BRILLIANT Y/N. HAIKYUU

chapter ten

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chapter ten
cheering up boys
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On that night with Tobio, strangely, you felt as though it was your job to help Tooru. And you would not help in the way he wanted you to, but rather in the way you felt he needed to be helped. That was why you found yourself once again, accompanying home a confused, and slightly scared, Kageyama Tobio.

The boy, you knew, in some form of admiration, felt strongly for Tooru, and this, whether he admitted or not, had hurt him deeply.

You didn't let him out of your sight, so that when both the night and Tobio's expression continued to darken around you, you stopped to wait for him, and when he reached you, you even gave him your hand. He was reluctant at first, but since he was shocked and in desperate need of comforting, he quickly grabbed your hand, refusing to look at you, a blush coating his cheeks. To you, this gesture was meant to comfort him, nothing more, and admittedly, you just didn't think much of hand-holding or hugging, or any of that really. You were not a touchy person (although recently, you found yourself giving out hugs more frequently), as you thought that in terms of emotional comfort, no amount of physical contact could hold a candle to a good book. But since you were not stupid, you were well aware of what comforted other people. And you wanted to comfort Tobio.

You tried the best you could, in the way you knew Hajime and Tooru had once tried with you, and told yourself that hugging and hand-holding could be nice. And that it could help. This kind of touch was a rarity for you, usually reserved for making the other person, not you, feel better, and you had never really had much incentive to use it before, but for Tobio, you wanted to try, and so you did.

The two of you didn't speak again till you reached the station. Then you told him warmly, but also in a incredibly stiffly manner 'Come on, sit down. I'll wait with you,' and the two of simultaneously sat down on the bench. It was awkward, and for a moment, neither of you moved, instead frozen to your seats. Secretly, you knew that you were the one making it awkward by sneaking not so conspicuous glances at Tobio every two seconds. And then whenever the two of you locked eyes, you would quickly look away. At one point, Tobio clearly had enough, because after you quickly had averted your eyes from his yet again, you even started whistling, and that was where he just turned to look at you blankly.

He frowned at you seriously, probably not so happy with the way you were acting as if he was of a different species. But, you noted, while maybe unintentionally, you had still managed to distract him somehow, even if not in the way you had originally hoped. It was a small victory, but a victory nevertheless.

Smiling stiffly, you put your hand on his shoulder and said quietly, 'What happened wasn't your fault.'

He looked at you again, blankly, and this time he didn't look away. He blinked twice. "I know. I didn't do anything."

Another stiff smile painted itself onto your face. "That's, uh, good- uh, brilliant that you know that. But I hope you can also not hate Toor— I mean, Oikawa-san, for it.'

Tobio said nothing in return, but by the look in his eyes, you gathered that hating Tooru for this hadn't yet occurred to him. For the first time that night, you smiled a real, and not so stiff smile. Tobio really was an alright person, and when you said alright, you actually meant 'good'. He could be rude, but when it came down to it, there was little actual meanness there.