Chapter 2: It's A Deal
As it turned out, the boys had nothing to worry about. Yui spent her time running directly behind Daichi. Rin ran circles around everyone with boundless energy as she chatted with everyone, teased her senpai, and laughed with Yuu. At one point, it appeared that Tsukishima had had enough and decided to put an end to her fun and games in the only way he knew how.
"Jeez, you're annoying..." Her smile faded as she looked at the tall first year. "If you keep this up, you'll probably get kicked out of our gym. No wonder your teammates don't wanna be around you in the morning..." He gave her his usual haughty look, looking down on her as only he had perfected.
"Hey, Tsukki..." Yamaguchi started softly. It was clear that he felt bad for the second year girl-- his friend wasn't exactly the type to hold back and went out of his way to piss of his teammates and anyone opposed to him. But he'd never been this way to a girl he just met. They didn't know anything about her. What if she started crying? He wasn't sure if his cold and calculating friend would be able to stand up to a girl's tears.
The two passed the small redhead who seemed to have a hard time looking at them, her running turning into a jog. But just when he was going to bring up apologizing to her, she jumped on Tsukishima's back, sending him sprawling though he managed to stay on his feet in the end. He did let out a grunt at the added weight, his eyes wide in surprise. She had planted her shoes on his back, resembling a little monkey on his back.
"There's no need to be a jerk, Tsukki~" she purred with a sly grin. "If Dai-senpai puts me on your team as your libero, I'll have everyone's back. Just like I have yours right now~" She quickly jumped off with a little more force than necessary, sending Tsukishima stumbling into a tree. He glared over at her and she pulled her lower lid down, sticking out her tongue before getting back to running.
Nishinoya's face had a hint of seriousness as he glanced at the golden eyed first year. But he let himself be distracted by Tanaka who whistled at her toughness. "Dude, I totally thought she was about to cry..." He sounded relieved.
"No. I've never seen Rin cry. She's the one that makes people cry." At Tanaka's confusion, he laughed. "Right? She used to have tons of trouble making friends. Girls were always jealous of her and guys thought they could treat her like some doll. It didn't help that she used to bring a shit ton of food with her for lunch..." He stopped for a moment. "Actually, she still does... hey, Rin!"
She turned to look at them and ran back to their side. "Yeah, what's up, Nishi~?"
"Do you still work at your Dad's restaurant?"
The redhead nodded with a grin. "Yep~ Pop's is kinda ticked that I joined volleyball instead of training to take over the restaurant. Keeps talking about how he's not getting any younger and how I draw a bigger crowd than he does... blah, blah, blah..." She ran around to the other side of the two boys, unwilling to stay in one spot for too long. "Why?"
"I was just wondering if you still make those huge bentos. With all the training, I haven't had any of your cooking for a while now."
Rin laughed and grabbed his sides, tickling him with her fingers. "Poor Yuu~ you're wasting away, aren't you ~?" The boy laughed, squirming to get away from her, causing Daichi to yell at them to stay focused so they wouldn't get hurt. "Sorry, Dai-senpai... but yeah... hmm, it's not enough to pay you guys back though."
"Huh?"
By this time, everyone had finished their run and were back at the gym. Yui had an idea and ran to the younger girl, whispering in her ear. "Hm? You think? I mean, I do owe them... and it'll give you plenty of time to stare at his butt~" Yui jolted away, flushed as her crazy redheaded kohai giggled teasingly.
After that, Rin seemed to be strangely quiet. She stretched with her senpai as they were the only two girls. It helped that they were almost the same size, the younger being a couple of inches shorter. Suga commented on how comfortable they seemed with each other. It was almost like Asahi and Yuu. That had the whole group looking at them and then agreeing.
"Huh? Why are you guys staring at us and nodding?" Yui asked, tilting her head in confusion. When Daichi told her, she stopped for a moment. "Wait... so I'm the Asahi in that scenario?"
"Hey!" Rin stood up to her full 5'0" height and stomped her foot. "Why do you automatically assume that you're the Asahi in our relationship?" She stomped over to the ace and grabbed him by the arm, pulling him down to her level. "Although being the Nishi is awesome and we're totally liber-bros, don't you see the resemblance?!" She had her cheek push against his and couldn't see how freaked out he was getting.
"... uhm..." Everyone had the same thought in their head but didn't want to encure the tiny redhead's wrath. Of course, their own lovable ball of sunshine had no qualms about speaking his mind. "No, not really..." She let Asahi go in shock and the large third year stumbled away, choosing to hide behind a laughing Nishinoya.
"What's going on here, fellas!?" Coach Ukai had arrived and he was glaring more than usual. "I'm late one day and you punks decide to bring girls into the gym?!" he growled. They had nationals to train for-- this was no time for goofing off.
Both girls went in front of the blond man and bowed respectfully. "We're from the girl's volleyball team. Please give us permission to train with you in the mornings!" He listened to their schill with half an ear and could admit to the usefulness of an extra libero and wing spiker-- they could have decent practice games among themselves whenever they wanted in the mornings. But the fact remained...
"You are girls. You're way more likely to get hurt by playing against us guys. It's nothing personal. If you break your arm on Asahi's spike or tear your rotor cuff blocking Hinata's quick, you will be out for the rest of the season if not forever. Seriously, I'm talking irreversible damage." He put it to them gently, not wanting any tears but the redhead stepped forward.
Determination gleamed in her eyes as she spoke out. "We're at risk either way. Our team barely makes it to practice in the afternoons and refuses to come in the mornings. If we tried to play another girl's team right now, we'd lose... badly. That's why Michi-senpai and I are trying to do anything and everything we can. Dai-senpai said if we get even the tiniest injury, we are to tell him immediately or we can never come back... but also that we needed your permission. I know that we can't really compete in strength with your ace... but I have speed and Michi-senpai has determination and stamina. We can keep up, I promise. Just give us a chance to prove ourselves to you guys." She fisted her hand and glared at him. "Please."
Everyone stood their with baited breath as Coach Ukai looked at Rin then turned to the boys. "What are you doing just standing around?! Get on the court and start working on your receives!"
The boys scrambled to do just as their strict coach instructed, leaving the girls to face the grown man alone. The wild girl didn't move as Yui went to her side and started pulling her towards the exit. Obviously they had been dismissed. But even still, it had been fun running in a group just as motivated as they were to improve. Talking with them during the run... and staring at Daichi in admiration of his assets... yes, it was all worth it even if it didn't last long.
"Didn't you hear me? Get on the court."
Both girls froze and looked up at the stern man. "But if you get hurt, it's on you. Let us know immediately... and you can at least watch the morning practices while you heal up. No toughing it out like some of these guys like to do." Yui flushed with happiness and clasped her hands in front of her face as she tried to hide her face and stop the urge to squeal in joy.
Rin had no such restraint and hugged the older man around his waist, cheering and calling him every great name she could think of. He stopped her at Tough Guy God. "I hate repeating myself! Get on the court or leave! Final warning!!"
Yui saluted and Rin ran back to her senpai's side, grinning. "Thank you for having us, Coach~!" And they headed off to get in line with the boys.
"By the way..." The second year looked up at the dark haired girl, spotting a flash of confidence on her face. " That display back there with Coach is why I'm the Asahi~"
"Hey!"