Daichi comes to an end on the Friday after his graduation. Everything is set up to be a nice and relaxed night. He would have preferred getting food and drinks over karaoke, sure, but Asahi and Kuroo are looking like they’re having far too much fun with their version of Fantastic Baby (including dance performance, Christ; Daichi did not need to know that Asahi’s hips could move like that).

And how he ended up crammed into a tiny karaoke room with the other former third-years from Seijouh and Nekoma, well, Daichi doesn’t know. Dammit, let him enjoy the night and Suga’s hand on his arm in peace. It’s such a nice hand. Suga has the most beautiful fingers. Not that Daichi has ever told him, not even now that his head is sitting comfortably on Suga’s shoulder, and they could almost be holding hands.

Then the song changes, and Suga twitches by his side. “I love that song!”

“Mhm?” Daichi glances up at him. “’s that so.” Shit, he’s so unfairly pretty. The first thing Suga did after graduation was to get his ear shell pierced. Daichi is very gay, and happily so.

“C’mon, let’s dance!”

“I don’t dance,” Daichi says.

Something glints in Suga’s eyes. He tilts his head, flashes a grin. “I know you can,” he sing-songs.

Before Daichi realizes the trap, his lips move. “Not a chance, no,” his mouth sings back.

The silence afterwards is stunning. Daichi prays to everyone that nobody’s heard them, but there’s not a chance (Oh god. Fucking. Damnit.) that Suga didn’t catch that he just referenced to Chad’s and Ryan’s courtship song.

“Daichi.”

“I, well – “

A hand grabs his arm, and Suga is pulling him outside. Daichi barely catches a glimpse of a very drunk Kuroo taking a stand against Oikawa with something that suspiciously sounds like I Will Survive.

Then they’re outside and Suga is laughing. His dimples are perfect, his mouth is perfect, and Daichi feels numb and burning from the inside all at once. His head is dizzy. Suga’s fingers are in his, thumb tracing Daichi’s sweaty knuckles.

“First off, I know for a fact that every guy who knows the words to that song from High School Musical two has some kind of rhythm. And second – what other dark musical secrets have you been hiding from me?”

“Uhm.” Daichi swallows. It’s very hard to think when Suga steps even closer, and then Daichi’s hands somehow finds a way to Suga’s cheek. “I… like anything where characters sing about what they’re doing?”

Suga smiles, wide and soft. “How about we go to my place then, you don’t laugh at me for liking musicals almost as much as I like you, and then you… you could tell me about it, stud.”

Daichi’s throat is dry. He manages to nod, too many times and too hard, but Suga doesn’t seem to mind. His fingers squeeze Daichi’s. “Okay. That’s convenient, because,” Daichi clears his throat and starts walking, dramatically gesturing at the empty street ahead. “My place is just a jump to the left.”

Then Suga is laughing even more, his forehead falling against Daichi’s neck, and they make it home in each other’s arms. Daichi doesn’t really remember how much of Grease they end up watching, but when he wakes up the next morning, his and Suga’s clothes stink of sweat and night air and a tiny bit like each other, from falling asleep in a tangle of limbs and with Daichi’s hand in Suga’s soft, familiar hair.

Daichi knows that something is going on, and it can’t be good. Training camp is exhausting his team, he’s got to make sure they work hard but don’t strain themselves, and the heat isn’t helping either. But Daichi still isn’t blind. He notices things in the periphery of his vision.

So when Kuroo moves to stand by his left side and Bokuto’s arm slides around his shoulder from the right, Daichi can reduce his wincing to a minimum. He doesn’t even get to say hello.

“Lovely day, isn’t it,” Kuroo says. Daichi squints at him. This is going somewhere that he most definitely won’t like.

“Absolutely peachy,” Bokuto grins. His golden eyes are far too fixed on Daichi’s face. “Perfect conditions.”

“Indeed.” Daichi shakes Bokuto’s arm off and takes a step back. “May I help you two-”

“You know who’s also very lovely?” Kuroo’s lips twitch at one corner.

“I know!” Unbelievable. Bokuto actually fucking puts a finger to his chin as if he’s thinking. “That setter of yours, ah, what’s his name again?”

“Hm, I forgot it too,” Kuroo says, faux sadness clouding his face. “I only remember that cute voice and his nice legs.”

“His name is Suga,” Daichi growls. He gets ignored.

“Yeah, those are damn nice.”

“Irresistible even.”

