Chapter Twenty-One
A/N: Rape Warning
He stands in front of Nekoma's team, they're lined up with Kuroo staring at them intensely, deciding. "Yamamato! Inuoka!" The Nekoma captain shouts suddenly, making most of the line jump in shock. "Right!" They both shout, stepping forward, Ace and Middle blocker, he recalls them distinctly, shoots Inuoka a glare when the other boy starts shouting, "Are you gonna beat Shouyou and Kenma-senpai?" Kuroo looks like he regrets his decision and Yamamato, Tokyo-Tanaka, looks like regrets being picked.
"Don't call me that." Kenma says from beside him, as Inuoka, Kuroo, and Yamamato move to stand in front of them. "Good luck, captain." Kuroo declares, offering him one of his too big hands. He shakes it, hates the way Kuroo's hand absorbs him, knuckles curling over the sides of his palm like he's trying to squeeze his hand off. "Good luck." He echoes, nodding to Yamamato and Inuoka. Kuroo's hand lingers on his, squeezing it almost painfully like he thinks that'll scare him off. He just smirks up at Kuroo, "Get ready to lose!" He announces, tugging his hand away from the rough grip.
Kuroo's large hand slides into his hair, ruffling up the messy black mass, and glowers down at him. "Ah, but I have no intentions of losing, Shouyou-chan." A smirk gleams down at him, almost glowing through the shadows of his tilted face. "Let's do this!" He calls out, clapping his tan hands together, making more of his teammates jump. "Woo!" Lev and Inuoka call out, rushing towards the net, exchanging hugs and smiles as they end up on different sides of the net.
"Ready, Kenma?" The older boy blinks slowly, then his eyes widen minutely as his name is called, then golden pupils are pointed at him. He nods, "Want to serve first, Shouyou-chan?" he asks, offering him the ball. He hesitates, he's learned from Grand King and Yamaguchi, but he's still a notice, A rusty one at that. He swallows, ready to decline, but Kenma pushes the ball into his hand. "You'll be fine, Shouyou-chan, I believe in you." He's not sure that believing can help his amateur serves, especially when Kenma calls his name like that.
"R-right!" He shouts, giving the ball in his hands a squeeze. I can do this. He stares at the ball for a long time, remembering the motions and specifics of each serve. He does a standard overhand, it's what he's most familiar even if it puts the ball right in Kuroo's hands. Yamamato and Inuoka both rush to the net before Kuroo pushes the ball, first tempo, he recognizes and Inuoka starts screaming as he jumps. "Take this, Kenma!" He shouts as the ball falls into his spike path, it throttles forward, right into Kenma's open arms, "Shouyou!" the blond boy calls out, "Got it!"
Setting is also something he knows very little about, he rushes under the ball, wait. He jumps instead, curling his palm as he spikes the ball, it slides over the net, hits the ground in front of Kuroo's hand. "Wow! That was so amazing, Sho-chan! How did you do that?" Lev shouts, suddenly looming over him, "I thought I was gonna spike it, but then you went hwaaah!" Kenma pats his shoulder, giving him a smile, which is the only compliment he needs. "Just something you learn when you're an awesome captain like me!" He giggles, even harder when Kuroo glares at him. "It's on, you little brat!" It's a challenge, but not menacing like he knows the dark haired boy could be.
His next to serve is going to be a jump serve, he's just not sure which yet. Angle your hips back so your shoulder can hit faster. Grand King's advice tingles against his brain as he remembers their training session, it had seemed much harder back then, impossible even; but when he's in the air now, viewing the court in slow motion, the ball slides into view as he soars. Angle hips. Faster serve. The ball whizzes past like he'd spiked it, slows as it collides with the edge of the net, but topples onto the ground as Yamamato dives for it. "Woo! Service ace! Sho-chan, teach me to serve!" Lev's excitement fuels his own,I've never had anyone ask for help before. He's not sure he likes the feeling, or the way that Lev's eyes shine when they land on him.
Inuoka intercepts his next serve with a scream, he pouts at that, downright scowls when Yamamato scores the next point by hitting the ball through Lev's hands. The tall boy groaned, cursing loudly, "Don't use the 'fuck' word, Leev." The taller boy pouted, tried to pet him but stopped in his tracks when Kenma spoke up. "Lev," The blond pronounces slowly, Hinata can feel his face heat up when Kenma looks at him, always seeing through him, "Keep your arms closer, and spread your fingers." The tall boy nods, looking like he might write those words in Lev's Guide to Volleyball. "Let's go!" The tall boy announces, raising his too long arms above his head.
He settles slightly behind the other two as Kuroo starts to serve, even with his previous immobility he's sure that he'd be faster than Lev in receiving. "Here it comes, Shouyou-chan!" The dark haired boy howls, as his too big hand comes into contact with the ball, he watches Kuroo's form as he serves, the ball hurtles towards their side of the court. Left. His feet throw him in that direction as he makes the connection, slaps his hand in front of him as the ball swoops down. "Nice one, Sho-chan!" Lev praises from in front of him, his knees bent like he was about to dive for it before he had.
"Lev!" Kenma shouts, drawing in the tall boy's attention as he tosses it. He watches Kenma's eyes as he gets back onto his feet, the honey color shifting into something darker as his fingers flick out, sending the ball flying. Lev dashes to the net, looking halfway graceful on his too long legs, "Woo!" He shouts, his arm whipping back to spike, only to meet nothing but air, then net. Hinata watches the ball sail past Lev's head, almost into someone's head. He hides a laugh in his hand, looking away from Lev's face, "What?" The tall boy exclaims, removing his limb from the net, "I missed!" He wails suddenly, hiding his face in apparent shame. "I've failed you, Sho-chan. I'll never make a good student."
