Chapter 2: A New Challenger has Appeared

There are rules I try to follow to maintain some semblance of balance in my life.

Control your environment.

Limit variables.

Avoid unnecessary attention.

I wished I could have planned better because I was not prepared for a new variable to be introduced into my environment this morning. And you’ll see how I screwed up that last rule soon enough…

As I sat down at my desk, Tadashi walked over, the look on his face immediately made my danger senses go off.

“Honestly, Kaito, you should be grateful.”

Tadashi leaned back in his chair like he owned the place. With the way he was sitting, I was surprised he didn’t put his feet up on the desk and start smoking a cigar.

“You’ve got two childhood friends throwing themselves at you. Really hot ones I might add. That’s premium content.”

“I’m not a streaming service.”

“You should be,” he said in a matter of fact tone. “I’d subscribe. Hell, I’d pay for the premium service...”

“Please don’t.”

He leaned in, lowering his voice like he was about to tell me where the bodies were buried.

“So… which one are you gonna pick?”

“Are we seriously talking about this again? This must be the millionth time you’ve brought up this topic just this week. I’m not picking, dude.”

“Yes, I’m bringing this up again. And again and again, until you finally man up and choose because that’s not how this works.”

“That’s exactly how this works.”

He stared at me like I’d just said I didn’t like pizza. Or worse, that I liked pineapple pizza. Look, I love pineapple and I love pizza. But put them together and try to feed that to me and I’m throwing hands.

“Kaito,” he said slowly, “you cannot just… not choose. That’s illegal in romcom law.”

“My life isn’t a romcom! And I’m trying not to ruin my friendships with two girls I’ve known since I was like six.”

“BORING. Shit at this point, just flip a coin bro.”

Before I could respond, the classroom door slid open. The air immediately changed.

Click. Click. Click.

Every head turned. It felt like a scene from a movie where the main character, or at minimum, the main love interest is introduced. A girl stepped in, long dark hair, stunning purple eyes, calm expression, her posture absolutely perfect.

Even I had to admit, she looked like the kind of character who gets a full-page introduction panel in a manga. A full color introduction, no less.

“I am Miya Aizawa,” she said with a cool, relaxed tone. “I look forward to working with you.”

No emotion. No hesitation. Just… smooth.

For some reason, I swear on my life, her eyes landed on me. I could feel it. Just for a second. Yeah… that’s not ominous at all. I tried to put it out of my mind but it was difficult when she walked over and sat down at the desk next to mine. Knew I shouldn’t have chosen the window seat in the back. Rookie mistake. She immediately pulled out her notebook and pencil and stared straight at the front of the room, all business.

Tadashi gave me this look that clearly meant go for it bro. I shot back a clear rejection. My eyes were unambiguously saying, “Are you out of your damn mind?” Pretty much every guy in the room was staring at her like they would drop dead the moment they stopped looking. I’m not trying to get involved with yet another potential disturbance to the peace. And trying to make a move on the kuudere super model sitting next to me was clearly going to be something that would make me stand out way too much. And what was rule number 3 for keeping balance in my life again? Exactly.

Thankfully, the morning passed by rather quickly. Three guys had already confessed their love to Aizawa though she shot them all down with practiced poise. I put on my sneakers in order to get ready for my pickup game with Tadashi during lunch. Didn’t really feel all that hungry so I didn’t mind skipping lunch today. Plus, I really felt like I needed to put Tadashi in his place. He’d been way more annoying than usual over my lack of a decision between Akane and Hikari this past week. Why couldn’t he just understand that not making a choice was best for everyone? Nobody gets hurt this way. I knew this from personal experience. But that’s a story for another time.

I’ve always loved basketball. Ever since my dad took me to a game when I was really young. I’m fairly certain it’s my earliest memory. I was fascinated by everything. How electric the crowd was, how the players moved on the court, my dad yelling at the top of his lungs in uncharacteristic fashion, everything. It’s my favorite sport and nothing even comes close. The constant action, the fast pace, the strategy, the skill involved. It’s poetry in motion.

