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SNAPSHOT 1
Ever since you could remember, Noya had been a rather peculiar guy. Unapologetically loud, energetic and with a laugh that could fill an entire room with warmth. He wasn't known for being tall, sure, and maybe not for being the prettiest. But Noya had a way about him. The way he carried himself confidently, yet underneath the bravado, he was almost shy. And there was nothing you liked more than catching glimpses of those rare but heartwarming moments.
Like when you flirted back at his terrible pickup lines.
When, during a bus ride after a game, his head rested against your shoulder as he slept peacefully, cozy in your warmth. Or maybe it was the way he used his short height to his advantage just to tackle you.
Either way, every moment spent as one of Karasuno's team managers felt like a blessing. Filled with laughter, joy, a bit of chaos, but so much love. Love for a specific person too.
SNAPSHOT 2
If Asahi had to pinpoint a moment, he would say it was during nationals. That was it. That's when he started-well, when he, Daichi, Suga, and Tanaka— began to notice the change in Nishinoya. He was a bit calmer. Too calm for his standards. At first, they brushed it off as tension and nerves. They were playing at nationals, after all.
But then they started noticing more and more. The way his eyes followed a certain manager longer than usual. The way his smile turned almost shy when talking to her. Hell, if he could have, he probably would have giggled and kicked his feet from how giddy he looked. And they had just... never seen him like that before, not with such evident heart eyes.
He was no stranger to getting crushes. To parading around declaring, "I think l've found the woman of my life," only to cut to him drooling over someone else the next day.
This, though, was different.
And it was as clear as the summer sky. Noya had a big, fat crush.
SNAPSHOT 3
Graduation came fast. Too fast. The memories blurred together. Glimpses of Sugawara, Daichi and Asahi
coming back to see them and maybe, just maybe, shedding a tear or two, despite being only a year older.
Glimpses of Kiyoko talking to a very flustered but noticeably more laid-back Tanaka. The two having a somewhat normal conversation.
And then, them.
Even the old group, Kiyoko included, despite her usual quiet nature couldn't help but comment.
"Did Noya and Y/N have a falling out?" she asked in her usual calm, collected voice, though a tinge of worry slipped through.
"It's complicated," Tanaka sighed softly, his gaze drifting back to the duo who were trying, badly, he should add, to avoid looking at each other.
"Something happened. Even I don't know the whole story. Noya refuses to open up. I suspect they dated in secret for a while, but it's unclear. They never confirmed or denied it. But one day... the atmosphere in the gym was tense, they weren't even talking. Even Coach Ukai was worried. Eventually, she quit being a manager before the season ended."
SNAPSHOT 4
As the years passed, the once Karasuno High members went their separate ways. Some went to college, others straight into work, some pursued volleyball careers. A few even got married.
Despite the distance, the group never failed to see each other. Not always with everyone present. More than once, if Noya was there, you weren't. And vice versa. Whether it was fate or a deliberate choice, the others never quite figured out.
But time went on and things changed. Eventually, at some point, you two started showing up at group hangouts at the same time. And once became twice.
Twice became thrice.
Things weren't like before. But they weren't bad either. And the most perspicacious out of the bunch, was able to pick up on the shift that was happening.
They had all moved on, met new people, become new people. Yet despite the years, despite looking so much like their younger selves, just a little older, they weren't who they used to be.
Loud personalities had softened, though they still carried that familiar explosive energy. Quiet and introspective ones had grown more outgoing. But at the core of it all, they were still the same bunch of kids from a school in the middle of the countryside, chasing a dream.
Just without a volleyball this time around.
And despite the years on their faces, now in their late twenties, things were good. Their shared group chat was livelier than ever.
Especially now.
December 31st. As everyone, whether still in Japan or scattered across the world, sent their early New Year's messages, one in particular made the chat explode.
From: Noya, 00:20
To: All
→ one attachment
Happy New Year, everyone! From Rome with love. (P.S. She said yes, by the way ❤️)
Attached was a picture of you two, smiling in front of the Colosseum. You were showing off your ring, a hint of a soft fading purple bruise on your neck and cheeks caressed by glistening streaks of happiness.
From: Hinata, 00:21
To: All
"WAIT A MOMENT, SINCE WHEN WERE YOU TWO TOGETHER?!?!?! WHAT DID I MISS, GUYS, WTF."