Work Text:
Kuramochi [8:32am]
>Gmorning my fave rival catcher and asshole of a best friend
>As ur absolutely WONDERFUL wingman I'm giving u a heads up
>Sawamoron is an idiot and u should check ur Twitter
>I know u only go on every 17 years but for real check it
Kazuya blinks at the blurry words illuminated on his phone screen. It’s already difficult enough to decipher what Kuramochi texts him half of the time because he insists on refusing to write with any semblance of proper grammar, so trying to interpret the slew of letters on his screen without his glasses is near impossible. He blindly reaches over to his nightstand for his glasses, sliding them on and then rereading the text with sharper focus.
He groans and runs his hand over his face. He has no idea what Kuramochi is going on about, but he doesn't really want to know.
Kazuya [8:45am]
>Actually, I'll pass. I'm sure whatever trouble Sawamura has managed to get himself into this time can be handled swimmingly by our PR team
He drops his phone onto his bed and stretches languidly, sighing as his muscles stretch. It's Sunday and with Sunday comes no baseball practice. He's planning on making curry and working out a few game strategies for his upcoming games. Maybe re-watch a couple games as a refresher on his opponents.
His phone buzzes too soon. He scowls as he picks it back up.
Kuramochi [8:46am]
>LOL
>I'm sure ur PR team will be handling it
>But it involves u too
Now, that's ominous.
Kazuya doesn't want to deal with this on his day off. He runs his fingers through the nest of his bed head before reluctantly opening his rarely-used Twitter app.
Honestly, Kazuya uses his account so infrequently that he barely knows how it works. Sometimes he goes on to check in on some of his friends or to strategically creep on rival teams, but otherwise, he doesn't see a huge need to use it. He's not too concerned about building a fanbase for his team - the Tokyo Yakult Swallows. He only cares about performing his best and winning. So, it's not like he feels the need to interact with fans regularly.
He leaves that to Sawamura.
Sawamura Eijun, the Swallows' ace pitcher, the center point of their team. He's always had a charismatic charm about him, drawing people in with his noise, making them feel special with his genuine and open interest in their lives. He has come a long, long way since their days at Seido - has really blossomed into an absolutely terrifying pitcher. Kazuya, selfishly, loves working with him as the Swallows' starting catcher, but a part of him will always wonder what it would be like to be Sawamura's rival, to face his eccentric pitches as an opponent.
Oh well. Maybe in another life.
Just as Sawamura pulls his teammates to him with his enthusiastic energy and fighting spirit, he does the same off the field with their fans. Unlike Kazuya, Sawamura thinks it's important to indulge the fans, to make them feel special, to express his unending gratitude for their support. Kazuya thinks it’s excessive and completely unnecessary – they’re not idols, they’re baseball players.
Kazuya almost rolls his eyes thinking about it. Sawamura would spend hours signing autographs and talking with fans if Kazuya wasn't there to kick him in the ass and get his head back in the game. Typical of pitchers, though – always wanting to be in the spotlight, always wanting to eat up the attention.
When Kazuya's Twitter loads, he is immediately bombarded with an annoyingly large number on the screen, indicating that he has far too many notifications. His scowl deepens. That's unusual. He doesn't like it.
He clicks on the tab and then opens the most recent notification at the top.
Sadie bear @swallows1fan retweeted @seijunofficial’s post
!!!!!!!! I am SO HAPPY!!! You guys are the cutest!!! #misawabattery @seijunofficial @mkazuofficial
Eijun @seijunofficial
@pats_art21 also I love that you've come up with a name for our battery! Misawa! Thanks for supporting us, the #misawabattery and @swallowspr will be taking all the wins this year ヾ (´ 〇 `) ﾉ ♪♪♪ oshi!
Kazuya doesn't really understand any of the text that this @swallows1fan has apparently retweeted - he only has a loose understanding of what that even means, honestly; he does not get the hype of social media when he could just call or text his friends as needed - but he recognizes Sawamura's username, which piques his interest and suspicions.
He clicks on Sawamura’s profile. He scrolls down, vaguely curious but mainly fearful, until he sees Sawamura's most recent tweets.
Eijun @seijunofficial
Wow!!!! This is amazing! @pats_art21 you are so talented!! twitter.com/pats_art21/status/1296503314217988098/photo/1
Eijun @seijunofficial
@pats_art21 also I love that you've come up with a name for our battery! Misawa! Thanks for supporting us, the #misawabattery and @swallowspr will be taking all the wins this year ヾ(´〇`)ﾉ♪♪♪ oshi!
Kazuya's eyebrows furrow. He clicks the link in Sawamura's first tweet. It takes him to someone else's profile - God, this is already exhausting, there are way too many things going on. On the page, a picture pops up.
