Chapter Text
Hinata Shouyou was many things: MSBY Black Jackals and the national team’s wing-spiker, Japan’s sweetheart, and, very afraid of an oncoming verbal berating.
“I swear the key is in here somewhere,” Shouyou mumbled to himself as he rummaged through his duffle bag, sending subtle glances behind him. He looks angry, the omega thought. Just behind Shouyou stood his mate, sweaty, tired, but still strikingly gorgeous. He quickly caught a glance of his husband; the dim light of the hallway illuminated his sharp jaw and flushed skin. He exemplified the qualities of an alpha, his tall, lithe stature, his piercing eyes and his dominating aura. Sometimes, standing next to him, Shouyou would feel self-conscious. He too was toned but found his small frame and unruly red hair somewhat childish in front of his Grecian God of an alpha.
(But Tobio would always whisper softly to him at night, how he loved every inch of his perfect omega.)
Kageyama Tobio was many things: the country’s top setter, a familiar face in the curry sponsorship circuit, and getting increasingly impatient.
The couple had made their way back from the national team training, and unsurprisingly, the two were running on close to nothing. After mating, their connection ran so deep that the two could almost feed off one another’s energy, leaving their stamina unmatched by any of their teammates, and only failing when the two were truly unable to move anymore. Their exhaustion today wasn’t helped by the fact that Shouyou had stopped to sign autographs and speak to everyone he could outside the stadium – thanking fans for their support and encouraging aspiring players, especially the young ones. “They’re the future of our sport!” he countered to any complaints about the time. Shouyou often felt an added sense of responsibility to encourage any young omega fans, his presence in major league sports, plus his great prominence was far more than an omega was expected to achieve in sport, especially one dominated by tall, broad alphas. Of course, omegas were not relegated to domestic roles in this day and age, with many achieving great success in business and academia, but sports – where the physical disparities between the secondary genders were so jarring – Hinata Shouyou was an idol. His achievements were something Shouyou was proud of, and one of the many reasons Tobio was in love with him. How could someone not be proud to call such an accomplished, beautiful man their lover? Tobio could not believe this exceptional man chose him, and he swore to spend every day of his life cherishing and celebrating Shouyou. One way he would do that would be ravishing his omega in a nice warm bath…but for that, they’d have to get through the front door.
“Dumbass, I told you to let me keep the key.” Tobio gritted, looking down at Shouyou with his hands folded tightly across his chest.
Hinata paid no attention to the comment, proceeding to empty the contents of his bag on to the ground. His belongings tumbled out: his worn-in knee pads, empty water bottles littered with sponsor branding, a game console Kenma had gifted him for down-time during practice, and that. Among the miscellaneous items which now lay sprawled across the floor, was an unassuming plastic stick. Shouyou’s heart dropped. Before he could even fully process the significance the object held, his reflexes had seized and stuffed it back into the abyss of his bag. He stared at it, against the dark fabric of the bag, the object still seemed to catch the light of the hallway. Shouyou considered it to be mocking him, how was it possible for an inanimate object hold so much power over him?
(Because he remembered, it told him he was pregnant.)
“Dumbass, if you weren’t feeling well, why did you have to greet everyone after practice?” Tobio chastised. The drive back home was seemingly serene – but the occasional bumps in the road, honks from impatient drivers, and the blur of the bright neon signs outside of the window assaulted Shouyou’s already pained senses. Shouyou liked to believe that he had grown out of his performance anxiety and nausea but the past few weeks had disproved that. Before every practice, Shouyou had been excusing himself to the bathroom to empty the contents of his stomach. Without fail, Tobio would follow his husband to the bathroom, settling down beside him, rubbing his back, and whispering sweet nothings in his ear. Tobio wished he could be more help but with the Olympics just around the corner, their first one together, Tobio could reciprocate the nerves. It would be the first time an omega would be representing team Japan in the Games and Shouyou felt like he was burdening the immense pressure of himself and his entire secondary gender.
“Ugh…I thought it would pass, not get worse.” Shouyou muttered, grasping his stomach tightly in a vain attempt to soothe his pain. He sunk into his seat, trying to curl himself smaller and evade any further scolding. His head was pounding, and he wasn’t in the mood to reciprocate the energy it took to keep up with Tobio’s worry.
“Idiot.” Tobio’s hand inched toward Shouyou, his fingers unfurled inviting Shouyou into a grasp. Shouyou looked up from his knees which he had pulled up to his chest, Tobio was still focusing on the road but had offered his hand for support. Shouyou clutched it tightly and nuzzled into it. He smiled fondly, Tobio’s love style could be epitomised by this moment, a tongue just as coarse as it was in high school, but a heart so aware, sensitive, and compassionate.
