You were the wild child. You were the girl that played in the mud as a kid, you were the girl that listened to loud music. You were the girl that was one of the boys. You were the girl that every other girl came to about their crush because, more likely than not, you were buds with the aforementioned crush. You were the girl that wore spandex shorts underneath her skirt because it was uncomfortable otherwise. You were the girl that had played every sport under the sun at least once, and more likely than not you played with the boys. You were the tomboy. You were unladylike. You were the girl that would never have a crush, that was absurd.

And then he came around.

He came crashing in like the baseball you sent through your mom's window when you were 10. He was bursting with life, and he was a show-off as well. He worked hard in the advanced classes and he was loud. He talked for hours about volleyball and how he was going to be the future ace. It felt like you were stabbed several times by Eros's arrow. Everything about him was cool even if he was kind of a dork at times. The way he was confident, the way he was a first-year on the starting lineup and first string, the way others were confident he was going to be the ace, the way he spiked, all of it cool.

"Hey, (L/Name)-kun, everything okay?" one of your friends asked you, his face was twisted with confusion. Another one of your friends approached as well. You grab the other boy's shoulders and gave out an agonized, confused groan.

"Woah! (L/Name)-kun!? What's up!? The last time you groaned like that was when you had to take summer classes!" He raised his hands to try and calm you, but you gave both of the boys a frustrated stare. Some of your classmates began to stare at you and how weird you were being. It wasn't uncommon, but it wasn't an everyday occurrence either.

"HOW DO YOU MAKE A CRUSH GO AWAY!? I DON'T WANT IT! GET IT OFF!" You yell at him as you shake his shoulders. Your other friend tries to stop your wild behavior by grabbing your arm and slowing you down.

"(L/Name)-kun!? What the hell!? What do you mean 'get rid of a crush?!' do you have a crush!?" your dizzy friend slumped back on a desk after being shaken by your strong, sporty, self.

"I think I do?! I don't wanna! I don't wanna!" You grip your other friend's arm as the fear of god shot through him like a bullet. You had a massive amount of strength that half the first-year boys were envious of.

"(L/Name)-kun! Calm down!" Your friend tried to soothe you, but you simply released him and slumped back into your desk and groaned and wailed loudly. Your other friend was slowly recovering from his impromptu spin cycle.

"(L/Name)-kun, crushes are normal! You'd get one eventually," Your friend informs you as you feel your spirit leave your body. "I have one, Matsuda-kun has one, It's. COMMON!" He gestured his hands towards you as you continue to stare at the ceiling.

"Hey bro! Don't out me like that!" Matsuda gawks at your friend, and your friend only shrugs to reply.

"But I don't want it! I was supposed to be a free spirit that traveled the world out searching for adventure! Maybe leaving heartbreak in my wake, I wasn't supposed to get feelings for a boy!"

"Ta-da!" Your friend shimmies his hands "You have feelings! You're not a psychopath!"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!" You yell again, causing the entire class to jump. They all turn and glare at you, but you were frozen by who you saw in the door staring at your outburst.

There he was, Goshiki Tsutomu. Your unwanted crush. You were stiff as you stared at him.

"Everything okay?" he asked from the doorway. His mouth was pressed into a tight line as his eyes held concern for you. Your friends whip around and look at him. A girl in your class gave a nervous laugh and waved her hand at him

"Yeah, (L/name)-kun just gets like that, she's fine." You almost died. He probably thought you were some sort of weirdo now.

"Oh, okay, hope you feel better soon!" He smiled with a bit of relief on his face and waved at you before leaving towards his class. The girl that waved him off then quickly got out of her desk and ran over to yours. Once at your desk, she smacked her hands down.

"That was him wasn't it? Your crush? You would have kept screaming if it was anyone else!" Your friends jump at the excited girl in front of you.

"W-why do you want to know huh!?" You try and make an intimidating face, but she scoffed at your attempt.

"I don't know if you remember or not, but you totally helped me when I was crazy about that one boy, so now I'm gonna return the favor!" She smiled as she slammed her hands down again.

"E-EH?!" You tilt your head as another girl looked at her friend and nodded.

