Chapter 9 – Faith in Fool

4/28

The cafeteria was quite lively as lunchtime had struck, Shujin students from all grades were either sitting at the numerous roundtables, chatting amongst their classmates, others with smaller lunches leaned against the cafeteria walls with friends and their school bags on the floor. The younger Yoshizawa twin sat with her quirky, orange-haired friend with glasses in the middle of the place...

"So Sumire… I know we couldn't talk much yesterday, but what do you think about Ren- uh, I mean our senpai?"

Futaba asked curiously, though she had a very smug and teasing look, wanting her friend to get flustered as it was very cute to see her blush...

"Hmm... I honestly have no clue…"

Sumire was more focused about something on her mind, however. She pondered deeply on a lot of things, was it okay to go behind Kasumi's back like this? Would he even accept her plea for help? What will she do if the worst of it comes? She grew anxious in her expression.

"I didn't have the chance to speak about getting his help..."

The younger Yoshizawa explained to her quirky friend tapping on her laptop, sorrowful that even when the opportunity for her came, she didn't have the confidence to ask.

"Well, if you really want we could meet up with our senpai again, we can in a few days."

Futaba looked eager for her friend, wanting to get her out of that sad mood and cheer her up, the twin sister with glasses pondered for a moment.

"That could work, though I'm still honestly worried about the possibility that I might meet a dead-end if senpai says no..."

Sumire hung her head, she really felt the lack of confidence in herself to do anything. Almost going face-first into her prepared bento box without a thought. Futaba got worried for a moment that she was really going to dunk her face in the delicious-looking food without her having any yet!

"S-Still, it might be worth a shot! We can't just back away now, you gotta tell him, Yoshi! Get yourself pumped!"

A slightly uneasy Futaba cheered for her red-headed friend with glasses, she stood up from her chair at the table, showing her a fist of determination like the heroes in anime do... Sumire could only think about the stares from on-lookers around them, the other female students began laughing and talking amongst themselves, presumably about them...

"O-Okay…"

Sumire responded hesitantly, a little embarrassed. Futaba felt a disturbance in the force, or rather she saw Kasumi Yoshizawa stepping into the cafeteria, she then noticed them at the table and started walking over...

"Oh, sh-she's coming!"

Futaba quickly told Sumire, who proceeded to hide her honest feelings from her expression, not wanting her sister to suspect something was wrong...

"Hey Sumire, Sakura-san."

Kasumi looked a little displeased to them as she took the chair next to her younger sister at the lunchroom table, though what bothered her seemed to be about something else entirely. The girls were not quite sure, however.

"Y-Yo Kasumi! It's really good to see you today!"

Futaba spoke, hiding behind her laptop to not show her very nervous face, not even sure that she wanted to come off as casual or formal...

"Are you okay, sis?"

Concerned, Sumire had questioned Kasumi, who then hastily undid the cloth from her bento box to eat her lunch.

"Sheesh, I would have walked with both of you to the cafeteria but I guess every boy in our grade needs my help with classwork or whatsoever is quite tiring even for me…"

The twin with the red ribbon in her hair voiced the grievances she had about their male classmates to her younger twin and geeky friend.

"I mean you are one of the top students for the first years... everyone adores you."

Sumire explained to her talented elder sister, sounding a little sad in her words. Though the twin with glasses really tried not to come off that way. Kasumi however, didn't pay much notice to her tone...

"E-Either that or first-years boys are just throwing themselves at you for a date!"

Futaba could quite clearly see that Kasumi was quite popular with the boys in their grade.

"Hm. I have no time for that stuff, besides me and Sumire made a promise to work ourselves every day for our dream!"

Kasumi looked non-plussed by the quirky girl's words, she glanced happily at her younger sister. A bright smile on her face, the elder twin took Sumire's hand and clasped it together with her own, just like when they did the promise to each other all those years ago...

"Right..."

Sumire recalled those days, they were much easier to remember than right now... she glanced at the table in thought, and then back to Kasumi, assuming the ever bright smile on her face was still there... however, she noticed the look in her elder sister's brown eyes as her smile weakened, it reminded her of her own... frustrated.

"Is something wrong, Kasumi?"

The younger twin questioned with concern, she never seen her be like this. Something was clearly wrong with Kasumi and she wasn't saying what yet.

"It's nothing, right now... but, I do need to speak with you at home about something..."

She explained, sounded a bit disappointed in her words to her younger sister. Though Sumire could only imagine what... The quirky girl could feel the awkwardness of it all.

"…Can you not speak of it here?"

Sumire wondered, she grew anxious to know what she was going to say when they get back. The elder twin shook her head no in response.

"It's best if I didn't, besides it's almost time for PE!"

