—006.

Shimizu's morning went by as normal. He woke up at four-thirty, brushed his teeth, went on a morning run, took a shower with Morimichi, made her breakfast then ate with his sister, washed the dishes, swept the house, and put on his uniform all before six o'clock.

Kiyoko made him try braiding and it ended with his sister having to trim her hair (he apologized profusely and still felt bad even when she told him it was alright).

"That reminds me," Kiyoko said from behind him, her hands gently brushing her brother's hair. "You have a track meet against Nekoma, Furukodani, and Shinzen tomorrow, right?"

Shinzen?

"...I didn't know we were against Shinzen t-too..." he murmured, checking the app where the coaches sent out reminders about meets and practices. Sure enough, Coach Yonezu sent a reminder last night about their meet, and they were running against Shinzen.

Shinzen High wasn't a powerhouse like Nekoma and Furukodani were, but their team wasn't slower than Karasuno. They were in the weird spot where they weren't amazing, but they weren't bad either– just like Johzenji.

Kiyoko parts and begins to braid his hair, tying it with a light-pink ribbon shaped like a bow. "I won't be able to go because it's in Tokyo, but I'll be cheering you on from Miyagi." She says, softly kissing the top of his head as she steps off the couch to put her leggings on.

He glances at the front door to find Morimich asleep in one of Kiyoko's sneakers. The taxing job of eating got her tired fast.

The boy sighed, tipping his head to rest on the couch. Something about the day felt off, and it hadn't started yet. The nagging feeling in his gut that someone or something would disrupt the flow of his regular school day made him anxious.

Deciding it wasn't more than his usual anxiety the day before a meet, he grabbed his bag and put the strap over his shoulders, fixing his shoes as he waited for his sister to finish getting dressed.

It was just regular anxiety—nothing more and nothing less.

-:-

Y/N's gut feeling was right.

On Thursday they didn't have practice so he'd typically watch Kiyoko check on the clubroom before school started, but he decided to go to the library to return the books he borrowed (and were a day overdue).

He didn't expect to see Nishinoya-san barely awake with his gakuran messily buttoned leaning against the school gate seemingly waiting for someone.

Shimizu looked around. No one was approaching, and leaving him there would be irresponsible. Then again, what if Nishinoya-san got mad for waking him up? He doesn't want to be on bad terms with anyone on the team– especially someone he met the day before.

"Shit, I fell asleep... oh, Shimizu you're here!" The tiredness disappeared from Nishinoya-san's stature as he jumped excitedly, greeting the other with a happy smile.

"...o-oh, g-good morning, Nishinoya-san." Shimizu bowed. "...I didn't know you were—um, waiting for me. I could've come earlier if you wanted."

The shorter blew a raspberry. "And make you wait for me? Hell no!" He puts his hands behind his head, still oblivious to the state of his uniform.

Shimizu bit his lip. "...uhm, Nishinoya-san, do y-you mind if I fix that?" He pointed at the buttons on his uniform. After what happened with Tooru-san, he'd rather ask before touching people without knowing if they were comfortable.

"Huh?" Nishinoya looked down and then smiled. "If you want to go ahead, but that means you'll let me follow you wherever you go!"

'...why would he want to stay with me?' Shimizu thought as he bent down, fixing the buttons on Nishinoya's gakuran. He stood up, fixing his glasses, and wondered why Nishinoya's cheeks were tinted red. "...I'm g-going to the library to check in some books." He rubbed his nape anxiously, looking away from Nishinoya's piercing brown eyes. "...I'm s-sure that sounds boring to you, I'm so—"

"Nah, you're fine." The other interrupted, holding the door open for him as they walked into the school building. He got his shoes from his locker and sat beside Y/N as he changed. "I asked to come, so if I don't like it I'll go."

He looked at the boy incredulously. "...b-but, you're staying?"

"...yeah? I wanna get to know you more! Like, what's your favorite color? Favorite food? Do you and Kiyoko-san have any other siblings? Do you have any pets? Your hair looks so pretty!" Nishinoya rambled, his smile never leaving as the two walked up the stairs.

"...t-that's, um, a lot of questions, Nishinoya-san..." Y/N scratched his cheek with his pointer finger. "...m-my favorite color is (f/c), and my favorite food is (f/f). Kiyo and I don't have any other siblings, b-but we do have a cat,"

Nishinoya gasped as Shimizu put the books in the overdue pile. "That's so cool! What's their name?" He and Nishinoya walked to the realistic-fiction section and Y/N began skimming through titles. "...her name is M-Morimichi. I, um, adopted her two days ago."

