𝚂𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝙳𝚊𝚢 𝙵𝚘𝚘𝚕 - 𝙺. 𝚂𝚊𝚔𝚞𝚜𝚊 𝚡 𝙾𝙲

Chapter Twenty-Four - Cold Mochas

Chapter Twenty-Four

After every play, Sakusa's eyes flickered over to the seats reserved for the players to give away. During their first set after the intermission, he wondered if she disregarded what he had said about her not needing to change anything and that maybe she was running late because she was putting on a different outfit or styling her hair. He'd have to give her hell for that, but it could wait. She was on her way at the last minute, after all.

Sakusa wasn't the only one with their eyes on that seat, and as they neared the end of their final set, Miya knew Sakusa was devastated that it remained empty. His posture lost its perfection, and his expression was tense. He was clenching his jaw and periodically his fists. They must have started to cramp from that by now. It was their last point. Miya's final toss of the game and the winning spike. Play 2A wasn't an option anymore, and when his gaze briefly flickered over to Bokuto, he gave a slight nod; the team knew him well enough to see that Sakusa had reached his limit.

After Bokuto struck the ball into the opposing court, the crowd cheered while the whistle blew. Before the scoreboard could even change, before he could hear the commentator announce their position in the semi-finals, Sakusa was walking off the court. Coach Foster closed in on him and put his hand on his shoulder. "You're too har–"

Sakusa shrugged his hand off and stared at the locker room door. "Don't." He took a deep breath to try and cool off, feeling himself shaking from frustration. There was still a chance she ran into a problem. Maybe she couldn't get a taxi and got lost walking on the way? It was unlikely but still possible. Perhaps if she was walking it started raining. He wouldn't have wanted her to get sick if that was the case. If something came up, he was sure she would tell him, and yet when he checked his phone, there was nothing but an e-mail notification from the health food store he bought his supplements from.

No missed calls.

No text message.

Nothing.

"Fuck!" He loudly cursed. She sounded okay when we ended the call...she changed her mind, didn't she? She doesn't think I'm being honest, does she? She doesn't believe me...no. It's worse. She doesn't trust me to tell her the truth anymore.

There was only one thing he needed to do. One thing he needed to fix. One wrong he needed to right and he needed to do it now. Sakusa shoved his street clothes into his gym bag and slung it over his shoulder. It mentally pained him to pass by the showers without using a stall, but time was of the essence. Sajima probably wouldn't care if he was sweaty anyway. Well, not at first.

The sound of each foot hitting the pavement beneath him was all Sakusa could hear. The buzz of the lamp posts struggling to stay lit, the increase of cars whooshing past as spectators left the arena, the clunk from the metal boxes that changed which traffic lights reflected onto the asphalt; none of it registered while he considered what he was going to say to Sajima once he reached her apartment.

Let into the lobby by an elderly man having a cigarette outside, Sakusa couldn't be bothered to wait for the elevator. Perhaps it seemed ridiculous that he was so worked up over this and treated it with such urgency, but it was important to him. She was important to him, and if he hadn't been clear enough about that, if she harboured any doubt or misconception of how he viewed or felt about her, he didn't want her to think about it any longer.

Sakusa knocked on her door when it was within arm's reach. He bounced on the balls of his feet as he waited impatiently, and after a long moment, he knocked again. "Sajima?"

Met with silence, Sakusa rested his forehead against the door. Is she really that mad? He knocked another two times. "Sajima, can we talk?"

If Sakusa wasn't well aware of her working hours, he might have thought she had gone to sleep, but he knew that simply couldn't be the case. Sakusa weakly knocked one last time. "I know you're upset with me...I just want a chance to explain. Properly, this time."