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Despite the late hour, Haneda Airport is still bustling with people, both tourists and people returning home from their own business or vacations alike. Tsukishima glances at the screens showing the arriving flights once again, double checking that there haven’t been any delays.
So far, Kageyama’s flight from Rome to Tokyo is still on time, and he should be getting off within the next 20 minutes. Tsukishima leans back against the pillar behind him, getting comfortable for the wait.
“You don’t have to come pick me up,” Kageyama had said a few weeks ago when he was telling Tsukishima about his travel plans. “I’ll just come to Sendai the next day by train and meet you at your apartment.”
“Don’t be stupid.” Like Tsukishima would ever let Kageyama come back to Japan with no one to welcome him home. “Just tell me when you get in, and I’ll be there.”
He decides to kill the time by listening to a podcast, something Yamaguchi unfortunately got him hooked onto a few years back. Thirty minutes later, in the middle of the hosts’ spirited debate over the themes in a mafia movie, Tsukishima finally spots Kageyama coming from the arrivals area.
Tsukishima is about to call Kageyama’s name when their eyes meet, and Kageyama makes a beeline to where Tsukishima is waiting.
Tsukishima moves forward to meet him, too, and they connect in the middle. It’s too late for exuberance, but Kageyama does wrap his arms around Tsukishima the second he’s close enough.
“Ugh,” he says, burying his face into the crook of Tsukishima’s shoulder.
“Nice to see you, too, king.” Still, Tsukishima doesn’t have it in him to make fun of Kageyama too much. He did just get off a 13 hour flight after all. “The flight was that bad, huh?”
Kageyama tightens his grip around Tsukishima’s waist before he lifts his head to look at him properly. “Missed you,” he says, leaning in for a kiss.
He misses, hitting Tsukishima’s cheek instead of his mouth, but Tsukishima makes up for it, turning his head and capturing Kageyama’s mouth in a gentle kiss.
“Let’s get to the hotel,” he says after pulling away. “I bet you’re exhausted, and we still have to travel back to Sendai tomorrow.”
Kageyama nods, but spends a few more seconds leaning against Tsukishima before he finally lets go and steps back.
Luckily, all Kageyama has with him is a backpack and a travel bag, no baggage claim necessary. All of his other stuff had been shipped to Tsukishima’s apartment ahead of time and has either already arrived or will come soon.
They take a taxi to the business hotel where Tsukishima booked a room for the night. During the ride, Kageyama half-dozes on Tsukishima’s shoulder, the street lights casting strange shadows across his face.
Since Tsukishima already checked in when he arrived in Tokyo earlier, they head straight to the elevators once they arrive, riding up to the fifth floor in silence.
The room isn’t luxurious, but it doesn’t need to be when they’re only going to be in it for the night. There’s a double bed just big enough to fit the two of them, and that’s good enough in Tsukishima’s opinion.
“We’re not staying in a love hotel?” Kageyama asks, sliding his backpack off his shoulder and placing his bag on the floor. He glances around the room, even though there’s barely anything to see in the tight space.
Tsukishima raises an eyebrow. “Did you want to stay in a love hotel instead?”
Kageyama shrugs. “The beds are better, and we could … you know.”
Considering how worn out Kageyama looks, Tsukishima doubts he could manage to stay up for sex even if he wanted to. “Let’s just clean up and sleep for now,” he says. There’s always time for a quickie in the morning before they leave for their train anyway. He packed some lube and condoms in his bag for that express purpose.
For a moment, it seems like Kageyama will protest—which Tsukishima doesn’t necessarily mind either—but he just ends up shaking his head. “Shower with me at least?” he asks, reaching out to link his fingers with Tsukishima’s own.
“Of course,” Tsukishima says. He brings Kageyama’s hand up to his mouth, pressing his lips to the back of it. “Someone has to make sure you don’t drown.”
Even though they’ve lived their lives mostly apart for a while now, it only takes a week for Kageyama to get comfortable within Tsukishima’s apartment like it’s his own.
All of Kageyama’s clothes are inside Tsukishima’s closet and dresser, their toiletries are mixed together, and Kageyama’s preferred milk brand is in the fridge. It’s like he’s always been living here, a permanent resident instead of just an extended guest.
Midori, a gray tabby cat Tsukishima rescued last fall, has quickly taken to Kageyama too, even though she’s usually wary of new people. The second they met, she purred up a storm, rubbing herself all over Kageyama’s legs and jumping into his lap as he stared wide-eyed at her affection.
Right now, the two of them are curled up together in front of the balcony door, napping in a mid-afternoon sunbeam. Midori is cradled in the curve of Kageyama’s arm, and her somnolent purrs add to the hum of background noise in the apartment.
