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Even after months of being together with Oikawa Tooru and Iwaizumi Hajime, there was still something about the way Oikawa flaunted himself that infuriated Ushijima. It wasn't that he didn't like the way Oikawa would wink and blow kisses to the girls who would often fawn over him, it was quite charming. But it was the fact that he knew Oikawa did it to get him going. It was the fact that Ushijima, with help from Iwaizumi Hajime -- had learned how to read Oikawa almost flawlessly. After learning that Iwaizumi too, had spent years of adjusting (and accepting) Oikawa’s flirtatious personality, Ushijima had decided that this would work out for the three of them.
"You can't let him get to you." Iwaizumi informed Ushijima as he pressed into Oikawa's back, hands slipped around to his front to stroke Oikawa's length almost lovingly, guiding Ushijima's hands along to help him understand the best ways to touch the ace setter. "If he knows it's upsetting you, he'll just keep going."
"I'm right here, you know -- ahh!" Oikawa whined, leaning back into Iwaizumi's arms as Ushijima hoisted up Oikawa's lower half to steady his angle as he slowly fucked him, bringing himself closer to the Seijou alumnus. "I can hear what you're saying --"
"You'll forget either of us had this conversation once you come." Ushijima growled lowly, pressing his lips near Oikawa's ear. "You usually do."
All three of them were on rival teams nowadays. ("I'm hardly a rival, I'm in a completely different league," Ushijima would say, despite having taken temporary leave from the national team to seek out higher education.) And all three of them had found that their relationship was something a little bit more than best friends, or rivals or competition. They sure as hell didn't know what it was, but it was something, and they usually wound up in bed together when they saw one another. And it was all thanks to Oikawa’s inability to make decisions. And for once it was for the best.
Iwaizumi had been the first to make a move, having asked Oikawa to finally be official right before their graduation. "We'll make the distance work." he'd say. "You only need my emotional support half the time, god knows you're perfectly capable of jerking yourself off." Needless to say, Oikawa took more offense to this than necessary, throwing a small tantrum in the graduation auditorium, reminding the entire school that they would be free of Oikawa Tooru once the next term had started.
Ushijima had made the second move, several months later. He and Oikawa had encountered one another while Oikawa had gone off to school elsewhere, and he wanted to mend the broken relationship that had been formed between them. "It's not fair that we never got to see one another as anything but competition." He'd said to Oikawa as he brought over two drinks -- one Americano with hazelnut flavoring, and one caramel macchiato -- sitting down across from him. "I actually hear you and I have a lot of common interests." Oikawa stammered a bit, trying to find the words to inform Ushijima that he was currently in a relationship. But, it was hard to find words when he'd realized just how lovely Ushijima's smile was.
And that was how Oikawa, somehow, had found himself dating the two most influential players in his volleyball career.
The struggle for Oikawa wasn't necessarily telling either of them that this was going on, not at all. He and Iwaizumi had made an agreement that they both could date other people when they were away from home. That was no problem. And from what Ushijima had said while they were having coffee -- he was in an open relationship still with one of his teammates from Shiratorizawa. Ohira Reon, if Oikawa remembered the name correctly. It wasn't the problem about the polyamorous situation among them.
It was how to tell Iwaizumi and Ushijima who the other person he was committed to was. How does he explain to Iwaizumi that stupid, dumb, gorgeous Ushiwaka-chan had somehow stolen his heart? And how does he explain to Ushijima that Iwaizumi -- the hot headed and rather aggressive ace from Seijou, has the other half of his life?
How, precisely, does one tell the people they love that they're also committed to someone they absolutely loathe?
They don't.
"Why are you calling me?" Kageyama asked as Oikawa sat on the bed of his dorm room, his phone to his ear, having dialed someone he supposed he could call a neutral party. "Last I recall, you were still all about making sure I knew you were better than me."
"This isn't about that." Oikawa said, his tone lacking the typical cockiness and cheer it often did when he spoke to Kageyama. "It's about something I think you'd understand better than most people. Because you know what it's like to be attached to someone who loathes you."
"Gee, I wonder who could possibly loathe me. Goodbye Oikawa."
"I'm serious." Oikawa said rather dismally. "Don't hang up, I have to ask you something."
Kageyama didn't speak initially, causing Oikawa to believe momentarily that Kageyama had in fact hung up while he was speaking. As he pulled the phone away from his ear, he heard Kageyama's voice chime back up. "...You're actually serious. You're asking for my help."
He could hear Kageyama's voice heave into a sigh on the other end of the line and Oikawa began to debate internally if this was even worth asking about. "What could I do that you'd want my help for? Do you want me to tell both of them for you? Because that's the last thing I would do for you after the shit you've put me through."
