They were outcasts.

The real world was too much for them to handle, so they were always together. It was hard to fit in with people who couldn't understand them even though they are trying their best to understand the world. Mashumaro knew that. She was the scheming queen of mischief, although most of that mischief is only directed at Hirari. After all, there was no one else she was happy with. Although she was a naturally happy girl, but she can't openly express herself even though she had other friends besides Hirari.

To her, Hirari was her savior. At the time when she was abandoned by the people she once called friends, the only one who insisted on being her friend was Hirari. Together, they escaped the real world and developed a little world on their own.

Mashumaro sighed, hugging herself. Summer days may be hot as hell, but when the sun goes down; it feels as if she just got lost in the dead of the winter. It reminded of her of the line she drew to divide the people of this world. There were cold people and warm people. She walked aimlessly, obviously not knowing where she'd end up in as usual. She's actually surprised she has never gotten into trouble in the streets. "Good thing I don't catch attention." Or so she thought. She was pretty. A pretty girl walking in the streets would seem dumb for the rest of the world to see. Thing is, she wasn't sure if she was still part of the world.

She was an outcast. She probably just dragged Hirari into being one.

The girl looked up at the sky. "Wow, it does look like my dress." She mumbled to herself. Other than being the queen of mischief (towards Hirari), she was also the queen of random. In her own world, anyway. She always has a tendency to ruin moments although she does not even intend to. Her physical appearance was enough so her personality took the toll of life's imperfection. The stars were reflected in her eyes as she stared into the horizon as if she was in some kind of trance. "If that girl falls in love, she won't be an outcast anymore." She breathed in the sea breeze. "I had no idea how close the sea was to this part of the city." Again, another random thought crossing over with her deep thinking.

The wind blew, and with it, her hair and dress danced under pale moonlight. Sighing, an image flashed into her mind. It was an image of an upset Hirari. She gulped, knowing how scary the other girl was when angry. Hirari may be purer and more innocent than her, but there is nothing more dangerous in this world than innocence. She shook her head and ended up walking back toward the building with a slumped posture. "I'm hungry." A grumble could be heard just right under her chest. She rubbed her tummy, massaging it to at least make it stop making weird noises. Though she looked beautiful for the night, she doesn't even bother to mask her actions. Today was a bad day.

She was an outcast because she was a coward.

She got pissed at the crowd in the train station, couldn't find Hirari anywhere and arrived at Hirari's dad's apartment late so she had to rush. She looked haggard, and her hair had some parts sticking out. She raised her hand weakly to open the doorknob, only to have it opened by someone from the inside. "Ugh." She said. "Why is my mind reacting so slow to everything…?" She groaned, bowing down to the person before even looking at him.

The person stepped aside, letting her in. He watched as she walked like a drunken person, just like the first time he saw her. "Oh, there she is. Why's she talking to herself?" Another person pointed out. "Hey, why do you want to talk to her, anyway? You can just text her the explanation as to why cats are afraid of cucumbers. Don't you have her number?" The other person, Yamaguchi suggested. Tsukishima glared at Yamaguchi, wanting to tell him to stop talking, but decided otherwise. "I removed it from my phone." Tsukishima replied in a monotonous voice before closing the door. Yamaguchi raised an eyebrow questioningly. "Um, weren't we going outside for some air?" He asked Tsukishima, who continued walking back to the party. "Changed my mind."

Tsukishima went to sit back on the table where there were supposedly only two seats. The other was for Yamaguchi, but the freckled boy wanted to look around and check out Ukai's former rivals. Tsukishima wasn't even interested in the party in the first place. He tagged along because, well, there was obviously nothing better to do. After a while, Yamaguchi placed two plates of desserts on the table. "I got you your favorite! I was surprised they actually had it there." He enthusiastically told Tsukishima. Although the blonde still had the stoic expression, Yamaguchi was able to tell that he appreciated it. Tsukishima loves strawberry shortcake. A bit too much. "Thanks." He muttered.

By chance, on the empty table in front of them sat a brunette. She looked tired. And hungry. Tsukishima glanced at her every now and then. He didn't know why. They have only met once. That was it.

Plus, she was annoying. Her randomness that night pissed him off.

"Um, Tsuki… why do you keep on forking the cake over and over again without eating it?" The sound of Yamaguchi's voice released him from his thoughts. Tsukishima put the fork into his mouth, not realizing that the cake dropped from the fork and he ended up tasting nothing. "T-Tsuki? Are you sure you don't need fresh air?" Yamaguchi looked worried now. The freckled pinch server thought Kageyama wasn't making any sense when he claimed that Tsukishima was acting weird. Now, Yamaguchi was starting to think that Kageyama may be right about that. This time Tsukishima started focusing too much on the strawberry shortcake, eating it faster than he usually does.

He didn't want to talk to her. There's no reason to. Right?

"MARSHMALLOW! YOU'RE FINALLY HERE! I THOUGHT YOU GOT LOST!" Hirari's voice was loud enough for both Yamaguchi and Tsukishima to hear, even though she was only calling for her friend. Mashumaro shifted her attention to Hirari, with Kageyama and Hinata, who had cake all over their faces. "W-Why do you have cake on your face? I knew you were a messy eater, but, uhh…" Mashumaro was staring at Hirari and Kageyama in horror. Kageyama had cake on both his cheeks. "The Karasuno volleyball club suddenly decided to play with cake and I got involved because…" Hirari shot a look at Kageyama and Hinata. The raven-haired guy looked away, avoiding guilt while Hinata rubbed his head sheepishly. Mashumaro smiled. It seemed to her that her prediction may come true.

"Ah! Kaji-san! We're going to train tomorrow somewhere here in Tokyo! Do you want to come? There's this really awesome quick we're doing and it would be great if you guys get to see us play!" Hinata grabbed both her hands and shook it excitedly. "Oi, you're going to break her arms, you moron." Kageyama told him.

She was an outcast because she chose to be one. Then again, maybe she really didn't have to be one?

Mashumaro had always secluded herself from the real world. She hesitated, but seeing how happy Hinata was in telling volleyball stories and phenomenon, she swore she could hear the good side of the world calling out to her. The boy was one of the "warm people". This is probably her chance. No more stalking in the shadows and making herself unknown. No more pushing Hirari into situations where Hirari does all the talking. Gathering the little courage she had left, she faced Hinata with a shy, but determined expression and nodded. "Yes! We'll go!"

Welcome back to the real world, Kaji Mashumaro.