The next day, you were seriously thinking about staying in bed and skipping class. Even when your mom forced you out of bed and sent you out, you were still thinking of just not going to school. Maybe find a bench and sit on it all day while scrolling through your phone. Yet your muscle memory took you on the same path you'd take everyday. You were out of breath, and as you saw the school building in the distance, you felt this knot growing inside your stomach. The baseball team's words echoed in your mind and it made you grip your bag's straps tighter. How are you supposed to present yourself after that? Do you just give up? Or do you keep on being agressive?
'Wonder which one of these option is the most pathetic...' you sighed.
"(L/n)-san!"
Someone behind you placed their hand on your shoulder. You felt your heart drop and immediately turned around with a glare that could kill.
"Don't fuckin' touch me!"
"Keeee!" the poor young man jumped back. "I-I'm so sorry! I called out for you a couple of times but you didn't respond I'm deeply sorry!" he bowed a bunch of times.
You recognized him from the club room yesterday, he was even holding a football. Meanwhile, the students passing by you two were feeling bad for him as you kept glaring at him. It would seem you've picked option two without even realizing it, going back to your default setting of being Deimon's little imp.
"What do you want?" you sternly asked, folding your arms and taking a step back, creating a distance between you two.
"I'm sorry." he stood back up, scratching the back of his head with an awkward smile. "I just saw you going to school and I thought that...maybe we could go together." he tried looking at you, but your glare made him look away. "S-since, you know, w-we're club mates now."
Your face twisted in cringe.
"That doesn't mean we're besties, even less that we have to talk to each-other now."
"Y-You're so right! I'm so sorry for assuming!" he bowed again.
'This has to be an act. No one is *that* awkward.'
"But...I never got to introduce myself." he stood back up and smiled more genuinely. "I'm Kobayakawa Sena, it's nice to meet."
"Did I ask?"
"Ah! N-no, you're right! I'm sorry!' he bowed again. "I'll try not to get in your way anymore!"
You clicked your tongue and turned back around. You silently walked the rest of the way with Sena not far behind. At some point, you glanced back and could see him holding the football from multiple different angles. It made you wonder, was this guy a player? He was built like a stick.
You approached the school gates and suddenly froze.
"Huh?" Sena noticed and stopped as well, looking ahead. "The baseball team?" he mumbled.
As soon as you saw the guys from yesterday, walking towards the school as well but from the other side, you completely forgot about Sena. At that moment, a million scenarios of what your next step would be went through your head. Meanwhile, they were talking to each-other.
"Ayo, where's the ball boy?"
"He arrived earlier to practice."
Hiding, running away, the one that you leaned towards the most was setting the record straight and actually punching one of them. But you literally didn't have the strength to do that.
"Man, as if that would change anything."
"Still, now we don't have to take all the equipment out. That's less work for us."
Maybe you could jump onto them, crushing them Kurita-style.
"He is a good handyman for sure."
"He really is!"
They began to laugh, but stopped midway and froze when they saw you. You gulped and praised yourself for the beginning of this nightmare, ready to put up a fight. But then, their faces became paler, they began to shake like leaves.
"We're... We're so sorry!!!" they shouted at the same time before running inside the school.
Now that was an unexpected turn of event that left you extremely confused, same for Sena as well. Curious, he walked up to be beside you, to ask about what just happened. But then he saw you taking a deep breath, looking relieved.
"Are... Are you okay?"
"Now what did you say?!" you pointed at him and glared.
"T-To not get in your way!" he leaned back.
"Exactly, keep doing that!"
'I just escaped a situation. No more slip ups from here on out!'
"I'm sorry..." he mumbled.
With narrowed eyes, your gaze lowered to the football in his hand. You nodded towards it.
"What do you do?"
"Ah." he looked at it. "I'm a runni-I mean!" his eyes darted around. "I-I just... run the club's management. Yeah that's it, I'm just the manager, along with Mamori-neechan!"
You looked up and down at his frail body.
"Sounds about right."
That pierced through his chest like a giant arrow with 'WEAK' written on it. With a small huff, you walked in the school, leaving him behind.
'Still got it.'
Though you were very happy that the baseball team seemed to have given up their plan to stop your 'reign of terror', you were still on your guard. Who knows, maybe they *did* spread the word and everyone was just keeping quiet about it. So you'd always glance around and keep an ear out for any nasty remark or mocking look, and the few you did spot, you'd retort with your usual method, and it'd shut them up, like always. Like nothing ever happened.
