Number Neighbours || kagehina || scrapped

2.2

"Alright everyone, listen up!" Coach Ukai's voice rang. Everyone looked in the Coach's direction to see Hinata and the girl named Yachi standing next to him. Hinata seemed excited, which exaggerated how nervous and bug-eyed Yachi looked. The team began to circle around them as they waited for Ukai to continue. Kageyama followed his team. "We got a couple newbies joining us today. They're gonna introduce themselves. You first, Carrot Top."

    Kageyama felt his stomach drop at the sound of Hinata's virtual nickname. Out of anything Coach could think of, why did he have to say that?

    Hinata stepped forward, suddenly looking nervous. That was the first time Kageyama saw Hinata nervous in person rather than through text messages. The messy haired kid fiddled with their sleeves anxiously and went paler than he already was.

    It was a strange sight. While Kageyama hadn't known Hinata in person very long at all, they were always outgoing and excited– even in the pictures he sent Kageyama a few weeks prior. Kageyama couldn't tell if Hinata was extremely confident most of the time or just stupid.

    "My name is Shoyo Hinata!" Hinata said loudly, almost shouting. While their words were relatively the same, Kageyama couldn't help but notice how different this introduction was to the one he got the night before. As Kageyama became slightly lost in though, Hinata bowed down toward the team. "Thank you for letting me join!" And with that, the ball of sunshine stepped back once again. As Yachi stepped forward, Kageyama and Hinata locked eyes– only for a brief moment, but Hinata smiled at Kageyama before shifting his gaze to Yachi. That damn smile, Kageyama thought. That smile made his stomach feel funny and his head feel light and fuzzy. It was a feeling he didn't understand.

"U-uh, my name is Hitoka Yachi," the blonde girl squeaked. Kiyoko walked up and put a hand on her shoulder, coming to her rescue.

"She's just here to check us out today," the calm third year explained. "If she likes it here, she might become our manager next year. So behave."

The last sentence seemed to be directed at Tanaka and Nishinoya, who immediately promised Kiyoko they'd be good with glossy eyes. Yachi scooted behind the taller girl, who bonked the two second years on the head with her clipboard. "That's not behaving,"

    Kiyoko and Yachi walked to the side of the gym as the rowdy boys almost melted to the ground, dumb expressions on their faces. "So..." Noya Senpai began, his sentence being finished by a dazed, "Awesome..." from Tanaka Senpai.

    "Alright, get off your asses," Coach Ukai called out to the team. "We're gonna play a practice game with each other."

Coach split them up into two teams; Kageyama's team had Hinata on it, along with Tanaka, Nishinoya, Kinoshita, and Daichi. The opposite team had Sugawara, Asahi, Ennoshita, Narita, Yamaguchi, and the snarky beanpole called Tsukishima– who could still make Kageyama do whatever he wanted for one more day, outside of games. That asshole's going down.

    Then, the practice game began. Kageyama made set after set to his teammates, his mind focused on what the best play would be. Hinata had amazing jumping power but struggled to connect with the ball, and when he did manage to make a spike there was a slim chance it would get past the blockers. Tanaka had a much better success rate, so he tended to favour the rowdy second year. 

    Without thinking, he set the ball to Hinata, who successfully got their team a point.

    "WOOOOOOOOO!" Hinata yelled, jumping up and punching the sky with their small fists. He turned to Kageyama, who was still a bit lost in his own head. "Kageyama! Did you see that? You went like bam, and I went up like woosh, and then it was like POW, and then–" the messy haired kid paused, cocking their head to the side. "Is something wrong?"

    "What?" Kageyama blurted, turning to Hinata with tinted cheeks. "No, uh–"

    "Kageyama!"

    The dark haired setter turned his head to the voice he recognized as Sugawara's. The grey haired boy acted a bit like an older brother to the entire team– wise and protective, but still a dick when he wants to be. Kageyama could tell this was one of his wise moments rather than one of his teasing ones. "Remember what I taught you," the upperclassmen suggested just before the game resumed.

    Well that's vague, Kageyama thought, almost annoyed. Suga taught him a lot of things– how important it is to know your teammates, how to bring the ball to the spiker instead of the other way around, how–

    That's it.

Before he knew it, the ball was passed to Kageyama. This is my chance, he thought, preparing to toss another set. He watched the fiery haired teammate leap, almost flying in the air, preparing for a spike. No, Kageyama's mind continued as the ball met his fingertips. This is our chance.

He aimed for where Hinata's hand would go and made the set.

WHAP.

Cheers erupted from either side of Kageyama– Hinata jumped up and down in excitement, making strange noises, while Tanaka yelled, "WAY TO GO LITTLE DUDE!" Hinata stopped jumping up and down after a few seconds, looking to Kageyama and smiling brightly. That smile could make Kageyama's heart melt every time.

The game continued smoothly, ending with Kageyama's team as the victor. Once it was over, Coach gave each player pointers and had them practice for a little while longer before letting them go. Kageyama was in a rush to leave, as he didn't want Tsukishima making him do something for him– especially not in front of Hinata. He bolted up the stairs to the club room, gathering his things quickly and moving swiftly towards the exit. As he was leaving, he felt something bump against his chest. "Ah, fuck–" a soft voice mumbled. "How do I keep running into people today?"

Kageyama looked down to see Hinata rubbing their face with a small pout on his lips. The small spiker looked up to meet Kageyama's eyes and smiled once again. "Kageyama! I need to ask y–"

    Kageyama peered over Hinata's head, seeing Tsukishima exit the gym with Yamaguchi. He quickly grabbed Hinata, cutting him off, and began running down the stairs and towards somewhere they could hide.

   "What are you doi– Kageyama!" Hinata called behind him. Kageyama swiftly turned a corner, pulling Hinata behind him. Finally, he let the spiker go. Hinata rubbed their wrist, glaring. "What the heck, man?"

    "Heck?" Kageyama mocked, leaning against the side of the building. Hinata huffed.

    "I don't like cursing, okay?"

    "You literally said fuck a minute ago,"

    "Shut up!" Hinata groaned, leaning against the area next to Kageyama with another huff.

    "Sorry," Kageyama muttered, not meeting Hinata's eyes. "I was... kinda hiding from Tsukishima."

    "That's fair," Hinata shrugged. "He's kinda mean, isn't he?"

    "He's a prick," Kageyama responded. He turned his head to look at the shorter kid, who was looking up at the sky. "What did you want to ask me?"

    Hinata looked down, fidgeting with a ring on his finger that Kageyama never noticed before. "Uh, well," they began, suddenly looking embarrassed. It's kinda cute, Kageyama thought. He didn't let himself look much more into that thought. "My mom told me I could have any friends I made over for a sleepover but I only really talked to you, Tanaka Senpai and Nishinoya Senpai and I don't trust them around my family so–"

    Without thinking, Kageyama reached out and rested his hand on Hinata's head, giving them a pat. "Go get your stuff, dumbass. I'll grab stuff from my place on the way,"

    Hinata looked up, a pink tint in his cheeks and a sweet smile on his face. Kageyama tightened his grip on the ginger's head, almost covering up for the endearing nature of the head pat, and directed them towards the club room. Hinata yelped, slapping Kageyama's hand away. "I'm going! I'm going,"

    Hinata ruffled his hair and shot Kageyama a look before walking towards the club room. Kageyama watched them go for a moment, and noticed a small skip in Hinata's step.