Chapter 22 : Reaction from All the Parties
Each person's eyes were fixated on Kataoka-sensei who stood in front of them. His voice had barely carried across the room as he just revealed the two names who had made it to the first team. The names were now etched into the minds of every player, a moment that would forever be etched into the annals of those two's baseball careers.
Haruichi who had no great attachment to the senpai in the second team except for Fumiya accepted the promotion gracefully, no hint of emotion could be seen on his face. However, the same couldn't be said for Sawamura. The pitcher froze on the spot, his head turned around immediately to search the whereabouts of one person. In his mind, there was one question that needed to be asked.
'What about Chris-senpai?'
Horror flashes as Sawamura realizes it was he who was chosen, not Chris. His heart sank when he saw Chris's lonely back from behind as the shoulder slumped on the catcher's body, losing all of its strength after hours of waiting nervously for this announcement. He couldn't see Chris's expression from behind, yet that lonely back was enough to destroy his heart.
"These two players will be added to the 20 names playing in the summer." Kataoka-sensei continued his announcement, ignoring the somber atmosphere and the sobs that could be heard here and there. "They will be practicing for it starting tomorrow. You can all go for today. The third-year students who weren't chosen, stay behind."
One by one, the crowd slowly dissipated. The bittersweet taste of disappointment lingered on the tongues of those who had been left behind. They knew that the road to the first team would not be an easy one, and that the sting of rejection would only fuel their determination for the incoming year. But for now, they allowed themselves to feel the sadness, to grieve the loss of this milestone, and to find solace in the unwavering support of his friends.
Unfortunately, the same couldn't be said for the third-year students. This was their last chance to play for Seidou. Not being chosen here was definitely the death sentence to their careers. Their shoulder shaking, trying to hold back the tears that were threatening to slide from their eyes. Seeing this scene, Sawamura who was still frozen on the spot had his heart ached.
"What are you doing, Idiot?!" Kuramochi suddenly kicked him in his rear, snapping him from his depression. "Don't space out like that. Let's go out first."
Those two went out silently, letting the coach and the rest of the third-year students have privacy. However, outside of the bullpen, all the first team members were waiting, eavesdropping the conversation inside.
"You all really did well these past two years." Kataoka-sensei spoke. "You've endured fierce battles and excruciating practices all for the sake of becoming regulars. You've had so many painful and sad memories here, but you all decided to stay. For staying with me all these years… I am and will always be proud of you all."
The heavy atmosphere inside was finally broken as tears that were held back before finally broke when Kataoka-sensei bowed and said the last part. One by one fell to their knees, couldn't hold back their tears.
Chris looked up to the ceiling, not wanting to be seen crying, He knew Sawamura and the others were outside, and he didn't want them to see him this vulnerable. He knew this would happen. He was already prepared for his last game for the team. However, when reality hit him hard like this, it was really painful.
His mind suddenly raced back to the countless hours spent in the rehabilitation center, the sweat, the tears, and the unwavering determination to come back. When Kataoka-sensei asked him if he was ready to come back, he believed that he was ready. But fate had other plans. A sense of regret washed over him, a feeling that he had let himself down.
Chris's eyes suddenly met Kataoka-sensei's, a man who had seen him grow from a talented rookie to the player he is today. Even though his father still blamed Kataoka-sensei for letting him practice unsupervised which caused his shoulder injury, Chris didn't blame him. Chris had the highest respect for the coach who was still willing to believe in his talent even when he hadn't played for almost a year.
But at this time, the moment Chris saw the sympathy in the coach's eyes, he knew that his career in high school baseball ended here.
After a while, tears finally dried up, replaced by a new determination. Fire could be seen in everyone's eyes as they thought that they were still on the team. Even though they couldn't be on the field, they vowed themselves to give the team their unwavering support, being the backbone of the team from the stand.
"Don't worry, Sensei. We still have one more job in this team. Until we are graduated, we will always be here to support the first team member!"
"Yeah! This is the time for us to go to Koushien!"
"That's the confidence!"
Kataoka's face softened hearing the laughter from his players. He didn't lie before. Even though the players in front of him were not as talented as the others, he was still proud of them. Just like in this case, they moved on from their sadness pretty quickly, replaced by the quick thinking of how to support the team better. Their unyielding love for the game and for the school was able to move him, the coach who was infamous for his stone heart.
"Well, if you can think about it now, you better go back and have a rest. Don't be late for the class tomorrow, okay? Just because I am not your official coach anymore doesn't mean I cannot punish you for your cheeky antic, do you understand?!"
"Yes, Sir!"
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Unknown to most of the players inside, all the main players eavesdropped the conversation. Sawamura who was just being promoted to the first team wasn't happy. He clenched his fists tightly until it started to get hurt, gritting his teeth angrily at himself.
