Black hair was rather spikey. Wasn't he just the real-life visualization of a video game protagonist? For data's sake! He must have fit it in some way. But, those glasses-hidden orbs of brown held a sort of longing that his data could not completely explain. It was odd and he had tried to break it down, down into terms that he could understand. It stayed out of his reach, impossible.
Perhaps, like the video game protagonists Kikumaru often described, Inui Sadaharu was supposed have a sort of discovery quest to figure it out.
He found himself able to break down the signs into a few causes: Fatigue or Love.
He doubted it was fatigue, because he kept on a strict diet and had excellent stamina.
Love?
It seemed farfetched, but with the drumming of his heart against his ribcage. Like a hammer stuck, it dropped to his stomach, butterflies releasing from his stomach and fluttering their way up – oh it was practically indescribable by the best of data. It could be broken down into strategic reasons, of course, but the human experience was key. It wasn't like the feeling of 'love' he had experienced for precisely 4.2 seconds when he was younger.
No, it was much stronger than that.
He recalled promises, lost in the sea of the past, the ship he swore had sailed from it still caught in the waves, rumbling, tumbling, wondering. These promises, reaching deep in the sapphire blue of the water all the way up to the baby blue of the sky.
These promises, he seemed to cling onto them, no matter how hard he tried to break the grip. He fist was clenched around them, holding tight to a hand he, unbeknownst as to exactly why, wanted to hold again.
"Sadaharu, I do believe that, if we keep this up, we will be the strongest doubles pair in the country."
"We'll keep it up then, Rena."
The dark-brown haired girl of the age of ten gave a small smile. "Well, that is a promise then. We will work on until we reach the top." She tilted her head slightly, before standing and picking up her racquet, "The regimen will be difficult. Can you handle it, Doctor?" She asked, reaching her free hand out to help him up.
"I can, Professor," Inui had responded, taking her hand and standing up. He grabbed his racquet and pushed aside his tennis bag and the two practiced until they simply could not stand anymore. They both collapsed, beside each other, laying atop their bags, balls and racquets laying almost sporadically nearby.
"Good work, Sadaharu…"
"I can say the same to you, Rena."
She, weakly, looked over to him, half-open eyes of brown gazing softly, "We'll be like this for much longer."
"Yeah, we will."
All the lost laughter of childhood flashed before his eyes but the calling of his team distracted him. He was a calculating man, brave in his wits, not afraid to risk loss to analyze and properly beat an opponent relying solely on data. It was an amazing skill, taught to him by her, the one he so… he so fondly recollected upon. Childhood friend, best friend, he missed her, but that was explainable. Human minds often wished to interact with minds of similar thoughts and opinions. Yanagi Rena and himself had those kinds of interactions.
It had to do with growing up alongside each other – they were a mere day apart, so close together their birthdays were. Yes, their birthdays were so close that their parents often combined the parties; it was easier and neither minded. Small, together celebrations were better than separate.
Yet, the concept of love was a difficult one to grasp, even for a man who knew so much. Was he… afraid? Did something, something that could be seen as trivial, happen to be one of the weaknesses of him? What even is love? A chemistry related connection of mind and soul? Or something much more divine and linked to fate and destiny?
He walked, holding his notebooks, one of old, one of new. He pushed up his thick-rimmed glasses and followed his team, closing his eyes briefly. His mind went into a daydream – a byproduct of infatuation? He saw her, older, a different uniform, alone, looking out on the ocean in the spot they used to meet at. Tennis skort was affect just slightly from the breeze, her hair – it hadn't seemed to change much, followed this breeze as well.
Suddenly, all doubt in his head was cast aside, thrown into the garbage can like a piece of crumbled paper, and he stepped forward, approaching.
One step, Inui, the manager of Seishun Gakuen, saw in his dreamscape. A mere step but he felt like he was closer to seeing her again.
She had left suddenly, suddenly after they played a singles match and didn't finish mother had explained that her family had moved to the Kanagawa prefecture. Inui could deduce that Yanagi had never gave a peep to him about moving because she hadn't wanted to worry him, but it was her sudden disappearance that hurt the most. Stung, he could barely stand that day she left. Next day, he was seemingly over it.
That had been so far from the case.
Beyond his explaining, he had felt like he was dying, dying little by little on the inside in her absence. He seemed so wiped from emotions about losing his childhood friend during his past years of junior high merely because he had made friends and he knew very well that showing stress and worry openly could stress, worry, and debilitate others. And he was quite good at suppressing things that needed be thought of and move on.
He'd wanted to see her again.
The facts added up to it. He was in love… or was he?
He'd wait, wait until fate brought them back together. It had to, so long as they won their competitions. After his researching into the subject matter, he knew she went to Rikkaidai, a private school in the Kanagawa prefecture that had won the last two nationals and Inui could easily put some of the reasoning behind the winnings on her.
He'd wait, wait until the Kantou tournaments began and then he'd see her. He was more than willing to wait. Love, seeing her again, it was worth it, even if he couldn't grasp why. He wasn't sure. Love, a concept shaky, easily blinded by admiration.
"Rena, what did you wish for?"
"Sadaharu, if I told you, it wouldn't come true, now would it?"
They both laughed, looking out at the ocean, notebooks beside them.
"Such a silly notion, right? That blowing on a candle and wishing, keeping the wish in your back pocket, would help it come true," Yanagi said, releasing a yawn, setting her pencil down, "I'll tell you what I wished for if you tell me at the same time."
"We can only listen closely to one thing at a time though, Rena."
