Yes, yes, no, yes.Getting sick of this relay thing now, hope it ends soon. It's just so silly how they take this high school sport event so seriously, and the "I can only confess if I win this thing" trope is so outplayed. Anyway, thanks for the chapter!
The chance of your comment actually happened is terrifyingly highThe author could so something very funny here - have him drop the baton and interpret that as not being ready yet for a relationship with her and thus the author can now spend another 50+ chapters repairing that insecurity))
It would kind of track with their approach to this manga thus far.