Sipping his afternoon cup of coffee, Tsukishima watches the two of them contemplatively.
Because of the nature of their relationship, which has been long distance far longer than it hasn’t, he’s still not quite sure what to make of these domestic moments. The scene before him is disgustingly idyllic, like something out of a cheesy romance drama.
Tsukishima hates the heat, but summer has become his favorite season these past few years. It’s the only time that he and Kageyama can see each other routinely after all. Still, though, he has to wonder if their relationship is still worth the time apart, the distance, which has only grown larger over the years, and all the other troubles.
He doesn’t need to see Kageyama all the time to want him, to love him, but the older he gets, the stronger his desire to come home to someone grows. It’s part of the reason why he kept Midori after her leg healed up instead of adopting her out to someone else like he had originally planned.
Tsukishima doesn’t mind being alone, but nowadays he wants to be alone together with someone else.
Kageyama is here for the summer, almost four whole months before he has to fly back to Italy for another season with Ali Roma. After the club’s triumphant championship run in the SuperLega, it’s a well-deserved break, and Tsukishima is glad to have him, but every day ticks closer and closer to their parting. As always.
It’s been two years since he bought a ring in Italy, and it’s been tucked away in the back of his closet for almost the whole time he’s had it. The ring had been an impulse purchase, which Tsukishima didn’t necessarily regret, but some days he wonders if there’s even a point to having it now.
It’s one thing to date someone long distance, but to marry them? Tsukishima’s not sure if he could make that leap, even if in the grand scheme of things it wouldn’t change their relationship much at all.
Sometimes, briefly, Tsukshima considers asking Kageyama if he would want to come back to Japan. He doesn’t, of course, because he understands Kageyama’s ambition to play against stronger players, stronger teams, and chase after challenges that he can’t find back home in Japan.
Instead, he keeps the ring he bought hidden and enjoys the moments that they do have together. Isn’t there a saying that absence makes the heart grow fonder? Their hearts must be at max capacity now, Tsukishima thinks. A lack of love has never been an issue for them at least.
Finishing his coffee, Tsukishima sets the dirty mug in the sink to be washed later before he makes his way over to where Kageyama and Midori are sleeping soundly, lying down next to them on the ground. If their time together is going to be limited, he’s going to make the most of it.
Summer passes, with the days sticky with heat and moving both too quickly and as slow as molasses. Tsukishima keeps busy, with his part-time work at the museum and his own volleyball training, especially now that the Frogs are in the V League’s first division.
Kageyama does his own training, sometimes with Tsukishima at the Frogs’ gym, but not always. Annoyingly, he gets called to Tokyo every now and then for meetings, like video calling wouldn’t be much easier and simpler in the end.
The short periods that Kageyama is gone don't really impact their day-to-day life much, but Tsukishima still doesn’t like him being away when their time together is already so limited. Those days, they revert to their long-distance habits instead: texts in the mornings, calls in the evening.
“You sound tired.” Tsukishima has Kageyama on speaker as he lies on the couch, too lazy to scrounge for something to eat at the moment. Midori is curled up on his chest, asleep again after greeting Kageyama through the phone. “Are you alright?”
“Yeah, it’s just…” Kageyama’s voice crackles through the phone as he moves around the hotel room his agent set him up in for the week. “Today’s meeting ran long. No one could make up their mind, and they wouldn’t let me leave either.”
“Is something up?”
Kageyama sighs. “Just contract stuff for next year, some sponsorships, too.” There’s a thump , like a body flopping back on a mattress. “I just want to go home. I miss you.”
“I miss you, too,” Tsukishima says, instead of teasing like he might have done before. He’s too tired right now to hide his honesty. “This should be the last of it though, right? You’ll be able to stay in Sendai for the rest of the summer?”
“I hope so.” A few days later, Kageyama is back in Sendai, and he tells Tsukishima that if anyone else wants to see him, they can take the train for once instead.
As the days pass, Tsukishima finds his thoughts drifting to the ring in his closet more and more often. He even manages to dig it out from his closet one night while Kageyama is out for dinner with his sister.
The ring still gleams as brightly as the day Tsukishima bought it, untarnished by any wear and tear. It’s beautiful, and there’s only one rightful place for it.
He still doesn’t ask, though, doesn’t even bring up the possibility of marriage to Kageyama. Even just thinking about asking is more than what he’s been doing for the past few years, at least.
They’ve been together for almost ten years now, even with their less than auspicious start in high school and the distance between them in the years after. Tsukishima doesn’t necessarily think marriage is a requirement in a long-term relationship, but—it’s something he wants. He wants to be married to Kageyama, to have a husband.
