47 Yousre My Hero pt 1 (1/2)
Since Tohru was the only one left to be MAXED for the event, Arata and the other two vacant girls namely Attori and Ruby watched yet again practice of the basketball club. With one of the kings and another of the queens watching them, the two teams did not mind the rigid and fierce training. With members purged from the club, the remaining members had no choice but to shoulder the vacated positions themselves. The kicked out were not part of the main teams, but they were valuable reserves at least. Both for the incoming Athletic Meet and the outgoing third years.
More and more hours were put into training, and the club had gone past the 6 PM action time. Arata was not worried since he would probably go straight home that day. However, he still got cold sweat from the intense atmosphere of the two girls at his sides. Both the school queen and the mad girl were on their phones, reading through what seemed to be articles. They barely looked at the game, but Ruby spared some seconds and glances when Tohru gets to play the ball.
'What are they reading?' Arata took a deep breath and turned to Attori's direction. He knew she would not hide her screen, but looking at her from this angle made it look like he was looking down her collar. The player had no choice but to turn away and sigh. 'I should just ask later.'
Bang! The basket's metal rim shook forcefully as Tohru managed to jump so high for a dunk. Since Tohru got the ball earlier, Ruby paused reading and watched the seconds when Arata was busy. She hummed at the impressive stunt and waited for the next person to hold the ball. The player did not see it, but he figured it was Tohru since everyone was congratulating her.
They were even calling her 'captain.'
It was the first time Arata placed interest in the girls' basketball team— in terms of their positions. Yukari did mention their positions were already given, but he cared too little about it. He only knew enough about it because of his route that involved being the captain of the Basketball team. How it really mattered in court was nothing he paid attention to— not that he had to really play basketball back then. This time, he can see how it affects the ball game at a closer view.
”I guess we trained for too long today. Next time, we'll be going back to the basics. Some of you missed their targets.” The coach called out and proceeded with other reminders before closing the practice.
However, before the students could leave to change, there was another bang by the doors of the gymnasium. It was a slightly older male with dark hair and a tough angular face despite the glasses. He wore the uniform of a famed university— a college student perhaps. The other students were puzzled by his arrival, but Arata's group knew him.
Wakaba Keita walked inside the gymnasium and headed towards Tohru's direction. The girl started backing away as their gazes were fixed on each other's. Arata and Attori ran down the benches and intercepted the male before the ex-boyfriend could enter the actual basketball court. The man recognized the player and so he chose to glare at him instead.
”Why are you here again?” The college male gritted hard as he balled his fists in anger.
”I school here.” Arata hid his fear and nervousness as he held his breath. The newcomer seemed to be fine with being physical at any moment. ”If you're here to disturb Hamada-sempai, you should leave at once.”
”You think you can stop me?” The man took a step forward.
The tension wrapping the court did not sit well with Tohru; neither did the damsel in distress spotlight Arata shone on her. She went closer to the site of the commotion and glared at the man in the gym. ”Didn't I tell you not to show your face to me again?”
Keita hissed as he changed his aggressive stance into a begging one. ”Tohru-san, please let's talk about this! You can't just leave me like that! Tell me what went wrong! I'll fix it!”
”Eh, but there's nothing to fix...” Tohru huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. ”It's not working anymore. I don't want to get it 'fixed' either. Just let me go.”
”Don't want to...” he echoed a little of her words. He then turned to Arata again. He waved his flexed arm as if restraining a punch towards the player's direction. ”You. You must be behind this! You trashed my sister twice, and now, you're taking Tohru-san away from me, too!”
Arata kept his mouth from moving. He stared at the man's temperament, and he knew anything he will say will only help him break into a fight with the god. Denying or accepting the accusations would only make him rage more than he was by then. However, silence was not also a good answer. It would only stall the player until a better answer surfaces.
”What's with this silence?!” Keita only laughed out in annoyance. ”Looks like I had to force your tongue out of your mouth!”
The man advanced against Arata, and the player had to push forward to catch the blow. If he had not moved, either Tohru or Attori would act on his behalf. Both women were acclimated to violence— or so it seemed. Whether he was right or wrong, it did not matter by then. He grabbed the man's arms and pushed him so he could not swing his arm for a punch. Even though his Strength was at High, the older male did not budge. The player realized it would take it more than this for the scene to end.
From the normal game perspective, it should be a special action scenario. Momoka's route was littered with these so the player did not question the set-up. Arata would only need to choose which button to press. Dodge or Attack would be flashing on his screen, and the HUD would show a bar with a 'perfect zone' where he could execute the action flawlessly. He would just need to press the screen so that the moving circle would stop at the 'perfect zone.' However, there was certainly no bar or moving sphere at the moment. He had to hold him down on his own.