wrong."

"I know."

He heard some rustling behind him and then silence. Then, he heard the broken sound he'd been making earlier cut through the air. He was pretty sure Oikawa was crying, even though Kageyama didn't know why.

He wanted to get up and comfort him too, but he was also pretty sure he wasn't supposed to have heard that conversation.

A/N Hmm, what's up with Oikawa? Reviews are awesome and appreciated ;)