Disclaimer: I do not own Prince of Tennis.

Lady Monozuki: I am going on vacation in a couple of days and didn't want to leave you all without an update. So here is the next chapter! I hope you all enjoy very much! Thank you everyone who reviewed. The pairing for this story is now Yukimura/Ryoma.

Ryoma opened his eyes and immediately shut them again. His head hurt like the rest of his body. The stabbing pain and achy feel coursed through his limbs. Right now, he wanted to fall back asleep, but his brain was alert. How long had he been out? Where was he? What had happened? He attentively opened his eyes and allowed time for them to adjust to the light. The silence of the room was unnerving. There was never a moment of peace and quiet in his house. Every day was the same occurrence.

He sat up, gritting his teeth in pain. His father had really done a good job in beating him this time. After getting used to the throbbing pain, he looked around the room. It was unfamiliar to him. The look was more like a home to someone, rather than a hotel. He tried to think who would do something like that for him. No one had ever cared before, so why should they care now? Ever since Nationals, he was merely an outcast. Occasionally, there would be an invite to burgers and arcades. However, they were far and few between.

"Ah, Echizen-san, you're finally awake," someone said.

He turned his head. When had someone entered the room? He had been sure that no one was in the room before. Ryoma took in the familiar face. Somewhere, it registered that this was the person who had saved him. He remembered the blue hair and soft voice.

"Yukimura-san," he whispered. The name had just rolled off his tongue. It took him an additional thirty seconds to connect that this was the person he had played for the National championship just a few months ago. Why would someone that had been his rival previously want to help him out now of all times? After all, he took away their third victory. Not that he had regretted doing so, of course. It just seemed strange that he would take care of him after all that they had been through.

"I asked my parents if you could stay here," Yukimura said. "They said that you could stay as long as you needed."

He didn't say anything in response to that. He wondered how much they knew and whether or not they had called his parents.

Oh god, what if they did? Did they know what had happened that night?

"Echizen-san," Yukimura whispered. "I don't know what's troubling you, but it doesn't matter. I don't know the circumstances or the story, but I want to let you know that I don't care. You are welcome to stay here. If you need anything, let me know."

"Why?" he asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Why did you take me off the street? You could have left me there, but you took me, why?"

"Because you needed help," Yukimura replied.

He looked at the person in front of him. It was the most genuine reply someone had ever given him. It was odd that a former rival would be more concerned about him than his own teammates. Was it because he was nothing more than a tool to his teammates? Did they not care about him or what happened to him as long as he brought good results? He knew they had seen the bruises and he knew that they had heard his oyaji yelling at him over the phone numerous times. So why did they ignore all of that? Why did the one person who should hate him the most take him in?

"I don't want to be indebted to you," Ryoma said. "I'll leave soon."

"There's no need. If you don't have a place to stay for the night, you're welcome to stay here. Besides, I don't think your ankle will allow you to walk much anyway."

"What's wrong with my ankle?" he asked.

"It's sprained," Yukimura replied. "Also, your ribs are bruised pretty bad. I imagine it's already hard enough to breath sitting up."

He wasn't going to say anything in response to that. He knew that it was true. There was no way in hell he was going to let Yukimura know that. After all, there was no use on letting a practical stranger know what was going on in his miserable life.

He wouldn't care either. I am not to him. He only did this because I was collapsed on the street, nothing more.

"Where's your family?" he asked.

"My parents are often overseas. They let me stay here because they didn't want to uproot me every time they were called away for work. It wasn't until I started to attend elementary school that they were moved around and since I was excelling academically and sports-wise here. It is nice at times, but it gets lonely from time to time."

"Is that why you seem close to your teammates?"

"Maybe, they have become like my family. Especially when I was down with my illness, my parents barely came by to check on me. All they did was pay for the hospital bills and physical therapy."

"I see," he muttered.

At least your family never hurt you. They may not be present all the time, but they don't think you're a disgrace to them.

"Like I said before, Echizen-san, you are more than welcome to stay here. I wouldn't mind the company."

"I won't stay. I'm just a burden."

"You know," Yukimura said with a darker tone. He looked the former Rikkaidai captain in the eye. "You don't always have to be by yourself. Sometimes we need help. Even if you can't rely on your former team members, there are still people out there who care for you. I'm one of them. Don't forget that."

He looked away and tried to keep himself from crying. If there were people who still cared for them, why hadn't they tried to help him? Why had they left him? He thought he could trust them and he had been wrong about them. So how could he trust someone he had met briefly and believe everything that was said? It didn't make sense.

Why does he care so much? Why did he even take me in? Is it just to mock me?

