Chapter 15:
Mizuki woke up early on Saturday morning to get ready for her date with Kageyama in the afternoon. She planned on telling Kei despite her feeling extremely anxious about it. Her phone buzzed as she received a text from him.
Kei: Going to the bookstore later. Want to come?
She smiled down on her phone. He mentioned the other day that his favorite archeologist released a new book about the Staurikosaurus and he wanted a copy of it. He was the biggest dork she knew. Unfortunately, she wouldn't be able to go with him as she already had plans.
Mizuki: I can't :( I'm going on a date later.
She took a deep breath as she waited for his response. She wanted to be honest with Kei, especially so that their fight from before doesn't happen again.
Kei: Date? With who?
Mizuki bit her lip as she explained the reason for her date with Kageyama.
Mizuki: Don't be mad!!! It's a favor to Rina. She wanted me to go on a date with Kageyama.
She waited for him again to reply but he didn't. It had been 10 minutes. She decided to text him back once more.
Mizuki: You're not mad, are you? :(
Mizuki buried her face on her pillow. She should've just said no to Rina's request. It was too late to reschedule, and she would feel terrible canceling on Kageyama. Her phone buzzed abruptly, which caused her to panic slightly.
Kei: No, I'm not mad. Where are you guys going?
Mizuki grimaced, throwing her phone on the other side of her bed. First, she knew that even if Kei wasn't mad, he wouldn't be thrilled with the idea of her going on a date with Kageyama, someone he didn't like. Second, she knew that Kei would tease her about it. She grabbed her phone and replied.
Mizuki: We're going to get food and then we're watching a movie...
After a few agonizing minutes, he finally replied,
Kei: Okay, have fun.
Mizuki was honestly freaking out - she had a tendency to overthink a lot of things. That quality about herself was by far not her favorite. Because of this, she decided to call Kei, just to make sure that he wasn't upset. The phone rang twice before he picked up.
"Hello?" He answered flatly.
"Hey, hey, hey! Kei!" She enthusiastically greeted him.
"Weirdo. What do you want?" Kei asked.
"I'm calling to say hi!" She blurted out suddenly. It sounded way too forced.
"I'm not mad, seriously." He reassured her.
"That's not... Are you sure?" She bit her lip nervously.
"I'm serious. Have fun." He responded quickly.
"I'll make it up to you! I'll buy you a thousand nerdy books that you want!" She laughed softly.
"Very funny. Bye." Kei hung up the phone right after. Mizuki sighed, relieved that Kei wasn't upset.
Mizuki continued getting ready for her date. She didn't really have romantic feelings for Kageyama, but Rina insisted that they go on a date, even if it was just once. She changed into a light pink, floral surplice front dress and matched it with a white, leather bag that she received from the twins as a gift. She strolled to the bathroom so that she could straighten her wavy hair and apply natural makeup on her face.
To pass the time until her date, she decided to complete some homework that she was behind in. She remembered that Kei had let her borrow his notes because she accidentally fell asleep in class the other day. She opened his book and noticed how neat his writing was. She couldn't help but smile as she flipped through his biology notes about the earthworm. As Mizuki reached the end of his current notes, she noticed a yellow sticky note on the page, addressed to her.
Don't fall asleep next time.
I'm not lending you my notes anymore.
You're on your own after this.
Mizuki couldn't help but laugh at his note. She took a picture of it and sent it to Kei. Within a few seconds, he replied.
Kei: I mean it. :P
She placed her phone down on her desk and attempted to focus on her schoolwork. She was grateful for him - Kei was dependable and honest, two of the many qualities that she adored about him.
After a couple of hours, Kageyama rang Mizuki's doorbell nervously. He had never gone on a date before. This was his first time. He could mess up in a million different ways which would be shameful and unfortunate. The front door slowly opened and he was greeted by Mizuki's mother.
"Kageyama-kun, it's nice to see you again." She beamed, "Come in."
He greeted her politely as he warily walked into Mizuki's house. He had only been there once when he visited her when she was ill. He remembered how awkward and tense the situation had become when Kei had arrived minutes after him.
"Honey! Kageyama's here for your date!" Her mother called out.
Kageyama blushed furiously as he played with the hem of his shirt. Rina helped him pick out an outfit for his date. They settled on a plain, white shirt with a denim jacket and black jeans.
Suddenly, he heard footsteps coming down from the staircase. Kageyama gazed up and he couldn't believe how beautiful Mizuki looked. Her smile was the first thing he noticed which made his heart flutter. Her hair seemed to dazzle against the light and the dress made her appear as if she came out of a romance movie.
"Kageyama, you look very handsome." She grinned widely as she moved closer towards him.
