Michael followed Ken's group along the streets of Houston, his thoughts wandering. As he held hands with Rachel, he couldn't help but feel that this scene was too surreal to be true.
He was currently out with his idol, the one he had looked up to from a young age. Not only this, he was surrounded by the next generation of talents in the Majors.
Part of him felt like he didn't belong, but an even larger part was filled with excitement to be included in such a group. Michael forced down his impostor syndrome and decided to enjoy the precious moment.
He felt his hand get squeezed by Rachel who was smiling at him sweetly. She could feel his nervousness, so this was her way of supporting him.
Michael smiled back, squeezing her hand in turn.
The group made it to the Italian restaurant and were led into the fancy establishment by one of the waitresses at the front. The table they had were one of the best, in a secluded area of the restaurant.
"Can I get you any drinks to start with?" The waitress asked politely.
"Just some water please," Ken replied.
Only Steve and Santiago got an alcoholic beverage, since their season had already ended for the year. Michael decided to have an orange juice because he was still too young to drink.
"So, where is your wife?" Rachel asked, looking directly at Ken.
Though it was unintentional, it sounded like she was insinuating something, causing Michael to stammer.
"S—She's heavily pregnant, I'm sure Ken didn't want her to fly here and risk any complications." He said, defending his idol.
Ken smiled, not offended by the comment, "You're right, I don't want her flying anymore until they're born. My mom and others are at home taking care of her."
"Oh, I see. What about you guys?" She said, looking at the others.
"Ahem… I don't have a partner yet." Santiago said a little uncomfortably.
Steve on the other hand shrugged his shoulders, "My girl is back in Detroit with Ai and Miho. I offered to bring her, but she refused."
After this question, the table turned silent as everyone looked to Rohan who had yet to answer.
Like Santiago, he looked uncomfortable.
"I'm single..." He said lamely.
Since he was a few years older than everyone present, he felt like a bit of an outcast being one of the only single people. Even the youngest, Michael had brought his date.
"Rohan has been too busy to get a girlfriend," Ken added, giving him a wink, "he only just recovered from an accident not too long ago."
"I see, what happened? Did you fall or something?" Rachel asked curiously.
Michael nudged her and whispered, "That's a little rude isn't it?"
"No, it's fine." Rohan said, raising his hands, "I was hit by a car when I was running a couple of years ago. Like Ken said, it took a long time for me to fully recover."
Rachel's eyes widened in shock and she quickly apologized for being so insensitive, quickly deciding that she should keep her mouth shut from now on.
The mood seemingly deflated, leading to an awkward silence at the table. It wasn't until the waitress came back with some drinks that things returned to normal somewhat.
"I saw your game the other day where you threw 108mph, that was so cool." Michael said to Ken, changing the subject matter.
"Ah, thanks." Ken said with a wry smile, "I was forced to get drug tested right after that game…"
"And I needed to get my hand x-rayed" Daichi quipped, causing the table to laugh in response.
"Did they find anything?" Rachel asked, seemingly oblivious to the mood.
But Ken wasn't offended, he merely laughed, "Of course not."
"How is College going for you?" Ken asked, moving on.
Michael nodded, "It's good, though we barely went 0.500 this past season," he replied, wearing a wry smile.
"It's fine, as long as you get drafted in a couple of years, you'll be in the Majors in no time." Ken said, waving it off.
Michael's eyes widened briefly, his gaze moving over all the people present. No one corrected Ken, it was as if they completely trusted his judgment.
"You think I can make it to the Majors?" Michael asked, his tone slightly soft.
"Yeah, of course. You definitely have the potential to." Ken added matter-of-factly. He had used Identify on Michael when they met again earlier, just to check up on him.
The guy had EX+ potential and had improved his fitness tremendously since the last time they saw each other. As long as he kept working earnestly, it would only be a matter of time before he joined the Majors.
Michael felt a warmth rise within him, bringing a smile unconsciously to his face.
"It would be nice to play on your team…" he said after a while.
"Haha, who knows, maybe you will get drafted by Detroit?" Ken said, "Then we'll definitely be unstoppable."
Ken could already imagine the youngsters taking over the team and taking the Majors by storm. In fact, he had already tried to incite this over in Japan with his Training Demon skill.
Right now there were probably 4 or 5 players that could make the switch from NPB to Majors without any difficulty, whereas the others he'd trained like Shiro had already quit playing baseball.
The atmosphere managed to recover from Rachel's slightly eager questions and soon it turned harmonious. Once the topic of baseball was reached, everyone opened up about their experiences.
It was good having Santiago around once more, it had almost been a few years since they'd seen each other. It seemed that each time Ken had an event, the guy was busy training.
First his wedding, and then the gender reveal/baby shower.
"Hey, did you want to work out with us this week?" Ken asked Michael whose eyes suddenly lit up and sparkled.
"That would be awesome!"