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âIâm sunburnt ,â Vitor complains, a miserable expression on his face and his hands ghosting over his pink shoulders. âAlready. What the hell?â From under her umbrella, Ines makes a mocking noise and laughs at the way his skin turns white then bright red again under the pressure of his fingers.Â
âDumbass,â she laughs. âYou just got over that last one. How have you not learned your lesson, huh? Sunscreen, stupid. Sunscreen.â She snaps her fingers and returns Vitorâs glare over the rim of her sunglasses. He looks away first. Ines scoffs, smirks.Â
âOi, oi!â Mateus jogs over, his own dark skin glistening with sweat and humidity but no more pink than usual. Heâs never done anything other than tan and tan evenly , the Brazilian asshole. âFound our fourthâwhereâs Nils?âÂ
âDominating on third court,â Ines says. âThose poor Americans never had a chance.â
âThought they were Canadian,â Vitor protests.Â
âNo, no. Accentâs all wrong. American.â Ines nods at her own conclusion before sliding her sunglasses onto the top of her head to get a good look at Mateusâ companion, a short-ish man sheâs never seen before. His hair is a shock of orange, and his fair skin is going to give him hell on the beach, especially if he keeps wearing t-shirts and shorts like he is now. He has a bag slung over his shoulder and a wide smile on his face as he glances around at everything the beach has to offerâmore specifically, all of the sandy courts. Most are occupied by tourists who arenât any good, but a few are empty, and the man shifts where he stands like heâs itching to get to one of the nets. âWhoâs this?âÂ
The man meets the flick of her hand with an uncomprehending look before glancing toward Mateus.Â
âHinata Shouyou, fresh off the plane from Japan,â Mateus explains in English. The manâsâShouyouâsâface lights up, this time with both comprehension and excitement. He sticks out a hand for Ines to shake and Vitor after she finishes with him. âHeâs in Brazil to play for the National team, scouted straight from high school.âÂ
âSo heâs good?â Vitor asks. Shouyou keeps his grin, not complaining that heâs being talked about like heâs not standing right there. âYouâve got to be really good to get scouted from across the world, donât you?âÂ
âI want to get better,â Shouyou insists in accented English, âso I can play withâso I can get to the highest court. I want to fly.â He nods and looks proud of himself despite the strange, metaphorical quality of his speech. Ines blinks at him before the urge to laugh bubbles over her lips.Â
âWell, kid. Itâs a whole different thing to fly on sand, hear me?âÂ
âThatâs why Iâm hereâif I can play good on sand, I can be the best on a solid court. I want to be the next Small Giant!â Sheâs never heard of such a person, figures he must be some Japanese player who hasnât had the chance to get popular over here yet, but she doesnât tell this kid that. The look on his face is something she doesnât want to crush out of him, no matter how often and how loudly Vitor insists sheâs a cold-hearted bitch.Â
Sheâs not a cold-hearted bitch. Vitorâs just dramatic. She would know; sheâs been dealing with his dramatics since the womb.Â
âIâve done some research,â the kid continues, âbut Iâm excited to learn everything I can from you guys!â He beams at her, and she opens her mouth to. comment on the fact that she hasnât played seriously since college, but thereâs a commotion a little ways down the beach where a small crowd has formed around one of the courts. Cheers mixed with groans, a sure sign a match has just ended, and Nils emerges from the crowd, red-faced but vague and expressionless. His narrow chest is heaving, and he pushes his visor away from his forehead to rub away the sweat on his hairline.Â
âLehmann!â Vitor cheers, throwing an arm over Nilsâ skinny shoulders. âHow were those Canadians?â Ines holds out a water bottle for him to take, the condensation pleasantly cool against the skin on her palm. He chugs the water for a long moment before wiping his mouth on the back of his hand.Â
âThey were shit,â he mutters. Heâs silent for another long moment. âAnd they were American.âÂ
â Dammit ,â Vitor mutters, all but collapsing onto his back under the shade of the umbrella. Ines leans over him and gives him the bird, sticking out her tongue. âYeah, yeah. Accent was all wrong. I get it, Ines.â He mutters to himself and throws an arm over his eyes so he doesnât have to look at her anymore.Â
âDonât mind them,â Mateus tells Shouyou, and Ines feels a little guilty for forgetting about him even for a second. He shakes his head, still smiling. âNils, up for a match? I want to get a feel for Shouyou here. Gotta see how much weâve got to work with.â His big hand comes down on Shouyouâs shoulder.Â
âSure, sure. Go get a courtâneed a moâ to cool off,â Nils tells him, waving his free hand and tilting his head back to drink more. His Adamâs apple bobs. He finishes and hands Ines the bottle as Shouyou drops his bag on the sand near one of the closer courts. âIsnât he a little short for volleyball?â he mutters in Portuguese.Â
âHe could be the best Japanese player there ever was, but beach is a whole ânother game. Give him hell, Nils.â Ines slaps him on the shoulder and drops her sunglasses back onto the bridge of her nose with a smirk as Nils duck back out of the shade. Mateus, on the closer side of the net with Shouyou already, has given Shouyou his spare pair of sunglasses to keep the sun out of his eyes. The green-purple lenses clash terribly with his hair, but he doesnât seem to mind. He shoots Mateus a thumbs-up as he drops into a semi-squat, thinking heâs ready for Nilsâ serve.Â
Ines chuckles to herself; there had been one match last spring in which their opponents couldnât receive a single one of Nilsâ serves and dipped, embarrassed and thoroughly beat, after half a set. She hopes this kidâll stick with it. She likes the look of him, really, and would hate to see that brilliant smile smote by her friends.Â
Ines isnât looking to feel like a total dick today, really.Â
Nils presses his lips together before throwing up the ball and swinging his arm to hit it. It seems to float over the netâa float is risky, but there isnât much of a breeze today. The day is sticky with humidity, and sweat sticks to the inside creases of Inesâ elbows and knees even as she watches from under her big umbrella, and she holds her breath as she watches the ball drop into Mateusâ and Shouyouâs side of the net. Mateus doesnât move for the receive, and she can tell even from the back of his head that heâs side-eyeing Shouyou to see if heâll go for it. This match is to gauge his skill, after all.Â
Shouyou takes two steps forward, almost directly under the ball, and it drops onto his forearms; he receives it perfectly, sending the ball back over the net to Vitor and Nils. Ines whistles lowly to herself and sits forward in her seat as the two duos rally. There hasnât been an opening for anything yet, but Mateus is finally stepping forward toward the net instead of leaving the match essentially to Shouyou.Â
She figured he would. Despite his constant nonchalance, Mateus is competitive, and he will want to win. He and Shouyou share an obvious glance as Vitor bumps the ball back over to their side, perfect for a set. She canât see Shouyouâs eyes because of the distance and the colorful sunglasses, but his lips are pulled into another excited grin. He looks like a sweaty, grown kid in a candy store as he bounds toward the net. Heâs making too many big movements, she thinks, and his beginner status is obvious.Â
He stops, waits for a split second, and jumps straight up as the ball comes toward him. His jump is impressive even on sand, but Ines wishes she could see it on a solid courtâthat comment about flying must be awfully and scarily accurate.Â
His hand arcs over his head just a split second too fast for the ball. It catches on the side of his pinkie finger and wobbles in the air before falling next to him instead of on the other side of the court. Mateus dives for it but comes up short, and the point goes to Nils and Vitor.Â
As Vitor celebrates the point (cheering as if theyâve just won the biggest match of the season instead of just one point against a total newbie), Shouyou bows in apology, promises to get the next one. Mateus shakes his head good-naturedly and waves him off.Â
Even from so far away, Ines hears Shouyou request a faster set. Her lips part in surprise; Mateus is a setter to be reckoned with because of the sheer power behind his sets, and though the one he sent toward Shouyou wasnât one of his faster ones, itâs still a surprising request to hear.Â
Just what the hell kind of indoor volleyball has this kid been playing?Â
The next spike that Shouyou attempts goes worse than the first; his jump is too early, and the ball is nowhere near his hand when he swings. This time, he has enough time to fumble the ball over the net with a one-armed bump, but he nearly over-balances when he hits the ground again. He stumbles but manages to right himself before the ball comes back.Â
âSorry, sorry,â he says to Nils. âIâm used toâmy high school setter and I did quicks, so Iâm a little out of sorts for the normal sets.â Shouyou rubs at the back of his neck and laughs. Mateus only blinks at him, half gaping. On the other side of the net, Nils and Vitor are staring at him like heâs crazy. Ines thinks he might as well be.Â
The next time is only marginally betterâthe ball gets over the net, but itâs a near thing, and Mateus is obviously trying to set faster and faster each time. His shoulders heave with each breath, and his face is glistening with sweat. He shakes his head as the ball hits the ground on the other side of the net in a flurry of sand and grunts as Nils and Vitor try to receive it.Â
âThat was totally yours,â Vitor grumbles as he brushes sand off of his shirt and arms. Nils rolls his eyes.Â
âCan we try a faster set?â Shouyou asks. Mateus laughs, the sound loud and deep, and his shoulders shake with it. He slaps the kid on the shoulder, and heâs still grinning wide enough to show most of his white, straight teeth.Â
