Chapter Text
Shouyou was definitely not awake yet. Nope. No way. He was too tired, his muscles sore and some of his arms still had burns from the heist. There was no way he was getting up. He snuggled back into the wall of warmth that was spooning him from behind and let the strong arm wrapped around his waist hug him tighter into the alpha still asleep next to him. The light was just starting to spill past the blinds and into their room, making him squeeze his eyes closed. Their room. Wasn’t that a wild idea? Shouyou still had an antsy ball of nerves pool in the bottom of his stomach whenever the word ‘our’ came about and meant him and Kageyama. They were definitely an ‘our’ but he still was unsure of the lines and shape of it all. He didn’t like the idea of just staying in one place for so long. He needed an out, a safety net. Even when he had been with the crew for years he always had a few safe houses he would disappear to a few times a year. The crew always understood, never judged him and always welcome him back with open arms. Sometimes he just needed some time to remind himself that he was free. But now he had someone else to think about. How would Kageyama react to him just leaving one night, no word, no note and reappearing a week later? He didn’t want to think about it, but the thoughts kept pushing their way to the surface of his mind.
“Stop thinking so hard,” Kageyama’s sleepy voice mumbled out. Shouyou gave up and just opened his eyes and shifted in the bed so they were facing each other. He fought off a small blush. They still felt so new, so raw.
“We gotta talk,” Shouyou whispered, reluctantly. He felt Kageyama tense, then force himself to relax and met his eyes. Endlessly deep blue. He could get lost in those eyes. All the gems he had seen in his time, and he had seen a lot, could never match the quiet fire blue of Kageyama’s eyes.
“I know,” Kageyama said softly. His face wasn’t that normal pinched one he wore, but the soft kind one he had when it was just the two of them.
“I…you…I can’t just…it’s not you…but sometimes I need to… I don’t really know when…” Shouyou couldn’t seem to form a sentence, always starting then trying a different way to explain this piece of him. Kageyama waited patiently as Shouyou kept trying to explain but after a few moments he hugged Shouyou close and Shouyou let himself burry his nose in Kageyama’s neck. He let the calming scent of his alpha relax him.
“I know you can’t just stay, not all the time,” Kageyama said carefully, resting his head in Shouyou’s hair. Shouyou froze for a moment, afraid and surprised and a mix of all emotions that normally made him need to take a few laps around a building to work off this sudden burst of energy. “I know it’s not about me, I mean me specifically. But Kenma said…he said sometimes you’ll just come and go and if I can’t be okay with that then I should back off,” Kageyama chuckled a little before continuing, “But it’s okay. I mean I’m okay with it,”
“You are?” Shouyou asked breathlessly, almost afraid to hear the answer. Kageyama pulled back so they were face to face again and cupped his cheek gently.
“It’s part of you. And I love all of you. So if you need to leave for a day or a month or a year,” Kageyama struggled to say that last word before taking a breath and continuing, “then I can wait. Just come back to me. Because you Shouyou, you are worth the wait,” Kageyama promised with a serious face that spoke of all sincerity. They both knew that Kageyama would probably never leave the Karasuno family. After everything Daichi and Suga had done in taking him in, this was really the place he was best for. But that didn’t mean they couldn’t find some way to meet in the middle. Shouyou just stared, a little open mouthed. He felt tears begin to prick the corners of his eyes and struggled to hold in the almost painful swell of emotions he felt for the man lying next to him.
“I wanna always come back to you. To home,” Shouyou admitted, this time a tear definitely leaked and rolled down the side of his face. Kageyama wiped it with his thumb and Shouyou leaned into the gesture.
“I wanna always be your home,” Kageyama admitted. They hugged, just wanting to hold each other and be as close as possible. Shouyou had played this conversation out in his head so many times since he realized how serious they were about each other but he could have never imagined this. He sighed contentedly.
“And maybe sometimes, you could come with me. How do you feel about bungee jumping?”
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
For once, Kenma wasn’t on his phone. Or his computer. Or tablet. Or any device really. For once he just sat, eyes closed, curled in Kuroo’s lap as he read out the book he was holding. It was some historic fantasy that had dragons and withes and a lot more things that Kenma wasn’t keeping up with. But the lull of Kuroo’s voice was nice and his eyes were so tired. Kuroo was holding the book in one hand and petting his hair with the other and Kenma just wanted this particular moment to stretch on forever. After a few moments he realized Kuroo had stopped reading and petting his hair. He cracked open one eye to see Kuroo smiling down at him, but it was a sad smile? Kenma sat up and turned so they were face to face.
