Author's note: I hate these two so much. This is a boner/confession fic. Like that is the level to which I have fallen. There is no hope for me.
At the end of their first year, Hinata demands Kageyama teach him how to jump serve, and Kageyama obliges him without much resistance. He thinks it might be fun, and since everyone and their mother knows about Hinata's bad serves, this would be an excellent trick to have up their sleeves.
They practice for weeks, and Kageyama thinks Hinata's gotten very good — not excellent, this is Hinata, expectations are never terribly high — so he's surprised when in their last practice match of first year, Hinata serves normally. He tries to signal to him to try it out, because this is a practice match, that's what they're for, and Hinata ignores him. Asshole.
The new year begins and eight newbies join the club, clamoring to see the godlike quick up close. They do it once, to show off, and then, fighting his pleased smile, Kageyama splits the kids up into four groups of two. He, Hinata, Tanaka and Noya-san will each play on a team while Ennoshita and Coach watch.
It is the first time he has faced Hinata across a net since their game in junior high. He knows, consciously, of course Hinata has been practicing on his own. Nonetheless, when he sees the serve, with that jump…
It's fast, it's beautiful, it's effortless. Hinata lands on his feet like he's come out of a spike (he has). He's staring at Kageyama with a teeny-tiny grin, and he looks a little worried. Good, because Kageyama feels like yelling at him. But he's not quite there yet. He has only barely registered the sound of the ball slamming into the court behind him. It might has well have hit his face, for all the thought-processing he's able to handle. He does not hear the impressed shrieking of the first years — not even to note that it's markedly less than their cheering had been for his own service ace two minutes ago. He certainly doesn't pay any attention to Tanaka's victory yells from the other court.
He comes out of it a little when Ennoshita says, "Nice serve, Hinata!" without much surprise. Kageyama inhales to bellow, "What the fuck was that!"
"Language!" both Coach and Ennoshita yell at him, and he says, "Sorrybutdidyouseewhathedid?!" He wants to tear out his hair — he wants to tear out Hinata's hair — he marches under the net and over to him and reaches, though Hinata skips out from under his fingers with a groan.
"What! That was awesome, why are you mad?!" he yells over his shoulder as Kageyama gives chase. "I didn't do it wrong! It was perfect!"
"Of course it was perfect! You piss me off!" Kageyama pants, and then his chest slams into Ennoshita-san's arm. "Uff!"
"Calm down!" Ennoshita barks in his ear, and Kageyama puts a hand over his eyes, and realizes.
Oh shit.
He bows deeply to Ennoshita and to Hinata (who has scarpered behind Coach) with loud apologies, then excuses himself to the bathroom. He runs there.
Once the door has closed behind him, sound and some semblance of conscious thought return. He listens to himself breathe, then focuses on the squeaking and thudding coming from the courts.
He looks down at himself and thinks, this is new and this is awful and did anybody notice? and is this going to happen every time the moron jump serves? because that would be terribly inconvenient.
He grips the sides of the sink until his palms hurt, then releases, trying to focus on the feeling of the blood rushing back into his fingers. He runs his hands over his face and wonders if he should try to get rid of the problem in the normal way. Into one of the toilets in the stalls, maybe. Those doors lock. As long as he doesn't take too long or make any noise, no one will know.
As he ignores it, it seems to be going away on its own. A little. Maybe he just needs to breathe deeply and wait it out. Maybe he could go into a stall and pretend he's sick. He might actually be sick.
God, being sixteen sucks.
"Kageyama," says Hinata from behind him, rather reproachfully, and he thinks his spine might fracture under the force of his flinch. He didn't hear the door open or shut at all. He twists to face Hinata and wonders if he should try to subtly angle his hips further away or if that will simply draw attention to the problem.
"What," he says, pleased that his voice doesn't crack. Looking at the idiot now does not renew the response. It's just Hinata. Annoying, proud, stupid. Not —
he gets a flash of the jump, his intense focus, and he looks like the embodiment of how it feels to score a service ace —
"Ugh, um, are you okay? You must be sick. Unless you're smiling? Kageyama!"
"Please stop talking," Kageyama says, starting to feel a desperate need to hide. "Go back to the games, I'm not — I'll probably head home, it's a Saturday and I've got a lot of homework —"
"Oh my god, you are definitely sick. I'll tell Coach. Want me to walk you home?"
"No! No." He cannot think. He cannot come up with any reason he wouldn't want Hinata to walk him home. Except: "Don't you want to stay on the court?"
Hinata gets that look.
But he's also smiling.
"There'll be tons more courts, with you, dumbass."
Oh. Oh. Shit.
Kageyama grimaces. "I'm so fucked."
Hinata laughs really hard at that. "Jeez, I'm not that bad."
