Chapter Text
- This is a translated work. The original work is @BunnyMaster’s [特等奖是神户牛烤肉套餐三人份]. Thank you @BunnyMaster for granting me permission to translate your work into English!
- Hi everyone! Thanks for clicking into this page. This work includes Miya Atsumu x Kita Shinsuke & Miya Osamu x Kita Shinsuke, if you don’t feel like you want to read this piece, please kindly close the window. Thank you so much for your understanding!
- I apologize for any grammatical errors since English is not my first language. And I also apologize for unable to translate their Kansai dialect.
- Anyway I’ll try my best to translate her work into something readable.
- Please don’t hesitate to comment!
- The timeline is set around late September and early October — prior to the Spring InterHigh Tournament. Please enjoy ;)
If there’s a hypothesis saying “the checkout queue in store is the longest line in the world,” Miya Osamu would be its No.1 supporter. At the moment he reaches out to the shelf filled with onigiri rice balls, Osamu hears his stomach growling. Therefore, with a good reason, he grabs everything he can — a roast beef onigiri, a pulled pork onigiri, a mayo-squid onigiri and a seaweed onigiri — from the shelf.
“Hey, mom would scold you if you can’t finish dinner!” Miya Atsumu yells at his brother while firmly grabbing his curry onigiri with his palm.
“I’ll finish my food.” Osamu mutters, “by the way, don’t ruin yours.”
“Oh crap!” Atsumu looks down to his hand and finds out he is squeezing the poor onigiri into pieces, “Not again!”
While Atsumu is still grumbling about his onigiri, Osamu walked passed him to the checkout counter. There are four more people joining the queue while Atsumu is complaining, elongating the already-too-long waiting line.
Osamu’s stomach growls even louder.
SO HUNGRY.
This is a torture, Osamu sighs. There’s food everywhere, yet he cannot eat anything before checking out. He has to do something.
So he looks around, trying to divert his attention. Not to his right, which is the bakery area; and definitely not to his left, which is filled with fried chicken and barbecue skewers. What’s even worse, the guy in the front is microwaving fried noodles, filling the air with smell.
Osamu hopelessly looks up to the ceiling, leaving a glimpse for a new poster on the corner of the wall. It’s an advertising post, noting that the store is going to hold a lottery for their 20th anniversary. Every 500 yen spend in the store counts for a draw, and each draw has a chance to win something. Apparently the jackpot wins you a chance to dine at the top-rated teppanyaki restaurant in downtown, with a coupon of a special Kobe Beef Combo for THREE.
For THREE.
Osamu blinks to the big number “THREE,” and captures this piece of information like a camera.
“Hey Samu, Hey! Help me with this!” Atsumu tosses the curry onigiri to Osamu, asking him to pay it together with his food.
Okay, here we go again — typical Miya Atsumu. Osamu knows exactly what his brother wants from him. Because there were times when Atsumu asked him to pay for their food, and never paid back. For a second, Osamu thinks about tossing the onigiri back to Atsumu’s face, but he stops after reading the price of the onigiri.
Including Atsumu’s curry onigiri, they have spent more than 500 yen in this store.
And that’s enough for a draw.
Just as Osamu knows the ball will always come to him, he knows for a reason that they will hit the jackpot. This has nothing to do with logic nor a deduction. It is more like an intuition.
Although this intuition doesn’t grant him the big prize this time.
So Osamu puts his prize — an arcade coin — into his pocket, and starts to bite on his onigiri. He’s not in a hurry. The pool is still open, and he knows he still stands a chance.
“Samu, gimme my onigiri!”
Before he could finish his first onigiri, Atsumu rushes to him like a hungry golden retriever. Osamu steps aside to avoid physical contact with his brother, and tosses out the curry onigiri right in the middle of Atsumu’s face. Oh well, the crumbled onigiri pieces (in the plastic wrap) hit Atsumu in his eyes and nose, making him yell even louder.
“Arghhh Samu!!”
Atsumu shows him a frustrated face, tearing the plastic wrap apart. Unfortunately, the crumbled pieces burst out of the wrap and spread all over him like a firework. While watching Atsumu struggle with his onigiri, Osamu devours the rest of his onigiri as fast as he can.
“Damn!! This is your fault! Samu! You owe me an onigiri!”
After throwing everything into the waste bin, Atsumu cleans himself up and shouts again, drawing attentions from some passers-by.
“I have nothing left.” Osamu shows his empty palms.
“No way! You bought four!”
“I ate them all.”
Much as Osamu wants to ignore his brother’s stupid-looking face, he cannot ignore the fact that they have the exact same face. And much as Osamu wants to walk away from his brother, he has a plan in mind. So Osamu turns around and offers to his brother:
“Hey, lemme buy you snacks this week.”
