#longfics

It was bright, the sun splitting through the fluttering curtains of your small little space carved out in the corner of the city. A warm breeze danced through the open crack of a window, one of the rare days of sunshine in a place otherwise known for dreary downpours and gray skies.

You busied yourself with folding laundry, each pile slowly growing into a teetering tower precariously stacked on the coffee table as you let the quiet hum of the television lull you into a peaceful rhythm. It was unable to distract you from your thoughts, giddy tingles across your skin as you reminded yourself of the impending arrival of your boyfriend finally torn from another deployment.

“A’ll be ‘ome soon, darlin’.” Johnny’s words echoed around in your mind the same as they were spoken to you over a late night phone call, a buzzing in your veins as excitement took hold in your wait.

‘Home’. Is that what he thought of your place? He had certainly made himself comfortable on your worn sofa and plush bed more times than you could count at this point. His presence etched into the breath of each of the small rooms, taking up ample space even in his physical absence.

But maybe it meant more than that. More than what four walls and a bed could ever hope to represent in their simplicity. Maybe ‘home’ was how he thought of you, of any floor you set your feet on, any place your laughter stickied the air with familiar honey sweetness. A comfort and safety he had long imagined for himself, finally made corporeal.

You were getting ahead of yourself. It was just an undecorated phrase, not soaked with the deep meaning you were suckling out of it. It was the only logical explanation, since you hadn’t spoken about that sort of thing yet. You had only been officially seeing Johnny for a few months now, the time broken up in uneven patches by his demanding work. Regardless, he had somehow taken firm hold of your heart and made his own place within it as easy as a pup would curl up on a patch of grass.

Those words played on your mind repetitively, ‘home soon.’.

Your thoughts were only thwarted by the sound of heavy footsteps coming down the hall. The steady thumps growing closer halted your movements, the t-shirt in your hands hanging limply as you turned your head towards the door as if you expected Johnny to materialize through the wood itself.

Knock Knock Knock.

The fabric was long forgotten, crumpled and thrown into the cushions of the couch as you moved with haste to whip the door open without even having to check who it was.

His clothing was stripped down to his undershirt and uniform pants, his boots half-laced and deeply worn with cracks spidering in uneven lines, standing tall over you despite the slight hunch of his shoulders from fatigue. The tiredness all but disappeared from his features as he laid his once-weary eyes on you, a shot of pure espresso just in your visage evidenced by the splitting grin that spread on his lips at the sight.

“Thare she is.”

Your heart swelled and pulsed, a wave of relief washing over you like warm bath water as you finally set eyes on your long-awaited lover. You nearly flung yourself into his arms, making him take a small step back and eliciting a low chuckle that reverberated between your bodies.

“I’m so glad you’re back.” you mumbled against his skin, pressing your face snuggly in the junction between his neck and shoulder. He smelt like sweat, fireworks, grass, and something innately him that eased the worry that had lodged itself in your gut the moment he had left. He was safe.

His strong arms wrapped around you tightly, yet with a reverence of a man holding something precious in his grasp. His chest rose as he inhaled deeply, burying his nose in your hair and taking in your entire presence like a salve on his raw soul. You could’ve stayed there forever like that, if only you weren’t half in the hallway of your apartment complex.

“C’mon then, in ye gae.” He lifted you effortlessly, a small giggle escaping your lips as he carried you back into the room and closed the door with a foot behind him.

After only a few of his large strides, you were lowered onto the sofa, your back meeting plush cushions as he leaned up just enough to look across your face with something close enough to awe that it made your heart skip a beat.

“Yer prettier ivery time I see ye.” He said with warm affection, the corners of his eyes crinkling as you breathed the same air. You couldn’t prevent the light flush of your cheeks as you tried to stifle your flustered appearance with an eye roll, but a wide smile further betrayed the butterflies in your stomach. Those traitors.

“Stop that.” you pretended to chastise, not-so-secretly adoring the attention after the time apart. Perhaps not the most witty response, but it was enough to have Johnny letting out an amused huff through his nose.

“Canae be mean tae me, I got ye a present.” He teased, making your eyes widen. Of course he thought of you while he was gone, even when trudging through dirt and blood, you were on his mind. The admittance of that fact still made your heart beat harder in your chest as if it might just burst out.

What could it be? He never told you where he was sent off to, always brushing off the question with a joke or a teasing, ‘At’s top secret, darlin’.’ But you were smart enough to know he wasn’t being called on to head over to a vacation spot, hardly a good place to find a gift. It only made your curiosity stronger, though. Not that the physical item truly mattered. Hell, he could give you a stone and you would be elated. Just the idea that he had thought of you was what was making your blood rush.

He shifted to one side to pull something out of his pants pocket, suddenly brandishing a hanging bit of chain dotted with crystalline beads. A necklace. It daintily hung from his roughened fingers, the sun shining through the window casting dancing lights over the ceiling as it reflected off the surface. Your eyes lit up with your smile.

“Ghost helped me pick it oot, believe it or nae.”

(People milled among the desert street, stalls propped all along the dusty path like stubborn daisies in sidewalk cracks as the team moved along under the blaze of the sun. Ghost spotted something that made him pause. A necklace with beads the same color of your eyes shifting in the light wind. It struck him in a strange sudden way, making his already dry throat feel all the more parched. “I bet ya girlfriend would like that.”)

“Ghost?” You questioned, a light furrow between your brows as you tried to imagine the looming figure doing something as gentle as helping a friend choose a necklace for his lover. It was almost humorous, especially with the mental image of them decked out in full gear fussing over jewelry.

“The big lad sportin’ a mask.” Johnny clarified with an amused edge to his voice as he unhooked the necklace and placed it around your neck. You lifted your head slightly off the couch to allow his girthy hands to clasp it in place.

“Yeah, I know who Ghost is.” You replied with fond sarcasm, but the thought was quickly forgotten as you lifted a hand to web between the decorated metal around your throat, holding it up slightly to admire it closer. After a moment, your eyes drifted back up to Johnny’s, resting them there as you saw how he was staring back at you, incredibly soft and warm with a tinge of nerves.

“Thank you, Johnny.” You said softly, a new glow seeming to emanate around you.

His body relaxed further, as if he had been holding his breath for your reaction, as if there was any universe where you wouldn’t have been delighted to receive a gift from him. Silly man.

“I’m glad ye lik’ it, darlin’.”

His hand carefully moved to cup your jaw, his calloused thumb running gently along your cheek as he spoke the words for the first time to you– the words that stole the breath from your lungs.

“I love ye.”

𓂃˖ ࣪⊹

Sign Your Life Away [E]: Wally West is being sent to his death. Vampires, according to the legend, liked virginal human omegas. They liked to have their way with them, fucking them until they couldn’t move, and then draining them of their blood and killing them. Sometimes, they’d stretch it out over months, or years, killing them slowly, sometimes they’d take their pleasure all in one night. If the vampire’s desires were met, then they wouldn’t hurt the greater Kingdom.They paid their sacrifices to the vampiric nobility. They would send a request for an omega of their choice, and the King of Central would sign their life away, turning them over to the vampire who made the request, hoping that it would keep the peace.Vampires are brutal, inhuman monsters. Or... that's what humans think.

