Chapter Text
Miyagi in the springtime brought out a different type of nostalgia with Iwaizumi Hajime. He had almost forgotten how the warm winds blew in his face, making his clothes gently flutter against his body. He missed how the countryside used to talk to him when he walked down the familiar roads. The birds chirped as if they were welcoming him home and the leaves on the trees were waving him hello.
Perhaps he didn’t realise how homesick he was until now. After spending the past few years away, it was good to be home. Iwaizumi missed the view of this town, reminiscing on the same buildings he used to walk with his friends from school back home.
As he lugged his suitcase behind him and adjusted his backpack, he took in another deep breath of the fresh air. He turned the next corner, and his heart stuttered. His familiar home—the one where he grew up in; the one where he would bring home cicadas to show his mother and then let them go into the backyard—he almost cried when his hand hit the door handle.
“I’m home!” he cried out, hoping for a warm welcome from his family. His voice was louder than he expected.
“Already?!” Iwaizumi heard his father stumble out of the living room into view. He had gloves on, and his hair was all ruffled. “Welcome home, son! Sorry about all the mess. We're in the middle of packing up.”
“Hajime, welcome home,” his mother chimed in, popping her head out from the hallway.
He could definitely see all the mess. Almost everything was in boxes, and he could see cleaning equipment everywhere. He had just gotten home, and this was what he was welcomed to. “Thanks?” He lowered his suitcase handle to give his dad a quick hug. “Why are you guys cleaning? Why is everything in boxes? Are we moving?”
“We're just getting rid of everything we don't need. After we heard you were coming home, we didn’t want you walking into a mess. It's been years since you came home to stay for this long after all.” His mother grabbed his hand and led him to the kitchen, “Do you want to eat? I’ll make us some lunch. It must've been a long train ride.”
“You didn’t have to clean up everything. It's not like I would've forgotten where I grew up.”
His mother crossed his arms and huffed, “Our son comes back home after a while, of course we have to clean up!”
He laughed and pull her in for a quick hug. “It's okay. I’m gonna go meet Oikawa later. I just wanted to drop off my things; I’ll be back for dinner and then I can help you clean up. I gotta get some of my old stuff packed up back to Tokyo anyway.”
“Things never do change. You were always with Oikawa-kun since you were kids. I’m glad you two are still close, it's very sweet. I used to miss watching you two play volleyball all the time. With your new job opportunities, I guess it's hard to stick together.” He knew his mother meant well but it gave him the chills knowing more than half his life, he had spent with that brown-haired man.
His father jumped into the conversation, “When did Oikawa-kun get back? I haven't seen him since he came back for that one year for the Olympics.” That was seven years ago.
Iwaizumi wasn't exactly sure why his best friend was back either. Oikawa rarely came back to Japan, even for a visit. The 2028 Olympics were coming up next year and he was sure that Oikawa would've been focused on training for that. The only reason he came down back to Miyagi was to move some of his belongings to his Tokyo apartment. It was one of the only weeks he had available and he wanted to spend some quality time with his family.
He had emailed Oikawa about his plans home months ago, and for some reason, his best friend wanted in too. From what Oikawa briefly said to him on the phone, he would only be staying for a few days.
“I think he got back yesterday. I’ll be back later!” He quickly grabbed his suitcase and threw it into his bedroom and waved goodbye to his parents.
“When you get back, you've got a package to open! It's addressed to you!” He heard his father yell as he was always halfway out the door. He didn’t even bother to change into cleaner clothes—he was just excited to be home and spend time with his closest friend.
He was almost tempted to do a hop, skip and a jump but refrained as he is a very manly man. Iwaizumi was headed towards a particular café that was still around back when he was in high school. He rarely ever went there since he didn’t like to drink anything other than water, but it was a good meeting spot to kill time.
But just as he approached the next atreet of houses, he could've sworn he heard a familiar voice whisper in his ear. He immediately stopped to look in all sorts of directions. Was he just hallucinating? It was probably just the wind.
That was until his feet led him to an old, yet recognisable park. It was built right in the middle of a residential area. The familiar houses he used to walk by on his way home from school were knocked down for newer homes even though the population of Miyagi hadn't increased that much.
There was one thing that hadn't changed though—the huge cherry blossom tree that was the centrepiece of the park. He felt like it had gotten smaller, or was it him who was bigger? The colours of the petals reminded him of his high school days. He used to come here and just look at the tree when he had time. It was oddly soothing. Not to mention this park held sentimental value to him.
On the opposite side of the road, were the new houses he previously mentioned. It shouldn't have made him feel so sad to see the old houses gone but it did.
A good five minutes later, he arrived at the café. The scent of freshly baked bread and coffee was exhilarating. Seijoh’s iconic volleyball captain (from 2012-2013) then stepped into the spotlight with his hair flowing in the wind. Iwaizumi could've sworn he heard music play in the background. Some things never change, including this man’s aura and presence.
“Iwa-chan~ I missed you!” Iwaizumi couldn't stop a smile from appearing on his face. Even though he hated that nickname, he brought in his best friend into a hug and gave him a hard slap on the back. “Ouch!”
“It's good to see you, Oikawa.” The two took a seat by the café window. “I’m surprised you even had time to come back to Japan. You hardly ever send me emails or calls.” He hated to admit it, but he genuinely missed hanging out with his friend. It gave him a sense of belonging and comfort in a sense.
“Sorry, sorry. I really am busy. When you told me you were coming back, I got FOMO, so I had to! You don't know how hard I had to convince my team.” Oikawa shivered at the thought.
“So, what you're saying is—you read my emails but just can't be bothered even writing back. Best friend you are.”
“Wait! Before you hit me, look what I found!” Oikawa held his hand out to protect his pretty face. “Look!” With his other hand, he revealed a familiar volume of an old Volleyball Monthly magazine. Specifically, it was the one where the Aoba Johsai volleyball team had a small segment back in 2012.
Oikawa had opened it to the page with his profile when he was seventeen, along with the rest of the Seijoh four at the bottom of the page. It was definitely an old copy Oikawa had laying around; there were so many drawings all over the shiny paper and it seemed as though Oikawa had scribbled his signature everywhere.
Iwaizumi cringed at the sight, but this particular magazine brought back some memories. He had completely forgot it existed. His whole body almost relaxed as the first memory to come back to his head was the sound of his name.
“Iwaizumi-san, I think we'd probably be able to get a million yen.”
“I’m still super handsome even now,” Oikawa flexed. “I was going through my things when I got home and just found this laying around. I never did pack up my room properly after high school.” In a way, Iwaizumi was disgusted because it's been over ten years since he officially left Japan. “No! I mean I did clean up, but all my high school stuff was still left out on my desk and shelves. Don't you remember this issue though? I chose this photo myself and you guys had to deal with a random one. You're lucky the editor picked a good one.”
“Yeah, whatever.”
As Oikawa went on and on and on about his face, Iwaizumi couldn't help but flip through the pages and reminisce on his last year of high school. He didn’t peak back then, but it was one of the best years he's ever had. It was full of great moments, great people, so many emotions and–
It was a year full of love and Iwaizumi’s reason why spring was his favourite season.