âSure we can.â On his way back to the back of the court, he shakes his head and mutters something that looks a whole hell of a lot like Jesus . Ines shares the sentiment, really, and sheâs sure Nils and Vitor do, too.Â
Mateus and Shouyou lose the match two-nil, not that Ines expected a team with one newbie to beat the duo of well-versed beach players, but Shouyou is still smiling and clapping Vitor and Nils on the back in congratulations. Toward the end of the first set, heâd adapted enough to hit a few of Mateusâ sets, though not because Mateus set fast enough but because Shouyou slowed down enough to hit them. Still, he obviously doesnât know how to move on sand, and his energy waned in the second set.Â
As Nils and Vitor return to the shade under her umbrellaâas afternoon approaches, the temperatures are only getting hotter, and itâs really only a matter of time before they all end up sweating their asses off despite the reprieve the shade offersâMateus keeps Shouyou back on the court to teach him the very basics of beach volleyball. Shouyouâs mess of orange hair bobs each time he nods.Â
âThat guy,â Nils mutters as he takes a seat next to Ines, âis a monster.âÂ
â Mateus could hardly keep up with him.â Vitor shakes his head and wipes at the sweat on his face. ââFaster set, faster set, please,â he said. I thought Mateusâ arms were going to fall off or something.â Nils huffs and nods faintly. Ines slides the visor off Nilsâ head and throws it to the side. His curly hair is dark and matted with sweat and sand. He lets her run her fingers through it despite Vitorâs gagging noises beside them.Â
âHeâs sure as hell something else, though,â Ines notes. Over on the court, Shouyou nods at something Mateus says before backing up and bounding back toward the net for a jump block. His fingertips reach just barely over the net, a testament to how tired he is from just those two sets as his first few jumps showed an impressive block. He lands again and has to bend over to catch his breath, hands on his knees even as he continues to listen to whatever advice Mateus is giving him. He nods and mops at his collarbone with his t-shirt before backing up again.Â
This time, he takes two steps toward the next, stops and lets his feet sink in the sand, bends at the knee, and uses his arms to propel himself almost directly upward. This time, his jump is higher, even, than during the game. His eyes seem to shine behind the lenses of Mateusâ spare sunglasses as he mock-spikes. The power behind it would be terrifying, Ines thinks, if she were on the other side of that net.Â
âNice, Shouyou!â Mateus cheers, and he claps Shouyou on the shoulder with a whoop. Shouyouâs laugh is high and sunny, and Ines wonders briefly how anyone ever got anything done around him back in high school.Â
Mateus invites him to lunch at one of the local joints that they like.Â
âGotta learn the local secrets early,â Mateus insists, âor no one around here will ever stop seeing you as a tourist.âÂ
âBut I live here,â Shouyou tells him. He has to crane his neck a little to look at him as they walk side-by-side. âThat means Iâm not a tourist, doesnât it?âÂ
âJust act like youâve lived here since forever, and no oneâll think any different,â Ines advises. âIf you start to make a name for yourself on the beach, it wonât be a problem. Nils here came from Germany and got to be a local legend before he ever learned to speak English or Portuguese.â She pats his elbow and leans into his side with a grin. He shrugs.Â
âPeople would come up to him to congratulate him on a good match, and heâd just stare at them.â Vitor jabs him on his other side and dodges when Nilsâ hand shoots toward the side of his head.Â
âDumbass. Iâll beat you one-on-one, shit head.âÂ
Shouyou laughs, suddenly and unexpectedly, one of his hands covering his mouth and the other wrapped up in the fabric of his t-shirt. He waves off their looks.Â
âYou remind me of my setter back home in Japan. Kageyama, er, T-Tobio is his given name, heâs sort ofâŚgrouchy. And vulgar. His favorite word is probably âdumbass.ââ He snickers to himself like thereâs an inside joke none of them know.Â
After a second, Vitor bursts into laughter tooâobnoxious and howling laughter.
âHe called Nils grouchy! â As Shouyou turns bright red beyond just the flush from the sun and heat of the beach and stutters out explanations and apologies, Vitor stumbles and repeats grouchy, Nilsâgrouchy! over and over again, cackling to himself until Nils really does manage to get a hit on him.
* * * *
One day at the end of December, Ines shows up to the beach early, half by chance and half because sheâd gotten bored laying awake in bed. The sand is cool between her toes, and the sun hasnât yet risen over the horizon. For the most part, the beach is emptyâthere are a few stragglers, likely left over from whatever party or bonfire went on last night, but she pays them little mind as she carries her bag and her big umbrella from her car to the spot that sheâs staked claim to for years now. Itâs close to the water, far enough away from the entrance to the beach that she never gets swarmed, and from this spot, she gets the best view of the volleyball courts.Â
Itâs a perfect spot, maybe the most perfect spot on the beach, and itâs hers.Â
Victoriously, Ines works the post of her umbrella into the sand and ends up sweating already. She heaves a sigh because it is far too early to sweat, even if she chose to come to the beach this early. She glances around the beach, basking in the sound of the tide and the ocean and the seagullsâusually, these sounds are lost under a mess of voices, and hearing them is almost nostalgic.Â
 Down the beach, Shouyou is meditating. She knows, first without even looking, because he does it every morning, says he likes the smell of the ocean which he canât get where he lives back home. Shouyou talks often of the smell of the mountains, and from what she understands, itâs wholly different from the smells sheâs used to. Â
She knows itâs him, also, because she recognizes his obnoxious hair when she thinks to look for him. Sheâs seen some baby pictures on his phone in passing, and his hair color is natural, but Ines still thinks itâs obnoxious. Poor kid.
His head is bent; Ines doesnât meditate and has never meditated since she canât fathom why anyone would want to sit alone and do nothing for so long, but sheâs pretty sure his posture is not supposed to be as hunched-over or as tense as Shouyouâs is right now. His head, while bent, is really just hanging from his shoulders, which are slumped and undisciplined and nothing at all like sheâs ever seen the kid in as long as sheâs known him.Â
Granted, a few months isnât enough to know someone, but so far, heâs only ever been all-smiles. Seeing him now, she thinks heâs dying and promptly panics as a salty breeze blows in off the tide.Â
Ines chews on the nail on her thumb, thinking. She glances once at Shouyouâs dejected form, then at her chair, then down the other end of the beach where more and more people are appearing. The sun has quickly risen just above the horizon, which means Mateus will be here soon enough since he arrives, every morning on the dot without fail, at nine. Nils will follow soon after, and Vitor will be the last to arrive, but heâll bring breakfast.Â
She could leave it to one of them, any of them.Â
Thatâs a lie. Out of any of them, she only trusts Mateus to handle this. Nils is too quiet, and Vitor is certifiably an idiot.Â
Ines sighs and accepts the fact that today will be the day she finally tries out meditation. This is what she gets for waking up early; from now on, she will leave it to Mateus to claim her perfect spot for her.Â
The sand on this side of the beach is firmer since itâs so far out of the way. No one, except for Shouyou, ever comes down this way, and the cool, settled sand proves it. It barely shifts under her as she lowers herself to sit with her legs crossed.
Sheâs close enough to the kid to feel a vague heat coming off of him from his knee where they almost touch, but he doesnât so much as lift his head to greet her. Ines can see, now, that his eyes are closed, and his hands are curled into fists on top of his thighs. If not for his light breaths, she might have thought he was sleeping or actually meditating.Â
Ines stops looking at him and instead focuses on where the sky blends seamlessly into the ocean. She squints against the sun and draws in a deep breath because sheâs heard thatâs what people who meditate do, probably from some fake magazine in a random waiting room.Â
âMorning, kid,â she murmurs, hating how abrasive her own voice sounds in her ears. Would shutting the hell up have been a better idea? She isnât sure, but she wishes she knew.Â
âGood morning,â he answers, but itâs muffled because of the way he has his chin tucked into the top of his sternum, and he still doesnât open his eyes to look at her.Â
Ines hadnât been expecting to have to carry the conversationâShouyou is usually a ball of rapid, excited words, no matter what heâs talking about, whether itâs what he ate for lunch or a match where he came out as the victor. She flounders for a long moment, opening her mouth and closing it and hoping sheâs not making things worse.Â
âItâs Kageyamaâs birthday,â the kid sighsâ mercy , she thinks. Then, who the hell is Kageyama again? Oh yeahâŚTobio, was it? Finally, he opens his eyes and lifts his chin off his chest to look at the same sky sheâs looking at. âDecember 22. Heâs nineteen, now, and Iâm not there.â He laughs without much humor in it. âHeâs probably eating a cake Tsukishima bought him. Ugh.â
A moment of silence passes between them, half because Ines is a little lost on whatâs happening and half because sheâs waiting for him to keep talking.Â
Shouyou is crying when she steals another look at him. Itâs so subtle and quiet and nothing at all like him that Ines doesnât notice the exact moment his eyes go glossy. Maybe heâs been crying the entire time heâs been on the beach, but thisâŚhis shoulders tremble with it, and he curls his knees into his chest, fully giving up the facade of his meditation. He hides his face in the knobs of his knees and cries in a way Ines is pretty sure sheâs never seen anyone cry before.Â
Itâs quiet, almost silent, and full of a desperation she doesnât understand in the slightest. Even Mateus would be out of his depth here.
