"I swear my chest hurts from laughing so hard." Mina wheezed, locating a palm to her chest for support. She and Kuroo had parted from the others moments prior, and were now on their way back to the hotel. The pair tried to convince Kenma to join them, enticing him with the idea of dessert. But the second year setter refused, stating he was stuffed.

"Bo really ate their entire supply of salmon. It was truly an amazing sight to witness." The Nekoma captain exhaled a chuckle, recalling the bewildered expression on the server's face at Bokuto's order. Akaashi apologized profusely after settling the bill. But according to his captain's logic, since it was all you can eat – they should have been prepared for him to eat all he could. Mina swore she almost punctured her lung after enduring a ten-minute laughing fest.

"I hope he doesn't get sick from eating that much." The brunette swiped at her cheek to discard an imaginary tear as she inhaled a lung-full of air to stabilize her breathing.

"He's a big boy, he can handle it." Shaking his head, he pushed his head back, granting himself a clearer view of the night-sky. For most of the dinner, Kuroo had been contemplating whether or not to express his views on her boyfriend's dishonesty. Could he truly provide her a neutral view, despite his own feelings? He despised the thought of leaving her to process her feelings alone, particularly because she had a history of panic attacks.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Mina gently swayed her body to bump against his, silence was unusual from him.

"About today… You shouldn't ignore your boyfriend. Who knows, that crazy bastard could have been lying through his teeth. You said you love this guy, so don't you owe it to him to hear him out?" Scratching the back of his neck, Kuroo allowed his gaze to return to the smaller girl.

He had a point.

Stifling a groan, the foreign girl dragged a palm down her face.

"I know. I just short circuited. But what he said… It sounds like something my mother would do. And Toru is an amazing player. I wouldn't be shocked if someone was interested in him."

"Here's your final lesson of the day, little bunny. The truth will set you free. If it turns out the weasel was being honest, you can deal with it then. For now, find the truth." His fingers tangled in her hair, ruffling it and ruining the position of the bow, earning him a grumble.

"You sound like a preacher, it's super creepy." She teased, stepping forward and away from his touch.

"I was going for fortune cookie vibes, but I'll take it." A wide simper was presented towards her, prompting her to burst out into laughter. Round two of a laughing fit anyone?

Following Kuroo's advice, Mina had responded to the Seijoh captain. Without providing any details on what they would be discussing, the couple agreed to meet at a local park once Mina unloaded her luggage. Oikawa arrived ten minutes earlier, eager to hear how the interview went. He was sat on a bench adjacent to a playground, his attention was on a young child struggling to propel themselves on the swing. Children were persistent creatures, he noted mentally.

"Hi Pretty Boy." The greeting was whispered softly, indicating it was only meant to be heard by him. Mina had changed into a silky one-piece to combat the rising temperature.

"Hi Pretty Girl." He echoed back, his head tilting while a smile crept onto his lips. He was completely oblivious as to why she had arranged this meeting.

"Mind if I sit down?" Gesturing at the empty seat beside him, she attempted to conceal the uneasiness that was gripping her.

"Of course, Mina-chan." The Seijoh captain was half-expecting his girlfriend to launch herself onto his lap, being overly affectionate was usually her thing. It was beginning to dawn on him that something was amiss.

Once the brunette settled down beside him, any lines she rehearsed refused to leave her mouth. Instead, she lamely stated – "I need you to be honest with me."

The mocha haired captain immediately straightened his posture, his senses on high alert. His mind rummaged through possible reasons why she could be upset. It took a few seconds for him to realize what it was. There was only one possibility.

"Is this about your mother? If you don't want me taking her help, I understand. I'm sorry I didn't speak with you about this earlier. I had meant to; you need to believe me." His explanation was spoken incredibly fast, but Mina was able to catch every word. Guilt sparkled in his caramel irises, pleading her for forgiveness.

"How much of is it true? Is Kirei signing you?" Leaning forward, Mina averted her gaze to the ground and the small rocks that were littered around them. The truth would set her free, huh? Well, right now the truth was breaking her heart.

"Kirei? No. I'll admit I did receive a call from someone named Kaori, but we haven't arranged an interview yet. Nothing else has happened, I promise." His response had simultaneously irritated and relieved her. On one hand, Victor was lying about the two of them playing together. On the other, Oikawa had misunderstood the route cause of her pain.

"Toru, I understand why you did it. I'm upset that you hid this from me. Do you know how humiliating it was hearing about this from Victor? If you had just told me, this conversation wouldn't be happening!" Hurt disguised as anger had surged inside of her system. Her words had caused the male to fall silent – she had recently communicated with Victor?

"I'm sorry." Was there much more he could do other than apologize?

As he reached out to seize her hands in a comforting gesture, Mina flinched away from his touch. Lack of communication continued to damage their relationship, and Oikawa knew he was to blame.

"I opened up to you, Toru. You knew my relationship with my mother wasn't the greatest. I haven't spoken to her since that day! But you hid this from me. You shouldn't have hidden this from me…" Placing a palm over her face, liquid began to cloud her vision. Perhaps it hurt more because the situation was far too similar to what brought her first relationship to a close.

"I know.. I messed up. I should have spoken to you, Mina. I'm sorry." He could feel her pulling away from him, and it terrified him. He refused to lose her, not for this. Not ever.

"I don't know. I need to clear my head. I need some space." There were too many emotions weighing over her, it hurt simply to breathe. Even if Victor had fabricated some of the details, he was right and he was… here. Her mother had betrayed her, and… so had Oikawa.

"I won't let you go. No. I refuse." Beside her, the Seijoh setter blinked back tears. "Mina, I love you. I made a mistake; I didn't think it through. I was a damn idiot. I'll earn your trust again." This time when he reached for her hands, Mina remained still. "I will earn your trust. Just give me a chance."

Would she really end their relationship over this? Did she even have the strength to complete such a feat? The answer was quite obvious. She did not. The truth was, it was a small mistake. One they could grow from. She just had to remind herself that Oikawa Toru was not Victor, nor her mother. And that was not a simple task.

"Okay." The single word had prompted relief to exhale from the Seijoh captain. Gently he applied a kiss to her head. He understood why this had hurt her and vowed to never make the same mistake again. Volleyball no longer was the sole thing that mattered to him. Mina Saito had changed everything for him, teaching him how to love in a way he did not know he was capable of. From now on, he needed to strike a balance. Volleyball was his future, but so was she.

A/N: cute, am I right!?