Chapter Text
The sounds of volleyball hitting the ground echoed throughout the gym at Karasuno High. The boys had just returned from their training camp and game against Nekoma High and were preparing themselves for the spring prelims.
Kiyoko tuned out a lot of Ukai's pointers and tips for the boys when she felt a presence. She glanced by the gym doors and saw a pair of eyes looking in. They quickly disappeared around the corner as hers connected with theirs. Curiosity peaked her interest as she made her way to the doors. Looking outside of the gym, Kiyoko was greeted with the sight of a small girl.
Kiyoko would've mistaken her for a middle schooler if it wasn't for her Karasuno uniform. The girl couldn't have been taller than 150cm. Her [H/C] hair became a curtain over her left eye as she stood nervously in front of the upperclassman. "I'm sorry to intrude, but... Do you know if this school has a colour guard team? O-Or, at the least, somewhere open where I can practise...?" The small student stuttered, obviously nervous. The third year student noticed that the girl was carrying a strange tall bag. She also noticed that the girl did not appear to be of a Japanese descent and that her Japanese was slightly broken.
A foreigner, perhaps?
"I'm not sure if there's a.. Guard at this school, but there's some open space around the club rooms." Kiyoko said, pointing around towards what appeared to be a small complex. The tiny student bid her a thank you before scurrying off. Kiyoko watched her rush off before returning inside the gym to the boys practise.
•|•|•
The boys leave their den covered in sweat from their practise. Stomachs grumbled as Coach Ukai began to lead them to his shop for dinner.
Although the boys were the ones who were working the entire time, Ukai was beyond exhausted. The older man had been staying up late for the past few weeks thinking of strategies and weakness within his boys. He knew that these games meant a lot to them, especially the third year boys. He glanced back and looked at the three as they conversed with each other. He didn't want to let them down, nor the rest of the team. And especially after today's practise game against Nekoma, it was clear that receiving and defence were the biggest weakness within the team.
A loud metal pang rang out and brought Ukai out of his thoughts. He began looking around to find the source of the sound and noticed a peculiar sight. A tiny girl was swinging around a giant flag that has to be at least a foot taller than her. He stopped in his tracks. The boys noticed his pause and looked to where his gaze went and widened at her.
"Hey do you guys recognise her?" Daichi asked quietly to the team. The only answer he got was from the shaking of heads. "She was glancing in the gym earlier and simply asked if there was a colour guard team at this school or open space. Other than that, I hadn't seen her before." Kiyoko said. He nodded, turning his attention back to her and watched her in awe.
What she was doing was something none of the boys had ever seen before. The flag itself was rather plain: a solid salmon pink. Nothing too flashy. However, her skills showed a completely different story. Despite being shorter than the black flag pole, she danced rather gracefully, the flag being tossed in what could only be assumed very difficult and intricate ways. What made the display all the more powerful was the choice of song. The boys didn't understand the words, as it was an English song, but they could tell it was a rather melancholic by the instrumentals and the powerful voice of the artist.
The entire team was awestruck by the performance. Different thoughts were flowing throughout each of their minds, but in the end they all came to the same conclusion; it was beautiful. Everyone was silent, even Noya and Hinata. Daichi, however, was the one most enthralled by her. He was getting a familiar feeling of when he first met Hinata. He didn't and wouldn't have expected someone with such a small stature to be capable of such beautiful and captivating acts. His breath hitched when she made a large 45° toss and slid to the ground, fearing the massive object may hit her. However, she caught it with evident ease and stood back up abruptly. She did a few more small tosses before slamming the flag against the ground in time with the ending note along with a dramatic pose. The boys didn't utter a word, not wanting to break the silence. However, Hinata finally snapped out of his daze. "WOW, THAT WAS AMAZING! HOW DID YOU DO THAT?!" He yelled, startling everyone including her. Her head snapped in their direction, briefly connecting gazes with Daichi before she stood up abruptly. And she ran.
"W-Wait! Come back!" Hinata shrieked before running after her. He didn't get a single step in before Coach Ukai had grabbed the collar of his shirt, preventing him from running after the small teen. "You already scared her, and she left her things behind. We don't need her to be afraid of us, give her some time." Sugawara reasoned with the first year. Hinata grumbled a few incoherent words before nodding. Suga walked over to her spot and took a look at her things. He was surprised to see not only a flag but what appeared to be a wooden rifle and a sword among her large bag. The silver-haired male gingerly put the flag back in the bag and zipped it up.
