--New Angle-- Sugawara x Fem!Injured!Reader

--New Angle-- Sugawara x Fem!Injured!Tennis Player!Reader



As you neared the gymnasium of the school, you could hear the voices of the boys resonating off the walls. There was also the echo of the ball being thrown back and forth, followed by the squeaking of shoes.

You walked inside the gymnasium, but paused for a moment. Something you enjoy watching is the Karasuno volleyball team practicing. Seeing them training rigorously and working together put a smile on your face. It would be a lie saying that was the only reason you loved the boys volleyball team.

"Nice receive Nishinoya!"

You turned to the source of the voice, who was none other than your boyfriend, Koshi Sugawara.

The silver-haired boy managed to capture your heart three years ago. He was kind, caring, and willing to be there for you. He was also, in your eyes, the cutest boy you had ever set your eyes on. What else could a girl ask for? He was certainly enough for you.

Another thing you couldn't help but admire was his determination and willingness to play hard. The face he made when he concentrated was down right adorable. His brows always furrowed downwards and he would always look forward. He was one of the best setters you have set your eyes upon. Sugawara would always work with anyone since he was so trustworthy. There was so much you learned about him from watching him play.

Ever since the two of you started dating, when the two of you were first years long ago, you had been going to each other’s sport events. The two of you always made sure you would support each other with the sport the other loved.

Once upon a time, Suga would help you with practice for your tennis matches, but that wouldn't happen anymore. A few weeks ago, you had sustained an injury, with ruined your tennis career. Due to your irresponsibility, you could no longer bend your right knee to run or jump. Your injury was a lifelong one.

You looked down at the brace on your right knee. The doctor had ordered you to wear that for a couple of months to keep it from bending too much. The thing was, looking at it angered you. The damn thing was a reminder of why your dreams were shattered.

"[First]."

A soft voice had uttered your name, breaking you away from your thoughts.

You turned to see Kiyoko Shimizu, the manager of the volleyball team. It was because of her that you came to these practices. She had always been a friend of yours, and one time you accompanied her to this very gym, and that's how you were introduced to Sugawara.

"Hey Kiyoko!" You offered a faint smile.

"Practice is almost over," she said.

"So soon? Shouldn't it last longer?" You wondered.

"Normally it would, but," she turned to look at the boys, who were now practicing receiving. "...some exams are coming up and the captain doesn't want any of his teammates failing."

"Oh, that's right!" You facepalmed, realizing you forgot about the coming exams. “I've been in and out of school because of doctor appointments since I..."

You said no more and just stared at the knee brace with frustration. All you wanted to do was take the stupid thing off and play tennis again. If you hadn't been so reckless before, you wouldn't feel anger for yourself.

The small hand of the black-haired beauty patted your shoulder. She knew you felt so much frustration right now, but she didn't know what would be the right thing to say at the moment. All she could offer was silent reassurance.

Coach Ukai blew the whistle signaling the end of practice. The boys ceased their practice. Of course, there was Hinata who wanted one more toss before they had to go, so Kageyama did so.

Sugawara took a gulp from his water bottle, and wiped the sweat off himself with a towel. He then turned to look for you. The first thing he noticed was the troubled expression on your face. Right then and there he wanted to run up to you and hug you tightly, but he knew Daichi wouldn't appreciate that.

The captain of Karasuno gathered his team for stretches to end their practice. Shimizu knew she had her duties to attend to, so she gave you one last glance. You gave a small smile, attempting to reassure her. She muttered a "good-bye" and ran off.

Daichi gave the boys one last pep talk, and told them to start cleaning up. He stopped Sugawara though.

"Hey, Suga, you go ahead and change," he said.

"Are you sure? I will feel guilty if I don't help out with cleaning," he stated.

Daichi sighed heavily. "And you'll feel guilty if you don't go right now. I noticed how off your tosses were today. You’re worried about her, so you should go."

Sugawara laughed sheepishly. "It was noticeable huh?"

