Sincerely, Me [Kindaichi Yuutarou] | ✔

Trip

"Iwasaki-san!" A boy popped his head through the door, mouth wide open as he called, "Iwasaki-san, the principal wants to see you in his office!"

"Oh, okay." Shino stood up from her seat, impassive. "Thank you."

Curious, Kindaichi's gaze trailed after her before he turned to Kunimi, who was snacking on some pretzels, his earbuds in his ears. "Think she's in trouble...?"

Kunimi removed his left earbud. "Maybe. She's a bit unpredictable, don't you think? She consistently gets good grades in class—"

"I remember when she beat you in a math exam on the first week and you were moody for the rest of the day," Kindaichi recalled, chuckling at the memory.

Kunimi gave him an annoyed glance. "You didn't even know her name until a few days ago. How do you remember that incident but not her face or name?"

"It just didn't occur to me!" Kindaichi defended, raising his arms up. "I just remember that something like that happened. After finally meeting her, I remembered."

"Hah." Kunimi snorted. "As I was saying, she can be unpredictable. She gets good grades despite spending most of her time sleeping during lessons and she doesn't even fear our math sensei."

"You don't either."

"That's because I know how to stay on his good side. Her, on the other hand... She just doesn't care, and that's what makes her strange."

At the principal's office, two men were having a debate about something.

"Tachibana-san," Irihata insisted, "I made it clear that I was to have no girls managing my team. You have no idea how distracted the boys get. Not to mention that they're only ever there for Oikawa-san. I've had at least twenty five trial members last year and all of them joined only for their selfish desires." The team's better off without a female manager. And if no males expressed their interest in the managing position, that was fine too. Aobajosai's volleyball team was doing just fine as it is, and Irihata didn't exactly need any drastic changes made.

"Irihata-san," Principal Tachibana said, sighing, "I'm ordering you to reconsider; just make an exception for this girl." His eyes hardened. "You will give her the standard trial period for a manager, and you will only remove her at the end of the trial period if you don't see her fit to be a full member of your team."

Irihata frowned and opened his mouth to argue again, "Tachibana-san—"

"She will start today." There was a tone of finality in his voice that not even the hardened Coach Irihata could fight. Inwardly, the old man Tachibana was just tired. The things I do for that niece of mine...

The door knocked and Irihata turned his head ever so slightly.

"Come in!" called Principal Tachibana, able to guess just who it was. A small figure stepped into the room, face stony. "Ah, welcome, Iwasaki-san. We were just discussing you. It has recently come to my attention that you're not in a club. Is that correct?"

"It is," Shino replied.

"Then everything's in order for you. Effective from today, you are the manager of the boy's volleyball team. Dismissed."

xXx

They hadn't even consulted her, and that was quite irritating at the least. But there was nothing she could do about it now, so Shino simply returned to class.

Kindaichi mentioned that he was in the volleyball team. Interesting.

She kept her head down until after school, when after school volleyball practice was to take place in the largest gymnasium on campus.