Chapter Text
Five weeks. thirty-nine days. A little over a month into university and one former captain and ace, Ushijima Wakatoshi, found himself questioning how exactly his life ended up like this. And it’s not really an uncommon thought, he realizes, blearily looking up from his dorm bed to stare at his door which rattles from the force whoever on the other side is using to knock, the doorknob rattling.
He just wanted to relax and ponder over his thoughts. He’d just returned from his calculus class five minutes ago, used the spare time because the professor had given the class to productively finish the assignment and clarify some of the problems’ finer points with the professor while the other students unproductively filled the room with distracting chatter.
The reason for why he’s in university isn’t really concrete. After he had accepted his scholarship, mentally claiming it was so that he could expand his volleyball skills before trying for a professional or the national team, but there is still something in his mind telling him that there was something else that just made him want to go to university. And even though he’s focusing on volleyball it doesn’t mean he won’t try with his education.
Now, for the door. The knocking is getting bothersome. Ushijima gets up and he feels pleased inside when the person on the other side of the door starts their shouting again.
Tokyo is very different from Miyagi. None of the third years from the Shiratorizawa Academy volleyball club chose to go to university outside of the prefecture. Satori had helped him move, though, going as far as borrowing his mother’s car to drive the two of them down to Tokyo. He had admitted that he thought he would be lonely, so Satori made him promise to text and call and Skype, which he does. But the real surprise came in the form of where his dorm was. Building 3, Floor 2. The building was rather small, with only one hall per floor: Five rooms, once person per room, just big enough to sleep, study, and have some walking and storage space. And halfway down the hall or so, there is a large area. It has a washing machine, dryer, a sizeable kitchen, and a sitting area with a TV and a computer, that area only being able to be entered by who he had then assumed was him and his hallmates. There was also a communal bathroom for the hall and the ground floor has a decent bath.
But his hallmates. Hallmates who happened to also play volleyball. And be captains. All four of them, which he had learned upon stepping out of the elevator with Satori behind him only to come face to face with one Oikawa Tooru who promptly screamed in his face, leading to the other three doors opening and then a round of introductions.
Now he’s happy to say that he’s at least acquainted with them. And whoever insists they aren’t acquainted insists that they’re friends and all of that in a miraculous span of a mere thirty-nine days. To him, it isn’t that much time. In reality, a lot of things can happen in thirty-nine days, things even he’s not aware of. But one of the things he knows is that he’s found people he can trust in his hallmates.
He opens the door and, as expected, he’s met with an overly hyperactive Bokuto Koutarou, one of his four hallmates. The man looks like he’s about to jump out of his skin, volleyball duffle slung over his shoulder.
“Wakatoshi!” Bokuto exclaims. “Finally! You’re up!” He quickly looks Ushijima up and down and shrugs. “That works. Quick- grab your bag! We’re going! Kuroo and Oikawa are already on their way!” Hallmates two and three. Bokuto’s voice gradually shifts to a whine and Ushijima smiles internally.
“I tried to stop him” a second voice says, resigned “But Kuroo and Oikawa ran before I could even open my mouth.” And there’s his fourth hallmate. Sawamura Daichi.
At first, he wasn’t sure what to feel of Sawamura. He hadn’t stood out too much at first during the prefecture finals. It had stuck to him, after their loss: how did someplace like Karasuno beat Shiratorizawa ? So he had rewatched the match. Again and again, narrowing his eyes, picking apart what they could of done, what Karasuno had done. Deciding if some things had been flukes or were actually a product of skill.
No, he hadn’t been angry. More frustrated and confused. Shiratorizawa should of won- it’s not an opinion, but a fact. Their number ten didn’t really have any skill or precision, nothing notable about him besides his height, over exuberant personality, and baseless courage. Their ace was powerful and certainly skilled, but he didn’t stand out as much as an ace should and was completely different off the court. And then he had found the pattern. Had seen how they tried to trick his own team, how they had tricked him to spike at their libero until he quickly learned to receive his hits. And at the end of his marathon, no less than a day after their loss, he finally realized something, a missing gear to his mental equation to solve how Karasuno won:
He never focused on their number one, their captain. Sawamura.
So he went back and traced the teen’s movement. All he remembered about his counterpart had been that he mostly played defense. Now that he knows who to watch, he can see things he never saw before. Sawamura filled in so many gaps in the defense. His serves weren’t the best but they were good and efficient, well aimed. He observed all of his players, predicting what move they would make before moving to reinforce it.
