Misunderstandings
AN: Based on real events. Yes, I have weird friends. And it's another Rikkaidai fic. Seigaku will always be my favourite team, but because they got the most character development in canon, writing about the other teams is way more fun.
It was perhaps the warmest day of the summer season yet, but that wasn't going to stop Rikkaidai's tennis team from practicing. If anything, it made them practice harder, especially with the ever-looming Nationals above their heads.
"I'm exhausted!" said Marui, as they all trooped into the changing rooms, practically dripping with sweat at 6pm, after three hours of intense practise.
"You barely played at all, Marui-senpai." said Kirihara, accusingly, from where he was wringing out his hair onto the changing room floors. "You were drilling the non-regulars for the first two hours, then you were against the machines."
"Didn't stop it being hard," Marui, as he stripped off his shirt, to find his school-clothes. "Do you know how many balls those non-regulars missed and threw out of the courts?"
"Several. Considering they almost hit me in the head while I was playing Yanagi-senpai. You could done something about that, you know. You know, like laps? I was almost injured. What kind of a senpai does that?" said Kirihara, as he too stripped off his clothing.
"It's not like you have any qualms about injuring the rest of us. I still have a bruise from last week!" said Marui, showing off the impressive purpling bruise on his ribcage.
"Could you please stop flirting for five minutes?" asked Jackal, as he buttoned his shirt on. "Sometimes, peace and quiet is appreciated."
There was laughter from practically every other regular. Even Sanada was smirking a little, though it was hard to tell, underneath the hat. Marui had turned almost as pink as his hair, but Kirihara merely smirked and batted his eyelashes at Marui, which made Marui accidently smash his locker shut, in alarm. There was another burst of laughter and this time, Kirihara joined in as well.
"Ttch. You're such an annoying little kouhai." said Marui, as he slowly regained his normal colour.
"Thank you." said Kirihara, as he replaced his grip tape on his racket as he took a seat on the benches.
"I'm just going to take a shower." Niou said, as he slung a towel over his shoulder. "Hiroshi-kun, could you check over my English homework? Izumi-sensei said that she'd give me detention if my verb conjugations were wrong again, and then Sanada-fukubuchou would make me run laps again for being late."
Yagyuu rolled his eyes as he tied his tie deftly. "Fine, I'll check them for you. In your bag?"
"Third compartment, like usual." said Niou, winking as he ducked towards the showers.
Yagyuu quickly opened Niou's locker and Kirihara gave him a look. "You know his locker combination? I would expect that from Yanagi-senpai, but not from you, Yagyuu-senpai."
"I've impersonated him for a week straight, Akaya-kun." said Yagyuu, as he lifted Niou's bag out of the locker, "It was more than slightly necessary to learn it."
"Really? When?" asked Kirihara, looking slightly shocked.
Yagyuu smirked slightly. "If you didn't notice, then I think Masaharu-kun's plan worked quite well."
"Not fair, senpai!" said Kirihara, pouting, as he sprayed some deodorant in the air.
"It was two weeks before the Kanto Finals, Akaya." said Yanagi, from where he was tying his shoes together. "Yagyuu-kun still has a few unconscious ticks that he needs to smooth out. Niou-kun was flawless in his act, however."
Yagyuu frowned momentarily, before going back to reading the sheet of paper with conjugations for several verbs in future, past and present. "Really senpai? Like what?" asked Kirihara, as he sat down next to Yagyuu.
"I'm not sure." Yagyuu said, looking a little distracted, as he reached for a pen inside Niou's bag. "Why don't you ask Yanagi-kun? I'm sure that he has more knowledge on it than I. You don't notice your own unconscious habits, after all."
"But shouldn't you know them?" asked Kirihara as he leant over to see what Yagyuu was reading. He leant too far and toppled to the floor, bringing Niou's bag with him. A white plastic bag rolled out along with Niou's pencil case, now scattered all over the floor, spilling ink and lead.
Yukimura merely lifted his legs onto the bench to avoid the ink coming his way and Yanagi sighed, as he rolled up his trouser legs. Kirihara yelped as the black ink seeped into his white shirt and knocked over the white bag even further in his haste to get up.
