Chapter Text
Sawamura Daichi took the train to work. At half eight every morning, he and a hoard of other commuters crammed their way onto a carriage, and spent twenty minutes being jostled around before reaching the next station, the city stop. Most people get off there, and Daichi is among them. After having this job for two years now and making the journey daily, he realised that you become familiar with those who share the same routine.
Not personally. You don't know their names or stories, you just get a small insight into their lives. Like the small blonde art student, who always carried a black, plastic portfolio almost as big as her. Daichi remembered seeing her before summer, too, on her commute to university, but she looked just as terrified now no matter how long she'd been going there. She usually ended up stood beside the tall guy with glasses, who towers over her and, though he never even gave her a second glance, she flinched every time her portfolio jabbed him, and anyone else, as the train shuddered along. Her apologies always go unnoticed by him; he wears his headphones constantly, a faint tune spilling from where he stood. The kid in the hoodie didn't acknowledge her mumbled apologies, either; he's always too busy playing some sort of game. Honestly, he must own every portable console there is. If he isn't playing a game on his phone, it's a PSP, or DS, screens flashing madly - and he looked bored with every one of them.
And then there's the other guy.
Deliberately, Daichi makes sure he doesn't get on the train through the same door as him, and not even the same carriage, if he can help it. The possibility that they'd be squashed so closely together near the doors when there are no seats available was torture to Daichi - he wouldn't be able to cope, he'd blush like mad, lose his grip on a handrail and fall right on top of him when the train rattled to the side.
Daichi cringed outwardly. Even thinking about the possibilities made him feel silly. So, no, always he stands further up the platform, at least a carriage length away, so nothing like that will happen.
He climbed the final few steps to the platform and glanced around, spotting the usual Friday morning commuters. It was the coldest September morning so far, so he pulled his coat tighter at the collar as the cold wind hit him.
He stepped up to the platform and checked the large departures board on his left. The cute guy always stands further down to the left, so Daichi could always sneak a glance his way when he looked up to check the train was on schedule. He was there now, and Daichi held his breath to stop even the tiniest trickle of laughter escaping, so his laugh wouldn't show in the cold air.
Daichi, and everyone else on the platform, had come prepared with multiple layers for the colder weather that morning. This guy definitely hadn't. He had his jacket zipped to his neck, so all you could see of his white shirt was the cuffs, which he had pulled at to cover his knuckles and frozen fingers. When summer had started to disappear he'd adopted that lighter jacket, but it still wasn't enough to keep him warm on this cold morning. It didn't help that he'd chosen to wear chinos, of all things, so the skin on his ankles was exposed to the cold too. His grey hair bounced around as he danced on the spot, keeping his feet close together and hugging his arms to keep the warmth in.
It's not that Daichi wanted to laugh, as such. He genuinely thought it was quite cute, him jumping around, probably feeling like a fool for not dressing warmer.
A train whizzed past them on the tracks furthest away, but a chilly wind still hit them hard for those few seconds. Daichi turned his head to the left so the wind wasn't blasting into his eyes, and he glanced up a little. The grey haired guy had his eyes squeezed shut and his arms tucked in tight, shuffling on his feet still to keep his feet from freezing solid. The cold had found its way under Daichi's jacket and was prickling at his back, so how must that guy feel?
When the train had passed by, Daichi realised something. He had a scarf in his bag - he'd packed it in case it was colder when he got to work, but he hadn't felt the need to use it on the commute. It seemed polite to offer it to the guy, who was obviously freezing.
What harm could that do? It would be a nice gesture, to offer him his scarf so he could warm up before they parted ways at the next station. It would be a way to talk, too - never had they said more than two words to each other. Once, Daichi had been about the enter the station toilets and nearly bumped into his crush as he was leaving them - a terribly romantic moment, Daichi thought, but the first time he'd heard his voice as they both said 'sorry!'. Another time they'd nodded and politely said 'hi', but Daichi had chickened out of saying anything else. Naturally he'd been a grumpy nightmare that day at work, embarrassed at himself.
Perhaps the third time is a lucky one.
Their train would be arriving in five minutes. The station was filling up now, more people crowding the platform. He'd have to do it now or there'd be no point. With a sigh, Daichi tugged at his bag and unzipped it, pulling out the black scarf.
He heard someone's phone ringing then, blasting over the sound of the intercom announcing that the train would be at their platform soon. Daichi turned and saw the grey haired guy frowning and pushing a hand out from the warm sleeve, to drag his phone from his outer coat pocket.
'Hello?' Daichi heard him saying, his voice not showing and signs of cold or annoyance. 'Oh, hey Noya... God, I hope so, it's freezing today. I don't want to think about how cold the office will be,' he laughed there, and Daichi bit the inside of his lip. Damn he's cute.
