───● The Middle School Basketball Girl Pleads ●○●
My basketball practice sessions with Yuka were still going strong, even as we moved from venue to venue.
“Whoa, you can pull that off now…?” I asked, wide-eyed.
“Yup! I’ve been practicing non-stop!” Yuka replied with a proud grin.
Yuka’s rate of growth was terrifyingly fast. She had already been skilled when we first met, but now she had reached a level where no middle schooler could possibly stand up to her.
Her outside shooting percentage had shot up, and her overall play was so polished it wouldn’t surprise me in the least if she got picked for an all-star squad.
Come to think of it, didn’t she mention attending some regional selection camp the other day?
Your big brother figure here couldn’t be prouder.
“Hup…!”
“Nice!” I called out. “Try not to look down at the ball, and use your left arm to keep the defender at bay.”
Even so, there were still things I could teach her.
It was scary to think my reservoir of advice might run out soon, but naturally, I still held the upper hand in plenty of areas.
Once she reached high school, she’d probably blow right past my skill level, so I wanted to pass on everything I could before that day came.
The place where I was coaching Yuka today was the City Gymnasium, located just a short distance from her house.
As the weather had gotten colder lately, we had been spending more of our practice time indoors.
Yuka kept insisting, “I’m totally fine outdoors!”, but letting sweat cool off in this weather only increased the risk of catching a cold, so indoors was definitely the safer bet this time of year.
That said, renting space at the City Gymnasium came with plenty of restrictions, like sharing the facility with other people and dealing with strict time limits.
“Alright, let’s take a quick break!” I called out.
“Okay!” Yuka replied cheerfully.
Fortunately, there was only one other group using the facility, giving us full control of our half of the court. Taking a breather wouldn’t mean losing our spot.
Taking a seat on the bench, I took a gulp from my sports drink.
Yuka sat beside me, rehydrating with the water bottle she had brought from home.
After resting for a few minutes…
“Alright, Yuka. Let’s finish things off with a one-on-one!” I suggested.
“Got it!” she agreed eagerly.
Playing a one-on-one at the end of practice had become a regular routine for us lately.
Considering I had actually lost to her once before, I was taking this dead serious.
Yuka took possession of the ball on offense.
I dropped into my defensive stance.
“U-Um…” Yuka stammered.
“Hmm?” I asked.
Normally, the drill started with her passing the ball to me and me checking it back to her. But before handing the ball over, Yuka looked up at me with a faint blush dusting her cheeks.
…I have a bad feeling about this.
“I-If I win… do I get some kind of reward?” she asked softly.
“Ah, well…” I trailed off.
And here I thought I could talk my way out of it this time…
Lately, setting up a “reward if she beats me” clause had become an unspoken rule whenever we played one-on-one.
The idea itself wasn’t bad, but Yuka’s requests were always a little… much.
Still, accepting her terms made a night-and-day difference in how fiercely she played.
This is so unhealthy! You should be giving it your all even without a bribe!!
“…Fine. Same as usual,” I gave in with a sigh.
The moment I reluctantly agreed to the usual prize, Yuka’s face lit up like a Christmas tree.
“A-Alright, here I come!” she declared, her eyes sparkling.
“Isn’t that a little too sudden of a motivation boost?!” I blurted out.
The second she bounced the ball to check it with me, her expression flipped into one of intense, serious concentration. It was downright intimidating.
I-I mean, it’s great that she’s motivated and all, but still!!
I really wish you’d try this hard without needing a reward attached to it?!
…The result?
“W-Well then…” Yuka murmured shyly.
“Ah… Yeah, okay. A promise is a promise…” I muttered, hanging my head in defeat.
In a first-to-five-points game, she sank two consecutive three-pointers right in my face and handed me a clean loss.
Something is seriously wrong here.
After changing out of our athletic gear in the locker rooms, we relocated to a quiet spot behind the City Gymnasium.
Tucked away near the back exit away from the main street, foot traffic was practically non-existent, meaning there was little chance of anyone spotting us.
The only sound echoing around us was the faint rumble of activity from inside the gym.
Whenever it was time to hand over her “reward” (with heavy emphasis on the quotes), we always ended up coming to this exact spot.
This is so scandalous… It’s terrible for a minor’s moral upbringing…
Yuka threw her arms wide open, her eyes sparkling with anticipation… and I wrapped my arms around her in a tight hug.
“Nnnyaah…” she let out a contented squeak.
Apparently, she loved this.
She once told me that receiving a hug directly from me made her feel wanted, which she adored.
I-I mean, if it’s just a hug, it’s safe… Right? Who am I kidding, of course it’s not!
While guilt gnawed at my conscience, the fact that I genuinely cared for Yuka meant I didn’t dislike it either… which was honestly the worst part.
I held her like that for a while, keeping the embrace going until she was satisfied.
My heart is pounding from the constant terror that someone might walk by and catch us.
W-What if someone calls the cops on me…?
Granted, in a world like this, no one would probably report me… but that didn’t change the fact that this was fundamentally improper.
Just as Yuka seemed satisfied and I began pulling back from her—
“Ah, wait a second,” Yuka called out.
“Hmm?”
The moment I tried to step away, Yuka locked her gaze onto my face, staring intently as if she had spotted something on it.
