Lucky Strike (Tanaka Ryuunosuke x Male!Reader)

Fluffy white clouds drift along the evening sky, which a pale, drowsy blue. (M/N)'s shoes scuff softly against the ground, sending a few tiny pebbles flying. The (h/c) male had been exhausted all week from schoolwork, and his lack of sleep showed in dark circles under his now dull (e/c) eyes. He'd also been awake the entire night before, studying for an upcoming math test.

He lets out a silent yawn, glancing at the bags he'd been carrying.

School had ended only half an hour ago - (M/N) had fallen asleep during a few of his classes, which resulted in him missing out on writing down important notes. He had thought that it would probably be best to go home and sleep, but once he had actually gone through with his plan, he couldn't help but feel guilty.

While staring at the backs of his closed eyelids, and while being buried underneath the blanket of his warm, comfy bed, he made a decision - letting his guilt get the best of him. So he got up, put on some half-decent clothes, and went back outside.

And now he's making his way towards the entrance of Karasuno's gym, anxiety making his heart pound fast.

In his bags are meat buns. He'd bought them  - enough for the entire volleyball team - on his way over. He'd also bought them out of the same persistent feeling of guilt. The smell of the food made his stomach groan, but although he'd been tempted to, he didn't eat any.

The guilt was there, because he had wanted to do something for Karasuno's volleyball team - for his boyfriend, and for his boyfriend's friends. They all loved meat buns, as far as (M/N) knew. So, to cheer them up, he bought exactly that.

He didn't have any spare money to buy himself a meat bun, but he'd decided that just seeing the others happy would satisfy him.

He stops when he's in front of the gym's familiar doors. His free hand curls into a fist, before knocking on them. Gently, at first, but then firmer after a moment.

The door opens almost instantly, revealing Karasuno's Libero. The shorter male's dark eyes widen when they land on, and recognize (M/N).

"Hey," Nishinoya greets, a quirky smile tugging at his lips.

(M/N) puffs his cheeks out, feeling them heat up slightly. He offers a small smile in return, and raises his arm, showing off the bags he'd been holding. Nishinoya squints slightly, seemingly trying to see through the bags. But then he smiles again, wider than before, and hastily grabs (M/N)'s arm.

As Nishinoya drags the other male inside, (M/N) quickly takes in his surroundings. Everyone else is practicing, as usual, and (M/N) feels his heart swell with pride when he sees him jump. The male in question dives for the ball - his legs bending without effort, his right arm instinctively flying up.

His hand meets the ball with an exciting smack, and then his feet meet the ground once again, and he's grinning.

(M/N) doesn't realize it, but he's grinning, too.

Before (M/N) knows it, he's sat on the gym's stage. Nishinoya's beside him, greedily tearing into one of the bags, until he's found one of the meat buns. He unwraps it, shoving half of it into his mouth, before pulling (M/N) into a crushing hug.

"THANK YOU," the shorter male cries out.

His voice echoes around the now silent gym, and when (M/N) looks back up, everyone's watching. The scene attracts the other team's members, and soon they're rushing over. A few of them - Tsukishima and Kageyama and him - pretend not be interested, but gradually make their way over anyway.

(M/N) forces his gaze away from where it wants to go, reminding himself not to cross the line. But it's hard when his heart's sent into a frenzy as soon as their gazes meet, and it's even harder when he sits right next to him.

(M/N) hands the remaining meat buns out, avoiding eye contact with the male in question as he also gives one to him.

"Tanaka," Hinata chirps, between a happy bite of the food.

The orange-haired male's gaze flickers to (M/N), and then behind (M/N). It's obvious that Hinata's referring to (M/N) - really fucking obvious - but it doesn't make his next words hurt (M/N) any less.

"Isn't he one of your friends?"

There it is.

There it fucking is.

(M/N) tries to stop himself, he really does. But he can't help it, so he does exactly what his brain is screaming at him not to do. He sneaks a glance to the male beside him, and doesn't really expect what he sees.

Ryu's watching him, concern gleaming in those sharp, charcoal-gray eyes. Before (M/N) can look away again, Ryu clears his throat.

He turns away first.

"Yeah."

It doesn't hurt, (M/N) tells himself.

It doesn't fucking hurt.

But it does.

Soon enough, everyone's shoving their meat bun wrappers at (M/N). He accepts their statements of gratitude with faked happy-hums, and stuffs the wrappers back into the bags. The others leave, all except for Sugawara and Ryu.

Sugawara's helping in picking up a few of the wrappers - the ones that either had fallen out of the bags, or the ones that some of the team members had carelessly left behind.

Ryu's waiting for a chance to talk, and (M/N) knows it.

"It's nice to see you again," Suga smiles.

"I guess so," (M/N) murmurs.

The two finish cleaning up in quick silence, and Ryu stands up the moment he sees that the two of them are done. But before he can approach (M/N), Suga begins talking again.

He gently places a hand on one of the (h/c) male's shoulders, and fixes him with another smile.

