#jozhenji

Terushima had searched for Y/N specifically, mainly because she was one of the only girls to not have joined a club yet, and because she had in depth experience with volleyball. But he would be lying if he didn’t almost admit that it was also because he wanted to spend more time with her. Third year was kicking his ass, and the least the year could do for him was to let a good friend, and crush, of his be a team manager for the Volleyball Club at Johzenji.

The difficult issue for Y/n was that she didn’t want to spend her time trying to manage such a large group of third year boys who all towered over her, or have to deal with the countless second and first years who still needed a lot of teaching to improve their skills. Not to mention, the rumors that Johzenji volleyball club is the unruliest of all teams, that was one of the things that scared her off. The school’s motto is ‘Simplicity and Fortitude’ after all. While many people would think that all the clubs were as overwhelming as the volleyball club, they would be wrong. It was just volleyball that seemed to have the majority of students who never cared much for the idea of a simple and strong playing style.

“I can understand why you don’t want to be manager. But, please, the team has somehow been able to take a more tactical approach, even if it is just slightly.” Terushima toyed with his tongue piercing between his front teeth for a moment before continuing, “You played volleyball in middle school and for all three years you won best defensive specialist. You being our team manager would be the best thing for our team.” He forced a small smile while moving his shoulders up slightly.

His slightly timid actions, and of course his words tugged at Y/n’s heartstrings. Pursing her lips, she considered the pros and cons. She nodded her head and the corner of her mouth turned upward.

“What the hell? Why not, sounds good.”

Terushima started grinning like a madman and he tried to hold himself back from jumping up and down. But he couldn’t escape the pull as he hopped to the gym, before turning around and waving, “Practice starts at 3:30! You better be there tomorrow!”

Y/n was there tomorrow, but what she saw wasn’t what she expected. She knew who Runa and Terushima were, but the rest of the team was a blur of faces and limbs all moving around in excitement. And she had a flashback.

The short memory of breaking her leg shot past her brain. The rush of people surrounding her as she cried out on the vinyl floors, holding her leg to her body. It was a hot but also freezing spot above her knee.

She had broken her leg and couldn’t play volleyball anymore. She broke it over summer vacation, so when first year rolled around, she decided to give up on volleyball for the duration of her high school career. Of course, she felt envious of the volleyball team members but, at least she was back in the gym. It was a nice first step, even if it was taken two years too late.

Y/n looked around, and people were still talking and moving around. It didn’t look like volleyball practice. Terushima seemed to be the center of it all, and at the very edge of the gym was Runa standing and trying to bring them to all attention. Suddenly, Y/n was slightly agitated. If they wanted her help, then they would need to listen.

Clearing her throat loudly, Y/n stomped her foot and announced, “Listen to me right now. Shut up!” When everyone stopped what they were doing and turned to face her, she paused for a second before swallowing lightly and tilting her head up. “Stand in a semi-circle so we can get practice started.”

Practice wasn’t bad, not at all. Y/n just had a difficult time trying to help all of the members, improving stances and angles of arm positions to amplify receives. She didn’t have a difficult time teaching; she had a difficult time trying to help everyone and not have her time assisting completely surrounded by Terushima asking her questions and begging her to look at his serves.

“Y/n, Y/n, look at this!” He bounded up to her with sweat dripping down his forehead from all the athletic activity.

“We have to start cleaning up Terushima, maybe tomorrow?” Terushima scowled before slumping his shoulders and setting the volleyball into the basket, mumbling a ‘fine’.

After practice, the Johzenji volleyball club liked to hang out. This was also what Terushima liked to call his personal group of therapists. Him and his homies at his house, eating junk food and watching various volleyball highlights running through the TV, listening to reactions from his club members at receives, spikes, digs, or even a good setter dump.

“She drives me crazy. And I can never even think around her! It’s just- I can’t act normal around her.” Terushima flung himself onto the couch, he groaned as he dragged his hands across his face.

“You can’t act normal in the first place.” Someone muttered.

“Hey! I heard that.” Terushima leaned up from the couch, before letting out a deep sigh and falling back onto the couch.

“Just ask her on a date. Simple as that.”

Terushima wanted to retort, but he couldn’t. Because it was simple as that. The next couple of days were truly a struggle. At first, he tried to look for ways to be helpful. But that only ended up with him stressing Y/n out because she couldn’t handle him asking her questions all the time. Then he tried to be the silent and mysterious type, but that only ended up with Y/n laughing because he tried wearing his leather jacket during practice.

“You can't exactly, you know, play volleyball wearing such a restrictive material Terushima.” She pulled on the sleeve of his jacket and he slid it off. She folded the jacket and hung it over her arm. “Now, go and keep improving your technique. Okay?”

Terushima nodded before sighing dreamily once she had left to set his jacket down. His third attempt was a lot more successful. But his third attempt was less of an attempt on his part and more of an effort on Y/n’s part.

It was a Friday, and mostly everyone had cleared out from practice. Terushima went to go serve, just for a final moment of practice. But just as he had hit the ball, Runa had started walking by. He ran forward to try and receive at the very least. But in one fell swoop, Y/n was there and receiving the ball, sending right back to Terushima, the ball landing just slightly to the left of him.

“Runa are you okay?” She turned around and held onto her shoulders, doing a quick check of her to make sure she was okay.

“I’m fine, I’m fine.” Runa put her hands up, she smiled at Y/n before raising her eyebrows and nodding over to where Terushima stood, stunned.

Runa and some other the other members had finally finished cleaning up and had exited the gym. Leaving Y/n to wander over to where Terushima stood.