Poor Dumb Seahorse [E]: Dick steals a magical artifact that will give him legs, and heads to the land to find his baby brother. Jason was taken by the selkie-trader Jack Napier two years before, and he's been assumed dead since. On the way, he meets a cute adopted son of a selkie who's willing to help him find his brother. He thinks he might be in love.

An Omega Worth Fighting For [E]: The emperor has made it illegal for any omega to go to war, but he has also demanded one alpha from every pack to join the army as they defend themselves from the oncomming Manhunter invasion. When a summons is sent for Dick's baby brother to join the war, he has no choice but to take his place, omega or not.

You Can't Hurt Me Anymore [E]: “He’s awake,” one woman noted. She was holding a large syringe like the ones they used in movies filled with silver liquid. “Should we sedate him?”“No, he can’t do anything,” Rudy’s voice came from behind Wally’s head.He strained back in his bonds to see the man behind him, but he couldn’t move his head enough to. The woman shrugged, grabbed Wally’s stomach and held him still as she inserted the needle beneath his skin. Whatever the liquid was inside of it, it burned as it slid in. Wally thrashed, throwing his head back farther and screaming his throat hoarse. He heard his father chuckle above him.

We're Going Back (To The Future) [T]: “Look now!” Max declared excitedly, picking the watch up off Dox’s neck and holding it up against his. “Dox’s clock is exactly one minute behind mine!”“Did it break?” Bart asked. “Max, what’s going on?”“Dox has just been the first being ever to travel through time!” Max grabbed his shoulder, grinning in glee. “It’s a time machine, Bart. A time machine.”Bart’s eyes widened. A time machine?

Red Hood, Prince of Crime [E]: There were many interesting ways to find your soulmate. Roy Harper had heard dozens of them as teens argued over which was the worst. At that moment, he knew with all certainty, This was it. The worst way to find out about who your soulmate was, was to find it carved into the grave of your best friend's little brother you only spoke with once, after having found out that the boy was brutally murdered and left unavenged. A cold rage burned in Roy. He wouldn’t let this rest. Jason Todd would not go unavenged. No one kills his soulmate and gets away with it

The Fox Princess [E]: In the kingdom of Keystone, the alpha nobility had a favourite sport– hunting down the animal-creatures of the woods. They specifically loved omegas. They would take them back to their palaces, make them unbreedable, and then keep them as their concubines until they died. Lately though, every single royal had their mind set on one target: the golden fox. When he caught the creature, Eo did not intend to do what most of his kind did and remove the omega’s ovaries. He intended to breed him. Such a beautiful creature should not be wasted and tortured, he should be bred and cultivated, made into Eo’s lady. He was so pretty, all bright, his tail and ears golden, and his skin bright tan. It was rumoured that what at first drew the royals to the forest creatures was the fact that they walked in nakedness. That their bodies were on display, bare and tempting, and Eo could understand that. He couldn’t imagine holding himself back if he were to see this creature even if he were not on the hunt for him

The Alphas From the Club [E]: Wally and Linda (alphas) pick up a 21 year old Dick at a club and then start courting him. It’s not until awhile into the relationship that they realise they’ve begun courting Robin, and now Nighthawk is out for Flash’s head for touching his baby brother

Sell Yourself to Chance [E]: "We three owe a debt to the king of the vampires. He offered us protection from his people in exchange for a bride fit for his son.” “No omega we’ve found has equaled his standards.” “But you?” The witch reached out a hand and cupped his face again, tilting his head up, her eyes roaming down his body. “You’re an omega fit for the gods. You would make any prince a very happy man.” Dick swallowed. “So… you want me to give up one engagement for another?” “I know, it seems like a bad price, but this prince is not a man you regard as your father,”

I'll Take Care of You [E]: “I’m an omega,” his voice quivered. “I’m sorry I hid it from you but I was scared. I know omegas are–” “Wally… I can’t–” Wally looked over, eyes fluttering, pain filling them. “Can’t… can’t what?” “I can’t protect you… because I’m going into heat too.”

Mermaid Biology [E]: The mer sat at the bottom of the tank, tail curled around him, staring up at the surface of the water with big, round, terrified eyes. He’d been brought to the marine centre three months earlier, after he was injured by poachers and unable to swim away. So far, no one had been able to get close enough to him to help him, which was why Wally was here. Wally was a doctor in mercreature studies. His doctorate specifically focused on the humanistic nature of the species, their mannerisms and their communication. Although the centre’s director didn’t seem enthused about that specific area of Wally’s expertise– he was very much of the opinion that mers were fish and that thinking anything else was a lapse in reason– he’d realised that he was the best one to make sure that his most costly specimen didn’t die on them. Wally had never been this close to a mer before. 

Partners in Crime [T]: The skies are black with lead-filled rain/A morbid painting on display/This is the night the young love died/Buried at each others side

Coping Through You (Inside Me) [E]: The mercenary growled and turned toward the omega, pressing him up against the wall and putting his face right against his. “Stop trying to fight me and remember your place, Richard,” he hissed, squeezing his hand on Dick’s hip. The omega looked into his eyes with big, blue watery ones. He was on the verge of shaking out of his skin. “Slade you have to go back and get Wally. He’s… he’s still alive, but if he stays there his healing factor will… and he won’t– and I– I–” Big tears flooded down Dick’s face and he slid to his knees on the ground as Slade let go of him. The alpha growled, nose crinkling, mad. “You what?”Dick covered his face. “I love him.”

No One to Turn To (But You) [E]: “Unless Hunter drops his claim.” Wally curled in tighter. “He’s not going to... I can’t.”“No, he’s not just going to give up his claim if you ask, but if you’re ruined, he won’t want you anymore.” Wally dropped his hands down. “Ruined?” Dick stared at Slade with round, shocked eyes as he pieced together what he was saying.“I happen to know that Hunter is one of those alphas who believes in purity in an omega. He doesn’t care if you’ve been assaulted, or if you’ve cheated, it would still be your fault, and he’d toss you out.”

Haunted By Ill Angels Only [E]: When Barry dies in the future, leaving Wally to take up his legacy and stand up for himself, Wally can't do it. When he realises he's probably going to end his life anyway, he goes to a crossroads to make a demon deal. His life for aunt and uncle's return to life. He doesn't realise that he and the demon have a very different definition of what giving someone you life means.

Princess of Defiance [E]: “I’M DOING THIS FOR YOU!” Jason screamed, “THE LEAST YOU COULD DO IS SAY THANK YOU, JACKASS!” he stormed out of his father’s office, body tense, anger in every footstep.Roy fell behind him as he walked, nervous about the princess’ outburst. He knew that Jay had been freaking out since the council’s decision to offer the King of Defiance the marriage treaty, and he could understand, after all, Jason wasn’t the kind of omega who liked being treated like an omega.As soon as he got back to his room, he slammed the door and dropped down to the floor, pressing his knees against his chest. Roy sighed and sat down next to him, flopping his arms over his knees. Jason’s head fell in his hands.

