"Her spikes are the epitome of danger," Tsukishima observed.

(F/N) spiked through two blockers flawlessly during the manager's game. The ball landed precisely at the corner of the court, scoring a point. Kageyama's eyes were mesmerized by her plays and I admit that I was in awe as well. The rest of Karasuno team was hyped up by their skilled managers, I hear the crowd go 'ooooh'

"Epi-to-me?" Kageyama and I asked in unison

"Ah such simpletons. It means, her spikes are the literal definition of danger. She's just that skilled." Tsukishima explained slowly. Kageyama was irked by his response but I was too distracted by the game.

Paying close attention to the court again, (F/N) does another service ace and Mika shouts for joy. Karsuno's side was racking up points and I couldn't help but jump up and down in excitement.

"Wonder where she did her training!" I exclaimed as I held onto the railings.

"She mostly learned from her dad." Kageyama answered blankly

"Her dad?" I ask as my eyes were fixated on the tiny girl with crazy hops.

"Well and some of it from me." Kageyama gloated with a smirk.

"Nice one touch Mitsuki!" Mako yelled from below

"Also from Mika I assume. You can't take all the credit bakayama." Tsukki muttered

As the whole team watches Karasuno's managers claim victory, I watch envious of (F/N). Her play style was exactly like the Tiny Giant and I was absorbing her every spike, receive and run up.

"She's like the Tiny Giant!" I yelled as the game came to an end. The girls below were cheering and overjoyed by the win.

"There was a rumour that the Tiny Giant disappeared. It was said he was supposed to take over the famous Udai corporations. A million dollar volleyball company that was founded by his father. But he left and stopped playing volleyball from the pressure of his parents. No one really knows about his whereabouts." Tsukishima read as he looked down at his cellphone.

"How do you know that?!" I ask astonished

"It's called Google Search you simpleton idiot" Tsukki snorted

"Ugh it was just a question!" I groaned as I diverted my attention back to (F/N).

"Don't believe everything you read from the internet..." Kageyama murmured as he also was gazing at (F/N) with pride. It was like he contained a secret he wasn't willing to share. However, what I cared about most is learning from (F/N)

Maybe I can ask (F/N) to train me!

"I need to practice with (F/N) ASAP!" I boasted as I leaned over the railings to grab her attention. (F/N) turns around and smiles up at the rest of the team.

"Dumbass, she'll be hella busy with her college courses. Plus she'll probably want to spend time with her soon to be boyfriend." Kageyama explained as he yanked me by the collar, pulling me backwards and choking me at the same time.

"Boyfriend?! Did Suga finally ask?!" I managed to sputter out with curiosity but Kageyama was yanking you back even harder.

"No, but he's going to, that's why I said 'soon-to-be'. Dumbass! You're going to fall dumbass!" Kageyama yelled

"Is dumbass your only vocab Kageyama?" I teased and he furiously messes with my hair.

"OW OW STOP ITTT!!" I screeched

"Shut up you human tangerine!" he said in a menacing tone. He harshly ruffles my hair and I tried slapping his arms to loosen his grip.

"Tsk, what a couple of simpletons," Tsukishima remarked and Yamaguchi giggles behind him.

Someday. One day. I'll be like the Tiny Giant!

~

As the camp came to a close I was sad to say goodbye to the new friends I've made. Especially Toma. She became one of my close friends that I exchanged numbers to keep in contact. The whole team was saying their goodbyes and looking forward to seeing them in Nationals.

"You can bet we'll see you again!" Hinata exclaimed

"Looking forward to it" Kenma murmured back

"I'LL MISS YOU CITY BOY!!!" Tanaka cried to Yamamoto

"SEE YOU AGAIN MY FRIEND!!!" Yamamoto sobbed and Nishinoya joined them in a crying circle.

Daichi and Kuroo exchanged firm handshakes and the rest of the team walked over to the bus. Even throughout the whole bootcamp, Karsuno lost a total of 63 practice games but still held their heads high. They were all hopeful, as each person on the team learned something new and I was just as determined to make it to Nationals.

