I never do one of these beforehand, but I just wanted to say that this is almost the end of this book. After this, there'll only be an epilogue of sorts to end this first book. And because this is the last 'real' chapter, prepare yourselves.
Because this one will be long AF. Enjoy reading!
* * * * *
"What's going on with you?" Kei asked.
I took a sip from my water and glanced up at him. "It's nothing." I said. I closed my eyes and forced myself to relax.
Kei narrowed his eyes at me. "Tell me." he said.
I huffed and looked up at him. "I'm fine." I said. Before he had a chance to talk, I walked over to the others. My eyes found Toru's quickly as I glanced to the other side. He smirked at me, his eyes having a devilish glint to them. He knew I was trying to figure him out, but he also knew I couldn't.
The second set was about to begin and I made my way to the court. "Akira." coach said, stopping me. I looked over my shoulder, raising an eyebrow at him. "You won't be playing this set." he said. "You need to get whatever you're thinking off out of your mind." he told me.
My hands tightened into fists and my eyes darkened as I made my way back to the bench. I sat down, clenching the fabric of my jersey in my hand as I looked down. The constant buzzing of my phone rang through my head.
I only snapped out of it when I heard the team cheer. I looked up and saw Koushi congratulating Kei. 'He scored and I didn't even notice.' I thought. 'I need to get this out of my head.' I thought. I slowly exhaled and allowed myself to calm down. I grabbed my bag and searched for my phone. When I found it, I turned it off before throwing it back into my bag.
The relief spread over me quickly when I didn't hear its buzzing anymore. "Then, if they were able to hit the ball with a 100% of their abilities... Don't you think they'd be able to break through the block?" I heard Chikara say. I glanced at Tobio, Shoyo and him as he said that.
It was like a switch had finally flipped in Tobio's head. A small smile appeared on my face, but it soon dropped when I heard the screaming of fangirls. That could only mean it was Toru's turn to serve. When I looked at the court, he had the ball in his hands, a taunting smirk on his face.
Yuu and Daichi were the only ones in the back; The only ones to receive. I watched as the ball sped towards them. Daichi was quick to react and saved the ball just in time. Koushi tossed the ball to Ryuu, who spiked passed the two blockers in front of him. A smirk spread on my face and I fist-pumped just a little as I watched the team cheer.
Toru's streak had been broken.
I watched Asahi spike and hit the blockers' fingertips. It went out, which meant a point for us. It was 14-13 at this moment, both teams going head to head. I could tell Koushi as giving his all. He wanted to stay on the court, but, looking at Tobio, I could see the same desire burn within him.
I watched as coach called Tobio to him. 'Koushi's only got about one more play left.' I concluded, my eyes narrowing. He tossed to Asahi, who completely broke through Kindaichi's, Yutaro's, block. Then it was time for Koushi to change and Tobio came back in the match.
With Tobio back in the game, everything went quite fast. He attempted to communicate with the others, giving high-fives and asking them how they'd like their tosses to be. His concentration was top notch, and he even managed to sync with Kei. His face when Tobio agreed to try and sync with him was definitely worth it.
Naturally, the second set went to us. Now the third set was going to be the decisive factor of this match. The look Toru sent us as he walked back onto the court sent chills down my spine. So full of determination, desperation and bitterness. He wanted to beat Tobio so badly.
The rallies were long and we barely managed to keep up. Toru was up to serve again. I narrowed my eyes at his blank face. There was no way I could read him like this, at least not like I could before. I needed more time.
He served, Daichi receiving it. The ball went up and Tobio tossed it to Asahi, who slammed the ball down. Seijoh managed to save the ball, but it was long and it seemed to cross to our side. Shoyo jumped to push the ball over, but Toru managed to get his hands behind the ball and still toss it to Hajime. With Hajime's spike, Seijoh score yet another point.
Coach called a time out and we all gathered around him. "It looks like they're getting used to attacks that cut into the middle." he said. "Use all sides of the court." he said.
"Right!" they chorused before going back to the court.
I bent over, resting my elbows on my knees as I watched the set continue. We were playing to the best of our abilities, which is exactly why I could see the difference in strenght between our teams. It was truly frustrating.
Kei did a feint and scored, making me smile a bit. Ryuu scored not much later and then it was time for Shoyo to go back in. Toru watched intently as the small boy returned to his position on the court. His eyes were narrow, gleaming with annoyance and a slight uneasiness.