"Since she's probably not gonna come back and get it, let's leave it in the club room so no one else steals anything. We can look around for her in school tomorrow." He said, making his way to their club room. Daichi and Ukai nodded in agreement. The boys quickly got changed back into their normal school uniforms and locked up the room before heading their way to Ukai's store for their food.
×|×|×
I didn't realise my mistake until I was already back home. I quickly opened and shut the door to my small apartment in a flash before sinking down to the ground, panting in exhaustion. My small ferret ran out from his hiding spot in among the cushions on the love seat and nuzzled himself between my arms. I smiled softly and pet his head.
"Thank you, Zaggles. I know you always know how to make me smile," I cooed to the animal. He licked my hand gingerly before running off to find his sister. I sighed and began to feel myself for my phone. My heart sank to the bottom of my stomach as I remembered that I left it in my guard bag, which I had abandoned during my panic. I smacked myself in the head before beginning to pace back and forth in front of the front door.
Dammit, I swear I grabbed it! I'm so stupid! Should I go back...? No. I don't wanna socialise. That's gross. But... I need my phone, I said I was gonna call him...
I was pulled out of my thoughts when Zaggles waddled up by my side and nudged his head into my leg, seemingly towards the door. I nodded to myself. "You're right, Zag. I need to face my fear. Besides, it'll be a lot more awkward if I wait until tomorrow to get it." I said to him, scratching his head affectionately. I quickly out my bag back on the counter and sprint out the door, leaving Zaggles and wherever his sister was to their own devices.
I make my way back towards the school in a rush, panting. I noticed that no one was left on campus once I got back around where I was earlier on in the evening. My head drooped in despair as I began to make my way back home.
Dammit... I told the idiot I would call, he'll probably be spamming my phone again. Just what I need, my texts spammed with 50+ memes again—
"Umm, are you the one from earlier who was doing the flag thing..?" A timid voice asked me. I froze and looked up to see a scarily tall form towering over me. A scream was about to escape my lips until I notice how soft yet nervous his facial expression was. His hair was long and brunet, tied into a loose bun. His chocolate eyes were gentle and avoided my gaze as he twiddled his fingers in a nervous manner. The screech that was previously threatening to spill from my lips died down as my own face softened at his gentle demeanour.
For such a big guy, most wouldn't expect him to be this shy.
"Yes, that would be me. Would you happen to know where my things are?" I asked the timid giant in a soft, shy voice. His face heated up in embarrassment (although I should be the one embarrassed since it's my things I left) and he finally looked me in the eye, nodding his head. "Y-Yes! I decided to lock in our clubroom since we weren't sure if you were gonna come back and we didn't want it to get stolen or damaged and—" I giggled at his rambling, giving him a small smile afterwards. He scratched his back nervously before turning away.
"Daichi is the one who has the key, we can go get it since you probably want your stuff back." He said. My heart sank slightly and it was my turn to twiddle my fingers shyly. "Do you think.. you could go and get the keys and I hang back a little? I don't.. like meeting a lot of new people at once..." I mumbled, turning my head away from him. He blinked before nodding.
"Of course! You can just wait here, I'll go get the key so that you can get your things, just wait here." He said to me before running off. I nodded and stayed in place. I stood still for about a minute or two until I began to grow a little nervous. I had only moved back to Miyagi a week prior, and I was still very unfamiliar with my surroundings. The terrain hadn't changed too much, but I didn't exactly remember how everything was from 7 years of being gone. My anxiety spiked and I scrambled to catch up and follow the kind stranger.
I trailed behind him at a distance and he turned a corner around to a small convenience shop. I noticed that I had passed it on my way to the school and made a mental note to myself to stock up on energy drinks when I come back. I took the moment to look around the corner and identify the group.
I was astonished to see that someone was even taller than the timid giant. He had glasses and shaggy blond hair and stood next to a shorter but still tall green-tinted male. Among the rest of the group were brunets and raven-haired boys.
Three others stood out more, one being a platinum-haired male. He had soft hazel eyes and a beauty mark underneath his left eye. His hair looked soft to the touch.
I wonder what shampoo and conditioner he uses, his hair looks amazing...
I turned my attention to the two short people of the group. Both of them stood out for their unique hair and for the fact that they were the only ones remotely close to my short stature. The first had fluffy, unruly orange/ginger hair. He had brown eyes and was obviously full of energy. The other was even shorter than him, though not by much. He had brunet hair with a tuft in the front bleached blond. His hair was styled to appear spiky. His eyes were a soft brown and held a somewhat animalistic glint. His eyes suddenly trailed over to my hiding spot around the corner and I squeaked in surprise before running back a little. I heard him shout "wait" but he never came closer. I slowed my breathing and stood in place, waiting for the gentle giant to come back.
