Behind a strong man [Ushiwaka /Oc]

Chapter 5 - A Visitor

Behind every strong man

stands a woman with secrets

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When Tamiko woke up the next morning she squeezed her temples. Having a headache early in the morning wasn't that comforting. She had gone to bed very late last night, having talked with Semi a lot. He had asked in detail how she was holding up and he wasn't very satisfied when she told him that all was fine. An hour passed of him rambling on about how irresponsible her mother was for leaving her on her own. When she went to bed it was past midnight and she was exhausted. Still half asleep she went to the bathroom to wash herself and got dressed. At first she didn't notice the time when she walked into the kitchen but the sight of Semi and Yamagata, both enjoying a fresh tea, surprised her.

"Did you sleep well?" Semi asked.

"I have a headache." she grumbled and Yamagata offered her a cup.

She thanked him and drank the train silence. The boys continued their conversation about the upcoming tournament.

"You guys are up early." she noted.

"It's past noon, Tamiko-chan. You slept through the morning." Semi explained with a cheeky grin.

"What?" Tamiko was shocked. "What did you guys eat for breakfast?"

"Is that really the first thing you worry about?" Semi wondered.

"We ate in the cafeteria." Yamagata explained.

Tamiko grimaced. Of course they did. She looked over to Semi and as if he could read her mind, he answered.

"We didn't want to wake you since you had a tough evening."

She slumped back against the back of the chair and sighed. Remembering it was the last thing she wanted to do. The sound of a grumbling stomach filled the kitchen. The boys refrained their laughter and Tamiko looked away, blushing.

"Come on, let's have some lunch. The others should be there already." Yamagata suggested and they followed him.

They walked to the cafeteria, a first for Tamiko. She always made her own lunch and never had to go to buy her own food. It was a large hall for all the students, especially for those who lived in the dormitories. Ushijima, Tendou, Goshiki, Ohira, Shirabu and Kawanishi lived in the dormitories since their parents lived a little too far from school. They had already occupied a table and waited for the others, Goshiki waving at them furiously. Tamiko decided to have a salad and some rice, the only meal she could afford at that moment. Semi had offered to pay for her meal but she had denied being very hungry. They joined the others while Tendou was talking about a new shonen jump comic with a lot of enthusiasm. Only Ushijima was listening although his disinterest could be seen from a mile away. Tamiko quietly ate her salad while sitting between Kawanishi and Semi. She felt a lot of eyes stabbing into her back. Sitting amongst the boys of the famous volleyball club as the only girl really gave her a lot of unwanted attention from the fan clubs. Ushijima and Semi both had the biggest fan clubs that always rivaled against each other, although both boys didn't care. All the boys of the volleyball club were single, mainly because they hardly had free time. Coach Washijo made them go through intense training every day, at least the ones that lived in the dormitories.

"Kageyama, you should eat more." Kawanishi told her.

"I'm not hungry." she insisted but her grumbling stomach betrayed her again.

"I guess Tamiko-chan is overwhelmed by the good food." Tendou grinned.

"You can have some of my chicken." Ohira offered.