Atsumu comes across a kid, and instantly adopts him before realizing who he is.
Atsumu clicked his tongue, pacing through the hallway while he waited for the rest of his team. He needed to go to the bathroom badly, but Osamu somehow restrained him to the point where he'd have to wait until his team exited the gym.
"Mm," he hummed, hands on the back of his head while he quietly sighed. "'Samu, y'think Tobio-kun's gonna make it to the point where we face off against him?"
"Tobio-kun?" Osamu quietly huffed, his words appearing nearly silent for a moment among the hustling, bustling crowd looking to get home after the first day of games. "That's the kid you told me about at your training camp, right?"
Atsumu stupidly grinned, eyes looking somewhat malicious as they always did whenever he smiled, no matter what, "Yep. Goes to Karasuno."
Osamu whistled, leaning against the wall while he stuffed his hands in his pockets, "They're the team that beat Shiratorizawa, right? They're probably gonna make it there."
He glanced over at his brother, eyes dull yet mind grinding, "Y'wanna see if I could go find Tobio-kun?" He had a sadistic glint in his eyes, something that Osamu had grown familiar with.
"I will murder you."
"Fine, fine!"
"D'y'think we could mess with Tobio-kun before our game together?" Atsumu narrowed his eyes, deep in thought as if he was coming up to a solution to a problem. The problem in question, of course, being the making of a problem. Atsumu's favorite hobby.
"We?" Osamu muttered in distaste, feeling a sour taste in his mouth even speaking to Atsumu when he was so focused on causing problems. "You mean you. I'm not doing anything with you here."
Atsumu snorted, slapping his brother's back twice and chuckling haughtily, "Sure you won't. Sure." He had a subtle smirk on his face, knowing the multiple times that he'd roped Osamu into pranks on his teammates, though the younger brother was always spared due to Kita's knowledge of Atsumu's annoying behaviors.
In fact, Kita had recalled something a decent bit ago:
/
"So, there was this book I was reading, right?" Kita started, making a little bit of small talk as he tied his shoes.
Aran nodded, humming quietly in confirmation, "Yep. What about it?"
"Called... 'The Deeper Meaning of Liff.' Weird title, but it's about words that should exist...but don't," he explained, sitting up, stretching as he always did. "You know one of the words there?"
At this point, some of the other teammates had begun to listen in on the conversation; For what reason would Kita bring up a book right before volleyball practice?
"The one that stuck out to me was...'Brabant.' It's supposed to describe," Kita started, before making direct eye contact with Atsumu, as if staring him down, daring him to speak up after him. "The feeling of when you're incredibly inclined to see how far you can push someone. As in...push their buttons. Annoy them. Bend the stick before it snaps."
Osamu held back a snicker at that. Aran smirked, quickly making the connection.
One by one, the rest of the team slowly realized why he was staring so intently at Atsumu.
Yet, when Atsumu realized it, he merely rolled his eyes in amusement, "Har har. Ya got me."
/
As they lightly jogged down the hall, Kita having released the leash of Atsumu, the two of them were already halfway to the bathroom.
Of course, it didn't take Atsumu long to use the bathroom. Osamu speculated that it was because Atsumu never watched his hands, something that both disgusted him and intrigued him, considering how his excuse would likely be "Well, I can get back to practice quicker then, can't I?"
They weren't even doing anything regarding volleyball for the next 12 hours, yet Osamu could still absolutely believe that that'd be Atsumu's excuse.
What the younger twin couldn't believe, however, was when Atsumu walked out of the bathroom with a very short, energetic orange-haired teen in a volleyball uniform bouncing on the balls of his feet right behind him.
"Uhh..." He couldn't even find a way to phrase his thoughts, to put what he was feeling into words.
Was it confusion? Shock? Interest? Intrigue? He couldn't decide.
God, sure could use that book that Kita-san read.
"What's going on?" He sighed, exasperated, suddenly finding all his energy drained from him. He just...didn't know how many more of Atsumu's antics he could take today, and the day had only reached the end of the volleyball games.
"Oh, this guy?" Atsumu dryly laughed, before stepping to the side to dramatically wave his hands around. "Meet Hinata. Hinata Shouyou."
Instantly, Hinata gasped excitedly, "Oh my gosh! You're Osamu Miya!" He turned on Atsumu, hopping around in a blur, "You really did take me to see him!"
Osamu met Atsumu's eyes, yet found himself eyeing the little boy again, "Where'd you find him? Did you steal a kid from the crowd or something?" He'd reached the conclusion that Hinata had just been a little kid, potentially a brother who'd come to see his relative's games, but got engrossed in some of the other players. After all, he and Atsumu were probably some of the most famous high school athletes.
Atsumu snorted, "Pfft. As if. Couldn't take two steps without a fan coming up to me themself. But, nah, he's not just a kid from the crowd."
