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Kageyama held his head down as he walked back to class. Slipping through the crowd of students as fast and as inconspicuously as he could, hoping that he wouldn't be noticed. An arm slung over his shoulders and brought him to a stop, he tensed as his heart dropped into his feet and he turned his head to look at the asshole ringleader who had been tormenting him for the three months.
"No need to be so tense Tobio." He smirked and led Kageyama away from the crowd. Kageyama felt eyes on them, but he knew nobody would help him. Tochikawa was just that much of an asshole that nobody wanted to be near him apart from his posy, even to help a classmate. They didn't want the bullies attention shifted to them.
"Come and play with us Tobio, class is boring right? We can have a great time." Tochikawa crooned, his followers laughed and Kageyama frowned.
"I need to go to class. I'm behind as it is. I don't have the time to be skipping class."
Tochikawa's fingers tangled in his hair and he tugged hard at the soft strands. Kageyama let out a little yelp of pain and tried to back away but Tochikawa yanked him closer, fingers still entangled in Tobio's hair, and walked him over to the stairs leading to the roof.
"You've always got time for me Tobio. Now let's go have some fun."
#
Tsukishima's eyes bore holes in Kageyama's back as he watched that little shit head from 1-C drag his teammate away. The look on Kageyama's face sparking worry deep in his gut. How long had he been a target of that pathetic little weasel?
"Oi Tsukki, are you listening? We need to go to class." Yamaguchi bumped his arm and Tsukishima turned his head to look down at him. He raised his hands in a placating manner to sooth his friend before he glance back at Tochikawa and Kageyama as the former dragged Tobio to him by his hair.
"Yamaguchi, I'm probably going to skip class. Make up some excuse for me." He said and turned away.
"What? Tsukki?" Yamaguchi grabbed his arm, confusion written all over his face. "What do you mean you're 'probably going to skip class'?! Either you are or you aren't, pick one!"
"Why?" Tsukishima asked impatiently, throwing a glance back at Yamaguchi.
"Because I won't know what to say otherwise!"
Tsukishima sighed. Yamaguchi had a point. "Just tell her I went to sick bay and might be back later."
Yamaguchi nodded and released him. Tsukishima was gone before Yamaguchi could say another word, heading straight for the stairs Kageyama was being dragged up by the year level bully. Yamaguchi shrugged and went back to class; Tsukishima will do as he chooses.
#
Tsukishima slipped through the door and hid himself around the corner of the wall. Out of their sight but keeping them in his. They were easy to follow, not being the quietest people around, he barely had to worry about making too much noise as they jeered at his teammate and pushed him around, almost pushing him down the stairs once or twice.
By the time they got to the roof, Kageyama was a mess. He was jumpy and frightened and flinched away whenever someone came close enough to touch him, shaken by his very close near misses on the stairs. They laughed at him and spat abuse at him and he did nothing but stand there and take it. He was far too used to this to be bothered fighting back anymore. Tsukishima could see the resigned look in his eye and feared that he had something to do with that.
"Honestly Tobio, you used to be so much more fun. Now you're just pathetic, standing there and taking it like a bitch." Tochikawa was right in front of him, hand caressing Kageyama's cheek as he smirked. He drew back his hand and slapped Tobio as hard as he could.
Kageyama stumbled back and hit the roof railing. It creaked at him and rang in the hollow metal tubes, he stood straight again as the group laughed and chattered amongst themselves. Then came the suggestion that froze Kei's blood and tightened a clamp on his heart.
"Hey Tochikawa. We need a some more entertainment up here, what do you say to a bit of air time bitch?" They giggled together and Tochikawa's eyes lit up like he'd been given an early Christmas present.
"You're right Oojima. It's not like anyone would miss the bitch anyway. Right, bitch?" Tochikawa smiled at him. Kageyama didn't answer; he looked down at the floor beneath his feet and prayed they would just leave. Tochikawa clicked his tongue in annoyance and stalked forward, he hated being ignored.
He twisted his fingers in Kageyama's hair and yanked his head back, relishing the gasp of pain that escaped Tobio's lips. "Right bitch?" He called, yanking on Kageyama's hair again. Kageyama nodded and Tochikawa smirked, kneed him in the stomach, threw him to the ground and walked back to his place in the middle of the arch of bullies cornering Kageyama.
Kageyama struggled to breath on the ground, he pushed himself onto his knees and rested his head on his forearm as he couched and tried to work past the pain radiating from his abdomen. Tochikawa had not held back.
"Get up bitch!" Oojima snapped. "Time to learn how to fly." He crooned. Tsukishima felt rage coil in his gut, he wanted to help but he knew he couldn't beat all of them. He was bigger than all of them but he wasn't good at fighting. Down below Tsukishima heard the gym doors get slammed open as the P.E. class fled the oven they called a gym. The class was noisy.
Tochikawa stalked back to Kageyama and yanked him to his feet by his hair. "Look, you even have an audience bitch. Climb the railing." He ordered, shoving Kageyama at the fence. Kageyama looked down at the class and paled. It was a long way down.
"Tochikawa I-."
"Climb the fucking railing bitch! If you're lucky they'll catch you and you can take someone with you to the afterlife." Tochikawa pulled out a knife and held it to Kageyama's throat; he tensed but slowly began stepping up on to the bottom bar of the fence one foot at a time. Tsukishima stepped out from around the corner and ran for Kageyama, he called out to him drawing the group's attention to his presence as Tobio's feet planted themselves on the edge of the building.
Oojima and another one of the group stepped in his way and grabbed him.
"Tsukishima!"
"Get moving bitch." Tochikawa shoved Kageyama backwards, his foot slipped off the edge and he fell back.
"Kageyama!" That was not Tsukishima's voice. Tsukishima was too shell-shocked to speak as he watched Kageyama fall, but he moved. Tanaka's voice having broken his frozen state, his body moved faster than he'd ever moved before, his long legs ensured he reached the edge after only four steps and he vaulted the railing.
The tug of extra weight pulled Tsukishima away from the fence and his hand slipped. They both fell away from the edge; Tsukishima tightened his hold on Kageyama's arm and moved his body into a dive, high enough still to hook a leg around the bottom bar of the railing to hold them up.
Kageyama swung into the building and scrabbled for a handhold to relieve Kei of his weight. Below them people were screaming in horror. Tanaka was yelling up at them and classroom windows were shoved open to see what the commotion was about. "Kageyama! Tsukishima!" They were right above Sugawara's class, the door to the roof slammed shut.
Tsukishima let go when Kageyama nodded at him. He did so slowly; scared to let him fall should his grip fail. Kei quickly pulled himself back onto the roof and dragged Kageyama up and under the railing before he wrapped his arms around his shivering setter and hugged him tightly against his chest like he never wanted to let go.
Kageyama shook in his hold and sunk into his embrace, walking a thin line between panicked breathing and hyperventilating. He was crying, releasing soft gasps and sobs as he tried to control himself. Tsukishima rested his chin on Kageyama's head and didn't say a word. Just held him securely in his arms in silence until Tobio squeezed out an apology. Tsukishima squeezed him back.
"It's ok, it's not your fault." He said. "I won't let anything happen to you."