Hinata wants to tell Lev that he would never accept him as a student, too rude, that only people who's name he can pronounce can be his student, even worse. "Next time!" He promises at the same time Kenma apologizes, "I'm not used to tossing to someone as tall as you." The blond boy admits, and Lev rears back, pulling himself to his full height again. "I'm sorry I failed you, senpais, it'll never happen again. I'll hit your toss with perfection!" He likes Lev, even if he has a very hard name to pronounce, and that he's too tall. "Don't call me that." Kenma mutters, walking back to the middle of the court as their ball is delivered back to Kuroo.
He can feel the atmosphere shifting with Kuroo's next serve, gone are the nicknames and smirks, replaced with a stoic face and a fast jump serve. He barely manages to catch it, can't angle his hand enough to get the ball to Kenma, "Sorry!" He shouts, jumping to his feet, this is my moment. He has to spike, because Lev is redirecting the ball to Kenma.
Kenma nods at him, hair shifting left, he nods, sprints right. Watches as both Inuoka and Yamamato follow him with the intention of blocking, then ducks left, jumps into the air on the far side of the court, spikes the ball following the sideline. He whoops, perfect straight, idiot Kageyama. Then he's swallowed by shadows and bright eyes, "That was amazing! You jumped so high! Wow!" He blinks, surely Lev could reach his jump height with barely any effort, couldn't he?
He offers Lev a smile, trying to melt the tension that Kuroo's silence forces onto the court. "I won't miss next time, serve to me, Kenma!" The tall boy shouts, eyes no longer on him. Kenma stares at Lev like he's watching a wall, then shrugs. He was concerned when he first saw Lev, the grey hair and long limbs, that he was secretly an old man that wanted to murder Nekoma, but he can see now that he couldn't have been more wrong. Kenma moves back, ball in hand, and smacks the ball without any warning.
His head whips away from Lev, onto the enemy court as Kuroo intercepts Kenma's serve with a dive. Inuoka moves back, under the ball, which means, his eyes flick onto Yamamato, who's been silent since the game started. Unless. He glances over to Kuroo, who's standing now, but not looking like he might run forward and spike. He confirms this when Yamamato starts screaming, just like Tanaka-senpai, his hand colliding solidly with the ball. He watches the ball stutters to a stop for only a fraction of second before it's rocketing through Lev's open arms. He dives for it, feels his face collide with the ground, then the ball collide with his head. Why. Why does this happen. He really, really wants to scream, but he's sure he'll pop a blood vessel in his face and start bleeding if he does.
His feet land under him, his head only slightly fuzzy from the quick movement, "That all you got?" He taunts, earning a glare from Yamamato. Lev barks out a laugh, "Next time!" The tall boy calls out,maybe he can be my student after all. He smirks at his two teammates, but his eyes linger on Kenma's frown. "I'm fine." He assures the older boy once Lev is positioned in front of the net. Kenma nods, turns to face the net as well. Their teams trade points back and forth, all of them getting worked up with sweat and screams.
He's only slightly devastated when they lose the first set. Lev's fumbling fingers have the ball landing on their end of the court, the taller boy takes it harder than he does, he has to assure the taller boy that it would be fine, that they'd take back the set and an extra one. Lev perks up at that, leaving him wondering if the Russian blood makes the taller boy emotionally jumpy, not that he has any room to talk, he had cried over fictional cats a few hours ago. Not that Lev needs to know that, it was embarrassing enough that Kenma had taken his picture during his episode.
Inuoka starts off the next set with an ear-numbing scream as he serves. Too many years in prison. He grumbles as he dives for the ball, almost colliding with Lev, who's stupid long legs allow him to close distances with ease. "Kenma!" He belts out, since both of their spikers are currently on the floor, the blond boy nods, slowly moving until he's under the ball's path. He's up before Lev can get his long legs under him, Kenma's head veers right, almost distracting Yamamato, but Inuoka and Kuroo are staring directly into his soul.
Not that it stops him, he launches up, as high as he can to smack the ball against Kuroo's fingertips, sending the ball spiraling off the court. Lev cheers him on, something like pride swells in his stomach each time, like a little bit of darkness is extracted with each point he scores. Kuroo smirks at him, dangerous and almost creepy. "Nice wipe, Shouyou-chan." The dark haired boy states, his dark arms crossed. "Wipe?" He asks, the word flowing awkwardly off of his tongue.
"It's when you force the ball out when you spike it." He blinks, Kuroo's smile widens, "That's what you meant to do, right?" It's half a question, but mostly Kuroo is teasing him. He just smiles back, "Of course I meant to do that!" He cries out, almost defensively. "Of course you did, Shouyou-chan, I'd wouldn't expect anything less of a fellow captain." Kuroo says, half serious before he breaks into one of his weird chuckles. He hasn't heard that many people in Tokyo laugh, but he's pretty sure it's not supposed to sound like that.
"You won't beat me, Shouyou-chan." Kuroo's tone darkens instantly, contrasted when Inuoka corrects him with, "Beat us, right, Kuroo-san?" But they both ignore him, very intent on glaring at each other until Lev serves the ball. Lev, he realizes sometime into the set, is terrible at serving, which is odd because he's surrounded by talented players all the time, and he's really tall, which Hinata thought would help with his jump serve, but Lev sent the ball darting past Kuroo's head, which is almost funny until it hits out of bounds. Lev apologizes, but is forgiven instantly because the look on Kuroo's face almost makes him pee his pants. "Lev, you bastard, you almost took my fucking head off!" The Nekoma captain shouts, leaving him shaking his head as he almost makes Lev cry.
He's in good spirits until the set ends, then his world kind of freezes along with his heart, Kuroo: Two-Hinata: Zero He swallows, glances up at the enemy captain who's grinning ear to ear, looking particularly cat like, those dark chopper eyes freezing him in his tracks. He wants to scream, and run away, demand a do-over, but Kuroo's look makes his throat dry and is only interrupted by Lev, who's on his knees and the same height as him because of it, begging for his forgiveness. "It's fine, Lerr-ree-Leebu." He stutters over the unfamiliar lets coming out of his mouth, tries to walk past the kneeling Lev so he can talk to Kenma, but too long arms reach out and refuse to let him go.
