Shortness of Breath

"Hinata?"

"... it's okay. You feel that?"

His palm shakes as warmth spreads through it, and sure enough, a solid thump beats against his hand.

"That's my heartbeat, alright? Just focus on that."

The young man can only nod frantically, trying his best to calm down his erratic breathing. Tremors wrack his chest as too much and too little air seems to make it into his lungs at the same time. As if his body had completely forgotten how to function.

"You'll be okay..."

Cool air fills his lungs a moment later and he tries his best to force down the tears suddenly threatening to spill. The chilly ether almost instantly seems to relax his throat, allowing him to take steadier breaths.

He's aware that his choked, panicked breathing pattern was now slowing down. And, with awareness, comes clarity too.

He opens his eyes, instantly aware of two very concerned looking forms on his sides. The duckhaired captain of Nekoma, and the quiet setter, Kenma. Behind them, he can see the rest of Nekoma sitting or standing around him in a wide berth, each looking worried and anxious.

He groans and shuts his eyes again. The humiliation of his current predicament dawns on him and he's left with a sour taste in his mouth.

"Hey, Hinata," Kenma calls again, his voice soft and soothing, quieter than usual.

"H-eyh-" the squeak comes as a reply. The rush of wind hurts his throat, but Hinata just shakes his head in an attempt to get rid of the haze of pain, "Tn...s..."

"No problem," the captain of Nekoma answers, his voice still as authoritarian and confident as always.

"Yo, Yaku, did you find them yet?" Kuroo whispers, trying to keep the area around the young sunshine child as calm as possible.

"OH! Yea, I found their libero, he said he'll find the others," Lev answers all too eagerly.

"Would you SHUT UP, the ace's still sick, DUMBASS!!" Yaku counters angrily and glares at the tall Russian, "The captain asked me!"

The assault of noise makes Hinata flinch, causing the icepack to fall from his chest.

The heat that follows sears his lungs and he starts coughing once more, clutching the fabric of his shirt as his lungs struggle to lose their erratic rhythm again.

"Let it out," comes the reassuring voice of Kuroo once more, followed by his hand working circles on his back, "If you die, that setter of yours will skin me alive."

"He is scary enough," Kenma adds non-chalantly, smiling in relief when their jibes makes Hinata crack a smile too.

"He-hs- not -at bad..." the broken reply comes, tinged with humour and fatigue.

"Not that bad?" Yaku quips sarcastically with a snort, earning a warning shoulder shove from their vice-captian, Kai.

Without a word, Kenma lifts up the icepack to Hinata's chest with one hand and supports his position with an arm to his back.

One more the cold calms down the young teen, seeping the tension out of the strained muscles and relieving the crushing pain that keeps him from breathing.

"Oi! Hinata!! OI!" the frantic yell echoes through the hall.

The entire team looks over and a very stressed-out King of the Court deadsprints past all of them and skids to Hinata's side, "WHAT HAPPENED?!"

"We went to the vending machines for some juice after the match," Kenma says and frowns deeply, "And he just... I don't know why..."

Kageyama slips the inhaler into the hands of the orange-haired boy, fingertips trembling and a deep line of worry still present on his usual calm features.

"... Did you just...do you carry that thing around with you all the time?" Inouka asks in confusion.

"Yes." Kageyama snaps back, taking the small inhaler back from Hinata once he's done. He rests his hand on Hinata's back, acutely aware of the heat rising from his form. It was definitely just a medium one, not as bad as the last, but not something to be brushed off either.

For a few moments they all wait for the young man to finally calm down, for his breathing to settle and his suppressed coughs to die down.

When Hinata finally looks up, he smiles tiredly, "Sorr.. 'bout...tha..." his strained voice states. He rolls over to his hands and knees, struggling to get up. His legs keep shaking and he has to use his arm to lift his leg up enough to plant the sole of his sneaker on the ground.

Kenma and Kageyama wordlessly slip under Hinata's arms and pull him to standing along with them.

"We can carry him to the bus for you?" Kuroo says, his concerned expression never fading from his face, "It's quite a walk."

"No, thank you... " Kageyama quickly interjects and bows deeply towards Nekoma's captain, "Thank you for taking such good care of him, but I'll take him."

"We won't drop him," Yamamoto quips and grins, "That baldie from your squad will definitely kill us all in our sleep then, not to mention what your captain might do."

Kageyama, who'd managed to pull Hinata unto his back into a piggyback position, stands up and shakes his head, "I know."

The team sighs in collective unison at the stubbornness of the King. But, they also realize that that was why those two worked so well together.

"I'm... trd..." Hinata wheezes and dives his head into his shirt before a short burst of coughs follow.

"I know you're tired," Kageyama snaps angrily, regretting it instantly afterwards, "I'll get us there soon... just... try to rest, okay?"

The pair head-off towards Karasuno's bus, only to find the Nekoma team circling them and acting like a group of bodyguards for the pair.

"Kuroo-san?" Kageyama says and tightens his grip on Hinata's legs when he feels the latter's grip fading from fatigue. From the slowed breathing, Tobio could tell that Shōyō was already asleep – and content, as can be deducted from the mutters of pork buns in his sleep. The setter clears his throat and focuses in front of him once more as they walk, "This really isn't necessary..."

"What? We're just walking to our bus," Kuroo answers with a non-chalant shrug.

Coincidentially, Kageyama knows for a fact that Nekoma's bus was on the other side of the building, as Hinata had raced with him to there in order to catch up to Kenma before the match.

The crowds in the hallway dissipate to the sides as Lev and Yamamoto takes the lead in creating a path for them. Kai and Yaku were calmly defending the sides, apologizing for the supporters and fans as they make their way through the crowd- thanking them when they've finally passed through.

It didn't take half as long to work his way through the crowd this time, Kageyama realizes with a surge of appreciation when they finally make it outside towards the Karasuno bus.

The rest of the team weren't back yet, but at least Coach Ukai was standing at the doors, ready for Hinata and Kageyama to arrive. From the look on his face, obviously Nishinoya had told him what had happened.

"Well then, later!" Kuroo exclaims, waving casually as the team finally leaves their post as protectors to the Freak Quick duo.

"Kuroo-senpai!" Kageyama calls after him, slowly bowing in order to keep Hinata balanced, "Thank you for everything."

"We didn't do anything," Kuroo answers with a grin.

"Please take care of him," Kenma says, his sharp eyes trained upon Kageyama's.

"I will."