"We'll help too, (L/Name)-kun!" the girls offered. Matsuda-kun and your other friend smiled at each other.

"We'll do everything we can (L/Name)-kun!" they cheer.

"Great!" the first girl pumped her fist "We'll all meet after class and clubs are done! Everyone meet up in my dorm, okay?" She rushed back to her seat as the teacher walked in, leaving you in a slight daze.

"OKAY! Time for the first official meeting of the "GET (L/NAME)-KUN A DATE" CLUB!" the first girl who approached you, who you later learned was named Hara-chan, yelled out as she shot a fist up into the air. each of the first years who had agreed to help you earlier that day pumped their fists as well. You sat there in silence as these first years who were also in the idiot class got excited.

You were rather dirty after your volleyball practice. Your team liked to practice in the sand a lot, so you were always dusty and dirty from practicing on a sand court a few miles down the road. You had also spotted a rare bug that you had to chase for a little bit before finally returning to the dorms where Hara waited for you. She had scolded you for being slightly late, but she soon forgot about it after she got herself excited again at the thought of helping you get a date.

"Okay, so how do I do that?" You question as you sway slightly on the floor. You sat cross-legged, and you slouched as well. Your fingers were tapping softly against the linoleum made to look like wood grain.

"Why do you think boys don't ask you out (L/Name)-kun?" another girl, Ito-chan, asked. Your friends, Matsuda and Yamazaki both tilted their heads and what Ito-chan meant by that. Her friend, Fujita-chan, soon cleared her throat.

"Let me ask another question. Matsuda, Yamazaki, why have you guys never asked her out?" The two boys tilted their heads further.

"Uh, because she's a bro? We've never really thought of (L/Name)-kun in that way." Fujita nodded as she looked over at her friend. Ito nodded as well. Hara got the picture.

"So (L/Name)-kun is in the brozone." Ito and Fujita nod at Hara. "And no one's really putting her there, I think she's putting herself there!" the dumb hypothesis shot through the room like it was Einstein's theory being proposed for the first time.

"Oh my god (L/Name)-kun! You're in the brozone!" Yamazaki panics. Matsuda then shoots up out of his chair

"No, not yet! Goshiki hasn't really met (L/Name)-kun yet! He might not have dubbed her 'Bro' yet! We still have time!" He proudly proclaims, but then slowly realizes he has no idea what to do.

"Well, I think first thing's first, we clean (L/Name)-kun up. She's filthy..." Ito looks her over.

"I was at practice! The volleyball team's been practicing on the sand a lot so that our jumps are higher and our footwork is better!" You declare. You were clearly proud of all your hard work.

"Yeah, but how will you catch his attention if you're absolutely covered in sand and dirt! You just look kinda homeless!" Hara then begins shoving you across the floor while you grimace at the strange ride she was giving you. She apparently was being too slow for Ito and Fujita, as they began pushing too as you look back at your friends for help.

"Take a bath (L/Name)-kun! You can borrow some of my clothes! Use my body wash and shampoo too!" Hara says as she slams the door on your back.

"Here! I'll pick out some clothes!" Ito quickly ran to Hara's closet as she looked through it.

"I'll help too!" Fujita searches with her friend. Matsuda and Yamazaki stood awkwardly as they tried to think about what they should do. Hara was quick to instruct them.

"You two! Begin thinking of a plan to befriend Goshiki-kun! That way you guys can do what (L/Name)-kun does all the time!"

"R-Right!" They both call out to her as they begin texting furiously, seeing whatever link they had to Goshiki.

After you got a shower, you were immediately stuffed into a light-colored nightgown. When you begged for something to wear underneath the skirt of the nightgown, you were given thigh high socks. It was testing your patience.

"Wow (L/Name)-kun! You look really good with a skirt and thigh highs! Your thighs really work with that combo!" Fujita comments as Matsuda and Yamazaki stare. You were very uncomfortable.

"Why are you dressing me like this? What's the point!"

