You seem to be okay now, Yuya.”
When I returned to the bench, Shinji patted me on the shoulder and called out to me. The grin on his face felt so irresistible. Or maybe he had noticed me?
“I’m sure there won’t be many chances in the second half, but when the time comes, it will be upto your decision, okay?”
“Aah. I’ll take care of it. I’ll definitely do it!”
“Don’t get too worked up and miss out, okay? Oh, could it be that the flag has been raised?”
Hey, Shinji. Don’t say anything ominous when the second half is just about to begin! But the power Kaede gave me is too strong or so I guess, I should relax my shoulders just enough.
“Yoshizumi… well… good luck! If you lose, you’re dead!”
“Thanks, Nikaido. I’ll make sure I get it right, so just watch me.”
Nikaido nodded her head somewhat reassuringly. Yui-chan followed with a smile and a thumbs up
“Yoshizumi-senpai! With a bang! You’ll have to come back with a bang!”
“Oh! I’m going to get a shot at you!”
I gave her a thumbs-up, too. When I looked at Kaede, she was smiling benevolently and just nodding quietly. I believe in you, I thought I heard her heart say that.
“I’m about to go, Yuya. Let’s do our best.”
“Aah! This game, ah!”
I fist bumped with my partner and stood on the ground again. There was no smile on Sugiya-senpai’s face, his mouth was closed as a straight line, and he looked far more serious than you would expect from a well-behaved captain. Please show me this kind of spirit in our regular matches too.
“Yoshizumi… you… you’re the only one… you’re the only one I’ll never forgive!”
“Sugiya-senpai? What’s the matter?”
“What’s wrong with you!? It’s all your fault! You made out with Hitotsuba-san during halftime!! I want to get my head nuzzled by her too!”
No, Sugiya-senpai. You don’t have a girlfriend, do you? I mean, how did you witness Kaede patting my head at the water fountain? That location is at the end of the ground, so I thought no one would mind.
“Of course I’d notice! Hitotsuba-san was chasing after you with a towel!? Then, all of a sudden, you both created a strawberry space… Damn it! I’ll never forgive you!”
Even though the game was about to resume, Sugiya-senpaii was already stomping his feet in frustration. Shinji, as expected, looked disappointed. I’m sure that was just a look of disgust thrown at Sugiya-senpai for saying something stupid? It was not about me, was it?
“I’m gonna have to make this right!”
Sugiya-senpai arrived at his position with a grudging smile on his face. Whether we cry or laugh, these 30 minutes would decide everything.
Piiiiiiiiiiii ——
Kick off with the opponent’s ball. We will win!
*****
Ten minutes left in the second half. The score was 1 to 2, and our class was losing. Yuya-kun was desperately running on the ground, but he was too busy defending to attack.
“Kaede-neesan, hey… This is probably not a good idea, right? If we don’t do something, we’re going to lose!?”
Yui-chan grabbed my hem with a worried look on her face. I know how you feel. Yuya-kun and his team had been overwhelmingly strong until this final match. I think that was why they couldn’t believe that Yuya-kun, who was going to play so well in this game and was about to win so easily, struggled so much.
“Yui-chan, this is not the time to give up! Let’s support them until the end!”
“That’s right, Yui-chan. I know how you feel, but we who are supporting them shouldn’t look so down. Yoshizumi, Higurashi, none of us are giving up.”
“Shin and Yoshi can pull off a miraculous comeback from here!”
Ai-chan bit her lip and Akiho forced a smile to encourage Yui-chan. But I’m sure those words were also meant to inspire me when I felt like I was failing.
“But I’m pretty sure it’s actually quite painful. First of all, it’s tough to keep the ball with them. The opponents have been thoroughly marking Higure and Yoshizumi to make sure they don’t get a pass. On the other hand, our team can’t attack properly without those two… As expected of the captain of the soccer team, even if his personality is rotten.”
As Ai-chan said with a tongue lashing, the passes to Yuya and Higure were completely blocked. This was the main reason why they were struggling. However, even if they received the ball near their own teammate, that teammate was quickly surrounded and robbed before reaching to Yuya-kun and others. Thus they became a prey to the opponent’s counter. With this —
“We’re running out of steam… What should we do, Kaede-neesan! If this continues, Yoshizumi-senpai and the others will lose!? I don’t want to see them lose… I don’t want to see them lose”
“Yui-chan”
I rubbed Yui-chan’s back as she hugged me with tears rolling down her face. As this was a game, there were bound to be winners and losers. And even if one worked hard every day to win, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they would be rewarded. But—-
“It’s okay. I’m sure Yuya-kun will be fine. Yuya-kun is a person who has a stronger heart than anyone else, who never gives up. He won’t stop until the whistle blows to end the game. The person I love is not that weak!”
I stared at the ground with blurred vision. I won’t shed a tear until the game was over. Until then, I would cheer desperately!
“Good luck, Yuya-kun! Hang in there!!”
Cheers filled with prayers echoed through the ground. He exhaled loudly and then looked up at the sky. There was a smile on his mouth. Aah, I knew it. The person I loved hadn’t given up yet.
From this point until the final whistle, Yuya-kun was never on his own.