And his uneasiness was correct. Shoyo sprinted up to the net, suddenly changing his cours and running along the net. He jumped high while Tobio tossed his King's Toss to him. Shoyo spiked and earned our team a point. I let my head fall back as I closed my eyes. 'It's so frustrating... I want to be out there too.' I thought. I wanted to win; I had to win.
They sure listened to coach Ukai, seeing as Tobio used every side of the court as much as possible. While fatigue set in, Shoyo kept jumping. He knew it would delay everyone else if he was even one step behind.
He jumped again, the blockers jumping up to block him, determined to stop the ball. Unfortuneatly for them, Tobio tossed it to the backline, where Asahi jumped and slammed the ball down on the other side of the court.
Another time out was called and we were tied 15-15, finally. I held up a bottle of water for Kei to take. He nodded at me as he grabbed it and drank. "You seem better." he said.
I glanced up at him and smiled a bit. "Yeah, I am." I said. I looked at the others, who were talking and drinking. "I was simply distracted by my father." I told him.
"You shouldn't be. It's you own life, he can't control it. Not if you don't let him." he said as he sat down beside me.
Our arms touched, and I felt the heat spread to my cheeks. "Yeah... I guess so." I said. From the corner of my eyes, I saw him look at me. His eyes had a mix of emotions I'd never seen before. They were blank, yet I could see everything. Confusion, determination, annoyance... Everything about him seemed to be so clear to me in that moment.
"See something you like?" he asked, a cocky smirk on his face.
"Your eyes..." I trailed off. "They're so clear to me." I said. "You're like an open book to me, Kei." I told him.
His eyes widened as he stared at me. We were silent, me still observing his eyes, trying to figure out what else I could see in them. We only snapped out of it when the whistle blew. He stood up and jogged back to the court, not once looking back.
I heard a chuckle from beside me. When I looked up, I saw Koushi and Tadashi laughing at me. "It's so obvious you like him." Koushi said with a grin.
I tensed up, looking away awkwardly. "Is- Is it that obvious?" I stammered. All of those on the bench nodded at me and my face grew even hotter. "Well then..." I mumbled.
The whistle blew and the set continued. Yuu received the ball and Tobio tossed it to Shoyo. Nobody marked the boy as he jumped to spike the ball. My eyes quickly glanced at Seijoh's libero, who crouched down and got ready. 'They haven't given up on Shoyo's spike... They intend to break it.' I thought.
The libero smiled and easily received the ball. I huffed as I fixed my eyes on Toru. "I knew it." I whispered. Then, I felt a hand on my shoulder. I blinked and looked up at Shimizu, who motioned to coach.
"You got your act together?" he asked me, a smirk on his face.
A sly smirk appeared on my lips as I nodded at him and stood up. My eyes zoned in on the court as I stepped up to the white line seperating me from the others. I held up Yuu's number and we quickly changed.
I walked up to my position and crouched a bit. I closed my eyes and exhaled slowly, relaxing my muscles and trying to put my thoughts into the back of my mind. Opening my eyes, I looked Toru right in the eye. We stared at each other blankly, both with the full intent to show the other who's boss.
I held my hands beside me as I fixated my gaze on the ball in Toru's hands. Toru threw the ball up and slammed it down. 'It's short!' I realized and sprinted forward. But my realisation was to late and the ball hit the net, falling onto our side. I scoffed as I returned to my position.
He served the ball again. I bent through my knees, almost hitting the ground as I received the ball. It went up, but not the way I wanted it too. "Cover!" I yelled, standing up as I watched Tobio and Asahi run to the ball. They stopped and Tobio quickly sent the ball to Asahi, who managed to get it over the net.
I bit my lip. 'That was way too close.' I thought as I watched the two of them stumble around. We rallied again, diving and saving the ball time after time. I ran under the ball, contemplating who to sent the ball to. "Center!" I heard Shoyo yell behind me. 'I'm counting on you, shrimpy.' I thought as I sent him the ball.
He spiked the ball, but Seijoh blocked him. And that's when coach called our last time out of this set. I jogged to the bench and grabbed my towel. A bottle of water was held into my sight and I grabbed it, gratefully gulping some down. "Thanks." I said, glancing at Kei.
He shrugged as he drank his own water. I put the bottle down on the bench and looked down at my leg. The constant rallying didn't do much good to it. It was already starting to ache from the constant strain I had to put on it.
"Your leg okay?" Kei asked.
