spilled milk

chapter 1

𝙔/𝙉'𝙨 𝙋𝙊𝙑

You were tired.
Not end-of-the-world tired — just school tired. The kind of tired where your brain feels like it's been microwaved for six hours and your only real source of hope is that one cold milk from the vending machine that always hits better than it should.

You jogged toward the vending machine near the back of the gym building, digging through your pockets for coins as you walked. You could already taste the icy sweetness in your mouth. That creamy, overprocessed carton of happiness was all you wanted.

You reached out—
—and your hand bumped into someone else's.

You both froze.

You looked up.
Sharp eyes. Tense shoulders. Black hair.
Kageyama Tobio.

He was staring at you like you'd just committed a war crime.

"...Mine," you said quickly, fingers curling around the carton.

His eyes narrowed. "I touched it first."

You raised a brow. "Pretty sure I did."

Silence.

Just you, him, and one very unfortunate milk carton caught in the middle of a territorial crisis.

Then you smirked.

"Guess I'm faster."

You pulled it from the machine, popped the tab, and walked off without looking back.

You didn't have to.
You could feel the heat of his stare burning into the back of your skull.

And maybe — maybe — that's why you smiled as you took the first sip.

⸻

𝙆𝘼𝙂𝙀𝙔𝘼𝙈𝘼'𝙨 𝙋𝙊𝙑

He stood there for a full five seconds.

Just. Staring.

The milk carton — his milk carton — was gone.

That girl had stolen it.

No — worse — she had smiled while doing it. Like it was funny. Like she hadn't just crossed a sacred boundary that could never be uncrossed.

He clenched his jaw and stuffed his hands in his pockets.

Unbelievable.

It wasn't even about the milk anymore. It was about principle. About timing. About honor.

She had looked so smug, too. With that little smirk. Like she knew he wouldn't fight her for it.

(Which... okay. He wouldn't. Because what was he supposed to do? Snatch it from her hand? He wasn't Hinata. He had dignity.)

Still.

He'd never forget this moment.

And Kageyama Tobio didn't lose.

⸻

𝙔/𝙉'𝙎 𝙋𝙊𝙑

You didn't even make it halfway back to the main building before the guilt started creeping in.

Not real guilt. Just the annoying kind. The kind that whispers, Did you really just steal a volleyball player's only will to live?

You took another sip.

Yeah. You did.

But in your defense, he was intense. Like, serious over a carton of milk intense. And when someone stares at you like you just ended their bloodline, it kind of makes you want to win.

So you did.

You didn't expect him to glare at you like that. Like you'd ruined his whole day.

It was honestly a little funny.

You turned the corner toward the stairs, still sipping and hiding a smile. Something told you this wasn't over. Not with the way he looked at you. Like you were now on some kind of personal hit list.

Oh well.

You'd fight him again if it came to that.

⸻

𝙆𝘼𝙂𝙀𝙔𝘼𝙈𝘼'𝙨 𝙋𝙊𝙑

She was still in his head.

It had been twenty-seven minutes.

Kageyama sat on the gym floor, half stretching, half spiraling. Practice was going on around him, but he couldn't focus.

All he could see was her face.

Smirking.

Sipping his milk.

He clenched his jaw.

Hinata dropped down next to him, breathing hard from drills. "You good?"

"I'm fine."

"You don't look fine."

"I said I'm fine," Kageyama muttered.

Hinata raised an eyebrow. "You've been staring at the floor for like ten minutes."

Kageyama didn't say anything right away. He looked straight ahead, then muttered, "Some girl took my milk."

Hinata blinked. "Huh?"

"She took it. From the vending machine. I had my hand on it, and she just—took it."

Hinata stared. "...Dude. Seriously?"

Kageyama nodded once, stiffly.

"Who was it?"

Kageyama hesitated, then sighed. "Y/N. From our class. The quiet one who always wears headphones."

Hinata's jaw dropped. "No way. Y/N?"

"She looked me in the eye and walked away with it," Kageyama said flatly. "Didn't even look back."

Hinata tried so hard not to laugh. "Oh my god. You lost a milk battle."

"I didn't lose."

"She walked away with the milk."

"It's not about the milk," Kageyama snapped. "It's the way she did it. All smug."

Hinata grinned. "So what, you're gonna challenge her to a rematch?"

Kageyama didn't answer.

But in his head?

Yeah.

Yeah, he was.

Next time, that milk was his.

Even if he had to sprint the second the bell rang.