The Enduring Libero

Chapter 5

There's a reason that sports players avoid crashing into each other, with the exception of football. As I crashed into the other person, I felt a nice bruise appear above my rib cage, and two more on my arms as we both tumbled to the ground. My head spun for a moment as I tried to register where I was. It took three seconds for me to see, or rather feel, that I had landed on top of the other person. One second later I had pushed myself off the ground, leaning back on my knees. Now that we were both not jumping, I recognized Nishinoya.

"Sorry!" I stuttered as he sat up, rubbing his head.

His eyes were closed as he groaned. "That would have been a cool receive..."

My nerves started shooting like fireworks. "Sorry," I repeated, placing one hand on the ground for support. My body swayed forward as I tried to peer at his head. If I had injured one of the players I would be so dead. "I didn't see you-". I stopped as he opened his eyes. The distance between us was a lot shorter than I had realized, and now his brown eyes were staring up at me, a breath away. My knees started buzzing where they were pressed against him as we both froze there, staring. His lips parted in surprise, and I figured I looked the same. A blush started creeping its way across my cheeks, and I pulled back. My heart beat didn't seem to register the extra space, so I took a silent but deep breath to try and calm it. "Uh, sorry. Are you ok?" I managed to stutter out. Goodness, why would my heart not slow down?

He nodded, and I saw that the tips of his ears had turned pink. "I'm fine. Sorry, I didn't see you either."

I swallowed, glancing back. None of the other players were there, so why was he? I quickly moved myself backwards. "Uh, thanks for trying to get the ball."

He pulled back his knees, sitting in a cross legged position. "Yeah, well it was mostly just instinct." He grinned shakily. "It's kind of my job."

"Heh," it was really a half laugh. "Uh where is everyone else?"

He blinked, and then face palmed. "Right, they're all running, I just came for a jacket." Nishinoya stood, and so did I, though my legs were a little wobbly. I had been practicing next to our team's belongings, so all he had to do was walk a few steps to the right to get a jacket.

While he did so, he glanced back at me. "So why did you pass it back?"

"The ball?" I tugged on a braid as I forced myself to turn and begin retrieving the volleyball. "It was just an accident." I bent down and picked up the ball. My fingers ran over the scuffs on it absently as I noticed my heart had returned to its normal pace.

"Then what were you thinking about?" I glanced over my shoulder at him. He was standing with his hands in his now adorned jacket, looking at me blankly. "If you can stop the quick attack you would be able to keep a simple toss straight."

I frowned, drawing out my voice in a sarcastic tone. "Your faith in my skills is touching." I glanced back at the ball in my hands. "I was just remembering something."

"Nishinoya!" Both of us turned to look at the gym's entrance and exit. Deichi was standing there glaring with his hands on his hips. "Are you coming?"

The libero flinched and looked embarrassed. "Sorry Deichi." He gave me a parting glance, which made my heart flutter against my will, and then ran across the courts, receiving a smack on his head from the captain.

When they had left I sat down on the ground, cradling the volleyball in my lap. I should have kept practicing, but my mind was occupied with something else. To be specific, surprised eyes that were a caramelly hazel. My cheeks were heating up as I remembered how close we had been, how surprised he had looked. I bit my lip, trying to stop the blush from spreading. It wasn't like I hadn't been that close to a guy before, I'm sure I've attacked Oikawa at some point in the past.