Chapter 4

"Good...awn...morning..aaa...Yanagi...kun." Itou managed out before yawning again. It was only five in the morning yet Yagyuu had said that student council members had to work this early.

"Good morning Itou-chan." Yanagi greeted the girl and smiled.

"Yanagi-kun...you aren't sleepy?" Itou questioned incredulously while trudging her seemingly heavy tennis bag to the school grounds from the bus stop. To answer her question, Yanagi let out a soft yawn.

"It's too early for my tastes." He replied simply. The senior girl let out a snicker.

"So the data master hates mornings." She found this extremely funny since she envisioned Yanagi as the kind that got up really early to look over all his data.

"Everybody has their likes and dislikes. I seem to dislike the morning. Do you find that strange Itou-chan?" Yanagi turned to the girl and questioned with a hint of humor in his voice.

"You're messing with me." Itou stated plainly at the data master.

Yanagi looked offended, "I would never do such a thing. I am always very serious."

"Uh-huh." Itou let out sarcastically. To that, Yanagi only smiled.

"Come on, let's go to meet with Yagyuu." The boy told the girl and the two walked to the student council room. It really was too early.

Kawasaki Sakura leaned against the fence waiting for her double's partner to come out. Finally, the door creaked and she jumped to greet her friend.

"Morning Shina!" Kawasaki cheered and Nishimura let out a grunt of good morning.

"It's too early." Nishimura growled, "How do you get up so early and not be tired each day?"

Sakura raised an eyebrow, "It's six thirty." She replied like it wasn't early at all.

"Exactly! It's six thirty! That's so early!" Nishimura exclaimed and then sighed and followed with rubbing her eyes. Sakura gave her partner another confused look and Shina gave up and sighed.

"Miura-buchou must be copying Yukimura-san. The girl's practices weren't always this early in the morning." Kawasaki huffed and stretched.

"She is. Ran thinks that we need to start upping our training times and schedules to match the guys. She wants us to be in tip top shape for the tournaments." The girl's vice captain sighed again.

Sakura looked confused, "I don't get you Shina. You are the vice captain and yet Itou-chan organizes the training menus and you don't get a say in what goes on in the tennis club."

"I do, but Ran gets the final say and well...I can't disagree in the fact that we need more practice."

"And yet you complain about it." Sakura gave her friend a look.

"You know what Sakura? Shut up." Nishimura rolled her eyes.

The two girls arrived at the school and went directly to the tennis club. Some girls were crowding around Narumi in the change room, mostly the second years.

"What's going on?" Nishimura asked.

Everyone faced their vice captain. "Oh! Narumi-chan brought her violin!"

Said girl sighed and then smiled at her senpai. "Good morning senpai."

"Morning Narumi-chan. Everyone, practice is going to start soon." Nishimura announced and the girls all went back to changing.

"Someone looks tired." Shimizu caught up to her friend and Itou looked up from her run.

"Oh, Kimiko-chan. I had to get up at 4:30 this morning." Itou complained.

Shimizu gave her friend a worried look, "Why? Poor you! That's so early!"

"Student council. Yagyuu-kun has tennis practice too so we have to meet really early and leave really late each day. The work too...argh." The girl groaned and her friend gave her a reassuring look.

"I feel really sorry for you."

"You are lucky to have a wealthy family." Itou's look seemed distant.

"Hmm? What's with the change of subject?" Shimizu raised her eyebrow. She always knew that her friend had an average family and sometimes they were low on money. At those times, Shimizu always lent her friend cash to support her family.

"It's nothing really. I was just thinking what it would be like to ride a car to school everyday and have people call you young master. Ha, I guess I'm thinking too much eh?" Itou laughed sheepishly.

"Not really. It's not really that good. There are a lot of responsibilities and I have practically no freedom. My future is already set and I can't really change it. It was a miracle that I got to join the tennis team and that I got to go to Rikkaidai." Kimiko sighed.

"I'm sorry." Itou apologized looking at the ground again. She and Shimizu shared a deep friendship yet their social classes were so different.

"It's fine! You should come over some day. I would be more than happy if that happened." Shimizu laughed and Itou did too.

"I will." The girl promised.

Miura blew the whistle three times and all the tennis club members gathered around their captain.

"One week from now, we will have the district preliminaries! I expect all of you to do your best and not sustain any injuries. Those who aren't regulars still have to practice hard if they want to take part in the challenge matches coming up one month from now! Everyone dismissed! Regulars remain!" Miura stated.

"Regulars, for our first match this year, we will have to work very hard. Itou has created you each with a training menu that she will hand out right now! We will increase our drill this afternoon and I want to rally with each of you before the tournament. I will start with Kawano today! Okay! Careful with injuries! Dismissed!" Miura announced and the regulars headed back for a shower and changing.

"In the end..." Chiasa started and sighed, "You two ended up bombing history...again."

Narumi let out a huge depressed sigh as she gripped her paper.

"Why? It's so hard and difficult. Why does this subject even exist?!" She cried and flailed her arms in a childish manner.

"I know right? I actually read the pages this time too!" Kirihara repeated Narumi's actions.

Sato Kosuke, Kirihara's cool and smart friend sighed with Chiasa and Honoka.

"You two...how could you both suck so much at that subject. I mean, fifty percent? Seriously?" Sato groaned.

"It's difficult! I thought I knew all the answers yet I didn't choose the best one!" Narumi groaned. The five kids passed Marui, Niou and a girl who shot all of them a strange glance. Chiasa stuck her tongue out at them.

