#Oikawa's interests are IMPORTANT and WORTHY

[ninapi]

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Save me (Kageyama Version)

Premise: Friendship is a fragile thing. Keeping you safe was his priority for the longest time, but overcoming hardships along someone you hold dear form irreplaceable, indestructible bonds, and a childhood friend can easily become the love of your life; or so that was for Kageyama Tobio.

Word count: 3286

Note: Welcome to the final route for this series! If you’re new to the series, in order to understand what’s going on chapter 0 (link here) is very important, also Semi’s chapter 1 is the original set up for the current timeline so I would advise you to read that one first as well (link here), if you haven't yet. With that out of the way, let’s all scream together because Kags is finally here~ 🙊

Chapter 1: First Love

Kageyama Tobio had always been alone, ever since he was a child, his only friends were members of his own family. His overwhelming talent made his personality take a sudden turn for the worse when facing rejection by his fellow volleyball teammates.

He always knew he had talent and had been groomed since a young age by his even more talented grandfather to be at the top of the volleyball industry. He came to this world to be a setter and the people around him knew this, building an impenetrable barrier around him.

When he arrived at Kitagawa Daiichi that barrier just kept growing steeper. He knew he was at fault, he didn’t know how to make friends, how to be gentler, all he’s ever got from other people has been rejection, mistreatment, spiteful words, so that was all he knew how to give back.

Kitagawa Daiichi came with many downsides, but also brought an unexpected light to his life which he thought was completely out of his reach for the longest time.

His captain was the worse type of human being to ever exist. He felt threatened ever since his arrival to the team as they shared the same position, and he was clearly better at it, making his life miserable on purpose. Oikawa’s personality was the complete opposite to what he was, as annoying as one can be, but everybody seemed to love him regardless and he had something he could never aspire to get, you.

Being deep into volleyball since he was very young, this was the first time he developed some sort of interest for the opposite sex. You were the only person in the entire school who wasn’t mean to him, you weren’t scared of being a target for his hateful words, never annoyed by it either. Always worried about his well being, constantly nagging at the others for their comments and taking offense in his behalf. It felt weird having someone worry over him and at first it was nothing but a nuisance to him, he would always ignore you, wave away your smiles with disinterest. You shinned too bright for his taste and he didn’t know how to handle it.

He would say you were as annoying as your boyfriend was, but in reality, he was just lying to himself like he usually did when he wanted to run away from his problems. He didn’t want to see you in a better light because you fraternized with the enemy, someone willing to date Oikawa was definitely not worthy of his time.

But you kept on insisting, would just sit beside him without making any noise, all you wanted was to be there for him, if he wanted silence, that’s what he’d get. Companionship didn’t feel as bad as he thought it would and he started to look forward to the short moments he would share with you during practice. There was something about the way you looked at him so openly, there were no lies, no bad intentions, your presence was soothing and so, he stopped avoiding you all together.

Friendships aren’t easy to build, but you were the one putting in all the hard work, the least he could do was reply back to you when you felt like talking to him, stop pushing you away, and that did the trick.

When he saw Oikawa’s true colors for the first time a hole grew in his stomach. He couldn’t fathom someone could treat you the way he did. You had nothing but good intentions in life, your heart was full of love, you were a rare type of human, he’d never seen someone like you before, definitely didn’t deserve such a treatment especially not from someone who was supposed to love you.

He didn’t know there was a side to himself willing to protect someone, all he cared about was himself and volleyball, but somehow, wanting to protect you came out of him naturally and feeling your warmth against his chest the day everything blew up was a game changer for him. He could feel you tremble in fear, but he could also feel the way your body relaxed against his when you noticed he was there. The skin of your wrist was red and swollen, your face devoid of all color, making him realize Oikawa was indeed a piece of shit with everyone, not just to him, he sees that now and made him question your decisions, he wouldn’t even respect the only person around who truly deserved that respect, and suddenly he wished Oikawa would just go away for good without leaving a trace.

Days after that became dull. Oikawa stole his everyday happiness, the peaceful moments he shared with you in a secluded bench in the gym, the light banter that always led to your soft giggles. He lost it all just because your boyfriend saw you and him sharing some milk. It was his doing, he caused this, that’s why he wanted to leave in the first place and let you sulk without your lactose dose of the day, but he didn’t, he couldn’t resist the look of despair in your eyes, even if that meant cutting down his own intake of goodness. It was a silly simple action but ended up drifting you two apart, souring his mood for the entire rest of the year.

But when Oikawa finally left for high school, air came back into his lungs.

The very first day of your last year in Kitagawa Daiichi, the first thing you did was wait for him by the school gate. The smile you gave him once you finally saw him coming was like no other thing he’s seen before. Your eyes were twinkling in the morning light, your cheeks rosy with excitement, your hair had grown a bit over the winter break and you changed your hairstyle, somehow you looked more relaxed, it showed on your face. “Kageyama-kun! How have you been? I went to visit some friends in Tokyo over the weekend and they had this limited-edition milk, it made me think of you, so I got us two! Let’s try it in the lunch break, ok?” that’s right, he was gone, he could actually talk to you again.

“You really know how to get someone’s attention, don’t you?” chuckling, you laced your arm around his while you went inside the school building. It felt so freeing to the both of you not having to watch over your backs every single minute, not having to watch your words anymore. “See you at lunch then, T.O.B.I.O-kun~” you left him behind, running over to your classroom in a fit of crazy giggles, like if he was going to chase you around just for calling him by his first name, which of course he didn’t, though, it made him smile.

Lunch was fun, even if you stole one of his sausages. The weird milk you brought from Tokyo tasted like cough syrup, but it was so horrible that it just made everything better. He’s always eaten lunch by himself somewhere hidden from the rest, searching for a peaceful quiet moment, but you made lunch period fun, it was a good kind of different.

He thought about walking you home, you both lived in the same direction anyways, and your bashful smile when he suggested it made his chest feel a bit tight. Though, the giddiness in the air didn’t last long, as soon as you both came out of the school together a large angry hand stopped you from walking any further. “You seriously need to stay the fuck away from my girlfriend, Tobio-chan. Is it that difficult to understand that she’s already taken? That you aren’t welcomed here? Did mommy not teach you not to touch what’s not yours?” he thought he was gone for good and you never expected him to actually come and pick you up, his high school was pretty out of the way, it was absolutely not necessary for him to do so, but he didn’t trust you, didn’t trust the look in Kageyama’s eyes when you were around. “Don’t be like this, Toru. We were just headed in the same direction that’s all. Come on let’s go. We’ll get going now, Tobio-kun. See you around.” the sad smile on your face made him want to punch this man and his smug annoying face out of this world, you looked clearly bothered and uncomfortable, your wrist once again red and swollen. He thinks of how bright and how full of life your face was this morning and saw nothing left. This relationship was clearly taking a toll on you and he just didn’t know what to do to help or if it help was even welcomed.

•───────•°•❀•°•───────•

Kageyama thought you’d be scared of Oikawa’s recurring behavior, he thought you’d stop talking to him once again, but you proved him wrong when he saw you waiting for him by the school gates like the previous day.

He’d never had a true friend before, so he was unsure if that’s how friendships worked, all he knew was that he wanted to continue with whatever that was for as long as it lasted, he wanted to continue being the source of your giggles, being the one to make you feel at ease and comfortable, the one you look for, not hide from. And so, it all began its natural course.

With you, not every day was a happy day, and he was well aware of that before even getting this close.

For some reason you couldn’t hide from him your sadness, your fear. He always knew when something was off. As the year went on, the off days were more than the good ones and all he could do was to be there for you. He wanted to do more, to kidnap you and take you away from this pain that hunted you. He wanted to make you understand what you were doing for Oikawa out of compassion was ruining your own life. He wanted to see you laugh more, to be carefree again. But you continued pushing your fears away and focused on your time together, you loved helping him practice during breaks, the exercise and his company almost made you forget the unpleasant life you were having.

That day you took a punch for him was more than a revelation for Kageyama. He wanted to officially have the roll to protect you, not only from this man, but from harm in general. The pained look on your face, the lack of strength on your legs that could barely support your own weight, you were such a kind loving person, seeing you so broken made him so angry he could barely contain himself.

Knowing you would finally leave Oikawa for good and attend Shiratorizawa brought excitement to his heart, finally, you would be free. You would be able to smile, he would be able to take you home, go out together on the weekends, share some ice cream, who knows maybe even hold hands, or so he thought, since he didn’t see you again in school after that and your phone number had been cancelled before he got the courage to give you a call.

•───────•°•❀•°•───────•

He did his best to get admitted in Shiratorizawa, even asked his sister to help him study. Originally he wanted to make his grandfather proud, but now most of all, he wanted to see you again.

Sisters are a pain. His study sessions turned into questioning, his sister was very much intrigued by this friend of his and used her help as bargain chip to squeeze information out of the poor boy. That day he learned friends don’t have this many feelings for each other and she ran around the house professing his undying love, earning her a ball to the face.

But she wasn’t entirely wrong.

He missed you. That wasn’t normal for him, but he thought it was because you were a very important friend and that was it, until he just couldn’t sleep at night thinking about the silliest of things, like that one time milk came out of your nose and he had to clean your face while you couldn’t stop laughing, how you would bury your face on his arm when you didn’t want him to see you cry, how short your skirt was in summer and how he was able to see that cute lil mole you had on one of your legs that you claimed didn’t even know of its existence, how you would always wait for him with a smile on your face even when you had an awful fight with his nemesis.

His sister was definitely not wrong.

The way his chest felt tight whenever you were sad, whenever you would get too close to his face, whenever you would cover his scraps with band-aids, whenever you smiled just for him to see.

At first, he thought it was annoyance, he thought he hated all these things, girls had always been overly attentive with him for some reason, and he’s hated their guts since the very beginning. But he caught himself smiling back one day and realized he didn’t hate it as much if it was you. He even kept one of your carebears band-aids in his desk’s drawer, always saying he would throw it away another day. Truth is, every time he sees it his chest feels full and that was a nice feeling, so it will probably live in his drawer for the rest of his days.

•───────•°•❀•°•───────•

Going to Karasuno wasn’t a choice but a last resort option. He didn’t want to go to Seijoh that was a fact, so the closest second school to his house happened to be Karasuno and seemed like they had a volleyball club too. Anything was better than fighting Oikawa again for his position in the team.

It wasn’t his first choice, he hated himself for not being able to get in Shiratorizawa, but he found out quickly that Karasuno wasn’t as bad as he thought it would be.

It took some time, but he finally felt like part of a team and that was something he’s been searching for, for years.

The first time he faced Oikawa again he noticed the lack of you in the audience. He knew you said it was over, that you wouldn’t be with him again. But you had said that before many times, and he always ended up breaking you into accepting him back. He wanted to believe this time was true, but he had his doubts. Not seeing you there cheering for him was a good sign, making something resembling hope to bloom in his chest.

Time went by and he thought of ways to approach Shiratorizawa without being pegged as a creep, it wasn’t easy. He went a couple of times as far as he could get without being noticed and there was just no sign of you. Waiting at the gates would be just weird and would draw too much attention, sadly he didn’t know anybody at the school so getting someone to call you over was also not ideal for him, causing all his attempts to fail. The only option left was to win his way over to Shiratorizawa in the tournament, maybe he would get to see you there or at least could ask around.

•───────•°•❀•°•───────•

Semi was going through some of the videos the coach had sent for them to analyze Karasuno and create some tactics, when you plopped down beside him, handing him his lunch. You made a sandwich for yourself, but you ended up buying too much bread, the most viable option being sharing it with your friend as usual. “So, what you doing?” you leaned over so he could share his screen with you, while chewing on some lettuce. “If you may know, rabbit girl, we are playing against these guys next, so we gotta watch them play and learn all their tricks.”

“So that’s how you always win then, you cheat.” laughing at Semi’s unimpressed face, you choked on your lettuce at a single shot of very shinny looking black hair. “EITA! Go back, go back!!”

“Go back where?” you snatched his phone away, doing it yourself, “OH my GOD, I knew it! I would recognize that hair anywhere. You’re playing against my Tobio? You doomed, babeh.” getting his phone back, he stares at the guy in question. He was indeed pretty good, was the only known threat in the list, but was always seen yelling at others and with a permanent scowl on his face, not what he was expecting him to be from the way you talk about him like he was some sort of soft angel. But you liked prickly guys, you were his best friend after all and he was definitely a sourpuss.

“Meh, he looks ok. Not as scary as the Miya twins, which we might have to face if we win against Karasuno. Nothing Ushijima can’t take down.” Hearts were coming out of your eyes while staring at his screen, it’s been so long since you’ve seen him. He looks way taller now, his face slimmer, he’s starting to look like a man, you’ve always thought he was cute, but cute didn’t quite make the cut anymore, he was hot.

“You are looking at him like he was a piece of meat on a grill, (Y/N). Have some self-respect will you, disgusting.” that made you laugh, but you wanted to watch the rest of the game, you could at least live vicariously through it and pretend you actually knew something about his current life. His teammates all looked like good people, they seemed to get along, it made you feel fuzzy inside, if that was true then you were happy for him, of course Shiratorizawa would have been a better fit for him, but Karasuno wasn’t half bad, they made him shine like the star he is.

“Can you send me the video?” grabby hands and puppy eyes were not enough to sway Semi, you knew this but at least you had to try, “You disgust me, but whatever, I’ll send it to you. BUT with one condition. You gotta promise you will go watch the match. That way you can practice going out on your own and you also get to see your eye candy boy again. Deal?” even after practicing with Semi, going out on your own was a terrifying thought, but you wanted to see Tobio and also cheer for your friends, you even promised Ushijima you would go watch one of their matches soon. “Deal.”

It would be scary, but it was a step in the right direction. You would be lying if you said your heart didn’t just skip a beat at the thought of seeing Tobio again, it was worth it.

•───────•°•❀•°•───────•

“Oh my GOD. Is that a girl?????” Hinata stole Kageyama’s phone running around the entire gym trying not to get caught. “Give me back my phone you imbecile.”

“What’s going on here? Stop acting like kindergarten kids.” Daichi took Kageyama’s phone away from Hinata and handed it over to its rightful owner, not before taking a peek first. His Lock Screen had in fact a picture of a girl laying her head on Kageyama’s shoulder with a dopey smile and dreamy eyes, he was right.

Kageyama had changed his phone background for the only picture he had of the two of you together, seemingly preparing for the match. He wanted to have it in hand so he could ask around Shiratorizawa, all he was thinking about was on ways to get to you, didn’t think his team would see it and make fun of him.

“She’s really pretty, though. Do you know her? She looks older.”

“Can’t say I do. Stop stealing Kageyama’s belongings, I won’t be able to stop him for long if you keep on acting like that.” Kageyama kept on mumbling to himself while hiding his phone in his pocket, a slight tinge of red peeking through his shirt to the back of his neck.

“Maybe he stole the picture from the internet and edited himself into it. He would never be able to get such a cute girl.” Tsukishima could be heard snickering on the background, setting his nerves ablaze, “Shup up, moron. Like you could even get another human to breathe the same air as you.”

Once again Daichi had to go in between them, dragging the smallest load out of the gym with him. If there was one thing he didn’t expect from Kageyama was girl problems, he thought he would be able to graduate in peace before the younglings entered that problematic phase.

But he was wrong.

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Tagged babes: @dazaisfavgf @lauraagrace @san-emi

Masterlist

[haikyuu-imagines-and-others]

so this might totally not work but how about a scenario where Kuroo, Iwaizumi, Akaashi and Oikawa (sorry if it's too many?) had like a bad breakup with their (now) ex and they're trying to get back with her or smth and they have this one friend supporting them in the make up but also comforting and trying to distract them and stuff?? and at some point they realize they're actually in love with their friend? Or maybe she actually goes to whoop their ex's ass when she's being particularly mean 😂

Hhhhhmmmm well I usually only allow 3 characters at a time, but I’ll make an exception for this one! Mostly because it has a degree of angst that I absolutely love! But please be sure to limit to 3 for scenarios! Thanks love for the request! - Admin Satori

Kuroo Tetsurou:

Your heart had started hurting at the beginning of this mess. Your love for Kuroo shriveling up and aching when he’d gone off and found himself a girlfriend. He seemed so happy, so content with life and excited for the future… you’d kept quiet… you’d kept quiet and settled for being his friend.

Because you’d rather be his friend than nothing at all. Confessing to him how you felt once he was happy with how things were going would only threaten your friendship…. And if you had to go on without him? You don’t know what you’d do. He was your sunshine.

Yet…. About a week ago… his warm smiles seemed to dim before altogether extinguishing before your eyes when he admitted his girlfriend had dumped him.

For someone else. One of his friends from college.

“Because I’ve got a really ugly laugh, she said it freaked her out.” He chuckled halfheartedly, shrugging easily before running his fingers through his hair - he was staring into the mirror in his bathroom. You had come over to hang out and have fun with your friend, take joy in his company… but this wasn’t a side of Kuroo you were used to.

“An ugly laugh? Not even!” You scoffed, “She’s insane. Let her go ruin her life.”

But he didn’t let up. He wanted her back. He changed everything about himself so she would want him back. He cut his hair - short. Cropped black hair. He pierced his ears because that’s what his friend had.

You couldn’t do anything but watch in horror as he transformed everything for her. He wore different clothes, too baggy and weird matchups. Hats and too big glasses… Were those prescription based? Had he really spent more money to get new frames for his glasses?

“Tetsu-“ But he wouldn’t hear it from you. Too in his own head trying to figure out ways to change himself.

“_______, which one is better?”

Resting your hands on his, you had him lower the clothing out of the way, “Tetsurou….. Let’s go out on the town today…” He rolled his eyes, about to bring up the clothes as a show of ‘duh that’s why I’m asking you what to wear’, but you held his hands down, “Don’t you have any normal people clothes?” You smiled, but the irate tick of his eyebrow had you internally shrinking away from him.

Had you said something wrong? Was this really that serious?

So you slowly pulled your hands away, down casting your gaze before stepping back, “Sorry.. You probably have plans with her today, huh? Uhm… I guess.. Just shoot me a text if you need anything, okay?”

He didn’t respond, and you took that as your cue to leave.

You didn’t see him for days after that. He was busy. Taking classes on how to mask his speech to make it sound like whatever language was his mother tongue. Going shopping on his own to pick out the most similar clothing he could to the guy his ex was dating. He even changed his laugh… You hadn’t heard his real laugh in about a month now…

If you were being honest with yourself, you’re heart would break knowing you couldn’t even recreate his laugh in your memories. All you could hear is his forced laugh… he wasn’t happy, and yet he didn’t even see it himself.

But you were there for him. Sending him messages here and there, encouraging him to find himself before trying to get her back, sending the funniest of memes you’d think he’d like.

But you were hurting. More now than ever before. Because the young man you loved, the one you could see yourself with for the rest of your life… was slipping away. Slowly being replaced by some kind of imitation human.

You’d had it though. You were tired of watching him water down his personality because she couldn’t understand. Because she was the problem. He was perfect the way he was. “Wow, you’re so much smarter than me, I’m blown away by your brilliance.” He’d stumble over his fast learned French, complimenting her in a language she didn’t even understand but that she found ‘sexy’ and ‘hot’.

Irritation in your veins, you simply turned to her, and her smug smile, and growled out, “You’re a fucking idiot.” You were so angry. So furious. Before she could jump at the opportunity to shut you down, you were right there with your fury, “What kind of airhead are you? You don’t even KNOW French and you’re forcing him to learn it? For what? A chance to be by your side? Do you know how many women would JUMP at the opportunity to have Tetsurou for who he is? Millions.”

She scoffed, “Oh yeah right. He was an absolute loser before I-“

“No! No he fucking wasn’t!” You completely lost tack of where you were, your anger getting the better of your words, of your thought process. “He was smart! He still IS smart! Way more ‘brilliant’ than you! He learned French… in 2 weeks! Just to impress you! He changed everything about himself for you! And you’re still seeing someone else? Why even drag him along if you’re not going to commit? Why make him change everything about himself, everything I loved, if you don’t even want him?”

A simple shrug. “It was funny.”

No care. No sympathy. She didn’t care. She didn’t love him. He was her toy and she was having fun.

You didn’t even notice when you raised your hand to hit her.

