Chapter Text
Contrary to popular belief, Atsumu was not an idiot. He could be pretty perceptive if he put in the effort.
That’s why he noticed the unusual behavior that his teammate and friend, Suna Rintarou, had developed around his brother.
Suna was a nonchalant guy, kinda quiet and reserved. He was cool, but Atsumu wouldn’t get caught even in death admitting that outloud.
It was hard trying to decipher what he was thinking, but they’ve been friends for a while now, so Atsumu can dare to say that he understands what his intentions are.
As subtle as it was, Suna likes Osamu.
There’s not really a notorious difference on how he acts around the gray haired guy, probably no one else has caught on, yet it was crystal clear to him.
He could be wrong though, as there has never been an indicator that confirms his suspicions, but Atsumu trusts his instincts. His gut feeling has almost never failed him to this day.
Suna always perks up when Osamu arrives or is mentioned in a conversation. He discards his phone just to talk to him properly, something he fails to do most of the time with anyone else. And even if he’s done with the twins’ bullshit from time to time, he only ever reproaches Atsumu about them.
Which was totally unfair by the way, why only hold it against him? Osamu was the same, if not worse than him.
Anyways, despite what he originally thought, Atsumu is not really bothered by it. Suna is a great guy and he knows if he ever dates Osamu he would treat his brother right.
His only problem? Their Sunarin is really taking his sweet fucking time in asking Osamu out.
It’s truly infuriating, what’s taking him so long? At this rate they will graduate and Suna still won’t confess.
So, Atsumu, being the naturally good-hearted person that he is, decides to do the reasonable thing.
Meddle in stuff that's none of his business.
“Don’t”.
“Don’t what?”, he asks in bewilderment, there’s no way Osamu knows what he was thinking.
“Am not sure, but ya look like yer thinking about doing something stupid”, his brother supplied, scrunching his brow at him, “So don’t”.
Damn, he can’t even scheme in his head in peace.
They were both walking back home after practice, each with a meat bun that Aran had bought for them and the team. Or well, Atsumu only has one, while Osamu has two.
He eyes the additional treat, why did that scrub have one more than him?
“Did Aran buy ya two buns?”, he demanded to know, feeling slightly jealous. Why did Aran only spoil Osamu? Atsumu was definitely his favorite twin, right? He deserves an extra bun too! “That’s so unfair”.
“Oh, this?”, Osamu asked, waving the offending treat in his face, that bastard, “Suna gave it to me, said he wasn’t hungry”.
Oh? So that’s how it was…
He was definitely not surprised, given his recent discovery, but he was certainly amused.
“I see…so Sunarin gave it to ya”, He mused, only getting a hum in return, “Don’t ya find that funny?”.
“Why would I?”, his twin looked at him boredly, as he did most of the time, “He does that sometimes”.
Oh? So it’s not the first time…
Atsumu is actually surprised that Osamu is not swooning over Sunarin right now, the key to his brother’s heart is literally food.
“Say, ‘Samu”, he gets his attention, trying to sound as casual as he can, “What do ya think about Suna?”.
Osamu turns to fully look at him, probably sensing that there is something beneath his innocent question.
“He’s a great dude, I guess?”, The younger muses, quirking an eyebrow at him, “Why ya ask?”
“No reason”, he says, disappointed by the lack of…well, anything.
To his knowledge, Osamu does not like Suna that way, or at least he has never given him any leads that he feels the same as their friend.
And apparently that’s all Osamu thinks Suna is, a friend. He’s a teammate, a guy they hang up with. Osamu probably has never thought of him romantically in any sense.
But something gnaws at him from inside, his gut telling him that there’s something that can be achieved if he gives it time.
Suna and Osamu would make a great couple, at least he thinks so. They complement each other well, both being usually the collected and calm type. Though he knows for a fact that Osamu is anything but calm, the fucker really matches Atsumu’s own freak.
It would be nice if Sunarin’s crush could get somewhere.
So he sets his mind; he’ll help these two losers get together.
“Mark my words, ‘Samu, I’ll change yer life!”
“...What are ya on, ya weirdo?”
*******
Suna’s deadpan expression made him reconsider his life choices.
“Ah, you found out? That’s actually very impressive from you".
Atsumu thinks that he should feel offended by the comment, but he ignores it by the more pressing news.
So he had impulsively confronted Suna about his subtle yet evident crush on Osamu.
They shared the same homeroom, so they often talked between classes. Atsumu took advantage of not having anyone near them and took the cat out of the bag.
He did not expect Suna’s indifference in having been caught though.
For some reason, he thought his friend would be mortified, given that Atsumu has always been pretty protective over Osamu. Or at the very least a little embarrassed by his infatuation being exposed.
But Suna just looked bored, as if the topic was not that big of a deal to him.
“Wait, why are ya so chill about this?”, he retorted, pouting at the lack of reaction, “I just uncovered yer biggest secret!”.
“That’s not my biggest secret, you dumbass”, Suna huffed, squinting his eyes at him, “And what do you expect me to do? Deny that is true? That’s a waste of time. You already found out, there’s nothing I can do about it”.
“But what if I tell Osamu? There are no secrets between us, ya know?”.
Suna side-eyed him, letting out a chuckle.
“You wouldn’t dare”.
He wouldn’t. Yes, he can be an asshole sometimes, and he does indeed tell Osamu everything, but Suna is his friend, and he wouldn’t betray his trust so blatantly.
“Maybe, maybe not”, is what he goes with, shrugging while letting out a sigh, “Ya should confess”.
“Why the fuck would I do that?”.
That made Atsumu halt.
