"Ah, Ayame-chan, good mo-" Daichi stopped when he saw the girl's face "What happened?!"

"Ah?"

Ayame haven't slept that night after she and the freckled teen fought. Their disagreement was the only thing that keeps recurring in her mind. Oh, she felt guilty for saying something like that. Of course, she knew he's just really worried for her, and she loved that side of him.

She couldn't have a wink of sleep because of what happened and the guilt for having a fight with him.

"Ayame-chan!! What's wrong?!" Nishinoya and Tanaka were devastated to see that their cute angel has lost her redeeming features because of staying awake all night. Okay, I kinda exaggerated on the description but yeah, you get the picture.

"Oi, don't make her condition get worse, you two" Ennoshita grabbed their collars and pulled them back "Stay back"

"Yamaguchi, what's with that face?" Tsukishima raised a brow after the freckled teen arrived "You look like you haven't slept in years"

"Ah...sorry, Tsukki..." he wasn't even looking at his bestfriend as he apologized blankly and sleepily.

"...Oi, what's up with you?"

"Ahahaha..."

"Oi...what the hell...he looks like a freaking zombie..." the megane sweat dropped as the teen walked past him, his gaze blank and his eyes have bags underneath them.

Everyone stared at him, then back to Ayame.

"Is it me...or the only people who looked really sleep-deprived are Ayame and Yamaguchi?" Ennoshita noted.

"Did something happen...?" Kinoshita wondered "I'm pretty sure it's nothing perverted, knowing those two"

Ayame and Yamaguchi's eyes coincidentally met for a few seconds before the two of them looked at the opposite direction at the same time.

"Hmph!"

Let's just say that these two can be stubborn sometimes.

That caught everyone's attention even more.

"HUH?!"

Even inside the bus, when they're about to leave for Sendai Gym, the two didn't sit on the same seat together like usual. Ayame sat next to Daichi, while Yamaguchi sat at the empty seat at the back.

Even the atmosphere inside the bus is making them sweat drop when the two wouldn't notice each other.

"What the hell...the atmosphere is really awkward!!" they all thought.

Even the two adults in front could feel the atmosphere from the back.

"Ukai-kun, will Ayame-san and Yamaguchi-kun be okay?" the teacher lowered his voice as he asked the man.

He sighed "I really don't know...This is the first time that happened and I really hope it won't affect today's matches"

"But...our strategist is really sleep-deprived! This might affect the team's morale!" he mentally sweated bullets as he thought for the worse to come.

Once they got off from the bus, the stills haven't made up and kept ignoring each other.

"Could it be...they got into a fight?" Sugawara suggested as soon as those two were out of earshot.

Asahi couldn't believe it "Eh?! Ayame-chan and Yamaguchi having a fight?! That's something really hard to believe, Suga!"

"Same..." Daichi nodded "I called Aunt Kazumi and asked what happened but she didn't know what, though she guessed that the two fought over something"

"Just what could cause those two to fight and ignore each other?" the ace worriedly asked.

"Suga...can you do something about those two? You're the mature one here when it comes to stuffs like this" he asked before facing the third year setter.

Sugawara sighed and observed the two before answering "I can't do anything about that. This is Ayame and Yamaguchi's fight, so it's not my place to interfere. Even if I do interfere and help them make up, they won't change and grow up from their relationship. They should mend it themselves, without me or anyone else's interference"

"Though I really wanted to return back to normal!!" he mentally screamed.

He then patted the captain's shoulder "It will be fine, Daichi. They are not kids anymore. It will be like a challenge to strengthen their relationship with each other. The only thing we can do as their senpais is to watch and guide them to do the best thing for them"

"I guess so... I'm probably too overprotective of her" Daichi said as he looked at Ayame.

"You realized this just now...?" Asahi and Sugawara thought at the same time.

Ayame breathed deeply and slapped her cheeks lightly to focus on today's match. That unsettling feeling in her stomach stirred up again and she knew that something is bound to happen sooner or later. Her relationship with the freckled teen right now is slightly strained, and she hoped it didn't get worse from that.

She wanted to say something to him, but she didn't know the right word to tell. She wanted to apologize, but she couldn't.

The same goes for the freckled teen, as well.

Their opponent today is the Wakutani Minami High School, the team she guessed that they'll have a hard time playing.

