Author's Note: I wanted to veer away from my "yeah let's go out" genre so... friendship story, everyone!

Warning: Don't read if you get sad easily. :(

This is How I do Special

Osakada Tomoka had been my best friend for as long as I could remember. That's how I knew something was wrong over the telephone line, a makeshift connection between us, just by the tone of her voice.

"It's about Kaidoh. Kaidoh Kaoru." There was splashing in the background, probably her doing the dishes. Tomoka was the only person I knew with the exception of me who would do chores in a crisis.

"What about him?" I asked nervously. The tennis coach rolled her eyes, obviously thinking that there was no emergency. I was in a tennis camp, where phones and electronic devices were prohibited, except in emergencies.

"He's dead."

"Dead? H-how?" Now the coach looked more alert, energetic, ready to move in a second to reassure everything was all right.

"That doesn't matter, does it? Can you come home?"

I opened my locket with a picture of Tomoka, smiling brightly at the camera and being happy to finally graduate from middle school. I stared at her, imagining about how she must have felt when she received news of his death. Probably shocked. I felt the same when Ryoma moved away. But it was more gradual for me. I hadn't felt it until I remembered that he wasn't going to go to school anymore.

"I'll try."

"Thank you... Sakuno. Thank you so much."

"I'll see you later. Bye."

Suddenly the coach appeared behind me, taking the phone and telling things people tell you all the time when people die. It was a shame, he was so young. God must have his reasons.

That night, I cried. Not for Kaidoh, for Tomoka.

---

My grandmother came up, a sad expression on his face. She had come to drive me home, though I had a perfectly good reason why.

"He was a good tennis player, noble in heart and spirit." She sighed. "Though the Seigaku glory days are long gone, I still miss the whole team being together."

"Poor Tomoka," she added, noticing how I clutched my gym bag. "She really loved him."

"I know."

---

Kaidoh was on the Seigaku tennis team. A little obvious, I must admit, but we have to start off with the general things. He had a scary face, but that facade was the thing that attracted Tomoka in the first place. Tough guy outside, but more fluffy and kind on the inside. And determination. She loved animals, and so did he. He liked freshly prepared udon, and she was perfectly happy to supply him whenever he was down in the dumps, or trying to calm him down after an argument with Momoshiro, which happened far too often.

I don't know what he was attracted to her, though. He preferred the quiet; he liked solitude. Tomoka was the opposite. As usual, I just happened to spot them, and go along for the ride. It was Tomo-chan that reserved me a seat beside her. And I was grateful. Because life is an ugly thing when you don't have a best friend. I think that was one thing I had in common with Kaidoh. He had Momo to depend on, and I was leaning, always, at Tomo-chan.

It started with mysterious things popping up in a corner of his shoe locker: kitten plushies, dog-print band-aids, and tennis balls with ah-dorable bunnies drawn in a permanent marker. Of course, I drew the bunnies. Tomo was never one for patience for the ink to fully dry.

Then there were chocolates. Fuji and Tezuka were practically being pushed up a wall; while Momo and Eiji lamented about not getting any. Oishi had gotten his fair share (apparently, his shy demeanor was noticed) and Taka-san comforted most of the men that did not even get one. And Kaidoh... was running away. Tomo noticed this out of a corner of her eye, and tripped him with fishing line. He got his first chocolate. Awkwardness ensured, and I was looking at Ryoma. He was busy throwing his away. Luckily I hadn't given mine yet.

"Don't, Ryoma-kun!" I started, but then I faded. I was 'spineless'.

He looked at me. "Why shouldn't I?"

"Eto... you know... it's just a waste of money. We could... you know... eat it." I was stuttering.

"Eat it?" His voice was incredulous. "What do you mean, eat it? There's too much!"

I sighed. I couldn't argue against the Prince of Tennis.

"Just give me them."

---

I took one at a time and gave them to disappointed guys. I let them pick out the names.

Horio looked at the chocolates. "I want that one," and he pointed to Tomoka's.

Instantly, I remembered her infatuation with Kaidoh. "No. No way." I said. "She likes somebody else."

He rolled his eyes, but that didn't make any difference when he had, frankly, a unibrow.

