It's the third day of school and Yua's back in the gym, as a "member" this time and not an outsider. At least, in everyone's but Masu's eyes. It doesn't really matter anyway since she's only here temporarily.

By the time Haruna's through with introductions, the other members are already welcoming her, their previous hostility forgotten. There's a middle blocker, Hondou Natsuyo, and a libero, Enokira Nori. There's one of each position, at least.

"So what's the plan, coach?"

Yua rubs the back of her head awkwardly. "Don't call me that. I'm only helping out."

"Well, we don't exactly have anyone else." A cheeky grin crosses Haruna's face and Yua grimaces. It's not like she knows a whole lot about teaching. She'd stayed up the night before thinking of new practices she could use, but to no avail. Now, she's just running on instincts, reusing old Seiho methods with hopes of progress.

She thinks they can work. After all, how hard is it to do some laps, some receives, and miscellaneous exercises that they should've already been doing? She's seen them move; they have stamina, can't go wrong with that. Then, what is the problem with them?

First, it could be their sulking captain.

"We've already been doing these workouts," Masu snips grumpily as she moves to Yua's side, ignoring the "no we haven't" Haruna shouts. Yua simply raises an eyebrow as the latter's cheeks reddens.

"You are pretty slow for someone who's so experienced."

"I like taking it slow."

"Moroboshi-san, you need to cooperate–"

"Don't tell me what to do." Yua watches Masu's retreating back in annoyance. If only Masu wasn't here, she would be much happier. It's a bit unfair to think this way considering that Masu was here before her, but she's at her wit's end from all sides. First, there's this, then the amount of schoolwork she has, her terrible sense of direction making her late to everything, and finally, that one person who can't get out of her mind.

"Hey, do you know Kouda Hikari?" she asks straight off her mind, regretting it immediately. She doesn't know what compelled her to say that.

Haruna blinks at the random question and before Yua can change her mind, Masu cuts in, "Our school flower?" She rolls her eyes derisively.

"School flower? That's a thing?" Not that Yua hadn't been expecting it.

"Yes, Kouda-san's the prettiest person in our school and she's super sweet. Just ignore Masu; she's jealous," Haruna answers with a teasing smirk at Masu, who just scoffs loudly. "She's quite wealthy so she can be a little oblivious sometimes. Masu's just offended by some random comment she made ages ago."

"She said I was nicer looking than she thought I was. Completely out of nowhere! I didn't even know this bitch."

"That's just because of the bad-girl image you put up!"

"And do I need to mention things she's said about other people? She's not oblivious; she's fake."

"What do you mean fake? Like she pretends to be nice?"

"Yes."

"She's not fake," Haruna says exasperatedly. "Just ignore Masu. Kouda-san's probably been sheltered her entire life so she can be a little rude sometimes. But, she's a nice person. Why are you asking anyway?"

Oh, Yua doesn't know. Why is Hikari stuck on her mind anyway? They had one meeting and Yua hasn't even glimpsed her in the hallways. Such an insignificant encounter and yet, it just sits there in the back of her mind as if taunting her.

Is she jealous? That's valid; Hikari is much more beautiful than her, but it's a deeper unrest. It's not like before when she would just go train and be able to stop thinking for a while. It's as if she's stuck in this haze of discomfort, but there's nothing to hold onto.

But there's no time for this.

She can't dwell on her thoughts or question some stranger's person. She has things to do with only a few months to accomplish them all. This position on the team isn't just something for her to pass her time. It's to help them get to the same goal Yua'd wanted. She may have lost her present, but she can help save another's future.

But, in a way it almost feels like she's trying to save herself.

"But Waka-kun! You have to participate in the field day; it's a school tradition!"

Ushijima walks speedily to the gym with a much smaller person trailing after him. "No, I have told you before. We have limited time and I will not waste it on something so frivolous," he says with a finality that he hopes will deter the other. The latter only rushes in front of him, blocking his path.

He rubs his nose bridge in annoyance. He'd forgotten how annoyingly stubborn Hikari can be.

"Waka-kun, it's just one day," she argues, crossing her arms sulkily. "Missing one practice isn't going to change anything. Either way, you're still technically practicing since you're playing anyway." He wants to point out that one day is a significant amount, but Hikari wouldn't understand as she's never have.

"You know, Wakatoshi, we've done this every year," Tendou chips in. "It's our tradition!"

"It will be a waste of tim–"

"Everything is a waste of time to you!" Hikari snaps. "Everyone wants to do it."

"Some people have never done it before."

"Exactly! We can give them an opportunity to try it, Wakatoshi," Tendou pleads. "C'mon. We can afford one day."

"As your manager, I have a voice in deciding your practices," Hikari adds with a finality to her voice. Ushijima glances at her expression and obstinate stance before sighing in defeat. He has better things to spend his energy on.

Hikari happily takes his silence as her victory before cheering loudly, "Yes! I knew you would agree, Waka-kun! This year is going to be special!"

"Cause I'll be playing in it," Tendou sings. Hikari giggles, but shakes her head.

"No, this year, we have a special guest! Hayama-senpai is going to be here."

