touch, or lack of... | tsukishima kei x reader

You never held hands. You never hugged. You were never questioned about it, until suddenly you were.

Waving to Kei as he left the cafe you worked at, you turned at the sound of someone's voice too close to your ear.
"I think it's cute how he always walks you here. Who's he, anyway? Is it your cousin?"

You blinked, turning to your far-too-loud colleague. "He's my boyfriend."

"Wait, really?" the look of surprise on her face was plain offensive.

You nodded. "Why would you think he was my cousin?"

"You never…you know, like, kiss each other goodbye. You stand so far away from each other, I thought you weren't— a thing." the tone of her voice irritated you. Tsukishima & yourself were dating. Why was it such a hard concept to grasp?

"We don't do that." you replied in hopes of ending the conversation, but your words had only fuelled the girl and she was talking again.

Having someone mistake Kei for your cousin was bothering you more than you liked to admit.
Sitting on the sofa, your knees brought up to your chest with your head resting on top of them, you looked over at him. The tall volleyball player was leant back half a meter away from you, focused on the flashcards in his hand. He knew something was wrong and you knew that he knew. The way his brows knitted together was not a sign he didn't understand what he was reading, but that he was worrying...about you.

Concentrating on the gap between the two of you, it was hard to stop yourself from over-analysing the situation. Was it only you that felt comfortable with what you had? The space between the two of you was the same as always, but to you it no longer whispered 'safety'. Instead, a sickening fear slithered across your body as millions of voices shrieked about the danger these centimetres held. The danger of someone filling the hole between you. The danger of being too far away when he needed you. The danger of losing him.

As if sensing your turmoil, he shuffled until one leg was under him, the other resting off the edge of the sofa. His whole being was screaming 'talk to me', but he remained quiet. He knew pushing you to talk would only lead to more stress. So you sat in silence until you were ready to talk.

"People at work think it's weird we don't touch." you finally said, embarrassed that something so dumb was the cause of your anxiety.

"I think it's weird people at work have an opinion on our relationship." he answered with a shrug.

"This girl thought you were my cousin…apparently touch is the only way to show someone you care about them."

"That's stupid."

"I know." you felt your frustration seep into your tone. Kei picked up on it, but didn't mention it. His expression remained the same, as of your words had no effect on him.

"Sorry. It's just…so stupid." you fixated on those fifty centimetres again— you closed your eyes.

There's the sound of shuffling and you can only assume the conversation is over. When something warm was pressed against your forehead and his thumb gently brushed your cheek, your breath hitched. When your lids fluttered open, you were greeted by the same distance as before. A blush across your cheeks, your fingers found the place his lips had been only seconds ago.

"So what if we do things differently? It doesn't make me love you less." Tsukishima had now resumed his initial position, reading over the flashcards.

The only difference was his flushed face and the way the space between you spelt 'safety' once again.