  âDid you know Kageyama failed English in high school?â Shouyou laughs into his knees, and he lifts his head, only glancing at her before averting his eyes toward the tops of his knees again. His voice is clearer, if wet and congested, when he continues, âif he ever comes over here, Iâll have to translate everything for him because heâs just a big dummy like thatâŚbut itâs okay because I donât mind doing it for him.âÂ
âIs he going to visit?â she asks instead. Ines stares at the side of his face, at the way his lips are pulled down. The tip of his nose is pink.Â
âI donât know.â Shouyou heaves a sigh and cranes his neck as if looking for clouds in the cloudless, early morning sky, but his eyes are closed. His arms are still wrapped around himself in a twisted, lonely sort of hug, and something twinges hotly under her sternum at the sight. âI miss him, Ines. I miss him more than I have the words for in all the English and Japanese that I know. I donât know too much Portuguese yet, but I donât think any language has the words for this. Do you understand what I am saying?âÂ
âNo,â she tells him honestly because all the people sheâs ever loved are right here in BrazilâVitor has been by her side since forever, and maybe heâll never leave (she complains about this fact often, but him leaving would be similar to losing a limb, she thinks); Nils is looking for apartments and a permanent visa; Mateus loves the city too much to leave. Most likely, she will never understand what Shouyou is feeling, and thereâs no use in lying about it.Â
Still, he huffs out a laugh. It is hollow and nothing at all like how Shouyou usually sounds.Â
âThatâs okay.â He shakes his head, and his fringe falls across his face. âIt justâŚaches, I think.âÂ
âWhich part?âÂ
âThat Iâm hereâI love it here, and I love you all, but I-I canât talk about him because none of you know him, and it just makes it worse.â To Ines, he looks exactly like what sheâs been calling him since he arrived on her beach: a kid. He is curled in such a small, tight, vulnerable ball that he looks small and childish, and she wishes she could take this from him, just for a minute.Â
She imagines this is the sort of ache that never goes away, keeps getting worse and worse and bigger like a rotting tooth.Â
Ines rubs a gentle hand along the line of Shouyouâs hunched shoulders and considers everything heâs said. It seems obvious to her, but sheâs come to learn that the kid is a littleâŚstupid sometimes. Itâs endearing, really.  Â
âTalk about him all you want,â she tells him. âWe canât know him if you never tell us about him.â Shouyou turns, and his expression is so shocked, like he hadnât thought talking about this Tobio kid was an option, that she has to bite back a laugh. His eyes are wide, red, and framed by lashes that are tacky and dark with his tears.Â
âReally?â he breathes, gaping.Â
â Yes, kid. Really. Talk about him all you want.â He looks at her for another second before his back goes straight, and his knees back away from his chest. His eyes, for the first time this morning, are light and excited and happier, even, than he normally is.Â
âIâIâll tell all of you at breakfast,â he promises with a resolute nod. Together they stand, and Ines discretely and internally urges the three others to get their asses onto the beach so she can hear a little more about this Tobio guy who Shouyou misses enough to cry about him.Â
Already, heâs smiling as they settle in to wait for the others under her umbrella, and his face isnât even red anymore.Â
Unreal, she thinks but would never say. No one can possibly bounce back from a meltdown like that in ten minutes flat, but here he is. Shouyou is a mystery to her, and Ines has a feeling she will never quite figure him out, no matter how hard she tries.Â
Their breakfast place is mostly outsideâthere are three walls out of four and a full patio of tables and chairs and big umbrellasâand somewhat full by the time theyâre seated. Thereâs a general, loud chatter around them that they have to talk over as they wait for their drinks and then more while they wait for food (Mateus orders for Shouyou because he canât read the menu and the waitress is speaking in rapid Portuguese), and Ines finally takes it upon herself to prompt him to start with the gushing heâs so obviously preparing for.Â
 âKageyama isâheâs amazing !â he starts, and he sure does talk with his hands. Still, sheâs almost never seen him so happy. Heâs giving her whiplash with his moods, his smiling and crying, and Tobioâs ears must be burning over in Japan. âHis tosses are like guwahhh , you know? I always want to hit them, forever, but sometimes he sucks and doesnât toss for me. Heâs sort of annoying like that.â He shrugs and plays with his fingers over the table. âHeâs going to university back in Japan, got scouted for a team ân everything!âÂ
âWhatâs he going for?âÂ
âUhâŚâ He trails off, rubbing at the back of his neck again and smiling bashfully. âSomething with sports, probably. Volleyball is everything to him.â Another laughâseriously, if she hadnât just seen the kid crying, she would wonder if he was human. No one is this sunny all the time, and if this Tobio guy is close with Shouyou, he must be just as perpetually happy. Ines canât see how anyone could be grouchy around him with all the smiling and laughing and joking. Even Nils looks a little brighter as their lunch goes on.Â
âGot any videos of your matches?â Vitor asks, leaning over the table. âI wanna see for myself how fast this guyâs tosses are if Mateus is too slow for you.â He tuts, and Mateus nudges him back into his chair. Shouyou flushes bright red at the mention of that first match, which none of them have ever let him or Mateus live down.
âIâve got a few videos of us practicing up on my Instagram!â Shouyou wrestles his phone out of his back pocket and taps around on the cracked screen for a few seconds, the four of them watching as he chews on his tongue, brows furrowed, and searches for the video heâs looking for. He must find it because he pumps his fist in the air and turns his phone around for the four of them to see.
His phone screen, at first, is just an extreme close-up of Shouyouâs face as he positions the phone just right. His hairâs a little longer than it is now, curled around his ears and cheeks and sticking to his sweaty skin. As he positions the phone, his tongue sticks out of the side of his mouth, and he stands and backs away a few frames later. Without Shouyouâs face filling the screen, they can instead see a terrible angle of an indoor volleyball net, the floor around the camera littered with volleyballs. Far from where the camera is propped up is a blurry form with orange hair and a white t-shirt. Closer is a taller boy with dark, flat hair who glances at the camera and then back toward Shouyou.Â
He calls out something in Japanese, Ines assumes, and Shouyou rolls his eyes.Â
âKageyama asked me why I needed to record us practicing,â he translates. âI told him because I wanted to post it, and then he called me a weirdo. Meanie -yama.â Shouyou rolls his eyes and smiles fondly. On the screen, Tobio shrugs, and Shouyou makes a gesture so he throws up the ball for a toss. Before it even starts falling back toward Tobioâs waiting hands, Shouyou sprints toward the net, jumps, and the ball somehow makes it to the palm of his hand and is bouncing off the side of the net closer to the camera before Ines can even register what sheâs seen. Her mouth is open, and her eyes are wide.Â
âHold on, hold on,â Vitor splutters, âplay that again. I didnât even see the damn ball until it hit the ground again.âÂ
âThat was our fastest minus-tempo. We never did get to try it out in a match.â His voice is wistful, and he chews on his lip. âThis is the first time Iâve played volleyball without him on my team since junior high,â Shouyou explains. âIâm here to get better so I can get to the top with him and play for the longest time.âÂ
âYou must miss him a lot,â Mateus says, and the big softie looks like heâs on the verge of tears. Inesâ stomach seizes, and she moves to shush him before he can trigger another one of the kidâs terribly off-putting meltdowns over missing Tobio (on his birthday, no less), but Shouyou only waves his words off as he pockets his phone again.Â
âI do! A lotâŚbut itâs worth it.â Â
âAh! What a cute couple,â Mateus coos, holding a hand over his chest.Â
âN-noâoh, weâre notâŚKageyamaâs my best friend,â Shouyou stutters. âWe arenât, um. A couple, I mean.â He holds his red face in his hands. The tips of his ears are brighter, even, than his hair.Â
âSorry, sorry.â Ines laughs awkwardly, and the subject of Tobio drops for the time being. After Shouyou leaves, promising to meet up with them on the beach again in the morning, the four of them place bets on how long itâll be before they do get together.
