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His Butterscotch Curls - Part 1

Author's Note: This is Part 1 of 10 (If I ever finish this). I do not own the characters, only this piece of writing and the fanon storyline/versions of them.

This story will contain angst and mentions of poor mental health, so if these topics are sensitive for you please read with caution. Please note that this is not an attempt to romanticise mental illness, but instead focus on how it can negatively impact relationships with oneself and others. If you are someone who is struggling with your mental health, I urge you to seek professional help, and take care of yourself.

This chapter does not contain the mention of any sensitive topics, other than a mention of bullying in kindergarten. If this is a sensitive topic for you, feel free to skip the parts highlighted in red.

Kageyama

“Would you like to share my lunch with me?”

I look up to see a pale face, framed by soft, butterscotch curls. Large, round glasses sit over the bridge of a roman nose, golden eyes blinking down at me. His cheekbones and the tip of his nose are airbrushed with a soft, cosmos blush. 

Flinching, I hug my grazed knees to my chest, bringing my knuckles to my tear filled eyes and rubbing them away. He doesn’t seem to take it back or change his mind. I nod, sniffling and shuffling over to allow him to sit beside me. He sits down, our thighs brushing together, and I take this moment to notice that he’s a lot taller than I am. He could hurt me a lot worse than the other kids if he wanted to.

He doesn’t. He simply places his lunchbox over our thighs, and reaches for his chopsticks. I glance up at him as he holds some food up to my lips. I accept it, thankful, doing my best to avoid looking at what remains of my lunch on the concrete. 

The sounds of the other kids’ teasing and laughter seem distant now that he’s here. I feel safe. They can’t hurt me, not when he’s around. We continue to eat in a comfortable silence. 

“Earth to Tobio?-” I’m brought back to the moment by a flick to the forehead, blinking up at the same golden eyes, this time framed by rectangular glasses. 

I realise that not much has changed about Kei since we first met. He still has the same unruly yet incredibly soft locks, the same airbrushed cheeks and nose, even the same resting pout, the existence of which he has always denied. This thought makes me let out an audible giggle. Kei huffs. 

“What’s so funny, Tobio-chan?” he pouted down at me. I booped the tip of his nose lightly with a grin, and he responded by scrunching it. 

“Nothing, just thinking about when we first met…” I started, sighing dreamily as I began.

“...Back in kindergarten.” we murmured in unison, and I stared at him in disbelief, feeling my cheeks heat up at the fact that he’d said it with me. Was I really that predictable?

He seemed to notice my embarrassment, and let out a chuckle, followed by that teasing asshole grin he always has. “Hmm, it’s only the…” he paused, making a show of counting on his fingers, my cheeks progressively flushing a brighter shade of red, “...9th time this week, and it’s only Wednesday.” 

I buried my face into my hands, peeking at him from between my fingers “Shut it.” I huffed, causing him to grin even more, ruffling my hair. 

“Tobio-chan~ Was that day really that special to you?” He teased, and I punched him in the stomach, eliciting a groan out of him “Ow- fuck- fine- fine! sorry.” He huffed, rubbing at the area I’d just punched him. I let out a triumphant ‘hmph’ and crossed my arms across my chest.

After a few moments, he leaned in and wiggled his eyebrows suggestively, and I sighed, but mumbled a soft “...Mph.. yeah, you were the first person to ever treat me like I was something other than a punching bag.” I continued to pout, but melted at the sight of him smiling to himself, as if it was an achievement to be my first friend. 

I left it at that, relaxing slightly as I watched him zone out, probably reliving some of the fond memories of childhood. He stared down at his hands, absently smiling to himself. 

I shuffled closer to him, letting my head rest against his shoulder, my eyes fluttering shut. I could feel him adjust to make it more comfortable for the two of us, soft smiles plastered on both of our faces as he wrapped an arm around my shoulder. 

We spent the rest of our lunchtime basking in the comfort of one another, no words exchanged. They weren’t needed. All that mattered was that he was here for me, and I for him. 

***

Tsukishima

The bell rang just in time, snapping me awake from my half-asleep state. The silence had grown a little too comfortable, causing me to almost doze off. Tobio made no move to get up, and I assumed that he had fallen asleep. Wouldn't be the first time that’d happened. 

