e i g h t • solo talks

                                    

                                          
Winter Training Camp 
Day 4
8.30am

                          
     "THE BITCH SAID WHAT?"
                          
     I immediately start to question my choice of telling Akane what that happened last night. "Wait, listen —"
                          
     "Hinata, I am listening. And from what I'm hearing, Akamine is being a little bitch right now."
                          
     "Akane's right, Choyo."
                          
     Kotori, Akane and I are currently heading down to the cafeteria after washing up. They weren't happy to see me coming back late and all sweaty last night, nor were they pleased to see me entering the classroom with a slightly more obvious limp to my step. Telling them about how Shiho threatened me was the cherry on top.
                          
     "You better watch out for Akamine. She seems like the person who will resort to some crazy rash moves if desperate," Kotori continues. She eyes my ankle warily. "And try to take it easy, alright? I'll toss to you less today."
                          
     "Thanks," I say grimly. "Don't tell Kisa about this. She might confront Inarizaki's captain, them being friends and all. I don't want this to blow up."
                          
     Kotori nods in understanding. Akane frowns at me with worry in her eyes. 
                          
     "You sure?" Akane asks slowly.
                          
     "I'll be fine."
                          
     The last thing I want is to be the centre of attention of some drama. The last thing I want is to stick out.
                          
     I'll be fine, I comfort myself as I step into the cafeteria, feeling the piercing glare from Shiho as she sits beside Atsumu, along with the rest of his teammates.

                          
•••

                          
— a t s u m u — 
                          
     
     For some reason, Shiho was even more of an annoying prick today.
                          
     Usually, she would always say hi whenever they bumped into each other during breakfast, and try to start some conversation before joining her team for breakfast. Inarizaki boys and girls volleyball teams sat near each other but always kept to themselves and sat at separate tables.
                          
     Today, it was different. Instead of joining her team, she insisted on sitting with him. His teammates didn't really bother but it didn't mean they weren't slightly ticked off by the fact that Shiho couldn't read the atmosphere and casually chattered at and only at Atsumu as if the rest were invisible.
                          
     To be frank, Atsumu didn't care. It wasn't as if this was the first day his teammates were meeting Shiho anyway. The girls and boys volleyball team weren't complete strangers — they sometimes hung out, exchanged words here and there, so at the very least they were acquaintances and were comfortable in each other's prescence. He even heard from the alumnus when they randomly pop by that it used to be a common thing for some members of the two teams to date each other.
                          
     "Oi, 'Tsumu, can ya tell your play toy to go away?" Osamu whispered harshly into his ear once Shiho went off to get breakfast. 
                          
     "'Samu! How can ya be so rude?" Atsumu gasped dramatically, resting a hand on his chest. 
                          
     Osamu rolled his eyes. "What are ya up to now?"
                          
     Chuckling, Atsumu smirked as he watched the auburn-haired girl queueing up to take her food. "Mine-chan here feels threatened because of all the attention Choyo-chan is gettin' from me. So I was thinkin', what if I made her view Choyo-chan as her enemy? Will that finally drive little Cho-Cho (a/n: cho 蝶 = butterfly. This is also a play on Choyo's name. Hinata 日向 Choyo 蝶陽) to me?" Atsumu was proud of himself for even thinking of such a grand scheme. He felt like a genius.