Thank you everyone for the reviews, comments, and favorites! You guys are awesome!

Overwrite

Hajime was tired.

Wait, scratch that – he was exhausted.

Despite being on a solid schedule, the baby was still prone to waking up in the middle of the night and cry. He wouldn't be hungry and his diaper would be dry, and he would still just lay there and wail until Hajime managed to coax him back to sleep.

And tonight was one of those nights.

The baby had been up for at least an hour now, crying his eyes out, even as Hajime held him. And Hajime just didn't know what to do. He'd thought about calling Suga, but the other was most likely working at three in the morning, and Hajime didn't want to bother him with something that wasn't even an emergency. Or, what if it was an emergency? What if the baby was sick and he just didn't know?

He ran through the list in his head of what Suga told him to look out for.

Runny nose? Nope.

Loss of appetite? Not even close.

Constipation? Definitely not that if the sheer amount of diapers Hajime was changing daily had anything to say about it.

Fever? Hmm.

Hajime placed his hand to the baby's forehead and then cheeks. He didn't feel warm.

Maybe he had a thermometer somewhere…

Suga had scheduled the baby's first appointment at the hospital first thing last Saturday morning when Hajime had gotten a little less than three hours of sleep the night before because the baby had been up crying all night. The appointment went smoothly however, especially under Suga's watchful eye and it undoubtedly made Hajime feel better when Suga told him that the doctor (his name was Kai if memory served) was Karasuno's rival in volleyball and said that out of all the doctor's there, Kai was the best. (Hajime didn't even know why he was worried. It was stupid, really.)

But the sheer wails that the baby let out when they had to draw blood and administer his first vaccine made Hajime's heart drop in his stomach. He hated hearing the baby cry. Hated it. Not because it was annoying or anything, but something in him told him to immediately comfort the baby, to shield him from whatever was causing him pain. (You're hurting him, stop it – stop it!) And as soon as they were done, Hajime held the baby close, patting his back and murmuring comforting words until he was soothed into a sleep.

And when Kai asked for the baby's name, Hajime blanched. Only one name had ever come to mind when looking at the baby with the curly tufts of brown hair and brown eyes, but that name had belonged to someone else. Someone who had been gone for over a year. Someone who had been his best friend. He shouldn't be thinking of calling this baby Tooru. It wasn't – it was…

It was too fitting.

(And if Hajime remembered correctly, his niece had been watching some movie that said something about 'once you name it, you start getting attached to it', but he couldn't be sure. He'd sat through a lot of kid movies between now and then with her so his memory was a little fuzzy.)

All in all, the baby was outwardly in perfect health and all they needed to do was wait for the results from the bloodwork to come back before being given the all clear.

Hajime noticed that despite being absolutely drained from taking care of the baby over the past two weeks he caught himself feeling lighter, breathing easier. Felt his world spinning again. And in those rare mornings that he'd wake up before the baby, he'd lay there and just… take everything in. How bright the sun would be leaking through the blinds, accompanied by the slightest draft. The wool blanket pooled at his feet. The hum of traffic. The tiny form sleeping so soundly beside him.

And he found himself adjusting.

To what he wasn't exactly sure of, but he was getting used to waking up in the early hours of the morning and feeding the baby or change a diaper, or just sitting on the couch with him nestled in his arms, to name a few. But one thing he would never get used to is the way the baby would stare at him – a stare that was just so full of wonder and awe and pure innocence. Like Hajime was the only thing in this humongous world. And it never failed to bring a smile to the man's face.

Suga apologized profusely for not being able to come by at all because shifts at the hospital had been hell for both him and his friend, but Hajime said he didn't mind and that his boss had been very understanding about the whole situation, letting Hajime work from home by helping complete paperwork since the new receptionist was easily overwhelmed and tended to make little mistakes.

Her name was Yachi, and she was in her last year of college. She was a very sweet girl who was usually seen with a smile on her face. Jumpy, yes, but sweet. She immediately recognized Hajime from the last Karasuno and Aoba Jousai game (she practically screeched when she saw him), and while Hajime only did see her in passing, he felt bad for only vaguely remembering her.

Apparently she found out about the job opening thanks to one Hinata Shouyou, who frequented the physical therapist due to a shoulder injury from – can you guess? Overworking himself, that's right. Hajime had half a mind to yell at Hinata the minute he saw that familiar orange mop of hair but refrained from making a scene and simply dealt a whack to the head. Hinata took it all in good humor though, offering condolences about Oikawa and saying how sad he was that he wouldn't be able to play on the national volleyball team with "The Great King."

