u/VAvictory1

The brilliant early summer sunshine poured down along the tennis court of the apartment complex, stretching mottled shadows under the net. A sweltering heat rose from the hard court, making the surrounding air blurry, but that was nothing compared to the smoldering warmth flickering inside Natsusawa Saku.
He stood leaning against the net post, gripping the tennis racket so tightly that his fingertips turned slightly white. Saku’s athletic attire was incredibly basic—a neutral-colored breathable t-shirt paired with black shorts—but his familiar black hair was a bit messy today because its owner kept running a hand through it every few minutes.
Tricking his fingers into tapping on his phone, Saku’s gaze didn't actually register a single word on the screen. His mind right now was a chaotic, hopelessly out-of-sync mess. And understandably so; this was the first time the two of them were hanging out alone since the day he gathered all his courage to confess his feelings to her. The upcoming Physical Education final exam at T University was just an excuse—his standing here, waiting for someone, was for an entirely different reason.
"When will she get here?"
Saku muttered softly, his deep voice quickly dissolving into the wind. His usually sharp, cold eyes were anxiously searching the entrance of the practice court for a familiar silhouette.
And then, that silhouette appeared.
From the corner of the court, a girl was walking quickly toward him. Today, Subaru wasn't wearing her usual modest, elegant dresses; instead, she wore a sporty outfit that fit perfectly, accentuating her small yet healthy physique. Her signature platinum-blonde hair flowed freely, each step she took causing the strands to sway gently, shimmering as if capturing all the morning sunlight.
Saku stood frozen like a statue. The racket in his hand almost slipped from his palm. Subaru’s delicate face and slightly hesitant, bright eyes crashed straight into his usually calm world, tearing down every defense mechanism he had.
"So pretty..."
The words slipped out of Saku’s mouth before his brain could even signal a stop. Though his voice was soft, in the midst of the empty, quiet court, it was clear enough to be impossible to ignore.
Subaru’s steps faltered for a beat. Her cheeks instantly flushed a vibrant pink, the color spreading all the way to her ears. She quickly looked down, clutching her tennis racket tightly against her chest like a shield to hide her embarrassment, and murmured:
"I-I came here to practice tennis, not for... for a date..."
"S-Sorry! Shall we start practicing right away then?"
Saku flusteredly tried to fix his blunder, his tone of voice notably higher than usual. The burning sensation of embarrassment made the back of his neck hot. He quickly turned his gaze elsewhere, pretending to brush invisible dust off the racket strings to hide his own face, which was now just as red as hers.
An awkward yet suffocatingly sweet atmosphere enveloped them both. They silently stepped up to the baseline, just a few paces apart, yet the space between them felt like an entire world filled with pink bubbles. Saku cleared his throat, trying to regain his usual "old soul" composure, but his mouth seemed to act faster than his brain once again:
"Um... after we're done practicing... would you like to grab lunch with me?"
The moment the words left his mouth, Subaru looked up at him, her round eyes blinking in surprise, while Saku just wanted to bang his head against the net post immediately. Talk about giving himself away—he had just agreed it wasn't a date, only to throw out a lunch invitation laden with intent.
While the young couple was still immersed in their own world of pink bubbles, there was someone else watching from the glass lobby of the apartment building, taking a massive amount of "splash damage."
Hidaka—an old high school classmate and currently Saku’s departmental classmate at T University—stood with his arms crossed, leaning against the glass door. He had witnessed the entire scene, from the moment they met to his best friend's utterly unpromising lunch invitation. The sight of the two standing so close together, faces as red as ripe tomatoes, with invisible cherry blossoms fluttering around them despite it being summer, made Hidaka let out a helpless sigh.
"Seriously, if I let these two practice here any longer, I’m going to die of sugar rush," Hidaka muttered, slapping a hand straight onto his forehead, helplessly covering the eyes of a golden bachelor.
He shook his head, watching the way Saku clumsily fumbled to pick up a tennis ball and almost tripped over his own feet, and then how Subaru hid her mouth, giggling bashfully. This morning's amount of sugar was way too heavy for an empty stomach to digest.
"Alright, I give up. Guess I'll go buy breakfast."