'Like nothing ever happened...' you thought in the middle of class.
Yes, you were glad for that but still, the question lingered: what made them change their mind? Your eyes landed on Hiruma, sitting a few seats diagonally ahead of you. He was reloading a bunch of his guns with ammunition he'd take bullet by bullet from a small pile on his desk. He'd do that whenever he wasn't listening in class, to pass the time (the teachers would never dare to ask him to stop). Either that or he'd study his own american football strategies. You sighed and looked out the window.
'It'd make sense if it was his doing.' you thought, looking out the window. 'He wouldn't want my problems to affect the whole club, now that I'm a part of it. That's all there is to it...'
As soon as the bell rung, announcing the end of class, Hiruma stood up.
"Oi~! Impie!"
"Impie?!" you glared at him as he walked up to your desk with a big smile and two guns (as he does). "Quit it with that!"
"It's time for club meeting."
"Club meeting?" your classmates started to whisper. "So (Y/n) *was* looking for a club." "And she picked the American Football club." "Why? To both those statements." "What does she even do?"
"Oi!!!" you glared at everyone. "Mind your own business you noisy rats!" a smirk formed on your face. "If you have any questions, why don't you ask the club leader huh?!"
"Yeah," Hiruma turned towards everyone. "why don't you ask me~?"
He cackled as a dark energy emanated from you two. Everyone squealed in fear and ran away.
'Now we know why she joined! These two are demons!' they all thought.
Now alone, he looked at you.
"Come on, let's go already. Anyone who's late gets punished!"
You huffed, frowning.
"Fine, fine," you stood up and walked passed him. "whatever."
"Kekekeke~!"
He kept giggling all the way to the club room.
'What's got him so giddy today?' you thought, not daring to look back. 'Probably the fact that he has a new member, though I'm not even a player. He must be glad to have another pair of hands to work for him.' you sighed through your nose.
Once you reached it, you needed a moment to catch your breath. Hiruma waited for you before going inside. Before then, the door opened and Sena and Mamori stepped out, she quickly stood in front of him to protect him from the two 'delinquents'. You quickly stood straight and acted like nothing was wrong, which made Hiruma snicker.
'Oh boy.' Sena thought. 'I gotta be careful not to make her angry-'
"Ah~! (Y/n)-chan!"
You all looked over to see Kurita running towards you, looking very happy. He stood in front of you and held your hands.
"I'm so happy to have a new friend!" he said with a big bright smile while shaking them. "Welcome! Let's go to the Christmas Bowl together!"
"Ku-Kurita!" Sena yelled, worried about him. "She doesn't like it when people touch h-What the heck?!" he exclaimed when he saw the look on your face.
You knew Kurita was a genuine sweetheart, so when he says stuff like this, you really believed him. So here you were, blushing, with stars in your eyes and your eyebrows furrowed. No one has ever told you such nice things before.
"Y-yeah!" you stuttered, with no harshness in your voice whatsoever. "I'll try my best!"
"Yay~ new friend! New friend!" he happily chanted.
You did your best not to cry.
"What in the world?" Mamori covered her mouth, just as surprised. "Is this really the same person? (L/n) (Y/n) is known by everyone in Deimon to be a heartless imp."
"If that's how everyone says you are, all the time," Hiruma said, not looking away from you. "how else are you supposed to act?"
Sena's eyes widen and he looked back at you, remembering your run-in with the baseball team this morning.
'Something must've happened.' he thought. 'And I don't think it was her fault...'
"Oi~ Impie."
"Stop calling me that!" you glared at him. "I'll shove your own flamethrower down your throat! You'll be shitting flames!"
'She's back!' Sena and Mamori thought.
"Focus will ya?" he gestured you to come closer. "We gotta get to work. That goes for you too Fatty."
Kurita chuckled and happily approached the group, you followed him.
"So, are they ready yet?" he snatched a poster from the pile Mamori was holding.
"Hey!" she glared at him.
He unrolled it and you all looked at it. 'Eyeshield 21; Two touchdowns against Ojo; The Hero of Notre Dame comes to play for Deimon!; "Join me on the field!"; Now accepting members!' was written on it, along with a picture of Eyeshield, and a little map of the school showing where the club room was.
"No way!" Sena exclaimed.
'Notre Dame...? Is he French?' you thought of asking, but stopped yourself. 'Don't ask! Don't let them think you're interested in that stuff!'
But that reminded you of something. You looked around.
"Eyeshield's getting the punishment. He's late." you clicked your tongue. "Does the ace player think he's too good to bother?"
