Back at Yoyle Mountain...
"So how did you like snowboarding?" Tennis Ball asked as the students all filed into the restaurant-style canteen. They stood to the side and waited to be seated as a waitress went around their group, passing out small paper menus for each of them before leaving.
Golf Ball shrugged, but stretched and rubbed her tummy. "Too much core for me. I'm better at using just my fingers than my entire body, anyway."
Tennis Ball opened his mouth, but before he could speak, Golf Ball beamed up at him and rubbed her arm nervously. "But...I liked it," she said in a somewhat quieter voice. "It was...it was fun."
He smiled back down at her and patted her shoulder. "That's nice. I'm glad."
After a moment of contented silence, they both opened their menus at the same time and started looking through them. They idly glazed over the donut selections, leafed through the pages of salads and vegetable dishes, and skimmed over all the different types of milk before the sound of a throat clearing in front of them got their attention.
"E-excuse me?"
Golf Ball and Tennis Ball looked up to find their snowboard instructor standing to the side of the line, clasping her hands tightly in front of her and shuffling her feet nervously. "Um..." she started, in a tone halfway to whispering, "are you...Tennis Ball?"
"Yeah, that's me," Tennis Ball answered as he glanced at Golf Ball, who merely shrugged. "What's up?"
The girl let out a soft gasp and a few panicked stammers before squeaking softly and covering her mouth with her scarf. "I-I'm sorry," she murmured, just loud enough for him to hear.
Tennis Ball arched an eyebrow and folded his menu closed. "Are you okay?"
"Y-yeah, I'm fine," she replied. "I just...well...I-I'm a—I'm a big...I'm a fan o-of...of your work...that you did for the OSC art contest a couple of months ago. A-and I wanted to meet you and see if I-I could—uh...I mean...I wanted...I thought...I..."
"Whoa, calm down." Tennis Ball gently gripped her shoulders and gave her a reassuring smile. "Take your time, all right? You good?"
"Yeah, I...well, I..."
The girl was far too embarrassed at this point to look at anything other than her boots. Her breathing started to get more rapid and heavy, which was beginning to worry Tennis Ball. "Are you sure you're okay?" he tried one more time. "You don't seem too—"
"PLEASE LET ME BUY YOU DINNER!"
She covered her mouth almost as quickly as she had blurted out the words. The fact that she had said them much louder than expected and the several pairs of concerned eyes that had turned to look at her made her want to bury herself in the snow and die. Her hands flew up to cover her face and she quickly turned away. "Ah, stupid, stupid, stupid..." she whispered to herself. She raised her voice slightly and shook her head as she turned away. "I'm sorry, I'm...ah, sialan, Ski, kau bodoh goblok—I-I'm sorry. Just...forget I ever said anything."
"Wait, hold on!" Tennis Ball reached out and grabbed her shoulder to keep her from walking away. "What's going on? Are you well?"
"I just—I wanted to speak with you about, like, arts or crafts things, because I also like art," she explained in a hurried, humiliated voice. "Or maybe if you wanted to learn more about snowboarding, we could talk about that. Because I—you—I saw—y-you're a...a nice person, and I just...I haven't...it's...oh, just forget it. It's stupid."
"Hey, arts and crafts isn't stupid," Tennis Ball said, refusing to let go of the girl's shoulder even as she tried to walk away.
"No, I know," the girl replied. "That—that's not what I meant. I just...fine." She looked around for a brief moment before leaning closer to Tennis Ball and whispering, "I...okay, look, everyone knows you for woodworking, but I'm personally a huge fan of the drawing that you submitted as well, even though it only got third place. I want to learn from you, okay? Even just a few tips or something."
Tennis Ball seemed surprised for a bit, but he soon gave her a warm smile and shook her shoulder. "You don't have to buy me dinner just for that," he said with a laugh. "Of course! I'll help you out, if I can."
"No, I—I want to buy you dinner," she quickly said. "You...out there, on the hill, you were...y-you were...nice to me."
"On the hill?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. "You mean when you fell?" He chuckled and shook his head. "Well, helping you up was just the right thing to do."