"Them staring is the point!" Hara smacked the back of Yamazaki and Matsuda's heads, knocking them out of their daze. "Has Goshiki-kun ever given you more than a glance?" Hara smacks her hands against her dorm's counter. "Or was that the first time he's talked to you today?" you bit your bottom lip as you widen your eyes. You began to think back to all he's ever said to you.

"Oh! Do you happen to have a pencil I can borrow really quickly?"

"Hey is anyone sitting in this chair? Can I steal it? Our table over there ran out."

"Hey! You dropped this!"

"Oh! Sorry! Excuse me."

"There's an eyelash on your face."

You begin to choke as you feel yourself slowly die inside. Hara was right. He's never said a word besides what other people would say in passing. Anything that was directed at you was small and didn't have any sort of meaning behind.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!" You scream again as you let yourself fall to the floor. Everyone in the room jumps as go to check on you. You were laying face down and groaning into the floor about how you "don't want it" and to "get it off"

"This is just how crushes are (L/Name)-kun! You gotta buck up and deal with it like everyone else!" Fujita attempts to soothe but clearly doesn't know what she's doing. Ito pouts at her and shoves her as she tried to soothe you

"It's okay, at least he's spoken to you! So that means he doesn't hate you!" Yamazaki nods furiously

"Yeah! You've got this (L/Name)-kun!" You continue to groan.

"I think the first step is to grab his attention. Wake up early and come to my dorm tomorrow!" Hara declares as she gives a devious smile. You had a bad feeling about this.

The next day, you woke up early and arrive at Hara's dorm, as she instructed. With a tired face and disheveled uniform, you knock on the door. You were still waking up slightly as the door swung open way too fast for your liking or for your brain to process this early.

"Perfect! Come here (L/Name)-kun! Er, I mean... (Name)-chan~" She grabbed your floppy arms and dragged you into her room. Fujita and Ito were also in the room holding socks and hairbrushes and clips along with makeup and body sprays. You look both quizzically and fearfully at the items before you. It was too damn early for this.

"Okay! Let's begin! You looked really good in thigh highs (Name)-chan! Let's give you those again!" They then tore off the spandex that you had underneath your skirt and chucked them in a bag to the side.

"ACK! My spandex!" you reached out to them as you felt very uncomfortable with just underwear and a skirt, but Ito threw them to the side.

"Here! Wear a little mascara too!"

"Spray on a bit of this~!"

"Eugh, your nails are dirty!"

"Your hair's a mess too!"

You stood there awkwardly and highly uncomfortable. Your hair was perfectly brushed with a cute hair clip and your eyelashes had mascara on them and were curled. Your fingernails were filed and even while your skin held the sweet aroma of roses. You held your legs together as they were covered by thigh-high black socks. Your spandex had been stuffed into your bag. A tinted gloss covered your lips. Your shirt was also neatly tucked and your tie straightened up.

"Woah, (Name)-chan, you're really cute when you try!" you shot a glare at Hara.

"W-why do I have to be dressed like this?!" You stammer as you pressed the skirt firmly against your behind with your hands to prevent any kind of exposure.

"We went over this yesterday (Name)-chan! Goshiki-kun's never really noticed you or tried to actually talk to you, but he might if you're like this! Look at you!" Fujita gestures at your appearance. "Look how cute you are (Name)-chan!"

"Why are you calling me that?" You question her as you slowly get more adjusted to not having your spandex

"It's cuter! Plus (L/Name)-kun makes you sound more masculine!" Hara flips her hair back as she looks you over again, making sure everything was perfect. "Okay! I think you're ready!"

"Kya~ so cute (Name)-chan!" Ito remarks

"Yeah! I'm kind of jealous that it's this easy for you..." Fujita remarks as she pouted slightly. You huff as you look down at your feet. Would this really work?

As you enter the school building, you could feel multiple eyes vying for your attention, but not the kind of attention you were used to. Most days you would be giving advice on how someone can fix their pitching form or how someone can improve their shots in basketball. Today was very different. One boy had followed you to an empty classroom that you were grabbing a book from during lunch.

