Jin in particular was automatically predisposed to be lugubrious for what he speculated was the rest of his fucking life, because his hopes for winning Ayako had incurred an untimely demise even before it was declared to her. That, and the fact that Sendoh double-crossed him in the most inhuman ways imaginable convinced him that something had gone awry in the mapping of his fate. He was not exactly crazy about finding out what it was. He hardly cared why his luck sucked as long as he knew that it did. That was exactly the kind of narrow-mindedness and shallow thinking that landed him in Kainan’s basketball team in the first place when he was more than dead sure that he’d signed up for the chess club.
Sendoh, on the other hand, was entirely oblivious to the forbidden love that had somehow found its way to him. He was still firm in his belief that it was Jin whom Ayako liked, and that it would always be Jin. The possibility of Ayako’s harboring feelings for him (Sendoh) never occurred to him even once.
“Man, Jin’s gonna be the happiest man on the planet once I’m through with Operation... er, what did I call it again? Oh yeah! Operation JA!”
Sendoh was enjoying a walk all by himself along the shore of the Kanagawa Bay the next morning. He couldn’t help but marvel at his own genius—how his plan for getting Jin and Ayako together was foolproof.
“JA, of course, stands for Jin-Ayako. I am such a genius!” sang Sendoh in a tone that suspiciously resembled that of a certain redhead who indulged in a similar kind of self-exaltation. “Sendoh the Genius Match-Maker...” He reflected awhile on how that sounded, and decided that he couldn’t have come up with anything better.
He glanced out at the sea and at the seagulls that had begun their day, and for a brief moment—when he let his hentai thoughts get the better of him—he even imagined a couple of them mating. He laughed at his own perverseness, and attributed the same to his mother’s being a biology teacher at the Kanagawa University.
“I know how genetics works,” Sendoh said; “I know all about it.”
In the distance, he imagined that he saw a group of dolphin, and quickly averted his attention from them before he imagined the mating as well. Instead, he focused his attention on the litter on the beach.
“Litter means I’ve come to that part of the city.” Sendoh noted, ‘that part’ being more or less the part that the older Mitsui would have called ‘home sweet home’. “Better go back.”
Sendoh about-faced and began walking back the same length of the desolate beach that he had traversed.
“So... How should I plan their first date?” he wondered aloud as he walked.
That was something he hadn’t considered, and now that he mentioned it to himself, it did seem very exacting.
“Ayako’s sure gonna want something that’s way beyond poor Jin’s, er, monetary means,” Sendoh mused, “so I need to find some way to get them to go on a simple date—yes—and although Ayako’s not exactly known for her simple tastes, I suppose she could compromise her comfort for the sake of her future lover.” Sendoh was astounded by his own genius—once again—and he increased his pace to a run to return home as quickly as possible and write everything down in his notebook—a story, perhaps. A literary afflatus had seized him all of a sudden, and it was stimulated by the seemingly important position he had appointed himself to in the similarly important task of reducing the distance between an unfortunate boy and the girl he loved with all his heart.
“Jin, you are an a-hole, understand?” Jin said scornfully to his reflection. “You’re nothing but a worthless pile of... pile of... gosh, I can’t get myself to say it...”
Jin slammed a fist against the mirror and retracted it quickly when the glass threatened to shatter.
“Jin, you are an a-hole,” he repeated; “Because that’s what you are—an a-hole.”
Self-deprecation was an activity Jin indulged in whenever he was feeling down about something. It partly because he was given to depressive propensities, and partly because he really was depressed then. He blamed himself for not getting a chance with Ayako, and refused to believe for once that it was just luck that didn’t favor him. Luck, he scoffed, was the solace of the mentally weak and the senile.
“Jin, you are a total pain in the ass. That’s because you’re an asshole. Do you get that? An asshole. In other words, an anus.” He paused awhile, because he remotely felt he became too technical all of a sudden, but shrugged and went on: “Yeah, you’re the pitiful opening of the rectum from where bodily débris are ejected. Hear that? You’re just a darn anus, Jin.”
He glanced at the wall-clock and shook his head. “I’ll deal with you later,” he said viciously to his reflection before dashing into the bathroom with his school uniform.
Ten minutes later, he was out of the bathroom, and on his way out of his bedroom, he glanced at his reflection once again, and what he saw made him sigh a deep, melancholy sigh.
“It’s no wonder Ayako didn’t like how you look. You’re a total nerd!”
