i waited in the stands of the sendai city gym for the game to start. since my surgery and whatnot.iI wasn't allowed to manage their game which was unfortunate, but i still came to support. they were going to play karasuno to see who would go to the next level. i was a little nervous after i heard the rumors about some crazy middle, their number 10, and their new setter, kageyama tobio. i'd briefly met him before, he was quiet, he was a little scary if i'm being honest. they'd taken down shiratorizawa which came as a shock actually, i knew they could beat seijoh, but shiratorizawa? if i'm being honest, i think this is a great match up, i know the boys are all really excited to play, probably scolding atsumu to not pull some crazy shit like he does at all the other games. I laughed at the thought of shinsuke telling him not to, having some crazy scary aura, but having a calm voice like always. i watched as karasuno walked out, they were wearing orange jerseys instead of their usual black ones, they all looked concentrated, ready to play. i'd seen some of their players before, their captain, number 1, their libero looked familiar, obviously their number 10 and kageyama. i looked at the door the boys would come in through, waiting anxiously for their arrival. finally i saw the door open and all of them walk out, i smiled lightly, giving a wave to which they all excitedly waved back,
"hi y/n!"
atsumu shouted at me, then osamu hit him in the back of the head and scolded him for yelling. i flagged shinsuke down, trying to catch his attention, but got aran's instead. i looked at him and pointed at kita who he told i was calling for him. he looked up at me, and i motioned to him,
"ask to serve."
he nodded his head and went back to warming up. soon after, captains were called, both shinsuke and karasuno's captain went up to one another, bowing slightly. i watched as he talked and then the two went their separate ways. shinsuke walked up to the coach and said something to him. he looked up at me and gave a thumbs up, i nodded my head. i knew atsumu would be serving first which was good, we needed a good serve to start, and he was definitely one of our best servers.
"fancy seeing you here."
i turned to my left,
"oikawa."
"the last name kind of hurts, y/n-chan."
he acted as though he was in pain,
"what're you doing here?"
i asked him,
"i'm here to watch the game, obviously. i want to see tobio get destroyed."
he glared at the younger setter on the court,
"anyways, shouldn't you be down there with your team?"
"i should, but i'm not allowed to yet. i'm not cleared to even go near a volleyball court. i'm kind of pushing my limits right now. i still wanted to come watch though and support my team."
"and your boyfriend?"
"and my boyfriend... wait, how do you know about that?"
i asked him,
"rumors fly, y/n. but that's beside the point. who do you think will win?"
"i'm not sure. i heard karasuno is pretty crazy this year, i mean, they beat you didn they."
i held in my laugh as he covered his face in defeat,
"look, you don't have to remind me about it."
"they also beat shiratorizawa which is honestly really shocking."
"i'm glad they did, now that stupid ushijima wount think he;s better than everyone."
"you really don't like him, huh?"
"he's always asking me why i didn't go to shiratorizawa and that i should've gone, it really gets on my nerves."
i laughed at the thought of the stoic captain telling oikawa that he should've gone to shiratorizawa.
"i'm not sure honestly, the boys have been putting in a lot of work this season, but from everything i heard, i'm a little on edge about this game."
"me too, i think karasuno can pull it off, but even if they do, your team won't go down easily, that's for sure. if anything i'll probably go to three and probably further than 15."
"i'm really hoping they pull through, i really don't want this to be the end for them."
i paused, watching as the official warm ups started,
"since you guys lost, you've retired haven't you?"
I asked him,
"yeah, it sucks having to be retired. i don't do anything anymore, i can't even go to the gym to practice because it's the basketball season."
he groaned,
"and it's not easy to find somewhere to go, you either have to pay a lot or just not go."
"well, look on the bright side, maybe you wont fuck up your knee even worse."
he tensed,
"mhm, don't think i never noticed, tooru."
"i probably need the break anyhow and i'm going to play again soon."
"yeah?"
"mhm, after graduation, i'm going to brazil."
i paused, looking over at him,
"brazil?"
"yep."
"wow, that's really great, i'm happy for you."
"so, if you ever find yourself in brazil, definitely let me know."
"i will."
we both watched as karasuno stepped onto the court,
"i really want shrimpy and the king to lose."
