SHIYUMI FINALLY RELEASED KITA...

     after being pried off by the miya twins and ojiro.

     "hmph! you guys are just jealous that I'm hogging shin-kun. whatever, I'm going back to rin", shiyumi sassily huffed, sticking her tongue out — specifically at the twins — as she marched off.

suna, who was laying down on the towel, stirred awake once he realized that shiyumi was back from her adventure.

     "you're more like a leech than a crow in my opinion", suna commented.

     "well if you think about it, after next week, who knows when I'll see shin-kun anymore? he is a third-year", shiyumi honestly stated, deciding to ignore the insult.

     "touché".

     "by the way rin, we should go get some more purin. 'samu ate all of mine", shiyumi suggested.

     "you can go. I'm going to lay here in the shade", suna declined.

     "oh come on!! I'll buy you some chuupets as well~", shiyumi bargained.

     suna's eyes slightly narrowed, as he internally debated with himself.

     'don't do it, rintarō. he's just using you as a buddy to walk with'.

     shiyumi tilted her head from side to side, awaiting for suna's reconsideration.

     'which you're fine with. honestly, just get up and go with him. shut up, other me!'

     "rin? honestly, if you really don't want to go, I'll just go by myself. I just didn't want to leave you alone here", shiyumi smiled.

     'oh fuck it'.

     "yeah, whatever. let's go", suna grumbled, wobbling upwards, as he accidentally stood up too fast, causing him to be slightly woozy.

luckily, shiyumi was there by his side, supporting him by clutching onto his arm. it had become a habit for them, not that either party minded much.

as the two escaped the water fights and those who were simply chilling under the umbrella, suna could visibly witness shiyumi glow once they had reached the convenience store.

"hello, welcome in!", the cashier greeted.

"hey!", shiyumi waved back, as she guided suna towards the dessert aisle.

just as the girl was about to lay hands on her beloved, she had heard some derogatory comments directed towards a familiar redhead.

"huh? hey guys, look! it's tendō...tendō....what was it again?", one guy with a shaved head had asked.

"satori! right, because it means yōkai", another male chimed in.

shiyumi clicked her tongue in annoyance, as she just wanted to get her snacks in peace. however, she couldn't help but be nosy.

suna watched the girl release his arm, as she marched two aisles down from theirs.

hesitantly following her, suna realized that tendō, shiratorizawa's middle blocker, was also present.

"are you still continuing volleyball? because if I recall, monsters don't deserve to—"

"are you dumb?", shiyumi instantly interrupted, causing tendō to snap out of his downcast expression, as he didn't even notice the two volleyball players nearby.

"huhhh? and who are you?", another guy asked.

"I would ask the same, but you six seem prettyyyy irrelevant", shiyumi scoffed.

"HUH?! YOU SURE TALK BIG FOR A SHRIMP!", the male with a butt chin yelled.

"kids like you should just stay outta the way before you start crying for mommy", another laughed.

shiyumi was starting to get very irritated.

"I'm a high schooler, first of all. and for your information, I bet I can whoop all your asses in a game of volleyball", shiyumi huffed.

"oh yeah? I'd like to see a little shrimp like you try", one snickered.

"fine! meet me on the beach at 2:30, and if I win, you all must stop calling satori-kun a monster", shiyumi bargained.

"sure, but if we win, we won't hesitate to scrub the deck with your faces!", one snarled.

"yeah, sure. whatever~ see you guys then", shiyumi shrugged, dragging suna and tendō out of the store, as she had completely forgotten about her snacks.

     "tch, fool", one muttered beneath their breaths.

     suna and tendō had then given a look to all of them, specifically the one that had insulted shiyumi.

     it was like they were challenging them, luring them into a trap by using their pride and ego as bait.

     'try us'.

     as the three had returned to the beach, they had promptly taken a seat under an unoccupied umbrella.

     "so who should we have join us for the match?", tendō asked.

     "okay, but first off, who even are they? satori-kun, did you spill milk on them or something? why were they being such a wet sock?", shiyumi questioned.

     tendō flinched, as his eyes darted from side to side.

     "I'll go back and get the snacks", suna suddenly announced, leaving the two alone, as he knew tendō probably wasn't as comfortable with him around.

     "I mean, you don't have to explai—"

"they were from my elementary", tendō interrupted.

"they called me a monster because of how I looked...well...still look, I guess...", tendō mumbled.

"so the nickname guess monster..."

"it's because I look like a monster", tendō answered. "not because of what you said — a beast on the court".

shiyumi was speechless for a moment, before erupting into full on laughter.

"wha—"

shiyumi suddenly sandwiched the redhead's face with both her hands, causing tendō to confusingly raise a brow at the girl's actions.

"you don't seriously believe them, do you?! like please, satori-kun, do you know how attractive you are?! I swear I saw girls looking your way but was too scared to approach you because you were busy throwing water at shirabu-san and tomu-kun!", shiyumi stated.

"those people are hella blind, thinking you look like some yōkai", the orange-haired girl huffed.

it might've been sincere coming from shiyumi, but tendō still seemed to have his doubts.

"and plus, I actually think you look really hot with your hair down", shiyumi whispered, unintentionally causing tendō to blush, as a giddy feeling started overcoming his insecurities like a sea blanket.

     "I-I MEAN, NOT THAT YOU DON'T LOOK HOT WITH YOUR HAIR UP, YA KNOW?!", shiyumi immediately followed up.

     tendō chuckled, as he ran his taped fingers through his hair in a bashful manner.

     "you're gonna make me cry", tendō joked.

"okay bet!", shiyumi laughed.

tendō smiled, as he lazily relaxed his usual upbeat expression.

"no but seriously, you're so sweet, shōyō-kun. sweeter than my favorite chocolate ice cream", tendō compliemnted.

     shiyumi's shoulders rose like a volcano, hugging her neck, as she presented her classic sunshine smile.

     "mah~ if you ever need cheering up, I'm always here", shiyumi offered.

     tendō ruffled the younger player's hair, now understanding why the captain of inarizaki doted on her so much.

     "I'm back", suna announced, dropping the bags of purin and chuupets on the towel, as he took a seat beside shiyumi once more.

     "so did we finally decide on who will be playing with us?", suna asked. 

     "yep!! well...if you both don't mind...I was hoping to have..."