“Wha…Why? Are you alright? Are we gonna die?” Maybe he shouldn’t have said that, now his brother looks even more like an idiot.
“And you’re gonna pay me back,” says Osamu, “next month.”
“I knew it! I knew you’re not gonna treat me! You cheapskate!” Atsumu just never stops shouting.
Of course Osamu’s not going to treat him. But he knows paying for Atsumu means they are going to spend more money in that store. And that money’s going to buy them more chances to win the lottery.
As Atsumu catches up with him, Osamu notices more eyes on them. Mostly schoolgirls. As always.
Osamu has always been familiar with that attention.
The Miya twins have made up their reputation by their volleyball techniques, and of course, their good-lookings. They have become topics among the Inarizaki schoolgirls. Osamu never cares about what others say about them, yet Atsumu holds a different opinion. Atsumu will show off his fan base like how a kid shows off his new toys, and throw his toys away after a few plays. And even though Osamu doesn’t like to be compared with his brother, he often hears girls gossip about him and Atsumu, trying to pick a favorite.
And this is weird.
This is weird not because he’s being compared with Atsumu. This is weird because he starts to care about something he never cared before. And that’s what bothers him.
“LOL I knew it! How do you feel, huh? I bet you cannot finish dinner you fool!” For somehow his brother seems to misunderstand him, and reads his bothered face is a result of eating too much.
Well, he is not. He is just bothered.
And Osamu proves himself at dinner — by finishing everything on the table, including Atsumu’s braised pork belly — and pisses his brother off. While neglecting his brother’s shouting, Osamu chews up his food as he always do.
The twins have been fighting since the day they were born. They fought for toys; they fought for puddings; they fought for volleyballs. No matter what they fought for or how they fought each other, they would always get what they want. And they would always make it up at last. Everything is well-balanced between them.
Until that someone showed up.
Osamu feels scared for the first time. He is scared because he cares about that someone too much, and he knows Atsumu cares as much as he does.
Osamu is scared to lose. He is not scared of losing a volleyball match, or a fight with Atsumu. He is scared of losing contact with that someone.
That someone is going to graduate from the men’s volleyball club after three months, and he will graduate from Inarizaki high school in half a year.
And Osamu doesn’t want to lose him.
And that’s why Miya Osamu has to win.
And that’s why the Miya twins have to win.
Hyōgo’s rainy season comes around in late September. The days become shorter, and the sun goes down earlier. Fortunately the volleyball team finishes training before it gets too dark, so the boys can run home under the golden sunset. Osamu walks outside the campus, embracing himself under the setting sun and the purple sky. He touches his pocket, and counts the arcade coins he wins.
They have tried more than ten times, but no one has ever hit the jackpot.
After Atsumu takes away his new prize — a hand lotion — and asks for him to give out all his coins, Osamu begins to feel exhausted. He is hungry and all worn out, and he doesn’t even care about what Atsumu says. But clearly his brother has a talent for being loud.
“Samu, I have invested you for your draws! So gimme my shares!”
How could he be so noisy? Osamu reaches inside his pocket and pulls out all the arcade coins, offering them to his brother. He is exhausted, and he just want to go home.
“Hey, don’t go! Let’s go to the arcade!” Maybe his brother is more than being noisy, he is also annoying.
And immature.
Osamu makes his point as he watches Atsumu being extremely energetic in the arcade by jumping up and down like a kid, making the 8-year-old boy next to him looks like a real adult.
Wait a minute…What on earth is Atsumu doing? Why is he standing in front of that machine for 15 minutes? And that is…a claw crane machine?!
While Osamu is still confused with what Atsumu wants from that claw crane, his brother rushes to him like he’s going to save a falling ball.
“Samu! I need some money!”
“What?”
Osamu never loses to Atsumu when it comes to arm wrestling games or hitting powerful spikes, but he has to admit that his brother has a faster reflex. Atsumu takes away 2,000 yen from him, and exchanges for 30 arcade coins.
Now Osamu is completely confused. He walks closer to the claw crane and takes a look. It’s a machine of tiny food model keychains. Osamu spots sushi, Unagi don, fatty tuna sashimi and Kobe Beef barbecue. They look pretty real, especially that Kobe Beef keychain. And Osamu starts to feel hungry.
Although Osamu hopes they can finish up quickly and go home, Atsumu seems to lose his luck after investing 11 coins in the machine. His brother is aiming for the model of tuna sashimi plate, but all he does is to push the keychain further away from his sight.
“You missed a ‘Power Catch.’”
