Requested by @AkumuAmari
First words from your soulmate are inked on your wrist. When you truly love one another the words on your wrist disappear.
"Kiyoko-san's friend... right?"
"Why you out of all people?"
------
The bell rings loudly and the teacher yells some last minute words about homework as everyone begins packing up. You feel a tap on your shoulder and turn to see Kiyoko standing right behind you.
"I'm going to practice now, are you coming to my house when it's over?" She asks in that flat tone of hers.
"Yeah, just text me when you're on the way. I'll see you later Yoko." You wave to her as she leaves, a smile brightening your face until she slips out of the room.
"Oh, to be in love!" You jump when you hear Sugawara's voice right next to you. When you look at him he wears that teasing smirk he uses whenever he teases you about Kiyoko.
"Where did you even come from, shouldn't you be at practice?" He shrugs before leaning over and grabbing your bag.
"I came to try to convince you to come." He says while dodging you. You look at him with a heated glare and he sighs. "You really won't? The first years just joined and they're seriously impressive."
"You know I don't want to be around those two that follow Yoko around like idiots. I might end up fighting them." You murmur. Sugawara hands you your bag back and follows you out of the classroom.
"They're not that bad." He says, to which you roll your eyes.
"Have fun at practice, see you tomorrow." You turn away from him with a wave and begin walking down the hall.
"I'll get you to come one day!" He calls. You turn to look at him with an amused expression.
"You haven't managed to since the end of our first year." You say back. He groans loudly and you give him a wide victory smile before turning away. "Bye Koshi!"
"Bye..." You laugh at his defeated tone before continuing your walk down the hall. As you turn a corner someone barrels into you, almost knocking you off your feet. Arms quickly go around your waist and you blink rapidly when you look up into the face of none other than Kiyoko's number one stalker.
"Oh... it's you." You murmur. He stares at you for a moment before his face lights up in realization.
"Kiyoko-san's friend... right?" Your face quickly loses its color and he looks at you worriedly. "Are you okay?"
"Why you out of all people?" You groan. His face transforms into an expression of curiosity and you use this opportunity to wiggle out of his arms. "Actually, never mind. Thanks for catching me, and please watch where you're going."
You walk past him in hopes that you could get away before he realizes anything, but sadly you hear him yell after only getting a little ways down the hall. His heavy steps come up behind you and you let out a quiet sigh before turning to him.
"You're my soulmate!" When he yells people turn to look at the two of you. You hush him before dragging him into the nearest classroom, which happens to be empty.
"Could you be any louder?" Your tone is clearly hostile and you level him with a glare.
"I just wanted to let you know that my heart belongs to Kiyoko-san! I'm flattered, but we can't be together." His face is surprisingly serious and it takes everything in you not to laugh in his face.
"Why do you think I walked away from you? I already have someone I love. Thanks for making this a lot easier though." He blinks several times and you smile before turning towards the door. Right before you slip out you turn back to him with a smirk. "Also, just to let you know, that someone happens to be Kiyoko."
You close the door with a loud laugh and make your way home, where you flop down in your bed. Oddly enough you find this whole situation funny in a way, possibly because you believe you have a head start at getting Kiyoko. You reach around for your phone and scroll through social media before following Tanaka.
"Let the competition begin." You murmur. Your mom calls up for you to clean your room and you quickly do so before crawling back into your bed for a quick nap. When you wake up it's dark outside and you quickly check your phone for the time. Your notifications are lit up with messages from Tanaka, as well as a message from Kiyoko.
"The players wanted to eat out. I'll see you tomorrow." You read out loud. After reading her message you swipe to the messages Tanaka had sent you. Several off guard pictures of Kiyoko, as well as a few selfies of the two of them here and there. You feel like your blood boils and all of a sudden this doesn't feel like much of a joke anymore.
"So this is how we're gonna play." You turn off your phone and let your head fall back onto your pillow. "Alright, game on."
------
"You're coming to watch practice?" Kiyoko's voice is surprised, but you don't let that throw you off. You nod eagerly and latch onto her arm.
