Haikyu!
Higher
Chapter 45: First

Life continued as normal as the days wore on.

Hinata began to practically live at Aika's house after their venture to Tokyo, while Yachi joined the two after practice for dinner on occasion. Kageyama never worked up the courage to ask if he could join the small group of freshmen, despite Aika practically dragging both Tsukishima and Yamaguchi to eat with her after practice some days.

"Tobio, are you hungry?" she asked after practice in the last week of August. He looked up at her, putting his water bottle back in his bag, and nodded, his words suddenly failing him as he noticed how close to him that she was. "Can we get something to eat if you don't have to be home soon? There's a new sushi place that opened up near my house, if you'd like to go with me." She paused, hesitation clear in her face, and quickly added, "Shoyo has to go home tonight. His dad's coming home for the weekend."

He stood from his place on the floor of the Karasuno gymnasium and nodded with a small smile. "Let me treat you. I never repaid you for that lunch after the last tournament, and you and your brother allowed me to eat with you," he said softly.

Aika laughed as they began to walk from the gym, Kageyama rubbing the sweat from his face with a towel. "You don't have to do that, Tobio." She waved him off, smiling softly up at him, causing him to fight back his blush as he glanced at her, only to see her looking away from him again, instead glancing at her phone.

"I want to." His reply was quick as he spoke to her, his tone gentle, but insistent. "I'd like to treat you to dinner, Aika."

He swore that he could see a flush on her face as she looked up at him with wide eyes and her mouth open, forming a surprised little "o" shape. He wanted to laugh a little bit upon seeing it, as he could clearly see her expressions now, could clearly tell how she was feeling, unlike way back when he first met her, when the only emotions she ever really, truly showed were mostly negative, and even then, her real feelings were rare.

Closing her mouth and replacing her phone in her bag, she managed a small, hesitant smile. "O-okay, then," she agreed, nodding. Her hand tightened around her bag strap as she glanced away from him. "I'm going to run to the store and grab a drink, then. I'll grab you milk again, so, uh… I'll meet you at the gate."

He watched as she used her crutches to move as fast as she possibly could down the hill, away from him, her short hair swinging behind her as she moved. He couldn't help the laugh that fell from his lips, watching her and feeling the affection for her swell in his chest.

"So, you and Aika are going for dinner tonight?" a snide voice reached his ears. Kageyama turned to see Tsukishima and Yamaguchi standing behind him, already changed from their practice uniforms. Both looked equally smug for some reason, causing Kageyama to feel some sort of irritation. "Is it a date?" Tsukishima asked, his tone still arrogant.

Pursing his lips, Kageyama made an uncomfortable sounding noise in the back of his throat. "It isn't a date." He sounded dejected even to his own ears as he said it. "But it is just the two of us, I think."

"Well, if you want to pay for dinner, just make sure that you don't take your eyes off the check," Tsukishima warned him. "Yamaguchi and I had to pay one time while she was in the bathroom. She wouldn't have let us otherwise." With that, the tall blonde put his headphones over his ears and moved off, although Yamaguchi didn't follow him.

Instead, the slightly shorter boy hesitated, managing a small, but encouraging smile at the setter as he shifted, moving closer to his teammate and resting his hand on Kageyama's shoulder, as if trying to reassure him.

"Tsukki means well," he murmured. "Aika's come to mean a lot to him. She's his first real friend in a long time, so he's a little protective over her. Not like she needs it, but still. Just… be sure to treat her right, okay, Kageyama?" He grinned again, this one a little more open and genuine, less hesitant like he usually was around other people.

Simply staring at his teammate, Kageyama nodded slowly, his gaze firm. "I will," he vowed, his voice as serious as he was about Aika.

Yamaguchi laughed a bit as his hand dropped from Kageyama's shoulder and back to his side. "I knew you'd say that. I just wanted to make sure." He waved as he began to bound away, trying to catch up to Tsukishima's retreating figure.

Only being able to stare after his two teammates, Kageyama felt his chest begin to well up with confidence, something that he only ever felt when he was on the court. Besides that confidence, that pride, there was something else, that he'd only felt a few times before. Once was when Hinata, Aika's best friend, told Kageyama that he was the best choice for his friend. He took a deep breath, trying to somehow come to terms with this feeling in his chest, despite knowing that it was his own head telling him that he deserved to feel this way.

"You're staring after those two awfully hard." Startled, he whirled around to see Aika standing behind him, a bag in hand as she sipped from a bottled tea. She reached into the bag and held out a carton of milk to him, and he gladly accepted. "Something happen?"

