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Kageyama knows of two instances when he felt the world stop.
The first is during his last volleyball match with Kitagawa Daiichi, where he carelessly created bitter rifts between him and his teammates and felt the heavy weight of a king on his head and shoulders.
The second is during Karasuno’s volleyball practice on a cloudy Monday. The minute Hinata says the words, “I’m leaving” is the moment Kageyama feels the burden of a tyrant weigh all too heavily and allows it to drag him down the widening cracks left from middle school.
“When?” comes the soft voice of Suga. His usual soothing tone shakes slightly under the pressure of the strained atmosphere.
“The end of this week.”
“Do you know which school you’ll be attending?” asks Daichi.
“Not really,” says Hinata as he rubs the back of his neck sheepishly with a small laugh. “My parents want to keep it a surprise. I guess they figured I would have trouble concentrating on my studies and whatnot. They want me to deal with it when it comes. Good thing too, ‘cause I’d probably daze off during practice and serve a ball at Kageyama’s head again.”
Nishinoya snorts and just like that the tension is broken.
“Well then, we’ll just have to make sure we send you off properly, don’t we?” Tanaka slaps Hinata’s back and sends a wink to Nishinoya that promises a surprise moving party.
And that’s how Kageyama finds himself sitting in the center of the gym Friday evening eating a piece of cake amongst his many animated teammates, watching them shower Hinata with gifts. Coach Ukai gives Hinata an entire bag of meat buns while Suga and Daichi hand him a volleyball signed by the entire team (Hinata ignores Tsukishima’s “Later, Chibi” as he reads the messages). From Asahi, Hinata receives a volleyball keychain and a ruffle on the head. Yachi had designed another “Small Giant” poster featuring Hinata’s impressive jump for the middle blocker to hang on the walls of his new home. Meanwhile, a banner displaying the message, “We Will Miss You”, hangs on the side of the gym, courtesy of Kiyoko, Takeda-sensei, and most of the second years. Hinata accepts them all with a smile as he slurps Kageyama’s gift (that had been an awkward exchange as Kageyama had promptly dumped an entire stash of juice boxes onto Hinata’s lap and walked away without saying a word).
Tanaka and Nishinoya don’t give him tangible presents but their boisterous personalities are more than enough as they take turns giving him piggyback rides across the gym. Tsukishima merely rolls his eyes at their rambunctious behavior but the absence of his usual snark (save for the “Chibi” comment) is a gift all on its own. Yamaguchi, for his part, gives Hinata a handshake and wishes him good luck in his future endeavors.
Soon, the hours wane, the cake eaten, farewells spoken, and their coach is shooing them all home.
Hinata stays behind for one last look. With the final round of good-byes behind him, the gym is peaceful but it’s not at all how Hinata wants to remember it.
The rowdiness of Nishinoya. The protectiveness of Tanaka. The encouragement of Takeda-sensei and Coach Ukai. His rivalry with Tsukishim. Asahi’s gratitude. Captain Daichi’s determination. Suga’s everlasting patience. Yamaguchi’s hard work. Yachi’s and Kiyoko’s unwavering support.
These were the best gifts Karasuno could give him.
And who could forget the races, the secret practices, the serves, the study periods, the partnership of-
“Kageyama.”
The boy in question steps closer to Hinata’s line of view, hands shoved inside his pockets.
“You were waiting for me?”
A nod.
Hinata smiles and falls in step beside Kageyama as the latter walks him to his bike.
There’s so many things Kageyama wants to ask. Will you still play volleyball? Why move now? Why move at all?
But whether he liked it or not, come Monday morning, Kageyama will be racing on an empty road and tossing in an emptier gym. It wouldn’t matter.
Or at last he thought it didn’t.
“Which school?”
Hinata pauses before his hands reach for his neck again. “I told you, my parents-”
“Which school?” Kageyama presses. He’s an idiot, yes, but he knows volleyball like the palm of his hand and his partner like the back of the same hand. He sees the darting eyes and the quivering armsas they werewhen Daichi had asked the same question.
Hinata avoids Kageyama’s gaze.
“A-Aobajousai.”
It’s bearable.
It is by no means easy, but Hinata surprises himself at how tolerably he’s able to adjust to his new life.
The classes are the same, mostly because Hinata pays the same amount of attention (a.k.a. none at all) to his lessons. Making new friends come naturally as well. His energy and vigor win some and lose some, namely the Kitagawa Daiichi alumni though even Hinata knew that it wasn’t because of his demeanor.
“Are you lost, little crow?”
“Got tired of the King’s toss, didn’t ya?”
“Or maybe he got tired of you.”
