𝐣𝐮𝐝𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 [𝐟𝐮𝐫𝐮𝐲𝐚 𝐬.]

𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐲-𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐞.

katsumi sleepily sat in the canteen, watching footage of their summer tournament game against yakushi. it was eight o'clock in the evening and katsumi's eyelids were heavy, but she forced them to stay open.

an empty bag of gummy bears and a bottle of chocolate milk sat on the table next to her, forgotten about by the fielder. when the footage ended, katsumi only started it back up again, not realizing the time. an hour into her third play through of the video, the door to the canteen slid open.

she failed to take notice of the noise, jumping when she felt a hand on her shoulder. "what're you doing up?" she looked up, meeting a concerned brown gaze. kawakami's face was etched into a faint frown, eyebrows pinched together.

"w- watching the yaku- kushi g- game." she murmured, looking back to the tv.

"katsumi, it's nearly one in the morning." kawakami sighed, grabbing the remote and clicking the tv off.

"and you're up?" came katsumi's reply. kawakami frowned, softly whacking the back of her head and making her gasp in shock.

"your brother's gonna kill you." he warned the girl, pulling her out of the chair and carrying her out of the lunchroom. "let's get you back to your dorm." katsumi grumbled, too tired to fight against his hold. "you know you need to get lots of rest so that you can play again. how've you been sleeping, anyway?" he eyed her eye bags warily.

"f- fine." she murmured, leaning into kawakami's warmth.

"hm." kawakami's lips pressed into a thin line. "i don't believe you." katsumi scowled, verbally unresponsive. "if you tell me, i won't tell anyone. promise." katsumi looked up at him, seeing no trace of deception in his eyes.

"been having nightm- mares.."

"you wanna talk about it?" kawakami asked softly, though he thought he already knew the answer.

"i just..." his breath hitched with surprise when she didn't outright say no. he kept his gaze forward, not wanting to startle her out of opening up. "j- just not good enough... i've failed so- so much..."

"katsumi." he stopped walking, frowning deeply. "shut the fuck up." katsumi gaped at him, stuttering at his words. "up until your injury, you've done nothing but succeed. you've excelled again and again, without mistake—it was almost inhuman. katsumi, making mistakes is human, your injury is nothing to beat yourself up about. our loss against inashiro is not your fault."

katsumi remained silent, looking away from the boy and instead focusing on her twiddling thumbs. kawakami didn't speak up again, only continued walking to her dorm. "get yourself in bed, and don't you dare wake up on time. if i see you in the canteen at breakfast, i'm telling your brother everything. i want you to get a full eight hours—take tomorrow off. coach and miyuki will understand."

he let the girl down, patting her head and turning to leave. suddenly, a hand reached out and grabbed the back of his shirt, pulling him into a firm hug. "thank you, senpai." kawakami smiled, turning to hug the girl.

"go to sleep." he patted her head, before pulling away from her and walking away. katsumi smiled softly, stumbling into her room and falling into a pitch black sleep.

˚* ੈ✩‧₊

that morning, katsumi woke up just past nine a.m. after a full eight hours of sleep; just like kawakami had ordered (threatened). katsumi reveled in the rare privilege of being able to lie in bed four hours past her usual wake up time, before pushing herself up to get dressed for the day.

she swung her door open, eyes cast downward. a container with a note sat on the ground and katsumi hummed, bending over to pick it up. she sat at her desk, smiling softly at the note.