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Looking back, there's really only one explanation for all of Hinata's eventual suffering, which is that: this is a hundred percent the work of some otherworldly higher being.
An entity that's out to get him because he has grown and gone relaxed, like little frivolous mistakes don't scare him anymore.
When Hinata first stumbles upon the thread, it's at 10:15 P.M, forty-five minutes before the start of the graveyard hour, thirty minutes after he arrived at his apartment following an away game.
He's lying down on his bed, all washed and dressed up in his softest pajamas, burrito-wrapped in his finest, warm, thick, and fluffy blanket, when the main post, like magic, innocently pops up on his timeline in the middle of his bedtime scrolling, just when he's about a minute away from dozing off to a deep sleep.
He remembers the exact time this happens because he goes over the said main post twice. Once, when he sees both his and Atsumu's faces dangerously close together in a picture and he pushes past it thinking it's one of those typical fan edits, and another—which is a second later—when he swipes down for a double take after realizing that the picture is not, in fact, a fan edit and is indeed real, and according to user Meiyu with the handle churchofatsumu: Okay, tell me why Atsumu only looks at Shouyou like that.
Hinata blinks. Whatever fog of sleep that was starting to cloud his mind is gone instantly. He clicks on the picture and zooms in until his and Atsumu's faces take up the entirety of his phone screen.
He lifts a delicate brow. Atsumu, in the image, was giving him his usual charming crinkle-eyed smile after their winning match. Their faces were closer than normal, sure, but it was nothing new. Nothing different. So, what is user Meiyu trying to say?
Curiosity gets the best of him, and he exits and taps the post, unveiling the replies beneath.
His first mistake. The first punch delivered by the extraterrestrial beings from above.
Meiyu @churchofatsumu
Okay, tell me why Atsumu only looks at Shouyou like that.
Alt. Image Description | Miya Atsumu leaning dangerously close to Hinata Shouyou. Hinata Shouyou is laughing, while Miya Atsumu looks at him with a soft expression. Their noses are just a few centimeters away from touching.
Meiyu @churchofatsumu
The way this is not even the first time. He has been doing this ever since Shouyou joined the team. Look at their MSBY fanmeet from last year. Their faces aren't as close, but his eyes, you guys. His eyes.
Alt. Image Description | Miya Atsumu looking fondly at Hinata Shouyou while he's (Hinata Shouyou) busy chatting away with Bokuto Koutarou.
Meiyu @churchofatsumu
Call me crazy, but don't you think there's a little something in the air?
Hinata rubs his eyes.
Something in the air? He scrunches his nose. If he remembers correctly, the air was completely normal during the fan meet last year.
Well, there is that strong perfume during their high-touch segment that Sakusa absolutely despised, which he still doesn't shut up about to this day, but contrary to what his fellow spiker says, no one exactly made a big deal out of it. To the majority of the team, it wasn't anything unusual.
And it's not like the air is any different on the court either. Maybe there are instances where you could whiff the faint smell of athlete sweat, but hey! Again, it's completely normal.
Confused by the statement, Hinata decides to read on.
His second mistake. The second blow brought upon by another unearthly presence.
Meiyu @churchofatsumu
Like, these suspiciously loving gazes aside, I don't know if you guys have noticed, but for someone who said he doesn't really like sharing his personal stuff, Atsumu has no problem with letting Shouyou borrow his jacket not just once or twice, but all the time.
Meiyu @churchofatsumu
Not just that, but this possessive bastard (dare I say) also likes putting his arm around him. If not around Shouyou's shoulders, it's on his waist. Are you trying to stake your claim on him, Atsumu? Hmm.
Meiyu @churchofatsumu
Also, let's not forget his other nickname for Shouyou when they're alone. Who the hell calls their teammate "Sunshine"
Meiyu @churchofatsumu
I don't know about you guys, but personally, I don't think this is something you do to someone you merely consider as a friend. This is some type of activity that only lovers do. You know, those who go out on a date, kiss with tongue, and crash into a 20,000 yen love hotel room during anniversaries.