Tendou raises an eyebrow at the suffix. "Hayama-senpai?"

"The new girl?" Ushijima asks. "I met her the other day. She has the appearance of a strong player."

"She is strong since she's from a champion school and all," Semi adds as he sits next to Ushijima. "She's pretty chill though."

"What school is she–"

"She's super nice! But she's a little scary cause she's so tall for a girl," Hikari chirps.

"What team was she–"

"What are you doing, still sitting there?! The break ended five seconds ago!" Washijou suddenly yells from across the gym.

"Sorry, sir! Yes, sir!" There's a scattering of noise as the players rush back onto the court, water bottles and towels hurled to the side. Ushijima purses his lips as he returns to his position, still curious about the new girl.

What team could she be from and why would she come here, to one of the worst teams possible? She's strong, that he knows. He could see it in her mannerism so there has to be an ulterior reason. Is it because of a disciplinary punishment, or is it a problem in the family?

A divorce?

He shakes his head, bringing himself back into running. It's not his business what happened to her and he has more important things to focus on.

This year, the competition's going to be much stronger. He needs to train as much as he can to change the outcomes at nationals.

The noises of the churning fan and the old television fill the room with a static warmth. Yua has her legs propped on a chair as she finishes her schoolwork.

"So..." Yusuke breaks the silence, a teasing smirk on his lips. "I heard you joined the girls' volleyball team as...their coach?"

She furrows her eyebrows, still uncomfortable with the title. "I'm just helping them out. There's nothing official about it."

"Hm...I feel like you'll like it though?"

"I don't know..." Yua flicks through her packet. Yusuke eyes her for a bit before turning to her mother, who's busy watering the camellias.

"Hey Aunt Yuki, what do you think about Yua joining our school's volleyball team?" Yua grimaces, knowing exactly her mother's response. Her mother had never been the biggest fan of her love for the sport, especially after she got into high school. It's a waste of time, she's been told. A misplacement of effort when she should be studying for university instead.

"She should be focusing on her studies," came her mother's expected reply. Yua catches the small frown her mother gives her, hidden from Yusuke.

"Well, you can focus on both sports and school."

Her mother shakes her head. "Yusuke, you're able to balance both. I heard that you want to study medicine in university, but what about Yua? All she does is volleyball with no other direction."

"I don't need another direction," Yua says stubbornly, holding her mother's glare. She feels a split second of guilt when she notices her mother's pale skin. She's been looking more fragile lately, but still retains her beauty in the Sato family's fox-like eyes. However, Yua's proclivity to win the argument outweighs this.

"Volleyball is just a hobby. You'll realize this later when it's too late."

"I won't because I can do a lot with volleyball. I can go professional and build my career on that."

"And yet," her mother fixes her with a knowing glance, "you don't even know if you want that."

That's true. Yua hadn't really thought about her future beyond high school, but she was never worried about it. It was always clear-cut that she would go from Seiho into whichever university she gets scouted into. It's bad of her to think this way since it was for her mother's health, but she would've had everything set if they didn't leave.

She could say that now and end the argument, but she's not that selfish, and her mother knows too. "You do whatever you want to do," she says in resignation as she walks back to her plants, leaving Yua and Yusuke in the tense silence.

Yusuke glances back and forth before awkwardly murmuring, "Volleyball's a huge deal to you then?"

"Yes," Yua grits out. "But what do I have now?"

"Like we were saying, you still have our team?"

"How far can I get with them? They're not bad, but they're missing half a team. I don't even know how we can practice. I barely know what I'm doing..." Yua vents, feeling her frustration resurfacing.

Yusuke doesn't speak for a few seconds as he lets Yua simmer. He tries to come up with suggestions, but Yua's honestly getting a little hopeless.

Until Yusuke suddenly slams his hands on the table. "I think I have an idea!" he exclaims excitedly, surprising Yua. "Do you know about our field day?"

Yua shakes her head as Seiho's never had one before.

"Every year we have a field day to help the first years integrate into the school. There are a bunch of activities, but they'll definitely put you in volleyball."

"A volleyball game? With who?"

"There are teams of course. The teams are based on classes, not the year, so all the 1 classes are on one team. Same for 2 classes and so on. The usual line-ups are members from the boys' and girls' volleyball team so you'll definitely be in it."

"Boys' team?" She thinks back to Ushijima, whom she'd recently met. She feels a surge of excitement at the idea of playing with him, a national ace. Not to mention, this is a great way for the girls to practice. It's the closest to a practice match she can get.

And the closest to a real match for her.

It'll be the first time she's playing since nationals. She starts to feel adrenaline coursing through her, something she hasn't felt in too long.

Finally, she's found something here to look forward to.

Sorry for the long update guys! College and the all-nighters that came along took up all my free time. I tried to use this break to catch up on my writing, but I ended up sleeping a lot and editing on the haikyuu wiki instead haha. It was also hard to get inspiration after being out of touch with haikyuu for a while (I started skimming the recent chapters since I want the Inarizaki match to finish before I actually read it). But, I'm slowly getting back into White Camellias. Hopefully, next semester won't be as stressful and I have more free time.