Tennis no Oujisama (c) Konomi Takeshi/WJ/Shueisha
Written because I like Kintarou/Sakuno and there isn't enough of it. (Why oh why?) I apologize for the extreme cheesiness of it all. I'd like to blame it on my mediaplayer and its tendency to have the song 500 miles on repeat. XD
I'll Walk 500 Miles and Back For You (And Bring Onigiri Too!)
one.
He did not fall in love with her at first sight. Kintarou has always thought it impossible for anyone to like (as in really like like) another by just looking at the other person's physical characteristics (though he admits he found her quite cute right away. It's the pigtails. He's always had a thing for pigtails.). He did, however, fall in love when he tasted her onigiris (they were that good!). Add that she was so nice to him, so concerned about his health and all that.
("Ah, those are already dirty.")
Well, she probably didn't see the article on the Yahoo! mainpage about how it actually takes five minutes for any food that fell on the ground to catch germs. But that's all right. She probably uses Google—which is a pretty good search engine but their main page is so boring.
But that's not the point. The point is, Tooyama Kintarou is undeniably, completely smitten by the girl with the long, auburn pigtails who has one of the kindliest smiles he has ever seen and the best onigiri he has ever tasted. Now…
What was her name again? Koshimae said something to the likes of Ryuu…Ryuu…Ryuuza—something.
Oh crap. He can't remember. But no problem. He'll just call and pester Koshimae until he tells him.
But first things first, a thought pops into his mind: what's Koshimae's number anyway?
two.
Most people who know Kintarou describe him as a cheerful, friendly boy, easily liked by many . In fact, if there was an award for congeniality, he might have won it already and in succession too. Once he sets his eyes on someone, he doesn't stop until he has charmed his way into the other person's life. He's got tons of friends in school and loves getting more. To him, friends are like Pokemon:You gotta catch 'em all.
But while Kintarou's social skills can be considered admirable, his intelligence level on the other hand is a whole different thing. He isn't stupid (except may be in Kanji. And Math. And Science. And…), but he can be prone to having moments of stupidity once in a while.
So of all the things Kintarou have forgotten, he forgot to get Koshimae's phone number, which naturally foils his original plan to contact Koshimae and get the information straight from the boy. But setbacks like this do not discourage Kintarou . He believes if there's a will, there's a way. He swears to himself that he'll get Koshimae's number and the girl's name all within the week. The question is: How?
Well, that's something he still has to think about. But he'll come up with something! Probably. Hopefully. Or he can just go to sleep and hold on to the belief that an idea will come to him while he dreams.
three.
On most quiet Saturday nights, one can usually see Echizen Ryoma wasting the hours away in his favourite place: inside his bedroom, sprawled on his bed with a either a comic book or a handheld gaming device in his hands and a sleeping Karupin comfortably resting on his stomach. Tonight is no different from all other Saturday nights.
But that was before he got the phone call.
Ryoma furrows his brow, seeing a set of numbers he has never seen on his phone's LCD screen. Flipping the device open, he allows his curiosity get the better of him. He pushes the 'answer' button and brings the phone to his ear.
"Hello."
"Oi, it's me!" A cheerful voice that seems familiar but he can't exactly place responds on the other line.
"Who are you?" he asks in his usual monotone.
Somewhere in Osaka, Tooyama Kintarou is pursing his lips together, pretending to look hurt by Ryoma's inability to recognize him. "How can you forget me so easily, Koshimae?"
Ryoma's eyes narrow upon hearing the name. There is only person who is Kanji-challenged enough to misread his family name. An image immediately appears in his mind, one of a red-haired boy in a leopard-print tank top. "Ah, it's…you."
"Yup!" The red-haired Tennis Prince grins. "So, how's it going?"
Ryoma answers his question with another question. "How did you get my number?"
"Won't you even ask me first how I'm doing? I'm doing okay, by the way, in case you're interested."
"I'm more interested to know how you got my number."
"How rude," Kintarou remarks, though his voice neither sounds offended nor upset. "You're not really the kind who likes exchanging pleasantries, are you?"
Ryoma brushes off this remark. "How did you get my number?" he repeats more firmly this time.
"Eh? Does it really matter?"
Ryoma doesn't answer, which Kintarou takes as a yes. He sighs. "Fine , since you are so persistent, I got it from someone I know who knows someone who knows you. There, are you happy now?"
Ryoma isn't, not one bit. Not only did he suffer a sudden case of headaches and dizzy spells because of Tooyama's answer, he also didn't like the revelation that someone has been giving his contact number out to just anybody. Worse, it's even without his knowledge. He doesn't verbalize his thoughts to the other boy though. Instead, he turns his attention on the other thing that bothers him: why the hell is Tooyama calling him in the first place?