Meiyu @churchofatsumu
Seriously, do you have anything you would like to speak into the mic and share with the audience? @/miya_atsumu
Hinata gapes.
Did he read that right? Did this person just imply that Atsumu has a quote-unquote secret crush on him?
He shakes his head. No, it can't be. They were nothing but friends. Teammates. Nothing more, nothing less. Atsumu is his setter, and Hinata is his spiker. There's no way Miya Atsumu, number one V.League heartthrob, snatcher of people's hearts, would fancy him, right?
Right?
This is all nothing but a misunderstanding. User Meiyu is clearly reading too much into this. What is it that Sakusa would call these types of fans who fervently believe that a romantic relationship is budding between two people despite the lack of evidence? Despite the existence of contradicting facts? When people insisted he's better off with Bokuto instead of Ushijima?
Delusional?
Yeah.
Delusional.
Delusional shippers.
User Meiyu is a delusional shipper who has clearly misinterpreted Atsumu's kindness and sweetness for something deeper than friendship, and is intentionally choosing to believe it. They are taking his actions the wrong way and are deliberately framing them as if something more special is going on when this is just the setter on a normal day.
Atsumu is looking at him fondly? Please. Atsumu looks at everyone fondly, even the ball.
Lending of jackets? Hinata's only given a pass because he lent Atsumu his huge, wrong-sized sweater (which he bought online, okay, so excuse his mistake) once when the setter stayed at his apartment over the weekend. It's the usual concept of give-and-take in friendship 101.
Possessive bastard? Now, calling him that is just rude, and what's wrong if Atsumu is a touchy person? Don't people hug their friends all the time?
And nicknames? Come on now. He calls Sakusa, Omi-kun. Bokuto, Bokkun. Inunaki, Wan-san. Atsumu is only being friendly, which also, mind you, is very important in his position as starting setter.
Him, calling Hinata, Sunshine, isn't and will never be anything special. Let alone romantic, for that matter, and it's honestly alarming that there are approximately—Hinata squints—seventy-one thousand and nine hundred eighty-six people who believe in this thing.
Hinata's fingers hover over the reply icon. He should set the record straight with this Meiyu person. It'd be terrible if this got out of hand. However, just as he's about to type, his timeline refreshes, and his algorithm does this funny thing of dumping fifty more posts about the same gossip and belief.
Hinata exhales in a mix of frustration and resignation. He scrolls post after post, skimming through every new speculation about him and Atsumu as he searches for Meiyu's thread.
His third mistake. The third strike yielded by Celestia Almighty.
Hinata doesn't know when it starts. He loses track of time after completing a dozen, but somewhere in the middle of it, he ends up straying away.
Maybe it's because curiosity got the best of him—his sweet brain wondering how on earth did another batch of thousands more people think of this apart from Meiyu and their followers—that he ends up clicking on a very common hashtag in the posts and voluntarily searches up his and Atsumu's names.
Hinata stumbles upon a whole new community out there during the midnight hours and doesn't end up getting a wink of sleep.
"Hinata, you okay?" Meian asks. He turns from his spot on the line to fix Hinata with a scrutinizing gaze. "Sleepy? Had a hard time getting some shuteye last night?"
Hinata yawns. "A little, but it's nothing I can't handle. I've been through worse, captain," he says, praying Meian doesn't notice the slight wavering in his words.
The Jackals are currently gathered at their usual restaurant for breakfast, lined up at the counter as they place their orders one by one. The team is surprisingly complete. No one is sleeping in, and there are no last-minute excuses to stay back for the first half of training. Everyone has seemingly managed to recharge over a single night.
Hinata can only wish to say the same.
Embarrassingly, his hours of sweet rest were spent elsewhere.
And by elsewhere, they are places that he believes he shouldn't have discovered in the first place.
Sacred, sacred places on social media that only a certain group of people should have known.
He didn't know fans thought of him and Atsumu that way.
He didn't think their actions could come across that way.
