chapter forty-five!
GAUCHE
IN THE EARLY HOURS on a Saturday morning, Kageyama was the first one to be awake as per usual. Compared to others who find it difficult to detach themselves from their bed, despite groggy, he gets up in less than a minute and stretches out. His eyes may feel heavy but it's nearly an automated response for him to immediately follow his daily routine. He stretches, changes into his running gear, heads down to the kitchen for a glass of water, then leaves the house for a thirty minute run around the neighbourhood. That would've been the end of his routine had he not taken a different turn.
Instead, he's led himself towards the Sakanoshita store. This wasn't some spur of the moment idea and he has never strayed from his usual path, but he promised to meet Mina before he leaves for the tournament. Quite unfortunate for him but the girl had plans with her school club, despite it being a weekend. The raven haired male had high hopes for her attendance, but this wasn't something she could easily opt out of. He would be lying if he said he still wasn't affected by the idea, but there was nothing that he could do to change that. So, he might as well anticipate whatever time they have for today.
He jogs, a soft puff of his cold breath leaving his lips. It didn't take long for him to see the store located uphill and within that distance, he could see the figure of the girl standing. Kageyama's steps hasten a bit more and he could see a groggy Mina in her pyjamas, hands delved in the pockets of her hoodie. This marks a moment in his life— seeing Mina in her rarest form, fairly awoken. The girl waves at him with a smile as she sees him coming closer.
"Good morning," Her voice hoarse and weak, Mina greets once he slows down to a stop in front of her. "All done morning run?"
Before he could even voice out a response, the girl had pulled a steamed bun from the depths of her hoodie and stuffed it straight into his mouth, rendering the boy speechless. Nevertheless, he slowly starts to bite into it while the girl could only give him a dazed smile.
"A good breakfast will make you strong," Mina says as Kageyama's eating the bun. "Not saying eat meat buns everyday. Next time, I will make big breakfast for you, okay?"
Kageyama nods. He notices the way her toes were curled and then loose, the little pit-a-pat bounce of her feet and how she was sniffling from time to time. With winter just along the corner, the fall season doesn't hesitate to warn them about the oncoming conditions. Mornings were mild and bearable enough that Kageyama wouldn't wear as much layers, but he couldn't say the same to the girl who only exposed her face and hands. She looked like a boiled egg with that hood wrapped, he thought. A cute one that is, but nothing in this world could ever make him say that out loud.
"You're gonna get sick," He grumbles, pulling out a hand warmer from his pocket as he finishes the last bite of the bun. "I told you it's fine."
Mina smiles and takes it before thanking him. "Oh? And you're okay without seeing my face before the big game? Tobio-kun is okay not seeing me before game?" She leans in and grins. "Really? You are okay with that?"
Her actions forced him to take a step back out of pure fluster. Of course he wasn't okay, that's why he wanted her to be there for him during the game. There's no denying how disappointed he was but this wasn't the time for him to sit in a corner and sulk like a child who didn't get the toy they wanted. Kageyama also didn't want her to catch a cold either with how she's stood here, waiting for him.
"Stupid.." He mumbles. "Go back inside and sleep. I gotta go and practiceㅡ"
"What? Tobio-kun leaving already?" A small frown forms on her lips and she grabs onto his sleeves, stopping him from leaving. "I can practice with you! What will you do? Stretching? Or volleyball moves?"
Surprised once again, he listens to her list down random things that he honestly could be doing. Mina was a bit more energized now and it causes the corners of his lips to tilt upwards. He turns his body towards her again and takes her hand into his, causing the words flowing from the girl's lips to die down as she's now focused on him.
"You'll really practice with me?"
"Mhm!" She nods.
Quite weak to her charms, he complied to her words (rather, he was quite willing if anything) and she rushes off to the store to go back and change into a proper pair of shoes and a ball snug between her arms. The pair heads down to an empty park that wasn't too far off the store's location and not a moment later, Kageyama starts them off with a proper routine of stretches. Compared to the athletic male who's used to it, anyone could hear the faint groans and grumbles escaping Mina's lips whenever she felt like her body was overexerted. Soon, it turned into a coaching session with Kageyama helping her how to properly do them.
Not long after, they moved on (once Mina felt like her once rusted body was oiled albeit in pain) and did some passing with the ball, at times Mina would try and set the ball up for him to spike which would then lead to him teaching her the proper stances and hand movements. Their activities continued on for another hour until Mina's body couldn't keep up anymore and she collapses out of exhaustion on the nearest bench.
"I can't," The brunette says in between her ragged pants. It's embarrassing to say the least how weak her constitution was due to the lack of exercise. "I can't believe I'm this bad."
"Sorry..." A bottle of water comes into view before Kageyama opens it, guilt washing over him. "I shouldn't have pushed it that hard."
When she starts to feel her heartbeat steadying into a normal, rhythmic pace, Mina heaves out a huge breath and sits up to take the drink. A smile forms on her lips and she starts to chuckle, causing confusion to brew on his face. The girl takes his hand and urges him to sit down beside her which he does so without any words.
