Chapter Text
Shit! Class ran late. My uncle is gonna kill me if I show up late to practice again. Why doesn’t he get that I’m in college and have to actually attend class? I know I said I’d help coach his stupid high school volleyball team, but you’d think he’d cut me some slack.
I hike my gym bag farther up my arm and hurry down the street. Why does Karasuno have to be out in the middle of nowhere? I glance at my watch. I’m gonna miss the next train out of Sendai if I don’t hurry. I pick up my pace so I’m almost running.
I round a corner and smack face first into something very solid and very warm. I hear the person let out a small “oof,” as I bounce off and land straight on my butt.
“Are you okay?” a male voice asks me.
“Tooru!!! You knocked a girl down!” a younger male voice says.
“Maybe watch where you’re going next time, huh?” I say trying to cover up my embarrassment. I look up into the face of the person I smacked into. My mouth pops open. Oh crap, he’s hot.
He looks down his perfect nose at me still on the ground. He extends a hand toward me. I notice how long his fingers are. “Maybe you shouldn’t go barreling around corners without looking where you’re going?” I grab his hand as my face burns. He helps me stand even though his face still looks slightly affronted that I blamed him for our collision.
I stand and blink. He’s tall. Since coming to Japan I haven’t seen many people who are much taller than my 5 feet 9 inches. Well, except for some of the players, but I can’t count them. This guy has to be over 6 feet at least. Maybe 6’1” or whatever the equivalent is in centimeters, which I still can’t get my brain to comprehend.
I realize I’m standing there just staring at him. I shake my head. He’s too pretty for his own good. His hair is perfect. He probably spent more time on it than I did getting completely ready this morning. His nose is straight and fits his face. Chocolate brown eyes stare at me, now with an arched eyebrow raised slightly. His mouth is turned down in a little pout that looks fake to me. I realize I still haven’t said anything.
“Uh…yeah. Sorry for running into you. If I’m late to practice again, my uncle is gonna yell at me.” I give him a tight smile.
His eyes roll slightly and he glances at my bag, which I dropped when I landed on my butt. His eyes land on the volleyball that’s trying to escape. I see them widen and his face brightens almost immediately. “You play volleyball?”
I reach down and stuff the ball back in the bag and pull the strap over my shoulder. “Y-yeah. Well I do back home. I’m studying abroad here in Japan.” I notice the younger boy he’s with is also carrying a volleyball. “Do…do you play too?”
His chest puffs out a little. “Captain of my team. I help coach this little guy and the junior league on Mondays when I don’t have practice.” It’s like his whole personality changes when he starts talking about volleyball. His face is open and smiling. His eyes are wide with excitement. The change only adds to how gorgeous he is. I find myself staring again. My phone buzzes, breaking me out of my trance. I glance at it and my mouth tightens. It’s a text from my uncle.
<YOU’RE LATE! YOU BETTER HAVE A GOOD EXPLANATION THIS TIME!>
“Shit.” I glance at the child standing in earshot. “Sorry.” I look towards the guy. “Um, sorry, I really have to go. I’m so late. I’m really sorry I ran into you.”
“Wait,” his voice cuts through my thoughts of how pissed Keishin will be. I look at that gorgeous face again. He eyes me with a different expression. I don’t miss the way his gaze lingers on my chest. I sigh. It’s a regular occurrence. “Can I see you again?”
His question doesn’t register. “I’m sorry, what?” Did this hot guy just ask me out?
“Can I see you later? After your practice of course. I have to take my nephew home anyway.” He tilts his head to the side making his hair shift.
I blink a couple times. I did hear him correctly. “Um, why?” It’s out of my mouth before I can stop myself.
He smirks with one side of his mouth. He takes a step closer to me. He glances at his nephew before whispering to me, “You’re hot, I’m hot. We both like volleyball. I think we’d have a lot to talk about.” His voice got deeper. I swallow, realizing that drop in his voice kind of turned me on.
I don’t see what the harm would be getting a cup of coffee with a relatively attractive volleyball player. Oh who am I kidding? This dude is so hot, it’s hard to look at him straight on. Live a little, right? “Ok, sure.” His eyes light up. “I won’t be back until later, probably like 9pm. Is that okay?”
“Sure. How about we meet up at that coffee shop on the corner?”
I glance towards the corner. I’ve been to that coffee shop so many times since I moved here. I smile. “Okay.” I glance at my watch. I’ve officially missed my train. I grimace at that. “I really have to go now.” I jog off.
“Wait, what’s your name?” he calls after me.
Without thinking about customs or cultural differences I shout my first name back at him, “Riza!”
“See you tonight, Riza-chan!”