It looks like a digital drawing. It's high quality - really well done. This @pats_art21 is clearly very skilled and talented.
Kazuya recognizes his own face, his catcher's gear, his jersey. He recognizes Sawamura's golden eyes and bright smile, his glove and his baseball cap. It's a picture of them standing on the mound together, Sawamura's gloved right hand held in the air. Kazuya is standing next to Sawamura, his gloved left hand curled into his chest. Between them, their hands are clasped and held up into the air together, like some sort of victory pose. They're both grinning. There's a blush on Sawamura's cheeks.
Objectively, it's a very cute picture.
The text that goes with the piece of art reads:
Patty @pats_art21
Can't wait to watch #misawa dominate and win this season! Maybe they'll even give us a win in other ways, if you know what I mean ;) #misawabattery
There are too many comments beneath the post for Kazuya to begin combing through them, but he scans a couple.
Ei @ace_eijun replying to @pats_art21
Omg this is amazing and I need this to be real life (μ_μ)
Suga K. @vball_fan76 replying to @pats_art21 and @ace_eijun
God if they don't address their tension soon I'm going to beat them upside the head with a wet noodle
Bball and BL @loverboyzz replying to @pats_art21
AHHHH yes #misawabattery is the #bestbattery
Okay - what on God’s green Earth is happening.
Kazuya goes back and stares at Sawamura's original tweets. He rereads them over and over again until a wave of heavy exasperation settles in his chest.
It's too early for this.
---
"Do you think before you do anything?"
It's the first thing Kazuya says to Sawamura when the pitcher stumbles back into their shared apartment. Kazuya is in the kitchen making himself breakfast. Sawamura has very obviously just returned from a run, if his sweaty bangs and flushed cheeks are anything to go by.
When Kazuya had originally been signed with the Swallows, he lived alone. He and Sawamura had gone to separate colleges, though they'd kept in contact, and after Sawamura graduated, he reappeared into Kazuya’s life just like the first time he stepped onto Seido’s diamond – unexpectedly and with a fiery passion. He followed Kazuya into the professional world with a bright smile and a vibrant, "Miyuki Kazuya! My pitches are even better than they were the last time we played together. Catch for me!"
As if Kazuya really had a choice in the matter.
Sawamura signed with the Swallows and joined the first string only a few months later, catching up to Kazuya so quickly that he almost gave the catcher whiplash. Then, he had bounded up to Kazuya one day and began ranting about how he was looking for a new place to live because his lease was ending, and you know, it would be rather convenient for us to live together - it'd sure make discussing teams and strategizing a lot easier, don't you think?
And, again, Kazuya didn't really have a choice.
That was nearly a year ago.
Kazuya debates with himself nearly daily on whether or not this roommate situation is a good decision.
Today, he thinks it isn’t.
Sawamura kicks off his shoes at the door and raises a brow at Kazuya. "Of course I think before I act. How else do you think we take out batters so effectively? You're not the only one thinking on the field!" He crosses the span of their open living room and beelines straight into the kitchen. With a cheeky smile and bright eyes, he tips up onto his toes to spy at what Kazuya is cooking over the catcher's shoulder. Eggs and bacon, as usual. "Did you make enough for me?"
Kazuya rolls his eyes and elbows the pitcher out of his space. He smells like sweat and the spice of his deodorant. It's a familiar combination. "Absolutely not, you mooch. Make your own breakfast."
It's a lie. Kazuya always makes enough for Sawamura. He doesn’t quite remember when that started.
Sawamura smiles brightly, the corners of his eyes crinkling. "Thank you!" He responds, reading through Kazuya's lie with ease – a perk of being a long-term battery that also happens to live together. He opens the fridge and grabs a sports drink, taking a big gulp before turning back to Kazuya. "Okay, but why did you ask me if I think before I act this time?"
Kazuya gives Sawamura an unimpressed look. The fact that he asks Sawamura this same exact question often enough to require clarification on what this time entails is a problem. "Your Twitter posts."
Sawamura blinks, confusion scrunching up his features. "Twitter? You rarely go on Twitter." He mutters, pulling out his phone. Kazuya assumes he's opening the app on his own device. "Oh! You saw that piece of art I retweeted! Wasn't it so nice? I really liked it."
Kazuya has to stop himself from rolling his eyes and groaning. Of course it's that simple to Sawamura. "Yes, yes. It was nice." Kazuya agrees, because it was a gorgeous piece of art – Kazuya can appreciate skill when he sees it. "But don't you understand the implications of your posts?"
Tilting his head, Sawamura says, "Implications?"
That answers that question.
