Chapter 56: The Calm That Lit The Fire!

Chapter 56: The Calm That Lit The Fire!Raya stood smiling knowingly, while Haruma remained frozen in his place, eyes wide in shock. Shiori smiles and shakes her hand, "Ooh no, it’s really not needed, Haruma need rest, I’ll walk" "No way!" Jiho chimed in with his usual energy, "Haruma’s a man! he’d totally choose your safety over his rest! right man?" Haruma snapped his head up at Jiho, and began nervously, "I-" Before he could finish, Kabuto stepped in besides Haruma, leaning on him and casually sliding his arm over Haruma’s shoulder. "Yeah Haruma’s a man for sure!" Kabuto said with a wide grin, "And just to keep Haruma company I’ll join them too!" Izaya, practically bouncing with excitement, threw his hands up in the air, "Yeaahhh! and for Kabuto’s company I’ll tag in too!" "Awesome!" Jiho chimed in with his usual enthusiasm, "Count me in too, we’ll race back to the academy!" Raya’s expressions tightened with annoyance, "Enough!" he snapped out loud. Everyone fell silent, snapping their wide surprised eyes on Raya. Realizing everyone’s shocked eyes on him, Raya let out a nervous chuckle, smiling hesitantly, "Hehe... I mean there is no need for all of us to tag along, it’s Haruma’s reward after all!" Kabuto raised an eyebrow in confusion, "Haruma’s reward?" he asked. "Yep," Raya replied almost instantly, "I mean come on, there’s no doubt that today Haruma was the best, so we should give him a reward, and there is no better reward than giving him an opportunity to walk Shiori home." A brief silence settled over everyone as they were looking at Raya with slight confusion, who was flashing a hesitant smile. Breaking the pin, Itsuki smiled, "Ahh, yeah yeah, Haruma really was the best, let him have this honor." Everyone suddenly began nodding, a low murmur of agreement passing between them, making Raya take a sigh of relief. Shiori was standing silently, eyes cast downwards with a soft blush coloring her face. Haruma seemed equally flustered, avoiding eye contact, his own face tinged faintly red. Kabuto let out an exaggerated sigh, turning to Haruma, "Alright fine... enjoy your reward!" He said, standing straight on his feet. Haruma took a steady breath and gave a small nod, "Alright, I’ll make sure she gets home safely." He then puts on his sleeveless hoodie, adjusting it quietly before gesturing for her to take the lead. She nodded gently and started walking, he silently followed her. Behind him, his teammates watched him go with soft, warm smiles. A little off to the side Kurogami stood slightly apart from the group, eyeing them leave while licking on his popsicle... Now walking side by side, Haruma and Shiori moved in silence. As they were walking, Shiori, appearing slightly nervous, glanced up at Haruma, "So, In four days you’ll be playing a big match, must be feeling nervous, right?" Maintaining his eyes ahead, Haruma gave a small, calm smile, "Not really." he replied softly. Keeping her eyes on him, she asked "Aside from the All-School Cup, how many tournaments have you played?" Still looking ahead, Haruma responded with not an answer, but a question, "Why were you there in the All-School Cup?" Looking down, Shiori answered softly, "I mentioned I’m a big football fan, so I heard about the tournament and decided to go watch it." "Did you watch all the matches?" He asked almost instantly. She shook her head lightly "No, just the final. My job and distance made it hard to watch all the games, so I decided to watch the one that mattered the most." Haruma nodded, processing her words, then after a pause he asked, "You really liked my play?" Shiori’s face lit up with a bright smile, as she quickly stepped in front of Haruma, walking backwards so she could face him. "Of Course I did!" She began enthusiastically, "The moment you got subbed in, no one weren’t actually expecting you to be that good, but you really pulled out a blinder of a performance. You alone led your team to victory! that bicycle kick save you made was absolutely stunner, I was literally jumping on my feets watching you play and-" Haruma kept his eyes on her, walking steadily with a big warm smile on his face. He couldn’t help but be drawn in by her energy, the way she spoke with such excitement, reliving the match left him smiling at her. Giggling with excitement, she kept going, "And then that final volley kick of yours followed by that final roar! I’ve never felt such intense goosebumps in my entire