This takes place in the beginning of After Story before they are engaged and move in together but after Tomoya moves out of the bakery. I do not own anything.
Chapter 1: Baseball
Okazaki Tomoya was walking towards a familiar bakery. It was a beautiful Sunday morning; the sun was shining brightly and the sky was glistening blue. Even though spring had just arrived, the weather was warm and pleasant. It was a perfectly nice for his date with Furokawa Nagisa, his girlfriend.
Tomoya had been working this entire week. He had to admit, as tiring as his job was, he loved that feeling of accomplishing something and being responsible. His co-workers respected him and even Yoshino, his mentor, provides compliments here and there. However, due to his job, it meant spending less time with Nagisa. He would see her in the morning when she prepares him for work and also in the evening when she cooked him dinner. It was those little moments he enjoyed. Yet, it did not seem like enough. He wanted to spend every waking moment with her. But due to their conflicting schedules (he was working and she had school), it was hard to manage. He was hoping today they could go out on a date and spend time together.
As he walked closer to the bakery, he noticed a small, petite figure in front of the shop, sweeping the sidewalk. She was wearing a light blue sundress and brown sandals. A smile grew on his face as he approached closer.
The orange hair girl heard the footsteps and turned around. Her eyes glistened with happiness, "Hi Tomoya."
"Hey Nagisa," he moved closer to her. He noticed the broom and asked, "Is your old man making you work today?"
"Oh no," she smiled. She always smiled, "I'm just doing it to pass the time."
"That's good," he was relieved, "So, how about we go on a date? I'm off work today."
"I would love that but…" she trailed off, looking down at the ground, "You see…"
However, she was interrupted by a loud yell, "Hey punk!"
Tomoya turned around to see Nagisa's father, Akio, walking outside to join the couple. Yet, he wasn't wearing his normal apron. He was wearing a red, short sleeved, collared shirt and khaki pants. He had a baseball bat in one hand and was holding a baseball glove in the other hand. He tossed the glove to Tomoya.
He caught it and stared at it, "So, what is it for?"
Akio pointed the bat at him, "We are playing baseball today. We've been challenged by these local teenage boys who think they are better than anyone else." He swung his bat around wildly. "I'm going to teach these boys a lesson. You don't mess with a guy like me."
Tomoya just looked at Nagisa and muttered, "He's really worked up, today."
"He is determined to play today," another voice came upon the scene. Nagisa's beautiful mother walked outside. She was wearing a simple pink sundress and was carrying a picnic basket. "Hello Tomoya. It's so good to see you."
"Hello Sanae," he bowed to her. He studied the scene in front of him. He seemed downcast, "So, I guess today is family picnic day." He was hoping for a day with Nagisa.
Akio pointed his bat at Tomoya, "And you're coming with us."
He was confused, "Huh?"
Akio explained, "I need extra help because I'm determined to beat these cocky bastards."
"It's true!" Nagisa verified, "He even called our friends Sunohara, Kyou, Ryou, Kotomi, and some other neighbors to help the team. We also called Tomoyo but she was busy with student council."
"Now, we have you on our team," Akio added, looking at Tomoya.
"What?" he was taken back. Akio sounded so demanding.
"Please join us Tomoya," Sanae asked. She didn't sound as demanding as her husband. "I made plenty of food for everyone."
"Well…" Tomoya scratched his head.
"It'll be fun," Nagisa joined in, "It would be more fun if you joined us." She blushed.
Now Tomoya was convinced, "Okay, I'll go." Besides, he would spend time with Nagisa.
The couple smiled at each other as Akio shouted, "Let's play some baseball!"
The baseball park was full of kids, teenagers, and even adults. They were cheering and shouted all around the area, obviously excited for the game. Tomoya and the Furokawa's sat in the post where they joined up with the others. Akio was discussing the game strategy.
"You see those boys over there!" he pointed his bat at the boys on the other side of the baseball field. They were older boys around Tomoya's and Sunohara's age. "They are our opponents. Today's mission is to crush them! No half-assed stuff!"
"Well, why did you call Sunohara then? You won't win with him up to bat," Kyou teased even though she sounded serious. She had on a pair of red shorts and a white t-shirt.