Some were silly, Hinata recalls, like that false claim that he and Atsumu had eloped and he's now his secret wife, all because the setter said he'd toss to him in the future. Apparently, to fans, that was a proposal, and he's now a Miya in the making.
Then there were some who were cruel, like those who believe they are dating but claimed that Hinata could do so much better, which is absurd because Atsumu would be nothing but a magnificent boyfriend.
Others that followed were either downright ridiculous or just plain nonsense, and some were, surprisingly, strangely convincing, which is almost terrifying because it adds credibility to the points listed in Meiyu's thread, and Hinata hates how, throughout it all, as he progresses on each and every post, some part of his guts—his stomach—flutters at the mere thought of possibility.
He wills down a despairing moan.
God. Has he been this deprived of romantic gestures and advances—of love—that he's now biting unofficial, unconfirmed, senseless, and absurd claims? That he's now turning into those delusional shippers that Sakusa hates?
Meian shoots him a look. "You sure about that?" he asks once more. Always the ever-so caring and observant captain that he is, and Hinata has to push forth every bit of control not to shy away, back down, and spill everything from his guts.
Literally.
Hinata plays with the tray in his hands. "I'm sure," he manages to reply.
Meian presses his lips into a thin line. "If you say so," he eventually gives in, turning his attention back to the menu behind the counter.
Hinata breathes out a sigh of relief.
Finally. He allows himself to at last bask in the momentary mental silence. Call it a brief reprieve from all the weird online chaos. Thank god, Meian let him off the hook easy. Now, his mind can actually sit still without having to fly around looking for excuses like a rabid crow on the loose. He wills himself to start forgetting about those posts little by little, those results that came up after searching their names. He's not going to think about it. He's going to ignore every memory that threatens to resurface concerning it. Last night, up to this tiny bit in the morning, was enough.
For a couple of minutes, Hinata thinks he's doing such a great job. His mind is actually starting to slow down and his thoughts are going quiet. Everything is going all so well—that is, until, a familiar voice decides to appear, interrupt, and wholly destroy the ongoing construction of his newfound inner peace.
"Miya, will it kill you to shut up for even just ten seconds?"
"Omi-kun, I haven't even said anything yet!"
Hinata wishes his eyes didn't naturally gravitate to the back of the line.
Atsumu is standing at the tail end of the queue. His face is still a little puffy from sleep, and his sweatpants are sitting dangerously low on his hips. One side of his jacket is hanging off his shoulder, leaving part of his arm and bicep exposed. His blond hair is messy, the ends sticking out in different directions, but somehow, through divine intervention and favoritism, it manages to look perfectly styled.
He also seems to be in the middle of what appears to be another argument with Sakusa.
Atsumu is talking animatedly, his lips curled into this smarmy grin, his brows lifted just high enough to highlight the smugness and playfulness twinkling in his eyes, while Sakusa looks thoroughly unimpressed and murderous, throwing a few irritated remarks here and there as the line slowly moves forward.
Hinata, by some miracle, is able to piece some bits of their conversation together.
"Oh, come on, Omi-omi," Atsumu says, a teasing inflection in his voice like the nuisance he is. "You know I won't tell Ushijima-san anything about you. You can trust me! I can keep secrets."
Sakusa scowls. "In what world does that face of yours look like it's a keeper of secrets?"
Atsumu gasps, scandalized. "Omi-kun, you wound me! And here I thought you considered me your bestest friend."
"In your fucking dreams."
"You—you're such a dick! All this time, I was out here telling you stories of my life—"
"I didn't ask."
"Sharing my gran's favorite food, the embarrassing shit 'Samu and I used to do, Aran-kun's one-day pet ant, Kita-san's number one ice cream flavor and y—"
And Atsumu trails off.
Whatever it is Atsumu is about to say is cut off when he suddenly catches a pair of eyes looking. When he catches Hinata staring. When he notices Hinata looking their way.
Uh-oh.
Almost immediately, his expression twists, and whatever cheeky and obnoxious grin that had been plastered on Atsumu's features is instantly gone.
Instead, Atsumu's expression softens, and he smiles.
