iwaizumi sat on the bench, retying his skates. he sprayed water into his mouth. suicides on skates were the worst. conditioning practices were iwaizumi's least favorite practices, but he knew he need them. he was about to enter the rink when kyoutani blocked his way. "practice is cut short today, someone reserved the ice," he grunted, pushing past his teammate.

"what the fuck?" iwaizumi muttered. "how come nobody told me?" he called to kyoutani's back.

kyoutani turned around. "coach just told us. none of us knew," he explained. "don't think coach even knew 'til some guy came in and handed him the schedule. looked pretty smug about it too," he said bitterly.

"who wants the rink?" iwaizumi asked incredulously.

"some figure skater," kyoutani spit. "can't believe it. they can dance or whatever the hell it is they do on the ground. we actually need the ice."

"i thought we reserved the rink for two hours on mondays?" iwaizumi said, trying to get kyoutani away from insulting the skaters. as much as he wasn't happy about this, there was no need to be disrespectful.

kyoutani shook his head. "coach only reserves it for an hour. usually, no one comes in after us so we have until close. looks like that figure skating guy has the rink the hour after us every monday 'til january." his signature scowl deepened.

"until january?" iwaizumi cried. "but what about the winter cup? we're a young team. we need the extra practice."

kyoutani shrugged. "coach should'a made sure we had the two hours. nothing we can do about it." he turned around and left for the locker rooms. iwaizumi followed, wondering how he could help the team.

the next month iwaizumi came to monday conditioning no matter how much he was dreading it. he was secretly glad that the figure skater - who's name he learned was oikawa - reserved the rink because that meant conditioning was cut short. a bigger part of him knew that the team needed the extra hour they were losing every week. for the few weeks they had been without the ice, the team would go jogging after they were told to leave. iwaizumi had joined them, knowing he could use all the extra stamina he could get, especially since he was a starter. one week, kuroo had held a street game at the cul de sac he lived at. most of the team showed up and it was fun, but it really wasn't the same. soon enough, iwaizumi was itching for more time on the ice.

he figured if he stayed behind one monday, maybe tried to talk to this oikawa guy, he could cut a deal with him. maybe he'll be reasonable, iwaizumi thought hopefully. he was about to find out that he was very wrong.

"iwaizumi! get your ass in gear!" bokuto teased, grinning at him. the entire team was waiting with their bags, restlessly tapping or shuffling their feet, waiting for iwaizumi to finish up.

iwaizumi waved them off. "go on without me. i have something to do." kuroo and bokuto shared a glance that iwaizumi couldn't read but said nothing.

"see you tomorrow!" nishinoya called, a chorus of goodbyes following. iwaizumi nodded and waved goodbye to his team.

the stands were empty, as they always were this time of week. iwaizumi crept to the very top of the stands, hoping not to be noticed by oikawa, who was currently near the bench messing with an old boombox. he slipped a cd into the player and pressed the button, hastily skating towards the center of the rink moments after. iwaizumi recognized the song from the first few chords - a song that wasn't all too popular, superman. it was an interesting choice. the song was extremely emotional, especially with ivory lane's rich voice. iwaizumi couldn't wait to see how he pulled it off.

iwaizumi, as tough as he looked, was a bit of a sucker for figure skating. ever since he was born, he watched the skating events with his mother, amazed at the skaters' fluid motions. he had tried figure skating but decided it wasn't for him. his love for skating soon blossomed into his passion for hockey, leading him to where he was then. he still watched every skating event he could.

iwaizumi was not disappointed. oikawa's skating conveyed every feeling in the song to the precipice of perfection. faster and more complex skating made the bittersweet points even sweeter and slow, sweeping movements matched both the tempo and the story behind the more upsetting parts. the thing that amazed iwaizumi the most was how graceful the skater was. it was truly beautiful, watching him slide around the ice effortlessly. it was a bit of an understatement to say that oikawa was truly alluring.

his finish was strong and iwaizumi considered clapping, despite wanting to keep the fact that he was watching to himself. oikawa's back was to where he was sitting, but iwaizumi still heard him say cockily, "don't think i don't know you're here iwaizumi. you can clap."

