The first time they saw each other, all she saw were the rumours. He was tall, scary, and thuggish. He was the kind of guy you'd never want to piss off. She'd here about the third year from her gossiping classmates, how he'd sell drugs to people on shady streets and beat up others. He was the kind of person she wished wasn't on the volleyball team.
She freaked, hair standing on end as he asked her a simple question. It didn't take long before she ran away the first time she saw him (and the team) leaving him bewildered.
That was also the first time they talked.
The first time they touched was an accident, and it was definitely not sensual in any way. She was handing out water bottles and towels to the boys and their fingertips had accidentally brushed against each other. Even though her jumpy personality around the volleyball team had begun to fade, sudden jolts such as this caused her to tense up and stammer out apologies.
In turn, he ended up apologizing as well, her personality setting off his wimpy one.
The first time they spoke out of a club-related event was when he saw her hiding under a gazebo in the park. She had gone to the convenience store to buy some snacks for dinner, and failed to notice the darkening skies that ultimately led to heavy rain. She wasn't well dressed, either, as she let the handles of the plastic bag slide down her arm, hands wrapped around herself to keep warm. It didn't do much, she was a shivering mess, even more so when he approached and called out her name. She jumped at the voice that startled her out of her thoughts, right out from under the gazebo and into the rain, thinking that someone was going to kill her.
That was the first time he gave a girl his jacket, and their first time sharing an umbrella with someone of the opposite gender.
It was also the first time he walked her home.
The first time they held hands was an accident. The team had organized an outing to an amusement park, and they were on drink duty. It was her first time there, she tended to stay home on her free time, and Asahi's second. When most of the team wasn't there, they left the refreshments with the captain after he shooed them off.
The thought of being alone with the gentle giant flustered her, and she ended up pointing towards the first the dark building to her right, claiming that they should go there.
A haunted house, the test of courage.
Something neither had.
They were both scared easily, clinging to each other and screaming whenever something popped up in front of them. Their hands were intertwined, each person gripping hard onto the other, as they were constantly spooked. They didn't realize until they were out of that hellish place, immediately letting go when it dawned upon them.
The team wondered why they were red in the face when they regrouped.
The first time he confesses, it went way over her head. They began hanging out for the last month, enjoying each other's company despite the odd looks they sometimes got in the street, or at their favourite cafés. He had gone down to her classroom during lunch time, asking for her, and nearly scaring most of the first years. They went out to one of the trees in the garden, enjoying a peaceful lunch time when he continued to eye her warily.
Deep breath.
"I like you."
"Hm? O-oh, I like you too!"
He turned to face her so fast, she was afraid he might get whiplash. Her eyes went wide, wondering if he was okay as he stared at her incredulously. Had she just returned his feelings?
"Y-yes. I me-mean, I like you and the team. I'm- I'm glad to be a part of it."
He ruffled her hair as she blushed, shyly looking at the bento on her lap. He turned to face away, lips quivering as he chuckled nervously.
"Yeah."
His first confession of 'liking' someone, and she understood it as friendship.
The first confession she receives – and understands – wasn't from him. There was a letter in her shoe box that slipped out, and the boy she walked to school wasted no time in sharing it with the team. The decoy had jumped up and down, waving the envelope as if it were a treasure, causing the flustered girl to cover her face with her hands. Luckily one of the seniors retrieved it for her and she hurried to hide it in her bag.
She never notices the sad smile on his face, but he also isn't there when she rejects someone for the first time, either.
The first time they kiss is during the prelims. They had one after a difficult battle, and she spent no time running from the stands. Most were crying tears of joy, hugging other teammates and then she ran into his arms. The adrenaline in both their bodies was pumped, and they didn't even realize that they kissed until the libero hollers something that neither of them process, and then points a finger at them, gaining some attention.
They break apart quickly, both impossibly red and embarrassed.
They're official now. It's the first time they both date someone, and they're impossibly happy. She's still as jumpy as ever, while he seems to never have grown a backbone, but that's okay. They're young and in love and they're having the time of their life together. She does her best to ignore some of the hurtful, snide remarks that others make. They don't know him like the team does. Like she does.
The first time he sees her cry because of him is at graduation. A mix of emotions overcomes her, and he has trouble differentiating them. She's ecstatic that he graduated (not that she ever had any doubt that he would) and got accepted at his first-pick university. She's dejected because that means that he'd be moving away. That their time was coming to an end.
She runs to him once the ceremony is over, tears staining her cheeks as he tries to soothe her.
It isn't the first time they kiss anymore.
It was the last.