Comments and rumors he could ignore. But the game itself, never.
Hinata finds himself more often than not gazing at the doors of the gym, listening to the patter of the balls and the squeaks of shoes as their owners serve, toss, and spike. It’s the latter that thrills and stings the most because Hinata can almost feel the smack of leather against his palm as much as the slap of reality against his thoughts.
In the end, he always leaves, never lingering for more than a few minutes.
They say skills applied on the court can also be applied to life. Hinata never fully realized how true that is till now.
If he couldn’t spike the ball, he’d avoid. If he couldn’t play the game, he’d avoid. If he couldn’t endure the betrayal, he’d avoid.
Using volleyball to escape volleyball is the reason why he could never cross the line between “bearable” and “easy”.
But sometimes, he’s able to take one step over, even if it’s just an inch. Those sometimes come in the form of one Iwaizumi Hajime.
“Hinata Shouyou, am I right?”
Hinata bolts up in his seat and shuts his mouth before the words “What’s a third year doing in a first year classroom?” or “How does he know my name?” or even “Crap, what does the ace of Seijou want with me?” spill out.
He manages a nod.
“How are you adjusting to the school?” Iwaizumi asks as he takes the seat beside Hinata. Most of the classroom is empty seeing as it is lunch break.
Hinata swallows a mouthful of rice before answering. “All right.” And Hinata surprises himself again, seeing how simple it is to converse with an ex-opponent. Iwaizumi asks him about his lessons, friends, and such and Hinata responds with his usual zest.
That is until Iwaizumi drops the bomb.
“Have you joined a club yet?”
Oh no. Hinata knew this was coming, honestly, but it doesn’t stop him from nearly choking on his juice. “W-well…”
“You should come back to volleyball.”
This time the juice really does go down the wrong pipe but Iwaizumi is patient enough to wait for his answer as he thumps Hinata’s back repeatedly.
“Why?” Hinata asks between heaves and coughs.
Because you need a faster spiker? Because you need a snitch that knows Karasuno’s strategies? Because you want to see the hurt on their faces when I’m standing on the other side of the net?
“Because you need it.”
…What? Since when was this about him?
“What do you mean?”
“You’ve been staring at closed doors for too long.” Hinata stiffens; had they been watching him?
“Come back.”
And Hinata breaks.
“I wish I could.”
It takes Iwaizumi a few seconds before he realizes Hinata isn’t talking to him.
“Over here!”
Kageyama plants his feet and follows the ball’s arc, noting the looming blockers in front, the dash of the spiker on the left, and the movement from the ace behind him.
This position. This timing. This angle.
Now!
Hand meets ball and ball meets hands before meeting fist as the libero saves the blocked spike and sends it soaring back to Kageyama.
“One more!”
There are times when the world stops and times when it whirls out of control. Kageyama feels his world spinning when he sees a flash of orange and the brief rush of wind behind him as the spiker sprints forward.
His hands move on their own accord, tossing the ball where he knows it will meet the spiker’s hand at the highest point, anticipating the satisfactory smack as leather meets wood and the wide eyes brimming with excitement-
Tweet!
There’s a loud thud as the ball strikes the side of the gym before bouncing slowly and rolling to a stop.
The scoreboard is flipped and it’s a point for the other side.
Kageyama faces his team as his world steadies itself. “Sorry.”
His captain pats him on the shoulder and smiles. “Don’t mind it.”
But he does.
“That damn idiot…”
Iwaizumi grumbles as he hurries to the gym with a stack of papers in his hand. Assikawa had accidentally switched the team’s schedules with his ever-growing stash of love letters so it was quite the confusion (and amusement) when the coach had announced how “[his] heart throbbed every time [he] stared dreamily” at the popular setter. (And seriously, these girls need to stop getting confession advice from shoujo manga). In any case, Iwaizumi delivers the coach’s answer by proxy via a sharp jab to the gut.
But since the captain was needed to review some attack patterns, Iwaizumi took it upon himself to retrieve the papers. Nearing the sliding doors, he has half a mind to toss the stack at the setter and watch him play 52-pick-up when he spies Hinata idling by the side of the gym.
“Door’s unlocked you know.”
Hinata jumps slightly before turning towards the third-year.
“If you come in, I can give you a club registration form.”
Iwaizumi knows he’s being too forward (and Hinata’s wide eyes confirm this) but after their last encounter he figures the kid could use a bigger push.
“You’re welcome anytime.”
Hinata gazes back at the gym. “It doesn’t seem like it.”
“How come?” Iwaizumi asks and internally facepalms at his stupid question.
