#I want Fukunaga to look back as he stands beside her and go ‘can’t ask for a better best friend. the most annoying little shit in my life

[lovelysugawara]

_Distasteful Pursuit_

Kuroo x OC Fanfiction

Plot:

Hikeji Yuna got rejected by the Team Captain of Nekoma Volleyball Club, Kuroo Tetsuro. But Yuna still tries to support him despite the annoyed look he’s giving to her. What will happen when she suddenly becomes the team’s manager?

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

You are still walking and going to gym 3. You still think about what to say to Kuroo, and if it's okay for him to see you at this hour.

Thinking about his annoyed expression makes your heart hurt a little. Though you kind of used to it. And it’s not supposed to be like this.

You heard from Ayane that high school crush should be a happy memory you’ll remember forever. But why doesn't that apply to you?

You can clearly remember how you smiled the day you realized you have a crush on Kuroo Tetsuro. But where does that smile go? Weren't you happy a few months ago?

“Yuna-chaaaaan~!!”

Bokuto pulled you out of your reverie.

You looked back and saw a running Bokuto.

“Hallo Yuna-chan!” he’s now standing in front of you.

“H-hello B-Bokuto-san,” you awkwardly smile at him.

He’s smiling so widely at you that you felt shy of him being so energetic.

“Are you going somewhere?” he asked, still so energetic as ever.

“Y-yeah, on the way to Kuroo-san.” you answered him.

“Kuroo? He’s not here. I mean he was here not too long ago. Actually, I saw him talking to Akaashi, but he suddenly walked out of the gym. Hmm,” Bokuto’s amber and questioning eyes caught your attention.

“Anyways, can I help you with anything?” Bokuto’s eager eyes are hard to resist.

“W-well, can you help me find Kuroo-san?” you politely asked him.

You then see his eyes bright like a star, “Of course, I lead the way then. Let’s find him.”

You and bokuto started walking.

***

On the other side, Kuroo is already looking at you and Bokuto. He intentionally didn’t show up to you. He actually sees you, but when he’s about to call you, Bokuto already approached you. And the rest are somehow bothersome for him.

He remembers why Akaashi approached him.

Akaashi looked at him straight in the eyes.

“It’s about your manager, Hikeji Yuna-san.”

Kuroo is a bit surprised to hear your name from Fukurodani's setter.

“What? Is there something wrong with our manager? Did she make mistakes that cause you trouble?”

Kuroo even questioned himself why he asked that. Why would he think something so negative about you? Why would he think you made a mistake like it’s the only thing you only do?

Seeing Akaashi’s doubtful reaction, it makes him feel a bit weird.

“No, she didn’t meet anyone in our time except Bokuto-san. But there’s something going on with Hikeji-san. You probably don’t know it.”

Akaashi’s serious face makes kuroo back down a bit.

“I guess she’s being hated by your team.”

What Akaashi told him, is actually true. And he knows it. Of course, one of the reasons she’s being attacked is because of him. People don’t like Yuna because of what happened before. Or did it actually happen?

“I’m only saying this and it is actually my personal opinion, I’m watching her the whole afternoon and people don’t actually talk to her.”

Kuroo didn’t answer back, he’s more shocked knowing someone outside their team noticed that.

Akaashi’s eyes didn’t leave Kuroo’s face, he’s watching every facial reaction he will show.

“Based on your reaction now, I’m guessing you somehow know it. But please don’t throw a blind-eye on this, Kuroo-san.” Akaashi finished what wanted to say.

“Excuse me,” Akaashi walks away but then suddenly stops and looks at Kuroo.

“Also, I think Bokuto-san likes her. I hope that’s fine.” Akaashi continued to walk towards the door.

What?

Is the question echoing in Kuroo's mind.

Bokuto, liking Yuna?

He can’t seem to picture you with another guy, he kind of feels irritated somehow.

But does that mean he likes you?

He shakes the idea off, of course not. He rejected you months ago, why would he do that if he likes you?

But seeing you walking with Bokuto now, clearly pisses him.

***

Then came the next morning and another set of training was on the lists.

You and other managers are busy either preparing food or watching your team’s match.

You are also busy, watching your team noting all your coaches' advice, and then writing it down in your own notebook.

Nekoma, lost to Fukurudani that morning.

As you watch Nekoma and Fukurudani’s practice game, you know something is different on Kuroo’s move. He seems stiff and unable to decide, making Kenma carry the game.

You’re a bit worried, and you wanted to ask him what is wrong. But you know he won’t pay you any attention, he won’t even bother to answer you.

You stand awkwardly far from the team as you look secretly at Kuroo. You put a bottle of water earlier beside his towel and you think it is better for him not to know it’s from you because you know Kuroo will drink it.

“You seem off,” Kenma said to Kuroo after that game.

“I’m just out of focus,” he said.

“Why?” it is clear that Kenma didn’t actually care about his reason because he continued to scroll on his phone.

“I’m just- worried,” Kuroo looked away and a bit embarrassed about his answer.

“Worried about what?” Kenma insists on his boring questions.

“About something, just don’t mind me.” kuroo just brush him off.

Kenma feels weird about his friend.

“Hey, hey, hey! Yuna-chaaaan!”

Bokuto suddenly appeared in front of you, with Akaashi following him.

“B-Bokuto-san,”

They saw you carrying an icebox. And Bokuto’s forehead creased.

“Why are you carrying that, isn't it heavy?” you can hear his voice with worry.

“U-uhm, n-no, not actually heavy. See,” you cried to carry it more but struggle to walk because it’s indeed super heavy.

As you are about to fall forward, you’re shocked when someone holds you on your waist and someone holds your hand and the icebox.

And when you see who they are, it’s actually Bokuto and Kuroo.

“Are you alright?” both the guys actually asked you the same question.

You didn’t know what to say, and you know you can answer Bokuto easily, but Kuroo is also here, and he’s holding your waist. Making you blushed.

Akaashi on the other hand sighed a little bit and decided to get the icebox from your hand, leaving the three of you unmoved.

“Seriously, are you guys planning to hold her until lunch?”

After Akaashi said those, the three of you jolted and they suddenly put away their hands.

Bokuto held his hands up, like surrendering, “I’m so sorry, Yuna-chan.” and he’s blushing like crazy.

While Kuroo, looks away and puts his right hand on his mouth. Trying to hide his embarrassment and blush at the same time.

“S-sorry,” he just said.

Actually, Kuroo saw Bokuto approach you. And he plans to snatch you away from him when suddenly the icebox almost fell, making him run to you like his life depends on it.

Maybe because if you ever fall to the ground, Bokuto might catch you first, and you’ll for sure hug him.

Did he somehow feel jealous?

He then erased that in his mind and told himself it’s impossible.

Then Mako from Shinzen High appeared. “Yuna-chan, please help us in the kitchen if you’re available.”

You didn’t actually know what happened, but you know you’re blushing. You are more shocked knowing Kuroo is also there and he did save you from falling too.

Is this even real? Does he worry about you now?

Mako noticed it too, “Are you okay?” she said.

You suddenly looked at Mako, putting aside what happened and you tried so hard to hide your flustered face..

“Y-yes, l-let’s go mako-san.” you actually push her away from the scene. Not even looking back at the two.

***

At lunch, all teams are eating at the pantry. Because Nekoma and Karasuno are a bit close, some players from their team eat together.

“OHHH, I just remember! Tora-san, you got a pretty manager!!!” Tanaka blurted out suddenly.

“Ohh, Ryuuuu is right. She’s pretty and like an angel.” Nishinoya also said.

“But of course, Kiyoko-san is still the best of all,” Tanaka made sure to emphasize that, and even nishinoya agrees.

“She’s also kind, hmm,” Hinata agrees with them.

Then suddenly, Tora laughs with Inuoka and Shibayama.

“What are you talking about? She’s pretty? She’s kind?” Tora still laughs, making Hinata and the others look at them like they have grown an extra head each.

“Yes, why?” Hinata innocently looked at them.

Tora stands up and makes a scary face, “Don’t be fooled by that witch, or she will haunt your dreams.”

The Nekoma boys just laugh at their own joke.

“Hey, that’s rude. Why are you like that?” Hinata suddenly reacts.

“But we are serious, just don’t get close to her. You don’t know why she approached you guys. She might be trying to get your attention.” Inuoka said with a serious face.

“But we just approached her this morning and she looks kind and very different from what you guys talk about,” Tanaka told them.

Then Tora, Inuoka and Shibayama looked at each other.

“Even so, just don’t approach her freely,” Tora said with warning.

***

“I still don’t understand, how can they say that?” nishinoya said as they walked outside the pantry.

“Yeah, I wonder what she does for them to think of her like that,” Tanaka said.

“But still, i don’t feel anything weird about her. She does smile so pretty.” Hinata said as he blushed.

“Heh, a rare chance for Hinata to be flustered like this.” Tanaka teased him.

They all laugh.

***

The training continues in the afternoon.

Nekoma played against Ubugawa, and they almost lost but so glad for Fukunaga securing the last hit for them.

“That was so tiring,” Kuroo helped himself with a towel. Kenma still has this tiring face because he's been playing since this morning.

“You okay, Kenma?” he asked the setter.

“Do I look okay to you? I’m tired.” Kenma exhaled.

You saw the two of them, and you approached Kuroo and Kenma holding one bottle of water.

“Kenma, here’s your water,” you said to him.

“Thank you, Hikeji-senpai.”

You smiled, and then looked at Kuroo.

Kuroo is also looking at you, but like always you can’t look at him directly in the eyes. And you blushed as you looked away.

“N-nice game, Kuroo-san.” you said and then you ran away.

Kenma shot a deathly glare at him.

“What did you do this time?” Kenma looked at Kuroo, scrutinizing him.

“I-i didn’t do anything!” Kuroo is clearly blushing as he answers Kenma.

Kenma just looked at him like Kuroo is the most irritable person in the world.

“More importantly, why didn't she give me water?” Kuroo suddenly asks.

“Well, you won’t accept anything from her, right? Maybe that’s why she doesn’t want to give yours anymore.” Kenma said as he drank the water and then smirked.

“Why? You just realized it?” Kenma teased Kuroo.

Kenma is right.

You don’t want to inconvenience Kuroo anymore. That’s why you tried to hide giving him water or towel, or anything.

Kuroo just looked at you while you talked to other managers and smiled with them.

He didn’t know why he felt light-hearted seeing you smile, and as you touch your hair with your hand, he suddenly wondered how it would feel if your hand touched and caressed his hair too. Or how would he feel if you smiled at him like that?

Like you will brighten the world with your smile.

He then suddenly shakes his head, then asked what was wrong with him. Did he bump his head somehow?

Why is he thinking about you?

Kuroo turned away from you, then suddenly heard Bokuto.

“Kurooo,” the Fukurodani’s ace approached him.

“Oh Bokuto, what is it?” He said.

Bokuto looks at him with a serious face.

“Listen, I think I like Yuna-chan.”

…

“What?” Kuroo said, and he doesn’t want to believe what Bokuto said to him at that moment.

What will he do?

Or

Is there something he needs to do?

Will he let someone steal your smile from him?

A/N:

Heya guys! Sorry for taking so long again to update this. ^^ trying to grasp some stuff. but I hope you guys will enjoy this.

See you next week. ^^

~

Taglist:

@dekuspet​ @mkkhaikyuu​ @captain-eagle-art​ @rozesarered @kurooloves @elianetsantana @saamsstuff @seijohsangel @i-vonsnyeeoj

#kuroo testuro #kuroo fanfic #kuroo tetsuro fanfiction #kuroo x oc #kuroo tetsuro x oc #kuroo haikyuu #kuroo imagine #kuroo hq #kuroo tetsuro imagine #haikyuu imagines #haikyuu fanfiction #haikyuu fic #haikyuu!! #haikyuu to the top #kuroo angst #angst

[mkkhaikyuu]

Autumn Skies: Chapter 3

Previous | Chapter 3  |  Next  | Masterlist      

Autumn Skies - Chapter 3 The First Snow

•°O°• [[December]] Present •°O°•

Cold air hits you as soon as you step out of the classroom. You started walking down the hallway, trying to bury the jealousy that resurfaced in your chest from what you just saw.

The image of Kuroo pulling Hana in for a quick kiss as you were about to step out of the room kept playing in your head. You know you should be used to it by now. It’s not like it was the first time you saw them kiss, or hug and hold hands for that matter. But it still feels like a punch to the gut each time.

Stopping outside the guidance counselor’s office, you took a moment to compose yourself before knocking and entering.

“Oh, y/n! It’s been a while,” Miss Yukino, the guidance counselor, greets with a smile. “Have a seat!”

You try to muster up a smile of your own as you sat on the chair in front of her desk.

“So, have you thought about it?” she began, leaning forward to rest her chin on clasped hands.

“I have, but I’m still undecided,” you answered.

Miss Yukino studies you for a moment, and you steeled yourself, silently hoping your turbulent emotions didn’t show on your face. If she suspected something, she didn’t say anything about it.

“Why? What’s holding you back?” she finally asked. You found the question amusing. There was a long list of things holding you back.

Every year, different universities and some private companies offer academic scholarships to seniors at Nekoma High. Some of the scholarships are offered only to the seniors running for the top ten of the batch. You and Kuroo were among the top ten.

Back in the last week of October, the guidance counselor called you to her office to tell you the news. Apparently, you qualified for two scholarships – one from the University of Tokyo and the other from Yale University.

So now you were stuck between two choices. You’d always dreamed of getting into the University of Tokyo. Who wouldn’t? It was one of the best universities in the country. You’d already imagined yourself being a university student there more times than you could count.

On the other hand, you’d thought about studying abroad before but never seriously considered it. Studying abroad would mean being alone in a foreign place with no familiar face to seek comfort from. Sure, you were independent to a fault but leaving behind the comforts and familiarity of home? That was probably too much. You didn’t think you could handle that. Besides, it would be too costly. You’d never in a million years think you’d ever get so lucky as to receive a scholarship from a renowned university located on the other side of the globe. You haven’t even told your family about it.

In an effort to decide, you’d paid a visit to the University of Tokyo’s nearby campus that afternoon of the spring interhigh qualifiers (which was also Kuroo’s birthday). You’d also done some research on Yale University. It was a prestigious university that consistently tops world university rankings. That should’ve been enough to convince you to choose Yale. In the end, you still couldn’t decide which one to go for.

However, there is one thing that can decide for you. The scholarship from the University of Tokyo was final, that is, all that was left for you to do was accept it and hand in your application. On the other hand, you’d actually just made it through the first round of screening for Yale’s scholarship. You’d still have to go through a few more exams and a series of interviews. You wonder if putting in the extra effort is even worth it at all though. Based on your research, Yale University is pretty selective, having an extremely low acceptance rate. The last thing you needed was another reason for you to get your hopes up.

As if reading your thoughts, Miss Yukino puts a hand on your shoulder, causing you to look up.

“This is a rare opportunity, y/n. You’re the only one who qualified for this scholarship, you know. Just give it a try. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain just by trying.”

She smiled, her eyes conveying so much faith in you that you couldn’t help but nod firmly. She was right. You owe it to yourself to at least try. Trying and ending up failing was better than having what if’s constantly haunting you. This was a once in a lifetime opportunity and you couldn’t believe that you’d almost let it slip through your fingers.

With newfound determination, you told Miss Yukino that you’d give it a try. In turn, she breathes a sigh of relief, happy that she was able to convince you. After she instructed you about the next steps, you thanked her and left.

•°O°•

You changed into your tracksuit and went to the gym. As the manager, you’re supposed to be at practice sooner so the gym would be ready once practice starts. Luckily, you weren’t going to be late this time.

Stepping into the gym, you quickly went about your pre-practice routine of preparing towels, filling up water bottles and setting up the net.

As you tied the last string of the net to the pole, you gasped and froze as your vision suddenly went black. You felt a familiar pair of hands covering your eyes, warm against your skin. You knew it was Kuroo. He liked to sneak up behind you to surprise you whenever he had the chance.

“Kuroo!” you warned. You pried his hands off your face and turned around to glare at him like you always did. You were standing on a chair since you couldn’t reach the part of the pole where you needed to tie the net. From your position, you could clearly see his handsome face as he laughed, finding your reaction amusing as usual. Warmth creeps up into your face and you felt the traitorous butterflies fluttering in your stomach. Why was he making it so hard for you to move on? You quickly turn away before he sees your burning face.

“How many times do I have to tell you to leave the task of setting up the net to me, y/n?” he asked with a shake of his head, hands planted on his hips. Deciding to ignore him, you carefully stepped off the chair while holding on to the pole. Kuroo instinctively reaches a hand out to your arm to steady you.

Inwardly, you sighed. Doesn’t he know what he does to you? You couldn’t believe he was this dense and oblivious to your feelings. You’d always known Kuroo to be extremely perceptive. What was he being so clueless for?

The rest of the team starts arriving in their practice uniforms. Sighing in frustration, you walked away wordlessly from Kuroo, shifting to manager mode.

Practice began shortly after. You were off to the side as the team played against each other three versus three. You kept yourself busy with scorekeeping and updating the team’s stat sheets.

•°O°• 

After practice, you collected the sweaty towels. Lev, Inouka, Yamamoto and Fukunaga picked up the stray balls and put the net back in the equipment room.

Suddenly, you heard Lev call out, “Hana-senpai!” Lev flailed his slender arms around, beaming at Hana. The other boys paused to greet her then went back to what they were doing.

Hana waits at the entrance, looking around for her boyfriend. Her long dark hair cascades down her back in soft waves. You bitterly admitted to yourself that she was indeed beautiful.

She spots you near the storage room and waves, walking over to you. You waved back. The two of you didn’t talk to each other that much. At most, you would just exchange greetings whenever you met.

“Hey, y/n. Do you know where Tetsu is?” she asked. You bit your tongue upon hearing the nickname.

“Showering, probably. He should be back soon,” you answered. As if on cue, Kuroo comes out of the locker room. Kenma also walks out not long after Kuroo, his attention already on his game. You quickly excused yourself from Hana to go get your things.