But as much as I love to watch the pros do their thing, I love to play even more. It’s the only time I feel like I can control the chaos that is my life. The only time I truly have balance. When I throw all my self imposed rules out the window. There’s no greater feeling in the world than hitting a wide open J. Or a pinpoint pass that leads your teammate to score. Or a hustle play that swings the momentum of a game. I like every position and what it brings to the game, but the one I gravitate towards the most is point guard. The conductor of the offense. And I always try to make sure that my symphonies are on point. No pun intended.

I dribbled the ball. Tadashi was guarding me pretty closely. I had to admit, his defense was suffocating and nobody else on my team was open for a pass. Everyone was standing around ballwatching rather than cutting or setting screens. Tadashi began his trash talk, as is tradition for any true Celtics fan.

“You’re bricking again, Kaito.”

“I missed once,” I shot back. Still dribbling, still trying to get around him. I hate how good he is at defense. He’s no slouch on offense either. And I really hate how he trash talks like he’s Larry Bird out here.

“Can’t beat my defense, bro. You’ve missed three times.”

“That’s a small sample size.”

“That’s a pattern.”

“That’s not how patterns work.”

“That’s exactly how patterns work when you’re playing like this.”

I picked up my dribble.

Cut left.

Tadashi stayed in front of me. Grinning like an idiot. Still talking trash.

“You’re not getting past me like that, Laker boy.”

“You’re overcommitting.”

“I’m locking you down.”

“You’re reaching.”

“I’m anticipating.”

I pivoted.

Drove right.

Tadashi stayed with me. Closer than expected. As much as I hate to say it, you had to respect his defensive prowess.

“You’re slower than usual,” he said.

“You’re more annoying than usual.”

“I’m always this annoying.”

“Facts.”

I faked a pass.

He bit.

I stepped through.

Pulled up. Took the shot.

CLANG.

Silence. Then…

“HAHA!” Tadashi’s face ballooned in size like a puffer fish. “Can’t even hit the open J. Sad.”

“That rim is biased.”

“That rim is FAIR AND BALANCED.”

“That rim is clearly favoring Boston.”

“COPE.”

“I’m not coping.”

“You are coping in real time.”

Thankfully we got the offensive rebound.

“Run it back!” the rebounder, Suzuki, shouted.

My squad reset our offense on the half court.

“Alright, listen,” Tadashi said, crouching slightly and guarding me like his freedom depended on it, “you’re not beating me today.”

“I already beat you.”

“That was last week.”

“That still counts.”

“Different patch. Updated some of the software. Got rid of a bunch of bugs that were slowing me down.”

“This is not a video game!”

“We’ll see about that. This is absolutely a game. Just lucky we’re not playing 2k. Then you’d really be getting your ass whooped.”

“You’re trash at 2k, Tadashi. Even with the legends teams.”

Before he could respond, I did a quick crossover and immediately drove to the basket.

He pressured harder this time. More physical. More aggressive.

“You’re such a tryhard,” I said.

“I’m succeeding.”

“You’re fouling.”

“Ref didn’t call it.”

“There is no ref.”

“Exactly.”

No matter what I did, I couldn’t get to the paint.

I spun. Created some space.

Took the midrange shot.

SWISH.

“There it is,” I said. “Just like I drew it up.”

“Lucky.”

“That was not luck.”

“That was a bailout.”

“That was clean and you know it.”

“That was desperation.”

“That was skill.”

“That was mid.”

“Makers.”

We reset again. Tadashi checked the ball to me. I called for a screen. I went around the screener but Tadashi refused the switch and stayed on me.

“You’re forcing it now,” Tadashi said.

“I’m adjusting.”

“You’re panicking.”

“I don’t panic.”

“You’re panicking internally.”

“That’s not measurable. How would you even know that?”

“I can see it in your soul.”

“Bro, shut the hell up and just play.”

“I am. I’m getting inside your head…”

Tadashi did a quick nod to the sideline.

I passed the ball to an open teammate then paused and took a quick glance.

“Look what we have here…” he said with the most smug look I think I’ve ever seen on his face.

“What? Oh her…”

“We got a new challenger.”

“That’s not helpful.”

“That’s extremely helpful.”

Aizawa stood near the wall.

Alone. Completely still. Watching the game.

Not awkward. Not curious. Just focused, like she was trying to ingrain everything she was seeing into her memory.

