The Otaku Plays

“I’m sorry, Haruhi-kun!” Wataru-san bowed his head before me as I left the first aid room.

Next to him stood a woman dressed in a suit, and had her green hair tied in a tight tail that accentuated her brown eyes.

“I apologize too, on behalf of the hotel.”

“Why are you… apologizing?” I questioned. I got into a fight for my own reasons, and the establishment shouldn’t be held accountable for it.”

Wataru-san shook his head vehemently “It’s our fault for not making sure of your safety as a member of our staff.”

“Haruhi-kun.” The woman nodded at Wataru, and extended a hand to me. “You might not know me, but I know you. I’m Kirara’s sister you see, my name is Endo Sana.”

Oh, so THAT was Kirara’s sister. She was definitely way more… serious than her younger sibling. I could even call her slightly charming, the way she professionally carried herself.

"On behalf of the hotel I work at, I'd like to offer you and your friends a complimentary pass to use all our facilities for the remainder of your stay.”

“Eh?”

The facilities?

“Isn’t that a little much?” I couldn’t help but smile wryly.

“Not at all.” Sana shook her head. “You got hurt while working for OUR hotel, and protecting OUR clients. I won’t bore you with the legal details, but this is the least we can do.”

“Ah, okay then?”

“Don’t worry Haruhi-kun. You should enjoy yourselves tonight.” Wataru-san reassured me with a hearty nod.

<><><><><><><>

“You dare challenge me again?!”

“Our battle will be legendary!”

Mari and Kirara exchanged menacing stares, holding their rackets as if they were sharpened and ready for war.

“Should we stop them?” Ichika asked from the sidelines, concerned.

“Nah…” Chihiro yawned and leaned back.

After getting the go-ahead from Wataru-san and Sana-san, I informed everyone that we were free to enjoy the playroom filled with arcade machines, ping-pong tables and all sorts of amenities.

Evidently, Ichika, Kirara, and Kota had access to the hotel facilities due to their stay. Thus, we ended up in a spacious playroom, where Kirara and Mari engaged in yet another intense table tennis match.

Sumi was chatting with Chiaki, while Riku and Kota had found common ground on a few arcade games.

“Shoot! Shoot!”

“Bang!”

The two fought a few pixelated aliens, losing coin after coin.

I observed Ichika, sitting beside me, her chin resting on her fist, her gaze sweeping across the room. Her eyes roamed aimlessly until they settled on something, lingering there for a moment.

It was a lonely billiards table by the side.

“Heh.” I smirked. “Wanna try uh… Hayasaka-san?”

I asked, remembering how we weren’t exactly supposed to be well-acquainted. She seemed to flinch at the sound of her surname, before she turned back to me.

“You mean… that?” She pointed at the table.

“Yeah, pool.” I shrugged, leaning back on my chair, “I could teach you, you know. I happen to be pretty good at it.”

Ikemen skills, unleash!

“Hah,” Ichika smirked too, “Let’s see you try then.”

The both of us got up, as I turned back to a bored Chihiro.

“You coming?”

“Hah!” He scoffed as haughty as always, “I suppose I could grace you with my presence.”

He shot Ichika a fleeting glance, and got up too.

<><><><><><><>

After grabbing the necessary equipment – the marble balls for the game and the billiard cues to hit them with – I took the opportunity to teach Ichika how to play.

The very clumsy, and stubborn Ichika.

“You just bend over your cue, while keeping it aligned along your—“

Hastily Ichika thrust her arm forward, before I could finish.

“Agh!”

She misplaced her shot by a mile, barely scraping the ball with the tip of her cue.

“That was horrible…” I muttered, looking at the pouty girl beside me,

This was her third miss, and the game hadn’t even started yet.

“Heh, I don’t know if it’s your teacher, but you’re definitely… lacking Hayasaka.”

Chihiro spoke with a smirk, as he held his cue like a noble brandishing a jeweled staff.

Ichika’s eye twitched at his comment.

As one would expect, Chihiro was the kind of person to hold grudges, and being rejected and insulted by Ichika surely put her at the top of his list.

Ichika's pout deepened, and she leaned over the table again, determined to correct her stance and give it another try. Yet, her tension was palpable, and her posture remained rigid and forced, signaling that she was likely headed for another miss.

“Hey.” Not if I could help it though. “May I?”

Ichika looked at me, clearly puzzled by my ambiguous suggestion. Despite her uncertainty about what was to come, she nodded tentatively. Taking that as my signal, I stepped closer, draping my arm over her shoulder, and guiding her arms to rest between mine.

