Hi guyssssss! This is my first time writing a story and posting it here. Well, not really because I've posted a story on Wattpad once or twice. ._. But whatever.

I hope you enjoy! ^O^

"Set! 4 games to 2, Echizen!"

Announcement that was soon followed by an ear-piercing whistle signalling another finished game. A tired sigh escaped his lips followed by a yawn as he wipe a bead of sweat that formed and slid along his jaw line and reached his chin. A pair of golden eyes swept through the crowd unconsciously not knowing exactly what—who it was searching for. He blinked as soon as he realized this and focused on what's around him—what's here and not on what's not here.

"My, it seems like Echizen has improved even more." A mother hen's voice.

"Possibility caused by practice, 95%. Possibility of having a motivation, 5%. Ii, data, data." A writing on a notebook.

"Echizen? Motivation? Interesting." A sadistic smirk.

"Psh. Momo's just stupid." A grunt.

"Echizen-san has certainly improved great—" a racket was given, "BURNING! THAT ARROGANT BRAT!"

"Hn." A small nod.

He was just about to let out another sigh when he was suddenly taken by surprise when someone threw an arm around his shoulder, causing his cap to fall to the ground.

"Oi, oi! O-chibi won against Momo again, nya~!" The redhead acrobat grinned down at the younger boy.

He glared up at his senpai-taichi as he was a head taller than him. He opened his mouth to tell him off but was once again taken by surprise when someone started ruffling his hair.

"Right, right. This kid is becoming a man more and more! Now if only he shows a slightest interest in girls." His father's laughter along with his senpai-taichi's cackled and echoed around the whole court. The retired samurai "insisted" on going to his practice after he was caught by his wife reading a porno.

Ryoma closed his eyes in annoyance as a vein popped off his forehead and slapped both men's hands off him.

"Stop treating me like a child," he snapped at them.

"RYOMAAAAA!"

All heads turn towards the voice and suddenly, Ryoma was tackled on the ground by a furious blur of black colour. Momo hovered over Ryoma as he flexes his fingers as if to ready himself for punching the younger guy, a furious gaze glaring down.

"Oi, oi. Don't get cocky just because you've beaten me once or twice, you brat," Momo spatted venomously with a pissed off smile.

"Are you stupid? He's beaten you more than thrice. Don't praise yourself too much, Momo."

Veins popped off Momoshiro's forehead and he turned to the owner of his voice. Kaidoh. Of course. He stood up, his eye and the corner of his lips twitching.

"Ha? What did you say, Mamushi?"

"What, now you're deaf? I said don't praise yourself too much, baka. Did you understand it this time, or do I have to repeat myself?" Kaidoh challenged.

Fires ignited in their eyes and a bolt of lightning cackled in the background. Ryoma sighed at his senpais' antics and he saw this as his pathway to freedom. He walked away as discreetly as he could, and soon enough, the bickering started.

Ryoma sat on the bench beside the vending machine after buying what he wanted, one hand holding his drink, while the other, in his pocket. He let out a sigh of relief after taking a long sip that quenched his thirst when suddenly a familiar twin braid of auburn hair flew past his eyes as if everything was in slow motion.

Unfortunately, the moment didn't last long because suddenly, she was running too fast away from him—too fast for his liking. He hasn't seen the familiar colour for weeks—2 weeks, 3 days, 37 minutes, 58 seconds to be exact. Not that he's counting.

"Ryuzaki."

He watched as she froze in her step and realized what he said. The name just slipped out on its own. After a moment of surprise, he shrugged it off. There's nothing he could do now. The deed is done.

The girl's head turned to see who it was that called her and her eyes widen in an instant. Ryoma's eyes soften as he sees the familiar shade of pink colour her cheeks that always seem to creep on her face whenever he's around. (A/N: He's stupid, don't judge him. xD)

"R-Ryoma..kun.." She mumbled so quietly with wide eyes as if not believing what she's seeing. She turned to face him fully and immediately began to ramble as her face burn.