“...Because that’s what normal people do when they like someone?”, he replied, frowning at his friend, “Or what? Ya plan to suppress yer feelings until we graduate''.
That was definitely a joke.
“Well, yes?”.
He had to be kidding.
“The fuck, Sunarin?”, Atsumu scolded, huffing at the guy that just went back to his phone, “I didn’t take ya for a coward”.
Suna frowned but still didn’t look up to him.
“I’m not a coward”.
“Then why do ya not want to confess?”
“There’s no point in doing so”, is Suna’s quiet reply, his voice turning a little more quiet which makes Atsumu pause, “I know Osamu does not like me that way. So there’s no point in ruining our friendship over something so insignificant like a crush. It’ll pass, probably”.
Some part of Atsumu wanted to be angry that the one person he thinks could be a good match for Osamu thinks that their feelings for his brother are not worth fighting for. The other part though, feels sad that Suna has decided to give up before even trying.
It’s not like he can lift his spirits by assuring him that Osamu feels the same, because he knows he doesn’t. He does not want to get Suna’s hopes up, but at the same time, he really thinks that if he shoots his shot things will come around eventually.
If he confesses to Osamu…maybe his brother would finally see Suna as something more than a friend.
“I still think ya should try”, he assures, patting his friend’s back, “Maybe if you come clean with yer feelings, the scrub will realize his own”.
“You know he doesn’t feel the same, Atsumu”, Suna subtly deflated, finally looking up from his phone, “I don’t wanna waste my time, nor ruin what me and Osamu have right now”.
Suna might think he can conceal what he was feeling pretty well, but Atsumu can clearly see the pain and dejectedness in his usually bored gaze.
“Now, ‘Samu would never let something like that come between yer friendship”, he hurried to acknowledge, “And what if he doesn’t feel the same now? Ya hafta win him over”.
“Win him over? Osamu does not even think I can date someone”, Suna complains, almost whining which catches Atsumu’s attention, “He has told me so, he thinks I’m incapable of putting in the effort to maintain a relationship”.
“And can ya blame him? Yer barely putting in the effort to even maintain this conversation right now”, Atsumu chastises, shaking his head, “But that’s easy to correct, Osamu just needs to see that yer very dateable. Then I’m sure he will take an interest in ya!”.
Suna rolls his eyes, clicking his tongue at Atsumu’s enthusiasm.
“I’m pretty sure that wouldn’t work”, the younger said, huffing as he went back to his phone, “Besides, how can I even prove that I would be a good boyfriend? So ridiculous”.
“I can think of something!”.
“Oh, I bet you could”.
Atsumu was all in for helping Suna, but the sarcastic tone and the indifferent attitude was getting on his nerves.
However, he did want this situation to improve, so if he really wants to help Suna, he needs to think of a plan that does not require his friend to directly confess, but at the same time that it catched Osamu’s attention.
He also needs to prove to his brother that Suna was capable of holding romantic relationships, maybe then would Osamu realize his dormant feelings for him. Atsumu swears they are there, but Osamu himself probably has never thought about them too deeply.
Maybe if his twin saw Suna dating someone else he could get things going…
That’s it, Atsumu widened his eyes at the revelation.
Osamu just needs to see Suna give the undivided attention that was exclusively for him to someone else, then he would definitely realize his own feelings.
But he just couldn’t make Suna date anyone, that would be awkward for him and the other person, and what if the third party grew attached? That would be another mess…
So there really was only one way.
“Say, Suna. If I told you there was this minimal chance that Osamu could return yer feelings, would ya be willing to try?”.
His friend looked at him warily.
“I told you already, I don’t want to make a big deal out of this”, Suna replied, but ended up sighing, “But I guess, if there was a slight chance…I wouldn’t mind giving it a shot”.
Atsumu can settle with that answer.
“Alright, date me then”.
“I beg your biggest pardon?”, Suna all but choked on his spit.
“Okay, hear me out”, Atsumu started, already scheming how this would go, “I don’t like you and you don’t like me, at least not like that-”
“I don’t like you at all, you are annoying”
“-At least not like that! And all we need is for Osamu to see ya being all lovey-dovey with someone else to realize that he does in fact like ya and how ya treat him”.
Suna makes a disgusted face at that.
“And for that I have to date you and you ugly face?”
“Hey! Me and Osamu share the same face, ya idiot!”
“Your brother is cuter though”
“You idiot-you want my help or not?”
Suna sighed again, but seemed to actually think about it for a moment.
“Wouldn’t that be too much of a hassle?”, he asked, genuinely curious, “Why are you so invested in this?”.
Atsumu also took a moment to reflect on it.
The main reason was that he was a nosy shit that could not stand Suna’s cowardly pining and his brother’s dense mind.
On the other hand…he just wants his friend and brother to be happy, and if they can find it together, that’s just a plus.
“I think ya would be good for him”, he confesses, smiling softly, “And that he would be good for ya. That’s all”.
Suna looked like he still wasn’t entirely convinced by Atsumu’s plan, however, he sighed one last time before nodding his head.
“Alright, let’s try”.
His smile brightened.
He can’t wait for Suna and his brother to start dating already. Only then does he realize that he has to date Suna first, and now he understands the aversion his friend had at first.
“Oh wait, yer right. Just thinking about dating ya gives the ick”
Suna smacked him in the arm, and they almost started a brawl in the middle of the classroom, but that would only make their plan less believable, so they had to restrain themselves.
Atsumu did not think this one through it seems. How can he pretend to be in love with Suna when they get on each other’s nerves half of the time? Well, they better buckle up for the ride.