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Tsukishima and Yamaguchi make a funny pair, some say.
Well, funny may not be the right word. Odd, perhaps. Unusual. Unsuited, at worst.
People only see the derisive glint in Tsukishima’s eyes, the contempt in his sneer, the bitterness of his words and his scathing remarks. Then their eyes slide over to him, unsightly, unassuming Yamaguchi, and the annoyance in their gaze shifts to puzzlement. How? They seem to say, how does such a nice young boy like Yamaguchi befriend someone like Tsukishima?
And, okay, Yamaguchi will admit, they may not fit together like two pieces of a puzzle, but that doesn’t mean they don’t match or get along; hell, he thinks, if there’s one pair odder than them it should be Hinata and Kageyama, who bicker at every possible moment, even when they’re in sync with each other.
People just don’t see it, Yamaguchi thinks. They’re only offered the surface of his friendship with Tsukishima. They’re only given his blunt apathy, Yamaguchi’s shy snickers. And Tsukishima may not have the most redeeming qualities, Yamaguchi assents, but he’s not all bad like others make him up to be, either. Yamaguchi just wishes others would see it like he did.
Sometimes, though, he agrees when some will question their friendship, wonders what Tsukishima’s still doing hanging out with him. Because what’s meek, talentless, Yamaguchi next to a cool, skilled, Tsukishima? He’s not on the starting line like all the other first years, his jump float serve leaves something to be desired, and while he may be in a college-preparatory class he’s not in the top ranks either.
Yamaguchi sighs, looking down. He’s nothing special, really.
Tsukishima, walking next to him, looks at him inquisitively. They’re with the whole of Karasuno, walking in downtown Tokyo in one of their spare moments of free time, shop lights and street lamps beginning to light up as the evening sky darkens. Everyone is excited at the prospect of being treated to delicious food by coach Ukai and Takeda-sensei after hours of practice during training camp, and their loud voices mingle in with the crowd, laughing and smiling. Tsukishima’d decided to stay at the back of the group in the hopes of it being a little quieter, but Yamaguchi thinks that isn’t going to happen, what with the ruckus Tanaka and Noya are causing doing god knows what a few ways down.
Tsukishima’s still waiting for an answer, eyebrow raised, Yamaguchi realises. He flusters.
“Ah, I’m just thinking about our training camp,” Yamaguchi decides to say, blowing a stray piece of hair away from his face. “It’s nerve-wracking, going against such renowned teams, you know? Nekoma and Fukurodani…”
Tsukishima shrugs. “Not really. They’re just other high schools, like us.” He frowns. “The real problem is that we have to listen to not only these idiots get riled up, but a bunch of others too.”
There’s an indignant shout in front of them. Hinata’s jumped around at Tsukishima’s words, roughly elbowing Kageyama in his movements and eliciting an angry yell his way as he glares.
“What did you say, Stingyshima?!” he yells, and ducks as Kageyama shoots a few choice words his way and makes to grab him. Yamaguchi is slightly amazed at the fact that Hinata can easily keep up with the group by walking backwards, keeping his scowl fixed on Tsukishima all the while. Meanwhile, Tsukishima clucks his tongue in annoyance.
“Your lack of originality in insults never ceases to amaze me,” he says, deadpan, and Yamaguchi can’t help but let out a snicker into his palm. “Besides, you’re just proving my point by yelling.”
Hinata, who’d been about to shout angrily yet again, quickly shuts his mouth, then opens it again, seemingly at a loss for words, and frowns, looking rightly affronted.
“Whatever, Pissyshima!” he growls, pointing. “I won’t lose to you! You better get ready!”
“I’m sorry, what was that? I can’t hear you, you seem to be too short for your voice to reach me.”
That sets Hinata off again, their little decoy ready to leap up and throttle Tsukishima, but Kageyama stops him by yelling at him to shut up, he’s being too loud in public, and oh, isn’t that ironic, Yamaguchi thinks as he watches the other two first-years start to argue heatedly. Tsukishima smirks while Yamaguchi smiles, shaking his head in amusement.
“You don’t like hot-blooded people but you sure like to rile them up,” he sighs. “You’re a walking conundrum, Tsukki.”
“It’s not my fault it’s so easy for them to get angry.”
