In the back of the school, at an area near the teachers' parking spot, sat a lonely male figure on one of the many fences that were present. Amane Kei had been eating his lunch here since he had found it during the first term. Not many people knew of this place as anything more than just a confession spot, but these conditions were perfect for Kei who had been looking for a peaceful place to eat his lunch without having to be bothered by others.
As it was a confession spot, he would also occasionally listen in on people's confessions since he couldn't help but hear their loud, nervous voices. Today, to him, was supposed to be like any other day for him. However, it was only lunch break and so many things had already happened. The tournament date being pushed forward, Azusa's transfer, her admission into his class, he couldn't get a break. As he was finally getting some peace while eating his self-made bento box…
"Let's go out, you and I."
'Ah, it's happening again…? Wait, that voice… is Keigo? Again? Seriously?'
"I think we're gonna make a nice couple don't you think?"
'Ah gimme a break, doesn't this guy ever learn?'
Just as he got up and was about to leave, he heard chatters nearby. When he took a peek, he saw that many of his classmates had followed Keigo and Azusa to this spot to see how the confession would go. Naturally, since he called her out in front of everyone, they would definitely follow them to see how it would go.
'Do you think she's going to accept?'
'It's her first day, I don't think so?'
'But… it's Keigo we're talking about, other than Mai-san, who could resist?'
As he was walking away while drinking his juice box, he couldn't help but overhear a familiar voice.
"Umm, it's my first day. I don't think I should be getting into a relationship this quickly…"
"Hah? What are you talking about? Trust me, if you go out with me, your status in this school is basically set!"
"I'm sorry, I still don't think I should be getting into a relationship yet. But thank you for your offer."
Kei thought that it should be fine to leave them as is since there are so many people around that Keigo would be blind to not notice them and try to do anything he did to Mai on Azusa. Kei kept his distance and tried to sneak away from the area undetected so that he wouldn't be spotted by anyone.
"Oy, listen to me, don't you want to be at the top of this school's social caste? I'm telling you, if you date me—"
"Heh~, I don't really care about that. Besides, I hate desperate men who can't take a hint."
It seemed that Azusa had finally gotten tired of being nice towards Keigo and there was now a terrifyingly cold aura surrounding her. Keigo on the other hand was speechless by what he had just heard. Since he was not used to girls rejecting him, bar Mai, he did not know how to respond to her sudden change in demeanour.
"Maybe you should learn a thing or two from Kei and try to be respectful towards girls and not treat them as if they're trophy objects." Azusa said as her eyes had turned sadistic along with her smile.
"W-why are you bringing that bastard up? Are you two dating or something?!"
"Heh~ Still not taking a hint?"
"Just you wait! When you come for baseball practice, I will make your life a living hell!"
"Baseball? Ara, looks like brawns like yours don't come with brains after all. Whoever said that I was in baseball?"
As Kei was trying to sneak away, he could still hear the exchange between the two. 'Why are you showing that side of you on your first day?', Kei thought. Then again, he was quietly cheering for Azusa as she finally put Keigo in his place.
"Maybe you should find out more about the person you're confessing to instead of—…!"
As Azusa was continuing her sadistic outburst towards Keigo, something caught her eye.
"Ara. I finally caught you!"
While Kei was almost out of sight, he heard those words as he felt someone grabbing his arm. Azusa had spotted him and instantly ran towards him and hugged his hands. Kei was stunned as he didn't know what to do in that situation.
"O-oy! Let go!"
"Kei-kun~, that guy is bothering me~" Azusa said as she pointed towards Keigo.
The act between the two had now caught the attention of their classmates altogether including Keigo. Kei tried to shake free of her but she clung on to him as if her life depended on it until Kei finally gave in and just started walking.
'Are those two… dating?!'
'She's not in the baseball club?!'
'How does she get so close to Kei?!'
***
When they were finally away from the rest of their classmates, Azusa had her hands clapped together in apology. It seemed that she had made Kei angry which was a rare sight.
"I'm sorryyyyy! But he wouldn't let me go…"
"Haah… It's fine… just forget about it, okay?"
When the two returned to class after the bell rang, they received curious gazes from their classmates. They were all wondering what was the relationship between the two of them. Kei wanted to keep it a secret since it would definitely cause more trouble for him, and more hate to be directed to Azusa from the girls if they found out she is the manager of the first-year players (him). As of now, they could only see them as nothing more than childhood friends where Azusa was just as close to Kei as Chihaya was.
"Haah… Why can't I get a break?" Kei let out a deep sigh as he sat at his place while looking out the window.