Running After You

Chapter 3: I'm the Manager Now

Youta really found a way to get himself into it now, he thought as he handed the signed paper to his teacher during the first break for class. There would be no going back once things were finalized, but he hoped nothing strange or tiresome would come of it.

"Great, now the club's formed and I'm the teacher supervising it." Said Mikimasa. "Heh, I've always wanted to see over a club of my own." The proud look on his face made Youta question just how much supposed selflessness went into the encouragement on him creating a club.

"So, what do I do, exactly?" He asked. While the boy did go through the paper, it was surprisingly vague on his duties as a sports manager. All he could tell was it was his job to elevate and aid in the numerous needs for their student-athletes. "Just go out and hand out water, or what?"

"You wish it was that easy." His teacher had a grin which gave him concern. "Because there's only one member, that being you, this club isn't exactly fitting in line with the standard we set for all other clubs. I'll see if I can get others to join, but in order for this to continue to exist as a club and therefore keep funding. You need to take care of the missions I give you."

"Missions?" The word choice made Youta think he was in a game, rather than dealing with reality.

"I told you before that there have been some students giving and having a harder time than most. So I want you to focus your efforts almost solely for them. It would certainly give credence to this club existence if you're able to solve the problems of your fellow students, right?"

"Yeah, but I'm just a student too. I'm no therapist or anything." This went beyond just sounding like hard work. Youta would need some immense problem solving skills, along with some social skills to go along with it, that he didn't have.

"It's still worth a shot." Mikimasa replied, setting the paper along with the rest of his important work as a teacher. "At worst, you fail and the club gets shut down. But I do hope you'll try your best. After all, you did agree because of your friend, right?"

"Uh, yeah." Despite this being the truth. Admitting it to his own teacher gave Youta some embarrassment. "I'll do my best though. I promise that." Even with his intent, this didn't mean he had a clue in the world on how to approach his task. There was no formal training on what made a good manager and he didn't even have a job to do yet.

"Great, because I already have a mission for you." He would have no chance for a grace period with being thrown into fire right away. "Just to keep things simple here, you're going to begin work with a classmate of yours. Fuwaka Tomika."

"Tomika..." He repeated her name as his head turned towards the back of the classroom. There his vision landed right where the girl sat at every day all to herself.

She was a cute girl, where Youta took a couple extra glances without realizing it. Her flowing blue hair moved like the waves of an ocean and she had a fine figure to go along with it. There was no surprise that as a swimmer, hence why he'd even be helping her, she had a few admirers.

However those admirers kept their distance, as did everyone else, so she normally would be seen all alone. Even during her swim meets when she should be with the rest of the team.

Because she had a reputation for being a bit... Eccentric. Either saying things that made no sense or speaking in a manner which indicated she didn't care for anything but swimming or the ocean.

He had made no effort on talking with her either. Though this wasn't special because Youta didn't talk to any of the girls in his class. Outside of Mitora, only boys made up his friend group, as was common for any high schooler such as himself. So today would be a new experience for him. "What's wrong with her?" He asked.

"Perhaps not the word you should be using." His teacher reprehended him. "But I'm sure you've noticed she's become a bit of an outcast among your class. Not to mention her often spacing out during class and failing to do multiple assignments. So she's not popular with either the students, nor faculty at the moment."

"That does sound like a problem." If she was struggling in classes, then he figured he could help her with some homework. After growing up with Mitora, Youta had gotten used to being a bit of a tutor. However it seemed that the role of being a sports manager meant more than just being a glorified tutor.

"Now, go ahead." Mikimasa beckoned him away to go talk to the girl. "Nothing else for me to tell other than good luck." He hoped there would be some guidance as would be expected from a teacher to a student. However it seemed he would be on his own to tackle this new challenge never faced before in his young life.

Youta turned and made a slow beeline towards the girl's desk. This would be the first time they've ever talked. So it gave him pause as his mind struggled on what his words to her should be. He didn't want to sound intrusive, but his role meant there would be no choice nor backing out from the endeavor regardless of first impressions. Therefore it was paramount to start off on the right foot.

"Hi." That was the first and only word he had to say to her in his greeting. Youta paused as he watched her stare at him in bewilderment.

"Hey." Her singular word response to him was the only proof needed to confirm everything he already knew about her. From her equal in length reply and lazy gaze in his direction. It was evident his sudden approach to her served no annoyance, yet no enjoyment to her.

"So, can I talk to you?" He realized just how awkward this was for the both of them. Youta had no clue on how to explain to her about his role and that he was supposed to help her. Fuwaka didn't say anything and instead stood up. "Is that a no?"

"Well, you were just talking with Mr. Fudera. So I guess I did something wrong and he wants to talk to me." She didn't sound the least bit concern over why a teacher might want to talk to her. Instead, her voice implied this was just another normal thing, despite being aware she hadn't been a bad student, outside of grades, or caused anyone trouble.

"No, it's not that." He stepped in front of her, stopping the girl from leaving. "It's for me. You see, I'm the new sports manager."

"Really? Cool." She sat down, her words expressing what her body language failed to do. To describe how she sounded to everyone else, it was that she had the airy sense to her voice as if she wasn't entirely there. "So what, you gonna cheer me on when I swim or something?"

"I'm not a cheerleader, I'm a manager." He corrected her only to hear the school bell indicating the end of their break. Somehow they had wasted the entire break period and only got a few sentences towards describing this new relationship. He still had yet to even tell her why he approached her in the first place. "Look, after school just meet me at the school pool. I'll tell you everything." She'd already be there anyway due to her responsibilities.

Afterwards he returned to his desk to immediately plop his face right onto the table. Their first encounter couldn't have possibly gone any worse and already his confidence in keeping this club afloat was already shattered. If he couldn't have a normal conversation with this strange girl, then how was he expected to help her?