Hold Me Tight

by remuswriting

Sato Kai is a manager for Karasuno boys' VBC and no one can get a read on him, even though he can read all of them.

2. Chapter 2

A/N: I took out a text conversation in the chapter because I don't fully understand ff guidelines, but it said no chat fics. If you want to see the text conversation (which is basically talking about a study group), then you can read on my ao3 remuswriting.

---

A third-year girl with black hair stood in front of Yachi. She was beautiful – sexy even with the beauty mark by her mouth. Yachi couldn't completely focus on what was being said to her. She kind of remembered being told the girl's name was Kiyoko, but she wasn't certain. She couldn't help the way her head was reeling from seeing a beautiful girl.

Kiyoko pushed some hair behind her ear and Yachi couldn't help the fact that her eyes were trained on it. Kiyoko's hair looked so smooth and shiny, and part of Yachi wanted to reach out and run her fingers through it just to see if it was. She wouldn't do that though. That would be extremely inappropriate and embarrassing to do, especially in the hallway where everyone was staring at them – staring at Kiyoko.

"So, what do you say? Why don't you try a trial membership?" Kiyoko asked, and it seemed to knock Yachi out of the strange trance she had been in.

"Sure!" Yachi squeaked, and Kiyoko grabbed her hands as she smiled wide. Yachi felt her face heat up due to the contact. It felt like electricity was shooting through her.

"Really?" Kiyoko asked, and she didn't wait for Yachi to confirm. "Thank you so much!"

A blonde boy appeared behind Kiyoko, walking over to them, and he was pretty too. His blonde hair was wavy and out of his face making it easy to see his blue eyes. He was barely taller than Kiyoko, but he was intimidating. Maybe it was the hands in his pockets and how the smile on his face didn't fully reach his eyes.

"Kiyoko, you're scaring her," he said, and his voice was smooth and gentle. It made him not as intimidating somehow.

Kiyoko looked back at him with a huge smile on her face. "Sato-san, she agreed to do a trial membership!"

A huge smile erupted on the boy's – Sato's face, and this time it reached his eyes. He was pretty too, maybe even a little bit beautiful. Yachi felt her face continue to burn from how overwhelmed she was getting due to how pretty these two were, and how everyone was staring at the three of them.

He turned to Yachi and his eyes were so clear. She had never seen blue eyes like his before. "I know I'm probably late for introductions, but I'm Sato Kai, Class 3-5." Sato took a couple of steps forward to be next to Kiyoko. "We'll come by after school, but we need to go to talk to our advisor now."

Yachi nodded, but she wasn't really in control of what she was doing. Kiyoko let go of her hands and straightened out before she hurried away. Sato let out a frustrated sigh and started jogging after her slightly. "Hey, slow down, not all of us were in track!"

Kiyoko laughed and they were gone from sight. Yachi let out a sigh and her thoughts were racing, because what did she just get herself into?

"What was that about?" Someone asked her, and she looked over to see a couple of guys looking at her.

Her face was now a vibrant red. "I-I don't know!"

---

"Hey, everyone, listen up!" Sato called out. He had gone ahead of Yachi and Kiyoko, so Yachi now trailed behind Kiyoko. She was absolutely terrified about what was going on and what was going to happen.

Yachi knew this was the volleyball team, and that she had agreed to meet them, but she hadn't realized how nerve-wracking it would be. The only thing that had managed to help her nerves was Sato talking to her about volleyball on the way to practice. Yachi knew nothing about volleyball, and she was pretty sure that Sato and Kiyoko knew that, but neither of them had said anything about it. Instead, they had kept smiling and talking while she nodded at everything that was said.

She and Kiyoko finally caught up to him and entered the gym, which was full of people. Yachi didn't even know this many people at Karasuno played volleyball. She scuttled slightly to hide behind Sato.

"Oh, you found someone!" A boy with orange hair yelled, and Yachi jumped.

"Hinata-san, lower your voice," Sato said, and his voice was soft but threatening in a way. Yachi was a little scared of him now, but she liked how the orange-haired boy seemed to try to lower his voice immediately.

She noticed how Sato attempted to hide her behind him to where she could see everyone, but they couldn't see her as much. It didn't help much when it came to her nerves and how her body wouldn't stop trembling.

"Hey!" A bald boy called out as he and two other boys hurried over to them.

"What's going on?" A short boy with a blonde streak asked.

Kiyoko took a step away from Yachi, which made her visible to the team. Sato glared at Kiyoko, and Yachi didn't know why. What had Kiyoko done? Weren't they friends? What happened?

"Um, she's joining the club on a trial basis as the new manager," Kiyoko said as she looked at Yachi.

Everyone's eyes were focused on her, and she felt her limbs go stiff like boards, but she was still trembling. She stood up straighter, trying to look more confident, and finally spoke. "I-I'm Yachi Hitoka!"

Everyone started to crowd around her. They were all so tall and it felt like things were closing in. Her breathing changed a little from how scared she was. She couldn't even keep up with who was speaking because of the amount of panic that thrummed throughout her body.

A huge, scary man leaned down to talk to her. "So, you're a first-year?"

"I'm in Class 1-5, sir!" Yachi yelled slightly, and Sato immediately stepped in front of her.

"Hey, give her some space, Asahi-san," Sato said, and his voice was sharp and demanding. The scary man backed up a little. "Try being more conscious about the height difference."

Yachi looked over to see two boys looking at her behind a boy with ash blonde hair. The ash-blonde guy hit both of them in the face. "Hey! Stop staring at her like that!"

"This is really great news! Now you'll have a manager for next year!" The scary man said, and Sato made eye contact with him, which made the scary man take a step back.

Yachi raised her hands as she waved them, because she hadn't agreed to that. It only got worse whenever the orange-haired kid agreed with the scary man.

"Hey, stop putting words in her mouth," Sato snapped, and everyone fell silent. "Remember, we said trial membership, or can you guys not listen?"

"Yeah, nothing's been set in stone yet," Kiyoko defended, and Yachi wanted to cry. Almost all of them were so tall and she had never been this scared before. "We asked her today at the very last minute, so she's just dropping by before heading to do her committee work."

"She wanted to meet everyone though," Sato said, and his eyes scanned over all of them. "Not that I can understand why."

This wasn't the nice guy that had tried to make Yachi feel better as they walked here. Was he only nice to Yachi so she'd stay? That didn't seem like him, but she didn't know a lot about him, so she couldn't decide that.

She quickly bowed. "I-It's a pleasure to meet you!"

"Same!" The entire team said together as they bowed, and she jumped with a small squeak.

"Hey, just like with Asahi, back up!" Sato said, and he threw his hands up slightly. "Wait to be like this when she's more comfortable since you're all a lot to handle."

Everyone nodded and a couple of them mumbled some apologies as if they were scared to be heard. She looked at Sato to see his eyes narrowed at everyone. She didn't have much time to focus on it because she was leaving already. Her limbs were still trembling and felt like she was going to fall to her knees once she got outside.

She had come here on a whim and hadn't thought too hard about it, especially since Kiyoko and Sato had been so nice to her about it. They hadn't pressured her, but just said she was welcome to come by if she'd like. She said she wanted to meet everyone, but she really hadn't. Or maybe she had. She couldn't figure out what she wanted right now.

Yachi clutched her chest to feel how hard her heart was racing. There had been so many big guys in there. How was she supposed to be the manager when she was terrified of all of them? Suddenly, she froze, and her eyes went wide. She had stood next to Kiyoko and Sato for two minutes.

If she were to be honest with herself, then she'd admit she was more amazed by Kiyoko, but she couldn't look over how Sato had been protective of her. He tried to help her not be as scared, even if it hadn't helped a lot in the end. They most likely had fans with how they looked and acted.

She immediately dropped and tried to hide as she checked her surroundings. She didn't want to die yet, especially not at the hands of fans of upperclassmen. Yachi started crawling to the door when she heard a voice.

"Hey, what's the matter, kid?"

It was a man and Yachi jumped slightly before she looked back at him. He had bleached blonde hair, piercings, and was extremely tall. Was this one of Sato and Kiyoko's fans? If so, then most likely Kiyoko's.

She quickly got up to her feet and started running. "I-I'm going to get murdered!"

---

Lunch wasn't exciting for Yachi. She typically ate in silence, sometimes went over her notes, and, very occasionally, helped anyone with homework if they asked. She preferred it like that. It was easy.

It had started like that today, but now she was debating with herself on whether or not she should go to volleyball practice after school. The two senior managers were nice, and Sato (he had reintroduced himself) had come by during one of their breaks to talk about afternoon practice.

He had made sure to emphasize that she wasn't obligated to come if she didn't want to, but she knew she'd look like a complete jerk if she didn't.

"Yachi!" A voice called out, and Yachi jumped slightly to see two boys walking into her class. It took her a moment to remember that they were from the volleyball club. A bad ache formed in her chest and she immediately started to feel nauseated.

Why were they here? What did they want? Wait. What were their names? Did they even introduce themselves yesterday? What was she supposed to do if she couldn't remember people's names? She wouldn't be able to have a future if she couldn't remember names. She'd end up homeless and her life would basically end. The bigger picture was playing in her head, and she was terrified.

"Anyways, I'm Hinata Shoyo from Class 1," the ginger boy said, and Yachi blinked a couple times to realize she had gotten stuck in her thoughts again. He pointed at the tall intimidating black-haired guy. "This is Kageyama. "

"Hey," Kageyama said, and he sounded like he didn't actually want to be there. Had he just followed Hinata? Or maybe that was what he sounded like all of the time? Was she judging him too soon?

"H-hey," she said.

"Yachi, do you like studying?" Hinata asked. Yachi had no clue what was happening. That was a random question.

"I mean, I don't hate it," she said, and suddenly Hinata's notebook was in her face. She flinched slightly and noticed that Kageyama just stood there.