Not only Atsumu is surprised by this comment and messes up with his 12th coin, Osamu also gets surprised and turns around.
And he sees him.
That someone.
“K…Kita-san!”
Just like his brother, Osamu is never a fan of math, but for somehow he can clearly sense the hours they had with Kita-san. They have just waved “goodbye” to Kita-san an hour ago, and they are not supposed to meet Kita-san in the next 10 hours.
So what happens if they meet Kita-san earlier than they have expected?
Osamu’s increased heart rates have told him everything.
“Good evening, Atsumu, Osamu.” Kita Shinsuke politely nods to the twins.
“Good evening, Kita-san.” Osamu tries hard to make himself look cool, and he has succeeded.
“G…G…Good evening!” Unfortunately his brother has failed.
“This machine has a ‘Power Catch’ per every three to four catches. A ‘Power Catch’ can move the claw a little bit further than normal catches.” Their captain makes a perfect punch before any of them could make a move, and Osamu realizes he is hit right in the middle of his heart.
“Still, the ‘Power Catch’ has a limit. If you move the claw too far away, the keychain will fall. So I would suggest you to pull your target closer by using normal catches. Atsumu, you have done well before, but you maybe want to improve the timing to catch your target. See, if you calculate the distance…”
And this is their captain. He always keeps an eye on every detail, and makes his perfect punch to everything they have missed.
“…And that is my suggestion. Any questions? Do you want to try again?” Kita looks at Atsumu.
“Umm…So…You play claw cranes a lot, Kita-san?” Again, as Osamu expected, his brother still looks bewildered and throws out a random question.
“Not really. Arcade is not a part of my routine. And this is my first time playing a claw crane. I’m here today because I got a few coins from grandma, and she got it from winning the store lottery. I think it might be better for me to use them here.” Kita pulls out a paper envelope from his bag, and shows his coins to the twins.
“Then how could you be so good at it?!” Atsumu almost screams out his confusion.
“Because I’ve watched you play 10 times,” Kita answers, “and I think figuring out the claw’s moving regularity is more like solving a geometrical problem. I have watched you play for a while, so I did a brief summary based on your moves.”
“If you want to try again,” their captain then moves to Atsumu, guiding him to handle the claw, “you can move your claw to the left. Yes, just a little bit.”
“To your right this time. Good job, Atsumu. You’re almost there.”
Osamu begins to feel thankful that he is not the one to operate the claw. His brother looks as nervous as he could ever be, yet still cannot grab the sashimi keychain. Osamu walks towards them to take a closer look, and spots the beef keychain again. He knows he wants it. Maybe not as much as how Atsumu wants his sashimi keychain, but he wants it.
And it has come to the 29th move. It’s a “Power Catch.”
Atsumu looks like he is at match point with Itachiyama, and Sakusa Kiyoomi is going to make a serve. While their Kita-senpai still looks calm. Up and cross, the claw picks up the sashimi at first, but drops it on the edge of the exit.
“Hooolllyyyy crap!!! What the heck is that?!” Oops, looks like Sakusa hits “in.”
“It’s okay, Atsumu, you still have one coin.” Their captain calms Atsumu down with his comfort voice.
“But we already lost our ‘Power Catch’…” Even Atsumu’s dropping brows show his disappointment.
“You’re fine. If you push it from the right side, and move slightly towards the front, you can definitely get it. I’ll help you with it.” Kita says in a flat tone, showing no expression but a convincing attitude.
Osamu follows Kita’s voice to the claw, and sees himself in the reflection of the machine’s transparent wall. He sees Kita-san’s face — meticulous and concentrated — as he sees Atsumu’s face next to Kita-san’s. They are so close to each other, and they are getting closer.
Just as Osamu thinks they couldn’t get any closer, Kita presses the same button which Atsumu is pressing.
Osamu sees Kita presses his hand on Atsumu’s hand.
He sees the keychain fall.
He sees himself in the reflection.
And he sees his heart.
Just as he sees Atsumu’s face turns into ketchup color with Kita-san’s hand on his. He knows he is falling for Kita-san. He knows they are falling for him.
“Yayyyy we made it!!” Atsumu jumps up and down like a 6-year-old, and tries to hug Kita with a blushed face. While their captain just gives him a pat on the shoulder, and says: “You did good. You deserve it.”
Osamu picks up the sashimi keychain and tries to take a look, yet his brother snatches it with his tongue out: “That’s mine!!”
Before Osamu could make a move to snatch it back, their captain speaks up: “Are you guys still using this machine?”
“No, we’re done. We have nothing left.” Osamu shows his empty palms.
“Then I’ll go for it.” Kita nods to his underclassmen.
“Oh yes, please!” Atsumu answers with a cheerful tone.