"Nakashima Takeru..." she looked at the pamphlet while the players were warming up "His height might be somewhere around 170 cm, but based from what I observed a little from the match yesterday, the feedbacks from other players and coaches, and a few research, he's incredibly good at mid-air battles. Not only that, his team's combination play is also quite troublesome. He's also the captain of his team and he's their strong foundation, just how Daichi-nii is to Karasuno"

"Let's all do our best, Ayame-chan" the captain ruffled her hair.

Again, that unsettling feeling in her stomach. She tried for a smile but her knees started shaking as she tried to use the wall as a support. This alarmed the third year.

"What's wrong? Are you not feeling well?" he held her arm to support her.

"I-I'm okay... I'll be okay..." she faced him and tightly gripped his sleeve "Nii...please...be careful...please..."

He didn't know what she meant by that but her condition is making him worried "I-I will but...shouldn't you be telling yourself that? You're pale"

"I know...this is a premonition...I have a feeling that something is bound to happen...something not good... I don't like this" she thought "S-Sorry but...I'd like to go to the bathroom alone..."

"I'm going with you-"

"Don't" she said "I-I want to be alone for a few minutes. Don't worry, I won't faint"

And she rushed off to the bathroom.

"Daichi-san, is Ayame feeling sick?" Hinata asked him worriedly.

"I don't know. She seemed fine earlier" he paused "Scratch that. She looked sleep-deprived but that doesn't seem to connect to what she's feeling right now"

"Hmm? Where's Yamaguchi?" Asahi asked when he noticed the teen missing.

"Bathroom, probably?" Tsukishima answered nonchalantly, but he knew that the freckled teen followed her. Even though they are still fighting and ignoring each other, he still worries about her.

***

Ayame washed her face with water and lightly slapped her cheeks multiple times to focus herself. She wiped her hands as she exited the bathroom...and bumped to Oikawa who was passing by.

"Oh! Ayame-chan!"

"Oikawa-san" she bowed "Sorry for bumping you"

"Don't worry. It doesn't bother me" he looked around him "It's rare to see you alone like this. Aren't you with your boyfriend right now?"

She flinched and looked away "I just went to the bathroom. There's no need to bring him with me"

He was surprised by the way she sounded and reacted "Could it be...you two are fighting?"

She didn't answer his question, but her guilty eyes answered his question.

"Oh dear...I didn't expect this from Ayame-chan..." he mentally sighed and scratched his head "You know, it's not a good thing that you haven't made up with your boyfriend"

"I-I know..." she muttered "It's just that...I don't know what to say to him...I want to apologize but...I feel like I couldn't"

Oikawa patted her head and smiled a little "I'll try not to pry in your fight with him"

"Eh?"

"It's your little scuffle as a first time couple. You two should handle this yourselves" he told her "It'll be a test on you two. You know, a disagreement between couples is normal because it could strengthen the bond between you two, as long as it doesn't escalate to something worse that could break you two"

Her eyes widened when she heard the last part "That happens?!"

"Of course! Don't tell me you've been reading too much shojo manga that you didn't think of this possibility?" he asked her teasingly.

"...I have..."

"Eh?" he blinked "Ah... she has no idea about romance stuffs so I think she referred to shojo manga as a guide...really...this girl is unbelievable..."

He scratched his head "Well, what I'm trying to say is, if you don't reconcile with him, you two might break up and-"

"I don't want that!" she blurted out before covering her mouth "A-Ah, I'm sorry for shouting...but...I don't want to happen. I-I don't want to break up with Tadashi-kun...even...even though, we're not speaking to each other right now, I most definitely don't want to break up with him...I...I love him..."

"Then reconcile with him" he told her kindly with a smile "I may not know what your fight is, but you should go and apologize to him. This also applies to your boyfriend, as well"

"I...I don't know the right words to tell him...I...I think my apology is not enough..." she muttered "I...I know he's just worried for me but...I...I don't want him to worry anymore...I want to stand on my own without depending on anyone anymore...but, it sounded like, I'm pushing him away...and I don't want that. I don't know what to do..."

He patted her head "Analyze this carefully, just like you are analyzing volleyball. Think carefully on the words you wanted to say. Love is not simple, Ayame-chan. Sometimes you have to accept the things that you can and cannot do."

"I...see..."

He started walking away "I've given you advice here as a friend. But once we're inside the court, we're opponents, and I won't be giving any advices. Later and good luck, Ayame-chan"

"Oikawa-san!" she called out and bowed "Thank you very much!"