But another hand held you back. “How cute~! You were pining this whole time? Oh, if I had known that, I would have made him change much more…” Then she was walking away, tossing a “Come on, Tetsu~, we’ve got some shopping to do~.”

“Uh…. Go on ahead of me… I’ll catch up….”

You roughly pulled your arm from his hold, but soon found all the fight had been leaked out of you in that moment of fury. You were tired. Tired and hurt.

Kuroo didn’t leave to catch up, though. He stayed with you. Silent. Watching your emotions play out on your face before you gathered what was left of your strength to cover what you were feeling. Hurt. Lost. Loss. You wanted to lash out, get him away from you as quickly as possible just so you could have your alone time - time to grieve over the young man who would never want you.

“I can’t…. I can’t do this anymore, Tetsurou… I can’t… It’s not healthy for me to watch you lose yourself for someone like..” Your hand waved weakly in the direction his ex had walked off in, “I just.. I don’t have it in me anymore.” When had your eyes welled with tears? No matter because you could feel a few of them slip passed your control down your cheeks. “I can’t stand by anymore… I can’t fight her… I can’t…. Your heart isn’t mine to fight for anymore, and that much is so fucking obvious since you’re just going to go after her and-“

Lips against yours. Hands cupping your face. You felt your heart break just a bit inside your chest at the mere idea of this being a dream or a trick. But if this were a dream or trick… what was the harm in indulging in the feeling of warmth spreading throughout your body?

So you fell. You fell for him harder than you had in the very beginning. Your hands held his against your cheeks, feeling his thumbs rubbing away your runaway tears, “I’m not… I’m not going after her… I’m not going anywhere…” Was that a choir singing in your ears at the sound of his real voice? That didn’t help dry your tears, but it had your heart swelling in your chest.

Kuroo kissed you softly, tenderly, anxiety eating at his core for making you wait so long for his attention. But when you’d gotten angry at his ex… when you’d admitted to being emotionally worn out… He’d seen you. The real you. The you who had been by his side even in his stupid choices.

“Please….” You whispered, “Please stop changing yourself…” You pulled from his lips before moving your arms to wrap around him, pressing your face into his chest and letting out a quiet sob when he held you close to him, burying his face in the top of your head.

“My laugh isn’t too ugly for you?”

You scoffed around a sniffle, pinching his side, “Your laugh is my favorite laugh.”

Iwaizumi Hajime:

Why had you agreed to this? To get in better shape, sure… but to watch him kill himself over someone who clearly didn’t have the ability to care? Not at all.

And yet you stayed. You helped. You watched and trained and worked out with Iwaizumi almost on a daily basis! You were feeling good about yourself! He would help you eat healthy and shed off any weight you felt shouldn’t be there! It was great!

Except that it wasn’t. Because he was taking it too far. A 5k, and you were beat! Ready to shower and rest your aching muscles…. And yet he turned it into a 10k, a 15k, a 20k….. Leaving you in the dust, or forcing you to catch up with him by non running/walking means. You’d catch up with him towards the end, driving beside where he was running on the sidewalk, calling for him to get in the car so the two of you can go relax and binge watch some TV.

But he’d only fight back. “I don’t have TIME to relax, ________. I have to keep working out. I don’t want her to think I’m lazy or getting fat.”

His ex. She’d pointed out his ‘chubby cheeks’ before breaking up with him… and now he was obsessing over it. Trying everything in his power to bulk up his body and slim down his face… Did he really look chubby to everyone? Did his efforts at the gym not translate into his physique?

You had lost count how many times you’d told him he looked amazing, that his arms were big enough to squish a watermelon between them or that you could hand wash your clothes on his abs….. He could probably outrun a goddamn cheetah… and yet he didn’t stop. He didn’t quit.

It wasn’t healthy. You were in your peak condition - where you wanted to be in terms of body weight and eating routines. You were feeling amazing! Endorphins firing off when they were supposed to, anxiety and depression long gone from your mind because you were taking care of the root of them… You were in the best shape you’d ever been and you couldn’t be happier!….

But you could. You could definitely be happier…. If he’d stop killing himself over his ex.

“Hajime, for fucks sake… You’re not even eating right anymore!”

“I can’t eat, ______. I’m just going to get fat and look like a damn hippo next to her. Gotta be in my best shape.” He’d brush you off, even going to move past you towards the weights he had in his home. He’d spent so much money on gym equipment - because the gym he’d gone to had noticed his unhealthy habits and actually banned him from going back.

Leaving you to be the only amount of reason he might listen to.

It wasn’t working though. He wouldn’t listen to you. Not when you pointed out his faulty thinking, not when you showed him videos saying what he was doing was unhealthy, and not when you practically begged him to come to his senses.

Stubborn fool…. But you loved him. You loved him for his heart, for his thoughts… for his kindness and thoughtfulness towards others… You loved him for who he was… not for how he looked - though he looked absolutely delicious. And yet… He didn’t see that.

You couldn’t keep this up. You’d stopped working out with him. Stopped spotting him when he lifted weights… At one point, you’d stopped talking or visiting him altogether.

He hadn’t noticed.

That probably hurt the most. The fact that you could disappear and he wouldn’t notice… Not how he was now. Before his ex? He would have physically gone to your house to check on you… but now? After her? After her thoughtless heartbreaking lies? …. He only thought of her, of how to better his body for her pleasure.

But you couldn’t take it any longer. Sitting there alone in your home… wondering what he was doing, wondering if he’d eaten at all or if he’d had any water… Why was he killing himself for her? Why? You loved him… You loved him no matter what, but watching him bend himself broken……

Iwaizumi was lying on his back on his weight bench when you entered his home. “______! Come spot me.” You didn’t fight, you followed his instruction…. But irritation boiled your blood when he lifted the weight off it’s support before you were in place… So you did something that rational thinking you would forever be embarrassed about.

You straddled him.

Legs on either side of his hips, you sat casually on his pelvis, hands under the steel rod he gripped in his hands. “Wha-what the hell are you doing?” He grunted out, forcing his mind on the weight shaking in his hold and not the pressure of your body on his. “Fuck, help me?”

“This is literally half the weight you were able to lift last month…..” You noted, the muted anger clear in your voice. But you made no move to help lift the weight from him. Instead you grabbed the steel from the top and pulled it down so it was over his chest, then you were leaning down on it.

Iwaizumi let out a gasp of a squawk, “________! Stop!” He called, his own irritation in his voice, he was getting angry with you… but you knew this was the only way for him to see.

So you leaned a bit harder on the steel bar, feeling his arms shaking as they struggled to keep the weight from ‘crushing’ him… though you knew it wouldn’t harm him… His muscles were so weak from overuse, he needed to rest… if he rested, you knew this weight wouldn’t have any chance against him. Yet he struggled. Because he was unhealthy. He was weak.

“You’re a goddamn fool, Hajime. In your drive to get strong, to be the biggest meat head in the whole world, you’ve made yourself the weakest human I’ve ever known.”

His green eyes showed his anger, showed his boiling rage, “Get. Off. Of. Me.”

You smirked, “Make me. Big strong Hajime… I’m sure you could toss a little one like me around like a ragdoll… So why don’t you?” His arms continued to shake as he held off the weight, and you felt disgust in your stomach at the sight of him, “Because you can’t.” You roughly pushed off of him, moving to stand behind the weight bench and pull the steel bar to its support rings.

Iwaizumi didn’t move, gasping for air as he stared up at you, his expression showing his anger…. But his eyes… His eyes showing his fear, because you were right. He knew you were right this whole time. “Why do you care? I’m trying to get….” He panted for much needed air, his lungs burning from the exhaustion making itself known.

“Because I’m literally watching the man I love kill himself. You’re wasting away to nothing but skin and bones, all your muscle is falling apart because all you do is wear it down…. Soon enough you won’t even be able to hold your own head up and you know what? She’s not going to want you back. Not then, not now, and not when you eventually end up in an early grave because your heart can’t handle the effort your exerting.”

No tears. You were quite proud of your explosion. In most cases where you were angry, you couldn’t get your words out clearly, or you’d lose your train of thought… but you’d been thinking about him nonstop since he’d been dumped… since he’d started this whole insane power trip.

The silence was deafening.

“I owe you… so much, Hajime. Because you helped me. You pulled me out of his swirling hole of darkness… and you pushed me to better myself… I’m healthy. I’m able to run a 5k without dying after a couple feet… I’ve been eating healthy and all my inner demons are being starved because I absolutely love myself now…..” You looked down at where he lay, limp and weak… and you wondered if this was the first break his body has had since the breakup. “But I’m not happy, Hajime… I’m not. I can’t be. Watching you do this to yourself… You’re in the top percentile in terms of body mass and weight…. But you’re not stopping… You’re wearing yourself down day by day, hour by hour…. Not eating because she said you’ve got chubby cheeks….”

Iwaizumi looked away, feeling his heart ache. “Do I still have chubby cheeks?”

“Yeah, you do.” Was your immediate answer, and his green eyes were back on you in an instant - he took insult to your telling him the truth. But you let out a sigh and moved to stand beside the weight bench, grabbing his arm and pulling him to sit up. He struggled to help you, everything about his body felt heavy, felt tired and nonresponsive…. But you didn’t seem worried. “That’s not going to be something you can change though…. You’ve lost…. Nearly a quarter of your body weight… and you still have chubby cheeks… I think they’re just genetics.”

You playfully pinched his cheek, and he let out an irritated huff, “How could you love someone who’s got a fat face?”

His body slumped, and you couldn’t tell if it was on purpose, against yours, leaning into you. You wrapped you arm around his waist, and rest your head on his as it laid on your shoulder. He needed your strength right now. “Hey now, chubby doesn’t mean fat. You’ve got a cute face.” You smiled, hearing his unintelligible grumbling. “Please…. stop.” You whispered, struggling to keep the emotion out of your voice… this was the first time in a long time you’d been able to talk to him about anything other than a workout plan.

Pressing a kiss to his forehead, you squeezed your arm around his waist, feeling him flinch at the minimal pressure, “Ah! Alright alright! Jeez….” He hissed out, letting out a exhausted sigh, “Then… Could you help me get better?”

Vulnerable… You knew it was a long road before he was back to who he used to be… But if he wanted you to help him…

“And…. When I’m feeling better and I’m able to actually walk…” He cleared his throat, and you could feel the warmth of his face against your shoulder as he blushed, “Will you let me thank you by taking you out to dinner?”

“Uh…..” There goes your confidence in your words… You hadn’t expected that. Now it was your turn to blush, feeling your heart slamming against your chest as you watched his shaking hand take yours on your lap. And you knew he was shaking because he was weak, but a part of you felt as if he were shaking because he was nervous. “Uhm….” You cleared your throat, “Y-yeah… I-I’d love to….”

Akaashi Keiji:

So very flashy. How annoying… Your eyes traveled between the cool and collected Akaashi, your close friend… the man you loved…. To his girlfriend…. Who didn’t seem to care who was staring as she cooed and reacted loudly to the container Akaashi was currently offering her.

“Oh my GOD! Keijiiiiiiiii! These are so pretty!!!!” Pearls. A pearl necklace and matching earrings. She took the jewelry out of the container before tossing the velvet box in your genera direction, “Oooooh these are cute.” Akaashi watched patiently, though there was pride in his eyes… He was happy. He was content in her reaction because it meant he did good in shopping for her. But before he could really be proud, she turned to face him seriously and grab his hands, “Okay, so where’s my 4 months and 1 day anniversary gift?”

Your lips rolled inward and your eyebrows rose in your surprise at her greediness. But you remained silent. Akaashi had invited you out to hang out with him and his girlfriend, so pointing out her gold digging tendencies was definitely out of line. Akaashi stared at her in surprise, his eyes widening as her eyebrows furrowed in confusion at the time lapsed, “4 months and one day?” He asked, repeating what she said to make sure he’d heard her correctly.

She rolled her eyes, tugging on his hands like a child on the verge of a tantrum, “Well, duh, Keiji~! Everyday with me is a blessing, right? Don’t I deserve nice things?” A pout and Akaashi was letting out a tired sigh before using one of his hands to pull out his wallet. “I want something prettier than the pearls! Something that glitters in the light!”

“Something expensive.” You muttered under your breath, feigning innocence when her head turned to acknowledge you.

“You don’t want me to be as boring and ugly as ______, right? Look at her~ No jewelry or anything pretty at all!” She huffed, pulling her hands from his and crossing her arms over her chest.

Insulted, but not really bothered, you simply rolled your eyes. Akaashi, though, didn’t seem to notice the jab in your looks, his fingers delving into his open wallet before pulling out a mind boggling amount of money for her.

She happily plucked the money from his fingers, and as he leaned down to press a kiss to her lips, she held up a finger to stop him. “Ah ah ah, no kisses. Not until I get my shiny stuff.” Then she was turning and prancing off in the direction of one of the most expensive stores in the city. Leaving you and Akaashi.

“Well, it’s really nice to see you, Keiji…. What’s been going on?” The idea of bringing up his girlfriends actions had you internally cringing. You didn’t want to talk about it. That was his life, his choice. And while you were pining for his attention…. You couldn’t force him to look your way in anything other than friendship.

His green eyes met yours, and your heart squeezed in your chest. He looked so tired. So exhausted. Had he been sleeping well lately? “Work. Honestly,” He smiled halfheartedly, “This is the first time I’ve been in public that wasn’t work.” His hum trailed off into silence. His eyes seemed to drop at bit, and you had to hold back the impulse to stroke his cheek…. That wasn’t something for you to do.

He’d been working nonstop. You knew. Pearls? On his salary? He must have been saving up for weeks. He probably even went into his savings account to pull for it… and you KNEW he hated dipping into that account! “How many hours this time?”

Akaashi checked his wrist watch, “Technically, this is only my lunch hour I’m using… I still have to go back into the office.” He must have seen your disapproving expression, his eyebrows furrowing as he looked in the direction of where his girlfriend had gone, “I’ll be fine. Work isn’t horrible..”

“You look like you haven’t slept in days, Keiji….”

“I’m fine, ______.” Was his curt response, wounding your already aching heart. You didn’t say anything more, allowing him to make his own decisions and run his own life the way he thought was best….

Yet you regretted not saying anything that day.

Because it only got worse.

He’d stopped texting you, stopped talking to you - and when you reached out to him… he only left you on ‘read’. Was he ignoring you? Was she poisoning him to leave you alone? Or was he genuinely upset with what you’d said that day?

But you were right, and you wouldn’t let his reaction to you make you question yourself. He was harming himself because she liked nice, material things… She liked expensive things, and he liked her - so he was going to bend over backwards to get her the nice expensive toys she wanted in that present moment. By any means necessary, you knew, because he was a loyal young man. He was a dedicated young man, who would stop at nothing for the ones he loved.

Did that mean he loved her more than he….. no, he never loved you. You were just a friend. You were sure Bokuto was a higher tier in affection receiving than you were. Because you were his girlfriends’ ‘competition’. If she didn’t like you… Then Akaashi had no choice but to agree with her.

Anger coursed through your veins as you shot up from your couch, feeling sick to your stomach at the idea of Akaashi not caring about you because he didn’t have the courage to think for himself. He was his own man. If he wanted to be friends with you, he damn would be! This silent treatment on the phone was absolutely ridiculous and you wanted some answers!

So why wait for them?

You banged on his front door, listening for any movement beyond. Another couple of bangs, and still no response. Was he home? His car was in the driveway… The lights inside the house were on… He had to be home. He was ignoring you or maybe he just… wasn’t paying attention.

The spare key. You remembered where it was. Under the doormat, you remembered telling him it wasn’t a good place to hide a key to his valuables…. Before he really had any valuables, that is. Akaashi had never been one for material things… Not until she came into his life and drained his wallet. She liked nice things…. He bought himself nice, useless things to make her happy… He bought her…. Probably thousands of dollars worth of material things.

The lights were on. Everywhere. You frowned as you slowly entered his home, closing and locking the door before turning off the lights nearest you. It was 3 in the afternoon, there was no point to having all these lights on when the windows were open.

“Keiji? You here?” You called out, a bit of a tremble in your voice - his empty house was creepy… No soothing presence of the man you loved to calm your nerves. “Keiji?” You tried again, slowly opening the door to his study.

Akaashi glanced over at you briefly before turning back to his laptop. He was working. On a weekend. Headphones in, you wondered if he was listening to a mundane lecture his boss had forced onto him or if it was his favorite music. He waved you off, his natural reaction to wanting to be left alone, but you only came closer. “________, I’m working. Please leave.”

But you didn’t. You scoped his office.

It was a wreck. A mess. A flimsy blanket and pillow on his office couch, books and papers littered all over the floor. Did he ever leave this room? Maybe for the bathroom since you didn’t see any unsavory yellow liquid filled bottles…. yet. The only site of food or drink being contained, poorly, in the trash bin. A whole pile of energy drinks beside it.

“What… the fuck, Keiji…” You had had it. You reached towards him and pulled the earbuds from him, making him lean back in shock when the lecture faded away from his hearing. “Keiji…. Are you serious? Look at this….” You waved towards the entirety of his study, “This has got to stop! You’re running yourself into an early grave!”

Akaashi shrugged easily, “I haven’t been home enough to tidy up. I have to make sure my next paycheck is big enough so-“

“No, no you don’t, Keiji. You have to take care of yourself. You have to drop her and focus on yourself!” An empty bag from one of the expensive stores caught your eye, you grabbed it and started picking up what you thought was trash, tossing it into the bag, “What the fuck is going on, Keiji.. It’s like you’re someone else entirely and I don’t know what to do. I’ve tried talking to you but you only shut me out, and honestly it’s getting harder and harder for me to try to help you because I know it will only end it failure and hurt my heart even more than it already is-“

“She dumped me, _______.”

You froze.

Dumped him? His shoulders sagged, and his hand tiredly closed the laptop in front of him before leaning back in his desk chair, his hands coming to rub at his face roughly. “She left me… And I need to get this money so I can get her something nice.. So she comes back to me…”

“Why?” You didn’t mean for your voice to hold the poison it did. But why would he want her back? She was only a greedy gold digger…. And yet…. He wanted that? He wanted that poison in his life?

Akasshi lowered his hands, giving you a surprised look, “…. Because I loved her?”

It was a lost cause. He was. Your heart ached as you dropped the bag, not finding the point in cleaning up if it would only revert once you’d left. “Why?” You asked again, this time balling your fists by your sides, “Don’t you see what she’s doing? She just wants money. She just wants you to spend all your money on her so she can look good. That’s all it is. She doesn’t care, Keiji… She doesn’t give a damn! You spent all that money on her, you missed holidays, you missed my birthday, you missed your own birthday for fucks sake…. And what? She left you anyway? Don’t you see?”

When had you started crying?

You roughly wiped away your tears, “She’s not going to change, Keiji… And you’re a goddamn idiot if you think she is.” You sniffled, “No one who really loves someone does that. They don’t make you bend over backwards just to hang out with them, they don’t love you depending on the dollar amount of a gift, or make you lose yourself to make them happy!” Akaashi was taken aback when your eyes met his. He’d never seen you so distraught before - never seen that expression of pure torture in your eyes, “I love you, Keiji… and I would NEVER make you change yourself for me. I would never ask you to spend your very last dime on something stupid like earrings or a diamond necklace….”

He was at a loss for words. “I….I know that, ______…..” His voice was calm and collected, but the hesitance at the beginning of his response told you he felt out of place. He never would have expected you to confess.

“Then why…” You started only to stop…. Seeing there was no point in letting him see you fall apart… “You know what….. Forget it…” You sniffled, rubbing at your cheeks to clear the tears before making your way to the study door.

“N-No, wait!” His hand grabbed your opposite wrist as you went to open the door. “Please…. Don’t leave.” Your hand rested on the door as he held you in place, “You’re right, _____. You’re right. I’m a complete fool… For not listening to you, for ignoring you… You’re right… and I’m so sorry… Please….” His voice cracked, and you prayed this wasn’t a trick…. “Please stay.”

Oikawa Tooru:

“I think I’m going to stop doing anything with Volleyball…”

That took you off guard, and you lowered your coaching clipboard. He was the coach at his former highschool… and he wanted to stop? Everything? You huffed with a smirk, “Yeah sure, when pigs fly, Tooru.” But when he didn’t laugh, you glanced up at him once more, “Why would you want to do that?”