Kintarou seems to have read his thoughts. "Anyway, I'm pretty sure you're wondering why I phoned you all of a sudden. Must have surprised you, huh?"
On other days, Ryoma wouldn't have minded Kintarou's attempt to dillydally. But it's 9:30 and he's almost sleepy and his patience is thin. He lets out a sharp breath. "Can you get to the point and fast?"
"Are you always this grumpy?"
"Depends on who I'm talking to."
"Har-har. Very funny, Koshimae," Kintarou leans back on his chair and rests his legs on his study table. "But okay, since you're in a hurry, the reason why I called is because I just want to ask you a few questions."
"About what?" Ryoma yawns as his eyes begin to droop, feeling like they're going to fall any second. He has to end this phone call and soon.
""Um…it's actually about the about the girl you're with the last time, the one that has those extra-long pigtails?"
Upon hearing the words that left Kintarou's lips, Ryoma's eyes shot open, his sleepiness suddenly, completely forgotten. Slowly, he pulls the phone away from his ears and stares at it long and hard. The expression playing on his face is a cross between confusion and disbelief.
"Hello, Koshimae? Are you still there?"
Bringing the phone back to his ears, he asks, in a voice which is surprisingly strained. "What about Ryuuzaki?"
"Ryuuzaki! So that's her name," Kintarou exclaims happily. "Do you know I've been wondering what her name was the whole week? By the way, she isn't your girlfriend or anything right?"
Ryoma's forehead creases at the question "No, she isn't," he answers blandly. Unconsciously, his grip on his phone tightens as if he were aiming to break it into a thousand pieces.
"Great!"
For some reason, Ryoma starts feeling not too great.
"So do you have her number?"
There is silence for a few seconds before Ryoma's voice is heard on the line again.
"Why do you want her number?"
Kintarou frowns. "Why are you asking so many questions?"
"Because I'm in a position to ask them and demand answers."
"And so you're abusing that privilege by being nosy about everything."
"You can always hang up if you don't want to do it my way." Ryoma pauses. "Or I could. Maybe I should right n—"
"Wait!" Kintarou cries out. "I was just kidding! Come on, don't be so sensitive."
"So why do want Ryuuzaki's number?"
Ryoma hears Kintarou clears his throat and follows it with a hesistant, "Well…" And then, the red-haired boy giggles like some lovesick schoolboy. Ryoma's brow furrows. What the hell….?
"Ah, I don't know how to say this. It's so embarrassing." Had they been using their phones video conference features, Ryoma would have seen Kintarou's face turn as red as his hair. "Um…you see…I think Ryuuzaki-san is so cute and so nice, so…"
Despite being labelled romantically-challenged by his senpais, Ryoma easily gets what Kintarou is trying to say. "You like her."
"Well, kinda. Sorta. Um…" Kintarou giggles again."Yes!"
If Ryoma wasn't feeling too great earlier, now he has started to feel a lot worse. He feels like he has just been punched in the gut. What's wrong with him anyway? It must be something he ate during dinner…
"So, can I have her number?" Kintarou removes his legs the table so he can lean forward on his desk and grab a piece of paper and a pen. He excitedly waits for Koshimae's response. The response he gets isn't what he has expected though.
"I'm sorry. I didn't understand that. Your connection, it's breaking up."
Kintarou furrows his brow. "Eh? What do you mean? The connection seems to be ok—"
And before Kintarou can finish, the line goes dead.
Kintarou pulls the phone away from his ears and stares at it incredulously. Did he just—-? "What the hell—he hung up on me! That jerk!"
He presses the redial button on his cellphone and as he waits for the other boy to pick up, he silently swears he'll make sure to let Koshimae know what he thinks of his lack of phone etiquette.
After six rings, the sound stops and a woman's voice comes on.
The number you have dialed is currently out of reach. Please try your call later.
four.
Despite Koshimae's lack of cooperation, Kintarou still managed to get Ryuuzaki's first name and cellphone number through Junpei who got it again from his cousin, Sato…Sato…um…Sato-something-whatever.
As he looks at Sakuno-chan's (she is Sakuno-chan to him from now on) number on his phone, Kintarou scolds himself for being an idiot. He should have just asked Junpei for the info since the very beginning. He could have avoided wasting his cellphone minutes on Koshimae who wasn't of any help at all anyway. Then again, he did want to talk to Koshimae too—-and he still does, even though last night's conversation didn't end in a more pleasant note.
