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Osamu must have dropped his keys at least four times on his walk towards the gym. When he drops them a fifth time right outside the door trying to find the right key, he curses and the proceeds to bang his head against the door three times. He considers going back home then, surely whatever set the alarm is nothing serious. If anything, the fact that only the court’s alarm got activated should really just put his mind to rest.
If it’s a thief, what are they going to steal? The net?
If it’s any of his or Kenma’s idiot friends—Osamu might kill them. Surely any friend capable of breaking into the gym has an alternative option. They are fucking adults for crying out loud. Most of their friends even have a professional volleyball career, meaning they should have a gym open to them to use whenever. He really hopes it’s not one of those idiot friends. (Osamu ignores the part of his brain reasoning that if it’s not someone he knows, then it must be a thief or someone equally if not more dangerous. Nope. He wont think about that.)
Osamu fumbles with the lock and ponders on what course of action he should take once he gets the door open. It’s half an hour past midnight so his brain is barely operating (hence why he has been dropping the keys so much) so he draws a blank and by the time he is pushing the door open, Osamu can do nothing put mentally pat his back and wish himself good luck.
He hears nothing once he is inside. The halls are quiet and the there is no source of light coming from anywhere visible. Osamu inhales, reassuring himself as he walks forward, looking around through squinted eyes. It’s too dark to detect any signs of a break-in and unless he wants to notify whatever criminal of his location, Osamu will refrain himself from turning on any lights.
He passes by the restrooms and locker rooms, quickly checking if anyone is there. He also takes a peak inside the office and storage room. All empty. It’s then that he pulls out his phone to check that the court alarm has indeed been activated and once he comes to terms with the inevitable, he begins making his way to the door that leads to the court.
What the fuck am I doing? Osamu thinks the moment he reaches the door and concludes that even if someone is there, unless he turns on the lights, there is no way he is going to be able to see. I shoulda called the police. His hand reaches for the door knob and he temporarily contemplates the possibility of there being a bug in the system, maybe the alarm was activated by mistake. He quickly dismisses that thought when he hears someone speak from the other side of the door.
Osamu mentally groans and curses at whatever divine power put him in this situation. Probably the same divine power responsible for Atsumu. He inhales deeply one last time, gathering up courage to turn the door knob and face whatever awaits. I’m gonna die. He thinks just as another sound comes through the door. Osamu blinks as he makes sense of the sound of shuffling and giggling and…moaning!?
Oh no. Nooooo. This is much worse. Osamu quickly loses his weariness as the sounds become clearer and as he is turning the door knob, his annoyance is starting to grow followed by anger. He ends up slamming the door open, hand reaching straight for the light switch to the side as he makes his way inside.
The moment the lights turn on, Osamu’s eyes are drawn to the side of the court where two figures scramble to get off each other. “Mierda” He hears one say echoed by “shit” From the other individual. Now Osamu doesn’t really recognize the first voice or much less understand the word spoken in a foreign language, but he unfortunately knows well who’s accent just swore in English.
Osamu instantly regrets ever getting out of his bed. “Ya gotta be kidding me.” Iwaizumi Hajime, athletic trainer of the official volleyball men’s team, has the decency to look ashamed. “Really? Really? There was no other place? Couldja not have booked a hotel room like normal people?”
The person besides Iwaizumi that is starting to look awfully a lot like a foreign setter Atsumu often complains about, tilts his head and looks ahead with a thoughtful expression. “There is just something about a volleyball court. It really gets us going—“
Iwaizumi groans, slapping the back of the other head—oh god, Oikawa Tooru? Argentinas starting setter? This night couldn’t get any worse. “Get the hell outta my gym.” Osamu demands, defeat evident in his tone.
“Yessir!” Oikawa mock salutes while Iwaizumi nods, already collecting the clothing scattered around the floor.
Osamu chooses to turn away then, counting his blessings that at least they had both been wearing underwear.
