The first boy had offered to pick her up from home- and would have, had Kippei not scared him off. The second she had arranged to meet in the street courts… or would have, if Shinji hadn't spotted them and raised the alarm. Momoshiro had ratted the third out to Kamio, who had promptly arrived and dismissed the boy in a few, curt words. She had dismissed Momoshiro when she had seen him watching her meet the third in a park- he was, after all, a Seigaku regular. A Seigaku regular- how had Kamio recruited a Seigaku member into looking out her?
It had been the fourth boy that had done it.
Something in Tachibana An's chest had snapped when she watched the hastily retreating back of the fourth boy. She hadn't felt much for him, but it was a chance to go catch the latest movie with free food, and an evening off from the company of the Fudomine boys. "Honestly, brother," she scolded. "Between you and the rest of Fudomine, I'll be lucky if there's another guy who's brave enough."
Tachibana Kippei smiled smugly in response, slinging a companionable arm around her shoulders. "That's the way I like it."
An shrugged off the arm irritably.
And to think she had ignored the way they had scared off the other boys who had expressed an interest in her. In Fudomine it was a well-known fact that to date Tachibana An, you not only had to go through her brother (who was scary enough in his own right), but her brother's tennis team. Few had dared to try- and she was normally too well watched in the tennis courts that any prospective suitors had been scared off as soon as they approached, or in some cases, before they approached. Tachibana Kippei believed in pre-emptive action.
Tachibana An trudged back home, wondering why she had even bothered sneaking out if she was going to get caught.
If only there was a way to get them to back off…
Ryuuzaki Sakuno liked playing tennis. Sure, she wasn't as good as Tezuka-buchou, or Echizen-kun (part of her blushed at the thought of Echizen-kun), but she still cherished hopes of being able to play against them one day, or, as her traitorous mind whispered, just playing Echizen-kun.
But such thoughts were left behind once she stepped onto the court (and Echizen-kun wasn't in sight). She was not a blushing, clumsy girl with too-long braids and a poor sense of balance; she was Ryuuzaki, a tennis player- not formidable, but still good enough to play a few rallies. She sometimes understood how Kawamura-sempai's mood could change so drastically whenever he gripped his racket. When you played tennis, you were more than yourself. You were a part of the game.
It didn't make Kawamura-sempai any less scary though.
"How was the last date?" she asked An as they met at the tennis courts. Tachibana An was everything she wasn't: confident, brash, and a good tennis player. An drew people to her in a way Sakuno could never hope to achieve- which explained why she had gotten asked out more times than Sakuno- not that Sakuno minded, as all that mattered was that Echizen-kun hadn't asked her out, and was not likely to.
An scowled. That itself was an answer.
Sakuno worried her lip. She didn't really have that problem herself, given that all of the tennis regulars associated her with Echizen-kun. Idly, she wondered what would happen if she went out with someone who was not Echizen-kun. They would probably have a heart attack. She mentioned this to An, hoping to cheer her up.
It did not. "I just need to get back at them," An groaned from across the net. "Teach them to stop interfering with my love life!"
Sakuno sighed, serving.
It was a testimony to how distracted An was when she didn't react to Sakuno's first serve when it bounced perfectly in the court. She missed the second serve. The third serve hit her cheekbone.
They gave up the match while Sakuno apologised and An scowled into space, mind churning with revenge plans.
When An showed up in the tennis courts that afternoon, practice stopped.
"Who gave you that bruise?" Kamio asked, eyes narrowing.
"Bruise?" An reached up to touch her cheek, before remembering Sakuno's stray ball. "Oh, yes. Tennis accident."
"It better not be one of your new boyfriends," Kippei warned.
"Want me to beat up that idiot for you?" Masaya offered.
Boyfriend? Hm. That was an idea.
"So it is a boy then," Shinji speculated when An remained silent. "I wonder what kind of boy it is, to have distracted An-chan from the game…"
"What?" Kamio exploded. Her brother draped his arm around her. "Just tell me who it is, An, and I swear…"
"It's none of your business," An replied, cutting through the outcry before it truly started. This was too good an opportunity to pass up. "But if you would like a meeting, I could arrange one."
It was amusing how quickly they agreed.
An would have been less amused if she had heard them arguing who would get to beat An's mystery boyfriend up first.
"Hey, Sakuno? Mind doing me a favour?"
Sakuno thought it was sweet that the Fudomine boys cared about An that much, but she agreed.
