Clawed & Flawed: A Nekoma Story

Chapter 11

Monday – 3 P. M.

"Alright, that's the end of your first-day. What do you think?" Kuroo turned around to check on his new classmate.

'She's sleeping... How long has this been going on?' he tried to take a peek at her notes.

Shiro laid her head on the left side of the table to ensure that she was hidden behind the teacher's blind spot. Her notebook was wide open, and she was in the middle of writing down the notes on the whiteboard. The captain rushed and packed up his own books into his bag before attempting to help the newbie.

"All done. Now let's see what our little Inu-chan has written," he gently pulled the book away from under her hand; careful not to wake her up.

As his eyes scanned through the note, he almost dropped the book while trying to hold down his laughter.

"How did she manage to copy everything perfectly in kanji but jot down the verbal notes in English? Furthermore, these drawings... I guess I do have to help her with her studies," he sighed before packing up her belongings into her bag.

"Shiro-chan! Let's go to the clubroom together!" Lev dramatically entered the classroom, waking the girl up.

"My head hurts..." she muttered in a daze as she rubbed her eyes.

"Drink some water, I'll lend you my note after the club activity. C'mon, don't let the coach wait for too long," Kuroo carried her bag.

"Wait, where did my bag go?"

"I told you I'll be a reliable and generous senpai. Think of it as an apology, Shiro-chan," he pointed at himself with his thumb.

"Fine, I'll meet you at the gym. I need to get changed. I refuse to wear this tacky uniform for a minute longer."

'Geez, even at school she is still wearing a jacket and leggings. Has she ever let her skin breathe?' he pondered.

Shiro headed to the girls' bathroom as the group of boys made their way into the clubroom to get changed for their practice session.

"Where's Yamamoto?" the captain looked around.

"I think he's helping his sister with something, but he should be done by now."

"In that case, let's not say anything about Shiro-chan to him. Let fate decide how he deal with the situation," he smirked.

"You're a sore loser," Kenma commented sluggishly.

"It's not every day that I get witness him freak out."

'It will come back and bite you in the ass,' the gamer thought.

"Stop with the 'it will come back and bite you in the ass' look."

Lev swooned and broke the tension in the room, "Inu-chan looks so cute even when she's angry or passive. I can't believe I get to have a female manager on my first year."

"Don't get attached, she's a third-year after all," Yaku popped his bubble.

"And she's here to help us advance to the Nationals. Let's all be professional and provide her with the best working environment," the captain dusted his jacket and trackpants.

"Said the person who fought with her the most," he landed another jab.

The clubroom door swung open, "I give up!"

"Shut up, Yamamoto. We don't need another noise complain from the basketball club," Kuroo had a hand on his hip.

"I helped my sister in return for a favor. She was supposed to help me recruit the long-awaited female manager."

Everyone exchanged glances for a split second before commencing with their activities.

"So, what happened?" Yaku put on his shoes.

"She managed to find a girl, but she immediately ran away as soon as she saw me from afar. I didn't even get to see a clear view of her face."

"Hahaha..." Kuroo chuckled and held his stomach with both hands.

"Hmm? What's up with him? He seems livelier than usual," Tora changed out of his school uniform.

"That's because Inu—"

Fukunaga covered Lev's mouth with an ice pack, "Cool it."

The painful pun forced everyone to pick up their pace and walked towards the volleyball gym in silence. The coach and the new manager had been waiting on the bench with filled water bottles, towels, and practice bibs ready. Shiro had gotten changed into her signature baggy long sleeves and hid her long hair under the black cap.

"Ah, you again. Still haven't gotten your gym uniform, huh?" Tora smacked her back mindlessly.

"Kuroo, you're wearing a jacket and your trackpants. Is your normal uniform still in the wash?" Coach Nekomata observed. "It's quite unlike you to wear this much fabric."

The tall middle blocker tried to avoid eye contact with Shiro as the whole gym stared at him for an answer.

"Uh, it makes me sweat more without doing as much. The gym gets pretty cold at night too," he attempted to put an end to the conversation by pretending to be busy with his warmup stretches.

'How could I admit to the whole team and Coach that I was insecure about my deltoids. Stupid Shiro,' he grumbled in his head.

"Alright, now that everyone's here, I would like to introduce you to your new manager. My grandchild, Nekomata Shiro."

"Huh?!" Tora retreated as he replayed the memory of him smacking the kid in front of the coach.

"Hahaha... I guess this comes across as very sudden and surprisingly to all of you."

'Obviously. This is worse than knowing she was a girl,' most of the players thought.

"My son had become increasingly worried about my well-being, so being the brat of a father he is, he sent his only child alone to Tokyo to spy on me."

'Is this a family soap opera now?'

"For the time being, Shiro will be your manager since the position has been vacant for so long. Practice continues as usual. The manager will be in charge of the clubroom and gym keys, extra practice, and everything else that I'm not responsible for."

"Isn't he being too lenient?" Inuoka, a first year, whispered.

"Of course, I will be available if you need advice. I want to monitor Shiro's performance as a manager. Just because we are blood-related, doesn't mean you boys should feel shy or obliged to act as peers. Now go on and do your warmup stretches," he folded his arms and smiled coolly.

"I know, I know. Don't sleep, right?" Shiro mumbled before pulling out her tablet.

"I won't be coming for practice tomorrow. Schedule for a physical training. I'm sure you're done with the workout regiment, right? So, I want you to join their practice today."

"Eh?" she almost fell off the bench.

"Go warmup and play 3-on-3," he pushed his granddaughter and grabbed the tablet.

"Oh, hey! Shiro is joining! Hahaha! Let's see how good your receives are!" Tora grabbed her by the neck and took of her cap. "How are you gonna play while wearing a cap?"

"Yamamoto..." Kuroo held out a hand.

Shiro's long hair draped over her back as her fringe framed her face. The gym was dead silent.

"Eh? Huh... Your hair... This perfume... Eh?!" the delinquent-looking wing spiker dashed behind the captain.