Okay, next chapter. The last flash back may take a few more days since I have three exams this week (Mathematics being one of them) BUT I'LL DO MY BEST.

LilweenGalatrass: I'm glad you liked it and yes, she is a lot rougher...and tougher. I know you are getting impatient, but love takes time, right? The plot will continue soon but who ever said that there wouldn't be fluff in the flashbacks ;)

kalmaegi: That was my aim. Siblings have their differences and their similarities. And she is 16 in that moment so a young little dumpling. AND USHIJIMA IS 15, OKAY? 15! I'm sticking to reality. If I make a mistake or something doesn't make sense, tell me please.

PandaHee: Izumi was turned off because of his fashion style xD She has already moved on at this point. But they are still good friends and hang out together.


Chapter 15 - A seed (Flashback)

It was the last Friday of the holidays before the start of the second year and Tamiko was sorting books in the library. That was her job. She was a librarian assistant and she loved it. She had even introduced the reading Friday where she read stories to children. A little stack of books was already waiting for her but she still had an hour of sorting to do. She loved those moments and she was sure nothing could ruin it.

"Kageyama Tamiko." she suddenly heard a voice next to her.

She turned her face to look into olive eyes. Ushijima Wakatoshi himself was standing next to her at eye level despite herself standing on a ladder. It was the first time she saw him since that incident and she was surprised that he even still remembered her name. His voice also seemed different. Deeper. No surprise there. All the boys went through puberty in their high school days and Ushijima was no exception. His features had grown more defined and the boyish face was turning into that of a man. His neck also looked thicker than last time. His hair was also a little longer. She swallowed when he didn't walk away.

"What are you doing here?" she asked as calmly as she could.

"Looking for a book." he answered plainly.

"In the 'gardening' category?" she asked with disbelief.

"Yeah." he nodded.

This surprised her. Was he really looking for a book in the gardening section? She wanted to laugh. But she tried to stay professional

"And I'm in the way." she said.

"No. I was just surprised to see you in a place like this." he admitted.

"And why exactly?" she asked.

"You work." was all he said.

"Some people don't always get money from their parents." she grumbled. "Or get famous enough."

It wasn't unknown. Ushijima was the star player and his fame had been growing over the year. Soekawa and Semi had shown her pictures of their powerhouse team in the volleyball magazine and it mainly featured Ushijima. Stupid popular guys, she had grumbled to herself. They are all the same, thinking they can get what they want. She didn't look at him since she expected a egotistical reaction like she was used to.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to be rude." he apologised.

What? Her eyes widened behind the glasses and she looked at him, reading his face. There was a hint of softness on his face and no ill intent. Then the shame flooded her. She had judged a book by it's cover. She has made the assumption that he was just like Oikawa when in fact, he wasn't. He was entirely different. If she thought about it, he was the complete opposite. Ushijima was quiet, contained. Oikawa was loud, emotional and flamboyant. Maybe she could give this guy standing before her a chance.

"How is your head?" he asked.

"Oh, it's fine. A little scar but otherwise everything is fine." she smiled.

Why she smiled, she didn't know. It was an incidental occurrence and it didn't bother her. On the contrary, she relaxed and stepped from the ladder. Maybe he wasn't so bad after all.

"So," she started and straightened her top. "Do you need help or can you find the book yourself?"

"No, I'll find it myself." he insisted.

She blinked and looked after him as he walked past her. Was that just bluntness or was the politeness earlier just for show? Judging by the way he somehow innocently looked for a book, she checked him as blunt, for now. She shrugged and continued her work until her favourite time of the day arrived.

"Hello, everyone." she greeted the children with a bright smile.

From a distance, Ushijima heard the unison of children voices greet her as 'Kageyama-sensei'. This caught his attention and he watched as she showed them a book. His eyes lingered on her face as she laughed and smiled with the children. Only when a person walked through his field of vision did he return his attention to his book. After an hour he decided to borrow two books he had found very interesting and went to the reception. The librarian was an elderly, yet very friendly lady. Ushijima thanked her and left, with a parting glance at Tamiko, who was still enthusiastically reading to the children.

The following Monday was the first day back to school. All the students gathered by the billboards that had been erected on the plaza. Every year, the students were ordered into new classes to compensate for the competence, to push the students higher. Tamiko has tried her best. She was in class one before and now she was excited to see what class she would be in now. There were a lot of new students as well, new first years. There was one who caught her eye since he wore a suppressed smile on his face. She smiled to herself when she heard someone call her name. Izumi caught her by the gate.

"I bet you lunch the you got into class 4." she laughed.

"Please, no bets." Tamiko pouted.

Both waited until the crowd has thinned. There were cheers and tears. Good grades meant a lot to some of the students. Even the students with the sport scholarships were put into those classes. But their grades also mattered.

"You're in class 3! You jumped two classes!"