"Woah, after the game with Aoba Johsai?"

Shimizu nodded.

"Wowwww..." Nishinoya-san pulled out a nearby chair with his torso against the back and his head against the top. "Is she cute? Do you have any photos of her?"

Y/N paused, pulling his phone out of his bag. "...y-yeah, just one though." He pulled up the photo he had sent Tooru-san a few nights prior, letting Nishinoya examine it as he skimmed through the first few pages in his hand.

"She's so tiny!" The boy muttered, zooming into Mori's face.

"...y-yeah," Shimizu exhaled, "I haven't taken her to the V-vet yet, but she seems healthy so I'm hoping nothing's w-wrong with her."

Nishinoya cocked his head in confusion. "I thought you adopted her?"

"...um...does adopting her f-from school grounds count?"

The boy shot up from his chair and gasped. "No way. Dude, did you steal her from Aoba Johsai?"

Shimizu hid half his face behind a book as he averted his eyes. "...It's not s-stealing if she was a stray before that..."

"How did a cat get on school grounds anyway?"

Y/N shrugged, putting his phone back in his bag and tucking the books he picked under his arm. Nishinoya's eyes widened. "You're going to read all that? Some of those aren't even in Japanese."

"...I like leisure reading, it, um, h-helps me relax after a long day. I'm also really good at English so I'm, uh, able to read the words..."

Stars lit up in Nishinoya-san's eyes. "You're so smart! I suck at English, all the adverbs and pronouns and verbs are so confusing!" He blew a raspberry and watched Y/N fill out a book release envelope. "Why can't Japanese be universal?"

Shimizu's cheeks rose slightly. "...I'm s-sure people from Western countries think that too but with English, Nishinoya-san."

The two sit at a table out of sight from the door as Y/N picks at his cuticle. Normally, he would start reading but didn't want to be rude and ignore his presence.

The shorter boy laid his cheek on the desk, staring at the pile of books. "You can read, you know? I don't mind."

Shimizu bit his inner cheek. "...n-no, it's fine! I d-don't want to be uh, rude..."

"...how are you being rude by reading?"

Did he mess up already? He hadn't done anything that Nishinoya-san wouldn't have liked— he answered all his questions, never raised his voice, and didn't say anything that pushed Nishinoya-san's boundaries— his be damned.

"...I-I j-just thought you'd–" Shimizu gulped as he dug his nails into his palm. "...w-want me to talk b-because we're here t-together. I-I'm sorry, Nishinoya-san."

Nishinoya sighed as he stretched, laying on his chin instead of his cheek. "It's fine man! Being here with you makes me happy, so I don't mind if you do what makes you happy." He interrupted himself with a yawn. "I might fall asleep anyway, so you're all good."

The boy paused. His presence made Nishinoya-san happy? He didn't do anything to please the other (does answering his questions count???), but he was still pleased.

"...o-okay, thank you N-Nishinoya-san," Shimizu muttered as he picked the first book in the pile and began reading.

Surprisingly, reading with someone else wasn't as bad as he thought. Despite his efforts to stay awake and stare at him reading, Nishinoya's snoring was oddly comforting.

He finished one book and got halfway through the other when the bell rang at eight thirty-five. Shimizu shut his book with a yawn, putting the rest in his bag as he rubbed his eyes. To his side, Nishinoya-san was sound asleep with drool leaking from the side of his mouth.

"...Nishinoya-san, the b-bell rung, we have to get to class..." the boy whispered as he patted his shoulder.

Nishinoya turned his head the other way. "Mnm..." he whined, "five more minutes..."

"...w-we don't have five more minutes, Nishinoya-san."

The brunette groaned and picked his head up, wiping the drool off his face and staring at a bookshelf. He yawned, using the chair to crack his bones before looking at Shimizu. "Did'ja have fun? Sorry if I snored, hope it didn't bother you."

Y/N shook his head. "...n-no— I m-mean yes— I mean..." He flushed, hiding his face in his palms.

"Take your time dude, no rush!"