"I-I was just r-running an errand from t-the convenience store. I-I had to buy m-medicines for S-Shou-kun—" she continued to stutter.

Ryoma, however, was too busy observing her overall appearance—she was wearing coat over coat with a scarf wrapped around her neck, leggings and sneaker shoes to pair with—under the shadow of his cap, obviously. Her hair is in its usual braids while a hair clip is keeping her bangs in place. His eyes follow the trail of her slender shoulder, down to her fair arm, and finally to her hand, and sure enough, she was carrying a grocery bag.

Realizing that he's not listening, she bit her lip and looked down in embarrassment and looked up at him through under her lashes. She blinked at his curious, steady stare and followed his gaze that led her to look down at the grocery bag. She opened her mouth to say something but he beat her to it.

"I had a practice match today," he said.

"O-Oh, w-well w-what happened-" she tried to reply but only to be cut off again.

"I won."

"I knew—"

"Momo-senpai tackled me."

"Were you-?"

"I was fine."

"Oh, we—"

"I haven't seen you for weeks."

"E-Eh?"

"You haven't been in practices for weeks."

"B-But it's just been 3 days—"

"Who's Shou-kun?"

"E-Eh?"

She blinked in surprise and stared at him in uncertainty but he just stared intently back. It was just when he stared at her more intently that she flinched under his gaze and started talking. Ryoma seemed satisfied and started sipping his Ponta again.

"W-Well.. A-Ano.. Umm.. Shou-kun is—"

"Sakuno-chan!"

A voice came from behind Sakuno and startled the both of them. Ryoma's gaze shifted from the girl who, by now has stiffened to the figure that seemed getting bigger and bigger. And that's when it hit him—more like her—when the figure enveloped Sakuno in a tight embrace from behind, that the figure was running towards them. (A/N: He's stupid, remember?)

Ryoma's eyes narrowed at the arms around his friend then lifted his gaze on her face that was burning in embarrassment. He watched the girl suspiciously as she turned her face to her friend.

"A-Ano, wh-wha—" she started.

"Ryuzaki, what's that—thing, you got there?" He pierced her with his heavy stare. He didn't mean to be rude, not that he's sorry, but it's just that if Ryuzaki-sensei would know that her beloved granddaughter is being touchy-feely with someone he doesn't know—he felt the slightest of a shudder ran through his body.

The "thing" lifted his head up and finally, Ryoma could scrutinize "its" ugly appearance. It has a raven dark hair that was sticking to every direction in a messy way as if he just got up from bed. Well, he probably must have gotten out of bed because apparently, he's still in his PJs. But what irked him more was how his eyes were a light shade of violet as if mocking his golden ones.

"H-He's—" she tried to answer.

"Thing? I'm not a thing. Sakuno-chan, do you know him? He's rude," the thing interjected and pouted disgustingly at the helpless Sakuno.

Ryoma's eyes didn't fail to notice how its arms tightened around her lithe body even more. The pair of golden orbs narrowed even more when the thing had the guts to smirk at him as if he knows something he doesn't.

Sakuno sighed as she was, once again, cut off. Was she even meant to answer any questions?

Heavy silence and atmosphere fell upon them making the tension known between both boys. The poor girl looked back and forth between them and sighed as she realized that they're speaking with their eyes, and she's not allowed to intervene.

And they say girls are confusing, she thought as she sighed once more.

"Sakuno-chan/Ryuzaki?"

The boys asked simultaneously. Their heads shot up and their gazes met again. The unfamiliar boy scowled in disgust while Ryoma just turned his head away.

"Was I supposed to answer?" she mumbled quietly to herself.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Sakuno's head shot up, realizing that both boys heard. She pressed her lips together in tight line and contemplated whether to answer or not but, what the heck.

"When someone asks me a question, either I would be beaten to it, or another question is asked again before I could even answer. And frankly, it's getting irritating," she glared lightly at the ground before her.

She could feel their stare on her and her hands flew to her mouth as if not believing what she just said aloud, and mentally sighed in relief when a soft chuckle reached her ear.

