Reviews: Things you like? Things you don't like? Anything else? On a related note, is there something scary about reviewing that I can't see? Or is it because I usually use the tagline 'nice but not necessary' these days? I wonder.
About Us
Chapter 9
By Miki
Yuuta thought Atobe sounded tired.
More than tired, even.
Atobe sounded like someone might sound if he'd run a marathon, written a thesis and climbed Mount Fuji in the space of a week, and even though Yuuta had a feeling he was trying to hide it, Atobe just couldn't stop yawning.
He'd yawned almost as much as he'd spoken already and they'd only been on the phone a few minutes.
"So as I was saying, unless you have any objections, I wouldn't mind trying the new place in Ao–" Atobe stifled a yawn.
Yuuta smirked, amused.
He'd been about to call Atobe when Atobe called him first.
Maybe it was because Atobe was so tired or perhaps he didn't have much time talk, but Yuuta had expected a complaint about not having called him first and he hadn't got one, so he wasn't about to start the complaining.
He grinned as Atobe started to speak again.
And yawned again.
"Aoyama," Atobe finished somewhat lamely a moment later.
"Maybe you should take an early night," Yuuta suggested.
Atobe was silent for a moment.
"I can't."
"Why not?" Yuuta questioned, stopping short of telling Atobe how tired he really sounded.
He picked up his pen and drew circles at the edge of his maths homework.
He'd been working on it before he'd started playing with his phone, but now his trigonometry exercises had become squiggles and doodles and there was one that looked like it might be Atobe's head right next to the answer to problem five.
Its hair was pretty poofy and though that could have made it Mizuki on a bad hair day, or Yanagisawa before he'd attacked his hair gel, Yuuta was more inclined to think it looked like Atobe.
"I have homework," Atobe informed him then, sounding a little offended at Yuuta's question. "I don't know what sort of school your school is, but at Hyoutei, we actually have to work for our grades."
Yuuta's hand froze in its movement, his fingers gripping his pen tightly.
"And you think I don't?" he questioned, frowning and glaring down at his homework.
He wondered how he could have forgotten how egocentric Atobe could be.
There was a silence on the other end of the line before Atobe sighed.
"That wasn't what I meant, Yuuta, and you know it."
Yuuta gripped the phone harder in his hand, trying to hide his annoyance.
"What did you mean then?"
There wasn't any other way to take Atobe's words. He'd meant exactly what he'd said and they both knew it.
He'd meant that Yuuta wasn't as good as him; that they weren't on an equal playing field.
And Yuuta knew exactly why it annoyed him.
It was a thought that had been going around in his head ever since he'd met Atobe.
"I meant that…" Atobe sighed again, sounding annoyed and trailing off when he yawned again.
Yuuta felt his annoyance leaving him at the tone in Atobe's voice, and then Atobe stifled another yawn and Yuuta poked his pen at the head on his page, drawing on a dot under its right eye.
They ended up finishing their call without really getting anywhere and Yuuta ended up going to bed feeling just a bit annoyed; whether at himself or Atobe, he wasn't sure.
(S)
Shishido wasn't sure when his backside had started going numb.
All he knew was that he'd been sitting here with Atobe, Jirou and Ootori for a lot longer than he'd thought he could even sit still, and they weren't showing any signs of getting bored.
Maybe it wouldn't have been quite so bad if Ootori hadn't been doing such a good job of ignoring him.
It wasn't that Shishido expected him to pay attention every minute of every day, but after the incident with Tooru the other day, he was feeling like maybe Ootori hadn't really learnt anything after all.
The way Jirou kept nearly falling asleep was annoying him too.
Didn't he have anything better to do than sleep? They were here at Ootori's house because Jirou had suggested they change their training exercises in the lead up to nationals, and since the whole training exercise had been his idea, he could at least give some input into their meeting.
Why Shishido was here instead of someone like Oshitari, who actually thought he knew better than everyone else, he wasn't sure.
Shishido thought it probably had something to do with the way Gakuto and Oshitari had been pestering Atobe about his girlfriend in the change rooms the other day, but he could have been wrong.
It could just be Atobe being stupid.
There were times that Shishido thought Atobe was acting more like a girl with PMS than any girl he'd ever seen, and as Atobe snatched Ootori's piece of paper again, he decided that now was probably one of those times.
Ootori pulled his hand back quickly, cringing a little.
Shishido thought at first that he might have a paper cut, but when he peered a little at it, he realised the look on Ootori's face wasn't because it had hurt but because he hadn't expected it.
Shishido sat forward in his seat then, glancing at Jirou as he slept in his chair, and then at Atobe as he frowned at Ootori's papers.
