disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot... sadly.

Betrayed

Data never lie, especially not those belonging to Yanagi Renji. His data was perfect, to a fault as most people would say; they had never failed him, nor would they ever in times to come. Not that he expected them to. When the Master of Rikkaidai Fuzoku mentioned something in its absolute sense, he meant exactly what he said.

Perfect, hence, meant perfect in every sense of the word. Therefore there were few things that Yanagi would call perfect; he had more fingers on one hand than the number of things that had in his opinion achieved perfection. Like his… relationship… with Kirihara, for example. Well, not exactly, if he were to be entirely honest with himself. There were still various unstable external factors out of his control that could potentially upset their current state of connectedness by at least 12.3 percent, a 5.6 percent chance that their relationship was nothing more than a case of infatuation and a 4.2 percent chance that it was a mere experiment on both sides. But ever since he had finally admitted his affections for the younger boy to himself, with much repeated confirmation from his trusted data, something in him had changed.

He had become soft and… hopeful.

For the first time in his life, Yanagi Renji found himself wanting something to be perfect. The Master who had always taken all the flaws in the world in his stride was suddenly stricken by the desire to make something perfect. It both frightened and fascinated him.

"You're in love and love does that to people," Jackal had said to him. "It just does; there is no reason for it, Renji."

Love. Besides the fact that it was a four-lettered noun that meant zero in a tennis game, Yanagi had absolutely no idea what it was. Even his data revealed nothing. It troubled him that anything that was said to be so close to the human heart could be so elusive; the ever composed Master soon found himself in a constant state of nervousness. The very thought that there was something within human comprehension which his data could not interpret sent Yanagi's mind into overdrive with panic.

"Sometimes when you think too hard about something, you end up missing the big picture, Renji. Your heart knows you better than you brains; just let it be your guide for once. What are you afraid of? You have nothing to lose, my friend."

He could still remember the smile on Seiichi's lips and that soothing calmness that emanated from him as they talked. Till this day, Yanagi still could not even start to figure how Seiichi ever found out; much of his friend's mental capabilities was still beyond him. Yukimura Seiichi was very good at hiding his data. He was also very good at giving advice, but then that was nothing new; it was already down in his data.

However easy Seiichi had made it out to be, Yanagi soon found out that persuading his brains to let his heart take the lead was hard business. It was… unnatural. Illogical. It was like making himself change into someone else and lose control. He did not understand; even his data offered no hint of a solution. It was awful; if love meant going through so much confusion and disorder and pain, why would anyone want to fall in love? It was in this way that his ever-pragmatic mind threw him into a perfect scenario of false dilemma, forcefully attempting to silence the protest his heart put up.

It was something that Yanagi never wanted to remember; no one liked to be reminded of their foolish moments. Especially now that he had found the answer to his own question, the question of why people fell in love. The answer had come to him when Akaya kissed him that day under the bridge on their way home. It turned out to be much simpler than he ever thought it would be.

People fell in love because they were meant to be.

There was no reason for it that could be captured by any form of data; people loved simply because.

"You don't need to know what is love, senpai. Just love; there is nothing logical about it. So stop thinking," Akaya had breathily ordered as he reached up for another kiss that day. And Renji had more than gladly obliged.

Just… love.

Now, one year into their relationship, Yanagi found himself a changed man. Well, on the outside he was still as much data and statistics as ever, but on the inside he knew that he had finally found something… someone… who would one day become more precious to him than all the data in the world.

Love, he was beginning to find, was a most wonderful thing.

Until today, that was.

If one could ever experience apocalypse on an emotional level, it must be something akin to what Yanagi was going through right now.

He exhaled shakily as his dropped his face into the palms of his hands. His notebook had been flung violently across the room a few seconds ago, and was now resting sullenly in a dark obscure corner, barely more than a wreck. It looked as if Yanagi had been tearing at its pages not too long ago.

"Why… Akaya? What is it that I missed?" he whispered into the suffocating warmth of his hands, pained.