Spoilage [E]: Dick had known from the beginning that Slade would have him as his prize. What he hadn’t expected was the alpha breaking his spoilage collar and throwing it aside, before lifting him up and carrying him in his arms over the threshold of Wilson manor, declaring Dick his wife-to-be. He’d been surprised. To Dick’s understanding, Slade had offered him a lifetime of servitude in exchange for his life, and he had reluctantly accepted it in the hope that Slade would also let Wally live. He had not expected to be Slade’s new bride. He didn’t know how he felt. On one hand: he was still a person, despite everything. His guardian and those close to him might have their heads spiked on the walls of the new world leaders’ fortress, but Dick still had his rights.At least, as many rights as an omega usually had. Wally is not so lucky...

It was almost pathetic, he felt like he was pitying himself when he should instead be pitying you. He should be feeling bad for you, and yet he couldn’t help but blame himself— as he thought, rightfully so. He was sure this was all his fault and he almost wallowed in that pity.

A sigh left him as he spaced back in, remembering he was driving and trying to stay focused so that he didn’t cause an accident. He’d been very spacy lately and he wasn’t the only one to sense the change in himself. His teammates, though Sakusa especially, were looking weirdly at him. There was an obvious damper on his usual upbeat mood. Even when he walked into the gym and tried to smile and get as excited as he always did before this month about playing volleyball, but even if others believed his façade, it was always clear that Sakusa didn’t buy it, and yet he never said a word.

Atsumu almost dreaded the day that the quiet man finally spoke up about it, but he was trying to cherish this time when he wasn’t saying anything just like he was dealing with the situation between the two of you. He was working on a lot of things, one of those things being enjoying the moment he had even if he was dreading something coming up. He knew he let things put a damper on his moods and the person who always got the brunt of that was you, and he was almost disgusted that he’d done that to you. That he’d made you put up with that sort of behavior when instead he should have been enjoying the moment he had with you instead of thinking about the near future so much.

The gym came into sight as he turned one final corner. With another sigh, Atsumu rolled the windows of the car up and pulled into the parking lot, taking the spot beside Sakusa’s car and turning it off. He hesitated for a moment before getting out and grabbing his gym bag. He was only a couple of minutes early, but it seemed like only Sakusa and Bokuto were there so far. He wondered where Hinata might be but brushed the thought off as he headed for the gym’s open doors and walked inside.

“Hey, Atsumu-san!” Hinata called, making the man nearly jump as he looked over.

“HInata-kun, I didn’t think you were here.”

“I came with Bokuto-san.” He said, grinning largely at the man. “Are you ready for today’s practice game?” Atsumu forced a smile at the man and nodded.

“Ya bet I am.” He said, watching as Hinata’s smile seemed to grow before he got distracted by Bokuto and hurried over to ask what the man had said. A soft sigh left Atsumu, but he wasn’t alone for long before a second, familiar voice spoke up as the taller man passed slowly by him.

“You better not screw this up because you’re sulking.” Sakusa said simply, watching Atsumu give a shaky smirk in his direction.

“Omi-Omi, ya don’t trust me.” The other man narrowed his eyes at Atsumu suspiciously— or maybe he was only annoyed and Atsumu was overthinking everything, he honestly wasn’t even sure at this point because he felt like he was always overthinking nowadays.

“No. I don’t.” Sakusa said simply. He seemed to hesitate like he may say something else and it made Atsumu’s throat go dry before he brushed whatever it was he was thinking off and walked away, leaving the man standing by the door alone. Atsumu looked to his feet for a moment and frowned. Part of him wanted his friends to know he was upset and care, but at the same time, he hated to admit he was having marriage troubles— especially to Sakusa. He was perfect, after all, he already thought little enough of him, Atsumu didn’t want him to think even less.

So silently, the man went to the locker room and quickly changed into his gym clothes and left his bag in there. As he walked out, he tried to prepare himself for this practice game. He was excited— he really was, but he couldn’t help still feeling a pit in his stomach he didn’t know how to fix. Too many thoughts ran through his head that he worried he may make one too many mistakes today and the weight on his shoulders may start to show.

Thursday, September 23rd

For the first time in what felt like forever, the weight of the world didn’t feel like it was on your shoulders. You weren’t sure if it was because you finally decided what you wanted with Atsumu or because things at work were finally less stressful. Whatever it was, you were taking the time to enjoy the breather life was giving you and it showed to your co-worker who eyed you suspiciously as you worked with a small smile occasionally on your face. He wondered what you might be thinking, if you finally gave in and Atsumu had given it to you good last night, or maybe even if you finally put your 2 weeks in for this job and just hadn’t told him yet.

“Alright, what the hell is up?” The man asked, shocking you out of your trance as you looked away from the computer and at him, still typing out the rest of your sentence on the keyboard that you had memorized from how much you had to type on it. When you were done, you ended it with a period and raised your eyebrow at the man you worked alongside every day.

“What do you mean?”

“You’re in an exceptionally good mood for someone who was just weeks ago contemplating divorce.” You almost laughed because he was right— you had no clue what it was, but today seemed like a good day from the start. “Did you guys make up or something?” The man asked, then, not so subtly, pushed his pointer finger through a small hole he made with his other pointer finger and thumb.

“Ew— what, no.” You said, looking at the man in an appalled way that made him laugh out loud.

“What, like you’ve never had sex with him before?” He said as if you were acting like a prude. “I was just wondering. What’s got you in such a good mood if it wasn’t that?” You had no reason not to tell the man, knowing that because he didn’t tell anyone anything else, you were sure he wouldn’t spill the beans now. After all the time you’d spent together, you’d learned to trust the man you worked beside all day.

“I decided not to divorce Atsumu and I got rid of the papers.” A smile immediately worked onto your co-workers face as he reached over and gently placed his hand on your shoulder.

“I think you made the right choice here. I assume by how you’re acting you agree with me.” He added quickly.

“Honestly, I really do.” You said, looking away from the man and down to the ring that was on your finger; you swore you’d known in the back of your mind this whole time. No matter how angry you were, no matter how certain you were divorce was what you wanted, you never once took the ring off of your finger— and it wasn’t because it was stuck and you couldn’t. The thought never even crossed your mind and that simple thing made you certain that you always knew this was going to be the outcome. “All I ever wanted was Atsumu to love me. He’s really showing me that even though I was overthinking everything and thinking he didn’t love me, he did the whole time and I guess… communication issues were worse than I thought they were on both of our sides. I never really told him how I felt about things. It’s not all his fault, you know.” You finally admitted.

“Stop, you’re gonna make me gag, you guys are so gross.” You laughed at your co-workers words, looking at the man with a soft shake of your head and seeing the small smile still on his face. “Really, (y/n), I’m glad that you made up your mind and that this time has helped you figure things out. Maybe you can work on communication still even after all of this.” You nodded and stretched your fingers out with a soft sigh.