"Gomen, gomen," the boy who has his arms wrapped around her smiled up at her sheepishly and her at him, oblivious to the prince who averted his gaze away from the obvious connection between them.

Ryoma closed his eyes in annoyance. This is getting tiring, and mocked cough to get their attention. Sakuno's face flamed in embarrassment and Ryoma pointedly ignored the mischievous smirk of the other party.

"R-Right, um, R-Ryoma-kun, this is, um.. Shou-kun is just—" Sakuno tried to explain, but then she felt how the arms suddenly tighten around her making her squeal in surprise.

Ryoma has had enough of this and threw the now empty can of the drink in the trash can nearby before turning on his heels and started walking away.

"Ja, ne." He called out.

"E-Eh? M-Matte kudasai! E-Eto, wh-where are you going?"

Ryoma called out from over his shoulder, his hands in either of his pockets, but he was still walking away.

"Practice," he answered shortly.

"A-Ah, d-demo—"

Shou-kun surprised Sakuno by suddenly speaking loudly by her ear, and if she hadn't known better, she'd think that he's doing it on purpose, "Ne, Sakuno-chan, you'll be heading to my house right?"

She's late.

Normally, she's always dedicated to her schedule. Everything goes smoothly as planned, but she figures that a small talk wouldn't hurt. But what happened now? In the morning, she had planned to head to Tomoka-chan's house to help her babysit her nieces and nephews since it's the weekend and she's free, and after that, she'll go to the convenience store and head for Shou-kun's house. She'll stay there until 7 in the evening once his mother comes back. Sakuno briefly recalled Kyoko-san's pleading.

But what on Earth happened? It's already 4:45.

Shou-kun has been sick for days, and he should be in bed right now. He shouldn't be outside especially with the winter creeping in on them. The last place he should be at is the tennis court, one arm around her for balance support, with the pre-winter breeze that just kissed their cold faces, while Ryoma-kun is asking his Captain for permission to ditch practice just this once.

Tezuka-senpai seemed sceptical and dismayed at first but Ryoma already cut his thoughts by pushing the fact that he hasn't ditched practice even once and this was an emergency. After a while, the buchou finally sighed and gave in.

Sakuno felt the weight of Shou on her even more and almost lost her footing but caught her balance. She sweat dropped and glance at him worriedly, feeling his temperature rise even more and from the way he shivers, she knew it's time to go. His skin is ice cold for Kami-sama's sake!

"Shou-kun, hang in there," she whispered to him although she knows it's in vain as the only answer she got was the sound of deep panting and teeth clattering. She sighed and looked at Ryoma with a pleading look, "Ryoma-kun.."

Ryoma turned to asked her what the matter was but saw her struggle as she tries to stand Shou up. He remained silent for a minute but one more plead from her got him sighing and turned to Oishi-senpai that was watching a rally.

"Ne, Oishi-senpai," he called out.

The senpai turned to him and smiled kindly like he always does, looking at Ryoma with a questioning look.

"What is it, Echizen?"

"Do we have some blankets in the locker room or something like that?" He asked and cocked his head slightly towards Shou.

Oishi understood and smiled before disappearing inside the locker room. As soon as he was out of sight, Ryoma walked towards the couple and put one the other boy's arm around his shoulder. It took a couple of minutes for Oishi to return and gave the requested blanket. Sakuno took it gratefully.

"Arigatou, Oishi-senpai," she turned to Ryoma with a questioning glance when he signalled her to give him the blanket. He can't believe he's doing this. It probably won't matter him too much than how it does right now, but the fact that he's doing it for some girl—Ryuzaki to be exact. But then again, Ryuzaki is not just some girl, and even Ryoma knows that. Of course he knows that more than anyone else. Pathetic. After passing him the blanket, he wrapped the freezing Shou with it, and before anyone knew it, the freezing boy was already being carried by Ryoma—bridal style.

Many things happened at once—Kikumaru got knocked out cold by a powerful serve by a surprised Momo, a surprised hiss, few chokes, scribbles on a notebook, cameras were whipped out followed by a lot of flashing and clicking sounds of them and a—

"BURNING! THIS IS MEN'S LOVE! YES, BURNING LOVE!"

