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He distantly hears the clang of his bat as it hits the ball, muffled, far at the back of his mind. The ball travels further, white against a stretch of blue.
Haruichi looks up, far into the sky.
He stays, feet rooted to the ground. He feels himself float, gently amidst the clouds.
——-
"That’s rare of you to just daze out like that, Harucchi," Eijun says over dinner.
"Ah, I suppose so."
Furuya contributes to the conversation with a helpful nod.
"Maybe I’m just tired." He picks at his rice, rolling a piece of karaage he dropped in his rice bowl.
Haruichi wishes his friends would stop trying to give him their food, with intentions of cheering him up or otherwise.
——-
He hears Eijun sneak into his room before he sees him. The door creaks open and fumbling footsteps stop at his bedside. Rubbing his eyes, he sees a mop of brown, a cheeky grin right in front of his face.
“Eijun-kun?” It couldn’t be a humane time to up, but he could never be too sure, with Eijun.
“Harucchi,” Eijun whispers. “Come with me for a bit!”
Maezono-senpai’s snores cut through the silence.
After a cursory glance towards the bunk above his, he turns back to Eijun. “Why?”
“I can’t sleep.”
“Yes?” Haruichi considers entertaining the option of going back to sleep. There’s tea in the pantry, Eijun-kun, please drink some, it’ll help you sleep, maybe.
“Play catch with me for a bit?” Eijun props his chin on the edge of his bed and tilts his head, the perfect image of an enthusiastic puppy.
Oh well.
He probably should’ve expected something like that.
Haruichi yawns, stretching an arm above his head. “Go down to the grounds first, I’ll catch up,” he says.
“You better not leave me and sleep!”
Eijun whirls out of his room, Haruichi sits on his bed staring blankly at the closed door.
3:47 AM, the clock on his desk says.
The floor is cold on the pads of his feet, a sharp chill seeps into his heels, shoots around his ankles.
——-
Burnets are starting to bloom around the edge of the outfield. Haruichi looks up from his feet – from the burgundy buds – to the sky. The first morning light trickles in, soft lines of grey and blue in the horizon. He takes a deep breath in – lets the cool air pass through his lips – and a deep breath out.
“Harucchi!” He hears a quiet rustle of grass as Eijun bounces on the balls of his feet, waving his hand up in the air.
Haruichi returns the gesture before punching the inside of his glove, waiting for Eijun to throw.
The thump of ball against leather is loud in his ears, a dull thud resounding towards the sky.
——-
They fall in to a rhythmic, comforting lull. A breeze grazes the back of his hand, slips between his fingers, and the ball shoots forward. A blur of white, a straight line, forward, forward, towards―
“Sawamura! Kominato!” Kuramochi-senpai shouts from the dugout. “What’re you guys doing up so early? Breakfast is ready!”
“Sweet, we’ll be right there!”
Eijun’s smile is bright, bright with blue sky behind him. Their usual morning begins, teammates bustle out of the dorms, and Haruichi feels a small tug at his lips.
——-
“You really are amazing, Eijun-kun,” Haruichi says as he throws the ball.
“Huh?” Eijun stumbles a little as he catches it. “What brought this on?”
Haruichi smiles. “No reason. I just thought you should know.”
——-
The ground at midnight feels different alone. Eijun didn’t ask him for a game of catch tonight. It’s good that he’s getting sleep for once, if anything. Arms outstretched, he walks along the chalked lines towards first base, balancing himself as if walking on a tightrope.
He thinks of Eijun, his smile, his shoulders from where he sees him at second base. How he would look back a little before turning full towards him, his hand shooting up as he shouts, ‘two out!’
Bright, the first word that comes to mind.
Then, I wonder if I’ll ever be like that.
——-
“Guys, look what we got!” Kuramochi-senpai bursts through a group of first years with colourful packets in his arms. “Fireworks!”
Masuko-senpai nods behind him, proudly holding up his own heap of sparklers.
“Let’s light them up after we finish ground maintenance.” He runs back towards the dugout accompanied by excited cheers from the team. “Nothing says the end of summer like firewords! Sawamura, get the buckets later, yeah?”
Eijun shouts in reply, punching the air for good measure.
——-
Eijun’s panicked shrieks could be heard from the other side of the field. He whizzes past Haruichi, and Furuya with a sparkler pointed at him, pattering a few steps behind.
“Oi, that’s dangerous― Watch it!” Furuya promptly responds by walking faster.
Haruichi wonders how long it’ll take before Eijun takes out two sparklers of his own, launching his counterattack with an even louder battle cry.
——-
“Wow, you’re really good at this Harucchi!” Eijun crouches next to him, watching the light from the senkou hanabi between his fingers. “I’d fidget so much that it’d die out in seconds.”
“It’s nothing, really,” he says softly, not looking up. “I’m just sitting still.”
“Hmmm.” Eijun keeps his gaze on the sparkler for a while before he starts rocking on his heels, fingers twitching on his crossed arms.
Haruichi chuckles, bringing his free hand to his mouth. “I know you can’t stand still, but not that bad.” He inclines his head towards Eijun and continues, “You can go and run away from Furuya-kun again. I’m fine on my own―”
“Harucchi!” Eijun shouts, startling Haruichi. The faint glow of the sparkler tip falls with a plop into the bucket below with a quiet hiss.
“Ah, sorry!” Eijun scrambles to stand up. “I’ll wrangle another one from Miyuki for you! I’ll get one for me too and then we can― no, wait, that’s not―”
Haruichi watches Eijun try to calm himself down, his hand held on his chest as it rise and falls with every inhale.
“You’re definitely,” he starts, his eyes sharp, determined. “Really amazing too!”
“I don’t know what’s bothering you, but you look really down lately…” Eijun trails off – eyes darting away – and he scratches the back of his neck. His shoulders tense, fists balled at his sides.
He looks straight at Haruichi, unwavering when he says, “You’re amazing.”
He registers the sound of footsteps on gravel, Eijun running away towards the dugout. Behind the soft oranges of fireworks, he watches Eijun grab two sticks of senkou hanabi and running back, grinning from ear to ear.
Backscatter orbs fills his vision as he looks down at the joint sparklers, his taking light from Eijun’s.
“Thanks,” he murmurs.
Eijun beams at him, the image so clear and vivid that Haruichi lets himself drown, falling deep into warmth around him.