FOR YOU (2/2)
boldface - conversation on the other phone line.
"Hey, did you hear? Tezuka-sempai is back!"
"Really!?"
"Yeah, I saw him entering the office when I got here."
The 3rd year tennis regulars sat listening quietly to the girls' outbreaks of the news about their former class president's return.
"I didn't know that." Oishi wondered why, since Tezuka always updated him on almost everything.
"Nya, if you don't know that, then I guess no one else knew." Eiji was almost as surprised as the girls when he heard the news.
"I suppose Tezuka wants to give us a surprise." Fuji simply said.
"Haha~ I didn't know Tezuka can be like that." Eiji laughed.
"Who knows?" Fuji shrugged, smiling.
"Maybe there's a reason why Tezuka is coming back this early. His arm injury is not that easy to cure in such a small amount of time."
"There is." Inui murmured.
"What was that, Inui?" Fuji asked.
"Oh nothing." Inui smiled and got up to leave the classroom to go to the restroom.
At 8, the teacher walked in, followed by a person.
"OOHH! It's Tezuka-sempai!" The girls shrieked and jumped out of their seats to crowd around him.
Fuji watched with amusement as Tezuka spoke a few words, eliciting pouts and whines from the girls before they obediently returned to their respective seats.
Tezuka cast a glance at the Regulars present and gave them each a nod of recognition. Alternatively when it was Fuji, Tezuka smiled.
Fuji widened his eyes and smiled back, biting his low lip in shyness.
-..-..-..-..-..-
Fuji waited patiently for everyone to leave the classroom and approached Tezuka. "Hey."
Hearing the all too familiar soft voice, Tezuka looked up. "Hey."
They smiled at each other.
"I'm back."
"Yeah. I know."
Silence.
How are you? was what Tezuka wanted to say. "How was the team in my absence?"
Fuji shrugged and casually replied. "Could've have been better with you leading the team."
Tezuka stood up and grabbed his bookbag. "Are you still thinking about that match with Shiraishi?"
Instead of a frown that Tezuka expected to see, Fuji merely shrugged again. "Not really."
When Fuji moved, Tezuka could see the shiny silver around Fuji's neck. He nodded and prodded for Fuji to follow him out.
"Ne, Tezuka, are you back permanently?"
"I don't know yet."
As they walked down the hall, there were many faces were itched to talk to Tezuka. But because it was Fuji who was talking to Tezuka, no one dared to go up and interrupt them.
"Why are you back?"
Tezuka glanced down at Fuji for a quick second. "For a reason."
"Ah, I see." If Tezuka didn't want to say more, then Fuji wouldn't force him.
"I heard you got a few unexpected visits."
"Hm?" Fuji stopped and stepped in front of Tezuka. He stared at Tezuka's eyes until the latter couldn't take it anymore and looked away. He chuckled softly. "Maybe."
Tezuka had to be amazed that Fuji had become more brash and flirtatious. He couldn't hold Fuji's beautiful eyes for more than a second or two.
"Come on, let's get something to eat." Fuji tugged on Tezuka's arm, and he nodded.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Going home that day, Tezuka wreak his brain immensely to find a perfect gift for Fuji that would out bested the ones Fuji received from the 2 captains from the other tennis teams, but nothing came to mind.
Surely, with a look at the necklace Fuji wore, he could tell that the jewelry was expensive. Then, what would be more expensive that Fuji would like?
Tezuka sighed in frustration and ruffled his hair. He decided a little help from the spy that he appointed to look out for Fuji before he left the country would be helpful.
"Hello?"
"Inui."
"Yo Tezuka. There is a 100% chance that you're calling to ask me for help regarding a gift for Fuji, am I right?"
"…" Tezuka hated when Inui got too predictable.
"Sorry, I got a little too excited…"
"I see…anyways, what should I get him?"
"Since Shiraishi and Atobe got him expensive gifts, why don't you give him something invaluable?"
He slowly nodded in agreement. "Hm…"
"A card?"
"No, something got to do with…a bear."
"Build-a-Bear."
Tezuka immediately frowned. "I don't sew." He emphasized it with an obvious remark.
"Chocolate bear?"
"Too typical."
"A drawing or painting that you can whip up instantly?"
That made Tezuka curious. "Why instantly?"
"I heard from Saint Rudolph that Mizuki is coming by tomorrow."
"For what purpose?" Tezuka stood up and left the room to get a glass of water.
"Apparently, Mizuki was aware of the little phenomena that came about with Fuji."
Tezuka did a small inclination with his head when he saw his mother in the kitchen reading a magazine before walking over to the cabinet.
He sighed before speaking through the receiver. "Anymore ideas?" At that, his mother looked at him with pure curiosity. With a few more grunts, Tezuka hung up and filled the glass with water.
"What sort of ideas are you looking for, honey?"
Tezuka turned his head to look at his mother. He carried the glass over to the table and sat down. "A gift idea."
"Oh, a gift? Who is it for?"
Tezuka took a sip of water. The question made him nervous and he didn't know whether it was wise to let his mother know about the whole thing.