"English! Can you teach it to us?" Hinata asked, and he turned to Kageyama. "Come on, ask her too, Kageyama!"

Kageyama leaned forward slightly. "Please teach us. "

Maybe he was just like that. There was nothing wrong with him being like that – nothing at all – it just made Yachi feel a little better because that meant he didn't hate her. Or hopefully, he didn't hate her. She really didn't want anyone to hate her.

"If we fail any tests next month, we can't take the trip to Tokyo! So, we've been getting tutored by a tall four-eyes named Tsukishima after Sato-senpai said he wouldn't tutor us! But Tsukishima's been getting irritated lately because Kageyama and I are too stupid for him," Hinata explained, and he looked pained talking about it while Kageyama looked confused.

"Jeez, Hinata, he's not that bad, is he?" Kageyama asked. Why was he asking Hinata that if he was also being tutored?

"But it's better if someone nice tutors us, right?"

Kageyama's brows furrowed slightly. "Sato-senpai isn't nice either."

"He's nicer than Tsukishima!"

"I-if you think I'm good enough," Yachi said.

Hinata was suddenly back in her face. "Really?!"

"Sure, but I'm not sure if I can be nicer than Mr. Tall Four-Eyes."

Hinata and Kageyama shook their heads as Hinata spoke. "You definitely don't have to worry about that."

As they started going over things, Hinata and Kageyama seemed to be able to get it. Yachi had never really tutored anyone before, more just helped with a problem and then was done. Maybe that was expected when you were in one of the college prep classes.

It didn't matter if it was expected or not, because it felt nice helping them. Yachi really liked how excited Hinata got and how concentrated Kageyama was. She felt useful.

"Yachi, your notes are so easy to read!" Hinata said as he copied her notes, and then he pointed at something. "And you draw really well, too!"

"My mom works at a design firm, so she's really picky about things like this. Oh, if you leave a space here, it will be easier to fill in later. Also, if you limit the number of colors you use, it won't get confusing. And..." Yachi jumped away from Hinata's notebook. "I'm sorry! I drew all over your notes!"

"Oh, I get it! You're amazing!"

"I-it's nothing." It was quiet for a moment and Yachi's eyes kept flickering between Hinata and Kageyama. "So, Hinata-kun."

"Just Hinata's fine."

"Do you not like studying, Hinata?" Yachi asked, and Hinata pressed his back into his chair as an exasperated expression made its way to his face.

"I hate it. Sitting for a long time like this sucks," Hinata said, and Yachi nodded slowly.

"But you're working hard so that you can go on this trip to Tokyo?"

"Yeah! We're gonna have practice matches with all the strong schools from Tokyo!"

She didn't know what a practice match was, but Hinata's smile was bright, and his eyes sparkled. He was excited about it; it was so clear. He was so excited about it that he was doing what he hated most in order to get to do it.

"That's amazing. I've never been that serious about anything before," Yachi said, and Hinata leaned forward slightly.

"There's this school called Nekoma High School in Tokyo, and the setter there is really smart. Their captain has a rooster-head and is like huge and evil-looking," Hinata said as he messed with his hair to look more like a rooster. "And there's a guy that's totally awesome at picking up one receive after another like 'foom'!"

"The libero from Nekoma is awesome," Kageyama said, and Yachi was surprised to know that Kageyama was still paying attention. She thought he had zoned out while copying her notes.

What was a setter? Or a libero? Or a rooster-head? Were those volleyball positions? It's not like she would know. Maybe she'd look it up later to avoid having to bother anyone.

"In our prefecture, there's the Great King at Aoba Johsai. Then there's Ushiwaka, who they call the absolute champion, and Date Tech's Iron Wall who's six and a half feet tall," Hinata explained, and Yachi's eyes went wide.

"Oh, wow that's super tall!" Yachi said, and the thought of being near anything that tall terrified her. Hinata didn't seem scared though, he actually seemed passionate about all of it. She didn't think he'd be someone who would get a lot out of playing volleyball. "Um, Hinata, are you a manager too?"

Hinata looked at her and tilted his head. "Huh? Why?"

"Oh, I thought only tall people play volleyball and the club was full of tall guys," Yachi said, and Hinata was just staring at her. "And Sato-senpai is about your height and he's a manager."

Hinata quickly stood up, which caused his chair to scrape against the floor. "I may be short, but I'm a starter!"

Yachi stopped breathing for a second. How could she make a judgment like that? She knew nothing about volleyball or Karasuno's volleyball team. She had only ever been to one practice, and she hadn't even been there for a full five minutes.

She quickly stood up and bowed. "I'm sorry!"

"It's okay, he's used to it," someone said, and she looked up to see Sato next to Hinata. Hinata had bright eyes as he stared at Sato. Kageyama didn't look up from his notes. "He's not all that tall, but he sure can fly."

"Hinata, don't you need to copy this down?" Kageyama asked, and Yachi wondered if Sato would get mad that Kageyama wasn't paying attention to him.

Sato put a hand on Hinata's head before he pushed him to sit down. There was maybe a two-inch height difference between them, but Yachi only noticed it because she noticed how tall everyone was. "Seems like Kageyama-san is my favorite starter today because he's actually studying."

Hinata scrambled to get back to copying notes. Yachi looked at Sato, who was holding a notebook in his hands. Hinata looked up at him. "What are you even doing here, Sato-senpai?"

"I was coming to check that you two idiots weren't slacking off and Yamaguchi-san said I would probably find you two here," Sato said, and he looked at Yachi. "I also have something to give to Yachi-san, so it's killing two birds with one stone."

"What does that mean?" Kageyama asked, and Yachi was ready to see Sato get frustrated. He hadn't snapped at her, but he had been a little mean to the team the day before. Maybe he just had a short fuse with them. She hadn't known him long enough to know that. She hadn't known any of them long enough.

"It means that I get two things done in one go. I'm seeing you three all at once instead of separately," Sato said, and Kageyama slowly nodded. "I'll work with you on idioms if you need me to."

"I thought you couldn't tutor people," Hinata said, and he pouted slightly. Yachi felt slightly left out because she didn't know what Hinata was talking about. He had mentioned that Sato wasn't tutoring them when he first started talking, so she knew that much. It made sense for her not to know though, but hopefully, she'd learn more soon. She wanted to.

"Idioms are all about explaining. Also, it seems that Yachi-san has really pretty notes, so I think she'll be a better tutor than me," Sato said as he leaned over Hinata's shoulder to look at her notebook. Suddenly she felt exposed. "They remind me of my volleyball notes."

Hinata's eyes widened. "You're right! They look just like those!"

"Volleyball notes?" Yachi asked, and she tilted her head slightly. Sato looked at her.

"You'll learn more about that later, but I did come by to drop this off," Sato said, and he handed her a plain black and white composition notebook. "It's like a little guide to volleyball. It's not a lot since I started working on it yesterday, but I think it'll help if you decide to come to practice later. I meant to bring it earlier, but it slipped my mind."

Yachi opened the notebook to see something similar to what you'd find in a handbook for dummies, but for volleyball. Everything was simple but carefully laid out. There were even drawings with the team members to show what was being talked about. The drawings were detailed. It was clear how much work had he put into this. She had never seen anyone draw a volleyball net so precisely. When she looked back at Sato, he was pointing to something on Hinata's notebook.

"So you're learning about prepositions. Well, there's a pretty simple way to pick them out." Sato took Hinata's pencil and circled something. "Commas are going to be your best friend here."

"I thought you weren't going to tutor us," Hinata said, and Sato rolled his eyes.

"I said that because I couldn't help you if you didn't have clear notes." He tapped the pencil against Hinata's notebook. "Now you do thanks to Yachi-san."

"Thank you so much, Sato-senpai," Yachi said, and he looked up at her as he dropped the pencil on the desk.

"Oh, no need to thank me. I know how overwhelming it can be to be out of your element." Sato put a hand on Hinata and Kageyama's shoulders, which made them go stiff. "I'm going to be leaving now, but make sure to keep these two idiots focused. Sometimes brute force is needed." He let go of them and smiled at her. "See you later hopefully."

Sato waved and left as the three first years said bye. It was quiet for a minute before Hinata looked back up at Yachi. "Sato's right that I can fly. It doesn't matter how big and strong they look, but when we're in a match, I feel like I can take them on as equals. It's exciting, but also nerve-wracking."

Yachi hadn't thought that Hinata would remember the conversation they were having before Sato came in. "That's amazing, taking on people like that." She was being serious. He wasn't taller than her by much, but she was still short. She could never have the courage to go against tall and scary people. "That makes you the Tiny Giant, Hinata."

Hinata stood up and slammed his hands on the desk. His face radiated with excitement, and it took Yachi by surprise. She was fairly certain Hinata was always going to take her by surprise. "You know who the Tiny Giant is?"

Yachi jumped slightly and felt anxiety spread throughout her like a forest fire. "Uh, no, I, uh… When there's a Japanese person performing well among all the tall foreigners, aren't they called the Tiny Giant?"

Hinata faltered slightly. "Oh right. Yeah, I'm gonna be the Tiny Giant."

"Hey, Tiny Giant, that's not gonna make it to Tokyo, hurry up and copy this," Kageyama said, and Hinata nodded as he sat down.

Yachi thought about how Sato said she needed to keep them focused, but Kageyama seemed to do that for her. Could it be because of Sato coming by minutes before the conversation had started up again? Did Sato really have that effect on the team? Or maybe just Kageyama?

Regardless of if Sato had an effect on anyone, Yachi found herself agreeing to tutor them again. She also found herself saying she'd see them at practice later, even though she hadn't been sure if she would be there originally. As she turned back to go into her class, she felt like she had been in the sun for way too long. That was definitely because of being around Hinata.

---

"Hey, you're early," Sugawara said as Sato walked up to him. Sato rolled his eyes but didn't say anything. He didn't really have anything to say in response to that. "How was class?"

