Sora was completely lost! Like, she didn't even recognize the area she was in. And she didn't have her phone with her. Of course at a time like this... The blue haired girl cursed and started wandering around aimlessly. Maybe she'd be lucky enough to find a bus stop or a train station. There weren't many people around as well, so she literally had not much of a choice as to keep walking.
She had been in the wellness center with her family when her mom had asked her to run a quick errand for her. Just buying some ingredients she'd need for dinner later. Without thinking much of it, Sora had happily agreed and since getting to the konbini was much easier with the bus instead of walking there, she had hopped on and thought she'd arrive there in no time. Sad to say since the young girl still didn't seem to know all her ways in Tokyo properly, it had been the wrong bus...
Long story short, instead of noticing she was lost right away when she had gotten off of the bus, Sora had walked around and wondered why she wasn't able to find the damn konbini and hence she had completely lost her way by now. She couldn't find back to her original bus stop where she had gotten off and she also had no idea where the heck she actually was in general, so that was that.
As a huge fence came in sight, the young girl could hear earsplitting, feral laughter along with loud smashes. She tilted her head with curiosity. That somehow sounded kinda familiar...
"I wanna blast it away!" a raspy voice shouted. "Nada-senpai, I'm gonna blow it out of the park!"
Wooosh...
Sora blinked. Nada-senpai?! Didn't she hear that somewhere before?!
She quickened her pace a bit and soon noticed that she had arrived at the very back of a High School baseball practice field. It was almost empty, except for two male figures who seemed to be facing off against each other. One of them pitching, the other one batting. And then also the realization who those two were hit her hard. She had seen them on TV after all.
The two boys were Todoroki Raichi and Sanada Shunpei and this meant that this place had to be Yakushi High School. Sanada was their ace pitcher, while Todoroki was some hell of a crazy good batter with a monstrous swing for just a first year. Not that this new information actually helped the young girl in her current situation though.
A cold wind blew and swept her sky blue, long hair. Sora shivered. She was only wearing some black thermo-leggings and an oversized dark blue and white striped long-sleeved shirt, since she was dressed for the work inside of the wellness center. When her mom had asked her to go shopping for her, she had just thrown on her dark gray coat, had slipped into her black knee-length boots and left the building in an attempt to hurry up and be back in only a few minutes. How wrong she had been... Without a scarf, gloves and a warm winter cap or earmuffs it was certainly freezing cold in Tokyo in January.
Nevertheless, something about the two boys playing baseball with each other was captivating her. Despite being cold and lost, Sora stopped directly in front of the fence and watched as Sanada pitched ball after ball towards Todoroki who swung his bat at full speed. Every ball he made contact with, flew high and wide, even if it was a foul. There was an awful lot of homeruns he hit there, but the skills of the ace pitcher were the real deal as well. He sure knew how to get his job done properly! A very scary combo, the blue head thought. And Seidou would have to face them again for sure.
"Do we have a fan, princess?"
"Whoa!"
Sora flinched in surprise. She had been so lost in her thoughts that she hadn't even noticed that the black haired Sanada with his punky hairstyle had gotten closer and was now leaning against the fence with one arm. He let out a soft chuckle.
"Sorry, sorry, didn't mean to scare ya"
The shorter, brown haired Todoroki was keeping his distance in the meantime, munching on two bananas simultaneously, one in each hand. Sora could clearly see the x-shaped scar on his cheek and she wondered what could've happened to him.
"Ah, no that's absolutely fine. It wasn't your fault, I was spacing out"
"So, did you come to watch our practice today?"
"Huh? Oh, uhm... No. Not exactly. I mean you two were the reason I stopped on my way, but you weren't the reason for me being here in the first place"
"Mhh, mysterious..."
"Sorry, I don't make any sense right now. Let's just say I heard a lot of noise and came over because I was curious?"
