You Exist Inside The Colors

02.

EPISODE TWO

The next day Hajime arrives at the school only two minutes before the bell rings. His shoelaces are untied and a mess of knots that bounce as he runs towards his first Wednesday class with Mr. Kiyoko. He barely has enough time to catch his breath when he finally arrives at the room.

He is somehow thankful he hadn't bumped into Tooru again.

After class, he realizes today is the day for the volleyball try-outs for the new team members. He hesitates for a split-second, convinced of the thought that waiting until Tooru graduates before he joins the club would be best for him. He is unsure why he suddenly changes his mind. His encounter with the team captain yesterday was too overwhelming for him, but not enough to change his mind about officially joining the club.

So why, then?

Hajime yelps when someone suddenly smacks his back in the hallway. He whirls around to charge at whoever it was but recoils when he realizes it was Tooru. "I'll be expecting you at the try-outs today," Tooru beams. Hajime still can't comprehend the light that Tooru radiates. Not for second. This, this is why I am suddenly hesitating to join. He just stands there in awe and always struggling to find the right words to say until Tooru is out of reach. Tooru is too far away from me now, he won't hear me.

Even so, "I'll be there!" Hajime shouts at the top of his lungs. Tooru looks over his shoulder, taken aback for a moment then gives Hajime a smile that rivals the sun. Hajime doesn't see the color that the sun radiates, but he knows for sure, with seamless certainty that it is like this, and the team captain has outshone it.

Breathtaking, Hajime thinks.

He arrives at the gym five minutes late from the scheduled time. The school gym is wide and vast that seems to bend and stretch before his eyes. Hajime calculates the square area and comes to a vague conclusion; it can accommodate roughly thousands of people. There are others who have lined up for the volleyball try-outs, and Hajime couldn't care less. The team captain is first to call out his name. "Hajime!" he gestures for him to come forward, and Hajime does so.

"Please write your full name over there," Tooru points to a single sheet of paper scribbled with different names. Hajime writes his down halfway through the page. A lot of freshmen have come to the volleyball try-outs, huh? Hajime snorts. He hands the paper to Tooru, his eyes scanning the gym. He doesn't want to make Tooru think that for some odd reason, he feels awkward around him.

"Iwa..Iwaizu..mi Hajime," Tooru reads his name out loud, struggling to string the syllables of his name together. "Iwaizumi Hajime," he repeats, dropping his voice this time. Hajime is confused of what the silly captain is trying to make out of his name. "Iwa-chan!" Tooru exclaims in all of a sudden. "Iwa-chan sounds a great nickname, don't you think?"

Hajime is startled and overwhelmed, unable to describe the feeling of joy of being acknowledged by the captain and the awkward feeling creeping into his chest; it is a seamless blend that changes everything about how he sees Tooru. What do you call this feeling again? He searches for the answer to this question but the longer he looks at the captain's enthusiasm, the deeper he sinks into the depths of Tooru's eyes. The deeper I fall into oblivion. "I guess," Hajime replies.

"For the first set, the names I will be calling out will play with the team captain, Yutaro Kindaichi, Akira Kunimi, and Shinji Watari," The Head Coach announces. The names go on and on, and Hajime sits waiting in the bench with an impassive look on his face. "...And Hajime Iwaizumi."

Hajime snaps back to his senses, straightening up.

"Iwa-chan," Tooru bends down to look Hajime in the eyes, as if teasing him, "you're playing with me on the first set." Hajime doesn't move for a moment then he walks inside the court, pushing past the captain. If he lets himself get distracted by Tooru's silly games, he won't be able to join the club. Hajime breathes in deeply. This time his vision narrows and all he sees are the lines that mark the court, the net and his teammates.