Hey Guys, Chapter 2 is up! If you haven't read my other fic, heart strings, then you probably don't know why the update took so long. To put it simply, i had a lot of things that were due in the past weeks. And at the same time, i kinda had the case of "writer's block" . I actually had 3 drafts for this...so yeah. I hope you like it! Oh and to those who reviewed, favorited and alerted, THANK YOU SO MUCH. I REALLY APPRECIATE IT :D
PS: There are a few Japanese words here, but don't worry, i'll provide a mini translation at the end.
[09/13/09] Revamped this chapter. Changed Hikari and Ryoma's first encounter.
One Sided Rivalry
Chapter Two: Bad Luck
"Hikari-chan!" I groaned.
"Hikari-chan!" I groaned again.
"Hikari-chan!" I grumbled as I rubbed my eyes and sat up. Where was that noise coming from?! I think the proper question here would be WHO was calling me at…I looked at my alarm clock. It read, six a.m. "What the-?" Who on their right mind would call and wake me up at friggin six in the morning?! I sighed. You know what, never mind. I think I already know the answer to that question. I got out of my bed and stomped towards my balcony. I pushed the curtain aside, unlocked the glass door and slid it open. There I saw, on the other balcony, was a smiling Fuji Syuusuke.
"FUJI!" I screamed, slightly hushed. I didn't want to wake the rest of the Fuji's and oniichan. "What are you doing?!" I was obviously mad. I have a really bad temper in the morning. Nah, I think it's just the fact that Fuji was being….Fuji, waking me up at six in the morning. Fuji's done a ton of annoying things in the past. But this is just… crazy! You don't wake people who are asleep! Especially not those who are not morning persons. That's just downright mean.
"Good Morning, Hikari-chan." He smiled. My eye twitched. Good Morning. Good Morning? Good Morning?! Did he actually wake me up just to say that?! Ugh! "Y-you! Did you actually just wake me up to greet me good morning?! At six friggin o'clock?!"
"Yup." He smiled…as usual. Okay, this is REALLY PISSING ME OFF. Like I said, I had a very bad temper in the morning.
"FUJI SYUUSUKE!"
It was six thirty in the morning and I was already dressed in my school uniform. I was in the dining room, eating the breakfast that I had made. Bacon, scrambled eggs and toast. I sighed. You do know that school starts in three hours right? And that my house was a mere few minutes away? I could have left the house a little later for crying out loud! Ugh. I sighed again. Nothing I can do now. I mean, Its not like I could go back to sleep. And I kind of don't want to stay at home doing nothing for over two hours.
"Stupid Fuji. Stupid Fuji and his weird and sadistic ways. " I grumbled as I forked my egg.
"Ah. Morning Hikari. You're up early today." I looked up and saw my oniichan, Miyashita Naoki, in his usual business suit. His raven hair was a bit messy, as always, but despite his messy hair, he still manages to look rather professional. He sat down in front of me and started eating his breakfast.
"Stupid Fuji's fault."
I heard oniichan laugh. Obviously, he found this amusing. Oniichan was well aware about the weird relationship Fuji and I had. You know the whole "we're friends and rivals and we just love getting on each other's nerves" relationship. Though, I think we should replace the last part with "Fuji just loves to get on my nerves." I mean seriously, I can't seem to piss the guy off. It's always him pissing me off. I glared at him. "Oniichan! Don't you go siding with Fuji!" he laughed harder.
"Alright alright Hikari, though you've go to admit, Fuji really knows how to push your buttons." I gave him that are-you-serious face before sighing. He was right though, Fuji knew EXACTLY how to get me pissed. Maybe it's a sadist thing. Then again, Fuji's sadistic nature does come in handy at times. Like this. If Fuji hadn't woken me up in the break of dawn, then I wouldn't be spending time with Oniichan right now. You see, this kind of situation happens rarely. Oniichan usually leaves early for work and comes home late. So I don't get to spend that much time with him.
"Hey Hikari, you want a ride to school?" Oniichan asked.
I nodded. "Sure." I quickly took my last bite and gulped down my orange juice.
I walked outside and saw Oniichan already in his car. I ran towards the car and sat shot gun. Just then, we saw Fuji leaving his house. He has tennis practice every morning, which is why he's awake during this godforsaken hour of the day.