"Oh, that makes sense indeed. That would've been our Raichi over there. He's kind of a savage"
"Yes, he has some nice swing. That's some scary batting he can do, seriously"
"Heh... So, you do like baseball after all..."
Sanada grinned widely at her, seeming happy about his discovery. Sora snickered along.
"You can say that. I have a bit of knowledge, too"
"Interesting"
"But I'm surprised that you're here. Don't you guys go home for new year and have a few days off?"
"Oh, yeah we do, but we're a public High School, hence no dorm system. Most of our guys are living close, so no need to travel far. We can use our compounds for individual practice as we see fit even if we don't have official practice with our coach"
"I see. That's rather convenient though"
Sora was kinda envious since the practice fields and also the indoor spaces at Seidou were always occupied somehow. If you wanted to do individual practice, you basically had to search for an open spot somewhere and if you were very unlucky, someone noticed you had found a place and followed you, so you most likely had to share.
"It is", Sanada affirmed, sounding proud.
Apparently going to a public school also had advantages like that.
"So, tell me princess, if you're not here because of us, then what are you up to instead?"
"Ah!"
Sora blushed in embarrassment, earning a cocked eyebrow and a mischievous little smirk from Sanada.
"Hm?"
"It's uh... kinda stupid, so promise me you won't laugh, please?"
"I'd never, I swear!" Sanada gave back in a playful voice. "A gentleman doesn't make fun of a troubled princess"
Sora sighed. He seemed like a good and trustworthy guy and she needed help anyway, so it was whatever.
"Me and my family moved to Tokyo not such a long time ago and I usually live in the dorms of my private High School, so I'm only home for the few days of new year", she started explaining with the black haired ace nodding along. "My mom asked me to run a little errand for her and I wanted to go to a konbini nearby. Since it's faster when you take the bus for the two stops rather than walking the distance, I hopped on, but unfortunately it seems like I still don't know my stuff around here. It was the wrong bus I took, so..."
"So?"
"So, I'm lost", the blue haired girl admitted meekly. "And because I thought it wouldn't take all too long, I don't have my phone with me either..."
The young girl avoided his intense gaze and flushed even deeper than before. This was seriously mortifying! Sora had her pride and usually she was pretty independent and could handle herself just fine. She wasn't the type of girl who'd need someone else taking care of things for her all the time.
"Now, now this is nothing to be so embarrassed about", Sanada tried to soothe her with his dark and soft timbre and flashed her a reassuring smile. "And also nothing to laugh at. If anything, I'd like to help you out if you'd let me?"
Finally, the blue haired girl dared to lock eyes with the ace again and returned the smile with one of her own.
"That'd be very nice, thank you very much"
"Ah, right. I haven't introduced myself properly yet. I'm Sanada Shunpei, Yakushi's ace and my shy teammate over there is Todoroki Raichi. Forgive him if he doesn't talk to you, he is so awkward around people and especially strangers that all he ever does is blushing and stuttering"
"Eh?!"
"I know, I know. Unexpected, isn't it? It's the complete opposite of how he behaves on the ground or whenever he's up to bat"
That wasn't just unexpected, that was crazy! Did the dude have a split personality or something?! But then again it was an explanation as to why Todoroki was keeping his distance despite staring at his senpai and Sora with a curious glint in his dark eyes.
"You can both call me Ao-chan. Everybody does", Sora offered, not exactly able to give away her real name to other baseball players she would have to face as the male Sora.
Luckily for her, Tomo-chan had come up with the idea to give all her employees nicknames related to their character colors and Sora's was blue, hence she was Ao-chan when working at the café. This fit the anime, manga and cosplay theme of the café and it was also for personal safety and privacy, so that all too pushy customers wouldn't know the names of the waiters and waitresses. Discretion was quite a thing in this business and it came in handy for her because she could use it also outside of the café to keep her secret identity at Seidou as a male baseball player. No one seeing Aoki Sora in the press or in TV would associate that with the female Ao-chan working in a cosplay café after all.