"I know. Ryoma-sama, right?" He sighed. "Can I still have it? She's a pretty good cook."

I opened my mouth to tell him that it was not 'Ryoma-sama' that she liked, but that could get into an uncomfortable situation. "Okay, fine." I said.

He opened the box gleefully. "Yes!" He bit into a heart-shaped piece. "That is so good. Seriously, you should try that. Here," and he handed me a ribbon-shaped one with Ryoma's name on it.

"Sorry, Horio, but I can't. It's for Ryoma-kun."

He shrugged. "Whatever. Have you given him any yet?"

A flush came to my face. I couldn't answer when I was at least fifty degrees Celsius. Horio seemed not to notice, however, and I shook my head.

"That's good. Well, he never accepts them anyway. He would be like, "TENNIS IS LIFE" or whatever. He's lucky to have you in the first place."

I shook my head again, pigtails whipping my cheeks. "No! We're not a couple or anything! I mean-- I mean-- well, we're just classmates!"

He looked up cheekily. "Riiiiiiiight."

"It's the truth," I insisted.

"And guess what? I don't buy it. You genuinely like him." Horio smirked. Finally, people would listen to him.

But enough of my problems. Kaidoh was blushing. For me, it was a daily occurrence everyday-- when I bumped into a stranger on the train, when I spilled something in a cafe, Ryoma looking at me-- but for him. Oh dear Lord. Have mercy on him. Momo would have teased him relentlessly and Inui would use that particular piece of information to either blackmail him. Fuji would do the same, and Tezuka would bark out laps.

I stopped and stared, because when Tomo had a crush, she kept it to herself, which was funny when she was such a blabbermouth.

"Are you O.K., Kaidoh-senpai?" She held out her hand. Always the gracious lady herself.

She smiled, and he, being the gruff boy he was, got up by himself without taking her hand. Than he ran away.

Things changed pretty quickly after that. Seigaku won the Nationals (no surprise, right?) and I found myself trapped in a summer where Ryoma was a billion miles away, inaccessible as he could've been in real life. He was still a child, although his hight and skills denied it so.

Those were lonely days, my friend.

Tomoka was sympathetic. She totally expected me to 'hook up' with him that year when he transferred. I mean--well, he never matured anyway--I did want that, but another part of me told to wait until he took things seriously. Like life. And maybe girls.

She herself was getting into interesting situations herself. After she found out Kaidoh worked as a volunteer in a pet shelter, she did too, and gradually a romance blossomed into something I wished happened to me. I did go on a date once--with Kintarou--but it happened that I got really tired after dealing with his energy. Sure, he was hot (and wicked tennis playing too) but he had nothing of the arrogance that attracted me to Ryoma.

Ha-ha. Surprised? Sometimes I was too. Sometimes I wished I never met that infuriating, clueless boy so I could get on with my life.

These were the things I was thinking about when I attended his funeral. There were a couple of photos, memoirs, ect. But the one I liked best was a small simple photo of him smiling gently after the Nationals. They won. It was the proudest moment in his life, probably. Taken courtesy of Tomoka.

Momo had tears running down his cheeks. "He was a good guy," he said. "He was the best buddy I'd ever have or had."

I wondered, if I was Momo, would I be able to stand it? They had had gone through so much, since elementary and middle school.

Tomoka let her hair down, at that moment. Although she was wearing a black dress, I envied her because there was a fleeting moment--in the rain--where the red of her hair contrasted against the fairness of her skin. She was sad, but beautiful. Even when she was suffering, she had an indomitable spirit.

"All's well that ends well," she said, but I could tell she was holding in her tears.

I had always cried to Tomoka whenever my heart or soul or whatever was damaged even for a little bit. Now it was my turn.

"It's okay," I said, even though it wasn't. I hugged her, not wanting to stop until she was better.

"Oh Sakuno, Sakuno, I feel like I'm the one who's dying." she sobbed.

"I know. But we're here," I said reassuringly. "We're always here for you."

"Thank you," she said. "Thank you."

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Author's Note: Um. I feel good after writing that, even though I'm horrible enough to write about death...