.azumane.
the next morning, i woke up feeling groggy and like my brain was submerged in jelly.
i groaned and rolled over, jabbing a finger at my alarm to turn it off.
i rolled over onto my back and closed my eyes for a minute, before quickly getting out of bed, because that was a dangerous game. the alarm was off and i was still pretty tired, so it definitely wouldn't be a good idea to try anything that might make me fall asleep again and be late for school.
i sluggishly got dressed and ready for school, going downstairs for a quick breakfast, before heading back upstairs to brush my teeth and grab my book bag.
with a quick, 'goodbye,' to my parents, i was out the door.
"morning, asahi!" i heard a high, clear voice call out.
"how are you?" a deeper voice asked.
"suga? daichi? why are you outside my house? how long have you been here?"
they beamed at me.
"we've been here for about five minutes," suga replied.
"we're here to walk you to school to make sure you don't chicken out and skip," daichi explained. "also just to make sure you're alright."
my lower lip trembled slightly.
"you guys..."
"please don't cry!" suga shouted.
"i won't!" i exclaimed.
"i think this calls for a group hug then."
i nodded, and the three of us awkwardly clambered together for a quick hug, then we were off to school.
along the way, they asked what i was gonna do about the nishinoya situation.
"ughhh," i groaned.
"well don't sound so excited," daichi chuckled.
"yeah, whatever. i want to fix things between us... i don't know if i'll be able to tell him today, but i still want to try to talk to him some more. i miss being friends with him. and dating him too, but that's out of the question at the moment."
"well, it didn't have to be," suga pointed out.
i threw my hands in the air in frustration, clenching my fists.
"i know that! i feel really bad about it too..."
"sorry..."
i shook my head and dropped my hands back to my sides.
"it's fine. you're right anyway. but, yeah, you guys need to make sure that i tell him my future school plans by graduation at the latest."
"alright, we'll make sure to pressure you every single day."
"oh no, that actually sounds stressful," i complained.
"what were you expecting? now let's get a move on, you took long enough to leave the house, we're gonna be late!"
"it's not even real practice! the season is technically over!" i pointed out.
daichi pointed at me.
"touchée, but that still doesn't mean we should be late. after all, what kind of example are we setting as captain, vice captain, and ace? and also just third years. the firsties need a good example to look up to and follow."
"guess you're right."
"of course i am. now let's hurry."
i groaned, but we all sped up a bit and got to school quickly.
it seemed as though we were the last to arrive, when we got to the club room and it was empty.
"i told you, asahi!" daichi said, quickly throwing his stuff down and starting to change.
"yeah, i know, you told me," i grumbled, setting my things down as well.
suga didn't say anything, just giggled quietly and hummed to himself as he changed.
i took a quick glance at daichi, and saw him staring at suga with The Most whipped facial expression i had ever seen.
i chuckled softly to myself as i stuffed my clothes in my cubby and grabbed my volleyball shoes.
i walked down to the gym, figuring i'd give daichi and suga a minute alone 😳 before they came down too.
i walked into the gym and looked around at all the little groups before spotting nishinoya and tanaka on the floor a short distance between the other second years and the managers.
they seemed to be having some type of conversation, but i wanted to talk to noya, so i walked over to them.
"noya?" i said softly, looking down at them.
they both sat up quickly.
"what is it?" he asked, sounding hesitant, which was unusual for him.
"could i talk to you... alone?"
he made a face.
"whatever you have to say to me, you can say in front of ryū," he declared.
"alright." i sat on the floor next to them. "i don't want things to be awkward between us anymore, i hate it."
"you think i like it? it fucking sucks."
"yeah... which is why i wanted to talk. i know our talk last night was a little... rocky... but i want to at least try to be friends again."
he stared at me with narrowed eyes for a second, then resumed his normal expression.
"alright."
"alright?"
he shrugged.
"yeah. i don't see why not."
he held his fist out for a fist bump, and i gladly obliged.
"okay, so anyway, suga and daichi walked with me to school this morning, and i swear to god, daichi is so whipped."
"oh man, tell me about it! literally, he doesn't even try to hide it, they're so married."
"not to barge into this conversation..." tanaka began.
"go ahead," noya said.
"okay, y'all are talking about how whipped daichi is, have you seen suga?! seriously, there are some times where i'm surprised he doesn't get a nosebleed."
noya laughed loudly, and i chuckled.
"seriously."
as i took in the situation, i smiled. i wasn't expecting it to be this easy, and it wouldn't always be, but i was glad for this small bit of normal-ness.
then something a bit startling happened. for the first time in days, tanaka willingly addressed me directly without being angry and/or protective of noya.
"asahi, you've known them the longest. have they always been like that? what's it like being a third wheel?"
i thought about it.
"well... at the beginning of first year, obviously we had just met, so it was a bit awkward at first, but we all became good friends pretty quickly. and daichi and suga obviously had feelings for each other by the start of second year, but it wasn't until summer break that they actually got together. and being a third wheel to them is a bit awkward sometimes, but they try to keep it all friendly when i'm around."
"that's considerate of them."
"yes, they do tend to be considerate people."
the gym door slid open again, drawing our attention.
"well, speak of the devils," noya said.
"do you think they were in there fucking?" tanaka whispered.
i shuddered.
"i didn't leave them along for that long. plus, i don't wanna think about that."
"yeah, it's just weird and gross. i mean, fine for them, but i don't wanna know, that's none of my business."
"yeah, true."
practice started soon after, and went pretty well. a few awkward moments, but it was definitely an improvement from yesterday.