Shiratorizawa were the flowers that blossomed from fertile soil. They had the support of their peers and coaches which nurtured them and coaxed them to survive. A great number of deserving victories urging them to grow and improve, to become stronger. But then Karasuno came. An invasive species that shouldn't of been able to survive, much less flourish in this environment. They grew quickly, durable. Small and fighting for control of the land, of the nutrients. They worked together, the progress of one benefitting all of them. Weeds amongst flowers. And then there’s Sawamura, like a hidden water reservoir only accessible by those weeds. Hidden, but there. Vital for their survival. Those weeds most likely would of died without it being there.
Ushijima thinks of Oikawa, how he would of flourished if he came to Shiratorizawa. His natural strength would of blossomed like an Epiphyllum oxypetalum in a world where the sun never rises. One of the things Ushijima finally found himself realizing was that even though individual strength did matter, which was Shiratorizawa’s requirement for each player: to be strong, there was also a bigger picture. It was how the team powered each other and not just themselves that made them strong.
He had been confused as to why Oikawa chose Aoba Johsai. Their team was weak er than Shiratorizawa, their individual strength pitiful. But then he looked at Karasuno, over and over and over again until it finally clicked into his brain, so similar to what Oikawa had told him the few times he told him why he'd never go to Shiratorizawa. Because it didn't matter what the individual strength was. A garden isn’t considered amazing if all of the flowers are the same. It is the uniqueness of every sprout in it that makes unique.
At Aoba Johsai, the team had been able to work together, complimenting each others preferred technique rather than rely on only Oikawa to lead them to victory. At Karasuno, the players worked together like the works of a machine. Karasuno shouldn’t of been able to hold together. But it did. And twelve days into university, twelve nights of near obsessive thinking, he realized who made Karausno hold together right before he fell asleep, only to wake up earl for a morning run before practice and continue his string of thought.
He has respect for Sawamura Daichi, the thread that held his team together, the cement that kept the water from breaking free from the dam, the conductor of a symphony of instruments that shouldn’t even be in the same room but still managed to make it sound beautiful.
Respect is a fickle thing. He doesn’t give the feeling out needlessly. Anything he things about someone must be deserved. And once it’s there, it becomes a fact. Because if there’s one thing Ushijima strays from, it is opinions.
So Ushijima believes Sawamura when he says that he tried to stop Bokuto. Sawamura is truly like the dad he’s heard Kuroo and Oikawa tease him to be, although he wouldn’t say that outloud. At times it seems as if Sawamura dislikes being teased with names such as “Dad-chi” but at other times, he seems rather amused. And then there’s his scary mode which even sends shivers down Ushijima’s spine.
“Very well” Ushijima says. “I finished my assignments ahead of time. Smaller group practices are more beneficial to the growth of individual skill rather than if we were to practice with the entirety of the team.” Bokuto lets out a whoop and races down the hall. Ushijima turns his back to the doorway, now alone.
“I was wondering what you were doing during the free-time” Sawamura muses. Oh, so he’s still here as well. “I thought I was the only one to actually make use of the time.” Ushijima hums, sitting at his desk’s chair so he can but on his sneakers. He had put them in the wash yesterday so they’re nearly as clean as the volleyball shoes which lay in his bag. Ushijima had nearly forgotten that Sawamura was in his calculus class. He sat across the room, closer to the door. Just like Ushijima, he was the only third year from his team who left the prefecture.
In class, Ushijima is quiet. He seldom speaks, not because he doesn’t want to talk to those around him but because he’s awkward in nature. He doesn’t know how to start a conversation or carry one beyond a few sentences. He knows his classmates find him intimidating and cold- he’s heard the same things at Shiratorizawa. Sawamura, on the other hand, seems to be popular. He’s nice and it’s a fact that he’s nice looking. Being on the team has helped him keep fit and Sawamura is often one of the first people in class and the people who sit around him would switch every day, as if they were vying for his attention. He would see girls giggle at him in the hallways, approach him to converse, and Sawamura would be nothing less than polite with them, certain comments causing him to blush or rub the back of his neck.
Sawamura seems to have some sort of natural charm. Ushijima doesn’t feel uncomfortable speaking with him even though they are only acquainted- rather, their conversations are usually rather interesting and enlightening. It also helps that Sawamura understands Ushijima’s silence, not taking it as a sign of not being interested such as most people but recognizing it as Ushijima simply not wanting to speak, instead only wanting to listen and communicate only with the occasional hum or a raise of the eyebrow.