They’ve stopped at a crosswalk near a park in a less busy area of the city, waiting for the lights to change, and it looks like Hinata and Kageyama’s little tiff has finally reached the front of their group, because Yamaguchi spots a ticked off Daichi making his way towards them, and he shudders in sympathy for the impending wrath his friends will have to face.
Before that can happen, however, there’s a sudden wail amidst the sparse crowd, and Yamaguchi startles, looking to the right like everyone else. A split-second pause of silence, and another wail, louder, this time. It seems to be coming from the park, and when Yamaguchi peeks behind everyone else, he spots a small figure standing alone next to the swings.
Most passerbys look out curiously at the sound before shrugging and continuing on their way. Nishinoya, conversely, zips through them and crosses the street in a flash, ignoring Daichi’s angered yell.
“Nishinoya! What the hell do you think you’re doing, you didn’t even look both ways before cros—” he cuts himself off when the lights change and simply curses before quickly following after him, and everyone else is quick to join their libero.
He’s standing next to a little girl, around six or seven years old and bawling her eyes out. Her knees are scratched and her hands are messy with sand and dirt, grubby fists pressed against her eyes as she cries. Yamaguchi looks around nervously, but he doesn’t spot any other adult in sight.
“Hey!” Yamaguchi hears Nishinoya greets loudly, smiling, and the girl startles, dropping her hands from her face as she stares with wide eyes. “I’m Nishinoya Yuu! Are you okay?”
The girl simply looks back, eyebrows drawn and lips trembling. When she sees everyone else make their way towards her, her face twists, and he she takes a heaving breath before she starts crying again, falling on her backside as Nishinoya backs up, taken aback.
“Nishinoya!” Daichi fumes walking over briskly. “What—”
“I didn’t do anything!” Nishinoya protests. “I just asked if she was okay, and she started crying again!”
“Since she was already crying, I don’t think she was okay in the first place,” Yamaguchi hears Tsukishima mutter next to him.
“I don’t see any other adults in the vicinity,” Asahi says nervously as he looks left and right, fiddling with his fingers. “Shouldn’t her parents be here?”
“Maybe she’s lost, then,” coach Ukai tells them, rubbing the back of his head and sighing before looking over towards Takeda-sensei. “Would you mind calling the authorities?” Takeda nods firmly, going for his front pocket and taking out his phone. Next to them, Suga blanches and goes for Nishinoya and Tanaka, who are trying to talk to the girl and only succeeding in scaring her more.
“Don’t crowd her, you’ll make things worse!” he scolds, pulling them away. “This is probably really scary for her already!” Tanaka and Nishinoya look rightfully guilty.
“Maybe her parents are still nearby?” Yachi pipes up meekly. “Not here in the park, but maybe in neighbouring streets? We could look for them!”
“Good idea,” Daichi says, smiling. “Some of us can look around while the others stay,” he adds, looking pointedly towards Nishinoya and Tanaka. “And I think that would be the best job for you both.”
“I think first priority is comforting the girl, though,” Ennoshita comments. “She’s pretty shaken up.”
“I have a little sister!” Hinata raises his hand as if in class and steps forward determinedly. “I take care of Natsu when my parents go out and sometimes she has nightmares and I comfort her!”
“That’s not the same thing, dumbass,” Kageyama tells him. Hinata rounds on him and tells him it is too, and Suga goes to split them up before they can start another fighting match.
Yamaguchi bites his lip, worried. The sky is getting darker and darker as time passes, and everyone is getting more agitated too, and he doesn’t know what he should do. Should he even do something? Everyone’s already being so useful, helping out and making suggestions; he doesn’t think he’d be of much use right now, not having a single clue as what to do. Tsukishima isn’t doing anything himself, standing by with his arms crossed and a small frown on his face.
Kiyoko, who’d stayed silent until now, steps forward and walks towards the girl, who’s gone on to quiet sniffling and whimpering, messily wiping her face. She crouches down so they’re at eye-level, and smiles softly her way.
“Hello,” she starts, just as soft, and the girl looks up, tear tracks staining her cheeks and snot dribbling over her upper lip. “My name is Kiyoko, these are my friends. We’re here to help, and we were wondering if you were alright. Are you lost?”
