Chapter Text
Eijun ate quickly, stuffing his breakfast down at an impressive speed. It was surprising how he didn’t choke or cough. This exact routine happened on any day when there was no school, and his family had a good idea for why he was eating so quickly. For once though, they didn’t scold him. (If they did, he would simply deny it anyhow.)
Once his bowl was completely clean, Eijun grinned and pushed the bowl away from him. “Can I go please?” Eijun begged his grandfather, eyes twinkling with flecks of gold.
“Go where?” he asked, even though he knew very well what Eijun was referring to.
“Next door to see Miyuki Kazuya, of course!” he chirped with a wide smile, a smile that was missing two of his front teeth.
“You know, you can just call him Kazuya,” his grandfather responded with a chuckle and a shake of his head. His grandson definitely had some interesting quirks.
“He’s Miyuki Kazuya!” Eijun shouted stubbornly, not changing his habits in the least. “So can I go? Please??” He bounced up and down, unable to contain his excitement. He looked ready to jump at any moment.
“Sure, just don’t make too much noise,” his grandfather said.
“And try not to bother the neighbors too much,” his mother added, ruffling her son’s hair as she passed by. But then she noticed something, and picked up Eijun. “Oh my goodness… Eijun-kun, you messy eater!” His grandfather and father soon noticed what his mother noticed so quickly.
“Ugh, Eijun… You stained your shirt again?” his father sighed. “You need to change your shirt before heading out!”
Eijun pouted and said, “It’s not my fault! It’s the food’s fault. It couldn’t keep up with my speed.”
Eijun’s mother shook her head but rubbed his back nevertheless as she took him away for a change of clothes. She pulled on a freshly laundered shirt over Eijun’s head; it was one of my favorites: a navy t-shirt with a sunflower printed in the center.
“Now, if you eat at the Miyuki family’s place, be careful!” Eijun’s mother reminded him as she held his hand, only letting go as she opened the front door.
A bright “Okay!” rang out from Eijun's mouth and then was quickly out the door, his chubby fingers gripping his beloved baseball.
***
“Haha, Miyuki Kazuya, you’re still so short!” Eijun shouted, giggling as he patted Kazuya on the head.
“Well, what did you expect?” he replied with a roll of his eyes. “I just saw you yesterday, you know. And don’t pat my head! I’m older than you.”
“But you are shorter than me! Are you sure you are older?” Eijun retorted cheekily.
“Of course I’m older! You should show some respect,” Kazuya grumbled. “And do you really have to point that out to me every day?” He fiddled with his glasses a bit, wide-framed glasses that were much too large for his small face.
“I notice it every day!” Eijun explained with a genuine smile, as honest as ever. “And I say what I notice!”
“You never think about what you say, do you?” Kazuya couldn’t help but laugh. Eijun was always amusing! And even though he would always tell his parents that Eijun was a nuisance, he didn’t really mean it, and his parents understood. Kazuya heaved a sigh and then climbed onto a rock to make an announcement: “I’ll grow taller than you someday, you know. And then you’ll be the shortie!”
Eijun shook his head and followed Kazuya onto the rock. “That’s hard to believe. Especially since I will grow taller too! So you can’t catch up with me in time...” Eijun paused to let his thoughts wander to the future. He knew he would grow taller. And he was sure he would always be taller than Miyuki! He couldn’t even imagine what being shorter than Miyuki would be like… It could not be possible. Miyuki Kazuya is Miyuki Kazuya, and he will always be the cute short one! There was no way there could be a tall Miyuki.
“You can’t predict the future, Sawamura-kun!”
“Yes I can, Miyuki Kazuya!” Eijun laughed. “And the future says you will stay a shortie. Forever and ever!” He poked Kazuya’s forehead playfully and his tinkling laughter continued. He jumped off the rock and tossed the baseball from one hand to the other.
Kazuya’s face flushed, his small lips transfixed in a pout as he quickly changed the subject: “Don’t call me by my full name! It’s weird…” He climbed down from the rock and poked Eijun’s cheek. “You can just call me Kazuya!”
“But you are Miyuki Kazuya! Miyuki Kazuya is Miyuki Kazuya,” Eijun said simply. He didn’t want to call his friend by any other name. “And we should play catch!” He cheerfully thrust the baseball into Kazuya’s face, waving it in front of his glasses.
“You always want me to catch for you. Is it really that much fun to you?” Kazuya asked, but even as he asked, he accepted the ball.
“Yes!” was obviously Eijun’s reply. “Let’s play~!”
“Alright, alright, if you insist...” Despite the tone of his own voice, a smile tugged at Kazuya’s lips. Sawamura-kun always wants to play catch! Is that the only thing he thinks about? Kazuya wouldn’t admit it out loud, but he loved playing catch with Eijun too. I always have fun when I’m with him though! I hope we can play catch together forever... Playing catch with Eijun, however, was always a challenge… Eijun’s balls would always come flying in surprising directions, and Kazuya still had lots of trouble trying to successfully catch them. (Especially since the baseball was very large in comparison to his tiny hands. And he had to catch the balls bare-handed; there was no mitt at this time.) He really wanted to get to a point where he could catch Eijun’s pitches with no problem! A thought flitted across his mind: I wonder if being taller would help…? He was sure he would get his growth spurt soon. But for now, he would content himself for being super-skilled. If it was harder for someone who was short, then he had to give himself credit for working extra hard and keeping up with Eijun.
Little did the two children know… Both of them had dreams of playing baseball together. Not just catch, but real baseball. Once they learned how to properly play the sport, they would fall in love with baseball all over again. But for now, the youngsters contented themselves with Eijun throwing and Kazuya catching the ball.
After playing catch for an hour, a pretty voice rung out from the house: “Kazuya-kun, Eijun-kun, I made snacks! Come inside before they get cold!”
Kazuya perked up at the sound of his mother’s voice. “Let’s go inside?” he said as he tugged on Eijun’s sleeve. Kazuya didn’t have to ask.
Eijun was already running, pulling Kazuya along with him. “Your mommy makes the best snacks!” Eijun declared, clutching Kazuya with one hand and the baseball with the other. “I hope she made cookies like she did last time…”
When they clambered up the front steps, the door was already open and a pleasant scent wafted out. Miyuki’s mother ushered the children in with a platter balanced on one hand, piled full of warm chocolate chip cookies -- more than enough for everyone.