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Tobio has always had long hair. Silky, smooth, dark—reaching down to the small of her back. It’s not like she wouldn’t rather cut it, she just… won’t.
Whenever she finds herself in the bathroom, her hands seem to gravitate toward the pair of scissors neatly placed behind the mirror. She screws her brows up in consideration, before carefully putting them back.
Her grandpa gently pulled the brush through her silky hair, murmuring softly into her ears to lull her.
With stunning clarity, Tobio remembers that she had been sulking earlier—probably something volleyball related. Miwa complains plenty to her nowadays about her obsessive attitude towards volleyball even back then, so that’s the most likely guess.
“Tobio-chan,” He began sweetly, and Tobio lifted her head, the remnants of her previous trembling pout still present on her young features. He tucks two strands of hair behind either ear, cupping her face and smiling warmly at her.
“Your hair looks just like your mother’s when she was your age.”
Tobio might’ve brushed him off then, huffing something petulant, but now all she can feel is a bittersweet warmth in her stomach at her late grandfather’s words.
She wants to hold onto any fragment of her family, and if it means not cutting her hair, then she’ll gladly do it.
No matter how important volleyball is to her, the words of the one man who introduced her to the sport are far above that of said sport.
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Tobio can feel Ennoshita’s questioning gaze from the sidelines as her ponytail whips forward and smacks her in the face during a jump serve. Can feel the amused stares of the girls across the next as she has to physically spit a few strands of hair out of her mouth.
As a part of Ennoshita’s introduction as their new captain, she’d created a practice game for them all to assess their skills before the new first years joined the team. Tobio had been thrilled at the opportunity to show off, but now all she can do is burn with embarrassment at the continued stares of her teammates.
“Your hair’s attacking you, Kageyama-kun.” Ennoshita comments dryly, tapping her pen against her clipboard.
Tobio snaps her gaze over, huffing, before turning her attention back to the court.
Screw her hair and her grandpa’s dumb words.
Built up sweat clings to Tobio’s hairline as the 3v3 against Tsukishima, Yamaguchi and Nishinoya finally comes to an end. Much in part due to Shoyou’s persistent efforts to rile Tsukishima up, the match ended up dragging into well over 30 points as the two middle blockers battled it out. Tobio’s a little annoyed that she wasn’t the one rivalling Shoyou, though she supposes they were on the same side of the net this time.
Tobio brings her hands up to haphazardly push her hair out of her face. Her clammy palms increase the grease sticking to her scalp, and she inwardly curses herself. The effort she’ll have to put into drying her hair may be worth it for looking presentable at school the next day after intensive practice, but it’s definitely not enjoyable…
“Great job, Tobio-chan!” Shoyou beams, holding her hands up high above her head. She moves her hands away from her head to meet her girlfriend’s hands, clasping their fingers together for a few moments before letting go. Shoyou’s smile grows more chuffed, already shining from the glory of beating Tsukishima.
“Yeah! You tell her, Hinata!” Tanaka grins that wild smile of hers, swinging an arm around Tobio’s neck and grinding her knuckles into her scalp affectionately. She pulls back with a marginally startled look. “Ya pretty sweaty, though, dude.”
“Yeah…” She sighs, pulling her hair out of its long ponytail. The cool air permeating the gym is a welcome feeling of relief against her sweaty scalp. “My hair’s been annoying me lately.”
“How come you don’t cut it, Kageyama-kun?” Yamaguchi asks as the girls on the other side of the net approach. Her kind eyes flit over her hair as it sways gently in the air flowing through the open door.
Tsukishima answers the second she sees Tobio’s mouth open with its regular answer. “Because if she did that, then none of the boys would find her cute anymore.”
Shoyou gasps, taking offense in place of Tobio. “I’d still find her cute!”
Tsukishima’s snide smile grows. “And are you a boy, Hinata?”