"Yeah, but...since I'm the instructor, when I fall, everyone just assumes that it's either part of it or that I don't know what I'm doing," she explained. "It doesn't help that I'm...probably the youngest instructor, too. I mean, I'm not even full-time."
"Well, nobody's perfect. Everyone needs help once in a while. And, hey, I've known some seven-year-olds who are leaps and bounds smarter than some seventeen-year-olds. Seven, seventeen—it doesn't matter! Age is just a number!"
For the first time since they met in the canteen, the girl looked up at Tennis Ball and smiled. "Yeah...you're right. Age is just a number."
She pointed over to a booth near the corner. At the booth, Snowboard was gazing out the window watching the snow fall. Sitting next to her was someone else who was reading the full-size menu in front of their face. "Snowboard already got us a table," she said, "and we already have some fries. Would you...would you like to come sit with us?"
Tennis Ball was about to nod, but his mind was far too eager to remind him of the source of what some would call his past trauma. He cast a worried glance behind his shoulder, praying that Golf Ball wasn't burning holes in the back of his head with her eyes.
But to his pleasant surprise, she was simply smiling up at him. "Go ahead!" she said in a cheery voice, already aware of his concern. "I don't know what I want yet, anyway. I'll just sit with Puffball and Fries."
He shot her a wary look and raised his eyebrow. "...Really?"
"Tennis Ball, the last time I didn't let you make new friends, we murdered 12 people, incurred several thousands of dollars' worth of property damage, and fought the YEPA in court."
"Ehh..." Tennis Ball gave her an iffy shrug and made the so-so gesture with his hand. "I mean, technically, we didn't kill them ourselves; we were just complicit. I see your point, though, but...are you sure?"
Golf Ball smiled and patted his arm twice before giving him a light push. "I don't want to hold you back anymore, TB. Go have fun."
Tennis Ball gave her a grateful smile before turning back to the girl. "All right, then. Lead the way!"
The girl gestured for him to follow her through the canteen. After around ten to twenty seconds of walking, they arrived at Snowboard's table. Tennis Ball waited for the girl to take the window seat before sliding in next to her. In the middle of the table sat a warm basket of fries.
"Hey, Miss Snowboard," he said with a wave. He gestured to the other person and asked, "Who's this?"
"Pleasure to see you again, Tennis Ball," Snowboard answered before nodding toward the person next to her. "This is one of the skiing students from the group that was after yours. She, uh...seemed to know you. Um, excuse me, miss; what was your name again?"
Tennis Ball flicked his gaze over from Snowboard to the back of the menu that the new girl was reading. The new girl turned to her side to glance at Snowboard before letting out a small giggle. As soon as Tennis Ball heard that familiar laugh and as soon as she lowered her menu to reveal her familiar face, he let out a loud, exasperated groan and planted his face in his palms.
"Nitro," Counterfeit Coin replied. She gave Tennis Ball a mischievous smirk before turning back to Snowboard. "Again, thanks for all your help earlier. I feel like skiing's easy to learn, but it's also pretty hard to master, huh?"
"Agreed," Snowboard said as she reached for a fry and bit into it. "I must admit, though, you are more agile and dexterous than most. It certainly serves you well."
"Oh! Well, thank you very much. Ah, it does feel nice to be complimented...doesn't it, Mr. Popular?"
Tennis Ball sighed heavily, but gave her a tired grin and chuckled. "Nitro...why are you here?"
Counterfeit Coin grinned back before taking a fry and whimsically twirling it in the air. "It's one of life's great mysteries, isn't it?" she asked with a cheeky smirk. "Why are we here? I mean, are we the product of...some cosmic coincidence, or...is there really a Goddess watching everything? You know, with a plan for us and stuff?" She sighed wistfully and gazed out the window. "I don't know, man, but it keeps me up at night."
"You know what I mean!" he laughed.
She shrugged. "What? I can't enjoy skiing and the majesty of Yoyle Mountain on winter break, same as you?"
Snowboard looked back and forth between the two, amused. "Well, it seems you two need no introduction, then. I take it you're good friends?"
"Her? Friends? Seriously?" Tennis Ball scoffed and pointed at Counterfeit Coin. "This annoying little turd? This cocky, clingy brat? This absolute thorn in the side of anyone who even gets near her?"
