#futamata

Johzenji High School was in the middle of a bitter fight.  It was the Spring High Volleyball Miyagi prefectural deciding tournament, and their first opponent was a team that had only recently made a name for themselves, Karasuno High School.      

Johzenji had some strong and unconventional opening moves in their attack, but their opponent had bared their teeth in return.  Then came the moment that they tried to imitate the synchronized attack that Karasuno demonstrated, and completely failed, losing the first set.  And now they had their backs to the wall in the second set.  Johzenji's typical clever schemes and surprise attacks were beginning to show signs of impatience, and soon their plays became out of synch.      

Recieves, scoring, serves, and spikes all continued to land out.      

Six people on the court, and each one was spinning his wheels and getting nowhere.  Like a shirt that started off on the wrong button, they were completely unable to connect right.  If they kept on like this without being able to shake off this block, the point gap would only widen more and more--.    

Clenching her small fist in the Johzenji cheering section on the second floor of the gymnasium stood a girl, the team's young manager, watching the match.  She was a first year named Kuribayashi Runa.  She had just barely joined the volleyball team, and she didn't understand what was going wrong, why they weren't scoring points.  That being said, she knew the players' impatience and irritation could be painfully bad.     

Then, she saw her senpais' faces change.     

She could see the director calling for a time out.  The setter, Futamata, smacked the ball hard across the net.  Then the ball crossed the end line, and the whistle blew.  Kuribayashi worriedly watched them gather around the bench, exchanging mutual encouragement, then suddenly narrowed her eyes in confusion.     

"......What?"     

The bench looked odd.  The director wasn't there, and her senpai manager, Misaki, was standing before the players and starting to say something.  After the court changed sides, the bench was distant from the Johzenji cheering section, so she couldn't hear Misaki's voice, but--     

"Senpai is, scolding them....?"  

******

Which day of which month it was, she had forgotten, but she remembered that it was the day that they started wearing summer clothes to school.  She had just advanced in her homeroom course, though it felt like only yesterday she was taking her entrance exams......but that was hardly a surprise anymore.  She had stopped comparing the school regulations and subjects one by one to her middle school experience as well.  From the high school buildings, to the lessons, to the new teachers, she had gotten used to all of them, and high school had lost its fresh taste. But Kuribayashi Runa found herself enjoying the everyday routine of Johzenji High School in its own way.

That day, that moment in early summer after school, Kuribayashi was getting ready to leave for home when she peeked into her locker and noticed something, her head tilting to its side.

"What's this?"

A classmate, who she had promised to walk home with,  called out, "Runaaa, what's the matter?"

"My jersey isn't here."

"What happened, did a bully take it or something?"

"Nah, I probably forgot it in the changing room after P.E.....I think.  I'll go grab it.  You'd better go home without me."

"Aww, you sure you don't want me to wait?"

"It's fine!  If it's not in the changing room, I'll have to spend time looking for it, and I don't want to keep you waiting that long," Kuribayashi said, waving goodbye to her classmate.  The collar on her brand new summer clothes rustled as the sound of her running feet echoed in the hallway.

The uniforms and bags of the go-home club, the jerseys and practice clothes of the exercise club--the school entrance was packed with students as Kuribayashi weaved through them past the school store, which was preparing to close, to the gymnasium.  She faced a closed iron door, the sounds of bouncing balls and calling voices emanating from within.

"Ready and.....hngh!"

After putting all her body weight into opening the heavy front door, a ball came rolling right through the opening.

"Huh?"

The colorful blue and yellow ball collided with her feet.  She paused a moment, but no one came to retrieve it.  Was it okay to take the ball to whoever had lost it?  Or no, maybe it would be better to just leave it as is.  Uncertain whether she was allowed inside, Kuribayashi stood in front of the entry door, nervously peering into the gymnasium.

There was a green net suspended from the ceiling separating the gym into two parts.  The opposite side of the room was for basketball, and her side, with a net sandwiched by people tirelessly pursuing a ball was for volleyball...probably?  That's what it looked like they were playing, though it seemed different from the way the boys had played when they were messing around in her gym class.  There was a more serious feeling to it, so it was probably the school team.  Everyone's voices were really loud, and it was a little intimidating.

The ball probably belonged to those people.

Kuribayashi picked up the ball at her feet that no one had come to retrieve.

Then again, the atmosphere didn't exactly lend itself to her calling out to anyone, so she ended up holding the ball in her arms and watching the club activities.