Akaya…

When Yagyuu Hiroshi came up to him during practice today, it had been most unexpected. The Gentleman did not like unnecessary small talk during practices, even with his doubles partner who lived on gossip and scandals. Therefore Yanagi's mind had churned up quite a few possibilities within the few seconds he had before Yagyuu came to stand beside him. 76.7 percent chance that he would be asking for a new personal training menu, 20.01 percent chance of him asking about the latest lineup for the upcoming invitational match, 9.4 percent that he wanted to discuss the game between Marui and Kuwahara that Yanagi was presently occupied with, 0.2 percent chance that he would be asking for a new doubles partner because Niou was making him lose his hair double the rate last month…

But nothing prepared him for what was coming next.

"Akaya was with Yukimura buchou last Sunday, Renji." Yagyuu did not look at him; he appeared to be extremely interested in what was happening on court. Except that the game had just ended and there really was nothing interesting about Marui's verbal attack on his doubles partner who had just beaten him 2-6. Niou had a much more impressive vocabulary of swear words and expletives than the self-acclaimed tensai.

Yanagi grunted as he continued to scribble furiously in his notebook; Marui really should work on his stamina. Merely taking sky-high levels of glucose was simply not enough, not when he was up against national-level players they would soon meet in the Nationals. He would have to draw up a new training menu for the sugar-crazy boy…

"Sanada walked in on them, Renji."

His pen stopped.

"I see. Anything else?" His voice sounded… normal.

Too normal.

He thought Yagyuu spared a quick sideways glance at him, though with those glasses one could not really tell.

"They were not… physically involved… though, judging from what little Sanada decided to tell me. But he seems pretty upset, so I assume it must have been something just as horrible." Yagyuu slowly and deliberately pushed up his glasses. "I don't think he meant for me to tell you. But I thought it's only right for you to know, since it involves Akaya as well."

Yanagi frowned slightly. Yagyuu was speaking too slowly, and he was avoiding his look too deliberately. It was not like the Gentleman at all; if it were anyone else, Yanagi would have said that he was perhaps embarrassed, or at least uneasy. But this was Yagyuu Hiroshi, so he could not be sure. His data showed him to be a man of contradicting natures.

"I… I have never seen Sanada this upset, Renji," Yagyuu said, still looking straight ahead even though both Marui and Kuwahara had already left the courts.

"I see."

At this, Yagyuu flinched slightly. It was so slight that only someone who knew him as well as Yanagi could catch it. Data was helpful in this way. But even then, Yanagi still could not be sure if it was just a trick of the eye. "That is all I have to say, Renji. Niou… he is still waiting for me." With a slight nod, Yagyuu left in search of the resident Trickster who had long left the practice court in his partner's absence.

Yanagi remained standing there a long while after Yagyuu left, his pen poised to write though he wrote nothing.

People came and went without sparing much of a look at him; the Master was not one to trifle with if you wanted to see the sun rise tomorrow. Those who did venture a peek of curiosity in his general direction were either deeply awed by the perfectly motionless player or deeply traumatized by his unnatural stillness.

When Yanagi finally snapped out of the sickening blankness, he found himself shaking. It was as if all strength had suddenly left him and his body would soon crumple to the ground like a rag doll; he felt boneless. His hands were shaking and he lost his grip on his pen. It clattered loudly to the ground.

It felt all wrong.

It was not right that his breath was coming and going at only a third of its normal rate, not right that his limbs were all turning to jelly-like numbness, that his mind was threatening to shut down on him.

"Akaya…" he whispered, barely audible above his breath. A strong hand closed around his arm as his notebook fell from his hands and onto the ground with a loud thud.

"Not here, Renji." Jackal tightened his hold on the other boy's arm as he felt Yanagi start to teeter on his feet. "Come on." He turned and firmly, but not unkindly, guided Yanagi towards the clubhouse, picking up both the notebook and pen along the way. "You're in shock, Renji. Go get some rest," he stated.

Yanagi merely nodded as he allowed himself to be led away.

Akaya…

"I need to talk to Akaya," he breathed as he let his hands fall onto the table before him. "I need to know what happened… between him and Seiichi." It was irrational for anyone to feel so much pain over something that one did not know the details of. It would be much better if he knew exactly what happened. He would have the data and then he would perform the most immaculate calculations to find out what went wrong… He needed to talk to Akaya. He ached with the intensity of his need to know, and to hear it from Akaya's lips.

It was like a blind man's thirst for water in a desert; seeing nothing, yet feeling every pain more excruciatingly than anyone else. Searching endlessly for water, yet not know if it was the life-sustaining fluid he had found or the deadliest poison, but too tired and too needy to find out before gulping it all down.

