I didn't come to wave or take pictures - For Fragrant_Hitachiin

[saltinourstars]

Most paparazzi keep away from Kei. Hitachiin Legal loves a restraining order, and that’s enough for a semi-normal life.

But public games are public, and Kei spots at least three in the stands. Nondescript hair, clothes, faces. So plain they scream among the colorful crowd. One even has the nerve to smile, when he catches Kei’s glare.

Ugh.

Never mind.

Exhaling, he shuts them out. Settling into the tempo of his team. The rhythm and flow of defense, rising to a higher crescendo each time. It feels good. Kei's spent four years building with Todai, and they're contenders for Nationals. Maybe even favorites.

This is what matters.

Not the paparazzi with their gossip and grins.

Comments

[saltinourstars]

No. They don't. But they want him, and hearing that desire expressed... It's not nothing.

Kei snickers at whatever face his fiancé's just made.

So graceful.

"Oh come on. Do I look like the kind of person to join a team completely out of spite?"

[fragrant_hitachiin]

Kaoru puts his teacup down on the table with a little scowl.

As to whether Kei would join a team out of spite, he raises a single eyebrow. "Wouldn't you? Admit it, you'd do at least partially out of spite." He pauses, then adds. "But so what. If that's what motivates you, it's fine, as long as you enjoy where you end up."

He lets that statement sit, and scowls at his teacup again.

"I burned my tongue. Kiss it better?"

[saltinourstars]

Kaoru could have called Kei out Karasuno. Because spite was exactly why. Instead, he points out the upside. That motivation is motivation, and maybe the form of it doesn't matter.

Not as much as the final decision.

Kei leans in and grants that kiss. With no sass at all.

[fragrant_hitachiin]

Kaoru smiles. He understands that the kiss means Kei's mind is settling, not so lost in the problem he's facing that he can't see what's around him. It feels good to have his playfulness reciprocated, to feel valued. Not that Kei doesn't always value him, but Kaoru can feel helpless in the face of Kei's stress and anxiety, and that's where insecurity looms.

After the kiss, he leans back. "For what it's worth, I think you should hear them out. Try it. If you don't like it, you don't have to stay."

[saltinourstars]

"Fair enough."

It's better to have more information. Tonight's been a good start. Feeling more settled, he blows across the cup's surface. Cooling it enough for a sip.

Then approximately 300 more message alerts chime.

Spluttering, Kei scoops up the phone. Face going dark as thunderclouds.

"Damnit, he told Bokuto!"

[fragrant_hitachiin]

Kaoru laughs. He reaches for Kei's phone and turns it off. The room goes blessedly quiet.

"Oops, guess you must have missed his texts."