Another extended drabble! o: I dunno. I think I just like this question. Last time it was in Fuji's point of view, but even I didn't know whose it was until I threw Eiji in there and got him to say Fuji's name. o: Makes me wonder if you guys figured it out before Eiji came in. Well this ones easy to figure out. ^^ Read, Review, Enjoy!


What Would You Die For?

Chapter 2

It was the same question. The exact question that he had to answer back in America. A question that sounded so innocently simple but in reality was anything but. He told his teacher with the blank face that he carried with him over the years but back then their was a glimmer in his eyes.

"My cat, Karupin!"

He was so gullible as a child. Even going as far as believing he could beat his father in a tennis match one day. That was his goal, his dream, his entire life. What would you die for, he thought to himself as he held a bright neon yellow ball loosely in his hands, turning it in a slow circle as he leaned back against the back rest of the bench he was on. And his child voice rang in his ear, "My cat, Karupin!" He hadn't even thought of his family for an answer. Thinking about it now maybe that's why his teacher had looked at him in annoyance. He had chosen a pet over his own family. But what could one expect of a child?

There was no way to know what you would die for. Would you even want to die? Even if it was for something you loved? For someone you loved? Could I really put someone through that guilt? He asked his own mind, glancing down at the ball as if it had all the answers. But wondering about all this wouldn't get him anywhere, so with a sigh the boy stood up to go and return the ball he had taken when it flew at his head. He knew keeping his reflexes trained would come in handy one day.

A boy who was in his class spotted him first, yelling out that irritatingly loud voice of his, "Hey Echizen! Have you seen a ball?" Because of him other people started to notice him making his way to the green painted metal fence. Stupid Horio. Never knowing when to keep his mouth shut or at least how to be quiet. Kachiro made his way over to the fence first, a smile on his face as he asked in a much calmer manner, "Have you seen a tennis ball, Ryoma-kun?"

Ryoma nodded his head, looking at all the people, freshmen to third years, gathered in small groups around the courts. With a small shake of his head Ryoma realized that those people have probably never went out of their way to talk to other people and figure out what was really important wasn't their social cliches. With a mental sigh Ryoma tossed the ball over the fence to Kachiro, who wasn't able to catch it, and looked at all the members once again with something akin to sadness in his eyes. Until he saw a strikingly feminine brunette who was looking straight at him. The brunette's eyes were closed but slowly they opened, revealing a churning ocean blue that made Ryoma think of rolling waves crashing against each other. In an instant he realized that that young man went through the same thing he did. He's seen death up close.

"When are the sign-ups for the freshmen again?" Ryoma asked in his monotone, almost bratty, voice when Kachiro had finally managed to pick up the ball. The other boy looked at him, his head tilted to the side as he answered with a smile,

"Tomorrow."

That's when Ryoma realized he still had something to live for. He could live for a tomorrow. He could live for the start of something he had forever loved yet was certain he would have to abandon. He would face the reality that was so cruelly thrust upon him. And he would still be a live. Once you die you die, he thought with a hum of maturity, and there is no way to come back from the dead and make things right again.