iwaizumi scoffed, not caring to wonder how oikawa knew his name. "i wouldn't be so smug if i were you," he said. "your catch-foot camel spin could use a bit of work." of course, this was a complete lie. oikawa's catch-foot camel spin was practically a text book example, he just wasn't prepared for oikawa to be so confident; it was a bit overwhelming. he walked down to meet oikawa where he was sitting at the bench.

oikawa raised an eyebrow in surprise. "you know your moves. i'm impressed. but no matter," he waved at the air dismissively. "i know you didn't come here to talk skating, nor watch me skate. what are you actually here for?"

iwaizumi didn't expect oikawa to catch on that quickly. "i just wanted to talk to you about your practice schedule and how it effects ours."

"ours being the hockey team's?" oikawa asked, seeking clarification. iwaizumi nodded. "hmm, i see. now i'm guessing you'll be wanting your second hour block back on mondays, am i correct?"

iwaizumi shook his head. "no completely. i was wondering if we could have maybe every other monday? our winter cup is coming up and we could really use the practice."

oikawa crossed his arms over his chest. "mhm. so, let me ask you iwaizumi, have you taken into account the fact that i need this practice as much as you do?" iwaizumi blinked. he hadn't thought about it. "mhm," oikawa hummed again. "i thought as much. i have a competition the first week of january. i need the practice too. i'm sorry. i do wish your team the best of luck with the cup." he stood up, lifiting himself off of the bench. as he walked down to the locker rooms, he didn't stop nor turn around to say, "and feel free to come and watch my practices again. i could use an audience."

iwaizumi tried to ignore the pounding in his chest. 

it didn't work.

₪

the next week after practice, iwaizumi once again informed the team he would be joining them. the week after that, he said the same thing. at that point, it was december, a month before the cup and oikawa's competition. after the fourth week of skipping the after-practice (as terushima not-so-fondly called it) bokuto and kuroo confronted iwaizumi.

"dude, this is nothing like you," bokuto cried while kuroo nodded supportively beside him. 

"you must really like this oikawa guy," kuroo said, winking and jabbing iwaizumi's ribs.

iwaizumi's eyes widened. "i have no idea what you're talking about," he insisted, but bokuto and kuroo weren't as clueless - nor as gullible - as he had thought.

"we know where you go after practice," bokuto stated seriously, leaning into iwaizumi's face. he was obviously trying to intimidate iwaizumi but was failing miserably.

kuroo sighed hopelessly. "dude, you're whipped. we know you go and watch oikawa practice after us everyday," he said, sounding bored with the whole thing. bokuto nodded eagerly.

"i-it isn't like i like him or anything," iwaizumi scowled distastefully, but he could feel his cheeks betray him by heating up.

"whatever lover boy," kuroo smirked. "go and meet your boyfriend. don't let us keep you."

"he isn't my boyfriend!" iwaizumi yelled as he walked into the rink. at this point, it was normal and expected for iwaizumi to come and watch oikawa practice, so he placed his bag underneath the bench and sat himself down next to the ever-present boombox. 

oikawa was already on the ice. "who isn't your boyfriend?" he asked curiously. he was wearing his usual parctice attire - a t-shirt and leggings - but for the first time iwaizumi seemed to notice how well it suited him.

"no one," he muttered. 

oikawa frowned but didn't press the subject. "put on track six, would you?"

iwaizumi did as he was told. oikawa was his normal chatty self but iwaizumi was too distracted and lost in thought to actually pay him any attention. do i like oikawa? he thought to himself. no, there's no way. but the more he thought about it, the more it made sense. staying after to watch him practice, getting defensive when asked about him, getting nervous to see him, it all would make sense if he liked oikawa. which he didn't. unless he did..

"iwaizumi, are you even listening to me?" 

when iwaizumi came back down to earth, oikawa was standing in front of him shaking his shoulders, faces so close their noses brushed together. oikawa's hands felt like electricity going through iwaizumi's skin. he was in fact not listening, so he shook his head, causng oikawa to sigh heavily. "i said, i have an offer."

iwaizumi raised an eyebrow suspiciously and leaned back away from oikawa. "what kind of offer?"

"let's just say it has something to do with a certain ice rink on a certain day that a certain team wants," oikawa said teasingly, grinning like a fool.

