Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

There is this thing about True Love. When you truly love someone they’re always on your mind. Their presence puts you at ease. You want to discover everything about them, figure out what makes them tick cause it’s parallel to your own ticking. When you truly love someone they are the sun, the moon, the stars. They’re planets, galaxies. When you truly love someone they are supernovas and milky ways. When you truly love someone they’re everything. They’re intoxicating. When you Truly Love someone with all your being, with every single one of your cells, when your heart beats for them and you wake up in the morning and go to sleep at night with them on your mind. That’s when you have found yourself to be the luckiest person on the planet. The luckiest person on our puny earth because there are seven and a half billion people on this earth and you were as lucky as to find someone to love. Because you are lucky to love someone, you’re lucky to have the privilege of loving them.

Tsukishima Kei called bullshit.

He called bullshit on every single one of those silly beliefs about True Love. Yes, the person you’re in love with is always on your mind and yes, they’re your all but no, you don’t feel lucky to love them. Not when Soulmates exist and you’re in love with your freckled childhood friend who is definitely not your Soulmate. You don’t feel lucky to love them when it hurts you to know, know. To be sure that whatever feelings you might have for them will not be reciprocated because they already have this Soulmate engraved into their skin. It’s an unknown and unreliable system if you asked him. Whatever you write on your skin appears on your Soulmate’s skin, whatever pain you experience will be experienced by them too and in case of very strong bonds emotions are also conveyed.

When he was younger Tsukishima used to talk to his Soulmate by writing them little messages and his favourite song lyrics. They both played volleyball and it was something they used to bond over, used to. Because Yamaguchi Tadashi happened and he took over Tsukishima’s world with the first time that he saw him smile.

And Tsukishima knew that it was unfair. He knew that it was unfair to whoever his Soulmate was that he was so intoxicated with his best friend because he’d only hurt them. Notes from his Soulmate still occurred on his arms. The occasional appointment, grocery list or bruise but Tsukishima knew that it was probably from volleyball so he didn’t worry and sometimes. Sometimes there was the smaller handwriting. Are you still there? What happened? Did I do something? Are you okay? His Soulmate was so very concerned about his wellbeing and Tsukishima didn’t bother to reply. He knew that made him an asshole but still. He didn’t want more people to involuntarily get hurt in this already hopeless situation. He’d deal and hopefully, he’d never meet his Soulmate so he could avoid any kind of awkward situation related to love.

Of course, the world, fate, whatever the fuck you want to call it didn’t agree with him. Of fucking Course.

High school started and so did Tsukishima’s personal Hell.

He didn’t even notice at the beginning of the year. Hinata Shouyou and that stupid King of the Court and their idiotic love for a stupid high school club annoyed the shit out of him. He was constantly pissed because of their stupid behaviour. Their drive to get better, their obsession with victory. It pissed him off. Because couldn’t they see that there would come a time when they weren’t the best and people would discard them like it was nothing. Weren’t they aware that this entire career in volleyball that they were imagining could be over in the blink of an eye? One bad match, one injury, one failure, and poof. Gone. A cut through their beliefs and dreams and hopes. He didn’t get how they didn’t understand. How they didn’t see. Because wasn’t this the most obvious outcome of all? But they continued to not see and Tsukishima continued to make fun of them with Yamaguchi. He could believe it if those two were Soulmates. Their idiocy was compatible but that didn’t seem to be the case at all. He made an offhand comment about it once and Hinata had looked at him as if he was the idiot here and said. “Kageyama already found his Soulmates. They’re two upperclassmen from when he was still at Kitagawa Daichi. Didn’t you know? Like they don’t know he’s their Soulmate either but like seriously me and Kageyama? What were you thinking Stingyshima?”

“Tch. I just thought you were compatible since you’re both volleyball idiots.”

“What’s that supposed to mean.”

“Exactly what it means. You’re just too stupid to get it.” Yamaguchi sniggered behind him and Tsukishima’s heart fluttered. He hated that it did but feelings had been caught and he couldn’t let go of them.

So the routine continued. Insulting The Volleyball Idiots, low-key pissing off the senpais whilst still adding honorifics to their names. Being a general pain in the ass and his heart fluttering whenever Yamaguchi as much as looked at him. It was an annoying routine but one that he couldn’t afford to break because it included Yamaguchi. It continued to include Yamaguchi hopefully for forever but then the Spring High happened and they lost to Aoba Johsai. Everyone was filled with new determination to do better. Tsukishima wasn’t. Not really. Wasn’t their loss the inevitable proof of their incapability to be the best? That’s how he thought of it and that’s how he continued to think of it. Until that damned training camp when Yamaguchi yelled at him. Because what else do you need besides pride to go on? Tsukishima could make a list. But because it was Yamaguchi and because he was more pissed off than normally he decided to practice together with Bokuto, Kuroo, and Akaashi. Who cares if he was more motivated than normally to practice?