Oikawa shrugged, “Ah… Because I’m not any good at it. Busted knee, it’s not like I’m going anywhere grand or amazing with this kind of career.” So nonchalantly was he digging into himself, you ached at how harsh his words were. “So might as well give it up before it wastes anymore of my life, right?”

“I think….” You started, “If you enjoy what you do… why give it up?”

That seemed to confuse him for a couple days. He’d come into the gym, teach the players a new tactic then spend the rest of the session in his office, making it seem like he had paperwork to do but really… he’d just sit there and stare off into space.

Had what you said really been that insane?

Apparently to his girlfriend, it really was. Soon enough you heard the office door slamming closed and the sound of clicking heels as she stomped to where you stood on the side of the court - watching the students playing easily with each other. She grabbed your shoulder and whirled you around to face her.

You nearly reactively punched her for putting her hands on you. But you restrained yourself in time for her to stare huffily at you, “Did you tell Tooru it was fine for him to keep this job?”

“First…” You calmly responded, setting down the clipboard in your hands before staring at her fiercely, “Don’t ever fucking touch me again.” She didn’t seem to flinch, her jaw only clenching in clear annoyance with your calm demeanor. “Secondly, Tooru is a grown man. He can make his own decisions.. I just simply said-“

“OH! So it WAS you! You bitch! He needs to leave this dead end job and get something better! Something that actually suits his handicapped self! He’s broken, ______, let him fucking leave this hellhole and get some desk job or something.”

The expression you pulled wasn’t something you were used to. Disgust? Maybe mixed with humor? Or maybe it was disgust and insult? “Tooru is not broken. Not in the least. He’s fully functioning and much stronger than he was as a teenager… If he wants a break from work, he’s got plenty of time off saved up-“

She scoffed, “Clearly, you’re not understanding me.” Her eyes became hateful as she glared at you, “He quits.”

A snicker pulled from your mouth at her complete seriousness, and when her fury only seemed to increase, you shrugged easily, “I can’t take that from you, sorry. Tooru-“

“STOP calling him that! He’s MY boyfriend. You call him something formal or-“

“Like I was saying, Tooru,” You emphasized his name, “will have to come talk to me about it if he really wants to quit… I doubt he does, but my office is open for any appointment he wants to set.”

Then she stomped her foot like a toddler, “Don’t you realize he’s broken? He can’t do anything right! Always clumsy around the house, talking about volleyball as if he’s ever going to play again, honestly, what’s the point?”

You nodded as if you were actually listening, grabbing the clipboard now to show you were done with the conversation, “Just tell Tooru to come talk to me and we’ll get it figured out. Thanks. BOYS! Huddle up!” You yelled loudly, gaining the attention of the high schoolers.

Oikawa didn’t come talk to you about quitting that day. Or even that week. But she sure was in your office more often, complaining about how you were tricking Oikawa or manipulating him into staying. She was easy to handle, though… Kind of fun with a side of dead brain cells after each conversation with her… But it’s not something you could stop since she would come into the building with the request to talk to Oikawa.

It hurt you to see him having to deal with her everyday. It hurt you even more to know he was willingly staying in that kind of relationship instead of looking your way… But you saw him everyday, too, and you were able to talk to him as you would if he were yours….

Yet that ache in your heart remained. Because he wasn’t yours. And by the looks of that relationship, and her control over him, he never would be.

Then one day… out of the blue…. She dumped him.

He didn’t come to work for days. And you gave him time. You didn’t worry about his absence because you knew what it was to be heartbroken… You were just stronger for how you handled yours.

By the second week of his… unplanned leave, you’d decided that was enough. He needed to come back to work.

When he opened his front door, you were surprised to see he looked relatively normal. Clean, put together, rested… He looked great! “Breaks up, bub… Time to get back to school.”

Oikawa frowned but allowed you into his house, “_______, I just got dumped… have some sympathy…”

You scoffed with a smirk, “I did! For almost 2 weeks, Tooru… But you gotta get back to work sometime, so why not today? The kids are…… What’s that?” Your eyes were drawn to a bag of what looked like charred books and magazines. Burnt to a crisp and resting by the front door to be taken out with other trash. “Are those….” You could make out a few titles, space and aliens and planets and stars…. They were his nerd books, his favorite topic… Burnt and ruined. Ready to join the garbage… “Are those your…. Your alien books?”

He didn’t meet your eyes when you looked at him in shock, simply shrugging before making his way further into his home, wanting to be away from the memory of yesterday. The memory of burning his books and interests down. “Ah, what’s the point, ______~? I’m nearly 30 years old! Space is for kids who have a chance to get there.” He shrugged easily, as if 30 years of obsessing over the unknown was nothing to him.

“Your whole life…. Tooru….” You were speechless, how did someone handle these cases?

“She said I’d never make it to space, so why bother? And honestly, she was right… So I figured… why keep the clutter? Maybe she’d enjoy the cleaner house when I win her back.”

“Win her back…..” You echoed, but it didn’t sound like your voice - honestly, you could barely hear your voice over the cracking of your heart.

Oikawa nodded with a smile, as if he’d done something right! “Yeah! I even got rid of my Volleyball magazines and some of my previous-“

You slapped him across the face, an impulse reaction, “What the hell is wrong with you?” Then you were grabbing his arms, his hand coming up to rub his cheek with a sour look on his face, “All your things? All your interests?”

He shrugged, “She didn’t think they had a point.”

Anger seized your body and you shook him in your hands as best you could… He just let you slightly wiggle his body, “What the hell is wrong with you?? Who cares what she thinks? If you liked them, why didn’t you keep them?”

A laugh…. One of his fake laughs escaped him as he pulled out of your hold, “You’re right, ____! I’m just an idiot, huh?” He smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “Just a blind idiot who doesn’t know how to make anyone else around me happy… I couldn’t keep my girlfriend because she didn’t like my stuff.. and now I can’t keep my best friend because you didn’t like what I did with my girlfriend…” He put his hands on his hips and shook his head with a ‘hopeless’ smile on his face, “I just can’t win, huh?”

You wanted to hit him again. You wanted to shake the sense into him. You wanted to yell and tell him how wrong he was for thinking so lowly of himself and allowing the ideas of others unhappiness change who he was.

But you could only stand there in shock.

“I…. I loved your interests… Tooru… I loved hearing you talk about aliens… Or space in general… Hell, I didn’t understand half of what you were talking about, but I loved hearing you talk about it…. And Volleyball?” You let out a huff of disbelief, “I fucking TOOK the job as the team sponsor because you were the coach! You know I didn’t know a thing about Volleyball before you…. And you were nice enough, sweet enough, to take the time out of your busy day to talk to me about it and show me videos of you playing in the past…..” Your heart leapt into your throat, “And… And you’re telling me you… You just… got rid of everything?”

His eyebrows furrowed, his heart hammering in his chest. He was upset you hit him… but maybe you were right to. Maybe he was losing his mind…. He’d gotten rid of everything… for her… but you… You liked those things, so why had he gotten rid of everything because she hadn’t?

“I… I don’t know….”

Pity filled your heart. Pity for his confused head, his foggy thinking… she’d wrapped herself so much around him, constricted his air and reasoning so much that even after her releasing him… he was still affected by her poison. “Oh, Tooru….”

Tears filled his eyes, “I… I don’t know, _____! I don’t know why I did it! I don’t…. I didn’t….” He reached up and wiped the tears leaking down his cheeks, “I just.. She didn’t…” Realization of what he’d done was finally setting in and you could see he deeply regretted everything he’d done. “Oh my god…” He slowly lowered himself to sit on his couch, slouching forward as he covered his face with his hands, feeling shame wrapping around his body…

You joined him on the couch, not giving him a chance to argue before you were wrapping your arms around him and pulling him close to you, “It’s not your fault….” You whispered quietly, but he only shook in your hold. He’d gotten rid of his most prized possessions… Without even pausing to think if it was a bad idea…. “She hurt you, Tooru… She dug herself into your life and uprooted everything….” He closed his eyes tightly, wishing what he’d done was just a bad dream… that he’d never met her… that’d he’d just gathered the courage to be with you from the beginning! “And when you’re better…. Feeling better or thinking better…. We’ll go get cooler stuff…. Cooler Alien things and space stuff….”

Oikawa felt guilt and shame pinching his heart. Here you were…. Supportive and sweet… offering to help him when he was the most idiotic of people to fall for someone so evil… and yet… He hadn’t seen that before. He’d chosen to be blind to it. Because his ex had chased him… And he liked being chased - but you… You waited. Patiently, you waited for him to come to his senses.

You just wished you’d been more proactive in voicing your opinions of his ex. Maybe it would have saved his alien books and volleyball stuff. “Thank you… For slapping me…” That took you offguard, too, and you couldn’t help but feel a rush of deja vu at his ability to keep you on your toes… But you could only laugh in surprise. “Seriously… If you hadn’t slapped me..” He trailed off, knowing he’d been under his ex’s spell before you’d hit him…

Humming with a small smile, you squeezed him in your hug, “Thank me by talking to me about space and volleyball.. Or anything else you like…” He blushed deeply… You could feel the warmth and wondered what he was thinking about, “So what do you li-“

“You.” Oikawa blurted out, feeling his face light on fire with his embarrassment, “I like you… A lot…”

[bontenten]

The Choosing

Pairing: Daichi x f!reader (ft. Captain Squad <3 and Sakusa)

WC: 3.2k

Genre/Warnings: Crack/Bad Humor, Smut, Romance, Reverse Harem, Royalty AU!, mention or hints of size kink, exhibitionism, creampie, breeding kink, dick and ball worship, you’re perverted and gross

Summary: You are the Princess of the Kingdom of YoreNaym and you need to choose a husband.

Repost from my main because I say so. Lee... :gru: i miss u

Also, no beta we die like Daichi.

It’s a tradition carried through many, many generations that the daughters of nobility from the Kingdom of YoreNaym must choose a suitor from the eligible bachelors from the neighboring kingdoms. It’s a show of kinship to the other kingdoms and also a means of securing peace.

At some point, everyone’s sister’s cousin’s second uncle’s sworn brother’s adopted daughter’s nephew twice-removed will be related and connect back to the Kingdom of YoreNaym. In short, the blood of this kingdom’s daughters unite the lands. No incest, there’s enough genetic diversity, if you will. And because you are also a princess of this kingdom, it’s your turn. Yay.

While growing up, you hear the elders say that the youngsters should be grateful that they have the agency to at least pick a suitor. They spin their looms and cackle, reminiscing that, “Back in our days, we didn’t get to have a choice. Our elders appointed a spouse for us from whichever kingdom had a suitor. Unlike you girls who get to choose, ungrateful wenches…”

Does it really matter? It’s just the false pretense of choice, isn’t it? At the end of the day the selection of eligible bachelors are all chosen ahead of time, deemed worthy, and then after the initial picking, you are just allowed to pick. It doesn’t matter who you choose, any one of them will fit the criteria. Maybe you’ll just close your eyes and pick one randomly. Can you actually say, “I’ll choose my own hand and marry myself.”

That’s pretty brave, hell yea that’s a main character move right there. Speaking of which, who are the eligible bachelors you can choose from today? It’s practically your engagement day, yet you really haven’t been paying any attention at all.

“Hey,” you whisper, lifting the curtain of the palanquin. A maid quickly answers to your beckon.

“Yes, my lady?”

“Who are the candidates today again? You have a...list or brochure of sorts?”

“Just a moment, my lady, I’ll retrieve the scroll for you.”

You open the scroll and peruse the contents. Huh, all the neighboring kingdoms are going all out this year. There’s the Kingdoms of Nekoma, Inarizaki, Fukurodani, Aoba Johsai, Shiratorizawa...Wow, even Johzenji and Nohebi have candidates? Funny, all of these are all presenting their crown princes too. As they should, you are the most beloved princess of the Kingdom of YoreNaym, and the suitor you choose will bring you back as a blessing to his kingdom. It’s a total bummer that the Kingdom of Itachiyama isn’t participating this year. Sakusa’s crown prince succession is next year! You have heard so many swoon worthy stories about that princeling, even paid handsome amounts of money for paparazzi paintings of the beautiful man. No one will find out that the princess of YoreNaym actually hoards little pictures of Prince Sakusa in her panties drawers. It’s a shame you aren’t picking your husband next year.

There’s one more Kingdom on the list that surprises you. Kingdom of Karasuno, or more commonly referred to as the Kingdom of “Fallen Crows”. According to legends, they used to be quite a prosperous kingdom, but after a few generations of inept leadership, a drought, and poor trade economy...the Kingdom has mostly faded into obscurity. It’s been years since a suitor candidate has been offered. So who is it?

“Sawamura Daichi,” you whisper to yourself, “Interesting.”

The festival ground outdoors is especially grand. There are a huge number of tables prepared off to the side for guests. Trays of food, fruits and wine are provided for every single guest in attendance. You are led by the attendants to the temporary throne seat as the guest of honor. As you make your way to the throne, all the guests stand up to acknowledge your entrance. It’s so pressuring and a part of you wishes you can just dig a hole and bury yourself on the spot. You don’t even want to think about how many eyes are on you. They are all just jealous because, really. Take my word for it, I’m the narrator.

When you take a seat, the guests reseat themselves. A shaman comes to the center stage and bows to you.

“My lady, the time is auspicious, let us commence the Festival of Unity. At this time, I’ll be introducing the eligible bachelors from neighboring kingdoms near and far. They have passed the arduous tests and come as the best to offer in asking for your hand. Each of the suitors will present to you with a talent or skill, as to show you their excellence. After the demonstrations, you will be allowed to take your pick. Whereupon you will—”

“Okay, I get it! They will participate in a talent show, we clap, and I choose a husband, I got it!” You snap, cutting the shaman’s words off. Your patience is wearing thin.

A number of guests can be heard mumbling in the crowds, probably commenting on your behavior. Your eyes scan the guests, you can care less. Judgmental eyes, scheming eyes, lecherous eyes, disgusting eyes....Your gaze meeting with a pair of eyes that are absolutely blank. Wait, not blank as in emotionless. Non-judgemental? The opposite of unkind? Dare you say, polite? He gives you a smile and returns to taking a sip from his goblet. You scan his clothing up and down to look for his family crest. Black and orange. A crow. Karasuno.

Your thoughts are jumbled as an increasing amount of questions fill your mind. He? Karasuno? That Kingdom of Fallen Crows? You barely hear the shaman announce the first candidate.

“Bokuto Koutarou from Kingdom of Fukurodani.” Bokuto is a very large, very well built man. He is wearing his family crest of an owl across his back proudly. You can tell his chest is incredibly broad, the bulge of his big tiddies stretch the tight shirt he’s in. If you squint hard enough, you can maybe see the outline of his nipples through the training shirt, but maybe that’s just your perverted imagination too. Bokuto comes to the center stage and greets you.

“Hey! I’ll uh, demonstrate my strength to you, my lady.” He easily picks up a huge hunk of metal and lifts it with ease above his head. Damn beefiness, those arms of his. Seeing the bulges flex when he flexes has you dreaming of mouth along that delicious flesh. And when he pins you down under his massive body? Ooh, if this is the first demonstration, you’re excited to see the whole lineup today. Gasps and murmurs can be heard in the crowd. Bokuto grins and drops the load on the ground. You can almost feel the tremors beneath your feet. Truly, a herculean feat.

“Thank you, Bokuto, I have seen your demonstration and all those here are witnesses.”

Bokuto’s demonstration is a showy start of the competition for your hand. The shaman announces the next candidate. “Ushijima Wakatoshi from the Kingdom of Shiratorizawa.”

Ushijima walks up to the stage exuding the regal aura of nobility; a byproduct of his strict upbringing. The twin crests of an eagle decorate his shoulder pads. His expression is quite cold, but there’s a saying, “it’s always the quiet ones.” You lick your lips and study him some more.

“Greeting to the princess,” he says with a deep bow. “I also bring a demonstration of my martial prowess.” Ushijima takes off the bow and quiver of arrows from his back and nods at his attendant who then catapults three apples high up into the air. Everyone’s eyes follow the  trajectory of the objects, squinting to see what’s happening. No way.

Ushijima draws the bow back and calmly shoots one arrow, perfectly spearing the three fruits along the shaft. The crowd bursts into cheers. You also find your tight grip on armrest loosening, the tension from the scene dissipating in a moment. Ushijima’s calmness, accuracy, decision-making...he would make a very suitable partner for sure. Co-workers of sorts, that is.

You know your marriage carries a lot of weight politically and the fate of the whole universe will rest on your decision. Maybe not the whole universe, but close enough. But, marital bliss is important too right? Is Ushijima the right choice? There are still many more candidates, it’ll be best not to make a rash decision. Your gaze wanders over back to the Karasuno prince who is clapping earnestly for Ushijima’s performance. He’s acknowledging a rival’s strength, you think to yourself. Well, that’s certainly a rare but admirable trait. A confident man, he is.

After Ushijima’s demonstration, Oikawa Tooru’s enchanting musical performance offers a much desired change of pace. The rhythm and melody from his zither carries both the energy of fortitude as well as a graceful spirit. Quite stunning, but just not quite the musical vibe you’re feeling at the moment. Bummer, maybe a different day, really. Could be friends?

Kuroo Tetsurou from the Kingdom of Nekoma offers a particularly memorable performance too. Kuroo comes to the center stage with a trough filled with flames. Everyone is at a loss as to what is going on. Kuroo flashes you a grin before taking out a few pouches containing some powders. In a poof, the flames burst alive with colors blending blues and purples. And moments later yellows and greens, even reds. No one has ever seen fire change color like so.

“Witchcraft!” someone gasps.

“No it must be alchemy. Dangerous craft,” another adds.

Kuroo bows to you. “My lady, this is called chemistry, a discipline of science.”

Kuroo’s smiles teeter on the edge of flirtations and you cannot deny that your heart flutters just slightly when you see his crooked grin. He’s intelligent, humorous, and attractive. Definitely also a contender. A union with him might be fun. And especially when you see Kuroo run a hand through his messy, black locks and give you a piercing gaze, you almost wonder if this is the feeling of chemistry. It feels like you are naked under his seductive, golden eyes, completely submitted to his will and absolutely drugged. And you fear that if he sends you another one of his grins, you’ll come untouched. Dangerous, send him off immediately.

“Thank you, Kuroo, I have seen your demonstration and all those here are witnesses.”

After Kuroo, many more candidates also come to the center stage for their demonstrations. Kita Shinsuke from the Kingdom of Inarizaki composes and recites poetry on the spot. His literary talents and mastery of public speech move a very large crowd of the literati officials. Kita is a charismatic leader and commands confidence. But he doesn’t seem to be the best fit. Your brain says ‘yes’, but your coochie just isn’t feeling it. The nerve signals say no.

Terushima Yuuji demonstrates a one-man comedy show, but his storytelling skills, although humorous, fall just a little short after Kita’s. Had Terushima been slotted for a different position, perhaps he would make a stronger impact.

Daishou Suguru. Interesting. But tongue itself will eventually get boring too.

A few more candidates demonstrate their talents to you. Most of them fail to impress you at all. Your blank expression is more than enough to make a few almost shit their pants or cry on the way they exit the stage. It’s really not their fault, you’re just a bit tired after seeing so many performances and demonstrations. You are just trying to find the best fit after all. It’s your duty and responsibility as the muthereffing princess of the Kingdom of YoreNaym.

“Sawamura Daichi from the Kingdom of Karasuno.”

The crowd is silent as Daichi stands up from his seat and makes his way to the center. His shoulder is relaxed and his head is held high. He doesn’t have the large build of Bokuto nor is he decked out in regal fabrics like Ushijima. His hair is simple and clean. His expression is polite and pleasant. Amongst the sea of beautiful and talented men, Daichi is like an ordinary seashell buried in the sand. But like how too many bites of dessert beckon the simplicity of water, Daichi’s humble presence makes him stand out in particular.

Daichi bows deeply. “I send my deepest regards to the princess. I am Sawamura Daichi from the Kingdom of Karasuno.”

“Please rise, Sawamura. What demonstration do you bring to me today?”

“My lady, I have nothing showy in particular. I only bring myself. And please feel free to call me Daichi.” You can feel his piercing gaze on you, confident and assertive. So he has some guts. It beckons you to submit, but you bite back. Grrrrr.