"Wa-I didn't mean to make you c-cry, Sho-chan." The taller man wails, arms dragging him closer like a stupid squid. He sighs, "'M not crying, idiot." But Lev just spreads his giant hand over his hair, petting him, and he jerks away, "Don't!" He shrieks, drawing attention of most of the gym, and Kenma, who walks over and bats Lev's hands away. "Shouyou said it was okay, please drop it, Lev." and the tall boy nods, rubbing his eyes with his balled up fists. "Are you okay?" Kenma's voice is quiet, less intense but just as serious as the tone he just used with Lev. He nods, feeling drained. I lost. He has nobody to blame but himself, Kenma and Lev tried their hardest, and he dragged them down; he couldn't even accuse Kuroo of cheating, even if he really wanted to.
He lines up with Kuroo an his two teammates, all of them bowing and shaking hands at the dark hair boy's insistence. Kuroo's hand clamps around his again, tan skin swallowing his hand easily. "I told you wouldn't beat me, Shouyou-chan, but-" Kuroo's eyes glance to the four people surrounding them, "I'm pretty interested in those jump serves you did. They were pretty interesting." He's pretty sure that he can hear Kuroo purring as he speaks, like a pleased feline, but there's something else, a knowing glint in Kuroo's eyes that set him on edge.
"Had some help." He admits through gritted teeth, not out of embarrassment, but something about Kuroo makes him uneasy. The dark hair boy nods, messy hair tumbling forward to cover more his face, "That makes sense, that form did look familiar." He swallows, does he know how Grand King serves. It wasn't unlikely but for Kuroo to notice the similarities is shocking in its own right. "What do you want- For your favor, I mean." He practically hisses out, watching Kuroo blink slowly.
"You're leaving for Miyagi tomorrow right?" He blinks, not sure how Kuroo could have access to that information, he nods. He'll accept his fate, even if it's not fair. "Come by my house tomorrow on your way to the station. Alone." If there weren't warning bells before, there were now. Me and Kuroo alone, not like anything bad can happen, Kenma is friends with him. He tried reason with himself, because despite his creepy facial expressions, he was pretty sure that Kuroo was a nice guy. Tanaka-senpai was the same way. He nodded, "I-I'll see you there." Kuroo smiles, nodding, "Want to have a rematch, no deal this time?" The tension slides off of him almost instantly as he agrees.
Kenma doesn't seem as pleased as he is about staying in Nekoma gym for hours more than neccessary, maybe it's the rain, it's sprinkling lightly on them as they walk back to Kenma's house and Kenma didn't bring his umbrella because it wasn't supposed to rain. "Don't you like the rain, Kenma? It's like a free bath!" He muses, getting a glare from Kenma, his golden eyes glowing like a cat's, he snickers quietly as the older boy fusses with his now damp hair. "The faster we walk, the faster we get out of the rain." Kenma is still glaring, "But then I'd get my socks wet." He's pretty sure Kenma's sock were already soaked, a combination of sweat and light rain, but he nods, matching pace with the taller boy.
"Tokyo's really pretty like this." Light grey clouds that almost cast out the setting sun, making the city lights shine more brightly, lighting up drops of water as they fall down. Kenma just grunts, obviously not sharing his opinion. The walk back to Kenma's house takes longer than their walk to Nekoma, give or take a few long moments where he insisted on kissing the taller boy. "Can we sit outside for a bit?" He says as they walk through the gate to Kenma's house, the blond boy looks like he really wants to disagree with him, but shrugs instead. He sits down on the step in front of the door, staring at the sheets of rain fall onto the nearby plants. "I'm leaving tomorrow." He says once Kenma is seated next to him, the older boy nods, golden eyes on him. "I'm gonna miss you." His eyes suddenly itch as he mentions that, "A lot." He confirms, then Kenma's chilled arms are around him. Their shirts squelch against each other as Kenma manipulates him into his lap.
"I'll- miss you too, Shouyou." The older boy's Adam's Apple presses against his neck, sending shudders up his spine. "Can I visit you?" Kenma nods silently against his neck, "Everyday?" He has to ask, but Kenma just snorts, "Aren't failing enough classes?" He scoffs as if offended, then leans his head back, resting it on the older boy's shoulder, "You'd tutor me every night then, right?" Kenma's body shakes with silent laughther, "I don't even study for my own classes, Shouyou." The blond boy admits, he can feel his face contort in curiosity. "But you're so smart, and stuff!" Kenma could be great at everything, because he's Kenma.
"Kuroo's smarter than I am, I just want games-" Kenma's voice trails off, "And you." He adds quietly, and directly into his ear. His damp skin flushes under Kenma's hot breath, "D-don't say stupid stuff..." He whines, hiding his face from the older boy. Stupid Kenma. He pauses when he hears something, a laugh. Kenma's laugh is quiet but warm, barely makes any noise as his shoulders shake. "It's not stupid." Kenma retorts, his cheeks tilted up, smirking.
He sighs, then pecks Kenma on the edge of his smile. "You know what is stupid?" A raised brow, "How white your teeth are?" Kenma laughs again, can feel it vibrate his ears and in his chest. "I like your laugh." He comments once his heart is under control, and the older boy just stares down at him, his cheeks crested with red. "I love you, Shouyou." He squirms, scared of the way Kenma's voice makes his insides tingle. "Are you ticklish, Shouyou?" That same voice asks, grinning into his neck. He shakes his head, a lie, but Kenma doesn't need to know that, especially when they're this close.