Kazuya reaches over the stove and turns the burner off. Sawamura moves around him to grab two plates. Kazuya divides the eggs and bacon onto the plates while Sawamura grabs two mugs and fills them with the coffee Kazuya had brewed earlier. The pitcher then grabs the creamer from the fridge and the sugar from the pantry. Kazuya likes a little cream and no sugar; Sawamura likes a lot of cream and too much sugar.
They sit at their shared dining table. It's normal, comfortable - what they do every day. "So, what was wrong with the picture?" Sawamura presses, dancing happily in his seat when he takes his first sip of coffee. Kazuya bites his cheek to hide a fond smile. "I don't see anything wrong with it. They said they wanted us to win!"
“Sawamura,” Kazuya begins, long-suffering sigh on his lips. Sawamura has come a long way since their Seido days, but the core of his soul is still made of the same innocent, straightforward material as it was when they were teenagers. The only way Kazuya will get his point across is to say it straight. “I’m fairly certain that piece of art was meant in a romantic context.”
Kazuya watches as Sawamura’s brows knit together. He gives Kazuya a skeptical look. “So?” He shrugs nonchalantly, like this is not a completely uncharted conversation. “Who cares? It’s not a bad thing if people support our battery, no matter how they imagine it to be, right?”
He says it as if it’s just that simple. Maybe it is.
Kazuya’s lips pull into a wry grin. “Honestly, Sawamura.” He mutters. “I don't know what to do with you.”
---
Kazuya spends most of his Sunday doing absolutely none of his originally planned strategic game analyses and instead gets caught up browsing the #misawabattery hashtag on Twitter, which has somehow become a local trend in the few hours since Sawamura retweeted the fanart.
Apparently, there are many people who have been speculating about the nature of Sawamura and Kazuya’s relationship for quite some time. Apparently, there is a ton of incriminating evidence that points at their relationship being something more than platonic.
Apparently, tons of their fans ship them. Far more than just the one person they discovered had created fanart of them.
All of this is news to Kazuya.
Somewhere after the 24th photo of them grinning mischievously at each other before a series of games scattered across their high school and professional careers, Kazuya finds himself stalling at a post with a couple of stills from an interview that the two had done together recently.
Neku @neenuneku
Just look at the way these two baseball idiots look at each other and tell me #misawa isn’t real #misawabattery
The first photo is one where Sawamura is grinning at the interviewer with golden irises and an excited flush over his freckled cheeks. Kazuya remembers that they had been discussing how Sawamura was feeling about some of his specific pitches for the upcoming tournament starting next week – Sawamura always gets stupidly excited when asked to talk about his pitching and his grips. In the still, Kazuya is looking at Sawamura with an expression of unyielding fondness – his lips are quirked up and his eyes are soft. He quite honestly looks absolutely enamored by Sawamura.
Kazuya frowns, his heart fluttering oddly in his chest as if it doesn’t know what to do with the sight of himself looking at Sawamura so fondly.
The second still is of Kazuya talking. He’s facing forward toward the interviewer, but his gaze is cut sideways over to Sawamura, who is listening intently to whatever it is that Kazuya is saying. Sawamura is leaning in – admittedly too close to be considered normal, but the pitcher has never really had a good concept of personal space – with his bright eyes intently focused on Kazuya, his lips parted slightly, almost enraptured by Kazuya’s words.
It’s – it’s kind of overwhelming.
Kazuya’s heart is still scrambling to figure out what it’s feeling within the cavity of his ribcage. He swallows down the weird surge of feelings that blossom from his chest as the image of Sawamura’s captivated expression brands itself behind his eyelids. He closes the app and sets his phone down, forcing himself to pick up the scorebook he’s had idly sitting at his side for the past hour.
He hopes his phone dies, so he isn’t tempted to pick it back up. This is why he doesn’t usually use social media.
He hadn’t been prepared to have his entire worldview upended today.
---
Kazuya’s descent into realizing that his relationship with Sawamura is, indeed, not quite platonic occurs over a series of very mundane events.
Exhibit A:
“How about fish?” Sawamura points to the fillets of raw fish lying over ice beneath the glass case in front of him. “We haven’t had fish in a while.”
Kazuya ponders the idea for a moment. He has a few recipes in his brain that use fish, and they should have all the other ingredients he’d need otherwise. “Sure.”
Sawamura grins and gives Kazuya a quiet oshi! Then he turns to the fish merchant and requests two fillets of his highest quality salmon. Kazuya hands the merchant a few bills, tells him to keep the change, and Sawamura grabs the sleeve of his shirt, tugging him along to a different booth across the market.
