Chapter Text
They were fighting again. She could hear their shouting voices through several walls. It made her stop doing her homework and crawl into bed to find comfort. Anxious thoughts of her friend filled her head when she nibbled on her fingernails. A nasty habit, her father had said.
And soon enough, she could hear familiar knocks on her window. She jumped out of her bed and made her way across her room to let him in. Wakatoshi didn’t say a word when he stepped through the window in only his pajamas and a pair of socks. With clumsy movements, she took his hand in hers and led him to her bed. They both sat down and didn’t utter a word for a few moments. Their hands were still clasped together.
“I can still hear them,” Wakatoshi said in a small voice, looking down at her carpet. She pretended to not see the tears welling in his eyes.
Not knowing what to say or how to help him, she looked down at their hands. “Should I sing to you?” she asked instead. When Wakatoshi nodded, she cleared her throat and began to sing an array of random melodies. Anything that came to mind, really.
By the time she finished her third song, he laid flat on his back on her bed, staring at the ceiling. She went silent.
“Should I stop?”, she asked, unsure if her actions were helping him at all.
“Why do they always fight, Hina-chan? If they don’t love each other, they should just not be together anymore,” Wakatoshi whispered sadly. She fidgeted again but decided to lay beside him so she didn’t have to crane her neck to look at him.
“My father still loves my mother, even though she is gone. Maybe love is so strong that it can make people do weird stuff sometimes,” she guessed.
“If love is like that, I don’t want it,” he huffed and turned to her. “You’re the only friend that I care about. Does that mean I love you?”
She played with a loose thread on one of her pillows. “Real love is for grown-ups, Toshi. But if you ask me, I love you as much as I love the cat that always comes to play with us,” she concluded, nodding to herself.
Wakatoshi seemed to deflate. “I love volleyball,” he said, thinking deeply. “And I think I like you just as much. If I had to decide between the two of you, I wouldn’t know what to do.”
“You would choose volleyball, you dummy,” she said in an accusing tone. How often had he declined to play with her to throw some stupid ball around instead?
Wakatoshi seemed to think about it again. “No, I don’t think so. It’s the same with your singing. You love it, too.”
“It’s because my mother used to sing, too,” she sighed and glanced at a photo on her wall. “Do you want to play cards?” she offered, tired of their conversation about love and confusing things.
He shook his head, eyes closing. “I want to sleep. Can you sing to me again?”
Looking at him and his chubby cheeks, she thought for a bit before deciding to sing a lullaby. When she thought he fell asleep, she closed her mouth and listened to his deep breaths.
I promise you that I will be your friend forever, they both vowed to each other silently.
“Miyazaki-san, do you have a minute?”
She looked up from her homework, pen twirling in her hand. In front of her stood a rather pretty girl, whose auburn hair was tied into a bun. Her uniform was neatly arranged and she looked at Hinako expectantly.
“Yes, of course. What is it?” she asked politely and closed her textbook to signal that she had her full attention.
“My name is Nakamoto Ayame. I’m the third-year manager of the volleyball club,” she introduced herself proudly. She took a chair and put it on the other side of Hinako’s desk before taking a seat.
“Oh, if you’re in the volleyball club you must know Wakatoshi, right?” she asked, following her upperclassman’s movements with her eyes. Nakamoto nodded. “He directly joined us this year from the junior school team. An excellent spiker,” she gushed. Hinako suppressed a smile. It seemed that Wakatoshi had already made a name for himself in high school.
“But I didn’t come all the way here to talk about Ushijima-kun. Are you in a club, Miyazaki-san?”
“I am,” Hinako answered slowly, suspecting in what direction this conversation was going to go. “I’m in the science club.”
“Oh.” Nakamoto’s shoulders slumped. “That’s too bad.”
“Why do you ask?”
“You see, the volleyball club is looking for an assistant manager right now,” she explained, eyes lighting up again from talking about the sport. “I’m going to be rather busy with exams and college applications, so I asked the players if they knew anyone who would be interested, and Ushijima-kun mentioned you.”
“Did he now?” Hinako’s eyebrows scrunched together. “I thought I told him I already joined a club.”
“Ushijima-kun told me that you know a lot about volleyball. And since it’s an assistant position, you would only have to show up for one or two practices a week to replace me while I’m gone. If you want, I could ask if you could get a few extra credits for taking up more extracurriculars.”
Hinako entertained the thought for a second. She had science club meetings three times a week, so technically, she had time to squeeze the volleyball club in between. But then she would have to move her private singing lessons to later in the evening or to weekends. It was true that she liked volleyball, since Wakatoshi made her watch it with him all the time, but managing a team?