It must be the optimist in him speaking but Kintarou wants to believe that he just caught Koshimae at a bad time, thus explaining his moments of rudeness. He did say he was sleepy, after all; a lot of people get grumpy when they're sleepy. Hopefully, Sakuno-chan will be in a much a better mood than Koshimae.
He looks at her number for a few more seconds and then he takes a deep breath. He presses the 'call' button.
And then he waits.
five.
Sakuno is about to turn in for the night when the cellphone on her bedside table started ringing. Sitting down on her mattress, she grabs the device and looks at who could possibly be calling her at this hour. It's a number that's not registered on her contact list. Curious, she answers the call with a curt, "Hello."
"Oh, hi Sakuno-chan!"
Even though the speaker treats her as if they were long-time friends, the voice comes comes to Sakuno as something unfamiliar. "Ano…who's this?"
"Ah, you don't know me. No, wait scratch that. You do know me but we were not formally introduced. I was the one who ate those onigiris you brought, you know during the Nationals?"
Sakuno easily recalls the memory. "Eh? Is this Tooyama Kintarou-san?" she asks, her face scrunched up in wonder. What does the Tennis Prince from Osaka want with her?
A big grin appears on Kintarou's lips. "You know my name, "he states. And he can't get over it. She knows his name. She knows his name. She knows his name. Strange, how something so simply is making him giddy.
"Well,Tooyama-san has gotten really popular in Tokyo after your match with Ryoma-kun. It was quite a game, after all."
"Yeah, it was fun!" He exclaims happily. "So were you there? Did you stay to watch me and Koshimae?"
"I did."
"What did you think of the match?"
Sakuno raises her legs off the floor and crosses them together on her bed, Indian-style. "It was intense. It has to be one of the most heart-stopping matches I've seen."
"Arg. That Koshimae made me work my ass off."
"I can say Tooyama-san did the same thing to Ryoma-kun." She smiles. "I had a hard time predicting who's going to win."
"But I bet you were rooting for Koshimae to win, weren't you?"
"Eh? Um…ano…"
Kintarou senses that his question seems to have made Sakuno uncomfortable. So he laughs to express that he doesn't mind that she cheers for Koshimae instead of him, though it would be nice in the future if she does root for him to win too. "That's just fine, Sakuno-chan. It's understandable and expected that you'd cheer for him. You're from the same school, after all."
Frankly, school loyalty is hardly the main reason why she is supportive of Ryoma. She cheers for the boy because of a lot of reasons, mostly personal ones but she doesn't share any of these to Kintarou. Instead, she focuses his attention on the question that has been nagging her since she answered his call, "Um…so is there anything that I can help you with tonight? By the way, how did you get my number?"
Kintaroru silently groans after hearing the same question, this time from Sakuno. He wonders why everyone wants to know how he got their numbers. Is it really that important? But since she's Sakuno-chan, he willingly gives her the same answer he gave Koshimae.
"To be honest, I called Koshimae first but he was so unhelpful."
A moment of silence passes as Sakuno muses on why Kintarou would ask people around for her phone number. She doesn't remember anything she did that could warrant this kind of attention from him. As she ponders on this further, her silence starts to alarm Kintarou. He realizes maybe she didn't really appreciate getting a random phone call from a boy she barely knows.
"Are you mad? Did I say anything to upset you? Or is this entire phone call upsetting you because I can hang up if you like."
His question snaps her attention back to him. "Eh? No! " she blurts out. "I'm not mad, Tooyama-san. I was just wondering why you would call me up."
"Do you mind that I did?"
"Not at all."
And she totally doesn't. So far, she finds Kintarou to be really pleasant and easy to talk to. It does help too that her initial impression of him when they met during the Nationals is rather qood. Truthfully, Sakuno has gotten quite a soft spot for him ever since the day he ate her onigiris and told her they were still yummy despite all the dirt on it. At least, he had appreciated her efforts on them, unlike a certain other Tennis prince she knows.
"Well, to be honest, the reason I called is because…" Kintarou starts. "I want to…to ask you about the recipe you used for the onigiri. I loved them a lot." It is a lie. Not the part about loving the onigiris because he did love them, but he has no interest in making them himself. His culinary skills are as bad as his knowledge of Kanji. He just needs something to talk to her about.
"Really?" Based from Sakuno's enthusiastic reply, he has chosen the correct topic to kickstart what he hopes is the start of a blossoming friendship. "Would you like me to give the recipe over the phone? Or do you want me to email it to you instead?"
Kintarou feels like he has hit the jackpot. "Email would be great!" He gives her his email address and she gives him his.
"I'll send it to you soon."
"Thanks, Sakuno-chan. And by the way, can I ask another thing?"
