Hinata remembered him. He remembered the smirk on his face when his own team of misfit toys was crushed by a powerhouse middle school. He remembered the way he would spit the word 'King' from his mouth whenever addressing that team that slaughtered him, but that boy was a one-man team, and he remembered the thought of being part of that team.

Kageyama remembered him. Though he cared not to admit it, he remembered the boy that soared on wings that never existed. He remembered the way that boy made him believe in people with wings. He remembered the boy's promise to beat him. He remembered the determination in his eyes, and the coldness in his own.

The day they stepped into the gym, neither of them expected to be reminded of their rivals. Neither of them expected to not be rivals. Neither of them expected, as they locked eyes, to be a powerhouse team in and of themselves, a powerhouse duo, a pair of aces.

Rivalry aside, Hinata really wanted to hit one of Kageyama's tosses. He remembered the sharpness, the speed, sheer power. Hinata wanted to prove that he could be there, that he could meet Kageyama halfway, that he could be Kageyama's other half.

Of course, he couldn't really receive a toss when neither of them were allowed to step foot in the gym. They would need to prove themselves to be a part of the team. Hinata would need to prove himself to Kageyama.

First, though, Hinata would have to be able to receive.

Kageyama didn't know what he was getting into with Hinata. He hadn't expected such a small boy to have such a large stamina-he was tossing nearly five hundred tosses to the boy during any breaks they got, and Hinata wasn't backing down. Kageyama liked to say the only reason he was doing it was so that they could get back to the gym. He liked to tell himself that Hinata would never be half of what his other teammates were, but Hinata kept trying, and Kageyama kept denying. He denied everything. He denied Hinata's strength and his ability to be a well-rounded player-that is, until one day.

"Hey," Hinata's chest heaved as he spoke. The two were leaning against a tree in the park they were practicing at. Sweat beaded on Hinata's forehead and he pulled his shirt up to wipe it away. They had just finished two sets of a hundred receives, and between Hinata running after askew receives and Hinata yelling about a toss being unfair, he was out of breath.

Kageyama glanced over at him. He was less tired, since he was only tossing; in fact, his insult-hurling made him out of breath more than the actual tossing did. "What?" he asked, cocking his head to the side with curiosity.

"It's the night before the match," Hinata mumbled.

"Yeah? So?"

"Can I come over tonight? To practice?"

Kageyama stared in disbelief. "You want to come over?" he repeated.

"Well, yeah," Hinata straightened up. He reached for the water bottle he'd brought, took a long drink, then continued. "I think it would be better to practice somewhere other than the park every night. This isn't necessarily the best part of town." He noticed Kageyama going pale and felt embarrassed for asking so suddenly. "I mean-we could go to my house-"

"I haven't had anyone over since elementary," Kageyama mumbled. Hinata started to apologize, but Kageyama cut him off. "Let's do it, only for tonight. We have to prove that we can work together to be able to get anywhere."

"Right!" Hinata beamed, and Kageyama wondered how this kid could always be so damn happy. He had the slight urge to smack the grin right off his face. Before he could, however, Hinata was running back towards the area they'd been practicing in, and Kageyama was trailing behind him.

"Oi, Kageyama, what's up with you?" Hinata asked. Kageyama hadn't been hurling his usual insults at Hinata, and he was starting to get worried. "Are you sick or something?"

"I'm not sick, dumbass," Kageyama growled. He tossed it hard to Hinata, and Hinata got a mouthful of grass as he dove for it. He hit it just over Kageyama's head.

"What's up with you, then?" Hinata responded as he stood up and brushed himself off. Kageyama frowned. Why was this boy so concerned?

"Nothing's up," he responded sharply. "One more set and then you go home. My parents will be home soon."

"Did you not tell them I was coming over? Is that why you're worried?" Hinata pressed the matter.

"Dumbass, I'm not worried! They just don't know you very well," Kageyama muttered. He tossed the ball to Hinata before he could get even nosier. Hinata received the ball, genuinely received it, and Kageyama's jaw dropped. He hadn't expected the boy to receive such a hard toss, and after three sets nonetheless. Hinata beamed like a ray of sun.

"How was that for a receive?!" Hinata squealed. Kageyama clicked his tongue.

"Right, that was one of how many?" he sneered. Hinata growled.

"Rude," he muttered.

