"Hey there!!

How are you guys doing in the heat?!"

"Oh, Mion-san.

We're doing good.

Is that our refreshment?

Thanks a bunch.

You're such a great manager!"

"I just felt like coming here.

I didn't bring this for you, by the way.

And don't treat me as your manager without my permission, please."

"We'd be a stronger team if you were our manager, Mion.

...Why don't you apply?

As manager, I mean."

Satoshi-kun smiled at me in a carefree manner.

...I didn't want to become their manager. It'd be tiresome.

I've been coming every week, though, so I'm a quasi-manager already.

"Well, if I feel like it.

Anyway, how's Satoshi-kun doing, Coach?

Is his batting average improving?"

"Yes, yes. He's doing fine.

His batting average is...... well,

if you buy three packs of rice crackers at Sevens Mart..."

"Aha hahaha!

Does that mean it's thirty percent?

...Wow,

you're doing great, Satoshi-kun!"

"...Mmph.

It's not just about the number, Mion.

I have to be able to hit the ball when it really counts."

"It's good that you're aware of your weaknesses, Satoshi-kun.

You just continue working on them for now."

Irie signaled to the pitcher, who then threw the ball.

Satoshi-kun looked calm, following the ball with his eyes. Then he swung!

Thwack!!

The ball flew between the first and second bases and landed in the distance.

"Wow!

That's great!

Good job, Satoshi-kun!"

I clapped, and Satoshi-kun blushed in response. He repositioned his helmet to hide his face.

"Well,

he's good in practice and when the game is slow..."

Irie smiled compassionately.

...It seemed that Satoshi-kun really couldn't perform well when it counted.

While he was usually good, when everybody expected him to perform, he couldn't.

I didn't think it was because of nervousness... he just couldn't do it.

...I think it's a perfect fit for Satoshi-kun's character. He seems calm at first glance, but he's actually slow.

"Numerically speaking, you're a great player...

But you need to be able to hit the ball even when things get serious.

That's why you were an easy out in the match with the Ukita Jaguars the other day!!"

"......Mmph...

Shut up. I know that."

"If he'd been able to hit the ball then, he would have been a hero...

What a shame..."

A hit could have put the offense into the lead, or at least given them an extension.

That was when Satoshi-kun came up to bat.

Irie wanted him to live up to everybody's expectations...

But statistically, that wasn't likely to happen...

Yet Irie insisted on giving him a chance, in spite of the fact that all the team members had suggested a pinch hitter.

"Ahh!

It would've been perfect if you could have hit it!!

Why didn't you?!

Why can't you hit the ball in a situation when it really matters?!"

"There was nothing I could do...

I know I'm weak in a situation like that...

I thought a pinch hitter was a better idea too..."

"It's not about the match, it's about you, Satoshi-kun!!

Arrgh!!

You need to be more aggressive!!

Shouldn't you have thought the opposite way?

Shouldn't you have insisted that you'd come up to bat, no matter what everybody else said?!

I can't believe you wanted to give away the chance to some pinch hitter!!

Why are you so weak like that...?!"

"That's what I'm always telling him...

I know that's one of his good points, too. But, uh......"

"You can be a gentleman at other times, but when playing games, you should be a demon!!

I think all men should have those two sides to them!!

You need to let your demon out, Satoshi-kun!!

You're native to Hinamizawa, so never forget that you have the demon's blood running through your veins!!

Are you listening?!

Satoshi-kun?!"

"...Mmph...

I-I am...

I'm not sure, but..."

"What aren't you sure about? We're talking about you!

So...

...Whoa!

.........Ahh..."

Satoshi-kun suddenly started stroking my head. He looked delighted, for some reason.

...A blush immediately spread across my face.

I didn't know how to respond...

"You're giving me advice, right?

Thanks.

I'll do my best."

"......H-Hey...

don't you try to fool me..."

"I'm not.

I'm just happy that you care about me.

Ahahahaha."

I couldn't resist his hand.

...I couldn't help mumbling like he does.

Satoshi-kun ran back to the field, leaving me red as a beet.

"...Do you feel good when you have your head stroked?"

"...Depends.

If it were you, I'd have to teach you a new martial arts technique."

"Ah, what a shame!

Aha ha ha ha...

All right, everyone, gather around!!

Why don't you split into groups and have a practice match?"

The Hinamizawa Fighters are sort of a lazy team.

The members gather simply to enjoy playing baseball, not to fight for victory.

The Okinomiya Titans use this field too, but they practice on a different day of the week. They always train hard using dumbbells and stuff.

Our team split into two groups and started a match, retaining their loose atmosphere.

