Right after our class ended, Kento looked back at me from his chair and asked something weird.
"Hey Haruki."
"What?"
"…Can we practice for a bit today before lunch?"
"Huh? Practice what?"
"Sprinting of course."
"Pft."
"Oi, why'd you giggle at that? I'm serious, you know?"
"Yeah, sorry about that. It just sounds funny without context. So? Where should we practice?"
"The school field, of course."
—
A few minutes later, we arrived at the school field.
Still confused why he asked me to practice with him, I looked around the field.
Surprisingly, there weren't many people hanging out in here.
We're currently stationed at the place we practiced on yesterday.
We noticed that there was also a shop nearby; so we decided that we'd be eating lunch there afterwards.
Wanting to end this as fast as possible, I went straight to the point.
"Now then, which part do you want to practice?"
"What? There are parts in sprinting?"
Kento was shocked.
Sprinting has its own parts? Such a simple sport could have stages in its execution? Well-
"Naturally. there's the 1st phase where you have to get a decent pose in, making sure you maximise the speed generated from your start using the blocks on the ground. Having an efficient start really helps to gain speed quickly."
"There's even multiple methods for getting a decent start? The hell?"
"Well yeah, of course. Your starting position before the race starts is very important."
"Okay then, you said 'parts'… so I assume that there's more to this?"
"Yes, there's 2 more phases. The 2nd phase is maximum velocity. At this stage, the runner's posture becomes fully erect, standing tall without getting his hips lowered. The runner achieves their maximum speed during this phase, as the name suggests. Though this only lasts for a few meters, about 10 to 40 meters in a 100 meter dash."
"Well, that doesn't sound too hard… I think?"
"Yeah, it really isn't. You just need practice to execute it properly."
"I see…"
"The third and final stage is basically where you try to minimize deceleration as much as possible."
"Hmm… could you like demonstrate for a bit, Haruki?"
"Well… I suppose I can."
Right after that, Kento went to the side of the lane, and I prepared to sprint.
Kento then began the countdown.
"3… 2… 1… Go!"
Of course, I went all out and completed the 100 meter dash in-
"11 seconds!" I heard Kento shout out after I crossed the 100 meter mark.
"Haruki… And you say you're the one who doesn't have any redeemable features… you bloody lier."
—
After my demonstration, Kento asked me to guide him through the first and second phase.
Of course, as his friend, I did him a favor and helped him out.
Later on, we bought some burgers and drinks from the store near us for lunch.
I got lemon juice, and Kento bought some apple juice.
"Hmm… the burgers are a bit dry, and the burger sauce is a bit too simple for my liking. There's not enough veggies here too, and the one piece of lettuce in it is dry. Pathetic burger, 4/10."
"That's surprising. When did you become a food reviewer?"
"Oh, it all started when your mom lost all hope on you." I retorted with a joke. Kento's response to this would be more surprising, though.
"So while I was in elementary school?"
"…"
There was a slight pause. Kento quickly diverted the subject back to the burger as he realised the awkward atmosphere made by his statement.
"I'm kidding , hahaha. But you're right, this burger is shit."
"Yeah, the patty is also slightly under seasoned… ugh."
Though it was still slightly awkward, we silently continued to eat the pathetic burger in the dismay of tongues. But this silence would be broken by Kento once again.
"Hey Haruki, is there anything that stands out about me?"
While trying to digest this disgusting substance, I answered his question fiddly with:
"I guess you're the Normie king?"
"Is that even something to be proud of though? …"
We headed back to our classroom after we ate the unpalatable burgers.
However, while we were on our way, I noticed the face Kento was making. It looked as if he was unsatisfied about something…