This was the result of a fifteen-minute word challenge that ran longer. The challenge word is stated at the end of the fic.
Making a Splash (Prince of Tennis)
By Haruka (email: haruka at ymail dot com)
"This was a good idea, Ochibi-chan!" Eiji enthused as he and his teammates for the goodwill games, Ryoma and Sengoku, entered the public bath and removed their shoes.
"You know, I wasn't inviting you guys to come with me when I said I was going," Ryoma said flatly.
Sengoku ruffled the younger boy's hair good-naturedly. "Aw, but you're glad we came, anyway!"
"I am?"
Eiji chuckled and pointed. "There's the men's bath over there. Hoi, look, it's those guys!"
They saw three familiar teenagers up ahead, all of them from the American team that were their opponents for the games.
"But I tell you I AM a boy!" Terry Griffy was insisting in English to the caretaker of the facility, much to the snickering of his teammates. Ryoma translated for Eiji and Sengoku, who also laughed, drawing the attention of the other boys.
"Kikumaru," Terry's brother, Tom, said upon seeing Eiji. The Griffys had already won their match against Eiji and his partner for the games, Oshitari Yuushi, but Eiji wasn't one to hold a grudge, so he saluted Tom in a friendly greeting.
"Good to see you again, nya!" he said. Tom nodded, not understanding a word, but Eiji's smile spoke for itself. Sengoku added a wave to that.
In the meantime, the third American player present, Kevin Smith, was glaring at Ryoma. It was no secret that he'd agreed to come to Japan solely to fulfill his lifelong ambition to beat Ryoma at tennis. "What are YOU doing here?" he snapped.
"Same thing you are, only no one is questioning our right to go in," Ryoma replied, and headed for the locker area. Eiji and Sengoku followed, glancing back to see Kevin's eyes boring into the back of Ryoma's head while Terry continued to argue his gender in English with the Japanese caretaker.
Ryoma, Eiji, and Sengoku had finished with the rinsing room and were submerged comfortably in the relaxation bath when they saw their opponents again. Apparently, Terry had been able to prove his maleness since he hadn't been banished to the women's bath, and he, Tom, and Kevin stepped into the water tentatively.
"It's hotter than I thought it was," Tom remarked.
"The old men like it hot, and they come here most often," Ryoma replied.
Sengoku nudged Eiji as they watched the naked Terry enter the water. "See? He really IS a guy!" he chuckled, making Eiji giggle. Tom frowned, not knowing what they said, but realizing that they were talking about his brother.
"Anyone could tell that from the muscles in his legs on the court," Ryoma replied.
Eiji stuck his tongue out at the boy. "Oshitari said the same thing, nya." He glanced back toward Terry. "I guess the guy can't help it if he's pretty. He could cut his hair, though."
"Why would he?" Sengoku remarked. "He and his brothers are idols – they make a fortune selling their 'look.'"
The Griffys were both looking frustrated now. "You know, if you're going to talk about us, you could at least speak English so we understand you. Otherwise, it's rude," Tom told them.
Ryoma translated for his friends, who both bowed in apology. "They didn't mean anything," he told Tom in English. "It's hard when none of you understand each other's language."
"You and I understand the same language, though, don't we, Echizen Ryoma?" Kevin said, and Ryoma met his gaze.
"If tennis is a language, then yes." He shrugged. "Otherwise, you may as well be speaking Martian for most of what comes out of your mouth."
Kevin sat up straighter. "What is it I'm saying that you don't understand?" he demanded. "The fact that I'm going to crush you on the court? That you've been hailed as the best for too long and it's time someone took you down?"
"Yeah, that." Ryoma leaned back, unconcerned, and closed his eyes. He came to relax, not listen to Kevin Smith blather about dominating the world of tennis, starting with him.
He was just beginning to let the hot water loosen his tense muscles when a spray of it hit him in the face.
"Kevin!" Terry gasped.
"Pay attention to me when I'm talking to you!" Kevin ordered Ryoma, who slowly wiped off his face and stared at the blonde boy with narrowed eyes.
Eiji and Sengoku, although not knowing what the boys had been saying in English, certainly understood the mood involved. "Hey, now that's not cool!" Sengoku scolded Kevin in Japanese, knowing he was fluent in both languages. "This is a place to relax, not start fights."
Kevin splashed him in the face as a response. Tom and Terry exchanged a worried glance, while Eiji glared at Kevin.
"Hoi! Now listen you –!"
*SPLASH*
Eiji blinked in surprise as water dripped off his face, but didn't get a chance to respond before there was an echoing splash and Kevin was dripping himself. They all looked toward Ryoma, who had a hint of a smirk on his face.
"You REALLY want to start something?" he asked.
Kevin's hateful stare changed, turning mischievous. "Yeah, I do."
The battle was on. Both twelve-year-olds began splashing each other mercilessly, their older friends getting caught in the crossfire. Eiji tried to fend off some of the water by splashing back, only to hit Terry instead. The pretty boy countered with a driving wave of water that covered not only Eiji, but Sengoku, who fought back with a massive splash that hit Tom instead. All six boys were soon squealing, laughing, and making so much commotion that all other patrons left the rapidly-flooding bathing room in a hurry.
"I can't believe we got kicked out of the bath, nya," Eiji lamented when the group of them were back out on the street much sooner than they'd planned.
"It was fun," Terry admitted, grinning at his older sibling, who nodded.
Kevin pushed wet blonde bangs off his forehead and pointed at Ryoma. "This doesn't change anything between us. You're still going down."
A drop of water fell off his extended fingertip and they all watched it land. The effect was somehow comical and the four older boys struggled to keep from laughing out loud. Ryoma, however, locked twinkling eyes with Kevin's.
"ONE of us will make a splash by the end of the games, anyhow."
(Word challenge – Flood)
(2005)
Prince of Tennis belongs to Konomi Takeshi.
This fic is not to be re-posted.