AN: It's been a while eh? Almost gave up on this but thanks to everyone whose stuck with me so far I'm going to try my best to see this through.
"I really can't forgive you Mihashi." Kanou whispered bitterly.
In that brief moment Hatake appeared from behind Kanou and drove his foot into Mihashi's back with as much force as he could muster. The pitcher was abruptly knocked off his bike and collided with the wet ground elbow first. The sudden impact must have rendered him unconscious because the pitcher was silent.
"I'm going to break his arm." Hatake spat.
Kanou's knuckles whitened as he clenched his fists during the excruciating silence that followed. He tore his gaze away from his childhood friend that lay on the ground unmoving to his catcher and accomplice.
"Don't break his arm!" He spluttered, immense guilt piling on top of him like bricks.
It was already too late, a sickening crack echoed throughout the forest as Hatake stomped on Mihashi's hand with the heel of his foot. The catcher raised his foot in an attempt to aim better and pulverize the rest of his arm but Kanou pushed him away from the pitcher.
"That's enough." Kanou exhaled shakily, eyes wide with fear and regret. They slowly backed away from the unconscious blond with a sickening feeling in their gut. The pitcher remained crumped on the cold ground with his bike and a bruising hand and that was profusely bleeding at the wrist. Only the wet leaves, silence and the moonless night sky were there to blanket the injured boy.
"Where's Mihashi?" Tajima wondered aloud during break before he took a sip of his juice box. Abe's eyes widened in surprise, he was just about to ask the same thing. He assumed Tajima would know since those two were stuck together at the hip most of the time.
Izumi shrugged his shoulders "I haven't seen him all day. Maybe he's sick?"
Abe frowned, he didn't seem sick yesterday. In fact, he was in his best shape yet since making it to Koushien. They made it to the top 4 but fell short of actually winning in a close 4-6 game against ARC. Yesterday was their first practice of the new season and Mihashi was in great condition. Abe felt a deep wave of concern hitting the bottom of his stomach as he looked over to Mihashi's empty desk. He took out his cell and sent a text to the pitcher. "Why aren't you here today?"
The catcher covered his mouth with his hand and couldn't shake the feeling of something terrible off his mind. These unexplained absences and mysterious injuries were becoming too frequent to be accidental. Mihashi was an absent-minded airhead but he wasn't careless. There was something going on that the pitcher was hiding. If that's the case Abe was going to beat it out of him because with the way things are going Mihashi could seriously get hurt. Regardless of Izumi assuring them it was probably no big deal and that Abe was being overly protective, he was going over to the pitchers house tonight to straighten things out.
Mihashi woke to the chiming sound of his cell phone. He grimaced in pain when he inhaled, his entire body was aching. A sharp whimper escaped his lips the moment he put light pressure on his wrist. The pitcher cradled his bloodied arm and stared at it in disbelief. Did last night really happen? Did Kanou really tell Hatake not to break his arm? Was his arm broken?
The blond took a shaky breath and attempted to stand up. His legs were trembling too much so he crumpled back onto the ground. Another chime came from his cell and the vibration from the phone made it fall out of his pocket. The subject read, "I'm going to come over tonight to give you the homework you missed in class. We have to talk."
Fear made Mihashi's stomach drop and he felt a cold sweat crawl through his body. It didn't matter how much pain he was in but how could he face his own team now that his pitching arm was damaged? What can Abe do with a pitcher who couldn't pitch?
The adrenaline mixed with fear was enough to get the blond standing; he pushed his bike with his unscathed arm the rest of the way home. After unlocking the door he headed straight to the shower and turned it on. He crouched into fetal position fully clothed as the hot water rained over him. The blood from his arm and dirt from his clothes mingled in the water, turning it a muted red color before slipping through the drain. Mihashi let his tears fall freely. "I'm sorry Abe-kun, I'm sorry Kanou-kun." He whispered. "I'm sorry everyone."