A different Beginning? (Book 1 of Soaring Ravens) (discontinued)

Chapter 2

'thinking'

"talking"

normal

Author note/time change

emphasis

-_-_-_-_-_-

Every day of each of the first four weeks of high school were the same for Hinata. Go to class, don't pay attention because you learned all of this years ago (thanks Dad), don't talk to anyone, unless absolutely necessary, and practice in secret. 

Now, Hinata was known as that smart, short, silent, creepy red head. People avoided him in the halls, always a plus. People didn't ask to sit with him at lunch, yey. No one ever tried talking to him anymore, which was great. Life was good. Hinata didn't like hanging around others. He preffered to stay by himself and mind his own business. 

Life continued like this until Monday of his fifth week. 

Hinata walked towards the gym. When he went in, he started practicing again. First serves, then recieves against the wall, then he even tried setting a little bit (also bouncing it against the wall so it would come to him at the opportune place.) He was just finishing his 10'th spike when he faintly heard something that sounded like a little squeak, but dismissed it as his own breathe. Then, he threw the ball against the wall to set up for his 11'th spike, jumping as high as he could once more and slamming it onto the floor at an angle-a cross spike- all in the span of about 3 seconds.  

Hinata heard a gasp... he knew that wasn't his own breathing...

He slowly turned around, and saw the entire volleyball club staring at him in shock, door wide open behind them. His eyes darted to the clock... he was seven minutes late..

Tanaka's eyes then widened in recognition. 

"Hay, you're one of the first years that I asked to join the club the first day!" He pointed to Hinata, who looked like a cornered fox kit, small and afraid. Now they would surely ask him to join... he would have no argument, they would keep bugging him... and bugging him and he wouldn't be able to stand it! He didn't want to talk! He didn't want to play volleyball.. competitively! That would be like disonhoring his dad's memory, right?! how could he play volleyball without his dad!? (though deep down inside, Hinata knew that his dad would want him to just continue playing volleyball... Yet Hinata still felt sad from the crash.)

"Wait.." Tanaka continued, "if you didn't want to join the club, why are you playing volleyball? Why not join the club?" Now he had no way out of this... maybe he could just refuse?

"You know, if you join the club, you can play here whenever you want. Wait, have you been practicing everyday here?!" Tanaka exclaimed.

Hinata slowly nodded, still representing a quivering animal. By this time, all the other team members had been looking back in forth between Tanaka and Hinata, most of them still wide-eyed and a few of the older looking ones also with small, hopeful gleams in their eyes. 

"What is your name?" this time it was the setter from his first match, he looked somewhat apprehensive and Hinata could tell that he was trying to appear cool, calm, and collected. 

"Hinata Shouyou." The setter's eyes widened, then narrowed.

"I know you, you were in that first match from middle school. Yukigaoka, right?" Hinata nodded a bit. 

"You were the only good player on your team, you know." At this Hinata became mad, sure he was the only one on his team who actually wanted to play, but he was still very gratefull to, and still considered himself friends with the other five people he managed to rope together.

"You were the only self centered person on your team, you know?" Hinata practically growled. The setter's face contorted into a grimace and he looked like he was about to retort before the gray haired boy that Hinata remembered from earlier stepped between them. 

"Now now, there is no need to get so offensive, guys." he smiled. "Sorry, let's start over. I am Sugawara, and this is Kageyama-kun." he gestured to the setter.

"I'm Tanaka!!!" Tanaka grinned.

"My name is Daichi"

"I am Yamaguchi!"

"Tsukishima"

"You don't have any pinch servers or extra players?" Right after he said this Hinata winced. That was probably not the smartest thing to say, now they know that he isn't new to volleyball, especially with Kageyama's comment earlier.

Kageyama narrowed his eyes. "You wouldn't have thought that someone who didn't even want to join the club would know this much about volleball, hm?"

Hinata sighed, before starting to walk out the door, picking up his bag along the way... Only to find his exit blocked by Kageyama and Tanaka.

"Where do you think you're going?" Asked Tanaka. "Aren't you going to join the club?"

Sugawara started to protest, "Tanaka you shouldn't assu-" 

"Please join, we could really use someone like you! practice starts at 0900 tomorrow..!" Hinata's eyes widened and he remembered a cold night and soft gray eyes. 

'practice starts at 0900 tomorrow, I hope you won't be late.'

Hinata's eyes narrowed, he wished the second year hadn't said that.

"No." he started pushing towards the door again, slightly annoyed.

"Please just think about it?!" 

"No"

"Maybe you can just practice with us? Maybe then you'll want to joi-"

"Tanaka, that's eno-"

"I SAID NO!" 

Everyone gawked at the small first year who had finally had enough. He pushed them out of the way and bolted acrossed the lawn. Then he grabbed his bike, and sped away, leaving the volleyball club behind him gaping.