If not now, then when? Tsukishima thinks. He still doesn’t ask, but he doesn’t put the ring back into the closet either. It might be useful to have it on hand after all.
Before long, August arrives, and with it, festival season. In Sendai, that means Tanabata, the largest festival of its kind in Japan. The mood around the city is both hectic and excited as the preparations are underway.
Last year, he and Kageyama had been out of town during the festival, vacationing at the beach in Okinawa. Tsukishima had burned, then freckled across his shoulders under the harsh sun, but Kageyama had gained a dark, even tan all over except for where his swim trunks covered.
They don’t have any such plans this year, though, so when Yamaguchi extends an invitation for the two of them to join him and Yachi and a few others at the festival, Tsukishima is hard pressed to decline.
“You’re on speaker,” Tsukishima says when Yamaguchi calls one night. It’s his turn to cook dinner, and he’s in the middle of making curry (what else) per Kageyama’s request.
“Hi Kageyama!” Yamaguchi calls, correctly assuming that he’s somewhere close by.
“Hi,” Kageyama replies, too quiet and half distracted as he tries to teach Midori how to spike with a little Vabo-chan doll.
Tsukishima rolls his eyes but passes on the message regardless. “He says hi. Was there something you wanted, or is this just a social call?”
“You’re going to be in town next week, right?”
“Yeah, why?
“Me and Yachi were thinking of getting a group together to go to the Tanabata festival next Sunday. Do you guys wanna come with? It’ll be fun!”
“Pass.” Tsukishima slices an onion more roughly than he intends, the thwack punctuating his answer.
Unfortunately, Kageyama comes up to the kitchen counter right then, Midori cradled in his arms. “We’ll go, Yamaguchi.”
“Great!” Yamaguchi says. “I’m gonna go now so you guys can argue about this in peace, though. I’ll text you the time and place to meet later, okay?”
Yamaguchi hangs up before Tsukishima can get a word in edgewise, which is exceedingly annoying, but he doesn’t bother to call him back.
“I haven’t been to a festival in a while,” Kageyama says. “Should we wear yukata, too?” Tsukishima doesn’t even bother to sigh. There’s no way he could refuse the king this after all.
“If you want,” Tsukishima says, resigned but not necessarily unhappy about it.
Both of them have to make a trip back to their parents’ place to pick up some yukata to wear, which almost makes Tsukishima want to go in their regular clothes instead, but the required family socialization, on both their ends, passes without incident.
The yukata Tsukishima picks is dark blue, with a subtle moon pattern along the sleeves and the sides. It was the first one he found that was long enough, which made it the obvious choice. Kageyama ends up with one that’s white and sky blue, a simple, but eye-catching design due to the bright colors.
“Should I go with a darker one?” Kageyama asks, frowning as he digs through his family’s sets of yukatas. “We would match better that way, I think…”
“I don’t mind,” Tsukishima says. If he’s being honest, he likes the contrast between their outfits. “It’ll make it easier to find you when you get lost.” Kageyama glares at him for that, but he sticks with his choice in the end.
On Sunday, they meet up with Yamaguchi and Yachi just before sunset. The two of them have also invited some friends from work to tag along.
“Geez, everyone is showing us up,” Yamaguchi says with a laugh. He and his coworker are the only two in their group wearing their regular clothes instead of yukata. “Didn’t think you’d dress up for this, Tsukki.”
“I’m always dressed for the occasion,” Tsukishima says, though the amused look on Yamaguchi’s face says that he can tell that the yukatas were clearly Kageyama’s idea.
“You both look very handsome,” Yachi says, beaming at the two of them. She and her friend are both dressed in yukatas as well, their bright colors and similar floral designs complementing each other nicely. “I’m so glad you guys dressed up, too!”
The festival is beautiful, with thousands of decorations all over the city’s shopping center. As the sun sets and lanterns are lit, everything takes on an otherworldly tint. Even with his initial reluctance, Tsukishima can’t fault anything about the festival itself; there’s a reason why it’s the highlight of the summer after all.
They debate over which booths to visit first for a few minutes, before it’s ultimately decided after Yachi’s stomach makes a growl like an angry animal. “I didn’t eat lunch today!” she defends, though her cheeks are flushed red in embarrassment.
While Kageyama stakes out all of the savory booths—for grilled squid, yakisoba, yakitori, and more, Tsukishima contents himself with a crepe and some takoyaki for now. He’s definitely going to be bullied into eating more, but he’ll cross that road when he gets there.
