"Who'll take care of Miho? Oikawa-san and Kageyama have to go somewhere, Tsukishima needs to study, Iwaizumi-san has work, and Sugawara has work as well."

The five men stared at Hinata tiredly.

"Just rest, Shou-chan. Leave it to us," Oikawa assured. He looked at Sugawara.

"Suga, do your best," Oikawa cheered on before grabbing the bag full of necessities needed for his work. He turned to Kageyama and motioned him to leave fast before the responsibility of taking care of Miho would get passed to them.

Sugawara gasped and faced Oikawa but he was gone. Sugawara clicked his tongue and glanced at Tsukishima.

The blond male pushed his glasses up with his middle finger before leaving him alone.

Sugawara then turned to Iwaizumi.

"Good luck," Iwaizumi said before leaving him behind.

Now, only Sugawara and Hinata were left.

Miho stopped playing with her dinosaurs and went to Hinata's side. "Miho won't go to school if you're not there." She spoke in her usual manner of speaking but with more worry.

"Go to school. Your dad will be sad," Hinata insisted as he covered his mouth to avoid infecting Miho. The young girl noticed this so she backed away and covered her mouth as well.

"Miho, let's go?" Sugawara asked so Miho furrowed her eyebrows and pursed her lips. She held Sugawara's hand and sent one last glance and wave at Hinata before exiting the house.

Once everyone was gone, Hinata dragged himself to his room and laid down on his bed. He groaned as he felt his body ache. Did he overwork himself? That couldn't be allowed. Hinata had to earn as much money as possible. After all, his mother's condition was only worsening so Hinata needed to earn the money for the surgery and fast.

"Argh... I can't be sick. Not now." Hinata spoke huskily before closing his eyes to rest.

Hours passed and when Hinata finally opened his eyes, he could hear voices from the living room. He pushed himself up and placed a hand on his forehead. It didn't feel hot anymore so maybe he was fine. He then stood up and looked outside but to his surprise, it was dark. Hinata blinked before grabbing his phone from under his pillow. He checked the time and saw that it was 5:48 in the evening. He rushed to the bathroom to wash himself, much to the others' surprise, and afterwards, went back to his room to change clothes. Once he got changed, Hinata came out of his room with his phone and wallet.

"I'm going out for work!" Hinata yelled. He was exiting the share house when Sugawara held him back by his hood.

"Hinata, where are you going? Aren't you supposed to rest?" Sugawara questioned.

"Yeah! But I'm fine now!" Hinata turned around and grabbed Sugawara's right hand before placing it on his forehead.

"See? I'm not sick anymore! See you then!" Hinata rushed out and didn't bother hearing a reply from Sugawara.

"That... ugh! He's overworking himself!" Sugawara thought out loud as he walked to the living room with an aggravated expression. He sprawled himself on the couch and grabbed the controller as he pressed the buttons with too much strength.

"Oi, Suga! You're breaking the controller!" Oikawa reprimanded as he drove past Sugawara. This time, they were playing another racing game instead of Mario Kart. Sugawara scoffed as he focused his irritation on the game. He hoped that Hinata wouldn't get sick at his job.

Oikawa, Sugawara, and Kageyama kept playing with Miho and Tsukishima commenting on the game from time to time. They kept their eyes on the television not realizing that it was now 10'o clock.

Iwaizumi then arrived home and found his five housemates on the living room. He sighed tiredly and went to the kitchen for a glass of water then after that, he headed to his room to change but as he walked inside, he caught a glimpse of Hinata's room and found it empty. Iwaizumi walked back and observed the surprisingly clean but vacant room.

"Oi, where's Hinata?" Iwaizumi asked loudly so the others would hear him.

"Miho knows!" the girl shouted as she went to Iwaizumi with a grin. The male smiled at her softly and kneeled down to pat her head. "Shou-kun went to his work!"

This shocked Iwaizumi so he pushed himself up and thanked Miho before going to the living room. "You allowed Hinata to go to work? Isn't he sick?" he queried.

"That dumbass went even when Sugawara-san tried to stop him," Kageyama explained.

"Then you could've dragged him to his bed," Iwaizumi suggested before groaning.

