Stealing First

Chapter 1

"Yo, Mochi! Rei said she needs to see you in her office first thing in the morning. She sounded pretty serious." Ryo taunted his fielding partner, delivering the message with some added dramatic flare designed to make him squirm.

"What?! Why?" Kuramochi turned, his eyes wide at the thought of being in any sort of trouble. He had come to Seido for a fresh start, leaving his previous delinquent ways behind him, and he had thought he had been fitting in here pretty well so far. All the players on the team respected Rei and did their best to live up to her high expectations for them, and he was anxious at the thought he may have let her down.

Of course, as his friend and on-field counterpart, Ryo was all too aware of this and used it as a source for his own amusement. "She didn't say, but if the director wanted to talk to me, I know I would be a little nervous." The short-statured second baseman gave a half wave and turned away, chuckling at the worried expression on his friend's face.

Kuramochi continued to pack away his equipment but without any of his usual energy or spark. He should have known he would end up stuffing up eventually. He just hoped it wasn't anything that would risk his spot on the team. He was really starting to feel at home here. Maybe it was to do with the pranks they had pulled on the first years a few weeks back? But that was just harmless fun, and certainly nothing worse than what the third years had done to him in years past. His brow furrowed with concern as he tried to think back to what he might have done.

Seeing how genuinely worried he was, Yuki Tetsuya, the team captain, walked over and placed a steadying hand on the second-year's shoulder. "He's just messing with you, Kuramochi. I was there when Rei spoke to him, and she just wants you to show the new transfer student around. Apparently, she is trying to scout the father as a potential assistant coach if Coach Kataoka leaves, and she wants them to feel welcomed."

Tetsu felt the tension leave his teammate's body. "Transfer student? Is he in the baseball program?"

"I'm not sure. I heard that they have transferred from Australia and his name is Charlie Sullivan. His father will be the new third-year math teacher."

"Wow, from Australia? That's so cool! I can't wait to meet him! After I finish kicking Ryosuke's ass, that is," replied Kuramochi, his tension returning in the form of annoyance. "Thanks, Tetsu," he called over his shoulder as he ran after his pink-haired senpai to exact his revenge.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 

The next morning, Kuramochi knocked sharply at the door to Takashima Rei's office. He paused briefly, taming his olive hair with his hand and adjusting his blazer. "Enter," she called and raised her head to see the lanky shortstop waiting in the doorway. She smiled, reflecting on how far he had come from the scruffy delinquent she scouted back in junior high. "Thank you for coming in early this morning. I needed one of the leaders from the team to help out, and with Miyuki having so much on his plate at the moment, I am grateful for your help."

"No problem, Rei, I'm happy to do what I can for the team. Tetsu mentioned we have a new transfer student starting today?"

"That's right, I would like you to meet Charlie Sullivan. Charlie is actually the same age as you, but because of the way the transfer worked out between here and Australia, will be starting as a first year with us here at Seido." Rei gestured to the sofa in the corner of her office. As the student turned to face him, the first thing he noticed was how short the new recruit was. Then he saw the shock of long purple hair that framed her face as she smiled warmly, and froze. "Wait, Charlie is a girl?" he stammered, shocked.

"How very observant. Kuramochi was it?" Charlie replied lightly, a slight smirk on her face. She extended her hand in greeting. "Nice to meet you, I'm Charlotte Sullivan. But everyone just calls me Charlie."