DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN PRINCE OF TENNIS\

This is for the Looking Away challenge by EmInArEvOl in which Ryoma is betrayed by his teammates. So, Seigaku lovers -BEWARE! They are not going to be very nice.

AUTHOR'S NOTES:: : Please remember when reading this work of FAN-FICTION that characters are Very likely going to be OOC . Things are going to be shaped and twisted this author's way.

WARNING: This will be Yaoi / Shounen-Ai– Pairing; Meaning BoyxBoy / MalexMale. Will also have R-rated language. Turn back now if any of this offends you

Thank you to those that reviewed:

Sg, Pri-Chan 1410 , Me , tellerofstorys ,Don Seira ,Wonderingmoon ,EmInArEvOl ,UekiKosuke,ILOVEGAARA ,HiKaRi-ChIbI ,VanillaCream ,The Ice Mage,IceDragon21 ,MyInfernalInsanity ,animeluvr555 ,.rain ,Insane Blood Prince ,denizen of the night ,Mirsama ,itachisgurl93 ,SkyGem , UekiKosuke

Thank you HiKaRi-ChIbI for boucing ideas with me :)

Alright, time skip. A long one too.

So Ryoma is 17 (going on 18)

The rest are 18 and 19

~Five Years Later~ Early March~

"Never thought I'd step foot back in this country."

"Ahh, I'm beat!" His companion yawned, then stretched, his arms high up in the air as he did so. It was such a long flight from California to Japan.

Kevin glanced at his friend slash rival. The closer they got to Japan, the more cold and tense Ryoma got. Accidentally meeting Ryoma four years ago in New York, Kevin was struck speechless by how worn out and old Ryoma looked then. Not physically old. But soul old. Like he had seen hell and back or something like that. He was struck speechless when he challenged Ryoma to a game only to be told he was no longer playing tennis.

What the hell? What happened to leave the Echizen Ryoma that he admired and saw as a rival dead inside?

It had taken him nine months of nagging and badgering, begging and more nagging and help from Nanjiroh for Ryoma to pick up his racquet again. Ryoma lost to him. Abysmally. He kept challenging Ryoma and they started to play almost every weekend. It wasn't too long before Ryoma caught up on his play again and he, Kevin started losing. Another three months for Ryoma to say "Mada Mada Dane."

But it wasn't the same. The words were the same, bug the feeling behind them were not. And that was the crux of the problem. The words lacked feelings. They were just that; Words. Like Ryoma said it to please them; like it was expected of him.

He learned what happened to Ryoma from Nanjiroh. That Seigaku used Ryoma to win the National and tossed him aside after. The elder Echizen thought Kevin might be able to bring Ryoma out of his shell he put himself in. He tried and believed he succeeded somewhat. But sometimes he wondered. Especially times when his friend would become so silent, so still, so hurt, when he sees certain people on the street; certain people who resembled certain ex-teammates. But as soon as the hurt appeared in those golden orbs, they pass and all that was left was a colder, more distant Ryoma. One step forward, three steps back, Kevin thought.

Ryoma stepped out of the cab with his bag hoisted over his shoulder and looked up at the house he had stayed in four years ago. Taking out the key his father gave him, Ryoma unlocked the gate and walked up the pathway to the door.

The old man who had owned the place passed away six months ago, bequeathing the house and property to his father. His father wanted to sell and his mother talked him out of it, reasoning it would be a wonderful house to stay in when they visit Japan instead of in a hotel. Or even as a present to Nanako when she marries.

Ryoma didn't think he would ever step foot in Japan again, but his mother had told, ordered, him to come and fix the place up since it had been neglected and has fallen into dis-repair. And since he has free time, he should be a good son and listen to her.

Looking around, he saw that indeed there is a lot of work to do. Weeds have completely overtaken the yard. Inside, he saw, was not much better. A thick layer of dust covered every surrounding inch.

"Achoo!" He sneezed and rubbed his nose. Another sneeze came from behind him.

"Jeez, man this place is a mess! It's going to take us forever to make this place livable again."

Ryoma nodded absently, walking toward the back door, kicking up dust in his wake.

"Achoo. Ryoma!' Achoo!" He ignored the sneezing from behind him and pushed the back door open with a loud creak, and as he expected, the backyard is as bad as the front. Maybe even worse. Weeds almost as tall as he is covered that area. He can't even see the court that he and his dad had played on out there.

"Yech! This really is going to take forever, Ryoma," Kevin whined. Ryoma stayed silent, face apathetic. Inside, he was seriously considering hopping back on the plane and convince his mom to just sell. Except that he didn't want to put in the effort arguing with his mom. Once she gets something into her head, there's no letting go.

Hours later, they had two of the bedrooms cleaned and dusted. Well, as much as it will allow them to sleep in without choking on the dust and dirt. Wiping the sweat from his brow, Ryoma straightened to his feet and stretched out, working out the soreness and kinks from his body. Kevin did the same, groaning aloud.

"Ah man, I'm starving!" His stomach agreed, letting out a loud roar, like an angry starving tiger. Kevin laughed sheepishly. "It's decided. Time to eat!"

Everything looked the same, yet different. Like the store at the small corner store that was still there, but had expanded to twice the size it was five years ago. There were new houses and buildings next to older ones. Sliding into a seat at a BBQ shop, Ryoma looked around. It was one of the newer shops since it was an empty lot before. He wondered when it had been built. Kevin saw this place earlier in the taxi and had wanted to try it, telling Ryoma that he can have burgers and fries anytime, but they were in Japan and he wanted something different. Soon they were filling up on grilled meat and seafood, too busy satisfying their hunger to talk.

