Cup of coffee cradled between her hands, Hitoka welcomes the warmth of sunlight on her face.
"Good morning," she smiles as Hinata and Kageyama approach her, school bags swung over their shoulders. Hinata is first to greet her, a smile too wide for Yachi who had just woken up - Saturday, after all, was the day she usually kept to herself, to sleep in and watch series, while Sunday was for her chores and studying.
The boy waves, practically running his way to her, "Hi! Thank you so much for helping us on the weekend!"
"Yeah," Kageyama seems of her opinion, rubbing the remnants of sleep out of his eyes, almost as if he had just woken up, despite it being close to noon, "Thanks."
"I'm glad to help, you can come in," she leads the two to the staircase, quickly arriving on the second floor where the apartment she shares with her mother is, "Don't mind my mother, please act as if she wasn't there."
For a sometimes distant woman with so little time to give her only child, Yachi Madoka still always found some time to snoop in her daughter's life.
Hinata and Kageyama share an unsure glance at the girl's words, "Sure?"
"Thanks for having us!" Hinata and Kageyama bow as she lets them inside her home, taking off their shoes, and Hitoka's cheeks flush when she sees her mother's head poking out of the living room, curious about the two boys her daughter had invited into their home.
If the two boys notice Yachi trying to shoo her mother away, neither says a thing. Although, Kageyama does seem unusually amused. The teenage girl nods, glaring at her mom from the corner of her eye, "Do you want anything to drink before we start?"
"No thanks," Hinata cheerfully says, eyeing the inside of the modern, if a bit small, household. Kageyama rubs the back of his neck, before almost shyly asking for some water.
"Of course! I'll be right back!" that's when it happens.
"Oh what polite young men you are!" Hitoka pales as her mother goes to approach, a too-friendly smile on her lips, "I hope you and that club of yours have been taking care of my Hitoka, I know she can be a handful sometimes-"
"Mom, no!" horrified, the blonde first-year turns on her heel to face Madoka who is grinning like the cat who got the cream, undoubtedly unbothered and perhaps even pleased with her daughter's screeching, "Not this again!"
The woman sniffs, rolling her eyes, "Don't be silly Hitoka, I'm only taking care of you. I'm sure that - Kageyama-kun and Hinata-kun was it? - don't mind."
"O-of course not ma'am-" Hitoka interrupts Hinata and her mother's ridiculous cooing, suppressing a shiver as her hands land on each of the boys' shoulder closest to her, pushing them in the direction of the kitchen in a rare bout of boldness.
Once the door is almost closed, she turns to her mother, features blank, "If you bother us again, you'll have to make yourself something to eat!"
The threat has the wanted effect, because Madoka promptly pales, "You'd let your own mother starve?"
Kageyama chokes on something that sound suspiciously like laughter behind her and Hitoka bites on the inside of her cheek to not break out of her serious facade, "We both know you'd bully Nakano-san into buying you something on his way here. Now shoo!"
It's like the roles are reversed, the two boys share a bemused look at the strange mother-daughter dynamic.
"She can't cook, at all," Hitoka feels the need to explain once her mother has finally left the area, "She'd only survive on fast food and instant ramen if nobody cooked for her." That's one of the reasons she and Sat-chan got along so well, Hitoka muses with a slightly secretive smile.
Her mother, terrifying businesswoman that she is, could probably rule the world before noon if she wanted, yet she cannot for the life of her make something more than a grilled cheese in the kitchen - and even that usually turns black around the edges.
"So! You guys wanted to review English and modern literature, right?" It had been a week without her having any involvement with Karasuno's volleyball team besides occasional texting with Shimizu-senpai and short greetings in the hallways, but when Kageyama and Hinata had cornered her as she got out of school, pleading for her to help them one last time... there was no way she could have said no, not when she knew how much they struggled with their academics.
And well, she'd be lying if she said that the fact that they still wanted to hang out didn't make her very, very happy.
"Yes!" Hinata nods, gaze focused intensely on his notebook, "The final exams are next week, and since we managed to raise our grades enough, if we pass those we'll be able to go to Tokyo!"
"I'm sure you'll do great," she reassures, handing Kageyama his earlier promised glass of water, "How about we start with modern lit since we didn't cover it last time?" Kageyama looks relieved at the news, gaze sweeping over Yachi's magical notes eagerly.
"So," she scoots into the seat to Kageyama's left and in front of Hinata's, "Is it comprehension or writing that has you guys bummed out usually?"
The next two hours are spent memorizing words and working on spelling as well as sentence construction, Yachi giving her peers tricks for the exams as well as studying, "If you get lost or overwhelmed by the exam, take a second to take a step back and clear your thoughts - think of your favorite song's lyrics, your latest volleyball win or something like that."
