Chapter 40: My Beautiful Underclassman Manager’s Love Life.

The intercom at Takumi’s house rang with a cheerful chime. On the screen stood a girl with deep, ruby-red hair cut into a short bob, a carefree smile on her face. It was Kana.

This is starting to feel like a routine on club days, Takumi thought.

(Well, I suppose this relationship will end once Kana completely overcomes the trauma of being harassed by Takeoka-senpai.)

With a faint pang of loneliness in his chest, Takumi headed to the front door.

“Mornin’!”

Kana greeted him energetically.

“Morning. You look even more like an athlete than usual today.”

“Mornin’ muscle! I wanna be super popular with the guys!”

“I think you’re already more than popular enough.”

“Wait, does that mean you think I’m an attractive woman, Takumi-senpai!?”

“I’m not denying you’re attractive, but that was just an objective observation—”

“Whoa, you’re not denying it! Score!”

Kana thrust her fist high into the air.

“Maybe listen to the end of the sentence? Don’t let your guard down.”

“You should be the one to be honest, Senpai. If you push yourself too hard, you’ll sink. I mean, your nipples will.”

“Don’t you mean ‘inverted’ for nipples? Wait, that’s not what I’m talking about.”

“Look at you, Takumi-senpai, making dirty jokes too!”

Kana burst out laughing.

“Of course I’ll make a dirty joke now and then. I’m a high schooler. I only banned the really suggestive stuff. If I hadn’t, I’d have punished you a hundred times by now.”

“Hmm, that might not be so bad.”

Takumi silently put some distance between them. Kana slid closer, step by step.

“I’m joking, Senpai~!”

“No, I mean, everyone has their own preferences, so I think it’s fine. Even if you happen to be a total masochist, Kana.”

“I said I’m joking!”

“I know.”

Takumi chuckled. Her reaction was a perfect ten—the kind that deserved an award.

“Good grief… What kind of person teases a popular, beautiful girl like this?”

“It’s amazing how you can say that without it sounding like a brag. Honestly, how many people have confessed to you since you started at Sakura High?”

“Hmm, let’s see. I think I’d need to be the Thousand-Armed Kannon to count them all.”

“Wait, even the Thousand-Armed Kannon couldn’t do it?”

When Takumi played the straight man to her joke, Kana smiled with an air of satisfaction.

“Spoken like a true Takumi-senpai… But in reality, I think it’s about thirty people.”

“That’s incredible. You never felt like dating any of them?”

“Yeah. None of them really clicked… I mean, I’m happy they confessed, though.”

Takumi was impressed. Her refusal to date just for the sake of it showed her underlying sincerity.

“Maybe you have a thing for total weirdoes?”

“Who knows. It’s true my type might not be the ‘classic’ choice. More like a ‘hidden gem’ type.”

“The way you said that makes it sound like you have someone specific in mind.”

“…O-Oh? Takumi-senpai, are you that curious about my love life?”

Kana asked teasingly. He wondered if he had just imagined the split second of agitation that crossed her face before she spoke.

“Of course I’m curious.”

“Wait, does that mean—”

“There isn’t a senpai alive who wouldn’t be curious about the love life of a close underclassman. Besides, if you have someone you’re interested in, it’s probably better if I don’t let you into my house anymore.”

“…Takumi-senpai, do I look like the kind of loose woman who would come over to your house while I’m in love with someone else?”

Kana looked a bit displeased. Takumi panicked.

“No, that’s not what I meant. Sorry, I phrased that poorly.”

“It’s fine. I was just being a little mean, so don’t worry about it.”

“Oh, okay… Wait, does that mean I did something to deserve you being mean?”

“…Why are you only sharp at times like this?”

“Huh? What?”

“Nothing~!”

Kana abruptly looked away. Then, a moment later, she turned back to Takumi with a smirk.

“And what about you, Takumi-senpai? You tell me I can come over whenever I want, but you don’t have a harem of girls hidden away, do you?”

“That’s a scary way to put it. Rest assured. I don’t have any girls who would want to be part of a harem to begin with.”

“Ehh, you say that, but I bet you’re secretly popular. Maybe with the girls who aren’t the center of the class, but are a bit mature and philosophical.”

“That’s very specific.”

“Didn’t you get quite a few chocolates on Valentine’s Day?”

Kana poked his side playfully.

“Not really. Including the people who give them to everyone and the managers, it was ten. They were all just courtesy chocolates.”

“It’s so like you to remember the exact number, Takumi-senpai.”

“Well, regardless of the reason, they took the time to make or buy them for me.”

“Hmph. You really do live up to being a self-proclaimed gentleman, don’t you? Impressive.”

“I don’t think many girls use that meme phrase, do they?”

“Exactly. That’s why whenever I say it, I end up being cast out as an O-U-T-C-A-S-T.”

Kana put extra emphasis on the word outcast.

“…Like an outcast beast?”

“You caught on!”

Kana held out both her palms. Takumi gave her a high-five, hitting them just a bit harder than usual.

“Anyway, I was about to let it slide, but I only strive to be a gentleman. I’m not arrogant enough to proclaim it myself.”

