Most of the Karasuno team was scattered around the pushed-back benches and the gym floor. Tanaka and Nishinoya were reenacting a receive with exaggerated sound effects near the net. Daichi and Suga were talking quietly by the equipment cart, occasionally glancing over the group with a captain’s and vice-captain’s fond supervision.

And on a worn maroon couch that had been dragged from the club room, Tsukishima Kei sat. One long leg was crossed over the other, a book open in his lap. The white cords of his headphones trailed to his phone on the cushion beside him, a silent barrier against the celebration.