“Okay, I know you don’t really like sweets,” Sawamura chitters, looking up at Kazuya, already rearranging his features into his best pout – the one he knows Kazuya has a hard time saying no to. “But look at this cheesecake.”
They buy the cheesecake. Sawamura doesn’t stop smiling the entire way home.
Leelee @llee526
Does @mkazuofficial even know that he’s whipped or should we tell him #misawa #misawabattery
---
Exhibit B:
“Miyuki,” Sawamura whines, flopping over the end of the couch where Kazuya is sitting. “I’m exhausted.” He face plants into the cushion next to Kazuya’s hip.
Kazuya rolls his eyes and attempts to suppress his own yawn. He, too, is exhausted. “Then stop being dramatic and go to bed, idiot.” But even as he dismisses the pitcher, he reaches out and cards his fingers through Sawamura’s hair.
Sawamura purrs and shifts so he can use Kazuya’s lap as a pillow. He falls asleep in minutes, Kazuya following not long after. They both wake up with cricks in their necks and soft color in their cheeks. When Kazuya pries himself away from Sawamura to go to the kitchen and make their usual breakfast, Sawamura slides up behind him at the stove and wraps his arms around the catcher’s waist, burrowing his face into Kazuya’s strong shoulder and mumbling something that sounds suspiciously like you took my pillow away, jerk.
Kazuya pinches him in the arm but doesn’t pull away.
Pony @ponystripes
@seijunofficial what’s your favorite food?
Eijun @seijunofficial replying to @ponystripes
Anything except natto!!! (x_x) My real answer is the homemade dumplings @mkazuofficial makes on special occasions
M S @bestbattery1221 retweeted @seijunofficial’s post
EXCUSE ME DO YOU SEE THIS DOMESTICATED SOFTNESS #misawa is real #misawabattery
Eijun @seijunofficial replying to @ponystripes
Anything except natto!!! (x_x) My real answer is the homemade dumplings @mkazuofficial makes on special occasions
---
Exhibit C:
"Your control was all over the place today." Kazuya hums from the bench, leaning down over his legs to unwrap his guards. "If you throw like that in our upcoming games, you'll be switched out before the second inning even starts."
Sawamura stands in front of him, blocking the afternoon sun from blinding Kazuya. He bristles at Kazuya's assessment and scowls down at the catcher. "It wasn't that bad! I can admit that my mind was a bit distracted at first, but it got better. Don't exaggerate, Miyuki Kazuya!"
Kazuya raises a brow and runs a dirty hand through his sweaty hair. "And what, pray tell, were you distracted by?"
Crossing his arms over his chest, Sawamura huffs. He exhales aggressively through his mouth, blowing his bangs out of his eyes. "You! You kept looking over and paying attention to Tanaka. How am I supposed to focus when my catcher isn't even focused?"
Kazuya blinks up at Sawamura, dumbstruck. "I - what." He struggles. "I only looked over to check his form a couple of times. Shion is our new catcher, so I wanted to make sure he was paying attention to Tanaka's condition."
"Yeah, well." Sawamura looks away, full-on pouting like a child. There's a slash if pink across his cheeks. Kazuya stares. "It was distracting."
Pitchers - always so emotional. Professional or not.
Kazuya swallows thickly, something unfamiliar settling in his stomach – not entirely unpleasant, maybe even a little pleased. "Oh my God, you were jealous."
Sawamura has never, ever been good at lying. He knows it, so he doesn't try. "I was! You were supposed to be paying attention to me!"
Kazuya can't help the bubble of laughter that escapes his throat. He stands, his eyes dancing behind the lens of his sports goggles. "Of course. How could I forget that the great Sawamura Eijun is supposed to be the center of my universe?" He rolls his eyes, words dripping with sarcasm. "How dare I pay any ounce of attention to anyone else?"
Sawamura raises a brow and drops his arms back down to his sides. "Don't make me sound like a brat. You can pay attention to others when you're not supposed to be paying attention to me." He grumbles. He then reaches out and grabs Kazuya's sleeve, tugging the catcher after him as he leads them towards the lockers. "Anyway, c'mon. I want to stop at that ramen place you like so much for dinner. We need to go grocery shopping soon."
Kazuya laughs loudly, following the pitcher with little resistance – what else is he supposed to do? Years of experience have taught him that trying to resist Sawamura Eijun is futile; he’s just going to wiggle his way into the cracks in his armor, anyway. "Oh, so you're telling me that you forgot to get groceries yesterday like you were supposed to?"
Sawamura flushes all the way to the tips of his ears. He doesn't even try to deny Kazuya's completely accurate assumption. They bicker in the bath, they bicker on the train to the ramen house, they bicker when Kazuya drags Sawamura into the grocery store afterward, they bicker when Sawamura can't decide on if he wants curry later in the week or fried pork. They get supplies for both.
Kazuya finds himself smiling the entire time.
Rocky Harry @rocky526lu
@seijunofficial do you even pitch to any other catchers or what #misawa #misawabattery
Eijun @seijunofficial replying to @rocky526lu
Of course I do!!! @mkazuofficial and I have just been working together the longest, so our chemistry is unmatched. He brings out my greatest potential! #misawa #misawabattery
---
Kazuya [10:01pm]
>Sawamura get off of twitter
Sawamura [10:02pm]
>THERE’S NOTHING WRONG WITH PEOPLE SUPPORTING OUR BATTERY
---
Exhibit D:
Kazuya is sick.
It’s just a head cold. He’s certainly had worse. The worst part about this illness is that it’s terrifyingly close to the start of tournament season, and if he’s not better by the end of the week, he might not be able to start in the Swallows’ first match.
It came on yesterday with a sore throat and fatigue. He tried to make it through practice but nearly passed out, and that certainly wasn’t helpful for Sawamura’s emotional state – which is important for his pitching, so Kazuya hasn’t been too thrilled with this turn of events.
He’s wrapped up in too many blankets, curled on the couch. There’s some random show on the TV screen before him, but he isn’t paying attention. His hair is a mess, his glasses are smudged, he hasn’t eaten in too many hours because he hasn’t had an appetite, and he is very much over being sick even though it’s only been 24 hours.
The sound of rain lulls him toward unconsciousness. He’s about three seconds from falling asleep when Sawamura returns home.
“Miyuki – oh!” Sawamura pauses when he sees the catcher wrapped up on the couch. He sets a wet umbrella down by the door and kicks off damp shoes. He flounces across the living space over to Miyuki in less than ten seconds. “How are you feeling? I picked up some soup for you – it’s nothing fancy but Kuramochi said fluids are important! And I grabbed the new copy of that magazine you like.”
He digs around in the plastic bag hanging off of his arm and presents the magazine. He doesn’t wait for Kazuya to respond before he crosses the threshold into the kitchen and begins to warm up a can of soup.
“You didn’t have to do this.” Kazuya says softly, mainly because his throat is too sore to speak much louder, but also because he’s touched. Sawamura places a steaming bowl of some sort of brothy soup on the table in front of him.
Sawamura gives Kazuya a look that clearly says don’t be dumb. “I can’t play my best without you.” He says earnestly, giving Kazuya an oddly intense look with an undercurrent of concern.
Warmth blossoms in Kazuya’s chest. He stirs the soup idly, waiting for it to cool enough to not scald his mouth. “That’s not true.” He mumbles, feeling a little insecure, maybe even a little needy, because he can’t breathe out of his nose as well as usual.
“Oh, shut up.” Sawamura grumbles in response, absolutely flooring Kazuya with the incredibly emotionally-mature words that come out of his mouth next. “You don’t get to tell me when I do or do not feel like I play my best. I always feel best when you’re my catcher, so I need you to get better before this weekend.”
Kazuya’s heart stumbles a bit in his chest. The soup tastes like hot water because Kazuya’s nostrils are too stuffy to decipher flavors, but he eats it anyway.
He manages to get better just in time for their first game of the season, and Sawamura debatably throws his very best pitches to date during that game.
Anonymous J @jordanfan324
@seijunofficial holy shit you weren’t kidding, @mkazuofficial really does bring out your greatest potential. Phenomenal pitching today! #misawa #misawabattery #bestbattery
Eijun @seijunofficial replying to @jordanfan324
!!!!! Thanks so much for watching!!!! We always aim to do our best, isn’t that right, @mkazuofficial? #misawa #misawabattery
---
Exhibit E:
Kazuya can be an asshole, so it's not the first time that Sawamura has been mad at him in their 10 year friendship, but this is the first time Sawamura hasn't bounced back from his anger in 24 hours, and it's certainly the first time he hasn't returned to their shared abode without giving Kazuya some sort of heads up.
The catcher is fidgeting. He’s been fidgeting for the past two hours. It's 2am and he hasn't heard from Sawamura. He's worried and he feels guilty because he had said something that he definitely didn't mean. He had been tired and cranky and Sawamura was being clingy and annoyingly loud, and Kazuya just wanted to be alone for a while to recharge.
But he doesn't want to be alone like this.
He wants to be the kind of alone where he can keep his door cracked while he binge watches a show on his laptop in his bed, hearing Sawamura putz around in the living room. He wants to be the kind of alone where he can sit on the opposite end of the couch and play a stupid puzzle game on his phone while Sawamura reads the latest chapter of the manga he's been following. He wants to be the kind of alone where he works on making dinner while Sawamura sings in the shower and Kazuya pretends he doesn't find it endearing.