Shimizu bit his lip. How is he already messing this up? "...I d-did have fun a-and your s-snoring didn't bother me either— it was actually r-really calming,"

Nishinoya pauses and stares at him. His cheeks flush and his eyes widen. "...you mean it?"

He nods.

Blush forms on his nose and ears as he hastily gets up. "W-well, look at the time! I'm going to split–see you, Shimizu!!!"

"...w-what? W-wait, Nishinoya-san!" He reached out to try and stop him—but he darted out of the library without another word. Shimizu looked at Nishinoya-san's bag on the floor and sighed, fixing his glasses as he slings his bag over his shoulder, carrying Nishinoya's in his hand.

So much for 'respecting his boundaries'.

...

Y/N twirled a pencil as he stared at the Chemistry quiz on his desk. The test was sprung onto them when class started—he wasn't a fan of pop quizzes since the aspect of studying before a test calmed him, though he was almost finished, the last question stumped him.

He bit his lip picked the best possible answer and sighed out of relief. He turned his paper over and rubbed his eyes underneath his glasses. Glancing at the clock, he had ten minutes before class was over and lunch started and he still hadn't given NIshinoya-san his bag.

Thinking about how much trouble the other was in for not having his things made his skin crawl and his throat dry. Shimizu grabbed a book from his bag and picked up where he left off in the morning.

He'd have to find where Nishinoya-san ate lunch before he went to the stadium.

...

After three failed attempts and embarrassingly bumping into a teacher, Shimizu willed himself into trying one more class before giving up because if someone else stared at him he would start crying.

He slid the door open and surveyed the classroom. To his surprise, Nishinoya-san and Tanaka-san were in a corner, the taller boy laughing at something Nishinoya-san said.

The boy stepped into the classroom—trying to ignore the stares as he approached the two.

"Dude, how did you get a ten on the quiz?"

"Fuck off Ryuu! You're in class one and you still failed! It's not my fault— Shimizu?"

Y/N squeaked as he jolted. Nishinoya and Tanaka stared at him, the latter's eyes widening when he saw his bag.

"...g-good afternoon Nishinoya-san, Tanaka-san; y-you l-left your bag in the library a-and ran out before I could g-give it to you," He mutters, bowing his head and extending his hands.

Nishinoya gasped. "That's where it was! Yua-sensei got so mad at me for leaving my homework and I didn't even do it anyway!"

"Y'know man, maybe that's why you're failing math."

The shorter blows a raspberry, takes his bag out of Shimizu's hands, and smiles when he looks up. "Thanks a lot, Shimizu!"

Y/N fixes his glasses. "...n-no problem, N-Nishinoya-san. S-sorry for intruding, I'll leave you two alone now," he bowed politely and speed-walked out of his classroom without waiting for an answer.

The boy bit his inner cheek, gripping his bag strap tightly. He's spent twenty minutes trying to find Nishinoya-san's classroom and hasn't touched his lunch. If he spent the lunch period catching up on his science project, he'd finish early and have time for other subjects—but he and Kiyoko have been working on a healthy relationship with food.

His low iron and blood pressure didn't help either.

'...missing one lunch period isn't that bad, I ate in the morning, so I'll be okay.' He thought, sitting down and bringing his project out of his bag. He's skipped lunch before, he'd get through it.

He won't have time to do it after school—his visits to the hospital were long enough.

-:-

Shimizu slips his gakuran on, leaving the first two buttons undone as he grabs his bag and walks out of his classroom. The school day ended half an hour ago, but he stayed behind to help clean the classroom and finish his science project— turning it in early so he wouldn't bother him anymore.

"Shimizu-senpai!"

He squeaks, the hairs on his neck standing as a flash of orange passes. "Shimizu-senpai, you aren't coming to watch us today?" Shoyou pouts.

"Hinata, you moron! Stop running away from— oh, Shimizu-senpai?"

Tobio's face softens when he notices who the ginger is talking to. "You aren't watching practice today?"

Y/N shakes his head. "...I h-have to go the hospital today, s-sorry Tobio, Shoyou."

Shoyou's mood visibly dampened at the mention of a hospital, his shoulders sagged and his eyes shone with worry. Tobio stiffened–his previous soft (as soft as his face allowed it to) expression dissipating. "Are you okay? You aren't hurt, are you?"

The older waves his hands around, frantically trying to clear the misunderstanding. "...n-no, no, I'm g-going to visit someone, I should've clarified s-sorry..."