"O-oh I don't think he-"
"Kekekeke! On the contrary!" Hiruma smiled. "He only showed up when necessary! We're not risking showing his true identity! His legs are ours!" he cackled.
"Creepy." you said as Sena gulped.
"Anyway," Hiruma tossed the poster to him. "We need more real members who practice with us every day. As it stands now, we won't stand a chance in the Fall tournament."
'Fall tournament...? Oh yeah, and Kurita said they'd go to the Christmas Bowl. But they lost against Ojo...' you glanced at Hiruma but quickly looked away. 'Don't ask!'
"The first thing we need is someone who can catch." Kurita said. "We'll be in big trouble without a receiver to catch our passes."
"Someone who's as tall as possible. Height gives receivers an advantage."
'Makes sense.' you nodded.
"Alright!" Hiruma gave you all a bunch of posters. "Everyone slap these up all over the school!"
"Don't we need permission?" Sena asked.
"Just stick 'em up," he smirked. "you have *my* permission."
"Yeah, they're just posters." you said with a raised eyebrow. "Putting them on walls won't destroy the school, it's not like it's propaganda."
"Kekekeke! Not yet!" he added.
You looked away, stopping yourself from giggling. But a small snicker slipped out, and Hiruma noticed. His smile widened.
"Impie, you're with me." he told you as everyone went their separate ways.
"Huh? Why?"
"Consider this your tryout for the Devil Bats." he handed you his posters.
You obviously didn't want to take them, but the way he just dumped them on top of yours (since you were holding them with two arms like you'd do with a box) made it inevitable. You had to hunch over a bit at the suddenly added weight.
"You motherfucker." you said between your teeth. "I'm not-!"
"These posters combined weight approximately three kilograms, same as last time" he explained, his hands on his hips. "If you can manage to keep up until it lowers down to one, you pass. And you can go on your merry way."
"Same? Last time was two!"
"Nope. The bar weights one kilo. As a warmup, people tend to only lift the bar of dumbbells or barbells, because it's also heavy."
You blinked twice, surprised.
'So...I actually started with tree kilos.'
It didn't sound like much, but it still made you really happy to know that. You pursued your lips to not smile in front of him, before adjusting the posters in your hands and straightening your back. Yeah you did suspect that he just didn't want to carry them himself, but still, you wanted to take that challenge.
"Bring it on." you said with a determined look.
His smile widen and he chuckled. The two of you went around the school together, Hiruma would stop, pick a poster from you to stick on the wall, plastering them on the entire announcement boards, then on to the next one. Sometimes he'd even take down other clubs' posters to replace them. Anytime someone would object, having the two of you stare at them would be enough to make them flee. You would think just holding posters would be easy, but when you're walking non-stop, going up and down stairs, it becomes tiring. And for you, it was painfully exhausting.
Throughout this 'tryout', Hiruma would never slow down, no matter how tired and out of breath you were feeling. Weirdly enough, you appreciated the fact that he wasn't going soft on you, as expected of him.
"How you holding up so far Impie? You want me to slow down for ya?" he looked back and asked with a silly voice.
With the way he said it, anyone could assume he was mocking you. But you've known him long enough to tell that it was just his way to motivate someone. You chuckled.
"Oh fuck off." you smiled, frowning. "Keep walking!"
"Kekekeke!" he walked away. "Keep your back straight!"
You straightened your back, you didn't even realize you were slouching. Thankfully, as time went on, the weight you carried became lighter, and since it was gradual, you got used to it and you were eventually able to easily keep up with him. Now that you had the energy to think, you became pensive. He noticed.
"If you got questions, ask." he said as he put up a poster on the wall.
Your eyes widen slightly, were you obvious, or was he sharp? You didn't know.
"...What's up with that Fall tournament?"
"You saw, we lost against Ojo." he faced you. "We lost our chance at the Spring tournament, but there's a second one in Fall, and it's the real deal." he smiled. "Only the winner of the fall games can enter the Christmas Bowl, we have to win this one no matter what!"
"Oh~." you nodded slightly.
"And that gives you plenty of time to train too." he pointed at you, he would've poked you in between the eyes if you hadn't backed away.
"Me?"
"By the time we enter the tournament, you will become a full-fledged athlete!" he leaned closer. "And you will become a cheerleader!"
"I thought I was an *anti* cheerleader." you pushed his hand away.
"You gotta master the rules in order to break 'em Impie."
He began to walk again, you followed him.
"I don't know if you've noticed but, I'm not exactly the cheering type."
