"What!? You've injured your shoulder?" Seiji Hanada couldn't believe his eyes as he stared at Ken who was currently had his right arm in a sling.
Ken had a guilty expression on his face as he tried to explain what happened to cause his injury.
Of course he didn't tell the coach that their manager's father had assaulted him, but it didn't seem too far from the truth.
"You ran into a steel pole?" Coach Hanada was flabbergasted.
"What were you thinking? How could you be so careless?"
The next 5 minutes was a stern lecture surrounding an athletes duty of care towards their own bodies since it was essentially their livelihood. He went on and on, not even noticing the small smile appearing on the corner of Ken's lips.
Ken wasn't mad, in fact he was quite happy inside. The way the coach was reacting told him just how much he cared about him, despite the occasional name calling in between the advice.
"So what did the doctor say?"
After finally getting out all he had to say, the coach calmed himself down and asked the important question. In truth he was quite anxious, worrying that Ken would have to take a back seat for the rest of the year.
"Doctor said it's a contusion and needs at least 2 weeks to heal." Ken replied.
A contusion was just a fancy way of saying a bruise. Something he did not know when the doctor gave him the news of his injury. His initial reaction was one of panic, only to be quickly reassured after he turned pale in fright.
Actually, the doctor had told him 6 weeks, but with his Fatigue Management skill he was certain that it would be all good in a couple of weeks.
"Haaah, you're lucky kid." The coach let out a sigh of relief, feeling some strength come back into his body.
Ken nodded seriously. He already knew what it was like to have an injured shoulder, and he would be lying if he said that he wasn't scared.
"I should still be able to do some running and fitness exercises if I wear this sling." He said, wanting to stay in shape.
Seiji rolled his eyes before replying ominously, "Yeah you're damn right you will."
"Eh?"
Ken felt a little bit of danger from these words, but he still managed to force a smile onto his face, lest he receive more punishment.
He quickly left the faculty office afterwards, using school starting as an excuse.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Ai who was on her way to class. As if they were strangers, they completely ignored each other and went about their business.
A rotund figure was standing near the stairs, his greasy hair seemingly stuck to his forehead. He adjusted his glasses, a triumphant grin appearing onto his face.
"Hehe, looks like my plan is working so far." He muttered to himself.
'Next I'll need to isolate her from everyone else. Once she feels alone, I can swoop in and become her savior. Hehehe.' Kohei thought, his twisted mind formulating even more devious plans.
As Ken was walking, he suddenly felt disgusted for some reason. He turned his head, only to lock gazes with a wide youth who was sitting uncomfortably on the stairs leading up to the second floor.
It was only for a second, but he instinctively knew that this was the piece of garbage that had played with his livelihood, putting his career in jeopardy. He felt his shoulder throb in response.
Unknowingly, Ken's left hand clenched into a fist.
It took all of his willpower to avert his gaze and continue walking to class. Thankfully, his poker face had once again saved him from alerting the enemy.
They could not afford to put Kohei on guard just yet. If he was spooked and released the photos, all that he'd been through so far would be for nothing.
Kohei felt his body tremble as the tall and foreign looking teen walked away from him. In the brief moment that their gazes locked, he felt small and insignificant, as if he were an ant that could be crushed at any moment.
He paused, before suddenly feeling a cold sweat flow down his back.
"Tch."
He clicked his tongue in annoyance, his facing scrunching up into a scowl.
'You think you're so much better than me you bastard? No one can be allowed to taint Ai… She deserves to be with someone who will treat her like the princess she is.'
The bell suddenly sounded, prompting him to stand up and slowly trudge his way up the stairs.
***
Tetsu made his way through the busy street, donning his tank top which revealed his defined arm muscles. If it wasn't for the vestiges of flour caught up in his stubble, he might appear much more intimidating.
"Tetsu!"
He heard a voice call out to him from across the street, gaining his attention.
It was an average sized man who was also wearing a tank top. Instead of being muscular like Tetsu, his arms were covered in traditional Japanese tattoos, making him look like he belonged to the Yakuza.
Were it not for his balding head and friendly smile plastered on his face, people would surely avoid such a character.
"Tsukasa!"
Tetsu's face lit up with a big grin as he walked forward to greet his old friend, pulling him into a bear hug.
"I haven't seen ya in 10 years ya old bastard!"
Tsukasa who was on the receiving end of a mauling, did his best to continue breathing. Only after he began tapping furiously on the other man's shoulder was he finally released from the submission.
After catching his breath, the man composed himself.
"You're still as savage as ever." He said with a wry smile.
"Where's the rest of the crew?" Tetsu asked, looking around expectantly.
"Heh. If we all grouped up in the same place, people might just call the police on us." He replied with a smile.
Tetsu looked a little disappointed, but he shook his head shortly after. He hadn't come here to catch up with old friends, he was on a mission.
Seeing Tetsu's expression change, Tsukasa knew it was time to get down to business.
"A few of our boys are surrounding the store at the moment so no one comes in."
"Mmm, good. Let's go have a look"