“Just yourself? That’s quite cocky of you Daichi. Others bring talents and demonstrations of qualities that make them fit as my suitor. What do you have to offer for me to choose you? Or is that something you are not looking for at all?”

“Karasuno,” Daichi begins, “Karasuno is a good kingdom. For many years long ago, our people have suffered greatly and we have gained a poor moniker. However, for the last few years, the kingdom has made significant progress and improvements. Alongside my brethren and officers of my court,” Daichi gestures to his entourage sitting off to the side, “We have come a long way. ”

“You tell me much about your home, Daichi, but what about you?”

Daichi pauses for a moment to collect his thoughts. He is well aware of the pressures you are putting on him, testing his convictions to the limit. You are a princess after all, so it’s only natural that you test his qualifications. Diachi swallows his nerves and faces your confrontation head on.

“I come to tell you the truth, my lady. I cannot hide these facts about myself or my kingdom. I am truthful, honest, but I have an unshaken belief that my kingdom will prosper because I have my closest and trusted with me. Each of them have their talents and strengths. Karasuno is a band with a bit of everything, and we’re family.”

You inwardly sigh. It seems like Daichi won’t be completely living up your hopes. At first you thought that his confident yet humble demeanor must hide something. Something incredible, because he can sit back and freely applaud other men for their talents. Something remarkable because he doesn’t feel the need to jump out in front of others. Something big. Very big.

“I don’t doubt your family’s bond or strength, but I am here to choose a suitor, a husband in layman's terms. So, I suppose that—”

“Wait,” Daichi cries out, and gestures towards his Karasuno brethren.

A tangerine head jumps up and brings out a scroll. He skips a few steps towards you and passes the document over to the shaman who brings it to you.

“My resume, if you will, my lady. I have no other talents but what is shown there.”

You glance at Daichi, studying him closely. From his clenched fist, you can tell that even in this moment, he’s a bit shaken and nervous. You undo the ties on the scroll and unravel the contents.

All eyes are fixed on you, trying to decipher every microexpression you make. The slight widened eyes, the twitch of the brow. The slight part of the lips and the deep breathes from you trying to calm the invisible fire that’s building in your core. It’s big. If the resume is accurate, Daichi’s demeanor truly is hiding a beast. A massive, humongous, schlong. Finer than any specimen you have seen in banned pictorial books you read and hide under your massive princess bed.

The sheer size and girth of the XL 2d image is rendered in X-TRA fine detail. You brush a finger onto the parchment, tracing the lines depicting the veins running along the shaft. You gulp, rubbing your finger down what is drawn as a big, swollen tip that’s glistening. Artists these days are so detail-oriented, it looks as if precum is just dripping from the tip and shimmering. So realistic, you just want to take it all into your mouth. To gag or to choke. Neither are a question.

The balls, those massive balls that are the storehouses for an endless supply of fresh cum. Organics from the finest the kingdom has to offer. Precious jewels hanging at the base, ripe for your licking. It looks so juicy and plump and you want nothing more than to rub your cheeks, cooing at how cute they are.

You know it’s good. It better be good if the painting is depicting something this sumptuous. If this is the real deal, then you really have nailed the jackpot and secured a brilliant future for yourself. Marital bliss. Bedroom adventures. Bedroom adventures where he’ll fulfill every nightmarish fantasy you ever have. It’ll be hard at first, your cunt’s so tight and he’s so big! But it’s okay, you’ll take him like the royal princess you are because the Kingdom of YoreNaym raises whores and sluts only!

No scratch that. Coital activities can take place anywhere. Maybe you’ll cockwarm him while the two of you hear what the morning court has to say about the affairs of the kingdom. Maybe you’ll find yourself tumbling around in the garden after a cute game of hide and seek, skirt hiked up, as he fucks a grass stain into your back! Okay. That might not be the best idea. Perhaps just once. For novelty’s sake.

But hear me out, when you are sneaking into the kitchen for some snacks, he’ll pin you on the large baker’s table and just take you right there to fuck his babies into your womb. His cock pumping into you as the table creaks and shakes from his thunderous movements. He’ll fill you to the brim with copious amounts of his hot cum, heaps and heaps of them, just like the baker fills the buns with cream custard in the most obscene fashion ever. Watch your belly rise and bulge up like pastries in the oven. Oooh cummies.

You sigh and squirm in the seats as you continue examining the masterpiece of a dick. You feel your heartbeat racing wildly as if you are caught tinkling in the castle fountain. It’s unknown if you ever did that, by the way. Just saying, your memory is failing you just a tad. But oh gosh, you’re wet already. The slick pooling between your folds is just soaking through your princess panties; the ones in the drawer where you keep all your secret prince Sakusa drawings heehee. But Sakusa’s pretty face aside, you are now face to face with the most magnificent dick pic you’ll ever receive. Not really unsolicited, but damn work of art. Literally.

The crowd is silent when you clear your throat and roll up the scroll, taking extra care to not let anyone else touch your new precious treasure. You lean forward and perceive Daichi. Daichi gives you a cocky grin, showing his teeth. Slightly stained with the wine, but it’s just temporary. It doesn’t matter as long as the real deal is...well, real.

Daichi catches your eyes wandering to the outline of the bulge between his legs. The glorious dickprint that he’s casually showing to everyone present. It puts Herculean Bokuto to shame, Ushijima into a blushing mess. Kuroo nearly snorts his colored powders. Daishou’s tongue hangs out and dries. Oikawa is sent to the medics. Kita no longer waxes poetry about the weather. Terushima leaves the party early.

Daichi is smug and casually asks, “My lady, would you like to examine the goods? I am a pure man and would not carelessly offer tastes to anyone. But you are a princess of the Kingdom of YoreNaym. You can have a sampling before you commit. Satisfaction guaranteed.”

[legendaryoikawa]

haikyuu boys as part of the mafia + how he met you

note: i just thought of this while im washing the dishes HAHA. female reader insert. also happy birthday to the ultimate baby bokuto 🥺💖

warnings: nsfw, mention of violence, grammar issues because im dumb asf

bokuto kotaro 

decoy/manipulator

has a two persona that is best used especially when he is in the midst of a deal

even though he’s a decoy, it is enough to send a rival down to his knees and beg for his mercy

Because bokuto doesn’t show tiny bit of his mercy especially when his dominating side takes over him

Is a good manipulator. To the point that you would have constant nightmares with just the slip of his words.

Good with his hands. Quite aggressive. Yet he plays his cards elegantly like the man he is.

you met him in a luxurious casino. you were the attendant of his table and you could always note how fast his mood changes and it was scary. you carefully stacked the chips in front of him, feeling the heavy weight of his stern gaze. you saw from your peripheral how his hands slid down the edge of the mahogany. “play with me.”

you didn’t answere and continued on organizing the stacks for a new game as per bokuto’s request but he repeated those words again, “play with me. you. im talking to you.”

and you did. he lost. and that’s what made you terrified even more. he grew dejected and stormed out of the casino like a raging tsunami.

that didn’t made bokuto happy at all, so he made sure to find you so he could play with you once more. it didn’t caused him a sweat when he found out where your apartment complex is. and his words have shaken you when he laid the stacks of money on your table and said, “play with me. the loser gets to kiss the winner, if you’ll allow it of course.”

there’s something with his words that are like witchcraft spells. and you found yourself nodding, yes.

daichi sawamura - 

the kingpin. 

daichi is the leader of the mafia group: karasuno or better known as their alias ‘lethal crows’.

 daichi is born into the syndicate. so he doesn’t get caught up unlike amateur people in the black world. 

undergone strenuous training just to prove himself as the worthy kingpin. 

he often orders the assassination and criminal deals. 

he isn’t as ‘intimidating’ like how people expect kingpins to act, but daichi has his own way that makes people so afraid of him. if he wishes to kill on the spot, he kills. even if you’re something important, if you annoyed him to the edge, you’re six feet deep.

however, one flaw of daichi is that he prioritizes his members that he doesn’t oversees the barriers coming his way. 

you met him during this time when curiosity get the best of you. you entered this fancy yet abandoned building in hopes of scavenging something that was left by its past owners. however, no treasure came to your view, rather a drug deal with bunch of rogue looking guys.

“daichi?” you were so shocked to see your co-worker in an expensive designer coat sitting in this throne like chair with stack of bills piled in front of him. he isn’t the typical guy you were used to seeing: the goofy guy in the fryer with his greasy apron. 

you didn’t expect him to be so, different.

“who’s this?” tanaka rose up to his seat. cracking his knuckles while giving you a dangerous look. 

“let her enjoy her remaining life as a free citizen. after this..” he counted the bills and paused at look at you, “you’re coming with me.”

akaashi keiji 

weaponry/gadgets specialist

Quite reserved.

He is often hired to big projects but he would turn it down if it requires his apperance.

No matter how much his members push him to bite off the job he wouldn’t, not unless he works up in the roofs, alone.

Usually works in the shadows. Where his identity is hidden.

Ask him about any weapon, he’ll have an answer in a few.

give him a vague description of a bomb, he’ll have it ready, ticking, for you.

he met you when you walked into his first walked in his gang’s base, with your red stilettos clicking aggressively against the marbled tile. then comes the second meeting and the third till you’ve both made good acquaintances. you liked him. for both his smart mouth and big dick. if he wasn’t just too difficult to persevere.

but you could see that way his breath hitched the moment you walked in with your fitted versace dress. which made you cocky from head to toe.

he could note the way your lips tugs upward as you scan the whole interior of the place. you didn’t need it though as you know every curvature of the place. you were just that shit going around him so you could give him a good view of yourself that he refused indulge in.

you stopped midway to stare at him from head to toe then back to his pretty face. gaze fixated on his kissable lips. despite your urge to kiss him up, you decided to tease, “give me something bold.”

“pardon?”

“you heard me, akaashi.”

and he gave you a fancy handgun, a caliber. however that wasn’t your request. you pulled his shirt and whispered to his ears, “i said i want something bold. want me to spell it out for you? A-k-a-a-s-h-i”

and you walked away. just like that and things just became bold in your apartment complex.

oikawa tooru 

underboss/ loverboy

Smooth talker. Usually uses his pretty face as an advantage to get something off girls that swoon over him.

he is quite unpredictable as well.

he approached you out of nowhere in the met gala and you were forced to be in his own disposal. he isn’t really a headache to deal with. but you aren’t here to flirt around especially with pretty boys like him. there is something in him that is similar with a ticking bomb. so best is to admire guys like him at a distance.

however, oikawa is determined to chase over you. because you are like a diamond in a room full of charcoal.

he approached you immediately when you stopped by in the concession stand to nurse yourself a cocktail.

“fancy a dance, miss?”

you looked at him. oikawa tooru. beautiful as they say but you immediately walked away.

oikawa smirked to himself, “if you just don’thold a precious information. i wouldn’t chase over a doll like you.”

tendou satori 

head of intelligence

can predict the moves of the rivalry gang

so in result they end up getting butchered thanks to tendou’s half assed predictions.

guess monster

the boys entered the room with a agitated expression painting their faces.

tendou raised a brow and looked at the boy filling in their ammos. “what’s up boys?”

“we got played.”

tendou grinned. “oh, interesting. who pulled an ace card?”

“y/n of the yakuza.”

tendou made sure to track you down for meddling in his play.

kyoutani kentaro 

torture specialist

All the dirty work is assigned to him

But kyoutani is quite carefree with his job, to the point where oikawa needs to step in to clean after his mess.

he is really brutal when it comes to finishing a rat pack from a rivalry gang and he gives no mercy.

knows every possible way of killing

but he fancies using the bat since it can strengthen his arm strength and it’s practical.

loves the sound of metal clashing with hard skull with the splasing sound of fresh blood slightly staining his skin.

you were both childhood sweethearts. however, you were the only one pursuing him because he doesn’t want to commit anything to you. not until you found out about him and his crucial job out of accident and he was forced to confess to you, and it was the reason why he don’t want to accept your heart.

one time he went home and he couldn’t find any trace of you. panic coursed through his veins when he heard your cries over the line.

“fucking touch her and i will drench all of you in boiling acid.”

ushijima wakatoshi 

hand to hand combatant

people are usually afraid of him because of how he could flip people off easily without drenching a sweat

he has the capability to run a whole gang just by himself

but he would just rather go and fight fist first

and chill afterwards

both of you met when you were scouted as a new member and part of the group’s test is to have a hand to hand combant against wakatoshi.

you were mortified when he approached you. with his large built and driving aura.

“ready?” he asked lowly.

“no?”

he raised a brow, “i bet.”

and he let you win just so you would get accepted in the gang.

tanaka ryuunosuke

hand to hand combatant

really moody

aggressive and violent

could kill with just the use of his hands, alone. 

but he has his soft moments too but this happens when the moon turns blue.

you were tasked to be his sparring mate. and to be frank, you were really spooked and frightened that you won’t get out of the arena, working let alone, alive. 

and to see him up close, it was really, a deal. he’s tall, with a slim yet broad frame, and really is intimidating. he gave you a look and ruffled your hair. 

“i don’t hurt girls.”

that was the first time you saw him smile. rumors said he never did. 

sugawara koushi 

consigliere

smart shit. 

he’s usually responsible for the activities of the group.

master at hiding the illegal stuff away from prying eyes

and a genius at continuing the legal stuffs even though it’s just for a front

he is also the adviser of the kingpin, especially at plans and deals on heists and forgery

at some point, he is the official diplomat for Japan.

he met you when he is trying to study the floor plan on the central bank. he was in this beige tux, with his gray hair brush up to give justice to his whole other persona. 

you came up to him and offered him installation plans and bank deals perfect for a bachelor like him. 

he gave you a smile, “i will be meeting you soon.”

and he did. in a creepy dali mask and a red overalls. “i told you, i will be back.”

iwaizumi hajime 

sniper

he goes with codes to maintain his anonymity

he works like a black panther, often sleek yet deadly

even the police couldn’t catch up with his hideous crimes because he never leaves unwanted trails behind

kills in his own special way

one time, he made someone swallow a C-4 and stitched his neck leaving it looking so grotesque

and boom, red, bloody like a slaughter house

he once made his way onto one of oikawa’s fancy bar to unwind. however, things went distrupt when there was a sudden shootout. he was beyond amused at how petty the shooters were aiming down at him. it was full of chaos.

he ducked down to fill in his ammos but he could see a figure crouched down underneath the satin cloths drench haphazardly above the tall tables.

he yanked the cloth and saw you there, looking lost as fuck. “what the hell are you doing here?!”

your eyes widened at the sight of the handsome man looking down at you as if you’re some unknown species. “uhm— chilling?”

he repeated your words. “chilling? in a middle of a fucking shoot out?”

“yo. i was lost okay? i don’t know where the exit is”

he grabbed you and threw his arms over your head so you’re protected from the stray bullets ricocheting over the place. “you’re a fucking goner.”

—

i hope you guys like this 🥺💖💖

[mysterystarz]

kairosclerosis:

summary: oikawa knew that he was happy, so then why was it so difficult to preserve that feeling?

pairing: oikawa tooru x g!n reader

word count: 1.4k

genres + themes: reverse comfort, angst

warnings: a lot of oikawa's inner thoughts, mentions of self-doubt

a/n: so this was a very self-indulgent fic (inspired a lot by this word and perfectly wrong by shawn mendes) and kind of encompasses a lot of feelings that i've been experiencing sometimes, but i feel like this was one of the things i've written that i'm kind of happy about ! i hope you enjoy this <3

Happiness was a feeling that was always difficult for Oikawa to identify. There were moments in which he could confidently taste the sensation on his tongue, a golden sort of taste that brightened his soul from the inside out, but other times, it was almost indecipherable to the other emotions that he seemed to find.

Why was it so complicated?

He often found himself sitting late at night, wondering how, if anything, people seemed to find glory in every glance, while he had to spread himself thin just to catch a glimpse. It was a question that drove him in circles in some of his lonelier moments, a constant reminder to the way he could never find the same sort of...fulfillment as others did.

It was something that bothered him with his late night practices, serving ball after ball across the gym, until the burning in his muscles was enough to drown out the feelings of inferiority he seemed to feel.

Happiness was as good as an illusion. To Oikawa, the feeling was far too short lived, far too fleeting to even be considered as a reality.

The day he discovered what happiness could be, was the day he met you.

It had been a normal day by all standards, the sunshine casting it’s glow delicately onto the buildings and the numerous sakura trees that lined the entrances of Aoba Johsai. It was a lovely spring day, one with the type of breeze that struck a freshness into everyone’s hearts, as well as their minds.

He liked these types of days for the simple pleasures he could indulge in. Eating his milk bread, he could pretend for a small moment that he was just another highschool boy, somebody who could make fun of Iwa-chan while being made fun of by Makki and Mattsun. He didn’t need to shoulder the expectations of the world, but he could still reach for the stars, and even hold one in his hands. It was why these days brought a rare sort of feeling, and it was why he managed to treasure them when they came around.

It had been on one of these days where you had strolled into the gym during practice, a concentrated, yet polite look on your face as you handed their coach your manager application, a gentle smile on your features when it had been accepted. You had done your job as manager to perfection, and he felt the morale of his team increase with every praise you sent in their direction.

Never him though.

He knew his sets weren’t as accurate as Kageyama’s, but they were still consistently improving. He didn’t expect praise from anyone, and yet found himself doubting his abilities when your calculated eyes didn’t make a comment on them. It was a neutrality of sorts. You never wrote it as a point of improvement, yet never complimented them.

Did that mean he was average?

The darkness enveloped his surroundings as he served again, his knee straining uncomfortably. He had been in the gym for hours now, doing anything, to get his mind off the precedent of facing Shiratorizawa the next day. It was a thought that nagged at him.

What if he wasn’t good enough?

Oikawa was supposed to be happy. He was happy for sure. His team had won the earlier matches, and cheers of their school name and the sight of his school colors was enough to send a wave of warmth and pride straight to his chest.

The way he felt defeating Tobio was one he savored continuously, the very thought of him beating one of his own demons fueling his morale incredibly.

So then why was it that he felt this way still?

Ah. No matter how many victories he held in his pocket, he could still never shake the way he always managed to lose somewhere else. He won against Tobio due to skill and observation. Was that really him and his team? Or was it just the circumstances?

A final serve over the net had him kneeling down, a million thoughts enveloping him at once.

Happiness wasn’t supposed to feel like this.

He wasn’t even sure what it was supposed to feel like. All he knew was the way he picked apart the scenarios, wishing time after time that the feeling would linger long enough. Call him goal oriented, but surely his ambition would allow him to truly appreciate the way something seemingly light hearted and accomplished would be like.

“Oikawa. Are you okay?”

He suddenly looked up, only to find your concerned face across the gym. You jogged over to him, water bottle in hand as you examined his position. He was on the floor now...somehow.

When had he fallen over?

“I’m alright Y/N-chan.” He smiled charmingly, “What brings you here now?”

“You’re lying,” you sighed, tossing him the water bottle. “Drink this, and then try that sentence again.”

He hesitantly took a sip of the water, feeling it soothe his insides until suddenly, he had downed the whole bottle itself. A glance in your direction saw him identifying a knowing look in your eyes as you smiled back at him, almost gently.

“You have to rest before the game tomorrow you know,” you chuckled, joining him onto the floor. “Why do you do this to yourself?”

“Why are you here?” Was what he asked instead, watching the way your expression never changed. “Aren’t you supposed to be at home?”

“Iwaizumi-kun told me something like this could happen,” you admitted, “I hoped I wouldn’t find you here, but here we are.”

He found himself brightening slightly at the thought. He knew that Iwaizumii cared. Behind the gruff and tough persona he put on, he cared deeply for everyone he was close to, always worrying for their well being and putting all of himself into ensuring that.

He must have told you about all the past times he’s been in situations like these.

But then why was it you that came? You were one of the smartest students in their class, and even despite that, you somehow made time to juggle all your other obligations.

He was important....to you?

“I’m here because I care about you Tooru,” you said, hesitantly ghosting your fingers over his cheekbones. “Please, don’t internalize what you’re feeling. I’ll provide you answers to anything you ask me, but please, just speak your thoughts. They’ve been troubling you, and that troubles me to know that.”

“What does it take to feel content, Y/N?” He questioned, feeling his confidence spike momentarily. “What is contentness when there’s always something new to climb for?”

“It’s where you can look at your achievements and feel like you’ve done something worthwhile.” You smiled, “But there’s something deeper than that. What makes you overwork yourself when you’re one of the best?”

