Fandom I Only Need Memories Of You

[nikoru]

Atsumu's eyes lit up like a kid on Christmas morning at Emi's admission. Jackpot! He knew if he pestered her enough, that unshakeable honesty would win out.

"A date, huh?" He crowed, swinging around to face Osamu with a triumphant grin. "I friggin' knew it!!"

Osamu just rolled his eyes so hard it looked painful. "Emi didn't actually confirm anything, idiot. Don't get too excited!"

"Ohhhh! But she did!" Atsumu sang gleefully, spinning back towards the petite blonde. In two long strides he was scooping her up by the waist and swinging her around in a circle, uncaring of her startled squeak.

"My brilliant little snitch came through! Now we've got the confirmation, all we need to know where Kita-senpai and Megane-kun are," he cackled against the crown of her head.

Setting Emi back on her feet, he cupped her face with both hands and planted a loud, exaggerated smooch right on her forehead. "You're the real MVP, Shorty! What would I do without ya?"

Spinning away with a jaunty whistle, Atsumu strode over to snatch up her phone from the counter. A few deft taps and swipes later and he'd pulled up her messages with the pink eye-glassed girl.

"Aha! Here we go!" He crowed over one shoulder as he flipped the phone towards Osamu. "Better start prepping some top-notch humiliation material, Samu. We're gonna give 'em hell!"

"Hold up, give me that!" Osamu made a lunge for the phone but Atsumu danced back easily, cradling the device protectively.

"Nuh-uh, finders keepers!" He sing-songed with a mischievous glint. "We're gonna need to take actual photos for maximum impact, Samu!"

Osamu let out a long-suffering groan as Atsumu cackled victoriously. "You just had to give him fuel for his dumbass fire..."

The blond setter was already wrapping his arm around Emi with his free hand, his cheshire grin widening by the second. "What do you say we follow them, hmm? We can probably wear disguises and follow them to their date?"

There would be absolutely no living this down for Kita and Matsuda now. Atsumu could hardly wait to give them hell...

---

Momoka emerged from the train, still reeling somewhat from the old woman's unintentionally hurtful comments about her dress. She walked along mutely beside Shinsuke, trying to shake off the lingering sting of embarrassment.

When he gently asked if she was alright, she managed a tight smile and small nod, not wanting to dwell on the incident any longer. Momoka's spirits did lift slightly at Shinsuke's suggestion to stop for refreshments before heading to their actual date destination.

"That sounds lovely, thank you," she replied, grateful for the chance to collect herself fully.

Her breath caught ever-so-faintly when Shinsuke extended his hand in an unspoken invitation. The pink-haired manager felt her cheeks warming anew, though this time from a pleased sort of shyness rather than humiliation.

Without hesitation, she slipped her hand into his, reveling in the simple intimacy of their intertwined fingers. The captain's thoughtfulness and consideration helped push the last remaining mortification from her mind. As they approached what appeared to be a cute cafe, Momoka couldn't help her curious gaze from being drawn to the vibrant poster plastered across the window. It announced some sort of book-themed promotion with an illustration of a rose rendered in warm autumnal tones.

"Hmm... I don't believe I've heard of that series," she admitted, glancing up at Shinsuke quizzically. "Though it does look rather intriguing, doesn't it?"

She studied the artistic rendering more closely, brow furrowing slightly. "Autumn Rose by Neeko Saki..."

Giving a slight tilt of her head, Momoka turned her smile up at him once more. "I do love a good themed menu."

Her eyes sparkled with excitement, firmly putting the train incident behind her. With Shinsuke by her side, Momoka felt her initial nervous tensions melting away. Momoka gave Shinsuke's hand an appreciative squeeze as they entered the café.

The little bell above the door jingled merrily as Momoka and Shinsuke stepped inside the cozy cafe. Momoka felt herself immediately enveloped in its ambiance. Bookshelves lined the walls, crammed full of well-loved tomes of every genre. Plush armchairs and overstuffed sofas were arranged in intimate nooks and reading corners throughout the space. It had the distinct air of an eclectic library combined with a trendy coffee shop.

Soft lamps cast a warm, flickering glow over the rich wood tones and bursts of jewel-tone accents. The mouthwatering scents of freshly brewed coffee, baked goods, and spices hung tantalizingly in the air.

