Chapter Text
Tendou Satori isn’t, by any means, violent, but recently - it’s concerning the number of times he’s pondered over this matter in the past couple of weeks - he’s been feeling like chopping off some people’s heads.
And it’s all due to his annoying teammates, more specifically, the third-years, although he’s going to exclude Ushijima from the steadily growing number of people on his hit list. However, he won’t hesitate to threaten the rest of them to curb their strange behaviour if he can help it, but unfortunately, his warnings have not been working in his favour at all during the past few days. In fact, it only seems to fuel the fire.
Practices at Shiratorizawa Academy have never been more welcome, and although he would much prefer to be curled up in his dorm room with a good manga volume in his hands, sniggering over and insulting the idiocy of the main characters like the asshole everyone thinks he is, he needs some form of getaway from his friends’ sudden and entirely unwanted interest in his personal life.
Apparently, it all started when the third years - again, excluding their favourite captain - had decided to play a game of Would You Rather after a particularly rigorous practice session, and Oohira had somehow managed to convince Goshiki to play with them.
Shirabu had sneered at Semi’s attempt to get him to join them, much to Semi’s ire.
Tendou had merely given a lazy smile, before clapping a hand on Ushijima’s shoulder. “Wakatoshi-kun? Wanna join us for some fun?”
Wiggling his eyebrows for a more dramatic effect, he secretly wondered if Ushijima even knew how to play party games, especially one that more often than not ended up with broken friendships and stale tension in the air.
Ushijima remained as stoic as ever when he replied with his usual neutral tone. “I would have to refuse your offer, Tendou. I’d like to get back to my room quickly as I’m feeling tired.”
Tendou shrugged, releasing his grip on Ushijima so that he could plop down in the space left for him between Yamagata and Goshiki, who was looking rather nervous to be surrounded by his seniors.
“Suit yourself then. Although, Wakatoshi-kun, you should take my advice and be a little more social, it’ll do you good since you’re going pro.”
Ushijima blinked at him owlishly, like he couldn’t really understand what Tendou was implying but wanted to give a satisfactory answer anyway, because he was just that kind of person. Nothing Ushijima did was without careful calculation and intent and Tendou, as his best friend, would know that better than others.
“I will try. Thank you for the tip, Tendou.”
Tendou’s burst of raucous laughter made Goshiki wince.
“You’re most welcome~ Off you go then.” he sang in response, and watched as Ushijima once again disappeared through the doorway out of reach of the shenanigans of his teammates.
Tendou shifted his attention towards the rest of the people in the messy circle with him. “Now,” he started, “Who’s first?” He was looking forward to all the blackmail material he could potentially gather from a couple of rounds of the game.
Immediately, Semi led the discussion by pointing at Oohira. “Reon, would you rather take a dump in the bushes or wet yourself in a public space?”
Oohira grimaced at Semi’s question, whispering a quiet “Gross.” to himself as he tried to come up with his answer.
He sighed in defeat when he caught the look of smug glee on Semi’s face, before rolling his eyes and saying, “Take a dump in the bushes, because it could mean that there aren’t any people around.”
Semi frowned slightly at the small leeway he had unknowingly given his friend, muttering under his breath as he prepared to be hammered by a similarly ridiculous question. “Drat.”
Oohira, however, wasn’t looking at him, but at Tendou, who looked from side to side in faint confusion. “What, me?”
He was surprised that Oohira wasn’t trying to get back at Semi, but he’s not one to back down from an obvious challenge. Actually, he’s always liked indulging in them, if only to see the looks of frustration on his opponents’ faces when he shoots down all of their advances. Tendou squared his shoulders in mock courage, gesturing for Oohira to continue.
“Would you rather do a hundred serves during practice or a hundred diving receives?”
Tendou pretended to think about his answer, although it really should have been a no-brainer. “Why, obviously, I would take the hundred serves! Diving receives suck. You’ve gotta try better than that, Reon-kun.”
Oohira chuckled at his logic, only slightly aggravated by the fact that Tendou was giving him this annoying smirk. Tendou grinned because it was now his turn to point fingers at someone. He eyed Goshiki who was next to him, and a bigger smile spread across his face.