"Oh really?" he raised an eyebrow. "Could've fooled me with that little speech of yours last time."
"How-" you took a second, remembering that day was already embarrassing. "How was that cheerleading? All I did was talk shit!"
"Exactly!"
You frowned, confused.
"You'll get it eventually Cherry." he walked away.
You quietly gasped and touched your cheek, it was warm. Your frown deepened.
"Kekekeke! Congratulations, you've passed the tryouts!"
Finally, there were only a few posters left and the two of you have covered this whole side of the school with them.
'That wasn't so bad.' you thought, pretty proud of yourself.
"See ya later." he walked away.
"Wha-Hey! What the hell?!"
"What?" he looked at you with a raised eyebrow. "*My* posters are all gone, but *you* still have some." he pointed.
"So you *did* trick me into carrying your shit!"
"Kekekekeke! Think whatever you want! I know how many I printed, if I don't see that exact number by tomorrow, you'll be punished!" a dark energy emanated from him as he took out a shotgun.
You gulped and just glared. Satisfied with that reaction, he walked away again.
"We're meeting back at the club room once everyone's done."
You huffed and walked the other direction.
Since you both took care of that whole section of the school, you had to walk a long way, but after those painful couple of hours, it was easier than you expected. You went outside and passed by the sport field, where the baseball team was having tryouts. Seeing them made you frown. But then, you noticed that Sena was watching them.
'What is he doing?' you frowned. 'Slacking off?'
You lightly shook your head and went on your way, but only a few steps later a baseball flew past you, making you stop and yelp, and hit the wall beside you.
"(L-L/n)-san...?" you heard Sena said.
"Oh no." the baseball players said to each-other.
"What have you done you idiot?!"
"What?"
You went to pick up the ball before slowly turning to the team with unblinking eyes.
"Throwing baseballs at people now?" you said as you took slow steps towards them. "You guys have really stood low."
"We-We're sorry!!!"
"It was an accident!" Sena stood in front of you in a panic. "I swear!"
"And why're you taking their defense huh?" you glared.
"Huh? B-Because-"
"Oi~!"
You both looked over to see one of the players waving at you. He was short with a bandage on his nose, also his hands were HUGE, he was smiling widely and you didn't like it.
"Sorry 'bout that!" he exclaimed. "Mind tossing that back?"
Your eyes narrowed and landed on the trashcan on the other side of the field. Taking some momentum, you threw the ball as hard and as high as you could. You knew you could never land it, but at least the guy would have to walk a distance to go get it. That mild inconvenience you'd give him would be a win in your book. But instead, the guy caught it mid-air, and he made a weird monkey noise when he did. Sena gasped, and you would've too but you suppressed it and acted unfazed. Though your eyes did get bigger.
"Catch MAX~!" the guy said, pointing to the sky before smiling at you. "Thanks whoever you are!"
'He doesn't know about (L/n)-san?' Sena thought. 'I guess I didn't either...'
'I think I pulled something.' you thought, feeling a great pain in your shoulder but doing a great job at hiding it.
"Geez." you overheard a player say. "This guy catches well, but he can't hit or throw."
"Deimon plays complete baseball." the coach said. "We need players who can run, hit and catch."
"He could be a receiver." Sena said, looking at the monkey dude. "Don't you think?"
You looked at the guy, he was being scolded by the other players. But he took it with a smile and enthusiastically ran back to his position on the field.
'Keeee!' Sena screamed internally, only now realizing who he was speaking to. 'I spoke to her again!'
"...If catching's really the one thing he's good at." you turned and walked away. "Then sure I guess."
He blinked twice in surprise. He was really expecting another scolding. You looked back at him.
"And go put up those posters!" you nodded to the couple of them that he had. "Unless you wanna get killed by Hiruma!"
"R-Right! I'll do it!"
Your hands now empty, you went back to the club room. Sena came back soon after you. Him, Mamori and Kurita gave each-other a recap of where they went while you and Hiruma stayed in your separate corners. He turned on the tv, it was showing a highlight of the Devil Bats vs White Knights game. You watched as Sakuraba struggled to catch a ball. You did hear from Agon that he wasn't that good of a player, and after seeing Monkey-boy, you'd have to agree, that guy would've caught it like it was nothing. You felt your heart drop when you and your shitty disguise came up on screen.
"Oh yeah," Sena chuckled. "that girl really gave us a fright."
"She didn't have to be so rude." Mamori sighed, but smiled too. "But, it was nice to see that we had a supporter."
