FOUR. Confessions and Rejections

Disclaimer: I don't own Prince of Tennis so don't sue! I'm poor! Not really, but you get the point.

A/N: I was sort of disappointed that I only got one review for the last chapter. sadface. Anyway, I'm not really asking for much, but I'd really appreciate it if you left a review telling me what you though about this story and what you'd like to see.

Reviews are a great tool and are very encouraging.

I'll be in China for the next month, so I might update once more to make up for the month long absence.

Yagyuu Hiroshi was like prince charming to the women at Rikkaidai. It was the exact opposite for his doubles partner, Niou Masaharu, who was dubbed the Lady Killer along with the infamous title of the Trickster.

It was no surprise that he received plenty of confessions from fangirls and such. Being the gentleman and living up to his reputation, he kindly and politely rejected them.

On his way to meet his teammates for lunch, a girl he recognized to be Endo Akane stopped him in the hallway. She was in Yukari's class, he noted to himself.

"Can I talk to you Yagyuu-kun?" She had a soft tinkling soprano voice. "It will be just for a moment."

He knew what she was going to say, due to the expectant spark in her unusual blue eyes. He listened to her heartfelt confession, but his mind drifted towards the slightly disheveled girl with the caramel hair and emerald green eyes. Unconsciously, his lips twitched upwards into a genuine smile that only a few ever had the privilege to see.

"Yagyuu-kun?"

Hearing his name being called, he looked up and his smile changed. It was a subtle switch, and completely missed by the girl. His lips morphed into the stiff, polite smile that he showed almost everyone.

"I must apologize. I am flattered by your feelings, but I regret that I cannot return them." His smile was still the same as the discouraged girl nodded in thanks and walked off, dazed.

Light footsteps came up behind him.

"Popular as always." The playful voice was filled with mirth.

"Not as much as you, Masaharu. I am promised, too, if you haven't forgotten," Yagyuu murmured as he turned around. Noticing three pink lines that slashed downward on Niou's cheek, Yagyuu sighed, "I would lay low for a bit, if I were you. Those scratches on your cheek are a quite deep."

"Oh, these?" Niou feigned nonchalance, "my cat scratched me last night when I fell on him."

Yagyuu looked at him over the rim of his glasses. "You don't have a cat."

Niou averted his gaze sheepishly for being caught in a lie.

"Furthermore, I've never had the privilege to see a cat that has pink nails."

"Hmm…so when are we going to meet your cute fiancée?" Niou asked, attempting to change the subject. Now was as good time as ever. He had always been curious about the girl that had Hiroshi smile a genuine smile and not that stiff lipped twitch.

"…" Yagyuu paused to decide whether to just out with the truth. "You already have."

"Whoa, whoa. Back up a sec. She goes to Rikkaidai?" Niou was now incredibly curious.

"You should remember. She gave you one of the best shot downs I've ever seen." Yagyuu chuckled at the thought.

The team had gone to a café after they had won a tournament. It was next to impossible for Niou not to flirt. It was just his nature. Yukari was working that Saturday, and well, the rest was not pretty. She had told him off. With that alone, everyone on the tennis team would not be forgetting her in a hurry.

The afternoon rush at the café was slowly winding down. She was still in a cheery mood despite the long hours, because soccer practice was in a few hours. Quickly jotting down orders, she made her way back to the kitchen. She greeted the cook with a smile. He was always telling her that she was working too much and to cut back on her hours. On her way out of the kitchen after placing the orders, the bell tinkled, signaling the entrance of customers.

All eight Rikkaidai tennis regulars entered. What a coincidence.

She didn't see any other waiters anywhere in sight so she greeted them.

"Hello. Welcome to Sakura. Eight people, I assume?"

The stern looking one, Sanada, nodded in confirmation as the others behind him chatted amiably about a tournament. They had obviously won the said tournament. She turned her head just in time to catch Hiroshi smile at her and wave. Waving back, she turned and led the regulars to a large booth. After taking their drink orders, she gave them time to look over the menu, and tended to the other customers. Coming back with a tray full of drinks, she set each drink down in front of the person who ordered it. Most of the menus were down on the table, and they seemed ready to order.

"You guys ready to order?" she asked, taking out a small notepad and a pen from her apron.

She heard a bunch of yes's and grunts.

"Okay then," she said, turning to the silver haired guy on the end, "What would you like, sir?"

The silver-haired man lifted his head up with a smug smile. "Hmm…" he said, tapping his chin with a finger, "I'd like your name and your phone number."

She arched her eyebrow in disbelief, but quickly bit out a sharp reply. "Would you like fries with that?"

Faint snickers could be heard among the regulars.

Sanada was already beginning to massage his temples. "Niou…" he warned in a menacing.

The Niou's smile faltered a bit, but his persistence was never ending. "Aww babe, don't be like that," he purred, reaching to touch her hand.

The others were looking to see what she would do. She also noticed that a certain pair of grey eyes were locked on her, gauging her reaction. This guy has got to be kidding, she thought in exasperation as she slapped his hand away. She was beginning to lose her patience. "You're hilarious. Now order something you can actually afford."

Marui, across from Niou, choked on his soft drink. Kirihara let out a snicker but stopped when Niou gave him the evil eye. Even Yukimura let out one of his tinkling chuckles.

It had been a while since Niou had come across a girl like that.

It took a few moments for Niou to dig thorough his brain for the exact event. "Oh! That brunette at the café!" He smirked. "She was a feisty one, totally my type."

"Ah." Yagyuu nodded in confirmation.

Puzzled, Niou asked, "If she's the heir to the Hayashi Empire, then why is she working there?"

"She hates depending on people. She is quite the independent woman. And if you can believe it, she has a third degree black belt."

"Well well, looks like you'll have quite the time dealing with your feisty fiancée." A smile was forming on Niou's lips. "Heh, thanks to her wonderfully smooth shot down, the whole team already knows who she is. Now that I think of it, Hayashi Yukari is also the notorious girls' soccer team captain…man, I can't believe I never noticed."

"Ah. Don't worry. You'll will meet her again soon enough."

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