"Welcome to the Karasuno Boys Volleyball Club!"

Yachi feels a tremor zip from her toes to her head. It's unreal, but she's standing here, by Shimizu's side.

"Alright!" Sawamura claps to get everyone's attention. "Since Yachi is now an official member and finals are over, I'm treating everyone to pork buns!"

The boys, who are excited enough to have Yachi be part of the team, become more riled up with the thought of free food.

"O-Oh, I don't know if I can…" Yachi turns to Shimizu and rattles her brain for ideas. "My mom... I think she wants me home to help her cook dinner!"

"Why don't you call and ask her if you can come with us instead?" suggests Hinata.

Yachi is reluctant for two reasons. She had already faced her mother and spoken her true feelings about joining the team - announced it, actually, in a public space. Hasn't she already spent her allowance of bravery points? Asking her mother's permission for things is scary. Yachi doesn't want to admit to her second reason - that she's actually using her mother as an excuse to avoid socializing with the others. It's a difficult decision. Quickly weighing the pros and cons, she rationalizes that there shouldn't be any harm in going out for pork buns. That is, if food is the only thing she has to worry about.

"Oh! That's a good idea, Hinata." Yachi tries her best to sound convincing, and luckily Hinata is too distracted to notice her lack of enthusiasm. She flips open her phone and calls her mother. After two or three rings, Madoka picks up.

"Hello?"

"Hello, mom? It's me."

"Hitoka? Is everything alright?"

"Yeah! I was just, um, wondering if I could hang out with the volleyball team for a little bit. The captain said that he's treating us all to pork buns from the market. I told them that I probably wouldn't be able to go since I thought you might need my help cooking dinner tonight." Yachi prays that her mother can somehow magically sense what she's truly feeling deep down, and will go along with it.

"Nonsense! I can't remember the last time you've ever asked me permission to hang out with others at school." Madoka completely misses any hints that Yachi thinks she put out. "You go have fun. And please don't stay out too late."

"O-Oh, okay."

"Be safe!"

"I will."

When Madoka ends the call, the cons of joining the team seem to weigh heavier. Yachi knows she needs another excuse. Her main method of escape is no longer valid.

"So?" Hinata grins at her like a puppy waiting for a tennis ball. "What'd she say?"

"She said it's fine, but…" Yachi isn't going down without a little resistance. "But, I don't think I have enough money on me for pork buns today!"

"Hmm?" Hinata looks confused at her remark. "Didn't Captain say he was treating us?"

She reached too far and skewed the facts. "O-Oh yeah. I forgot."

"So you can come after all! Awesome!" Satisfied with the confirmation, Hinata runs off to join Tanaka and Nishinoya in celebrating.

Yachi feels her throat closing. There's something in her chest, and it's slowly getting heavier. The air is thick, and it's getting harder for her to breathe. She needs to breathe through her nose and think rationally, use logic, or things will only get worse. She knows this. These aren't strangers. Why is she so afraid of spending time with them?

"Hitoka-chan." Shimizu puts her hand on Yachi's shoulder, and the air returns to normal in an instant. "You don't have to come.

"W-What!? But the captain said that part of the reason why we're going is to celebrate my joining. Wouldn't it be rude to leave?"

"In most cases, maybe. But we know about your current limitations. Daichi-san!"

Shimizu waves Sawamura over, and when he nears, Yachi shrinks closer to Kiyoko. The confidence he exudes makes her nervous.

"Hitoka-chan is considering going home instead. Is that okay?"

Yachi is mortified. She can already tell that Sawamura is judging her. He must regret accepting such a rude person like herself into the club. She shuts her eyes and clings to Kiyoko for support.

"Of course!"

Yachi barely opens one eye to look up at Sawamura. He's smiling.

"Yachi-san, I know being around lots of people can be frightening, especially a rowdy bunch like them."

He jabs his thumb in the direction of the team, where Nishinoya is doing a handstand on Tanaka's shoulders. Most of the boys are chattering loudly.

Sawamura slightly raises the pitch of his voice and speaks gently. "Still, I think it's important that you take this as a chance to try getting to know your teammates. Eventually you'll need to start getting comfortable with them in order to best manage them. But if it's too much for today, I won't force you to do something that makes you uncomfortable. Think it over, and let me know what your decision is after we finish packing up and changing." Sawamura waves and jogs back over to the main group to help put away the volleyball net.

Relief washes over. The captain himself has given Yachi an out, but she's mostly glad that Sawamura isn't upset with her.

"Shimizu-senpai, what did Sawamura-senpai mean when he said 'getting to know your teammates'? I thought I was a manager, not a player."

"Hitoka-chan, this is our team. Every time we win, it's because we worked hard together. In the meantime, I have to go talk to the coach about the results of today's practice. While you think about what you want to do, can you please convince those two to help clean up?" Before running off, Kiyoko gestures to Hinata and Kageyama, who, in a test of telepathy, are trying to set a ball back and forth with their eyes closed.

Our team.


"Did everyone get a bun?"

Yachi stares at the fresh food in her hands. She wonders what could've possibly possessed her to come along. She doesn't remember telling the captain that she wanted to join them after practice. She doesn't remember walking past the road that led to her usual bus stop. She doesn't remember the aching urge she had to bolt down that road and disappear from the team's view.