Daichi gave his friend a pat on the shoulder and a smile. "Go, Asahi can do your share of the chores."

The brunet, who happened to walk by then at the time, stopped in shock.

Daichi chuckled to himself, and turned to the ace, who he was now lecturing.

"Sorry Asahi," mouthed Sugawara before bowing and running off to get changed.

You stood still, watching the boys clean up. It looked fun to be with everyone as a team. You wanted that feeling again. Slowly, you would forget what it's like to accomplish things as a team. Everything was not as fun anymore just because you had been reckless.

You felt a light tap on your shoulder. "Yo!"

You turned to see the bright, smiling face of your boyfriend, Sugawara.

"Koushi?" You gave him a concerned look. "Aren't you supposed to be helping?"

"It will be fine," he gave his team one last wave. “C'mon, let's go [First]."

Sugawara took your hand into his, and lead you out the gym. The two of you hand-in-hand began the journey back home.

At first, everything was quiet. Neither he nor you would utter a word. Sugawara knew you felt disappointed in yourself at the moment; things have not been going the way you had expected it to. Right now he knew all you needed was someone to talk to. If you weren't going to initiate the conversation, he was.

"[First]," he clutched your hand tighter and glanced at you. "tell me, what did the doctor say yesterday?"

You sighed heavily. You knew Sugawara was going to bring that up eventually. You wanted to avoid the topic, but knew he was persistent.

"It's all over Koushi...," you murmur.

"Tell me, what is?" he asks.

"My future." You huff under your breath, then look up to him. "Everything I had tried so hard for is gone. All the praise. All of the scholarships. All of the hope I had... I'll never get it back..."

Sugawara stayed silent for a while. He pondered for a moment, then led you to a park. He noticed an isolated bench, seating himself on it. His brown orbs glanced at you, then the spot beside him, inviting you to sit down. You did so.

Sugawara looked at you once again. “How do you know it's all over? You need to give it a shot."

"Koushi, there's no hope," you growled, getting frustrated again. "The doctor already told me that I have patella tendonitis, and it's far too late to do anything about it."

There was silence between the two of you. The only sounds that were being heard were the cheerful shrieks of the kids running on the playground.

"I should have listened to the doctor earlier...," you began. "Remember how last year I wore a brace for about three days?"

Sugawara nodded, urging you to go on. He knew talking about it would help him understand how you feel.

You sighed. "Well, the reason I only wore it for three days was because I didn’t want to fall behind the others on the team. I am - well, was - the star of the team. People had a lot of expectations for me."

With another sigh, you leaned back and gazed darkly at your knee brace. “All of this happened because I overworked myself and didn't listen to the doctor's warnings."

You turned to Sugawara and asked, "Remember my last match?"

"Yes, I do."  Sugawara took your hand to grasp it lovingly.

“Well, the pain I felt in my knee started way before that." You laugh, trying to lighten the mood. “I thought if I pretended the pain wasn't there, it would go away..."

You gazed up to the sky and thought back on your match from weeks ago.

. . .

. . . . .

You could still remember the match. You stood on the court, and wiped the sweat from your brow. Your partner turned to you, giving you a thumb's up, to urge you to keep doing your best. You smiled and nodded.

It was now the opposing team's turn to serve the ball. You got into position, gripping the racket tightly in your hands.

Attentively, you watched the person whose turn it was to serve, trying to read their movements. Would they serve to the left or the right?

The enemy bounced the ball, as if taunting you. You had to admit, it annoyed you, but you knew you would be able to get the serve.

Ready to move at a moment's notice, you shifted the weight from your left leg to your right. A sharp pain spread throughout your knee. You winced in pain, biting your bottom lip. Glancing down, you noticed your knee didn't seem the way it usually was. It was red. The pain was throbbing sharply. You cursed under your breath.

You heard a racket hitting a tennis ball, snapping your head up, you to look upwards. The ball flew across the net and past your partner. It was coming right at you.

