The Half-assed Prince

Tsukki is a cute nickname

Tsukishima's face was buried in his arms as he slept during the break. For the past few days, he seemed to be exhausted. After witnessing their practice yesterday, I was surprised that they still had the energy to stay awake through the whole class.

I tried talking to him, hoping that he would answer me, but he didn't. He didn't even budge, so I thought it was the perfect chance to finally try calling him by his cute nickname.

"Tsukki! Tsukki! Tsukki!"

At first he showed no sign of hearing me. When I called him again, he got up, slamming his hands on his desk, and glared at me.

"Urusai Yamagu--" He stopped when he saw it was me.

"Sanae-san? What do you think you're doing?"

"Gomen. I've been calling you so many times but you're not answering. So I tried imitating Yamaguchi."

He slumped back in his seat, immediately burying his face in his arms, and ignored me. But I, as tenacious as ever, continued pestering him.

"Tsukki! Tsukki! You should wake up. The teacher is coming."

"Stop calling me like that." He said, but it turned out like a murmur.

"Eh? But Tsukki is so cute." I said.

"Just stop it."

I crossed my arms and pouted. How come he let Yamaguchi call him like that and not me? If he wouldn't let me call him by his nickname, how about his first name?

"How about Kei? Can I call you Kei?"

I didn't think he'd be comfortable with that since I was being too familiar but then he lifted his head a little and peeked through his arms, revealing only his right eye as he looked at me. Damn! He looked so cool.

"Call me whatever you want." He said.

"Then how about Tsukki?" I insisted.

"Except that."

Still, I was pretty shocked. I honestly thought he wouldn't like it. But at the same time I was happy. I felt closer to him, like the gap between us had somewhat shortened.

----------------------------------------------------------

Daichi-san told me that I could still watch their practice, so after I was called at the teacher's office, I immediately headed straight to the gym.

They were halfway through the game by the time I arrived. I sat next to Ukai-san and Shimizu-senpai and observed the play. They seemed more fired up today. Then I learned that the coach of Kanda High had called earlier and asked for a friendly match this weekend.

After practice, as they were cleaning the gym, Ukai-san suddenly came and talked to me.

"So how do you find their game?" He asked.

"The team is powerful, in general. Each member has their own strength. And I think their positions are well-planned too." I answered.

"How could you say that?" He asked, his face full of curiousity.

"I've been wondering how Hinata could get the middle blocker position, since it is usually for tall people. But with his jump and his speed, I guess it is a wise decision. Actually, he always leaves my mouth hanging open everytime I see that freak quick. I also noticed that when Hinata is in the vanguard, the team's offense is at the highest level, but when Hinata rotates to the rear, it decreases the team's offense. But it doesn't mean that the vanguard is in a bad state without him since Tsukishima and Kageyama are right up front, increasing the team's defense." I explained.