Work Text:
It was an ordinary evening.
Miyuki and Sawamura were discussing pitch-calling strategy for the next day's game as they walked back to the dorms from the team training facility, just like always.
They split up at the mailboxes downstairs. One bent down to unlock one of the little boxes along the very bottom row, while the other rose onto his toes to open a box at the very top of another column.
Miyuki adjusted his glasses and crouched down on the spot, using the light overhead to sort through the stack he'd just taken out.
Flyers, bills, statements, magazines...
A blurry dark shape appeared over the cover of the latest issue of Baseball Kingdom.
Closer.
Closer.
“Ta-da! Miyuki-senpai, guess what this is!”
A ridiculously colorful envelope suddenly whooshed into his field of vision.
Miyuki squinted at the decorative script, then uncertainly shifted his gaze toward the standard print in the corner logo.
“Uh... a convention?”
“Yep! I begged my agent to apply for me ages ago, and I finally got approved!”
Sawamura hummed happily as he turned the envelope over and over in his hands like a treasure.
“This'll be my first time attending a convention as a guest. Heh heh.”
“What's inside the envelope?” Miyuki stood up, curiosity getting the better of him too.
And that was how Sawamura ended up dragging him back to his dorm room.
Miyuki came and went from this room all the time, but “to see what's inside a convention envelope” was definitely a first.
The pink-and-yellow envelope sat proudly in the center of the table.
Miyuki took a seat on one side and watched at his leisure as Sawamura pulled a fairly large metal box from the bookcase.
Sawamura carefully set it down beside the envelope, then turned and started rummaging around near the entryway.
“Sawamura—what are you looking for?”
“I should have a letter opener specifically for opening envelopes, right? Where did I put it...?”
“Huh? You mean you haven't been using a letter opener before now?”
“If I can tear them open by hand, why would I go looking for a knife every time?! Wait, don't distract me!”
“Really?” Miyuki propped his chin on one hand, thinking. “That letter opener you're talking about—doesn't it have a wooden handle with gold trim?”
“I think... so? Miyuki-senpai, do you know where it is?!”
“Didn't you put it together with the fountain pen I gave you? Third drawer of the dresser?”
Sawamura guiltily shuffled over to the dresser and started searching as quietly as possible.
In the end, he couldn't hold back.
“How do you know so much about my stuff?”
“Secret~ But hey, if you were jealous of my autograph and went out of your way to get the same pen, you should actually practice your handwriting, Sawamura-kun~”
“Ah! Found the letter opener!”
Sawamura trotted back and sat down across from Miyuki. He took a deep breath, then carefully slit the envelope open along the seal.
Inside were:
A stylish guest badge that read:
SPECIAL GUEST: PROFESSIONAL BASEBALL PLAYER SAWAMURA EIJUN
Two holographic admission tickets.
And a folded invitation letter.
Sawamura immediately hung the badge around his neck, pinched the nameplate between his fingers, and broke into a goofy grin.
“They even embossed my name!”
Miyuki picked up the invitation and skimmed through it.
Apparently, Sawamura had been invited to appear on the main hall stage for an author-and-reader talk event.
The author's name looked strangely familiar.
Oh.
It was the exact same name printed across the spines of several shoujo manga series Sawamura owned.
“Miyuki-senpai, wanna come too?”
Sawamura held one of the holographic tickets right in front of his face.
“The organizers gave me two extra tickets!”
The gaudy ticket shifted colors under the light.
Miyuki tilted it away from the glare, barely managed to catch the date and session, and said, “Sure. But why me?”
“Because you're off that day, aren't you? You're the closest, so you get first dibs.”
And just like that, the domineering pitcher made the decision for him.
Sawamura put the invitation, guest badge, and one ticket back into the envelope, then carefully opened the box labeled SAWAMURA EIJUN'S TREASURE BOX and solemnly placed the envelope inside.
“Then I'm taking this ticket?”
“Mm-hm!”
“What are you going to do with the other one?”
“Haven't decided yet...”