•°O°•

The sky was dark and light snow covered the school grounds. A scarf was wrapped snuggly around your neck and you wore your hoodie under your tracksuit jacket. You, Hana and the team walked out of the gym together.

Yaku glances at you and asks, “Hey, we’re having a Christmas party, right?” Upon hearing that, the rest of the team and Hana also look at you. You nodded.

“Yeah. Is next Saturday alright?” you asked. They all agreed. The first-years bounced in excitement, yelling about presents, decorations and food. Yamamoto rambled on about doing a Christmas play or something. Meanwhile, you and the other third-years started talking about your plans and ideas for the party. You tried to avoid looking at Hana and Kuroo who were walking arm in arm.

“I can help with the preparations,” Hana suddenly offers. You raised your eyebrows in surprise. Before she notices your surprised face though, you quickly gave her a grateful smile. The boys were quick to offer their help as well.

“Thanks. I’d appreciate that,” you told them with a small laugh, “I’m actually kind of busy these days so any help is welcome.”

“Busy for what? The final exams?” Kuroo asks. You hummed in agreement.

“Well, that and other stuff,” you murmured.

“Oh? Like what?” Kuroo presses on, raising an eyebrow. You raised an eyebrow back at him and tell him it’s nothing. You didn’t really want to talk about it. Kuroo sighs exasperatedly.

“You’re so secretive these days, y/n. You never tell us about what goes on in your life anymore,” he turns to Kenma who was walking silently beside you, “right, Kenma?”

Kenma only gives him a deadpan look before saying, “That’s because you’re barely ever around anymore.”

Kuroo gasps and jokingly puts a hand to his chest, “Haaa?! Kenma, you take that back!” He then points to Kenma while looking at you pleadingly, “Y/n, tell him he’s wrong!”

You shook your head and chuckled fondly at him.

“You’re so dramatic,” you, Kenma, and Yaku say at the same time. Kuroo’s jaw dropped. Kai smiled amusedly behind him.

“I can’t believe you three would gang up on me like that,” he muttered.

Kuroo was right though. You’ve both just been so busy with your own lives these days. It’s not like he has been avoiding you or anything. He still came up to talk to you all the time when he had the chance. But it’s been a while since you were able to catch up and talk about things that had nothing to do with volleyball.

“I’m actually preparing for university,” you mumbled. They all looked over at you, in surprise and out of curiosity.

“Did you get the scholarship from the University of Tokyo?” Kuroo asks.

“I did. What about you?”

Kuroo’s face lights up, “Yeah! Guess you can’t get rid of me that easily, can you, y/n?” He laughed.

“Idiot. We probably won’t even run into each other at the campus at all. It’s huge,” you told him.

You were about to tell them about the possibility of you studying abroad but cheers and congratulations erupted from the team for the two of you. Instead, you saved the news for another time. Hana merely watches with an unreadable smile on her face.

“It’s getting late, Tetsu. We should go,” she says, tugging on Kuroo’s sleeve, the smile still on her face.

Reaching the school gates, the team went about their separate ways.

You, Kenma, and Kuroo accompanied Hana to the bus stop. While waiting for her bus, you and Kenma sat on a nearby bench, giving the couple a bit of privacy.

You try to listen as Kenma tells you about the game he was playing but your eyes seem to gravitate towards the lovebirds across from you. They stood under a snow-covered tree, with Kuroo wrapping one of his arms around her waist as they talked. You watched as they laughed about something you didn’t know about. They were completely in their own little world. One that you had no place in.

You wonder about what could have been if you’d confessed to Kuroo before Hana came into the picture.

“Y/n, maybe you should stop staring,” Kenma interrupts your thoughts. You turned to look at him.

“I’m not staring.”

Right after you said so, your gaze returns to the couple before you could stop yourself.

“Are too,” he quips, the hint of a smirk tugging on his lips.

“Am not,” you insisted, looking away to glare at Kenma’s game instead.

“Are too.”

“Am no– oh, the bus is here,” you said.

The two of you walked over to Hana and Kuroo.

“Call me when you get home safe, petal!” Kuroo calls out as Hana gets on the bus. You and Kenma wave goodbye to Hana and she returns it.

The three of you stood there for a moment watching as the bus leaves and disappears around the corner.

“So, petal, huh?” you joked. Kuroo glared at you while Kenma snorted.

“You’re just jealous,” Kuroo retorted. Your jaw drops. Well, he was right. Every inch of your being was oozing with jealousy but you weren’t going to let him know that.

“As if I’d even date you,” you said, crossing your arms over your chest. Standing next to Kuroo, Kenma gives you a deadpan expression before he sighs and starts walking.

The three of you settled into your usual, comfortable banter as you made your way home.

send an ask or comment/reply if you want to be added to the taglist :)

a/n: Sorry this took a while! I hope you like it. Let me know what you think. :)

Disclaimer: Kuroo Tetsurou, Haikyu!! and other Haikyu!! characters belong to Haruichi Furudate.

💖taglist: elianetsantana literaleftist  yeehawslap starry-magicshop atsunflower saturnfarie sakurahoshizora kellyyween donica95 kyomihann​ roseestuosity brattyshirabuismybff  rirk-ke @-doublezero​​

#kuroo x reader #kuroo #kuroo x y/n #kuroo tetsuro smau #kuroo smau #haikyuu au #haikyuu x reader #kuroo tetsuro x reader #kuroo tetsurou #haikyuu imagines #kuroo hc #kuroo au #kuroo imagines #haikyuu x y/n #haikyuu hc #haikyu #haikyuu #haikyu!!

[hitozy]

suga mama ≪ masterlist ≫  wherever, whenever

Hinata Shoyo has done multiple stupid things in his life, which is why he is amazed on how much he is hating himself right now. 

He still can’t believe what he has done. 

After Kenma unnecessary telling him that YN’s dad was NOT coming to her graduation and that was why he should come instead; he actually got dressed up, bought her a present, got on a train and bought flowers on the way to their school only to find out, that it was a LIE. 

And now here he is, absurdly unprepared thanks to Kenma, sitting beside her very tall, very handsome and very rich father, waiting for the ceremony to start and for YN to walk up that stadium and take her diploma.  

Did he mention he’s sweating bullets?

“You said your name is Hinata Shoyo, correct?” Hinata grips his thighs to stop himself from yelping,“Y-YES SIR!” 

Mr. LN looks at him with amusement. “There is no need for you to be nervous around me, Shoyo. Unless you are thinking of or already courting my daughter,” he turns towards Hinata, leaning against the back of the chair while propping his head on his hand, sharing an intense gaze. 

A few minutes pass and Hinata can’t utter a word. He wants to deny it but the unsaid words feel heavy and wrong on his tongue.

“Ah, I see.” Is all Mr. LN says, before turning back to his previous position and looking up front, “My bunny, Hinata Shoyo, is not a toy or a plaything. So I want you to know that I do not condone nor support any kind of baboonery, but-” he arranges his cuffs, “ I know she is her own person and responsible enough to make her own decisions, no matter how difficult it may be.”

Hinata has seen and spoken to YN multiple times to know this already, but he finds it very touching to know just how close they are. She really does have a good relationship with him, even though he must be so busy...

“Still, if you toy with her, her emotions or take her for less than what she is, I have enough money and connections to make you go away. Do I make myself clear?” 

Hinata is a bit impressed by this man, but mostly terrified. “Y-yes sir.”

Mr. LN smiles at Hinata, “Bunny told me that you have been thinking about doing beach volleyball… do you have a plan formed yet?”

He shakes his head, “No, we’re still looking into it ah- coach and I!”

Mr. LN observes him for a while and finally says, “If you need money to travel or a place to stay abroad, or even a letter to get a visa”, he hands Hinata his business card with his personal cellphone on the back, “let me know. You have a lot of potential from what my daughter has said, I would hate for it to get wasted because of finances. Or you could also tell YN, she will be working with me part time while studying at university. Either way,” he chuckles, “we would help. We have a knack for giving and never receiving.”

… Hinata should have gotten YN a better present.

After the ceremony, Mr. LN called the driver to take the graduates and Hinata to a high-end restaurant. They had a private room and everything just for them. 

Once again, Hinata was not prepared for this.

Across from him, he sees a very drunk Fukunaga eating dumplings with chocolate syrup and a drunk Yamamoto crying about girls, eating some kind of steak… with chocolate syrup and wasabi. Kenma is kind of drunk, streaming the whole ordeal. And YN?

YN is pressed against his side, giggling at her friend's antics. He can feel her warmth through his sleeve and thanks every godly entity out there of this opportunity.

Then he curses them all when she shifts, sandwiching his arm between her breasts while throwing her legs on top of his.

His thoughts divide into: ‘she's so soft’ to ‘i am such a pervert, oh god’ but he can’t bring himself to separate from her, this is the closest they have sat together, ever and he wants to enjoy it while it lasts. So he buries all the sinful thoughts and just memorizes her on him… for future reference… for when he is alone. And she doesn't have to know about it.

When Yamamoto stands up to take off his pants is when Hinata calls their leave. He picks up YN’s phone and dials the driver to pick them up. He kind of has to carry-drag them all out.

As soon as they get out, it's like a domino effect, Yamamoto falls and so does the rest. He quickly moves and manages to get YN just before falling down.

She giggles in his arms and wraps her arms around his neck looking at him with hazy eyes.

“Oh my, a knight in shining armour has arrived just in time,” she trails a finger from his forehead toward the tip of his nose, bopping it, “what would my knight like as a reward?”

Hinata feels his face heat up, a telltale sign of his blush, “No-nothing, Miss.Princess, now come on, the driver is almost here…”

Giggling she holds his face between her hands, “Oh but I must pumpkin~ and I know what it should be”, and with that she leans forward.

Her lips are a lot more softer and plush than he had imagined. He could feel the slight coat of shimmery gloss that she still had on her lips, when she separated a bit he took up the chance of licking his lips. Strawberry.

She leaned again, applying more pressure this time but still keeping it soft, not for very long though. The way she tugged him towards her and her teeth nipped his lip caused him to gasp, letting her slip her tongue inside his mouth.

This is my first kiss, was all Hinata could think as he let his hand slide slowly up her spine to grip the back of her head and deepen the kiss.  I like this a lot. He smashes his chest against hers and tugged her bottom lip, dominating the kiss. He didn’t have any experience beforehand, so he hoped he was doing it right. When Hinata wrapped his arms around her tightly, he accidentally grinded against her, causing YN to moan. 

Her moan snapped him out of his trance. 

Panting, he started to back away from her, "Princess, the driver is almost here, come on, let's pick up the guys." Instead of letting him go though, YN buried her face in his neck, “Don’t wanna.” Hinata couldn’t help the giggle that came out, he wasn’t sure if it was because of the kiss or how cute she was acting but he had never felt this warm in his life.

As he helped the driver load up everyone and settle down, he thought about what just happened and their relationship. 

Yachi was right, I do like YN a lot more than everyone else, he blushes realizing that he grinded up against her. He was so close to taking it a step too far, and he hasn’t even told her about his feelings! 

But she’s so much better than me, and could go for someone better as well. So talented and beautiful and strong.

And he can’t even receive all of the balls properly.

He wondered if the kiss was a way of YN expressing her feelings… or just a drunk meaningless moment. He then felt something fall on his shoulder. YN dropped her head there and proceeded to intertwined their fingers before falling asleep.

You’re so beautiful, like a princess. But soon the princess would become a Queen, and she would need a King by her side... not a pumpkin knight.

“Pumpkin?” YN softly says, curling up against him. 

“I’m here, Miss. Princess,” for as long as you let me, kissing the top of your head.

He decided it was better not to question it and just live it day by day.

suga mama ≪ masterlist ≫  whenever, wherever

no facts on this one... I’m gonna let it all sink in...

You’ll be seeing the first chapter of part ii sometime this week :) (once i finish the draft lol)

taglist ➜ open! send an ask to be added ღ

@mint-mai​ . @prettyinblack231​ .  @starryleafy​ .  @ilauvcoldpizza​ . @its-the-aerieljeane​ . @daddy-kawa​ . @aizumii​  @pansexualproblemchild​

#hinata shoyo #hinata shouyo #hinata shouyou #hinata shoyo x reader #hinata shouyo x reader #hinata shouyou x reader #hinata smau #hinata fic #haikyu!! #sweet tangerine #sweet tangerine♥

[nekomassetters]

Twenty Five

"Shut up she's gonna hear you!"

You find yourself waking up from whatever dream you have after hearing a small "click" and giggles from the voices of your teammates.

"Shhh she's waking up!"

As your eyes flutter open, you make out the figures of Ritsuko, Namakura, Mito, and even Taka standing over you and smiling like idiots while looking at someone's phone.

"Is that my-"

"Oh Y/N!" Ritsuko exclaims as she passes the phone to Nakamura, "you're up! By the way, did you ask Kenma out yet?"

"Seriously Ritsu why are you making me ask him out. I don't want to give him the wrong impression," you say groggily as you start to sit up.

Nakamura then passes the phone back to Ritsuko who shows you the phone. You see a picture of you asleep from just a few minutes ago before Ritsuko turns the phone back to face her.

"Not funny," you groan as you reach out your hand, expecting them to give you back the phone.

You watch as the girls crowd around your phone once more. Their eyes widening in excitement as they watch Ritsuko do something on your phone. Taka lets out a gasp which forces you to reflexively jump up and grab the phone from your teammate's hands.

"What the hell did you do?" you groan as you unlock the phone.

As the girls giggle, you open your phone to see the same picture of you asleep in your text conversation with Kenma.

"What the fuck?" you growl at the four girls before you.

"Once you ask out Kenma, we'll leave you alone," Nakamura teases as she sends you a wink.

"You're all the worst," you grumble as you try to push past them.

However, Ritsuko and Mito's hands on your shoulders halt you from getting past.

"Fine!" you shout out as you push them away from you, "I'll do it at lunch."

📷

"Sooo," you hear someone call from behind you.

As you're trying to get your lunch, your friends are already waiting for you to do as they wish.

You roll your eyes and turn around to see your four friends smirking in anticipation at you, waiting for the show to begin. After not getting a response from you, they once again remind you of what you promised would happen during today's lunch.

"Oh my god, I know! You are all bitches," you say as you shove your lunch towards Taka, "I'll do it and get it over with so you can finally leave me alone."

Without putting much thought into what you are going to say, you scan the room until your eyes meet with Kuroo's wild black hair. You begin to approach him, seeing Kenma sitting across from him as the pair begins eating.

"Hey Kuroo," you greet as you put your hand on his shoulder.

"Hey Y/N where's your lunch?" he asks sweetly as if he's genuinely concerned for your eating habits.

"I just came over here super quick don't worry," you reply as you tousle his hair.

This instantly catches Kenma's attention. The male across from where you stand now locks his gaze into yours. For a brief moment, you're at a loss of words as your heart skips a beat from nerves.

"Kenma I was gonna ask if you were okay with going out with me, Akaashi, Ritsuko, Taka, and Rooster-head here," you say with a smile.

Fukunaga and Yaku, the two sitting on either side of the setter, begin shaking him in excitement. You hear them mutter small cheers and answers for him to repeat back to you in case he isn't sure of what to say. However, for the longest time, Kenma just stares back at you.

As you observe Kenma, you think you see the smallest bit of pink cross his cheeks. It quickly dissolves though once he nods and agrees to your proposal.

Immediately, Kenma goes back to eating to avoid embarrassment from his friends who are staring at him in shock.

"Cool," you say as you once more mess up Kuroo's hair, "see ya later then."

You begin to walk towards where your annoying friends have chosen to eat. You can't help but feel a bit weird about the way Kenma reacted to your question considering that he's typically more verbal around you, but quickly shake it off as you sit down.

"Oh my god, how did it go!" Nakamura squeals as you sit beside Taka.

"Fine," you shrug, "it's seriously not a big deal."

"But it is!" Taka chimes in, "you're literally the best for setting this up for us and I'm so glad you're going!"

Taka gives you a side hug as you stare at the rest of your friends who are looking at you as if you're a homeless puppy.

Remind me not to let Taka spend too much time around these jerks.

"Alright losers," you hear your coach's voice boom across the gym just in time to save you from the conversation you were having, "once you're done eating make your way into the boys' gym. We're finally going to have our real match!"

You look across at the table where Kuroo and Kenma were eating. You watch as Kuroo's face lights up in excitement and say something to Kenma, resulting in his face turning bright red. The rest of the table stares between Kuroo and Kenma at the weird exchange, waiting for a response from either party.

Instead of responding, Kenma stands up and makes his way out of the gym. Your eyes follow him until the doors close. Once you turn your gaze back to the table, you see a few pairs of eyes already staring back at you.

📷

"Yo," your coach beams excitedly as she walks up to your team, "you're all gonna be competin' against the boys so Tamura-sensei from the Fukurodani girls' team and I came up with our best possible starting line up."

Your coach begins explaining to your big collective team who will be starting as well as those who aren't. When she arrives at the setter position, you look over at Taka who's face is already showing clear defeat.

Trying not to feel too bad, you look away and listen to your coach as she explains that Akaashi is the starting setter for the other team.

"I dunno," she grumbles, clearly having a different opinion from the other coaches, "something to do with the damn ace."

Your coach then reveals that you will be the starting setter for your team. You and Taka both thank your coach for her evaluation and proceed to warm up.

"Too bad Kenma won't be setting," Ritsuko nudges as she walks over to you, "but at least you know where his eyes will be the whole time."

Instead of letting your emotions get the better of you, a brief flashback takes over your mind to the weird way that Kenma responded to you asking him out before.

I thought he was going to get the wrong idea from it, but maybe he really is fine just being friends with benefits too.

📷

For the majority of the game, both sides were pretty much tied. Currently, one set has been awarded to each team.

As you get ready to block a ball from Fukurodani's ace, you hear a loud cracking noise that brings everyone's focus to one person.

"Shit," you hear Akaashi's low voice complain as his legs give out, landing him on the floor.

