Colours of the Snow | Yuki Ishikawa

7

Volleyball Nations League 2021.

I woke up as early as 5 AM. This event has been sucking out all my energy. I feel drained from coordinating personnel and monitoring games lasting until late at night.

Keeping a close eye on everyone's movements is crucial. The organizers are going above and beyond to ensure the safety of all participants. The pace of the event is relentless, with matches happening practically every hour on the two courts in the venue, some even stretching late into the night, as late as 9 PM.

That's why I have been sleeping the earliest at midnight recently, and I wasn't able to properly watch any of the games.

Despite being in the same location, I haven't had the chance to meet up with Yuki yet.

It would have been better to stay in Milan and live-streamed all of Japan's matches.

Yesterday, they won against the Netherlands, but I couldn't watch the match. All I could do was to congratulate Yuki over the phone.

The following morning, just as I finished getting ready at 6 AM, I received a message from Yuki. 'Are you already up? Call me if you are.'

I missed my Yuki, so I called him right away. He also picked up immediately.

"That was fast, Eri," he greeted.

I longed to hear his voice. "I miss you," I said with a tinge of sadness.

"I miss you too. How are you these days? Can I drop you a visit? I have been wanting to see you."

"I have to report before 7 AM. Get here quickly. See you in a while!"

Without further ado, he ended the call.

I occupy this room alone since we, coordinators, communicate to various people in this bubble. We are very prone to the spread of disease if that happens, so we have our own rooms in case of immediate quarantine.

Five minutes later, Yuki arrived. As I opened the door, he dashed towards me and enveloped me in a tight hug. We stood there, silently embracing each other before I finally spoke.

"How are you?" I asked, breathless and filled with anticipation.

"As usual, I'm doing well. But I've been worried about you," he confessed.

"I'm sorry. We haven't had much time to talk lately because I've been running around like crazy. But I've been keeping up with the news about you and your team. Congratulations on your victory yesterday!" I said.

He patted my head, "Thank you. But the I came here to check up on you. Even though you might not have seen me, I've always had my eyes on you."

I squinted my eyes at him. "How? Did you stalk me?" I was very curious. What is this Ishiwaka doing?

He chuckled. "Ai. You didn't know you were all around the area--from the hotel's lobby, dining hall, and parking to the game venue courts."

"How did you manage to spot me?"

"I always find you in a crowd. My eyes are drawn to you," he said, winking mischievously.

"Elaborate, please," I insisted, still puzzled about how he could have seen me amidst the crowd.

"Yesterday, I spotted you at Rimini Fiera and also at the hotel while you were dining. You're always so easy to find during meals," he explained.

"Wow, you're lucky to have seen me. I only saw you once. That's not fair."

"I am indeed lucky." He hugged me again. "But please take care of yourself. You've been pushing yourself too hard, and I don't want anything wrong to happen to you--not when I cannot come to you immediately."