Kazuya gets very little sleep that night, falling into unconsciousness somewhere around 5am on the couch. He wakes briefly when he hears the door open, quiet footsteps in the entryway. It's well past 7am and Sawamura didn't come home last night. Kazuya is too tired to actually get up, to try and hold a conversation right now, feeling the edges of unconsciousness trying to pull him back under.
Sawamura pads his way over to the couch, mumbling under his breath. "Stupid Miyuki Kazuya" Warm fingers brush at Kazuya's bangs before pulling Kazuya's glasses off of his face, something he neglected to do the night before. "If you get sick again, I'm going to be so mad."
A blanket is draped over Kazuya's shoulders. Kazuya has the good sense to reach out before Sawamura can retreat, grabbing hold of the sleeve of his jacket. "You're already mad." He manages to say, voice nothing more than a soft croak because of his dry throat and grogginess.
"Yeah, I am." Sawamura responds softly. He's kind of blurry in Kazuya's vision because he doesn't have his lenses to sharpen the edges, but Kazuya can tell that the pitcher is frowning. "You're an asshole, sometimes."
"Most of the time." Kazuya sleepily admits, letting his hand drop, letting Sawamura go. "'m sorry.” He pauses. Then, he says, “You didn't come home."
Sawamura rolls his eyes, but Kazuya can't really see it. "I was giving you space."
"Could've let a guy know."
Warm fingers are back at Kazuya's forehead, brushing through soft hair. Kazuya has always been affectionate when he's sleepy. He nuzzles into the touch. "Sorry. Let's talk about it later, okay? Go back to sleep, Kazuya."
Kazuya likes the way Sawamura's voice caresses his given name like a warm blanket. He nods his agreement and quickly falls back beneath the waves of sleep.
When he wakes, Sawamura is in the kitchen making breakfast – probably for the first time ever since he moved in. This time, Kazuya is the one to rest his head on Sawamura's shoulder.
Suga K. @vball_fan76
@mkazuofficial @seijunofficial do you guys ever fight? It seems like you’re always on the same wavelength in games #misawa #misawabattery
M. Kazuya @mkazuofficial replying to @vball_fan76
Of course we do. Have you met @seijunofficial, he’s an idiot
Eijun @seijunofficial replying to @mkazuofficial
EXCUSE ME THE LAST TIME WE FOUGHT WAS YOUR FAULT and you ended up sleeping on the couch because of it!!!!
Ei @ace_eijun replying to @seijunofficial and @mkazuofficial
…I honestly can’t even with you two #misawa #misawabattery
---
There’s a new picture circulating the Twittersphere #misawabattery hashtag the next time Kazuya swipes through it. It’s a picture of them when they were at the grocery store. Kazuya is holding a can of curry paste, reading the instructions. Sawamura’s head is tipped over Kazuya’s shoulder, pressed close, almost completely flush to Kazuya’s side.
Baker B. @bakingbetween
oh my gOD look at these domestic idiots. they’re dating without officially dating and they don’t even know it. this is so paINFUL #misawa #misawabattery
Sharpshooter @cannonforcanons replying to @bakingbetween
RIGHT! It’s so precious and also so hard to watch. They’re so perfect together! #misawa #misawabattery
Yona @princessyona replying to @cannonforcanons and @bakingbetween
@mkazuofficial @seijunofficial maybe if we explicitly call you guys out, you’ll get your shit together? We all ship you already so just help us sail it
---
Kazuya [11:12pm]
>Mochi, I’d like to ask you a question and I would like you to be as honest as possible with me
Kuramochi [11:13pm]
>Who are u and what have u done with asshole Miyuki
>When am I ever anything other than brutally honest with u
>Shoot
Kazuya [11:15pm]
>…are Sawamura and I dating without officially dating?
[11:16pm] Kuramochi is calling.
Kazuya contemplates not answering the call, but he knows that Kuramochi will just spam him until he does. “Hello?” He asks cautiously, ready to hang up immediately if needed.
“Oh my God,” Kuramochi nearly growls into the speaker, his voice too loud in Kazuya’s ears for this time of night. “It’s about goddamn time you figured this out.”
---
The team goes out for celebratory drinks after they win their semi-final game of the season.
The championship game isn’t for a couple of weeks, so they let themselves let loose for the first time in a long while. They’re a little rowdy, probably too loud, but they’re excited and they’re all floating on the high of an amazing season led by Sawamura’s pitching and Kazuya’s game calling and everyone else’s excellent fielding.
