Archive of Our Own

“Hey, Osamu, did something happen with Atsumu recently?”

Upon the ring of a more than familiar voice, Osamu is quick to turn around in order to be greeted by his good friend, Aran. Osamu notes that he holds a curious look on his features as his eyes meet his, seemingly patiently waiting for some sort of answer from the gray haired boy. However, Osamu finds that he doesn’t really have a clear answer to his sudden and honestly—rather loaded question.

“‘Tsumu?” Osamu questions. Upon Aran’s nod of confirmation that his twin was indeed the individual he was being questioned about, he wastes no time in quickly responding with, “Not that I know of, he’s still the same ol’ big fat jerk as usual.”

Osamu expects some sort of unamused expression from the other as that was usually the reaction he’d get on any other day; but instead he is met with an even more puzzled look on his friend’s face. Now, Aran wasn’t even bothering to wrap Osamu into his thoughts anymore indicated by his eyes venturing off to the side paired with the deep pondering. Upon the realization that his very answer caused the following actions—Osamu can’t help but question Aran further himself.

“Is there a reason yer askin’?” Osamu asks, one of his eyebrows slowly perking upward as he takes a moment to gather his jacket and other belongings.

Aran on the other hand, only continues to share a hesitant glance before he at last lets up his demeanor with a short sigh. “It’s just—” he pauses, thinking of an effective way to share his worries. It soon catches up to him though as he continues with, “He’s been rather eager to leave practices these days, don’t you think?”

When Aran asks his second question of the evening, Osamu’s eyes instinctively make a quick search for the bleached blond hair of his very own twin brother; only to come to the realization that he was nowhere to be found. Osamu then takes in Aran’s question and even though he’d just now truly noticed Atsumu’s skill of leaving after practice incredibly quickly—he really didn’t find such behavior to be anything incredibly out of the ordinary.

Of course they would leave together whenever they could, but that didn’t mean always. They were twins, yes, and they’ve always been side by side since they were young. On the same note however, they were also their own individuals with their own lives. It wasn’t unusual for Atsumu to leave practice earlier than him or vice versa. Sometimes they both just had their own things to tend to that the other really had no business in and that was perfectly okay as long as they both made it home in time for dinner as per their mother’s request; which they always managed to do.

So yes, Atsumu had been dashing out of the court whenever their coach even spoke the slightest indication of practice ending. But did that concern Osamu? No, not really.

“I mean, I guess he has,” he agreed, “though, I don’t think it’s somethin’ to be worried about.”

“I’m not worried, I’m just—”

“Curious?”

Upon the sudden interjection of a new voice, the two friends turn to face the new person who had unexpectedly joined their conversation. Much to both of their surprise, it was none other than Suna himself who was currently holding a blank expression as his eyes met theirs.

Osamu held both a sense of bewilderment and amusement at Suna, an otherwise relatively quiet person, butting into their conversation. “What? Are ya curious?” he can't help but ask with a slight laugh in his throat.

“Are you not?” Suna flips the question onto him with ease and Osamu internally wonders where the sudden air of boldness arrived from within a few mere minutes.

But when Osamu soaks in the question for himself, he really can’t understand why both Aran and Suna were so interested in Atsumu’s outside activities. He tries, oh he absolutely does. If there was any chance he would either have some sort of upper leverage to use against Atsumu in the future or simply find harmless dirt on his brother; he would see the appeal. However, he just couldn’t as long as they were talking about the same Atsumu he was thinking of.

“No?” is all Osamu says in reply which effectively earns a stifled laugh from Suna all while Aran gives him a look of disbelief.

“He’s your brother,” Aran begins before emphasizing his statement with, “Your twin—and you’re not even the slightest bit interested in why he’s practically sprinting out of the door this past week?”

Now, both of them were simply staring at Osamu. The very Osamu who simply couldn’t fathom why his friends were so invested on their mission to find out why Atsumu had been leaving practice in a hurry. Maybe it was a different experience because they were brothers, but Osamu never once questioned why Atsumu left as early as he did even when he had been asked about it only a few minutes ago. It was Atsumu they were talking about for crying out loud! Whatever he was doing, it certainly couldn’t be anything that interesting.

Osamu lets out a sigh as he slings his bag over his shoulder. “Seriously, what do ya guys think he could be doin’ out there?” he says as he eyes his two friends standing before him. “Sure, ‘Tsumu’s an absolute brat, but believe me, there’s no way he can be causin’ enough havoc for ya two to be this worried,” Osamu finalizes.