“The topic seems to be something that will be coming back in future lessons. It was wise to choose to understand the concept better rather than waste the time engaging in pointless conversation.”
Sawamura lets out a laugh and Ushijima finishes tying his shoelaces. Sawamura is comfortable with laughing at a comment. Ushijima finds it harder to find which comments are appropriate to laugh or chuckle at. Occasionally he would chuckle or smile at something, but only if it was clearly amusing, even to him.
“Agreed. Sometimes I wonder why girls want to know about where I go clothing shopping in the middle of a lecture. I almost missed some important tidbit once.” Ushijima slings his bag over his shoulder and stands, Sawamura moving to the side so Ushijima could exit and lock his door before the two make their way to the elevator.
“Do you know what Bokuto wants the next hour before our scheduled practice to focus on?” Ushijima asks, pressing the button to call the elevator up. Daichi shrugs.
“I don’t really want to do another two-on-two before practice. Our last one left me exhausted. Coach is brilliant for somehow getting you and Oikawa on the same team but for a two on two, you guys are just brutal.”
“Kuroo is more merciless. He holds nothing back when initiating one of his blocks. I do not think there has been anyone to block one of my spikes on the first try.”
“Do you remember our number eleven? He’s the blond one with the glasses.”
“Yes, he was rather bothersome but his block reading was impressive.”
“Yeah. Tsukishima. Kuroo likes to think of himself as his senpai. We had a training camp with some schools in Tokyo. Nekoma and Fukurodani were there. And he taught him different blocking techniques. You can probably thank Kuroo and Bokuto for Karasuno beating you guys at the prefecturals.” Ushijima feels his eyebrows raise less than a millimeter. This is a new piece of information. The two knew each other before university. They had seemed friendly during their nationals match.
He had been suspicious at first because of how close Kuroo had seemed to Sawamura but then he realized that it was Kuroo’s nature to be like that, trying to be subtle about his want for affection. Truly like a cat his school had been named for. Ushijima himself is guilty of making himself give Kuroo a congratulatory pat on the shoulder or back after noticing this. And then he started allowing the man to sling an arm around his shoulder after seeing Sawamura comfortably allowing Kuroo to do so without any negative expressions crossing his face. Ushijima is socially awkward so it helps to watch how other people behave to model his own behavior after them.
“But I was wondering if you could help teach me how to serve left-handed?” Sawamura asks when they reach the ground floor, elevator doors dinging open. Ushijima looks at him in surprise and he sees Sawamura’s nervous tick: rubbing the back of his neck. He’s not looking at Ushijima. They begin their walk.
“I am curious: you are perfectly capable of serving with your dominant hand. Why would you want to hinder your progress by learning a serve with your non-dominant hand?”
“Well, I have the same amount of power in both of my arms. And I’m comfortable using my left-arm because of defense.“ Sawamura opens the door, holding it open to allow the two of them to exit into the noisy world of Tokyo. “My serves aren’t anything special and just switching it to serving lefty will change things up and make it more difficult to receive because of sudden the switch is.” Then he hesitates. “And I don’t think I’m going to make it as a starter. With you four and our seniors, I’m going to have a lot of time on the bench to watch and learn.”
Ushijima ponders for a few moments. He wants to address that last part, since the tone Sawamura had used was factual, no doubt in his voice. It is worrisome. But he wouldn’t know how to go about it. “You could easily learn a jump-serve rather than serving lefty.”
“How about a lefty jump-serve?” Ushijima actually stops walking and he just looks at Daichi, the other looking up at him, meeting his eyes, a wide grin on his face and a light in his eyes. “It’d be fun for you and me both. And it’s also an excuse to get out of whatever ridiculous exercise Bokuto thinks up.
“Well” Ushijima starts and Daichi’s eyes somehow grow larger, resembling a puppy’s. Except much more intelligent and human. His smile grows softer, warmer, and Ushijima finds something stir inside of him. It’s not the first thing one would think up Ushijima thinks And serving with your non-dominant hand is unwise. And it would take a while to get comfortable with a simple serve and even more to learn how to properly execute a jump serve. But I am a lefty so it would be easier for me to teach him to serve like that rather than with his dominant hand. And it may increase his chances of becoming a starter, with a serve that elusive. And perhaps with sufficient practice he will be comfortable with spiking with his left hand as well. It will benefit the team to have a player who can serve and spike with both arms and with the same level of efficiency, and his defensive skills are incre-
“-jima you okay?” Ushijima blinks and a hand leaves his line of sights. Sawamura lets out a light chuckle. “You looked pretty out of it. Did you think something? I mean, it’s fine if you do-”
“It will be beneficial to the team.” Ushijima states, cutting Sawamura off. “Under one condition” Sawamura nods eagerly “You teach me how to spike right handed. I have no need to serve with my right hand but I can better evade blockers who have adapted to me spiking lefty only to have me use my right hand with just as much control.” Sawamura’s mouth opens but the words only come out a few seconds later.