Hinata and Lev (aka Hinata 2.0 but then not the improved version) joined them with practising on certain days too and that ended up with him and the annoying orange-haired idiot walking back to where they were staying together. They even had some serious conversations that mainly ended up veering right off back to volleyball but for some reason, Tsukishima thought it was pretty nice. So on the occasion even when they were back in Miyagi he’d walk together with the shrimp. It was bound to happen though that Hinata mentioned the forbidden topic. The one topic Tsukishima Kei still didn’t want to discuss. Soulmates.

“Did you know that Daichi-san and Suga-Senpai are Soulmates?” Hinata asked. “Didn’t you?” Tsukishima smirked and Hinata’s cheeks started to be dusted with the lightest of blushes. Cute, passed through Tsukishima’s mind before he could register and or be annoyed by it. “T-Th-That’s not it at all, Stingyshima! I just wondered y’know.”

“Sure you did.”

“Really! Remember when you said you thought Kageyama and I were Soulmates?

“Hmm.”

“Well Kageyama confronted them about it and they’re trying to work something out and all which made me wonder about other people who found their Soulmates on our team y’know? So like, Suga-Senpai and Daichi-san, Tanaka-Senpai and Ennoshita-san, Noya-Senpai and Asahi-san, Kageyama and his old upperclassmen. It made me wonder about if you and Yamaguchi were Soulmates since you’re so close and all. Are you?” There he’d done it. Tsukishima had been waiting for that moment when anyone asked if he and Yamaguchi were Soulmates because people assumed shit whenever and wherever. He thought that maybe he could avoid it but that seemed to be impossible now that the ginger had called him out on it. Well, there was only one appropriate response. “Tch. You’re even more of an idiot than I already thought. Of course we’re not.”

“Well, it seemed very likely that’s all Stingyshima. You two have great chemistry, it’s obvious that people would make assumptions like that.”

“Where are all those big words coming from? I didn’t know you were intelligent enough to know those.”

“Shut up, Stingyshima! I’m not that much of an idiot.”

“You sure?”

“Very. Anyhow, does that mean that you don’t know who your Soulmate is?”

“Why do you think that I’d have any form of obligation to tell you, shrimp.”

“Oh, nothing. I-I was just wondering. I haven’t talked to my Soulmate in ages. Well, it wasn’t really talking. We wrote each other notes y’know, on our arms and such but one day my Soulmate just kind of stopped replying and I haven’t heard from them since. I’ve tried to make contact but I’m always blatantly ignored. It, uhm, it’s pretty heart-breaking.” Tsukishima glanced at the smaller boy and he felt a pang in his chest looking at him. Hinata was looking at his feet and he held this look of longing in his eyes. As if he wished to be with this Soulmate again. As if he wished to get to know this person who blatantly abandoned him above all else. Tsukishima thought it was cruel to leave someone hanging like that. Never letting them know what you feel, never letting them know how you’re doing. Hinata’s Soulmate could have died and he’d never know. Tsukishima found himself feeling sorry for the sunshiny shorty because someone that sunny certainly didn’t deserve something like this, did they? That’s when it hit him. A cruel and truthful epiphany. That’s what he’d been doing to someone for ages now. This exact thing that he found cruel is what he’d been doing to someone from the moment he met Yamaguchi onwards. That was harsh, even for him. But obviously, Tsukishima didn’t voice any of his thoughts, no. Instead, he made one of his signature cold remarks but with a little less bite than normally. “Those are a lot of hard words for someone so stupid.” He tried to smirk but it froze on his face when he heard Hinata’s whispered ‘Yeah’. It told him that maybe this time he’d gone too far. So that might have been why that evening when he came home he grabbed a random pen and wrote: long time no see, I suppose. On his arm. He got a reply almost instantly. Yeah, got any kind of explanation for your absence?

Not really, let’s just say that I met someone and hoped they were you when they definitely weren’t.

Ah. That’s kind of acceptable I suppose.

But that’s not what I’m doing this for.

Huh?

Well, of course, I’m doing it to explain myself but I also wanted to apologise. I’ve been shitty to you for the past years. I was so caught up in my own feelings that I didn’t even bother thinking about what you might feel.

It’s okay. Really. It’s fine. It’s kinda late so I’m just going to do some stuff right now.

Yeah, thanks for your understanding.

Yeah.

It was pretty obvious to Tsukishima that his Soulmate didn’t want to talk to him anymore and he didn’t blame them for it, not at all. He just hoped that he’d done some very minor and very late damage control. He hoped he hadn’t ruined his relationship with his Soulmate for forever, that would be pretty sucky. Even though he deserved it. So he continued to talk to his Soulmate and their relationship seemed to be getting better over time. His crush on Yamaguchi was still killing him but he seemed to have it under control. Everything was going pretty well until someone new came by.

A small cute blond girl named Yachi Hitoka and with the words that magically appeared on her skin she magicked his best friend’s heart into her palms. That was the first time that Tsukishima left before Yamaguchi without telling him where he’d gone. That was also the first time that Tsukishima Kei ever cried himself to sleep. Because yes they weren’t Soulmates, and yes it’s indeed common knowledge that non-Soulmate relationships never worked out that well but as long as Yamaguchi didn’t find his Soulmate there was hope. Tsukishima had held on to that little bit of hope that Yamaguchi would love him in the way that Tsukishima loved him but with one smile from Yachi and one blush from Yamaguchi and one look at their arms to see the same doodles covering them his entire world had collapsed and he absolutely fucking hated it.

