“Please do your best. We’re all cheering for you.”
“Ah, yes. I’ll do my best.”
It was Monday, the beginning of a new week. While walking down the hallway, I was offered words of encouragement by a teacher I think is the vice-principal. I replied politely. It wasn’t just the vice-principal, who I’d barely ever spoken to before. Classmates, people from the neighborhood, employees at stores I frequent…
Honestly, it might be rude to say, but I’d started to feel a bit overwhelmed by how many people were saying these kinds of things to me. And it all stemmed from what happened last Saturday.
＝＝＝＝＝＝
“Congratulations on making it to the third round of qualifiers. Do you have a moment?”
Right after we secured our spot in the third round of the Spring High qualifiers, before we could even leave the arena, we were approached by a reporter from a TV station. Well, we’d heard before the match that there might be interviews, and we had said we’d be okay with it afterwards. So I ended up being interviewed in a Q&A format.
By the way, this interview wasn’t actually for the Spring High qualifiers—it was for a segment on a news program that features promising young athletes who are expected to shine at the upcoming Olympics in three years. Because of that (sorry, everyone), I was the sole focus of the interview. The other team members only gave a few brief comments about what I’m usually like.
The only exceptions were our captain Asuka and Hina, who’s technically my older sister but more like a younger one in reality. Asuka talked about me from the perspective of our club activities, and Hina spoke about me in terms of our personal life. Even so, if you added their interview times together and doubled it, mine was still longer.
After the final question of the interview, just as things were wrapping up, an unexpected person called out to me.
“You’re still not quite there yet, but your movements look a lot more like a volleyball player’s compared to back in August.”
Coming closer as she said that was Coach Tashiro, who leads the Japan women’s national volleyball team.
“In my position, I can’t openly cheer for a specific school, so that’s all I can say—but I’m glad I got to see how much you’ve grown. I’ll be rooting for you in the next match too.”
With that, she left the venue looking satisfied.
Hmm… I mean, I appreciate the support, but still. It’s not like I’ve got some deep passion for volleyball or anything…
＝＝＝＝＝＝
After the interview, while changing in the locker room, I got a notification on my phone about an update on social media.
“We won! We’ll be fighting in the finals for a spot at Spring High!”
It was from Sayaka. Sounds like they made it through the second round of qualifiers too.
“Tamaki Commercial made it through the second round, apparently.”
“I see. If we’re facing them again, it’ll be in the finals.”
“Alright, time to settle the score from October.”
“Mirai, didn’t we play six sets in that October practice match and go 4-2? So technically, they owe us, don’t they?”
“Yeah, but we lost the last set, didn’t we? Gotta end with a win or it doesn’t feel right.”
Even though I didn’t announce Tamaki Commercial’s victory to anyone in particular, everyone latched onto it. Well, it’s not just about Tamaki Commercial—their coach, Kumada-sensei, has helped us a lot, not just during the summer camp but even after that.
No matter how passionate they are, it’s hard for our two coaches—Saeki-sensei, who’s still new, and Uesugi-sensei, who (not that I can talk) didn’t even know the rules of volleyball—to find practice match opponents.
That’s where Kumada-sensei stepped in and said:
“If we’re going to face each other down the line anyway, think of this as a bit of scouting—it’s a small price to pay.”
And with that as an excuse, he invited us to practice matches in both September and October.
Thanks to that connection, the members of our Matsubara girls’ volleyball team and the players from Tamaki Commercial, like Sayaka, have gotten to know each other well.
“But to face Tamaki Commercial, it’d have to be in the finals, right?”
“Yep. Tamaki Commercial advanced from Block D. We’re in Block C. So we’d only meet if both teams win their semifinals.”
“It’d be great to fight Tamaki Commercial for a spot at Spring High, but is that even realistic?”
“Their opponent in the semifinals is probably Himesaki High. Whether they can win is…”
“Sure, Himesaki’s strong, but Tamaki Commercial’s tough too. We’d know best—we played a ton of practice matches with them.”
With that kind of conversation, we finished changing (side note: we come to the venue in our school uniforms, not in tracksuits—though that’s not really important), rode the bus driven by Uesugi-sensei back to school, put away the gear we’d used for the match, and wrapped up the day’s club activities. That was where we disbanded for the day.
＝＝＝＝＝
The next morning, Sunday. I was watching a certain entertainment news program that I normally wouldn’t watch, together with my family—or rather, with Ryou-nee and Hina, who live in the same house as me.
“So, is Yuuri really going to be on this show today?”
“That’s what they said yesterday, but…”
“When you think about it, they didn’t even spend half a day editing it. Being a pro must be tough.”
Just as we were talking—
[And now, it’s time for our next segment: Shine Bright! Future Top Athletes!!]
[Today we’ll be introducing a rising star who suddenly appeared in the world of Japanese women’s volleyball!]
Oh, the introduction’s already starting…
Wait, hold on! When did they even film that!? The TV screen showed a close-up of me, right before hitting a spike.
[Once called Japan’s signature sport, volleyball has struggled in recent years due to rule changes and the increasing size of players, making it hard not only to win medals but even to qualify for the Olympics.]
[But the one who may be able to turn things around is the player we’re introducing today: Tachibana Yuuri. She’s a first-year high school student who, believe it or not, only started playing volleyball after entering high school.]
And so, my segment began.
On screen, I was giving rather awkward, very amateur-like answers, but the reporter did a great job making me look good.
[—What’s amazing about her is, above all, her jumping ability. Let’s take a look!]
