Hinata came back quickly after his uncountable journey from the bathroom, luckily just as the match was about to begin. Each team was now on the court, and as I stood between Mr. Takeda and Shimizu on the sidelines, I couldn't help but feel a little nervous, even though I wasn't one of the playing members.

"The matches can get pretty fiery," Shimizu told me, almost as a warning, sending me a warm smile. "But you learned all the rules really well, so you'll know what's going on out there."

"And," Mr. Takeda quickly added, pointing to my clipboard. "You're going to be taking notes on their skills, so you'll be very entertained!"

Out of instinct, I bowed my head in understanding and clung onto the sweater I was borrowing tightly, my brows furrowing as I strained to see each player.

Note their assets and pinpoint their weaknesses.

There was no possible way I was going to make a mistake on my first day.

"We will now begin the practice match of Karasuno High School versus Aoba Johsai High School." A loud voice announced, and I jumped, my trembling hands pulling out my pen and paper.

All at once, everyone bowed.

"LET'S PLAY!" They boomed in unison.

A shiver went up my spine and I raised an eyebrow at the odd and sudden sensation. I had never felt something like that before, and I had a strong feeling it wasn't because I was still cold.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Shimizu glance at me and I looked up.

She was smiling.

"That feeling is something you're going to have to get used to," she explained softly looking back towards the team with pride. "Because at the beginning of each match, there is nothing stronger than the determination that's in each member."

I nodded. Of course, she was right. After seeing them in practice, I had no doubt that Karasuno's Volleyball Club wanted to win more than anything, and I was sure they could do it. Sure, there was a lot of practice they needed before they could win... but their determination was going to be their savior.

I took a deep breath, turned to look at the teams, and flinched.

It was blatantly obvious to notice that Aoba Johsai was more organized and carefully structured than Karasuno. Right now, the only thing Sawamura was trying to do was calm Hinata down, who was spazzing out on the court.

"Hey Hinata," He told him, offering a weak smile. "buck up."

If anything, this seemed to worsen his condition.

Behind them, Kageyama was looking around, and after a while, he called out to Hinata. It was an overall change in demeanor in him, that was for sure. He was taking in his surroundings.

I scribbled this down.

Kageyama: Observant and focused. Volleyball only?

"Hey Hinata, you know the drill." Kageyama told him, "The same as in the three-on-three match."

Hinata flinched and turned to him, his arms straight at his sides. "I-I know that!"

I ran my fingers through my cinnamon brown hair, pursing my lips in worry.

"Does he, though?" I mumbled, and Mr. Takeda chuckled.

"Let's hope he does."

Not long after, the first whistle was blown, and the first serve was hit by the other team. My eyes followed it as it smoothly sailed over to our court, where Sawamura called out loudly, bending his knees and extending him arms in what seemed to be a perfect receiving posture.

"I got it!"

Again, a flash of orange blinded me and I internally groaned as Hinata dove in front of him, hitting the volleyball awfully.

Mr. Takeda held his clipboard in front of his face and Shimizu glanced away, biting her lower lip. I shut my eyes, but hesitantly opened one, not wanting to miss a second of my first match.

"Idiot, that obviously wasn't your ball!" Kageyama scolded, annoyed.

Hinata jumped and turned to look at him, trembling once again.

"I'm sorry!"

Nervously, I glanced up to find the volleyball and noticed it was falling down again on our court, and I held my breath, my eyes darting to the captain.

"Ennoshita, cover!" Sawamura ordered, and in an instant, Ennoshita-Kun sent it flying back up with timed precision.

The gears in my head turned and I calculated the result, mumbling it under my breath at the same time Ennoshita yelled it.

"Tanaka."

"Tanaka!"

He jumped and spiked the ball, but the three Aoba Johsai players on the other side blocked it with their hands, reflecting it harshly back to us.

It was too fast for Kageyama as he dove for it, missing it by inches.

I sighed and scribbled some more notes down when Takeda Sensei and Shimizu both placed their hand on my shoulder, eyeing my closely. Freezing, I looked up at them and jumped.

"How did you know that so quickly?" Mr. Takeda asked with a push of his glasses.

Shimizu nodded and I gulped, shrugging nervously. I never really could explain how quickly I calculated problems in my head, but no matter the situation, I was usually never wrong.

"I-I just took into account the other players, and what move would b-be the most effective to counter Hinata's mist-take." I responded, pulling out the rule book as I spoke. "See, the most reasonable move would have been to spike it from the f-front line, since there was really no time to adjust any f-further."

Mr. Takeda smiled, impressed as he looked off to the court again, his hand at his chin.

"Maybe you can be more than just a tutor..." he mumbled lowly, just loud enough for Shimizu and I to hear, to which I laughed nervously.

For the next several disastrous moments, it was more than obvious that Hinata was completely overwhelmed. Unfortunately, because of this, he cost the team crucial points by making clumsy mistakes, like bumping into our own players and even injuring them. To our horror, he even knocked himself into the ladder where the referee was standing, knocking it and him over.

By now, Kageyama was ready to fight him, but he was being held back by Sugawara while Hinata continued to apologize for his reckless behavior.

I didn't dare look, so I asked Shimizu to tell me the score.

"It's 24 to 13, set point for Aoba Johsai to win the first game."

I adjusted myself on the bench and set down my notebook, feeling content with my notes for first set. However, I wish I could say the same regarding the score.

"Hey, you!" Kageyama yelled, making me jump and turn to look at them. He was holding onto Hinata's collar and making him sweat in fear. "That's enough nervousness!"

Sawamura sighed and turned around, his body facing forward in his receiving position. "All right, let's steadily rack up points!"

His encouragement seemed to lift the team's spirits somewhat until he spoke again.

"The next serve will be--"

All at once, everyone began to sweat in panic. Even us on the benches couldn't help but widen our eyes in alarm when we saw that the familiar orange-haired nervous wreck was up to serve.

This wasn't good. A serve-miss was an immediate score for the opponent. If Hinata missed, or failed to get it over he met, the first set would be finished.

Before I could think of something to boost his confidence, the whistle blew and Hinata jumped, startled. He threw the ball up and hit it awry, landing a blow directly on the back of Kageyama's head.

We all froze.

I didn't know what would make Kageyama kill Hinata more: The fact that because of him, they lost the first set, or the fact that Hinata served the ball directly to him.

A mix of both was also a valid answer.

-

...If you want to be the last one standing, become strong...