Honoka shook her head, "Well, Narumi-chan, at least you are amazing at all the other subjects. Er...I mean..."

Narumi forced a smile, "You don't have to make it sound that mean...ehehe."

"Right, Narumi also bombed her geography right?" Sato grinned, "Let's see."

Narumi reluctantly handed her paper over. Sato's face changed from interest to disbelief.

"What the f**k is this?" He cussed and the girl whimpered softly. Kimura burst out laughing, Honoka tried to hold her laugh and Kirihara just looked obliviously confused.

"What?" The former asked.

Kimura shook her head while trying to hold her laughter, "It's...i-it's n-nothing...ahahahahahahaha!"

Narumi flushed red embarrassed, "Hey shut up Chia! It's not funny!"

"Th-thirty t-two...ahahahaha..ah. How did you manage to get that low of a score?!" Kimura questioned and Asuka shook her head.

"I. Abhor. Geography."

"What does abhor mean?" Kimura grunted. This time, the entire group burst out laughing including Honoka and Kirihara. After a while when the five arrived at the cafeteria, Kirihara spoke up.

"Hey, what are we laughing for?" He asked. Everyone inwardly facepalmed.

"Hey guys!" Kawano walked over with her tray of lunch to the five and sat down with them.

"Yo, Mai." Narumi smiled and Kawano sat beside her. Narumi still had her violin case with her and her school bag.

Kawano took a bite into her bento and looked at Narumi. "Hey, Asuka, how long have you been playing the violin?"

The asked girl's attention was caught. 'I can't lie...'

"Um...for as long as I can remember actually...hehe." She laughed awkwardly and she seemed very interested in the bento for some reason.

"That long?! You must be really good then!" Honoka smiled.

Narumi shook her head rapidly, "No! Not at all actually! I really suck!"

Narumi's friends were slightly suspicious but they didn't press the matter. The six chatted and ate lunch. Soon, they were back off to class. Narumi, Kawano, Kimura and Sato went one way and Honoka and Kirihara went to their class.

These classes passed by pretty quickly for Narumi. Physics, English, Trigonometry, these subjects were all of Narumi's aces. Sato found it amazing for the girl to be so good at these and yet fail at History and Geography. She was pretty and nice as well... The boy groaned silently. He couldn't be developing a crush on that girl could he? He, the star of the basketball team who has fangirls always around him and she, a beautiful doubles player of the tennis team who attracts many boys and hangs out with the good looking boys from the tennis team. It didn't seem to work.

'I'm not good enough for her.' Sato realized. He composed himself and decided to pay attention to the board instead.

"Bleh. Finally the end of our boring lectures. Tennis!" Kirihara shouted out once he, Narumi, Kimura and Sato were out of their final class.

"I've got basketball. I guess I'll see you guys later then." Sato waved and walked the opposite direction.

Kimura noticed his careless movements and grabbed Narumi's arm.

"Hey, don't you think he's really cool? I mean not as cool as Yukimura-senpai but- Hey! He was staring at you during class today as well. You think he has a crush on you Asuka?"

Narumi rolled her eyes with boredom, "Doubt it. Besides, he has so many girls swarming around him every single day. Why would be interested in me, a girl who is lousy at geography and history?"

"Quit whispering!" Kirihara complained, "Tell me too!"

Kimura shooed the boy away, "Girl stuff Akaya, you won't understand."

Kirihara grumbled at the girl, "You are sounding like Niou-senpai! How bothersome."

The three managed to get out of the school without shouting their heads off. Once they were outside, Kirihara left and joined up with Marui and Niou.

"Wakame, you were talking to Yukimura's girlfriend weren't you?" Niou ruffled up his kohai's hair roughly.

Kirihara grumbled at his nickname and Niou's actions, "You mean Kimura? She isn't buchou's girlfriend."

"Not yet but I bet you fifty yen that she will be." Niou stated and Marui shook his head.

"I'll bet with you then. I bet that she won't be Yukimura's girlfriend." Marui stated and blew a bubble.

"Yeah! I'm siding with Marui-senpai!" Kirihara quickly exclaimed and Niou shrugged.

"Hmph, you'll see." With that, he entered the change room and went to his locker.

"Genichirou, Seiichi has violin concert tickets." Yanagi stated to his dense friend.

"So what?" Sanada simply stated while grabbing his racket and turning to the data master.

Yanagi also grabbed his racket, "He wants to go with you. He was originally going to go with both of us but I have student council work."

"Hn." Sanada grunted and the two started a light rally.

"You should go. It's after practice today. Take a break." Yanagi suggested and Sanada's reply was the same.

"I'll go. He mi-."

"He might invite Kawano otherwise, is what you were going to say. I really don't find any worry in that. I think that Seiichi is rather interested in Narumi Asuka though." Yanagi stated logically while hitting a ball over.

"You mean that girl who ignored Yukimura until a few days ago?" Sanada questioned.

"Yeah, her."

"Hn."

Yanagi smirked softly as he hit the ball back over the net. Sanada's troubled expression really was very funny to see. Whenever Yukimura got himself into some kind of business with a girl, he would act like this. Of course he was only concerned about his captain and whether or not it may affect his tennis and he would always hide this concern but Yanagi could see it as if it were as clear as day.

'I think Narumi is going to turn out to be an interesting girl.'

A/N:

Ok, I've been very busy with schoolwork lately since the term's almost ending and stuff. I'll try my best to update monthly but I might be a little late. Thank you all for reading and reviewing my story. It motivates me to write more. I will try to get the next chapter up earlier. XD