To everyone's surprise, a bunch of hypodermic needles fell out onto the floor. Everyone blinked.
"Yagyuu-senpai…"asked Kirihara, not even seeming to notice the blue and black ink dripping off his clothes, "Do you know why Niou-senpai would have needles in his bag?"
Yagyuu shook his head speechlessly, as he picked one up. Yanagi lifted another one up. "These are hypodermic needles. Using for injecting a liquid substance, quickly and relatively painlessly. This one seems to have come from the Kanai General Hospital, by the label."
"Where Yukimura-buchou was staying?" asked Kirihara, as he too picked up a needle, gingerly.
"That's right." said Yukimura, who didn't seem fazed in the slightest, as he started to comb out his hair.
"What's Masaharu doing with needles?" asked Yagyuu, looking a little puzzled.
Kirihara shrugged before his eyes widened. "Yagyuu-senpai…you remembered that Marui-senpai accused Niou-senpai of being on drugs last week, because of his new-found strength on the courts…"
"No!" Yagyuu barked, harshly before regretting it at the crestfallen look on the boy's face. "No. He's not. Niou isn't a fool. Tennis is first. He's not that much of a fool. He can't be."
"Besides, I have already seen data that supports that Niou has been practicing more lately, on his own, so that his stamina will match yours, Yagyuu-kun." Yanagi said, "It is more likely that these are merely for some prank."
"What kind of prank is that?" asked Marui, looking slightly confused, "Some prank with needles of all things…" Marui shuddered, as he blew a bubble.
Kirihara still looked uncertain. "I'm not convinced! What kind of prank could you play with needles? This is for something else! Besides Yagyuu-senpai, Yangai-senpai, Niou-senpai has kept secrets from both of you before, right? Remember when we found out that he was failing Music, a month after it had actually dropped that low?"
Yagyuu frowned and adjusted his glasses, with only two fingers. "You can't keep a secret this big. This is just for a prank."
"Do you honestly believe that, Yagyuu-senpai?" asked Kirihara, his face hard, and his green eyes worried.
There was no response from Yagyuu, who merely stood still.
At that moment, Niou came back out from the shower, rubbing his long white hair with a towel as he dripped his way into the changing rooms. "What a mess! What happened?" he asked nonchalantly before blinking slightly at the serious expression on Kirihara's face. "What's up?"
"Niou-senpai…I want to ask you something, and I want you to answer seriously." said Kiriahara, looking very cold.
"Oooh, scary face. Something really is wrong, ain't it, kid? Sure, I'll try. Shoot kiddo." Niou said, breezily, as he leant against the nearest locker.
"Are you taking drugs, Niou-senpai?" asked Kirihara.
Niou blinked for a moment, before smirking a little. "I think you have to clarify on that a little, kid."
"Drugs! You know, cocaine, heroin, pot, that weird white stuff that enhances your sports and makes you woozy and makes you ill and look like that weird American woman, Lindsey Lohan!" Kirihara said, gesturing wildly, looking mad.
Niou sniggered slightly as he leant upwards a little. "Cocaine and Heroin don't increase your sporting ability. Those are steroids. And pot is the nickname for cocaine."
"Why do you know so much about drugs, Niou-senpai! You have to be taking them!" said Kirihara, looking contrite and smug, pointing at Niou in shock.
"I am taking drugs." said Niou, still looking vaguely amused. There was a smash and everyone turned around to look at Yagyuu, who had dropped the needle the floor, smashing it, his face and skin turning a sickly shade of white.
"Masaharu…" he said, looking horrified and Niou rolled his eyes.
"Not like the way kiddo seems to be thinking though. I don't take recreational drugs. I ain't stupid, Hiroshi. Have some faith in me." he said, rolling his eyes.
"Then, what are the needles for?" asked Kirihara, looking more confused than ever, with more than a little petulance to his tone.
Niou rolled his eyes and went to the white bag and threw a little vial of clear substance to Kirihara. "In-su-lin." read Kirihara haltingly, in English.
"Insulin?" asked Yanagi, looking shocked, his eyes opening slightly. "Then, you're diabetic?"
Niou nodded. "Type I. It's kind of a pain, really."