“Uhm…uh…your captain doesn’t seem to want me.”
What? Iwaizumi detects some half-assed lie with that statement but there did seem to be a hint of truth to it in Hinata’s eyes. He had expected an excuse regarding Kageyama’s old classmates but this?
“What makes you say that?”
“W-well you were the one who came to recruit me after all.”
Again…what?
At Iwaizumi’s puzzled face, Hinata continues, “You guys already have many club members so you probably don’t need to go out of your way to recruit any. But you took an interest in me and it may be because of my quick but we both know that that’s only possible with Kageyama’s toss. I’m pretty much useless now yet you came to me anyway without even knowing my name before I came here. I assume it’s because your coach or advisor asked you to do so but why you and not the captain?”
This kid was surprisingly sharp.
Iwaizumi runs a hand over his hair and sighs. “There is a legitimate reason for that but it’s not what you think.”
“Then why?”
“Well…”
“Hey, Iwa-chan, can you do me a favor?”
“What do you want, dumbass?”
“So mean…I need you to talk to Chibi-chan.”
“Why do I have to-wait what?”
“Talk to the new student, you know, the orange-haired transfer from Karasuno, part of the freak duo with Tobio-chan.”
“You want him on the team? Why can’t you ask him yourself?”
“He won’t listen to me.”
“Like that’s ever stopped you before. Go talk to him if you want him on the team.”
“He won’t join if I do.”
“Why not?”
“He doesn’t see me as the captain; he sees me as a king he needs to help Tobio-chan dethrone. If he accepts the offer to join the team from me, it’ll feel like betrayal.”
“I’m sure he feels that way no matter who approaches him.”
“True, but there’s a way to put a band-aid on the wound instead of rubbing it with salt. Since Hinata doesn’t acknowledge you as much as me – hear me out before you hit me, Iwa-chan! – accepting the offer from you will make it more bearable. He sees you as the ace of our team rather than an enemy. You don’t hold as much of a connection with Tobio-chan as I or the first-years do.”
“Why do you want him on the team so badly? Is this a tactic to lower Kageyama’s self-esteem? Because if that’s how you plan on winning it’s a very low-”
“I despise geniuses but what I hate even more is seeing someone break because they can’t do what they love most.”
“He was busy with, uh, captain stuff,” Iwaizumi finally says, giving Hinata a taste of his own medicine.
Fortunately for him, Hinata buys it. “I see.”
“Yeah…” Iwaizumi glances at the papers in his hands; he really needed to get these to his coach soon. “Anyway, think about it, and really think, not just about what it may mean for Karasuno. I know you’re concerned about a so-called betrayal but I don’t think your team would appreciate you betraying yourself in the long run.”
And with that, Iwaizumi enters the gym, leaving the doors slightly ajar in an open invitation.
Practice is enjoyable.
No, it really is because there’s nothing more exhilarating than directing the ball exactly where it should go: over the net, past the blockers, and smack onto the floorboards.
The best part is seeing his wide-eyed opponents as the ball blazes past their ears and their open mouths when they realize it was Hinata who scored.
The worst part is bracing himself for Kageyama’s wrath when he misses a serve. The worst part is listening for Nishinoya’s “Rolling Thunder” when they’re practicing receives. The worst part is waiting for Tanaka’s “Nice receive” when he takes the ball to the face.
The worst part is waiting, remembering, and realizing.
“Good work today! Let’s clean up!”
Gulping down the last of his water bottle, Hinata walks toward one of the nets and begins the process of disassembling it.
“Need some help with that?”
Hinata nearly drops the poles in his hands as he registers Kindaichi’s voice.
“S-sure.”
Kindaichi lifts the poles from the back as Hinata moves forward to grip the front and the two make their way to the storage closet.
“Thanks,” says Hinata once everything is put away.
“No problem. Hey, uh, sorry about…earlier.”
Hinata tries not to visibly flinch when he remembers the condescending jeers about him and Kageyama on his first days of school. “Don’t worry about it.”
“I had no right to talk to you like that seeing how you were a victim too.”
Huh?
“What are you talking about?” asks Hinata.
“You know, the king’s toss. I know I told you that Kageyama probably threw you away when you left Karasuno.” Kindaichi opens his fist and lets his palm drop as if he were tossing something in a trashcan. “But it was really you who came to escape his tyrannical tosses, right? And there’s nothing wrong with that.”
Hinata’s eyes narrows. “I didn’t come here to escape anything. And you wanna know why? ‘Cause there’s no such thing as a king at Karasuno.”
Kindaichi scoffs.
“C’mon, you saw him during the Interhigh! Is that how a king tosses?”