"Same," He sputtered out, "I mean, you are the same. Wait. You don't look handsome. I mean..."
Kageyama was royally messing up and the date hadn't even begun.
"See you later mom!" Mizuki grabbed his arm and they exited her house together.
"I hope my mom didn't say anything embarrassing to you when she let you in," She smiled sheepishly, "She can be a bit over the top."
Kageyama shook his head, still unable to form appropriate words to say to her.
"Kageyama-kun, are you alright?" She asked worriedly.
"Earlier," He coughed, "I meant to say you looked very... um..." He gulped anxiously, unable to meet her curious gaze.
"Don't be nervous," Mizuki giggled softly, "It's just a date. Unless..."
Could it be that Kageyama had never gone on a date before? This would explain why he was so jittery. Mizuki remembered going on her first date with her ex-boyfriend. They went to a movie and afterward, when he tried to kiss her, she accidentally slapped him because she panicked.
"I'll make this the best first date just for you, Kageyama-kun..." She clasped her hands together which made him feel a little more relaxed.
The two sauntered over to the bus stop as they waited for the bus to take them to the mall. They were going to grab some food there before walking over to the movie theatre to watch a horror movie. Kageyama didn't like scary movies but Rina insisted that it would make him manlier in front of Mizuki's eyes. As the bus arrived, the two sat in the middle together.
"Do you like horror movies?" She asked him.
"I do..." He lied, avoiding her gaze.
"I like them too!" She laughed gently, "I like not knowing when I'm going to be scared next."
Kageyama hated being scared. Still, he had to keep up his lie, as per Rina's request.
"You're not afraid of horror movies?" He inquired, looking at her dainty face.
"I'm afraid of a lot of things like closed spaces and robots, but not horror movies..." Mizuki admitted.
The two rode the bus for about 20 minutes before they had finally arrived at the mall. Mizuki pointed to a nearby sushi restaurant inside the mall, where they could eat and talk peacefully at the same time. They were about to be seated when a familiar face came out of the restaurant's kitchen.
"Iwaizumi-san!" Kageyama exclaimed, surprised to see his junior high upperclassman there.
"Oi, Kageyama," He answered back, "What are you doing here?"
"I'm... Uh..." He stammered, looking at Mizuki for help.
"We're on a date." She finished for him, which caused Iwaizumi's eyes to widen slightly.
"Follow me you crazy kids..." He seated them at a secluded booth and provided them with menus.
"How long have you been working here, Iwaizumi-san?" Kageyama asked curiously.
"For a couple of months now," He answered, taking the pencil that was tucked behind his ear out, "I only work during weekends though."
Iwaizumi stared strangely at Mizuki which made her nervous. He witnessed her and Kei fighting after the game with Aoba Johsai a couple of weeks ago.
"Nice job during the practice game by the way," Iwaizumi continued, "That number 10 can really jump."
"Thank you." Kageyama answered quietly as he tried to hide his face in the menu.
"I'll give you both a couple of minutes and I'll be back to take your order." He responded before facing Mizuki.
"I hope you and that blonde friend of yours made up after that fight." Before she could reply, he was called by one of his co-workers to refill some glasses of water.
"You had a fight with Tsukishima?" Kageyama raised an eyebrow, drinking the water on the table.
"It was more like he was angry with me..." She nodded, "We're fine now though."
"Can I ask what it was about?" He replied back, his eyes narrowing in concern.
"He got mad because I told you about my ex-boyfriend before him." She confessed shyly.
"Oh..." He managed to say, "Can I ask you a question about Tsukishima?"
"Sure, go for it." Mizuki smiled.
"Why are you friends with a mean guy like him?" He blurted out. He hoped that this wouldn't offend her, especially because Kei and Mizuki were good friends.
"Well..." She pursed her lips together, as if in deep thought, "A lot of people think that he's rude, but he's really not. Once people get to know him, they'd see how trustworthy and kind he truly is."
"Really?" Kageyama answered flatly. That didn't seem like the teammate he knew.
"Are you ready to order?" Iwaizumi said after he approached them.
The two ordered an assortment of maki, nigiri, and sashimi sushi that they could both share. For a while, they talked about their shared love for volleyball. Mizuki even felt comfortable enough around Kageyama that she talked about her father's games. She also told him about her unique experiences in Brazil, and how she learned to speak Portuguese and English during the year that she lived there. As for Kageyama, he talked about how his milk addiction started, and when he found out he wanted to become a professional volleyball player. After about an hour, the two realized that they needed to finish up soon otherwise they would miss the movie that Rina had recommended for them. It wouldn't be the worst if they missed the movie - they were both having a fun time after all.
