In honour of the fact that half of my classmates will be leaving this year. And also the fact that I'm possibly the only person who cares.

(Written by: Nithila)

"They're all acting strange," Oishi noted, as he, Kikumaru, and Taka watched the match between Ryoma and Momoshiro closely.

"There is a ninety-eight percent chance that you are talking about the non-third year regulars." Inui announced, popping out of nowhere.

Oishi jumped. "Gyaah, Inui! Don't scare me like that!"

"I almost had a heart attack, nya!" Eiji cried, clutching his chest dramatically.

Oishi sighed, turning back towards the match. "But they are acting very strange. I wonder if they're sick...?"

"I've noticed it, too," Kikumaru scrunched his eyebrows worriedly. "I don't think any of them have been sleeping well – even Kaidoh looks tired. And Ochibi's actually been coming to practice early." He shook his head slightly. "It's a miracle!"

"I've noticed it, too," Fuji added, appearing out of nowhere. The regulars were talented at sneaking up on people. "The three of them don't play as well as they used to. I beat Kaidoh quite easily right now, and Momoshiro and Echizen... are barely playing at all."

As one, the third years looked at Kaidoh, who was scowling somewhere far away, and then turned back to the match in front of them.

Then, as one, they all looked at Tezuka, who was standing a few feet away from them and looking pointedly in the other direction.

"There's a ninety eight percent chance that Tezuka agrees with us," Inui informed them. Tezuka's eyebrow twitched almost unnoticeably.

There was a moment of silence.

"I know!" Kikumaru exclaimed, rubbing his hands together in delight. "We can all go and investigate after school! We'll pretend that we just want to have a really fun meeting, and then we'll corner them, and then Fujiko can use his Instant Death glare, and tell them to – "

"Actually, that won't be necessary," Inui cut in. "I already know what the problem is."

Eiji visibly deflated, and Fuji seemed somewhat disappointed.

"So, what is the problem, Inui?" Taka asked.

Inui flipped through the pages of his notebook. "I believe the three of them are upset about our graduation."

There was a pause. Taka was the first to break the silence. "...Oh."

The third years exchanged uneasy glances.

"It's nice to know that they'll miss us..." Kikumaru said later that day, as he and Fuji sat at their usual table for lunch. "But thinking about it now makes me sad, too!"

Fuji smiled gently. "It is difficult to leave, isn't it? None of us know where we're going to end up. I doubt that any of us will stay in Tokyo, actually." Fuji had already sent an application to a university in London.

"I don't want to leave, Fuji." Kikumaru said suddenly.

Fuji looked up, surprised.

Kikumaru bit his lip and frowned, shifting his gaze. "I don't want to leave. I love our school! What if everything changes after we leave? What if...we never see each other again?" He paused. "And what will I do without Momo, Kaidoh, and Ochibi? They're still going to be here for a whole year..." Kikumaru was almost on the brink of tears now. Fuji didn't respond.

"Actually, senpai, I'll be here for two years," a voice spoke up helpfully.

Kikumaru jerked his head up, eyes wide. "Ochibi?"

Ryoma smirked in response, and turned to leave.

Almost out of reflex, Kikumaru grabbed him by the arm. "Ochibi, eat with us!"

Ryoma looked at him, and then at Fuji, who was staring at him, unsmiling. He shrugged and seated himself at the table, slowly opening his bento.

All through lunch, Fuji watched his kouhai intently. The boy seemed to have noticed his gaze on him, but he was doing a good job of not caring.

The younger boy was acting more or less like he usually did, but something was off. Something was...wrong. Fuji couldn't quite put his finger on it, and that bothered him immensely.

"Ne, Ochibi, will you miss me when I'm gone?"

Ryoma blinked slowly. "Why would I? It's not like I'm never going to see you again."

Kikumaru pouted, saying something along the lines of so heartless and just like Tezuka, but Fuji wasn't listening.

Ryoma's expression had changed. He'd averted his eyes slightly, become more tense, and if Fuji hadn't been so skilled at reading people, he wouldn't have noticed. Slowly, he turned his gaze towards Fuji, and stared at him blankly.

Fuji opened his eyes and stared back.

'It's not just that he's going to miss us. There's something else bothering him.'