"I'll keep track of the score.

Coach, do you have a pencil?"

"Thanks for helping out.

Here."

I took the pencil and the clipboard.

...I didn't know how to differentiate between recording hits and errors at first, but by now I was used to it.

"Show me what you got, Satoshi-kun!!

Oh, maybe it'll be too much pressure if I cheer for you too excessively.

Just do okay then!"

"...Mmph... That doesn't sound very encouraging either...!"

"Ahahahaha! Do your best!!"

Time passed slowly that Sunday.

Huge white clouds appeared in the sky. They made me feel healthy.

Humans are born to be active under the sun.

One of the parents was acting as umpire today,

so Irie sat on the bench with me.

He shouted words of encouragement to the kids while they ran to their positions.

Any other baseball coach would constantly berate them, but he was much more generous, like a kindergarten teacher.

He let the kids have fun while watching over them.

...To other baseball players, it might look a little naive...

"I'm surprised you guys can do well with only a small amount of practice."

"Kids in Hinamizawa romp around every day,

so the amount of exercise they get surpasses that of the city kids.

Besides, too much training is not always effective."

"...Wow, you think completely differently from the Okinomiya Titans.

I can understand why their coach hates you."

"It's not about being right.

Matches exist for someone to win, after all.

So prioritizing victory certainly isn't wrong.

I think it's admirable to aim for victory together...

but the goal of our team doesn't happen to be victory, that's all."

The Hinamizawa Fighters and the Okinomiya Titans had been rivals for a long time.

Both teams shared the same baseball field, for one thing...

and originally, there was only one team, but the people living in Hinamizawa left and made their own...

Anyhow,

we were rivals.

The Okinomiya Titans were strictly about winning, and the Hinamizawa Fighters were just about having fun.

...Surprisingly, our scores weren't that different.

Which meant... our team had something they didn't.

Even though I couldn't put it into words, I knew what made that happen.

"Hey, Team One, no slacking!

You can make up the two-point difference pretty easily!

Team Two, no slacking either!"

Still, some parents would criticize our coach for being too lenient.

...But still others would strongly agree with him.

Which side would I take?

Hmm... the latter...? I couldn't really say for sure.

The reason for this was that Irie had an obnoxious habit of sexual harassment.

In particular, he had a fascination with maids... but I should talk about that some other time.

Satoshi-kun let the ball pass twice to see its trajectory, then hit it on the third pitch and ran to first base.

"Oh, he did it.

He's so good when he's relaxed."

"In the beginning he used to get tired very easily.

Hahahaha. He's improved quite a lot since then."

"......He really does look kind of like a bookworm.

I wonder why he started playing baseball in the first place..."

All the other kids who joined the baseball team loved baseball.

They'd go out to play in the fields outside of practice. That's why they all had an aptitude for it.

But Sis never said that Satoshi-kun exercises intensively in school or anywhere else.

He only likes to read.

That's why I didn't understand why he started playing for this team to begin with.

"Ahahahahaha.

That's because I invited him."

"Is that so?

You recruited him?

...Did you notice some sort of hidden talent?"

"Uh, excuse me. Can I have a cup of barley tea?

......Ah, thank you."

Irie asked for tea in a suspicious manner.

...While he constantly joked around, I knew he was actually a very mature person.

I assumed he was trying to evade my question.

"...Is there a particular reason?"

Irie pretended he didn't hear me, but I pressed him on it. In response, he shrugged, and began answering the question.

"...I think you might be able to guess."

...What would be Mion Sonozaki's guess?

...I quickly searched through the data I had on Satoshi-kun...

I came up with Satoshi-kun's family circumstances.

He lost his parents in an accident a year ago.

Since then, he's been having a tough time at his uncle's home.

"...So, you invited him so that he could vent?"

"Sports are great.

You can free yourself through exercise.

I thought that as long as he concentrated on something else, he could forget about his troubles at home."

"...Er... you know he's usually sort of a daydreamer... zoning out all the time...

Is he still stressed...?"

I knew Satoshi-kun must be suffering even though he didn't look like it.

But Mion Sonozaki never pays attention to things like that, and I had to act like she does.

"Satoshi-kun got really sick after his uncle took him into his custody.

He had many clinical symptoms, but the causes were unknown."

Satoshi-kun often got sick

after he was taken into his uncle's custody.

He suffered from fatigue and migraines.

He suffered from a lack of energy and sleeplessness.

...The coach, I mean, Dr. Irie, soon realized:

Satoshi-kun was suffering from a psychological disorder.

Most of the people in Hinamizawa knew how bad Satoshi-kun's environment was.