He stared at his reflection a few moments longer, hm-ed and hmph-ed and flicked a short bang to the side on his forehead, straightened his shirt, touched himself gently below an eye, gave his reflection an understanding nod, and then rushed into his closet.
He returned a short while later, and went and regarded his reflection again.
He beheld himself in casual, ‘normal’ clothes and a pair of stylish sunglasses perched fashionably on his head, permitted himself a long ‘hmmm’ of triumph, and walked insouciantly out of his bedroom and all the way to school.
“Whoa, Jin, what’s this all about?” asked a classmate of his, going green in the face with envy.
“Just the general you-know-what,” Jin replied coolly; “I’m feeling a little self-assertive today.”
“Sensai will have your head, I swear,” warned the jealous bastard darkly, before turning around and walking away daintily.
Jin inhaled deeply before entering his classroom. He noted with particular interest the array of reactions he got from his classmates as a result of his rebelliously unusual and brazenly defiant attire. Upon some people’s faces befell a sort of dark perplexity, and upon others’, envy. Still others whistled in appreciation and thumped Jin on the back for his display of courage and coolness.
“Never thought you had the stuff in you, man.” said one classmate.
“Jin and cool? Now that’s seriously something new.”
Jin smiled sheepishly, but said nothing. Inwardly, he was already regretting what he’d done. He was in a cold sweat when he sat down at his spot, because he had just recalled that the first period was history, and he wasn’t exactly a whiz in the subject. And there was no time for him to go back home and change back into his uniform again—not to mention the courage to face his classmates again after how much they’d exalted him. All there was left to do was wait.
And he waited...
And waited...
And waited...
And then suddenly, the classroom door flew open, and Jin tensed from head to foot.
However, instead of the fat history teacher everybody was expecting, the office lady walked into the classroom, clipboard in hand.
She spoke in a nasal tone: “Your history teacher has not shown up today on account of an unforeseeable illness that has befallen him. A substitute teacher will be taking your class today.” She left as suddenly as she had come.
“Oh, thank you!” Jin said loud, heaving an enormous sigh of relief as he slumped back onto the backrest of his chair, a beatific smile on his face.
“I swear, right?” said the guy who sat next to him; “The substitute teacher is so sexy! If she weren’t taken, I’d pounce on her!”
A sickly pallor found its way up to Jin’s countenance. He didn’t wish to be reminded of the imbroglio he was presently in: unpleasant instances in the nightmare he had the last night flashed in his mind. Even after he awoke that morning, for at least five minutes he was convinced that he was at the christening of the baby Ayako had with Sendoh.
“Right?” insisted his seatmate.
“Yeah, totally,” Jin said weakly.
“All right class,” said the substitute teacher, walking in with the air of someone who has spent a lifetime in teaching history. “Let’s see that report that the Old One has assigned you with.”
The last bit elicited sniggers from several portions of the classroom. Among the students, the history teacher was never known by his real name—rather, the irreverent sobriquet, ‘the Old One’.
The substitute teacher sat herself at the desk and began neatly stacking the finished reports that several of the students promptly turned in. She glanced around the classroom and her eyes fell on Jin.
“What’s the matter, Jin? Haven’t you finished your report?” she asked.
Jin opened his mouth a little bit, and then decided that it was better if he kept it shut: His throat was dry, and why should he waste all that energy when a simple shaking of the head would suffice? And so he shook his head—like a door on rusty hinges.
The teacher gave vent to a long-drawn ‘hmmm’ that she had evidently suppressed in expectation of the foreseeable reply.
“And why are you wearing those clothes?” she asked sharply and in a manner that gave Jin the curious feeling that she wouldn’t have asked him that if he had worn his uniform.
“Adventure.” Jin replied lamely.
The sub raised an eyebrow. “Is that so?”
“Pretty much so.” Jin replied with all the cool he could muster.
“And shall I bring this to the Principal’s notice?”
“That’s entirely up to you, although if I were you, I wouldn’t do such a thing.” Jin was surprised at the words that were coming out of his mouth: It was as though he were possessed by Voltaire’s spirit or something.
The teacher grinned, evidently enjoying this novel kind of dialogue with a student. “And if I do?”
“You wouldn’t,” Jin replied cockily, “because the Principal’s in the hospital right now.”
“And what about the Vice-principal?”
“He’s in jail under the pretext of drunken driving.”
“And what about your parents?” the teacher said, getting annoyed at the fact that everything Jin was saying was true.