A minute passed before I heard the jingling of keys. I turned my attention to the source of the sound and saw the long-haired man walking towards me. I smiled lightly and walked by his side. We walked together in a comfortable silence back to the school.
"Are they your teammates?" I asked in a soft voice. He turned his attention to me, surprised that I had spoken up before making his response. "Yeah, we all play volleyball. We're training for a tournament coming up that'll determine whether we make it to Nationals. Its my third and last year here, so this means a lot to me." He said, a smile finding its way onto his face. My expression softened at the tone of his voice. I could tell instantly that volleyball was something he deeply cared about.
Kinda like me with guard...
"A third year. So here in Japan your third year represents the last year of high school?" I said. He nodded, a little puzzled. "I only recently moved here to Miyagi, last week actually. I'm surprised you can understand me, I hadn't spoken Japanese in years so I've assumed most of my speech is choppy and a little broken." I explained to him. "Anyway, with that said, I guess we're in the same grade, stranger!"
The timid male stopped in his tracks to stare at me in shock. "Wait! Y-You're a third year?? But you're so..." He tried to find a way to say short without sounding like a jerk and I laughed at his politeness.
"Short?" I finished for him. He nodded, scratching the back of his neck awkwardly. "I'm honestly not sure why I'm so short. My family isn't known for being tall or anything, but as far as I know, I'm the shortest person known within my ancestry. Well, most of my ancestry. My brother is on the short side too." I said, looking up at the night sky. He gave a curt nod in understanding as we neared the buildings I had been practising in front of earlier today.
"By the way.. What's your name, kind stranger?" I asked him, turning on my heel to face his direction.
"I'm Asahi. Azumane Asahi." He said, smiling down at me. I held out my hand, a small smile on my face as I look up into his eyes. "I'm Udai [Y/N]. It's a pleasure to be your acquaintance." He took my hand and my eyes widened at the size difference between our palms. Geez Louis, he could fold his fingers over mine. My cheeks turned pink after I realised that I had been holding his hand for a minute and I release, turning away in embarrassment. He turned away too, not letting me see his red cheeks either. I looked up to see we had arrived back at the small complex. He went up a stairway and to the third door. He fumbled with the keys before unlocking their club room and letting me inside.
"Sorry if it's a bit messy here, other people normally don't go in the club room unless they're part of the team.." He said nervously. However, I didn't listen to a word, and made a straight beeline for my bag. I unzipped it to check if my flag, rifle, and sabre were all in place and undamaged. I grabbed my phone out of the other pocket and tucked it in with my skirt. I zipped the bag shut and stood up, the top-heavy object slung over my shoulder. I smiled brightly at Azumane and bowed as best as I could.
"Thank you so much, for keeping my things safe, Azumane!" I exclaimed happily. He nodded his head at me in acknowledgement and we leave promptly, with him locking the door safely away. As we began to head off of campus, I locked eyes with him.
"Well, I'll see you in school tomorrow, Azumane." I said, heading off in the direction where I live. He said a soft "see you later" and we both go our separate ways. I fished my phone back out and opened the messenger app. Memes and 4 missed calls were showing on the screen from a specific number. I sweatdropped and quickly opened the messages. I began typing back a response before putting the device back in my pocket.
That's A Little Gay Bro XXX-XXX-XXXX
Hey man, I left my phone
in my bag earlier today, sorry!
I'll call back tomorrow, ight?
[Delivered at 9:43pm.]
He'll understand. He'll answer tomorrow morning at his time, he pulls all-nighters all the time.
When I arrived back at my small apartment and grabbed the door, I noticed that it opened without me inserting the key. "Whoops, guess I didn't lock it..." I said to myself as I close it and lock it this time. As I sat my bag down beside the door, I noticed two expectant animal faces staring back at me.
"Alright you two, I'll feed you. Geez, Zaggles, you were the one who made me think I should go back to get my things." I grumbled, grabbing their food dishes. After feeding them, the rest of the night passed by rather quickly and soon enough, I was getting ready to sleep for the night. Ziggles and Zaggles were safe and sound asleep in their shared cage and I had finished my quick shower. As I turned off the light and drift away to dreamland, more than a dozen faces flash across my mind while the gentle giant lingered a little longer.