Of Cats and Crows (Sugawara Koushi)

Hope Is a Fickle Thing

Mitsumi had been sitting in her bedroom crying since she woke up at 2:00 a.m. She had woken up feeling absolutely destroyed. No amount of blankets or tissues could help cure her of the heavy heart she was carrying. She was supposed to be proud of herself, and she was. But, there was something missing this entire time that she couldn't understand.

An hour had passed and she finally caved in. She wrapped herself in her weighted blanket and tiptoed to Suga's room. The door creaked open slowly as she crept in like a child sneaking into their parent's room. Suga was sleeping soundly. His mouth slightly agape as he snored. Mitsumi stealthily closed the door and crawled next to him. She bit her lip to hold back the ugly sobs that were threatening to escape again. He stirred for a moment as he felt the mattress shift beside him.

"Sparks, it's early." He said as he yawned. "Why are you still up? You have your final round." Suga rolled over to face her and let her snuggle in close. Her breathing was heavy and his shirt was suddenly wet from the tears that were on her face.

"I had a dream that my parents disowned me." She whimpered into his chest. "It's okay though. I just don't want to be alone right now." Mitsumi felt his strong arms encase her. The lack of support for her main career choice had caused a number of issues in her life. The horrible memories of all the discussions she had as a second year in high school with her parents had come flooding back to her as she tried to sleep.

She had been strong for the last few days. Mitsumi had been feeling like she was unstoppable playing as a duo with Mei. And suddenly, everything seemed to crumble, and she felt like she was using Mei as a crutch. Suga couldn't help but welcome her into the warm and safe place his arms had become to her. He was relieved he could be with her so easily.

He rubbed her back and nuzzled his head into the crook of her neck. "What can I do to help you right now?"

"Nothing. Just... Let me stay here. Please." Mitsumi sounded so desperate, it was breaking him.

Suga rolled over so that he was on top of her. He wiped away her tears with his thumb. The moonlight reflected off of her glassy emerald eyes. He knew that weight and physical contact is what grounded her the most. And he was happy to provide. "Breathe with me. We'll get through tonight together." He hugged her tightly and laid his head next to her's. Their breathing slowly began to match up. Her rushed and heavy breaths normalized, and her heart rate decreased. "I'll be right here in the morning."

...

"This place is packed." Kuroo looked around the concert hall with awe. All of the red velvet seats were filled on all of the floors. The auditorium echoed with the sounds of excited chatter.

Bokuto tugged at the collar of the dress shirt he was wearing. He absolutely hated having to wear anything with a collar. "It makes sense why you were so serious about dressing up." He felt like he was being choked by his clothing.

The entire Tokyo University Women's team had decided to attend on a whim. Especially after hearing that Suga was the only one that had been there every single round. Hironori and his wife were even able to make it. But they kept their attendance on the down low from the other piano majors

"Hey Bokuto, it might help if you fix your collar in the back." Hironori was sitting behind him and fixed his collar for him.

"Wow! That feels better! Thanks!" He grinned.

Makoto sighed in embarrassment. "Hey Bo, can I see the program?" She thanked him for the pamphlet and thumbed through it.

Uehara and Kizano were surprised by all of the credentials each pianist held. "Hey, Kuroo, I thought you said Mitsumi had done a bunch of these."