𝐒𝐏𝐈𝐊𝐄!! ✧ o. shotaro

eight

special chapter: from another perspective.

shotaro didn't know why he couldn't sleep.

did he eat something bad? was that why the tingly feeling in his stomach wouldn't go away?

he turned to the other side, pulling the quilt up to his chin. no, he wouldn't admit that those feelings were caused by nanako. because he was too scared.

too scared of rejection.

he saw the way she looked at kageyama during practice matches. it seemed reasonable, who wouldn't like a genius setter like him? someone who was a perfectionist, someone who knew exactly how to score points, someone who knew her longer than he did.

he thought back to what inuoka mentioned about kitagawa daiichi. no one expected nanako to have been classmates with kageyama, hell, even on the same junior high volleyball team. it crushed shotaro's high hopes of having a chance with her.

yes, that explained everything to him. the way she looked at him, the way he looked at her.

shotaro was very wary of what was going on in his peripheral view. as an outside hitter, he had to be aware of his range and the best spots to aim for without giving the opponent's blockers any clues.

he saw the way kageyama stared at nanako during the final practice match, right before shotaro ended the game with the point he scored.

of course she would be more comfortable with a guy she knew for a while. how could he even think about having a chance against kageyama?

shotaro felt a sigh escape his lips. even after he told himself that, why couldn't he get her out of his head? why did the way she said his name even have any effect on him?

how did he fall so hard for a girl who probably didn't even like him back?

an outstanding volleyball player. that was all shotaro thought he looked like to her. and that's what he convinced himself to believe.

yet, just by being looked up to as an "ace" from nanako made him feel like he went straight to  nationals and won the whole tournament. how could one sentence cause him to become overwhelmed with joy?

he slowly brought his hands up to his cheeks, feeling them heat up as he remembered their conversation from a couple of hours ago. the corners of his lips curled upwards as he pushed away all of his insecurities.

for now, he would ignore all his concerns. just for the night.

"i really like you, sugiyama nanako," shotaro softly whispered, cupping his face with his hands.

at the corner of the classroom, a specific scheming team captain was wide awake with two pillows next to him. a wide grin formed on his face as he fell into a light slumber, satisfied with what he heard for the night.

✧ ✧ ✧

"hey taro, wake up!"

shotaro blinked, squinting as his eyes adjusted to the new light in the classroom. kuroo hovered above his face with his usual bedhead, nudging the outside hitter with his elbow.

the second-year looked behind his shoulder to find kenma already awake, sitting with his legs crossed and intently playing a video game.

"he's been up at it since five," kuroo stated, narrowing his eyes at the setter. "hey kenma, if you have nothing to do stop burning your eyes with that and wash up!"

"five more minutes," kenma muttered, rapidly moving his fingers on the controls.

"can someone wake taketora up?" lev asked with his torso propped up. "he's drooling on my foot!"