December 4th - Sunday - After noon
Kazuo walked along the faded line that had been painted on the ground some time ago. The court had long ago been forgotten; perhaps a playground when there wasn’t as much buildings around. Now, few frequented the basketball court either because of the area or because Kazuya was rumored to hang around here.
He was retrieving the basketball that had bounced away. He could remember as a child, he would always end up having to go fetch the ball after it rebounded to some distance. He was always frustrated about it. Basketball was one of the few things his brother prevailed at more than Kazuo did. He didn’t like being bested, even if it were only his twin. He could recall all the times he would go out to the court and practice, yet coming up short every time. Memories of him letting his anger unleash as he threw the ball as hard as he could at the back board and watched it bounce away, satisfying his frustration. It was on that same day that he met him.
As the image of a man’s face began to familiarize itself in Kazuo’s mind, Kazuo closed his eyes tightly and dropped to his knees, putting one hand up to his head for support. He didn’t want to remember those memories. He had long ago forced them from his mind.
He had a pain of regret for coming out there today. It was his first time playing basketball after injuring his arm. Lately, he had been following Kazuya there just to watch his brother play. He had thought he would have been okay to play today.