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Atsumu grabs his brother by the collar. "This is all yer fault ‘Samu! If ya just did what I told ya to do, then maybe we wouldn't be fightin’ right now!"
"My fault?! Who's the one actin’ so petty that it affected his performance?" Osamu scoffed.
Kita steps in between them. "Both of you. Let's calm down and talk this ou-"
"No can do Kita-san! Osamu's been gettin’ on my nerves since last week and he needs ta know how annoyin’ he's been!” Atsumu snarled to his captain as he steps to the side to haul Osamu again.
"If anything, yer the one who's been gettin’ on my nerves! Always complainin’ whenever ya have the chance to. God, it's like ya never learned how ta shut up!" Osamu argued as he pushed away the hands dragging him.
"How about ya shut yer mouth for once!"
Osamu rolls his eyes. "See what I mean, always complainin’! Ya know, I only wish to have some space around me. But no, fate decided to be cruel and gave me someone like ya!"
"Ya think I have it better? I have it worse. Ya never listen, ya always stay away from me. Can't ya be nice for once?! I'm your twin, we're supposed to care for each other, yet ya never do!" Atsumu grit out through clenched teeth, barely holding back hot tears..
"Ya know what? I agree with ya. Ya have it worse since yer so immature, ya don't read the room, ya act pretentious. I wish I never had a twin. Better yet. I wish ya never existed in the first place." Kita makes an effort to stop him, but the words were out before he could think about it.
"Ya make everything worse. You disappearin’ would do the world some good."
Compared to the noise from before, only silence was heard. shocked faces accompanied by heaving breaths.
As if in pain, tears start to fall on his face. He slowly croaks out, voice hoarse.
“...I hate you, Osamu.”
Atsumu turns his back to him, running out of the gym.
Aran breaks the silence first. “Osamu, you went too far.”
“I agree, you can’t take back what you said.” Suna follows in.
His fist clenched, as if refusing to take the blame for what blurted out his mouth.
“He deserved it. At least now I’ll finally have some time for myself.”
Osamu protests as he goes back to what he was doing before the fight started.
He goes home first, knowing that times when he and Atsumu argue means he’s not doing their routine to walk home together. Having overexerted himself from practice, he eats dinner, ignoring his mother who chastised him for arguing with his brother again. Then he went to sleep under their shared bunk bed and scowled.
Too far. How was it going too far if he was only being honest? They argue all the time, and Atsumu’s said worse stuff before. Did Osamu curse him to hell for it? Yeah, but the next day they both acted as if nothing happened. Why should this time be different?
Wasn’t he being fair by telling Atsumu the truth? It would have been worse if he kept the whole thing bottled up inside him. It’s not the end of the world just because his words slipped. Aran and the team were just being dramatic. They don’t know his brother like he does.
He wakes up late and hassled. He barely got good sleep as it is, why is it that the world had to take revenge on him by doing this?
He sat up, already annoyed that Atsumu didn’t wake him up on his way to school. The guy cradles his grudges like children.
As soon as he finishes his bath and sits down for breakfast, his mother acts indifferent.
“Ma.”
“Hm?” She was distracted, watching some sort of commercial on the tv.
“Did Atsumu..” Osamu murmured.
“Who, honey?”
He shook his head. “Nevermind. Nothing. I’m leavin’ for class.”
“See ya honey.”
He ran to school, already late for his first class. As soon as he reached the room, his classmates were already talking to each other, no teacher in sight. And no Atsumu in sight. Great, he won’t be able to talk to the pretentious bastard for the rest of his classes since this is the only one they share.
For the rest of his morning, he spends it in peace. No Atsumu means no trouble. Making this the most tranquil day he’s had since years. No squealing fans coming from everywhere, no click of a camera, just a normal day. A normal day he’s never had before.
As much as he enjoys the quiet, this particular one seems to be the most uncomfortable for him. Not having his twin near just feels… off.
He just brushes that feeling off. That noise is going to come back later anyways, he still has volleyball practice with Atsumu.
After finishing his classes, he went straight to the gym to practice. And maybe see a yellow-haired person with a face similar to his. He steps in and immediately hears shoes squeaking.
“Just in time, Osamu. I need someone to toss for me.” Suna comes up to him with a volleyball in hand.
He takes the ball and follows the sleepy-eyed guy to the center of the court. As he starts to toss, he looks around to find Atsumu. He’s still not there. Maybe his words did more than he thought.
…He’ll come in a bit. He always does. They always forgive each other before the day ends, this one will be the same as well. He hopes it will.
Time passes by and Atsumu is still not showing up. Is he so mad that he resorted to not seeing him for the rest of the day? This pettiness Atsumu is showing started to affect Osamu’s actions, his spikes not powerful enough, his serves becoming outs, receives shaky, and tosses wobbly.
Maybe his brother thought that ignoring him would make things less awkward. He suspects that the others are in it too. No one’s been asking him about where Atsumu’s been since he stepped in this gym.
His captain, noticing the faults he’s done since a while ago, started questioning him. “Osamu, are you doing okay? You’ve been performing badly for an hour after you got here.”
