Whatever hope that Mikaela had managed to amass for herself had curled up and died in the third set, but she refused to let herself be pessimistic. Karasuno never had a chance in the third set, losing 25 - 21. Shiratorizawa had taken a step back from the second set and it had paid off for them so far; they were one set away from winning the finals.
"This is so stressful," she mumbled under her breath.
Saeko leaned towards her and grinned. "What, the game or your crush?"
"It's not a crush," she defended instantly.
"You keep telling yourself that, honey, but you just admitted less than a minute ago that maybe it was more," Saeko teased. "You can't take it back now."
"Take what back?" Akiteru asked, popping back into the conversation.
"Nothing!" Mikaela hissed as the first serve of set four went way out of bounds. "Nothing at all!"
Saeko laughed loudly. "Just girl stuff, Akiteru. Girl stuff."
He sighed, "well, I guess I wouldn't understand even if I wanted to." Mikaela and Saeko shared a quick glance with each other and grinned. "Hey, look! Nishinoya got a clean receive!" They all glanced back to the court as Kageyama struggled to set the ball up for Asahi, who punched it to the court floor to make it 2 - 0 for Karasuno. "Only because of Kei's blocking," he added proudly.
Shimada grinned. "I think he's starting to stretch his wings a little."
The rallies dragged on and on. Shiratorizawa came back quickly to tie it up at 4 - 4, and from there the points just went back and forth. At one point, Shiratorizawa got a break point and made the score 11 - 9, but Karasuno came back with an attack from Asahi and then a block point from Hinata, which brought the score back to a tie at 11 - 11. The score kept climbing slowly, with Shiratorizawa always taking the first point with Karasuno following close behind, until they managed to pull ahead with a break point at the twenty-point mark. Karasuno was up 22 - 21 when Yamaguchi came up as a pinch server.
"He's really grown up," Akiteru remarked as Yamaguchi moved to his spot on the outside of the court, preparing for his serve.
Mikaela nodded eagerly. "I know, right? I've only known him for a few months and he's changed so much."
To her surprise (and absolute delight), Yamaguchi's serve was success in flustering the other team, and Tsukishima pulled off a delayed spike to get them another break point, making the score 23 - 21. As the team congratulated him, Tsukishima glanced up at the stands and nodded at her before turning back to the team. Mikaela felt her face heat up.
"Did you have something to do with that play?" Akiteru asked as Saeko harassed Shimada for more information about what just happened.
She nodded, feeling the blush in her cheeks. "W- Well, when we were at the training camp, I suggested that he learn that because it's an asshole move."
Akiteru laughed. "Well, you're not wrong."
"He pulled it off perfectly," Mikaela said triumphantly, folding her arms and resting them on the railing. "And Kageyama synced up with him perfectly too."
The next point went to Shiratorizawa thanks to Ushijima, but the play afterwards, Kageyama went to set for Tsukishima and ended up sending it a bit too high. Thankfully, Tsukishima managed to snap out his arm at the last second to tip the ball gently over the net.
"So much for Kageyama syncing up with him perfectly," Takinoue muttered.
Mikaela shot him a glare. "Oi, he's tired, give him a break."
YOU ARE READING
How to fly with clipped wings (English ver.) HAIKYUU!! FAN FICTION
Fanfiction"You can't play volleyball anymore." To which she replied, "Watch me." The accident that destroyed her dreams is what forces Kageyama's cousin to transfer to Karasuno. Between family, school, and health problems, she's got a lot on her plate- but sh...
