You abandon standing with Hajime and Tooru as the set comes to an end, your notebook full of the game that had just finished. Kindaichi, or Turnip Head, apologized about what had happened the last time you met. You weren't happy about the reminder, your skin crawling in agitation at both teams, but you let it slide, now it's the time to be supporting your team for their next match, not criticizing them for their past. You rush down the stairs, having spotted Karasuno leaving the court moments before. You shove your notebook into your bag, taking long strides towards the meeting area. As you approach, you spot Ukai and Daichi. You slow your pace, taking deep breaths as you approach Daichi's side.

"1:30? That long?" Daichi repeats back to Ukai, raising an unsure brow. His brown eyes skim read the paper given to him, displaying the times and teams.

"That's an hour and fifteen minutes." You speak up, eyebrows furrowed in thought. "I guess other teams haven't played yet, as there are only four courts and, like, forty teams playing. Daichi shifts back, knocking arms with Ukai as the elder swears under his breath.

"(F/n), what have I told you about doing that?" Ukai scolds, a crease forming between his brows. Why do you alway sneak up on people?

"The rambling or just existing?" You raise a brow, a cocky grin on your face. "Either way, it gives enough time to eat the orange slices!" You exclaim, grinning broadly as you stare ahead. You chuckle, giddy, as you clench your fists. "I cannot tell if I'm still pumped from the last match or excited for the next." You breathe.

"Glad to see you." Daichi chuckles airily, closing his eyes. "I'm expecting you to boost morale."

"Sure thing, Cap'n." You nod, looking up at him. You could hear the team ahead chattering away, Nishinoya helping Tanaka stretch and Kageyama and Hinata talking, loudly, as always. Ukai speaks, you barely catch it as your eyes dart around for a certain player. Two players in fact. Daichi informs the team of the starting time, and Ukai advises them on eating and re-hydrating. You dump the bag as the team begins conversing and approach Tsukishima.

"Moon, where's Gucci and Sat?" You question, worry clear in your eyes. The taller sighs.

"How rude. No hello, just straight to the point. Didn't your family teach you manners?" He places a hand on his hip, eyes half-lidded as he looks down on you.

"Yes, snark appreciated, but answer the question." You sigh back, bored of his attitude.

"They went out to get some air." He replies, seemingly bored as he walks away. You frown, lips pulling and eyes half-lidded.

"You're such an ass, Moon Moon." You fold your arms. He stops, peering at you over his shoulder. He appears to be leering, but you couldn't tell. His perpetual height always made it seem this way. You step around him, and the team, and snatch away some orange slices from the plastic box on the floor. You and Kiyoko had prepared them this morning. You grab a handful of napkins that sat beside it. Taking eight of them, you bundle them up and take diligent steps towards the exit, searching for Satoru and Yamaguchi.

You first catch a loud groan, then a lazy yawn with broad arm movements. "If there's anything more eye-catching than Satoru..." You mumble, turning your body towards the two. Satoru, despite his small frame, took up most of the seat with his spread legs, leaning back and placing his palms on the back of the bench. Yamaguchi, bless his soul, sat small, back hunched and knees together. The two seemed like opposites. You jog over, hands filled with oranges before stopping. You clear your throat, head falling to the side.

"If you want a seat, go find another bench." Satoru's voice is dark, not bothering to check who is speaking. From this, you deduce his annoyance.

"Sat, if you were a spice," His quickly looks to you, "you'd be vanilla." You give a smirk. "Now move your arm before I break it." His arm snaps back as Yamaguchi stares at you in shock.

"(F/n)-san, what are you doing out here?" Yamaguchi asks, turning to face you as you wedge yourself between them both.

"I've got food for you. Standing in that stuffy gym has made me parched." You smile, passing over three orange slices inside of a napkin.

"So, you stood there doing jack shit, like us?" Satoru snaps, as his arm grabbed the food the same way his voice grabbed your attention.

"Now I see what you're salty about." You roll your eyes. "And don't contaminate me with your sadness."

"We were just venting." Satoru defends, biting down on a slice.

"From the sounds of it, more like you." You whisper, covering it with a sweet smile. "And, both of you, come back inside. Even if it's just eating food, bond as a team." You belittle, shaking a finger. "You know how much Captain prioritizes bonding." Satoru sighs exaggeratedly, throwing his head back.

"Fine."

"Jesus, you sound like Mumen." You laugh, shaking your head.

"Mumen?" Yamaguchi repeats.

"Oh." You blink. "Oh, yeah. We have a little sister, and I call her Mumen. She likes bikes." You nod as if stating common knowledge.

"If you two are going to talk boring stuff, I'm gonna go find Shouyo." Satoru begins to jog off.