"It was class?" Sato said as he looked over at Sugawara with furrowed eyebrows. Sugawara just smiled at him. "How was class for you?"

"Well, since you asked," Sugawara started, and Sato wanted to take back asking, "Aoi wished me happy birthday, even though it was yesterday. It's really the thought that counts, but also the fact that she knew was crazy. I also made an 89 on my English quiz."

"You should've started with the English test, it's far more interesting than the Aoi-san thing," Sato said, and Sugawara pouted. "Hey, don't do that. I'm happy that some girl in your class knows when you were born." Asahi walked over to them, and Sato looked at him. "Koushi made an 89 on his English quiz."

"I can tell him that!" Sugawara said as he crossed his arms across his chest.

"Yeah, but you'd also talk about Aoi-san, and no one wants to hear that."

Sugawara looked at Asahi as he pointed at Sato. "He's so mean to me, don't you agree?"

Asahi looked between both of them and started to curl into himself. He clearly didn't want to be put in the middle of this, but almost always was. Tsukishima stopped next to him. "Sato-senpai's mean to everyone, not just you."

"I treat everyone the same," Sato said, and he looked away from them. "Oh, there's Yachi-san. She really did show up."

Hinata jumped in front of her. He looked excited, more excited than Sato had seen him recently. "Yachi-san, this afternoon there was an English quiz and some of the stuff you taught me was on there and I got a third of them right!"

Yachi's face brightened, and they jumped together. "Wahoo!"

Sato smiled at them. Hinata was making it easy for her to feel accepted. He hoped they'd end up being best friends. They would both benefit from that a lot. It would also benefit Sato if someone else could help him out with her.

"Hinata really does have a way with people, doesn't he? I mean he's already friends with her," Sugawara said, and Sato nodded.

"He's something else, that's for sure," Sato said. He looked around at everyone to see that everyone was in the gym. "Everyone's here, so we should probably start getting ready for practice."

Everyone parted ways to get different things ready. Sato walked over to Kiyoko and Yachi, ready to be given directions on what to do. The first thing he noticed was Yachi standing at attention, and he chuckled a little.

"So, you'll just be observing for today. There's no need to be nervous," Kiyoko said, and Yachi looked beyond nervous. She was terrified and Sato stopped when he got next to Kiyoko.

"Right!" Yachi yelled, and Sato put an elbow on Kiyoko's shoulder.

"I'm pretty sure you just made her even more nervous, Kiyoko." Sato looked at Yachi as Kiyoko giggled a little. "The best advice we can give you right now is to be careful of stray shots."

"Right!" Yachi yelled, and Sato took his elbow off Kiyoko's shoulder. "Thank you!"

"Breathe, Yachi-san. I promise everything will be okay." Sato smiled before he paused for a moment. "I'll stick around, so there's really nothing to be worried about."

Yachi nodded, but it was clear he wasn't helping. He didn't know how to help her calm down, because he hadn't been around her long enough to figure it out.

Kiyoko went to the ball cart while Yachi looked around as if she were ready to fight. She was on the defensive instead of offensive. When Sato looked ready to fight, it was always on the offensive. She was on the defensive because of how intense her anxiety was. He couldn't imagine what it felt like to experience the level she did.

"Hey, you, okay?" Ukai asked, and both Sato and Yachi turned to him. Yachi screamed slightly and Sato's eyes flickered from Ukai to her. Ukai awkwardly laughed as he put a hand on the back of his neck. "Listen, I'm just the coach."

Yachi looked absolutely horrified, which made Sato's eyes widen. What was going on in her head? It wasn't that he couldn't get a read on her, but that she was so anxious there was no point in trying to figure it out. It could be because of anything.

Yachi immediately bowed on the ground in front of Ukai. "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!"

Sato looked at Ukai with a confused expression. "Coach, what did you do to her?"

"I don't know!" Ukai said, and he was panicked. Sato couldn't blame him. "This is the first time I've met the girl!"

It took some coaxing, but Sato got Yachi off the ground and Ukai was able to start practice. Yachi stood next to Sato on the sidelines. Sato usually helped with warm-ups, but he knew it would be better to be next to Yachi for her first day. She didn't know what was going on and having someone be able to explain things to her could maybe help her anxiety a little bit.

"I know it was short notice, but did you ever get around to looking at the notebook I gave you?" Sato asked, and Yachi quickly looked at him with wide eyes.

"A little! I'm sorry, I should've looked more!" Yachi squeaked out, and Sato shook his head.

"No need to apologize, it makes sense if you didn't get to read it. You have other responsibilities," Sato said, and Yachi's panicked eyes seemed to calm slightly. Maybe reassuring words were what she needed. The only issue with that was he would run out of them at some point. "I just need to know if I need to explain anything. Sometimes it's hard explaining things to people who don't know anything about something you're passionate about."

Yachi slowly nodded. Sato wondered if she had something she knew a lot about. Would she be able to explain it to him if she did?

She turned back to the court and her eyes went wide. A stray ball was coming right at them. Kiyoko was better at deflecting balls than he was, and he blamed it on not having sharp reflexes. If he were a player, he'd be absolutely useless on the court. Kiyoko wasn't there though, so he went to step in front of Yachi. If he couldn't deflect it, he'd just make sure she didn't get hurt.

Hinata was there in an instant to deflect it. He soared through the air slightly. He always did. It was crazy to Sato how much Hinata belonged in the air.

Sato turned to Yachi, who was paralyzed with fear. "Are you alright?"

Kiyoko hurried over to them and Sato's eyes remained focused on Yachi. "Yes, sir! This is the first time I've watched volleyball that wasn't in gym class so close to the court. It's pretty amazing."

"I think our team's offense is among the best in the prefecture," Kiyoko said, and she quickly threw a stray ball back to the court. "Don't you agree, Sato-san?"

"You know I'll always agree with you," Sato joked, and Kiyoko rolled her eyes with a smile. "But to be honest, I do agree. They've worked incredibly hard to get like this."

"Kiyoko's smiling!" Nishinoya said, and it was nearly a squeal. Sato looked over at him out of the corner of his eye.

"She's even talking more! This new manager is making her open up!" Tanaka said, and Sato turned his head towards them, making eye contact. Tanaka and Nishinoya straightened out before going back to practice. This was one of the perks of being seen as intimidating. Sato turned back to Kiyoko and Yachi.

"Karasuno was actually strong enough to go to Nationals before," Kiyoko said, and Yachi gasped slightly.

"Nationals?"

"Yeah, but in the last few years people have been calling Karasuno 'the Fallen champs', or 'the Wingless Crows'. It really pisses me off to be honest," Sato said, and he looked at the court. "When you see how passionate all of them are, there's no way anyone should be thinking that. Winning isn't everything."

Kiyoko looked at him. "Aren't you the one who lectures them when they lose?"

Sato looked over at her and narrowed his eyes in a teasing manner. "I said that winning isn't everything, not that it shouldn't happen. Besides, right now, all that matters is that we get to Nationals."

"Yeah, this year we're going to Nationals," Kiyoko said as she stared at the ball that was suspended in the air. "I just know it."

Yachi looked up too and there was a red tint to her cheeks. "I see. That's amazing! These guys are so talented!"

Sato and Kiyoko looked over at her. Yachi looked over the court in awe, but Sato could still see the anxiety bubbling up inside her. She most likely always had some anxiety inside of her. Sato didn't know how to relieve it, or if he could even try to relieve it. His eyes went to Hinata, who was running around the court, and wondered if maybe he'd help Sato out with Yachi.

---

At the end of practice, everyone lined up in front of Takeda. Sato noticed how Takeda and Yachi were similar with how they were both nervous yet kind. Takeda had a gentle smile on his face.

"It's last minute, but Ouginishi High School requested a practice match tomorrow, and I accepted," Takeda said. Sato's eyes widened and he smiled slightly. This was good. This is what Karasuno needed. "They were interested after seeing us at the Inter-High prelims."

The team gasped with excitement. It was still amazing that people saw them as strong opponents again. It was going to help build their strength up again.

"Don't forget the regret and bitterness of losing to Seijoh," Ukai said, and none of them would be able to forget that. Sato had watched everyone during practice, and how the way their movements had shifted. It clearly still weighed heavily on everyone's minds. "However, you don't need to hold on to the feeling of losing. Just focus on winning!"

The team cheered and it was endearing how excited everyone got from words of encouragement. The way they yelled over each other with huge grins was innocent. It was one of the few things Sato liked seeing on them.

Sato took a couple of steps forward. "Hey! Let's go over some of my notes before we leave. I want to make sure we're all prepared before tomorrow. It'll all be verbal, so you need to remember this. I don't have time to write anything out."

Everyone turned to face him and nodded. Ukai and Takeda let Sato take over while everyone sat on the ground. Sato went over each player. Normally, it was all written out and no one got to see what anyone else needed to improve on unless that player wanted to share. There wasn't time for that now though.

When he made it to Kageyama and Hinata, he knew what he wanted to say. It wasn't the right time though. Normally he'd say there's never a right time, but there was in this case. He just wasn't sure when it would happen.

All he knew was that they needed to fix that freak quick attack, because it was going to be hardcore blocked out one of those days. It was going to become useless and Karasuno would lose the edge it had. Karasuno would lose if it wasn't fixed.

---

Yachi hadn't filled out the club application yet.

Her mother's words rang in her ears every time she thought about it. She hadn't stopped going to practice though, because she had promised she'd finish the trial before deciding. It was just hard knowing the answer wasn't what everyone else wanted.

"Is something troubling you?" Kiyoko asked, and Yachi jumped and turned to her. "By the way, I used to play sports, but I had no prior experience with volleyball or being a manager. Sato-san and I differ there. He had been part of volleyball for years and knew everything there was to know." Kiyoko took off her shirt and folded it. "He was absent a lot when I first joined but left me the first set of volleyball notes he'd ever write for Karasuno."