"Eh? What is it?"
"Is…is it okay if I text or call you once in a while? " Kintarou's face grows warm. Thank god this isn't a videocall. "To discuss more recipes!" He quickly adds. "Or maybe some other stuff?"
"Sure, Tooyama-san."
"Cool!" By then, Kintarou is already grinning from ear to ear. "But please, don't call me Tooyama-san. That's just too formal for me. Simply Kintarou is fine."
Had Kintarou been another boy, she might have a little bit of difficulty granting his request. But his cheerful nature has put her at ease right away, making her feel as if she's talking to someone she has known since kindergarten. It's like talking to a male version of Tomo-chan.
"If you say so, Tooya—" She stops. "Kintarou-kun."
"That's much better," he remarks. "Anyway, it's getting late and it's a school day tomorrow so…talk to you again soon?"
"Sure."
"Good night, Sakuno-chan."
"Good night, Kintarou-kun."
A set of beeps comes in next. Kintarou hangs up and sets his phone on the study table. Then, he jumps into his bed, laughing. He grabs a nearby pillow and hugs it tightly, burying his flushed face in it.
Later on, he falls asleep, dreaming of Sakuno in a pretty gown made of sunshine and rainbows, singing flowers, dancing bears, Koshimae in a jester suit serving him cakes and tea and a castle made of onigiri.
Well, he does have weird dreams.
six.
When Kintarou said that he'd talk to her again soon, he really meant every word. This is why eight hours after their first phone conversation, his name is showing on her phone's LCD screen.
"I just want to greet you a good morning," he says. "I hope you have great day in school!"
Sakuno is surprised that he'll call just to say that, but it'll be a lie if she claims that she isn't touched by such thoughtfulness.
"Thanks, Kintarou-kun. I hope you do too."
Later, he sends her a text message during lunch period.
Lunchtime! Argh. I'm so hungry right now I could eat just about anything. Anyway, are you eating your lunch already, Sakuno-chan? Eat well, okay?
Smiling, Sakuno sends her reply.
seven.
She is holding her cellphone again.
For the past week or so, Ryoma has noticed that she has been holding it a lot more frequently than she used to. And every time he sees her, she's been smiling—as if the messages on the tiny LCD screen were the most amusing things she has ever read.
Now, watching Ryuuzaki and her activities isn't a usual habit of his and things like changes in her phone habits isn't something that he deliberately pays careful attention to. However, he can't help but notice these stuff because, well, simply because he just cannot stop himself from not noticing them. It's like watching a train crash: you don't want to look but you end up looking anyway.
It isn't just him who has noticed Ryuuzaki's sudden fascination with texting. Even Osakada sees it as something out of the norm.
"Sakuno-chan, will there ever be a time again when I won't see you holding that phone during your free time? You've become worse than I am."
Osakada and Ryuuzaki are by their shoe lockers. Osakada is in the middle of putting her inside shoes in her locker while Ryuuzaki is leaning against her locker door, typing on her cellphone. The pigtailed girl stops and looks up.
"But a message has just come in, Tomo-chan. It's rude not to reply."
Osakada closes her locker door. "Is that him still?"
Him.For some strange reason, he has heard this word louder than anything else that Osakada has said.Him. So Ryuuzaki has been exchanging messages with a boy. Him. Ryoma suddenly finds himself not feeling too well again. Maybe it's something he ate durintg lunch this time. He really should start watching what he eats.
He sees Ryuuzaki nod. "Ah, he's just asking me about—-" Ryuuzaki stops, and furrows her brow. Slowly, she turns her head towards his direction and catches him red-handed watching her.
He gives her a look that seems to say, 'I wasn't listening to your conversation at all'. And then he slams his locker door and walks away.
eight.
It's been a proven fact that Kintarou likes Sakuno. As in really like like. Whenever he talks to her, he feels so happy,so light-headed, so content and everything around him seems to be made of nothing but sunshine and rainbows. And he likes her so damn much that he'll do anything for her, even things that he normally wouldn't do.
I already sent the recipe to your email. Make sure to send me some samples, okay. :)
Like cook.
Now, Kintarou can't cook even if his life depended on his ability to create an entree. He loves eating food, not making them. He just doesn't have the skill nor the interest for it. Despite this, he can't let Sakuno-chan down. He doesn't have the heart to ignore her request for onigiris he himself have made. And so he reconsiders adding cooking to his list of skills.
My first batch of onigiri are yours.
May the gods help him.
But the gods, it turns out, don't really have time to heed his wish for sudden culinary expertise. Kintarou's first attempt in cooking ends in a disaster.
"Oh shit! Shit! It's burning!"
