to yuka, shintaro is nothing but a nuisance. not only does he reek of body odour, he brings a number of his deliquent friends home over time. his nasty cuts and bruises too, are something that she has to take care of as a childhood friend and neighbor. the number of times shintaro has come home with bruises all over his body is countless. there's just a tad too much time yuka has to take care of the boy that she's starting to suspect he's jumping into fights and letting himself get beat up on purpose.

his older brother is a whole other being altogether. ryutaro morimoto is the symbol of perfection. he has good grades, lots of friends, and is exceptionally talented. not only in physical activities but artsy and musical ones too. he is a gem even at school. everyone, even the popular crowd wants to be around him. he acts as a beacon to the other kids, someone they could look up to and depend on. unlike others, yuka sees him in another light. the ryu-chan yuka knows is the protective and attentive older brother that's been with her since she was little.

when she's sick, he would be by her side attending to her. when she has trouble with her homework, ryu-chan is the first person she would run to. when shintaro jerked her off the swing, ryu-chan scolded his own brother on behalf of yuka who's not even blood-related to him. she adores him for all he's done for her. even now, he will be the first person she goes too when she feels uneasy.

"yuka! yuka! oy katari!"

yuka stirred in her sleep. the loud voice that has been calling out to her woke her up. it was a sunday for god's sake, she deserves the extra sleeping time. standing up she walked towards the window. still shielding her eyes from the light she peeked from behind her fingers. her eyes came to focus and the first thing she saw was a figure standing below her bedroom window.

"what are you doing here morimoto-san?"

her voice came out gruff. hurts from too much singing the other day. shintaro was waiting expectantly below her window. he was dressed in a complete baseball uniform. it seemed like he's very excited about something.

"oh come on don't call me by my family name," he grinned, "shin-kun sounds way better."

yuka rolled her eyes and yawned. "what do you need?"

"i was thinking you could play baseball with me."

yuka laughed. "no way, i'd have to be part of the team to use the field."

"right. watch me play then?"

"sure." she shrugged.

shintaro gave her a thumbs up and turned to walk away.

"matte! will ryu-chan be there?"

shintaro smiled and nodded once again. yuka gave him a quick smile before shutting her window shut and drawing the blinds. if ryutaro is there she has to look her best. she entered the bathroom and studied her face. it wasn't that bad. her most recent breakout was a week ago and has since then passed. no more acnes for about 2 more weeks. she sighed in relief and started brushing her teeth. once she was done she dried her freshly washed face and snuck another look at the mirror. a smile appeared on her face. her face wasn't that bad after all.

in a second, she was already in front of her wardrobe trying to decide on something to wear. since it would be an outdoor activity she thought of trying on a fun look. the weather's been hot so might as well use something breezy. tying her hair up, she put on a translucent floral dress over a balck tank top and white shorts. her eyes traveled to her legs. she's never noticed how long it has gotten until then. definitely a catch.

looking at the clock, she grabbed her woven clutch and a string of ribbon. her fingers gracefully laced the ribbon over her hair. it was a pretty sight. she turned off the lights and locked the door to her room before finally leaving her house. the sound of her heels tapping against the floor filled the entranceway. when she finally did get outside, shintaro was already there along with ryutaro. yuka's face brightened immediately as she gave the older morimoto a bear hug. ryutaro returned the hug without any hesitation and smiled.

"ready to go?" he said, pinching the bridge of yuka's nose.

"totally. come on shin-kun!"

yuka grabbed shintaro's hands and quickly pulled him towards the bicycle.

"get on, i'll be walking with ryu-chan."

"ch-chotto matte! aniki can ride on the bike."

frowning, yuka gestured at shintaro to stop being a er. the boy shrugged and quickly told her that he was not going to ride on the bike. to make things clear he kicked the wheel of the bike, surprising yuka.

"is anything wrong?" ryutaro asked.

"nothing, aniki. here ride the bike, i'll walk with yu-chan."

"okay then. take care you to."

ryutaro flashed them a smile before getting on and riding to the field. the two watched him disappear slowly from the pavement. annoyed, yuka turned to face shintaro.

she scoffed. "what the heck was that for?"

"nothing. i just thought it would be better for aniki to ride the bike. he has to get there faster to prep the field anyways."

yuka huffed and walked away, keeping a distance from shintaro. if it was not bad enough for him to wake her on a sunday morning, he had taken away the chance of her getting all romantic with ryutaro. the time it takes to get to the field by walking on foot is approximately 15 minutes. she checked her phone. another 13 minutes with the er. deciding to shorten the time, she started walking faster. a minute with shintaro is suffocating enough. 15 minutes is way more than she could possibly handle.

within 10 minutes she had arrived at the field. a bit sweaty but looking good nevertheless. her eyes searched for the familiar face of ryutaro morimoto but it seems like he has somehow dissolved into nothingness. just then, a hand was slung over her shoulder. she jumped in surprise, only to find that it was shintaro who was getting all touchy with her.

