The heart of an artist Wakatoshi FF

Chapter 25

By now it was almost afternoon when Wakatoshi had suggested something to eat before it got too late, which Hanabi had not refused. While the ace waited in line at a booth, Hanabi waited patiently on a bench and took her tablet at a convenient moment when Wakatoshi wasn't looking.

She was beginning to feel her exhaustion and hoped that her body would hold out until tonight. She was aware that it was also due to her excitement and that Wakatoshi had simply given her too much emotion.

"Here." she heard Wakatoshi say as he sat down across from her and handed her a bowl of noodles with vegetables. "I didn't know what you liked."

"That's all right, I eat pretty much everything." Hanabi smiled and picked up the chopsticks to eat. "Why did you take me here?" she wanted to know, hoping for a conversation with him. "You said you enjoyed it and actually wanted to be in the art club. Think of it as making up for it."

Hanabi looked briefly into his eyes before lowering her gaze and smiling gently. "As soon as Tendou and you leave school, I'll leave the volleyball club." "Why?"

"It's fun with you, but what will I do when you're gone? Then it will be too boring..." Hanabi mumbled, and it wasn't just because of them that she came to this conclusion. "Thanks to you, I'm enjoying volleyball a bit more again, but I only want to do it as a hobby on the side so that you don't lose this joy any more. I'm grateful to you for almost forcing me to become your manager."

Wakatoshi looked into her gloomy face. Something was one hundred percent wrong, that much was clear. That was why he wanted to meet with her alone to find out. Well, he also had some feelings for her that he couldn't place.

When he had told Tendou about this proposal, he had thought it was a stupid idea. However, his best friend had said with amusement how much he liked Hanabi. And Tendou was absolutely right. He did like Hanabi, a lot.

Time flew by. Late in the evening, Hanabi had looked at everything, really everything, and only then did she set off back to school with Wakatoshi. She had tried very hard not to fall asleep on the journey.

As a gentleman would do, Wakatoshi walked the younger girl to her room, looking at her the whole time. "Hanabi, I know it's not appropriate, but...can I have your notes on our team?"

Hanabi looked up questioningly. "Um, yeah, sure. I guess you need it for the high school tournament, right?" The ace nodded in confirmation, so Hanabi opened the door. "Sure, but I'm going to the bathroom."

"Just tell me where it is." came from him, while Hanabi had already disappeared behind the next door. "First drawer by my desk!" she called out.

Without much sniffing around, Wakatoshi opened the drawer in question, took out the notebook and could only see a sheet fall out, which he immediately picked up from the floor. He briefly thought it was a short note that she had not yet written and narrowed his eyes as he read her name.

Wakatoshi didn't really interfere in any matters, but what he could read made him look at the bathroom door. He realized a few things and swallowed as he went over each line.

Just as Hanabi came out of the bathroom again, Wakatoshi was able to push the sheet back into the drawer and held up the notebook. "Thanks."

"No problem." Hanabi smiled and accompanied the ace to the door. "And...thank you...for today..." the girl spoke, standing on her tiptoes to give him a kiss on the cheek before slowly closing the door. "Good night...Wakatoshi..."

Unable to say anything, Wakatoshi looked at the closed door. He couldn't even hide his blush from himself at that moment. His hand automatically clenched into a fist, while his heart began to ache. He knew a situation like this, back when his mother had died. He knew exactly what Hanabi was going through now, which made it even more painful for him.

Hanabi had not only lied to her family, but also to all her friends. She didn't just have a simple vitamin D deficiency. No, it was even worse than he had thought. His suspicion that something was wrong had been confirmed today.

Her reticence, her quiet nature and her exhaustion. All of this was the after-effect of her diagnosis, which she would never tell anyone. Now he also realized why she wanted to keep her distance and leave volleyball. If there was no cure for her, it wouldn't be noticeable in the art club how much strength her body had lost.

Wakatoshi realized how Hanabi was preparing for the worst and didn't want it to get worse. No! He didn't want it to get to the point where Hanabi went to ground! Not now, when he had feelings for her!

Her lung cancer was only in the early stages, so he could help her get out of it! He would never let Hanabi die now, just like his mother. He would never allow Hanabi to give up!