thank you to the lovely reader who made this request! i accidentally turned this into angst oops. I swear it wasn't supposed to be-
There's always those two kids at school who are never seen apart—and I mean never. Whether it be in the halls, in the classrooms, the bathrooms? Maybe, who knows?
You were one of those kids, and the other--well the other one was-
"I bet I could do an entire loop around the school with you on my back before class starts!" Nishinoya exclaimed.
"Oh really?" you purred, elongating the vowels in your words.
"Let's see," he grinned. You hopped onto his back with ease, his arms securely fastened under your thighs as he prepared for take off.
"Comfy?"
"Very."
The rambunctious boy smirked back at you before sprinting through the crowd of students who were simply trying to enjoy their short break.
"Nishinoya!" a teacher shouted as the two of you jetted past. You turned around and blew a raspberry at the grumpy vice-principal, making sure you didn't lose hold of the boy's shoulders as his figure disappeared into the crowd.
"Oi—watch out Asahi-san!" you shouted to the tall brunette as he flinched and quickly jumped out of your path.
"B-be careful!" he exclaimed to the two of you, Sugawara by his side.
"Are they trying to set a new record?" the setter rose a brow.
"I don't even know..."
Nishinoya's quick and shallow pants were all you could hear as the two of you weaved through the school's obstacles. Obstacles being students, lockers, the principal, teachers—wait, the principal?
"(l/n), Nishinoya, my office, now."
The boy skidded to a stop as you frowned with regret. You hesitantly slid off of his back, looking at him with fear of what would happen next.
"You think we'll be alright?" you asked, your quivering so subtle that only he could notice.
"I hope so... I don't wanna get suspended again," Nishinoya's disappointment added a significant amount of weight to the already downcast mood.
Nishinoya immediately noticed this and squeezed your hand in his own, "I'm sure we'll be fine!" he flashed you an iconic grin before letting go. A sense of relief washed over you as you both approached the principal's door.
The man sat in a black office chair, legs crossed as irritation etched his stern features. You gulped as a bead of sweat ran down the side of your face. Sure, you had gotten used to teachers' everyday reprimands but the principal... this was something else.
"This is the eleventh time..." he pinched the bridge of his nose, "the eleventh time I've gotten reports from teachers of you two breaking school rules." his tone was firm and angry but also straightforward which you very much appreciated. The passive aggressive teachers were the ones to avoid.
Nishinoya puffed at his blond tuft of hair, scoffing with his arms crossed. "What was that?" the man boomed towards your friend. "I-it was nothing sir... he meant nothing of it," your words came out in such a weak tone, they weren't convincing at all.
"You both know, any signs of affection are prohibited at school—as known as rule #4, no PDA." he ordered.
You furrowed your brows before doubling over in laughter, your anxious facade dissipating completely, "W-wait, gimme a second... PDA?!" you repeated, wiping away tears of laughter.
The man's face drooped into a scowl. Nishinoya couldn't help but snicker beside you.
"You think we're dating?" you asked. "That's what PDA is, (l/n)," he said in a quieter voice. "So if we were just two friends—which is what we are," you looked at Nishinoya for confirmation and he nodded firmly, "would we still have gotten in trouble?"
The principal paused for a moment as if he couldn't comprehend the stupidity before him, "Yes... you both run through the halls every day and cause a disturbance to both students and teachers, not to mention carrying another student is dangerous and against school regulations."
"Oh." you blinked, "Heh... shit," you cursed under your breath. "I heard that," the principal remarked.
"So, as for punishment, Nishinoya Yuu," he began as the boy refused to look his way. "You have already faced a week suspension this year, so only a two week suspension would be fit for you—and club activities are banned for a month and a half."
Nishinoya stared down at his lap, holding in his many words of anger, so he wouldn't further the consequences. "...Sir, it was my fault actually, I pressured him into all of it," you cleared your throat.
The man furrowed his brows, glancing between the two of you. He already knew the truth, being a principal made it easy to see through students' blatant lies, but he wanted to see how this would play out. "(l/n), you would only be suspended for a week since this is your first time. Nishinoya's time would add to your own, making it a three week suspension."
You gulped and noticed Nishinoya shuffle by your side. "(y/n), that's not fai-" "Three weeks it is, and you'll be prohibited from attending volleyball club practices for 46 days," he nodded to finish his statement.
Your grades were decent, nothing lower than a B, but you would miss your teammates. The principal continued to add a few more words, telling you this and that, don't do it again, be a better student, and so on.
Nishinoya dragged himself out of the office behind you, "(y/n)..." he called your name with disappointment. "What?" you turned around unmoved.
"You're gonna be gone for a month. Why would you do that?" he asked. "Simple, you need to be at school more than I do, plus I'm just a nice person," you dramatically held the backside of your curved hand under your chin.
"Don't get me wrong, I appreciate it... but your family-"
"Is fine." you cut him off in a strict tone.
He gazed at you with heavy suspicion, but took the notion not to pry. The last time your friend visited your house, he had overheard something he wasn't supposed to. The way your family treated you disgusted him, hence the reason why you'd always be at his house instead.