Seeing the hesitation, his mother stopped probing. "Then, what kind of gift?"
"Hmm…" Tezuka thought for a while. "Something that relates to a bear."
"Ah. What's the price range?"
"Invaluable."
His mother tapped her fingers on her chin in thought. Suddenly, he started to giggle to herself, causing a confused frown to appear on Tezuka's face.
Not knowing what to do, Tezuka kept silent as he stared at his mother.
"I was thinking of the first Halloween we celebrated, with you wearing the bear costume."
A light bulb flashed in Tezuka's head and he quickly muttered a 'thank-you' before retreating to his room.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-
"Oishi, have you seen Tezuka?"
The whole school hours went by without Fuji seeing Tezuka anywhere, even the teachers had no idea where Tezuka went.
"I'm afraid not, Fuji." Oishi flipped his notebook shut and pushed his chair out to stand up. "You might want to confirm with Inui. He knows basically almost everything."
"Ah. Thank you Oishi." Fuji skipped out of the club room and went to find Inui. Before he found Inui, Inui found him.
"Fuji."
"I was looking for you."
"Oh really?" Inui shifted his glasses. "But before you say anything, there is someone looking for you at the gate."
Fuji cocked his confused head to the side and wondered. "Who?"
"Shiraishi."
Fuji's face lit up. With a bright smile, he went toward the gate. A few girls were talking to Shiraishi when Fuji spotted the captain.
Catching the sight of Fuji approaching, Shiraishi excused himself from the girls and smiled as he walked toward Fuji. "Hey."
Fuji returned with a smile. "Hey. What are you doing here?"
Shiraishi shrugged. "Wanted to see you, I guess." He grinned and stuffed his hands in his pants' pockets.
Secretly, it made Fuji all fluttery inside, but it wasn't as strong as when he was with that other person. "Really?"
"Yeah." Shiraishi looked around. "Are you free right now?"
"Hm." Fuji nodded. "There is no practice today because our school is prepping for the upcoming dance."
"That's good then. Do you mind going out with me for a while?"
"I don't mind, but let me get my bag first."
Shiraishi nodded.
"Want to come with me?" Fuji pointed to the direction of the tennis court.
"Sure."
When Fuji and Shiraishi left the gate, a black limo arrived.
Members of the tennis team gradually looked up one by one as they spotted one of their rivals with their tensai.
"Oi, Fujiko!" Eiji waved and ran over to them as they neared the club room. "Are you going somewhere?" He obviously ignored Shiraishi's presence.
Fuji chuckled and glanced at Shiraishi. "Yeah."
"Mow, I want us to do something together." Eiji pulled Fuji away from Shiraishi. "Oishi found Tezuka." He whispered to Fuji's ear. Without Fuji knowing, he stuck out his tongue at Shiraishi, who raised an eyebrow in mild confusion.
"Really?" Fuji looked at Eiji, who nodded.
"He's in there with Inui." Eiji pointed to the club room.
Fuji smiled brightly. He turned to Shiraishi. "I'll be out in a sec."
Shiraishi nodded with a smile. "Sure."
Eiji crossed his arms and frowned at Shiraishi.
Before Fuji reached for the doorknob, the door flung opened and a big brown thing flew out, knocking Fuji back a few steps in surprise with his baby blue eyes wide opened.
The big bear mascot that he recognized belonged to Seigaku's sister school. Fuji blinked in puzzlement as everyone else on the court froze and stared in awe.
A few seconds of silence later, Inui stepped out from the club room and bent his neck to whisper something to the frozen bear. "Well, do something." With that he walked away with an evil glint shining from his glasses.
Fuji's eyes were as wide as a saucer, round and bubbly. "…Tezu…ka?" He began with uncertainty.
With a small sigh, the mascot suddenly started to move its arms and danced.
At first, Fuji watched with bedazzlement. Eventually, a gape turned into a smile, and a smiled turned into a sweet giggle. Once the mascot stopped dancing, Fuji's clap was the only sound heard echoing throughout the court as he grinned.
When the bear's arms arched to make a heart, Fuji got excited and clapped louder. "Yay!"
The bear surveyed the court, and it seemed that everyone was just staring awkwardly at him. In embarrassment, the mascot's paws moved up to cover its face as it sank to the ground.
Fuji then chuckled and almost everyone else rolled out laughing. Shiraishi looked amused.
Fuji walked over and squatted in front of the bear. "That was...unexpected." He leaned forward and removed the bear's head, revealing a very hot, a combination of blushes and no glasses, Tezuka. "But you did a great job."
Fuji smiled widely and brightly. He boldly cupped Tezuka's face in his palms. "You look great with contacts." Without a warning, Fuji leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on Tezuka's cheek, making Tezuka flush harder.
"You gave him a kiss for that lame performance!?" A disbelieving voice boomed, making everyone turned to the source. "Despicable!"
"Tch, it's the Monkey King." Echizen scoffed.
Fuji stood up and put his hands on his hips. "What are you doing here sputtering non-sense?" He demanded.
Atobe stubbornly moved closer despite the disapproving glare Tezuka was emitting. "I demand an explanation!"