You turned away, hiding your face. Hiruma cackled loudly, which made them look at him, then at you.
"Wait...No way..." Sena hesitantly pointed.
"It was you?!" him and Mamori exclaimed at the same time.
You didn't say anything, your fists clenched. Hiruma cackled even loudly.
"Ah! I knew it!" Kurita smiled. "See Hiruma? I told you it was her!"
"I knew from the beginning Fatty." he leaned back in his chair. "You're all idiots for not seeing through that shitty disguise."
"I wanna die."
"Wha- (L/n)-san no! We're sorry!" Sena wanted to place a hand on your shoulder, but he didn't. "...Thank you."
You glanced back at him. He was smiling softly.
"We were all feeling really low but...Your words really motivated us to keep going until the end, even if we'd lose the game!"
"What are you saying Sena?" Mamori smiled. "You weren't even there, you were out to buy tapes and batteries."
"Oh! Y-yeah, you're right." he scratched the back of his head, awkwardly chuckling. "I just heard the other players talk about it."
You looked at him for a moment. His words made it click for you. Just like when Hiruma used mockery to motivate you, you did the same for them with your trash talk. You opened your mouth to say something, but turned away, choosing otherwise. The news then talked about the incident between Eyeshield 21 and Sakuraba. With how fast he was going, it must've been brutal.
"Unfortunately, due to an accident collision with Deimon's ace player, Sakuraba had to leave the field. Eyeshield 21 has release the following statement: 'Did you catch my Homicide Tackle? Accident schmaccident, I did it on purpose! I don't show mercy to people who mess with my run. If you don't wanna die, stay outta the way! Ya-ha!'."
"Is that what Eyeshield's really like?" Mamori asked.
"That's obviously you." you looked at Hiruma. "Who else says 'Ya-ha' like that?"
As a responce, he cocked a hand gun.
"Yup. You get in the enemy's head, you win." he said with a big creepy smile. "You gotta become their worst nightmare!"
"Oh is that why I'm here?" you raised an eyebrow.
"Where else would Deimon's Little Imp belong, other than the Devil Bats? Kekekeke!"
You sighed.
"Don't worry." Kurita patted Sena's shoulders, who looked devastated. "No one would take that seriously."
"Why are you comforting him?" you tilted your head.
"Huh? Uuuuh!" they both panicked.
"'Cause he's a wimp." Hiruma casually responded before changing the topic.
You raised an eyebrow, but didn't push it.
The next day after class, you and Hiruma were on your way to the club room when suddenly you saw someone running over. He took out two guns just in case, but you just stepped to the side and the guy ran passed you. On closer inspection, you recognize him as the monkey-boy from yesterday. You didn't know why he was running but he looked bummed out. You both shrugged it off and kept going. A short while later you passed by an announcement board, on it were the results of the baseball team's tryouts.
'Oh!' you stopped. 'He must've failed.'
"Mmh?" Hiruma noticed you weren't following him anymore and turned around.
He saw you looking at the poster and clicked his tongue.
"Oi! Don't you go looking for another club!" he walked back to you, looking angry.
"Say, in your notebook..." you looked at him. "do you have a monkey boy in there?"
He blinked twice.
"What are you on about?"
"That guy that ran passed us..." you pointed behind you with your thumb before telling him about what happened yesterday. "I know you said receivers should be tall, but from what I saw, he was way better than Sakuraba."
"Kekekeke! That's not saying much!"
Despite that, he took out his notebook from his pocket and began to flip the pages.
"Taro Raimon." he read. "First year student. Role model: Maseru Honjo, star catcher of the baseball team the Shuei Bears. Has dedicated his life to baseball in order to become a hero using catching."
"That is a...weirdly specific dream to have." you frowned slightly. "And I saw him play, catching's the only thing he's good at aparently."
"Kekekeke! How interesting!" he scribbled additional notes on the guy's profil. "He could be a potential candidate, that is, if he decides to quit baseball."
"Taro Raimon..." you mumbled as you looked for his name. "Third string."
"He's basically kicked out then." he put his book back in his pocket and placed his hands on his hips.
"What do you mean?"
"Third strings are replacements for the replacements. They're giving 'em a hint to buzz off."
Your eyebrows furrowed. From the little you've seen of him, he seemed to be really dedicated to this sport. All that for ending in third string... You couldn't help but feel bad for him.
"Well, now what?" Hiruma asked, making you look at him. "You want us to kidnap him?" he smirked, sounding excited at the prospect. "He did get kicked out of the team!"