Her amethyst eyes were immediately drawn to the chalkboard menu hanging behind the counter. Ornately decorated with vines and flowers, each item was named after the book. She grinned, delighted by the obvious care put into the literary theme. As they moved further inside, she couldn't help craning her neck to examine the various knickknacks and antique book displays adorning the shelves and side tables. It was as though she had stumbled into an enchanted realm straight out of the pages of a storied novel.

"This place is amazing," Momoka breathed, giving Shinsuke's hand an excited squeeze. "I almost feel like we've discovered a secret hideaway."

 

[WinterFever]

Maybe, she should not have said anything to Atsumu because from the looks of it. The Setter was on the verge of exploding with excitement and Emi wasn't too sure if she was going to be able to handle a hyper Atsumu especially when he was rubbing it on Osamu's face.

Glancing between the twins as Atsumu rubbed in what Emi said in his face, she eyed him warily before squeaking when he picked her up. Then stood in a daze as she was put down and he kissed her forehead. Causing her once pale cheeks to turn a slight ting of pink to show her embarrassment for all to see. What in the world was Sumu thinking doing that? Much less in front of his twin!

"Um.." Emi mumbled quietly after a few moments of waiting for the world to stop spinning and she didn't feel the weird flutter of butterflies in her stomach. "That's my phone Sumu, you're not keeping it. My parents would be pissed at me if they found out that you took it." Emi said as she glanced up at her best friend, before looking towards the silver-haired copy and mouthed 'Sorry, I didn't know he'd be this happy.' before looking back at Sumu.

"I mean, they're going to the mall, so I don't think it'd be a problem if we went in normal clothing." Emi pointed out, not sure how far she wanted to go with this thing that Atsumu was making a big deal of.

----

Dark eyes examined the poster that was on the window as they walked slowly past it. Shinsuke's mind processed what he was seeing and tried to figure out what the book and cafe were based on. "I agree." He murmured quietly, as he was not really much for reading unless it was for school then he'd be having his nose buried in it. Glancing down at the pink-haired girl, Shinsuke offered her a small smile before following her inside of the cafe.

The scent of freshly brewed coffee was the first thing to hit Shinsuke's nose before the light lemongrass sort of scent that could only come from old books slowly made its way towards him. The place was pretty quiet, as most people were busy reading or snacking on whatever they had ordered from the cafe. "They sure did an amazing job on this place," Shinsuke murmured in agreement with Matsuda-san.

"I quite like the calm atmosphere that it provokes," Shinsuke said as he glanced at Matsuda-san before slowly walking forward to order something from the interestingly writted menu. "Do you know what you would like?" Shinsuke asked as he glanced at the pink-haired girl before looking at the person waiting for their order.

"A small black coffee please," Shinsuke ordered for himself before waiting for his date to decide what she wanted before he'd pay for them.

 

[nikoru]

Osamu felt his insides twisting in a way he didn't like. Why did he feel uncomfortable seeing Atsumu and Emi like that? It first started when he saw them eating ice cream together after their detention, and there it was again. But this time, he's here and he did belong to the conversation, so he really wasn't missing out much. When he saw his twin place a triumphant peck in his friend's forehead, his fist clenched that it almost turned his knuckle white. But once Emi flushed pink as a reaction to the intimacy, he just gritted his teeth.

Wait, was he jealous?

Osamu just sighed as Atsumu still went on with his rambling and just rode along with his silly antics.

After giving Emi time to finish her breakfast and get dressed for their little excursion to the mall, the silver-haired twin was in awe with how Emi put herself up together nicely. He knew he looked really radiant, her bright blue eyes complimenting her outfit. Even the way she prepared her hair or the spritz of perfume she had filled his mind with fantasies—how nice it would feel if he got a bit closer to embrace her and just bask in her essence.

"You look really good, Emi-chan," Osamu admitted, trying to conceal his smitten smile before they left the Nanako residence.

Wait, why is he thinking like this? Emi was his childhood friend.

Then, he saw his twin looking all confident after sneaking into his childhood friend's room, an accessory or two in his hands. "And I look handsome as well, probably like a celebrity hiding from paparazzi!"

