Intricately Laced Love

Chapter 3 - A Perfect Serve

Two things happened in the past eight hours when Daisuke said that he "romantically set me and Kuroo up". First thing was a volleyball practice after school during which boys had no mercy on us and second was a "pleasant" conversation with the coaches right after the practice.

It is ten in the evening and my frustration and anger are directed to mopping the floors in one of my mother's cosmetic shops, Doishiki. Doishiki is a chain of natural beauty products and cosmetics whose ingredients are primarily organic. My mother got an inspiration to create one of her own beauty brands when working as a chemist for a dermatologic company. In the past 15 years of that business, she managed to spread the company over entire Eastern and Southern Asia, and over the period of 15 years her business has been very successful. She now works on setting the stores in Europe, Africa, and America. The headquarters, a twenty-story high glass building with logo at the very top, is situated in the centre of Tokyo, and so it the store my brother, Taketora Yamamoto, and I are in right now.

"Technically, the sole purpose of the combined practice is to help my team - including myself, obviously - to enhance our skills and to still remain a team while waiting for the mysterious coach to magically appear, so we can go back to being an individual team - Nekoma Female Volleyball Team, or NFVT for short." I continued my rant.

"But things have turned a little way out of hand, haven't they?" Daisuke, who wanted to come with me and help us around the store, asked sympathetically. He wore a light pink apron that reached about his knees. He is sorting and aligning products by colour.

Taketora Yamamoto's POV:

Nishimiya sighed. "Yes." Then added more passionately, "It was a practice match, boys versus girls. Right? So, I had to watch the game and wait for someone to willingly substitute herself out. None of the girls were willing to do so - which I didn't mind. They were really determined to make a successful rally and receive all spikes and tips. Dull thuds of elbows hitting the ground and screeching of the skin echoed the gym. Boys were not holding back and the end of the practice came. Girls had their heads down and their faces gloomy. I had a heavy heart. I didn't know what to do. Do I encourage them or do I keep quiet? Those were the sort of questions I had when the practice match ended."

I am listening to their conversation while lifting heavy boxes whose products have to be put onto shelves and setting them down in front of some shelves for Daisuke to sort out later.

"Taketora, why were you so ruthless? You are supposed to treat them like flowers, not rip their arms off with beefy arms of yours!" Daisuke looked at me over the aisle and frowned.

"How else are they going to learn? They have to know the true pain in order to be first! That's what a real man is!" I said loudly and pumped my fist in the air.

"And what is a real woman, a man's distraction?" She rolled her eyes.

"What do you mean? Your team is not distracting at all. We actually kinda like you." I stared at her.

"All of you are literally looking at our butts in spandex with your mouths open."

My face and ears turned a dark shade of red. "T-t-that's not true!!"

"Oh, it is!" she pointed the finger at me and wiggled it. "You think we didn't notice? No wonder your team enjoys our company. Let alone the warm up time... Boy, y'all get riled up so easily!" She laughed.

"NOT TRUE!"

"IS TRUE!"

"NAH-UH"

"YES-UH!"

"As if you ladies don't check us out! You all drool when our muscles show!"