Ines bets a year at most.Â
* * * *
In all the months since that first day, Shouyou hasnât been late to a match. Heâs notorious within their group and within a few circles of locals for being awake at the ass crack of dawn to jog, practice on the beach, or meditate, like she found him back in December.Â
Ines thinks heâs crazy for waking up before the sun every day , but at least heâs never late. Or, he hasnât been late until today.Â
âWhere the hell is he?â Vitor all but whines as he collapses in the shade of Inesâ umbrella. He throws an arm over his face dramatically and groans like a widow in an old movie. Ines rolls her eyes at him.Â
âHeâs not back in Japan, is he?â Nils squints up at her like sheâll know. She shrugs and glances toward the tall buildings of the city just beyond the beach. There is no head of bright orange hair bounding toward them, only a group of women in bikinis, armed with towels and chairs. They are smiling at each other as if Shouyou isnât missing.Â
âNo, no,â Mateus says, rubbing at his chin with a contemplative look. âHe reminded us of his trips back home about a million times before he went. We wouldnât all just forget if he told us he was going.âÂ
âUnless it was a surprise trip home,â Vitor suggests. He sounds proud of himself for thinking the idea up.Â
âThe kidâs poorer than any of us,â Ines huffs. âHe worked like a million jobs just to afford the few times heâs gone home. No way he could make a surprise visit.â She shakes her head resolutely, lips pressed together because if Vitor tries to tell her sheâs wrong, Ines is willing to fight him on it. He doesnât say anything more for a long while, his face drawn up in deep thought.Â
âHeâs fine!â Mateus looks so sure of himself as he says it that itâs so easy to believe him. She watches him stand at the edge of the shade of her umbrella from over the top rim of her sunglasses, his hands on his hips and a charming smile on his face. Ines narrows her eyes, and his grin falters for a split second.Â
Gotcha.Â
âYou know something,â she says as she slides down her chair. âYou know something, Mateus.â She feels sort of bad for Shouyou, now, because his naivety and newness to this group is so unbearably obvious, now.Â
Mateus is the worst liar she knowsâthe worst liar on the beach or maybe even the world, she wouldnât know. But heâs a shitty, shitty liar, and she only knows it because she made the mistake of asking him to cover for her. All she had wanted to do was go to a college party, and sheâd come home to find Mateus, red-faced and guilty as hell, sitting in her living room with Vitor (smirking like heâd won the lottery) and her parents (supremely pissed off).Â
Poor Shouyou, she thinks with only the barest hint of sympathy. Heâll never make this mistake again, at least.Â
âWho? No, I donâtâI donât know a thing, actually,â Mateus stutters. His eyes flit away from her as she smirks. âNothing, no.â He shakes his head, holds his hands out in front of himself. Around her, Nils and Vitor sit up slowly without taking their eyes off of Mateus. The big guy rubs at the back of his neck and presses his lips together into a tight, thin line.Â
  âHe knows something,â Vitor murmurs, and not for the first time in her life, Ines understands why people think the two of them are so similar. Over Nilsâ head, they smirk at each other, sly. âNils, what do you think, huh?âÂ
âI think he definitely knows something,â Nils says in his deadpan voice, âand I think itâs about where Shouyou is.âÂ
âAnd why heâs late.âÂ
âAnd how heâs definitely not in Japan right now.â
âI mean,â Ines adds, âhow else would he know that Shouyou is for sure okay?â In front of them, Mateus shifts, and the sand moves around his feet. âIf he knew nothing, he wouldnât be so sure about it. He would be worried.âÂ
âIâm worried! I am!â But Mateus is biting his lip, and she knows that with a little more weedling, he will break, and they will know where Shouyou is. âWe should goâŚlook for him. Maybe. In case heâs dead somewhere.âÂ
Nils, Vitor, and Ines stare at him without saying anything. Ines is on the edge of her chair, and there is sand sticking to the sweat on Vitorâs back. Heâs sunburnt again because he never learns, and she can already hear the whining complaints that are sure to come when the pain kicks in later. She considers staying with Nils tonight to avoid it.Â
âNo, we⌠shouldnât go look for him,â Mateus corrects, talking slowly. He squints at all of them and looks vaguely betrayed.Â
âWhich is it, Mateus?â Nils asks, and somehow, he keeps his voice flat, still. âShould we go looking for Shouyou or not?â Mateus licks his lips and swallows hard. Ines is getting tired of waiting, and Vitor fidgets where he sits. The situation is obviously losing his attention, so she stands so fast she hears the blood rushing past her ears.Â
âIâm going looking because, frankly, youâre all boring compared to him,â she says, turning on her heel and digging her shoes out from under her beach chair. Theyâre covered in sand, but so are her feet, so what difference does it make? She slips them on and ventures into the sun, out from the semi-cool shade sheâd been lounging in before Mateus stops her.Â
âYou canât,â he tells her, sounding as if heâs on the verge of pleading with her. She bites back the thought of Mateus begging with her to stay here, on the beach.Â
âWhy not?âÂ
âHeâll be here, just⌠later. âÂ
âIs he hungover or something?â Ines flicks her hair over her shoulder with a laugh. Theyâre all intimately aware of Shouyouâs drinking habits. The problem with them is that Shouyou, while getting broader and more muscular the longer heâs here training in Brazil, is still short. Shorter than any of the National team players and the shortest of their little groupâeven Ines has a few inches on him.Â
Itâs only occasionally a sore spot for him, one that Vitor pokes at probably too often.Â
âI thought I left jabs about my height in Japan ,â Shouyou says each time Vitor starts, arms crossed over his chest and head shaking slowly. He purses his lips and looks so much like a disapproving parent that Ines canât help but laugh; Shouyou is years younger than them, being straight out of high school, but she could swear heâs older than her own brother sometimes. Â
Point being: Shouyou is a lightweight. The kid has muscle, but heâs still filling out. In the meantime, Ines has seen him show up to the beach hungover more times than any of them. She feels like theyâre corrupting him somehow, but sheâs not going to be the one to stop him.Â
Mateus says heâll learn his lesson one of these daysâthat day might be today, actually, if itâs bad enough to keep him off the beach.Â
âItâs got to be a real bad one if heâs staying home,â Vitor adds, and she hates him for saying exactly what sheâd been thinking.Â
Just a few weeks ago, Shouyou had shown up sweaty and quiet for the headache and a little more sweaty than usual. Still, the kid had played fine, better than the tourists heâd beat who walked away to lick their egos while he tried not to lose his breakfast. It was quite the sight, and he must be on the verge of dying for real if heâs decided not to come to the beach today.Â
âIs he sick?â Nils asks, and for the first time, he sounds genuinely concerned. He leans forward and stares Mateus down. âIf heâs sick, we can help. We will help.âÂ
âOur mom taught us the best soup recipe.â Vitor nudges Ines in the side as he says it. âIt was almost in a magazine and everything, one of those fancy food ones with people like, uh, that Atala guy. Weâll make it for him if heâs sick.â He nods eagerly.Â
âHeâs not sick!â Mateus breaks, and Ines watches him apologize to Shouyou internally. Sheâs sure the kidâll hear an earful of them in person once this is all over. âHeâs not sick, and heâs not hungover. Probably.âÂ
âProbably?âÂ
âProbably.â Mateus nods once like heâs pleased with himself, and Ines has to give credit where credit is due; she hadnât expected him to last this long, especially against all three of them. Maybe he really is getting better at lying.Â
Still, his lips tremble. The three of them watch him like vultures as his face crumbles, and his broad shoulders drop.Â
âHeâs got a friend over from Japan,â he sighs. The excitement drains out of the rest of them like a big, sighing exhale. Ines cocks a brow and puts her hands on her hips.Â
âTooru? Heâs the secret?â She huffs. âThatâs boring.âÂ
Ines isnât sure she quite believes in fate or coincidences, but the closest thing sheâs ever seen to it is the day Shouyou dragged Tooru Oikawa onto her beach. Heâd been smiling wide and literally pulling the guy behind him, explaining rapidly about how heâd just happened to run into him on the streetâ what are the chances, guys? Itâs so crazy!
Personally, Ines isnât sure how she feels about the guy. First, sheâd thought he was too much of a pretty-boy to be any good at volleyball, but even she has to admit Tooru is one of the best setters sheâs ever seen; itâs no wonder Argentina scouted him so early, and sheâs already plotting ways to get his autograph to sell on eBay.Â
Who knows? It could get her a pretty penny sometime in the future. Sheâs already come across more than a few articles about the up-and-coming setter on the Argentinian team.Â
He and Shouyou had, together, decimated another pair, and they worked with a strange familiarity despite the fact that neither had ever been on the same team as far as she understood through their vague and slightly confusing explanations of their high school teams. Tooru might be a cocky son of a bitch, but his arrogance isnât unfounded. He seemed to know what sort of toss Shouyou wanted before even he knew.Â
âWe make quite the duo, donât we, Chibi-chan?â Heâd laughed, slinging an arm over Shouyouâs shoulder as the losers of their match shuffled away. âWonder what the Kingâd say if he saw you now, playing with me.â Ines was pretty sure Japan had a prime minister, not a king, and even then, she couldnât imagine the government bothered with a bunch of high school kids. Sheâd chewed on her lip to keep from asking.
