(Part 10)

The match finally at its climax. The coaches joined the highschoolers in the pavilion.

"Head coach Nidou." Yusuf stood up. Nidou gestured him to sit back down.

"You're all here?" Haris got up, giving Seles and the rest space to settle down.

"The middleschoolers…" Elias asked, suddenly tracing them, gathered before the entrance.

"Little ones…!" Noah waved however, judging their disheveled and muddy sights, he narrowed his gaze. "What happened to them?" he questioned.

Elias went over to the boys along with Isa and Lou Wang.

"Those middleschoolers? They ran here all the way from the hotel, thanks to him." Musa patted Nidou's shoulders playfully.

"One of them even got hurt. It's better if you check out." Pedro added.

Nidou rolled his eyes, indifferent. The highschoolers however, hearing the word 'Hurt' immediately rushed off.

"How?" Evan, who stayed with them questioned perplexed.

"Little ones!" Noah waved immediately grabbing Helios by his shoulders once he came close.

Helios startled, blinked, "Y-yes?!"

"Are you alright? You aren't hurt or are you? Which one of you is hurt?" Noah asked frantic.

"Yeah, it wasn't a big deal, right? Should we go to the hospital?" Elias panicked checking Kenzo and Seraph simultaneously.

"Goodness, what were you doing?" Isa crouched before Adam checking his face, arms, hands, and fingers; moving him round and round to find any injuries.

Adam pouted adorably, "He's worried about me…?" he thought astonished.

Haris, the fastest one out of all went inspecting Cassiel, Gabriel, Azazel and Heber.

The middleschoolers stood awkwardly. "What in the world…?" they thought altogether, completely flummoxed.

"Actually, it wasn't us?" Poseidon scratched his temple, embarrassed.

"Then who?" Nagi and Lou Wang asked.

"Feng… he got hurt. Just a little…" Heber pointed, immediately hiding behind Azazel, Gabriel and Ezekiel who chortled.

"Feng…?" Elias repeated getting up as Isa, Lou Wang and Haris locating the purple head who stood way back, immediately surrounded him.

Awkwardness creeping over Feng, he hid his forehead with his hand.

"Oh dear, what happened?" Elias asked him concerned.

Feng shook his head rejecting, "N-no nothing happened."

Haris immediately realizing pulled Feng's hand away to reveal a big red potato pulsing clearly.

"OH MY GOD!" Noah freaked out.

Isa, as if facing a seizure stepped back.

"Heavens goodness, who did you offend?!" Nagi removed his glasses and inspected every corner of the big bump.

Kenzo hiding his laughter remarked wittily, "A billboard."

Helios instantly turned away, clutching his stomach, desperately trying to control his laughter without anyone noticing.

"A billboard…" the highschoolers as well as Evan (after hearing from the instructors) repeated in disbelief. 

"Anyway, could you go grab the cold pad from my gear bag? It's wrapped around an ice bottle," Elias instructed. Lou Wang nodded and hurried off.

"And you, sit here," Isa directed, leading Feng towards a nearby seat in the pavilion.

"It's okay, I'm fine," Feng reassured, though a bit hesitant.

"Let me take a look, then we'll decide," Nagi said with a grin.

A sudden shiver ran down Feng's spine as he instinctively covered his forehead, vigorously shaking his head in refusal.

Nagi smirked ironically, "Come on, it's nothing, dear."

Chills went down Feng's spine! "They got a screw lose toady!!" he screamed in his thoughts.

Receiving the cold pad, Elias took the initiative and gently pressed it against Feng's forehead. "Hiss...!" Feng reacted, instinctively leaning backwards. His back entirely pressed against the seat's backrest.

"Don't avoid it," Elias urged.

"But it's too cold," Feng complained.

"Endure it for now, young man. You should've taken the consequences into account before running into that mess." Haris exclaimed in disbelief. "Honestly, what were you doing before such an important match anyways? You're a selected participant," he added, glancing at Isa and Nagi who were advising the rest to take care of themselves before the crucial match.

Xavier chuckled, tousling Feng's hair, "He didn't do it intentionally. It was just an accident, right?"

Feng nodded in agreement.

Suddenly, Noah cheered as the sharp sound of the ball crunching against the bat echoed. Like a bullet, it soared above the stands.

"A Six! We've won!" Noah exclaimed, raising his fists and rushing towards Evan, who beamed with pride.

Alan, who had ended it all, stood illuminated under the mottled yet ephemeral afternoon sky. His expression, combined with the wind, conveyed an ordinary yet triumphant victory as he grinned fervently. "Mission accomplished, Kazu, Kazu!" he chanted, reaching out for a high-five.

Kazuna beamed with pride commenting, "Good."

Aaron sighed, rubbing the back of his head. "Can you believe we lost?" he exclaimed incredulously.

Orion chimed in, rolling his eyes, "Even with Rauf on our side."

"That's because Rauf is here that we lost in the first place. It's always the same." Ren nodded, recalling the repetitive, bore rigid outcome.

"Just watch as he goes. Our handsome boss~" Haruf chanted amusedly as Rauf exited the field to join the coaches.

Meanwhile, Kazuna frowned, feeling offended by the dismissive attitude. "Always looking down on everyone and everything," he thought to himself, feeling slighted.