(Kuramochi had begrudgingly congratulated both Sawamura and Kazuya earlier when his own team, the Yomiuri Giants, had lost to the Swallows. It had been a close game. Kuramochi had shook their hands and then pulled Sawamura into a headlock, muttering on about how you should have cut me some slack, Bakamura! I’m part of the reason you’re so successful now, you know – show some respect to your old senpai!
Kazuya had not saved Sawamura when the pitcher had struggled in Kuramochi’s hold, calling out to the catcher. “I’m not your knight in shining armor, Sawamura.” Kazuya had grinned, elated with their win. “You’re capable of defending yourself.”)
The bar’s lighting is dim and Sawamura sits next to him in the booth, pressed much too close. “Miyuki Kazuya,” Sawamura murmurs, voice lower than usual, words sloppier than normal because he’s a little tipsy. “When we win the championship final, you have to make me those dumplings that are my favorite. You know, the ones you made for me on my birthday.”
Kazuya raises a brow. Sawamura is so close that all Kazuya has to do is tilt his head only slightly to catch Sawamura’s gaze and to feel the puff of warm air that comes with Sawamura’s exhale on his cheeks. “Don’t get cocky.” He chastises lightly. “You always mess up when you get cocky. Remember when you literally tripped and fell on the mound at Koshien in high school?”
Sawamura’s flushed cheeks darken as he pouts. He leans in and nuzzles his face into Kazuya’s shoulder to hide his embarrassment and Kazuya’s heartrate skyrockets. “Will you ever let that go?” Sawamura mumbles into the material of Kazuya’s shirt.
Kazuya grins and knocks his temple against the crown of Sawamura’s head, chestnut locks tickling his nose. “Absolutely not.”
Sawamura huffs. “I’m not getting cocky. I know better than to underestimate our opponents. And my statement still stands.”
“You just want me to cook for you.”
“What’s wrong with that?”
“I cook for you every day.” Kazuya responds, long-suffering but fond.
Sawamura straightens from his shoulder and Kazuya suddenly feels too cold. The pitcher gives him a boyish smile. “Yeah, you do, and I appreciate it!” He says. Then, his eyelids hood over his molten golden gaze as he leans in impossibly closer, and asks, “Do you know what else I want to do when we win?”
Kazuya nearly rolls his eyes. Pitchers – so greedy. But Sawamura is too close and his eyelashes are impossibly long and the splash of freckles over his nose is too distracting and apparently they have been dating without officially dating for a very long time, so Kazuya, breathless, manages to ask, “What?”
With a flirtatious smile and the courage that comes from combining victory with alcohol, Sawamura completely obliterates whatever fortitude Kazuya may have had left to maintain his defenses against the pitcher’s unintentional charms. “Kiss you.”
Kazuya nearly chokes on his next inhale because he has known Sawamura for years, and somehow, he still can’t ever, ever predict what the pitcher is going to do or say. His gaze drops to Sawamura’s mouth, pretty, pink, probably chapped, and Sawamura seems to notice because he tucks his bottom lip between his teeth. Kazuya licks at his own lips and nearly swallows his tongue. Somehow, Kazuya manages to find the blueprints that instruct him on how to speak. “You only want to do that when we win?”
This time, Sawamura is the one who looks to be caught off guard. Good, Kazuya thinks, because if he’s going to feel out of control, he at least doesn’t want to be alone in the matter. Sawamura’s eyes widen, that pretty gaze flickering between Kazuya’s lips and his own dark, surprised one, as if he can’t settle on whether he wants to look at Kazuya’s eyes or stare at his mouth. Kazuya watches as Sawamura’s Adam’s apple bobs when he swallows. “No,” Sawamura begins slowly, cautiously, even though his eyes are dancing with excitement and his cheeks are flushed with hope. “I would ideally like to do it all the time.”
Here is Sawamura, open and honest and genuine as usual. He has a brand, and he sticks to it.
Kazuya bites his lip around a smirk. He leans forward until his nose knocks against Sawamura’s. He revels in the way Sawamura’s fingers fist into a ball in his lap, like he’s trying to keep himself from touching. “Well, then,” Kazuya purrs even though his heart feels like it’s going to leap right out of his throat and his brain might just pour right out of his ears. “This is very clear and enthusiastic consent, Sa ~ wa ~ mu ~ ra ~”
Sawamura blinks slowly, taking in Kazuya’s words and digesting them. Then, he breaks out into a wide smile and leans forward to close the gap between their mouths, catching them in a long-overdue kiss.
Kazuya mentally kicks himself for not doing this sooner.
