Work Text:
Since attending Karasuno Highschool and becoming a starter on the volleyball team, there were many lessons Kageyama Tobio had learned. These lessons would all be ingrained in his head for years to come, but the most prevailing one, however, sacred knowledge that he had committed to memory within his first week, was:
When in doubt, blame the second years.
Someone left a bag of special homemade brownies on the locker room shelf, tempting poor Asahi to take one too many and be rendered useless for the entire practice?
Blame the second years.
How about when somebody stole the gym keys from Daichi’s jacket and snuck back into the building after hours so that they could get some more practice in, and ended up falling asleep in the middle of the court until they were found the next day?
Definitely the second years.
Or what about when they pranked Tsukishima by forging an entirely fake practice game schedule, pretending to be Sugawara sending it to him a month in advance, and successfully having him show up to Karasuno on a bright and early Saturday morning at 6 A.M. for warm-up?
Well, Kageyama had been a part of that too, but it was mostly the second years.
Point is, when unsure of who to place responsibility on for whatever wacky shenanigans were thought up and subsequently inflicted on the team, it was always a good idea to blame not the second years as a whole, but rather two continually suspicious characters in particular.
Either his seniors, Tanaka and Nishinoya, were actually behind it, or they weren't, but the third years would believe they were anyway - So honestly, you might as well blame it on them. Kageyama liked the odds of either option.
Besides, most of the pranks Tanaka and Nishinoya cooked up were annoying at worst, but harmless at best, especially when it was against the more good-humored members of the team.
(Only once did they ever try to prank Daichi by putting semi-permanent hair dye into his shampoo. For every day his hair was pink, they had to run an extra twenty-five laps. He's never the subject of pranks anymore.)
This newest prank, however, was pure torture. Pure torture that had to have been planned out in advance and specifically designed to ruin Kageyama's life in the most ruthless way possible.
Before him was a minefield of insurmountable horror.
Unavoidable terror.
Inescapable doom.
Before him was Hinata in a skirt.
Kageyama was first aware that something was wrong at the end of practice. On most days, all of the team members would stay behind to clean up, being eager to leave the gym and fill their starving stomachs as soon as possible, but tonight was different from the rest.
It was Friday night, and while that usually meant a game the next day, the Karasuno team had been blessed (or cursed, depending on who you ask) with a by-weekend. A blissfully free two days stretched out before every player, and as a result the atmosphere was lackadaisical and easy. Nobody had even bothered to put away the net yet, and even Tsukishima, who was usually the first one to leave, didn't seem to mind being delayed, respectfully listening to whatever sage wisdom Sugawara was doling out.
Tanaka and Nishinoya were hitting the ball back and forth to each other, Asahi was talking to Mr. Takeda about his college plans, Ennoshita and Daichi seemed to be engrossed in their own conversation, etc, etc, the rest of the team scattered around the gym stretching, relaxing or talking amongst themselves.
Most of them anyways.
Kageyama himself was content to repeatedly practice his serve, aiming for a different marked spot on the floor every time and proudly rejoicing or angrily lamenting whatever the respective outcome. He would have been more than happy to continue that practice until forcible removal from the gym, but he suddenly became aware of the fact that two people seemed to be missing from the picture.
"Where's Hinata and Yamaguchi?"
It was a casual question addressed to the air; he wasn't sure if any of his teammates were aware of their whereabouts either, but he saw Tsukishima's head jerk up when the former's name was mentioned.
Other than that, the majority of the team didn't seem to know, shrugging in response or joking that the two better not be trying to get out of cleaning.
Kageyama was ready to shrug the query off himself, settling back into position to toss the volleyball once more in the air when he paused, realizing how strange it was that the two would disappear together. They didn't spend much time together outside of practice, and didn't seem particularly close - At least, not like Kageyama and Hinata were, walking with each other to the bus stop at night, eating lunch together, and racing to practice every day.
He had never seen Yamaguchi and Hinata do any of that together.
With that thought in mind, he set the volleyball down.
"I'm gonna go look for them." He announced to no one in particular once more, Only this time, he received a response.
"Oh, don't worry!" Nishinoya reassured. "They'll be out soon enough."
"Yeah," Tanaka agreed with such a mischievous look in his eyes that Kageyama frowned on reflex, "And I'm sure they're going to have a really good reason for disappearing."
Kageyama scanned the room, hoping that one of the captains found these words as worrying as he did. Instead he locked eyes with Tsukishima, whose gaze was narrowed in apparent distaste.
Of course, that could have just been from making eye contact with Kageyama.
