Cote: Retelling

(2) Chapter 1: Summer is the season for reading?

I look at the class point total on my phone display. It reads 191 points. After experiencing success in our midterms, our class was gifted with 91 class points, making our point transfer come to a total of 19,100 points. Or at least, that's what we should've received today. As of now, there has been no point transfer and Chabashira-sensei has refused to answer our questions.

At the very least, the fact we haven't had a transfer implies a delay, but we currently don't have a reason why. There are multiple possibilities I can come up with, but I've decided to wait and hold my judgement for now. Even for this school, this is too unfair. I'm sure an explanation will come soon, and I don't feel like wasting my time. Besides, I have a good guess as to why. A quick scan over my classmate's location data, combined with the suspiciously nervous behaviour a certain delinquent displayed in class, leads me to guess—

"Ayanokouji! Break's over, so get back out on the field!"

By the call of my senpai, I'm thrown back out onto the field. It's now June, and the Summer sun has begun to lord over us all. I can't help but feel a bit drained. No matter what insane training I received, the white room was air-conditioned in the end. A man can't live in the arctic and suddenly get used to the desert, nor can a deep-sea crawler suddenly adapt to the sea surface. Even back at the mansion, I rarely went outside the air-conditioned rooms and halls. Well, it wasn't exactly a choice, but this heat... it almost makes me want to go back to the white room.

Freedom's really taxing, huh...

It's just too goddamn hot.

"Ayanokouji-kun, are you ok?"

"You really aren't looking good today. Could you be sick?"

"No...Thanks for your consideration, but I'm just weak to the heat."

"Kotetsu, you weren't doing too well today either."

"I just missed breakfast today, alright? Anyway, that's surprising, Ayanokouji. I never took you for the sensitive type."

"I'm just well-adjusted to the cold."

"What, are you from Hokkaido or something?"

"No, I just lived abroad for a while..."

After practice, the soccer club's changing room is always filled with meaningless conversations such as these. Of course, that doesn't mean there's nothing to be gained; after two months of casual interaction, my speaking skills have grown drastically. Though I was already well-practiced in manipulating and controlling the conversation, I'm now more capable at playing a 'role'. The one who extends the topic, the one who follows up, the one who interjects with a joke... so on.

In this group, Shibata and Kotetsu usually take the 'initiator' role while Hirata plays the 'mediator' and Watanabe the 'interjector'. As for me, I play a bit of everything-I sometimes introduce the topic, mediate or interject. Of course, these 'roles' are generalizations of how these conversations go, but as a model it's quite effective.

"See you guys later!"

After we finish changing, we say our goodbyes and leave. Sometimes we hang out at pallet, the arcade or the Chinese restaurant, but there's been less of that lately.

"Well, Kotetsu's gone off on his own again. You guys wanna go to the arcade?" Shibata starts.

"I have free time today, so I can come." Watanabe says.

"I have time as well." Says Hirata.

"Count me out. I don't want to stay out in this heat any longer."