âHeâd be mad, and you know it.â Shouyou paused, considering something, his lip pulled in between his teeth and brows furrowed slightly. âAnd donât call him that. He hates it coming from you.âÂ
âOi! Coming from me ? Whatâs that supposed to mean?â Tooru whined. He slouched. âKageyama practically idolizes me, Chibi-chan! He should love it when I call him a title like that.â Shouyou huffed and rolled his eyes.Â
âHe hasnât idolized you since junior high.âÂ
âI bet he lets you call him King.â Tooruâs expression was smug, and Ines wouldâve loved to slap it off of his face. She hadnâtâfor some reason, Shouyou seemed to like the guy. It mustâve been about familiarity or something because Ines sure as hell didnât understand it.Â
âAs a matter of fact, he does,â Shouyou replied, grinning proudly. Again, Tooru cackled.Â
Yeah, Tooruâs a little insufferable, she thinks, but Shouyou likes him. Still, heâs a lousy secret. Ines crosses her arms over her chest.Â
 But Mateus shifts again, and he wonât meet her eye as she stares him down.Â
âOh my godâitâs not Tooru, is it?â Mateus sighs, and the three of them, including Nils, cheer. âWho is it?âÂ
âHe wouldnât tell me,â Mateus mutters, and heâs almost pouting. Itâs almost comical to see such a childish expression on such a big guy. âHe just said heâs got a visitor and would be on the beach late.âÂ
âI wanna meet the kidâs friend,â Ines says, and she turns on her heel and starts across the beach without bothering to collect her things, âsee if theyâre any good, you know?âÂ
âWell, I want to see whoâs so important that Shouyou can miss a day of practice,â Vitor adds as he struggles to stand. He groans with the movement. âHeâs a little machineâwhoever heâs got over has to be, likeâI donât even know.â He shakes his head.Â
âIâm curious.â Nils shrugs, stands, and follows.   Â
âWait!â Mateus calls, and now he really is pleading. âDoesnât he deserve a little privacy?â
Ines thinks of the number of different versions the kid has of the Bathroom Song. She presses her lips together and shakes her head before continuing across the beach.Â
Privacy has never been an issue with him before, obviously.Â
Shouyouâs apartment is a few blocks away from the beach. Ines has been there once or twice in as long as sheâs known the kid, but only ever to drop him off after a late night at the beach or at one of their bars.Â
This time, his roommate lets the four of them in without so much as a second glance.Â
âHavenât seen much of him since last night,â Pedro murmurs, glancing at Shouyouâs closed bedroom door. âNever seen him sleep in so late.âÂ
âYou havenât thought to check in on him?â Vitor replies, sounding incredulous.Â
âConsidering the scary guy he came in with last night, no.â Pedro gives an unbothered shrug. âBut feel free to make sure heâs not murdered in there.â He disappears back into the kitchen, where something is sizzling loudly on the stove.Â
Ines, Vitor, and Mateus press their ears against the smooth, cool surface of Shouyouâs bedroom door. Beyond, there is some quiet shuffling but no other sound or indication that whoeverâs inside is actually okay or alive.Â
âScary guy?â Ines mutters to herself, mulling the thought over. Shouyou talks about his friends back home more often as of late, but none of them have ever come across, at least to her, as scary. She canât imagine Shouyouâs friends being like that, considering his own sunny demeanor. Then again, that Kageyama Tobio guyâShouyou called him, what? Grumpy? Vulgar? He didnât necessarily look scary in the video she saw of him.Â
âYouâre taking too long,â Nils says, and he tugs on the doorknob, sending the three of them toppling into the room. Ines manages to catch the side of the door before it can bounce off the wall and before she can eat the wood floor of Shouyouâs bedroom.Â
The three of them freeze in the doorway, Nils slouching in the hallway behind them, his hands shoved into his pockets in an attempt to appear innocent. Ines raises her eyes from the floor at her feet to the foot of the bed to the two figures on the bed ( two figures?), one bigger than the other and with his back to them. Over the shoulder of this bigger figure, Shouyou cranes his neck and blinks at them. She blinks back, semi-aware that sheâs gaping but unable to stop herself. Shouyouâs face breaks out into a smile at the sight of them.Â
On top of the kid is a broad, tall guy with dark hair. His chest rises and falls steadily, indicative of sleep, and sheâs glad, now, that she caught the door. Shouyouâs arms are wrapped around the guy as he sleeps, and his legs are lost in a mess of blankets and other legs at the end of the bed. It looks like Shouyou should be suffocating under whoever this guy is, considering his size and the fact that he is so wrapped up around the kid that his head rests on his narrow shoulder instead of on the pillow, but Shouyou doesnât seem to mind it at all.Â
In fact, he looks pleased. Thrilled.Â
He pats the guy on the back, shaking him, and the guy shifts and mutters something.Â
âNoâcome on, Sleepy-yama,â Shouyou grumbles, shaking the guy harder. âIâve been laying here for hours. My friends probably thought I was dead or something. Look, they even came looking for me.âÂ
âTalking too fast, dumbass,â Sleepy-yama mutters, and a big hand descends on Shouyouâs face as the guy pushes himself up. Shouyou wriggles and yells into the palm covering his face. Ines gapes as the guy sits up and stretches, and she catches the side of his face.Â
Ohâhe really is scary-looking.Â
Itâs undoubtedly Tobio, from the video, though much older and much more grown than heâd appeared on the cracked screen of Shouyouâs phone. And much, much scarier; his face is pulled into a scowl as he swats at Shouyouâs flailing limbs, and he rolls his eyes as the kid shouts under him.Â
âShut up ,â he mutters.Â
âI let you sleep for so, so long, and youâre still mean!â Shouyou insists. âI couldâve made you sleep on the floor, and we donât have a futon here, so be grateful, Kageyama!â He smacks Tobio on the shoulder with a huff.Â
âIf you donât stop being annoying, I wonât toss to you.â Shouyou glares at Tobio but says nothing more; Tobioâs expression is triumphant.Â
â Anyways ,â Shouyou continues, finally gracing the four people in the doorway of his bedroom with his attention, âsorry I wasnât at the beach this morning! Kageyama was jet lagged and fell asleep on me for, like, forever.â Tobio yawns and makes a grab for Shouyouâs hair that the kid dodges easily, as if heâs used to it. âBe nice! Introduce yourself.âÂ
Tobio stands, and the bed creaks under the shifting of his weight. Heâs almost as tall as Nils. He blinks slowly at the four of them before bowing his head, avoiding their eyes.Â
âKageyama Tobio,â he says, and his tone is so different toward them than it had been just a second ago that Ines has whiplash, probably.Â
âMateus Lobo!âÂ
âVitor Rocha Vehlo.â He takes Tobioâs hand and shakes it enthusiastically.Â
âInes Rocha Vehlo.â She offers him an apologetic nod. âSorry about my idiot brother.â
âNils Lehmann.â He nods, too, and doesnât dare venture farther into the room than the doorway.Â
âTheyâre teaching me how to play better on the sand, Kageyama,â Shouyou explains, standing up on the bed so heâs taller than Tobio is. He wobbles but stabilizes himself.
âYeah, them and Oikawa. â He growls the name, and Ines smirks. She likes this kid already.Â
âOi, donât get jealous,â Shouyou tells him sagely. âI still like your tosses better.âÂ
âIâm not jealous, dumbass. Heâs just an ass.âÂ
âHeâs an ass whoâs better at beach volleyball than you are,â Shouyou sings. Tobio rounds on him, and if she were faced with that expression, Ines thinks she would surely just curl up and let him kill her. She wouldnât fight it.Â
âIâll kill you!â Tobio insists, and Shouyou dodges another swat aimed at his head.Â
They donât stop arguing until Vitor challenges them to a match on the beach, just as the sun starts to set over the tide. The two of them share a look, and Ines has a terrible feeling about itâmaybe, she thinks, it would be better if they just kept up their bickering.Â
Itâs Mateus and Vitor against Shouyou and Tobio, and she has a brief moment to consider that monster quick Shouyou showed them before the match starts with Tobio serving. The ball hits Mateus on the biceps, and even he looks surprised by it as the ball flies off to the side, out of his control and out of bounds.Â
Shouyou turns and shoots a grin and a thumbs-up to Tobio. He smirks and gets ready for another serve.Â
Later, after Shouyou jumps for a particularly intense spike, a flurry of sand kicked up around his feet, Ines watches Tobioâs shoulders slump. His expression is awed, his mouth dropped open and eyes wide as he tracks every movement Shouyou makes. The ball hits the ground on the other side of the court despite both Vitor and Mateus diving for it, and Shouyou turns around almost mid-air to gauge Tobioâs reaction.Â
He masks his awe with a flat, nonchalant expression.Â
âKageyama! Did you see that?âÂ
âWhat?âÂ
â Gwah! Kageyama!â Shouyou whines.Â
âI didnât see anything,â Tobio denies. His bangs flutter as he huffs and crosses his arms. âI donât know what youâre talking about, idiot.âÂ
âSo mean!âÂ
Ines leans in toward Nils.Â
âIs there any way I can change my bet?âÂ
* * * *
Ines doesnât expect to cry when the four of them drop Shouyou off at the airport, his one-way ticket back to Japan clutched tightly in handâsheâs known for months, now, that he was moving back to play on Tobioâs university team and hopefully get scouted for a professional team over there. With the national season ending in Brazil, there isnât much left for him here in terms of volleyball, and thereâs only so much the four of them can teach him.Â
Heâs gotten stronger. Ines sees him in terms of the kid who showed up on the beach with Mateus that first dayâskinny, bright-eyed, and eager to learnâand then, now, as he stands opposite the four of them with his carry-on settled by his feet. Heâs broader, more muscular, all grown up, and the people on the beach loved him like a local. Theyâre sorry to see him go.Â
So is she. Nils looks like heâs biting back tears, and Vitor is crying ( weeping is more like it, considering the snot on his upper lip) without shame. Mateus pats Shouyou on the shoulder hard enough to almost send him tumbling head-over-foot, and the smile on his face is wide and sad.Â
The kid is older, now, and sheâs seen him growing in front of her for how long now? Not long enough, apparently, because her vision is blurry, and the edges of her eyes burn like hell. Dammit .Â
Ines sniffles valiantly, lying to herself when she says she wonât, absolutely wonât, cry. Now or later in the privacy of her apartment.Â
âIâll miss you all,â Shouyou promises, and he doesnât try to hide the redness of the tip of his nose or the wateriness of his eyes. His lip trembles, but he tries to keep up his smile as best as he can despite the obvious effort it takes. âSo muchâ so much!â Shouyou nods like a bobblehead, once, twice, faster as if he canât bring himself to stop. His crazy hair bobs along.Â
âDonât go, Shouyou!â Vitor pleads, and itâs selfish, so selfish, but Ines has to keep herself from nodding along with him. âWe have an indoor league here, too, orâIâm sure Tooru could get youâBrazil is better, but Argentina could beâI would settle for Argentina.â Vitor is blubbering like a pathetic idiot, but Shouyou still laughs wetly and shakes his head.Â
âI have to go,â he says. âKageyama is waiting for me. Or, he will be, since itâs such a long flight ân all.â He sniffles and shrugs, glancing down at the other busy terminals. There are about a million strangers who donât bother to bid the five of them even a second look. âI already got accepted into his university, and I think heâs excited that Iâm coming back, even if he wonât admit it.â He huffs out another wet laugh and rolls his eyes. âSo I have to goâbut donât think I wonât keep in touch!âÂ
âIf you donât,â Ines insists, and her voice cracks embarrassingly, âIâll come over to Japan and kill you myself, kid.â His grin widens, and he nods.
