The match had begun and tension was building. They had trained so hard for this match and, everything would be tested. So far, Aoba Johsai was in the lead. However, Karasuno was quickly catching up. They hadn't shown their opponents every new move in their arsenal but, they would win this no matter what.
Iwaizumi served the ball to Noya, who received it with ease. It bounced into the air and began to fall just above Kageyama. He assessed his surroundings and quickly found the person he would toss to. Four people ran to the net, Tanaka, Asahi, Tsukishima and Hinata. Hinata used his speed to get to the empty side of the net. However, as the opposing team ran to cover him, Kageyama saw another empty space. He tossed the ball with great force and it flew towards Tanaka. Tanaka's hand smashed the ball and it careened onto the floor on the other side of the net.
Karasuno cheered loudly for their point gained. Meanwhile, all but one member of Aoba Johsai were getting agitated. The not agitated member stood smiling at a certain ginger on the other side of the court. Iwaizumi smacked him on the back of the head. "Hurry up Shittykawa, we have a point to gain. You can ogle him later." Oikawa nodded, a small smile gracing his lips.
It was Karasuno's serve and Asahi was up. He tried his jumping serve and launched the ball to the other side. However, his opponent was Oikawa, and he saved it easily. The ball went up and fell towards Aoba Johsai's libero. He tossed it as best he could to Iwaizumi, who was smiling mischievously.
Shoyo saw through his plan and ran for the net from the back line. Iwaizumi gently tapped the ball, making it dip just over the net. But, before it could touch the varnished wood, Shoyo dived under it to receive it. Oikawa's eyes widened. He watched as Shoyo's bent knee smacked against the floor with great force. He was about to go help when Shoyo simply stood up. Instead, he grabbed the net with both hands and watched Shoyo.
"Shoyo, are you alright?" He questioned just above a whisper. Shoyo looked at him through the net and smiled. However, Oikawa could see the pain in his face and it only made him worry more. "I'm fine Tooru, just stings a bit." Oikawa nodded. "Ok but if it gets too bad, promise me you'll get off the court." Shoyo nodded before getting back into position. Oikawa didn't like this one bit.
Something clicked inside of Oikawa after that. Something made him want to beat Karasuno really bad. It was the fact that no one, not even Kageyama, had noticed the performance drop in Shoyo. It was a good thing he hadn't been tossed to yet. However, judging from the nod Kageyama just gave him, and the small nod in return, they would be using a quick this round.
He was right. The ball flew towards Kageyama, who was setting up for the toss. He took a deep breath before launching it towards the other side of the net. The problem was, Shoyo hadn't gotten there yet. The ball hovered in the air for a few seconds, giving Shoyo chance to hit it but, he was lower than normal. His hand could barely reach the ball, making his spike weak. Though, it still wasn't received.
Oikawa turned to his coach. "Coach!" He screamed desperately. Their coach was caught slightly off guard but managed to call a time out. That was their last one. His team would probably hate him for this, but he didn't care.
The whistle blew and both teams reconvened at their individual benches. All except Oikawa. He walked over to Karasuno's bench and pulled Shoyo to the mid point of the benches, away from their teams. "You promised you'd get off if it was too painful." Shoyo tilted his head. "What do you mean? It's not that painful." He smiled worriedly and, to be honest, Oikawa didn't know what Shoyo was worried for. Was it for him? Or was it for Oikawa being able to see it?
Instead of questioning it however, Oikawa grabbed Shoyo and pulled him in for a hug. "I'm serious Shoyo. Get off the court if it gets any worse." This wasn't just him being over protective. Not entirely. This was him talking from experience. He didn't want Shoyo to have a knee problem too. That would ruin the ginger. Shoyo wrapped his arms around Oikawa's waist and hugged tighter, unknowingly to Oikawa, lifting weight off of his leg. "Ok Tooru, I triple promise." The two separated without either team knowing any different, and went back to their benches.
Oikawa's coach grabbed his shoulder and smiled. "Do you have a plan?" Oikawa nodded. Shoyo would probably hate him for this but, it's for his own good. "We should ease up a bit." All Seijo eyes widened. "What?! Don't be stupid Shittykawa! Why would we do that?!" He couldn't tell them the truth. He sighed. "I'm getting a lot of enemies today. But that's fine, it's all for Sho-Chan." He stepped forward with the best devilish grin he could muster. "To throw them off." The coach nodded his head. "I see. Make them believe we're getting worn out, then strike back full force." The team made a sound of understanding before they all grinned. Shoyo looked over to Seijo instead of listening to Ukai and saw the grins. His body went stiff and a shiver slid down his spine. This couldn't be good.
The match continued and slowly, Shoyo's knee got worse. He tried to fight it. He tried getting Kageyama to hit his head so the pain in his leg was lessened but, annoyingly, Kageyama was in a good mood and wasn't wanting to hit people yet. What made it worse was, he knew that Oikawa could see it. He tried hiding it as best he could but, Oikawa saw through everything he did.
Just as the set was ending, Shoyo's knee gave out. He collapsed to the floor with a thud and Oikawa ran to the net. Shoyo tried to stand but, his knee was having none of it. Oikawa growled, and for the umpteenth time this match, he was angry at Karasuno. The team had only just noticed that something was wrong, and that was only because he couldn't stand anymore.