She splutters, and Tobio senses a stupid statement brewing on her lips. Maybe the best option is to just kiss it off her before she says anything dumb. “Well—no! But I’m her girlfriend! Aka, my opinion matters most!”
Somehow, for reasons unbeknownst to Tobio, she finds herself pleased with the words.
“Sounds kind of possessive if you ask me.” Tsukishima shrugs, brushing her short blonde hair behind her ear.
Yamaguchi snickers, batting at Tsukishima’s shoulder half-heartedly, “Be nice, Tsukki.”
“Give it to ‘em, Tsukishima!” Nishinoya shoves Tsukishima’s back roughly, “They’re way too lovey-dovey!”
“Lovey-dovey?” Tobio blinks, squinting before she turns her head in time to meet Shoyou’s gaze. She looks equally confused, and still bubbling with a little defensiveness. Tobio may not need anyone to defend her on court, but it’s nice to have someone here to defend against the threat of Tsukishima.
Their confused spell is broken when Ennoshita comes over to them, reading glasses perched low on her nose as she scans over her notes. Tobio stands a little taller in the presence of her new captain.
“You all did well today,” Her lips quirk in a smile. “Hinata-kun, your receives are getting better, but you still need to work on your serves. Kageyama-kun, your sets are precise as usual, but I noticed you throwing the ball slightly too forward on your jump serves—so try and work on that.”
Tobio nods emphatically. Her serve had felt a little less accurate than usual that match, so she’s glad she’s gotten corrected.
“Tanaka, you were great. I don’t really have any pointers.”
“Oh yeah!” She pumps her fist arrogantly, looping her arms around the nearest girls to her, Shoyou and Tsukishima. They’re both sporting completely polar opposite expressions, as they usually are. “Ya here that, kiddies?!”
“Nice, Ryu-chan!” Nishinoya grins, jumping up and wrapping her arms around the back of Tanaka’s shoulders. The four person conjoined- hug sways slightly, and Shoyou has to grasp onto Tobio for balance.
“Get off me, Tanaka-san.” Tsukishima grumbles, shoving all three of them to the side.
“Anyways,” Ennoshita voice cuts through their petty arguing, sparing them all a derisive glance, “Yamaguchi-kun, your setting is really improving, I’m impressed. I saw you hovering near the net, though, and that cuts down your options on tossing, so try to give yourself more room.”
“Okay.” Yamaguchi smiles, and Tsukishima looks pleased.
“Tsukishima-kun, your blocking was stellar. Thanks for finally putting Hinata’s insane jumps in their place.”
“Hey!” Shoyou bursts up, “Why’s Kei getting any praise! She sucks!”
“Because she did her job as a middle blocker.” Ennoshita replies, but there’s a slight snark to her tone. “You know. Blocking.”
“For a middle blocker, you really don’t do much of that, Hinata.” Tsukishima adds.
“What! I blocked your spike!” Shoyou puffs her cheeks out. Tobio thinks she looks adorable whenever arguing—always has this determined look on her face. It’s different from when she’s on court, less focused and more petulant.
“Yeah, a soft block.” Tsukishima scoffs. “Your Majesty had to get the rest of that.”
“Y’know, as captain you’re supposed to break up arguments, Chikara-chan.” Nishinoya snorts, and the captain just shrugs.
“Lets them get it out of their system, at least.” She reasons, and Tobio supposes she’s right.
“Irresponsible captain over here!” Tanaka jests, and it earns her a glare from Ennoshita. “Yeesh, okay. My bad.”
“Yeah. Your bad.” Ennoshita crosses her arms, holding the silence in a way only a captain could. She breaks it soon after with a clap of her hands. “Anyways, go get dressed. Practice is over.”
“Can me and Tobio-chan stay for a little longer?” Shoyou asks with her glistening eyes, taking the words right off Tobio’s lips.
Ennoshita levels them a questioning look, before acquiescing with a sigh. “Fine, but clean up after.”