“What’s wrong?” Kenma asked. Kuroo let out a soft laugh and just looked at him for a moment more before answering.
“I just, really don’t want you to leave here. But I can’t really ask you to do that can I? It’s not very fair of me,” Kuroo said, his smile still sad. Kenma didn’t like that. He didn’t like Kuroo sad. But he knew he could just promise to be here, forever. He knew it and the rest of the crew did too.
“Maybe I can’t promise to leave here. But I can promise to not leave you,” Kenma said quietly. Kuroo looked surprised and the attention made Kenma squirm, but he made himself take a deep breath and keep going. “I want you to come with me, with us. Stay with me,” Kenma said, looking right into Kuroo’s eyes. He was afraid what he would find there.
Honestly, he had been meaning to ask Kuroo ever since he spoke with the rest of the crew about it. There had been a little hesitance that always came with a change in a group dynamic but none of them could deny how happy Kuroo and Kenma made each other. Kuroo also did such a good job of caring for Kenma beyond just guarding him during a job. Ennoshita begrudgingly admitted he couldn’t be everywhere and having someone dedicated to making sure Kenma was secure would be an asset. They had each given their blessing for Kenma to ask Kuroo. Even Oikawa, who had pulled him aside and had a longer talk about having a bond with an alpha and all that it entailed. Kenma listened and assure Oikawa that this was what he wanted and he was sure Kuroo was for him. Oikawa couldn’t really argue with how close they were and promised him that if he ever needed it, Oikawa would always be there for him. It was sweet and Kenma knew that this was part of Oikawa’s own rough past showing, but he was sure.
“Yes,” Kuroo said it so quickly it startled Kenma. “Yes, I wanna stay with you. No matter where you go I wanna be with you,” Kuroo breathed out. There was a quiet stunned moment between them before they both broke out in wide, goofy, sappy grins. Kenma pushed forward and kissed Kuroo, who responded enthusiastically. For what seemed like so long, Kenma had been alone. Then he had the crew, a family, people who cared about him and encouraged him to put his skills to good use. Now here was Kuroo, this kind, smart, funny, handsome alpha who just wanted to take care of him and follow him where ever he went. Kenma rested his forehead against Kuroo’s and just let himself linger in the moment a little longer.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Oikawa knew it would becoming so he took the liberty of just waiting in Hajime’s room. Really did the man have any clothes with just a little bit of flare? He was just making a mental note to mention that to him when the door opened and Hajime walked in. He didn’t notice him at first but when he turned and saw Oikawa sitting on hit bed he startled and clutched at his heart.
“Don’t just sneak up on someone like that!” Hajime barked. Oikawa smiled and crossed his legs, making himself comfortable on the bed.
“You know most people would love to find me on my bed,” Oikawa laughed. Hajime just gave him a dead panned face and raised one eyebrow. After a moment they both cracked up, unable to maintain the joke. Hajime took a seat next to Oikawa on the bed. For a moment Oikawa allowed himself the small pleasure of enjoying how close they were to each other. He could feel the heat, the scent radiating off of the alpha next to him. It was weird to be so close, this intimate and not have his fight of flight response kicking in. Oikawa was still getting used to it.
“I know you guys aren’t staying, not for too long anyway,” Hajime said, looking anywhere but at Oikawa.
“We’ve gotten a few requests while we were here, some things we should look into. If we don’t know one else will,” Oikawa said with a sigh, leaning back. Hajime gave a weak nodded and scratched the back of his neck, not even sure where to go from here. It felt like so much and not enough had happened between them. While there were parts Hajime wished he could do over again, he still wouldn’t have traded any of their time together.
“I wouldn’t blame you if you guys didn’t come back,” Hajime said suddenly. Oikawa looked at him surprised.
“Well I wouldn’t go that far. I think some extended stays at Casa Karasuno are definitely in our future. But really I wanted to talk about you, about us,” Oikawa said carefully.
