Hello there! I can't believe that it's been this long! I profusely apologize for the long wait. It's just that I've been suffering from writer's block and lack of creative energy. I think my job is doing that to me.

If you follow me on tumblr deadlyleomidget then you're going to see that I've been accepting requests and writing prompts to get my creative juices flowing. Now I'm here so I think it worked. I'm still accepting requests so feel free to send me one.

Also, I hope you enjoyed last chapter after the long wait. I tried so hard to make Azusa feel sad and frustrated about how the team reacted to her secret but in a way she wouldn't blame them for feeling that way. I also sneaked in a little MiyuAzu flashback that I didn't even plan on writing. It just came to me naturally.

My hopes for Azusa's character is that she becomes her own self and not similar to my other OCs. She is supposed to be in the middle between Ai and Satomi.

As always, thanks for your support!

I apologize for any grammar mistakes.

Feedback is always appreciated.

Disclaimer: I don't own Daiya No Ace, Yuji Terajima does. I only own my OC.

Enjoy!

Chapter 6: I Won't Give Up!

'What am I going to do?'Azusa thought with dread as she made her way to the field.

She hadn't seen anyone since the night before and was beyond nervous to face the team. Last night some players were talking behind her back and she feared that the same thing would happen again. She didn't even have the courage to go to morning practice and lied to Haruno saying that she was not feeling well but that she would join them for afternoon practice.

'Why didn't I lie to stay in bed for the whole day?' the manager whined to herself. She was starting to regret her decision as the field came into view.

Azusa made her way to the field with her head down, preparing for the comments, whispers, and pointing. But she didn't get anything like that. She just got a couple of stares from a few of the players in the second and third string but they quickly looked away. They didn't even glare at her or made snide comments. It was as if they didn't know anything about her. The atmosphere was also different. It was gloomy and the tension was palpable. Of course…

'How can I be so self-centered and stupid?' Azusa thought.

They are not saying anything because a more important thing happened. The ace just suffered an injury. Who the hell would care about a measly manager when the ace was down with an injury just weeks before the summer tournament?

'Dumbass…'

No wonder everyone was so quiet. Even the third-year players who were always energetic during practice were quiet. She couldn't blame them. It was really hard to see Tanba being hit by a ball like that.

"Oi Azusa-san! Come grab the baskets, so you can start picking up the balls from the field!" Azusa heard Sachiko said from the shed.

"H-hai!"

Azusa did as she was told and just focused on her tasks as she would normally do. At first, she felt self-conscious since she was still on edge. But as time went by she started feeling more relaxed which made her feel relieved. Even though she wasn't afraid of confrontations, she really didn't feel like getting into an argument with anyone. Since it was a hard topic for her to talk about. She was also grateful that her senpai or Haruno didn't question her and treated her as if nothing had happened. She briefly wondered why that was.

Although she was glad that there haven't been any issues so far, she was still not 100% content. It just didn't feel right to go on about her day like this. Practices were usually more lively, and the energetic atmosphere was always contagious. But this? This was as dead as a cemetery. This was not the team that she had grown to love in the last couple of months.

Azusa passed by the batting cages with more baskets and glanced at the players practicing. Jun was among them along with the captain, and they were batting as great as always but the passion was lacking. Jun was always loud, specially when he was batting. But now a somber expression replaced his usual lively one. He didn't even have a scowl or was yelling at people.

She understood that it was hard for him since he is also a third-year like Tanba but this was too much. He needs to move team need to move on. If not, then there was no way they would win the summer tournament and go to Koshien.

He needs to snap out of it.

'He is the vice-captain for god's sakes,' Azusa thought in mild irritation.

"Isashiki-senpai! She yelled. "What kind of batting is that?" she taunted.

Azusa started smiling to herself when she noticed that Jun was turning to her. She was expecting a scowl and yelling from him and oddly enough that made her happy. It would mean that she got him to be his usual self even if it lasted only for a minute. However, she didn't receive neither from him. Instead, the only thing she received in turn was a half-hearted glare from him. But he didn't say anything to her. He didn't demand her to respect him because he was older than her, or dared her to say it again to his face.

She got nothing.

