After his game controller was taken away, Kenma Kotsume entered a long, idle period.
Out of sheer boredom, he even started thinking about Volleyball.
Tetsurou Kuroo was more than happy about this.
After school, the three of them dragged the net to the spot where they’d played during Summer Vacation.
Now that the weather had cooled, moving around actually made them feel warmer.
When it came to Volleyball, Tetsurou Kuroo was especially enthusiastic.
The other two just played along, so they agreed to all of Kuroo’s arrangements.
Kenma would Serve, Kuroo would Attack, Yoriko Arisu would Receive, and then the most energetic Kuroo would Pick Up Ball.
By now, Yoriko Arisu no longer made a fuss over the bruises that appeared on her arms.
Though it still hurt, she was slowly getting used to it.
It’s scary how quickly you can get used to things.
As they played, Tetsurou Kuroo brought up an old topic, once again plotting about his two childhood friends.
“You guys are really good at Volleyball! Don’t you want to try joining a competition?”
Kenma Kotsume: “No. Didn’t you already join the Club? You have plenty of people to play with, right?”
Yoriko Arisu agreed: “It’s fine to play once in a while, but seriously practicing is a bit of a hassle.”
Just thinking about it was exhausting.
“That’s different! Playing with friends is way more fun, and you two are really talented.”
Tetsurou Kuroo looked full of regret.
He didn’t give up.
On a certain Rainy Day when they couldn’t go out, he brought over a Volleyball match CD.
“Let’s watch a Video!”
Yoriko Arisu and Kenma Kotsume exchanged glances and made room in the middle: “Honestly, we can’t do anything about you.”
Yoriko Arisu reminded him, “I have Animation to watch at five, so we can only watch until then, okay?”
Tetsurou Kuroo agreed readily: “No problem, no problem.”
Watching the ball dart around the screen soon made Yoriko Arisu sleepy.
Coupled with the white noise of Rain outside the window, she yawned, tilted her head, and fell asleep leaning on Tetsurou Kuroo’s shoulder.
Tetsurou Kuroo was the same.
He’d watched this Video before, and with the outcome already known, it wasn’t as exciting anymore.
He was quickly infected by Yoriko Arisu’s sleepiness, and the two of them nodded off together, heads touching.
Only Kenma Kotsume kept his eyes glued to the TV, completely absorbed by the exciting match, his eyes shining.
“Did you guys see that? Just now!”
Kenma Kotsume turned around excitedly, only to see Yoriko Arisu and Tetsurou Kuroo sleeping soundly, heads resting together.
Kenma Kotsume’s excitement faltered.
He couldn’t help but frown, then went over and separated the two, squeezing himself in between.
Tetsurou Kuroo was woken by the movement and blinked sleepily.
“What’s up?”
“Ah… just that,” Kenma Kotsume said without thinking, “just now, the Setter glanced to the right, so the other side thought he’d set the ball that way, but then he passed to the left instead.”
“That move was really awesome…”
His mood wasn’t as excited as before.
Something felt weird.
Yoriko Arisu’s head had shifted from resting on Tetsurou Kuroo’s shoulder to his, but she didn’t seem to notice, even snuggling in for a comfortable spot, rubbing against him unconsciously.
So itchy.
That was Kenma Kotsume’s first thought.
Like a cat.
That was his second thought.
Tetsurou Kuroo didn’t notice the change in his demeanor or care about being pushed aside.
He looked at Kenma Kotsume like a cat seeing a teaser toy, his eyes sparkling: “Kenma, you’re amazing!”
“I only ever pay attention to the cool spikes, but you notice the tactics. You’re totally cut out to be a Setter!”
“Just like a Coach, super—cool!”
Kenma Kotsume’s attention shifted instantly: Coach!
[Single Kill]
With the two of them chattering away in his ears, Yoriko Arisu couldn’t sleep anymore.
She rubbed her eyes and mumbled, “What are you guys talking about?”
No one answered her.
Over there, Tetsurou Kuroo seized the moment and kept pushing: “And being a Setter doesn’t require much running around—it’s a super chill position!”
Kenma Kotsume: “!”
[Double Kill]
He leaned in toward Kenma Kotsume, his voice as enticing as a convenience store owner telling kids about a new snack comic: “Kenma, if you went on the court, you’d be amazing, you’d completely outplay the opponents, just like a hero defeating the Demon King!”
Password accepted.
That hit right at gamer Kenma’s heart.
His eyes turned to vertical slits.