“Oh. Well, I'm heading out. Don't forget to go over the scouting notes again later. And don't get so excited you start throwing wild pitches tomorrow~”
“Don't curse me! You damn four-eyes! You're no longer welcome here! Goodbye and don't come back! Hmph!”
————
The next time Miyuki heard anything about the convention was a week later, through a private message from Sawamura.
[Sawamura Eijun: Miyuki-senpai!]
[Sawamura Eijun: I have run into an extremely extremely extremely difficult problem and require your assistance!]
Miyuki had just gotten out of the shower when the messages popped up on his lock screen.
He raised an eyebrow, put on his glasses, and opened the full conversation.
[Sawamura Eijun: Ah, this is too complicated to explain in DMs. Just join the group and read it yourself!]
[You have been invited by Sawamura Eijun to join the group chat: Anyone Who Wants the Convention Ticket, Join Here! (Seidou Only!)]
What kind of group name is that?
Miyuki rubbed his hair dry with one hand while struggling to operate his phone with the other. After several mis-taps, he finally managed to open the group chat, which was already sitting at 99+ unread messages.
The most eye-catching thing was the pinned message at the top.
[Sawamura Eijun: @everyone You all make really good points... I honestly have no idea who I should give the ticket to... so I've invited Miyuki Kazuya to decide!]
[Miyuki Kazuya was invited to the group chat by Sawamura Eijun.]
[Sawamura Eijun transferred group ownership to Miyuki Kazuya.]
[Kuramochi Youichi: ?]
[Toujou Hideaki: Good evening, Miyuki-senpai.]
[Kominato Haruichi: Good evening, Miyuki-senpai.]
[Kominato Haruichi: You can scroll back through the earlier messages.]
[Kuramochi Youichi: ? Wait, no. Why does he get to decide?]
[Kuramochi Youichi: @Sawamura Eijun Explain yourself.]
[Furuya Satoru: Good evening, Miyuki-senpai.]
Exactly.
Why am I the one deciding?
Miyuki frowned slightly, walked over to his desk, sat down, and solemnly began scrolling upward.
He hadn't even finished drying his hair.
Twenty minutes later, the ends were no longer dripping, and Miyuki had finally gotten the general idea of what had happened.
Basically, Sawamura had mentioned in the Seidou alumni group that he had one extra convention ticket and asked if anyone wanted it.
Then the alumni chat exploded.
Too many people said they wanted to go, but everyone had to consider scheduling, travel, and other practical issues, so Sawamura had created a separate group called Anyone Who Wants the Convention Ticket, Join Here!
What happened after all the contenders joined, however, was much harder to summarize.
After skimming through several hundred messages, Miyuki realized he'd been invited at a very delicate point in the proceedings.
His head was already starting to ache.
How did a group with only five people manage to produce four completely distinct phases of communication?
————
Phase One: Friendly Negotiations
[Kuramochi Youichi: Looks like it's just the four of us.]
[Kuramochi Youichi: Let's start by saying why each of us wants to go.]
[Kuramochi Youichi: I want to try the new game they're demoing there. The developer already opened reservations for convention play sessions.]
[Kominato Haruichi: What a coincidence. Me too.]
[Kominato Haruichi: Also, my brother wants me to pick up merch for another game character. It's a convention-exclusive item.]
[Toujou Hideaki: My reason is a little different from yours. I want to see my favorite idol perform live. I've never had the chance before.]
[Kuramochi Youichi: @Furuya Satoru]
[Furuya Satoru: I want the polar bear shikishi.]
[Kominato Haruichi: What polar bear shikishi?]
[Furuya Satoru: They said you can get a polar bear shikishi at the convention.]
————
Phase Two: Open Warfare
[Kuramochi Youichi: @Kominato Haruichi The merch Ryou-san wants is really popular. You'll probably be stuck in line for most of the day.]
[Kominato Haruichi: You seem awfully familiar with it, You-san. I don't remember you playing that game?]
[Kominato Haruichi: Also, isn't the new-game demo you mentioned only five minutes long? Taking precious paid leave for five minutes seems a little extravagant...]