“Osamu, what happened to being the smarter twin?”

“What?”

Suna lets out a deep breath of exasperation before finally releasing his inner turmoil upon the gray-haired twin with, “The idea that Atsumu could have a girlfriend hasn’t crossed your mind at all during this entire conversation?”

Whatever Osamu was expecting Suna to say; it certainly wasn’t that.

“Girlfriend?” he repeats with a large amount of bewilderment as if doing so would cause it to make more sense to him.

On one hand, Aran shot a look of sympathy for his slowness as well as a look of appallment for the same exact reason. On the other hand however, Suna couldn’t help but release a small fit of laughter upon seeing Osamu’s reaction to his revelation of the idea that was brewing within the team. If it was any other occasion, Osamu would be a bit shocked at Suna’s burst of emotion—but he just couldn’t not when his friends were presenting the idea that his brother could possibly be seeing someone only a few seconds ago.

It wasn’t that Atsumu wasn’t capable of having a girlfriend. Oh, he absolutely was and Osamu hated it. Not because he was jealous or anything in that realm, but because he was an absolute pain to deal with whenever he would rave about the amount of people after him. And yet even with all of that fawning from other parties paired with Atsumu’s own boasting; there never seemed to be someone that was of a romantic interest to Atsumu.

“That makes no sense,” Osamu bluntly lets out. He can see the dissatisfied gazes passing over both of his friends’ features. He could also hear the small sighs and groans as well and he knows very well why they had those kinds of reactions. And believe him, he really did want to understand their speculation of Atsumu having a girlfriend, but he simply couldn’t imagine it being the reasoning for his quick departures.

“What? You don’t think Atsumu’s popular enough to have a girlfriend?” Suna argues, but it’s more like a tease if anything.

“No, he’s definitely popular enough to get one,” Osamu shoots back, horrid memories of Atsumu bursting into his room to rave about how many girls had asked him out on Valentine’s day flooding into his mind almost as if a dam had broken. “He’s just never had an instance where he took any of the offers seriously,” he finishes off as he continues protesting both Suna and Aran’s idea.

Suna crosses his arm before shooting back with, “You don’t think something could’ve changed his mind? Or rather—someone could’ve changed his mind?”

Osamu thinks for a moment and if he was really thinking that intently; he could. While Atsumu was a hard headed person through and through, he wasn’t exactly a difficult person to please. So while he hadn’t accepted any offers made to him up until now, that didn’t mean that there wasn’t someone out there who would be the one to change his mind. And just maybe, Atsumu had found them already. Though, Osamu wonders what kind of person they would be for Atsumu to come around on his entire philosophy for.

“Maybe,” Osamu gives in slightly. But, there’s still a look of hesitancy planted on the gentle features of his face and both Aran and Suna were able to recognize it almost immediately. Aran goes to reassure Osamu that none of their comments are that serious of a deal, but Suna has other plans.

“Listen, Osamu,” Suna begins as he slacks one of his arms across the twin’s shoulders. Osamu initially jolts at the sudden contact, especially with it being from someone who rarely ever did so. But, he finds that there is no other way out so he relaxes his posture. “We have a plan with this whole ‘Atsumu situation’,” Suna says, gesturing to Aran when he says the word ‘we’— even though Aran’s confused face denies a part in his so-called plan. Osamu can’t help but find this all rather pointless and more serious than it all needs to be, but he nonetheless lets Suna continue.

“If we were to ask Atsumu ourselves, he probably wouldn’t tell us all of the details—so instead, why don’t you go and find out for us?”

Osamu’s eyes widen.

“What?!” Osamu expressed with a much louder voice. He quickly snaps his head around to meet Suna’s as he abruptly, albeit—unintentionally, knocks Suna’s arm off his shoulder before exclaiming, “Why me out of ya two?! Yer obviously the most curious out of all of us, Suna!” Now, he was clearly wrapped up into something he had no idea even existed only a few minutes ago.

“Well, because you’re his twin and you’d be the least suspicious out of all of us?” Suna blatantly tells him which only results in more of a bewildered expression from the one being thrusted into a role of an operation.

Osamu’s thick brows contort into a tilted angle as his dark eyes stare down his two friends; more particularly Suna. Aran shoots an apologetic look towards Osamu which also includes a clear indication of ‘I have nothing to do with this’ as well. Rather than garnering all his appallment to Aran, his eyes drift over to Suna. Suna who had absolutely no reaction to his small outburst previously. Suna who had basically prompted the idea of sneaking around Atsumu in order to find out about his private life.

