Chapter 59: Engraving
Shirako Town was as quiet as the deep sea at night, with only the lights on in the court. From the corner came the faint sound of balls hitting the ball, mixed with the rustling of leaves, which were carried into the wind.
As soon as the meal was over, Yuan disappeared. He must have gone to look for Senior Gan again. He had clearly asked her out yesterday to watch the meteor shower together.
Fengjian walked back under the shadows of the trees. After a whole day of struggling with Momoshiro Kaido, his arms, which had been motionless, began to resist. The pain of needles mixed with the itchiness of ants gnawing rushed straight to his forehead like an electric current, and it seemed that even his nerves were not willing to be outdone and began to twitch in pain.
She sighed softly and quickened her pace towards the dormitory.
However, as she passed by the stadium, she caught a glimpse of a dark shadow under the tree on the edge of the field. When she took a few steps closer, she realized it was Tezuka.
His chestnut hair was tinged with gray. He was leaning against a tree trunk with one leg bent. A faint white light flashed across his lenses as he stared intently at the direction of the court.
"President Tezuka."
Tezuka turned around and saw Kazama sticking his head out from behind the tree and winking at him, "Do you mind if I sit here?"
After receiving a positive answer from the other party, Fengjian flattened her skirt and sat down next to him.
He swallowed slightly, and when his eyes swept over her bandaged hand, his voice softened: "How is the wound?"
"The doctor said the bandages can be removed tomorrow," Kazama said in a relaxed tone, "Maybe I can recover before school starts."
"That's good." His tone was as light as a tight bandage loosening.
"Be careful not to get the bandage wet after you remove it, as it will worsen the wound." Tezuka spoke calmly, his words concise like short instructions given during training.
Feng Jian was stunned for a few seconds before realizing that the words just now were words of concern. He laughed out loud, but when the other party looked at him with a puzzled look, he responded softly.
Lighter than the wind.
"Well, I discovered something," Kazama suddenly turned around and smiled at him with his head tilted, "Sometimes President Tezuka and Atobe-kun are quite similar in some ways."
Tezuka tilted his head in surprise.
"That guy Atobe, even a single word of concern would have to be wrapped in a gorgeous shell, and President Tezuka..." It was rare to see the other party show a surprised expression. Kazama deliberately dragged out the sound, and the sound of the wind sounded like a beat in his ears. "Actually, President Tezuka, you are the same, right?"
Meeting those clear and bright eyes, Tezuka turned his face away, "After all, it was me who asked you to join the training camp, but in the end, you suffered such an unexpected disaster. If it leaves a scar..."
He was silent for a moment before Kazama took over, "No, the doctor said it's healing very well. Even if there's a scar, it's a badge of honor."
The last syllable was mixed with the chirping of cicadas, and the last sentence sounded brisk and like singing to him.
"Actually, I've always wanted to ask President Tezuka..."
Fengjian lowered his head, his long, soft hair spread on the ground, covering his entire face. "What were you thinking when you risked your life for Qingxue? What did you feel when your elbow hurt?"
Without waiting for the other party to answer, Fengjian continued to speak: "It must be very painful, excruciating pain, as if your arm was cut by a knife, but there is no trace of wound..."
"I've always wanted to know what that feeling is like," Kazama's voice was muffled, like a rainstorm crackling against the car window. "I've always wanted to know how much pain President Tezuka endured for Seigaku, and now I finally feel it."
"Although it's not even one ten-thousandth of what President Tezuka has endured, but... I have experienced the same pain as you, right?" Kazama suddenly turned his head and looked at Tezuka, his last sentence choked with a faint sob, "It turns out that it really hurts..."
She looked at him, her eyes sparkling like the glint of broken glass after rain.
Tezuka stood there in a daze. When the evening breeze blew through his hair, the rustling sound of leaves came with the fragrance of the girl's hair. The leaves above his head rustled, and one of them slowly fell and landed on his shoulder.
He was speechless for a moment, and the light reflected from the broken glass shone straight into his heart like a mirror.
He almost hurriedly avoided looking away, his eyes falling on the mountains and fields, but like a lens that could never focus, only a blurry shadow was left on his retina.
After a long time, he finally found his voice, which was so soft that it sounded like a sigh, "Kazama, it's all over."
However, what responded to him was increasingly intense sobbing. He turned around and found that Fengjian's face was as pale as snow, with beads of sweat the size of beans sliding down his forehead.
He immediately noticed something was wrong, and placed his fingers on her intact right arm. His tone was like a taut string, "Kazama, what's wrong with you?"
There were even a few beads of sweat splashing on the back of his hand, almost burning a hole.
Feng Jian bit his lower lip tightly, with an embarrassed look on his face. He avoided his sight and said in a voice that was even more trembling than his hands, "Yes, it hurts a little..."
A quarter of an hour later.
"Why didn't you tell me that your arm was inflamed?" Tezuka's voice was colder than the incandescent light above his head.
Feng Jian lowered his head, listening to the lecture silently like a primary school student admitting his mistake. In the end, he couldn't help but quibble, "Everyone is very excited, I don't want to..."
"So you just endure it silently," Tezuka interrupted her, his voice as cold as a frozen lake, but his hands moved lightly, "Do you know that this puts a lot of strain on your arms?"
Kazama turned his face away and muttered in a voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz, "President Tezuka was the same as before."
Tezuka's usually calm face fell silent, and he looked up at her. Kazama's eyes darted around but didn't meet his.