“We definitely still need to work and put in a lot of effort, but I don’t think saving us is going to be as hard as I thought that it was going to be. It just needs more work than I’ve ever had to put in before and I guess that worried me because I thought Atsumu wouldn’t put that effort in.” You admitted, never before even admitting it aloud to yourself alone before, but there was something about this man you worked with that just made you want to spill your deepest thoughts and secrets.

“Good luck with that, but I don’t think you’ll need that much— the two of you are clearly going to be okay.” He said, turning back to his desktop when a notification came across. You smiled a bit as you looked back down and started to continue typing out the words you had to transfer from paper onto the computer.

“Yeah— I think we finally will be.”

Friday, September 24th

Thunder struck loud overhead as you started on a new puzzle in the living room. Atsumu laid on the sofa behind you, the tv on and his arm slightly dangling off the edge of the cushion. A blanket was draped over his leg and stomach, though he wore sweatpants that slid slightly up his calf as he hung his other leg over the sofa back. His head rested comfortably against a pillow that was leaned against the armrest.

Was it the most comfortable he could be? No, absolutely not, but he was tired and he wanted to relax— but more importantly, he wanted to be near you as well. He only had a few days left, he knew that. He knew that this month was going to be over before he knew it and no matter what you chose, he wanted to take this time to be close to you even if the two of you weren’t touching or even speaking. Instead things were quiet as you separated your puzzle pieces, the overhead light in the room off but the lamp by the tv and the table lamp by the sofa were both on to illuminate the room.

You were almost done sorting your puzzle pieces when all of the sudden everything shut off with a bright lightning and loud thunder strike. Things were silent as your eyes slowly started to adjust to just the sliver of light that came in through the window from outside.

“Well, I guess I’m done watching that.” You couldn’t help but give a little laugh at Atsumu’s sarcastic tone. “Dammit, why does the power always shut off when we’re doin’ something nice.” He sighed, though undeniably his cheeks were warm from the sound of your laughter— it was a sound he missed more than anything, even more than the feeling of your bare body against his didn’t hold a candle to your sweet laughter.

“I guess we’re just supposed to be doing something else.” You sighed, resting your head back on the middle cushion of the sofa to stretch your neck and tense shoulders. Admittedly you needed a massage, tired from work and tired from sitting here for the past hour or so, but you were having fun tonight and that was more important to you than relaxing your shoulders after a long day of typing on the computer and doing other work at the hotel.

“Well what are we supposed to do in the dark?” He mumbled. The last time the power cut off when the two of you were watching a movie you’d spent the entire hour making out and grabbing desperately at each other, but tonight you didn’t know what to do.

Did you want to spend an entire hour kissing him and grabbing desperately at him? So badly— more than you thought you’d ever wanted to kiss the man, but that wasn’t what you needed to do. Not tonight. You sighed softly beneath your breath and thought “Maybe the next time the block blacks out” to yourself before opening your eyes. The room was still too dark to see more than the outline of most things unless there was a strike of lightning that lit the room for just a second.

“Maybe we should… talk?” You suggested, truthfully shocking the man behind you. He thought maybe you might even suggest going to bed— after all, it was past 9 o’clock at night and since it was a Friday night that the two of you weren’t talking a whole lot on, he figured you might choose to sleep the whole week off tonight. When was the last time the two of you just sat here and talked? He couldn’t even think of once as he laid there and he almost felt bad for that. Quality time was important to you, he knew that, but he thought quality time cuddling with a movie playing was enough in the past; and maybe it had been enough, but he couldn’t help but feel like this was why communication issues had gotten so bad between the two of you.

“Talk? About what?” He asked, not moving and neither did you.

“Anything.” He gave a thoughtful hum and tried to think of a topic to speak on, but he wasn’t sure. He’d been so preoccupied with the movie and you were doing something completely different that he didn’t have any immediate thoughts to comment on. Thankfully for him, you filled the silence like you always managed to do when he was stumbling for words. That was why you were so damn perfect for him, wasn’t it? “How about the team— how is everyone?”

“They’re good— Bokuto-kun keeps talkin’ about Halloween, but Omi isn’t too excited.”

“He doesn’t like Halloween?”

“I don’t think so. Or maybe he just doesn’t want to go to Hinata’s party.”

“Oh, Hinata is throwing a party?”

“I guess he does every year. He invited us, I wasn’t sure if ya’d want to go so I told him we’d talk— all things considering.” He finished, almost sadly as he thought about the fact that the two of you may not even be together next month to go to Hinata’s Halloween party. “Ya know, talkin’ to Hinata that day brought me back— I was thinkin’ about that time when we were teenagers and we made ‘Samu dress up with us.” He said, brushing the previous thought off in this moment. You gave a soft laugh beneath your breath as you thought back to the one and only time you were able to convince his twin brother to dress up with you guys.

“I was ketchup, you were mustard and he was mayo. He hated it.” Atsumu snickered and softly shook his head as he closed his eyes and tried to envision accurately how pissed off his brother had been when he made him put the costume on.

“I was surprised he actually said yes.” Atsumu said honestly. “I figured he may even laugh in our faces. He can be kinda cool when he wants to be.” He said with a light sigh.

“Have you spoken to ‘Samu recently?”

“I did earlier today, he says the store is real busy around any given Holiday so he won’t be able to do anything for Halloween this year, but I think it may just be a ruse to get out of dressin’ up with us.” Another little laugh came from you as Atsumu fiddled with his fingers on his lap.

“He’d probably only put a name tag on his shirt and say he’s someone else for the night anyways.” Atsumu hummed in agreement before yawning. “It’s dark in here. It’s sort of making me tired.” You commented innocently, trying to only fill the silence and yet it seemed to give Atsumu an idea that had let you down.

“Yeah, I was thinkin’ about goin’ to bed.” He said simply. You tried not to sound disappointed as you spoke, moving so that he could get off of the sofa without accidentally hitting you.

“Oh— sure, okay.” You stood, watching as Atsumu stood up and folded the blanket he’d been using. You rubbed your arms while he tossed it over the back of the sofa and yawned yet again as he stretched his body out.

“Goodnight, (y/n).” You wanted to ask him to stay, you wanted to grab his arm before he had time to move, you wanted to kiss him, you wanted to do whatever it took to keep him out of bed and keep him here with you. You wanted to reminisce and continue to think back on all of the good times you had with the boys, you wanted to think about the time you fell in love with Atsumu— more importantly you wanted to think about the day he confessed to you.

But instead you only nodded as he turned to start heading for the bedroom.

“Goodnight, Atsumu.”

Saturday, September 25th

Last night had sent you through a whirlwind of emotions as you sat out on the sofa while it stormed for at least 2 hours after Atsumu went to bed. By time you went in there and got beneath the covers, your husband was softly snoring, curled up with a pillow and sleeping peacefully even through the thunder. It had taken you a little while to fall asleep as you laid there and continued to think and listen to the storm, damn near getting teary eyed as you wanted to curl up with the man that you remembered doing everything with for the first time.