âOf course.âÂ
âWeâll make it work,â Mateus promises, sounding like theyâre all going into a five-way long-distance relationship. Ines has never had a long distance anything before, let alone a friend the whole way across the world.Â
The time difference is twelve hours; she knows because she Googled it two nights ago and then again last night as if it would somehow change. When the kidâs waking up all the way over there, she will be cooking dinner or watching evening television. When she is watching the sun set over the ocean, he will be starting volleyball practiceâindoors because, Shouyou says, there arenât many beaches suited for playing outdoors where he lives, but he wonât forget everything theyâve taught him.Â
With their advice, he will get to the top.
Ines repeats her promise to herself over and over again and wills her eyes to dry. She blows out a big breath and ignores the semi-asmused, semi-understanding look Mateus shoots her way.Â
Over the speaker, a drab voice announces the flight Ines knows is on Shouyouâs ticket, claims that itâs boarding now, first class, please! Shouyou is not first class, but he still chews on the corner of his lip and glances over his shoulder at the terminal where a lot of people are suddenly standing up to get in line.Â
It feels like thereâs nothing left to say. Ines wonât say goodbye because sheâs keen on keeping this promise to herself, and sheâs a woman who knows her breaking points.Â
Nils doesnât seem to share these sentiments because he surges forward and stoops to wrap his arms around Shouyou. The kid has put on a few vertical inches, which he boasts about often, but Nils is still taller, and the angle of the hug looks awkward. Neither of them complain about it, even though Shouyou is straining on the balls of his feet and Nils is hunched over entirely.Â
Shouyouâs arms come around Nilsâ sides, and his hands wrap around the extra fabric of his t-shirt. After a long moment, Nils pulls away and wipes his face on the back of one of his hands.Â
âYou will do great things,â he promises, and Shouyou blushes but accepts the praise with a nod. A tear streaks down his cheek as Nils returns to Inesâ sideâhis face is flushed, the edges of his eyes red and puffy from crying. Itâs strange to see him in such a state but somehow comforting, too. Ines grasps for his hand, and he lets her.Â
Mateus rushes forward next and picks the kid fully off the ground and spins him around like heâs a little kid. Shouyouâs bright laugh bubbles over the noise of the chaotic terminal and full, bustling airport.Â
âMake us proud!âÂ
âI will!â Because Shouyou doesnât try , Ines has found in the year sheâs known him. He just does. He will make them proud.Â
Mateus sets him on the ground next to his carry-on again, and Vitor descends on him in a split second. He might say something profound like the other two had, but Ines canât figure out what it is beyond the weeping and crying and sniveling. Shouyou chuckles and pats him on the back as Vitor tucks his face away in the junction of his neck and his shoulder, but thereâs no way any of them are ever going to hear the end of this from him. Ines can hear it already: three decades from now, Vitor will see a sand-dusted volleyball and say, wistfully like a widow in an old book, Shouyou used to play volleyball in the sand⌠Â
And then heâll cry about it.Â
Ines rolls her eyes at the thought, and for the first time today, itâs a genuine eye roll, not one to hide her own tears.
Mateus pries Vitor away as the next group gets called for Shouyouâs flight, otherwise heâll never let go, and Shouyou really will be stuck here.Â
Ines steps forward, biting the side of her tongue so hard it aches in her jaw, and sheâs sure she wonât be able to keep this promise. Her face crumbles as Shouyou stands before her, waiting, his eyes wide and just looking at her.Â
âYouâre a real good kid,â she manages before her shoulders shake with a heavy sob, and Shouyou all but barrels into her, his head resting just under her chin and his firm arms wrapping around her middle. She buries her face in his hair and lets her promise-breaking tears soak the strands.Â
The kid doesnât complain about it. Heâs sweet like that, and sheâs really, really going to miss him.Â
As they untangle from each other, Shouyou bends to pick his carry-on up from the floor beside him. His cheeks are red and shiny with his tears, but he still smiles at the four of them. Smiles so wide his eyes are forced closed and his cheeks bunch up and all of his straight teeth show.Â
âDonât forget me!â he tells them and bows at the waist. He turns to board his plane but seems to remember something at the very last second because he fishes something out of his bag and turns back around. âAh! And Vitor gets all of the sunscreen I didnât get a chance to use.âÂ
He shoves three bottles of sunscreen into Vitorâs trembling arms and boards his plane.Â
True to his word, Shouyou keeps in touch. They have a group chat, which he is active in despite his university classes and, from his descriptions, his brutal volleyball practices. They hear about Tobio oftenâ kageyama and iâŚoh and kageyamaâŚhis tosses are just⌠âbut it only makes Ines more confident in her wager for the bet the four of them over here in Brazil have going.Â
The kidâs obsessed with his setter. Itâs a typical case, only a matter of time, she thinks.
The five of them try to do a video call at least once a week because out of all of them, Shouyouâs messages are often so riddled with spelling errors they border on impossible to decipher, and itâs easier to catch up without that barrier getting in the way. Usually, they meet up in Mateusâ apartment, seeing as he has the biggest living room and a television that hooks up to his laptop without too much fuss, and he keeps boardgames in his hallway closet. At heart, heâs just an old man who gets absolutely heated over Scrabble on a semi-weekly basis.Â
Shouyou never misses these callsâhe is nothing if not determined to keep up the bond he has with the four of them despite the distance and his dorm buildingâs shitty WiFi. He often freezes mid-blink and doesnât unfreeze until moments later, and his speech goes all garbled at random intervals, but he is always there, ready to hear about everyone they beat on the beach since they last spoke. He cheers them on and talks about his own games, which are going well, and at least once every week, he attributes his university teamâs winning streak to their teachings.Â
But this week, Mateus calls him, and the call rings out.Â
Like, rings out and hangs up on them, and Shouyou doesnât answer. Mateus blinks at the television screen showing their message history and the one new notification: SHOUYOU missed your call (10:42AM) . Call back. Â
âOh my god, heâs forgotten about us,â Vitor wails, falling against the front of Mateusâ couch dramatically. He throws an arm over his face and makes a strangled noise. âI knew it was only a matter of time, but I havenât even used up one of his bottles of sunscreen! Itâs too soon.â Nils leans over and flicks him on the shell of his ear.Â
âHe hasnât forgotten about us. Shut up with that.âÂ
âHe might be sleepingâit is almost eleven over there,â Mateus reasons. Oh, curse this time difference. Ines shifts where she sits on the floor next to the coffee table.
