Youthful Days (Book 1)

23. Old Wounds

After that day, Ayuna stayed away. She knew that was the captain's covert way of expressing disapproval.

She didn't blame him: as a leader, Tezuka had only the team on his mind. He had grand visions and wanted his team members to become the finest athletes in the entire country. In his eyes, she had the potential to be a roadblock—an obvious distraction to a vital player and the rest of the team.

From that point on, Ayuna looked for excuses to steer clear of the tennis courts. As the matchday against Hyotei loomed closer, Ayuna wondered about skipping it altogether. Surely, any of the first-year attendees would be able to give her a second-by-second recap.

Although Fuji noticed these subtle changes in her behavior, he didn't say a word. Despite being close friends with the captain, he, too, must have a certain degree of respect for him and avoided crossing any boundaries.

Yet on a fateful Sunday morning, her wariness around Tezuka was forever changed.

***

It was exactly a week before the match against Hyotei. Coach Ryuzaki intended to assign Tezuka to the singles one spot. However, knowing he had traumatic injuries, she wanted reassurance from a professional before finalizing the lineup.

On Sunday, he decided to visit his orthopedic clinic to check out the old wounds on his shoulder and elbow. After a routine physical examination and x-rays, Tezuka was told that his shoulder-to-elbow alignment was good: they were deemed safe to resume normal activities. Yet, they were nowhere near the conditions required for athletic exertion, especially not for a joint-demanding sport like tennis.

The doctor sat Tezuka down in his office solemnly. "Tezuka-kun, irrespective of your stable conditions, this upcoming match can still be risky to your recovery."

"I understand your concern, doctor." Tezuka pressed, "But didn't you once encourage exercise?"

"I encouraged you to perform light to moderate exercise. A competitive tennis match is neither of those."

"I have no intention of playing vigorously."

The doctor seemed skeptical of his claim. Brows furrowed, he asked, "When you practice, do you feel any aches or pains from your left shoulder?"

"Not much."

"If the pain isn't zero, then it's an indication of incomplete healing."

Receiving no reaction from Tezuka, the doctor sighed.

"Play the match if you wish to, Tezuka-kun. However, since you've been my patient for a few years, I'm extremely worried about the ongoing conflict between your athletic ambitions and your health. Although complete recovery for your type of injury is certainly likely, you have been getting in your own way because of continued tennis practice after the initial trauma."

Pausing here, he warned sternly, "You're at a point where you must sacrifice one or the other."

To this, Tezuka nodded thoughtfully. "I understand you perfectly and I'll take your advice to heart." Then, he stood up, bowed and bid the doctor farewell.

***

As soon as he was outside the clinic, Tezuka folded up the doctor's formal recommendations and tucked it into his pockets. He then leafed through his exam results as he strolled down the sidewalk, being careful to choose only the pages with encouraging prognosis.

That was when he came into full collision with an oncoming jogger, the impact knocking the papers out of his hands. As he apologized, Tezuka realized that the person gathering up his papers was none other than Hanamachi Ayuna.