"Are you lying, Shouyou-chan?" He shakes his head again, and then hands are digging into his sides. He yelps loudly into the rain, trying to wrench his body away from Kenma's fingers, but Kenma's legs lock around his and he's trapped. At the mercy of someone he trusted, "Please don't!" he whines, trying to shoot Kenma puppy dog eyes in between bouts of giggling and screeching. "Want me to stop, Shouyou-chan?" The older boy teases, dragging his fingers across his damp stomach before digging in, he screams loudly and nods.
Kenma's stupid fingers relent, and then he's being pulled back against the older boy's chest, "I'll miss you." Kenma says quietly, he nods, leaning back until he can feel Kenma's heart beating against his back. "I'll be back before you know it. For revenge." He giggles, winter break was only four months away, but it seemed like an eternity from now, would probably seem longer when Kenma wasn't holding him.
They walk inside at Kenma's insistence, he's shivering at once, the air inside impossibly colder than outside. "I'll get you a towel." Kenma says, kicking off his damp shoes, unaffected by the freezing air on his skin. He nods, slips off his shoes, tucks his socks inside of them. Kenma's back at once, smirking down at him, toes curling over the landing. "Get naked, Shouyou." He commands silently, he opens his mouth to reply but only a squeak emits from his throat, "W-what?" He asks, looking around the taller boy for any other occupants in the house.
"Strip for me, Shouyou-chan." He can't help the shiver that runs up his entire body. "B-but someone could s-see." He hisses out, holding onto the bottom of his shirt like Kenma might walk over and rip it off. "They're both working." The older boy adds, as if that helps any. He looks up at Kenma and whines, "Do I have to?" The older boy nods quickly, holding the towel like a flag between his hands.
He sighs, out of options, and his hands drop from his shirt, push at his shorts, taking his damp underwear with them, the pool around his bare ankles with a plop and he steps out of the wet pile. Tugs at his shirt, thankful the fabric hides his burning cheeks from Kenma's gaze. He peels off the soaked shirt and picks up his shorts, rolling the pile under his arm. Then he's standing in front of Kenma, feels the older boy's golden eyes sweep across his exposed body.
Kenma steps forward suddenly, wrapping soft fabric around his shoulders, soaking up beads of water, then the towel slides over his body, warm and almost rough with the pressure Kenma's hands provide. The towel works into his hair, blinding him to the older boy's heavy stares. "Kenma?" He asks, and the towel freezes in his hair with a him of acknowledgement. "You're dripping on me." There's a soft noise, then Kenma pulls back, offering him the towel with a little smile.
He takes it, wraps it around himself and steps onto the landing, leans forward on his instep until his face is level with the older boy's. Kenma's lips quiver under his, then they're spread open, impossibly heated muscle pressing against his lips. Hinata opens his mouth, and Kenma's tongue slides in, flicks against his passive muscle. He swallows, his feet trembling slightly with the effort to remain standing. "Kemma-" He gasps, pulling back landing on his heels again. The older boy hums, then settles a damp arm across his previously dry shoulders.
Kenma leads him upstairs, into his bedroom, where the older boy's clothes are peeled off of his body. He swallows, never really interested in seeing someone strip as much as he is now. He watches each of Kenma's muscles spring forward, wanting to rip out of his pale skin, the way his fingers tug at his shirt until it's gone, thumbs hooking into shorts until it's all a pile on the floor. Then they're standing naked, in Kenma's too cold room, alone. He gulps, then golden eyes are latched onto his.
Last night in Tokyo, he thinks instead of, Returning to no home, they're cuddling, like always, Kenma's hips and chest slotted to his slighter frame, the older boy's arm settled over his stomach. It had been rubbing his stomach some hours ago, but Kenma was sleeping now, I should be sleeping now. He flicks his phone open again, checking that it was still too early in the morning. Alone. He didn't want to be without Kenma if he didn't have to be, but a deal was a deal, and he'd lost.
Hinata isn't sure what to think of Kuroo, he's Kenma's friend, his captain, his neighbor, but he was also intimidating and unpredictable, if only to him. The rest of the Nekoma team didn't look at Kuroo in fear, but in admiration of his captain, maybe he's just scared of captains. Except Daichi, he decides, because even when Daichi was being scary, he only did it because he cared. He wonders what it's going to be like, without Kenma that is, living with Suga-san or Daichi, maybe wandering the street so sleep on a bench. Are there any benches near school? He didn't even know where Suga-san lived, not far he'd been informed but he had a feeling that his not far was different from his senpai's. I ride a bike six Kilometers to school everyday, Suga-san. The older boy hadn't responded, leaving him wondering the fate of his bicycle, or his school bag, or his sneakers.
He made a point to ignore thoughts that revolved around Natsu, Did Natsu get her birthday bike? He almost called them two weeks ago, beg for forgiveness and ask to see Natsu, but he was thankful that his excessive sleeping kept him from doing so. I wonder if she got taller. He hadn't been that all when he was her age, ignored the spike of jealousy when he thought of his baby sister. She has a mom, she has a home. He had a home too, with Kenma, and he had to run from it to pursue his dream.
He'll be fine without me, he was sure of it, Kenma said he liked to be alone while he was sure that he would die without Kenma's touch, praising and loving all over his skin. He tugged at his hair, the only physical reminder that his time in Tokyo would be real until he reunited with Kenma. He focused on that for a moment, wondering what his teammates would think of his hair, Kagayama would call it stupid, or maybe he'd be confused, either way he'd end up getting punched during or after practice. Tsukki would be sarcastic and Yamaguchi would laugh when he did. Tsukishima was a mystery as a person, but he was predictable in speech. Suga-san would try to smother me, maybe crying- offer hugs and meat buns. He really missed meat buns now that he thought about it, Noya-senpai- he might like it, offer to teach me Rolling Thunder. Tanaka-senpai would... He couldn't think of how the taller boy would react, he might like it, Kiyoko-san has black hair too. He snickered at that, wondering if he could manipulate his senpai into getting him ice cream, blanched when he realized that he might have to flirt with his senpai to get it. He weighed the choice in his head, Free ice cream... scarred for life... but free ice cream...