“I’ll think about it. How much time do I have?” she finally said, being swayed by the thought of extra credits. Nakamoto smiled triumphantly and told her that if she had an answer by the end of the week, she could visit her in her classroom.
“You should come to practice today. Get to know the players,” she added before the sound of the bell made her jump up and sprint out of the classroom, shouting goodbye to Hinako before disappearing around the corner.
What a lively girl, Hinako thought with a grin on her face, I like her.
“Who was that?” asked a voice behind her.
“Oh, that was the manager of the male volleyball club. She’s a third year,” Hinako shrugged. Her friend, Kaneko Eri, took a seat next to her.
“I heard they are looking for another manager. Wait, did she come here to ask you?” Eri asked curiously. Hinako nodded while putting her English textbook into her bag and pulling out another. “Wakatoshi recommended me. I told her I would think about it. I could fit it into my schedule but I’m not sure if I should join, since volleyball is Toshi’s thing. And yours, of course.”
Eri grinned at that. She was a middle blocker in the female volleyball club and a good one at that. “That’s right,” she said and added, “I don’t think it’s a bad idea if you ask me.”
More students started to take their seats, including another one of her closest friends.
“What’s not a bad idea?” Sugiyama Misaki asked.
“The manager of the male volleyball club asked Hinako-chan if she wanted to join,” Eri clarified.
Misaki’s eyes lit up. “I watched the team practice once.” She brought her pointer finger and her thumb together in a gesture that meant that she definitely approved of their looks.
Hinako laughed at that. “I wouldn’t join only to ogle at some guys. I don’t know, I see Toshi most days, wouldn’t it be weird to join his club?”
“Didn’t you tell me he brought it up himself?” Eri pointed out.
“I think he wants you to join. That way, he can see you every day,” Misaki snickered. Hinako rolled her eyes in feigned annoyance but couldn’t stop the grin that formed on her face at her friend’s teasing.
“I already told you that Toshi is like a brother to me,” she stated as a matter of fact.
“Apparently, Ayame-san invited someone to practice today. Maybe she is the one who is going to become our new manager,” someone behind him said.
“I hope she’s cute,” they chuckled. Wakatoshi frowned. Why did it matter what their manager looked like? It was only important whether they could do their job properly.
“Alright boys, enough talking. Go warm yourselves up,” Coach Saito shouted and then turned around to talk to Nakamoto.
He decided not to dwell on the hope that his childhood friend would join his club. She was busy enough with her extracurriculars and her singing lessons, after all. Thinking about her made him smile a bit.
“Wakatoshi, is that a smile I’m seeing? Who are you thinking about, huh?” Tendo Satori teased him, appearing out of nowhere. Wakatoshi only shot him a look that told him to back off. Satori just pouted and walked away.
They were busy with practice 2v2 matches when the doors to the gym opened.
“Nakamoto-san?” Hinako asked when she saw the back of her upperclassman.
“Oh, you came! I’m so glad,” she cheered and linked their arms together in immediate camaraderie. Overwhelmed by the warm welcome, she decided to politely smile and sneak a glance around the gym. She only recognized the few first-years she knew from class. And of course, her best friend. She waved at him when he noticed the commotion on the sidelines and looked over. He waved back.
Ayame began to point out each player and told Hinako their name and what position they played. Hinako tried hard to follow her but by the end of it, she could only memorize a few names.
“And these are Coach Saito and Coach Washijo.”
Hinako bowed to the older men and introduced herself. While Coach Saito greeted her warmly, Coach Washijo just sized her up and down and nodded at her in greeting.
“Don’t worry, Coach Washijo is like that with everyone,” Ayame whispered to her when they made their way to the court to collect stray volleyballs.
Later, Hinako waited outside of the gym while looking at a sheet of paper that Ayame had insisted on giving her. It was the application form for becoming a club member. If she were to accept, her duties would include writing down statistics, organizing scrims, and helping the players by distributing towels and water bottles. She would also be responsible for organizing the transportation and accommodations when they go to tournaments.
All in all, it was quite a bit of work. Ayame had ensured her that they would do everything together and she wouldn’t leave her alone, but she still had her doubts.
“Hinako.”
She turned around. “You used to call me Hina-chan, you know,” she teased him. Wakatoshi just grunted, ruffling her hair when he walked past her. Quickly, she followed him.
“Hey, stop that. If you keep messing with my hair, I’ll never get a boyfriend,” she pouted and patted her hair down.
“Are you going to join the club as our manager?” he asked, looking to the side and down at her.
Hinako crossed her arms. “I don’t know. Should I? The team seems nice.”
“If they cause you any problems, you can tell me and I’ll deal with them,” he said in a serious tone.
She poked his side with her elbow, although she doubted that he even felt it. “I don’t need your protection, thank you very much. And you didn’t answer me.”