life!" She suddenly stopped walking in her tracks, causing Haruma to stop as well. "My home is here." She said gently. keeping eye contact, Haruma nodded in agreement, his eyes never leaving her. She was holding her gaze too, before moving her hand at him, "I’ll be there watching your every game, expecting the same performance." Haruma’s smile grew warmer. He reached out and took her hand, "I’ll give my absolute best and that’s a promise." He gave her hand a gentle shake, with both exchanging warm smiles, holding hands for a moment longer. She gave him a small nod then took a step back before turning around and walking towards her house. Haruma stood still, watching her go with a soft smile on his face. Just as he turned to head back his way, a light downpour started, then quickly getting heavier. Haruma quickly jogged towards a long, roofed structure supported by metal poles, where he stood under its shelter. The sound of rain drumming echoing around him. "Damn!" Haruma muttered, glancing up at the sky, "This was unexpected! maybe I should just wai-" Before he could finish, the sound of footsteps splashing through puddles caught his attention. Shiori came running out of her house and into the rain, taking off her baseball cap to reveal her hair tied in neatly bun. She stood under the rain with arms outstretched, eyes closed, face tilted up at the skies as if embracing every drop. Haruma stood frozen, eyes wide, completely taken off guard by the sight of her twirling gently in the rain, her face shining with a radiant glowing smile. "Hey Shiori!" Haruma called out loud, raising his voice over the sound of the downpour Shiori turned to him, and upon seeing him her smile grew more warm and joyous, "Haruma?" she said. "What are you doing?" Haruma asked, half scolding "You’ll catch a cold!" Still smiling, Shiori raised her hand towards him in a playful invitation, "It’s so fun!" she said. Haruma let out a slight smile, shaking his head before pulling his hood over his head, he stepped into the rain. Shiori beamed with excitement and joy, as Haruma approached and stood in front of her. Without a word, she again closed her eyes looking up at the skies and opened her arms, soaking in the moment. Haruma was watching him with a slight smile tugging at his lips, "What are you doing?" he asked, amused. She opened her eyes and looked at him with a bright smile, "You should try it too, it’s so peaceful!" she said. Haruma smiled softly before closing his eyes and tilting his head up at the sky, opening his arms, as he let the rain wash over him. Smiling at him, Shiori did the same. Haruma remained still, enjoying the calm, when suddenly, his smile slowly began to fade, slipping away into silence. He slowly lowered his head gradually, dropping his arms to sides before slipping his hand into the pockets of his hoodie. His hood casting a shadow over his face covering his eyes and forehead, leaving only the faint outline of his serious expressions, quiet and unreadable. "Shiori I’ll be going now." he said in a low tone, his voice just above a whisper. Shiori opened her eyes and looked at him, "Yeah sure, you must be exhausted, wait let me grab you an umbrella, can’t let our future star catch a cold." "No It’s fine." Haruma said simply, turned around and began to walk away. Shiori watched him leave with a flicker of confusion in her eyes, but it soon melted into a soft smile, "He must be tired." she murmured to herself, watching him fading into the rain. Haruma was walking in silence, the sound of rain and his footsteps was the only sound around him. Slowly he lifted his head, removing the shadows of his hood to reveal his face completely pale and serious, a hint of something dark in his eyes. His face was tense, jaw tightly clenched. Inside his pockets, his fists were tightened, knuckles pressing white. "That’s it! I finally got a chance! a chance I’ll never have again... a single chance to prove myself! a chance to finally conquer this garbage of a game! I’ll not hold back... I’ll do everything! I’ll tear through every limit! I’ll go beyond what’s possible in order to prove how great I am! "I’ll slay you for good! and will show you what true greatness looks like! and when it’s over the world will know, that I’m the best fuckin striker to ever live!" With fire burning in his heart, Haruma passed through the downpour, each step heavier than the last until a golden aura began to surge from his body, blazing brighter against the storm.