《Til' the Ball Hits the Court》MCYT Volleyball AU

∥One - Newbies∥

The pivot of new shoes against the court for the first time sent a bead of sweat down Clay's face. He planted his feet and jumped up, reaching his arm back and swinging forward to make contact with the ball that had been tossed at him. The ball slammed into the palm as he followed through in the air, letting it fly across the net, brushing the tip ever so slightly, before knocking into the floor on the other side. A body collided with the ground, arms outstretched, just missing the ball.

"Nice one," Leo called, hopping to his feet and stopping for a second to fix his knee pads before shagging the ball. Clay turned to where Callum stood and gave him a nod.

"Give me another one," he said, resuming his position at the edge of the court. Leo tossed Callum the ball and ran back to the court, arms outstretched in front of him. The libero let his fingers brush the ground and lowered his crouched position further.

"C'mon, gimme the ball, I won't miss this time." Callum rolled his eyes at the remark and tossed the ball straight up above him before setting it towards Clay again. He followed the same set up as he lunged for the ball, feet secured to the ground in an order engraved into his mind after endless practice. Left, right, left. The ball shot across the net, this time straight at Leo's chest where he planted his feet and popped the ball up effortlessly.

"Told ya!" He said, pumping his fist in the air. Callum rolled his eyes again and left his place at the ball cart to shag the ball as the ginger was too busy doing a victory dance and pointing at Clay who stood in defeat. The sound of footsteps came from down the hall and seconds later a new group entered the gymnasium.

"Aye! You guys starting without us?" Nick asked, jogging into the gym and throwing down his bag and water bottle on the side of the court. George followed behind, sitting down next to him and slipping on his shoes. Leo perked up and ran over to them, spinning in circles before prying himself between the two, an arm thrown around each of their shoulders.

"Ayee! The gangs back together!" He announced, grinning like a mad man. Nick laughed and pushed his arm away leaving Leo to dramatically fall on top of George.

"The newbies not here yet?" Nick asked, smirking at George who was struggling beneath Leo. The other two jogged to where they stood on the sidelines, Clay shaking his head.

"Not yet, we're the only ones here so far," he responded with a nod coming from the Callum who was working on getting Leo up and off the poor britt. It was mid-July, around the time most of the national teams started practicing to get ready well before the actual tournaments started. This was the case for Nartoon's young adult men's team as they were finally granted official time slots for access to the gymnasium.

As if on cue, a new group consisting of four others walked into the gym together, lost in their own conversation. Clay waved them over and they obliged, still lost in their own speech.

"We're getting three new players, right?" George asked, shifting his gaze to the nodding Clay, finally rid of Leo's aggressive embrace. Nick slouched back and crossed his arms, rolling his eyes dramatically.

"Well they're late," he said in an exasperated tone. Leo shrugged and plopped down next to him, pushing him over by the shoulder to receive a push back. George scoffed and Callum rolled his eyes at the two.

"Children," He remarked, getting a nod from George as his face was overtaken by a small grin. When the new group reached the sidelines and were setting down their things, Clay clasped his hands together.

"Alright, we're missing four people, has anyone heard from Ant and-" Clay was cut off by a call from the door and he turned to where Ant and an unfamiliar face walked in.