Disclaimer: I do not own Prince of Tennis or any of its characters. I only own my original characters.

Warning: Contains spoilers for latest manga chapters. Mild angst in this chapter. Shonen-ai fic

Parings: Tezuka X Echizen, Sanada X Yukimura, Momoshiro X Ann. Hints of OC X OC

(This chapter tallies with chapter 6 of Echizen, Our Buchou)

A/N: Same as what I've said in Echizen, Our Buchou. Tina would serve her purpose in this chappie, though I think most of you would already know what it is, considering you'd most likely read that fic first.

Thank you all for your reviews.

So sorry for the late update. Was in rather low spirits, as mentioned in the other fic, and I was having trouble trying to write this fic, even though the other one was completed quite a while ago. I dread the day the holidays come to an end and I'd have to go back for my next semester. Would most likely be updating only once a month or something… (gloom)

By the way, I was highly amused by what one of the reviewers had mentioned. It really helped to lighten my mood. 'a', in case you haven't noticed, this is a shonen-ai fanfiction, so of course I made Tezuka and Echizen look gay. They are gay in this story. Check out the pairings for every chapter. XD

Won't talk too much. To the story then...

Life After Seigaku

By: Gwynhafra

Chapter 8

The regulars of Kanto High were now busy preparing themselves for the incoming inter-school games, which was less than two weeks away. The junior high and senior high competitions were at different dates, with the senior high's games being a few days earlier than the junior high games.

Fuji had recovered from the incident involving the three seniors, and tennis practices had resumed again, much to Kikumaru and Asakawa's delight.

Asakawa had improved drastically, as he trained diligently on the ball machines. Though under the captain and vice-captain's ever observant eyes, it was impossible to not improve. Tezuka had already fed him with who-knows-how-many boxes of Volcanic Wasabi Sushi, while Atobe's personal trainers were wielding very nasty stun guns.

Before long, Asakawa had graduated from ball-machine training and was now training alongside Fuji, as they were doubles partners. Tezuka had made that decision some time before the Seigaku selections, as he felt that Asakawa was still very inexperienced in tennis, and Fuji would be a perfect guide for him, for Fuji was adept at both singles and doubles.

"Hoi hoi! Let the doubles experts teach you nya." Kikumaru chirped. Atobe had instructed for the Golden Pair to tutor the other two, a task which, of course, was gladly accepted by both parties.

"I wonder if it's possible for me to reach all of your levels..." Asakawa laughed weakly.

Kikumaru patted him on the back. "Don't worry! You're a speedy player, so you should keep your focus on offensive. We'll be here to guide you, so don't think too much about it nya!"

"I...guess you're right..." Asakawa gave a sheepish grin.

Oishi nodded. "With you playing offensive and Fuji being a counter-attacker, you would make a very powerful combination. Trust in your strength." The former vice-captain of Seigaku gave the redhead thumbs-up.

Not too far away from them, Tezuka and Atobe were speaking to Ayaka-sensei, who had decided to come and watch over their training, as she was their teacher advisor after all.

"Now then. We had better prepare ourselves for the competition, and after that you would all have to sit for your February exams. We'll show them the true spirit of the Kanto High tennis club!" Ayaka told them.

Fuji smiled. "Don't worry about it, sensei. We have K-High's pillar of strength here. There is no one else who can match his spirit." He nodded approvingly at Tezuka.

"Saa...yudan sezu ni ikkou! Back to your practices. We don't have time to lose." Tezuka said.

"Hoi hoi! Let's go! We'll show that baka headmaster about the true worth of tennis." Kikumaru cheered.

Ayaka twitched at that. "Please don't hold a grudge against the headmaster. He's not the one at fault." She muttered softly.

"Aa." Tezuka replied, causing the teacher to blink at him.

Asakawa frowned. "I will not forgive that headmaster for implementing that stupid system. Thanks to him, my brother had to transfer to another school."

Ayaka looked crestfallen as practice resumed on. Fuji and Tezuka exchanged looks. They wondered if it was a good idea to tell the teacher that they already know about the real situation at this school.

Apparently Atobe had beaten them to it.

"Ne, sensei. Some of us already know that the school system is currently manipulated by my aunt, the assistant headmistress." He stated.

