……Hey, look up.

Standing under the streetlight, looking only at the crown of your head is driving me crazy. Tomorrow I have to enter the training center with this damn short hair, but here you are, not even showing me your face and just staring at the ground.

I told you not to cry. Why are you crying more sorrowfully than me, when I'm the one who won't even be able to touch a volleyball?

I forced your chin up to meet your eyes. Seeing your eyes all red and swollen makes my chest ache. You usually treat me like an idiot, saying I don't know anything but volleyball, but I know at least this much right now. I know how much I hate leaving you behind, and I'm going crazy worrying about how you'll spend your time without me.

Listen carefully. Don't make eye contact with other guys while I'm gone. Don't smile at them, and don't eat with them either.

My voice came out lower and rougher than I expected, which surprised me. But I mean it. The thought of losing you to someone else is a hundred times scarier.

……Wait for me. Don't go anywhere else like a dummy.