He couldn’t bring himself to hate Yachi, look at her. Who could blame her for anything? It wasn’t her fault that she was destined to be with his best friend. It was destiny that decided to screw him over. It definitely wasn’t fine with Tsukishima though. He could feel the bile rising in his throat every time he saw the two of them together. He felt the bitterness wash over him every time they smiled at each other. He felt the envy every time they looked at each other with such love as if it didn’t matter that the rest of the world existed because they only needed each other. He didn’t know if this made him want to barf, if it made him angry or if it made him want to bawl his eyes out. It almost felt like a combination of the three really. Because how could anyone deal with their year-long crush being in love with someone else, who was fucking destined for them. Like you would never be.

“Hey, Stingyshima are you okay?” Tsukishima snapped his head towards the noise and there he stood. Hinata Shouyou and for the first time in a while Tsukishima wasn’t immediately annoyed by the sight of him. “Why’d you ask that, shrimp.”

“Don’t call me a shrimp! And I asked because you look kinda sad, okay. Am I not allowed to be nice to you?”

“No, you’re not, shorty. I don’t want your pity.”

“Geez. Stingy. You’re being extra stingy today Stingyshima.”

“What’s that supposed to mean.”

“Exactly what it means.”

“Tch.”

“Be respectful to your elders Tsukishima-kun.”

“That you’re a few months older than me is never going to fix the height gap, shorty. Give up already.”

“Extra stingy indeed. But! But, I got you to stop looking sad. You look regularly annoyed now. So ha! Take that.” Hinata walked off and Tsukishima stood there and wondered what he’d got himself into.

From that point onwards Tsukishima started to talk to Hinata more. It started out with extra practice but it ended with the two of them walking together even when it wasn’t needed and making light conversation with the occasional banter thrown in, naturally. Hinata spoke most of the time. Telling Tsukishima about weird things he’d noticed during school or something his little sister, Natsu, had done and Tsukishima replied with headshakes, snarky comments and sarcasm. Hinata seemed to enjoy it, though. There had been walks on which Hinata had pestered him about the music he listened to because he always wore headphones and the like. It had started to annoy him to such an extent that Tsukishima burned him a disc with his favourite songs and so music exchanges became another part of their strange, newly developed friendship. Yamaguchi had asked him why he hung out with Hinata so much and Tsukishima always replied the same: “I’m giving you and that Soulmate of yours some quality time together. Aren’t you supposed to be happy?” or some variation on that and that always guilt-tripped Yamaguchi into dropping the subject.

Tsukishima’s interactions with his Soulmate had also become a lot smoother and surprising, a lot of fun. Tsukishima’s Soulmate was kind of an idiot, who liked volleyball and had pretty good music taste and he’d never admit it out loud but Tsukishima enjoyed talking to them more than he ever thought he would. The same could be said about his interactions with Hinata. He had come to be quite fond of the orange-haired pest and he’d go almost as far as to call them friends. Almost. Because he’d never say it, no matter how much someone paid him. He had his pride as a sarcastic asshole on the line if he did something nice like that. But he’d stopped constantly complaining about Hinata’s existence if that displayed anything.

So, after all this had happened Tsukishima had a lot of good days now compared to before. But today was even more special. He’d got over his crush on Yamaguchi now and was fully supportive of his best friend’s relationship but that’s not what made today an extra good day. No, today was marked extra good because of his Soulmate. They’d got a lot closer since Yamaguchi and Yachi met and they knew a lot more about each other now too but today marked the first time ever that his soulmate had written I love you in messy scrawl across his arm. When he’d seen it Tsukishima had smiled and a light blush spread across his cheeks. He had written it back and since that moment it felt like he was on cloud nine. Nothing could stop him from having a good day. Everyone noticed it. He wasn’t as biting and intentionally mean today and he lay off of the hurtful comments in general. His teammates found it a little creepy and since he avoided the question when Yamaguchi asked it the team sent Hinata to interrogate him about his new found happiness.

“Hey, Stingyshima. You look different today. Happier somehow. What happened?” Hinata asked when they were walking home together after practice. Tsukishima rolled his eyes. “Why’d you think anything happened, shrimp.”

“No reason at all. It’s just that your comments have been lacking their usual bite.” Tsukishima raised an eyebrow. “Really? Since when are you the expert on how biting my comments are?”

“I’m not really, it’s just that I’ve been around you for long enough to understand when your presence is menacing and when you’re just being kind of borderline nice.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah. I suppose.”

“I’ll remember that.”

“Is it because of your Soulmate?”

