This chapter is practically all dialogue, I'm sorry.

"How late are you guys going to stay? Do you have anything better to do with your lives?" I teased Hinata and Kageyama. Practice had ended maybe 45 minutes ago, and most of the team had left or were getting ready to leave momentarily. 

"We can take the net down (l/n)-san, you don't have to stay." Hinata said as he tossed a ball to Kageyama. 

"Well I wasn't here earlier to set up the net, I feel like I should stay to clean up." SMACK, the ball hit the floor as Hinata's feet fell to the ground. "Don't you guys probably have to study or something?" Both Kageyama and Hinata looked back at me gloomily. I knew both of them struggled a bit in their classes. "That's what I thought," I giggled. 

"(L/n) is right, you can't play if you don't keep your grades up." Daichi chimed in from the edge of the gym. He gave me a wink. 

Hinata and Kageyama drifted off the court, we'd scared them into doing school work. Practice was important, I understood Hinata and Kageyama wanted to keep working to perfect their "quick attack", but they needed to leave time for other things as well.

"(F/n)-chan! If you're going to put the net away, hurry up! Tanaka and I are going to come over and play Animal Crossing." From behind Noya, Tanaka sent me a beaming smile. 

"When did I invite you over exactly?"

"When you became friends with us," The two boys laughed. 

"You just use me!" I teased back. 

I wheeled the poles to the closet and locked up. Tanaka and Noya sat on the gym step waiting for me. I jogged over to them, changed my shoes, and grabbed my bag. We locked up the gym, and began the trek to my house. As we passed by the convenient store, Noya noticed a sign for  nikuman.

"I've been craving nikuman for the longest! Let's get some!" He pleaded. 

"I agree," Tanaka said, "we need to get our protein in after practice."

I had learned after many years that it was better if Noya and Tanaka got what they wanted, or else they wouldn't shut up. "Alright, I probably wont get any though." 

Both of them sped inside, and straight to the nikuman station in the store. An older man walked over behind the counter and asked how he could help us. 

"Can we have 4 Pork buns?" I asked. The two boys behind me began to dig through their pockets. "I got it you guys." I said, taking some money out of my bag. 

Tanaka looked at me confused. "We can help you pay, (f/n). You're not even going to eat any." I shook my head, and gave the old man behind the counter some money, he passed back my change, and a bag of nikuman. I thanked him and left, with Noya and Tanaka following me. 

"Are you trying to make us feel guilty?" Noya raised an eyebrow at me. "Or do you just don't want us to come over?"

I gave a laugh. "Why would I do that? I just felt like buying you them today." 

I felt Noya and Tanaka look at each other oddly. 

"Why are you being so nice?" 

"Well jeez, I'm not a Shinigami." I joked. 

"No there is definitely something going on here." Tanaka said, and Noya nodded with him. "You've been in a good mood all through practice. Like, too good."

"Yea, I'm not used to this glowing (f/n)." I scoffed at Noya. 

Glowing? Yeah right. Although I did feel pretty happy all morning, and I even woke up late. That's usually enough to make my day a bit messy. It couldn't have been because of Oikawa, we had just met, and had a little hang out. However, I couldn't stop my mind from reaching that possibility.

"Whatever, you guys are delusional. You're my best friends, just take the damn buns." They needed to get off my back. 

We walked into my house and took our shoes off. Noya and Tanaka scurried to my room to start playing Animal Crossing on my console and 3DS, such freeloaders. I followed them in and sat on my bed, leaning against my wall. "Don't get grease on my controllers." They gave me a muffled acknowledgment. I scrolled through social media, and watched my friends play video games. 

"You guys will never be able to get to my level," I said, paying more attention to the TV screen than my phone, now.

"That's because you spend like an insane amount of time playing. Which I don't even understand, because of all the homework you get."

I shrugged, "It's called time management, something both of you don't --" My phone buzzed loudly next to me. I flipped it over and stared at the screen. 

"Who is it?" Tanaka asked, eyes still glued to the TV.

"Uh, just give me a minute." I jumped off my bed with the phone in hand, and walked into the bathroom down the hall, closing the door behind me. The phone continued to shake in my hand. I answered and pushed it to my ear. "Hi." I said quickly.

"Hey," I heard from the speaker. "How's it going." I blanked and there was an awkward silence. "Um, it's Oikawa by the way."

A spurt of embarrassment shot through me. "Oh, I know. I have your number saved." I gave a nervous laugh. 

"Oh, okay, I wasn't sure." Another moment of silence. "So, I just wanted to see what's up."

"Nothing at all really, just relaxing ya know, heh." Wow am I boring!

"Oh, cool. Do you wanna hang out then?" 

That was so casual. I thought. How many times has he done this, and why am I apparently so bad at it.

"(F/n), what are you doing, are you alright?" Noya said as he knocked on the door.

"Go away, I'm busy!" I yelled back, locking the handle.

Oikawa's voice echoed confusion from the speaker. "Uh, sorry I didn't realize. I just though I'd ask."

"Shit, no I wasn't talking to you, I'm sorry." I frantically blurted out, lowering my voice. "I could probably go somewhere, yea." Was this too quick? We'd just seen each other last night. Isn't there some code for the distance between dates or something? My overthinking was interrupted by the shadows I saw moving outside the door.

"Okay, there's an ice cream place not too far from the park we were at last night. Wanna meet there in an hour?"

"Yea an hour sounds good. See you."

"Okay, see you soon, (l/n)." I hoped I heard a smile in the way he spoke, right before he hung up. I sat on the toilet seat cover with my phone in both hands, I was staring at it. I felt a smile creep along my cheeks. I fake flushed the toilet, and ran the sink. When I opened the door, both Noya and Tanaka were standing outside.

"Who were you talking to?" Tanaka said. They had to have heard something.

"I was talking to myself... I think I'm feeling sick, some nasty stuff came out in there." I waved my hand back and forth in the air and closed the door. "You guys should probably go soon, I'm starting to feel nauseous I wouldn't want to give you anything." I began walking back to my room, as my friends' eyes were inspecting my lies. 

"Who called?" Noya asked behind me.

"It seemed pretty important." Tanaka added in right after.

I turned around in my room and scoffed at them. "It was a telemarketer, I just really had to go to the bathroom suddenly. Now can you guys leave, I feel sick."

Noya and Tanaka glanced at each other in the doorway. "You're lying to us. Who were you talking to?" 

"I told you I was talking to myself."

"Why are you lying to us? Was it a boy?" Tanaka pushed, more seriously this time.

"Holy crap, you're so annoying, who are you my dad!" I spoke it much louder this time. Tanaka and Noya stared at me, almost speechless, but stern. "I didn't mean it like that," my hands loosened and I broke my eye contact with them.

"We're just trying to protect you," Noya said quietly. "Because he didn't." 

I felt my chest tighten. And I couldn't bear to look at their faces. How could I have compared them to him. "Can you please leave." The air was thick between us. Tanaka and Noya grabbed their bags, and began to turn away. I didn't look back towards them, I just stared into the pink tint of the flower on my desk. As the two boys turned to leave I saw Noya linger for a moment at the door frame, but he didn't say anything more. 

I heard the door slam as they left, and I released my breath. I stood for a moment, as my eyes welled up.