Satellite

Suga got off the bus and walked toward his apartment building. A head of orange hair ambushed him almost as soon as he had turned the on to his street.

Suga offered Hinata his arm and Hinata took it. They walked arm in arm to Suga’s building. He told Suga all about his day at school and Suga listened closely; he had wanted to be alone almost all day, and, now, as he watched Hinata’s eyes glitter and felt their shoulders bump, he was overwhelmed with gratitude for the company and the distraction from his current situation.

Once they were both in the apartment and settled in, Suga thought about cooking dinner and patted himself on the back for having stocked up over the weekend. There was a distinct possibility that Hinata hadn’t had a real meal all day; it was a long time ago, but Suga remembered what it was like to be a hungry college student.

Hinata interrupted Suga’s thoughts. “Are you making dinner? I’m starving!”

“Of course!” Suga answered with mock exasperation. “I figured you’d be hungry after running around campus all day.”

“Yesssss, Suga you are best!” He was excited, but, instead of his usual victory leap, Hinata’s brow furrowed. “Can Kageyama come over for dinner, too? He was at school today and he told me that his parents don’t really cook for him anymore.”

“He can definitely come for dinner,” Suga replied quickly. He didn’t know Kageyama that well, but the thought of him sitting alone with no food on the table tugged at his heartstrings so hard that it almost knocked him over.

Hinata fiddled with the bags of vegetables that Suga got out of the fridge. “And, is it okay if I stay the night? You can say ‘no’ if you want!”

“Aw, I don’t mind if you do, but my place is pretty small. And you have to be out of here pretty early in the morning so that I can go to work…” Suga’s voice trailed off and he didn’t try to save it.

“That’s okay! I don’t mind at all! Though…” Hinata looked nervously around the kitchen, “do you think Kageyama could stay here too? I mean, only if you would be okay with it. And you can say ‘no’! We just want to work on our song. My place is too far and Kageyama said his parents wouldn’t like the noise.”

Suga sighed. “We don’t really know him, Hinata. What if he’s a psycho and murders us in our sleep?”

“Ehhh, I don’t think so. Daichi talked to Iwaizumi and Oikawa and made sure Kageyama was legit. They said he was a stuck-up jerk, but we already knew that!” Hinata said brightly.

Suga was a little surprised, but it was so very like Daichi. He ignored the fluttering in his chest and studied Hinata, who stared back at him with a hopeful expression. “That’s good to know, but I only have one extra futon.”

“That’s okay! I can sleep on the floor. Or the couch. It’s pretty small, but I think I’m short enough to fit,” Hinata gasped. “Don’t tell Kageyama I said that I’m short!”

“I’ll try my best not to,” Suga said with a laugh and crossed his fingers over his heart. “Just no funny business on my only extra futon, okay?” he waggled his finger at Hinata.

“Gah! It’s totally fine! I’m fine! I’ll sleep on the couch! Or the floor! Not on the futon with Kageyama!” Hinata fumbled with his words and turned red. Suga bit his lip to hide a laugh.

“Alright, alright. If you say so. Go let Kageyama know he’s welcome to come for dinner and stay the night. I’ll get started on food and you can help after you’ve let him know.”

“Kay!” Hinata shouted.

Suga took his own phone out of his pocket.

To: Sawamura Daichi
I hope you didn’t terrify Kageyama in your interrogations ;)

Daichi replied almost instantly.

From: Sawamura Daichi
No! I only spoke to Iwaizumi. Well, Oikawa butted in halfway through. Sorry for not telling you. I just wanted to make sure that you’d be okay.

To: Sawamura Daichi
No worries. I know you’re looking out for Hinata.

From: Sawamura Daichi
And you :)

To: Sawamura Daichi
Okay, enough sweet talk. I have to get back to cooking dinner for these hungry kids.

From: Sawamura Daichi
If they’re anything like Noya and Tanaka, they’ll eat you out of house and home. Call me if you need anything. Please.