“Tch.” How did Hinata even guess that? “I’m taking that as a yes then. That’s really nice for you Stingyshima. I and my Soulmate have been talking again as well lately. It’s really great!” Hinata smiled and Tsukishima swore that time stood still because was that the first time that he noticed how the brightness of Hinata’s hair accentuated the brightness always present in his eyes? And was it the first time he noticed how incredibly adorable his face scrunched up whenever he full-out smiled because that deserved to be noticed. And was it the first time he noticed how his smile was way too wide for that adorable small face of his. And, and, and… and did Tsukishima realise how incredibly fucked he was if he actually had a crush on the shrimp? Why did he have to catch feelings at the most inconvenient of times? His relationship with his Soulmate was getting back on track too. Tch.  

So the best day of Tsukishima Kei’s first year of high school was simultaneously his worst day and all because of this silly thing called love. He wondered if it was really such a great thing when it seemed to hate him so much. He decided to ignore that question for now.

So Tsukishima hid his feelings. The Inter-high came around, they beat team after team. They advanced further and further. They beat Shiratorizawa and Tsukishima continued to be in denial about his not-feelings for Hinata. He acted normally. He didn’t let anything show. He acted the same as always and made sure that nothing gave him away but of course, Yamaguchi caught on anyway which meant that Yachi new via relation and that was why he was particularly more pissed one day compared to others. Yamaguchi told him that he should at least tell Hinata about his feelings but Tsukishima continued to refuse. The guy was obviously head over heels for his Soulmate, even though he hadn’t met them yet. Tsukishima wasn’t going to complicate his life by confessing to him out of the blue. So Tsukishima continued to ignore his feelings for Hinata throughout the Miyagi prefecture training camp even though his heart beat sped up every time Hinata called him Tsukki.

Right now though? Right now Tsukishima was talking to his Soulmate who had told him that they too had made Nationals so they could meet there, maybe. The prospect of that terrified Tsukishima but at the same time it set something inside him on fire. It felt exhilarating to know that he was close to meeting his Soulmate. Incredibly close. So even Tsukishima was excited for these last few weeks before they were going to Nationals. He also did some extra practice with the freak duo and Yamaguchi on occasion but that wasn’t really the best because he’d never admit to it but the way that Hinata and Kageyama hit it off made him jealous even though Kageyama already found his Soulmates. Could anyone really blame him for envying the King? Really? That guy had his two Soulmates and this ray of light and optimism who actually loved hanging out with him. That must be a fucking great feeling, right? Knowing that there’s a ray of sunshine always there to support you. Tsukishima shook his head. What had he been thinking, this was getting seriously bad. Tch.

Later that week Hinata texted Tsukishima to ask him if he wanted to practice together, with just the two of them and Tsukishima was lying if he said that it didn’t make him happy. Because hell yeah did it make him happy to have his crush ask him to be alone together but he thought of his Soulmate and Hinata’s Soulmate and that just made him feel like a bad person for doing feeling like this.

He practised with Hinata for about two hours and after that, they went to get meat buns, at the shorty’s request and Tsukishima just couldn’t make himself say no. So they got meat buns and sat on a random bench to eat them together. They didn’t talk a lot, they sat in comfortable silence and Tsukishima was kind of tempted to ask Hinata if he could hold his hand because he looked at the small fingers wrapped around the meat bun and wondered if they’d fit nicely in his own. He wanted to hit himself for that thought the moment he’d properly processed it but he left it at a mental scolding. When he refocused his attention away from his own idiotic thoughts Hinata was staring at him. Well, not really at him more like at his arm and Tsukishima looked down and saw a tiny crow drawn on his wrist and he smiled fondly at the thought of his Soulmate. Until he noticed that Hinata had a black pen in his hand and was sporting the exact same crow drawing on his wrist. Hinata continued to not say anything and stare at his arm in concentration. Tsukishima waited for the Earth to swallow him whole. That didn’t happen, though. What did happen was that Hinata looked him in the eyes and he had this intense aura around him. The one he usually reserved for on-court business only. “It’s you,” he said and Tsukishima wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or not and he was getting increasingly more worried when Hinata lunged at him. He was preparing for a punch but instead, he felt short arms wrap themselves around his waist. “It’s you,” Hinata whispered again and he said you with such affection that it made Tsukishima’s heart skip a beat. Tsukishima proceeded to awkwardly pull Hinata closer to his chest and when Hinata looked up at him he asked him something he’d wanted to ask him for ages already. “Hey, shorty. Can I kiss you?” When Hinata nodded he didn’t hesitate and so they shared their first kiss but definitely not their last.

Chapter Text

Epilogue

Part I telling the team

Two months had gone by since Tsukishima and Hinata had first kissed. In that time they’d told the team about them being Soulmates which had gone about as well as they’d expected. Tsukishima still got goosebumps whenever he thought about that horrific event.

