CHAPTER EIGHT

      Misaki first met Iwaizumi and Oikawa when she was six, having moved from the concrete jungle that was Tokyo to the mountains of Miyagi.

      She remembered that she had been rather self-conscious, hiding behind her mother's legs as her parents introduced themselves to Iwaizumi's family, who lived just a turn down the road from them. Iwaizumi had been nice and introduced himself with a rather soft voice (this was much before he became the gruff Iwa she knew today) and had asked her if she liked volleyball. Misaki had nodded and muttered a quiet 'yes'.

      "Okay!" Iwaizumi had said with excitement. "You can meet one of my friends and the three of us can play volleyball together."

      Her parents had never been more eager to send her away with a stranger. But later it would turn out that her mom had gone to college with Iwaizumi's mom, so technically they had a connection there.

      Iwaizumi, though...he was loud, unlike her quiet cousin back in Tokyo. He smiled often, laughed loudly. And that was the reason kids wanted to be friends with him. But really, in their locality, there weren't many kids of their age. Instead, it was just Misaki, him and his friend.

      Who was his friend?

      Was Misaki friends with Iwaizumi already? (They were kids and kids formed friendships with few words, silence or excited sentences)

      His friend...his friend was Oikawa Tooru.

      From the start, Misaki disliked him. He was so loud, and this was not like the comforting loudness Iwaizumi had. And he was mean. He made fun of her hair and her front teeth that happened to be slightly crooked. She hated him; she really hated him. But he was Iwaizumi's friend and so she would try to be friends with him

      But Oikawa didn't like her either. For some reason, he was jealous of her though she had no clue what jealousy was back then. (The worst part then, was when they learnt they shared the same birthday)

      "I don't like you, because Iwa-chan always wants to play with you," He had said. "And I don't want to play with you."

      Stupid, kiddish reasons...but six year old Misaki thought Oikawa really hated her and so she cried. Then Iwaizumi hit Oikawa for making her cry and all was well in their little kiddish bubble.

      Then one day, when they were seven and old enough to go to the park alone, Iwaizumi fell sick due to the flu and it was just the other two playing in the park since they couldn't see their friend. Oikawa was on the only working swing and was refusing to step down and let Misaki take her turn, even though she kept on begging him. But this was Oikawa Tooru and he was stubborn.

      But Misaki refused to cry and neither would she be like the bullies who pushed people off swings to take an endless turn on it. So she quietly stood there, fiddling with her hands and let Oikawa take an everlasting turn. But Oikawa was Oikawa and if there was one thing he was as a seven year old, he was a little dumb even though he bragged that he was smart.

      He fell. And as he fell, his knee scraped against the ground. (The first in the line of the many minor and major knee injuries over the years)

      Seven year old Misaki wanted to laugh and make fun of him as revenge for all the times he had made fun of her. But she saw the tears swimming in his eyes as he refused to cry and all desires to make fun of him flew away. She quietly crouched next to him and held out her handkerchief (her favorite one at that, too).

      "You should use it," Misaki quietly said. "It will stop the hurting."

      "It won't!" Oikawa protested loudly. "It hurts really bad. It's bleeding!"

      "It's not," Misaki said, just as blunt as a child would be. She pointed towards his knee, that had just been scraped by the ground and there was no blood coming out.

      "Take it," She held out her handkerchief, saying her words with an insistent tone. "Tie it on your knee. It will help."

      "I don't want a girl's handkerchief; I'll get your germs!"

      "Okay, I'll take it back."

      Misaki went to put it back in her pocket, but Oikawa suddenly grabbed her leg. She looked at him curiously, but he refused to look at her eyes. A light blush covered his cheeks as he said something incomprehensible.

      "What?" Misaki asked. "What did you say?"

      "You do it!" Oikawa replied loudly, still not looking at her. Misaki looked shocked but she sat on the ground next to him and started tying the cloth around his not-so injured knee. She finished quickly and only heard a small 'thanks' in return.

      That was the turning point in their friendship. 

      Oikawa still made fun of her and Iwaizumi still hit him, but if anyone else at school teased her, now both of them would jump to her defense.