“They’re in Osaka.”
“Grandparents?”
“Dead.”
“Uncles?”
“None.”
“Girlfriend??”
Jin inhaled sharply. “Oh no, you didn’t say that!” he said; “You did not just say that!” He ran out of the classroom before he could start crying, leaving the confused substitute teacher to wonder if she had insulted the deceased in some way.
“Did I insult the deceased in some way?” she asked the classroom.
“No, Miss: Jin’s just upset that he doesn’t have a girlfriend.”
The teacher gasped. “Jin doesn’t have a girlfriend?!”
“I heard that!” said Jin from outside the classroom. “Don’t think for a second that I didn’t! And no, I don’t have a girlfriend.” He said the last bit rather incoherently.
“Jin-san, didn’t you say Ayako-san was going to come after practice today?” Kiyota asked for just about the millionth time during practice that evening.
“Er, you!” Jin addressed another player; “Not there—other side.”
The player in question glanced lugubriously at Jin and said in a tired sort of way, “But Captain, this is the twelfth time...!”
“Quit arguing.” snapped Jin. He was in a really snappy mood that day. The brief encounter he had with the substitute teacher earlier that day made his self-confidence skyrocket. He now felt himself in a position to berate anybody he wanted to; he had the guts all of a sudden.
“Hey, Jin!” Kiyota importuned; “You haven’t answered my question yet!”
“Er, Kiyota, look here.” Jin said in the politest way he could manage when speaking through clenchted teeth. “You go to that corner over there, or you’re off the team.” Jin pronounced the last bit distinctly.
“Roger that.” Kiyota said, giving Jin a brief salute before scrambling off to the other side of the court.
“Phew,” Jin said; “Good riddance.”
He glanced at his wristwatch. There was still a quarter of an hour left for practice to end. He had no choice but to wait for Ayako.
“Oof!” Jin cried as a heavy, round and orange something hit him square in the middle of his face and sent him crashing to the floor.
“Aaaaaah! I’m so sorry, Jin-san!” a player came running up to him.
Jin was too busy making sure his nose wasn’t bent the wrong way to register who the player was.
“I just wanted you to know that Ayako’s standing at the door.”
Jin looked up into the grinning face of Kiyota and had a fleeting urge to rip it clean off. But he didn’t do that: Instead, he hurriedly got up, dusted his clothes and made a beeline for the gym door, where Ayako was standing.
“H-h-hi Ayako!” Jin said nervously; “I hope you didn’t see that.”
“I did.” Ayako said, smiling. “But don’t worry, I won’t tell.”
“So how was practice today?” Jin asked, eager for conversation with the girl of his dreams.
“Good. But more importantly, let’s get down to business.” Ayako said, walking inside.
“N-now? Don’t you want to freshen up or something?” Jin honestly wanted to talk with Ayako for at least a while without hearing or having to use the accursed name—“Sendoh”.
“I’ve already freshened up.” Ayako said; “Miyagi just treated me to some iced tea. Lemony iced tea...” Ayako lost herself momentarily in the bliss of the word ‘lemony’, which she obviously connected with something more profound, such as the name to which Jin had recently become averse.
“So you don’t want to relax or anything?”
“No. Done relaxing.”
“Do you want to check out our school?” Jin was pushing his luck.
“Maybe later,” Ayako said without a thought; “But now, let’s get down to business.”
Jin wanted to suggest that he hated the word ‘business’, but he knew that if he did, he would be going against his word.
“All right, let’s get down to business.” Jin acquiesced dully. “Where do you want to start?”
“Sendoh!” Ayako squeaked; “Isn’t he just the cutest thing?”
Deep down in Jin’s system, an evil voice wanted to burst forth and disagree, but Jin suppressed it, and mumbled, “If you say so.”
“Anyway, there’s loads I need to tell you, so let’s sit down over there.” Ayako dragged Jin over to the benches and made him sit down before going on: “I’ve totally found out all I need to know about Sendoh!”
That was awfully quick, Jin thought. Aloud he said, “That was awfully quick.”
“I know,” Ayako said; “But thanks to that kid—Hikoichi—I was able to gather everything I need.”
Jin gave vent to an enlightened “Ah!”
“So you see, I now know all about Sendoh’s interests, hobbies... Heck, I even know his daily schedule!”
“You aren’t planning on stalking him, are you?” Jin said, and laughed at the absurdity of the notion.