"Okay, be careful." You cup your mouth, shouting, only to see Hinata and Kageyama leaving the building with a volleyball. "So much for lunchtime bonding." You sigh, shoulders sagging. You look to where Satoru sat before, discarded orange skin and a scrunched-up napkin in his place. You frown.

"(F/n)-san?" Yamaguchi says lightly. You hum, looking to your own uneaten orange. You begin peeling it off the skin, then side eye Yamaguchi when he doesn't continue. "I'm listening."

"Oh, well, yeah." He holds his last bit of orange. You raise a brow. "Do you... no, never mind." You smile, letting out a huff of air through your nose.

"I don't know what my idiot of a brother said to you, but I assure you he meant no harm. You really shouldn't hold back." You comfort, bringing up a piece of fruit to nibble on.

"I've been practising... my serve." He says, eyes looking away as he hides behind his orange. You grin.

"I heard. Do you wanna show me when we get back?" You perk up, leaning towards him. He flushes, leaning back as he scratches his cheek.

"O-oh, if you wouldn't mind watching."

"Dude, I won't just watch." You grin. "Imma help you too. I know you've been putting in extra practice with Ukai's friend, but I studied alongside the Great King. The serving jumpy is his signature move."

"Thank you." He smiles. "And... serving jumpy?" He cocks a brow. You redden, laughing awkwardly.

"I see you have developed a Tsukishima." You point out his current facial expression. "I've... always had a difficulty with remembering names. What's it called again? Floating serve?" He laughs, nose wrinkled as he closes his eyes.

"It's a jump serve, (F/n)-chan."

"'Chan'?" You mimic, a coy look on your face.

"You can call me Tadashi!" He panics, back going rigid.

"Kun or san?" You question. His eyes are wide, unblinking.

"You're comfortable with calling me that?" He asks in disbelief.

"Well, yeah." You shrug, taking a bite and chewing. He's unresponsive, so you expand. "We're classmates, we eat together sometimes, and we're best of all teammates too if you count assistant coach as one. So, yeah, kun or san?"

"Kun, if you wouldn't mind? Seeming we're classmates and all." He gulps, looking everywhere but your face. You look down at your lap where you have neatly folded your rubbish in your napkin.

"Tadashi-kun." You speak, staring into the distance. "It sounds mean, but I'm honestly not trying to be." You now look dead straight into his eyes, face serious. "I know you don't hang around with girls." His body jolts at that. "So, if it's too hard for you, just imagine me as one of the guys. Lots of others do that, so I honestly don't mind. I'll do anything if it helps you." He's speechless for a moment. His mouth lays open, but his tongue wouldn't move. Tadashi Yamaguchi was at a loss for words. He curses inwardly, thinking that if Tsukishima were here he would make some comment and sort out this mess. You rise from the cement bench, turning to pick up Satoru's forgotten rubbish before holding a hand flat out to Yamaguchi. "Would you like me to take your rubbish?" You ask. He gets up quick, almost knocking his own rubbish onto the floor.

"No, no. I can do it." He approaches a nearby bin, you quickly catching up to him.

"Geez, Gucci. I almost forgot how tall you are. Your legs are powerful in stride." You joke, tossing rubbish into the bin. Idle chatter is what you had on the way back to the building, and you leave Yamaguchi with Tsukishima, along with a snide look. You now search for the member you have been worrying about the most today. He shouldn't be hard to spot, so you walk down the halls until you spot him, sitting on a bench, staring out the full window into the field, a view of Hinata, Satoru and Kageyama practising their volleys.

He sat with his hands in his lap, wringing his fingers together.

"Asahi-Senpai?" You call tentatively. He turns towards you, hair falling around his face. "Are you okay?" He forces a smile, unsure and awkward, before answering.

"Yes." His voice is flat, and your face falls. With a teasing smile, a brow raised, you ask.

"Then why don't I believe you?" You hum, and he gives a deep chuckle.

"You shouldn't have to worry." He looks back down to his hands. You laugh softly and seat yourself next to him.

"As your Assistant Coach, I do." You reason, folding your arms. "You know what's worrying me?" You ask him, and he looks to you. "The fact that the other teams have a really catchy, 'Go, go, let's go, let's go, Dateko' cheer." You huff. "The fact that it's so catchy, it gets stuck in my head and I can never forget their team name. It irritates me to no end, and the fact Karasuno doesn't have one makes me more conscious of the fact that people may forget us." It is silent for a moment, Asahi continuing to stare at the floor as you stand beside him, unsure. Then you chuckle, a hand going to rub the back of your head. "You know what, I realised it was dumb to worry. Because this year we have an amazing team, made of exceptional players. So, all the stages I went through when thinking about the catchy cheer, was pointless. The Oddball Duo has made us noticed, and we've been catching other teams attention with our plays." You let out a long sigh, head drooping. "And now I feel better for dumping my emotional baggage onto someone else. I'm sure your anxiousness is more reasonable than mine."