In the past year, Oikawa and Kageyama had found themselves not so much friends after Karasuno's performance in the national circuit. But instead they found themselves something more along the lines of reconciled as Kageyama began his second year of high school. Oikawa had to accept that Kageyama was in fact, a very talented player, but he would still make it known as best he could that he was better person all around. So as a part of their reconciliation, they had come to learn how to confide in one another when it came to personal struggles. After all, their own internal struggles were rather similar when the both of them really took a moment to look at one another.
"What can I say," Oikawa sighed as he shifted his position around on the bed so he was now lying with his head against the pillow, his arm tucked beneath it. "I need suggestions, and who better to get advice from than someone I hate part of the time."
"Yeah that makes me real likely to help you --" From the other end of the line, Oikawa could hear the shrill helping of Karasuno's oddball number 10 screeching 'Is that the Grand King?! Tell him I say hi and sorry we beat his team again last week!' To which Oikawa didn't need Kageyama to relay the message. He already knew Seijou wasn't faring nearly as well as he had hoped they would. Yahaba was a nervous little ball of emotions, and he was pretty sure that Kyoutani was having a hell of a time trying to keep the other setter focused when it came to keeping the team in order.
"Tobio-chan," Oikawa said, his tone rather firm, as if he were back to speaking down to his kouhai in junior high again. "I think you misunderstand just what sort of position I am in. I am dating both Iwa-chan -- who you already know to be an absolute angel and the patience of a saint. And Ushiwaka-chan. Do you hear me Ushiwaka-chan." Oikawa groaned noisily on his end of the call, pressing his finger tips on the sides of his nose. "Stupid, dumb, gorgeous fucking Ushiwaka-chan. Who likes science fiction and is freakin' majoring in university in astrophysics -- THAT ISN'T FAIR TOBIO-CHAN. He's attractive, he's a fantastic player and he's smart enough to go into that field! That's not fair!"
On the other end, Oikawa could hear the noise of not only Kageyama, but little oddball ten laughing to themselves -- and he realized that Kageyama had put him on speaker phone. "You're either gonna have to pick one or tell them both!" Hinata Shouyou said into the call. "But, pffft, sounds to me like even the Grand King's obsessed with Shiratorizawa still."
That was Oikawa's cue to bark an annoyed 'goodbye!' into the phone and hang up. He was finished with dealing with those two unreasonable idiots.
But something was absolutely true, and perhaps it had just come to the forefront of Oikawa's mind from having to listen to them and get some of that off his chest -- He did have to talk to them both about it. In a way, he considered himself lucky, he had two incredibly attractive men at his hip, but the idea of having to turn either one of them down had been absolutely maddening.
He wanted them both.
"Oikawa," Ushijima's voice chimed in Oikawa's ears as he stood in line, waiting to order his drink. He didn't have class until later that night (one of those required core courses, thankfully only needing to attend once a week). "I was wondering if I would see you again. I had heard you were attending school in this area." Oikawa's spine tingled as he turned to see Japan's super ace standing in line behind him, as broad and intimidating as ever. But there was something far less threatening about him. As they stared one another down, Oikawa didn't feel the urge to snap back with something particularly witty or potentially offensive. Instead, perhaps it had to do with the charming smile that Ushijima wore, his coat buttoned up and a cozy looking cocoa-colored knit scarf wrapped around his neck. He looked far more charming than threatening as he stood there.
"Ushiwa--jima." Oikawa had caught himself on the childish nickname he'd thrown Ushijima's way all this time. He was trying to make a point of not starting any arguments with people. "I'd heard the same about you. Didn't realize you were still attending university after earning yourself a spot on Japan's team."
"I actually requested academic leave before traveling with the team." Ushijima said rather politely. "Although I intend to make a career out of volleyball, I was hoping to pursue an education first, in the event something should prevent me from playing."
Oikawa wasn't really in the mood to congratulate him for pursuing an education. In fact, he found the entire conversation that had started awkward already. "Good for you," Oikawa said softly as he started to fish in his wallet for exact change to get his hazelnut Americano. "It's good seeing you again Ushiji--"
"I want to apologize." Ushijima said lowly, causing Oikawa to look up from his rather barren wallet -- having money to spend while in school was proving to be difficult, and he began to step out of the line. "I acted rather coldly toward you throughout junior high and high school, and I'd like to make up for it. Can I buy your coffee for you, at least?"
Oikawa found himself staring as Ushijima began to retrieve a (very nice, leather bound) wallet from his coat pocket, retrieving a pair of 1000 yen bills. He hadn't expected Ushijima to come out of nowhere, and on top of that, blurt out an apology. And just what was he supposed to do? Accept it? Accept that Ushijima Wakatoshi had actually up and made his final year of high school an absolute embarrassment? He was supposed to lead Aoba Johsai to nationals, and then this asshole in front of him had to show up and stop him. Of course Karasuno had ultimately been the ones to prevent that, but that was talking semantics and he was altogether more displeased with Ushijima because he prevented this from happening not once, not twice -- but multiple times through out Oikawa's college career.