To: Sawamura Daichi
You got it, captain.

Suga slipped his phone back into his pocket and chopped the vegetables he had put on the counter. He eyed a picture of him and Daichi tacked up on the kitchen cabinet; Suga had strategically placed it there so that he could look at it when he cooked. He traced Daichi’s sharp jaw line and the outline of his hair. Daichi’s hair was short in the photo but, lately, he had let it grow, and it took all Suga had not to run his hands through it whenever he saw him. He wondered if Daichi ever thought about running his hands through his own silver hair; Suga almost shivered at the thought of Daichi’s tan hands tangled against the pale of his hair. He imagined Daichi’s calloused fingers gripping the locks at the base of his neck and pulling -

“Suga? Are you okay? Kageyama’s coming. He offered to bring something, but I told him we were good. We’re good, right?”

Suga blinked a couple times to haul himself out of his ridiculous fantasy. “Great! I’m great. Sorry. I’m glad Kageyama will be able to join us, and, yeah, we have everything we need.” He let out a shaky breath.

“Yay! What’re you doing? Can I help now?”

Suga considered the options and put Hinata in charge of the rice maker. He figured that it was the task with the least chance of a freak kitchen disaster. They worked side by side and when the doorbell buzzed, Hinata leapt three feet in the air and ran to Suga’s door to greet Kageyama.

Kageyama and Hinata came up and Hinata showed him where to put his things. Suga whisked the rest of the stir-fry sauce to let the two of them talk before he greeted the duo.

“Hi Kageyama! Did you find the place okay?”

He nodded. “I did. It was a little bit of a longer walk than I thought, but that’s okay.” His eyes got wide very quickly, like he forgot something. “Suga! Thank you for having me!”

“It’s no problem at all. I’m glad you could come!” Suga glanced at Hinata, who glowed with excitement.

A couple hours later, Kageyama and Hinata sat on the couch and talked in low voices. Kageyama had an acoustic guitar over his lap and made chord patterns on the neck as Hinata tried to describe the sound he wanted with his hands and incomprehensible noises. Suga sat at the cleared kitchen table, leaned his elbows on the surface, and sipped his tea.

They only had one incident at dinner. Kageyama had been talking about his classes when Hinata was struck with sudden inspiration for their song. He slammed his hands down on the table which flung Kageyama’s chopsticks into the air. They reached for the chopsticks at the same time, bonked heads, and then swiped at each other as if it were some sort of boxing championship. Suga had to reach over and slap them both from across the table. Other than that, it was uneventful and, he admitted, pleasant.

Now, Suga watched Hinata hum along to Kageyama’s strumming. They had only just started hanging out and they were already so in sync, like fate herself had brought them together at the open mic night. Fate?

“Hey Kageyama,” Suga interrupted, “how’d you end up at the café last weekend? Did you know Hinata would be there?”

Kageyama stopped playing and thought about Suga’s question. Hinata leaned closer to him.

“No. Oikawa wanted to go for some reason and he brought me because he thought there might be people who would,” Kageyama looked at Hinata like he was afraid to continue, “tolerate me. And let me play with them.”

Hinata was outraged. “Don’t get all sad! You have me now! We’ll be the best!” Kageyama stared at him in stunned silence.

Suga wondered if Oikawa knew that Kageyama wanted to play with Hinata. But how would he have known that Hinata would be there? Daichi had probably mentioned something off hand, but they didn’t talk that much, did they? Suga’s gut twisted. Did he know Suga would be there? A flurry of papers from the coffee table distracted him.

“Well now you’re here with me and we’ll write the most amazing song and then we’ll be in a real band!” Hinata jumped up and shouted.

Kageyama smiled, but it faded too quickly for Hinata to notice. Suga took his cue to leave and got up from the table. “I’m off to bed, but come get me if you need anything. And try not to destroy my apartment.” He pointed to the extra futon and the folded sheets on top of it. “If you need any more blankets, they’re in the closet by the front door. Goodnight you two. And don’t stay up too late!” Suga chided.

