Trouble has entered the Chat

Sunshine, Where'd You Go?

Friday

- Incoming call from WakaJima - 5:23

- Voicemail - 5:23

- Incoming call from WakaJima - 5:28

"Good morning."

"Good morning Hinata. I'm sorry if I disturbed you."

"Don't worry about it, thanks for calling."

"Of course. Do you have your jacket on then?"

"Yeah, I've got it on."

"Ah. Good then. Did you sleep well?"

"Yeah," Not at all, "it was fine."

Moments of harrowing silence render both of them uneasy. "I see."

"How did you sleep?"

"Enough to get through the day. Thank you."

"I'm glad. Sorry, I've got to get going. I'm sure we'll talk in the chat later today. Thanks for calling."

"Right. Stay safe."

- click -

Not once did he say his name. Not once did he sound remotely awake. Not once did he sound carefree and bubbly.

They didn't talk the rest of the day.

-

Saturday

Normally, Karasuno didn't have weekend practice, but every day counted when it involved nationals. All of them had agreed to make up for lost time and get ahead of the game, landing Hinata another reminder from Wakatoshi on Saturday.

- Incoming call from WakaJima - 5:46

"Good morning. How did you sleep?"

Unexpected, but pleasant nonetheless. "Oh, I slept about the same as before." If not worse.

"Could be worse then?" It was.

"Yeah. It could be worse." It could be better.

"That's good. I have my jacket on, you don't have to worry about me."

"As long as you are warm, I can agree to that much."

"I am warm, thank you. Have a good day today, chat with you later?"

"I'll be here whenever you can be."

No such luck.

- click -

-

Later that day, the crows mention Sunday is free of practice after several of them get roped into family plans. It really isn't a big deal, but it removes any reason for Wakatoshi to call Hinata the following morning. He's not sure if that's for the better or worse.

Calling might not be an option, or texting, talking in general really, but that's okay. By the end of the day, his comforter envelops him in a warm hug he tried not to imagine as Hinata's doing. It's not long after that he's out for the count, sleeping through even the loudest noises from the outside world.

-

Sunday morning comes and Wakatoshi remains flat on his bunk, surrounded by his comforter and the temporary silence, listening to the hands of their shared wall clock tick by, one second at a time. There's no need to call Hinata, he tries to convince himself several times. Moments prior, his index finger floated millimeters from the dial icon, his finger itching to just press the button already, but his insecurities won out in the end.