“If you join the club, you can tag along on tournaments,” he said. “And you can cheer me on.”
“I won’t join to become your personal cheerleader, Toshi,” she sighed and hooked her arm through his. When they were younger, he would piggyback her around but the days were long over, she thought sadly. Her body ached for sleep.
“Ayame-san said that I might get extra credits if I join since I would take on multiple extracurriculars. My father would be happy about that, too,” she pondered. Then, she stopped and pulled on his arm to make him still too.
“Do you want me to join? If you ask me to, I will,” she told him. Her hands rested on his left wrist.
Wakatoshi nodded and rearranged the strap of his gym bag on his shoulder. “I would be happy to see you at practice every week.”
She grinned and resisted the urge to pinch his cheek at his admittance. He hated when she did that. “Alright then, Toshi. Someone has to make sure you don’t injure yourself. I’m like your big sister, after all.”
“You’re smaller than me,” he pointed out.
“That’s because you had an insane growth spurt out of nowhere! Back then, I was taller than you,” she complained. Unfortunately, she had stopped growing when she was around twelve years old, so Wakatoshi had all the time in the world to surpass her in height. Her head barely reached his shoulder anymore.
He just smiled silently at her while they resumed their walk back to the dormitories.
It was Friday, which meant that her classes ended earlier than usual. She quickly finished her homework and met up with her private tutor to do her vocal training. Her voice was in a good condition that day, but that didn’t stop her teacher from scolding her for every small mistake she did. Sighing, she reached for her water bottle when the lesson was over. The small but ferocious woman was an old friend of her mother, and since she was a natural at singing, everyone expected Hinako to possess the same amount of talent. When her phone rang in her pocket, she put it on her ear and greeted her friend who cheerily greeted her back.
“Eri-chan invited us to a small meetup with her volleyball friends from another school. Are you free?” Misaki asked, her voice sounding a bit different than usual over the phone.
Hinako threw a quick glance at the clock. “I have to find Nakamoto-san and give her the application form first, but after that, I can come,” she replied while exiting the building. The warm spring air greeted her.
“We would head out in a second but you can just join us later. We’re meeting them at the usual café. Is that okay with you?”
After agreeing and saying her goodbyes, Hinako put her phone back in her pocket and hummed to herself. She could really use a quiet evening with her friends after an exhausting week at school.
Hinako set out to the gym where the volleyball team practiced at the moment. When she handed the filled-out form to Ayame, her upperclassman jumped in the air in glee and promptly hugged her. Quickly, she gathered the team who was taking a break to drink some water.
“Boys, this is Miyazaki Hinako. She’s a first-year and now our assistant manager!” Ayame exclaimed happily.
Hinako felt a blush creep on her face at the collective attention of the entire team. “Nice to meet you! I hope we get along well”, she smiled and bowed respectfully, since a lot of the players were older than her.
A few minutes later, the players were back to practicing. Hinako excused herself from the coaches and Ayame and left the gym in a hurry. One glance at the digital clock on her phone told her that the introduction took longer than she thought it would. Not bothering to change out of her uniform, she walked through the gate and set out to the café that she and her friends often frequented. It was a small, but aesthetic shop which offered all sorts of coffee and cakes.
The bell jingled quietly when Hinako entered, looking around the café to find her two friends.
“Hinako-chan!” Misaki shouted from the far-left corner and waved at her.
Relieved, Hinako walked up to them and seated herself on an available chair next to Misaki. “I’m sorry for being late,” she apologized, “I was introduced to the volleyball team and it took longer than I expected.”
“You play volleyball?” the guy sitting opposite her asked. Hinako looked at him and felt an unwanted flush creep up her neck at his bright smile. He was handsome.
She waved her hands in front of her. “I’m just the assistant manager of the team. I’m really bad at the sport itself,” she laughed.
“Oh, I should introduce you. This is Oikawa Tooru, the setter of Aoba Johsai and that’s Iwaizumi Hajime, their ace. We went to middle school together”, Eri explained, grinning. Turning to the two boys she said, “And this is my friend Miyazaki Hinako. She sings. And she’s a nerd.”
Hinako swatted her arm and shouted ‘Hey!’ at the smirking girl.
“Are you related to Miyazaki Aoi by any chance?” Iwaizumi asked, tilting his head in curiosity. Hinako timidly nodded and told them that she was her mother.
“She was an incredible singer…” Iwaizumi started but stopped when he remembered what had happened to her.
“Thank you. I’m trying to live up to her,” Hinako laughed forcibly, sensing the tension at the table.
“Anyways, volleyball. Are you guys any good?” she blurted out, trying to change topics.
“Aoba Johsai’s volleyball team is one of their prefecture’s best, right?” Misaki asked, taking a sip of her smoothie and looking at the two boys.
