WON'T TURN BACK, miyuki kazuya

chapter 24

The Mariners win Game 4.

5-0.

Eijun pitches the entire game this time.

There is something to be said about the simultaneous comfort of having your family and friends watching you as well as the unstoppable drive to do better because of their presence. It doesn't wear down on him or Miyuki, they don't fracture under the pressure, they are stronger because of it.

They are the most true, tangible reminder of why they are here, what they are trying to do.

(The moment of Eijun and Miyuki's realizations during the game yesterday was captured and posted on all MLB media after they confirmed with the two of them. So, it's clear to everyone else, too.

So much so that after today's game, Jimenez meets you all, thanking you for your presence and asking if you're absolutely sure you don't want a private viewing box, because I could definitely work something out for you guys.

But all of you are too fond of your seats.)

It's all in good fun now, but the truth is, with this win, the World Series score is now 3-2, with the Mariners leading.

They need one more to win the World Series.

One more and then the Mariners might be winning the World Series for the first time since their inception.

Tomorrow is their last game that will be on Seattle soil. If they don't win (you hate even thinking it), they will take off for Los Angeles, where they will play Game 6, and if needed, Game 7.

Ever the pragmatic one, Chris is prepared with plane tickets and hotel rooms, should you all need to head down to LA.

But like you always do, you have faith in them. You think, you really do, that they're going to win Game 5 and win the World Series with it.

It's not just Miyuki or Eijun performing at the top of their game, it's everyone else. No dropped balls, no erroneous fielding mistakes. They're putting in their all, because they know what's at stake, too.

And with that, Game 5 is upon you before you can even blink.

-

A rainy day presents itself as a good omen. You think if it'd been unusually sunny or unusually warm, you would be worried. Los Angeles is typically warm year-round and Seattle is its polar opposite. Let the weather act normally and you won't think anything else of it.

(Lula vehemently agrees with your thoughts, so that also makes you feel a little better.)

Just like the past two days, the stadium is packed and the streets are, too. You've seen countless videos of closed-off streets filled with hundreds, maybe thousands, of people celebrating the Mariners' wins and you've seen even more videos of bursting-at-the-seams bars and restaurants and the people there celebrating, too.

A voice that sounds a bit like Miyuki says that even if they lose, at the very least, the city will have had a very nice tourist season.

But they aren't going to. You know it.

Both teams are fighting for it — the Mariners, because they know with one more win, that's it, and the Dodgers, because it's their job to do anything they can to stop their momentum in its tracks. You aren't going to doubt the team so much that you think they'd lose if they needed to head back to LA to play Game 6 but the pressure would be tenfold, because they'd be tied 3-3. And there, it could go anyone's way.

But of course, they know this.

Carlos starts the game, with Miyuki. It's always a matter of ego when it comes to the pitchers, but here, you think it works out just fine. Carlos is fueled both by his own feelings about Eijun's stardom as well as the motivation to do better and better here means helping to create an iron defense with his pitching.