Oikawa shifted his attention from the television to his childhood friend. He raised an eyebrow and waited for his friend to speak.

"I'll bring him home," Iwaizumi said before exiting the house.

Oikawa stood up earning him the attention of his housemates. He smirked and winked at them before he said, "I'm going to ask Iwa-chan something. Don't miss me too much."

Kageyama grabbed a pillow and chucked it at the brunette.

Oikawa caught the pillow and hurled it back at Kageyama's face and before the younger male could say or do anything, Oikawa ran away. He closed the door behind him and went out of the entry way. When he caught Iwaizumi meters away from the share house, he loudly called out to his friend. Iwaizumi stopped and turned around, causing Oikawa to grin slyly as he loomed closer to him.

Once he was a meter away, Oikawa smirked. "Iwa-chan... you look awfully worried about Shou-chan," Oikawa mused.

"Wha – Of course I am! He's sick!" Iwaizumi retaliated.

"Oh really? I'm worried about Shou-chan as well but you don't see me going after him," Oikawa countered.

Iwaizumi glared at his friend. "Hinata's sick. Are you telling me to just leave him be?"

"Yeah...unless you like him."

Iwaizumi froze when he heard Oikawa's statement. He took a long deep breath before heaving an equally long sigh. He stared at Oikawa seriously before saying, "I'm interested in him but that's all. I don't like him that way."

Oikawa blinked and didn't say anything for a few seconds. He then heaved a sigh. "Okay... I get it. Go after Shou-chan, I'm worried about him as well," he said with a smile on his face.

"Oikawa, don't think I can't see behind that smile. You're planning something, aren't you?" Iwaizumi spoke with a smirk. Oikawa huffed in amusement before crossing his arms.

"I'm just saying, Iwa-chan," he said venomously, "you know what happens when we both like the same person."

Iwaizumi failed to say something back.

Oikawa had gotten the last word so he smirked at his childhood friend and turned around before walking back inside.

Iwaizumi closed his fists and bit his lower lip before heading to where Hinata was. He had to forget about what Oikawa said and focus on getting the orange-haired male back.


"What happened to him?" Iwaizumi asked when he saw Hinata with his head lowered.

The female beside Hinata smiled apologetically before explaining the situation. She said that Hinata became sick while working so she made him rest. The lady, who was actually the owner of the bar and a coworker of Hinata's at the school, made Iwaizumi send the male back home.

Once Iwaizumi got the younger male, he walked him home. Unlike the usual comfortable silence that sometimes occurred between them, tonight was incredibly awkward. Iwaizumi didn't know why but he didn't particularly want to know.

"Iwaizumi-san, I'm going back to the bar. I have to work," Hinata blurted out.

"You aren't. You have to rest." Iwaizumi denied.

"But—"

"Listen, the others are worried about you. I don't wanna take care of you as well since I have other things to do and I'm too stressed to be worrying about others all the time so don't be stubborn and just go home and rest."

Hinata closed his mouth and gulped nervously. He looked ahead of him and sniffed. When Iwaizumi heard this, he felt the need to look at the younger male but stopped himself. He recalled what Oikawa asked him. Remembering it, Iwaizumi clicked his tongue and glared at the streets. He didn't like the younger male. He was just interested, that was all and nothing more.

Then another sniff was heard. Iwaizumi groaned and glanced briefly at the man beside him but he stopped scowling when he saw Hinata tearing up.

"I... ugh... I wanna work." Hinata sobbed silently.

Iwaizumi's eyebrows knitted together when he heard that.

"You're crying because of that?" Iwaizumi asked. "Work is good and all but you have to put your health first."

"I can't!" Hinata responded as he cried. "My mom's life is on the line!"

Iwaizumi didn't say anything back. He observed Hinata cry and since he didn't know what to do, Iwaizumi gently tugged on the younger male and awkwardly patted his back. He looked away from the shorter male and kept silent as Hinata wept while biting on his lips to prevent causing a noise. The two stayed that way until Iwaizumi felt Hinata's weight on him. The older male stared at him and realized that he must've fainted. Sighing to himself, he hoisted Hinata into his arms and carried him gently like a sack of rice.

