Just Us - Kozume Kenma/Reiai
Fluff!!! Non-otome
Fandom: Haikyuu!! Characters: OC/Kenma Written for: @narekashi Written by: @lokiiwood
A/N: Happy holidays, Reiai! When I saw you write you liked Haikyuu!! I couldn’t help myself. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did writing it ^^ <333
The bus tires finally slowed to a screeching halt and the people's loud murmurs of frustration grew in its place. In her list of top twenty nightmare scenarios, this was one of them. She was living it - experiencing it - and didn't know what to do. Not only had she left her book at home for what was supposed to be a short trip, but she was also trapped on a bus with a bunch of strangers. Reiai stopped considering the things that would make the ordeal worse - the lack of escape route, the blizzard outside… Well, she tried to stop considering it, anyway. She dug herself further in her jacket.
The crying of a microphone denoted the bus driver’s third announcement. The first one was a warning for a possible tire failure and not to panic, the second was its confirmation, and this one was the unfortunate notice that yes, the bus was stopped and no, he had no idea when they would get help. She buried her head in her hands, enjoying the warmth while it lasted. Would she perish here of boredom or of cold? Perhaps a car accident despite being on the side of the road? The possibilities were endless, really!
Sensing movement, Reiai peeked out of her hands to glance at the boy who’d taken the aisle seat beside her. He’d been buried the entire ride in his video game, not looking up even once to at least pretend he was concerned about the situation. He slowly raised his head, the blonde hair covering his face finally parting as he glanced around. Wait...did he really not know what was going on? She’d laugh if she wasn’t so disturbed. After a few seconds of watching and listening to the other passengers, he turned towards her. Reiai quickly glanced out her window.
But there was no way he didn’t catch her staring.
Another top ten nightmare scenario. She squeezed her eyes shut, praying to anyone who would listen for him not to say anything, for the nightmare to end.
His voice was quiet, barely a whisper. If Reiai hadn’t been listening intently, she wouldn’t have even heard him.
“Excuse me sir...do you know where we are?”
Crisis averted.
She gulped and turned to face him, clasping her fidgeting hands together in her lap.
“Bus?”
Wait, why did she say that?
She gazed into the boy’s cat-like golden eyes and felt her breath hitch. She had expected them to be red and dry, not for their depth to be a pool of crystal honey ready to suck her in. The boy’s eyebrows furrowed for just a moment at her response before he glanced down at his game and turned it off.
“...Sorry,” he muttered.
“No - I’m - uh, we’re at…” She opened up her phone as she peered out the window, double checking the GPS was even functioning in the storm. “...Highway 32.”
“Thank you, ma’am.”
She stared at him as he continued to look at his black screen. Was he okay?
“Um, do you have somewhere to be? Will you be alright?”
Reiai didn’t know why she was prying into this stranger’s life so suddenly. Maybe it was because he looked her age and had no idea what was going on? She’d hate for him to be as miserable as her, even if she didn’t know him at all. She attempted a smile for him.
The boy raised his head again and regarded her with patient eyes. She shifted in her seat, uncomfortable with the silence that accompanied his gaze. But he finally spoke, his words careful and sure.
"Yes. Based on the speed and direction of the snow outside and the road visibility, I think this is only a ground blizzard. If this region has already been like this for two hours, then at a minimum we'll only have an hour left to deal with it and two hours at maximum. The tank was three-quarters when I came onboard, so the fuel should last us if we just use heating."
Reiai blinked at him, her eyes and smile becoming genuine as it widened. That’s what he’d paid attention to? The fuel tank when he got on the bus? The other guests’ passing details of the longevity of this area’s blizzard? Was he some sort of genius?
“Wow…”
He quickly looked back down, as if ashamed at her surprise.
“Thank you,” she whispered, giving him her best, reassuring nod even though he wasn’t looking.
“Yeah.”
Sensing that their limited interaction was done, she sighed and returned her gaze to the window, watching the snow swirl around the black pavement and slow cars pass by. Reiai wondered what it would be like to be a handsome genius with pretty eyes, not noticing that the boy beside her was staring at the back of her head, wondering what it’d be like to be a pretty girl with a disarming smile.