"what's this offer?" iwazumi asked cautiously.

oikawa's grin turned into a smirk. "i'll give you guys ever other monday on one condition." oikawa stuck one finger in the air matter-of-factly. "you," oikawa poked iwaizumi's chest with his finger. "go on a date with me."

iwaizumi choked on his spit. "i what?"

"you go on a date with me," oikawa repeated easily, shrugging his shoulders. "it's no secret you like me and don't have the balls to ask me out yourself. i'm helping you and the team."

"i- who said i like you?" iwaizumi sputtered, not helping to make it sound like he didn't like oikawa.

oikawa shrugged. "skater's intuition. now tell me, where are we going on this date?"

₪

iwaizumi didn't come to the rink after practice. instead, he took the hour to properly shower and change into nice clothes. after the hour was up, oikawa came into the locker room and wolf whistled. "hot, iwa-chan!" he teased, looking the boy up and down. "give me a few minutes to change and i'll be right out," he said, pushing iwaizumi out of the locker room.

when oikawa did come out of the locker room, iwaizumi's jaw nearly dropped to the floor. "you clean up nicely," he said. it was supposed to sound teasing, but he seriously meant it. what he was wearing wasn't anything super fancy - just skinny jeans, a red flannel, and a white t-shirt with an alien stitched with black thread into the chest pocket - but he looked amazing.

oikawa laughed. "wait until you see me at competition," he said. "that is, if you'd like to go. obviously, you don't have to if you don't want to." iwaizumi was surprised; he didn't think oikawa got nervous but he sure as hell sounded nervous at the moment.

iwaizumi smiled genuinely. "as long as you come to the winter cup i have no complaints." oikawa's smile grew at least three sizes.

the two walked in silence for a while, but it was comfortable. they walked close enough that thier hands and shoulder brushed against each other. each time they did, iwaizumi almost had a heart attack. oikawa was the one to break the silence, as he usually was. "where are you taking me?" he asked quietly. his smile was still uncharacteristically large and genuine.

"bowling," iwaizumi said, unwilling to keep it a secret. he figured everyone knew how to bowl, so it wasn't a bad first date idea. however, he was extremely worried that this one bad idea could result in no future dates. he decided not to dwell on it.

oikawa smiled softly. "i love bowling," he replied. the rest of the walk there was wordless. when they walked in, it was suspiciously quiet - the reason being it was completely empty. oikawa threw a sideways glance at iwaizumi but said nothing. iwaizumi waved to some people at the counter who waved back.

"good evening hanamaki, matsukawa," iwaizumi greeted the men.

one of them laughed. "no need to be so formal. loosen up."

iwaizumi grinned. "whatever maki. you know my size. oikawa?"

oikawa, who was standing back a little awkwardly and was a bit confused, stepped forward with his most polite smile. "size ten." hanamaki went to get the shoes.

matsukawa leaned on the counter, dark eyes inspecting oikawa with a smirk. "so this is the famous oikawa."

oikawa laughed nervously. "that's flattering, but i'm not all too famous."

hanamaki brought over the shoes, handing them to iwaizumi. "oh no, believe me, you're famous to us. iwaizumi doesn't shut up about you."

oikawa looked to iwaizumi and took his deep blush as confirmation. "cute," he muttered, not meaning for iwaizumi to hear. he did and his blush spread to his neck.

"we're in a bowling alley," iwaizumi reminded his friends. "and i'm strong enough to throw one of these bowling balls at an impressive speed at your head." both boys straightened up right after that. "now that that's settled.. alley four?" matsukawa nodded and typed something into a computer. the alley's machine came to life, the screens lighting up. "thanks," iwaizumi said gratefully and walked over to the alley. oikawa followed.

when they finished setting up the scoreboard and were putting on their shoes, oikawa finally asked, "why is it so empty in here?"

"it's currently closed," iwaizumi replied simply.

"that makes sen- wait, then how are we in here?" oikawa exclaimed, his surprise showing through his eyes.

