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From the moment you meet TĆru Oikawa, you know you wonât get along. You were water and he was oil.
He smiles too easily. Talks too much. Carries himself like the world is already his.
âSo youâre the new manager,â he says, eyes dragging over you in a way that makes your spine straighten. âYou lookâŠserious.â
You donât blink. âAnd you look like someone who ignores instructions.â
The gym freezes. Someone coughs. A volleyball rolls to a stop.
For a split second, his smile slips. Not enough for anyone else to notice but you do. Then itâs back. Wider. Sharper.
âIwa-chan,â he laughs, âsheâs scary.â
âI like her already,â Iwaizumi mutters.
Oikawa decides right then that you are trouble.
You call him out when he pushes through pain. You correct him during strategy discussions. You donât laugh at his jokes when heâs being reckless.
âYou donât understand what it takes to win,â he snaps one afternoon when you stop practice to force him to rest.
âAnd you donât understand what it takes to keep a team standing,â you shoot back.
He steps closer, towering slightly. âIâm the captain.â
âAnd Iâm the manager,â you reply coolly. âWhich means itâs my job to stop you from ruining yourself.â
The silence crackles. For a moment, it looks like he might yell.
Instead, he laughs too loudly. âWow. You really hate me, huh?â
You donât answer. Because the truth is far more dangerous.
What he hates most is not you. Itâs the way the team listens to you.
They relax around you. Trust you. Look to you when things go wrong. Oikawa sees it in small moments such as when a player thanks you quietly, when laughter follows you down the hall.
And worse when other people notice you.
The first time a first-year lingers too long by your side, Oikawaâs serve turns brutal. The first time an opposing captain smiles at you, Oikawaâs jaw tightens until it aches.
âYouâre glaring,â Iwaizumi mutters.
âDonât be stupid,â Oikawa snaps.
But later, when he watches you laugh at someone elseâs joke, something twists violently in his chest.
The tension escalates during a practice match.
Another school. Another captain. Too friendly.
Youâre talking strategy, but Oikawa only sees the way the other boy leans closer than necessary.
âManager,â Oikawa calls sweetly from the court, voice laced with warning. âWeâre starting.â
You glance over and nod before turning back to the boy in bright orange jersey. âI know.â
Oikawa doesnât miss a single serve that game.
Afterward, you confront him.
âThat was childish,â you say.
âAnd that was flirting,â he snaps back.
You laugh, incredulous. âYou donât get to decide who I talk to.â
âI know!â he fires back, voice sharp, frustrated. Then, quieter âThatâs the problem.â
The breaking point comes after a loss.
You donât soften your words during review.
âYou stopped trusting your hitters,â you say evenly. âYou tried to do everything alone.â
Oikawa stands so fast his chair scrapes loudly against the floor.
âYou think you know better than me?â
âI think,â you reply, meeting his eyes without fear, âthat youâre terrified of being replaceable.â
You find him later behind the gym, rain beginning to fall, his hands braced against the wall like itâs the only thing holding him upright.
âWhy do you look at me like that?â he asks, voice strained. âLike Iâm not enough.â
Your chest tightens. âBecause you keep acting like you have to be perfect to deserve staying.â
He turns on you then, eyes bright with anger and something far more fragile.
âEveryone chooses you,â he says bitterly. âThey listen to you. They trust you. You donât have to fight for attention.â
âThatâs not true,â you whisper.
âThen why..â his voice cracks, âWhy does it feel like Iâm already losing you?â
The jealousy spills out raw, ugly and honest.
After that, nothing is the same.
Arguments linger too long. Silences stretch until they ache. Every accidental touch feels deliberate.
When someone flirts with you, Oikawa steps in without thinking.
You shove his shoulder afterward. âYou donât own me.â
âI know,â he says, voice low, eyes dark. âBut I donât know how to stop wanting you to look at me like that instead.â
The confession hangs there unclaimed, dangerous.