[Triple Kill]
Tetsurou Kuroo landed the final blow: “And playing Volleyball makes you taller.”
“Kenma, you’ve been drinking milk a lot lately, right? You must want to grow taller!”
He wore a “you can’t hide this from me” expression.
Thinking of his reason for drinking milk, and his mom’s surprised face when he did so voluntarily, Kenma Kotsume froze, his ears instantly turning red.
Why does this feel so embarrassing…
Tetsurou Kuroo misunderstood and patted him on the back: “No need to be embarrassed, wanting to grow taller is totally normal. I drink milk every day too.”
Kenma Kotsume: “…Mm.”
“So, Kenma, play Volleyball with me, okay?”
Tetsurou Kuroo hooked an arm around his neck, hopeful.
Tetsurou Kuroo’s relentless attacks had already broken down Kenma Kotsume’s defenses.
The middle-parted kitten’s eyes grew determined: “Mm, I want to play Volleyball.”
Tetsurou Kuroo clenched his fist and cheered: “Alright! Got one!”
Kenma Kotsume: “Kuroo… you just said your real intentions.”
“What, what?”
Just waking up and hearing this, Yoriko Arisu was shocked, looking at Kenma Kotsume with a wounded expression.
“Kenma, didn’t we agree to be indoor kids together? Traitor!”
Tetsurou Kuroo, in high spirits, hooked his arm around Kenma Kotsume and leaned toward the black-haired girl: “Then Arisu, you should play Volleyball with us too!”
“Ugh…”
Yoriko Arisu’s face twisted with struggle.
Kenma Kotsume took her hand, looking into her eyes seriously: “Arisu, together.”
Yoriko Arisu shut her eyes and shouted, “Ahhh, fine! I get it! I’ll play Volleyball too! Just don’t leave me behind!”
The adults were delighted with the decision of the three little ones.
Kids running and jumping around was totally normal, plus it was good exercise, so they just packed the three of them off to the Volleyball Club.
Once in the Club, there were daily Training sessions, which was different from just playing around.
Yoriko Arisu couldn’t take it for long and often found excuses to hide in the corner and secretly nap.
Sometimes, when a Volleyball rolled over, the sleeping Yoriko Arisu would automatically hug it to her chest and keep sleeping.
A few of the little kids who witnessed this whispered among themselves.
“Should we wake her up?”
“She looks like she’s sleeping so well… I kinda feel bad…”
“But our ball is still in her arms?”
“Yeah, we should probably wake her up.”
While they were muttering uselessly, Tetsurou Kuroo had already walked over and poked Yoriko Arisu’s cheek: “Arisu, don’t sleep here.”
Yoriko Arisu frowned, annoyed, yawned, and opened her eyes: “Kuroo, you’re so noisy.”
She puffed up her cheeks in protest.
Tetsurou Kuroo sighed helplessly, putting his hands on his hips: “If you sleep here, you might get hit by the ball, and—”
He took the Volleyball from Yoriko Arisu’s arms and handed it back to the waiting kids: “Don’t go hugging someone else’s Volleyball!”
Yoriko Arisu, her sleep interrupted, looked dejected: “But Training is so boring… We have to run laps, do sets, and even Fish Dive… My whole body hurts after Fish Dive, it hurts so much!”
“Honestly, what am I going to do with you,” Tetsurou Kuroo thought for a moment, “How about this: if you finish today’s Training, I’ll treat you to… to… to Octopus Balls!”
“Really?”
Yoriko Arisu’s eyes lit up, and she couldn’t help swallowing.
Kenma Kotsume popped up from behind, his voice cool: “What about me? I trained hard too.”
“Kenma, where did you come from?!”
Tetsurou Kuroo jumped, then said with pain, “I only have enough allowance for one order.”
Kenma Kotsume turned his head away: “Tch.”
“Don’t ‘tch’ me, I’ll treat you next time.”
Yoriko Arisu raised her hand: “There are six Octopus Balls, we can share.”
Tetsurou Kuroo looked at her, moved: “Arisu, you’re the best.”
Yoriko Arisu replied crisply: “But none for Kuroo.”
“Eh… why not!”
“Because you dragged us into this, hmph.”
“Nooo—”
In the end, he still got some.
Two Octopus Balls each.
Tetsurou Kuroo chewed his hard-won Octopus Balls, his eyes practically sparkling: “They taste especially good today.”
Yoriko Arisu savored hers: “It’s true, they taste like hard work!”
She’d earned them through Training!
Kenma Kotsume: “Dummy.”