𝚂𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝙳𝚊𝚢 𝙵𝚘𝚘𝚕 - 𝙺. 𝚂𝚊𝚔𝚞𝚜𝚊 𝚡 𝙾𝙲

Chapter Twenty-Seven - Casually Half-Naked

Chapter Twenty-Seven

"Kiyyyooooooo," Sajima whined after Sakusa had crouched down in front of his couch so she could disembark from being a human backpack.

"You can whine all you want, but I'm not going back to get work for you," he rolled his eyes, setting down her duffle bag on the ground before sitting next to her. "You do realize you're staying here for a few days because none of us trust you not to work, right?"

"But there are so many hours in a day; it's such a waste! What am I even going to do? Especially when you're at practice!" Sakusa wrapped an arm around her shoulder and tugged her close. Her head naturally lolled onto his arm, and she sighed. "I feel kinda...lost. I don't think I've gone this long without drawing since I picked it up in middle school."

"It's barely been two days," Sakusa pointed out.

"What's your longest time without volleyball and/or volleyball-related activities?"

Sakusa tried to recall a day in the past ten years when he hadn't touched a volleyball. "The same as you. Yesterday and today."

Sajima scratched her cheek, feeling a little self-centred for not having considered she was the reason he'd been separated from what he loved most. "Sorry...did you wanna go get some practice in? I don't mind."

"I'd be lying if I said I didn't miss it," Sakusa admitted. "But I don't regret my choice to stay with you while you were admitted. Even if I had gone to practice, I would've been too distracted to play properly anyway. All I would've done is increase my risk of injuring myself by doing something careless."

"Oh," she mumbled.

"I thought that since this is an extremely rare occurrence for both of us, we should try and make the best of it. Is there a movie or anything you'd like to watch? I'm sure you don't usually give yourself time for that sort of thing."

Sajima's eyes lit up at the notion, and she sat up straighter. "Anime? Will you watch anime with me? Can we? Pleaaaaaase?"

"We can watch whatever you'd like, Sumire."

And with those words, Sakusa found himself watching ten episodes of the show Sajima chose while she slept snuggled under his arm after having passed out during the third one. If the situation were different, he wouldn't have worried about jostling her so he could reach the remote, but for now, he was just happy she was actually resting.

_

The following morning Sajima's internal clock woke her up at four-thirty. She rubbed her eyes and yawned before opening them, only remembering where she was by the scent of crisp linen sheets mixed with the slightest hint of Sakusa's citrus and mint shampoo. Her lips curled up, but her smile fell when she glanced over and saw Sakusa wasn't there. That's when she remembered falling asleep on the couch last night.

He really shouldn't have slept on the couch instead...

Feet met with the cold hardwood floor, creating a shiver that snaked down Sajima's arms and back. She stretched her arms over her head and noticed a yellow flower-shaped sticky note adhered to the nightstand with her name on it.

Sumire,

Go back to sleep.

Sajima breathed a soundless laugh and picked it up. She had only seen Sakusa's handwriting once before, but it amused her that it wasn't impeccably neat. In fact, it was a little messy. Perhaps the messiest thing about him. In picking up the note, she noticed a second one stuck to it that informed her of where he had placed her bag and that she was free to use whatever she needed.