They ask that question everyday, so by now Tobio’s figured out that Ennoshita’s reluctance is just an act of indifference! She can’t say no to Shoyou—and Tobio sure knows she can’t either.
“We will!” Shoyou smiles all bright, and Tobio’s own blank expression cracks a little. She makes a beckoning motion, and like a “sad puppy dog fetching for its master” (Tsukishima’s bitchy words, not hers), makes her way over.
They take their place on the same side of the net, Tobio setting and Shoyou spiking. She looks so perfect in the wing-spiker’s designated spot. Next year, once Tanaka leaves, Tobio knows Shoyou will become Karasuno’s ace. No one else could fill her shoes; no one could shine as brightly as Shoyou in any regard.
Doesn’t mean she’ll be captain, though! Tobio’s got her eyes on that position. She needs the leg up on Shoyou just a little bit next year.
“What’s wrong, Tobio-chan?” Shoyou asks, gripping the ball just beneath her chin with a sheepish smile. She looks braced for impact. Tobio must’ve hit her enough last year that she’s now on guard when asking questions. “You look like you’re thinking for once!”
Doesn’t mean she’s any less cheeky, though.
Tobio’s tongue pushes against the backs of her teeth as she considers whether to tell the truth or not. Shoyou blinks up at Tobio, dropping her arms as she realises no punches are coming, and her face just looks so… well… cute.
Is that really all it takes to get Tobio spilling everything…?
“I was thinking you’ll look good as Karasuno’s ace.” Tobio murmurs, twirling a piece of her hair absentmindedly. She’s not nervous to tell the truth, not really, since both she and Shoyou know it's fact, but it’s still a little worrying waiting for her girlfriend’s reaction.
Shoyou’s mouth slacks, chin tipping up as though she’s doing a double take. “Really?”
Tobio guffaws, cheeks warming with embarrassment. “Obviously!”
“How is that obvious?!” Shoyou shouts back, and suddenly Tobio’s stepping forward to crowd her.
“You obviously know you’ll be the ace next year!”
“I-I guess?!” Shoyou cows, blushing with a mix of pride and bashfulness. “It’s just weird to hear you say it so easily!”
“Fine.” Tobio pouts, straightening up and crossing her arms, “I’ll never say it again.”
“What?!” Shoyou shouts, springing up and leaning into Tobio’s space. “You can’t just do that, Tobio!”
“S-Sure I can.” Tobio lisps, compulsively curling her hair behind her ear. Why did Shoyou have to go and make this so embarrassing?!
“Well, whatever.” Shoyou suddenly says, lips spreading into a large grin. “I’ll just have to prove myself as Karasuno’s future ace right here and now! Set to me, Tobio!”
Shoyou jumps back into position before taking a few more steps back for her run-up. Tobio looks at her, slightly dumbfounded at her ability to get over embarrassment so fast. Maybe she needs to learn a thing or two.
“Okay.” She hears herself saying, not quite realising she’s giving in way too easily.
Tobio passes the ball to Shoyou, who throws it up to her. A perfect pass, one which is exceptionally easy to set cleanly for Shoyou—especially now that Shoyou’s gotten better at adjusting her hit trajectory for less than stellar sets.
Not like Tobio would be the one giving her those bad sets. Only the best for her hitter, right?
The ball barely even skims her fingertips as she sets it up for Shoyou. The height is further above the net than it needs to be, a silent challenge to her future ace.
Shoyou’s flying upwards in milliseconds, eyes locked onto the ball as it blows forwards. At this angle, Tobio gets to see the look on her girlfriend’s face. Her ever present smile has been replaced by a focus only found on the court, eyes blank with laser-point precision as she slams the ball down onto the other side of the court.
The boom resounds through the gym, and for a few seconds all that’s heard is Shoyou’s shoes skidding back against the floor, and the whip of their heads as they meet each other's gazes.
