The King Fell and Needs Help Getting Up

Chapter 22

The next morning Kageyama wakes up before the others and quietly climbs out of his futon. He gets changed into a pair of shorts and a t-shirt before slipping out of the room. He quietly walks down the halls so he could go outside and run for a bit. He smiles when he feels the cool air of the dawn, the sun starting to rise and it was nice. He felt that a huge weight had been lifted from him since his talk with Miwa. It was like he was able to see the new path ahead for him.

He starts his morning with a few stretches, making sure his limbs are well stretched after a night of sleeping on them. Once he was all stretched, he started his run just around the camp. He didn't want to risk getting lost in the unfamiliar city with his phone back in the room. The darkness of the night before begins to fade as the sun rises higher, slowly lighting up Tobio's body and casting his shadow against the ground. The morning dew flicks against Tobio's legs as he runs through the grass. He's so focused running around the schoolyard, he doesn't notice someone watching him. It's not until he takes a break to catch his breath that he notices and only because he felt their hand take his.

"C'mon king. It's too early, let's get back to bed."

"Tsukishima, I'm not tired."

"It doesn't matter, it's cold out in the morning, come back to bed."

"You just want to suck the warmth out of me like a demon."

"Maybe, are you going to refuse?"

"Yes! I don't like being cold either! And it's not that bad! The summer morning dew feels nice!"

"Hah... Fine...How about one more lap and then you come back to bed?"

"...Hm... alright.. I guess I can work with that." Tobio says and Kei joins him for the final lap. Kei made sure Tobio kept to his word by dragging him back to the room.

"I said I would come! You don't need to drag me!" Tobio whines.

"I know, maybe I just like holding your hand King, ever think of that? Hm?" Kei teases and the setter's face flushed bright red as he quietly follows. Kei chuckled and soon they were back in the room, in their futons. Although not asleep, Tobio enjoyed resting a bit more with his hand in Tsukishima's.

It's around a half hour later when Nishinoya and Tanaka wake up. Noya quickly opens the curtains, waking up the 3rd years. The other second years got up on their own. Tobio sits up as everyone moves around getting ready for breakfast. Kei looks up at him from the side, admiring how the sun shines on Tobio's face.

'So pretty...' he thinks to himself as he hears Yamaguchi trying to wake Hinata gently. He turns around and flicks Hinata in the head.

"OW!!! TSUKISHIMA!! Why did you do that?!"

"Quiet down Boke!" Kageyama yells at him and Tsukishima laughs as he climbs out of bed. He holds his hand out to Tobio who takes it and is helped up off the floor.

"Let's go King, Shrimpy needs time to wake up." Kei says as he leads a compliant Kageyama out of the room.

"They're openly holding hands!" Yamaguchi says, closer to a squeal. Kei ignores it as they leave. Tobio follows Kei out to the dining hall, neither saying much as the others stir and get ready for another day of training. Kei brings Tobio to a table in the corner and has him sit against the wall, he told the setter it was cuz he'd want to also sit next to Yamaguchi but it was really so no one else could sit beside Tobio. The hall begins to fill with the other players and breakfast is served not long after, consisting of miso soup, rice and some rolled omelettes. Kei grab both his and Kageyama's portion bringing them to the table where Hinata had already began digging into his food.

"First to eat but the last to wake up, you should aim to switch those around." Kei says as he gives Tobio his tray.

"Yeah, you missed our morning run! And thanks Tsukishima." Tobio says as he slides the tray over in front of him.

"No worries. I'm sure I don't need to tell you this anymore but make sure to eat it all." He says giving Tobio a look that the seter rolls his eyes at.

"Yeah yeah... I've been doing better! You don't have to worry!" Tobio pouts as he begins eating his breakfast.

"Did Kageyama have issues eating before? I mean he's always eaten alot when we bought him food." Tanaka asks.

"He didn't eat much at home so he was starving when he ate food provided for him. He struggled a bit before the incident and wasn't eating at all or very little so I've been having to add more to his plate to make sure he eats enough. He's getting better." Kei explains and everyone nods and they move on from the subject, all talking about the practice games for the day and how excited they were to put their practice to use. Tobio stays quiet as he eats even with excitable Hinata blabbering beside him.

Once he finishes he leans against Tsukishima who was still eating. He closed his eyes to just listen to the sounds around him. They didn't make him overwhelmed anymore, they brought him comfort if anything. People weren't focused on him, they were all having their own conversations, none of which were about him. He didn't have to worry his parents were going to show up, didn't have to worry that there was something dark waiting for him when he opened his eyes. He sees the sun shining, feels the warmth from the people beside him. It was nice, it was comforting, others' touch hadn't been comforting before. Now his friends, wow he had real friends, touch stabilized his mind and a small smile came on his face. No one pointed it out but they all smiled back at the sight.