He sighed softly, as if in silent compromise, "This won't happen again."
"President Tezuka, are you talking about me, or..." Kazama smiled like a cat stealing fish, "are you talking about yourself?"
After reattaching the wristband, Tezuka looked up and their eyes met directly.
The warm white light passed through the tips of her chestnut hair, casting a faint shadow on her eyelids. Her brown pupils were like clear glass, clearly illuminating her stunned look.
The feeling of oppression came like a tide, and Fengjian's breathing slowed down. His peripheral vision passed over his soft head and suddenly caught a glimpse of the window. It was as if he had grabbed the last straw of life. He quickly stood up and got out, and the sound popped out before his brain could think.
"It's a shooting star!"
Walking to the windowsill, the smell of disinfectant lingering in my nasal cavity dissipated, and along with it, the burning sensation behind my ears. The coolness of the indoor air conditioner faded, and the late summer breeze, bringing with it the heat and the chirping of cicadas, came over.
The refreshing scent of soapberries falls at your feet along with shadows.
"Chiba said there will be a meteor shower tonight." Fengjian pointed to the sky, but did not mention the little awkwardness in the house just now.
However, there was nothing to be heard around except the noisy chirping of cicadas and dark gray clouds, not even the shadow of a star.
"Well... maybe it will come soon," Fengjian touched the back of his head and laughed, "after all, beautiful things can only be waited for..."
"Um."
There was an unexpected response from beside him. Feng Jian turned his head in surprise, but was caught off guard again and bumped into those brown eyes. There was a hint of warmth in the bottom of the eyes, like ripples caused by a stone hitting the lake.
Tezuka nodded, watching her purse her lips and smile softly, "All good things require waiting."
"Um..." Feng Jian lowered his head, staring at the dense stripes on the railing, and suddenly said, "President Tezuka, have you decided which university you want to apply to?"
As she spoke, her fingers hanging by her side twirled the hem of her dress, her head buzzing, and she couldn't help but breathe more lightly, as if she was afraid of disturbing his next answer.
"Todai."
It's not uncertainty, but categorical certainty.
The buzzing sound in Fengjian's heart finally quieted down. She loosened her fingertips that had turned white, and a seed began to sprout in a corner of her heart.
"President Tezuka," Kazama suddenly said, and when the other party looked over, he looked up at the sky, his eyes seemed to reflect the bright stars, "The meteor shower is coming."
Tezuka responded softly, his gaze moving from her quiet profile all the way up to the sky as blue as the sea.
When the first white meteor swept across the night sky, Feng Jian suddenly grabbed his clothes and shouted: "When you see a shooting star, you must make a wish!"
The sound was a bit like the joy of a child getting candy.
The tightly closed door suddenly flew open, and everyone from Seigaku rushed in, accompanied by the cheers of Momoshiro and Kikumaru, and Fuji's chuckled "I guessed you'd be here." Gen scurried over from beside Kan, threw his arms around her neck, and accused her of secretly coming to watch the meteor shower with President Tezuka without calling them...
Tezuka adjusted his glasses and ignored their booing, only looking at everyone with a little more calmness.
While everyone was arguing, Kazama walked aside and opened his cell phone. The chat history with Yukimura was up to half an hour ago.
Yukimura: "Did you make a wish when you saw a shooting star?"
Kazama looked proud: "Of course." He also added an arrogant emoticon.
Yukimura smiled and said, "How about I give you a chance to jump the queue? Tell me your wish and it will be granted soon."
Kazama chuckled twice and typed quickly, "I don't want to. By the way, what are the results of the reexamination?"
A medical examination form was sent over. As Fengjian clicked on it, Yukimura's words had already fallen:
"all the best".
She looked up at the meteor shower that had traveled halfway across the globe. Perhaps there was no better wish than this.
——
On the last day of the training camp, the morning came earlier than ever before. Kazama sat cross-legged on the sidelines, writing on a piece of paper with his only moving hand:
President Tezuka was the first to arrive at the court;
Momoshiro and Kaidou actually team up as a tag team and take the initiative to challenge Hyotei's Shishido and Feng;
Chiba and Gan were sitting together, and I guess they were sorting data;
Senior Fuji is telling jokes to his juniors;
Yukimura and Atobe stood at a distance on the sidelines, watching their respective teammates, seemingly discussing the time for the next training match, perhaps tomorrow, or perhaps someday;
Arai and Horio were entangled by Shitenhoji's funny doubles, and it's probably possible to predict when they'll escape;
I heard that Echizen was worried that the seniors couldn't handle the pressure, so he secretly returned from the United States. Now he's being pestered by Kintaro. He can't take it anymore~
Sanada started to teach Kirihara a lesson again, because the genius fraudster's plan was said to have succeeded again.
…
The last moment of the training camp was captured in a group photo. Feng Jian, who originally just wanted to be a photographer, was quickly pulled in by everyone and pushed to the front.
Tezuka nodded slightly at her, Atobe hummed in a light tone, and Yukimura looked at her with a smile.
She met everyone's gaze calmly, put her hands behind her back, and smiled at the camera.
On the back of the photo are everyone's signatures, with a few words written at the bottom:
Just as the story has no end, the tennis ball will always fly to a new landing point.
They may be heading towards different futures, but I have had the honor of recording their youth and the unique heartbeats when they served the ball.
This summer seems to be endless, yet it seems to have ended long ago.
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