❛ ARE YOU SURE IT'S THE RIGHT THING TO SCOUT
A BOY WHO HAS ONLY EVER PLAYED ON A
SANDLOT, REI TAKASHIMA? ❜
❛ I'LL TAKE MY CHANCES. ❜
katsu higashi fell in love with baseball the minute the ball made...
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THE SANDLOT ! CHAPTER FOURTEEN
the summer sun is merciless.
its heatwaves are sultry and scorching, beating down on the exposed skin that his jersey can't cover. there's a permanent grimace etched on his mouth as he does his best to ignore the way his clothes cling to his sweaty body. it's hard to, especially when the atmosphere is blisteringly stuffy.
katsu longs to take a cold bath, or several, in this case.
it wasn't even the hottest day of the month, but it certainly felt like it. the wind was practically silent and motionless. the little greenery surrounding the fields were practically unmoving as they shriveled underneath the blazing heat.
as the day went on, the sun only became more intolerable.
katsu isn't even sure how he's moving right now. nothing could've prepared him for this, not even the summer days back in kotohira. sure, he played sandlot games under hundred degree weather, but at the end of the day they were just that.
honestly what did he expect from it? they were just a bunch of scrawny middle schoolers playing a sport without abiding by its rules.
katsu comes to a halt and wipes away the sweat gathering above his brow with the hem of his neckline. he eyes the growing crowd of reporters gathering just behind the fences in bafflement, wondering when they'll stop showing up.
it was quite odd seeing them trying their best to sneak a picture of them mid-practice.
were they somehow on the same pedestal as renowned idols?
when he brought it up to the nearest player, which happened to be kuramochi, the shortstop merely cackled in his face in response. his innocent question had become a gag throughout practice that day, leaving him a flustered mess every time it was brought up.
clearly he's misjudged high school baseball again.
he makes his way towards the batting cages, watching as the third years easily send the balls soaring high.
"took ya long enough!" isashiki snarks out once he's near, deftly swinging his metal bat over his shoulder. katsu can only grin sheepishly as the vice-captain roughly hands him his gear.
it's funny to know he was scared of isashiki. that is until katsu realized he was more of an overbearing brother with an equally foul mouth.
katsu curls his gloved fingers around the bat's handle, eagerly stepping towards the batter's box. swinging during practice always helped satiate the hunger that groveled him during their games.
he idly scrapes the ground with his spikes before positioning his feet right on the makeshift line. his surroundings cease to exist once he settles into an open stance, focusing on the pitcher before him with keen eyes.
