Karasuno's Mangers: Little Ukai and The Runaway

53: Twenty Pounds in Six Hours

Her finger was twitching. It had been doing that for a few hours now. Emiko cocked her head to the side and tried to hold her fingers together. The tremors ran up to her wrists.

Maybe she shouldn't have had that energy drink at 11:08 pm. She definitely shouldn't have had another one at 3:34 am. Maybe she shouldn't have stood for 47 minutes under the icy droplets in the shower.

Maybe she should have eaten the breakfast cereal bar that her grand-mama shoved in her hands before she had to leave.

Most of all, Emiko should have stayed home today.

She had a routine for days like this. A check-list to follow that would ensure she'd be back on her feet with smarty-pants comments under her belt to tackle the next day.

She needed pillows. Many pillows. At least eight. She would need two blankets, one to sit on and cover her lower half with and another to throw over her head. The curtains would be pulled down, the only light in the room coming from her laptop screen as she watched a Marvel movie and hummed to the soundtracks she had memorized.

And snacks. She would need lots and lots of snacks.

It was the day of the semi-finals though, and she needed to support her team. Emiko sat down to work. Then, two energy drinks and 61 finger prickles later, she sat back and marvelled at the new Karasuno Banner she had sewed herself. Now, it was hanging from the railing above them. Delicate FLY lettered in white against an ominous black. The outline of their starting line-up just below it.

She had pricked her fingers with the pointed needle too many times. Maybe she had given herself nerve damage. Maybe her body was trying to get rid of the caffeine pumping in her blood. Maybe she was scared.

A warm touch on her hand pulled her from her thoughts. Emiko blinked and then drew her stare to the body sitting beside her on the floor of the city gymnasium hallway.

"Ew," she frowned, "Tobio you have cooties."

"You're shaking."

"Am not," she slapped his hand away. Emiko pulled her sleeves down and balled her hands into fists. "I might be possessed though. Recently, I was contacted by the Demon Queen so I might just be experiencing some side effects."

He blinked. "Demon Queen?"

"Don't say its name," she hissed, "are you trying to summon it?"

"Uh, no?"

"Good." Emiko nodded. "Smart choice."

"What are you doing?" he asked, shifting so he was sitting with his legs stretched out.

Emiko's gaze travelled to a bluish bruise that was coloured on his knee. She poked it. "How'd this happen?"

A strangled cry left his lips as he elbowed her. Emiko clutched her side and groaned, throwing a glare at him as he shifted away. "You have cooties too," he mumbled.

"No, only boys have cooties. Gosh Tobio, don't you remember anything from Kitagawa?"

"I remember a pretty girl who chased me with worms on a stick."

"Lies. You have no proof."

"I remember a pretty girl who made the guys flinch by just glaring at them."

"I'm pretty good at glaring, aren't I?"

"I remember a pretty girl in a pink tutu."

Emiko blinked. She scoffed and then bonked his head. "We agreed never to bring that up, Tobio. Some things are better left in the past- Why are you looking at me like that?"