"Heh, a nickname? That's cute. And it fits you perfectly. Alright, Ao-chan, you can call me Shunpei"
He winked at her and Sora chuckled at his flirty personality.
"Hey Raichi, come over say hello. Don't just stare at her, that's rude!"
With a bright red face that reminded of a ripe tomato and very stiff movements, Todoroki slowly came closer and eyed Sora up and down before he took his base cap, lifted it und gave a short, but polite bow as a wordless greeting.
"Nice to meet you, Todoroki-kun", the young girl gave back very friendly, not wanting to scare him off.
If it was actually possible, the young batter grew even more red, expanding the color not only over his face, but also his ears and his neck. He averted his gaze and lowered his head a little bit, but he started fidgeting on his spot restlessly, nudging Sanada with his elbow. The black haired boy sighed and shot Sora an apologetic glance.
"He probably wants to tell you that you can call him Raichi. Everyone on our team calls him by first name"
Dear Gods in heaven, that was so cute! Shy Todoroki was honestly cute as hell! And it kind of triggered a protective instinct. Sora had the urge to cuddle him all of a sudden.
"Alright then, Shunpei and Raichi it is", the blue head agreed curtly.
"Perfect", Sanada confirmed, smiling. "Okay, so how about the two of us have a quick shower and we let you inside the building to warm up a little until we're finished. Then we can escort you home"
"Ah, no, no, you don't have to accompany me. Just giving me directions would absolutely suffice..."
"No can do, princess", Sanada interrupted her firmly. "Gotta make sure you get home safely and that you don't get lost again"
Todoroki only glanced between his senpai and Sora a little confused, because he hadn't heard the former conversation between the two of them.
"I'll explain later", the black haired assured his teammate with a pat on his shoulder. "Now let's go shower"
The young batter nodded obediently and tagged along like a little duckling. Sora had to suppress a girly squeal because that scene was so damn cute again. That Todoroki boy sure was precious.
To get into the school complex, Sanada had to open a door in the fence for her and also the entrance door of the big building they entered so the boys could wash up properly after their practice. Sora got a drink from a vending machine while waiting for them and sat down on a nearby bench. She blew her warm breath on her cold fingers and rubbed her hands together.
"Are you cold?"
Much faster than she had anticipated, her two saviors appeared in the hallway again and Sanada stepped behind her to put one of his team jerseys around her shoulders additionally to her coat. They were both in proper winter jackets and boots and looked ready to go.
"Thank you, Shunpei. And sorry for interrupting your practice"
The blue haired girl got up from her seat to follow the boys who shook their heads in perfect sync.
"But you sure had a shower very fast"
Sanada laughed and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.
"Yeah, once I had told Raichi what was going on he kinda dragged me along. Guess he really wants to help, too"
Awwww... Heartbreak!
"Thanks, Raichi. That's very nice of you"
The brown haired shy boy only blushed as an answer again and Sora avoided locking eyes with him for too long so that she wouldn't make him any more uncomfortable.
The little group made their way out of the Yakushi compounds and as Sora explained where she lived exactly, Sanada walked ahead and led the way to the next subway station. The blue haired girl had decided she wouldn't tell them about the wellness center to not make any unnecessary connections with her male self, like her family name, her family business or the two boys accidentally running into one of her family members who would definitely call her by her true first name.
"There's also a konbini nearby if you still want to go shopping for your mom", Sanada offered generously while the three teenagers were sitting in the subway together.
Sora waved her hands, once again trying to avoid causing any more trouble for her new acquaintances.
"I will do that by myself later!"
The black haired pitcher gave her a pointed look and crossed his arms over his chest.
"You sure make it difficult for us to be proper gentlemen, Ao-chan. That's not very nice"
"Ugh, fine..."
Not that she wanted to complain about chivalry...
