The Captain and The Coach

Benched

"Technical foul! Black number four!"

Riko shut her eyes at the referee's call, and her heart was heavy as she called for a member change.

She felt Junpei's anger and frustration as he made his way back to the bench, and she couldn't blame the freshmen for not knowing what to do or say to their captain. He sat down wordlessly and buried his face in his hands.

Riko took a towel from the end of the bench, then draped it over his head before taking a seat beside him. She looked at the court grimly as the game wore on, and even she didn't quite know what to say to make him feel better about the situation.

"Riko."

She stilled at the sound of her name leaving his lips.

Not Coach. Just Riko.

As her heart pounded in her chest, she knew what it was he needed. And it was something only she could give.

She placed her hand on his knee, keeping her open palm up.

Immediately, he covered it with his hand and gripped her hand tight.

At the sight of their intertwined hands, Riko could see the eyes of the freshmen widening in shock. She silenced them with a death glare, and they immediately fixed their eyes on the court and focused on cheering for their teammates.

"Junpei," she said quietly, and she felt him turn his head slightly at her. "It's not over yet."

She felt his grip on her hand tighten, and she continued, "I won't let you sit here and sulk. Watch the game with me. Form a strategy from the sidelines. Be ready to jump back in the game because your team needs their captain."

She squeezed his hand tight and added quietly, "And I need you, Junpei."

He turned to face her then, and she could see that steely resolve in his eyes. "There you are," she said with a soft smile, and her heart skipped a beat when he smirked at her. "You really know how to cheer me up, Riko," he said in that quiet, serious way of his.

Without letting go of her hand, Junpei sat up and draped the towel over his shoulders instead. Together, they watched the game attentively, and they began to mutter their predictions of how Rakuzen was going to move.

The freshmen took notice of what they were doing and gaped at them. "Coach, Captain, what's going on?"

Riko smirked at them. "This is what your captain and I do for fun when we watch games of our next opponent," she said, and it was the spark Junpei needed for his time on the bench to have purpose.

As the game wore on, Junpei taught the freshmen how to watch it attentively, how to observe the movements of the opponent, and how those nuances could spell all the difference.

Riko stole a glance at him, her heart filled with pride that Junpei was truly a captain, both on and off the court.

Suddenly, the action on court caught their attention and it seemed as though everything was going in slow motion as they watched Shinji stop Reo's Void shot.

Junpei and Riko shot to their feet and they let go of each other's hands as Riko clapped and Junpei roared his approval from the bench.

He turned to her then and said, "Thanks to Shinji, I know how to stop him now."

She nodded at him, then made her way to call for the member change.

As she went back to him, she was surprised to see his hands shaking.

"Riko, could you help me stop my hands from shaking?" he asked sheepishly, "It feels different going in with four fouls."

He started to turn his back towards her, but she surprised him by stepping in front of him instead.

His eyes widened as she took both of his hands in hers and clasped them together. She locked eyes with him as she held his hands tight, and instinctively he slowed his breathing down to match hers.

"Junpei. Just relax. You know you've got this," she said seriously, "I believe in you."

He took a deep breath and nodded, and Riko felt that his hands were steady now.

She let them go, then grinned at him. "For added measure, remember that you asked for this." She stood behind him then slapped his back loudly and he groaned. "That hurt!" he complained as she laughed.

As the buzzer sounded to signal his entry back into court, Junpei surprised her by grabbing her hand and giving it a quick squeeze. "This one's for you, Riko," he said quietly, and she smiled as he jogged to his teammates on the floor.

Riko could feel the freshmen's bug-eyed stare at her, and without turning to them, she said sternly, "Anyone who says anything is running 300 laps by himself after this game."

She felt them snap to attention then, and she hid her smile as she sat back down to watch Junpei command the court, like the true captain he was.