They had arranged to meet after practice, and Sakuno was cherishing serious doubts about the whole endeavour by then. She hadn't ever met the Fudomine boys before despite An's frequent, vivid, descriptions.
An has no such qualms. Seizing Sakuno's wrist, she flings open the café door. Spying the Fudomine team, she strides in. "Brother," she announces, coming to a halt at the table where the team is gathered, while nodding to the rest, "this is my girlfriend, Ryuuzaki Sakuno."
It is perfect timing. Tachibana had just taken a sip of his drink, and at her words he chokes, drenching Kyuosuke, sitting opposite. Tatsunori, beside Kyuosuke, does not escape unscathed from their captain's surprise either. At their twin cries of shock, Tetsu wordlessly passes them the napkins.
An grins at their reaction. They look suitably horrified, and even Shinji is stunned into silence. It is one thing to intimidate someone who decides to make a move on their An-chan, but when that person is a girl? They can scarce afford to be seen bullying helpless females- especially Sakuno, who, with her long braids and blush, looks even younger than An-chan. The Fudomine tennis team has a reputation after all.
"A girl?" Tetsu manages, and An smiles, sitting on to the seat closet to her- between Tachibana and Kyuosuke. She notes with displeasure that they have arranged themselves so that the only two empty seats are furthest from each other.
Ignoring the other, she drags Sakuno onto her lap, sighing at the other's startled "eep!" of protest. Sakuno is unfairly light, and her hair tickles, but it is worth it to see the look on their faces.
"Ryuuzaki…" Shinji mutters, recovering the earliest, "the Seigaku's coach's granddaughter? I thought she liked Echizen-kun, but that's obviously wrong because she's here with An-chan…"
Kyuosuke interrupts. "Seigaku?"
If Seigaku hears that Fudomine had scared a girl off- a girl that is part of their precious tennis team (however indirectly)- even if said girl is corrupting their An-chan… well, Fudomine isn't suicidal, by any length. They don't fear Seigaku, but Seigaku is worthy of respect all the same.
Tachibana focuses on something else. "Echizen Ryoma?"
An can feel Sakuno's blush from here, and adjusts her grip before the other girl can run away. "Echizen Ryoma?" she whispers to Ryuuzaki. She hasn't heard that piece of gossip before.
If it is possible, Sakuno blushes even harder. An sees her plan falling apart. But Sakuno recovers faster then she hopes, turning on her lap to say, sweetly, "An! You didn't tell me your teammates were this rude! We haven't even been introduced."
That sufficiently derails them. Tachibana has noticeably stiffened at the sight of Sakuno and An with their faces so close together, An notes with some glee. Kyuosuke gets up and offers his seat to Sakuno, sensitive to his captain's moods. On Tachibana's other side, Kamio mutters, "Don't worry, it's just a phase…"
"Is the red head your brother?" Sakuno asks, as she moves into Kyuosuke's newly vacated seat, even though An knows that Sakuno knows who her brother is- An had drilled Sakuno in the Fudomine team members on the way to the meeting. "Because he's a fine one to talk about phases, after the way I saw him kissing Momoshiro last week."
Kamio turns as red as his hair. Shinji is rendered speechless once again. Tachibana splutters. An resists the urge to giggle helplessly. It's hard to whisper, "It's just a phase" when you're going through the same phase yourself, and swearing it is love.
Under the table, she reaches for Sakuno's hand and squeezes it in silent thanks. Yes, her plan is working very well.
With luck, the Fudomine team would stop interfering with her relationships.
"Oi, Echizen! Do you know that Ryuuzaki-san's going out with Tachibana An?"
Echizen drops his tennis racket, the clatter joining the sounds of most of the regulars stopping in their tracks.
"What? I thought she liked Ochibi, nya?"
"Ile data…"
Echizen pulls his cap further over his face.
"Saa… it's one thing to be dumped by a girl for another guy. But to be dumped by a girl for another girl?"
"Nya, Ochibi! You suck!"
"Maybe she liked him because he was girlish himself!" Momoshiro jeers.
"And what about you and Fudomine's Kamio Akira, Momo-sempai?" Echizen asks, picking up his racket and examining it for any damage.
"Ehhhhh?"
"I saw them kissing last week," Inui elaborates, flipping his notebook open. "What exactly is your relationship?"
With the rest handily distracted, Echizen makes his escape under the sound of Momoshiro's blusters.
End.
Author's Notes: Tried not to make Sakuno too OoC- I hope she wasn't. Hope you liked it!