Kiss Me (Like You Wanna Be Loved)

Chapter Two: First Impressions

As soon as his class lets out, Keiji goes directly to Bokuto's apartment.

The building is relatively old, but well taken care of. Bokuto's room is on the fifth floor, which is a downside since there's no elevator, but it's certainly not a deal-breaker. Especially when the building is close enough to campus that it'll only add five minutes to his walk to class. Plus there's a grocery store right down the street and a large konbini next door, which is definitely a positive.

Keiji tries to focus on the convenience of the konbini's onigiri stock being oh so close as he trudges up the ten flights of stairs. He's only slightly winded by the time he makes it to apartment 504. He knocks on the door and a moment later it flies open.

Keiji's first impression of Bokuto is that he's big-and not just physically with his height and broad shoulders and well-muscled arms, but also his energy and his smile and his booming voice as he greets, "Hey, hey, hey! You must be Akashi!"

"It's Akaashi," he corrects, slipping off his shoes in the genkan. "It's nice to meet you, Bokuto-san."

"Come in, come in!" he says brightly. "I'll show you around!"

The excessive use of exclamation marks makes a lot of sense now that Keiji sees him in person, considering the guy is basically a walking exclamation mark himself. He's wearing baggy athletic shorts and a tight white t-shirt which makes him look like a stereotypical jock-meaning: aggressively heterosexual and obnoxiously hot. It's much easier to picture him on the court or doing a keg stand than in a classroom. Thankfully his hair is ridiculous-white streaked with black and styled into gravity-defying spikes-so it prevents him from being overwhelmingly attractive.

Keiji follows as Bokuto leads the way into the apartment and rambles on, seemingly without breathing between sentences. He details the cost of rent and utilities (fortunately within Keiji's budget) and explains why his former roommate left (unfortunately due to a sick family member). Keiji doesn't get much of a chance to talk, but that suits him fine and gives him time to look around and assess.

The living room is sparsely furnished with a low dining table surrounded by plush cushions for sitting, a small couch, and a TV on a stand in one corner. The kitchen is quite nice-not very spacious, but there's enough counter space that it's not cramped. Keiji strongly prefers to cook his own meals, though he hasn't been doing that much lately because the community kitchens in the dorm are a hell-zone. His eyes linger on the stove, which looks to be a shiny newer model.

"You like to cook?" Bokuto guesses, and Keiji turns to give him a questioning look. The other boy shrugs, "No reason to check out the kitchen like that if you didn't intend to use it."

Keiji gives a slight nod. "I hate the dorm kitchens," he admits. "They're always dirty and overcrowded."

"Well, you won't have to worry about that here!" Bokuto says. "I don't cook much! Well, sometimes breakfast, but for dinner I usually just grab take-out after practice."

Keiji hums in acknowledgement and follows Bokuto toward the bedrooms.

"That one's mine," he says pointing down the hall to a half-open door that reveals a partial view of an unmade bed. "And this one would be yours!" He gestures like he's presenting a prize on a gameshow then steps out of the way, allowing Keiji to walk inside.

The room is small but bright, with one wide window to let in light. There's a desk in one corner and a bed in the other, the twin-sized mattress stripped bare. Keiji turns to glance at Bokuto in the doorway. "It's already furnished?"

"Ah, well, the bed and desk are actually Tatsuki's," he explains. "He said he'll be back for them eventually, but yeah, for now you're free to use 'em!"

"I see." Keiji had been worried he'd have to dip deep into his savings to buy some apartment essentials, so this is honestly better than expected. In fact, aside from Bokuto's absolute lack of an indoor voice, this all seems pretty much perfect.

There's got to be a catch.

"So, what do you think?" Bokuto asks. He leans against the doorframe and crosses his arms over his chest. Keiji can't help but notice the way his muscles bulge at the motion, straining the sleeves of his t-shirt. "Any questions?"

Keiji drags his eyes up to Bokuto's face. "Are you dating anyone?"

"Oh. Um." Bokuto blinks at him, then looks off to the side. A soft blush rises up his neck as he scratches at the back of his head. "Er. Well, I'm not really-"

Oh god. Keiji realizes how Bokuto interpreted his question and briefly wishes for death. "I'm not asking for myself-it's just-I mean-" he says in a rush, and great, now he's getting flustered too. This went from perfect to disaster in two seconds flat. He takes a quick calming breath. "My last roommate had his girlfriend over nearly every night. It's part of what drove me to leave, and I don't wish to repeat that."

"Oh!" Bokuto says with a little huff of a laugh. "I thought-"

"I know what you thought. I assure you that is not the situation."

"Heh, yeah, no I'm not dating anyone." He waves his hand dismissively, and Keiji is thankful he doesn't drag out the awkward moment. "I'm waaaay too busy with volleyball for something like that. I, uh, do like to have friends over sometimes, so we could set up rules for guests and stuff, and if you ever want to bring a girl over-"

"I won't," Keiji says quickly. Probably a little too quickly. He doesn't really want to explain that he's 1) extremely gay 2) very much a virgin 3) too socially awkward to even make friends and 4) focusing entirely on his studies right now. He's not even sure which part of that is the most embarrassing to admit.

But he can see the question forming in Bokuto's eyes and he winces preemptively as the other boy asks, "Oh, are you like ace or something?"

Huh. That's... not the question he was expecting. And there's no judgement in his tone, just pure curiosity, so Keiji probably doesn't have to worry about Bokuto being homophobic. He must take too long to reply, though, because before he can formulate a response Bokuto is rambling again.

"Oh jeeze, sorry-that was really personal, wasn't it? You don't have to answer! It's okay if you are! Or if you aren't! I didn't mean to offend you or anything, I'm-"

"It's alright," Keiji cuts in. "I'm not offended, and I'm not asexual. I simply have no interest in dating at the moment, so it is extremely unlikely I will be bringing anyone home."

"Ah. Okay. Cool." He gives a sheepish smile. "Sorry, sometimes I say things without really thinking."

"So I've noticed. But it's fine. I don't see it being a problem."

"Really?" His lips start to stretch into a grin. "It doesn't bother you?"

"I doubt we'll be spending enough time together for it to bother me."

"Oh. Right." And just as quickly as he perked up, he deflates. This guy's mood flips like a switch.

Keiji doesn't know what to make of that, so he continues on like the well-built college student in front of him isn't pouting like a child denied dessert. "As far as having guests over, that's fine by me so long as it's not every day. I would only ask that you let me know ahead of time if possible."

"I can do that!" Bokuto says. "And yeah, it probably won't happen too often. Like I said, I'm busy busy busy with volleyball."

"Right," Keiji says, and he realizes he's fidgeting with his fingers so he forces himself to stop before asking, "Then, do you have any questions for me?"

And he's expecting the standard inquiries about his income, his habits, his schedule.

But all Bokuto asks is, "When can you move in?"

Keiji pauses, considers, makes his decision. "Tomorrow?"

And Bokuto smiles, wide and bright, and for the first time in a long time Keiji feels like things might just turn out alright.