"Plus I get like an extra spring break," you chuckled. Nishinoya frowned before nodding his head, "Fine, but I'm gonna come over on the days I don't have practice to pick you up. You can hang out at my place," he shoved his hands in his pockets as you started down the hall.
You agreed to the compromise before making your way home. The wooden door creaked as you entered through the front. A hostile, bitter voice greeted you after your painfully long day.
"YOU WERE SUSPENDED?!" your mother shrieked. You instinctively held your hands over your ears to prevent blood from dripping out. "Don't cover your damn ears!" she squeezed your hands in a painful grasp and pinned them to your sides.
"You fucking brat! All you do is run around with that Nishinoya kid all day, no wonder your grades are shit!" she spat in your ear.
You cringed as you felt the warm saliva drip down your neck. She glared at you before winding her hand back and striking you across the cheek with her backhand. "Go to your room, I don't want to see your dirty face for the rest of the day," she ordered, throwing your wrists to dangle by your sides.
You stumbled to your room and closed the door as gently as you could, for if it was slammed your mother would have confronted you. Grabbing a dirty T-shirt off the ground, you wiped your ear and neck where the saliva clung. You dug out a bottle of painkillers and swallowed a couple to numb the burning pain in your right cheek.
A faint tap on your window caught your attention. It sounded like a pebble.
You slid open the glass and stared down at your best friend. Nishinoya held out his arms, signaling that he'd catch you from the second floor.
Really? Won't he get crushed? Then we'd both die.
You slowly crawled out of the small slit and clung onto the windowsill, staring down at the ground that was several meters down. Nishinoya adjusted his feet as if he was about to receive Oikawa's serve and waited patiently.
"Are you sure about this?" you asked quietly so your mother wouldn't hear. He nodded confidently.
You slowly counted down in your head as your grip on the wooden ledge loosened more and more.
Three.
Two.
One.
You quickly descended towards the ground and fell into the boy's arms. He toppled over you, his hands supporting his body as he stared at you from above.
"Are you okay?" he asked, just barely moving his lips.
"Y-yeah..."
A few seconds later Nishinoya was helping you up by your hand. "What happened to your face?" he gently touched the tender spot where you were hit.
You winced in pain and he quickly retracted his hand. "S-sorry!" he apologized. "It's fine, I just face planted 'cause I tripped on the stairs," you laughed, cupping your cheek so you'd get used to the pain.
"Come on, we're going home," he turned his back towards you, signaling for you to hop on. You climbed on top of him as he adjusted his hands under your legs once again.
The rhythmic footsteps of his shoes sang to you like a lullaby as the sun's rays painted the sidewalk gold. A comfortable silence between the two of you was something rare since talking was both of your specialties.
"(y/n)," Nishinoya's voice broke the temporary silence. You hummed in acknowledgment with your chin propped atop his shoulder.
"I saw what happened."
You sat up, suddenly tense against his body. "You saw what?" you asked, the worry in your voice made no effort to hide.
"Everything. I saw her hit you, spit at you, hurt you," he grew angrier with each word as he listed your mother's actions.
Tears you hadn't even noticed began to break from your eyes and stream down your face. They rolled over your wound, burning it with relentless pain that you thought the painkillers would have taken care of.
They dripped off of your chin and onto the boy's shirt. You began to sob into his back, tears soaking through the thin, white cotton.
"Why do you let her do that? Why didn't you tell me?" he spoke as he faced forwards. You sniffled, unable to respond to his questions because you didn't know the answers yourself. At least not off the top of your head.
"My Grandpa said it's fine if you stay over, I don't want to bring you back there."
You silently nodded against his wet shirt. She was your mother, your own family who raised you and watched you grow to what you are now, but then again, they were the worst burden of your life. You weren't sure what the right decision was.
The two of you arrived at a medium sized suburban house with a dark wooden porch in the front. "I can walk from here," you mumbled but Nishinoya made no effort to release you.
He pushed the door open with his foot, announcing his entrance as he carried you to his room. You basically had the house completely mapped out since you spent more time here than at your own.
"You can take my bed, I can sleep on the floor," he stopped at his bed where you slid off of his back and onto the soft mattress.
"Thank you," you spoke up, looking directly at him without breaking eye contact.
The boy bent down and wrapped his arms around your delicate frame. You couldn't see his face at the moment, but you could tell his eyes were filled with tears.
You wrapped your arms around his body, feeling his warmth surround and comfort you. He pulled away and stared at you before heading to the door, "I'll get you a towel to shower, you can use my clothes."
You nodded, your hands in tense fists on your lap. This wasn't how you expected the suspension to play out.
The bed creaked as you fell onto your back to stare at the sticker covered ceiling.
Nishinoya was more than a friend, he was family to you. At least a better one than you've ever had. Maybe things would finally start to get better from now on.
A faint smile graced your lips at the thought.
"Thank you, Noya."
i'm considering writing a part 2 sometime, but then again i have over 100 drafts... stay safe everyone ♡