Disclaimer: I own very little.
A/N: This was originally posted on Saeki's birthday.
Worriers
"Is he any better?"
Upon hearing the quiet voice, Saeki turned to look towards the doorway. "Thankfully, yes," he said, smiling a bit. "He's asleep now, though. Must be the fever."
"I'm glad." Oishi sighed in relief as he walked further into the room. "I was really worried."
"Well, don't be. He'll be all right." Saeki turned to look at his unconscious captain again. "Really, now. He should have known better."
"We all should have," Oishi said, crouching down next to the bed. "Though the sun is nice and all, it's still not good to play on the beach all day without cooling down every now and then."
"Yeah… and he got so caught up in the extra beach volley matches he didn't even go swimming like most of us did." Reaching out a hand, Saeki touched briefly Aoi's forehead. "I should have kept an eye on him."
"It's not your fault." Still, in Oishi's voice he could detect traces of similar guilt, and he wasn't even Aoi's vice-captain at all. "If anything, we all are at a fault."
"But he's my captain. I should have made sure he's okay." Saeki sighed. "It's my responsibility as his vice-captain and senpai."
There was a hand set on his arm. As he turned to look at Oishi, he found a careful smile directed his way. "…I know."
He knew, didn't he, nobody else but Oishi could, really, out of both their teams. While they may not have looked very similar at a first glance, well, they were still both vice-captains. And good vice-captains, as a rule, were also natural worriers.
"How can I just go on to high school and leave him on his own?" Saeki asked after a moment. "He'll get himself killed without anyone there to look after him. Today's just proof of that."
"How can I just go on to high school and leave Momo and Kaidou on their own?" Oishi asked back, equally serious. "They'll kill each other without anyone there to look after them. Any day is proof of that."
Saeki's lips twitched. "Maybe we should –"
He never got to finish his sentence, though, as he heard a quiet moan from Aoi's direction. Instantly turning to look at his captain, however, he was relieved to see the boy was still sleeping just as peacefully as a feverish boy could. Slowly relaxing, Saeki realized that Oishi, too, was leaning worriedly over Aoi's mostly still form.
"He'll be all right," Saeki said again, and he wasn't sure which one he was trying to reassure, Oishi or himself. He wasn't sure whether it truly mattered, anyway.
The hand that had previously rested on his arm was moved to his shoulder as Oishi straightened, still staying close to the bed. After a moment of rare hesitation, Saeki brought his own hand to cover it. Oishi didn't seem shocked or even surprised, thankfully, simply standing there, quietly helping him keep watch over his captain.
At least he wasn't worrying alone.