"He didn't-Well, not officially..." you tilted your head and glanced away.
"Kekekeke~ if we see him, I'll have to....talk to him."
"That pause was way too long for it not to be suspicious!" you pointed at him. "You're doing this on purpose!"
He just chuckled and walked away.
"For now, we'll keep searching for players. And when it comes to receivers, I've got a plan." a spark lit in his eyes.
You were curious, but you knew you'd get your answer soon enough. Once in the club room, Kurita, Mamori and Sena were given flyers to hands out directly. And you were once again paired up with Hiruma. Or, to be clear, Hiruma paired you with himself.
"Here." he dumped a bunch of flyers in your hands.
"Wha-Again?!"
"Don't give me that look." he smirked, holding a rope with one hand and putting it over his shoulder. "We're going on the most exciting mission you know?"
You leaned to the side to see behind him. At the end of the rope was a big box on wheels, and that opened box was filled with footballs.
"And what is this mission exactly? Do tell."
"We're gonna test any potential receivers!" he cackled and walked away. "Come on!"
You frowned and followed, remembering to keep your back straight. The two of you went to the school's entrance and observed the students who were leaving for the day. Eventually, Hiruma taped your arm with the back of his hand.
"Candidate number one." he pointed at a tall guy.
He picked up a ball and suddenly threw it at him with great speed and precision, it hit him right in the jaw and he fell backwards. The sound it made made you wince. Hiruma clicked his tongue.
"Trash."
"H-Hey!" the guy stood up. "What's your proble-?!"
He saw who threw it, he apologized and ran away. Next, three tall students approached. Hiruma took three balls and threw them at the same time, it was really impressive. Two out of three were hit, the third one eventually caught it, but it was a messy catch.
"What gives man?!"
Instead of saying anything, Hiruma just took a bunch of flyers from you and dumped them all on him.
"So is this what we'll be doing for the next couple of hours?" you asked.
"You got a better idea? Besides, with a bit of luck, we'll run into that monkey-boy."
You sighed, your shoulders dropping a little bit. This went on for a while, lots of people were hit, very few could catch.
"You attack them without warning," you said at some point. "of course they'll miss."
"I'm testing their reflexes." he said. "See if someone can catch it single-handedly." he handed you a ball. "Here, you try this time."
You put the flyers down and took it, he pointed at a really tall guy. You threw the ball at him and he didn't manage to catch it.
"Oh come on!!!" the two of you exclaimed.
"That one was so slow!" you gestured towards him.
"If you can't even catch a pass from her then you got no chance on the team!" Hiruma added.
"Get outta here!"
The guy ran away, confused as hell, and the two of you sighed, disappointed.
"We're done for today." he said once there was no one left.
"Monkey-boy didn't even show up..."
"Even if he didn't, we'll definitely get a new receiver tomorrow." he said as he walked back to the club room.
"Mmh!" you nodded.
"Oh~? So you agree?" he smirked, glancing back at you. "We're doing this again tomorrow?"
"Uh, yeah." you frowned, leaning back a little bit. "That's what I said."
"Kekekekeke~!" he kept walking.
"Weirdo." you mumbled before following him back.
The next day, at the club room, you noticed that Sena had a baseball glove with him.
"...Did you steal that?" you asked, a bit baffled.
"What?! N-no!" he quickly shook his head, waving his hands. "Monta left it behind, that's all!"
"Who?" you frowned.
"Rai Montaro. The...the baseball player from yesterday."
'Taro Raimon? Rai Montaro... He got his name all mixed up.' you chuckled.
"Ah-!"
"Kekeke! It suits him better anyway!" Hiruma said before Sena could process what the hell he just witnessed.
He placed stacks of flyers on the table.
"Smother everyone who's tall with tons of posters!" he said as he took one of them.
"I hope we find a receiver..." Kurita said as he picked up another stack.
"Hiruma?" Sena asked. "Does a receiver *have* to be tall?"
"No, not really." Kurita responded.
"Is it a problem in football if you're only good at one thing?"
He seemed very invested in that monkey boy.
'Did something happen between these two...?'
"No dingus, it's the opposite." Hiruma smiled. "We *want* people who're only good at one thing. Everyone's a specialist in football. Like he's a power guy," he nodded towards Kurita. "Eyeshield's the one that runs, and Impie screams a lot."
You would've scream 'hey! Fuck off' but you didn't want to prove him right. Still, your pout gave away your entire thought process, which made him snicker.
"Even the professional teams are like that." Kurita smiled.
