40 Not Much of an Air Ball (1/2)

A strong sun at 6 AM was a slap to Arata's eyes. It had been so dim for the past few days, and so seeing so much sun was something he had to get used to again. And to think that he had no proper sleep for the last few days. He was scared of getting another penalty, and so he had to make sure he will be able to rest today.

However, the start of his day was already energetic. Not because he was enthusiastic about something good, but it was because of something painful. He was trying to avoid getting hit by Yukari's fist.

”Hey! Why are you running away!? After disappearing for the entire weekend!?” The furious best friend chased him in circles around the block. It had been badly raining in their area for the last weekend, and suddenly not going home for two days worried her to the point of being enraged.

The rivers had flooded, and the roads got submerged enough to paralyze the entire city. Vehicles crashing and people drowning were what the news was about, and she received no reply from Arata, who did not even bother to reply to her. Then all of a sudden, he had the guts to text the class president that he would not be in class yesterday. Yukari was pissed, and she wanted to hit his face.

”Wait! Stop trying to hit me! I'll stay still!” Arata yelled back. However, he was forced to stop and stumble. ”Ah, shit-” He saw Cora walking towards his house, and he was about to hit her with his speeding body. The player ended up rolling and knocking the poor girl to the ground.

Yukari managed to slow down properly before walking up to the lucky guy. She panted softly and placed her hands on her hips. The admirer only glared at the man before sighing and shaking her head. The girlfriend managed to find where they all stopped and joined Yukari in her spot. The two women looked down at Arata who was on top of Cora, with his face buried against her abdomen. The girl of German descent winced in pain, worried about getting scrapes or bruises from the fall.

”Arata-sempai...” the girl spoke in pain, ”why are you... running around? Did... something happen?”

”Sorry, Cora-chan. I happened.” Yukari scratched her head, feeling sorry for the other girl's pain. Then again, she kicked Arata's side lightly. ”Get up! You're heavy!”

”Ah, I'm really sorry for hitting you, Cora...” The man consoled his own head which hit the ground first before hitting the girl. He managed to get up and helped the freshie o get on her feet. He massaged his arms, with Attori giggling as she checked for scrapes and bruises. Arata turned to Yukari who was attending to Cora, whining. ”See? This is why you don't go chasing me with a karate chop!”

”It's your fault for not answering my texts!” She got back to the root of their problem. The admirer would argue again, but she only huffed to the side and led Cora back to the Hamasaki Residence.

Attori watched them go ahead before turning to Arata who sighed at the early morning ruckus. She waited for him to feel the weight of her stare before talking, ”didn't you hear the news last weekend? A lot of accidents happened. She was scared something bad could have happened to you.”

”I know that, but I don't want to get hit.” He chuckled, admitting that he was at fault for most of it.

They walked back to the house, and Arata saw Yukari mumbling with a pout as she continued cooking. Cora was holding her ice pack against the back of her head, and she smiled and waved at the guy as he entered the house. He joined her in the dining table while Attori went to help Yukari in the kitchen. The exchange student then dusted the guy's shirt more. Soon, breakfast was served and so they ate in silence.

Arata ran after Yukari as soon as they left for school. Attori and Cora were walking behind them, as the player had his arm around the best friend who was keeping quiet. This was not like her, and so Arata kept on bugging her about it. Then again, instead of sulking, Yukari was more of lost. She had no idea where to begin. Perhaps it was just easier to show him after all.

”I'm... quitting the basketball club...” she whispered under the guy's teasing.