Kiyoko paused and Yachi stared at her, unsure of what to say. Had it been obvious that Yachi didn't know if she wanted to join the team? Had it upset Kiyoko? Had it upset Sato?

"I don't think everyone has to like something before trying it or that you need unwavering will or lofty motive to get started," Kiyoko started again as she put her practice shirt on. "Sato-san approached me during the first year about being a manager and I thought I might as well try it. There was no harm in going to a couple of practices, and Sato-san was mysterious back then. To get started, I think you just need a little bit of curiosity."

Yachi slowly nodded and hurried to get ready once she realized Kiyoko finished. She hadn't known Sato had been the first manager out of him and Kiyoko. She had assumed they had come at the same time since they were so close. Or that Kiyoko had recruited him.

Maybe it was okay she wasn't super passionate like everyone on the team, but she still wasn't sure if it was okay with her. Every time she saw anyone, especially Sato, going above and beyond, she worried more and more that this wasn't for her. She wasn't going to make volleyball manuals or explain what she had observed during practice that day that needed to be improved. Yachi didn't have those skills.

When she looked over at Kiyoko, who was getting something out of her bag, she thought about what she had just said. If Kiyoko had done it when she knew nothing like Yachi, then Yachi could do it too. Maybe.

---

"You're later than usual," Daichi said, and Sato narrowed his eyes at him. "No need to get upset with me. I was just making an observation."

"Sorry. I'm just tired of those manga club girls coming up to me. You'd think they'd get the message the first time I said no," Sato said, and Daichi shrugged.

"You have to admire their determination."

"I don't want to."

"Sato-san!" Ukai called out, and Sato hurried over to him. He was with Takeda, Tsukishima, and Hinata. "Is there anything you want to talk to them about with their blocking?"

"I didn't have a chance to look over any of their previous games, so just continue to focus on timing and height. Sorry it's not much," Sato said, and Ukai waved a hand dismissively.

"No worries, just thought you should get a say," Ukai said and turned back to Tsukishima and Hinata. "Alright, get back to practice."

Sato turned to Takeda. "I was wondering if there was any way you could give me an update on what you think their exam scores are going to be like. I've been trying to figure out if I need to do a study group with everyone."

Takeda's face lit up but faded slightly. "Although I can't tell you about their scores, I can tell you it's a good idea to have a study group."

Sato nodded. "Alright, thank you."

"Ouginishi will arrive in four and a half hours," Kiyoko said once she entered the gym. Sato went over to her as she turned to Yachi. "All right, Hitoka-chan, would you line up some chairs around the court there? Let's see. . . Eight of them."

"Okay!" Yachi said, and Kiyoko hurried off. Sato hurried after her to help get the chairs out so Yachi could put them out. Yachi tried to get them all at once, and it looked like she was struggling a little.

"Hey, if they're heavy, then get one at a time," Sato said, and Yachi looked a little panicked. "We have time."

"I-I'm fine!" Yachi said, and Sato sighed as he nodded.

"Want some help?" Hinata asked, and Sato stepped between him and Yachi.

"Hinata-san, this Yachi-san's training as a manager," Sato said, and Hinata nodded. Sato understood Hinata just wanted to help, it was just who Hinata was, but he needed to get ready. "Go get ready."

"Right!" Hinata said before slapping himself. "I'm not going to lose today!"

"You're way too intense for me right now," Sato mumbled as he grabbed another chair to put with the others.

"Today's a practice match, right?" Yachi asked as Hinata turned his head to her.

"Yup."

"I was wondering why you study so hard to play in away games and get fired up for a practice game," Yachi said, and Sato stopped to watch. He knew Kiyoko needed help, but he needed to see this. This was Yachi trying to get a feel for the team.

"Huh? Because I want to get stronger and win," Hinata said as if it were that simple. It was. In sports, that's all the motivation that was needed.

"I see. I'm sure you have your reasons," Yachi said, and Sato furrowed his brows. He had never heard that before. What reasons were there?

"Huh? Reasons? Reasons why I want to win?" Hinata asked.

"Oh. Yeah."

Hinata's intense stare made an appearance. The scary look in his eyes made Sato feel uncomfortable, he wasn't even the one being looked at. What had brought it out? They weren't even in a game. "Do you need a reason not to want to lose?" Yachi gulped and Hinata looked at Kageyama. "Hey, Kageyama, is there a reason you don't want to lose?"

"What? How would I know? Is there a reason you want to eat when you're hungry?" Kageyama asked, and Hinata crossed his arms as he nodded slightly.

Sato blinked a couple times. That wouldn't explain anything to Yachi, even if it made sense to everyone else. Hinata spoke, "Right."

"Sorry, that was an inane question," Yachi said as she put her hand on the back of her head.

"Inane question?" Kageyama and Hinata asked in unison, and Sato had to hold in his laughter at their tilted heads.

"A foolish question or a comment said to abase oneself after asking such a question. We just went over it the other day!" Tsukishima snapped, and Sato let out a small laugh. They were all so temperamental with each other that sometimes Sato wondered what it would look like if they had their own TV show.

Footsteps were heard outside, and Sato turned to see the opposing team at the gym door. There was a decent amount of them. They spoke in unison. "Thank you for having us!"

"Alright, gather round!" Daichi called out, and Karasuno jogged over. Sato looked over to see Kiyoko going to Yachi.

"We line up too," Kiyoko said, and Yachi nodded. She didn't seem so nervous, which made Sato tilt his head slightly.

Kiyoko and Yachi stopped next to Sato, who had turned to look at the other team. They were tall and radiated cockiness. How long would that radiate that? Could he make it to where Karasuno could crush that?

Sato looked out of the corner of his eye. "Hinata-san, move back a bit."

Hinata's eyes widened slightly before he backed up a bit to be in the line. Sato looked back in front of him before looking over and all he could see were random tuffs of orange hair.

"Bow!" Daichi said, and everyone bowed.

"Let's play!" Everyone said.

They then divided up to get warmed-up, or more for Ouginishi to warm up since Karasuno had finished practice just a little before they had shown up. Sato got out all of Karasuno's uniforms and placed them on the chairs on the sidelines. Daichi went over to him and stopped next to him as he smiled. Sato looked away and bit the inside of his cheek.

"We're gonna start soon, so let's get changed!" Daichi called out, and Karasuno quickly hurried over to the chairs.

Hinata was the first to get ready but ended up getting tangled in his jersey. Yachi looked terrified and shocked as she covered her face with her hands, but then moved her fingers to where she could look out of them. Her face was bright red, and Sato laughed a little before he heard Sugawara's laugh, which made his gaze go to him.

"Hinata, that's backwards," Sugawara said, and Sato felt his breath get stuck in his throat. He looked away and just thought about how annoying Sugawara was. Sugawara wasn't even finished getting ready, that was annoying.

"Sorry, you'll have to get used to this," Kiyoko said to Yachi, and Sato took long strides to be next to them.

"It's okay! Really!" Yachi said, and she waved her hands frantically.

"Yachi-san, it's okay to be uncomfortable," Sato said, and she looked up at him with wide eyes. "If you get too uncomfortable, then just tell us and we'll try to help out."

She nodded. "O-okay."

Sato knew she wouldn't tell them, but at least he had put it out there that they'd help if she needed it. He looked over to see Tanaka still shirtless and walked over to him with a tight smile. "Tanaka-san, are you planning on putting on your uniform any time soon?"

Tanaka's eyes widened, and he quickly hurried over to grab his jersey. Hinata was screaming but stopped once he made eye contact with Sato. Apparently, Sato was going to have to be strict today. He didn't want to be since Yachi was still new, but what could he do?

"Gather round!" Ukai called out, and everyone hurried over to him.

Sato stood at the end of everyone. His eyes went over everyone's expressions and postures, and everyone seemed to be doing okay today, but that could change during the match.

"This is our first match with another team since Inter-high prelims. You haven't forgotten your frustrations since then, have you?" Ukai asked, and as everyone said 'Right!' he looked over at Sato. He wanted Sato to say something, and it was tiring always being looked at. So very tiring.

"Put actual effort into this. It's expected that you treat every match like an official match," Sato said, and everyone looked over at him. They were listening to him like they always did when it came to volleyball. "We don't half-ass things here and I'll know if you're half-assing it. You all know that I won't hesitate to call every single one of you out if needed."

"Right!" The team said again, but they looked nervous. They understood that he was serious when it came to matches and them getting better. This practice match was important and they needed to understand that.

Ukai chuckled slightly before he looked back at the team. "All right, go out there and raise some hell!"

Everyone went to their places, Sato ended up next to Kiyoko, who was near Takeda. Takeda looked at them. "Have we played this team before?"

"No, we haven't," Kiyoko said.

"Which makes this so fun," Sato said as he smirked. Takeda smiled slightly. He smiled so much, and Sato knew it was because sometimes Takeda didn't know how to respond. His smiles were usually enough to be an answer.

Kiyoko and Yachi ran the scoreboard while Sato stood next to Ukai. Practice matches were the only time Sato was on the court during matches. He always sat in the stands at official matches due to it being too much to be on the court. There were too many people – too much energy that he couldn't focus. It was easier for him to think in the stands and run down to the entrance of the court with notes to give Kiyoko if needed.

"Nice serve!" Sato called out when Kageyama did a service ace. Ukai looked over at him, but Sato didn't look back at him. "Sometimes they need encouragement after I scare them."

"You sure it's not because you're worried you're going to scare Yachi-san if you act like normal?" Ukai asked, and Sato shrugged.

"That could be another reason, but mainly encouragement. I'm harder on Kageyama-san than I am on some of the others," Sato said, and his eyes followed the match happening before them. Karasuno was holding their ground, and he'd never take credit for it, even if sometimes Takeda tried to give it to him after he scared the team. "I don't want him thinking I hate him."

"I don't think Kageyama thinks you hate him. Well at least, it's pretty obvious to me you don't hate him."