“Is there an ‘us’” Hajime asked sincerely. Oikawa looked unsure and soon they were both just two people looking at the floor because the idea of looking at each other while being this honest was terrifying.
“I don’t know. I’d like to see if…I’d like to at least try,” Oikawa admitted. He felt Hajime slowly put his hand over his own. This was the first time they had touched since that dramatic moment in the library and honestly, Oikawa didn’t feel like pulling away.
“I’d like that to. I wanna try,” Hajime said. Oikawa steeled himself to look over and was treated to a blush on the other. It was sweet and endearing.
“Maybe we just start there. Start slow. Start just with a ‘try’” Oikawa said lightly. He wasn’t ready for a commitment. Not yet. There was still pieces of work he wanted to do not only on himself but for himself. That didn’t mean he couldn’t see a time someday where he would be willing to give his heart again to someone else. And maybe this time, he just might get someone else’s in return.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Yamaguchi sat out on the patio, leaning back and enjoying the sun as it warmed him. Part of him was still tired, the restless tired that came from dedicating every waking moment to a project and then suddenly being done with it. He ignored the niggling voice in the back of his head that told him he should be thinking about logistics and the crew’s next move and instead took a moment to just bask in the sun.
“You really do look lovely like that,” The calm voice startled him and he almost fell out of his as Tsukishima walked up and took the patio chair that was next to his. Yamaguchi blushed and couldn’t help the goofy smile that spread across his face.
“You aren’t too bad yourself,” he said, a little unsure, but Tsukishima’s small chuckled made his heart flutter. He scooted his chair so they were pushed together and laced his fingers through Tsukishima’s open hand. This was nice. Warm. Comforting. It was a lot of things Yamaguchi had given up on when it came to a romantic partner. He had really given up on finding a romantic partner altogether. But Tsukishima was just so…well strange really. He was quiet, calm, and composed but he was also so inquisitive and sure of himself in a way that didn’t make him need to show off. It was refreshing really.
“So, what now?” Tsukishima asked softly, his grip on Yamaguchi’s hand tightening just a little. Yamaguchi sighed and let his head fall back, taking in the sun for a moment while he tried to think of an answer.
“I really don’t know. I think I could see us staying here for a little. At least between jobs. It would be nice to have a more permanent home and if we combined our resources it would really benefit us both. But the work we do, we don’t compromise for anyone. We work to help others, not just omegas but really anyone who needs us. That’s not something I’m ready to give up just yet,” Yamaguchi said. He really didn’t have any answer, but just let him mind run. It was like feeling out the shape to a new puzzle, one that didn’t really have just one answer. Certainly not one easy answer. He could see his crew and how they were changed by this. Hell, he was changed by this.
Yamaguchi could see how Kenma had opened up and he knew that the idea of a permanent home, one that would be safe and waiting for them would be good for Kenma after a long job. More stabilizing. He also wasn’t blind to how devoted Kuroo was, it was why he had agreed to allow him to join their crew in the first place. And Ennoshita seemed to actually thrive in this environment. It was secure and familial but it also challenged him. A challenge was something Ennoshita hadn’t really had in while. Even Yamaguchi could see how much they could learn here. Shouyou was already talking about taking Kageyama on a tour of his favorite places around the world. He hoped Kageyama wasn’t afraid of heights, because for Shouyou that meant his favorite places to rob and jump off of. The real surprise had been Oikawa. Not that he had thrown himself into this place like some of the others, but that he had relaxed at all was a bit of a miracle in it of itself. He could easily see them all settling here. But that seemed more like a far off retirement. Like a promise for someday, but not now.
Yamaguchi realized he had gotten lost in his thoughts when he felt the smooth circular patterns that Tsukishima was rubbing into his hand.
“I would never ask you to give it up,” Tsukishima said quietly.
“I know. I think we still have work to do out there. Good to spread to people who are beaten down by the system. But maybe, maybe we can still call here home too,” Yamaguchi said. Then he gave a sly smile to Tsukishima, “And maybe, if you’re good you could come with us sometimes,” Tsukishima smiled and leaned in for a soft sweet kiss. He broke it off with a find look at Yamaguchi.
“I think ‘home’ is the perfect word for it,” Tsukishima said, leaning in for one more kiss.