#too busy following a volleyball match to properly tag

[aristotle0]

watching the Olympics truly puts my sport anime knowledge into use

[sandersstudies]

Espresso-ly for You - Chapter Two

I liiiiiive! Or at least, my writing does. Like I said, I can’t and won’t promise regular updates on this one, but the sweet sweet coffeeshop AU will never let me go for sure.

Chapter One Here 

***

“Hey there, long time no see!” Janus said over the top of his mug. It was the one he brought from home, with a snake for a handle. 

“I saw you on Sunday,” Virgil said, slouching his backpack off his shoulder to store in the employee cupboard. 

“Yeah, but so much has happened since then,” Janus said, and then sipped his drink loudly. “Did Logan tell you about the birds that were fighting outside on Tuesday?”

“No.”

“See, of course he didn’t, he doesn’t care about the fun stuff. God, you look exhausted, let me get you a pick-me-up, you raccoon.” He began to measure a shot of espresso.

“I’ve already been drinking way too much soda to stay awake,” Virgil said.

“I’m not giving you soda, am I?” Janus asked, turning on the steam wand. “I’m giving you sweet bean juice, it will give you things no other drink can.” The shots pulling from the espresso machine dripped like warm honey, and Virgil had to admit they looked enticing. Janus was the most skilled barista in the cafe, going to local barista competitions three years in a row, and making it to the final round the last two years. 

“One of the benefits of working here is all the free coffee you want,” Janus said. “Might as well take advantage of it.” He’d barely looked at the machine while preparing the milk and espresso, but now, with a few seconds of intense focus, he guided his pitcher across the surface of the crema to create a delicate rosetta. “There, my nicest flat white of the day, all for you.”

Virgil took the cup and sipped. Perfect, creamy foam. 

Janus picked up his own cup and slurped the last of the coffee inside. “Well, better prepare for the lunchtime rush,” he said, checking his watch. “How was it yesterday?”

“Not too bad.”

“If you want to run register and food the first hour, I’ll run bar and then we can switch,” Janus said, reaching behind himself to tighten his apron strings. “If it slows down I’ll do a restock but I think we should be fine.”

Janus had been the first barista to push Virgil to run the espresso machine solo. When the morning or lunch rush came and there was a line out the door, Janus would watch and speak encouragingly, but never step in to rescue him the way Logan did.

“See these two cups?” Janus had said one day when Virgil could barely hold a milk pitcher without shaking. “These two drinks are the only ones you need to worry about right now. All those other drinks, all those other people, they don’t exist to you. It doesn’t matter if there are three drinks or thirty drinks waiting, you’re always working on these two drinks, and two drinks only.”

Eventually Virgil learned how to fall into a rhythm where he prepped one shot as another one pulled, poured one milk as another one steamed. Janus would flit back and forth from the register to the hand-off, confidently ringing in and handing out drinks as Virgil’s hands shook too hard to stop cups from spilling.

“You don’t need me,” Janus had said. “Someday you’re gonna be stuck up to your elbows in cappuccinos and I’m not going to be here, and you’ll have to haul them out of yourself. If I rescue you now, you won’t be able to do it then.”

Virgil had burned with frustration that Janus wouldn’t help him. But when the line dwindled, Virgil found himself reaching for the next cup in line, and it wasn’t there. He’d done it, he’d seen only two drinks in front of him and had conquered a breakfast rush. The customers had become a blur, and he’d honed in on more lattes and macchiatos than he could count.

“The next challenge,” Janus had said as they shared coffee in the following lull. “Is to bring the customers into focus too. Two things matter in coffeeshops, the coffee, and the people. You can’t let either one distract from the other.”

“You want me to do all that and small talk?”

“It gets easier with time.”

The retrospect that proved Janus right didn’t help Virgil to not feel aghast at the suggestion. It was easy to envy Janus’ ease around customers, asking Wendy how her radishes were doing as he poured her coffee, telling jokes to kids, and showing them the swan he’d drawn in their father’s latte. 

Virgil tied his apron and went to the front register. He ran his fingers over the screen. Pretending to type up a long order was his key both to eavesdropping and to looking busy, especially if he furrowed his brow just enough to look focused. Whenever a particularly angry customer started to complain at the other end of the counter, here Virgil would be, tapping like he was crafting a novel and not hitting the button for “doppio” a dozen times in a row. Meanwhile Janus, usually, would be the one at the end, silver-tongued and composed, listening with raised eyebrows and a soft smile. He’d turn around only when the cafe was empty to say “could you believe that jerk?”

A gaggle of college girls in matching volleyball t-shirts approached, and Virgil glanced at Janus, who cracked his knuckles dramatically. “May the coffee gods guide me,” he said as the bell on the door jangled merrily. 

“Hi, what can I get for you?”

“Large iced vanilla soy latte.”

“Medium blended caramel coffee, extra caramel, whipped cream.”

“Small almond latte.”

And so on down the line. Janus remained unfazed, continuing to greet other customers who braved entering the store despite the line. He called out every drink he made and made eye contact with each girl who picked hers up, even (Virgil thought he saw) winking a couple times. The hum of the espresso machine and hiss of the steam wand filled the cafe, singing along to the piano playing over the speakers. Was this Logan’s playlist?

The line didn’t end, after that. The girls cleared and were replaced by tides of office workers in pressed clothes from the smattering of office buildings that hemmed in the coffee shop on all sides. Friendly receptionists and personal assistants were a favorite of Virgil’s, and were perhaps the only ones who called him by endearments that didn’t feel horribly awkward.  Most of them tipped well. 

The cafe chairs filled up, representing casual business talks, friendly meet-ups, and solitary breaks from long days. All the grind-never-stop types had the coffee to-go, and those taking a quick respite adored the cafe’s “for here” cups. Virgil liked to watch for the people who perked up or relaxed with their first sip. One of the personal assistants from the building across the street (Virgil thought her name was Jackie) put her cappuccino to her lips and leaned back into her chair, the tension around her eyes softening.

