you can fly even higher

first (yamaguchi)

Yamaguchi Tadashi

The game is 25-26. Your team is on the verge of winning and it depended on you. You and only you.

The pressure is all over you. You could feel it on your shoulders. The game had been pretty difficult and winning it means winning everything. If you did that, you were going to be the first team of your school to archive that. So, you couldn't mess it up. You couldn't let the other team win. You have to serve right and precisely and then defend as all your lives depend on it.

And that is very scary. Super scary. Because eleven souls and all the staff and half the gym are counting on you. They are all counting on you to bring glory and honor to your school.

And you couldn't disappoint them.

Not today.

The whistle blows indicating the end of the time-out. All your teammates look at you with hope and they all whisper good wishes before they enter the court with you.

Someone passes you the ball once you're approaching the end line and while everyone is accommodating in the court and exchanging a few last words before the game continues, you hold the ball firmly between your hands.

You can do this; you say to yourself. You definitely can do this.

The people that came to support your team and the one you're playing against, cheer as loudly as they can until the referee blows the whistle again. Then is all silence.

And suddenly, while you're trying to concentrate, looking at the net, still holding the ball in your hands, you swear you hear someone's voice.

"You can do it, Y/N-chan!", your eyes move almost automatically, past the net, to the other side of the court, behind the enemy. There, with his arms in the air, a big and bright smile and all the hope in the world is Yamaguchi Tadashi, looking like he is 100% sure that you'll win this match.

That, somehow, feels like gasoline.

You let out a breath and then you serve the ball, which causes a few problems to the contrary team. You run to your position, with your hairs up and feeling like you can see and perceive everything that is happening in the court in that very moment.

Your team does a triple block that doesn't stop the ball but makes the spiker hit directly into the libero, who receives the ball almost perfectly. Then you prepare yourself because even if you're in the back and you're not supposed to spike, you're doing it anyway cause that's the play.

"Y/L/N-san!", the setter shouts and while you're running, preparing yourself to fly, the decoy does the job, distracting the defense and creating the perfect spot for your spike.

The moment you jump to hit the ball and send it to the other side of the net is like time stops for a few seconds, is like you're suspended in the air, like you're defying gravity, almost like you're flying.

Just as fast as the feeling comes, is gone. And the next few seconds are total confusion to everyone. When your feet touch the ground again, there is silence in the whole gym, except for the team at the other side, that tries to receive the ball but fails.

Then there is more silence, expectation, until the whistle blows and suddenly the gym erupts in screams.

You hear the libero screaming like crazy, the setter, and one of the wing spikers hugging and then you feel someone jumping over you. Is not until you're on the floor and you see your teammates' faces that you understand.

Your team won.

You won.

You started to cry, one of your teammates starts to laugh about it, the sensei starts to cry too and hugs you proudly. Everyone is screaming and shouting your name and you feel like you're about to go deaf.

The next few things pass in a blur. You salute the other team, you thank the people that came to see, and then, when, you're receiving your medal and then you're posing with your team holding the trophy, you feel like you're dreaming.

Until you see him. Until he comes from the sidelines to hug you and cries on your shoulder and tells you how proud he is of you. You start to cry again, and he laughs.

"I love you", he says and your heart stops beating for a few seconds until you hug him tighter and you answer him with so much joy that the words are barely heard.

"I love you too".

And hours later, when you are both laughing while eating pizza to celebrate, you realize that is the first time he said that to you. That it was the first of so many times.