"No." He said rather hotly, crossing his arms over his chest, his lower lip sticking outward. "You know, I'm not going to accept it. Not your coffee or your apology. I can get my own damn coffee and if I wanted an apology I would've asked for one." His pride (that Ushijima had once called useless) soared as he stood firmly in line, pretending he didn't have a completely empty wallet, as if he had no intentions of letting Ushijima catch wise.
"Your wallet was empty and I didn't see any cards in there." Ushijima pointed out. "You're next in line and you're going to embarrass yourself if you order and suddenly can't pay." And just like that, Oikawa had failed at keeping Ushijima from knowing better. Ushijima glanced over Oikawa's shoulder as the person in front of the two of them stepped from the line to wait for their drink to be made. Oikawa was next and he was in fact at a standstill, gesturing for Ushijima to step ahead of him.
"I'll take your damn coffee and your conversation, but I'm still refusing the apology." Oikawa hissed.
"Large Caramel Macchiato and --"
"Medium Americano with hazelnut and room." Oikawa grumbled as he watched Ushijima fork over one of the notes before stepping to the side. "I'm, er, gonna get a table." He added as he stepped aside to snag a particularly isolated table by one of the windows, sitting down with a slight thud.
He didn't know what to make of it all, really.
From his seat, Oikawa watched as Ushijima carried the two cups over to them. There was something different about him. Something humble. Something that almost made Oikawa wondering if perhaps...Ushijima had lost his position on the national team to someone else? He couldn't be sure, but even the way Ushijima had said Oikawa's name upon greeting didn't seem to be in his character.
Maybe he really was sorry.
But the moment the slightest bit of the thought of Ushijima's legitimacy hit him, Oikawa recalled how Ushijima had made him feel after all those matches. After all those struggles at finding himself feeling positively weak before Japan's super ace, making him feel as if he was absolutely nothing and no matter how hard he worked, he would never measure up -- ugh, his stomach was in knots and he wished he could punch Ushijima in his big, dumb and --
Ushijima smiled as he slid the coffee across the table to Oikawa, practically lighting up the entire dim cafe with how bright he shone.
gorgeous face.
Had Oikawa been standing outside, the rosy color that suddenly burned on his cheeks would've been understandable. But the temperature inside was warm and toasty and the redness was a little out of place. Strangers would've assumed he was cold, but Oikawa had been in that line for ten minutes when Ushijima got there -- and he would've known.
His fingers wrapped around the recycled cardboard sleeve that protected his hands as he lifted the lid to his cup, pulling a small bottle from his pocket -- almond milk, he'd found they charged extra if he asked for some, and he was on a budget -- and pouring its contents into the cup. "...So go ahead." Oikawa murmured. "Talk, I guess."
"Well," Ushijima said as he removed his coat ("What? Is he planning on being here a while?") Oikawa thought to himself in annoyance. "I had heard from a few sources that we have quite a few interests in mind. Namely astronomy and science fiction." Oikawa rose a brow, lifting the Americano to his mouth to take a sip, the milk having cooled it enough for drinking temperature.
"Astronomy? Are you kidding me?" He asked, dubious about Ushijima's seriousness. "Come on, everyone and their mom's into it lately, it's such a fad."
"It's only a fad when you're ignorant to the science." Ushijima chuckled, almost as if he'd been expecting such a quip from Oikawa. "That's what I'm attending school for right now. Astrophysics."
"Shut up." Oikawa blurted over the plastic rim of his cup. "Shut up, no you aren't. You're lying." Ushijima laughed rather pleasantly as Oikawa continued his slurs of disbelief, as he sounded almost angry over Ushijima's success in the academic field as well. "This isn't fair. You best me in volleyball, now you best me in the one thing I'm really passionate about outside of it, what the hell? Why are you doing this to me? It's like, I can't get a break, can I? Even when I decide I'm going to move past it all, you show up again to remind me of what I'm just not quite capable of. Thanks. Glad to see what your intention was -- did you track me down or something? Were you looking for me all this time so you could get me alone so you could tell me that you've surpassed me --"
"Oikawa," Ushijima interrupted, looking quite shocked to hear Oikawa's little outburst. "That wasn't the intention at all. I didn't track you down, this is all a coincidence. But I did intend to contact you at some point to apologize. This encounter just made it easier." He sighed, taking a sip of his caramel macchiato and set it down on the table. "I figured I would tell you because I had heard from Seijou's ace that you're quite fond of astronomy, and that I have access to my schools observatory and planetarium."