Tadashi continued to stifle me with his defense as I tried to find a way to get open.

“Did you just notice her, Kaito?”

“I was occupied.”

“With losing?”

“With playing.”

“Debatable.”

“HEADS UP!” someone shouted.

The pass came fast. Wrong angle. Too wide.

It was going past me. Toward her. She didn’t move. Didn’t react.

I moved. No hesitation. Time seemed to slow down, like right before a car accident.

Somehow, I managed to close the distance. Pure adrenaline. Reached out and…

Caught the ball mid-flight.

The impact stung. My momentum carried me forward, but thankfully I planted my feet and stopped just in front of her. I would have felt like such an ass if I had crashed face first into her.

She blinked. Once. Looked at the ball. Then at me. She spoke in that cool and collected voice of hers.

“…Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

She continued to stare at me like she was studying an alien life form as she spoke.

“…You reacted quickly.”

“…Maybe.”

A pause. I already had the feeling like this was the most awkward conversation of my life, yet somehow, also very pleasant. She spoke once more with a practiced speech that felt like all unnecessary words had been eliminated from her vocabulary. Just direct and to the point.

“…You missed earlier.”

“…Also true.”

Another pause. Seconds felt like days at this point.

“…You are inconsistent.”

I laughed. And began to mimic her speech. Not to be rude but to hopefully make her more comfortable. And to get her to say more than three words per sentence.

“…That’s one interpretation.”

She nodded slightly.

“…Why did you help me?” she asked.

“…The ball was going to hit you.”

“...That is obvious.”

“…Then that’s your answer.”

“…You could have ignored it.”

“...I could have.”

“...But you didn’t.”

“…No.”

“…Why?”

I paused. This had to be the strangest question anyone has ever asked me. I felt like every answer I could potentially give was the wrong answer.

“…It was the logical thing to do.”

She stared at me. Longer this time. I had no clue what she was thinking behind those lovely purple eyes of hers. But I could definitely see the gears turning in her head.

“…I see,” she said. “…I am Miya Aizawa.”

“…Kaito Sakamori.”

Time seemed to pause yet again.

“…Interesting,” she said.

“…Is that a good thing?”

“…I have not decided yet.”

“…That’s not reassuring.”

Then she turned slightly and stopped staring directly into my soul. Like she was signalling that the conversation was over.

“ALRIGHT, BREAK’S OVER!” someone yelled. “Back on the court!”

I slowly began to walk back onto the basketball court. Tadashi ran up to me and clapped me on the shoulder.

“Bro...”

“What?”

“You just triggered a new route with your hero antics.”

“That’s not how this works.”

“That is exactly how this works.”

“This is not a game.”

“You just saved the fine ass transfer student and she called you interesting.”

“That is a statement.”

“That is a FLAG.”

“That is not… We barely even had a conversation.”

“That’s totally fine. That way you can stay dark and mysterious. Kaito, you sly dog. You’re collecting them now. Like they’re Pokemon.”

“Dude, shut up. I am not collecting anything.”

“You are absolutely collecting them.”

“I’m… I’m going back.”

“Yeah you are,” Tadashi grinned that stupid grin of his. “Going back into the danger zone.”

“This is not a danger zone.”

“This is absolutely a danger zone.”

But… even as we got back to playing…

I could feel it. A new variable. Not loud. Not aggressive. Not all up in my comfort zone. Not attached to me.

Just… present. Watching. Observing me like I was her prey in a nature documentary, one being narrated by David Attenborough.

“…Unpredictable.” I thought to myself. Damnit. Even my thoughts were mimicking her speech right now.

And as I know all too well, unpredictable creates problems.

“…I don’t like problems.” Damnit. Gotta stop doing that.

From the sideline, I’m fairly certain I heard, very quietly…

“…That was unexpected.”

That wasn’t good. That can’t possibly be good. I couldn’t believe that my three rules for maintaining balance were in complete shambles in just a few measly hours. For now, I had to focus on the game and wiping Tadashi’s smug look off his face because I knew I wouldn’t be hearing the end of this one. Was he right? Was there really a new challenger? I swear I could hear the Smash Bros announcer as I thought that. What started off as a rather uneventful morning seemed like it would have greater consequences ahead.