Chapter Text
He laid on his stomach, over the comfort of Kei’s bed, and swinging his feet repeatedly in the air. He wasn’t sure what he was doing anymore. The math problems he was working on had gotten complicated and for one reason or another, he was having difficulty concentrating. His phone was right next to him, but it had gone silent since his arrival. It was fine, though. He already knew that such small and petty things bothered his best friend.
Tadashi sighed and lightly tapped his head with his pencil. He had come over to Kei’s house to study like he always did, but naturally, things weren’t the same anymore. He didn’t expect them to be. He was the one that had unexpectedly dropped a bomb on their eternal friendship. After all, he was dating Tooru and that alone was a strange concept to grasp.
He didn’t keep secrets from Kei, so he was the first one to know and he wouldn’t be exaggerating to say that he was quite displeased with the news.
It wasn’t anything to be concerned about. He assured him many times, but Kei wouldn’t let his worries go. Tadashi couldn’t blame him. He was the first one he came too after he had gotten into a fight with Tooru in the beginning.
They had argued over something truly insignificant, but in the end, he was the one that was pushed away. Tooru ignored him and didn’t talk to him for days. He was stubborn that way and to make things worse, he kind of was too. Tadashi was ultimately hurt, but he figured they probably needed some time to sort things out. Their insecurities would get the best of them otherwise.
Still, he didn’t know who else to turn to, so he went with Kei, his best friend and the only person that was aware of his relationship with the setter at the time.
Kei comforted him, drying his tears with tissues and cracking a joke every so often to make him smile. He made him hot chocolate, wrapped him up in blankets and let him watch movies for the rest of evening. Tadashi felt better after a while and that’s when Kei seriously asked what he was planning to do about his relationship with Tooru.
Unsure, Tadashi had shrugged indifferently, telling him that he would wait to see how things progressed. He really liked Tooru after all and he didn’t want to leave him because of an argument that most likely erupted from a misunderstanding. Kei nodded then, telling him that he would try and support him no matter what he decided. Besides, it didn’t matter whether he liked it or not. His happiness would always come first.
They made up after a few days and Tooru filled him with kisses. He apologized, saying that he let his anger and jealousy get the best of him. That’s why he confronted him the way he did.
Surprisingly, Tooru didn’t want to leave him either. He told him that he would be willingly to go far and wide to prove that he was indeed worthy of his affection. With such sweet words, Tadashi immediately accepted his forgiveness, but nothing could prepare him for what came next.
Tooru decided to formally introduce himself to the team as his boyfriend. From that moment on, things became much more harder to deal with.
“So, how’s it going?” Kei suddenly broke the silence, looking at him curiously from his desk. Most of his books were closed, so Tadashi wondered if he was already done with the homework. Sadly, he checked his own progress and realized he didn’t have much done. He sighed again which probably pushed Kei’s patience to it’s limit.
“Well, I’ve been stuck on the same problem for a couple of minutes now. I thought I knew what I was doing, but I think I used the formula all wrong. None of the answers are matching. It doesn’t make sense. Either that or I copied it wrong during class. I was falling asleep at some point.”
“That’s not what I meant. I’m talking about Oikawa. How is it going with him? You’ve been acting kind of strange lately. Did you get into another fight or what?” Kei’s eyes looked menacing as he glared in his direction. Immediately, he sat up and shook his head.
“No, we haven’t. Everything is fine. Actually, we’re going out on Sunday, so I’m kind of nervous. I’m not sure what I should wear or do or say even.” Tadashi placed his hands over his cheeks, feeling them get warm. It wouldn’t be their first date, but he would get butterflies anyways. “I guess I might be a little worried about that.”
Kei didn’t say anything, but he seemed to understand for the most part. Then, a small smile appeared across his face. He seemed a bit relieved. “I see. Well, I’m glad things are working out for you then. Even though, it was kind of weird when he suddenly came to the school to introduce himself. It’s not like we didn’t know already. You were so obvious.”
