Chapter 9: Heart
The left is mine, and the right is yours
The left is yours, and the right is mine
So that when I am alone, there is something missing
So that I do not live on alone
The first thing that he sees when he opens his eyes is Kageyama's gentle face. His eyes were just open, staring at him as he'd been watching him sleep the whole time.
"Go back to sleep…" he muttered.
"You're still awake?" Hinata spoke in a drowsy voice. He shifted his weight to his side, rubbing his eyes to check the time. It was merely five am, and the sun had not even risen from the horizon.
Hinata closed his eyes again, burying his head at the crook of Kageyama's neck.
He felt extremely warm against his bare skin.
Oh right.
They did it. They have really done it.
The orange head blushed at the thought as he realized that he had just bared his whole self to another being—and it was even an angel.
"Your ears are red…" Kageyama spoke rather teasingly, this time using his hand as a leverage to rest his chin over his palm, giving him a better view of the shrimp, who had now buried his face to the angel's chest. He then gently ran a finger on one of Hinata's cowlicks, brushing it to the side.
Hinata giggled. "That kinda tickles."
Kageyama smiled.
"Go back to sleep," he muttered once again, placing a kiss on the shrimp's forehead as soon as he looked up.
"It's a Saturday."
"Yeah, but you'll need energy later."
"Hm…"
"We're going on a date, remember?"
Hinata's eyes lit up amidst the dark. He beamed at Kageyama.
"Where do you wanna go?"
"Hm…" Hinata scrunched his face in concentration.
"Kageyama."
"Hm?"
"Suki da."
It was a bare whisper, yet it was enough to make Kageyama's heart stop for a second.
"I know."
"Ne Hinata."
"Hm?"
"Do you know? It is said that once, people had four legs and four hands."
"E-Eh?! That must've looked…gross…"
Kageyama laughed. "It's just a legend."
"Maa, but it would've made volleyball easier. You can toss the ball with your one hand, and then you can support it if almost falls, then you can throw it again!"
"Ugh…the image is sending me shivers. Plus, it'd make it harder for you to move. Imagine yourself running with four feet."
Hinata chuckled. "Indeed. But why did you mention it?"
"Hm…just that according to the legend, God split this body into two."
"W-Woah…must've hurt a lot!" Hinata shuddered at the thought.
"And that's why it is said the people spend their lives looking for the other half," The angel said, giving a slight smile to Hinata.
"Oooooooooohhh…interesting! Does that mean that you are my other half?" Hinata said without batting an eye.
"Maybe. Maybe you had the other half of my heart."
"And maybe it's the reason why we are in synch! In the court I mean…"
Kageyama chuckled. To his surprise, Hinata had placed his ear just above the spot where his heart was.
"It's loud."
Kageyama smiled. He then placed his hand on Hinata's own chest, making the human flinch at the sudden warmth of the contact.
"So is yours."
"Kageyama-kun… The drowsiness in his voice was coming back.
"What is it?"
"Can you please…sing that song again?"
"You never get tired of it, don't you?"
"No way. No matter how many times you sing it…I would never ever grow tired of it…"
The angel sighed.
"Well then…" Kageyama spoke, pulling the blanket higher over the two of them.
And thus, he began to sing.
The orange head smiled, his eyes fluttering to a close.
The angel had hardly finished the second to the last verse of the song when he heard a snore come out from the body next to him.
He was about to close his eyes and let himself fall to sleep when—
"Don't go."
It was Hinata, his eyes still closed, his mind probably freely roaming in his dreaming state when he spoke those words.
But to the angel, whose mind was still fully awake.
These two words meant the world to him.
And then something hit his heart. Something warm. Something painful.
Before Kageyama knew it, he was fighting back his tears.
Hinata must have been the happiest person that morning. He had never seen the shrimp grab his clothes so fast, finish his bath in probably hardly five minutes, and fix himself in front of the mirror in the blink of an eye.
"Don't humans normally take their time preparing for a date?"
Hinata frowned. "What are you even talking about, Kageyama-kun? We've got no time to waste!"
"There's really no need to rush, I mean it's just eight a.m.—"
"No!" Hinata exclaimed in a voice full of resolve. He then turned to Kageyama.
"This day, we'll spend every hour of it together! Every second!"
The angel could not help but smile. He then stood up from the edge of the bed, settling down the book he had been reading for days. He then slowly walked towards the shrimp, placing his hands carefully around Hinata's waist.
His celestial eyes fluttered close as he buried his nose at the crook of Hinata's neck. He sighed.
"You really smell like the sun."
Just as he let the angel indulge in his scent, the orange head did the same with Kageyama's warmth.
"Y-You have to put your shirt back on."
"Oh. Right." Come to think of it, he was still half naked.
"Are you alright?"
"Eh?"
"I mean, I didn't hurt you last night—"
"Hurt? What do y—" Hinata's words trailed off as soon as it hit him. His face turned red as soon as he realized what Kageyama was talking about.
"I-I'm fine…" he said in a small voice. The angel held him closer. Hinata could literally hear the beating of his heart. It sounded like a drum against his ears.
"Kageyama-kun…"
"What…"
"Is something bothering you?"
He felt the embrace loosen up as Kageyama took a step backwards.
To smile at him.
"Nothing. Now go downstairs and eat. We'll have a lot of things to do."
The orange head gave the angel a long and gazing look.
Tiptoeing, Hinata reached for Kageyama's face and gave him a swift kiss. The angel seemed to have been frozen. Hinata grinned.
"Got you on that!"
And with that, the orange head dashed out of the room, climbing down the stairs as fast as he could.
The angel broke out a subtle smile.
He then turned his back as soon as he heard Hinata settle on his chair, happily asking his mother about breakfast.
His eyes fell to the book.
Gently, he picked it up and flipped through the pages.
And so the human placed her hands on both side of the creature's face.
"Must you leave right at this time?"
The creature, with his golden eyes, gave a wistful smile. He tried. At that moment, it felt like his heart was being engulfed by a thousand strings, clutching them into a pain that he had never ever felt before in his immortal life. His brothers were right. He never should have come down to this place. For the mortal world is a place full of bonds, and these bonds, as much as they tie them to a certain mortal, bring loneliness on whoever falls victim to such emotion. An emotion that went by the name of love.
He was sad. Just sad. At that moment, there could not have been any plausible emotion.
But he knows. That the best gift that he could give was a smile to the mortal that planted that seed in his heart.
"I must go now."
The human bit her lips. The creature that like him, she was fighting.
To place a smile in her lips.
"I see. We'll see each other again, right?"
She waited for an answer.
But it did not come.
All the creature did was to hold her hands.
"Thank you. For everything."
They say that mortals always loved the three words that spark the bind between two souls. But the creature chose not to say so.
As soon as he disappears, the human would forget about his existence. With this, he wanted her to fall in love. Again. With another man. A being that could make her happy for the rest of her life. A being that could stay by her side forever.
She called his name. It felt like music to his ears.
And then she opened her lips. He knew that she was going to say those three words.
"Don't," he said softly, placing his hand over those frail ones. "Don't say it."
The human's eyes gave an imploring look.
"Close your eyes. And turn your back."
The questioning look stayed in her eyes. Nevertheless, she chose to trust the man that she loved.
"Promise that you'll never open them until I say so."
The creature place his arms around the human.
And whispered those three words.
As soon as he said it, the human opened her eyes.
She never got the chance to reply to those three words.
At that moment, the creature had ceased its existence from her memories.
"Kageyama-kun!" Hinata exclaimed as soon as he entered the room. "What are you waiting for, let's go!"
The angel closed the book he was reading.
"Yes," the angel said with a smile. He then settled the book.
"You really love reading that book, don't you?" Hinata said. His hand was about to reach for the book when Kageyama caught his hand. He then enclosed his fingers around the smaller palm.
"Let's go," Kageyama spoke with a smile.
He sure had been smiling a lot lately, the shrimp thought.
A.N.: Two more chapters (yeah, I added one): one epilogue and then the final one. Please look forward to it! :)