As you Shine

1.

Bokuto was like the sun.

He was blinding and a bit disorienting, like ice water to the face, but as Akaashi stood there at the edge of that gymnasium, staring at a man who was rushing from teammate to teammate with the most ridiculous grin on his face, he knew.

That man was a star.

The way he leapt into the sky as if the ground couldn't keep him there, the way he boasted his strengths out loud, clear, and booming, resounding through every heart in the room, and the way he tackled everything (and everyone) with such gusto, like every fiber of his being was meant to do whatever he was set on doing.

He was shining.

And, perhaps, for the first time in Akaashi's life, he wanted to be a part of the brilliance of someone that bright. He wanted to stand by Bokuto's side, if the man—the physical embodiment of stardust—would have him.

Akaashi wanted to play next to him so that he could catch even a glimmer of the warmth Bokuto Koutarou exuded from his very being.

With this thought, he chased after that unattainable sun in the blue, blue sky, and submitted his high school applications for Fukurodani high school.

2.

"Hey, uhh, Akashi-kun."

Akaashi glanced up from his sweeping to come face to face with the sun himself, looking at him with an expression of mild anticipation and sheepishness.

'It's Bokuto Koutarou,' his brain helpfully supplied.

"It's Akaashi," Akaashi numbly added, staring up at the flecks of yellow in those sunset gold eyes. He was almost entirely positive he could get lost in those hues.

"Ah, right, Akashi-kun," Bokuto repeated, completely butchering the freshman's name once more. "Could you please help me practice spikes for just a little bit?"

Akaashi could have refused, but the twinkle in Bokuto's eyes and the unwavering row of perfect, sparkling teeth kept him grounded there.

A star.

He was finally here standing next to a star.

Something ached in his chest, a kind of longing, muted by a dull happiness in living this moment right now. The moment he met Bokuto Koutarou face to face.

And this Bokuto Koutarou wanted to play with him.

How could he ever refuse?

A little bit, he said.

It would be fun, he said.

Akaashi bent over, feeling sweat bead down his face as the distant cries of 'one more!' echoed through the gymnasium. Each breath he took was like fire in his lungs, his body crying out for rest. How many hours had it been? This was a little bit?

"Akashi!"

"It's Akaashi..." he choked out, exhaustion settling into his bones. He glanced up just as Bokuto bounded towards him, a grin as wide as the expanse of the endless sky fixed on his face.

"Your tosses are the best!"

And just like that, it was as if his weariness faded away just as the shadows thinned and disappeared with the break of dawn. Akaashi stood up straight, a prickling, warmth building in his chest, apart from the heat of a strenuous workout.