Song: Follow You - Bring the Horizon
Iwaizumi could feel the faint hint of summer as he lay flat on his back, staring up at the stars. Sleep tugged at him and he closed his eyes, his body not caring about how hard the asphalt was beneath him.
"Iwa! I told you not to lay down. You'll drift off," Tooru scolded, hitting him lightly in the stomach.
Hajime sat up, desperate to get back to the apartment. "How much longer do we have to wait out here? It's been forever," he complained.
"Just a little longer. Kuroo said to stay until at least 3am," Oikawa said, checking his phone.
This was the third night Iwaizumi had sat with Tooru on top of the south street parking garage. It faced the corporate building they were assigned, and it was just high enough to where they could see pretty much everything they needed to. Turns out, there's not much to see at 3am on weekdays.
Oikawa kept his eyes fixed on the building every waking moment, and Iwa was sure he hadn't even blinked. In sharp contrast, Iwaizumi had brought his sketchpad to pass the time. The moon, the stars, and streetlights kept the pages lit enough. He drew the buildings, the drunks down below, and Tooru, of course.
But near the end of their watch, the two sat side by side, their feet dangling off the edge. Iwa turned to Oikawa, his tired face lit dimly by the flickering streetlights. "I've been meaning to ask you something," Iwaizumi said, getting Tooru's attention.
He laughed a little. "I'll tell you anything you want to know, Iwa."
"How did you find out about Kuroo?"
"Well...he found me at our fountain one night. It was really late, and there were no stars out. I don't remember how I got there or how I got the gun, but he's the one that pulled it away from my head and took me to his apartment. The rest is history, I guess," he said, looking away to avoid Iwaizumi's saddened eyes.
"Were you going to do it?" Hajime asked.
"I was."
Hajime didn't let himself think too long on what could have been if Kuroo hadn't shown up. "I want you to know something important."
Tooru looked over to Iwa. "Yeah?"
"I want you to know that if you died, I would miss you, and I wouldn't ever be able to forget you," he admitted.
Oikawa's face crumpled a little at Iwaizumi's words. "I feel the same about you."
Hajime let the silence settle between them, keeping the words he'd meant to say unsaid. If Tooru died, Iwaizumi would be buried in the grave right beside him.
"It's time to go," Oikawa said, dusting the dirt off his pants and lending a hand down to Iwa.
"I'm so tired," Hajime said as the two of them walked back to their car three blocks from the parking garage.
Tooru raised an eyebrow and grinned. "Are you really/"
"What are you playing at?" Iwa asked with a sigh.
"Well...I have some leftover spray paint in the trunk. If you want, we could have some fun," he said, his voice pitching up.
Iwaizumi was, in truth, exhausted, but he rarely turned down a night of delinquency with Tooru. Besides, what's the harm?
"I'm gonna need some more convincing," Iwa teased as they approached the car.
Tooru gave him the evil eye before delving into the contents of his back trunk. "Here. You get the red one and I'll take the blue one," he said, throwing Iwa a paint can and running across the street.
"Tooru, wait!" Iwaizumi shouted, running after Oikawa through alley after alley. The wind blew through his hair and his feet pounded against the asphalt. If he didn't know any better, he could have sworn he was flying.
Tooru looked back as Hajime caught up, a beautiful smile on his face. They laughed together, racing through the streets.
"This is perfect," Oikawa said, skidding to a stop in front of an empty wall on the side of a random grey building.
Iwa put his hands on his knees, his lungs burning from exertion. "If you say so," he said between gasps.
"What do you want to paint?" Tooru asked, shaking his paint can.
Iwa looked up, his eyes wide. "You mean you didn't have a plan?"
"Of course not! Why would I have a plan?" he asked, laughing as he painted dark blue lines on the dull grey wall.
Iwaizumi sighed deeply before he started to paint. He copied whatever Oikawa was doing, watching as his lines slowly took shape.
"You could be an artist too, Tooru," Iwa said, observing his friend carefully. Oikawa seemed to be utterly carefree, the weight of the world temporarily lifted off his shoulders. Iwaizumi realized that he would take that weight from Tooru completely if he could. He would bear it for the both of them if it meant Oikawa could be free.
"I'm nothing compared to you. I don't know why you're copying mine," he said laughing.
"Why did you decide to paint a crown?" Iwa asked, putting the final touches on his piece.
Oikawa backed away, smiling at the finished product. It was two twin crowns, one blue and one red. They were upright.
