daddy issues ; ushijima wakatoshi

fourteen

"i can't believe you fucking rejected me!" sumiye dryly complained. the two were standing outside shiratorizawa's gates, their adventure ending soon.

"i didn't want to hold your hand."

"this is the thanks i get for trying to be nice to you, ushijima-san."

the ace shrugged in acknowledgement. freezing air was pricking at their skin, encouraging the teenagers to return to their dorms. although he was shivering, the olive haired boy didn't want tonight to end. something about sumiye drew ushijima in. the two weren't close (he wouldn't even label them as aquatinces), but the way her boyfriend talked to her in those voicemails left him bothered.

"anyways, i think i should go back to my dorm–"

"why don't you come over to mine?" he impulsively asked, surprising himself. a small frown made its way onto the redhead's face, and before she could answer he continued. "tendō is visiting his parents for the weekend, so he won't bother you. we can work on the project."

sumiye looked taken aback, making ushijima feel nervous. did he make her feel uncomfortable? then, the look faded into a neutral mask. "fuck, why not? i'm not doing anything for the rest of the night anyways."

✿

the boy's shared dorm room was very plain, sumiye noticed. she didn't know what we expected it to look like– maybe a carnival funhouse? tendō gave off clown vibes.

"are you... okay?" ushijima asked hesitantly, breaking the girl out of her thoughts. the two were huddled around his laptop that was showcasing his research, when the boy noticed that sumiye was spacing out.

her eyebrows raised at his sudden question. "i'm fine." the redhead grumbled, causing ushijima to nod awkwardly. sumiye's tone came out harsher than intended, but she was didn't care enough to feel bad.

"i'm sorry, i wasn't trying to be rude."

the girl looked at the desk she was sitting at– it was very plain, the only decorations being school supplies and textbooks. a sigh escaped sumiye's lips as she massaged her temples. "don't apologize, you didn't do anything, ushijima-san. i'm sorry for snapping at you; i'm just really stressed right now."

"want to... talk about it?"

it was almost comical how awkward ushijima was being. sumiye wanted to laugh; it was obvious he didn't talk about emotions often.

biting back a teasing remark, the redhead mulled over his offer. as much as she hated talking about her feelings, it might be nice to get it off her chest. sumiye knew if she tried to talk about this fight with shiro and lena, they would just tell her to break up with kentarō. at this point, she tried to avoid the topic of her boyfriend with them at all cost. "i got into a fight with my boyfriend."

ushijima nodded, staying silent as he waited for her to say more. "i don't know why i blew up at him; it was stupid. he went to all this effort to plan a date and i–" her voice cracked as kentarō's words reverberated through her mind. "i threw a bitch fit."

"you shouldn't invalidate your feelings."

the girl's head snapped up at his words. "what?"

"if you feel that way, than your feelings are justified. you keep invalidating your feelings."

sumiye's eyes widened at his introspective words. shat the fuck was that? coming from the boy who she's never seen smile, this sudden emotional intelligence caught her off guard.

"yeah..." she muttered, still slightly phased by his sudden maturity. "i'll keep that in mind."

✿

after their awkward conversation, the partners returned to their project.

sumiye's mind raced with the olive haired boy's thoughtful perspective. tonight she learned all sorts of new things about the ace next to her. mentally, sumiye took note of this recently learned information– he's scared of ghosts, she stole his motorcycle virginity, and he apparently had some semblance of emotional intelligence.

ushijima felt his interest piqued by the redhead to his right. although she constantly seemed snappy, she could be sweet when she wanted to. the longer he thought about it, the more childlike her behavior seemed. there was just something about her that made ushijima want to know more, a small scratch that needed to be itched.

"i should head out now," sumiye said staring at the clock on ushijima's laptop. it was getting late, and she didn't want to intrude, even though he was the one to invite her over. also, the later sumiye stayed, the more likely rumors would spread about them. if possible, the girl would like to avoid dragging ushijima's reputation into the rumor mill.

"okay," the ace saved their work and closed his laptop. "let me walk you to your dorm."

"no," she answered a little too quick. to cover up her rude response sumiye added,"it's fine."

"are you sure?"

internally, sumiye rolled her eyes. as nice as his assurance was: yes, she was sure. the redhead was 100% confident with all of her decisions (and if she wasn't, she would rather pretend than admit it ).

"i'll see you on monday, ushijima-san."

"goodnight, hashimoto-san." he concluded with a small nod, shutting the dorm door behind her.