"How about you try to do those exercises the teacher gave?" Yachi giggles when she hears a stomach grumbling, "I'll go make something to eat so we can take a break, we either have some leftover pasta or some onigiri I was going to make for my mom to take to work, although it might take a bit longer?"
As she washes her hands at the counter, Hitoka doesn't notice the sudden blush that covers the boys' faces, "Uh, some onigiri sounds great," Hinata lets out a too-high cheer at his teammate's words.
"Great, since I'll be right here feel free to ask me anything!"
She lets the two volleyball players focus on their exercises for a while, washing her hands and quickly getting to work, eyes narrowing on her workspace as she thinks of what filings to stuff the rice balls with, grilled salmon flakes for sure, I could make some umeboshi ones and... kelp maybe?
"Yachi-san?" the petite girl startles at the voice behind her, almost dropping the soy bottle she'd been holding while making the marinade for the kelp.
"Ah!" her hand clutches at the front of her shirt, "Sorry, you took me by surprise Hinata-sa..." she catches herself at the last second, smiling shyly, "Hinata, did you need anything?"
"Well," the boy rubs the back of his neck, looking away, "Could I borrow your bathroom please?"
Hitoka's face pales, words quickly spilling out of her, "Of course! My goodness, I can't believe I didn't show you where it was earlier!" she made a terrible, terrible host, unused to welcoming new people into her home, "Forgive me?"
Hinata chuckles, letting her lead him out of the kitchen which also serves as a dining room, and to where the bathroom is, a few doors away, "Don't be silly Yachi-san, thanks a lot!"
She smiles, stopping by their small living room to check on her mom and ask the woman if she wanted to eat something right now, or later. Madoka looks up from her papers with a half-crazed look, "I'll finish this before eating, but thanks honey."
Hitoka nods, "You're doing a great job mom, I love you," Hitoka then gets back to the kitchen where some salmon is sizzling on the pan, "Is everything going well Kageyama-san?"
The boy grunts, "Yeah, thanks," his face is pinched, eyes narrowed, and the harsh lines of his face, around his eyes and on his forehead, are on full display as he looks at the sheet in front of him.
Noticing this, Hitoka quietly tiptoes over to sneak a glance at the question that is bothering him, "Here," she takes a pencil that was on Hinata's side of the table, scratching some parts of the question, "It's easier to understand the question by getting rid of unessential information, like here what's important to answer is-"
"What does the title The Metamorphosis refer to, and how does it set into the historical context?" the girl grins clapping her hands, "That's it, keep up with the good work Kageyama-san!"
Just as she begins to chop some umeboshi into rough pieces, the boy behind her speaks once more, "Hey..." Hitoka looks over her shoulder to meet Kageyama's eyes, letting go of the knife and tilting her head slightly to the side as an invitation for him to continue, "You can drop the honorifics, if you want."
Wide honey-colored orbs blink, once, twice. Her mouth seems painfully dry all of sudden, and her mind comes to an abrupt halt.
It was easy to understand such a request from Hinata, Hinata Shouyou who was so friendly and uninhibited. Coming from Kageyama, quiet and collected and secretly very kind Kageyama, however, Yachi would be lying if she said it didn't take her by surprise. The boy had proved himself much more reserved than his friend, unless it came to volleyball that is.
"I...I'd like that, if you're comfortable with it," Hitoka nibbles on her lower lip, peering at the boy through her lashes curiously.
"I don't mind," Kageyama assures, "Not if it's you," then as his words catch up to him, the too-tall first-year's face bursts into a bright red color, "I-I mean since we're friends."
Hitoka ignores her own blush, "Thank you Kageyama, you can do the same," then she turns her gaze to Hinata who had just entered the kitchen, heard the last bits of their conversation, and went back to his seat, "You too Hinata, there's no need for honorifics."
The rice cooker beeps then, stealing the blonde's attention away. Putting the portion away to cool, she starts another and finishes to cook the salmon which's smell has her stomach grumbling. About fifteen minutes later, each boy is given a plate with the three kinds of onigiri and she puts those for her mother away, "Here, enjoy."
She'd swear Hinata's eyes fill with tears when he lays his eyes on the three medium-sized onigiri, "Those look amazing," like a man starved, the bigger than nature boy bites into one of the rice balls, expression melting at the taste.
"I'm glad you like them," she calls from over her shoulder as she puts all of the school stuff out of the way and brings three glasses of lemonade to go with their lunch, "Sorry for the wait."
"'t was worth it," Kageyama says and she giggles, joining them to eat her own slightly smaller onigiri. I did a good job with these, Yachi acknowledges as the taste of umeboshi hits her, I should make more with pickled plums this week.
"So, if everything goes well with the exams this week you guys are all heading for Tokyo next Sunday right?" then, her lips purse, "That's convenient, since after finals there's only activities and recovery exams, you guys won't miss anything."