At almost the same time, you hear a small, high-pitched squeak coming from behind you. You recognized the voice of Taka right away as everybody witnesses Akaashi's fall to the ground.

Once Akaashi gets escorted off to a bench by Fukurodani's ace, Kenma gets substituted in. Kenma then takes his position nearby you, sending you a quick smile before going into game mode.

His brief grin takes you back for a moment as it sinks in that he actually smiled... at you. It wasn't the first time he'd done that, but lately you felt as though Kenma was becoming less interested in you which means he'd have no reason to give you a friendly smile.

📷

Now three points behind the boys' team in match point, the next ball will decide your teams' fate.

Keeping your eyes fixated on Kenma as he decides who he should set to, you guess that he will be sending the ball to Bokuto, who had just gotten out of his emo mode.

Rushing to block the ace, you swiftly turn to see Kenma jump up and set the ball over the net himself

The whistle blows, resulting in the end of the game. You feel as though time is passing in slow motion as you keep your eyes glued onto the setter who's now being bombarded by his teammates.

The deep yells of the boys rushing towards Kenma ring in your ears as Kenma ignores them all to keep his gaze on you. Once more letting his lips curve upwards, you realize his smile isn't friendly at all. It's a sadistic grin meant to torment you over the loss you just caused.

"Don't worry bout it sis," Mito says as she pats your back, "none of us saw that coming either."

The two of you stand in silence as the boys continue to cheer on Kenma for their victory.

However, as you turn back to face the rest of your team, you fail to notice Kenma trying to shake his teammates off of him so as to walk in your direction.

#Wattpad #Kenma Kozume #kenma #kenma x y/n #ao3 #fanfic #haikyuu fanfiction #fanfiction #haikyuu!! #haikyuu x female reader #haikyuu reader insert #haikyu x reader

[therainroguefanfiction]

📱 Find Me (Tooru Oikawa) #12; It’s a Deal~

📑 Table of Contents | ◂p r e v i o u s

━━━━━━༻📱༺━━━━━━

“Mom, I’m leaving!” You called as you slipped your sneakers on, tugging the baby blue mask up to cover your mouth and nose.

She peaked her head out from the kitchen. “Be safe and don’t kill anyone!”

You rolled your eyes. “Thanks for believing in me, mom.”

“You’re welcome, sweety!”

You picked up the messenger bag from the floor and slid it over your shoulder before pulling the door open and stepping outside. It was ungodly hot today, the air weighing heavily upon you like a thick fog. You seriously considered just turning around and heading back into the air-conditioned house, but you knew you would never hear the end of it from Kenma if you did so.

With a sigh, you headed out the gate that surrounded the small property, only to step back in surprise. Kenma was standing in front of you, his golden eyes glued to the gaming device in his hands. Next to him stood a black-haired boy that you assumed was Kuroo. ‘Holy shit he’s tall…’

The ravenette nudged Kenma in the ribs and he finally glanced up, his face betraying no emotion as was the usual for him. “Where’s my game?”

You sweatdropped, digging into your bag to produce the plastic case that housed the game in question. “I still haven’t beaten Cage, so I’m tempted to keep it. What are you doing here anyway? I said not to pick me up.”

“If you can’t beat Cage, we’re no longer related.” He took the game from your hands, carefully placing it into his own bag. “And Kuroo insisted that we come pick you up.” He then turned around, heading back in the direction he had just come from.

“At least introduce us!” Kuroo cried out before sighing and turning back toward you with a kind smile, offering you his hand. “Hi, I’m Kuroo Tetsuroo. It’s nice to finally meet you, Y/N-san.”

You slid your hand into his with a nod. “I’m L/N F/N, it’s nice to meet you, too, Kuroo-san.”

It was mostly silent between the three of you as you made your way to the train station that would take you to Nekoma high where the game was being held. It was mostly Kuroo asking you random questions in-between scolding Kenma for being rude, but you didn’t really mind his company, he seemed like a nice guy, plus he was taking care of your idiot cousin for you, so he already had points in your book.

The school came into view and Kuroo glanced at you. “Are you nervous?”

“No,” your brow furrowed in confusion. “Why would I be? It’s not like I’m playing.”

“Because of Oikawa,” Kenma responded simply, his cat-like eyes zeroing in on you. You came to a dead stop, eyes growing wide as your brain processed the words. “You forgot who we were facing, didn’t you?”

“I-In my defense, I’ve been sick.” You scowled at him, thankful that the mask was there to cover your reddening face. How could you have possibly forgotten such an important detail? ‘Calm down, Y/N! He doesn’t know who you are, just pretend like you’re a Nekoma student.’ “Give me your jacket, Ken.”

“No.”

Your eye twitched as he continued toward the locker room. “You little -”

Kuroo chuckled, sliding the red Nekoma jacket from his shoulders. “It might be a little big, but it should do the trick. He doesn’t know who you are, right?”

You nodded, taking the jacket from him and sliding it on. It was huge on you, making you feel quite small, but as long as it did what it was supposed to, you could live with that. “Nope. I never told him.”

The two of you reached the locker room just as a group of boys stepped out and you immediately caught the eye of a boy with a blonde mohawk. His eyes snapped between the two of you before he started to freak out, pointing at you as if you were some piece of art hanging in a museum.

“You have a partner, captain?!”

“No, this is Kenma’s cousin, Y/N.” Kuroo proceeded to introduce the Nekoma volleyball team to you, inserting little comments about each player as he did so. “They are here to watch the practice game and they’re still sick, so leave them be.”

“Why are you starin’ at me, huh?!” Yamamoto demanded, narrowing his eyes at his captain.

“Guys, Aobajohsai is here.” Yaku nodded his head toward the front of the school where the group of boys was filtering through, dressed in their white and blue track suits.

Your body tensed up upon seeing them and you tried to pull the mask farther up your face. Kuroo, sensing your discomfort, turned to Fukunaga. “Can you take Y/N to the gym so I can get changed?”

The black-haired boy nodded, giving you a kind smile as he motioned with his hand for you to follow him. The two coaches were inside the gym already, talking quietly amongst themselves. The older one noticed the two of you first.

“Oh, who is this?”

Fukunaga smiled politely at the older man. “This is Kenma’s cousin, sir. They came to watch the game.”

His dark eyes shined as he held his hand out to you. “Nekomata Yasufumi, I’m the head coach for Nekoma.”

“Nice to meet you, sir.” You took his hand, bowing lightly before introducing yourself. “I hope it’s okay if I watch the game.”

“Of course!” The younger man grinned before introducing himself as Naoi Manabu. “We appreciate you coming to support the boys.”

Nekomata glanced at the door where the opposing team had appeared. “You can sit with us on the coach’s bench.” He patted your shoulder as he passed by, going to greet the coach of Aobajohsai.

You made the mistake of glancing at the group, catching Watari’s attention. His eyes widened in surprise and you quickly looked away, hoping he wouldn’t give you away as you settled yourself on the bench, pulling the jacket tighter around your body. The gym was pretty cold because of the weather outside, so you were thankful for the warmth it provided.

Kenma and Kuroo entered the gym, greeting the other team before heading over to you.

“You look like a turtle trying to retreat in its shell.” Kenma commented blankly.

“Because I am,” you scowled, attempting to smack him in the stomach but he stepped back before you even got close. “You of all people should understand that.”

He just shrugged and began his warm up stretches. Kuroo chuckled as he glanced between the two of you. “You two are a lot alike.”

Both of you snapped your eyes to him and scowled. “We are not!”

Oikawa glanced up at the exclamation and, at first, he didn’t recognize you as you sat in Nekoma’s jacket, a mask covering the lower half of your face, but then you shifted your head and he got a better look at those eyes of yours. How could he ever forget those eyes? They were burned into his brain.

Watari noticed the captain’s shift of attention and he chewed on his lip, wondering if he should try to distract the brunette, but before he could make a decision, the third-year was already striding toward the three of you, his expression a mixture of determination and annoyance. Kenma was the first to notice his approach but he didn’t have enough time to speak before Oikawa was standing beside you, hand on his hip.

“You have some nerve ignoring me, deleting the app without a word, only to show up at our game!” He huffed, brushing his bangs away from his forehead.

Your eyes widened, heart racing within your chest. You wanted to deny the accusation, to claim he had the wrong person, but something within his eyes told you that he wouldn’t be fooled by your lies. He knew it was you. You glanced at Watari, who was watching the scene with a worried expression. Had he betrayed you and told Oikawa who you were? ‘Of course he did. They’re teammates.’

“You owe me an explanation!”

Kuroo slid himself between the two of you, eyes glinting with amusement. “Sorry, but Y/N doesn’t owe you anything.”

His brown eyes narrowed. “This has nothing to do with you. It’s between me and them.”

The ravenette hummed, grin spreading across his face. “Let’s make a deal, then.”

“What?”

“If Nekoma wins, you leave Y/N alone. But if Aobajohsai wins -”

Oikawa’s eyes met yours. “When we win, you have to at least hear me out.”

“Deal.”

“W-Wait a minute -” You cried out, your voice cracking because of your nerves. “Don’t I get a say in this?”

“No,” the two captains chorused, glaring at each other. You could just see the electricity between their gazes.

You looked to Kenma for help, but he only offered you a sigh, knowing that he would have to work harder to make sure Nekoma took the win. You had never wished harder that the ground would swallow you up whole.

━━━━━━༻📱༺━━━━━━

The game was intense.

Judging from how hard both teams were trying, you wouldn’t be able to guess that it was simply a practice game because they were acting as if it was the final battle for the gold. Every time Oikawa was up to serve, he made a show of staring at you for a solid five seconds before finally serving the ball and you hated it.

Just to spite him, Kuroo started doing the same, his grin stretching wider when the brunette glared at him. It was obvious to the ravenette that Oikawa was feeling jealous because he didn’t know the extent of the relationship between you and Kuroo.

It seemed to go on forever, at least to you since you weren’t used to watching volleyball games. Aobajohsai took the first set, but Nekoma took back the second set. The third set dragged on forever, neither team willing to give up but, in the end, Aobajohsai took the set by two points, much to your dismay. You could only hang your head as they celebrated their win.

Kuroo approached you with a sheepish smile, rubbing the back of his neck. “Sorry, Y/N-san. We lost.”

“I hate you, Kuroo-san.” You mumbled in reply, making the taller boy pout.

“That’s not very nice~”

Oikawa wasted no time heading over to you, a smirk upon his lips. “I won. Time to keep your side of the barga -”

Iwaizumi came up behind him, smacking him in the back of the head. “You won? Last time I checked, volleyball is a team sport, Shittykawa.”

A light strip of pink covered the brunette’s cheeks as he whirled around, his voice hushed. “Not in front of Y/N, Iwa-chan!”

But the boy only rolled his eyes. “You can figure it out later. We’re gonna miss the last train.”

Oikawa’s eyes met yours and he held his hand out to you.

For a moment, you just looked at his hand.

“Your phone,” he stressed, flexing his fingers. “I won’t let you get away again.”

Hesitantly, you pulled out your phone, but you were clearly taking too long so he snatched it from you, tapping away. To be honest, you expected him to make a comment about how you only had four contacts in your phone – your mom, dad, younger brother, and Kenma -, but if he thought anything of it, he kept it to himself as he tapped away on your phone.

“There. I’ve called myself from your phone so I have your number.” He handed it back, offering you a smile. “If you block me, I’ll find you, Geek-chan~”

A chill went down your spine and you couldn’t pull your eyes away from him as he left the gym with the rest of his team. Silence settled over the three of you for a moment before Kuroo clapped his hands.

“Well, that’s settled. Let’s get you home, Y/N~”

Your eye twitched as you stared down at his number in your call history, lips tugging down. Why did it feel like fate was messing with you?

“He really called you Geek-chan,” Kenma mumbled under his breath as he followed after Kuroo.

You scowled, bumping your shoulder against his. “Shaddup, Ken.”

It was barely visible, but the corner of his lips tugged up in amusement.

━━━━━━༻📱༺━━━━━━

You were just crawling into bed when your phone started to ding on the bedside table. You considered just ignoring it, but you knew he wouldn’t stop until you answered so, with a defeated sigh, you picked up the phone and checked the messages he had sent you.

You decided to get it over with, saving the picture he sent to use as his profile photo as you saved the contact to your phone. As you filled out his name, though, you took pause, watching the line appear and disappear as it waited for your text.

‘Oh, I know!’ You erased his name, typing in something different. You had only just saved the contact information when he messaged again, clearly impatient.

Despite yourself, you smiled at the cute image he sent, setting the phone on the table before settling under the covers. Unbeknownst to you, Oikawa did the exact same thing, falling asleep with a smile upon his lips.

━━━━━━༻📱༺━━━━━━

▸n e x t

📜 Read more by checking out my masterlist 📜

Tag List: @the-broken-halo-writer​ @nekoma-hoe​ @iishoto-chan​

#find me #oikawa tooru #tooru oikawa #haikyuu #haikyuu!! #anime #smau #writing #creative writing #writeblr #scenario #scenarios #anime scenarios #anime scenario #fanfiction #fanfic #fanfics #anime fanfic #anime fanfics #reader insert #reader-insert #reader #series

[kythen]

Haikyuu!! - it’s hard when you’re young [1/2]

Pairing: Kurodai

Summary: Age Gap AU. Kuroo is doing well in high school. His volleyball team is on track to Nationals and his grades aren't even slipping that much. Why his mom thinks he needs a tutor is beyond him.

A story about growing up, moving out, and falling in love. Also found here on AO3.

Fic commission for ali!

[Chapter 2]

Word count: 7,301

"We're going to the convenience store after this," Yaku says as he rummages around in his bag for his uniform. "You coming with us?"

"I can't," Kuroo replies, tackling his hair with more exasperation than usual. "Mom wants me home early today."

"Family stuff?" Yaku asks sympathetically.

"She got me a tutor to prepare for the university entrance exams."

"Not that you need it." Yaku rolls his eyes. "You're a nerd."

Kuroo shrugs. He isn't exactly top student material but his grades have always been on the high side. Sure, he hadn't scored as well as he hoped in the latest tests, but it was still a safe pass and he knows that he can redeem himself the next time. He studies hard, balancing volleyball with school, and his teachers have high hopes for him entering his university of choice. Why his mom thinks he needs a tutor is beyond him.

"Hey, maybe if you're number one in the level for the next tests, she'll call it off," Yaku suggests as he shakes out his crumpled uniform.

"Maybe. Or maybe she'll think that the tutor's helping and keep them." Kuroo knows where he got his particular brand of stubbornness from and it isn't from his dad.

"You could always start failing for a change."

"I need to keep up my grades to play in the Spring High, you know." Kuroo runs his hand through his bedraggled hair one last time and sighs, giving up on it entirely.

The clubroom is all but cleared out by the time Kuroo says goodbye to Yaku and Kai and leaves. The walk home is uneventful without Kenma, who had been dragged off by Yamamoto and Fukunaga in the name of team-bonding, and Kuroo reaches home in less than an hour. There isn't anyone at home as he lets himself in and he checks the board in the kitchen for a reminder his mom had written in.

His tutor is coming over at four in the afternoon, his name is Sawamura Daichi, and Kuroo is to be polite to him, even if Kuroo thinks he doesn't need tutoring. Kuroo rolls his eyes at the last reminder. He is always polite to strangers, even if they don't think he is for some unfathomable reason. His mom had raised him right, but she had also lamented that Kuroo resembled her a little too much, which would only make life difficult for him. Kuroo sees himself in her smirks and glinting eyes, but he likes those parts about her, just as he likes those parts about himself.

Fifteen minutes before four, the doorbell rings and Kuroo trudges downstairs dutifully, already showered and changed out of his school uniform. The low table in his room is set up and a tray of drinks sits on the kitchen counter. His mom would be proud.

Kuroo opens the door to a familiar smirking face, a formidable woman Kuroo only knows too well. She has her hand propped on her hip, her long black hair loose and wild around her shoulders, her eyes glinting in amusement at the unamused look on Kuroo's face.

"Surprise, Tetsu!" Kuroo's mom tosses her hair back as she pushes her way past Kuroo and into their house. "I managed to get a free pass to come home earlier so I could see this new tutor of yours. I've talked to him over the phone a couple of times but I've never actually seen him so I was curious."

"Mom," Kuroo groans, dragging out the word in exasperation. "I can handle this myself."

"Of course you can," Kuroo's mom nods in approval as she spots the tray of drinks on the kitchen counter, "but this isn't about you, Tetsu. As I told you, I've talked to Sawamura-san on the phone a couple of times and he sounds handsome. I just wanted to see what he looks like."

"Doesn't he have Facebook or something?" Kuroo asks.

"Apparently not. The friend who recommended him to me said he isn't much of a social media user."

Kuroo raises an eyebrow. "How old is this guy anyway?"

The doorbell rings again.

Kuroo's mom sweeps past Kuroo in a way that is becoming increasingly familiar as she makes a beeline for the door. By the time Kuroo orientates himself in the direction of the front door, his mom has it open and she is smiling at whoever is on the other side of the door.

"Kuroo-san?" a male voice inquires politely and Kuroo's first thought is that his mom is right—Sawamura does sound handsome. His voice is warm and friendly, carrying a confidence that makes Kuroo straighten his shoulders, determined to make a good first impression.

"That's me," Kuroo's mom says merrily. "Come in! Tetsu's just lurking behind me."

Kuroo's mom steps aside and Kuroo gets his first look at Sawamura Daichi, unwanted tutor and possessor of a handsome voice. He is shorter than expected, standing a couple of centimetres shorter than his mom and a full handspan shorter than Kuroo, but he is broad and steady in a way that makes him seem bigger. His hair is cropped short, favouring practicality over fashion, and his eyes are a warm brown as they settle on Kuroo. He is handsome, Kuroo would say, but in not in a flashy way. Certainly, not the kind of handsome that would justify his mom's early return home.

"You must be Tetsurou-kun," Sawamura says with a smile as he steps into the Kuroo home.

Kuroo raises a hand in greeting. "Hey. That's me."