"you just hate everyone don't you?"
i laughed,
"more like friendly rivalry."
"It really sounds like hate, the way you're saying it."
the inarizaki side of the stands were filled, students and families, and then the karasuno side was empty, completely empty.
"so, where is iwaizumi at?"
"he said he was on his way, but i'm not sure he'll show."
I watched as a hand hit the back of his head,
"i'm right here shittykawa. hey, f/n."
"hi."
"no need to be so rude, iwa-chan!"
he sat on the other side of me, leaning back into the seat,
"so, who do you think will win?"
i asked him,
"hard to say, but honestly i'm kind of rooting for karasuno, no offense."
"none taken, they're pretty good."
the two teams lined up,
"they're starting."
i leaned forward in my seat to see better.
"let's have a good game!"
timeskip:
i was completely invested in the game. inarizaki had won the first set, but karasuno took the second. they were about to start a tiebreaker, i cried. oikawa looked at me like i was crazy, but i couldn't help it, he got to play. i was so happy, in all three years of playing with the team, he'd never stepped foot onto the court, but now he finally did.
flashback:
"guess what, f/n."
i glanced over at him as he sat beside me,
"what?"
"you're not guessing."
"okay, you got me a dog."
he stopped,
"did you want a dog?"
he looked dead serious as he asked me,
"no, I'm just kidding."
i laughed lightly,
"i don't know, just tell me."
i watched as he pulled something out of his bag, a shirt? he handed it to me,
"what is this?"
"just look."
i unfolded the shirt, the number 1 imprinted on it, i flipped it to see the front seeing the small line under the number,
"no way."
i smiled,
"i knew it would be you."
"jesus y/n-chan, why were you crying so much?"
tooru asked me,
"he got to play."
"is it really that shocking? isn't he the captain?"
"yeah, but he's never played in a game before."
i watched as they were about to start, he was back on the court again, they desperately need him that was for sure. they took a hit after they lost the last set, but i really, really hoped for this one to come out well, for them to fight through it and bring home the win. they started fast, just going back and forth the whole time, no one could get a solid lead. karasuno was up by one, one more point and they would win the game and move on the score ahd gone back and forth, they were now at the 30's, 31-30. i watched the serve go over the net, the boys attempting, doing everything in their power to get the point, then a shank. i watched as they desperately tried to get to it, but he was a second too late. the last whistle blew, they'd lost. i held my breath as they stood for a second. karasuno was celebrating, their third years crying, the rest of them overjoyed that they'd done it, but my team, they looked destroyed, all of them. they lined up one again,
"thank you for the game."
then they went up and stood before the crowd,
"thank you for cheering us on."
i stood up, grabbing the crutches from beside me,
"it was good to see you again."
i smiled as i looked at the two players beside me,
"i'll talk to you later."
"bye, f/n."
"bye, f/n-chan."
i walked towards the elevator, pressed the down button and looked around for the boys, until finally i saw them coming down the stairs. I slowly walked over, waiting for them to all come down. atsumu was crying a lot as he walked down, this was it. since they'd lost, the third years would retire soon, leaving just the first and second years.
"you guys did great."
i said as they neared, the third years were all on the verge of tears, but held it in, staying strong for the team. shinsuke stayed behind as everyone went to go get their stuff and head home,
"i can finally say that i've seen you play in an official game."
i smiled,
"and you did so amazing."
tears streamed down his face, i'd never seen him cry before, he usually kept his cool, but just this once he needed to let it out,
"come here."
i wrapped my arms around him, holding him tightly as he cried into my shoulder. his hands gripped the back of my shirt, as he tried his best to not completely fall apart,
"you were truly something else out there. i dont think i've ever seen the team so excited to play before."
i laughed lightly,
"we didn't lose because you got put in, because i know that that's what you're thinking right now. we lost because they were good, alright? it had nothing to do with you or anyone doing bad, they were just a little better this time. you all played beautifully, so, i can say this with confidence now,
i pulled away,
"it was because of you that they held it together, shinsuke."
i wiped his tears away,
"don't think otherwise."
a/n
so, only one more chapter left :/
I can honestly say that I will be crying after that, but I'm going to add and epilogue after just to ensure you get a good ending :)
as always, I hope you enjoyed, don't forget to vote and recommend!