They finished up their set just as the sun started going down, and Kageyama's mother pulled into the driveway. She got out of the car and walked across the yard to Kageyama to kiss his forehead. Kageyama blushed in embarrassment, and though he wanted to, he didn't push her away. "Tobio, who's your friend?" she asked, smiling over at Hinata.

Hinata bowed his head. "I'm Hinata Shouyou," he said at the ground.

"He came over to practice volleyball," Kageyama explained.

"Oh! It's so nice to meet you, Hinata!" she beamed. Hinata looked up at her and smiled back just as brightly.

"Sorry for the intrusion," he said. Kageyama's mother shook her head.

"It's not a problem! Tobio hasn't had a friend over since elementary-"

"Mom, Hinata was just saying how he had to get home," Kageyama interrupted. His ears were red with embarrassment.

"Oh, what a shame," she sighed. "Are you sure you can't stay for dinner?"

"My mother needs me home, but thank you," Hinata smiled politely. "It was very nice to meet you. See you tomorrow, Kageyama?" he called, already going to grab his bag off the porch.

"Alright," Kageyama agreed as he watched Hinata grab his bike from the grass where he'd dropped it. The two watched Hinata quietly as he began to pedal away. When he turned the corner and disappeared out of sight, Kageyama's mother nudged his side.

"So, what's so special about Hinata-kun?" she asked sweetly.

"Nothing," Kageyama muttered, but he knew it was a lie.

"Well, he's very nice. Tell him he's welcome anytime."

"This is a one-time thing."

"Hm?" She and Kageyama started towards the door. "Well, if it's a one-time, then tell him he's welcome one time," she joked. Kageyama clicked his tongue and rolled his eyes.

"He's the other boy who I'm playing with in that match tomorrow," Kageyama explained.

"Oh!" she cried. "You two seem to make a good duo. Maybe he'll be able to receive that tough set of yours!"

Kageyama tensed at the thought and his mother apologized quickly. "Sorry, sorry," she shook her hands in apology. "I'm making pork curry tonight," she changed the subject.

"Pork curry," Kageyama repeated with a dazed smile. His mother laughed.

"Tobio, will you help me get the groceries from the car?"

Hinata barely slept that night. He was too excited for his chance to really prove himself. Up until then, everything had been about Kageyama, and he wanted people to notice him too. He was Hinata Shouyou, for crying out loud! He could jump! He could...well, he could basically only jump, but he could jump pretty high!

He groaned into his pillow, wondering why he couldn't have been blessed with height like that jerk Tsukkishima or amazing skill like Kageyama. He wondered how different things would have been if he were one hundred ninety centimeters. He wouldn't be able to be just like the Little Giant. Would he even have looked up to the Little Giant? Would he even be attending Karasuno? Would he have lost that match against the King?

His spinning mind kept him up nearly all night. He stared at the clock as it neared three in the morning. His phone buzzed under his pillow, scaring him so much that he fell off his bed with a dull thud. He grumbled angrily and squinted at the screen.

It was Kageyama.

'R u awake?'

Hinata sighed. He had only given Kageyama his number so they could plan out when they would practice, and they rarely texted besides that. Still, he responded.

'cant sleep, wby?'

'Obvi neither can I since Im texting u'

'do u think well lose?'

'No way in hell Im losing to that jackass.'

Hinata held back a laugh. Kageyama sure was angry. He wondered if Kageyama was ever not angry.

'will u toss to me? ;)'

'Maybe if ur not a complete idiot on the court tomorrow.'

Hinata grumbled something under his breath and was about to respond when Kageyama sent another text. 'My mom says ur welcome to come over anytime, btw.'

Hinata was surely confused. Kageyama had told her it was a one-time thing, right? They only did that so they would be more prepared. 'i thought that was a one-time thing?'

'Well she really likes u.'

'oh well im glad :)'

'Im gonna try and get some sleep before the match. Dont screw it up for me.'

'ill try not to lol'

Hinata put his phone under his pillow again, expecting Kageyama to leave him on read, but a few seconds later his phone buzzed again. He opened the text. 'Goodnight.'

'night!' he responded, setting his phone on his bedside table. He glanced at the clock. 3:14. He sighed and closed his eyes, burying his face in his pillow. He had stopped thinking about the match and instead was thinking about hitting one of Kageyama's tosses tomorrow right in that smug Tsukkishima's face.