CR: Ok, I wrote this chapter because I was bored, that's all. I guess I wasn't a good writer after all. Oh, if you guys are asking about my injured eye I got, well, I got discharged from the hospital. I am so tired of the hospital food, doesn't taste like home at all. My family has to be burdened by bringing in my daily medication (I suffer from a medical condition). Well, thank my lucky stars all I got was a bruised eye from the near car accident. Anyway, bacl to the story!
"Monkey King? That's a weird name." said Pakura, frowning. "Alright. Let's wake Monkey King up then." She took out her water bottle, and poured it on Monkey King's head. He woke up, spluttering. "How dare you ruin Ore-sama's beautiful hair, you female bastard!" Pakura twitched. "Hey, I was just trying to wake you up, Monkey King. Anyway, I don't give a damn about your 'beautiful' hair!" she snapped. This time, it was Monkey King's turn to twitch. "How dare you call me a Monkey King! You're just like that brat!" Pakura raised her eyebrows. "Well, Ryoma told me Monkey King's your name, so I don't see any harm on calling you by your name." Monkey King rounded on Ryoma, who was sniggering away. "I don't see what's so funny about introducing me as Monkey King, brat. Ore-sama has a beautiful name, and that's Atobe Keigo."
Pakura asked, "What's Ore-sama?"
"It means the stupid me in Japanese." said Ryoma.
"You brat! It means the great and magnificent me! You two had better be awed by my presence!"
Pakura looked him up and down. His hair and shirt is wet from her water bottle and his face had a red weal. He was also sporting an angry expression. She was awed by his presence alright…if being awed meant that fact that you like being in the presence of a crazy looking wet monkey, that is. Pakura turned to Ryoma. "I should've punched him one more time, shouldn't I?"
"Yes you should." said Ryoma.
"No, you shouldn't. Anyway, what was that punch for?"
"That's for calling ME a traitor all of a sudden and I don't even know you!" Pakura snarled.
"I wasn't. I thought you were the brat and speaking of which, I want to talk to the brat to find out what happened three years ago."
"Three years ago?" said Pakura.
"Oh, three years ago?" said Ryoma, his tone suddenly gotten cold. "It was…"
"Ok, enough! Let's not talk here. Let's go to my house and talk, we'll have more privacy."
"Erm…sorry, we can't. I'm going home to visit my-" However, he was cut off as Atobe grabbed his left hand and dragged him towards his limousine. Pakura jogged tp catch up with them, carrying both hers and Ryoma's stuff."Oh yeah, what are you doing in the airport today, Atobe-san?" said Pakura. "Ore-sama was going to send one of his butlers off to America to visit his family. He had better be awed by my generosity." Somewhere in the airport, a certain butler sneezed. "Yeah, yeah, whatever." said Pakura. She slapped Atobe's hand, making him let go of Ryoma's arm. "And I'll thank you not to manhandle Ryoma like this, he can walk himself." Ryoma rubbed his arm and muttered a "thanks" to Pakura.
"Oh? What's your relationship with him?" said Atobe, smirking. Inwardly he hoped it wasn't lovers, because that will be his title. Pakura thought for a while, before saying, "Well…."
"Don't answer the question!" said Ryoma, cutting her off. They reached the limo, and Atobe practically shoved Ryoma in, and also helped Pakura put their stuff in the trunk. Pakura climbed in after Ryoma, and Atobe followed last. He slammed the door close and his chauffeur drove off. Ryoma huffed, folded his arms and stared at the window. By the intensity of the glare, it was a wonder why the windows haven't melted. She knew all he wanted to do is to go home and visit his family. And what happened instead? They met some narcissistic person who declared he needed a word with Ryoma and now, they are being kidnapped to his home to have a talk. Worse, she got dragged along because she was with Ryoma. The talk had better be something important, OR ELSE she's going to make sure he won't be able to walk for a week, just like what she did to one of the male players in the ITM. Of course, she won the match against him by default, because his legs were incapacitated. Just then, the limo stopped and Atobe said, "We're here." Pakura stepped out of the limo, and her jaw dropped slightly at the sight of the house. Wait, Atobe did say house, right? A H-O-U-S-E, right? She didn't hear wrong, did she? To call Atobe's home a house would be an understatement. It was like 5 stories high (I anyhow guessed) and it was freaking huge! It looked more like a mansion than a house. Atobe led Ryoma and Pakura in his house. The maids and the butlers welcome Atobe, calling him "Young Master Keigo". He led Pakura and Ryoma in his room, telling the butlers and the maids not to interrupt them for a few hours.
