Valued

The Baseball Club.

Break time.

Knock, knock.

Following the plan discussed with Akane Nanao yesterday, Shouya Katase used the ten-minute break to head to Coach Tougou's office.

No matter how much he trusted the Coach, he couldn't just brush aside his girlfriend's concerns.

Just like Akane said, better safe than sorry.

'I hope Coach Tougou isn't that kind of person.'

With that thought in mind, Shouya Katase knocked on the door labelled "Coach's Office."

Upon hearing a commanding "Come in," he pushed open the door.

The warm air outside sharply contrasted with the coolness inside the office, thanks to the air conditioning.

After closing the door, Shouya Katase looked over at the man, who was sitting on the sofa sipping tea.

Noticing his arrival, Tougou set down his cup and greeted him.

"Katase, what brings you here?"

Standing stiffly to one side, the boy nodded. "There's something I'd like to discuss with you, Coach."

"Well, don't just stand there. Have a seat and let's talk."

The gorilla displayed the kind of care that shows how much a coach values his players.

After his words, he even thoughtfully picked up a glass from the tea tray and poured Shouya Katase some water.

For someone with a reputation for being stern and unapproachable, it was rare for Tougou to do something like this.

So Shouya Katase, unsure of what to do, stood frozen in place.

Well..he was clearly trying to show his appreciation without overdoing it and raising suspicion.

Seeing that the boy hadn't moved, he frowned and scolded:

"Are you deaf? I said sit down."

"Ah, right."

Moving cautiously, Shouya Katase finally sat down on the single-seater sofa and accepted the cup of tea, nodding in thanks.

"Thank you, Coach."

Tougou didn't respond to his thanks.

Instead, he poured himself more tea and asked, "How's the taste? After drinking it last time, did you feel more energized during practice?"

Since the coach brought it up, Shouya Katase's eyes sharpened as he forced a smile. "Yes, I did notice. I was wondering what was going on at the time."

Taking a sip in front of him, Coach Tougou's harsh features softened into a grin:

"I told you, didn't I? I had to pull some strings to get this tea."

"It boosts energy, improves blood circulation—lots of benefits. It's great for training; otherwise, I wouldn't have given it to you."

"Come by and have some more whenever you're free."

"Whether I can advance as a coach depends on you."

Hearing these words of trust and encouragement from his coach, Shouya Katase suddenly felt a surge of excitement, like a horse recognized by its master.

Raising his cup, he downed the tea in one gulp and loudly declared:

"I'll definitely bring glory to the school and to you, Coach, in the competition!"

"Good, that's the spirit!"

Smiling with approval, Coach Tougou Toshizuo got down to business:

"So, what did you want to talk about?"

As the conversation shifted to what Akane had asked him to discuss, Shouya Katase grew hesitant.

After a few false starts, he nervously spoke up:

"Um, Coach, last time..."

Recalling what Akane had told him on the phone last night, he paused briefly before continuing:

"She didn't come today because of leave, and I didn't get a chance to talk to her about keeping a distance, as you instructed, Coach. So, I was hoping you could give me another opportunity..."

Hearing his words, Tougou smiled dismissively and waved his hand as if it were no big deal.

"I see, that's all?

After training, I'll find an excuse and send you both to the storage room again."

"I'm giving you the opportunity—make sure you make it clear this time and don't disappoint me."

Meeting the coach's gaze, Shouya Katase straightened up and nodded solemnly.

"Understood!"

After getting the confirmation he wanted, Coach Tougou glanced at the clock on the wall and said:

"There's still some time left in the break.

Sit here and cool off for a bit, have some more tea.

Training needs a balance of work and rest."

"Thank you, Coach!"

...

Even though the coach had told him to stay longer, Shouya Katase didn't feel comfortable sitting for too long.

So, after a few more sips of tea, he stood up and excused himself.

Closing the door behind him, he stood outside, then took out his phone and stopped the ongoing recording before sending the unedited audio file to the contact labelled "Akane."

Recording the conversation was also part of last night's plan when Akane discussed the details of testing the coach's intentions.