“You still play?” He put his hands on her shoulders and shook her. “How come you didn’t join the girls' team?”

Y/n toyed with her hands before frowning, causing Terushima to back up. “I don’t play anymore, because of an injury over summer, before I started my first year. So, I gave up.”

“Why’d you give up when you're so clearly amazing! I thought you had stopped after Middle School because you were too focused on schoolwork? Or because the High School volleyball scene was too intimidating for you. But really you're still a volleyball idiot like me.” Pleased with the retort, Terushima smiled. Only to be met with her rubbing her shoulders and chewing on her bottom lip.

“I gave up because I was scared, I was scared I would get hurt again, I guess.” Y/n felt embarrassed. “I really do love volleyball. It’s just wasn’t going to work out, my lack of self-confidence and my actual injury prevented me from playing.” She wasn’t making an effort to hold back the way her eyes watered now.

Terushima didn’t know what to do. So, he just didn’t do anything. He wished he would have stepped forward and hugged her. He hoped he would have said something to comfort her. But he had never been in this kind of situation before so he just stood there, awkwardly holding his arm.

“Sorry, didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable. Thanks for letting me vent. I really do get kind of jealous seeing all you guys getting to play all the time.” She sniffled before wiping her face with her palms.

Y/n picked up the volleyball in her hands, running her fingers along the stitching. Just letting the weight of the ball be held in her hands. She pushed the ball into Terushima’s arms, he fumbled for a moment before holding it steadily.

“Improve your technique.” He blurted out. Looking directly into her eyes.

“What?” Y/n tilts her head and raises an eyebrow.

“Improve your technique, that’s what you said to me when I tried wearing that leather jacket.”

Terushima feels a flush grow onto his back of his neck before walking over to put the volleyball away. Y/n follows him as he wheels the basket away. He is reminded of all the times he followed her as she put away the basket into the storage closet.

“I did. What about it?” Y/n locks the storage closet and the gym door as she and Terushima head outside.

“You need to improve your technique.” His words are blunt and straight to the point.

“My technique? Big words coming from you Terushima.” She teases, nudging his stomach with her elbow.

Terushima remembers the first time he met Y/n. It was just after the loss to Karasuno, and he was feeling oddly humble. Being back at school felt weird he missed the competitions, he missed playing volleyball, and the thrill of wondering if he was going to win or lose. But seeing Y/n doodling in her math notebook just outside the cafeteria seemed like a challenge, and he wanted to take it. His attempts at flirting with her were immediately shut down.

“No, not your volleyball technique.” He looked forward and kept walking, Y/n realized that he had begun taking the route she took to get home, so she just went along with him.

Even though Y/n was very advanced with volleyball, it didn’t mean those skills carried over into the social world. Being in the volleyball club for so long, really cut her off from other people. Since all of her time was usually spent practicing or doing schoolwork. So, when she stopped doing volleyball, she had to start building up her personality from the ground up, and doing something like that, at high school where everyone already had an idea of where they fit in was extremely difficult.

“Then what technique exactly?” She tugged on his hand, forcing him to face her again.

“You didn’t need to apologize. You are allowed to feel like that. Apologizing was a show of bad technique.” When Y/n went to let go of his hand, he gripped onto it, softly, but still holding onto her hand.

“What technique?” She raises her voice, she mentally clarified to herself that she wasn't angry, she was confused. And she didn’t appreciate that confusion.

If there was one thing Y/n had to get used to, it was Terushima becoming intent on becoming her friend. At first, he really rubbed her the wrong way during second year. But once she shut him down, he kept coming back not to flirt. But to just talk, and he talked about everything and anything. Eventually, she opened up. Terushima absorbed everything she told him like a sponge. He was desperate to know her, to understand why she closed off in the first place. He wasn’t oblivious, he could clearly see that she was alone. But he didn’t know how lonely she was until he became her friend.

“Your emotional technique is extremely weak.” He explains.

Y/n goes silent.

“You're not some robot, whose machine arm got ripped off and then screwed back on wrong. You are a human. With complex feelings. And most of the time even I don’t understand my own.” He rambles, the words becoming slightly jumbled as he goes on.

“Can you give an example?” Y/n is less confused now, but wants to see how far Terushima is willing to continue his unintelligible rant.

“Of feelings?”

“Why not.” She lets go of his hands and starts walking, Terushima standing still for a moment before jogging slightly to catch up with her, there was only a few more steps before they reached her front door.

“Well, you're feeling jealous-”

She cuts him off, “Of your own feelings.” She stops again, realizing they are already at the the front door.

Terushima thinks for a moment. He understands a lot of his emotions pretty well. He likes to have fun because it makes him feel victorious. He doesn’t like to lose because it makes him feel defeated and less confident in himself. He knows that seeing Y/n sad makes him angry, and he knows that when she smiles or laughs, he feels his own happiness bubble up in his stomach.

“I like you.”

She takes a step back, her eyes widened.

“Oh, um, was that not what you meant?” He rubbed the back of his head. Putting his head down slightly, he cringed. His shoes suddenly became a picturesque vision of the ocean, seeing as his intent was focused wholly on the laces and stitching.

“Not exactly, but it’s good to know.” Seeing as Terushima had his head down, Y/n kissed the top of his head slightly. Shaking her own head, she ruffled his hair and started unlocking her front door.

Terushima shot his head back up and pulled her in close. “You do not get to just kiss me and then leave.”

“I won’t leave.” Then when she tries to wiggle out of his grasp, he just holds on a little bit tighter.