Oikawa steps off the plane and tries to swallow his nerves down. He's jittery despite his anxiety and the exhaustion from the long flight he endured. Maybe it's the fact he couldn't sleep much, cramped as it was. Sometimes his long legs are more of a curse than a blessing. He thinks of the night before, of Iwaizumi running his fingertips over them idly, making him shiver, the pads of his fingers rough and calloused from spiking, yet so delicate on his skin.
Oh, that was two nights ago now, wasn't it?
Oikawa, squints at the bright lights of the airport as he enters the gate. It's afternoon in New York City, and the airport is crowded and bustling. It takes a moment for him to recognize the romaji letters swirling around him, rather than the familiar kanji of home. He feels kind of dumb for it.
Still, he follows the other passengers towards baggage claim, feeling a bit dizzy. People bump and push past him. A screaming child rushes past and he feels a bit disjointed, wondering why no one else seems all that bothered. The crowd empties out and he finds the baggage ring and starts to fidget. He pulls out his phone, figures it must be late in Japan but decides to text Iwaizumi anyway.
I landed! America is so weird, Iwa-chan.
He glances up and sees that his baggage still hasn't made it's way down the conveyor belt and decides to keep texting into the void.
It must be late in Miyagi right? Hope I don't wake you up! You better be dreaming of me c;
He smiles at his phone and slips it back into his pocket, not expecting a reply anytime soon. Iwaizumi is a notoriously heavy sleeper, and snores like a monster despite his denials. The memory makes him smile more, and his heart clenches and he wonders if he'll be able to visit home during winter break.
He spots his bag and strides over, picking it up and stretching out the handle to wheel it around with him. He realizes he should notify his coach of his arrival, to figure out where he is supposed to go. He pulls up the informative e-mail, scanning it, and heading over to the correct exit.
He looks around before spotting a sign with his new university's name, and he picks his way over.
"Hey! Are you one of ours?" The man standing beside the student holding up the sign asks jovially with much more energy than Oikawa's tired brain can currently handle.
Oikawa nods, bowing. It earns him a hearty laugh and a smack to his back he decides to interpret as friendly.
"Which one are you?" The man asks, grinning.
"Oikawa Tooru." He responds, and his voice sounds a little scratchy from lack of use.
"Sorry, run that by me again?"
"My name is Tooru Oikawa." He tries, self conscious of his accent, but remembering in America the order for names is flipped. It's weird. It's foreign. But so is everything else. Still, he'd thought at least his name would remain the same.
"Toroo? Alright. It'll take me a while but I'll get it eventually! I'm terrible with names." The man continues eyes glinting. He's short and a bit heavy set, but his smile is large and welcoming.
Oikawa doesn't really know how to respond and it's jarring to be called by his first name so casually. Not even Iwaizumi uses it. Well, he uses it very rarely.
"Speaking of names, look at me gettin' all sidetracked? I'm Dan Smith, your coach! Lucky you, having a flight time I could come get ya personally. We're waiting cause I've got two more internationals from Britain who should be arriving soon and then we can turn you over to the admins to settle ya into your rooms. I'll give y'all the schedule for the week once we get into the car. Oh and this is Ricky," The man finishes, pointing at the tall lanky blond blue eyed boy holding his sign.
He's cute, and a bit timid, seemingly grateful for the giant sign shielding most of his body. He's a bit shorter than Oikawa, which he finds quite comforting. He'd always heard Americans were giant. Thankfully, he was pretty tall.
It's hard for Oikawa to grasp the longwinded stream of words the coach spills out but he nods politely, feeling a bit like he did in his first year of elementary, thrust into a new crowd, a new world, a new everything. It was a very rocky start but he managed pretty well eventually and he's sure he'll manage fine now once he's settled. Despite Iwaizumi not being around this time. He's older now. He can take care of himself.
He checks his phone automatically, but there is nothing. Which he already knew. It's probably the middle of the night back home. He decides to send his father a message to let him know he had made it safely. He probably should have done that earlier come to think of it.
About ten minutes later two more boys join their ranks. They're also shorter than him, and they seem to have become friends while on the plane. They're both in high spirits, chattering with their coach. One of them, the darker haired boy comments, "Funny the Japanese kids the tallest among us!" He laughs and there's smiles all around.
And Oikawa laughs too, a bit self conscious but he's used to putting on a mask, flashing a charming smile, "I'm tall in Japan too." He confirms, and he tries to ignore how weird it sounds to speak English, how troublesome the word tall is to pronounce, how weird it is to call his home Japan. But he ignores it, he pushes it down, hoping to be burbling with the confidence he desperately needs. The confidence he normally has.
His teammates buy it, and none seem to comment on his accent, and he feels a bit more relaxed, like things are going to be ok, for the first time since stepping onto his plane.
He slides open his phone and texts Iwaizumi once more.
Americans are so chatty! :P
He slips his phone back in, and follows his team as they're marshaled into a small van. The coach is in the passenger seat, the sign holder-Ricky was it?- driving. Oikawa's against one of the windows, with the two Brits smushed beside him.