Osamu looks at his watch and realizes they’re supposed to head home at this time. But for somehow, he decides to watch Kita play. He looks at Atsumu, and knows his brother feels the same.
“I can’t believe this is Kita-san’s first time.” Atsumu stares at their captain’s moves with full concentration.
“I know.” Osamu nods his agreement.
And Osamu almost chokes when he realizes Kita-san is aiming for the Kobe Beef keychain.
How does he know? Or is this just a coincidence?
Osamu suddenly remembers how he and his teammates talks about Kita-san’s almost “robotic” behaviors, about how they are afraid to be on the receiving end of their captain’s sternness.
Kita-san always does everything that needs to be done. He covers for his teammates, and serves as a reliable backbone on the court. He cares about his underclassmen by giving Atsumu food and drinks when…
Osamu realizes Kita-san is looking at him in the eyes.
Kita-san catches the beef keychain.
And Kita-san hands the keychain to him: “Osamu, this is for you.”
How does he know?
Osamu blankly reaches out his hand, and Kita puts the keychain inside his palm. He feels Kita-san’s fingers give him a light touch on the palm, as if Kita-san is grabbing his heart like a “Power Catch.”
He knows there’s no turning back for his feelings.
The three of them part with each other later that day when all the arcade coins are used up. On the twins’ way home, Atsumu walks like he is in paradise, humming all along the road. Osamu reaches his hand to the pocket, feeling the keychain lying inside.
Although the twins have arrived home after “the Miyas’ curfew,” their parents are out of town for the weekend, leaving them a note, a prepared meal combo with a sashimi plate of fatty tuna and 20,000 yen. The twins stare at each other for a second and decide to microwave their meals.
“Hey, Tsumu.”
“What?”
“Would you rather give a piece of your fatty tuna to Kita-san?” Osamu asks his brother when he robs the last bite of Atsumu’s fatty tuna.
“Are you kidding me? Only one piece?” Atsumu looks so excited that he stands up from his seat, “I can offer him 1/3 of my whole meal!”
“You bet,” Osamu stares at the fatty tuna between his own chopsticks, “and I’ll do the same.”
Atsumu loves fatty tuna, and his brother knows it. The piece of tuna Osamu takes has a pinkish color, reminding him of something vague yet perceptual, like his and Kita-san’s reflections.
“Hey, how about we get our meals from that store this week?” Osamu makes his offer.
“Yeah, okay. But why? Don’t we have more shops in the neighborhood?” Atsumu looks confused.
“Remember that lottery they have? The pool is still open, and no one has ever hit the jackpot.” The pool is open, but Osamu is sure they don’t have many chances left.
“What is the jackpot?” Asks Atsumu.
“A special Kobe Beef Combo, for THREE.” Osamu underscores the “three.” He is intended to do so since he knows his brother as he knows himself.
“For THREE…Sure! Let’s go for it!” And his brother gets it.
They are the Miya twins after all. And they always get what they want.
The twins have been keeping a tight training schedule, even on Saturdays. They get up a bit more earlier than usual and rush to the store. A light shower might come around the neighborhood earlier in the night, and moistened the pavement while people fell asleep. At the moment they arrive at the store, the shop-owner has just opened up for the day:
“Wow you guys are pretty early!”
“You…look like you are not expecting us.” Atsumu has run too fast on his way, and now he can barely catch his breath.
“Nah, usually your captain comes earlier. But the orchestra club members are the first to check things out.” Says the owner.
“Then we are the first today!” Says Atsumu in a delight voice.
“Hold up, champion.” Osamu never wastes a second and steps inside the store before his brother.
With the 20,000 yen their parents left with them, they shop like a Black Friday sale and buy themselves 5 lottery draws.
Which 4 out of 5 draws by Mr. Miya Atsumu win them 4 more arcade coins.
Osamu sighs and takes a last shot. And, “bingo,” he gets them another arcade coin.
“No way…Hey, what if we get an umbrella for our team? The umbrella is on sale today!” Atsumu is right. The umbrella is 1,000 yen each, so one more purchase will get them another two shots for the lottery.
It looks like Atsumu’s not giving up as he turns around to grab the umbrella in the corner. And his brother doesn’t plan to stop him. However, they are called to a halt when they hear the shop-owner’s loud voice behind them:
“Wow Congratulations! You hit the jackpot!”
According to the Greek mythology, people who gazed into Medusa’s eyes were turned into stones. And Atsumu looks like he has just dated Medusa. With full shocks over both of their faces, the twins turn back to the lottery machine and see him.
He is wearing their familiar team uniform, standing in front of the machine with a calm look, as if he has just finished cleaning the locker room.