Chapter Text
It feels like a spike, driven through his chest, his head, his everywhere.
Dysphoria.
He hates it, he wants it gone, and he wants it gone now, but Hinata Shouyou is shit outta luck. Transphobic parents are not a trump card in getting hormone therapy, really, quite the opposite.
Hinata Shouyou is tired of the horrific slurs that are thrown at him each day by the people who are supposed to be raising him, treating him with respect.
"Tranny"
"Faggot"
"Dyke"
"I can't believe I have to call you my child."
Hinata Shouyou's chest hurts. Maybe it's because of the ace bandages he wraps too tightly around it, or maybe it's just because his heart is in agony. He doesn't care enough to figure it out.
---
Hinata Shouyou knows he's in deep shit when he starts to get butterflies in his chest when he looks at his stupid, dumbass setter, Kageyama fucking Tobio. He doesn't want to be falling for this boy, this perfect, masculine, amazing asshole of a boy.
But at the same time, he oh-so does.
---
The words his parents say are getting to be too much. That, paired with the fact that someone at school Found Out, and now they're bullying him relentlessly for it.
He tries to hide it from the team, he doesn't want them to worry over him, he's not worth it. They don't need to worry about the cuts, about how he's stopped eatin, he doesn't want them to know. Unfortunately, the Karasuno Volleyball team has some very observant people on it.
Suga confronts him almost immediately, after one practice where Hinata was off his game. Shouyou assures his senpai that it's nothing, that he's just tired and that homework kicked his ass last night, paired with a nervous chuckle. Suga lets it slide.
---
Hinata Shouyou knows he's totally fucked when Kageyama Tobio accidentally walks in on him changing, the bandages still around his chest, but his torso otherwise bare. The skin that shows is full of imperfections, freckles and scars decorating it. There are red and white lines covering his shoulders, stomach, hips, all free for the dark haired boy to see.
"Shit." The word slips from Shouyou's lips as Kageyama's eyes flit over him, the taller turning a deep red but not exiting the bathroom. No, instead of leaving, he takes a step forwards, earning a pace backwards from Hinata.
"It's okay." Was the reply. "Let me help."
---
Hinata decides that Kageyama finding out wasn't so bad, after all. He doesn't mind being scolded about using ace bandages even though "those are gonna hurt you someday, Shou, be more careful with yourself." gets a little repetitive.
Now, he thinks, maybe he should have listened.
---
It was a spike like any other that did it. He went up, hit the ball, fitting snugly into his palm. But this time, as his arm shot down to propel the ball, it didn't glide smoothly like he was used to.
No, this time there was a crack.
It reverberated around the room, along with Shouyou's scream of pain, bouncing off of the walls of the gym. Instantly, everyone's attention was on the orange-haired boy lying on the ground and clutching at his chest. Kageyama was the first there, of course, and if Shouyou hadn't been in excruciating pain, he probably would have blushed.
The dark haired boy simply asked, "Rib?" and Hinata nodded. He'd been warned time and time again that wearing ace bandages to bind could snap ribs, but he took it as more of an urban legend than anything.
Now, he really fucking wishes he'd taken them seriously.
His head is foggy and breathing is slow and pained as he faintly hears someone call 911. His body is heavy, the only part he's truly aware of is the warm pain centered around the right side of his torso. He hears clipped voices talking, and then someone the sounds an awful lot like Kageyama Tobio saying "I'm sorry." as hands reach beneath his shirt and unwrap something from his chest, releasing a horrible pressure.
The last thing he's aware of before the shock consumes him is the hand he's holding as he's being carried away.