Though, it had already been a couple of weeks since THAT event, he was still reeling from the shock from the fan-day event where he thoroughly embarrassed himself in front of a crowd. A crowd made up of HIS FANS!
Here he was, the most graceful, agile and powerful setter in all of Japan (he tried not think of a raven-haired dork who kept upping him in the ranks) with the best footwork ever, yet he slipped. SLIPPED!
Miya Atsumu had always been a confident brat, but now a days, even his mother was proud of his accomplishments. So to think that he SLIPPED, it would be like saying he forgot to wear his legs that morning. To top it all off, people LAUGHED.
His fans!
No!
People were supposed to be in awe of him when they were in his presence, or be afraid of him. Yet, they LAUGHED!
To say the least, Miya Atsumu had been mortified ever since, and for the longest time his soul had left his mortal (but to-die-for) carcass. To make matters worse and put him in existential crisis every now and then, that moment kept coming back to haunt him periodically, etching itself into his soul deeper than ever before.
But the moment the carrot-top beast he hadn't seen in years, entered the practice courts this morning, it was as if Christmas, New Years Eve and a girlfriend that would last longer than a week, had finally arrived for Atsumu!
Hinata Shouyo seemed slightly taller, muscular and even more confident than he remembered from his final year in Inarizaki. His overall mannerisms were still as light-hearted and easy going as back then, but Atsumu knew monstrous power when he saw it.
Felt it!
His eyes sparkled with joy when he greeted their trainer, but the sharpness and the rapidity of his gaze scanning their trainer, left Atsumu slightly breathless. His smiles were still as bright, but they now shone with a new-found tranquility, that could only come with the insatiable thirst along with assuredness for imminent victories.
"Meet Hinata Shouyo, our newest member with very... uhm... interesting skill sets," said the trainer. "Meet the rest of the team. Let's start with our setter -."
"Miya-san! Long time no see! I was hoping to bump into you," said Hinata, as he happily bounded over to him, with stars in his eyes, as if he had met his idol, finally!
Oh, how long has it been since I felt this overwhelming surge of happiness that comes with admiration from others?! Shouyo-kun, you're getting treated to a lovely dinner today...
"Shouyo-kun! Long time indeed," he said, grabbing him in a friendly hug, which the little beast warmly returned.
"HEY! HEY! HEY! HINATA! MY NUMBER 1 DISCIPLE!"
"Bokuto-sannnn! Long time no see!" he responded enthusiastically and he bowed a full 90 degree towards him.
Disciple? Looks like a story I wanna hear about later from Bok-kun...
"Ahem!" coughed the trainer loud enough to pull all of their collective attention towards him.
"I sincerely apologise for my behaviour!" exclaimed Shouyo-jun, as he bowed deep enough that his head was inches away from the ground. "I just got excited to meet everyone I wanted to meet for the longest time!"
"That's okay, but let's get on with the formal introductions and we need to start with the training regimen for today. In your free time you can explore the faculties in this building," he said.
"Not a problem! Thank you for taking care of me!" said Shouyo-kun.
Just the monster I've been wanting to handle on the court...
Atsumu felt an intoxicated delirium at that thought, as a small devious smirk crept onto his face.
He's now mine to play with, Tobio-kun...
(A/N: A mini shoutout to readers from Brazil, I love you guys so much, and I miss my friends from Rio and Sao Paolo so much! I learned new levels of badass-ery from them and it has done tons to my overall self-esteem!)
"Ne~ Neee~! Shouyo-kun! What's your max jumping power?"
"You said you played with pros right? For beach volleyball? Are you like pro in it yet?"
"Neee~! Did you have any Brazilian girlfriends? How were theyyy? Ehhehehehe..."
Atsumu was generally in raptures with the tiny ball of energy, was impressed with his growth so far. But currently Hinata was receiving a rapid barrage of questions which he replied all throughout their morning training and then during their lunch too.