“I’ve never been good enough to get completely to the top!” He groaned. “There’s always been obstacles and a victory...it makes me happy but it never lasts! Why can’t it last?”

“Hey,” you said, leaning slightly closer, “Maybe it’s because you never believe that you deserve the happiness you feel. I think you deserve this and a whole lot more you know.”

He turned his head upwards to meet your eyes, reassuring and genuine at his predicament. Perhaps what you had said had some truth to it.

Yet he still felt something weighing him down.

“I just want to feel on top of the world for real one day,” he admitted, exhaling a breath he didn’t know he had been holding. “Yet anytime I try to, it always just disappears. I’m practicing so maybe we have a chance at winning tomorrow. I’ve tried so hard, but somehow the talent always beats that.”

“Tooru…it’s alright to let it out you know.” You placed a hand gently on top of his, a hesitant act that he found quite endearing. “How long have you felt this way?”

“Always do,” he mumbled, “And I feel pathetic for it. Y/N-chan, is there something wrong with me?”

“No way!” You argued, the passion ever so present in your eyes. “You devote all of yourself to this. You are worthy of all good things. I swear it.”

“I can’t bring myself to feel that though.” There seemed to be a tension building up into his chest and his eyes.

“Your team believes it. All of your fans too.”

He met your eyes again, watching your breathing slow. “What?”

“They believe you deserve the world.” you affirmed, your mouth set into a straight line of seriousness. “And I think you do too.”

Underneath the dimmed lights of the gym, your hand a gentle anchor atop his own, Oikawa finally broke down.

Perhaps happiness was the feeling of being loved.

He realized that as long as you were beside him, that feeling would never fade.

©mysterystarz all rights reserved, please do not plagiarize, translate, or modify my fics in any way even if credited

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[haikyuuphilia]

can you do hcs for kuroo, oikawa, tsukishima and bokuto where they meet their s/o’s really overprotective and intimidating cousins? my cousins are the reason why i don’t have any guy friends because when they find out i have one, they’ll threaten and scare the poor guy off 😭✋

♡ meeting your overprotective cousins

ft. tsukishima, kuroo, bokuto, & oikawa

established relationship, no warnings apply, gn!reader | fluff ♡

→ tsukishima kei.

pretends like it’s not a big deal to meet your cousins

but both you and he know he’s very nervous

because of course!! he wants to make a good impression on his s/o’s close family

you warned him that they can be... overprotective, to say the least

and you might be a little afraid that they’ll scare him away, too

but if anyone can handle that kind of intimidation, it’s tsukishima

he’s ridiculously cool during your meeting

never impolite, just very composed and mature and conveys how much he cares for you

trying his very best to NOT come off as a sarcastic asshole. he kind of succeeds.

afterwards, he’ll casually ask what you think your cousins thought of him

if you tease him and say they didn’t approve, he’ll be so worried

(don’t worry, they say how much you liked him and grew to accept him as your boyfriend!)

you might fall in love with him all over again after that whole ordeal <3

→ kuroo tetsurou.

will definitely play it off like he’s not nervous

except you might have overheard him giving himself a motivational pep talk in front of the mirror a few minutes before, so...

he’s determined to prove that he’s different from anyone interested in you in the past

because he definitely loves you more than any of them

and he also wants to show you that you don’t need to worry about your cousins’ judgment of him

still, his hands are clammy underneath the table, and he might grip onto your hand while maintaining a calm smile

somehow manages to befriend at least one of your cousins during the meeting??

like they’re discussing video games or volleyball or science or something and they just bond like that, exchanging discords or phone numebrs

you do you, kuroo

afterwards, he’ll assume that they absolutely loved him just to make you (and him) feel better about however it went

when your cousins reluctantly concede that kuroo’s acceptable, kuroo has never been more excited

he’s so glad he got to prove how much he loves you to people who are important to you, too!

→ bokuto koutarou.

before the meeting, he’s not nervous at all

in fact, he’s excited to meet your family and get to know more about you

even if you’ve told him that your cousins can be overprotective and intimidating, he takes it as a challenge

he’ll be the first boyfriend of yours to pass this test

you’re probably more reassured than you’ve ever been because who doesn’t like bokuto??? 

he has a heart of gold ! he’s an amazing person and boyfriend, through and through

but during the meeting, the nerves start to creep in

you’re going to be the one reassuring him now

he might a little mopey, especially when being stared down by your cousins

but he’ll pull through and prove that he’s worthy of dating you

your cousins will see it, too:

there’s no way bokuto isn’t being genuine when it comes to loving you

→ oikawa tooru.

doesn’t seem that nervous

but his confidence only stems from him studying “how to get your s/o’s family to like you in 10 steps” for five hours the night before

he’s turning his charm and charisma levels up to 110% just for this occasion

you might have to remind him to be himself -- oikawa tooru, your boyfriend, not some popular volleyball jock or anything else

still, he’s sure that even if they end up hating him, he’ll date you anyway

because that’s what the two of you want, and that comes first in his mind

but of course he wants to make a good impression!

he’ll be very serious when meeting your cousins

might make some grand declaration like “so maybe when we’re in our sixties, y/n and i will move to-”

you and your cousins: “sixties?!”

oikawa might get flustered and lose him charming facade, but your cousins grudgingly approve of him

they do caution you that this guy seems flirty

but it’s okay, since he would only ever flirt with you <3

hi of course i can, thanks for requesting headcanons! ahh i’m sorry to hear that your cousins scare off any potential s/o’s for you. that must be rough to deal with, even though i’m sure they mean well. regardless, hope you enjoyed the hcs!

x rue

[cozy-neko]

The Cherry On Top • Character Introductions • 01 | And so it begins • 02

With each cup of coffee Y/N placed in the cupholder, a low grumble accompanied the action. Each thunk of coffee that slid into each holder was a little more aggressive and heavy-handed than the task need be, but the air of irritation that emitted from the girl was undeniably strong, and the unfortunate barista that was tasked to make this foul-mood customer’s drinks handed her the last of her order before quickly slinking away.

“Stupid, stupid, stupid,” Y/N continued to grumble under her breath the entire frigid three blocks back to the campus of where her office was located.

“Stupid, stupid, stupid.” A scowl was evident on the girl’s face the entire elevator ride up the tall skyscraper until it dinged and stopped at the 70th floor. It wasn’t until the doors slid open that Y/N sucked in a shaky breath and plastered a Crest-worthy, Splenda-sweet smile on her face as she exited the lift and entered the bustling office.

“Coffee’s here!” Y/N sang out and placed the two cup holders down on top of the front office’s counter tabletop.

“Y/N’s back!”

A scurry of workers crowded around the 21-year-old girl as she animatedly read off orders off the top of her head and handed them out, one-by-one to its rightful owner.

“You’re the best, Y/N-chan!” A senpai from the tech editorial department ruffled her head, earning a small whimper of protest as she tried to sooth her hair. It wasn’t like she spent twenty-minutes this morning trying to tame her unruly mane for nothing.

“Isn’t Y/N the best? She’s always so good at remembering who gets what.” Another senpai from the lifestyle editorial department chimed in and took a sip from her latte.

“Oh no, no! I’m just doing my job.” Y/N let out a forced chuckle, but it went unnoticed as her coworkers slowly disappeared back to their corner of the office to get back to work.

"Alright, you can drop the act, you fake."

The instant Y/N heard a snort coming from behind, the fake smile that was plastered to her face immediately dropped as she whipped around to face a chestnut-haired male.

"I hate it here," Y/N groaned and leaned her upper body onto the countertop. She let out a huff of air and blew a stray piece of hair away from her eyes. "I can't wait to graduate from coffee intern to staff writer."

"You're meeting with the Chief later today, right?" Oikawa Tooru removed his hands from the pockets of his slacks and eyed the remaining drink leftover.

"Mmm, yeah." Y/N let out a distracted sigh as her thumbs flew across the keyboard of her smartphone for a quick text. With the click of a button, she locked her phone and shoved it into her pants pocket and gave her full attention to the older male. "Chief told me that she had good news for me, and judging by all the overtime work and random projects I picked up over the past few months --"

"You mean bitch work?" Oikawa interrupted, earning a glare from the girl.

"For your information, my 'bitch work' got published last week! And that's besides the point. All that matters is that Chief has noticed that I'm a responsible worker who is willing to go above and beyond my day-to-day tasks and now I'm definitely getting the promotion that's been long due!"

There was a smug grin on Y/N's face while Oikawa rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, you are a hard worker, Y/N-chan, but that doesn't mean you should be doing other people's tasks when it should be their job to do them in the first place."

"Can't you just be happy for me?" Y/N whined. "I didn't graduate from UTokyo with over $100k in student debt just to go on coffee runs. And I don't even get to have my own drink!"

Oikawa sighed and placed a hand on top of the shorter girl's head. "I am happy for you. And proud of you. I hope you get the staff writer position you wanted, and when you do get assigned to my department, I'll make sure to run you dead with ten articles simultaneously." 

There was an evil, teasing glint in Oikawa's eyes which Y/N responded to by sticking out her tongue.

A ding! interrupted the teasing banter and Y/N checked her phone. She let out a quick squeal and a small hop.

"Gotta go! Ayame-san from tech has an article she wants me to write!"

Y/N waved goodbye and scurried away.

"Hey! I asked for a dirty Chai, not a mocha! What the fuck, Y/N?" Oikawa yelled after the retreating girl.

"Serves you right for making me do your coffee run too, Oinkawa!" Y/N's bubbly laughter echoed through the hallway as she skipped towards the tech editorial department.

Oikawa sighed and tugged at the front pieces of his hair. It was already nearing the end of the day, but he was still at least half an hour away from completing his remaining task for the day. He was currently in the middle of copy-editing an article one of his staff writers submitted earlier today when he felt his phone buzz in his pocket.

Oikawa removed his glasses and pulled out his phone, rubbing his tired eyes while unlocking his phone. It was a text from Y/N.

She must've finally talked to Chief, Oikawa thought. He swiped his thumb to unlock his phone and read the text.

Oikawa grimaced at Y/N’s text. It was obvious the meeting did not go the way Y/N had wanted it to. Sighing, Oikawa stood up and packed his things. Looks like the article was going to have to be pushed back a week; there was a more important meeting he had to attend to first.

Y/N glared at her phone and bounced her leg, a nervous tick that Oikawa absolutely hated whenever she did. Maybe if he was here right now, he would've had the opportunity to scold her. Except his train was running five minutes late. Y/N groaned as she watched another minute go by.

Where's Tooru?

How much longer was he going to make her sit in agony at their favorite bakery and tea shop? 

Right when Y/N was about to hit send on her phone, the shop door jingled, and in waltzed Oikawa.

"Alright, alright, I'm here. What happened?" Oikawa was slightly breathless, having sped-walked from the station and down the block to meet up with Y/N. He rolled up his button-down sleeves and removed his work badge from around his neck.

"So I got the promotion," Y/N began to which Oikawa cut her off.

"Okay, congrats, but that's hardly an existential crisis."

"No! Let me finish!" Y/N stomped her foot once, irritation beginning to seep in. Oikawa rolled his eyes, completely immune to Y/N's temper flare ups. Instead of retorting, he opted to take a sip of her fruit tea. "I got the promotion, but it wasn't the promotion I wanted."

"Did you get placed in lifestyle with Iwa-chan? I heard that department's kind of a mess right now. Iwa-chan told me their lifestyle editor's too busy hooking up with Hanamaki's layout intern to even run the department --"

"Tooru, for kami's sake, I'm begging you to shut up." Y/N groaned and covered her face with her hands. "I'm TK Mag's new gossip blogger. Chief wants me to freaking exploit influencers under the alias of 'Cherry' for the new Cherry on Top blog."

“The new what now?”

end notes: 

→ the timestamps at the top of each photo are irrelevant. the timestamps that you want to pay attention to (or not. it really doesn’t matter) are the ones within the text chats.

→ if you see the word shanchou in oikawa’s and y/n’s texts, i accidentally misspelled the word shachou which means “president of the company.” i was debating whether i wanted to use the japanese spelling or just keep it as Chief. i changed my mind multiple times and decided to just go with the english version but got too lazy to correct the photo. 🤡

→ props to authors who only explicitly write smaus. creating each social post is so time consuming and slightly frustrating that i almost threw my phone across the room.

→ don’t come at me for my nonexistent and try-hard humor. 😔✋this is why i only write angst.

→ no kenma and akaashi this chapter, but they will be introduced in the next!

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[tamcitrus]

pairings: Bokuto x fem. reader, Kuroo x fem. reader, Oikawa x fem. reader

words: 1.2 k

warnings: jealously, mentions of sex

request: Can i request some jealousy headcanons for Bokuto, Kuroo and Oikawa with a fem reader? What would tick them off or how do they handle it?

tam’s notes: i’m not the best at jealously stuff, but i think this turned out well! i really think this would be situations where they would feel jealous and they all had different ways to handle it. anyways, i hope you like this!

Bokuto Koutaro:

He knew it was impossible but he wanted your attention on him all the time.

He wasn’t a jealous partner but sometimes during games he would look at your place in the grades after doing an amazing play and if you were talking with someone else he would get ridiculously jealous.

He loved to dedicate his best plays to you, you loved it too and the people watching went wild everytime he did that, it was so fun and it motivated him to play even better.

Who was this person and why they were more important than him at that moment?

It happened once with Akaashi too and he felt so guilty for it.

Your job was similar to Akaashi and one time at a Fukurodani meeting you were talking so much to him.

That’s ok, he thought. It’s Akaashi, nothing to worry about. Not that he wasn’t worthy of your romantic interest but he was like a brother to you, you had said it yourself.

So when after a lot of drinks you had thrown one glass all over you and Akaashi helped you to get clean -his hands were too close to your breasts- he felt something off in his chest.

“I’ll help her,” he said as he put his arm around your waist to take you away. He didn’t dare to look at his best friend because he knew he did nothing wrong.

“I made a mess,” you laughed, a bit tipsy. “What’s with the long face?”

He took a towel from his friend’s house to clean your chest and neck and kept silent. “Are you jealous, baby?” He couldn’t help but blush at your question. “I could show you right here and now how much I love you but I don’t want to make a mess in your friend’s bathroom.”

All it took for him to calm down was you holding his face and pampering him with kisses so he could remember you only had eyes for him, you were totally devoted to him.

Kuroo Tetsurou:

What attracted you most about Kuroo was how relaxed he was. He knew how to handle people and he could talk to anyone. He knew how to control any situation.

You were quite the opposite and there were very few people you talked with and after a few months of relationship he met everyone. Or he thought so.

Until you started meeting this person once a week and he had no idea who they were. He didn’t have a reason to ask either, he trusted you, but it was bugging him.

One time, after morning sex, this person called you and you got ready so fast to go out and meet them. “Can’t you stay? Let’s take a shower,” he said. “I’m sorry, I really have to go, babe.”

On his free day and after sex? You had to leave? He never considered himself a jealous person but maybe he was. He was worried about it the whole day, even after you came back.

“Ok, what’s going on?” Your phone wouldn’t stop ringing the whole day and when you took call after call he couldn’t help himself and snapped. “I don’t wanna be a jerk but…” “Don’t be,” was your answer.

He learned he could live with it. You were still his girlfriend and no one was changing that, even when you were spending so much of your time with this mysterious person. He made a mental note of leaving a mark here and there on your body, just because he could and it made him feel better. It didn’t bother you either so there was no harm.

“You have to ask for vacations on this exact date,” you said to him one day and gave him a paper with the dates on it. “We’re going on vacations! It took me a lot of time, I’m sorry. I never thought hiring a travel agency would be so time consuming.”

Now he felt like a jerk again. “This was what you were doing? y/n, I’m an asshole.”

“You are but I love you,” you laughed. “Never took you for a jealous guy but you’re even chill with that. I love that about you.”

Oikawa Tooru:

You and Tooru were considered the perfect couple. Both athletes, both sure about themselves, handsome and young, with a life full of success ahead.

Given his past with fans, it would be only right to assume that you would be a bit jealous of him and all the women that desired him. But it was the other way around.

Whenever he had free time he loved to go and watch you practice. Ice skating was so elegant and you looked better than ever skating. You couldn’t talk much in the middle of both of your seasons -the little time at home together you preferred not to talk about work- so he didn’t know about you skating in pairs now.

“This is ridiculous,” he whispered to himself. He knew that spark of anger and possessiveness inside him was useless. You were working. He shouldn’t feel this.

Even so, watching another man lifting you, touching your body that much -one particular movement required him to take your waist first and then held your thighs-, it made him feel uneasy. You politely smiled and laughed at whatever he was saying but when he took a strand of hair off of your face he clicked his tongue. No one with just-friend intentions would touch your face like he was doing it.

He waited for you at the entrance of the rink when your trainer called it a day. He used his usual charming smile when you introduced this guy to him and they shook hands and helped you to take your skates off.

His hands moved on your legs slowly, almost like a caress, and Oikawa made sure the other guy was looking when he kissed you with more enthusiasm than other times. You looked at him with questions on your eyes and he just smiled again.

“Are you tired, love? What do you want for dinner?” he asked and you knew he was showing off. “I’d like some homemade food tonight,” you said, taking advantage of the situation. He smirked at you and helped you to get up, taking your bag and skates, in addition to his own bag, so you didn’t have to carry anything.

“Goodnight Chris, goodnight coach!” you said as you both were walking out to your car. “What was all that about?”

Tooru gasped at your question as he turned the car on. “I saw how he was looking at you, and that caressing-your-face-as-i-put-your-hair-in-place was scandalous. I did that many times, I know how it looks and what it means,” he said, half outraged half joking.

You laughed out loud because of course he was jealous. “Oh so you did that many times… did you do that to me?” you asked and he huffed. “Tooru, I should be worried about him trying to take you away from me…“ You didn’t get an answer from him, so you continued. “Chris is gay.”

“Oh great, now I look like a fool,” he said.

You both laughed now and you kept this story to remind him about it every time you wanted to tease him.

[fuckinuchihas]

Would it be possible to request for Oikawa where he has a crush on a Karasuno student and every time he tries to talk to them he becomes a blushing stuttering mess and he hates it because he's usually so confident? Something fluffy~ Gender neutral is fine but if you don't mind, can you make them more like "one of the boys"/tomboyish if possible? It said your requests are open, I hope I didn't misread and I hope this is okay!

So heyyy....umm I hope this is ok!

Pairing: Oikawa/Reader

Rating: T for language (one fbomb I think)

Fluff

Practice games are just as important as matched games in Toru’s opinion and he takes each and every single one seriously.

Especially against Karasuno.

He isn’t going to let his guard down against them, not with that cocky smirk on Tobio’s face.

His tongue pokes out a bit as he steadies his arm for the perfect serve.

The game hasn’t started yet, it’s just warm ups but a few of the Karasuno players are watching him with rapt attention and he feels his confidence grow.

He throws the volleyball into the air, gets started on his run and then his hand comes down perfectly aimed to hit it just right and swoosh, it’s headed in a direct path to the opposite side of the net.

It bounces against the floor with a hard smack and then it pops back into the air before-

“STRAY!” He hears and then there’s someone standing there, just holding his serve ball like it didn’t bounce back up with incredible force and Toru blinks and gapes.

“Sorry about that!” he hears Nishinoya call out.

Then they just toss his serve ball back to the salty Karasuno middle blocker like it’s nothing. Like they didn’t just catch a serve rebound flying at top speed.

Toru feels his heart start pounding wildly in his chest as he watches you make your way around the edge of the court.

‘What is this feeling?’ he wonders to himself as the whistle blows and his attention is back on the game.

Aoba Johsai win all three games in straight sets, he feels a bit smug despite the exhaustion settling in.

Now that he doesn’t have to focus on the matches his eyes wander around the gym trying to get another glimpse of you.

Unfortunately word has gotten out about the star setter of Seijoh being at Karasuno campus and the fangirls are already vying for his attention.

He pastes on his fake smile and shows them the proper gratitude for their support.

He is grateful after all, he just also feels a little disappointed.

The next time he sees you it’s completely on accident again, he’s taking Takeru to the movies and you’re standing at the counter alone with an armload of popcorn, a large soda, and some candy too.

The more he sees you the more intrigued he becomes.

You’re just-you’re nothing like what he’s used to.