“During the Interhigh, you were there, on the other side of the net. Maybe the king really did match his toss to your jump but let’s face it: the quick was only possible because of your exceptional speed and reflexes. Now that you’re on this side, how sure are you that he won’t stay a king?”
“As sure as his name’s Kageyama Tobio.”
And with that, Hinata picks up his bag and walks out of the gym before Kindaichi can say anything else.
But as soon as he reaches his bike, Hinata drops the bag and fists a hand before him, clenching and unclenching.
He’s being stupid.
Clenching and unclenching.
Kageyama would never. Kageyama had changed. Kageyama would stay changed.
Clenching and unclenching.
…Right?
“C’mon, you should know better than that.”
Hinata turns to see Oikawa leaning against the side of the gym, casually twirling a volleyball on his finger.
“C-captain?”
“I’m a bit disappointed, Chibi-chan. Guess it can’t be helped that you’re concerned for little Tobio-chan but you of all people should know what he is capable of now.”
“I trust him. I do. It’s just…well…”
Oikawa sighs and twirls the ball in the air before catching it with one hand.
“I suppose you’ll just have to see for yourself, then.”
“What do you mean?”
Oikawa chuckles.
“Oikawa-san.”
“Yes? To what do I owe the pleasure, Tobio-chan?”
“Don’t cause trouble for Hinata.”
“Who are you to order me around?”
“I mean it. I don’t want him on a team that judges him based on my actions.”
“Not my fault if they do-Oi, are you seriously bowing to me?!”
“Please, take care of him.”
“…You too.”
“Huh?”
“Be wary of your actions on the other side of the net; Hinata doesn’t need trouble from both ends. I don’t want a teammate who feels responsible for another team’s player.”
“So you’re saying-”
“You didn’t need to ask, brat. I always take care of my team. I’ll see you Friday.”
“Wait, what?”
“You didn’t forget about our practice match where you’ll prove you’re the player Hinata claims you are, did you?
“When did-”
“Don’t be late. Oh hi, Iwa-chan!”
“What’s this about scheduling a last-minute practice match right before our English exams?”
“It’s for a good cause, I swear! Don’t throw the ball at me!”
Tweet!
Kindaichi presses his palms on his knees, taking deep gulps of air as the final score is flipped. Honestly, he doesn’t give a shit about the winner. Mostly because nothing could compare to Hinata’s fervor as he prances around Kageyama like he just won the gold.
“That was so cool! You went like wham! And zoom! And Tanaka went like pow! And whoosh!”
“Did you think I would stop going like wham! and zoom!?” Kageyama’s hands are on Hinata’s head. “Don’t think that lowly of me, idiot!”
Kindaichi clenches his fists. So Kageyama threw away his crown. So what? He’s still an egocentric-
The bald-head has his hands on the duo, laughing as he pushes them apart and grinning when he holds up his hands for Hinata’s high-five.
Selfish-
Karasuno’s captain has a hand on Kageyama’s shoulder, smiling as he whispers something to the setter.
Ki-
It’s slight, but there’s no mistaking the curve of his lips as Kageyama watches Hinata recap the game to Karasuno’s vice captain using wild hand gestures.
Damn it all.
Kindaichi tosses his towel on the bench and stomps off towards the bathroom. Turning on the faucet, he splashes some water on his face, keeping his head bowed to the sink.
He sees it. After years of reckless tosses and feeling the scrape of leather as fingers reach for the blur of a ball, he sees Kageyama’s “don’t mind” instead of the usual “move faster!” and hates how easy it is to imagine this version of Kageyama donned in a blue and white jersey.
This could’ve been them. High-fives instead of fists. Grins instead of glares.
We could’ve been friends.
“Whatever you’re going to say, don’t.” Kindaichi lifts his face from the sink and glares at his ex-teammate in the mirror. “This doesn’t change anything. I don’t want apologies; like I said before, we’re not going to reconcile or anything of that crap because never got along in the first place.”
Kageyama nods. “Okay.”
Kindaichi turns to face him. “Next time we meet it’ll be at the Spring High.”
“Okay.”
“Next time, you’ll play as you did today.”
“Okay.”
“Next time, we’ll be the victors.”
Kageyama smiles (or at least what Kindaichi assumes is a smile what with the awkward quirk of the lips and narrowed eyes).
“Challenge accepted.”
Kageyama sticks out his hand. Kindaichi takes it.
We could be friends but rivals ain’t bad.
Kindaichi rolls his eyes at Hinata who waggles his eyebrows.
