A reason for his smile[Atsuhina]

Chapter 8: Orange Juice and Chocolate Donuts

[Hinata's POV]

The sound of a someone else's breathing echoed through the locker rooms.

"Who's there?" I said, wiping my nose with the sleeve of my sweater.

No answer, only the sound of a quick inhale.

I turned my head and squinted, trying to see through the tears. I saw a mess of bleached hair and a surprised face. He looked familiar, and my eyebrows scrunched in concentration. My head tilted, then I widened my eyes.

"Miya Atsumu?" I saw a figure walk out into the open, scratching the back of his neck, and nervously smile.

"Haha yeah, that's me." He looked at me with a concerned face.

"Hey, are ya okay?" He walked up to where I was sitting and put a hand on my shoulder.

I started tearing up. "No, I'm not." I looked away.

He lifted his hand from my shoulder and walked around to stand in front of me. I looked up to meet his eyes and they were questioning. It felt overwhelming, so I rested my gaze on a random locker, eye level with me. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw his hand wave, wanting me to say more. I ignored the action then squatted in front of me.

"And why is that?" He stayed in that position until I looked over at him.

I inhaled and said, "My boyfriend just broke up with me." I looked up at the bright locker room LED lights. "This is the fourth wreck of a relationship I've had," I sighed and saw him raise his eyebrows. He sat down and lay his bag next to mine. Knee pads were sticking out of one of the side pockets, and I saw volleyball shoes through the unzipped portion of the zipper.

I saw Atsumu looking at my bag. He asked me, "Are ya going to the gym?"

I nodded. "I'm the new guy on the volleyball team."

"Oh, well, I'm the setter. And, as yer new setter, I need ya to be in top condition."

He stood up and held out his hand for me. "C'mon you need to get changed and introduce yourself to the rest of the team."

I took his hand and he pulled me up. I slouched and looked down. I felt empty. I felt sad. I felt alone.

He let go of my hand. "Hey, can ya tell coach I'll be a little late?"

I looked up. "Huh? Why? You're already here." I reached into my pocket and pulled out my phone. I checked the time and said, "If we change right now, we can get to the gym on time."

"Please, Hinata." He walked over to his locker and opened it. "I need to do something real quick," he said as he desperately tried to stuff his huge bag into the locker. I thought it was funny, and he eventually got the bag to fit and slammed the locker door.

"Will ya?"

"Yeah, sure."

"Thanks!" he said with a bright smile.

"You can call me Shoyo by the way," I muttered.

"Alright!" He said as he ran out of the locker room.

I felt a knot form in my throat. "No, not know." I choked. I changed into my practice clothes and walked to the gym.

"HEY HEY HEY! SHOYO!!!" was the first thing that I heard, then I was tackled.

"Hey Bokuto!" I tried for a smile.

"We're on the same team now!!" He took a step back and looked at me. His face was confused.

"Shoyo, why are your eyes and nose red?" He furrowed his brows.

"Ah that, just allergies." I gave him a cheeky smile. I faked a sneeze, trying to be as convincing as possible.

"Oh, okay. Well, I'm glad you're here!" He smiled again.

"Oh!" I remembered what Atsumu had asked me to do. "I have to go tell the coach something."

I ran over to where the coach was standing with a clipboard. He saw me and checked something off.

"Hi, coach. I'm Hinata Shoyo."

"Yes, I know. Why are your eyes and nose red?" He asked me.

"Oh, that," I said nervously.

"They're allergies coach!" I heard Bokuto say for me.

Coach raised his eyebrow. "What he said." I scratched my head.

"Alright. Go join the others, we will all get acquainted in a second."

"Oh, I met Atsumu in the gym. He told me he'd be a little late." Coach narrowed his eyes.

"Of course he will." he sighed. "Thank you for letting me know, no go on."

I nodded and ran off to practice with the others, sticking with Bokuto the entire time.

I lost track of time, but after a bit, I heard the gym door open. I saw Atsumu walk over to the coach, and overheard their conversation.

"Why are you late Atsumu?" 

"I had to go to the store. I was feeling low in iron, so I went to buy some spinach. I feel amazing now."

The coach had an expression that said Seriously? He exhaled and said, "All right, go join the others. We'll be introducing the new players in a couple seconds."

I returned my attention to setting for Bokuto to spike. I didn't understand how people like Kageyama did this. Shit. I thought as the knot in my throat grew, Now isn't the time.

"ALL RIGHT LINE UP, WE HAVE SOME NEWBIES TO WELCOME." I stood in line, waiting my turn to introduce myself.

[After practice]

In the locker room, I wiped the sweat off my neck. I felt exhausted, the emotional event of the day catching up to me.

"By Shoyo!" Bokuto said as he left. I waved good-bye with a weak smile. "See you tomorrow!"

Only Atsumu and I were left in the locker room. He walked over to where I was standing.

"Hey, so I went to the store earlier-"

"To pick up food for your low iron levels, right?" I said, wondering why he was telling me this.

"Yes, well no. I actually went to buy painkillers. I usually got headaches after I would cry and thought ya might want some." He said, handing me the travel-size pill bottle and orange juice.

"Did you used to cry often?" I asked. He seemed to know what to do.

He ignored my question. "I also got you some orange juice and chocolate donuts. They're my favorite and figured with all the emotions you're feeling, you'd forget to eat."

"Thank you Atsumu," I said.

"Yeah of course! I need my spikers to be in top shape after all." Atsumu grinned.

"I guess." I looked down at the things in my hands.

"Well, I have to get going. Hand me yer phone." I looked at him confused but did as he said.

He typed for a bit then handed it back. "Here's my number just in case ya ever need anything!"

"Okay," I told him.

I watched him leave the room, then looked at my phone. He had put himself in as #1 Setter.

"Wow." I chuckled softly. I got my stuff and walked outside. There was a slight breeze, and it felt good against my sweaty skin.

[3rd POV]

Hinata went home and took a shower. He debated on whether or not to text Bokuto but then decided not to. He didn't want to bother him with his problems.

After a long day, Hinata finally got some rest. He fell into a deep sleep and had a dream. No, not a dream. A nightmare.

Authors note: Hey ya'll. I am GENUINELY curious, what do you think the time line is for this story? like, what do you think will happen? Also 2.1K READS????? THE HECK, thank u all SO FRIGGIN MUCH >.< I wuv u all, and LOVE reading ya'll's comments <3

Word count: 1181