A moment came where a couple of middle-aged women paused to examine the menu, and Janus appeared as if by magic at the register. 

“Tag team, let’s go! Your turn on the bar, kid.” 

Virgil moved to the espresso machine. Janus had not only finished the drinks in front of him, but wiped down the counter and machine to leave Virgil the perfect surface to begin again. The middle-aged women put in their orders, and Virgil felt like his vision zoomed in as he began the two drinks in front of him, and the two after that, and the two-

He was getting better at this now, even managed a croaked “hello,” to most of the customers who walked in the door, and a “thank you” as they took their drinks. He let the steam wand run a few extra seconds to feel the warmth bead on his face every time he started to get anxious. 

The lunch rush came to its merciful end, and Virgil took his break to chew a PB&J sandwich before Janus left for the day. As the clock hit two, the elder barista pulled his keys from the cupboard.

“I bid you adieu and an easy close,” he said, twirling his keychain around his hand as he clocked out. The jingle of his keys was followed by the jangle of the door behind him, and Virgil was alone in the cafe.

He brewed fresh coffee - they’d almost run out during the rush, and pause to sweep the floors and wipe down the counters. Running the store for the last three hours before close, and the chance to close the store by himself was both a responsibility and a chance for peace that Virgil appreciated. He liked helping customers, more spread out then before, and in between them finding little things to clean, extra minutes to practice his latte art - damn, how could Janus draw a rosetta so effortlessly? All Virgil’s came out looking like lumps. 

He aerated the milk gently, and heard the front bell ting.

“Hey there,” Virgil said without looking up, tilting his pitcher so the foam was perfectly incorporated. He turned the steam wand off and gently groomed the milk to pour. “Sorry, I’ll be right with you.” 

The milk texture was almost perfect. He guided his pitcher over the crema and… produced a haphazard rosetta. It was lopsided and a little mangled from Virgil swirling the crema too hard, but it wasn’t one of his worst attempts.

“Hey, that looks pretty good!” 

Virgil looked up and felt his ears get hot. Roman was leaning slightly over the bar (oh wow, he was even taller than Virgil had thought), staring at the cup. “Could you do one like that for me?”

Virgil swallowed. “Yeah uh… yeah, sure.” Nevermind that it was much harder to make oat milk froth properly. Virgil grabbed his non-dairy pitcher.

“Oh, could you make it as an large cinnamon-”

“Yeah, I got it.” Oh no, I cut him off. In too deep now. Virgil felt Roman’s gaze on him as he made the latte. The cinnamon-sugar topping made a nice base to draw with, but Virgil didn’t have as much experience with oat and soy, and the rosetta was barely visible as he finished it. Roman stared into the cup.

“Sorry,” Virgil muttered. “Still practicing.” 

“Oh, that’s okay,” Roman said, but sounded a bit disappointed. He left a ten on the counter. “Thanks for trying, the extra’s for you.” 

He left the cafe, and Virgil watched him vanish down the street, but just before he was out of sight, he put the to-go cup to his lips, and Virgil saw his shoulders relax.

[siimjaeyun]

Chapter 4: Attack of the Man Crab 

Synopsis: During the promotion festival of a new water brand, a crab man submerges from beneath the sand to take away any victim in its sight. But it makes a complete 360, when you're the one who disappears, and Jay, your twin brother, is forced into a mystery to bring you back. 

Series Masterlist

----- 

The night had settled in, and the young couple took their time setting up the nets onto the blank beach. 

“Can we go home already?” The girl rolled her eyes, and took a place on the bench nearby. 

“I promised WonderWater we would have it set up for the volleyball tournament.” 

“Fine, pass me some water.” The boy, trying to be as sweet as possible, handed her the bottle, but didn't have the reaction he planned for when she smacked it down. 

“I only drink WonderWater!” 

“You’re such a pain you know.” He turned back his attention on placing the last volleyballs inside the basket; it had to be perfectly tidy by tomorrow. In the meantime, nobody noticed the two pair of green eyes that emerged from the sand, and before long, a broad red crab pounced on the couple. With its left claw, it grasped the young girl making her cry out for help. 

“Haha very funny Jane. This is some sick trap huh.” He had no intentions to believe her, but once her body had fully been engulfed into the sand, he began to dig and found nothing. Soon, the crab resurfaced; he had claimed his second victim. 

------ 

“WonderWater! Get your gluten-free, fat-free, zero calorie WonderWater!” The mascot cheered out to the crowd, and meanwhile the teen mystery group had arrived at the volleyball tournament. 

“Let’s get some nachos before the game!” Sunoo led the way to Jack’s Shack, a local beach food store that served food in every variety. It took a few steps to arrive, seeing as though it had been moved to the other side of the beach. 

“Hey Jack!” 

“What I can do for y’all?” He kept his attention at the cone in front of him, passing it on to the customer who had been there a while ago. 

“The usual.” 

“Hey Jack, isn’t your shack usually where the courts are?”

“Blasted council moves my shop every time, every damn time.” With a tone of anger, he aggressively started chucking at the pineapple, cutting it into cubes and placing it inside the container. 

“Jungwon and I will head first to get some seats.” You grabbed Jungwon and dragged him over to the court, and the poor boy was confused by your sudden behaviour. Originally, you thought of explaining your lost heart confessions about Heeseung, but chose to stay quiet after a noticeable embarrassment. 

Eventually, the other five boys made their way to you; their hands full of snacks to keep their short attention spans busy while the girls volleyball team began. 

“Is that Jay?” You twisted your head forwards and saw him in the first row with the boy’s soccer team; he was proudly supporting the match, of course, probably for the pretty girls on the team. 

“Tsk, he’s probably only here because it’s the girl’s volleyball team.” 

Time elapsed, before a slow rumble began. The ground beneath you began to shake. 

“Is that an earthquake?” Sunghoon managed to get a hold of the pole aside from him before taking his friends with him. Prioritizing the younger members, he helped Jungwon and Sunoo get a hold first, before reaching out to Jake. 