"What did you do to them now?" Tsukishima asked, his voice the epitome of cool and casual. His tone didn't sound curious at all, but the brief flash of, if not panic than at least worry, in his eyes betrayed him.
Any answer was interrupted by the slamming open of the gym doors and any reasonable thought process of Kageyama's was interrupted by the sight before him.
Yamaguchi and Hinata in skirts.
More importantly, however, Hinata in a skirt.
And not just Hinata in a skirt, but Hinata in a cheerleading outfit.
Wearing makeup.
Hinata in a cheerleading outfit wearing makeup.
"What. The. Fuck."
The words were being played on repeat inside Kageyama's head but it was Tsukishima who had given voice to them. He had only let his composure slip for a moment, instantly looking around and apologizing to the senpais for his language, but no one was paying attention to him. Everyone was staring at Hinata and Yamaguchi.
It was quite the sight to behold.
They stood there in the doorway for a minute, as if to make sure all eyes were on them. Yamaguchi was blushing profusely but Hinata seemed to be almost relishing the attention.
They were wearing Karasuno High Cheerleading outfits: Black cropped tank tops with an orange outline and a picture of a crow splayed across the chest was the first part of the outfit, an embarrassingly mini black skirt completing the bottom. On top of that, both boys were wearing knee high black socks and holding orange pom-poms in their hands.
Karasuno doesn't even have a cheerleader team, the rational part of Kageyama's brain pointed out.
The irrational part was plotting death on Tanaka and Nishinoya, the pair that was currently collapsed on the ground laughing uncontrollably.
To everyone else, Kageyama was sure it did seem like a humorous situation, but he could find nothing funny about it.
Even from his position across the court, it was easy to notice the difference in their faces. Hinata's eyelashes seemed darker and longer, Yamaguchi's freckles more defined. As if that wasn't enough, both their cheeks were rosy pink, the exact same color of their glossy lips.
He had decided it was going to be a painful death.
Hinata and Yamaguchi were the first ones to break the silence, aside from the continued laughter of the ones responsible.
As if this had been rehearsed, they strutted into the gym, taking a standing position shoulder width apart.
Then, suddenly, "GO GO KARASUNO! FIGHT FIGHT KARASUNO!"
In unison they waved their pom-poms in the air, swinging them back and forth in an amateur cheer dance that was definitely choreographed by a couple of highschool boys.
It was enough to get the rest of the team involved as they started clapping and cheering along, as best as they could through their own laughter.
Kageyama wasn't laughing. In fact, he was attempting to cover his face to hide how much he knew he must be blushing. He could feel the warmth blooming, positive his cheeks were beet red. Hinata in a cheerleader's outfit was one thing, but dancing in said outfit in front of the entire team? Kageyama didn't think his psyche would survive this.
In an attempt to control himself, he tore his eyes away from the cheering pair, looking instead at the reactions of those around him. For the most part, everyone seemed to be taking it in stride. Daichi’s thinly veiled amusement couldn't disguise the waves of annoyance he was sending towards Nishinoya and Tanaka (but Kageyama knew for the rest of the team's sake he would have hold off until this whole thing was done) and Sugawara seemed to be attempting to play the part of responsible adult, searching for some sort of jacket or blanket to cover the boys with. For the most part however, everyone else seemed amused.
More importantly, they weren't focused on Kageyama's strange reaction.
Indeed, instead of laughing like everyone else was able to, he had been reduced to shambles.
Hesitantly, he dared to look back at the "cheerleaders".
Immediately, Hinata made eye contact and winked in his direction with a smile, causing Kageyama's internal body temperature to rise several degrees.
Desperately, he averted his gaze once more and found something he could actually focus on.
Or someone.
Tsukishima Kei, the most cool-headed and reserved person on the team, was redder than even Kageyama. His body was frozen, completely rigid, and he didn't attempt to cover his reaction at all, despite the fact that his pale skin and blond hair made the contrast of red stand out even more.
But it seemed like just this once Tsukishima was unable to maintain his usual façade, the stillness quickly broken and instead replaced with visible agitation. It progressed quickly as the seconds passed, the boy fidgeting with his hands, jersey, anything to distract him from the ever-increasing urge to grab Yamaguchi and haul his ass out of the gym.
For a couple of minutes the cheers continued, complete with stupid rhymes and dance moves that were both technically abysmal and yet, utterly charming.
Finally, both boys paused, panting ever so slightly.
Once again in synchronization, Hinata and Yamaguchi pointed towards the crowd, "BIG FINISH!"
