Chapter Text
It was a normal day in the life of a baseball coach of a powerhouse school like Seido, doing some paperwork, making training plans, scheduling practice games, and the like when Kataoka Tesshin’s office hours were interrupted by a knock on his door.
He and Rei looked at the door surprised. His baseball team wouldn't usually come to visit or need his service at this time. Neither is it time for the regular visits of the higher-ups. So this is a very unexpected occurrence.
“Come in.”
Their first-year alpha catcher with brown hair and eyes stepped into the room with a cheeky grin. “Hey coach, Rei-chan.”
“Miyuki? Is there anything you need?” Rei asked.
Miyuki stood still for a moment, still clad in his baseball uniform, complete with his cap and sports glasses. Gathering himself, he declared with a faint blush on his cheeks, “I need to schedule a heat leave.”
The two teachers in the room froze.
Heat leave?! The student in front of him is scheduling a heat leave?!
Of course, they would not deny him. All persons were given the right to schedule a heat leave, whether they be a student or working, as long as they had a mate. Going through a heat without their mate would be very painful and in some cases fatal for both parties. No matter how new the mating bond is, even if the mates were young and their needs just involve cuddling and comfort, separating mates during a heat is dangerous.
Suppressing omega and alpha instincts by regularly taking suppressants is common before mating. It would have no adverse or long-lasting effects on the person, so most alphas and omegas prefer to take suppressants to avoid rut and heat cycles respectively.
But when a person is mated to another, there is a shift in one's hormone production, and taking the suppressants for too long without breaks will harm the body. So, all mated individuals are advised to take a break from suppressants once a year, especially when the cycles of a pair sync up with each other.
Kataoka shook himself out of the stupor he caught himself in after the bomb Miyuki just dropped. He looked through the files of his team members, searching for the file of the player in front of him.
After finding it, he flipped through it looking for confirmation of that one specific detail. And there it was. Miyuki Kazuya. Male. Alpha. Mated .
He looked at his assistant coach, looking at the file over his shoulder in a similar state of disbelief.
How could they not have known that Miyuki had a mate? But after really thinking about it, it wouldn't be difficult to see how they missed it. Their practice uniform covers most of the body and that would include a mating mark wherever it may be. To add to that, everyone in the team takes suppressants which make people produce fewer pheromones, and combined with the scent blocker that they are required to apply during practice, the scent indicating a mate would be difficult to sniff out unless you're really looking for it.
But how he was able to hide it from the rest of the team, Kataoka would never know. And he knows for sure that they don't. Because if they did, he or Rei would have heard about it from eavesdropping overhearing their very loud players.
In all his years of being a coach, Kataoka has never had a first-year player come to him for a heat leave. So, the mating status of the first years is usually skipped over when reviewing them, although it's definitely something he will be changing.
Of course, some of his players have requested a heat leave before, but they were all third years and some second years occasionally. In many cases, he was actually there when someone would need to change their mate status or even be a witness to the pining messes his players become before they get together which would sometimes result in a moment of blushing new mates, proudly displaying their mating bites.
“When would you like to schedule your leave?” Rei asked, bringing a calendar marked with the schedule for the baseball team to use for reference.
Miyuki took a glance at it and pointed at his preferred dates. “I'll be gone from here to here.”
Rei raised her brow at the dates he selected. “You will only be absent for three days in this schedule. The rest will fall under winter break. Is that okay with you?”
“Of course Rei-chan.” Miyuki grinned at them teasingly. “I'll have time to rest before training camp starts and Eijun's an even bigger baseball idiot than I am. The dumbass didn't want me to miss any practice time and even wanted to have it fully during the break but his mother threatened us not to miss new years, so this was the compromise.”
“His name is Eijun?” Kataoka looked at the boy in front of him curiously. Miyuki always seemed to put people at a distance. He communicates well with the team and encourages trust in his gameplay but on a personal level, Kataoka has never seen him allow anyone close. The closest anyone ever got was Kuramochi. But now, this distant, untouchable person is speaking so fondly about someone he clearly loves. He couldn't help but be surprised, but happy for him.
“Yeah. He wants to come to Seido soon. He'll be causing you headaches so get ready.” Miyuki snickered and made his way back outside.
Before he could leave the room, Rei called out to him. “Wait a moment. Sit.” She ordered, gesturing to the chair in front of her.
She waited for him to settle on his seat before speaking.
“How much do you know about protection?” She asked with a glint in her eye.
Kataoka internally sighed. Every time someone comes for a heat leave for the first time, she does this. It was obvious how much she enjoyed the awkwardness and uncomfortable squirming it more often than not results in. Awkwardness from both the student and himself.
He doesn't want to sit through this for long. Trying to end it quickly, he stared down Miyuki to hurry up and leave.
Taking the hint, and also wanting out of the conversation, Miyuki quickly stood back up. “Ah! I need to go back to practice! I'll be-”
“Sit down.”
Miyuki sighed as he sat back down. He wasn't getting out of this it seemed. So in natural Miyuki fashion, he will do his best to make her regret it.
He took a deep breath and sent a mental apology to his coach.
“We already did our research, Rei-chan! Even now, we're being very careful. Ei takes contraceptives daily and I make sure he doesn't forget them. And when we-”
Kataoka closed his eyes and tried to tune out the conversation as Miyuki continued to share a very detailed step by step account of the preventive measures they take.
He wasn't sure if it was the truth or if Miyuki was just making this up as he goes. With Miyuki, it can go both ways. Although, he was pretty sure they were only scenting and cuddling in their nest given their ages.
He was glad that they were very prepared, but seriously, he wished Miyuki didn't go that deep in his explanation. Well, he supposed at least Rei would regret doing her scheme this time.
_____
Kataoka strode through the practice grounds on his way to the field. It was the day that the new first years were being introduced to the rest of the team. Now, this would be a normal annual event, but after seeing a particular application form the night before, he was undoubtedly curious to finally meet a certain Sawamura Eijun as much as it pains him to admit.
Standing in front of the crowd, he took note of the missing spot in the second year group as the first years introduced themselves.
“I’m Ooshima Hiroshi, from Miyagawa Shinia! I hope to play shortstop!”
“Kariba Wataru! Preferred position: catcher!”
“Sawamura Eijun! From Akagi Junior High! I aim to pitch for the team and get us to Koshien!”
The crowd burst with murmurs at the proclamation. Kataoka eyed the pitcher he was looking forward to meeting. The brunette was looking him straight in the eye. It wasn’t lip service at all. He meant everything he said and his eyes told him that he would work hard for it too.
Before he could proceed to the next student, Sawamura spoke again. “Ah! Someone is trying to sneak into the line!”
Kataoka looked in the direction he was pointing and saw the bespectacled catcher getting to his position. “You, go run until practice ends.”
He glanced at Sawamura, noticing how he tried to hide his smirk, then took a look at the catcher currently running around the field who was also sporting a grin.
What a pair they make.
That year, his office hours were once again interrupted by a first year. But this time he was fully prepared for it.
“Boss! We're here to schedule our heat leave!”