Oikawa moved to the side of the net closest to the benches. "Hey! Karasuno Coach! Swap Shrimpy out now!" Ukai looked at him with wide eyes. "What?" Oikawa narrowed his gaze threateningly. "He can't even stand on his own, get him off the court." Ukai looked to his star player and sighed. "Yamaguchi." Yamaguchi ran up to their coach, worry showing on his face. "Yes coach?" Ukai handed the boy a board and pointed to the court. Yamaguchi's face contorted into a mix of emotions. Happiness, sadness, anxiety. He wasn't too happy for Shoyo but, he felt happiness in knowing he was going to be playing a match.
The whistle blew again, this time calling for a player switch. Shoyo felt frustration as he realised who was to be swapped. However, when he tried to stand so he could walk over, he fell. He grimaced as his knee bent again and mentally slapped himself for dragging it on.
Suddenly, he felt a strong grip on both arms. He looked to his left to see Kageyama, scowl remastered and on full display as he helped his partner across the court. Then, as he looked to his right, his face grew guilt stricken. Oikawa looked pissed as he helped Kageyama walk him to the bench.
For the rest of the match, Shoyo watched from the sidelines. His anger rising as his mind pieced things together.
Once the match was over, Shoyo was helped to the line to show sportsmanship. However, he and Oikawa did not bow. They stood glaring at each other through the net. No matter how many times Kageyama tried to pull him into a bow, Shoyo refused to move. Only moving when both teams headed for their changing rooms.
Being able to stand on his own now, Shoyo insisted on walking back to the room by himself. Of course Kageyama tried to oppose the choice but, Suga came to the rescue and pulled Kageyama away.
Once he was slow enough to not be trapped in the group, Shoyo turned and headed for the other changing room. When he arrived, he knocked on the door. Iwaizumi answered and knew immediately who to call for once he saw the head of ginger. "Oikawa, you're fan girls are here." Shoyo pouted at the name but stayed quiet. Iwaizumi was the only one who knew after all.
Oikawa left the changing room, scowl still in place. Before Shoyo could say anything, Oikawa pulled him away and led him to a secluded place. Shoyo pouted the entire way, making it very hard for Oikawa to stay angry. Once they stopped, Oikawa forced Shoyo to sit down and take pressure off his leg.
Then, it got cold. Really cold. Shoyo knew it was now or never and cut Oikawa off before he could complain. "You went easy on us." Oikawa blinked in surprise. "What?" Shoyo scowled. "You went easy on us! How could you?!" Oikawa watched as Shoyo's eyes began to water. It was crushing his heart. He had made Shoyo cry again! He looked to the floor with guilt stricken eyes before answering. "You were in pain. I had to ease up or you would get a lot worse." Shoyo was about to argue when Oikawa's head shot up, rage covering his features. "And what about you huh?! You promised to leave the court if it got too bad!" Shoyo grimaced at the hurt in Oikawa's voice.
"I-I'm sorry..." Tears fell from Shoyo's eyes and onto the ground. "I didn't, mean to. I just, got way too, into it." Oikawa mentally slapped himself for the tone he had used. How could he be so mean when Shoyo's in pain? He knelt next to the ginger and wrapped his arms around him. "I'm sorry, don't cry. I'm just worried. I didn't want you having a similar injury to mine. You need your knees the most and I didn't want you losing them just to finish one match." Shoyo sniffled, trying his best to stop crying. "Can, can we call, it even?" He looked up to Oikawa, brown eyes glistening into a shade of amber.
Oikawa swallowed a breath before he smiled. He leaned down and kissed Shoyo's forehead. "Of course we can Sho-Chan. Now, let's get you to a medic." He pulled away and went to stand. However, before he could, Shoyo tugged on his jersey and pulled him into a kiss.
When the two pulled away, Shoyo was grinning widely as a pink tint spread across his face. Oikawa smiled at him, eyes softening at the sight. "Hm~... I have an idea~." Shoyo's grin dropped at the tone. He knew something was coming, and he didn't like the thought. Then, Oikawa lifted him up so he was carrying him bridal style. Shoyo squeaked. "Ah! What are you doing?!" Oikawa laughed. "Taking you to the medic of course~. Precious little Sho-Chan~." Shoyo wanted to complain. To yell at Oikawa. But, he couldn't. He was too busy dying of embarrassment. "I hate you Too-Kun..." Oikawa laughed once more. "And I love you Shoyo~."
Just down the corridor, a search party had been made. "Anyone found him yet?!" In unison, everyone replied. "Not yet!" Suga turned the corner before freezing. He watched as a bright red Hinata was carried away by a laughing Oikawa. He blinked, once...twice...three times before turning around and walking back to the group. "I think he'll be fine." Kageyama ran up to him, looking slightly panicked. "Did you see him Suga-San?" Suga nodded. "Yep! He's with a medic so, we can get changed happily." The entire team sighed in relief before walking off. Suga gave one last look in the direction he saw Oikawa and Hinata. "Finally saw it for myself. He better be nice to Hinata-Kun, or Karasuno will devour him like road kill." He said all too happily before skipping off to join his team.
Around another corner, Iwaizumi stood listening in. He heard the last thing Suga said and gulped. He quickly pushed off the wall and made his way to the medic bay. "I have to warn Oikawa. Though, I don't see him hurting Shrimpy, he needs to be careful. Or the crows will get him."
Around ANOTHER corner... Nah, I'm just kidding. :P