He heard Yukimura get up and leave the room. Why did he feel so guilty for accepting the help of someone else Was it because he wanted to try and do this by himself? It didn't make sense to him. However, there wasn't much in his life that made sense anymore. How many times had he gone over what his father had done to try and justify the actions. Every time he tried to justify it though, he became less certain and more uneasy about everything.

Why couldn't he just have a normal life? Or one where he wasn't judged on what he was supposed to become. Because he knew that there was never going to be a chance where he could be better than his father. He had tried and failed so many times. It was never going to end. Every time that he failed them, it was just a reminder that he was nothing in comparison to his father. What was he supposed to do in that sort of situation? It wasn't his dream to fail his parents, but he had in every aspect. No matter what score he got in school, it didn't matter. His father had always done better, even if it was the same. There was always something to criticize about his tennis and his attitude. He could never do anything right.

So what hope did he have? What was left for him in this life if everything he did not matter? What was he supposed to do? Ryoma tried to think of one reason that he should live.

You're not on the streets. You are alive because he did not leave you there. If he had left you, there would have been no other reason.

"How do I make it up to him?" Ryoma whispered.

"What are you talking about?" Yukimura asked.

He jumped slightly. This was the second time that the blue-haired person had come into the room without him knowing. Usually, he was aware of every movement that his parents made. Now…now he didn't feel the need to listen so hard and always be on guard.

"How do I make up being a burden to you?"

"Echizen-san, you are not a burden. You don't have to "make up" anything to me. Your presence is enough. It does not matter how long you stay, but I just like your company."

"Why?"

"Because you seem interesting," Yukimura replied.

"That's it?" he asked.

"Were you expecting a different answer?"

"Yes, no one ever fins me interesting."

"What about your teammates?"

"They were just interested in my tennis abilities and how far I could go. They didn't really care about anything else."

He noticed a frown forming on Yukimura's face.

"That doesn't sound like Seigaku. Most of all, it doesn't sound like Tezuka."

"Then you believe the farce like everyone else," he mumbled.

"Maybe so, however, I've known Tezuka for a long time and he never came across as shallow. Yes, he wanted to hone the different talents of his team, but he never wanted to only focus on their skills in tennis."

Yukimura stared at the boy sitting on the bed. Even though he hadn't known Echizen very well, he knew that there was something wrong. Everything from being on the streets in the first place to the skewed vision of Tezuka was off. He did not know what had gone wrong or even where the problem was, but he knew that he wanted to provide a helping hand throughout the situation.

Ever since Nationals, the young boy had been on his mind and how Echizen had overcome everything that he had thrown at him. It was enthralling and had made the match so much more interesting compared to the other opponents he had played. Most would give up and others would put up a fight, but never defeat him. Echizen had done all of that in the duration of one match and had shown him so much emotion on the court.

It was as if tennis was the way that Echizen could express himself. Every emotion, enthusiasm, and trepidation was out there for him to see. He saw the pain and the confusion through it all. There didn't seem to be much wrong with the boy then. However, this was a different story. The person who had showed him so many expressions on the court was now shrinking at every word he said. It wasn't meant to tear him down, nor was it meant to be hurtful.

Though with the way Echizen reacted, he felt that he was overstepping his boundaries and hurting the young teen even more. It was hard to be in a spot where he knew nothing, but knew that there was something wrong anyway. How was he supposed to handle it when he couldn't figure out what the problem was. He needed more information, but he wasn't going to try and get it out of Echizen. From what he could tell, the boy had trust issues and that was something that could not be conquered easily. If he could get past that first barrier, he felt that everything else would follow afterward.

There was no easy way to handle the situation thought. He knew that it wasn't going to be easy, but he hoped that Echizen gave him a chance to show that he was going to be there for him, no matter what was going on in his life. There was more there and he wanted to be there this time. It did not matter if he barely knew the boy; he was going to try his best to make sure that Echizen Ryoma was not going to give up on everything.

"What are you staring at?" Echizen asked.

"I'm just contemplating what I should do."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I wonder how I'm going to help you."

"You don't need to help me. I'll be fine on my own, Yukimura-san."

"You may drop the honorific," he said quickly. "it makes me feel too distant from you. Even if we have only spent a few hours with each other, I don't want honorifics to get in the way."

Echizen stared at him as if he had completely lost his mind. He didn't care though. He was used to being looked at like he was a lunatic.

"If you insist then," Echizen said. "I suppose that you can just call me by my first name. I grew up in America so it's kind of weird to be called by my last name all the time."

He smiled slightly. At least he was making progress, even if it was just getting past some of the formalities. He would rather be going forward rather than backward. He just hoped that he could keep this up.

To be continued…