Oi! Miyuki! - Kuramochi called after him, jumping the whole four steps like it was nothing, catching up with him quickly.

Where ya' going man? Won't you stay for the rest of the ceremony? - Kuramochi asked confused and received no answer from the brunette.

Come on, just a little! The girls even made a small party for us! - He tried to convince him but nothing seemed to change his mind.

I want to see him - He muttered, closing his locker after he made sure he had packed his uniform and hadn't left anything behind, feeling how Kuramochi's hand left his shoulder.

Send him my regards then - He told Miyuki with a soft tone, feeling down again.

Miyuki left the stadium after that, feeling grateful with his friend for apologizing him with their coach, since the captain himself wouldn't be with his team for the final ceremony.

He silently looked through the window as the cab took him to the train station, thanking the driver and jumping out and entering the busy station. He had made this on a whim, he was now sitting in a Shinkansen in his school uniform on his way to Nagano with not even a piece of bread in his stomach, but that didn't matter, he needed to see his beloved one.

His long gone beloved Eijun.

It had been a year after his decease and though the time to mourn him had passed and they had returned to their usual activities, none of them could shake the uneasy feeling of emptiness he left them with, for they never listened to his morning shouts as he ran with his tire, or his bad pep talk during breakfast or his usual nonsense as they trained and played.

Sawamura was gone with a big piece of their heart and nothing could ever fill that hole.

Miyuki fell asleep not long after the train parted, dawn falling upon them as quickly as it left the station, ignoring the orange shades of the sky mixing with its natural blue and white.


Oi Kazuya! Miyuki Kazuya! - Sawamura called after him, waking him up in the act as his loud voice echoed in the room.

Quit shouting already! - He mumbled from the pillow, groaning in pain as Eijun landed over his back, Eijun's hands caressing his shoulders.

Rise and shine cap! You promised you'd catch for me today! - Eijun said still sprawled over Kazuya's back, kissing briefly his left shoulder before Miyuki chose to roll over and make him land flat on his back, laughing like a maniac as Eijun screamed at him for it.

Stop that already - He pulled him from his tantrum and caught him effectively between his arms, kissing his face all over while his screams subsided, succumbing to Miyuki's attentions and kissing him softly on his lips before Kazuya's arms left him as well as his mouth, laughing and dressing in his uniform, leaving a frustrated Sawamura behind.


Miyuki woke up after a few hours feeling miserable, it had been a while after he had stopped having dreams about his time with Eijun but they still came back, his most precious memories now painful ones.

He hadn't noticed it but he had been crying in his sleep. That had been his last morning with Eijun. They had studied until late night in Kazuya's room and Eijun decided to stay.

Who would've thought that would be the last night they would spend together.

He composed himself and kept his usually uninterested face to endure the rest of the ride, only gazing away from the window when they had reached their destiny. He jumped out of the train and parted with a slow walk all the way through the rustic yet endearing streets of Eijun's hometown, all gazes fixed upon him for he wasn't really known there especially in his high school uniform.

He reached unconsciously to the Sawamura household, surprising his mother with his presence.

Kazuya-chan! What are you doing here honey? - She pulled him inside and gave him a tight hug. Kazuya had been very loved by Sawamura's parents and still held small conversations when it was Eijun's birthday or other festivities.

Kazuya explained briefly as she fed him first, he had declined but just like Eijun she wasn't leaving him anywhere near his house without having him eating a good share of food, especially today when he had come so pale and weak after such a tiresome game and a long trip in train without food on him.

The night fell quickly upon them and Kazuya fell asleep quickly after visiting the altar Eijun's parents had set for him, leaving his championship medal as an offering beside his picture, praying briefly before returning to the guest's bedroom.

Kazuya woke up earlier than anyone in the house and tossed in the bed for a half an hour before actually getting up. He made breakfast for them before leaving; taking a plate for himself otherwise Eijun's mother would give him a good smack in the head if it came to her that he abandoned the house without eating anything at all.

Kazuya walked slowly by the lonely road, shoving his hands in his (borrowed) sweater, the cold weather playing a bad joke on him. He was walking mindlessly, like a dead man on his feet; he felt suddenly so heavy and confused, a rush of anxiety crashing on him like a wave as he made his way up. He stood up before the big entrance and felt even worse but his feet moved him nonetheless, moving him automatically to one of the adorned pile of stone despite him never really been there.

Kazuya stopped at its front and slowly fell to his knees, defeated and heavy, not minding the cold against his knees nor the throbbing pain in them as they made contact with the hard surface.

H-hey…. Eijun – He started – This is…. Well I don't know what to say.

He felt a pang in his heart as a gust of cold wind rushed past him.

I'm sorry I haven't visited you, I... was afraid to finally see you here – He whispered, sitting beside the gravestone, leaning over its cold surface – The guys say hi, they really miss you –He said awkwardly.

You know, it's been so hard to go back to our normal lives… ever since you left us it's been so hard to keep going like we used to… We really miss you, you loud mouthed brat – He joked, leaning his head backwards, sighing deeply – But we made it, I wanted to let you know… we made it for you, we are officially champions this summer and we are devoting this trophy to you… our Ace.

He fell silent for a moment, just breathing there.

I miss you so much Eijun… It's been so hard to wake up to a silent room, to sleep alone without waking up because of your kicks nor the constant squishing when you slept over my chest like a spoiled dog… Without your non-stop nagging to play catch… I… really miss you, you know? You have been the only one that had put up with me, you broke all my defenses and crawled all the way to my heart and made your home there, and now you are so far away from me yet you haven't… you are still there in my heart, I always remember you my love… you have no idea of what I'd give to see you one last time, to hold you tightly in my arms and never let you go, because I just can't let go of you Eijun, you'll forever live with me even if you are not in this world anymore…

I wonder what you'd say if you could see me now, what kind of indecipherable Sawamura-kind pep talk you'd scream at me, and the guys too… they worked so hard through this summer, and when we feel down we always remember what you'd say to us, even if it made no sense you still managed to lift our moods and to keep pushing…

I wanted you to know that we haven't forgotten about you, we would never, we always have a small payer for you before every match, it's a tradition the girls came up with when we had no clue about how to dedicate you our efforts…

Kazuya talked to him about their tournament, how hard it was for them to finally win Koshien but how good it felt to actually to accomplish it after almost 11 entries against Inashiro. He talked about their new members and how good they were.

I the blink of an eye, dawn came upon him, he had no idea how much time he had been sitting there and the sun started to set far away from him, he was cold, his back hurt and he was hungry, yet he didn't wanted to leave his place, he didn't wanted to part from Eijun's side again.

Yo' you shithead! I knew you'd be so stupid and stay here until you fainted! –Kuramochi shouted from his back, startling the brunette.

Just hurry up and go to the car! – He kicked him and helped him get up, surprising as he saw the entire Seido walking through the graves in line, Maezono holding the trophy as the others tailed him, greeting him until Kataoka made his way through them and stopped before Kazuya, then asking him to enter the bus to warm up as they all presented their offering to their former teammate.

Kataoka placed the trophy beside his gravestone and bowed to him, saying a few words before leaving his students to do the same. Kazuya was moved by their gesture and thanked his coach when he re-entered the car, waiting as they all did the same quickly and took their seats, Kuramochi beside him.

Kazuya didn't realized how tired he was until his head hit the resting seat, falling asleep with a gentle smile as he mumbled in his sleep. Feeling the bus already moving he murmured one last thing before falling dead sleep over Kuramochi's shoulder.

See you soon my love…