~
1 hour ago, somewhere inside the mall
"I can't believe you talked me into doing this..." Mina muttered, trudging after Rina, who wore a black hoodie with a cap and black sunglasses in order to remain inconspicuous.
"We have to make sure that Mizuki and Kageyama are having a good time on their date." Rina whispered, her eyes scanning the mall for her friends.
"Why are you torturing yourself?" Mina crossed her arms, clearly annoyed that she agreed to go to this strange and unnecessary spy mission with her twin.
"What do you mean?" She raised an eyebrow.
"I mean, clearly you like Kageyama," Her sister stated loudly, "I don't think Mizuki even likes him like that. Why did you insist on setting up a date for the two of them?
"I made a promise to him," Rina responded, covering up her sister's mouth, "Don't be so loud!"
"This is ridiculous. I'm going to the restroom." Mina left her sister alone.
Rina sat down on the bench and tried to catch her breath as she waited for her twin.
They arrived at the mall around the time when Mizuki and Kageyama should be on their date but she hadn't seen them anywhere. She didn't understand how undercover spies did this.
"Oh, it's you." She heard a voice say.
Rina looked up and recognized the boy that was talking to her. It was Onion Head's friend from Aoba Johsai. She couldn't remember his name though.
"Oh! You're that guy from Seijoh! The lazy one!" Rina declared which caused him to sigh.
"I'm Kunimi Akira," He introduced himself, "You're the one that has a twin."
"That's me! I'm Suzuki Rina!" She beamed, "What are you doing here?"
"I'm waiting for my friend. He lost his wallet so he's trying to retrace his steps." Kunimi responded, sitting beside her on the bench.
"You're not helping him?" She asked curiously.
"We've been looking for almost two hours. I'm tired." He confessed, closing his eyes as he leaned back.
Rina liked him - not only was he cute, but he was also mellow. She felt inspired to relax because of him.
"What are you doing here?" He inquired suddenly, keeping his eyes closed.
The fact that Mina was the only one that knew her dilemma was killing her inside. Rina couldn't tell Hinata, otherwise, he might blab to Kageyama. He couldn't tell anyone about her problem, especially not Mizuki. She would feel horrible! She stared at Kunimi, who seemed to be falling asleep. Maybe she could tell someone.
"Kunimi-kun," Rina took a deep breath, "Can you keep a secret?"
"Sure." He answered blandly.
"I'm spying on my friends who are on a date right now. The problem is, I may like the guy," Rina disclosed softly, "But he doesn't like me."
Kunimi opened his eyes, intrigued by her problem. He noticed how messy her long, brown hair had become - probably from all the stress she experienced about that guy she liked. He liked her eyes - they seemed cold at first as they were gray, but he didn't get that feeling from her at all.
"Kunimi! I found it!" A voice called out. It was his friend, Onion Head.
Kunimi stood up slowly, before facing Rina, "It seems like you can't tell anyone else this."
"How did you know that?" She gasped, wondering if he could read her mind. That would be extremely embarrassing.
"You're telling your deepest, darkest secret to a total stranger..." He shrugged, waiting for Kindaichi to reach him.
"Well, you're not a total stranger. You're in Aoba Johsai's volleyball club." Rina grinned widely.
"I hope everything works out for you." He stuffed his hands in his pockets as his friend approached the two of them.
"That's it?" She frowned.
"See you..." Kunimi mumbled as he began walking away with his friend.
"Wait! Kunimi-kun..." Rina called out, causing him to stop in his tracks.
"Yeah?" He turned around, waiting for her to continue.
"Thanks for letting me tell you my deepest, darkest secret." She smiled softly. This surprised Kunimi, which confused Kindaichi.
"Yeah." He nodded slowly. Little did Kunimi know that he was becoming strangely fond of Rina.
Finally, they left as Mina approached her.
"Where have you been?" Rina sighed excruciatingly, "I still haven't seen-"
"They're eating in that sushi restaurant," Mina pointed to the sushi place, "Do you want to go there and watch them?"
Rina stared at the restaurant and took a deep breath, "I think we should go home."
Mina noticed the disappointment in her twin's face but she knew that if Rina saw them laughing and having a great time, she would feel even worse. She placed her arm around her sister and smiled.
"Let's go home." As the two walked towards the exit, they immediately spotted someone they knew.
"Is that... Tsukishima?" Rina squinted, making sure that she wasn't seeing things.
"It is..." Mina nodded slowly, "What's he doing here?"
"Isn't it obvious?!" Rina clamored angrily, "He's here to ruin their date! We have to stop him!"
The twins watched as Kei disappeared around the corner towards the sushi restaurant.
This could not end well.