Chapter 527: Different views


    ?


    What was she hiding? Why did she seem so anxious?


    Hiro couldn''t shake these questions as he carefully observed the nurse. With each passing second, his presence grew more intense as he sought to pry the truth from her. His eyes narrowed, boring into her as if he could see straight through to her soul.


    The nurse felt a shiver run down her spine under his gaze as if she were standing exposed in a blizzard. How could a sixteen-year-old possess such an unsettling stare? Why was she, a grown adult, feeling so intimidated by him?


    She couldn''t exin it, but she knew she couldn''t reveal the truth. With a nervous smile, she forced out a response, "Haha... yeah, he''s alright."


    Hiro''s gaze only grew sharper as he pressed, "Then why hasn''t he woken up yet?"


    The nurse quickly replied, "It''s the sleeping pills..."


    His mother immediately chimed in as well, "Yes, he was having trouble sleeping, so the doctor prescribed some sleeping pills to help him rest and recover faster."


    Hiro scanned their faces suspiciously, but they remained firm, refusing to reveal more.


    It was clear he wasn''t going to get the truth from them.


    Reluctantly, Hiro shifted his gaze away. While he hadn''t uncovered the full story, he had already pieced together enough to realize something was off. Even if he asked the doctor, he doubted he would get a straight answer. If the nurse was in on it, who''s to say the doctor wasn''t as well?


    But why were they treating him like he couldn''t handle the truth?


    Whatever it was, it had to be something serious. Something terrible must have happened to his father. Probably, she was worried that he wouldn''t be able to take it.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    So, even though he vaguely figured out the truth, he didn''t pressure her to reveal the truth. Right after hearing their response, he dropped the matter and changed the topic.


    While they conversed, the nurse carried out her duty diligently.


    After a while, Akashi who had awakened from his slumber stumbled upon Hiro on his way to check on Uncle Takashi.


    However, he wasn''t surprised to see him here. After all, he had already expected him toe. "You two should catch up. I''ll head inside for now," saying so, his mother walked inside upon taking notice of Akashi''s presence.


    "How have you been?" Hiro asked as he got close to Akashi.


    "I''ve been doing well," Akashi responded gruffly.


    It might be because he had woken up just now that his voice sounded a little deeper than usual.


    Hiro noticed something off in Akashi''s tone, a subtle coldness that hadn''t been there before. But before he could probe further, Akashi shifted his gaze toward the hospital room where Hiro''s fathery. His eyes lingered there for a moment, filled with a mixture of concern and frustration.


    "So, how was the tournament?" Akashi asked, but his wordscked the usual warmth. There was no smile, no genuine curiosity-just a pointed question that felt more like an usation.


    Hiro hesitated, sensing the underlying tension. "It was pretty good," he said, trying to sound enthusiastic. "But... that''s not important right now. I feel like Mom is trying to hide something from me... Like, I can''t help but feel worried about Dad" he added.


    Akashi''s eyes flicked back to Hiro, and the coldness in them seemed to deepen. "Your dad? Now you''re worried about your dad?" he said, his voice edged with bitterness. "Where was that concern when you were off ying football while he was lying here?"


    Just what happened to him all of a sudden?


    Hiro was a little startled to see him so agitated. It was as if he had enraged him. He could tell that he was somewhat dissatisfied with him but he couldn''t tell why he was dissatisfied with him.


    Also, why was he acting as if he had abandoned his father?


    Wasn''t he tantly using him?


    Hearing him, he felt enraged. Just how could he dump all the me on him as if he was enjoying his time while abandoning his father?


    But didn''t he do the exact same?


    Hiro flinched at the words, guilt washing over him. "I didn''t know it was this serious. Also, Mom said that he was fine," he defended weakly, but even to his ears, the excuse sounded hollow.


    Excuse. He was merely making excuses at the moment.


    Even he could tell that he was making excuses. How could he fail to learn the truth? But since he was having the time of his life being able to fulfill one of his greatest desires, he refused to ept the truth.


    Even now, after seeing the state of his father, he was trying to avoid facing reality.


    Akashi shook his head, clearly unimpressed. "You should''ve been here, Hiro. Your family needed you, and you chose football instead. What''s the point of winning a game if you''re losing what truly matters?"


    Hiro opened his mouth to respond, but no words came out. He had been so focused on his goals, and his dreams, that he hadn''t stopped to think about the consequences. He''d justified it to himself by believing he was doing it for his family, but now, seeing Akashi''s anger and the truth in his words, he wasn''t so sure.


    Could he me Naoto and Tatsuki for persuading him?


    After all, he had tried to return. But it was their joint effort that had prevented him from returning. Even during his time abroad, he had tried to reach out.


    And he was aware of it as well.


    After all, he was one of the people whom he had reached out to for help.


    So, how could he talk like he had abandoned his father?


    "I''m here now," Hiro finally managed to say, though it felt inadequate.


    Akashi gave him a long, hard look. "Yeah, you''re here now," he repeated, his tone heavy with disappointment. "But don''t think you can just walk back in and everything''s fine. You can''t just pick and choose when to care."


    It was clear that he was aware of something. But the words he said cut deep inside his heart. It was as said by him. He couldn''t just appear as if it wasn''t a big deal.


    Hiro remained unresponsive as he began to ponder deeply.


    With that, Akashi turned away, heading towards the room where Hiro''s fathery. "I''m going to check on him. Maybe you should think about what''s really important."


    Hiro stood there, frozen, watching his friend disappear into the room. The exhration he had felt earlier after scoring important goals for his national team now seemed so distant, reced by a sinking feeling of regret. For the first time, he truly questioned his choices.


    As he stood there in the quiet hallway, Hiro realized that he had done something uneptable. What if he had lost his father?


    But aren''t there yers in the world who put their career over football?


    So, why was he wrong to do so?


    There are many instances when despite the grievances yers would go on to perform. Like how Luis Diaz kept on performing for Liverpool when his father was kidnapped.


    But it didn''t mean that he wasn''t affected by the kidnapping. Probably, he was terrified beyond measure. But that didn''t mean that he could abandon his profession. After all, there was only so much he could do given his circumstances.


    So, it was better for him to focus on what he could do.


    And Hiro had done exactly the same. Even if he had returned home, what could he even do?


    It''s not like he could miraculously cure his father.


    If he could then he wouldn''t hesitate to return.


    Although it was Naoto and Tatsuki who had done the bidding, it was he who had epted the choice. So, he couldn''t put the me on others.


    With that being said, it wouldn''t be an overstatement to say that it was Hiro who had made


    the final choice.


    So, along with guilt, he felt a mix of emotions such as rage and sorrow. Sure, he might have done something uneptable. But it didn''t give others the right to ridicule him. If they were in his spot who knows if they had also made the same choice.


    Was it wrong to fulfill his lifelong obsession?


    Hiro stood in the hallway pondering deeply about the affairs at hand. At times, he felt as if he hadn''t done anything wrong while at times he felt as if he had wronged something.


    However, despite pondering about the matter for a while, he couldn''t conclude.


    But the scale tilted more toward him being just. After all, he had sessfully debuted in the national team and his father was also alive. So, wasn''t it all good?


    Although he was a bit enraged at him for using him, Hiro''s impression of Akashi only became more favorable.


    For a while, it appeared that he was concerned about his father more than him.