His mouth opened again in a means of protesting and yelling at Ushijima, but he couldn't quite bring himself to. He'd brought up Iwaizumi -- his long distance boyfriend of the past semester -- and somehow the two of them had been in contact? It hardly seemed realistic because, as far as Oikawa knew, the only person who disliked Ushijima was much as he did was Iwaizumi. His brow rose as he took another sip of his Americano, pleased to find that it had the appropriate amount of sweetness without being too overwhelming.
"Iwa-chan told you I like astronomy?" he asked, eyes narrowed as he set the cup down, pulling out his phone to begin composing a message to Iwaizumi, simply stating: What else did you say about me to Ushiwaka?
He and Iwaizumi were going to have quite the talk later.
Somehow, Oikawa's conversation with Ushijima had turned into not just coffee, but lunch as Ushijima positively insisted that the two of them get something to eat before he ultimately joined Oikawa on the train back to his school. And from there, lunch turned into dinner and somewhere along the line...
Oikawa decided he was going to accept Ushijima's apology.
As the two of the sat in their third restaurant of the day of what ended up being a spontaneous day out, Oikawa sighed, placing his hands on the table. "I give up, Ushiwaka." He said, having finally decided to resort to using the nickname he'd adorned the player with quite some time back. "You've been proving yourself to me all day, and I suppose you're not as much of a prick as I thought." A server came by to drop off the check, which Ushijima refused to let Oikawa look at. "All I have to say is, apology accepted."
Ushijima had turned out to be quite the interesting gentleman. Polite, charming, funny and altogether smart and incredibly good at flattering Oikawa. Which was precisely what Oikawa liked in a guy. Unless it was Iwaizumi, of course. Ushijima had himself a laugh as he slipped a card into the book to hand off to a server. "Glad I could change your mind, I know we've had our differences in the past but I'm happy to see you're giving me another shot."
"We spent four hours sitting in a cafe discussing the plausibility extra terrestrial life creating the Nazca lines and the Pyramids." Oikawa blurted out, almost cheerfully, combing his fingers through his hair. "Not even Hajime does that with me, and well, he's sorta obligated since we've been attached at the hip."
"Well, I'd certainly love to discuss this again sometime, Oikawa." Ushijima chuckled softly as a rather comfortable silence hung between the two of them as the book was set back on the table for Ushijima to retrieve his card.
Comfortable silence was something Oikawa often didn't get enough of anymore. What had begun as an unsettling, unplanned encounter had led to Oikawa skipping his evening class and watching as Ushijima lifted his hand from the table. Academic leave or not, his fingers were still wearing the callouses of years of volleyball prowess, grazing perhaps roughly as Ushijima's fingers brushed upon the back of Oikawa's hand. Lifting Oikawa's hand from the table, Ushijima brought it to his lips, kissing the back of it in a classic, nearly courtly gesture. As he rest it back down upon the table, Oikawa found himself meeting the warm amber of Ushijima's eyes, struggling for the words to come out.
"We're on a date, aren't we?" Oikawa murmured quietly. "This turned into a date."
"I think it did." Ushijima's face washed free of his seemingly default, mature demeanor as he turned his gaze away, flushing deeply and laughing to mask his embarrassment. "I hadn't intended for it to go that way but, I guess it did." He began to withdraw his hand, but Oikawa was quicker.
He'd set many balls in motion before, but this was a different kind of ball to a different kind of ace, and it would not be until later that he began to regret the toss.
His hand rest upon Ushijima's before it slipped away. Oikawa leaned over the table, staring almost dumbly up at him. His teeth tugged upon his lower lip before his mouth gaped open while his fingers closed around Ushijima's hand. "Let's do it again." he spoke. "You changed my mind, okay? I would--I'd like to see you again."
A laugh slipped away from Ushijima as he stood up, having put his card back in his wallet, guiding Oikawa to his feet as he did so. "At least let me walk you home before you ask for a second date."
Permission for a second date wasn't needed as Oikawa returned to an empty dorm room -- and the opportunity to invite Ushijima in and out of his pants. Oikawa stepped out of his shoes almost instantly and out of his coat as Ushijima stood against the door long enough for Seijou's former captain to make the first move. Grasping the wool of Ushijimas collar, Oikawa pulled himself forward, sucking in Ushijima's lips in an unexpected, feverish kiss, quickly becoming preoccupied with the sensation of just how soft Ushijima's lips were.