Just as everyone was loading their luggage, I was in search of Tsukishima to return back his headphones; however, he was nowhere to be found.

"Tsukki?" I call out but no reply, "Has anyone seen Tsukishima?"

"Hm, I think he was with Toma last time I saw him! He still might be in the recreation centre." Yamaguchi pointed at the building as he loaded the bus with Yachi.

"Thanks Yams." I say as I run back into the recreation centre. The hallways smelt like a mixture of Salonpas and sweat. I was going to miss this place.

Until next time.

I walk down the hallway, searching left and right until I hear a distant giggle that anyone would recognize.

Toma.

"You kinda, you know-" Toma muffled

I turn quickly around the corner and I drop the headphones as it makes a clang to the floor. I gasp as my heart pounds out of my chest.

"T-Tsukishima?" I stuttered

I caught both of them red-handed as Toma kissed Tsukishima on the lips. I stood there speechless, horrified by the sight. Tsukishima's eyes immediately widen from the kiss and I was glued to the floor, stunned by what was happening. My legs were shaking as my eyes shifted back and forth from Toma to Tsukishima.

WHAT... WHAT THE FUCK?!

"MITSUKI, I CAN EXPLAIN!" Toma exasperated as she pulled away from him.

"Y-YOU! I KNEW SOMETHING WAS ALWAYS WRONG WITH YOU! YOU CHEATER AND LIAR! H-HOW HOW CAN YOU DO SUCH A THING?! TO BOKUTO! TO ME!? I THOUGHT YOU WERE MY FRIEND!" I yell on the top of my lungs and tears started to well up in my eyes.

"MIKA LET ME EXPLAIN!" she yells as she tries to approach me.

"NO I DON'T LISTEN TO CHEATERS! ESPECIALLY LIARS!" I declared as I slapped Toma across the face. She falls to the floor and rubs her bruised cheek. Her eyes were full of terror as she cowers away from me.

"Toma! Are you alright?" Tsukishima helps her off the floor and I couldn't take this anymore.

Of course, it's always her isn't it.

"Mika please." Tsukishima gets up and takes hold of my arm

"DON'T FUCKING TOUCH ME!" I yell as I swat him away. Running away from the sight, tears stream down my face unexpectedly.

"Mika!" Tsukki calls out for me but I was already far away.

Liars! And cheaters! Just like my dad! Stupid, freaking four eyed freak! And to think I actually liked you. And YOU TOMA. You disgust me the most.

I run back to the bus and push and shove for a seat in the back. Disregarding the rest of the team who were confused by my silence. I reach the seat in the back corner and slump over. The little memory of Tsukki saying, 'but I like you better' was echoing in my head like an irritating buzzing bee.

What bullshit.

I slam my clenched fists on my thighs and bite my lip to stop myself from crying.

"Mika?" (F/N) calls to me but I ignore her as well.

"Mika? Are you okay? Did something happen?" (F/N) takes a seat beside me on the bus but I look out the window. If I faced her, I knew I'd start crying.

"It's nothing..." I mumbled as I wait for the bus to start motioning forward.

"Mika, talk to me." (F/N) asked full of worry. She pulled on my sweater but I immediately shuffled away from her. I just wanted to crawl into bed and reach home as soon as possible.

Tsukishima gets on the bus but I close my eyes to ignore him. It looked like he wanted to say something but there was no need to.

Liars don't have the right to explain themselves.

A flashback of my dad played in my head as he promised that he'd stay, but he didn't. I hated liars that's why I always had trust issues. (F/N) sat beside me the whole time and waited for me to say something but what I just witnessed made me speechless.

Takeda-senpai started the engine and it roared to life. Ukai did a quick head count and his eyes fell on (F/N). He tilts his chin towards me, asking (F/N) if I was okay.But I was paralyzed in my seat as I gaze out at the passing scenery of Tokyo. It was as if someone shot me in the heart or stabbed me in the back with a million daggers.