("You're not going to be able to play volleyball ever again if you keep this up," Hajime had said, thumping Hinata on the forehead. Hinata had sighed, saying that Kageyama had told him the exact same thing and then went on a rant about how if that happened, he wouldn't be able to surpass Kageyama.)

At any rate, she would send him emails and fax paperwork to him so he wouldn't feel like a completely useless bum while sitting at home. It worked out for both him and Yachi alike.

Hajime sat on the edge of his bed once the baby had reduced his cries to mere sniffles and whimpers that transitioned to much needed and appreciated silence. Hajime sighed, the back of his head hitting the headboard as he stared up at the ceiling, remembering that he had also agreed to let Suga bring his coworker (husband included) over to see the baby after their shifts at the hospital.

And Hajime thought he'd be thankful for the upcoming peace. That he'd be happy to meet the baby's future, more stable family. A loving family. One that he had gotten.

He should've been happy.

But he found himself uneasy.

Uncertain.

Guilty.

He found himself getting attached.

Thunder suddenly roared up above him, loud and menacing, and the baby was up and wailing again. And as Hajime comforted the baby, he couldn't help but remember that Oikawa was terrified of thunderstorms, even as a grown man. In middle school, Hajime used to poke fun at him for it ("It's just a storm, dumbass, it can't hurt you."), but when he saw how truly scared Oikawa was as he trembled under the blankets, Hajime always made sure to be there for Oikawa when a storm was rolling in.

"I'll be fine, Iwa-chan. You don't have to come over every time," Oikawa had said under the thick blanket, the tremble in his voice betraying his tone, obviously embarrassed that he was 16 years old and still scared of a little thunder.

"Shut up, Shittykawa – I'm staying." Hajime pulled out his own blanket and plopped down next to his best friend, ready to ride this storm out together.

"Shh, it's okay, it's okay," Hajime pat the baby's back, humming softly to hopefully drown out the thunder. "I'm here, Tooru. I'm here."

He didn't even feel the name slip from his tongue. It was too natural. Too easy.

"What am I gonna do?" he whispered.

Suga and his friends were coming over in less than 10 minutes and Hajime still didn't know what to do. But here he was, twiddling his thumbs, just waiting for Suga to come by so he could meet these people. What would they even be like? What kind of lifestyle did they live? Of course, if Suga was the one who mentioned them, they had to have been at least semi-decent guys. Suga wouldn't have said anything if they weren't.

Hajime had absolutely nothing to worry about.

So why was he so nervous?

There was a cry from his bedroom and Hajime reacted instantaneously, moving to the other room and sitting at the edge of his bed.

"Hey there, little guy," Hajime murmured, picking the baby up and bringing him close. "Sleep well?" The infant quieted once resting in Hajime's arms and nuzzled into his chest, making the man smile. He glanced at the clock: 6:42. About time for dinner. "Hungry?"

After changing a soiled diaper, Hajime moved to the kitchen to prepare a bottle just as there was a knock at the door and he sighed. He grabbed the bottle from the fridge and placed it on the countertop before going to answer it. 6:45 right on the dot. Suga's ridiculous punctuality irritated Hajime sometimes.

"Hajime-kun!" Suga grinned.

Hajime's brow twitched in irritation. "How many times have I told you not to call me that?"

"You tell me not to do a lot of things," Suga said. "Anyway, Hajime – this is my friend I was telling you about, Akaashi Keiji."

The man with steel blue eyes and messy, dark hair next to Suga gave a deep bow. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Iwaizumi-san." And while he looked like he'd rather be anywhere but here, Hajime could see there was a latent fire in his eyes.

Hajime nodded, giving a quick bow. "Likewise. And you don't have to –"

"Hey, hey, hey!" another man with gravity defying white-grey hair and golden eyes popped up from behind them. His grin was bright and contagious, not to mention loud. A literal firecracker ready to go off in explosions of color. "I'm Bokuto Koutarou! Nice to meet ya!" His gaze fell on the baby. "That's the baby, right? He's so cute!"

Polar opposites, Hajime thought, amused. However, something nagged in the back of his mind the more he looked at Bokuto. Why did the guy look so familiar? Did he perhaps see him at work? No, Hajime knows almost every person that walks in there. High school? Maybe volleyball? He looked athletic enough for it. But his attention was redirected when the baby started sniveling in his arms, obviously disturbed by the loud noise.

"Koutarou, please keep it down," Akaashi said. "You're going to upset him."

"Sorry," Bokuto lowered his voice to a whisper.

Suga turned to Hajime. "We're not interrupting anything, are we?"

"Not at all," Hajime said, moving out of the doorway. "I was just about to feed him, so feel free to come in. Make yourselves at home."

"Pardon the intrusion," Akaashi said as he, Bokuto, and Suga removed their shoes by the door.

