ARCADE [Sakusa x Atsumu]

chapter 3. I got problems a smile can't solve

Receive. Set. Spike.

It was almost like a routine, like a machine producing the same movements over and over again to give the same results. He felt like he wasn't doing anything to advance, everything was saying the same in his eyes.

The ball fell back towards him as he stood ready to set it to a wing spiker. It took the simple movement of his fingers to send the rapid flying object towards a Spiker, resulting in the volleyball hitting the ground on the other side of the net rather loudly.

The sound of the crowd sounded distant in Atsumu's ears. Everything sounded blurry or like it was fuzzy. He couldn't focus all that well on what he could hear. The only thing his mind was set to was not failing his team.

The game was 17:13 for MSBY black jackals, it was their third set out of five. They have won the first set, losing the second one which forces them to try to win the two next ones.

Sure, they could do all five sets, but Atsumu didn't know if he could last that long. He took deep breaths as he got back in position, preparing for the next round of spikes and sets.

They were playing an official game in the Tokyo stadium, playing against a team from Argentina. He only recognized one player on the whole team, an old acquaintance of his as they played volleyball in high school.

One thing for sure, he knew he could never compare to that person.

Oikawa somehow managed to look impeccable the full game, not once showing a face of fatigue or any type of struggle. His sets were incredible, and clearly very easy to hit. He adjusted to every single player on his team like he was a magician of some sorts.

And that made Atsumu feel upset. Not with his team but with himself. He knew he didn't quite have the same skills as oikawa, which would explain why a lot of people Envy the said boy. Yet he was placed in a team mostly because the team needed a good setter. He always feels like he was a last choice as he knew so many more people had more talent than him.

He tried to stay focused on the game as much as possible, which was much more straining than it seemed. The fort said came by much faster than he expected, but also was much harder than the three first ones.

They ended up winning, but it was almost not the case. The fourth set was 27:25 for MSBY, making the whole team pounce in joy. Atsumu didn't even realize his team won until everyone started yelling. He quickly changed the look on his face to match his teammates, even though he was slightly confused in a way.

Everyone's discussions afterwards sounded blurred in his ears as they got back onto the bus that would lead them back to their practice gym. He simply put on a pair of headphones to ignore everyone.

He also ignored the threats he would get by text from a certain man, even though it honestly made him fear his life a bit. He couldn't remember if the match they played today was going to get broadcasted, if so he hoped no commentator said anything about him.

He knew Joon was persistent and would find him sometime soon, and he hoped the day would never come. It was starting to drive him slightly sick to think that he is literally chased by an insane person.

Joon was his past lover, if you could call him like that. Everything started off rather nicely, they met in college and got together as time went on. He always seemed extremely sweet and trustworthy, but some people change...

After a while, he started becoming a little more aggressive when they would bicker. At first, Atsumu didn't think much of it. He always assumed that Joon was just slowly opening up a bit more about his real emotions.

But slowly the loud yelling turned into hitting. And it wasn't cheap hits, they were strong and very painful. He's got one of his ribs fractured because of the said punches.

When it came to intercourse, it was much more forceful than it used to be. Yes, he's had his first time with the man, and it was honestly very romantic at the time . But it was like he started to absolutely hate intercourse after how Joon started to treat him.

So one day, Atsumu decided to run away and move into a new apartment under his mom's name. His mom simply thought it was because he had trouble affording an apartment with his name because he was in college or something in the lines of that, but his brother knew the real situation.

The bus finally arrived at the training gym, everyone getting out feeling rather groggy. Everyone went straight back home as the game was rather exhausting.

Atsumu decided to follow Sakusa home and not stay behind with the others to chat a bit. The black haired Spiker grunted but didn't complain.

They both walked to their respective apartments together, the silence being slightly awkward period sakusa finally decided to speak up as the other clearly seemed to want to stay quiet.

"What's up with you, ratsumu?" He asked a little harshly. The blonde-haired boy looked up towards him and arched an eyebrow. "Whaddya mean wassup?
- you're quieter than usual.
-Aweee is omi kun worried~?
-good night."

And with that, Sakusa entered his apartment and closed the door gently this time. Atsumu dropped his stupid smirk as soon as the Spiker was out of sight. He sighed and entered his own apartment quietly, knowing very well his mental breakdown wasn't going to be pretty that night.