“Tsutomu,”
Goshiki startled at the use of his name, and he quickly became even more jittery when he saw Tendou giving him a most mischievous look.
“Yes?” he said hesitantly, not quite sure if he wants to continue playing the game.
Tendou is known for his persistently provocative jabs at opponents across the net, and his teasing of his friends was about as constant as his guess blocking was accurate.
“Would you rather...” he paused, noting the quickening in breath beside him that indicated the rapidly growing anxiety of his junior. “-have Wakatoshi-kun or Semi Semi as your role model?”
Goshiki froze in horror at his unfairly controversial question, one that was sure to get him cuffed on the back of the head or worse if he answered without tact. And, sadly, tact was something that Goshiki had yet to master.
Tendou giggled a little hysterically, eagerly waiting for the panicked first year to gather his scattered thoughts and give a reply.
Semi growled from opposite them. “Don’t call me that! And that’s just evil, you know the kid’s obsessed with Wakatoshi, so why’d you put me in there?!”
Tendou just hummed along to a random tune in his head, nudging the stiff body of Goshiki. “So Tsutomu, who’s it gonna be?”
He liked the way Goshiki squirmed uncomfortably at his prodding and glanced at Semi out of the corner of his eyes in a desperate plea for help, his face an unhealthy ashen.
Semi gave a long-suffering sigh from his place, mentally beating himself up for even mentioning the game now that he was caught right in the middle of one of Tendou’s deliberate attempts to be an asshole. Why he even tried to be so intimidating when he wasn’t was beyond Semi, but he wasn’t about to inquire about his friend’s questionable habits.
Tendou may have babied the boy more than their other first years, but apparently Goshiki wasn’t spared from his tendency to take advantage of others’ weaknesses for his own amusement. Semi relented and waved his hand discreetly, reassuring Goshiki that he wouldn’t scold him for not picking him.
Goshiki looked relieved, and he swallowed as he returned his deer-caught-in-headlights stare to Tendou, who mustered his most innocent-looking expression to hide his smile.
“T-Then… I’ll pick...Ushijima-san...” he muttered into his knees as he drew them up and curled up like an injured cat. He sulked to himself, wishing that he didn’t have to pick between favourites, as it could ruin the team’s dynamic.
Semi dropped his forehead into a palm, exasperated by Tendou’s antics. “Seriously, Satori, that was a dick move.”
Tendou shrugged, although the mirth in his eyes didn’t do much to change the fact that he wasn’t the least bit guilty.
Games are games, Tsutomu. You’ve gotta keep that in mind, otherwise people will think you’re too serious.
He didn’t say that out loud, though he did give Goshiki a sympathetic pat on the head that he hoped conveyed his silent apology. He wouldn’t want to make his cute underclassman cry, Yamagata would have his head.
Oohira, ever the group mediator, took up the role of diverting Goshiki’s attention back to the game at hand; they haven’t had enough fun yet - and he wanted to catch Tendou off guard too after the stunt that he pulled on poor Goshiki.
He side eyed Tendou’s nonchalant expression, thinking ahead to what he should ask when his turn next came around. Semi noticed him giving Tendou a half stink eye, and raised his eyebrows curiously; usually, Oohira was the one who didn’t try to pick a fight with everyone he met.
Oohira gestured with his head towards their team’s middle blocker, speaking with his eyes.
Wanna have a go at him later?
Semi grinned impishly when he picked up the message, one side of his mouth curling up higher than the other, and nodded almost imperceptibly.
You bet.
The turns flew from one side of the room to another, and soon, everyone who was playing had broken away from the circle on the floor to different spots in the locker room. Even more puzzling was the fact that they’d somehow gone from playing Would You Rather to Truth or Dare.
In the half an hour that had passed since they switched games, Tendou had migrated from the floor to being sprawled out on one of the benches cackling at one of his own lame jokes, and Semi was standing in front of one of the rows of lockers with his arms akimbo.
Goshiki had retreated to one corner of the room after being picked on a couple more times, hoping that no one would notice him if he just kept still, while Oohira sat next to an upset Semi as he watched him argue back and forth with Yamagata about a topic he’d rather not focus on.
