"Sairenji-san, what is it that you want?"
Sora looked at the blushing girl with a teasing smile.
"I want... I want... I want to ask Sora-kun to play tennis!"
As if finally mustering her courage, Haruna bowed deeply and shouted.
Not just Sora, but even Momioka Risa and Sawada Mio beside her were stunned. Haruna-chan's shy and embarrassed look had made them think she was going to say something else entirely. It turned out she just wanted to ask him to play tennis.
"Haruna-chan, Sora-kun isn't feeling well. Maybe he shouldn't play?"
"Yeah, I agree. Besides, you're so good, Haruna. Sora-kun is definitely no match for you..."
Risa and Mio were both a little against it. On one hand, they thought Sora's health was poor—he couldn't even jog, let alone play tennis. On the other hand, knowing how good Haruna was, they didn't want to see Sora lose and be mocked by those annoying boys.
However, Haruna, who was always so gentle and considerate, didn't listen to her friends' advice this time. Instead, she straightened up and looked at Sora with anticipation.
"I haven't really tried it before, but since it's an invitation from Sairenji-san, let's have a match."
Stroking his chin and nodding, to the renewed surprise of Risa and Mio, Sora actually agreed!
"Sora-kun, your health..."
Remembering that Sora had said his health was poor, Risa and Mio tried to dissuade him anxiously.
"Risa-san, Mio-san, I'm touched by your concern. But don't worry, I'm actually in great shape. What I told the teacher before was just an excuse to be lazy, hahahaha..."
Tilting his head back and laughing loudly, Sora's words left Risa and Mio dumbfounded. His poor health was just an excuse to be lazy?
The two girls felt their minds reeling, completely at a loss for words. In contrast, Haruna beside them had an "I knew it" and happy expression on her face.
"Sora-kun, let's go now then."
Feeling this was a good sign and that she was getting to know Sora-kun a little better, Haruna felt an inexplicable little joy in her heart.
"Hmm, well, no rush, no rush."
Surprisingly, after just agreeing, Sora then shook his head.
"Um, Sora-kun, is there something else?"
The three girls were all puzzled, looking at Sora with confusion.
"Rito-kun, come over here for a sec."
Instead of answering them directly, Sora waved and called out to Rito not far away.
"Sora-san, what is it?"
Having been keeping an eye on Haruna's every move, Rito came running over at Sora's call, as if he'd been waiting for this moment.
"Rito-kun, we're going to play tennis, you should join us. I still need to warm up, so you can play a match with Sairenji-san first."
Sora smiled and patted Rito's shoulder.
"Play with Haruna-chan? Me..."
Staring blankly at Sora, Rito didn't snap back to reality for a long time.
"What's wrong, Rito-kun? You don't want to?"
Looking at the dazed Rito, Sora had a knowing, smiling expression.
"Ah... I do, I do! I want to!"
Are you kidding? He was almost overjoyed by this sudden stroke of luck, how could he possibly not want to? Snapping back, Rito quickly replied.
"Hehe, I thought you might not be available. As long as you're willing. Sairenji-san, you don't mind playing a match with Rito-kun first, do you?"
Nodding with satisfaction, Sora also sought Haruna's opinion.
"Um, if it's Rito-kun..."
The girl shyly lowered her head. She wouldn't be very willing if it were any other boy, but she could accept Rito.
Although the current Rito and Haruna still kept their distance, he had a crush on her, and she had a soft spot for him.
Seeing Haruna agree, Rito was even happier. To be able to play tennis with Haruna-chan, he felt so happy he could fly to heaven.
It had to be said, Rito was indeed a pure-hearted boy who was easily satisfied...
"Rito-kun, I've created the opportunity for you. Whether you can grasp it is up to you."
Winking, Sora leaned in and whispered in Rito's ear.
"Waaah... Sora-san..."
Staring blankly at Sora, Rito felt a surge of emotion. In the past, when others found out about his crush on Haruna-chan, they almost always mocked him. But Sora-san was the first person ever not to laugh and to help him like this. Rito was so moved he was about to cry!
Sora-san, you're a good person! You're a really good person!!!
"Alright everyone, since it's decided, let's head over to the court now."
With a wicked curve to his lips, Sora led Rito and the three girls toward the court...
…
"I can't believe that Rito guy is playing against Sairenji. How unexpected. Rito, go for it! Show Sairenji your manly side! Hahahaha..."
"Rito, if you dare bully Haruna-chan, we'll never forgive you!!!"
"Yeah, yeah, playing tennis with Haruna-chan, I'm so jealous!"
"Rito, you should just give up. Haruna-chan is not an opponent you can beat!"
...
What was supposed to be a small tennis match ended up drawing the entire class as spectators. Standing on opposite sides of the court, both Rito and Haruna felt a little nervous.
"Hah... Besides Sora-san, Saruyama is the only one cheering for me..."
Sighing, although he was truly happy to be playing with Haruna-chan, everyone else, both boys and girls, was booing him, except for Sora-san and his friend Saruyama.
Rito felt his life was quite a failure. It was like a coffee table, covered in cups of tragedy...
Besides Rito, Haruna was also incredibly shy and nervous at the moment. Being watched by the entire class made her feel very embarrassed.
She couldn't help but glance in Sora's direction. The shy, nervous girl was momentarily stunned, and then a wave of annoyance washed over her—
"Sora-kun, didn't you say you were going to warm up? What's with that look of watching a good show and waving at me now?!!!"
At that moment, Haruna discovered another side to her deskmate. Sora-kun was handsome and smart, but also a bit lazy. And now she had discovered another one of his traits:
He loves to tease people!!!
"Sora-kun, are you sure you're not going to warm up? It'll be your turn soon."