The recording was purely for Akane to gauge what Tougou's intentions really were.

Unexpectedly, Shouya Katase also got an explanation for why he felt so hot during practice last time.

Hopefully, this will help clear up some of the misunderstandings between Coach Tougou and Akane.

One was his girlfriend, the other was a mentor who valued him—it would be best if they could coexist peacefully.

Of course, for the safety of his lover, he would not advise his lover to give up the experiment before the outcome was certain.

He just hoped that if the coach really was innocent, Akane would stop viewing him with such suspicion.

With these thoughts, Shouya Katase made his way back to the baseball field.

...

..

On the other side,

Sitting on a toilet seat in the women's restroom, Nanao Akane was wearing headphones, listening to the recording her boyfriend had sent her.

Judging by her furrowed brows, the recording the content of the recording was far from what she had imagined.

Her suspicion of Tougou was based on what Sasaki had told her—that the coach might have spiked Shou-kun's tea—and coupled with the coach's bad reputation and the occasional glances he threw her way, this formed a strong sense of wariness towards him.

Now, hearing Tougou Toshizuo openly admit that the tea he gave Shouya was meant to help with training directly contradicted what Sasaki had told her.

The bad rumours about him have not been confirmed...

And those glances he threw her way could have been just her imagination.

Could it be that Tougou was innocent?

Her suspicion wavered for a moment, but she quickly regained her resolve.

Regardless of whether he was innocent or not, compared to Sasaki who took the initiative to confess his thoughts to her, people like Tougou who might do bad things secretly and had the ability to ruin their lives were more worthy of guarding against.

So, no matter what Shou-kun thinks.

She wasn't going to change her view of Tougou Toshizuo.

...

Resolving her thoughts, the girl removed her earphones, placed them into her pocket, and stepped out of the restroom stall.

As the sun set, the sky was painted with the red hues of twilight.

A crimson sunset coloured half the sky, casting a reddish glow over the distant clouds.

The gentle breeze softly stirred the air.

The dimming light illuminated the campus as it gradually fell into darkness.

19:08

Eight minutes had passed since the school's regulation for additional practice to end no later than seven o'clock.

Tougou checked the time on his wristwatch before leisurely blowing the whistle that signalled the end of practice.

*Tweet-tweet—*

However, unlike before, he didn't shout "Dismissed on the spot."

After blowing the whistle twice, he placed his hands behind his back and called out:

"Gather up."

The team members, too tired to even consider complaining, dragged their exhausted bodies and lined up neatly, awaiting his speech.

Not surprised by how obedient they were, Tougou stood before them with a grin that could scare a child to tears and said:

"I know you're all tired, so I'll keep it brief and then let you go."

"First of all, you're aware that the competition is approaching quickly. Time isn't on our side, yet your performance is still this subpar.

At this rate…"

Ten minutes later…

"That's all I have to say."

"Dismissed."

"Oh, and Katase, help Manager Nanao pack up and move the equipment to the storage room."

"Yes, sir!"

Normally, the others would be teasing Katase, envying him for getting a chance to be alone with the baseball team's star manager.

But it was already late.

With their bodies drained and having had to endure the coach's rambling for over ten minutes while standing at attention, they were too impatient to stick around.

So, once Tougou Toshizuo finished and turned to leave, most of them immediately headed for the locker room.

The few who remained only gave Katase a quick playful glance before departing as well.

Soon, Katase Shouno and Nana Akane were the only ones left on the empty baseball field.

But there was no romantic atmosphere between the two.

The main reason was that Akane was afraid that Tougou might be hiding somewhere and watching them.

Therefore, the conversation between the two of them was still very formal, with them calling each other classmates.

"Sorry to trouble you, Katase-san."

"It's no trouble at all."

The less you say, the fewer mistakes you make.

After exchanging simple pleasantries, they began collecting the baseballs and bats scattered around the field, without so much as touching each other.

Once everything was packed into a crate, Katase and Nanao each grabbed an end and carried it to the storage room outside the baseball field.