Your first kiss, your first “I love you,” the first time he held your hand, the first time you had dinner with his mom and brother after starting to date, the first time you went on a date as boyfriend and girlfriend instead of as friends questioning their feelings for each other, the first time that you thought seriously about spending the rest of your life with him— not in some “He’s my best friend, I want him around forever” kind of way, but this way. Thinking of marrying him, of spending forever with him. Of sharing a bed, a home, a pet that you didn’t have. You thought about the first time you’d ever missed him— truly missed him. The first time that he was gone for a week on vacation after the two of you started to date and how much you wanted to be in his arms that whole time. You never would have thought then that you could make it a whole month without touching him after needing to stay the night with him after a whole week— but here you were. As hard as it was, you’d made it a whole month almost, and even if it was killing you, it was here.

This morning your head had hurt from a lack of sleep, but you were walking along with Atsumu outside anyways. The two of you were headed to the small store close to your apartment that you always went to get groceries at. It was chilly enough that you wore a long sleeved shirt and jeans, yet you didn’t need a jacket and instead were nice and cozy in this unless there was a harsh wind that blew between the buildings during your walk.

You still felt as distracted as you had all morning, tired and unable to stop reminiscing. You knew there was a time and a place for everything, but after being cut short last night when he went to bed, you just couldn’t stop yourself. Even the happiest of memories you were reliving in your head were making you sad.

This morning, completely unaware to you, you had been so distracted that your lace was tied loose on your shoe. The walking had seemed to knock it free, but you were unaware or rather you didn’t care about whatever it was gently knocking the side of your shoe every now and then as you walked. Atsumu kicked a rock gently, watching it roll and going to kick it again before he noticed the lace of your shoe dangling free and spoke up.

“Oh, hang on,” Atsumu suddenly said, stopping you in your tracks as you looked at the man and snapped out of your trance. Confused as you watched his every move, the man got down on his knees and reached for your shoe, tying the laces that you were completely unaware had somehow come undone in the time you were walking. An elder woman smiled lightly as she passed by the two of you as your cheeks flushed warm. “There we go,” Atsumu said, standing and dusting his knees off. “Wouldn’t want ya to trip.” He said it simply, lightheartedly, as he continued to walk.

“Thank you,” you said, walking beside the man who was purposely walking much slower than he usually did. You had adapted to walking fast alongside the energetic man who was always seeming to be on the go and wanting to hurry and do new things, opposed to his brother who seemed to prefer leisurely strolls, but lately he’d taken your shorter legs into consideration and hadn’t been walking like he normally did. It wasn’t a lack of having to rush that made you feel so glad, but instead that he simply cared enough to notice the way you had to take 3 steps to his 1 when he was at his most hyper.

“You’re welcome,” he sent you a quick smile as the two of you walked alongside each other, heading for the store. Truthfully he had been surprised that you had come with him this morning— the original plan was to go alone, but when he had told you he was leaving and you asked to go, how could he possibly say no to spending more time with you? Atsumu opened the door for you and let you walk inside before following you, waving at the owner who knew almost everyone that you’ve seen by name.

“(y/n)! Atsumu! I thought I might not see the two of you together anytime soon.” The elder man said. “It’s been awhile.” He had a nice smile on his face that Atsumu matched with a soft chuckle in response.

“Life gets busy,” was all he said, shrugging as you grabbed a basket and got the first couple of things up front at the store with the two men. “How’ve ya been?”

“Good, good. The store has been busy,” he seemed a bit ragged and sighed, but the sound seemed content as he got a few more cans and stacked them on the shelf without looking back as if it was a mere habit made out something he’d done every single day for over half of his life. “Good and bad in that case— I’m needing more help soon. My grandson is gonna take over the business sooner or later, I’m hoping he starts to learn things soon so I can catch a breather.” He said with a light chuckle. “You two need anything, just holler.” He said.

“Sure thing, thank you,” Atsumu walked around the small store, grabbing a few things he knew was on the list he’d made this morning while you were in the shower before he finally found you. Atsumu walked up behind you and caught your attention as he set a couple things in the basket before sliding it off of your arm. “I’ll take this.”

“I don’t mind.”

“I don’t either.” He leaned closer to you and eyed the list in hand, missing the way that your cheeks flushed while you stole a quick look at him— or rather a long look as you watched him mouth a few things on the list off to himself. Just before he finally looked to you, you looked down at the list in your hand. “We only need a few things. It should be a quick trip and then maybe we can get some lunch before we head home.” He suggested, slowly walking through the store with you close to him in the tight isles, but for once this month, you couldn’t complain about being squeezed closer to him because it gave you an excuse to stand this close to him as other people passed the isles behind you. “I was thinkin’ dumplings, sushi, maybe some soup. How does that sound?”

“It sounds really good.”

“Alright, it’s settled; we shop, we get food, we go home.”

Sunday, September 26th

There was something about today that was bringing you back to your phone. Maybe it was all of the reminiscing you’d done the past couple of days, but you were sitting on the sofa now while Atsumu was in the shower, looking through your photos. You had a lot— up in the thousands when you checked, and a lot of them were either Atsumu alone or both of you. As you searched through your photos, you found some of your favorites that you couldn’t resist adding to your favorites folder and eyeing them for as long as you felt like it.

Memories came back to you with every photo, though one of your favorites was your current home screen. It was a photo you’d taken, both of you grinning and laying in a pile of leaves. It was only last year, but you nearly forgot about it until you saw this photo, and every time you did it made you so happy that you set it as your home screen a couple months back.

It had been a chilly Autumn day, you were inside with his mother making soup for dinner and drinking hot tea while Atsumu and his brother were raking up leaves in the yard. You remembered everything vividly as you thought back and were nearly caught in a daydream.

A soft laugh came from you as your mother-in-law cracked a joke at your husbands expense. The two of you were watching the twins from the window by the kitchen sink as they raked and occasionally argued about who knows what. All you knew was you had heard your husband call his brother stupid several times now and it was almost embarrassing even if the woman you were with was his mother and knew exactly how her son’s were.

“Do they ever stop arguing?” You asked with a light laugh. Despite knowing already that you knew the truth, she spoke anyways with a shake of her head.

“No. They certainly do not.” She chuckled to herself, though only giving a soft sigh afterwards as she watched her children get into another fight that resulted in Osamu throwing the rake at Atsumu who then bolted after the man who laughed, flipped him off and ran in the opposite direction. “You sure are a brave one to put up with one of ‘em all by yourself like this.” You laughed and continued to cut the potatoes in front of you on the cutting board so you could toss them into the pan for dinner.

“What can I say, I adore him.” Mrs. Miya smiled fondly at you, something that you were missing as you looked down to ensure carefully that you didn’t cut yourself on accident while you worked on the vegetables. “Besides, sometimes his antics can be rather entertaining.” Their mother softly hummed and leaned against the counter, long ago already considering you a part of her family and even now that you were finally really a part of her family she still viewed you as one of her own this whole time.

“Name a time recently where my sons antics have been funny instead of unbearable.” You thought for a moment with a soft hum and peeked out of the window at the man who was leaned over, hands on his knees and panting while Osamu did the same. This time the fight seemed to be dismissed with words rather than a fist-fight like they usually got into, something that relieved you.