He faced her and smiled. He walked away while waving his hand.

"I think... I know what to do now..." she started walking back to her team "But... I don't know how to approach him... when I think about it...it feels awkward, because I was the one who tried to push him away when he's just concerned for me...I'm so stupid..."

Unknown to her, the freckled teen was hiding behind a wall and he heard everything. He clenched his fist to his chest, a tiny blush dusting his cheeks when he recalled her words.

***

Ayame didn't have the chance to talk to him, because their game against Wakunan is about to start.

"Uwaaah...a family is cheering their team..." she thought when she saw Nakashima's family cheering him and his team. While the players were warming up, he and the Coach Ukai are already wary of their team.

"What's the matter, you two?" Mr. Takeda asked them upon noticing the faces they're making.

"We're going all out, Sensei" the man said.

"Huh?"

She bit her pen to shake off that anxiety "Wakunan team might be difficult for us to handle"

The match started, and the first point was taken by Karasuno thanks to the quick attack of the oddball duo. Ayame noticed that the opposing team wasn't shook by the least.

"Not panicked, at all? Looks like they found a way to counter it" she thought "This is not the first time, but our team has trouble dealing with teams like them that handle us at their own pace and intelligently...like Seijoh and Nekoma"

"As long as they don't get frustrated or do anything rash, we'll break through..." she said.

Daichi approached the short middle blocker "Hinata, looks like a powerhouse school is on their guard with you"

The said teen flinched while Ayame blinked in surprise.

The captain then added with a small smirk "They've probably been researching you..."

Researching you...Researching you... Researching you... Researching you...

She could practically hear it echo from the teen's mind.

"Man, you're totally overshadowing us" he added, to which Tanaka's ears twitched in his direction.

Hinata tried to intimidate them back by moving his body in a circular motion "But I am able to triumph myself from yesterday"

Tanaka showed his support by flashing them his infamous evil looks "Hey, if you guys are just watching Hinata, I'm gonna peck yer eyes out"

Poor Nakashima shuddered from their aura.

"Well done, captain" Mr. Takeda thought "He knows exactly how to get them going"

"Nii...you're amazing...!" she flashed a thumbs up at him and he returned the gesture.

The challenge started as soon as the next point went to Wakunan. It kept going until she noticed the play style of Wakunan's captain.

"Their combinations are quite troublesome but..." she looked at him "Nakashima Takeru-san's play style...is the most similar in the prefecture to the former Little Giant"

"Thought so" the man agreed.

Spikes kept going and so does the points that go to each team. It seemed like both short spikers are competing against each other.

"Does this mean that Nakashima-kun can see very well, like Hinata-kun?" the teacher asked.

Ayame used her ability to see a spiker's motion in slow motion earlier to prove her theory.

"I don't know how much he can see but..." the man looked at the first year and nodded his head.

"Rather than Shoyo-kun's play style to aim at small spaces..." she replied "He uses angles"

"Angles?"

"I think he changes the angle of his spikes" the man answered.

"He'll hit it against the blocker's hands to change the angle of the rebound" she added "The type of spikers blockers find annoying"

She looked at the bench players, and the megane's face has annoyance and disgust written on it.

"I can see it in your face, Tsukishima-kun..." she stifled out her laugh, though it changed when she saw the freckled teen. He momentarily stopped his cheering when they made eye contact, and both of them looked away.

"Maybe...later..." she whispered.

"What's up?" Coach Ukai asked.

"Ah, nothing"

The match went on. The violet eyed girl noticed the growing frustration of the shorter teen when the blockers limited his course rather than stopping him.

"Keep calm, don't lose your cool, everyone!" she prayed.

Thankfully, Daichi knows what to say and how to handle them. As captain, he knows how to calm his teammates and motivate them.

Not only him. Wakunan's Nakashima also knows how to handle his own team and motivate them in his own way.

And thus, that unsettling feeling in her stomach worsened as each point added to the scoreboard.

"This battle...is more like a battle of captains rather than Little Giants..." she thought "Nii...! Please...do be careful!"

Score: Karasuno–19, Wakunan – 17

The rally was long. Nakashima performed a block out and Daichi received it, followed up by Nishinoya. The captain went for the third touch and...

The ball goes over the net and the point goes to Karasuno, but no one celebrated.

Ayame's arms went slack when she saw the scene in front of them.

"Onii...-chan?"