"H-Hey! How are you?" the boy asked as soon as he closed the door behind him. With a few scuttled steps, you could tell that he was close. You gave a slight glance behind you as you rummage for the book. "I um... you look nice... I was wondering if you..." You look him dead in the eye and he realized who he was talking to "(L-L/Name)-kun!? What are you doing dressed like that?! Not that it's bad or anything! It's just not like you! N-not that it doesn't suit you! I mean! You were fine before too! B-but you're cute now!" he quickly placed a hand to his forehead. The boy felt stupid for not recognizing that it was you, one of his old baseball buddies.

"Dummy, I'm trying to get someone's attention! Haru, Ito, and Fujita all think this is going to work, Kikuchi-kun" Kikuchi scratched the back of his head as he looked at you and blushed.

"Well it certainly caught my attention!" you felt a confident smile spread across your pink-tinted lips.

"Oh! Sorry! Did I walk in on a confession?" you both look up and see a very familiar bowl cut peeking his head into the room. You barely noticed the pain in his voice. "Sorry! I hope everything works out between you two!" the volleyball player gives a wave before quickly exiting, much like your soul leaving your body. You wanted to scream. That was him. THAT WAS GOSHIKI. Kikuchi noticed your expression and did a double-take at the door.

"... that was him, wasn't it?" you could only let out a small vocalization as an affirmation "...I might have just ruined some of your chances, didn't I?" you quickly grabbed the boy's shoulders and gave him a glare before screaming at him

"WHAT DO YOU THIIIIIINK!?" you could cry at that moment, but instead you chose to lean against a wall and groan a bit. Hara would be mad at you if you ruined the makeup you wore.

"H-Hey! Wait! I can fix this! I can just go tell him it's a misunderstanding! Right? That'll work?" You weren't even listening to him at this point. You just quietly leaned against the wall as you came to terms with how ridiculous this plan was. Kikuchi kept rambling as you narrowed your eyes at the window across from you. If Goshiki didn't notice you when you were you, then how was he supposed to fall in love with the real you?

"This was a stupid idea to begin with..." You mutter as you felt your legs twitch. Kikuchi noticed your slowly deteriorating expression.

"(L/name)?" The boy asks once again before you lift yourself from the wall and sprint out of the room. "W-Wait! Like I said! I can fix this!" He quickly runs after you out into the hall, but you were much faster than he was. You ended up running past a very confused coconut head as he was chatting with some friends.

"Whoa! Hey! Be careful! You might fall over!" he called out to you, but you ignore every word as you hurdled over a student who was crouched to pick something up. The student gawked at your athleticism. Goshiki flinched as he became impressed with you. Maybe you didn't need to be told to not fall over...

"WAIT! (L/NAME)!" Kikuchi comes running after you, but Goshiki recognized him.

"Whoa whoa whoa! Didn't you just confess to her or something?" Goshiki questions as he keeps hold of the boy's arm. The boy looks up at Goshiki with wide eyes. How was he going to explain this without pissing you off more?

"Did he? Man, she must have rejected you, sorry dude!" one of his friends patted the panicked boy's back. Goshiki's friend looked up at the aforementioned boy and studied his expression.

"What did you like about her?" another friend asks as Goshiki slowly lets go of Kikuchi's arm. The friend was also checking his tall friend. "Was it because she's cute?" a light bulb suddenly went off in Kikuchi's head. He noticed that Goshiki was listening to him, so he took his chance.

"Well, (L/Name)-kun's super sporty. Played just about every single one, but she loves volleyball the most." Kikuchi glanced over at Goshiki, who became enthralled after hearing that word. "She's loud at times, and she can be kinda dumb in her own cute little way." He couldn't believe he was saying all this about (Name), she was one of his bros, but talking about her like this almost made him actually fall in love with her. "She's loyal and reliable too. She's the wingman for a lot of girls, some guys too." He decided to drop the big one "She normally doesn't look like that. She was trying to catch someone's attention today, but that guy clearly wasn't me!" Kikuchi scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. "She's probably gonna go change into her normal spandex now. She usually doesn't wear thigh highs like that. Although it's super cute on her, don't you think?" He looks over at Goshiki with a smile. 'This is for you (L/Name)-kun!' He would normally never talk about her like that, but right now he had to make up for the giant mess he and several other people had gotten her into. Goshiki blushed at his question.