He picked up the phone.

Then put it back down.

He stared hard at the phone then picked it up again only to put it down a split second later. This went on for five minutes, this picking up the phone then putting it down again routine. By the time he finally managed to hold the receiver long enough to dial Akaya's number, his hands were shaking again. They had become cold and clammy.

Like rotting fish; a revolting but perfectly apt description.

"Kirihara household. Who is this speaking?" The line had gotten through.

"Good evening. This is Yanagi from the tennis club. I'd like to speak to Akaya, please." Perfect control.

"Senpai! I was wondering when you're going to call. We haven't talked for the whole day…"

"Sorry. Something came up. How was your test today?"

"Huh?" Akaya sounded strangely like a little puppy right then; Yanagi could almost imagine him tilting his head to one side, brilliant green eyes wide and staring into space as he tried to recall. "Oh right. That test. It was okay I think. I heard the re-test is next Monday so I'd probably miss practice."

"Again," Yanagi added. Akaya laughed sheepishly.

"C'mon. You know school has always bored me…."

"What doesn't, Akaya?"

Laughter again. Yanagi let the sounds of the younger boy wash over him and make him drown. Anything to put the moment off a little longer. Anything to make him continue believing that Akaya still loved him.

"So why did you call, Yanagi-senpai? Are you still angry with me?"

Silence.

"What makes you think so, Akaya? I wasn't angry with you." I would never be angry with you, Akaya… You are too precious to me.

"You didn't even look at me once today and you were acting all funny… I don't know how to put it. You were so tense and far away… I thought I must have done something to make you angry."

He sounded just like a wounded little puppy longing to be taken into its master's arms again. Yanagi ached. For him. If Akaya had been there in front of him in person…

"I wasn't angry."

"That's good." Yanagi could almost see the smile on the younger boy's face. "So why did you call if you're not angry with me?"

This was it.

His hands were unsteady and the receiver felt too slippery. It was as if it would fall from his hand anytime soon.

This was it.

"Where were you last Sunday?" Akaya… please…

Silence again.

But this time, it stretched out for a long while before Akaya replied.

"Why do you ask, senpai?" Akaya did not answer his question.

Yanagi felt his mind start to reel; Akaya sounded… defensive. "You said you couldn't meet me last Sunday. I'm just curious, Akaya. That's all."

"Oh, that. That friend of mine, Mimori, you remember him? He asked me to a movie that he and a few others were going to. They were really pushy about it, so I…"

Akaya never got to finish what he was saying.

The line went dead.

A/N: Hi all of you who have kindly taken time outto read this, a big thank you! It wasn't easy starting on this fic even though the plot did come easily enough. It started one fine day when I was daydreaming as usual, then something occurred to me: is it possible for one to love a person, yet at the same time need another to fill up the gaps that the one he/she loves has left, but still love that person just as strongly? Ah wells. Am I confusing you? I am? I guess I should just shut up and let the story do the talking.

One interesting thing that happened when I started on this fic was that I really intended for it to be a YagyuuXNiou centric fic. But Niou, ever the trickster refused to be put down on paper no matter how much I tried. (I tried for weeks, just in case you're interested to know) and the Gentleman insisted that I wrote about the others first as a sign of courtesy. So I turned to Sanada and Yukimura, but our darling devious Yuki was too busy making ou... I mean, making up with his Gen-chan to take notice of me. Marui had disappeared to somewhere else looking for food I suppose and Jackal adamently refused to be written about in the absence of his little... er...friend. Kirihara was acting the devil and attempted murder when I suggested starting with him first. So that left me with Renji. He was genial and by far the most cooperative. I had fun writing about him though I'm not sure if he is agrreable wih the way I portrayed his... affections... for Kirihara. We'll find out soon enough. Lolx.

One last thing before I go off in search of the other Rikkai players. For those who are expecting a scandal of some sort regarding what Sanada saw in the prologue, I'm afraid that you'll be sorely disappointed. As Yagyuu said, there's no physical involvement of any kind, but it would be traumatising for both Sanada and Yanagi and the epicentre of this melodrama of my concoction.

Okay. This is really long, so I should really go before any one reading this decides to do anything drastic. See you!