The sun was blazing, and the campus of Fukurodani Academy buzzed with laughter and excitement. Colorful booths lined the fields for the annual sports festival, and none drew a bigger crowd than the boys volleyball team’s station — a competitive, team-run "Spike Challenge" booth, where participants tried to receive a spike from Bokuto Koutarou himself.

"COME ON! WHO’S NEXT? LET’S SEE IF YOU CAN HANDLE THE OWL KING'S SPIKE! WOOO!" Bokuto boomed, sweat glistening on his forehead, his energy as boundless as ever.

"Please don’t pull anything, Bokuto-san," Akaashi Keiji muttered from the sidelines, clipboard in hand as he monitored the queue, made sure the prizes were organized, and reminded Bokuto of the cooldown rule he ignored every five minutes.

Akaashi’s eyes drifted away from the booth, catching a familiar figure walking up — {{user}}. Despite being from a different class, Akaashi recognized the way his chest tightened just from seeing her approach. Her shy smile was like a breeze in the humid festival air.

She stood a bit back, not wanting to cut in line, clearly just here to check on them. Akaashi’s expression softened, just slightly.

"{{user}}," he called, walking over to her, tone neutral as usual but voice a bit lower than when he spoke to others. “You didn’t have to come all the way here…”

“HEY, AKAASHI!” Bokuto yelled, practically throwing a volleyball at another third-year who could barely catch it. “Did you see how hard I spiked that one?! I think the ball bounced TWICE before hitting the ground!”

Akaashi didn’t turn around. "I saw, Bokuto-san. Please remember not to spike too hard against first years. You're making them cry again."

Bokuto blinked, then turned to a trembling underclassman holding a bruised arm. "OH NO! I FORGOT TO HOLD BACK! I’M SORRY, MAN!"

Meanwhile, several girls from Akaashi and Bokuto's class were gathered around the booth’s side. They were all giggles and squeals, holding water bottles and towels, practically tripping over themselves to hand them to the two boys.

"Bokuto-senpai! You're so amazing!"

"Akaashi-senpai, do you want some cold water?"

“You guys are the most popular here!”

Akaashi offered a polite smile, but he didn’t take the bottle. His gaze flicked back to {{user}}, who stood quietly near a tree, clearly aware of the stares the girls gave her once they noticed where Akaashi’s attention landed.

“Bokuto-san,” Akaashi said quietly, stepping close to his captain. “We’re going to have a problem.”

Bokuto blinked, confused. “Huh?”

He followed Akaashi’s eyes, then noticed {{user}} — and then the stares from their classmates, eyes narrowed, whispers growing louder.

Akaashi didn’t speak, but his body tensed.

"OH," Bokuto said, understanding dawning. He puffed up his chest.

Then Bokuto roared.

“EVERYONE LISTEN UP!” he yelled, standing in front of the booth and holding a volleyball high above his head like a microphone. “AKAASHI ISN’T TAKING LOVE LETTERS! HE’S NOT INTERESTED IN ANYONE IN THIS CLASS, OKAY?!”

The giggling stopped. Every single girl stared at him.

“HE’S DATING SOMEONE AMAZING FROM ANOTHER CLASS! AND I WON’T LET YOU GUYS RUIN THEIR RELATIONSHIP, GOT IT?!”

Several jaws dropped. One of the girls gasped, “He’s dating someone?!”

Akaashi exhaled through his nose. “…Bokuto-san…”

“NOPE! I WON’T LET YOU STAY QUIET, AKAASHI! THIS IS SERIOUS STUFF!”

Bokuto then turned to {{user}}, waving her over boldly. “{{USER}}! COME OVER HERE!”

Her eyes widened slightly in alarm, but Bokuto grinned and gave her a thumbs-up. “TRUST ME!”

Akaashi lowered his clipboard, walked over to her, and quietly offered his hand. She took it, unsure, but relaxed when he gently laced their fingers. He didn’t speak—he didn’t need to. The way he stood beside her, subtly but solidly, was enough.

Bokuto stood between them and the still-staring girls. “You see this? THIS is true love. And if you mess with them, you mess with ME! And nobody wants to face my spikes when I’m mad!”

One of the braver girls stepped forward. “So it’s true? Akaashi-senpai, you're seriously dating her?”