Akaashi

"FUCK!" He cried out, sprinting off down the alley. His breathing came ragged and unorganized, and he pulled at the strings of his backpack, tightening it against his back. His eyes burned, pupils dilated, tears wet his neck and shirt.

He, Akaashi Keiji, was going to die. He didn't know how but he knew he probably would if he stopped running. Tears drenched his cheeks and dripped onto his shirt, and he could feel his shoes loosening. He silently cursed his sense of style and his hatred of knots and laziness when it comes to tying his shoes. This was one of the days where he wished he took that extra 15 seconds to tie them instead of tucking the strings into the shoe.

He never felt the need to reevaluate but, when you're sprinting away from someone like you've never ran before, you think about stupid shit that is completely unnecessary. Such as, why the hell did he always forget his wallet. And cellphone. Or, why did he decide to use this alley? Like ever? He had no clue, and his head was reeling for answers as he veered with the turn of the walls.

Although, he realized he'd have to pull something out of the miracle chest that Akaashi seemed to endlessly have access to mostly due to the fact that in just 50 feet he needed to make a decision: left or right?

Although, his brain decided that it was the best time to not function at all.

"Left or right?" His mind wailed.

He wracked his brain for a choice, whimpering and sobbing as he ran. He stepped in a small hole in the ground filled with rainwater. His foot and pant leg were drenched, and the back of his shoe sagged off his heel. The ghostly pain from when he injured his ankle haunted him, and his heels and the soles of his feet would undoubtably have severe blisters. His lungs burned, his heart pumped in his throat, his head, everywhere he could feel adrenaline coursing in his blood. He had to make a decision though, and quickly.

The foot steps behind him got closer and louder, the pace speeding up. He knew better than to look back. He would panic to much.

"Left or fucking right?"

Yet, he couldn't help himself. Checking over his shoulder, he saw how close the man was. In all reality, maybe his vision distorted but the distance made him gag a bit as he cried out.

His brain scrambled, turning itself inside out just to figure out a simple right or left question, in a crucial situation. He knew this was the turn closest to his neighborhood simply because of the art, but slight disorientation due to panic did not allow for a solution. His nose was clogged with snot, but he could vaguely breathe through the left nostril, and his right foot was soaked and in pain.

"Left?" He planted under his breath.

Frankly, he would never admit that's how he chose, but he sprinted around the left corner, and God bless everything that was good in that moment as the alleyway revealed a street and his neighborhood.

"Boy, do I know how to pick 'em..." He thought, veering towards the first fence he needed to jump. "Is that how it feels when you have no idea how to answer a question on a test and you guess?"

He shook his head, checking over his shoulder. The man had stopped running and stood in the shadows, but that didn't mean Akaashi would stop. He sprinted on, and noticed when he propped a foot up on a fence that he lost a shoe. He hoisted himself up and over the fence scraping the ball of his foot, landing his a bush. Twigs and leaves broke off in his hair and scratched his visible skin. He groaned lightly, before coming to his senses. He rolled to the side, crashing to the ground with a loud thump. The impact knocked the breath out of him, but in the next second he pried himself off the ground, and limped towards the next fence.

He landed on both feet this time, pain jolting through his legs up to his knees. He continued on, moving in the general direction and noticing with each step the aches grew. The bruising on his forearm along the bone and on his wrist from falling on them. His knees were scraped and all over he had small nicks littering his skin. Judging by the sharp pain in his ankle, he might've sprained it or twisted it. He sprinted down his street now, the familiarity not even phasing him. Nothing could comfort him at that moment. Nothing except maybe Kuroo's strong, warm arms or Yamaguchi's soothing words and specialty tea.

He could see his unkempt shrubs, and the powder blue of his house and his white trims, and tears welled in his eyes again. He skidded in his grass, kicking up clumps as he scrambled up his steps careening into his door. He banged his hand raw against it, jiggling the handle frantically. "Tadashi! Please, Tadashi, hurry!" He choked out, leaning his body against it as his body shook with anxiety. "I'm so scared..." He twisted around looking over his shoulder. Did the man catch up without him noticing?

There was a soft click, almost unnoticeable, and the door swung open. He stumbled forward, unprepared, with Yamaguchi grabbing him and steadying him.

"Keiji, what the actual fuck happened to you?"

________________________________

"Okay, wow, that was terrifying to listen to..." Yamaguchi said softly, biting his lip. He wrapped both hands around his mug of tea, brining it to his lips. "That's some shit, right there..." He muttered, blowing into the liquid. He glanced up. "That may explain why you took a while."

"Yeah.. I guess..." Akaashi muttered, gripping his own, staring into the darkness of it. He watched the ripple, and observed how the cuts of his cheeks, chin and forehead in his reflection morphed.

"I'll stay here with you. You can sleep, or eat, or we can watch Stranger Things-" Akaashi's head snapped up, his face contorted with surprise. "What, you're that determined to watch stranger things?"

"N-No, Tadashi, but what about your perfect attendance record since like the third grade?"

"Honestly, you were literally just chased by some murderous, most likely a rapist, psycho down a disgusting alleyway. I should be taking you to therapy."

Akaashi's lips parted, but Yama said something before he could. "The least I can do is cuddle you and make sure you're okay. Now, c'mon, we'll go to my comfy ass bed."

Akaashi nodded and brought his mug. They slid under the warm covers, and their legs intertwined. They spoke, about trivial things, and made shitty knock knock jokes just so they could smile easily as they absentmindedly traced the paisley patterns. Yamaguchi slid a hand up, cupping Akaashi's soft cheek, wiping away a tear from their laughter with his thumb.

"How exactly do you do it?"

"Do what?" Akaashi answered, covering Yama's hand with his own.

"You literally still look like you just got done with some photoshoot, or had a makeup artist add some cut to your face for your part in some dramatic action movie where you're the traumatically beautiful femme fatale gay boy who takes it up the ass from some like giant rock of a man who has a cock the size of my-..." He spluttered on, making Akaashi laugh hysterically and push his other hand over his mouth. Yama pushed it away giggling. "The point is, you're just so obnoxiously beautiful. It's not fair and I call bullshit."

"I love you Tadashi." He murmured, touching their foreheads together lightly. He dipped his head down into the crook of Yam's neck, nestling in, shutting his eyes.

"So... I'm guessing no Stranger things?" Yamaguchi teased softly, throwing an arm around Akaashi, pulling him close.

AN: Hey lmao totally platonic but I love them and their relationship so I was like wee fluff