Heeseung grabbed your shoulders, but managed to witness how the crab leaped from beneath. The whole beach was sent into a frenzy, and most had managed to run away. A young girl however was not as lucky. Her body was in the clutch of the crab’s claw, and it was swayed back and forth in a zigzag  pattern. 

The creature had now disappeared once more. 

------ 

“That was way too close.” You managed to hold yourself together as you stared at the younger duo bickering in front of the officer who questioned them over the incidents. 

“And they say we’re too immature.” Sunghoon managed a small scoff and took a glance at the row of gym like lockers under the red tent. A blue name tag stamped (JACK) stood out to him; it caught his eye. 

“Take a look.” Heeseung inspected the name tag, and when he attempted to open it, a pile of sand escaped from the locker and trailed onto the floor. 

“I mean Jack would have a good reason to attack.” 

“Come on, the only way to find out is to set a trap.” Heeseung gladly took the lead, managing to finally steal his friends away from the attention of the authorities. 

------ 

“Y/n, you’ll be the bait. I mean what's more perfect than a young girl!” 

“Finally, we won’t have to be the bait this time!” Jungwon jumped in delight and stuck his tongue out at you. 

“You’re lucky I love you guys.” While you went away into the van to place on the bathing suit you had brought with you earlier, the boys got to work on the trap. 

A large pot was placed smack in the middle, and a plunger attached to a spring was dug below. 

“Sunghoon and Jake will stay on lookout by those rocks over there.” He pointed the direction towards the two mounted boulders on the edge of the pier. 

“Jungwon, Sunoo, and I will be keeping an eye on Jack’s Shack.” 

Meantime, you continued to struggle with getting dressed, but eventually you were successful. As you checked to make sure the suit was properly tied, you once more noticed the white bracelet in your hand. Jake. 

You held it in your hand and walked onto the hot floor; it burned the soles of your feet. The bottle of sunscreen made its way to you, slathering your skin to avoid getting a slight sunburn. As you continued with your own thing, the same beady eyes popped over the sand, scanning your surroundings. It drew downward before springing onto you. 

The bottle slipped from your hands, and your feet carried you towards the trap. 

“Guys! The trap!” Sunghoon went forward to help you, but by mistake triggered the plunger below which sent him into the pot meant for the crab man. 

“Y/n!” Heeseung came out from his hiding regime, and tried to reach for you but it was too late. Your body was swallowed whole in the sand, and the only thing Heeseung managed was the continuous motion of scraping the sand. 

The white bracelet glistened under the sunlight; you were gone. 

------- 

“Heeseung..Heeseung...LEE HEESEUNG!” Sunoo’s continuous screams had no effect on the poor soul, his hands still attempting to dig at the floor beneath him. 

“I think he’s broken.” 

Jake kept his focus on the white bracelet in his hold; it was the last piece of you before the attack. 

“I called Jay, he’s on his way.” 

“This was my fault, if I hadn’t set off the trap.” RM gave them an apologetic look as he tried to comfort the other heartbroken boy who blamed himself. 

A small ring erupted out of nowhere, and Jungwon opened the door, believing that it was Jay who had arrived. Instead, an envelope with the letters JK welcomed him. 

He ripped the envelope open and dumped the belongings on the table; a piece of paper and a cassette tape were found. 

BREAKING NEWS: TEENS GO MISSING (2001) 

Below, was the photograph of the eight people who had disappeared. 

��Let me see this.” RM looked at the photograph, a stern look appeared on his way, but made sure to not show it to the young group in front of him. 

“Sunoo, play it.” 

“Hello young ones. As you can see, this isn’t the first time kids have disappeared from Seoul. I suggest you start looking.” 

Quiet glances took over the room, so when Jay had finally made himself welcome, he looked at the group oddly. 

“Uh...Jungwon called me earlier, what’s up.” No one dared to respond, semi-afraid of the latter’s response. 

“Y/n...sort of...kind of...got taken by the man crab from the attack at the tournament.” 

“Nice one Jungwon. Is this because I stole y/n’s phone the other day?” No one bothered to look him in the eyes; the reality soon settled into Jay’s mind. 

“How did this happen!?” His loud voice was almost as terrifying as the incident, but he sighed, cupping his face with his bare palms. 

“We’ll find her. We just need a place to look. Grab Heeseung, come on.” Sunghoon’s stern look led the team his way; not bothering to snap Heeseung out of his trance, he threw him over his shoulder. 

“Jay, you drive.” 

------- 

“So my sister is missing, and your response is to come to the school?” Clearly irritated, Jay stopped following the teens in front of him. He was desperate and tired; his sister was missing, how could he not be. 

“Look Jay, we get your urgency, she’s our friend too…” Sunoo took a long pause before declaring his next statement, “If there is anything that we have learned from these mysteries, is that you got to attend to every clue before, and you gotta listen to others.” 

They continued their way down the hall; the walls decorated in shelves with endless books and articles. 

“Where are we anyway?” Jake tried directing his light to all the corners of the room, but found everything to be covered in dust. 

“They call it the morgue. It’s where they keep all the archives of old articles.” Sunghoon pulled back the chair and got to work typing on the computer. Meanwhile, Heeseung took out one of the books, not caring much about the title. 

“Y/n read a book once...she sat in a chair...she liked sitting in chairs.” Five heads abruptly looked at him; He was losing his mind. 

“Not helping Heeseung.” Jay and Jake peered over Sunghoon’s shoulder to take a peek at his screen. 

“The article of the missing kids, I found it.” 

“On the night of twenty years ago, eight teens went missing from the Seoul Caverns. They were reported missing from their parents two hours before, but they vanished.” 

“Seoul Caverns? They’re the ones that run under the beach. Scroll down.” Jay took hold of the mouse, moving down and two new articles appearing. 

“Look it’s Mr.Wonder and James Lee, the day of the inauguration of Wonder Water.” 