Suddenly, Oniichan lowered his window. "Hey Fuji, on your way to school?" he asked.
I saw Fuji nodded. "Hai Naoki-san." He smiled his usual smile. Uh-oh, I don't think I like how this conversation is going on.
"Well, I'm taking Hikari there right now. Why don't you hop on?" I gawked. Was Oniichan serious? Grr. On normal days, I wouldn't have minded it…going to school with Fuji I mean. We are neighbors and we are friends. He gets on my nerves a lot but I don't hate him. But today, let's just say no one wakes me up this early for no apparent reason.
I heard Fuji-chuckle. "Arigatou, Naoki-san." I then heard the car door open and close. I looked at the rear-view mirror and saw a smiling Fuji…again. When do you not see him smile? Yes, there are times when he doesn't smile, but those times were quite rare. Only when Fuji's really upset and really serious does he NOT smile and show those beautiful cerulean eyes of his. I huffed.
"Ohayo, Hikari-chan" he smiled for the nth time. I turned around and shot an annoyed glare at him as I stuck out my tongue. He chuckled again. He seems to be enjoying my agony. Well, what can you say? He IS a sadist after all.
"Hikari, be nice." I looked at Oniichan, he was obviously doing this on purpose. I could tell he was doing this to make fun of me. I guess, in a way, Fuji and oniichan are alike. They were both very talented, good-looking sadists. I groaned and turned to Fuji again. "OHAYO FUJI!" I forced a smile onto myself and then rolled my eyes. Fuji just chuckled.
"Saa Hikari-chan, you don't seem to be in a good mood today." Was he provoking me or what? Grr. He continued. "Did you sleep well?" That was it. Fuji had managed to pluck my last nerve. "FUJI SYUUSUKE!" Thus emerged, much to oniichan's dismay, a war between Fuji and I. Although, the only thing that Fuji did was make random comments, that was enough to get me pissed.
I looked at my watch and sighed. I looked around the classroom. Of course no one was here. It was way too early to be in school, no one was even in school except for the athletic clubs. I looked out of the window. Hmm, maybe I'll go take a walk, buy something to drink from the vending machine. I am getting a bit bored here and I'm too lazy to finish reading this chapter of the textbook. It's too early to be reading something as heavy as world war II. I stood up and left the classroom.
I continued to aimlessly walk around the school grounds. I wonder what else I can do? I've bought my can of ponta, which I have yet to open, visited Kou in the basketball courts, watched the soccer team have practice matches and even fed the stray cats I saw at the back of the school. And somehow, there's still some time left before classes start. I sighed.
Suddenly, I felt someone bump into me from behind, causing me to trip and dropping the can of Ponta I had bought earlier. Sadly, the ground wasn't flat. It was sort of a slope. So instead of just tripping, like what normally happens, I literally rolled on the ground. "AAH!" I screamed as I continued to roll down. And when I finally thought the worst part was over, I ended up falling on a muddy puddle. I groaned. This is so not my day. When I asked what else I could do, rolling on the ground and falling on a muddy puddle was not part of it.
Slowly, I sat up to see what it who it was that caused me to trip. Upon looking up, I saw this boy staring at me. He was in the exact same spot where I was. I'm guessing he's the culprit, after all, he's the only person in the vicinity…He was wearing this cap and this regulars jersey, the same one that Fuji and Eiji had. So he's probably a tennis regular. But isn't he too young to be one? Or maybe he was just short for his age?
He smirked. "Mada Mada Dane" I then notice him pick up something on the floor. It was a can of Ponta. My can of Ponta. He's stealing my drink! My current source of happiness. I was looking forward to drinking that. I mean, I could by another one but that was the last one! The vending machine went haywire right after I bought that. Maybe it was because I kicked the vending machine when it didn't want to dispense my drink. But, no one needs to know the details right? I then notice the kid walking away. "Ah! Come back here! That's mine!" I said as I tried to run after him. But somehow, I ended up slipping and falling again. This was not my day.
"You!" I then stood up and tried to catch up to him, not minding the weird stares that I got. Who wouldn't stare at me? First of all, I was a complete mess. I mean seriously, I was all covered in mud and I'm guessing I have a few twigs in my hair, and two, I'm screaming "Brat!" over and over again. I sighed. Could my day get any worse?