You took a step with your left leg, and everything was fine. Then, another step was taken with your right foot. You yelped in pain. You had put too much pressure on your knee. Even though you should have been worrying about your knee, you wanted to keep going. There were scouts watching you. This was your last year in high school, so you had to get those scholarships no matter what.

...It was not going to be possible though.

Your knee gave in, causing you to fall forward. Face meet ground. The impact caused your tennis racket the leave your hand and skid across the court. You saw the tennis ball bounce in front of you, then roll far from you.

The crowd went silent in an instant. Your partner dashed to your side, throwing countless worries at you.

You attempted to stand, but the intense pain wouldn't allow it. Your hands grasped your knee, and you hissed in pain. You rolled to your back.

The tennis coach and school nurse ran to your side, noticing your reddened knee. The nurse took a quick glance at your knee and her face darkened.

"This isn't good..."  The nurse commented. “There's not much I can do here, she needs to be taken to a hospital!"

"Someone call an ambulance, quick!" The coach hollered.

“I'll be fine!" You spoke out. “Just let me rest and-"

"[Last Name]... you can't play anymore," your coach stated.

Those words struck you. Your own coach, the one who had been supporting you the most, is taking away your privilege to play?

The crowd was buzzing with conversation. Everyone knew you were an excellent tennis player. There was no doubt you would continue playing tennis during college, or so they thought. Now, you were injured. You couldn't possibly play tennis if you couldn't run after the ball. It was all over for you...

"Take her to the benches," the coach ordered.

You directed a pleading look to your coach. The one place you didn't want to be at was the bench. You wanted to be on the court. You wanted to play.

Lips quivering in desperation, you couldn't think of any protests to direct towards your coach. You were a fool, but not foolish enough to try to convince anyone to let you play one more time. You knew it was over.

Your limp body was picked up and carried to the bench. Whoever had picked you up propped your injured leg on the bench. The nurse put an ice pack on your knee, to dull the pain. Your teammate handed you a towel. You abruptly took it and placed it on top of your head.

It was all over...

Your hands tighten into fists. Slamming your fist on the bench you give an angry grunt and let the tears cascade down.

. . . . .

. . .


"It's really frustrating knowing I lost a lot because of my stupid knee. Well, guess I'm the stupid one for not taking care of myself," you laugh sadly.

The grin you forced on your face, quickly turns into a frown. “All of those scouts don't pay any attention to me anymore. Everyone is focused on another girl who never got any attention weeks ago." You sniffle. “I was the one who wanted to be a professional tennis player..."

You bury your face into your hands. Not caring anymore, you let yourself cry. “I worked my ass off every day so I could be a professional! I got so many trophies and awards, and now they mean nothing! This fucking hurts!!"

A pair of arms enveloped themselves around you. Sugawara embraces you tightly, pulling you towards him. You wrap your own arms around him, and cry into his chest.

. . .

The sky was a variant of orange and red hues. The rays from the setting sun would peak from the Earth's edge. The day was nearing it's end, so both Sugawara and you decided it was time to head home. Being the gentleman he is, he offered to take you home, while his hand was still intertwined with yours.

You were wiping the last of your tears from your cheeks. Sugawara saw this as an opportunity to say what was on his mind.

"[First], I think you're looking at everything the wrong way." He gazed down at you.

"Hmm? How so?" You ask.

Sugawara looks up towards the sky, brows furrowed in thought. He knew you were going through tough times, so he didn't want to make things worse.

"Look at things differently," he told you. "Rather than being pessimistic about this, and feel like you have to give up everything, know that there are still plenty of opportunities out there for you continue doing what you love."

"But… I want to play tennis," you mutter.

"...And I want to play volleyball," Sugawara mumbles.

You gaze up to him. It had escaped your mind the fact that Sugawara isn't a regular in the volleyball team anymore. A supposed genius first-year joined the Karasuno volleyball team, taking Sugawara's spot.

