Monochromatic: Haikyuu Fanfic

Chapter 9: Mean

Umeko Fukui overall is a good person. Sure, perhaps she may have skipped some cleaning duties from time to time, or drift into a daydream in class occasionally, but overall she's a good kid. She has manners, gives polite greetings, and even helps elderlies cross the street. She does her homework in the earnest, and does the chores around the house.

A good kid. A good kid who deserves a decent, painless life.

That's why she's questioning the heavens why she deserves to be a bus full of rowdy, fired up volleyball players.

She groans at hastiness of her decision, throwing her head back against the leather seats. Matsukawa, who sat at the isle across notices and gives her an apologetic, yet amused smile.

"It gets worse, don't worry."

Fukui plugs her ears with her fingers to mute out noises, mostly consisting of Oikawa's ramblings and Iwaizumi irritatedly telling him to shut up. Some of the noises also came from the underclassmen, such as Yahaba mumbling in nervousness and Kindaichi sympathetically patting the boy's back.

How did she end up in this bus anyways?

***
Fukui poked her head outside the crack of the sliding door just outside her classroom just a couple of hours ago to see the boy before her. She gave a polite smile.

"Iwaizumi," Fukui's shoulders lax before him, she could've sworn Sensei would've found out already... "What brings you here?"

"Are you coming to the game after school today?"

Well, Iwaizumi is Iwaizumi. Blunt and straight to the point, that Fukui remembered about him, those traits tracing back to even his childhood years. Fukui shoved her hands in the pockets of her uniform and shrugged lazily.

"Yeah, I was going to, actually. I was gonna hitch a ride with one of the girls... Match with Karasuno, right?"

Iwaizumi nodded. He never really approached Fukui before despite knowing she's back - perhaps he had known it would only lead to nowhere. Because who in the world go up to someone you only knew as a child and say, "hey! I used to be your friend. We should hang out again"?

Well, there's Oikawa in that list.

"Oikawa needs a couple of hands for this match, since ours was scheduled directly after school, we might not have enough time to prepare. We just need someone to help around." Iwaizumi paused. "Well, he was hoping you'd fit the job."

"He can't go ask me himself?"

"He knew you'd turn him down if he asked directly."

"Smart boy." Fukui paused to consider her options. "What kind of work are we talking about?"

"It's not a hard job - just time-consuming. We just need someone to set up the towels and fill up the water bottles before the match while we warm up."

"So what, like a manager?"

Iwaizumi nodded.

"I don't know... It feels like betraying my previous team back at Tokyo..." She said unsurely, and Iwaizumi just sighs, as if expecting this kind of answer.

"...but then again, they're in a prefecture of their own. I guess I can help around as long as it's a one time thing..."

***

"Matsukawa-san," Fukui says, eyes fixed outside the window of the bus watching endless path of sidewalk pavement whoosh by. "How long do we have to wait?"

The said boy looks outside for any indication of where they were. He hums, "ten more minutes, if I'm right. Just a few more turns and -"

"Aya-chan!!!"

Oikawa's loud voice echoed throughout the chatters of the club members, syllables of the Ayame's name playing on his lips. He held a phone close to his ear, a sweet smile pans from from his expression.

A sigh is audibly heard from the phone's speakers, "what do you want, Assikawa-san?"

"I'm just here to say good luck on our upcoming match, but of course you won't need it! There's no point if we're just going to mercilessly crush you!"

Fukui feels her throat dry up - how can he deliver that phrase so sweetly? What's this? A yandere school prince archetype? He definitely didn't seem like it...

"Very funny." Ayame replies sarcastically. "If you don't have anything useful to say, the please," she says with an exasperated tone, "hesitate to call me whenever."

"Mean as always! I'm hurt! To think I was going to offer you something exciting before the match too..."

He singsongs the last part playfully to spark curiosity in Ayame. After then string of low buzzing follows, just the little sound emitted by the signals of his phone. It heightens the eagerness of Oikawa to enlighten her to just what the 'exciting thing' is. He got her where he wants - an expectant smirk tugs on the corners of his lips.

The phone clicks, and the low buzzing noise halts.

It takes Oikawa a good couple of seconds before he registers what just happened, his once smirking lips melting into a frown.

"Gah! She just hung up on me! Can you believe that?!"

"Yeah," all of the members deadpanned in unison - as if it was the most natural thing in the world to say, and Oikawa's hand goes up to clutch his chest.

"You guys are so mean!"

"What a crybaby..." Fukui thought.