Chapter 7

Ryota was rummaging his closet.

"What am I going to wear? Ayako will be waiting for me!" he pulled out a few clothes and dumped them on his bed.

"Aaaah! I'm so confused! I don't even know her favorite color!" he examined a blue shirt closely and threw it on top of the large pile of clothes at the foot of his bed.

"Maybe it's red… her cap's red… no, maybe her cap's red because she's supporting Shohoku…"

"Or maybe it's pink! She always wears her pink shirt! Ryota you idiot, you can't wear pink!"

"Or blue! Her shorts are blue!"

"I'm confused!!! What am I going to wear?!"

He pulled almost everything out of his closet when the phone rang. He quickly picked up the phone.

Ayako: "Hello? Ryota?"

Ryota: "Aya-chan!"

Ayako: "I'm on my way there."

Ryota: "You're coming here?! But I thought I was going to your house!"

Ayako: "I didn't say that you were coming here."

Ryota: "Oh… gomen."

Ayako: "It's okay, I'll be right over in about… 5 minutes or so."

Ryota: "Okay Aya-chan, you want me to pick you up?"

Ayako: "No thanks, I can manage."

Ryota: "You sure?"

Ayako: "Hai."

Ryota: "Take care…"

Ayako: "Okay, bye."

Ryota placed the receiver down. He turned around to see his room--clothes were everywhere and there was such a big mess.

"Oh no!" he wailed as he scooped up his clothes and stuffed it all in the cabinet as fast as he could. He also hid Ayako's pictures which were posted on the wall. He stuffed all of these things inside the cabinet just in time.

The doorbell rang and Ryota opened the door. Ayako was standing on his doorway, with her school bag.

"Konnichiwa Ryota-kun!" Ayako greeted him with a bright smile.

"R-ryota-kun? Did she just call me Ryota-kun?" Ryota felt his knees suddenly becoming wobbly.

"Konnichiwa! Come in!"

"Soo… Let's study?"

"Hai." Ryota said, leading the way to his room.

Ryota fixed his desk, his radio and school books on top, and two chairs beside each other.

"Sit here Aya-chan." He said, pulling the first chair out.

"Arigato Ryota."

"So… where do we begin?"

"We begin at the Cosmological Myth of Egypt."

"Okay."

"At first there was nothing but Nun, the primal ocean of chaos which contained the seeds of everything to come. In the jumble of waters the sun God reposed. Finally, by an exertion of will, he emerged from the chaos as…"

"Ra?"

"Yes! That's correct! Then Ra, gave birth to the God of Air who is?"

"…Thoth?"

"No, Thoth is the lord of divine words. Did you study earlier?"

"I browsed through the book, but I didn't get to remember all the characters."

"Okay, what say we study for about a few minutes, then I ask you questions… Is that okay?"

"Hai. Perfect."

"Oh gosh, he's so handsome… No Ayako, this is no time for idle dreaming. You've got a test tomorrow… Concentrate!" Ayako tried to stare hard at her textbook, but the words just slip in her mind.

She can't help but glance a few looks at Ryota, who can't concentrate at the same time.

"I can't believe I'm with her…alone. She's so pretty, I can't concentrate!!!"

"Ryota?"

"Nani?"

"Is it okay if I turn on the radio? It's getting a bit quiet…"

"Sure. I like to study with the music on."

Ayako reached out for the radio, and they both listened to it.

"Ayako, I just want to tell you that I love you so much."

"I'd wait till the end of time, just to be with you."

Ryota and Ayako froze. Ryota's eyes widened while Ayako kept listening.

"If I could just show you how much I feel for you, I'd show it."

"But my love for you is just too big, to vast for a human to show."

"I feel this strange thing for you whenever you are around."

"A comforting feeling, a feeling of relief."

"A feeling that tells me that you are the one for me."

"This song is for you."

"Best in Me, by Blue."

Ryota's face became as bright as the sunset, slowly burying itself into the text book.

"Is that Ryota singing?! I didn't know he sings so well!"

"H-how? W-why? W-who? Sakuragi!!!!" Ryota clenched his fist. "That doaho!"

The two of them listened carefully as the song finished, ending in the last few words:

"That's why I love you, my Aya-chan."

"Okay, I'm finished reading…are you finished?" She asked as if nothing happened.

"H-hai."

"Okay then, who is the daughter of Ra, who at the same time is the Goddess of Moisture?"

"…Tefnut."

"Nice! And who is the daughter of Shu and Tefnut?"

"Yeah, I remember, they were married and had two children…Geb, the Earth God…and Nut the Sky Goddess!"

"You've got it! And then…what happened?"

"Men were created from Ra's tears. Eons passed and Ra grew decrepit, so the ungrateful race of men plotted against him. Ra learned about these plots and decided to kill humankind. He sent…he sent… Hathor to kill the people, leaving only a tiny remnant left."

"I can't believe you failed the tests! You know the story very well!"

"I get confused with the names…" Ryota said while a pink tinge appeared on his face.

"Okay then--what was that?" Ayako heard a grumbling noise.