Ayaka's eyes went wide. "How...?"

Fuji looked slightly guilty. "I...overheard your conversation with the headmaster..."

Ayaka gave a weak smile. "I see..."

Asakawa was now playing against Kikumaru, seeing that Fuji wasn't about to join them yet. "Fuji. Would you like to play doubles with us?" Oishi asked.

"Later." Fuji called back, turning once more to the teacher.

"Sensei...could you please tell us about the grudge Headmaster Toruwa has against Kanto High?" Atobe asked politely. While Atobe was always acting high and mighty against literally anyone, he would humble himself when he spoke to those he hold in high regard. His parents and Ayaka-sensei were among those who fall under this category. One will never catch him saying "ore-sama" when he spoke to these three.

Ayaka stared down at her hands. "Very well...where should I begin..." she pondered a while to collect her thoughts.

"Toruwa Jun was a third year in Kanto High when I enrolled into that school. He was, how should I say this...the absolute model student. Son of the headmaster, with perfect grades, perfect upbringing and a very friendly nature, many of the students admired him."

She smiled a little at the memory. "However, his greatest talent was in basketball. As he was the most skillful player during his year, he easily made it into the regulars for every competition. He was to the basketball team as Tezuka-kun and Atobe-kun are to the tennis club now."

She gave a sigh as she continued on. "However, this did not last for long. While he had admirers, he also had enemies, as many were jealous of him for his grades and basketball skills. Just before the state competitions, some students ganged up on him and beat him up so badly that he had to be hospitalized. Of course, for the first time he had lost the position of a regular. That was not the worst of it though..."

She looked up at them, her eyes grave. "The worst was...that he could never play basketball ever again. He suffered a serious injury to his knee joint, and ever if he recovered, the old injury would remain there. It was a huge blow to him, of course, to never play his favourite sport again. He was devastated when the doctors broke that news to him. His father had expelled those students, of course, but to protect the school's reputation, he had hushed up about this incident, so no one would know about it. Needless to say, because of this, it created friction between Toruwa and his father. Toruwa then left the school, swearing never to return to it. Mind, the fight had been so serious that most of the students had heard about it, considering Toruwa and his father were yelling at each other before Toruwa stormed out of the school gates."

"I can understand his feelings. He's just like me. Rich, popular, smart… Oh, it's a no wonder those peasants were jealous." Atobe began glorifying himself. Tezuka sighed at the narcissist's words. Beside him, Fuji merely chuckled.

"When he first returned to this school shortly after his father passed away and had left the position of headmaster to him, he was severely discontented, and threw the responsibility of the school affairs to his assistant headmistress. This school reminded him of his destroyed dreams, and he really had never wanted to return in the first place. Of course, Assistant Headmistress Kitsune took this to her advantage, and by the time Toruwa knew of what she had implemented, it was nearly impossible to stop her, for the whole board of directors had already lost their sense of respect for him…among other reasons. He no longer had any allies, be it the board of directors, or even the student council."

She gave a weak smile at seeing the grave faces of her three students. "Oh well. I'm done with that story. The three of you don't have to make that kind of faces. You do not need to worry yourself about this, for it has nothing to do with all of you. Toruwa has changed slightly now, at least, and he's trying his best to see to it that the L classes do not suffer more than they already have. I'm grateful that at least you had brought some of his senses back to him, Tezuka-kun."

She did not speak on. They knew what she had meant, for Fuji had already mentioned to them before that Toruwa was moved by Tezuka's determination to bring the regulars' system into the tennis club, and had played against their senior even though he was in an injured condition.

Atobe frowned. While he would love to pile all his resources and have that crazy aunt of his kicked out of the school, he could not. The Atobe family creed did not allow it…

She got up from where she was seated. "Please. Just forget about what I've said. Don't let it burden your minds. Come on now, the competitions are just around the corner."

"Ayaka-sensei…you like the headmaster, don't you?" Fuji suddenly asked.

There was an immediate change on the teacher's face, as she turned beet red.

"M-me? Like him??? You've got to be joking." She tried to laugh it off. Fuji grinned, as he knew he had hit the jackpot. The way she was saying it would be like Tezuka saying he hated Ryoma or something.

There was a beep. "Tezuka. I think that's your phone. Ore-sama have a classier ringtone." Atobe pointed out before leaving to have a match against Kira.

