AKOGARE

by

Unmei Hime

Disclaimer: I do not own Tennis No Ohjisama

Part 1: Letter

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Dear Ryuuzaki-san,

May I ask if you could meet me at the rooftop this afternoon after school?

I have something to tell you.

Please come.

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"Okay class dismiss."

Soon after the teacher said the long-awaited words, she heard herself breathe a sigh of relief. The subject was Trigonometry, the most boring yet most difficult subject in junior high, in her opinion at least. She was never a Math person and it made her wonder how she could use Trigonometry in real life.

The Greeks invented Trigonometry to make students suffer, she inwardly whined.

She gathered her things and stood up. She sighed again and felt the folded paper in her pocket. I wonder who left this letter in my shoe locker. She found the piece of paper this morning when she arrived in school and it made her puzzled the entire day. Who could it be and why?

She considered telling Tomoka but later decided against it. Tomoka would only make a big fuss out of it and before the end of the day she would have asked every person in the entire class, she was sure. Better keep it to myself for now.

In a matter of minutes, she reached the rooftop. She didn't know why but she was nervous.

Heaving a deep breath, she opened the door and found a boy whose back was on her. When he finally turned around, she found herself looking at a face she had seen so many times.

Round eyes, short straight hair, small nose. Small frame. His height too short for a junior high student. He wasn't even the same height as her.

Katou Kachiro.

She couldn't help the pang of disappointment that she felt after the realization. She should have known. Who am I expecting? Ryoma-kun wouldn't do such a thing. I'm such a fool.

"Ryuuzaki-san. You came... Thank you." She heard the boy say.

"Katou-kun, why did you ask me to come here?"

"I---I..." The boy fidgeted, looked at her then looked down then looked at her again. A faint blush stained his cheeks. She could see that he was trying his best to say the words but failing miserably. He reminds me of myself whenever I'm in front of Ryoma-kun. She thought.

"What is it?" She asked softly.

"I---I like you." He confessed, his eyes finally meeting hers.

She didn't know what to say. Yes, she was surprised. It was her first time to hear such words from a boy. "T-thank you. But—".

"But you don't like me." Kachiro finished, a look of sadness in his eyes.

Sakuno shook her head. "No, it's not like that, Katou-kun."

"I know you like somebody else." The boy looked down in defeat. "And I know I can never beat him, one way or another."

"Katou-kun..."

"But all I want is to tell you my feelings. I'm not asking you to like me back. I can never do that."

Sakuno reached for his hands. She didn't want to hurt him but he was hurt all the same. "I'm pleased that you like me. Really I am."

"You're a special girl, Ryuuzaki-san. I just hope he could see that." He smiled sadly.

She let go of his hands and walked toward the railings. She didn't want Katou-kun to see the tears that were starting to fill her eyes. "Ryoma-kun will never notice me. His world revolves around tennis." Her voice was quiet but her face revealed the feelings that she was keeping inside. No, she didn't want anybody to see that. "But I'm glad just to be with him. Just to watch him. Just to talk to him. It's enough for me that I could see him even though I could never touch him. "

Wiping the tears from her eyes, she turned around and smiled bitterly. "There's nothing I can do about it, is there? Ryoma-kun is someone who's out of my league. I knew it since the first time we met."

Kachiro smiled back, though it didn't reach his eyes. "We're two brokenhearted people. Why don't we indulge in ice cream to forget our heartaches? My treat, what do you say?" She's really amazing. And you're the biggest fool on earth not to know that Ryoma-kun.

Katou Kachiro was dead wrong.

They didn't know that there were two other persons who had fully heard their conversation, every detail of it.

"Echizen, what are you thinking?" Momoshiro noticed that since they left the rooftop landing, Echizen hadn't spoken a single word.

"Nothing in particular." The boy said without even a sideward glance. He was looking on ahead as if too impatient to get home.

"I know something is running inside that head of yours," Momoshiro pressed on though he knew he was treading on dangerous ground. He wanted to confirm something and he would do just that.

"I'm not thinking of anything." Echizen said coolly.

Momoshiro Takeshi was not someone who would give up that easily. "You know, you cannot fool me." He studied the face partly hidden under that white baseball cap. His expression was blank, no emotion whatsoever. He sighed. The boy was too nonchalant for his own good.

Echizen finally regarded him a glance. "See you tomorrow at practice, Momo-senpai." Echizen walked on and turned the corner before Momoshiro could stop him.

"Oi, Echizen!" Momoshiro knew then his attempts were futile. But he promised he would get it out of Echizen whatever it would take.

"I'm glad just to be with him. Just to watch him. Just to talk to him. It's enough for me that I could see him even though I could never touch him. "

The words kept ringing on his ears like a broken record. No matter how hard he pressed his ears or face against the pillow, it was of no use.

Damn it. How could she say that? What did she mean?

And why in the world was he thinking of her for hours now? Why in the world did she accept that Kachiro's invitation to have ice cream? Didn't she see he was taking advantage?

"Yaro--." He said through clenched teeth and rolled over for the nth time, not knowing in particular what he was angry about.

Echizen Ryoma would soon learn that there were things much dreadful than Inui's specially mixed juices and things much harder to understand than Fuji's weird interests (drinking Inui's juices in particular).

His life would never be the same again.

a/n: Your thoughts would be very much appreciated. Thanks for reading!