“Impossible to miss. Especially when you’re around him all the time.”

“And I mean, we’re all just men, you can’t just keep your eyes from wandering a bit-”

Daichi’s hands clench into fists. He shouldn’t say anything, fuck, of course Suga is gorgeous, brilliantly so, even guys can pick that up, and the other captains are known for picking partners by attraction and not what’s between their legs, but does it have to be his Suga?

Wait. No. Suga isn’t his boyfriend. Maybe, just maybe, Daichi kind of wouldn’t mind if he was.

“It’s interesting,” Kuroo keeps going, “that you knew I was talking about him when I mentioned that he’s hot.”

Daichi wants to die. He looks away from those idiots, searches for an escape. “I was guessing.”

“You didn’t deny that he’s attractive.”

“Well, judging from an objective basis-”

“Dude.” Bokuto slaps his shoulder so hard that Daichi starts coughing. “He’s so into you. But I mean, if you don’t care for a guy as sweet and dang hot as Koushi-”

“Don’t use his first name. He doesn’t like that.” Daichi runs a hand down his face. Then his brain catches up on what Bokuto said. He stares at the other captains. “…he what?”

“Finally,” Kuroo nods, looking like a very pleased father. “He’s catching up with the newest information.”

“Because we were so kind to help out.” Bokuto wipes an invisible tear from his eye. “I almost went to kiss poor Suga myself, just to make captain dense here jealous.”

“He wouldn’t like that.” Daichi’s voice is tiny. “Are you guys joking? Is. Am I…” He clears his throat. His entire face burns. “Is it that obvious?”

Bokuto wraps an arm around Kuroo’s shoulder. “Our job here is done. Look who’s coming over to check on his captain’s safety.”
Daichi can’t help but turn around. He doesn’t hear the other captains run off, a high five clapping through the gym somewhere far away from Daichi’s mind. Suga is striding over to him along the side lines. There’s a dark crease between his brows and his eyes ask a silent question: Are you okay?

Daichi swallows. Absolutely not. He’s so fucked and in love and has been for longer than he’d ever admit. But when Suga is by his side, there’s somehow enough courage in Daichi to reach for Suga’s hand and hook their little fingers together.

Daichi doesn’t know what Suga’s face shows when he pulls him back towards the team. He hopes that it’s something good – the shy squeeze of a sweaty palm against his own seems to be a nice omen.

Okay look, this really isn’t fair. Daichi’s just a man and he can only take so much, the line has to be drawn somewhere and if it has to be drawn along the soft curve of Suga’s lips, then so be it.

Who even caused this? Oh, right. Hinata. Daichi kind of understands him to some degree – it’s the peak of summer, and the entire team is melting away in the flaring heat of the gym. Even when training ends and everyone slowly changes from one pair of shorts into a more casual one, the sun is still burning down on their faces as they exit the gym. And then Hinata says “ice cream”, and before Daichi can help it, everyone’s dragging him to a small shop in the busier part of town and he’s a few hunded yen poorer.

It’s worth seeing Suga’s eyes light up, though. It’s also worth watching him excitedly choose lemon and almond for his ice cream cone, patiently waiting as the last in line just behind Daichi, all to calm Hinata’s enthusiastic bouncing and shut up Kageyama who keeps rambling about more practice and better tosses by getting them their ice cream as fast as possible. Everything’s well. Except.

Daichi hasn’t signed up for Suga eating ice cream as if he’s… kissing someone. Asahi, who’s far too aware of Daichi’s crush, is at least enough of a friend to shoot him a pitiful glance before shooing the team forward, giving Daichi and Suga some time to relax as they follow behind the group.

“Daichi.”

What? Oh. Suga’s called his name. Daichi looks at him, blinking. “Y-yes?” It’s really hard to focus when Suga smiles like that, his eyes warm and squinting against the setting sun, mouth a bit white-shining from the rests of melted ice cream. Daichi stares. It’s been so easy to fall hopelessly for him-

“Your ice cream is dripping.”

And before Daichi can react, Suga leans in and licks a drop of strawberry off his ice cream cone. Daichi feels his face grow hot. “I didn’t – uhm. S-sorry.” But Suga just laughs. “Why are you apologising? It’s your ice cream, not mine. Don’t let it go to waste, though.” He goes back to his own cone, leaving Daichi to stare down at his ice cream.