He smiles this easy, tender, warm, and ridiculously sweet all-over smile as he regards Hinata with a gentle nod.
Badump.
Badump.
Meiyu @churchofatsumu
Okay, tell me why Atsumu only looks at Shouyou like that.
A queasy feeling, that Hinata thought had long since left him after high school, without warning, settles inside his stomach, and before he realizes, he's already thrown away his tray somewhere, and he's making a run for the nearest toilet.
He locks himself in one of the empty cubicles and throws up air, his cheeks flushed a bright red.
Badump.
Badump.
Crap.
His stomach churns.
Grrrmpph.
Stupid threads, he thinks.
Stupid threads, he thinks again, two weeks later into the smiling fiasco. He glares at the loose strands hanging from the cuffs and hem of his sweater. This was his favorite.
Right beside him, to his left, he hears Bokuto curse.
"Damn it," Bokuto hisses, lips pulling into a pout as he tightly wraps his arms all over himself. Hinata's oddly reminded of a hedgehog with the way his fellow spiker curls into a ball. "It's so damn cold! It's not even snowing! Why is it so damn cold?!" he whines subsequently in question, like it isn't November, and it isn't the last bit of fall, and they're not in Akita for some sports outreach program work.
"Omi-omi," he hears Bokuto whine again. He has straightened from his position of half-curling into a ball, "do you have a spare jacket that I can use?" he asks, eyes peering right into the open bag slung neatly on Sakusa's shoulders.
Sakusa takes one look at Bokuto, then at his unzipped bag, sees the tiny sleeve of his extra jacket peeking through, then looks at Bokuto again. "No," he deadpans.
Bokuto gasps. "Liar! I can see your extra peeping through your bag! Do you want me to die?"
Sakusa sighs. "No, and no. Your skills are valuable to the team, and unfortunately, you're my favorite roommate. Please don't die," he says.
"I won't have to if you just lent me your jacket!" Bokuto cries, features contorting into absolute despair as Sakusa's fingers hook on the zip. "C'mon now, Omi-omi! This sweater isn't going to make me last! Don't be mean!"
"Yeah, Omi-kun, don't be mean," Atsumu chimes playfully, cackling when Sakusa shoots him one of his nasty glares from afar. Don't notice me. Don't notice me. Don't notice me, Hinata prays as Atsumu waltzes his way behind the open stage, three bouquets of flowers tucked against his arm. His cheeks are still decorated with a collection of fan-stuck stickers. "Poor Bokkun, about to die from the harsh cold. Maybe next time we should make it mandatory for our fans to bring an extra jacket."
Sakusa rolls his eyes. "It's his fault for not dressing warmly."
Atsumu's eyes gleam. "My, Omi-kun, you're such a devil. Anyway, Shouyou-kun—" Hinata wants to cry. "—what about you? You okay?" he asks, and now Hinata is the one who wants to curl into a ball, but unlike Bokuto, he also wants to die.
This thing he has with Atsumu has unfortunately only gotten worse, and to make matters even more difficult, Hinata thinks he's even starting to catch feelings.
The breakfast scene has kept replaying inside his head over and over for days, until said days turn into weeks, haunting his daily way of life and interactions so much that it might as well be classified as a plague.
The Miya Atsumu-Hinata Shouyou-Meiyu-Thread plague.
Why did Atsumu smile at him like that?
Does Atsumu truly look at him like that?
Aaaaaah, Hinata cries in his head. He can't be like this. He isn't supposed to get hung up like this. This is stupid, this is nonsense, and that isn't real.
Atsumu tilts his head slightly to the side.
"Shouyou-kun?"
Hinata jumps, and he answers on instinct. "Yes—I mean, no!"
Atsumu laughs. "Which one is it?"
"Yes. Definitely yes," Hinata splutters, and he tries to ignore how Atsumu's fancy coat and fluffy scarf sway in the chilly wind, how remnants of autumn leaves are falling over his head, how the scene playing out currently makes him look like the main star of a romantic drama, and Hinata is screwed, isn't he? He swallows. "You know—yes. The agree one where I say yes to what you have to say."
