A/N: Between each chapter will be a mini-chapter, and this one has the gang wrecking each other at Mario Kart.
Five months ago
"I'm making all of you my bitches tonight," Aya proclaimed as she dropped to the floor beside Miki. Grabbing two controllers, she kept one for herself and handed the other to her girlfriend.
"I beg to differ! I'm an experienced Yario Cart player, and I know all the ins and outs of the rainbow course," Sugimoto cordially countered. He and Manami and situated themselves in front of the television and picked up controllers as well. While Onoda crawled over to the Woo U and turned on the console, Naruko plopped onto a beanbag. The latter two wouldn't be playing yet, but watching and cheering on the others was almost as fun as playing themselves.
Once the bright colors of the television screen flashed on and they moved onto the player select screen, Manami immediately chose Bashful Boy.
"Why do you always choose him?" Naruko questioned, and he shifted to allow Onoda more room to sit on the floor in front of him.
Manami hummed in thought. The Bashful Boy's masked face, complete with circular black voids for eyes, patiently waited onscreen. "…I feel like we have a lot in common."
Everyone waited a few seconds, expecting elaboration, but the blue-haired male only apologetically shrugged.
"Maybe it's because you're kind of mysterious?" Onoda suggested.
"I don't know about mysterious," Miki commented. She flicked through the roster a couple times before deciding on Beeowser. The giant black and yellow reptile roared his approval. "It's more like you have a lot of depth to you."
The blue-haired male smiled. "Thanks. But compliments aren't going to stop me from destroying you."
Miki grinned. "Big words! You better back them up."
"You got this, babe." Aya gently bumped her shoulder against hers before settling on Bonkey Tong.
"Hey, don't count me out either. I almost won last week's round," Sugimoto reminded them. After he selected the little being floating on a cloud called Rakitu, they all picked courses and prepared to start.
Air thick with tension, each player readied their thumbs over the accelerator buttons.
3
Naruko leaned forward and gripped Onoda's shoulders; the boy underneath him, equally as in suspense, held his breath.
2
Carts' engines revved. Sugimoto's brow furrowed in concentration.
1
Manami licked his lips in anticipation, and the girls' faces were nothing but serious.
START
As they pulled away from the starting line, Sugimoto charged ahead only to be mercilessly bumped aside by Miki's Beeowser.
"Ah!"
"What are you doing man?! Go after her!" Naruko ordered.
"I know, I know!" Sugimoto exclaimed. Rakitu straightened out and chased after the other drivers. Meanwhile, Bashful Boy drifted around the first corner with Bonkey Tong close behind.
The first two laps were filled with friendly shit-talking and ruthless racing. Just when it seemed like one person was too far in the lead, a heartless blue shell would knock them pack in place. A few times Aya nearly fell behind, but some lucky item grabs saved her.
Upon crossing into the third lap, Miki suddenly leaned against Aya. "You're doing so great!" She then planted a quick kiss to the other's cheek and, without missing a beat, went back to playing.
Aya, taken by surprise, felt her thumb slip, and she watched helplessly as her character careened off the path. "Traitor," she huffed.
Miki simply grinned wider and kept her gaze focused on the screen.
Naruko's fingers gripped the back of Onoda's shirt. "Oh shit—"
"—Manami's got a blue shell!" Onoda finished.
"I sure do," he confirmed.
Miki, who was currently in the lead, paled. "Ah ha, why don't we make it a fair race to the finish? We don't need blue shells."
"All's fair in love and war," Sugimoto disagreed. With his Rakitu right behind Bashful Boy, he was in no danger.
"You heard him," Manami said, and with the press of a button he unleashed the blue blur.
"No!" The shell bashed into Beeowser, stopping the driver and ruining heard-earned momentum.
Now that Miki and Aya had fallen to the back, Sugimoto and Manami raced toward the finish. Neck in neck, drifting around the final corner, Sugimoto straightened out a mere moment before the other.
"How?!" Manami cried out, yet the far too elated smile on his face revealed how much he was enjoying the thrill. The finish line lay directly ahead.
"I spent a whole night playing only this course with my brother!" Sugimoto proudly revealed. "I know it like the back of my hand."
"Kudos. But I can still win!"
"Try me!"
Naruko and Onoda joined in on the jeers and cheering; their words grew louder and quicker with each passing moment. Aya and Miki yelled out a few of their own remarks, too, but they were still focused on reaching the end of the track.
Then, winning by half a second, Rakitu crossed the checkered line first.
Sugimoto stared at the gold "1st" glimmering in the corner of the screen. Then Naruko reached over to give him a congratulatory slap on the back, causing the dark-haired male to be started out of his stupor.
"Look at this guy, showing up Manami!" Naruko praised.
A beaming grin broke out on Sugimoto's face. Dropping the controller onto the carpet, he thrust his hands into the air. "Oh my god, I did! I won!"
"Yeah yeah, you're just lucky you didn't have a girlfriend tricking you into messing up," Aya grumbled as she followed Miki over the finish line. But the corner of her lips tugged upward anyway.
"That was a good race," Manami remarked, placing his controller in his lap and leaning back on his hands.
Sugimoto nodded. "An excellent one. I'm pumped up for the next round. Who's on?"
After five more races, each of which they switched up players and continued to throw playful insults and the occasional compliment, they decided to call it a night. Sugimoto had won another race, giving him a score of two; Miki won one; Onoda won one; and Manami redeemed himself by winning on the last track. Onoda's mother made each one of the bespectacled male's friends take a cutely shaped snack before they left and loudly welcomed them to come back again, much to Onoda's chagrin.