But regardless of all of his questions being answered fully, Atsumu still felt unsatisfied. He wanted to know more. He wanted to see his monstrous skill-sets unleashed.
I guess I'll have to wait till I can see him during a play-off...
But in reality, he really couldn't wait to see what the little demon carried in his arsenal of defence and attack moves. His response, agility, innate physical strength and the ever-so-breathtaking jump, were still imprinted in his mind, as if their first match in his second year had happened only a while ago. He couldn't wait to see him fly, one more time.
Earlier during their training, from the corner of his eye, he saw that initially Oomi-Oomi seemed wary of him. Atsumu guessed that he probably remembered his skill level from high school when he was still a tiny demon fledgling, but now he had warmed up to him and was 'happily' sharing his precious hand sanitiser with him.
(A/N: Atsumu has a known competitive streak, even with his own team members. So please note, Sakusa Kiyoomi was definitely not happy, the green monster only saw it otherwise.)
Hinata Shouyo definitely had a way with easing into any social group. It seemed seamless, effortless, but it was his fully honed ability to be perceptive of people, their moods, and their thoughts, and gradually attuning himself to their presence.
Cool, but deadly...
It's like he knew how to bring down any walls that people might have, in either empowering or catastrophic ways. It depends on which side of the net you stood on. Being closer to him, only made his teammates feel more powerful, and the opponents powerless... And more power on his side meant deadlier monsters to unleash upon the opponents...
Yes, Miya Atsumu was definitely in awe of him.
Lunch was over and they all ambled back to their practice courts. Atsumu had draped his arms around Shouyo on one side while Bokkun was draped around him on the other side, feeding him his own 'pearls of wisdom and game sense,' which Hinata seemed to be sincerely impressed with, greedily indulging in the information that he was being bestowed with.
They neared Court C again for a few warm-up drills after which the practice games would begin. They only had a few sets to play for the day, but Coach mentioned something about a new Assistant Business Manager, who'll coming to meet them post-lunch.
Assistant Business Manager huh...
Atsumu assumed that he probably wanted to meet the rest of the team, being new and all, and get prepared for the upcoming pro-league tournaments to build the hype around the players.
He spotted them, as soon as they entered. Their coach and probably this new Assistant Business Manager.
There was a figured dressed in black, sitting on the chairs lined up by the courts, next to the famous demonic Jackals' coach, who was openly smiling as if Christmas had come for him too! SMILING!
Never in his last 8 months of being a part of the Black Jackals had he ever seen the coach even look gently at them, and yet he was beaming with him, a newcomer, as if he was met with a landscape of sakura trees in full bloom or fields of gorgeous red roses. He shifted his gaze back to see who was this person was, making the demon coach smile so much. He sure was telling one of heck of joke or a tale!
Were they any better than Aran-kun's one liners?
And the first thing he noticed was it not was a he, it was a she. And she was gradually increasing the rapidity of the thumps of his heart by the second, even though it was just her back facing him.
The black blouse gloved her shoulders, her arms and her arching back, revealing the comely shape of her curves.
Fit.
The high waisted tan trousers that she tucked her top into, was well-fitted around her hips, her thighs, and that satisfying swell of her butt, but couldn't see the rest of her legs as they were loose.
Fit...
He'd love to see the curve of her calves or indulge in the feel of her thighs wrapped around his torso, when they would be...
Yea, okay. Real fit.
She had simple black pointy heels that showed a slight hint of the colour red on her soles, conforming well around the heels of her feet. He'd love to see how they would point, without her shoes on, when she would be in throes of passion. With him.
Yes, very fit.
She tucked in her hair, nodding at what the coach was saying, swinging one of her legs over the other, shifting a little in her seat, probably trying to find a more comfortable position, and all he could think of in that moment was they both would would be very comfortable, wrapped around each other like a lotus that was about to fully spasm in pleasure...
Wait, not spasm... that would be... bloom! Bloom... yes... The lotus would bloom...