[Kuramochi Youichi: Aren't you planning to try the demo too?]
[Kominato Haruichi: I'm fine just watching the new mechanics from the side. I don't absolutely need to play it myself.]
[Kominato Haruichi: Toujou-kun, I remember you've posted quite a lot about following idols on Instagram.]
[Kominato Haruichi: Is it the same idol who's appearing at this convention?]
[Toujou Hideaki: ...Yes...]
[Kuramochi Youichi: You've also posted autographed photos and handshake-event souvenirs.]
[Kuramochi Youichi: I'm starting to question the real intention behind what you said earlier.]
(Quoted: [Toujou Hideaki: My reason is a little different from yours. I want to see my favorite idol perform live. I've never had the chance before.])
[Toujou Hideaki: An autographed photo and a handshake event are completely different! The version of her onstage and the version of her interacting with fans can't be treated as the same thing!]
[Toujou Hideaki: Do you know how much floor tickets to one of her shows cost?! XXXX!]
[Kuramochi Youichi: Jeez, that much?]
[Toujou Hideaki: But if I get this convention ticket and arrive early enough, I can sit in the very front row for free!]
[Toujou Hideaki: Please give me the ticket! I really, really want it...]
[Kominato Haruichi: @Furuya Satoru]
[Furuya Satoru: I want the polar bear shikishi.]
[Kuramochi Youichi: Furuya, can you say anything else?]
[Furuya Satoru: I only want the polar bear shikishi.]
————
Phase Three: Coalition Building
[Toujou Hideaki: @Furuya Satoru I can line up for the polar bear shikishi for you. How about you let me have the ticket?]
[Furuya Satoru: Okay.]
[Toujou Hideaki: What series is it from? Let me see if I can reserve it online.]
[Furuya Satoru: (link to an extremely popular four-panel comic featuring anthropomorphic animals)]
[Kominato Haruichi: Ah, so that's the polar bear.]
[Kominato Haruichi: That series is really popular. Toujou-kun, are you sure you want to line up for it?]
[Toujou Hideaki: My idol's performance is at eleven in the morning. I'll line up for the polar bear shikishi afterward.]
[Toujou Hideaki: If they're out, can I substitute a different character? @Furuya Satoru]
[Furuya Satoru: Arctic hare is okay too.]
[Furuya Satoru: I want the polar bear shikishi and the Arctic hare shikishi.]
[Toujou Hideaki: Okay.]
[Kuramochi Youichi: @Kominato Haruichi If I record the game demo for you and then go buy Ryou-san's merch, will you give me the ticket?]
[Kominato Haruichi: My brother also wants merch for XX, XXX, and XX.]
[Kuramochi Youichi: ...Fine.]
[Kominato Haruichi: Deal.]
————
Phase Four: Pressure Sawamura Into Choosing
[Kuramochi Youichi: @Sawamura Eijun Group owner decides. Pick between me and Toujou.]
[Sawamura Eijun: ...]
[Kuramochi Youichi: What's the ellipsis supposed to mean?]
[Sawamura Eijun: Cheetah-sama and Harucchi's plan is so thorough! I really want to try that game too!]
[Kominato Haruichi: Oh?]
[Sawamura Eijun: But! Toujou's dedication to his idol is extremely admirable! And I also really like the Shiba Inu in (anthropomorphic animal four-panel comic)! I want a Shiba Inu shikishi!]
[Toujou Hideaki: If you give me the ticket, I'll line up for the Shiba Inu shikishi too!]
[Sawamura Eijun: Waaaah—Toujou! Thank you!]
[Kuramochi Youichi: Hey, hey.]
[Kuramochi Youichi: We have Ryou-san on our side.]
[Sawamura Eijun: ...]
[Kuramochi Youichi: Decide already!]
[Kominato Haruichi: Eijun-kun, make sure you think very, very carefully before deciding.]
[Sawamura Eijun: ...]