"Ah- Um, I-I don't know her that well, so I don't know if that's appropriate!" the up and coming ace pushes his index fingers together. One of his friends snorts.

"And yet you manage to worm your way into the smallest things she does, just to talk to her for a few seconds." his friend laughs.

"Yeah, you barely know anything about her, and you're infatuated like a school kid!" Kikuchi then looks at Goshiki with a deadpan stare. Does Goshiki have a crush on (L/Name)?

"Ah! That's your crush isn't it though? Sorry, we're talking about her like thi... why are you making that face?" Kikuchi's face had warped into one of blissful nirvana. His soul had ascended to heaven as he heard Goshiki's friends talk and tease the volleyball player for his immature crush.

"No, it's okay, don't worry about it~. I don't have a crush on her anymore~. You should go talk to her~. I have a feeling you'd hit it off well~" Kikuchi then began skipping and humming down the hall as he made his way to the cafeteria. He left a bewildered Goshiki and friends as they watched the once flustered boy twirl with joy down the hall.

"This was stupid, every single idea, stupid." You slam a volleyball against a wall with a sharp smack. You were keeping tears back as you continue to let out your frustration on the ball "I should have known. I should have known I'd always be the friend. That's the grave I've dug."

You were no longer in the thigh-high socks you were forced into and resumed wearing your spandex. Your skirt, school shirt, and the socks were all stuffed ungracefully into your bag. The clips that had once held your hair were torn off in a fury of frustration. The makeup that had graced your face was now in the bathroom trash on a makeup wipe that you had borrowed from another girl who was also in the bathroom at the time. You now wore an athletic shirt that hugged your body in a much looser fashion than those socks did. Your hair was now slightly messier than it was before because of your exercise. You crinkle your nose and close your eyes tight as you can before slamming down on the ball with all your might, sending it flying off the wall. You then fell to the floor to sit down cross-legged and slouch over. You were so caught up in your own distress that you didn't notice the gym doors open, the sound of a single pair of athletic shoes, or the missing sound of a volleyball dropping on hardwood.

You did notice someone taking a deep breath as if to calm themselves. You were slightly agitated. Was it someone who thought you were still wearing makeup?

"Look, I'm not wearing any of that girly stuff ever again, so you probably won't like me..."

"How do you know?" a familiar voice called to you. Your eyes shoot open as your body stiffens. You slowly turn your head to see a smiling future ace walking towards you with the volleyball you just sent flying under his arm.

He could feel his cheeks redden when he saw you hit that spike. It was clean, and it had power. He had to calm himself slightly just to approach you.

"G-Goshiki!?" You scream as you suddenly brace yourself against the wall.

"Whoa! Hang on! I just want to talk with you!" he tried to calm you down, but his own face soon began to show signs of embarrassment and panic. He really wanted to talk to you. He had for a while. He just didn't know how to... girl. Ever since he heard you talking loudly and unladylike in the cafeteria, he had a little schoolyard crush on you. It was something about the way your hands moved and how your nose scrunched into your eyes when you laughed. Your messy hair didn't bother him, but he loved it when you would comb it with your fingers. For it being messy, it seemed soft.

Still. He didn't know how to girl, well he didn't know how to talk to a girl he had a small crush on. He could talk to girls. He would peek into your class every once in a while to see how you were doing. Most of the time you were laughing or yelling. he would do his best to show off whenever you would pass by the gym during his practices, much to the chagrin of his teammates. His seniors told him to keep his cool, so he did his best. He would ask you little things, but never actually turned those little things into a conversation.

"Oh! Do you happen to have a pencil I can borrow really quickly?" 'Ahh! Something that belongs to her!'

"Hey is anyone sitting in this chair? Can I steal it? Our table over there ran out." 'She looks lonely today, I hope she's okay...'

"Hey! You dropped this!" 'I've been following her for a little too long, I should go to class...'

"Oh! Sorry! Excuse me." 'SHE TOUCHED ME~!'

"There's an eyelash on your face." 'I hope she doesn't question why I was staring at her face...'