Kasumi's cheerful attitude returned, she began eating her out of her bento quicker before the period started, Sumire continued with her albeit slower as she was in deep thought...

"Hnnng, kitty. The mood was all over the place with those two… now It's just me dreading about PE!"

Futaba set her laptop to the side of her and laid on the table, exhausted from seeing the very clear awkward tension between the Yoshizawa twins...

(Meow)

The black cat with bright blue eyes poked its head from Futaba's school bag on the floor.

Shujin courtyard

Ren and Ryuji were training after classes have ended in the secret training spot just outside the main school building, doing stretches and squats before running around school grounds again, students looked at them like they were crazy and baffled that troublemakers would consistently keep a schedule for exercise...

"Ugh, dammit. I wanna move better but I just can't. I was training for nationals back in my first year… now I totally suck balls..."

Ryuji was gasping for air, holding his knees with heavy breaths. Ren was exhausted as well, wiping away sweat constantly, he was now thinking wearing the full tracksuit was probably a bad idea… he would plan to wear light for next time, a male voice was calling to them from a distance.

"Sakamoto?"

A curious male student with dark hair wearing Shujin's track uniform followed by two other male students, came walking up to both of them in the midst of their training.

"H-Huh..."

Ryuji turned around in a startled surprise of three male students in track uniforms, it seemed that their club practice had ended. The country boy sensed a weird tension between his friend and the members of the track team.

"Who are they?"

Ren questioned to Ryuji, thinking there was some sort of history between them obviously.

"M-My former clubmates, Nakaoka... Takeishi…"

The usually energetic blonde seemed a bit unnerved as he avoided making eye contact with his old club mates, Ren noticed a shamed express on his face...

"You running again? I saw you from the window. You trying to get back to the track team?"

Nakaoka sounded curious but had a skeptical look for Ryuji, The delinquent transfer student.

"He is..."

Ren answered for his friend, the track group began whispering to each other as they looked at Ryuji, who was hesitant to even speak at all. The country boy thought he was being a bit awkward...

"Sure, this was your secret training spot wasn't it?"

Nakaoka probed Ryuji again, briefly looking around their surroundings in the courtyard...

"Y-Yeah..."

Ryuji crossed his arms in a nervous tic, he answered his former teammate rather uneasy. A brief moment of awkward silence struck the two groups, until Ren got impatient and decided to try and break the ice.

"So, I don't know… do you want train with us?"

The country boy asked Nakaoka and his friends rather blunt-sounding.

"Hold on, aren't you that transfer student?"

One of the friends who stood behind Nakaoka recognized the guy with the frizzy black hair... Ren began to quietly groan in reaction, trying to hide the annoyance on face...

"What's the deal Sakamoto? You're really gonna hang around this criminal?"

Takeshi questioned Ryuji, the group began looking coldly at Ren

"He ain't like that, shouldn't you be training too, why do you care?"

The energetic blonde bot began getting visibly angry at Takeshi, he then took a step forward to the group of his former friends to show he wasn't gonna be anxious with them anymore.

"Hm. I'm saying this to you, a former runner for track, you better watch out. From what I heard around school, he'll assault you the second he gets pissed off…"

Nakaoka stood forward to face close with his former friend, warning him about his choice of new friends, the country boy rolled his eyes at all of this but felt grateful for Ryuji standing up on his behalf and himself.

"That don't got anything to do with this…"

Ryuji was getting more irritated with Nakaoka and his friends just assuming those fake ass rumors going around about his new pal were true... He curled his hand into a fist. Ren's eyes widened as things were escalating.

"Calm down, Ryuji..."

The country boy quickly grabbed a hold of his friend's shoulder and cautioned, being very stern so he doesn't do anything stupid...

"I can't let him just say that shi-"

The angry tried shaking off his grip as he stared down his former club mates, they all scoffed at him.

"What? You wanna fight all three of us, Sakamoto?"

An arrogant Takeshi challenged his former teammate. Frustrated, Ryuji grit his teeth and hanged his head slightly, really trying not want to give his anger...

"We ain't fightin now…"

The country boy stated to all of them, he stood between and held Ryuji back with his arm, he looked at the members of the track team with a

"This ain't even close to a fight…"

One of the track members stated jokingly, the country boy began thinking that they wanted Ryuji to act out... he was disgusted by them.

"Man, I sure was stupid for thinking you were my teammate before. I worried about you after breaking your leg, how you're acting out, falling into the wrong crowd… Looks, like I just wasted my time…

Nakaoka stated to Ryuji coldly, he looked toward Ren with very callous eyes, the delinquent wasn't caring about what he personally thought of him, smiling all smug.

"Come on, Nakaoka… let's get out of here."

Takeshi seemed to have had his fill, Nakaoka and his track friends began walking away from the two...

