40 After Inter High
"Hey, do you want to ask if they can open up the rooftop?"
"Ehh do you really think our teacher will open it~?"
The voices of students could be heard in the classroom and the clatter of chairs and tables began to start as lunch had finally once again rang its bells. Haruto who was in the back was finishing up his notes from the class beforehand when he felt a vibration in his pocket signaling that he had gotten a message.
'Hm? A message from Akane, what does she want now.' Haruto thought in his mind, as the name he saw pop up was his sister.
[How are you feeling after your match yesterday?]
[Frustrated…]
[Ehh but I saw a recording of the match and I must say you played really well despite the loss.]
[Yeah, yeah but a loss is a loss. The next time however we'll win no matter what.]
[What a protagonist like line~. Don't worry your older sister will cheer you right up! I'll order some high end sushi for your dinner tonight.]
Haruto saw the text and stopped for a bit, thinking about saying no to the offer since Mahiru will be cooking dinner and it would be too much food. He was about to text back until he saw the next line Akane sent.
[Don't worry about Mahiru making dinner. I messaged her that I will order food for you guys tonight.]
[..When did you guys exchange numbers..]
[(＾▽＾)]
Haruto tried to ask again but all he received back was the same emoticon every time. He eventually gave up and said his thanks to her and smiled as he put his phone away.
He finished up the notes he was writing and looked around to see if Kageyama or Hinata went to get lunch without him.
Kageyama's chair was empty showing that he left already but Hinata was slumped up on his desk and looked dead.
"Earth to Hinata are you there?" Haruto poked him a bit and saw the sulking look on his face.
'He still looks down after the loss huh.'
"Let's get some food from the cafe, I heard that the chocolate cookies they started selling are really good." Haruto told Hinata and they both went to the cafe to get some cookies.
After getting the cookies they began to walk around trying to find Kageyama. After a while, they decided to see if he went to either the corridor they usually stay at or the gym. Seeing the corridor empty they went to the gym and heard a ball being bounced.
They saw Kageyama serving the ball and hitting it against the wall. Kageyama saw them enter and stared at them as they were munching on the soft cookies that they bought.
"Here, have some." Haruto gave one to Kageyama and they sat in silence near the wall as they ate the sweet cookies.
"We'll destroy them next time and go to nationals with everyone." Haruto said amidst the silence and the two people beside him nodded their heads as they didn't want to once again feel this frustration they currently have.
"But do you know if the third years are going to continue playing with us or sit out for the rest of the season?" Kageyama asked and the other two began to furrow their eyebrows at his words.
They were silent as usually the third years will sit out and focus more on prepping for college rather than participating in their club activities.
"You don't need to worry, we plan to stay for the spring high." A voice came from the entrance of the gym and Sugawara appeared with a smile on his face.
"We were so close to winning this time, how can we sit out?" As Sugawara said these words a smile appeared on their faces as the thought of playing with the others once again made them happy.
"Anyways, why are you guys sitting here? I saw the gym door open and thought someone forgot to close it."
"We found Kageyama here and we just sat down to eat some of the cookies we got from the cafe. Oh! There are still more in the bag, have some."
Haruto answered Sugawara's question and took the bag beside him and offered some of the cookies he still had. Sugawara took some and sat down beside them and they started to talk about random topics until they heard the bell that ended their lunch and they returned back to class.
***
"Yamaguchi, can you help me set up the net?"
"Yes I'll be right there! Should I get one of the poles or get the net?"
Ennoshita called out to Yamaguchi near him and they started to set up the net to use for their afterschool practice. The rest of the team were silent as they waited for the third years to come.
Even after Haruto told them what Sugawara said they were still nervous but they finally gave a sigh of relief as they saw them come through the door with a smile.
"Although we lost in that match yesterday, It was very impressive that we were able to push that second set in the 30s." Ukai started to talk out as everyone was gathered in the gym.