“We won’t! Thanks for dinner! See you in the morning!”

“Thanks again for dinner. It was really nice of you,” Kageyama added in a low voice.

Suga took one last look at them before he went into his room and shut the door.

The next night, only the second night they spent in Suga’s apartment, Hinata and Kageyama fell asleep together on the couch. Kageyama still had his guitar on his lap and Hinata had ink smudges up and down his arms. They leaned into each other, not quite supporting one another, but close enough to touch. Suga snapped a photo and smiled at the picture on his screen.

He cleared the papers off Hinata’s lap, took the guitar off Kageyama, and rolled out the extra futon with sheets just in case one of them woke up and needed it. When everything was set up, he crept back into his room sat at his desk. He tapped his pen on his notebook and the weight of the week pressed down on him.

Not enough money to pay rent. Not enough money to keep getting food and help his friends. Not enough money to go back to school. Another job search. A way to make money that he believed he could leave behind. Oikawa’s face.

Suga leaned back in his chair and tried to stop himself from wondering what it would have been like if he hadn’t kept his past from Daichi, if he hadn’t turned himself into a liar. What if he could change? Would they be in love? Could Daichi love him, the him with all his cards on the table? Would the truth be too weird, too painful? Which would he regret more?

Suga's last day at work was a somber affair and he was almost thankful that it was all over. The only things that got him through the long days of tying up loose ends and saying 'goodbye' were Hinata and Kageyama's hushed whispers, excited smiles, and soft guitar notes. Saturday afternoon came and Suga showed up at Daichi’s house for band practice and, most importantly, the debut of Hinata and Kageyama’s song. Noya and Tanaka welcomed him into the house.

“Suga! Have you found a new job yet? Kiyoko said you could work with us! You could be our supervisor!”

“Dude, that would be perfect. I mean, the job pays crap, but it’s basically the coolest place in the city,” Tanaka said solemnly.

Suga rubbed Tanaka’s head and pushed his groceries into Noya’s arms before he pushed them both to the kitchen. “I’ll be fine, you guys. Just worry about yourselves and your new place!”

Noya threw the bags on the counter and Daichi and Asahi caught them before they fell and spilled everywhere.

“Oh yeah! We wanted to invite everyone to a housewarming party! When we gonna do it bro?” Noya looked at Tanaka and rubbed his palms together in anticipation.

Tanaka rubbed his chin. “My best dude, like the weekend we move in? I’ll okay it with Kinoshita and Narita, though they should be cool. They said they didn’t mind us doing stuff on the weekends as long as we kept it chill during the week.”

“YES! Let’s do it! You all are invited!”

Suga turned to the living room and saw a number of faces, some he expected and others he didn’t.

“Tsukishima?”

Tsukishima broke off his glaring contest with Kageyama, who was seated on the couch across the room, to look at Suga and nod.

“Hey! What’re you doing here?” Suga asked.

He shrugged. “Daichi told me to be here today. He wants me to play with the king of The Court.”

“Don’t call me that!” Kageyama yelled in the background.

Suga wasn’t convinced. “Daichi has been trying to get you to play with us for months! What made you change your mind?”

Tsukishima looked to the corner of the room where Hinata spoke to a tall, lanky boy with long, black hair tied up in a small ponytail. His painted fingernails tucked loose strands of hair behind his ears.

“My friend wanted to see what the fuss was about. Also, I had to see if Kageyama was really as good as everyone said he was.”

“Cool! I’m so excited to hear you play after all this time,” Suga said warmly. He wanted to introduce himself to Tsukishima's friend, so he headed toward Hinata and Tsukishima’s friend. When the unfamiliar boy turned, Suga almost gasped. Tsukishima had a restrained smirk, but the boy in front of him had a toothy grin that lit up the room. Tsukishima was clean cut and unassuming, but the boy standing in front of him had a bold smattering of freckles, a septum piercing, and a slightly ripped t-shirt. Suga was intrigued immediately and couldn’t wait to get to know the both of them better.