"What's 'diabetic'?" asked Kirihara, looking really puzzled.
"Diabetes, Akaya." said Yukimura, looking up from where he was placing his green headband back on. "Diabetic is the adjective. It's a serious medical condition. But I'll let Niou-kun explain it."
"It means that I don't get enough blood sugar by myself." Niou elaborated, looking a little bored as he bent to pick up his pens and pencils from the floor, careful to avoid the smashed pieces of the needle. "Kind of like Marui, but more extreme. Marui can survive without extra sugar; it just means he can't play tennis with as much energy as he usually does. However, I can die without the external sugar sources, because my body can't make its own sugar. Full stop."
"You could die without these?" asked Kirihara, looking horrified.
Niou nodded, pulling a face. "Puri. You've learnt about respiration, right? Our body converts glycogen into glucose, which our body uses for energy. When our blood is low on sugar, messages are sent to the pancreas, which in turn releases insulin to stimulate the making of glucose. Diabetic people don't have insulin glands, or these insulin glands were turned off as a child by some illness. Not really sure on the specifics for general people, but mine stopped working after I had TB at age six. So, I have to inject insulin into myself so that I get the sugar I need."
Kirihara looked kind of shocked. "You didn't tell anyone?"
"Yukimura-buchou knew." said Niou, nonchalantly, as Yagyuu helped him pick up pens and siphon off the ink. "No one else needed to."
"Yukimura-buchou?" asked Kirihara, looking shocked.
"I did. I felt that it was better to keep it quiet. Potential is best achieved when judgment is not applied." Yukimura said, smiling.
Kirihara went over to pester Yukimura, but Yagyuu leant slightly closer to Niou, and frowned, his eyebrows knotted together. "Why didn't you tell me before?" asked Yagyuu, looking a little lost. "We're best friends. We're doubles partners! I've known you since the beginning of middle school. I impersonated you for an entire week!"
Niou looked slightly sheepish. "Look, it's embarrassing, okay?" he muttered, darkly, making sure that Yanagi wouldn't be able to overhear. "I hate this. I hate being so weak. I have to take these seven, eight times a day, to make sure I don't die. Everybody who knows always gives me this look, and I hate being treated like that. On the courts, I'm the trickster and I'm one of the best and no one cares that I'm diabetic. I'm just another tennis player."
"But I wouldn't have cared." said Yagyuu, frowning as he stood up. "I care more than you kept it from me."
"But it ruins our doubles combination." sad Niou, quietly. "Now you'll start trying to cover for me more and take the shots that I should and it will inevitably lead to Rikkaidai losing."
"Don't be stupid." said Yagyuu, icily. "I expected better from you, Trickster. You know me. And I know you. I won't lose. And anyway, Doubles is about trust. I trust you, but do you really trust me? Because it sure doesn't look like it."
Niou blinked. "Hiroshi…"
"Forget I said anything." said Yagyuu, as he handed the last of the pens to Niou. "If you'll excuse me, Niou-kun, mother will be expecting me."
"What would you have done in my place?" asked Niou, loudly. "Would you have told everybody and seen those pitying looks, day in and day out? Watch all the teachers and students treat you like an invalid, like you're a fragile doll, ready to break? It's just a disease. And I've hardly let it affect me. I didn't want to be seen and known as 'that kid with diabetes'. I wanted to be known for myself, and I am, now. I'm Niou, tennis player, trickster and math whiz. So, I ask you again, what would you have done in my place, Hiroshi?"
Yagyuu stopped and turned around. "I wouldn't have lied."
"It's not technically lying, senpai." said Kirihara, butting in, quickly, seeing the look on Yagyuu's face. "He just didn't say anything about it to anyone. Omission isn't technically lying. Now, saying that you take drugs? That was a lie! I may not be the best at Science, but even I know that insulin is a hormone! You don't take drugs!" he accused, poking Niou firmly in the chest.
"I wasn't lying! I have to take several painkillers so that I can inject myself several times a day without causing myself pain all the time. Puri~!" Niou said, smirking a little. "You're just sour, Kirihara-kun."
"Liar, liar." taunted Kirihara, seemingly ignoring Niou's explanation.