-o-
It’s not actually his Gym. Officially, the gym is under Kenma’s name. They figured it would make things easier if Kenma just took care of all the paperwork while Osamu helped with his investment on the sidelines. When they had first considered buying the gym, Osamu had just opened his first Onigiri Miya shop in Tokyo, and at the time, keeping his business operating limited his capability to focus on the gym.
Kenma was kind enough to take most of the burden. He looked over all the finer details and made all the harder decisions while Osamu barely had time to update himself on the improvements every few weeks.
The whole process took over half a year and eventually once Onigiri Miya was thriving without Osamu’s constant supervision, he found the time to fully invest himself in an idea that had flourished over a few drinks a few months before the 2020 Olympic games.
-o-
“We need to upgrade our security.” Osamu mutters, head resting on the table as Kenma comfortably circles around his kitchen, in search of food.
“Who was it this time?” Kenma asks and Osamu turns his head to the side to watch as he struggles to open a bag of chips.
“Iwaizumi and, you wont believe it, Oikawa Tooru.” Kenma’s expression shifts to one of extreme displeasure.
“I’ll talk to Kuro.”
-o-
Osamu doesn’t really know how talking to Kuroo will help, considering this is all his goddamn fault. The damage is done. There is actually nothing that idiot could do to fix this. But Kenma cussing him out is not something Osamu is opposed to so he doesn’t voice his thoughts and instead trusts Kenma will do something to handle this.
Kuroo is definitely due for a few cusses, if not punches like Osamu would prefer. Osamu is really not exaggerating when he says this is all his fault. He is the one that started this whole, hey, let me break into my friend’s gym and confess my undying feelings for the person I’ve been pinning after all these years in a place that resembles the setting of where my feels first came to be.
“I’m gonna install cameras.” Osamu states. “Then i"ll exploit them with blackmail.” Suna nods, his mouth full with food but eyes easily expressing he is following the conversation. “I’m gonna start a YouTube channel named; horny volleyball idiots.”
“Shouldn’t you make some sort of social media account for your restaurants first?” Suna asks but Osamu ignores him.
“I’m sure it will get a lot of attention. Ya think I can ruin a few careers?”
Suna shrugs, reaching over for another onigiri. “I think that if the world finds out about Atsumu and Kageyama, there will be an uproar.” A pause. “Not necessarily a bad one.”
Osamu groans into his hands.
-o-
Thankfully its Kenma who finds Atsumu and Kageyama. Osamu doesn’t think he could ever recover if he catches his brother doing any of the things he has caught Kuroo and Tsukishima, or Lev and Yaku, or Kita and Suna, and most recently, Iwaizumi and Oikawa doing. Hearing the details over breakfast is bad enough; Osamu almost pushes his plate aside. Almost.
But honestly, Iwaizumi and Oikawa are the last straw. Specially because a week later their friends, Matsukawa and Hanamaki make a similar attempt. Osamu doesn’t know how it has come to this. He blames it on the monster generation. It’s insane that Osamu’s entire social circle consists of people that play or have played volleyball in high school.
Of course Kuroo played a big part when he taught everyone that it’s okay to break into private property. A stupid lesson really because Osamu would gladly give any of them the keys. Maybe not if they confess they are going to be doing something other than playing volleyball— but that’s what the gym is for!
“I miss it, sometimes.” Osamu tells a sleepy Kenma. He knows his friend is barely listening. His eyes are bloodshot and his hair is a mess, Osamu thinks Kenma should have bailed on their meet up if his stream had gone on for more than six hours. Even so, he is glad his friend is here to listen to his sorrows. “With everyone getting ready for the olympics— there is this scent in the air.”
“Mhmmm.” Kenma says. “Just play.”
Osamu snorts, reaching for another bottle of beer. “Where?”
Kenma blinks at him. “I’ll buy you a gym.” He says, pausing to think something over. “The one across from your shop.” Osamu laughs along to the crazy idea.
“Sure. Then we can all play. We can have some ridiculous matches. Let’s play a three on three, us two against Sumu and Hinata. We can take ‘em.”
Kenma yawns. “Thats a two on two.”
