The day Sora got promoted to first string came much earlier than she had anticipated. After having performed very well in two practice matches of the second string, the coach had been pleased and wanted to try out if the blue haired girl would be able to keep the quality of her play constantly high when having to cope with first string standards. While eating three bowls of rice for dinner wasn't a big problem from the beginning, things sure started getting busier even though she still acted as an infielder.

Besides practice, school classes, homework, her study sessions and tutoring the first years and her classmates, also the café was beginning to make arrangements for the winter and the Christmas and new year's season. The young and very cute manager Tomoko whom Sora (and also Sawamura to her big surprise) had started to call Tomo-chan, had already asked her if she could work some additional shifts because she was short on employees and the young girl had agreed as long as it would fit into her schedule.

However, even though her teammates had been very supportive and they also had celebrated her promotion to first string with a party in her dorm room, the blue haired girl had to face certain problems. Like having to form a battery with Miyuki who was doing fine with his recovery since they had begun with the additional massage therapy on a regular basis. Since the young captain had been struggling with fatigue at first, they had filled in the coach and the doctor with what the two teammates were doing and had received approval. After a few days, the brown haired catcher was back to his normal malicious self, so there was no doubt he would be able to practice again once winter break and the training camp started.

Being even closer to all the first-string members now surely didn't only have advantages, especially since some of them were way too observant and curious. While the guys from second string hadn't thought much of Sora not showing up to bathe or shower or change together with them, of course the first-string team had to notice and to care. Kuramochi was constantly mocking her for being shy or having an inferior complex or privacy issues, while the young girl really was at a limit with her excuses.

Also going to her part-time job had become an adventure because Sora truly had the feeling that she was being watched or something like that. There was always someone of her teammates around her. The blue haired girl barely had some privacy left and she had to create her opportunities to be able to sneak out with Sawamura.

Miyuki and Kuramochi had both started to hang out in her dorm room frequently, as much as the young southpaw and the green haired shortstop still insisted on Sora being his videogame partner, so she also had to visit him in her rare free time. Otherwise, that guy would be sulking, claiming the young girl ignored him on purpose which wasn't true. It was kind of exhausting to have so clingy friends.

And then there was still her bad conscience. The closer her friendships with the guys were getting, the more Sora wished she wouldn't have to lie to them like she did. But the more she also tried to convince herself that the others wouldn't treat her like that if they knew she was a girl. This back and forth was wearing her out just as much as school, practice and her job. It was getting a bit much.

Luckily the blue haired girl had Sawamura she could talk to and she also did video calls with her family, especially with her brother Ten whenever she had some time left, mostly before going to sleep. But a pang of loneliness in her heart remained. She was feeling alone, homesick and as much as she was enjoying her time with the baseball team and the practice, she was also aware she didn't fit in hundred percent.

Time was flying, it was getting colder and darker outside, the weather was getting on her nerves and winter was approaching in a high speed. There wasn't much time left until winter break and the training camp would be starting and Sawamura was already excited to no ends.

Meanwhile Sora was waking up with a huge headache the second day in a row. Her eyesight was blurry and she was feeling hot. When she looked in the mirror that morning, her usually bright blue eyes were glassy and her cheeks were reddened. Lovely...

The day before she already had been unusually tired, but the young girl had been able to manage somehow without anyone of her nosy team noticing. Today she had the feeling it wouldn't be so easy. And she had to work late shift in the café as well... Not to mention the baseball practice! Ugh! A fever at a time like this, just... why?!

Sora rolled her sky blue eyes in annoyance when she was getting dressed and stumbled because her head was spinning. Now she was even feeling lightheaded, great! Hopefully she wouldn't just pass out. The blue haired girl searched for two paracetamols in her dresser and took them with a lot of water. Bitter! She scrunched her nose before heading out for breakfast.

The young girl was glad when she ran into Sawamura before entering the cafeteria where some of their other team members were already gathering.

"Eijun!" she hissed and pulled the surprised southpaw around a corner.

"Mornin' Sora", he greeted with a grin. "Unusually energetic so early! That's the spirit!"

"Quite the contrary. It sucks, but I have to ask you a favor", the blue head admitted. "I'm running a temperature and I need you to cover up for me..."