“You win; there’s no king at Karasuno. It doesn’t make me and him friends though so don’t think we’ll be singing ‘Lean on Me’ together anytime soon, idiot.”
Hinata grins. “You look almost like Kageyama with that scowl.”
“Don’t compare me to him!”
Hianta pulls his hair towards the ceiling and lowers his voice a few octaves deeper. “You win; there’s no king at Karasuno.”
It would’ve been funny if Hinata weren’t insinuating that Kindaichi sounded like whining zombie.
“Oi!”
“You’re doing it wrong.”
The pair turn their heads just in time to see Kunimi walk through the gym doors. The latter drops his bag against the wall, swipes up his hair, and says with perfect matter-of-fact Kindaichi-speak, “Don’t think we’ll be singing ‘Lean on Me’ together anytime soon, idiot.”
Kunimi snickers as he dodges Kindaichi’s elbow before surrendering his arm to an ecstatic Hinata who bounces on his toes with glee and admiration.
“That was perfect! Hey, hey, can you imitate others? Can you do me?”
Kunimi arches a brow at the middle blocker before turning to Kindaichi with a deadpan “Send me a toss.”
Hinata beams, waiting for a jump that could give the small giant a run for its money but instead freezing when all Kunimi does is close his eyes and introduce the ball to his face before greeting the floor.
“Wahhh!” Hinata yells, somehow combining his panic, annoyance, and marvel into one word. (It probably began as a “wow” before evolving into a scream.)
Kindaichi chortles, leaning on the wall for support as the ball slowly rolls away from Kunimi.
“How was that?” the wing spiker asks from his position on the floor.
Hinata folds his arms, grumbles, and looks away. His lips twitch when he accidentally meets Kindaichi’s smirk and it doesn’t take long for the bright ring of his laugh to reach Oikawa as the latter leans against the doorframe, watching his kohai in fond amusement.
That is until they begin their own rendition of the captain vs. vice captain relationship, complete with Hinata’s fangirl squeal, Kindaichi’s deadly glower, and Kunimi’s shameless peace sign.
If one didn’t know any better, they’d say the current game between Karasuno and Aobajousai was a national final. With the elaborate rallies, blink-and-you’ll-miss-it tosses, and spectacular receives, the crows and their prefecture rival promise a nail-biting match of the century.
To Kindaichi, it’s grueling. Striking quickly and effectively while on guard of Kageyama’s dump shots is no easy feat. But he always loved a challenge and the answering smirk his ex-teammate sends his way tells him his rival wouldn’t disappoint.
To Hinata, it’s refreshing. Seeing Kageyama on the other side of the net is tough but with shouts of “Dumbass, Hinata!” when Hinata receives a head-shot and “Go, killer serve!” when Kageyama is in position, Hinata is easily reminded that they still stand on the same court.
To Kageyama, it’s…well…(he’s yet to expand his vocabulary but if anyone knows a word that means exhausting, elating, and bitter all in one, he’d love to be enlightened.)
After the whistle blows, handshakes exchanged, and celebrations screamed, Kageyama leaves the group huddle in search of-
“Hinata.”
The middle blocker lifts his head from the drinking fountain to give Kageyama a warm smile.
“Congratulations.”
Between “You, too” and “Come back and play with us” among other potential responses, “You failed” is not the answer he hoped his short-circuiting brain would choose.
“Huh?”
“I-I mean…uh…” Kageyama plasters a hand to his face. “I just remembered…”
“If you’re the king that rules the court, I’ll have to defeat you, and I’ll be the last one standing!”
“If you want to be the last one standing, become strong.”
“You’re strong, Hinata. You deserve to stand on the court.”
Hinata laughs. “I remember too. Man, I was such a crybaby that day.”
“But you-”
“I know. It sucks that I’ll never be able to hit your tosses again but I’m glad that it was you I lost to. And I’m happy that Karasuno will no longer be called the flightless crows.”
Hinata grins before punching Kageyama in the arm.
“Oi, what was that for?!”
“For calling me a failure. Who said I failed? I told you I’d defeat the king of the court, didn’t I? Now it’s Kageyama Tobio’s turn to shine.”
“You little-” Kageyama lunges for Hinata who quickly scrambles out of the way.
“I won’t lose next year though.” Hinata is still smiling but his eyes scream determination.
Kageyama smirks. “Me neither. You better work on those receives.”
“You better work on those blocks.”
“My serves will be stronger.”
“My jumps will be higher.”
“You’ll be pushed to the limit.”
“You’ll be pushed until you almost break.”
“I will make you invincible.”
“I will make you the best player in the world.”
Kageyama matches Hinata’s grin.
“It’s a promise.”