“I think there’s a virus going around, we can go to the doctor tomorrow.” Tobio proposed. His hand still tightly intertwined with his mate’s. Despite the callouses on Tobio’s hands and hardening skin as a result of their harsh practices, Shouyou loved holding his hand. Shouyou’s smaller hand fitting perfectly into the warmth of Tobio’s. Often, Shouyou would be peeved by their height difference, but when he and Tobio fit together so perfectly, it felt right.
Shouyou, however, could not appreciate the moment fully nor articulate a reply as he pondered another explanation, one with matching symptoms which he remembers Koushi detailing vividly – pregnancy. Almost all of their friends from high school had had kids, Daichi and Koushi had their twins, Yuu and Asashi had their son, Kiyoko and Ryuu were way ahead with their four children, and even Kei and Tadashi had just welcomed a daughter. It seemed everyone was settling down, shouldn’t they as well? But then again, Tobio and Shouyou were the only ones in professional sport, and- Before he could lose himself further into his thoughts, the car began to emit a blinking noise. Shouyou looked to a small, flashing red light on their dashboard.
“Shit, the tank’s almost empty. Shouyou, do you mind if we stop at the gas station for a second?” Tobio asked.
“No, it’s okay.” I can grab and take a pregnancy test.
Tobio pulled the car into the gas station and Shouyou excused himself to the restroom.
☺
The pregnancy test looked back at him. He held his breath, positive.
Shouyou was sitting cross-legged in the gas station bathroom stall, the cool touch of the floor tiles creeping up his legs and the stiff backrest of the stall door exaggerating the tightness in his body. These same surroundings had brought him comfort before matches, but right now, he couldn’t seem to get his heart to quell.
How can a smiley mean pregnant? How can it just assume I am happy to be pregnant? Hinata questioned. His inability to comprehend the situation had begun to morph into a muddle of anger, confusion, and disbelief.
(And pure undiluted fear.)
He stared at the stick in his hand, with an undeniable tremble in his fingers. His mind was running through all the possible scenarios that could unfold – not being allowed to play at the semi-finals, getting kicked off the team, Tobi-
Oh, Tobio. The two had never discussed this, never even considered this. Was Tobio going to be mad? This was half his doing too, Shouyou rationalised. He couldn’t be angry, right? Pregnancy was so far off in their life plan they never felt the need to speak about it, yet there it was, right in the middle of the volleyball season, on a cheap 800-yen pregnancy test, an insolent smiley face.
(But deep down and afraid to admit it, Hinata was inexplicably happy, too, in that goofy smiley kind of way.)
“I’m not angry.” Tobio mused. Pulled immediately out of his thoughts, Shouyou looked up to Tobio. Did he know? Tobio’s lips were drawn into a tight line and his eyebrows were creasing downward. Tobio’s face, to Hinata’s surprise, was painted with subtle worry rather than annoyance. “It’s okay if you misplaced it, I am sure our landlady is still awake.”
Of course. Shouyou understood, he can’t possibly know yet. Out of the corner of his eye, a glimmer caught his eye. Shouyou exclaimed, “ah-hah.” Shouyou grabbed the key to their apartment, finally, a small victory for today. He stuffed all his belongings back into his bag, purposefully sinking the test to the bottom.
He unlocked and pushed the door open to their apartment, immediately overcome with the intermingled smell of the two of them. Shouyou’s fruity tangerine and Tobio’s sandalwood, perhaps an unlikely combination, but fitting. They took off their shoes and headed in, passing their decorated wall: their framed high school diplomas, a picture of their first year Karasuno team, Hinata in Brazil, Tobio and his grandfather, and, of course, their wedding photos.
They had gotten married on a cold December day, the day after Tobio’s birthday to be precise. Their decision to get married was like most decisions were for them – hasty. The two had come back to Miyagi to celebrate Tobio’s birthday, and when Hinata apologised for forgetting his gift back in Tokyo, Tobio suggested a way to make it up to him: “Marry me.” There was no ring but the words were enough for Shouyou’s breath to stop. Shouyou’s face flushed, his eyes glistened, and his smile widened.
(“A million times yes!”)