It was natural for him to become sick, because he entered that bad environment right after his parents' deaths.

"Satoshi-kun cannot express himself freely.

Whether it's crying or simply being agitated, he's not good at handling those emotions."

"...That's true. I can't imagine him being angry or crying..."

"...Did you know Satoshi-kun's mother had been married a few times already?"

"...Yeah,

I know a little bit about that."

Satoshi-kun's mother had married a number of men over the years.

That meant Satoshi-kun had several stepfathers.

He had to deal with strangers coming into his home multiple times, so he was forced to be mature.

"Satoshi-kun is mentally underdeveloped.

He isn't aware of it himself, though...

He didn't have enough time to cry, laugh, and throw tantrums in his childhood...

He was forced to become a grownup in just a short time."

"......That doesn't sound right."

"Children have to behave like children in order to grow...

There's nothing positive about being forced to become an adult."

Not only was Satoko's current relationship with her aunt conspicuously terrible,

I heard that her relationships with her previous stepfathers weren't good either.

Satoko always caused problems...

And Satoshi-kun would always step in to protect her.

"......I thought his physical symptoms came from the stress. His body was trying to warn him."

That's why Irie invited Satoshi-kun onto the baseball team.

He told Satoshi

that he needed a new member...

or something like that.

"He hesitated at first...

but after I talked to him at the clinic a few times, he began to open up to me.

...First I invited him to come see the practice...

then I suggested he try batting...

I eased him into it..."

Sports worked excellently for Satoshi-kun.

His health quickly improved, and he started to become interested in baseball.

He practiced batting. He was soon able to swing beautifully, and...

he learned how to see the trajectory of the ball.

"...Ah, I can imagine that.

He likes to read,

so he must have read a book titled 'How to Play Baseball' or something like that."

"He's become a good batter very quickly.

He's put forth a lot of effort...

Though I wish he could actually hit when it comes down to the wire too...

Hahahahaha."

"Are you guys close?"

"I think so...

He talks to me about his problems, so I guess that's a sign of trust."

I felt a bit jealous of how confidently Irie said that.

While Satoshi-kun and I were friends, we weren't so close that we'd open up to each other like that...

"...Oh,

are you jealous?"

"Ehh?!

...About what?!"

Taken aback, I blushed.

Irie started laughing at me.

"......Please stay as his good friend."

"W-Well, yeah... ahahahaha. I'm trying...

hahaha..."

I didn't know what I was saying.

"...You know, regarding Satoshi-kun...

He seems a little sick again lately."

"............What?"

Thwack!

The ball flew to the left.

...But the left fielder managed to catch it.

It seemed that the relationship between Satoko and her aunt had gotten worse lately.

...It was obvious his sickness had something to do with that.

"Their aunt is bullying Satoko-chan in a terrible way...

She's become worn out after all that,

and..."

"So,

Satoshi-kun is also worn out...

from covering for Satoko, isn't he?"

I wasn't interested in Satoko, so I switched the subject back to Satoshi-kun.

...I didn't know much about Satoko.

I knew that she was a big part of Satoshi-kun's life, but... I'd never been interested in her until today.

She must have been building up self-esteem in taking care of her unreliable brother.

That was all I knew about her.

......But, considering Satoshi-kun's personality, even that goofiness of his might have been an act.

Maybe he was trying to make her feel good about herself by letting her take care of him...

if only unconsciously.

When he's alone, he's surprisingly strong.

I realized that only recently...

So, I couldn't help but think...

...That his whole life is constantly affected by Satoko.

Satoshi-kun managed to get along with his stepfathers even though he experienced some stress.

He was even getting along with his aunt.

......But in order to protect Satoko... he always had to step in and suffer.

I didn't really know anything about Satoko, but......

I had to admit, I felt hostile toward her.

...I felt jealous because she was monopolizing him.

"It seems that their aunt has been tyrannizing Satoko-chan even more lately...

That must be what's causing Satoshi-kun's sickness."

Irie heaved a sigh.

As he said, Satoshi-kun had been absent a few times lately.

...He seemed a bit tired, too.

He looked normal when around everybody else, but he looked a bit depressed when he was alone.

"...So, you invited him to join the team to relieve his stress, didn't you?"

"Yes,

that's right."

"...But he looks stressed again now.

How can we save him this time?"

"..................Hahaha.

I don't know..."

Irie smiled powerlessly.

...I couldn't help feeling a bit disappointed about that, because Satoshi-kun put his trust in him.

"Just between you and me......

Satoshi-kun recently told me

that he wanted to leave the team."

"Eh?

