signed, s. eijun

18 . 5

Nozomi felt a little out of place walking into the stadium for Eijun's game. it wasn't at Seidou, so she had to take the train. it was quite the trip, and the game seemed to had already been started when she got there.

she was here to support Eijun though, so better late than never.

she had done a little bit of research before the game, and found that their opponent was a powerhouse school thay relied mostly on their speed. truly, they would be a troublesome opponent. but she believed in the team, and had some faith that Eijun would pull through.

Nozomi couldn't seem to take her eyes off of Eijun the entire game. his pitching was so. . . intoxicating, if that makes sense. it was captivating and made you not want to look away for a second.

he only gave up one run, and for that, she thought, he deserved a whole lot of praise.

he was just so cool and even if she wasn't all that into baseball, Nozomi was glad she made the trip out to Gunma to see him pitch. it would have been a waste of her time if he didn't pitch.

so, after the game ended she finally found Eijun in a hallway with his team and approached him.

the whole team (apart from Kuramochi) was surprised to see her here in Gunma. some of them remembered her from her days eating lunch with Eijun to help him study, and some of them knew her a little bit more personally because they were either her friend or an acquantiance from class.

Eijun was probably the most surprised to see her after she came up from behind him and put her hand on his shoulder.

"hey, Sa'amura. nice pitching today," she told him. he grinned widely and scratched the back of his neck.

Kanemaru could be seen a couple feet away, nodding to himself as if he was approving of her nickname for him.

"you really think so? but i gave up so many hits. . and don't forget about that run they scored!" he was obviously nervous, but he had no reason to be.

"i'm not forgetting anything, Sa'amura. you truly did play well today," she insisted.

"ah, it's the return of Nura-chan! how have you been?" Miyuki butted in, a mischevious grin on his face.

"i've been okay, thank you. how have you been?" she asked politely.

"well, it's been a little troublesome dealing with Sawamura over here, but i guess i've been fine," he teased.

"hey! you're difficult to deal with too! this is a prime example of why!" Eijun retorted heatedly.

"it's okay Sa'amura. i'm sure Miyuki was just joking," she consoled him. she smiled sweetly, but everyone could tell she was fibbing and just saying that to calm Eijun down. and Eijun, who was a bit skeptical, bought it in the end.

"yeah, i guess he probably was just joking," he conceded. "hey, Nura! do you want to sit with us and watch the next game? another part of our team is playing so we can have a small rest." he looked to her, smiling so brightly, how could she possibly say no?

"of course, Sa'amura. i guess it would be a waste to go back now and not get to watch another game, huh?" she smiled back just as bright as Eijun and all his teammates could think was, 'she deals with him so well!'.

"ahaha! yeah it would be a waste!" he laughed loudly.

"shh, okay Sa'amura. bring down the noise level a notch or two. we're in a public stadium." she chuckled softly.

"oh, sorry," Eijun said, voice barely above a whisper.

"it's okay. now, how 'bout you help your teammates with their bags while i get yours, mm? let's get moving to the bleachers." she carefully took Eijuns bag from his shoulder and slung it across her own.

"but Nura! i can't have you carrying my bag! here, hand it back." he made a reach for it, but she gently brushed his hand aside.

"Sa'amura, i am perfectly capable of carrying a bag. and i would help your teammates, but its probably equipment and i wouldn't know what to do with that. help your teammates, please?"

she pulled the 'please' card with the silent 'for me?' card after it, and Eijun couldn't help but comply.

Eijun grabbed two bags and put one on each shoulder. "let's get this show on the road!" he exclaimed, before starting to walk down the hall. everyone followed behind him and Miyuki fell into step beside Nozomi.

"i really need some tips on how to handle him. you do it so well it's like you have super powers," Miyuki said. Kuramochi snorted behind them and a couple chuckles came from Nori and Shirasu's direction. Nozomi shrugged, smiling softly.

"you just have to ask him nicely, i guess. he told me one time it's like you're patronizing or teasing him all the time and he doesn't like that. it's all in your tone of voice. gentle yet firm for instructions seems to work," she explained. "although he might think it's weird if you do it so start out just using that tone when it really counts- like in a game,- and just build from there."

"wow. can you become a manager for the team? i feel like you could tame all of our brats. you did it with Sawamura," Miyuki said shamelessly. "we could really use someone like you."

"i dont think i have time to become a manager, but if you absolutely need my help with something, i guess i could come to your practice or something. if your coach doesn't mind," she offered. Miyuki grinned.

"i'm sure he wouldn't mind as long as you keep Sawamura tame and help with the other troublesome ones. it wouldn't hurt to try." now that she was actually talking to Miyuki- more than a few sentences- she saw that he wasn't all that bad. he was just a little rough around the edges.

"alright. tell me a day and a place and i'll drop by. but keep it a surprise for Sa'amura, okay?" she smiled brightly.

now that they were on the bleachers, Eijun put down the bags he was holding and came rushing back to Nozomi.

"hey Nura! are you okay? don't take anything Miyuki says to heart! he likes to tease people a lot!" he exclaimed. Nozomi laughed lightly.

"i'm okay, Sa'amura. i was just asking Miyuki about some of the pitches you threw today. they were all really cool to watch!"

"you can ask me all about my pitches! i will answer all of your questions without fail! ahahaha!"

Miyuki took his chance to slip away, and as he took a seat between Kuramochi and Nori, he couldn't help but think that Nura Nozomi, a very kind and gentle and worthy girl, has Eijun wrapped around her little finger.

he knows she knows it. and he is positive that she is the perfect person for the role.

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aye yo. Eijun is whipped, what else is new.

i'm actually pretty happy with this chapter so i hope you enjoyed it

today is double update day :)