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Her muscles ached but it was a good type of ache as she dived again and again as her teammate kept hitting her shots from the other side of the court. It was welcomed because it told Yun Jin that she was doing well. The ball was launched her way again.
Left, right, center.
Center, left, right.
There was no pattern to where the ball would end in the court and Yun Jin had to rely on her split second decisions after her teammate hit the ball.
They had been doing this since two hours ago after their official practice session ended.
"Again!" Yun Jin called enthusiastically as she went once again in the position to receive a serve. Her breathing was ragged as she tried to catch her breath.
However the other woman hesitated, holding the ball between her hands.
"Come on Shenhe!” She encouraged after a breath. “I'm ready."
But Shenhe remained still and Yun Jin had no choice but to let out a sigh before standing back up, their after-practice ending.
Yun Jin languidly stretched as if trying to reach for the ceiling. It felt so good to stretch that perhaps she may have been pushing it being in a bent position for too long.
Shenhe had started to make her way toward the side of the court where Yun Jin was in, ducking low as she passed the net. She would have teased her if she did not have other things in mind.
“Is something the matter?” Asked Shenhe quietly after a moment and Yun Jin blinked at the intensity which her opal eyes gave her.
Sometimes she forgot how compelling it was.
“No.”
Yun Jin replied too fast and she could see that Shenhe’s eyebrows furrowed ever so slightly. Silence reigned as they both stared at each other.
Many felt intimidated being right next to Shenhe considering her tall stature. She was easily a foot taller than Yun Jin and even then, Yun Jin had never felt that emotion and wondered why the others felt it.
Yun Jin could no longer hold her gaze as she looked away, anywhere that was not the girl in front of her.
"It was not your fault."
The raven-haired girl tried to scoff at it, but it was a weak attempt. Yun Jin had tried to forget about it, place it in a box and store it at the farthest place of her mind, but her personality did not let it be.
Yun Jin was a perfectionist, and any mistake in the court was huge.
***
They were tied against the city of wind’s team and neither side was giving an inch.
“Remember girls, they like to be swift and to the point. We can’t let them get more scores on our side.” Says Beidou, her eyes fierce at the challenge as she meets everyone’s eyes. "We have to attack first and get the match!"
“Right!” They all in unison, as they’re huddled after a time-out called by the Mondstadt’s team after Liyue had scored and making their score tied. Attempting to make them lose their momentum.
“Don’t let them get to you alright? Let’s go kick some wind butt!”
The referee called the teams back to the court. The team scores a point. It was the libero’s turn in the court and Yunjin enters, switching with Ganyu, the other smiles as they high-five each other..
***
Yunjin let the memory fade, their outcome had not been a favorable one, having lost by such a miniscule score. She could not pick up the ball from a spike that the opponent had made.
They were friendly games, but these helped the teams gauge what they would exploit in order to get the upper hand in the nationals that were coming up fast.
The libero had unconsciously let her face show her frustration in a pout that did not go unseen to Shenhe, moving her into action.
“Wh-what are you doing!?” Yun Jin squeaked as she felt slender arms wrap around her suddenly. She could feel her face and ears become heated as she was brought into Shenhe’s embrace.
“Comforting you.” Replied the white-haired woman easily, as if talking about the weather. Even if they had just been going out for a few weeks already, it was rare for Shenhe to be the one to take the initiative; it would be Yun Jin coaxing her.
"Do you not want to?" Shenhe made an attempt to move away, but Yun Jin stopped her, feeling her cheeks turn bright red as she pressed to the middle blocker's form.
"I- I want to. I was simply surprised."
These are occasions that made Yun Jin become more easily flustered at the unexpected tenderness that she knew Shenhe could display. Her heart was beating so fast that she was sure Shenhe heard it.
She relaxed into the embrace and they stood there in the court, also wrapping her arms around Shenhe's slender form. Enjoying the comfort that she gave her.
"I realized what you were doing when you wanted to keep practicing for hours, multiple times this week," Shenhe said softly after a moment. "Ever since the game against Mondstadt. I know how you feel but sometimes we are bound to lose. It's not just one person's fault, we're all a team."
The raven haired girl sighed, knowing Shenhe was right.
"I know. It's just hard to not think like that. You know? If I had gotten to the ball in time.."
Yun Jin felt Shenhe press her lips upon her head and she felt butterflies form.
"We can't know the outcome simply for that instance. What if you would have gotten it and we would still have lost? You would say that it was because 'you could not lift it up correctly'."
Yun Jin chuckled at Shenhe's imitation of her voice as she looked up to meet her gaze. She sounded cute trying to sound an octave higher. "Okay, okay. You know me too well."
Earning her a breathtaking smile from her usually neutral expression girl and Yun Jin knew she would never grow tired of it.
One of Shenhe's hands moved upward to press against Yun Jin's cheek, her thumb stroking her lovingly. "Do you feel better?"
"Yes." And Yun Jin meant it, it was still there but it seemed unimportant now. It was comical that Shenhe could easily affect her mood. "You hugging me and your pep talk was all I needed."
There was a faint flush on Shenhe's cheeks hearing what her libero said but happy all the same. "I'm glad."