Chapter Fifty Eight: Fingers On The Laces
Disclaimer: I do not own Eyeshield 21.
Song Playing: Swing Swing
Theme 4: Late
It was late. Which wasn't anything new, it was always late when they were finally ready to leave. By the time they were actually locking up everyone else had been gone for hours.
Today was no exception.
She was busy organizing equipment and doing some general tidying up. If the clubhouse was anything short of immaculate when she left, it would drive her nuts until she was able to get in the next morning. At this late in the game she had pretty much trained the entire team and the cheerleading squad to clean up after themselves. If it wasn't for Hiruma she'd be in and out within fifteen minutes. The man was like a tornado. He never put anything away. He never threw anything away. He never even put his dirty uniform into the hamper; instead he piled it right next to it as if to taunt her. Some days, like today, she thought he did these things on purpose. Just to aggravate her.
He did these things on purpose.
He had a feeling that she suspected. He might even go so far to say that she knew in her gut but she'd never say anything about it. Not out loud and definitely not without evidence. The best part was that she didn't know the real reason why he did things like pull out folders he didn't need or leave videos out of their cases or use a new pen for every piece of paper he wrote on and leaving it wherever he was at that moment. See, she thought he did it just to drive her up a wall.
This was true but it was true on a secondary level.
The cold hard truth was he liked her. A lot. Unfortunately he was rather... inexperienced in the liking a girl department. So he had to settle for these little distractions to get her attention. Plus it was nice to have someone else around. Even if they grumbled a little and didn't talk much during their time alone together.
Out of the corner of his eye he saw her pause in her re-organization of the equipment closet. She was holding one of the older balls that had worn patches on the leather and strings hanging out from the laces. The football seemed impossibly large in her smaller hands.
It was in that moment that he was blindsided by an overwhelming curiosity. "Oi!" Her head snapped up and she looked deeply embarrassed. She was also surprised enough to try to hide the thing behind her back. This was even more amusing, now there was no way he was going to let this slide. "Pass it."
She blinked. "What?"
He clapped his hands together and the sound seemed to echo in the small room. "Throw the fucking ball."
She seemed unsure but he wasn't backing down either. With a sigh she brought is back out. With great focus and concentration she positioned herself like she had seen him do a million times before. Then she let it fly. The ball cart wheeled and stopped short, hitting the desk before bouncing around until it settled in between a couple of the game machines. When his eyes snapped back to her, she was biting her lip and her ears were red.
It was just too good of an opportunity to pass up. "You throw like a fucking girl."
The rest of her face was now as red as her ears. "I am a girl!"
"Doesn't mean you have to throw like one." Getting up, he squatted down to retrieve the wayward ball before making his way to where she was standing. "You're holding it wrong." With asking he grabbed her hand and started placing her fingers correctly. "Your fingers can't be all clumped together. They need to be spread out, in between the laces like this."
She did as he directed but then she couldn't grip it properly. With a sigh he spent the better part of the evening teaching her the proper techniques: getting her footing right, showing her when to let go, and most importantly how to compensate for her hand being so much smaller than his.
When he deemed her ready he went back to his original spot several feet away, "Now try."
She looked hesitant but threw it just the way he had been showing her. It made a wobbling arc before he caught it.
Well, she was no Joe Montana but she was passable.
When he told her as much she didn't get mad like he thought she would. Instead her face flushed and she actually seemed kind of, sort of pleased. It was an expression he would definitely be remembering for a long time after this. Not for any sort of blackmail or anything but for his own personal happiness.
Oh yeah. He definitely did those kinds of things on purpose. He was also going to be doing a lot more of them if it got him moments like this with her.