He took another deep breath as you sat frozen against the wall. He couldn't help but become more infatuated with the tomboy in front of him after all that your supposed admirer said about you.

"So... how long have you been playing volleyball?" He awkwardly begins as he kicks the ground a little. You narrow your eyes slightly as you gain a little more confidence and stand up.

"Since elementary. I-" you were interrupted by his excited musings. He couldn't help himself

"R-Really!? Me too! It's a great sport! I-" He realized he let himself have an outburst and his face became flushed. You let an excited smile cut into your cheeks as he talked to you.

"You don't have to stop! I agree! I love it! I hope to become an ace for my team one day!" you fill with even more confidence as you gush about the sport you love. "The ace is super cool after all!" His face lit up after you said that. He couldn't help but lift his head higher and let himself brag

"Well, I am the next ace without a doubt you know! I think it's pretty cool too!" he began spinning the volleyball that you were once assaulting between his fingers. He looked down to see your adorable face with a wondrous glitter inhabiting your eye along with a stupid grin spread across your lips. He couldn't hold in his dork self any longer. "Ah! Do... you want to practice passing a bit?" he asked almost in a shy tone as he held up the ball he had been spinning. You nodded your head vigorously, causing any nervousness of his to dissipate.

"... So... why did you want to talk to me all the sudden?" you spy the ball as it came towards you in a skillfully placed arc. With swift hand-eye coordination, you send it back. You were more confident as you began to play the sport you loved. You were always more confident when playing sports, maybe a little too much sometimes. Goshiki quickly lifted his head as he did the same.

"Uh... well..." He stopped to focus on the ball you had just bumped up into the air "I might have had a small crush on you, but after what that boy who had a crush on you too said, I think it's a bit bigger than small now." you sent the ball back as you began to process what he just said. "My friends and seniors told me to play it cool because I have a tendency to be overwhelmi-" after tossing the ball to you, you spike it down at him. He quickly ducked at your near-deadly projectile.

"ARE YOU TELLING ME I COULD HAVE BEEN TALKING TO YOU ALL THIS TIME?!" you scream at him at the top of your lungs. He flinched and retracted slightly as he put his hands in a half defensive position.

"E-eh?"

"I've been stressing out about my crush on you for WEEKS and you're telling me now that I didn't HAVE TO!?" You began waving your hands wildly. Goshiki blushed when he heard the word 'crush' "I didn't have to get in that uncomfortable get up to get your attention when I already HAD IT!? I KNOW you're a volleyball dork! I KNOW you're loud! I KNOW you're overwhelming! But I still think all of that is cool! I think you're cool! I like you for that!"

"Y-You really think I'm cool!?" A glitter lit his eyes as his lips cut into his cheeks. He let his dorky expression free around you.

"The only uncool thing I think you've done is not talk to me when you had a crush on me!" you began to laugh that that laugh he loved so much. The one that originally caught his attention. The laugh that was far from elegant and came from your nose. He made quick steps over to you as he caught you in his arms and lifted you up. You grip his shoulders as he supports you with one arm under your knees and the other on your waist. He looked up at you with that dorky shimmer still in his eyes. After seeing him split his face like that, you could feel that you were rarely ever going to get flustered around him again. Your cheeks flush slightly as you peer at him through your happy eyes.

After that day, you became the power couple. The couple that would loudly greet each other in the hall and excitedly talks about the smallest things. Your loud talking annoyed his setter greatly, but you didn't care. He would kiss your cheek and hold your hand whenever he could. He was excited about you like you were excited about him. Whenever he did something impressive, he would look to you. You would have that wide smile that he loved and that stupid glitter in your eye.

He loved to watch you too. You would perfectly pull off a feint or hit around a tight block, causing him to scream from wherever he was watching. It was hard to believe he managed to keep his cool around you when you both were starting out.

you gripped him tighter as his fingers ran through your hair. He still felt like an idiot that it took him so long to approach you. You made him incredibly happy, even if you both got yelled at from time to time by his setter. He grew to love everything about you, every rough edge and every curve. You were the tomboy, but you were his.