"Koshi's always trying to get me to go so I thought I'd give it a shot for once!" You smile at her and she nods before leading you to the gym. When the two of you walk in everyone's eyes are on you.
"Hey, you actually came!" Sugawara yells. You smile at him and continue to look around for your target. Once your eyes land on Tanaka your smile widens and you lean closer to Kiyoko before waving at him. His face flushes a bright red and you try your best to hold back an evil cackle. When you sit down on the bench you sit as close as you can to Kiyoko, which she's used to after years of being friends with you. All practice you throw cheeky looks at Tanaka, who continues to throw glares at you, until finally the time to clean up comes. While Kiyoko talks to the coach Tanaka walks up to you.
"You...!" You hold back a laugh when he gets in your face. "That's not fair!"
"But isn't it?" You place a mocking hand on his shoulder and move forward until you're only a few inches away from each other. "I'm just using my advantage."
"For disliking each other you two are awfully close." Sugawara appears right next to you and whispers with that wide smile of his. The two of you instantly separate, each with a slightly flushed face. He laughs loudly before going back to cleaning up, leaving you and Tanaka alone again.
"I'm going home!" You stand up from your spot on the bench, only stopping when you spot Kiyoko still helping put things away. "...After Yoko's done."
Everyone finally finishes putting everything up and you all end up outside the gym. You say a quick goodbye to Kiyoko, who lives in the opposite direction from you, and begin the walk to your house. Only after a few minutes do you realize a certain someone's following you.
"You know, stalking me isn't gonna help with Yoko." You call over your shoulder. He frowns and comes up to walk next to you.
"I live this way." He says.
"You don't walk Yoko home?" You'd be lying if you weren't surprised, but by the way Tanaka deflates you realize it's not by choice.
"It's Noya's turn to walk her home." With his mood clearly now at rock bottom you can't help but chuckle.
"I don't have to take turns with anyone since we're best friends." He glares at you and you can't help but laugh louder. "I'm really living the life!"
"I swear I'll get there one day, Kiyoko-san will ask me to walk her home everyday and I won't have to take turns with Noya!" He yells with his head turned up to the stars and you begin to laugh so hard your stomach aches. After a moment he starts laughing as well.
"Why... are you l-laughing? I'm laughing at you!" You say as you clutch as your stomach. Though you point it out he continues howling, which has you right back to square one. Before you know it you're standing in front of your house and waving as you close the front door.
"Who knew the idiot actually isn't that bad." You murmur, taking a peek out the window to watch him leave. He walks in the direction the two of you had just come from and you can't help but smile softly. "And he walked me home."
"What are you looking at?" Your mom appears behind you and you quickly pull the curtains closed.
"Nothing!" You turn towards her with a wide smile. She stares at you for a few seconds before shrugging.
"Well dinner's ready." She turns and you let out a relied sigh.
"Too close..." You breathe out.
------
"Where are you going?" You pause halfway out the door when Kiyoko calls after you. In your hand is your lunch bag that you hold up for her to see.
"Bringing Tanaka food so he'll admit I can cook." You saw with a wide smile.
"Still? You've been doing this for the last few weeks." She asks with a tilt of her head. You freeze before quickly clearing your throat.
"He just can't seem to believe me, he always says it sucks." You shrug and wave before slipping out the door. You make the short walk to the courtyard where Tanaka sits on one of the benches waiting for you. When he looks up you wave the food around and his face lights for a split second before it's replaced with a frown.
"Just admit you can't cook!" He turns his head dramatically away from you and you shove the box in his face.
"Just admit I can and you actually like the food I make!" When he opens it up and practically drools you know you've got him. Laid out neatly is some of his favorite foods, which he had been subtly mentioning over the pass few days, along with some things you knew you could make well. The two of you begin to eat and chat about this and that until the bell for lunch rings.
"Finished just in time!" You close the box and rise from the bench. He gets up after you and begins walking in the same direction when you know his class is the other way. "Oh, you're walking me back again?"