Tobio’s lips slack, an unbecoming smile spreading across her face like muscle memory. In the back of her head, she’s still worried Tsukishima will pop her head and creepily long body out from behind a corner and call her Shoyou’s “lap dog” again.
Praise me, her eyes scream at Tobio, prodding her Shoyou-ridden heart for compliments.
“…Your approach was too slow.” Tobio manages to murmur, digging her blunt fingernails into her palms. Nowadays, it’s begun to mentally pain her to withhold comments from her girlfriend, but she never knows what Shoyou’ll do with praise! Maybe her head will explode!
Shoyou rolls her eyes, huffing out a sigh as she gears up to complain. “Well, clearly Stingyama isn’t gonna give me anything on my spiking!”
Tobio blinks, gaze darting over Shoyou’s expression as it slowly grows more cheeky. Dimples pop on one side of her cheeks as she smirks, cocking a hip.
“But maybe you’ll give me some praise on my setting!” Her smile is so beaming, that it takes a few seconds for Tobio to process what exactly her ears are having the misfortune of hearing.
“What?” She gasps, completely unable to mask her shock. Shoyou looks so… so serious about it. “You… setting?”
“Heh,” Shoyou titters, “Sugawara-senpai started teaching me last year and I’ve been practicing even more so I can show off to you!”
Tobio’s first incredibly confronting thought is that if Shoyou is good at this then she’ll officially have lost to her. Lost her spot on the starting lineup—maybe lost her spot on the volleyball team as a whole.
The second more grounding thought is that Shoyou absolutely sucks at volleyball. Tobio for some reason has to consciously remind herself of this despite the fact that Shoyou continually proves her inability to do simple things like receives or serves on a daily basis.
Just yesterday she took one of Tanaka’s spikes to the face. (They somehow still followed up and scored the point, so maybe the diversion was useful in the end.)
“As if.” She scoffs, but her whole ten seconds of staring at Shoyou has only strengthened her ego.
“I can set!” Shoyou contests, placing her hands on her hips arrogantly. “I’ll show you!”
“Fine.” Tobio grunts, inwardly cursing herself for agreeing so easily. She knows Ennoshita is still lurking around and will tell them to go home soon, so they should practice actually useful things! “But you’re adjusting to my spiking style.”
“Easy!” Shoyou switches spots with a very hesitant Tobio. She covers her mouth to hide her snickers, “Not like you’ve got a very fun spiking style, Tobio-chan.”
“What was that?!” She grits, now intent on making her approach as fast as possible.
“Let’s go!” Shoyou quickly brushes past her outburst, throwing a ball over to Tobio. It feels disorienting to be touching the ball first, but she throws it back to Shoyou’s waiting hands anyway.
Her hands are splayed apart similarly to how Tobio’s typically are. However, her palms are turned slightly too far upwards, which will limit the allowed velocity on the ball’s trajectory. It’s likely to be a rather blunt set, but Tobio makes her approach anyway.
She watches Shoyou out of the corner of her eye as the ball falls onto her hands, adjusting her speed to be that of a third-tempo approach for simplicity’s sake. Tobio jumps, watching with a scrunched face as the ball careens over toward her.
The set is too high—way too high. Tobio flinches before it’s even above her, and her fingertips barely skim the underside of the ball as she attempts to hit it. Her hand is unable to connect properly, and the ball’s path resembles that more of a dink than an actual spike.
Tobio lands, watching disappointedly as the ball bounces off to the other side of the court.
Slowly, her gaze falls on Shoyou, who’s still stuck on the ball like she has absolutely no idea how her set failed.
Her stupidity annoys Tobio, and she fumes, “How tall do you think I am, Shoyou?!”
Shoyou jumps into her regular fighting position; legs grounded and arms spread out from her sides. “Well, I dunno! You look pretty tall from here! Maybe you should’ve jumped higher!”
“Wh—and how would that help when your set still sucks?” Tobio’s right eye twitches, head dropping to the side in exasperation.