"We were strong but we came short of the victory we wanted. So from now on we need to get even stronger than before as a new goal is in our sights." Everyone in the room focused on the words of Ukai while he looked at Daichi to tell him to continue.
"The Spring High is the next tournament that we will compete in. As I had said before, Karasuno had only stood at that stage only once and we will be going there once again." Daichi said in a strong voice.
"To Tokyo, we will stand back on the orange court to fulfill some old promises and advance even further compared to the past."
""YEAHHHH"" Everyone yelled out and ran off to start practice while Ukai was leaning against the wall thinking about how he would improve the team.
"Ukai! I got some good news." Takeda busted through the door and gave the paper that was in his hands towards Ukai.
"The coach from Nekoma was able to get us in to join their joint practice matches in Tokyo!" Takeda yelled out excitingly while Ukai continued to stare at the paper that was given to him.
'This is just what we needed.' Ukai gave a big grin as he saw the lists of schools that will appear in the joint matches that they were invited to.
***
"I'm home."
"Welcome back."
Haruto arrived home after his practice and saw Mahiru holding a cup of tea while she appeared to greet Haruto by the door.
"This is the first I've seen you not wear an apron when you greet me." Haruto gave a small laugh as he went to his room to quickly put his stuff away.
"Well there wasn't a need to wear one tonight. I could wear it for you if you miss it so much." Mahiru gave a teasing smile as Haruto just shook his head at her words.
"Did the delivery arrive or no-"
*Ding Dong
Haruto was about to ask about the delivery when he heard the door ring and he quickly went with Mahiru to open it. They got the plastic bags and took them to the living room table to open them.
"From the best sister ever <3.." Haruto read the note that was attached to the bag and smiled while he sent a quick text to Akane to say his thanks. He decided to buy some in-game currency for her to use in her games.
"Let's dig in." Haruto said and spread out the sushi that was brought out from the bag. The table was soon covered with a colorful display of sushi ranging from sashimi to maki rolls.
The two took a bite of the sushi and marveled at the fresh taste it brought. They were surprised by the quality of the fish as they didn't suspect that a delivery could bring fish of this quality.
"Haruto, try this sashimi. It's really tender!" Mahiru said while covering her mouth as she was chewing. She picked up a piece and held it up with her chopsticks for Haruto and placed it on his plate
He took the piece that was given to him and tried it while dipping it in some soy sauce.
The piece that he took a bite from was tender as Mahiru said but also contained a subtle sweetness and a small hint of saltiness.
"Woah, where did Akane find this place cause she really found a jackpot."
"She said that it was recommended by a person on her volleyball team." Mahiru giggled and continued to eat the food in front of her.
"By the way.. When did you guys exchange numbers?"
"Oh it was when you were putting away the groceries when Akane first came over."
"Has she said anything weird or.."
Mahiru looked at Haruto who was giving a subtle glance towards her and smiled saying that it was nothing that he should be worried about. However this made Haruto even more worried at the kind of stuff Akane would try and say to Mahiru.
'But who would have thought that you always seem to prefer blonde girls when you play games with Akane..'
Mahiru thought in her head as she twirled the ends of her soft strands while secretly glancing at Haruto. She felt embarrassed by her thoughts and accidently ate a piece that had too much wasabi, making Haruto help her out by giving her water.
The two continued to eat the sushi and unknowingly also fed each other pieces as they were excited by the different cuts of fish that were unique in their own way. After they were done eating Haruto took the role of cleaning up and told Mahiru that she could relax.
He gathered up all the garbage and quickly threw them away and started to boil some water to make some green tea after eating a big meal. He presented Mahiru with a cup of the tea he made and sat down with her, ending the day with Mahiru by his side.
***
There will be more slice of life kinda chapters and I will now try to focus more on Mahiru. I don't want to suddenly rush things but I will also try to not drag it out too. I will try my best though (Ｔ▽Ｔ). Peacu