"get away from me butthole."

shintaro pursed his lips. "butthole?"

"yeah, butthole."

"are you sure it's not hole?"

yuka shook her head. "that's too typical, stupid."

shintaro chuckled and gave her head a quick pat. yuka shoved his hands away and crossed her arms in a ver childlike manner. shintaro returned her pout by sticking his tongue out, leaving yuka gaping at the treatment she's getting. deciding to ignore him, she glanced at the direction of the field, hoping to find ryutaro. at that exact moment she felt an arm resting on her shoulders, again.

"oy morimoto i told you to stay away." she whined.

as she turned her head to whack shintaro's head another face greeted her.

"do you hate me that much, yuka?" ryutaro laughed.

her face quickly reddened. she has just made fun of herself in front of her crush.

"oh um i thought you were shintaro."

"no hard feelings there." he said, ruffling her hair.

the guy left once again. yuka, having seen ryutaro's face went to take a seat. there was a lot of empty seats waiting to be filled, so she picked one nearest to the field. that way, she'll be able to see the game - and ryutaro's face - better. there was still some time left before the game starts. yuka was about to get up ad buy a drink when a cold can of tea was brought to her face. taking the can, she looked up to see shintaro softly smiling at her. he silently sat beside her and took a sip of his own tea. yuka awkwardly opened her can and starteg drinking her tea too.

"it's embarassing to admit but you look pretty cute."

eyes widening, yuka looked at shintaro and blushed.

"eh? w-what?"

shinataro shook his head and smiled. "nothing. have fun watching the game."

he slowly got up and turned to go. yuka looked at shintaro walking away. he's never crossed her as the type to call a girl pretty. he doesn't have that air around him. that sweet romantic air. if there is one thing yuka was sure about shintaro it's how childish he really is. now she's not really sure. sipping on her tea, she looked down and smiled. maybe he was not that bad.

the game soon started with shintaro's team batting first. it was a senior-junior match which means ryutaro and shintaro wouldn't be in the same team. ryutaro was playing pitcher. yuka looked at him adoringly but somehow the feels are a bit different from usual. she was more inclined to watch shintaro. that's why. her gaze traveled towards the bench. surely, shintaro was sitting there with his friends, all geared up and ready to bat. although she couldn't see very clearly, she knows that he was observing the match quietly. somehow she smiled when she saw him.

shintaro stood up and confidently entered the field. cheers erupted from the team and supporters likewise. he was a popular player, valued and skilled, that much she knows. she found herself cheering too. at other times she would be too preoccupied with ryutaro that other players were gone from the field to her. that includes shintaro. but now it's the exact opposite. her eyes were on shintaro. she has never ever payed attention to how he played and how much he excelled at the sport. shintaro swung his bat powerfully as ryutaro's ball approached him. the ball flew across the field. home run.

he quickly ran towards the first base, his helmet bobbing up and down. yuka was in trance. never has she ever thought shintaro would be this good. before this, if ryutaro's team somehow lost she woudl have assumed that someone from shintaro's team was just that good. never shintaro. not once has she thought that. without her realizing she was already standing up and screaming his name, clapping all the while. even before the ball was returned to the nearest base, he has made it to the last stop. it was a legit, heart wrenching, home run. the crowd cheered and clapped. his teammates gave him a pat on the back, every single one of them. he smiled, appearing all sweaty and panting. yuka smiled at the sight and gripped her clutch. he looked cute, attractive.

ninth inning finally came to an end and yuka clapped. ryutaro's team won but shintaro's play was outstanding nevertheless. she walked towards the benches and waited for shintaro to come out. when he finally did, she smiled.

"you did great."

he smiled. "thanks."

"i saw that home run."

"of course you did, you were sitting right there." he said pointing to the sidelines.

they laughed together and looked at each other.

"aniki's inside, l-"

"no i want to talk to you."

shintaro raised an eyebrow but stayed. "what is it?"

"ano..." yuka muttered.

she looked up and stared at shintaro's face. there were bruises and cuts, still, but now it appealed to her. he looked wonderful and brave. she smiled and brushed away her hair shyly.

"i-i think you look pretty cool too in that uniform. kinda." yuka admitted shyly.

shintaro scratched his temples, surprise evident in his face. "what was that yu-chan? did you just call me cool?"

yuka looked to the side, refusing to look at shintaro. a blush was creeping up her face and it would only make her redder to look at the boy standing in front of her. a mischievous grin crept up the boy's face.

"you like me don't you?"

snickering yuka played with the ends of her hair. "think what you like," she said smiling, "and call me yuka. childhood nicknames are getting a bit old, shintaro."

the boy nodded, agreeing with her. they exchanged smiles before shintaro turned and went on his way to the changing room. his smile was radiant and stretched real wide. he pumped his fist in the air and brought it down almost immediately. "sugoi!" he said to himself, smiling all the way to the empty change stall. all those games and silliness were not for nothing anyways. he might finally get a chance to get the girl.