His gentle hazel eyes widened with worry and the young pitcher reached out to put his hand on her forehead.

"You're burnin' hot, Sora! Ya sure that's okay? Maybe you should go rest"

"And cause trouble for everyone? Sit out during practice after being promoted to first string? Failing Tomo-chan even though I promised to take the additional shifts? And what about classes? I have an academical scholarship, Eijun! I need to be present in my lessons!"

The brown haired boy squirmed uncomfortably. He understood where she was coming from and he'd most likely react the same way, but he was also concerned for his friend.

"Did you take some medicine? Wait... do you actually have something like that in your room?!"

"Yeah, I did. But I'll go and buy some more after work only to be safe"

"Alright, I'm gonna go with you then"

"Thanks, Eijun. I'm sorry to worry you like that"

"Nah, no sweat" The southpaw waved his hand. "But when I notice you're gettin' worse, I'm gonna go tell Cap, just so you know. Not gonna have you drop dead!"

Sora smiled gratefully.

"Deal!"

"Great! Now, let's go eat, you need some energy! And more coffee than usual, you look ghastly"

"Wow, thanks! How flattering..."

"Ah, no! Sorry, sorry! Didn't mean it like that...!"

Sora chuckled amused about Sawamura's slight panic and the two students went into the school's canteen.

"Go sit, I'll bring your share along"

"Mh, thanks. I'm gonna go get some coffee and wait for you over there"

She gestured towards a free table and her brown haired friend nodded before lining up for some food. Sora grabbed two cups of hot black coffee and sat down in a corner far away from the others. She leaned back and sighed. The pills she had taken earlier were slowly but surely beginning to be effective, but the young girl still felt like shit.

Sawamura wasn't taking long to join her and as promised he brought her some food. He also made a huge effort to distract her with some jokes and funny stories. The brown haired pitcher kept talking and laughing the whole time until they had finished breakfast and the young girl was just glad that none of their other teammates had come over to sit with them.

By the time the two friends left the cafeteria Sora's standing was much steadier and the heat was going down. The dizziness and her blurry vision had disappeared and she had the feeling that she could at least survive this day somehow. It wasn't perfect, but bearable and that was all she needed.

"Should I walk you to your room?" Sawamura asked.

His voice and his eyes still showed a lot of concern. Sora smiled, but shook her head.

"I can manage", she reassured him and squeezed his hand. "Ah, look! There's Nori. Gotta go!"

"Alright, go with Nori-senpai then. See ya later!"

"Mh, later Eijun!"

They waved at each other and the blue haired girl hurried over to walk with Kawakami.

"Cheez, Nori"

"Good morning, Sora. Ready for history?"

"Kill me"

"That bad, huh?"

Kawakami snickered as they both entered their classroom.

"But you usually do fine, right? Your grades, I mean"

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean I actually like my subjects. I do enjoy learning languages though"

"Heh, I see. I wish I could be so good in something I don't like. When you have a look at my grades you can clearly tell which are my favorite subjects"

The teenagers plopped down on their seats and Sora rested her head in her arms she had put on her desk. Closing her eyes, she waited for the bell to ring and the lesson to start. It was weird to be earlier than Miyuki and Kuramochi though, but she didn't care much. The young girl was just glad that the throbbing of her head had reduced to tired numbness. Her cheeks were still feeling warm, but she wasn't sweating anymore which she considered a good sign and a courtesy of the paracetamol.

When she suddenly received a kick under the table, the blue haired girl almost jumped from her chair. She hadn't even noticed that she had dozed off in the middle of the classroom. At the same moment she heard the bell ring and noticed that their teacher just came into the room, so someone had woken her up right on time.

"Hyaha!" Sora heard the characteristic Kuramochi laughter from beside her and she threw the shortstop a grateful glance.

"Thanks", she mouthed and he flashed her a wide grin and showed her a thumb up.

During classes and also during lunch time Sora was enduring pretty well. Of course she had to cope with Miyuki's and Kuramochi's teasing because it had been the first time for her to fall asleep in the classroom, but that only meant they weren't worried and also that they weren't suspecting anything.