Kuroo narrowly avoids the elbow to the ribs his mom sends his way as she ushers Sawamura through the living room and points the way up to Kuroo's room on the second floor. She shoves the tray of drinks into Kuroo's hands with a pointed look and Kuroo shoots her a look of wide-eyed innocence.

On the way up to his room, Kuroo tries gauging Sawamura's age. Old enough that he doesn't live on social media the way Kuroo and his peers do, but young enough that it doesn't show too obviously on him. Sawamura dresses for comfort, a shirt with a cardigan thrown over and jeans, which doesn't help Kuroo when anyone from twenty to sixty years old dresses like that these days. What Kuroo does know is that Sawamura is definitely older than him, but Kuroo can't quite put a finger on how old he is exactly.

Kuroo pushes the door open with his shoulder and Sawamura helps him with it so that Kuroo can safely enter his room while balancing the tray. Kuroo sets it down on the floor beside the table as Sawamura looks around Kuroo's room briefly.

"So," Sawamura says as he takes a seat across the table from Kuroo, "your mother may have already told you this but I'm Sawamura Daichi and I'm here to help you with Economics, History, and Literature. I hear that you're pretty good with Math and Science."

Kuroo resists the urge to shrug. "I'm alright."

"Can you show me your test papers from your previous tests?" Sawamura asks.

Kuroo retrieves the folder he had put together for this purpose, watching as Sawamura flips through them one by one, inspecting the contents of each page. Kuroo isn't nervous. He knows his grades aren't abysmal, but does he feels slightly defensive about the recent dip in his grades. Spring High is right around the corner and that means a rise in the number of practices per week, the number of hours they put into practice, and a significant dip in grades across the team. He had been hoping it wouldn't show too much but his mom had noticed and so here was someone he just met five minutes ago, scrutinising every inch of Kuroo's papers and analysing the mistakes he made in them.

Kuroo could be at the convenience store with Yaku and Kai right now, but if he wants to get into the university of his choice, he knows that his current grades won't make the cut. He stifles a sigh.

Sawamura glances up at him, a corner of his lips quirking upwards. "It's not that bad," he says, exchanging Kuroo's Economics paper for his History paper. "I've seen much worse. Most high school students would weep in joy to get grades like yours."

"But I'm planning to get into Todai," Kuroo says, his fingers drumming restlessly against his knee.

Sawamura hums wordlessly as he flips through Kuroo's Literature paper. "I think you can do it. And if you think you can't, that's what I'm here for."

He isn't exactly boasting, Kuroo doesn't think so. Sawamura says it casually and confidently enough that Kuroo finds himself believing him.

Kuroo blinks. "Do you work as a motivational speaker when you aren't tutoring high school students?"

That gets a proper laugh out of Sawamura, his eyes crinkling at the corners as he says, "I used to do something like that. Motivational speeches have become something of a habit to me after that." Sawamura puts Kuroo's papers down on the table between them, laying them side-by-side and smoothing out the pages. "Now, let's talk about what we can work on to get you into Todai."

---

"So how did your tutoring session go?" Yaku asks as he chomps into a yakisoba bun.

Kuroo waves his hands vaguely, the rest of him draped over the railings by the road outside the convenience store as he slurps coffee milk through a straw.

"Did you get any learning done in that time? Gonna top the level and show your mom that you won't need a tutor anymore?" Yaku prods, munching on noodles and bread.

"It was just one session," Kuroo tells him. "We barely covered anything but the reasons why I sucked in the recent tests."

"What does your tutor look like anyway? Male or female? Young or old?"

Kuroo wrinkles his brow in contemplation, conjuring up Sawamura's image in his mind. Even in his mind's eye, Sawamura radiates warmth and assurance. He had been unfazed by any of Kuroo's questions, school-related or not, answering the relevant ones with enviable ease and deflecting the non-relevant ones professionally. He had also drawn up a study plan for Kuroo that Kuroo had to admit was better than his current one and left his number in case Kuroo had any burning (school-related) questions to ask him. Kuroo had gone into yesterday's tutoring session grudgingly, but he finds that he actually likes Sawamura's methods. It is a confusing time for Kuroo and a day after a tutoring session with Sawamura, he finds that playing the rebellious youth doesn't really suit him. Maybe Yaku was right all along—he is a nerd.

"He's a guy," Kuroo answers, gesturing vaguely in the air with his hands. "He's shorter than me but older than me. He said that he graduated from Todai and that's probably why my mom snapped him up."

Yaku raises an eyebrow. "He graduated from Todai but he's tutoring high school students?"

"Maybe he wants to be a teacher," Kuroo says, feeling strangely defensive of Sawamura. "He's pretty good at motivational speeches."

"You could take a leaf out of his book," Yaku tells Kuroo through a mouthful of yakisoba bun.

"Are you saying that you don't like my motivational speeches?" Kuroo demands, mock-affronted.

"I like them well enough but you could do with fewer words that come straight from our chemistry textbook. Heck, some of them aren't even in there."

"Good. You need the revision anyway."

---

Sawamura sets homework for Kuroo, which makes him want to groan in pain because it isn't as if school doesn't give them enough to do every day. It isn't a lot per se but it is still work and Kuroo can't call himself a high school student if he doesn't grumble about it. Kuroo rushes home after practice on Thursday to get Sawamura's homework done before that day's tutoring session and he manages to finish it just before the doorbell rings.

Kuroo's mom isn't home and Kuroo half-expects to see her smirking face as he opens the front door warily, but it is just Sawamura.

"Ready for another evening of studying?" Sawamura asks as he toes off his shoes at the entryway. Kuroo stifles a groan and he swears he sees Sawamura grin at him. "Thought so. How has your day been anyway, before it was ruined by my presence?"

Kuroo shrugs. "You know, the usual. School, then extracurricular activities."

"You're in the volleyball club, aren't you?" Sawamura asks as they move to Kuroo's room.

"Yeah," Kuroo says, surprised. "Did my mom tell you?"

"Well, there's a volleyball in your room and your track pants has 'Nekoma Volleyball Club' written on it," Sawamura replies, nodding towards the said items in Kuroo's room.

"That's some prime inferencing skills you have there," Kuroo remarks wryly.

"All the better to teach you with, my young student," Sawamura retorts as they sit down at the table. "Now show me what you've done for the week."

As Kuroo produces the practice papers Sawamura had assigned to him, Sawamura rummages around in his bag and places a plastic bag with a familiar logo stamped on it on the table. Sawamura pushes it across the table and the steaming hot aroma of fried food wafts invitingly towards Kuroo.

"Eat this if you get hungry during today's session," Sawamura nudges the mouth of the plastic bag in Kuroo's direction. "I bet you just charged home on an empty stomach to get my homework done on time, didn't you?"

Kuroo doesn't blush—he is too dignified for that—but he does reach into the bag and possibly swoons a bit as his fingers close around a hot packet containing a fat croquette. "Sawamura-san, you are a god to your students."

Sawamura snorts quietly. "You're the most enthusiastic student I've ever had, Tetsurou-kun, but save that for after I get you into Todai."

"What can I say? High school students have low standards for what constitutes as a religion," Kuroo says as he blows on the croquette.

"Believe it or not, university students too," Sawamura says as he starts marking Kuroo's work. "I remember being hungry all the time throughout high school and university."

Kuroo bites into the croquette delicately, trying not to burn his mouth on it, and he glances up at Sawamura as he remembers a question he had from last week. "How old are you anyway, Sawamura-san?"

"How old do I look?" Sawamura asks without looking up from Kuroo's papers.

Kuroo considers Sawamura carefully. There isn't any grey in his hair or any obvious lines in his face, but there are faint crinkles around his eyes when he smiles and an air of maturity about him. His arms and legs are toned, but not in the same way that Kuroo's and his teammates' are from running around all day during practice. His mom had said that Sawamura was a Todai graduate so that would put him at somewhere older than twenty-three. Kuroo frowns. But twenty-three isn't that much older than Kuroo's own seventeen years and Sawamura seems so much older than him.

"Thirty?" Kuroo hazards a guess.

Sawamura's face is impassive but Kuroo swears he sees a muscle jump in Sawamura's jaw. "I'm not telling you."

"What? But I made a guess," Kuroo most definitely does not whine, but he comes close to it.

"I didn't say I would tell you if you were right or wrong," Sawamura points out. "I'm only being paid to tell you if you're answering these questions" —he flicks his pen at the papers he is marking— "correctly."

Kuroo is grudgingly impressed by Sawamura's line of argumentation, even though it is incredibly petty of Sawamura. "I'm going to ask my mom."

"Go ahead," Sawamura says graciously as he pulls out a familiar sheaf of paper from his bag and slides it across the table without batting an eye. "But do that on your own time. For now, I want you to answer these questions."

---

"I have no idea how old he is," Kuroo's mom says over dinner. "You know, I don't think I actually asked."

"Wouldn't that be one of the first things you'd ask a potential tutor for your son?" Kuroo asks, aghast.

"It's not like he's an axe murderer or anything." His mom shrugs. "I knew that he was a Todai graduate and he seems like a nice and polite man."

"If I end up chopped in half with an axe, it's all on you, mom," Kuroo grouses.

"Once you're off to university, you're gonna have to figure out who's an axe murderer and who isn't by yourself, kiddo." His mom waves a spoon at him. "I won't be there to vet everyone who enters your life all the time."

"I know, I know." Kuroo waves his spoon in return before digging into his food. He isn't that hungry after all the croquettes he ate but food is food and as lean as he is, Kuroo's stomach is a bottomless pit.

He and his mom have talked about Kuroo going to university before and his mom had said it would be best for Kuroo to get an apartment off-campus that was close to school. But this also means that Kuroo will have to move out of the Kuroo home, leaving his mom all alone in a house that was too big for two, let alone one. For most of his life, it has just been his mom and him and thinking about moving out makes Kuroo's stomach squirm.

"Not hungry?" his mom asks as Kuroo pokes at his food, lost in thought. "Or is that your way of telling me my food's not great?"

Kuroo shakes his head and starts shovelling rice into his mouth.

---

Kuroo gets a Thursday off from Sawamura's tutoring sessions when it so happens that the last qualifying match for Nationals falls on that very day and Kuroo has a match to be had against Nohebi and that snake, Daishou. He wishes they could have won their match against Fukurodani and avoided facing off against Nohebi because Nohebi plays dirty and Kuroo hates risking any of his teammates getting injured during their match.

They play warily, they play well, and they win, but be it out of bad luck or the sheer pressure Nohebi exerts on them, Yaku comes out of it with a sprained ankle and Kuroo rips a nail on a failed receive. It is still bleeding after the match and Kuroo winces as he peels back the bandages and resolves to leave it for home. They are packing up and ready to move out when Kuroo glances around the venue one last time. Sometime during the match, Kuroo swears that he had seen Daishou's ex-girlfriend, Mika, and he scans the stands for her, wondering if this means that Daishou still has hope with patching things up with her.

Instead of Mika, Kuroo finds a familiar face, one he hadn't expected to see in the sports hall, and he startles as Sawamura waves at him. Sawamura looks relaxed, his elbows resting on the railings at the front of the stands. He is in neutral territory, neither on Nekoma's nor Nohebi's side of the stands, and Kuroo feels somewhat reassured by that as he waves back at him.

"Someone you know?" Kai asks as he comes up beside Kuroo with Yaku leaning on his shoulder.

"Yeah. I hadn't expected to see him here though," Kuroo says, slinging his arm around Yaku's shoulders and taking some of his weight off Kai.

"Who is he?" Yaku asks, peering in Sawamura's direction.

"The tutor that my mom hired."

"That's him? What is he doing here?" Yaku asks. Then his face splits into a grin as he remembers, "Oh wait, don't you have a session today? What are you still doing here when you should be off getting some learning done?"

Kuroo nudges Yaku. "I'm off today. In case you haven't noticed, we have an important match today."

"Lucky for you." Yaku nudges right back, sticking a sharp elbow into Kuroo's side mercilessly. "Having to study on your birthday would suck."

"And playing in a qualifying match for Nationals on my birthday doesn't suck?" Kuroo asks, raising an eyebrow at Yaku.

"No way. It's the best thing that could happen on your birthday." Yaku grins.

Kuroo grins right back.

"You should say hello to him," Kai remarks from Yaku's other side, bringing their attention back to Sawamura. "He might be here to see you."

"Why would he be?" Kuroo asks, surprised.

"Perhaps he's a dedicated tutor who takes interest in his student's activities beyond their studies," Kai suggests mildly.

That... sort of sounds like Sawamura, but even for him, coming all the way down to cheer on a student he only sees for two hours per week seems extreme.

They vacate the court for the next team to start their warmups and Kuroo leaves Yaku with Kai and the rest of the team as he climbs up to the stands where he saw Sawamura. Sawamura is still there, watching the ongoing match attentively. His posture is relaxed, but a line of tension runs from his neck down to his spine. From this angle, there is a light in Sawamura's eyes that Kuroo hasn't seen before as he tracks the back and forth between the two teams still playing on the court.

Sawamura doesn't even notice Kuroo when he stops beside him and Kuroo flounders, unsure if he should interrupt Sawamura when he looks this engrossed in the match. Then Sawamura turns his head, distracted by the lanky figure in white and red hovering near him, and a smile spreads across his face.

"Hey," Sawamura says, gesturing for Kuroo to join him and Kuroo takes a step forward, copying Sawamura's pose and leaning his elbows on the railings. "Good match you played there."

"Everyone's been training really hard for this," Kuroo tells him, suddenly feeling self-conscious knowing that Sawamura had been watching his match.

"I can tell. Your team's like a well-oiled machine when it comes to team plays," Sawamura says, going back to watching the match below them. "I'm envious."

"Do you play volleyball?" Kuroo asks.

"I used to, in high school just like you," Sawamura replies, a wistful look entering his eyes. "Then I continued in university until things got too hectic and I dropped it entirely."

"Do you miss it?"

Sawamura smiles a bit, but there is something sad about it as Kuroo looks at him, framed by the clash of action and noise on the courts below and the glaring lights on the ceiling above him. He doesn't look as out of place in the sports hall as Kuroo had first thought; it was just that Kuroo had grown so used to seeing Sawamura in his room, bent over his table and marking Kuroo's papers with a red pen, that it had seemed odd for Kuroo to see him anywhere else.

"A little," Sawamura admits. "You should know how great it feels to stand on court and feel like you could do anything with your teammates around you."

"I do." Kuroo knows what Sawamura means and part of him aches whenever he thinks about how this is his last year with Nekoma. "What position did you play?"

"I was a wing spiker. You're a middle blocker, aren't you?" A corner of Sawamura's mouth quirks up as he grins at Kuroo. "And the captain too."

Kuroo doesn't blush—he never blushes—but his face is overheated from exertion and he thinks he should have spent more time cooling down instead of coming straight to find Sawamura. "It was the will of the people. I won through popular vote."

"I think they made a good choice," Sawamura says approvingly. "I was watching your match."

Kuroo remembers what Kai had said about Sawamura being here to watch him and he swallows, suddenly nervous as he blurts out, "Did you come here to watch my match?"

Sawamura's eyes widen in surprise and Kuroo knows that he got it wrong even before Sawamura opens his mouth. "I come here to watch the volleyball matches from time to time, especially since it's the Spring High now," Sawamura says, somewhat apologetically, which makes Kuroo want to hide behind one of the seats in the stands and possibly never come out again. "But I knew that your match was today and that it was a qualifying match so I definitely wanted to see that. Speaking of which," Sawamura changes the subject before Kuroo can spontaneously self-destruct, "how are your fingers? I thought I saw blood when you were wrapping them up."

"Oh, they'll be fine," Kuroo says, wiggling his mummified fingers at Sawamura. "It's just a torn nail."

"You better get that cleaned up as soon as possible."

Kuroo nods, jerking his thumb towards the exit. "Actually, I think I should get back to my team before they send out a rescue team for me."

Sawamura chuckles. "You better get going then. And don't forget that next Thursday's session is on as usual."

Kuroo groans, probably more dramatically than needed, and Sawamura goes back to watching the ongoing match as Kuroo turns tail and flees, still mortified that he had even thought that Sawamura might be here for him.

---

Nationals come and go in a blink of an eye and in spring, Kuroo finds himself buried in mock tests and study guides. Volleyball practices and matches have become a thing of the not-so-distant past and Kuroo spends more time indoors studying than running around in school gyms. That door is closed and Kuroo has to work fervently to wrench open another door for himself in the upcoming entrance exams.

Sawamura comes in three times a week now, bringing with him more papers to do, more study plans to adhere to, and more snacks for Kuroo to munch on while he studies. Now that the Nationals are over and the responsibilities of the Nekoma Volleyball Team have been handed over to the second years, everything in his life has narrowed down to the sole goal of getting into Tokyo University. And, frankly, it is just about driving Kuroo crazy.

The thing is, Nationals had just ended for Nekoma a week ago and Kuroo is still smarting from their loss to the Miyagi powerhouse, Shiratorizawa. It was a respectable loss and Nekoma had made it much further than anyone had expected so Kuroo, Yaku, and Kai could step down with pride. But a loss is still a loss and it grates on Kuroo like salt in a raw wound. They could have gone so much further, stayed for so much longer, perhaps even won it all. Kuroo wants to believe they could have and that he would never have to leave Nekoma.

He doesn't want to be studying for entrance exams or be cooped up at home all day, reading until his eyes blur and writing until his hands are smudged with ink. He wants to be doing something.

"Okay, stop," Sawamura calls out and Kuroo shoves his mock test paper away, having barely answered any of the questions. It is disappointing for him and he looks at his lap so that he doesn't see the disapproval on Sawamura's face.

Sawamura sighs, plucking the paper out from under Kuroo's hands. Silence fills the room, muffling the sounds filtering through Kuroo's open window and expanding outwards from the both of them at the table until Kuroo breaks first.

He looks up, his shoulders tense and his jaw clenched, and Sawamura looks back at him from across the table, one hand propped under his chin and his other hand resting on the table. Sawamura doesn't say anything but he raises an eyebrow and Kuroo takes personal offence to that.