"Pardon the intrusion!" Bokuto said.

Suga leaned against the arm of the couch. "How have things been going, Hajime? Sorry that it's been so hectic lately."

Hajime shut the door. "Things are fine, so don't worry about it."

Bokuto came bouncing over to him. Quite literally. "He's so cute! Can I hold him? Can I hold him?"

Hajime tried to ignore the hesitation in his bones. "Sure. I'll go get his bottle ready." He gently set the infant in Bokuto's arms, who, despite what first impressions might give off, held the baby tenderly. He felt something pull at his heart, and opted to walk away before it got worse.

He could feel Suga's eyes on his back as Bokuto sat down on the couch with Akaashi, their full attention on the infant. Stroking his hair. Murmuring sweet things. Hajime put the bottle in the microwave, unaware of how hard he shut it. He sighed.

Get it together, Hajime, he leaned against the counter. Get it together. Be happy for them.

They deserved this more than anything. They deserved to be happy.

He brought the bottle back once it was warmed up and handed it to Akaashi. "Here you go."

"Thank you." Akaashi's smile was small as he handed the bottle to Bokuto, who was practically vibrating with energy as he placed it to the baby's lips.

"Would you like some tea?" Hajime offered. "Or water? I've got soda, too."

"Oh no – if you're making tea, I'll handle it. You screwed it up last time." Suga made his way towards the kitchen.

"I'm sorry that my tea is not good enough for your refined palette," Hajime said.

"I'm only looking out for my friends. They don't know how lethal your tea is. Or coffee, for that matter." Suga bustled about, looking through the cabinets and pulling out some cups.

The only sound in the house for a while was Suga preparing the tea, mainly because Bokuto and Akaashi were focused on the baby and Hajime had no idea what to say to them. What could he say to them? But thankfully Suga rejoined them while the tea steeped.

"What do you think, guys?" Suga asked, watching the couple.

"He's awesome!" Bokuto grinned down at the infant. "I'm so excited."

"He's very well taken care of," Akaashi said.

Suga smiled. "Despite his gruff appearance, Hajime here has a heart of gold and has been doing a great job. I was a little worried at first, though. I thought he'd burn down the house trying to make a bottle."

Hajime rolled his eyes. "Thanks, Kou."

"You love me."

"Sugawara-san told us that you played volleyball, Iwaizumi-san." Akaashi directed his eyes towards Hajime, who shifted almost uncomfortably.

"Yeah – in high school and college." Hajime nodded.

"What team were you on? I don't recall seeing you in any games."

Hajime scratched the back of his head. "I played at Aoba Jousai in high school, and then at Tokyo University."

Akaashi nodded, seemingly content with that answer, but his husband seemed to have other plans.

"Aw, man! No wonder we didn't run into you. You're from the countryside like Suga over here. We played at Fukurodani." Bokuto said. Was he pouting?

No wonder Bokuto looked so familiar. Hajime had seen him in the Volleyball Monthly magazine as the issue named the top five players with the potential to go to nationals. He had skimmed through that issue, mainly because Ushijima was listed among those, but he remembered seeing Bokuto's picture. And Hajime couldn't help but wonder why in the world someone as good as Bokuto wasn't playing for the national team.

Bokuto continued with his questions. "What position did you play, dude? I'm so upset we didn't get to go against you guys!"

"I was a wing spiker," Hajime said.

"And the ace," Suga added.

"You, too?!" Bokuto exclaimed. He cheered. "Wing spikers are the best! Were you the captain?"

Hajime shook his head. "Vice-captain."

"So I'm the only former captain in the room?" Bokuto huffed. "Lame."

Suga laughed. "Don't get all down and out on us, Bokuto."

"Being the captain meant that you were the best at what you did, so feel honored," Akaashi said, his eyes on the baby.

Bokuto's spirit was immediately lifted. "You're right, Keiji! I was great, wasn't I?"

Hajime couldn't help but wonder how in the hell these two were even together. Sure, they balanced each other out – Akaashi seemed very down-to-earth and calm while Bokuto expressed every emotion with not only his face but his entire being – but Hajime still had a little trouble wrapping his head around it.

He guessed that was how Suga's and Oikawa's relationship used to be. They balanced each other out perfectly. Suga helped keep Oikawa grounded and Oikawa gave Suga those extra boosts in confidence and helped keep his head high. They helped each other out, complemented one another. And with the way they bickered, one would think they were an old married couple. And maybe they could've been that, if Oikawa had worked up the nerve to ask for Suga's hand like he said he was going to.

Hajime never worked up the nerve to tell Suga what Oikawa had wanted for their future.