“But look there, Jack threatening the town because of his business. It’s time stamped with the same day as the kids went missing.” Small glances were given to one another, and like that they made their way to the next destination. 

------ 

“You know, when they tell you teens have gone missing from the Seoul Caverns, it would usually be the last place you would take us, don’t you think?” Sunoo and Jungwon clinged onto one another, slowly following Jay who had also been pushed to the back. 

“Nothing seems out of place?” Jake continued to lead the group through the caverns, stopping every few feet to investigate the surroundings. 

“You ever think about how y/n has nice hair.” Heeseung continued to let out the occasional sigh, still walking like an empty zombie. 

“Heeseung! Guys!” You managed to hear the voices of people and immediately knew it was your friends to the rescue. 

“Sometimes I can still hear her voice.” 

“That is her voice!” Jay bolted first towards the direction of your screams, and was met with you inside a cage with a couple and a member from the girl’s volleyball team. 

“I’m so happy to see you guys!” You held your grip firm on the metal cage, slowly waiting as Sunoo managed to pick the lock and open it. Since the cage was dangling from the top, you crashed onto the ground. 

“Y/n! You’re alright!” You gave the boys a smile; they clearly needed reassurement after having to stand Heeseung experiencing a life crisis. 

“Here. You’re probably cold.” Jake extended his hand to give you his white hoody; taking it, you placed it over your body and responded with a “thank you.” 

“Look what else I found!” Heeseung looked up and down with his eyes at the large wooden ramps connected to form an entrance to the beach. 

“What kind of crab monster needs a bunch of ramps?” 

“No crab man, I’ll tell you that.” As they thought of a plan to make their way out of the caverns, the crab man escaped from his hiding place, chasing them once more. Heeseung held your hand and brought you with him in the opposite direction as it was persistent on your trail. Jay led the younger members to the right, trying to find a way out. Meanwhile, Sunghoon and Jake directed towards the wooden ramps. 

The crab man retook his grasp on your waist pulling you backwards. 

“Get off her!”Heeseung made an attempt to give it a blow in the claw, and luckily Jay came to help. 

“Push!” Jay and Heeseung each took one claw and managed to remove his firm grip. 

“Hey ugly, over here!” Sunghoon and Jake frantically waved their hands in the air, trying to lure the monster into their direction. They were successful. The two sprinted with all their might up the platforms to the beach, trying to avoid the crab who was using its claws to break through the floorboards. 

“Come on, this way.”  The rest of you hurriedly made your way out of the caverns, looking to help the two boys being chased. 

“Jake the trap!” Sunghoon went first and they both ran to the opposite side, causing the crab to collapse on the plunger, and finally captured inside the pot. 

------- 

“Finally, you can’t escape anymore Jack!” 

“Huh, what did I miss.” Jack, the owner of the food shack stepped out behind you. 

“Then who?” 

Sunghoon skipped towards the crab, and pulled the mask off of it. 

“Meet James Lee. The mascot of WonderWater. I recognized the pattern of his freckles earlier in the article.” 

“That’s right. WonderWater was MY creation! Mine! But Mr.Wonder stole my idea and with my engineering degree, I managed to construct the suit. If anyone came looking, everyone would have the right reasons to suspect Jack. And I would have gotten away with it too, if it wasn’t for you meddling consumers!” 

Chief Kim did the usual, and placed the handcuffs on his wrists. 

“Come on, let’s go to RM’s Studio!” You wrapped your arm with Jay and led the way. 

------- 

“So Heeseung, everyone told me how much paranoia you were in earlier.” You moved your two feet slightly waiting for a response. 

“Yeah, but don’t worry. It’s the last time I’ll have feelings. Trust me.” Heeseung fled the conversation and entertained himself with the drumset. 

“Y/n, you dropped this.” Jake plopped the white bracelet into your hold and left immediately as well. 

“Is there anything else I missed? Well, besides Jay surprisingly joining you guys on a mystery.” Jay stopped mid mouthful as he was happily indulging in some snacks with Jungwon and Sunoo. 

“JK dropped this off earlier.” Sunghoon handed you the same newspaper from earlier, and you gasped at seeing the front cover. 

“What is it?” 

“You know that locket I found in the caves, it’s them.” You compared the couple in the locket to two of the faces of the picture; they were the same. 

“Guess JK is right. There is a deeper mystery.” The conversation quickly became muffled as RM shut off the hearing button from his recording studio. It was becoming worrisome and with a blank expression, he stared off. 

Some things are not ready to be exposed. 

------ 

Next: Chapter 5: “Mystery song” 

[autumnsart22]

Oikawa x reader ch. 9

Holy shit, HELLA long chapter! I just got so excited for this one, I couldn’t wait until Sunday lmao. Hope you like it, it was definitely one of the most fun to write 🤪

I stepped out of the car, the smell of salt washing over me. The sun was high in the sky, baking and hot today--perfect day for the beach. Kiyoko slid out of the passenger seat after me, her sheer white coverup doing nothing to conceal her matching white bikini underneath. I wore a pink strawberry sundress over a high waisted baby blue bikini with matching sandals and sunglasses. 

Daichi, Suga, and Yamaguchi joined us around the side of the car, since we had all carpooled together. From across the sandy parking lot, I saw Tanaka pull in, his car practically shaking with the volume of his music. Noya sat in the passenger seat, totally vibing with it, while Asahi, Hinata, Kageyama, and Tsukki sat in the back; all of them except for Hinata looking immensely uncomfortable. 

When they joined us, we all walked together onto the beach, where at least a hundred people were already gathered. Beach volleyball was set up, music blared from an unseen speaker, beer kegs were scattered at random intervals, picnic tables were covered with snacks and food, grills were going, and people talked, laughed, and swam in the ocean. 

I was momentarily overwhelmed by the amount going on, but Hinata grabbed my hand, bouncing with excitement. 

“Come with me,” he said, practically dragging me away. I managed to grab Kiyoko at the last second, not wanting to be abandoned on the beach with a bunch of people I didn’t know. 