The night everything nearly breaks, itâs raining hard enough to drown out the world.
You argue again about his shoulder, his recklessness, the way he refuses help.
âWhy do you care so much?â he demands, standing too close now.
You laugh shakily. âBecause someone has to when you wonât.â
His eyes search your face like heâs afraid of what heâll find.
âThen why does it feel like youâre always choosing everyone else over me?â
âYou push me away,â you whisper.
He grabs your wrist not rough, not gentle but desperate.
âBecause if I donât,â he breathes, âIâll want something Iâm not allowed to have.â
The rain soaks you both. The air hums.
Enemies donât touch like this. Enemies donât tremble like this.
And yet neither of you lets go.
The rain keeps falling. Neither of you moves.
Oikawaâs grip on your wrist tightens for half a second then falters. His fingers loosen like theyâve forgotten how to hold onto anything at all.
ââŠIâm tired,â he says suddenly.
The words donât sound like TĆru Oikawaâs. Thereâs no sharpness. No sarcasm. Just exhaustion, stripped bare.
You turn fully toward him. His head is bowed now, shoulders tense and breath uneven. Rain darkens his hair, water sliding down his lashes like heâs crying even though he hasnât let himself yet.
âIâm tired of fighting,â he continues, voice cracking despite himself. âTired of pretending Iâm not scared. Tired of acting like I donât notice when people look past me like Iâm already replaceable.â
âI hate that I get jealous,â he admits, words spilling faster now, like if he stops theyâll choke him. âI hate that every time someone laughs with you, I feel like Iâm losing something I never had the right to want.â
Not the captain. Not the rival. Not the confident, infuriating, brilliant setter but a boy who is terrified of being left behind.
âI keep pushing you away,â he whispers, voice breaking completely now, âbecause if I let myself want you⊠if I let myself believe you might stay...â His breath stutters. â...then losing you would destroy me.â
His shoulders shake once. Then again.
He turns away sharply, dragging a hand over his face like heâs angry at himself for falling apart.
âGod, this is pathetic,â he mutters. âDonât look at me like that. Iâm not supposed to...â
Finally, you donât hesitate this time.
Your hands come up, gentle but sure, resting against his arms. He stiffens at first, instinct screaming at him to pull away but he doesnât. He canât.
âTĆru,â you say softly. Not captain. Not Oikawa. Not idiot. Just his name.
He exhales, a broken sound, and his forehead drops to your shoulder.
The rain soaks you both, but you barely feel it.
You wrap your arms around him.
For a moment, he doesnât move. Like he doesnât know what to do with comfort. Then his hands clutch at the back of your jacket, fingers curling tight and desperate.
âIâm here,â you whisper, pressing your cheek against his damp hair. âIâm not leaving. Not because youâre perfect. Not because you win.â
âIâm here because youâre human,â you continue. âBecause you care. Because you try. Because even when youâre terrified, you still stand on that court and give everything you have.â
His grip tightens like your words are the only thing keeping him upright.
âYou donât have to compete for me,â you say quietly. âYou donât have to earn me. You donât have to be better than anyone else.â
He lets out a sound thatâs halfway between a laugh and a sob.
ââŠYouâre cruel,â he murmurs into your shoulder. âSaying things like that.â
You pull back just enough to look at him.
âNo,â you say gently. âIâm honest.â
His eyes are red. Vulnerable. Open in a way heâs never allowed anyone to see.
âI donât need you to be untouchable,â you add. âI just need you to stop carrying everything alone.â
For a long moment, he just stares at you like heâs memorizing this, like heâs afraid it might vanish.
Then he nods. One small, shaky nod.
ââŠStay,â he whispers. Not a demand. Not a joke. A plea.
You slide your hands up, thumbs brushing away rain from his cheeks.
âI am,â you promise. âRight here.â
He leans into you again, slower this time. Trusting.
And for the first time, TĆru Oikawa lets himself break. Not because heâs lost but because someone stayed.