Oihina Week 2020 Part Two

help me, i'm chocking (love me, i'm dying)

SUMMARY

Shouyou's lungs ache, filled to the brim with flowers. His heart hurts, bleeding from an unrequited love.

"You see, when I can call like that to him across space—I belong to him. He doesn't love me—he never will—but I belong to him."
― L.M. Montgomery, Emily's Quest

Shouyou's lungs constrict again, and he coughs. The spots of red mingle with the purple tulip petals, and Shouyou crumbles them with his fist as he lets his head rest against the cold wall of the bathroom. His chest has stopped aching for now, so he tries to stabilize his breathing before standing up and tossing the crumpled petals into the nearby trash can.

He washes his hands, wiping away the specs of blood from them, and makes sure his face isn't stained either before looking at himself in the mirror. His face looks ashen, and there are big bags under his eyes. His usually bright orange hair is opaque, and all in all, he looks like a strong wind could knock him over.

The others are surely looking for him, since he left practice in quite a showy fashion. Not that Shouyou had any other option, since he's not too keen on letting everyone watch him as he coughs up flowers. Especially not him.

Shouyou doesn't know how it happened. Or well, when it happened. It's almost too easy to find reasons to love him.

At first, he was the senpai that they had beaten during his first year of high school to get to Nationals. A setter he held in high regard because he was even better than Kageyama, and was an outstanding player. Then, when he arrived at university, he became his team's Captain and starter setter. They became friends, partners even. His tosses were and still are one of the best Shouyou has ever spiked, like they are meant for him each and every time. They started to work well together, to communicate well in and out of the court.

So of course, Shouyou had to fuck it up and fall in love with him.

At first, Shouyou genuinely had no idea who was supposed to be responsible for the white carnations he had just coughed up, locked up in his room.

Shouyou isn't stupid, he knows what the Hanahaki Disease is. It's one of the main topics in the health class curriculum during middle school, and later on during high school again. So he knows what it means when the pretty petals come out, with small specs of blood all over them.

What he didn't know at the time, was who he was supposed to be in love with.

It should be stated, Shouyou has never been in love before, not really. He had had crushes - even though Kageyama won't ever hear about it, no sir - but those were fleeting and never left him with a particularly deep impression. He certainly hadn't coughed flowers before, that's for sure.

So who?

He got his answer a week later, during volleyball practice. He was doing some receiving with Bokuto's help, when suddenly he saw it.

Oikawa is as beautiful as ever, he had thought absentmindedly as he watched Oikawa set for Iwaizumi in a flawless manner.

Out of everyone, Iwaizumi has always been the one Oikawa sets for the best. Shouyou thinks it's fitting, they are childhood friends, after all, but their coordination and shynch are still something to be amazed by.

Then it hit him.

Since when did he think Oikawa is beautiful?

Now, don't het him wrong. From an objective point of view, Shouyou knew and still knows Oikawa is handsome and that he has an aesthetically pleasing physique. That much can't be denied. But to go from there to beautiful... well, that's another thing entirely.