Unexpectedly, Hinata put one foot in Yamaguchi's suddenly outstretched palm. Even more disconcerting, he put both hands on the other boy's shoulders, smiling at him in a warm and confidential way that Kageyama attempted to ignore as much as the rest of the performance.
This next part was worth checking out, however: After a brief countdown, "Three, two, one!", Yamaguchi lifted his hands, and thus Hinata, pitching both up in the air. At the same moment, Hinata jumped as if from a launching pad, flying as high and as gracefully as if he were in a game, successfully completing a back flip with his trademark stunning athletic ability.
He even landed with two arms held high in the air, a perfect ten.
There was stunned silence for a moment before the entire Karasuno volleyball team erupted into cheers, actual ones this time. Even Kageyama couldn't refrain from clapping, impressed at their planned finale.
Nishinoya and Tanaka were staring first at the pair of boys and then at themselves, as if they couldn't believe what had just happened.
That's what they get for underestimating Hinata, Kageyama thought smugly to himself.
Hinata stayed on the ground for only a second, jumping once more into the air with a triumphant yell. This one wasn't planned, however, he was simply celebrating the successful routine.
Coming back down to earth once more, he grabbed Yamaguchi and pulled him into a hug. They parted, but kept their heads pressed close together, both grinning with exultation. Kageyama noticed Hinata mouthing words, something along the lines of "We did it!", before they both pulled back and started animatedly talking with the players that had surged towards them.
Kageyama stood motionless, the image of the two boys' proximity engraved into his mind.
Irritated at his own reaction, he tore his gaze away once more, determined to leave the gym until he was able to reclaim a better hold of himself. He didn't seem to be the only one in trouble though; the look in Tsukishima's eyes seemed capable of murder. Whether the victim was Nishinoya and Tanaka, Hinata or even Yamaguchi himself was still unclear.
As entertaining as watching that situation play out might have been on some other day, Kageyama felt something akin to sympathy in his chest. From the look alone he had a pretty good idea of what Tsukishima was going through, and he knew it couldn't have felt good.
Fighting against the side of him that wanted to leave the aggravating middle blocker glowering where he stood, Kageyama strode towards him instead, intent on pulling him to the side. He left his spot not a second too soon; just as Kageyama reached him, the angry blonde took a step forward, as if ready to hatch his murder plot.
He was pulled backwards by a hand pulling on his sleeve, and if looks could kill Kageyama was sure he'd be bleeding out on the court right now.
As it was, Tsukishima instead just continued to stare at the grip on his shirt with a balanced amount of derision and disgust.
"Something I can help you with, King?"
Resisting the first urge to roll his eyes and the second, much more powerful urge to deck Tsukishima where he stood, Kageyama simply said, "As much as I'd love to see you embarrass yourself in front of the whole team, it'll be better for both of us if you come to the locker room with me and calm down."
Tsukishima opened his mouth, probably to immediately ridicule the idea, but at that moment his eyes were drawn to the second round of clapping and he was able to catch Hinata and Yamaguchi performing a mini encore, complete with pom-pom shaking. Color flooded his face and Kageyama dragged him out of the gym, knowing he was in no position to protest.
Neither of the boys noticed the lingering stares that followed them.
"What were they thinking?" Kageyama demanded when they entered the changing room, slamming his hand into the wall and immediately regretting it.
"Ow."
"Idiot. What did the walls do to you?"
"Oh, shut up, Tsukishima. You only sympathize with the wall because you show about as much emotion as one."
Maybe it was because he was already in emotional turmoil, but Tsukishima actually seemed embarrassed about Kageyama's statement, as if he had been called out. He looked down at the ground, but was otherwise as motionless as a statue, all the restlessness now gone.
There was a beat of thick, awkward silence between the two before he bothered speaking up.
"It wasn't their idea, if that makes it any better."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean Tanaka-Senpai and Nishinoya-Senpai put them up to it. I didn't hear the full story, but it concerned them losing a bet. This was their punishment."
"Why does it feel more like our punishment?"
"I doubt it was intended that way. I'm sure they meant to humiliate the two more than anything to do with us."
"I don't know about that, why did they seem to be enjoying themselves so much?" Kageyama groaned with exasperation.
"That I do not know. I always told Yams not to get involved with the second years and their bets. Frankly, their win rate is statistically impossible."
Tsukishima's typical jaded expression faded as he talked about Yamaguchi; the harsh glint in his eyes lessened and the barest hint of a smile dared to rest itself on his lips. If it hadn’t made Kageyama want to vomit when thinking about it, he almost would have described it as soft.