When he tastes the strawberry in his mouth, licking along the cold cream that’s rapidly melting away, Daichi can only think: an indirect kiss.

And then, he thinks: Tomorrow, I’ll make it a real one.

Easy like that. – daisuga.

“Wanna be my friend?”

It’s Daichi’s first day of high school and he’s so nervous that he feels like throwing up, but then a soft voice asks that question. Daichi turns around, confused, and sees a boy standing next to him. It’s the welcoming ceremony and they should be quiet. But the boy smiles at him, his eyes spark, and Daichi finds himself nodding. “Okay. I’m Daichi.”

“I’m Suga!” The boy says, and it’s easy like that.

“Wanna be my teammate?”

It’s one week into high school and Daichi wants to choose a club, but Suga is faster with his question and then it’s not really a choice anymore. “Okay,” Daichi says, “what kind of teammate?” Volleyball, it turns out, can hurt, and Daichi’s arms are blue after a week of training. But he’s never felt so happy and alive and like part of a new family, and Suga’s there, and they walk home together. So that’s nice, and it’s easy like that.

“Wanna write each other letters?”

He’s always too slow to ask first. The graduation speech of Daichi has driven tears down Asahi’s cheeks, and Suga’s crying, too, but for other reasons. He hugs Daichi so tightly that he feels like drowning, and Suga smells like flowers and oh why does he have to let go? “Okay. Every day. And we’ll phone, and there’s skype,” Daichi says and, when nobody’s looking and Asahi helps by blocking the view, Daichi cradles Suga’s cheeks and kisses him until he starts to sob and nod, wild, grabbing Daichi’s suit.

It’s not always easy like that. Two colleges, nights on skype, a fight that is followed by two weeks of silence. Daichi, taking a train to Suga’s uni and showing up in his dorm at 3 a.m. with tear-stained cheeks and flowers stolen from someone’s garden. Suga, calling him an idiot and letting him in, always letting him in and close and back into the arms Daichi has always loved.

In the end, Daichi manages to be faster with just one question.

“Wanna be something more than just boyfriends?”

When the ring fits onto Suga’s finger, it’s easy like that, and forever will be.

Daisuga week 2015. Day 2. Travel.

It takes an hour for Hinata to stop crying and look up at Daichi. “Tell me,” he says, voice cracked from tears. “Why does it hurt so much when he’s gone? I know it’s for his career. But… how did you do this? How were you and Suga away from each other for six months?”

Daichi wants to pull him underneath his skin and whisper ‘Kageyama loves you, and he will return’ into his bones. Instead, he smiles, and speaks.

He tells Hinata the story that begins after his and Koushi’s graduation, a story of a night under starlight and the heaviest words he’s ever heard: “I’ll go to Europe, and I need to go alone.”

Daichi’s story isn’t long, but it fills the silence with colours that seem endless. He tells Hinata how Koushi had kissed him a last time, how he had just smiled when Daichi asked: “Why?” And how the answer had only been: “For us. So I can know myself before I learn everything about you.” How Daichi had been angry, sad, jealous, until his father had told him to go visit an old friend in Canada and think about whether he’d take over the company or not. Daichi had thought about it for two days. Then, he’d booked the ticket.

Letting go was the hardest thing he’d ever done. They didn’t phone, didn’t see each other’s faces, didn’t hear the soft whisper of “I love you”.

But Daichi tells Hinata about the short messages Koushi had sent, only one per day. “Paris is beautiful, not only at night.” – “The ocean is colder here. The wind tastes different.” – “I miss you.” – “I’ll stay in Kopenhagen for my last week. I want to see you. Do you know the Little Mermaid there?”

Hinata doesn’t cry anymore. He stares at Daichi, eyes wide, and rubs the tears away. “And you went to see him. What – what happened?”

“We met,” Daichi says, soft. “Sometimes, distance breaks people, and sometimes it weaves them together even more. Have faith in Kageyama.”

He doesn’t tell Hinata anything else about the end. The last night of his journey, how he walked up to the mermaid’s metallic shimmer in the dawn’s light, how Koushi turned to smile at him through tears – that is something Daichi doesn’t say out loud.

The flecks of gold in Koushi’s eyes and the kiss of salt and “let’s be forever” are curled around Daichi’s heart. When he falls asleep with Koushi’s weight melted against his chest, Daichi thinks back to the little mermaid, to Kopenhagen, and thanks the cold wind for carrying his choked “yes, yes” right into Koushi’s soul.