It had been a rather spontaneous gesture as Oikawa flipped the lock on the door, after recalling his roommate had gone away with the rest of the football team for an away game. Ushijima's shoulders shrugged and pulled their way free from his coat, stepping forward to assist Oikawa in unbuckling his belt. With coats and shoes discarded and only inner layers of clothing to be peeled away, there wasn't much keeping them from what they were craving . Oikawa's hands found the back of Ushijima's skull as his former rivals jaw relaxed, and they became a bit obsessed with figuring out where to rest their tongues. After so long, Oikawa had come to know how to use his tongue with Iwaizumi but Ushijima's mouth was foreign territory, and he was all too eager to take a look around before committing to a method.
With belt free, Oikawa freed his mouth as well with a deep, airy gasp as he took a moment to look Ushijima up and down. He was sober, and he was already positive he'd regret this once it was over with. But after an afternoon of flirting and discovering common interests and Ushijima just being so damn charming, Oikawa couldn't help himself. Ushijima was practically screaming Take me to bed and he couldn't resist. He tugged at the bottom of his shirt, a long-sleeve, gray mock turtle neck he'd been wearing to stave off the cold, and pulled it over his head in a swift jerk of his arms. No sooner were Ushijima's hands upon his chest, stroking and practically worshipping the ridges of muscles in Oikawa's abdomen.
Oikawa gasped, sinking on to the edge of his bed as Ushijima lowered to his knees between his legs. A breath escaped him as Ushijima's face pressed into his chest, lips lightly brushing over every inch of him. Each puff of air that Ushijima released against Oikawa's chest gave him his excuse to wrap his arms around Ushijima's neck to guide him to the rest of his torso. It was only moments before Ushijima had hoisted himself on to Oikawa’s bed, straddling his slender body as he pushed him down on to the mattress.
Ushijima stared down at Oikawa who had already begun to unfasten the zipper of his jeans, starting to wriggle his way free from them. A smirk tugged on Ushijima’s lips momentarily as he took a moment to comb his fingers through Oikawa’s hair with a laugh.
“Never expected I’d be about to sleep with you.” he chuckled lowly as Oikawa’s hands pressed against Ushijima’s hips, to trace over the leather of his belt, fingers trailing to the metal buckle which he began to unfasten. “Of all the people --”
“If you keep talking, I’m going to change my mind,” Oikawa threatened, as he looped his fingers around the buckle, yanking the belt out of Ushijima’s pants. “You’re gorgeous, but the only words I want to hear coming from you right now are ‘I’m going to fuck your brains out.’”
“Oh,” Ushijima said, a brow raising as he leaned in to suck upon the tender, and already slightly bruised flesh of Oikawa’s neck. “You must be a mind reader,” he whispered into Oikawa’s ear, teeth nipping at his earlobe. A heavy breath slipped away while his nails scraped down the Seijou alumns side, freeing a gasp from him.. “Because I was about to say just that.”
Iwaizumi’s teeth sunk into Oikawa’s neck as his hands ran over the smooth curves of his torso, guiding toward his ass to where his fingers began prodding at him rather exciteably. Murmuring soft utterances of ‘I love you’ against Oikawa’s skin, years of pent of feelings were finally able to be released. As their bare torsos pressed against one another, it had become clear that this had been something they’d both been craving for as long as they could understand what that craving was.
Oikawa smiled warmly up at his newly christened boyfriend as his hips rocked back and forth slowly, taking the time to savor how their bodies felt pressed together. It wasn’t a lamentable decision at all, and the way Oikawa’s body curved to fit Iwaizumi’s needs, and how Iwaizumi’s hands brushed along the right spots at the right times. It was as if they were puzzle pieces, absolutely meant to connect together.
Sex between them was something still new and experimental, but they’d finally become comfortable beneath the blankets with each other in the weeks leading up to Oikawa’s departure for school. They had made it an unspoken promise that they would spend as much time as possible together before that day eventually came (much to both of their dismay).
“I’ll only be four hours away, Hajime.” Oikawa spoke as he sat up in bed next to Iwaizumi as he stretched out on his stomach, head buried in his arms on the pillow. “It’s not like I can’t come home on the weekends to see you now and then.”
“That’s the problem.” Iwaizumi said, turning his head so he could watch Oikawa as he checked the time on his phone. “What if you become too obsessed with the weekends coming up and don’t focus on your classes?”
A soft “pssh” escaped from Oikawa as his lips pursed and arms folded across his chest, dropping the phone between their pillows. “I was able to focus on you, the team and school at the same time, what makes you think I’ll have a hard time focusing now?”
“Because Ushiwaka’s going to a school by you, and I know that’ll take up a lot of your time obsessing.” Iwaizumi sighed, pushing himself up with his hands, revealing the smooth, muscular lines of his arms and shoulders as he adjusted his position, deciding to get comfortable in Oikawa’s lap.