“Wait, what are you going to treat me to?”

“I didn’t say I was treating you to anything.”

While letting out a wry smile, Takumi suddenly remembered his promise to Reiko. The offer to treat him to a meal to celebrate his promotion to the second string wasn’t just a whim or a social nicety; they were currently coordinating their schedules.

Between the second and third strings—and since she had to look after her younger siblings—it was proving difficult, but Reiko was being quite proactive about making it work. Her comment about wanting to try treating an underclassman for once might not have been a joke after all.

“Senpai, what’s wrong? I’d understand if you were captivated by my beauty, but I’m not over there, you know?”

“Hmm? Oh, no, it’s nothing.”

He trusted Kana, but since he had promised Reiko not to tell anyone, Takumi remained vague. Thankfully, Kana wasn’t the annoying type who would try to force information out of someone when they were clearly hiding something.

From there, the conversation shifted to the skill levels of the second-string players.

“Captain Nihei is truly amazing. He has a terrible personality and he’s incredibly smart.”

“By ‘terrible personality,’ you mean as a player, right?”

“Exactly. He’s definitely a good senior, but he’s the type to relentlessly do whatever the opponent hates most. If he were an enemy in a scrimmage, he’d be a total nightmare. He’s reliable as an ally, though.”

“I’m interested.”

“You play with a bit of a mean streak yourself sometimes, despite that cute face, Takumi-senpai.”

Kana grinned.

“‘Cute face’ was unnecessary, but I don’t dislike using underhanded tactics. For a player like me especially, I have to use every tool at my disposal.”

“I think that’s super important. In that sense, you’re a bit like Nacho, Senpai.”

“Ah, yeah. In terms of positioning and role on the team, we might be similar. I could never be as cunning as him, though.”

He was referring to the Spanish defender who supported Real Madrid for many years—a player for whom the word “intelligent” was truly fitting.

“Well, you couldn’t exactly call Nacho a ‘clean’ player, even as a compliment.”

“True.”

“Also, besides the captain, Niijima is definitely skilled.”

“Ah, I see.”

He was a first-year who had been promoted to the second string at the same time as Kana. His name was Niijima Haruhiro. He was a boy with idol-like good looks; his handsome face and the fact that he had been promoted to the second string so quickly drew parallels to Nishimiya Makoto—the third-year first-string star often called “The Prince,” who commanded immense popularity among the female students. While their playing styles differed, rumors said Haruhiro was already being called “The Second Coming of Makoto” and had already amassed a certain number of fans.

“Is his skill really that far above the rest?”

“Technically… yes. But mentally, he’s incredibly immature. He hasn’t changed since he started school; he still looks down on others, and I don’t like him.”

“That’s rare. For you to say something like that, Kana.”

She didn’t usually go out of her way to say she “disliked” or “hated” someone.

“He acts like he’s the most important person in the world. I hate that kind of delusional type the most,” Kana spat out.

(…She’s probably thinking of ‘him.’)

It was easy for Takumi to guess. “Him” referred to Takeoka, the former third-string captain who had relentlessly harassed Kana. The reason her words were so harsh was likely because she had always hated that personality type.

“Well, personality clashes happen. I won’t tell you to be best friends, but try to get along well enough. You’ll probably be seeing a lot of him.”

“Right.”

Kana nodded with a serious expression.

“But make sure you say ‘no’ to things you don’t like.”

“You sound like a mom sometimes, Takumi-senpai. Do you have an unusually strong maternal instinct? Do you produce breast milk?”

“Well, no one else has ever said that to me, so I wouldn’t know. But maybe it’s the environment here that forces me to act like a mother?”

“I see. So you’re saying I’m a brat? Very well… this means war.”

“Fine by me. Rock-paper…”

““Scissors-shoot!””

Takumi threw paper; Kana threw rock.

“Yep, I win.”

“W-Wait! That was totally your pace, that’s cheating! One more time!”

“I’m not sure if ‘pace’ is the right word, but sure.”

“Hmph, look at that confidence. I’m going to wipe that smirk off your face.”

Kana blew on her fist for luck.

“Here we go. Rock-paper…”

““Scissors-shoot!””

“…Yeah, I had a feeling.”

Again, Takumi threw paper and Kana threw rock.

After Takumi won three more times in a row, Kana finally offered her surrender.

“Takumi-senpai, if you don’t learn how to go easy on people without them noticing, girls are going to hate you.”

Thus, she offered him her sage advice.

“Ahaha, sorry, sorry.”

Takumi laughed it off. He couldn’t exactly tell her that he had tried to lose on the fifth round, but he had misread her move so badly that he ended up winning anyway.

***

“Shirayuki-san—”

As they began to see a few other Sakura High students, Takumi switched back to using her surname while they talked. Suddenly, he felt a gaze on him. It was Haruhiro. When Takumi turned his eyes toward him, Haruhiro quickly looked away.

“Ta… Senpai? What is it?”

“No… it’s nothing.”

Haruhiro’s attitude was anything but friendly. Takumi had a premonition that trouble was brewing, but he told himself he was likely just biased because of what Kana had said.