ONLY ME || Haikyuu x Male

CHAPTER THREE

Coach Ukai blew a whistle that he'd manifested from thin air, and Ennoshita served, sending the familiar red, green, and white volleyball flying over the net. Ren took a breath, licking his dry lips. He wouldn't let himself get lost in his head. He'd practiced too hard for that to happen.

Daichi received the ball, sending it flying over to Kageyama-the first year setter. Ren watched keenly as the ball sailed into the setter's hands, and in the split second where his fingers met the surface of it, Ren's gaze snapped to the left. Hinata. When did he get there? He was running, fast, approaching the net, getting ready to hit. He was jumping, he was in the air, but Kageyama hadn't set the ball yet? Tsukishima and Tanaka were getting ready to block, but Hinata was already at the peak of his jump. They wouldn't get it.

So he had to.

Hinata's hand connected to the ball, and it snapped downwards. For a moment, he saw triumph on the short boy's face, but it vanished as the ball met Ren's forearms, soaring upwards in a beautiful arc, right into Sugawara's hands.

"Nice receive!"

Nishinoya's voice belted the words at Ren from the sidelines, but he could hardly hear. He watched as Sugawara set the ball to the perfect spot for Tanaka to slam it onto the ground on the opposite side of the net, right beside Narita.

Cheers erupted from Ren's team members, and they all gathered to high five one another. He had a smile on his face, his forearms still stinging from the impact. He'd missed that feeling, receiving a hard hit, and it made his heart swell with pride more so than he'd like to admit.

"You there! Bumblebee!" Ren turned his head, raising an eyebrow at the raven-haired first year who'd called out to him. Bumblebee?

"Me?"

"Yes! How did you receive that? No one's received that superquick on their first try!"

Ren blinked slowly, recalling the speed of the attack. Now that he thought about it, the quick had seemed much faster than a regular one. "I don't know. I just moved and I got it."

Kageyama sputtered, though he went silent after Daichi smacked him on the back of the head, telling him he should be more respectful to his seniors. Hinata, on the other hand, was pouting, his arms crossed and eyebrows creased. Ren felt a flush of guilt at that. Had he said something wrong?

A brilliant laugh disrupted his fretful thinking, and Tanaka threw his arm around Ren again. "That's our all-rounder for you! Amazing as always, Hasegawa-san!"

"Whatever! I won't let you receive it again!" Hinata shouted out, and though his words seemed annoyed, his expression depicted excitement and awe. Ren stared at the first year, curiosity blooming in his chest. Who was this boy?

He didn't have much time to think. They all hurried back into their positions and Coach Ukai blew his whistle again, signaling for Ennoshita to serve. The ball went towards Asahi this time, who got it up no problem. Kageyama set it towards Kinoshita, who spiked it straight into Yamaguchi's waiting arms.

Ren watched the ball head in Sugawara's direction, and he inhaled sharply, preparing himself for his next move. "Suga-senpai! Back to me!"

They locked eyes, and Suga smiled lightly. The ball landed in the setter's hands and half a heartbeat later, it was heading towards Ren. His eyes locked onto the spinning sphere and he took a breath. His thighs tensed beneath him and he pushed forward. Step. Step. Step, and jump. And then he was flying.

He hadn't felt this glee in so long. Soaring through the air, his arms raised, the ball just in front of him. His cheeks were sore from how wide his smile was, and he could feel the air shift around his hand as he brought it forward, connecting it with the surface of the ball.

B A M M

The ball flew so hard that when it hit the very back corner of the court, it flattened halfway down before bouncing up again. The first years all had astonished expressions on their faces, while the others only smiled knowingly. They'd all played with him before, after all. They knew his strength.

Ren landed softly, barely making a sound. His palm was on fire, but he ignored it as he grinned.

He really was back.

~~~

The scrimmage continued on, and Ren's team ended up winning. He thought he had done pretty well. There had only been two incidents where his hearing had gone all fuzzy, and he hadn't heard his teammates call the ball, so he nearly collided with Tsukishima and Yamaguchi. But he hadn't even grazed them, and he'd apologized so profusely afterwards that he'd even managed to fluster the lanky blonde beanpole.

Now, they were all grabbing water while Ren and Daichi were gathered around Coach Ukai, awaiting his decision on Ren's acceptance. He was anxious, of course, but he was pretty confident. He'd played well, and he hadn't hurt anyone. Wasn't that good enough?

"So. Before I let you onto the team, I have one question." The coach's casual expression morphed into one of forlornness, and Ren couldn't help but feel a little scared of what was to come.

"Yes?"

"I've noticed you spacing out sometimes. Like when you nearly slammed into Yamaguchi. You barely managed to stop in time. Is there a reason for this?"

Ren's eyes flicked over to Daichi, who gave him a nod of reassurance. His condition wasn't one he particularly cared about keeping secret, but it was always a little nerve wracking, telling new people about it. Especially since he didn't know how they would react.

"Well, it's because of my...disability. I have a mild case of psychosis. It used to be a lot worse, but I went through everything I could to make it better, and now it is. My hearing will get fuzzy sometimes, and on occasion I'll get light hallucinations, and maybe I'll like-like talk a little too fast and cut myself off, I guess, but other than that I'm totally good. I haven't had a psychotic episode in a long, long time so I don't think it's anything to be concerned about, but I totally get it if you don't want me on the team because of it-I know how scary it can be to others and-"

"Woah, woah, slow down there, kid." The coach patted Ren on the shoulder, cutting him off. "I just wanted to get a better understanding of you as a player, like what could affect you during games. Don't get too worked out about it."

Ren opened his mouth, but no words came out. He was running through every word that the coach had just said. With that exact structure and that word choice, could he mean...

"Does this mean that...that I'm on the team?"

The smile that Coach Ukai gave him melted all of Ren's anxiety away, and his heart started pounding. Pure joy flooded his systems, and he felt like jumping up and down in excitement as the coach gave him a tiny nod.

"Yes. Welcome to the crows, kid. I know you'll fly high with us."