Did that mean that he didn't want to talk to her anymore because she didn't tell them that she was Mei's sister? Or was he just too upset over Tanba?

The manager looked at the ground dejectedly. Trying to stop the tears welling up in her eyes and silently cursed at herself why doing it. There was no way that she was going to cry in front of the team and look weak.

"Look at her trying to be all buddy buddy with the senpai," one second stringer snickered under his breath as he passed by her with another player.

"I can't believe that she showed her face to practice," the other one said.

Azusa gripped the basket as hard as she could until her knuckles were white and bit her lip. She was not going to be easily provoked by anyone. She was also not going to cry. She didn't have the time for that. The only thing she had to do was to prove herself to her fellow managers and the team, so her place in Seido wouldn't be questioned.

'I'm going to prove myself no matter what,' Azusa thought to herself with renewed determination as she walked to the other field. Deciding that it was best to keep to herself. Perhaps, what the team needed right now was a little bit of time to regroup after what happened. So she shouldn't be taunting Jun or any other player for that matter.

'Including Sawamura,' she added to herself.

"Blondie-chan!" Azusa cringed as she heard Sawamura's nickname for could sense that the southpaw was approaching her as if he just read her mind.

"What do you want?" she asked warily, turning around with a basket in her hands.

Sawamura stood right in front of her with a serious expression gracing his features which half- frightened her.

"What is it?" she asked awkwardly.

The pitcher suddenly bowed before her. "This idiot pitcher, Sawamura Eijun, sincerely apologizes for what I said about you!" he said.

Azusa's eyes widened in surprise. "Huh?"

"I never meant to offend you or hurt your feelings," he continued. "I just say things without thinking first."

The manager averted her eyes to mask her hurt expression. "So you didn't mean it then?" she asked in a timid tone.

Sawamura looked up at her as he straightened his posture. "Of course not," he said as if it was obvious. "You're my friend and I trust you."

"Really?" Azusa asked with a hint of relief in her tone and then blushed when she realized how vulnerable she must've sound. "I mean… There is no way that I would plan on being a spy. I don't play dirty like that and neither does Mei," she cooly explained.

"So do you forgive me?" the southpaw asked in a hopeful tone.

Azusa gave him a small smile. "Of course I do," she said. "We're friends."

Sawamura jumped in excitement. "Thank you for giving this Sawamura Eijun a second chance, blondie-chan!"

Azusa gave him a weird look. "Why are you referring to yourself in third person?" she asked trying to stifle her laugh. "Are you reading one of those old books again?"

"I'm just trying to be nice here," he said in an indignant tone.

"You don't have to because you're weirding me out," she teased again. "And besides I already forgave you so we can move on from this as friends."

"So if we are friends, does that mean that you're going to give me all the details about your brother?"he asked with a toothy grin.

"Of course not, baka!"

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

After her conversation with Sawamura everything was almost back to normal. Her friendship with Sawamura was intact, Haruichi was still friends with her, and Furuya was also the same as always. She could say that he was the only one who truly didn't care about her being Mei's sister. Even the team was getting to be livelier like they used to be. It seemed that the coach had a talk with both Tetsu and Jun who went back to being themselves. Also, no one has made any rude comments to her. Only stares and the occasional whispers. Which was something that she could definitely handle and ignore. So on her book everything was fine.

Yes, everything was fine.

Except… Except that Tanba was injured and the team depended on Sawamura and Furuya for the summer tournament. There was no way that they were going to win without them. However, despite the fact that they were both great pitchers, they still had a lot of things to learn in the next couple of weeks. Which was almost virtually impossible considering that they didn't have enough time. Even with Chris guiding them it was going to be difficult.

However, Azusa had faith in both of them, and she knew that they could rise to the occasion. They just needed the support from the entire team. Including her. So she determined that she was going to do everything in her power to help them since that was the reason why she came to Seido in the first place.

"So do I get to pitch now?" Sawamura asked Chris in excitement.

"You get to pitch to the most reliable person in the team," the catcher said in mild amusement as he pointed towards the net.

The southpaw started complaining but begrudgingly grabbed the baseballs that Azusa set aside for him and started practicing his pitching.