...How come...?"

"He claimed he was tired of it...

That's what he said,

but I believe he actually wants to spend more time with Satoko-chan.

He thinks that Satoko-chan might end up being tortured while he's at practice.

I think he's concerned about that."

"....................."

I was left speechless for a while.

......Satoko again.

Satoko.

Why did Satoshi-kun have to sacrifice so much for her?

Just by ignoring her, his stress would melt away.

...Of course, I knew he couldn't do that.

If that were the case, then... the blame lay with his little sister.

I knew how badly she'd been treated.

But that only happened because she made things worse for herself.

It was her fault that she couldn't establish a decent relationship with their aunt.

If Satoko were more mature, like Satoshi-kun, her home life wouldn't have gotten so bad.

......Satoshi-kun wouldn't have to suffer those indirect blows.

In the meantime, the baseball team's practice match had become one-sided. It wasn't even worth watching anymore.

The members of the losing team were just goofing off.

The sky had turned cloudy too. It was depressing.

...It didn't look like it'd rain soon, though. The gray sky hadn't brought along any cool air. It just felt disgusting.

Irie became quiet. He was looking down around his feet.

I, meanwhile, just stared at Satoshi-kun.

......To me, he didn't look active anymore.

...He was once able to enjoy playing baseball, and he felt fine.

...But he got sick again... just because the relationship between Satoko and her aunt had deteriorated.

...I couldn't help but say it.

"...Shouldn't we do something about Satoko instead?"

It was just a murmur, but Irie had definitely caught it.

"...What...

...do you mean, Sonozaki-san?"

"It's not that complicated...

If Satoko were stronger, Satoshi-kun wouldn't have to deal with stress.

I think Satoko is the cause of everything."

".........Nn......

I don't know about that..."

"Yes, you do.

If she didn't cause any trouble, he wouldn't have to step in, would he?

He wouldn't have to take over in the fight between Satoko and her aunt, right?"

Satoshi-kun never got scared of any trouble.

......No matter how formidable the enemy,

he'd bravely stand up

to protect the weak.

I knew that because I could vividly imagine it.

Whenever their aunt chides Satoko...

...Satoshi-kun steps in

to protect her.

...The aunt probably didn't like it.

...Though Satoshi-kun didn't have to fight, the aunt would attack him anyway. The fight would then be between the aunt and him.

Satoko might then tease the aunt by sticking out her tongue, hiding behind his back, and pretending to be scared.

...She'd never think about how deeply he was being hurt.

Because of Satoko... Satoshi-kun had become cornered and stressed.

"I'm surprised to hear this from you, Sonozaki-san...

I thought you were Satoko-chan's friend, her classmate,

a big sister kind of figure...

I thought you'd always be on her side.

...But what you've said is...

surprising to me."

Irie looked at me suspiciously.

...I could tell what he was thinking about me.

...I'd said too much.

Mion Sonozaki and Satoko Houjou are friends.

They're close...... so, Mion should have been encouraging her, after the situation at home got tougher.

That's what

Mion was supposed to do.

I had totally forgotten about that, and spoken as myself.

.........It's only natural that Irie would give me a suspicious look.

...He might end up changing his impression of Mion Sonozaki entirely.

.........I'd have to apologize to her about this, and ask her to put things right.

..................I'd totally messed up.

Even so...... I didn't think I'd said anything wrong.

I'd objectively looked at the situation and made a modest proposal.

To be honest,

I was simply afraid that he might leave the team.

I couldn't go to the school in Hinamizawa,

so the baseball field was the only place where I could see him.

I could even say that he was my reason for living.

......That's right. I was in love with him.

...But I wasn't going to tell him how I felt...

For I was satisfied just being by his side.

I certainly couldn't ask for anything more.

...After all, I couldn't reveal my true identity.

I had to pretend to be Mion in order to live in Okinomiya.

I thought that maybe I should leave Okinomiya in order to be free...

...But that's stupid!

No matter how tough my life might be...

I'd prefer to be here

with Satoshi-kun stroking my head every now and then.

...Why did I love him that much...?

I read about it in some manga once.

You don't need a reason to be in love.

...I was surprised at myself for being like this.

"...Calm down...

Shion......"

I breathed out slowly, then held my breath......

trying to slow my throbbing heart.

I felt a bit calmer.

...At that point, a clear thought came into my head.

I want to be with Satoshi-kun.

So?

I want him to stay on the team.

So?

I want to get rid of his concerns and his stress.

So what?

......So

...What can I do to achieve all that?

My head started to cool down... as I heard the umpire shout.

"Game set!

And match!!!!"