Once in the safety of his room, Atobe locked the door and rounded on both of them.
"You said you wanted to talk. Now spill!" said Ryoma.
"I just want some answers, brat. First off, where were you for the past three years?"
"Well, for starters, I was in America and training regularly with her."
Atobe sighed. He doesn't know anything, does he? "Because you have been labeled as a traitor here."
Pakura stood up. "Seriously? What did Ryoma do?"
Atobe grimaced and said, "Well, it started like this….."
"Hey, Tezuka, where's that brat that helped you won the championship? Isn't he coming for the celebration?" said Atobe.
Tezuka shook his head. "No, he's not coming. And we're not going to ask him."
"Why not? He's the one who helped you, you should ask him."
Oishi sighed. "I wish we could, but it's hard after that boy betrayed us."
"Betrayed you?" said Gakuto.
"Yeah, we heard him talking to someone on the phone, saying now he could use our moves and take credit for being the creator." said Eiji, faking a sigh
"No way! I thought he was OK!" said Kenya.
"I guess you can't judge a person by his looks." said Momhshiro.
Pakura sighed. She pitied her protégé, having to endure betrayers and LIARS! "And I assume you believe them?" said Pakura, trying to keep her voice calm.
"That's the story I got from the Seigaku regulars."
"I see. Now you want to hear Ryoma's side, I presume?"
"You're right."
"Hmm….why do you want to know so much? It's not your business at all. Also, this is something I don't' share freely." said Ryoma.
Atobe had to admit Ryoma got him there. He was nothing to Ryoma, but Ryoma doesn't know he held a special place in his heart ever since that match during the Nationals. He then looked at Pakura. "Then, why did this girl know your side of the story?"
"Simple. She's a special person that I can trust. And also, stop calling her girl, she has a name!"
"I know, but I don't know her name!"
Pakura thought giving him her real name would strike some familiarity with him, so she said "Just call me Carumati for now, Caru for short." Carumati was the nickname her friends give her. It means intelligent and wise. During her ITM, she intelligently observed other players from afar, which allowed her to understand their playing style and their strengths and weaknesses. She was also wily, when she figured out a way to defeat her last player. She was independent and was sly and elusive. Pakura won her ITM by pretending to be a weakling, feigning fatigue and injuries, when in reality she is sly and cunning. She never begins matches at full strength and relied on observations and her amazing speed during matches. Then, when her opponent gains confidence, that's when she would show her sadistic side (like Fuji, but worse) strike back without mercy, making her one of the strongest ITM champions. Also, like Ryoma, she's ambidextrous. She's cool calm and collected. However, one fatal flaw of hers is that she can't even stand to see men topless. She was the most "pure" among the players in the ITM, which almost led to her downfall in the ITM when one of the male players figured it was so hot, he ripped off his shirt. She played the rest of the match with her eyes closed. Pakura shuddered at that memory.
"Alright, Caru, so what's Ryoma's story?"
"What makes you think I'll tell? He'll tell you when he's ready."
"But, I really need to know!"
"Why?" said Ryoma.
"B-b-because…Ah, screw it!" He strode over to Ryoma and smashed his lips against Ryoma's. Pakura immediately closed her eyes, and covered her ears. She so does NOT want to see a kissing scene. In movies, she also did this when she foresees a kissing scene. In fact, romance makes her sick. (I'll reveal the reason later in the story) Ryoma struggled for a moment before giving in. Atobe's a good kisser, he'll have to admit. That's why when his tongue swiped the lower lip; Ryoma did not hesitate before allowing Atobe to gain entrance. Atobe had never tasted anything sweeter in his life. Ryoma's mouth tasted of grapes (from Ponta of course.) He wished he will never let go. His tongue cannot cover all that intoxicating taste, his mouth cannot consume more. They eventually separate, in much need of air. "Now will you tell me?" said Atobe.