Sawamura exchanged some silent glances with her and she smirked and winked to signal him everything was still fine and nobody had recognized anything. He was nice enough to keep his mouth shut and even to bring her a mint tea after eating, causing Miyuki to raise his eyebrows at his pitcher partner.

Her real challenge began in the afternoon when practice with the first string was starting. The effect of the medicine was wearing off and Sora didn't have the possibility to run off to her dorm room to take another two pills. She cursed herself for not being smart enough to put the medicine in her bag in the morning, but she had been struggling just to stand and to think straight.

After the warming up the blue haired girl felt like suffocating. The bandages around her chest suddenly felt too tight and she was sweating and panting way too heavily.

"Hyaha! S'up Sora?! At your limit already? We didn't even start yet!"

Kuramochi kicked her as he jogged past her and she had to stop to prop on her knees. Again it was Sawamura who suddenly appeared at her side, handing the young girl a water bottle.

"You okay?" he muttered under his breath and placed his hand on her back to support his friend if necessary.

Sora nodded and almost emptied the bottle.

"So far..."

"You sure you want to continue practice? I could bring you some ice to cool down..."

But Sawamura's worries got interrupted by coach's order to gather around. The friends complied, but the brown haired pitcher fidgeted nervously at Sora's side and tried to stay as close to her as possible.

Miyuki who was watching from the sidelines narrowed his caramel eyes at his battery partner. He gestured towards Kuramochi, calling the shortstop over.

"What's up with our idiot today? Isn't he acting weird?"

The green haired boy shrugged.

"It's Bakamura. He's always acting weird"

The captain only sighed. So true!

"Keep an eye on him"

"Yeah, yeah... You're such a mom!"

"Shut it!"

"Hyaha!"

The team was instructed to go over to batting practice and the students moved to the cages and got equipped with helmets and bats to prepare for their hellish training. The head coach would surely push them beyond their limits once again and they all knew it. In fact, also Sora knew it and for the first time in her life, she feared it. Not because of her health, but because of her friend's concerns for her.

At first it looked still promising. Toujou was working as a practice pitcher and he was doing a great job. Sora was taking turns with Sawamura, Kuramochi and Kanemaru, so she had some short intervals of rest between her bats and it wasn't too exhausting. The blue haired girl still had enough concentration and focus left to at least hit the ball. She really thought she could see it through until the end. That was until her vision decided to get all blurry again.

"Shit!" she cursed under her breath and rubbed her eyes with the sleeve of her shirt. "Nice one, Toujou! Keep going!"

"Thanks!" The nice first year grinned from ear to ear after her praise, but she wasn't even able to see it properly.

Sora gulped very hard. Her mouth was dry, her head had started throbbing painfully again and she felt weak and dizzy. Additionally, her body honestly seemed to be on fire this time. Her skin burned like hell and her cheeks were heating up more and more every second now. The young girl let out a breath and lowered her head when finally Kanemaru was up to bat next.

"Sora?!" Sawamura placed one hand on her shoulder, holding her in place. "Kuramochi-senpai, we're takin' a short break. Sorry, we'll be back in a sec!"

"Huh?!"

But before the shortstop could react, the brown haired southpaw pushed the young girl a bit and she began walking forward.

"How bad is it?" the pitcher asked keeping his voice very low.

"Can't see clearly"

"Tch"

Sawamura clicked his tongue and snatched Sora's wrist to guide her the way to the benches without her tripping and falling over. At their goal, the brown haired boy pushed his friend to sit down and handed her another bottle of water. He took bat and helmet from her and got two towels ready to wet them with the cold water.

"Here, put one around your neck and one on your forehead or over your eyes", Sawamura ordered and Sora obeyed. "I'm gonna go get some ice. We honestly need to cool you down"

"Sorry, Eijun..."

"Idiot, don't apologize! It's not your fault!"

"And what exactly are you two doing here?"

"Agh! Cap!"

"Hyaha! That's what I want to know! Who in the ever-loving hell gave you two slackers permission to go and take it easy?!"

"Kuramochi-senpai?!"

Sora who had her eyes closed up until now, jumped from the bench, one wet towel still around her neck and the one from her eyes now in her hand. But she had gotten up too fast and staggered, causing Sawamura to react quickly and reach out to hold her.