"matsukawa's family owns the place and he owed me a favor. him and his boyfriend hanamaki work here. they're both old friends," iwaizumi explained. "it normally isn't open on mondays, but like i said, matsukawa owed me a favor." he glanced to where matsukawa and hanamaki were now making out on top of the counter. "keep it pg!" iwaizumi called. both boys sat up, looking at the other two as if they had forgotten they were there. iwaizumi turned back around. "so it looks like i'm first."

iwaizumi started off strong, two strikes and very few missed pins. oikawa started off shakier, having only a few spares and some missed pins. half way through the game, however, oikawa got into a grove. he had been trying to work on his form, treating the game like he did skating. somehow he had figured out the exact motion and form he had to maintain to hit a strike and did so every frame from then on. matsukawa and hanamaki whooped and hollered every strike oikawa hit, now sitting at the seating area near the alley. "iwaizumi, you are getting your ass beaten," hanamaki laughed.

iwaizumi sighed, but he was smiling. "yeah, i am aren't i?"

"and you aren't even mad?" matsukawa cried. "our small iwaizumi is in love!"

"oh shut up. and don't say that so loud," iwaizumi whispered, glancing over to oikawa. the boys shared a look and nodded, smirking smugly.

oikawa, of course, won the game. they had time for another round, so oikawa made a bet with iwaizumi. "if i win this, you'll take me on another date." iwaizumi may have lost the second game on purpose.

₪

three months later, iwaizumi was sitting in the stands like he had done so many months before to watch oikawa practice. he was now here to watch oikawa compete against the several other hopefuls. after their first bowling date, they had gone on other dates spuratically, but they weren't exclusive. iwaizumi couldn't exactly say oikawa was his boyfriend because he hadn't asked him to be. he had finally grown the 'balls', as oikawa would say, to do it, and figured it might be romantic or whatever to do it after oikawa's competition. to say he was nervous was an understatement.

oikawa wasn't preforming until somewhere around the end, so iwaizumi didn't have to worry about time. he went to a consession stand to buy a sandwhich and a soda. when he came back, the competition had started. all of the young skaters were immensely talented, but he wasn't worried. oikawa was so impressive. he was sure that the boy could beat anyone here.

when the announcers spoke oikawa's name, iwaizumi snapped to attention. he watched intently as oikawa skated the center, the spotlight skining on him brightly. the beginning chords of the song he chose began to play and iwaizumi caught his eyes at the last second. it may have been wishful thinking, but he could've swore the smile that graced oikawa's face was just for him.

it was then iwaizumi was aware of how he was falling for oikawa. watching him move across the ice, iwaizumi couldn't be more proud. he had seen all of the practice he put into the routine and it definitely showed. everything oikawa did was done with a quiet confidence. he had every reason to be confident; oikawa could easily compete with the people already on the top of the leaderboard. iwaizumi just hoped the judges agreed.

it turned out that the judges did agree. oikawa was placed first with only a few skaters left to go. when they announced this, iwaizumi was sure he cheered louder than anyone in the stands. after the last nail-biting quarter hour, it was announced that oikawa had placed second in the regional men's single skater finals. iwaizumi was ecstatic, for oikawa had beaten so many other skaters, but he didn't know what this meant for oikawa moving on.

iwaizumi left the stands and waited in the spot he and oikawa had arranged for. when oikawa saw him, he ran into iwaizumi's outstretched arms, trapping him in a tight hug. "iwa! i made it! i qualify for nationals!" he cheered. happy tears fell down his face, now staning iwaizumi's shirt.

"i'm so proud," iwaizumi whispered.

oikawa sniffled and leaned back, still encased in iwaizumi's arms. "you are?"

iwaizumi nodded. "you put in so much work. it really showed. you were amazing out there."

oikawa giggled. "thanks."

without second thought, iwaizumi leaned in and kissed oikawa. oikawa seemed surprised, but he kissed back, matching the passion that iwaizumi put into it. when they pulled away, oikawa took a deep breath. "i always wanted to do that," he murmured.

"me too. i- uhm, have no idea how to say this," iwaizumi laughed. "i'll just say it. oikawa, would you do me the honor of being my boyfriend?"

oikawa nodded eagerly. "yes. yes, of course. as long as this isn't just some charade to live off of my new found popularity," he joked. iwaizumi shook his head, smiling brillantly. "alright, then consider me your boyfriend." 

iwaizumi couldn't stop himself from kissing his boyfriend again.