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The sun is calling for him.
It always has since he was a child. Koushuu would always go to his mother’s garden, spending his day outside as much as he is allowed to to bask in its light. Its warmth would wrap around his frame like a blanket, keeping him warm and protected. Even at night when it’s supposed to sleep, its presence lingers when he looks out his bedroom window and sees the moon beaming at him, knowing that the sun makes it shine to accompany him in his dreams.
The sun is calling for him.
In fourth grade, just a few days after the first day of class, there was suddenly a commotion. One of his classmates picked up a pencil that another classmate dropped. The moment their hands touched, both gasped so loud that the teacher immediately went to see what was wrong. When Koushuu asked one of the girls what happened, she explained that there was this sudden surge of emotions in her chest when she touched their classmate’s hand that shocked them both. Leaving school that day, he learned about soulmates.
The sun is calling for him.
Everyone has a soulmate but not everyone meets them, that’s what his mother said. His parents weren’t soulmates but they always tell him that their love transcended that. They would remind him that he doesn’t have to meet his soulmate to find true love so he shouldn’t be worried, but Koushuu isn’t worried. In all honesty, he doesn’t really care. He has his grades and baseball to think about. He doesn’t have time to look at anything else. As long as the sun rises every day to greet him hello, he doesn’t need love.
The sun is calling for him.
After graduating from high school, he chose to pursue college instead of going professional despite the numerous invites he received. His parents asked him his reason so he told that he wanted to finish studying first and have options before choosing his career. Satisfied, his parents let him do what he wanted. But the truth that he didn’t want to admit was that he felt like there was something missing. It’s not that he regrets choosing Teito, it just felt like every time he would crouch down on the plate and look at the mound, there was this itch in his skin that he couldn't place. Still, the sun was there for him, so he moved forward.
The sun is calling for him.
Koushuu wants to believe that college is okay, but it’s not. His grades are good, the professors are horrible, but what he loathes the most is that he doesn’t have time to go outside unlike before. He may be on the baseball team, but most of the time he’s either in his apartment, library, or at a cafe doing his requirements. He doesn’t have time to bask in the sunlight anymore.
“Dude, I think what you need is a date,” Kukki suggested, munching noisily on his cheeseburger. Beside him, Seto nodded.
“Yeah, Koushuu. Your life can’t just revolve around baseball and college. Are you planning to die young?” he said, stealing a fry from Asada’s plate who was too busy getting away from Kukki’s monstrous way of chewing.
“And what does my life span have to do with dating?” the blonde asked, annoyed..
“Well, if it’s successful, you’ll have a reason to live,” Kukki grinned cheekily, earning laughs from their bespectacled friends. Koushuu scoffed. The four of them were at the cafeteria, just having finished the minor class that they share. Before this conversation, they were talking about their upcoming scrimmage next week. How did it come to this? He doesn’t know. All he knows is that he’s the unfortunate target of the day.
“Shut up,” he grumbled, stealing the burger away from Kukki and taking a huge bite from it as his friend looked at him in horror.
“Seriously, though. At least just go to one blind date, Koushuu,” his best friend said, ignoring the cries of pain from the brown haired man beside him. “C’mon, choose between the three of us! We’ll—”
“What? Why does he have to choose one of us? I don’t wanna date him! He ate my burger!” Kukki complained, cradling the food to his chest while Asada patted his shoulder.
“That’s not what I mean, you idiot. Let me finish what I’m trying to say first. Geez,” he said, rolled his eyes before focusing back on the blonde. “Anyway, what I meant to say was we’ll set you up on a blind date!”
“A blind date,” the catcher deadpanned. His friend nodded, smiling at him. “Yes, Koushuu. A blind date.”
“Let’s go with Asada’s pick, then,” Kukki blurted out, mouth still full of food. Hearing his name, the tall boy jolted, “Wait, why me?”
“Didn’t you have this senpai from your high school that’s been going around on blind dates?” he asked. Hearing this, Seto’s eyes widened in recognition of the story and gestured to Asada to say something. Koushuu, on the other hand, wanted the day to end.
“Oh, him,” the bespectacled said hesitantly, “He is, but… I don’t think Okumura and him would match.”
“There you go,” the blonde said, dismissive, but his friends ignored him.
“What do you mean they won’t match?” Seto asked.
“Both of them are too… different… from each other,” Asada answered carefully, eyeing his blonde friend in case he reacts badly. Thankfully, he didn’t react, but the other guys did.
“That’s it! That’s what we want!!” Kukki said, clapping. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and turned to their tallest friend. “Asada, message that senpai now. Tell him that he’ll be having a blind date tomorrow,” he instructed, to which the other answered with an “Okay!” and typed away on his phone.
“I haven’t agreed to this,” Koushuu groaned, trying to take the phone from his friend’s grasp but Kukki slapped his hands away, dead set on warding him off.
“You won’t agree to this anyway so might as well we agree for you,” Seto grinned just as Asada said, “He replied and he said he’s going!”
So here he is, standing outside a cafe just a few miles away from his place. His friends didn’t let him see his date’s face but they did give him his number, and the amount of emojis the guy used in his messages makes his head spin. He sighed, lingering outside for a moment to bask in the warmth of the day.
“Here goes nothing,” he said, stepping into the establishment.
There, he saw the sun smiling at him.
He knows this even without touching him. He knows this even when they’re only a few feet apart. He knows this because the man reminds him of the sun—of its warmth, its light, its presence. He knows this, he knows this, he knows—
He just knows.
“Hi,” the sun said, reaching his hand out for a handshake, “I’m Sawamura Eijun.”
The action made the blonde’s eyebrow raise in amusement. In this world, a simple touch could break or change an entire person’s life. People try their best to avoid skin contact with others because of that so it was quite easy for Koushuu to figure out why the man went out on multiple blind dates. But that doesn’t matter, because he’s here now, reaching his hand out to the other.
“Hello,” he answered, feeling his chest burst the moment their fingers brushed with each other, “My name is Okumura Koushuu.”