Walking out of the place, Kevin patted his belly contently. "Mmmm, that hit the spot, Ryoma." Ryoma nodded in agreement. "What'd you want to do now?'

"Go home."

"Hmmpf, you're no fun."

Ryoma sighed and looked at Kevin. "It's been a long flight. A long day of cleaning. I'm exhausted. If you want to go out, then go. I'm going home." Kevin held out his hand in surrender. "Okay, okay. Home it is," he said with a smile. In truth, he was exhausted as well. He just wanted to get Ryoma out to do something. Otherwise he would hole himself up in the house and never leave.

He knew Kevin was only thinking about him, but he really was exhausted. "After."

"Eh?"

"After the inside of the house and yard is cleaned up to halfway liveable, we'll do something."

"Awesome. You've got me pumped up now, Ryoma. Just you watch. We'll have things good as new in no time!" Kevin whooped. Ryoma shook his head. Nothing seemed to get Kevin down.

"Neh, Ryoma. Are you gonna enroll in university here?"

"Hmm, not sure. What about you?"

"Argh, don't remind me," Kevin groaned as they walked home instead of taking a taxi, enjoying the cool night air. "I don't think I've ever studied so hard in my life. My brain still feel fried. But I wasn't going to let you beat me in that either, Ryoma." Kevin grumbled. Ryoma had decided he didn't want to go to school any longer than necessary and had talked to the councilors and teachers at school. He had proven to them that he knew the materials, taken their tests and passed with flying colors. And no way was he going to let Ryoma graduate early and he didn't. So he hit the books hard and with the help of Ryoma, he graduated the next year after.

"Anyways, school won't start back up until August back in Cali. Here it starts in April, right? So if you're not sure, you have to decide soon Ryoma." Kevin told him, concerned for his friend. Ryoma could have attended any universities he wanted, but opted not to, saying he wanted to just be free for a while with no obligations to do anything for anyone. He has been secluding himself away from people as much as he can and since he no longer have to attend school or associate with anyone, it's become worse. Kevin hoped he can talk Ryoma into attending school. If not here, then back in California. At least to get out more. Beside himself, Nanjiroh, and Rinko, he doesn't think he's seen Ryoma talked to anyone else unless absolutely necessary.

Three days later, the two barely made any progress at all. In fact it was worse. A torrential downpour of rain revealed leaks in the roof in more place they can count or had buckets for. The back and front yard was now a muddy mess wet grass, weed and lots of mud. The inside was no better. The floor was still damp despite the how much they have mopped up. Even the rooms they had cleaned up on the day of their arrival was now a wet mess.

"Arggh, this is never ending," Kevin complained. Again. Ryoma had to agree, they have mopped up, only to have it rain again and the process repeated for the last three days. He and Kevin even went up to try and fix the leaks in the roof, only to made it worse. He banged the hammer too hard and made a bigger hole in one of the smaller leaks. Kevin got frustrated and stomped his foot, only to almost fall down to the floor below. Another big hole.

"We need to hire somebody who can fix things and weed the yards. A handyman." Ryoma watched Kevin's eyes went from surprised to ecstatic.

"Really? What are we waiting for. Call someone. A plumber and a roofer and a gardner." Ryoma shook his head.

"That costs a lot of money," he reminded Kevin.

"So? You got plenty of that. Argg, you're such a tightwad!" Kevin grumbled. "Must got it from Aunt Rinko, cuz Uncle Nanjiroh sure isn't one." Ryoma smiled a bit at Kevin's grumbling.

"What's wrong with wanting to save up?"

"Dude, you're super rich for people our age. How much did the last one sell for? $100,000. $100,000!" Kevin practically screamed the figure out. Seeing that Ryoma was not going to budge, his shoulders drooped in defeat. "Alright, alright. Then we need a super handyman who can do all that for cheap!"

Well at least today shows clear skies , Ryoma thought, looking up at the blue skies. He hoped it will not rain again. He finger-combed his long hair before pulling it up in a knot and then topped it off with his white cap, though a few strands escaped it. Kevin was out handing out help wanted papers they had made that morning for a handyman, or as Kevin said "Super Handyman". Looking around the yard again, he knew they were going to definitely need one of those Super Handyman.

He really wished he didn't have to come back to Japan. He didn't want to run into his so called friends. He wondered why his mother just didn't hire some people to come and fix up the place instead of just sending him here. If she knew about what happened she might change her mind. But she didn't know. Neither he or his father had told her the reason why he decided to go back to America so suddenly five years ago. And from what he can tell, she still doesn't know.

Ryoma closed the gate behind him with a click. Right now he needed to go buy some things for the house. Mainly beds for him and Kevin, since their futons were all wet. And since he was going to buy something to sleep on, he'd rather sleep on beds.

Getting off the train in to the main shopping district, Ryoma looked around. As with his neighborhood, there were the old and the new blending in together. He looked around, there was a shop around there that furnitures as he recalled.

Completing his purchase, Ryoma nodded to the sales clerk. They would deliver the beds and mattresses delivered by later that day. He paid extra for that to happen. With that done, Ryoma decided he would look around the area; see what's new. Until a voice interrupted him.

"You! Echizen!"

O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O

So already back and Ryoma meets someone he knows.

UPDATED 9/11/2010