[Toujou Hideaki: Shiba Inu shikishi Shiba Inu shikishi Shiba Inu shikishi.]
[Sawamura Eijun: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH]
————
On one side, the middle-infield duo.
On the other, the pitchers and their dependable center fielder.
Why did they have to dump this impossible problem on the catcher?
Unfortunately, Miyuki no longer had the luxury of hesitation.
Kuramochi Youichi had just sent more than a dozen consecutive @Miyuki Kazuya and @Sawamura Eijun tags.
Someone had to step up.
[Miyuki Kazuya: Roll dice.]
[Miyuki Kazuya: Use the built-in one. Highest roll gets the ticket.]
[(Private Message) Sawamura Eijun: As expected of Miyuki-senpai! What a brilliant idea!]
[Miyuki Kazuya: If anyone ties, those people roll again. That's it.]
[Miyuki Kazuya: Completely fair.]
[Sawamura Eijun: Right! Everyone roll!]
[Kuramochi Youichi: ...]
[Toujou Hideaki: (rolled 4)]
[Kominato Haruichi: (rolled 4)]
[Furuya Satoru: (rolled 2)]
[Kuramochi Youichi: Whatever.]
[Kuramochi Youichi: (rolled 5)]
[Kuramochi Youichi: !]
[Kominato Haruichi: Congratulations, You-san. Don't forget what you promised me and my brother.]
[Sawamura Eijun: It was Cheetah-sama after all!]
[Kuramochi Youichi: Yeah, yeah...]
(Quoted: [Kominato Haruichi: Congratulations, You-san. Don't forget what you promised me and my brother.])
Phew—
Looks like that settled it.
Miyuki turned off his phone and ran a hand through his half-dry hair.
He abandoned his original plan to blow-dry it and instead opened the digital scorebook on his tablet, settling down to read through it carefully.
Unfortunately, he hadn't even made it ten minutes before his phone started vibrating nonstop again.
Miyuki pinched the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes as he let out a slow breath.
Then he unlocked the screen.
Sure enough, the group had gained several dozen new messages.
[Kominato Ryousuke was invited to the group chat by Kominato Haruichi.]
[Kominato Ryousuke: @Sawamura Eijun Say in the group what you just told me on the phone.]
[Sawamura Eijun: Ugh...]
[Toujou Hideaki: What happened?]
[Kominato Ryousuke: @Sawamura Eijun]
[Sawamura Eijun: I actually had two tickets and I already gave one to Miyuki Kazuya]
[Kuramochi Youichi: ?]
[Kuramochi Youichi: Oh. So that's what happened.]
[Toujou Hideaki: Ah.]
[Kominato Ryousuke: @Sawamura Eijun Why did you give Miyuki a ticket?]
[Sawamura Eijun: ...Uh, the reason...]
[Kominato Ryousuke: Never mind. I won't make this difficult for you.]
[Kominato Ryousuke: @Miyuki Kazuya Why did you accept the ticket?]
[Kominato Ryousuke: Or rather, what exactly do you want to do at the convention?]
Ouch.
Miyuki had never actually thought that deeply about it.
Compared with Kuramochi and the others, all of whom had perfectly reasonable, concrete motivations, Miyuki really didn't have any comparable hobbies in his everyday life.
He didn't play games.
He didn't follow idols.
The few manga he owned had mostly been forced on him by Sawamura, and he couldn't get into shoujo manga at all.
Even the complete collector's edition of a famous battle shounen series Sawamura had once given him had only been unwrapped and placed in the most visible spot on his bookshelf.
He had never opened a single volume.
[Kominato Ryousuke: @Miyuki Kazuya If you can't give us a reason, then you roll too.]
The new message appeared at the very bottom of the screen.
Miyuki tapped the display on reflex.
[Kominato Ryousuke: @Miyuki Kazuya I can see you've read it. The ticket should go to someone who needs it more, don't you think?]
[Kominato Ryousuke: Rolling dice is fair, after all.]
Well, he'd been backed into a corner now.
Miyuki gritted his teeth and tapped the app's built-in dice sticker.