"Probably just thunder. The news said that it would rain today."

"Oh, okay, I'll continue the story. Nut was married to Ra, the Sun God, but she also made love to her brother Geb, and Thoth, the lord of divine words. When Ra found out that Nut secretly slept with Geb, he cursed his wife saying that she shall not bear a child in any month of the year. He then ordered Shu to separate them--"

Her words were cut off by a loud grumbling noise.

"Are you sure it's thunder Ryota?"

"I guess so. Please continue."

"As I was saying, Shu defeated Geb and--"

There was a loud crash. Ayako turned around to see Ryota's cabinet, wide open, its contents on the floor.

Ryota jumped up and started to gather his clothes and his things.

"Haha, Aya-chan, sorry, I'll fix this mess in no time, really, hehe…"

Ayako noticed a photograph near her foot and picked it up. She was amazed to see herself in the photograph.

"Ryota-kun…" she sighed and decided to help him clean the mess.

"No Aya-chan, I can fix this on my own, no need to help--"

There was one last shirt on the floor. Ayako reached out to get it, but before she could grasp it, she felt Ryota's hand over hers.

The both of them turned into a violent shade of red as they quickly separated their hands.

"Must I really get embarrassed twice on such a wonderful night?" Ryota murmured to himself, taking the shirt on the floor and stuffing it back in his cabinet.

"Where were we?" Ayako quickly changed the subject.

"Shu defeated Geb and…"

"Oh yeah…Shu defeated Geb and raised Nut aloft, separating them permanently. That is why the sky and the earth are far from each other."

Ryota listened carefully as Ayako finished the whole story. Well, it was too good to be true. A great night couldn't last forever. Ryota had to take her home.

They walked together, side by side on the road. The night was wonderful and the cold breeze was perfect. The streets were dim, and they were all alone.

A sudden sound of thunder boomed over the street. Ayako felt raindrops drop down on them. Slowly, these light raindrops began to fall faster, and it started to rain. He quickly took of his jacket and covered his beloved. Together, they ran, looking for shelter.

They soon found a dry bench covered by a huge tree. They sat down together, wet and trembling because of the rain. He wrapped his jacket around her.

"Arigato Ryota." Ayako whispered to him.

"You're welcome."

"He's such a gentleman…he's so sweet… I can't take it anymore… I have to tell him how I feel… I don't want him to suffer any longer… Now all I need… all I need is courage."

A moment of silence.

"Ryota?"

"Nani Aya-chan?"

"I like this guy. He's very sweet, he's handsome, and he's definitely my type of guy. And every minute I spend with him makes me fall even deeper in love with him…Do you think I should tell him?"

"…You tell him what you feel Aya-chan…there's no point caging up your feelings and bottling up your emotions…"

Ryota felt dejected. He accepted his defeat. The fact that Ayako could not love him back. Ryota thought that she loved another man.

"But…Ryota…how?"

"Just tell him what you feel…And maybe a kiss or a hug would be sweet…"

"Okay…I'll tell him right now." Ayako stood up.

"But Aya-chan, its still raining, you'll get wet, maybe now is not the right time."

"If I don't tell him now, I might suffer eternity not being able to tell him what I feel. If I don't tell him now, it might be too late, I might lose him."

"But Aya-chan, please wait till the rain stops, I'll even accompany you--"

Ryota felt two arms around his neck and a slender body leaning against his.

"A-aya-chan?"

"Aishiteru Ryota."

He could not believe his ears. He blinked hard.

"Is this a dream? The most beautiful girl in the world, declaring her love for me?"

"Watashimo aishiteru Aya-chan."

"Ryota-kun, I've been hiding my feelings for you long enough. I thought that you won't try harder in basketball if you knew that I love you. But I realized that you were not that kind of person. I suddenly felt fear. Fear of losing you Ryota-kun…" light tears cascaded down on her cheeks.

"Don't cry my Aya-chan…" he said as he gently wiped her tears away.

And then it happened so fast. They stared into each other's eyes and their lips slowly met. They felt a warm, tingling sensation in their body. They seemed to forget the cold of the rain. They held hands, and sat down on the bench.

"Ryota-kun?"

"Nani Aya-chan?"

"I'm ready."

"Ready for what?"

"Ready to answer your question."

"What question? The one I asked you a while ago? The question about the God of the Dead?"

"No, Ryota-kun." She giggled, "The question you've been asking me since you met me."

"Oh…"

"Ask it again."

"…Will you be my girlfriend?…"

"Hai." She said as she snuggled closer to him, leaning her head on her shoulder, and still clasping his hand in hers.

"At last…" Ryota grinned as they watched the raindrops fall down from the dark sky.

"One more thing." Ayako added.

"Nani?"

"Could you sing me that song you sang over the radio? Your voice was so nice…"

Ryota blushed. "Okay. For you, Aya-chan."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Author's Notes:

Finally!!!! The nicest chapter of the story is finished!!! I'm melting!!! They are so romantic!

Now we know what Sakuragi planned for Ryota!

Oh, and stay tuned for the final chap.

Ja Mata Ne! Please Review! ^_^