"I'm a genius. Geniuses don't need to warm up."
"Um, Sora-kun, you're not deliberately creating an opportunity for Rito and Haruna, are you? You want the two of them to..."
"Well, something like that. Seeing how hard Rito-kun's crush on Sairenji-san is, as his friend, I wanted to help them out a bit."
"Aww... Sora-kun, you're so noble!"
"Hahahaha... Not at all, not at all..."
Watching the court while chatting with Risa and Mio, only Sora himself knew how much truth there was in his words.
"Um... Sora-kun, you're helping that Rito guy so much. Do you really not have any feelings for Haruna yourself?"
It was Risa's voice. The usually straightforward girl was acting uncharacteristically shy, a unique blush on her boyish face that made her look surprisingly cute and charming.
Turning his head, Sora looked her up and down, then lifted Risa's chin with a wicked, charming smile:
"What's this, Risa-san? Do you want me to have feelings for Sairenji-san?"
Feeling her heart pound violently, the girl let him hold her chin, staring blankly at Sora, feeling as if she had completely sunk into that handsome, devilish face, unable to speak...
…
"Phew... Rito-kun, I'm starting!"
"Sairenji-san, bring it on!"
Under everyone's expectant gaze, the match between Rito and Haruna on the court was finally about to begin.
Taking a shallow breath, the gentle and quiet girl vanished. Haruna's expression became serious, and her whole body radiated an intimidating aura. The noisy surroundings quickly fell silent.
Gulping, Rito had never seen this side of Haruna-chan before. He felt that at this moment, he didn't even dare to look directly at her.
His heart began to pound faster. Rito discovered that, besides her gentleness and cuteness, Haruna-chan now had something else that attracted him...
While Rito was still staring blankly at Haruna, the girl on the other side had already made her move. She tossed the ball into the air, leaped gracefully, and swung her racket in mid-air, powerfully hitting the ball.
Thwack!!!
The tennis ball left a long afterimage in the air, bounced off the ground, and shot up again. Rito on the side finally snapped back to reality and instinctively tried to return the ball, but he was half a beat too slow. The ball grazed the edge of his racket and hit the fence behind him.
"Point, Haruna-chan! 15-love."
A girl acting as the referee blew her whistle and announced Haruna's point.
"Ooh... Haruna-chan! Haruna-chan!"
The quiet surroundings instantly erupted into enthusiastic cheers. Although everyone knew Haruna-chan winning the point was inevitable, they were still very happy for her to witness it.
"Hahaha... Haruna-chan really is amazing..."
Rito on the court wasn't discouraged at all. He scratched the back of his head and grinned foolishly. If he weren't on the court right now, he would have wanted to cheer for her too!
It had to be said, what a pure-hearted kid he was...
"Rito-kun, it's your serve."
Blushing slightly with a bit of embarrassment, Haruna still felt a little happy being cheered on by everyone.
"Ah... Right!"
He quickly picked up the ball. According to the rules, it was now his turn to serve.
Taking a shallow breath, he tossed the ball up and hit it with force.
Although Rito could play tennis, his skill was only average. If it were soccer, Haruna-chan might not be able to compete with him, but when it came to tennis, he was far behind.
The ball was served successfully, but it was immediately returned by a well-prepared Haruna. Not distracted this time, Rito managed to receive it and hit it back.
The two went back and forth, continuously returning the ball into each other's court. They had already forgotten the cheering crowd, both completely immersed in the game.
Rito felt he had never been happier. At this moment, he wasn't just playing tennis with Haruna-chan; he was conveying his feelings to her with this bouncing ball.
Remembering that all of this was thanks to Sora's help—without him, he would never have had this chance to "communicate" with Haruna-chan—Rito felt even more grateful towards him...
After a dozen rallies, the more skilled Haruna finally seized an opportunity. As Rito approached the net, she powerfully hit the ball to the back of the court. Watching the whistling tennis ball, all Rito could do was stare, unable to catch up.
"Point, Haruna-chan! 30-love."
The students outside the court cheered again as Haruna won the second point.
"Rito-kun, let's continue."
It was Haruna's turn to serve again. Bouncing the ball to get a feel for it, she spoke to Rito across the net.
"Yes, Sairenji-san!"
Gripping his racket tightly, Rito couldn't help but feel nervous.
Although he never intended to win against Haruna-chan from the start, for some reason, hearing the boos from the students outside, he couldn't help but feel a little uncomfortable.
"Just one point. Just one point is enough. I have to prove myself to Haruna-chan!"
Not asking for much, Rito told himself he just needed one point. He had to prove himself to Haruna-chan, so he absolutely could not lose this next ball!
His expression turned serious. At this moment, Rito exuded the exact same aura as Haruna-chan had earlier, which quieted the students and made them look at him with a hint of surprise...
Under everyone's watchful eyes, Haruna finally found her rhythm. She tossed the ball into the air again, leaped up, and hit it towards the other side.
The ball left a long afterimage in the air. Rito, with intense focus, stared unblinkingly at the ball flying towards him. His body seemed to move instinctively on its own.
"I can do it. This time, I can do it!"
Watching the ball about to land on his racket, a great sense of confidence rose in Rito's heart.
He could feel it. This time, he could definitely do it!
Well, if everything had proceeded normally, perhaps Rito really could have done it—successfully receiving Haruna-chan's serve and winning a point, thereby proving himself to her. After all, that's what people with protagonist plot armor are best at.
However—
"Rito-kun, oh Rito-kun, I'm so sorry. Your efforts end here..."
At the edge of the court, a wicked curve formed on Sora's lips. He pointed his finger, and a thread of battle qi shot across the air into the tennis ball just as it bounced off the ground...