“Uncle Toru!” Takeru says, grabbing his attention and also making you turn your head.

“What is it, Takeru?” he says, trying to pay attention but his gaze drifts back to you without permission.

“Why are you staring at them? You’re acting like a creep!”

‘What?” he yelps, as your gaze moves over him almost absently and then to Takeru with a small smile.

This kid.

“Takeru, we’re going to be playing the quiet game indefinitely if you don’t stop embarrassing me in front of people,” he says through gritted teeth.

You don’t hear the words come out of his mouth but the expression tells you all you need to know and you chuckle before turning back to your date with yourself.

He watches as you head into the theater with the latest action movie banner over it.

He’s not opposed to action movies but he had kind of hoped you’d have chosen the animated film that he’d planned to see with Takeru.

“Toru, can we watch that instead?” he asks, pointing to where you disappeared into the theater.

One thing he’ll say for his nephew, Takeru knows how to take advantage of a situation.

“Don’t be ridiculous, Takeru. Your mother would kill me…” he says, guiding the kid toward the snack counter instead of the ticket booth.

“I’m almost twelve now!” he says, looking up at Toru with an unflattering gaze.

“Pfft...I’m not stupid, kid.”

“Yeah...sure,” he says, a painfully sarcastic eye roll tacked on for good measure.

“Why are you so mean to me? I’m your favorite uncle!”

“You’re literally my only uncle…”

Toru pouts but nobody gives him a second glance.

“Great King?” Hinata asks, and Toru meeps before putting a hand over Shortie's mouth.

“Shh…” he says, and Shoyo looks at him with confusion etched on his face.

“Why are you here? Did you come to spy on us?” Hinata asked with wide eyes. Maybe Kageyama wasn’t the only one who was nervous about their upcoming match.

“I’m just here looking for some-for a friend,” he says, eyes darting around the gym through the small window.

“Oh, okay...who is it? Maybe I can help you find them!” Shortie says, with that same passionate enthusiasm that he springs up with on the court.

Toru assesses the odds of Hinata picking up a clue that maybe he and you aren’t exactly friends but then he remembers Tobio usually keeps control of their shared brain cell and spills his guts.

“Do you remember the practice match we had?”

“Yea the one last week? “

“That’s the one...I was warming up and I hit my spike,”

“Yeah and it was like SWOOOSH and POW against the court and even Nishinoya senpai couldn’t pick it up...it was soo awesome,” Hinata says, stars sparkling in his eyes.

Toru felt the old familiar pride in himself start to grow.

“Yes, exactly. Well it bounced and then someone caught it...do you remember who that was?”

“Oooh yeah, I know them. But they’re not here, they work part time at that place with the big neon sign out front. The one across from the coach's store!”

Toru says a quiet thank you for the blind gullibility of an idiot and nods. “Thank you, Shortie. I might just consider this worthy of an I owe you.”

“Oh it’s no problem but...why don’t you just text them?” he asks, tilting his head to the side.

“You’re right, I should do that. Well this has been fun but I’m leaving now...you should work on those receives. Catching them with your face might be fun to watch but it’s not going to put the ball where it needs to go.”

Before Hinata can go off he turns to leave with a wide grin.

The walk there isn’t long and he checks out the familiar sight of Sakanoshita and then turns his head.

“Hmm…” he says to himself. It’s not exactly what he’d expected but Shrimpy is a lot of things, but capable of lying isn’t one of them.

He slips in the door looking around as if he’s interested in what’s on the shelves though a glimpse of you is really what he’s waiting for.

Toru keeps glancing over to the counter while he distractedly pretends to browse.

In fact he is so focused on keeping an eye out for you that he nearly jumps out of his skin when you say, “Can I help you with anything?” from right behind him.

He’s not sure whether his heart is pounding so fast in his chest because of the literal fear that is tingling under his skin or the fact that you are unexpectedly standing so close.

He backs away into the shelf, wincing a bit when a few items fall onto the floor.

Blood rushes to his ears and neck as he forces himself to turn around and start to pick things up.

“No I-I’m fine,” he says, hiding his awkwardness as best he can given the floor has yet to open up and swallow him whole.

“Y’know, you’re nothing like I expected…” you say, chuckling to yourself a bit as you try to help with the misplaced items.

“You-you know who I am?” he says in a voice that sounds almost nothing like himself. Toru Oikawa isn’t some meek, mild mannered blubbering mess. He’s confident in himself and his skills both on and off the court.

But then he sees your eyes, and the tiny smile dancing on your lips and he’s somehow a whole new person.

“Of course. I might not follow Volleyball as closely as some but I’m pretty sure there are slugs living under rocks that know who you are,” you chuckle, replacing the last item onto the shelf before standing back up to your full height.

“Yes...well I am the best setter in Miyagi,” he says, trying to find his confidence again.

“One of, sure,” you say and there’s a sly smirk on your lips as you think of Tobio-kun.

(cue unamused emoji face)

“Oh, and I suppose you think Tobio is better?” he says, feeling vaguely jealous and angry all at once.

“I wouldn’t really know,” you say, shrugging a bit. “Honestly I just know that he credits you a lot for teaching him everything he knows and that seems like such a waste if you can’t appreciate it properly.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well you’re rivals, I get that...but also another way to look at it is not only are you one of the best-”

“THE best.”

“Fine, even if you’re THE BEST setter in Japan, or even all of the world...you have a legacy now. It’s not just your own skill that you can depend on but that of your junior…” you say with a soft shrug. “Honestly that feels just as important to me.”

Toru blinks at you a few times before you offer a short wave goodbye and make your way back toward the counter.

He decides it will be best to get out of there as soon as possible.

When he rounds the corner, Toru presses back against the cool brick of the building behind him and lets his head fall back.

This feeling...it’s new. It’s intense...it’s fuck-its unlike anything he’s ever felt before.

Is he actually...flattered?

Impressed?

Is he...is he in love?

No, that’s silly.

Toru Oikawa doesn’t do love.

He plays at it, he feeds it to his fans but he doesn’t actually feel it.

The wind whips at his face and he turns away from it. He’s not sure how just yet but somehow this is Tobio’s fault...he just knows it.

Once he confronts his feelings, it takes a while but he comes back to you.

Over and over he shows up where you are and tries his best to make polite conversation despite the nervous flutters in his stomach or the way heat seems to blossom in his cheeks anytime you playfully tease him about anything.

If you’re standing too close there’s at least a thirty percent chance he’s going to knock into something and either he’ll have a bruise or you’ll be picking stuff up off the floor all over again.

It settles a bit the more you get to know one another but he can still be surprisingly adorable with pink cheeks and shaky words when you do something to catch him off guard.

If only the tabloids could see him now.

You shoot hoops together, he cooks for you on occasion, and you share your rougher edges with him.

Yet he doesn’t walk away...

It’s actually kind of nice to feel like you can be yourself with him.

You expect him to be a lot more of a skeeze but he’s patient and to be honest he moves at an even slower pace than you would. You give it time though, because he might be thinking he’s doing it for you or he might just be taking the slow road for himself and you’re in no rush.

If he’s willing to stay by your side, then being patient is the easiest part.

MASTERLIST

[morievna]

Strangler Fig and Given - Ritsuka

I hope that everybody who is reading it is okay. It is rather anxious what is happening now... Personally I am fine – I am healthy and lucky enough to work remotely from home. And marathoning Twoset violin vids xD

I have realized recently that I rarely wrote about Ritsuka outside chapter analysis. I like him, but his character arc after volume 2 is kind of stuck and sometimes he is only there as Mafuyu’s boyfriend. Hopefully, it is just slow build-up since current arc provided some opportunities to explore his character further. Actually now I am interested when it all will go and whether story will take some a bit dark turn. Well, Gusari likes drama so who knows ^^

What got me thinking more about him is that when I reread Strangler fig some time ago, I noticed something interesting:

This part from Ritsuka POV  (chapter 23) reminded me of Seiji POV from Strangler Fig:

Even though it is worded differently, it is rather similar way of thinking about who needs more somebody in relationship. As though characters Seiji and Ritsuka are very different, both stories are about struggling with repressed feelings and relationships entwined with dependency, jealousy and possessiveness.

But before going deeper, there is another interesting thing – how perfectly fits symbolism of titular strangler fig with all of it.

Strangler fig was named for their pattern of growth upon host trees, which often results in the host’s death. Beginning life as a sticky seed left on a high tree branch by an animal, the young strangler lives on the tree’s surface. As it grows, long roots develop and descend eventually reaching the ground and entering the soil. Several roots usually do this, and they become grafted together, enclosing their host’s trunk in a strangling latticework, ultimately creating a nearly complete sheath around the trunk.

Although a strangler fig often smothers and outcompetes its host, there is some evidence that trees encased in strangler figs are more likely to survive tropical cyclones, suggesting that the relationship can be somewhat mutualistic.

[source]

Note here that whether we are thinking about the positive or negative, the idea is to use the symbolism for self-introspection and personal growth, so even if we are looking at the negative aspects, it helps to approach this symbolism with the intention of achieving transcendence. Intuitively, it is not difficult to see that dependency and possessiveness emerges as a theme in the strangling fig story. Are we forming a dependency on a person that is ‘strangling’ him or her? Are we using a person as a clutch for personal gain? Are we possessive in our personal relationships?

[source]

I found it pretty fascinating – thanks Kizu Natsuki for opportunity to learn some random tree facts xD

Okay, I am going to compare Ritsuka and Seiji - there will be some spoilers for Strangler Fig, but more just about character than plot. At the end there will be some speculation where I think story may go.

At starting point both of their relationship with respective love interest are quite similar – they both see themselves are protector of his beloved one. Seiji regarded Akira as crybaby and Ritsuka thought of Mafuyu as adopted stray dog. That’s why both of them was acting as they are more dependable one, who has to look after another. Of course I don’t mean it as something bad, I think just some people feel better when they are in charge actively and taking care of others as having some control of situation and not being helpless.

As story progresses relationships changes as well – in SF it is more direct like the quote I attached at the begining, where Seiji realized that relationship is not so simple and he needs Akira more than he thought previously. In Given it is shown more gradually with Ritsuka realizing Mafuyu’s influence on his music and what it really means. Over time Ritsuka is no longer teaching Mafuyu, but realized that his own music changed and that he have feelings for him – we see him struggling accepting sexual orientation. But after advice and support of others he is able to confess his feelings before live performance, which ultimately leads to him and Mafuyu getting together.

The same struggle has Seiji – as he tried to suppress his feelings while dating multiple girls at the same time. It was also related with family expectation – being heir to rich family, which owns big company and he was strained by it. We see much later in the story how much his father’s acceptance of his sexuality puts him at peace and allowed him to move forward.

But before that happened – there was a domino effect that led to tension and later separation between him and Akira. The factors were as mentioned earlier –  trying to suppress his love as well as  jealousy and possessiveness over Akira. Besides, he was unsure what Akira was thinking and feeling of him and that’s why later seeing Akira’s jealousy made big impression on him.  

In Given there are similar motives as well, jealousy is often brought up in Ritsuka’s arc as he is struggling with his feelings for Mafuyu. So let’s take closer look.

In chapter 18 there was Ritsuka’s outbreak about his jealousy of spending so much time with Akihiko. I found it interesting especially that he looks up to Akihiko a lot – whatever is it wanting to be muscular like him or looking for advice. All of it looks to me as he is insecure and afraid that Mafuyu will chose somebody better than him (in his mind).

It maybe is a stretch, but it is interesting how he commented to not wanting to be feminine while Akihiko appears to be more hmm traditionally masculine at first glance. But I am not sure that Gusari intended Given as gender commentary, so I won’t look deeper into this since it is a bit tricky topic. But still you can see that Ritsuka has a set of expectation about what he wants himself to be.

His insecurities showed back again in chapter 23 – he still is unsure what Mafuyu thinks of him and what wants out of their relationship. All makes him more trying to control and suppress his desires. In addition, he is afraid that he will hurt Mafuyu. Just like in Strangler Fig – Seiji is pretty much fearful too that his feelings will consume and destroy Akira. Both of them are quite unsure how to express their love and affection and fear that it will turn badly.

When Mafuyu mentioned that there was similar clock in Yuki’s home, Ritsuka’s reaction is quite telling too. It is interesting that he perceived it as some sort of test. To me it feels like he want to be worthy of replacing Yuki in Mafuyu’s life – like wanting to not be worse than him and setting expectation which he thinks that has to fulfill. It is interesting how much jealousy and insecurity are combined together.

In addition, this theme reappears in mix_3

It is quite peculiar how much is not believing that Yuki was that good in music – as it was easier for him if it was otherwise. It lines up with text on cover of this chapter – Ritsuka wanting to forget that Yuki possesed many of Mafuyu’s firsts. Again, insecurity.

As mentioned earlier – seeing Akira being jealous gave Seiji clue about he is thinking about him. I think it is possible that we see something like that in Given too.

Way back in chapter 5 there was jealous Mafuyu, but back then he couldn’t talk about his feelings. Although a lot changed since then, but still he has some problems with that (which is totally understandable) and his character development is not over after all. I think it would be good to see him exploring and expressing more negative emotions since it is important to acknowledge them too. So I think it will be something another situation with in the future and he will express and handle it better. Personally I think it would be interesting if it would be similar to mentioned case with Ritsuka and Akihiko – feeling jealous over person he looks up to like for instance Ugetsu.

On the side note, I will be surprised if there is none of interaction between Ugetsu and Ritsuka in the future. Or rather it would be wasted potential. To be honest I considered it a bit weird that Ritsuka was called a prodigy around volume 3. I would say he always appeared to be quite skilled and very hard-working since he was young, but being prodigy is sort of different thing. It would make more sense to me if it was done on purpose that he and Ugetsu would foil each other at some point and have some sort of dynamic like Oikawa and Kageyama from Hq. Besides, it would be interesting to see Ritsuka questioning his own talent and reasons to play music.

So where it all leads? *ominous voice*

Okay, so I will run wild with speculation.

As I mentioned several times before I think that Mafuyu will sing Yuki’s song and perform together with Ritsuka and Hiiragi and Shizu. My main reason behind is that it would be good closure for the story, tying past and future together into something new. But I am afraid that lots of drama will lead to that.

I think that current situation will escalate – Ritsuka will be more and more engaged in playing with Hiiragi’s band instead of Given. As a way to prove himself to be not worse than Yuki he will keep working hard and focusing more on music than anything else. Which of course will bring Mafuyu anxiety since it will remind of his past and will make him worry that it will repeat.

I think there will be some argument between Ritsuka and Mafuyu and it will too overlap with some Akihiko-Haruki drama (since Akihiko is trying to balance violin and drums I am expecting some collision like violin contest and Given performance happening in the same time. And you know these instruments have double meaning xD), which all of it will cause that they will disband or simply stop playing together for a while depending how much angst Gusari wants.

I think that Yayoi will try to make up for her mistake and nudge Ritsuka into talking with Mafuyu. Then they will finally talk about his past with Yuki (I mean it has to happen at some point) and make it up. Then I think there will be proposition for Mafuyu to play with them and sing Yuki’s song.

After all music is foundation for Given, but still main theme is love story. So I believe it is not about small band becoming successful, but rather showing Mafuyu’s journey – how he healed from past trauma and regained back love (Ritsuka) and community (Hiiragi and Shizu) as well as reconcile at spiritual level with Yuki by playing his song. This is how end of his arc would felt satisfactory to me, but we will see what Gusari is planning. Of course, I don’t expect to be right about everything, it is more that these are themes I expect to appear in story.

As always thanks for reading.

[animebw]

Binge-Watching: Haikyuu S2, Episodes 19-21

Aoba Johsei, round two! In which I ruminate over the slow build-up to this rematch, a new player throws everyone off their game, and Team Dad Iwa keeps everything running smoothly.

Relighting the Fire

There was only ever one way the second season of Haikyuu was going to end: with a rematch between the reborn Karasuno and their old enemy Aoba Johsei. Their loss to Oikawa’s team at the end of the first season has been the driving force behind every crow’s personal journey in this season, pushing them to overcome the flaws that dragged them down and come together as stronger, more capable players and people. We’ve seen them grow and evolve, adding new tools to their tool belt, using their old tools even better, connecting their tools with more precision and accuracy, to the point where they’ve genuinely started feeling like a team capable of taking on the big leagues. Aoba Johsei is the reason Karasuno’s come so far, as well as being the rival team we’ve spent the most time with and understand most intimately. And just like that time, that final match is stretched out into basically an entire quarter of the season’s runtime, playing each of its inevitable three sets out in exquisite detail as the tide of battle bounces back and forth with every hard-fought point. It’s a homecoming that’s been a long time coming, a destined battle we’ve been awaiting with baited breath ever since the season began. And now that we’ve finally arrived at it… I can’t help but wonder if we might have waited just a little too long.

See, looking back on the season that brought us to this point, I can’t help but notice that after a fantastic first half that built off the first season’s stopping point spectacularly, my interest in its second half wasn’t quite as fervent. I still enjoyed the hell out of it, to be clear; this is Haikyuu, after all, and it still does everything well that it’s always done well. But ever since we finished up the training camp and Karasuno proved how far they’ve come since their failure, I feel like the show’s kinda been stuck in a holding pattern in the build-up to the Johsei rematch. None of the matches since then have had much in the way of intense personal stakes, outside of Daichi and Ennoshita’s parllel story a couple episodes ago. They’ve mostly been all about the rival teams, but while they’ve all been fairly well-rounded, none of them have been interesting enough on their own merits or presented enough of a worthy challenge to maintain a good level of momentum. As a result, the last quarter or so of the season has ended up feeling mostly like connective tissue, a bridge between the actual important story beats that doesn’t have that much going on itself.

When I think back to the build-up to the final battle in the first season, I remember every match Karasuno fought in stark detail, because all of them were part of Karasuno’s story. We saw our boys grow and evolve over the course of matches, learn new things about themselves, overcome old obstacles, become stronger and surer as they went. The matches weren’t just killing time, they were advancing our characters’ arcs both as individuals and members of a team as they did so, while pitting them against opponents strong enough to jump-start that progression. I was never anxiously tapping my foot waiting for the “real” battles to finally start, because every battle felt like it held genuine importance for everyone involved. Sadly, I can’t say the same about the opening prelims this time around. Few of the teams Karasuno have fought thus far have felt like genuine opponents, just placeholders biding time for the real tournament to finally kick in. I know Karasuno’s stronger now so they’ll have an easier time facing stronger opponents, but this is still their story; shouldn’t they have a worthy obstacle to face to push their tale forward?

Mad Dog

Well, thankfully, now that we’ve finally reached the endgame, I can put those complaints to rest, because Aoba Johsei’s just as worthy an opponent as I remember them being. It’s sort of remarkable that such a seemingly normal opposing team would end up becoming such a terrifying end boss, but that’s the power of Haikyuu’s writing. Aoba Johsei doesn’t have any fancy metaphors to its name, no flashy powers or special moves, and no real stunners outside of Oikawa’s killer serves. But thanks to Oikawa’s incredible teamsmanship, their gears all click together perfectly, making for a well-oiled machine that can respond to any threat thrown its way quickly and efficiently. Their threat comes from raw skill, filtered through all six players on the court working in synch to bring out each others’ best. That’s why they were able to defeat Karasuno’s flashy moves last time around; talent is no substitute for experience and level-headedness in the heat of battle when anything can happen. Of course, now that Karasuno’s finally got some experience under their own belt, the playing field is far more evenly matched, resulting in the tension spiking through the roof once again and every last point feeling like it could turn the tide of battle. Good god, y’all, I’ve missed this intensity. This is the kind of clockwork storytelling that Haikyuu excels at.