“You like Yamaguchi?” Kageyama asked bluntly.
Any softness was dropped in an instant at the words as Tsukishima sneered, “You really want to have a conversation about feelings? With me? Tell me, what are your thoughts on Hinata?”
“Okay, okay I get it.”
“How did you feel when you saw him dancing around in a little skirt and a painted face? Shaking his hips for the whole team’s enjoyment-”
The tension in the room sharpened.
“I said I get it!” Kageyama snapped, the frustration he had felt before rising to the surface with his simmering anger.
“What am I supposed to do about it? Everytime I see him I just want to-”
“I don’t want to hear that.”
“Somehow I keep forgetting how much I hate you.”
“Don’t be so melodramatic, King. I can’t believe I’m going to say this, but I don’t want to hear you wax poetic about how you feel when you see your shining sun because it’s the same fucking way I feel about Yamaguchi, okay? And I’m as powerless as you are.”
Another moment of filled silence.
“Well, what if we do something about it? What if we, I don’t know, talk to them about it.”
“Talk to them?”
“Like, confess.”
“Confess?” Tsukishima asked in the same tone one would inquire if the other person were a debilitating idiot.
“Do you have any other ideas?”
Tsukishima leaned up against a locker. With his lanky body pressed against the cold metal it couldn’t have been comfortable for the boy, but his expression retained it's cool indifference.
“Yeah, I do, actually. I’m going to keep it bottled inside until it shrivels up and dies. Or until I do.”
“Now who’s being melodramatic?”
“I think it’s still you. Good thing you told me about this plan before doing anything, god knows you probably would have burst into song or something.”
“I want to threaten you so badly right now.”
“What’s stopping you? Or are these the feelings you’re going to repress, until you’re a thirty year old man with unresolved anger issues and one expensive weekly therapy bill?”
Without warning, Kageyama launched himself from where he was standing, quickly and efficiently pinning Tsukishima in place against the lockers, two hands holding him in place on either side of his head.
“You know what, I think these are some feelings I’m gonna get out.”
Tsukishima cocked his head to the side, trademark smirk already in place.
“I won’t lie, King, that sounds pretty gay. Keep me in here any longer and the rest of the team is going to think you’re either killing me or-”
“Gross, you know what-”
Kageyama’s words cut off mid-sentence before he could finish, his brain short-circuiting once more for what was the second time that day.
“Uh, I’m waiting.”
Even in the position Kageyama had caught him in, Tsukishima was still taller than him. The fact that the blonde was perfectly able to manage looking down on him was infuriating as his blasé demeanor, but Tsukishima’s petty jabs weren’t nearly as important as the idea that had just birthed itself inside Kageyama’s brain.
“Now there’s a way to get their attention.”
“What? Be gay? Mission accomplished, moron.”
“Oh my god, shut up, no. Just think about it. There’s one way we can let them know that we’re. . .whatever, and make Hinata and Yamaguchi jealous at the same time.”
The satisfied gleam in Kageyama’s eyes and openly smug smile was that of a man fully convinced he was a genius.
“Are you actually suggesting what I think you’re suggesting?”
“Well don’t you think it’s a better alternative than bottling your feelings up until you die?”
“Actually, I think I’d prefer death. A swift, painless one please. You know what, fine, I acquiesce. It can be painful, as long as it gets me out of this situation.”
Kageyama leaned in close, their previously unbreeched proximity to each other now broken, contributing to the atmosphere around them seeming to brim with tension. His voice was quiet as he spoke softly but threateningly into Tsukishima’s ear.
“What you can do to get out of this situation is stop being a little-”
“Um, are we interrupting something?”
Tsukishima was pretty sure Kageyama shattered a speed record with how fast the boy removed himself from the scandalous position he had been in mere moments earlier. Of course, Tsukishima had helped him by forcibly shoving him, sending the boy crashing into the opposite line of lockers, but still, he moved plenty quick on his own.
“Woah, woah-”
“Tsuki!”
“You piece of shit-”
“Kageyama, are you okay?”
“I’m fine, Hinata, unlike how Tsukishima is going to be in a couple of seconds-”
“Oh, you just want another excuse to get close to me, don’t you, King?”
Hinata and Yamaguchi had quietly ventured into the locker room, pom-poms still in hand, searching for their respective counterparts and not entirely sure what to expect. Likewise, they weren’t entirely sure what to say either when they found one of them pressed against the other, completely and totally alone.
‘Are we interrupting? ’ wasn’t quite able to cover all the questions that immediately flooded their brains, nor the rush of tidal wave emotions that came with it, but it seemed like as good a place as to start as any.