"What the hell are you talking about?" Sunohara retorted, "I will be amazing! After all, I have something to play for."
"What do you mean by that?" Nagisa asked, truly interested.
"With all these beautiful girls around, I will play as hard as I can just to win their hearts," he answered proudly.
"You are ridiculous," Tomoya muttered, rolling his eyes.
"I think it's sweet," Sanae gushed.
"I read in a book somewhere that people who have strong passion in their hearts are able to succeed in what they want to accomplish," Kotomi explained, "It especially works when someone holds passion for the one they love. They want to do everything they can to make this person fall in love with them more and more. Who knows, it may happen to Sunohara, if he has enough passion in his heart."
"That was really touching, Kotomi," Ryou gushed.
"I don't care what is in your hearts; you just better win this game!" Akio yelled.
"Way to ruin the moment, old man," Tomoya muttered.
Soon, the game started. The opposing team was pitching and Sunohara was the first to bat. He took his stance at the mound. He gave out a smile at the girls sitting on a field, watching the game. They responded by looking away with annoyed looks on their faces.
"He's an idiot," Kyou muttered, arms crossed over her chest.
"I'm gonna go to the concession stand to buy Sunohara some water. He'll probably need it," Nagisa said to Tomoya.
"Do you need me to go with you?" he asked a small amount of concern in his voice.
"No, you just enjoy the game," she smiled. She stood up and walked off the field.
Sunohara turned out to be a total failure since he struck out. He came back to the post with a defeated look on his face.
Kyou laughed at him, "You looked like a total idiot out there!"
"I guess you did not have enough passion in your heart to play your best," Kotomi said sadly, not intended at all to be a joke.
"I'll do better next time," Sunohara vowed.
"You should've done better this time!" Akio screamed at him. Sunohara flinched away. Akio grabbed the bat from him. "I guess I have to pick up the slack." As he walked towards the field, he yelled to Sanae, "Wish me luck, honey!"
"Show them what you got, dear!" she yelled out, affectionately.
They all watched as Akio hit the ball. The opposing team scrambled to catch the ball as Akio ran around the field. By the time the ball was back at base, Akio was at third base. Happy with his play, he boasted to the rival team, "Haha! See that's what you get when you mess with me, the Babe Ruth of the neighborhood! You bastards asked for it and we're answering back!"
"I think he has too much passion in his heart," Kotomi observed.
"He really is into this. It's kind of scary," Tomoya was surprised by Akio's actions.
Akio waved at his wife, "Aren't you proud of me, honey?"
"Yes dear!" she shouted back, "I love you so much!"
"I love you too!" he shouted back.
"Well," Kyou stood up from the bench and grabbed a bat, "I guess I'll go next." She began walking out to the field.
"You go, sis," Ryou cheered.
"Bring me home, kid!" Akio shouted from third base, encouraging her.
Tomoya just rolled his eyes. It was then he noticed that Nagisa had yet to return. Concerned, he stood up, "I'm going to go look for Nagisa." He didn't wait for anyone's reply as he walked away.
Tomoya walked off the field and towards the concession stand. It was not as crowded as he thought it would be. Finding Nagisa was easy. She was by the stand with a water bottle in her hands. However, there was a taller boy in front of her. Feeling uneasy, Tomoya approached them and spoke up, "Hey Nagisa!"
She looked past the unknown boy to look at her boyfriend, "Tomoya!"
The boy also looked at him. He was his height with dark red hair and brown eyes. He wore a dark blue shirt and khaki pants. "Who are you?" He sounded rude.
Tomoya watched as Nagisa moved over to his side as he answered, "I'm Okazaki Tomoya." He decided to at least sound friendly for Nagisa. "Do you know Nagisa?"
"No, we just met," the boy shrugged, "Anyways, I'm Fukoyoshi Takahisa. So, you must be Nagisa's boyfriend?"
Tomoya blushed as Nagisa answered for him, "Yes, he is."
"Damn, that's too bad," Takahisa scratched his head, "Here I was asking this cute girl on a date and she's already taken."
"What!" Tomoya was pissed that this guy was trying to ask Nagisa out, his girlfriend.
