Haikyuu!
Higher
Chapter 18: Point

"What do you mean by that?"

To everyone's surprise, the next words came from Kageyama, who was watching Tsukishima intently. His expression had become calm, showing no ill will towards his teammate. Instead, he seemed genuinely curious as to why Tsukishima said the things he did.

Aika paused, her hands freezing in place, still holding the cold towels. Her eyes flickered between the two first-years. Both had blank expressions for decidedly different reasons, but they held the other's gaze, refusing to be the first one to look away. Maybe it was male pride, or maybe it was a genuine attempt to understand each other, but she supposed the reasons weren't important compared to the idea that they were simply trying to communicate.

For a minute, Tsukishima stared at Kageyama, like he was expecting it to be some sort of trick. Then, he narrowed his eyes, slowly grinding out, "Since I have a different way of doing things than you, I'd prefer your tosses to be consistent." He sounded a bit bitter, but it wasn't as venomous as Aika thought it'd be.

She paused for a moment, staring between the two. Kageyama's face was filled with confusion in his attempt to figure Tsukishima out, and Tsukishima's face was filled with an almost blankness that contrasted his usual bitter resentment he aimed towards Kageyama.

"You're not the only one on the court who's thinking about what to do during a game." He scoffed. "Everyone's been thinking about this kind of stuff… the best strategies, the opponent's defenses… It's on everyone's mind. We all think about how to win."

Somehow, those words sounded both ominous and comforting at the same time, two things that shouldn't have worked together in the same sentence. But with Tsukishima, it was like there was no other combination of words to even begin to describe his way of speaking. It wasn't as if he was ominous or comforting, but he somehow managed to sound like both.

Aika, pursing her lips, lifted her arms again, pushing the towels into their faces. "You boys are so filled with testosterone that you won't even begin to give each other anything but a thousand piece puzzles?" she deadpanned, glaring up at the two, who were both looking right back at her with irritation.

As he practically snatched the towel from her, Tsukishima growled, "It's not like I have anything else to say." He tossed the towel onto the bench, still looking angrily at her.

Kageyama also took the towel she offered, but instead of tossing it onto the bench, he held onto it, wringing it with both hands. He bit his lip, his eyes darting from Tsukishima to Aika and back to Tsukishima. He pouted, like he didn't want to say something else, but he swallowing his pride, he faced Tsukishima, hating how the stupid beanpole was still taunting him with that stupid look on his face.

He ground out, although he was sure he'd killed part of his soul with two words, "Got it."

Everyone, from Sugawara to Tsukishima, looked at him with shock. "You… you sure agreed fast. You're not sick, are you?" Tsukishima managed, his face in the expression one would make if he'd just heard that it was raining fish outside.

The whistle blew and, as Kageyama walked back to the court, he replied, "That depends on how this goes."

Aika giggled, watching as the shocked birds followed him, especially Tsukishima, who's face had shrunk in surprise. She looked to where Kageyama had tossed his towel, and she grinned.

Everything would be okay.

Tsukishima didn't think that the King would actually do it.

He didn't think that the King listened to anyone.

But that toss was just right. It was the perfect height for Tsukishima, whose fingertips hit it as it began to fall back to the court. The ball practically floated right over the blockers' heads in a perfect feint, one that would sear into their memories for years to come.

That was what they didn't see coming.

And the smirk of pure satisfaction that he felt coming over his face was what he didn't see coming.

Maybe this whole teamwork thing won't be such a disaster.

The game continued on, with Tsukishima's feints throwing in a new dynamic in how Aoba Josai could block the ball. Each time he did a feint, he simply lured them further and further into a false sense of security, then blew it away with a single, powerful spike.

Kageyama and Tsukishima, as blockers, were also working surprisingly well together, showing just how much of a force they could be if they decided to cooperate with each other. Somehow, it was unsurprising that two of the tallest players on Karasuno were so alike and so different at the same time, but now that they were working together just fine, they were managing to make life tough for their opponents, who weren't expecting such strategy from two idiots.

It was soon 24-23, with Oikawa serving and just one point needed for Karasuno to take victory.