"Then who is he?" Osamu rolled his eyes, not enjoying the drawn out conversation. He'd much rather hearing where the little boy came from so he could return him to his parents.
"Oh, look!" Atsumu grinned, before pointing down at Hinata's jersey, the boy in question looking up at the two in slight confusion. As Osamu's eyes trailed down, he raised an eyebrow.
"This kid's on Karasuno?" Osamu skeptically asked, a little incredulous. Hinata nodded frantically, a spark in his eyes.
"Mhm! We're gonna be facing you tomorrow!" He assured, determined, pointing at Atsumu, who whistled, impressed. However, that determined, fiery expression cracked away to reveal an incredibly bright smile right into Atsumu's face, causing him to almost lose his balance.
With a wide mouth, Atsumu slowly turned his head towards Osamu, a glazed look in his eyes, "I'm keepin' him."
"No."
"I'm keeping him!" Atsumu declared, before turning to Hinata with a sickly sweet smile. "Say, how'd ya like to meet the rest of Inarizaki?"
Hinata's eyes only glimmered brightly, surprisingly receptive (Osamu had no idea how this kid was gonna be treated by his team if they thought he was lost) to the entire idea, "Sure!"
Surprisingly, not even Kita was able to resist Hinata's smile. It didn't take too long for Atsumu and Hinata to convince the team, especially considering how the kid was lost in the first place.
From what Osamu could gather, which wasn't much considering how he somewhat zoned out from the entire thing, Hinata had gotten separated from his team when he had been struck with a severe, urgent need to go to the bathroom similar to Atsumu. He'd gotten lost halfway through, separated from Kageyama, who was supposed to be going with him, and had just decided that going with someone else who was going to the tournament was the best way to make sure he wasn't completely lost.
Again, from what Osamu could observe, Hinata might as well have been obsessed and determined as Atsumu when it came to volleyball, as if just as entranced with the sport as his older brother. Something that he found simultaneously endearing and horrifying. The former, mainly because it meant that Atsumu would be able to talk to someone about volleyball who could never get sick of it. The latter, he worried what might happen to Hinata if he spent so much time with Atsumu, despite the fact that Osamu knew full well that he was only vilifying the setter just because of how much time they were forced to spend together naturally.
In fact, as he mulled over the events of the day in an attempt to distract himself from the boredom, he could hear in the buzz of noise, Atsumu and Hinata raving and ranting about various things volley-ball related, but he could hear a certain child-like joy in Atsumu's voice.
Makes sense. Osamu snorted to himself, huffing lightly. His mental age does drop whenever volleyball's involved, after all.
"Yo, Hinata," he heard Aran walk up to the kid, roughly smacking him on the back. "It's only about...4 or 5 ish. You wanna head over to a gym nearby or something to practice?"
Osamu boredly, almost lethargically turned his head towards the new trio, only to be blinded by Hinata's flashing light, as if beams of joy were radiating off of him, "Really?! I get to practice with you?!"
Of course, Hinata had already practiced with another Top 5 Ace in the form of Bokuto, but 2 was astounding. Playing against 1, Ushijima, was even more awesome in Atsumu's eyes, even as a person who'd played against Itachiyama, who had Sakusa on the team.
Osamu watched Atsumu roughly smack Hinata on the back to follow the ace up, "Don't forget about me! Top setter in Japan, y'know!"
Kita clicked his tongue, slowly walking side-by-side with Osamu, "You really let him come with?"
Osamu muttered, scratching the back of his head, "Not like I could've stopped the two of them. They've got too much energy for me to even try to keep up."
The captain snorted, "Even you know that's a lie. You probably wanted him here, too."
"It'd take longer for him to find his team. Plus, he pretty much fits right in," Osamu lightly explained, not going into too much detail.
"I'll...I'll take that as an answer," Kita muttered, a slight smile tugging at the corner of his lips as he stepped onto the bus, taking his seat before Aran, Atsumu, and Hinata requested that the bus driver take a detour in order to get them to the gym. They clearly hadn't planned it out yet, but considering how Aran was close enough to Atsumu, they'd be able to make it up very quickly. After all, he couldn't find a reason not to keep practicing, especially with how much stamina he'd had in the tank.
As Osamu stepped on the bus, he sighed, ready to fall asleep on the bus as they got to their hotel where they were staying for Nationals.
"Yo, Hinata," Atsumu called out to the short boy, even though he was right behind him, "We're sitting right here, cool?" He pointed to one of the seats, going a little past it since Hinata seemed like a window seat kind of person.
As the short boy wiggled his way in there, Atsumu settled down with a content sigh, knowing that Aran had taken up the role of asking the bus driver. He very well knew that the driver wouldn't listen to someone he hadn't even met before like Hinata, and with how many antics he'd done, definitely not Atsumu. It had to be Aran.
"Mm," Atsumu clicked his tongue, slinging an arm around the back of the bus seat. "You text somebody on your team yet about coming with us?"