Daichi wouldn't say anything just tell me to practice harder. It seemed like a Daichi thing to say, but he's pretty sure his captain would smile, almost complimenting him, Asahi- hmm. He doesn't know a lot about Asahi, that he's the ace, that he has long hair that looks really soft, that his back attack is awesome. Maybe he'd say that it's nice. Asahi is nice, but quiet, but Hinata doesn't know his personal side like the other third years do. He's pretty sure the second years would just stare at him, wonder who he is for a long time, because he doesn't know them, and they don't know him. He doesn't think about what Kiyoko-san would say, already feeling a blush sprout on his cheeks from thinking about talking to the very pretty manager.
It suits you. Kuroo's words linger in his mind for a moment before he realizes that the dark haired boy isn't on his team, forces himself to think about Grand King's reaction, his spiker friend has black hair, maybe he'd like it. Grand King was a mystery as well, I love you. Mine. Can I touch you? He swallows, dread and ice lingering in his veins. He never thought that Grand King, his rival, Kagyama's old senpai, would say those words, they seemed so out of place between Grand King's friendly -perfect- smiles and his swooped, swishing hair. Remembers Grand King's eyes, terrifying and cold lingering on his skin.They don't match. Realizes that Grand King's smile and hair would always be perfect, but his eyes would express something else. His eyes match his words. It's his last thought before falling asleep.
Kenma wakes him up, shaking his shoulder, long fingers spread out over his chest. "'m sleeping." He whines, rolling onto his stomach and trapping Kenma's hand. The other boy hums quietly, then his phone is clicking, "Guess I'll just kiss nobody." It's a dirty trick, but he'd jump at any chance to kiss Kenma. He pushes himself up and throws his leg over Kenma's lap, pressing their chests together with their lips. Kenma's talking against his lips, but they come out as gurgled syllables that turn into wordless moans as his tongue flicks against Kenma's
This is his favorite position, sitting on Kenma's lap, using the older boy's thighs for additional height so he doesn't have to strain his neck to kiss him. They sit like that for a while, Hinata's eyes closing in bliss until something that isn't Kenma presses at his lips. He opens his eyes, bleary and dazed, then there's glass being pushed into his hand. Disorder. He opens his lips again, nipping on Kenma's fingers as the pills go in, he swallows them with water, drains the glass and sets it on Kenma's nightstand. Another thing to do on my own, I need a list, he realizes as he gives thanks to the older boy, letting the medication settle in his stomach before going back to his very important task of kissing Kenma.
The dizziness isn't as bad as it was yesterday, and his brain is almost clear, but Hinata is pretty sure he could fall asleep if he remained still for more than two seconds at a time. He pulls back from Kenma, stares at the way the morning light catches on the older boy's hair, it's a moment that he'll savor on his way to the station. Alone. Kuroo had never given him a time to be at his house, but Nekoma's captain lived next to Kenma, could easily see him walk by at any point during the day. Kenma looks at him, gives him a weird look, like he's upset at being awake but also happy to see him. "Hey Kenma?" He asks after a too quiet moment between them, "I'm not carrying you to the bathroom." The older boy sighs and he giggles, it was something in the back of his mind, Kenma carrying him around, but not what he was going to say. "Love you!" He chirps indignantly, pushing his head under Kenma's chin like a greedy cat. Kenma's greedy cat.
Kenma's palm lands on his head without him noticing, he jerks away from the touch, but stills when Kenma's long fingers spread across his scalp, giving it small scratches. Hinata hums against the older boy's neck, delivers small kisses to the warm flesh; Kenma's hand freezes on his head, so he pauses as well, looking up into honey colored gems. Hinata is pretty sure that Kenma's eyes are his favorite thing about the older boy, excluding the way his long fingers pull embarrassing noises from his body, and the way his lips make him squirm. He could stare into Kenma's eyes for a very, very long time, like he's doing right now. His dry eyes close without his instruction, and he settles his too light head on the older boy's shoulder. "I love you." He whispers again, yawning loudly as he does. Kenma hums back, "Love you." Croaking out from his swollen lips, a not so attractive sound but he enjoys the way Kenma's throat vibrates against his forehead.
He feels the pills messing with his head when he pulls away from Kenma's shoulders, the way the room kind of tilts when he's not focusing, recognizes that his thought pattern isn't what it should be. "Kenma-Kenma-Kenma!" He sings quietly, then giggling softly, the older boy hums like a beehive under him. "What is it, Shouyou?" Hinata groans at Kenma's dismissive nature. "Call me Shouyou-chan." He asks for no reason other than the fact that Kenma would if he asked. "What do you want, Shouyou-chan?" The blond boy asks with a teasing tone reserved for his name, honorific thankfully attached.
"Am I yours, Kenma-kun?" He asks, sinking further against the setter's chest like he might melt against him. Kenma hums quietly, resumes petting his head, "Do you want to be mine, Shouyou-chan?" It sounds like a genuine question as opposed to his usual teasing. He nods into Kenma's neck, giving his pulse a slow lick once he feels it under cheek. "I wanna be Kenma's!" He announces into the boy's ear, who just nods, panting hard. "I want to go- swimming." He admits, pressing their lips together, Hinata can feel Kenma's lips twisting into a smirk. "Will you settle for a shower?"
He feels tears prick into his eyes, I REALLY wanted to go swimming. He nods, rolling off of Kenma and offering the older boy his arms. He looks up after a long moment of not being picked up, Kenma is off the bed, heading towards the bathroom without him. "Kenma-kun!" He whines, rolling over to look at the ground beside the bed, wondering how much it would hurt to fall off the bed instead of using his legs. He finds out shortly that the answer is very, and he groans softly before crawling into the bathroom behind Kenma.