Ryoma turned back to Kikumaru, who was still complaining about how Tezuka had polluted Ryoma's mind by turning him into a rock. Ryoma argued that he wasn't half as bad as Tezuka, and that he was actually capable of moving his facial muscles, and the conversation proceeded from there.

But despite everything, no one could get rid of the dark shadow hanging over their heads.

They all knew their time together would be over soon.

Tezuka stared at the black board, absentmindedly taking notes. This lack of attentiveness was highly out of character for him, but Tezuka couldn't help it that day. He was worried.

Contrary to the popular belief, Tezuka was not an old man with a heart of stone who lived solely to make people run laps. He was well aware of everything that happened among his team mates, and was quite capable of worrying over them as well. With the amount of trouble they gave him, Tezuka sometimes wondered why he didn't have gray hair.

He'd heard the entire conversation that the third years had had that morning, and, even before that, he'd been watching his juniors. All three of them were lagging, and barely had enough energy to last through their usual drills.

As their captain, Tezuka would have to do something about it.

"Oi, Echizen!" Momoshiro called, waving from the end of the corridor. "Want to have lunch together?"

"I don't mind."

"Great! Let's go outside, then!" Momo grabbed his wrist and dragged him along, chattering animatedly the whole way. For the most part, Ryoma didn't listen.

It was rare for the two of them to have lunch together. In middle school, they'd eaten together all the time, but after high school, they'd just...stopped. There was no particular reason for it. They'd just stopped.

They headed towards a tree near the southern entrance, and settled down to eat.

"You seem tired, Echizen," Momo said worriedly, glancing at him over is food. "Like you haven't been sleeping well."

Ryoma scowled. "Right back at you."

Momo sighed. "I know, I know." He smiled softly. "I didn't think it would be so hard to watch them leave, you know. I've known them for five years, and now...it's just...over."

It's over.

Ryoma looked away. He didn't want to talk about this. He really didn't.

"I never knew I depended on them so much," Momo continued, talking more to himself than to Ryoma. "I spend more time with them than I do with my own classmates. And this is entirely different from leaving middle school – back then I knew we'd be together again. And sure, everything was different when we entered high school, but...we were still together, weren't we? But now..."

It's over.

Ryoma chose not to respond. He stared hard at his food and tried to concentrate on eating.

He really didn't want to think about this.

After Tezuka dismissed the tennis club in the evening, and after the freshmen had picked up balls, Ryoma didn't go into the clubroom. He was the last person left on the courts, but he couldn't have cared less.

Actually, he hadn't even noticed yet. He was staring at the tennis courts without even realizing what he was doing.

Court D. That was where he had first played a third year regular. Inui...he was possibly the only regular Ryoma actually disliked playing against. His tennis was creepy, and so... frustrating. Much like the senior himself.

Court C...Aha. That was where he and Kikumaru had played doubles against Oishi and Kaidoh. That had been a disturbing match. They'd played after Momo had lost his regular spot, and the Golden pair had fought...and Inui had been so obsessed with defeating Tezuka.

He'd played Fuji on Court B, hadn't he? They'd asked Tezuka for a rematch, and the captain had agreed. The match had stopped half way again though. Not because of the rain, but because Kikumaru had choked after drinking something from Fuji's water bottle, and Fuji had been called to the headmaster's office for bringing dangerous substances to school. The man wouldn't believe that it was only Inui juice.

Ryoma looked around himself, smiling slightly as he surveyed the other spots.

That was where Tezuka always stood when he was watching the team.

That was where Fuji hid every time he stole Tezuka's glasses.

And that was where Kikumaru had tripped over a rock and sprained his wrist...

It occurred to Ryoma then that he was becoming too obsessive for his liking, and he quickly shut down his train of thought and turned to leave.

When he entered the clubroom, nearly everyone had already left. Only Fuji was still there, sitting on a bench and towelling his damp hair.

"Echizen," he said, once he opened the door. His eyes were closed, but he wasn't smiling. "I wanted to talk to you."

Ryoma certainly didn't.

I'm not sure if I can update anything until April. I'd disappeared for so long because of my mock exams, and now I have my actual board exams.

I think I was facing withdrawal symptoms from not writing for so long.

Please review!