Scars That Mend - Kiribaku Emergency Services AU

Warm Sand

"Toshi, ball!" Denki shouted from the other side of the volleyball net, pointing to where the ball had landed beside the lavender-haired man's deck chair. He pushed up his sunglasses and retrieved the ball, lazily tossing it back to the blonde. Denki caught it clumsily, turning to Shoto with a pained look. "Try not to hit it so far, dude."

Shoto shrugged, adjusting the rolled sleeves of his cotton shirt with a gentle sigh.

"Oi, Ei." Mina hissed, grabbing me around the neck. "After we beat Team-No-Braincells, wanna do girls versus boys?"

"You're the only girl, Mina."

She tilted her head, biting her lip. "Kyo-chan?"

I shrugged. "If you can get Kyoka to agree..."

Mina pouted, turning to where the purple-haired technician lounged in the shade. They pulled down their sunglasses with a huff, glaring at Mina. "Not a girl, Mi-chan."

"I know! But-"

"Alright, ready?" Denki called, tossing the ball in his hands a few times. Mina and I readied ourselves, grinning slightly. We'd been playing against the detective and paramedic for a while, beating them easily. Mina, being a dancer on top of her job as a bartender, was much more athletic than either of our opponents, and my background as a football player gave me an edge. Not to say the other two weren't athletic - Denki was lithe and nimble, and Shoto clearly got a lot of exercise - but neither of them seemed to understand how to win at volleyball.

After a few short volleys, Shoto huffed in the mid-afternoon sun, fanning himself with his hands. "I need to cool off. I'm done."

Denki groaned, looking around for someone else to join his team. I shook my head, also feeling the effects of the unseasonably warm October weather, reaching for a bottle of water. "I'm out, too. It's hot."

"We'll play later, when it's cooler!" Mina agreed, and the four of us joined Kyoka and Hitoshi on the sand beside their deck chairs. I glanced over to the deck, where Katsuki was aggressively preparing lunch. Meat was stacked on the grill, beside a handful of veggie skewers for the vegans, Hitoshi and Kyoka. 

"I still can't believe you guys did all this for me." I said, leaning back onto my elbows. The sand was warm against my skin, sticking to me slightly from the gathering sweat. 

Kyoka let out a chuckle. "We didn't do anything except show up. Scary Dog over there arranged everything."

"I really appreciate it." I mumbled. "It's nice to celebrate with friends."

"We're...friends?" Shoto mumbled, eyes widening slightly.

I cocked an eyebrow. "Why else would you be here?"

He shrugged. "I was told to transport you. I thought that was my sole purpose for being here."

I shook my head, feigning offence. "I can't believe you think we aren't friends, Shoto."

The man looked up with a start, his two-toned hair shifting out of his heterochromic eyes. He looked slightly embarrassed, but didn't say anything. 

"We should go swim!" Denki said excitedly, downing the rest of his can of beer in one go. "Come on!"

"Nope." Hitoshi ordered, grabbing the blonde by the wrist before he could sprint to the ocean. "No swimming when you've been drinking."

"But-"

"Denki, no." Kyoka confirmed. 

"Denki, yes..." The blonde mumbled, but flopped back down onto the sand.