I didn't run into anybody when I was walking down the hallways towards the volleyball gym which increased my worries since I thought I was late. I must have a looked like a mess, with my backpack halfway open and notebooks nearly spilling out in my arms. I probably should have taken into account how long the line would be to sign up for the blood drive, but there was nothing I could do about it now. I had the information sheet and was on my way to practice.

The familiar open corridor that led directly to the gym doors finally came into view and I picked up my pace, mentally praising myself for changing into my uniform before I arrived. Hurrying up the steps, I hastily opened the metal doors and walked inside, ready to start helping them with their training.

"TOMO-CHAN, WATCH OUT!"

I flinched and snapped my notebooks up to cover the front of my face, falling backward as the volleyball hit and bounced off my thin wall of defense. A scurry of shoes sprinted towards me and I was lifted up by my arms, surprisingly unhurt. A number of voices started to ask me if I was alright but the only thing I could manage to do was shake my head up and down, practically overwhelmed.

"You need to receive better or else you're gonna keep making them fly off course!" Kageyama shouted, pointing his finger right into Tsukishima's face. As always, he shrugged indifferently.

"Well, it's her fault for walking in late anyways. We left around the same time, she should have a good excuse," Tsukishima said, walking away from the group.

I didn't feel personally attacked by his words and instead tried to find my footing again, thanking Suga and Tanaka for helping me up. Hinata, Kageyama, and Narita were on their knees picking up my notes that went flying. I was about to start helping them out of embarrassment when Hinata shouted straight into my face, shoving a sheet of paper right into my nose, knocking me onto my behind.

"YOU CAN'T DONATE BLOOD, YOU'RE TOO SMALL!"

I winced and took the sheet, shoving it into a nearby folder before anyone else could take it. Kageyama and Suga both stared wide-eyed at me and Shimizu raised an eyebrow, also concerned. I wanted to hide away, already feeling everyone start to calculate my body's height and weight.

"To be safe, the golden thumb-rule is to be at least 50 kilograms to donate," Sawamura-Kun said, reading off the sheet he had taken from my folder. I flushed, recalling what my most recent weight was from a week ago. Everyone looked me up and down.

"Tomo-Chan's got to be at the most 45, " Tanaka mumbled, eyes closed. My eyes widened and I shook my head, hurrying to stand up.

"I'm 47!" I exclaimed, cheeks bright red.

"Hehe, I'm 51.9 kilograms," Hinata chuckled with a hand over his mouth. I spun to stare at him and he looked away, smug smile still in place. Kageyama hit him and I pursed my lips, taking the notebooks and papers from everyone's hands. All I had to do was gain a few kilograms in three days. How hard would that be?

"You're not gonna be able to gain three kilograms in three days," Tsukishima announced as he came back from his moment of isolation, patting away his sweat with a towel. Yamaguchi and Suga both nodded, fingers raised.

"Not unless you eat a whole lot of pork buns!" Hinata giggled, earning him yet another slap to the head.

"I can manage, I'll just eat twice as often," I assured, waving my hand in the air. The team members exchanged glances with one another and Shimizu helped me move my backpack to the back, also eyeing Suga skeptically. Turning back to face everyone, I placed my hands on my hips and furrowed my brows.

"What?"

"Er... Tomo-Chan, don't binge eat just to donate blood," Suga advised gently when he saw no one else was going to speak up, arms extended, "the blood drive comes around twice a year, you can do it next time when you have more days to adjust accordingly."

At this, I shook my head.

"No, it's gotta be this time," I insisted. Kageyama picked up a volleyball and began setting it in the air above him, slightly confused.

"Why?"

I pursed my lips. They would probably think my reasoning was dumb. Of course, no one really would understand but myself, and maybe, maybe Toto. Maybe even my dad. They all continued to watch me, waiting for my response. Fidgeting slightly, I glanced away and rubbed the back of my head, trying to find a way to explain my sudden desire to donate blood for this specific time.

"Because... they're... giving out signed copies... of my favorite b-book..."

Kageyama stopped setting the ball and turned to stare at me, eyes squinted in misunderstanding. Hinata seemed to be taking some time to process what I said, but the rest of the team members all had the same, incredulous stare. Tsukishima and Tanaka seemed to be somewhat impressed, but Suga, Shimizu, Ennoshita and Yamaguchi were more so leaning towards worried mothers. It wasn't until Sawamura-Kun asked who the author was that everyone exploded with their inputs on the subject.

"Who cares who the author is?! She could faint, or worse!" Suga exclaimed as Kinoshita and Narita held him up. Shimizu had already pulled out her phone and was searching something up, ignoring Tanaka's attempts to catch her attention as he claimed he was going to donate too.

"What's so great about the book being autographed?" Hinata asked with an eyebrow raise.

I frowned and pointed a finger in the air. "It's like you getting a volleyball signed by The Little Giant himself!"