It also helps that Aoba Johsei’s still got a few tricks up its sleeve, and it pulls out an incredibly risky double-edged sword to turn the tide against Karasuno’s newfound skill: shaking up their clockwork teamwork by subbing in a reckless, unruly, but absolutely overwhelming new player. The Mad Dog certainly lives up to his name, hitting off killer spikes and stunning plays that leave Karasuno scrambling to catch up. But what I like most about him is that he’s not just a terrifying new opponent who completely dominates the playing field; he’s a flawed, unfocused powerhouse who runs headlong into the thick of battle, without the perspective or versatility to respond to any situation where brute force isn’t the way to go. In fact, I realized about halfway through episode 21 that he’s essentially where Hinata was at back at the start of the show: an incredibly talented player who relies on his flashy enthusiasm over actual skill and finesse to throw his opponents off balance. Aoba Johsei even starts using his intimidating presence as a decoy just like Karasuno used to use Hinata back before he could hold his own. Facing down the Mad Dog, Hinata’s essentially seeing himself back when he was still inexperienced and rash, and the mere fact that Hinata’s able to pick out the flaws in his strategy shows just how far he’s come (”He doesn’t know the bliss of a feint… what a waste.”) It’s the first time we’ve seen him being the mature, experienced one picking out the flaws in the technique of a novice much like himself back in the day. Mad Dog’s overwhelming force might be winning out for now, but if Hinata’s newfound perspective is anything to go by, it’s only a matter of time before he delivers the same smackdown to the mutt as Aoba Johsei once did to him.

Team Dad

Of course, Mad Dog’s only the least of Karasuno’s worries when it comes to Aoba Johsei. Don’t forget, the reason they lost back in the first season wasn’t because some star player overwhelmed them, it was because every player on that team was strong enough to work together and face them down on a united front. And we’re still getting plenty of evidence as to how strong that bond is, not the least of which is how often Oikawa has found himself getting dunked on this match. Good god, it never gets old watching his teammates rub his attempts at smug seriousness in his face with the barely perturbed contentment of a group of uncles humoring their unruly nephew (”If we lose, you owe us ramen.”) Hell, it’s becoming increasingly apparent that for how important Oikawa’s guiding hand is, it’s really Iwa who helps everyone keep a level head when the going gets tough. Oikawa’s important, sure, but he can be a literal grade schooler at times, immaturely needling his opponents and getting so riled up that he overextends himself and starts flubbing his serves with too much power (”Just in case, watch the back of your head.”) Iwa, meanwhile, is effortlessly able to call out everyone bullshit and get them back on track. He’s the one person who can rile the Mad Dog back into shape, and he’s even able to freak Oikawa out through sheer determination when he puts his mind to getting a point in. Oikawa keeps this team motivated, but it’s his husband who keeps them on steady feet and pointed in the right direction. That’s the incredible teamwork that makes Aoba Johsei such a tough nut to crack. Here’s hoping this time, Karasuno brought a bigger pair of nutcrackers.

Odds and Ends

-Listen, I just really love it when members from rival schools find each other off the court and awkwardly remember that it’s okay for them to be friends again. It gets me every time.

-”Nice catch.” aksjdhakjsdhasd poor coach

-”You’re just making Karasuno pity us even more…” but I repeat myself

-OH MY FUCKING GOD OIKAWA’S FACE

-”Guess we have no choice!” “Don’t start stripping here.” God, I’m gonna miss Dateko.

-”I’m pretty confident when it comes to being nervous!” Yachi istg

-”My heart’s about to pop out of my chest!” SOMEONE SAVE HER OH MY GOD

-Kageyama files his nails. I… don’t know what to do with that info.

-PROTECTIVE SHIZUKU IS EVERYTHING

-”Nice kill.” Oh, show some enthusiasm, Shinpachi.

-”The ones who just did it are the most surprised?” Hey, they got the first point, it’s a good feeling.

-”Nice one, Ryu! Love ya!” Lady, you’re the best.

-”Calm down, you, uh, dumbass!” ajksdhaksjdasd what was that even

And with Yamaguchi sallying forth to redeem his failure in their first match, we’re officially at the final stretch. See you next time for the season 2 finale!

[mikazau]

Searching for Silence

Inspired by @mikkapi's Haikyuu!! Fantasy Au. If you haven’t seen it, please head over to her blog and take a look! 

If you have any questions, feel free to message or send through an ask. Constructive criticism is always welcome and gladly received.

Although I doubt I managed to do her wonderful art justice, I hope you enjoy what's here...

Chapter One - Dreams of the Past

A small hand, reaching up to the hem of the hood, tugging it down. As it fell, it framed the face of a boy, the murky brown colour, blurred by droplets streaming down.

“Don’t cry Tooru.” A voice bravely encouraged, steady and warm.

‘Tooru’ continued to sniffle, unable to stop the cries from escaping. He clasped a hand over his mouth as the tears flowed out. After a few moments of stifled sobs, the sounds gradually quietened. Tremors still ran through his body as the wetness dried, making way for calmness.

The hand which so gently pulled the hood down earlier now moved to pat the small male on the head.

“It’s ‘lright….. You’ll be fine.” Maybe everything wasn’t alright, but this person, they made it seem like it was.

“N-No-“ “I’m here.” Those two words were all it took for him to relax slightly, feeling his heart warm up. Simple words they were. The emotion in them were strong.

Warmth from the hand continued to rest upon the top of the cloak, where brown locks would normally be seen. Tooru felt himself calm down.

The hand pulled away. It took him a moment to realise that the warmth had gone.

“Wait!” His hand reached out, desperate for the comforting touch. A cold blast of wind whisked the hood of his head as he lifted his head up.

He jerked up, sitting upright. His breaths were laboured as his arms, still outstretched, came into a resting position in his lap. He stared down at them as he tried to stop his erratic breathing.

Whether nightmare or dream, that scene had haunted him for years. Yet he still did not know who the other person was.

Oikawa Tooru, future king of Seijou, with all his resources and people helping him, was unable to find that person to this day. He buried his face into his hands, shaking with silent laughter.

How pathetic... A crown prince who couldn’t even find his heart’s desire could not be worthy of the throne and responsibilities that came with being King. He, who should know his people, should be able to find that person. How could he, when he remembered nothing from that day, no traits, no features, no - Nothing.

The shreds of his memory gave him only the calming voice that soothed long ago and the warmth of the hand that had gently touched.

Taking his hands off from his face, he sighed. He shouldn’t be thinking about that. Not when he was meant to be preparing to become King. Even if the job was at least a few decent years away, it was still important that preparation be done for when time came around to it. He turned and slid off his bed, feet making soft footsteps as he padded around his room. He could never sleep after that particular dream and normally ended up taking a walk outside instead.

A walk in the silence calmed him. Whether it was a stroll amongst greenery, flowers dispersed around or down the long corridors of the palace he resided in, it helped. Not to piece together the trailing thoughts of his mind’s inventions, but to bring together himself for the hardships yet to come.

A few minutes later, his shoes were on, along with a smooth outer layer to keep him warm. Slowly, he stepped towards the door and opening it, minding the squeak it could make. Taking a look around, he saw no one and relaxed slightly. The door clicked shut behind him.

“And where do you think you’re going, your Highness?” An annoyed growl could be heard in the undertone of the voice. The prince whipped around, on guard and cautious. His eyes brightened as he made out who it was.

“Iwa-chan!”

“Don’t call me that please.” The other grumbled as he stood up from the place he was sitting, beside Oikawa’s door.

‘Iwa-chan’ or Iwaizumi Hajime, was one of the top graduates in his year from the Academy. Recently, he was chosen to become a part of Equites Draconis, Oikawa’s personal guard, due to his power and technique with weapons as well as his level-headedness. Not to mention the fact that the said male had taken to him, holding a strange interest for him. And as one of the only knights who was able to keep up with Oikawa without being intimidated off - for the prince himself was also skilled in weaponry - or sent on a hunt and chase of some kind, he was normally set the role of bodyguard. Like now.

“Where are you-“ The ‘bodyguard’ was about to repeat the question again before he was interrupted rather abruptly.

“You shouldn’t be treating your future king like that!” Oikawa answered teasingly. “Especially since he’s taller than you~” A scalding glare was directing towards him, but he brushed it aside, continuing to poke fun at Iwaizumi.

“I’m in charge of guarding over you tonight; I should know where you are at all times. In case something happens.” He informs as he stared Oikawa down. “My height has nothing to do with that, Prince Oikawa.”

Giving Iwaizumi a petulant pout, he turned and began to walk off, still planning to go on that walk.

“You never told me.” Those words made Oikawa stop. “Where do you think you are going?”

“I might tell you if you get rid of the ‘your Highness’ and ‘Prince Oikawa’ that you are so fond of~”

“It would be against what I’ve been taught. Letting you out without knowing where you’re going is also against that, Prince.” Iwaizumi replied stiffly.

The prince thought for a while. He needed a reason. A lie should work, right? It usually did after all. He turned around and pulled on a bright smile.

“I’m going to get a drink!”

“You could have rung the bell and got a servant to do that.” Iwaizumi deadpanned.

“I wouldn’t want to wake up anyone at his hour.” He replied cheerfully, watching the knight’s expression. “After all, they all need their beauty sleep~”

The other crossed his arms, giving him a look to continue. As a part of his responsibility, he was to take care of this. Even if he was here all night interrogating the prince, it was worth it as his welfare and safety would have priority and be taken care of.

“If letting you out could cost your safety or life, I will personally lock you in your room if I have to. It is part of my duty, to both you and the royal family.”

Oikawa sighed. Iwaizumi hadn’t seem to have bought his act.

“I couldn’t sleep so I wanted to take a walk.” He answered honestly, looking down at the ground slightly in shame.

“It would have made my job a lot easier if you had just said in the first place.” Iwaizumi slowly walked over, minding his step in the darkness and making sure to keep distance between them, out of courtesy and respect.

Oikawa gave him a strange look, prompting the knight to explain. “Come on then, I can’t exactly let you go out alone. Who’s fault is it going to be if you end up kidnapped or lost?”

“I’ll be fine! You need your sleep, Iwa-chan.” A finger poked at the area above his eyebrows. “Otherwise you’ll never get rid of the wrinkles on your forehead!”

“Either you go with me or you don’t go at all.” He answered firmly, completely ignoring what Oikawa had done temporarily.

“Fine.” He huffs, whirling around and stalking out. Iwaizumi quickly caught up and walked behind Oikawa as he had been taught.

“If you’re going to walk behind me, how are you going to protect me if someone tries to attack me from the front?” Reaching out, Oikawa grabbed Iwaizumi and pulled him forward.

“I-I can’t stand beside you-“

“Prince’s orders~” He winked. “You can’t go against those right?”

The other shrugged the prince off, straightening up. “Where do you want to go for this walk of your’s then?”

“Hmm… We’ll see.”

[lia-nikiforov]

Spring Anime Final Impressions

The flowers are gone and all we have left is the summer heat and flooding rains -literally my hometown’s in chaos because of the rain ahahaha- but I couldn’t leave without my last impressions of this lovely spring season. I’m going from best to worst, akthough just as it was at the start of the season, there’s a very harsh cutoff point from the good stuff to the trash.

Uchouten Kazoku 2: There’s little I can say that can express how beautiful and perfect this show is and how worried I was that the second season might feel unnecessary or that it wouldn’t live up to the magic of the first one, but boy was I wrong. This remains one of the most delightful and criminally underappreciated franchises of this decade and being able to spend more times with its wonderful characters and magical rendition of Kyoto has been an utter pleasure. If Morimi ever decides to write more novels I hope they get the same loving treatment from the folks at P.A. Works.

Shingeki no Bahamut: Virgin Soul: Although not the tightly packed exciting adventure of the first season, Virgin Soul is no less entertaining while also cutting deeper narrative sensibilities and character developments, as well as expanding the world of Bahamut without ever leaving the capital city. The production itself is wonderful, with  a warm color palette and excellent animation. Nina is an excellent protagonist and one I enjoy following immensely and although I can’t help wonder what they’re planning to do with her budding romance with Murder King I’m certainly excited to see what adventures await her and Jeanne as they head to the dragon village.

Boku no Hero Academia 2: This season has definitely stood out for the flood of absolutely excellent sequels and HeroAca is no exception. Tournament arcs are a staple of the shonen genre but I haven’t seen a lot of them handle it as well as this show has, giving us a bittersweet conclusion and setting up character arcs for a lot of Deku’s very excellent classmates. The show did a great job of exploiting its extended cast for the best with a vast range of creative Quirks. I grew particularly fond of Mei and Shinso and I hope we get to see more of them. But first! Iida angst! Protect these children please!

Attack on Titan 2: After four years and watching Araki’s masturbatory Zombie Train AU, Attack on Titan’s season 2 had a lot to live up to and I gotta say it didn’t disappoint in the slightest! Between the excellent pacing, the brilliantly planned horror tone and the little tweaks in bringing up events from later in the manga (namely Ymir’s backstory) they managed to make these 12 episodes a wild and incredibly satisfying ride. Maybe my only complaint is the brief appearance of CG Colossal Titan, but other than that, it was a worthy sequel that easily surpassed the original and I’m really looking forward to S3. Extra props for the OP and the terrifying ED which will give me nightmares forever.

Natsume Yuujincho Roku:  This new season of Natsume, however short and seemingly inconsequential, felt leagues above the previous one, and I can’t quite pinpoint why. There was something uniquely heart-warming about the selection of stories and seeing how far Natsume has come in his journey and with the support of friends and people that love him. Although there was virtually no progress in disentangling the mystery of Reiko (actually, I don’t think Natsume returned a single name this season) we got a couple of clues in the last two episodes and had an important change with Natori. I don’t know if we’ll ever see more seasons of this beautiful show, but that it remains so consistently well-written and sweet after over 70 episodes is truly a wonder.

Yowamushi Pedal: New Generation: I was skeptical about Yowapeda without the charismatic third years, but I gotta give props to Watanabe and the anime team for managing to create new compelling characters for all the main teams. It still has its shortcomings: Kaburagi’s quite insufferable for the most part, as is Doubashi, and I’m not a fan of Izumida becoming a cocky trashtalker. I think they could’ve done more with Sohoku as reigning champions, but for the most part they’ve fabricated dumb excuses to still paint them as underdogs, which is frustrating. And I will never in my entire life forgive them for not giving Teshima light of my life at least the minimal satisfaction of taking a tag. It’s a frustrating recurring theme that hardworking characters (like Teshima or Oikawa) always lose to the geniuses (unless they’re the protagonist) and that paints a very grim and saddening picture of sports, especially considering these shows are supposed to be aimed at teenagers. Idk, it’s annoying and Teshima deserved better. Still a great season overall, but a very sour ending.

Kabukibu!!: It’s always nice to see a show about a niche subject be actually good and that was the case with Kabukibu. Although it never quite reached the heights of the first few episodes with its subtle discussions of gender, it remained a charming show that shone through its terrible terrible production values. Although I’ll say it didn’t quite succeed in making me interested in Kabuki the way Rakugo Shinjuu did with its titular art form, it has a unique message  about the elitization of art. Definitely worth a watch. 

Little Witch Academia: You’ll probably think LWA’s low position on this rank is rather strange. It’s not a bad show by any means. It’s charming, fun, with great animation and likable characters. But I was sourly disappointed with how the second half panned-out, with its laser focus on Akko causing the colorful cast (including best girl Sucy) to fade into the background completely. With the exception of a few standalone episodes, none of the other girls –save Diana- really got much time to shine, which was a true tragedy. The resolution of the conflict with Croix was also awfully anticlimactic. So yes, a very good show, maybe better than the two above it, but that had potential for so much more so I can’t help grading it on a curve in terms of how it didn’t meet my expectations. 

Oushitsu Kyoushi Heine: I honestly had no expectations going into this one and thought I’d end up dropping it so I was pleasantly surprised by how fun and charming it was. It’s not breaking any grounds or changing the world, it’s just that old familiar comfort food that doesn’t disappoint and leaves with a happy, satisfied feeling. The ending was super hammy but I was nonetheless charmed by the four princes and Heine so it feels like a worthy use of my time, though I wouldn’t reccommend it to anyone that wasn’t already into this kind of shows.

STARMYU 2: Like Heine, Starmyu is easy, stupid comfort food. It’s hard to praise it because it is so profoundly stupid, but I love it dearly even if I can hardly name the five main characters. The middle portion was kind of a bore, but it picked up pretty great in the end, with the twist of giving Hoshitani the starring role so he could go full gay share the stage with Otori, and they even managed to somehow tie up most of the loose threads they opened during the season –namely Ageha’s involvement- even if it was in trite, ridiculous ways. But if you expected anything less than trite and ridiculous from Starmyu, you’re barking at the wrong tree

Grimoire of Zero: The first half of this series was terrrrribly boring (and overall terrible too), but it managed to have a graceful landing for the finale and that’s why I’m putting it above the other two. Could’ve done without the creepy salesman almost literally masturbating to Zero’s smell or the show making us sympathize with the dirtbag sex slaver wolfman or how generally boring the major conflict was but it was mostly okayishly dull. Terrible production values though with Kabukibu as competition, you almost didn’t notice.

Re:Creators: Aaaand here’s where we take a dip in shitland. This is a very depressing show because it has so much potential and some true moments of brilliance, but it never truly grasps any of it, doesn’t stick the landing, and then we’re left with a “what could’ve been”. Plot developments are contrived –especially in regards to Magane- and Meteora needs to shut the fuck up. Our milquetoast protagonist (who claims in ep 1 he’s not the protagonist and some suckers actually believed him) has also received a tragic dead girl accessory now which only makes the whole thing even more sour and frustrating

Seikaisuru KADO: Hear me out folks, I love KADO. I love it because I hated the first half with such boiling passion and yet saw people singing its praises left and right for its “complex themes” “clever sci-fi plot” and “original premise” in spite of its terrible writing and inconsequential plot developments. The writing introduced literally world changing concepts and then refused to commit to show their consequences, to the point of completely backtracking by the end of the show. So I was veeeery pleased when the show decided to self-destruct in the stupidest possible manner if only for a sense of petty self-vindication i-was-right-all-along. It ended being terrible for different reasons than it was at the start, but still, the fact that it managed to have such an incredibly terrible ending is mind-bogglingy hilarious. Of course, if you give it proper thought, it’s infuriating –everything regarding the magic Daughter ex Machina plot is- but boy am I glad the show became so irredeemably terrible. Thanks Toei! (zaShunnina and Hanamori deserved better though). I’ll give them this, the dynamic of zaShunnina’s arm movements was pretty unique and gave us a handful of very fun shots.

And now the summer’s here and my last month of freedom before I start my Masters, pray for my soul my friends. Spring was a very strong season thanks to its very strong sequels, but there aren’t any of those for summer (except for the continuing ones) Let’s hope that this new season brings along a good bout of surprises and good anime and that Amazon doesn’t destroy the simulcast industry

[imagine-that-haikyuu]

i feel like this is cheating but i can't help it, would it be possible to request (short, because i'm not an asshole) character analyses from you in the future? if not no worries, i'm just such a sucker for meta and i really like your style haha. i'll try to be specific so you'll have an easier time writing it. i mean it's basically headcanons without the head so it's just... canon. yeah that was not the smartest sentence i've ever written and i'm not proud of it sorry

i know i said that i’d do tsukki for this meta, but i started rambling about keishin in chapter 255 in a post for the other blog and halfway through writing it, i thought it would just best for this. also because you asked for something short and the tsukki meta will be long. since we haven’t seen as much development from everyone’s favorite coach as we have from tsukki, it seemed like a good opportunity to highlight some subtle hints that furudate-sensei’s been giving us that something is in the works

and also for me to ramble about my husband

so that being said, there are spoilers past season 3 of the anime since this is about the latest chapter, 255

if you like what i do and want to show your support, consider supporting me on ko-fi!

- admin rachel lauren

Never underestimate my ability to hyperfocus on Keishin in every chapter, but chapter 255 has me beginning to think we’re going to get some development from him in some capacity, and perhaps regarding his relationship with his grandpa.

I’ll never stop talking about how Furudate-sensei is a very smart in crafting their stories and bringing what may seem like minor details or throwaway lines to attention again many chapters later, so I think it might be fair to assume that some parts of 255 are hinting at something important to come for Keishin. Even if this ends up being nothing more than speculation on my part, it’s still something that might be interesting to think about for the rest of the Nationals arc.

Right after using Karasuno’s signature weapon against them, Inarizaki rubs salt into the wound by reading Kageyama and successfully blocking Hinata. Like the great coach that he's proving himself time and time again to be, Keishin of course is going to try and ensure that this doesn’t get to them and lead to mistakes later on.

