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Adrenaline pulses throughout the court; the match is over, but everyone continues to jump and shout with excitement.
They’d won. Of course they’d won, but admittedly, it was a tough practice match that kept everyone on their toes, plus their opponents were a little less-than-friendly. The Karasuno team can’t help but be buzzed over their victory.
And Hinata, Hinata of all people scored the winning point, single-handedly. He’d pulled a feint, making the guys on the other side of the court trip face flat on the floor in hopes of receiving the ball. Daichi would have chastised the middle blocker for using that move in such a crucial part of the game, but hey, it worked, so nobody complained.
Kageyama is jogging toward the rest of the team, still panting from the match, but his legs slow to a stop as he observes the scene in front of him.
Tanaka is shouting, and Daichi is yelling at him don’t you dare take off your shirt, and for once, Tanaka listens. He instead grabs Hinata by the waist and lifts him into the air, Simba-style.
The shorter teen squeals in surprise, and his hands go immediately to his senior’s, trying to pry them off of his body.
"H-Hey! Stop that!" the first year squeaks.
The atmosphere is so light, so carefree, and the rest of the Karasuno team chuckles at the two.
But Kageyama’s ears are trained on only one laugh.
It seems that Tanaka is repeatedly digging his fingers into Hinata’s sides, and with each squeeze, Hinata thrashes and whines bubble up from his throat. Giggles spill from his lips, and Kageyama is entranced.
It’s not like Hinata doesn’t laugh often. In fact, he probably laughs the most out of everyone on the team. But the sounds that typically come out of his mouth are boisterous, loud, and admittedly annoying, at least to Kageyama.
But this laughter is different. It’s higher-pitched, a little desperate. It’s also amusing how every time Hinata tries to say something, he’s cut off by his own chortles. And it’s not annoying, but maybe even mesmerizing. Kageyama can even make out subtle snorts, and it’s actually sort of pretty cu—
NO. No, Kageyama is stepping into some very dangerous territory. He forces himself to think about something else, like maybe how he’s still sticky with sweat or how his heart is beating faster than usual or how that may be one of the sweetest sounds he’s ever heard —
"Kageyama, are you okay?" Sugawara has a tendency to appear at the best moments, and this is no exception. Kageyama’s grateful to have his senpai pull him out of his thoughts.
"Y-yeah," Sugawara looks at Kageyama then at Hinata and then at Kageyama again with a knowing grin, but says nothing.
"Hinata’s grown." Suga’s voice breaks the silence.
"Really? He doesn’t look a millimeter taller," Kageyama scoffs.
"I didn’t mean it like that." And, after a pause, "You’ve grown, too."
Kageyama knits his eyebrows in confusion as the gray haired boy walks over to Daichi, who is apparently calling him over.
Meanwhile, Tanaka has finally put Hinata down, after a bit of begging (“Puhuhut me down!” // “I will if you call me Tanaka-senpai!” // “Tanaka-sehehenpai!”). Liveliness is still bursting from Karasuno, and the excitement is warm and welcoming.
Kageyama joins in, but the sound of laughter stays in the back of his mind.
-
It’s late at night, and practice has finally come to a close. The volleyball team rushes around the gymnasium, hurrying to clean up so they can go home.
Hinata is in charge of taking down the net, and Kageyama watches him as he fumbles with the strings. He catches his eye for a brief moment, and they both quickly turn away. (From the corner of his eye, Kageyama can see Hinata working more vigorously, and the setter has a passing thought that he’s trying to prove something)
Sugawara comes by, offering Hinata a hand, but the teen ferociously shakes his head no, I could do it, thank you Suga-san, which confirms Kageyama’s suspicions.
Finally, finally, Hinata has the net gathered in his arms, and he clumsily walks across the gym to put it away. He doesn’t even get halfway there before he slips, and suddenly, he’s on the ground. Kageyama really, really tries not to snicker.
Kageyama’s just about to walk over to help (and maybe throw a few lighthearted insults), but Suga beats him to it.
"Are you sure you don’t need help?" he asks with a grin.
Hinata’s trying to rise, but he’s all tangled up and struggling is just making it worse. He sighs dejectedly. “Uh… can you…?”
The third year crouches down and begins disentangling him. From what Kageyama can see, Hinata’s pretty stuck, and Suga has to take his time untwisting the ropes.