Atsumu smiles. "Okay."
Hinata's cheeks flush. So embarrassing. "Anyway, I'm fine. It's a little chilly, but I'm fine. It's nothing new. I mean, I'm used to it, you know? I lived in Miyagi half of my life, and the snow gets terrible so—" His sentence is disrupted when he feels a thick fabric wrap around his shoulders, and the scent of sandalwood immediately floods his nose.
Atsumu has draped his coat around him. It's a little big, the tips nearly hitting the floor, but it's so comfy, so cozy, definitely an upgrade from just having on his sweater, and—
"You lived in Miyagi half of your life, and the snow gets terrible so much that you're shivering and trembling," Atsumu muses. The bouquets are no longer in his arms and are instead put on the nearest snack table. "Don't be ridiculous now. Just 'cause you lived in Miyagi doesn't mean you're immune to the weather. Do you really wanna drag yourself into a cold?"
"No, of course not," Hinata rushes to say. He's not anymore the reckless guy he was in high school. He's learned from his mistakes. That version of him is long gone now it's just, and this is totally not an excuse, "but what about you?"
"Me?"
"Yes, Atsumu-san. You. Um," he plays with the cuffs shyly, "I can't have you freeze because of me."
"Huh." Atsumu hums. "Then what about this?"
Suddenly Hinata feels heat envelop one of his hands.
"There. I'm all toasty," Atsumu says, and he sounds so proud of himself, the smile is so dazzling on his sticker-filled face that a part of Hinata's heart flips. Atsumu's hand is so big and warm. "You gotta take care of yourself, Shouyou-kun. Can't have you dying from hypothermia."
Hinata feels the heat in his hand creep all the way to his cheeks. "I don't think that's how it works, Atsumu-san."
Atsumu throws his head back. "You wouldn't know." He cracks a smile.
Then out of nowhere, "Tsum-tsum, do you have a jacket?!"
Atsumu's smile vanishes as quickly as it comes. "Hell no," he fires. "And even if I did, I wouldn't let you have it. Remember when you returned my brown coat neon green, Bokkun?!"
"It wasn't my fault! It was the washing machine's!" Bokuto argues petulantly. "Hinata, come here and tell Tsum-tsum off for me—wait, are you wearing his jacket?"
Badump.
Badump.
Meiyu @churchofatsumu
Like, these suspiciously loving gazes aside, I don't know if you guys have noticed, but for someone who said he doesn't really like sharing his personal stuff, Atsumu has no problem with letting Shouyou borrow his jacket not just once or twice, but all the time.
Atsumu looks offended. "It's a two hundred fifty-thousand yen trench coat, for your information."
Bokuto gawks. "I can't believe it—liars! All of you! I thought we were a family! This is betrayal! I demand to be de-adopted from the team!"
Badump.
Unfortunately for Bokuto, he remains within the team, and several days later, the Jackals wrap up their scheduled match against the Azuma Pharmacy Green Rockets.
Hinata is beyond grateful for the distraction. For once, his mind is occupied with volleyball, volleyball, volleyball, and volleyball instead of Atsumu, Atsumu, Atsumu, and did he say Miya Atsumu?
"Shouyou!"
Hinata turns toward the familiar voice. "Tsutomu, hi!" he greets happily. "Nice game! You guys were amazing!"
"Thanks! You guys are, too," Goshiki says. "I can't believe you jump so high now. Definitely higher than the last time I saw you. You gave our blockers such a hard time."
"Did I really, now, especially with all this, augh, height and power you all got?" Hinata pouts. Matchups with the Green Rockets always feel like battling with six versions of Barnes.
Goshiki plants both his hands at his sides and laughs. "I say this rarely, but yeah. Can't believe what I was seeing. You were so incredible and pretty."
"P-Pretty?" Hinata feels his cheeks pinken. That's a new compliment. "That's so sudden, but um, thanks. You—you're good looking yourself, Tsutomu! You become a whole different person on court. Kinda like Kageyama!"
