Welcome to Aoba Johsai || Iwaizumi Hajime

Chapter 14

"So all of you are her friends?" Haneul's father asked as he looked at each one of them.

The four of them nodded with a nervous look.

Her father smiled at them. "What are you all doing here?"

"We wanted to make sure that she was feeling better," Iwaizumi replied.

"I'm fine... Thanks for worrying..." Haneul mumbled.

Her father looked at her before facing back to them. "It's nice to know that she has friends who worry about her. Although it's a shame that we are leaving soon."

At her father's words, they all looked alert. 

"Is... Is she really going to leave?!" Oikawa asked in a rush.

"Can't she stay...?" Hanamaki asked with Matsukawa nodding beside him.

"Is it because of what happened...?" Iwaizumi asked.

Haneul fidgeted on her fingers at their reaction. When her father saw that, he quietly enveloped her hands with his before speaking. "My heart broke every time I saw her cry because of the events that happened in her school. I don't know if I can handle that sight any further. I don't want her to go through those again."

Haneul looked down, not wanting to look at their faces as her decisions were still undecided.

"If..." Iwaizumi spoke, making her look up at him. "If we protect her, can she stay?"

The other three nodded at Iwaizumi's words. "Yeah, we will make sure to stay with her at all times!"

"We will try to prevent it from happening again."

"We will make sure she doesn't have to go through those again."

Haneul's eyes widened at their words. "I... I don't want to be a bother!"

"Non-sense," Iwaizumi said immediately. "You will never be a bother. You were never once a bother to us."

When Haneul's father heard their words, he smiled in relief. He was glad that she made good friends. He glanced briefly at his daughter before speaking. "I'm happy to hear that, but I guess it's up to her. I am planning on going along with her decision. If she still wants to leave, then we are leaving immediately. If she wants to stay, I am more than willing to stay."

Everyone's eyes went towards her that she bit her lips as she looked down. "U-Uh... I... I don't know..."

"Don't feel pressured... Regardless of our feelings, we will support your decision," Iwaizumi said before standing up.

The others stood up as well. "We should leave now and let her have some time."

Haneul did not have the courage to look at them as they head to the door. Her father understood her state and headed out with them to see them off.

"You are Hajime, right?" Her father asked quietly as he looked at Iwaizumi. "You visited last time as well."

When Iwaizumi nodded, her father grabbed his hands gently and patted them. "Thank you so much for taking care of my daughter. I heard from her that you especially helped her a lot."

Iwaizumi shook his head. "She helped us a lot as well..."

Oikawa smirked before saying, "I never seen Iwa-chan that soft on someone before!"

Iwaizumi blushed as he glared at Oikawa while the others laughed.

Her father smiled at Iwaizumi. "You know... She talks about you a lot."

That caused Iwaizumi's face to turn into a brighter shade of pink. "U-Uh..."

"I have never seen her smile that brightly when she talks about someone," her father said as he continued to smile at him. "You are the reason why she especially enjoyed her days here."

Iwaizumi's blush turned deeper each second while the others smirked at him. "Congrats, Iwaizumi."

"It was mutual after all."

"Iwa-chan, you look like you are about to burst soon!"

Her father chuckled at their interaction before letting go of Iwaizumi's hands. "Please go back safely."

They all nodded before leaving.

• • •

As the four of them walked together, the three of them teased Iwaizumi. For the first time, Iwaizumi did not yell at them and blushed as he covered his face with his hand. However, they were soon all silent as they hoped for Haneul to remain in Japan. They didn't want her to leave. They already made fun memories together and were hoping to make more.

Oikawa wanted her to stay as he has never seen Iwaizumi fall for someone and guilt might eat him alive since he threw hurtful words towards Haneul. They may have made up, but it doesn't change the fact that he still felt guilty about that day. It might really make him think that he is the reason behind her leaving.

It went the same for Iwaizumi. He felt guilty that he could not protect her better although he already did his best. He was aware of his feelings long ago but just did not want to pressure her about it. In fact, he wasn't even planning on telling her about his feelings. However, now that they are on the verge of not seeing each other anymore, he wanted to tell her his feelings. Although he wanted to, he was not planning on telling her as he didn't want to pressure her to stay if she truly did not want to.

• • •

Meanwhile, after the four of them left, Haneul's father looked at Haneul. "Do you want to rest? Or would you like to eat?"

"I want to rest..." Haneul said.

Her father nodded as she stood up from the couch. Before she could enter her room, her father spoke. "You know, that kid, Hajime, he seemed really nice and caring. I could tell why you like him."

Haneul smiled at the thought of Iwaizumi as she nodded. "Yeah... He is really kind..."