'This is good practice to solidify your form but you're too dumb to see it,' Azusa thought as she watched Sawamura intently.

"Why do I have to keep doing this?" he was throwing into the net as hard as he could every time without being mindful of any of his body movements which almost made the manager facepalm.

"Why don't you stop complaining and watch what you're doing?" Azusa offered instead. "You're not being consistent at all, baka," she said with a disapproving head look.

Sawamura stopped to glare at Azusa. "What did you just say?"

"Narumiya-san is correct," Chris said while still looking at Furuya practice with Miyuki. "You're not raising your foot at the same length every time you pitch," he explained.

"Which is why your releasing point is inconsistent," Azusa continued for Chris.

"You need to solidify your form," Chris said in a stern tone.

Sawamura knew that Chris's tone meant that there was no other room for argument and just muttered a quiet "Yes, sir."

"If you want I can record you so you're mindful of your body when you're pitching," the manager offered.

"That's actually a good idea," Chris said.

Sawamura nodded. "That might be helpful."

Azusa smiled to herself, pleased that she actually came up with something that Chris approved of. She forgot the last time she came up with a good idea.

"I'll bring the camera then."

"Hurry up blondie-chan!" Sawamura exclaimed obnoxiously.

The manager raised an eyebrow in irritation. "Who the hell do you think you're rushing?" she asked annoyed.

"You blondie!" he said. "First, we have to record it and then we have to watch it right? So we don't have time to waste!"

Azusa grumbled as she clenched her fists in anger. "Aren't you being a little too demanding?"

Chris shook his head at their bickering. "I hope you have this same energy for studying," he said in a strict tone.

Azusa and Sawamura stopped fighting and turned to Chris while blushing in embarrassment.

"Studying?" Azusa asked in curiosity since she had no idea what was Chris talking about. Yes, he is their senpai but since when does he care about their study habits?

"For the finals," Chris replied coolly.

"Finals?" she exclaimed in shock.

"They're coming up soon," the elder catcher elaborated.

Sawamura burst out laughing. "You really didn't know? Even I knew about the tests!" the pitcher boasted.

Azusa gasped. "Is that why you harassed Kanemaru-kun to help you study?" she asked.

Now it was Sawamura's turn to gasp, but this time around it was out of indignation. "Harass is a harsh word blondie," he said, offended while crossing his arms across his chest. "I just asked him for help and he is helping me study."

"I think it's a perfect word to describe this situation since he doesn't look too happy while he is helping you bakamura," Azusa retorted.

"Oi! You didn't even know about the finals exams coming up so you don't get to call me baka anymore, baka!" Sawamura taunted.

"Absolutely not! You'll always be an idiot!"

"You're both idiots," Miyuki said as he came out of the bullpen along with Furuya who have just finished practicing.

"I concur," Chris said in a tone mixed with disappointment but also amusement.

Azusa was going to retort back but she didn't want to keep fighting in front of Chris. There was something about him that compelled her to act better around him or perhaps to pretend to be better around him. Perhaps it was because of the mature and calm aura he always displayed. Or maybe it was because he was the person that Miyuki respected the most and that meant a lot to Azusa. Since very few people truly gained Miyuki's respect. So she wanted to be as composed and mature as possible.

"But what can we expect from them? We got a pack of rowdy first-years," Miyuki continued with his teasing.

Chris merely chuckled.

'Composure and maturity be damned!'

"As if you're so much better," Azusa hissed while glaring at Miyuki.

"At least I know when final exams are coming up," Miyuki jabbed. "Not to mention that I don't have to worry about failing," he continued.

"Can we please stop talking about final exams?" Furuya asked in a quiet yet anxious tone.

"And who said that I was worrying?" Azusa asked while facing Miyuki, completely ignoring Furuya.

The bespectacled catcher tried to stifle his laugh. "Don't pretend with me," he said. "We both know that studying is not your forte."

Azusa snorted. "We? I don't remember ever sharing that information with you."

"Mei told me that you were a terrible student," Miyuki said with a smirk.

She grunted in anger. "And who said that he is to be trusted?"

Miyuki grinned to himself. "So you're saying that he is a liar?" he asked.

"Of course!" she said with a conceited smile.