“Well, just the other week we were out with his team for dinner and Atsumu, Bokuto and Hinata had nearly gotten us kicked out of the restaurant for being so rowdy. If you ask Sakusa-san, he was not impressed, but… I don’t know, it was sort of endearing.”

“Nearly getting kicked out of a restaurant is endearing to you nowadays, hmm?” She teased.

“Well, rather how happy Atsumu has been lately is what’s really endearing.” You said simply. “A couple weeks ago I know the games were putting a lot of pressure on him to set perfectly, so now that we’re past it and he’s finally having fun again, he’s just so… I don’t know— how do I put it, bright?” You spoke as if you were asking, though not meeting her eye. “He’s just so cheerful and happy again, and it’s always nice to see him so happy after being stressed out.” Your mother-in-law gave a thoughtful hum and gently placed her hand on yours to stop you from cutting the potatoes. You looked at her curiously as she smiled at you.

“He sure is lucky to have you. Now how about you go tell Osamu I need his help with something and help Atsumu for a minute.” You smiled at her and nodded, wiping your hands off with a towel and heading out of the house, unaware of the sweet smile still on her face as she thought about just how lucky she was to not only have you married to her son but to have you as a daughter-in-law.

“’Samu!” You called, catching both of their attention as you walked over. “Your mom wants you.” You offered to take the rake from the man who rubbed his sweaty forehead and nodded.

“This isn’t over!” Atsumu frowned at his brother who only stuck his tongue out at him and walked to the house. You snickered as your husband grumbled something beneath his breath and raked the last bit of leaves he had into a rather large pile. “Look, I’m done!” He said in your direction with a grin. You smiled as you looked over at the man and sent him a thumbs-up.

“Congratulations, now come help me since ‘Samu was slacking off.” You poked fun at the man who wasn’t even here and made your husband snicker as he walked over towards you.

“Of course he was, it’s ‘Samu.” You couldn’t help but laugh even as you gently hit his arm. “What, it’s the truth!” He said, watching as you gently shook your head with a smile on your face. Atsumu grinned, reaching over with his cold hand and cupping your warm face, making you yelp.

“Hey! You’re cold!” You said, pushing his hand back and making him laugh.

“But yer so cute,” he leaned in, making you give a soft sound in protest as his cold nose brushed against your face before you quickly returned the quick kiss he gave you. “Come here—“ You wondered what he was doing, dropping the rake in the process of getting pulled towards his leaf pile. Atsumu let your hand go, flopping back into the leaves with a thud and giving a relaxed sigh as he brought his arms behind his head and looked at you. “Well— come here,” he said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“Uh, no— do you know what kind of bugs are all over these leaves?”

“Don’t worry, we can take a shower afterwards. I’ll make sure there aren’t any bugs left on ya.” He sent you a wink that you sighed at. Truthfully, the thought of laying in a pile of leaves with your husband did sound nice for even just a moment. You hadn’t laid in leaves like this since you were a kid, so you let go of the thought of bugs and nodded slowly as you hesitantly sat down beside him. He grinned, wrapping an arm around you while you laid down beside him and quickly grabbed your phone from your back pocket. “Quit bein’ so stiff, there’s no bugs.”

“There sure as hell are.”

“Well, there’s no bugs that matter.” He pressed a soft, cold kiss to your temple, but you couldn’t help the smile that grew on your face as you snuggled closer to the man. Opening your phone, you quickly turned the camera on and brought the phone up in the air, snapping a quick picture while Atsumu watched the sky before he looked at the camera.

“Say cheese!” Atsumu grinned along with you and rested his head against your own.

“Cheese!”

You were stolen from your memory as the cushion beside you dipped in.

“Whatcha doin’?” Atsumu asked, leaning closer to see the picture that you were looking at. Your cheeks warmed as you looked to him, wondering just how long he’d been out here and if he’d tried to speak to you while you were off reminiscing the past.

“Uh— just us. Remember this?” Atsumu immediately smiled as you showed him the photo.

“I do— that was a good day.” He sighed happily and leaned back comfortably against the sofa. You thought for a moment before glancing outside.

“We should visit your mom again soon. It’s been too long.” Atsumu smiled, peeking at you while you shut your phone off and set it on your lap. He’d always found it so endearing how much you loved his family and how much his family loved you in return. He wanted nothing more than to go back to that day, holding you in his arms in the leaves and kissing you a million and one times to make you laugh before Osamu came back outside and yelled at him for not working. Even the thought of his brother annoying him didn’t make the smile on Atsumu’s face falter as he looked down at his hands.

“Yeah— yeah, we should.”

Monday, September 27th

Work was slow, you were tired, and lunch was dull. You still had a few minutes left of your break and you were almost bored, wanting to get back to work early just so that you weren’t going to fall asleep here at the place where you often ate lunch alone, and yet not moving as you took another bite of your food. It was quiet in the room, but not for too much longer as your phone that was face down on the table started to buzz.

Absentmindedly, you picked up your phone with a yawn and answered it in a sleepy tone.

“Hello?”

“Hey,” shocked, you pepped up and raised your eyebrows.

“Oh, hi Atsumu.” It was quiet for a moment before you spoke up again. “What are you calling me for? Do you need something?” You asked, trying to not sound distant despite your shock.

“No, I just… I can’t stop thinkin’ about ya.” He whispered it, something that almost made you miss what he’d said entirely. “I miss ya and I just can’t stop thinkin’ about ya.” You couldn’t help but flushing a bit as you looked down at your food and bit the inside of your lip.

“Ah, gee— don’t make me blush.” You teased, though your voice still seemed rather distant on the other end of the line to Atsumu and made him sigh.

“Sorry, I just can’t get’cha outta my mind.” You frowned lightly at the tone of his voice, thinking— or rather knowing— that something was wrong and it was heavy on his mind.

“Are you alright, Atsumu?” You asked the man who only gave a soft hum in return to your words for a moment. You thought of speaking to fill the silence before he spoke up again.

“I told ya, it’s not your job to worry about me thinkin’ poor things right now.” He said it simply, but it only made your frown deepen.

“I know right now you’re the one working on getting me back, but if there’s something on your mind then you can tell me, ‘Tsumu.” You said, making the mans cheeks flush as you called him by that all too familiar nickname. It wasn’t something only you called him, but it had been almost forever since he’d heard it from you and he couldn’t help the reaction. “You can tell me anything, Atsumu.” You said as reassuringly as you could. “I know things haven’t been the same between us, but if you’re down about something I’m not going to ignore how you’re feeling.”

On the other side of the line, Atsumu fiddled with his fingers and gave a soft sigh. Did you really want to know what was on his mind? Sure, you offered, but offering was different than hearing the whole truth and nothing but the truth. The truth was heavy— it was something he knew might freak you out. He thought that he may be finally getting you to love him again, but he worried you were still on edge and if he were to get too close too fast you might scare and decide hastily what to do about this marriage. He worried about losing you more than anything he’s ever worried about before, how could he just spill what’s been bothering him?