I tilted my head to look at him, admiring his fiercely sharp and incredibly captivating features. I was so used to seeing them scrunched into a variety of expressions, that seeing them completely relaxed caught me off guard. 

The sunlight caught the fly-away strands of his fluffy dark hair, long eyelashes casting a shadow over his flushed cheekbones. His eyes were underlined by dark circles, which based on my observations, had gotten half a shade darker since last week. Tobio’s insomnia was getting worse. 

I was torn between letting him catch up on sleep and waking him up so we wouldn’t get in trouble for missing class. It didn’t take much contemplating for me to come to the conclusion that his sleep was way more important than a lesson on quadratics. I already knew the whole topic anyway and it wasn’t like the teacher was going to help Tobio understand it, being more focused on trying to get everyone to pass rather than helping people who struggled. 

Having nothing better to do with my hands, I started playing with his hair, allowing him to curl up to my chest. I wrapped my arms around him and held him close, resting my chin on the top of his head and letting myself relax once more. I inhaled deeply, blanking out for a few moments as the smell of his shampoo brought a single thought to my head.

God, how I loved the smell of sea kelp and lemonade.

***

Kageyama

Strawberry shortcake. Vanilla. Icing sugar.

The comforting smell engulfed me, causing me to stir. My head was resting on something comforting. It wasn't a pillow. It rose and fell in sync with my breathing, and once the initial post-nap fuzziness passed, I realised it was his chest. Kei’s chest. One of his hands was resting on the small of my back, the other tangled in my hair, implying that he’d been playing with my hair before he too fell asleep.

As soon as I registered this, my eyes snapped open, a decision which I immediately regretted. Bright sunlight blinded me, causing me to scrunch my eyes shut for a moment, before blinking furiously to let them adjust to the light. I looked around lazily, coming to the conclusion that we were cuddling. On school grounds. Out in the open. How we hadn’t gotten in trouble, I didn’t know. 

Sitting up, I reached into my bag to grab my phone, wanting to know how long we had left until class. 4:06 pm. I dropped my phone, letting out a louder than intended “Shit!” Not only had we slept through class, but I’d missed the bus. Walking home was an option, but it’d be an inconvenience and extremely exhausting. 

I heard a groan from beneath me, and glanced back to see Kei stirring. “Mhph, Tobio?” he mumbled, blinking up at me. He seemed to realise I was awake, a soft smile making its way upon his face “Sleep well?” So he knew I was asleep? And he let me sleep? God, he was such an idiot. 

“You let me sleep?” I mumbled with a huff. He sat up a little, resting on his elbows. 

“Your dark circles looked worse than last week, and I didn’t have the heart to wake you up, especially since you seemed like you really needed it.” He explained, slowly making his way into a sitting position by the end of his sentence. 

“We missed maths! And I missed my bus!” I huffed, and he looked more amused than anything.

“I’ll give you a piggy back home~” he offered smugly. I responded with a simple glare, and he laughed but lifted his hands defensively. “Okay okay- I’m sorry- the offer still stands though, yknow, since I caused you to miss your ride home I’ll gladly be the substitute to make up for it.” 

And that’s how we ended up in our current situation. Kei, carrying me home in a koala hug, our backpacks swung over either shoulder; my face buried in the crook of his neck, out of both affection and embarrassment. I could feel his grin as he marched down the street, which to my luck was pretty much empty at this time of day. 

“So~ My place or yours?” He asked. The question itself was less important than what it implied. He wanted to hang out. I hummed in thought, feeling him shiver at the feeling of my breath against his neck. I smirked, taking it as my little victory against him. 

Deciding to avenge all the teasing I’d put up with today, I leaned closer, murmuring softly as my lips brushed the shell of his ear, “Mine, parents aren’t home~” I spoke in the most sultry tone I could muster without breaking out into a fit of giggles. I felt him tense up at that, his skin growing hot against mine. 

I let out a “Pff-” before starting to laugh, and he huffed as he looked away. He took a turn into my street, and I grinned to myself.

I relaxed, keeping up the act until we go to the door, holding my laughter as he tried to open the door, which swung open. The look on his face when my mother greeted him at the door was priceless.