The rubber soles of shoes made squeaking sounds as they collided with the floor, a sound different from ordinary shoes.  Maybe that's why the way they moved was different too.  Everyone was moving with their whole bodies in big motions.  What was the word for it?  Dynamic, that's how they were moving, dynamically.

"Not too long ago, they ranked in the best four at the Interhigh, you know."

She quickly turned toward the voice that addressed her, to find a female student wearing a jersey right beside her.

She seemed like an adult, probably a first or second year senpai.

"Ah, umm, that's really amazing," Kuribayashi responded straight away, though truthfully she wasn't exactly sure what "Interhigh" meant.

But she had said something about them being the best, so that must be an impressive achievement.  Or so she thought.  But at her response, her senpai in the jersey adopted a strange, delicate look on her face.  "......Yeah, they've gotten strong."

That face wasn't the face of someone who was happy about the strength of their own team.  Kuribayashi worried that maybe she had said something wrong, and, flustered, tried to come up with a word or two to backtrack and cover up her mistake.

At that moment, a ball came flying through the space between them.  It was fast.  At the same time a boy of large build also came flying after the ball.

"My bad!!"

He didn't exactly jump gracefully--it looked like his face was about to collide with the floor, like an unflying paper airplane taking a nosedive to the ground.

".........!"

Without saying anything, Kuribayashi stiffened as right in front of her, the ball went up in the air with a thwap.  Then in a big arc, it flew toward the net.  The boy she thought was going to fall on his face somehow managed to make a soft landing and quickly rushed back to the net.  Before he landed, did he hit and send it back?  It must have happened right before her eyes, but she still didn't understand how it happened.

Her eyes followed the back of the running player who continued with the rally as if nothing had happened, and she muttered, "That was amazing......"

"Are you curious?"

"Eh?"

"Right now we're recruiting for a new manager.  If you're curious, want to join on a trial basis?  I'm the manager right now, but since I'm a third year I'll be retiring soon."

Kuribayashi quickly looked to her senpai making an out-of-season canvassing attempt, then back to the court.  The strong-looking, and a little scary-looking boys were jumping around chasing after the ball.  Flecks of sweat could be seen flying and scattering from their hair.  School had only just gotten out, and they were already soaked with sweat.

Kurobayashi felt a little out of place as the only one in the gym still in her school uniform, and she handed the ball she was holding over and said apologetically, "But I don't even really know what sport this is......"

"Huh?  What they're playing right now is volleyball, you know what that is."

Kuribayashi, flustered, looked back toward the court one more time.

This was volleyball?

"But the volleyball we play in gym class has more people... umm, five I think?"

"Six," her senpai corrected without a pause, and Kuribayashi flushed in embarrassment.  If she didn't even know how many people were supposed to be on the court, how could she possibly become the manager?

Her senpai manager continued.  "Usually, volleball does use six players."

"So this is... not usual volleyball, then?

At Kuribayashi's words, her senpai smiled.  "This is practice.  They're doing their two-on-two training."

Volleyball was typically six-on-six.  What they were doing now was practicing with two-on-two, in order to widen their range and change the extent that they relied on each other for support.  It also made them chase the ball more assertively, and taught them to look for more opportunities to make spontaneous attacks, she explained.  However, watching the team members jump and tumble about while chasing the ball, one couldn't help but get the feeling that they were just romping and playing around.

"They remind me of the kids in my neighborhood with the way they're playing," Kuribayashi said.

At her frank words, her senpai giggled, but then her face changed to that same delicate expression she had before.  "Exactly.  For these children, this is their playground."

"Playground......?"

It wasn't as though Kuribayashi was unathletic, or that she had poor control over her body; but then, she wasn't part of any sports club either.  Every time she was asked to join a club, rather than declining up front, she would just decline to answer.  But somehow, talking to her manager senpai now, she had a feeling that she wanted to hear more.

With everyone on the team working hard to their utmost extent, she wasn't really sure if just a hunch was really enough of a reason to join, but she turned to her senpai and, with no further consideration, said "I'll try it," and completed her club entry registration to become the new manager on a trial basis.

Thinking over it, she had already more or less gotten used to school, and maybe it would be good to try a new thing, or maybe it was just that she was feeling a little fickle with the change into the new summer clothes.  Whatever the reason, she knew she wouldn't regret the decision.

******

If she thought that joining the club on a "trial basis" was going to be easy-going, she was wrong.