He has a longing gaze in his eyes. In his mind were memories of playing with his teammates. He remembered all of the wins and losses. He remembered every set he passed to Asahi or Tanaka. All of those memories were precious to him. Now, it's his final year in high school, which would be the last opportunity to play with his friends.

You opened your mouth, to offer reassuring words and an apology to the silver-haired male, but he spoke before you.

"I'm sorry [First], I spoke without thinking." Sugawara laughed sheepishly. "Don't worry about me."

"Koushi... But-"

Sugawara spoke before you said any more. "The only important thing right now is you. I want to see you smile again."

Those words were enough to make a small smile form on your lips. Sugawara smiled brightly back.

"Oh!" Sugawara glanced upwards. "I hadn't realized we were near your home!"

He was right. A few steps ahead was your home. Sugawara led you to the front door and offered a smile.

You had so much more you wanted to tell him. You didn't want to seem selfish and not assist him with his frustrations like he was doing for you, but it was time for you to go home.

"I'll come by tomorrow to pick you up, okay?" He states.

You were about to give him a nod of approval, but a thought occurred to you. "Don't you have morning practice?"

"Skipping one morning practice won't hurt!" The boy smiles, his index finger near his lips as if telling you to keep this a secret.

You laugh. "You're gonna have to deal with Sawamura on your own y'know!"

"Don't worry about me," he murmurs and leans forward, giving you a light peck on the lips.

You kiss back and turn around to head into your house. Stating your goodbyes, you shut the door.

Then reality hit you. Your house was quiet, dark. Sugawara's bright smile was not with you. There wasn't any around to tell you everything will be alright. No hugs. No cute gestures. No safety. Just loneliness...

All around your house were reminders of what you had failed to keep up with. Trophies and medals decorated the walls of your room. Ribbons of your elementary days were neatly aligned on the walls as well. Several photos were neatly placed on your desk. It was as if everything were taunting you.

You hated this.

Letting out a cry of despair, you threw every single prize to the floor. Heavy tears fell from your cheeks. Every single medal and trophy was thrown to the floor. The ribbons and photos ended up in shreds.

Why was everything taunting you?

. . .

Sugawara gave a light tap to the front door of your home. A few seconds later, he was greeted by your mother, who happily let him in.

"Suga, [First] is in her room finishing up. You can go get her if you'd like," your mother said.

"Thank you." Sugawara give his gentle smile. "If you'll excuse me then."

Sugawara was about to be on his way, but your mother spoke one more time. "Oh, um, Suga!"

"Yes?" The male turned towards your mother again.

"I'm sure you're aware of my daughter's problem... Please help her," she begs.

Sugawara gives a confident nod. "Don't worry, I will."

Sugawara advances towards your bedroom, ready to go to school. Your door is open, but he knocks before he peeks inside. He sees you, standing in front of a mirror, making the final touches to your hair.

You see Sugawara from your mirror and smile. "I'm almost ready Koushi!"

"Okay, I'll wait," he says.

Sugawara shrugs his messenger bag from his shoulders. He then proceeds to plop down on your bed, laying down and closing his eyes.

"Don't go to sleep!" You say, softly throwing a pillow at him.

"I won't, don't worry!" he laughs.

Sugawara opens his eyes again, finally taking note of the barren walls. He always remembered there being several awards from tennis of yours, but now they are gone... Sugawara realized why your mother had asked for his help.

You interrupted his train of thought by taking his hand, and pulling him up.

“We have to go to school Koushi!" You laugh. "Just because you skipped morning practice doesn't mean you have to be lazy!"

He knows that smile of yours is fake.

. . .

The school day had ended, and you had no idea what to do anymore. Your afternoons were free from now on, which was a reminder of your injury. It was time to spend a lonely afternoon since Sugawara had afternoon practice to make up for him skipping the morning one.

You sighed heavily and slowly placed your books into your schoolbag. Feeling heavy with sadness, you dragged your feet out to the hall.