Ryoma tried his best to ignore them as a flushed Sakuno tried to keep up with his steps.

"A-Ano, R-Ryoma-kun—"

"I'm fine."

A small groan of protest came from the boy in Ryoma's arms which caused him to close his eyes in annoyance. It's not like he wanted this in the first place. So bothersome.

The trip to Shou's house wasn't long lived. It was just a fifteen-minute walking distance from the court, and finally, they reached his house and no one could ever compete with the relief that Ryoma felt when he heard her say that they're there. He saw her look for the keys inside her purse and took it as a chance to observe the house. It was as ordinary as a house could be.

He heard the familiar loud jingling of the keys and watched as she stuck it inside the keyhole, turn it, and pushed the door open. She stepped inside and Ryoma followed suit as the warmth of the house enveloped them like when a friend hugged you for the first time when you're crying your heart out—unfamiliar yet comforting.

Sakuno took her shoes off neatly by the door as she smiled at Ryoma lightly and welcomingly.

"Make yourself at home."

He just nodded once and did the same thing she did before following her to what he guess is the living room, what with all the furniture in the room. He looked around as she put her bag down on the couch and headed to the kitchen.

"Where's his room?" he asked when she came back from the kitchen, carrying a face towel and a tin bowl filled with what he's guessing is ice cold water.

"Ah, right. Follow me."

She walked upstairs and once again, he followed suit. Once they got to the top of the stairs, she turned left and by the end of the narrow hall is a door that was probably his room when she entered it. The inside of his room was a normal boy's room, except that it's not dirty as how the people thing all boys' rooms are. He gently—and slightly cringed as he thinks of what he's doing—laid the other boy down on his bed and placed another blanket over him until it reached just above his chest.

He and Sakuno silently watched as the sick boy shifted a little and how his face seemed to contort into a look of comfortableness of being in his own bed. Sakuno smiled gently as she laid the now wet towel on the boy's forehead and watched as he cringed a bit because of the cold before returning to a peaceful look. Sakuno turned to Ryoma.

"We should probably give him some privacy."

The whistling of a kettle that struck the silence of the night could be heard, steams excreting from its sprout. A fair, slender hand took the handle with caution and pour hot water into two mugs, and after, putting the kettle back on the stove before taking the mugs warily in both hands.

Sakuno entered the living room and set the mugs in the table in front of the couch where Ryoma was currently on and sat on the other sofa.

"Arigatou," said Ryoma as he took the mug gratefully—one hand holding the handle, and the other, pressed up against the other side for warmth.

The girl smiled and blew at the hot chocolate before taking a sip of her own and sighing contentedly as she feels the warm liquid roll down her throat, making her warm all over. She looked up under her lashes and saw how the boy in front of her did the same. Suddenly, it all seemed surreal. The prince and her, sitting together in a living room, sipping calmly on their hot chocolates as if they were waiting on the nearing winter.

Sakuno smiled timidly to herself. This is like a dream.

But of course, like any dreams, it was short-lived. Sakuno flinched while Ryoma merely turned his head to the source of disturbance. She smiled apologetically at him and fished her phone out of her purse and stared at the screen as the phone beeped loudly. It's time for Shou-kun to eat and take his medicine. She sighed and flashed Ryoma a small apologetic smile once again before heading to the kitchen to get his porridge.

Ryoma just watched her pass by him, carrying a tray with a bowl of porridge and glass of water on it, and heading upstairs to his room. He sighed. He's been watching her walk back and forth from the kitchen, to the living room, to the bedroom to check on Shou, and back to the living room again. He sipped on his drink again before he got sucked into his thoughts. Well, assuming that a sick boy who can barely move on his own couldn't do something unwanted to his.. friend.. He concluded he can leave.

Sakuno is currently feeding Shou-kun herself, all the while wiping the sweat that rolled down his temple. She blinked in surprise when a hand took a gentle grip on her wrist, stopping her action all together. Shou-kun was staring into her eyes intently.