They got married the next day in the Karasuno High School multi-purpose hall, a small favour for the school’s most famous alumni, the principal called it. None of their friends was surprised by the invitation, the two idiots were meant for each other, they had seen it the first time the witnessed the so-called freak duo, and, fittingly, the Karasuno multi-purpose hall was also their high school volleyball gym.
Shouyou smiled at the wedding picture, the two of them hand-in-hand, Shouyou in a sleek white suit and Tobio in his dapper black one, with all their friends jumping behind them. Tobio noticed his omega’s glance holding on to the photo, he smiled reminiscing the day himself. “I’ll get the water going,” Tobio whispered, unwilling to startle Shouyou back from the beautiful memories, slipping past the omega in the direction of the bathroom.
“Wait!” Hinata exclaimed, surprising himself. He had snapped out of his daze, but unknowingly the worry had been continuously bubbling in him, and like a kettle brimming with boiling water, it was about to overflow. “How do you feel about having children?” The words roped Tobio, as he turned back, stopping in place.
“Where on earth did that come from?” Tobio eyed his partner. Tension had set into Shouyou’s face, his mouth was slightly open, lips pouted and a frown drawing on his lips. Their height difference had often forced Shouyou to physically look up to his alpha, but, at this moment, the action made Shouyou feel small and more fragile. “Well, it’s a long time away. We should focus on volleyball.” Tobio mused.
“No, I mean, how do you think about children right now.” Hinata pressured.
“I don’t think about children right now,” Tobio said.
“Not the concept, the actually having of children – the conception, the birthing-” Shouyou rambled. His words were catching fever, as his heartbeat began to increase and the worry started to grow on his face.
“I don’t think about having children either” The alpha replied plainly, unsure of the direction the conversation was taking.
Shouyou looked into his alpha’s eyes, staring back were plain, bored blue eyes. How was Tobio not getting it? His worry was slowly manifesting into irritation. How could Tobio not smell the stress on him or did he simply not care? Were alphas above these domestic concerns, was it because Shouyou’s an omega that he worries about inane things like this?
“Well, like I said, there’s too much to focus with just volleyball right now,” Tobio continued. There was no room to even interpreted doubt in his words, they, despite his growing worry regarding his omega’s emotions, were like how he approached volleyball and life in general, he supposes – direct.
“I mean, if I were to get pregnant—” Shouyou tried again.
“You wouldn’t, it’s the middle of the season.” Tobio cut him off.
“Will it ever not be volleyball with you?” Shouyou snapped back. Did Tobio care about being with him outside of volleyball? They had never been together – be as lovers or even rivals – without volleyball as their context, could their relationship exist outside of it?
“Why would you want to even talk about this? If you got pregnant right now all your work would be for nothing.” Tobio rebutted, the tense smell Shouyou was emitting began to rile his aggressive alpha instincts up as well. “If you got pregnant, you would be just another pregnant, stay-at-home, omega. I know first-hand how hard you worked to be here, are you ready to throw that away?”
“Do you know how derogatory that is?” Shouyou retaliated. His breaths were getting haggard, his fists were clenched so tightly that they were piercing half-moon shaped wounds into his palm. Any remnants of his previous worry had vanished, instead replaced with growing anger.
“You worked so hard to leave that label behind, a kid would hold you back from your dreams. I am only looking out for you.” Tobio reasoned.
“Can you even hear yourself? I am successful not despite being an omega, I am successful and an omega. There’s a difference.” Shouyou countered. He was aware of his part in being slightly defensive in his approach to this conversation, but Tobio’s comments sounded archaic and frankly, off-putting. “I think it might be best if I spend the night at Kenma’s,” Shouyou said, briskly passing Tobio.
Worry crossed Tobio’s face, but his words betrayed any semblance of concern, striking viciously. “Why did you even bring up such a moronic conversation anyway?”
“No, I’m glad I did. To think I’ve been with someone who so ignorant.” Shouyou said, throwing open the bathroom cabinet, thoughtlessly throwing the contents of his gym back on the floor. He grabbed an overnight bag, his toothbrush and some clothes he brought back from practice. Tobio stood wordlessly, he felt the need to stop Shouyou, yet his body did not move. Perhaps Tobio was unable to grasp the events unfolding, perhaps regretting his words, or perhaps acknowledging that after a nasty fight like that, they should spend time apart.
(Perhaps all of them.)
Shouyou passed Tobio without a glance, his emotionally-dampened scent trailing behind him. He left crossing their wedding photo without a single glance and completely overlooking the items left on the floor of the bathroom where, in the heat of the moment, Shouyou forgot he had left that inconspicuous plastic stick laying in plain sight.