cypher's condo V

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Your mind still felt hazy from the intensity; closing your eyes again as you tried to comprehend every sensation that ran through your body. Feeling high off your mind, up in the clouds reaching the sky, you watched your chest rise up and down, your heartbeat subsiding. Oikawa wrapped his arms around you, burying his head into your neck like it was the only safe space available. You heard him release an exhausted sigh, dragging the tips of your fingers down the blue dragon tattoo down his back.

"God, that was so fucking perfect." He mumbled into your skin as you reached up to stroke the back of his head, cradling his body in your arms. "We need to do this again."

You released a light-hearted chuckle, holding onto him tighter while you shook your head in a playful manner. "I don't think Hajime would like that."

"Yeah you're right, he probably wouldn't." Oikawa slipped his hands underneath your back, rolling you both over to the other side of the bed, your body now on top of his. He leaned up to kiss your lips quickly, bringing his head back down on the sheets. "But that's not gonna stop me from letting it happen."

You smiled at him before lowering your head on his body, cuddling up against his chest with your ear pressed to his sternum, the sound of his heartbeat pounding in sync with his breaths. It was an interesting contrast to the bustling noise of the city right outside, paired with the heavy rain against the window. Somehow in the moment, everything calmed you down, convincing yourself that you were safe in his arms, thinking nothing could hurt you.

"Do you ever wish for a night to last forever?" You aimlessly traced circles around the dragon tattoo on the side of his arm and neck, dragging along the outline of the ink. "I know it's wishful thinking, but honestly, right now—everything seems so calm and simple, I kinda want to stay like this for a while."

"Me too." He watched you glide your finger across from one side of his chest to the other, feeling the scrape of your fingernail against his skin. You saw Oikawa turn his head to face the window wall, looking out to the Tokyo skyline. "Sometimes I wish I lived a simpler life like this."

You looked up with one eyebrow raised, slightly confused. "What do you mean?"

"Well, I don't really... like my life that much." He released a soft sigh before pursing his lips, looking off to the side straight at the Tokyo skyline under the rain. "I wish it was a lot simpler, where moments like these are what I would look forward to instead of using it to distract myself from my problems."

You were surprised at how self-aware he was about it; completely feeling the pain of the world through his heart, holding all of the melancholy inside his soul. His words made you feel empathetic, entirely understanding of the situation and why he thought the way he did about his life. In a sense, he was right; if you were in his shoes, you wouldn't know how to handle living the life he lived. Wishing to slow down a fast paced life was a rational, an idealistic output for many nihilistic people.

"You know you don't have to use it as a distraction," you placed both of your hands on his chest, resting your other cheek on top of them. "I think moments like these are supposed to help us keep going, you know? I don't think it should be the answer to your problems."

"I never said it was." He scoffed, rolling his eyes with a smile on his face. "You act like I lack motivation in my life. I have plenty of that, sweetheart."

"Well, you don't have to be so rude about it, asshole." You released a slight chuckle, slapping your hand on his chest a little harder than you expected—earning a wheeze and a cough from him, disrupting his breathing for a second.

He playfully laughed along and began to mess with you; tickling your sides, grabbing your waist to roll around in what's left of the sheets on the bed. It was a wholesome moment shared between you two, exchanging smiles and giggles with the rain finally starting to clear up outside. You laid on your back, staring up at the dark ceiling—blue and purple neon lights still flashing outside from a city that never sleeps.

"Then it can be seen as something to keep you grounded in the moment, a reminder to let you know you're still here in the present." You turned to the side on your right, cuddling up next to him with your body pressed up against his again. While resting your head on his shoulder, you traced the tip of your finger along his chest, his skin still warm to the touch.

"You know, you sounded exactly like Hajime right there." Oikawa looked down at your hands trailing across his chest into his right arm, dragging your index finger along the coil of the dragon's tail. "He said something similar to me once when we raced each other down a mountain one time."

You popped your head up from his shoulder, glancing at him with your eyebrows raised. "Was it Mount Haruna?"

"Yeah, how'd you know?"

"My dad used to take Hajime and I up there in his car to race down the winding roads, it became one of his favorite places to visit. It's nice to know he still goes there after all these years." You let out a large sigh, your heartbeat pounding out of your chest despite your body relaxing on Oikawa's shoulder. "Did you tell Hajime about your past that night?"

"Nope. No one knows about my past, baby. Not even your cousin." He tightened his grip around your shoulders, rubbing your arm gently while planting a kiss on your forehead.

You thought about how Leia informed you that no one could decipher the great Cypher, for which it seemed to reign true, even the ones closest to him such as Iwaizumi not even knowing who he really was. He mentioned earlier that he felt his feelings were unheard by the world, people only ever perceiving him as someone he wished he wasn't anymore. Though, he also explained under the right situation, he would continue to be the person he didn't want to be, forever encapsulated between his own definition of morality.

You lifted your head up slightly and saw him staring down at you with a glimmer in his eyes, his lips turning up into his cheeks. Like back when you saw him drift the hairpin corner during the race earlier, Oikawa gave you that same gratified and content expression, showing only sincerity from his smile.

In your mind, Oikawa truly was a unique cipher to figure out, wondering what exactly he was trying to imply with every word spoken about himself. You thought back to the advice your father had given when you were younger; while explaining the anatomy of a car, he emphasized an important analogy.

"If the engine is the heart of the car, then the transmission is the brain. To exceed the potential of the engine, you must first go through and master the brain, deciphering all of its puzzles to work the entirety of the transmission. With that, you can be one with the machine."

It was the game you both agreed to play with each other, the chase between cat and mouse, a push and pull dynamic—getting to know who truly was Tooru Oikawa, leader of the Seijoh Brawlers. He really did put up a glass wall for you to peer into, alluring you in by wanting to know what truly remained inside.

You crossed your arms over your chest, raising both of your eyebrows. "You know, we still haven't finished our little game."

"Oh? Which one?"

"The one where I get you to finally crack." You turned your body over, laying on your stomach, bringing your left hand to touch the side of his face. With your eyes squinted, you gave him a sly smile and flicked the tip of his nose with your index finger. "I see right through your little façade, Tooru. One day, you'll lose—and I'll get to find out what's truly behind that mask you're hiding behind."

"I'll never let you win." Oikawa snickered under his breath, shaking his head.

"Hmm, we'll see about that."

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