      This was the start of the tightly bound trio that was Misaki, Iwaizumi and Oikawa. The three went to volleyball games together and played volleyball together, though Misaki soon learnt she didn't have any athletic talent compared to the other two. But she was there, supporting them from the side, telling them all about these new volleyball videos she had watched. And slowly Misaki started changing too. She started being a little more confident, a little more loud. She wore braces in the last year of elementary school and by the end of their first year at Kitagawa Dai-ichi, the braces were gone and she had completely fallen into her role as the manager of the volleyball team.

      She was different now and different was good. Differences were always good. Till they weren't.

      In her eyes, Oikawa was the best volleyball player and the best setter she had seen. Iwaizumi followed right behind. And Oikawa started gaining popularity too; his stupidly pretty face got him a bunch of fangirls and many, many confessions. Some he rejected; one or two he accepted, only to get dumped later because of his commitment to volleyball. But he was good; more mature than seven year old Oikawa. Both Iwaizumi and him were incredible.

      But year after year, till their last year at Kitagawa Dai-ichi, they could not bring down the wall that was Ushiwaka. The last year came with another problem. From the moment he stepped on the court, Misaki realised that Tobio Kageyama was a genius setter in every way Oikawa was not. And the other setter knew that too.

      Oikawa Tooru was talented. But Oikawa Tooru was no genius.

      He worked hard, pushed himself...till he worked too hard and temporarily lost his place on the team to Kageyama.

        That was the first time Misaki saw him cry. Like actual, proper, tears down his face crying. And she wouldn't lie; it hurt more than his stupid teasing or some wound. It felt like someone had pulled on her heartstrings in the worst way possible. That was the first time Misaki learnt of his insecurities from his mouth (though she already had an idea about them).

      And that brought them to now. Oikawa's vow to beat Kageyama would come to fruition today.

      The match between Karasuno and Aoba Johsai was about to begin.

      It was hard to read what was going through Oikawa's mind right now, but Misaki knew it was one thing and one thing only. Defeat Kageyama and his team.

      Oikawa's expression was even more unreadable as he shook hands with Karasuno's captain, Daichi Sawamura. And strangely enough (or credits to Oikawa's stupidly pretty face), it seemed that a lot of the girls in attendance were on Seijoh's side.

      She smiled under her breath as she gathered the volleyballs being spiked by her team. And then, she watched with an amused smile as Kindaichi held back Iwaizumi who looked really mad at Oikawa. (So the usual, her mind said)

      The first whistle was blown and she went back to the bench, standing utterly straight as she stood next to the coaches. Both teams lined up. With another whistle, they bowed.

      "Let's play!"

      With a few words from their coaches, the team set off to play. But not before Oikawa said those few words he said before all their matches.

       "I believe in you."

      With those few words, the atmosphere of the team changed and the match finally began.

      'Let's go, Seijoh,' Misaki thought as she looked towards the team. 'You better win this. I believe in you all.' She had a feeling that Oikawa was trying to show off here a little and her feeling was absolutely correct, because instead of tossing the ball to Iwaizumi or Mattsun, he did a dump shot right in Karasuno's face.

      Misaki laughed a little, covering her mouth with one hand as she wrote down the point in her notebook.

      The next point went to Seijoh too. Then it was Karasuno's turn. Their super-fast number 10 went in for the toss, then Misaki realised that the bald guy was also going for it. 'Then who is he...? Not a back attack from their number 3?'

      But it was nothing like that. Kageyama did a dump shot of his own.

      'He's just as bold as always,' Misaki thought. 'This definitely feels like a setter vs setter battle.'

      And that it was.

      This match felt different than any other match Misaki had ever attended. Both teams were incredibly good, but there was something about Karasuno that made them a strangely difficult team to face. Seijoh won the first set, but Karasuno won the second and now the game was pushed into the last and final third set which would decide the winner.

      The match was a delight to watch, though she knew it was bringing up some old feelings and memories for Oikawa. But his analysis nor his play was affected. He was playing as he always did and so was the team, but at the same time, they were all putting in extra effort to take down the first year freak duo that was Kageyama and Hinata.

      Misaki was scribbling down every detail about this match in her notebook, watching the plays at the same time. Write and watch...write and watch...it was her usual routine, her duty as the manager.

       Final set and the intensity of the match had increased tenfold.

      More so, neither of the teams were letting the ball drop which meant long rallies. And long rallies meant tired players; tired players meant mistakes would end up happening. Misses would happen. But the match hadn't ended yet.