Semi glared at Yamagata, who gave him an unimpressed look in return. “What do you mean a straw has two holes? There’s obviously only one! How are you gonna drink with a straw when liquid runs out two different ways?”
Yamagata narrowed his eyes. “There’s two, and I’m not budging on this one. You may have gotten the one about butts correct, but I’m not losing to you over this.”
Oohira groaned as a month-old memory about the very same pair getting into a heated debate over whether humans have one butt or two resurfaced in his mind.
He really didn’t need the added stress, what with Goshiki cowering in the corner because of the fierce battle between Semi and Yamagata, and the harsh laughter from Tendou that grated against his supply of patience spectacularly.
He and Semi had yet to come up with questions to throw Tendou off his usual rhythm, and he felt quite frustrated that their attempts had failed again and again to the annoying smugness of their friend.
Oohira liked to think that he could understand Tendou, even just a little, but the truth was that nobody could seem to pin anything on the guy unless it was a volleyball-related mistake that he made during a match.
Come to think of it, does he ever talk about himself?
And there was the thought that triggered more questions about Tendou Satori in Oohira’s mind.
He dug through his memories slowly and realised that Tendou, their strangely goofy friend, didn’t really speak much about his own personal life.
Oohira lifted his head from its place between his knees, and blinked a few times. He thought he was finally getting somewhere with his train of thought when Tendou let out a particularly loud chortle, screwing up his face uglily as he sat up.
Oohira slapped Semi on the back of his calf, drawing his attention away from Yamagata. “What, Reon? I’m in the middle of something here-”
Oohira dragged him down by yanking on his forearm. He whispered something to Semi, whose face broke out in a sly smirk when he got the gist of what Oohira was trying to tell him. Semi straightened up after a while, a vague plan forming in his head at the new idea that Oohira had brought up to him.
“Okay, Hayato, I’m gonna have to stop our discussion here.” Yamagata merely sniffed at him. “Now, I believe it’s my turn to ask questions.”
The rest of the people in the room stared at him in silence.
Semi gave a devious grin as he walked over to Tendou, who shifted a little in his seat at the suddenness of his approach. He smiled brightly up at Semi, teeth showing and all. “To what do I owe the pleasure of this- uh- interest, Semi Semi?”
Semi gritted his teeth at the silly nickname Tendou used to refer to him; he’ll never know what came over Tendou to start calling him that. “Satori, come on. Truth or dare?”
The cheshire smile on his face didn’t fade even when Tendou cocked a head to survey his now more confident demeanor. “Hmm… Truth then, my wonderful intuition tells me that you’ll make me do something I don’t like if I choose dare.”
Semi’s shit-eating grin grew larger and more irritating at Tendou’s answer. “Alright. Do you, Tendou Satori, have someone you like now?”
The room went quiet at the unexpected question, and even Tendou looked a bit perplexed by the sharp turn this game had taken. He stared back at Semi, surprised, and his eyes widened ever so slightly.
Semi held his gaze, a pleased glint in his eyes as he took in the subtle twitch of Tendou’s fingers on the edges of the bench. Tendou always did that when he was at a loss for what to do. It became blatantly more obvious when Tendou dropped his eyes first and, instead, looked past Semi at the plain white walls of the room that suddenly became much more interesting.
“Uhm...” he trailed off unsurely, and Semi straight up smirked like the little shit he is for thinking up such a question.
Tendou cursed his body for betraying his thoughts, he’d just been so shocked that his friend would even bother asking something like that that he’d momentarily surrendered control to his instincts. Usually he could count on them to get a desirable consequence, but they didn’t seem to be working right now.
He let a chuckle slip through his lips, and made a show of stretching his arms above his head.
“Well? Come on, spill. We wanna know the truth.” Semi poked at his shoulder insistently.
Tendou wondered if he’d regret the next words that came out of his mouth right as he said them. “Hmm? Yeah, I do. Everyone does, right?” He hoped that by adding in his last comment, he’d be able to shift some of the scrutiny away from the fact that he does have someone he likes.