And if he was considered a coward for that, well, then so be it. Suga was just getting back on his feet. Smiling more. Laughing. Sleeping through the night without being plagued by nightmares. And Hajime didn't want – had no right to take that away.

"I heard Aoba Jousai was quite the powerhouse, though," Bokuto commented as he handed the baby to Akaashi. "Especially Oikawa. Man, I really wanted to receive one of his power serves. That guy was a monster! I heard about this one time –"

"Koutarou," Akaashi hissed.

Bokuto looked at his husband for a minute and then at both Suga and Hajime, and his eyes widened in realization. "Shit – fuck – I am so sorry, I didn't mean –"

Suga smiled. "Don't worry about it, Bokuto. Hajime and I are doing better now. Right?" He looked over at his friend.

Hajime nodded. "Yeah. Totally."

"Still though, I'm really sorry. I just like –"

"Bokuto, don't sweat it." Suga went back to check on the tea, but Hajime could tell that he just needed to be out of the room for a moment. Like he had said before, they were getting better. It didn't mean that they were there yet. "Besides, Tooru wouldn't want us to be sad when we think of him. He'd want us to be happy."

"Right," Hajime said.

And they saw the tension quite literally leak from Bokuto's bones.

They sat there talking for a while, mainly getting to know each other, with Suga's friendship being the common thing between them. And of course, Suga pulled no punches and shared embarrassing stories about all three of them. Hajime learned that Akaashi worked in the cardiology wing of the hospital and Bokuto worked at a small business firm downtown. When asked why he wasn't playing volleyball anymore, Bokuto said that during the semi-final match in college, he had gone up for a block and the new first year on the team collided right into him trying to go for the block, too, and knocked him off balance. But that wasn't the worst of it.

"He landed right on my ankle," Bokuto had said. "Snapped it like a toothpick. After that, I couldn't really go up for a spike, so the coach said my volleyball days were over." He had chuckled. "I thought Akaashi was going to blow a gasket, he was so upset that I kept playing."

"I only had your best interest at heart," Akaashi had said. "Besides, you failed your math test that day, too, so you should've been studying."

"Why do you keep bringing that up?" Bokuto gave an indignant whine.

Overall, Hajime liked them. He thought they were nice and were like one of those couples you really only read about in those cheesy romance novels, so they were entertaining in that regard. And he could tell by the way they looked at the baby that they'd already fallen hook, line, and sinker. They'd give the baby what he needed, things that Hajime wouldn't be able to provide. They were the picture perfect family.

And so, Hajime finally addressed the elephant in the room while when Bokuto and Akaashi announced that they should be heading home. It was now or never. "If you two want, you can go ahead and take him home." He didn't have to ship nonchalantly because nothing was wrong. Nothing.

All eyes were on him now, slightly widened, and they could probably hear a pin drop.

"Are you sure, Iwaizumi-san?" Akaashi asked. "If you want to spend a few more days with him, then –"

Hajime shook his head. "No, it's fine. The sooner he gets used to you two, the better. I know it's not going to happen overnight, but might as well start as early as we can."

"Hajime…" Suga started.

"If you want to take the formula and car seat, that's fine, too," Hajime continued, ignoring the war drums in his ears, his clammy hands, Suga's scrutinizing gaze. "Unless you want to take the seat back, Koushi."

Suga was silent for a long moment, his eyes never leaving Hajime's back, before finally replying. "No, I don't need it."

"It's all yours, then." Hajime started putting the formula tins and diapers into plastic sacks, helping Bokuto haul them out to their car.

Once everything was moved out and Hajime filled them in on the baby's eating and sleeping schedule, Akaashi and Bokuto asked one more time before they left if Hajime was sure about this to which Hajime reassured them that yes, he was sure. Because if they asked him again, he would've given a very different response.

"Thank you very much for everything, Iwaizumi-san," Akaashi said, the baby sleeping peacefully in his arms. "We can't thank you enough."

"Yeah, man, this means a lot. Like a lot, a lot," Bokuto added. "Akaashi's wanted to be a dad for forever now. Thank you so much."

Hajime smiled a bit, even though it hurt to do so. "Glad I could help."

With that, the couple left and Hajime blinked away the burning in his eyes. Blinked away the tears that he should not be shedding. Suga was still there, waiting on him, watching his every move, and he couldn't break. Not when Suga had to be at work so early in the morning. He didn't need to cause his friend any unnecessary stress. He didn't need to be worried because there was nothing to worry about. Nothing at all. Nothing at all.

Suga was on his feet as soon as the front door shut. "Hajime?"

Hajime didn't look at him. "I'm fine."

And if Hajime felt like his world had stopped spinning again, well, that wasn't anyone's business.