Chapter Text
Oikawa Tooru, didn’t care. He didn’t give a dam. Not one ounce.
At least that’s what he told himself.
Repeatedly.
His brown eyes were glued to his laptop screen displaying Schweiden Adlers playing off against EJP Raijin. It was the last of five sets, the score was tight at 14-13, and the adlers were pushing through, victory at their fingertips.
The court gleamed and every player was swift from the camera’s side view.
The Adlers starting setter....
Was up and ready to serve.
The man was mostly obscured from this angle when setting rapidly to the spiker, but now he stood at the back, a beacon amidst the horde of white jerseys.
The whistle blew, and although Oikawa knew what would follow, his fingers, that lay atop of his keyboard twitched involuntarily as the setter jumped up, practically gliding, and made perfect contact with the ball, smashing it at a rapid and crushing speed. The ball flew past everyone’s eyes and landed inside the opponent’s court with a smack and then bounce that reverberated throughout the stadium.
The score: 15-13.
The crowd erupted and the Adlers setter cheered with rushing excitement as he was immediately crowded by his teammates who high-fived him, some patting his back and others almost lifting him up, basking in their victory that would lead them to the finals.
The Adlers setter: Kageyama Tobio. Just 19 years old was already soaring above his peers on the national stage.
Tobio had grown a lot, physically he was taller and his shoulders were broader. His bangs were cut and parted in a way that made his forehead more visible, something Oikawa didn’t recall seeing since their middle school days, when Tobio was just a little brat continuously pestering him about jump serves. The jump serves he pulled off with expertise now.
After the the two teams shook hands, interviews by sports press followed and Oikawa, expression forced into neutrality watched on.
Tobio was asked about his thoughts on the match, and in the corner, Oikawa could see another player being interviewed on camera.
It was Ushiwaka.
It wasn’t news to Oikawa, but it was befitting, he thought, with a bitter smirk (rivalling the bitterness of the green tea that was held in his other hand) that two of his rivals were now on the same team in the V-league. Although he purposely distanced from having to think about either of them throughout the day, he couldn’t help noticing the stark similarity between the two, and of course, Oikawa couldn’t stand either them.
"Heh. They must be long-lost brothers." he remarked snidely to himself.
He almost broke out into laughter but then his phone buzzed with a text notification. He leaned his laptop onto one leg and reached for the smaller device on the coffee table in front of him.
It was Iwaizumi Hajime. His best friend.
Iwa-chan
[ still telling yourself you don’t care? ]
Another message popped up.
[ i bet your watching the game right now ]
Oikawa tsked at the messages. Iwaizumi was always too sharp when it came to reading Oikawa’s mind but the fact he was a thousand miles away and still reading him like a book, made Oikawa sigh with annoyance and yet...fondness (he missed him like crazy).
Oikawa didn’t know how to respond in words so he only sent back a slew of eye roll emojis. Those probably captured his emotions perfectly anyway.
Iwa-chan
[ so I’m right ]
Oikawa was about to respond, with what exactly he didn’t yet know, but most likely a jab at Iwaizumi’s expense.
But then he heard it.
"I had a senior in middle school who was really skilled at them....still is I believe."
Oikawa froze then, eyes snapping up to the laptop screen where Tobio talked less monotonously and with a more earnest tone now, towards the interviewer.
"I would watch him a lot and I tried copying him."
Tobio’s navy blue eyes were glazed as if he seemed to be reminiscing those days as he spoke.
Oikawa didn’t acknowledge it outright but his heart rate had spiked up. He was alarmed, taken aback, completely caught off guard.
The interviewer responded "So this senior was the source of inspiration towards this brilliant serving we keep witnessing from you, Kageyama-san?"
Tobio focused his eyes to the present again and nodded, resolutely, in fact.
"Do we know what he’s doing now?" the interviewer inquired further.
Oikawa wished she didn’t ask that, not that what he was doing and where he was these days wasn’t worth broadcasting to a mass of people, but asking Tobio about it—
"It’s Oikawa Tooru, he’s the starting setter for San Juan in the Argentine league." Tobio replied after a slight pause.
Oikawa bristled at the outright mention of his name, dropping the phone that was in his hand, beside him on the couch cushion.
He wasn’t expecting that either. For Tobio to actually...mention him in name?
He didn’t know what to feel...
Should he be mad? He still didn’t like Tobio after all. Should he be baffled? Since he never in a million years expected Tobio to mention him in such high regard to this day.
He didn’t know.
But for some reason. That Oikawa couldn’t grasp.
There was a smirk breaking free on his lips. It was not of bitterness like earlier, but of something much more....
Thoughtful.
He subconsciously raised a hand to his chin to conceal it, as if to prevent being exposed despite being virtually alone in his apartment living room.
For now, whether it was that or not, he settled the emotions welling up inside him, as simply pride.
Pride for what? Let’s go with the fact his junior, the prodigy that surpasses him, recounts him as not only a rival but an inspiration, he thought.
Oikawa was always upfront about his pride. His pride was a driving force, an aspect he would flaunt as both a sword and shield. He would brandish it easily and openly.
But in this case. In this moment. He tucked it away in his heart quietly, like the smirk that was only visible through the parted gaps of his fingers.
Oikawa Tooru did care. He always cared.
He started accepting that fact more now.