Work Text:
Kousei was sitting on the bleachers among the cheering crowd. It wasn’t really his type of crowd. They were much noisier than the audience at a concert hall. But he promised he would take a break from piano practice so that he could make it to Tsubaki’s home game. He didn’t want to miss her first home game since the first two were away games. He felt a bit awkward being squished between energetic fans, but he endured it for her. It’s the last inning of the game and Tsubaki’s team is just one home run away from beating the opposing team.
Tsubaki approached the plate and she twisted her grasp on the bat, she had her eyes down as she hit both of her cleats with the bat. When she looked up, she caught a glimpse of Kousei in the crowd. He stuck out like a sore thumb among the crowd mixed with students and devout fans of her college softball team. She couldn’t help but chuckle to herself. He was wearing his usual layered outfit. This time it was a softball jersey with her number on it with a hoodie underneath it. Of course. She thought to herself as her eyes lingered over to the pitching mound. The pitcher blew a bubble with her gum before she deliberately popped it with her top teeth.
Going into full focus, she raised the bat and rested it on left shoulder. Her eyes squinted as she dug her cleat more into the dirt. In a blink, the pitcher moved and circled her arm to toss a fastball at Tsubaki, which didn’t go unhit. Her bat met the ball square in the middle and the impact sent a vibration down her arms before she hastily threw the bat behind her and took off to first base.
The crowd was going crazy. Kousei was nervous before the pitch, but he felt the adrenaline rush through his bloodstream when the piercing sound of the ball hitting the bat echoed in the air. He couldn’t help but join the crowd and he stood on his feet to cheer loudly for his girlfriend. “Go, Tsubaki! Run!” He yelled at the top of his lungs. He kept his eyes on Tsubaki as she passed first base and ran for second. Everyone on the bleachers is telling her to hurry when the ball gets tossed around the outfield. She slid to second and was safe.
“Yes!!!” Kousei raised his fist into the air!
The next batter approached home plate and she hit the ball at first pitch and she took off to first, while Kousei’s eyes watched Tsubaki run for third. She was about to keep running, but the ball was being thrown around the field, so she stopped at third just to be safe. When the next batter stepped up, the crowd started to drum their feet against the bleachers, the batter one of the favorites among the team. She missed the ball twice, but when she struck the ball on the third pitch, the ball was caught by the opposing team. The crowd groaned in frustration. That’s the second out.
Kousei had his eyes locked on Tsubaki the whole time. She was getting antsy on third and she was desperate to finally get the winning homerun. The last batter finally stepped up to the plate and prepared to hit the ball. To their dismay, the batter was unable to hit the ball, striking out. “No!!” The crowd cried out. The team’s first home game and it ended in a loss. Kousei’s eyes traveled along the field, following Tsubaki walking back to the batter’s cage. Her shoulders are slumped forward and her head is faced down.
He took a deep breath then stood up onto his feet, sticking his hands into his pockets. He made his way out of the stadium and walked to the area Tsubaki and the rest of the team would exit out of. He was humming quietly to the piece that he had been practicing for the last week as he waited for his girlfriend. His fingers tapped lightly on his thighs as he continued to hum and wait.
A half hour had passed and Kousei was returning from the convenience store with an egg salad sandwich in one hand and two bottles of Tsubaki’s favorite juice between his fingers in the other. The team and an entourage congregated outside of the building and Tsubaki was chatting with her teammates. Kousei noticed her smile in the dim light from the lamps, but he knew deep down she was hurting because of the loss.
He slowly approached Tsubaki and she caught the movement in the corner of her eyes, turning her attention away from her friends. “Kousei~ You’re here! Did you enjoy the game?” She asked him, hopeful.
“I don’t mean to interrupt your conversation,” he said sheepishly, but Tsubaki shook her head. “It’s fine!” Kousei offered her a smile then nodded his head. “Of course I did! Being able to watch you play and enjoy softball is always enjoyable,” he told her as he held out his hand with the juice, keeping it out so Tsubaki could give him her bag. .
“Thank you!” Tsubaki took one of the bottles in her hand then replaced it with the strap of her duffle bag.
“Whenever you’re ready, we can head home.” He told her as he shouldered her bag.
“Give me five minutes!”
Kousei nodded his head then stepped off to the side to let Tsubaki wrap up her conversation. He peeled open the packaging of the sandwich and with nimble fingers, pulled out one half. He took a small bite out of it and his eyes lingered around the area, taking in all the faces of everyone there. Thirsty, he left the sandwich between his teeth and he carefully twisted open the bottle he was holding.
Tsubaki approached him and gently removed the sandwich out of his mouth and took her own bite. He blinked at her before he took a drink of the juice. He tilted his head back down and he offered her the sandwich still in the packaging. She shook her head and continued to eat the sandwich she took from him.
The two of them started to walk away from the crowd silently. Kousei didn’t want to break the silence, so he ate the other sandwich quietly. He knew she was probably still processing the loss to figure out what she could have done better to guarantee the win for her and her team.