And the more he thought about it, the more his brief period of anger left. While of course he still wasn’t on board with the idea of him going out of his way to be extra interested in Atsumu’s affairs; he was more puzzled than anything at the moment.

Osamu sighs as an unimpressed look welcomes itself to his delicate features. “What would ya even want me to do?”

Suna shrugs which was almost enough to send Osamu into another wave of disbelief, but luckily Suna is kind enough to speak up before it gets to that point. “I don’t know, maybe sneak around and find out where he heads to after practice?” he suggests as if it was a relatively straightforward request when of course it was anything but that to Osamu.

“What—ya want me to basically spy on ‘Tsumu?”

“I mean…”

“Yer absolutely ridiculous.”

“Hey, don’t knock it till you try it,” Suna replies. “Plus, wouldn’t you want to know where Atsumu goes all these days? Even if it’s not anything special, wouldn’t it just be nice to know?”

Now Osamu couldn’t tell if Suna was trying to manipulate him into doing his suggestion. It really seemed like he was, so maybe he did shoot a timid glare in his direction before letting his face relax. When it does though, Osamu thinks. Would it really be nice to know where Atsumu goes these days? The first word that creeps into his head is a definite ‘no’, but when he lets his mind wander further, he begins to think otherwise. He knows his mother would be thankful if he checked up on his hot-headed brother from time to time.

He also thinks that checking on Atsumu would ease the small sliver of worries built in his system whenever Atsumu departs from his side. Now and in the inevitable future.

Osam’s eyes flicker from side to side as he desperately tries to not make eye contact with Suna again because he knows if he does—he wouldn’t be able to turn away from the idea. But just as with anything else when it came to his beloved brother, he was rather weak willed. That fact was evident when his eyes managed to land directly on Suna’s light green ones when his gaze directly collided with his.

Osamu sighs.

He tried. He really did.

But, his efforts would ultimately amount to nothing as his pointer finger clicks on a bolded article titled: ‘How to Sneak Around Without Getting Caught 101’.

Now here Osamu was, hiding behind a large pillar in front of their school gates as half of his face occasionally peeked out—looking like an absolute fool.

He really didn’t think trailing after Atsumu would be so utterly taxing. He had originally anticipated that all he would have to do would be walking a few steps behind his brother; but his thought was promptly shut down by Suna who expanded more on the rules of spying on someone. Especially when that someone was your twin who could easily recognize you with the mere sound of a few footsteps against concrete. He of course protested against Suna’s suggestions, but just as mentioned previously, it was incredibly easy for him to give in to anything when it involved his brother.

It was now a few days after their initial conversation. It was also just a few minutes after practice in which Atsumu was the first to change, grab his belongings and scramble out of the door as they had all expected. However, this time; Osamu made the effort to grab ahold of his brother before he was fully out of his sight, quickly asking where he was headed. He was hoping that Atsumu would make his journey easy for him—but that hope was immediately shattered when all that Atsumu responded with was a vague ‘I’m just gonn’ head out for a bit, don’t worry, I’ll be back in time for dinner.’

Though, Osamu doesn’t miss the more than thrilled shrill in his voice when he tells him the evident automated response which doesn’t do anything but raise Osamu’s curiosity within himself.

Shortly after, Osamu carefully trailed after his brother who was just standing outside the gates of their school; leading him to the position he was currently in—and the one he had been in for a couple minutes now. Almost comically, a ring comes from Atsumu’s phone which he quickly picks up in less than a second causing Osamu’s eyebrows to furrow. He wondered who was on the phone that could possibly have Atsumu so tranced that it was making him stop in his tracks, but his wonder only increased when he hears a small fit of laughter exit from his brother, all while there was a large grin dancing on his lips.

Osamu so desperately wanted to see the screen of his brother’s phone, but that would ruin his entire operation completely. In just a few seconds after Atsumu’s burst of laughter, he catches sight of Atsumu beginning to walk in the opposite direction of the route they usually took when going home. Clearly, wherever he was headed wasn’t anywhere near their home. Osamu is quick to follow in his tracks as he pays close attention to Atsumu’s movement ahead of him; always ready to dash behind some sort of object to hide his cover if it came to it.

God, how the mighty have fallen, he thinks to himself as he realizes the mess he had gotten himself into.

