It was a perfectly ordinary day after school. As Nitori Sanae, a member of the Tachibana Girls' Academy basketball team, I had just finished my usual club activities. I was warming up with my childhood friend, Houjou Manaka, to shoot some hoops at my place when my smartphone, tucked away in my sports bag, began to ring.
"Sanae~ your phone's ringin'~"
"I know. But who'd call me now? The captain, maybe?"
I wonder if there was some kind of problem with today's practice… The thought crossed my mind as I fished my smartphone from my bag. My breath hitched when I saw the name on the screen, and I froze.
──Asanagi Umi.
We'd been seeing a bit more of each other since reconciling last Christmas, but a direct call from her was unheard of. She always went through Yuu-chan.
"Sanae, you're not gonna answer?"
"That's… Of course I'm going to answer."
Taking a single, deep breath to steady my nerves, I tapped the call button.
"Hello, Umi-chan?"
"Yeah. It's been a while since we've talked on the phone like this, hasn't it?"
"…Yeah. So, what's up?"
"Ah… uhm, yeah. It's just that, well…"
It seemed Umi-chan was surprisingly nervous, too. An awkward silence hung between us, thick enough to feel even over the phone. A call this late usually meant something important.
Just as I was about to ask what she wanted, a hand shot out from my side and unceremoniously switched my phone to speaker mode.
"! H-Hey, Manaka—"
"C'mon, I wanna talk to Umi-chan too~ What's up, Umi-chan~? You need somethin'~?"
"Manaka too… Yeah. Actually, I was hoping the two of you could be my basketball practice partners. There's a class tournament at the end of the month, and so—"
"Oh, is that right~? Okay, sure~"
"H-Hey, Manaka, what do you think you're agreeing to…"
"Eh~, what's the big deal? It's a request from Umi-chan, we have to accept~"
"W-Well, that's true, but…"
Manaka had completely hijacked the conversation, a role that should have been mine. …In that moment, I found myself incredibly envious of her carefree nature.
"Hey, Sanae."
"…What is it?"
"If possible, I'd like your help too, Sanae. When it comes to basketball, I think you're the best out of the four of us, and I know you'd be a great coach. So, please."
"Umi-chan…"
Ahh, geez. She's as cunning as ever. Putting it like that…
She knows I can't refuse. It makes me so happy, I'd do anything to help.
"Alright, I'll do it. But you're gonna have to tell me all the details, okay?"
"Yeah. Thank you, Sanae. I was worried you might say no, so I'm really happy."
"Why would I say no… We're… friends… right?"
"!… Yeah, that's right. Well then, I'll head over to your place tomorrow."
Feeling a bit dazed, I ended the call after we had so smoothly made plans for the next day.
"…You're looking forward to tomorrow, aren't you, Sanae?"
"…Yeah!"
Right now, my chest was so full of happiness that I couldn't care less about my usual training.