She wondered if he noticed how strong he was.

Sure, she knew he was always strong in his own way, but she'd noticed he was now stronger in other ways.

If she thought about it, she realized he already had a strong personality, but now his sense of self worth was stronger too. She thought of Musashi's words about how one carries him or her self makes that person seem taller. Sena was like that now. Even if he still lost his nerve every other sentence he spoke, it was a major improvement from when they first met.


It was terrific seeing him again after so long. Suzuna realized that as she watched Sena in his element out on the football field. He was having fun. He looked happy. It made her happy to see him happy. The two years he was in America felt so much longer suddenly.

The game was short lived, with the Cupids giving up by half-time. It was, sadly, expected even before Sena's arrival. But, nobody thought it would be polite to voice this.

As soon as Sena walked off the field he was swarmed. Both friend and reporter were around him in a second. Suzuna stayed to the side, not wanting to get trampled and also realizing she didn't really know what to say to him.

Why was it so awkward so suddenly? She had been messaging and calling him all of the two years he was gone. Pretty much everyday too!

But...

She watched as he tried to talk to everyone at once, scratching his head and babbling in fragmented sentences the whole time.

Seeing him in person and on a computer monitor were two completely different feelings.

She needed to break the ice, get herself in a mode where her unease was forced out of her.

Suzuna smiled deviously before skating up onto the bleacher railings, pom-poms at the ready and taking a nice deep breath.

The deja vu of her actions made her twice as eager to do this.

"SENA!"

The attention of everyone present was on her, she just looked directly at him. She smiled at him before shouting once again.

"YA! YA! SENA'S HERE! YA! YA! WELCOME CHEER! YA! YA! SENA'S HERE! YA! YA! WELOME CHEER!"

It was slightly corny and pretty simple, but she made it spectacular with her enthusiasm and skating tricks up on the railing. She was pleased to hear Monta, Kurita, and Mizumachi readily join in. That encouraged several others to join in too. But, she still only focused on Sena, watching the way he watched her.

He was surprised and flustered at first, just like she thought he would be, but then he smiled at her. Smiled like he does out on the field. Happy and having fun.

She decided it was best to end her cheer there with a extra loud 'YA!'. She needed to jump down from the railing before the light headed feeling that rapidly hit her made her clumsy.

Everyone clapped and Sena smiled timidly, scratching the back of his head. And then he was looking at her again just as she was starting to jump down. Deja vu hit again as she saw him move.

Then he was catching her. Spinning her in his arms to accommodate for her sudden weight. She could feel the strength and heat in his gloved hands on her back. Feel the muscle of his arms as he righted his footing and began to set her on her own feet.

For the split second he held her there, she realized that only the very tips of her inline skates brushed against the grass. It sent her pulse a buzz when they locked eyes with each other.

This wasn't the same Sena that tried to save her from falling during the Death March. This Sena caught her with relative ease and looked at her with an easy smile and held her lightly by the elbows.

Suzuna felt intimidated completely. She loved and hated it at the same time.

"S-sena, didn't I tell you to stop doing that?!" She stood a little straighter, making more distance between them, but not leaving his hold. She looked off to the side and saw the calculating looks of Hiruma and the other more observant players. They noticed Sena's increase in strength and balance too. She just hoped they hadn't noticed her noticing it as well.

He blinked innocently before returning to his usual fidgeting. Shoulders hunched, eyes wide in self consciousness.

"A-ah, yeah, well, I-I just reacted!" He looked down at his feet, laughing a little. "Maybe cuz it's been a while, huh?"

Suzuna stared at her hands resting neatly on his upper arms. The word bicep instantly coming to mind.

She hurriedly made eye contact again and smiled at him. "Yeah, I guess it has been!"

And then he was surrounded again, their small moment coming to a screeching halt as Monta slapped Sena on the back, then Mizumachi pulling him into a headlock. She saw the way Sena tripped forward at the Ha Ha Brother's hearty punches and how he at once stood straight again.

The whole lot of them, excluding the reporters, walked together to the Enma University football clubhouse. Sena in the lead with his current and former teammates asking him all about his time at Notre Dame. Suzuna skated next to Mamori near the end of the chaotic group. Mamori saying she'd wait until the boys had their fill before talking with Sena, the cheerleader agreeing to do the same and silently wondering if Sena realized how strong he had gotten.

Suzuna shivered.

She could still feel the way his fingers slid down her spine.


Hey there! This is part 1 of a 4, possibly 5, part series of related oneshots for SenaSuzu! Pretty much told through Suzuna's eyes. I have something else planned for these two also, but I'll wait until I finish this before I do that! Hope you enjoy! Comments and feedback are appreciated!