This seemed to put things into his perspective and he gasped, falling to his knees as he cradled a nearby volleyball in his arms. Sawamura-Kun deadpanned as Kageyama began bickering with Hinata over how immature he was acting, practically on top of him now with swinging fists. I placed my hand over my face, sighing heavily. This was a disaster.

"We should get practice going again," I said, finally getting everyone's attention. Scrambling to their feet, the boys all bowed their heads and rushed off again to their usual spots, easily returning back to the routine they were so used to. I walked over to Shimizu, giving her a weak smile as I started to sort out the questions for the day.

"Just don't overdo it," she said gently after a few moments, flipping through her notebook. I was relieved to see that I wasn't going to get a lecture from her and nodded happily. It was nice to have someone trust your decisions.

By the end of the day's practice, everyone was certainly in a lighter mood, even with Asahi and Nishinoya's absences. Hinata actually seemed ready for a nap. The atmosphere in the air proved how each member was ready to relax and lay down once they left the gym. As much as I would have liked to do the same and go straight home, since it was now officially the weekend, I couldn't. I still had to tutor Tsukishima and Yamaguchi.

"I'll be you with guys in a bit," I told them as I helped collect the volleyballs, happy to see them already sitting against the wall with their notes out. Tsukishima was busy wiping himself off and Yamaguchi was chugging down his water, giving me an assuring wave. I picked up the pace, handing Kageyama the rest of the equipment. The other members were already filing out the door.

"You're not going home? It's dark out," he said, wiping his forehead.

I shook my head and nodded towards Yamaguchi. "I've got to help them with their quiz."

Kageyama started rolling the cart into the equipment room without responding. After a few seconds, he turned around and crossed his arms, eyes glancing towards the door.

"I... I'll wait then, so you don't have to walk home alone with them, or whatever..." he said, turning back around to make room for the volleyballs. I blinked and he kept his back towards me, mumbling lowly to the point where I couldn't really hear him.

"...You're too small to deal with that tall bastard..."

I put my hands on my hips, trying to see if he was either being kind or insulting. Taking the nicer option, I smiled and bowed, crouching down next to him.

"You can sit with us while you wait then. It shouldn't take more than 30 minutes," I said before turning around and going back to Tsukishima and Yamaguchi, who were now exchanging questions. Seeing me approach them, Tsukishima frowned and raised the quiz I had handed back to him, pointing to a question that was marked wrong.

"How did I get this one wrong, the capital of Germany is Berlin," he demanded. I scanned the question to see if I had possibly mis-graded, but I hadn't. Smiling, I used his pencil to circle his mistake.

"You misspelled Berlin," I explained, to which he scowled at.

"Don't mind, Tsukki!"

"Shut up, Yamaguchi."

Yamaguchi flinched and nodded, smiling nervously. "Gomen, Tsukki!"

Taking both their quizzes, I started to circle wherever their main mistake was, hoping it would help them see where they went wrong. I didn't even notice Kageyama approach me from behind until he sat down beside me, munching on a pork bun in boredom.

"What are you doing here, going to try and raise your grade?" Tsukishima snickered, making Kageyama's eye twitch. Without lifting my focus from the papers, I dragged a red line with the pen down Tsukishima's hand, smiling as he flinched and snatched his hand back.

"Oi!"

"If you hurry, we can all go home soon and go to bed," I said, raising my head enough to give him a smile. Tsukishima scowled and Yamaguchi hurried to pull out his towel, dabbing it with water before offering it to his best friend.

Falling back to my studious mode,

I handed them back their sheets and gave them each their notes, which were also littered in red circles where the answers may be. They began working immediately and silently like any good student would do. I tried keeping my attention on them as much possible, but eventually, my eyes started to glance back and forth from the extra pork buns and the clock. After a while, Kageyama took notice.

"Oi, do you want some...?" he asked, nudging his elbow towards half empty box. I opened my mouth to refuse, not wanting to take his dinner, but remembered that I had to start gaining weight for the blood drive and snatched one, bringing it to my mouth before pausing and bowing my head to him in thanks.

"Domo," I mumbled after a few bites. He was laid out on the ground, skimming through his phone and only nodded in response. I took another bite.

"Eh... Tomo-Chan, this is hard... what's the formula to find circles on a graph again?"

Yamaguchi scratched the side of his head with his pencil, clearly confused. Tsukishima glanced at him for a moment before going back to his own work, erasing and rewriting the correct answers without taking a moment to ask for any further help. Happy to be of assistance, I scooted over on the floor and pulled out my math binder, ready to explain. At this rate, I'd be --hopefully-- done right on time.

-

I HOPE YOU GUYS ARE READY BC THERE IS GONNA BE SO MUCH AWKWARD FLUFF ON THE WALK HOMEEE GAHHH I CANT WAIT IM WRITING IT UP RIGHT NOW AND TOMO IS SO REALISTIC AND KAGEYAMA ISNT SO ITS WONDERFUL

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