The whistle pierced through the air, marking the final point of the match. Yebin relieved, the last mistake their rivals made indeed saved them.

“Good job, guys.”

“Not good enough.” A senior, also one of their spikers, refuted before her words even finished. “You could do better. Most of the balls you gave me were too far from the net, you know those are not the types I can spike effectively.”

“Who are we gonna face next?” Another senior asked.

“Yonsei University.”

“They are good. We won’t win if we play with the same level like this one.”

There were 15 more minutes till the next match, some of the team members went to the toilet, some were using the time to rest. Yebin sighed and took out the papers from her pocket, double checked about who were assigned to be the starting players in the next match. The two setters would be two juniors, it was a good chance for them to train their skills and spunks, but to Yebin at that time, she was only glad that she could cool down for a while.

She hadn’t talked to Kyungwon since yesterday, they always talked everything at almost every minute. Yebin didn’t want to avoid her, but somehow she rather avoided her. She didn’t have the guts to start the seemed-to-be-necessary talk. If it wasn’t because of the captain’s responsibility, she would have taken a day off and hidden herself in her room.

As for Minkyung, Yebin hadn’t got any messages from her or Xiyeon. She had no idea if she was ok or not, which only messed her minds even more. As for her teammates? As long as they don’t cause her troubles, she had never expected them to help.

A shadow came close and hovered over her from behind, she didn’t take it serious at first, then a hand dropped on her shoulder, making her look back curiously. She felt the knot in enlarged.

“Come.”

Kyungwon didn’t speak much, Yebin didn’t know what to say either. They walked to the lattice, away from the others and the noises.

“Focus.” Kyungwon turned to face her. “You need to focus.”

“…Huh?”

“You said it yourself once, you hate when people don’t concentrate on the competitions. You are acting like one now.”

Yebin gulped. “Do I?”

“You don’t want them to look down on you, do you?”

“…No.”

“So do your best. Leave everything irrelevant after the matches.”

Kyungwon gazed into her eyes, waiting for an answer. Yebin breathed in and nodded without a word.

“I’ll be here watching.” We will talk after this.

The third match ended about 40 minutes later. They were surpassed once so Yebin got in in the middle to change the rhythm, and eventually, they won with the score of 25:22. She searched around and found Kyungwon on the small stand, sitting with her seatbelt backpack on her lap. She received a nod.

“Hey, Hanyang’s captain wants to speak to you.”

“Coming.”

The final two matches, Yebin was a starter for one and stayed in bench for the other. They won both and ended up with 4 wins and 1 loss. That was acceptable for everybody, and the seniors hadn’t been picky on her since Kyungwon showed up. Finally, she had overcome the heavy time.

Well, part of it had, part of it had not.

“You were there…long before I was aware, weren’t you?”

Yebin asked and shrank in the passenger’s seat, eyes locking at the front. They were waiting for a traffic light, usually she’d be the one to drive, but earlier Kyungwon just took the key from her.

The atmosphere was not tense, to be honest, but the awkwardness was unavoidable.

“I arrived during the second match.” Kyungwon also looked at her front. “When that tall spiker hit you on the chest and you fell on your .”

If it was possible, Yebin felt half of her had been devoured into the seat. They remained quiet for the rest of the ride, the road and streetlights became something interesting to study.

Kyungwon glanced at her cousin, she had her knees to her chest and arms circling her shins. When they were kids, when they fought over some childish stuffs and when they didn’t talk to each other, she would always be like this. The last time they had a quarrel was years ago, in junior high. Kyungwon didn’t think they were having a quarrel now, but it was a plight none of them had expected and none of them meant to be stuck in.

With a turn, they stopped at the front gate of their house. Kyungwon dropped her hands down from the steering wheel, knowing she had to be the one to make the first move. She was always the one made the first move when they were younger, it was like her responsibility to be older.

“I don’t know why I want to tell you this.” She murmured, “But I didn’t read it.”

It took Yebin some time to comprehend. “I know you didn’t.”

“You didn’t give it to her because…”

Kyungwon couldn’t finish the sentence, Yebin still grasped and nodded slowly. “God, you should’ve told me.” She pinched the bridge of her nose. “And I should’ve known you’re also…”

“I wasn’t sure at first either. When I was finally sure…I didn’t know what to do.”

“…When did it start? I mean…about her.”

Yebin reached over to adjust the aircon. Why is it so hot? “Long before I realized. You?”

“Perhaps the same as you. Did you tell anyone?”

“No.”

“Nor did I. But I guess Nayoung unnie and Kyulkyung have seen it.”

“Xiyeon might know it too, she just didn’t expose us.”

“…You sure she didn’t? She’s Minkyung’s sister.”

“…….”

Yebin facepalmed and Kyungwon bumped the back of her head on the seat. “Do you think she knows?”

“Now I’d rather she doesn’t.”

Another silence engulfed, the embarrassment increased, it wasn’t easy to gather the courage to continue.

“Are you gonna…confess?” Yebin asked hesitantly and Kyungwon bit her bottom lip. She had prepared for this, but she never figured what was the best.

“What if I say yes?”

“I’ll wish you luck. And I’ll feel happy for you.”

“…How do you know she’ll accept?” Kyungwon shook her head. “I like her. I like her a lot. But honestly…I have no idea if she has that kind of feelings to me. Sometimes I feel she likes you more.”

“Would you believe if I say the same to you?”

“…I’ll be ecstatic if what you say is real.”

“So we’re not only having crush on the same person…We both have no idea what she’s actually thinking.”

“Seems like it.”

“What if she already has someone she likes? A cool, hot musician or a muscular athlete?”

“Then we’re both pathetic. Another thing in common.”

They sniggered at the same time. The problem wasn’t solved, but the burden was eased.

“She’s beautiful, isn’t she?”

“Definitely.”

“What do you like her the most?”

“That’s a hard question.”

“Because everything of her is attractive?”

“…Yes.”

We fell deeply.

“I don’t want you to give up because of me.” Kyungwon turned to Yebin. Honesty might be the best for them, for now. “It’s happiness, not a toy or candy in childhood that can concede to others. You don't do this for selflessness. So I’m also telling you, I won’t give up because of you. It will be her to choose in the end.”

The genuineness in Kyungwon’s pup