bluecastleace | PSL/Meme Continuation Post

Do you play any other sports?

Sports medicine would be a good choice for you, or even coaching. You'd make an excellent coach. You have just the right balance of kindness and firmness.

[Unlike a certain demon coach who basically lets his own wounded ego terrorize the team.]

Any science program is more about tenacity and self-discipline than pure intelligence, that's the thing. You spend so much of your time, energy, and mental strength on academics that the information can't help but stay in your head. The only ways to fail are slacking off or quitting.

[The compliment catches Iwaizumi a bit off guard - not so much the firmness part (he’s heard that plenty of times), but the comment about kindness. Kind of weird how this silly question game is making his chest feel warm.]

I’ll play any sport I can get my hands on, at least casually. Obviously I don’t have time to play for another team, but I probably would if I could.

Never really thought about coaching to be honest. I take that as a big compliment coming from you. [He does. Really.

[As for Shirabu’s answer, it’s intense as always, and impressive no doubt. Iwaizumi considers himself to be pretty driven, but this kid...]

I don’t know much about medicine, sport or otherwise, but I’m pretty confident you could do whatever you set your mind to, Shirabu.

Sounds corny as all hell, I know, but I mean it.

Ah, I see. It'd be fun to watch you play something else, even if I'm not very knowledgable about any other than volleyball. For some reason it's easiest to imagine you as a baseball player, or maybe soccer...

[Two things about Shirabu that tend to surprise people: he thinks a lot about the people he knows, positively and negatively alike, which is how he develops his very strong opinions of them; and more surprising, he's as free with his praise of those he respects and admires as he is with criticism of the opposite.

If they develop a deep, long-term relationship, Iwaizumi may have to adjust to Shirabu's capacity to gush.]

That's kind of you, but I've already failed at some of the most important goals in my life to date, and I'm sure there are more to come.

Determination's only one variable. So many others can block your path and refuse to move, and if you can't best them

Excuse me. That's not a very pleasant train of thought, we can leave it behind.

[Perhaps even more surprising is Iwaizumi’s ability to gush when he’s in the mood to do so - it doesn’t happen often, but despite how he might appear to others, he certainly isn’t one to ignore someone’s good qualities, especially when he cares about them.

[He’s learning that Shirabu has many of them. Even what appears to be self-doubt is grounded in practicality and astute recognition of his own deficits - everyone has them, after all. That doesn’t mean that Iwaizumi always agrees with him, but Shirabu certainly does make it a challenge to argue some of his points. He makes a good one there, as much as Iwaizumi would like to refute it.

[But aside from that, there’s something else he wants to say.]

You can talk about whatever you want to, Shirabu. I’m listening.

[There’s a pause, and then (just to lighten the mood a little):]

I do like baseball by the way.

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