"No, no. Yours is normal and reasonable. Mine is selfish. Very selfish!" He points out, shaking his head.

"Yours is selfish? You'll have to tell me so that I can judge it." You raise a brow. "Because I don't think you're selfish. So, what's up?" He looks at you, quiet. "Is it No Brow's team?"

"Yeah..." He rubs his hair, making it into a worse mess. "More so that I've missed lots of practice. A month of training."

"Well, that's your fault." You frown, bracing your hands on the edge of the bench as you lean forward, trying to get a better look at his face. He stares at you in surprise, the blunt un-sugared words hitting him. "It is." You frown, the statement obvious. "You can't act like it isn't true, because of missing practice for as long as you did affect your play. But you didn't realise at the time you'd come back. So, it was reasonable to miss all that practice. But mainly, you didn't want to lose. And if you don't try, you won't lose." You lean back. "So, you're really just scared of failure, especially after all your spikes were blocked." His shoulders slumped.

"Oh."

"But," You sing. "Our worries are solved by the same thing. The first years." You point out. "People that saw our first match, or even heard about it, know to watch out for 'the shorty number 10'. Kageyama, on the other hand, is a skilled setter that can accommodate for other plays. I think by having a notorious decoy and an accommodating setter will distract others, so when the time comes, I'm sure Kageyama will pass to you." You laugh bitterly. "Not that my words mean much. Also despite the fact we haven't really gotten closer as a team, and have no good moves. Just decent at the basics." You give a smile and a thumbs up. "But hey, the basics are the foundations of any team. So, don't feel too pressured, if you or Hinata miss, Nishinoya is there. One of the best libero's. We couldn't be a luckier team with our second and third years." You look down, humming in thought. "Now that I think about it, our team has some talented players, literally like everyone. They have such redeeming features."

"That's true." He nods.

"That includes you." You grin. "And I hoped I helped. Even a little." You look up at his hair. "Now, about your hair?"

"My hair band snapped." He holds out the broken piece of plastic with a sheepish look.

"Well, I think I can help with that." You get up, moving behind him. You pull up your sleeve to reveal three hair bands. Brown, black and white. "First off, you have thick hair and you're using a thin hair band." He looks over his shoulder at you, face puzzled. "My mother has really thick hair, so she only buys the thick hair bands."

"There's different types?" He asks.

"Yeah. I never realise until my mother complained to me for using hers. I'm guessing you've always used the thin hairbands?" You ask smugly. His face flushes, looking away.

"They always end up snapping."

"Well, with the thin ones you can do about two lopes, but thick you can do three! Here, have mine!" You pass it to him.

"Thank you very much." He takes it. "Umm... right." He eyes the band.

"You alright?" You ask, worried, bending forwards.

"I need a mirror."

"Use the bathroom."

"They're being cleaned."

"Oh." You tap your chin. "I can do it for you if you want?" You put your hand out cautiously.

"Are you alright with doing that?"

"Oh, come on. My hair doesn't look that bad." You chuckle, flapping your hand at him. He catches the joke and laughs too. He passes it over, and you put it around your wrist again before giving him a quick warning. "This will include me touching you, so be prepared."

"Of course, (S/n)-chan." He laughs. You brush his hair through with your fingers, bundling it up in your palm.

"A little tip, nothing to do with our current issue." You laugh forcefully, rolling your eyes. "But I read somewhere that to calm your nerves, you take a deep breath in four-five seconds, hold it for seven, then breath out for three, it helps lots."

"Really?" He asks. You hum in response.

"I use it a lot. It's also given me better lung capacity." You grin, finishing off the man bun. "Okay, bear in mind the only time my hair goes up is when I do a high ponytail, and I plat my sisters' hair, it may not be that good." You pat his shoulders. "Just remember what I said."

"(F/n))-chan, what are you doing over?" Daichi asks, appearing behind you. You jump back, standing on one foot with your arms awkwardly bent.

"Nothing suspicious." You reply, squinting, slowly lowering your limbs. "Hey, Nishi." You wave to the short boy. He stares at you blankly, then to Asahi. His silence unnerves you, but perhaps this is the way he prepares himself for a match since after middle school. Back then he always had his moments of silence.

"Let's go." Daichi orders, beginning to walk away. Asahi rises, and you both walk in tow as Nishinoya tails Daichi.