He glanced at her with a grin, knowing full well that she'd return it. "Well, fence yeah, she saved my life," he said without a moment's hesitation. "I owe her, and she knows it."
"And I'm gonna make sure you know it, Mr. Popular," Counterfeit Coin said with a confident smirk.
"Heh. Yeah, you will. Look, do you want me to pay for your dinner or something?" he asked. "Or have you stolen my wallet off me already?"
Counterfeit Coin gave an exaggerated scoff and pressed her palm to her chest in a pretentious show of mock-offense. "Me? Why, I would never make a man pay for my meal. Have some faith in me, Tennis Ball; I've got more decency than that. I assure you, every single cent I use to pay for my food will always come from my own hands."
Tennis Ball only raised a skeptical eyebrow and held his palm out. After a few seconds, Counterfeit Coin chuckled and tossed his wallet onto the table. "After leaving yours, that is."
Meanwhile, the snowboard instructor softly cleared her throat. When the two of them turned to look at her, she stuttered for a moment before speaking. "U-um...hi. N-Nitro, was it? I see you're...pretty close with Tennis Ball, then."
Nitro looked at her and sized her up with her eyes before letting out a small snicker. "Who's this, Tennis Ball?" she asked. "Guess you just got a girl in every city now, don't you, hotshot?"
"H-huh?!"
Tennis Ball rolled his eyes, however, and shook his head. "Don't worry, she's just messing with you," he told the snowboard instructor before glaring back at Counterfeit Coin. "And me, too, evidently."
"Order for Snowboard?"
Snowboard raised her hand and nodded as a waiter carrying their food approached their table with a tray stand and some trays of hot food. The waiter placed some more appetizers on the center of the table before handing the two instructors their orders. "Have you decided on your entrée yet, miss?" he asked Counterfeit Coin.
She shrugged and nodded toward Tennis Ball. "Nah, I'll just have what he's having."
"Wh—Nitro!" Tennis Ball spluttered. He chuckled awkwardly when the waiter raised an eyebrow and explained, "Well, I was gonna have what she was having, so..."
"Surprise us," they said at the same time.
The waiter's eyes widened for a bit before a small grin started to form on his face. He slipped his notepad back into his pocket and gave them a light bow. "Will do," he said in a somewhat teasing voice before gathering his trays and tray stand and walking off toward the kitchen.
Counterfeit Coin then turned back to the two across the table and asked, "Back to my question, Tennis Ball. Who's this?"
"Oh, yeah, that's right!" Tennis Ball exclaimed. "I haven't introduced you yet. I assume you already know Snowboard, the ski instructor for some of the others, right?"
"Yes, we've gotten acquainted," Snowboard replied as she picked up a couple of fries and ate them. "I must say, these hot chips aren't half bad."
Tennis Ball turned to the snowboard instructor and gestured toward Counterfeit Coin. "As you might have guessed, this is Nitro," he told her.
The instructor tried to put on a smile and extended her hand toward Counterfeit Coin for a handshake, which she accepted. "Nice to meet you, Nitro."
"Same here."
"And Nitro," Tennis Ball said, "this is our snowboard instructor."
Tennis Ball joined Snowboard in eating some of the fries while Counterfeit Coin shook the snowboard instructor's hand again. "Nice meetin' you, too, Miss Snowboard Instructor Lady," Counterfeit Coin said. "Or do you by chance have a shorter name that you prefer to go by?"
"Ah, yes, of course!"
She gave Counterfeit Coin a somewhat timid smile as she subconsciously scooted closer to Tennis Ball. Tennis Ball glanced at her for a moment, surprised, but soon shrugged it off and went back to eating his fries.
"My name's Ski," the snowboard instructor said. "Again, it's been a pleasure meeting you and Tennis Ball."
"Same for you two," Counterfeit Coin replied. "Now, Ski, how's about you and me join the two smart ones here and get eating?" She picked up a fry and grinned. "I, for one, am pretty hungry."
"Of course!" Ski grabbed a few fries herself and smiled back. "Mari kita makan!"