"Ootori, I said Wednesday, not Tuesday, and Ore-sama is most definitely not getting up at five AM; I clearly said six AM and you would have heard it if you hadn't been too busy trying to wake up Jirou. I already told you-"
"Look, Atobe, why don't you write it yourself if you don't like Choutarou's writing?" Shishido snapped, annoyed.
"It's okay, Shishido-san. I don't mind," Ootori protested, trying to quiet Shishido down.
Shishido shot him a glare and then narrowed his eyes at Atobe.
"What would be the point of having appointed a scribe then?" Atobe shot back, frowning. "Ore-sama has better things to do than sit and write like a common scribe, and had Ootori actually been listening to me like he's supposed to, he wouldn't have to write it all again."
"Why don't you write it yourself since you don't seem to need our input anyway?" Shishido returned, frustrated with the way this meeting was going.
It was only Monday afternoon and Atobe was already acting like it was a Friday and Kabaji wasn't here so there wasn't even anyone to put up with his demands and just answer him with an "usu".
Shishido didn't get that though either, since Kabaji's two syllable answer had always irked him a bit, and didn't Atobe get annoyed at someone who always said the same thing?
Probably not, Shishido decided.
Atobe probably just liked sheep to agree with him.
Atobe pursed his lips.
"I didn't say that I didn't need your input, Shishido, but if spouting off is all you can do, then why don't you just go back home, arn?"
Shishido sat forwards in his chair.
"Why don't you go home, Atobe? You're the one making a fuss about nothing."
Atobe banged his pen into the tabletop.
"I'm not going home, Shishido, because unlike you, I'm actually trying to get this finished before Kantoku asks about it tomorrow, because you know he's going to ask about it and you know that if it's not done, I'll be the one in trouble. So if you're not going to help, go home now."
Shishido glared in response. He'd passed the point of frustration a long time ago, boredom before that and irritation even before that, but the words he wanted to spit out were stuck on the tip of his tongue.
Instead, the only ones he could say were the ones that fell out of his mouth before he'd realised he was saying them.
"What's you problem Atobe? You order people like Choutarou around, telling him to do what you want, and then you turn around and tell him he's not doing a good enough job and get stuck into him over nothing! Then next moment you're trying to tell me that I'm causing a fuss over nothing? What is it with you?"
Shishido turned to Ootori to get his support, but his chair was empty.
"He went to the kitchen, in case you've been arguing so much you haven't noticed," Atobe informed him, still pursing his lips.
Shishido ignored the comment.
"You know, you get so pissed off whenever someone mentions Yuu-chan, but you're always dragging your problems into everything, and I don't really care anymore what the hell you're pissed about, but stop taking it out on us," Shishido spat, pushing his chair back with a loud slide on the floor.
He felt almost stupid doing it, but enough was enough, and Atobe was driving him up the wall for no reason at all!
"You can't have it both ways, idiot," Shishido finished, keeping his arms crossed as he walked out of the room towards the kitchen.
A part of him felt incredibly stupid, because he realised he'd just done what Atobe had said he was doing; making a fuss out of nothing.
But it wasn't really nothing.
Not when it came to Ootori.
(S)
When Shishido had mentioned Yuu-chan, Atobe's first instinct was to yell back; to tell him not to talk about Yuuta, to tell him that he didn't know anything, to tell him that he didn't have any right to talk about Yuuta or about himself like that.
Then when Shishido had stomped out, Atobe had looked at Jirou, still asleep in the chair next to him, and he'd felt like an idiot.
He felt stupid raising his voice to Shishido, and he felt even worse for having done it in Ootori's house.
He knew Ootori's parents weren't home, but the maid had walked in a moment later, and Atobe had the sinking feeling in his stomach that she'd heard their yelling.
He didn't care if she'd heard him.
Not really anyway; she was just a maid after all, and she wouldn't tell anyone of importance.
But though he hadn't gotten as worked up as Shishido, he hadn't exactly maintained his self-control either, and he hadn't handled it as he should have. He may have been Atobe Keigo, but in a sense, that only gave him more reason to behave.
Captains weren't supposed to behave like that, even if Shishido was sometimes annoying, and even if Atobe was still annoyed with himself about the other day, and even if he'd been too ashamed of his own words to call Yuuta back…
Shishido was right, of course.
Atobe wasn't being fair.
The realisation hit Atobe hard and he got out of his chair, walking over to the large windows that faced the garden.
Atobe wasn't that familiar with Ootori's house, but the door to the garden opened easily when he pressed his hand down on the handle, and Atobe stepped out, leaving the door open behind him.
At least out in the garden, he didn't have Jirou sleeping next to him.
He knew he was being stupid about Yuuta.