The shower is running by the time he makes it to the tub, Kenma is undressing above him, golden eyes looking down at him curiously. Hinata smirks, "Kenma's naked." The blond boy just snorts, continuing his undressing until all of his pale skin is ready to be stared at. He takes advantage of the opportunity, rolls his eyes over all of Kenma's sharp angles and muscles, lingering on each of Kenma's faded scars. He's wonders how many of them are volleyball related when there's a tug on his hoodie, he looks down, Kenma's toes are curled into the fabric, tugging at it like a bird. "Get undressed, Shouyou-chan." He nods and slides against the floor, wiggling out of the jacket and shucking off his boxers.
"Can you help me into the tub?" He whines, clawing at the bathtub in question, Kenma's face flashes with concern and irritation. "How are your legs?" He shrugs against the floor, then hoists himself up to rest his chin on the edge of the tub. Hinata hears a sigh, then there's hot hands pulling on his stomach, the pressure making his insides squirm as he's positioned into the tub. For the first time in weeks he's sitting in Kenma's tub instead of standing. Kenma joins him, always behind him to keep him from falling. He yawns, getting a mouthful of water for his efforts, "How's the water?" Kenma asks over his shoulder. He pauses for a moment, letting the water wash over his skin. "Warm." He leans his head back, resting it on Kenma's shoulder like he usually does, lets his last night in Tokyo get purged from his skin, replaced with steam and the smell of Kenma's shampoo.
Hinata doesn't remember the rest of it, but he's pretty sure he didn't pass out. Kenma is drying him off now, warm towel wiped over his skin until he's no longer dripping, he looks up at the older boy, who's drying himself off now. "Thank you." He mumbles, using the wall to climb to his now feeling feet; the other boy hums and follows behind him. He gets into his own clothes, a little dismally, and holds onto Kenma's volleyball jacket. He's very tempted to just take it, but he's sure the Nekoma team would wonder where it mysteriously disappeared to. He sets it on Kenma's bed, and picks his phone up. He messages Daichi, formally asking if he can stay with him, then packs his charger and pills, tossing them into his bag more forcefully than necessary.
Kenma waits until all of his things are packed before asking about breakfast, he nods, letting the taller boy lead him downstairs. He's left alone at the breakfast bar as Kenma makes them eggs and omelettes, he watches the older boy as closely as his shifting vision will allow. The curve of his arms and legs, are very fun to look at while he waits for Daichi's reply. There's a plate, and he eats. Kenma sits next to him, their elbows nudging each other as he eats with his left arm instead of his right. Kenma stops eating, "Shouyou?" He asks, are you okay? in his tone. He closes his phone, puts his chopsticks in his other hand, gives Kenma the best smile he can manage, which is big, because he's practiced his just enough smile for years.
"Just wondering how long it'll take me to find the station- and Daichi isn't texting me back, he's probably just working." Kenma nods, then frowns, "I can walk you, Shouyou-chan." It's an offer that he should beg for. Alone. He shakes his head, "If you're at the station then I wouldn't get on the train." It's as much truth as it is a lie, because he'd never leave Kenma alone in public. The older boy snorts into his tea, mumbling something he doesn't catch, and they return to their meal. Kenma makes really good eggs, but he's realizes that he doesn't really like eggs, but they're not bad, especially Kenma's. The rice is sweet, moist and most importantly, not topped with crushed up pills.
He doesn't think he could have functioned in middle school if he hadn't dumped every meal into his pocket, smiles almost wistfully as he swallows his next mouthful. He's feeling loose, like he might fall over, but also strong, like he'd just bounce back up. Like a spring. The dread over meeting Kuroo -alone- dulls a bit whenever he looks at Kenma, stops to stare into warm, warm eyes. They don't hold the analytical glint that made Kenma so intimidating on the court, they're open, almost swirling -he's pretty sure that's the drugs, but if not Kenma had really pretty eyes- with open emotion, a sharp contrast to his blank face. He spied a pimple on the older boy's cheek, giving Kenma a more youthful look instead of a brooding old man with dyed hair. That sounds like Coach Ukai. His throat bubbles with laughter until it's spilling into his tea.
Kenma looks at him, a dark eyebrow raised in question, "You look like my coach when you're mad, please don't be mad." Not exactly what he was thinking, but Kenma would look more like Ukai if he was mad, he laughs a little more at that. Kenma's face is openly confused then, "I'm not mad, Shouyou-chan." He chirps back, "I know!" Then starts sipping at his tea, eggs and rice gone.
If Kenma thinks he's crazy, he doesn't say so, just rubs his fingers across his scalp. He jumps, not expecting the contact, and soon melts into the strokes, indulging himself on Kenma's touch. Kenma lets out a soft coo when Hinata finds himself moving towards the fleeting hand, he flushes instantly. Stupid Kenma. He mumbles something into his teacup, which was empty before the petting ended. The blond boy nods his head like he understands, then retracts his fingers, which is the exact opposite of what he wanted.
"My parents want to say goodbye." He nods, he'd been half expecting Haruo to fall into tears, and nobody would say anything, because that was such a Haruo thing to do. Kenma's mother, wonderful Aki-chan, would nod curtly, give him a small hug, or pat his head like Kenma had just been doing. She might say something analytical, maybe something that made him feel worse than disorder did, but never as bad as freak. Kenma pulls him onto the couch, he melts against Kenma, not because of his limp spine, but because Kenma is warm and that warmth is something he has to leave behind. He wonders, not for the first time, if he should really consider moving to Nekoma, Little Giant Cat, doesn't sound as nice as Little Giant, but being alone was significantly worse when he's had a taste of Kenma.
