nevertheless || yuzuru hanyu

twenty-three - no filth for the glory

Losing and being expected to lose can come as a blessing in disguise.

Though silent and seemingly nonchalant about the whole event, Gabriella was very observant towards everyone that was going to play against her team, The frequency of outside calls, errors, or missteps, she had it all engraved in her mind. She could analyze who were the opponents which could potentially make it difficult for her team to win.

It was scheduled for the singles division to be the first match which prompted Gabriella to ask Kane to begin his warm-ups. She was confident that Kane could win against his first few opponents.

As the umpire blows on his whistle, it was a signal for all the players to step into their respective courts.

"Remember, don't get worked up whatever happens. This is a game, and your opponent will churn out any strategy to control the match. You can do this, Stay relaxed and focused." Gabriella walked with him to the court as she spoke. As much as he could, he tried to properly keep in mind what Gabriella was trying to tell him. Though it was only a small feeling, Kane felt a little bit nervous. As with any match that he ever played, any time the game would begin he'd get a little nervous. It was somehow part of the process, it wasn't anything bad, frankly, it was a healthy feeling.

He took a deep breath and looked at Gabriella once more. "Remember, grasping the court is as important as feeling the opponent. You can do this, Kane." She uttered, this time, Kane gave her a simple yet confident nod. With that, Gabriella returned to her seat and watched the match unfold.

As it began, everything went as Gabriella expected. Kane breezed through the starting teams and was able to make it to the semifinals smoothly.

During the semifinals, Kane was playing extremely well despite being exhausted from the previous matches. He seemed unstoppable. He was breezing through it. Good score, good momentum, and good sequence. He had full control over the court and it could be seen from the way he moved. He was graceful and rhythmic. He was enjoying himself as if the court was a stage. He was visibly focused but free.

It was almost nostalgic for Gabriella to watch him. She remembered the times that she'd enjoyed and go through matches the way Kane did.

Everything was so easy before, everything thing seemed easier when it was new and young.

It was just three points more and Kane would advance to the finals for the singles division. It was at this moment that the speakers sounded the announcement for the participants of the doubles division.

Being given the reminder, Gabriella instructed her two doubles team to begin their warmups and proceed to their designated court.

"I'll go to your area later so you better warm up properly. Don't be too nervous, I know that for some of you this is your first competition and for the others, you came back from a bad patch last year. However, being new and being expected to not play well is an advantage. The lesser your opponents know about your skills, the more threatening you are to them, so just stay focused do your best, got it?" Gabriella reminded her team before they proceeded to their respective courts. "Yes, coach!" They energetically answered her in unison.

"Very well. Go start your warm-ups."

Meanwhile, Gabriella turned her attention back toward Kane. He had just finished his match, advancing to the finals with a score of 21 to 16. She approached him with a towel in hand and a bottle of water as he walked to her with a soft grin. "Good job." She simply said as she took hold of his racket for a moment.