Stitch By Stitch || Haikyuu!!

18

Third person

"E-eh?!"

Akiyama-sensei's eyes widened slowly at the blonde's statement, her mouth forming a small 'o' shape.

"K-Konimi... is everything okay---"

"Nevermind whether things are okay or not, just... remove me from the club... please."

The young brunette teacher gulped, not liking Cosette's empty expression and tone of voice.

"I'm... afraid I can't do that just yet, Konimi-san..."

"Why not?" Cosette narrowed her eyes.

"Y-you see, you're still an important cast of Les Mis, and even if you do leave... our club already has limited members, and the remaining ones are third-years. Come end of this school year, the music club will become nonexistent."

"That's none of my concern at this moment, Akiyama-sensei. I'm not going to stay in a club where I don't feel welcome---"

"Don't!" a familiar voice called out, and Cosette immediately turned to see the classroom door swing open abruptly. "Don't quit, Cosette!"

"M-Morisuke?"

"Dame da," Naomi pleaded, taking a step towards her friend. "I-I'm... really sorry about Seira-chan and Ayame-chan, I don't know what's gotten into them... but I... I don't want you to quit!"

"I... don't want you to quit either, Konimi..." Kenma said quietly, although loud enough for her to hear. And somehow, his soft voice was enough to make her relax, even if just a little bit. "Is this something that you really want to do...?"

"You wouldn't want to give in to them, yeah?" Kuroo added, smiling slightly.

"Naomi... Kenma... Kuroo..."

Akiyama-sensei put a hand on her student's shoulder. "It's still your decision, Konimi-chan, but none of us want you to quit. I agree, I wouldn't want a voice like yours to go to waste."

"Cosette, we're all here for you, alright?" Yaku smiled reassuringly, stepping forward and taking her hands into his as an act of comfort. "You can't let the two of them mess with you. We've got your backs."

Is my judgement... going to be right this time? I can trust these people, can't I?

Sensing the hesitation of his classmate, Kenma spoke once more.

"Onishi-san and Honda-san are different from, us, Konimi... I promise you, we would never do anything to hurt you."

"I promise, Cosette," Yaku nodded, squeezing her hands a little tighter before releasing them.

"Promise," Kuroo agreed, putting a hand on his best friend's shoulder. "...even if you may hate me."

"And I definitely promise as well," Naomi smiled, pulling her into a light hug. "Cosette, you're a very important friend to me and like everyone else here, I want the best for you."

The blonde looked at each of her friends in astonishment as she was released from Naomi's hug. "I-I..." her voice trailed off. "I don't know..."

Akiyama-sensei sighed, before walking over to her desk and pulling out a poster. "I can give you time to think about it, but I want to hand this to you."

Taking the paper, Cosette's eyes skimmed over its content. "Annual Music... Awards...?"

"That's right. Every year, members of the music club compete against music club members from all other schools in the prefecture in terms of singing an original song. After the premier of our Les Mis production, at the same time the sports clubs will be having their own competitions, Nekoma will be hosting the event. The overall school with the most points in total, after specific members finish singing for their representing genre, will win, but the one singer with the most points will be given a possible record deal. We haven't been able to enter recently, having only two members, as you must have at least three in the club to participate. You're the only one now who can make us eligible to compete."