°。°。°。°。°。°。°。゜。°。°。°。
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The boy had been right. The blizzard cleared after an hour and mechanics came not even twenty minutes later to replace the faulty tire. Reiai had gone home and enjoyed her following December days without further incident other than the occasional sight of a honey-eyed stray cat that reminded her of a stranger.
“We’ll be having another neighboring school’s sports teams joining us this year for our Winter Sports Festival. That makes six, which means I expect everyone to help.”
The classroom faux groaned in unison but set off to complete their individual tasks with enthusiasm. Reiai volunteered for something new this year, too exhausted from a late night of writing and watching shows to goof off with her classmates - much to their dismay. She made her way to the infrequently used gym closet that was hidden away behind large mats. Grimacing, she pushed past the rusty hinges and crude marker drawings to the equally dusty interior to begin. It was a single-person task away from the loud hubbub of excited students, only requiring her to check inventory on the old volleyballs, bats, and cricket balls.
She finished it early but didn't leave. Reiai set a timer on her phone for when she needed to be back in class and sat in the closet, sipping on her water as she read the novel she brought with her. So engrossed was she, that she didn't notice the door opening and quickly closing back.
His hand rested on the knob. No way. Was he seeing things now? There was no way that girl from the bus ride was in this very closet. This was the worst good karma he could’ve asked for. Strange, either way. Well, not too strange, the probability of seeing her again wasn’t low if he considered that they both were in high school in the same region that enjoyed exchange-like events.
Kenma made up his mind, turning around to return to his friends who were scouting the volleyball court before he heard them shouting amongst each other.
“Anybody found the volleyballs yet?”
He sighed. Right. These people would destroy the place even though they weren’t supposed to be using the court at all. He wanted nothing to do with it. It didn’t occur to him that he might be using it as an excuse until he opened the door again, cold feet making him pause in the doorway as wide, brown eyes stared up at him.
There was still time to go back.
“Oh! You’re...um…!”
She stuttered, quickly closing her book and relocating it behind her back. Was she scared of being caught reading? There had to be a reason she was hiding out in this strange closet. She glanced behind him and worried her lip. He should probably let her be. “I just came to find a volleyball,” he decided on.
She nodded vigorously but kept checking the door.
“Sorry,” he muttered. Kenma quickly jerked it close and she gasped behind him.
“Ah, wait, don’t-!”
A sinking feeling set in as he heard her quickly stand and rush to his side to touch the door. Her hand carefully twisted the knob - and twisted it was, completely off its mantle. Oh no. Kenma glanced at the hinges, rusted and useless, then to the doorknob sitting ominously in the girl’s hand.
“Oh, no..”
Kenma opened his mouth to apologize once more, but sighed instead. Great. She probably thought he was an idiot for not noticing such obvious details like broken door hinges and loose doorknobs.
But she just started to laugh and he blinked over at her, taken back. There was that alarming smile again - it sounded like holiday bells and felt like snowflakes sprinkling on his head. Maybe he was delusional, finally driven mad by his obnoxious volley teammates who demanded so much of his attention.
“I’m sorry, I should’ve stopped you,” she sighed. “Do you have your cell phone?”
Kenma sighed again. “No...I left everything in my bag in the bleachers…”
“Oh…”
They both stood there, staring at the door until he cleared his throat. “What’s - um - your name?”
“Reiai.”
Reiai. A nice name. He felt better now that he knew - a sense of relief that was surely misplaced.
“I’m Kenma.”
She hummed in response, and he tilted his head to look at her just as she did the same. Reiai’s expression changed to something he didn’t recognize, and he watched her curiously as she returned to sit beside her book on the floor.
“Well, we’re going to have to wait until someone finds us then.”
Kenma surveyed the room. It was dusty and unorganized. Being found might take a while, he may as well get comfortable. He sat down against the door, staring at the ground and hoping she didn’t pay him much more attention. He was nervous - beyond nervous - even though it was just one, friendly person in the room with him. He couldn’t accurately describe the feeling of feathers tickling his insides, only that he didn’t like it.
“Kenma, do you play volleyball?”
His head shot up to heed her as she rubbed a volleyball off with a towel.
“I’m...Nekoma’s setter.”
