As the two of them remained on the rooftop, Rush lowered her head, her thoughts drifting back to Urara.
What if what Young said was true?
What if she, too, was the hindrance to Urara's success?
What if greatness was only meant for those worthy of it… and not for someone like her?
Silence settled between them, both clouded with doubts; neither dared to break.
Until...
"The truth is… I always wanted to run with Lin. But… it's not that I couldn't catch up to her… rather… I can't catch up to her." Young responded.
She pushed herself upright and leaned against the fence, her gaze falling onto the school grounds below, where Umamusumes dashed across the track.
Rush startled. "What do you mean…?"
"You see…" Young continued quietly, "Lin never knew one thing about me. One thing that will hurt her more than anything else…"
She hesitated.
"It's that…"
While Rush and Young stayed on the rooftop, Urara finally finished micturition.
She bounced down the corridor, humming cheerfully, her mind as empty as ever.
Step after step, turn after turn—
Until she spotted a familiar figure once more.
Lidden lay sprawled on the ground exactly like before.
"Lin-chan!" Urara called out, rushing toward her, while Lidden grumbled on the floor.
After helping the exhausted Lidden up...
The two of them settled onto the floor, sitting side by side.
"Are you alright, Lin-chan?!" Urara asked again.
Lidden nodded quickly. "Yes… Thank you, Ura… Urara!"
"What are you doing on the floor anyway?" Urara added.
Before Lidden could answer, Urara suddenly gasped.
"OH! Let me guess! You're trying to mimic how the Spidermusume crawls, aren't you?! I want to try it too!"
Just as Urara prepared to lower herself onto the ground, Lidden panicked, waving her hands frantically, embarrassed.
"No… no! Urara… that's not true! I just tripped because of exhaustion!"
***
***
***
A few minutes later...
After calming the lively pink creature, they returned to sitting quietly. Lidden sighed as she curled into herself, knees drawn close, her mouth buried between them.
"Urara…" she muffled, "Do you think Young purposely… evading me…?"
"Why would she!" Urara replied without hesitation. "Young-chan is Lin-chan's friend, isn't she? A friend would never abandon one another when it mattered the most!"
She grinned.
"Just like how Rush-chan and I will never abandon one another when it mattered the most!"
"Is… is that so…?" Lidden lifted her head slightly, tilting it. She wanted to believe it—but she doubted, and lowered her head again.
"But I feel like… like she really was…"
"Ever since we finished our race, she's been more distant than ever… It's like she doesn't want to see me again… doesn't want to be with me…"
A pause.
"Was it because we lost…?" she whispered.
"No way! Young-chan isn't someone like that! Urara can tell Young-chan has a heart! And a person with a heart like hers would never do that!" Urara insisted, nodding.
"But… sometimes, even people with hearts can stop their beating when it is threatened by pride…" Lidden murmured. "It reminded me of my cousin… she was a truly magnificent specimen… You might have heard of her…"
"Really, really?! Who is it?!" Urara bounced in place, eyes sparkling with curiosity. And her face shoved right onto Lidden's.
Lidden was startled and began to tremble. "Wh— wh— what?! You were a bit too close, Urara!"
After calming that pink creature again, Urara returned to her seat as Lidden continued,
"You… you remembered my full name?"
"That my name is Bamboo Lidden. A familiar name with someone on the international track."
"Really…?" Urara tilted her head, trying hard to recall. She wasn't very good with full names unless she had already given them a nickname.
"Yes…!" Lidden swallowed. "Bamboo Memory."
"Bamboo… M… mm… mummery?" Urara struggled, as usual.
"No… no! Bamboo Memory! The legendary Umamusume who nearly bested the beast herself, Oguri Cap!"
"Oh…! Really…?" Urara remained somewhat clueless.
Lidden nodded. "Yes…! Whe— when I was younger, she was my idol… my inspiration…"
Her expression dimmed.
"Bu… but…"
"But…?" Urara asked gently, tilting her head.
"Sh… she left… me. No— us," Lidden corrected softly. "And it's not entirely her fault. She has a dream to chase! It would be unreasonable if I stopped her because of it!"
She tightened her grip around her knees.
"But still… it left a void in me… Every day since, I still wish I could've stayed with her longer… run side by side with her more…"
She swallowed.
"Then… because of her departure to Tokyo, I began isolating myself from people… friends… even family. I was afraid to feel that void again. Afraid that if someone left me again… I would suffocate from it… again..."
Meanwhile...
On the rooftop, Young and Rush remained.
"You see, Sky… I've always dreamed big. Wanted to reach the big leagues. I told myself I would," she said quietly. "But dreams aren't meant to be permanent. In a moment, they can shatter. Crushed like paper before you react to it."
She exhaled.
"It happened when I found out that I… I have an issue…"
She didn't elaborate.
"Because of that, I isolated myself. Kept my distance. I didn't want anyone to carry my burden with me. It wasn't pretty. It was ugly."
She leaned back against the fence.
"That lasted… until I met Lin. She was quiet. Secluded. Just like me."
A faint smile appeared.
"But because of her… I started dreaming again."
Meanwhile, Lidden added downstairs, "Young was the first to introduce herself…"
"She said she wanted to be my friend. Of course, I gave her the cold shoulder because of my problem."
Her fingers fidgeted slightly.
"Yet… she never gave up. When I had a problem, she was the first one there. She stayed. Because of that, she somehow… reminded me of my cousin. The way she would show me pride and glory."
She continued softly. "Except Young didn't do it on the field… but with the way she explained techniques."
On the rooftop and in the corridor, at the same moment—
"She inspired me,"
Both Lidden and Young said.
"She made me dream again… even when I have not long to live for…" Young said quietly.
Rush froze, shocked.
"You will be the first— hopefully the last— to know about it." Young lifted her head, slight tears gathered along her lashes. "I might not survive into adulthood… And I may lose the mobility of my body during my teenage years… Because of this… stupid brain of mine."
Her voice began to crack.
"I always wanted to run… but I... I... I might not be able to… because my body will slowly stop listening to me the older I get…"
"You mean…" Rush gently asked.
"Yes," Young answered, wiping her tears. "I have a disease. One that gradually takes pieces of your life as you grow. And I'm terrified that when Lin finds out… it will hurt her more than anyone else."
She then straightened herself with a proud smile.
"But after today's performance… I can proudly say she'll make it. She'll move forward— even without me."
In the meantime, down the corridor, Lidden clenched her fists.
"I will never make it without Young! She taught me how to run properly… trained me… showed me how to become what I aspire to be. Maybe not like my cousin… but as myself."
"And I wanted… to stay with her…" she added softly.
"I wanted to be… with her…"
They uttered at the same time.