Osamu continues in his adventure, now into a small nearby town, and he’s surprised to find that Atsumu really doesn’t pay attention to his surroundings very well and it worries him deeply. Mainly because he’s been creeping after him for nearly ten minutes now and Atsumu has yet to even turn around and get a decent look of everything around him; including people. Osamu tells himself that he’s going to scold Atsumu for that later tonight along with the fact that he’s been practically speed-walking to get wherever he’s headed.

After a few more minutes pass, Osamu contemplates on just abandoning it all and stopping by a convenience store for an onigiri to consume on his way back. But, he soon finds that option is off the table when it dawns on him that he really had no idea where he was—meaning Atsumu has been venturing off into an unknown area for the past few days.

It worries Osamu for a second, but that worry ultimately retreats to the back of his mind when his eyes notice that Atsumu had finally made a pit stop after what felt like a milenema. He catches sight of Atsumu entering a shop and when his dark eyes peer up at the place his brother had stepped foot in, his confusion only soars.

“An umeboshi shop?” he whispers to himself as he awaits for his brother a few meters away from the shop.

One thing was for sure, Atsumu never really enjoyed umeboshi. He holds a vivid memory in his mind; one of a six year old Atsumu practically sobbing after having a taste of some homemade umeboshi their mother had brought from her friend’s garden. He can still remember the way their mother had taught him the proper etiquette of consuming produce from someone else’s garden. From that day onwards, Atsumu never forgot how to respect other people’s kind produce offerings—as well as how much he had a dislike for umeboshi.

But here he was, nearly ten years later, heading into a shop where it seemed umeboshi was their speciality. Osamu knew for a fact that it couldn’t be that his taste had simply changed, because just a week ago he had offered Atsumu some umeboshi himself, to which he had of course refused.

Just what was his business in that shop?

As his mind was wandering, his ears caught onto the sound of a bell ringing. His eyes darted to the entrance where Atsumu was already a few meters away from, him nearly skipping away from the town. Clearly, he was still heading to some other location and wasn’t just dashing out of practice for some umeboshi which only intrigued Osamu even more with every step he took.

The sun was beginning to retire for the day and Osamu internally feared that he would have to continue their journey much later than he anticipated, but luckily that seemed to not be the case as Atsumu made a sharp turn into an open valley that led into a relaxed body of water. When his gaze caught the sight before him, Osamu did admit that it was most definitely a lovely sight especially when paired with the sun setting.

However, when he did so—he also caught sight of someone sitting in the grassy field of the valley in the exact same area where Atsumu was headed.

Osamu blinked.

Was Suna’s assumption really right?

He could only faintly see the backside of their head from the distance where he was, but it was evident that the person had relatively short hair. It also seemed like their head of hair was curly as well, an observation that Osamu took in well. Though, when his eyes peered down to the lower remnants of their body, their choice of clothing wasn’t anything like Osamu had been expecting. He expected maybe a school uniform; a collared shirt and maybe a skirt, if Suna’s guess had truly been correct. However, rather than anything he was expecting—his eyes were greeted with the complete opposite.

A bright green and yellow track suit with both a large number ten as well as the name ‘Itachiyama’ in all capital letters.

Osamu initially thinks he might be losing his mind.

But, when he catches sight of his very own brother standing in front of the person he presumed to be one of the top three aces in the nation with a beaming grin on his face—Osamu recognizes that this was all reality.

And that he had expected practically anything but this.

Osamu decides to stay hidden behind a nearby tree. Earlier he would’ve been conscious of how he appeared to other bystanders, but now he just couldn’t be bothered to care any further. Not when it had been proven to him that his brother has not been sprinting out of practice to visit a secret girlfriend; but instead a Sakusa Kiyoomi well known in their sport of volleyball. As Osamu sits there, trying his ultimate best to comprehend the new found information he’d just discovered, he really can’t help but peek out from the tree and look at the two now sitting together in the grass.

He can’t hear everything from the area he’s at, but he does his best to at least garner even a little bit of information that could help him come to some sort of understandable conclusion. Not surprising to him is the fact that he hears Atsumu’s overwhelmingly booming voice speak first.

“Sorry I’m late, Omi-kun!”

A nickname?

“I stopped by this shop in town earlier, they had yer favorite.”

He sees Atsumu’s arm stretching out with a small grocery bag in his hand, the one that presumably was from the umeboshi shop. Osamu can’t help but wonder how Atsumu knows his favorite food. Were they close? If they were, how did it even happen? They’ve never really made the effort to interact all the previous times they’ve faced one another at nationals.

