At the Finish Line [Haiji Kiyose] - Run With the Wind

two - "run in the rain"

They glance between each other, shaking their heads in response and Haiji claps his hands.

"Okay, that's it for tonight. Good training from you all."

They thank him for the food, leaving the kitchen in their own time and heading back to their rooms for the evening.

Once it's just Kakeru washing up the dishes, he turns to Haiji sat at the table writing down on his notebook. "Haiji-san?"

"What's up?" He asks, continuing to jot down the latest lap times of each team member.

Kakeru dries his hands on the tea towel, a frown on his face. "You're sure you feel okay?"

Haiji laughs. "Of course. Why do you ask?"

"It's just... You were exhausted." Kakeru shrugs. "You only took one day off, so I just thought..."

"I'm fine, Kakeru." Haiji smiles at him. "Don't worry about me. This is the happiest I've been in a long time --training everyone."

Opening his mouth to answer, Kakeru purses his lips, nodding in response to Haiji, who closes his notebook and stands up.

He wanders over to the doorway, lifting the blue curtain to see Musa and Shindo. "Were you two going for a run?"

Shindo nods. "We were going to go back out in the rain, work on our endurance."

"Is that okay, Haiji-san?" Musa questions.

"It's important to get plenty of rest for your muscles to repair," Haiji informs them. "But if you want to go then I won't stop you. Just be careful of cars and pedestrians."

The two nod, making their way down the hall to the cubby holes, grabbing their trainers.

Haiji turns back around, taking a seat back down at the table and turning through the pages of 'Monthly Track and Field' magazine. "Oh, hey, Kakeru?"

He nods to Haiji, who opens his mouth to reply, when Musa and Shindo run into the kitchen, holding their shoes in their hands.

"Haiji-san, there's someone outside by the hedges," Musa tells him.

Eyebrows raised, Haiji places the magazine down, standing up from the chair and following the two through the hallway and to the open front door.

The two stand to the side for Haiji to look outside and he squints his eyes to focus. "Is there?"

Shindo nods. "We could see clearly when a car drove past."

From behind the three, Kakeru leaves the kitchen with Nira running next to him. Wagging her tail, Nira races past the four and outside into the pouring rain.

"Nira!" They chorus as she runs over to the hedges by the road. She barks excitedly and gains the attention of the mysterious figure.

"I wonder who it is." Shindo places a finger to his chin.

Pulling his shoes and raincoat on, Haiji steps outside. "I'll go ask."

Carefully making his way through the muddy ground, Haiji shields his face from the rain with his hand and calls out to Nira.

The dog wags her tail as the stranger pets her back, glancing at Haiji with her tongue hanging out of her mouth.

"Hello?" Haiji shouts as the rain hammers down harder.

The figure turns around, standing up abruptly and Haiji catches a glimpse of her face.

"Crap, sorry." The girl shakes her head. "I didn't mean to sit outside your place, I'm waiting for a bus."

"It's raining really hard!" Haiji laughs. "How long have you got to wait?"

She glances down at her phone, stuffing it back into her coat pocket. "Another hour or so!"

Turning back to the other three at the front door, shrugging to them, Haiji scratches Nira's head and looks to the girl. "That's a long time to wait!"

"I know!" The girl huffs.

A gust of wind brushes past and her hood flies off, making her groan in annoyance as she attempts to pull it back over.

His eyes widen, tilting his head to the side to try to look at her face again. "Wait-- Yoshida? Chiyo Yoshida?"

She raises an eyebrow, pushing the damp hair out of her face as she turns to him. Placing a hand out to stop the rain from hitting her face, she raises her eyebrows.

"Huh --wait, Haiji? Haiji Kiyose?"

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