The two men successfully got home and this time, only Oikawa was awake. He waited in the living room when he saw his friend come in carrying Hinata on his shoulders. Oikawa raised an eyebrow before approaching the two.

"What the heck? Why are you carrying him like that?" Oikawa queried.

"He fainted on me," Iwaizumi answered shortly.

"Hmm, is that so? You must be happy," The brunette said.

"Cut it out, Oikawa. If you like this brat on my shoulders then go ahead and hit on him. I don't like him like that so I don't care," Iwaizumi snapped back before pushing Hinata's door open with his foot and entering the room to place the shorter male on his bed.

Oikawa gaped at what his childhood friend had said. His mouth then curved into a smirk before it turned into a joyful grin.

"Okay then. Tomorrow, I'll go straightforward with Shou-chan and ask him out. Wish me luck, Iwa-chan," Oikawa declared before going to his room and locking the door.

Iwaizumi scoffed and stared at the male on the bed. He observed him for a while and after that, Iwaizumi slapped his own forehead.

"Like hell, I'll wish him luck," he admitted under his breath. He eyed Hinata and somehow he ended up saying to him, "You better reject that trash. I don't know if he's serious about you but he doesn't look like that to me so if you don't wanna get hurt... pick someone else. Someone... more reliable and mature."

With that said, Iwaizumi hit his forehead for the second time and turned around. He then left with an irritated expression. Who cares, right? Iwaizumi didn't care. Oikawa could flirt with Hinata and Iwaizumi wouldn't even bat an eye! Besides, Iwaizumi was too stressed to be wanting a relationship.


"Shou-chan, I realized that you're actually cute!"

"Eh? I'm a man, I'm not cute!"

"Then you're adorable."

"Oh... ok—wait, no! You just said cute but in another way!"

Iwaizumi sure didn't bat an eye but he was sure as hell irritated. He munched on his food angrily while ignoring the two people in front of him. God, Iwaizumi was eating. Couldn't they do this somewhere else? Not in front of his sunny-side up eggs would be a good start. Those two were disgusting.

"Oi, are you two flirting in front of food?" Kageyama asked with annoyance.

"What? Of course not, Tobio-chan!" Oikawa denied with a grin.

"Then shut up," Kageyama snapped back.

Iwaizumi bit his lower to lip to prevent himself from laughing but someone was already chortling loudly. It was Sugawara and Tsukishima.

"Oikawa! Do you want some ice for that burn?" Sugawara asked as he stifled a laugh.

"He'll just melt the ice," Tsukishima quipped as he stopped his laugh by drinking water.

Sugawara further laughed at this before choking on his food.

This time, it was Oikawa's turn to laugh. "Karma just served you!" Oikawa retorted.

"But not as much as Kageyama served you," Tsukishima jibed for Sugawara, who asked for a clap back which Tsukishima gave with satisfaction.

Iwaizumi snorted and drank his glass of water.

Oikawa glared at Iwaizumi and saw the amused look of his friend. Oikawa smirked causing Iwaizumi to feel irritated. How could he smirk when he was getting roasted? Iwaizumi couldn't grasp it and it pissed him off even further.

Slamming the glass of water, Iwaizumi licked his lips and gleamed at his friend.

"Iwaizumi-san, do you need more water?" Hinata kindly asked.

"Like hell, I need it!" Iwaizumi shouted in response, making Hinata flinch. "Give it to Oikawa, it seems like he's thirsty but it's not for water." He then pushed himself up and fixed his tie with annoyance.

"Iwa-chan looks thirsty as well. Do something, Shou-chan," Oikawa retaliated.

"Tsk!" Iwaizumi clicked his tongue before leaving. Once he left, Sugawara stared at Oikawa.

"What was that about? Are you and Iwaizumi fighting? Like an old married couple?" Sugawara questioned.

Oikawa smirked and leaned on his seat. He thought about it for a while and received a sudden idea. He glanced at Hinata and rested his chin on his palm. "Think of this as our divorce since Iwa-chan got a new lover," Oikawa mused out loud. "Actually, Shou-chan... how did it feel being carried like a bride last night?"

Hinata, who was drinking, choked on his water and pounded on his chest as if it would do anything.

