Singleplayer RPG

Chapter 5 - Using New Items

Lev flinched, not expecting to be so intimidated by Kenma. He nodded and Kenma stood up, walking back towards the net. After a moment of hesitation and exchanged looks of concern, the rest of the team got back into position to resume practice. Kenma was now a lot more focused on setting the ball, making the rest of practice go smoothly.

After practice, the team headed to the changing rooms. Yaku kept looking over his shoulder at Kenma, seemingly as though he has something he wanted to say, but he kept quiet, choosing to just smile at the conversation already happening. Yamamoto then cut across the chatter.

"So Kenma, why were you so distracted in practice?" he asked nonchalantly. Kenma, who was almost done buttoning up his shirt, flinched and slowly turned his head to face Yamamoto. He had a carefree smile on his face, but Kenma was surprised that he'd noticed. The clubroom fell silent. Yaku looked over at Kenma, his face shifting to one of intrigue. His fidgety temperament had shifted to one of relief. He tried to seem offended by Yamamoto's straightforward question, but it seemed like he was glad someone addressed the question instead of him.

Kenma anxiously stood there. He wasn't sure whether it was best to discuss his problems with Lev or whether he should pretend nothing was wrong. Kuroo looked over, noticing the look of dilemma on Kenma's face. He then grinned.

"Maybe Kenma's just mad that Lev has a terrible shot," he said snarkily, causing Lev to become restless. He frantically waved his arms around and the team just laughed at the situation. Kuroo then smiled at Kenma, who had a look of gratitude on his face. The team then finished changing and headed out. Lev, in a plot of redemption, ran a little ahead of everyone, then pivoted on his foot to look at them.

"Hey, why don't we all go to the arcade? You know, as a team bonding exercise?" Yamamoto's face lit up, along with the other other first years. Meanwhile, Kenma and Yaku's shared a look of disgust.

"Don't wanna," Kenma said bluntly, look down at his phone. Lev then ran up to Kenma, grasping his free hand.

"Please, Kenma-san! It'll be fun, I promise!" Kenma stood there awkwardly, before caving and letting out a sigh.

"Fine, we can go." He looked up angrily at Lev. "But you're treating me to some food. Got it?" Lev frantically nodded, seemingly excited about being able to spend some time with the team.

They all arrived at the arcade of Lev's choosing. Everyone seemed interested in trying different things, and before they realised, they'd all split off into groups. Kuroo decided that he'd follow Kenma where he went – it seemed Lev had a similar plan. The two of them, along with Lev and Shibayama ended up in the claw machine section. Lev seemed somewhat agitated, but he quietly stood there tapping his foot against the floor. Shibayama looked longingly into one of the machines, staring at a large plush, which Kenma identified as being My Melody from the Sanrio series. Kenma walked up next to him.

"Do you want me to try and get that for you?" Kenma asked. Shibayama looked up at him, causing him to nod his head while blushing out of embarrassment. He inserted a coin, then stepped to the side to let Kenma work the controls. The rest of the group watched Kenma as he calmly positioned the claw above the plush. The claw lowered, gripping the plush around its head, then carried it upwards. The team stared anxiously as the plush was moved through the air. The claw hovered, them released its grip of the plush, causing it to fall into to opening. Everyone around Kenma celebrated, praising him and asking him how he did it. Ignoring their praise, Kenma reached his hand into the chute, pulling out the plush before handing it to Shibayama with a soft smile on his face.

"Here you go." Shibayama held the plush in front of him, almost crying because of how happy he was. He then hugged the plush, grinning from ear to ear with glee. Kuroo looked over at Kenma with a look of pride on his face - he'd never really seen Kenma out himself out there for someone else, so it was a refreshing scene.