Haikyuu!!, Practice Makes Perfect

Title: Practice Makes Perfect [Asahi/Sugawara]
Rating/Warnings: R for training camp shenanigans
Summary: During Karasuno’s week-long training camp in Tokyo, Sugawara and Asahi work on their connection.
AN: Hey, Haikyuu fic! I ship these two so hard and like nobody else seems to? How??? Maybe if I write it, they will come.

Practice Makes Perfect

By the third day of training camp, they’ve probably watched the same clips of synchronized attacks at least a hundred times. Sugawara is used to being aware of everyone’s position and timing on the court, which made the ‘almost but not quite’ feeling of their failed attacks grating initially. Tanaka yells in frustration when they fuck it up for the seventeenth time that night, Daichi’s mouth pressed into a thin line when Sugawara glances over.

“Almost,” Sugawara encourages. Tanaka gives him a look that could peel the lines off the gym floor, no doubt assuming that Sugawara is just trying to encourage them, but for once, that isn’t the case.

They really do almost have it. Sugawara can feel how close it is, just at the edges of his fingertips. If they do it just one more time…

“Oi!” a female voice calls, and the three of them turn to find a couple of the managers standing in the doorway, hands on their hips. “If you guys don’t quit soon, the cafeteria will close!”

Tanaka stands up at attention with a salute, calling “Roger that, baby!” and Sugawara has to hide his smile behind his hand as the girls flash him an unimpressed look, and Daichi cuffs Tanaka across the back of the head.

“I’ll go get Asahi,” Sugawara offers. He smiles innocently when Daichi shoots a look over his shoulder, but Daichi leaves him to it, herding Tanaka towards the door.

It doesn’t take much hunting. Even if Sugawara didn’t know that Asahi was practicing his serve already, he can hear the distinctive thwack of Asahi’s palm connecting with the ball as soon as he draws near the next gym over. Sugawara pauses in the doorway without drawing attention to himself, just watching as Asahi picks up the next ball and lines up another serve.

The line of Asahi’s body is straight and true, the snap of his arm powerful. Sugawara never tires of watching it, watching how Asahi can take an act of brute force and make it so beautiful. It makes Sugawara’s fingers itch to toss for him, to make it so that he see the power of Asahi’s spike from close up, over and over and over.

“Hey,” Sugawara calls, and the spell breaks when Asahi yelps and the ball slips from his fingers to roll away.

“Do you have to do that?!” Asahi demands after glancing over his shoulder to find Sugawara. Sugawara just chuckles to himself as he bends over to scoop up the ball.

“Scaredy beard,” he teases, coming forward to drop the ball in the bin with the others. “Come on, help me pick these up quick. The girls said the cafeteria is closing soon.”

Working together to chase down the balls scattered across the gym makes Sugawara think of being first years and shagging balls together. It feels like so long ago, hell, the beginning of spring feels like a hundred years ago, but Asahi has been beside him the entire time. If Sugawara squints, he can almost see the Asahi who was not so much taller than him, whose hair barely covered his ears, almost.

Asahi notices him looking, and tilts his head, asking, “What?” When he stands, he towers over Sugawara, his hair escaping his headband and bun to curl against his neck.

Maybe his eyes are just as tired as the rest of him, Sugawara thinks to himself, smiling. “Ah, it’s nothing. Let’s go eat, hm?”

In the cafeteria, Daichi has saved them some seats despite the fact that he’s sitting with the other captains and vice-captains. Sugawara knows Asahi is hesitating, his shyness from all the new people getting a little better after a few days but not totally solved. He shifts his tray to one hand so that he can grab the hem of Asahi’s t-shirt with the other hand, dragging him along.

“There you are,” Daichi says, raising an eyebrow. “Get lost?”

“Just helping Asashi with his balls,” Sugawara says, giving everyone else a cheerful smile hello. Now Akaashi and Kuroo are raising their eyebrows as well, and Sugawara has to suppress a laugh at the way Asahi becomes very interested in his rice.

“HEY,” Bokuto flings a hand across the table to point in Asahi’s face, “you’re the guy with the stupidly strong spike! Come spike for blocking practice tomorrow!”

“Ask, don’t just order people around,” Akaashi says, driving an elbow into his captain’s side and making him wheeze.

“I don’t mind helping,” Asahi offers, and Sugawara pats his leg under the table encouragingly.

Feeling confident that Asahi can play nicely with the other kids, Sugawara turns his attention back to Daichi, who is pumping Kuroo for information about Shinzen’s synchronized attacks. It’s one thing to watch another team do it, and another to understand how to practice the technique. Sugawara lets Daichi ask all the questions, all the while thinking that if they don’t make the breakthrough soon, Tanaka’s impatience especially will make it a cycle of diminishing returns, especially given their consistent set loss.

Sugawara feels optimistic, though. He’s used to watching his team closely, as an attentive setter, and he has a feeling that soon his teammates will be showing him some interesting stuff.

“We have to finish cleaning up,” Sugawara announces as they’re clearing their trays from the table. Asahi opens his mouth and Sugawara steps on his foot, turning his question into a pained wheeze. “Don’t wait on our account. If you hurry maybe you can claim first shower as Captain’s privilege. The first years might even believe that.”