"I already told you, I love Tomoya and I would never leave him," Nagisa spoke up, sounding very confident but shy.
"We'll see about that. Watch me on the baseball field. I will be playing to win your heart," Takahisa winked at her. "See you later, cutie." He walked away.
Tomoya clenched his fist in anger. He had to control himself so he wouldn't charge after that guy and beat the hell out of him.
"Tomoya?" he felt something grab his sleeve. He looked at Nagisa, who had an ashamed look on her face. "I'm sorry. I kept looking telling him I had a boyfriend but he wouldn't leave me alone."
He couldn't be mad at her. He knew Nagisa would never cheat on him. She was loyal. He touched her hand and gave her a reassuring smile, "its okay. I'm not mad at you." He took her hand and started walking back towards the field.
"I don't know why he started talking to me. I'm not that cute. In fact, I know there are cuter girls here than me," she rambled nervously.
They came back to the field and back to the post where Akio had been talking to the others. He turned to look at Tomoya, "Where the hell have you been?"
"I had to do something," Tomoya simply answered. He obviously did not want to say what happened. By changing the subject, he asked, "How are we doing?"
"We're up by 2," Akio answered.
"I struck a home run and managed to bring Furokawa home," Kyou explained.
"It's their turn to bat so we all have to be on the field," Kotomi added as she handed Tomoya a glove.
"They cannot get a home run!" Akio exclaimed.
Everyone except Sanae and Nagisa walked into the field. Tomoya decided to play outfielder with Kotomi and Kyou. Ryou and two teenage boys Tomoya didn't know stayed near the bases. Akio was the pitcher and Sunohara was the catcher. The first rival was up to bat.
"Prepare yourself," Akio had a frightening grin on his face. He threw the ball fiercely. The batter swung but missed. Strike one. After two more pitches, the batter struck out. "You bastards can't handle this!"
"He's starting to scare me," Ryou whispered to Tomoya.
"You're not the only one," he whispered back. He looked at the batter mound to see who was next. Much to his dismay, it was that damn Takahisa. He got up to the plate.
"Hey Nagisa!" Takahisa called out. Everyone stared at him, including a blushing Nagisa. "I'm about to hit this home run just for you!" Everyone then looked at Nagisa, who was staring at the ground.
"What the hell?" Akio glanced between his daughter and the batter; quite confused about the situation.
"Hey Tomoya, what is going on?" Kyou asked the pissed off boy.
"Just get ready," Tomoya was getting more pissed off. He figured two can play at this game. "Hey old man!" he shouted at Akio, who gazed back at him. "Strike this guy out!"
"Just who the hell do you think I am, punk?" Akio grinned. He pitched the ball, expecting a strike…
However, Takahisa proved to be a tougher guy than they thought. He hit the ball and it flew over the field, outside the fence line. The entire team was too shocked to say or even do anything.
Once he made a home run, Takahisa winked at Nagisa and shouted, "That was all for you, cutie."
Everyone's shock grew even more. Tomoya just growled as Akio shouted, "Hey punk! You better not be hitting on my daughter!"
After another home run, the teams switched positions. Once everyone returned to their posts, Akio immediately confronted Nagisa. "Flirting with the enemy, huh?" he accused.
"No dad! It's not like that at all!" she argued back, her face extremely red.
"My little girl is just grabbing all the boys' attention," Sanae gushed, a smile lighting up her face.
"One punk is enough!" Akio retorted, his arms crossed over his chest immaturely.
"Seems like Okazaki has some competition," Sunohara joked, teasing his friend. "You need to step it up or else that Takahisa guy will sweep Nagisa right off her feet."
Tomoya's hair covered his eyes so his face was unreadable. Angrily, he grabbed a bat and walked towards the field.
"Well, someone's pissed off," Sunohara muttered.
"I have the feeling this has just turned into something more than just a baseball game," Kotomi said.
"Nagisa, you should be lucky. You have two guys fighting for your heart," Kyou smiled at the frail girl.
Meanwhile, Tomoya took his stance at the batting mound. He noticed Takahisa was pitching and he had a smug grin on his face. 'I'm gonna wipe that stupid smirk off your face' Tomoya thought. He took his shoulder into consideration. 'Please don't act up. I need this.' Suddenly the ball came flying out of nowhere. He couldn't even react.
