Inarizaki's Hidden Foundation

Ch. 6 - Slightly Inebriated Part II

A pair of hands hold back your long hair.

"I was gone for literally 35 seconds," Kita sighs. When you have nothing else left in your stomach to expel, you stumble back to the steps of the patio and sit. He then hands you a water bottle which you gratefully take and down half of.

Kita tells you, "You should try not to pursue Atsumu in that way. He's a friend and my teammate but just for your sake, he's known as a player. He was dancing up on another girl when I went inside, which just proves my point."

Huh, out of all things he could've said, you didn't expect him to start with that.

"Yeah, no. I'm not tryna tie him down like that. Just thought he'd be a good time," you start to justify. "But like.. not that you care. Why am I explaining myself to you? You don't even like me.."

He looks inquisitively at you. "I don't not like you. Where'd you get that impression from me?"

"When I talked back to you after you saved my face from breaking. I thought you were going to vote against me being manager.."

"I actually vouched for you. I told Coach that both you and Mina should join or neither of you. You are much more observant than your friend, no offense intended, so you would be a great addition to our team. But you probably wouldn't join unless Mina joined too. And that time I was legitimately concerned about your well-being. Glasses shouldn't be worn in sports as a general rule. If it makes you feel any better, too, you don't look terrible without glasses."

Utterly confused, you just stare at him. There's no reading this dude and what he feels or thinks about anything. "I- oh. Thank you. I had no idea.." you say. Referring to his last sentence, you add, "And what kind of compliment is that?"

To your surprise, he laughs. It's a low, husky and rich sound. It's.. really pleasant. "I've been told that I could work on my complimenting skills. I guess I just don't get a lot of practice because I don't give them very often. In all honesty, you really are pretty without glasses."

"Hmm.." you squint at him, suspicious. A second rush of dizziness comes around so suddenly that without thinking you lean your head on Kita's shoulder. "Ah, f*ck... my head.."

He stiffens at the contact but then moves closer so you can more comfortably rest on him. "It's getting late, maybe I should take you home."

"Mmph.. urgh, god dammit, Shinsuke, why do people drink? Why does alcohol exist?" you complain.

The door behind you slams open and someone says, "Oh, you guys are out here... WHOAA.. what be going on? Am I .. mm.. are we... interrupting?"

You and Kita turn your heads around, your chin still resting on his shoulder. It's Osamu, but he's seriously slurring his words. The heck? Isn't he allergic to alcohol? A whiff of something putrid reaches your nostrils and you almost gag. Ugh, he's been smoking weed. Next to him stands Mina. Or not exactly standing. She's heavily leaning on Osamu, very drunk.

"Y/N! KITA! Did you make up? Are we all friends now? Y/N you have to be a manager nowww!" Mina slurs out. Seeing her so messed up suddenly sobers you. Your head still throbs but you are much more clear headed and alert.

"Mina, you need to drink some water. Here," you stand up and hand her your half full water bottle.

"NO!" she responds, holding up her hand. "Not until you promise you'll be a manager. I want to do it so bad and all you need is to say yes." She looks like she's going to cry.

No, please, no waterworks today, I can't deal, you think. Rolling your eyes, you finally say, "Fine, Mina. I'll be a manager with you. But you have to promise to do most of the work, got it? Since you dragged me into this."

"YAYY!!! I swear to you I will," she exclaims, clapping in excitement. You then hand her the water and make her finish it.

You turn to Kita and say, "Hey.. actually do you think you could take all of us home? Osamu drove us here but clearly he's high.. I'm so sorry this is really inconvenient-"

"It's okay. I'd rather you all get home safely so I can take you. Let's get Atsumu and go." Kita says.

"Thank you," you reply, taking Mina by the shoulders to lead her back inside and to the front door. Kita leads Osamu the same way.

You, Mina, and Osamu wait out front while Kita goes to find Atsumu. He eventually does and the blonde looks to be the most messed up out of all of us, barely able to stand on his feet. Kita has to almost carry him so you grab the back of Osamu's shirt with your left hand and hold up Mina with your right, following Kita to his truck. You and Kita then throw them in the backseat.

Jumping into the passenger seat you say, "I can tell you my address and I'll watch over Mina tonight but I'm not sure where the Miyas live.."

"It's alright, I do. I'll drop them off first and take you to your place," he replies.

"Sounds good," you nod.

The ride is very quiet, the three in the back looking to have fallen asleep. You discreetly check out the inside of Kita's truck to pass the time. It seems a little old and rustic and the radio is staticky but at least it's roomy.

"This is my family's truck that we use on our farm," Kita suddenly says. "It was passed down from my grandfather so it's definitely been around for a while. But she's sturdy."

"Oh, that's kind of cool. An antique," you reply. How did he read what you were doing like that?

"Mhmm," he says.

You finally arrive at the Miyas and Kita takes the two of them inside. He comes out of the house a few minutes later and after hopping into the driver's seat, pulls out of the driveway. While backing up, he puts his hand on the back of your seat to turn his body enough to see behind. You suddenly take notice of his muscly forearms which were now exposed since he pushed up the sleeves of his buttonup shirt. The top two buttons are undone, revealing his collarbones and the top of his pecs.. and you can't stop staring.

"Y/N, are you feeling okay? You going to be sick again?" he asks, catching your blank expression.

"Uh- I- what? No, I'm fine. Just tired, it's been a long night," you stammer.

Your place is about 10 minutes away and you are grateful to finally be home. After parking in a guest spot near the lobby, Kita opens the back door and picks up a sleeping Mina princess style. You lead into the building and press the button to the 7th floor.

Opening your front door with the keypad, you hold it open for Kita and Mina.

"Here, can you put her on my bed?" you ask. He nods, putting your friend down where you instructed.

Once he's done that, you go into the kitchen to grab yourself and him glasses of water. You hand him one, which he gratefully takes and downs.

"Thank you for taking us all home. Especially because being DD is so annoying," I tell him.

"You're welcome. It's really no problem. I prefer to be clear headed and keep my friends safe," he says. Ah, a man of integrity, you chuckle to yourself.

He gets up and you see him to the front door. You're about to say bye when he turns around and asks, "So are you really going to take on the manager position, Y/N?"

A pause. "Yeah, I guess I will. I need it to fulfill my extracurricular requirement, too, so.. I don't see a reason not to."

He nods and says, "Okay. Well, I will see you on Monday at practice then."

You close the door when he leaves and stand there for a moment.

Welp, I guess I just committed to it, you think. You walk over to the couch in your living room and plop down on it. How did the night end up like this?