“Makishima, good luck at practice.”
“Yeah. You too—good luck with your report.”
“Mm!”
I parted ways with Sasaki in front of the library building and headed toward the practice field.
On the way, I spotted a familiar messy perm walking sluggishly, so I called out to him.
“Yo, Azaki.”
“...O-Oh. Makishima, huh.”
His face looked drained, with dark bags under his eyes.
Azaki was obviously out of it today.
Yep, he’s definitely still hung up about yesterday.
He said afterward that he failed to take anyone home, after all.
“Don’t tell me you’re depressed because Aihara turned you down?”
“O-Of course I am! Listen—seeing Aihara-san again yesterday reminded me. Her face is insanely cute, she smells amazing, and her boobs are perfectly big! She’s absolutely gonna win Miss Koutoudai! Damn it, I really wanted to take her home and do it!”
“D-Do it? So you seriously were only after sex?”
“Obviously! When a top-tier girl like Aihara-san’s there, all the other girls look like dust. So I’m not giving up—I’ll definitely make Aihara-san my woman!”
Whenever it’s about girls, Azaki gets fired up instantly.
All the other girls look like dust, huh.
The “Sasaki” you didn’t even notice is considered national-treasure-level beauty, you know.
This guy really judges girls solely by breast size.
“Anyway, what about you, Makishima? That leftover glasses-and-black-mask girl—how did it go?”
“Sasaki.”
“Ah right, that was her name.”
If this guy didn’t have soccer talent, he’d honestly just be trash. Who forgets someone’s name the day after meeting them?
“So? What happened? Don’t tell me you already brought her to your room and did it.”
“Nothing happened. I already told you on lime yesterday—she only used me as an excuse to escape the group date.”
“Pfft, you couldn’t even hit on a plain girl like that? You’re the ultimate soccer idiot, Makishima-kun!”
Azaki tapped my shoulder repeatedly, annoying as always.
Yeah, blocking his lime account was definitely the right choice.
“Anyway, for your sake, I’ll set up another group date! Look forward to it!”
“I’m good. More importantly—the reward for completing yesterday’s mission—”
“You know, you’ve been way too stressed lately. Just get yourself a girl who can heal you already, and relax a little about soccer too.”
A girl… who can heal me.
“Makishima, thanks, okay?”
The first face that popped into my mind was Sasaki’s… N-No no, she just messes with me, that’s all.
“Hey, Makishima. Want me to tell you why I turned down going pro and chose this university instead?”
“...Huh? You turned down going pro to come here? That’s news to me!”
“You wanna hear the reason?”
From the start, Azaki was one of the most skilled among the first-years, but to think he passed on a direct pro contract to come here.
Of course I want to know the reason…!
“Tell me, Azaki.”
“Alright… I…”
He stopped walking and looked up at the sky.
“I wanted to sleep with one of Koutoudai’s smart big-boob girls—”
“Hah?”
Hearing a reason lower than garbage, I was left speechless.
Yeah, I’m never calling this guy my best friend again.
✳︎✳︎
When I arrived at the ground with this garbage of a person, the other players were already there doing voluntary practice.
The afternoon practice held under the cloudy sky mainly focused on game-style training.
With the match just two days away, everyone’s motivation was sky-high. To get chosen as a starter, this was the perfect chance to show the coach your current form… supposedly.
But as a bench member, I just sat on the sidelines watching my teammates shine on the pitch.
After four long hours of intense practice, all first-years except for starter Azaki were told to clean up.
I was in charge of counting equipment, so after checking the number of cold sprays, I leaned over the ball basket to check the number of balls.
…Huh? One ball is missing.
Now that I think about it, earlier during the match practice, when Tanaka-senpai the keeper punted the ball, it flew way off in the wrong direction.
If it went past the entrance and out onto the perimeter course, that’d be bad. I should check the gutters around there too.
“Haah…”
I reluctantly stood up and walked in that direction, relying on memory.
“Ball, ball~ where are you, ball~”
I started searching along the campus path that connects the outside and the ground, using my phone’s flashlight.
“Makishima-kun?”
While shuffling forward staring at the ground and singing quietly, someone called my name.
“Aihara? Didn’t expect to see you. It’s been since yesterday.”