"S-Shou-kun?"

"Have you told him what our relationship is?"

To say that she was taken aback was an understatement. Why would he ask that sort of question all of a sudden? He's been acting weird ever since this morning. Before she could answer, he already beat her to it. Again.

"Don't tell him. Not yet, anyway."

It wasn't a request, it was a command, and all she could do was nod. He smiled at that.

"Good."

With that, his grip on her loosened and he fell asleep in an instant. Sakuno blinked. What was that? She sighed and headed downstairs, only to stop on her tracks with widened eyes. He's leaving. Ryoma-kun was by the doorway, putting his shoes on. Sakuno felt stupid. What did she expect? That he already considers her as one of the few people he let in just because he accompanied her to some boy's house? Stupid. So stupid. And yet why is she barely holding her tears back from falling, biting her bottom lip until it almost bled? Why is she so upset?

Ryoma felt her presence by the stairs and lifted his head up to meet her eyes—only to find out that he couldn't because she was looking at the ground, her bangs covering her eyes. It was just the eyes, and the way she bit her lip and the way her hands tightened at the end of her skirt, it's enough for him to understand that she doesn't want him to leave—not yet. He swallowed—his throat suddenly dry for some reason like he just swallowed a spoonful of sand.

"I-I'm..just going on a..Ponta Run," he said, not looking in her eyes. He glanced at her when she remained silent, but her grip on her skirt loosened a little. "You can come if you want," he added croakily.

Ryoma blinked at her as she finally lifted her head up, and was just staring at him with wide eyes as if in awe. He turned his head to face his undone shoes before finishing tying it up. He stood up, and if one just squinted his/her eyes and looked very, very closely, he/she would see the faint shade of pink tinting his cheeks. He's done too much embarrassing things today.

"Hmph," he tugged on his cap a little lower and put his hands in both his pockets, glancing at her briefly. "If you don't hurry up, I'll leave you though."

Sakuno cannot believe what she's hearing. Was she that depressed and so addicted that her body stopped functioning properly all together? Are her ears deceiving her? All those thoughts of course vanished all at once when she heard him call her name—well, her surname, but whatever. She finally smiled, one that brightened her whole face, and nodded excitedly.

"Hai!"

It wasn't much of a busy night. Since winter is coming, people have gone to their homes for the sake of warmth and possibly cuddling with their loved ones. But, considering that the convenience store was just few blocks away, neither Sakuno nor Ryoma has anything to say about it.

Currently, they were just sitting on a bench nearby, with Ryoma sipping on his Ponta, and Sakuno on her hot coffee.

It's just more or less like how we first met, she thought, feeling nostalgic.

"So," he said out of the blue, "good evening?"

She just stared at him.

"Ryoma-kun," she said but the boy was avoiding her gaze. "Is this how you start a conversation?"

Ryoma just remained silent and tugged on his cap, looking at anywhere but her. Sakuno blinked a couple of times before bursting into fits of giggles, making Ryoma grunt.

"You're horrible at this!" She said in between giggles.

"Shut up. I'm trying."

She finally calmed down but still looked at him ridiculously.

"You know, Ryoma-kun," she stated, "Maybe it's just me, but I think you've been meaning to ask me something else."

This time, it was he who just stared at her, making Sakuno fidget on her seat and blushed in embarrassment. She was too confident. That's why it surprised her when he spoke.

"You're right."

She whipped her head to face him. So she was right!

"Well, go on. Ask away," she replied light-heartedly.

"Who's Shou to you?"

Sakuno was lost for a moment. Why did he ask that? But she promised Shou-kun that she won't tell him what they're relationship was. Not yet.

"A-Ano, i-it's getting late. W-We should—" she stuttered.

"Ryuzaki," he said sternly.

She looked at him in panic. She doesn't know what to do! Sakuno looked down on her hands that were holding her drink, her fingers were trembling. She hasn't lied to anyone before! Much less break a promise to someone dear.

