Archive of Our Own

After watching the anime movie Your Name, Atsumu starts believing that one day, he'll find his soulmate by hearing the ringing of a small bell as they pass each other.

Osamu thinks that's ridiculous. The whole concept is ridiculous. There's no such thing as a soulmate or your fated one or red string. You choose who you want to be with, but he can't also just convince his twin brother about it.

"Hey, do we still have time before going home?" Atsumu asks peaking at the door of their changing room. Their game was done. Losing a match against Karasuno. Atsumu admits that he never thought he'll lose today to some group who pops out of nowhere. Karasuno, especially their freak duo, is unknown to them. Like entering a new level in a game where your opponent has an unknown skill.

"Yeah, why'd you ask?"

"I'm going to watch before we leave" he announces, shutting the door close before anyone could stop him. He still doesn't know what he should be feeling after losing, it's not new to him, but the game results were unexpected. Now he needs to find something to do instead of sitting down and waiting for their ride home. Or he'll end up overthinking what he could've done.

"Why are you following me?" He peeks at his twin brother. "What? I also want to watch" Osamu shrugs off.

When they reach the main gym, a roar of fans almost freaks the shit out of Atsumu. Mixed words and cheers and thumping noises of drums, bottles, and other cheering materials fan brought. Karasuno is playing against the Komomedai.

They silently watch there for a good 10 minutes before Atsumu sighs.

"I'll tell you something, don't tell anyone," Atsumu tells, eyes focus on the game, or maybe to a certain ginger hair playing. Osamu turns to look at his twin, one eyebrow raise.

"Okay...?"

"You're not even sure if you'll not tell anyone" The blond glare at his twin.

Osamu doesn't look like it but he has a big mouth —like Atsumu. The former regards him silently for a minute.

"Okay, sure I won't. What is it?" He finally asks.

"I think I've found my soulmate" Is what Atsumu says, smiling at his twin proud.

A roar from the audience booms again as Hinata scores a point.

Osamu's jaw drops. "What?"

"I heard it"

"Heard the bell?" The gray-haired male repeated.

"Ah-huh." Atsumu nods his head. "When we changed court, we passed each other and I heard it" The blond recalls what happened during their game.

"Okay, who is that 'we' you are talking about?"

"That Shrimpy" Osamu follows where his brother looking, he's not sure to who exactly his eyes are the focus but there's only one Shrimpy in the Karasuno. Of course not their libero. He looks at a certain ginger hair male and then back at Atsumu.

"Hinata Shouyō?" He asks at his brother who's smiling wide. Osamu wonders if Atsumu hit his head somewhere or something.

"Are you sure about that? I mean, we're in the middle of court so maybe you heard random people playing a bell and it so happened that you walked past him" He explains, and for Osamu that makes sense.

He doesn't think so he's brother has that superhuman hearing, he's not Peter Parker of Spiderman. And soulmate isn't real. He still refuses to believe in it, especially the bell and red string.

"The bell doesn't sound like any normal bell okay? I told you, I'll only hear it once I met my soulmate"

Osamu wonders if he could, maybe convince his parents to disown his twin. Atsumu is stupid, but he never thought he'd be this crazy stupid.

"Now, you're thinking I'm being ridiculous, right?" The blond accuses.

"I don— I'm not" But Atsumu just stares at his twin as if he's a big fat liar (when Atsumu is the one who has master the art of lying). "Okay fine, I do. Because that's just plainly —"

"Stupid?" Atsumu interrupts.

Osamu stops for a second. And then he nods his head "Well not stupid, but kinda close with that"

"But it's true"

"Can't you just say you have a crush on him instead of saying soulmate? It's so cringing. What if he doesn't feel the same way?"

Atsumu shrugs. "Then I'll just have to make him feel the same way"

"Now you sound creepy"

Instead of replying to his twin brother's comment, Atsumu just ignores him and faces the court again. His eyes follow the ginger hair male on the court.

Ever since Atsumu discovers the red string and soulmate, his been determines to find his through the bell. He never thought of what will be his soulmate looks like, whether it will be a boy or a girl, shorter or taller than him, older or younger, or even whether he play any sport or nothing at all. Once he hears the bell, he'll definitely make sure not to let go of that chance.

Though he's probably the luckiest to know that it was this first-year high school, ginger hair, small middle blocker of Karasuno of Miyagi Prefecture. Hinata Shouyō.

Atsumu wonders if Hinata heard that bell too, he wonders if Hinata believes in a soulmate. He wonders if, he feels the same. Because if he doesn't, well he needs to. Because Atsumu is too stubborn to give up his soulmate.

His eyes widen in delight when he sees the ginger hair male jump so high, spiking the ball so hard it might pop. Hinata scores again and the whole stadium applause. Atsumu couldn't help but grin, he doesn't know why he's so proud when he just lost a game against them.

But that grin disappears when Hinata suddenly collapses, receiving gasps from the audience.

"Uh-oh" He hears Osamu but he ignores it.

'What the fuck happened?' He wonders squinting his eyes to see properly. It doesn't look like Hinata was injured. 'Did that jump sprained his ankle?' the jump he did earlier was higher than the jump he usually does during their match against Inarizaki.

The referee times out, everyone's murmuring as they watch Hinata being led by their coach to the bench. Their teacher— if Atsumu wasn't mistaken— is telling Hinata something. Atsumu can't see his face properly but Hinata looks upset.

He isn't injured but there is something wrong with him as he is replaced by a new player. Hinata was escorted out of the gym as the game continues again without him.

Suddenly, Atsumu doesn't feel like watching the match anymore.

"Aren't you going to see him?" Osamu nudges him.

"No, what will I do anyway?"

"I thought he's your soulmate?" He looks at his twin with that bored look Osamu usually carries. "Samu, you're so stupid" he announces.

Osamu snorts. "I'm stupid? At least I never claimed random dude I met as my soulmate because I heard a bell when we walked past each other—"

"Shut up. I'll tell him one day, but not now, besides I've already promised something to him" He walks passes his twin brother to hide his red face.

"Promised something?"

"Secret. I'm not telling you anymore" Atsumu exclaims.

As they walk towards where their teammates are, Atsumu recalls that short moment he had with Shouyō. 'One day, I'll toss for you'. He doesn't know why he just shouts that right in front of the Karasuno team after they lost, but he just felt like marking Shouyō—in a way it wouldn't sound weird. Because he thinks Karasuno's raven-haired setter has a thing for Shouyō.

"Why are you blushing?" Osamu asks.

"You're thinking something pervert huh?"

"Shut up" Atsumu grumbles. He needs to convince his parents about disowning Samu.

When Osamu met Hinata again, he'd never thought it will be like this.

"So, we're dating" Atsumu announces proudly, grinning widely as he shows off his tan-skinned, ginger hair boyfriend to their parents.

Honestly, he thought his brother will give up on him after weeks, but Atsumu didn't. He keeps pestering him about Hinata. Watching his match, going to Miyagi just to hang out with him. He thought Atsumu will finally give up when he heard that Hinata is going to Rio. But he didn't. And now here he is watching his brother flex his boyfriend to his parents and keep saying it's because of fate and the red string.

Osamu wonder, if it is the red string or they just meant to end up together? Either way, at least his brother has finally got what he wants. And that is his soulmate.