Hinata headed towards a large circle of people who stood around a massive bonfire, despite the heat of the sun. I recognized a few of them, but didn’t know any by name. 

As Hinata approached, a tall, broad boy with spiky hair and silver dyed tips turned around. “Hey! Hey! Hey! It’s the little orange!” 

“Hey Bokuto!” Hinata said, running over. “How have you been?” 

“Gooooood, Fukurudani is playing better than ever, so I hope you’re prepared to be crushed by my amazing spikes!”

Another boy turned around, just as tall as Bokuto with spiky black hair. “Keep it down Bokuto, you’re so loud.” He looked over, noticing Hinata. “Heyy, it’s Hinata. Kenma, look who it is!” 

“Kuroo, leave me alone, I’m busy.” Kenma, a short kid with longer hair and blonde dyed tips had his eyes glued to his phone, tapping on the screen as he played some sort of game. 

“Hey, I want you all to meet someone!” Hinata gestured wildly at me, and most of the people around the bonfire turned to look. 

“Hi,” I smiled. “I’m Y/n L/n. It’s nice to meet all of you.”

“Heyoo, I’m Kōtarō Bokuto!” Bokuto roughly slapped me on the shoulder, almost making me fall on my face. 

“Tetsurō Kuroo, nice to meet you.” The other boy with the spiky hair stuck out his hand, and I shook. He gestured to the boy with the longer hair, who still hadn’t looked up from his game. “That’s my boyfriend, Kenma Kozume. Sorry, he’s a bit rude.” Kuroo jabbed Kenma, who let out an offended grunt and gave his boyfriend a death glare.

“I have drinks,” another extremely attractive boy with black hair joined the circle, passing a few red solo cups around. When the boy noticed me, he gave a short nod. “Hi, I’m Keiji Akaashi.”

I quickly reintroduced myself, smiling and accepting a cup filled with what smelled like beer. 

“Can I have one?” Hinata asked, and I almost burst out laughing. Hinata drinking beer? Usually he only liked fruity drinks like white claws, or just avoided alcohol altogether, taking orange juice instead.

Bokuto laughed loudly, but passed Hinata a red cup. 

“You won’t like it, Hinata,” Kenma muttered, but the Karasuno first year seemed determined. As I expected, disgust twisted his expression as he took a sip and he handed it off to Kiyoko immediately. 

“Where do you go to school, Y/n-san?” Akaashi asked, turning to me. 

“Oh, I’m the manager of Aoba Johsai. They had practice today, which is why I came with Karasuno.” 

“OOOOOH she’s ditched them!” Bokuto yelled. 

“Keep it down,” Akaashi said, rolling his eyes.

Hinata poked me. “Y/n-chan used to go to Karasuno as our manager, but her mom forced her to transfer, which is why you haven’t met her before.”

I nodded, feeling a little uncomfortable suddenly. I didn’t want to face the question of my loyalty quite yet, because which team would I choose? Seijoh or Karasuno? 

Luckily, I managed to move the conversation away from myself. “Where do you all go to school?”

“Kenma and I are at Nekoma,” Kuroo said, ruffling the shorter boy's hair. 

“Me and Akaaaaaaaashi go to Fukurodani!” Bokuto pumped the air. He almost had as much energy as Hinata; how was that even possible?

Akaashi gave me a knowing look and passed a bottle of gin my way. I added a small amount to my now empty cup, thanking Fukurodani’s setter with a wide smile. 

“Heyyyy, anyone want to drink out of the beer keg?” Kuroo smirked, gesturing towards the large metal barrel a few yards away. Bokuto agreed instantly, and Akaashi decided to tag along. 

I tapped Kiyoko’s arm. “I’m going to join them. Do you think Hinata is fine?” 

The orange haired spiker was speaking wildly to one of the tallest guys I had ever seen, who had silver hair and green eyes. The tall boy had his arms crossed, looking down at Hinata from his immense height. 

Kiyoko nodded. “Yeah, that’s Lev Haiba, he’s friends with Hinata. I’m sure they’ll be fine.” 

“Ok, I’ll see you later, ok?” 

Kiyoko nodded and waved, turning to talk to Dachi and Suga who had just come to join the group around the bonfire. 

I turned, downing the gin in a quick, terrible tasting gulp, before hurrying to catch up with the three other boys who were headed over to the beer keg. 

Tanaka and another boy with a blonde mohawk were already taking turns drinking from it, seeming to be in a competition over who could handle the most. Kuroo began chanting for Bokuto to do a kegstand, a challenge which the Fukurodani captain accepted instantly. With the help of Tanaka and the mohawk guy (who introduced himself as Taketora Yamamoto), we managed to hold Bokuto upside down as Akaashi fed him the hose, which sprayed beer directly in his mouth. 

The entire group quickly collapsed, and Bokuto fell in a spray of alcohol which soaked his clothes. I began to giggle uncontrollably, and even Akaashi smiled.

Kuroo slapped Bokuto on the back. “HA, better luck next time! I bet I can do better.” 

This started a competitive round of keg stands, which didn’t end well for anyone. By the time it was my turn to drink upside down, everyone was already too drunk to hold me, so we just ended up falling in a tangle on the ground. 

“You look like you could use some help,” said a deep voice above me, and I looked up to see a serious looking boy with cropped olive hair standing over me. He extended his hand, and I accepted it, allowing him to help me to my feet. 

“Thank you very much,” I smiled. 

The guy nodded, his face expression blank. “My name is Wakatoshi Ushijima.”

I blushed slightly at his low voice, not sure what to make of him. “Um, I’m Y/n L/n.”

I blinked, suddenly realizing that he was only wearing swim shorts. Unfortunately, I was standing very close to his naked chest and stomach (which were ripped as fuck). 

Before my intoxicated brain could come up with the next course of action, I felt a hand on my shoulder. 

“Hello, Ushijima,” I looked over to see Kuroo, smiling blandly at the other boy. “It’s good to see you again.” 