“Y-yeah! That sounds good, awesome, really! Who knew that you’d like playing around with the opponent?” Ushijima nods. Sawamura really must be happy for him to stutter.
“There are things that living in the same hall as Kuroo Tetsurou does to you.” Ushijima continues walking, leaving Sawamura frozen behind him.
“Wait, did you just make a joke?” Ushijima hides his smile. “ Ushijima! ” He has to purse his lips to keep the smile from growing even larger when he hears Sawamura jog to catch up to him.
Chat Name: SHI-RA-TO-RI-ZAWA
[14:08]
Wakatoshi: I have become a teacher.
Satori: wait what?Goshiki,when did u go to uni!
Goshiki: IM NOT IN COLLEGE USHIJIMA-SAN WHO R U TEACHING!?
Eita: No offense, but I never thought you’d become a teacher
Eita: Is it volleyball at least?
Wakatoshi: Yes. Sawamura asked me to teach him to serving left handed.
Shirabu: I still can’t believe the two of you somehow became friends
Satori: r u jelly?the crow is pretty chill
Satori: proud of u wakakun.finally making ur move
Wakatoshi: ?
Wakatoshi: My move to improve? He did agree to teach me to spike righty.
Goshiki: USHIJIMA-SAN TEACH ME HOW TO SERVE LEFTY
Shirabu: Not if it takes you that long to type out one sentence.
Goshiki: : (
Wakatoshi: I will consider it when I come to visit. I will say how it went after practice is over.
Wakatoshi: Now I must go or else Oikawa will try to discretely serve a ball into my head.
Reon: What did I miss?
[19:02]
Wakatoshi: Practice went well. Sawamura is already partially adept with using his
left hand since it seems as if he is comfortably ambidextrous when it
comes to defense. I predict he will be able to execute a normal serve and
have it reach the net by the end of the week. My progress was much
slower, as I had no interest in learning to properly control my right arm in the past, but
Sawamura was very patient with me. He promised teaching him and
learning would be fun and it was indeed entertaining. I will be inactive for
approximately an hour.
[20:53]
Satori: waka its been more than an hour
Wakatoshi: Apologies. I was getting ready for dinner. To portray his thanks,
Sawamura cooked us dinner today. I aided him in the final process since
he made quite a lot to accommodate for his and Bokuto’s appetites. It is
unbelievable how much food the two are able to eat whilst not needing
to do extra physical activity to keep in shape.
Goshiki: OH FOOD WHAT DID HE MAKE
Eita: I have a guess.
Wakatoshi: Hayashi rice.
Satori: 0w0
Shirabu: That is quite the coincidence. . .
Wakatoshi: No, he said that he was making it because he remembers reading in an
interview that it is my favorite food. The action is quite considerate of
him. Shirabu, if you would give him the chance, he truly is a nice
person. He is a strong player, his presence is enjoyable, and he is
very intellectual. We’re sitting down for dinner now. Good night.
Chat Name: Ushiwaka Protection Squad
[21:02]
Satori: EMERGENCY MEETING WILL COMMENCE ONCE EVERYONE
HAS CONFIRMED THAT THEY READ THE CONTENT OF THE
OTHER CHAT
Shirabu: Yes, this meeting is very necessary. And I am not being sarcastic
Jin: Sure, you guys are ignoring time differences but I read it
Eita: Yes
Reon: Yes
Goshiki: SOGNDOHNDOFHISJEPOTSEA
Yunohama: Yee
Taichi: Yee
[21:05]
Satori: thats all were getting k
Satori: so u guys know how ushi is
Eita: Yes. Reading what he texted was rather unnerving
Shirabu: He’s oblivious. I was correct to fear for our captain.
Goshiki: DONT INSULT USHIJIMA-SAN
Shirabu: I’m not.
Reon: He really isn’t insulting him, Goshiki-kun
Goshiki: OKAY
Satori: alright
Satori: dont u dare say im wrong cuz ALL of u could just feel his words
Satori: how the heck did ushi get a crush on the guy who pounded us into the
dirt?