“Could you close your eyes for a moment?” she asked.
“Sure, go ahead,” I replied.
Wondering if a stray leaf had gotten stuck in my hair, I closed my eyes—only for something soft to touch my lips a second later.
A tender, gentle warmth pressed lightly against mine.
It took my brain a solid few seconds to process that the soft touch belonged to Yuka’s lips.
“Yuka…!” I gasped, my eyes snapping open.
“Ehehe. I won today, so please forgive me,” she giggled, flashing me a mischievous smile.
The enchanting look on her face felt far too mature for a middle school girl.
…Man, she really has grown into a dangerous young lady.
Is she gonna turn into an absolute femme fatale at this rate???
“Let’s go!” she cheered, grabbing my hand.
Yuka tugged my hand and began walking forward with a spring in her step.
Looking at that radiant smile of hers made me want to forgive whatever she did, which was truly a troublesome predicament.
Yuka carefully lifted a piece of cheesecake served on a beautiful plate to her mouth with her fork.
“This is so delicious!” she squealed with delight.
“Glad you like it,” I smiled back.
After wrapping up basketball practice, I had brought Yuka to a cozy cafe.
Staying out too late wasn’t ideal, but it was still early evening, and I had asked her to notify her parents in advance.
Of course, treating her was partly a reward for all her hard work… but that wasn’t the main reason we were here.
In truth, I had a very specific matter I needed to discuss with her today.
“Actually, Yuka, there’s something I need to talk to you about,” I began.
“…What is it?” she asked, setting her fork down after finishing her bite.
She swallowed her cake and looked straight at me.
Perhaps sensing the serious shift in my tone, Yuka straightened her posture, bracing herself.
What I had to tell her… was that I intended to reach a final decision by March of this year.
In other words, I was going to make up my mind once and for all about who I would choose as my girlfriend.
As I explained this to her, the bright, flower-like expression that had lit up her face moments ago slowly began to cloud over.
“D-Does it… really have to be that soon?” she stammered in a quiet voice.
“I’m a terrible guy, you know,” I replied honestly. “I’ve kept your feelings on hold for so long, and like I mentioned before, I’ve been doing the exact same thing to the others too.”
“You are not a terrible guy!” Yuka protested firmly.
Despite Yuka being the first person to confess her feelings to me, I still hadn’t given her a clear answer.
Part of that was because Yuka herself had told me, “You don’t have to give me an answer yet.”
But leaving everyone’s feelings hanging indefinitely wasn’t right.
And if I ultimately didn’t choose Yuka, keeping a young, amazingly popular girl like her chained to my side would be incredibly unfair.
Yuka stared down at the floor, muttering under her breath.
“But… if you do that, then I’m… in the absolute worst position, aren’t I?” she whispered.
“…” I stayed silent.
Of course, I intended to give her feelings full, serious consideration before deciding.
But I couldn’t blame her for feeling like she didn’t stand a chance.
After all, the massive hurdle known as our age gap loomed over us.
“B-Basketball!” Yuka suddenly blurted out.
“Huh?”
Yuka snapped her head up, speaking rapidly as if an idea had just struck her.
“I’ve gotten a lot better at basketball, right?!” she pressed.
“Well, yeah, of course you have,” I answered.
“J-Just like in basketball, I’ll… I’ll keep growing too!” she declared desperately.
Hearing those words struck me right in the chest.
It was… a desperate plea.
“I’ll become a wonderful woman that you can’t help but fall in love with, Masato-san!” she pleaded, tears welling in her eyes.
“In three short years, once I’m in high school and college, I’ll become someone worthy of standing by your side…!”
“So please… give me a chance too!”
Yuka’s eyes trembled with emotions she could barely contain.
Seeing her like that stirred up a storm of feelings inside my chest.
“…Your feelings are reaching me loud and clear, Yuka,” I said gently.
“…R-Really?” she quavered.
I wasn’t going to lie to her.
I wanted to tell her exactly what was in my heart.
Looking straight into her eyes, I met her gaze head-on.
“At first, I definitely thought of you like a little sister, and I can’t say that feeling is completely gone even now. But…”
My mind flashed back to that day.
The day Yuka beat me in basketball and poured out her heartfelt confession to me.
“Ever since that day, you’ve continuously expressed your feelings to me, and you were the one who changed how I view things, Yuka.”
That was my undeniable truth.
Ever since she confessed to me, my everyday life had fundamentally transformed.
“I promise I’ll give your feelings fair and honest consideration,” I assured her.
“…Okay. I understand,” she nodded slowly, relief washing over her face.
Seriously entertaining romantic feelings from a middle school girl…
Under normal circumstances, people might call it creepy or bordering on illegal.
But brushing off all the passion and effort Yuka had put into telling me how she felt was something I refused to do.
I was going to consider Yuka seriously as well.
That was a decision I had made for myself.
“Besides, there’s no way I’d ever cut ties with you or stop seeing you,” I added with a warm smile.
“That’s a promise, right?” she asked, searching my face.
I had zero intention of cutting Yuka out of my life.
I genuinely wanted to see how much better she would get at basketball in the future.
And above all, we had grown far too close to ever throw that away.
After that…
Having finally calmed down, Yuka resumed eating her cheesecake, and I sat quietly, watching over her with a warm smile.