Baseball and the Azure Blue Sky

Chapter 16: A surprise for the Baseball Idiots

"Yes, Takako-senpai!" the other three managers replied obediently.

"Girls, I'm sorry to cause you so much trouble. It really is so much extra work although you're already working so hard every day. I wish I could've made it a special beautiful Christmas surprise for you as well", Sora apologized genuinely making the female managers blush.

"I'm certainly glad that you asked for help this time, Sora. We may have not so much contact, but also we managers have been worried about you when we heard that you had collapsed during practice because of a fever", Fujiwara said looking at the other three girls who suddenly made serious faces as well.

Sora fidgeted on her seat uncomfortably.

"Agh, right. I'm very sorry for that as well..."

"Great, then let's go and convince coach and the staff members", Umemoto grinned widely while standing up from her chair and raising her fist into the air.

The others followed suit, raised their fists, bumped them together and let out something similar to a battle call.

"Seidou, go fight!" Sora yelled.

"Fight!" the girls shouted as an answer and then started giggling together.

"Ah, I'm so jealous! I want to be on the team too!" Tomoko complained on the phone, causing the others to laugh even more.

"Oh, no worries, you already are, Tomo-chan. Thank you again for helping us out. I know your Christmas and new year schedule is very tight even without our request", the blue haired girl stated. "Well then, see you on the 25th. And thanks again for postponing my shifts as long as I'm having training camp"

"Sure, sure! Come back healthy and full of energy! Have fun you guys and see you soon, Sora-kun! Bye-bye!"

"Bye-bye!" the girls echoed before ending the call with the café manager.

"You really have a nice boss", Yoshikawa commented while they were all leaving the classroom to make their way to Takashima's office.

"I know, right. Tomo-chan's an angel! I'm very lucky to work for her. Otherwise I couldn't keep up with the school and the baseball schedule plus the curfew"

"But I honestly gotta say I'm positively surprised about your attitude towards girls, Sora", Natsukawa remarked with a little impish smile and nudged the blue head with her elbow. "You're always such a gentleman. That's completely unusual for guys our age. And especially those baseball dorks. Only matches on their mind the whole year, Gee!"

"Aw, c'mon don't be so strict with 'em. They're all good guys at heart!" Sora responded, grinning back at the girls, but Fujiwara nodded seriously with a slight blush covering her cheeks.

"Yes, I agree on that"

Luckily for the little group, Takashima and coach Kataoka granted them permission for their plans and the female scout agreed on organizing a Christmas tree with Oota for the evening of the 25th. With a car it would be easier for the two adults to get the big conifer into Seidou's cafeteria.

The next two days however, Sora experienced the true hell on planet earth. Well, technically the unofficial name for the winter training camp was also the hell camp, as well as the Seidou summer camp and the blue haired girl had known that from the beginning, but comically enough she still wouldn't have expected it to be that bad. The blue haired girl was used to training very hard. She had trained with two teams and with her brother and still had done additional pitcher practice after all. Maybe that was the only reason Sora actually survived those two days. Suddenly she really wanted her fever back... Her whole body was aching and she could feel muscles and parts of her body she didn't even know she had them before.