Since he hadn’t known her that well in his previous life, despite chasing her for the first 2 years of high school, he didn’t know what to expect.
Yet even if he had one million guesses, he never would have been able to pick what she decided.
It was an old school Japanese rap song from the 90’s. The way she held the microphone and rapped along so effortlessly told him that she was very familiar with the song.
Ken wasn’t the only one to be shocked. The entire booth could only stare at her in disbelief as her aesthetic and song choice seemed so out of sync.
Once she was done however, everyone clapped.
Ai smiled brightly as she returned to her spot next to Ken.
“I didn’t know you liked that music?” Ken commented, feeling as if he got to see another side of the girl that he was fond of.
Ai blushed a little before responding. “Well, my dad listens to it a lot. I used to perform for his friends when I was little.”
Ken nodded, feeling a little odd. He hadn’t met any of Tetsu’s friends, but he imagined that they wouldn’t be all that savory. A picture of tattooed men riding bikes seemed to come into his mind.
However he shook his head in the next moment, not knowing how spot on he was.
Not long later the food arrived and everyone began to chow down. There were plenty of laughs and discussions not involving baseball, reminding everyone that there was more to life than just the baseball club.
People had other dreams and visions of the future that didn’t necessarily involve baseball.
Now that Ken had seen Shiro’s love for singing, it had opened up his eyes a little.
He had been looking at everything through the lens of baseball, since his main goal was to turn professional. Despite it being his end goal, he had been driving his team along the way with the same principles.
Hiroki, Yusuke and Shiro. Did he really need to push them so hard if they didn’t want to play baseball professionally?
How much had his regression changed the lives around him? Did he make their life better, or did he make it worse?
Ken’s gaze moved to Shiro who was laughing and cracking jokes, incidentally making himself the butt of the joke. However, he could see that the guy was truly enjoying himself.
If Ken hadn’t completed the Coup mission that the system gave him back when they faced Fujimi, what would have happened? Would Shiro be living a mediocre life or would he have been able to give up baseball and pursue his real passion, singing.
There were too many questions that he didn’t know the answer to, leading to a headache beginning to form behind his eyes.
“What’s everyone’s goals in life?”
Ken blurted out a question, stopping the conversation abruptly. Most threw him a curious gaze, yet Ai felt a little concerned seeing his expression.
She had seen that look before whenever Ken had been carrying a burden by himself.
Seeing that he didn’t receive an answer right away, he continued.
“I want to play on the biggest stage of baseball… The Majors. I know it might seem like a long way away, but I’m committed to making it happen.”
He had expected some odd expressions or even some doubt, yet surprisingly everyone seemed to believe in him. Shiro and Ai specifically seemed to think that it was a forgone conclusion.
Ken turned his gaze to Yuta and asked him outright.
“What is your goal Senpai?”
Yuta looked a little uncomfortable, especially with Yuko looking at him expectantly.
“I don’t think I have what it takes to go pro. I’ve been talking to the coach and he said I might be more suited to coaching and sports science.”
Ken’s eyes widened, but he nodded in the next moment. Yuta had one of the highest game intelligence, plus he was rather smart. It made sense for him to take such a route.
“I want to study marine biology. Yu-kun and I can go to the same University.” Yuko said with a smile, hugging Yuta’s arm.
Next up was Kaori who was sitting beside Yuko. She seemed a little depressed, likely because she hadn’t finished deciding what she wanted to do just yet.
Ken interjected before the silence got awkward.
“You don’t have to say anything if you don’t want to Kaori. You’re still only in your 2nd year of High School after all.”
Kaori shook her head, building up her courage.
“I-I want to design video games.”
“Eh?”
Everyone in the room turned their gaze to the teen as if she’d just said something outlandish. Only Shiro’s eyes seemed to sparkle with inspiration.
“Wow! That’s awesome. I’m sure if you work hard then your dream will come true.” Shiro said, his words full of enthusiasm.
Seeing the enthusiastic Shiro, Kaori couldn’t help but blush. Most people would laugh when she told them her dreams, especially since she was a woman.
Yet the boy in front of her sincerely believed she could succeed.
Inwardly, her opinion of Shiro had changed little by little since the start of the group outing.
“What do you want to do Shiro?” She asked meekly.
Hearing her call him by his name for the first time brought a wave of happiness inside of Shiro. It was a weird sensation, but it seemed to light a fire within him.
Ken listened intently. Whatever Shiro’s next words were could determine how he treated him in the future.
“I… I always wanted to become a baseball player, ever since I picked up a glove in elementary school. But I was never the best, so I eventually gave up on that dream.”
Ken’s expression morphed slightly, but he still wore a small smile on his lips. He would need to be more conscious of his friend’s wellbeing in the future.
“But all of that changed when I met Ken.”
‘Huh?’
Seeing the puzzled expression on his friends face, Shiro couldn’t help but grin widely.
“Ever since we met on the field in middle school, my whole outlook changed. I was over the moon when I found out we both decided to go to Yokohama, because I knew that he was a special person.”
Ai nodded in agreement, sneaking a glance at the shocked Ken. There was something about the teen that was blinding, drawing everyone towards him and elevating them.
“Shiro… What are y—”
Shiro cut Ken off and continued his speech.
“Ever since hanging out with Ken, I’ve felt like a whole new person. It’s almost as if his excellence has rubbed off on me, giving me the confidence to challenge my dreams once more.”
He clenched his fist and stared at it for a few moments.
“So to answer your question. I’m aiming for the pro’s.”
Shiro grinned widely and stuck out his fist towards Ken.
“I’ll be in your care.”
Ken stared at the outstretched fist for a few moments, feeling a bunch of complicated emotions. He had originally thought his regression only had negative effects on his friends, but it seemed it could also be the opposite.
“Yeah, no worries. I’ll make sure you never slack off again.” He said, connecting their knuckles in the next moment.