Daichi eyes them. “Can’t you learn some subtlety at least?”

“At a sports training camp?” Sugawara tilts his head as if confused. “Captain, I don’t think you know what training camps are for.”

Sugawara is still chuckling to himself at Daichi’s bland expression and Asahi’s soft whine as they walk back towards the gym. It’s dim in the spaces between the gym’s outside lights, and Sugawara feels safe enough to reach for Asahi’s hand and lace their fingers together. Asahi squeezes back but doesn’t pull away, and Sugawara likes the effect training camp is having on Asahi more and more. When they reach the gym Asahi was practicing in earlier, Sugawara pauses in the doorway for a moment, looking longingly at the soft, probably still sun-warm grass which is so clearly preferable to the hard floor of the gym. But Kenma hadn’t been kidding about the bugs, and they’ll get eaten alive if they roll around in the grass after dark.

“Hm?” Asahi asks at the hold-up, but Sugawara shakes his head that it’s nothing and pulls Asahi inside the gym. Some energy-conscious person has already turned out the lights and Sugawara doesn’t bother correcting that. If anybody wanders by, they’ll assume nobody’s inside.

“Here okay?” Sugawara asks, tugging Asahi towards the nearest wall and pushing his back up against it.

“Now you ask?” Asahi says. Sugawara can just barely make out the cute arch of Asahi’s raised eyebrow as his own eyes adjust to the low light.

“You could say no.” Sugawara shrugs. Asahi does not say no, not when Sugawara leans up on his tiptoes to press their mouths together, not when Sugawara’s hands slip under Asahi’s T-shirt to rest against the warm, sweat-damp skin of his waist.

Asahi scrunches down a little to make up the height difference, his arms circling Sugawara’s waist. Sugawara sighs softly into Asahi’s mouth as Asahi’s arms tighten around him, the strong grip pleasantly possessive. Warmth is already spreading over Sugawara’s skin as he leans into Asahi harder, digging his fingers into Asahi’s skin a little deeper. He licks at Asahi’s mouth, trying to move him along.

“Worked up?” Asahi mumurs, humming low in his throat when Sugawara takes advantage of him speaking to deepen the kiss. Sugawara doesn’t dignify that with an answer, especially now that he’s got Asahi’s tongue teasing along his own. It hasn’t been easy holding back for three solid days when they’ve been seeing each other every waking minute, plus sleeping beside each other to boot.

Asahi drags his palm down Sugawara’s spine, and Sugawara whines breathlessly into Asahi’s mouth. Asahi’s hand feels huge splayed against his back like that, the heat of it sinking into Sugawara’s skin through his thin T-shirt. Sugawara loves Asahi’s hands, how they’re so strong but he uses them so gently. He skims his own fingers over Asahi’s sides and back, grinning against Asahi’s mouth at the muffled gasp he gives. If he teases enough, Sugawara knows, he can get Asahi to grab him more tightly, maybe even hold him down, but they don’t have that kind of time here, more’s the pity. If they’re gone too long, someone will come looking for them.

The last thing Sugawara needs on his conscious is Hitoka catching them in the act and fainting dead away.

”H-hey,” Asahi says as Sugawara nips at his lip a last time, then slides down to his knees suddenly, glad for his kneepads. “What are you…”

“I’m not doing this often enough, if you have to ask that.” Sugawara tilts his head back to grin up at Asahi as he rubs his cheek against the front of Asahi’s shorts.

“Oh!” Asahi shivers as Sugawara noses at him more deliberately, then hisses when Sugawara tugs his shorts down. “Wait, that’s not, wait a second—”

Sugawara is not waiting a second, because if he let Asahi have his way they’d never get on with it. Instead he tugs Asahi’s cock free from his underwear and licks a slow, wide stripe up it, and magically all of Asahi’s protests melt into a soft “Koushi.”

“Mmhmm,” Sugawara agrees, mouth occupied. Asahi’s cock is already hard and thick against his palm when he wraps a hand around it, so Asahi can’t be that anxious about somebody catching them. Just in case, Sugawara focuses on teasing Asahi with his tongue, swirling it around Asahi’s tip before pressing it against the little notch on the underside. He knows he’s doing it right, not that he had any doubts, when Asahi’s hands work gently into Sugawara’s hair.

Normally Sugawara likes to watch Asahi’s reactions, but it’s too dark anyway, so Sugawara lets his eyes flutter shut at the first touch of Asahi’s fingers against his scalp. Asahi’s hands are so big, palming Sugawara’s skull as easily as a volleyball and making Sugawara think about what those strong fingers feel like sliding over the rest of his body, his calluses catching against Sugawara’s skin. Asahi’s fingers press in a little more, not pulling but reminding Sugawara what he’s doing there and shaking him out of his fantasy. Soon enough; it’s Asahi’s turn at the moment.