Aika frowned, knowing just what was coming. "Oikawa isn't messing around. We haven't seen much of Iwaizumi this time around, but he's not someone to be underestimated," she murmured. "These two have been through a lot together. Don't underestimate them, coach. Call a time out if we need it. Don't let Oikawa get the flow."

Glancing at the girl, Ukai frowned. He saw the way she was tensing under the sheer amount of pressure she was placing on herself, noticing every last thing she could. She wasn't the type to let people sit and suffer, even though most of the things that she worried about weren't hers to worry about. She wasn't on the court anymore, but she still worried and thought the same way that every player on the court worried. She was always looking carefully at the court, and she was always thinking the same thing whenever something went wrong:

"I should have taught them how to fight against that!" or "I should have worked more with them on that!"

She wasn't the type to let things be, even if there was absolutely nothing that she could have done in order to change it. There were things that she couldn't prevent.

Especially not struggling against Aoba Josai and Toru Oikawa.

But she was worried about a bunch of crows who had learned better than that. Even if it was something that they didn't know, they'd learn if they had to, even if it was a last-minute crash course. She could only hope that they would be able to learn quicker than it would take to shut them down

Kageyama proved this almost immediately, leaping alongside Tsukishima to block Iwaiziumi's spike as Oikawa's toss made its way towards the Aoba Josai player.

With 25-23, the set went to Karasuno.

Aika heard her ringtone before she felt her phone vibrating in her pocket. Blinking, she turned away from the celebration of the won set, only to blanch as she saw the name on the caller ID.

Tetsu-nya

"Damn," she murmured. She knew that there was only one reason he was calling her. Turning to Ukai, she held up her phone, and he nodded at her. She quickly left the gymnasium, flipping open her phone as she did so. "Hello?"

"Aika Yamada, did you think I wouldn't find out about what you told Kenma?!" Tetsu demanded angrily, his voice ringing loudly in her ears.

Her footsteps echoed down the hallway as she came to a vending machine. "I don't know what you're talking about." She tried her best to force her voice – and her leg – not to shake as she fished inside her pockets for spare change. "What did you find out?"

For a moment, it was like Tetsuro didn't know how to respond. "Ai… you're not gonna play dumb with me, are you?" he asked, his voice practically a growl. "I found the videos. Of the game where you… God, how did that happen to you?! I thought we taught you better than this!" He sounded hurt, like he couldn't believe that he hadn't been the first to hear about her injury.

Aika bit her lip. With shaking fingers, she pushed a coin into the vending machine, her eyes scanning over the drink choices. "Tetsu, I haven't seen you for almost ten years. Did you expect that the first thing out of my mouth was going to be 'Hey, good to see you again, I pulled my hamstring and caused permanent damage to my leg?'" she snapped dryly.

"No, but I thought you'd tell me at some point!" Pausing, Tetsu forced himself to take a deep breath. "Look, I have an offer to make you. If you want, I could help you get back on the court again."

Her eyes widened, her finger hovering over the button on the vending machine.

"W-what?"

Aika wasn't there for the start of the third set.

Something about how she'd looked so unsure with herself as she'd left caused Kageyama to think that something had gone horribly wrong. He may not have been wrong, all things considered. After all, she hadn't been the same since the Tokonami match the day before.

But he couldn't think about what might have been when there was something more important right in front of him.

Win.

He had to win, or at least keep his eyes on the prize. There was so much going on that he couldn't breathe. There were things happening that he couldn't take his eyes off of yet.

10-11, in favor of Karasuno, but only barely.

He could see why people feared Aoba Josai, feared Oikawa and Iwaizumi. They had easily blocked off every path of attack he had, and easily turned around every play into something that they could use. He just didn't understand it.

He just had to rely on the people on the sidelines to figure something out.

But when the first time out was called, Aika still hadn't returned.

Aika couldn't move from where she'd sat down over ten minutes ago. An empty can of coffee was in her hands as she stared at the wall blankly. Her eyes were practically dead as she bit her lip.

I have to get back to the court. Karasuno… my boys need me.

But her feet wouldn't obey her. She couldn't get them to move at all. There wasn't a single part of her body that would obey her, and there definitely wasn't a single bone in her body that wasn't hurting with what she was remembering. Her body was feeling the same pain that it'd felt all that time ago when she was in the final match, when she was straining to do what she was taught was the only thing she could do.