Oh! That’s the scene where they asked me to jump a little so they could see my jump height—right after the match, in a corner of the arena while we were cleaning up.
After that, the male reporter from the TV station also tries to jump like me, but even though I’m shorter, I end up hitting a much higher point.
Yeah, makes sense. Volleyball isn’t all that familiar to the average person, so unless you show what’s so amazing, they wouldn’t really get it. That’s probably why, even though the matches happened first and the interviews were afterward, the TV broadcast put the interview first and then showed a digest of Saturday’s two matches.
That definitely makes it easier to understand. As expected from the pros.
But more importantly…
Huh? Was I always this… cute?
The me on the screen, jumping and giving awkward answers—
Well, I looked really cute.
“? Yuuri? What’s wrong?”
“Yuu-chan, your face is all red! Did something happen?”
“……”
This is kind of embarrassing…
I mean, it’s not like I’m a narcissist or anything…
Back in the summer when I was on TV, it was just a minor appearance, and I wasn’t really conscious of it—partly because it was a kind of shameful moment where I ended up showcasing my completely flat chest in a swimsuit to the whole country. So I didn’t really watch it much. But seeing myself like this now…
Hmm. I think I can kind of understand why Hina and the others are always calling me cute…
“S-So, like… am I really… this cute?”
Ryou-nee and the others gave me a “What is this girl even saying?” kind of look before replying:
“Well, it’s hard to see yourself objectively…”
“I keep telling you, right? When I walk next to you, I end up looking like your sidekick.”
They said it with an exasperated expression.
Even so, it’s not like I knew that before, and honestly, it’s kind of embarrassing—
[Tachibana Yuuri had never played volleyball before, but the one who got her into it was the team captain, Asuka Tohira.]
!!
[Yes, normally she’s serious and really committed to practice—]
An interview with Asuka came on the screen. No way! What is this…!?
[And what is the private life of volleyball prodigy Tachibana Yuuri like? We asked her teammate—and older sister—Hina Tachibana!]
Oh no, here it comes…
Next up was Hina.
[My little sister’s always a bit of an airhead. Just the other day—]
I’m sorry. Even if only for a moment, I thought I was a beautiful girl…
The program showed Asuka and then Hina, and both of them looked super cute. Not like me. Since I see them all the time, I don’t really notice, but yeah—they’re really pretty. The show kept emphasizing that all three of us are first-years, but seriously, could they not? I look totally plain in comparison. But it’s not that I don’t have curves! It’s just that those two are the weird ones!
“…So Hina-nee is cuter and prettier than me after all…”
It’s official now. I already knew, but the national TV broadcast just confirmed it again.
“Huh? What are you talking about, Yuu-chan?”
“I just needed to confirm the truth. Hina-nee is definitely cuter than me. Even through the screen, she totally looks more adorable.”
Cuteness is all about comparison.
There’s this term, “princess of the otaku club,” right? It’s used for girls who stand out and become popular just for being female in places where there are barely any girls.
But what if the reverse is true—if you’re surrounded by cute girls?
That’s exactly my situation in the volleyball club.
Earlier, I was confident enough to think, “Wait, am I actually a pretty girl?”—but in the looks hierarchy of Matsubara Girls’ volleyball club…
First place has to be Hina.
People might say I’m biased because I’m her sister, but I’m convinced she’s the prettiest girl in the whole school, not just the volleyball team.
Next are probably Asuka or Mirai. Asuka’s face is already gravure idol-level pretty, and her figure has serious curves. Mirai’s taller than me, but when it comes to cup size, she’s actually one of the smallest in the club—but she has these stunning legs.
So the top three in looks are definitely those three. After that, it probably depends on personal taste, but generally, extreme height (either tall or short) can be a turnoff, so someone like Mana might have the broadest appeal.
Reiko and Kaori are tall, and I’ve always thought they look like models.
Yuki is tiny but busty—an attribute that hits the mark for a certain crowd…
Needless to say, everyone has a good face.
…
I’ve tried not to think about it until now, but maybe… I’m actually the least attractive one in the volleyball club…?
“W-What’s wrong, Yuu-chan?! You suddenly look so down…”
“Yuuri? Are you okay?”
“I’m not okay… It’s not fair. Everyone’s cute, and I’m not. This is like being publicly humiliated on national TV…”
No good. I really feel like crying now.
Also, each of the team members gave a one-liner on the show, and if you think about it from the viewer’s perspective…
“They showed that mixed-race girl first and I thought she was cute, but I was wrong.”
“Everyone except the mixed-race girl is cute.”
“That girl they showed last was really cute. The mixed girl at the start? Total warm-up act, lol.”
That’s totally what they’ll be thinking!!
And this was broadcast all over Japan.
Too cruel…
I tried explaining this tragedy to the two people in front of me, but—
“Why is Yuuri’s self-esteem so low, I wonder?”
“The only thing that’s really awful is what’s going on inside your head, Yuu-chan…”
For some reason, neither Ryou-nee nor Hina took my plea seriously.
＝＝＝＝＝
That broadcast, it turns out, was seen by more people in our area than expected.
Even though there wasn’t any special promotion or anything, when I went to the shopping district at lunchtime to buy groceries—
“Yuuri-chan! I saw you on TV!”
And—
“So you and Hina-chan play volleyball, huh? When’s your next match? I’ll come cheer for you!”
—stuff like that happened. It was a huge hit.
And little did we know, that big response would end up helping us out the following week.
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