“Don’t be daft, Jin,” Ayako said daftly. Then, “Of course I’m planning on stalking him!”
Jin’s mouth fell open. “You??”
“Yeah, why not? I mean, lots of girls stalk boys nowadays.”
“But stalking is wrong.” Jin hissed. He couldn’t bring himself to accept that the girl he’d taken a fancy to should stoop to means as iniquitous as espionage to achieve her ends.
“I know!” Ayako said; “That’s what makes it so much fun!”
Jin inhaled deeply, thinking of ways to change the subject. “So what about that date you’d planned? How am I supposed to help?” he said.
“Oh, well, I’ve noticed that Sendoh and you are rather close, so if you could convince him to spend a day with me, he might agree.” Ayako said, blushing slightly.
“Rather close...” Jin said bitterly.
“Why? Is anything the problem?”
“No; nothing at all,” Jin said hastily; “Don’t worry: I’ll make sure you’ll have Sendoh by Saturday.”
“Yes!” Ayako said triumphantly; “I’ll have him by tomorrow!”
“Oh bummer—tomorrow’s Saturday,” Jin mumbled incoherently, and before he could postpone the date, Ayako trapped him in a tight, ‘purely friendly’ hug (as he kept reminding himself).
“Thank you so much, Jin! You’re a wonderful friend! Bye!” Ayako said, dashing out of the gym.
Jin conjectured that she was probably going to buy a dress for herself. But Jin had failed to buy himself more time, and since he was a man of honor, he would give it all it takes to convince Sendoh to go out on a date with Ayako.
*
“Hey, Jin!” Sendoh said, answering the telephone. “What’s up, man? Did Ayako say anything new to you?”
“Er, no.” Jin said from the other line. He quickly added, “I have a favor to ask of you.”
“Spit it out.”
“A big favor.”
“No favor’s too big between friends!”
“Er, thanks a bunch. Anyway, I want you to be at the Town Center Mall tomorrow at five in the evening, okay?”
“Sure, but what for?”
“Ayako will be going there, so I want to go, too, but I’d feel much better if you were with me.”
“Jin, you’re so naïve! A date’s only for two people!”
“Please make this an exception, Sendoh. You have no idea how much it’ll mean to me.”
“Are you feeling strange, Jin?”
“No. Why?”
“You sound gay.”
Jin hung up.
“How gay was that?” Sendoh said to himself, slumping down onto the bed.
He honestly didn’t have any qualms about going to the mall, and since Jin entreated him so earnestly, he’d be hardhearted to say no.
Sendoh, on the other hand, was entirely oblivious to the forbidden love that had somehow found its way to him. He was still firm in his belief that it was Jin whom Ayako liked, and that it would always be Jin. The possibility of Ayako’s harboring feelings for him (Sendoh) never occurred to him even once.
“Man, Jin’s gonna be the happiest man on the planet once I’m through with Operation... er, what did I call it again? Oh yeah! Operation JA!”
Sendoh was enjoying a walk all by himself along the shore of the Kanagawa Bay the next morning. He couldn’t help but marvel at his own genius—how his plan for getting Jin and Ayako together was foolproof.
“JA, of course, stands for Jin-Ayako. I am such a genius!” sang Sendoh in a tone that suspiciously resembled that of a certain redhead who indulged in a similar kind of self-exaltation. “Sendoh the Genius Match-Maker...” He reflected awhile on how that sounded, and decided that he couldn’t have come up with anything better.
He glanced out at the sea and at the seagulls that had begun their day, and for a brief moment—when he let his hentai thoughts get the better of him—he even imagined a couple of them mating. He laughed at his own perverseness, and attributed the same to his mother’s being a biology teacher at the Kanagawa University.
“I know how genetics works,” Sendoh said; “I know all about it.”
In the distance, he imagined that he saw a group of dolphin, and quickly averted his attention from them before he imagined the mating as well. Instead, he focused his attention on the litter on the beach.
“Litter means I’ve come to that part of the city.” Sendoh noted, ‘that part’ being more or less the part that the older Mitsui would have called ‘home sweet home’. “Better go back.”
Sendoh about-faced and began walking back the same length of the desolate beach that he had traversed.
“So... How should I plan their first date?” he wondered aloud as he walked.
That was something he hadn’t considered, and now that he mentioned it to himself, it did seem very exacting.