“Figure it out!” Shoyou pouts before she’s smiling and giggling again.
Tobio straightens at the airy sound, simply opting to cross her arms in disdain. “Whatever. Not like you’ll be using that ever again, anyway.”
Shoyou ignores her insults completely, gripping the ball between two palms and spinning it on its axis. “I really feel like you now! All power-hungry and control-freak-ish.”
“…Is that really how you see me?”
“That’s how everyone sees you, Miss Queen of the Court!” Shoyou steps over to interlock their arms. She’s warm and clammy, so Tobio presses one of her cold hands to Shoyou’s forehead.
“Only Tsukishima still calls me that.” Tobio mutters, watching as Shoyou’s eyes shut from the relief of her hands.
“Means she respects you.” Shoyou retorts, keening into Tobio’s hands.
In response—and also because it’s still so weird to see a gentle Shoyou—she quirks a brow. “Doesn’t feel like that.”
“Meh,” Shoyou cracks her eyes open, but doesn’t move her head up to meet Tobio’s gaze. “I still think the ‘Queen of the Court’ is a great nickname. Means you’re strong!”
Tobio’s fingers twitch against Shoyou’s forehead, a faint pink dotting her cheeks.
God, that nickname used to get her so riled up when she first joined Karasuno. She remembers Tsukishima’s catty insults, how it reminded her of Kitagawa Dai’ichi’s bitchy players and Oikawa’s petty dislike of her.
But even back then, Shoyou still used that name with such reverence. She used how it was meant to be used, even when Tobio had for so long forgotten what exactly the words meant on their own—only a distorted retelling of them.
“Yeah…” Tobio breathes out, pulling Shoyou in for a hug before she can stop herself. She slots her girlfriend’s head beneath her chin, locking her in place with her strong grip. Even if it was loose, Shoyou’s already gone so limp-limbed Tobio doubts she could manage to move her legs. “We’re strong together now, Shoyou.”
Shoyou stutters out a useless breath, and her arms belatedly come up to wrap just as tightly around Tobio. She grins.
“Mmm, together.”” Shoyou begins sweetly, a silence descending over them before she’s suddenly spluttering and forcing her back. She shoves Tobio away, whose arms come up in shock to see if Shoyou’s alright.
Shoyou coughs forcefully into her arm, muffling the sounds slightly. Tobio steps closer, frown jutting out on her features. “What’s wrong—”
No reply comes, and a nervousness settles in Tobio’s stomach. What if her hugs are suddenly poisonous? Is she carrying some kind of disease which has infected Shoyou’s lungs? Maybe that “volleyball parasite” Miwa complains is perpetually infecting her brain has struck Shoyou instead—
The nervousness slinks out of her as Shoyou pulls a comically long strand of sleek, black hair off her tongue. Tobio just looks at her, bewildered.
“I almost choked on your hair, Tobio!” She cries out, “Trying to kill your own girlfriend? And with your hair, no less!”
“I-I didn’t…” Tobio trails off, brows furrowing and eyes widening. She examines her own slightly wet chunk of hair Shoyou had supposedly choked on, rubbing it between her pointer and thumb.
Shoyou tilts her head, plants her hands firmly on her hips and outright scrutinises her. “Your hair gets in the way during games, right?”
Tobio blinks and drops the section of hair. “Yeah?”
“Then why don’t I braid it for you?” Shoyou waggles a finger, smiling softly. “They’re more stable and whip around less! Plus I’m an expert!”
Her lips part. “You can braid?”
“Uh, duh!” Shoyou sticks her tongue out. There’s still a strand of black hair on it. “Who else do you think does Natsu’s hair?”
“Really?” Tobio mutters, admiration slipping into her tone. Natsu typically has a few small, complicated-looking braids sticking out of her messy hair, but Tobio had just assumed their mother did that…
Shoyou giggles. “Really! I can do yours easily! Way easier than Natsu’s—her hair’s kinda wavy.”