During Hinata’s previous struggle, his arms ended up above his head in a somewhat awkward position. As Suga fiddles with a particularly stubborn knot, his hand brushes against Hinata’s ribs, and the redhead inhales sharply, slightly flinching.
"Sorry about that," Suga snickers, but it doesn’t sound like he actually means it. After loosening the tie, he "accidentally" pokes Hinata in the ribs, and yeah, he totally didn’t mean it when he apologized.
And it goes on like that; whenever Sugawara untangles one of the knots, he finishes with a light jab to Hinata’s torso, and continues on to the next. Hinata is biting his lip, but he still can’t help but squeal when the other boy’s fingers come in contact with his body. At this point, he isn’t so sure if he’d rather just stay in that jumbled mess.
After what seems like an eternity, the setter is done with the last tie, and Hinata throws the net to the side, happy to finally be free. He stretches his arms up, his muscles aching from being in the same position for a while.
Suga sneaks closer to the unsuspecting spiker and quickly skitters his fingers up his sides to his underarms. Hinata lets out a surprised shriek and falls onto the ground, right on top of the volleyball net.
"Don’t get tangled again!" Suga smirks, and helps him up. Hinata wraps his arms around himself, and he pouts.
"That wasn’t my fault!" he complains.
Suga rolls his eyes. “Then next time, don’t be so ticklish!” he teases. At that, Hinata pouts even more and his cheeks take on a pinkish hue.
Kageyama notices he’s been staring the entire time, and he hasn’t even finished mopping. Face heating up, he completes his chore as fast as he can, and quickly changes out of his uniform. As he rushes out of the gym, he passes Sugawara, who beams at him wholeheartedly.
Kageyama becomes even more embarrassed.
-
The sun is out on their way to volleyball practice. It’s warm, the air is pleasant, the grass looks greener than usual, and Hinata and Kageyama have an unspoken agreement not to race on days like this.
There’s a comfortable silence between them as they get closer to the gym, but it’s soon replaced with faint, unintelligible shouting in the distance.
The first years turn around, and see Nishinoya bounding towards them like a damn dog running towards its owner.
"SHOUUUUYOUUUU!" As he approaches, his momentum slows down and Kageyama thinks he’s going to greet them like a normal human being. He changes his mind when Noya absolutely pounces on Hinata.
"Noya-san!" Hinata bewilderedly yells as he falls to the ground. "What are yo—" He doesn’t have a chance to complete his question; the moment Noya stuffs his hands under his arms, Hinata loses it.
His laughs come uncontrollably, and in a futile effort to stop the flow, Hinata slaps his hands over his mouth. Curling into a ball, he tries to cover his sensitive areas. His laugh is… interesting, Kageyama thinks. And it’s definitely not cute. At all. (Kageyama actively ignores how Hinata squirming around reminds him of an overexcited puppy, or how Hinata sounds like an angel giggling)
"Kageyama, help me hold his arms up!" The libero says mischievously. Hinata struggles with more energy as he tries to escape, and he shakes his head vigorously, further messing up his already spiky hair.
"Nohohoho!" His voice is muffled from his hands, but it’s still coherent.
"I…" Kageyama trails off. He would be lying if he said the thought of tickling Hinata hasn’t crossed his mind (not because he wants to hear Hinata’s endearing laugh or anything, but because of… team bonding? Yeah, team bonding), but he’s hesitant. Kageyama isn’t the most touchy-feely guy in the world, and although he kind of (really) wants to tickle Hinata, it would be pretty odd if he were to just come out and actually do it.
Before he can finish his reply, all three of them snap up their heads to a forceful “Hey!”
Daichi stands in front of them, arms crossed. “Stop fooling around, practice is going to start soon.”
"Yes!" Kageyama and Nishinoya shout in unison. Hinata says it, too, but the word comes out in the form of giggles.
Daichi huffs, looking more amused than angry, and strides away.
The instant Noya climbs off of Hinata, the latter springs up, dusting off his shirt. His face is red, and his hair is beyond tousled, but otherwise, he seems completely fine.
"I’m going to get you back for that!" He points at Nishinoya, and the second year just sniggers.
They head toward the gymnasium again, but Hinata turns around. “Coming, Bakageyama?” he asks with a grin.
