Rin began playing soccer alone.
I will catch up with Nii-chan! I'm gonna be the best in Japan, too!
After Sae was gone, the room seemed a bit larger. Itoshi Sae lived up to his name as a boy genius. This room, which was their place until yesterday, is decorated with many certificates and trophies that Sae has won, and just looking at them makes him feel proud. His favorite photo is the one taken when they won the junior competition. Rin is in the third grade and Sae is in the fifth grade. Sae is in the middle of their team, with a bored look in his face like it's just natural to win. Next to him is Rin holding the trophy high in the air because Sae, the ace who was supposed to hold it, let Rin do so.
I'm sure Nii-chan is doing well in Spain. So, I will do my best in morning practice too!
From that day on, Rin decided to practice on the grounds in the morning before anyone else. Even during school classes, he reads books about soccer, reads articles about Sae's success, and thinks about soccer all the time. That's why his test scores are bad, but he doesn't care about that. Besides, because he's only doing well in English to succeed in the world, even if his other grades are bad, there is no problem from Rin's perspective. After school, he goes to club team practice every day.
"Obachan*, ice cream please."
*おばちゃーん/Obachan means "auntie"
On the way there, his usual routine is to go to the penny candy store and eat a popsicle.
"Yes, here you go. Speaking of which, what happened with your brother lately? I haven't seen him at all. Did he quit soccer?"
He buys popsicles with his own allowance now.
"It's not like that. When he becomes the best in the world, he'll come back to buy ice cream."
The auntie at the penny candy store didn't know much about soccer.
After he practiced with the team, he always practiced on his own every day until he was the last one to leave. On the empty practice field, he earnestly kicked a soccer ball.
Twack!
He shoots at the point he aimed. He keeps shooting.
... That shot's still naive...
He shoots until he is satisfied. Even after returning home, he continued muscle training and stretching in front of Sae's trophies. It's tough, but it will pay off on his muscles, and stretching is important to prevent injury. When he's done, he watches a horror movie and then goes to bed. This is his daily routine.
For some reason, since Sae has been gone, he only watches horror movies. Movies, videos, and even games, should be chilling and scary. Playing horror games alone at night is quite thrilling. Just like this, Rin's stoic days passed.
I'I.....get stronger. My aim is to be like Nii-chan.
However no matter how hard he tried, reality didn't go as expected. Rin hit a wall early on.
Something's not right.....
For some reason, he couldn't make shots like he used to. When it came to matches and simulated practice, he just couldn't seem to get a good combination with his teammates.
"What's wrong? Feeling under the weather?"
"You gotta properly look at the whole thing and play~"
The coach would worry about him, and his teammates would warn him. The harder he tries, the more he feels like he's going nowhere. In agony, he heads to the club practice today as well.
"Obachan, ice cream please.
For a moment."
He's eating a popsicle at the penny candy store. As he was munching on it, the word "lost" appeared on the stick.
"Alright."
"Oh, did you win?"
When he pumped his fist, the auntie at the penny candy store called out to him.
"Nope. I lost."
"You're happy because you lost? You're a strange kid, aren't you?"
The auntie tilted her head in puzzlement.
"It's fine. I don't want to use my luck."
The reason he's happy with that loss is because long ago, Sae said, "Those who use their luck on things like this can't be the best in the world." Now that he thinks of it, maybe he was trying to cover up the fact that his younger brother Rin was the winner and he's the loser. Sae hates to lose. Even so, not jinxing it but Rin's a bit happy when he loses. In fact, even if he wins, he won't eat the second one. He just throws it in the trash to destroy the evidence. Because that's what Sae did. Like this, Rin does nothing but imitate Sae. But why does he feel like he can't catch up? Of course, he knows that he can't always win just because of hard work. Even so, it was hard not to get any results despite his stoic efforts. He's been practicing the same as Sae, and if anything, Rin's physique is better. But he can't score goals. He can't win matches.
...But I'll do it. I'm going to be like Nii-chan.
After finishing his ice cream, Rin headed back to practice