Yagyuu smirked a little, as Kirihara got tackled by Niou into a firm headlock and the two of them fought through the locker rooms. They never changed their habits.
"Get a room!" said Marui, rolling his eyes, as he grabbed an energy bar from his bag. "Preferably away from here."
"Yagyuu…" said Niou, dropping Kirihara to the floor without a second thought as Yagyuu started to leave.
"What is it, Niou-kun?" asked Yagyuu, as he adjusted his collar slightly.
"Can you forgive me? I never meant to make you hurt. I just didn't want anybody to know how vulnerable I am." said Niou, his face slightly hurt by Yagyuu's change to his surname.
Yagyuu sighed before smirking slightly. "Sure, I forgive you. But you're doing my Science homework. With that sort of knowledge about Biology, you'll be perfect to help me out. I don't understand the stuff about classification."
"What!" said Niou, looking irritated. "Hiroshi! Don't tell me you were just pretending to be mad to get my help!"
Yagyuu smirked deviously. "You honestly think I cared about you lying? I know my fair share about pride and how it's debilitating."
"I think you corrupted him, Niou-senpai." said Kirihara, looking amused. "He wasn't this devious at the beginning of last year!"
Niou started shouting at Kirihara and this time, Yagyuu joined in. Yukimura merely chuckled lightly as he stood up and Yanagi smirked as he fell into step with Yukimura.
"I feel I should be saying 'Ii Data' right now and adjusting my non-existent glasses." he murmured to Yukimura who only just stopped himself from laughing.
"I hope you don't, I don't think Genichirou wouldn't be able to take that stress on top of their antics." said Yukimura, smirking as they left the locker room.
"Speaking of Genichirou, where is he?" asked Yanagi, as he stuck his hands in his pockets.
"Something about a kendo competition. He had to rush off. Probably for the best that he missed this entire exchange. I think he would have made everyone run laps before any of their issues were sorted out. Actually, Renji, can I ask you a favour?" asked Yukimura, rapidly changing the subject away from Sanada.
"Feel free, Seiichi." said Yanagi.
"Don't tell Inui about this. About Niou's diabetes. Only about four teachers know and none of the other students do. It's the way Niou wants to keep it, and I want to keep it that way too. Besides, we'll most likely face Seigaku in the Nationals again, and I don't want then to know his weakness in a match." said Yukimura, sternly, as he adjusted his headband.
"I won't tell him, Seiichi. I'm able to respect people's privacy." said Yanagi, nodding slightly.
"Good. By the way, you left your bag in the locker rooms." said Yukimura, smiling a little.
Yanagi started. "You didn't tell me!" he exclaimed.
"When you go back, make sure to evict Marui, Niou and Akaya from there. I don't think Natoko-sensei would appreciate it if the locker room, got any more dirty. I don't want to have to deal with it tomorrow." said Yukimura, twirling his hair slightly as he started to walk towards the gates.
Yanagi blinked a little before laughing lowly. It wasn't often, but sometimes, Yanagi forgot just how devious his best friend was. Knowing Yukimura, he'd planned this entire exchange out from the shower to Yagyuu's individual reactions.
Hmmph. He shouldn't have forgotten that his Captain's mind was deviously oriented, even when he was off the courts. People who forgot that, tended to be crushed. And Yanagi had no intention of falling down from his position at the top.
AN: Type I diabetes nowadays actually has more practical solutions than insulin injections at odd hours of the day. There are now machines that function as the pancreas would, but monitoring your blood sugar levels and injecting insulin when they get too high or injecting glucagon when they get too low. They maintain homeostasis for you, by use of an insulin pump with a direct blood link.
Of course, as Prince of Tennis was written in the 2000s or before, Niou has to deal with needles. And accusations of taking drugs. It had to be Niou taking the place of my friend. Who else would people actually suspect of taking drugs?
My friend actually uses an insulin pump, but one day when we were changing for badminton, her bag knocked over, spilling a bunch of spare needles that she keeps for emergencies. A couple of my teammates were immediately on her case, thinking that she was taking drugs and jeopardising the team, etc. Luckliy, she and I were able to smooth it out, but it was funny nonetheless, and reminded me of something that Kirihara and Niou would do.