Diamond no Ace: Laugh, Love and Live

Comfort

Megumi had sped-walked out of the cafeteria, not even finishing her first serving of dinner. Her appetite didn't let her and most certainly her mood too. She could not eat in that sort of atmosphere. Dwelling on it too much won't do any good to her so she sat at a secluded bench beside the vending machine outside dorms, to cool down her head.

She wondered if anybody had noticed that she was out the door before anyone could say anything to her. Surely, they had seen how she had quickly walked out the scene. She didn't want to stay there any longer. She'd feel sullen and she might throw up her food instead if she forced herself to eat.

Luckily, nobody seemed to notice how her water-works suddenly started working when she was half-way out the door. That would be more humiliating for her than the others seeing her blow up like a madman.

"Oi," Somebody called out in a soft voice. Megumi looked up to see the person that she had wanted to see the least out of everyone in the team, composing of a hundred or less. The female brunette openly made a face at him, earning her an amused chuckle from Miyuki who sat at the empty space on her beside her.

"And here I am, hoping that nobody would follow me," her voice sounded strained but calm and Miyuki knew that she wasn't entirely okay at all. It was then that he realized that she was holding back. But holding back what? Was she holding back her anger? Her tears? Her scathing words? He didn't know, but he wanted to know even if he has to push her a bit.

"Well, aren't you a little touchy tonight?" Miyuki said bluntly, not minding what Megumi was currently feeling. The girl looked down on the floor, her eyebrows furrowed as she started fiddling with her fingers. She could feel her ears burning out of humiliation. However, that didn't stop her from saying what she was thinking.

"And you're really tactless tonight, you know that?" She looked at him, turning her head a little to see his lips curling into a small smile, laughing a little. Megumi instantly had the urge to punch that stupid smile from his face.

"Thank you," his eyes twinkled in amusement, behind his glasses.

"It wasn't a compliment though." Megumi grunted in frustration. Sighing, she clasped her hands together, leaning back on the wall. Miyuki just brushed and laughed off the comment.

A few seconds of silence passed and no one talked between the two of them. Megumi was thankful for that though because she used those few seconds to recompose herself. And he was enough of a distraction from her self-deprecating thoughts.

"...I'm not usually like this," The female brunette began vaguely, making Miyuki to look at her curiously. It was the first time that the girl was opening up to him. Him, of all people.

It was a real surprise that she did. He figured that she won't be saying anything to him about herself,

"I am not always this emotional, I'm telling you!" She defensively said to him, which he found slightly funny. Miyuki decided to hold in his laughter for now, or else she might go berserk on him again.

"It's just that... I really love baseball, so I get really touchy."

"Really? So, you're not always blowing up on other people when it's not about baseball?" Megumi glared at him warningly, and he held up his hands in front of him defensively, telling her that he was only joking.

"I have been playing baseball ever since I was a kid. My dad is a baseball player when he was younger, but he is now a physical therapist and sometimes he helps create training menus. Uncle was a former player too, but he gave up on going pro and decided to coach in his alma mater instead."