"I think my heart is about to fall out of my butt..."

Suzumeda seemed to be entertained by my torment as she lead me along by the arm whilst Shirofuku tottered behind us with a mouthful of trail mix.
"Oh, calm down! Your dad thinks you're at my place studying, doesn't he? My mama even covered for you! Just try to enjoy yourself, (Y/N)!"

I wanted to enjoy myself. Oh, how I desperately wanted to, but I was scared out of my wits. Deliberately disobeying my parents? I may as well prepare to pay my own shipping fees when he sends me off to Timbuktu.

"You've seriously never been to the quarterly markets? Wow. You live under a rock under a rock." Shirofuku hummed, which didn't do much to help my mood.
"Yeah, well, it isn't my fault..." I replied a little sourly, lowering my head and watching my shoes scrape against the pavement.

I'll be okay...Think of it as a quick vacation...You've earned it, right..?

"Ayooo! Over here!" Something zinged in my chest when I heard Bokuto's voice, and my head snapped up in search for him. He was across the way, standing just off to the side of a large entry arch, accompanied by Akaashi and three other boys.

Oh. Wonderful. More testosterone. Lovely.

"Hey, guys! Sorry we're late. Little Miss Muffet here wouldn't get her ass off of her tuffet." I loved Suzumeda dearly, but she really did enjoy poking fun at me. I knew it was all in good fun, but it still rubbed me the wrong way. Especially when it was in front of other people.

"I'm glad you're here, (Y/N)!" Bokuto turned his attention to me, beaming brighter than the sun itself. "I was worried you'd back out!" Just as I was about to respond, one of the guys I hadn't met yet sidled up beside him, almost nudging him out of the way as he took a good long look at me.

Messy black hair...a lazy smirk...is this a delinquent?!

"You were right...She is pretty cute." He chuckled, brows wiggling. "I'm Kuroo Tetsuro, and Mr. Owl Eyes here has been raving on about you since we met up three hours ago." Nervous, and quite honestly taken aback by the man's statement, I just stood there awkwardly as Bokuto pulled Kuroo backwards by the scruff. He was quickly replaced by a shorter, much nicer looking guy who donned an apologetic smile.

"Sorry about him. He's an actual idiot. I'm Yaku Morisuke, and that's Kenma." He motioned to the last of the unknowns, who had his nose buried in his phone. "Why don't we all head inside, huh?"

Okay...at least this guy seems mostly normal...

"Uh...y..yeah, sure...alright...I'm (L/N) (F/N), nice to meet you all..." Damning my stuttering, I chose to remain between my two female friends as we entered the markets, still keeping my head down.
"Don't just cling to us, you limpet! Go on! Socialise! Make some three legged friends!" Suzumeda pushed me forward by the small of my back, and I stumbled forward, right up beside Kenma.

He lifted his gaze for all but a moment before returning it to his screen.
"Don't worry. I'm not that excited about being here either." He sighed, sounding less than enthused.
"It...isn't that I'm not excited...I just don't really know how this kind of thing works..."

This time, his eyes lingered on me a little longer. He seemed confused by my statement.
"This kind of thing..? Lucky you. I get dragged around like a dog by Kuroo." Upon mention of his name, the ravonet dropped back to join us, followed by Bokuto immediately.

"My ears are burning~. I hope you're singing my praises, Kenma." He snickered, reaching over and pushing Kenma's phone lower so he had no choice but to converse.
"Why would I ever do something like that?"

As the pair began to bicker, I became hyper aware of Bokuto walking by my side, and I nervously stole a peek up at him. He was looking right back at me, but the difference was that he wasn't trying to hide it.

"So, what'dya wanna do first? There's food, some sideshow games, stalls if you wanna buy something. You name it, I'll take you to it!" He thumbed himself and grinned down at me, which caused my cheeks to heat up.
"I...um...I'm happy doing whatever anyone else wants to do..." I murmured, opting to turn my attention down towards my shoes.

"Let's look at the stalls first. I promised my aunt I'd buy her some soaps." Yaku piped up, motioning for us to follow him. It was strange. Again, I was thinking about how my father's rules didn't make sense. Nobody in my current company seemed dangerous to me.