The job of a manager involved management of the club budget and maintenance of the equipment, coordinating the rotation the gymnasium, keeping track of the score, keeping track of the practice times, picking up balls and taking out balls, et cetera.  From routine tasks to supporting the team, she hardly had time to take a breath.

And of course she couldn't neglect to properly learn the rules of the game.  Even though there were lots of things she didn't know, she had lots of help from third year manager who recruited her, Misaki, and each day she was able to manage somehow or another.

While she was tackling the jobs of being a proper manager well enough, there was the small matter of figuring out how to deal with the club members.  The boy's volleyball club members, not to mention the female manager, all tended to communicate by bantering like grade-schoolers, and it left Kuribayashi completely baffled.

Still not used to it, Kuribayashi was quickly getting ready to leave for the day, when as though aimed at her, several balls rolled her way.  One by one she picked them up and tossed them back to the captain, Terushima, and the other club members with him.  "Thanks, Runa-chaaan!" they called back to her, laughing.  They really were a little scary.

Afterward she understood; they must have been throwing the balls to the helpless Kuribayashi on purpose, just to watch her feeble form and laugh at her.

Other than just the volleyball club members, the members of other clubs were scary too.

When she was carrying heavy things, like the water jugs and such, she would hear, "Runa-chaaan, let me help youuu.  I'll take it, I'll take it~" and Terushima would come and grab whatever she was holding.  Occasionally when that would happen, a passing girl from the basketball team would glare at him for some reason.

"Terushima, aren't you the captain or something?  You don't seriously have to carry the water jug yourself, right?"

"Shut up!  I want to do it, so back off!  Runa-chan is different from you lot, she's weak!"

"What's that supposed to mean?!  Terushima you seriously piss me off!"

While listening to her senpai's exchange, Kuribayashi could do nothing but curl up and apologize, "Sorry, sorry," over and over again.

Some days were especially different from the usual, and she would wish that they wouldn't think of her as an obstacle, but on the days when they were really intolerable, Misaki would break in and stop them.  But it seemed like Terushima didn't listen seriously.

******

Some months later, on a day after the summer uniforms were retired because of the cold, it was after practice.  Kuribayashi was in the corner of the gym shining a ball, when Terushima came over with a wide grin and called out to her.  "Runa-chaaan, let me escort you home, we can walk together~"

"Eh....."

Trying to think of a way to refuse him without being rude, she stood there with rag and spray can filling both hands at a loss for words, when Misaki came to her rescue.

"You guys are always doing things like that, cut it out before you scare her.  She's our precious recruit, too....  Just ignore them, Runa-chan.  Come on, let's go."

"R- Right......"

"It's not like we're trying to scare her.  I just said I'd escort her, that's all!"

Ignoring the sulking Terushima, Misaki started helping Kuribayashi tidy up balls.  But Terushima, completely undeterred, cut in front of the managers again and peered into both their faces.

"Ummm, so lately, I've been thinking.  I'd really like to eat onigiri made by Hana-san and Runa-chan!"

".....If you're hungry, why can't you just go to the school store and buy something?"

"I don't want the school store onigiri though!  The vendor changed this year or something, even the bread isn't as good now!"

Terushima seemed very proud of his complaints about the taste of the school store food, but he must have realized to some extent that his secret intentions were completely obvious, because it didn't take long for him to run away to his teammates.  While lightly glaring at his receding form, Misaki muttered, "....When Okudake-kun was here, this sort of thing never happened."

"Right, he was one of the third years."

All of the third years retired after the Interhigh, all except for the manager Misaki alone.  Misaki stayed on with the players, since she didn't have a kouhai to replace her, and without a successor she could hardly abandon the team.  Perhaps she decided to stay on until the Spring High because she was a little worried about Terushima and the others that remained on the team.

Misaki took a ball in her hands, and as though remembering something that had happened long ago, said, "Yeah.... We weren't quite as strong as we are now, but everyone played seriously, like they meant it.  Ah, but the second years now, during practice they really do play to their best."

Adding a few more words of explanation, Misaki's face reminded Kuribayashi of the day she first saw the volleyball club.  "They've become strong," she said with that same delicate expression on her face.

Kuribayashi asked without thinking.  "...The way things were before, was that better?"

"Huh?"  Misaki was a bit taken aback, then she turned her eyes toward her boisterous team members.