Someone's steps were echoing behind yours, and seemed to be advancing towards you rather quickly.

"[First]!" A voice you recognize well by now calls out to you.

You turn around seeing a panting Sugawara stopping before you.

"Koushi!"

Sugawara is silent for a while, catching his breath. He had on his club attire, ready for practice. He gives a gentle smile before talking.

"Come with me [First]." he takes your hand and starts pulling you along.

You follow, although you were confused. "Where?"

The silver-haired male continues walking, but gives you one glance. "You're coming to practice with me."

"Koushi... I don't think that's a good idea...," you began. "I'll just be in the way."

Sugawara gives you smile. "Just trust me on this."

. . .

You now found yourself sitting next to Shimizu, who was taking notes of the boys' play. At first you were reluctant to be here, but that soon faded. You started cheering them on when they performed great serves or flawless receives. Your voice echoed throughout the gymnasium, giving words of enthusiasm.

Sugawara found himself smiling, seeing you so joyful. Of course, he wasn't going to let the rest of the boys get your attention. He made sure to stand out for once. Pretty soon, your words of encouragement were aimed to him. Sugawara found himself smiling sheepishly at the praise.

At the present moment, the boys were playing a mock game against each other, just for fun. Now, Sugawara had pulled a perfect set for Narita, who successfully spiked it.

"Good job Koushi and Narita!" You yelled exasperatedly.

Sugawara gave you a thumbs-up and continued to focus on the game.

"Hey, Kiyoko." You got the attention from the female next to you.

She looked away from the game for a moment to focus her attention on you. "Yes [First]?"

"Koushi, he always plays hard doesn't he?"

Shimizu nods and gives you a small smile.

"He doesn't play many games, does he?" You ask.

"No, he doesn't. He will occasionally go into games though," Shimizu explains.

"Which isn't a lot of the time...," you finish for her.

You smiled to yourself. It was your boyfriend’s final year to be in the volleyball team. He had already told you before, he probably wasn't going to be in a professional team since he wished to excel in his studies. Knowing that, Sugawara was still working hard. He just wants to be close to the sport he loves, even though he can’t play.

"You wanted me to realize this, didn't you Koushi?" You mumbled yourself.

. . .

Practice was over, so Sugawara and you said your goodbyes to the others. The boys encouraged to come by again sometime, which you agreed to.

Now, your fingers were intertwined with his, and the two of you enjoyed the comfort of the sunset.

You decided to speak your thoughts. "You had a reason for wanting me to go watch you practice, right?"

"I was cool, wasn't I?" Sugawara gave a bright smile. "What did you think of that last play with Asahi?"

You playfully hit his arm and laughed. "Koushi! I'm being serious!"

Sugawara chuckled. “You saw right through me, huh?"

"I just knew you were up to something. I know you Koushi." You gave his hand a tight squeeze.

You were silent for a while. The grasp around his hand was gone. Instead your arms were around his body. Your head was buried into his chest. “Thank you," you mumble.

The silver-haired teen smiled down at you, and wrapped his own arms around you. He held you tightly against him. "See? You just had to look and think about things in a different way."

You nodded. "I'll continue to work hard for the rest of the year, doing what I love."

Sugawara brushed locks of hair away from your face, his eyes urging you to explain.

You took a few steps back, and continued to walk, talking as you do. "I'll talk to the coach about being a manager for the tennis team. I still want to be around to give tips and help the underclassmen." You looked at Sugawara, and gave a determined smirk. “I'm not quitting tennis anytime soon!"

Sugawara ruffled your hair affectionately. "Being around for the underclassmen is just as fun. Trust me!"

“Studying sports medicine doesn’t sound too bad either,” you think outloud. “Maybe I can assure what happened to me, won’t happen to someone else.”

You stop walking, and turn to your boyfriend.

A triumphant smile decorated your features. "I wouldn't know what to do without you Koushi." You gave him a gentle peck on the lips.

"I'll help anytime." He kisses you back.