Hinata looks up at the older boy, honey eyes don't flick to him, they're focused on the screen, and he learns that Kenma's eyes glow from every angle. Something that's not a weird Tokyo thing, something that's awesome about Kenma for just being Kenma. "I love you." He whispers without meaning to, and then he's being stared at. The older boy's eyes droop slightly, one of Kenma's signs that he's happy, he only recently picked up on it. It looked like regular listlessness for a long time, but when he's this close, looking through Kenma's dropping eyelids, he knows what his eyes are saying. I love you. It's enough, because Kenma doesn't like to talk, and he won't ask for more than he deserves.
Haruo's presence is heard before it is seen, the front door slamming shut, followed by a holler of his entrance. Kenma's hand slides down from his hip, he pouts, gives Kenma the fastest peck he can manage before Haruo approaches them. "Shouyou-chan!" The big man wails, plopping onto the couch between them, separating him from Kenma. He smiles up at the man, leaning to the side until his back is straight again. "Good morning, Teacher!" He chirps, giving the older man his best smile before he actually starts crying. Haruo returns it slowly, the same way that Kenma smiles, a twist of his lips, then revealing too white teeth until he can see most of his teeth. "I'm gonna miss you so much!" Haruo exclaims, throwing a meaty arm over his shoulders, he nods, scared if he opens his mouth all that will come out is, I don't want to go.
He swallows his admission but it lingers in his throat, begging. "I'll miss you!" He echoes back, throwing his arm around Haruo's sizable stomach until they're half hugging. It all goes down hill from there, Haruo's choked sobs are quiet at first, then grow progressively louder as they remain in contact. Hinata's words start to itch at his throat, threatening to spill out if he can't control himself. "I'll be back before you know it. Winter break is in four months." That doesn't help at all, Haruo's tears start falling like raindrops into his hair. I don't know how to handle this. He gives Kenma a pleading look, but the blond boy just shrugs. He offers Kenma a smile that's only for him, warm and not too big, Kenma doesn't like seeing all of his teeth.
They stay like that for hours, until Kenma's mother comes home, and Haruo perks up instantly, darting off the couch like a big dog. "My angelic, magnificent, Aki-chan!" The man coos before offering to take her bag from her. He can't hear what Kenma's mother is saying, but she sounds happy, Haruo just made everyone feel like that it seemed, even Kenma who's lips were quirked up, even if he didn't look as happy. Haruo's outbursts were very loud, but equally as endearing.
"Is Hinata-kun still here?" There's a trill of confirmation, then both of Kenma's parents are next to the sofa. Hinata offers both of them a sad smile, doing his best not to cry or beg to stay, because he'd been offered but he had things to do. "Ah, Hinata-kun, reckoning day is here already?" He's not sure what that means exactly, but the soft tone of her voice reflects the message well enough, You're leaving. He nods, swallowing down those words again. "I'll be back, as much as you'll have me!" He offers cheerfully, she snorts quietly, her lips moving into a brighter smile. "You're always welcome here. Just don't break the lock." He really doesn't know what that means, but her eyes are consumed with mirth, he never thought that Kenma's mother could joke. He giggles, hating how bitter and sad it sounds.
"Wouldn't be a problem if I had a key." It's a stupid retort, completely a joke until the moment Haruo presses a slab of metal into his hand. He swallows, eyes itchy for no reason, "Nn- What? You r-really don't have to this." He's offering the key back, but Haruo's hands remain on Kenma's mother, they're both smiling. "Just-" Her voice is uneven, and she swallows loudly, "No popping up at midnight, okay?" He laughs, a natural noise that brightens the faces of the two adults in front of him. "Right!" He whoops, giving them a deep bow. I'm welcome here.
Hinata tries not to think too hard about it, being welcome into a friend's home, being offered a key, but not able to return to his family. They're my family. It still hurts, hurts so, so bad. Thinking that Natsu will forget him, when he could never forget her. His mother, absent six days a week since Natsu was born, giving him small, exhausted smiles. Even Sato, who stared at him with cold, dark eyes, he'd miss her, she took care of Natsu because he couldn't. We're still related, we're just not family. He hugs the three of them, hiding his tears in Kenma's shoulder, as friendly as he can make the contact while still having it.Freak. But he's not.
They have lunch together, after hours of sitting in each other's space, in the dining room. A plate of sweet dumplings passed around, with squid soup and slices of bread. He doesn't feel like eating, but he does, being unsure for the first time when he'll be sitting a table with people he loves again. They share stories, Kenma's mother making up ridiculous fake names for privacy reasons, "-And then when the therapy dogs all came in, they all jumped on the poor girl! I think she learned a lesson about eating dog treats, though..." They all laugh, even Kenma, who's hand is lingering on his leg, squeezing every now and again as if making sure he's there.
He tries to make the goodbye as easily as possible, his cheeks still burning from laughing so hard as he declines all of their offers to escort him to the station, he admits that it'd be hard to go, and they all share a look like saying, that's the point. He cries again, standing by their shoe rack. He wants to reach out for Kenma so, so bad, has to grab onto his own wrists to avoid doing so. His nails dig in slightly, when Kenma gives him the final goodbye, "See you soon, Shouyou-chan." Whispered just for him, he swallows, choking on his emotions. "I love you." He mouths it into Kenma's chest, and the older boy hums quietly in agreement.
Hinata walks out of the Kozume house with a refill of his medication and a key, out of their stupid gate that takes both of his hands, watches the three of them waving until he's hidden by their too tall shrubs. He breaks down when he's alone, the Nakameguro streets surprisingly empty, he chokes on more tears, wiping his face in a jacket that isn't red. Walks next door, hopping over the gate because opening it would be too much right now. Kuroo seems like he'd been waiting by the door, it slides open quietly almost as soon as he knocks.
"What did you want?" He asks, trying to keep his tone even, not reflecting his sorrow or fear to the dark haired boy. Kuroo is quiet for a long time, waves him into the house with a too big hand, he hesitates at the entryway, the walkway is dark despite the light seeping through the door. "Kuroo-" He tries again, but the door slams behind him, and he's slammed against the flat surface. "What does he see in you?" Growled from above him. He swallows, "What- What do you mean?" He squeaks out, feeling weak under Kuroo's grasp. "I saw the way you looked at him, you fucking whore!" It's louder, more dangerous as the voice gets closer to his ear.