Somehow, they manage to find a table for all six of them, which ends up looking like a buffet with all the food ladened down with it. Yamaguchi and his coworker almost end up in a drinking contest after finding a booth with free beer refills at a certain price point, but Yachi’s spirited defense of their tablespace limits them to only a few mugs.
After eating, they decide to split up for a bit to visit the other booths. Yamaguchi’s coworker and Yachi’s friend are apparently both self-proclaimed sharpshooters so they head over to the shooting galleries to see who can win the best prize. Yamaguchi and Yachi, as supportive friends, go to cheer them on.
Tsukishima and Kageyama end up at one of the goldfish catching booths. Several children are trying their hand at catching a few fish, with mostly limited success.
“Do you think we should get one for Midori?” Kageyama peers into the glass aquariums housing all the goldfish as if trying to find one that he thinks Tsukishima’s cat will like the best.
“To eat?” Tsukishima asks. “I think she has enough tuna at home, to be honest.”
“As a friend,” Kageyama says, in a tone that suggests he thinks Tsukishima is particularly stupid. “Maybe she gets lonely during the day when we’re both out.”
“I think she’s okay, king.” If he doesn’t manage to nip this in the bud now, Tsukishima is sure that he’s going to end up with five goldfish and an outsized aquarium bill. And he’s going to be the one taking care of all the cursed fish anyway since Kageyama is going to leave for Italy in a little over a month. “She’s asleep 90% of the time during the day anyway.”
Kageyama frowns, but he ultimately relents with a shake of his head. “I’m going to get her a different present then.”
The “present” ends up being the most atrocious, misshapen bow Tsukishima has had the misfortune of seeing. It has six different trailing tails, feathers, and poorly glued on gemstones. Kageyama had purchased it at a booth selling children’s art projects as a fundraiser.
“You’re not…going to make her wear that, are you?” Midori’s a relatively calm cat, but even she has her limits. Tsukishima also has standards, and he’s not going to let his cat look like a fashion disaster, even if the two of them are the only ones to see her wearing it.
“It’s for her to play with,” Kageyama says, rolling his eyes. “You know she likes to chase ribbons.” Maybe Tsukishima really is the stupid one.
When they meet up with the rest of the group, they’re all laden with what seems to be half of the prizes at the shooting booth and are in the process of giving most of them away to several eager children.
“Good haul?” Tsukishima asks, raising an eyebrow at the sheer number of prizes they’ve managed to amass in a short hour.
“The competition between Satou-san and Kotori-chan got a bit out of hand,” Yachi says. She has the arms of a long black cat plush wrapped across her chest like the strap of a bag. “It was fun to watch, though! I think Yamaguchi won some money, too.”
“I bet on Hasegawa-san, of course,” Yamaguchi says, holding a fan of bills in one hand. “I can treat everyone to dessert now!”
Magnanimously, Yamaguchi buys everyone some shaved ice with his ill-gotten earnings, along with an extra beer for Satou to drown his sorrows in after losing. Tsukishima gets strawberry, of course, while Kageyama opts for a blue coconut flavor.
The shaved ice is cool and sweet, the perfect accompaniment in the nighttime warmth. Kageyama’s tongue turns blue, and Tsukishima wants to kiss him, to suck the flavor from his tongue. He resists, though, because they're in public and his capacity for dealing with Yamaguchi’s inevitable teasing is nonexistent right now.
It’s been a few hours now, and night has well and truly fallen. The festival is still bustling with visitors, but all of them are noticeably flagging after all the food they’ve eaten. By mutual agreement, they decide to end their night here.
“Before we go, we should write some tanzaku wishes and hang them on the trees!” Yachi says, clapping her hands together. “It’s tradition, right? And a nice way to end the night overall.”
There’s rows of bamboo and tables with paper and string for the wishes all throughout the festival space, so they head for the nearest one that isn’t too tightly packed with crowds of other wishers.
“I wish that our team lead Takahashi-san will transfer to a different department,” Yamaguchi narrates as he writes. From what Tsukishima has heard, this Takahashi person is somehow both an overbearing tyrant and completely incompetent.
“If I write the same wish, do you think it’ll double the chances of it actually happening?” Satou asks with a laugh.
“I want to get the limited edition brownie parfait at the cafe by the office before it runs out,” Yachi says, writing her own wish down neatly. “I’ve been trying to get it for three months now, and no matter how early I show up, it’s always gone!”
Tsukishima considers his own wish. Certainly, he could do something basic like wishing for Midori to stop nesting on his shirts when he needs to wash them or for the Frogs to do well during the upcoming volleyball season, but he finds himself wanting to write something more… sentimental.