The warehouse outside the baseball field was a place she often visited, but to be honest,

She didn't like this place at all.

It was secluded, dirty, messy, and rarely visited.

Now it was also dimly lit.

All these factors combined made it an unappealing place for anyone, even for a guy.

After opening the storage room door and placing the equipment inside, Nanao hid behind the door and peeked out through the gap for a while.

Once she was certain no one was around, she signaled to Katase and snuck outside to hide nearby, waiting for the "big fish" to take the bait.

Watching his girlfriend sneak off to her hiding spot, the boy sighed in exasperation.

Even after listening to the recording, Akane still had zero trust in the coach.

Why was she so determined?

..

This secluded place, combined with idle time, easily leads to wandering thoughts.

Katase Shouya sat on the cotton blanket near the window, wondering why Akane had such a big prejudice against the coach.

Yesterday, he asked her, and it turned out that the coach had no contact with her from beginning to end.

Even if Qian was disgusted with him because of some rumours about the coach, it was inappropriate for her to be so repulsive to him as she was now.

Just because of Sasaki's nonsensical words?

Why did she trust Sasaki so much in the first place?

The coach had been supportive of him, wanting him to perform well in the competition so that it could boost his own chances of promotion within the school's sports department so strictly speaking, their interests were aligned.

Akane was aware of this too.

Yet despite all this, she chose to believe Sasaki's baseless comments.

Even though she said yesterday that she would cut ties with Sasaki once this was over, Katase Shouya couldn't help but still feel a little uncomfortable.

He was wasting time testing the intentions of a coach who had always supported him, all for his girlfriend.

But the reason his girlfriend was doing this was because of a few words from that person who she had only met a few times and could be considered a complete stranger.

Even though her reasoning that it's better to be safe than sorry made sense, the fact that she trusted Sasaki more than him was undeniable.

Given how much she trusts him, were they really just acquaintances who met a few times?

Would they really cut off contact in the future?

Being alone in a silent, dark place easily calms one's body, but when the body is still, the mind tends to wander.

And once thoughts start swirling, they can cloud judgment.

There's an old saying that being too clever can backfire.

Even smart people, when overthinking, are prone to mistakes.

So, what about someone like Katase Shouya, who is far from being sharp?

From his perspective, his girlfriend's actions were indeed hurtful.

He did break the agreement, but why did he do it?

It was because she was getting too close to another boy, leading to his misunderstandings.

Even though she was already in a relationship, she was still 'flirting' with another guy.

Wouldn't any guy start overthinking in this situation?

Adding to that, she trusted that guy more than her own boyfriend.

A few words from him were enough to make her go to such lengths.

Is this the kind of trust a normal friend should have?

Even though he understood Akane's concerns, but her over-trust in outsiders really made him disappointed and upset.

However,

Katase Shouuya gradually dispelled the suspicion in his heart, hoping to dispel the "what if" in Akane's mind so that she would indeed stop contacting Sasaki.

*Sigh…*

Shaking his head to dispel his bitter thoughts, he pulled out his phone and quietly watched the time tick by, waiting for the test to be over.

*Smack—*

Slapping a mosquito that had bitten her arm, Akane Nanao pulled out her phone from the pocket of her baseball pants and checked the time.

19:45

She had been waiting here for over ten minutes.

By now, Tougou Toshizuo should be sneaking over, hoping to catch Shou-kun under the influence of the 'drugged' tea and doing something inappropriate.

But…

Could it be that the tea Shou-kun drank really was just the invigorating kind, like Tougou claimed, and not some lust-inducing drug?

Furrowing her brows, Akane Nanao was wondering whether she should wait a bit longer when she heard some noise nearby and instinctively shrank back, hiding behind the bushes.

*Tap, tap—*

The source of the sound was a distance away, and with the dim light of dusk, Akane Nanao slowly raised her head and looked through the green plants in the direction where the sound came from.

'Tougou Toshizuo, I knew you'd show up!'

Upon seeing the burly figure slowly approaching the warehouse, Akane Nanao quietly raised her phone and aimed the camera at him.