You had a pleasant lunch with your close friends. However, as afternoon arrived, you excused yourself from them because you had other arrangements for today. The boys were saddened by the fact that they had to say goodbye to your daughter, but they are excited to see her again.
You drive all the way from the restaurant to the park, where your brother is waiting for you. You brought Keiko and the diaper bag with you after parking near the park's entrance. There are a few individuals around at the moment.
"How about I kick you?! Stop fooling around and help out, Kusoikawa!" Iwaizumi yelled at the attractive setter.
Iwaizumi and Oikawa volunteered to help with the preparations. Iwaizumi is currently assisting Shin in placing the blanket on top of the picnic table. Your brother then placed the meal he had made earlier on top of the table.
"Hi, everyone!" you called out from the distance as you approached them.
"It's (F/N)-chan and my adorable niece!" Oikawa was the first to approach you. He gladly grabbed Keiko from you and smothered her with butterfly kisses around the face. "Oh! Iwa-chan! Come here, meet Keiko-chan!" he said, motioning for the young man to approach him.
When Iwaizumi saw you standing next to the lovely setter, he had no time to dispute. You gave him a gentle grin. He walked up to you quietly, patting your head. After a few years of not being able to see each other, you offered him a bone-crushing hug. He may finally hold you in his arms.
He couldn't help but laugh as he hugged you back. He genuinely missed you, and it was difficult not to think about your face every day when he started university. After all, he's been secretly in love with you since you were in middle school.
Your arms were still around his neck and your face cuddled against his chest as he placed you down.
"Look, who grew up!" Iwaizumi said. He was talking of your height. You were roughly 165cm while you were in high school. You're about 5'7" tall now. You are the same height as Hinata, at 170cm. "You're almost to my chin now!"
"I'm a big girl now!"
"Big girl? You're more than that now; you're a mother."
"I miss you, Hajime-nii!" you smiled as you held him once again. Iwaizumi's hand remained on your waist. You didn't seem to mind. Intimate actions like these were common between you and Iwaizumi.
"Same here," he said quietly. You patted his arm as you walked away then went up to the picnic table. Your eyes gleamed as you looked at the meal.
"Hey!" Kai said as he walked in with his wife and son.
"Kai-niichan! Kairi! Nee-chan!" you exclaimed.
"Keiko-chan, you're growing up!" Kai said as he wrapped his arms around his niece. "Grow up like your mother, okay?"
"Honey, Keiko-chan still doesn't understand what you're saying," Kai's wife remarked shyly.
"Hello, Kairi-kun!" You gently pinch the little boy's cheeks. "He's beginning to resemble you, nee-chan."
"What? Hey! Kairi looks just like me!" Kai protested.
"Yeah, right!" you exclaimed, laughing.
"Well, Keiko-chan looks like her father!" Kai exclaimed.
"Not arguing with that," you shrugged.
"You're no fun!" Kai retorted.
Not long afterwards, the celebration began. You were glad to see your brothers having fun, especially when you have Oikawa and Iwaizumi.
Words cannot explain how much you treasured this moment. You sat alone in the picnic table, watching them play with your daughter.
"Someone's enjoying her alone time," you turned around to see Iwaizumi standing behind you, arms crossed.
"You're here to ruin it?" you deadpanned.
He fixed his gaze on you, and you returned his gaze. None of you were going down without a fight. You kept staring at each other until one of you gave up, but you were as stubborn as predicted. It made Iwaizumi smile and admitted defeat. He sat next to you without prompting.
"Stubborn as always," he remarked.
"At least I'm using it correctly," you responded, smiling. It made him chuckle and ruffles your hair.
"Dammit, Hajime-n, I already fixed this," you pouted, straightening your hair with your fingers.
"Oh, come on, you always like it when I do that," he chuckled.
"Patting my head, yes; ruffling, no," you replied.
Cherry blossoms dance in the air as they fall from the branches of the tree surrounding you. The leaves will change as summer approaches. It was fortunate that you were able to glimpse this view before it became green.
"When was the last time we watched the cherry blossoms together?" Iwaizumi asked.
"It had been a few days before you and Tooru-nii left Miyagi for Tokyo," you attempted to recall.
"Ah, that's right. I remember now, you broke the news to us that you're dating Tsukishima." You immediately noted the increasing animosity in Iwaizumi's voice when Tsukishima was mentioned.
"Oikawa told me," he stated, "why doesn't he know about your daughter? Why are you hiding Keiko from him?"
This is what you were frightened about. You know Iwaizumi is overprotective of your well-being and takes things seriously if you're involved.
You're not sure why he's acting this way, maybe because you've been together since you were kids and he treated you like his own sister. When you think about it, no other idea comes to mind.
When Iwaizumi is enraged, you become terrified. After all, he's not the most composed and collected person around.
"(F/N), I want you to be honest with me; I'm not going to get angry with you, but I can't promise I won't do anything to that guy." He was serious, as shown from the look in his eyes.
"Hajime-nii," you were hesitant. To be honest, even though Tsukishima made a fool of you. You still cared about him. Even though you don't have to, you can't stop thinking about him.
"(F/N), I'm not repeating myself," Iwaizum stated coldly. "What happened between the two of you?"