"Then you shouldn't have any issues and will pass all of your exams, correct?" the catcher asked with a knowing smile.

Azusa's smile faltered as she gulped a thick lump down her throat. "I- I don't see why I would have any issues. I'll pass everything!"

"Good! Then I guess we have nothing to worry about, Chris-senpai," Miyuki said while turning to Chris with a cheeky smile.

"You sure have a twisted personality," Chris replied instead while shaking his head in disapproval but Miyuki just laughed.

"So are we finally changing the subject?" Furuya asked again.

"And blondie where is the damn camera?"

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"Who the hell does he think he is?" Azusa grumbled in anger as she entered her room and turned on her light. "I can totally pass the finals. They are just dumb tests. I just need to study," she continued mumbling to herself as she walked through the mess that was her room. Casually ignoring her clothes that were scattered throughout the room.

She opened her bookbag and sat at her wooden desk next to her window ready to study. She hastily took out her notebooks and textbooks and decided to start with math which was the hardest subject for her. Normally, she'd pick the easiest subject for her first, such as history and avoid math all together. But this time around she was determined.

She was determined to prove that damn unfairly wickedly handsome catcher wrong!

The manager started off with some equations as practice. She wrote them down on her notebook with enthusiasm. But her smile started to falter as she stared down at her notebook. The answer to the first equation was just not coming to her head. Hell, she didn't even know what the first step was.

She sweatdropped. 'I don't understand.'

Azusa took a deep breath to calm down her nerves and relax, so she could concentrate. "Calm down, calm down Azusa," she told herself. "We just need to re-read the chapter and follow the instructions," she continued with a matter-of-fact tone. Azusa took her textbook and flipped back to the previous chapter that they were learning about.

She started reading the first paragraph of chapter seven. 'How to Add and Subtract Algebraic Expressions.'

Azusa snorted. "Who the hell cares? I'll never use this in my life," she grumbled again but was following the steps and was starting to understand the simple equations. However, as she progressed with her studying then she found herself more and more confused since the equations were starting to get more complex.

"I don't understand! Where the hell is X now?" she whimpered as she tried to make sense out of the equation.

5x - 8 + 3(2x- 5)

Why is this so hard?

It was obvious that she needed a tutor but who? Sawamura already took Kanemaru and Haruichi was already helping Furuya or at least trying to help. Haruno was also bad at math just like her so it just would be the blind leading the blind.

Who was good at math?

"Azu-chan! Earth to Azu-chan!" Miyuki called out as he waved his hand in front of Azusa's face.

"Huh?" she looked at him weirded out.

They were walking towards the bus stop side by side through the dim streets of the city. Azusa didn't have a problem with walking to the bus stop by herself but Miyuki always made her wait for him so he could walk her there. Even though she didn't think it was necessary there was no way she would complain about this. She enjoyed their walks together, even if they were quiet sometimes. Usually, Miyuki didn't mind the silence between them while they walked together, but it seemed like this time around he got uncomfortable with how quiet she was.

"You got too quiet for a good minute there," the catcher confirmed with a small grin. "It seems like you were concentrated on something and that's never a good thing."

Azusa narrowed her blue eyes at him in a glare. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"I think we both know what's that supposed to mean," he said. "How is little Miss brainiac doing?" Miyuki teased.

She quietly growled in response.

'He is lucky that he is handsome and smart because otherwise I'd break his pretty face… Wait… smart… Smart. He is smart. So does that mean -'

"So you're not going to tell me how your studies are going?" Miyuki pressed in curiosity with a teasing grin.

'Oh hell no! There is no way that I can ask him.'

"I'm going to take your silence as a 'I haven't even started studying yet' since you're not answering me."

"That's not true! I've been studying!" she said defensively.

The catcher chuckled in amusement. "Good to hear! So you should be good to go then."

"Of course," she said in a conceited tone as she flipped her hair. She was thankful that she didn't have her hair up in her usual high ponytail. "Science, history, and English are all a piece of cake. I'm not worried at all!"

Miyuki smirked. "What about Japanese literature?" he asked with a knowing smile. "And you forgot math as well."