Oikawa smirked in amusement before scanning the other's expression. They seemed serious. What was up with that?

"I wasn't carried like that, am I?" Hinata asked frantically.

"Maaaayybe?" Oikawa teased.

"Argh! So that's why Iwaizumi-san's angry with me again!" Hinata hit his head and Oikawa almost felt bad. Almost. If only he wasn't enjoying it.

Meanwhile, Kageyama got his focus on the brunette. He bit the inside of his cheeks and leaned on his seat. Kageyama would get to the bottom of this. He just had to ask at the right time.

On the other hand, Iwaizumi went to work, still frustrated. He kept working and consulting others and he ultimately forgot about his problem. He kept his eyes on lots of paperwork and did his hourly check on the office. And amidst the busyness, Iwaizumi heard someone call out to him. It was his boss and apparently, he was allowing Iwaizumi to go home early. Now this would've made him happy but Iwaizumi wanted to avoid the place as much as possible. Yet there he was, walking home at three in the afternoon.

As he headed home, he heard someone call out to him so he looked around and surprisingly, he found a girl with orange hair coming up behind him. Narrowing his eyes, the girl looked familiar.

"Iwaizumi-san!"

This caused the male to flinch in shock. He backed away and bowed politely. "Uhh... do I know you?" he asked.

"Iwaizumi-san, it's me! Hinata Shouyo!" the "girl" said.

"What?! How did you – But you're a girl, I mean, a man! How could you—"

"I'm crossdressing," was the straight answer of Hinata.

Iwaizumi stopped asking and eyed Hinata with empty eyes. "What the," was all he could mutter. Iwaizumi then slapped his forehead and realized that every person had a weird hobby or two. He wasn't in any position to judge other people's hobbies so he stared at Hinata wearing female clothing and took a deep breath before placing his hand on her—his shoulders.

"It's alright. I won't judge you or tell the others. I'll be going home then." Iwaizumi then left but Hinata grabbed his wrist and made him look at him, shocking Iwaizumi.

"I don't like wearing female clothes."

Iwaizumi and Hinata kept quiet as they sent a blank look to each other. The older male gently pushed the younger male's hand away while Hinata stepped back.

"Why are you wearing that then?" Iwaizumi asked indifferently.

"The kids at the kindergarten splashed me with water! I needed to find a change of clothes and a friend who likes cosplaying had this extra clothing so she gave it to me!" Hinata explained with shame as he covered his red face. He couldn't possibly show himself to his housemates so he had to do something. He would not go home wearing female clothing. Knowing the others, he'd surely be laughed at. And Hinata wouldn't put his dignity in the line. So he faced Iwaizumi with a look of determination.

"You're going with me. You're going to help me buy groceries and male clothes," Hinata said with firmness.

"What? Do it on your own and leave me out of it." Iwaizumi replied as he backed away but Hinata suddenly raised a bag that looked like the ones mothers would buy at grocery stores to save the environment from plastic.

"Lezgo!" Hinata pumped his fist in the air before pulling the older man along. Iwaizumi furrowed his eyebrows as he attempted to pull himself back. Hinata noticed the resistance so he turned to him.

"We'll buy meat so help me, okay?" Hinata informed.

"I don't care! I just wanna go home!" Iwaizumi retorted but before he could do anything, Hinata started walking.

Iwaizumi followed him reluctantly.

The two men headed to the shopping street near their place. Various stalls were seen and almost anything that could be sold was there. Since Hinata needed to buy vegetables and spices that he'd used in the hotpot session with the others, he went to search for a stall with vegetables but he stopped when he saw something. There was a set of sashimi that was on discount.

"Whoa... it's not expensive," Hinata mumbled.

Iwaizumi glanced briefly at the shorter male beside him and wondered how long Hinata would keep wearing the female clothing if he didn't like the fact that he was wearing one.

"Are you gonna buy it?" Iwaizumi asked.

"Yeah! It's on discount so I'll buy one – no, two sets of it!" Hinata raised two fingers before he took two pack of sashimi. Before Hinata could get it, Iwaizumi flicked Hinata's hands away from the sashimi earning him a glare from the shorter man.