You seem to be okay now, Yuya.”
When I returned to the bench, Shinji patted me on the shoulder and called out to me. The grin on his face felt so irresistible. Or maybe he had noticed me?
“I’m sure there won’t be many chances in the second half, but when the time comes, it will be upto your decision, okay?”
“Aah. I’ll take care of it. I’ll definitely do it!”
“Don’t get too worked up and miss out, okay? Oh, could it be that the flag has been raised?”
Hey, Shinji. Don’t say anything ominous when the second half is just about to begin! But the power Kaede gave me is too strong or so I guess, I should relax my shoulders just enough.
“Yoshizumi… well… good luck! If you lose, you’re dead!”
“Thanks, Nikaido. I’ll make sure I get it right, so just watch me.”
Nikaido nodded her head somewhat reassuringly. Yui-chan followed with a smile and a thumbs up
“Yoshizumi-senpai! With a bang! You’ll have to come back with a bang!”
“Oh! I’m going to get a shot at you!”
I gave her a thumbs-up, too. When I looked at Kaede, she was smiling benevolently and just nodding quietly. I believe in you, I thought I heard her heart say that.
“I’m about to go, Yuya. Let’s do our best.”
“Aah! This game, ah!”
I fist bumped with my partner and stood on the ground again. There was no smile on Sugiya-senpai’s face, his mouth was closed as a straight line, and he looked far more serious than you would expect from a well-behaved captain. Please show me this kind of spirit in our regular matches too.
“Yoshizumi… you… you’re the only one… you’re the only one I’ll never forgive!”
“Sugiya-senpai? What’s the matter?”
“What’s wrong with you!? It’s all your fault! You made out with Hitotsuba-san during halftime!! I want to get my head nuzzled by her too!”
No, Sugiya-senpai. You don’t have a girlfriend, do you? I mean, how did you witness Kaede patting my head at the water fountain? That location is at the end of the ground, so I thought no one would mind.
“Of course I’d notice! Hitotsuba-san was chasing after you with a towel!? Then, all of a sudden, you both created a strawberry space… Damn it! I’ll never forgive you!”
Even though the game was about to resume, Sugiya-senpaii was already stomping his feet in frustration. Shinji, as expected, looked disappointed. I’m sure that was just a look of disgust thrown at Sugiya-senpai for saying something stupid? It was not about me, was it?
“I’m gonna have to make this right!”
Sugiya-senpai arrived at his position with a grudging smile on his face. Whether we cry or laugh, these 30 minutes would decide everything.
Piiiiiiiiiiii ——
Kick off with the opponent’s ball. We will win!
*****
Ten minutes left in the second half. The score was 1 to 2, and our class was losing. Yuya-kun was desperately running on the ground, but he was too busy defending to attack.
“Kaede-neesan, hey… This is probably not a good idea, right? If we don’t do something, we’re going to lose!?”
Yui-chan grabbed my hem with a worried look on her face. I know how you feel. Yuya-kun and his team had been overwhelmingly strong until this final match. I think that was why they couldn’t believe that Yuya-kun, who was going to play so well in this game and was about to win so easily, struggled so much.
“Yui-chan, this is not the time to give up! Let’s support them until the end!”
“That’s right, Yui-chan. I know how you feel, but we who are supporting them shouldn’t look so down. Yoshizumi, Higurashi, none of us are giving up.”
“Shin and Yoshi can pull off a miraculous comeback from here!”
Ai-chan bit her lip and Akiho forced a smile to encourage Yui-chan. But I’m sure those words were also meant to inspire me when I felt like I was failing.
“But I’m pretty sure it’s actually quite painful. First of all, it’s tough to keep the ball with them. The opponents have been thoroughly marking Higure and Yoshizumi to make sure they don’t get a pass. On the other hand, our team can’t attack properly without those two… As expected of the captain of the soccer team, even if his personality is rotten.”
As Ai-chan said with a tongue lashing, the passes to Yuya and Higure were completely blocked. This was the main reason why they were struggling. However, even if they received the ball near their own teammate, that teammate was quickly surrounded and robbed before reaching to Yuya-kun and others. Thus they became a prey to the opponent’s counter. With this —
“We’re running out of steam… What should we do, Kaede-neesan! If this continues, Yoshizumi-senpai and the others will lose!? I don’t want to see them lose… I don’t want to see them lose”
“Yui-chan”
I rubbed Yui-chan’s back as she hugged me with tears rolling down her face. As this was a game, there were bound to be winners and losers. And even if one worked hard every day to win, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they would be rewarded. But—-
“It’s okay. I’m sure Yuya-kun will be fine. Yuya-kun is a person who has a stronger heart than anyone else, who never gives up. He won’t stop until the whistle blows to end the game. The person I love is not that weak!”
I stared at the ground with blurred vision. I won’t shed a tear until the game was over. Until then, I would cheer desperately!
“Good luck, Yuya-kun! Hang in there!!”
Cheers filled with prayers echoed through the ground. He exhaled loudly and then looked up at the sky. There was a smile on his mouth. Aah, I knew it. The person I loved hadn’t given up yet.
From this point until the final whistle, Yuya-kun was never on his own.
