"I'm not late, am I?"
In the spectator seats, Yukinoshita Yukino, already irritated by the crowd around her, suddenly heard a familiar voice behind her.
She turned to see her elder sister walking over with Hiratsuka Shizuka.
Without a word, Yukino shifted aside to make space for them.
As soon as Yukinoshita Haruno sat down, she let out a surprised exclamation. "Why are there so many people here? And most of them are girls?"
At that, Hiratsuka paused mid-reach for her beer and glanced around curiously. Sure enough, the stands were packed with girls.
There were boys too, but compared to the ocean of girls, they looked pitifully outnumbered.
"Oh, I get it now~"
Resting her cheek on her hand, Haruno smiled lazily, amusement flickering in her eyes. "All these girls came for Shirase-kun and his group, huh?"
"Ah, that makes sense." Hiratsuka laughed, finally pulling out her beer and snacks. "Girls this age still care most about good-looking guys, after all."
"Well, I like looking at handsome guys too," Haruno said with a playful grin.
She glanced at her silent sister. "Why aren't you saying anything?"
"I have no interest in your topic," Yukino replied coolly.
"That's true. Even though you're a teenage girl yourself, you never talk about handsome guys. Come to think of it, my little sister really does lack youthful energy."
"You're judging someone's energy based on whether they pay attention to handsome guys?"
Seeing the sisters about to start again, Hiratsuka jumped in to change the subject. "Alright, that's enough. Who do you think will win today?"
Haruno kept that charming, soft smile. "I don't really know much about soccer, but I'm interested in Shirase-kun, so of course I'll cheer for him."
Yukino stayed expressionless.
Now that she was in high school, she wouldn't let herself be easily provoked by her sister's teasing anymore.
Seeing her unbothered, Haruno simply smiled and turned her gaze to the field. "Those five girls over there are the Nakano sisters, right? Shizuka-chan, didn't you say they're close with Shirase-kun?"
"They're more than just close…" Hiratsuka blurted out before catching herself—an image of Shirase hugging Nakano Nino flashing through her mind.
Realizing she shouldn't have said that, she quickly shut her mouth.
Haruno looked at her, intrigued. "Why stop halfway?"
Yukino, too, glanced over suspiciously. She wasn't stupid—Hiratsuka's sudden silence was clearly hiding something.
"It's nothing! The game's about to start." Hiratsuka waved it off awkwardly, unwilling to gossip about her students.
The Yukinoshita sisters were obviously unsatisfied, but since Hiratsuka wouldn't say more, they let it drop.
Haruno chuckled softly as she looked at the Nakano quintuplets. "By the way, I recently found out something interesting."
"Oh? What is it?" Hiratsuka played along.
Haruno's gaze lingered meaningfully on the five girls before landing on the short-haired one. "I have a friend who loves watching dramas. Lately she's been obsessed with some late-night one that didn't get great ratings. She said there's a familiar face in it."
"Familiar?" Hiratsuka frowned, trying to recall. "Someone we know?"
Haruno shook her head. "No."
Yukino raised an eyebrow. This was just like her sister—deliberately mysterious to stir curiosity.
Still, even she felt a twinge of interest in this "familiar person."
Knowing Haruno, she wasn't lying.
"Shizuka-chan, I know you're curious, but be patient. I'll talk to that person myself first. If she's interesting, I'll tell you."
"Here we go again. Can't you just be direct for once? Half-telling stories like that is so irritating."
Listening quietly, Yukino's heart stirred.
Haruno had been staring at the Nakano quintuplets just before she said that.
Could one of them actually be acting in a drama?
Now that was unexpected.
Yukino glanced toward Shirase on the field, wondering if he knew.
Even someone as detached from entertainment as her knew how complicated that world was. High schoolers getting involved in acting—it was never simple.
...
Five minutes before kickoff, the empty commentator seats finally filled.
A man and a woman.
The man was a professional commentator, happy enough to cover this friendly match—Toritsu High was a strong contender for the national championship, after all.
His only complaint was his partner: a third-year student from Toritsu High and a member of the student council.
He'd assumed she was chosen for her soccer knowledge, and figured a male-female commentary pair would be fine.
But the moment Shirase's team appeared, his co-commentator started fangirling.
"That number 10—that's Shirase-kun, right? The guy who went viral in those short videos? He's so handsome. And number 9, the blond one! Compared to them, our school's team already lost in the looks department."
The commentator's mouth twitched. Are you here to analyze the game or to rate good-looking guys?
But after glancing at the player photos on the table, he had to admit… she kind of had a point.
Toritsu's players weren't exactly hideous, but—well, "unusual" might be generous.
There was even a bald one.
On the field, both teams took their positions, and the referee's whistle signaled kickoff.
Right from the start, Toritsu's ace, number 7 Hasebe, took possession and showed off his skill.
Hayama Hayato, assigned to mark him, instantly stumbled from a feint.
In that flash, Hasebe sprinted past another defender, drawing attention, then passed decisively to a teammate for a quick combo play.
But his plan collapsed immediately.
Shirase appeared out of nowhere, intercepting the ball perfectly.
The play flipped from offense to defense in an instant.
Toritsu's ace was taken aback. According to the intel and past matches he'd studied, Shirase's strengths were supposed to be his speed and precise passing and shooting—nothing about top-tier interception.
He'd made that pass fast and clean, yet Shirase read it easily.
It felt like Shirase had known exactly where he'd send the ball and was already waiting.
When Shirase's side's counterattack ended out of bounds, he exchanged a quick glance with Hayama, who nodded and switched positions.
Shirase then walked up to Hasebe.
"You want to go head-to-head already?" Hasebe said with a friendly smile, clearly expecting it.
Shirase shook his head slightly. "Just felt like picking someone to torture."
"Torture?" Hasebe didn't get it—at first.
But soon, he did.
Every attempt—his signature feints, quick passes, clever positioning—was shut down by Shirase, always one step ahead.
Pure torture.
Toritsu's ace, who'd always played freely, now felt his scalp tingle from frustration.
He had the physical edge—181 cm tall, strong, with great hops—but in every clash, Shirase somehow overpowered him.
Speed and stamina? Those were Shirase's domains.
One-on-one defense burned energy fast, but Shirase's stamina had been boosted through relentless training—and something else entirely. He could keep hounding Hasebe without tiring.
By the 27th minute, Hasebe was already gasping, worn down by the suffocating defense.
"You must've studied my match videos closely. Impressive," he said bitterly.
Shirase answered honestly, "High school matches aren't that interesting. I just happen to know you really well."
Hasebe snorted. "How well?"
"Better than your parents. That familiar enough?"
Hasebe froze.
Somehow, it didn't even sound like a joke.
The way Shirase had been reading him felt exactly like that—like they'd trained and lived together every day.
What the hell is with this guy? How can he know me so well?