The Birth of A Volleyball Legend

"Congratulations!" Maria exclaimed, clinking her glass with Yuki's who was in a good mood. "You did so well today, and I am so proud of you!" She squealed, embracing the boy with her bear hug. Yuki himself could only smile awkwardly, silently asking for Mattheo's help.

It was at the end of the day when he finally met the Silvestri family. Maria didn't hesitate even for a second before 'kidnapping' him, dragging the poor boy to the taxi they called before and asking where he wanted to celebrate his win. In the end though, after debating over yakiniku or hot pot, Yuki finally decided to take the unconventional option by calling Aiko and asking whether it was okay to do that at the orphanage, not only because it felt more homey for him, but also because he wanted his two families to meet each other. Explore more at empire

"So, you are Bell-nee and Ella-nee?" Hina asked, her eyes shining. "You both are so pretty!"

"Urgh…" The twin sisters stared at each other confusedly. They were still not yet proficient in the Japanese Language, so they couldn't follow through the little girl's babbling. "Yuki-nii, a little help, please?" Asked Isabella.

Yuki just chuckled before he said, "She said that you both are very pretty, and everyone seems to agree with her." He translated the little girl's words, which made the twin sisters blush shyly. Their parent mirrored his action as they were amused at their daughters' 'not-so-secret' crush on the boy.

It had been dark outside, with most of the sun had already drowned below the horizon. However, the atmosphere in the orphanage was still lively, with chatter and laughter could be heard from every corner of the court. The children were busy grilling their new 'pretty' sisters about their lives outside of the country – albeit with Yuki's help since they couldn't communicate well in either Japanese or English – while the adults were getting to know each other with the topic of Yuki as the bridge.

"So, he has been doing good, right? Not just being a silly teenager who is obsessed with the sport?" Maria asked curiously.

"Oh, yeah! He is doing alright! He even excelled in his study and got the 3rd rank during the midterm exam." Aiko told the woman about his achievement proudly. Yuki himself was not listening to that. He had his jaws slacked, staring at Aiko in disbelief. After all, this was the first time he heard his matron talking in fluent English, and honestly, she didn't have any of the thick accents that Japanese people usually had. This told him that she had this skill from a long time ago. 'Well, this only adds another mystery about her past.' He murmured.

When Yuki saw the mischievous eyes on his Obaasan, though, he suddenly had a bad feeling here.

"Well, let me tell you something. A few weeks ago, Yuki spent three full days in an Astronomy Camp with the girl he has a crush on, and when he was back, he had this silly grin that lasted for about three more days before he went back to normal." She ended the story with a small giggle.

"EH?!" The story got a strong reaction from the female members of the Silvestry family; excitement for Maria and jealousy from the twins. "Detail! Give me all the details here!" The older woman demanded excitedly.

Yuki felt the temperature of his face rise instantly as he moaned, "Obaasan!" However, facing four fierce women in front of him, he knew he had no way to win this.

Seeing his dejected look, Mattheo chuckled a little, patting his shoulder reassuringly. "You will not be able to win against them, young man. Just give it up."

Yuki grumbled grumpily, muttering something about being unfair as he decided to mend his siblings who were abandoned by the twins. His action captured the twins' attention as they swooned over his attentiveness, and when Yuki saw that, he couldn't help but gulp nervously.

"Uh… Ella-chan, Bella-chan, are you both alright?" He asked hesitantly.

"N-Nothing!" The two girls stuttered, their faces flushed red in embarrassment.

Time passed pretty quickly here, with everyone enjoying the food the Silvestri Family brought. Usually, this kind of occasion involved alcohol—or sake for Japanese people—but since most of them were minors here, they all got orange juice as a substitute.

As the night got late, though, the twins started yawning, unable to hide their tiredness anymore. It seemed the jetlag still affected them both, as they had a hard time staying awake. Getting concerned, Yuki asked, "Do you want to take a rest in my room?"

"E-Eh?!" Their face turned red instantly at both sudden offer and innuendo. Their shyness got their father's laughter here as he had never seen them both so meek like this. Taking pity on them though, he rose from his spot and denied Yuki's offer politely. "Don't worry, Yuki. We will call our taxi and go back to our hotel. Oh, and please don't mind if we visit you again tomorrow. It seems my wife just finds a best friend in your matron here." His lips twitched in amusement while watching the two older women talk animatedly about something that Yuki couldn't understand at all.

As they waited for the taxi though, Mattheo decided to ask, "So, how is it? Have you been enjoying the sport at all?"

Yuki paused for a moment, pondering over the question. He knew why Mattheo asked that. When the man offered the sponsorship for his education back in the past, the main concern was whether he wanted to follow Mattheo's step into the volleyball world or choose a completely different path. At that time, Mattheo assured the boy that he didn't have to follow Mattheo's path here. He just encouraged Yuki to try to be more serious about it since Yuki had already been a part of the team at that time.

And while Yuki had never slacked off and did things half-heartedly, he still had his own doubts about it.

However, now, after so much happened in the last eight or seven months, he started to look at this from a different perspective. A lot of memories rushed into his brain, flashing one by one like a movie. From the harsh training Akira put them into, the roar of celebration after winning against strong opponents, the bitter cry when they lost against Konan High, the summer camp, joining a professional team, and even today's game, he knew that if not for playing volleyball he would've never experienced all of that.

So, after about seven months since Mattheo asked that question, and when the man visited the topic once again now, Yuki was finally able to answer it with a smile on his face. "Yes, I am enjoying this sport so much, Mattheo. Thank you."