"But this is not something I can freely share. And you can remove your hands now, Caru." Pakura removed her hands and opened her eyes. Pakura said, "Just tell him Ryoma. He didn't kiss you for nothing you know." Ryoma looked at his mentor and to Atobe. Something in his eyes told him he could trust him. Ryoma took a deep breath, and told Atobe the story. As he talked, Atobe's eyes got narrower, and his scowl became more pronounced. He occasionally looked at Pakura to detect if Ryoma was lying, and by the solemn look, he knew Ryoma wasn't lying. After he finished his story, Atobe suddenly spat out, "How could they do this to you? They betrayed you and then they lied? They deserved to be executed!" Pakura jumped at the sharpness of his tone.
"Chill, Atobe. Do you know the phrase, 'Everything comes with a price' they will get their retribution and…"
"And you'll make sure of it." Pakura finished his sentence. Really, they knew each other so well; they can finish each other's sentence even without Synchro.
"You read my mind again, Caru." said Ryoma. "Anyway, so as to let you know, Keigo, I'll make sure Seigaku pays for what they did, and don't you dare stop me!"
"Alright, alright. So….since you called me Keigo, are we officially lovers?" Pakura made to cover her ears again, but Ryoma glared at her, making her put down her hands. "Well...I didn't say no, did I?" he smirked. Atobe leaned in to kiss him, but Pakura suddenly appeared between them, pushing them apart. "Save those steamy moments when I am not in, ok? And Atobe, may I have a word with you?" she smiled sweetly. Atobe nodded. She pulled him to a corner, out of Ryoma's earshot. "Do you really love him?" said Pakura.
"You are not convinced, are you?"
"No. I hope you wouldn't break his heart, or I'll break your face!"
"Alright, I won't. But what should I do to make you trust me, Caru?"
"Convince me." said Pakura. She looked at the clock. "It's nearly 8, we'd better get home." she said. "Would you like a lift, Caru?" said Atobe.
"That'll be great, thank you. Ryoma, we're going home, let's go!" said Pakura.
Atobe took Ryoma and Pakura home, using his limousine. Once they arrived at Ryoma's house, Pakura went to retrieve their belongings from the trunk. "Thanks for the ride, Keigo." said Ryoma. Making sure Pakura is looking, he gave a long, lingering kiss on Atobe's lips. Pakura nearly dropped her stuff in shock. "Bye, Keigo!" said Ryoma, inwardly sniggering at Pakura's slightly shocked expression. He liked making fun of Pakura's too innocent demeanor. She may be the most sadistic mentor in history (I'll tell you how she mentored Ryoma later), but she has such a pathetic weakness. Ryoma secretly laughed to himself, glad that he was one of the few that knew about it. Pakura glared at him. "I hope you're happy corrupting my mind." She huffed.
"Oh, Pakura-sensei, that's not tainting your mind at all. In fact, it's only the beginning." Ryoma cackled.
"Yeah, whatever." said Pakura. "Let's go back to your house." She carried the luggage with one hand and knocked on the door with the other hand. The door opened and a man with an unshaven beard, dressed in monk's robes and carrying a porn magazine answered the door. Pakura instinctively snatched the magazine, and tossed it a good distance away. "Paku-chan! I haven't even finished reading my magazines!" Nanjiroh whined.
"I'll thank you not to read those in front of me. I already saw a good show tonight." Pakura mumbled, glaring at the smirking Ryoma. "Seishounen, what did she see?"
Ryoma turned to his father and said, "Oh, nothing." He followed Pakura to the stairs. 'Tainting her innocence is going to be fun.'
CR: Of course, there is a reason behind her weaknesses. She also had a few more, which I would reveal in the story. I'm sorry I am not good at writing kissing scenes…just pretend I never updated, if you don't like it *covers face*