"I'm going to ask Daichi-san something, why would I walk you back?" He scrunches his face up in that frown of his and you laugh.
"Whatever you say." You smile at him and he looks pointedly away. When you get to your class he stops to watch you go in before turning back around.
"Visiting Daichi?" You call through the still open door. His ears turn red and he clears his throat.
"I just remembered he didn't come to school today." After replying he speeds away. You can't help but stare at his retreating figure until he's out of view. A few seconds pass and you feel a presence behind you.
"Koshi, one day I'm going to attack you." You say without turning around. His face appears in front of you and it has that wide, knowing smile on it.
"Tanaka." Is all he says. You look away from his searching eyes and point to the door.
"The late bell's about to ring, why aren't you in class?" As soon as you finish the bell rings and he jumps.
"Crap!" He scurries out to the sound of your loud laughter. Your teacher comes in and you calm yourself and try to tune into the lesson, hoping it'll pass by fast so you can watch the team's practice. As the teacher drones on you find yourself zoning out and eventually dozing off. You wake with a start when you feel someone shake your arm.
"Classes are over, it's time for practice." Kiyoko says.
"I slept through the rest of the day?" You ask doubtfully. She nods and you groan. "I'll be there in a second, you can go ahead without me."
"Alright." She nods and leaves the classroom. Now that you look around basically everyone else has left, leaving you to look out the window for a few silent seconds. You soak up the nice blue sky as you give yourself time to wake up. While you're staring you hear the door creak open, and when you turn to look Tanaka's standing in the doorway.
"Why aren't you at practice?" Is the first thing you think to say. You mentally cringe at yourself as he comes closer to your desk.
"Kiyoko-san said you were in here." He answers. You give him a surprised look and grab your bag before standing up.
"I'm surprised you didn't follow her to practice like the stalker you are." You say teasingly. His laugh is weak in return and you look at him curiously. "You okay?"
"Just fine!" He replies loudly. You stare at him for a moment and watch as the tips of his ears slowly turn red. "I'm fine!"
"...If you say so." You start walking to the door and grab his arm on the way. "Come on, let's go."
With your gaze finally off of him his face flushes a deep red, to the point where he feels like steam could come out of his ears. He lets out a low sigh and tilts his head down to where he can see your hand latched around his wrist. What the two of you don't see is a nosy Sugawara quietly following your footsteps, his phone out and taking multiple pictures as proof.
"Gotcha!" He whispers with a chuckle.
------
"I still can't believe we're going to nationals!" You cheer as you exit the gym with the rest of the players. Though the Shiratorizawa game was the day before yesterday it still hadn't sunk in that the team had beat them. It showed on everyone's faces how excited they were for the upcoming games.
"Alright, everyone go home! It's dark so make sure to be safe!" Daichi yells. Everyone yells back before going off towards their houses. You look around for Tanaka spot him talking to Kiyoko. They're standing close to each other with serious expressions on their faces and you spin around before you can think too much about it. You aren't sure why you're feeling so worked up, at this point it seemed like the shared feelings the two of you had for Kiyoko were just a game between you guys. You begin walking home but after a few seconds by yourself someone runs up next to you.
"Ryu?" You ask in surprise. "Isn't it your turn to walk Yoko home?"
"Maybe." He says with a shrug. When you don't take your questioning gaze off of him he finally looks at you. "So?"
"You skipped last time too." You say. He avoids your look again and you sigh. The two of you walk in silence for most of the way until your house comes into view and he stops.
"I have something to say!" After months of being around him you're used to his yelling and screaming, but he sounded oddly serious for once. You stop walking and turn towards him to see his expression was as serious as his voice was. When you nod at him to continue he opens his mouth and his face flushes a deep red. "I-I! I need to..."
"Tanaka, speak clearly. You need to what?" You say after he trails off. He stays silent and you decide to say what you thought he was going to tell you. "Your face is really red so I'm guessing you scored a date with Yoko! I saw the two of you talking and it looked really serious-"
"I didn't! I don't even like Kiyoko-san anymore!" He blurts out before covering his mouth. You stare up at him in silent shock and he clears his throat. "I don't like her anymore, because there's someone else I like."