Tezuka fished his phone out of his pocket, and brightened up when he saw Ryoma's name on it. Nearby, Fuji chuckled as he observed Tezuka's reaction.

"Ryoma." He said, having trouble hiding his feelings from his voice.

There was a short pause at the other end, and Tezuka frowned slightly. That was unusual.

"Kunimitsu...I'm afraid I can't make it today too." Ryoma sounded glum.

Tezuka's frustration rose. They had not gone on a single date ever since the Seigaku selections. He tried to calm himself down, convincing himself that Ryoma probably was busy with his club's preparations for the inter-school competitions as well. The Seigaku captain must have a good reason to call off their date. Still, he failed to keep the resentment out of his voice when he gave his reply.

"I see…"

"I'll try to make it up to you…" he had not spoken much when a girl's voice said shrilly on the other end. A girl whom Tezuka really hated now…

"Mou, Ryoma! How long are you going to keep me waiting? Let's go home together." Tina sounded like she was flirting with Ryoma.

"I have to leave now. Bye." Ryoma said quickly, and the next moment there was only a dial tone at the other end, as Ryoma has ended the call so fast.

Tezuka was still frozen on the spot, his hand still holding the phone to his ear as if hoping that Ryoma would suddenly pop back on with a "Just kidding!" or something like that. After several moments, he put down the phone.

He was trying hard to maintain his mask as he began to shake slightly with rage. So that was why Ryoma cancelled their date?! In fact, the other boy had seemed so eager!

Fuji too was frowning at seeing Tezuka's face change from a happy one to a murderous one. He walked a distance away and dialed Inui's number.

"Inui. What is going on at your side? Tezuka is really in a bad mood now."

"I don't blame him. That Momoshiro is matchmaking. I don't think he knows about how serious his actions are." Inui replied.

Fuji looked thoughtful. Knowing Momoshiro, that guy had probably not meant any harm, and thought that he was doing the right thing, as Momoshiro would most likely ask Echizen to get a girlfriend with whenever the Seigaku captain had the chance. He couldn't really blame Momoshiro, as Echizen was so terrible at expressing himself, he was probably giving off all the wrong impressions to the dunk smash player.

"I'll deal with that baka vice-captain now. Keep an eye on Tezuka-buchou."

"I will." Fuji ended the call. Tezuka was now playing against Yamato, and Fuji was mildly impressed that the captain can still keep his mask intact, with all that frustration he must be feeling inside. He dearly hoped that nothing worse would come up.

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"Minna. You sure look like you're in high spirits." Kawamura smiled at his friends, who were his shop's most regular customers.

"Of course! It's almost time for the inter-schools. I can't wait nya…I wonder who we're fighting. Hope I can have a match with that purple haired, china doll hair styled kangaroo."

"Eiji." Oishi scolded, though he was laughing. It seemed that Hyotei's former acrobatic player would have that nickname stuck to him from now onwards.

Inui flipped through his notebook. "I believe we would not be meeting a lot of our former rivals. As you know, most schools only allow second years and third years to become regulars. Only a few schools have made exceptions for first years who were formerly regulars. My school is one of them. As for Kanto High, you all have so many first years as you do not really have a choice."

"That's true." Fuji said.

Inui closed his notebook and adjusted his glasses. "A pity Rikkai Dai and Kanto High would not be in the same inter-school competitions. Hope all of you would be able to make it into the district games. With any luck, we would be fighting against each other."

"Of course we would make it. Don't expect us to go easy on you, Inui." Kikumaru gave a grin.

Not too long later, Kawamura's dad came out of the kitchen area with their requested sushi.

"Takeshi. Serve these to your pals. They must be starving." Kawamura's dad said heartily.

Both Eiji and Asakawa began to salivate. "Sankyou, Kawamura-papa!" Eiji immediately lunged for his prize.

"Those two really are gluttons…" Oishi sighed, watching them gobble the food so fast they had nearly swallowed the eating utensils as well.

The door slid open, and both Kaidou and Momoshiro had walked in.

"So sorry I'm late. It's all this baka Mamushi's fault here. He was taking such a long time to keep the equipment."

"You could have just left first, and leave those keys to the clubroom to me." Kaidou retorted.