Shaking my head lightly, I sighed. "Not if we continue to rally like this." I said. Then the whistle blew and we all returned to the court.
The match went on, and to Toru's delight, Shoyo moved to the backline. Then the whistle blew again and we all looked to see Tadashi holding up Shoyo's number. My eyes widened just a bit. 'Pinch server? But... he's not ready for that yet.' I thought as I glanced at coach questionably.
When I looked back at Tadashi, he stood with the ball in his hands. He was trembling, his eyes wide as he looked around the court.
"Tadashi." I said. The boy snapped his head up to look at me. I exhaled slowly before plastering a real, wide grin on my face. "You got this." I said. I watched as his eyes widened and his posture relaxed just a little bit. I turned around to the team, still a smile on my face.
Even they looked shocked, but Kei, he looked the most shocked out of all of them. "Come on. He can do this." I said. Then, I quickly changed my smile into a smirk and crouched into position. The others snapped out of their dazes and nodded, getting in position as well.
Tadashi threw the ball up and served. My eyes saddened when I watched the ball hit the net and fall to the ground. He walked off the court, his head down as he apologized. When you're in such a position, where all pressure's on you, there's nothing you can say to make someone who failed feel better.
'But there might be one thing...' I thought. "Make sure you get it next time, Tadashi." Daichi and I spoke as he walked passed us to join the others at the bench. He stopped and looked at all of us on the court, tears in his eyes.
"Right!" he said.
I smirked lightly when I felt the pressure being lifted off our shoulders. 'Thanks, Tadashi.' I thought as I closed my eyes for a second.
And then the rallies started again. I was panting heavily, but I wasn't about to give up. Sweat trickled down my neck, my legs shook with exhaustion. My leg had been throbbing for the past ten minutes already. A dull, never-ending ache. But no way in hell I was giving up.
Then, Hajime scored. The court seemed to become dead-silent as all eyes turned to the scoreboard. Seijoh was at match point. The ball was served by Ryuu, and Seijoh returned it. The power behind their spikes was incredible, and Ryuu only managed to touch the ball, sending it into the air.
The ball almost crossed over to the other side of the net when Tobio tossed the ball with one hand. Shoyo spiked the ball right over Toru's head, and scored. Now we were tied, it was a deuce. "We're not going to lose this easily, Toru. We'll be the best." I said with a wicked grin.
After a small break, the match continued. The endless rallies continued, and the worst part of it was that both teams were determined to win. No one gave any ground, no one got that two-point lead. We soon reached thirties and all of us were running, jumping, spiking on our last power.
Mine had run out a while ago, I was ready to faint right there. I kept my eyes fixed on Toru, observing his every move. I knew I was getting closer to reading him. Closer to being one step ahead of him like the both of us had been in our junior high.
Now it was his turn to serve again. He was thinking about something, something beyond us as his opponent. "Someone who can't see the opponent right in front of him, can't defeat the opponent that lies beyond." Hajime told him. That was all Toru needed to get back in his concentration.
And what concentration it was. I felt suffocated by his demeanor. His glare bore right into my very soul. He served what was probably the best serve he'd done today. Daichi barely sent it up and got it to the other side of the net, where Seijoh was waiting.
Toru tossed the ball to the one no one had been expecting. He tossed to Kunimi, who shared my first name, and he spiked it. Tobio sent the ball up, but once again it crossed over to the other side. Toru tossed it to Kunimi again and he did a feint. Tobio dived, but failed to receive the ball.
Now, Seijoh was at match point again, and unfortuneatly for us, Toru was serving. He served, but feinted it at the last second. Daichi dived and sent the ball back up. We couldn't do a quick, but Tobio managed to pass it to Asahi, who slammed his hand against the ball.
The ball touched the fingertips of Seijoh's blockers and their libero saved it. Toru tossed to Hajime, who spiked it. Ryuu received the ball with his shoulder and sent it back up. The ball flew over to the other side of the net, Yutaro jumping up and spiking the ball.
'I'm not letting you win, damn it!' I thought as I dived, saving the ball as I glared up at Seijoh. I jumped up and looked at Toru. Then I saw it, his eyes that were so sure, so calm. The eyes of a winner. My eyes widened as I watched Shoyo jump up to spike. Three blockers moved and than I knew Toru hadn't failed to plan ahead.
I put all the power I had left into my legs as I watched the ball bounce off the block. A surge of pain shot through my leg, tears springing into my eyes as I pushed through and dived. The ball fell down in slow motion...
