His eyes flicked to her setup, and he hesitated slightly before placing his piece, his playing becoming a little more defensive. "Yup. It always falls apart at the end for me." Kota looked up at her. "And have a little more confidence!"

He sat back, taking a more conservative drink of water. "I guess it was. She was using me as a distraction, but I didn't realize that back then. She'd make up stories about what was going on... it was fun." He laughed. "Like I said, I never really paid much attention to the game."