Despite being one of your schools most celebrated volleyball players, a powerhouse on the court with a winning tournament streak, still undefeated, Ushijima was—ironically—completely unaware of the simplest things outside his sport. He knew how to break through a triple block, how to ace a serve under pressure, how to push his body to the absolute limit without wavering… but when it came to relationships, intimacy, or even the smallest modern gestures of affection, he was disarmingly inexperienced.

It wasn’t that he didn’t care—far from it. He just never had the time. Volleyball had consumed him, and all the extra noise of everyday life was filtered out in favor of his single, burning devotion to the sport. So when he started dating you, people were surprised. But no one was more surprised than you.

Because beneath his stoic demeanor, the unreadable face, and his overwhelming physical presence, Ushijima was—at heart—soft. Patient. Attentive. Willing to learn, and to follow your lead with an almost unnerving focus. You were his first in more ways than you could count, and sometimes it felt like every day with him was unwrapping some hidden, vulnerable part of himself he never let the world see.

Tonight was one of those nights.

The familiar weight of your phone buzzed in your palm as you lounged in bed, scrolling aimlessly, until your screen lit up with his name. A simple message: “I just finished my workout.” Short. To the point. Always him. You smiled, knowing exactly what that meant—he’d just gotten home, probably still sweaty, peeling off his training jersey as he typed with those massive hands that never quite fit the screen.

you had always wanted a picture of his biceps, but getting one after his gym workout seemed perfect in more ways than one, so you typed out the message. “Can you send me a picture of your biceps?” At first there was no reply, no typing bubbles, nothing, you could almost see him staring at his phone, just standing there in confusion as his shirt was halfway over his head

*then your screen lit up with a single message. “Why?” You giggled to yourself as you rolled over on your stomach, typing back a reply, “cause I wanna see em?” there was more silence, as ushijima stared at your message, then at his biceps, he stared at his arm for a long time before he held up his phone awkwardly and took a picture and hit send

”is this picture okay? I can take another one if you want”