"One guy not good enough for you? Want to take my best friend away, huh?" His shoulders are slammed into the door with each question, lungs emptying of air with each collision. "Answer me, fucker!" Then the space beside him claps like thunder as Kuroo's fist collides with it. "Is he paying you? God, you're such a fucking slut." His heart freezes at the icy words, the last one piercing right into him. "I-I-"
"I. I." Kuroo mocks, face lowering so his chopper ones are glaring directly into his, he tries to look away but one of Kuroo's hands seizes his jaw, his thumb digging into the soft flesh below his jaw bone. "I'm sorry!" He gasps out, too scared to say anything else. Kuroo's chuckle is dark, smoother than his real one, "No, you're not." Then that hand is on his head, pushing him down until he slides against the door. "But you will be." It's too dark to see the tanned captain, but he can feel his presence, hear his harsh breathing. Then there's heat pressing against his cheek, and Hinata reels back, head colliding with the door. It echoes into an empty house, along with a groan as his head starts spinning. Kuroo's chuckle starts again, "Such a whore, begging for my cock already?"
His mouth is opened to retort, to scream, but it's all muffled when salty heat penetrates him, sliding past his tongue and ramming into his gag reflex. His throat makes a noise, a warning of bile that he hasn't heard since he was kicked out. "C'mon, I know you can suck dick better than that. If you want money, you're gonna have to try harder." Suck dick. Kuroo's dick. He swallows around the vacuum of Kuroo's length, no air fills his lungs, but Kuroo gasps as if mocking his inability to breathe. "Fuck- That's more like it."
He should just- "If you bite me, I'll fucking kill you." He's more shocked at the words than the cold tone, like the tan male above him can read his thoughts. He doesn't dwell on it, struggling not to choke as Kuroo's dick continues to block his airway, he can feel each vein as it's ripped from his mouth, can feel drool sliding down his open mouth. Kuroo's cock slides out of his view, into shadows for half a second, then collides with cheek, spreading his spit and whatever else all over it, the slickness dissolves from Kuroo's member as it slides over his cheeks, can't feel most of his face or the tears that threaten to slide down his cheeks. "Crying already? Pathetic." It's a growl, he doesn't reply, taking in deep breaths, but they all taste like sweat and panic.
It's pushing against his lips, the bluntness forcing them open, and Kuroo's hips are slotted against his head, he's left inhaling emptily against thick hairs and musk. "Hey, look up here." Kuroo's voice is less acidic than it had been and he obeys. I'll kill you. Then he's blinded, only for a second before he's back in darkness. "Insurance." Kuroo explains, putting something inside his view, a picture of him with Kuroo- No. He pushes against Kuroo's hips, but they push forward against him, his head colliding against the door again with a noise that means danger. "Don't fight me, or I'll send this to everyone - Kenma, Oikawa, even your captain." He swallows hard, nodding while his face is pinned.
"Gonna be a good Shouyou-chan?" Kuroo taunts, tugging at the tears in his eyes, he nods again, voice bubbling against the intrusion in his airway. Kuroo groans loudly, hips shoving where there's no space to move forward. "Such a fucking slut." Then nothing, just sickening noises as Kuroo's cock slams into his mouth, lingers then pulls out. "Want this load?" Load of what? He shakes his head, but his skull is clenched between Kuroo's finger and he cries out. "'Course you do, a slut like you? Any guy'll do, right? Get my best friend to fuck that ass of yours yet?" Then there's more growling, the distinct sound of Kuroo tugging on his slick cock is the most prominent, then a lower, deeper keen as his face explodes with heat and flashes of light.
"I think I like this one the most." Kuroo comments casually, still panting hard, then his phone is blinding in his face again. His face, wet with tears and- he looks away, clenching his eyes shut. "Clean yourself up, you fucking faggot, then get out." He whimpers, throat burning with bile that impairs his voice. Kuroo leans down then, a breeze ghosting over his skin, chopper eyes that shimmer like blood stare into him. "Kenma finds out, everyone in Japan will know what a fucking whore you are, got it." He nods, pushing himself against the door, making distance where there isn't any. "Good boy." Kuroo praises, running one of his tanned fingers down Hinata's jaw. "Your mine now, got it?" Another nod. Mine. Mine. He can see Kuroo's smile then, shining brightly in the dark entryway. "Train leaves in ten minutes, better run." There's another chuckle, then he's being lifted and forced from Kuroo's home. "'Till next time, bye-bye!" Called from the door before it's slammed shut.
He walks blindly, following the path to the station, past the squid place that Kenma had brought him to. He wades through crowds of men with too dark hair, and avoids their gazes like Kuroo could be anyone of them. He makes it to the station quickly, following the sound of hissing engines until he's stopped by a too black suit, he flinches back, voice still raspy from Kuroo's favor. "Station-chan!" A voice bellows from above him, chopper eyes, too much like Kuroo's have him looking down at his feet. "It really is you, did it really take you three weeks to get to Nakameguro?" He's laughing, something that would be taken well if he hadn't just been- Whore. "I almost didn't recognize you, your hair is so different! But it really suits your jaw, at least, that's what my wife says anyway. She runs a salon in Nakameguro, you know." The man prattles on, but he's too busy connecting the dots. Salon. It suits you. He chokes on his breathe, and steps away from the tall imposing man, his frame too familiar.
"Oh! I gotta go, lunch break's over, see you, Station-chan." He nods to nobody, and sneaks onto the train, curling up on a seat until he's on the path to Miyagi, his phone flicks open.
"Do you need the address?" I'll tell your captain. He clenches his eyes closed, I won't cry. I won't cry.
"Yes thank you very much"