The train would be here soon. Too late for Daichi to offer his scarf now. He sighed and zipped it away again. He'd never really have done it, would he? In theory it would have been great - it could have been the first step toward them saying 'hi' every morning, maybe joking together about remembering a coat this time, but Daichi was unusually shy when it came to him.
Had he acted quicker, Daichi could be chatting with a cute guy in a less-packed carriage than those he's used to that Friday morning. Instead, Daichi's commute consisted of being squashed against one of the poles, which his head occasionally banged against as the train swayed, and jetting jabbed in the side by the art student's portfolio, all to the soundtrack of muffled music and video game bleeps.
At the station he's swept into the crowd and through the ticket gate within a minute, marching off to work with his hands deep in his pockets, focusing on not turning around at any point to look for the cute guy.
He arrives at the gym he works at in record time. The foyer is mostly empty, apart from a co-worker, Asahi, who's tidying the reception desk.
Asahi glanced up at the sound of the swishing automatic door and called out a bored, 'Morning, Daich...' but stopped when he saw Daichi's face like thunder. His eyes were sharp and dark and generally quite terrifying - Asahi knew something had ticked him off.
'Don't look so scared, Asahi,' scolded Daichi, punching his friend on the arm, but keeping the dark expression etched on his face. 'I need help setting up this morning so hurry up.'
Asahi rubbed at his arm and followed his friend through the gym. 'O...okay,' he said, wondering what it was this time that had riled Daichi up so much.
The following Monday wasn't as cold. The sun was blocked by the clouds, but enough warmth broke through that Daichi didn't need to zip his coat up. He made the usual trip to the station sleepily, wishing he could just go back to bed.
Asahi had eventually heard why Daichi was so grumpy on Friday. He'd been a terror to work with all day, and as a sports coach that meant anyone he was in charge of got yelled at twice as hard as they deserved. Asahi was included in that, and later in the day, as they were tidying up, Asahi finally questioned Daichi's rotten behaviour.
'What's with you today?' Asahi had asked. By now he knew to make sure any equipment that could cause harm or be used as a projectile should be kept far from Daichi whenever Asahi said anything, but he hadn't realised Daichi had his clipboard in his hand when asked the question.
Daichi fixed him with a glare for several, long seconds, but then he threw his head back and sighed, dropping to the bench. Asahi flinched, but moved closer curiously when Daichi's shoulders dropped, his entire body exhausted.
'There's this guy...' Daichi began, struggling to find his words.
Asahi raised an eyebrow. This wasn't the sort of thing he'd expect to talk about with Daichi, who seemed to only ever criticise Asahi, or talk about work.
'And...?' Asahi prompted.
Daichi rubbed his face with both hands. 'I've never talked to him. He's been getting the same train as me from the same stop for nearly a year now. And I've never had the courage to say anything.'
'Why not?'
Because he's really cute, Daichi thought, and I'd probably not be able to speak. He'd worried about that happening before, and was one of many reasons he'd chickened out in the past; he wasn't used to being so flustered, it was unnerving. He couldn't tell Asahi that though - he didn't want to see the reaction it would get.
'I... don't know. Look, it's not a problem,' Daichi assured his friend as he stood up and yanked the equipment bag from Asahi. 'I'll probably try again next week - I nearly said something today, so maybe I've got enough courage now.'
'Maybe,' Asahi said with a small smile. 'Oh but... you're not in next week, remember? It's your week off.'
Daichi stopped in his tracks. Damn. He'd totally forgotten. 'Well, whenever I can then... what're you smiling about?!'
But Daichi still came to the station on Monday. It was a decision he'd been swaying between all weekend. Most of him agreed that it was a stupid decision. He didn't need to pay the ridiculous cost of a single day ticket just so he could see the cute guy once that week. He wanted to see him, though. Admitting it to Asahi had turned him into a mess; on the train home he'd caught himself smiling simply at the thought of how silly he'd looked dancing on the platform to stay warm, and he'd embarrassed himself a dozen times imagining how offering his scarf could have gone wrong.
He was actually annoyed it wasn't as cold. He couldn't use the scarf as an excuse to talk now. If he was going to do it, he'd need something else to say... and he'd psyched himself up enough since Friday that he had to say something today.
Daichi had forgotten how busy Mondays can be. Everyone is there and nobody wants to be there. Commuters all cleverly buy their tickets for the week ahead on the same day, so the foyer of the station is a nightmare to get through. He realised when he was already in the queue that he could have skipped Monday and come in on Tuesday - then, maybe his crush might take notice of him being there, maybe they could strike up conversation based on that... god, Daichi was ridiculous.
The platform was packed full of commuters wanting to be the first on the train - the quicker they're on it, the quicker they can be at work, and the quicker the day would end. Usually amongst them, Daichi just felt tired. He didn't have anything to do on his first day off. He'd already cleaned his flat at the weekend, as a distraction from the cute guy. Nor did he have anything to do in the city, so Daichi would end up riding the train there and getting the next train home.