"Well so much for putting a good word in for me…"

Ren uttered sarcastically as he watched Ryuji's old teammates leave the courtyard, holding quite the smug look on his face, the blond boy shook his head with tiredness.

"I nearly smacked him when he talked about you... But y'know, you actually helped me calm down a little. I'm glad were here for this, thanks man."

Ryuji confessed to his frizzy-haired friend with a grateful smile, he then raised his hand for a high five enthusiastically. Ren looked at him confused and then hesitantly raised his own hand, feeling that his spikey blonde friend was getting way too pumped for this... they both proceeded to awkwardly high fived…

"Well, ain't nothing… just get back at em' by becoming the big track star again, will ya?"

Ren told him with a small smile, he had some confidence that if he really focused on running nonstop, Ryuji could definitely do this for himself.

"Man, your accent is weird…"

The energetic blonde boy rubbed under his nose with a teasing look on his face, the country boy was exasperated of him bringing it up. After a while, both of them went home…

Leblanc

Going through the door of Sojiro's hideaway café, the service bell rings. As the country boy stepped into the place, he noticed his stern guardian behind the wooden counter, cleaning up after having served customers all day...

"I'm home..."

Ren uttered clear for the owner of the small café, he holding his school bag over his shoulder with tired eyes, school was a lot of effort. Sojiro noticed his presence without looking at him as he continued to sort out tea cups and plates he washed...

"You got a minute? Somethin' I wanna ask you. Sit down, let's have a chat..."

Sojiro nodded to the seat in front of himself for the delinquent boy as he finished organizing things at the behind the counter.

"Sure, I guess..."

The exhausted Ren slowly sat down in the stool, putting his school bag at his feet and rested his arms on top of the counter...

"You'll talk with me? You're being well-behaved. That's crazy."

Sojiro looked quite astonished at the country boy, he sounded rather genuine about what he just seemed to noticed.

"Ha, if you say so..."

Ren held an amused look for his guardian, finding that to be actually humorous. After weeks of staying in his café, working for him, and even escorting his own daughter to and from school, Sojiro could still make wisecracks like that...

"So how's school? You're not causing any sort of trouble, are you?"

Sojiro questioned with stern and probing eyes. The country boy didn't seem to notice or care about his serious expression.

"I haven't, I'm pretty sure Futaba has told you..."

"Good, I gotta report to your probation officer twice a month. It's already a pain in the ass so try not to create more work for me to0 do, ya got that?"

"Loud and clear, Sojiro."

Ren answered half-mindedly, he yawned a bit. The delinquent boy from the countryside was being too easy-going about his own situation in his guardian's eyes.

"Don't go dragging other people into your mess, last thing we need is more idiots running around."

The owner of the café had a pretty serious face. Without warning, the cellphone in Sojiro's pocket began vibrating, he dug it out and answered. Ren heard a familiar voice on the other end, though couldn't make out what she was saying, she sounded upset...

"Hm? Something wrong? Yeah, I'm heading out in a bit. Sorry about that... Ok, I'll see you later."

Sojiro returned the phone to his pocket and focused his attention to the curious-looking boy in the stool chair.

"As you can see I'm pretty damn busy with work and in my private life."

The owner of the café let out a tired sigh, Ren grew curious about the phone call.

"That Futaba...?"

He questioned his guardian with somewhat concerned eyes, he fiddled with his frizzy black hair that covered his forehead...

"Something about her friend, if you could lend me a hand here in Leblanc, It'd be a really great help."

Sojiro uttered to him with a beat look on his face. The country boy contemplated what it was like in his shoes, must be tiring to look after a kid on probation, run café and take care of his family every day, though he tried not to think too hard on it...

"Sure, am I doing something more fulfilling than just serving and doin' dirty dishes?"

With a joking smile, Ren questioned the old café owner with a little sarcasm in his tone. His guardian held a smug smirk for him.

"Mhm, I'll teach you how to make the perfect cup of coffee, not a bad trade, eh?"

The smug Sojiro held a hand to his chin as he offered the boy, who seemed up for it...

"Sounds interesting, at least you'll pay me more right?"

Ren asked with a rather hopeful look on his face, even perking up in his stool chair.

"Haha, quite funny kid…"

Sojiro chuckled to himself about his question. The country boy had a sweat drop on his head in a stunned silence...

"Th-That wasn't a joke..."

He looked disheartened as he sat in the chair.

"Well, enough chitchat, let's get started before closing time."

The enthusiastic Sojiro laid the green apron on the counter for the boy to ready himself and began to teach him the secret techniques about making a cup of coffee.