[Miyuki Kazuya: (rolled 1)]
[Kuramochi Youichi: Pfft.]
[Kuramochi Youichi: All these years and your luck still hasn't improved at all? Hahahahahahaha.]
[Miyuki Kazuya: ...]
[(Private Message) Sawamura Eijun: Miyuki-senpai, don't roll dice next time...]
[Kominato Ryousuke: Then Haruichi and Toujou, who tied for second, will roll again. Whoever gets the higher number gets the second ticket.]
[Kominato Haruichi: I withdraw. Toujou-kun can have the ticket.]
[Toujou Hideaki: ! Thank you! Thank you, Kominato-senpai! Thank you, Miyuki-senpai!]
[Toujou Hideaki: @Furuya Satoru I'll line up for the polar bear shikishi and Arctic hare shikishi for you; @Sawamura Eijun I'll line up for the Shiba Inu shikishi for you.]
[Furuya Satoru: Okay.]
[Furuya Satoru: ! Thank you! Thank you, Kominato-senpai! Thank you, Miyuki-senpai!] (message recalled)
[Furuya Satoru: Thank you! Thank you, Kominato-senpai! Thank you, Miyuki-senpai!]
[Sawamura Eijun: THANK YOU TOUJOU!!! I'll mail the ticket to you first thing tomorrow morning!]
[Toujou Hideaki: ok! I'll DM you my address.]
[Kuramochi Youichi: @Miyuki Kazuya You know my address. Mail me the ticket ASAP.]
[Kuramochi Youichi: @Miyuki Kazuya]
[Kuramochi Youichi: ...]
[Kuramochi Youichi: @Sawamura Eijun When you go out tomorrow, remind him to mail the ticket.]
[Kuramochi Youichi: @Sawamura Eijun]
[Miyuki Kazuya: Got it.]
————
Once the tickets were mailed out, that should have been the end of the matter.
Instead, convention-related things seemed to invade Miyuki's everyday life overnight.
On the way to team training with Sawamura, a few high school girls excitedly discussed which characters they were planning to cosplay.
A huge convention advertisement appeared beside the supermarket Miyuki visited regularly.
Even the news and shopping apps he used—and the ones he barely ever opened—started pushing convention-related content at him the moment he launched them.
Well, if it kept showing up anyway...
Might as well take a look.
Another night, freshly out of the shower, Miyuki sat down solemnly at his computer and typed the convention's official website into the address bar one character at a time.
The seven-day event schedule was displayed prominently across the page.
Miyuki spotted Sawamura Eijun's name immediately.
He checked Sawamura's appearance time and location three separate times, then hunted through a mess of decorative fonts until he found the venue map and started searching through the enlarged sections one by one.
Right on cue, a ticket-purchase link popped up in the sidebar.
Miyuki smoothly selected admission for the day of Sawamura's appearance, entered his contact information, and clicked Purchase.
[Second ticket release sold out. Please watch for announcements regarding future releases.]
...?
Why am I even looking this up?
Miyuki shook his head, closed the website, opened the folder containing his latest game footage, and pressed play.
“With runners at first and third, the score tied 0-0, how will the Miyuki-Sawamura battery handle this final out?”
...
“It's a perfect changeup from Sawamura Eijun! Strike three!”
“But Miyuki's pitch calling was aggressive too. Those two inside pitches beforehand were only half a ball apart...”
Miyuki hit pause.
The frame froze on the instant the pitcher's glove bumped against the catcher's mitt.
He picked up his phone and hesitantly opened a secondhand marketplace app he hadn't used in ages.
[Search: XX Convention XX/XX Session Ticket]
[No results found.]
[Are you sure you want to exit the app? Confirm / Cancel]
The screen switched to social media.
Miyuki tapped the search bar in the upper right corner yet again.
[Search: XX Convention XX/XX Session Ticket]
[Best Ticket Sniper posted: Ten years of trusted service! Full refund if we fail! Inquiries welcome~]
[Forever Loyal to Lord XXX: Can you say roughly what the price range is?]