-o-
Becoming friends with Kenma was one of the most surprising things he did on his last year of high school. It’s not that he and Kenma are so different that it’s hard to find a common ground to grow a friendship from, but rather that their differences seem to stem from similar standards in life and well, it also helps that both of them share a deep admiration for Hinata.
They met in their last year of high school at the spring tournament. It was after Inarizaki managed to pull a win over Karasuno. Osamu was running on a high from that win but nothing compared to his brother who acted as if he had won the entire tournament. Of course Kageyama made it easy with his very displeased annoyance and displeasure while Atsumu kept taunting him; getting way too close to Kageyama’s personal space and sounding way too sly every time he called out ‘Tobio-kun’.
Hinata was pouty at best while the third years of Karasuno didn’t seem all that affected. They were happy. Content at the efforts they made. Satisfied with their performances and capable of understanding Inarizaki’s own efforts. Suna and the tall Karasuno middle blocker were also partaking in some taunts and childish conversations that Ginjima and that jump floater were enjoying as they watched on and laughed.
Osamu himself was starting to feel his stomach grumble; he just wanted to grab some food.
It was then when Nekoma came around to greet their ‘rivals’. Osamu remembers well how both Suna and Tsukishima had turned and in unison mocked the tall hyper light haired player which just prompted Ginjima and Yamaguchi to double over in more laughter, another player from Nekoma quickly joining them. To the side, Karasuno’s third years were being greeted by Nekoma’s third years but what truly caught Osamu’s attention was how casually and quietly Nekoma’s captain managed to make his way past everyone to greet Hinata.
“Shouyou.” The guy called out and Hinata instantly perked up. He went from staring after Kageyama’s and Atsumu’s back and forwards with a bemused expression to a brighter smile, that rivalled the expression he shows every time he jumps to spike a ball. “Kenma!” He exclaimed and hoped away, whatever sign of sadness for the team’s loss visibly gone.
It intrigued Osamu.
Kenma was very observant. He caught unto Osamu’s stares after talking to Hinata for a few minutes and bowed politely. Hinata’s attention got drawn to him and then called after him, congratulating him on the game and praising his spikes and blocks before calling him Miya-san with hesitation and Osamu held back a snort. “Just call me Osamu.” He tells Hinata. Who nods enthusiastically! “Osamu-san! Your spikes were great! Weren’t they Kenma?”
The Nekoma player hums.
“Hey hey! I know we won’t be able to play another game together but maybe you’ll face Inarizaki! They can be a final boss too!”
“Final boss?” Osamu found himself asking.
“Possibly.” Kenma responded, his gaze turning to fully focus on Osamu.
Osamu suddenly found himself feeling hungry for something new.
And that’s how they met. They became friends later when Osamu was sneaking around behind a food stand to eat more than his couch lets him out of fear that he will throw up during the match. Kenma is also hiding but instead of eating he is avoiding being forced down more food.
They bond over overbearing teammates and end up exchanging numbers since Osamu finally gets an answer to that final boss comment. Two weeks later they have some sort of routine when they each find time to play a quick game every Friday night. It’s history from then on.
-o-
“How is this gonna even work?” Osamu asks, hating how he sounds like he is judging Suna. Hating even more that he somehow now seems to be the responsible one in their friendship.
“You have six players on one side. Six on the other. Then you play. You know. Volleyball.”
“Not what I meant.” Osamu groans as he watches Komori and Washio flip a coin to decide who gets to serve first. “Isn’t this a little unbalanced?”
“We are all professionals.” Suna insists. Osamu forces himself to swallow back another groan.
“Whatever. Close the gym when you are done.” He ends up saying, glancing off to the side to watch as Yaku starts giving his team instructions, making way too many hand gestures that seem like he is planning a massacre.
“You are not going to stay and watch?” Suna asks, accepting the keys from Osamu anyways.
Osamu shrugs. “I’ll watch it later.” He leaves before Suna can ask what he meant.
-o-
The gym consists of one court, two locker-rooms, three storage rooms, a public restroom and two offices. One office has a microwave, a mini fridge and a portable stove meaning Kenma and Osamu mainly use it as a kitchen. The other office has an actual desk with paperworks and other important books and files.