They're still all talking, sharing excitedly between the two of them and the coach their plans for school, their academic interests, their favorite positions to play, past wins and losses. It's all very exciting but at times hard to follow and Oikawa feels a bit drained by then.
"Is that your mobile vibrating or mine?" The Brit next to him interrupts himself, groping for his own cell. Oikawa blinks, digging into his pocket and seeing that its his.
You'll fit right in then. Now shut up so I can sleep.
Oikawa can't help the grin that splays across his face, and it feels surreal to see Iwaizumi's words from miles and miles away lighting up his screen and he holds on to this, savoring those simple words Because they are familiar, they are real, they are home.
He doesn't know how to respond but it seems Iwaizumi still has more to say as his phone buzzes again.
But I do want to hear everything. But like, in a few hours. It's the middle of the night over here.
Oikawa's smile softens, and he texts back
Sorry, Iwa-chan! I forgot how desperately you need your beauty sleep. Text me when you're awake! I'm skyping my parents later tonight so maybe I can skype you after? c:
He waits a moment, wondering if Iwaizumi has gone back to sleep or not, but he gets a response soon enough.
K I can do that probably. have fun
And after another second:
be careful
And after an even shorter second:
love you
And Oikawa's heart is beating like crazy because this is the greatest treat he's gotten in a long while. Iwaizumi is usually more flustered and guarded, unless in a certain mood, or tired. So it's mostly the latter, but Oikawa relishes in it, excitedly typing back.
Iwa chaaaaaaaan! I love you too! Go have sweet dreams of me ok! Night!
And he feels giddy as he shoves his phone back into his pocket, leaning forward to join the conversation, confidence and energy surging through him. He easily integrates, sharing his passion for volleyball, his interest in astronomy and his excitement for the American experience.
The coach seems to jump on the latter point, listing all the noble feats of his dear country and Oikawa half listens, but he's more interested in the stories of his teammates and how they relate to his.
"I had a...a," he pauses, trying to think of the correct word in english, "younger classmate?" He tries.
"Underclassman?" The driver offers helpfully, eyes looking at him through the review mirror.
"Hai! Yes," Oikawa grins, "My underclassman, he was annoyingly talented. Naturally so, it pisses me off, I crushed him the first time I faced off with him when we went to different High Schools. But he settled the score in the next tournament."
"Ug, younger people being better than you is always the worst." One of the Brits, laments, and Oikawa smiles, "It's quite unfair."
He likes that he's feeling connected, he likes that these men aren't as foreign as he had feared. He glances and sees the driver is still looking at him through the rearview, and he decides to ignore it, turning back to his seat mates to continue the conversation.
They're all laughing when they get off the van at the round about near the administrative building of the university. The coach hands them off a schedule of practices for the week, and wishes them the best before taking the van to go park it.
Ricky guides them quietly into the building, handing them off to one of the Orientation leaders, and hanging back.
She smiles at them, "Welcome! Here are your orientation packets!" Oikawa is struck by how loud she is, but takes it in stride, smiling a charming smile, letting his fingers graze against hers when he takes his folder. She glances at him curiously, before smiling sweetly.
The packet is full of information and his orientation schedule. He'll have to go through it in detail later.
"Alright," Ricky speaks up, voice soft and yet commanding, and they all turned to him, "I'm going to take you to the best dining hall on campus, show you the gym and then help you get back to your dorms to unpack and rest."
They nod, eagerly and follow and Oikawa doesn't think much of Japan or home at all.
It's when Oikawa turns the key into his dorm that he realizes that Ricky lives in the same building. They had dropped each Brit off in his own dorm, and then Ricky had taken him to his own. But instead of leaving, he follows him in with a soft smile.
"What room are you in?" He asks, and Oikawa tells him, "104".
Ricky seems to laugh, "I'm on 119. Other end of the same hall, here I'll show you where your room is." Oikawa follows, and once he unlocks his room he sees that Ricky is still lingering. He doesn't know why it prickles his skin but it does. The man is just being nice, after all.
"Bathroom's near the lounge over there. This floor has gender neutral bathrooms but I think the floor above us has 'em separated? I'm not sure. Anyway, my room is all the way down past the lounge if you need anything. I'll probably be in the dorm all night. Leah might come see you soon. She's the RA for this floor and she means well."
Oikawa nods, because it's a lot to process and the minute he saw the unmade bed in the room he'd had the insane urge to sleep for a thousand years. Ricky remains another moment but then seems to get the picture, waving and departing down the hall.
The brunet crawls into his room. It's a decent size, with two of everything. His roommate hasn't arrived yet, which is to be expected. Oikawa picks the side with the window view, and starts setting up his bed and unpacking.
He's only made his bed and pulled out his laptop when he decides he'll do the rest tomorrow. He lies down on his bed, sighing as he sinks in. He can tell the mattress is of poor quality but he can't bring himself to care at the moment. He's exhausted. He wonders if he could just doze off, but he promised his parents and he promised Iwaizumi too.