"Right?" Hinata grins, shining as bright as the sun, "It's so cool we get to play and miss school at the same time!"
She sweatdrops a bit, "That wasn't the point I was trying to make, but as long as it makes you happy..." the girl trails off and Kageyama considers her from the corner of his eye, she's a bit weak-willed.
"Hey," the setter starts, lips pursing as a thought occurs to her, "Yamaguchi mentioned he and Tsukishima ran into you and a friend the other day when they were walking home from practice. He said something about basketball, what's that all about?"
If Yachi is bothered by the sudden question, she doesn't show it, "Ah, well I was blowing off some steam and ended up playing with some girl who wanted to use the court with her friends later - she was amazing, tall as a tree and could jump freakishly high."
"Hah, I didn't know you played basketball Yachi," Hinata blinks, "Why not join the team at school? I hear their girls' team is pretty good, better than the volleyball one even."
Kageyama grunts at the poor, disrespectful choice of words, "Idiot, that's so rude, the captain would have your head if he heard you say something like that," and before Hitoka knows it, the two of them are arguing again, shooting petty insults at each other.
"You know that's not how I meant it Bakayama!" Hinata then frowns, admitting his words were needlessly mean, "The girls are amazing, especially the captain! I just meant that the female basketball team won some awards recently and all that!"
It's something that worried her at first, how the two would always end up fighting over nothing. Now, the scene is more familiar than anything, and it is easy for her to notice how there is no real heat in the words they exchange.
If Hitoka had thought she could get away with not answering Hinata's first question, her hopes are squashed when the boy turns to her after his latest argument with Kageyama, once again asking if she was thinking of joining the girls' basketball team.
"Ah, no," she blushes a bit, "I'm not so good, and it's just a hobby," she tries not to think too much of bright eyes as the ball whisks into the net, of cheering so loudly her lungs might give out, of boys who get so good, so fast they burn out like meteors, like shooting stars.
(it's just a game, it's supposed to just be a game)
"Is it about what you said the other day?" Kageyama blinks as Hinata's expression shifts into one of quiet, but noticeable discontentment, "About being inconsiderate and unpassionate?"
"Ah," she pauses, surprised he had remembered what she said the other day after she turned down the manager position, "A bit, but it is mostly because I want to focus on my studies..."
"But not only that," Hinata states, frowning, "Y'know, the way you think about yourself really doesn't sit well with me Yachi, and not just because I want you to be our manager."
Shouyou surprises the two with his unusually serious composure, and Yachi really did not realize how her words had struck a chord within the boy. She stutters, "Ah! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you with what I said, I'll be more careful!"
But she doesn't regret saying those things, Kageyama notices the way she worded it, wondering what the hell had happened the other day while he was gone. "Inconsiderate and unpassionate? You really said that?" the boy asks, letting his confusion seep into his voice.
He to try and stick the terms to the increasingly quiet girl in front of him, unpassionate maybe if you considered how shy and hesitant she was, but inconsiderate?
Now that had to be a joke.
Yachi wants nothing more than to run out and never come back, "I...Shimizu-senpai was so kind to me, and I didn't want for her to be stuck with someone like me as her legacy in such an incredible team. You guys were so nice to me, but you don't really know me."
"That's dumb," she startles, eyes widening at the fierce answer from Kageyama, "Don't let things like that stop you from doing something you want, you're overthinking. If you want to join, whether it's the basketball team or as a manager for the volleyball team, you should."
Hinata is slightly put off by how much he agrees with such a stingy guy.
"I don't know," a part of her yearns for it, but it's not fair of her to try chasing after memories with these people, "I'm no good in teams, really, I know you don't believe me, but I can be so careless sometimes, and I...I hurt someone with that carelessness, so much."
Pale blue eyes look back at her, haunted, and she knows, she knows that Kuroko never resented her for what happened, but he... he never quite forgot the part she played in the destruction of all that was around them.
The worst part is how he disappeared without a sound, like a ghost, a distant memory.
(she's drowning, not fighting back, letting herself sink deeper into the darkness even as hands reach out for her)
"Then you get better," Hinata's voice is what snaps the girl out of her trance, "You try your hardest not to make the same mistakes, but you don't stop living just because of a bad experience."
Kageyama nods, eyes the color of a midnight sky boring into hers, "What do you want Yachi?"
What I want..? she wants to stop being such a burden to others, she wants her mother to be happy, she wants to punch someone in the face, she wants to tell Satsuki she's fine and mean it, she wants-
(she swims to the surface and breathes)
"I want to be a part of something," then, Hitoka lifts her head, clear of any insecurities, of the worries that constantly plague her mind, "I want to be the volleyball team's manager, if you'll still have me."
The admission has giggles tumbling out of her, a breathtaking smile forming on her lips. "Of course!" Hinata's happiness is contagious, Kageyama even cracking a smile her way, "Good."