And bounced off the floor.
The court was silent. Not a single whisper could be heard. The shrill whistle of the referee cut through the air like a knife before the cheers broke out on Seijoh's side. I couldn't move, my limbs were paralyzed. My eyes were blank, my lips in a thin line as my whole body simply laid on the cold floor of the court.
I heard the captain talk with Shoyo and Tobio, but I couldn't register what he said. I could hear someone talk to me, but I couldn't hear passed the cheers. Like I had jumped in an icy lake, I came back to my senses. I disgarded the hand in front of me and stood up, closing my eyes as I walked to line up.
We bowed before joining back at the center to shake hands. Two familiar hands appeared in front of me. I stared at them before looking up at the owners. Their eyes were filled with sorrow as they looked at me.
"I'm sorry, Queen. But you aren't the best." he said. His words cut through me as both of them grabbed my hands.
"Akira... We're leaving." I heard someone say.
I let go of Toru's and Hajime's hands before looking over my shoulder. Coach looked at me, staring like everyone else. I nodded and turned my back to the two of them, walking to the bench. 'Why...? Why wasn't I faster? Why couldn't I save it? Why?!' I questioned as I grabbed the strap of my bag tighter.
* * * * *
I watched the food in front of me. Everyone else was eating their grief away, but I couldn't force the food down my throat. I closed my eyes, feeling tears well up and quickly stood up.
"Akira?" Asahi asked.
I ignored him as I walked outside and slammed the door shut behind me. The cold night air chilled me as I closed my eyes, letting my head fall back. I heard the door open behind me and I could feel someone stop beside me.
I didn't need to open my eyes to know who it was. "It was my fault, you know?" I said softly. "If only I had been faster, figured him out quicker..." I trailed off as I let the tears flow down my cheeks.
"This wasn't your fault." Kei said.
Opening my eyes, I looked up at him, staring into his eyes. They radiated nonchalance, and they made me furious. "Why?" I asked. He rose an eyebrow at me. "Why aren't you angry...?" I asked him.
He shrugged. "'Cause I don't care if I win or not." he said.
I looked down at the ground, my fists clenching as I gritted my teeth. I trembled with anger as I lashed out at him and grabbed the front of his shirt. "Why don't you care?!" I raged. "Winning is everything!" I yelled. "Why?!" I screamed into his face.
His eyes widened just a bit as he looked down at my dishevelled form. He lifted his hands, putting them on my shoulders as he pushed me off. "Calm down. It's fine if you don't win." he said.
"It is! If you don't win, you're nothing!" I hissed.
He looked me dead in the eye, his golden eyes calming me down. "Calm yourself, woman. You should stop being brainwashed by your dad. He's not worth it if he makes you feel like this." he said.
My eyes widened and my shoulders relaxed under his hands. The tears stopped flowing as I stared up into his eyes. The breeze picked up a few strands of my hair. His warm hands protected me from the cold air.
I chuckled a bit. I felt him shift and looked up at him. "Why do you calm me, Kei?" I whispered. He rose his eyebrow, tilting his head to the side. "Why did it have to be you?" I asked as I took in his tall, lean form; His hypnotic eyes and his messed-up hair. I closed my eyes, feeling the light hold of his slightly dry hands on my skin.
I shuffled a bit closer to him, opening my eyes as I brought my hands up to the back of his head. I stood on my toes and moved in closer to him. "Why did it have to be you I fell for...?" I whispered. I pressed my lips against his rough ones.
There were no fireworks, not bombs. The only thing that mattered were his hands slipping down to my waist as he kissed me back. Our lips molded together as we finally released the long bottled-up feelings inside us.
We slowly broke away, forehead against forehead as we panted lightly. "Took you long enough." he said. "I knew you liked me." he said. A smirk slowly spread onto his lips as he straightened himself up.
My mouth fell open as I looked at him. I shook my head as a few chuckles escaped my lips. "Only you, Kei... Only you." I said.
"You didn't lose though." he said suddenly.
I snapped my head up, raising an eyebrow. "What do you--" I said.
"You won the most important battle. The one within yourself, am I right?" he asked.
I looked down, staring at my feet. 'The battle within myself... I won against my father; I stood up to him. I won against my handicap; I can still play... I won... the battle of my feelings; I have him now...' I thought. A genuine, wide smile spread onto my face as I looked back up at Kei and nodded.
"You're right, Kei. I carried the day, after all."