Probably without even speaking to his crush, he thought with a sigh.
He spotted his grey hair easily further down the platform. Daichi stepped forward so he could see past the others waiting there, and saw his crush bundled up in a big winter coat. Daichi had to stop himself laughing again, but a smile still broke through, and he quickly turned away. At least he learned from Friday, he thought.
Maybe that could be a good starting point for conversation. Or would it be rude? Daichi didn't know this guy, he didn't know how he'd react to a comment like that from a stranger. He seemed lovely, though - he always had such a sparkling smile when addressing others, and when his friend called last Friday he still forced a friendly, cheery tone despite the fact his nose was about to drop off from the cold.
His smile slid away and Daichi turned serious. This could be a big step. They only needed to say a few words to each other, and that could set something off. It had been nearly a year for goodness sake, surely by now it would be impolite to not say something. Daichi sighed and looked around. More people joined the platform from several directions, so he joined the flow of commuters just behind him heading down the left of the platform.
OK. How would he do this? Saunter up beside him and outright say something? Wait beside him for a few minutes, then make some comment about the weather? Why is the weather such a common topic with this sort of thing, anyway? It sounds cliche and obvious and, well, dull, to start a conversation this way but it was perfect for them.
Daichi thought about this as he was stuck behind an elderly woman wheeling a suitcase. She was handling it fine but was really slow getting past a larger group of people, so Daichi was getting impatient.
Behind him, he heard something familiar. He winced at the sound of the train flying past them, coming to a screeching halt at their platform, and everyone hurried to board.
Daichi hadn't even made it to the next carriage. With a defeated sigh he joined his usual group and took a spot by the door. His train ride was no different to any other. Daichi hadn't even been checking the time. He hadn't realised he'd been queueing so long he'd had less time to put his plan into action, and now he'd wasted his last opportunity for a week.
It's a surprise Daichi didn't bang his head repeatedly on the glass in frustration.
He spent the next twenty minutes convincing himself he would not waste more time and money doing the exact same thing tomorrow, just so he could maybe say something to the guy he's been crushing on since he smiled at him near the bloody men's toilets. It sounded ridiculous because it was ridiculous. So much effort going into someone he didn't know and something he'd never get the courage to do, apparently.
As usual, he followed the crowd through the ticket gate, out of the station and into the street beyond. There he stopped and checked his phone for the details of the next train home.
He wasn't in that foul of a mood when he came back into the station a minute later and took his place on a platform. He just felt annoyed, and kind of sad. He didn't know this guy's name, he knew nothing about him, but he was so worried about everything he did around him, and so infatuated by everything he did - he had an adorable sneeze even, Daichi remembered, and he didn't bother to stop himself from smiling at the thought as he waited for the train.
Daichi leant against a thick post and blocked out the sound of children screaming nearby - he'd caught a glimpse of a group of mothers with push chairs beside him on the platform, but other than that there weren't many others waiting for this train.
He supposed it was kind of sad, too, that the guy would probably never know what Daichi thought of him. Daichi was getting a little deep now, but he put it down to him needing to go back to sleep, and hopefully he wouldn't wake up for a week. He still wasn't sure he was 100% convinced to not repeat what he'd done today on Tuesday.
When the train arrived he easily got a seat. The group of mothers and their screaming kids boarded the other carriage, thankfully, but Daichi managed to grab one of the seats with a table. It would have been stupid to go anywhere else, when the other sets of two seats already had one person sitting there. Daichi dropped his sports bag onto the table and slumped in his seat by the window.
As the train set off slowly and gently, behind him he heard the whoosh of the automatic doors that lead from the other carriage into this one. Briefly he heard the screaming children again, and thanked his stars that he didn't have to deal with that - having them on top of what had already happened before half nine on a Monday morning would have tipped him over the edge.
Whoever had just come from the carriage behind decided to take the occupied seat on the other side of Daichi's table, and Daichi only glanced at them as they slid into the window seat.
...It was him.
Daichi, without even thinking, stared at the grey haired guy and knitted his eyebrows together, his mouth open slightly as if he were about to protest. His confused expression was matched by the other man, but he added a cute, bewildered laugh.
'Oh, hi,' he grinned, but still looked curiously at Daichi. 'Is it OK to sit here?'
Flustered, Daichi sat up too quickly in his seat and knocked his bag forward. 'Y-yes, of course. Sorry, I'll just move this...' he shoved his bag onto the seat beside him and pretended to look inside, distracting himself from his crush being sat right in front of him. He watched through the corner of his eye as he tried to take off his large coat in such a small space, his cheeks growing redder with the heat and the effort.
What the hell. What was he doing here too?!