"Whoa, easy, easy!"

The brown haired southpaw took the second towel from the young girl and pressed it on her forehead while still holding her on her shoulder. His grip was firmly, but also reassuring and gentle.

"Eijun..."

"Shh, yeah I know... I know!" He tried to console her in a sweet tone, but knew exactly how frustrated the blue haired girl was with herself right this moment. "C'mon Sora, do me the favor and sit down again before you shut down completely..."

"Shut down...?!" Miyuki chimed in and glared at the young pitcher.

"Oi Sawamura, care to explain what's goin' on here?!" also Kuramochi questioned and crossed his arms over his chest, narrowing down his eyes on his roommate who stood in front of Sora so that the two other boys couldn't see her current condition.

"Moron!" Sora hissed.

"Yeah, sorry, but we're kinda busted anyway now, so..." Sawamura tried, but got interrupted once again.

"I'll be fine!" the blue haired girl insisted. "Just need a short time-out"

"No, you don't!"

"Sure do!"

"Sora, I told you when you're getting worse, I'm gonna tell Cap!"

"Hell, Eijun, for cryin' out loud...!

"How do you want to practice when you can't see anything?!" the brown haired boy shouted. "I know, I'm not the one to scold you about this, but eyesight is kinda essential to play baseball!"

Sora gave him a push and stumbled away from her friend, too upset to listen to him any longer.

"Shut up already! I said I can handle..."

But she didn't come very far, because she was caught by Kuramochi who pulled on the young girl's arm to have a closer look on her.

"You can handle what?"

"Yeah, Sawamura. What did you want to tell me?" Miyuki asked, voice and eyes cold as ice.

The young pitcher gulped.

Kuramochi on the other hand glared down on Sora whose blue eyes had turned completely glassy again. She was breathing heavily and her face was bright red. It was obvious that the blue haired girl had sweated way too much and she was barely able to hold herself up on her feet by now.

"Oh, fuck! Miyuki!" the green haired shortstop called alarmed. "Go, get the coach!"

"That Sora's got a fever", Sawamura answered at the same time. "But he said he took medicine for it and he was still looking alright the whole day. He even went to classes and ate a proper lunch..."

The captain sighed in utter exasperation and had to hold back his anger in order not to snap at his battery partner when suddenly Sora started to falter.

"Oi, Sora. Get yourself together..."

"Sawwwy... Mochi... Gonna take a nap now..."

And with that said, she collapsed right into Kuramochi's arms and the green head held her tightly, even lifting her up to carry her.

"We're gonna talk about that later!" Miyuki told Sawamura and turned around to go and get the coach and Takashima.

The brown haired pitcher clenched his fists and gritted his teeth, staying at Kuramochi's and Sora's side as close as possible.

"Sora...!"

When Sora opened her eyes again, she was lying in her bed in her dorm room and she felt like run over by a bus. She faintly noticed Sawamura by her side, but the young girl was confused and still dizzy.

"Eijun? What happened?"

"Uhm... You shut down during practice..."

But the poor brown haired boy couldn't even finish his sentence.

"Wait what?!" Sora jolted and sat up straight. "Ow, fuck! That hurts like a bitch!" She held her head.

"Oi, Sora! Lie down, will you!" Sawamura scolded.

"What time is it?"

"Huh?!"

"No, shit! I gotta go to work today, Eijun... Remember, I promised Tomo-chan to take over the additional late shifts in the café..."

"Aaahhh! Sora, Sora, Sora!!!" the young southpaw suddenly panicked. "We're not alone right now, you know! We do have company...!"

"Eh?"

For the first time she had woken up the blue haired girl looked at her friend properly and recognized two other male figures in the room just behind the pitcher. Oh c'mon... Really now?! She was so screwed! Sora closed her eyes and sighed. Karma was a bitch!

Miyuki and Kuramochi exchanged glances with each other, not seeming very amused.

"Work?!" the shortstop repeated.

"More secrets? Something else we should know or you want to tell us?" Miyuki added sarcastically.

Sora snorted and rubbed her face.

"Well, since I'm keeping it a secret you might've noticed that I certainly don't want to tell you. That's the whole meaning behind it, right?!"