Fuji crossed his arms.
"My wasabi bear costs way more than that stinky mascot and 3 times that cheap necklace."
"So?"
"You should be Ore-sama's boyfriend because he gave you the best gift."
"I did tell you that I didn't want it in the first place!" Fuji argued.
"Well, you didn't refuse afterward!"
"What!? Do you want be to regurgitate its arm and leg out and give the parts I didn't eat yet back to you!? Huh!?" Fuji prodded Atobe's chest with his finger.
Atobe glowered in stupification. The other 2 captains present stood watching in amusement, knowing Atobe wouldn't stand a chance.
"Fuji-kun~"
Fuji rolled his eyes before diverting his glare toward Mizuki, effectively froze the purple head in place out of shock.
Instead of looking at Mizuki, everyone looked past him and saw Sanada, who was standing by himself quite awkwardly at being discovered.
"Oh, don't tell me he's here for Fuji as well."
At that, Sanada smirked at Atobe, feeling quite pitiful for the almighty one. "Why would I when I have my own angel?" As if on cue, Yukimura appeared and Sanada wound his arm around Yukimura's waist.
Yukimura smiled and waved to Fuji, who returned the gesture.
"I heard you got a boyfriend, so I came by to suggest a double date with you." The Rikkaidai couple stepped into the spotlight.
Fuji giggled and hugged Yukimura. "Thanks for coming, but I don't have one." A few fake cough sounded. "Yet." He cheekily added when he caught the cough from Tezuka. "But Seiichi, guess who."
"Isn't it obvious that it is Ore-sama?" Atobe came behind Fuji and wrapped an arm around Fuji.
Fuji yelped shortly in surprise.
An ominous aura radiated behind Atobe and immediately, too different hands descended on Atobe's shoulder.
"Don't touch him." Tezuka warned. Originally, an angry Tezuka was scary. Without his glasses, Tezuka could be seen like death god.
Despite the menacing vibe he was giving off, Tezuka used his cute paws to pull Fuji by his side.
"Don't think because you're his captain, then you can do anything you want with him." Atobe glared unpleasantly and reached out to yank Fuji back to his side.
Tezuka narrowed his eyes. "This is Seigaku's ground. And you're in my territory." He pulled Fuji back.
Anyone who wasn't part of the love circle stepped further back.
"I suggest you getting an eye check up, even the purple manager know that Fuji hates you." Tezuka incidentally forgot Mizuki's name, due to being around Fuji for too long.
Mizuki fluttered his eyes around before pointing to himself. "Me?" Once again, he was ignored.
"Shiraishi, don't you feel any injustice to this?" Atobe turned to Shiraishi for help.
Coolly, Shiraishi shrugged and smiled at Fuji. "He likes me."
"Let's hear what Syusuke has to say." Yukimura spoke up.
Fuji smiled to thank Yukimura. "Well…" He stepped away from Tezuka and went over to hug Shiraishi from the side. "I like Shiraishi."
Everyone's jaws dropped and Eiji's glared on Shiraishi intensified, desperately wanting to burn Shiraishi into ash.
Tezuka felt a needle in his heart and his smile faltered in disappointment.
Fuji looked up at Shiraishi and smiled. "But...." He left Shiraishi's side and stepped to stand in front of Tezuka, looking up into the brown eyes. "I only love Tezuka."
For a few seconds of unexpectedness, everyone held their breath until Tezuka released a deep chuckle and took Fuji into his embrace, who sank further in.
Slowly Fuji tiptoed and Tezuka bent down as their lips met in a gentle kiss.
A few 'aww' went off and a few others fainted.
Atobe received a K.O.
Shiraishi watched with envy, feeling a bit disappointed. Other than that, he was happy that Fuji was happy.
Once they separated, both were flushed and breathing heavily to regain their breath.
Fuji smiled and held onto one of the paws. "So, where is my gift?"
Tezuka played innocent. "What gift?"
Fuji's eyes opened wide and pointed an accusing finger at Tezuka. "I even got a gift from Shiraishi, how come I don't get one from you?"
Tezuka chuckled and placed both hands on Fuji's shoulders. "I thought you're a tensai." He walked over to the bear head on the ground and picked it up, leaving Fuji to blink in confusion.
Tezuka turned his head to look at Fuji. "Am I not enough?" He spread his arms wide.
A bright smile was lit on Fuji's face. "Really!?"
Tezuka smiled and walked into the clubroom.
"You're really not lying? You're mine now, right?"
Tezuka sighed and held the door opened. "Yes, really. Now get in here before I changed I mind."
In a speed of lightning, Fuji ran in and slammed the door shut.
-..-..-..-..-..-..-
Right on, you all who guessed got it right! It's Inui and Tezuka. ^_^ Since this is a two-shot, I was trying to make it as short as possible. My origal version is half of the length, but I felt it didn't convey enough. If there's any disappointment, I apologize, but other than that, thank you to those who reviewed:
BleuFleur, AniManGa19930, masi, yoshikochan, limoncello, lovefuji, anhchi, and Dragna Vey.