“You knew. The others didn't? And I think he wanted to make a good impression. Honestly, I don’t know what he was thinking and he just made things a thousand times more worse for me. They won’t leave me alone anymore.” Tadashi grabbed a pillow and squeezed it tightly. “It’s not like he’s evil or anything. In fact, he’s close to perfect and I still can’t believe someone like him is dating me.”
“The others are probably just watching out for you especially since you’re dating a guy like Oikawa. Just ignore them. They’ll leave you alone eventually.” Kei stood up and stretched his hands in the air with a lazy yawn. He handed him the plate of cookies his mom had brought up a while ago for them to snack on. Tadashi happily took one and noticed his friend’s small smile appearing once more.
“However, if he ever does anything to you or makes you cry again, I’ll put him in his place. You’re too good for him and I’m sure the whole team thinks the same way.”
...
“What’s it like, Yamaguchi? Is he nice to you? What do you do on dates?” Hinata was pestering him with questions again and he wasn’t exactly sure what to say anymore. He understood he was simply curious, but at the same time, he wasn’t comfortable talking about his intimate love life. Instead of responding, he quietly laughed and hoped he would let the conversation go.
Sadly, he didn’t stop. Kageyama was walking right next to him, but he was probably just as intrigued. After all, who would have ever imagined that he was dating the famous setter that had defeated them once before? It was almost unbelievable. “Did you ask him out or was it him? How did you even meet him? Was it after the game?”
Tadashi turned to look at Kei and hoped he could help him out a little, but naturally, he was too amused by the situation. He went along with Hinata, demanding answers and teasing him for all its worth. “Yeah, Yamaguchi. Why don’t you tell us how it happened? We’re you the one that asked him out? Or did he confess his feelings to you? We’re simply dying to know.”
Cornered that way, he felt like he didn’t have much of a choice. He didn’t think they would ever get tired of asking him the same questions over and over again. He nudged Kei’s elbow, letting him know that he was going to get him back later for that. His best friend placed his headphones around his neck before giving him a teasing grin he had seen quite often the last couple of days. They walked in silence for the next few seconds under the starry sky before he let out an exhausted sigh.
“I met with him after the game to see if he could help me with my serves. He agreed and that’s how we started to spend time together. I never thought I would actually end up dating him, though.” Tadashi rubbed the back of his neck with his sweaty palm, feeling Hinata’s bright eyes upon him. He gulped, a blush forming across his freckled face.
“And yeah...he was the one that confessed to me first.”
“He doesn’t seem like the confessing type of guy.” Kageyama snapped suddenly, placing his hand over his chin thoughtfully as they briefly stopped. His eyebrows furrowed into a scowl despite his low soft voice. He truly looked scary, especially since he was standing right over the lamp post. Tadashi nervously laughed and unknowingly took a step back.
Out of everyone in the team, he seemed to be the person that disagreed the most with his relationship. He could still remember the way he threatened to kick Tooru out of the gym when he first appeared to introduce himself as his boyfriend. They had lost to him and his team. The last thing Kageyama probably wanted was to see his face again so soon.
Even so, Tooru’s taunting smile didn’t work in his favor. He had told him beforehand that he was going to try and get along with them, but it seemed that promise was quickly forgotten. Sparks flew between almost instantly. Tadashi could only watch as the events unfolded silently.
Then, Tooru held his hand and pulled him forward, stunning everyone that was currently there.
Sugawara, who was trying to hold Kageyama back, let him go and his jaw dropped a little. Hinata stopped jumping around and stopped shouting for a rematch. Nishinoya and Tanaka immediately calmed down as well. They looked at each other with concern as they became surprisingly serious. Azumane was standing a bit further back, but he looked incredibly worried. He was with Tsukishima, who wasn’t at all surprised by the scene. He already knew after all and his cool composure seemed to assure the ace that everything was fine.
Kageyama, on the other hand, seemed horrified by the gesture. In fact, he seemed like he was ready to slap his hand away from his and pull him over. The captain then heard the commotion and came over, but stopped almost immediately when he saw what was going on. He turned to look at Sugawara and again, he was just as confused. He simply shrugged with an anxious smile.