So many new sights and smells rushed my senses, and I found myself becoming distracted by all the little trinkets on sale. Handmade items, second hand treasures, organic produce. I was becoming curiouser and curiouser.

As I passed by a particular stall filled with bits and bobs, I paused and backtracked, eyeing something with much more interest.
"Seen something you like, (Y/N)?" Akaashi wandered up to me, following my line of sight as I nodded slowly.

The item I had seen was an old stuffed rabbit. Peter Rabbit, to be precise.
"Oh, uh, well, it's just that I used to have one just like this when I was a little kid..." I responded softly, having to clear my throat so my voice wouldn't disappear completely.

"Oya? Was it the toy?" I flinched when Bokuto appeared on my other flank, and I cocked a brow.
"The toy..?" I wasn't sure what he was on about. Nodding, he picked up a wooden train that was by the plushie, rolling one of the wheels with his thumb.

"Yeah! You know, the toy. Most kids have one that they love way more than the others. I had that purple moldy nugget mascot dude from WcDonalds. Wouldn't give it up for nothing!" Bokuto explained, and Akaashi hummed in agreement.
"I know what you mean. My cousin has an RC car he totes around everywhere."

Returning my gaze to the rabbit, I recalled just how obsessed I had been with my own. I slept with it, ate with it, even sat it on the edge of the bath when I bathed. I would likely have never have parted with it if it hadn't been for my father urging me to 'grow up'.

No, he forced that...

"Then...yeah, it was the toy..." I almost whispered, again pushing that crackle in my throat away before hurrying away. "C..come on, everyone looks like they're waiting on us..."

From there, we wandered around the markets and explored the sights. It was more like a fair, if I was honest, and I was content just following the others and observing. We all had to drag Bokuto away from the ring-toss game, after he forked out a whole lot of cash, insisting he wanted to win me a prize. I had to press the fact that even if he did, I wouldn't be able to take it home with me.

The next person we had to wrangle was Shirofuku, who reaped havoc upon the food stalls. Oh, to have a metabolism like hers would have been a dream come true for anybody.

On our way back towards the entrance, I slowed down to a full stop when I heard a loud, bleating noise, and there was no moving me once my (E/C) eyes settled upon what had made it.
"Oh ho ho? Did something finally catch your fancy?" Kuroo chuckled, grabbing hold of Kenma's hood so he wouldn't continue walking without us.

"There's a goat." I stated almost dreamily, loosely pointing towards a fenced area. Not only was there a group of goat kids, but piglets, lambs, rabbit kittens. Everything small and adorable.
"Oh, sweet! They've got a petting zoo!" Bokuto always seemed to be by my side, but this time I didn't even think twice about it.

Turning to him, I grabbed onto his sleeve with one hand and the strap of his bag with the other, looking up at him with large, pleading eyes.
"I wanna go see the animals!"

Were his cheeks red? Possibly, but I wasn't taking all that much notice in that moment. Gradually, his slightly 'o' shaped mouth spread into one of his widest grins yet, and he shot me a thumbs up.
"H..hell yeah! Let's go!"

Much to my confusion, Bokuto insisted that he pay for my entry into the large pen, and I could barely contain my excitement when the gate was opened and we were permitted inside. Kenma, Suzumeda and Shirofuku stayed on the outside, happy to just watch. At least the girls were. Kenna was still engrossed with his phone.

Immediately, I rushed over to the cluster of nub-horned goats, lowering myself to my knees and welcoming a barrage of bleats and headbutts.
"Oh my God, you're all so cute! I think I might actually cry..!" I squeaked, becoming a pedestal for one of the more boisterous ones.

"Wanna feed them?" Looking up, I began nodding before Bokuto had even finished asking the question, and he left, quickly returning with a cup of food for the little critters.

"O..oi! No, go to her! She has the food!" Yaku began to yelp, dancing from foot to foot when one of the goats began to chew at his pant leg.
"Oh Yakuuuu~ Look, this little guy looks just like you!" Kuroo snickered as he held up the tiniest ginger rabbit kitten I had ever seen, and I couldn't help but stifle a laugh at his friend's reaction.