âAnd the only reason you havenât finished a single bottle of his sunscreen is because youâre an idiot who forgets to use sunblock most of the time.â Ines sticks out her tongue at him when he pouts. âI keep reminding you, but do youââÂ
From the speakers on the side of the television comes the noise that indicates an incoming call. Mateus scrambles for the âacceptâ button, his knees sliding on his shag carpet in his haste. The call buffers for a second before Shouyouâs face appears on the big screen so close to the camera that his nose appears bigger than it really is, and his hairline is grainy.Â
âAh!â he mutters before leaning away. âI missed your call.âÂ
âWe noticed,â Nils drawls. Next to him, Vitor is still wailing, apparently unaware of Shouyou making an appearance.Â
âBut thatâs okay!â Mateus assures as he settles on the couch. âWe understand if youâre busy, Shouyou.â Shouyou shakes his head, pressing his lips into a tight line.Â
âOf course not! I clear my schedule for this every week, and you know it.â He puffs out his cheeks, and even though heâs technically an adult, he looks exactly how Ines imagines he looked in junior high. The kid leans forward in his seat again, squinting at the screen of his own laptop all the way across the world. âWhat are you guys playing this week?âÂ
â Battleship ,â Nils says.Â
âDoesnât Vitor always cheat at that?â Shouyou asks, laughter in his voice. Vitor squawks, indignant, and finally sits up straight and stops his wailing as the kid snickers behind his hand.Â
âOi, I do not cheat.â When none of them seem to believe him, including Shouyou, he crosses his arms over his chest and glares at the other side of the room. âI donât.â As Ines opens her mouth to prove him wrong (sheâs known him her whole life, and he has always cheated when it comes to Battleship ), thereâs a long, loud creak coming from the television speakers, followed by a quiet voice.Â
âAre those your friends?â Itâs muffled by distance, and Shouyou looks toward the other side of whatever room heâs in. Itâs a dark room, which is odd since he usually keeps a lamp on in his dorm during their calls, but Ines hadnât thought much of it. A smile breaks out over his face, and he shifts to sit up on his knees.Â
âYeahâoh, Kageyama, come say hi!â Shouyou tugs Tobio down into frame so all of them can see his flushed, wide-eyed surprise. He looks away from the camera and mutters something thatâs lost to her. âDonât be shy. You know them, anyway.âÂ
âH-hey,â he stutters and offers only a cursory wave. Ines gapes at the television.Â
âWoah, hey, whatâs Tobio doing in your dorm? Isnât it, like, super late over there?â Vitor asks. He looks almost offended.Â
âOh, I moved out of my dorm. I mustâve forgot to tell you guys.â Shouyou hums and rubs at his chin, brows furrowed.Â
âDumbassâhow could you just forget toââÂ
âOi, donât call me dumbass, you literallyââÂ
Ines watches them wrestle each other like little kids. The camera rocks precariously, blurring with the motion.Â
âSo Tobioâs helping you move?â The two of them stop wrestling and turn toward Shouyouâs laptop again. Tobio is leaning half over the kidâs body, his hands wrapped around his wrists, and heâs frowning.Â
âNo,â Shouyou says like itâs obvious, âweâre moving in together.â Â
âYouâ huh ?â Ines snorts so hard her tonsils must come unlodged from the back of her throat, and Mateus covers the bottom of his face with his hand. Nils smirks.Â
âWeâreâŚwe bought an apartment?â Shouyou unravels himself from Tobioâs grip to crowd the camera again. âAre you feeling okay, Vitor?âÂ
âHe probably thinks youâre a dumbass for forgetting to tell them,â Tobio insists behind him.Â
âShut up!â Shouyou swats at him, but he must dodge because Ines doesnât hear any noises of contact. She canât see him beyond Shouyouâs enlarged face. âHe does not âanyway, my roommate was a total weirdo. I told you about him and hisâŚbaby corn. And heâd stay out all night and then come back while I was leaving for class.â Shouyou seems to consider this for a moment before his eyes go wide. âOh my god, do you think he was a vampire?âÂ
âI doubt it,â Ines says while Tobio mutters, âProbably.âÂ
Shouyou exhales and turns to look over his shoulder. âTotally dodged a bullet there,â he says. âBut I got tired of him and his baby corn, and since Kageyamaâs roommate didnât like him either, we just decided to move in together.â He shrugs. âIt was easier this way.â  Â
âThatâsâŚnice,â Mateus mutters vaguely. His attention seems to be caught on the corner of his end table rather than on the screen.Â
Heâs probably thinking about his nightmare neighbors who bicker constantly and live upstairs. Praying for anyone who lives within a block of Shouyou and Tobioâs apartment.Â
âYeah, our friends from the team helped us move in, which was nice. We still havenât unpacked at all, so youâre balanced on a box of, uh,â Shouyou cranes his neck sideways to, presumably, read the side of the box, âKageyamaâs sports magazines.âÂ
âGood to know.â Nils nods and looks like heâs seriously filing this information away.Â
Shouyou turns around to look at Tobio, who is mostly lost in the darkness of the room with his dark hair and slightly less dark sweatshirt. âNow, go away. And donât listen in on my conversation, you creep!â Tobio grumbles but disappears from the frame without much resistance. Distantly, a moment later, a door closes. âHeâs going out to get more milk, so I can tell you this.â Shouyou draws in a big, shaking breath and blows it all out again before continuing. âI think Iâm going to confess to him soon.âÂ
Vitor looks like he might actually pass out. Ines trusts that Nils will catch him if he does.Â
âConfess?â Ines asks, sly. Shouyou gives her a strange look and runs his finger along the seam of the boxâs edge, his lips pursed.Â
âYeah, you know. Plan it out all romantic and tell him I like-like you . Like in those cheesy shoujo mangas Asahi-senpai used to read while he was waiting for everyone else to get ready for practice.â He pauses for a moment, eyes focused on something over the corner of the camera. âI should ask him for advice on how to do itâŚâÂ
âWhy donât you see if Tobio, uh, confesses first if you donât know how to do it,â Mateus suggests because currently, Ines is coming the closest in terms of their little, secret bet. Â
A competitive light enters Shouyouâs eyes. âI wonât let him confess firstâIâll beat him to it!â God bless this kid and his need to win. God bless him.Â
âOh, well, weâre happy for you either way, kid.â Ines bites back a laugh but allows herself to smirk at the others in the room. Mateus hangs his head and seems to concede defeat then and there.
âThanks,â Shouyou says, sounding suspicious. He shakes his head at himself. âYou guys are weird.âÂ
â Weâre the weird ones?â Vitor splutters. He holds his hands up and shakes his head like a wet dog as if heâs trying to rid himself of the idea. â Youâre the one whoâs in love with Mr. Bitchface!âÂ
âI-Iâm notâin love with him,â Shouyou insists, but his face is red, and he wonât make eye contact with the camera anymore, âand donât call him that. Itâs rude.â He pauses for a moment. âAnd youâre the one who had a crush on Oikawa of all people, so I donât think you can talk about who I like.â The kid turns his nose up at Vitor with pursed lips as Vitor flushes bright red, then pale as a sheet.Â
âYou knew?â Vitor hides his face in his hands. âHow?âÂ
âYou arenât exactlyâŚoh, whatâs the word?âÂ
âSubtle?â Ines offers, grinning.Â
âYes! Youâre not exactly subtle, Vitor,â Shouyou huffs.
* * * *
How Mateus manages to get the channel thatâs streaming the Japanese University Nationals all the way over here in Brazil, Ines will likely never know. Mostly, she doesnât want to know, just in case itâs not exactlyâŚlegal.Â
Mateus is an upstanding Brazilian citizen who will do anything, go to any length, to support his friends, and she wouldnât put it past him to break international laws to get this stream.
So, she doesnât ask. Ines sips the beer he offers her, and she pointedly tries not to wonder about it as a lot of bright, Japanese commercials that she doesnât understand at all flit on and off on the screen. Thereâs a woman selling what Ines thinks is a chocolate bar, but she canât be sure because there are no subtitles until the game starts.