Tamiko was speechless. All the studying had paid off.

When she walked into her new classroom, the air seemed so much different. These were the smart people, the ones that hard good chances to get into the top universities in the country, along with the students of class 4, whose chances were even higher. Tamiko found a seat in the middle of the room. She didn't like window or wall seats.

"Good morning, Wakatoshi-kun." a girl greeted.

Tamiko flinched in her seat and looked over her shoulder. Ushijima had walked into the classroom, followed by a guy with a buzzcut.

"Alright, everyone. Good to see everyone in this new year. You have all studied hard to get here and now have made it into class 3. Some of you have been here last year, others moved down from class four but a few made it up here. Nevertheless, welcome."

"I'm Hagiwara Daisuke and I'll be your homeroom teacher for this year. If there is anything you need help with, you can come to me." he said.

He mentioned a few more things about school activities, exams and trips. Tamiko listened carefully, feeling slightly nervous of the atmosphere in the room.

"Now that I have introduced myself, I want to know who you are." Hagiwara said and looked at the first student in the front row.

"Name, former class and focus." he commanded.

The first student stood, a beautiful girl with long blond hair and a melodic voice. All the students stood, one after the other, introducing themselves as if they were in the arms. Tamiko tried to judge them a little, if they were approachable for her or not. She wasn't with Izumi anymore. Then it was her turn. She stood and felt all eyes on her. She didn't falter.

"Kageyama Tamiko. Formly class 1. My focus is music." she said with a confident voice.

The teacher nodded and she sat down again. A huff escaped her and the introduction continued. Then the person diagonally behind her stood and she flinched a little when she heard the voice.

"Ushijima Wakatoshi. Still class 3. My focus is volleyball." he said before sitting down.

Another student caught her attention as well, mainly because of the focus.

"Yamagata Hayato. Formly class 2. My focus is also volleyball." the boy with the buzzcut said.

That's when it dawned her; she was the only one who moved up two classes. She swallowed but nobody seemed to say anything. Furthermore, the day passed quickly with nobody giving her any attention. When she spend the afternoon in the music room, she was more than happy. After school, Izumi and Tamiko walked home together, happy that the first day had gone so well. Ushijima also never approached or talked to her in class. If anything, he gave her a small nod, that was it. The months passed like this. She also never saw him in the library again. According to a colleague he did return the books and had even asked for her. Tamiko only worked there on mondays and fridays and he left in silence with that information. Over the course of the first half of the second year, Tamiko had finally saved enough money to buy contact lenses from her optician. It was a strange feeling not to wear glasses anymore and it took some time to adjust. Her hair had also grown longer. Her breasts had also finally started to grow and she loved her new self. Her confidence was at a peak and she had never felt so great in her life. There was even a moment that she first regretted but that also changed a lot, even her future occupation in the school. She was sorting out books when she noticed something. After looking through some papers, she typed on her phone.

From: Tami

To: Ushijima Wakatoshi

It's Kageyama Tamiko.

We have a new gardening book in the library you might like. Just ask at the reception for it.

About three seconds after she had sent the message, she regretted it. She had send a mail to his private number. Now he would probably think she was a stalker. While she panicked, her phone chimed announcing a returned message.

From: Ushijima Wakatoshi

To: Tami

Okay. Thank you.

A sigh of relief escaped her. She had his number. Was this good or bad? He wasn't the first guy on her phone. Semi had also managed to get her number from her and they often met during lunch in school. The last day before the summer holidays was the last nail in the coffin.

"You make your lunch yourself?" Semi asked.

The trio were sitting together eating lunch and his eyes were glued onto Tamiko's lunchbox. It was filled with all sorts of wonderful things that it was mouthwatering. Izumi grinned menacingly and before Tamiko could stop her, she was already boasting.

"Tamiko is a great cook!" Izumi revealed.

"Seriously?" Semi beamed.

And that was it. After school, Semi dragged her to coach Washijo and introduced her. The coach asked her about what she knew about cooking and she revealed that she cooked healthy meals for her sporty brother. The old man nodded and asked if she could cook the food for the summer training camp. She would get the money to buy the food as well and a place to sleep during that time. Without thinking, she accepted the offer. That week of summer was the craziest one she had ever experienced. She met Tendou, Ohira and even the giddy first year she had seen on the first day. His name was Shibaru and he was a setter like her brother. The boys, especially the third years looked out for her since her first encounter with the team ended with a ball in the face. They enjoyed her food and if she wasn't studying, she was watching. It was also during that time that she improved her observational skills, too. Advisor Saitou was very impressed with her observation that he said she would be a great teacher. His daughter was a nursery nurse, something that would suit Tamiko's skill. This sparked a great change in her. From then on, she taught herself the art of observation for the nursery nurse job and found; this is what I want to do. She smiled to herself. This summer was the best summer ever.