Chương 238: I'd Rather Do Nothing Than Make a Mistake
However, the bulky figure displayed on the phone screen didn't behave as the girl had expected.
Instead of sneaking up to the warehouse door and pretending to stumble upon their "mischief," he stood a short distance away with his hands on his hips, loudly shouting toward the warehouse in an impatient tone:
"Katase! Are you catching mice in there or something? It's been so long and you still haven't finished cleaning it up. Hurry it up already…"
He paused, then as if realizing that his current stance was less than dignified, he hesitated for a bit and then continued shouting:
"And make sure you close the door before you leave! If I come back tomorrow and find even a single baseball missing from that warehouse, you're done for!"
After saying that, he turned around, as if he wanted to leave.
Inside the warehouse, Katase Shouya, who was sitting on the cushion in the warehouse lost in his own thoughts, was initially startled when he heard the coach's voice.
He immediately feared that the coach might indeed be trying to catch them in a compromising situation, just like Akane had suspected.
But after hearing the coach's reprimand, he realized that Coach Tougou hadn't even entered the warehouse and was simply shouting from outside.
He glanced down at the time displayed on his phone screen.
19:48.
They really had been waiting for too long.
The coach was usually the last to leave, needing to ensure that all the members had gone and that the doors and windows of places like the changing rooms and warehouse were securely closed before he could depart.
No wonder he was getting impatient and urged him to hurry up.
Moreover, his parting words were clearly looking out for him.
If the coach truly had the intentions Akane suspected—of wanting to do something inappropriate—this would have been the moment to catch them off guard.
But instead, he remained outside, shouting to give them a heads-up and even sparing him from embarrassment.
So, Akane's judgment was wrong.
Sasaki's claims were unreliable.
Now fully convinced that the coach was in the right, Katase Shouya quickly stepped out of the warehouse. "Coach," he called out.
And the latter, seemingly not expecting him to come out, paused for a moment after already turning away.
Then looked back, briefly scanning the boy, who was fully dressed and not the least bit flustered.
Looking at him, Tougou's expression showed a hint of surprise, but he quickly turned his head away as if nothing had happened.
He didn't even glance inside the warehouse or ask where Nanao was.
Instead, he casually waved his hand and said in an annoyed tone:
"Don't keep her there too long. It's not safe at night, you brat."
"Finish up and get out of here. I'm heading out."
Hearing the coach's continued concern, Katase Shouya stood at the warehouse door, feeling guilty for having doubted him earlier.
But because of Akane's suspicions, he couldn't offer an apology, because he was afraid that it might raise the coach's curiosity.
He simply nodded and respectfully responded to the coach:
"Take care, Coach. Be safe on your way home."
Tougou waved dismissively without looking back.
Katase Shouya stood at the warehouse entrance, watching as the coach disappeared from view.
Shortly after he left, Nanao popped her head out from the flower bed in the distance and walked to Katase Shouya's side with a puzzled look on her face.
Neither of them spoke.
The area was dimly lit, with no streetlights, so they couldn't clearly see each other's expressions.
But both of them could sense each other's emotions.
One was still suspicious; the other was filled with guilt.
These conflicting emotions in a relationship usually lead to continued arguments and the start of more disputes.
So neither dared to be the first to speak.
Both had their own convictions and once they started talking, it would likely escalate into an endless quarrel.
They stood in the darkness in silence…
Knowing that continuing this way was a waste of time, Akane Nanao finally broke the tense silence.
"Let's go to the hospital and get you checked out."
This was something they had already planned yesterday so, Katase Shouya didn't refuse.
"Alright."
He needed the test results to prove the coach's innocence.
At the same time, those results would hopefully clear up the tension between her and the coach.
On one side was the coach who valued and supported his growth, and on the other was the person he loved.
If his girlfriend continued to harbour these baseless suspicions about the coach, it would undoubtedly affect his performance in the upcoming competition.
If the coach indeed showed suspicious behaviour, he would understand, as it was for his girlfriend's safety.
