Note: Story was written for Tsukihina Week and HaikyuuWriteCamp. Cross-posted on AO3. There is a Portuguese translation available.
Tsukishima wasn't surprised when Hinata asked for his help again to study when they were second years. It wasn't like he had got smarter and it seemed like now he was finally understanding a little that he had to show better results on his tests.
"Please, help me!" Hinata begged.
"What do I gain from it?" Tsukishima asked, pretending he wasn't interested.
Of course he didn't want to help Hinata, to lose his precious time on an impossible mission. But he also knew that he would have to do it anyway. Even if there wasn't Suga and Daichi to threat him anymore, Chikara was scary on his own.
"I'll do anything you want," Hinata replied, desperate.
Right now, there wasn't anything Tsukishima wanted him to do. But this opportunity was too good to let it slip away.
"Fine. You owe me. I'll think of something and you will have to do it," Tsukishima said.
And that was how he had ended up meeting Hinata three times a week after practice. It was a lot of time, but less than that wouldn't get them anywhere (more than once Tsukishima wondered how Hinata had managed to be in the same year that he).
It hadn't been easy to find a place to study. First they had tried to study at the library, but Hinata was afraid of the lady there. Then, they had tried to use the volleyball club room and it was worse, with Hinata getting distracted every second with volleyball. Not wanting to go to Hinata's house or having him on his, that only left Tsukishima with one option. They now went every time to a café they liked, with Hinata paying for them.
Today was one of these days and Tsukishima was trying to stop himself from strangling his teammate as he answered wrong again.
As usual, Kei left him trying to find where he was his mistake and he called the waitress. He didn't ask what Hinata wanted, already used to his wishes.
"Hi, I want a black coffee," he started to say, but he was cut off by the waitress.
"...And your boyfriend will want a tea, I gotta," she said happily and then she rushed off.
What. Boyfriend? Hinata wasn't his boyfriend.
He took so long trying to understand, to process the words, that he was still shocked when the waitress was once again in front of them, this time with their orders. Hinata drops his books, happy with the distraction.
"There you go, this is yours," she says, placing the coffee next to Tsukishima. "And this is for your boyfriend".
"Thanks!" Hinata says.
"What?" Tsukishima asks shocked. "You aren't angry that she thought we were a couple?" he is so stunned that he doesn't think about making some cruel joke about it.
"Hum, no?" Hinata replies, confused. "Why would I?"
"You do know that we aren't a couple, right?" of course it is a dumb question, then again Hinata is dumb.
Then something amazing happens: Hinata actually blushes.
"Yes, of course, I know it," he says defensively. "But why I should be mad about it? You know you're good looking Stupyshima, so I think it's good she thought I was with you".
Yes, technically Tsukishima knew that. There were way too many girls confessing to him or asking about him to Yamaguchi to not make him think that. Yet to hear Hinata say it out loud made him feel weird.
"Thank you?" he said unsure.
Hinata widened his eyes, clearing not having expected this reaction.
"Ohh, who are you?" he asked suspiciously.
"Just go back to study, you already lost so much time" he said and pushed the forgotten book on Hinata's direction.
And so he did and from several minutes they went back to studying, with Tsukishima mostly explaining things that Hinata should already know or be able to figure out on his own. Then the redhead got distracted and, as he always did, he tried to drink a bit from the rest of Kei's coffee.
He was able to save his drink just by putting it in a high place, laughing with the irritation clear on Hinata's face. Then the other smiled as if an idea had just appeared.
"Come on, Tsukishima! Don't be so mean. Why don't you let your own boyfriend drink it?" Hinata said, loud enough that people close to him turned to them.
"Shut up," Kei said, too ashamed to be causing such a scene in the middle of a cafe.
"Sorry, but I'm not Yamaguchi," Hinata provoked back and then managed go grab Tsukishima's coffee and drink it. He returned it empty.
Tsukishima rolled his eyes, but secretly he didn't mind. Yes, Hinata was far from being Yamaguchi, but right now it wasn't his best friend he wanted to be with. He would never admit it, yet he was having fun with Hinata, even if they were pretending to be a couple.