“Ayako’s sure gonna want something that’s way beyond poor Jin’s, er, monetary means,” Sendoh mused, “so I need to find some way to get them to go on a simple date—yes—and although Ayako’s not exactly known for her simple tastes, I suppose she could compromise her comfort for the sake of her future lover.” Sendoh was astounded by his own genius—once again—and he increased his pace to a run to return home as quickly as possible and write everything down in his notebook—a story, perhaps. A literary afflatus had seized him all of a sudden, and it was stimulated by the seemingly important position he had appointed himself to in the similarly important task of reducing the distance between an unfortunate boy and the girl he loved with all his heart.
“Jin, you are an a-hole, understand?” Jin said scornfully to his reflection. “You’re nothing but a worthless pile of... pile of... gosh, I can’t get myself to say it...”
Jin slammed a fist against the mirror and retracted it quickly when the glass threatened to shatter.
“Jin, you are an a-hole,” he repeated; “Because that’s what you are—an a-hole.”
Self-deprecation was an activity Jin indulged in whenever he was feeling down about something. It partly because he was given to depressive propensities, and partly because he really was depressed then. He blamed himself for not getting a chance with Ayako, and refused to believe for once that it was just luck that didn’t favor him. Luck, he scoffed, was the solace of the mentally weak and the senile.
“Jin, you are a total pain in the ass. That’s because you’re an asshole. Do you get that? An asshole. In other words, an anus.” He paused awhile, because he remotely felt he became too technical all of a sudden, but shrugged and went on: “Yeah, you’re the pitiful opening of the rectum from where bodily débris are ejected. Hear that? You’re just a darn anus, Jin.”
He glanced at the wall-clock and shook his head. “I’ll deal with you later,” he said viciously to his reflection before dashing into the bathroom with his school uniform.
Ten minutes later, he was out of the bathroom, and on his way out of his bedroom, he glanced at his reflection once again, and what he saw made him sigh a deep, melancholy sigh.
“It’s no wonder Ayako didn’t like how you look. You’re a total nerd!”
He stared at his reflection a few moments longer, hm-ed and hmph-ed and flicked a short bang to the side on his forehead, straightened his shirt, touched himself gently below an eye, gave his reflection an understanding nod, and then rushed into his closet.
He returned a short while later, and went and regarded his reflection again.
He beheld himself in casual, ‘normal’ clothes and a pair of stylish sunglasses perched fashionably on his head, permitted himself a long ‘hmmm’ of triumph, and walked insouciantly out of his bedroom and all the way to school.
“Whoa, Jin, what’s this all about?” asked a classmate of his, going green in the face with envy.
“Just the general you-know-what,” Jin replied coolly; “I’m feeling a little self-assertive today.”
“Sensai will have your head, I swear,” warned the jealous bastard darkly, before turning around and walking away daintily.
Jin inhaled deeply before entering his classroom. He noted with particular interest the array of reactions he got from his classmates as a result of his rebelliously unusual and brazenly defiant attire. Upon some people’s faces befell a sort of dark perplexity, and upon others’, envy. Still others whistled in appreciation and thumped Jin on the back for his display of courage and coolness.
“Never thought you had the stuff in you, man.” said one classmate.
“Jin and cool? Now that’s seriously something new.”
Jin smiled sheepishly, but said nothing. Inwardly, he was already regretting what he’d done. He was in a cold sweat when he sat down at his spot, because he had just recalled that the first period was history, and he wasn’t exactly a whiz in the subject. And there was no time for him to go back home and change back into his uniform again—not to mention the courage to face his classmates again after how much they’d exalted him. All there was left to do was wait.
And he waited...
And waited...
And waited...
And then suddenly, the classroom door flew open, and Jin tensed from head to foot.
However, instead of the fat history teacher everybody was expecting, the office lady walked into the classroom, clipboard in hand.
She spoke in a nasal tone: “Your history teacher has not shown up today on account of an unforeseeable illness that has befallen him. A substitute teacher will be taking your class today.” She left as suddenly as she had come.
“Oh, thank you!” Jin said loud, heaving an enormous sigh of relief as he slumped back onto the backrest of his chair, a beatific smile on his face.
“I swear, right?” said the guy who sat next to him; “The substitute teacher is so sexy! If she weren’t taken, I’d pounce on her!”
A sickly pallor found its way up to Jin’s countenance. He didn’t wish to be reminded of the imbroglio he was presently in: unpleasant instances in the nightmare he had the last night flashed in his mind. Even after he awoke that morning, for at least five minutes he was convinced that he was at the christening of the baby Ayako had with Sendoh.