"What?" Kuroo snaps, hunching in on himself. Sitting face-to-face like this, Kuroo is still taller than Sawamura but he has never felt it when Sawamura has always seemed so much bigger than Kuroo. He hates Sawamura's unflappable calm and bottomless pool of knowledge and the way he feeds Kuroo right answers and snacks in equal parts until he wants to burst.

His mom has always said that Kuroo was a patient child with a slow temper, but looking at Sawamura's impassive face now, Kuroo thinks she had been wrong. Kuroo feels prickly now, full of spines pushing out of his skin and pointing outwards, daring the nearest person to just try to touch him.

"You know, I'm surprised it took this long for you to snap," Sawamura remarks lightly.

Kuroo glares at him. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"I've been tutoring you for almost half a year now and you're the most infuriatingly good-natured, studious, and ambitious student I've ever had," Sawamura says. "I was expecting you to shut me out of your house by December, honestly."

"I'm not any of that," Kuroo replies heatedly.

"I've been pushing you too hard," Sawamura sighs. "You never showed signs of flagging while managing your academics and volleyball career so I got ambitious with you."

"I messed up my 'volleyball career' so I'm not surprised the other one is going the same way," Kuroo says bitterly.

"You did not mess up your volleyball career."

"Tell that to Ushiwaka," Kuroo bites out. "Tell that to my team."

"Ushijima Wakatoshi is a perfectly fine young man who doesn't deserve your vitriol," Sawamura says mildly. "And your team loves you. When I watch your matches, all I see is a team of players who look up to and respect their captain."

"Well, they're wrong," Kuroo says forcefully and he feels his gut twist in guilt. "They picked the wrong captain."

"Okay, fine." Sawamura nods. "They were wrong. They picked the wrong captain. The popular vote failed them. Kuroo Tetsurou should not have been Nekoma's captain. What else?"

"You were wrong about me too."

"About what?"

"I'm not good-natured or studious or ambitious or anything. I just want to—" Kuroo runs out of breath on that sentence and he finds that he doesn't know how to complete it. He wants to go to a good university, he wants to make his mom proud, he wants to do Sawamura's tutoring justice, but what does he want?

When Kuroo looks up at Sawamura, he doesn't see the answer there and Sawamura gazes back at him, his eyes steady and kind. "When was the last time you took a break from your studies, Tetsurou-kun? Went outside for a while?"

"I'm not wilting from the lack of sunlight or something." Kuroo scowls.

Sawamura shrugs. "You might be. You're looking a little limp around the edges." He gestures towards his hair.

As Kuroo checks his hair with his hands, outraged, Sawamura starts packing up. There is still an hour left on the clock and Sawamura puts the papers back into their folders and the folders into his bag. Kuroo drops his hands from his hair, feeling a pang of disappointment in his chest. "Are you leaving?"

"Yup." Sawamura nods, zipping up his bag. "And so are you."

"What?" Kuroo asks blankly.

"We're going for a walk to stretch those legs." Sawamura stands and his gaze drifts to Kuroo's hair again. "Maybe even get some sunlight for that house plant of yours."

"Ha ha," Kuroo mutters but Sawamura is already out of the door, without turning back to see if Kuroo is following behind.

Kuroo stays right where he is, determined to be stubborn. But after five minutes pass without Sawamura reappearing at his door, Kuroo shifts his legs restlessly, uncrossing one after another. He is pretty sure that Sawamura leaving in the middle of a tutoring session would be considered as skipping out on work. He should just tell his mom that Sawamura did that and be free of a tutor like he wanted from the start.

But somehow, Kuroo finds himself shoving his phone in his pocket and leaving his room, descending the stairs to find Sawamura looking up at him from the front door.

"Don't forget your keys," Sawamura reminds him as he holds the door open for Kuroo.

---

"Now what?" Kuroo asks, unimpressed as Sawamura leads him meandering through the neighbourhood. It isn't anything he hasn't seen before since he lives here, just houses and then the shopping district further down.

Sawamura shrugs. "I don't know. I'm going home. What about you?"

Kuroo scowls at him, turning on his heel to stalk back home, but Sawamura catches him by the arm before he can leave.

"I was kidding," Sawamura says, tugging gently at Kuroo's arm until Kuroo starts walking again. A meditative silence falls between them as they walk on until Sawamura breaks it with, "Do you really think you played badly against Shiratorizawa at the Nationals?"

Kuroo shoves his hands in his pockets. "We lost against them."

"That's the outcome," Sawamura says. "What I was asking is if your team was in any way slacking off or just plain bad at their plays during the course of the match?"

"No, not them," Kuroo says defensively, thinking of his team.

"Then was it you?" Sawamura asks mildly. "Did you single-handedly bring about Nekoma's downfall with your terrible captaincy?"

Kuroo grits his teeth. He wants to say yes, remembering the phantom touch of all the balls he failed to save on court. But a kinder voice whispers in his head that no, he didn't. He had played just as hard as everyone else on the team, gave it his all until the last ball had fallen on court. It hadn't been his team's fault or his fault. It had simply been a good match fought between two teams that had needed a winner and loser by the end of it all.

Sawamura is still eyeing him expectantly, waiting for an answer, and Kuroo deflates, all the hot air blowing right out of him. Maybe his mom had been right about him after all. Slow to anger and quick to fade. This still doesn't mean that he is going to give Sawamura the satisfaction of an answer so Kuroo just trudges along, bringing back the silence between Sawamura and him.

But Sawamura doesn't seem to mind as he keeps pace with Kuroo, a strangely comforting presence beside him as he walks through the neighbourhood. They reach a park and Sawamura ambles into it, leaving Kuroo no choice but to follow him in. A food truck is parked near the entrance, plastered with posters of brightly coloured crepes, and Sawamura walks right up to it, looking at Kuroo over his shoulder as he asks, "Which flavour do you want?"

Five minutes later, Kuroo finds himself sitting on a park bench beside Sawamura with a crepe in hand. Spring is in full bloom and the trees are bursting with life, vivid colours painting the park around them in a pretty picture. Anger feels like a misplaced emotion in this setting and Kuroo nibbles at the edge of his crepe, frustrated and uncertain about how he is supposed to feel at all now.

"I was a captain like you in high school," Sawamura says casually, as if they had been having a pleasant conversation all along and he was just continuing it. "I said I was envious of your team because my team was full of complete hooligans."

Kuroo side-eyes Sawamura, trying to think of him as a hooligan in high school.

"Not in the way you think," Sawamura says, noticing Kuroo's doubtful look. "We weren't gangsters and delinquents but we were mismatched and a rough fit for each other. Our ace had the face of a thug but he had the most fragile glass heart ever and our vice-captain looked like an angel but was really the devil in disguise." Sawamura shakes his head, a rueful smile on his face. "And don't even get me started on our first year weirdoes."

"Were you guys any good?" Kuroo asks, trying to think of the colourful characters Sawamura described coming together as a team. It could happen, Kuroo decides, thinking of his own team. They had their fair share of weirdoes too and they still managed to make things work.

"We got to the Nationals," Sawamura says, munching on his crepe. "And I was appropriately bitter because the possibility of winning it all had been so close before it got shut down right in front of us."

"That must have sucked," Kuroo says sarcastically.

Sawamura nods. "So much. And the worst part is that I still had for study for the entrance exams right afterwards."

"Sounds like a living nightmare."

"And my goal was Todai and you know how hard it is to get into Todai."

"Absolutely."

"But in the end, I got in. I had to kick my ass into gear, my friends had to kick my ass into gear, and it was the worst thing I had ever experienced," Sawamura says. "But I got in, and here I am now, tutoring ambitious young volleyball captains who go around with bedhead and treating them to crepes in the middle of their tutoring sessions."

"Is this the part where you say 'And you can do it too, Tetsurou-kun'?"

"Nah, I was just telling you my story," Sawamura says, finishing his crepe cleanly. "What are you going to do, Tetsurou-kun?"

Kuroo stares, blinking slowly as he realises that this is the second time Sawamura has pulled this on him in a day. "I'd call you an asshole but my mom told me to be polite to you."

"Thank goodness you didn't call me that then," Sawamura says wryly. "I'd have to tell her."

The urge to laugh bubbles up in Kuroo's chest, sudden and intense. He is acutely aware that his crepe is dripping melted ice cream all over his hand and he applies his tongue to his hand hurriedly. When he stares at the mushy, melted mess folded into his crepe, the corners of his lips tug upwards and he starts guffawing quietly into his crepe before he realises that he can't stop. Kuroo leans over, trying to stem the flow of ugly laughter that pours out of his throat and the sudden tears that drip onto the ground under him like the start of a rainstorm.

His crepe is all but ruined but it feels good to be laughing and crying out loud, his stomach curled in tight on itself until he takes a deep breath and realises that the knots in his chest have loosened. Sawamura isn't looking at him but he is still there with Kuroo on the bench, a silent, reassuring presence as he pats his back soothingly.

"Which high school were you from?" Kuroo asks once he can speak again, all the ugly noises in his throat dissolving into hiccups as he wipes his eyes on his sleeves. "I'm not telling you now," Sawamura says. As Kuroo turns to look at Sawamura accusingly, Sawamura continues, "But how about this? When you get into Todai, I'll tell you which high school I went to. I think you would have heard of us."

"What, were you from Shiratorizawa?" Kuroo croaks, exasperated. "Should I give you a running start when you tell me that Ushiwaka is your junior?'

"There's only one way to find out." Sawamura laughs, a bright sound in the fading evening, warm in a way that makes Kuroo's face tingle with heat. He hadn't felt like this before leaving the house or in the entire week after Nekoma's loss. But somehow, with Sawamura here by his side, Kuroo feels like everything might turn out to be okay after all.

---

Me (12.15pm): I GOT INTO TODAI

Me (12.17pm): <( ˘ ︶ ˘ )>

Me (12.17pm): So spill it, Sawamura. Which high school were you from?

Me (12.18pm): *Sawamura-san

Me (10.00pm): Sawamura-san?

Me (1.23am): Sawamura-san???

---

Two days after Kuroo receives his acceptance letter from Tokyo University, the doorbell rings.

His mom isn't home so Kuroo makes his way down the stairs, yawning as he goes to answer the door. He had been catnapping, making up for all the sleep he lost over the past few months. It feels good to finally get a period of extended rest after all that intensive studying and he feels it in his head, in his bones, in his back, how much he needed to do nothing but sleep.

Sawamura still hasn't answered any of his text messages and Kuroo tries not to feel too hopeful as he opens the door. As expected, it isn't Sawamura, just a deliveryman with a package for Kuroo and Kuroo takes the package from him glumly. It isn't only after Kuroo has shut the door that he remembers that he hadn't been expecting anything.

Kuroo eyes the package suspiciously. It is a nondescript thing, a standard flat, rectangular cardboard box. It doesn't rattle when he shakes it but it has a decent weight to it when he holds it in his hands. Curiosity gets the better of him and Kuroo takes a penknife to it carefully.

A book sits inside, with a sleek black cover and a ribbon bookmark down the middle. It is a planner and Kuroo flips through the empty pages, confused as to why it would have been sent to him. A familiar handwriting catches his eye on the first page and he flips back to it hurriedly. The name "Sawamura" jumps out at him and Kuroo's shoulders relax as he reads the words written on the page:

"Congratulations on getting into Todai, Tetsurou-kun!

Not to exaggerate but I knew you could do it. You're good-natured, studious, and ambitious (don't fight me on this—I'm your senior), and you've worked so hard over the past year, I would be surprised if you didn't get into Todai. Keep it up and you'll get far not only in your academics, but in life.

This planner is a little congratulations-for-getting-into-the-university-of-your-dreams present from me and I hope you use it well in your coming school year. Life is going to get hectic for you very soon so you're going to need some help mapping out your future.

P.S: To answer your question, I was from Karasuno High School."

There is a drawing of a crow in the bottom corner of the page, accompanied by a scribble that reads, "Crows rule the trash heap", and Kuroo realises what that means. He has heard stories from his seniors, from Naoi-sensei, from Nekomata-sensei, about a rivalry between Nekoma and a school in Miyagi by the name of Karasuno. The cats and the crows, they had been called, and their rivalry had been affectionately called "The Battle of the Trash Heap". They had fallen out of contact by the time Kuroo entered Nekoma but he had always been intrigued by the idea that his school had a rival once and a whole history between them built around a promise that they would meet at the top.

Kuroo thinks about Sawamura's team as he had described them, the colourful characters that had come together and made it all the way to the Nationals, just as Kuroo had done with his team. For certain, Sawamura had known about the past between Nekoma and Karasuno. If they had been the same age, Kuroo's team would have faced off against the very same team of hooligans that Sawamura described. Kuroo would have faced off against Sawamura. Things might have been different.

Kuroo might have been able to tell Sawamura what he really thought of him.

"Asshole," Kuroo mutters under his breath, now that neither his mom nor Sawamura are here to hear him. He traces his finger over the black ink crow Sawamura had drawn in his planner, rereads the message Sawamura had written for him, and grins.

#kurodai #kuroo tetsurou #sawamura daichi #haikyuu!! #my writing

[fangirllifu]

Sweet Like Pudding Ch. 18

Italics - thoughts

Training, training and more training. Yesterday had been nothing but, yep well you guessed it, training. And now it's the last day of the training camp.

Despite what happened the day before, with the collapsing and losing consciousness and all that. Kanna still wanted (more like demanded) to help out. And because the coaches didn't have the heart to refuse the kindhearted girl, she was placed on watch by not just the coaches and managers, but even the players as well.

In the early hours of the day, she observed every single practice match and did duties as a manager would do. In the evening, she helped the players that came to her for inputs in their individual practices. The likes of which mainly centered around the always-hungry-to-be-better-trio: the-ever-enthusiastic-to-improve-his-skills-for-his-team, Guardian Deity of Karasuno Nishinoya Yuu, the-constantly-striving-to-sharpen-his-skills-nothing-close-to-perfection, Kageyama Tobio and the-bearer-of-boundless-energy-and-drive-to-limitlessly-evolve, Hinata Shouyo.

Though she also helped with receiving and spiking practice for the others, her help was mostly needed and greatly appreciated by the Karasuno team. Because unlike the other powerhouse schools who have developed a style they are known for, Karasuno who didn't have one, had that much more room to experiment and mature. So Kanna eagerly supported them as they practiced their endeavors, like correcting the timing of their synchronized attack, along with the timing of Nishinoya's set-up jump.

After all the minor flukes and setbacks, finally they were able to connect as one. It was such a beauty to watch, truly an achievement worth noting. Now all that's left is to indulge in some well deserved protein. Praise the holy meat God!

The barbeque was a success, as one would've expected. Although there were a few mishaps, like Kageyama almost chocking which thankfully was solved by Akaashi. And then there was the matter of Bokuto stealing a bunch of meat on the grills, which was then solved by a peeved Kuroo. No fights broke out, which the managers were grateful for. All in all it was an enjoyable afternoon of meat and mingling for everybody.

Meanwhile, the Nekoma team was making their way to join their very own pudding head, when something made them stop in their tracks.

They watched as Kanna walked towards Kenma, who was silently sitting at a corner playing games on his phone. As Kanna sat beside him, they almost fell in surprise as they witnessed Kenma put his phone away. They all stood there unmoving, astounded as to what just happened. Being too distracted, they didn't notice the two get up and leave.

Kuroo having noticed his team members staring at nothing with expressions ranging from surprised to utter disbelief, walked up to them with Akaashi and Bokuto following behind him.

"What's with you guys?" Kuroo raised his eyebrow questioningly, once they were standing directly in front of the team, curious as to what was making his teammates make such faces.

"Kenma….." Yamamoto started, but was still too shocked to finish.

"He….. He…" Fukunaga, who rarely spoke, tried to explain but couldn't find the words to.

"stopped his game." Kai finished for them.

Kuroo, Bokuto and Akaashi looked among themselves confused beyond belief.

"What?" Akaashi deadpanned.

"Kenma stopped his game…." Yaku paused before he declared. "….for Kanna-chan."

Once he finished, Kuroo lost his marbles. Bokuto and Akaashi was just staring at him and back at the team trying to understand what was happening, and how it all involved Kanna.

"This can't be happening. Please tell me you're joking."

"That doesn't happen okay. Kenma doesn't ju—."

"Are you sure you weren't just imagining it?"

Kuroo questioned, well rambled. And with his teammates' absentminded nods, he began once again. He was now walking in back and forth with hands in his hair as he continued to mumble incoherent words to himself. Next thing you know the whole Nekoma team was following after their captain.

Bokuto and Akaashi looked at each other in confusion, and they weren't the only ones. With how loud and hysterical the bunch was getting, they would undoubtedly attract attention. The others all gathered around and asked Bokuto and Akaashi what was going on, but they too didn't know. Of course a none-Nekoma team member would never understand just how insane and nearly unimaginable it all was.

As everyone's curiosity grew, so did their impatience. It's been 10 minutes and the Nekoma bunch were still lost in their own world. The rest were starting to get twitchy from all the waiting and the still unanswered question of why they were acting like a bunch of lunatics. If nobody from the distraught team starts explaining soon, pretty sure someone's going to get hurt.

Who could blame them though? Even Nekomata-sensei had this weird expression on his face. If the team's reactions didn't send a red flag, their coach's reaction sure did. Sure enough like a bomb, Bokuto exploded, his patience being shorter than everybody else's, particularly so because it apparently involved his precious baby cousin.

"DUDE! JUST tell us what the heck's wrong already?!" He shouted as he frantically shook Kuroo.

Akaashi and his teammates tried to calm him down, but they couldn't deny that they too were worried given the reactions of the whole Nekoma Team.

Bokuto's frantic shaking and hysterical shouting seemed to snap the rooster-head captain out of his daze, as he stopped rambling and stared straight at Bokuto.

Kuroo looked around, sweat dripping from his forehead as he looked back at Bokuto and swallowed.