He is calm. Like they're on the court, in the zone, completely in sync and he knows where every player is and where they're going to move. The flurry of emotion is completely gone, and he can see so clearly exactly what he should — must — do next. With this, he's going to win. Hinata will never see it coming and if that doesn't make him ridiculously happy nothing ever will. "No, you're not," he says, then takes two strides toward Hinata and leans in.
As soon as he's close enough to see individual eyelashes, the panic rushes back full-force, what the hell am I doing, but Hinata. Is. Closing. His. Eyes.
So he kisses him.
He can hear him breathing quickly through his nose, and the exhale's hot on his lips, so he draws back just a little because Hinata might be hyperventilating. Then he grunts in surprise because Hinata's eyes fly open and the smaller guy lunges forward and mashes their mouths together, glaring, slightly teary. Kageyama breaks away again to draw back further and to say, "Are you okay?"
"Am I o… I am going to murder you, dumbass!" Hinata says, and sucks in a breath. "What the hell! Since when do you! I'm gonna — mm! Mmff!"
It doesn't surprise him that kissing Hinata doesn't do much to shut him up, and that makes Kageyama laugh a little.
"Stop laughing at me, dumbass! It's my first time!"
Kageyama laughs harder, and Hinata's shouting gets louder, and then the door opens to reveal Ennoshita with his fists on his hips. "Are you two okay?" he asks, not like Suga would have asked, but in his own I'm-so-done-with-this tone that tells them they need to keep it together. Kageyama manages to stop laughing and Hinata is panting but no longer yelling that he wants to punch Kageyama in the gut. Ennoshita looks them over, and Kageyama notices at the same time he does that the problem persists. He can feel himself blush, but Ennoshita says nothing. He wonders if Hinata even noticed. "We're done out there, no thanks to the two of you rushing off."
"S-s-sorry, Ennoshita-san," says Hinata contritely, staring at his feet. He's holding on to Kageyama's shirt, and when he realizes, he lets go and takes a step away from him. "Sorry."
"Get cleaned up," and now Ennoshita sounds like Suga would. "We'll lock up the gym in fifteen." He leaves.
Kageyama tries to think of the next step. Ennoshita's interruption has thrown off his concentration. He wishes he could hold a volleyball for a second, to get that certainty back. He could go out to get one… no, that'd be weird, to grab a volleyball and take it into the bathroom. The two of them could go out of the bathroom and talk about this on the court — it would clear his head, but what if the others aren't... okay with this?
"Talk to me, dumbass," Hinata gripes. "You're getting that anxious look, like when we're losing a game. The kind that makes you clam up. Are you actually sick, too? Do you need a —"
"Please stop talking," Kageyama says again, and Hinata does shut up, but his attentive, waiting silence is nearly as loud as his dumb questions.
"I think I have a crush on you," Kageyama says, and it isn't as difficult to say as he thought it would be.
"Yeah?" Hinata says, brightening considerably. His stupid smile looks slightly painful. "Yeah? Really?"
"Yeah really," he replies, trying not to smile back. "I'd thought that'd be obvious after…" He waves his hand between them. "Anyway, do you…"
"Yes! Yes. Yes!" Hinata says, bouncing on his toes.
"You didn't listen to my question."
"I don't care! I like you, whatever. I like you a lot. You're an idiot! How long did it take you to notice?"
Kageyama reaches for Hinata's hair again, comes up emptyhanded. "I didn't know you liked me back, dumbass, 'til just now."
Hinata stops dodging for an instant, then slowly turns to look at him, completely flummoxed. "You didn't know? Are you stupid? It's been a whole goddamn year!"
"Well it's not like you told me!" He thinks about every time he was ever disheartened or afraid, how Hinata always saw through it, Hinata always watched him when he thought he was alone, Hinata almost always made him better. He freezes. "Wait, a whole year? You — for a whole year?! Who does that!"
"I thought you liked girls! Most guys do!"
"So you were just gonna not say… Are you scared of me, or something?!"
"Of course! You're the king!"
Kageyama's hands ball into fists. "What." Ridiculous. They're past this.
But Hinata doesn't seem scared now. He draws himself up a little and throws his shoulders back, meeting Kageyama's hurt glare straight on. "You're the king, Kageyama. My first week, Suga said that I consider you to be the best in our year. And I do." He presses a hand to his chest, pulling at his shirt front, and doesn't look away from Kageyama for a second. "I've had a crush on you since I met you in that hallway before our game in junior high. You're … my…" He falters, and blushes bright red from his shirt collar to his hair. For some reason, this gives Kageyama his clarity back, and he smiles.
"I'm your king?"
"I didn't say it!" Hinata shrieks, and darts out of the bathroom.
Kageyama sighs, but his smile remains. At least until he notices that his problem has gotten worse.
"Oh for the love of—"
Author's note #2: Not sure yet if I want to add more to this. Um. Let me know what you think?