Just last week, Shouyou had called them in the middle of the night so that each of them had to pick up the call in their respective apartments, rather than just doing a two-way from Mateusâ apartment, and he hadnât even bothered apologizing (or saying hello or good morning, the heathen) before he started in about Nationals.Â
Ines had thought the kid was dying or something and had sat up and turned on her bedside lamp so fast that her back still hurts.Â
âWeâre theâthe only first-year starters,â Shouyou gushed, the words coming out so fast (and in her half-asleep state) that Ines had had a hard time discerning if most of it was even English or Portuguese or any other language on Earth, really. His cheeks were ruddy with excitement, and his eyes seemed to sparkle even with the terrible quality of his iPhone camera. Now that she thinks about it, that may have been less about the quality of his camera and more to do with the fact that he couldnât seem to hold the phone still.Â
âShouyou?â Mateus groaned, and his square was still dark despite the camera being unmuted. Heâd sounded as unintelligible as ever, his voice deep and hoarse with sleep. âWhat?âÂ
âKageyama and Iâthey put us as starters for Nationals! They think weâre that good, good enough to start already, and Iâm just all⌠buwahh! â His high, ecstatic giggle filled her bedroom, and she wanted to smile with him, be happy for him, but the words he was saying wouldnât register until later, after her alarm went off.Â
The realization almost made her choke on her breakfast as she gasped around a mouthful of food, suddenly awake and scrambling for her phone like she would die without it.Â
  The kid apologized for the late, semi-unintelligible call, but she told him to shut the hell up this is exciting , to which he replied IKR!!!!!! but with more exclamation points. Ines had dared to ask how Tobio was feeling about all of it.Â
Shouyou said something along the lines of, âhe thinks itâs obvious we would be startersâ and followed it with an insult and more than a few emojis he reserved for talking about Tobio and his terrible attitude, which made her laugh out loud in her apartment while Vitor groaned at it from the living room.Â
Mateusâ television clears of advertisements for the first time since he fiddled with the channels and did whatever magic he did to even get the channel, and the preppy advertisement women are replaced by two serious-faced men with microphones. They stare the camera down, and behind them, a blurry crowd cheers.Â
âFinal match between The University of Tokyo and Kindai University here at the Komazawa Courts. Two of the university-levelâs best teams compete here tonight for the title of number one,â one of the men starts as the other shuffles a stack of papers.Â
âItâs fair to say that within this league, this is a highly anticipated match,â the other explains, ânot one anyone wants to miss. These teams are considered the prime of the so-called âMonster Generationâ here in Japan, and on the roster here we see, even, a few names that were big in the high school leagues.â Again, he shuffles his papers.Â
The crowd cheers as the camera pans toward an incoming team. The jerseys are white and blue, and Ines can make out a familiar head of orange hair among the teamâorange hair next to a taller, dark haired kid who sheâs absolutely sure is Tobio. She slides toward the edge of the couch, sitting forward and gripping her drink tighter, biting back a smile.Â
âOh my god, I see him,â Vitor gushes, pauses, then continues, slumping, âno, wait. Thatâs not him.â He shakes his head and squints at the screen again, searching for the right pixels.Â
âFrom Tokyo UniversityâNumber three, middle blocker Morino Yasunari,â the announcer starts, and his tone is more excited, now, than it had been before. Number Three jogs onto the court with a wave to the crowd and the cameras. âNumber four, right side hitter Kuga Yoshitomo. Number seven Tsuzuki Ken, libero. Number nine, setter Kageyama Tobio along with number ten, middle blocker Hinata Shouyou. Finally, number thirteen, opposite hitter Tengan Shichirobei.â At Shouyouâs name, the four of them erupt into cheers that will definitely have Mateusâ neighbors calling in a complaint before tomorrow morning.Â
âThat nine and tenâtheyâre only first-years, arenât they?â the second announcer asks like he doesnât already know. Â
âKageyama and Hinata are two of those big-names from the high school leagues I was talking about. Anyone who knows anything about the high school volleyball leagues knows that this pair took the league by storm just a few years ago. Theyâre devilsâjust wait until you see this quick the duo boasts. Even I havenât seen it in person, and Iâm hoping weâll get a chance to see it in action, seeing as theyâre starters.âÂ
âCould be an intimidation tactic,â the other announcer notes, glancing at where the Kindai University team is entering the gym to a cacophony of cheers. âKindai is notorious for getting rattled right at the end. Speaking of Kindai, here is number one, captain and opposite hitterââÂ
âDid you see our boy?â Vitor crows, flinging himself back onto the couch precariously. âIâm so proud of himâlook at him, just look. â Except the camera is focused on the other teamâs middle blocker (number eleven), who is tall and artificially blond and nothing at all like Shouyou.Â
âHe looked thrilled,â Mateus agrees. Itâs really no surprise that Shouyou loves to be on television and in front of such a big crowd, made obvious by his enthusiastic waving and wide, blinding grin. Before him, Kageyama hadnât looked at the camera or the crowd, instead glaring straight ahead as he made his way onto the court. The juxtaposition of the two is almost humorous, and she wonders if they know itâif they picked those consecutive numbers to emphasize the difference between their personalities or something.Â
 The match starts with the other university serving following the captainsâ coin toss, and Ines is inexplicably nervous. She canât imagine how Shouyou, who she knows practically lives in a bathroom stall before big games like this, is feeling. She canât make out his face from the angle the camera is at, since itâs focused on the guy whoâs serving.Â
Ines is jealous, suddenly, of everyone whoâs there to see the game in person. And of the person standing next to Shouyou because sheâd love to give him a hearty pat on the back right about now.Â
Dammit. Ines mightâve cried when they dropped him off, but she absolutely canât cry now, months later, while watching him play. She wonât let herselfâfor real this time. If she does, Vitor will never, ever let her live it down, she knows.Â
Shouyou receives the first serve almost flawlessly. Despite herself, Ines finds herself analyzing him (and everyone else on the court but mostly him because she knows how good the kid is) for everything heâs doing right and wrong. She narrows her eyes at the screen and forgets to drink the beer in her hand. Her jaw is clenched, her shoulders tense; she hasnât been this keyed up over a match in longer than she can remember.Â
She grins like an animal when Tokyo scores the point.
Later in the set, the announcers have long since shed their serious masks, now cheering for both teams and yelling each play into the microphone.Â
âHere comes Hinata, number ten from Tokyo University,â one shouts, and Ines sits forward farther in her seat. Next to her, Nils shifts, and sheâs pretty sure none of them are breathing. âThis kidâs got a pair of legs on him, just look at that jump!âÂ
âI heard he went to Brazil for training,â the other says. âAll that sand-jumpingâimagine the levels this league could get to if we all took a page out of Hinataâs book.â They laugh, but they interrupt themselves with a gasp. âMy god, did you see that ball?âÂ
The camera focuses on Shouyouâs face as he turns to his team, fist clenched victoriously in front of him. Heâs smiling so hard sheâs sure his cheeks must ache like hell.Â
âNo! That thing blasted past Kindaiâs blockers before I could even see itâis that it? Was that the monster quick?â He sounds incredulous and disbelieving, and Ines smirks. Thatâs her kid, making them proud just like he promised to do before he left.Â
âI think it was! Itâs even faster than everyone saidâthis truly is a Monster Generation.â Â
âKageyamaâs toss was perfection, right into Hinataâs palm,â the other announcer gushes. âLike it was tailored for him or something. Weâve seen a hell of a lot of amazing tosses from Kageyama tonight but none quite as showstopping as that one.â  Â
Shouyouâs team wins in the fourth set, and Inesâ throat is hoarse and painful from cheering, and sheâs pretty sure Mateus is going to have to ask one of them for a place to stay soon, seeing as his neighbors must be plotting his murder by now.Â
There is so much happening in the aftermath of the final point that Ines canât bear to force her attention elsewhere, even as Vitor dances around the couch, singing and nearly spilling his drink in his histrionics, and sheâs glad sheâs watching when, not a moment after the ball hits the polished flooring of the court, the camera flashes to Shouyou and Tobio, wrapped around each other.
And kissing. Quite passionately, she would say, for international televisionâor, national with a single questionably-legal connection in Brazil. Vitor falls silent at the sight, gaping and shocked. When they pull away, oblivious of the cameras broadcasting their affections, Tobio is smiling. Ines canât see Shouyouâs face, but sheâs willing to bet itâs a similar expression.Â
âThatâs my boy! â she cheers. âPay up, you sons of bitchesâI won .â Nils and Mateus hand over their bets, and Vitor stands, stock-still, for another long moment until the camera moves on. She rubs her win in their faces for the entirety of the limbo between the end of the game and the ensuing interviews with players.Â
When Shouyou appears for his interview, he is still flushed, sweaty, breathing hard, and (unsurprisingly) grinning. Behind him, other players mill about on the court littered with stray volleyballs, but he stands at the center of the frame.Â
âHow does it feel to be one of the only two first years that played as a starterâlet alone one who scored so many points?â The reporter tilts the microphone toward him, and he starts to answer without taking so much as a moment to think the question over.Â
âItâs amazing! This stage is so different from any place Iâve ever played before, and I couldnât have gotten here without my team here or my team over in Brazil! Or Kageyama!â He nods once, obviously satisfied with his answer, and Ines falls back onto the couch.Â
âOh my god, heâs really in love with that kid,â Vitor murmurs behind her. âHow could I be so blind?âÂ
ââCause youâre a dumbass,â Ines answers, dodging the flick he aims at the shell of her ear with ease.Â
âThank you and congratulations, Hinata!âÂ
âThank you!â The kid bows at the waist and bounds off to meet up with the other members of his team, disappearing into a crowd of his euphoric peers.Â
The next interview is with Tokyoâs number four, Kuga Yoshitomo, and he smiles easily at the camera like he is meant to be in front of it. He glances over his shoulder at his team and then back at the interviewer.
âKuga, congratulations on your win,â the interviewer says, and he shakes her hand. âI think weâd all like a little insight into the team on a personal levelâespecially after what we all saw after that last set ended.â The woman laughs. âSo, anything you can tell us about your teammates?âÂ
âYouâre talking about Hinata and Kageyama?â he clarifies.Â
âAre they an item, maybe?â The reporter is obviously digging, but Ines can already tell that this will be a big moment in the volleyball world, maybe even trending on Twitter or something for the next few hours.Â
âGod, you shouldâve seen Kageyama when Little Red was over there training in Brazil.â Kuga gives an easy laugh and a faux-shudder. âHe was a scary guy, but the moment Hinata was in the picture, he stopped being soâŚmoody, if you know what I mean. They bicker, but they really are meant for each otherâanyone on the team would agree with me there.âÂ
âI thought they were together way before they were,â a nearby player interruptsâMawatari, his jersey reads when he turns back around. Kuga only laughs again and nods, shrugging.
The camera cuts to Tobio swatting at Shouyouâs head, fingers tightening around the air above him. Shouyou is laughing, but Ines canât make out the sound over the chaos of the gym. Shouyou shoots a thumbs-up towards the camera when he notices it, and Tobio turns away, flustered.Â
Theyâre two sides of the same coin, thatâs for damn sure, and Ines couldnât be happier that they found each otherâand that they helped her get some extra cash. Â