Daichi pushed aside his confusion and took a deep breath. This was his chance, however little sense it made. What was he going to say before? Something about the weather? He'd taken his coat off now and was blowing stay bits of hair from his face, settling himself into the chair... yeah, mentioning the weather could still work. He could say something about the coat, maybe joke about him not needing it today. Hopefully the other guy was a better conversationalist than Daichi. He could simply ask what he was doing there - or was that too forward?
The door whooshed again and the conductor called out for a ticket check.
'Hey, Suga! What're you doing here?' a voice called, and Daichi jumped at the sound. The conductor, a bored-looking bald guy whose uniform hung off his shoulder, was looking at the grey-haired guy across from Daichi. Suga, then. Finally, Daichi had a name for his crush.
'O-oh, hey,' Suga replied, sounding a little shocked. 'Didn't expect to see you awake so early,' he said with a cheeky grin.
The conductor laughed as he snatched tickets from other passengers and punched a hole in them before handing them back. 'Haha! I'm full of surprises. What about you, though, did you forget something?' He held out his hand for Daichi's ticket and quickly marked that one too.
'Uh... yeah,' said Suga, handing his ticket over to his friend. 'My boss'll kill me if I turn up without some documents.'
'Nah, nobody could do that to such a sweet face,' the conductor said with a loud laugh. 'See you later, then!' He pulled his jacket back over his shoulder and straightened it, then carried on down the carriage, shouting for tickets.
'Yeah, bye,' called Suga, shrinking back into his seat and, Daichi noticed curiously, he hid the side of his face with his hand.
Daichi tried to look away quickly but Suga caught him. With a glance over his shoulder to check the conductor was out of earshot, Suga leaned forward to Daichi and spoke. 'I didn't forget anything, actually,' he admitted. 'Totally forgot it's my week off!' he said, pulling a face and laughing.
Daichi blinked. 'R-really?' he choked out, astonished by what was happening. He let out a laugh. 'I wondered what you were doing here.'
'I could say the same for you!' Suga replied.
'Oh... well, I did forget something,' Daichi lied, quickly thinking about how lame his excuse was - it had popped into his head before the conductor had shown up. 'Volleyball shoes,' he shrugged, also pulling a face, when he knew full well they were in his bag like they always were.
'You play volleyball?' asked Suga. Daichi blinked again - Suga sounded impressed.
'Yeah, I coach it, too. I work at the gym just down the road from the station,' he said, gesturing backwards with his head to show he meant the station they'd just boarded from.
'Oh, so that's what the sports bag is for,' Suga said, nodding his head. Is this really happening. It seemed that Suga had payed as much attention to Daichi as Daichi had him.
'Yeah,' Daichi said again with a laugh. 'Erm... how exactly did you forget you had a week off?' he asked at a lower volume.
Suga blushed slightly, but threw his head back with a laugh. 'I really have no idea!' he whispered back. 'It's routine, I suppose. It's been a while since I had a Monday off.'
Daichi groaned. 'I know what you mean,' he said with a smile. He was still a little bitter about having to get up on his Monday off but... it was definitely worth it now.
Thank goodness, Suga was a better conversationalist than Daichi. He introduced himself properly first and then Daichi did the same. Suga said he had a friend of a friend called Sawamura and asked if they might be related, and they launched easily into conversation after that. Had Daichi known Suga was so easy to talk to, he'd have done it months ago.
The journey back was slightly shorter than the journey into the city, but Daichi actually wished it could be longer, or that they both lived much, much further away. They arrived back at the station without an unscheduled stop or breakdown or anything that would have prolonged their stay on that train. Suga and Daichi were still mid conversation when they left the station, and they both walked to the bus stop opposite the station without thinking.
Daichi knew his bus would be the next around the corner. That'd be just his luck. He wanted to turn his back away, purposely miss his transport home, so he could talk with Suga some more.
'You know, actually,' Suga said as he looked around and seemed to only just realise he was under the bus shelter. He looked down the road towards the town centre. 'I think I might go into town. No point wasting my day, is there?'
'Er, yeah,' Daichi said, slightly distracted by seeing his bus turning the corner, as he'd expected.
'Well then,' Suga said, grinning at Daichi.
'Yeah,' Daichi replied, shoving his hands into his pockets. He wouldn't hold his hand out for the bus.
'It was nice talking with you,' Suga smiled, already turning away slightly, prepared to say goodbye.
'You too...' Daichi mumbled. A woman held her hand out for the bus, so it was stopping anyway. It'd be easy for Daichi to hop on now when Suga left. It wouldn't be too bad to leave it there, they had had a nice chat together, and they'd definitely say something again when they saw each other next week... maybe... or would a week be too much?
'Y-you know what, Sugawara,' Daichi called as Suga stepped further away. 'I don't need to be at work until this afternoon. Would you like to grab a coffee?'
Suga grinned and blushed, and Daichi's legs almost melted. 'Yeah, that'd be great,' he beamed.