But Akane's suspicions were rooted in a few baseless comments from Sasaki—a near stranger.
If she kept this up, Shouya would have to consider that there might be something wrong with her perspective.
They each returned to the changing rooms, put on their uniforms, grabbed their bags, met up at the school gate, and took the bus to the hospital.
The entire time, until they got the results, neither said a word.
Looking at the report in his hand, showing that everything was normal, Shouya handed it to his girlfriend:
"Akane."
The girl's head was lowered, her blue eyes hidden behind her bangs, making it hard for him to read her expression.
But the tight line of her lips made the boy understand the reluctance in her heart.
She didn't take the report, which she had already seen at the hospital.
Akane's lips, which looked a little pale under the cold white light of the hospital entrance, opened slightly, and there were no ups and downs in her voice.
"I will cut off contact with Sasaki, but I will not change my suspicion of Tougou."
Hearing his lover's words, Shouya furrowed his brows. "So you're saying the testing will continue?"
If her boyfriend was willing to cooperate with her, she didn't mind trying a few more times.
Although Tougou's behaviour today was fine, Nanao wasn't willing to take risks involving herself.
So she truthfully replied:
"Yes."
Finding it hard to understand, Shouya sighed and asked as calmly as possible:
"Why? Can you tell me what's wrong with the coach?"
No response.
He waited a while but got no answer.
If she wasn't going to say it, then he would.
"Is it because of Sasaki's words?"
"The test results are right here.
He's wrong—he lied to you."
Realizing he was bringing up Sasaki, Nanao quickly raised her head and denied it:
"It has nothing to do with him. I just hate Tougou from the bottom of my heart…"
She wanted to say that the way he looked at her was scary and made her feel that he wasn't a good person.
But saying that would sound unreasonable and petty, and she knew Shou-kun wouldn't believe it, so she moved her lips but ultimately said nothing.
But in the eyes of Katase Shouya.
What's the difference between being eager to explain and being hesitant to speak and making things more obvious?
She still trusted Sasaki's words, even when clear proof was right in front of her.
But she said that she would no longer have any contact with Sasaki...
Can that promise really be trusted?
Unsure of what to do, Shouya could only force himself to believe her words.
To trust that she was simply rejecting the coach's character, hating him as a person and was not influenced by Sasaki…
Katase Shouya tried to comfort himself with this reasoning.
Unable to remove the thorn in his heart, he decided to take the "painkiller" approach and ignore the issue for now.
He stopped discussing whether the coach was problematic or whether she trusted Sasaki as these topics would only lead to more arguments between them.
He decided to let time reveal the truth.
Rather than making a mistake, he preferred to do nothing.
Of course, he didn't fully dismiss Nanao's unusual trust in Sasaki. From now on, he would pay more attention to her actions.
With this decision made, Katase Shouya put the medical report into his bag and said, "Akane, let's go."
Just like on the way to the hospital, they both remained silent on the bus ride back.
Katase wanted to start a conversation to ease the tension between them, but it wasn't easy to simply move on.
The hurt in his heart was still fresh, and he couldn't pretend everything was fine or comfort the very person who caused that pain.
In the middle of this awkward silence, his stop arrived.
"Akane, I'm heading off. See you tomorrow."
"Mm."
Akane Nanao's mood wasn't great either.
The failed attempt to test the coach had only deepened the rift between her and Shou-kun.
Though saying this it might seem like she was blaming him, she really wished Shou-kun could trust his lover unconditionally like Sasaki did.
But as the things stood now,
Her test had failed, she hated Tougou even more, wanting to stay away from him, but her lover didn't stand on her side.
This situation really made her distressed and helpless.
If her boyfriend wasn't cautious about him, wouldn't that be like stepping half a foot into the tiger's mouth?
And now that she couldn't turn to Sasaki for help, she could only stay even more vigilant around Tougou.
As Katase Shouya got off the bus, Akane Nanao, who was sitting alone on the bus, made this decision.
...
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