“I’m sorry to disappoint you, Tobio-chan, but I didn’t come to see you. I’m here for Yama-chan.”
Tadashi thought it was a good idea at first. They were going to figure out eventually. He didn't see anything wrong with him coming over to Karasuno, but he never imagined something so awkward. Everyone suddenly turned to look at him and he really wanted to sink underneath the ground. His face had probably gone bright red.
“For Yamaguchi? Why did you come looking for him?” Kageyama sounded completely baffled, but he was probably starting to get a vague idea of what was really happening. “What do you want with our teammate?”
“Don’t you know? We’re actually dating.”
Hell broke loose right after and that’s when Tadashi decided it was best to leave introductions for some other day. He quickly pulled Tooru out the gym since he didn’t think he was ready for the barrage of questions, for the intensive interrogation that was probably going to follow. He knew their relationship would come as a surprise, but he was never expecting such a reaction either.
Tooru ended up walking him home, telling him that maybe he had messed up with introductions. He had been looking for an approval and instead, it almost felt like they hated him even more than before. The next day, during practice, the tension seemed to remain. No one approached him about the topic at first since they were probably still a bit skeptical about it.
However, Kei did complain to him later that they had pressed him for answers, asking him if he already knew about it and if he was okay with it. He told them he was, but of course, that wasn’t enough. They probably wanted to hear the full story from him too. After some time, they were comfortable enough to bring up the topic and ask him directly.
Sadly, after that, they never left him alone.
His cell phone would ring and they would immediately assume it was Tooru. They weren’t wrong, but Tadashi quickly began to miss his privacy. He would step out of the changing room to talk to him and he would catch the others trying to eavesdrop on his conversation. Whenever he stated that he had plans for a certain day, Nishinoya and Tanaka would always ask if they could come along too. Tadashi would nicely turn them down, saying that it wasn’t anything important to stress over.
Sugawara would pull him to the side daily and have a talk with him. Sometimes their conversation related to his feelings. Other times it was about his relationship and how to establish a secure bond with his loved one. Tadashi took his concerns as friendly advice, but there was a instance when he talked to him about safe sex. The idea hadn't even occurred to him yet.
“From what I remember, he was always being confessed to by others. He never took them seriously, though.” Kageyama turned to look at him with a warning. “I hope he isn’t playing around with you.”
“It’s not like I didn’t have my doubts before, but I know he isn’t. He’s extremely nice to me and I really like him a lot. I want to say that he does too.” Tadashi nervously bit his lip since the setter had a natural way to intimate others. He probably wasn’t trying to. He figured he was just anxious since he was the only one that knew Tooru from middle school.
“I’m aware of what I’m doing and I know who I’m dating. I know you might not like him, but really, he’s not what you guys imagine him to be. He’s truly an amazing person.”
“For your sake, I hope he isn’t messing around.” Kageyama didn’t know how stubborn he could be. His words weren’t going to make him change his mind. Still, Tadashi nodded and knew that wouldn’t be the case. After all, Tooru had proven to him, more than once, that he was important. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have bothered to make up with him after their fight.
“And if he is messing around, I’ll…”
“I’ll beat the shit out of him.” Kei interrupted him as he walked on ahead, grabbing his attention. The setter lifted an eyebrow, but Hinata managed to smile because of it.
“See, Kageyama! There’s nothing to worry about!” Hinata assured him before he turned to look at him. He seemed a bit relieved and Tadashi hoped that would finally be the last time they bothered him regarding the matter. Even so, he was startled by the shorter male when he suddenly pointed his index finger in his direction. “Don’t forget, Yamaguchi! If you ever need anything, we’re here to help you too! You can always come to me for advice! I’m pretty good with that sort of stuff!”
“Using fortune cookies doesn’t count, dumbass!” Kageyama snarled at him, but he seemed to be in a much better mood regardless. He was thankful for it.
They walked home without talking about Tooru and were graced the constant bickering of the duo instead. He couldn’t complain, though. His uneasiness finally left him and he hoped the rest of the team would eventually understand as well.