“Right?” insisted his seatmate.
“Yeah, totally,” Jin said weakly.
“All right class,” said the substitute teacher, walking in with the air of someone who has spent a lifetime in teaching history. “Let’s see that report that the Old One has assigned you with.”
The last bit elicited sniggers from several portions of the classroom. Among the students, the history teacher was never known by his real name—rather, the irreverent sobriquet, ‘the Old One’.
The substitute teacher sat herself at the desk and began neatly stacking the finished reports that several of the students promptly turned in. She glanced around the classroom and her eyes fell on Jin.
“What’s the matter, Jin? Haven’t you finished your report?” she asked.
Jin opened his mouth a little bit, and then decided that it was better if he kept it shut: His throat was dry, and why should he waste all that energy when a simple shaking of the head would suffice? And so he shook his head—like a door on rusty hinges.
The teacher gave vent to a long-drawn ‘hmmm’ that she had evidently suppressed in expectation of the foreseeable reply.
“And why are you wearing those clothes?” she asked sharply and in a manner that gave Jin the curious feeling that she wouldn’t have asked him that if he had worn his uniform.
“Adventure.” Jin replied lamely.
The sub raised an eyebrow. “Is that so?”
“Pretty much so.” Jin replied with all the cool he could muster.
“And shall I bring this to the Principal’s notice?”
“That’s entirely up to you, although if I were you, I wouldn’t do such a thing.” Jin was surprised at the words that were coming out of his mouth: It was as though he were possessed by Voltaire’s spirit or something.
The teacher grinned, evidently enjoying this novel kind of dialogue with a student. “And if I do?”
“You wouldn’t,” Jin replied cockily, “because the Principal’s in the hospital right now.”
“And what about the Vice-principal?”
“He’s in jail under the pretext of drunken driving.”
“And what about your parents?” the teacher said, getting annoyed at the fact that everything Jin was saying was true.
“They’re in Osaka.”
“Grandparents?”
“Dead.”
“Uncles?”
“None.”
“Girlfriend??”
Jin inhaled sharply. “Oh no, you didn’t say that!” he said; “You did not just say that!” He ran out of the classroom before he could start crying, leaving the confused substitute teacher to wonder if she had insulted the deceased in some way.
“Did I insult the deceased in some way?” she asked the classroom.
“No, Miss: Jin’s just upset that he doesn’t have a girlfriend.”
The teacher gasped. “Jin doesn’t have a girlfriend?!”
“I heard that!” said Jin from outside the classroom. “Don’t think for a second that I didn’t! And no, I don’t have a girlfriend.” He said the last bit rather incoherently.
“Jin-san, didn’t you say Ayako-san was going to come after practice today?” Kiyota asked for just about the millionth time during practice that evening.
“Er, you!” Jin addressed another player; “Not there—other side.”
The player in question glanced lugubriously at Jin and said in a tired sort of way, “But Captain, this is the twelfth time...!”
“Quit arguing.” snapped Jin. He was in a really snappy mood that day. The brief encounter he had with the substitute teacher earlier that day made his self-confidence skyrocket. He now felt himself in a position to berate anybody he wanted to; he had the guts all of a sudden.
“Hey, Jin!” Kiyota importuned; “You haven’t answered my question yet!”
“Er, Kiyota, look here.” Jin said in the politest way he could manage when speaking through clenchted teeth. “You go to that corner over there, or you’re off the team.” Jin pronounced the last bit distinctly.
“Roger that.” Kiyota said, giving Jin a brief salute before scrambling off to the other side of the court.
“Phew,” Jin said; “Good riddance.”
He glanced at his wristwatch. There was still a quarter of an hour left for practice to end. He had no choice but to wait for Ayako.
“Oof!” Jin cried as a heavy, round and orange something hit him square in the middle of his face and sent him crashing to the floor.
“Aaaaaah! I’m so sorry, Jin-san!” a player came running up to him.
Jin was too busy making sure his nose wasn’t bent the wrong way to register who the player was.
“I just wanted you to know that Ayako’s standing at the door.”
Jin looked up into the grinning face of Kiyota and had a fleeting urge to rip it clean off. But he didn’t do that: Instead, he hurriedly got up, dusted his clothes and made a beeline for the gym door, where Ayako was standing.
“H-h-hi Ayako!” Jin said nervously; “I hope you didn’t see that.”