I want to go home...

~

Reaching home, I collapse on my bed and stare at the ceiling. I finally reached back to Miyagi and it was 9pm. As tired as I was, I couldn't manage to fall sleep. My thoughts were too much for me to handle.

Boy are and will always be stupid and dumb and selfish and liars and...

The list went on in my head as I try to get some shut eye. My phone beeps for the millionth time and I check the screen, it was Toma. Along with her text messages, I also had several missed calls. I read the messages from my screen but I don't open them to reply,

'Mika I can explain, there's a reason why I did that. Please just call me or better yet call Tsukki. He'll explain it to you. There's no reason to..."

The screen only displayed that much of the message but I really didn't give a crap about what it said. Another text from Tsukki was displayed on my phone,

"Please Mika, talk to me."

Flipping my phone down on my sheets, I bury my face in my pillow and scream.

I had a feeling she liked Tsukki and I was right! Should've listened to my gut. She did say that Bokuto and her were on the verge of a breakup if it wasn't for his sappy words, 'My addiction is volleyball and I'm hooked onto you Toma'.

The phone rings again and I was so fed up with Toma. Picking up the phone, I yell,

"WOULD YOU STOP CALLING ME YOU SICK BASTARD!"

I stand up from my bed as my voice cracked from all the yelling and pent-up anger. I wanted to kick something, anything.

Give me anything for this feeling in my chest to go away!

"Woah woah, Mika-chan? I know you're always angry at me but... are you crying?" Oikawa spoke softly through the phone and my face went from mad to full on flustered.

Oikawa?!

"Ah no, n-no I'm not. Leave me alone would you." I trip up over your own words but Oikawa didn't make fun of me for it. I sniff and wipe away my tears to hide my distress. I didn't want to be a burden.

"I'm coming over Mika-chan." he said in a stern voice and before I could stop him, he hung up the phone.

Falling back down on the bed again, I let out a huge sigh and close my eyes, waiting for this horrid day to be over.

A few minutes later I'm greeted by a knock on the door and I open it to find Oikawa holding out a pint full of strawberry ice cream and two spoons.

"I heard that ice cream helps." Oikawa said meekly.

I stare at him from my doorway, debating if I wanted to let him inside. Sighing in defeat, I turn around and lazily gesture him to come inside. He takes off his shoes and closes the door.

"Mika-chan, I hate seeing you this way. Do I need to beat up someone for you? Was it that dreaded four-eyes, Tsukishi-"

"Don't say his name." I interject, looking directly at his brown eyes. Oikawa pretends to zip his mouth and throw away an invisible key.

"Gotcha" he agreed as he took a seat on the worn out couch in the living room.

He pops open the ice cream lid and sticks the two spoons in. The spoons stand erect as he waits for me to sit down beside him. Holding out the bucket to me, he gestures me to eat with him and I comply. Though I still felt awkward around him, I craved company. He offers me the spoon closest to me and I eat away my sorrow. I scoop up as much ice cream as my lactose-intolerant self could handle. I didn't care about my dietary problems right now, I just wanted to eat.

Oikawa watches me intently as he scoops up bits of ice cream for himself. He eats it delicately, unlike me, I was scarfing it down like no tomorrow.

"Mica-chaan. Are you alright?" Oikawa spoke sincerely. He wasn't acting obnoxious like he usually is.

"I'm fine." I say as I aggressively shove the spoon back onto the ice cream. Oikawa sighs and waits for my confession

"Mika-chan. If Tsukis- * eh hem* that blonde hurt you, I'll do something about it if you want me to."

"No, don't. It's already embarrassing enough." I retort

"Don't be embarrassed Mika-chan" he feeds me a scoop of ice cream and I don't even care. Opening my mouth, I let him feed me like a baby.

"You deserve better than him, Mika." He says in a solemn voice as he lifts another scoop for me. The pink ice cream was in front of me but I was focusing on Oikawa. His brown eyes were full of sincerity as he lifted the spoon closer to my mouth. I had no idea what I was feeling, but for some reason Oikawa was as attractive as ever.

