He had always despised th nickname 'King of the court'. It had seemed flattering at first, framing his skills, but Kageyama eventually came to realize that it framed his negative attitude as well. 'King of the court'. It simply described Kageyama's overwhelming desire to win, and his oppressive nature when it came to doing so.
And then it happened.
He set the ball, and no one was there receive.
-
It wasn't an instant death, but he slid away fairly quickly. Those moments had felt like an eternity to Kageyama; maybe they were. Tiny, tiny eternities where all he could do was sit there and watch the small frame of his boyfriend grow paler and paler as he was hooked up to life supports. It wasn't planned for, they weren't prepared for this. It was probably one of the other graduates who had gotten themselves drunk despite the fact they weren't of age to drink. A hit and run. Hinata was just crossing the street. He hadn't even done anything particularly risky; the light was red, the car shouldn't have been in motion at all. But it was, and that car slammed into the ginger just as harshly as it would have if Hinata had dashed in front of it on purpose.
All Kageyama could do was sit beside Hinata in the ambulance and hold his trembling hand while they drove. He couldn't stop the color from draining out of his body, he couldn't hold him while they rushed him to the hospital, he could only cry over him while the doctors called for hemostatic agents and bandages. He could only cling to the smaller hand that was losing its strength. He could only moan when Hinata smiled and told him it'd be okay, and that he needed to be strong and 'fly high' even without him. He couldn't hug him as his life finally slipped away.
He didn't even make it to the hospital.
It was a hit and run, running over both Hinata and the red light. It shouldn't have happened, but there wasn't anything anyone could do to stop it. But somehow, Kageyama still felt like it was his fault. Maybe if he had tried harder to protect Hinata, he wouldn't have...
-
The gym was empty, save for a lone person. He aimlessly spiked the volley ball at the wall, diving for it when it ricocheted in the opposite direction. The black haired boy fell to the ground, scraping himself on the hardwood floor. He pulled himself up, wiping the sweat from his forehead off with his arm. Kageyama ran to grab the ball as it rolled away, snatching it up with one hand. He threw it up, pushing the ball upwards with a swift movement, setting it high above his head. It fell to the ground with a dull, unsatisfying drop. Hinata couldn't spike the balls he set anymore.
He had set the ball, and no one was there to recieve it anymore.