"I had fun," She earnestly says. Despite the drenched fringes sticking to her forehead, the droplets of sweat cascading down her temples or her sudden urge to hop into the shower, there was no denying how revitalizing it felt to have been stimulated like that. For once, it felt good to workout, especially with someone who earned the title, boyfriend. "I don't feel tired, you know! I feel super alive."
"...Really? You're not upset that I nagged about stuff?"
Upset? Well, it wasn't like he yelled at her or anything. In fact, he was quite generous— stern, but nevertheless understanding and generous when it came to teaching her. He taught her the basics of volleyball, what the proper stances were and such. Mina was worried that her help would turn out to be a hindrance instead, but Kageyama was patient with her. He never looked or sounded upset and instead, offered better methods that could be easier for her.
Everyone else says how mean he is on the court, whether it be his teammates or his opposing team but looking at him now, where was that malice that they were referring to?
"No," She shakes her head, taking a sip of the drink. "I should say sorry. I waste Tobio-kun's practice time. Big game is today too."
"It's not," He interjects quickly then soon realizing how hasty his response was, so he bites his lips from the embarrassment. "I mean, I don't think it's a waste. I got to warm-up a bit and... you also learned how to play a little."
"Yeah," The brunette smiles. "And I am not so scared of balls now. I think it was scary before because it moves fast and hurt a lot, but I think it is okay—maybe."
Having to help someone overcome their fears is always an accomplishment, especially for Kageyama when that someone is his other half. He knew how she would flinch when a stray ball would go her way during his practices and truthfully, it's quite amusing at times because they both knew that she just wasn't athletically inclined, hence why she has slow reactions and indecisive movements when in games. Though here she was now, slowly but surely getting the gist of it.
His eyes wander from her face down to her arms where her sleeves were rolled up and showcases the red blemishes on her forearm.
"I told you to just keep your sleeves on," Kageyama frowns and grumbles as he examines it. "Does it hurt bad?"
Mina looks down to see the damage. "Uh, it's okay. Not hurt so much."
"For now, yeah, but tomorrow you'll feel it," The raven haired male says. "It happens to everyone who starts out. Go ice it and just rest when you get home. It'll heal in a day or two."
It's silent, no response coming from the girl. Kageyama looks up and sees her already staring at him with a soft smile gracing her lips. She doesn't break the contact even when their eyes met and it makes him feel flustered to be under her gaze. He breaks the eye contact first and focuses on her forearms again before slowly speaking out.
"...What?"
"Tobio-kun is handsome, that is why," She states, unabashed. This only fuelled the fire and caused for his face to turn beet red. "I am serious? You know, many girls like you but because you always likeㅡ" Mina then copies his frown. "—like that, they get scared."
"Are you making fun of me?" He grumbles, rubbing his warm cheeks with a frown on his face.
Mina shakes her head. "I am serious. Good thing I am the only person seeing you like this. If girls know you are handsome and then see this? Tobio-kun who looks like tomato or when you smile— that's for me, okay?"
"You're seriously..."
He covered his red tinged face with his hands, grumbling incoherent things that only he would know. Mina knows exactly how to stir trouble in his heart and he doesn't know whether he likes that or not. If only his teammates could see how weak-willed he was in front of this girl, the teasing would never cease.
"..—AND SO, I THINK THIS WOULD BE THE BEST WAY FOR US TO RETIRE!"
As December nears and exams are inching closer and closer, the situation grows dire for students and especially the seniors. It isn't uncommon for the third-years to retire from their clubs so they could put more time and effort into grades and post-secondary admissions. Of course, the guitar clubs two very own third-years, Fujie and Maiko have slowly been talking about their plans of leaving the club. It wasn't anytime soon thankfully, but that doesn't change the fact that they were going to be gone.
So, they've proposed to go out with a bang. Bunta proposed to hold another event for the sake of their seniors (as well as to garner more plausible club members) which focuses on the two. He also suggested that they include the Film-Making Club, hoping that they could take professionally shot videos using the school's expensive cameras. Mina thought that the ideas were great and so far, Maiko hadn't thrown any snarky comments until Goichi made comments about the possibility of the video going viral and then hitting international audience.
"Your thoughts exhaust me sometimes," Maiko sighs, shaking her head. "I'm hoping you're not taking over Fujie's spot."
"Hey, I give good ideas too, you know." Goichi mumbles as he crosses his bulked arms.
"Anyways, any more ideas to throw in?" Fujie diverts the attention back to her. "Hibino-san, how about you?"
Everyone's attention shifts to the girl, Akari Hibino who has stayed silent this whole time. It wasn't as if she hasn't been paying attention this whole time, but it was hard to chirp in as the new club member and as a timid person in general. When she's noticed their attention was all on her, it felt like the girl was shrinking in her seat from the weight of their stares.
"Uh," Her voice trembles, but she tries her best to make it so that they can hear her. "I-I think that we could make a promotional video with the Film-Making Club, if possible..! That way, we have different more ways to promote the club and all..."
The club's president is unable to contain her excitement at the idea. "Ooh! I like that, yeah! That's an amazing idea, Hibino-san!" Fujie claps her hand, the rest of the members looking at their newbie in approval. A small and relieved smile formed on the girl's lips and everyone started to converse once again in light of the idea.