Win.

But she didn't.

She'd failed, and she'd fallen, and she'd lost everything.

But her crows were still able to pick up where she left off. They needed everything she could see, and they needed her to be there. She needed to see them fly, and she needed to feel like she wasn't alone, even if she wasn't stepping onto the court.

"Move, legs…" she spat, pushing herself up. "I need to get back…!"

With Hinata in, the tide had turned. Karasuno had made it to 15-15, tying things up with Aoba Josai. The small ball of sunshine had changed everything about how the game had gone, and it was making life difficult for the boys of Aoba Josai.

For a moment, anyways.

Kageyama could feel Oikawa's aura, his overwhelming presence, growing even further, spreading its reach towards Karasuno. He'd figured out how to bring down Hinata's broad cross, and now, he was serving his stupidly powerful jump serves, which were going into stupidly long rallies, which ended in extending the already stupidly large point gap.

He wasn't sure how much longer anyone could keep this up.

Everyone was at their wit's end, knowing that being two points behind could mean life and death.

But being three points behind?

Changing the tide would be practically impossible if the gap got any wider.

As she finally managed to reach the doors of the court, she could hear something different. It was like someone new was taking his place on the court. It was a new, refreshing aura to quell the raging fire that was the Aoba Josai versus Karasuno match.

She made her way through the doors, her jaw practically hitting the floor as she saw none other than Tadashi Yamaguchi, ball in hand, preparing himself for a serve.

"What's going on?" she murmured, retaking her place next to Ukai. "Why's Yamaguchi going in?"

Ukai grinned viciously, like he'd been holding a secret the entire time. Somehow, he looked scarier that Oikawa at that moment. "He's going to change the momentum with his new serve."

Aika sighed. "Coach, hate to say it, but you made a huge mistake." Both Takeda and Ukai looked at her. "He's never been in the game before. Hell, we've never even let him in a real practice match, let alone an actual game. Maybe he's got a cool new serve up his sleeve, but his nerves are gonna get the best of him. If you wanted someone to sub in, you should've put in Ennoshita," she deadpanned.

The two older men looked like they both still wanted to believe, but somehow, it was like their hopes had just been dashed.

"We should try again with him later. After we actually let him play a game, and we don't just send him in when it's convenient for us."

I failed. I failed. I failed.

This was my one chance, and I blew it.

Yamaguchi could still feel his heart in his stomach from his jump float not going anywhere fast. He knew he wasn't ready, but he'd still agreed when Coach Ukai had sent him in. He knew he wasn't fully prepared to be on the court, but he'd still done it.

"Yamaguchi." He looked over to Aika, who offered him a reassuring smile. "You'll get 'em next time. Keep your head up, okay?"

He knew that she was trying to help. But somehow, he felt worse.

He didn't feel like there'd really be a next time for him.

"He'll be okay," Aika looked to Ukai. "I know he'll be fine, 'cause now, more than ever, Karasuno feels like they have to fight. We have to bring the victory to us, so Yamaguchi can get another chance. For him, it'll feel like the end of the world for a little. But we have to believe in him, okay?"

Ukai nodded, still feeling somewhat guilty over sending an unprepared boy onto the court by himself.

"By the way, Aika, what was that phone call all about?" asked Takeda, turning to glance at the girl.

For a brief second, he thought that he saw panic crossing her face. But she quickly calmed herself and shook her head. "Nothing. It was just my brother reminding me to hand out the lunches I made. He's always nagging me about that kind of stuff." She smiled, but it was weak, like she'd created that smile in a split second to defend herself.

But Takeda didn't question it. He didn't have any right to, especially since Aika wasn't going to tell him, even if he asked her.

"Oh, you made lunches?" he asked instead.

She nodded, a glimmer of relief in her eyes as she gestured to the giant bag behind her. "Yeah. I made enough for everyone. So, no matter what happens, they'll all know that I'm proud of them." She paused, turning back to the game. "After all, they're the only team I have left."

Her words were quiet, like they weren't meant for Takeda, since they probably weren't. Instead, they were made for herself, her own realizations.

Those boys were her team now.