NCT Imagines (Requests Open!)

Middle Blocker (Lucas)

A/N: Haikyuu inspired :)

---

I hate being a benchwarmer, Lucas thought as he handed another sweaty player a bottle of water.  He was jealous of those who got to play while his position was on the bench.  He had the stamina.  And he definitely  had the strength.  But he was never considered in games.

Put me on the court, he prayed silently.  His eyes shot open at the sound of a huge crash that silenced the arena.  Like a bird that had flown too close to the sun, down fell the team's middle blocker.  The volleyball rolled to a halt on the sidelines and paramedics crowded around Kun who groaned loudly.  

The coach called for a time-out, checking on the team captain before gesturing to Lucas.  "You're in."

Lucas sat up, startled.  He had never played a single official game in his life, and now here they were in a stadium with hundreds of eyes on them.  If he messed up, he'd let down everyone.  But you can't learn to run unless you learn to crawl.  

The 6'0 middle blocker wrapped his fingers with athletic tape, hoping he could do some damage and help the team score.  Lucas stepped onto the court, and suddenly everything hit him at once.  The feel of the wooden boards under his feat creaked.  He could smell the sweat from his team and the opposing one.  And the net looked as high as ever, but he stood front and center where Kun had been positioned seconds earlier. 

Who is he?

Wow, he's handsome.  I wonder if he's any good...

I've never seen him before..

Lucas heard whispers buzz around him, but he tried to concentrate as the opponent served.  The rest of his team looked nervous.  Taeyong swallowed hard while Jungwoo and Yangyang seemed to visibly tremble.

"He's the ace of their team," Johnny quickly whispered to Lucas.  "We haven't been able to block one of his serves yet."

Lucas narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing the opposing team's ace.  His eyes followed his reared back arm that slammed the ball towards NCT's side of the court.  The volleyball seemed to move at lightning speed, but the closer it approached Lucas, the more it slowed down.  After spending a year sitting on the sidelines, he learned to analyze.  He would make bets with the other benchwarmers on how a serve or spike or block would turn out.  And right now, Lucas could bet 100% that the ball was going to curve last minute and land in an unprotected part of the court.

The rookie middle blocker swiftly raced to the gap and managed to wack the ball over to Taeyong.  His NCT teammates could barely processed what happened but smiled as they served the ball back at the other side.  

"Nice receive!" Johnny grinned.

"Toss it to me!" the other team's ace screamed at his setter.

The hair on Lucas' neck stood up as everything slowed down again.  The ace was approaching.  His hand was angled strangely, and Lucas could tell exactly where he would aim.  A second after the ace spiked the ball, Lucas' hand reached out and slammed it back down on the opposing team's court.  He'd only played for five minutes and already, he had easily shaken off the ace.

Johnny slapped an arm on his shoulder.  "You should talk to the coach about being a regular on the team."

Jaehyun nodded.  "You could be walking with the team, that's the queso." (A/N: sorry I mentioned "Regular" so I couldn't resist)

The coach silently answered by tossing him a water bottle.  And for once, the water tasted rewarding.  

"Who even are you?" the ace of the opposite team jeered.

Lucas winked.  "By the end of the game, you'll definitely know."

---

A/N: Hehe, this was definitely Haikyuu inspired.  I've been watching Haikyuu nonstop and I'm on S2 right now and am absolutely loving it!  Seeing them work so hard to be their best on the court is really inspirational.  Alsoooo, would any of you be interested in an imagine where I do NCT as Haikyuu players?? Just curious :O

Question of the imagine:  If any of you have or are watching Haikyuu do you have a favorite character?  (I'm only on S2, so no spoilers pls :). I think my fav so far is Kageyama!