And after a short pause, “Of course, dumbass.”
-
Is it just that Kageyama didn’t notice before, or is it happening more frequently? He isn’t so sure.
But whenever he’s with Hinata, there’s always someone just around the corner, just down the street, or just hiding in the locker room, waiting to ambush the short boy. It’s come to the point where Kageyama isn’t even surprised when Hinata gets attacked. But each time, he can’t help but focus on the laughter that fills his ears.
It’s in the middle of practice, and everyone is taking a water break. As Kageyama downs his bottle, he sees Tanaka place his hands on Hinata’s shoulders and knead gently. Instantaneously, Hinata scrunches up his shoulders and screws his eyes shut. His giggles fill up the room.
Sugawara comes up to Kageyama, who’s still drinking, and says casually, “Hinata’s laugh is pretty cute, don’t you think?” Kageyama promptly chokes and splutters.
"I gue— well, I don’t —" The black haired boy clears his throat. "Not really," he says hurriedly. His senpai raises his eyebrows at him and gives a doubtful look. Kageyama goes back to drinking his water and he refuses to look at Suga. He can practically feel his face melting off but he ignores it, along with the fact he’s still actively listening for Hinata’s laughter.
He concentration dwindles for the remainder of practice because yes, Hinata’s laugh is a little adorable and holy shit, Kageyama’s so screwed.
-
The oddball duo are walking to the setter’s home, as they do every Friday. Neither of them really know how it became a habit, but it happened once and just stuck.
As they walk through the doorway, Hinata says, “Sorry for the intrusion!”
"Dumbass, I told you my parents aren’t home today, you don’t need to say that," Kageyama huffs.
"Oh, right!" Hinata chuckles. Kageyama doesn’t really find his regular laugh obnoxious anymore, and whether or not it’s because of what Suga asked him, he doesn’t know.
Later, when the two have settled down and laid out some pillows on the floor, they turn on the television to watch volleyball matches. But they realize after watching the first five minutes of countless videos that they’ve already seen all of them.
So the two settle for a comedy movie, by Hinata’s request. Kageyama would choose, but he doesn’t watch these types of films often, and he trusts Hinata’s judgement.
He realizes later that that was a horrible mistake, because Hinata’s taste in humor is absolutely terrible and this may just be the worst movie Kageyama has ever watched. He’s cringing at each line, but Hinata seems to be enjoying it, cracking up at each crappy joke.
The characters have made four consecutive puns, and at the fifth, Hinata falls over laughing. Kageyama groans loudly.
Hinata punches him lightly. “You’re no fun! Don’t you ever smile?” Kageyama just glowers at him.
He turns his head back towards the movie, and is surprised when Hinata doesn’t say anything else. There is a silence between them, but then Kageyama hears movement beside him. Before he can look over, however, Hinata tackles him and straddled his hips.
"What are you doing, bastard!?" Kageyama gasps, caught off guard. He could easily push the other boy off, but decides against it. He is too small to do any damage, anyways.
"You don’t really smile. I’ve never even heard you laugh," Hinata smirks. Kageyama’s confusion dissipates as he realizes what Hinata’s planning. Before he can open his mouth to protest, Hinata lightly traces a finger across his stomach. Kageyama can’t help but shudder.
The two lock eye contact, and as Kageyama glares daggers, Hinata grins deviously and there’s a glint in his eye, the same glint that appears whenever Kageyama challenges him to a competition. Suddenly, his fingers dig into Kageyama’s torso.
And Hinata’s got to some kind of wizard or whatever because Kageyama does not remember being this sensitive. His composure quickly crumples as giggles pour from his lips, echoing off the walls. He is half-thankful for his parents not being home because them finding him in this predicament would be mortifying, but then again, maybe if they were home, Hinata wouldn’t have pounced in the first place.
As Kageyama bats at Hinata’s hands, he regrets not shoving him off when he had the chance because apparently, tickling renders his muscles useless and no matter how much he writhes around, Kageyama can’t break free.
He can feel Hinata drill his thumbs into his hips, and his laughter intensifies. He cringes inwardly; Hinata was right, he doesn’t laugh that often, and the way he sounds is unfamiliar and foreign. It’s embarrassing, and Kageyama hates it.