"Let's listen just to each other's then. Say your wish blindly, like you believe in it and it's all fact. There can't be much doubt in something you hope for, correct?"
"Right."
They took a breath at the same time, breathing in the cool, salty, ocean air.
"I wish-
"-for us to always be friends."
They both looked at one another, grinning. "We were thinking the same thing."
"Likeminded, how perfect!"
Yanagi gave another yawn, leaning against her friend, "Maybe our paths to keeping it will be rocky, but it'll happen. We'll stay friends."
Now, weeks had past and it was time. He was playing, Singles 3, against Rikkaidai, as a regular. Good thing he regained his spot. He had observed the team, knew she was there, but hadn't caught a glimpse exactly.
Then, she took her steps onto the court, dramatic comfrontation as eyes locked and time seemed to freeze. The way the wind caught her straight, dark-brown hair and blew it, gently-closed, brown eyes gave soft blinks, she was beautiful. She moved perfectly, right to an even pace that Inui was able to catch. A pace that easily could exactly match his walking pace. She hadn't ditched that then? Wonderful.
Strong, strength, Inui had it. He could manage it. He needed to. He'd talk to her, after – hopefully he could. It was less-likely for him to have anytime later if he couldn't make it happen. Every second he wasted not talking to her lowered his percentages of ever figuring out the clouded thoughts.
Every moment in those past four years, two months, and fifteen days came to this, his examining gaze falling about her calm features once more.
Flash to his dreamscape, where he took yet another step toward her, one more step closer to her, he could almost reach her.
The match ended before he knew it, even if it had been a long match. He had cased his data aside, casted the past, their past, away to beat her.
There was slightly shock on her face but she turned and the closing ceremonies of the end of the Kantou tournaments were had.
"Rena!" He said, quickly, afterward.
She had stopped in her walking, pivoted on her feet, and looked at his, directing in the glasses-shielded eyes, "Yes, Sadaharu?"
"Can we talk?"
"Perhaps we will talk later. The circumstances should be more special than just this, Sadaharu. Perhaps you'll have something more to say to me than just simple talking then as well."
She turned back around and walked away.
It was then back to the waiting. The figuring out what Yanagi had meant. She never said anything unless she meant those words. She hadn't changed a bit.
Perhaps, maybe just perhaps, they had known each other in past lives, their spiritual beings connected through many fleshy-lifelines. The idea of continuing life cycles was out there, but Inui would run every possibility as any reasonable man would.
Was it love?
He came back to dwell on the subject that the two children hiding up the sheets and writing out information and plans by lantern light would've never considered. They would have waved it off as another silly notion that adults would worry about. But, they were older now. Was it still so silly? No. It couldn't be that silly. No longer silly. Was that what Yanagi meant? That he was ready to admit feelings? She had always been perceptive to his worrying beforehand… Yes, that had to be it. They knew each other well and Inui couldn't think of anything else Yanagi could have meant.
"We have our combinations down to the last notch, Sadaharu."
"I am aware, Rena. We will be the best doubles pair the country has seen, won't we?"
"As long as we hold a goal above our heads and keep reaching for it… as long as we never give up, we will."
Finally, finally, it was post-nationals. Done with the ceremonies and Inui found it had been quite a special time. After all, Seishun had finally won a national tournament.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Solid shoes hit the hard floor, a steady pace, familiar pacing. Inui recognized it instantly, the data of it memorized. His pacing. Her pacing.
He knew it. This was predicted. They had promised to stay friends, so this was, in theory, inevitable. That was why Inui believed it would occur. He was near the place, the place they used to meet at, and she was still in her uniform, having traveled straight from the tournament to here. She leaned against the grey, metal bars.
It was time.
His heart beat quicken, sped up, raced and finally he had an explanation for it and he wouldn't rerun the calculations like it was spitting an error out at him. Fate had brought her, his friend, back to him and he wouldn't let it.
He'd have this passion, this passion that data could only theorize, forever.
A gust kicked up and slowly the dreamy feel of his dreamscape, the image he had carried and held onto, went from the colorless, distant feel to reality and he took one long step. A second large step, to the pace though.
"Rena."
He said and she slowly looked up and faced him, their sets of brown eyes meeting, seriousness lining their faces.
"Sadaharu." She said, looking up, not a long distance – he wasn't much taller.
He set his notebooks to the ground and carefully ran a hand through her hand. Her eyes opened a bit wider, "Did you figure it out… Doctor?"
She asked simply, a smile forming, leading into to slightly reddening cheeks that only Inui could catch.
"Yes… Professor," he said, a chuckle present in his voice as she gradually wrapped her arms around him. Admittedly, she missed him. It had been just as difficult on her to leave him behind in elementary school.
Lifting her slightly, he needed say the words aloud, they were spoken in actions. A careful, caring hug of smiles, no apprehension, no fear written on their faces. It was true, honest, and relieving to have it out there. To be able to hold her hand again, laugh alongside her.
Perfect and in the end, only the craziest of data could even reach miles near the outcome. The outcome, rocky, unstable path, ending ideally. Endless compassion that they deserved, the taste of sweet honey coming into thoughts from mere glances. As childhood friends, it was practically destiny. Perhaps destiny had all the data?
With the feelings, these infinite feelings that only came once in a life time, hitting, piercing at any age seen fit, learning of destinies data and trying to control it didn't matter.
Nothing else would matter, really, to Inui, but keeping Yanagi close, always. Never losing her again. That was a promise the two settled on.