Chương 35: Serve, Set, Spike
"Fine." He said, with a lack of emotion that would make Yuma blush. Then turned from her and walked towards the beach, much to her dismay.
"What?... Hey, don't leave me behind." She had to run to catch up to him. The truth was that he thought she was absolutely stunning in this swimsuit. But it's not as if he's about to go feed into her ego.
Kouji didn't stop his pace all that much. He had gotten a bit short after everything he had been through. All he had to do was survive this, and all his troubles would be over.
"Sheesh, I invite you over and this is how you treat me?" She asked, feeling rather miffed at his aloof nature. Unfortunately for her, being the last one for him played against her. Kouji was mainly concerned of things going wrong. As had been evident for the last four days.
What was his solution to that? Well, he wanted to be the one to take the lead. Although, it turned out that the answer to their plans hit him in the head. Literally.
"Sorry about that man." Some people were playing some volleyball. However, when they spied the pretty lady besides him, they offered a game.
"You up for a game of volleyball?" He asked, to which she accepted. Though in her usual fashion, just had to continue on with something that ticked him off.
"They just want an excuse to look at me." She bragged, as they approached the net. A simple round of beach volleyball sounded fun. Plus, it wasn't her idea, so Kouji had some level of confidence of things going well. Also, it's not as if they need to win or anything.
Well they didn't need to, but Himawari's a rather competitive girl.
"Okay Kouji, just sit back and let me handle this." She said, as she got her serve prepared.
"You play volleyball a lot?" He asked, wondering if she had an ace up her sleeve.
"Nope." She answered bluntly and struck the ball to begin the game. Or at least, the game would've begun if she actually hit it over the net. "That one was just a warm up." She nervously laughed that one off.
Again, she hit the ball. And yet again, it just hit net, landing by his feet.
"You guys can just serve first." He tossed it over to their opponents, much to her chagrin.
"I was just faking them out." She whined at him, acting annoyed that he was treating her like this. Kouji only rolled his eyes in response. If she was faking anything, it would be her skill.
The game now was able to officially start. The ball was served to them and Kouji was the one to hit it back first. Then, it was returned to them.
"I got it!" She shouted to him, taking a step back for him to set it. As the ball floated in the air from his light touch up. She took a leap and swing for the ball. Only to completely whiff, then fall into the net.
"Ay, ay, ay." He muttered to himself. Her display was making a mockery of the both of them, given the looks he was getting from the people watching this game. "Just let me get the next one." He told her, as he prepared to serve the ball.
In one swift motion, he knocked the ball over to the opponents side of the net. They recovered, and hit it back. This gave the pair the chance they needed as Himawari set it up for Kouji. He sprinted and jumped up to it, hitting it with everything he had. The ball flew past the defenders, slamming onto the sand.
Now the game was all tied up again, the other team was to serve. However, it seemed that Kouji's score for the team was a fluke. As their opponents served, the two of them both ran for the ball.
"I got it!" They shouted in unison, but it was too late for warnings. The pair dove for it, seeing each other right as they collided onto the sand. Now they were on the ground, as the ball effortlessly fell before their faces. Another point for the other team.
"Will you get out of the way!" He scolded her as they got on their feet. "Honestly, stop pretending you actually know what you're doing."
"I'll have you know I do know what I'm doing." She countered. "I've seen this plenty of times on TV." Kouji only looked at her with a tired expression from hearing that.
"Come on." He picked up the ball and pulled her to the server's position. "You're hitting it with no control, just focus on clearing the net."
"Of course I'm supposed to get it over the net." She complained as they got set up. "I'm not some idiot like you think I am."
"If it's too hard to do it overhand…" He demonstrated an underhand method for beginners. One where the ball rested on one hand, then it was hit from that hand with the other in a fist. Almost like golfing, in a sense. He was about to adjust her body to show her, but she recoiled from the attempt.
"Don't touch me." She got a bit irritated from him. "Unlike the last time, I'm not exactly as fully clothed." At least a tennis outfit covered more of her skin than a swimsuit.
"Fine." Instead, he just showed her how to do it with a motion of his own. Then went back to his own position. She took a second to think about what he just showed her, then she went about doing exactly just that. This time, her serve was clean, and sent over the net properly.
Now Kouji could act without worry as the ball was hit back to them. She set it up once more, and once again he hopped up and hit the ball with power. Giving the two the game tying score. One more and they can win this.