It had started out as a normal day. Tsukishima had woken up. Taken a shower, soaked in the bath and brushed his teeth. He had put on his school uniform, eaten breakfast, grabbed his phone and plugged in his earphones and as always he was waiting for Yamaguchi at the crossing from where onwards they’d walk to school together. Whilst waiting for him Tsukishima’s thoughts had drifted off towards the day before. When he had found out that Hinata was his Soulmate and they’d kissed. Tsukishima could feel his cheeks heating up just by remembering it. If anyone had told him at the start of the year that he’d fall in love with some hyperactive orange-haired kid who was idiotically in love with volleyball than he would’ve laughed at them and made some cutting remark questioning their sanity. But now, now everything was different. Tsukishima had come to love how energetic Hinata was, how he could devote himself to anything and everything (except for studying), he loved how the boy was the embodiment of the sun. He loved Hinata because he wanted to put up with Tsukishima. He loved Hinata because he hadn’t known Hinata for long but Hinata knew him, understood him. He got it when Tsukishima was sad or mad or nostalgic. It was like a telepathic bond. Hinata just understood and Tsukishima never knew that he needed anyone besides Yamaguchi to understand until now. So this particular day was great until Tsukishima walked into the changing room and saw that Hinata wasn’t there. Which wasn’t surprising as the shorter one of the freak duo was normally early and already practising by the time Tsukishima came to practice. No, the part that bothered him was that Hinata’s bag wasn’t even there, there was no trace of his boyfriend having come to practice at all. Which would have been fine if his boyfriend wasn’t the single most volleyball obsessed idiot ever, Hinata would never skip practice even if he was ill or something along those lines. To say that Tsukishima was worried was an understatement. He even went as far to ask Kageyama if he knew where Hinata was. Which he obviously did in his own way, laced with venom and sarcasm but he had a feeling that Yamaguchi caught on to how worried he was. One thing about having a childhood friend that had sometimes put Tsukishima off was definitely the mood-reading think Yamaguchi could so effortlessly do. Tsukishima ignored Yamaguchi for the moment though and instead he whipped out his phone and send Hinata a message. He could have written it on his arm somewhere  but that would:

1. Make Yamaguchi suspicious
2. What if Hinata had overslept

So instead he sends a message. A very simple one at that. Idiot where are you? He got a reply almost instantly. Jeez, Stingyshima I’m almost there, okay. I overslept it’s no big. Tsukishima couldn’t really suppress his sigh of relief and Yamaguchi continued to stare at him for a little longer. For the first time in ages, it actually made Tsukishima uncomfortable. But soon practice started and Hinata stormed in panting and together with Hinata’s arrival Tsukishima temporarily forgot all his worries.

Until lunch break that is. Hinata came to his classroom, which wasn’t a surprise, and the king was walking with him, which honestly wasn’t a surprise either. The surprising part was when he felt a tingle on his wrist and Hinata’s messy handwriting appeared reading, can you meet me outside, please? And because Tsukishima was curious and admittedly a little worried he nodded. Hinata went to get a drink and Tsukishima waited a few minutes before excusing himself to go to the bathroom. Hinata was waiting for him at the vending machine and Tsukishima was a little nervous when asked. “What did you want to talk about?”

“Nothing too important really, just something that crossed my mind.”

“What do you mean?”

“Just, I was just. Uhm.” Hinata was stuttering and his cheeks were heating up and it was incredibly adorable but Tsukishima told himself that there were more important things to consider than the fact that his Soulmate was the embodiment of an angel. There were more important things to talk about right now. “What is it?” Hinata swallowed and licked his lips and still with a light flush on his face he said, “Oh well, I was just wondering when we were going to tell the team. Y’know?” and for a second Tsukishima’s mind went blank. He hadn’t even considered telling the team. Heck, he hadn’t even considered telling Yamaguchi, yet. Which was really strange seeing as how close the two of them are.  It’s not that he had been planning on keeping his and Hinata’s relationship a secret, it’s just that he didn’t have a lot of time to think about these steps yet. It might sound cheesy but at certain moments Tsukishima still couldn’t believe that he was dating Hinata. That Hinata was his Soulmate. That’s a big thing. “Tsukki? What are you thinking about?”

“Oh nothing much, I just realised that I’d never really thought about when we would be telling the team. Anytime is fine really, isn’t it? They know about Suga-san and Daichi-san so I don’t see why they’d have a problem with anything. Yamaguchi might be a little hurt that I didn’t tell him beforehand but that’s fine.”

“Really?” Hinata’s eyes were shining and Tsukishima felt like rolling his eyes. Was this really something to be excited about? “Yes, really. You can choose the time. I’m okay with whatever I suppose.”

“Really! Then today during practice!” and Hinata was so excited and looked so happy that Tsukishima just couldn’t say no. “Okay.”

“Thanks, Tsukki!” Hinata yelled and jumped up to give him a peck on the cheek before dashing back to the classroom where Yamaguchi, Yachi, and Kageyama were waiting. Tsukishima just stood there for a second, dazed, wondering what he had done in a previous life to have been blessed with someone like Hinata Shouyou. Then it hit him what he had just agreed to and let’s say that Tsukishima had his biggest  What the - moment yet.

