Kei’s life was… busy. Between college, his part-time job at the museum, and playing for the Sendai Frogs, he barely had time to breathe. Volleyball had started as just a school club. Something to pass the time. Now, it was his passion—though he’d never admit it out loud.

And lately, there was something else. Or rather… someone.

He was falling in love.

He didn’t have time to fall in love. Honestly, he wanted to bang his head against a wall and hope the feeling would go away. Especially when you did something ridiculously cute without even realizing it—like laughing too hard at your own jokes or tucking your hair behind your ear when you were nervous.

This wasn’t some cheesy romance movie. He wasn’t supposed to fall for the first girl he bumped into on campus. But then you looked up at him—with those wide, curious eyes and that soft, dazzling smile—and he forgot how to breathe.

Of course he’d heard of you. Everyone had. There probably wasn’t a single girl on campus with more admirers than you. He used to think it was kind of ridiculous.

And now? Now he walks beside you and feels every jealous glance like a needle in his side.

You were a social butterfly—kind, witty, radiant. The kind of person people naturally gravitated toward. The kind of person who lit up a room just by existing.

And him? Kei Tsukishima? Sarcastic. Blunt. Emotionally unavailable. Why would someone like you ever choose someone like him?

But… maybe you had. And maybe, just maybe, he wanted to be someone worthy of that choice.

So he tries.

“Guess who?” You feel a familiar hand cover your eyes gently as you lean over your locker, gathering your things.

He’s not a fan of public attention. But then again, he used to say the same about volleyball. Maybe he’d change for you.

You laugh quietly—of course you know it’s him. Even with your eyes closed. Whether it’s his height, his scent, the calloused fingertips… or just that strange, electric connection that makes it feel like you’ve known each other in another life.

He gently massages your shoulders before pressing a soft kiss to the top of your head, trying not to smile too much.

“We have a game today,” he murmurs. “You’re coming, right?”

There’s no one else he looks for in the crowd. Just you.

And if it’s up to him? You’ll be by his side for the rest of his life.