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All in all, the day had been pretty stressful. A bad night’s sleep and school on top of practice left Hinata pretty miserable, struggling through the day. He was so tired by the time practice rolled around that it was affecting his ability to focus. And it did not go unnoticed.
Sugawara was mainly concerned, really. He checked in on Hinata whenever he had to take pause and take a few deep breaths. Daichi and Yamaguchi kept shooting him worried looks, but said nothing. Kageyama was frustrated with him, and Tsukishima mainly just ignored him (as per usual). Tanaka was loud as ever, bursting with energy and pressuring him to keep going. The one person that seemed completely ignorant to how exhausted he was, was Nishinoya.
Really, he was operating less than top notch, but still functionally.
But, that all came crumbling down when Tanaka and Kageyama got into a screaming match. Daichi tried to seperate them, but they kept going at it, shouting and bickering, leaning into each other’s faces.
Too tired, and overwhelmed and overstimulated from all the yelling, Hinata found himself running out of the gym, feet striking the ground, breaths heavy and shaky before he collapsed against the wall of the school, hiccuping as sobs overtook him, dissolving into a panic attack.
Amidst his shallow and rapid breathing and his shaking and sobbing, he couldn’t exactly be quiet, which meant that he was found rather quickly by one team member who saw him run out of the gym as fast as he could while everyone else’s eyes were on the two arguing boys.
“Hey, Shoyo.”
Nishinoya.
Hinata’s head snapped up, and he gasped, sobbing immediately after and wiping his eyes weakly, being met with the concerned face of his upperclassman.
“Whoa, hey,” Noya murmured, and settled by him, pulling the shaking ginger into his arms, rubbing his back reassuringly. “Shh, shh. Just breathe, okay?”
Sobbing heavily, big tears pouring down his face, Hinata nodded, and shakily started to try and breathe deeply. Noya encouraged him, holding him close and murmuring soft encouragements.
It took a little while, but Hinata’s tears slowly came to a stop, and he calmed down, breathing becoming an easier task for him while Noya continued to hold him close, letting him lean against the smaller’s side.
“‘M sorry.” Hinata whispered, and Noya pulled him closer, squeezing him softly.
“You don’t need to be.” Noya murmured reassuringly, nuzzling his temple softly. “I understand, you can’t always be okay. You wanna take a break or head back?”
“Head back.” Hinata said with a shaky sigh, carefully getting to his feet, Noya stood by his side, taking his hand softly and leading him back to the gym, the silence between them surprisingly comforting as Noya swung their hands between them, humming a soft tune to himself.
The door of the gym opened, and Suga was immediately by them, clearly worried and asking what happened, was Hinata okay, did he need anything?
Hinata flinched back, grabbing Noya’s arm, and Noya shifted in front of him protectively in one smooth movement.
“Back off a bit, Suga. He had a panic attack, he needs a bit of space.” The libero said calmly, and Daichi’s head snapped over as he trotted to Suga’s side.
“Do you need anything, Hinata?” Daichi asked, calm and reassuring, sending a glare over his shoulder while Tanaka yelled something, making Hinata flinch again, grabbing Noya’s arm tighter.
“Water would be a good idea.” Noya said, and Daichi immediately turned to go and grab Hinata’s water bottle. “Hey, Asahi! Grab me my weighted blanket, would you?”
Asahi gave a thumbs up, and immediately turned and trotted off, while Noya turned to Suga. “I think he needs to sit out for the rest of practice. Or go home early.”
Nodding, Suga reached out and gently ran a hand over Hinata’s head. “You want to stay for the rest of practice?”
Hinata nodded.
“Here.” Asahi said, and handed Noya the weighted blanket, a black blanket that Noya seemed to struggle with for a moment, before he lifted it over his shoulder, sending the ace a smile.
“Thanks. I’ll join back in a second, let me help Hinata get settled first.” Noya said to Daichi, who had returned and handed Hinata his water bottle.
“Sure thing. Join us when you’re ready.” Daichi said, and gently tugged Suga off to continue practicing.
Noya helped Hinata get settled in the corner of the gym with his water bottle and the weighted blanket wrapped around him. Giving him one final hug, Noya jumped up, and bounded back to practice with the rest of the team, leaving Hinata to smile weakly.
He wasn’t alone anymore. He had people who understood, people who cared. He would be okay.