The girl’s face twists, seemingly in confusion, and she swallows, coughs once, wiping her hands on her grubby knees.
When she next speaks, Yamaguchi whips his head up quickly in shock. Next to him, he spots Tsukishima looking surprised as well. Because…
“Não entendo você!” I don’t understand you!
That wasn’t Japanese.
Kiyoko, quick to compose herself, only allows herself to look surprised for a second before schooling her expression back into a soft smile. The girl, looking confused but calmer, smiles back, uncertain. A few ways away, coach Ukai groans, raking his hair in frustration.
“Well, this complicates things,” he sighs. Takeda-sensei snaps his phone shut and looks back.
“There’s a police station a few blocks away, someone should come over soon enough. They told us to stay with the child here, in case her parents come around.”
“Well, we’ve done everything we can. As long as we can keep the kid calm, things should be alright. It’s scary enough being lost with a bunch of strangers, but not being able to understand them, either…”
Kiyoko’s still talking to the girl, who even if she can’t understand her, seems to settle at the soft lilt of her voice, biting on her thumb in anxiety. The others are still looking around, the third years having gone a little further away to search elsewhere.
Yamaguchi’s still unmoving. Because that wasn’t Japanese, but…
“Yamaguchi can help with that,” Tsukishima pipes up next to him, and coach Ukai and Takeda-sensei look to them curiously. Yamaguchi tenses, nervous. Tsukishima, eyebrows raised, only watches him expectantly, small smile gracing his lips.
“What do you mean?” Takeda-sensei asks. “Yamaguchi?”
“Um. Yes,” Yamaguchi starts, hesitantly, then with more confidence. “I, uh. I can understand.”
“You what?”
“I speak Portuguese,” Yamaguchi explains, biting his lip.
“Fluently,” adds Tsukishima.
“Oh.” Everyone’s eyes are on Yamaguchi, and it’s as if he were standing behind the service line, preparing for a jump float serve, feeling the pressure from everyone’s sudden expectations. “Well, it would be very helpful of you if you could comfort her,” Takeda-sensei tells him with a smile.
Yamaguchi nods, and steps forward. Kiyoko’s led the girl to a park bench next to the rest of the group, not having stopped talking once, and Yamaguchi absently thinks that it’s the most he’s ever seen her talk at once.
“Um,” he starts when he stops in front of them, both of them looking up at him, Kiyoko encouragingly and the girl apprehensively. Yamaguchi’s panicking internally, and he clenches his fists once, twice, wiping the sweat of his palms on the back of his pants. How does he talk to kids?!
“It’ll be less scary for her if you’re at eye-level,” Kiyoko supplies helpfully, and Yamaguchi nods. Right.
“Um,” he says again, crouching. The girl’s eyes are on him. Faintly, behind him, he hears the rest of Karasuno return to their coach and teacher, the sky having gone too dark to search any further. Hinata’s asking loudly what Yamaguchi’s doing over with Kiyoko and the girl.
Don’t mess up, don’t mess up…
“Um. Com licença. Olá,” he starts, “uh, como vai?” and immediately the girl’s eyes brighten.
“Fala português, né?!” You speak Portuguese?
“É,” Yamaguchi smiles warmly when the girl bounces lightly in her seat, looking so relieved. “Me chamo Yamaguchi, esses são meus amigos,” he continues, remembering Kiyoko’s first words. “Queremos ajudá-la. Está perdida, né?”
Yamaguchi stays crouched there for the next few minutes, speaking with the girl and Kiyoko by their side, the girl getting less and less distraught with every word passing Yamaguchi’s lips. She smiles more and Yamaguchi relaxes as well, glad that she seems calmer now. He’s startled out of his little conversation when Kiyoko nudges him lightly, looking amused.
“So,” she starts, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear, “Is she alright?” Yamaguchi colours.
“Um, yes! She told me she was walking with her parents. I think they were buying her a snack at a stand nearby and she probably wandered out and ended up here. I’m guessing her parents weren’t able to immediately find her in the crowd. She said she got her knees scraped from falling off the swings. Um, her mom was wearing a sundress and has curly brown hair like hers, and her dad was wearing bright red shoes and sunglasses.”
“You should probably let coach Ukai and Takeda-sensei know,” Kiyoko tells him gently, and Yamaguchi nods, getting up and wiping the dust off his pants. The girl looks at him worriedly.
