𝐖𝐎𝐑𝐃𝐒 𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐔𝐒 𝐀𝐂𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍. deaf fem! reader x ushijima wakatoshi

𝐢. 𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐞𝐭 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝

a light tap on your shoulder had you turning around in an instant.

"[y/n]!" what you assumed to be your name read from the parted lips of your friend, mika.

"mee-kah," you tried to say. she returned your efforts with a smile.

"less 'e' sound, but your pronunciation is really good. have you been practicing?" you friend said slowly in order for you to understand.

you blushed as you nodded. you had been born partially deaf. as you got older, your hearing got worse. you were still able to hear faint sounds, but they were often blurred making you rely on the ability to read lips. with the urging of your parents, you had also mastered sign language at a young age. they wanted to be able to communicate with you and thought it'd be easier for the family as a whole to learn instead of forcing you to read lips which wasn't always an easy thing to do.

"i've been practicing, too," she signed sort of clumsily.

you loved her for that. sure, one might automatically assume that this was simply a friend's 'duty,' but you thought otherwise. mika was not obligated to try and adapt to your inability to hear, the same being for you and your choice to practice speech. it was the fact that both of you were trying for one another, and really that was what you appreciated most.

pulling out your phone, you quickly typed: you're getting better as well. in times like these, it was easier to just text your thoughts. upon seeing this, mika untucked her phone from her back pocket and read the message.

you tapped her shoulder to grab her attention. "thak ou."

you really meant it.

the next day after school, you went to find mika. she had mentioned visiting the gym where the boy's volleyball team practiced – something about wanting to visit her relatively new boyfriend, semi eita. when you finally arrived at the gym's entrance, mika and the person you assumed to be her boyfriend were already waiting. excited, you waved at your friend before watching her part ways the tall ash blond. the later did not until after kissing a blushing mika chastely on the lips.

once he had left, you gave mika the universal look for he's hot. she laughed at your childish attempt to waggle your eyebrows up and down. untucking your phone from your back pocket, you proceeded to type a quick message: i'm assuming that's him? he's cute mika! i'm happy for you!

she blushed profusely once more. "thank you. i was hoping the two of you could meet after practice was over."

"okey," you smiled.

the two of you made your way towards the bleachers and settled into the second row from the bottom. mika had already whipped out the snacks she packed in a small bag separate from her backpack. you were intrigued when she pulled out a fancy looking container.

honest opinion. cute? tasty looking? mika, never step foot into a kitchen again? first impression, [y/n], tell me.

you read the text quickly before turning your attention back towards the box. mika lifted the lid to reveal five atrociously shaped tekkamaki tuna rolls. you tried to suppress the laugh bubbling up in the back of your throat. mika had never been able to cook, yet here she was whipping out these poor suckers.

they look great :D , you typed with a wicked grin.

she groaned. ikik, they're bad aren't they. it's just that these are eita's favorite, so i wanted to make some for him to eat at practice during break. cheesy right?

no, no. aww, come on they're not that bad... you took another quick glance at the sadly rolled tekkamaki. i mean it IS a little corny, but it's sweet. look at you, mika, perfect future housewife.

hehe, i wish ;) maybe we'll still be dating after college.

you laughed at that. mika had always been a hopeless romantic, so you were glad she was able to have met someone like semi. if only it was that easy for yourself. the two of you continued to make idle conversation – mika helped you practice your speech pronunciation, and you helped her tidy up her sign language skills. an hour must have gone by when the sound of a whistle blew causing mika's attention to wander over towards the set up team benches.

i'm gonna go give eita this bento box now. wish me luck T-T

mika left her phone in your hands as she grabbed the dark blue container storing the tekkamaki and went off to deliver it to semi. as you finished reading her text, you set the phone back down on the bleacher only for a blue and yellow ball to catch your gaze.

must be one of the volleyballs the team's using for practice, you thought. stepping down to floor lever, you bent your waist low enough to pick up the mikasa brand ball. unbeknownst to you, a boy with fiery red hair cried, "watch out!"

you did not hear his warning.

𝐚/𝐧: as i have never experienced life as a deaf person my descriptions may or may not be accurate. i do not wish to offend with my writing, so please let me know if there is anything you notice that should/could be changed. thanks!

this story can also be found on my quotev where it was first published (not be mistaken as a stolen story). text messages are italicized and will follow after a colon (unless formatted otherwise; hopefully will not be confusing if this is the case), "speech" will include quotations around it, and thoughts will also be italicized – mainly for y/n's pov (what she is thinking and assuming others might be saying/implying).