"That! Right there!" I stiffened when Bokuto crouched down beside me, finger only inches away from my nose.
"H..huh? What right where..?" Returning to my timid self, I just stared at him, waiting for an answer.

"Mission one is a success! I got you to laugh!" He was glowing with excitement, barely able to stay upright with a lamb jumping against his side.
"Can't say it ain't so, (Y/N)! Heard ya loud and clear!" Suzumeda added from the sidelines.

Wait, mission one..? Of how many? How is this even a mission..?

"Actually, Bokuto, Yaku and Kuroo get the credit for that one." Akaashi piped up from nearby, busy gently petting a piebald piglet. Despite deflating a little, Bokuto still maintained his smile, which almost became infectious. What was it about him that made me feel like that?
"Yeah, well, I guess I'll just have to be the one to get it out of you next time!"

After the petting zoo, we left the markets, parting ways with most of the others at the station. Suzumeda, Bokuto and I continued on to the former's house, where I had been smart enough to drop a change of clothes. After a quick wipe down and deodorising, we bid farewell to my friend and continued on towards our street.

"I know it wasn't exactly teenagery, but did you have fun?" Bokuto asked curiously, hands stretched up behind his head as we walked in the fading sunlight.
"I really did...Thanks, Bokuto..." I replied timidly, toying with a loose strand of (H/C) hair that fell over my forehead. "I've never really done anything like that before..."

His pace slowed a little, and I could feel the surprised look he was giving me without looking over to him.
"You're seriously never allowed to go have fun? Like, ever?" He questioned, and I nodded solemnly. "Damn, alright, that settles it, then."

We slowed to a stop by the corner of the backstreet we usually took to school, where we had met and parted.
"S..settles what..?" I asked, almost sceptically. Pumping his fist in front of himself, Bokuto gave me a look so determined, so passionate, it made me believe that it could have something to do with volleyball.

"I'm gonna be your fun dealer, (Y/N)! Wait, that sounds sketchy...Fun provider! This was easy enough, right? We can make it work, and I can take you out so we can do fun things together! You and me! Also I guess the others too, but you know what I mean! Fun provider!"

It was about me. That passion, that determination, it was all for my sake. I wasn't sure what to think about it. Still, it made my chest squeeze in a way it hadn't done before.
"I..I guess maybe...on the odd occasion..? I...Yeah, I would really like to have fun with you...a..all of you, I mean..."

Does this count as a rebellious phase? Or...is this actually the real normal that I've been missing out on?

Perking up a little, Bokuto swung his shoulder bag to the front, holding up his finger for me to wait.
"Before I forget...I got you this..!" Out of his backpack he pulled that same Peter Rabbit plushie I had reminisced over, and held it out to me. Hesitantly, I accepted it, completely speechless as I brought it close to my chest. "I know you probably can't take it home with you...but it can chill with me until you can! I just wanted you to know about it."

The soft fur, the slightly musty smell, the rougher flannel of the tiny blue coat. It made me feel happy. Like a child again.
"I love him..." I whispered quietly, eyes stinging a little bit when I looked back up to the man, my new friend, and forced myself to hand it back, our hands just barely touching upon transaction. "Bokuto, you really are a nice person. I..I'm sorry if I-"

"Nope, gonna stop you there! No sorries necessary! I'm just glad that you'll talk to me now." His smile softened, and we spent a few moments in a loud silence before I snapped myself out of it.
"I..uh, I should get back...but...seriously, thank you so much. For today, for Peter...a..and for being patient with me..."

I began to walk away, but I continued to look over my shoulder, for some reason elated when seeing Bokuto waving after me, happy as can be.

"As I said, (Y/N)! That was only mission number one!"

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***I just really like the OG Peter Rabbit, okay? I used a toy I used to have when I was a little girl (that sadly got destroyed after I split with my ex fiancé).

This, but more 'loved' 😂

Next Time: Boundaries***