“Ah, there he is!” (Girl)
“Shirakawa-kun, you were amazing!” (Girl)
As I stepped out of the stadium after the game, a group of girls from my school, who had apparently been waiting, called out to me.
“Seriously, hitting three home runs is insane!” (Girl)
“As expected of our cleanup hitter! I want your autograph!” (Girl)
—No, wait, before I knew it, I was completely surrounded.
What the… is this…?
“Whoa… isn’t that more than three times the usual number of fans?” (Team Captain)
“Damn it, why is it always Kento and Shuuto…!” (Shouta)
“Captain, I want to be surrounded by girls too…” (Team Vice-Captain)
Hearing my teammates’ voices, I glanced over and saw the vice-captain, the captain, and Shouta watching me with envious looks.
Shifting my gaze, I spotted Shuuto in a similar situation, surrounded by girls.
Well, for Shuuto, this was nothing new. He’d probably shoo them away himself anyway, so that wasn’t my concern… but why me too…?
Up until now, only three or four girls would come talk to me after a game…
“Uh… thank you for your support…” (Kento)
Since they had been cheering for me, I decided to at least express my gratitude.
The moment I did, high-pitched squeals erupted around me, which honestly freaked me out a little.
Seriously, what am I supposed to do here…?
“――Everyone, my apologies. He’s tired, so could you please let him go?” (Nadeshiko)
As I struggled with the unfamiliar situation, I heard Kujouin-san’s voice from behind the girls.
“Kujouin-san…” (Kento)
“But…” (Girls)
Perhaps they couldn’t bring themselves to oppose Kujouin-san, as the girls suddenly fell silent.
With a gentle smile, Kujouin-san spoke again.
“Thank you for your support today. You’ll have plenty of chances to talk to him at school, so please feel free to approach him there.” (Nadeshiko)
With a flawless smile that left no room for argument, Kujouin-san effortlessly silenced the crowd.
Perhaps not wanting to be disliked by someone as popular as her at school, the girls quietly backed away.
…Isn’t her influence a little too strong…?
“You’re really popular, huh?” (Nadeshiko)
As the crowd of girls disappeared, Kujouin-san looked up at me with a slightly amused smile.
“It was so unexpected that I was caught off guard…” (Kento)
“It just means you’ve become a proper star player, Kento-kun. More importantly, your adorable imouto is waiting for you.” (Nadeshiko)
Saying that, Kujouin-san deliberately shifted her gaze in a certain direction.
Following her lead, I turned to look—and there, peeking out from behind the corner of a building, was Sophia.
…What is she doing…?
“Looks like she’s having trouble coming out because of the crowd. I’ll let the coach know, so go to her, okay?” (Nadeshiko)
“I appreciate the concern, but I can talk to her at home…” (Kento)
“I’m sure there’s something you two want to say to each other before the excitement of the game wears off, right?” (Nadeshiko)
I didn’t think there was any real need to talk right now, but Kujouin-san’s cheerful smile seemed to carry the unspoken message of “Stop complaining and just go already,” leaving me unable to argue back.
So, without protest, I headed toward Sophia.
“――Ah…” (Sophia)
As I reached her, Sophia averted her gaze uneasily, looking unsure of what to do.
She seemed awkward.
“Thanks for cheering me on. With this, Sophia, you’re officially the baseball team’s manager.” (Kento)
I wasn’t sure what was making her hesitate, but to make things easier, I spoke with a smile.
Hearing that, her expression softened into one of happiness.
She started twirling a strand of her hair between her fingers before slowly opening her mouth.
“I should be the one thanking you… This is all thanks to you, Kento-kun…” (Sophia)
“It’s because you worked hard, Sophia.” (Kento)
I had only helped a little. The reason she was able to join was because of her own hard work.
I shouldn’t let that go unnoticed.
If there hadn’t been any unnecessary interference, she would have been able to join the club through her own efforts alone.
――Can someone just deal with that homeroom teacher already?
As I was thinking about Kuzumine-sensei, Sophia suddenly fell silent.
She seemed off—restless, even.
Would it be better to give her some time?
We could always talk at home anyway.
“Sorry, I have to catch the bus. Let’s talk later at home.” (Kento)
I turned my back to her—
“W-Wait…” (Sophia)
She grabbed onto my sleeve from behind.
“Sophia?” (Kento)
Surprised that she was holding me back, I turned to look at her.
Sophia’s face turned bright red, and her teary eyes gazed up at me.
“I don’t want to let my feelings be noticed… so I’ll say it in English… Kento-kun, you were really cool today… And knowing that you worked hard for my sake made me really happy… Thank you so much…” (Sophia)
For some reason, she spoke in English despite not seeming flustered.
I understood the “Thank you” at the end, but… why English?
