Haikyuu x Reader

Sakusa Kiyoomi - Bruised and Battered

*Soulmate AU in which soulmates share pain until they finally meet*

Sakusa must've looked like an old man, hobbling around school. His entire body hurt as if he had tripped down the stairs. He had been sitting in class, trying to mind his own damn business when the slow ache set in. His jaw had clenched tight, trying his best to distract himself from the discomfort of the purple bruises that were surely forming all over his body.

But, he was used to it by now. His entire life he had been dealing with the constant random pains and bruises. His body was littered with scars from all sorts of accidents, the most prominent being the one on his knee. Everyone got hurt, he knew that. Hell, even he got his own bruises after rigorous hours of practice, but this? This was just ridiculous. How the hell did he get stuck with the clumsiest person as a soulmate?

It was like every other day something was wrong. One time he was just trying to run laps with the rest of the team and his ankle randomly gave out, the throbbing pain from a new sprain of his soul mate's ankle having him sitting down to take a quick breather. There would be times when Sakusa would just be laying in his bed, trying to get some sleep when there was a jolt of pain passing through his nose, making him reach up to try to soothe the aching. Did you fall or did you drop your phone on your face? He didn't know and it didn't matter. All he knew was that his nose hurt and now he was annoyed and couldn't wait to finally figure out who you were so he could scold you for being so reckless with your body.

But, even if it annoyed the shit out of him, there was part of him that found your complete and utter clumsiness to be almost . . . endearing. It was so easy to picture himself tutting his tongue at you, calling you a dumbass, a cute pout on your face after stubbing your toe. He didn't even know who you were or what you looked like, but just like everyone else, there was a certain excitement within his chest about one day finding his soulmate and finally learning all of the stories behind the scars that you shared.

Sakusa didn't know the full extent of that dull throbbing pain that had been building inside of his body since class until the end of the day. He had been stripping his uniform to change into his set of practice clothes, the steady eyes of his teammates stopping him in his actions. "What happened to your legs?" Komori asks, tugging his own shirt over his torso.

It was then that Sakusa finally took a good look at himself. There were deep bruises on his shins as if you had slammed them into something. He caught himself shaking his head. So, he was partially right, but instead of falling down the stairs, you fell up the stairs and had likely hit your shins on one of the steps. But, as if those heavy purple marks weren't enough, a third bruise was just barely visible under the leg of his shorts. You were a walking disaster, that was for sure.

"Soulmate," was the only response that Sakusa could manage, bending down slowly to tie his sneakers, trying his best to ignore all of the aches and pains that you had caused him.

"Man, you really got it bad, huh?" Komori laughed, punching his cousin on the shoulder lightly. "I couldn't imagine getting hurt as much as you do. Seems like every week you have a new bruise."

The ace just shrugged, gingerly getting back up to his feet. It was just his life. It wasn't anything new. The bruises and the scratches and the scars were just a part of him, they were a part of you, a physical representation of a bond that couldn't be broken. There would be more scars and more pain as his life continued, but it was worth it to be with his other half. If he had to endure a couple bruises and some random small injuries to find you, he would do it over and over again. Bruises eventually go away and even scars can begin to fade, it's all only temporary, but the love and adoration that he hopes to one day hold for you would be eternal, making everything worth it.

Maybe it was cheesy. Maybe this whole soulmate thing didn't seem like his vibe, but what could he say? There would be long nights of just staring at the ceiling as his mind raced and his heart pounded and he was flooded with thoughts of his soulmate. What would they look like? How would their laugh sound? Could they sing? Do they know how many licks it takes to get to the center of a Tootsie-Pop? Did they eat pineapple on their pizza? Those important questions always plagued his mind, leaving him tossing and turning for hours on end.

He had dreamt of meeting you a million times. Sakusa thought that it might be something as small as recognizing a scar or watching you bump your head and then feeling pain in the same area, you know, like something out of a movie. Except that wasn't it. Honestly, he would've missed the opportunity if it hadn't been for Komori. The libero had nudged him as they walked to class one morning. "Hey, they have a bruise on their leg just like you do! That's kind of a neat coincidence, don't you think?" Komori's easy smile and warm laugh was lost to Sakusa. It was like his whole world was moving in slow motion, eyes trained only on the girl walking the halls with a group of friends, blackish-blue bruises painted across her shins, a larger one on her thigh just barely visible beneath the school uniform. There was no doubting it. After 17 years, there you were, right there in his own school this entire time.

One of your friends noticed the wide look on his face, tapping your shoulder, and gesturing towards him. That little smile that spread across his face as you turned to look at him for the first time was unlike anything anyone had ever seen, but he couldn't help himself. You were better than anything he had ever imagined. That absolutely bewildered expression as you stared up at him, your mouth settling in a small, "Oh," as you got a good look at him. There was a small scar above his right eyebrow, matching the one that you had gotten after running into a table as a toddler. A scar in the shape of an 'L' on left hand from the time that you cut yourself trying to open a can of peaches. The more you looked, the more markings you found that matched the ones that covered your own body.

"So, what'd you do? Trip up the stairs?" Sakusa teased, nodding his head towards the bruises on your legs.

"Hey! You don't know that!"

He felt the edges of his mouth twitch up into a teasing smirk. "So, you did trip up the stairs." Sakusa just tutted his tongue at you as he shook his head, just like he had always imagined. "Dumbass."