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With every passing day, the spring high preliminaries drew closer, with no regards for the teams practicing their hearts out in search of just a little more time. Likewise, every day practices lasted longer and longer for the Karasuno High School Volleyball Club, as they fought waning daylight. The days have started growing shorter, giving them less time before the street lamps clicked on outside the school gates.
Usually, Takeda-sensei would insist the two managers go home at the first sign of sunset, hoping that the two ladies would get home before the town turned quiet and the stars came out. But tonight, they weren’t so lucky as everyone found themselves caught up in an impromptu practice match. By the time they called it quits, the flickering yellow light above the gym door had already come on and the windows in the school building were an inky black, indicating that no one was left inside.
“Did they forget to kick us out?” Tanaka questioned as everyone stepped outside.
“I don’t think the dean was here today, or there would be no way we’d still be here right now.” Suga shrugged his jacket over his shoulders, zipping it up all the way to block the chilly breeze.
“You all should probably just head out then.” Coach Ukai waved over his shoulder as he began walking away. “Make sure you’re all here in the morning. And everyone get home safe.”
Yamaguchi hung back at the end of the pack, watching as Suga offered to walk Shimizu to her house. Tsukishima began walking off without him, so Yamaguchi sped up his pace, unintentionally stumbling into Yachi as she fumbled inside her backpack for her phone.
“Oh, Yachi-chan, are you okay? I didn’t mean-”
“It’s okay, I just couldn’t-”
Yachi let out a panicked squeak and dropped her phone. When it hit the ground, the back popped off, sending the battery skittering off into the dark. Yachi chased after it, patting around on the ground until she found the little black rectangle. After fitting it back into her phone, she let out a loud groan and dropped to the ground, frantically pressing the start button.
“Are-are you okay?” Yamaguchi tentatively walked over to where Yachi was kneeling in distress on the ground.
“It won’t turn on! I was going to call my mom to have someone come get me but now and I can’t and I can only remember the last and first number of my mom’s number and if I try to walk home in the dark someone’s going to get me and I-”
Yamaguchi lifted a hand, scratching at the back of his neck. “I can walk you home.”
Yachi immediately stopped her babbling about serial killers and monsters in the dark, only to immediately launch into a new list of worries. “No, no no I can’t ask for that I’ll be okay, I just get nervous in the dark sometimes and I’ll be fine, don’t worry about me!”
“It’s okay. I want to.” Yamaguchi offered a hand to the girl still sitting on the ground, pulling her up before she immediately yanked her hand away to dust the dirt off of her skirt. “Lead the way, Yachi-chan.”
Yachi nodded quickly, saying that she only needed a walk to the closest bus stop, as there was another one right outside the front of her house. They began walking down a narrow sidewalk away from school, arms bumping against each other as they tried to avoid the too tall grass that needed to be cut.
After she finally calmed down again, Yachi bumped her hip into Yamaguchi’s side. “Thanks for walking me to the stop, Yama-kun.”
Yamaguchi bumped her back, albeit a little bit gentler than the bump that nearly knocked him into the bushes next to the sidewalk. “It’s no problem. My house is just a little bit further this way anyway.”
“You did really well in practice today.”
Yamaguchi felt his face flush as he shoved his hands into his pockets. “Thanks, Yachi.”
Yachi smiled up at him, her face lighting up the dark sidewalk as she tripped over a crack in the sidewalk. She quickly righted herself before pointing ahead. “My stop’s right there, Yama-”
Out of the darkness, a hand appeared from the alley next to the sidewalk, grabbing onto Yachi’s outstretched arm. Yachi let out a piercing scream, crashing into Yamaguchi as she ripped her arm away. Yamaguchi wrapped an arm around her, pulling her away from the person still cloaked in the pitch black of the alley. Yamaguchi felt his hand pull back as it balled up into a fist, launching forward to connect with the glass on the attacker’s face.
“Yamaguchi, what the fuck?!”
“Tsuki? What are you doing?”
Now on the ground in front of them was Tsukishima, gripping the side of his face where Yamaguchi had just smacked him.
“I was trying to get you to run off down the road pissing your pants. Why the fuck did you hit me?”
“You grabbed Yachi-chan, I didn’t know it was you!”
“Yeah, well I’m not the only one who grabbed Yachi.” Tsukishima raised an eyebrow at the pair standing in front of him before getting up and bidding them a ‘good fucking night’. Yamaguchi tried to process what he was talking about when he felt a small tug on his sleeve.
A small tug on the sleeve of the arm still wrapped around the front of Yachi’s chest.
Yamaguchi immediately let the arm dropped as he took two steps back. “Oh my god, I’m so sorry!”
“It’s okay, it’s okay!” Yachi waved her arms around in front of her, trying to dispel the awkward air between them. “You saved me! Or, you sort of saved me if it was anyone but Tsukishima! Let’s just go home, okay?”
Yamaguchi nodded, keeping his distance as they walked the remaining few meters to the bus stop. The bus pulled up a few minutes after they arrived, and Yamaguchi turned to lightly pat Yachi on the shoulder to wish her a good night.
“Thanks, Yama-kun. Have a good night.” Yachi leaned up, standing up on her toes to press a small kiss to Yamaguchi’s cheek. “Thanks for saving me.”