“O que aconteceu? Onde você vai?” What’s going on? Where are you going?
“Um, não se preocupe. Kiyoko-san vai ficar com você.” The girl doesn’t seem too pacified, so Yamaguchi adds, “Eu voltarei.” Don’t worry, Kiyoko-san is staying with you. I’ll come back.
Yamaguchi trots back to the rest of his friends, who are all either talking animatedly with each other or looking at him in varying degrees of astonishment.
“… How does he know Portuguese?!” he hears Hinata ask excitedly.
“It’s his first language,” Tsukishima answers. “His mom is from Brazil.”
There’s something akin to smugness and pride coating Tsukishima’s voice, and Yamaguchi flushes, relaying the information he’d gotten. There’s a police officer with the rest of the group now, and she nods and thanks him once he’s finished, calling her station.
“There’s a couple matching the girl’s description at the station right now,” she says when she finishes her phone call, shaking her head in exasperation. “They arrived a few minutes ago, they said they’d come over right away.”
Everyone sighs in relief.
“I’ll, I’ll let the girl know!” Yamaguchi tells them. When he tells her, she lights up, bouncing in her seat and talking rapid-fire about seeing her parents again and being scared they’ll be mad at her for getting lost. Yamaguchi smiles and reassures her that no, they’ll be very happy to see her safe and sound.
“I can’t believe you understood that!” Hinata crows, amazed. “It was so fast, like pfwoosh! It’s amazing!”
“And can you believe he’s also good in English?” Tsukishima cuts in, teasing smirk on his face. “That could be you if you actually applied yourself to class for once.” Hinata only sticks his tongue out in retaliation and Yamaguchi flusters, waving his hand in front of him.
“I’m not that good in English…”
Things have calmed down now that everyone knows the problem is being solved, and the mood feels less heavy. Hinata’s teasing Kageyama for his growling stomach while Ennoshita, Kinoshita and Narita have gone to the swings to sway lightly and make small talk. Daichi’s keeping an eye on Tanaka and Nishinoya, the latter pushing against Asahi’s back to keep him upright as he keeps dozing off. Suga is talking to Takeda-sensei, and Yachi to Tsukishima. Yamaguchi keeps Kiyoko and the girl company as she also sways in her seat, eyes slipping close once in a while before snapping them open.
“I’d let you all go,” the police officer tells them, standing beside them, “but I’m afraid I only speak Japanese, and it seems the girl’s parents speak very little of it as well, my co-worker’s told me, so if it’s no trouble I’d ask you to stay to translate. You don’t all have to stay, of course.”
Ukai nods. “We appreciate it, but we’ll stick together if that’s alright with you.”
“Ah, I don’t mind,” Yamaguchi tells him. “Everyone else is probably really hungry and it’s getting late, so it would be best to get to a restaurant before they close, right?”
Before Ukai can reply, there are sharp footsteps making their way towards the group, and a woman’s voice crying out, “Ana!”
The girl, who’d been nodding off again, snaps her eyes open and hops off the bench, looking around. When she sees where the source of the voice comes from, she smiles wide and runs as fast as her little legs can take her.
“Mamãe!”
She runs into her mother’s arms, who hugs her tightly and rocks her back and forth for a few moments. Two more figures approach, another officer and a man who can only be the girl’s—Ana’s—father.
“Thank you for keeping her safe,” he says haltingly, and Ukai points towards Yamaguchi, who fiddles around in embarrassment.
“You should thank Yamaguchi here. It’s a happy coincidence, but the fact that he speaks Portuguese helped a lot. Your daughter was a lot more at ease because of him.”
The man turns to Yamaguchi.
“Obrigado, muito obrigado,” he thanks him. Yamaguchi tells him it’s nothing, really, he didn’t do much, he’s just glad he could be of assistance.
“You helped a lot, kid,” the second officer tells him. “You all did,” he adds to the rest of Karasuno. “The situation could’ve taken a turn for the worse, so we thank you all for your help and the fact that this was settled fairly smoothly.”
Ana looks from where she’s snuggled tight against her mother, nodding at something she whispers in her ear.
“Yamaguchi! Obrigada!” She reaches out with one hand, grinning.