Hinata introduced them. “Suga, this is Yamaguchi. His nose piercing is so cool! And look! He has his nails painted! That’s awesome!” Hinata yelled over to Kageyama, “Hey! Bakageyama! Wanna paint my nails?”

Tsukishima snorted. Kageyama looked mortified, “Definitely not, dumbass Hinata!”

The three of them laughed.

“I’m so glad I finally convinced Tsukki to come - I’ve been wanting to for so long!” Yamaguchi chirped. Tsukishima didn’t even blink at the use of the nickname he so abhorred at work. Suga was in heaven. He had so many questions.

“We’re excited too! So, I know Tsukishima plays bass, do you play anything? Or do you sing? Or write?” He asked.

Yamaguchi squirmed under Suga’s eager gaze. “Well, I’ve been playing keyboard for a little while now, but I’m not good enough to play in front of people.”

“They don’t have a keyboard player yet! This is perfect!” Hinata grabbed Yamaguchi’s hands and jumped up and down.

Daichi clapped his hands to get everyone’s attention. He surveyed the room with a serious glare.

“Alright guys, we’re going to get started. Hinata and Kageyama, take whoever you want to help you with your song and head downstairs to practice. Suga, Asahi, and I will come down in fifteen minutes, so you better be prepared.”

Noya and Tanaka saluted Daichi and ran down the stairs. Tsukishima followed after Kageyama, Hinata, and Yamaguchi.

“How’s the song?” Asahi asked Suga.

“I haven’t really heard the whole thing, just bits and pieces,” he shrugged.

Daichi crossed his arms over his chest. “But they stayed at your house all week. You must’ve heard something.”

“I didn’t hear anything all the way through. I will tell you that they worked hard, at least. It was pretty endearing.”

“That’s a relief,” Daichi relaxed his shoulders.

When the time came, Suga squeezed himself in between Daichi and Asahi on the couch in the basement. Noya tried to situate himself between Asahi at the arm of the couch, but ended up halfway on Asahi’s lap. Yamaguchi leaned against the couch and smiled at Tsukishima.

Kageyama stood stiffly next to Hinata, who grabbed the microphone.

“So, this song was inspired by our conversation with Suga at the open mic night. We just did a few verses because we only had a week, and Tsukishima and Tanaka just got their parts, but I hope you’ll like it and let us play with you forever,” Hinata said in one breath.

The last comment made Suga squeeze Daichi’s arm and he, in turn, patted Suga’s hand. Hinata cleared his throat, nodded at Kageyama, and Tanaka counted off. The song started with a peppy guitar riff and Kageyama made eye contact with Hinata to signal the lyrics.

     Won't you take me
     Where my feet feel happy in their own time,
     And the cathedral of reason lets the bells chime,
     And the lightning is fine?

     I'm old enough to know
     That people waiting on some big sign
     Should quit their waiting on the divine,
     Divine is what's in your mind.

Suga was held spell-bound by Hinata’s voice, which simultaneously echoed the guitar riff and rose above it. He sung into the microphone like he wasn’t born to do anything else.

     I've seen the cruel and hard
     And I've seen them hard on you,
     But I'll buy you brand new shoes if you cross to my side;
     There's a whole lot of walking to do!

Daichi snorted and looked at Suga. Asahi’s foot tapped next to his and Suga tried to take in the lyrics as quickly as they were thrown into the air around him.

     And if we're near or far
     From our city by the sea-side,
     Well, as long as we keep our stride
     I believe we'll be fine.

Kageyama took over on the guitar and Hinata danced as he watched Kageyama play. Everyone in the room watched his fingers move effortlessly from chord to chord as his hand moved up and down the neck of the guitar. Suga knew that Kageyama was talented and had a gut feeling that Hinata was too, but he was shocked by just how explosive they were together. Suga looked at Daichi, whose jaw had dropped at some point during the last verse.

