Just Practice - IwaOi

Chapter 16: Off His Game

Oikawa and Iwaizumi didn't have to see Mayumi for a full week before their next tournament. She was part of the student section, which meant they could easily enter a heated quarrel off the court.

Oikawa was thrilled to finally get a word in, especially at a volleyball tournament, where he was king.

Iwaizumi was actually quite averse to the thought of having to speak to Mayumi, but knew he'd back Oikawa up relentless. He also knew he might even have split them up if things escalated quickly.

He noticed on their walk through the halls, many players from different teams had been sneaking glances at them. As if they were the butt of some kind of joke.

Well, they were outed to their entire school by some random second year who was able to get under the Great King's skin, that did warrant some staring.

"Iwa, we play Karasuno first." Oikawa said, looking down at a paper version of the schedule he had taken out of his pocket. Iwaizumi looked down at it with him, bumping shoulders lightly.

Which was normal.

It shouldn't have pulled the eyes of so many boys to them, their lingering stares staying placed on the pair.

Iwaizumi exhaled sharply through his nose, biting his tongue so no spiteful words could escape. He knew he'd probably stare too if it hadn't been him, but he couldn't stay calm for much longer.

Luckily, their first game was starting soon, so they made their way to the main gym to get ready. They once again made sure to keep a reasonable distance from each other, as it was now reflexive.

When Oikawa took off his white-and-teal sweats, he really looked like a force to be reckoned with. His white knee pad contrasting with his black one. It certainly made him stand out. Iwaizumi realized he had never looked at him like this before.

He was magnificent.

"Let's win this, okay?" Iwaizumi grunted, before tossing up a volleyball that was currently situated in his hands, slapping it hard over the net. The rest of the team cheered, now motivated. Oikawa especially brightened as Iwaizumi slapped a hand hard on his shoulder. It probably had hurt, but Oikawa made no move to shy away from the force.

The student section was obviously getting ready to cheer, all of them rising to their feet. This was normal, and it gave Iwaizumi a rush of euphoria from the familiarity.

As Karasuno took their own positions, Oikawa was was preparing to take the first serve, his eyes lidded in concentration. This was his art form, the serve was his masterpiece.

He bounced the ball off the ground a few times, before backing up to take the hit. The student section was strangely quiet, but Oikawa seemingly didn't notice, too wrapped up in his own performance.

Until they started booing.

It was loud and quite obvious it was aimed towards Oikawa, who was now seemingly frozen where he stood. Iwaizumi's head whipped around to see the strangely blank expression on Oikawa's face. His stomach lurched.

Was he going to serve?

When he turned back around he could see the confusion in each of the other team's eyes, as they also stopped to stare at Oikawa.

Many other players and spectators on the other sides of the gym stopped to see what commotion was about, not tearing their gazes away. Oikawa was shaking now.

Iwaizumi could call a timeout, but they hadn't even started the game yet. The shouts wouldn't stop.

The ball Oikawa had in his white-knuckle grip hit the floor the same time his knees did.

Their coach himself called a timeout. Oikawa had to almost be dragged to the bench, an emotionless deadweight.

Then the tears started to fall.

Oikawa's face was still a blank husk, but the tears painting his cheeks gave away his internal emotions.

Iwaizumi felt distant from the event. If he held Oikawa now, here in public, it wouldn't help the continuous heckling still erupting from the bleachers.

He noticed the Karasuno players gaze over at the team huddle, watching the players try comforting their broken setter.

That's when they started walking over to them, a black-and-orange mass, a silver haired man taking the lead.

It seemed like time worked in slow motion after that.

When Karasuno finally reached them, they all formed a larger circle around their own team.

They were like a living wall.

Keeping out the jeers their classmates were continuing to shout. Oikawa had his ears covered, desperately trying to quiet the sounds around him.

Iwaizumi watched as Sugawara made his way to him, sitting next to him on the bench as Oikawa instinctively grabbed onto his black jersey, leaving tear stains where he nestled his face into his chest. Sugawara simply rested a hand on his head, letting Oikawa bury himself deeper into him.

Iwaizumi knew it should've been him.

But he just couldn't.

They soon ended up calling off the game.

He knew Oikawa felt terrible about it all, but he fell asleep the moment he got on the bus.

The rest of the time they'd been at the tournament Oikawa had been uncharacteristically quiet. It was unsettling to say the least, seeing Oikawa's eyes still red from the tears.

It made Iwaizumi want to punch someone.

Specifically Sugita Mayumi.

He didn't know how to stop Oikawa from hurting, but he knew he'd do his best to make sure Oikawa never felt like this again.

If it was the last thing he did.