Semi reeled back with a shocked expression on his face, like he couldn’t quite believe what Tendou was saying even though he was the one who had been eager for an answer.
From his corner of the room, Goshiki choked on air, while Oohira gave a low whistle that made Yamagata snigger. Tendou felt slightly offended that they were displaying such disbelief, and he bristled a little. “Is that such earth-shattering information?”
He glanced at Oohira for an answer, his red eyes narrowed, since Semi looked preoccupied trying to rearrange his face into his normal expression of indifference.
Oohira raised one shoulder, and said, “Well, you hardly talk about this kind of stuff. It is a little surprising.” Tendou exhaled at his explanation.
He hoped that he wouldn’t have to deal with more of such questions, because honestly, that one hit a little too close to uncharted territory that he’d rather not venture into. It was hardly one of those subjects that he could prattle on and on about to his friends.
He got up from the bench, ready to call it a day after all the chatting he’d done, but was stopped by an exclamation from Semi. “Wait, really?? Who?”
Semi threw away any and all of his unbothered composure as he slid to a stop in front of Tendou, his curiosity piqued.
“Uh ah, that’s another question altogether, Eita-kun. I believe everyone is only entitled to one question for every target they pick.”
Semi’s gleeful expression was enough to make Tendou feel like he’d just jumped into a pit of tar, except that his friend’s incessant questioning was going to be the tar that stuck to him and refused to leave him alone.
He barely managed to get out of the room without Semi bugging him for more details, and eventually, Oohira took pity on him and dragged Semi away to pack up their own things.
Oohira looked over to Tendou and signalled with a head tilt to the door. “Go on.” he mouthed as Semi tried to wrestle his way out of Oohira’s iron grip.
If Tendou had thought that that’d been the last of the strangeness of their gathering, he learnt how entirely wrong he was in the following weeks.
Semi would often pop up out of nowhere, either in his classroom during breaks or right after they finished practice for the day, to ask him more prying questions. He can’t remember the number of times he’s had to avoid the uncomfortably embarrassing inquiries from all his friends on the team by ignoring them, changing the subject forcibly or straight up running away.
He shudders at the memory of Semi trying to find out if he’s had a girlfriend before(he hasn’t, but that’s none of his business!), and visibly winces when he remembers the way Oohira had stared him down when they were in the locker room changing for practice.
Even Ushijima has noticed something, but being the polite and considerate person he is, he had not commented on the other third-years’ behaviour.
What’s so interesting about my non-existent love life anyway? Tendou thinks as he looks around the clubroom to make sure that none of those nosy friends of his are there to force more questions onto him.
Their latest escapade involved roping in Goshiki and making him ask for a few very starry-eyed requests, which had nearly caused him to cave in; he has a soft spot for the kid, for whatever reason.
He breathes a sigh of relief as he strips off his shirt and pulls on a sweater, shivering slightly when a breeze fights its way into the room through the gaps between the windows.
It’s nearing autumn, and the days are slowly but surely growing colder. Tendou wrinkles his nose a little, he isn’t exactly a big fan of cold weather.
“Oh, Satori~”
Semi’s familiar voice outside the door causes him to jump, and he hurriedly stuffs his things into his bag so that he can make a quick getaway for the third time this week. Seriously, is there no end to Semi’s curiosity at all?
Tendou doesn’t think he can stand another week of running from something that he shouldn’t even have to worry about in the first place. So he yells back at Semi, half-furious that he’s being pushed around like this, and half-embarrassed that he’s so easily flustered over what he considers a lost cause - his love for a certain someone.
His mind drifts, and he’s once again entertaining thoughts about olive-brown hair and equally coloured eyes. He shakes the thoughts out of his head, frustrated that he’s so whipped he can barely think about anything else but the person in his head.
“What part of ‘I’m not going to tell you anything’ do you not understand??”
He expects to hear a round of crowing laughter from Semi, who’s taken it upon himself to unravel the mystery of Tendou’s secret love interest, but he hears nothing.
He zips up his bag, thinking that maybe his little outburst was enough to make Semi take a hint and get lost for the first time in three weeks. But as he slings his bag over a shoulder, a deep voice from behind him makes him almost drop the jacket that he had been holding.