     You've seen the years roll on
     And you've seen me roll with you.
     I see the road is long, so get on my side;
     There's a whole lot of walking to do!

     And if we stay on our feet,
     We'll make it in our own time.
     And though the road has got some steep climbs,
     I believe we'll be fine.

During the next instrumental break, Suga thought about the lyrics. Kageyama walked to Suga’s apartment everyday to play with Hinata and somehow, in the course of a week, they had managed to come up with this, a sort of hopeful manifesto about the future of their relationship, creative or otherwise.

Hinata lowered his voice to sing the next verse, but Kageyama shot him a look. Tanaka looked worriedly between the two of them and kept playing, but Tsukishima had just stopped. Kageyama snuck behind Hinata to say something to Tsukishima, who rolled his eyes and brought his hands back to his bass.

Kageyama locked eyes with Hinata. He bobbed his head to the music and mouthed words to himself for a few seconds before Kageyama signaled him back into the song.

     Well, I'm here, and you're here,
     And it's true, there's a whole lot of walking to do.
     And you're cool, and I'm cool,
     And it's true, there's a whole lot of walking to do.

They recovered well from the hiccup and Suga gave them a lot of credit for it. Hinata pointed to Kageyama, and then everyone in the room as he sang. Suga clapped along with the beat and Hinata beamed into the mic, so Daichi, Asahi, and Yamaguchi clapped along as well.

     There's no fuss and I trust,
     I trust you, there's a whole lot of walking to do.
     And you're strong, and I can be too;
     There's a whole lot of walking to do!

Kageyama had something of a smile on his face when he watched Hinata sing. Suga clasped his hands over his mouth and bounced his legs. The song wound down with Hinata’s breathy, agile voice.

     And you do, and I do,
     There's a whole lot of walking to do!

The music ended exactly in time with the last word. The room was silent for half a second before Noya shot up and shook Hinata violently.

“Yeah Tsukki!” Yamaguchi whooped.

Asahi, Daichi, and Suga just sat on the couch, dumbfounded. When Noya had moved on to giving Tanaka the noogie of a lifetime, Hinata and Kageyama ran over to Daichi and stood in front of him. Kageyama’s guitar hung off his shoulder.

“Did you like it?” Kageyama asked seriously.

“Can we be in your band? Please?” Hinata pleaded.

Suga was speechless, so Daichi took control.

“You’re in,” Daichi confirmed. “Tsukishima, we’d love to have you, too. It’ll give Noya a chance to focus on tuning and tech. And Yamaguchi, too.”

“I suppose I’ll play. Yamaguchi?” Tsukishima asked his friend.

“Yes!” Yamaguchi clasped his hands. Hinata ran over to him to gush about the song.

While everyone congratulated each other, Suga remained on the couch. He hugged himself and soaked up the unbridled joy that emanated from each person in the room.

“Suga?”

He looked up at Daichi, who had his hand out to help him up. Suga took it and let Daichi lift him off the couch.

Daichi lowered his hand but didn’t let go of Suga’s. “These guys don’t seem to realize that band practice means playing more than one song. Were you working on anything this week?”

Suga thought back to the lyrics he wrote in the low light of his room and contrasted them to Hinata and Kageyama’s anthem of hope. The last thing Suga wanted was to hold them back.

“Nope! We should see what else Kageyama and Hinata have to share. Or work on fine-tuning our other stuff.”

Daichi looked Suga like he didn’t believe him. “Only if you’re sure?”

Suga looked at the man holding his hand.

“Definitely. Let’s have them play it for us again, but this time you and Asahi join in! Noya, Yamaguchi, and I will look for areas to improve. And maybe, just maybe, we can go easy today and let them celebrate before you crack the whip.”

“Maybe just this once, for you,” Daichi said with a smile and pulled Suga toward the rest of the group.