They spent the rest of the short subway ride in mutual and comfortable silence and as promised, the Yakushi ace took Sora to the mentioned konbini so that she could get the ingredients for dinner for her mom. The boys even went as far as carrying her bags for her, despite her protests, much to her dismay.
"I'm perfectly able to handle myself when I'm not being lost!" she grumbled under her breath, causing Sanada to laugh.
"You're certainly an interesting girl, ya know"
"Because I'm trying to be independent?"
"Yeah, I mean any other girl would've used this situation to her advantage as much as possible as far as I can tell from experience"
"I've never liked girls like that, so I make a huge effort not to become one myself! I want friends, not errand boys"
"Heh, you're a nice and gentle one", the ace stated seriously, much to her surprise. "So, do we pass as your friends?"
Also Todoroki perked up listening silently to the ongoing conversation.
"...F-Friends...?" he rasped quietly with his husky voice.
It was the first time for Sora hearing the brown haired batter speak the whole day and she could've sworn to recognize a hopeful sparkle in his dark eyes before he averted his gaze again.
"Of course you do, what else would I call you?"
The young girl noticed Sanada's cheeky grin, Todoroki's happy blush and how both boys puffed their chests out in pride and seemed to grow a few centimeters taller right in front of her eyes. She suppressed a desperate sigh. First Narumiya, now these two! Her life was getting more and more complicated. She honestly had to watch out not to reveal her secret accidentally.
"Ah, hey you two, this is it. Over here!" she called arriving in front of her home after a short walk.
The blue haired girl jumped up the three stairs to the entrance door and pulled out her key.
"Come on in! You can put the bags into the kitchen"
They hesitated for a moment, but as Sora didn't look back at them after getting out of her shoes and her jacket and just kept walking into the house, the two boys followed suit. They put the shopping bags on top of the kitchen unit whereas the blue haired girl was already preparing some tea for her guests.
"You can sit down or have a look around. In any case, please make yourselves at home", she offered. "But you'll have to excuse me for a second, I have to make a phone call"
Since she didn't bring her smartphone, the young girl used the landline to call the wellness center and to inform her older brother about what had happened briefly. Ten promised to grab her remaining stuff in the center and to bring it back home after work later in the evening. Luckily, he didn't tease her too much for getting lost, the dark haired boy sounded rather relieved that nothing bad had happened to his sister. However, she still had to deal with two Yakushi players sitting in her living room now.
"By the way, Ao-chan, which High School do you attend?" Sanada asked curiously when Sora returned.
"Uhm, I'm a first year at Seidou High School with an academical scholarship", she half-lied and made the mental excuse that her age was still the one of an usual first grader after all.
"Eh?! Seidou?!"
Sanada's jaw dropped and Todoroki seemed to remember something. Or rather... someone.
"...Sawamura?..." he muttered shyly to himself.
"Ah, Raichi, you're friends with Eijun?"
That was news to her. Sora knew that Seidou had faced Yakushi and had also heard stories from Sawamura about it, but the brown haired pitcher had never mentioned a closer relationship to any of the guys.
Todoroki blushed once again and tilted his head to the side as if thinking about it carefully.
"Friends?"
"Right, you're most likely rivals huh?" Sora corrected herself. "Since Eijun is a pitcher and aims to be the ace and you're a batter"
"Rivals... Ace..." Todoroki repeated with enlarged eyes.
And then suddenly as if someone had pushed an invisible button, the brown haired batter jumped from the sofa laughing his crazy wild and loud laughter.
"I wanna smack his pitches so bad!" he cried at the top of his lungs, much to Sora's surprise and bewilderment.
"A-... Alright...?!" she deadpanned. "You sure are fired up when it comes to baseball it seems..."
"Kinda... sorry about him", Sanada sweat dropped and the blue head felt a strange kind of sympathy towards him, but also relief that she wasn't the only one who constantly had to apologize to people on someone else's behalf.