"How the heck am I supposed to explain this to HIM?! There isn't even any other possible way to easily explain this?!"

"I mean, I've had my suspicions but I didn't—"

"…I haven't even talked to Kenma about this."

He heaved a heavy sigh before he started.

"Okay look, I'm gonna try my best to explain this so that you'll understand. It might seem a little weird, but bear with me please." Once they nodded he started his explanation.

"Alright, well, you see... Kenma doesn't just pause, much less stop playing his game for anybody. And by that I mean nobody. Heck! Hardly anyone in the team can make him pause his game. And he'll only ever put his phone or console down when he either finished the game, or died trying to. But never in the middle of it." Kuroo finished. He really didn't want to have to say it out loud, so trying his best in explaining was his best bet. And by the looks of most of them, they seem to have an inkling as to where he was going with this.

"And so, I don't understand? How is that a problem?" Came the confused voice of one very concerned and distressed cousin.

Too bad the one person who needed to understand it most, couldn't. Kuroo was extremely conflicted as to what he should do. He tried looking around in hopes of someone, anyone, who could tell him what course of action would be best to take. Instead, all he got were what he assumed to be the same expression he currently had on his face. Completely and utterly frustrated, he turned to the one person who he was sure would know just the right thing to say and how to properly deal with the anomaly that is Bokuto, Akaashi. He silently pleaded with his eyes to save him from the trouble he was currently in.

"Bokuto-san." Akaashi said as he stepped closer to Bokuto and placed a hand on his shoulder. He then leaned in and whispered something to him

Kuroo along with the others bared witness to the gradual changes in Bokuto's facial expressions and body language. They watched as his puzzled expression turned to somewhat akin to understanding before it morphed into one they could no longer decipher. He'd also turned rigid straight that it was starting to make them all uneasy.

Nobody knew what Akaashi had said to Bokuto, and they would never know because said person refuses to tell them. But he didn't have to. They all figured it was the same conclusion that they had all came up on. They just hoped that Bokuto wouldn't do something he would end up regretting one day.

[Previous Chapter | Next Chapter]

Chapter List

#Sweet Like Pudding #kozume kenma x oc #Kozume Kenma #Bokuto Koutarou #akaashi keiji #Kuroo Tetsurou #haikyuu!! #haikyuu fanfiction #slow burn #romance #family #friendship

[candlesdance]

Chapter 6: A Cursed Image

The book falls open on the same page that had given Sugawara pause in the beginning. Behind him, Kageyama carefully begins to read.

“’…I hid the knife underneath the floorboards.’” He drags his finger down, as if in disbelief of what he’s reading. “’I only have one choice.’ What the hell kind of choice is that?”

For a moment, they’re all quiet. Hinata tentatively interrupts that silence. “This is kind of scary.”

They ignore him. Kageyama keeps reading.

AO3. Info. Trailer.

Hinata and Kageyama enter the cafeteria quietly, but are still noticed.

Bokuto and a few others holler out at the pair, glad to see Kageyama okay. Kenma gives a tiny wave where he sits beside Kuroo, and Hinata eagerly returns it—perhaps a bit too eagerly, judging by the way Kageyama clicks his tongue.

The first years from either team and some of the second years are crowded at one table, but Inuoka and Fukunaga still move aside to allow Kageyama and Hinata to sit down after getting their food.

“So!” Inuoka starts, smiling at the pair. “I heard you were sick, Kageyama!”

“I feel better now,” Kageyama shrugs, eating his food at a languid pace. True to that, he no longer carries the ill, forsaken mood and pallor of earlier. “I just wish I hadn’t missed practice.”

“It’s not the flu, is it?” Yamaguchi strains to be heard, tilting himself slightly to speak across the table. The babble of voices echoes in the wide space of the cafeteria.

Kageyama chews thoughtfully. “I can’t promise it’s not.”

“That… that’s weirdly foreboding,” Yamaguchi says.

Inuoka pursues Hinata for a conversation about the latest monster hunter game, but the spiker is noticeably distracted. He keeps shooting glances toward the table of third years; after doing so several times in one minute, Kageyama stomps hard on his foot under the table. He yelps. Everyone in the vicinity glances at him.

Before long, they’re done their dinner—and so is Sugawara. Hinata watches out of the corner of his eye as he stands from the table of third years, excusing himself. They can’t hear what he’s talking about from so far away, but something Asahi says gets him to burst out laughing. Hinata squints.

Without so much as a glance toward the first years, Sugawara leaves the cafeteria.

Hinata nearly chokes in swallowing his mouthful of unchewed rice, turning to Kageyama beside him to shake his shoulder with a less than subtle “mrgh” of attention-getting noise. Across the table, Fukurodani’s middle blocker Onaga stares at him.

“A-are you choking?”

Hinata shakes his head in fervent disagreement, reaching for his bowl of miso soup. He downs the last of it and gasps as the rice goes down. “Nope!” And then, hissing in a blatant whisper directed at Kageyama: “Let’s go!”

“What the hell are you two up to?”

Unfortunately for them, their timing is terrible. Yaku passes behind them as they stand from their seats, a second portion of rice in hand.

"Nothing," Kageyama shrugs, voice and face so completely blank it's genuinely convincing. Hinata folds his hands politely behind his back and rocks on his heels.

"Nothing!" He parrots, seeming shifty even in that.

Unconvinced, Yaku turns his eyes from Hinata to Kageyama. “I heard you were ill. Are you feeling better now?”

“A bit,” Kageyama is clearly unwanting in continuing the conversation. “But I still feel sick. I was going to go get some fresh air.”

Behind them, Yamaguchi raises his eyebrows.

Hinata nods vigorously. “I was going to go with him!”

The look Kageyama shoots him gives them away, but Kuroo is calling Yaku over so he relents and accepts their shoddy excuses with a haphazard smile. “Take it easy. I always like receiving your freakish quick, so don’t wear yourselves out, alright?”

They nod. Yaku leaves them with that and turns to return to his table. Walking as quickly as they can without raising any suspicion, they exit the cafeteria. As soon as they turn a corner, Hinata turns to his setter with a laugh.

“You’re a really good liar, you know. It’s kind of scary.”

“Shut up.”

“It was kind of ruined since you already told the guys at our table that you were feeling fine, though. Plus, since when would you ever admit to feeling sick?”

Kageyama tries to smack him. He evades. They end up racing each other to the old classroom, where Sugawara stands with the keys in hand and a look of mixed amusement on his face, almost as though he wants to laugh, but can’t bring himself to.

“I thought you were going to try and be stealthy?” Sugawara asks, even as he picks through the ring of keys.

“Well, I was trying!” Hinata protests.

“I’m sure you were,” Sugawara does laugh now, though it’s dry and maybe a bit forced. “I guess it doesn’t matter as long as we get back before bed. Let’s look around a bit and then leave.”

He unlocks the door and they step inside.

—

As soon as he closes the door behind them, they split up. The opaque glass had obscured anything of interest in the room, and Sugawara has to wonder what drew Hinata here in the first place.

Although the room is full, it seems empty in the sense that there’s nothing of use here anymore. Where there might have been cameras, there sit some reels of exposed film and grunge covered textbooks, piles of notes and crumbled bits of chalk. Sugawara stifles a sneeze.

Kageyama wanders over to a bookshelf, and Sugawara and Hinata end up scrounging through the old desks. Minutes of silence pass undisturbed; maybe they’d used up all of their energy getting here, but neither Hinata nor Kageyama say anything, both boys taking to different artifacts curiously. Sugawara doesn’t question them.

Hinata is examining what looks like scrap notebooks. There’s no real merit to digging around like this—and he’s truly digging, without any rhyme or reason to his methods of searching—but he’s focused, just as much as he’d be during a volleyball game. Sugawara had initially thought that perhaps he was searching for a specific object, but it's clear now that he isn't seeking out anything in particular.

“Hmm, this one is older than the others,” Hinata says, holding up a ratty, dog-eared book. The frame of the binder is peeling away in places, the leather spine covered in cracks. It must have been somebody’s beloved book in the past.

“Did you look inside?” Sugawara asks him, stepping past some rolled up papers to peer over his shoulder. Kageyama doesn’t even look up from the photography albums on his lap.

“Nope,” Hinata chirps, carefully opening the cover. “It’s so old.”

There’s a hand drawn circle of some sort on the very first page that gives them both pause. It looks like a pentagram at first glance, but that isn’t quite right. There’s three words scribbled in the outermost circle in a language he doesn’t know, and there is more writing in the middle of what appears to be a pyramid. Underneath, there’s something written in roman characters.

“This isn’t English… what is this?” Hinata asks.

“I can’t recognize it…”

“You can’t tell either, Sugawara?”

“Well, it’s definitely the roman alphabet,” He shrugs, straining to see it. “Here, let me see?”

The book is carefully passed between the two. Further inspection proves that the circle that Sugawara had assumed to be a pentagram is—well, it’s not a pentagram. It isn’t necessarily satanic in nature, but there’s still something weird about it.

“What is that creepy scribble?”

Sugawara and Hinata both jump. Kageyama had grown bored of the photo albums, evidently, and had snuck up behind Sugawara to peer over his shoulder. Hinata had been too absorbed to notice him.

“Geez, Kageyama, don’t sneak up on people like that! It’s rude!”

“Shut up, I was right in front of you.”

“I would have noticed if you weren’t being sneaky ,” Hinata sticks his tongue out at him and for that, Kageyama glares daggers at him. “But you’re right. That drawing is creepy.”

They fall silent, peering at it. Bored with the circle, Hinata reaches over Sugawara to flip the page for him.

“What a dirty book,” Kageyama comments idly, crowding around his upper classmate. “Gross.”

"You make it sound like it’s a perverted magazine," Hinata chastises him. “Choose your words more carefully!”

“I thought you said it was in English?” Kageyama ignores Hinata entirely. Sugawara examines the book, befuddled by the question. The second page is in Japanese; it seems like a journal of some sort.

“No, I said it’s definitely not English,” Sugawara murmurs, flipping through the pages.

“What is it? A diary?” Hinata asks, screwing up his face into a concentrated squint as he attempts to work out the text from upside down. “What does it say?”

“...?”

Something catches Sugawara’s eye. He pauses in flipping the pages to scan a passage.

“... I think this is a journal from one of the former students,” He says slowly, flipping back to the first few pages. Behind him, Kageyama makes a noise of dissatisfaction. He’d probably been trying to read what was on the other page. Sugawara is silent, so Hinata prompts him with an imploring look and a whine. He rolls his eyes, but begins to read aloud.

“… this is by ‘Nishimoto Mori’, … ‘my world with crumbing lenses.’ Huh?”

“Are you reading that right?” Kageyama asks, reaching around his vice captain to tap the scrawled letters. “’My life is ruined’. And then ‘here’s my story’. Isn’t that what it says?”

“You’re right,” Sugawara turns to blink at him, impressed. “This is written brokenly. I’m surprised you were able to parse that.”

Kageyama shrugs, but his ears go red. Sugawara turns back to the book and continues to read.

“’This school is boring. We were told by our teachers to keep journals to occupy ourselves, but I don’t really like it.’ Hmm… Kageyama, can you read this?” Sugawara taps a passage he finds illegible. The writing is not only smudged, but also written as though by a young child.

“‘The transfer student is loved by everyone’,” Kageyama answers, squinting down at it. “’I don’t know about her’.”

“That’s weird,” Hinata seems dubious. “Is that really what it says?”

“Yeah,” Sugawara nods, eyes roving across the idle writings. “Huh. This is kind of neat.”

“Like a time capsule,” Hinata grins. “I told you we might find something cool!”

Sugawara doesn’t respond to that—he just gives Hinata a smile in return before continuing reading aloud. “’The teachers are strict but they don’t check our notebooks’. And ‘the new girl talks a lot during lunch. Somehow, everyone listens’.”

“What are they, ten years old?” Kageyama mutters, squinting at the characters

.

“I don’t think so. This was a high school,” Sugawara replies to the rhetorical remark seriously, preoccupied with the text.

“Then it was written by an idiot,” Kageyama decides.

“Maybe that’s why you can read it so easily,” Hinata teases, getting an indignant huff from Kageyama. Sugawara flaps an annoyed hand and shushes them before they can devolve into bickering.

“This is just a boring recounting of the first few days of classes…” He flips through the pages until he finds something else—something that seems peculiar enough to read out.

“’This school is strange. I was told by one of my peers that someone once hung themselves in the third gym, but it’s brand new. I don’t think anyone hung themselves there’.”

Kageyama and Hinata fall silent, sharing a look with one another.

“’The headmistress is kind. I thought she would tell me to go away when I reported these things, but she took me seriously. She told me not to worry about it. These are just rumors. I won’t listen to them’.”

Sugawara hesitates and scans the next few lines before speaking them aloud.

“’I do want to go home. At night, the wooden floorboards squeak. We are not allowed to wander. But I hear someone walking around after curfew. Are they just messing with me’?”

Sugawara lifts his head and scowls, stopping there. “We… we shouldn’t read this.”

“Keep going!” Hinata urges, bouncing on the balls of his feet. His excitement is offbeat and misplaced, seeming an odd contrast to the uneasy atmosphere in the room.

“Doesn’t this bother you?” Sugawara asks, dumbstruck.

“It’s just a book!” Hinata says, usually loud voice sounding even louder in the quiet of the classroom. “We can’t stop here.”

“I kind of want to keep going, too,” Kageyama admits, lips pressed into a thin line. Despite his own curiosity, Sugawara is still hesitant. He doesn’t want to, but between the two of them, it’s not like he can say no. He reluctantly turns back to the book, flipping to the next entry.

“There’s only one line for this date,” Sugawara mutters, prompting Hinata to stand on tip toes to see so for himself.

“What does it say?” Hinata questions.

“’Akira told stories in our reading class again. Everyone listened, but I didn’t want to.’”

“That’s weird.” Kageyama is as blunt as ever.

Hinata gives a nervous smile and nods, agreeing with him, but curious all the same. “What were the stories?”

“It doesn’t say. Maybe they were rumors,” Sugawara offers, flipping through the book. There’s another page, like the last, with just a single line written in the middle. “’They knocked my lunch over and put cicadas in my slippers.’”

“Eh?” Hinata is plainly confused. “… why would they put cicadas in his shoes?”

“That’s what you pay attention to?” Kageyama gives him a disgusted look behind their upper classmate’s back, baiting him. “Are you an idiot?”

“No! Well, I mean it seriously. Why would they do that? Is there more, Sugawara?” He asks, as persistent as ever.

“’I found a bird in my cupboard. It ruined my school uniform’. This is...”

“There’s got to be more. Look,” Gripped with a frantic desire to uncover more, Kageyama flips to the next passage. Silence settles over them for a moment as he and Sugawara read it, Hinata fidgeting in impatience. “‘Akira wrote a message for me on the chalkboard: it told me to go home’. What the hell does that mean?”

“Go home,” Hinata parrots. “Didn’t they mention wanting to go home?”

The next few lines are scribbled out, ink smeared across the messy scrawl of writing. It’s barely legible at all. “’The world’s setting sun grows cold. The rotten trees reach the sky and touch the moon’—I think this next part is a poem,” Sugawara continues, turning to look to Kageyama for approval.

“I think so,” He nods.

“This is weird,” Hinata butts in, going still. “I don’t really get it. Maybe we should just put it back.”

Both Sugawara and Kageyama look up and fix him with a perplexed stare. The sudden drop in interest is unusual—Kageyama can’t ignore it. “Seriously? You’re the one who wanted to look through this thing in the first place.”

“I can’t even read it from here,” He says, making it clear that he simply feels excluded—or perhaps teased, like they’re making it all up as they go along.

The younger setter rolls his eyes, exasperated. “You’re not missing out on anything.”

“A lot of it is boring,” Sugawara quietly agrees. “You can look at it after, if you don’t believe us.”

Hinata huffs, but he doesn’t argue further. “… I guess.”

Sugawara hums idly as he and Kageyama struggle to read the rest of the poem. “… ‘understanding is given to life…’? That doesn’t sound right.”

“’Magic held close becomes the truth’. That’s this line,” Kageyama taps the paper where Hinata can’t see.

“’This was the summer story Akira told us’,” Sugawara reads, giving an appreciative murmur of realization. “ Oh. So the stories were really just poems?”

“I dunno if it’s a poem,” Kageyama’s lack of patience has him scowling, frustrated with his inability to understand the journal’s contents. “I don’t get it.”

“Okay, so maybe it’s not a poem,” Discontent with that answer, Sugawara flips the page. “This is dated the same as the story. ’Today, I thought I’d go see the teachers. I thought if I spoke to them something would change’. Oh… ‘nothing did’.”

“I guess it didn’t help the bullying in the end.”

Kageyama’s hushed words hang in the air. Hinata’s mouth falls open in surprise, like he hadn’t expected Kageyama to actually say it—like he’d hoped that they could just continue pretending that it’s a story, not a disturbing retelling of a high school boy’s life.

What they’re reading is sad, and how they’re reading it is unforgivably cruel—like it’s cheap entertainment, or a mystery to be solved. Sugawara has nothing to say for himself. Without turning any more pages, he rethinks what they’d read.

It was obvious. There were probably more explicit clues in the diary, but they hadn’t had the patience to read in depth. The cicadas, the bird in his cubby, everything. He feels guilty for flipping through the pages as if it were a magazine, searching for the parts that caught his interest.

“This is messed up.” Kageyama reaches past him to flip through the diary, and Sugawara’s hand snaps out to stop him midway, something catching his eye.

The book falls open on the same page that had given Sugawara pause in the beginning. Behind him, Kageyama carefully begins to read.

“’…I hid the knife underneath the floorboards.’” He drags his finger down, as if in disbelief of what he’s reading. “’I only have one choice.’ What the hell kind of choice is that?”

For a moment, they’re all quiet. Hinata tentatively interrupts that silence. “This is kind of scary.”

They ignore him. Kageyama keeps reading.