"As expected, you two are always a tough challenge. Especially when you're together on the pitch," Aaron emphasized as he approached them, extending his hand.

Alan smiled and shook it, "You weren't too shabby yourself, and I bet you didn't even give it your all," he guessed.

Aaron blinked in surprise before bursting into laughter, "Haha! I can't hide anything from you, can I?"

Alan shrugged pompously, fully aware of his know-it-all demeanor. Kazuna sighed, rendered speechless. Turning towards the pavilion, the two gave a thumbs-up in turn receiving many. Alan then noticed familiar figures and muttered, "Middle schoolers?"

Yusuf, standing prominently on the field, called out loudly, "Attention, everyone! Gather around!"

Responding promptly, the high schoolers on the field surrounded the pavilion. A little while as they settled.

"Are you freaking kidding me?! That's horrendous!" Senri exclaimed in shock upon hearing Feng's story.

The other high schoolers and Alan, who had been spectators, chanted unamused, "Wow~"

"What's so horrendous? How many times do I have to say it was an accident?" Feng responded, his annoyance palpable and his exhaustion evident. Enduring their repetitive and so called 'Care' felt more unbearable than the injury itself. Seriously?! Why was everything going wrong today? Did his luck finally run out? With that thought, Feng sought solace by finding Gabriel and burying his head behind his back, wishing to vanish entirely.

 Gabriel sighed, offering a wordless acknowledgment.

"You're lucky you didn't end up in the hospital," Aigou remarked, patting Feng's back before turning to address Senri. "And you, don't exaggerate. It's not the end of the world." He frowned at Senri's persistent negativity.

"But—" Senri began to protest, only to be interrupted by Orion's firm voice. "Enough already."

"He's right," Kazuna chimed in, agreeing with Orion.

Senri finally relented, exhaling deeply and running a hand through his hair in defeat.

The coaches exchanged a silent shrug, rendered speechless by the situation. "Anyway, instead of wasting time lecturing the middle schoolers, its better if you all get to work," Mir stated, flipping through his file. "Middle schoolers, follow Coach Yusuf for warm-up exercises. As for the high schoolers who casually put aside the nets, it's time to fix them back," he added.

The high schoolers let out sighs, their shoulders slumping. "Do we really have to do that?" Ren asked with a hint of lethargy.

"Absolutely. You should've considered it before removing them," Mir replied straightforwardly.

"Au~" The high schoolers grumbled, puffing their cheeks like rebellious children, except for Rauf and Evan, who had already departed.

Kenzo, upon seeing them, furrowed his brow in revulsion. "I feel nauseated," he muttered before quickly turning away to join Yusuf.

"I am surprised though," Adam remarked, rubbing his eyes as he glanced back at them.

"I feel... nothing," Helios stated incredulously, while Seraph scratched his temple, chuckling awkwardly.

"I wonder if they're just putting on an act," Xavier mused, following Cassiel and Kenzo.

As the high schoolers set the nets and prepared the pitch, they ran around teasing and joshing each other. Meanwhile, the middle schoolers assisted each other in performing exercises, albeit with a hint of envy towards the high schoolers freedom.

Sitting on the pavilion seat with his feet crossed, Alan let out a deep exhale. Gazing up at the sky and occasionally stealing glances at Nidou, he swayed left and right.

A bother hovering over his head, Nidou had realized, the pair of curious eyes. Growing annoyed, he shut his laptop and asked, "What's on your mind? Spit it out."

"Why did you pick me as a substitute?" Alan questioned as soon as Nidou finished speaking.

There was a brief moment of silence between father and child.

Nidou finally replied, "To mentally and physically prepare you that you could be chosen for the upcoming matches at any time."

Alan remained quiet, his mouth slightly agape.

"What? Scared to play now?" Nidou teased.

Alan shot him a sidelong glance and smirked, "Even my demons aren't afraid of the word 'Scare', old man."

Leaning back in his seat, Nidou closed his eyes, a confident smile on his lips. Yet, when he reopened them, a hint of concern flickered in them. Glancing at Alan, who seemed to be enjoying the breeze, his golden crescent earring swaying, Nidou simply asked, "Had fun?" His voice devoid of usual sarcasm or tease.

Alan blinked, revealing a satisfied smile. "Yeah, tons of it. Old man… even if it's a double-edged sword, even if its hell or it might lead me there. As long as I'm playing cricket, everything's fun," he confessed proudly.

Musa and Pedro listened to him, surprised.

Alan's eyelashes lowering and his expression swiftly turning nostalgic, he gazed at Will's energetic movement around the field. "Even if I hadn't realized it before, my whole life has revolved around it. The very first time I held a ball, I made it with a newspaper to earn pennies. Later, I picked up a real one to defend myself. I swung a bat to learn to strike forward. I've collided with wickets and felt pain. And... I've forged irreplaceable bonds, tapping bats and fists. It's my entire life, to be honest." "So, I'll look forward to it eagerly. Towards the day I'll be selected, Head Coach Nidou," he concluded with a determined smile.

Nidou was taken aback.

For the first time in so long he felt like he was finally having a normal conversation with this child. Despite being her father for a decade, trust, communication, understanding, everything lacked, to the point he was never once properly called 'Father' yet, it was just this moment… he simply didn't want to ruin. So, he nodded with a soft hum.