Considering he’s led presentations on the history of Tanabata in the region for the museum more times than he can count, Tsukishima is well-acquainted with the legend behind the holiday. Two star-crossed lovers Orihime and HIkoboshi separated except for one moment of the year when they’re finally allowed to cross the Milky Way and meet.
He knows that it’s ridiculous to compare himself and Kageyama to mythic lovers, but aren’t they in a similar situation? They’re apart more than they’re ever together, but they’ve still remained devoted to each other even after all these years, even as the distance has increased to what some people might consider insurmountable.
After almost ten years, Tsukishima doesn’t think he could ever imagine himself with anyone else. Despite all their troubles, they’ve still managed to be together. If that’s not enough to justify a marriage, he doesn’t know what is.
I want to marry Tobio, Tsukishima writes. He already knows that he’s going to make the wish come true, but it's only a matter of when. Quickly, he hangs up the tanzaku, using his height to hang it up as high as he can among some of the bamboo in the middle so Yamaguchi won’t be able to read it.
“What did you wish for?” Kageyama asks, as he goes to hang his own wish. From here, Tsukishima can’t read what it says, though he has some guesses. Maybe he wished for Midori not to be lonely.
“I’ll tell you later,” Tsukishima says. “I have a good feeling about it coming true, though.”
The train ride back to Tsukishima’s neighborhood had been quiet, and the walk from the station to his apartment is shaping up to largely be the same. In the dark, empty streets, Tsukishima indulges himself by lacing his fingers through Kageyama’s own. The warmth of his hand, even in the summer heat, is comforting.
The ring’s at home, still tucked away in his bedside drawer under some useless pamphlets. He should probably try to plan some kind of romantic proposal—even if the two of them are about as romantic as a pair of rocks—or even just wait until they’re back at the apartment. But honestly? He doesn’t really want to.
He’s been waiting two years to ask this question, and that’s probably a year too long anyway. There’s no harm in waiting a little longer, but there’s also no benefit to it either. If not now, then when?
“Hey,” Tsukishima says, catching Kageyama’s attention, “do you want to get married?”
“When?” Kageyama’s hand squeezes Tsukishima’s own, tugging him to a stop. Under the streetlamps, his eyes shine like gems. “Tomorrow?”
“If you want,” Tsukishima says with a laugh, shaking his head. It's not exactly the answer that he was expecting, but he'll take it anyway. Leave it to Kageyama to jump head first into things as always. He doubts that they could actually elope without their families, namely Miwa and Akiteru, wanting to kill them or being deeply upset, respectively, but it’s a nice thought at least. “I guess it might be better to do it sooner rather than later since you’re leaving soon.”
“I’m not leaving.”
“What?” For a moment, Tsukishima’s not sure that he’s heard right. “What do you mean you’re not leaving? Don’t you have to be back in Italy next month for a training camp before the season starts.”
“I’m ending my contract with Ali Roma,” Kageyama says. “I don’t want to be abroad anymore. I’m staying in Japan.”
“When did this happen?”
“Do you remember all those meetings I had a few weeks ago? I was meeting with my agents and managers about leaving Ali Roma and seeing what V League teams might want me to join,” Kageyama says. “I was going to tell you after things were finalized since I wasn’t sure if things were going to work out. We’re still going through potential offers right now.”
“From the Adlers?” It wouldn’t be a surprise if Kageyama’s former team wanted him back, especially with his recent performance in Italy. The distance from Sendai to Tokyo is a pain, but it’s much more manageable than the distance from Sendai to Rome. Given the choice, Tsukishima will take Tokyo any day.
“There’s one from the Frogs, too.”
“The Frogs, as in the team here. My team.” Tsukishima doesn’t believe in divine blessings, but maybe this is the closest that he’ll ever get to it in his life.
“Yes,” Kageyama says. He ducks his head, a little nervous. “I have a meeting with the Frogs’ management this coming Wednesday. I wanted it to be a surprise, at least if everything went okay.”
“How long have you been thinking about this?”
“Since last summer,” Kageyama says. “I didn’t think it would be so hard to leave last year, but it was. I had to complete my current contract with Ali Roma, though.”
“I made it my wish at the festival, you know,” he continues. “I wrote that I wanted to spend more time with you, as much as possible. If the contract with the Frogs works out, we’ll be teammates again. We can live together for longer than a few months at a time.”
“We can get married,” Kageyama says. “Tomorrow. Next week. Whenever. I don’t mind. I just want to be with you.”
“I love you,” Tsukishima says, because what else can he say? There’s no one he’s ever going to love as much as he loves Kageyama. Stepping closer, he curves a hand around the curve of Kageyama’s jaw, tilting his face up so he can kiss him, long and slow and deep.
“Thanks for making my wish come true, king.”