"Don't worry, I feel ya. No, seriously..."
"So, you're friends with some guys from your baseball team?"
"Yeah, I guess you can say that. We hang out every now and then when they have time in their tight schedules. I also help the first years studying and stuff"
Sora really tried very hard not to lie too much, so she was sticking to half-truths. Still, she felt bad about it because the two Yakushi boys were so kindhearted.
"Heh... Ain'tcha nice..." the black haired ace grinned widely. "I wouldn't have thought you're same age as Raichi though..."
"Shunpei, do you want to tell me that I look old?!"
The blue haired girl crossed her arms over her chest and raised an eyebrow at her fellow pitcher who almost choked on his tea.
"Wha-... No! No, no! Not at all. I didn't mean it like-..." he stopped, staring at her mischievous grin in disbelief. "You're teasing me!"
"Now you notice", she giggled, making him shake his head at her antics.
"You sure are something else"
Whoa, she had a déjà vu. Sora had said the exact same thing to Narumiya. She wasn't so sure if that was a good or a bad sign.
"Guys, I bet you have to be starving after practice, no? You wanna have some quick lunch?"
Stars and sparkles instantly filled Todoroki's dark eyes at the mention of food and Sora blinked a bit taken aback. So, the dude had two passions. Apparently they were baseball and food.
"That's not necessary, Ao-chan. I appreciate the offer, but we don't want to trouble you", Sanada said seriously, snatching Todoroki at the back of his collar who had attempted to make a beeline into the kitchen.
"Don't worry, it's my pleasure and my way of saying sorry and thank you again", Sora gave back lightheartedly. "Since I've actually been the one troubling you. Besides it won't be much anyway, I'm afraid"
Sanada sighed, scratching the back of his head.
"Can we help you with something?"
"You could behave like guests and leave things to me?!"
The dark haired boy gave her a flat look, causing the blue head to laugh at him. She held her hands up in surrender and waved them over into the kitchen.
Together the three teenagers produced a very promising omuraisu and a tossed salad while having fun chatting and preparing it. Luckily for them, Sora's cooking was pretty decent, so she could instruct the two absolutely clueless boys as to what to do. In any other case they would've been the lost ones this time for sure. Sanada and Todoroki couldn't have cooked a proper meal on their own to save their lives, much to the young girl's amusement. Still, they had offered their help, even going as far as insisting on it. Such sweethearts!
When they finally sat down to have their meal, Sora was amazed at the speed and the sheer amount of food Todoroki was able to basically inhale. She questioned multiple times if the guy was actually chewing properly and if this wasn't bad for his health. Sanada tried to calm her down, reassuring her that this was just the usual, but she had her doubts.
After lunch, the brown haired batter noticed the game console attached to the TV and was staring so intently at it that Sora asked him if he wanted to try it out, making him flustered once again, but he nodded fiercely at least. So, yes or no questions were much easier for him to reply to because he didn't have to speak. That was good to know but somehow sad and cute at the same time.
Sora taught Todoroki how to play and which buttons he had to press and was very surprised to learn that the young batter had never played a videogame before. Since they were too expensive and his dad was a single father, he just couldn't afford stuff like that at home.
Finally Sanada had to be the voice of reason once again, dragging Todoroki along as he excused himself after having played a few rounds. They both had met up to practice originally and Todoroki's father and also the coach of the Yakushi team didn't know that his son had left the school's compounds. Besides they only had showered very quickly and they also had to drive home with the bus or the subway, so the black haired ace decided to take his leave in the later half of the afternoon. Both boys could make it home in time for dinner and also Sora's family would arrive after work in the wellness center had ended for them, so the blue haired girl didn't have any objections.
She told them to come over some time soon again and exchanged phone numbers with the charming dark haired boy, promising also Todoroki that he could come back for more videogames if he'd like to.
As Sora waved her two newfound friends off at the entrance door, she considered herself very lucky to have been able to meet them.