head over heels

5 ~ seriously?

[A/N - ruh roh, a family moment.]

He followed Kei into the gym.

Ethan shot him a weird look as he broke off from Kei, heading for the stands. His brother stood on the court. Kei approached him, and Evan watched them talk. Eventually, they gave eachother a light fistbump, and their previous hostility seemed to fizzle away.

He watched incredulously. Sports boys and their drama would never stop being a mystery to him.

Kei left, then came back a few moments later, seemingly having gotten changed. Evan found his book, again, remaining firmly closed in his hands as he watched. He gnawed on his cheek as the raven haired boy stepped onto the court. He was in a far better mood than the previous day, and the energy around him was buzzing.

Ethan had apparently put Hugo into Dan's position, and Evan wondered idly what he was going to do in an actual game. Hugo was more than a fair setter, but he was also the team's best libero by a long shot. No one could fill his position there. Not really.

Kei seemed happier though. Hugo was a faster setter than Dan, so he stood a chance at keeping up with Kei's lightning fast movements, though more times than a few, Kei arrived at the net, jumping before Hugo even had a chance to react.

Evan sort of wanted to see just how fast Kei could go.

Ethan stood to the side, deep in conversation with the coach as the rest of the team practised. He looked troubled.

Evan felt his eyes slide back to Kei. He watched the boy roll his shoulders, his shirt rippling with the movement, then he ran, nimbly jumping around the other boys, and launching himself at the net in a high, arcing jump.

He hit Hugo's toss perfectly, sending the ball hurtling into the floor. It hit hard. So much so that it shot off the court, straight in Evans direction.

He let out an embarrassing squeak as he flattened himself against the seats, barely dodging the ball. It hit the seat behind him with a loud crack. He shuddered, peeling himself from the seat after a moment.

"Shit—" he heard Ethan call, "Ev, you good?"

"Fine," he shot back, clambering over the seat behind him to retrieve the stupid thing. He carted it back with him over to the railing.

"Throw it." Ethan held a hand out.

Evan tossed it back to him, Ethan caught it with ease.

"Thanks—" Ethan paused, his brow furrowing. Something flickered behind his brother's eyes, then disappeared almost as quickly and he turned away.

The teams practise continued, and there came a point where Evan could not justify watching the match any longer. He had to actively remind himself that he hated volleyball, and was here because he was an idiot and didn't know how to say no.

Instead he pulled out his book, flipping the pages idly. He still had a headache, though the advil seemed to have worked more than usual. He did find it hard to focus on the pages of his book.

He blamed it on his brewing headache.

At some point, he heard a small cough, and he looked up, almost jumping out of his skin as he found Kei standing right across from him on the row of seats below him. The rest of the team idly moved about the courts, clearing up stray water bottles and volleyballs.

Evan stared, his mouth going embarrassingly dry. Up close, he could see the muscles shifting in Kei's shoulders, and the thin sheen of sweat over his skin. He wore a black tank top and workout shorts. He had orange sports tape around one knee, and a black water bottle clutched in his hands.