Osamu bristles a little bit at the implication. "You're an incredible player, too. Who else could adapt to so many positions, wherever Coach needs him? Or hold his own against a monster like Tsumu?"
Not to speak too highly of himself, because he knows he lacks Tsumu's drive.
For some reason, Osamu seems to be raring up for an argument. Which really isn't necessary. So Kita can at least agree this far. The rest is semantics, right?
There's a slight smile.
"And don't pretend Atsumu's the only monster I had to wrangle."
Osamu has the decency to look sheepish. "Ah, yeah, we've caused you a lot of trouble the past two years, huh. Sorry, Kita-san. Hope you won't cut us out of your life now that volleyball's over."
He seems quiet and contemplative, as if he really believes such a thing could happen.
Kita huffs, amused. Except the mood doesn't lift. He looks over as the train slows. Trying to follow the strange line of reasoning, why it's got Osamu's body twisted up like that.
"Cut you out?
Here they are right now. Spending time together, not a volleyball in sight.
Small though it may be, the shrug rattles. This doesn't make sense. If Kita didn't want to spend time with the team, he could have joined any other club. Certainly wouldn't spent all this time working out the kinks and issues. Especially the interpersonal ones.
Wound up here.
"I'm not followin'. I've never done this because I have to."
"Well, I dunno. When you signed up to play volleyball you probably weren't expectin' a pair of over the top twins to come barrelin' in for you to corral. You're a peaceful guy and we're... not that. So it'd be understandable.. Am I makin' sense? You're looking at me like I'm not."
"But I was expectin' you. I saw your last Juniors match. You and Atsumu..."
It was one thing to read stats in a pamphlet. Another to watch the flesh and blood twins. Screaming and stomping, desperate for the ball. Like it was going to disappear any second. The game end before they wrung out every last scrap of love.
The memory still sends Kita's heart jumping.
"You were a level I'd never seen. Even if you spent as much time fightin' as playin' I wanted you on Inarizaki. Bad as anythin'."
Osamu can't even really answer that, but he can feel himself blushing a bit, cheeks heating up from the praise. Kita wanted them. Wanted him. Him and 'Tsumu, of course, but still. After all, it's not like he'd ever conflated the twins or made them feel like they were the same person or part of a set.
More people pour onto the train and Kita nudges over. Making room.
"Now..."
It's fair to ask. Kita's run out the clock with volleyball.
Time to think of the next stage
He's pressed shoulder to shoulder with Osamu and smells something... familiar? Clean. A scent he knows Osamu carries on him, probably a soap or shampoo. The detail clicks. Turns a thought loose, and Kita realizes he's happy.
"Now I feel the same. Even without playin', I wanna see what you do next. Still be friends."
Osamu feels warm sparks where Kita's body touches his. It's not like they've never touched before, but it still excites him like it's new. Embarrassingly, Osamu likes it too much.
But that warmth has nothing on how it feels to hear Kita promise that he still wants to be friends. That he considers them friends. Osamu should have known, maybe, but it still feels magnificent to hear.
"Good," he ends up saying, trying to subdue his desire to have an over the top reaction. "I wanna keep seein' you, too. You're really important to me."
Kita doesn't know when they shifted into being friends, instead of Senior and Junior. Only that they have. The fact doesn't surprise, but Osamu's agreement gives something more. Solidifies what's being built.
"Huh?" Osamu's gaze darts to the map in the train car, announcing the upcoming stop. "Oh yeah, this is us."
The conversation had distracted him; it was stunning to hear Kita so easily call them friends. Teammates, sure, but friends was different. Special.
He reaches for his phone to pull up the directions to this restaurant, and when the train pulls into the station, he starts guiding Kita towards the right exit.
"So this place's concept is Japanese fast-casual, so it's taking traditional foods and trying to make them more portable and convenient without sacrificin' the flavor, ingredients, or technique. It's small but their menu's impressive."
Talking about this is easy, and fun, and there's a light in Osamu's eyes. Excitement.
Osamu's got that particular light in his eyes. Same as every time food gets involved.
Kita smiles. Eyes crinkling over the mask.
"How'd you hear about it?"
As promised, this area's clearly off the tourist track. Only a few other people trickle out with them. Kita doesn't have to stay so close to Osamu. It's simply nice to have the chance.
"I follow a couple of reviewers and food bloggers on social media," Osamu admits somewhat sheepishly. "My SNS is usually full of pictures of amazin' lookin' food, it makes me hungry just goin' online sometimes. But most places aren't close enough to Hyogo for me to just go, you know? This is the first time I'm goin' anywhere I've seen outside of Kobe."
He pauses, then adds with a laugh. "Thought about goin' to Osaka a few times, though. The food there's supposed to be amazing."
It's a whole new world, but makes sense. Food being another kind of community. Kita listens carefully. Making a note to ask for a few of those blogs later.