Sena's face lit up, he then grabbed his bag and the baseball glove before running away at full speed.
"Holy fuck he's fast!" your eyes widen.
"That's what being a gopher your whole life will lead you." Hiruma casually said.
"A gopher...?"
"Sena!" Mamori called out.
"He didn't take any posters..." Kurita mumbled.
"I'm pretty sure he's going to see Monkey-boy."
"Monkey-boy...?" Mamori and Kurita were confused.
Hiruma smiled and went back to the table, putting the flyer back down.
"Alright, let's go."
"Uh...Where?"
"We're gonna pick up our new receiver." he grabbed a football and walked out.
'Is he planning on doing what I think he's gonna do?!'
"That doesn't answer the 'where' part." you said as you followed him while the other two put their stacks back down.
"After yesterday, I got some additional information on the guy." he took out his notebook and showed you one of the pages with a big smile. "I know the route he takes everyday to get home. That way we can take a shortcut and catch him quickly."
"What the fuck?!"
You did see a small map on it, but he closed it and put it back in his pocket before you could read anything. What you never knew was that, not even Kurita ever saw what was inside that book, so just catching a glimpse was like a medal of honor.
"Um..." Mamori said as her and Kurita followed you two. "What is happening exactly?"
You explained the whole situation with Monkey-boy. She looked surprised that you didn't call her names or anything.
"...You're very different than I thought you were (Y/n)."
"The fuck is that supposed to mean?!" you glared at her.
"You're nicer."
Your eyes widen. Not knowing how to respond to that, you just looked ahead and kept walking, your cheeks red. She smiled.
"You're doing okay there Cherry?" Hiruma glanced at you with a smirk.
"Shut your trap."
"Kekekeke!"
Eventually, the four of you stopped once you saw Sena and Monta, the latter of which was crying while the other one was handing him his glove.
"They won't even let me be ball boy... I'll never play pro baseball!" he sobbed. "My catching isn't enough to make me a hero."
He fell to his knees and cried. Your eyebrows furrowed, feeling your heart aching for the poor guy.
"Well..." Sena kneeled beside him. "Does it have to be baseball? We need someone who's good at catching on our team. How about-"
Monta snatched the glove away from him and stood up.
"I've dedicated my life to this!" he shook the glove. "You expect me to just switch to football because I can't hack it at baseball?!"
"B-but it'd still be catching-"
"Just go away! It's over! I had to wake up from my dream! It's over!"
That made you frown.
"All over..." he used the glove to wipe his eyes and walked away.
"Are you serious?!" you stepped forward. "Hey! Monkey-boy!"
"Monkey?!" he stopped and glared at you.
"Does Sena expect you to just switch sports? Yes! You dedicated your life to catching, not baseball! Let me tell you something about the baseball team, they're a bunch of cheating assholes! And if they can't even acknowledge your efforts then they're also blind!" you pointed at him. "You're gonna give up everything just 'cause one opportunity of being a hero didn't work out for you?! That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard! You'll never be a hero with that attitude!"
"What do you know?!"
"I know that I'm only starting to learn what hard work is, and giving up is *not* it!"
"(L/n)-san..." Sena looked at you with big eyes.
"You wanna be a sad loser, go ahead. But meanwhile you got a team who welcomes you with open arms and you're gonna say no?! You really have a monkey brain, Monkey-boy! Sure, go ahead, get outta here! This team is not for people who quit!"
Monta clenched his fists.
"Sh-she's right- N-Not about that last part and the insults!" Sena stood up and panicked before getting more serious. "Why does it have to end? Baseball's not the only sport where catching can make you a hero! You can be a receiving hero, playing football! I... We... We need you!"
There was a moment of silence. Monta clenched his fists.
"Shut up... I said leave me alone!" he ran away.
"Monta!"
"Ya-ha! Think fast Monkey-boy!" Hiruma exclaimed before throwing a football towards him at full speed.
'He actually did it!'
Monta looked back and, startled he caught it with one hand. You gasped.
"Single-handedly?!" you pointed at him while looking at Hiruma.
"Too bad. Without the drive, you couldn't handle it." he smiled before walking away.
"He's outstanding though!" Kurita stood in front of him. "Are you sure?"
Hiruma just blew a bubble gum and walked passed him. You looked at Monta, who was looking down at the ball, before rushing to catch up to him.
"What happened to the kidnapping thing?" you quietly asked.
"No need. He'll come to us willingly."
"He didn't look convinced. How can you be so sure?"
