I never imagined I'd go to school on a Saturday. Suga had asked me to go, since they were going to play a training match against Nekoma. My parents had thought about sending me to Nekoma, but decided on Karasuno in the end.
I was very excited to see the match for two reasons. Firstly, I wanted to see how they played against other schools. And secondly, if I got permission, I could photograph a real match with real opponents.
I finished eating breakfast quietly, because I didn't want to wake my parents up. That's why I almost had a heart attack when my phone rang.
"Hey." Said Ishida. Of course it had to be Ishida.
"Hey," I said quietly.
"Why are you talking like this?" he imitated my tone.
"Because my parents are asleep."
"Did you take lover boy to a proper date?" he said. He could be annoying sometimes.
"My boyfriend and I played volleyball and we had the best time."
"Ooh, boyfriend?" I could almost hear his smirk. "Was there a kiss?"
"Aren't you annoying?"
"But was there?"
"Yes," I admitted. And I told him about our date.
"I knew it!" Then he sighed dramatically. "You took away all the fun, though. I was going to present you to some candidates, but you'd end up falling for that one boy I didn't like. But you two would fight for your love and be happy together."
"You've seen too many movies," I laughed. "That's so cliché."
"Excuse me? Your sunset kiss is cliché and not my amazing plan. Anyway, I told my girlfriend I was going to meet her today, so I gotta go."
"Bye."
I hung up and sighed. Ishida and his two-minute calls...
I took a quick shower, got dressed, grabbed my camera and went to Karasuno high school.
"Hi, y/n," said Shimizu.
"Hello, my friend. Are you excited? I am excited. Do you think they'll let me take photos? It'll be great for my project," I said very fast.
"Slow down," she said, laughing. "Yes, I am excited. And I don't know about your project, but you should ask. They'll be here in ten minutes."
"Great." I said hi to the rest of the team and when Suga saw me, he hugged me, making me blush.
"I'm glad you're here," he said.
"I'll be rooting for you. You are going to play, I'm sure of it."
His warm smile always made my day brighter. More members of the team arrived and began to warm up.
"So, Sugawara, huh?" said Shimizu.
"Yeah... Wait, what?"
She laughed lightly. "I think you make a good couple."
"Thanks," I simply said.
A couple minutes later, someone came to me.
"Hi, y/n," said Yamaguchi. "Nice to see you. I just wanted to say that I'm okay with you taking pictures of me."
"Thank you. It's nice to see you, too." I was very happy that he had opened up to me. However, I didn't think his friend Tsukishima was very fond of me yet.
"Kenmaaa!" Hinata yelled and went out.
The cats were here.
Our team had played against them on another occasion, but I hadn't seen the match. The girls had told me about it.
Daichi and the captain (who's name was Kuroo, I believed) shook hands. Tanaka and a guy who was almost as bald as him almost started crying, everything they did in perfect sync. Nishinoya went to say hi to a short guy, who I assumed was the libero. Hinata was talking to the one he'd called Kenma. While Hinata's eyes were shining with excitement, Kenma seemed much less enthusiastic, but I could see he was happy, too.
"Who is she?" Asked Kuroo, referring to me. " She wasn't here last time, was she?"
"I'm y/n, thrilled to meet you," I said. "I'm here for my important photography project. I need your permission to take pictures of the match."
"Anyone against?" Kuroo asked his team. No one talked. "Nice to meet you, y/n."
We all entered the gym. I decided I liked this team.
"Hey, Hinata," I tapped his shoulder. "Would you mind telling me some names? I know the captain is Kuroo and your friend is Kenma."
"Of course!" he answered, and explained who they were. He didn't know everybody, but in the end I got it more or less.
Tanaka's friend was Yamamoto and Noya's was Yaku. The tall first year was Lev. I got some other names like Fukunaga, Inuoka, Shibayama and more. I'd learn them eventually.
The teams got onto position and I took out the camera. Nevertheless, I sat on the bench with Suga and the second year extras.
I wanted to rest my head on his shoulder and let him stroke my hair, but I knew I couldn't, so I just grabbed his hand and he intertwined our fingers.
"Weren't you going to take photos?" Suga asked.
"Yes, but I have to watch them first, to get the best shots," I framed a picture with my hands. "You have to imagine your eyes are the camera. When you blink, you take a picture. It might seem stupid, but that's how I got a good vision of the space around me."
"Interesting," he said. "That's good, because now you stay here with me."
I grinned at him and we concentrated on the match, holding hands.
Karasuno was good. But Nekoma was, too. The court was filled with tension.
Kenma's coolness and intelligence to deceive the blockers combined perfectly with Kuroo's spikes. Not to mention Yamamoto's strength and Yaku's ability to save the most difficult balls.
I commented the game with Suga. He told me the differences between this match and the one I hadn't seen and I told him about my observations and the things I wanted to photograph.
The first set finished. Nekoma was winning. I didn't want to disturb them, but I decided it was the best time to start working.
I moved as quietly and stealthily as I could. This was all very exciting. I loved seeing the shirts in different colours. However, I tried not to get too close to the other team, because they weren't used to me being around.
Yamaguchi almost nailed his serve, which might have been a bit discouraging, but the picture had been perfect. Yaku's receives, Lev's blocks, Kuroo's spikes and more were also perfectly photographed.
The match ended 2-1, Nekoma being the winner.
"Let's play another one," said Hinata, suddenly.
"Yeah, let's," said Kageyama.
"Do you want to lose again?" Kuroo laughed. "Bring it on!"
The team must have been motivated by that: they won 2-0.
"I say we go for a tie breaker," Lev said.
"Another one?" That was coach Ukai.
"Fine with us," said Daichi.
This one was tougher, though. The players were tired and both teams were getting used to the other one. Coach called Suga. Two minutes later, he was holding a sign that indicated the change of setters.
I squeezed his hand and murmured a good luck before he gave the sign to a frustrated Kageyama. Coach talked to him and he sat to watch his senpai, to learn. Their determination never ceased to surprise me.
Suga's presence changed the way our team played. It wasn't better or worse, just different. Another style. I hoped he was seeing my reassuring smiles. I believed in him.
Coach made the change again for the last set and Suga sat next to me on the bench again.
"You did great," I said and kissed him on the cheek, making him blush.
"Thanks. I'm really happy to have had the chance to play," he said.
We continued to watch the match. It was very tight, but Karasuno finally won. Both captains shook hands again and the players thanked the competition.
Nekomaaa!
I've decided to publish 2 chapters weekly so here it is!
Pls vote and comment :D