Sato wanted to look over at him and see his expression, but he refrained. He didn't need to know what Ukai looked like right now. Ukai wasn't a player and Sato didn't need to know everything about him because of that. It didn't matter if he had already picked up on so much about him already.

"You might not, but he's pretty oblivious. I want to make it clear when needed."

Ukai chuckled but said nothing else. Sato kept looking over at Yachi and Kiyoko out of the corner of his eye. He wanted to go over there and talk to Yachi, but he was expected to stand next to Ukai and discuss what could be done and what could be fixed. He had already gone over all of that at the end of yesterday's practice and would go over it after this match, so there was no need for him to stand here and look like he really had any importance. All he did was analyze players and determine the best course of action to ensure Karasuno would win.

Ukai was good at volleyball plays too. Sato wasn't as big of a necessity as he was made out to be. Or at least that was what Sato believed.

"They're calm," Sato said. It was nothing more than just an observation. When Karasuno got into the right headspace and took their time to think during matches, they were calm. It helped that they were prepared for this game, even if there wasn't much information on their opponent. "I wish they'd always be this calm."

"That's the dream," Ukai said. Sato wanted to tell him that he didn't have to add that. There were no constants in volleyball, especially when it concerned temperamental high school boys in the mix. Even if they weren't young, no one could be calm and collected all of the time, so it wasn't expected of them. It shouldn't be a dream.

Hinata and Kageyama did their quick attack, and Hinata wasn't satisfied. He never was, and Sato watched his movements and wondered if Hinata would ever be satisfied. It wouldn't be surprising if he never would be.

---

"Amazing! That was amazing!" Yachi said, and Sato looked over to see her talking to Hinata. "I'm only watching, and yet, I, I..."

"Did you feel overwhelmed?" Hinata asked, and Sato's brows furrowed.

"I didn't know he knew that word," Sato said to himself, but he heard Sugawara snort near him.

"Yeah, I did!" Yachi said with a smile.

"Then be our manager!"

Yachi's smile fell, and she became noticeably uncomfortable. "Huh? Um, uh…"

"Do it, Yachi-san!"

Yachi bowed. "For an amazing team like this, a Townsperson B with no knowledge of sports is just going to get in the way."

"Come to think of it, I played Townsperson B too," Hinata said. That surprised Sato because of how much Hinata shined. How could they hide that? "But I tried to stand out more than the lead and I got in trouble."

Makes sense.

Kageyama looked over at Hinata and Yachi. "Townsperson B… Ha."

Hinata snapped to look at Kageyama. "Hey, don't make fun of me, you jerk! Townsperson B has its own kind of awesomeness!"

Sato looked over at Yachi, who had a thoughtful expression. Would Hinata ever realize how good with words he could be when he wasn't using sound effects? Most likely not, which was okay as long as he helped Sato move along with what he wanted.

"I see," Kageyama said

"Then what role did you play, Kageyama?" Hinata asked, and Sato couldn't imagine Kageyama anywhere near a stage, even though it had been required when they were younger.

"The moon."

That was unexpected. What production had the moon as a character and how important was it? Did Kageyama have speaking lines? It would make sense if he didn't. Sato wasn't sure if Kageyama could even memorize lines and be able to act them out how they needed to be.

"Damn, that's cool!" Nishinoya said, and of course Nishinoya would find that cool.

"Kai played a tree once," Sugawara said, and Sato immediately glared at him.

"Why are you telling them that?"

Sugawara pouted slightly. "Because it's cute."

"A tree?" Nishinoya asked with wide eyes. "I wished I played a tree!"

Sato looked over at Nishinoya. "No, you don't. It requires standing still, and I've never seen you be still since I met you."

Nishinoya laughed, a huge grin on his face, and he was unbothered by what Sato had said. "Did you have to have your arms out?" Nishinoya extended his arms out as if he were playing a tree. "You could have moved them like it was windy." Nishinoya shook his arms a little.

"He did have to have his arms out!" Sugawara said, and he laughed a little. "It was really funny because he looked so angry, and sensei kept getting on to him for it."

"That pissed me off so much!" Sato said, and his volume raised when he continued. "It's not like I can help the way my face is!"

"So, you've always had a resting bitch face?" Tanaka asked, and Sato turned to him with narrowed eyes. Tanaka put his hands up. "Hey, it's just a term! It's not like I made it!"

"He used to smile all the time when we were kids." Sugawara let out a wistful sigh. "Those were the old good days and now it's all gone."

Hinata tilted his head. "Why don't you smile all the time now?"

"Because I don't want to smile." Sato shook his head slightly. "Doesn't matter. Koushi's just being annoying like usual, so don't listen to him."

"Is your favorite thing to do is tell me I'm annoying?" Sugawara asked, and Sato looked over at him with a blank expression.

"Does it bother you?"

"A little."

Sato nodded. "Then yes, it's my favorite thing to do."

Sugawara let out an exaggerated gasp as he clutched his chest. "Why do you hate me?"

Sato rolled his eyes. "Shut up." He turned to those who were staring at him. "Come on, let's get things put away so we can leave. Unless you want me to have you run more drills." Eyes widened and heads shook. "That's what I thought, now get to work."

---

Sato messed with the white throw pillows on the couch again. He straightened them once and then twice before he pulled at the corner of one of them. He couldn't get them to look perfect like he had managed to get the rest of the house. Everything was clean, even the bedrooms. Yui and Haruto would most likely end up playing in Kairy's room since there was enough stuff to play with in there.

"No one is going to pay attention to the pillows," his mother said, and he let out an airy chuckle. He turned to look at her, and it was like looking at an older, gender bent version of himself. Wavy blonde hair that went to her shoulders and blue eyes, but hers somehow held warmth or maybe it was life. "Don't even try to tell me that Koushi will, because we both know he won't."

"He's unpredictable," Sato said, and she gave him a pointed look. "Okay, he won't say anything."

The doorbell rang and she went to get it. Sato was grateful for her because he couldn't move. His feet were glued to the floor and his heart hammered away in his chest. It had been two years since he had invited anyone over and it wasn't like the house was a mess, because it wasn't. This was just a lot. Why did he even do this?

"Sorry for the intrusion," Daichi said, his voice so warm and earnest. Sato heard his mother laugh a little.

"Sorry for the intrusion!" A little voice said. Yui. Sato had never met her before, but he had seen plenty of pictures of her. She was four years old, the youngest of all the Sawamura siblings.

"Kai is in the living room fretting over the pillows," his mother said, and those words made Sato able to finally move.

He found Yui and Daichi taking off their shoes. Yui had a huge smile on her face as she looked around. Sato took a deep breath in before he let a smile spread across his face and walked up to her. "Hello there."

Yui looked up at him before immediately hiding behind Daichi's leg. Daichi chuckled as he placed a hand on her head, messing up her brown hair as he tried to move her in front of him. "Yui, say hi."

Sato crouched down. He was still a good distance away from her, but he was eye level with her now. "Hello, I'm Sato Kai." Yui gave him an uncertain look as she tried to hide further behind Daichi. She reminded him a lot of himself when he was her age. "What's your name?"

Her big brown eyes peered at him from behind Daichi's leg. She was curious but scared, and he understood that feeling. His smile widened a little. Daichi tried to pull her out more to be able to look at Sato. "I'm Sawamura Yui."

"That's a nice name," Sato said, and he could see Daichi's soft eyes going between them. He tried not to focus on that too much. "Sawamura-chan, do you like Barbies?"

Yui's eyes brightened at the mention of Barbies. She nodded as she stepped a little out from behind Daichi. "I love Barbies!"

"Well, good thing I have some that you can play with," Sato said, and his mother smiled at him as she gave him a thumbs up from behind Daichi and Yui. "Would you like that?"

Yui aggressively nodded. "Yeah!" She then looked up at Daichi. "Can I?"

Daichi chuckled as he nodded. "Of course you can."

Yui hurried over to Sato and he wanted to fix her hair. It was so messy now and he hated messes. Instead he took her to Kairy's room. Kairy had left some of her childhood toys there for whenever she visited and brought Yua with her. After getting Yui set up with the Barbies, Sato turned to see Daichi lean against the doorframe. His arms were crossed as he watched them.

"I didn't know you were good with kids," Daichi said, and Sato shrugged.

"I have practice from my niece," Sato started as he walked to Daichi, "I think she's a little biased since I'm her uncle though."

"I didn't know you had a niece," Daichi said. Sato nodded as he picked up a photo of Sato, Kairy, and Yua at a theme park one day. He handed it to Daichi. "You look nothing like your sister."

Kairy took after their father. Straight, pitch black hair and dark eyes. Her hair fell to her shoulders and her straight across bangs were always styled perfectly. The main difference between her and their father was that she looked full of life. He only ever looked angry and tired. Sato couldn't remember a time when their father hadn't looked like that.

Yua looked like Kairy, but brighter. Her smile was like sunlight and her eyes were a warm brown. She radiated life and it had always made Sato so happy.

"I take after our mother while she takes after our father, but you've already seen that," Sato said, and Daichi went to talk when the front door opened.

"Kai-chan!" A voice called out. It was Haruto, who was suddenly in Kairy's room. He shoved Daichi to get to Sato, which caused Daichi to snort.

Haruto was Sugawara's younger brother. He was eight and proudly told everyone that Sato was his best friend, and Sato said Haruto was his best friend. Sugawara fake cried about it, but neither Sato nor Haruto paid much attention to it, because they knew he was just being dramatic.

Sato knew Haruto only liked him so much because he taught him how to draw whatever he wanted as well as read to him whenever they saw each other. Sugawara wasn't artistic and was known for shrugging people off, even his family. Sugawara's mom had once said Sato was a better older brother than Sugawara, but Sato always disagreed. Sato was just better at paying attention. It was what he was good at.

Sato bent down and Haruto hugged him. "Hey there."