She turned a bit more towards the coach, fully engrossed in their conversation and not even hearing the boys walk into the courts.
He then heard a tinkle of sweet laughter, but there was something familiar about the way she laughed, that tugged open some dark recesses in his heart.
No! Don't go there, 'Tsumu... you have one heck of a meal waiting right in front of you, after starving for a week, there is no point thinking about what you had years ago, which you eventually shat out.
Well, not really shat it, I mean, she was really nice and I haven't met anyone who can really live up to the standards she set for me in terms of how to be a nice girlfriend, but... figure of speech, it is!
...Okay, why am I debating with myself, again?
But he was pulled out of his nonsensical musings abruptly, as he was hit by an all-too-familiar aroma of roses, and his thoughts descended back to her, the only one he knew of that wore that lovely fragrance since their high school days.
He would smell that every time he sniffed into her neck before peppering it (and her collarbone) with hickeys, much to her annoyance. He'd smell that on her every time he rested his chin on top her head, teasingly calling her the resting place for his big brain, which she'd taunt back with an "It's called an ego Atsumu, not a brain, as you don't have one." He'd smell that even in a sea of sakura trees in full bloom, like the first day they met or the last day they hung out on the terrace of Inarizaki. All of that alluring smell he'd be surrounded by, right before the sweltering summers and freezing winters dawned upon them. Figuratively too. He'd smell it sometimes even in his dreams, or when he was with another girl, biting down hard on his lips, not wanting to scream out 'Renny!' instead.
"Ren-san!" Shouyo tugged himself free from Atsumu and Bokuto's grasp, and bounced over to her.
Ren?! No... It couldn't be...
She turned around at the sound of Shouyo calling out to her, and Atsumu had his breath knocked out him when he was hit with the realisation:
It's her. It is her!
Fuck.
... It's her.
Although she hadn't spotted him yet, tantalisingly dark eyes stared on at Shouyo, as a smile graced her face, that felt like a strong blow to his stomach, knocking even more wind out of him, along with a sting of pain (or pleasure?) shooting right down to where it wasn't needed.
Yet...
She gracefully stood up, smiling in the kind, sweet way he knew she would smile when she would meet someone she was friends with.
"Shouyo! Nice to see you again," she said, her voice almost sounding like it was accompanied by the playing of orchestral violins in the background.
Did she know I was here? No way... 'Samu told me, she wanted to do nothing with me, and would deliberately avoid seeing me every time I was back in town...
"Are you here to meet the team? We just finished our lunch! Did you have your lunch?"
"Yes, thank you for asking. Mikasa-san and I ordered some food into our office because it's my first day, and I was engrossed with work. Anyway, coach was just indulging me with his vast experience, and regaling about the first and second string players along with the basic training regiment. I have a lot to learn, but I'm excited," she said, turning back to bow down to the coach slightly, which he replied with a hearty chuckle and said, "As am I, Ren-chan!"
"I hope you and the other players will help me, and I'll do my best to shine the spotlight on you all, showcasing all your individual strengths," she said, her eyes sweeping over the rest of us, till they landed on me, giving me the full brunt of her feminine loveliness. Her gaze left me with barely enough support in my knees to stand tall in her presence, as if she was always meant to bring me down to my knees.
I was indeed bound by her... Whipped, like she once said...
I watched her go rigid, as she belatedly realised who she was looking at. Her eyes widened slightly, but her smiled remained frozen, just like the rest of her. He wasn't even sure that she was breathing...
So she didn't know I was here... And now she's here. With me. Assistant Business Manager... Holy fuck, she's working here. We're in the same fucking city. Oh fuck... Okay, what the fuck... Okay... Fuck my life...
His body felt way too hot by this point, with beads of sweat collecting on the back of his neck. His stomach churned at the sudden nervous jitters, and he definitely felt something akin to a heatstroke approaching.
I, really, am fucked.