"Kageyama, Hinata?" she asks, even as their eyes have not left her, "Thank you, for everything."
She immediately goes to call Shimizu-senpai as the boys finish their food, explaining that she had changed her mind, "I'm sorry for causing so much trouble, if you haven't found someone to fill the position yet, I'd be glad to join."
The older girl's response is one filled with both joy and astonishment, and they agree to fill in the paperwork for the club activity and trip to Tokyo on Monday. Kiyoko hesitates, just as she was about to hang up as they had already said goodbye, "Oh and Hitoka-chan? It makes me very happy that you decided to join after all."
"Me too senpai, me too," when she gets back to her kitchen, Kageyama has a scary glare on his face, as well as some foam on his cheek, Hinata is cackling, hands in her filled sink.
"Oh! You two don't need to wash the dishes, I'll do it, you should go back to your studies," Yachi daringly raises to her tiptoes to wipe off the foam from Kageyama's face with slightly wet fingertips, the boy's lips parting in shock as the girl's fingers seem to leave tingles in their wake, "There that's better, now shoo, get back to work."
The boys do as they are told, slowly getting back in the swing of things and studying until the sun begins to set at around six-forty-five.
"I think you two have had enough for the day," Yachi says slowly, watching the two boys who are in a state of disarray, practically laying over her table and their books in exhaustion, "Dedication is good, but don't overwork yourselves."
"Need to...Tokyo," she leans over to close their books at Hinata's far from eloquent answer, enough is enough after all.
"Do you want some more tea before you leave?" she offers, their cups had been long empty, and so had the plate of biscuits they had eaten as a snack earlier, "Any last questions?"
There's something like a grunt from Kageyama and Hitoka's cheeks puff out as she tries to contain her laughter, wondering if they need her help to stand. They slowly do so, gathering their stuff and eventually making their way to her door, and she insists to walk them on, slipping on her slip-on sandals.
"If you want, we can study some more in the week, if you feel the need," although she doubts that with final exams and practice, they'd have the time, maybe at lunch time?
"Thank you so much for helping us on a Saturday," the two give her a slight bow of their head, just as Madoka Yachi leaves the building, having a late meeting once again. The older woman raises a brow when the two boys thank her for having their in her home.
"You two are sweet, it was no problem, feel free to come back any time," if she is laying it on a bit thick, well you cannot fault a woman for wanting her child to make friends, despite the catastrophe that was Junior High, "Was she a good teacher?"
"The best," Hinata says with assurance, "I'll be able to ace my exams now, I think! I won't let Yachi's kindness go to waste!" Never one to accept compliments graciously, Hitoka blushes to her roots.
Madoka sends her daughter an amused glance, "Well then, good luck on your exams."
"Thank you! Let's go to Tokyo together Yachi!" the girl eeps as her hands are grabbed between Hinata's, the warmth of the touch making her fingers twitch within his hold, "See you soon!"
The two of them stay silent for a while as Hinata and Kageyama walk away, Madoka staring straight ahead, "Hitoka, what was that about Tokyo?" the girl gulps, twirling a strand of chin-length hair between her fingers.
"I...um, I'll be joining the volleyball team as a manager after all, and there's practice matches in Tokyo next week," Hitoka's mother still hasn't looked at her, "Do you think I could go?"
"If you're sure this is what you want, don't let anyone pressure you into this," her mother's icy expression seems to melt off when she sees her daughter squirming, "I just don't want you to get hurt, you get so involved emotionally sometimes."
"I know, but they're not the same as my previous team, they're so-" before anything else can be said, her mother's partner arrives, out of breath from having run on his way here, "Sorry I'm late! We can leave now."
Madoka informs her child that she will be home late, ready to leave even as Nakano-san blabbers on about how they're not so last minute she can't finish her discussion with her daughter. Hitoka waves it off, smiling at the soft-hearted man who kept her mother in line, "It's fine, have a nice evening!"
It is a complete coincidence that when she gets back to her room, she catches sight of some sketches that had been left on her desk. It's not much more than abstract figures, jumping or crouching low like how she'd seen Nishinoya-san do to receive the ball.
The sight of them pisses her off.
Just as she's about to pick up her pencil and try to refine the drawings, a knock interrupts her and she gets up to open her front door, "Oh, Hinata?" the boy is panting, hastily explaining that he left his English textbook in her kitchen. Yachi blanches, how could I not notice?!
They eventually find the textbook underneath the table, probably having fallen off when Hinata was putting it in his bag. Before the boy can leave, however, a sudden idea has her gripping the edge of his shirt, "Hey, if you're not too busy after practice on Monday, do you think you and maybe Kageyama could do me a favor?"
The boy hears her explanation, face lighting up even when she doesn't say why she'd ask for such a thing, "Sure! I'd be glad to help!"