But when the silence loomed too heavy, Kousei finally took initiative to start the conversation. “You had a really strong beginning. I could tell you were in your zone halfway through the game, I was really hoping you’d get that final home run--” Kousei gets cut off.
“Hikaru is our strongest batter. I don’t know what happened!” Her voice was loud in the quiet street.
Kousei sighed and fixed the strap of the bag.
“We were so close. No one in the team wanted to pressure her and tell her we were counting on her. But, maybe we should have because I feel like her head wasn’t even in the game..” She continued to rant.
“Losing our first home game is kind of embarrassing!” She groaned and slumped her shoulders forward. “I really wanted to win like we did our first two games.”
Kousei shifted the bag to his left shoulder and wrapped his right arm around Tsubaki’s shoulders. He pulled her close to him and gave her a reassuring squeeze. “You will have more home games to win, Tsubaki.”
“B-But--” She tried to interject, but she fell quiet, knowing that he was right.
Tsubaki huffed and walked ahead of Kousei to blow off her steam. He stayed close behind her, keeping an eye on her. When they reached their apartment building, Tsubaki pushed the door too roughly, making Kousei jump behind her. "Oh, my bad," she muttered under her breath.
The two of them silently walked through the lobby to the elevator. When the doors slid open as soon as Tsubaki pressed the button, they stepped in. "What do you want to eat for dinner?" Kousei asked her.
She just shrugged her shoulders. "We still have leftovers from yesterday right?"
He nodded.
"It's already late to cook something fresh, we can just warm that up," she told him.
The elevator came to a half once it reached their floor. They turned out of the small space, then walked down the hallway to their apartment. Kousei unlocked the door and held the door open for Tsubaki.
The two slipped out of their shoes and entered their apartment. Kousei put her bag down in front of the couch and he wrapped an arm around Tsubaki's waist to pull her close.
She blinked up at him and turned to face him. Her expression was sad. Kousei pouted a little before he leaned to press a kiss on her forehead, then down to her nose. He placed a kiss on both of her cheeks, before he pressed a final kiss on her lips.
He pulled away and smiled warmly at her. "Go shower and dinner will be ready," he told her.
"Mm." She pressed another kiss on his lips then ran off into the bathroom
Kousei exhaled as he walked into the kitchen. He opened the fridge and took out the leftover curry that they had from last night's dinner. He roamed around the kitchen to at least get a fresh batch of rice cooked to accompany their curry. He got the curry transferred into a small pot and placed it on the stove, turning it on to a low heat so that it wouldn’t burn. Afterwards, he set the table for the two of them.
He lingered out of the kitchen and into the living room. Kousei settled down in front of the piano on the east side of the room, placed in front of their window. He pushed up the keylid and his fingers grazed against the smooth ivory keys. He glanced up at the piece that was flipped open on the stand and he started to play the melody. His fingers danced along the keys as he got lost in the song, his eyes closed and his body swaying left and right.
Tsubaki walked out of the bathroom as she rubbed the towel against her hair to dry it off. She listened to the song, feeling herself being drawn in by the slow melody. She walked closer to where her boyfriend was and she stayed quiet to enjoy the music. Even though she has said in the past that she dislikes music, she never truly meant it. She could listen to Kousei play the piano for hours on end and she would never get tired of it. She only disliked music when it took her boyfriend away, like it did in the past.
However, lately, music has only brought the two of them closer. Whenever she would be in a bad mood, he knew that if he played anything on the piano it would calm her down. Tonight was no different. Her bitter mood started to dissipate immediately when she heard him start to play when she was still in the bathroom. This was her comfort song. He knew her well and she was grateful for him for always doing this for her.
She slowly sat down beside him on the piano bench. Kousei scooted to the left slightly to give her more room. Tsubaki stayed silent as she let the soft tune carry all her negative emotions away. She closed her eyes and the notes filled the whole room. This. This is what she loved about music. Kousei knew she was upset and he knew just what to do to pacify her mood to make her feel better.
Kousei continued to play for her, hoping that his song would reach his girlfriend. He knew this song would do the job to make her feel better. Clair de Lune. This was one song that he has played for her countless times in the past and in the present. It was one song he would never get tired of playing as long as it meant that it would put Tsubaki in a better mood.
When he played the final note, he left his fingers on top of the keys, slowly opening his eyes. He turned his head to get a look at his girlfriend who was in a trance from the song. Her eyes were closed and her facial expression calm. He left the keylid open as he stood up, placing a kiss on the top of her head before proceeding into the kitchen to check on the curry.
“Dinner is ready,” he called out to her.
He listened to her movement walking through the living room then to pulling out her seat in front of the dining table. Kousei carefully brought the pot over to the table and placed it on the silicon mat in the middle of their plates. Then he went to scoop rice into their bowls and placed one in front of Tsubaki then in front of his seat.
“Thank you for this meal,” Tsubaki said in a calm voice.
He nodded and the two ate their dinner in calming silence.