He shook his head as he stabbed the straw into the milk carton, watching as some of the milk bubbled over where the straw stemmed from the carton. Taking a deep breath, he looked to Aika, who had pulled her phone from her pocket and was laughing silently as she texted someone back, tucking her short hair behind her ear as she did so. He sighed a little as he moved the carton from one hand to the other, but then proceeded to down the entire carton in one long sip, crushing in his hand it as the carton grew empty.

"That's kind of amazing, Tobio." He jolted, turning to stare at Aika as she looked up at him, amusement written clear on her face.

Feeling heat rush through his cheeks, he managed, "I just… like milk."

She laughed out loud as she tucked her phone away and started to walk down the hill leading to the school's entrance. He followed after her, his long legs allowing him to catch up to her easily, slowing his pace as he walked side by side with her.

There was a comfortable silence that sat between the two as they made their way down the streets, away from the school.

For Tobio, it felt as if he didn't know what to say. He subtly moved his gaze towards her, watching her out of the corners of his eyes, his piercing gray eyes focused solely on the girl walking next to him. He watched as she stumbled ever so often, her grip on her cane tightening as she tried to reclaim her balance. Each time she did, his hands twitched as he prepared to grab onto her if he had to help her, but each time she did, she didn't seem to need it. Even so, he kept his worried gaze on her.

"Are you excited?" she asked suddenly. Her voice broke him out of his thoughts, and he blinked with wide eyes. She laughed a bit as she noticed the confused look on his face. "Sorry, that was out of nowhere, wasn't it? I mean, are you excited for the preliminaries?"

Tobio immediately nodded, feeling that familiar well of excitement in his chest at the idea of being able to play volleyball again. His grip on his bag strap tightened and he fought back the fierce smile that threatened to take over his face. "Yeah," he replied, struggling to keep his voice under control.

She hummed, still looking up at him with a sort of serene smile. "That's good. I'm really excited to be back out there with you all. Being with Nekoma was fun and all, but… I missed being here. With Karasuno."

With you, the unspoken words hung in the air.

His hand twitched once again, and he felt an uncontrollable pull to wrap her hand in his as they walked side by side. But he didn't move. He fought against the feeling with all his heart, not wanting to scare her away, not now that she was standing next to him.

A soft touch garnered his attention, and he glanced down at his hand, which had been engulfed with a warmth while he wasn't looking. He stopped in his tracks, eyes widening upon seeing Aika's smaller hand wrapped around his, and she followed him. She looked up at him with a nervous half smile.

"Sorry, Tobio. I just… you looked like you were somewhere else."

She moved to pull her hand away from his, but he instinctively curled his hand around hers. Losing this warmth was not an option for him. He shook his head as she blinked at him in surprise.

"I was," he admitted. "But this is good."

He turned away, feeling words beginning to fail him again, and began walking down the quiet, dimly lit streets of Miyagi again. He could hear her cane hitting the pavement behind him as she tried to keep up with his longer strides, which were driven by his heart pounding faster than normal. Remembering both her leg and her height, he forced himself to slow down, keeping pace with her and walking right next to her, like they had before their hands connected. He could feel her eyes on him, and he forced himself not to blush as he felt her grip on his hand tighten just a bit, but enough for him to feel that kind of comforting warmth increase.

It was nice. He liked to think he could stay like that for a long time.

Forever, if he was allowed.

Dinner was nice. The sushi bar, having just opened, was in an off-the-road location closer to the houses than the town. The man behind the bar was an older man, probably in his late forties or early fifties. It was a pretty place, lit with lanterns instead of with modern lighting, and it was quiet enough for the two kids to not feel awkward as they sat in silence, eating their sushi together, only exchanging words ever so often.

"So, you two kids are high schoolers?" the chef behind the bar asked suddenly, his eyes twinkling as he looked at the two. Both of them looked up at him in surprise. "I recognize the Karasuno uniform. My kids went there when they were in high school."

Aika nodded, finally speaking for the first time since ordering her food. "Yeah. We're on the Karasuno volleyball team. Well, more accurately, he is." She gestured to Kageyama. "I'm just helping out, I suppose." She shrugged, looking towards the boy next to her.

"She's our assistant coach," he cut in, addressing the chef. "We're going to be competing in the Spring Tournament soon. And winning."

The chef hummed thoughtfully, looking between the two kids. He smiled brightly and nodded suddenly. "Right then. My name's Mabuchi, and I'm the owner of this place. You kids can eat as much as you want. It's on me," he announced, his boisterous voice filled with kindness.

