Kicked Out of the Bottom Soccer Team, I Found My Strength Thanks to My Beautiful Junior Manager. What Began as a Simple Act of Kindness Turned into Her Coming Over Every Day. - Chapter 46: The Beautiful Underclassman Manager Connected the Red Thread of Fate (Physically).

Chapter 46: The Beautiful Underclassman Manager Connected the Red Thread of Fate (Physically).

“Man, you were on fire today, Takumi-paisen!”

“Thanks. It’s all because you cheered me up before the match, Kana.”

Takumi met the palm she offered—a size smaller than his own—with a crisp high-five. Kana, who had been assigned to Team A for the scrimmage, had encouraged him before kickoff, telling him, “I know you can do this, Senpai.”

“Oh stop, you’re gonna make me blush with talk like that.”

“Good grief,” Kana added, playfully swatting Takumi’s back. Her face was completely relaxed; she seemed to be in an exceptionally good mood.

“But Takumi-senpai, I did have one thought.”

“What is it?”

“In that play toward the end of the first half—the one where you received the vertical pass from the Captain and dropped it to Yamada-senpai with one touch? Given the time on the clock and the tempo of everyone around you, don’t you think taking a touch to trap it first would have been the lower-risk play?”

“Ah… good point.”

Recalling the situation, Takumi nodded repeatedly.

“You’re right, Kana. Thanks.”

“No problem! To the legendary manager Shirayuki ‘Ederson’ Kana, a detail like that is a piece of cake. Oh? Are you wondering if a perfect beauty like me actually eats cake? Senpai, even idols use the bathroom every day. How else do you think they maintain those tiny waists?”

“I wouldn’t know, but please don’t discuss that in my house.”

Faced with a relentless barrage of nonsense, Takumi abandoned any attempt at a proper retort.

“Wait, did you just call me a piece of—?”

“I did not.”

Kana let out a bright laugh.

“By the way, just for confirmation… Takumi-senpai, do you happen to have a fetish for girls—?”

“I don’t. And no more gross topics, please.”

“Yes, sir! Sorry.”

Kana raised her hand like an elementary school student.

“Good. Glad you’re honest.”

“Did you fall for me?”

“Totally. Head over heels.”

“Wait, ‘heels’? Like on a shoe? Or like a wrestling villain? Ah—I’m slipping! …Sorry, don’t glare at me like that, my energy is just a little weird today!”

Takumi’s gaze softened.

“…Well, it’s good that you’re energetic. You usually know where to draw the line, so I’ll let it slide this time.”

“…Takumi-senpai. I know I’m the one saying it, but aren’t you spoiling me a bit much? I’m scared I’ll get too full of myself and make you hate me one day.”

“I doubt I’ll ever hate you. And you’re my junior, after all. I’m going to be lenient.”

“Hmph. There you go treating me like a kid again…”

Kana pouted.

That right there is exactly why I treat you like a junior, Takumi thought.

“Well, you are younger than me.”

“Technically, yes! But if we were in the same grade, what kind of relationship do you think we’d have?”

“I wonder. At the very least, the reason we first talked would have been different.”

“True.”

The two of them had first spoken when Takumi guided a lost Kana to the park where the third string practiced.

“But I feel like we would have ended up talking like this eventually. We’re both unparalleled soccer nerds, after all.”

“That’s true.”

“It’s what they call the red thread of fate—”

Kana plucked a single strand of her own hair and touched it to Takumi’s head.

“Beep! Connection complete!”

“A physical red thread. That’s a new one.”

“Ehehe. Now Takumi-senpai can never leave m—”

“—Actually, I can. Quite easily.”

As soon as Takumi stood up, Kana’s handmade thread of fate snapped.

“Darn it! I should have grown my hair longer…!”

“Before that, your height—”

“Ta-ku-mi-sen-pai?”

“My apologies.”

Takumi bowed at a ninety-degree angle. Kana burst out laughing.

“I really do love how quickly you apologize, Senpai.”

“Glad to hear it.”

“But I’m not forgiving you just yet.”

“Eh?”

“Takumi-senpai. Is tonight one of your ‘lazy time’ nights by any chance?”

“How did you know?”

Takumi was genuinely surprised; she was spot on.

“It was like this a week ago, too. I figured you’d be the type to run on a weekly cycle for things like that.”

“Impressive. Even your thought process was exactly right.”

“Hehe, I know everything about you, Takumi-senpai. From how many times you go to the bathroom to the average duration, the number of freckles you have, and even your—!”