Haruto's ash blonde hair was messy and getting all in Sato's face. When they pulled away from each other, Haruto's hair was an absolute disaster. It stood up in all directions as well as covered his hazel eyes, the same hazel as Sugawara's eyes. Sato knew what Haruto looked like, but it was a habit to look people over every time he saw them. He had to see if there were any changes he needed to be worried about.

"I missed you!" Haruto said. Sato gave him a stern look, which made him drop his volume. "Oniichan said we're doing homework."

Sato nodded as he tried to discreetly fix Haruto's hair. "We are. Do you have homework?"

"Of course," Haruto said with an offended expression. "I'm in elementary school!"

Sato chuckled as he stood up. "Sorry, I wasn't thinking."

"Clearly," Haruto huffed. People would think Sato would snap at Haruto for the reaction, but he didn't see a reason to. Haruto was an eight. He wasn't a threat by any means. He was just a child.

"Where's your brother?" Sato asked as he moved Haruto so he could step out into the hallway. Sugawara and Sato's mother were talking like they hadn't seen each other in years.

"He's been insufferable," Sugawara said, most likely talking about Sato. "You'd think he'd be nice to me at least once."

"You know how Kai can be," his mother said, and Sato felt betrayed. "He shows affection by being mean."

"I do not," Sato said as he walked over to them. "I'm just not an affectionate person."

His mother had an amused look in her eyes. "Okay."

"Are you saying I don't deserve affection?" Sugawara asked. Sato immediately wanted to say no, but he thought that might be too aggressive.

"I'm affectionate with you whenever you're not annoying me." Sato sighed. "Too bad you're always annoying."

Sugawara went to speak but knocking at the front door cut him off. Sato went to open it this time since he was close enough to and could move. He let out a deep breath as he opened the door. Hinata and Kageyama stood there. Kageyama had his usual deadpan expression while Hinata sparkled.

"Sato-senpai, your house is so cool!" Hinata said, and Sato moved to let them in.

"Thank you," Sato's mother said, taking over as host. She had always been better at it than he was. Hinata's eyes widened, and he did a sharp bow.

"Sorry for the intrusion, Sato-san," Hinata said, and Kageyama bowed as well.

"Sorry for the intrusion."

"It's actually Kusaka," Sato's mother said. Hinata peeked up from his bowing position with a confused expression. "Kai has his father's last name."

Hinata wanted to ask more questions. Sato could tell by the way slowly straightened himself out and how his eyes flickered between Sato and Sato's mother. There wouldn't be an explanation right now though, because Sato's mother would never do that unless Sato initiated it. She had always cared more about other people's emotions than Sato did. Sometimes he thought it was because her name meant Home of Light and Love. So suiting for her, while he didn't believe his was.

Restoration. He didn't know how to restore anything. He only knew how to pick things apart and cast it off to the side when he was finished.

"Can we come inside now?" Kageyama asked, his eyes focused on Sato. He cared about what Sato wanted more than the rest of the team. The first day of the year Sato had said he didn't care who Kageyama was in middle school; he only cared about who Kageyama would be in high school.

"Of course, you can put your shoes over there," Sato said as he pointed to the wall that no one had put their shoes against.

Kageyama nodded and passed Hinata, who was still looking between Sato and Sato's mother. Hinata blinked a couple times and hurried after Kageyama, trying to race Kageyama in taking off their shoes, but Kageyama had too much of a head start.

Once they went down the hall and stood next to Daichi, Sato poked his head out the front door. His mother walked up behind him. "What are you doing?"

"Seeing if Yachi-san is out here, but I'm not seeing her." He came back into the house and closed the door. "She's the last person since Asahi-san canceled earlier."

"Is Asahi okay?" Daichi asked, and Sato nodded.

"Yeah. His mom needed him to stay home." Daichi nodded, and Sato walked over to everyone before pointing to the living room. "We'll be studying in there, so go on."

"While you guys get situated, I'll go get some drinks. Is water okay with everyone?" Sato's mother asked, and everyone nodded.

"It's perfect, Kusaka-san," Daichi said with that perfect smile of his. Sato found himself looking away from Daichi. He had always thought Daichi's smile was so charming it could be considered dangerous. It was easier to ignore it.

His mother smiled before she hurried to the kitchen. Sato motioned for everyone to go into the living room. He trailed behind them and stopped to look over his shoulder at the door. Where was Yachi? It wasn't like her to be late.

He entered the living room to find Sugawara, Haruto, and Daichi on the couch while Hinata and Kageyama were sitting on the floor. He could hear Yui in Kairy's room playing with the Barbies. His mother entered after him with cups and a water pitcher.

"Why don't you guys sit at the dining room table?" She suggested. "It's in the next room, right through that door."

She motioned with the water pitcher to the door next to the couch. Sato nodded. "Yeah, it'd probably be easier to do homework if we had a hard surface to write on."

Everyone nodded too, but he knew it was just because they didn't want to be rude. They'd do whatever he or his mother wanted, and it pissed him off a little. Why couldn't they just be themselves? There was nothing wrong with that.

Sato didn't say anything as he motioned for them to walk into the dining room. Daichi was the first to get up and everyone else followed suit. Sato spoke. "I'm going to make a quick phone call but go setup without me."

He walked out of the room before anyone could say anything about it and pulled his phone out of his pocket. He found Yachi's contact through the group chat he had made and put the phone up to his ear. She answered on the second ring.

"Hello," Yachi said, and her voice was soft.

"Hello," he said. "Where are you?

"Oh," she squeaked out, and paused. She was trying to come up with an excuse, and Sato knew that. "I got caught up with my mom. She wants me to make something really complicated for dinner."

"I know you're lying." His tone was flat. "What's going on?"

"Oh, well, I," she started before she let out a shaky sigh, "I don't know if I'm really welcome to be there."

Sato's brows furrowed. "What do you mean by that?"

"Well, my trial membership is almost over."

Sato's lips pressed into a thin line. Yachi didn't know if she wanted to join the team or not. He already knew this, but he wanted to be wrong. He wanted Yachi to finally see that she should join – that she belonged – instead of being scared of everyone. Sato worried she was scared of him.

"I'd want you here even if you weren't on the team," Sato said, and he meant it. He meant nearly everything he said, but he really meant this. He hoped these reassuring words would help. He wanted them to help.

Yachi's voice was small and shaky when she spoke again. "I just don't want to impose. Everyone knows each other and gets along while I don't know anyone."

"You do know us." Sato said. It wasn't entirely true, but it wasn't entirely false either. "Hinata-san has told you things about him and everyone else. You know Kiyoko."

"Yeah." It was weak. "I guess you're right. I'm sorry."

"You don't need to apologize to me. You've done nothing wrong."

Nothing besides not doing what you're supposed to, Sato thought. What I planned for you to do.

"I'm still sorry," Yachi said, and she paused. The silence was so loud, but Sato knew she wasn't done. "I want to make a poster for the club. Is that okay?"

Sato's eyes widened and he nodded, even though she couldn't see him. "Yeah, that's a great idea. Do you need any help with it?"

"No, I think I'm good." Another pause. "Well, I was planning to discuss it with Takeda-sensei."

"That's a good place to start," he said. "Want me to go with you?"

"No, I think I'll be okay," Yachi said, and her voice didn't sound as small anymore. It was nice. "Thank you, Sato-senpai."

"There's no need to thank me," Sato said, and he sighed. "You're not coming today, are you?"

"Sorry, but I'm not," she squeaked out the last word. "I really do need to do something for my mom."

"Alright, well I see you Monday," he said, and she hummed. "Bye, Yachi-san."

"Bye, Sato-senpai!"

He hung up and stared at the front door. He wished she would come through it and join everyone in this study group. Everyone would love it. They'd love it so much, because she was fun to be around, even with her neurotic behavior.

"Kai, what are you doing out here?" His mother asked, and he turned to face her.

He held his phone up next to his face. "Just made a phone call."

She looked over him, not looking convinced that that was all there was to it, before she slowly nodded. "Alright, but you better join our guests. It's rude to make them wait."

"You're right, I'm sorry," he said, and she smiled. She sighed while he put his phone in his pocket.

"You don't need to apologize to me. Just go help those younger boys because they have no idea what's going on," she said, and Sato chuckled slightly, because he knew she was talking about Kageyama and Hinata. He nodded as he went to pass her, but she grabbed his shoulder. "Please try to be friendly. It doesn't matter if they're used to you being cold. Just try to be friendly."

"I'll try," he lied. There was no point in changing how he acted just because he was home and around his mother. She knew and accepted every version of him. She was the only person who did. She was the only person he knew would. "Now, I have to figure out how to teach."

His mother smiled as her hand fell off his shoulder. "Good luck with that."

He laughed a little. "Yeah, I'm going to need it."

Sato walked into the dining room to find Sugawara and Daichi helping Haruto with his homework while Kageyama and Hinata stared at their notebooks as if they couldn't read what they had written. He wouldn't be surprised if that were the case. He sat down next to Kageyama.

"What are you two looking at so helplessly?"

---

Hinata and Sato were the only ones left at Sato's house. Hinata's mother wouldn't let him go home by himself due to how late it was. He had tried to argue that he had taken the train, so he didn't have his bike. Sato knew it made sense for Hinata to have a train pass, but it still surprised him. Hinata's mother also wouldn't let Sato's mother take Hinata home, which was okay since she was currently taking Daichi and Yui home. The train scared Yui and Daichi was only able to get her to take it once a day.

"I'm sorry, she should be here soon," Hinata said, and Sato nodded as he picked up cups that had been left on the table. It annoyed him how his teammates weren't clean like he was.

"No need to apologize. I understand," Sato said, and he went into the kitchen. He watched Hinata over the counter that divided the two rooms. He didn't know how to exactly convey that it really was okay; that he wasn't upset. It was just that Sato didn't know how to do that with anyone outside Sugawara. "Is there anything we didn't get to?"