Frantically, he turns the gas stove off and removes the lid off of the pot. Steam gushes out like a flowing river and he fans it away with his hand. He frowns seeing upon seeing the completely burnt rice. He obviously can't make an onigiri using this.
Where the hell is a working rice cooker when he needs one?
With his gloved hands, he lifts the pot off of the stove and places it on the sink.
So that's one attempt down, several more to go.
"I can do this."
And he starts from the beginning.
Two hours, three burnt pots, and several curses, later, he finally gets the rice to cook properly. Thank god. Drained, the red-haired boy takes a chair and slumps down on the kitchen table. He dazedly stares at the mess on the sink and groans.
Who knew falling in love can be so physically tiring and stressful? If it's always going to be like this, Kintarou swears he's never going to fall in love with anyone else again. Sakuno-chan will have to be the first and the last.
nine.
Getting daily messages from Kintarou has become a routine for Sakuno. Not one morning since the day he first called did she not receive a 'good morning' call or text from him. It's something that she has grown to expect every time she wakes up and checks her phone.
So that morning, when she did not get anything at all—neither a call or a text— she can't help but get worried. She sends him a message, expecting a reply within a minute or two. Nothing. And so she decides to call him instead, only to be disappointed by the sound of his voicemail recording.
Sakuno frowns as she places the phone down on bedside table. It surprises her how something as simple as this affects her so much. She believes it's probably because she got so used to their morning routine that she can't help but be bothered by any sudden changes in the habit.
She tries to be optimistic though. Maybe Kintarou will send her a message later during lunch period.
He doesn't.
ten.
"Ugh. Stupid phone why are you not powering on?" Kintarou grumbles as he shakes the phone repeatedly as if so doing can make it start working again. he presses the power button one more time. Still, the phone stays off. Angrily, he shoves device back to his pocket. He swears to get rid of the stupid thing the moment he comes back to Osaka. But for now, he has more important things to do.
Like delivering his personally-made onigiri to a certain pigtailed girl in Tokyo.
Oh wouldn't she be surprised!
eleven.
Sakuno checks her phone for what could be the nth time that day. Still, no messages. She sighs as she keeps her phone inside her bag. With heavy footsteps and an even heavier heart, she walks out of the locker hallway and into the school grounds. She heads towards the schoolgates, all set to start her journey home, but she stops halfway when she notices the redhaired boy by the gates, holding a small, red bag.
He sees her and smiles. "Hey,Sakuno-chan!" he yells as he runs towards her.
"Kintarou-kun, what are you doing here?" she asks the moment he has gotten closer.
"Special delivery!" he says, stretching out his arms to offer the bag to her. "Well, I've finally made the onigiri and you said you want samples, right? So here they are!"
"Ah, you really shouldn't have." She gives him a small be honest, she never meant for him to take her words seriously, especially not when she stated them in jest. But she should have known Kintarou would do what she said. That's just how he is—and she actually likes him for it.
"But thank you for these. By the way, what happened to your phone? I've been trying to contact you the whole day." She frowns. "I got worried when you weren't answering at all."
"You were?" Kintarou beams, pleased by Sakuno's concern for him. "Sorry about that. My stupid phone has stopped working all of a sudden."
"I see. I thought…"
"You thought what?"
Sakuno shakes her head. "Nothing. Just forget it," she grins.
Frankly, Kintarou is curious as to what she was about to say, but he doesn't press further. She'll tell him when she's ready; she'll tell him when she wants to. He won't force the words out of her. Instead of doing that, he starts looking around. "Say, is there somewhere here where we could hang out? Let's eat the onigiri together!" .
Sakuno pauses to think. "Um…I know a place."
"Cool!" Kintarou exclaims. "But let's find Koshimae first and ask him to join us. I've actually made enough for three." And without warning, he grabs her hand and pulls her forward.
twelve.
His pair of cat-like eyes spots them right away as he steps out of the school building. It's hard to miss the red-haired boy in the yellow and green jacket, looking so out of place in a school that favors the colors blue, white and red. It's also hard to miss Ryuuzaki's flushed face as Tooyama leads her across the school grounds.
There are so many things wrong in this picture.
Tooyama Kintarou isn't supposed to be here, yet he is.
Ryuuzaki Sakuno isn't supposed to be holding his hand, yet she is.
Ryoma thinks he isn't supposed be bothered by all of these, yet he is.
And then the realization hits him like a bullet to the brain, a hard punch to the gut. And now, his chest feels heavy and all his energy seems to have been drained out of him. Ryoma isn't feeling too well again. But this time, he is certain, it has got nothing to do with anything he ate.
End.