DISCLAIMER: Images, dialogue and plot all belong to the author of haikyuu at 3am which you can find here: http://03xlimit.tumblr.com/

Time Master A/N:

If 4AM was told to imagine perfection, no other image would come to their mind besides their gorgeous limit, Akaashi Keiji. Limit 214 embodied perfection in every aspect. Early to bed, early to rise, highest scoring student on all of his exams, glamorous at all of his extracurricular activities – 4AM knew about everything regarding their Limit –at least they thought they did.

Blinded by their rose-colored glasses, 4AM has trouble really seeing that Limit 214 is not what he actually seems to be. Limit 214's extracurricular activities were not normal in any sense of the word.

Akaashi Keiji was good at many things, but high on his priorities list was getting exactly what he wanted –and with his looks, the world was practically eating out of the palm of his delicate hands. His supermodel parents instilled in him from a young age that with the bat of his eyelashes he could bring anyone to their knees. With their words and practice, they armed him with the power to swoon men and women before he was even old enough to own his own car and complete high school, enabling him to work his way up social ladders. Everything came very naturally to Limit 214: people were simple visual creatures, easily predictable, and most of all, annoying. Unfortunately, Akaashi felt like he didn't have much to offer humanity or vice versa, yet he attracted people like a magnet.

Spending most of his young life able to read people and getting whatever life could offer him eventually had the consequence of boring him to tears. This boredom leads Limit 214 to his not-so-well-looked-upon activity of extortion by running the most organized underground syndicate in the country, of course while still managing to keep his decent public image. The adrenaline that comes with fraudulence and scams renews Akaashi excitement for life, until his thrilling dreams start to weigh him down as nightmares. Needless to say when a Dream Catcher called 4AM repeatedly appears in his life to calm those terrors, things become even more exciting... to his dismay.

At first, Limit 214 ignores 4AM, often pretending as if they cannot see them leaning over his shoulder to look at letters he writes to his gang members. 4AM has proven to him they are not worth his time as they have easily fallen for his looks like everyone else, which Akaashi became bored of as usual.

Yet, every time when 4AM brings around golden books from his "library", Akaashi's curiosity peaks. Finally deciding to actively dismiss 4AM's heavy, excited breathing from the corner of his room, Limit 214 asks if he could also read what his Dream Catcher has in their hands. Akaashi is perplexed when 4AM will not let him look at their book's contents due to "Knowhere's" rules and also becomes slightly peeved that someone had the nerve to deny him his request. After trying to use his charms on 4AM and not gaining a reaction, he begins to see a world in which he cannot get what he wants.

In desperation, Akaashi snaps at 4AM to just give into to him because he's handsome and that he doesn't have a right to deny him. 4AM cheerfully agrees that he is handsome, but that is not the reason he should get everything that he wants. Akaashi disagrees, telling 4AM it's how he's received everything he's ever wanted in his life thus far –but 4AM genuinely believes it was because of his charming personality, to which Akaashi laughs at. If the gossip behind Akaashi's back rang true – Limit 214 was anything but charming—charismatic in the wrong ways, yes, but charming in the way 4AM was suggesting seemed like a stretch. If Akaashi could properly recall he was more feared than...charming.

When Limit 214 continues to disagree with 4AM, 4AM takes him to the Midnight Palace ballroom of memories without permission and the two share a dance. The palace's ballroom takes Limits through their life's memories as long as they share a waltz with their Dream Catchers. 4AM shows Akaashi simple good deeds he has fulfilled when he was younger – helping hurt animals, drying his friends' tears, writing letters to his sick relatives—the small meaningful activities Akaashi had somehow forgotten. Though his life had deviated from what it used to be, 4AM never stopped believing Limit 214 had a kind heart as time passed (although of course 4AM was still very proud of their Limit's beauty).

Overwhelmed, Akaashi freezes in the middle of the ballroom coming to the conclusion it just may be the first time someone is finally seeing him. Upon returning to the world of Limits, Akaashi gives up his life of being a cruel leader and transforms his gang to instead perform good tasks around his city instead of terrorism. Thanks to 4AM, he figures out that more people are willing to help him once he is honest and caring, which of course comes as initial shock to his most loyal companions. When his nightmares finally subside, the weight of no longer hiding makes Limit 214 begin to appreciate 4AM's company more so than any other human he's ever encountered.