“Okay, then how many hairs do I have in my armpit?”

“One thousand, one hundred, and thirty.”

“Wait, that’s my birthday!” (Note: 11/30)

“Oh! You did it!”

“I’m a fast learner.”

Takumi had remembered her previous instruction to react exactly that way to that specific joke.

“Um, so, Takumi-senpai… my parents are going to be late again today. If you’ll let me spend your ‘lazy time’ with you, I might just forgive you for making fun of my height…”

Kana glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. Takumi lowered his chin.

“Of course. I don’t mind.”

“Yes! Negotiation successful!”

Kana pumped her fist.

(I guess being alone is lonely.)

Takumi figured that was the real reason she hung around his house so much—simply to fill the silence. The reason he never turned her away was the same. When she was around, the atmosphere became forcedly lively and bright, saving him from the loneliness that sometimes crept in.

(And honestly, having a junior rely on me like this… it feels nice.)

Takumi wore a faint smile, nodding to himself.

“Senpai, you’re being a little creepy,” Kana laughed.

***

After polishing off the dinner they made together, they played a few rounds of a soccer game called E-Saka. Since Takumi held back a little, the matches were intense.

“Darn it!”

“Careful not to hit something and hurt yourself.”

Having won the third match to break a 1-1 tie with a goal in stoppage time, Takumi left Kana flopping on the floor like a landed fish and went to take a shower. As he was drying off and getting dressed, there was a knock on the bathroom door.

“What?”

“Takumi-senpai! Please let me blow-dry your hair! It’s been a while!”

“Ah, sure. I’d appreciate that.”

“Alright!”

This was the third time Kana had dried his hair. The first time she styled it in a center part, the second was a bowl cut, and today she went back to the center part.

“There! Perfect!”

“Thanks. Are you alternating between the part and the bowl cut?”

“No, just a whim. Both suit you, obviously, but I personally prefer the center part. It brings out a bit of a wild, masculine vibe.”

“Well, that’s flattering.”

“And yet, what about tomorrow morning?”

“I’ll run a comb through it. End of story.”

“What a waste… well, I guess if you got too popular, I wouldn’t be able to hang out here as much, so it’s fine.”

“Kana, have you started thinking of my house as a hangout spot lately?” Takumi chuckled.

“Perish the thought! It’s a sanctuary. A sacred space.”

“And what is the sacred maiden doing in this sanctuary now?”

“Playing games!”

“Good grief.”

“Hey, that last loss really stung! Besides, I finished my homework while you were in the bath!”

“Oh, look at you being responsible.”

“Hehe. A good girl gets her work done without being told.”

Kana wore a smug look, using a phrasing Takumi had used on her once before.

“Maybe as a reward, we could do one more round…?”

“Ah—sorry. I’m planning to do my homework now.”

“Understood! That means it’s my chance to close the gap!”

And so, a scene was established: Takumi at his desk finishing his homework while Kana sat on the sofa playing the game.

“…Okay, that should do it.”

When Takumi finally put his pen down, Kana was still playing. He leaned over from behind to look. Since his eyesight wasn’t the best, he had to get close to the screen, which naturally brought their faces close together.

“Oh, here’s a chance.”

“H-Hahi?!”

“’Hahi’? …Ah, you blew it.”

Kana fumbled the controls, sending the ball flying way over the crossbar because she had overcharged the shot gauge. Her cheek, visible right next to him and clear of any visible pores, was stained a light cherry pink.

(She’s probably embarrassed about making such a basic mistake.)

“That shot was a regular space launch. You could be a pilot one day, Kana.”

“…This is your fault, Senpai.”

“Eh? Me?”

“Yes. You startled me.”

“My bad, then.”

He hadn’t realized he’d startled her, but it wasn’t worth arguing over, so he apologized.

She apparently won the match regardless, so her mood didn’t sour. In fact, she kept up a high-tension “machine-gun” monologue until it was time for her to leave when Ran returned.

Though they’d had the run-in with Haruhiro, it had been resolved peacefully, and Takumi had successfully made his mark in the scrimmage. Kana seemed energetic, though the incidents with Haruhiro and Takeoka likely hadn’t vanished from her mind entirely.

Maybe it’s not perfectly smooth sailing, but overall, it’s not a bad start—.

That was what Takumi thought at the time, his heart full of anticipation for the days to come in the second string.

And Kana, who was currently rambling to Ran about everything she and Takumi had done and talked about that day, felt exactly the same.