Oikawa puts down the pint of ice cream on the table and wraps his arms around me.

"Let it out, I'm here to listen."

I let the tears fall as I start explaining what happened during training camp. How Tsukki ended up kissing Toma, who I thought was my newfound friend. I felt more stupid for even trusting the both of them. It reminded me of my dad and how he promised to stick around. It was all a lie.

"So you broke up with him?" he asked curiously. He rubs my back gently and his presence soothed my nerves.

I pause for a second and realize that Tsukki was my pretend boyfriend in the first place because of Oikawa. Even just thinking about Tsukishima brought up a mixture of feelings from upset to longing. It felt lonely that I couldn't talk to him or face him. He's my best friend and I lost him in a second. That's what hurt me the most. I felt alone.

"Oikawa-kun. He was never my boyfriend. It was just a cover up so you wouldn't flirt with me..." I shyly admitted into his shoulder

He was still hugging me and rubbing your back as a sign of comfort. I nuzzle into his neck as he places his chin on top of my head.

"And what's worse is that I can't help but feel envious of (F/N). Suga's her boyfriend now and I feel like I'll feel left out of the picture. Maybe she'll be too busy for me..." I cried and Oikawa pulls me in closer to his chest. I head laid on his broad shoulders and I sink my face deeper into his worn out shirt. I was heaving out of my chest as I never felt this before. I didn't know what heartbreak was but if this was it, it hurt like hell.

Oikawa slightly tilts his head sideways towards me and nuzzles his nose in my hair.

"It'll be okay Mika-chan." he whispered.

Suddenly I meet his gaze and kiss him hastily on his lips. Oikawa was taken aback from my sudden gesture. He didn't say anything further as I leaned in closer to him. He fell backwards on the couch and I was hovering above him. My hands were on his chest, with my lips inches away from his'. He held surprised expression on his face as his hands were still at my backside, sliding downwards to my hips. The longing in my eyes told him I wanted this, but deep in my mind, did I really?

Why am I doing this? To fill a void? Do I actually love Oikawa instead? Was this meant to be?

"Mika-chan... wait. I think I'll be disrespecting-"

"Ani" I say as Hajime drops his bag of groceries in shock. He was staring at the us on the couch, extremely close in proximity. He also takes notice of my tears as I swiftly wipe them away.

"What's going on here." he asked under his breath. He just came from the gym and grocery shopping. His bag spilt out the apples he purchases as they rolled out and onto the living room floor.

"Ah nothing! It's nothing Iwa-chan." Oikawa lets go of me and I straighten my posture suddenly.

"Mika is hurting you?" he accused with a gruff expression. My brother was sweaty as a towel was wrung around his neck. His muscles bulged under his t-shirt as he tensed up from the situation.

"N-no not at all, I was just having a bad day. That's all." I explain as I clean up my face

His gaze darted towards Oikawa with an expression of 'why are you touching my sister and why the hell are you in my house at this hour?!'

"I wasn't, I mean I was, well I was here because..." Oikawa tripped up from his own words and Hajime grew more pissed.

"Get out. Go home." he directed his best friend sternly.

Oikawa gave me one last glance and patted Hajime carefully on the shoulder. He closed the door on his way out and Hajime let out a sigh as he gazed at me, worrisome.

"I'm upset that you didn't call me when you're like this. Can't believe you called him instead" Hajime murmured as he took a seat beside me on the couch.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to..." I muttered, "I thought you wouldn't really care-"

"Of course I care Mika. I'm your brother."

He pulled me into an unexpected hug and for once I hug him back and let more tears trickle down my face. I've come to grown more vulnerable to my own brother. I was exhausted from crying but I couldn't help it. I were hurting a lot. Clasping onto my brother's shirt he strokes my hair and tells me,

"It'll be okay Mika."

"Just stay here a little longer."I say weakly and my brother nods as he continues to embraces me.

"I'm right here."

------- end p. 44 --------