Part- 407:
As the student turned back to his versation, Tahera defted again. “This is harder than I thought. I mean, how many tall students there be who aren’t already booked?”
Kiyoshi rubbed his temples, trying to stay optimistic. “Maybe… we’re just looking in the wrong pces?” He poioward the gym, where several students were gathered around a different club’s recruitment stand.
They trooped over to the gym, determio find at least one person ied in basketball. he gym entrahey saw a guy who looked like he had the height advahey were seeking. He was watg a group of students py an informal game of dodgeball, his gaze intense and calg.
Tahera tapped him on the shoulder, hoping her charm would win him over. “Hey! We’re looking for new pyers for the basketball team. You look like you’d be a great fit!”
The student turned around, looking down at them with a bnk expression. After a pause, he shook his head. "Nah, I’m just here to scope out dodgeball,” he said gruffly. “Not my thing to py basketball.”
He walked off, leaving Kiyoshi and Tahera staring after him in disbelief. Tahera’s face dropped, and she let out a small groan. “Dodgeball? Really? We’re losing tall people to dodgeball now?”
Kiyoshi patted her shoulder, giving her a sympathetic smile. "Look, we’ll find someone. I mean, basketball’s gotta have more appeal than dodgeball, right?"
They spent the hour scouting, their optimism fading with each reje. It seemed like every tall student they approached was either ued, already itted to another sport, or had no i in athletics whatsoever. By the time they had circled the entire campus twice, Kiyoshi and Tahera were ready to throw iowel.
They slumped back to their recruitment table, heads hanging. The thought of an underwhelming season without enough pyers weighed heavily on both of them.
Just as they were about to give up entirely, Kiyoshi spotted a familiar fa the distance. A tall, well-built student was walking across the field, hands in his pockets and a slightly absent-minded expression on his face. It was James, the new css topper who had just surprised everyoh his ret academic success.
Kiyoshi’s eyes lit up with a glimmer of hope. “Hey! Isn’t that James? He’s pretty tall… and he looks like he’d have some athletic potential.”
Tahera perked up, reizing the name. “Oh, James! I heard about him – everyone’s been talking about how he got the top spot in css. But do you think he’s into sports? I mean, he doesn’t look like he’s in any clubs.”
Kiyoshi shrugged. “He is in Judo club, also he was man of the tourhis year's national. But doesn’t hurt to try, right? Besides, if he’s as determined with basketball as he is with academics, he might be exactly what we need.”
With renewed energy, they marched toward James, who seemed lost in thought. As they approached, he gnced up, notig them with a look of mild surprise.
“Hey, James!” Kiyoshi called, waving. “Got a minute?”-----
In James POV:
