courage dear heart | Yuki Ishikawa

69

After a week of intense training, the day of the qualifiers finally arrived. There was a palpable sense of excitement in the air.

Strangely, I didn't feel anxious at all. If anything, I was eager—ready to compete.

The competition venue was breathtaking. The snow glistened under the bright, clear sky, reflecting the sun's rays, and the mountains loomed majestically in the background.

The course was perfectly groomed, with towering jumps and smooth, well-defined slopes. It felt surreal to be there, surrounded by such beauty, knowing I'd be competing in this very spot.

The atmosphere was electric, filled with athletes warming up, coaches giving last-minute advice, and the hum of anticipation from the small crowd that had gathered.

I hadn't spoken much to Yuki over the past week—he was caught up with his games, and they were doing well, winning all of them so far.

There had been one particularly tough match for Japan, and they barely managed to scrape through with a win.

Yuki had called me that night, but instead of being happy, he was frustrated, blaming himself for the team's close call.

He sounded angry, weighed down by the pressure. I'd spent the call trying to convince him that it wasn't his fault, and that instead of focusing on the negatives, he should see it as an opportunity to figure out what needed improvement in the team.

As for me, training had gone well. I'd pushed myself hard, enjoying the challenge of perfecting my tricks. I even experimented with a few new ones, despite my coach's concerns.

He wasn't too thrilled about my last-minute changes, but I couldn't resist. I wanted to take a risk, to give it my all, and try something different for these qualifiers.

Standing there on the snow, surrounded by the mountains and the familiar adrenaline of competition, I felt ready.

Ready to show what I'd worked so hard for.

As I was standing there, lost in my thoughts, Ayumu suddenly came up behind me, grabbing my shoulders. I jumped, startled.

"Nabi! Excited??" he asked, grinning.

"Captain! I'm super excited! What about you?" I couldn't hold back the huge smile on my face.

"Ready to take home my gold medal!" he practically shouted, his energy overflowing.

I couldn't help but laugh—his enthusiasm was infectious. "Let's go get those medals!" I replied, feeling even more pumped up.

Just then, our manager called out to us, signaling that it was time to join the coach and the rest of the team for final preparations. Reira would be going first, and I was up right after her.

Reira looked a bit nervous, and the team noticed it too. We all gathered around her, trying to ease her tension.

"You've trained so hard for this," Hiro said, patting her back.

"Just do what you've been doing in practice, you've got this," Kaito added

Reira gave us a small smile, taking a deep breath.

We watched as she took her position, and soon, she was flying down the course. As expected, she crushed it—her run was flawless, and she easily qualified among the top.

Then, it was my turn.

I was fourth, and I was glad not to be the first one to start.

For the qualification, we had three jumps, and they would consider the best two.