Tobio squints at the assumption that her hair is easy to work with. She clearly doesn’t know how long it takes to dry! Or how she has to basically mop up a chunk of fallen hair after every shower. Or even the maintenance Miwa has forced her to upkeep on her mop of hair!
“Please?” Shoyou wrings her hands behind her back. She always seems to do this when she can sense doubt on Tobio’s expression, and it always gets her to agree! It’s so frustrating! “I’ll do a great job, I promise! And if I don’t, I'll give you a full refund!”
“…I don’t think I have enough money to pay for anything in the first place.”
“Learn to take a joke, Tobio!” Shoyou rolls her eyes, pushing Tobio over to take a seat on the bench beside the nets.
Tobio taps a finger to her chin before inspiration hits. Well, she’s just attempting to put her own spin on Shoyou’s bargaining. “I’ll pay you with five more sets, then.”
Her girlfriend’s eyes sparkle anyway, smiling widening to show the dimples indenting her cute cheeks. “Sure! Five sets! But if I do a really good job, I get more, ‘kay?”
Tobio smiles marginally, but only once Shoyou walks around behind her because she has a reputation to keep up!
“Sure.”
Shoyou rummages around in her pocket behind Tobio, snapping an extra hair band against her wrist before she launches into her stupid monologue. “Welcome to Shoyou’s hairdressing store! What can I get for ya!”
Tobio curls her lip in scorn. “You’re a dork.”
“You’re running out of insults, Tobio-chan.” Shoyou inspects the black hair rolling down Tobio’s back in rivulets, “Expand your vocabulary.”
“Not like you’re any better.” She murmurs, for lack of a better insult. Maybe she does need to improve her variety of words, because usually she just redirects the insult right back onto the other person.
Tobio quivers gently as Shoyou glides her warm fingers through her hair, parting the black sheet into three.
She had always known how to do a braid, the simple basics of three sections and a lot of swapping over, but never exactly had a canvas to practice on. She found it awkward to practice on her own hair, since it was honestly too long for much manipulation, and her arms lacked the flexibility back then. She could likely do it now, but just… hasn’t.
Tobio both preens and bristles at the fuzzy feeling of Shoyou’s hands. On one hand, it’s really nice having someone’s fingers lightly scratching her scalp, on the other hand, she can’t be dependent on Shoyou for yet another thing! Having her as her star hitter and the one who does her hair makes Tobio’s pride shiver with worry…
“Stay still, Tobio.” Shoyou snickers from behind her, slinking the thick parts of hair over each other, curling them into a symphony of strands.
“I could’ve done this myself.” Tobio grits out, for some reasons still attempting to keep her pride.
“Could you? Cause your hair looks like it’s constantly trying to escape its ponytail!”
“Shut it.”
After that little exchange, Tobio continues to grumble to herself half-heartedly, but eventually leans back into Shoyou’s warm touch. Her girlfriend stops momentarily, surprised, before she continues her efforts.
“Your hair is so soft, Tobio-chan.” She remembers her grandpa telling her occasionally, kissing the top of her head and cradling her in his arms. She didn’t enjoy being manhandled—found it far too demeaning even at age five. If Miwa even came so much as a few centimetres in range of tugging her cheeks, Tobio would bolt.
They both used to compare her to a rabbit because of that little trait, since she bounded away from any sign of affection since Miwa loved to torture her!
Tobio’s knocked from her thoughts when Shoyou herself plants a kiss against the crown of her head. She almost falls off the chair in surprise, instead just jostling about as she tries to ground herself.
Shoyou laughs, “Come on, Tobio! You’re always stuck in your head, aren’t you?”
“Cause I was thinking about something!” She counters with immediately, cheeks flushing with exasperation.
“Well,” Shoyou gestures, “What?”
Tobio whips her head back around so she doesn’t have to face Shoyou. Her girlfriend returns her fingers in between Tobio’s thick hair, linking parts over the other so easily.