Yoshizawa Residence

Kasumi sat in her on bedside, in deep thought of her sister Sumire, local competitions they overcame together for ice cream rewards, the times where she succeeded. The twin with the red ribbon felt pained that the moment had come. Looking toward her doorway to her sister's room, she took a breath and made her way out...

She then noticed Sumire quietly reading a book at her study desk with her phone off to the side...

Their rooms were quite identical with the same layout and white color. Shelves, beds, and curtains all had a flowery aesthetic, Kasumi had chosen this look herself...

"Sumire, I need to talk about something, and its paining me to even say what I want to say."

The elder Yoshizawa twin uttered with a conflicted air to her words, this moment was going to pain her for a while... She took another deep breath.

"…What is it, Kasumi?"

This caught Sumire off-guard as she never heard this solemn tone coming before, she slowly pulled herself away from the book "Dressed in Ashes" looking a bit perplexed.

"I spoke to coach, a couple days ago during practice..."

Kasumi explained, a bit dismayed at her own thoughts and memories before speaking more.

"She told me something about our routines... I can't say she wasn't wrong now that I think about it..."

The elder sister stated how she felt to Sumire, holding a reproachful eye to her for a moment. A dreaded feeling came over her younger sister, what she feared had finally caught up.

"I-I…"

Sumire struggled to explain what she had felt for months, maybe even years of her life. The feelings of inferiority and sadness within her heart. The words refused to come out of her mouth because she was scared of what Kasumi would think, the one she admired most...

"Sumire, were you trying to mimic my performances for a while...?"

Kasumi questioned her, she was distraught in her face which created a visible look of anxiety in Sumire… silence between them crept for a moment.

"…Y-Yes."

The younger twin uttered under her breath and swallowed an unbearable feeling of guilt and shame as Kasumi remained silent, nervous sweats took over her body as her mind raced. The worst of it was coming now.

"Why...? I don't understand."

With a raised brow, Kasumi looked displeased by her younger sister's response, she tried to comprehend the thought while holding back anger at the truth...

"B-Because I… I-I wanted to be you, Kasumi."

Sumire explained, she looked at her older sister's feel and visibly grew sour at thought of herself, remembering all of her own failures and the times where Kasumi succeeded...

Tears began to form in her sad eyes, she had rested Dressed in Ashes wide-open on her desk, the anguish fell upon a page...

"What...? What do you mean, be me?"

Kasumi was puzzled at what Sumire meant, silence between them returned. The quiet sob from her younger sister was the only sound made throughout their home, their parents and grandmother weren't there to see them like this...

"Y-You're the talented one, you're the one everyone wants and loves, to see win, to be the best in the World. Being me, I-I try to keep up with someone so amazing, but no matter how hard I practice with you… it's never enough… I can't reach the top of gymnastics with you while being me… I can't fulfill our promise."

In between wiping away her tears, Sumire took a breath and laid her feelings out for Kasumi to hear. It was painful to do with the looks of sadness mixed with anger coming from her older sister...

As tears continued to fall down her cheeks, Sumire looked up to her older sister's face and was stunned by what she saw…tears in Kasumi's eyes.

"It's not fair to me, Sumire... I worked hard on my routines; I would want nothing more than to share my glory with you!"

In a moment of angst, elder Yoshizawa twin slammed her hand on the desk near Sumire's book, scaring her, Sumire looked away because it was too much to face.

Kasumi soon realized that she had gotten worked up and quickly wiped her own tears. She faced away from her younger sister's eyes, not wanting her to see anymore.

Sumire knew that she greatly hated this feeling of being upset over something and not being able to solve it herself. Pride and confidence were prominent in her life, this moment made her powerless... She gave a side glance with hurt eyes...

"If you don't believe in yourself soon... you won't come back to club practice for a while…"

Distraught by the truth, the elder twin stated rather bluntly to Sumire. She turned away from her sister and began walking out, leaving Sumire almost speechless...

"Wh-What did you say, Kasumi?"

Sumire was so horrified by her words, that the tears stopped falling for a moment.

"Coach Hiraguchi is giving you a break from gymnastics, she wants you to think about who you really are... We made our promise here, in your room... I didn't think that moment would share it with something like this..."

Kasumi had reached the doorway, she stood motionless facing out, she did not glance back... things were too much even for her...

"I-I'm... so sorry, Kasumi..."

Sumire sobbed openly once again, she hated herself even more because of this, of what she put Kasumi through...

"You know, Sumire is more than a sister, more than a gymnast to me… I hope that Dr. Maruki can help sort this out for you. I'm not angry with you anymore, I'm disappointed…"

Kasumi walked out, leaving her younger sister alone. Both of them felt horrible tonight, Sumire continued crying in her room. Her phone went off with a notification on... it was Futaba. She took a moment to try and calm down before trying to answer.