He started thinking that Kita may know where Atsumu is and decided to ask him. “I’m doing fine, Kita-san. I just think that someone should show up by now, considering how long he’s been ignoring me.”
“Ignoring you? Who would do such a thing?” Kita asks, his head tilted.
“Are you really asking who? Of course it’s Atsumu! I haven’t seen his face the whole day, and I know you guys are helping him since he can’t hide on his own for long.” Osamu says as his voice gets louder.
Kita’s face became confused as the rest of the team stopped playing to listen.
“...Atsumu? I’m sorry Osamu, but we haven’t heard of him before. What makes you think we’re hiding him?” His captain says, confirming his theory that the entire team has been helping Atsumu stay away from him.
Becoming more impatient, he starts tapping his foot. He takes a deep breath, tired of the people around him pretending to be clueless. “Really, what did he even bribe you with to make sure you go to this extent of acting?”
Suna finally talks as if he’s had enough of Osamu’s actions. “I swear if this is another one of your pranks, I’ll put an end to you. We don’t know who or where Atsumu is so could you just stop it? He could be one of your imaginary friends that we don’t care about.” Suna scoffed.
…What?
“You’re joking with me right? Stop hiding him or I swear I won’t attend practice for a week.”
“Osamu, I don’t get what you’re saying. The only one here who does pranks a lot is you.” Kita says, his face becoming more stern.
Is he hearing this right?
He couldn’t believe Kita and Suna’s words at first, but the team had agreeing looks on their faces as if…As if Atsumu didn’t exist at all.
This can’t be possible right?
Forgetting about the rest of practice, he started running back home to hopefully prove his suspicions wrong.
Where are you, Atsumu? Please. Please be at home. I beg you.
He gets to his house and starts opening the door quickly.
“Ma! Ha-have you seen Atsumu anywhere?!” His words affected by heavy breathing, he hopes that his mom asking him who Atsumu is earlier was only because of the loud volume of the television.
His mom turns her head around from the couch. “Atsumu? Who’s that honey?” Her eyebrows shot up as if confused.
Her words make his thoughts jumble up and he starts to observe his house for more confirmation. His eyes landed on a photo hanging on a wall. A photo where he’s a child in a theme park, smiling.
Alone.
That can’t be right.
He and Atsumu had that picture taken together. Together. The amusement park on their 7th birthday. So why is he alone?
His words from yesterday hit him like a truck.
"Ya make everything worse. You disappearin’ would do the world some good."
Did he cause this? Is he the reason why Atsumu, his twin, his brother, is gone?
He never meant for any of this to happen.
Osamu misses his brother. Everything that happened today doesn’t feel normal at all. Couldn’t he have been the one who disappeared? He’s the one who deserves to vanish after all the things he’s done to Atsumu.
As much as he doesn’t want to accept the fact, he needs to face it.
Atsumu is gone.
Tears flooded his face as reality settled in. Overwhelmed by too much stress, he started collapsing.
“Wake up, ‘Samu! ‘Samu! Wake up now, we’re going to be late!”
Osamu heard the voice. Familiar, loud, insistent.
Annoying.
Atsumu?
His body jolts and his eyes open.
He looks around and finds the familiar blondie he’s previously lost his mind over. The grin that shot from ear to ear should have embarrassed him. Instead, he hooked two muscled arms around his brother’s shoulders and pulled him close, Atsumu tried to wiggle away in an attempt to escape.
Atsumu, his brother, his pesky little brother whom he’d taken for granted. Relief flooded every nerve in his body as he continued to hug his blonde gremlin. Atsumu didn’t stop with his protests.
“Hell are ya doin’?! Let me go, we’ll be late for class ya big dumb gray idiot. Ass up!”
“You’re here.” Was all Osamu had dared to say, Atsumu stared at him like he’d grown two heads overnight.
“‘Course I’m here! We live together ya jerk. Now get up or else Ma’ll haul our ass out of here. Get up!”
He let his brother go, watching him with relieved eyes. He’d already blinked away the tears that threatened to fall. Osamu would rather die before he let Atsumu know that. “Where were ya yesterday? I didn‘t see ya at all.”
“Am I yer teddy bear or somethin’? I went straight home after we fought. I’m the one who’s supposed to be askin’ where ya were, I waited for ya but I fell asleep early.”
“I shoulda come with ya.” Osamu muttered as he got up to get his bed ready.
“Huh? Since when do ya do that? This is scarin’ me. First, ya hug me soon as ya wake up, then ya start sayin’ stuff like that. Seriously, who are ya? Where’d my gloomy twin go?” His brows raised, eyes observing Osamu intensely.
His smile stayed consistent. “Next time after we fight, let’s still walk home together. At least that way I can apologize to ya immediately.”
There, Atsumu’s confusion reached its peak. “The actual hell? Didn’t know ya could be so nice. Careful now, take it slow.”
Osamu laughed heartily. His brother stayed as annoying as ever. He loved it. He… loved him.
He threw a light punch to Atsumu’s shoulder. “Whaddya say we stop at that coffee shop on the way to class? I’ll buy.”
“Are ya insane?! We’re already late, ya midget!”
He laughed again. “Whatever.”
Osamu had never felt more complete.