“Ah, Y/n-san, I see you met Mr. Prissypants over here!” Bokuto flung his arm across my shoulders, not-so-subtly dragging me back from the olive haired boy. 

Ushijima narrowed his eyes slightly, but bowed to me. “It was a pleasure. I hope I get to see you again, Y/n-san.”

Without responding to either Bokuto or Kuroo, Ushijima turned and strode away, his back flexing as he walked. 

“You good?” Bokuto patted me on the back, and I almost fell. 

Instead I burst out into wheezing laughter. “Why was he so serious?” I gasped. 

Kuroo and Bokuto joined my giggles, hunching over and clutching their stomachs until none of us could breathe. 

“God-I-I need to cool off,” Bokuto finally panted, turning his gaze to the ocean. With a whoop, he took off at a run towards the water. Kuroo and I followed in suit, both of us tripping and falling as we slipped on the sand. 

It probably wasn’t the smartest idea to go swimming in the ocean when we were all wasted, but Bokuto was already waist deep, and Kuroo didn’t hesitate to follow him. I had enough forethought to quickly ditch my sundress on the sand before leaping into the waves, which quickly slammed my legs and almost sent me careening headfirst into the water. Bokuto and Kuroo were much taller than me and didn’t have any trouble standing in the large waves, but I was practically up to my chin. 

“Y/n-san, you look like a drowning cat!” Kuroo mocked. 

“Obviously that’s you, Mr. Nekoma!” I yelled, right before a wave crashed into me and sent me flailing back towards the beach. 

Bokuto and Kuroo were laughing, wading over to me and helping me back to my feet. Before I could blink, Bokuto splashed me in the face, making me splutter and gasp. When I partially recovered, I furiously splashed him back, starting a vicious battle which made my eyes literally burn from the saltwater. 

“You know, you’re chill Y/n-san,” Kuroo said. “I’m glad we got to meet you.” 

“Ohhhh yeah I agree! You’re definitely fun!” Bokuto agreed, and I grinned. 

“Thanks I--” Before I could finish my sentence, the captain of Fukurodani was easily scooping me up, holding me like a baby, before quite literally tossing me into the next upcoming wave. I spent at least three seconds in the air before I collided with the water and was swept under, tumbling with the sand and waves. 

I felt a hand on my arm, dragging me back up to the surface where I gasped for air and furiously spat out salt water. 

“Dumbass!” Akaashi was yelling at Bokuto, still holding my arm. “Clearly she’s too drunk to swim properly you idiot!” 

“Ah, it’s fine, I’m totally ok--” I tried to interject, but Kuroo gave me a “this happens all the time” look, so I let it go. 

By the end of his lecture, Akaashi turned to me. Poor Bokuto looked like a sad little puppy, and I gave him a pat on the shoulder. 

Akaashi said, “Want to get some food or something? It’s probably best if all of you get out of the water.” 

I nodded, still holding on to Fukurodani’s setter’s arm for support as we exited the water, Kuroo and Bokuto behind us. 

Oikawa POV:

After a lot of nagging and carefully worded pleas, I finally got Coach Nobuteru to cancel our Saturday practice so Seijoh could attend the volleyball club beach party. Apparently teams from all over Japan were coming, which made me practically buzz with excitement at the thought of mapping out potential enemies and showing off my own skills.

Iwa-chan and the rest of the team decided to go as well, all except for Y/n. According to our coach, she had a doctor’s appointment scheduled for that day, which was why she wasn’t able to make it to practice. I tried calling her to find out, but no one answered and it went straight to voicemail. Either she actually did have a doctor’s appointment, or she had gone to the party without telling anyone. 

The thought annoyed me a bit, because I knew who she would be going with: Karasuno. I knew it wasn’t my place, but it made me jealous to think of her with another team. She was Seijoh’s manager now, which meant she should be with me, not them. 

I had been absent minded all day because of it, causing Iwaizumi to smack me on the back of the head a few times after I didn’t hear when he was talking. 

As we stepped out of my car into the sandy parking lot, he said, “Dude chill. If she’s here, it’s literally fine. I don’t know what your problem is.” 

I ran a hand through my hair, huffing. “I know that! You’re the one with the problems.” 

Iwaizumi crossed his arms. “I’m going to get a drink.” He didn’t pause as he disappeared into the crowd of people, headed in the direction of one of the picnic tables loaded with different types of alcoholic and non alcoholic drinks. 

I tugged my shirt over my head, tossing it through the half-open window of my car, leaving me in only my gym shorts. I began to follow Iwaizumi, eyes scanning the crowd for a familiar flash of H/c hair. Instead, I was almost immediately swamped by fangirls, desperate to get a picture with me, or to have me sign their faces in permanent marker. 

What idiots. 

My fake smile appeared without prompting, and I humored them, laughing along with their comments and allowing them to snap a few pictures. 

“It seems you’re always the celebrity, Tooru Oikawa.” 

I turned slowly from the group of girls, muscles practically spasming in an effort not to punch Ushijima’s stupid, serious face. He stood a few feet away, arms crossed as he surveyed me. 

I forced myself to smile wider, giving a mocking bow. “That’s me. I just love the attention.” 

Ushijima started to speak, “You--” But I interrupted him, already done with the conversation. “I have someone I need to find, but glad we got to catch up. I’ll see you in spring nationals.” 

I pushed past him, not looking back as I headed further into the party. I scanned the crowds, spotting a few of the Karasuno players, recognizing Daichi Sawamura, Asahi Azumane, and Kōshi Sugawara. But Y/n wasn’t among them. Maybe she really wasn’t here after all, and had a doctor’s appointment like she said. 

Almost the second the thought had passed through my head, I heard a familiar laugh echoing from down the beach a little ways away from me. My head whipped around so fast that I felt my neck crack. 

Y/n-chan wore a baby blue bathing suit that clung to her body, water dripping from her hair and skin as she emerged from the ocean. Every thought flew out of my head as I gazed at her. Holy fuck…

But her arm was thrown around the shoulders of another guy, someone I didn’t know. He shook water from his dark hair as he helped her walk up the beach, his arm around her waist to keep her from falling. She was clearly drunk as shit--was he taking advantage of her? Or did she know him….