Azusa flinched. "Oh yeah those two," she said nonchalantly but she was cursing herself on the inside. She totally forgot about Japanese Lit and she was struggling a bit in that class. "I'm not worried about them," she added with a shrug.

"So you're a pro at Japanese Lit?"

"Yup!"

"And a math whiz too," he continued with sarcasm dripping from his tone.

"What can I say?" Azusa replied, keeping the same nonchalant tone but she didn't dare to look him in the eye.

"Man, that Mei is a liar, isn't he?" Miyuki asked. "Why did he say that you were a bad student?"

She scoffed. "He is just jealous," she said in a cocky tone. "He is a terrible student and he is probably driving his senpai crazy as we speak."

Miyuki chuckled. "Someone probably has the miserable task of tutoring him right now," he said with a snicker.

Azusa snickered as well. "I bet that Harada-san is the one stuck with tutoring him."

"Me too!"

They both burst out laughing so hard that tears were coming out of their eyes.

Azusa wiped a tear from her blue eye as her laughter subsided. "Mei is lucky. Harada-san is a good senpai," she said. "Perhaps you could learn from him," she chided.

Miyuki smirked at her as he put his hands in his pockets. "Oh yeah? How? By tutoring my kouhai ?"

The manager shrugged again. "Sure, why not?" she said in a casual tone as she removed an invisible lint from her jacket.

"And now why would I do that for?"

"Because… It's a nice thing to do?" she asked while glancing at his brown eyes with an angelic look. "It's nice to help others out when they are in need."

"Others?" Miyuki asked in suspicion.

"Yeah… You know… Other people," she continued.

The catcher narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "And would you be one of those "other people" by any chance?" he asked with air quotes.

Azusa's cheeks reddened with a small blush. "Maybe," she said in a timid tone while looking away.

"But I thought that you were a borderline genius," Miyuki teased.

Azusa gulped a thick lump down her throat as she felt her hands getting sticky with sweat from nervousness. "Well you know… Even geniuses need help from time to time. Don't you think so?" she offered with a sheepish smile.

Miyuki smirked at her as he chuckled. "Is this really the way to ask me to help you study for your finals?" he asked in a cocky tone.

The manager took a deep breath to calm down her nerves. She also wanted to remain calm because she didn't want to get angry at him since he made it so easy. How could he expect her not to wipe off that damn smirk off his face?

Azusa abruptly stopped walking, making the catcher stop dead in his tracks as well. He gave her a curious look, prompting her to tell him what was going on.

She deeply bored her cerulean eyes into his brown ones with as much intensity as she could muster. "Miyuki-senpai," Azusa began in a respectful tone. "Can you please help me study for my final exams? I really need your help," she asked him earnestly.

Miyuki just stared at her for a few moments without saying anything. He was probably confused by her sudden respectful demeanor. But then his lips curved into his usual smirk. "Of course, there is nothing that I wouldn't do for my precious kouhai," he said with sarcasm.

Azusa widened her eyes in surprise. "Really?" she asked, shocked. "You're going to help me. Just like that?"

"What do you mean?" he feigned innocence with a wide-eye innocent look.

"You're not going to make me beg or anything like that?" the manager elaborated, not picking up his sarcasm.

"Of course not, what kind of senpai do you think I am?" Miyuki continued with his fake innocence which made Azusa roll her eyes. "Besides…," he began in an abrupt serious tone. "You've done your best to try to help us prepare for the summer tournament with both Sawamura and Furuya," Miyuki said while glancing at her. "I know it's not easy because it's a handful and right now it's not the best environment with all what happened so I really appreciate it," he continued with a small smile.

Azusa felt a warm fuzzy feeling spread all over her body as she couldn't suppress a smile. "Thank you so much, Kazuya," she said happily. She was so glad that Miyuki was acknowledging her effort and also the situation with the team finding out her true identity without really addressing it. Letting her know that he is keeping an eye on her and knows what she is going through.

"Don't thank me yet," he said with an amused tone. "I'm a strict tutor so don't expect me to go easy on you."

Azusa's smile didn't falter. "I wouldn't have it any other way."

Miyuki's grin widened. "Good. So I expect to see you in my room after practice tomorrow night."

"Hai!"

For the first time in her life, Azusa was actually looking forward to studying.