The rest of the day was filled with anxiety. Tsukishima had called it off as not being of importance but what if some of the senpais would be weird because of it? What if they’d tease Hinata for it? What if it spread around the school and people would start to bully Hinata for being with someone like him? Wondering how Hinata got this unlucky and all those things. What if? What if, what if? Let’s conclude this part by saying that Tsukishima didn’t catch a single thing of what had been said in any of his afternoon classes and that he had become nervous and jittery enough that even the King noticed that he wasn’t his normal self when he stepped into the changing rooms after school. He brushed it off as being none of Kageyama’s business but that didn’t mean that he stopped being nervous. Hinata must have noticed as well because he quickly pinched his arm as a sign of reassurance and soon after a message appeared on the inside of his wrist reading. It’s alright we can pick another time if you want. Tsukishima shook his head, what had he been doing. This was their team he was thinking about. Filled with a bunch of volleyball obsessed idiots that couldn’t hurt a fly even if they tried to. There was nothing for him to worry about. So he wrote, don’t worry it’s fine and gave Hinata a quick nod. Hinata smiled at him and Tsukishima felt his knees grow weak for a split second. Would he ever get used to the effect Hinata had on him? probably not, but that would be fine. Seeing as telling the team would be fine too.

Tsukishima was wrong.

Practice went by and Hinata let him know that he wanted to tell the team after practice when they were getting meat buns. Which was fine by him so he waited it out. But Hinata and he were the last ones left in the changing rooms which didn’t necessarily imply anything until they’d both changed and Hinata hugged him for a second and whispered. “It’s going to be fine Kei.” And maybe it was the fact that those words were all he needed to hear, maybe it was the use of his first name, maybe it was just Hinata but Tsukishima wanted to kiss him. So he asked one simple ‘can I kiss you’ and their lips were connected in a sweet kiss. No tongue or anything like that, just innocent pure happiness to have found each other. Just pure adoration and appreciation transferred with one lock of lips and Tsukishima was in heaven. Because here he was kissing his Soulmate, here he was kissing Hinata who was his Soulmate. Here he was kissing and loving and adoring a short, energetic ray of sunshine going by the name of Hinata Shouyou who, surprisingly, loved him too. All was well, all was nice and he didn’t want this to stop, ever. But all good things come to an end, sometimes because people need to breathe, this time because Tanaka threw open the door to ask them what was taking so long. They jumped apart and for the first few second the only thing that happened was a prolonged staring contest between Tanaka, Hinata, and Tsukishima. Tsukishima even whispered, “No one will ever believe you.” But sadly enough no one had noticed how Nishinoya had been stood behind Tanaka the entire time and the rest of the team was actually just standing in the door opening. Staring. Kageyama’s eyes had widened in surprise, Yamaguchi’s mouth was opened in the shape of an ‘o’.  Yachi was blushing. Daichi and Suga were fondly smiling, Takeda-san and Coach Ukai were staring, Asahi and Kiyoko had averted their gaze. The benched second years were shocked but Tanaka and Nishinoya were by far the worst. Because it took about two seconds before both of them started grinning and it took that same amount time for Tsukishima’s cheeks to become stained with red and Hinata’s face turned into a tomato. Then Noya started laughing and all hope was lost. Because after Noya came Tanaka, came the rest of the first and second years, came the third years came their coaches and then even Hinata joined in. Tsukishima didn’t understand, what was so funny about this utter humiliation of his. What was so funny. “Why didn’t you tell me Tsukki? “ Yamaguchi asked whilst laughing, “Yeah dumbass, why didn’t you say anything?” Kageyama spluttered. Hinata and Tsukishima were at a loss for words. They weren’t prepared for this at all. But they were given time to explain whilst they got meat buns, so that was fine and Tsukisima didn’t hate the occasion just yet. He only started absolutely detesting it when the teasing began but that’s something no one wants to bring up.

Part II Meeting the Parents

 So they had told the team and the teasing was unending but besides that nothing much had changed. Except for the little details like Hinata randomly climbing on top of Tsukishima or jumping at him or being his weird energetic self around Tsukishima in general. It’s just that Tsukishima had never expected for them to become this close and he hadn’t been aware of how cute Hinata could be. Today was extra special, though. He was going to meet Hinata’s family and spend the night and Hinata would come to his house the following day seeing as it was weekend now. Tsukishima wasn’t worried to meet Hinata’s family all too much. He was aware that he had to please Hinata’s  little sister Natsu and that he had to appear knowledgeable and nice for Hinata’s parents. He wasn’t too worried about himself no, he was worried about Hinata. Hinata was coming over to his place tomorrow to meet his mum and older brother. He wasn’t worried that Hinata might embarrass himself, he’d find a way of doing that regardless of how many precautions they took. No, he was worried about Hinata meeting Akiteru. Tsukishima Akiteru is a good guy. Even his younger brother has to admit that and Kei has always looked up to him. He had started playing volleyball at first because Akiteru played and he took great pride in the fact that his older brother was the Ace of the team. The only problem with Akiteru is the fact that he’s the doting older brother type which doesn’t sound that bad until you’re his younger brother. He’d heard from their mum that Kei had found his Soulmate and immediately said that he could come over that weekend. Which, once again, sounds nice. Keyword: sounds. Akiteru would probably go all out. First he’d consider threatening Hinata in case he wanted to ‘hurt’ Kei then when that inevitably proofed futile (Hinata couldn’t hurt anyone, maybe by accident but not on purpose) he’d go over to the ‘yes-let’s-show-my-brother’s-presumed-lifelong-partner-all-his-embarrassing-photos which would be the moment that Tsukishima decided that he wanted to hang himself. So yeah, that was a thing and it would be problematic but at the moment he had an overexcited miniature Hinata clinging to his legs shouting about how tall he was. So he asked little Natsu if she wanted to know what it felt like being this tall and she happily accepted, after which he carefully lifted her up and carried her into the house following her older brother who was chattering excitedly. Natsu was also excitedly talking to him so Tsukishima felt accomplished at overcoming the first obstacle. Hinata’s mum was very nice. She had the same orange hair and brown eyes as her kids and Hinata definitely had her smile. Before they went to put Tsukishima’s belongings in Hinata’s room Hinata first went to pay his respects to his dad who had died a few years after Natsu was born. It had been an accident and Hinata couldn’t remember him well enough to really feel sad about it anyway. They put Tsukishima’s belongings away and walked back to the living room. Tsukishima got interrogated by Natsu about who he was and if he loved her older brother until the food was done. He told her that his name was Tsukishima Kei, Tsukishima having one of the characters for moon and Kei having the same writing as Hotaru meaning firefly. Natsu nodded enthusiastically. "Did you know that Hinata has the same character as in sun? You and big brother are opposites. It’s funny.” The little girl giggled and Tsukishima was relieved that she seemed to like him. “Big brother Tsukishima do you love my big brother?”