      There was still time; time for Seijoh to score, time for her team to show their strength. (these were the moments she wished she could also play; she was pretty confident in her receiving skills and maybe she could try spiking)

      24-24. A deuce. Misaki hated this; even sitting on the bench, just watching it made her tired. And moreover now, watching the number 10 of Karasuno run all over the scared made her feel even more so. Just how much stamina did that kid have? It definitely seemed like he was one of those athletes with monstrous stamina.

      'This is so not a normal match anymore,' Misaki thought as she watched the baldy from Karasuno do his serve. 'This feels more of a national level match; yes, definitely a national level match.'

      24-25. Point went to Karasuno.

      'Damn it, why am I getting anxious?' Misaki bit down on her lip as she watched the rally between the two teams. This match was not good for her heart and she meant this without any joking intent.

      25-25. Spike by Iwaizumi and point towards Seijoh. She did a tiny fistbump as the arena also echoed with cheers. And now, it was Oikawa's turn to serve. She prayed for one of his killer serves, the ones that could just blast off the opposing players' body, with them not being able to receive it.

      'Perfect form,' Misaki stared at Oikawa's figure; his mid-air form was incredible. But the ball went out, just a little bit. The whistle sounded. It was an out. 'Oikawa missed? How-? Shit, that's gonna hit the team hard and let's not forget him too.'

      25-26, in favor of Karasuno.

      But Iwaizumi did another one of his amazing spikes and the score was tied once more. 26-26.

      'God bless the existence of Hajime Iwaizumi.' Misaki placed a hand over her heart, clenching her jacket tightly. That one spike just boosted the team morale in an instant.

      And now, both teams were fighting again, doing everything they could to beat the opposing team. But Misaki knew they had to win; silently she prayed to let Seijoh win. But silently, she also believed in her team.

      31-31. That was probably the highest score any team had gone to, today. Her notebook was all scrunched up and one rightward glance at Karasuno's bench told her that their manager was the same. Both of them were in the same boat right now, cheering for their own team, hoping for their own win.

      It was Oikawa's serve again and this time, it was perfect. It was probably his best serve of the day. And then it was Seijoh's score.

      32-31.

      'Finish this, Oikawa!' Misaki silently pleaded. 'Finish this now! Don't let it carry on any longer!'

      Another rally began as the volleyball passed between the two teams. Misaki crossed her fingers at her side, forgetting the notebook. How could she even note down anything when she was tensed up; when she was nervous and worried for the sake of her own team? They had to win. Let Seijoh win.

      Another quick was coming, Misaki realised, as Kageyama rushed towards the ball, ready to make one of his demon tosses towards the orange-haired number 10. He jumped and the ball looked like it flew into his hand.

      But this time, Seijoh was expecting it. Kunimi, Kindaichi and Iwaizumi were all there, arms raised high above the net. The quick was blocked.

      The ball fell back on the side belonging to Karasuno. 33-31. Match over. Seijoh had won.

      "Yes!" Misaki fistbumped the air, cheering just as loud as the team was. Her heart finally returned to its normal pace. The teams lined up, bowing to each other, saying the usual post-match greetings. The audience clapped for both; but somehow, she felt they had slightly shifted towards Karasuno in the end. If she wasn't a part of Seijoh, she definitely would be applauding them for their amazing effort.

      But now was not the time to think about it. They had won. They had actually won. Oikawa beat Kageyama and now there were only two more matches left till they could get to the finals and beat Ushiwaka and then get to the Nationals. But they could do it. Seijoh definitely had the strength to do it.

      This first victory was their first step. There were still many more steps to take.

The first part of this chapter was a flashback I was planning; earlier it was going to come before the Shiratorizawa match but I realised it would be much better before the season 1 Karasuno match. It just fit here better. Plus, I have to admit, writing Misaki into the match episodes was hard when there weren't many places I could include her, so what's in this chapter is just a summary of those last few points in the final set. I know it's a little boring, but I promise things will pick up from the next chapter. Just to spoil you guys a little bit; the next chapter will also be the start of the angst in the story hehe.  

Till then, I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter! Let me know your thoughts in the comments!

And as always, please check out my bio for links to carrds that have information as well as petitions regarding various important issues. If there is any carrd you would like me to share, please leave it in the comments or on my message board and I'll definitely share it there.