“You’re not going to tell who what?”
Ice grows at the speed of light in Tendou’s heart, encasing it in a stiff, impenetrable armour as he whirls around in shock.
His expression must have been particularly entertaining, because Semi is stifling a laugh at him from behind Ushijima’s back. Tendou glares at him, mentally trying to come up with an answer for Ushijima, who looks both confused and intrigued, if the two emotions can even be blended together.
Tendou opens his mouth, only to get interrupted by Semi, who gives him an infuriating smile. Tendou inhales sharply when he realises what Semi is planning to do. Don’t you dare-
He barely gets out another word before Semi, that idiotic shithead of a friend, blurts out, “Wakatoshi, did you know that Satori is interested in someone romantically?”
Tendou groans, and a flush creeps up his neck that he’s sure is the same fiery red as his untamable hair.
To his credit, Ushijima doesn’t look shocked like the rest of the third years had been, but he certainly doesn’t look any happier at this newfound information. If anything, he seems more stiff than before.
Semi raises his eyebrows at his lack of reaction, only catching a tiny clench of the jaw as he finishes revealing Tendou’s secret - not really - with enough flourish to make Oohira grimace and Shirabu roll his eyes.
“Oh, I see.” Ushijima deadpans without missing a beat.
Tendou runs a hand down his stressed-looking face, before turning to his best friend to complain. “Wakatoshi! As you can see, they are all ganging up on me just because they made me answer one of their stupid questions! You have to help me get back justice!”
Unfortunately, Ushijima takes Tendou’s dismayed statements quite seriously, and he turns around to Semi, who takes a step back at the sudden movement.
“Tendou says he feels uncomfortable with your questions, Semi. Might I ask you to refrain from making him feel that way?”
A collective sigh fills the room when they realise that Ushijima is yet again taking things a little too literally, as he so often does - well, the third-years sigh, Shirabu sneezes into his sleeve to disguise a snigger.
Tendou snorts at the incredulous look on Semi’s face, sticking his tongue out childishly as he makes faces at him from behind Ushijima.
Oohira laughs. “Alright, alright. We’ll tone it down since Wakatoshi puts it that way.” Semi turns a disbelieving look on him, distraught that his fun is going to be spoilt. “But-”
“No buts. Come on, hurry up and get changed, your clothes are soaked in sweat and water!” Oohira steers the conversation away from Tendou, hoping to distract Semi from any lingering thoughts about interrogating him. It works, sort of.
“That’s because you turned on the hose for Tsutomu when I was walking past and you sprayed it at me! Satori is the only reason why I’m still in these clothes!”
As he’s led away to the showers by a patronising Oohira, who points out that it was his fault for being in the way when the first years were trying to retrieve water to clean the floor of the gym, Tendou sinks down on a bench, exhausted.
He smiles gratefully at Ushijima. “Thanks for the help, Wakatoshi-kun.”
Ushijima stares at him a second longer than it usually takes him to formulate his monotone reply, which makes Tendou’s smile wobble a bit.
“Anything for you, Tendou.”
Well, that’s new.
His heart skips a beat at the warm statement, and he tries to hide the redness in his neck by scratching the back of his head. “Well, I should go. It’s been a long day, rest up while you can, Wakatoshi-kun.”
Ushijima nods at him, glancing around and realising that they’re the only ones left in the clubroom; the rest must have either gone back to the dorms or raced for the showers in the gym building.
Ushijima himself had already changed into clean clothes and dabbed away at the sweat that had coated his body for the entirety of practice, but he prefers going back to the dorms to shower, where he won’t accidentally intimidate one of his teammates for a shower stall in a public bath.
It seems like Tendou was having the same idea, judging from the way his weight shifts from foot to foot like he can’t wait to get out of the room.
As much as he loves spending time with Ushijima, Tendou can’t really find it in him to look his best friend in the eye at the moment, and he gives a hearty wave to Ushijima as he brushes past him to get to the door. “See y-?”
He’s stopped by a gentle hand on his wrist, and he follows the arm up to its owner’s face, nearly ceasing to breathe altogether.
