one step further // haikyuu x OC

mystery box in the closet // 34

"Toshiko?"

"D-dad..! You answered!"

.

.

.

"Ah? Of course I answered, you called me after all..."

"Ah, right..." My voice was involuntarily tight from holding back tears. I hoped he hadn't noticed. I tried talking more in hopes to relax my voice box and suppress any chances of crying. "Um... did I interrupt your work?"

"Hm? Not at all, I happened to be taking a break. But your call was unexpected, I would've stepped out to answer anyway."

I was slightly shocked by his remark, but slowly I could feel myself calming down. "Ah- I see... Hey Dad? Just out of curiosity, do you know if something is wrong with Angie?" I could hear him sputter at the other end.

"Eh- Angela? Why do you ask?"

"She's been acting strange... and we never talk anymore." The phone crackled, making it sound like he was shifting in his seat before he cleared his throat.

"Is that so..? Well now that you mention it, we did have a brief chat recently. It wasn't about anything important though... She's- uh- she's been busy."

"Ah, I see..." Not wanting to prod him further I reluctantly let the Angie situation go.

In the end, she's just become another absent parent. I mean I should be used to that shit by now shouldn't I? My repetitive and negative thoughts nearly made me forget that I was on the phone, Dad was now asking about school to avoid the subject. I truthfully told him that my grades were still good.

"Ah, I also got a call about medical bills from some recent visits. Were you hurt?" Crap, I thought they would just send bills in the mail.

"Oh! Uh- no not really." I downplayed my injury out of fear of being pulled from club. "Just a slight sprain in my ankle. It's all healed now."

"Ah, well that's a relief..." He was silent for several moments, it seemed like he was gathering his thoughts and figuring out what to say next. "Is... your club going well?"

Eh...? Did he just ask about my volleyball club? My dad was acting strange too! Although, I almost couldn't believe to admit it was strange in a nicer way. My heart clenched.

"Volleyball club is good!" I lied. "We recently finished up a tournament. And we're preparing for the Spring Preliminaries.." My heart began to race with excitement. This was the first time he really listened when I talked about volleyball. I even managed to tell him some stories about practicing with the boys club. He sighed once I stopped and felt satisfied with how much I opened up. More silent moments passed, it made me feel inclined to end the call, but he spoke once again.

"Ko- Ah-!" He abruptly cleared his throat and started over. "...Toshiko. I'm sorry I'm not home. You - amongst other things - have been weighing my mind lately. This business expansion came at a bad time. I swear I'll take care of business quickly and be home as soon as possible. There's... There's stuff I want to talk to you about, and I hate to keep you alone for much longer." My breath caught in my throat.