10

Drifting away slowly, and aimlessly, it was as if days, weeks, months had passed. Hinata had nothing left in him. He had been holding on to the tiny string of hope and strength but it as slowly wearing out.

He tried harder than he ever could, but maybe... just maybe... there was no point anymore. Who was he even trying for?

Maybe it was time to let go.

It wasn't so scary now, going through all this physical and emotional pain, perhaps it was time to just stop.

He felt himself slipping away. Was he dying? Maybe this was how death was like.

But then there was a hand reaching out to Hinata.

It was getting closer.

Closer.

But he couldn't reach it. It was barely a volleyball width away.

He felt himself getting sucked up deeper and deeper.

He knew he had the willpower to fight through all of this... and there was someone out there waiting... trying to help.

He had the vision of himself in the bottom of the sea. Where sunlight was sparkling on the surface and that he just needed to float back up. But it was as if he couldn't- and the helping hand was getting farther and farther.

Who was it?

Everytime he looked- he couldn't make out what or who it was. But this time- his eyes met them. The piercing cold eyes that drilled into Hinata. They were serious yet it made Hinata feel needed.

"Kageyama..."

"Hinata. Please... I'm asking for... one more miracle."

"Kageyama?"

"Just... stop being dead. Wake up again, and it'll... it'll all be alright. I'm begging you..."

"Kageyama!"

"Come back when you're ready. We're all waiting for you." And then Kageyama was gone. A feeling of regret and frustration. He was so close, he almost grasped consciousness but alas, there was no longer hope.

☆☆☆

"Hinata's condition... is getting worse now." Dr. Sukodu said, addressing Karasuno's volleyball club.

"All in one day?" Daichi asked, obviously shocked and worried. The whole team was rather silent, and the mood was depressing

"Yes, I'm afraid. He's dangerously close to..." the sentence was left unfinished, and it lingered in the air for a solid minute.

"Death?" Kageyama finally said, afraid of the answer. The entire team suddenly found the floor very interesting to stare at.

"I'm so sorry."

"Why?" Tsukishima said, surprising the doctor. He looked up to Tsukishima and his face showed a peculiar expression.

"What do you..." Suga asked, in a bit of a cautionary tone. He knew Tsukishima was up to something, but he didn't know what.

"Hinata is Hinata," The tall middle blocker said. "I'm pretty sure all of you know that better than anyone. He's... different. This whole thing was rather strange, but I think Hinata is weird enough to fight through this. If anyone could do it, I believe that he can."

"But what if he can't?" Kageyama asked, and as he said those words, he felt his heart crack, but he continued on. "What does that mean for our team? Who's taking his place? What's going to happen? We're going to have to plan it, if we like it or not."

"You're right about that, however..." Tsukishima scanned his teammates expressions. "Nobody seems emotionally ready for that."

"Nobody... except for you and I, don't you agree?" Kageyama said, grinning a bit. "We can do this together." He knew that, Tsukishima was one to go through hard times well when everyone else was struggling, and Kageyama himself was determined to move on. That would be what Hinata wanted for him.

"Are you trying to hit on me?"

"What!? Of course not!" Kageyama's mood took a quick 180 degrees turn. "Tsukishima you-"

"Whatever," Tsukishima interrupted. "I guess that'll have to do."

"How... how are you two deciding these things right in front of us?" Asahi asked, bewildered.

"Do we get a say in this?" Ennoshita asked, although he knew what the answer would be.

"No not really." Tsukishima replied bluntly.

"Ts-Tsukki." Yamaguchi said, his voice unstable, making him flush in embarrassment. Kageyama noticed Tsukishima's expression soften quickly. There was something fishy about it, Kageyama took note.

"Yeah?"

"Just... please decide what's right for our team."

"I will." The two simple words were so straightforward and pure, yet it held great meaning and significance in it.

"Well, shall we?" Kageyama finally said facing the blonde again.

"Are you still trying to hit on me?"

"I'm not!"

☆☆☆

As Iwaizumi entered the dark room he found the two first-years sitting on the other side, discussing something serious and they were both concentrated. They were both writing furiously quick on a piece of paper, and they seemed to be in a disagreement. Neither of them noticed his entrance, so he decided to take a look at Hinata while he was there anyway.

Small. Innocent. Vulnerable.

Hinata laid motionless and his face was blank. He just seemed so soft, and so different. It wasn't the Hinata he knew, and he was almost unrecognizable. So expressionless, and naive. However, the doctor had told him that he was in a dangerous condition, and he knew that Kageyama must be beyond worried.

"Oh, Iwaizumi-san!"Kageyama had finally looked away from whatever plan they had been working on, and finally noticed the older.

"Kageyama... Tsukishima... I'm sorry about... Hinata."

"Why are you sorry?" Tsukishima asked, emphasizing the U sound.

"Both of you must be so... worried and anxious about all of this, and I really don't think it's right that you guys have to go through all of this."

"Yeah but..." Kageyama gulped. "It's definitely not your fault in any way."

"I mean... agh." Iwaizumi didn't know what he meant, and he was just speechless. There was nothing he could say that would make anything that was happening better. He felt that he was making it even worse.

Kageyama felt flustered next to the ace, who he felt was much cooler and someone he looked up to. He felt that it was appropriate to explain what they were doing, as he had no other words to say. "We're just discussing our plan for volleyball... without Hinata."

"And so far we haven't come to anything, because Kageyama-" Tsukishima started.

"Hey don't blame it on me!"

"-is rejecting all of my ideas-"

"That's because all your ideas are not in any way sensible!"

"-yet it was his idea to work together to solve this."

"I thought you'd be better than this!"

Tsukishima dropped his pen on the table in defeat. "It would just make my life a whole lot easier if Hinata Shouyou just woke the fu-"

"Huh?" A voice suddenly said. Kageyama looked up in confusion. The voice didn't match either Iwaizumi or Tsukishima's. The two looked just as confused. They were in shock for a moment and none of them moved.

"Who or what was that?" Iwaizumi said, eyes widened and still in shock.

"Where am I?" This time Kageyama identified the higher pitched voice from behind him, and he turned around along with the other two. A figure stirred in front of them, and it's eyes opened slowly.

"Hinata!?"

A/N: Slow updates rip

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