Sakusa takes the bag and peeks inside before turning back to the blond.

“Did you not get yourself anything?”

“Eh, I’m okay—umeboshi may be yer favorite Omi-kun, but it’s not for me.”

Osamu watches the scene before him. Internally, he applauds himself for being right about Atsumu still having a distaste for umeboshi; he knew he’d know his brother best out of anyone after all. On the other hand however, he wanted to slap himself on the back for not realizing Atsumu had been going out of his way to meet with Sakusa. Though, it dawns on him that he really would’ve had no way of knowing if it weren’t for him following Atsumu personally, because a big fat jerk plus a too blunt jerk? It was an unlikely friendship that no one would’ve ever seen coming.

Before he gets too far into his thoughts, Osamu’s eyes dart a gentle movement of the two a few meters from him. He notices Sakusa setting down the grocery bag to the side and while it’s faint, he can see that his hand was patting on the patch of grass next to him, indicating for Atsumu to take a seat next to him. In less than a second, Atsumu does exactly that as they were now sitting only a few inches from each other, much closer than Osamu would’ve expected especially considering it was Sakusa Kiyoomi: a person known to dislike close physical contact, as least to what Osamu knows.

Osamu begins to tune out their conversation as he dives deeper into the whole situation placed before him. But, that doesn’t mean he takes his gaze away from the two. As he thinks of what their relations to one another could be and just how long they’ve been secretly meeting with one another—all while he takes in their interactions together.

He observes their close contact with one another as they each spoke in a diligent manner. Osamu of course had expected for his brother to be chatting up a storm, but he had to admit; he never expected to see Sakusa speaking nearly as much as Atsumu was. Whatever their relationship was, it was evident they were most definitely closer than mere acquaintances. That assumption of his was further proved when he notices Sakusa attempting to shove a piece of umeboshi into Atsumu’s mouth to which the latter denied with flaring limbs and a loud shout of playful disapproval.

Osamu truly felt like he had entered a different universe. So much so that he intentionally pinches himself which only ends up making him silently yelp while proving that he was indeed in his original universe.

He just simply couldn’t fathom how everything came about. Why didn’t Atsumu mention anything? They all very well knew who Sakusa was, it wouldn’t have been odd for him to simply explain that they were friends and meeting up with another. None of it made sense to Osamu the more he thought about it and he knew there was most likely more to the picture than he was witnessing.

Quickly though, Osamu decides to snap himself out of the looming concerns developing in his mind and tune into their conversations again as he hoped it would explain some of the confusion he was growing rather accustomed to.

“We won most of our matches today—only lost around three, I’d say.”

“Wouldn’t expect anythin’ less from a top three ace, Omi-Omi.”

Osamu can see the way Sakusa lightly punches Atsumu in the arm as well as the dramatic reaction Atsumu gives in return. But, he also notices the soft laughter deriving from his brother along with the gentle smile that Sakusa was giving him in return; something hardly anyone saw when he was someone who wore a mask nearly every second of the day. It was a sight, for sure.

Quickly though, Sakusa continues their conversation.

“You know tomorrow’s our last day in this area, right?”

“‘Course I do.”

Osamu wonders what Sakusa means by ‘last day’ as well as the mention of matches. He also ponders on what exactly Sakusa was doing in this area like had mentioned, especially considering Itachiyama Academy is based in Tokyo which was a long train ride to the area their school was located in.

“Aren’t ya glad you won’t have to make extra long journeys from the school yer staying at to come see me anymore?”

“You’re ridiculous.”

Atsumu’s beat of laughter could be faintly heard from afar. Soon after, Osamu catches a small movement in the heap of grass situated between the two. Because of the angle he’s crouching at, as well as the other objects in his path of vision; he is able to clearly see just what the movement was. But, he swears he briefly saw movements of hands and fingers in between the planes of grass the wind was blowing. The sun was also deeper in its process of setting, making the scenery even more breathtaking than before, including the two sitting in it by themselves. Osamu even considers leaving them on their own accord, but that idea is quickly halted when hears an unexpected sentence.

“I like spending time with you, Atsumu.”

Another sound of delighted laughter is sung from the receiver of the sentence.

“And I like ya, Omi. Haven’t we said this before?”

“Stop acting like you don’t enjoy hearing it again.”

Osamu swears he stops breathing.