“Uhu, I love him a lot.”

“Really, what are the things that you love then?”

“Everything really but I suppose you want a more precise answer, don’t you?”  Natsu nodded. “Well, he’s very energetic, which I found a little annoying at first but I’ve come to find it very nice. He’s surprisingly good at reading people or helping them with understanding themselves, or each other. He basically brought Asahi-san, Nishinoya-san, and Yachi-san onto the team all by himself and despite being a little annoying. He’s also very charismatic. He’s cute too. His smile is too big for his face and whenever he’s really happy and smiles this really big smile his face gets all wrinkly but you can almost see the happiness come off of him in waves and that’s really nice and- “

“You really love my brother a lot, huh.” Tsukishima realised that he had been ranting and he could feel his face heating up. He nodded to show Natsu that he’d heard hear and two seconds later Hinata’s mum called that dinner was ready. Tsukishima wanted to stand up but was met with a blushing Hinata who had jumped into his lap. “I didn’t know any of that,” he said. “Well, of course. You don’t just tell people things like that.”

“Really?”

“Really.”

“Boys, the food is getting cold, hurry up.”

“Yes, mum.”

Tsukishima didn’t have anything to worry about regarding Miss Hinata. She had heard the majority of what he’d told Natsu and she thought he was a very nice kid. Tsukishima enjoyed staying at the Hinata residence and was almost reluctant to leave the next morning but he had to prepare. Hinata would be coming over for dinner and he couldn’t afford it for any of his family members to make a mess out of this. So he said his goodbyes to the Hinata Family pecked his boyfriend on the cheek and left for home. Feeling a little troubled and nervous but also very excited.

Tsukishima came home and he was immediately wrapped into a hug by his older brother. “Kei! Long-time no see! You found your Soulmate, right? What’s she like?”

“He’s a fucking delight. If you were wondering.” Akiteru seemed to have to take a moment to process this new information before he smiled once more. “Really, that’s great! What’s his name?”

“Hinata Shouyou and you’ll meet him soon enough so can we please move out of the doorway because I’m fucking freezing.”

“Okay and Kei no swearing. Does your Soulmate swear?”

“No, he’s too innocent for shit like that.”

“Well follow his example.”

“Are you fucking kidding me.”

“No, I’m perfectly serious.”

“Really.”

“I have the embarrassing baby pictures.”

“No, you don’t. I hid those and all my dinosaur collectables and everything else that you could possibly use to embarrass me.” Akiteru smiled and Tsukishima started to prepare himself for the chaos that would ensue later that evening.

It started out relatively well. Hinata came in, they hugged and Hinata met his mum without anything being the matter. They were told to wait for a little while longer till the food would be completely ready and Hinata had been fine with that too. Tsukishima had wanted to go upstairs and show him his room but no, of course not. Just when he wanted to take Hinata upstairs Akiteru walked in and Tsukishima could almost feel Hinata’s blood run cold. He wasn’t all that surprised because of course, Hinata had told him that he was a bit nervous about meeting Akiteru and Tsukishima had told him that there was nothing to worry about but had Hinata believed him? No. So Akiteru walked in and Hinata introduced himself, although with a blush on his cheeks and with a slight stutter to his words. Tsukishima found it rather endearing actually and he took one look at his older brother to see that he too was completely and utterly lost. Which didn’t stop him from being thoroughly embarrassing, of course. It seemed to make it ten times worse. Tsukishima had hoped for some peace and quiet before dinner in which he could sneak some kisses from Hinata, then a mild interrogation during dinner and then maybe some more kisses and saying goodbye to Hinata but no, of fucking course not. Before dinner, Akiteru showed Hinata some pictures of him in his dinosaur onesie when he was five and the fact that Hinata’s laugh was the most beautiful sound Tsukishima had heard all day almost made up for how badly he wanted to kill his older brother. Almost. “Tsukki, that’s so cute. You were an adorable small child.”

