Hot Chocolate

Suga is determined to have a conversation with Kageyama that is not about volleyball.

Suga selects a table in the back and sits down to wait. He’s a few minutes early, but Kageyama should be here any moment. Kageyama had seemed surprised but pleased when Suga invited him to meet for coffee – or, rather, hot chocolate – and talk, and Kageyama isn’t the type to be late anyway.

Daichi was skeptical when Suga told him about his planned outing with Kageyama today. It isn’t that Daichi doesn’t think that Suga should reach out to Kageyama, but he doesn’t think that Suga will get anywhere outside of a strictly volleyball setting. Kageyama has a bit of a one-track mind. Precedent is largely on Daichi's side.

Suga absolutely agrees that volleyball is one of the only ways – perhaps the only sure way – to get Kageyama to engage initially, but Suga has actually had some success in getting Kageyama to open up to him about other things as long as he seizes Kageyama's attention right off by starting with volleyball talk and then switching the topic of conversation. Today, he is hoping to take that a step further and have a conversation that is not about volleyball at all, even if it’s just a short conversation. Suga usually tries to give Kageyama space, but he wants to push a little today. It will be good for Kageyama – broadening his horizons.

And Suga does have an advantage in getting through to Kageyama that Daichi lacks: Suga is a setter, like Kageyama is, and Daichi is not. Well, Suga isn’t a setter exactly like Kageyama is. Suga doesn’t think that anyone is a setter exactly like Kageyama. But Suga is a setter, and he knows that Kageyama respects him a great deal. Kageyama listens when Suga offers advice and guidance, usually, and Suga is hoping that he can use his position as a role model for Kageyama to help