Something any good coach would say to his team, right? Though, in retrospect, I’m not entirely sure this was directed just at Hinata and Kageyama, but also to himself. Shimada and Takinoue’s comments from the next page are what tipped this off as a possibility for me:

This chapter contained very little comedy (as expected given what’s happening in the match at this time), but this would have been the time for sensei to demonstrate exactly what Takinoue is saying here. We already got something similar from Daichi after Oikawa’s first serve in the second official match against Seijou.Given that it’s been a very long time since that chapter was published, it would have been fine to pull that gag again without risking it feeling cheap or stale. The fact that sensei didn’t go down that route is an interesting choice, and even more so that they felt the need to have Shimada and Takinoue note this for the reader. If it wasn’t going to be important at some point, it would have never been mentioned. I say this with confidence because it happens again and again with other characters in this series. Furudate-sensei has an incredible knack for setting up important plot points by making them seemingly minor details far before they’re even needed. (Whether or not they include these things knowing they’re going to utilize it later or including it and realizing later that it can be incorporated into the story is beside the point. It doesn’t matter when those things come to a writer so much as if the writer can and does find/create an appropriate time to remind the readers of it).

Regardless, I’d say this highlights very well how much Keishin has grown as coach just in the three months since the Miyagi prefecture finals, let alone from when he first started prior to the Nekoma practice match. He was very much a rookie coach in the beginning; he’d show his frustration and helplessness through a bit of a temper whenever the boys were backed into a corner and he couldn’t immediately think of a solution.

Now, we’re getting some wonderful examples of how differently he’s handling his position as a coach. He’s spending more of his free time researching and strategizing not only to minimize the anxiety from not knowing exactly what a powerful opponent is capable of, but also to minimize the anxiety from not knowing how to combat them. Chapter 253 gave us this gem:

And in earlier chapters right before Nationals, (I don’t remember which chapters exactly and I don’t think screenshots are entirely necessary for them anyway) there are very sweet moments where he instills confidence in Kinoshita regarding his serves and Kageyama’s abilities as a setter among other things. More recently, Asahi’s flashback in 254 really drives this point home.

But I digress. Back to the “calm on the outside” panels from 255. Unlike before, we see Keishin not lose his cool outwardly. It’s safe to say that he’s learned that a team’s morale can hinder on how their coach is feeling. While he may have been outwardly worried in the past during time-outs, one of the boys was there to assure everyone that things were going to be okay. But he can’t rely on that happening every time. While the boys are fantastic at motivating themselves and their teammates, they’re still high school students: they’re going to look to adults they trust for guidance in times of doubt. Keishin becoming a more mature coach is absolutely necessary for Karasuno to hold it together on the national stage. 

I’d argue that a good part of this, too, comes from the fact that Ikkei is in the hospital again at this point in the manga. Given that he seems relatively close to his grandpa--however odd it may be to have your relationship with your grandfather be a rivalry--this is probably weighing on Keishin enough to affect his disposition in the middle of a match. Chapter 247 has a very ominous moment which makes me believe that Ikkei is a huge component in Keishin trying to dry behind his ears a little while at Nationals.

We know he’s talking about Karasuno here, but having that blank, black panel show up right after he learns from a relative informing that Ikkei’s condition is not getting better is incredibly unsettling. His grandfather as his motivation before was markedly immature, with Ikkei constantly taking jabs at his grandson and Keishin reacting to them mostly out of mild contempt and because of his competitive spirit. Now, it’s’ easy to see that this shift in tone also shifts the nature of Ikkei as his motivation. It’s less of a matter of wanting to beat his grandpa and more so wanting to continue the legacy his grandfather left before his retirement, that his grandfather can look at Karasuno and know that they’re in capable hands, and that he is a coach worthy of leading a team at the national level. And god forbid the man dies--because sports manga aren’t immune to character deaths (Area no Kishi, anyone?)--Keishin would certainly want his grandfather to pass being proud of him and of Karasuno.

Keishin can only be a proxy for sensei to explain strategy to the readers for so long. I think Shimada and Takinoue are better suited for that because they’re spectators as much as the readers are. While a flashback to the Neighborhood Association trio’s time in high school would be ill-timed at this point, I wouldn’t be surprised if we got a different type of development for Keishin in the coming months. I’d be more surprised if we didn’t, considering what I mentioned earlier about sensei’s storytelling style. If it doesn’t happen now, it’ll happen eventually. And if not I’m flying to Japan and personally giving sensei an earful after I thank them first.

[whythehandbasket]

dee's super ultra 'this girl might have a problem' mega delux fanfic reclist

≡ haikyuu ≡

↳ iwaoi 「favourite writers: loveclouds -- carafin -- ohhotlamb -- newamsterdam --notallbees -- tothemoon」

Chasing Paper Suns – oneshot, college-future fic with long distance being the main theme, it’s heartbreakingly beautiful with a good ending

just hear me out – oneshot, amazing soulmate au with a twist

it’s bad enough we get along so well -- oneshot, where a confession happens before they leave for college

bloom -- oneshot, epic ability au set in canon volley verse

the river runs -- oneshot, getting back together

All kinds of winnders – oneshot, nsfw (iwa/oi) some good stuff

Diluculum – oneshot, hurt/comfort yumminess

Dinner and a Movie – oneshot, fakedating or is it? ;3c

Either Way – oneshot, nsfw, if you want good porn then here it is

sweet flesh and hard nails  -- oneshot, nsfw, reunion sex

bad coffee & lemon bars – oneshot, my fav iwaoi coffeeshop au

the truth is out there – oneshot, it’s ridiculously funny

mint – oneshot, one of those writers i read everything for

Only Fools Fall – multichap completed, that rare epic a/b/o verse fic

stumbling into the sun – oneshot, nsfw, oikawa has a praise kink but not for that dirty talk kind, matsuhana is hilarious in this

Super Spy Husbands ‘Verse – fic series you might already know about but if not then get on with it bc its the most awesome thing!

you’re looking like you fell in love tonight – oneshot, fakepretend goodness

Loves Me, Loves Me Not -- oneshot, oikawa is being ridiculous

15Minutes – multichap completed, iwa-chan becomes famous

Storm Season – multichap completed, avatar au

↳ matsuhana

rated m for – oneshot, i want to see this au for every single of my ships

stranger things – oneshot, memelord radio djs, side iwaoi as always

hang out fall in love – oneshot, about witch doctors

plus one – oneshot, the canon one

poolside -- oneshot, pool confessions

↳ kurodai

If I Could Change Your Mind – oneshot, set during the training camp

the faster we are falling – oneshot, pining kuroo is my fav kuroo

And flowers bloom in his wake – oneshot, modern magic type of thing but set in canon

i ain’t even heard the question, but i know i’ll say yes – multi wip, kuroo failing at relationship gay chicken

A Friend’s Duty – oneshot, it’s about kurodai but the kurosuga interaction sells it

↳ oikuroo

burning bright – oneshot, elemental magic slash fictional sport shit going down, everyone should read this fic it’s a masterpiece

the dream that wakes you up – multichap completed, fakepretend / friends with benefits turning serious

bad boy & boy wonder -- oneshot, rival actors au

↳ ushioi

#notalovestory – oneshot, actors au with ushioi in a nutshell

A Place to Call Home – multichap completed, oikawa is ushiwaka’s kid’s babysitter and he gets ridiculously attached to both oh btw the kid is tobio! i adore this for the gorgeous and cute oikage interactions, baby tobio is precious.

The Benevolent King of the Grand King’s Heart – oneshot, that plottwist tho!!!

Slow Burn – oneshot, nsfw, for that quality sin aesthetic

↳ kurotsuki

the jaywalkers series – look, this fic series must be one of my all time fav hq anything that came out of this fandom, it made me believe that there are good kurotsuki fics out there and i don’t even ship this ship or i don’t outside of this fic. it has the most entertaining, funny, witty writing style i’ve ever seen, the amount of quotes i go back to in this fic are amazing. kurotsuki is also not the only ship it has iwaoi, bokuaka, yamayachi, daisuga too! a masterpiece in my book.

to the beat of my heart – twoshot, awesome au awesome author

↳ oisuga

Stuck in The Middle With You – multichap completed, the shit that made me ship this ship 

all you have is your silence -- oneshot, college au

stratospheres -- oneshot, about spirits

≡ knb ≡

↳ gen

because this is a gem and i’m a caring friend ;3

Anticyclone – oneshot, really fun gom dynamic where kise’s flat ends up being everyone’s flat and important choices are made

Crossroads, and Other Places We Met – gen gom at its finest

Walk Through a Valley of Lilies – a series collection about post winter cup stuff, some of them contain shippy undertones but mostly gen

Standing Up – multi wip, timetravel, gen, kagami travels back to teikou days

Protective – oneshot, gom being protective of kuroko

↳ aoka

because he cares – aokaga, oneshot, this author writes nice aokas

burning concrete – aokaga, oneshot, LOVE how poetic this one is serious fav

Firefly Without a Light – aokaga, twoshot, aomine the dummy

Invincible – aokaga, multichap, touou kagami and aomine

Five Fingers; A Love Story – oneshot, aokaga

Softer than Before (All The Second Chances) – multi finished, aokagakuro if you’re into that 

↳ aoki

Glad You Came – multi completed, aokise

Atmosphere (or, Casual Affair) – oneshot, aokise

Boyfriend Bluff – twoshot, aokise, fakepretend

moustachiopenguin is my fav aokise writer, her Just Breathe and One Day, He Says fics are my fav for the ship

≡ the raven cycle ≡

↳ pynch

Time Isn’t Real (but you’re a constant) -- multichap completed, time travel au, future!adam switches places with present!adam and he has a wedding ring on his finger 

Just To Be Quiet -- multichap wip, one of those fandom favourites everyone will rec you, pynch having a psychic bond since childhood

Larger Than Life -- multichap completed, the first fandom favourite fic anyone will rec you, childhood friends au

Rootabaga Country -- multichap wip, the greatest magical realism fic ever, this author writes amazing world building fics

Son of the Nuclear A-Bomb -- multichap completed, amazing ronan-centric fic, a lot of ronan-niall history packed into it

This Isn’t a Heist --  oneshot, fake-pretend dating where ronan wants to piss off declan and ends up lying about dating adam and well…keep those eyes wide -- oneshot, matchmaker cabeswater demands that pynch gets on with it, it should be awkward but instead it’s so sweet!!

Worthy Of A Crush -- oneshot, everyone’s into adam who’s oblivious while ronan is clearly not

I Would Be Glad To Tell You and Walk Away -- oneshot, the very first trc fic i ever read and it’s still a fav

Hit Reset -- multichap wip, amnesia fic

Goodbye Highway -- multichap completed, amnesia fic, ronan forgets everything post niall-death so he doesn’t remember blue and adam

Six to Eight Months -- multichap completed, the raven king coda fic between chapter 67 and the epilogue

King by the Roadside -- multichap, ot5

What Stays and What Fades Away -- multichap completed, magical exes getting together again

Heart of Stone, Heart of Flesh -- multichap completed, amazing au where Adam is a veterinarian and Ronan  dreamt up a whole menagerie of extinct/magical creatures

there’s an additional great reclist if you want more ot5 fics too

≡ the foxhole court ≡

↳ andreil

Lessons in Cartography -- multchap completed, probably the next best thing after the canon books, picks up right after the last book and runs with it

switchblade is my preferred weapon -- multichap completed, best raven!neil fic, a complete rewrite

Armies -- multichap completed, an au where the Hatfords took Neil in and away to Europe but he's still a prize for his dad and the Moriyamas and oh he still ends up meeting and loving Andrew

dangerous magics -- multichap completed, magical au

And We'll Be Running -- multichap completed, the band au where the Monsters are a band and andreil sings and writes songs together and fall in love

light fires at night (to push back the void) -- multichap completed, about andreil and i love yous

everything from Saul but especially her epic mermen/pirates/magic au series Fear No Fall

please tell me it's just the fandom freaking out -- aka the social media au where andreil has no chill for PR shit

right side of rock bottom -- oneshot, andreil learning to touch and trust

we might be hollow (but we're brave) -- multichap completed, neighbours au about healing

here's a mostly tumblr-posted reclist/compilation from back the time when the fandom was a lot smaller

an interesting tfc/trc crossover fic

my most fav crossover fic ever tfc/teen wolf

now i know i said i'd slap destiel recs onto this too but i feel like you'll be ready to drop the moment you see the length of this fic already, so what i'm gonna do is that i'll share my treasure box beautiful site that is destielfanfic which is like the best library for destiel fics, old/classics/fanfavorites/fresh titles/bangs EVERYTHING can be found on it! it has the most astounding tagging-searching system ever so it's easy to find everything your reader heart might wish for. if you still feel like asking for a proper reclist from me then feel free to come back and @ me anytime though! sorry for dropping this later than promised, i had to re-link my trc/pynch list because the links were dead on it + until now i haven't done a tfc reclist so that was from scratch. i hope you have fun with this, cheers!

[ohmythatoikawaboy]

Season 2 Episode 3

You might remember that in episode 2 we were introduced to some of my favorite characters* in Haikyuu, and episode 3 gives me exactly what I want: more Yachi development. I love my child so much and I want her to succeed.

Here we go!

*Disclaimer: everyone is my favorite character. I couldn’t even make a top 10 (or a top 20) because I just can’t choose. Just assume that I love almost every character.

Almost.

I LOVE THEIR INTERACTIONS, OKAY? EVERYTHING IS PERFECT BETWEEN THEM.

I enjoy seeing Kiyoko open up to someone. I enjoy it so much.

WHY DOES EVERY ATTRACTIVE CHARACTER IN THIS SHOW DRINK FROM A BOTTLE AT SOME POINT

…I got distracted, okay. But this problem sounds like Serious Stuff.

TAKEDA-SENSEI CAN BE SCARY SOMETIMES

FOR YOUR FUTURE WEDDING OR SOMETHING

I COULD TALK ABOUT THIS FOR HOURS

1) Takeda-sensei offering his savings to help the baby crows. He loves the kids sooooo much.

2) Ukai refusing to let Takeda spend his savings on this to “save them for his future wedding”.

3) Ukai’s first thought is about Takeda getting married.

4) Or something.

5) But Takeda might not be thinking of getting married and that’s why he can think of spending his savings on the baby crows.

6) Does this mean something or am I imagining too much?

(I’m thinking of UkaTake, that’s what I’m implying.)

In any case, it’s adorable to think that Takeda wants to help the kids so much. This guy deserves a medal too.

LOOK AT THIS EXCITED RAY OF SUNSHINE

Priorities

MY PRECIOUS CHILD *sobs*

I’m warning you now: this episode looks like a lot of fun but if you just think about it a bit, it ends up being pretty sad.

And of course I’m going to choose the sad route. *grins*

I’ve often talked about how every character in Haikyuu feels so real and human, and that’s usually because Furudate takes character stereotypes and gives them a twist.

So we have Yachi, your typical cute girl, right? She’s cute, she’s a bit awkward but in a cute way, and cute. Have I mentioned she’s cute?

I don’t mean to generalize or anything, and I don’t have that much experience with moe characters, but cute anime girls tend to be… empty. They’re just there to be cute and nothing else. Their usual flaw is being awkward and clumsy to make the audience want to protect them.

But now we start to see how Yachi isn’t just the clumsy adorable girl. She feels insecure and there is a good reason for her to feel like that. (And this is when Furudate kicks you with relatable sad stuff, okay? Okay.)

You don’t want to protect Yachi just because she’s cute. You want to protect her because she feels real. She has dreams but is insecure about them; she wants to work as hard as the rest of the team, but she hasn’t had the most supportive environment. She has the potential, but doubts hold her back. And I think many of us have been there. So you want to protect her because she’s actually a hard-working person who wants to help other people and you don’t only love her by her cute face. You love her because she’s so worthy of love.

Haha, what a dork. I would never do that.

(Everyone: if Oikawa told you “I’m going to stab you to death”, you would open your arms and thank him.)

What kinda makes me sad from this scene is how the guys keep on talking about other stuff and nobody really gets what Yachi means.

This guy is so done. (Poor Yachi, she was so excited, but now…)

Gosh, I love Furudate’s character designs, okay? Look at this guy’s hair. And look at Yachi’s mother. I love that she’s wearing pants. I know it’s probably normal but as far as I recall, I usually see women in anime wearing skirt suits. And is Yachi’s mother even married? The details in the house kinda give me the feel that she’s a single mother, but I could be wrong. In any case, I love how Furudate seems to be sending certain messages smoothly, as small but important details.

I’m not sure what message they want to send with Yachi’s mother, though. She seems to be a strong woman, one who still works even when she already has kid, something that is still not very common in Japan (as far as I know). Both Yachi and her mother end up being in charge of their lives and take up important roles that affect other people. What’s ambiguous here is the role as a mother. She seems to be quite absent from home, so she’s not really the best mother, but she doesn’t seem to be a bad mother either. She cares about Yachi, and she helps her whenever she can, even if her words are a bit harsh. I don’t think that Furudate is trying to portray a bad image of the modern woman, but it’s true that being a single mother and working doesn’t leave you much time to take care of your kids. Yachi seems to be doing almost fine, though. It’s obvious that she has been ignored sometimes in the past, but she finds motivation by becoming a manager.

Please make this guy be Yachi’s dad. He seems to be a nice person.

I have conflicting emotions about Yachi’s mother, to be honest.

On the one hand, my personal belief is that you can transmit the same message without being so harsh. But I get her logic and maybe, in this situation, her words are what Yachi needs to evolve. I think it greatly depends on the personality of the receptor and their background. A strong person who hasn’t had serious problems in life will probably react much better to harsh words than a person who has been through abuse, for example.

Yachi is a middle ground. She doesn’t seem to have big problems in her life, but her emotional needs have been neglected to a certain extent. She seems to find more strength in Hinata’s cheerful words than in her mother’s harsh ones. Maybe, when you have only heard harsh words in your life, being told something with kindness might be the push you need to change and improve.

AND THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT YACHI NEEDED.

It’s worth noticing that both scenes are together so you can see the contrast between both opinions. What Yachi needed to hear is that it’s okay to not know everything from the beginning. That’s all. Yachi just wanted a bit of reassurance. Not being extremely passionate since the beginning doesn’t mean you can’t become interested in doing something and learn more about it and end up giving it your all.

(Ahahahaha, the third years making the first years clean everything. I think that’s a thing in Japan, right?)

Oh Tsukki. OH TSUKKI. HOW THE TABLES CAN TABLE.

I’m not going to say anything about this. If you’ve seen season 3, you know what I mean.

Hinata is as intense as usual.

He always bends more than everyone else *sobs*

Oh, look, Yachi is trying to play too!

I swear Hinata has to die in every episode

I love this so much.

WE HAVE BEEN BLESSED

AND HIS LAUGH IS SO BEAUTIFUL

YACHI, WHAT’S THE POINT OF COVERING YOUR EYES IF YOU’RE GOING TO LOOK ANYWAY (but I get it, shirtless Suga is a blessing)

I’m here for Noya praising Asahi

THIS IS PRECIOUS

SAVAGE

Perfect smile

YESSS

I didn’t take any screencaps of the match but it’s so nice to see everyone so calm. You can really see their evolution, both individually and as a team.

HINATA HAS NO CHILL

KAGEYAMA PLS

He’s just… so positive all the time.

THIS MAKES ME FEEL SO BAD

#LetThisGuyBeYachisDad2k17

HINATA NEEDS TO CHILL

WHY IS THIS SO FUNNY OMFG

I SWEAR TO GOD, THIS GUY

YACHI *sobs*

THEIR FACES OMFG

Everything is perfect here but the most perfect thing is the guy’s face omfg

She’s proud of Yachi and this gives me life.

As I said, she isn’t a perfect mom, but she isn’t the worst either. She’s just… human.

THIS IS GOING TO MAKE ME CRY

I DON’T EVEN HAVE WORDS

YACHI IS PRECIOUS

This makes me so happy

SO HAPPY

TSUKKI, FOR FUCK’S SAKE

But look at everyone omfg. Look at Kageyama’s face.

Oh no

THIS IS MY FAVORITE SCREENCAP EVER OKAY??

THE FIRST TIME I SAW THIS I WAS ALREADY LOSING IT WITH THE FIRST PANEL WITH HINATA

SO DRAMATIC

BUT THEN I SAW NOYA EATING THE PAPER

AND TANAKA

I LOST IT

I FUCKING LOST IT

THIS IS TOO MUCH FOR ME

WHY IS THIS ANIME SO FUNNY OMFG

Will they survive? We’ll see it in next episode!