Chapter 98: Higo’s Thought
The dinner lasted for quite a while, with the children sighing helplessly as they had to watch their parents—not a lot, but most of them—starting to go crazy with a glass of beer in their hand. Who would think that it was a good idea to buy alcohol at the celebratory dinner for a high school team, anyway?
Fortunately, the inn they rented was not that far, so for those kids whose father was too drunk, they could just go back easily. As for Higo...
’Now, what?’
Honestly, after everything was settled, the exhaustion hit him hard. He felt his body aching, and the fatigue here normally was enough to knock him out until tomorrow. It was unbelievable that the organizer scheduled another ga two days later.
However, even with all the physical exhaustion, his brain was sohow quite active. He tightened his scarf, letting his mind wander back to the ga earlier while also staring up at the clear sky above.
His mother and Kumiko saw him like this, so they couldn’t help but ask, "Is there anything wrong, Ryukkun?"
"No, just... Thinking." Higo paused, trying to build a coherent sentence inside his ssy head. Those two waited patiently until the boy continued, "Just wondering, what could I do better in that ga earlier that could change the ga? I an, have I worked hard enough?"
It seed the quote he found on the internet in the past was right. The later the night beca, the more complicated and lancholic a man’s mind worked.
Both Minami and Kumiko stared at each other concernedly before the forr shook her head firmly.
"No, that is not a healthy mindset." The older woman glared at the two teenagers in front of her firmly. "It is okay to look back to evaluate yourself. But this? No, this is just you trying to bla yourself. You as well, Kumiko-chan. Don’t think I didn’t hear what happened at the table earlier."
Kumiko rubbed the back of her head sheepishly, knowing that she had been caught here.
"I know that this is a tough defeat, but I will tell you again, this is not your fault," Minami emphasized on the last part. "It is just your guilt that is taking over your cloudy mind, but let
ask you this. Before today, have any of you ever thought that you could win today’s ga?"
"Um?" Higo was startled at the question. "What do you an by that, Mom?"
"I have done my research before coming here, you know, and I know full well the team’s last encounter ended in disaster. Also, Sappotani is the best school in the prefecture, and it is not sothing that they themselves decide. No, it is a fact that everyone agrees on, a school with a great reputation in the north. So, tell , after losing 7 – 0 last winter, was there any of you who ca here with the desire to win?"
Well, when she said it like that...
Kumiko couldn’t help but ponder, suddenly rembering her first intention before arriving at the stadium. At that ti, all she wanted was for the team to hold the ga down until the last and try their luck in the penalty shootout. That thought itself was also the most realistic one she could co up with, but in reality, the probability was still quite low.
As for the thought of the team managing to pierce through Sappotani’s defense... Well, she didn’t dare to dream that far. No, Sappotani had never conceded a goal in this tournant so far, and if there was a team that could break this tough egg, it was definitely not an ultra-defensive team like them.
"Well, I get your point, mom, but..." Higo paused, struggling to find a suitable word to describe his feeling.
"But..." Minami also waited patiently here.
In the end, Higo let out a deep sigh before turning to his childhood friend, ignoring the cold breezing wind around. "Do you rember our conversation about those who didn’t train hard enough usually wouldn’t be too sad even after losing the ga?"
"Um? Yeah?" Kumiko nodded confusedly, not expecting the sudden shift of topic.
This was the conversation they had after winning the ga against Sapporo Kita in the second round. However, when that mory was finally at the tip of her head, sothing clicked inside her brain as she realized what Bagas was trying to convey here.
"I know that I am so frustrated right now, yet sohow... I cannot feel any sadness in my heart, you know? I even feel more emotion at the sight of you crying rather than
losing the ga itself. Does that an... I didn’t really train that hard?"
This ti, Minami also connected the dots. However, just like Kumiko, she was too stunned here, not knowing how the boy’s mind went too far at this point.
Higo didn’t really notice their reaction, though. Right now, he was still in his ranting mode, and the boy continued, "I an, you know that I co to the team because of you, right? If not for you, I couldn’t care less about football. Hell, even if I joined all of the training sessions, you could see
doing everything half-heartedly, preferring to go back and sleep under my kotatsu. I am just wondering if I did a slightly better than that... Is it enough to change the ga?"
His last words lingered in the air for a mont, with only the sound of the wind breezing and sotis the car’s engine buzzing could be heard around them. Both won were still too stunned, though, not knowing that Higo’s mind was so complicated.
In the end, once again, it was the mother who ca for rescue.
"Even with you training four more hours a day, I don’t think that you could change the outco of the ga. However, indeed, you can do a little bit better here and there." The woman nodded.
"So...."
"So, I will give you a howork for life, Ryukkun!" The woman chirped happily, sending a shiver down Higo’s spine.
"... What kind of howork?" Higo asked wryly, while Kumiko had her eyes shining right now. She knew Higo’s mother was always so creative in her educational style, so the girl couldn’t wait to see what the woman would co up with.
"Oh, it is easy, don’t worry!" She even smiled at him! "Since you admitted that you are only here for Kumiko-chan, I will ask you to watch more gas, observe them all carefully, and try to think of any real goal that only involves yourself! Don’t just think of Kumiko-chan, but also try to find your true self! Try to find your own path, young man!"
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