He can hear Atsumu’s tender string of laughter again. He’s heard it time and time before, but this one sounds different. He wants to say a bad difference because he’s heard of a various number of bad rumors that circulate around Sakusa, ones telling that he’s an extremely vile and distasteful person—but he can’t. Not when it was evident that those rumors were anything but true. Not when he’s witnessing a new side of Sakusa, one that was pleasant and amiable. Not when his brother’s laugh had characterized a different level of utter infatuation with that very same Sakusa.

Osamu begins to question his previous assumption. Their level of closeness obviously wasn’t that of only friends, evident by their words of intimacy shared only a few seconds ago. He was beginning to think that maybe Suna was right, just not in the way he was anticipating.

“This past week of meeting was fun, wouldn’t ya say?”

“Yeah, it was.”

The delicate way Astumu carefully begins to bury his head into the crook of Sakusa’s neck initially startles Osamu. It was weird to see his brother being so intimate with someone, especially someone of Sakusa’s nature. But, just as he realized earlier, there was a clear level of tenderness shared between the two that—while a bit foreign—was a bit heartwarming to witness, even as much as Osamu would never admit it.

“We’ll get to see each other again when nationals start, won’t we?”

“Of course we will—and until then, we’ll message each other whenever we can.”

“Wow, Omi, I didn’ realize how clingy ya were.”

“Will you shut up?”

There’s a mixture of amused laughter paired with an exasperated groan. Osamu watches them as the sun sets into a soft hue of twilight which illuminates onto both of them. He wonders if they had even bothered to notice the change of the sky above them because with the way they only stare at one another; it seemed that they couldn’t care less about their surroundings. His observation was even more evident when he notices the quiet exchanges between the two. He questions what could be the reason for the sudden silence, but when he sees the subtle movement of both of their heads slowly leaning into one another paired with their sunken eyes and puckered lips—Osamu fears for his eyes as well as his fragile mind.

It was at that moment that Osamu decided it was time for him to disappear from the scene and leave the two to have their moment actually alone this time.

On his quick journey back home, plenty of questions ran through his mind. How did they meet? When did all of this start? What was Sakusa doing in the area? Where was he staying? What caused them to fall for one another? Why did Atsumu decide to hide all of this?

But even with the unanswered questions trailing through the roads of his mind; he did have one answer amongst it all.

He knew what Atsumu had been doing during all these instances of him dashing out their court after practice.

When Osamu had returned home that night, he greeted their mother with a seemingly distressed face, so much so that their mother had even asked if he was doing alright. Of course, he reassured her before darting to their shared room as he awaited for Atsumu’s return home. As he patiently waited, he contemplated on whether he should confront him or not. He went back and forth between the benefits and downsides in doing either. If he asked him about it, Atsumu would question why he had followed him and invaded his privacy, possibly making him lose a sense of trust for him if it was that severe. If he didn’t, Osamu would secretly live with the guilt that he knew such an intimate part of Atsumu’s life without him knowing.

It all seemed so utterly confusing. What made it all even worse was the fact that he didn’t even get a chance to properly come to a decision before Atsumu had entered their front door.

When he heard Atsumu’s voice announcing that he was home, Osamu practically dashed out of the room to go into their hallway. Perhaps he was a bit too brash when he made his way to the front because when he greeted him with a simple ‘Yer back’, Atsumu shot a quick look of confusion while he took off his shoes and jacket before sending back a puzzled ‘Yeah? ‘Course I am.’

Osamu licked his lips. The question was on the tip of his tongue. It was sitting right there and he was seconds away from it bursting out of his mouth when their mother had loudly shouted from the kitchen that dinner was ready. Atsumu was the first to announce back as he cheerfully made his way to their dining room. Osamu clamped his mouth shut and nearly bit on his tongue before doing the same exact thing.

They all ate dinner just as usual. Even though Osamu was internally fighting for his life, he made sure to not show any of it when they were eating with their mother. He wouldn’t do that to his mother who always went out of her way to make a bountiful meal for them every single day. He also wouldn’t do that to Atsumu, even as much as it was all killing him inside. It wasn’t fair to both of them, so he ate diligently as all three chatted about their days lately.

After dinner, both him and Atsumu do the dishes together. They’re standing side by side and Osamu thinks that now would be perfect. Once again, his lips part, but he was quickly interrupted by the faucet malfunctioning and spraying them both with a burst of water. Just his luck. That of course resulted in them having to retreat to the bathroom and cleaning themselves up, meaning once again; another opportunity to confront Atsumu was snatched away again.

