Preview: Legacy + Additional Notes Regarding a Change in Schedule

It had been nearly a month since Nanairō had been injured by her father. Her wounds had healed mostly, but her spirit still remained in it's dampened state. Kazuya couldn't do much to help her, as she had began to avoid him for a reason unbeknownst to him. He hadn't hurt her or her pride, or done anything to provoke her, so why was he being avoided? Kuramochi saw through the sudden cold nature in Nanairō, though. After conversing with the giant nicknamed Zēro, he learned that  she had become conflicted, as Sanada Shunpeī, her childhood best friend, confessed that he had feelings for her. She became troubled by this, and realized that she couldn't just ignore his feelings. So she pushed herself away from Kazuya, knowing the damage it would inflict to her mental state if he criticized her judgement.

In truth, her feelings for Shunpeī had burned out long before they were realized, and she saw him platonically, but she didn't want to hurt the boy. She felt a strong attraction else where, but sacrificed it regardless, and decided that those feelings would surely sizzle out as well. But she was wrong.

She hadn't even realized, but she was straining her mental state so much that she was losing her appetite, both for food and baseball. She wore herself out and found herself unable to get back into pitching, catching, Fielding, or even batting. She had hit a major slump, and the only one she ever had.

"Is Chibana-sempai really okay? I wonder what's going on... He used to hit 5 home runs minimum per batting practice, but he hasn't hit one in two weeks. He barely makes it past the infield, and his control is horrible."

"Not to mention his Fielding has become atrocious. What could've happened?" The girl overheard the Freshmen communicating their concerns. Is it really that bad? She inwardly sighed as she looked around, before spotting Kuramochi, Ji YÅ«ko, and Kazuya eyeing her critically. Even those three are scrutinizing me... God I feel so helpless...

"Chibana." The girl jumped at her name being called.

"Y-yes sir..."

"I don't know what's going on here, but until you sort yourself, get off of my field." Everyone in practice stopped and stared at the scene unfolding.

"But sir I—"

"I don't want your excuses, so go clear your head and run. Don't touch a bat, glove, or ball until you've spoken to me." Kazuya watched in dismay as the girl weakly responded and dropped her head, before following directions and running. What could have such a dangerously taxing effect on her mental state, he wondered. Kuramochi nudged the megane out of his thoughts and tilted his head towards the running girl. Kazuya nodded and the three began to run, quickly catching up to the girl.

Nanairō

What is wrong with me?

That's all I could think about. What's wrong with me? Why are things like this? Why can't I just go back to how I was? Little did I know, I was only wearing myself out more and more. And it was all my fault. I should've told Shunpeī that I didn't feel the same. I should've been diligent.

"Hey." I looked over my shoulder to see Zēro, Kazuya, and Kuramochi. My eyes stopped on Kazuya and my mind sparked in hope.

"You okay?"

"I guess... I can't even tell how long it's been like this. It's like all of a sudden my desire to play has been taken from me... I don't understand it at all."

"Nanai." I looked up at Zēro.

"Uh?"

"End it with him. He is a main reason for your state."

"End it with who?" No one answered Kazuya, us all guilty for hiding it.

"Ah... But if I do that... I might hurt him."

"You're hurting yourself right now, and you're going to break yourself soon. Your mind didn't heal from when you got injured, so you need mental rest." I sighed. Of course 'Mochi was right.

"Nana, they're right. I don't really know what's going on, but you've avoided me at least for weeks and it's bugging me too. You haven't been playing like you normally do or should and everyone on the team is concerned. Everyone trusts you to find your way back, but you need to do it before it's too late." Ah of course... I guess I have been kinda worrisome lately.

"Yeah... I'm sorry. I've really been unreliable. I'm sorry for avoiding you... But you would've made my job as a friend a hell of a lot harder."

"What do you mean?" I scratched my neck.

"Well you see... Shunpeī confessed to me a while back... And I knew that I didn't feel the same but I couldn't let him down. And I knew that if I was talking to you I would hurt you both... So I cut you out so that you wouldn't be hurt. I guess I put my duties as a friend to Shun-san before my mental state... Doesn't help that my shoulders hurt like a bitch... So I'm sorry, Kazuya. I should have said something." He shook his head and closed his eyes. I could tell he was hurt.

"It's alright... But next time just say something. Now you're smack dab in the middle of a low slump."

"This is the worst one she's ever had. In middle school after we lost at Nationals, she atleast bounced back in three days. It's been weeks this time."

"Don't talk about that embarrassing time... They don't need to know about all of my lowest moments damnit."

"Get yourself out of this one if you really want to save face. We're all counting on you. If you can't pull yourself together, you'll be kicked off. You know this. You know this pressure, so get your thoughts together." Ji YÅ«ko was right, of course. And I knew it was coming. I couldn't just expect everyone to wait on me while I got my shit under control.

"You're right..."

"Of course he's right. You need to get your shit straight, Nana." I mentally winced at Kuramochi's un-minced words. Damn he really is straight forward...

I sighed inwardly. I never found the will to tell them that my shoulders were still throbbing like the wounds were fresh. I also couldn't tell them that the other scars were flaring in searing white hot pain. The stress on my body was sure to make me hesitate one day, and I knew I'd have to tell them then. But until then, I would keep it to myself.

To be continued...

Hey, I hope you guys enjoyed this Preview of the next chapter. I'm working on the next update for this book as well as a Preview for a new project I plan to spend a lot of time on. The new schedule should rotate bimonthly. So, this book will be updated twice a month and the new project will be updated twice a month as well.

New Schedule:

1st & 3rd Sunday of the month: The Wannabes

2nd & 4th Sunday of the month: New Project (TBA Dec 8th with a Preview)

*There will be no further updates in November due to next week being a holiday week where I live.*