FUJI'S POV
"Hey, where'd Echizen go?" Momo turned his head a few times in order to look for the missing freshman. Come to think of it, where did Echizen go? He went out for a little water break a few minutes ago and hasn't returned. This was not like Echizen at all. Despite the fact that Echizen may seem bored during tennis practice, I'm sure he enjoys it as well. He's kind of like a mini Tezuka, as long as tennis is involved, he's bound to enjoy it.
"You little kid! Come back here!" I chuckled. I knew that voice very well. It's the same voice that always screams at me. Though, that tone doesn't come close with the one she uses on me.
"Nya! Fujiko, it's Ochibi…and Hikari-chan!" Eiji pointed out as he let out a confused face. Who wouldn't be confused? Here we see Echizen as bored as ever and behind him was a screaming and mud covered looking monster that we all know as Hikari-chan. I wonder if she was running after him, it sort of looks that way. I chuckled, taking notice of the expression plastered on Hikari-chan's face as she continued to get Echizen's attention. I guess today's a good day. For me at least. "Saa…I guess she's still in a bad mood, huh?"
I watched as Echizen entered the courts, still ignoring Hiakri-chan a few feet behind him. Actually, I don't even think he noticed her. Maybe it's because she was a bit too far for him to hear? But then again, I can surely hear her from where I'm standing. Or maybe he's just focusing on something else. Finally, Hikari-chan was able to catch up with Echizen when he had bent down to tie his shoe laces. Saa, this should be interesting. She placed a hand on his shoulder as she panted. "Finally caught you!"
Echizen looked up, not much though. To put it simply, Hikari-chan was short for her age. Actually, she and Echizen were practically the same height, she was just taller than him by a few inches. "Ah, a monster…."
"M-m-monster?!" I noticed her eye starting to twitch. She took a deep breath, probably to stay calm. Anyone who knew her would know that she has a temper problem. I chuckled. "You stole my Ponta. Please give it back." She said as she pointed towards the can in Echizen's hand. I couldn't help but chuckle again. That's a weird reason to run after someone. And it's definitely not something she'd do. Unless of course she was really craving for it. Then I'd probably understand her reasoning. Saa, I wonder if it's because she woke up too early.
Echizen looked at the can of Ponta in his hand... and opened it. He took a sip. Typical Echizen.
She had that look of defeat on her face as she crouched down. "Mah! I was looking forward to that drink! The vending machine's broken already."
Echizen took a sip from the can and stared at Hikari-chan. "But you're the one who broke it…"
She suddenly stood up and glared at Echizen. "I did not!"
"Eiji, This conversation is getting interesting, neh?" I walked up towards the two with Eiji right beside me. I guess I wasn't the only one interested in the conversation. "Saa, what's this about Hikari-chan breaking school property?"
"Ah. Fuji." She blinked as she stared at me. "And Eiji! Right. I'm at the tennis courts huh?"
"Nya Hikari-chan! You look funny like that." Eiji laughed, clutching his stomach as he did. Amazingly, Hikari-chan stayed calm. Maybe its because it was Eiji. I wouldn't have gotten away with it if I had been the one laughing.
"It's his fault…" she mumbled as she looked at Echizen from the corners of her eyes.
"Ochibi!" Eiji slung his hands around Echizen. "I didn't know you knew Hikari-chan."
"We don't" they both said at the same time as they glared at each other.
"Well then, Ochibi, this is Hikari-chan. She's from our class." Eiji said as he placed his arms around both of their shoulders. "Hikari-chan, this is Ochibi- er Echizen. He's the only freshman who's part of the regulars team."
Echizen looked at her from head to toe. "Ara….you're my senpai? But you're just as tall as I am…" I heard Eiji bursting in laughter at Echizen's innocent remark. I'm guessing Eiji couldn't hold it in. Though, if you didn't know who Hikari-chan was, you'd probably assume that she was a freshman due to her small size.
Hikari-chan eye and mouth twitched. "Why you little brat!" With that, Hikari-chan tried to lunge at Echizen, probably to pinch his cheeks or something. Keyword here is tried. With Echizen having great reflexes and Hikari-chan being…uncoordinated, her attempt was a failure. Hikari-chan fell flat on her face, and all Echizen had to do was move one step to the left. Saa, this is such a nice day isn't it?