“Lookit you,” Oikawa purred, a little surprised with Iwaizumi’s daring little action. “This sort of affection is rare and usually unwarranted, what’s the occasion?” A scowl freed itself from Iwaizumi as his expression shifted quickly as he started up at his setter. “Oh come on, I’m not going to obsess. When do I ever do that?”
“Where do I start, well back in grade school you were obsessed with UFOs, and that’s nothing, junior high it was all about being perfect and then don’t get me started on Kageyama--”
“Alright, alright--!” Oikawa barked pushing Iwaizumi’s skull into the blankets surrounding his lap. “I get the point, don’t make it worse!” His eyes squinted slightly as he adopted the visage of a child, causing Iwaizumi to look up from the quilts smothering his face.
And just out of spite: “And then there was the whole deal with Karasuno and Kageyama doing better than you like we expected, and Ushijima coming along to taunt you for your bad decisions --”
“Iwa-chan, stoooop!” Oikawa whined, throwing his arms up in defeat to clutch his head as he slumped back into the pile of pillows. “I got it, I got it! I obsess easily, I heard you! Just let it go--”
“And don’t even get me going on how you obsessed over me.” A chuckle slipped free from Iwaizumi as he reached up to press his fingers on the sides of Oikawa’s chin, dragging him forward for an awkwardly positioned, but pleasant kiss. “For six years.” He added before he sat upright, crossing his legs on the blanket as he sat in front of his new boyfriend.
“Five and a half,” Oikawa corrected him, lips pursed into a pout as he receded into the blankets to defy Iwaizumi. “You asked me out before it could become six.”
“If you want to get really technical, it’s more like four and three eighths.” Iwaizumi also corrected as he decided he wasn’t going to wait around for Oikawa to stop resisting, sliding to the edge of the bed to get his jeans which had gotten comfortable on the floor.
“H-Hey--!” Oikawa whined, scrambling to sit up, arm extended to catch Iwaizumi’s hand before he got too far away. “I wasn’t done fooling around, and neither were you, get back here!”
With a glance over his shoulder, and a smirk that even Oikawa couldn’t match, Iwaizumi sank back into the bed, crawling over to his boyfriend whose wrists promptly became pinned to the mattress. “I knew you were observant.”
Iwaizumi and Oikawa’s relationship, aside for the fact there was now the term boyfriends attached to them actually hadn’t changed all that much after they had gotten together. Their routines ended up being the same. Oikawa was still parading about like he owned the whole damn world, Iwaizumi became increasingly more frustrated with him, and eventually it would lead to him hitting Oikawa somewhere in the most affectionate of punches. The only thing that really seemed to change was that Matsukawa and Hanamaki weren’t able to make the same jokes that they had become accustomed to after all those years. But it was only a matter of time before they came up with new ones. Mostly targeted at Iwaizumi having to “settle” for someone like Oikawa.
But for Iwaizumi, he was hardly settling. He knew some time back during his first year of high school that he wanted to date Oikawa. What it said about him at the time, he wasn’t quite sure. He was damn sure he wasn’t gay, he knew he wasn’t. He’d already lost his virginity to a girl he’d met over the summer, and he was still incredibly attracted to her. But he didn’t seem to want to give himself the bisexual label. It didn’t feel right. Because at the end of the day it was always Oikawa who his heart seemed to wander to. Even in his third year, he didn’t know what it said about him. He just knew that he loved Oikawa Tooru in whatever ways were possible.
So that was why it was pretty easy to tell his parents. They had always known that Iwaizumi and Oikawa’s friendship had been a little more than just best friends. No boys got that close without fear of bullying unless there was a reason. And there was. There was plenty of it. First and second year of junior high were probably the worst. Moreso for Iwaizumi than Oikawa. Oikawa was plenty popular as a kid, and he never heard the words that were thrown at them. But Iwaizumi was hardly popular. He only had friends because of volleyball. He was aggressive. Made enemies easily. And on top of it all, he was often found holding the hand of Oikawa Tooru -- local pretty boy and everyone’s favorite person.
For Oikawa, it was easy. He was well liked by everyone and if he said something about Iwaizumi being his “cry baby best friend” it was easy. He could make it seem like he was doing something convenient for Iwaizumi. What a hero. But Iwaizumi? No, no it was hardly that easy. When Oikawa wasn’t around? Faggot. Queer. Homo.
So what? He liked holding Oikawa’s hand. It felt safe. Oikawa never judged him, so why should anyone else? Why should they care? Oikawa didn’t.
He figured it out pretty quickly. Why Oikawa’s popularity saved him from the same name calling Iwaizumi heard when he was alone. It had to do with girls. Oikawa always liked girls and girls always liked him. But Iwaizumi had never really be into girls. They thought he looked scared and he often yelled at them instead of being nice. So he rarely made an effort.