No matter how much confidence he had in himself, Sawamura knew he didn't deserve to be promoted this time. His performance in the last month was horrendous, and if not for Chris's guidance, he would end it with a disastrous game. He didn't know why Kataoka-sensei took this decision. But now that he was promoted instead of the other senpai, Sawamura felt he had stolen something precious from them, guilt threatening to eat him alive.
Sawamura's patience finally snapped when Sawamura heard the silent cry from his senpai inside. Even though he was only close with Chris, the other senpai were still there and guided him to the second team. No matter how much they mocked and scolded him due to his terrible basics, at the end of the day, they would always be willing to share their knowledge with a rookie like him.
So, hearing the scene inside was heartbreaking for him.
However, before Sawamura could do anything, a hand suddenly tapped his shoulder, preventing him from doing whatever he wanted to do. When the pitcher turned around, he could see all his senpai from the main team were around him with the captain putting a finger in front of his mouth, preventing him from disturbing the scene inside.
"What are you trying to do, Idiot? Comforting them?" Isashiki scowled while leaning his body back against the wall. "No matter what you say to them, it would be like an insult toward their hard work. Even though we didn't know why Kataoka-sensei chose you, at least respect his decision. What you can do for those who weren't chosen was to get stronger, do you understand?!"
Sawamura could only nod silently, not trusting his words at all. Even though it was harsh, Sawamura knew Isashiki was right. The only thing he could do right now was to get stronger and help the team advance as far as possible. This wasn't just for himself, but also for those who worked as hard as he did yet couldn't stand on the field for the team.
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The next day, news spread quickly about the new addition members of the baseball team. It became a hot conversation topic everywhere since the baseball team would always be the pride of the school. However, there were also a lot of nasty rumors that followed the team.
"I heard both the new members are first year."
"Are you serious?!"
"Yeah! I got it from the baseball members in my class!"
"I heard they aren't that good. Is it a bit suspicious?"
"Kataoka-sensei is the coach, right? Are you sure his head is alright?"
"That was what I thought! It seems our Koushien dream will be delayed once again until we change our coach!"
Not only the ordinary students, but even the second-year players from the second team also gathered on the rooftop, talking shit about the team and the coach behind their backs.
"I can understand why Ryousuke-san's brother made it, but why was Sawamura chosen too? Even during that last game, if it weren't for Chris-senpai, he would've been all over the place. He couldn't even set the play."
"Yeah. Wasn't he pretty useless?"
"If someone like him got into the first string, then the other senpai should've been chosen instead."
"The coach is really a monster. We were cast away just like that."
Hiroto who had been silent from the beginning couldn't help but sigh, looking at his friends like an idiot. Hiroto knew a lot would be dissatisfied with the decision, but he didn't expect the players inside the team would make a big ruckus to the point of spreading the inside information to smear Sawamura's name.
He rubbed his forehead tiredly, finally getting enough of this. "Well, if you really want to know why Sawamura was chosen instead of the others, do you want me to break it off for you?"
All the heads suddenly turned to Hiroto, glancing at him curiously. "Is it just because Kataoka-sensei playing favorite?"
Hiroto rolled his eyes in exasperation at the answer.
"Well, I don't know about that, but from the tactical point of view, his choice is understandable. I mean, even though the other senpai had a good performance, it wasn't like the team needed them, right? Just like Chris-senpai or Maezono-kun who played well before, they would only be the bench warmer for Tetsu-san and Miyuki. Things are different with Sawamura-kun. Our bullpen lack of depth. We couldn't always rely on Tanba-senpai or Kawakami since they are just ticking bombs, could crumble at any time without anyone could guess. Furuya is also still a rookie. Adding another pitcher to the team was a reasonable decision to add the depth to the team. So, I don't get why you all have this talk."
"This…."
No matter how much they hated about it, what Hiroto said was a fact. Sawamura was needed for the team more instead of them, and it hurts. Maezono who was the spiritual leader of the second team clenched his fists, finally rose from his seat.
"Where do you want to go, Maezono-kun?" One of them asked.
"Practicing," Maezono answered shortly. "Unlike us who still have one more year, the ones who suffered the most from this decision are our senpai. But we could see on their face this morning's practice that even though they were still unwilling, they lowered their pride just to help the main players be better. If they could do that, who are we to talk shit like this? If you are mad about this decision, work harder and be chosen for the team next year!"
Silence befell on the rooftop as they all had their mouth gaped wide, not expecting Maezono who barely showed any emotion outside of the field would explode and rant like this. Hiroto sighed, following Maezono silently without saying anything. Inwardly, he hoped that his peer would change their mindset, because if not, the team next year would be a disaster, and he didn't want it to happen.
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Author note :
Hey! I have written a few next chapters of this new story and posted it already on my patreon account. If you want to read it in advance, you can visit patreon(.)com/ZetaFaes .
You can read this story up to chapter 31, and I will try to update it faster.
You can also read my other fanfiction, Kuroko no Basket: The Sixth man of Seirin Basketball Team up to chapter 169 on that page.
Thank you for your support! I appreciate it! :)
-Zeta Faes-