“H-huh?” I could practically feel the heat radiate from Ichika’s face while being in such close proximity. Our cheeks almost touched, as I corrected her form.

“There.” I said, tucking the cue just between her shoulder and chest, her arms closer to each other, stretched out.

Chihiro rolled his eyes, obviously misinterpreting my interaction with our “new” acquaintance. He nonchalantly rested his arm on the cushions of the table. From the corner of my eye, I noticed Ichika glancing sideways, her gaze fixed on me.

In a fraction of a second, I felt her relax, and a satisfied grin spread across her face.

“Hold that stance now—“

“Look,” Ichika whispered, “I think I got it.”

With a sly smirk, she adjusted her cue to an unusual angle and struck the ball forcefully. The ball smoothly glided across the slate and collided with the cushion where Chihiro's hand was resting on.

“WEERFJ!”

The haughty handsome guy façade of his flew out the window, as he jumped up and squeaked like a frog.

“W-what do you think you’re doing?!” Chihiro hissed, clutching his hand to his chest,. “You could have hit me, you brute!”

“Heh, that was the plan…”

Ichika smirked from ear to ear while this time it was Chihiro’s turn to glare at her.

If pettiness took human form, it would likely be stuck between deciding whether to be Chihiro or Ichika.

<><><><><><><>

After Ichika had learned the ropes successfully enough to threaten Chihiro with another close shave, we split into teams as me and Ichika wound up against the haughty rich boy and a guest star appearance from Sumi.

He said something along the lines of not wanting to be caught dead teaming up with Ichika, and the blonde tsundere only fanned the flames with a mocking flash of her tongue.

“Sumi, you know how to play right?” I asked, while the pink-haired girl smiled shyly at me.

“Yes, I think I’ve got a good grasp of the basics.”

“Even IF, I would be the one to teach her.” Chihiro smirked at me, “You have that one to look out for, after all.”

Ichika’s eyes twitched in anger once more, as the game begun.

Indeed Sumi seemed to be familiar with the basics of posture, hitting the ball and the fundamental rules. Surprisingly, Ichika turned out to be quite the quick learner, giving Sumi a run for her money.

Maybe it was the… weird method I used to burn the stance into her mind?

Ichika seemed to blush whenever I looked over her form before every shot, probably recalling my teachings.

Me and Chihiro were pretty evenly matched too though, so this bout was one to savor.

“HAAAAAAH!”

“HAYAAAA!”

Yet not one as memorable as the rivalry still going strong back at the table tennis venue.

“Uhm, Haruhi…?” Ichika whispered to me.

"Don't worry, no pressure," I assured her with a firm nod as she leaned over the table, gripping her cue tightly. The 8-ball's fate rested on this shot – sink it, and we'd be victorious; miss, and our opponents would live to fight another day. "And if you can't sink it, at least try not to scratch or foul," I whispered our strategy into her ear, leaning in a little closer.

Fouling would grant Sumi, who was next in line, the opportunity to place the cue ball anywhere on the table. And there was only one ball on the table left. A prize only one team could take home.

“Okay. Score, or no foul…” Ichika prepared to strike, gulping down the ball of nerves.

With a start, she moved the cue back, and down towards her target.

“Heh, get it over with already, it’s not like you’ll—“

Clank

Ichika's aim went slightly off, likely due to Chihiro's interruption, causing the ball to rocket off the table like a guided missile.

“WAAAAH!!!” Chihiro barely dodged it, as it whizzed past his face.

“Oops.”

“Damn it!”

Ichika smiled apologetically, while I hissed. Not only did we miss our chance, but Chihiro dodged too!

“What is the meaning of this?!” The young man hissed, “Do you seriously want to harm me that bad, Hayasaka?!”

“Ah-no, relax Chihiro-kun…” Sumi smiled wryly.

“This is preposterous! You are a hazard to my health!”

Chihiro stomped away from us, plopping down on a chair.

“WOAH!”

Not before slipping on his way there, by the loose cue ball Ichika had just ejected. As a result, he fell flat on his ass.

Seeing this, me and Ichika shared a wide-eyed look, while Sumi rushed to help.

“Chihiro-kun? Are you alright?”

She asked, as his face burned with rage.

“This game is stupid!”

“Pftt!”

In no time, Ichika and I couldn't help but dissolve into laughter, the two of us cackling like two evil witches.

Sumi turned to us briefly, a mysterious scowl on her face.

Naturally, she slotted away the last ball, sealing our defeat. Even so, me and Ichika never stopped laughing.