As much as Kageyama wants to cover his mouth and quiet himself, his hands are a little preoccupied. Whenever he thinks his hips are shielded, Hinata quickly shifts gears, and goes for his ribs, his stomach, and back again (Kageyama is once again amazed by that boy’s speed).
This is not what I want, Kageyama thinks to himself. In fact, it’s the exact opposite of what he wants. It should be him on top of Hinata, him making Hinata laugh, not the other way around. The thought fuels him, and in a burst of energy, Kageyama grabs Hinata’s shoulders and pushes, switching their positions in the process.
Hinata gasps, and his eyes widen in surprise. Surveying his current situation, he sees that Kageyama’s legs are at either side of his body, and that the raven haired boy is pinning his arms to the floor. He’s trapped.
"Oops! I may have gone a little too far…" Hinata chuckles nervously, warily eyeing Kageyama’s hands.
Kageyama is panting, slowly regaining his breath. He grabs both of Hinata’s hands in one of his, and uses the other to lightly swipe a finger across Hinata’s stomach, similarly to how Hinata did it to him.
The middle blocker’s face is scrunched up oddly and it’s obvious how hard he’s trying not to smile. He looks up at Kageyama with big, pleading eyes, and Kageyama bites his lip in mock contemplation, as if he’s actually considering letting him go.
”Payback,” Kageyama whispers as his facade falls away. His hand makes a beeline to Hinata’s side, and he squeezes experimentally. The result is instant. His body convulses, and laughter resonates through the room.
Kageyama would say that he’s pretty observant. Whenever Hinata gets tickled by other people, he always seems to be nearby, and he’s noticed which spots make Hinata weak. Bringing his hands close to Hinata’s face, Kageyama flutters his fingers against his neck. Hinata makes a weird sort of choking noise before falling into even more uncontrollable giggles.
After focusing on that area for a while, Kageyama retracts his hands, allowing Hinata to gain his breath back.
"Hey, this isn’t fair!" he whines, a smile still gracing his features.
As a response, Kageyama raises Hinata’s arms above his head, and Hinata shouts in objection.
"Wait, Kageyahahama!" I’m not even touching you yet, Kageyama thinks. He holds his hand in the air for several seconds to build anticipation, and Hinata won’t stop squirming.
When he digs into his underarm, Hinata lets out a scream and arches his back off the ground. He’s past the point of struggling and protesting, and has resigned himself to being an incoherent mess of laughter. Kageyama continues his attack wholeheartedly.
When tears start to prick at Hinata’s eyes, Kageyama realizes he’s being kind of sadistic and self-indulgent. He releases Hinata’s wrists and reaches down to his midsection again, which seems to be less ticklish than his underarms. Hinata’s hands, now free, weakly bat at Kageyama’s, but Kageyama isn’t too worried; they both know that he’s the stronger one.
Hinata’s cheeks are rosy, as well as vaguely wet. With his hair all disheveled and sticking up in different directions, it looks almost like a bird’s nest. His smile, Kageyama thinks, is so bright, and it reminds him of the sun. And of course, his laugh. It’s higher-pitched, a little desperate. Kageyama can’t deny it, it’s actually… it’s really…
cute.
The setter is prodding and scratching at Hinata’s sides pretty gently, and his giggling hasn’t increased at all. Even so, the spiker’s face unmistakably colors many shades darker until Kageyama could swear he looks as red as Nekoma’s uniform. Kageyama is confused; it’s not as if he’s tickling that hard or anything. However, his hands still as realization dawns on him. He said it out loud. Oh God, he just called Hinata cute.
Kageyama can feel his own face becoming pink, and he suddenly becomes hyperaware of his surroundings.
I’m on top of Hinata I called him cute this is so weird what is he going to say what have I done what should I —
He’s yanked out of his own thoughts by a hesitant, slightly embarrassed giggle.
“Y-you’re kind of cute too, Kageyama!” Hinata beams. Kageyama can’t tell if he’s being serious or not, but the awkward atmosphere quickly disappears.
He cuffs Hinata on the head. “What do you mean by that, dumbass!?” Picking up a nearby pillow, Kageyama shoves it into the other boy’s face. As the redhead grumbles from behind the cushion, Kageyama really hopes that Hinata hadn’t seen the small smile on his face.