Guarded (Sugawara x OC)

Chapter 26

"I'm sorry, what?"

But Machi's face didn't change. She stared back at him more determined than ever while Suga's quickly went from inquisitive, to incredulous. "You can't be serious."

"Why not?" Machi crossed her arms defiantly, "It's a minor tear. A few days of rest and it'll be fine."

The hand that was grasping the arm rest of her chair clenched tightly so that the fabric pulled taunt, "A minor tear is still a tear, Sunshine." Suga could feel his pulse rising. Of course there was always a fear that this might happen, but he had brushed it off almost as quickly as it crossed his mind. Machi was smart; she took sport seriously and knew when she reached her limit. But now that he was thinking about it, every time she'd talked about taking breaks and knowing when to stop, it had always been in reference to someone else, but never herself. "You could get really hurt."

"Not to uh, interrupt or anything," Machi's uncle approached the side of the van where his niece and Suga were still talking. He'd done his best to hang back and give them some space, but the direction their conversation seemed to be taking didn't sound good, and knowing Machi, she wouldn't take kindly to Suga's protests, no matter how well intended they were. "I gotta get these two troublemakers home. The wife is makin' curry tonight."

"Oh, ok, sorry about that." Suga apologized defeatedly. He gave Machi's hand a quick peck and slapped Yamaguchi's shoulder less roughly than normal. "See you two tomorrow, then? At practice?" Both Machi and Tadashi smiled their confirmation, Machi a bit quick to slide the door shut, which Suga took as her way of ending the conversation before he could talk her out of it.

"She won't listen to any of us." Tadashi turned around so his back was facing the van and his cousin couldn't see what was being said. Suga had never seen Yamaguchi look so upset. While he kept his shoulders slack of tension, it was evident in his face and the way his brow creased and lip trembled. If anyone had seen something like this coming it was him, who watched Machi push herself farther than most athletes would ever consider, every day for years. It had only been a matter of time. "Tsukki and I have tried, but she always brushed us off by saying it's normal. But she might listen to you." He was speaking a bit faster than normal to try and get his point across before either his dad or cousin thought something was up, but Suga still caught every word. "She's stubborn, so it won't be easy..."

"Thanks Yamaguchi," Suga was glad to know he wasn't an island in thinking this wasn't right. He gave his teammate a soft nudge towards the van so as not to keep them waiting any longer, "Good thing I'm stubborn too."

***

Suga definitely tried. Every day for almost the entire week in fact, he'd approach the subject with a different angle or concern to address to Machi as to why competing on Saturday was a bad idea. Yamaguchi hadn't been lying; Machi refused to listen to half of it or brushed off the more serious concerns as if they were nothing more than dirt getting swept under a rug. And then before he could counter any of her protests, Machi would shuffle off as quickly as one could while using crutches and Suga would let out a frustrated breath before following.

The closer Saturday came, the more desperate Suga became to prevent the inevitable. Every chance he had, in between classes, at lunch, even while waiting for her ride home, Suga would practically beg her to reconsider. But nothing seemed to help. Machi was a bull refusing to budge. And the more Suga pushed the subject the more hard headed she became.

"I don't get what you're so worried about Suga," Machi grumbled for what felt like the fiftieth time that day. His well meaning concern was starting to feel more annoying than sweet and she could feel her patience waning. Crossing her arms tightly, Machi pouted, "Minor injuries happen all the time in martial arts and they hardly ever keep the best athletes from participating." Granted, she knew she wasn't the best just yet, but quitting wouldn't help her get there any sooner.