"Strike one!" the umpire called out.
'Damn it!' Tomoya cursed himself. He needed to focus. He needed this home run. He suddenly remembered what Kotomi said about people playing better with passion in their hearts. 'I need to win this game! I have to!'
"Strike two!" the umpire called out again as Tomoya did not even react. One more strike and he was out.
"C'mon kid! Hit the ball!" Akio screamed.
"Don't let them strike you out!" Kyou shouted.
"Tomoya!" Nagisa shouted very loud. He looked at her with uncertainty. "You can do this! I believe in you!" She smiled.
It dawned on Tomoya. 'I can do this because I am passionate about Nagisa! I want her to be proud of me.' He watched as Takahisa threw the ball. He watched as the ball came closer and closer. Not even thinking about his bum shoulder, he swung the bat and shouted, "This is for you, Nagisa!"
The entire field was silent as the bat made contact with the ball. The crowd watched as the impact caused to ball to fly across the field. Cheers erupted as Tomoya just stood there, bewildered.
"Hey kid! Run!" Akio shouted. It was almost hard to hear because of the crowd screaming.
Tomoya snapped out of his thoughts and started running around the bases. The cheering from the crowd encouraged him to run faster until he scored a home run. He looked at Takahisa's perplexed face and felt satisfaction. He walked over to the post where everyone greeted him and patted him on the back.
"That was amazing, Okazaki!" Sunohara gushed, "Even with your bum shoulder that was an amazing hit!"
"We were worried there for a minute," Ryou admitted.
"Hey, we need another batter!" An unknown boy shouted to get their attention.
"Then go out there and bat kid!" Akio retorted back. He looked back at Tomoya and said, "I expect you to play like that for the rest of the game."
"You got it, old man," he nodded.
"You gave that pitcher a run for his money!" Kyou teased, "You proved to him that he was not allowed to steal your girlfriend."
He smiled and looked at Nagisa, who was giving him a loving smile. As he approached her, he couldn't help but ask, "So, are you proud of me?"
"Very," she replied, "No matter what you do out there on the field, I will always be proud of you. I only have eyes for you out there."
Tomoya then realized that this jealously thing was pointless. He had no reason to be jealous. This Takahisa guy can hit as many home runs; Nagisa will still love Tomoya and Tomoya only. She loved him that much. He was truly touched by her response. He couldn't think of any words to say so he did the next best thing. He kissed her. It was a simple touch of the lips. He could vaguely hear Sanae in the background, gushing over them.
Once he pulled away, he studied her blushing, yet smiling face and felt his heart flutter.
After a long afternoon, Akio's team won the game. The score was very close, 20 to 18. Tomoya managed to score two more home runs. Even Kotomi and Ryou scored at least once. However, Sunohara proved to be the weak link of the team. He could not score a point.
"Alright everyone! Celebration right now!" Akio shouted cheerfully. The sun was beginning to set, signaling the end of the day. Since they won the game, they wanted to celebrate with the team.
"I say we go out to that new café!" Sunohara suggested.
"Hold it, kid! You don't have a say in where we go to eat!" Akio exclaimed.
"What? Why?" he was flabbergasted.
"You didn't even score a home run!" Kyou answered, "We had to pick up your slack!"
While they were bickering, Tomoya noticed Takahisa approaching. Not even realizing it, he grabbed Nagisa's hand and pulled her closer to him.
"Hey," Takahisa greeted.
"Hi Takahisa," Nagisa greeted back; while Tomoya just nodded his head in acknowledgment. He gripped her hand tighter while she gripped back.
"I'm just here to say, congrats. You guys played a great game. You, especially, were a worthy opponent." Takahisa said directly to Tomoya.
"You were too," Tomoya spoke up.
"I guess I'll have to play better next time," he scratched his head. "I guess I will see you later." He turned and walked away.
Once he was out of earshot, Tomoya turned to Nagisa and said, "I'm surprised he didn't say anything to you."
"He must know that my heart already belongs to someone else," she smiled at him.
End
Next Chapter Coming Soon