"Come here, I'll give you a massage." Hoshimi didn't expose Yukinoshita. He took her right arm and began to relieve her soreness.
They had played for so long in the morning and were continuing in the afternoon. Even with a deep sleep recovery in between, Yukinoshita's stamina was almost at its limit.
"Should I be the main attacker in the next set?" Hoshimi asked while massaging her arm.
"No, I'll continue as the main attacker. If you do it, the match will go into a tiebreak."
"Yukinoshita, you're quite blunt."
"Why should I be polite with you? I'm just stating facts. Besides, your right hand seems to have a problem, right?"
"Hmm? How did you notice?" Hoshimi raised an eyebrow, his right hand so sore and weak that he could barely lift it.
"Your right hand is weak even when massaging. How could I not notice?"
"Well, no choice. The table tennis and badminton finals were this morning. Using my right hand continuously has taken its toll," Hoshimi explained nonchalantly with a shrug.
"Hah~ I'll continue as the main attacker, no problem?" Yukinoshita asked with a mocking tone.
"Fine. If you insist on praising me, then you can be the main attacker."
"..." Yukinoshita shot Hoshimi a sideways glance.
At that moment, the thought of losing the match briefly crossed her mind. She really didn't want to praise Hoshimi, not even a little.
But the thought vanished instantly. She couldn't allow herself to fail, especially not against Hayato Hayama and Yumiko Miura.
She disliked both of them, perhaps even detested them.
"Yukinoshita, look, Yuigahama-san is here to cheer for you."
Hoshimi, always observing his surroundings, noticed Yui Yuigahama hidden in the crowd, looking around nervously.
"Hmm?" Following Hoshimi's gaze, Yukinoshita spotted a pink-haired girl moving through the crowd.
She said nothing but her expression softened slightly.
"Rest time is over. The second set is starting."
The brief rest period ended quickly. The head referee stood on the court, looking impassively at the players.
"Let's go."
"Hmm."
Hoshimi took Yukinoshita's right hand and led her to the court.
In the first game of the second set, Hayama and Miura served.
Hoshimi expected the game to be evenly matched again, but Yukinoshita suddenly burst forth with an unexpected energy, decisively winning with a score of 4:1.
In the second game, Hoshimi and Yukinoshita won their serve round easily.
With two consecutive wins, the game score reached 2:0, completing one-third of their task. If they could keep this up, victory was within reach.
At the start of the third game, things were looking good. Hoshimi and Yukinoshita easily took the first two points.
Barring any surprises, they would soon win this game, bringing them closer to victory.
But the unexpected came quietly...
Faced with a high ball from the opponent, Yukinoshita chose to smash it without hesitation.
"Bang!"
With a powerful swing, the tennis ball shot towards the opposite side like an arrow.
However, Yukinoshita, who had jumped to make the shot, felt a sudden weakness. As she landed, her legs gave out, and her recently sprained right ankle throbbed with pain.
"Crack---"
A barely audible sound followed, and Yukinoshita fell to the ground in pain.
"?!"
Hoshimi's face changed. He quickly ran over, squatting in front of Yukinoshita to check her right ankle.
"A bruise, still a sprain, no bone injury."
"Time out," the referee called.
The girls from Class J rushed onto the court, followed closely by the pink-haired girl who squeezed through the crowd.
She was the first to reach Yukinoshita.
"Yukinon, are you okay?" Yui Yuigahama asked, almost in tears.
"... I'm fine," Yukinoshita said, biting her lip to force out the words.
"Don't worry, it's just a minor sprain. A few days of rest and she'll be fine," Hoshimi reassured, patting Yui's head.
"... Yukinoshita's expression turned cold as she looked at Hoshimi, her eyes flashing with anger.
At that moment, Hoshimi turned to give instructions to the other girls, missing Yukinoshita's change in demeanor.
"Alright, everyone, no need to worry. Help Yukino off the court to rest."
"Okay..."
The girls, now less worried but still visibly concerned for Yukinoshita, helped her off the court.
"Yukino, are you trying to avoid praising me?"
After a few steps, Hoshimi joked.
"Hmph! If you think that, then yes!"
Yukinoshita snorted coldly without looking back, the ice in her eyes growing.
Hoshimi chuckled, "Just kidding. I know how strong your desire to win is."
"... Yukinoshita glanced at Hoshimi, saying nothing.
Hoshimi shrugged, "Alright, stop looking at me like that. Go rest. I'll try to win, but if I don't, you can't blame me. Tennis isn't my strong suit, and I've only been learning for less than a week."
Yukinoshita turned away, leaving with the girls without a word.
She knew they'd already lost. Hoshimi couldn't win with his level of skill, especially with his right hand acting up. He wouldn't be able to serve properly.
Unless a miracle happened, but how likely was that?
Reality isn't a dream; Hoshimi can't just wish for victory.
She felt a deep sense of regret. She should have listened to Hoshimi and avoided the smashes.
Now, with her foot sprained, she had to give up the imminent victory to Hayato Hayama and Yumiko Miura.
It was incredibly frustrating!
But no matter how frustrated, she had to accept it. Yukinoshita Yukino wasn't someone who couldn't handle defeat!
As Hoshimi watched Yukinoshita leave surrounded by the girls, he turned to Yui beside him and joked,
"Why? Do you want to team up with me? Unfortunately, I'm already committed to Yukino."
"... Yui looked up at Hoshimi, who was a head taller than her, and asked in confusion, "Are you really going to continue?"
"Hmm? Surrendering already?" Hoshimi smiled in response.
"But your... your..." Yui's ingrained politeness prevented her from saying more.
She wanted to tell Hoshimi that his skills were poor. Without Yukino, how could he possibly win?
===
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