Work Text:
‘So… what exactly are we doing in a photo booth?’
Kazuya was actually very curious. He never had any opportunities to use one of these ridiculous machines before, mainly because he thought they were lame and a total waste of time and money – and now here he was: pressed against his partner, who turned toward him with a huge grin on his face. Kazuya already knew that he would not get away without a series of idiotic pictures, so he let out a sigh and shook his head.
‘What do you think we are doing? We are making memories, Miyuki Kazuya!’
Let’s be honest – they were hiding, and Kazuya knew well that they really did not have much choice but to try and fit themselves into the nearest empty space… which happened to be this photo booth. He had seen Zono, Kuramochi and Kawakami aimlessly wandering around the mall; his eyesight was not exactly as sharp as an eagle’s but he could recognize his teammates from miles, especially with Kuramochi’s ridiculous hairstyle. Trust Sawamura Eijun to act on whim, trying to ‘protect’ themselves from said teammates – the last thing they wanted was Kuramochi making fun of them…
‘We can make photos with mobiles, you know…’ Kazuya said, grinning back at his partner, as he snaked his left arm around the other’s waist, pulling him a little closer.
‘Yeah, yeah, but this is much more fun. Come on!’
Eijun started to fiddle with the touchscreen, looking for a relatively nice background that did not have childish drawings or candy cones on it – in Kazuya’s opinion, it was a lost cause, but he let the pitcher do whatever he wanted. He could not care less about the background or the frame, he just wanted to enjoy the moment till the end.
They had a day-off – one of the rarest things a Seido-player could ever experience – and Eijun wanted to go to Tokyo. He wanted to buy something for one of his friends in Nagano, and Kazuya volunteered to escort him – partly because it was a nice opportunity to spend some quality time with the pitcher and partly because he could not trust Eijun not to get lost…
'I am not paying for it, by the way’, Kazuya said, smirking.
'You are such a killjoy, Miyuki Kazuya… but fine. It was my idea, so it’s on me! Should we add any texts to the photo like… “Best Battery” or I don’t know… Help me, Captain!’
'It’s already ridiculous, so I don’t really care, but note that I won’t repeat this ever again…’
Best Battery… yeah, that was definitely something only Sawamura Eijun could come up with.
'I want these pictures, so let’s not ruin them that much!’
Eijun’s enthusiasm was one of the many tiny things Kazuya liked about the pitcher. His joy and optimism was contagious; he could change the mood of the entire team within seconds, and he was a man of surprises. He could be childish and naïve; he often pouted and scoffed, but he also laughed and shouted a lot. He was a lively kid, who wore his golden heart on his sleeve, so everyone could see how he felt – he was the complete opposite of Kazuya, who made fun of people, who was a realist and who did not really open up to anyone.
Except for Eijun.
Kazuya felt a poke in his rib, and he turned toward the other.
'What?’
'Think about a pose, Miyuki! Hurry up!’
3…2…1…Click.
They ended up smirking at the camera – two teenager boys, who were messing around in a photo booth. A little message popped up, saying “All right, well done”, to which Kazuya made a face.
'This was lame.’
'And whose fault is that?’
'Not mine.’
'Of course… now think about something! Come on!’
Kazuya grinned again, as he grabbed Eijun’s wrist and pulled the boy onto his lap.
'Look at me.’
'What?’
'You have exactly 4 seconds to do it…’
3…2…1…
Eijun shook his head and looked Kazuya dead in the eye; Kazuya cupped Eijun’s face, planting a kiss on his cheek as the camera went off.
Click.
'This was your big idea?’
'You wanted a cheesy, shojou-type picture, right?’ Kazuya flashed a smile at Eijun.
'Isn’t it you who wanted such a picture?’, Eijun shot back, looking at his partner in disbelief, but the tiny blush on his face did not went unnoticed. Suddenly, Kazuya started to enjoy this whole thing a lot more, since he now had a task to do: to make the boy on his lap flustered. That was meant to be sort of a punishment, but there was no need to let Eijun know that Kazuya did not dislike the idea of a series of pictures with the southpaw.
'Look, another countdown… surprise me, Eijun…’
Eijun gasped; Kazuya turned their position a bit so they were facing each other – it was not like Eijun wanted these pictures to be romantic or intimate… trust Kazuya to make everything difficult and embarrassing. He bent down a bit; he could see the mild curiosity in Kazuya’s eyes – how he never got embarrassed was quite shocking for Eijun, who could feel more heat seep into his cheeks. Kazuya put his hands on his hips, tilting his head a bit, waiting for Eijun to move.
3…2…1…
Eijun planted a kiss on Kazuya’s forehead – if the catcher wanted those couple-pictures, the least he could do was to play along.
Click.
'Your turn…’, Eijun murmured, blushing.
Kazuya chuckled; they have been together for a month now, and Eijun still could not get used it. Maybe it was because of how they got together – they were fighting, as per usual, and then there was a Freudian slip: Eijun 'accidentally’ confessed his feelings for him, yelling at Kazuya that “he was a jerk, an asshole and a smartass who had a twisted soul and a gross sense of humour and he still liked him”, and Kazuya would never forget that feeling when he grabbed the pitcher’s wrist and dragged him toward the nearest tool shed. He answered the pitcher on his own way and relief washed over him when Eijun kissed him back – the boy was a catch, Kazuya had to admit, and even if he was not an emotional person, he wanted to show the boy – his boyfriend, he corrected himself – that he meant a lot to Kazuya.
A brilliant idea came into his mind – a perfect idea for the last picture; the countdown started again, so he removed his left hand from Eijun’s waist as he grabbed the nape of the other’s neck.
'What…?
Eijun did not have time to finish his question.
3…2…1…
Click.
Kazuya pulled away, pressing his forehead against Eijun’s. Slowly, a rosy scarlet colour spread over the pitcher’s cheeks, making his face take on an almost childlike appearance – it was just too cute, Kazuya wanted a dozen of photos of Eijun. He smiled at the pitcher; it was a rare, honest smile that Eijun did not really see that often. They were looking into each other’s eyes, when-
Thank you for using the Fun Booth. Please exit the booth and retrieve your photos!
The monotonous machine-voice was what brought them back to reality; they actually forgot they were in a photo booth, hiding from their teammates.
Eijun disentangled himself from the hug – he did not remember wrapping his arms around Kazuya’s neck -, and he got out of the booth, holding the curtain so Kazuya could exit as well. It was Kazuya who grabbed the photo strip, laughing at the four little pictures, then he handed them to Eijun. The pitcher was still a bit dazed, and Kazuya ruffled his hair, affectionately.
'Move it, we still haven’t got anything for your friend, right?’
Eijun snapped out of his daze, panic rushing across his face; he yelped as he grabbed Kazuya’s wrist.
'You sly bastard, you distracted me and it almost slipped my mind!’
Omake
They managed to get back to the dorm before anyone else, although it was already late in the evening – they wouldn’t have gotten back for dinner, so they had ramen on their way to Seido. Eijun put the present into his drawer, and he quickly changed into his pyjama. He folded his jeans when the photo strip slipped out of his back pocket.
A warm, happy smile appeared on his face as he took a better look at the pictures; they started with a normal, we-are-just-friends-photo and they ended up…
Kissing.
In a photo booth.
Moreover, there was a photographic evidence of it.
'That sly bastard…’ Eijun whispered, as he touched the last picture – the one where he kissed said bastard’s forehead. Then Eijun let out a small laugh and he shook his head. 'You thief…’
The fourth picture was gone – when and how it was separated from the others was beyond Eijun – the only thing he knew that the picture was safe, possibly in a briefcase of a certain catcher…