"Hey guys," The attention of the members shifts over to the teacher who slid the door open and greeted them with a knock. "I'm just here to quickly remind all the third-years in this club to hand in their career choice form soon. The deadline's by next week, so get that going. You don't want to be hassled by teachers over a piece of paper."
Mina glanced over to her seniors who seemed quite lax. Truthfully, she found it quite stressful to deal with future plans through a piece of paper and a trip to the guidance counsellor's office— even though she's still years away from having to do it. At the moment, the brunette wouldn't know what she would write down on the paper; what school she would attend, what she would major in, or if she really was interested in anything enough to make a career out of it. If she were to follow her parents footsteps— the girl grimaced at that thought. How about her sister? Never mind that.
"We'll be sure to hand it in soon, Sensei!" Fujie reassures the teacher who nods in returns. He says his farewells to them before assumingely leaving to head over to another club room. "How about we all take a five minute break?"
Just like that, the members disperse. Goichi and Bunta decides to leave for drinks, Akari scurries out for a bathroom break, which leaves Mina with two of her seniors who seemed to be busy talking about their career forms. Now that she thought about it, what did they want to do? Fujie's quite open with a lot of things but she's never discussed her future plans, let alone even mention it. Maiko on the other hand—well, that's just how she was. She wasn't the type to give out answers unless being directly asked, though no one really had the guts to aside from Fujie.
While she's dazed out, their club president notices and she waves a hand to awake the girl from her mental stupor. Mina blinks and she looks at them, Fujie waving her over to where they were. So, she moves, leaning on the edge of the couch where the two third-years stood close.
"Do you know what you're going to do in the future, Lee-san?" Fujie questions.
"Oh, but I'm notㅡ" Mina shakes her head, but Maiko waves it off.
"We know, but still," She says with arms now crossed. "Don't you have the slightest idea of what you think you want to do in the future?"
It's not an unusual question, no, but that doesn't mean that it's a question that she could answer right away. Being good at academics has always been so reassuring since everyone insures that good grades and perfect school performance can take you to higher places, but it hasn't given Mina a passion for anything. All she strives for is success, but success towards what? Life? It had to be more specific than that.
Sensing her inner dispute, Fujie chimes in. "If there's one thing you don't mind doing, everyday, for ten years, what would it be?"
While the younger girl was thinking, Maiko chimes in.
"Weren't you planning on being a civil servant?" She asks Fujie.
"My mom suggested that, but I'm not really interested. I think I'm going to aim for the entertainment industry! Not as public figure or anything but I've always been a fan of documentaries," Fujie hums, arms crossed. "I want to be a producer!"
A producer, Mina mulls over it. She hadn't taken her senior as someone who would want to work in such an industry, let alone be interested in documentaries. It wasn't that it wasn't right or anything but it felt...unexpected. The brunette had expected her senior to work for big conglomerates or as Maiko mentioned, working as a civil servant wherever that may be. Though, one really doesn't know where life would lead people. It's unexpected and full of surprises every time.
"Let's see if your mom would even be happy with that decision," Maiko replies. "What would you do if she says no to that?"
"If she says no then I'll find ways to support myself," Fujie grimaces. "My grades are never a problem so I'm pretty sure I can find scholarships to apply for. Plus, if I really have to, I'll try to talk to my grandmother in Tokyo and ask her if she can help me."
"I'm sure she'll say yes. She's never said no to anything you wanted."
"Well, there's a first for everything," Their club president laughs. "What about you? Weren't you supposed to inherit your family's restaurant?"
That got Mina's attention. "Your family has restaurant here?"
It's not often that Maiko gets awkward but it's a sight to see when she does. The girl scratches the nape of her neck and nods weakly.
"Yeah... but that's not what's important here!" She changes the subject and looks back to her junior. "Weren't we asking you about what you wanted to do? I'm sure we've given you enough time to give out an answer."
Now that got the brunette's hands all cold and sweaty.
"It's a big question, so we don't really expect you to have an answer right now," Fujie smiles and pats the girl's shoulder. "Plus, you have two more years to figure it out too, so what's the rush?"
Right, there's still long ways until that question is needed to be answered, but it doesn't erase the fact that she's in the grey area. How does one come by something they're willing to do for the rest of their lives? Does it come by naturally or does one have to go and find it actively? Mina doesn't know. She knows there's no need to be mulling over these things right now since there's still ways until then, but a question is always a question— and she'd like to know how to find the answer.
"Aren't you going back home to South Korea next year?" Fujie questions and the brunette nods in response. "Maybe once you get back home, you can find something that you're interested in. There's lots of opportunities for you to try lots of things until you find your niche, so don't feel to pressured."
"...But what happens if I don't know?" Mina looks at her with eyes unsure.
"It'll come to you, maybe when you least expect it."
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
it's nerve wracking coming back
here after a long time lol
but here's the update! 3k+ words
that can hopefully make up for the
lost time lol
i got accepted to the university
that i applied for last december
so i'm in the middle of trying
to figure out my classes and dorm stuff
hope you guys always take care
and see you all on the next update!