“Uh…Wakatoshi-kun? Do you need something from me?” he manages to wheeze out without sounding like his lungs are running out of air. He hopes.
Ushijima frowns, his eyebrows pinching and his nose scrunching up slightly - the expression does something to Tendou’s heart. Ushijima keeps his eyes on his own hand, where it’s touching Tendou’s wrist.
Tendou waits, even though he feels like he’s suffocating right then and there, because he knows Ushijima isn’t great at communicating and needs time to convert his feelings into words.
The room is silent, so much so that if a pin dropped, they would be able to hear it. To Ushijima, it’s probably a small deal, but Tendou has never liked the way silence wraps around people and turns the atmosphere all awkward and tense.
He swallows a mouthful of saliva as he anticipates what Ushijima will say. Usually, he has a few good guesses based on Ushijima’s body language and facial expression, but now, he’s a little lost. His heart beats a strong, steady rhythm in his chest, although the more his brain decides to focus on Ushijima’s scorching touch, the faster it becomes.
He thinks he’s nearing his limit when Ushijima finally speaks, and it surprises him when he hears that deep, rich voice. “Tendou...do you really have someone you like romantically?”
He lifts his head up so that his olive-brown eyes meet Tendou’s red ones, a silent inquiry behind them.
Tendou, for the first time in his life, is speechless.
For some reason, this moment feels much more intimate than it should be, and he wonders if he’s finally lost it and conjured up the tension sizzling between them in the heavy air.
Ushijima continues to bore into his soul, those dark eyes of his captivating and beautiful, as Tendou had learnt when he’d first met him. His head swims, until the only thing he can see are those eyes that now seem to peer right into his innermost thoughts.
He doesn’t really feel like ending whatever that’s going on between them right now, even though he knows it’s probably all in his head.
A guy can dream.
Still, the distant sounds of their teammates’ rowdy discussions zaps him out of the haze that has settled over his mind, and he replies as smoothly as he can to avoid suspicion. “Of course I do, Wakatoshi-kun! Everyone does!”
And it’s gone, that unfamiliar heat behind Ushijima’s eyes, that unwavering gaze that sends electric charges through his body and makes him want to crumple into a heap of steaming mush.
Ushijima lets go of his wrist and takes a small step back, enough to dispel the remains of whatever tension that had been in the air.
Tendou’s heart twists painfully at the lack of contact, and cold air rushes in to caress his skin now that Ushijima’s warmth has retreated. He wants to reach out and take it back, the heat that he so craves.
Tendou remains still, a smile still plastered on his face as he beats down the disappointment roiling in his stomach.
Ushijima isn’t new to the faux display of confidence Tendou is trying to exude, having witnessed many a time when he was disturbed by some of the name-calling from their schoolmates but tried to hide it.
He catches the barest hint of a tremble when Tendou raises a hand to rake through his messy, gelled hair, but stops himself from saying anything about it.
Instead, before Tendou turns to go, he says, “I will stop by your room later tonight. I’ve finished that manga you lent me, so I will return it to you. Is that alright?”
Tendou hesitates just a millisecond too long, and Ushijima’s already suspicious eyes sharpen in alertness.
“Sure, why not? I can let you borrow a new one when you’re over!”
Tendou smiles, fake and unconvincing to Ushijima’s keen eye. “See you later, Wakatoshi-kun~!”
He exits the room without so much as a look over his shoulder, dragging out the last few syllables of Ushijima’s name right before the door clangs shut.
Tendou sprints away from the clubroom, away from the gym, and he doesn’t stop until he reaches his dorm room, sweat dripping down the sides of his face as he slams the door shut and locks it.
He pants heavily, both from the exertion of running and from the previous encounter with Ushijima, which honestly leaves him more breathless than running.
He sucks in a huge breath, his pupils blown wide with shock and disbelief, and his hands shake so bad that he can barely throw his bag onto his bed properly. The resounding smack of his clothes and personal items hitting the wall through the thin fabric of his bag makes him flinch.
“Holy shit...” he whispers to himself, looking down at his feet, which are planted to the ground, unable to move. “Holy shit...” he mutters again, feeling overwhelmed by the erratic pace of his heart.
What the hell was that?!