"Can I talk to you outside?"

***

The sky's a little darker when (M/N) steps back outside, and most of the clouds have disappeared. It's also colder than before, and both (M/N) and Sugawara are slightly shivering.

"Why were you gone for so long?"

(M/N)'s eyes widen at the question, slightly surprised at the other male's bluntness. Straight to the point. But he sighs, leaning against a nearby wall. A breeze blows by, tousling what's left of the withering leaves on the trees.

A few drift to the ground below, and (M/N) watches for a few moments, in silence.

"School stuff," he replies.

It's not exactly a lie.

He truly had been busy with 'school stuff', but that wasn't the whole truth. He just hoped that Suga wouldn't push it - wouldn't ask why he didn't just come to gym to complete his work.

"I see the way he looks at you, you know."

(M/N) splutters, whipping around to face the other male. His face flushes heavily, and Suga's gazing at him, a grin on his lips.

"H-how long have you known?"

"A while," Suga sighs.

"It's none of my business, but I've seen this type of thing before. You just have to give him time."

(M/N) nods slowly, reaching up to brush a stray (h/c) lock away from his face. He sighs, too, gazing up at the sky.

Karasuno had lost in a volleyball match against one of the neighboring high school teams, only two days ago. (M/N) had known how much Ryu wanted to win, despite the other male's statements that he didn't care about the score.

(M/N) wasn't there for the match, and he wasn't there to see his boyfriend's team practice for it. He had been sick, and even after that week of staying home to get better had ended, he didn't go to school a few days after that. He didn't want to risk getting anyone else sick, and he didn't want to risk going to school and getting sick all over again.

It was pretty dumb excuse to miss the event that Ryu's eyes lit up at the thought of, and the way he had talked about it - excited and happy, practically glowing.

"Are you okay?," (M/N) questions, glancing over at Sugawara.

And when (M/N) had finally showed back up at school, Ryu avoided him at all costs. It hurt to know that he had hurt his own boyfriend.

But it hurt even more to know, that even after a full two months of dating - a full two months of sweet texts and loving gazes and craved kisses - that (M/N) was still known as a friend.

"I'm okay," Suga murmurs.

"It messed him up the most, though. He kept looking back at the crowd, searching for someone. I just didn't know that that someone was you."

(M/N) swallows thickly, Suga's words echoing in his mind.

Just give him time.

***

When they walk back inside, nothing's really changed. The team members are still practicing, shoes are still squeaking against the linoleum floor.

But Ryu's gone.

(M/N) glances around nervously, gently worrying a lip between his teeth. His thoughts leaping from Sugawara's words to the places where his boyfriend might be.

The (h/c) male quickly makes his way further inside, stopping when he reaches the team's captain. There's the guilt again, but it's not heavy.

Of course he feels bad for distracting Daichi from the current practice match, but he has to hurry - he feels like his heart's burst at any second.

He has to hurry.

"Where's Ryu?," (M/N) asks.

The other male turns to him, dark eyes flitting between his options. Pay attention to the match, or talk to Ryu's friend. He drops into a stance, readying himself for the ball.

"He left," Daichi responds.

The team's captain then darts over to the other side of the court, before jumping high. He spikes the ball without hesitation, watching it for a split-second to see where it goes.

He rushes back over to (M/N), giving him a short glance.

"Said he was taking a break."

***

(M/N) wasn't really worried.

He knew that Ryu would come back, as he wasn't the type to abandon his work over some emotional crisis. But he couldn't help this fear that when Ryu would finally come back, he'd have something to say.

Not just something along the lines of 'sorry I took so long', no - he'd probably have something to say to (M/N).  

Maybe Ryu had finally gotten tired of him, and wanted a relationship where he wouldn't have to hide his feelings. With someone else.

With someone else.

A horrible combination of loneliness and slight jealousy makes his mind dizzy, and his heart give a little tug, so he pushes the thoughts away.

He bends down, reaching past the swinging door of the vending machine, and retrieving his item. It was one of the sodas that he knew Ryu liked. Maybe it would serve as a temporary apology, for not being there when Ryu needed him - a temporary apology until they got home.

If Ryu even wanted to be alone with him.

He picks the can up, the cold of the liquid inside seeping past its constraints and freezing his fingers. He turns back around, only to bump into someone much taller.

"Hi," he exhales, although it sounds like more of a question.

The taller male smiles - and to (M/N)'s alarm - reaches out. He presses his palm to the vending machine, leaning forward and cornering the smaller male. (M/N)'s eyes nervously flicker up and down the taller male's body, intimidation giving him a slight shiver.

It's not right.

"What are you doing out here all alone, huh?"

"I-I'm, um," (M/N) begins.

He quickly glances around the dim hallway, hoping that at any moment, someone - anyone - will stop the guy from getting to close.

"Getting a d-drink."

The taller male chuckles, using his free hand to caress (M/N)'s face lightly. The guy opens his mouth to say something, but is abruptly cut off by a voice - achingly familiar, but so cold.