In junior high, Oikawa protected Iwaizumi more than he realized. And when it clicked with Iwaizumi, he came to accept that he couldn’t rely on Oikawa anymore as a crutch. If people wanted to pick on him, they’d have to find something new to get at him for.
The break between second and third year was when Iwaizumi had decided to grow up a little more. He’d always been short tempered and quick to jump the gun, but it was that break that Iwaizumi came to realize something quite crucial about Oikawa. He had more important things he was focused on than Iwaizumi’s secret bullies. Like Oikawa in general. He’d started getting reckless. Pushing himself to limits that made Iwaizumi more angry than anything. Oikawa was so happy all the time, so why waste that happiness on being sick and tired?
And that was when Iwaizumi began to change.
And that was when he had stopped holding Oikawa’s hand. He would find new ways to hold it instead.
It had probably been in junior high that he realized he loved him. But it would be so much later until he figured out just what that meant.
“Hey, Tooru.” Iwaizumi said one night as Oikawa had dragged him up to the roof of his house to stargaze. There had been a power outage after a transformer went out, and so all the street lights were out, making it an ideal night for the both of them to sit up on the roof together.
It was hardly a night for stargazing. It was cloudy and only a few stars peeked out from the misty haze overhead. Of course, the moon was bright as it shone through, also being cause for another terrible night of stargazing. “Yeah, Iwa-chan?” Oikawa asked as he laid out on the blanket he’d draped over the roof to avoid laying upon the cold shingles.
“Why do you like space so much?” he asked, not bothering to lay out next to his friend. “It’s not like it’s a place you can just vacation to.” He could hear Oikawa huff softly to himself.
“That’s a dumb question, but I still like it.” Oikawa said as he adjusted his scarf around his neck. It was still cool enough out for some winter clothes, but not enough for either of them to freeze. “I think,” he began, catching Iwaizumi’s attention. “It’s because you don’t know what’s in store for you when you study it. Sure, I was really into it when I was a kid because of aliens, which don’t get me wrong, I still bet they’re out there, and probably among us...But as I got older, I learned more about it. There definitely aren’t aliens in our solar system. Life, yeah, probably on Mars, but not in this solar system. No planets or moons could sustain it, unless we’re talking about the possible oceans on Ganymede. But they’re hardly on our level.” His voice trailed off, glancing to Iwaizumi to make sure he was still listening. “I’m getting ahead of myself a little bit, but um. I think it’s just really great to me because space is kind of like human life. What’s out there, and what’s in us...it’s limitless. There’s so much potential, both in energy and in possibilities. There’s so much to learn and discover out there...And so much for us to learn every day, right?”
It was all surprisingly deep for Oikawa. Astute. But it was no surprise. Oikawa was a very smart person, after all. But the way he spoke showed a wiseness that Iwaizumi was both shocked and impressed to hear. A smile formed on his lips as he reached over, hesitantly resting his hand on Oikawa’s feeling as the other almost naturally wove their fingers together. It was comforting to feel how easily Oikawa would take his hand and Iwaizumi’s heart fluttered pleasantly. “I guess,” Iwaizumi said. “That there’s a universe inside of us all to discover, huh?”
“Yeah,” Oikawa agreed. “That’s a good way to put it.”
“Tooru.” Iwaizumi said, as Oikawa’s face lit up while a clustering of clouds gave away and the sky seemed to begin to twinkle -- right, that was it. It was a meteor shower that night. That was why Oikawa wanted him to come over in the first place. The transformer going out was just a coincidence. Oikawa turned as Iwaizumi said his name again, smiling brightly. “Tooru, I want to discover your inner universe. And I want to share mine with you too.”
The smile only seemed to grow brighter and wider as Oikawa’s hand adjusted around Iwaizumi’s holding it tigheter.
“It’s taken you way too long to ask.”
And so here Oikawa was. A universe of his very own in conflict with two very different ones in which he felt like he could either create or destroy either one wit a single blink. In front of each universe sat a cup of coffee. Caramel Macchiato for one. Hazelnut Americano for another. And an Amaretto Cappucino in front of the last. All three of them had their signature elements, but none of them were quite the same.
And behind each cup of coffee sat the owners of the universes: Iwaizumi Hajime, Ushijima Wakatoshi, and Oikawa Tooru. Oikawa had stood himself up, arms folded over his chest thoughtfully as he began to search for the best way to begin this. He had rehearsed it in his times over and over again to himself, and on the phone with Kageyama who proceeded to give him pointers in the very helpful light of “Why are you still calling me about this?” and “You still haven’t talked to them?”