"Has your class started plannin' the 3rd-year-trip? You could suggest it."
"Oh, that's a good idea," Osamu says. "I hadn't thought of it. Though I dunno if people are gonna wanna use this trip to go someplace they can already get to just by train, you know? Don't most people wanna go to Okinawa or Hokkaido or some other exotic place?"
He gestures for them to turn off the main road with the station and to a sloping side street, going uphill against a residential backdrop.
"It's just around that corner," he says, pointing. "I think I see a line?"
"People go places they have a reason to go to. Excitement, knowledge, food, it's all gonna pull in different ways. You're persuasive. Wouldn't be surprised if you got your way."
He tucks himself into the aforementioned line. Looking around for a menu.
Again, Osamu feels a little flustered at how casually Kita's dropping these compliments on him. Though to Kita they're probably just observations, it still means a lot to him to know how Kita sees him. Is being persuasive a compliment? Osamu thinks it is, in this case.
"Maybe. There's good food everywhere, though, so it's not like I'm gonna complain wherever we end up."
With that, he gets behind Kita in line and begins the wait. Anticipation is building inside of him to an all-time high, so it takes him a moment to see that Kita is looking around intently.
"Oh!" Osamu digs his phone out of his pocket and taps onto a different browser page. "I think they only have the physical sign on the front of the store, which is around the corner. But I've got it digitally right here."
The menu has a lot of staples of conveniences stores or izakayas; rice balls, karaage, yakitori, gyoza. But alongside the typical foods are interesting and unique flavors, including specialty fillings and sauces.
"Pretty much everythin' gets rave reviews, so pick whatever sounds good to you. I might ask whoever's at the counter to pick for me."
Osamu meant to hand the phone over to Kita, but having his hand held instead so that Kita can lean in and look at the screen?? It may as well be something out of a daydream, and Osamu is not going to burst his own bubble. If anything, he steps a little closer to Kita.
"That sounds like it could be good. Earthy and warm, and kind of Indian inspired?" He muses. "Good for the cold winter, to make you feel like you're not freezin' your, uh, hands off."
Was he totally about to say 'nuts'? You can't prove a thing.
The line looks long, but it moves quickly. Osamu fidgets like an eager child, trying to contain himself, the closer they get to the counter.
"Freezin' those off would suck," Kita agrees. Deadpan.
He releases the phone. Notes Osamu's shifting. Same as before a game, when it's time to charge in. The energy's nearly an audible thing. Wired up by crowds, excitement, the need to go.
Kita wasn't sure he'd feel this again. At least, not while they were still both on the same team. He grins.
Speaking of hands no longer being kept warm, Osamu misses Kita's touch just as soon as it's gone. But he can't really come up with an excuse to keep holding his hand, either, so he says nothing and shoves his phone back into his pocket.
"Me?" He repeats, lacking self-awareness. "Do I look excited? I mean, I seriously am. There's lots of good food in Tokyo, but this is the place I wanted to try the most. And you're here too, so it's gonna be extra good."
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2023-01-12 11:55 pm (UTC)Not to speak too highly of himself, because he knows he lacks Tsumu's drive.
"Coach has a good eye for talent. That's that."
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Date: 2023-01-13 12:30 am (UTC)For some reason, Osamu seems to be raring up for an argument. Which really isn't necessary. So Kita can at least agree this far. The rest is semantics, right?
There's a slight smile.
"And don't pretend Atsumu's the only monster I had to wrangle."
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Date: 2023-01-13 12:44 am (UTC)He seems quiet and contemplative, as if he really believes such a thing could happen.
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Date: 2023-01-13 01:04 am (UTC)"Cut you out?
Here they are right now. Spending time together, not a volleyball in sight.
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Date: 2023-01-13 01:27 am (UTC)Osamu says with a small shrug. Just an observation.
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Date: 2023-01-13 11:51 am (UTC)Small though it may be, the shrug rattles. This doesn't make sense. If Kita didn't want to spend time with the team, he could have joined any other club. Certainly wouldn't spent all this time working out the kinks and issues. Especially the interpersonal ones.
Wound up here.
"I'm not followin'. I've never done this because I have to."
no subject
Date: 2023-01-14 02:51 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2023-01-14 02:48 pm (UTC)It was one thing to read stats in a pamphlet. Another to watch the flesh and blood twins. Screaming and stomping, desperate for the ball. Like it was going to disappear any second. The game end before they wrung out every last scrap of love.
The memory still sends Kita's heart jumping.
"You were a level I'd never seen. Even if you spent as much time fightin' as playin' I wanted you on Inarizaki. Bad as anythin'."
no subject
Date: 2023-01-15 03:16 am (UTC)"And now? With volleyball out of the picture?"
no subject
Date: 2023-01-15 11:42 pm (UTC)"Now..."
It's fair to ask. Kita's run out the clock with volleyball.