Last year's Spring High, the time that Terushima and the others joined the club was the same time that the coach changed. The old Johzenji that operated with fortitude and sincerity couldn't boast any spectacular achievements, but that suddenly changed explosively.  Maybe the style of the new coach just meshed well with the character of the new club members.  Either way, they won and advanced through the tournament with great force.

Then they lost the steadily accumulating foundation of the third years with their retirement, and Misaki had the feeling that the style of just going with the flow might be dangerous going forward.

"Oi!  Everone, over here!"

On the court, Terushima tossed a ball into the air and called the rest of the team members together.

"All right, let's play some dodgeball!"

"Yeah!"

They were supposed to be tidying up.  Or so she thought before they all moved to keep playing, utterly stunning Misaki, who groaned, "Ugh, what now...."  Before the club members, spearheaded by Terushima, could go any further, she called out to them. "Hey!  Hurry and clean up this mess.  We have to get the gym closed up...."

"Heyyy, we're not just playing around.  Whatever you end up doing, if you have the mindset of practice, it can become practice you know!"

"Don't give me any of your childish arguments."

Noticing Misaki's less-than-pleased face, the other club members, grumbling complaints all the while, finally started tidying up.  The basketball team was already going home, calling "Later~" and waving to their acquaintances on the volleyball team.

"The volleyball club is always the last to leave," Misaki scolded, then turned to look at Kuribayashi slightly smiling on the side.

"It's true, they sometimes act like grade schoolers, or even kindergarteners.... But when you see these kids play, it's so fun it's ridiculous.  I actually really like them then."

Kuribayashi was taken aback.  Even though Misaski had never actually said, "the way before was better," she complained and grumbled about the current club members so often.  The words "fun" and "like" come out of her mouth now was something Kuribayashi never thought she would hear.

"Fun, huh...?" Kuribayashi asked without thinking.  Misaki asked her a question in response.

"Runa-chan, don't you think club activities are fun?"

"....Well, a little, but there are a lot of scary moments," she responded honestly, without thinking.  To explain further, she continued, "Um, when I was in grade school.... The boy in the seat behind me would always tear his eraser to pieces and throw them at me, and I would always worry--if he threw something other than bits of eraser at me, what would I do?  It made me nervous all during class, and lately I've been feeling the same way I felt back then....  Ah, not that erasers are going to come flying at me, but...."

"Sigh.... they really do always give off that feeling, don't they?" Misaki said with a wry smile, glancing over to the club members to make sure they weren't messing around.  After a little while, she asked Kuribayashi.  "Runa-chan, you haven't seen an official match yet, have you?"

"Eh, um, that's right."

Kuribayashi joined the club after the Interhigh.  The one time she actually saw a match, it was a practice match with a neighboring high school, and she hadn't really gotten a grasp of the rules yet.  The next time Johzenji was set to appear in a public match was this October, during the Spring High representative deciding tournament.

"If you saw them play, I don't think they'd scare you."

"....Is that so?" Kuribayashi asked doubtfully.

Misaki looked back at her and nodded.  "Yeah.  I think so."

After they had finished tidying up and left the building, it was completely dark, and the evening wind was uncomfortably cold.  At the time she had joined the club, it was still pretty light out at this time.  Kuribayashi fastened her jersey all the way up to the top.

"Bye everyone."

"All right, don't catch a cold."

Kuribayashi dipped her head at Misaki, who was waving goodbye, and then with quick feet hurried down the walk home.  She was going to get home early, eat a meal, take a bath, then she'd have to work on her literature homework.  But she couldn't go to bed late, she had to make sure she was in time for morning practice.  She was wondering what other people used their time for as she walked, when she heard loud voices coming from behind her.

"---are you serious?  Nah bitch that was you!"

"The hell it was!  You're the one who's so full of yourself."

Evidently Terushima and the other boys on the team had come outside.  Outside of club activities, they were always shouting like that.  It wasn't that they were actually quarreling, she knew they weren't serious, but the rough way they talked still scared her a little every time.  So much mental strain...

Hearing their boisterous voices draw closer, Kuribayashi subconsciously held her breath, as though perhaps by stopping her breath her body would disappear too, but sure enough they quickly found her.

"Oh hey, Runa-chaaan!  Are you okay on your own?  We can escort you home if you want!"

"Um-m, no, I'm fine on my own."

"You sure?"

"Y- yes, I'm good.  Thank you though."

"Tchhh, boringgg.  But if I bug you any more, Hana-san will yell at me again.  Whatever, see you tomorrow!"

