Chapter Text
Tsukishima wasn't the type to give a rat's ass about anything other than what he deemed important to him. Yet for the whole time he was practicing his serve with his teammates his gaze would always find its way to the freshman manager. Usually he would see her take down notes for each member or gather stray volleyballs in the corner but she seemed off today.
He wasn't the comforting type either and he would usually just ignore it and pretend that he never saw anything but he didn't like how it was bothering him more than Hinata who has been bouncing back and forth in front of him. Tsukishima studied Yachi for a good minute. Her figure was weak and her expression wasn't as bright as before. He followed her seemingly blank eyes to find Kageyama.
Unlike the rest of his teammates, Tsukishima knew what was troubling the girl. It was unlike him to even think about asking her if she had any problems but his feet seemed like they had a mind of their own as he walked towards the bench. He could feel his throat tighten, hesitance looming inside him as he reached for his water bottle.
"Could you keep your pining to a down low? You're throwing off my groove." He chided taking a gulp from his water bottle.
Hitoka was caught off guard, she felt blood rushing to her cheeks and her palms started to sweat. She wanted to panic and deny it but she didn't have any fighting spirit left in her. Her widened eyes drooped down once again, something Tsukishima finds unpleasant.
"Man, you really know how to pick 'em, huh?" Tsukishima added.
"Sorry." She said calmly, avoiding his gaze.
Tsukishima gave a frustrated sigh as he placed his water bottle back on the bench. His brows were knitted together, even if he was blunt he wasn't that insensitive. He placed a hand on her head, he didn't know if it would help but it was the only thing he could think of.
"Tsukishima-kun?" Yachi asks.
"You're our manager, it would be bad if our manager was sad and we didn't do anything about it." Tsukishima wanted to gut himself for that, he felt like it was overly casual for him to say such things but he felt like he needed to. It seemed like it was working as he saw her little ponytail perk up.
Yachi gave a small smile, she knew Tsukishima wasn't the type to care about idle things like her love life so she appreciated it much more.
The exchange between them didn't go unnoticed. Instantly Sugawara, Daichi and Asahi were standing just between the two with sly smirks that put Oikawa Tooru's to shame. Tsukishima could feel cold sweat drip down the side of his face as he realized his hand was still on the young manager's head.
"Our lil Tsuki is at that age, huh?" Sugawara said, his voice was whiny and his eyes sparkled with intent.
Daichi and Asahi nodded in unison.
"N-no.." Yachi didn't want to cause any trouble, especially for Tsukishima. "It's not like that!" Usually timid with her responses, she placed a little more strength into it. Upon realizing her response was a little too loud, she immediately flailed her hands and tried to form a decent sentence like, "Sorry!! -- I didn't mean to!!"
"Just ignore them, Yachi-san." Tsukishima says fixing his goggles, "They're old so they need something to make them feel young." He said before going back to his side of the court.
The three seniors could feel their vein swelling up as they watch their cheeky middle blocker walk away.
Meanwhile on the other side of the court, Kageyama's eyes were fixed on Yachi. Her reddened ears were peaking through her golden hair as the senior trio continued to playfully tease her.
"What was that about?" Kageyama asks Hinata.
"Who knows?" Hinata responded.
He didn't know exactly what was going on but he definitely saw Tsukishima's hand on Yachi's head. Kageyama didn't know what to make of it, especially since he never really thought of Tsukishima and Yachi being close as friends. Was it weird? Was it uncomfortable? One thing's for sure, Kageyama definitely saw Yachi blush.
Kageyama wasn't the type to stick his nose into anyone's business, but he also felt that he was good enough friends with Yachi to feel a little sense of curiosity and protectiveness, especially when the guy in question was Tsukishima. He didn't realize it but he was already gritting his teeth, that sight continued to fill his head.
It wasn't that uncommon to have a significant other during highschool! Not at all! But why does it feel off to him at the very thought of Tsukishima making Yachi blush? Was it because he was her friend and that he just didn't like the guy? Or was it because he just didn't like the guy? He doesn't know how to process something when he himself was also confused.
"What's wrong?" Hinata asks.
"Nothing." Kageyama felt a bit surprised. He immediately loosened his jaw and softened his eyebrows. He didn't notice he was making a weird expression.