“I did.” Ayako said, smiling. “But don’t worry, I won’t tell.”
“So how was practice today?” Jin asked, eager for conversation with the girl of his dreams.
“Good. But more importantly, let’s get down to business.” Ayako said, walking inside.
“N-now? Don’t you want to freshen up or something?” Jin honestly wanted to talk with Ayako for at least a while without hearing or having to use the accursed name—“Sendoh”.
“I’ve already freshened up.” Ayako said; “Miyagi just treated me to some iced tea. Lemony iced tea...” Ayako lost herself momentarily in the bliss of the word ‘lemony’, which she obviously connected with something more profound, such as the name to which Jin had recently become averse.
“So you don’t want to relax or anything?”
“No. Done relaxing.”
“Do you want to check out our school?” Jin was pushing his luck.
“Maybe later,” Ayako said without a thought; “But now, let’s get down to business.”
Jin wanted to suggest that he hated the word ‘business’, but he knew that if he did, he would be going against his word.
“All right, let’s get down to business.” Jin acquiesced dully. “Where do you want to start?”
“Sendoh!” Ayako squeaked; “Isn’t he just the cutest thing?”
Deep down in Jin’s system, an evil voice wanted to burst forth and disagree, but Jin suppressed it, and mumbled, “If you say so.”
“Anyway, there’s loads I need to tell you, so let’s sit down over there.” Ayako dragged Jin over to the benches and made him sit down before going on: “I’ve totally found out all I need to know about Sendoh!”
That was awfully quick, Jin thought. Aloud he said, “That was awfully quick.”
“I know,” Ayako said; “But thanks to that kid—Hikoichi—I was able to gather everything I need.”
Jin gave vent to an enlightened “Ah!”
“So you see, I now know all about Sendoh’s interests, hobbies... Heck, I even know his daily schedule!”
“You aren’t planning on stalking him, are you?” Jin said, and laughed at the absurdity of the notion.
“Don’t be daft, Jin,” Ayako said daftly. Then, “Of course I’m planning on stalking him!”
Jin’s mouth fell open. “You??”
“Yeah, why not? I mean, lots of girls stalk boys nowadays.”
“But stalking is wrong.” Jin hissed. He couldn’t bring himself to accept that the girl he’d taken a fancy to should stoop to means as iniquitous as espionage to achieve her ends.
“I know!” Ayako said; “That’s what makes it so much fun!”
Jin inhaled deeply, thinking of ways to change the subject. “So what about that date you’d planned? How am I supposed to help?” he said.
“Oh, well, I’ve noticed that Sendoh and you are rather close, so if you could convince him to spend a day with me, he might agree.” Ayako said, blushing slightly.
“Rather close...” Jin said bitterly.
“Why? Is anything the problem?”
“No; nothing at all,” Jin said hastily; “Don’t worry: I’ll make sure you’ll have Sendoh by Saturday.”
“Yes!” Ayako said triumphantly; “I’ll have him by tomorrow!”
“Oh bummer—tomorrow’s Saturday,” Jin mumbled incoherently, and before he could postpone the date, Ayako trapped him in a tight, ‘purely friendly’ hug (as he kept reminding himself).
“Thank you so much, Jin! You’re a wonderful friend! Bye!” Ayako said, dashing out of the gym.
Jin conjectured that she was probably going to buy a dress for herself. But Jin had failed to buy himself more time, and since he was a man of honor, he would give it all it takes to convince Sendoh to go out on a date with Ayako.
*
“Hey, Jin!” Sendoh said, answering the telephone. “What’s up, man? Did Ayako say anything new to you?”
“Er, no.” Jin said from the other line. He quickly added, “I have a favor to ask of you.”
“Spit it out.”
“A big favor.”
“No favor’s too big between friends!”
“Er, thanks a bunch. Anyway, I want you to be at the Town Center Mall tomorrow at five in the evening, okay?”
“Sure, but what for?”
“Ayako will be going there, so I want to go, too, but I’d feel much better if you were with me.”
“Jin, you’re so naïve! A date’s only for two people!”
“Please make this an exception, Sendoh. You have no idea how much it’ll mean to me.”
“Are you feeling strange, Jin?”
“No. Why?”
“You sound gay.”
Jin hung up.
“How gay was that?” Sendoh said to himself, slumping down onto the bed.
He honestly didn’t have any qualms about going to the mall, and since Jin entreated him so earnestly, he’d be hardhearted to say no.
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