“Yer my best friend, (y/n).” Atsumu suddenly whispered so quietly he wasn’t sure if you had heard him on the other side of the quiet line. You weren’t saying a thing, instead waiting for Atsumu to take his time and finally speak up. “I just… I miss ya.” He continued to speak softly, so soft you really had to strain to hear and you worried someone else may walk in while you were trying to listen to him and you might miss something he said. “I really do love ya, (y/n), and I just want you to still love me, too.” It was hard to bite your tongue anymore, but before you could even try, the words blurted out of your mouth.

“Oh, Atsumu— I love you more than you could ever know.” You shook your head softly, debating on what to say and how not to spill the beans on the entire truth. “Even when I’m at my maddest with you, it’s so hard for me not to love you. I’ve been trying to get over you this whole month even when you do nice things for me because I didn’t want to give in so quick, but there’s too many things I love about you to let go.” Your words made him wonder if this meant you’d made up your mind, but he tried not to get his hopes up and bit his tongue to stay quiet. “That day we were thinking back to when Samu dropped the milk, I just… I remember too many good things about you to hate you. I know I’ve said bad things as well— but I don’t think I’ll ever stop loving you no matter what happens. I’ve loved you since we were kids, this doesn’t just go away.” Atsumu sniffled softly on the other end of the line and rubbed his tired eyes.

“I just want ya back on my side of the bed.” He mumbled almost miserably and you swore that it crushed your soul to listen to his saddened tone. “I know ya haven’t made up yer mind yet, and I know yer still thinkin’ about everything, but… do ya think there’s a chance ya could ever forgive me? Even if… even if you choose not to stay married to me, is there any way that ya might not despise me?”

“Atsumu… I swear you’re impossible to despise.” You spoke softly on instinct.

“Nobody said I was easy to love though.”

“You don’t…” You bit your lip and looked down at your half-eaten food, making your stomach grumble but you’d lost your appetite at this point. “You don’t need to be easy to love, you just… you need to be you. You have something about you that just… it’s impossible to not be happy around you. When you’re at your best you’re just… you’re so bright. You’re so happy and… I know things are complicated right now, and I know I’ve been detached to say the least, but I do love you and it does sadden me to see you so down. This past week has been hard, I know, and… I just want you to trust me.” You said. “You trust me, don’t you?” He was quiet on the other end of the line for a moment, nearly making your throat go dry before he spoke up again in a soft tone.

“Yeah. I trust ya.” He admitted quietly. “I’ve always trusted ya.”

Tuesday, September 28th

Quietly, you watched the ceiling, laying on your back and glancing at the alarm clock on the side of the bed Atsumu slept on. It was nearly 2AM and yet you were still wide awake even if it was dark. You weren’t sad this time, you weren’t worrying about the future, instead you were relieved that the month was almost over. You were certain this time that Atsumu was going to continue to try and you were struggling not to tell him that you already made up your mind just to feel his arms around you again, but you weren’t going to give up early when you planned an entire month to wait out for the man to show you he still cared— especially now that you were so close.

As you were thinking about how you might tell him that you ripped up the papers and that you didn’t want to get divorced anymore, to finally acknowledge the way you missed his arms around you and to finally tell him that you loved him again. It’d been a month and you felt lonely even with him right beside you because you knew that you still loved and wanted him despite the bad things he’d done, but he didn’t and you worried he might lose motivation completely two weeks ago.

Stealing you from your thoughts, a leg was suddenly laid on top of yours as Atsumu beside you rolled over onto his side. Granted you were closer to the middle of the bed than you had been the previous nights and instead of laying on your side, you were on your back where the man could reach you if he only extended his arms or legs. A small smile crept onto your face as you looked over and saw the man through the dim moonlight.

His hair fell over his face, mouth slightly agape with soft snores and a small drop of drool falling onto the pillow that he had beneath his head. You moved onto your side, scooting a little bit closer to the sleeping man. Hesitantly reaching over, you gently brushed back his hair and smiled a little bit more as he nuzzled his face into the pillow and reached his hand up. You brought your hand down, gently laying your hand on the bed just before his own warm hand laid down in the same spot.

With a soft sound in his sleep, Atsumu’s fingers gently grabbed onto your hand and gave you a light squeeze as he mumbled something quietly and inaudibly beneath his breath as you watched him peacefully sleep beside you.

Anxious, missing his touch, missing him, you gave his fingers that slid between your own a soft squeeze. He gave another soft sound in his sleep, though this time you clearly made out a mumble of your name. You scooted a little closer, something that made his leg move along with you. Part of you worried he might wake up, but before you could even address that worry, he gave a soft groan and shifted.

Quickly, you closed your eyes as the man yawned. You weren’t sure if he’d merely shifted in his sleep or if he was actually awake, but a soft mumble from him soon gave you enough of an answer as he scooted closer to you. Wanting so badly to open your eyes and see if he was really awake, even kiss him and pull him closer, you struggled to stay still as the man gently squeezed your hand.

Sadly, his hand left yours, but his warmth wasn’t missing for long before Atsumu reached over and gently cupped your face in his hand. A quiet sigh came from the man as he softly caressed your cheek with his fingers. The sheets ruffled as Atsumu leaned closer, nearly making you jump as he gently pressed a soft kiss to your forehead. You fought off the urge to blush and move as the man stayed put for just a moment before a soft sigh exhaled over your face as he pulled back and laid his head back down on the pillow, gently grabbing your hand again and stroking your fingers.

“I love you. So… so much,” he whispered so soft you almost missed it in the otherwise quiet room. He closed his eyes, his fingers still gently rubbing the back of your hand as your heart raced inside of your chest and beat so loud you worried he may hear it even from his spot on the bed. You laid there quietly, wondering if tomorrow you may wake up entangled with the man or if you’ll fall asleep like this and shift along with him in the middle of the night and end up away from him like you have been for this whole month.

Either way, you were surprised he hadn’t noticed the way your palms sweat beneath his fingers and knew you were awake the whole time.

Wednesday, September 29th

The month was coming to a conclusion, and much like Atsumu promised you that day outside of your hotel, he hadn’t given up. He hadn’t stopped trying. He pushed harder, he tried harder, and he proved to you again and again this month that he was trying, that you meant more to him than you had originally thought.

And while he still didn’t know about your dealings with the divorce papers, you didn’t regret it one bit. You wanted nothing more than Atsumu, especially after everything this month. You decided you were going to continue watching him closely, but for the first time in this whole month, you trusted him. You trusted him with your heart and you trusted that he wasn’t going to hurt you. At least not deliberately, not on purpose this time.

You had to give the man credit. After all, if all it took was a simple threat, he completely changed and you were proud. You were anxiously waiting for the month to be over now, stirring the soup you were making since you had been feeling a bit sniffly today. You didn’t want to catch yourself sick again, so you were taking extra precautions and took the day off of work. In fact, the more you thought of staying with Atsumu, the more you found yourself going back to the art museum’s help wanted website.

You wanted to change things up. You wanted to work somewhere different; at first you’d been torn, but now that you were sure of what you wanted with Atsumu, it was helping you be sure in other areas of your life as well. This was an opportunity that you didn’t want to pass up, so after you talked with Atsumu about the papers, you thought you’d mention the museum.