“You know,” Oikawa said, finally opening his mouth, his voice cracking just slightly as he swallowed his nerves with a gulp of his drink which he had forgotten to pour his almond milk into. “I’ve been trying to find the best way to talk to you both about this but I’m just going to come out and say this. I’m dating--”
“Both of us,” Ushijima said quickly.
“Yeah, we know.” Iwaizumi added, exchanging glances with Ushijima. “He called me while you two were on your first date, asked my permission.”
“It was the right thing to do.”
Oikawa slumped into his seat, suddenly forgetting everything else he was going to say. And with good reason. Ushijima and Iwaizumi were both smiling rather politely, already striking up a conversation while Oikawa tried to figure out the best way to keep things going. He waved a hand rather hastily, having paled quite a bit upon hearing those words coming from both of his lovers. “I-I’m sorry, what?” he asked, almost dumbfounded. “You knew? You asked permission? Where was I?”
“You were using the restroom.” Ushijima said. “It was before we left for lunch that day. I assumed you were dating Hajime since you and he were always so close, and seeing that he was your phone background kind of tipped me off.”
“How did you get his number -- wait, Hajime? He’s letting you call him Hajime?!”
“He has my permission.” Iwaizumi added. “And, he used your phone. You left it on the table, he figured the guaranteed way I’d pick up was to dial as you and --”
“That’s so sneaky!” Oikawa nearly yelled. “God, so creepy too! Why would you do that! That’s so, so, so --”
“So what?” Ushijima found himself laughing at the way Oikawa’s pale face had brightened up to a rather charming shade of pink. “You enjoyed yourself and Hajime gave me permission to date you.”
“I knew you’d get obsessed with him,” Iwaizumi snorted, smiling as he too began to enjoy Oikawa’s flustered state. “I’m actually impressed you didn’t go seeking him out and that it happened by accident. Sounds like something from a movie.”
Oikawa glanced down at his phone and found a text message from Kageyama visible on his phone reading: They told you they knew, didn’t they?
Just who else had known?!
He sighed and put his phone in his pocket, finally retrieving his little bottle of almond milk which he dumped quickly into his Americano, almost irritated at how easily Iwaizumi and Ushijima were getting along. He’d been seeing Iwaizumi for almost eight months at this rate, and Ushijima for six. And yet the two of them sitting there as if there had never been a single ounce of hatred among the three of them.
“So what the hell does this mean?!” Oikawa blurted out rather noisily, catching the attention of the coffee shop patrons. “You two knew about each other and you’re not mad?! I’ve been trying to figure out for ages just what to do about this, if I should pick one or the other or if I should be with neither of you! Do you know how much this has been eating me up inside?! I was expecting to come out here with the both of you tonight and finding a brawl happening between two people I’m completely torn up over and --”
“Actually.” Iwaizumi interjected, his brows furrowed into a scowl as he reached across the table to place his hand over Oikawa’s. He inhaled slowly, chest heaving as he and Ushiima exchanged a glance, only for Japan’s ace to mimic Iwaizumi’s action.
“We were discussing it a few weeks ago.” Ushijima added. “And we were hoping you would be interested in making this a threeway relationship.”
And like that. Oikawa’s eyes zeroed in on the bruises along Ushijima and Iwaizumi’s necks. And the way their other arms hung off the table, clearly holding hands -- and he couldn’t tell if he was jealous or turned on.
--- Ushijima held Iwaizumi against the wall, his lips sucking ferociously against his throat as the former Seijou ace managed to feverishly tug at the others hair. ---
--- He squirmed, legs spreading as Ushijima’s leg pressed firmer between Iwaizumi’s and less than a second passed before they had tumbled on to the couch together. ---
--- Ushijima hastily did away with Iwaizumi’s pants and ---
“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Oikawa blurted as he realized just what was happening, somewhat engrossed by the way both hands resting on his felt so perfectly natural. “Both of you….” Smiles lingered on the edge of both Iwaizumi and Ushijima’s face as Oikawa found himself laughing slightly.
It was if his problems had been solved.
He pulled his hands free from both of his lovers, covering his face with a new sort of embarrassment. Maybe he was simply humiliated that he hadn’t realized that of course they would have found out about one another already. Stupid, stupid, he should’ve known.
There was the sliding of chairs as both aces stood from their end of the table and approached Oikawa on either side, slowly prying his hands from his face so they could get a good look at him. To both sides, Oikawa found himself almost being shielded by two incredibly handsome, and incredibly talented young man, both of which had taken one of his hands.
And as he looked at both of them, one after the other...he decided those problems had been solved. Months of frustration and concern about whether or not he could love them both and be loved by them both in return were no longer necessary.
Ushijima’s lips pressed against his cheek, and Iwaizumi’s against his forehead.
And he decided, yeah.
He could definitely get used to this.