strawberry pocky | tsukishima kei [SLOW UPDATES]

the ups and downs of youth

Hey guys! I finally finished school, which means MORE CHAPTERS FOR U GUYS!!
Love you so much, and I hope you forgive me for last chapter :(
-
Lola

The harsh, hurtful statement echoed in your ears over and over.

Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry.

Crying would only give him more of an opening to tease and ridicule you, but you were already starting to feel the tears prickling your eyes. You took a deep breath.

"Uh, did you have to say it like that? I know you don't have to like me back, but you could at least be nicer about it...", you said quietly, your embarrassment becoming increasingly difficult to hide.

Kei's expression was unreadable. "I already knew you liked me. Yamaguchi told me. I was just waiting around for you to confess to me, and I didn't want you to get the wrong idea. I don't have any desire to be in a relationship with you. Not in the slightest."

Your embarrassment quickly turned to anger after hearing his response (which, by the way, didn't answer your question at all). Anger at Kei, anger at Tadashi, anger at yourself for believing he would like you.

"Maybe you should learn how to say things more nicely, or just keep them to yourself. No wonder you only have one friend, Tsukishima."   you seethed, turning on your heel and marching right into the gym to give Yamaguchi a piece of your mind.

Kei didn't follow you into the gym, even though he was the one who had practice.

Tsukishima Kei was not as smart as he looked, or prided himself on being. Especially not after today's fiasco.

He really did like you. He'd never felt this way about any girl before.

But the moment you said you had to speak to him, the self-doubts in his head grew exponentially. He knew it wasn't good to think such self-deprecating thoughts, but those nasty thoughts were a somewhat normal occurrence for him - whether they had to do with volleyball, school, friendships, his personality, or romantic endeavors. He knew he wasn't cut out for a relationship. To him, romantic relationships were just like the movies - two people falling in love and then becoming all sappy and lovey-dovey.

Tsukishima liked you, but that didn't change who he was. He was still cold, sarcastic, uncaring. He knew that deep in his heart. You deserved a boyfriend who could compliment you, show you off in public, kiss and hug you, and call you disgustingly adorable pet names.

But that wasn't him. Not in the slightest. So instead of going through the discomfort of baring his insecurities to you, he decided he would rather you hate him for a while.

It hurt, but Tsukishima Kei didn't talk about his feelings.

He sighed deeply and made his way into the gym, only to see you - and your tear-streaked face - standing in front of a timid-looking Yamaguchi at the corner of the gym.

Damn, he thought to himself. Maybe I shouldn't have let it slip that Yamaguchi was the one who told me that.

——————————————————————-
You pushed open the double doors to the gym forcefully, leaving them to make a loud bang when they closed again. The team's third year team captain stared at you, bewildered. You plastered a polite smile onto your face and feigned the high voice you used when speaking to someone older than you.  "Excuse me, may I speak to Yamaguchi? I promise it'll be quick." you asked.

The captain, Upperclassman Sawamura, glanced over at your friend, who was currently warming up, and then at his watch. "We currently have about five minutes before practice starts, so please do make it quick," he told you. You nodded and muttered a thank you as you stomped over to where Tadashi was warming up. He took note of you and raised his eyebrows, to which you responded by wordlessly grabbing his wrist and leading him to the corner of the gym.