Hinata immediately perks back up. "Oh! Okay, I hope they get better soon!"

Tobio reminds the boy that they've only got three minutes until practice starts and they rush off, waving Shimizu goodbye as their bickering gets farther away. He grips his bag strap tighter, changes his shoes, and exits school with a gloomy look.

'I hope she gets better too.'

-:-

Shimizu walks into the bookstore by the hospital and lets out a sigh of relief. Morimichi liked it when he brought her new shoujo to read and he needed to find new manga to read at home.

The librarian kindly waves at him and he waves back; turning his books in and making a beeline to the manga section.

He picks out the fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth volumes of Fruit's Basket for her but pauses when he has to select something for himself. He finished Death Note a few days ago but now doesn't know what to read next.

Y/N must've been standing there for too long—deep in thought as he jolted when someone tapped his shoulder.

"Sorry, didn't mean to scare ya, just noticed you've been standing here a while," A boy with bright red spiked hair and dark red eyes says with a small smile.

Shimizu averted his eyes. "...o-oh, yes, s-sorry, I was just um, h-having trouble p-picking something out, s-sorry for bothering you,"

The redhead shakes his head. "You weren't bothering me, but since you're having trouble, you don't mind if I give you a recommendation, do you?"

"...o-oh! Um, n-no, I don't mind– g-go ahead."

The stranger chooses three volumes and hands them to the shorter boy generously. "This part is kinda boring but if you decide to read the whole series, it's good exposition!"

Shimizu runs his hand over the cover before putting it in the pile. "...t-thank you, um..."

"Tendou!"

"...thank you, T-Tendou-san," He glances at the clock, eyes widening after realizing it's past five. "...I-I'm really sorry but I have to go now, I a-appreciate the recommendation though."

Tendou waves it off dismissively. "It's whatever, have fun wherever you're going, bye!"

Y/N scans the barcode, swipes his library card, and hurries to the hospital.

Hospitals weren't his thing. They smelt like death, medicine, and IVs— the bleak white tiles around the building didn't have a welcome feel. He couldn't stand nurses or being under anesthesia, hospital beds brought bad memories, and unless it was a life or death situation, he'd never step into a hospital building of his own free will.

Yet, here he was. Checking in with the receptionist and taking the elevator to the Intensive Care ward. He kept his head down, trying not to let the stench of pills worm its way down his throat.

Hospitals made him dread his existence, they were a place he wasn't fond of but was obligated to visit.

He opened the door to room five-thirteen and placed the bag on the floor. Dull purple eyes opened at the sound as a shaky smile adorned her face. "You came...you took so long I thought you got overwhelmed."

Shimizu sat down beside the bed and took a deep breath. "...n-no, I just had a delay at the bookstore. I couldn't leave you, Mori."

She smiled, letting her head collide with the pillow with an exhausted exhale. "I had chemo today," she started, longingly looking at the painted sunset on the roof. "They said it's progressed from stage two to stage three, but the pneumonia dumbed down a bit."

Shimizu hated hospitals, a gloomy aura surrounded them and dreams died inside them.

"...o-oh," he tried to keep the anxiousness out of his voice but by the looks of Morimichi's face, failed miserably. She huffed, punching his shoulder with as much strength as she could. "Don't worry, all's well end's well. Now, give me my manga and tell me everything that's happened at school."

He grabs the volumes of Fruit's Basket and hands them to her. "...I-It's the same school stuff, w-we have a meet in Tokyo tomorrow and coach said we have a c-chance at nationals this year."

Morimichi hummed, the beep-beep-beep of her heart rate monitor rang in his ears.

Shimizu forces himself to continue. "...m-my sister, Kiyoko, is a manager for the v-volleyball team," why is he talking about them? "The f-first years are good, I think–that's what Sugawara-senpai t-told me anyway."

The girl has a violent coughing fit, robotically wiping the blood on a tissue and throwing it in a trash can. "..sorry, I must be more worn out than I thought."

"...y-you should rest, Mori."

She exhales, sunken eyelids covering her deep lavender iris' as she gets comfortable on her bed. "Yeah, I will, just...keep talking, keeps the thoughts away."

So, he continues. He talks about Tanaka-san and his infatuation with Kiyoko, the Sejoh versus Karasuno game, how the volleyballs adore his face, about Nishinoya-san and the other second years, and her