Time to think of the next stage
He's pressed shoulder to shoulder with Osamu and smells something... familiar? Clean. A scent he knows Osamu carries on him, probably a soap or shampoo. The detail clicks. Turns a thought loose, and Kita realizes he's happy.
"Now I feel the same. Even without playin', I wanna see what you do next. Still be friends."
no subject
Date: 2023-01-16 03:44 am (UTC)But that warmth has nothing on how it feels to hear Kita promise that he still wants to be friends. That he considers them friends. Osamu should have known, maybe, but it still feels magnificent to hear.
"Good," he ends up saying, trying to subdue his desire to have an over the top reaction. "I wanna keep seein' you, too. You're really important to me."
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Date: 2023-01-17 09:59 pm (UTC)"All right. Then it's settled."
Kita looks up as the train slows.
"This our stop?"
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Date: 2023-01-18 02:06 am (UTC)The conversation had distracted him; it was stunning to hear Kita so easily call them friends. Teammates, sure, but friends was different. Special.
He reaches for his phone to pull up the directions to this restaurant, and when the train pulls into the station, he starts guiding Kita towards the right exit.
"So this place's concept is Japanese fast-casual, so it's taking traditional foods and trying to make them more portable and convenient without sacrificin' the flavor, ingredients, or technique. It's small but their menu's impressive."
Talking about this is easy, and fun, and there's a light in Osamu's eyes. Excitement.
no subject
Date: 2023-01-20 01:10 am (UTC)Kita smiles. Eyes crinkling over the mask.
"How'd you hear about it?"
As promised, this area's clearly off the tourist track. Only a few other people trickle out with them. Kita doesn't have to stay so close to Osamu. It's simply nice to have the chance.
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Date: 2023-01-20 03:10 am (UTC)He pauses, then adds with a laugh. "Thought about goin' to Osaka a few times, though. The food there's supposed to be amazing."
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Date: 2023-01-20 04:47 pm (UTC)"Has your class started plannin' the 3rd-year-trip? You could suggest it."
no subject
Date: 2023-01-20 06:02 pm (UTC)He gestures for them to turn off the main road with the station and to a sloping side street, going uphill against a residential backdrop.
"It's just around that corner," he says, pointing. "I think I see a line?"
no subject
Date: 2023-01-21 12:49 pm (UTC)"People go places they have a reason to go to. Excitement, knowledge, food, it's all gonna pull in different ways. You're persuasive. Wouldn't be surprised if you got your way."
He tucks himself into the aforementioned line. Looking around for a menu.
no subject
Date: 2023-01-21 06:35 pm (UTC)"Maybe. There's good food everywhere, though, so it's not like I'm gonna complain wherever we end up."
With that, he gets behind Kita in line and begins the wait. Anticipation is building inside of him to an all-time high, so it takes him a moment to see that Kita is looking around intently.
"Uh, Kita-san, what're you lookin' for?"
no subject
Date: 2023-01-21 10:39 pm (UTC)"Don't wanna hold up other customers."
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Date: 2023-01-22 02:20 am (UTC)The menu has a lot of staples of conveniences stores or izakayas; rice balls, karaage, yakitori, gyoza. But alongside the typical foods are interesting and unique flavors, including specialty fillings and sauces.
"Pretty much everythin' gets rave reviews, so pick whatever sounds good to you. I might ask whoever's at the counter to pick for me."
no subject
Date: 2023-01-22 03:29 pm (UTC)"Cinnamon and cashews on yakitori? For real?"
He keeps reading as they shuffle forward. It's not that the flavors sound bad, he trusts the expert here. It's simply so many options! Who knew?
no subject
Date: 2023-01-23 03:12 am (UTC)"That sounds like it could be good. Earthy and warm, and kind of Indian inspired?" He muses. "Good for the cold winter, to make you feel like you're not freezin' your, uh, hands off."
Was he totally about to say 'nuts'? You can't prove a thing.
The line looks long, but it moves quickly. Osamu fidgets like an eager child, trying to contain himself, the closer they get to the counter.
no subject
Date: 2023-01-23 11:36 pm (UTC)He releases the phone. Notes Osamu's shifting. Same as before a game, when it's time to charge in. The energy's nearly an audible thing. Wired up by crowds, excitement, the need to go.
Kita wasn't sure he'd feel this again. At least, not while they were still both on the same team. He grins.
"Ya know, it's nice to see ya excited."
no subject
Date: 2023-01-24 03:25 am (UTC)Speaking of hands no longer being kept warm, Osamu misses Kita's touch just as soon as it's gone. But he can't really come up with an excuse to keep holding his hand, either, so he says nothing and shoves his phone back into his pocket.
"Me?" He repeats, lacking self-awareness. "Do I look excited? I mean, I seriously am. There's lots of good food in Tokyo, but this is the place I wanted to try the most. And you're here too, so it's gonna be extra good."
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