Standing there was Aihara, who happened to be walking along the perimeter next to the field.
Her side-up hairstyle swayed in the wind, and a citrus perfume drifted from her.
The only difference from yesterday was that she was wearing black-rimmed glasses.
I guess she wore contacts yesterday.
“That was quite the cheerful song. Something good happen?”
She heard that? …How embarrassing.
While I scratched my cheek awkwardly, Aihara tilted her head.
“What’s wrong? It’s late already, and practice should be over, right?”
“It is, but one ball is missing, so I’m looking for it.”
“That’s serious! If you lose even one, your senpai will totally chew you out. Like making you run the perimeter a hundred laps! Or do a thousand sit-ups!”
“I doubt the punishment would go that far…”
“I’ll help too!”
“Eh? I feel bad, you were heading home, right?”
“It’s fine, it’s fine!”
“But—”
“Really, it’s fine! I’m used to looking for balls!”
Aihara absolutely refused to back down.
In the end, the two of us walked along the gutter with our phone flashlights on.
“I thought this yesterday during the group date too, but… Aihara, are you by any chance a soccer player?”
“Yup. I played from elementary school all the way through high school.”
“Wow… longer than me. I only started in middle school.”
“Ehehe. But I wasn’t very good, so I was always on the bench. And when I couldn’t even get on the bench, I was stuck picking up balls. That’s why I’m good at finding them.”
She spoke brightly, but it felt like she was exposing a past she didn’t exactly want to remember.
“Didn’t you ever want to quit since you couldn’t play in matches?”
“Nope. Never. Because I really love soccer. No matter how tough or unfair things were, as long as I could play, that was enough.”
I honestly thought she was amazing.
I’ve never thought “I love soccer” even once.
For me, who took the Jr. Youth test because a friend suggested it, soccer has always been a battlefield ever since.
“I always dreamed of becoming an absolute striker like Mishiro-senshu.”
“Mishiro…”
“I was always FW too. Embarrassing as it is, I had zero goals in official matches, but I kept working hard, wanting to be like Mishiro-senshu.”
Mishiro Hakuto—at 28 years old, he carries the number 9 for the Spanish powerhouse FC Balsamico, and last year he beat Haaland and Mbappé to become the world’s best player. Japan’s—no, the world’s—absolute ace striker.
Just like Aihara, I admired him too.
Any Japanese player would want to be like him.
“But eventually, I quit soccer when I entered university. I wanted to live a normal girl’s life for once. Do things a typical college girl would do. And watching soccer is fun too, not just playing it, so I don’t regret it.”
“R-Really…”
I always thought Aihara had it easy—good style, cute enough that guys like Azaki would instantly go after her.
But maybe cute girls have their own struggles too, just like Sasaki and Aihara.
“Um… sorry! That was so weird of me, rambling about myself like that.”
“No, not at all. You’re admirable, Aihara. You understand yourself well.”
“You really think so?”
“Compared to you, I’m still completely lost.”
“Makishima-kun…”
If I could quit like she did, things would be so much easier.
Maybe I’m just searching for my own limits.
“H-Hey! Changing the topic—”
Aihara suddenly spoke in a brighter tone, maybe trying to shift the mood.
“Yesterday’s group date. You left early, right? Did something happen?”
“Uh…”
Everyone noticed me leaving with Sasaki, so I have to mention her somehow…
“Sorry. I kind of hit it off with Sasaki.”
“Hit it off?”
Crap, I didn’t prepare a follow-up explanation.
Why would I even hit it off with Sasaki when we don’t share a single hobby?! I mean—I didn’t. We didn’t! Hitting it off is not what that was!
“Uh… it’s a secret.”
“Hmm…”
“…”
“…”
Aihara stared at me suspiciously.
“Hey, Makishima-kun… are you and Sasaki-chan—”
That’s when it happened.
As I shined my light into the gutter beneath the green wire fence, I spotted the ball stuck inside.
“Ah! There it is…”
“T-Thank goodness! Now your senpai won’t scold you!”
“Y-Yeah. Thanks for helping me look, Aihara.”
After thanking her, I headed back through the dark evening path and resumed my solo training.
✳︎✳︎
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