Now, it was later into the night. All the lights in the hallways were turned off for the night. Their mother had bid them goodnight as she slipped into her own room. That also meant that they were left to retreat to their room—resulting in the situation they were in now; Osamu laying in the lower bunk while Atsumu was laying in the upper bunk. Osamu simply lays there, mind still running a thousand miles per minute all while he hears the small sounds of Atsumu shuffling in his blanket.

Osamu thinks. He had lost all other prior chances beforehand and now this was his last chance for the day. He knew if he didn’t do it today, he wouldn’t ever do it because that was the kind of person he was. He had to do it right now, but he just couldn’t figure out which was an odd feeling to him—especially when he had always considered himself a fairly good problem solver.

A minute goes by. Osamu panics even further. Who knows when Atsumu’s going to go to sleep? What if he was already asleep? Then he would miss his chance once more which was quite literally the last thing he wanted before he headed to bed for the night.

So, in a split second decision, Osamu asks a question.

“Was yer day good, ‘Tsumu?”

It wasn’t the question he had intended to ask originally, but it was still a question nonetheless. It was also a question that could determine a lot of things; the main one being if being with Sakusa really brought Atsumu as much joy as it seemed he did—which is something Osamu would give anything to at least know a fraction of, even if he would never admit it.

There’s a quick shuffling sound as well as the sound of an object, seemingly a phone, hitting a mattress. “Huh? Where is this coming from?”

Typical Atsumu. “Would ya have preferred I didn’t ask?” Osamu shoots back.

“With how random it is, honestly, yeah,” Atsumu responds, with no hint of suspicion or worry in his voice. Osamu fights the urge to reciprocate with another insult, taking a deep breath to himself in order to not give into the intense urge. He was asking for a deeper purpose, even though Atsumu didn’t know that. He couldn’t let himself go.

“Would ya stop bein’ a stubborn jerk for one second and just answer my question?” Osamu decides to return. It’s not exactly just an insult, but it’s also not just a simple question which seemed to work in his mind.

Atsumu lets out a small scoff. Following it however, are a few seconds of pure silence. Below him, Osamu patiently waits. He doesn’t berate Atsumu for not answering him immediately mainly because he knows exactly why he had taken a moment to think about the question he had asked him. It would be a rather loaded one when you had basically just spent a part of the day with your secret boyfriend no one knew about. At least, when you think no one knows about it.

After a few more seconds, Osamu hears a small chuckle from above him. And not long after, an answer to his dooming question at last comes.

“Yeah, I guess ya could say my day was good.”

It was an uncomplicated sentence, really. At least to anyone else it would be. But, not to Osamu. Osamu who had just found out his brother had a secret boyfriend he had been spending the past week with. Osamu who witnessed unspeakable amounts of peaceful tenderness between the two. Osamu who absolutely didn’t miss the pure heaps of warmth lathered in his brother’s voice when he spoke the previous sentence.

To Osamu, Atsumu’s answer sealed his choice on what he would do with the new information he had gained that day.

“That’s good to hear.”

Comfortable silence follows suit. Atsumu not bothering to say anything further after the response—and Osamu quietly smiling to himself with closed eyes.

“G’night, ‘Tsumu.”

“G’night, ‘Samu.”

The next day follows with clear blue skies as the sound of multiple pairs of sneakers squeak against their court’s floor. There’s also the sound of multiple volleyballs crashing into a range of things; the floor, the net, the wall. Amidst it all is the loud chatter of the team, all seemingly speaking about different things, whether that be their score on the latest test or a debate on whose serves were the best for the day.

Soon enough, all of their attention was gathered by their coaches who officially declared that practice was over for the day and that they were responsible for making sure the court was tidied up before everyone left.

Upon hearing such words, Osamu’s eyes immediately shifted over to his brother who had a look of both excitement and determination in his caramel eyes. Osamu knew very well why, of course. And as soon as the coaches left all of them to their own accords, Atsumu was the first one to sprint over to the locker rooms without even giving anyone a second thought. Everyone had practically gotten used to Atsumu’s urgency to leave practice for the past week, and while they were a bit agitated he hadn’t been doing his part to clean like everyone else—they decided to let it go as Atsumu’s urgency wasn’t in normal fashion meaning something was clearly important to him at the moment.