HIKARI'S POV
I heard the classroom door slide open. I saw that Eiji and Fuji had entered the classroom. I looked at the clock. Hmm, I still have five minutes before class starts. I sighed. Quickly and abruptly, Eiji came running to my desk, followed by a smiling Fuji.
"Hikari-chan nya! You really look funny!" Eiji whined as he sat in front of me. I looked at my compact mirror and groaned. I honestly looked terrible. Seriously, it's as though a storm just passed over me. I mean, look at me. My eye bags were so big that the can now be called eye sacs, my sea foam green uniform was now dirt brown, my usually straight dark brown hair was all messy despite all my attempts to brush it and I had a gigantic band aid on my cheek. If you're wondering where that band aid came from, well, when I tried to tackle that brat, I kinda fell on my face. And yeah…I got a scar…
"Mou Eiji, I look like a zombie!" I pursed my lips and puffed my cheeks.
I heard Eiji chuckle. "Nya, I think you're exaggerating a bit Hikari-chan!" Eiji smiled. Eiji's smiles are the best. They were warm, reassuring and fuzzy. Something about it just makes you forget all about your problems and causes you to smile.
"Arigatou, Eiji" I smiled as Eiji gave me one of his victory signs.
"Saa, I think that look suits you, Hikari-chan" My smile turned back into a frown. Guess who that was? No duh, it was Fuji. He was smiling again. I groaned some more.
"Fuji! You're so mean!" I screamed as Fuji chuckled. Sadists, you can't stop them from torturing you. I sighed.
"Whoa! What happened to you!?" It was Kou, he just entered the room. I could tell from the tone of his voice he was both confused, concerned and at the same time amused. I could tell that he was trying not to laugh. I sighed once again. So there, I started to tell Kou all those unlucky events that had transpired this morning. And guess what he did? He laughed. Typical Kou. He might not be a sadist, but he's still amused.
"AHAHAHA ! ARE YOU SERIOUS?! HOW UNLUCKY CAN YO- OW!" I stepped on his foot. Like I said, I was in a really bad mood. From the side, I could tell that Fuji was chuckling. I sighed for the nth time today.
Suddenly, I heard the door burst open, causing most of my classmates to run back to their seats. You see, most of them were chit chatting with their friends. There's nothing wrong about that, of course. I would probably be doing the same thing, if not for the fact that Eiji and Kou were seated right in front of me and behind me, respectively. The only bad thing about my seat would be…Fuji sitting beside me. Not that I hate HATE him or anything. It's just, he tends to be annoying at times.
I looked at the teacher and frowned. It was Riyuzaki-sensei. What is she doing here? It was supposed to be History and Phys Ed was later in the afternoon. Darn, I have a bad feeling about this…
"Okay class, for today, you'll be having P.E. instead of History and vice versa. Kirino-sensei called and said that she'll be late so we decided to switch schedules for the day." Groans from the class were heard. Who in the right mind would want to do sports so early in the morning. Oh, right, varsity people…Never mind them, they don't count. Great. PE. I wasn't the biggest fan of the subject! I honestly suck at anything related to sports. On the plus side, I'll be able to take a shower after class…
I was in my PE uniform, which was a white t-shirt and green shorts, and had my hair tied up in a high ponytail. I was sitting on the Gym floor, with Kou beside me and Fuji and Eiji behind. I sighed. I wonder what we'll be doing today?
Finally, Riyuzaki-sensei emerged. "Alright, form two lines. One line for girls and one line for boys. Arrange yourself according to your height." Well, I know where I'm going to be, in front. Like I said, I was the shortest girl in the class, heck, I was the shortest girl in the whole senior division!
"Okay girls, look to your right and boys look to your left." I looked to my right and saw Fuji waving. This made sense, Fuji's kinda the shortest guy here. So, what's happening?
As if Riyuzaki-sensei read my mind, she started talking. "Everyone, meet your dance partner." I gawked. My…what?! This had to be a joke right?! There's no way I'm dancing with Fuji! I looked at Fuji once again, he was amused, I was sure of it. Of course he was, my agony equals his satisfaction. Ugh. Today has to be the worst day ever!
So that's chapter 2. What do you think? How's the progression and blah? Comments , suggestions and constructive criticisms are welcomed :3 so please please please do REVIEW :D
Translations:
Ohayo - Good Morning
Oniichan - Big Brother
Kohai - Underclassman
Senpai - Upperclassman
Gaki - Brat/kid