"Not as different as you. You were mesmerizing, Shouyou."
Hinata feels his ears burn. "Now, you're just flattering me! I'm not like that," he says shyly, "but if I am, it's probably thanks to—"
"My amazing setter, Miya Atsumu, ain't that right, Shouyou-kun?"
Hinata nearly jumps in his spot in surprise.
"A-Atsumu-san? What are you doing here?"
"Just here to fetch my wing spiker." Atsumu hums. There's a dangerous bite to his words. "Tsutomu-kun, was it?" Hinata shivers when he feels foreign nails dig into his hip. His head is nearly pressed against Atsumu's chest. "Nice game. Totally had everyone in awe out there. Unfortunately, as much as my Shouyou-kun and I would love to chat, look at the time. Meeting calls. See you."
"Oh, already? But Shouyou and I—"
Hinata feels Atsumu start to push him.
"Yup. Already. So, you better run along now to your fellow astronauts."
From a distance, Hinata then hears Inunaki cackle. "Astronauts, pfft." He's immediately stopped when Meian hits him. Then there's Sakusa, who goes—
"Possessive bastard," he mumbles as he passes by them.
Hinata whips his head so fast the bones keeping his neck together might as well rip.
"Omi-san, what—" his words shake. "What did you just say?"
Sakusa stares at him. "Nothing," he says before continuing to walk away.
Atsumu digs his fingers right into his hips once more. "Come on, Shouyou-kun," he whispers. One of his hands presses on Hinata's lower back. "We gotta round up. Coach needs to discuss things with us."
Badump.
Badump.
Meiyu @churchofatsumu
Not just that, but this possessive bastard (dare I say) also likes putting his arm around him. If not around Shouyou's shoulders, it's on his waist. Are you trying to stake your claim on him, Atsumu? Hmm.
"Guess I'll see you around, Shouyou," Goshiki says.
Hinata nearly squeaks when Atsumu pushes him again along the way to their team room, more forceful than the ones before. "S-See you soon, Tsutomu!"
Badump.
"It's two thirty-seven in the morning over there, dumbass." A displeased voice comes from the other side of the screen. Kageyama looks like he wants to be anywhere else but here, and Hinata is also the same, but there's really no one else he can talk to about these problems, so Kageyama has no choice but to suck it up.
Hinata takes a deep breath. "I know."
"So, what is it that you're calling me for this late?" Kageyama asks.
Right behind him, Hinata can see the starry sky of Italy. He wastes no time dropping the guns.
"Kageyama, do you—" he pauses. He can't believe he's really about to say this. The cicadas in the background buzz in perfect timing. "Do you think Atsumu-san looks at me differently?"
Kageyama blinks. "Huh? What do you mean?"
"People are saying he looks at me like I'm special," Hinata says. He hugs the pillow between his chest and knees closer, like that would do anything to make his burning cheeks disappear. His brain truly has gone into a full descent. "Does he look at me like I'm special?"
Kageyama's brow pinches. "If you're here to rub that in, I'm ending the call."
Hinata immediately scrambles. This Bakageyama. He never changes.
"I'm not rubbing anything in! That was a serious question. Do you think he's," he pauses, and he tries to choose his next words carefully. Again: tries, "a possessive guy?"
"You mean a possessive bastard."
"You're so vulgar!"
"It's the same thing." Kageyama rolls his eyes. "And to answer your question, I think it depends. He tried to scare Suna-san away when he wanted to court Osamu-san, didn't he?"
Hinata sighs in relief. Yup. He's reading too much into this. Good. Great. He ignores that tiny part of him that deflates a little. This is the fault of user Meiyu and their stupid thread. Turning Hinata into one of them! The nerve.
"Exactly! So, this mea—"
"Also, during our opening match, Miya-san picked a fight with me for your honor."
Hinata nearly drops his phone.
"Wha—when did that happen?" he asks. If his voice pitches up a few notes, Kageyama is too clueless to take notice.