"I don't know why Nakashi chose to turn the crown upside down. Aren't crowns supposed to be worn right side up?" Tooru asked, a puzzled look on his face.
"That's why. No one can wear it if it's upside down. Maybe Nakashi believes that crowns belong to no one."
"Well...I'd say they look pretty good up there anyway, huh?"
The sirens were soft enough to ignore at first, their miserable wails echoing between the walls of the city. "I'm glad to feel normal with you again, Tooru. I've been a little lost lately."
"I lost myself too, and then you found me. Now, we're both lost," he said, taking a pause. "The irony of it is almost painful, don't you think?"
"I wouldn't want to be lost with anyone else," Iwaizumi admitted with a laugh, the urge to say more overwhelming him. He almost said it, but the sirens began to drown him out now.
"We should go before they catch us," Oikawa said, grabbing Iwa's wrist to pull him back towards the car.
"Hey! Stop!" a man yelled from the other side of the alleyway, pointing his flashlight straight into Iwaizumi's eyes.
Oikawa laughed, waving at the man mockingly before tugging harder at Iwa's wrist. "Come on! Let's go!" he said, still laughing as the two of them raced in the opposite direction. Sirens still wailed behind them, blue and red lights flashing in steady intervals.
Iwaizumi found himself chasing after Tooru yet again, his heart pounding in his chest. A police car cut off the street in front of them, tires screeching harshly.
"This way," Oikawa said, the two of them ducking into a nearby alley. The fear Iwa had felt earlier was slowly turning into excitement, the adrenaline pumping loudly in his ears.
They reached the other side of the block and ran straight into the street, narrowly missing a car zooming by.
The coming police car casted red and blue hues over the buildings as it rounded the corner, almost upon them. Oikawa pulled Hajime into another narrow passage. They were facing each other, their chests rising and falling in unison.
Hajime was yet again close enough to kiss Tooru, his gaze flickering to his parted lips. Oikawa met his gaze, his smile fading a little. The police car zoomed by them, but Iwaizumi stayed put, letting the blare of the sirens get fainter and fainter.
Through a stroke of pure bravery, he placed his hand on the back of Tooru's neck and kissed him, drunk with adrenaline.
To Iwaizumi's surprise, Oikawa didn't pull away. He deepened the kiss, slipping his tongue past Hajime's lips.
Iwaizumi leaned forward, bracing Tooru's back against the wall. He was starting to get desperate now, years of pent up longing coming out all at once.
It was just how Iwaizumi had imagined it to be after all this time. His head spun as Tooru's hands wandered up and down his arms, through his hair, and around his neck, a desire forming at the pit of his stomach. Tooru hummed between desperate kisses as Hajime's hand slipped up his shirt, running over his skin. He felt hot, almost feverish, under Iwaizumi's touch.
But as soon as it had begun, it was over as if it had all been a dream. "I'm sorry, Iwa. We should go," Oikawa said, pushing Iwaizumi away gently. He had a sort of disappointment hidden in his gaze.
Hajime's heart dropped, panic beginning to take hold. "No, I'm sorry. Damn it," he said in disbelief as he wiped his lips with the back of his hand, reaching out to Tooru.
"Let's just...forget about this, okay?" Oikawa said, turning away.
Before he could think, Hajime grabbed Tooru's wrist. "I don't want to forget about this. I can't. You know that."
Oikawa sighed, giving him a serious look. "Like I said, let's just forget about this. I'll sleep on the couch tonight, so we won't do anything we will regret later," he said, shrugging out of Iwaizumi's grip.
"Wait, Tooru-"
"Iwaizumi, I'm sorry, but I can't have you anymore attached to me than you already are. I've hurt you too much as it is," he said.
"You could never hurt me," Hajime said, trying to keep his tears from falling.
"You're a bad liar, Iwa. Don't make a habit of it," he said plainly.
Iwaizumi chose to let the words roll off his back. "I don't think you understand what I'm trying to tell you. I'm-"
"Come on, Iwa. I told you. That's enough," Oikawa said as they both walked back to the car.
"Why won't you let me say what I've been dying to say? I've been waiting our entire lives," Hajime asked, desperate for Tooru to look at him.
"Please. Stop talking. I don't want to hear it. Not after everything," he said.
Iwaizumi remained quiet after that as they reached the car. Tooru's rejection was like a knife in his chest, twisting agonizingly with every passing moment.