Their confusion only spiked as Tsukishima pushed Kageyama, and didn’t drop in the slightest as the two interrupted boys stared darkly at each other, not a single one sure if their next move was to kiss or kill.
“So uh,” Yamaguchi was one who dared to speak up first. Immediately, the eye contact was broken, Tsukishima abandoning the intense gaze to stare at the one who had opened his mouth. Of course, that caused him to immediately notice that the boy was still wearing a skirt, and he averted his eyes once more.
Yamaguchi felt stung at Tsukishima’s blatant avoidance, but he pressed on regardless, “Did we interrupt something? Because it-it looks like something was um, interrupted. Should we leave?”
“No, don’t leave.” Tsukishima replied, resisting the resurfacing urge to grab his friend and evacuate the premises as quickly as he could. It was consistently appearing as the easiest course of action.
“You weren’t interrupting anything. We just uh-”
“We were about to make out.”
“Oh my god. I mean-Yes, adequately termed, King-I mean, Kageyama. That was what was about to. . .” Tsukishima trailed off, unable to finish his sentence nor meet anyone’s eyes, which meant he missed the obvious hurt in Yamaguchi’s.
“Happen.” Finished Kageyama stoically.
Kageyama had pulled the complete opposite of Tsukishima deciding on the strategy of staring at Hinata unabashedly, searching for any signs of upsetedness at the news. He certainly didn’t seem pleased.
That was good, right?
Or was that just because Kageyama was very uncomfortably staring at him, somehow not managing to blink for an almost terrifying fifty-five seconds?
Oh yeah. This plan was definitely working.
“Okay, this isn’t working. Tadashi, I like you, do you want to go out with me?”
Shock, confusion, and surprise flashed across Yamaguchi’s face in an instant before his expression settled on one of elated joy.
“Uh yeah, I would-I would love to!”
“Perfect, we should leave immediately.”
Needing no secondary confirmation, Tsukishima grabbed Yamaguchi’s hand, the latter’s cheeks reddening to such a degree that just couldn’t be pinned on the blush he was wearing, and was more than ready to storm out of that godforsaken locker room.
Before he left, he paused, turning around only briefly to remark, “Kageyama, this was the stupidest idea I’ve ever heard of and the worst two minutes of my entire life. Hinata, your little outfit broke Kageyama’s brain and he likes you a disgusting amount, my sincerest condolences.”
As the happy pair gleefully left the room, Tsukishima could be heard reassuring Yamaguchi, “Believe me, Tadashi, you in that uniform completely demolished my brain, actually.”
That just left the two remaining boys alone in the locker room, one staring quite expectedly at the other.
Seconds ticked by in silence as Kageyama tried to think of some sort of speech or explanation that would sum up everything leading up to these events, the culmination of all his confused and passionate feelings.
Ultimately, he failed at that, and instead bluntly commented, “He’s right. It broke my brain.”
Hinata grinned victoriously. “That’s all I needed to hear.”
As the two boys headed back out into the gym together, Hinata mercilessly teasing Kageyama for thinking a fake dating plot would actually work, and Kageyama wordlessly letting it happen because Hinata was right next to him and still wearing a skirt , it didn’t take long for the rest of the team to figure out what had happened.
Everyone still had a field day trying to figure out how Tsukishima and Yamaguchi had been involved, however, and just what those four had been doing together in the locker room.
It took a tremendous deal of effort for Kageyama to tear his notice away from Hinata (Something which continued even when the boy wasn’t wearing a skirt), so it was surprising that he even noticed out of the corner of his eye the silent exchange of a fifty dollar bill from one grinning teammate’s hand to another.
“Fine, fine, you got me.” Tanaka reluctantly gave in to Nishinoya.
“Yeah, I thought so.”
“I just seriously didn’t think they’d be able to figure it out that quickly. Our little rookies are growing up.”
“$100 say Hinata and Kageyama have their first huge fight by tomorrow though.”
“Oh, you’re on.”
Kageyama just barely managed to conceal a menacing glare, ready to be sent in the direction of the two scheming second years. Of course, it made sense that they were behind this all along. When in doubt, you knew exactly who on the Karasuno team was to blame.
That being said, Kageyama had witnessed both the best cheerleading routine he had ever seen in his life and Tsukishima forced to be emotionally vulnerable, so maybe it had worked out for the best after all, a conclusion far too easy to come to with his new boyfriend right there by his side.
Of course, he was still planning on getting them back. The only variable he needed to figure out was how to convince Kiyoko to wear a cheerleading uniform. . .