one step further // haikyuu x OC

oddly familiar // 43

~Kei Tsukishima~

My bottom lip was close to becoming raw or bloody from how much I idly chewed on it. Some of the others were getting on my nerves and I'd bite my lip every time their volume exceeded my preferred limits.

"Alright!!" Tanaka burst through the door obnoxiously. "After Ennoshita gets back it's the first years' turn for the bath!"

"Okay!" Hinata shouted. "And I better not run into that Lev guy in there!"

Noya joined in the loud banter. "Yeah! You tell 'em Shouyou!" That caused an enormous outburst from Tanaka as well... and then the King started yelling at Hinata to be quiet... I had to drown out the noise before I went crazy. My headphones managed to keep me off the edge as I leaned back in my corner. My fingers twirled around each other while my hands rested on my knees. Music filled my head while I observed everyone in relative peace.

Yamaguchi wasn't at my hip, but instead was mingling with the less abrasive 2nd years. Not that I minded him not hanging out with me, just wasn't used to it. He had been mildly distant for some days. My curiosity of it was at the forefront of my mind as I watched him whisper back and forth with Kinoshita and Narita, they kept stealing glances at the seniors.

Those three were also acting strange. All of their heads hung low, murmuring amongst one another every now and again. Except for our usually chipper co-captain. His head rested on his folded arms and he barely moved. I wondered what got him so down in the dumps. What could he possibly have to be depressed over? After all, rumor going around was that Toshiko was smitten over him. Or was it the other way around? Either way, I could barely stomach the gossip.

It's not true... is it?

What do I care if it is true anyway?

It would be no surprise if she had feelings for him after what he did for her that day.

Does she even know what I did?

Who cares?

This is annoying.

"Tsukki!" I could read his lips, prompting me to remove my headphones and ask him what he wanted. "We can head to the bath now." He then leaned closer and spoke in a hushed tone. "Plus, I just found out something I think you want to know."
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"So apparently," Yamaguchi began after checking down the hallway to make sure nobody was walking near us. "Toshiko tried to confess her feelings for Sugawara yesterday."

"... are you serious?" I felt my chest get hot.

"Yeah! But supposedly she heard him saying something about 'never getting with her' before she even got the chance. But when he noticed she heard, it was too late and she ran off upset. Kinoshita says Sugawara chased after her but doesn't know what happened after that."

There I went chewing on my lip again. "How does he even know what happened?"

"He found out from Nishinoya who found out from Asahi. Apparently she asked for Asahi's help with it and he feels bad for what happened."

Tch... of course this happened...

"But hey, maybe consider this your second chance?"

"...what the hell is that supposed to mean?"

He smiled innocently. "Don't play dumb Tsukki, not like everyone else."

What the hell is he talking about? What does he mean 'like everyone else'?
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"So Shouyou! How's it been at your house, huh?" Nishinoya leaned towards the ginger that was rubbing his hair dry with a towel. He blushed wildly.

"Ah?! W-What do you mean, Noya?"

"C'mon you know what I'm talking about!" He smirked and teased. "We know Toshiko has been staying at your house. Give us all the details, lover boy."

"Nothing has happened between us, she's just staying for the rest of the week!" His blush never ceased and I couldn't help but roll my eyes as Yamaguchi and I eavesdropped. "But it's weird! Usually I'm so comfortable around her... but with her at my house I've been so nervous!"

"That's called feelings, moron." Tanaka joined in.

"...Huh?" Hinata tilted his head.

"Don't tell me you're so naive."

"It's not like I'm stupid!" He protested. "I know what feelings are, Tanaka!"

"Let me spell it out for ya, youngling!" The 2nd year continued. "You say you feel 'nervous', right? What times do you feel that the most?"

"Um... when she... gets out of the bath. And when I go to sleep."

"Hahaha! Hinata you dog!" Noya laughed. I was irked. I noticed our simpleton King looked displeased too. An oddly familiar reaction. That must be how I looked.

"W-well!! I can't help it! I've been so caught up over what good friends we are, how fun she is to hang out with!... And how pretty she is...and what it would feel like to hold her hand and... uh...!"

We all stared at him. His honesty caught all of us, even himself, off guard. Hinata had a realization. An oddly familiar realization. I had one similar.

"You're not nervous for no reason... you like her, Hinata!" Tanaka belted. I couldn't help but notice our reliable senior setter leave the room in a hurry. This only confirmed what Yamaguchi told me. Something did happen between those two. And from the looks of it, it wasn't good. I almost was relieved. Almost. Then I remembered what I did. How I fucked up.

"I don't think we should be friends."

I was an idiot for thinking that separating myself from her would control my emotions. It made my feelings worse. I longed for her more. Not that I would admit that, maybe it just needed more time and I would truly get over it.

Why did I want to get over it so bad?

Do I feel inferior to her? To other people who clearly have feelings for her? Do I compare to them?

If it was me versus Hinata... if it was me versus Kageyama... would she even consider me?

...Yamaguchi is right, I've been playing dumb. How the hell did he see it before I did?

xxx

Between sets against Nekoma, I couldn't be more grateful for water. Yamaguchi handed me a towel as I sat on the bench. We were observing the other matches when we were startled by a loud 'boom'.

"Hey! Hey! Hey!" A loud voice hooted through the gym, needless to say he garnered all of our attention. "You see that killer line shot guys?!" He addressed his teammates.

"Damn, he's intense..." Yamaguchi muttered. "Who is that?"

"I don't know." I said. "But he seems... oddly familiar."

Kuroo laughed slyly as he passed us by, offering a dry smirk. "That's Bokuto Koutaro, Fukurodani's captain and ace. Maybe he's familiar because he's one of the top five aces in Japan."

"... top five?" Yamaguchi mumbled.

Something itched at the back of my mind. Something like déjà vu. "What did you say his name was?" I asked.

"Bokuto Koutaro."

Huh... have I seen him before? Why does that sound oddly familiar?