"He told me to back off from picking a fight with you," Kageyama says, and he looks at Hinata with mild accusation. "Mind you, you started it, and the two of us were partners first."
"He's… He's just being protective! He's like this to all of his spikers! You wouldn't know this because you used to leave me to Tsukishima's torments all the time!"
"We were both on the same boat, dumbass. And not to mention he called you his wing spiker."
Hinata thinks he's about to go crazy.
"Because I am."
"He could have said our."
"It's the same thing."
Kageyama frowns. "No, it's not. Also, for your dumbass head, he even calls you sunshine. He does it a lot when you two are alone."
"And he calls you Tobio-kun."
"Yeah. My name." Kageyama snorts. "Which is nothing special."
Hinata's had it. Even the single person he thinks would be the most rational about this is losing it.
"Kageyama, you're feeding into my existing delusions."
"How can I feed your delusions when it's the truth?"
"You're not helping at all. Why did I even bother asking you? You're useless."
"And you're blind." Kageyama scoffs. "Whatever. Stay purposefully oblivious, you foolish runt."
"You're the worst!"
The outcome of this latest match was ugly.
Hinata sees really nothing wrong with losing. It's a part of the game, and everyone on this team has felt loss at least once, twice, or even more in their lives, but the feeling is still ugly. More so when you get heckled by a few people in the crowd.
"Don't listen to those bastards," Atsumu says the instant they are away from the public's eye. "They don't know what they're talking about. You were incredible, sunshine."
And without warning, he bends to press his lips against Hinata's forehead.
Badump.
Badump.
Meiyu @churchofatsumu
Also, let's not forget his other nickname for Shouyou when they're alone. Who the hell calls their teammate "Sunshine"
Hinata's entire face flushes. The feelings accumulated from the loss, his delusions built on that stupid speculation, Kageyama's useless advice, that poopy Meiyu—it all finally boils over. He can't take this anymore. He stops his tracks and whirls to look at Atsumu.
"Do you treat everyone like this?" Hinata asks. He sounds both desperate and confused.
"Huh?" Atsumu blinks. "Shouyou-kun, what do you mean—"
"Atsumu-san, please," Hinata cuts. He wants to cry and throw up. "I need to know. Do you like me?"
"Fuck," Atsumu curses. He looks at Hinata like a criminal caught in the act. "And here I thought I was being discreet."
Discreet?
Hinata wants to scream.
"So, you do like me?"
"I guess there's no point in hiding the truth." Atsumu has the audacity to look flustered. "Yes, I do. I like you a lot, Shouyou-kun."
"You like me?" Hinata repeats, his voice echoing in the empty hallways. If someone hears them in the changing rooms—most likely the other Jackals—as embarrassing as it is, they will just have to deal with it. "Like romantically? Not the friendship kind, but the lover kind, where you want to take me out on a date, kiss me with tongue, and crash into a twenty-thousand yen love hotel room during anniversaries?"
Atsumu blushes, and he brings a hand to the back of his neck. "I would say a romantic dinner, but a love hotel room works, too."
Hinata gawks. That thread was actually real? He shrieks.
"Y-You—what? Since when?!"
"When what?"
"When did you start liking me?"
"Since our spring nationals back in 2013."
"That's… that's so long!" Hinata splutters, incredulous. "We were in high school!"
"S-So?" Atsumu crosses his arms. "There's nothing wrong with crushing on someone since high school! And I can't help with who and when and what I do when I fall in love!" he defends, then mumbles, "but the confession really could have been done better."
"Confe—so, you do like me?"
"Shouyou-kun, seriously? I just told you I like you."
Hinata nearly collapses on his knees.
Atsumu—
All this time, that thread was actually real. Miya Atsumu actually likes him, wants to take him out on a date, kiss him with tongue, and crash into a twenty-thousand yen love hotel room during anniversaries bring him out for dinner. He wasn't slowly going delusional and insane, and is most definitely not getting caught up in unreal fantasies.
Badump.
"Shouyou-kun?"
"Atsumu-san, please just shut up and kiss me."