"...Oh, I'm sure they're beautiful then." You say after a hesitant pause. His face flushes even further and he nods quickly.
"Super beautiful! Really nice, and can cook really good, and is always supporting me, and-"
"Okay, I get it Ryu, that's enough." You can't help the bitterness that seeps into your voice, just like how you can't help but feel bad when he frowns. "I'm happy for you."
"Am I not doing it right? Suga-san said you'd figure it out if I said all that stuff..." He murmurs. You blink several times in confusion before realization dawns on your face.
"Wait." He looks back at you as your face flushes. "The person you like..."
"Is you." He finishes. The two of you stare at each other for what feels like an eternity before you turn around.
"No way." You say, covering your face with your hands. "And I like you too, that's why I've been so irritated whenever you talk to Yoko. I'm such an idiot!"
"You like me too?" You freeze when he yells behind you. When you finally manage to take a peek at him the hopeful look on his face makes your heart throb.
"Of course I do." You say after a long silence. His face lights up and he grabs you.
"Yes!" He shouts, lifting you up and swinging you around. You try to focus on how adorable he is and not on how dizzy you're getting until he sets you down. "So that means you'll keep bringing me lunch? And I can walk you to class and home everyday after practice? And we can go on dates-"
"Yes to all of that Ryu." You say with a wide smile. Suddenly his face lights up like a Christmas tree and you can't help but laugh. "Are you okay?"
"Maybe." He retracts himself stiffly from the hug he has you trapped in and bows. "P-Please take care of me!"
You flick the top of his head and he shoots up with a yelp. "Haven't I been doing that for months now anyway?"
"Right!" He instantly goes back to being stiff and turns away. "I'll see you tomorrow!"
"Tomorrow's Saturday Ryu."
"The day after the day after tomorrow then!" He yells before beginning to march away. You stare at him in amusement and wait until he's a bit farther away before whipping out your phone and calling him. He looks back at you with what you assume confusion before answering the call.
"Goodnight Ryu, I like you." You say before he has the chance to speak. You see his face flush crimson as he almost drops his phone.
"I l-l-like you too!" He struggles before quickly hanging up and shoving the phone back in his pocket. Right when you turn around to make the rest of the trip to your house you hear him yell your name, and when you turn towards him he waves to you. When you wave back he motions you to go home, which you do with a wide smile since you know he's watching you walk the whole way. Before you go inside you smile at him, and even though he probably can't see it you have a feeling he's smiling happily back.
"Now, tell me why you're in my house Koshi." You say as you glance into your living room, where he's sitting on the couch. "I saw you rush ahead so I know you came here."
"Your mom let me in, it's always nice to see her." He leans back with a wide smile and you flop onto the couch next to him.
"You didn't answer my question."
"I just wanted to make sure everything went well with you and Tanaka." He holds up his phone where several pictures of you and Tanaka from just now sit. The quality of them is incredible and it's clear that it's the two of you. "Already sent you the team groupchat!"
"You're obnoxious." You groan.
"Am I? I just wanted to make sure you guys got together, that's all!" He says with a wide smile. "So, are you happy?"
You stare at him for a moment before smiling back. "Of course I am, I have the best soulmate in the world."
"So when's the wedding?" He laughs and dodges your hand as you swat at him.
"You're definitely not invited." He gasps and you laugh.
"I'm so hurt!" He stands up and walks to the door dramatically. "I'm leaving!"
"Alright Koshi, get home safely." You wave at him as he gives you a soft smile. He closes the door quietly behind him and you stretch out on the couch. Your phone dings with a text and you open it to see a goodnight message from Tanaka.
"Goodnight Ryu." You murmur happily before letting your phone drop onto your chest. In his own room he's also smiling at his phone, the same feeling of happiness flooding his emotions as he clicks his phone off. With your hearts now connected the two of you felt like true soulmates, and with that the words on both of your wrists finally fade away.