"Ah, yeah.  See you tomorrow."

Bouncing and waving goodbye, the matched set of jerseys receded into the distance.  Calls of "What the hell was that?" and "Shut up!" could be heard from the group, as well as the sound of someone getting hit with a bag.  As she watched their shadows disappear into the darkness, Kuribayashi thought.

It felt like she just collided with a small typhoon...

It wasn't like she always felt completely unwilling to deal with them, but at the same time she wondered about this group of constantly running around and yelling boys; how could they possibly be different during a match?

If she saw them play, would she really think they're not scary anymore?  And why?

In an official match, what would be different than the usual?

While walking down the road filled with the sound of autumn insects, thoughts of the matches she hadn't seen floated through Kuribayashi's head.

******

The 30 seconds of time out went by in the blink of an eye, and the whistle calling the players back to the court sounded.  When she saw the condition of the players returning from the bench, it soon became clear that that mere 30 seconds had been an invaluable 30 seconds.

No longer did the players' faces show signs of impatience and irritation, but rather a new sense of resolve.

The game had resumed.

They were at a disadvantage, but you couldn't tell from the way the frivolous club members' plays once more started to get into gear.  Johzenji's staple reckless and free attacks, no matter where they came from or who hit them, were starting to stick, and they were once again playing wild and free.

The point difference of 11 to 17 from before the time out started to shrink bit by bit.

She wondered what Misaki said to them.  Her teammates were all playing without hesitation, and able to do as they pleased on the court.  The reckless and thoughtless attacks from before were no more.  They were thinking, and making sure, and then moving and outwitting their opponents all over the place, making sport of Karasuno's attacks.

Then it was 20 to 24.

At a four point spread, it was Karasuno's match point.

For Johzenji there really was no turning back; if they chose a safe, steady attack here, they were done for.

Four people on the court started moving at once.

It might become their very last play, and they chose...once again, the synchronized attack from before.  It was the same play that they tried to imitate during the first set,  using a copy of their opponent's killer technique to take them down!  Or so they must have been thinking, again trying to copy that same technique.

The setter Futamata's toss went to the left, and the one who came in to hit it was the ace, Terushima.

With only one blocker on him, Terushima spiked it.

The ball flew, hitting the ground extremely close to the end line.  Karasuno's team members all turned to look over their shoulders at the point of impact.  The line judge raised the red flag--it was out. 

Come on, come on, come on, Kuribayashi had been thinking with her eyes fixated on the match, forgetting to even breathe.  It was only when the whistle blew indicating the end of the match that she finally exhaled.    

"You've gotta be kidding...."

It was reckless, but they were a team that never backed down from doing as they pleased.  During the entire match, Kuribayashi hadn't once felt scared of them.  They were like completely different people, all serious and cool.    

When they came to do their greeting to the cheering section, she clapped as hard as she could, but when she saw their faces contorted with seething rage, her breath caught in her throat, and she realized she was wrong.    

".....Nope.  This is the scariest they've ever been."    

The other first year club members in the cheering section all got up together and started descending to the ground floor.  There was nothing for the defeated party to do but leave.  Kuribayashi also hurried to stand up.  Then she took one more look at the court, at the figures of her teammates leaving it, searing the image into her memory, before turning on her heel and following the rest of her club members.    

Coming out into the first floor hallway, she saw the players, then the coach, and finally Misaki walking towards her.  Kuribayashi, unable to say anything, silently stood behind the first year members.    

"Ah, Runa-chan."    

She may have been hiding, but Misaki found her and rushed over to her side.  She handed the scoreboard over to Kuribayashi and quietly said, "From the next match onwards, you have the reins, Runa-chan."    

"Right...."   

"Are you still scared?" Misaki asked.  Over her shoulder, Kuribayashi could see the her teammates drenched in sweat.  Their bodies were still stiff with fighting spirit, and they walked in silence with a sense of seething excitement still radiating off of them.  Compared to the usual boisterousness, these were like completely different people.   

Good work today--or no, it was a good match--but no, any words like that would just be flatly refused, would just be wrong right now.    

Right now, to even think about losing was--   

Kuribayashi, without averting her eyes from the backs of her teammates, said in a small voice, "No.  .....Next time, we'll definitely win."   

That thin voice, concealing a strong spirit, startled Misaki for a moment, then she tightly pursed her lips and nodded.    

"Yeah."    

She clapped the new manager on the back.

"Let's go."    

"Right."