In only about two minutes since Atsumu had entered the locker room, he was already out and sprinting to the exit. No one bothered to stop him, not even Kita. Though as Osamu watched his brother depart from the court, he couldn’t stop feeling the intense stares in his direction from quite literally everyone else on the team.

Because apparently, word had gotten around the team that he was going to be following after Atsumu in his endeavors after practice and of course, everyone wouldn’t miss the chance to hear the details from Osamu since they all couldn't be more curious.

Rather than giving in to everyone else’s own desires, Osamu simply holds them hostage with the answers they so desperately wanted to know. He had the upper hand now, so he decided to mind his own business as he took his time finishing his cleaning duties for the day; which also meant that the others had to complete their duties as well. Even when the cleaning was done, he went to the locker room to go and get changed, which led to the others following suit.

Now, they were almost all set to go. Osamu had even grabbed his bag and was ready to leave for the day when he could feel the intense stares of curiosity digging in his skin. He felt a bit evil for it, but he came to the conclusion that unless someone asked directly; he wouldn’t be the one to speak up first. It was all mainly because of the sheer amount of stress they had put him through—but also because now that he knew the secret of his brother, he didn’t exactly feel prompted to just share it with anybody.

Just as Osamu stepped one foot out of the day, not even bothering to give the others a hint of acknowledgement; he suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder.

Of course, it was no one else but Suna.

“So?”

Osamu takes in the one word he tells him. He also takes in the amount of eyes staring back at him, all of them filled with anticipation. He knows very well what Suna’s single word meant and what he was asking.

The sight of the previous day comes to his mind. The sight of finding his brother venturing off to a rather unknown area after school in order to meet up with the one and only Sakusa Kiyoomi. The sight of the warm hues of the sun gleaming down onto the both of them as they sat next to one another. The sight of the bristles of grass brushing against their clothing in the passing wind. The sight of seeing the two converse in a variety of topics, ranging from simpler ones like volleyball; all the way to intimate discussions about their time together.

The sight of seeing his brother falling into the deep depths of love for another person.

Osamu thinks he’ll never forget the way his brother’s lips curled into a gentle smile that day. His gentle thread of laughter that floated in the air. The love-stricken look cast in his eyes as he gazed at Sakusa, never even thinking of taking them off the other. He knew he would never forget the utter amount of admiration his brother held yesterday. He would never forget the absolute carefree answer he gave him just the night before. None of it would be forgotten so long as Atsumu remained in love.

So, Osamu sighs.

It earns him even more intense stares in his way as well as some faint sounds of shoes shuffling against the freshly cleaned floor. He almost has the heart to give them a laugh of sympathy with the news he was about to break to them; but he manages to refrain himself from doing so.

Instead, Osamu gives them the answer they had been desperately waiting for.

“Well, it’s safe to say ‘Tsumu definitely doesn’ have a girlfriend.”

When the fateful words are spoken, there is immediately a loud reaction from all of them. They all differed in their own way, however. Some were of exasperation for their assumption being wrong. Some were full of triumph and ‘I knew it’ as they boasted over being on the right end of the spectrum. Osamu makes sure to pay extra close attention to both Suna and Aran, the main perpetrators of the entire situation. He can see the look of defeat on Suna’s face along with the look of hesitant acceptance in Aran’s. In just a simple sentence, the entire court is sent in a storm as they all continue discussing the confirmation at hand.

It was then that Osamu decided to take his leave; following in his brother’s lead.

Osamu walks with his head gleaming up at the sky above him. It was the same atmosphere as it was yesterday with the soft gradient looming in the clouds. The wind was also blowing a hefty amount. Osamu begins to wonder what Atsumu and Sakusa were discussing on their last day together in that area with the harsh wind blasting in their faces along with the sun glaring in their direction.

He thinks they’ll be just fine though. With their dedication to one another, he doesn’t fear they would abandon each other’s side over something so small.

For now, Osamu vows to keep his brother’s secret.

He would be the one to cover for his brother in times of need, even if it earns him odd questions and looks as a result. He would be the one subtly assisting his brother in times of need if God forbid, there were times his heart was fragile. He would be the one to quietly support his brother through all the ups and downs of his secret relationship.

He would do it 100 times over again if it meant he would be able to protect the blissful atmosphere that surrounded his brother in these recent times.

Still though, he hopes he wouldn’t have to withhold the secret for too long.

Because he’s decided that he’d really enjoy meeting the boy who makes his brother shine like the radiating sun in the sunsets they share together.