“’If I hide in the showers, it’s no good. If I miss role call, it’s no good. The doors are chained when we sleep. If I break a chain, the noise will wake the others, so it’s no good. To hide I’ll have to be outside. To be outside I’ll have to have a reason. If I…’ I can’t read this. It’s smeared.”

Sugawara finds the next legible text and reads that. “’I’ll put it in the storage closet’. I can’t tell what he’s referring to… ‘And this in the photography room’. I think he means the journal…? Then ‘Akira is it’. That’s the last line.”

Kageyama flips through the book, but there’s no other text. The rest of it is empty.

“Is… is that it?” Hinata asks, peeking through his hands.

“I think—whoa,” Kageyama freezes as he flutters through a few blank pages and finds one with a polaroid taped to it, picturing the front of the school draped in snow. Underneath, it reads: I knew as soon as I saw it .

That isn’t it. There’s more and more pictures, the probable cause of the book’s heft. One of the hallways, filled with students. A young girl holding a book and reading in front of the classroom. A few smiling students stood underneath a cherry tree, covered in dappled shadows. It reads Nishimoto, Misaoto and Mirai underneath.

None of the pictures depict anything strange, but they’re eerie anyway. There’s a gradual shift in the pictures, more taken of people’s backs and not their faces, some unfocused and some far off, distant. If Sugawara didn’t know any better, he’d think of it as some kind of art project. The pictures are gorgeous, even for their age. That doesn’t change how strange they are.

Eventually, the photographs lose their beauty. The subject is blurred, or unsure. There’s pictures of the ground and nothing else. Another photo gives him pause—it’s of a tree. It seems to be of the tree in the courtyard. It’s hardly recognizable because it’s in bloom, but Sugawara is somehow sure of it. He glances at Hinata, expecting him to notice and perhaps comment on it, but he doesn’t.

The caption reads my summer’s story. Sugawara studies the page.

Kageyama speaks up before he can. “There’s something up with the picture.”

It’s warped from water damage, Sugawara realizes. Reaching past him, Kageyama touches it. “Huh.” He picks at the edge, trying to pry it free from the page. It’s taped on the bottom and the top—he removes the piece from the top, and flips it down.

There’s a scribbled drawing of another pentagram on the back of the photo. It’s a bit different from the one on the first page, but there’s no mistaking it. None of them say anything for a moment, unsure how to address it. It makes the hair on the back of Sugawara’s neck stand up. This isn’t something they should look at, and he doesn’t know why he feels that way, but the feeling is so suddenly intense that it makes him want to cringe away.

There’s something written in a messy scrawl underneath it, so he focuses on that, instead. No one says anything about the drawing.

“’I thought I could fix it on my own. Now all I have is this’.”

“This?” Hinata asks, fascination warped with confusion. “What’s ‘this’? The circle?”

“He could mean the book itself,” Sugawara says, avoiding looking at the drawing. He flips the photo back up and puzzles over it, trying to understand the meaning.

“All I have left is ‘my summer’s story’?” Kageyama suggests, dragging a hand through his hair. “It sounds like what we read earlier, about her ‘summer stories’.”

“But he hated her stories,” Sugawara says, precariously. “And, these photos… I don’t know; it might just be me, but I think they’re pretty good.” In front of him, Hinata tilts his head. “I mean—they’re taken well. He’s skilled. There’s so many… and this journal is here, in the photography room. Don’t you think it’s probably something he liked doing?”

“Oh,” Kageyama says, flattening his mussed hair. “So, you’re saying he wouldn’t mix her stuff with his pictures?”

“Yeah,” Sugawara nods, flipping the page. “It’s got to be something of his.”

“We should check the other photos, too. There might be more.”

Following Kageyama’s suggestion, Sugawara returns to the previous polaroids—but most are glued down, not taped, and those that aren’t have nothing underneath them. He flips through the rest of the pictures, but the book ends with just a few blank pages. There’s nothing else of note. Sugawara heaves a nearly relieved sigh.

Having seen them reach the end, Hinata holds out his hands imploringly. Sugawara is quick to oblige him, handing it off as if passing him something disgusting. Hinata’s persistent cheeriness is incredibly atypical when compared to the mood of the room, and Sugawara can’t help but think that it’s his own way of dealing with it. Allowing him to read in peace, the two other boys settle down at one of the abandoned desks, silently brooding.

After a minute or two of grinding teeth, Kageyama speaks up. “It’s bugging me.”

“What is?”

“I don’t know,” he sighs, weighted and exhausted. Sugawara realizes that the healthy flush that Kageyama had regained is long gone, lost to a pallor that makes him look sickly. The tremble to his intertwined fingers is barely perceptible, but present. “I guess all of it. I don’t know, it just… it feels like we read something we weren’t supposed to.”

“What do you…” The older setter swallows, nervousness bringing about a cold sweat. He thinks about the drawings. “What do you mean? Which part?”

“Like I said, all of it,” Kageyama snaps, frustration and sickness taking an obvious toll on his patience. “I’ve felt uneasy ever since we opened the book.”

“Kageyama, you don’t… this doesn’t have anything to do with how you felt on the way up, does it?”

“I…” Kageyama runs his hands through his hair again and then brings them down to the table, clenching them into fists. “It’s the only thing that makes sense to me.”

For one heart shattering beat, Sugawara really has nothing to say. He can’t comfort him again, not when he doesn’t believe it himself. The entire book reeks of bad omens. The mentions of bullying and the vague, obscure sounding poetry combined with the eerie degradation of the quality of the photography alongside the circles were all grim signs.

He wants to laugh at it. He should be able to laugh at it. But this is too serious to ignore or shrug off.

The tense silence doesn’t last long. Sugawara is just opening his mouth to spill out half-hearted comforts when Hinata runs over to the table and slams the open book down in front of them. The forbidding circle from the first page stares up at them, seeming to glint maliciously. Sugawara averts his eyes.

“Look at this again!” Hinata says, excitement seeming strange in the grim atmosphere of the small room—too bright, too cheery. “Guess what? I figured something out!”

Kageyama sighs, obviously struggling not to yell at him. “Pipe down before someone hears you, dumbass.”

“This writing isn’t by Nishimoto!”

“Huh?”

“Look," Hinata taps the scrawled writing underneath. “It’s all neat and tidy, when the rest is all messy. It’s different!”

Having thought Hinata might have been getting somewhere, Kageyama’s disappointment is explosive. “You’re such an idiot! It’s written in the alphabet, so of course it’s gonna look different.”

“Shut up! Tell me something that you noticed if you’re so smart! All you do is complain.”

“Dumbass. You’re an absolute dumbass.” Kageyama is sweating. If his sickness wasn’t clear to Hinata, then it is to Sugawara. It’s only getting worse.

“You’re just angry I noticed something that you didn’t!”

“Hinata,” Sugawara cuts him off before he can continue. “Stop. Arguing isn’t going to solve anything. This is serious. ”

“I know it’s serious,” The younger teen blurts. Both Sugawara and Kageyama can only stare. Hinata stares back with an intense, challenging gaze. He seems determined to get to the bottom of the mystery.

He turns around, walks through the mess, and squats to dig through more books, as stubborn as always. Sugawara watches him for a moment longer before heaving a sigh, drained of energy. If he wants to keep looking, then there’s not a lot Sugawara can do to stop him.

“Let’s keep this to ourselves,” Sugawara says, firmly. “The others might also… take this really seriously.”

“I don’t think they’d believe us unless we showed them this,” Kageyama mumbles, picking up the journal. He turns the page, obscuring the ugly scribble from their sight. “…I’ve read it myself, but even I still don’t really understand.”

“I think it’s a journal from a bullied boy,” Sugawara says. “And I don’t think we had any business reading it.”

“He’s probably long gone now, though,” Kageyama shrugs, flipping idly through the pages. “… it’s not about that. It just gives me the creeps.”

Sugawara raises his head and watches as Hinata picks his way through the junk in the room, carrying what looks like an album in his arms. He drops it onto the table and watches proudly as Sugawara drags it closer to inspect it.

“What is this…?”

Kageyama squints at it. “I was looking through that earlier.”

“Read the label on the side,” Hinata insists. Sugawara is befuddled, but he obeys, checking the label on the binder’s spine.

“’Nishimoto’… this is his? This entire album?”

“Yeah!” Hinata gestures toward it, obviously eager for Sugawara to open it. He rolls his eyes but gives in, because even though he’d said himself that they’d had no business in prying, he’s too curious to deny himself a look. And it’s not like this is a diary, this time.

Inside, the pictures are more of the same. Some are more mediocre than he’d expected, but others are spectacularly artful. There’s almost no text to accompany the many photographs, but they tell their own story—again, matching the dates of the diary, the pictures gradually lose focus and precision. Photographs of snow covered trees and wildlife, students silhouetted against the shining sun—the gorgeous frames make way for murky skies and unsure looking puddles of rain, blurred, as though taken hastily.

Sugawara isn’t interested, and Kageyama isn’t either, judging by the firm glare he’s giving the opposing wall. He closes the album and pushes it back toward Hinata, feeling sick to his stomach.

“We should go,” he suggests, throat dry. “I have to return the keys to Daichi.”

Hinata wilts. It’s obvious that what they’ve found has disappointed him, despite the fact that he was the one who wanted to come here in the first place. Or perhaps it’s not the mystery of the diary itself, but the reluctance of his friends to investigate further. Either way, he gives up on it, and nods.

“… I guess!” He’s pouting, put out. “Kageyama, you should probably rest more! You look sicker than before.”

“And who’s fault is that?” He grumbles, chair squealing as he stands from the table. “This place gives me the creeps. Let’s hurry up and get out of here already.”

Hinata picks up the book—and turns to leave with it. Sugawara gapes. “Hey! Leave that here.”

“What?” Hinata stares. “Why?”

“First, we’re not supposed to be here,” He admonishes him in hushed tones, heart beating a mile a minute. “You—maybe you didn’t catch it, but I already said we shouldn’t tell anyone else about this.”

Hinata seems puzzled. “We shouldn’t?”

“No,” Sugawara agrees. “We shouldn’t.”

Kageyama crosses his arms and scowls. “Put that down so we can go.”

Hinata does, though with great reluctance; like a kicked, scolded puppy, he settles it down on top of the table he’s closest to, eyes lingering on it even as he begins to walk away, steps slow. He’s probably expecting Sugawara to sigh and say fine, just take it! But when he realizes that’s not going to happen, he sighs and hurries out of the room.

Sugawara takes care to lock the door behind them, unenthused with the idea of Hinata returning to sneak the book out. For an extra measure, he tries the knob; it stays stiffly unmoving. It’s enough to reassure him.

Kageyama and Hinata split up from Sugawara. “Don’t sneak around anymore,” He advises, trying not to sound too stern. Even if he feels uneasy because of the book, he doesn’t want to show it in front of them any more than he already has. “Just get to the showers and then head up to our room.”

Sugawara doesn’t head up immediately, himself. There’s a restlessness deep in his bones; he finds himself drawn to the courtyard, where he pauses in front of the rows of windows to peer outside, at the tree.

It’s definitely the same one from the photos. Did Nishimoto spend his highschool days quietly sitting underneath it…? Even if he took photos of it, they didn’t seem to hold any type of cherished memory. Sugawara thinks about the circle that he’d avoided looking at, and the ominous message that went with it.

He suppresses a shudder.

It’s still cold in the hallways. Sugawara hates the miserable weather; it doesn’t look like it’s going to clear up any time soon. He just hopes it doesn’t rain.

It’s probably best if he heads up to the dorms to get settled into bed—staying out any longer might look suspicious. He’d even lectured the first years about discreetly hurrying to their dorm, so it doesn’t look good for him to avoid it himself.

Sugawara doesn’t run into anyone else on his way upstairs.

The second floor should be quiet other than the insistent howling of the wind outside, but when he opens the door to head inside, he stops short. He closes the door instead of entering the room, and a sudden thunk startles him.

Sugawara looks for the source of the noise and finds his eyes drawn to the brass ornament swaying from the doorknob.

That feeling of inexplicable dread crawls up his back as he watches it spin in place. It comes to a stop, and he draws it as close as the thin chain tying it to the knob allows him to.

There’s no doubt about it. It’s a charm with a circle etched into the metal, done in the same style as the pentagrams they’d seen in Nishimoto’s journal.

“Wh...what is this?”

Sugawara can’t take his eyes off of it. How had he never noticed this before? It was something that stood out from the rest of the school—no other doors had charms like this, and no other art existed like these circles. He can’t fathom as to why it’s here or what it means, but he has a feeling it’s nothing good.

There’s no way he can leave it on the door, not having seen Nishimoto’s writings. It’s probably been here for a while—probably since the school was vacated. Sugawara looks around for people, and then unhooks the chain it’s hanging from on the knob and pulls it off.

He stands back and stares at the door. Nothing has really changed except its appearance, but… standing here with the creepy charm in his hand, something feels different.

Sugawara shakes his head free of worries and opens the door.

#haikyuu #haikyuu!! #hq #hq!! #sugawara #hinata #kageyama #kagehina #sugawara koushi #kageyama tobio #hinata shouyou #fanfiction #kirayama #chapter 6

[ecotone99]

[SF] Vaporwave Therapy for the Weak-Willed... Or, simply: Stronger

Dallas folded the paper note back up and placed it on his night stand before falling to sleep. It lay there, next to him, all night. When he woke up, it stayed there on his nightstand while he took his shower, got dressed, and eventually headed to work. When he locked his door and closed it on his way out, the note was still laying there, a small piece of paper, folded in half.

His drive to work felt normal. Dallas got to be himself, play the soundtrack to his morning and let it drive him. He nodded his head and sang too loud with the windows down. He smiled out the window at the sun. Today would be different. He would make sure of it.

“Good evening, doctor!” Athena cheerily greeted Dallas as he walked into the lobby of the 91st floor.

“It’s the morning, Athena…” Dallas said, pausing.

“I’m sorry doctor, Daylight Savings Time always seems to throw my programming off, I will re-synch my internal clock to the company server’s clock immediately. Additionally, Mr. Fukunaga left a message on your voicemail approximately half an hour ago. I will make sure it autoplays as soon as you get into your office.”

“Thanks Athena, do you know when my first appointment is?”

“Ahh yes, doctor, your first appointment is… No wait, that is Doctor Horvath… Hmm, that one as well… It looks like he is actually taking three this upcoming hour, I had no idea how he plans to do that… Goldfarb, Dukes, and Kerfling. You don’t have one until 12 actually… However, I will make sure that you take priority on the queue for any walk-ins this hour as it seems that all fourteen of the other doctors are booked.”

Dallas momentarily clenched a fist that he released instantly. Today wouldn’t be like yesterday.

“Thank you, Athena.”

Dallas headed to his office, he hung his jacket on the hook behind the door as he shut it behind him. It was only a small space, an eight foot by eight foot square, but it was his space. And he had hanged up three different signed prints of the Simpsons, now on its 105th season. Besides, how many other precocious 26 year old Cyber Therapists had their own office? Probably not many. Dallas actually didn’t know. He and his friend Kit, who was also another therapist here, had both gone to school together. So, in this building, definitely only those two. The small office was cool.

Like Athena had said, Mr. Fukunaga’s message began to play as soon as he got to his desk.

“Good morning Doctor, this is your boss, Charles Fukunaga. Ahem, yes, well, after our conversation yesterday, I trust that you will be working your hardest this week to meet the expectations summary that I Net-Messaged over to you. I’ll be checking in with you later to see how things are going so expect another call. Fukunaga out.”

Dallas sat at his desk for a moment, staring at the blank spot on his wall between two of the Simpsons prints. One hand slowly clenched and unclenched over and over for a minute.

Goddamnit.

A short knock rapped at his door followed by the door opening almost immediately.

“Dallas, buddy!”

“Horvath, hello.” Why’d even you knock if you just planned on walking in?

“Hey, so are you coming to my party Wednesday night? It’s going to be at Dave and Buster’s! And I gotta tell you, I think I’m going to eat my own weight in cheese sticks!”

Be stronger.

“Horvath, look, I don’t want to go. So I’m not going to.” Dallas forced himself to look up from his computer and meet Horvath’ gaze. Horvath held it for a moment, he really did, but then he looked over at the Simpson’s print of them dressed like The Beatles crossing Abby Road. It was signed by former US President James Buchanan’s last living relative who bore no connection to The Simpsons but it was impressive all the same.

“Dallas, buddy, look you gotta come! If you don’t then Kit won’t and if Kit won’t then Jaime and Alex won’t! Please! It is my birthday.”

Get what you want.

“Horvath, you have three clients coming to see you in 15 minutes.”

“Oh yeah, you’re trying to pick something up from the master, eh? Alright, I’ll let you in on how I run it, I give them each 17 minutes and I count their time in the warm-up chamber and their times in the cryonics bath all as a part of the appointment. I only spend a little more than a quarter of an hour on the holo-therapy for each of them. Pretty sweet scam, huh?”

“No, I can’t imagine the Ethics Department for Fukunaga Mental Health and Ameridata would be happy about something like that.” Dallas had trouble pacing himself here, “I want you to transfer Kerfling to me. Tell her that you messed up the schedule and that you need me to substitute. You do that and then I’ll go to your party. See, we both win.”

“You… Dick!... Fine. But not cool and you’d better bring a gift!” Horvath huffed as he slammed the door behind him.

“I won’t.”

Dallas exhaled deeply, relief jetting through him, racing against the impossible pace of blood pumping alongside it. It had worked. He had worked. It was working! He had already gotten more than what he had started the day with!

Dallas hit down on the intra-office page system, “Athena, when Mrs. Kerfling gets here, please just go ahead and page me when you set her up in a therapy chamber. Dr. Horvath realized the mistake in his over-booking and requested my help with handling some of his workload.”

“You got it, Doc!” Athena said back cheerily.

Dallas pulled up Grandiana Kerfling’s file on his Data-Net and reviewed it while he headed upstairs to one of the Holo-Therapy rooms. Being careful while winding his way through the labyrinthine office halls to make sure he avoided the anti-gravity wing. Even though the zero-grav environments were supposed to be contained to the pods, he swore he got nauseous every time he walked by. He signed in on Suite 14 and made ran some pre-diagnostics to make sure all of the modules loaded up correctly. Everything booted up fine, even the premium add-ons.