Both the taller guy and (M/N) turn to face the source of noise, and their eyes widen. (M/N)'s heart pounds at top speed, because it's him. His cheeks flush, and if his heart was pounding before, it's now fucking soaring.

The soda falls from (M/N)'s hand, the only sound in the hallway against the silence.

"Can you leave him alone?"

The taller male whips around to face (M/N), eyes still wide. Then, his gaze hardens into a glare, and he roughly shoves a finger at the smaller male's chest.

"You fucking tricked me," he snaps.

"Thought you were a fucking girl."

Ryu rushes right between the two of them, shoving the male in question away from (M/N).

"Don't fucking touch him."

The taller male grins, folding his arms.

"You're the kid that plays volleyball, huh?"

Ryu doesn't respond. He darts a glance behind him, checking momentarily to see if (M/N)'s okay. Then he turns back, challenging the other male with an even more menacing glare.

"Fucking queers," he spits out.

And that's it.

The whole universe comes crashing down on (M/N), a watery dawn opening his eyes.

That's what Ryu's afraid of.

Everything becomes silent as Ryu lunges at the other male. (M/N) watches, his heart pounding in his ears, (e/c) eyes owl-wide.

Fists make contact with body, and (M/N) crumples to the ground. He doesn't know when the other team members enter the hallway, but before he knows it, they're there. Asahi's trying his hardest to hold Ryu back, while Daichi's trying to control the taller male's flying fists.

Everyone's trying to put distance between the two angry males, and (M/N)'s eyes are watery, cloudy and (e/c), as time just fucking stops.

***

"I love you," Ryu mumbles.

Everyone ignores his words, including (M/N). Ryu been taken to the nurse's office instantly after the fight, and the nurse had just about cried from the sight of him.

Bruises littered his face, and he had also received a bloody nose, but it didn't seem like he cared at all. As soon as he had lied down on one of the recovery couches, he'd been rambling on and on.

(M/N) was perched beside him, resting his chin on his open palms.

"I love you," Ryu repeats.

He reaches out, sitting up a little too fast. A groan escapes his lips, and one of his hands fly up to rest on his forehead, but he continues reaching out anyway. He scoots closer, draping his arms over (M/N)'s shoulders, and presses his front against the other male's back.

Ryu would never do this type of stuff, at least not in front of other people.

(M/N)'s posture stiffens.

But now he's shameless - nuzzling his face into the crook of (M/N)'s neck, securing the smaller male against himself.

"I miss you a lot."

"I'm right here," (M/N) sighs.

The other team members had volunteered to help with Ryu's wounds, since the nurse seemed to not even want to be in the same room as the beaten-up male. Hell, she couldn't even get near him without breaking out into a sweat.

"Tanaka," Tsukishima scoffs.

"I need to see your face - your nose, I mean."

Ryu shakes his head stubbornly, letting out a warm breath in the form a sigh. (M/N) flushes, but obliges against his boyfriend's will - gently pushing the other male away from him.

And just as (M/N)'s readying himself to get up, so Tsukishima can get the job done, Ryu brings his hands up to frame (M/N)'s face. His palms cradle (M/N)'s jaw, and he pulls the other male forward, claiming (M/N)'s lips, so soft.

(M/N)'s heartbeat quickens, and he reaches up so his fingers curl around Ryu's wrist. In the distance - so far away, so faint - he can hear what sounds like Tsukishima cursing under his breath, but then he realizes.

He's distracted by Ryu's lips, but he realizes.

He melts into the kiss instantly, warmth seeping into his body as his heart stutters, threatening to leap into his throat. He wants this, he needs this - whatever it is - and he's been craving it for too fucking long.

A tidal wave of fucking realization comes crashing down on (M/N), and he feels the atmosphere get warmer. His face is flushed, burning all the way up to the tips of his ears.

Ryu's kissing him.

In front of the entire volleyball team.

In front of his friends.

As soon as they pull away, (M/N)'s eyes get watery again, but from happiness. He winds his arms around Ryu's waist, tugging the other male forward desperately, maneuvering to sit on Ryu's lap.

This time, he's the one to bury his face in Ryu's neck, letting out little sniffs. He hugs Ryu tighter when the other male moves his arms around (M/N)'s body, holding him even closer than before.

"I'll come to all of your matches," (M/N) quietly murmurs, his heart swelling with happiness.

"If you promise to do that, then I'll promise to forever call you mine."

The words send a sudden shiver down (M/N)'s spine, but he smiles anyway. He pulls away, pressing a quick kiss to one of Ryu's cheeks. Momentarily, Ryu glances away to glare at his teammates - who are still in the room, half frowning, and half looking away with heavy blushes.

"And," (M/N) murmurs.

"You have to promise me that you won't get into fights. At least, not any like that."

A few beats slip by, but then Ryu's voice can be heard once again. Whispering, soft and caring, against his ear.

"Deal."