The alarm rang at exactly seven am. Yagyuu Hiroshi slowly opened his eyes and met the bright sunlight. The blasted thing continued to ring which annoyed him an awful lot. Still, he waited for a few more minutes before turning it off. And even after shutting it, he continued to lay down.
Eight years. Eight long years.
He hadn't heard from them in eight years. Deep inside him he regretted having never thought of contacting them even after getting back from his five year stay in Paris. But he chose not to think about it.
"It's no use. We can't go back in time." He told himself.
It just hurt too much to think about it. The scar it had created in his heart was never going to heal.
Yagyuu had always known himself as someone capable of being fully independent, solely because while growing up, he never had someone to turn to. He didn't realize that the Rikkai family he had been unconsciously part of had affected him so much. Preferring the doubles play with Niou had been proof of that. In truth, after leaving for Paris, he was unable to find any close friends – those comparable to the bond he shared with the regulars. Of course there were those few comrades who he'd hung out for more than once, but apart from the polite greetings, nothing more was shared. And it didn't help that he compared every single possible candidate of being a friend to at least one member of the regulars. He expected them to like sweets just as much as Marui so he gave them too many sweets. He expected him to be as gentle and understanding as Yukimura so he didn't quite behave naturally. And he acted childishly like Kirihara so Yagyuu can't help but treat him like a small child. The worst blow was when he started to mimic a certain guy who'd first befriended him in the institution. Yes he was all laugh and jokes, but he wasn't the trickster. It might be his nostalgia or Rikkai's craziness had finally worn off on him that Yagyuu didn't realize this.
The place he now owned wasn't that much far from his old neighbourhood. It was just about a thirty minute drive away.
Thirty minutes away.
Tic toc tic toc.
He started the car and drove to his destination. On the way, he picked up a bouquet of red roses and two cups of yogurt.
The cemetery gates were rusty and made a very annoying noise when you open it. The keeper let Yagyuu in and led him to the grave he'd been meaning to see.
Niou Masaharu
Dec. 4, XXXX – Nov. 8, XXXX
A son, a brother, and a great friend
you will be missed.
He ran into Yanagi the other day. It turns out a year after he left, Niou had gotten worse. He skipped tennis practiced too much that they had no choice but to kick him out. The rest of team tried to help him but he wouldn't listen to anyone. Then, his pranks became more destructive. It was like the devil has been let lose. It wasn't until Yukimura asked helped from Atobe to get Yagyuu's whereabouts in Europe. Nobody knew they were distant relatives but Yukimura and Yanagi.
They had some strings pulled just to get the school to have an overseas activity in Paris and by this time, Niou had found a note telling him where Yagyuu was. Niou worked hard to earn the prize.
And he did.
Everyone was glad to see him getting back on track.
Just before the yuletide season, Niou was off packing his things for a three week stay in Paris.
On the eight of November, the day of his flight, there was a vicious car accident. A truck lost its control causing it to drag several cars and crushing it to pulp.
Niou was riding a taxi cab that got involved in the misfortune.
He was the only one killed. The other victims survived though not without major complications.
"I saw the letter you know – the one Sanada wrote to me. But I was so busy with my classes and adjusting to the environment that I just forgot about it. I didn't even bother opening the damned thing." Yagyuu said passively. He put down the flowers and sat in front of the tomb. He sat a cup of yogurt in front of him and the other he opened.
"The taste never changed." He smiled at no one and set his barely eaten cup down. "And I'll still never be able to finish this." At the back of his mind he could hear Niou scolding him.
"Hiroshi! That's a waste of such good food. Here, let me have it. Why can't you appreciate such heavenly things. It's getting yummier by the second."
Yagyuu turned to leave. As he started the car, he noticed the battered tennis bag at the back seat. It's been years since he last had practice. Maybe it's time to get back into shape.
"You're over reacting, Niou-kun. It's the same as when we last had them."
Too bad life doesn't work that way.
(A/N: It's been years since I last wrote a fanfic and it feels like I'm starting from scratch all over again xD. I hope I didn't ruin the ending.
Not edited so there might be some grammar mistakes xD
I really can't believe I have time to do this when I have three tests and tons of projects to finish ~,~)|
R&R :)