He knew he was silly for letting Shishido get to him, and for being so harsh on Ootori for something so little.
He had known it even before he'd opened his mouth today, but he just couldn't help being frustrated and annoyed and feeling like for once, he wanted to have the freedom to act like the other boys on the team.
He wasn't about to say he regretted his position, or his parents' positions, because he knew just as much as the next person how many doors they had opened for him.
But still, the sense of frustration coursed through his body, making him want to grab a tennis racquet and ball, pull off his tie and just head for a court.
Maybe he was overreacting.
He could just call Yuuta and things would be normal, and it wasn't as though he hadn't argued with Shishido before. Everyone knew he could be a hothead, so it was probably better that they'd both gotten it out of their systems.
Ootori was as forgiving as Mother Teresa.
Atobe pulled out his phone, cringing as he listened to sound of the phone ringing on Yuuta's end.
It hadn't been that big a deal the other night, so perhaps he had been the only one who felt odd about it afterwards.
Maybe after all of that, he was the one making a fuss about nothing.
And suddenly he felt even stupider than before.
(S)
Shishido kicked Jirou under the table.
His foot only just reached and he didn't think it was a very strong kick because the table they were at was pretty wide, but Jirou opened his eyes nonetheless.
He yawned a little, eyes unfocused as he stared at the person who had kicked him.
"Did I miss anything important?"
Atobe looked unimpressed, as usual.
"One does tend to miss things by sleeping through meetings," he answered dryly.
"Only the whole meeting," Shishido answered, trying not to be quite so annoyed by Jirou.
Ootori walked back into the room, a tray in his hands.
Atobe raised an eyebrow slightly.
"What do you hire your maid for, Ootori? Decoration?"
Ootori smiled a little, and it sent a feeling of warmth through Shishido.
"I was in the kitchen and I do have legs and arms, you know, Atobe-buchou," Ootori answered.
Atobe sat back in his chair, looking at Ootori for a moment.
Shishido half expected him to pick an argument over it or say something downright rude at least, but he didn't say anything.
For a few seconds anyway.
"Well, hurry up then Ootori. Are you trying to starve your guests here?"
Shishido curled his hand into a fist under the table, pissed off all over again.
Ootori simply put down the tray and Shishido wanted to tell him to tell Atobe to get some manners already. He was a guest in Ootori's house and he was acting like he owned it!
"Shishido-senpai," Ootori smiled.
"Huh?"
Shishido looked up at Ootori as he finished pouring out the fresh pot of tea.
The look on Ootori's face was making him feel more than a little guilty for yelling at the table before, even if Atobe had started it.
"Are you hungry?"
Ootori put down the teapot with a chink and held out a plate of biscuits.
Shishido shook his head, sitting back in his chair again, his appetite lost after the spat with Atobe.
"Are you sure?" Ootori asked.
Shishido thought he looked a bit dejected, but he didn't have a clue why.
"I'm not hungry," he answered, trying not to look at Atobe.
He'd only get pissed off again and then he'd feel bad for acting like an idiot around Ootori.
Two minutes later though, he couldn't not look at Atobe any longer.
"Ootori," Atobe said blankly. "What exactly are these?"
Shishido looked across at him, watching him hold a biscuit between two fingers, staring at it as though it were something from outer space.
Ootori hardly blinked.
"Oh, I bought them from the Candy mart. I really like them."
Shishido had a funny feeling he knew what Atobe was holding, but just to be sure, he sat up again and pulled the plate of biscuits in front of him.
Hello Kitty faces stared back at him, and the smile crept onto his lips before he even realised he was grinning at a plateful of biscuits.
"What's so funny?" Atobe demanded quickly, and Shishido looked up at him, just annoyed enough to give him a scowl.
"Nothing apparently, since you're still acting like you have a stick up your arse."
"I am not!"
Shishido gave a snort.
"Oh really?" he asked nonchalantly, feeling like he'd finally gotten one over Atobe.
Sure, it was childish and he was doing it right under Ootori's nose and feeling just a little guilty for it, but Atobe was Atobe and there was a lot of satisfaction in getting him to look like the loser for once.
Honestly, he was being so prissy over a biscuit.
"If you're not going to eat that, then give it to someone who will," Shishido demanded, sticking out his hand.
Not that he really intended to eat something Atobe had been holding for a whole two minutes, but he knew how Atobe's head worked.
"I've heard that commoners are very into recycling, you know, but I'm sure Ootori's not so poor that he can't give you a new biscuit, Shishido," Atobe said, rolling his eyes slightly.
Shishido grabbed a biscuit off the plate, stuffing it into his mouth at once and chewing it.
"Fine," he grumbled, when he had swallowed it somewhat hastily and nearly choked on a stray crumb.