Atsumu was still smiling ear-to-ear while wearing sunglasses that was too small for his face since he "borrowed" it from Emi. Instead of looking like a celebrity like he claimed, he looked like a tall stalker with how he wore the sunglasses, the black baseball cap (that was a bit small for his head), and white facemask. Osamu was lucky he didn't join Atsumu in his weird ideas of being spies, instead he just mentally despised himself for entertaining his older twin.

In the train, Emi was seated in between the twins. Atsumu looked beside him and observed his childhood friend, and he was still grinning despite the facemask hiding his mouth. She really looked adorable whether she's in her pajamas or all dressed up like this. He was happy he get to spend time with her just a little bit more before classes started again. However, what he didn't notice is Osamu stealing glances at her too.

When the train arrived to their destination, Atsumu couldn't help but feel nervous once again. At first, taking a picture of his senpais seemed like a fun idea... but imagining how scary they were when he had to make up for the training he missed made him shiver. He loved volleyball since he was a kid, but remembering how Matsuda looked indifferent and almost calculating while his arms got sore felt like he was training with the Devil incarnate.

What if she increases the frequency of his training to the point of his arms falling off?

"Um... maybe this was a bad idea..." Atsumu whispered to Osamu. "We should go back and pretend this never happened."

"No way, you idiot!" Osamu yelled, then realized that they were in a public space so he whispered angrily into his twin. "You dragged us here, so you better not back out!"

---

Momoka had a lot of savings since she only spent on manga and not much on eating out or outings with friends (since she only had one which is Emi), but hearing that Shinsuke was paying for their little snack made her smile in appreciation.

"I'll have an iced Americano, please," she said while looking at her date, her mood improving. "Thank you, Kita-san."

When they sat down to a table for two, the pink-haired girl sighed dreamily as she observed his handsome features. Earlier she couldn't meet him eye-to-eye, but now she's just silently appreciating how he looked. She never thought that their initial date at the festival yesterday would be followed by another date. Plus he looked really nice today, and it seemed like he put a lot of thought in choosing this outfit like her. The only difference was that he looked better than she did.

While waiting for their order to come, she struck a conversation with him instead of just staring at him lovingly the whole time. "Kita-san... t-thank you again, for yesterday and for today. I must admit that I didn't expect I'd make it this far with you, but may I ask how you want our relationship to go once we're back to school? Do you... want us to be lowkey?"

A waitress cut their conversation short with their caffeinated drinks on a serving platter that was patterned on the theme of Autumn Rose. "Order for table number five, one black coffee and one iced Americano," she said while placing their orders on the table.

To help cool down her nerves, she took a sip of the iced drink while waiting for him to reply. She tried to send a discreet message to Emi, but it was riddled with typos.

Emi-chsn we're here at a csfe near the traun statipn. I think ot was going wrll so fsr, but I hope you'd stoll hrlp me find an putfit so I can chsnge.

 

[WinterFever]

Why did she entertain Atsumu's erratic behavior so often? He was like an energizer bunny on steroids when he got into one of his moods and was so much to handle. Often resulting in a headache to form from his high amount of energy and often unknown outcomes. Yet, it was fun to watch. To see what sort of situations Atsumu could get them into and then realize his own consequences. It made Emi amused more than annoyed at his antics because the way that his mind worked was just so, different than her own. Then anyone else's that she's known. He was an enigma that Emi loved to learn about.

Standing in the hallway, Emi fixed her hair to make sure the hairband looked all right in her hair. She didn't want to be embarrassed around her friends or out in public. It didn't matter where they were going, Emi had this weird thing where she always wanted to look her best. No matter what. Rather it was her low self-confidence in herself or for the fact that she was an athletic girl. She always felt like she needed to prove herself for some reason.

Hearing Osamu's kind words brought a small smile to the blond's lips. She raised her gaze in the mirror and smiled at the silver-haired twin. "Thank y-" Emi was saying but stopped as she heart Atsumu but in. Turning her gaze, an annoyed look appeared on Emi's face as she narrowed her gaze at the idiot twin. "You're going to make me go grey before I'm even twenty," Emi mumbled as she walked towards the door and slid her boots on that went with her outfit. Then, she grabbed the bag with the outfit for Momo and led the twins out the door.