“I was just thinking about my grandpa.” She finds herself saying. Tobio speaks carelessly a lot of the time—usually embarrasses herself like crazy because of it—but this time, it just feels like a natural statement to blurt out.
Shoyou pauses, voice adopting a more careful edge as she inches the conversation forward. “What about him?”
Tobio twiddles her fingers mindlessly. “He used to braid my hair too.”
Shoyou doesn’t speak for a few moments, mouth closing and opening to try and force something that sounds right out of her lips.
“He always said it was pretty and that I was ‘blessed’, or something dumb like that…”
“Really?” Shoyou shines, leaning over her shoulder so their gazes can meet. Tobio can physically feel her girlfriend’s kind, brown eyes beaming good thoughts into her head. “Well, I think that’s super sweet.”
“Yeah.” Tobio huffs, but her lips curl into a smile nevertheless. “It is.”
“‘S that why you won’t cut your hair?” Shoyou follows up with, smile turning fond.
“Mm.” Tobio hums. “He said it reminded him of my mother's hair.”
“Awwwww,” Shoyou coos, really sounding tempted to pinch Tobio’s cheeks. A shiver runs down her spine at the memory of Miwa’s continued attacks to her when she was young…
“Don’t ‘aw’ me!” Tobio snaps, crossing her arms. “Focus on my hair, dummy.”
“Yeah, yeah, Queen.” Shoyou snorts.
“…And don’t say that.” Tobio spares a glare back at Shoyou, who meets it by sticking out her tongue.
“Aaaand, tada!” Shoyou emphatically thrusts her phone into Tobio’s hands, where a picture of her braid flickers on its screen.
Tobio blinks, scrunching her nose as she zooms in on the image. She would be lying if she said that Shoyou had a good-quality phone, and this camera is proving its cheapness.
Nevertheless, it still looks impressive. The braid starts from the back of her head, lulling down her back in a neat, long wave. Strands weave over and under each other perfectly, and Tobio can’t see any strands poking out—but she’s attributing that to the horrible camera-quality rather than Shoyou’s skill.
Which she does, unfortunately, have.
“It looks nice.” Tobio nods to herself as she hands back the phone.
“Way more than just nice!” Shoyou retorts, jabbing a finger into her shoulder. “It’s amazing! Tell me it’s amazing!”
Tobio blinks, but agrees. “It’s amazing.”
It’s said so monotonely that Shoyou can’t help but argue back, even in the face of a Kageyama-compliment! “At least say it a little more convincingly.”
“You…” Tobio murmurs, catching herself over her words. Shoyou sees this way too much when she’s attempting to praise someone for a move. “You did a good job, Shoyou.”
Hey, at least that one came out quicker than a usual compliment!
“‘Course I did.” Shoyou grins, pulling Tobio down by the back of her head for a kiss on the cheek. Tobio’s eyes are blown wide as they pull back, “And that’s thanks for sitting still for me!”
“Thank you.” Tobio says, a little dazed.
“…That was me thanking you, Tobio,” Shoyou deadpans, “Not the other way round.”
“Oh.” Tobio replies intelligently.
Her gaze flits down as she handles the braid beneath her finger tips. Although she never typically has such a complicated style, and change even in something so minor frustrates her, Tobio finds herself liking it. It’s nice and smooth and has a satisfying texture to run her fingers down.
“It really is pretty, Shoyou.”
“Right?!” Shoyou’s face lights up so quickly it almost blinds her. That must have been the reply her girlfriend was looking for… “You look so elegant with it!”
“Elegant?” She questions.
“Mhm!”
“No one’s called my hair elegant before.” Tobio hums.
“Well, count me as the first, Tobio-chan!” Shoyou smiles brightly, reaching out and interlocking their fingers. Tobio finds herself almost annoyed that her hands have been ushered away from her perfect braid.