Yamaguchi hesitates, looking at Ana’s mom for permission before smiling and shaking Ana’s pudgy hand. “Sem problemas. Foi bom conhecê-la!” No problem. It was nice to meet you!
There are more goodbyes, thank yous, and waves, and the team watches as Ana and her family leave the park behind them. It’s quiet for a while, then,
“Alright, Karasuno! I think you all deserve that supper more than ever now, don’t you?” Ukai grins.
—
The restaurant is a mess of noise and gleeful crowing, everyone eagerly eating and talking a mile a minute. Nishinoya, mouth full, sets himself in front of Yamaguchi, eyes bright.
“Hey, Yamaguchi, how come you never told us you spoke another language! That’s super cool, you know?”
“Ah,” Yamaguchi says, smile nervous, “is it?” Tanaka, sitting next to his best friend, swallows his mouthful of rice before nodding.
“It totally is! How didn’t we know our adorable underclassman was so talented?! You could travel to another country and speak the language no problem! I wish I could do that.”
“That’s what English classes are for, Tanaka,” Ennoshita pipes in, closed-lip smile on his face. “If you actually studied for them, you might be able to fulfill this dream of yours.”
“That was unnecessary, Ennoshita…” Tanaka wilts, embarrassed.
“Well, anyway, it’s not like I really need to speak Portuguese during practice… English is way more useful than that, and—” Yamaguchi starts, but Tsukishima cuts him off.
“Don’t sell yourself so short,” he tells him, side-eyeing him. “Be proud of what you can do. None of us here can speak another language fluently.”
“You can speak a bit of Portuguese, too, Tsukki. And you’re really good in English!”
Tsukishima rolls his eyes. “I get by in English, there’s a difference. Besides, the only reasons I know words like ‘hello’ or ‘how are you’ is because I pick it up from your mom when I come over.” Tsukishima fiddles with his glasses, looking away, and Yamaguchi looks on curiously. “You’re pretty amazing, Yamaguchi.”
Yamaguchi gapes. Distantly, he can feel his cheeks reddening, sees the similar flush spotting Tsukishima’s cheekbones, the surprise in his eyes at his own boldness. Hears his upperclassmen shout in surprise and wonder, astonished that Tsukishima complimented someone, did you hear that, Noya-san, why don’t we have a camera in hand for moments like these, while Daichi yells at them to calm down before he gives them laps to run once they get back to the gymnasium.
Yamaguchi’s just as surprised at the admission, gaping towards his friend, his heart beating a little louder. But he smiles wide, beaming when Tsukishima keeps his eyes glued to his bowl of food, and simply links their pinkies together under the table.
“Thanks, Tsukki!” Tsukishima flushes.
“Shut up, Yamaguchi.”
It’s still a little hard to accept or believe it, that’s he’s amazing, or talented. They still make an odd duo, and the second time Tsukishima compliments him is just as surprising, when Yamaguchi argues with him and yells at his refusal to even try. Tsukishima ends up telling him how cool he is, and it’s just as hard to swallow, but Tsukishima’s nothing if not truthful, and Yamaguchi can still feel the slight squeeze of Tsukishima’s hand against his own before leaving him to train. Warm and comforting and grateful.
The third time’s the charm when Yamaguchi finds himself in front of a flustered Tsukishima one night while they’re walking back home sharing a meat bun, after a short and quiet confession, lips tingling from not just the heat of their snack, warming at the small but lovely words said for him only.
Tsukishima’s still waiting for an answer, Yamaguchi realises, his friend fiddling with the cord of his headphones hanging around his neck. And he thinks of all the little things Tsukishima does for him, the little things he does for Tsukishima.
The soggy French fries, the encouraging smiles from the sidelines of the court, their quiet lunches as they listen to Tsukishima’s latest favourite album together. The happiness that engulfs him just thinking of Tsukki, of spending time with him, the warmth in his heart that’s settled months ago and won’t seem to be leaving anytime soon.
They’re an odd duo, alright. But that doesn’t mean anything at the end of the day, when they’re both there for each other, have been for ages, and Yamaguchi wouldn’t have it any other way.
Yamaguchi closes their distance with another kiss, red to the tip of his ears but smiling breathlessly.
“Eu também gosto de você.”
I like you, too.