----

During the whole train ride, Emi hadn't noticed the glances she received from the twins. Instead, her gaze was focused on her phone which she finally managed to get back from Atsumu. She didn't want to reply and take Momo's attention away from the date, so instead she focused on playing some games. A bag on her lap held the new outfit that she picked out for Momo. Then, once they finally arrived at the station Emi pulled her gaze away from her phone and grabbed the bag before leaving with the twins.

"If you start something, you should see it through to the end Atsumu," Emi told the twin as she looked around. Her bright blue eyes looked for the cafe that Momo said she was at with Kita. Once she spotted it, Emi glanced towards the twins. "Why don't you two go to the right to look for them, and I'll look over here," Emi said as she pointed to the right side. "Whoever finds them first will call the other. What do you guys think?" Emi suggested as she looked between the twins. "I mean, splitting up means we can find them faster, right?"

While Emi spoke to the twins, she could easily see a bit of Momo in the window of a cafe. Slightly hidden by a bush that was outside of where she was sitting.
----

Moving towards a table with the pink-haired girl, Shinsuke sat down across from her and relaxed in his chair. His eyes focused on the shy girl in front of him. Blinking innocently as she seemed to be focusing on him for some reason that he wasn't quite sure of. He knew that they liked each other, but he wasn't quite sure of normal behaviors to show with that.

Upon hearing her question, a small hum escaped from the captain as he slowly crossed his arms over his chest as he thought. "Oh, yes. Thank you." He said as the waitress brought their drinks. Then his dark eyes went back to the girl in front of him.

"Well." Shinsuke started as he glanced down at his drink as he reached out for it. "What do you want to do?" He asked as he grabbed his coffee and raised it to his lips to take a sip. Which, surprised him a bit because it was quite good for a themed cafe. "I'm not sure if anyone would really care if we were open about things," Shinsuke said honestly, not thinking about how he as well as Momo seemed to make the team nervous with their strictness sometimes. "If you want to be low key though, that's fine with me as well."

 

[nikoru]

Atsumu put his thumbs up as Emi instructed them what to do, since it seemed like a plausible idea for them to split up. However, Osamu went beside with his hands in his pockets with a serious look on his face. The younger twin seemed to have something in his mind as he kept quiet while his older twin looked like a kid about to open his gift

"You know, Tsumu... if you're serious about catching Matsuda-senpai and Kita-senpai together, I suggest we should not stay together. As twins, I think we might catch a lot of attention if we are together," he pointed out, knowing that his brother couldn't keep his mouth shut when he got too excited. "Emi and I could act like a couple together so we would blend in with the crowd."

Atsumu looked at his brother incredulously, his eyebrows tight-knit as he heard his younger brother's suggestion. Osamu and Emi acting like a couple? The more he thought about it, the more he felt this inexplicable feeling in his chest, like someone was stabbing him repeatedly in his heart. But after some moment of silence, he nodded upwards to signify that he agreed with splitting up.

"Okay, I'll call when I see them," Atsumu said then walked briskly towards the direction that Emi pointed earlier.

As his older brother left, Osamu faced his childhood friend and gently took her hand into his, feeling her soft hand against his slightly-calloused hand. When he interlaced their fingers together, he felt like he had missed out on a lifetime of not holding her sooner.

"This makes our act more believable," Osamu said warmly, ignoring how loud his heart was beating for her. "Now, where do we go next?"

As soon as he asked that question, he saw the striking pink hair that their manager has. "Nevermind, I think I found them. Over there," he said while darting his eyes over the themed cafe. "Let's go, Emi-chan!"

---

"Kita-san... I think we should try to be a bit discreet during practice. I don't want to upset our kouhais and think that we are incompetent or that I'm having favoritism," Momoka admitted, finding comfort in looking directly at Kita's dark brown eyes. "But... I do want us to act like a couple too. I want us to go on dates, study together... and maybe even make bento for you."

She might seem too direct with the way she stated it, but she isn't the type to beat around the bush especially when discussing important matters like this one. She knew how important volleyball was to him, and she only hoped that he also knew how important this was for her too. But this is their third year of highschool, and they might go pursue different universities or go directly to work. Whatever his response may be, she would consider wholeheartedly as she did take up the courage to confess to him after all these years.

"We can hold hands in public if we're together..." she said bashfully. "But I think it would be best if we stay lowkey while at school."