Hinata gasped, "Oh, that reminds me! Thanks!" He searched around in his pocket before pulling out his phone, "I gotta tell Kageyama I'm going with you!"
Atsumu quirked an eyebrow, smirking lightly, "Oh, Kageyama? I know the dude. We went to the training camp together."
Hinata excitedly chirped, "Really? Cool!"
Atsumu's smirk grew larger, an idea popping up in his head, "You think we should send a picture to him? Maybe a selfie? He might be skeptical about where you are."
Osamu shuddered, even though he was asleep. Even subconsciously, he knew the tone of voice that Atsumu used whenever he was up to something, something real douchebag-like.
"Ooh, that'd be a good idea!" Hinata nodded fervently. He handed Atsumu his phone, knowing full well that he couldn't take pictures to save his life.
Atsumu hummed, coming up with his next words on the fly, "Lemme get a good picture here. Scooch a bit closer to me...there. Now, lean your head on my shoulder? Thanks. Lastly...you think you can hug me?" It was an odd request, though Hinata was never one to shy away from hugging people he considered his friends (which, unsurprisingly, was practically everyone). "Perfect. Thanks."
As a finishing touch, like a chef putting the garnish on their dish, Atsumu gently wrapped his arm around Hinata's side, hand gently placed on his shoulder and gently pulling him in, something that Hinata found oddly comforting.
Snap! The phone camera flashed for just a moment, and Atsumu handed his phone back to Hinata, who grabbed it gratefully.
"Ooh, this looks really nice!" Hinata complimented, rapidly tapping on his phone for a moment before shoving his phone back into his pocket, looking at Atsumu. "Okay, I sent the picture!"
"Sweet," he whistled. "Yo, Hinata. You seem really comfy."
Hinata lightly blushed, "I-I mean, are you not? I-I could stop if that'd make you-"
Atsumu chuckled, "Nah, nah, don't worry about it. I'm pretty comfy here too." He didn't mention the way that Hinata's foot was lightly resting on his, though he could tell that that force alone would later be enough to give his foot that numbing feeling.
"Oh, okay," Hinata's voice was a little quiet before perking up a bit more. "Cool!" He rested his head back onto Atsumu's shoulder, this time arms lightly gripping Atsumu's admittedly lean bicep. Letting out a content sigh, he slowly closed his eyes, shoulder going lax. "Tell me when we make it to the gym, mmkay? I wanna practice with you."
"Got it, Hinata," he nodded, understanding how the boy could be so tired. He'd been so energetic the entire time, it'd pretty much take a miracle to not only play a volleyball game, but also stay that energetic the entire rest of the day up until this point.
Plus, it meant that he could continue hugging Hinata like this, something that Osamu definitely would bring up to him later on.
Though, for now, Hinata leaning against him and not the window provided a sense of warmth that he imagined one who guarded somebody would feel, a sense of satisfaction mixing with pride and contentness.
"I can feel your heartbeat..." Hinata gently muttered, opting to scoot a little further so he could lean more of his weight onto Atsumu like a comfy recliner, this time, his head on his chest. Atsumu found it astounding, especially at the weird angle that Hinata had fit himself into, how the shorter boy could find his position as comfortable as it was.
Yet, it didn't pop into his mind that maybe, just maybe, he might've been the cause of some of that comfort.
"WHERE'S SHOUYOU?!" Nishinoya screeched, having searched through heaven and hell for his underclassman. "WE NEED TO GET TO THE BUS SOON!"
The other members of Karasuno searched frantically around the gym, before Kageyama called out loudly, "I got a notification from him!"
In an instant, they all dogpiled on the setter, trying to claw his phone out of his hands, though he'd already opened the notification.
"what. the. fuck."
Kageyama couldn't express the jealousy, possessiveness, rage, frustration, and resentment towards Atsumu that he felt in the moment, seeing what was on his screen.
He read the text: "oh, i'm with atsumu right now! apparently he was with you at your training camp? he seems super cool! oh and he offered to take me to the gym nearby to practice with ojiro-san! you guys can get going without me! :D"
Underneath was a picture attached to the message.
The sun gently warming Hinata's face, eyes shimmering in the light like skies, mouth slightly parted as if breathless from his company. His head gently rested on a firm shoulder, arms wrapped sturdily around the torso, Kageyama could just see the trust and faith put into that hold of Hinata's. The same cheerful smile on his face, only enhanced by the slight wrinkles by his eyes. The way that the gentle shadow cast from the other boy's shadow softly added a note of a forest-like tranquility. A beautiful sight of the city outside of the bus window. All of it...was practically perfect.
And all of it?
Ruined by the shit eating grin plastered on Atsumu's smirk, a personal assault on the entire Karasuno team, as if informing them in the most formally asshole-way possible, "I've already got your main guy on my side. How are you going to beat us tomorrow if you don't even have him on your side?"