Volleyball Ties

7: Loneliness to Kindness

You were currently sitting under a tree outside, enjoying your lunch. For once, Suna and the Miya twins weren't bothering you- not that you'd say they ever actually bother you. You actually rather enjoyed their company.

They were currenty busy with the school's volleyball team- as they had been all week... and the previous week. This was the third week of this school year and you were kinda feeling lonely. The guys barely had time for you since volleyball practices started for them last week- nowadays they spend almost all of their time with the team.

You sighed, not feeling hungry- a problem that started developing oncethe guys were around less often. You tended to stop taking care of yourself once you were left all alone- something that started once your parentsfirst left to be overseas, leaving you behind at home.

You felt that same feeling of abandonment. 'I knew it was just gonna be a mater of time before they forgot me....'

You curled your knees to your chst and wrapped your arms around them, leaning against the tree you sat under. You closed your eyes, wanting to go home and lay in bed.

"Are you ok?"

You opened your eyes to see a fairly tall boy that had silvery-white hair with black tips. You shrugged. "Still alive... I guess that's something."

The boy smiled slightly- barely noticeable- and sat beside you, leaving 20 centimeters of space in between you two. "You should be happy you're alive."

You simply shrugged, not looking at the new boy. You didn't give him a verbal response, instead you wondered who this guy was and why he decided to come sit by you.

"You looked kinda lonenly. Are you ok?"

You slowly turned to face him. "My frends kinda ditched me for their club last week."

His eyes widened, a slight frown appearing on his face. "That wasn't very nice of them."

"It's fine, I guess. Their club is really important to them and I don't particularly like selfishness."

He gave that slight smile again. "That's very respecctable of you. But... if you don't mind me asking- why don't you join a club?"

You just blinked at him. "Well... I'm really only interested in volleyball but I can't join the team."

"Why not?" He tilted his head to the side, a brow slightly raised.

You gave a sad smile. "I hurt my knee during that last middle school division tournament a few months ago. My doctor said I need to rest for at least a year for it to be fully recovered."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

You waved him off. "It's fine."

His brows furrowed. "Are you sure the doctor said a full year?"

You raised a brow questioningly. "Yeah. That's what I was told. Why?"

"A year seems a bit too long for a recovery period- especially for a simple knee injury."

You shrugged. "It's because I'm shit at taking care of myself when it really matters. I practiced nonstop and put too much stress on my knee- especially during my entire last year in middle school."

The boy frowned. "First off- language. Next, you should be taking good care of yourself. Practice is good, but only in moderation. Too little does nothing, but too much can only harm you rather than do any good."

You chuckled lightly. "I know. I just hyperfocus on volleyball sometimes. I really wanted to make sure that all my last games- my last middle school year- ended with me winning everything. I guess I got what I wanted... I just got the consequences with it."