Hinata's head snapped to look at Sato. He hadn't expected that question, it was clear from his wide eyes and how hard he shook his head. Sato didn't understand why Hinata was so nervous. Sure, he wasn't exactly the friendliest person and was a little intimidating, but he didn't think it was that bad.

"Nope! We got through everything!" Hinata squeaked out. "Thank you again!"

Sato nodded as he sat across from Hinata. When he spoke, his voice was calm. "If you want to say something, then say it. I'm not going to attack you."

Hinata's eyes went wide as he blurted out. "Do you like volleyball?" The words were so rushed that Sato almost didn't catch them. "Like I know you're a manager and everything, but sometimes you act like you don't like it."

No one had ever outright asked him that. Usually they tried to hint at it, and he never gave them an answer since it was never clearly asked. Hinata wasn't like most people though.

"I can see why you'd think that, but I do like volleyball." Sato paused. "I guess you could say I love it. Just because I don't play doesn't mean I don't love it. It's not like I joined just because Koushi asked me to."

"I didn't mean it like that! I knew that if you didn't like it, it wasn't because you don't play. It's totally okay that you don't play!" Hinata's hands waved through the air at an intense speed. He slowed down and his eyes flickered around the room before landing on Sato again. "Why do you love it?"

"I watched the Olympics as a kid and thought volleyball was really cool. I would've played it if I had any coordination, but sadly, I'm not athletic in the slightest." Sato looked down at the table. "My father wanted me to play rugby, which meant I couldn't play any other sport. I guess I kept that in mind, even after he left."

"What happened to your dad?" Hinata asked, and he seemed to calm down. Sato enjoyed seeing the calm side of Hinata because it differed so much from his usual self. It kept Sato on his toes because he was always waiting for it when it happened. Just like with the intense look Hinata got during matches.

"My parents got a divorce when I was like 10. He hasn't talked to us since." Hinata's eyes filled with sympathy, even though it wasn't needed. "It doesn't bother me anymore since I don't really want to talk to him."

Sato didn't want to talk about this, because he wanted to keep some part of himself hidden, but it was easy talking to Hinata. It was easy to just give in to the emotional intelligence Hinata clearly had, because Hinata didn't scrunch his nose at you or act like he didn't care. He did care and wanted to know more. It was so foreign to Sato.

"Why didn't you change your last name?"

Sato wanted to shut down the conversation. That was too much information about himself. He couldn't give that much up of himself, but he'd indulge Hinata. It'd be one of the few times he'd ever allow it.

"The main thing was that I didn't want to have to deal with everything calling me Sato instead of Kusaka," Sato said, and he looked down at his hands. "There was also the fact that I wasn't angry with him or really anyone when it happened, and I guess I wanted to show that by keeping his last name."

Part of that was a lie. He had been angry. He had been so angry at everyone and everything that it had been so hard to function. The only way he had gotten that anger out was by starting fights that left him bruised and disgusted with himself.

"I understand what you mean," Hinata said, and Sato doubted that. He couldn't imagine Hinata feeling how he did. He didn't want Hinata to feel that way. "My parents got divorced when I was six. I took my mom's last name, but I kinda wanted to take my dad's."

Sato nodded but he didn't know what to say. He never knew what to say when anything like this happened, because he made sure to avoid it. Sure, sometimes he was emotional with Sugawara, but that was Sugawara, his best friend. Hinata wasn't Sugawara. He was an underclassman who seemed to actually care.

"I know you're blaming yourself for us losing to Seijoh, but you shouldn't," Sato said to change the conversation. Hinata's head tilted ever so slightly. "Right now, they're better than us, and that's okay. It gives us a reason to improve."

Hinata nodded slowly. "Yeah, but how did you know I was blaming myself?"

"Hinata-san, my specialty is understanding people, but I don't even need to be good at that to figure it out. You were the final point." Sato put an elbow on the table before putting his cheek on his palm. "You're better than what everyone tells you. Don't listen to them, because, yes, you definitely need to improve, but everyone does. That includes Kageyama-san, our prodigy." Sato adjusted his face to where his chin was situated on his palm now. "I have full faith that you'll be on his level one day though."

"You do?" Hinata asked, and there was hope and confusion mixed into his voice. It made Sato wonder if he had ever actually complimented Hinata before.

"Yes, why would I lie about something like this? You just need to keep working on getting better, which should be easy since I'll be here to help you," Sato said with a small smile. Maybe that last part was a lie because it wasn't guaranteed that he could help them, but he tried not to think about it. He wanted to think about how he could get Hinata to become what he was capable of. "We're going to go to nationals together."

Hinata's face lit up with a smile and he nodded. "Yeah, let's go to nationals!"

Before Sato could say that for them to do that Hinata needed to work to improve his grades, Hinata's phone went off. His ringtone was one of the openings from One Piece, which was funny in a way. It fit him, even though Sato knew Hinata liked shoujo manga.

"It's my mom, I bet she's here!" Hinata said, and Sato nodded as his smile grew a little. Hinata grabbed his things as he answered his phone.

He shoved it onto his shoulder and pressed his ear against it. "Hey… I'm coming…Okay, see you in a second." He grabbed his phone and looked back at Sato. "Thank you again for helping me and talking to me!" He stopped moving and his eyes were really focused on Sato. "I think your dad is really dumb for treating you like he has. You're really amazing, Sato-senpai."

"Thank you, Hinata-san," Sato said, and he hoped it was good enough. He didn't know what to say to that. No one had ever said that to him before, not even Sugawara. "I'll see you Monday."

"See you Monday!" Hinata chirped before he hurried out of Sato's house. The door slammed shut.

Sato stared at the photo of him, his mother, and Kairy from their first vacation without his father hanging on the wall and wondered what they'd feel if they had heard those words. Would it be touching to them? Would they cry from the sincerity? His mother would definitely cry, but she was prone to crying. She had also always felt more than other people did.

Kairy would roll her eyes and be annoyed that someone felt like they knew what it had all been like. She had always gotten upset when anyone apologized for their father's behavior, because none of them wanted an apology from anyone besides him. Sato didn't know if they even wanted an apology from their father anymore.

Sato didn't know how he felt about Hinata's words. Maybe comfort, because Hinata didn't make Sato feel guilty – didn't make it seem like it was Sato's fault. Hinata made it clear that it was Sato's father's fault, and it was. It had always been his father's fault, but only recently had Sato realized that.

Sato had let the hatred for his father consume him until he no longer wanted it to. He no longer wanted to think about his father with every decision he made. He still did though. Sato didn't know if that would change, but now the feeling of disgust that covered him from head to toe and ate at his insides wasn't as intense.

There was something else he felt because of Hinata's words, but he didn't know what it was. Usually, it bothered him when he didn't know things, but he couldn't be bothered right now. Instead of thinking about it, he went to his room, turned off the lights, and laid in bed. He'd think about it later when he wasn't so exhausted it was hard to breathe.

---

Almost every Saturday, Sato got on the train and went to work. Sometimes he had to go in on Fridays and Sundays, but definitely Saturday. He hated it, because the train station was always packed on Saturdays. There wasn't a good time to get there, because everyone needed to be somewhere then. It made him wish he had his license, because then he could avoid all of this. He didn't have time for driver's education though, so that would be something for future him to figure out.

As he weaved between people, he heard his mother through the phone. "Are you sure you've gotten everything?"

He sighed. "Yes, I grabbed everything."

His mother let out a sigh of her own. "I'm just making sure because I have to be at work in an hour, so I can't bring you anything if you've left it here."

Sato rolled his eyes, and he was so happy she couldn't see him. She would've hit him upside the head, and he would've deserved it. "I understand. I'm about to get on the train."

"Alright. Text or call me when you get to work. I'll leave leftovers for you when you get back."

He brushed his hair out his face with his free hand. "Okay. Bye."

"Bye."

The line went dead, and he put his phone in his pocket. He had lied about getting on the train since he had a good 10 minutes until it came, and he was still walking to where he'd get on. He was almost there, the staircase that led to where he needed to be was right in his line of sight.

Someone screamed. "Mom!"

Everyone stopped in their tracks and looked to see a small blonde girl was the source of the screaming. It was Yachi and Sato noticed that Hinata was standing next to her, but he mainly focused on her. He had never seen her look so confident before.

"Hitoka?" A woman with brown hair, who Sato assumed was Yachi's mother, asked.

Yachi took a deep breath in before she bent slightly and started to yell. "Townsperson B can fight, too!" Then Yachi's volume increased drastically. "I'm going to be the volleyball club manager!"

Sato's eyes widened and his heart stopped for a moment. Yachi was going to be a manager. His eyes went to Hinata, who was just standing off to the side with a smile on his face. It was all because of Hinata that Yachi was going to be a manager.

What had Hinata done to accomplish that? How come Sato couldn't figure out what to do about Yachi when Hinata could?

"I-I see… Do your best." Yachi's mother said, and she looked shocked. Sato looked to see a man standing next to her, but they weren't together. Neither of them wore wedding rings and they didn't stand close enough to show romantic interest in each other.

"I will! What do you want to do for dinner?" Yachi asked, and Sato had to hold back a laugh. Yachi was still strange, even with confidence. It was refreshing to see.

"I-I'll eat at home."

"Roger!" Yachi said, and she turned to Hinata. Sato could see how her eyes shone. She was looking for confirmation in Hinata, and Sato smiled when Hinata gave her a thumbs up.

Hinata put his arms up in the air as if he had won. "All right! Three managers! We're like champions!"

Sato chuckled as he rolled his eyes and turned to go down the staircase. He hadn't been the only one with other intentions apparently, but he hadn't expected it to be Hinata. He knew that Hinata wasn't all pure and sweet – he was a high school boy – but he hadn't realized that Hinata could manipulate people as well.