He still has another half hour until his skype date, so he pulls his shade open to look out in the darkening night sky.
He can see the city scape, and there's a limited number of stars in the sky. It's disappointing. Back home he could see everything. And here only the brightest stars can shine.
He pulls the shade back down and curls up on his bed, the sinking feeling of homesickness beginning to drown him once more. He tries to think of all the positiveness, of all the friends he has made, of playing volleyball with his team soon, of all the new experiences to come.
He fiddles with his alien duvet, thinking about Iwaizumi's bland covers. He kind of wants to cry, and in the dark with no roommate it's the best time to do so. But his parents would see him in 15 minutes, so he doesn't. He keeps it all in.
His skype call with his parents goes well. Most of it is spent teaching them how to us the device but it's all well. All they say is how proud they are and how excited they are for him. It gets a bit tedious, and he cuts the call a bit short by mentioning how tired he is.
He texts Iwaizumi,
Can I skype you now?
He fidgets, hovering his mouse over Iwaizumi's skype icon waiting impatiently for his approval. He debates simply calling him anyway. His icon is a muted orange signaling 'away' but Iwaizumi leaves it there permanently to discourage Oikawa from bothering him. It never works.
yeah go ahead
Oikawa grins, and does just that, smiling after two rings when Iwaizumi fills up his screen sitting up at his desk, dressed crisply from a day of classes. He can see his notebooks out on the desk, mid homework.
"You're lucky I only have morning classes on mondays." Iwaizumi chides, scooting his chair closer and looking at him. "Shit man, you look like shit."
Oikawa rolls his eyes with a pout, "Eloquent as always, Iwa-chan. Is that my hello?"
Iwaizumi snorts, but frowns into the camera, squinting at him carefully, "Seriously though, you look tired as hell. What time is it over there?"
Oikawa flicks his gaze to the corner of his screen, "It's only a little past midnight."
"Yeah, but you've been up for like two days because of your flight right?" The spiky haired teen reminds, frowning deeper, "You should get some sleep before you keel over."
Oikawa whines, "But I stayed up to talk to you! Don't you wanna hear about all my adventures?"
Iwaizumi seems to hesitate, "...fine. But only for a little while. Don't start off on a nocturnal foot again this year. It isn't good for you." He finishes, leaning back a little in his chair in defeat.
"We can figure out a better skype schedule later. Now let me tell you! America is so weird."
And Oikawa goes on a long tangent, waving his arms and telling of his adventures and misadventures. Of the terrible food in the cafeteria. Of how many times he was asked if he could use a fork and knife or if he was only capable of using chopsticks. Of the huge shiny facilities that sprawled forever with state of the art equipment. Of how no one could get over the fact the Japanese kid was tall, etc, etc.
He relishes speaking Japanese, how the words glided from his mouth so smoothly and how much more relaxed he feels and how Iwaizumi laughs when he expected him to and looks shocked and offended at the right times as well. It feels good. It feels right.
"They sound like dumbasses to me." Iwaizumi comments after another culture shock episode is described.
"They mean well." Oikawa defends, smiling softly.
"Probably, and they'll learn sooner or later you're an even bigger dumbass anyway." Iwaizumi decides, taking the moment to crack his knuckles to hide his smile.
Oikawa whines, pouting, but he doesn't continue the teasing. Instead, he asks, "Did you do anything exciting today?"
"Not really." Iwaizumi responds, trying to think. He leans on his desk, supporting his face with his hand, "Just classes as usual. You know Daichi and Sugawara are in my Economics class?" He added suddenly, perking up, "The class is huge and I hadn't noticed, but Sugawara spoke up today and you can't miss that head of gray hair anywhere."
Oikawa blinks, "Mr. Refreshing has always been intriguing. I wonder if they'll keep playing volleyball?"
"I haven't seen them at practices. But I haven't really been going myself." Oikawa makes a tsking noise. Iwaizumi rolls his eyes, "You're not pre-med. You're not allowed to scold me."
Oikawa acquiesces to that, and listens on to Iwaizumi's own little stories, but he can feel the exhaustion hitting him. It's a losing battle. And it's when he feels the most tired that Iwaizumi speaks up.
"You look like you're about to die." The spiky haired teen comments, interrupting his own story, "We should probably stop."
"Probably." Oikawa murmurs sleepily. He sees Iwaizumi smile at him briefly and it looks so natural and loving and Oikawa wishes he had the strength to screenshot it. But it's gone in an instant and Iwaizumi's face returns to his stern expression.
"Get some rest ok? I'll text you." He states, with nod.
"Mm." Oikawa hums, smiling sleepily at him, "Love you."
Iwaizumi grows a bit red, huffing out an "I love you too." before shutting his computer down.
Oikawa doesn't remember falling asleep, he just remembers smiling.
And thats chapter 3!
not much happens sorry about that
thank you for reading! reviews make me smile c: