Taiki's dragged himself to morning practice on day three. The volleyball bounced off his hands at yet another wrong angle, sailing towards the basketball court where Maki was having her own crisis.

  "I swear it's getting worse," he muttered, watching Maki fumble a pass for the fifth time that morning. She responded with a thumbs-up that turned into a stumble, nearly taking out her teammate.

  During their shared lunch break, Taiki and Maki claimed their usual corner table, both moving like rusty robots.

  "Remember when we could lift our arms above our heads?" Maki asked, struggling to open her juice box. "Good times."

  "Remember when walking didn't feel like torture?" Taiki dropped his head onto the table. "I set thirty-seven balls this morning. You know how many went where they were supposed to?"

  "Zero?"

  "Negative two, somehow. Sato said he didn't even know that was possible."

  Maki snorted, then winced at the movement. "At least you're breaking physics. I'm just breaking things. Coach had to hide her coffee from me after that first day's incident."

  "We're getting worse," Taiki realized, horror dawning on his face. "How are we getting worse? Isn't practice supposed to make you better?"

  "Maybe we're evolving backwards," Maki suggested, finally stabbing her juice box with more violence than necessary. "Return to monke, and all that."

  "Except monkeys probably have better hand-eye coordination than us right now."

  They watched as across the cafeteria, Shiori effortlessly caught a flying apple without looking up from her phone. Sato, who'd thrown it, gave her a high-five as he passed.

  "It's not fair," Maki groaned. "They make it look so easy. Meanwhile, I'm pretty sure I forgot how to run in a straight line this morning."

  "Bold of you to assume you ever knew how to run in a straight line," Taiki replied, earning himself a weak kick under the table.

  Taiki leaned against the metal railing, letting the cool evening breeze ruffle his damp hair. His muscles still ached, but at least he felt semi-human after the hot shower.

  From his vantage point on the second floor, he could see most of the campus sprawled below. The sports complex dominated one side, its lights still blazing as dedicated students continued their evening practices. The main academic building sat quiet and dark.

  "Taking in the view?"

  Taiki glanced over to find Maki shuffling towards him, her hair wrapped in a towel. She looked about as energetic as he felt.

  "More like contemplating if I could survive jumping from here," he deadpanned.

  "Pretty sure we're too tired to jump anyway." Maki settled against the railing next to him, wincing as she stretched. "Besides, knowing our luck, we'd probably miss the ground."

  Taiki snorted. "That would be on brand for us."

  They stood in comfortable silence, watching the sunset paint the sky in shades of orange and pink.

  "You know," Maki said, gesturing vaguely at the campus below, "if you ignore the whole mandatory sports torture thing, this view almost makes it worth it."

  "Three days," Taiki muttered, more to himself than to Maki. "It's only been three days of this hell."

  "Feels more like three years," Maki replied, rubbing her shoulder.

  Taiki frowned, watching a few volleyball players still practicing in the distance.

  "I don't even like volleyball," he said, but the words felt hollow somehow. "I'm terrible at it. Like, historically bad. But..."

  Maki turned to look at him, raising an eyebrow. "But?"

  "But I keep thinking about those sets I messed up today. Like, I know exactly what I did wrong now. My hands were too low, and I wasn't getting under the ball properly." He flexed his fingers again, frustrated. "It's stupid, right? I don't even want to be doing this, but my brain won't shut up about fixing my form."

  "That's called learning, genius." Maki poked him in the side. "Your body's figuring stuff out whether you like it or not."

  "I didn't ask it to," Taiki grumbled. He wasn't sure if he actually wanted to get better, or if his pride just couldn't handle being this bad at something.

  "I still don't think I like it," he added quickly, just to be clear. "I'm just... I don't know. It's weird."

  Maki sighed, letting her towel slip down around her shoulders. "Yeah, I get it. Every time I fumble a pass, I can see exactly what went wrong. It's like my brain's taking notes even when I don't want it to."

  She pulled out a half-crushed protein bar from her pocket – where did she even keep finding snacks? – and broke it in half, offering a piece to Taiki.

  "Look," she said, chewing thoughtfully, "we both suck equally at this sports thing. And we're both stuck doing it whether we like it or not. So maybe..." She waved the protein bar around, scattering crumbs. "Maybe we could, I don't know, help each other not suck so much?"

  Taiki raised an eyebrow. "How exactly would that work? I can barely help myself."

  "Well, I watch your volleyball practice while I'm supposed to be doing basketball drills-"

  "So that's why Coach keeps yelling at you to pay attention."

  "Not the point," Maki continued, jabbing him with the protein bar. "What I mean is, we could both support eachother with motivation"

  She shrugged, trying to seem casual about it. "I'm not expecting miracles or anything. But misery loves company, right? And we're already pretty good at the misery part."

  Taiki considered this, absently accepting the offered protein bar piece. The idea of having someone to commiserate with – someone who actually understood how frustrating it was to be completely awful at something you were forced to do – didn't sound terrible.

  "So basically, you want us to be each other's personal cheerleaders of failure?" he asked.

  "More like... survival buddies," Maki grinned. "Partners in mandatory sports crime. The blind leading the blind, but at least we're both going down together."

  Taiki considered Maki's offer. Having someone equally terrible to commiserate with didn't sound like the worst idea. At least they could fail spectacularly together.

  "Yeah, okay," he said finally. "Why not? We're already rock bottom. Only way to go is up. Maybe. Probably not, but-"

  "Great!" Maki's eyes suddenly lit up with that dangerous sparkle that usually preceded her worst ideas. "Because I have a plan."

  Taiki immediately regretted everything. "Whatever you're thinking, no."

  "The first practice matches are in a month," she continued, ignoring his protest entirely. "And I think we should both aim for the starting lineup."

  Taiki choked on his protein bar. "I'm sorry, what?"

  "Think about it!" Maki was practically bouncing now, her earlier exhaustion forgotten. "If we're going to be forced into sports, we might as well go all in. Plus, can you imagine everyone's faces if we actually pulled it off?"

  "Yeah, because they'll all be staring in horror as I send every ball into the stands," Taiki deadpanned. "The starting lineup? Have you lost your mind?"

  "Lost it somewhere between the third and fourth lap this morning," Maki admitted cheerfully. "But seriously, what's the worst that could happen?"

  "Do you want that list alphabetically or by likelihood of public humiliation?"

  "Come on!" She grabbed his shoulders, shaking him slightly. "We've got nothing to lose! Well, except our dignity, but I'm pretty sure that died during warm-ups too anyway."

  Something twisted in his gut – maybe it was pride, or maybe it was just that questionable protein bar – but he found himself actually considering Maki's insane proposal.

  The math wasn't exactly encouraging. The volleyball team only had one bench player, but those six regular players were absolute monsters on the court. The idea of competing with them was laughable.

  But then again... what did he have to lose?

  He turned to Maki, who was practically vibrating with anticipation. "Are you actually serious about this? Because if we're doing this – and I can't believe I'm even considering it – we can't half-ass it."

  "Dead serious," Maki nodded, her eyes sparkling with determination. "No take-backs, no chickening out. We go all in or not at all."

  "I'm talking two hundred percent," Taiki pressed, surprising himself with how intense he sounded. "Extra practice, actual effort, the whole nightmare package. Because right now, we're both so bad it's practically a talent."

  "That's what makes it perfect!" Maki grabbed his shoulders again, grinning maniacally. "Nobody would expect it! We'd be like those sports anime underdogs, except way more uncoordinated and with zero natural talent!"

  Taiki couldn't help but snort at that. "You realize if we commit to this, we're basically signing up for voluntary torture on top of our mandatory torture, right?"

  "Exactly!" Maki's enthusiasm was starting to become concerning. "So what do you say? Partners in sports crime?"

  Taiki stared at Maki's extended fist. This was, without a doubt, the dumbest idea they'd had yet – and considering their track record this week, that was saying something.

  He let out a long-suffering sigh, his lips quirking up into a reluctant smirk. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but... fine. I'm in." He bumped his fist against hers. "Let's do this."

  Maki's squeal of excitement echoed through the hallway, probably waking up half the dorm. "Operation Sports Redemption is officially a go!"

  "Please tell me that's not what we're calling it."

  Taiki's phone buzzed at 4:45 AM, its screen lighting up the dark room like a miniature sun trying to blind him. He squinted at the message from Maki, already regretting every life choice that led to this moment.

  "DON'T YOU DARE GO BACK TO SLEEP!" the text screamed at him. "Meet you in 10. And remember - this is like Fight Club. First rule: we don't talk about extra practice. Especially to the sports freaks!"

  Taiki groaned into his pillow. Rolling out of bed with all the grace of a drunk sloth, he fumbled for his workout clothes.

  Another text buzzed: "If Sato finds out, he'll probably try to make this into some kind of team bonding thing. I can't handle that level of enthusiasm at 5 AM."

  "Bold of you to assume I can handle any level of enthusiasm at 5 AM," Taiki typed back, trying not to trip while pulling on his shorts.

  "Just imagine their faces when we show up to practice matches as sports gods."

  "Pretty sure two weeks of early practice won't turn us into gods. Maybe slightly less embarrassing disasters?"

  "SPORTS. GODS." Maki insisted. "Now move your butt before someone wakes up and ruins our secret training arc."

  Taiki crept toward the door, freezing when the floor creaked under his foot.

  The door clicked shut behind him with blessed silence. In the hallway, Maki was already bouncing on her toes, looking way too awake for this ungodly hour.

  "Ready to become legends?" she whispered.

  "Ready to regret everything," Taiki corrected, but followed her toward the stairs anyway.

  A few days later, Shiori's phone lit up during her post-practice stretching routine. She'd just finished helping some first-years with their layup form when Sato's message came through.

  Sato: Hey, noticed anything weird with your roommate? ??

  Shiori: Define weird. This is Taiki we're talking about.

  Sato: Fair point ?? But like... extra weird? Maki's been acting strange lately. She's gone before I wake up, comes back super late even after practice ends. And she looks like she got hit by a truck made of exhaustion

  Shiori: Now that you mention it...

  Sato: RIGHT?? And like, I'm all for extra practice but Maki won't tell me where she goes

  Shiori: Maybe they're dating?

  Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

  Sato: WHAT. NO. Wait. Are they??

  Shiori: Relax, I'm kidding ??

  Sato: But something's definitely up with them. I tried following Maki this morning but she lost me near the vending machines. Who knew she could move that fast?

  Shiori: You tried to follow her? That's definitely not creepy at all ??

  Sato: I was worried! What if she joined a cult? Or worse... what if she's getting secret volleyball training from another team?

  Shiori: Your priorities concern me sometimes

  Sato: We should totally investigate! ???♂?

  Shiori: You mean spy on our roommates?

  Sato: Not spy! Just... concerned observation?

  Shiori snorted, drawing looks from her teammates as she packed up her gym bag. She probably should've shut this down – she wasn't usually one for drama. But something about the whole situation felt off.

  Shiori: Fine. But we do this right. No weird stalking.

  Sato: YES! Operation Roommate Reconnaissance is GO! ??

  Shiori glanced at her phone, a small smile tugging at her lips. She was curious. More than she wanted to admit.

  Shiori: Fine. But we're doing this my way. No matching spy outfits

  Sato: You're no fun ??But deal!

  Shiori's alarm buzzed at 5:25 AM, and she silently slipped out of bed, careful not to make any noise. Operation Roommate Reconnaissance was officially underway.

  At exactly 5:30, she flicked on the lights. But there was nothing. No complaints, no shuffling, no signs of life at all.

  She knocked on his door. No answer. Pushing it open slowly, she found an empty, perfectly made bed.

  Shiori: Sato, we have a problem. My roommate's gone.

  Sato: NO WAY. Mine too!

  Shiori: Before 5:30? That's... concerning.

  Sato: I know right?? And now she's voluntarily up before dawn??

  Shiori: Something's definitely wrong here. When was the last time you saw her?

  Sato: Last night around 10? She said she was going to bed early. Because she was "tired from studying" But like... since when does Maki study??

  Shiori: Taiki fed me the same excuse. Since when do either of them study?

  Sato: This is getting weird. What could they possibly be doing at this hour??

  Shiori stared at her phone, genuinely puzzled.

  Shiori: Get dressed, meet me outside in 5.

  Shiori threw on her track pants and team jacket in record time, not even bothering to fix her messy ponytail. The mystery of their disappearing roommates had been driving her crazy all week, and she wasn't about to let another morning slip by without answers.

  Sato was already bouncing on his toes outside when she got there, looking way too energetic for this ungodly hour. His hair stuck up at odd angles, like he'd rolled straight out of bed and through a wind tunnel.

  "You look like a disaster," Shiori whispered, closing the dorm entrance behind her.

  "Says the girl whose ponytail is basically a bird's nest." He grinned, then switched to what he probably thought was a stealthy crouch.

  Shiori leaned over the railing, scanning the empty campus grounds. The morning air bit at her exposed arms, making her wish she'd grabbed a warmer jacket.

  "There's literally nothing out here," she muttered, squinting through the pre-dawn darkness. The campus looked abandoned – just shadows of buildings and the occasional security light casting weird patterns across the grounds.

  Then she noticed it. A warm glow coming from the direction of the gym.

  "Hey." She elbowed Sato, "Look."

  "Is that... the gym lights?" Sato pressed against the railing. "At 5:30 in the morning?"

  "Who even has access that early?" Shiori frowned, trying to remember the building schedule. The gym didn't officially open until 7 AM for morning practice.

  "Maybe it's ghosts," Sato suggested helpfully. "Sports ghosts. Getting in their eternal practice."

  Shiori shot him a look. "Really? That's where your mind went?"

  "What? It could happen!" He defended, then paused. "Though I guess ghosts probably wouldn't need the lights on..."

  "Unless they're very considerate ghosts," Shiori deadpanned.

  Shiori and Sato crept across the campus, trying their best to stay in the shadows. Well, Shiori crept – Sato alternated between dramatic rolls and randomly ducking behind trees that were definitely too thin to hide his lanky frame.

  "Would you stop that?" Shiori hissed after his third combat roll. "You look ridiculous."

  "I'm being stealthy!" Sato whispered back, now army-crawling across a perfectly open sidewalk.

  "You're being the opposite of stealthy. The entire campus can probably hear you humming the Mission Impossible theme."

  "Oh." He stopped humming, looking slightly disappointed. "I didn't realize I was doing that."

  As they got closer to the gym, the sound of squeaking shoes and thuds became clearer. Shiori pressed herself against the wall, edging toward one of the side windows. Sato copied her movements, but somehow managed to knock over a trash can in the process.

  "Shhh!" Shiori grabbed his arm, yanking him down as the noise inside briefly paused.

  "Sorry!" he whispered, then immediately sneezed.

  Shiori closed her eyes and counted to three. Working with Sato on a stealth mission was like trying to sneak around with a drunk elephant wearing tap shoes.

  They waited a few moments until the sounds resumed, then carefully peered through the window. The sight inside made both of them freeze.

  There, in the harsh fluorescent lighting of the early morning gym, were their missing roommates. Maki was repeatedly throwing basketballs at the hoop while Taiki practiced sets against a wall, his form absolutely terrible. They'd pushed the volleyball nets to one side, creating a makeshift practice space that looked like some bizarre hybrid of both sports.

  "Are they..." Sato squinted through the glass. "Are they actually practicing? Voluntarily?"

  "At 5:30 in the morning," Shiori added, watching as Maki fumbled another throw, sending the ball bouncing wildly across the court.

  "Should we go in?" Sato whispered, already shifting his weight forward like an overexcited puppy. "I could give them some pointers-"

  Shiori yanked him back down by his jacket sleeve. "No. They obviously don't want us to know about this."

  "But why? Look at their form - they're doing it all wrong!" He winced as Taiki's set went completely sideways, nearly taking out a basketball hoop. "That's not even physically possible. How did he-"

  "That's exactly why they didn't tell us," Shiori said, watching Maki chase after her third consecutive runaway ball. "They're learning the basics without an audience. Without pressure."

  Sato frowned, pressing his face against the window. "But we could help!"

  "And make them self-conscious?" Shiori shook her head. "They're actually trying. On their own. Without anyone forcing them."

  Through the glass, they could see Taiki retrieve his ball, muttering something that made Maki laugh so hard she dropped hers. Even from this distance, Shiori could tell they were both exhausted.

  "Look at them," she murmured. "They're terrible. But they're terrible together, and they're not giving up."

  "But-"

  "If we barge in there now, they'll stop." Shiori pulled back from the window, tugging Sato with her. "This is their thing. Let them have it."

  "Even if they're practicing wrong?"

  "Even then." Shiori started walking backward, making sure Sato followed. "Sometimes you need to fail a hundred times in private before you're ready to fail in front of others."

  Sato looked longingly at the gym door, then sighed dramatically. "Fine. But can we at least-"

  "No stalking, no spying, no surprise coaching sessions." Shiori fixed him with her best team captain stare. "Promise?"

  "Promise," Sato grumbled, shoulders slumping. "But if Taiki dislocates his shoulder with that form, I'm telling everyone I tried to intervene."

  Taiki's legs felt like jelly as he stood in line with his teammates. A month of secret training sessions with Maki had left him perpetually sore, but somehow still standing. He caught her eye across the gym where the basketball team was assembled, and they shared a knowing look. Dark circles under their eyes matched like some weird badge of honor.

  Coach Yamamoto cleared his throat, clipboard in hand. "For tomorrow's practice match against Seijoh, starting lineup will be..."

  Taiki's heart hammered against his ribs. Next to him, Sato bounced on the balls of his feet, radiating his usual endless energy. The past month had been a blur of early mornings, late nights, and countless failed sets.

  On the basketball side, Coach Mizuki was already reading names. Taiki watched Maki's fingers twitch at her sides with each name that wasn't hers. Shiori stood confidently at the front of their group, her starting position as team ace never in question.

  "...and starting setter, Sato Rentaki."

  The words hit Taiki like a punch to the gut. He'd known it was coming - of course Sato would start, he was actually good at volleyball - but something in Taiki's chest deflated anyway. All those mornings practicing sets until his fingers were numb, all those nights until his eyes burned...for what?

  Across the gym, Coach Mizuki finished reading the basketball lineup. Maki's face had gone completely blank. She caught his eye again, and this time there was no shared determination, just mutual understanding of their shared failure.

  The rest of the team was already breaking into practice groups, the starting lineup heading to one end of the court.

  "Well, at least that clears it up," Maki said, her voice unnaturally flat, like her soul had left her body.

  Taiki just nodded. What else was there to say? They'd given it everything they had, pushed themselves beyond what they thought possible, and still came up short. Without exchanging another word, both turned toward the exit, leaving their respective practices behind.

  Shiori caught Sato's attention across the gym, jerking her head toward their retreating roommates. The usual bounce in his step faltered as understanding crossed his face. He jogged over, dodging a stray volleyball.

  "Did they just...?" Sato's perpetual grin had morphed into a concerned frown.

  "Leave practice? Yeah." Shiori twisted her ponytail.

  "Should we...?"

  "Go after them?" Shiori shook her head.

  "But-"

  "Trust me."

  Taiki let his head thump back against the gym wall. His muscles ached from a month of secret training sessions that apparently meant nothing.

  "So, what now?" Maki's voice broke through their shared misery. She sat cross-legged beside him, absently rolling a basketball back and forth between her palms.

  Taiki snorted. "Quit and become professional video game players?"

  "Don't tempt me." Maki stopped the ball, pressing her thumbs into its worn surface. "I actually kind of hate that I don't hate this anymore. Like, my body hurts constantly, I haven't had a full night's sleep in weeks, and I still can't dribble without looking like a drunk penguin. But..."

  "But you keep wanting to try anyway," Taiki finished, understanding exactly what she meant. "It's stupid."

  "So stupid," Maki agreed, letting out a hollow laugh. "We're literally sitting here feeling sorry for ourselves because we're not good enough at something we didn't even want to do in the first place."

  "When you put it that way, we sound insane."

  "Probably are." Maki bumped his shoulder with hers. "Remember when we were going to start SAMST? Students Against Mandatory Sports Torture?"

  "Yeah, well, look how that turned out." Taiki gestured vaguely at their workout-worn bodies. "We became voluntary sports masochists instead."

  Maki snickered, then sighed. "I really thought we'd improved enough to at least make lineups."

  "Same." Taiki pulled his knees up to his chest. "Guess those 4 AM practices weren't as magical as we hoped."

  Maki let out a chuckle that caught in her throat, making Taiki glance over in surprise. Her usual confidence cracked, showing something raw underneath.

  "God, I feel so stupid right now," she said, her voice wavering. "I don't even know what to do anymore." She spun the basketball harder between her palms. "A whole month of practice and what do I have to show for it? Nothing. Absolutely nothing."

  Taiki watched as she deflated, her shoulders slumping forward. It was weird seeing Maki like this - usually she was the one keeping their spirits up with terrible jokes and random snacks pulled from mysterious pockets.

  "I mean, what's even the point?" She continued, her words tumbling out faster now. "Why bother being in a club if I'm just gonna park my ass on the bench for the entire match? At least before, I could pretend I didn't care about sports. Now I care, and I still suck." She laughed again, but it sounded more like a hiccup. "That's actually worse, isn't it? Caring and still being terrible?"

  Taiki shifted uncomfortably. Seeing her this defeated made his chest feel tight in a way he didn't like.

  He watched as Maki's shoulders started to shake.

  Without really thinking about it, he reached out and awkwardly patted her head. Her hair was still damp, and she let out a weird sound that was half-laugh, half-sob.

  "You know," he said, keeping his hand on her head, "you're probably the most stubborn person I've ever met. Like, who else would drag someone to practice at 5 AM for a whole month straight?"

  Maki sniffled, wiping her nose with her sleeve. "Someone really dumb, apparently."

  "Nah." Taiki smiled, surprising himself with how genuine it felt. "Someone who actually tried. That's more than most people do. Hell, it's more than I would've done without you dragging me along."

  "But it didn't work," she mumbled into her knees.

  "Maybe not the way we wanted," Taiki said, "But you stuck with it. Didn't quit. Didn't give up. That's... that's actually pretty cool."

  Maki lifted her head, eyes red-rimmed but with a familiar spark of determination starting to return. "You think I'm cool?"

  "Don't let it go to your head," Taiki muttered, quickly withdrawing his hand. "I'm sleep-deprived and emotionally compromised."

  "Too late." Maki's grin wobbled but held. "I'm getting it printed on a t-shirt. 'Officially Cool, According to Taiki Tsumugi.'"

  "I take it back."

  "No take-backs." She bumped his shoulder again, harder this time. "You know what? Screw the starting lineup."

  Taiki raised an eyebrow. "What?"

  "I mean it." Maki stood up, bouncing the basketball once with surprising control. "So we're not starting. Fine. That just means we need to practice more. Get better. Make them regret not putting us in."

  Taiki trailed after Maki back into the gym, his legs feeling like lead. Both teams continued their practices, seemingly unaware of their dramatic exit earlier.

  Until Shiori literally sprinted across the court, her ponytail whipping behind her as she reached Maki. "What happened?" She grabbed Maki's shoulders, eyes widening at her friend's tear-stained face. "Are you okay?"

  Sato appeared seconds later, his usual boundless energy tempered by concern. "Hey, what's going on?"

  Maki let out a shaky laugh, glancing at Taiki. He nodded slightly, and she took a deep breath.

  "We've been practicing. Like, extra practicing. At 4 AM." The words tumbled out of Maki in a rush. "Every morning for the past month. We thought if we worked hard enough, maybe..." She trailed off, looking down at her shoes.

  "We wanted to make the starting lineups," Taiki finished quietly. "Stupid, right?"

  Shiori and Sato exchanged a look that Taiki couldn't quite read. Then, to his complete bewilderment, they both broke into matching grins.

  "You've been practicing voluntarily?" Sato's voice cracked with excitement. "At four in the morning?"

  "That's why you've both been so exhausted," Shiori said, her eyes softening. "We thought something was wrong, but you were just..."

  "Being idiots?" Taiki supplied.

  "Being athletes," Shiori corrected, looking at them like a proud mom whose kids just learned to ride a bike. "Real ones."

  Sato scratched the back of his neck, a guilty look crossing his face. "Actually... we kind of knew about the morning practices."

  Taiki's stomach dropped. "What?"

  "We saw you," Shiori admitted, wincing slightly. "About three weeks ago. We woke up early and followed the lights in the gym."

  Maki's jaw dropped. "You were stalking us?"

  "Not stalking!" Sato waved his hands frantically. "We were worried! You both kept disappearing and looking exhausted and-"

  "And this one," Shiori jabbed a thumb at Sato, "wanted to burst in and help coach you right then and there."

  Taiki felt his face heat up, remembering all the failed sets and face-plants they'd suffered through. "So you just... watched us fail?"

  "I convinced him to leave you alone," Shiori said. "We figured if you were keeping it secret, you probably had your reasons." Her expression softened. "We just didn't realize you were pushing yourselves so hard for the starting positions."

  Maki hugged the basketball tighter to her chest. "Great. So you've both been watching us make fools of ourselves this whole time?"

  "No!" Sato's eyes went wide. "We only saw that one morning. And honestly?" He broke into a grin. "It was kind of awesome."

  "Awesome?" Taiki deadpanned. "I couldn't get a single set right."

  Taiki's stomach dropped as he noticed the crowd that had gathered around them. Both teams stood there, some looking sheepish, others grinning widely. Even the coaches lingered at the back, trying to appear professional despite clearly having listened to everything.

  "Sorry," Jin scratched his head. "We couldn't help but overhear."

  Before Taiki could crawl into a hole and die from embarrassment, he found himself surrounded by his teammates, Roku's arm draping over his shoulders while Takashi ruffled his hair.

  "You idiot," Daichi said, but his tone was fond. "You should've just told us you were practicing this hard."

  "Yeah," Hiro chimed in. "We can totally adjust our plays to match your progress. It's not like we were born perfect either."

  On the basketball court, Maki found herself in a similar situation, surrounded by her teammates. Several girls were talking over each other, offering advice and support.

  "I can help you with your dribbling before morning practice," one of the second-years offered.

  "And I'll swap out with you during some games," another added. "Coach always puts me in too long anyway, my stamina's terrible."

  The basketball coach cleared her throat. "While I appreciate the enthusiasm, the starting lineup decisions are still mine." But then she smiled. "However, I do appreciate players who show this level of dedication. We'll work on getting you some court time, Yoshida."

  Taiki watched as Maki's eyes welled up again, but this time with a wobbly smile on her face.

  Good, he thought. Maki deserves it. More than anyone. After all those early mornings, all those times she'd picked herself up after falling, all while somehow managing to keep his spirits up too - yeah, she definitely deserved this moment.

  His contemplation was cut short by two sets of hands grabbing his arms.

  "Alright, enough standing around!" Hiro grinned, tugging on Taiki's right side while Jin took the left.

  "Time to put all that secret training to use," Jin added with a wolfish smile.

  Before Taiki could protest, they were practically skipping toward the volleyball court, dragging him along like an unwilling participant in some demented three-legged race. His feet barely touched the ground as they bounced along.

  From behind them, he heard Shiori and Sato burst into laughter at his predicament. Through his awkward, bouncing perspective, he caught sight of them sharing a fist bump before heading off to their respective teams.

  "Guys," Taiki managed between jolts, "I can walk on my own-"

  "Nope!" Hiro chirped. "No more sneaking around for secret practice. You're stuck with us now!"

  "Whether you like it or not," Jin added cheerfully, and somehow they started moving even faster.