Dallas’ Data-Net activated a notification alert, it wasn’t Athena, it was Kit.

“Just saw Horvath and he was throwing a tantrum at one of his patients. What a baby.”

Dallas quickly messaged back so that he wouldn’t be looking at his Data-Net when Mrs. Kerfling arrived. “Yeah, I might have done that, I’ll tell you more later.”

The page from Athena popped up and Dallas dismissed it before snapping his Data-Net shut. Moments later, Grandiana was vogue-ing her way through the security checkpoint. Dallas greeted her politely, despite the fact that she seemed nonplussed about the change in therapists, and then ushered her into the Holo-Suite but he waited to engage the holograms.

“So, Grandiana—”

“You may address me as Ms. Kerfling, Doctor...?”

Decide right now, Dallas, decide to take what you want.

“You can just call me Dallas, and I hate to be the one to tell you this, Grandiana, but if you keep me at arm’s length then the therapy just isn’t going to be as effective. Now, I can call you Ms. Kerfling but you need to ask yourself how much you will really get from this session if you are so guarded.”

“Yes Doc… Yes Dallas, I’m sorry, Grandiana is fine… I just, I’m just not used to seeing anyone but Doctor Horvath.”

“That’s ok Grandiana, I understand that, but I was looking at your file and to be honest I feel like you were being slighted by Doctor Horvath anyway. I feel like you’d be much more receptive to the Dragons and Elves scenario so for this session I’m actually going to give you a free upgrade over your standard Castle Siege scenario. It is skews a little more towards fantasy then you’re used to but after reading your file I am sure that you’re more than equipped to handle the nuance of this kind of therapy. It might leave you a little more drained than usual but we will worry about that after the session, alright?”

“Oh my, Doctor Horvath has never taken this much interest in our sessions, I actually do think I am more excited about this… Very well then. Let’s run the scenario! I want to keep my sword from the Castle Siege Scenario though!”

“Absolutely, Grandiana, I can make sure that Scarblade is in the Dragons and Elves Scenario.”

“Wow, Dallas, you really did read my file, didn’t you!”

“I sure did!” Dallas chuckled as they engaged the scenario.

An hours and fifteen minutes later, Dallas had let the session run on long for a couple of reasons, the two stepped out of the Holo-Suite. Grandiana was actually out of breath but her expression read of exhausted contentment.

“That was fantastic Dallas! I thought the goblins had us for sure! What a relief it was to find out that Scarblade actually had a flame enchantment the whole time! I gotta say though, I am beat. Do you think it would be ok to schedule some extra cooldown time in the cryonics bath?”

“I won’t lie to you Grandiana, it will tack more onto your bill but as your therapist I would absolutely recommend it as well. It is good to be able to fully relax and decompress in an environment like that after all the action that you just experienced.”

“You know what, I actually don’t mind at all, sign me up for a double cryonics treatment! And while you’re at it, schedule me another appointment with you next week! I want to keep running the Dragons and Elves scenario and you’ve proven to be a much more capable therapist than Doctor Horvath!”

“I’d be more than happy too, Grandiana.” Dallas said, sending her into the cryonics room while totaling how much more the commission for all of that was going to look on his numbers. Just today’s double cryo would be a sizable increase in his numbers from last week! Horvath was an idiot, Grandiana was a whale and he wasn’t doing his due diligence to service her enough. He deserved to have Grandiana poached out from under him.

Dallas pulled out his Data-Net and saw that Kit had messaged him:

“Hey, meet me in the cafeteria for lunch after your next session! Just had the wildest experience with Chubbs!”

Chubbs was the nickname that Kit had for one of her patients who was not overweight (so the nickname wasn’t insensitive jeering). Chubbs was obsessed with Carl Weathers’ character from the Adam Sandler cinematic universe, Chubbs Peterson, the one-handed retired golf pro. He had only appeared in two films, Happy Gilmore and Little Nicky (the second appearance was really only a cameo) but Chubbs (real name Carl Dagonovich) was completely fixated. Every session with that guy was a scene-for-scene retake of Chubbs Peterson’s cinematic chronology. It hardly seemed therapeutic but the business of mental health takes many paths.

“Wildest Experience With Chubbs sounds like the title of an overly-produced porn… So yeah, obviously I need to hear about this. I’ll meet up with you in about an hour and a half!” Dallas messaged back.

Dallas coded his notes on his session with Grandiana Kerfling while waiting for his next patient. But he kept glancing down at his Data-Net the whole time he was typing up the report. When Kit finally responded he spun his chair completely away from his desk to read her message.

“Wildest Experience With Chubbs is also sadly the story of every time I’ve ever masturbated in front of a mirror but PIZZA JUST TASTES SO GOOD!” Kit messaged back.

Athena sent Dallas a page, notifying him that his next patient had arrived. Dallas started walking towards the Holo-Therapy Suites but he didn’t look up from his Data-Net, he just walked while typing a reply.

“Ewww… Why are you tasting pizza while masturbating in front of mirrors? Listen, if you ever need to talk about anything… I’d actually recommend you speak to Doctor Horvath because that guy is like, real good.” Dallas chuckled to himself as he typed it out.

“I meant pizza in the royal sense, stupid, obviously I don’t eat pizza while masturbating. I eat pot roast because I am a class act.”

Dallas stopped in the middle of walking to let out a short chuckle at Kit’s response. He smiled as he began typing back.

“Yeah, well have fun with your royal pizza or whatever you are doing with it, I’m about to start a session.”

Dallas snapped his Data-Net shut and watched his next client stalk through the security post. Daisuke Hernandez was a complicated man and Dallas hadn’t quite pinned him down yet but he was able to get along with him well enough to sell him a premium scenario for every visit.

“Darasu-San.”

“Hernandez-San, I trust you would like to run the same scenario today? Samurai and Banditos fight off the Giant Killer Praying Mantis?”

“Hai.”

“Sounds good, I’ve got a lot planned for you, I think we’re going to make some real progress. Who knows, by the end of today’s session, I might even upsell you from your usual zero-grav pod to a electrolysis massage for your decompress and debrief regimen.” Dallas said as they went into the holo-therapy room.

An hour and two minutes later and Dallas had done exactly what he had set out to do. Dallas had filled the scenario with so much nuance and subtlety Daisuke agreed to the upcharge. Another sale, two in one day for Dallas was unheard of. This was his personal best. All because he was strong enough.

Dallas checked his Data-Net once he had sent Daisuke Hernandez on his way. He had a message from Kit that was just a pot roast emoji and he grinned at that. Another message from Athena told him that he needed to call his boss back. The grin faded slightly, but only slightly. Mr. Fukunaga wasn’t so bad, really. His advice seemed to really be helping.

“Hey, I’ll meet up with you in ten minutes, I just have to make a real quick call!” Dallas messaged Kit as he rushed back to his office.

Once he was situated he initiated the call with Mr. Fukunaga.

“Ahem, hello? Who is this?” Charles Fukunaga demanded.

“Yes sir, this is Dallas, the doctor from Branch 7 that you spoke to yesterday, I was returning your call.” Dallas responded hastily.

“Yes! Dallas! Well, yes, fantastic! I was just looking at everything you’ve accomplished today! I swear, you’ve done better just this morning than you did all last week! I see you took my pep-talk to heart then, did you?”

“Yes sir, I—”

“Good, that’s good… Ahem, you know, the company, and by extension me personally, just want the staff of all Fukunaga Mental Health branches to be happy, comfortable, and loved! I want to make sure you are as fulfilled as you can be by working for us…

Can I get real with you for a second, Dallas? Just really real and raw and uncut? I want you to be really fulfilled! Just in every, ahem, EVERY way.

You know, I’m something of an older man. I’m hitting the ass-end of my fifties now. And I’ve started something new. I’m now the… well… I’m an active participant in a polyamorous relationship with two trans-women and a hyper-sentient android with three separate personalities. The six of us are very happy and VERY fulfilled.

I just, well, I just want to make sure that you are as happy as I am. I want you to find your polyamorous six-way! Do you have that, Dallas? Do you have somebody? Or five somebodies even?”

Dallas hesitated. For a lot of reasons.

“No, sir, I guess I can’t quite say that I do have what you have.”

“Well, m’boy, I want you, right now, I want you to really evaluate yourself. Ahem, and I want you to take that advice I gave to you and I want you to really apply it across every part of your life. You do that and I know that you will be the best Cyber-Psycho-Therapist that this company has. You’re good at what you do but I know you can be great at what you do. Now go back out there and do what you do! Fukunaga out!”

Dallas sat at his desk, staring at the blank spot on his wall between two of the Simpsons prints. It seemed endless in a way. It was so empty that it was able to completely consume him and remove him from the reality of the conversation that he just had with his boss. The blank spot was comforting for just a few moments. And then he remembered that he had just told his boss that he was alone. He told his polyamorous boss that he was alone.

Goddamnit.

“I’m on my way now… I’m… This day has been weird. Be right there.” Dallas messaged Kit.

When Dallas got to the cafeteria, he looked around until his eyes landed on a secluded corner with one solitary doctor eating her lunch. Kit’s hair was down, she was peeling a fresh orange, she was wearing the white lab coat that she swore made her look “more like a doctor”. Dallas had known her for so long and she had never looked better than right that moment. She was like if his eyes could drink hot chocolate.

Dallas grabbed himself a neon meal shake that advertised “all the power of lasers in one bottle” before sitting down next to his best friend. She told him about Chubbs, he told her about Horvath, Kerfling, and even Hernandez. He left out his talk with Fukunaga. She was so happy that he was getting his numbers up. She was always happy with him. Dallas liked to chase that feeling.

“You’re pronouncing that wrong.”

“What?”

“You’re pronouncing Chuck Palahniuk’s name wrong.”

“Bullshit, I watched the special edition blu-ray with commentary and Edward Norton prono—”

“Yeah, he pronounced it wrong too.”

“Well how do you know, genius?”

Do you have somebody? Or five somebodies even?

“Because I met him. He signed my copy of Choke. I asked him to write in the inside cover how to phonetically pronounce his name and he did. See, here is a picture of it right here.”

Kit pulled up a picture of the book on her Data-Net and there it was, plain as day. Chuck Palahniuk’s autograph right next a pronunciation key in his hand-writing.

“Wow… Ok, well that is wild.” Dallas said, incredulously.

“Yeah, well you should know better than to doubt me.”

“I didn’t doubt you… I was just hesitant to immediately doubt Edward Norton. He just seems so smart… Also, figures that you would have him sign Choke. I haven’t even read that.”

“Yeah, well I own a signed copy that I am not going to let you borrow so good luck never reading it.” Kit laughed, her eyes always shut when she laughed, it was this moment of sincere vulnerability any time she laughed. Dallas had learned to appreciate that. She was a licensed Cyber-Therapist, any of the smart ones knew to never be vulnerable.

You will get everything you want because decided to take it.

While her eyes were closed, Dallas leaned in and kissed Kit on her smiling lips. He felt her tense up for the fraction of a second but immediately relax as she kissed him back… for almost a full second before pulling herself away.

“Dallas, what the fuck? I’m… I’m… you can’t do that! You know I’m with Jiro!” Kit was blushing, her smile was down-turned into a scowl, and her brow was furrowed. Her tone was both panicked and indignant and… yes, angry. An individual’s whose career was based around interpreting human behavior might say that this was a wholly negative reaction.

Dallas began to feel shame injected into his face and neck and start to run down his back. He felt it seep closer to his extremities with each heartbeat until he finally felt it in his fingertips.

“Kit, I’m…” Dallas trailed off. He knew there were no words that could ever make this alright.

“Please don’t tell Jiro.” Dallas said numbly. He stood up and walked out of the cafeteria while Kit was flustering. She called after him but he kept walking. He went past his office, past the Zero-Grav Pods, past the Cryo-Bath Tanks, past Athena the android assistant, down the elevator, out of the building and began to walk home. There was no saving that situation. Probably.

Dallas, Kit, and Jiro had been friends for the last 15 years. They had gone to school together as three best friends until a year and a half ago when Kit and Jiro started dating. Dallas had never had a single romantic feeling for Kit for thirteen and a half years until she was with Jiro.

Why did I do that? That wasn’t strength… That was weakness. I am pathetic.

Dallas made it home when he realized his car was still at work. And that he was still supposed to be at work. And that Mr. Fukunaga had told him to get his sales up or he would be fired. And that… No. Nothing mattered right now.

Dallas lay down in his bed, fully clothed. His eyes landed on his bedside table where he had left the note. That note that Mr. Fukunaga had told him to write to himself. Back when Mr. Fukunaga was threatening to fire him still.

Dallas reached over and unfolded the note and read it.

“Tomorrow, you will be stronger and you will get everything that you want because you decided to take it.”

Dallas tore the note into pieces, rolled over, and began to cry into his pillow.

submitted by /u/Cursed_Apricot [link] [comments] via Blogger https://ift.tt/2ITYAoF

#Blogger #Story

[nekomassetters]

Two

As you're setting to Kuroo and Lev, Nekomata-sensei calls you over, along with Kenma.

"I want you two to work on your sets together okay?"

You look over at Kenma as he nods and walks to the court.

"Hey wait up," you shout after him, "what are we supposed to be doing?"

Kenma turns around causing you to stop in your tracks.

"Take about ten steps and stop," he lectures.

Without another word Kenma walks away, leaving you to do what you're told. You stand in the middle of the court and Kuroo brings over a cart of volleyballs towards you and stops at the endline.

You shift your gaze to Kenma who's standing at the court next to yours. He turns to you and lets you know you're going to do a rapid-fire tossing drill.

He then turns around and nods to Lev who throws him a ball. Kenma swiftly moves under the ball and sets it to Fukunaga.

Rude, acting like I don't know how to do a stupid tossing drill.

"You ready or are you going to stare at Kenma all day?" Kuroo calls out to you.

You shake yourself out of your trance and nod to Kuroo. You complete the drill sending the ball to Yaku as you set it. You continue to repeat this process as fast as you can until Kuroo says that the cart is empty.

"How many balls were in there?" you ask out of breath.

"I dunno probably only fifty," he shrugs as he looks for confirmation from Yaku.

Yaku nods in agreement with Kuroo's statement.

"Fifty? But my hands feel like they're on fire," you complain as you look down at your palms.

Your sentence is almost cut off by the sound of the gym doors opening.

"Sorry I'm late," you hear a familiar voice yell out as the sound of sneakers along the floor echoes throughout the gym.

You turn to see the familiar black-haired boy lands in your field of view.

Kai-chan...

You watch as Kai jogs over to Nekomata-sensei and apologizes profusely for being late. You try to listen for his excuse but get called back to earth by Kuroo.

"Oh my bad," you apologize, "what are we doing now?"

Kuroo lets you know it's time to work on spikes.

"Do you mind if I set for you guys?" you ask as you run up to him.

"Of course!" he beams.

Kuroo grabs your hand and brings you over to Kenma. You quickly flash him a smile and a thumbs up.

"Ready?"

Kenma nods and looks away quickly. You're not sure but you think you caught a bit of blush on his face.

It's kinda cute how shy he is.

"Y/N!"

You turn around at the sound of your name being called and jump back when you see Kai standing directly behind you.

"Oh hey Kai," you chuckle awkwardly, "long time no see, huh?"

"Are you ready for your first set?" he asks emotionlessly.

You're taken back for a moment, confused as to why he's not asking you about the last time the two of you talked.

He's always been polite so I guess I can't be too surprised that he's not bringing it up.

You begin to serve for the team as they line up behind you and Kenma in preparation for your serves.

After what seems like forever, Nekomata-sensei calls everybody over.

"Alright bring it in," he shouts to the group.

You follow the guys as they run over to their coach.

"Good job for the second day back," he smiles as he looks at the boys.

You glance over and see Kuroo with his hands on his hips proudly looking at the team. You smile thinking he really does act like the captain of the team. You then notice Kenma who's standing next to Kuroo with his eyes glued to his coach. As you remember you're also supposed to be listening, you shake off your thoughts and look back towards Nekomata-sensei. However, your eyes tend to linger on Kenma a moment before looking away.

"I also want to remind you that on Tuesdays and Thursdays Y/N will be practicing with us so BE NICE!" he sternly lectures.

Most of the boys smile or nod at Nekomata-sensei.

"Y/N why is it that you're practicing with us on those days?" somebody asks.

"Oh because the girls' coach can't hold practices those days and I, um, need extra practice because I've been out for so long and I'm the only setter," you reply nervously as your face feels like it's on fire.

You look over at Kai who's staring intently back at you. Quickly you remove your gaze from him and listen to Nekomata-sensei as he speaks.

Once the team is dismissed and the gym is cleaned, you walk over to Kuroo as he packs up his things.

"Bye Kuroo," you wave as you approach him.

Kuroo pulls you into a hug and says he can't wait to practice with you again. As he releases your eyes linger on him a moment before you collect yourself. You shift your vision over to Kenma who's sitting on the floor beside him.

"Bye Kenma," you say politely.

"Bye," he replies in a quiet voice.

You can't help but smile at his cute response. As you walk out of the gym you hear Kuroo laugh.

"Man I can't believe you actually talked!"

"What's the big deal it's not like I'm going to ignore her," you faintly hear Kenma reply.

You start to walk back to your dorm but hear someone call out to you. You turn around and feel your body freeze as you see Kai running up to you.

"Uh, hey Y/N," Kai says awkwardly, "how's your arm?"

"It's better," you reply as you rub it gently.

The two of you stand in silence for a moment.

Why doesn't he just ask me and let the cat out of the fucking bag alrea-

"Do you, um, have an answer?"

#anime #nekoma's setters #hinatastinygiant #Wattpad #Kenma Kozume #kenma #kenma x y/n #ao3 #fanfic #haikyuu fanfiction #fanfiction #haikyuu!! #haikyuu x female reader #haikyuu reader insert #haikyu x reader