"Don't buy things that aren't needed," he reprimanded.

"But it's food," Hinata retaliated.

Iwaizumi folded his arms and stared at the younger male. Hinata kept his stance and appeared serious about taking the two set of sashimi. While they exchanged looks, Iwaizumi felt hesitant. It wasn't because of the food that Hinata would buy, it was because Iwaizumi couldn't take him seriously. Not when Hinata looked like a high school girl.

"Oh? What are you two doing?"

The two men stopped sending scrutinizing gazes at each other and looked at the old woman who was running the stall. They gave a polite bow and before Iwaizumi could mutter an apology for blocking the front of her stall, the old woman spoke.

"You two must be newlyweds! Here, have some sashimi! I'll give it to you in a lower price since you two seem to be arguing about it!" The old lady handed them two set of sashimi.

Iwaizumi blinked and shook his head. He opened his mouth to say something but once again, Hinata cut him off.

"Really?! Are you sure? We'll take it then!" Hinata eagerly said as he grabbed two sets of sashimi. He put it inside his bag and paid for it. Once they were finished, the two males went away and headed to another stall. On the other hand, Iwaizumi couldn't grasp how they looked like a couple. Certainly, they didn't look like that, right?

Wrong.

After the two finished buying vegetables and other foods from other stalls, Iwaizumi realized that he'd been getting compliments but not about him, it was about him and Hinata. As a newly married couple. They went to buy onions, garlic, soy sauce and other spices and what the two men received were praises from old women about how it must be nice to have your husband go grocery shopping with you while carrying the foods you bought. Iwaizumi was so tempted to tell them the truth but every single time he opened his mouth, Hinata would mutter a thank you as he bowed to the old women. It was truly amazing how Hinata could brush off the inaccurate compliments.

This time, the two went to buy meat. Iwaizumi was hoping that no one would assume that he and the younger male beside him were a couple when Hinata stopped walking.

"Iwaizumi-san... this time, let's pretend that we're reaaaaally a newlywed couple."

That stunned Iwaizumi. He narrowed his eyes and scrunched his nose before saying, "Are you an idiot? What would we get if we do that?"

Hinata faced the taller man and raised the grocery bag full of food.

"I didn't know people in Tokyo would give discounts for a newlywed couple but now that I know, let's make good use of it. I want to save money and you want to save as well! Let's do it! Let's buy meat and get a discount!" Hinata raised his fist in the air again.

Iwaizumi could hardly say any disagreement or complaint as Hinata linked his hand around the older male's arms.

"Lezgo!" exclaimed Hinata as he marched to the stall where he could buy meat.

When they finally arrived at the butcher's shop, they were greeted by the male butcher who immediately assumed that they were married. Iwaizumi scanned the place and seeing all of the meat inside, he felt his mouth water. Afterwards, he faced Hinata with a guilty look.

"Seems like we could only buy half a kilo of meat," Iwaizumi said out loud, catching the attention of Hinata and the butcher.

Hinata furrowed his eyebrows and said, "What? But we—"

"I'm a failure as a husband. My salary is too low so we should save money and buy less meat," Iwaizumi interrupted.

Hinata blinked once then twice then thrice. He cleared his throat and shook his head in disagreement. "Of course not! Don't worry, I'll buy half a kilogram of meat then you buy another half so we could get more meat! Stop being sad," Hinata hesitated as he took a deep breath before blurting out, "honey."

The butcher was moved so he added an extra kilogram of meat. Hinata and Iwaizumi bowed to show their gratefulness to the butcher before exiting the shop. Once they were out and away from the store, they snickered. They covered their mouths and chuckled at how much food they'd acquired because of a small, incorrect assumption. Hinata then lowered his hand as he beamed at the older male.

"Whoa! We should do this every time I go shopping! It's weird that people assumed that we're a married couple but it works!" he stated as he walked with a small bounce on each of his steps.

Iwaizumi nodded and was about to say yes when he realized what just happened. He walked slowly and let the younger male walk ahead. He watched Hinata check the bags in his hands as he kept marching home. Acting as a couple, Iwaizumi couldn't believe what he had done. He'd gotten caught up in the moment and the meat in front of him that he forgot that he was not supposed to act like a newlywed with the younger man as his bride. Grumbling at his mistake, Iwaizumi slapped his forehead before observing the ginger in front of him.