You gulped, knowing there was no point in hiding from him. Even if you're terrified, he'll find out. You collected all your courage to tell him, "H—He cheated on me."
"He what?" he questioned again. Thinking he misheard what you just said.
You sighed in defeat and cleared your throat. "He cheated on me, Hajime-nii," you said, raising your head to meet his gaze.
His knuckles grew white as he attempted to hold back the rage that was growing up inside of him. What Tsukishima done was unforgivable to him. Someone dared hurt the most precious person he had ever loved. Not only that, but he ruined her life. No one can save Tsukishima from Iwaizumi's wrath.
You caressed his knuckles as you attempted to calm him down. You could see he was enraged, but you don't want to cause any trouble or involve him in any of your troubles. He trembled in rage, and you trembled in terror.
"Hajime-n, please," you pleaded. This wasn't intended to happen. You wanted to savor the moment.
Iwaizumi was able to calm himself after reading your gaze. He massaged his temples with his thumb and index finger.
He was back to normal after a few long breaths. He drew you up close, your face resting on his chest. When you inhaled, the familiar aroma of his cologne lingered in your nostrils. You sure missed his soft hugs. He kissed you on the top of your head.
"He was supposed to protect and love you, and you did not deserve what happened," he said quietly, sadness in his voice. "I'm sorry, (F/N), I wasn't there to protect you from all the pain you've been through so far." You shook your head and cuddled your face against his chest.
"I cried a lot because of him, laughed a lot because of him, believed in love because of him, and now I'm heartbroken because of him, but I haven't regretted a single memory I have with him. I have loved Kei with everything I have."
"(F/N)," he said. "You know that I love you, right?"
"I know and I love you too, Hajime-nii," you said, smiling at him.
Dammit, I love you more than that. When will you ever see that? He sighed and attempted a smile before drawing you into another hug.
He wasn't going to let you leave if he had the option. But he knows you deserve to find someone who will treat you well and shower you with love. He is capable of providing you with that. He hoped that one day you'd look at him the way he looked at you.
After a difficult day, you must eventually say your goodbyes and be separated from your loved ones for the time being. You parted ways after the gathering.
Oikawa and Iwaizumi walked back to their apartment in silence. Iwaizumi didn't say anything after a serious conversation with you. Oikawa noticed this and became concerned about his best friend's strange behavior.
He eventually decided to ask what happened after seeing you and Iwaizumi conversing earlier. He wondered if that conversation had anything to do with his strange behavior.
"Iwa-chan, talk to me," Oikawa said, but Iwaizumi just gave him a dreamy look. Oikawa frowned and grabbed both of Iwaizumi's large shoulders. "Iwa-chan! What the hell happened?!" Oikawa demanded.
"Hey, Kusoikawa," Iwaizumi said, "is there something wrong with me?"
"What do you mean?" Oikawa was perplexed.
"After what happened earlier, I take back what I said to you this morning. I'm still not over, (F/N). After all this time, even though it's been three fucking years since I last saw her. Here I thought I was over her." Iwaizumi's voice trembled. "Dammit, I was so certain I'd be fine."
Oikawa grimaced even more as he witnessed something he had not expected to see. He could see Iwaizumi crying directly in front of him. Iwaizumi Hajime, the harsh, violent, and usually irritated Iwaizumi, was sobbing in front of him. His dearest friend was fighting back uncontrollable sobbing. His entire body trembled as a result of the suppression.
"Tell me what happened," Oikawa said softly, his hold on Iwaizumi's shoulder tightening.
"Tsukishima he—he cheated on her. He fucking cheated on her, Oikawa! And she's still thankful for him. What the hell does he have that I don't?"
Oikawa was unable to remain calm, as he had expected, after witnessing and hearing all of the suppressed emotion that Iwaizumi had been hiding all this time.
"Iwa-chan, listen to me." He cupped Iwaizumi's cheeks, "Nothing in life is fair, remember that. I don't know what to say or what to do to be able to ease the pain you're suffering right now. I'm sorry for being useless when you need me the most. Love? Will it be easy? No. Is it worth it? Absolutely. You sometimes fall in love with the unexpected person at the most unexpected time. I know you want to be with her. It is as simple and as complicated as that. Cherish every moment you have with her. If one day everything is over, will you be able to let go of your feelings, Iwa-chan?"
Iwaizumi groaned, lightly smacking Oikawa on the head. "You are nothing but trash," Oikawa scowled. "I can't let her go for the time being; I'm hoping to find the strength to summon enough courage to confess to her, and then maybe I can let her go." He turned to face the pretty setter and ruffled his hair. "But seriously, you sound so awesome," Oikawa blushed. "Thank you for always being there when I need you, even if your words can't console me; your presence is enough to let me know I'm not alone. Now, don't let those words get into your head!"
For the first round, Iwaizumi gave Oikawa a sincere smile.
"Iwa-chan!" Oikawa attempted to leap at his closest friend as Iwaizumi decided to leave him behind. "Iwa-chaaaaaan!"
"SHUT UP, KUSOIKAWA! YOU'RE DISTURBING THE NEIGHBORHOOD!"