Oikawa had assumed that would be the end of the conversation, at least until they reached the table tennis area.
Unfortunately, he was wrong. After staring blankly for a moment, Iroha Isshiki suddenly leaned forward, her eyes sparkling with excitement. "Senpai, who's prettier? Me, or Yui-senpai?"
"You," Oikawa answered with a resigned sigh.
Today, all he could do was indulge her as much as possible. Even if it meant lying, that was all he could do.
"Then what about me and Saki-senpai?" Unfortunately, Iroha decided to push her luck again.
Oikawa fell silent for a moment before answering, "...You."
A sly smile crept across Iroha's face.
"You hesitated just now." She tilted her head, her tone teasing. "So you actually like Saki-senpai, don't you? Figures. Even a playboy like you prefers girls who are dependable like her."
Oikawa rolled his eyes and ignored her. Who knew what kind of trap she'd spring next?
Still, she wasn't wrong. If someone insisted on weighing the place each girl held in his heart, Kawasaki would undoubtedly come out on top. And if it ever came down to it, he would abandon everyone else for her.
Truthfully, Oikawa couldn't understand it himself.
How could she be so kind, so cute, so foolish and so stubborn?
_ _ _
After buying their tickets, the two of them entered the sports center. The table tennis tables were set up in one corner, where quite a few people were already rallying.
In Japan, table tennis ranked just behind baseball and football as one of the country's most popular sports.
Even people who didn't normally follow it would gather around the TV with their families whenever there was an international tournament. And in recent years, Japan had produced several standout players who had attracted a lot of attention.
...
Iroha was wearing heels. Not the towering kind office ladies wore, just a modest pair with slightly raised heels. Women's shoes came in so many different styles that Oikawa had long since given up trying to understand them.
Finally, after changing into indoor shoes, Iroha began stretching right in front of him.
Every graceful line of her figure was on full display. The kind of proportions that made countless girls jealous.
If you ignored the fact that she was rather flat-chested, she was practically perfect.
As Oikawa watched, their eyes met.
Iroha gave him a playful wink, tilting her head as if to say, "Senpai, you're such a pervert."
Most people would have awkwardly looked away after being caught staring.
Well, Oikawa wasn't most people. And who said he was sneaking a look? He was looking openly.
There were always people online talking about freedom of dress. Oikawa wholeheartedly supported that idea.
If everyone dressed conservatively, what was he supposed to admire? By all means, be as free as possible.
"..."
In the end, it was Iroha who blushed first, hurriedly stopping her stretches.
She picked up a paddle, fanning herself with it as she walked to the table. "Senpai, are you really that bad at table tennis? Want me to help you get used to it first?"
"That would be great." Oikawa picked up a paddle and examined it before wrapping his whole hand around the handle. "Isshiki-san, am I holding it right?"
Iroha burst into laughter. "So you really don't know anything! Didn't your middle school PE teacher teach table tennis? Isn't that a required unit?"
Her smile grew even brighter. The scales of victory seemed completely tipped in her favor.
"Senpai..." She smiled slyly, "Want to make a bet? The loser has to grant the winner one wish. Sound good?"
She looked at him with an expression that practically screamed, 'You're a man, aren't you? Surely you won't back down from a challenge like this?'
"You're taking advantage of me here, Kouhai. You know I can't even play, and you're still proposing a bet." Oikawa looked thoroughly helpless.
"Oh, come on. Maybe you're secretly a table tennis genius." She answered instantly. "You're not actually afraid of losing to your kohai, are you? If you're too scared, then forget it."
The look of naked contempt on her face made Oikawa want to drop the act and smack her on the head.
"...Fine." He let out a long sigh. "But no ridiculous requests if I lose."
Her eyes lit up.
"So that's a yes?" The grin on her face couldn't have been more obvious. "Then no backing out. Whoever goes back on their word is a..."
She paused. "Um... Whoever breaks the promise will never get a girlfriend for the rest of their life!"
Could she make that any more targeted?
"...Fine." Looking thoroughly conflicted, Oikawa nodded. He tossed her the ball and got into a ready stance.
"Then I'm serving!"
Before he could even respond, Iroha had already hit the ball.
What a sneaky girl.
"Heh!" Oikawa made an exaggerated swing and completely whiffed.
Iroha looked like she was about to burst out laughing. Even so, she pretended to comfort him. "That was so close, Senpai! You almost got it back. I think you're actually pretty talented!"
"Really?" Oikawa asked with an innocent expression. "Then maybe I won't lose after all."
"Exactly!" She nodded enthusiastically. "You might even win!"
They were playing to eleven points.
Over the next several serves, Oikawa didn't even touch the ball once.
The gym echoed with Iroha's endless words of encouragement.
Before long... The score was 9–0.
"Come on, Senpai! You'll return one any second now..." Before she'd even finished speaking, she served again.
A victorious smile spread across her face.
Then...
Bang!
The ball shot back across the table.
It skimmed right past Iroha's cheek before flying off the table.
"...Huh? I actually got it back?" Oikawa smiled to himself. "Guess I'm just really lucky."
Then he asked with feigned innocence, "Isshiki-san, is it my turn to serve now?"
"Y-Yeah..."
She still didn't think much of it. Just a lucky shot.
"Then be careful, Kouhai." The instant the words left his mouth, Oikawa flicked a backhand serve.
The ball bounced once... then exploded forward with a sharp whoosh.
Iroha didn't even have time to react.
She stared blankly at him. "Senpai... I thought you said you couldn't play table tennis?"
"I can't," Oikawa said with a smile. "But then it suddenly occurred to me that I'm pretty good at badminton, and serving doesn't seem all that different."
Now, it was his turn to grin.
.
.
.