He doubted Hinata fully understood what he was doing since he was genuinely a good person, but he would be able to give Sato a run for his money if he ever became aware of it. Or maybe he'd apologize instead of using it to his advantage.

Once Sato was on the train, he pulled out a notebook and pencil from his bag. He flipped through the pages to find a blank one and wrote 'Yachi Hitoka' at the top of it. He paused before he found the page labeled 'Hinata Shoyo' and put 'subconsciously manipulative' in parentheses next to 'emotionally intelligent'. He flipped back to Yachi's page and wrote:

Needs others to validate self-worth (Hinata is best to help with this). Her biggest weaknesses are her anxiety and mother issues. Biggest strength is striving to be better.

When someone sat next to Sato, he closed the notebook and put it back in his bag along with the pencil. He would work on it later and flesh out her profile more. All he had needed to do was start it so he wouldn't forget. What he really needed to do was figure out how to approach Yachi without struggling to figure out what to say.

---

Yachi stood by herself near the bulletin board in the first-year hallway. She was spaced out, Sato could tell, but he approached her anyway. He stopped next to her and looked at the bulletin board. "I saw the poster."

Yachi jumped and looked over at him. He knew that was going to be her reaction regardless of what he did. He looked down at her, and her eyes went to the floor.

"D-did you like it?" Yachi asked, and even though her eyes were focused on the floor, Sato could see the self-doubt in them. He still wasn't sure how to have that disappear when she spoke to him. Whenever she was with Hinata, it was completely gone, and Sato was envious because of it.

"Yeah, it's amazing," Sato said, and he smiled. Yachi looked up at him. "I wouldn't have thought about using Hinata-san as the focal point, but it was a really smart move. It looks amazing."

She looked back at the ground. "Well, my mom helped, so I can't take all the credit."

"I don't think that's true," he said, and she looked up a little. "Just because she helped doesn't mean you can't take more credit. I imagine she helped you figure out graphics and the best way to do it, but you still made it. You're the one who took the photo and came up with the idea and spent the time making it. So, you should be taking most of the credit."

Yachi fully looked up at him, and the self-doubt he constantly saw in her eyes was no longer there. He had done something right for once when it came to reassuring someone. He was going to have to write this down later.

"Thank you, Sato-senpai," Yachi said with a smile. "That means a lot."

"Don't mention it." He looked over her head to see Nishinoya hurry down the stairs. That must mean almost everyone was in the club room. "We should head to practice."

Yachi nodded. "Right!"

As they walked to the stairs, people stared at Yachi and Sato as they passed. A couple of people waved at him, but he didn't move to react. Instead, he noticed how stiff Yachi was next to him.

He shoved his hands into his pockets and turned his head towards her. "How do you think you did on your exams? Do you think you passed?"

Part of her stiff composure melted as she looked up at him with a small smile. "I think I did well! Tutoring Hinata and Kageyama-san really helped me while also helping them! What about you?"

"I did how I normally do, which is passing." He pulled his hand out of his pocket and ran a hand through his hair. "Also, teaching is the best way to learn." He shoved his hand back into his pocket. He was quiet while he adjusted it to be how it was previously. "I imagine you did great since you're so smart."

Yachi's face went red, and she looked to the floor. "I-I wouldn't say that."

"Well, I would," Sato said, and they walked down the stairs in silence. He preferred silence because it was easier to understand someone by how they reacted to it. Yachi didn't go to fill it, but instead seemed to enjoy it with him.

When they exited the building, Nakaya ran up to them from the bike rack. Her shoulder-length brown hair swayed as she ran. She was quite pretty with her shimmering brown eyes and gentle smile. She'd be the perfect protagonist for a shoujo manga. "Hey, Sato-san, are you busy right now?"

He nodded towards Yachi. "Yeah, I'm walking with the new manager to practice. Why?"

Nakaya turned towards Yachi. "Oh, hello, I'm Nakaya Kazumi." She turned back to Sato, not giving Yachi time to introduce herself. "The art club needs you."

Sato forgot that Nakaya wasn't shy around him. They rarely spoke, even though they were in the same class, but they had met in their fifth year of elementary school. It wasn't like they knew each other like he knew Sugawara knew each other, but they knew of each other (he knew more than she did, but both of them knew that). Nakaya was one of the few people in their year that didn't annoy him, and it was most likely because of how consistent she had been after all these years.

He tilted his head to the side and extended his fingers slightly. His hands were still shoved in his pockets, and for some reason, it brought him comfort. "Can I ask why?"

"Some of the underclassmen want to learn realism, but it's not most of the upperclassmen's strong suit. I remember that contest you won in junior high though. It was a realistic drawing of Suga, right?" She asked.

Sato had forgotten all about that drawing. It was back when they were required to submit something for art class, or at least the art teacher had required him to. She had always said he had so much potential and that he was just wasting it by being part of the volleyball club.

"You did a watercolor piece of a shrine at sunset," Sato said, and she nodded.

"Yeah, I won first place in the watercolor category, but you won first overall."

He shrugged as he sighed. "I told you last year that I don't do art anymore. I'm pretty sure I told you that the year before too."

"I still don't believe that. You're always drawing during class." Nakaya smiled a little. "It's a mystery that you're still doing so well in school."

Sato rolled his eyes. He forgot how comfortable it was to talk with Nakaya. He didn't have to tolerate conversations with her because she made him feel like an actual person. There were no wide, scared eyes or stumbling over words. She had once said he didn't scare her. She was like Sugawara in a way with how she treated him.

"I don't reveal my secrets," he said, and he looked over to see Yachi standing rigid and eyes flickering between him and Nakaya. He looked back at Nakaya. "We can talk about this later. I have to get to practice. Although, the answer will still be no."

Nakaya shrugged. "Okay, but that won't stop me. I just need you to remember your passion for art."

Sato rolled his eyes. "Alright, see you later."

"See you," Nakaya said before she passed by him and went back inside.

"Sato-senpai," Yachi said, and Sato looked over at her. Her brows were furrowed slightly. "You used to be in art?"

"Yeah, I can show you some of my old stuff if you'd like," he said, and he motioned for them to keep walking by moving his head. She followed him.

"Why don't you do it anymore?"

"The volleyball club takes up a lot of time, and someone has to control Koushi."

"How long have you known Suga-senpai?"

He avoided looking at her to see her expression, even though he so desperately wanted to know. He wanted to see what expression she had as she tried to figure it all out. "I think we were about six when we met. He moved into the neighborhood, well kind of. He's about a five-minute walk from my house."

"Oh," she said, and he really wanted to look at her. He knew her brows would be drawn together as she tried to bring her thoughts together. He wanted to confirm that though.

He continued to look straight ahead as they walked to the gym. "That makes sense."

"What makes sense?" He asked.

"That you guys have known each other for so long. You're very formal with everyone but him, so it makes sense," Yachi said, and Sato looked at her out of the corner of his eye. She didn't look nervous, but more like she was trying to figure it all out.

"You're one of the only people that thinks it makes sense," he said, and she looked up at him.

"I doubt that!" She said as she waved her hands mindlessly. "Everyone knows you two are friends!"

Sato nodded and looked away from her. Yes, everyone knew that he and Sugawara were friends, but none of them understood it. It didn't make sense like Yachi said it did, and Sato knew she didn't fully know what she was saying when she said it made sense. She was just thinking about it from an objective viewpoint of Sugawara and Sato used each other's given names.

"Let's go get ready for practice," Sato said, and Yachi nodded. Her eyes were wide, and it was his fault. Maybe his tone hadn't come out correctly? He didn't know, and he didn't ask.

When he got into the club room, Sugawara was at the door with his arms crossed across his chest. Sato had no idea what was going on, especially when he noticed the annoyed expression Sugawara had.

"I saw you talking to Nakaya," Sugawara said, and Sato nodded.

"And?" Sato asked, and Sugawara narrowed his eyes at him.

"You're not planning to help her out, are you?" Sugawara asked, and Sato's brows furrowed together.

"Where'd you get that conclusion from?" Sato asked, and Sugawara looked away from him.

"She always asks for you to help her out."

"Well, it makes sense," Daichi said, and Sugawara and Sato looked over at him. "I've seen your art from junior high. You're talented."

"You do art?" Nishinoya asked, voice loud, and Sato's face fell back into the deadpanned expression he typically wore.

"I used to, but I do volleyball now." Sato passed Sugawara and went to his cubby. "So, it doesn't matter who talks to me, since I'm not going to join them."

"Pinky promise," Sugawara said, and Sato didn't look at him.

"No, that's stupid."

Daichi laughed. "So harsh."

Sato rolled his eyes as he unbuttoned his shirt. "Just get ready and go to the gym – don't forget your jackets."

"It's too hot for our jackets," Nishinoya whined.

"Don't care, put it on when you get in there," Sato said, and soon the club room had filtered out to where only Sato and Sugawara left. "Are you waiting for that pinky promise?"

Sugawara said nothing as he walked to stand next to Sato. His pinky was extended, and he had expectant eyes. Sato rolled his eyes before he hooked his own pinky with Sugawara's before they both kissed the outside of their hands. It was easy to go through the motions since they had been doing it since they were kids.

When they released their pinkies, Sugawara spoke, "Now you can't help out the art club."

Sato rolled his eyes as he pulled his jacket out of his cubby. "Yeah, yeah. Leave already."

"I'm waiting on you."

Sato didn't move, just stared right into his cubby. He hated when Sugawara said things like that. He hated it so much. It always made his heart race and hurt. He hated it.

"Alright, let's go then."

When the entire team lined up in the gym, Sato stood next to Yachi. His eyes were trained on Sugawara. He knew they were best friends – that they waited on each other – but he couldn't stop thinking about the stupid pinky promise and those words.

"Welcome to the Karasuno volleyball club, Miss Manager!" The team said as they pointed at the back of their jackets. Kiyoko handed Yachi her own jacket, and Sato smiled.

Things were working out the way he wanted them to.