He took a gulp of his tea, even though it was hot enough that his eyes wanted to water, and by the time he'd blinked a couple of times and finished feeling like there was something stuck in his throat, he realised that Atobe's biscuit had disappeared.
"This tastes like artificial strawberry flavouring," Atobe observed. "Who on earth would want to eat this sort of thing? It tastes like something you'd feed to a dog."
Shishido bristled, about to defend his choice in food when Ootori did it instead.
Under the table their hands bumped, not quite accidentally.
"I like them," Ootori declared a little loudly. "True, they're probably not to everyone's taste, but I think they're kind of cool."
Atobe looked amused, raising an eyebrow.
"Cool?" he repeated, shaking his head slightly. "You're going to need a better adjective than that to convince me."
Jirou was asleep again by the time they'd finished their snacks and cups of tea, and Shishido was almost going to let Atobe off on the fact that he'd actually eaten three biscuits when he'd said he wasn't going to eat any…
But then Atobe and Shishido reached for the last biscuit at the same time and half of it was in Atobe's mouth before it even occurred to Shishido that it was off the plate.
Shishido glared across the table.
"I suppose they're not entirely inedible," Atobe declared. "Where did you say you bought them again, Ootori?"
Ootori gave a smile.
After Atobe and Jirou left, Ootori dragged Shishido to the kitchen to show him the huge bulk box he'd bought.
Forty-eight packets of sugary, imitation strawberry and vanilla flavour biscuits.
"Why'd you buy so many?" Shishido asked, a little dumbfounded.
He knew he liked them, but he hadn't realised Ootori really liked them that much.
Ootori's hand brushed his slightly as he stepped closer, pushing Shishido against the counter.
"Well, I thought maybe you'd want to eat them…" Ootori explained. "Er… When you come over, of course," he grinned.
Shishido wondered how many visits Ootori thought forty-eight packets of biscuits would last them.
Not that he wouldn't have come to see Ootori without the incentive.
Ootori's mouth tasted like vanilla and sugar when they kissed; a kind of déjà vu for them both, but Shishido thought he wouldn't mind getting used to it.
(S)
Mizuki held out a pair of shoes to Yuuta, tilting his head slightly at the lack of response on his team mate's face.
When he'd asked Yuuta to come shopping with him after practice, Mizuki had expected a frown and a suspicious sort of look, and a whole barrage of questions and protests.
In fact, Yuuta had been suspiciously easy to convince.
Mizuki had an inkling it had something to do with Atobe, but he wasn't about to ask.
He had no desire to see that annoying look on Yuuta's face whenever Atobe was mentioned, nor did he want to hear anything should Yuuta choose to confide in him.
In fact, he wouldn't have minded forgetting that Atobe ever existed because it was one thing to have a rival, and entirely another to have a rival to whom you had lost so easily.
Still, he was glad he hadn't had to drag Yuuta out.
It would have wasted precious time they didn't have, and considering the fact that today was Tuesday, they would have to be back in time for dinner or they'd either go hungry or be punished somehow.
Akazawa had ended up coming along too somehow, and then because Akazawa was coming, Kaneda came as well.
Walking into the shoe shop Mizuki had wanted to visit, Akazawa had made a beeline for the sneakers, which was perfectly fine with Mizuki because Kaneda had followed Akazawa which had left him Yuuta and a wall full of shoes he wanted to try on.
"Do you actually have a personal preference, or are you just employing a method of random selection?" Mizuki demanded, after Yuuta had pointed his finger at the same pair of shoes thrice; the first time when Mizuki had asked him which pair he liked, the second time because Mizuki had demanded to know which was his least favourite of the group, and the third time because Mizuki wanted to know which ones made his ankles look better.
"They're all shoes to me," Yuuta finally said, rolling his eyes a little. "Really, Mizuki-san, can't you just buy a pair?"
Mizuki frowned.
"No I cannot 'just buy a pair'," he scolded, slightly annoyed.
He knew shoe shopping wasn't Yuuta's favourite pastime, but that didn't mean he couldn't just fake a little enthusiasm or pay just a little more attention.
"Really Yuuta, if you'd look closely, you'd see that these two pairs of shoes are entirely different," Mizuki lectured.
He had a funny feeling his words were going in one ear and out the other, but he was determined to prove his point.
Even Akazawa or Kaneda would have given more constructive feedback than what Yuuta was giving with his random pointing and 'can-we-leave-yet?' looks at the door.
Mizuki huffed when he caught Yuuta looking at the door again, but the words on the tip of his tongue, he ended up swallowing in surprise.
It was Oshitari Yuushi and Mukahi Gakuto who walked in.
.tbc.