Ryoma observed her as her legs shook in panic before sighing mentally. Why is he asking who that Shou guy is? Why is he so curious? One word passed through his mind, so faint and fast in a blur that he almost couldn't catch it. Almost. His head shot up in realization, his eyes widening. He hastily threw his empty can in the trashcan and tugged on his cap roughly as he stood up, making Sakuno looked up at him in bewilderment.

"Ikuso. It's getting cold," he muttered under his breath.

Sakuno's eyes widen in worry. She doesn't want this night to end. Not too soon! This was like a once in a lifetime opportunity for her. She has to do something—and quick! Her legs moved on their own accord, and before she knew it, she's holding onto the sleeve of his jacket, making him stop on his tracks. She lifted her head up and looked at him with furrowed eyebrows, silently pleading.

She doesn't care anymore if she looks like wantonly girl, all she knew is that this one moment she wouldn't let to pass through. She stared at him, wanting to read the emotions in his eyes but couldn't because he wasn't even looking at her. She bit her lip that was now trembling before looking at the ground shamefully, slowly loosening her grip on his sleeve. What is she even doing?

However, to her surprise, he took her hand and turned his head to face her.

It was fast. So fast that she doesn't even know what's happening until when she's sure that it's happening even now 5 seconds had passed. His lips were pressed against hers gently, but aggressive at the same time. Before she could register what is fully happening, and before she could even respond, he already moved back, panting with his cheeks now tinted pink.

When the realization hit her, it hit her hard on the guts, and suddenly, her body feels jelly when all her blood ran to her face, making her look like a humanoid tomato. Because of it, she almost stumbled forward only to be held up by one arm of the prince. She held onto him and searched his eyes. She has always thought that they were of the same height, but why does she feel like he's towering over her?

He swooped in again and pressed his lips against her ever so lightly like they weren't even there. She flushed when she felt his lips brush against hers as he spoke softly.

"Who's Shou to you?"

This time, she doesn't care if she breaks her promise to anyone. There's always a first for everything, and there's no way she's going to let this first to pass.

"Shou-kun is.."

Ryoma gulped. What-if thoughts ran through his head. What if he kissed a taken girl? What if she was offended and felt violated? What if—

"Shou-kun is my cousin, and he's not interested in my gender."

He stared at her weirdly as if she had drunk dog piss for a moment before realization dawn on him. Again, for the first time, she saw him smile. This isn't really the first time she had seen him smile, no, but in those times, the team won the championships. This was the first time she saw him smile because of something different.

Not being able to contain her emotions, she snaked her arms around his neck and stood on her tip toes, closing her eyes. Ryoma was surprised, but not for long because he met her halfway, his arms wrapped around her waist, pulling her up against him.

There's no need for words.

But of course, they were chased down the street by the shop owner for displaying their affections in public. They ran away together, hand in hand.

When they reached Shou's house, they can see from outside that the lights were on. Kyoko-san was back. Sakuno squinted her eyes at first when the light from inside dawned on her, and then, she was suddenly hugged tightly.

"S-Shou-kun?"

Shou smirked at Ryoma who was behind her and was confused why he's not giving a reaction. Ryoma surprised him even more when he smirked and pushed Shou's head away, gently, but demandingly, pushing him away from Sakuno before hugging her from behind, making Sakuno blush.

"Wha-?"

"Nice try. But I know who you are," Ryoma smirked at the confused boy's face. When Shou realized this, he glared and pouted at Sakuno who was smiling sheepishly.

"Why'd you tell him so soon~?"

"Because she couldn't resist me," Ryoma pointed out blankly.

"Ryoma-kun!" Sakuno exclaimed in embarrassment.

Ryoma just smirked even more and looked at Shou in the eyes.

"Made made dane."

~END~

A/N: Thank you very much for reading!

Oh and, in the end, Shou wasn't that much disappointed because now he can hug and kiss Ryoma whenever he wanted. That night, he kissed Ryoma which caused Ryoma to pass out from disgust, while Sakuno is having mixed emotions and passed out, too, and Kyoko (Shou's mom) scolded Shou. xDD