Chapter Text
Kozume Kenma has a secret. One would not think that he would be a key component in his volleyball team. Everyone thinks that his childhood friend Kuroo, who is the captain of their team, is the star, but those who played with them knew that Kenma’s the real threat. He is the playmaker of the team, and he dictates the pacing for the team. With him, the team moves together as a cohesive unit, as if he is the brain and the rest of the team are his limbs.
It would be surprising for those who knew about this. Kenma is not as athletic as the rest. Far from it, in fact. He is probably the most unathletic player of all. He isn’t outspoken nor has the charisma of a leader. He doesn’t seem to take volleyball seriously and would rather play games on his mobile devices. Why then, would anyone listen to someone like him?
That’s the secret Kenma had been keeping. Hypnosis. If there was something that Kenma figured out in life, it is that hypnosis would allow him to subtly control people’s subconscious, and subsequently get him what he wants out of people. He hasn’t done a full hypnosis session yet, only minor inductions and attempts, enough to hypnotize his team members to act on his will and grant them a much stronger focus.
Kenma first learnt hypnosis when he was trying to figure out people. He did not like interacting with people, but when push comes to shove, he did not understand how to do so. When he figured that this is a problem in his life, he went to research about psychology and ran into the topic of hypnotism. He was fascinated by the papers and the performances of stage hypnotists, how they can make people cluck like a chicken or believe that they are a different person. After some thought, he decided to try out on Kuroo’s volleyball team.
And it worked. He managed to hypnotize them into allowing him to join the team. Then, he managed to convince them that they would have to listen to him if they want to win - which is true because they were very disorganized. Finally, he managed to figure out how to enhance their focus and concentration, to the point where they would move exactly how Kenma wanted them to. Volleyball then because a mind sport to him, where the players are simply chess pieces. That he found fun.
Then a wild piece appeared before him. A tiny crow who approached him during one of their exchanges. The crow was what Kenma felt is the true ace of Karasuno, their rival school. He was a head shorter than Kemna, who was not really tall in the first place, but he has incredible athleticism. He could zoom across the court like the wind and jump to heights that would make taller, stronger players envious. That crow is Shouyou Hinata.
And then their relationship started from that encounter. Kenma grew increasingly curious about Hinata’s flakiness and energy, and Hinata was always trying to bring Kenma out of his shell. They would chat a lot online and it was not long until curiosity developed into friendship, and into something…more.
They say curiosity killed the cat. Kenma thought, tossing onto the other side of his bed. But satisfaction brought it back. He wondered if this thought was a sign of things to come. Today, Hinata is visiting Tokyo for a week, and Kenma had agreed to let him stay over, so that he did not need to spend money on accommodation. His parents were gone on holiday, so basically they have the house all to themselves. Kenma kept thinking about how convenient everything was. Maybe it’s fate?
Kenma grew nervous. He never felt this nervous before. It was strange. He did not understand what he was nervous about. He had people staying over before, namely Kuroo, so why would someone like Hinata be any different? Silly Kenma, he scolded himself. He knew exactly why. Sighing, he tossed to the other side of the bed again, scrolling through his messages in case Hinata contacted him.
Ding dong!
Kenma’s eyes lit up. He walked towards the main door and opened up. His heart jumped at the sight of Hinata standing before him with a backpack and in casuals.
Cute…
He had never seen Hinata in casuals before. Kenma already thought Hinata looked great in his Karasuno team jersey, but him in casuals was in a completely different category.
“Hey, Kenma!!” Hinata chirped and waved his hands loudly. “Thanks for letting me stay over! We are going to have so much fun!”
Kenma gave a slight nod. “I’ll show you the way to my room. It’s a little squeezy but I have prepared a futon already. I hope you don’t mind the space.”
“As long as there’s space to sleep and hang around with you I’m good!” Hinata replied. “Your house is pretty nice! I thought all houses in Tokyo are small!”
“Well, we are kind of at the outskirts of Tokyo,” Kenma explained. “The small ones are probably the apartments in the city.”
They returned to Kenma’s room. Hinata placed down his backpack and stretched about, sore from the long trip from Sendai. “Wow, this is your room! There are so many games and books and stuff! Do you read a lot?”
“I do, but I play more games nowadays.” Kenma said.
“Ehh, I guess you are the studious type huh? I remembered that when I first met you, you were so focused on your game that you didn’t even notice me! I wish I had that kind of concentration. I could barely concentrate to do my homework!” Hinata said.
“Concentrate…” An idea hit Kenma. His heart started to pump, excited about this idea. This is his chance to try what he always wanted to try: a full hypnotic induction on a willing subject. Well, at least, he does not think that Hinata would refuse his suggestion. “I have a special technique to help with that.”
“A special technique to help concentration?!” Hinata’s voice grew excited. “What is it? Is it some kind of medicine?” Then his voice grew low and worried. “Is it dangerous?”
Kenma chuckled, which surprised him. He had not chuckled for a long time but seeing how curious Hinata was amused him. “It’s not. Have you heard of hypnosis?”
“Hyp…nosis?” Hinata cocked his head. “No.”
“It’s simple! It’s basically a relaxation technique, much like meditation, but guided by me,” Kenma tried to explain it as plainly as possible. “All you have to do is to follow my instructions carefully. It might take an hour or so though.”
“I don’t have any plans other than hanging out,” Hinata said. “So you mean after doing this ‘hypnosis’ thing my concentration would get better instantly?”
“It would get better, but you will need to do more sessions for it to get even better,” Kenma said. “Think of it as training.”
“Ohh, I’m good at training! I understand now!” Hinata beamed proudly. “You are a good teacher!”
I didn’t do anything, Kenma thought, but he let that slide. He took a deep breath to calm himself down. It’s happening. I’m going to hypnotize Hinata. “Okay let’s get started. Just lie down on my bed. I don’t mind.”
“You sure?” Hinata asked as he got onto the bed and laid himself down, body facing the ceiling and hands by his sides. “Like this?”
“Yes, just like this.”