I stalked towards them, my fists curling as instinctual protectiveness erupted in my stomach. “Y/n--” 

I reached out for her, and suddenly I was getting shoved hard in the chest by another tall guy with spiky black hair who came up from behind them. 

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” The guy asked in a low voice, glaring at me. 

“Hey! Who’s this?” Another guy with a loud voice and frosted tipped hair came up on Y/n’s other side, staring at me curiously. 

I took a deep breath and smiled widely. “I’m Tooru Oikawa. That’s my team manager you have there, and I’d like her back.” I reached for her again, but the guy with frosted tips smacked my hands away from her. My vision went practically white with anger. 

“Woahhh buddy, Y/n-san isn’t just an object that we’re going to hand off to a random stranger,” the boy said, only to be interrupted by a slightly slurred voice. 

“Oikawa? You’re here?” Y/n’s face brightened, making my heart stutter at how happy she was to see me. But then her brow furrowed in confusion. “What are you doing here?”

I laughed without humor. “Practice got cancelled, so the team came to the party.”

The guy with the black hair still had an arm around her waist. He turned to her with a serious expression asking, “You know this guy?”

“Yeah, Oikawa’s my...friend…” she slurred the last few words, clutching the boy’s arm as she tilted slightly. The other guy with the spiky hair quickly grabbed her other side so she didn’t fall on her face. He stumbled slightly as he moved, which made me think he wasn’t very sober either. 

“What the fuck did you give her to drink?” I snapped, fighting the urge to grab her again. “Woah, buddy, chill out.” Frosted tips laughed, his words running together. 

“Sorry,” the guy with the black hair grunted. “They’re all a little drunk.” 

My gaze fell on Y/n again, almost instantly distracted from the problem at hand by that dumbass bathing suit. I couldn’t get enough of her in it. 

“New girl--” I started. 

“What’s going on over here?” 

I turned to see exactly the opposite of who I wanted. Instead of Iwaizumi, or someone who would help me get Y/n away from these creeps, I saw the four Karasuno first years were striding towards us across the beach. Shōyō Hinata, Tobio Kageyama, Kei Tsukishima, and Tadashi Yamaguchi, all of them looking serious and angry. 

Y/n POV: 

Now was not a good time to be drunk. In fact, it was probably one of the worst times. I could barely keep up with what was happening as Hinata, Kageyama, Tsukki, and Yamaguchi approached. Oikawa (Oikawa was here!) stood a few feet away, arms crossed and a dark expression on his face. His hair was pushed back from his forehead, and he wasn’t wearing a shirt, exposing his toned stomach which was built with a lot more muscle than I would have expected from such a lean person. Damn. 

I became aware that I had an arm around two other shirtless men, Akaashi and Kuroo. The situation (me, drunk with a bunch of half clothed guys who were basically strangers) probably looked bad to Oikawa, which was why he had come over to help. I needed to explain but--

“What’s going on?” Kageyama said darkly, giving Oikawa a death glare. 

“Ah, my young prodigy, four eyes, freckles, and short stacks. Good to see you again.” Oikawa’s smile was arrogant and he put a hand on his hip as he glared at them. 

“It’s--” I tried, but Bokuto easily spoke over me. 

“This asswipe was trying to grab Y/n-san!”

Oikawa’s eyes narrowed, and I quickly unhooked my arms from around Kuroo and Akaashi, moving to the center of the circle of massive boys to try and calm them down. Unfortunately, I only succeeded in tripping. 

Oikawa’s arms came out so fast, it was as if he was expecting me to fall. He caught me around the waist, pulling me to his chest holding me tightly. My heart raced and I felt my cheeks heat up as my face was pressed against his skin, hands literally clutching his bare shoulders. 

The moment was ruined as Hinata let out an outraged cry. “Let her go right now, Great King!” 

I was yanked back yet again hitting another person’s chest as they pulled me away from Oikawa. I looked up to see...Tsukki? He was trying to protect me too? “Let her go,” Tsukki said, radiating arrogant hatred without even trying. His glasses flashed, and even I was intimidated for a moment. 

“Hey--” I tried again, but this time it was Kageyama who spoke over me. 

“She isn’t just some toy you can drag around,” he practically snarled. 

I felt a gentle hand on my arm, and looked over to Yamaguchi. “Are you ok?” He whispered. 

I nodded quickly, grabbing the boy’s hand and squeezing it. The fact that all these people were trying to defend me, even though they barely knew me or I didn’t go to their school anymore, made my heart swell. Even Yamaguchi, the sweetest and quietest person I knew, had come over to help. 

But Oikawa wasn’t a problem here. 

Kuroo stepped towards Oikawa, crossing his arms over his chest. “Clearly, you aren’t wanted around here. Go bother someone else.”

I watched Oikawa’s eyes turn lethal. He only looked this intense during volleyball matches, and now wasn’t the time to get into a fistfight. He was outmatched six to one, but he looked like he was about to punch Kuroo in the face.

“Yeah Great King! Get--”

I quickly lunged forward, interrupting Hinata and stepping between the two shirtless, towering boys who glared at each other with murder in their eyes. “Hey!” 

Oikawa looked down at me, his eyes softening slightly. “Chibi-chan…”

I turned to Kuroo and Bokuto, the second of which had stepped up to Kuroo’s side. I was now sandwiched between three different boys, my head barely coming up to any of their chins. I tried to ignore the number of bare chests around me as I spoke. 

“It’s ok, Oikawa is the captain of Aoba Johsai. I didn’t realize that Seijoh was able to come to the party today which was why I came with Karasuno, but Oikawa can drive me home.” 

Bokuto opened his mouth to say something, but Akaashi stepped forward, putting a hand on his arm. “Bokuto, it’s fine. She clearly knows him, and he’s the captain of Seijoh.” He turned to Oikawa, his face apologetic. “Sorry, we didn’t know who you were, and we didn’t want to give Y/n-san to a random person when she’s this drunk.”

