Chapter 8: I'm Still Standing

                                    

                                          
The Karasuno Boys' Volleyball Team entered Sendai City Gymnasium.  Almost immediately, they could hear the talk.  The phrases "flightless crows" and "fallen powerhouse" were spoken more than once.  Tanaka and Noya got in trouble with Daichi and Kiyoko for their vigorous defense of their school's honor (and Kiyoko's honor too, of course).  Nakano held her head high and said nothing, but cheered for Tanaka and Noya's efforts in her mind.  All in all, she thought, the usual smack talk.  Nothing too bad.  Nothing we can't handle...and nothing the boys won't completely dispel once they take the court.
It wasn't until she began to hear whispers about the Ace that Nakano became upset.  Had it been almost anyone else, she would have shrugged it off as more smack talk and thought little of it.  But Asahi was the most gentle and sensitive of the team.  She knew that he would let those words in...and when she looked over at him after hearing a boy claim the kind-hearted third-year was a drug dealer, she saw the hurt on his face.  She started glaring daggers at anyone who dared speak unkindly about him.  Several boys shrank from her icy blue eyes.  She stuck close to Asahi, and when the team settled down to begin stretching, she moved to help him.
"Hey," she said as she leaned on Asahi's back, helping him stretch out, "you know those guys only say those things because you're such a badass on the court, right?  They figure if you're a badass on the court, you gotta be a badass off the court too."
"I know," he said, clearly trying to keep a positive attitude. "I won't let it bother me."
Nakano chuckled.  "It's okay if it bothers you."
"Huh?" Asahi looked up at her.  That wasn't what he was expecting to hear.
She smiled at him.  "It bothers me when I hear people whispering about me, too."
"People whisper about you?"
"Sure.  They see a girl with a wheelchair and braces on her legs...well, they assume a lot of things.  Some assume that I must be sick with something and they avoid me.  Sometimes it's that if my body is broken, then my mind must be too.  They assume I'm stupid.  That bothers me a lot.  The worst is when they assume that someone I care about must have done this to me, and they say things about my family, or my friends.  Those are the ones that really upset me."
Asahi's face became concerned.  "Nakano, I had no idea..."
She shook her head.  "This isn't about me, Ace.  I just told you those things so that you know that I really do understand.  It's okay if the whispers bother you.  What matters is what you do with that feeling.  The people who really care about you, your team, we know none of that nonsense is true.  We know the real you.  We got you.  The only thing you need to do when you hear those idiots whisper is show them the real you...the badass Ace that rules the court.  Okay?  Hold your head up high, smile, and when you hear the whispers, vow to show them how stupid they are on the court."
Asahi smiled at her.  "Thanks, Nakano.  I won't let you down."
She laughed.  "You can't, Ace.  I'm too proud of you already."  She pulled him into a side hug, and as she did, her lips just barely grazed along his hair on the top of his head.  If you'd asked either one about it, neither would have even known what you were talking about.
However, it was enough to set off Tanaka and Nishinoya's ultra sensitive kiss sensors.
The pair suddenly popped up in front of Nakano.  "DID YOU JUST K-"
Nakano jumped up and slapped her hands over their mouths.  "Yes, I just hugged Asahi.  Do we need to yell that fact across the entire sports complex?"
Both boys tried to talk against Nakano's hands, causing her to shudder and yank her hands back.  "Ewwwww, guys!  No licking."
Kageyama was suddenly standing next to Nakano, his dark blue eyes boring into Tanaka and Nishinoya.  "Who did what now?  Did she say you licked her?"