"'Cause he got a pep-talk from the anti-cheerleader."
Your eyes widen.
Back home, you replayed today's events. It made you curious about something, so you went to your computer and looked up:
"Maseru Honjo..." you mumbled as you typed. "Shuei Bears..."
The results that came up were a bunch of videos of his best catches and interviews. You picked a random one.
"Great great Honjo!" the journalist said. "I'd say the Bears' win today was thanks solely to you, wouldn't you agree?"
"Oh, of course not." he smiled. "I'm only the player I am because I have the support of my teammates, because we need each-other."
"Teammates... It does sound nice." you sighed.
"A good team has to communicate, share their strengths in order to exploit them, and their weaknesses in order to work passed them. There needs to be a sense of comradeship. If your teammates can't be friends with each-other, then it is bound to fail, in my humble opinion." he chuckled.
You stayed silent for a moment before turning off your computer.
"Hey!" Mamori rushed in just as practice was about to start. "Why does Sena have to play receiver at practice?!"
"Because we don't have enough people." Hiruma said. "He'll be a receiver or a lineman or whatever I tell him to be."
"No way! And why's (Y/n) there too? She's not even a player!"
"None of your business mom!" you exclaimed. "Are you gonna ask me to clean my room next?!"
"Kekekeke! Good one! Ready?!" he prepared the ball. "Set, hut, hut!"
You, Sena and Kurita started running while looking behind you. The ball was thrown high in the air.
'There's no way either of us could get it!'
Just then, Monta jumped out of nowhere and caught it mid-air. He landed and rolled around a bit before striking a pose, pointing towards the sky. You gasped when you saw his football uniform.
"This is how you catch!" he exclaimed.
"Monta!" Sena smiled as he walked up to you three.
"Number 80, just like Honjo." he smiled. "I'm in!"
"Another teammate!" Kurita's face lit up.
"Really?!" Mamori rushed over, along with Hiruma.
"Ya-ha!"
"Oi, your name's (L/n) right?" Monta looked at you and smile. "Thank you."
"Huh?" your eyes widen.
"Your words, though they were harsh, they reminded me of something important: Dedication MAX, determination MAX!!!" he stroke a pose. "So, thank you... And you can insult me all you want, calling me lame or whatever, I can take it! Because I will definitely become a catching hero!" he rose his fist in the air.
"Hurray~!" Sena and Kurita did the same.
Your mind went blank for a second there. That was like the fourth time someone said something nice to you since you joined this club.
'No way. Are these guys...actually being nice?'
"You're welcome." you quietly said.
"Huh?" they all looked at you.
"I-Uh..." you nervously grabbed the edge of your shirt, blushing, your eyes darting around. "You're welcome."
'Who are you?!?!?!' Sena thought. 'The switch in personality is still unsettling!'
"Oh~ I think I get it." Monta hit his fist in the palm of his other hand before whispering to Sena. "She's so used to verbal fights that she can't handle compliments."
"I had the same thought." Mamori chuckled.
"I...I never really introduced myself." you looked down, your eyebrows furrowed. "My name is (L/n) (Y/n), I'm a second year, it's...It's nice to meet you all." you bowed. "I uh..." you stood back up, blushing and looking away. "I'm sorry if I hurt anyone. It kinda became second nature after a while." you looked back at them with a more determined look. ""I...My strength is trash talking but... I'm not..." you pursued your lips. "I'm here to workout. 'Cause I wanna get better, stronger. And...yeah." you looked away again.
Everyone smiled.
"She's kinda cute when she's being all shy." Monta chuckled.
"Don't push it Monkey-boy!" you gave him a death glare. "I will push you back to the jungle hole you came from!"
"Keeheee! Sorry!!!" he jumped back.
"Alright!" Hiruma exclaimed with a big smile. "Time for a special dish, Cerberus!!!"
Suddenly, Hiruma's dog came out of nowhere and started chasing after the, all except Hiruma. And also you, for some reason. But you were glad, you loved that dog. And just because you weren't fearing for your life didn't mean you weren't trying your best to keep up.
"Did you know?" Mamori asked Hiruma, the two of them standing on the side of the field.
"Mmh?" he hummed, while still looking ahead.
"About (Y/n). Did you know she wasn't as mean as she appeared to be?"
"You're saying you wouldn't call her mean? That's the main reason she's in this team in the first place."
"Is that so?" she smiled.
He looked at her. A moment of silence passed before he looked ahead again.
"'Course it is."
'I can't help but think something else is going on.' she thought, but decided not to press it.