It’s mainly there because they have started to rent out the gym on the weekdays. There are a few schools around the area that book practice matches or simple training camps on those days and after sitting for three hours for a presentation courtesy of Kuroo about ‘lowering the nets’, Osamu has come to accept that the gym is something bigger than a nostalgic attachment.
His favourite part of the office however is the bulletin board that hangs at the very centre. On it, there is a calendar displaying the schedules for the next four months. Below the calendar is a list of matches and their results.
The latest update is written in Suna’s messy handwriting. Liberos VS MBs it reads. 6-4 is the score. Osamu stares astonished. He is not going to let Suna live this down. Osamu takes a picture to later post it on his twitter before his eyes travel back to the calendar to check the upcoming schedule.
“Huh.” He says, reading over the details of the next match. “How unexpected.” He immediately reaches for his phone to dial Kita"s number.
“Osamu?”
“Yer comin’ tomorrow?” He asks after a short greeting, eyebrows furrowed as he continues to stare at the calendar.
“Yes.” Kita replies. “Wakatoshi-san was kind enough to invite me.”
Osamu nods, knowing well Kita can’t see him. “And Aran-kun?”
Kita hums. “I think he chose to play on Bokuto’s team.”
Osamu inhales before sighing deeply. “Bokuto and Ushijima? I thought we all agreed on staying away from them.”
A beat of silence and then, “Suna mentioned something about indulging their ignorance?”
Suna is a real bad influence on Kita.
Ushijima and Bokuto have taken a liking to each other; acknowledging they are equals and capable rivals. Their big-muscled-brain that functions at its fullest capacity when volleyball is in the equation, makes them entertaining athletes. Most of the public has picked up on their competitive nature and as they continue to improve and grow in the sport they love, they do so by attempting to one up each other in almost everything. To the public, it’s endearing.
To everyone that personally knows them, it"s extremely tiring because those two idiots obviously have a thing for each other. The sexual tension that surrounds them is suffocating. Osamu once spent a short period of time with them, back when he went to visit the Japanese volleyball team for one of their practices to offer some of his most recent recipes, and he had nearly found the courage to confess to his own crush after witnessing the way they just threw heart eyes at each other and claimed they were just ‘competing’.
“I don’t know how yer gonna survive this.”
Kita barely survives, so Aran tells him. In fact, everyone that gathered for that little friendly match Bokuto and Ushijima planned instantly regret it. Aran keeps him updated for most of the match and Osamu has to wonder how he is finding the time to text when Ushijima and Bokuto are treating the match as if it were the Olympic’s final.
‘Akaashi has given up on setting to anyone other than Bokuto’
‘Tendou wont jump to block any more of Bokuto’s spikes’
‘Hajime and Daichi are playing card games’
‘Suna and Kita have locked themselves in the office’
‘ARAN. PLEASE GET THEM OUT.’ Osamu texts back before banging his head against the wall in defeat.
-o-
On a brighter note, Ushijima and Bokuto eventually realize most of their friends have lost interest in the friendly match, prompting them to dismiss them with a sheepish sorry. Even so, they stayed behind and eventually managed to sort out their feelings and Osamu thinks he heard from Atsumu, who heard from Sakusa, who heard from Komori, who heard from Washio, who heard from Suna, who heard from Tsukishima, who heard from Kuroo, that Bokuto made the first move, which honestly isn’t all that surprising.
It’s also not surprising that his gym is once again used for something other than volleyball.
-o-
On a Saturday evening he sits with Kuroo, Kenma and Atsumu to watch the match he had promised Suna to watch. Kuroo and Atsumu are under the impression that it’s some official match from the previous season but Osamu surprises them. Kuroo is fuming for not being invited as "one of the most important middle blockers of their generation" and Atsumu is just angry Inunaki didn’t tell him about it. Then they make sense of the implication and Atsumu’s face pales as he asks “when did you install cameras?”
Osamu does his best to control his expression when he replies. “What do you mean? We’ve always had them.”