Maybe, Iwaizumi should reconsider what Oikawa told him. Even if the brunette did like the orange-haired male, that didn't mean that Iwaizumi couldn't like the same person. Sure, it would cause a conflict but surely, something like this wouldn't break his close ties with the brunette. With that thought in mind, Iwaizumi slowly accepted the realization that had hit him. It was unusual and unexpected but it seemed like the right answer at the moment.

What else could be the answer but this?


Once they got home, Iwaizumi instantly went to Oikawa to tell him something. Oikawa raised an eyebrow and told his friend to wait for him in his room. After a few minutes, Oikawa went to his room and closed the door behind him. He had his hand behind him as he leaned on the door while staring at Iwaizumi who was sitting on his bed with crossed arms.

"So... Iwa-chan, what's up? You went home with Shou-chan. Are you happy? Are you gonna rub it in my face to make me jealous?" Oikawa grilled.

"No... Actually, yeah. I'm saying this to make you jealous and," Iwaizumi started, "you might be right. I may actually like that person."

"Who?"

"Hinata."

Oikawa frowned after he heard this. He heaved a sigh and lowered his head. After a few seconds, he raised his head and showed a content grin.

"Finally! You realized it!" Oikawa exclaimed as he whined at how he had to plan all of his words to make Iwaizumi accept his feelings while not hurting him at the same time. Iwaizumi gaped at the brunette and stood up.

"You mean... you don't like Hinata?" he queried.

Oikawa's nose creased as he shook his head. "Shou-chan is cute but he's like my younger brother, in a way."

Iwaizumi rubbed the back of his neck as he groaned at the information.

Oikawa simply eyed his childhood friend before turning around and opening the door. Once he did, he found Kageyama looking at him with a grim expression. Iwaizumi stopped as he tried to process why Kageyama was in front of his friend's door while Oikawa pulled his phone out and checked it.

"Did you hear everything, Tobio-chan?" Oikawa asked.

"Yeah. I did. Thanks for letting me hear it, Oikawa-san," Kageyama replied as he entered the room.

Oikawa sensed that the black-haired male had something to say so he left the room and closed the door behind him, huffing in amusement. After Kageyama had asked him about his actions towards Hinata, the brunette decided to explain everything after lots of thinking. When Kageyama had heard it, he'd simply clicked his tongue and left the brunette alone.

Meanwhile, Kageyama faced Iwaizumi with his hands in his pockets.

"So you like that dumbass?" Kageyama greeted.

"Yeah. Why?" Iwaizumi nonchalantly replied, knowing full well who "that dumbass" was.

Kageyama grumbled under his breath and clenched the fists that were inside his pockets. He sent a scrutinizing gaze towards the older male and clicked his tongue.

"That dumbass has a lot on his plate. He has to support his sister's education and pay for his mother's medical fees. You know that already so why are you even doing this?" Kageyama spoke calmly.

"It's not like I could stop it, Kageyama. It's already there so I can't throw it away that easily," Iwaizumi retaliated.

Hearing this, Kageyama inhaled deeply before giving out a long exhale. He then looked at Iwaizumi with resolve.

"I might not look like it... but I'm worried for him. If you're not serious with him, then don't even try in the first place... Hinata has a lot of things to worry about, so don't add yourself to that list. You're not welcome."

After saying what was on his mind, Kageyama pulled his hands out and relaxed. He sent one last sharp stare towards Iwaizumi before exiting the room.

Once he was all alone, Iwaizumi plopped down on Oikawa's bed and thought about what Kageyama had said. He'd finally got the answer but somehow, he'd immediately been shot down before he could even try and say something to Hinata. Or maybe, it wasn't an immediate shot down, maybe it was just a warning before Iwaizumi could even try. Still, hearing that made him think hard.

Should he not chase after the orange-haired male after all?


A/N:

ANDDDDD SO IT BEGINS! Iwa will finally pine after a certain ginger! This chapter is quite angst-y, isn't it? What do you think would happen next chapter? Will a confession be said or nah?