“Hey!” I snapped. “I can take care of myself.”

Every boy around me, including Hinata, gave me a patronizing look. 

Bokuto laughed loudly sticking out his hand. “Well this is awkward! Sorry for almost punching you there. I’m Kōtarō Bokuto, captain of Fukurodani!” 

I sighed, but Oikawa nodded and shook hands with the other guy. “It’s a pleasure to officially meet you.” 

Kuroo and Akaashi also introduced themselves, but I was practically dying from the embarrassment of it all. How did they switch to being civil so quickly? Less than a minute ago, they all looked like they were about to end each other. 

Oikawa bowed. “Well, I think we’d better get going. Thank you for taking care of her before I got here.” He smiled, so wide and fake that I was shocked when no one said anything about it. Had he always hidden his true feeling behind those smirks and laughs, and I just never noticed? 

I quickly pushed the thought from my mind, turning to Kuroo, Bokuto, and Akaashi. “It was really nice to meet you guys. We should hang out again!” 

Bokuto crushed me in a hug, slamming me on the back a few times and knocking the breath out of me. “Hell yeah! Add me on instagram and I’ll send you my number!” 

Kuroo also slapped me on the back (what was with these volleyball players hitting so hard?!) and Akaashi promised to keep in touch. 

I hugged Hinata and Yamaguchi tightly. “Tell Kiyoko and Daichi where I went, ok?” They nodded both of them looking a little sad. I suddenly felt awful for abandoning Karasuno yet again, but I was the manager of Aoba Johsai. And even though I didn’t really want to admit it to myself, I wanted to go with Oikawa, outside of any duty as the manager. 

As I waved goodbye, Oikawa draped an arm across my shoulder and smirked at Kageyama. “I hope to see you in a real game, your majesty.” 

The tension spiked, and I tugged on Oikawa’s arm. “Let’s go, Shittykawa,” I snapped, practically dragging him away. 

“Ugh, Y/n-chan, you’re so mean! I just wanted to make fun of him a bit!” Aoba Johsai’s setter whined as we made our way across the beach, through the crowds of people towards the parking lot. 

I spotted Iwaizumi talking to two unfamiliar girls, and changed directions towards him. As we approached, I said, “Sorry to interrupt. Iwa, Oikawa and I are headed out. Do you have another ride?” 

Iwaizumi glanced between Oikawa and I, clearly trying to assess something. After a second he nodded. “Yeah, I’ll just get a ride with Kindaichi. See you later.” 

I smiled and thanked him, following Oikawa as he led me out to the parking lot. A few girls yelled Oikawa’s name from behind us, but he ignored them. 

I held onto his arm, still not feeling completely sober. And also, a small part of me wanted to silently declare that Oikawa was not available. Even though he didn’t belong to me in any way...but still. 

Seijoh’s captain stopped in front of one of the nicest cars I had ever seen, and I felt my mouth drop open as he pulled a set of keys to unlock it. It was a silver convertible, sleek and shiny, looking almost brand new. 

“Y-you own this?” 

Oikawa tried to hide a smile, but I saw pride in the lines of his shoulders and the curl of his mouth. “Yeah, I spent all my savings on it.”

I slipped into the passenger seat after putting a towel down so I wouldn’t get his nice leather seat wet, and Oikawa started the car, pressing the button so the roof smoothly rolled down. 

He glanced over at me, eyes flickering over my bathing suit, before he cleared his throat and looked away. 

“Here,” he tossed his shirt at me without looking. “You should put that on.” 

I glanced at the shirt. “Why?”

He muttered something under his breath that I didn’t hear, but before I could ask him to repeat himself, he connected his phone to bluetooth and started playing music. I rolled my eyes and tugged the shirt over my head. It was just a plain white Aoba Johsai shirt, but it smelled like him, and I had to resist the urge to sniff it like a creep. 

Instead, I pulled my wet hair up into a bun, leaning back in my seat as Oikawa pulled out of the parking lot. 

“Do you know the way to your house from here?” He asked, and I nodded. 

“Yeah, I’ll direct you.”

As we pulled onto the highway, “Why Do You Feel So Down” by Declan McKenna came on, and I lifted my hands into the open air. The sun blazed down and the wind whipped across my face, making a wide smile spread across my face. 

I began to scream the lyrics, most of my voice lost to the wind. Oikawa began to laugh at me, and I stuck out my tongue. 

“You’re so cute chibi-chan!” He took his hand off the wheel to squeeze my cheek, making me slap him and yell to look at the road. 

“I didn’t think you’d like this kind of music.”

“What?” He looked offended. “I like all kinds. What did you expect me to listen to?” 

“Probably something shitty, like your personality,” I scoffed, and he jabbed me. 

As we pulled up to my house, Oikawa smoothly parked next to the curb. 

“Here,” I moved to take off his shirt, but he waved me off. 

“It’s fine. You can give it back another time.” He eyed me, smirking. “It looks better on you, anyway.”

I blushed, reaching down to grab my purse in order to hide my face. “Thank you for driving me back. And also thank you for trying to defend me from the other boys, even though I can take care of myself. That was very sweet.” 

I turned to look at him, only to find him staring at me, head tilted and a genuine smile on his face. He shifted, and I felt all my muscles freeze as he reached out and grabbed my chin, running a thumb across my lips gently. 

“I’ll defend you whenever you need me to,” he said, and I let out a shuddering breath as he dropped his hand. 

“O-ok. Well I’ll see you Monday?” 

He nodded and waved as I hopped from his car. His shirt only reached my mid thigh, and I felt my face reddening as I made my way back up to my house. 

Oikawa POV:

I thought that seeing her in a bathing suit was bad…. 

Watching her walk up to her house wearing only my shirt made my heart pound so hard, I had to take a few deep breaths before I drove away. 

Chapter 8

Chapter 10