“Sorry, but could you say that in Japanese?” (Kento)
“…Sorry, I can’t.” (Sophia)
Curious about what she had said, I asked, but she simply shook her head with an awkward smile.
It seemed she had deliberately spoken in English so I wouldn’t understand.
“Did something happen?” (Kento)
Sophia sometimes acted strangely, but today felt different from her usual behavior.
When I asked, she simply shrugged.
“Now that I can be a manager, I feel like I can’t hold my emotions back… But more importantly, you have to go, right?” (Sophia)
She said that and gently pushed my back.
This really isn’t like her.
“It’s fine, I’m just thinking about what to do for now. I really, really appreciate everything you’ve done for me, Kento-kun.” (Sophia)
Sophia continued speaking as she pushed me forward.
I couldn’t see her face, but it felt like she was struggling with something again.
“If something’s on your mind, talk to me, okay…?” (Kento)
“I know. Right now, you’re the person I rely on the most, Kento-kun.” (Sophia)
I never expected Sophia, who usually isn’t so open, to say something like that.
That’s exactly why it felt strange—but after hearing her say that much, I couldn’t just brush it off.
“I see. Then feel free to continue relying on me anytime.” (Kento)
“Yes, I’ll do just that. Really, thank you.” (Sophia)
With those words, she let go of my back.
I turned around, wanting to see her expression, but she had already turned away, walking off as if avoiding the crowd.
…Seriously, what’s going on with her?
◆
<Sophia’s PoV>
A little over ten minutes earlier――
“Congratulations on joining the club, Sophia-chan.” (Nadeshiko)
After the game ended and Kento-kun spectacularly hit three home runs, Nadeshiko-senpai congratulated me.
Behind her, the three manager girls followed suit, offering their own congratulations one after another.
I bowed my head to thank everyone, trying to keep my cool, but inside, I was overjoyed.
After all, I had finally become a baseball team manager—something I had once given up on. Of course, I was happy. And more than that, I would now have even more time to spend with Kento-kun. That alone was enough to make my heart race.
From now on, our bond would grow even stronger――
“By the way… I didn’t really get a chance to bring this up earlier, so I might as well say it now.” (Nadeshiko)
While I was silently celebrating inside with my usual composed expression, Nadeshiko-senpai suddenly brought up something in a scary way.
At this point, what was she going to say…?
“Our baseball club has a no-dating policy… are you sure you’re okay with that?” (Nadeshiko)
“…Huh?” (Sophia)
For a moment, I couldn’t understand what she had just said.
Did I mishear her?
I must have misheard, right?
I could feel the sweat trickling down my back as I desperately prayed that I had misheard.
But――
“You see, since our baseball team is really strong, there are players who aim to be professionals in the future. Because of that, some girls try to become managers just to get close to them.” (Other Manager)
“Yeah, yeah. And since that could lead to unnecessary drama, the rule has been in place for a long time. It’s actually a pretty well-known fact at school.” (Other Manager)
“Kurogane-kun is really popular, but there aren’t many girls who aim to be managers because of that rule. Well, for us, we figured that if we got close as managers and built a connection, we’d have a better chance once they retired, so we went for it.” (Other Manager)
The three manager girls chimed in from behind Nadeshiko-senpai, hitting me with a harsh dose of reality.
What is this? No one told me about this…!
This is literally the first time I’m hearing about it…!?
And if it’s so famous, why have I not heard of it?!
“S-Speaking of which… what happens if someone breaks the rule…?” (Sophia)
With my throat dry, I somehow managed to squeeze out a question to Nadeshiko-senpai.
“If you break the rule, both the player and the manager have to leave the team… Ah, but as long as you’re not officially dating, it’s fine to hang out and stuff!” (Nadeshiko)
Nadeshiko-senpai added that as if to soften the blow.
It did not soften the blow at all.
You’ve got to be kidding me…!?
I had always dreamed of being the baseball team’s manager, and I had been waiting for this moment for so long!
But now, after joining, there’s a no-dating rule!?
Does that mean if I want to be a manager, I can’t date Kento-kun…!?
――I suddenly felt the overwhelming urge to withdraw from the team immediately.
But of course, after working so hard and receiving so much support from various people—especially from the person I loved—I couldn’t just quit now.
More than that, now that I had finally gotten my hopes up, there was no way I could give up on joining so easily.
So at the very least――
Why is this happening to meeeeeeeeee!?
――I could only scream inside my heart.
Yeah, I wanted to cry.
TL Notes:
Thanks for reading!
Oh…
The fact that she was only told of this after she joined is kinda cruel cause now she doesn’t have a way out.
I’m also 100% confident Nadeshiko doesn’t know much about love, otherwise, she would have probably noticed Sophia’s feelings and told her before the match and everything.
From what I’ve read, Sophia starts calling MC “onii-chan” to disguise her getting close to him as just sibling love.
Footnote:
- None