Prodigy || Ushijima Wakatoshi x Reader

[20] Warm Hugs and More

The next day, Ushijima didn't even talk to you. You could tell something was off. When you tried to force him into conversation, he would quickly get out of it, leaving you in a trance. You frowned, wondering what was bothering the captain. Your best bet was the matches ahead of you.

The 'late lunch' you had with Miya Atsumu wasn't all that interesting if you were being honest. He was nice and fun to talk to, but to be completely honest he didn't really get your heart all racing and your mind going insane. You didn't feel anything in particular for the boy, and your realism still stands – you don't actually believe you could go far with him.

Sure he was attractive, but perhaps, you weren't all that attracted to him after all – and the excitement you felt was just from knowing someone acknowledges you.

After the third match of the whole tournament, and the first of that day, you decided to ask Tendou, "What's wrong with Ushijima-san?"

Tendou panicked slightly, unsure what to tell you. He knew the reason – most of the team did, but he figured it wasn't his place to be spilling beans about his teammate to you. Instead he told you, "He's probably just on edge that we're facing Inarizaki in the quarterfinals."

"Oh," you said, unsure how else to respond. You noticed the captain had left your team, who were still cooling down, and had probably gone to refill his water as usual. You decided to talk to him, in hopes of cheering him up. You did feel responsible about ensuring everyone had a steady mental spirit after all.

"I'm going to go look for him," you told Tendou, who seemed to be against it.

"I'm not sure that's a good idea."

You brushed him off, already heading towards the door, "Don't worry about it!"

As you looked around, you kept your eyes peeled for your captain, but as you were looking around, you heard a girl calling your name. "(Y/n)-chan!"

You turned to find your old teammate, one who was still nice to you. "Oh, Akira-chan!"

"I heard you're in Shiratorizawa now, and dating Ushiwaka? You're really going heights, (y/n)," she told you, smiling.

You gulped at the inaccuracy in the sentence. But as soon as you wanted to correct it, the bitch appeared. "Akira, we're going now." Suzuki glared at you in dissatisfaction, and you returned the look.

"Sorry, (l/n)-chan, some of us have a game to play," she said, smiling devilishly. You clenched your fists in annoyance.

"No worries," you told her, gritting your teeth.

You tried to breathe normally, trying not to let her words get to you, but you couldn't deny that the realization that you could no longer play, that you could no longer pursue the one thing you love – was suddenly taking a toll on you. You left them, and like that, all the pain and anxiety overwhelmed you as you heard the sound of the volleyball arena.

Your eyes began to swell, tears cascading down your face as you breathed.

"Please stop crying," a deep stoic voice called from behind you. It was the boy you were looking for, in all his might and glory.

"I-I'm not!" you reply angrily, snot coming out of your nose.

Ushijima eyed you judgingly, wondering why on earth you were lying about something so obvious. "You're hurting" he simply stated.

He had overheard the conversation between you and your former teammate and at first, decided to leave you be but as soon as he saw you breaking down, he knew he had to do something.

You chuckled a little, "Well no shit."

"You think your volleyball career is over, but it's not," he told you.