Chapter Nine:
Lucky to have him

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"I'm back, Nii-chan..." She muttered sadly, sitting in the seiza position in front of her brother's grave. Tsukishima sat beside her, cross-legged.

"How have you been? I hope you've been doing good..." She trailed. Her gaze moved to Tsukishima, then back at the grave.

"I met amazing people this year, Nii-chan..." Y/n claimed. "Take this beanpole beside me as an example..." She muttered, chuckling as Tsukishima rolled his eyes.

"His name is—" "Tsukishima Kei," He said, cutting Y/n off. She glanced at him with slightly widened eyes. She didn't really expect him to talk, let alone to someone who was already gone.

She smiled, then turned back to her brother's grave. "I brought your favorite flowers... Keiko-nee-san's favorite, too..." She trailed.

"Have you and Keiko-nee-san seen each other? I hope so..." She trailed again. Tears pricked the corners of her eyes as she sighed.

"It's been almost a year since I stopped attending competitions... The last one I went to didn't even let me play my chosen piece... What do you think, Nii-chan? Should I go back?" She asked.

The cold autumn air ran by, sending shivers down her spine. She buried her face in her hands, quietly sobbing.

"This is the seventh time I've cried for you, Nii-chan... When will you come back? Everyone misses you..." Y/n muttered, her voice slightly muffled by her palm.

Tsukishima fidgeted with his fingers, glancing at Y/n. He grunted uncomfortably, stretching out his arm and patting her back.

Y/n flinched. She pulled her hands away from her face, looking at Tsukishima, who looked away in embarrassment. "I guess it was a good decision to come with you. It would've been pitiful to see you cry here without anyone even accompanying you..." He muttered.

Y/n smiled a little, then turned back to her brother. "I told you, Nii-chan... The people I met this year are amazing..." She muttered, making Tsukishima scoff. 'He's amazing. Even when he sounds sarcastic, there's always a slight difference when he's not.' She thought to herself.

"This is the second time I'm saying this, but I kinda like how you and Keiko-nee-san are next to each other... I think it's cute..." She muttered, glancing over at the gravestone next to them.

She sighed, silently gazing at her brother's grave. Small droplets began falling, making her look up to the sky. She chuckled. "I guess even Wikipedia is more credible than weather reports nowadays..." She muttered.

She felt the droplets stop, a shadow towering over her as they did so. Tsukishima pulled her to her feet, pulling her closer to him under the umbrella.

"You'll get dirty if you continue sitting on the ground," Tsukishima said. Y/n nodded, dusting off her clothes. "Let's go," Tsukishima said. "There's a coffee shop down the street. We can stay there until the rain stops," he said.

"But—" "go..." A voice trailed. Y/n's eyes widened. "We can come back when it's dry," Tsukishima added. "Hey, Tsukki, did you hear that..?" Y/n asked. Tsukishima raised an eyebrow.

"Listen, L/n, I don't have your hearing. I don't know what you're talking about. Hell, that sound you heard could've come far from where we are," he said, draping an arm around her shoulders. He pulled her along, making sure they both stayed under the shared umbrella.

"Come on. It looks like it's gonna rain harder. We'll get drenched if we stay any longer," he said. Y/n nodded, walking in the direction Tsukishima was leading her to.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•

"Here are your drinks," the waitress said. "The rest of your order will be finished in about five minutes," she added. "Thank you..." Y/n muttered, taking her cup into her hands. She sighed, the warmth of her green tea warming her cold hands.

It had been about five minutes since they had arrived at the cafe. They both chose to sit at a booth and sat next to each other instead of across each other.

"It's getting really cold now..." Y/n muttered, wrapping the scarf around her neck tighter. Tsukishima glanced at her, then down at his cup of strawberry soy milk. Y/n looked up from her cup as she heard the sound of a zipper being unzipped.

Before she could turn to Tsukishima, she felt warmth engulf her. She glanced as him, seeing him rolling down his sleeves.

"Tsukki—" "I only wore the coat for extra warmth. I'll be fine in a sweater," he said, taking a sip from the cup. Y/n smiled, pulling the coat over her shoulders.

She glanced up at Tsukishima, who was scrolling through his phone. "If that's your way of asking if you could wear it, then go ahead. I don't mind," he said bluntly. Y/n smiled widely. She took the coat off her shoulders, slipping it on.

Tsukishima glanced at her, smiling a little as he saw how big his coat was on her. Her cheeks heated up as she felt the comforting warmth of his coat.

'Nii-chan? Are you still watching over us? If you are, I hope you see this. I hope you see how lucky I am to have him.' Y/n thought to herself.

'I never knew he could've been like this. The closer I got to him, the more snarky he got. But who knew that even someone as salty as Tsukishima could be so sweet.' She thought, turning to Tsukishima.

Their eyes locked, making her feel all giddy. She giggled, giving Tsukishima a close eyed smile. "Thanks, Tsukki~" she cooed. He scoffed, his cheeks reddening as he turned away.

"Ichigo daifuku, correct?" The waitress asked, approaching them with a plate of strawberry mochi. Y/n hummed in response. The waitress smiled. "Here you go. Have a nice date," she said, walking off.

Tsukishima shrugged, taking a piece of mochi. Y/n smiled a little, not bothering to.correct the waitress. "You really like strawberries," she noted. Tsukishima only nodded.

"Maybe I should start bringing strawberry shortcake for you," she muttered, rubbing her chin. She chuckled when she saw Tsukishima's eyes gleam.

"You know, I'm surprised you haven't complained about me calling you Tsukki," Y/n stated. Tsukishima shrugged. "I don't mind. It sounds cute when you say it," he said bluntly, making Y/n's cheeks redden.

'How does he say that with a straight face?' She thought to herself. "In fact, I don't mind if you start calling me Kei," he added, taking more pieces of mochi. Y/n's cheeks reddened even more.

'He... Doesn't mind if I call him by his first name..?'

She smiled. "Well then, Kei, feel free to call me Y/n!" She beamed. Tsukishima hummed. "Whatever. Now, help me eat these. The rain is starting to let up. Once it stops, we'll head back to your brother," he said, taking a bite out of some mochi. Y/n smiled.

"You really did get lucky to have him in your life."

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Tidbits

1) Most Japanese are lactose intolerant. Even those who aren't lactose intolerant choose to drink flavored soy milk. We all know that Kageyama is an exception to this 🤡

2) So, if you noticed, whenever they actually do call each other by name, they use last names. I don't know why but in other fanfictions, the authors choose to make the cannon characters call the reader by the first name immediately. That is extremely disrespectful unless of course, you have their permission and are close with them.

3) Tsukishima fidgets with his fingers when he gets nervous. It's first seen when he asks coach Ukai about blocking someone taller and stronger.

4) School in Japan starts in April. If you keep track of all the time skips, you should know that it should be around September now. Autumn starts mid-September, and it starts getting really cold. However, you were only wearing a sweater and a scarf. Tsukishima was wearing a sweater, a scarf, a coat, and a beanie.

Progress report

Tsukishima:

Like: 98%

Love: 14%

Y/n

Like: 90%

Love: 10%

Today's winner: L/n Y/n