[Original Poster: Never above face value. Prices vary by session. DM for details~]
Not above face value?
If it were exactly face value, then getting one through them would actually be a pretty good deal...
No.
Why am I even thinking about this?!
Miyuki shut off his phone.
He no longer had the concentration to continue reviewing the game, so he turned out the light and went straight to bed.
One hour later.
He took off his sleep mask, unlocked his phone in the darkness, opened social media, and saved Best Ticket Sniper's username into his notes.
Only then did he put the sleep mask back on, roll over, and fall asleep.
————
A week later, Miyuki and Sawamura walked back to the dorms from the team training facility, just like always.
They collected their mail from the boxes downstairs, climbed the stairs together, then split up at the landing.
Miyuki was pushing open his door when he felt his phone vibrate.
[Anyone Who Wants the Convention Ticket, Join Here! (Seidou Only!) — 1 new message]
[Sawamura Eijun: @Miyuki Kazuya Group owner, @everyone for me!]
[Kuramochi Youichi: Just say it.]
[Kuramochi Youichi: Is it convention-related?]
[Sawamura Eijun: As expected of Cheetah-sama!]
For a moment, Miyuki even forgot to take off his shoes.
Still wearing his baseball bag over one shoulder, he leaned against the doorway and called Sawamura.
“Beep... beep...”
“Hello? Miyuki-senpai? Perfect timing! Hurry up and @everyone in the group. I have an important announcement to make!”
“...What announcement?”
“I just got notified that the staff said I can bring one assis—”
“I'll go.”
“Huh?”
“Ah...” Miyuki let out a quiet breath. “It's one extra spot for the convention, right? I want it.”
“Yeah... but when I gave you the ticket before, you didn't seem this excited?”
“I wasn't at first.”
Miyuki's shoulders relaxed.
He set his baseball bag on the floor, tipped his head back, and continued.
“But I've tried buying tickets on the official website twice.”
“I've searched secondhand platforms more than ten times.”
“I even hired ticket-buying services. Two different ones. Both failed.”
“Pfft.”
“What are you laughing at?”
“You really want to come, don't you, Miyuki-senpai?”
Miyuki paused.
Then, quietly:
“Yeah. I do.”
“...Then I'll hire Miyuki-senpai as my assistant for the day!”
————
[Kuramochi Youichi: @Sawamura Eijun It's been ten minutes. Are you going to tell us or not?]
[Sawamura Eijun: Uh. Um. I don't think I need @everyone anymore.]
[Kuramochi Youichi: ?]
[Sawamura Eijun: Hmm... I will be appearing on the main hall stage at two in the afternoon. Everyone is welcome to come support me!]
[Kuramochi Youichi: I have shopping to do. No time.]
[Toujou Hideaki: If I'm done buying the shikishi by then, I'll come.]
[Sawamura Eijun: Welcome, Toujou!]
————
The day of the convention.
[Kominato Ryousuke: (link to a fan photo of a fully disguised Miyuki following Sawamura around)]
[Kominato Ryousuke: @Miyuki Kazuya Care to explain?]
[Kominato Ryousuke: What exactly is your relationship, and how did you get into the convention?]
[Kominato Ryousuke: @Kominato Haruichi @Furuya Satoru @Sawamura Eijun]
[Kominato Haruichi: Miyuki-senpai, how could you.]
[Furuya Satoru: ?]
[Kuramochi Youichi: Knew it.]
[Kominato Ryousuke: Knew what?]
(Quoted: [Kuramochi Youichi: Knew it.])
[Kuramochi Youichi: I'll DM you.]
(Five minutes later)
[Kominato Ryousuke: I see.]
(One hour later)
[Miyuki Kazuya: I'm his assistant.]
(Quoted: [Kominato Ryousuke: What exactly is your relationship, and how did you get into the convention?])
[The group chat “Anyone Who Wants the Convention Ticket, Join Here! (Seidou Only!)” has been disbanded by group owner Miyuki Kazuya.]