Different Kind of Beautiful

Chapter 9

"Please?" Oikawa begged once again. 

I sighed, glancing up from the notebook I had started taking notes in. The team was taking a break it seemed, as he was quick to rush over. I glanced at the other players who in turn looked away.

"I already told you, I'll have to think about it," I shot back. 

He pouted. "Please, Anzu-chan. We need a manager!"

I shook my head at his stubbornness. "You can't have a manager because so many other girls would want to volunteer and distract the practice."

"But you wouldn't!" 

"You might be right but that doesn't mean much. Besides, I'm a third-year," I argued. "There isn't much point in me becoming a manager when no one will continue to do so next year."

"Well, since I'll be gone, then there won't be a problem with having a manager!" he chirped, looking rather proud. I narrowed my eyes and slapped his stomach with my notebook. He jumped and whined. 

"Don't act so superior over an inconvenience you caused," I warned, glancing back towards the court. For the moment, I was allowed to sit in on practices and get a feel for what I would be doing should I decide to join on. It seemed rather simple, though I knew that there was quite a bit about the sport I would need to learn first. 

"So mean," he muttered, turning around to rejoin the practice. 

I bit my lip as the sound of the balls smacking against the floor filled the gym once again. Once practice was over I needed to have a proper conversation with the two as to why exactly I had been asked to fill the position. It just seemed to come out of nowhere. It was still rather early in the year, but still. If the team really wanted a manager, they should have asked a second-year, since a first-year would probably feel too daunted by the task. I figured that while it would take a while to get used to being a manager, I could probably do it. 

I scratched the back of my neck and watched them practice their serves. 

My mind was pretty much made up already, though I wanted to try and convince myself otherwise. Even as they started to clean up for the day, I resisted the urge to sneak out and head home alone so that I could have more time to possibly change my mind. 

"Anzu-chan! You better not leave without us!" Oikawa called out the second I turned to put my notebook away. He was staring intensely at me, hands firmly locked on his hips. Iwaizumi tried to get his attention but failed. I smirked back at the captain as I watched Iwaizumi pull back his hand and launch a volleyball at his head. He clutched the back of his head with a whine before getting back to cleaning. 

"Idiot," I sighed, moving to lean against the wall by the door. Iwaizumi looked over at me, his gaze asking if I was going to leave. I shook my head and smiled. He nodded and got back to work. 

Sure enough, Oikawa practically raced over to make sure that I hadn't left. I saw him coming very clearly from across the gym and rolled my eyes before darting out the door. He shouted something but I didn't stop. 

If I got too far, he would probably throw a fit, so I made sure that I was walking slowly. 

"Why'd you leave?" he asked as he jogged up to my side. 

"If I hadn't started walking, I wasn't sure if you'd let me start walking," I mused. "You're rather persistent you know."

Oikawa laughed. "Thank you!"

"Not a compliment this time," I shot back, adjusting my bag. Iwaizumi snickered. 

I glanced over to see the setter stiffen, almost defensively. "You're the one who's running away!"

I smirked. "I'm not running, Oikawa. Besides, weren't you the one who was running from me this morning?"

Iwaizumi nudged his friend. "She's got a point, Shittykawa."

"I wanted it to be a nice surprise!" he blurted, throwing his arms up. "Why is it such a big deal?"

I sighed. Honesty is an important thing to have among friends, right? "I guess you're right. It really isn't that big of a deal, but there is a reason I've been a bit harsh."

Both turned to look over at me. 

"Basically, after everything that went down, Rinko and I made a bet," I admitted, scratching the back of my neck. "Just something stupid 'cause we disagreed about- Jeez, it sounds so stupid and wrong now that I think about it."

"What bet did you make?" Oikawa asked, confusion clear in his face. "It can't be that bad."

"Basically we made a bet about whether or not you would still be hanging out with me after a week," I blurted, pushing my glasses up to rub at my eyes. "I didn't think you would, but uh- Both Rinko and I were a bit disappointed today since we thought that I had it right."

"What the hell?" Iwaizumi said. It was less of an insult and more of an exclamation of confusion. "So wait-"

"You didn't think I'd still be friends with you?" Oikawa asked. 

By now we had all stopped walking. 

"Honestly, that first day you showed up at my house, yeah. I didn't think it was going to last." I couldn't look at them. "I'm glad that I was wrong of course!"

"That was a dumb bet." 

"What did you two bet?" 

I glanced over to see Oikawa was leaning closer. I narrowed my eyes at him and took a small step back. At his question, my eyes widened. I glanced up at the two, not sure if I should laugh or get worried. "Rinko volunteered to do the tutoring thing today since she was under the impression she had lost..."

"Serves her right!" Oikawa mused, standing up straight. "Tanji-san is super mean sometimes. What about you?"

"I was going to let her break a pair of my glasses," I replied. "I have terrible vision so she knew I was serious about it."

Iwaizumi glared slightly. "You shouldn't ruin a good pair of glasses like that."

"I know, but getting Rinko to back off from a potential bet is hard."

"Alright, as revenge for doubting us, I'm changing the punishment for your loss," Oikawa decided, starting to walk again. "You'll be our new manager starting tomorrow."

The two started walking, the setter practically strutting with pride at his idea. Iwaizumi glanced back and paused. I shook my head. 

"Idiot," I groaned, rolling my eyes. 

"What did I do this time?" he whined, turning around. 

I started walking and quickly brushed past them. "I was already planning on saying yes, so that isn't much of a punishment."

"Fine then! I'll come up with something else," he blurted, taking only a few steps to catch up again. He pouted slightly. "But since you've agreed, there's no backing out of it!"

"Whatever you say," I mused, suppressing a grin from overtaking my face. 

It had never felt so good to be so wrong.