kurodai week 2026!!

Dust swirled around the room as Daichi wiped off a box he took out of his closet. A palm sized streak cutting through the top of the box, showing a color once was and the aged look it has now. He could keep the whole apartment as clean as possible but somehow the epicenter of dust vortexes only existed on the top shelves of closets, at least that's what it felt like to him. No matter how many cleaning videos exist in the world, it seemed nothing could combat the closet corners. Although Daichi hadn't expected to pull this specific box down for quite some time, if ever. It's been years since he graduated high school but with their volleyball reunion party tonight, reminiscent energy is heavy in the air.

Right on cue his phone lights up with a notification, a message from the group chat

Suga: Don't you dare back out Daichi!!! We're all coming in uniform. Asahi: Koshi-kun what if we don't fit in our uniforms.... Suga: You absolutely can't back down Asahi, wear it small I don't care. I told you not to throw it into the dryer! Daichi: I'm not backing down. A promise is a promise, even if it's a stupid one.

With a chuckle Daichi looks back at the box in his hands. The Karasuno boys had all promised to wear their uniforms for their 10 year reunion party. It was majority Koshi’s idea thrust upon everyone, something about a picture perfect opportunity and a feel good story for the athletes. Of course after this many years and body changes for everyone, they all ordered replica uniforms to their new sizes. But Daichi had kept his original uniform after all these years. Hell he would be keeping it forever. This one box in his hands held so many precious memories of a time once was. Opening the box, a wave of nostalgia and sitting air washes over him. Placing the box carefully on his bed, his eyes soak in a decade's legacy in front of him. On top is his Captain's uniform, ironed and folded neatly. His mom had ironed it for him after graduation, saving it in pristine condition even until he had graduated college. Every seam filled with love. Slowly pulling out the items one by one, next came his team jacket. Then a small crow plush that the underclassmen had given him upon graduation. A little plump crow with a strict expression on its face, every team member was gifted one so that there was a full team of crows. "Looks just like you Sawamura-san!" Hinata's sunny smile lighting up his whole face. At that time that worried Daichi, especially if the worry lines were actually all that the team remembered him for. Sub-consciously rubbing his temples to push out any stress, he placed the plush to the side.

A rustle of paper against his finger stops him for a second. At the bottom of the box, hidden under sports certificates, is a picture. Daichi is face to face with a memory that had been locked away for some time. Two smiling faces of captains, cheek pressed to cheek with the former Nekoma captain, Kuroo Tetsurou. The other boy was beaming with a genuine grin, not an ounce of his usual mischief or smirks. Of course Daichi only had eyes for one smile but it’s not like his younger self was much different. The image felt like the picture perfect representation of boyish wonder and joy, and a hidden yearn but that’s besides the point.

A week before graduation, the managers had arranged a goodbye match for Nekoma and Karasuno. Primarily to let all the boys get one last hurrah together before the graduating upperclassmen all went their different paths. Rather than a match, both teams had been surprised to walk into a graduation party that the coaches put together to let the boys celebrate. A small exhale of a laugh leaves Daichi, remembering his eager kouhai still asking for a match rather than enjoy some downtime. Sugawara had arranged for group pictures at the end of the evening, after arranging all the groups he released everyone except the two boys. Pushing the two to the middle for a “captain’s only” memory, though the wink to Daichi was not the epitome of subtlety. 4 years of pining had not helped his nerves for any semblance of a cute picture. No matter how many times Koshi yelled at him to properly smile, Daichi couldn’t stop his deep flush and awkward stiffness. The final shot was only possible because Kuroo had whispered jokes non-stop into Daichi's year to break the tension. Every joke was awful but the monotonous onslaught of dad jokes were enough to crack Daichi completely. The memory of Kuroo’s arm coming around his shoulder to pull them closer for the picture was seared into his mind. He had asked his mom to hide the picture halfway through college. To save himself from more years of an unrequited love more distant than the miles between Miyagi-ken and Tokyo. Rubbing his finger over their expressions, there’s a crinkle sound from the back of the photo.

(Continue reading on AO3)