After dinner was all said and done, Steve stood up from the table and thanked Yuki and Chris for the meal before excusing himself. Without even acknowledging Ken and the others, he grabbed his keys and walked out of the front door.
Ken merely watched his retreating figure, too dumbstruck to register what was happening. It wasn't until he felt a stomp on each of his feet from both his mother and Ai that he finally snapped out of it.
'OUCH'
"Go after him." Yuki whispered, glaring at him.
"R—Right, I'll be right back." Ken said, leaving the table and heading out the door. He managed to catch up to Steve before he turned the car on and drove away.
"Dude, where are you going?" He called out.
Steve shot him a brief look before starting up the car. "For a drive." He said simply.
"Well I'm coming too."
But as Ken went to open the door, he found out that it was locked. Seeing this, Steve let out a small smile of triumph and put the car in gear slowly beginning to drive away.
For a fraction of a second, Ken contemplated letting him leave, but he quickly discarded the notion. With a feat of athleticism that would leave a squirrel jealous, Ken leaped head first into the open window as the pickup truck was rolling in first gear.
He'd managed to get most of his body in before Steve slammed on the brakes, causing him to hit his head on the dashboard.
Now stationary, Ken got his legs into the cab and took his seat before wordlessly buckling his seat belt. There was a short silence that stretched out between the two as Steve stared at the side of his friend's head.
"What? I thought we were going for a drive?"
"Y—You idiot! What if you got injured doing a stupid stunt like that?" Steve yelled, his shock evident.
Ken shrugged, "Should have unlocked the door."
"…You crazy bastard." He replied in defeat, kicking the truck back into gear. With that, he drove off without a destination in mind.
As they continued down the familiar roads past the school, the two had yet to speak another word to each other. Things felt a little strained, but Ken was a patient man when it came to things like this.
After all, this was the first time that Steve had shown true emotion, at least in front of him. Usually the guy would laugh things off and return to his usual ways of mischief, but this time it was different.
Ken moved his gaze, only to see the mask finally removed. Without his mischievous smile, Steve looked mature, almost a little cold. While it was a little shocking at first, Ken soon nodded in appreciation.
From his experience, bottling up one's emotions only led to more heartache in the future. Ken had a feeling that if he hadn't have chosen to jump in the window, he would have never seen this side of his friend.
The two continued in silence until they arrived at the Gladiators training ground. Since it was the holidays, the field was empty and the frigid wind ensured nobody would come out of the house without good reason.
Steve parked the pickup truck and got out, grabbing his equipment bag out of the tray. Ken followed, heading over to the empty field.
Upon arriving, Steve took out a glove and threw it to him before grabbing one himself and placing it on. He then grabbed a ball and sent it his way with some force.
Ken easily caught the ball and sent a lobbed throw back to the guy. At no point did they decide on playing catch, but somehow they had ended up here in the cold just after Christmas.
"So, you gonna tell me what's wrong?" Ken asked, sending the ball back to his friend.
Steve was silent for a few moments, save for throwing the ball again. His cold expression still remained, but Ken could tell that he was just sorting through his thoughts.
"Do you know why I decided to follow you to Columbia?" Steve asked.
"It can't be because you're in love with me right?"
Steve shook his head, not giving the response that Ken expected. He had tried to lighten the mood, but it seemed that now was not the time.
"You're the only person who believed in me." He stated simply.
These words brought a sour taste to Ken's mouth as he heard them. A pang of guilt washed through him as he asked himself a simple question: Would he have said that Steve had potential to go pro if he didn't have the system?
"I was never good at studying or baseball for that matter. Things never seemed to click and I began to lose motivation." He continued somberly.
"When I first started playing, I really wanted to be like Jeter… I told my parents I wanted to make it to the majors, but they would just laugh it off and tell me to keep studying."
"Eventually, I began to lose sight of my dream and began to believe them and the others. It hurt that they would dismiss me over and over, so I just stopped trying."
Ken listened silently, returning the ball back to his friend as he began to pour his heart out. There was a morose expression on Steve's once vibrant face, painting a desolate portrait.
"But then you came along…"
"You picked me up from the depths of despair and hoisted me along, kicking and screaming." This time a small smile crept onto the corner of his lips as if he were basking in the nostalgia.
Despite only knowing each other for 2 years, it had felt like a lifetime. Ken himself felt his spirits soar as he heard these words, unable to hide the smile from his own expression.
"Everything started to go right. Not only did my grades increase, but my body began to change, almost like it wasn't my own."