The next morning Oikawa had sent a good morning message, including an apology for breaking his promise. Mina had responded as usual, ignoring the stab of pain in her heart from feeling neglected. That was a conversation they would have once she returned from the summer training camp. This was her first real relationship, and she was still learning how to express her feelings, even if she learned to suppress them her entire life. She was naïve when she dated Victor, allowing him to take advantage of her without complaint. And now… Even though she and Oikawa only began dating over a month ago, their relationship was important to her.
"You ready, Saito?" Kiyoko had been waiting for the brunette for the last ten minutes as she daydreamed, gazing at the clouds from the window.
"Mhm. Yes." A heavy sigh parted her coloured lips, drawing the attention of the Karasuno manager. As the two began walking towards the main gymnasium, Kiyoko had stolen a concerned glance at her friend.
"I thought you would be happier today. You can play again."
"I am happy about that. I guess my head is in the clouds today. Sorry for making you worry, though. I'll be fine." The foreign girl folded her hands in the air in a dismissive movement. "It sucks that we only have three days left."
"Hmm. Once we go back we'll only have a week before the tournament begins." She was not completely convinced that Mina was fine, but she allowed the deliberate change of conversation.
"Oh man. Don't remind me." The brunette brought her hands to her face while emitting a groan.
"Hey Akaashi, I think I'm seeing a ghost!" The abrupt outburst had startled Mina, who resultingly stumbled over a rock, almost crashing onto her face. She was seconds from tasting the cement, when Kuroo had caught her hand, bringing her back onto her feet. The black-haired captain raised an eyebrow at her, stifling his laughter.
"Bokuto, you almost killed her." Fukurodani's setter had his eyelids narrowed at the Ace, who was laughing awkwardly – not like he thought that would happen!
"You two are like a tornado, I swear." After releasing a dramatic sigh, Mina crossed her arms over her chest, pretending to be upset.
"Me? What did I do? If I didn't catch you, your face would have been a pancake right now." The Nekoma captain placed one hand on his chest and another in the air. "Next time I will not be a model citizen and help those in need if this is the thanks I receive."
"Hey! I didn't do it on purpose!" Bokuto was now pouting childishly.
Between the three of them, it was difficult to ascertain which one was the most dramatic.
"… I'm just glad I was not included in that definition." Akaashi commented, which only made Bokuto whine even louder.
All the while, Kiyoko observed the four friends in amusement. She was glad to see her friend's spirit lifted.
The entire day Mina was showered with love by her team-mates. She even received many warm greetings from the other teams, despite not interacting much with them. The emptiness that she experienced in the morning was slowly replaced with a warm sensation. Due to the fact she had someone glued to her at every point of the day, she barely had a moment to think about Oikawa. It was only after personal practice did, she check her phone for any messages from her boyfriend.
'Helloooo? Are you ignoring me?' There was an annoyed emoji at the end of the first text.
'Are you mad at me?' The second text was sent an hour ago, this time there was a sad emoji attached.
It took a few seconds to realize where the insecurity stemmed from – she forgot to press send on the message she had typed in the morning!
She quickly tapped call, then brought the phone to her ear. Each dial tone had expanded the guilt piercing her conscience. If she had checked earlier, she could have avoided this misunderstanding!
"Well look who it is." His words were spat in a tone that Mina was unfamiliar with, it was as if he were speaking to his enemy rather than his girlfriend.
"Toru… It was an accident! I thought I pressed send, but I guess I didn't." Underlying the explanation was a clear plea for him to forgive her.
"Are you sure it was because of an accident? Or did that /guy/ delete my message so you'd get upset with me."
When Oikawa originally saw the incoming call, he excused himself from practice – hence the reason he took so long to answer. When they began talking, the mocha haired captain settled onto the steps outside of the main building, with his caramel irises fixed on his shoes. He didn't mean to argue with her, or even mention the 'incident'. But after a stressful day, the captain's patience was running thin and he was in no mood for excuses.
"What are you talking about?" Mina whispered into the phone; her mind unable to understand what he was referencing.
"Oh right. You don't know. How expected." The sarcastic remarks were accompanied by a humourless laugh. "You can't be so innocent all the time, Mina."
For the first time, she absolutely despised hearing her name on his lips.
"Can you just tell me what you're talking about." She was beginning to feel desperate – how could she defend herself when she had no knowledge about the reason he was upset.
"I rather not. You're a smart girl, right? The famous prodigy from France. So, figure it out." The pointed answer had destroyed the small amount of tolerance she had been struggling to maintain.
"I don't understand why you're acting like this. You're the one who couldn't care enough to talk to me yesterday. I get it, my health doesn't matter to you. But at least spare me this better than thou crap. I don't even know what's going on!" The brunette attempted to gain strength from the stars above, but all they did was remind her of him.
"If that's really what you think of me…"
No, no.
Mina knew where this was leading, and she refused to accept it. They were clearly both emotional and overreacting to the situation. It would not end like this.
"I don't want to hear it, Toru. I'll… talk to you tomorrow." Refusing to leave an opening for any more damage, she ended the call.
The brunette slowly lowered herself to the ground, unsure if her legs would continue to support her weight if she tried to return to the others. Bringing her knees to her chest, her lungs felt as if they were refusing to accept the air in protest of what just occurred.
"Hold your breath."
Kuroo was on his way back when he noticed someone curled up unnaturally under the streetlight. It was only when he proceeded closer that he recognized who it was.
Leaning down, he tilted his head, before gently poking the girl's cheek.
"You need to control your breathing, right? So hold your breath."
The fragile girl tried to comply with his directions, yet ended up hiccupping from the misdirected airflow. Kuroo blew out a sigh, dipping his head.
"I guess that's better than a panic attack."
Mina kept her face buried against her knees, continuing to hiccup. She didn't want him to see her like this, she could only imagine how pitiful she appeared. First, she was the idiot who became ill from a bug bite. Now this?
"Hey. I know something that will cheer you up. Come on." After stretching out his legs, the Nekoma captain offered her his hand.
The brunette did not immediately accept the invitation. First, she peaked up at his hand, while Kuroo chuckled to himself. Ultimately, she agreed, using his hand to hoist herself up.
Right now she just didn't want to be alone.
A/N: Dramaaaaaaaa.