“Oh, that’s so cool! You must be pretty good.”
“It’s nothing...my teammates came to scout your school’s court for the upcoming festival…”
Why was he telling her things she didn't ask? It was just like on the bus when he ran his mouth off about the blizzard. He'd been so shocked at himself then that he couldn't find words to continue the conversation.
“Maybe they’ll come find us, then.”
Doubtful. But he didn’t want to damper the mood even more.
“Do you want to pass the ball?” she asked.
Kenma stared at the dustless ball in her hands as she smiled over at him. Maybe she was trying to uplift the mood in her own way. He didn’t mind playing along.
“Sure…”
She tossed it to him - sloppy with no technique but an earnest attempt all the same. He watched its trajectory and waited for it to bounce off the wall before opening his left palm and catching it without much effort.
“Oh wow, you are good!”
She laughed and sat up straighter, her brown eyes glistening like dark caramel as she focused on the ball in his hand. Kenma felt his cheeks growing hot. This kind of attention, he realized, was the precise type he didn’t want. Expectations brought the ability to disappoint. If she could just keep smiling at him, if they could just enjoy their silence together, that would be better. Well, she didn’t have to smile if she didn’t want to, but…
It would be nice if she did.
And she smiled every time he successfully taught her something new about volleyball. So he kept talking - explaining basic techniques and praising her perfect attempts. It was peaceful. Reiai was admittedly fun to be around. Her jokes weren’t obnoxious, and she wasn’t overbearing. In a way, she reminded him of himself when she was honest about also being nervous on that bus and how she liked being comfortable. She even reassured him that when he called her ‘sir’ on the bus, she didn’t even register it. Kenma had been anxious over nothing at all.
“Kenma?”
“Hm?”
“You’re finally smiling.”
“What?”
He touched a finger to his lips. Sure enough, he was.
“I…” He paused for only a moment, unsure what he was even saying, “...guess I’m glad it’s you I’m stuck here with.”
Reiai's eyes widened and Kenma immediately regretted admitting such an embarrassing thing. Hopefully, she didn't think he was weird?
“I thought the same thing,” she whispered, rolling the volleyball between her hands.
Relief made his shoulders relax again. This wasn’t so bad. Talking and being honest with Reiai wasn’t so bad, anyway.
“Kenma?”
“Reiai?” He said her name only because he hadn’t before. He wondered what it would feel like to speak it, and now it rolled pleasantly off his tongue.
“I-I was wondering...um...the festival - it’s really nice. There’s lots to do and see, so…”
“Yes.”
He lost his mind indeed - agreeing to do something he didn’t even know the details of.
“Oh,” she giggled, holding the ball to her chest. He drank in her sweet laughs, letting the snowfall cool his heated face.
The door opened before she could clarify what she meant.
Lev stood behind him, his tall frame akin to a giant compared to his sitting one as he cheered. “Ah! Kenma, there you are! Were you stuck in he-oh? Handsome!”
Kenma sighed, knowing his ears were probably turning red but too annoyed to care.
“Don’t yell,” he muttered. Lev grinned wide and he frowned as Reiai shrunk away. Kenma slowly stood and glared at him before turning back to her. As he took in those confused eyes, his body acted on its own. Kenma walked over and gently took her hand, the volleyball falling to the floor as he helped Reiai to her feet.
And Kenma didn’t let go, clasping her hand tighter and leading her out the closet past Lev.
“Where are you going now?” he whined. “Aren’t you coming back with us?”
Kenma walked to the bleachers and threw his bag over his shoulder, glancing at Lev before locking his eyes with Reiai. His heart skipped a beat as she watched him, wide-eyed and giving him all of her focus - attention - expectations - the ability to disappoint.
“D-do you want to go back to class now?”
Reiai hesitated before that beautiful smile graced her lips again and her fingers entwined with his.
“No.”
He inadvertently smiled back, not needing to touch his lips to know he was.
“Then let’s go.”
“W-what about - don’t we need the volleyball?”
Kenma hadn’t even considered it. He shrugged the suggestion off with renewed confidence, the feathers in his stomach feeling less alien and increasingly fun as he stayed by her side.
“No, just us.”
