As Ken jumped in the car with Jeremy, he felt his mind racing. Just what kind of dream did he have again? His body felt weak and he couldn't move, there was also those somewhat familiar voices that was speaking to him.
He wasn't sure what it was, but Ken did not want to experience it again, not if he could avoid it.
'I'll need to make sure to use sleep protocol in the future…' He thought.
Whenever he used Mika's sleep protocol, he would have a restful sleep with no dreams. The only time he'd dreamed was when he was sick with a fever.
"Why do you look so pale? Don't tell me you're getting sick." Jeremy said, his gaze drifting from the road for a moment.
Ken shook his head, "I just had a bad dream, nothing to worry about."
"Good. We can't have you getting sick right before our series against the Bulls. It will already be tough adjusting to the new player in the team." Jeremy replied.
"He arrived before I left. The damn guy hardly knows English, what was the organization thinking adding him so late?" He continued, a sour expression on his face.
Ken blinked a few times.
"Um, actually the new guy is my brother…"
"…Excuse me?"
"He's my brother… We share the same family and last name." Ken reiterated.
"W—WHAT!?"
Jeremy stared at Ken, his hands still gripping the steering wheel tightly. "Your brother has joined the team? And you didn't tell us?"
"O—OI, keep your eyes on the road!" Ken shouted in panic.
Thankfully, the guy quickly turned his attention back to driving, though Ken still felt his heart racing because of the scare. The last thing he needed was to get into an accident on the way to training.
Letting out a sigh of relief, Ken explained himself.
"My brother didn't even tell me. If I didn't see him early on my morning run, I would have been just as clueless as you." He said with a small grin.
"I see…" Jeremy nodded. "So tell me… Is he good?"
Ken was silent for a few moments, but he nodded. "It's been a long time since we played against each other… But he's been a pro in Japan ever since leaving High School. There's no doubt he's gotten even better since I last saw him."
"Right… I just hope he plays well next week, otherwise it will be far too cruel if he's the reason we lost."
"Don't worry, Daichi is one of the best catchers of the younger generation, I can vouch for that. After all, I taught him everything he knows." Ken replied with a grin.
Jeremy paused before responding, "and what the hell do you know about catching?"
"Ah… I mean, everything he knows about baseball."
Ken felt a little embarrassed, but thankfully the trip from hit motel to the field was not far. Jeremy parked the car and they got out, heading towards the field.
Sure enough, everyone had already finished their warm ups. Ken spotted Daichi by himself, getting a few stretches in.
"Ken, it's unlike you to be late to practice…" Coach Dean saw Ken arrive and called him out, his face wearing a frown.
"Don't be too hard on him coach, he's a growing boy after all." One of the players commented, eliciting a laugh from some of his teammates.
However, Coach Dean didn't seem to be amused.
"I've already made the introduction, but I'll make it again since you're here now Ken." Coach Dean said. He pointed to Daichi and announced, "This is our newest addition to the team, Daichi. His English still isn't great, but I expect you to get along well."
"Yo, they been treating you well?" Ken asked Daichi in Japanese in front of the whole team.
Daichi shrugged, "Well enough. Just tell them that I can understand English, they don't need to speak so slow." He said with a grin.
Those on the field went silent. Perhaps it was because Ken was mixed race, or because he spoke in perfect English, but they seemed to forget that he was not American.
The team including Coach Dean stared wide-eyed at him, apart from Jeremy who knew the details.
"He says that you don't need to speak so slow, he understands what you're saying." Ken turned to the coach with a grin.
"Wait, you guys know each other?"
This seemed to be the question on everyone's mind at the moment.
"Asking if I know my own brother… That's a little insulting isn't it?" Ken replied, seemingly enjoying the reactions of all present.
The field erupted into chaos and soon Ken was peppered with questions from everyone. It was only after a few minutes that everyone calmed down enough to move on with the training.
Coach Dean composed himself. He had indeed seen that the two shared a last name, but that didn't necessarily mean they were related.
"Wait, aren't you two the same age? How can you be brothers… Unless you're twins?" the coach said after a while. He looked between Daichi and Ken and shook his head.
One was almost 6'6 and the other was 6' with wide shoulders. There's no way they were twins.
"Daichi was adopted into our family when we were 15. But by law, we are brothers." Ken reiterated. He had expected such reactions, so he wasn't offended at all. In fact, he never thought this day would come where they would be on the same team together.
"I see… Well, I expect you to get him up to speed before the first post season match next week. Now everyone, stop messing around, it's time to train." Coach Dean said, turning to the team.
"Geez, the coach is fired up." Jeremy said, letting out a small laugh.
"I haven't seen him this excited since we took him to that club with the exotic dancers."
"O—Oi! Don't go spreading false rumors." Coach Dean called out, his face turning red in embarrassment.