Oikawa grinned cockily. “We are. And at the Interhigh Tournament, we’re going to beat Shiratorizawa and that damn Ushiwaka.”
“Careful, you’re talking to his childhood friend right now,” Eri warned him playfully, nodding toward Hinako. She seemed amused by Oikawa’s open hostility towards Shiratorizawa.
Oikawa pouted. “Eri-chan, at this point, you’re all his friends. I still can’t believe you fraternized with the enemy.”
“What can I say? The girls in Shiratorizawa are too cute.”
After some explaining, Hinako learned that Aoba Johsai and Shiratorizawa were rival schools, with Shiratorizawa dominating most tournaments, leaving the other schools in the dust.
“Ushiwaka was already beating them in middle school, so they’re really intense when it comes to him. Especially Oikawa-san,” Misaki whispered to her when the others were distracted discussing volleyball theory.
Hinako nodded, deep in thought. Naturally, she always knew that Toshi was pretty good at what he did. But that he got so good that players from other schools were talking about him must have passed over her head. A small flicker of pride inside of her made her smile, which she hid by taking a sip of her tea.
They sat together for the good part of the evening, enjoying themselves and talking animatedly. Hinako had laughed hard at one of Eri’s jokes when she caught Oikawa staring at her in the corner of her eye. He quickly looked away and asked Iwaizumi if he could have the last bite of his cake.
“Get your own next time,” he grumbled but pushed the plate towards his friend.
“You guys are like an old couple. It’s so sweet,” Misaki chuckled.
“Who would ever want to marry this guy?” Iwaizumi muttered although Hinako could see a glint of humor in his eyes.
“I’ll have you know that I’m very popular with the ladies, Iwa-chan,” Oikawa pouted. “You’re just jealous.”
“Aren’t you dating Ayane-san right now?” Eri interjected, too used to their antics.
Oikawa scratched his neck and gave her a crooked smile. “I broke up with her last week.”
Eri groaned, putting her face in her hands for a moment before looking at Oikawa. “She’s a sweet girl, you know. And she has had a crush on you since, like, forever.”
He just shrugged but Hinako didn’t miss the genuine emotions in his expression which stood in contrast to his feigned indifference to the situation. “I liked her. But she wanted me to quit practicing so much and I can’t do that.”
Eri sighed and let the topic go, instead asking Misaki about her recent art project, which made the pretty brunette light up with joy.
Later, they all stood outside the café and bid their goodbyes to each other, with promises to meet up again soon.
“I’ll see you at Interhigh. You’re going to switch sides and cheer for me when you see me play.” Oikawa winked at Hinako who laughed and told him that she was a loyal fan of Shiratorizawa. A slight blush appeared on her face.
Oikawa opened his mouth to protest but was interrupted. “Come on, Shittykawa, let’s go.” Iwaizumi dragged his childhood friend with him after waving goodbye to the girls.
Hinako, Misaki and Eri set out to their dorms in Shiratorizawa. And, naturally, they started talking about the boys on their way back.
“Oikawa is cute, right, Hinako-chan?” Misaki asked her friend innocently.
Hinako pursed her lips in thought. “He’s good-looking, that’s for sure. But his love life seems…complicated.”
Eri nodded. “Tooru has his own fan club over at Seijou. The girls are practically running after him,” she explained while laughing in disbelief.
He had a fan club? Really?
“But don’t get me wrong, I’ve known this guy since middle school. He’s very genuine and caring. He’s never broken a girl’s heart willingly, even though he could.”
“And he’s an exceptional volleyball player. It’s his dream,” Eri continued, putting her hands in the pockets of her skirt. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone so dedicated to the sport.”
“Woah, Eri-chan, you must know him really well,” Misaki said in awe.
“Once he realized I wasn’t interested in him, or his whole specimen in general, he started talking to me about girls. I also practiced with him sometimes, along with Iwaizumi,” Eri explained, hooking her arm through Hinako’s, who in turn looped her other arm through Misaki’s, so they were walking around like a connected chain.
Hinako felt warm from happiness. Misaki and she have known each other since middle school but ever since Eri joined their little group at the beginning of high school, they felt more complete than ever. They had practically spent every day together, seeing each other in classes and hanging out on the weekends. She was really lucky to have them as her friends.
“You’re a great friend to him, Eri,” Hinako blurted out and buried her face briefly in Eri’s upper arm in a sudden gesture of affection.
Misaki made a noise of complaint, wanting to join the group hug. She abruptly stopped in her tracks, dragging Hinako and Eri with her to wrap her arms around the two of them, sighing contently. They stood there hugging each other while their laughter rang clear and loud in the streets of Miyagi.