“Well, thanks, I suppose.”

“I do wonder what happened to turn you into the salt mine that you are today.”

“Well I wonder how you came to be such an idiot but certain things just don’t have an answer do they?”

“Jeez, Stingyshima stop it. You love me anyway.” And because Tsukishima has always been a very weak individual he started blushing at that but at least Hinata started blushing too when it hit him what he’d just said. Akiteru was smiling in the background feeling glad that his brother had such a great Soulmate.

“So, Hinata-kun you play volleyball too, right?” Dinner was being eaten and Tsukishima saw the moment his mum went from I-am-so-sweet-and-innocent to I-will-kill-you-if-you-give-me-any-reason-to-think-that-you-might-hurt-my-son. He wasn’t all that worried for Hinata but his mum’s switch in attitude always made him a little nervous. “Yes! I started playing in middle school because I saw one of Karasuno’s matches on TV.”

“Really? Which one did you see?”

“I saw a match from when they got to nationals! The Little Giant was spiking and it was really cool!”

“Really? Akiteru was at school at the same time as him.”

“I know! Tsukki told me about it. That’s really cool! I’ve always wondered what it would be like to see him play in real life.” His mum raised an eyebrow at the casual use of the nickname but happily continued to conversation. “Kei told me that you seem to have your own set of wings, though.”

“Really? He said that?” Hinata quickly turned to him and the happiness in his eyes made Tsukishima blush. “What, shrimp. Am I not allowed to compliment you?”

“Of course you are Stingyshima it’s just that you don’t do it a lot, y’know. I have to soak every compliment up and lock it away in a special chest in my heart.”

“Are you fucking serious.”

“Tsukki! No swearing, what even is your thing with swearing like, how. But that’s not the point. Yes, I am indeed very serious. So if you could just accept this little feat so we can move past it and continue to enjoy the food I suggest you do.”

“Why are you such a fucking idiot.”

“One, no I’m not. Two, what did I say like one second ago about swearing. Three, you love me anyway.” Tsukishima groaned but he could see his mum’s happy smile and Akiteru’s eyes were shining which proved that they definitely loved Hinata and well Hinata. Hinata was still only looking at him waiting for a reply. Waiting for him. “Okay, fine.” Hinata cheered and everyone at the table laughed and continued to eat but as they ate Tsukishima snuck little glances at Hinata. Because he still couldn’t really believe that this ethereal being loved him. He looked at Hinata and saw his messy bright orange hair, he saw his sunshine smile, he saw those lovely sparkling eyes that would close whenever he laughed really loudly. He saw his lips which felt nice against his own. Tsukishima noticed Hinata’s small hands that fit perfectly in his and they always felt warm. Hinata, in general, was always warm. Always lovely, always nice and Tsukishima wouldn’t want him to change in a million years.

So they finished the meal and Hinata had to go and Tsukishima offered to walk him out. They stood in front of his house and before Hinata unlocked his bike he jumped and Tsukishima who was half expecting it anyway and caught him perfectly. Hinata’s arms were around his neck and his head was resting on his chest. “That was fun.”

“Was it?”

“Yeah.”

“Hmm.”

“Natsu loves you by the way and my mum thinks you’re great.”

 “They do?”

“How couldn’t they.” And Tsukishima’s cheeks heated up for the millionth time since he had started dating Hinata.  “Akiteru and my mum like you too by the way. Akiteru was sold the moment you first spoke to him and my mum right after you called me Tsukki.”

“Really? “

“Yeah, in all my years alive I’ve only ever let Yamaguchi call me Tsukki without killing him.”

“What about Bokuto-san and Nekoma’s captain.”

“Those two are pains in the ass that I wish I had never got involved with.”

“Wow, savage.”

“Were you expecting anything else?”

“Not really.” And Hinata held onto him a little tighter as if he never wanted to let go. “I don’t want to go home yet.”

“We can meet up again tomorrow and otherwise morning practice on Monday.”

“But that’s too far away.”

“Is it now?”

“Uhu.”

“Well as a parting gift. Can I have a kiss?”

“Always.” And Hinata lifted up his head and Tsukishima bowed down for a little bit and then their lips were touching and it was such a familiar thing but it never ceased to take Tsukishima’s breath away. Because Hinata’s lips were a little chapped because of how he had bitten on them before dinner. And one of Hinata’s hands was running through his hair and Tsukishima was running his fingers through Hinata’s hair too and they must’ve been a strange sight. Two boys on the pavement kissing each other on the lips whilst one is holding the other up. But neither of them cared. Because they had this moment and they had each other and they knew that they’d have each other for a whole lot longer.

So when Hinata did eventually cycle away, Tsukishima stared after him until he couldn’t make out his bike lights anymore in the dark and when he walked back inside Akiteru was smirking at him because he had probably seen everything but Tsukishima couldn’t even be bothered to be annoyed by that.

He had never really thought about it but it was nice being in love.