"Kouji, just let me get the next point." He hadn't considered that as an idea. if she attempted that, then it was practically a win for the other team. "Please, last time was just a slip up. The sand is just really hard to get a jump from."
"That's because it's unstable… Kind of like you." He muttered the insult under his breath. "Before you jump, you need to set a strong base before taking to the air. Let the sand under you settle, and you'll be fine." A part of him didn't want her to be the one to attempt the win. However, anything can happen in a game. So he wanted to make sure she was prepared.
"I wasn't asking for your help!" Even if she wasn't the one to appreciate it. Still though, she wasn't ignoring it either.
The people against them could see the weak spot between the two. The serve was directed towards Kouji, who only had two choice in this position. Either weakly return it to them, giving them the opportunity of attacking them. Or, trusting in Himawari. He chose the latter.
Kouji set the ball straight up, giving her ample time to spike it. Himawari calmed herself, as the ball reached its apex. She set her feet down, shifting the sand underneath her. Then, with all her might she jumped up, and swung for the ball. This time, she connected. Sending it down to the other side with a powerful speed. Too fast for them to defend.
"We did it!" Kouji cheered. The two were able to overcome and win the game. Especially despite the odds.
"Yeah, we did." She was grinning ear-to-ear. The two shared a hi-five, before quickly transitioning back to their usual behavior.
"Glad that's over with." He tried to play it down with his tone. Crossing his arms and facing away from her now. She responded in kind.
***
After a nice, hard game in the hot sun. Drinks were in order. So the two of them were now sitting under at a table under a large umbrella to escape the sun's rays. She grabbed herself a smoothie, while he took the very cheap, also known as free, offer of a cup of water.
"I gotta say, this is the most fun I've had all week." He told her. She hid her small smile from hearing that. It seemed that she had won out of all the girls this time. "It's too bad that's going to come to end." What he said next wasn't what she was hoping to hear.
"What do you mean?" She asked, playing dumb. She knew exactly what he was getting at.
"You see…" Kouji sighed, it wasn't going to be easy to break the news after what they just did. "I'm never going to see you guys after I leave the school." He explained his future plans, though she didn't pay too much attention to it. This was the reason why she did all this in the first place. Now, it was time to get to the final part of her plan. "I think it's better to go our separate ways."
"It doesn't have to end like this." She started, this was going to be the moment of truth. "I mean, you don't have to leave the school."
"Stay at the academy?" He pondered it for a second, but there was something stopping him from fully entertaining the thought. "Nah, there's no reason for me to stay."
"No reason? But…" She got really quiet when she didn't have anything to offer in response.
"But what? So I could keep being a tutor?" He completed what he thought was the thought. "I'm sure if you guys put some effort, you'd be fine." Actually, he believed they should form a study group, then he wouldn't be worried about whether they drifted apart… Wait, but why did he care about what happened with them after he left?
"But, you're such a good… Tutor." She couldn't come up with any proper reason for him. More importantly, she couldn't tell him the truth as to why she wanted him to stay.
"Rich coming from someone like you." He responded, rather cross at that. "You always complained about me trying to help you. Now you're asking for it?" While that was what he said to her, it wasn't the true reason for his issue with that statement.
Instead, he was wondering, what was the point of taking him out like this? If all she cared about was his tutelage, then what's the point of what they did today? He had… Ended up enjoying himself.
"…" She didn't say anything in response. What was there for her to say? He probably never cared about her, not beyond making sure she had good grades. The only reason he came to the school was for an opportunity. She and the other girls were just a part of that deal. Right? Was that true? "Right, you're just some tutor to me."
"Right." That set him off. He spoke with quiet rage under his clenched teeth. "That's all I am to you. Just someone to take advantage of. Someone that you can use and-" His tirade was stopped, as she slapped him across the face for what he just said.
"Don't you dare say I'm like that." They stared at each other, neither appeared as though they were going to back down. The crowd around them looked on, having heard the slap. Everyone was worried about what was going to go down.
"Whatever." It's Kouji that backs down first. When this is all over, it won't matter anyway. He get his clothes and walks away from her, who hasn't moved an inch since she hit him. "I'm going home now… Goodbye."
"…" She doesn't reply to him as he walks away. Soon, Kouji disappears into the crowd. This might very well be the last time she ever sees him again.
In frustration, she throws her drink off the table. Splattering its contents all over the ground. Then, she sits and covers her face, but that does little to stop the tears falling from her cheeks.
Operation beachfront has ended in failure. And it appears that it may have cost the girls any hope of keeping Kouji around.
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