"Yachi-san, is everything alright? You haven't eaten yet."

"O-Oh, right!" Without thinking, Yachi takes a sizable bite - it's so big she can barely even move her jaw to chew. She manages to get it down with an incredible amount of effort. "D-Delicious! Thank you for the food."

Sawamura nods. "I'm glad you like it! And I'm glad you decided to come." He leaves to converse with the other third years.

Yachi looks around at her new teammates. The diverse personalities are more evident when she is simply observing them, instead of studying them as athletes. Some of the boys are talkative and rambunctious. Others are more reserved and only speak sparingly.

Finally, Yachi realizes that she is standing alone. Everyone is involved in a conversation except her. This is why she hates socializing, especially in big groups - it's awful to be left out. Conversation seems to come so naturally to everyone else. Maybe there's something wrong with her.

"Hitoka-chan!" Shimizu waves Yachi over.

Yachi smiles half-heartedly because she can no longer hide how terrified she is. Still, she'd rather join her mentor than the louder, rowdier group of freshmen and second years. Hesitant, Yachi slowly makes her way. The three senior boys tower over her, making her heart pound in fear. Combined with their older age, their demeanors alone scream confidence in themselves - Yachi's antithesis. But they aren't strangers! Yachi has been working with them for more than two weeks now, yet she has to repeat this mantra over and over. So why is she still petrified? Why is her tongue dry? Why does she want to run away so badly?

"Yachi-san," says Azumane, "I'm glad that we're all finally able to relax together."

"W-What?" Yachi has been so accustomed to hearing Azumane yell while playing. This is the first chance she's gotten to properly listen to him speak. It's a deep voice. Warm and full. Encouraged by the gentleness, Yachi looks up at Azumane. He's smiling at her shoes, and rubbing his neck.

"I mean, we've all been working really hard lately."

"Yachi-san, especially!" Sawamura says.

"Yachi-san's been helping the freak duo study," chimes in Sugawara. "Remember?"

"Oh yeah!" Asahi says. "Even Tsukishima couldn't keep up with those two. That's either a testament to Yachi-san's hard work or Tsukishima's allergies."

Sawamura raises a brow. "I didn't know Tsukishima was allergic to anything."

"Yeah, when it comes to Hinata and Kageyama? He's allergic to kindness and patience."

Yachi looks between the three boys who, just moments ago, felt too intimidating to her. Now they're all just caught up in a fit of laughter. Shimizu can't help giggling. She smiles at Yachi, who, now more comfortable, has a small smile on her face.

"You've been doing great with them, Hitoka-chan," Shimizu says. "I hope they didn't take up too much of your time over the weekend."

"Wow Yachi-san, you even tutored them on the weekend?" Sugawara nods, impressed. "That's dedication."

"Shimizu's right, though. Don't let those two knuckleheads be your number one priority," says Sawamura. "I'm sure you have other things you wanna do."

"Oh no, it's all right! I really want to help out in the best ways that I can, and part of that includes my study skills…" She reflects on Sawamura's words. "And I don't really have other things I wanna do, anyways…"

The silence that follows lasts for too long. Yachi can hear her heart beat in her throat.

"B-By the way!" Sugawara says a bit too loudly. "You guys know the appliance store near my house?"

"Oh no," Sawamura rubs his face. "This isn't another one of those cons where you convince us to chip in for an overpriced birthday present for your mother again, is it? I already bought everyone pork buns, man."

Azumane shakes his head. "I bet she doesn't even use that rice cooker."

"Wha- NO, I-!" Instinctively defending himself, Sugawara fumbles a bit and almost forgets what he's going to say. He clears his throat. "I was gonna say that I saw an incredible poster in the storefront window. At first I thought it was about an action movie, but when I looked closer, it was this epic picture of Hinata! Ever since that poster went up, the locals have been donating money to support us." Sugawara beams at Yachi and her face turns beet red. "I had no idea you were so talented at graphic design and photography, Yachi-san."

"Dang, no wonder you chose her, Shimizu." Daichi crosses his arms. "Our new manager's got a lot of different talents hidden up her sleeve."

"You can say that again," adds Azumane. "Yachi-san, what gave you the idea to make a poster like that?"

"Well, when I overheard Takeda-sensei talking about how we were lacking funds, I wanted to help somehow." Yachi presses her index fingers together, painfully aware that all the attention is on her. "I remember asking Hinata what inspired him to take up volleyball, and he wouldn't let up about a certain Little Giant. I thought that if the Little Giant of the past was able to inspire Hinata this much, maybe having our own, present-day Little Giant would bring back some support from our community. Of course, I still had to consider how to present the photo, like playing with the contrast and selecting the best shot of Hinata mid-spike, as well as choosing the correct font that would inspire others and grab the attention of…"

Like fish with gaping mouths, the boys stare. Yachi had been rambling, and didn't even notice! "Um-"

"So cool…" They speak in unison, almost as if they rehearsed it.

Shimizu chuckles at the dumbfounded faces. She puts her thumb up, approving.

Looking only at the ground, Yachi breaks into a grin that she can't control.