Kageyama and Aika exchanged a look. After a few moments, she turned back to Mabuchi and asked, "Are you sure that's okay?"

"Yep!" Mabuchi nodded, skillfully preparing another plate of Kageyama's choice, salmon. "On the condition that you bring the rest of your team here once you win." He grinned again as he slid the sushi towards the two. "You've got to beat a whole bunch of good teams, right? If you say you're going to win, then you must be strong."

Kageyama took the plate and pulled it towards him, nodding in thanks. He picked up one of the rolls with his chopsticks and dropped it onto Aika's plate. She simply stared at him as he shoveled the food into his mouth.

As he swallowed, he looked Mabuchi directly in the eye.

"We'll win. And we'll bring everyone here when we do."

The older man grinned again. "That's the spirit. I'll be rooting for you kids."

Kageyama couldn't work up the courage to hold Aika's hand again as he walked her home. Instead, he walked side by side with her, his hand twitching ever so often as it brushed against hers.

"Tobio." He looked down at the girl next to him, who was smiling up at him. "Can I hold your hand again?"

He felt himself flushing a deep red as the words registered in his mind. He could barely remember nodding, but he knew he had when she took his hand in hers, holding it the same way she did on the way to the restaurant. His hand curled around hers, holding it firmly, yet gently, and he subconsciously slowed his pace a bit more, wanting to savor the moment as they walked together.

He hated seeing her house after only a few minutes, although those few minutes felt like hours to him. Not wanting to drop her hand, he stopped a block or two before her house, tugging her to stop with him. She did so, and looked up at him curiously.

"It's almost the end of September, huh?" he asked softly. "The qualifiers are in a month. Which means that we'll face Oikawa and Ushiwaka and anyone else who's in our way in a month."

"Yeah," she nodded. "And after we beat all of them, we're going to go to Tokyo to compete with even bigger teams. Nekoma and Fukurodani, even."

Kageyama turned to face her, still holding her hand in his tight grip. "Aika. Will you cheer for me during the matches?" he asked suddenly, his face tinged with a blush, but his words coming out stronger than he thought they would.

She blinked in confusion. "Of course I'm going to cheer for Karasuno to win," she replied.

"No, I mean…" Trailing off, he could feel his words starting to fail him. He fidgeted for a moment, biting his lip, but kept his gaze on her. "I mean, will you cheer for me. I know you'll cheer for everyone on the team, but I'd love it if you cheered for me… just me… at least once."

For a moment, she stared at him, her eyes wide with surprise, and he could feel himself growing more and more embarrassed by the second. He began to sputter out an apology, trying to take his words back, but she cut him off by nodding.

"Okay." She squeezed his hand again. "I'll cheer for you."

A deep breath left his lungs, and he couldn't tell whether it was from relief or surprise. Maybe a mixture of both. He offered her a small smile, but no words, as he turned, and continued walking with her down the street, her house only a few blocks away.

There was a comfortable feeling of having her next to him, one that he couldn't remember feeling before. Maybe it was because it was the two of them together that night, just the two of them, that he was feeling this way. Or maybe it was because, for the first time, he was beginning to entertain the idea that Aika felt the same way about him that he did about her. It was a small possibility, but it was one that had rooted itself deeply in his mind in less than a single day.

It was the way she held his hand. She held Hinata's hand quite often, but her body language was so different between the way she was with Hinata and the way she was with Kageyama. Perhaps he was overthinking it, since their relationship was so different than the one she shared with Hinata, but he couldn't help himself. He knew that Hinata was special to her, but he was starting to think that he was special as well. He wanted to believe it from the way she was holding onto him, with a sort of tenderness he never really saw from her.

They reached her front door before he could figure it all out. Not that he really would've been able to, even if he'd been given a century. He dropped her hand at the front gate.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Aika."

"Yeah. Night, Tobio."

He watched as she retreated into her home, chancing a look back to him while at her front door. He stuffed his hands into his pockets as he heard the door close behind her, and he couldn't help but smile as his heart finally began to slow its beating down.

Author's Note

It's been... 2 years. I'm sorry for disappearing the way I did. It seems that it happens more often than I'd like.
The past two years hit me harder than I thought they would.
tl;dr: I moved twice, started a new job, and adopted a dog. Life's been hectic and this story fell to the wayside.
So again, my apologies, everyone. I'll come back to posting regularly within the next few weeks.

I appreciate your patience with me. I hope I'll have time for writing like I used to again soon.

Love, Chiyuki