Asahi’s thigh is trembling under Sugawara’s free hand, both from the exertion of practice all day and from Sugawara sucking him off with practiced ease. Sugawara focuses on sucking Asahi in deeper and squeezing his shaft just right. He wants Asahi to feel good, wants to make Asahi forget about everything except for Sugawara’s mouth and hands, to come just for him.

“Koushi,” Asahi murmurs again, more urgently. He must be almost there, and Sugawara hums encouragement, sliding his free hand in a little to rub his thumb against the soft, hot skin of Asahi’s inner thigh. Sugawara can feel the way Asahi’s thigh muscles tense under his hand just before he comes, and then Asahi draws a ragged breath and does exactly that, pulsing out over Sugawara’s tongue.

Not unexpectedly, Asahi’s knees give out just after, the wall and Sugawara’s hands keeping him from being dumped on the ground too unceremoniously. He’s still gasping for breath but Sugawara can’t wait; he crawls into Asahi’s lap for a fierce kiss, framing Asahi’s waist with his knees so that his own erection is pressing against Asahi’s muscled stomach. Sugawara curls arms around Asahi’s neck and shivers every time Asahi breaks the kiss to pant against his mouth, struggling to suck in enough air before Sugawara crashes their mouths back together.

“Please,” Sugawara begs against Asahi’s lips. He works hands up into Asahi’s hair to tug the hairband and elastic free so that all of Asahi’s hair tumbles free in loose, sweat-damp curls. Sugawara twines his fingers through the curls and drags kisses across Asahi’s cheek and jaw, all the while sweetly repeating, “Please, please, please…”

“Okay, okay, shh,” Asahi answers, squirming cutely from Sugawara talking like that. Sugawara doesn’t do it often, since it’s embarrassing for him too, but he feels too desperate to be embarrassed at the moment, thin fire running under his limbs. Asahi gets a hand in between them, and Sugawara bucks into the first touch, but the angle is too awkward. “Turn around for me.”

None of Sugawara’s limbs will do what he tells them, but somehow Asahi gets Sugwara turned on his lap so that his back is pressed against Asahi’s chest, his head tipped back against Asahi’s shoulder. They’ve stripped off Sugawara’s T-shirt, anticipating a mess, but the practical effect of that is that there’s nothing blocking Asahi’s mouth from nibbling kisses along the curve of Sugawara’s shoulder. Asahi’s hands slide in opposite directions, one coming up across Sugawara’s chest to tug at one of his nipples, while the other hand slides into Sugawara’s shorts to pull his cock free. Sugawara has to muffle something close to a sob when Asahi’s hand wraps around him, finally, strong and familiar and perfect.

It’s so good, but it can’t last. Sugawara is strung tight like a wire already, and it takes Asahi only a couple minutes to bring Sugawara off, Sugawara’s sneakers squeaking against the floor as he arches into the touch and comes over Asahi’s hand and his bare stomach. Spent, Sugawara collapses back against Asahi, shaking and panting for air. He lets his head loll more to the side, and Asahi has no trouble decoding that as an invitation to trail kisses up Sugawara’s neck, making Sugawara sigh happily. Eventually Sugawara curls more on his side against Asahi’s chest to make kissing more practical. One of Asahi’s amazing hands slides up to frame his face, thumb brushing over Sugawara’s cheekbone. Sugawara comes down like that, trading lazy, lingering kisses with Asahi and tugging on Asahi’s wrist to encourage the arm around his waist to hug him tighter, tighter.

Their legs are like rubber when they try to stand, both of them snickering helplessly as Asahi tries to help Sugawara up and nearly sends both of them crashing back to the floor. Instead he topples them against the wall, Sugawara’s back hitting it this time.

“Sorry,” Asahi apologizes, hands on either side of Sugawara’s shoulders in an accidental kabe-don. Sugawara chuckles that he doesn’t mind at all and leans up on tiptoe to steal one more slow kiss before they finally make their way back.

Later, showered and changed into dry clothes and sprawled on their futons, they stay up talking quietly despite knowing that they need all the rest they can get. Sugawara isn’t quite ready to give up the peace of this moment, Asahi blinking at him sleepily across the small gap between them, the reassuring whisper of their teammates breathing all around them. Asahi’s arm is stretched out between them, Sugawara holding Asahi’s hand between his own, rubbing his thumbs idly in the center of Asahi’s palm.

“Are you jealous?” Asahi asks eventually, getting a “Hmm?” from Sugawara. “Of Nishinoya practicing setting for me.”

“Nah.” Sugawara shrugs a shoulder. The more weapons they all have, he knows, the longer they can stay on the court. The more tosses he will get to throw for Karasuno. For Asahi. “So long as you aren’t jealous that I’m going to learn to spike.”

Asahi’s eyes widen, mouth crinkling into a line as if maybe he is jealous, and Sugawara can’t help but laugh quietly at him. He pulls Asahi’s hand closer to kiss the center of his palm.

“Shh, don’t worry, Ace,” Sugawara assures, face innocent. “We’ll all still depend on your spikes and your strong heart.”

Asahi narrows his eyes and tweaks Sugawara’s nose, and Sugawara has to muffle his laughter against Asahi’s palm to keep from waking the others.