It’s soft at first, exploratory, but Sawamura has no qualms with sliding impossibly closer, with licking into Kazuya’s mouth and warming him all the way down to his toes. The pitcher slides his fingers over Kazuya’s jaw, holding his catcher in between his calloused hands as if Kazuya’s precious, and Kazuya falls right into the abyss of feeling that Sawamura pulls from him.
They kiss and kiss and kiss until their jaws start to hurt, until Kazuya feels dopey and breathless, until Sawamura’s cheeks are red and his gaze is a little hazy, until Tanaka rasps his knuckles against the table to gain their attention because the rest of the team is heading home. They reluctantly part, but Kazuya can’t even find it in himself to feel guilty for essentially ignoring the rest of the team’s celebrations in favor of kissing their ace.
When they stumble back into their apartment, Sawamura doesn’t even pretend like he’s going to sleep in his own bed. He curls himself around Kazuya’s sheets and Kazuya’s body, and even though Kazuya has never been very good at sharing a bed in the past, he finds that he doesn’t really mind too much. He falls asleep with an alarming amount of ease.
---
Kazuya [2:32am]
>We’re not dating without officially dating anymore
Kuramochi [7:33am]
>Thank fuck
---
They win the championship game with a spectacularly placed cutter to the outside that leaves Kazuya’s palm tingling through his glove.
The entire team swarms Sawamura, catching him in a mass huddle of sweaty, dirty bodies. They're all cheering, yelling, proud. When Kazuya is able to get to Sawamura, he catches those blazing golden irises and grins.
Sawamura leaps on him and kisses him right there on the mound.
Kazuya laughs into the kiss, breathless, exuberant. He catches Sawamura easily - because he's had years of practice catching for the pitcher - and has to pull away to roll his eyes when a couple of their teammates hoot and holler at them. Sawamura pulls him right back in, tugging at his lower lip as a reprimand for breaking their kiss. Kazuya yields, pliant beneath his favorite calloused fingers.
They make their way to line up. They bow, they thank the other team, and then they head to the dugout to grab their belongings. On the way, Sawamura flounces up beside Kazuya and laces their fingers together. It catches Kazuya by surprise when Sawamura stops them and then raises their clasped hands into the air, facing the stands still filled with their proud and excited audience.
"Thanks for coming and for your endless support!" Sawamura calls, waving his gloved hand into the air with a wide, blinding smile. “We love you guys!”
Kazuya is breathless at how bright Sawamura shines and at the seemingly impossible fact that he gets to orbit so close to the sun.
Later that evening, Sawamura is curled up into his side, warm and soft, arms wrapped around Kazuya’s waist, head pillowed on his lap. There’s a pretty mark blooming on his neck beneath his ear where Kazuya’s teeth had explored earlier. Sawamura looks good with Kazuya’s marks on him.
Kazuya idly scrolls through Twitter when he sees a picture of them from today's game. It’s a picture of them standing outside the dugout, hands clasped in the air. Beside the picture is the fanart that that had started it all. The parallels between the photo and the artwork are obviously apparent. The message connected to the tweet is an enthusiastic one.
M S @bestbattery1221
@pats_art21 you predicted the future and I couldn't be happier with this outcome #misawabattery #bestbattery #misawa #swallowchampions
Kazuya smiles. He retweets the post.
M. Kazuya @mkazuofficial retweeted @bestbattery1221's post
#misawabattery is indeed the best battery (￢‿￢ )
M S @bestbattery1221
@pats_art21 you predicted the future and I couldn't be happier with this outcome #misawabattery #bestbattery #misawa #swallowchampions
Mochi @kmochiofficial replying to @mkazuofficial
Don't know what's worse - the PDA we'll have to deal with now or the clueless pining we used to have to deal with
Kazuya laughs and snaps a quick photo of the pitcher curled up against him. He attaches it to Kuramochi's thread.
M. Kazuya @mkazuofficial replying to @kmochiofficial
Does this make it better? Isn't @seijunofficial cute?
Mochi @kmochiofficial replying to @mkazuofficial
Keep that disgustingly soft shit off of my feed god I hate u
When Sawamura checks his Twitter later and sees Kazuya's comment with the picture of him, he scoots himself into Kazuya's space with a sly grin and pink cheeks. "You think I'm cute, Miyuki Kazuya?"
"Nope. No clue where you’d get that idea from." Kazuya deadpans without missing a beat.
Sawamura laughs, tinkling and charming and lively. He slides onto Kazuya’s lap, cards his fingers through Kazuya’s hair, and kisses him. Kazuya’s hands slide over the pitcher’s waist, pulling him in closer.
Kazuya literally laughs out loud when he sees Sawamura’s tweet the next morning.
Eijun @seijunofficial
I ship it (ﾉ´ з `)ノ #misawa #misawabattery