After all, he was the one who told you to quit all that time ago. It wasn’t simply mindless words, was it? He did seem to truthfully care about your wellbeing, after all he had been showing you this month you wanted to believe it was true, but one thing you knew for certain was that people often just talked. You didn’t want to up and quit your job if Atsumu wasn’t completely serious, even if you wanted to believe he wasn’t kidding around.

On the other hand, Atsumu couldn’t stop thinking about the other day. The things you’d said to him, the way you told him you loved him, he couldn’t help but getting his hopes up just a little bit. He was aching for you, he wanted to hold you, he missed you. He wanted to kiss you, he wanted to laugh with you, he wanted to reminisce more about the past good times you’d shared together. He wanted to be with you in every single way, but he was too worried about scaring you.

He had made it this long and yet he felt like he couldn’t make it to the end of this month without knowing where your mind was and what you wanted. He wasn’t sure if you had made your mind up yet or if you might have even changed your mind at all. He was completely unaware of whether or not you still wanted to be with him or if you wanted nothing to do with him, but more importantly than that, he wasn’t sure if everything he’d done so far was worth it.

He put his everything into this month, he truthfully wanted to change. Not because you told him to, but because he believed that he needed to. Because he saw the way he’d hurt you in a new light— because he finally knew how little you felt to him before and he never wanted you to feel that way again. He knew he mouthed off, he knew he thought too little about his words and actions. He lost sight of how important turning on the coffee pot could be, but that wasn’t something he’d forget again. He wasn’t going to stop working on it, he didn’t want to. He was going to be better for you, all he hoped was that you might let him be. That you wouldn’t give up on him like he had given up on you. He’d never regretted something more than hurting you and he refused to do it again. He knew this wasn’t going to be the last time the two of you fought, but if you gave him another chance, this was the last time you’d ever feel like it was unfixable.

Even if it did take everything he had, he would give it to you— that was what marriage was, right? Giving each other everything even when you felt like you couldn’t give any more. Not giving up on each other no matter what the fight was about. Never making your partner feel how Atsumu had been making you feel lately. He swore this was it— the last time he was going to let you feel so poor, and he not only made that promise to you, but to himself.

It didn’t matter to him anymore how he felt. Before he nearly pitied himself when he felt like his advances were going right off your back, but he couldn’t care anymore. Even if his advances had been ignored in the past, that meant nothing to him anymore, because he’d meant what he said before: this was on him and he wasn’t foolish enough to mistake that. He knew it was up to him, not you, to reach out. It was like communication lines died between the two of you, but that didn’t mean it was unfixable.

However he didn’t blame you for even a second for thinking that it was unfixable. It was unfixable on your part because it wasn’t your job to fix it, not this time, and not in the future either. He wasn’t going to leave the fixing up to you anymore and just give up on you. He was done storming out mid-fight because he felt like he was in the right and you were wrong. He was done making you feel like he was impossible to talk to because he wouldn’t listen. He was done sitting with the knowledge that you had to think it could be your fault. He was disgusted that he acted the way he did, but this was his promise to himself now.

Instead of being disgusted with himself, he was going to change it. He was going to fix what he’d messed up because that was only the beginning and minimum of what you deserved.

Thursday, September 30th

Today was a long day, and he knew exactly why. It was the 30th, the last day of September. He’d had a good couple days this week reminiscing with you, but this was it— tomorrow was undeniable. Tomorrow was the 1st, tomorrow was his cut-off. You’d set the date a month ago now, completely sure of what you had wanted and yet changing your mind completely as the month went on, all thanks to the man who was unaware your mind had completely changed.

From the kitchen, Atsumu looked towards the sofa where you sat, a notebook in front of you as you twisted and tied a pretty bracelet with blues and purples together. He slowly started to walk over to you, a glass of cold water in hand after a long day and a cool, refreshing shower, but nothing was able to snap him out of his own head. He sat on the sofa, further away from you than before tonight because he wanted to give you your space. He took a quick sip of the water before setting it gently on the coffee table in front of the two of you.

“That looks really pretty.” He commented. You spared him a quick glance before turning your head back to the multiple strings as you tied another little knot in the bracelet.

“Thank you.” You said simply. He fiddled with his fingers, feeling like an awkward 14 year old boy who had a girl over to his house for the first time and yet the two of you had instead been dating since you were 17 years old. “I’m making it for a friend.” You elaborated, shocking the man who was expecting the conversation to end at your thanks.

“I bet your friend will like it.”

“I hope so,” you finished off one final loop with one color and sighed quietly, setting the bracelet on the coffee table and giving your fingers and arm a stretch as you leaned back on the sofa. Your fingers were tired as you stretched them out and popped them before looking over at Atsumu who was watching you with an almost sad look on his face. “What?” You asked innocently. The man scooted a bit closer to you, giving a soft sigh as you looked at him and he looked towards his lap.

“Look, I… I know that time is almost up.” He started. “I really meant what I said— I do love ya. I don’t know how yer feeling about the end of the month bein’ here now, but… but ya mean the world to me and I really hope that ya’ll give me one more chance. I mean it when I say this is it— this is the last chance I need. I’m takin’ this more serious than I’ve ever taken anything before. I won’t let ya down again if ya give me this chance.” Slowly, you scooted closer to the man who continued to look at his lap. You gently reached for his face and made him look at you.

There was a confused look on his face, but when you leaned in and pressed your lips to his, his heart felt like it stopped beating in his chest entirely for a moment. He was quick to kiss you back, pressing a hand to the sofa beside your leg and pushing his lips harder against your own.

Unfortunately, you pulled back, but you pressed your forehead to his softly before speaking.

“It’s okay, ‘Tsumu.” You said, pressing another sweet kiss to his puckered lips as he kept his eyes closed and prayed that this wasn’t some sick dream his brain concocted during a midday nap. Your soft tone was making his heart that he once swore completely stopped beat fast and hard in his chest with every kiss. “Just kiss me.” He pushed his lips back to yours without hesitation, leaning closer to you than he had in what felt like forever.

Slowly, you leaned back on the sofa onto your elbows. He easily moved along with you, sitting on his knees between your legs and continuing to kiss you in a desperate way that surpassed any way he’d kissed you after even your worst of fights in the past. When you got all the way back on the sofa and wrapped your arms around his shoulders, he suddenly pulled back without any warning.

“What… what about the papers?” He asked quietly as you peeked your eyes open at the man. “Does this mean… are ya gonna give me another chance? Yer not gonna leave me?” He spoke softly, a desperate tone and only swallowing hard as you gently shook your head and looked into his pretty brown eyes with a small smile growing on your face.

“I got rid of those a long time ago.” You said in reference to the papers. “I trust you.” Atsumu didn’t say another word, kissing you again quickly, something that you immediately returned to the man. You slid a hand up into his hair as he got comfortable on top of you, sinking down into the kiss without a single thought in his mind aside from how much he had missed this as his tongue pushed into your mouth.