Even though she knows she’s playing into Shoyou’s hands, Tobio can’t stop her next question.
“Will you braid my hair again for me?” She asks awkwardly, batting her gaze away from Shoyou’s piercing one.
For a few seconds, the question goes unanswered and Tobio can feel herself sweating bullets. Shoyou always seems to enjoy herself in these moments, taking extra time to carefully consider the question.
“Sure!” She blurts out, quite a bit quicker than usual. Tobio’s gaze incrementally makes it back to meeting Shoyou’s, body still taught with nerves. “Lemme do it before every game!”
“Come here.” This time, Tobio’s inclination to speak without thinking really does kick her in the butt! Her fingers disconnect from Shoyou’s to be held out at her sides.
“Huh?” Shoyou blinks up at her. Tobio can feel her head heating up.
After what feels like an eternity, Shoyou perks up with a drawn out ‘oh’ and comes crashing into Tobio’s arms like a freight train. Their hugs have never been exactly… normal. More like Shoyou either taking a hop skip and a jump to tackle her to the ground, or Tobio sneaking up from behind to pick her up and swing her about.
But this one… feels pretty much like what Tobio expected from their hugs when they first started dating.
She had expected they’d slowly drift into intimacy—or whatever she sees in shojo manga she most definitely doesn’t read—but they never really did. They were both still just Kageyama and Hinata. Volleyball-obsessed idiots who just happened to like each other.
So, Tobio has to manufacture something once in a while, right…?
(It’s an excuse and they both know it.)
“Heh, I can’t believe you’re hugging me voluntarily, Tobio!” Shoyou giggles into her shoulder. Tobio yanks her closer and muffles her voice from speaking any further.
Tobio buries her cheek into the crown of Shoyou’s fluffy hair, getting a face-full of orange strands. Her arms tighten their grip around her girlfriend’s torso, unable to stop herself in the face of her cuteness.
Shoyou bats at her upper arm with the back of her hand due to the restricted movement, and Tobio relents with a disappointed sigh.
“Y-You’re gonna strangle me, Tobio…” Shoyou splutters, coughing excessively. She wasn’t even holding that tight.
“Thank you for the braid.” Tobio mutters.
“…You’re being way too nice right now.” Shoyou grouses. “It’s freaking me out!”
Tobio smiles warmly on top of Shoyou’s head. “Yeah. Maybe.”
“Hey! Can you two lovebirds actually pack up before you leave!” Nishinoya shouts from the doorway while pointing at them accusingly, out of her volleyball uniform and into her colder weather clothes.
“Yeah!” Tanaka chimes in savagely, voice echoing throughout the gymnasium. The sheer magnitude of the sound forces the two of them apart from their hug. “And make sure there aren’t any lipstick marks anywhere, ya freaks!”
“Go home already!” Ennoshita shouts, cupping her mittens around her lips to amplify the sound.
“Seriously.” Tsukishima says derisively. “Get a room.”
“The gym isn’t your personal make-out spot!” Yamaguchi giggles, her and Tsukishima already making their way out after saying their part.
“Shut it, Tsukishima!”
Tsukishima circles back, face tightening in outrage. “How come I’m getting all the blame?!”
“‘Cause you suck!” Shoyou counters with, getting into her signature legs-pulled-apart-I’m-gonna-chase-you stance.
“Saying that like you two weren’t just sucking face!” Yamaguchi chimes in cheekily.
“Tadashiiiii!” Shoyou shouts in a war-cry, dashing after her and Tsukishima, who have begun to power-walk away like cowards!
The second Shoyou’s foot breaches the gymnasium exit, she pulls back and immediately shivers. “It’s freezing!”
“Get your little girlfriend to warm you up then, Shoyou!” Nishinoya teases as the rest of the team begins to leave.
“…We’re gonna prank call Tsukishima after this, right?” Tobio asks once silence has descended on the gym again.
“You bet.” Shoyou grins.