"Oi, oi, Sora...!" Sawamura hissed.

"Heh... You don't say..."

The captain's voice was dangerously calm and composed and it had nothing playful in it anymore. Sora felt chills running down her spine.

"I have a part-time job in a cosplay café... Nothing to murder me for, captain, so put your death glare away, will you..." she sighed defeatedly.

The blue haired girl just didn't have the energy left to argue now. And with the captain and the vice-captain of all people.

"U-Uhm... I called Tomo-chan, so you don't have to worry. She won't let you work with a fever anyway, so... yeah... Take your time and rest, Sora" Sawamura scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

"Ugh!"

Sora plopped back into her pillow. Her head hurt! She put her arm over her eyes and tried to follow her spinning thoughts.

"So basically, I can't go to classes to follow up properly, homework will have to pile up as much as the notes I'll have to copy and to work over, I'll have to postpone the tutoring for Eijun and Furuya... Ah, damn, I wanted to come up with a few exercises for that lazy guy, he always sleeps in class... And I'll have to leave Zono and his literature grade to Nabe and Shira. Right, history... My project with Nori! Gah, I'm gonna die goddammit! There I promised Nabe to help him with his scouting videos the next few days, now look at me, how pathetic! And I'll have to tell Furuya that I can't go shopping with him to look for that glass nail file... Won't be able to keep my promise to Tomo-chan either, hope she can find someone who works the extra shifts at the café! This sucks! This literally sucks! I just got promoted to first string and I can't go to practice. How does that look like in front of the coach?! Ahhh I'm pissed! My parents and Ten-nii also wanted me to come over and check on our new center and they finally unpacked all the moving boxes, so I really should go and show my face at home sometime soon as well... And I promised to proofread our homepage and check for any spelling or grammar mistakes before we go online... Ugh! I really just can't have a fever right now! So much trouble I cause for other people! I feel bad! So bad! Maybe I should write a to do list so that I don't forget anything..."

Kuramochi and Miyuki had frozen on their spots in the small dorm room and exchanged shocked glances with each other, eyes wide with disbelief while Sawamura only nodded his head to all the things Sora brabbled and put his hand on his chin thoughtfully.

"Leave Aniki to me, I'll make a call to your home. Don't worry, they'll understand. And I'm gonna tell Furuya you're sorry, I'm sure he won't react much either. He never does, ya know that, right? And we're gonna study with Harucchi until you're fully recovered again. I promise I'm gonna do my best to doze off less in my classes! It'll all work out, you'll see!"

"Thank you Eijun... Really...!"

"Sawamura..." Miyuki muttered, almost not able to believe how accustomed the brown haired pitcher sounded even after hearing that much from Sora. And since when was the pitcher so reliable?!

"Oi, oi! Are you two fucking kidding me?!" Kuramochi suddenly chimed in, sounding utterly pissed off. "How can you be so damn casual 'bout all that? You nuts? If you have that much on your plate the whole time now, of course you're gonna drop dead one day! Also think about yourself more and not only about other people! Besides, why the hell didn't you just tell us about your job?!"

"I've always been quite busy, so I'm used to it... Not a big deal actually", Sora answered vaguely, not going into detail or responding to the job question on purpose.

"If it's not a big deal you could've said something!" Miyuki argued.

Of course, the captain wouldn't just let her have this...

"Ehhh... But I didn't want to get scolded! You're pretty scary when you're being serious, captain..." the blue haired girl chirped in a honey sweet voice, making the young catcher roll his eyes.

"Why the hell would I scold you because of a part-time job?"

"..."

"Sora!"

"'Cause I might or might not have broken our curfew for it?!" she replied innocently.

"Oh, for the love of..."

Miyuki and Kuramochi groaned in annoyance and the green haired shortstop facepalmed.

"Well, I do work late shift. Does ring a bell, no?"

"I'm gonna buy you a leash!" Kuramochi deadpanned.

"Maybe a cage would be more appropriate", Miyuki gave back equally dry.

"There we go again having kinky fantasies. Should I start calling you master from now on?! I'm gonna repeat myself, I'm not into stuff like that!" the blue haired girl teased and the others finally couldn't hold back their laughter anymore.