Momoshiro made a face. "Give you these keys? You would lose them in three minutes!"

"Maa..maa…don't begin a fight here." Fuji said. Both Momoshiro and Kaidou looked like they were about to boil each other for dinner.

"Both of you. Sit down and eat quietly." Tezuka ordered.

"Hai!" they sat down hurriedly. Moments later they blinked, remembering that Tezuka wasn't their captain anymore.

Inui chuckled. "Looks like these two are still afraid of our former captain. Ii data…" he ignored Tezuka's trademark glare. Momoshiro and Kaidou were looking embarrassed.

"By the way, do you know that Echizen had a girlfriend?" Momoshiro suddenly began.

Tezuka stiffened, but Eiji on the other had looked highly interested. "Ochibi does? Who?"

"Remember that girl you saw during the selections? Echizen's going out with her now."

"Hoi! So even ochibi can have a girlfriend? I'm surprised!" Eiji laughed.

"Echizen…would be that green-haired Seigaku captain right?' Asakawa asked. He could not picture that boy dating. He was such an anti-social after all.

"That's him. He's so lucky nya. I thought he might be eternally single at the rate he was going. Right, Oishi?" Kikumaru chirped.

"E-eh…" Oishi agreed reluctantly.

Kawamura gave a weak smile. "I'm sure there must be some mistake…" he began, casting a glance in Tezuka's direction.

"You're definitely mistaken indeed." Fuji said, pinning Momoshiro with an icy blue stare.

"Nope. I'm quite sure about it. The whole school already knows about them." Momoshiro said.

Kaidou gave a hiss. "They're talking about Echizen and his girlfriend so often that it's making me sick."

"Aw, mamushi. You jealous cause you don't have a girlfriend?" Momoshiro smirked.

"What did you say, baka Momoshiro?"

There was a thunk as Inui set a jug of his latest invention, Inui's hyper remix juice, version 10.8 on the table.

"Kawamura. Please serve this to the next person who talks about Echizen dating again."

"Aa…" Kawamura obeyed.

Momoshiro frowned. "I still don't understand what you have against our captain's happiness. He's already gone off with her today."

There was a loud clatter as Tezuka stood up so fast he had knocked his chair over, making all of them jump.

Without a word, the K-High captain left the place.

"Tezuka-buchou! You haven't paid…" Momoshiro began.

"It doesn't matter. It's my treat." Kawamura said hurriedly.

"That's not fair nya! Why is it that you're not treating the rest of us too?" Kikumaru protested.

"Eiji-senpai's right." Momoshiro agreed.

The next moment, Momoshiro was staring into both a pair of blue diamonds and glinting glasses.

"I had given you a fair warning, Momoshiro-kun. Have this, it's my treat." Inui forced his creation down the dunk smash player's throat.

Fuji smiled, though it was one that didn't reach his eyes. "Why don't you have a sushi too, while you're at it?" He stuffed one of those deadly KVWS (Kawamura's Volcanic Wasabi Sushi) down Momoshiro's throat.

The others felt a powerful shudder run through their spines as the two sadists killed off the dunk smash player.

"I wonder what has gotten into the both of them, Oishi." Kikumaru clutched on to his doubles partner's arm.

"I wonder too…" Oishi laughed weakly.

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Atobe strolled down the corridor, so deep in thought that for once, he did not give the royal wave to his fangirls.

"Kyaa! It's Atobe-sama!" a few girls were whispering as he passed, but he took no notice of them. These peasants were not worth his attention when he already had so much in mind.

For one, the inter-school competitions were just slightly over a week away. He was confident that they would definitely make it to the district games, with him being vice-captain, it was only natural, of course. Still, he couldn't help but worry for his weaker teammates, especially Asakawa Kantarou. That guy had the least experience in tennis, being a beginner, and he sure hoped that both he and Tezuka had drilled some skills into the poor boy during all their time training.

Also, he had to keep his grades above par. He couldn't afford any mistakes this year, as the successor of Global Industries would be decided before third-year Mafuyu graduates. He would really have to be the first amongst the freshmen, since his aunt made it impossible for him to have additional points from tennis. Although that would also mean he had to beat the scores of a certain blue-eyed tensai and a stoic captain, and he severely doubted he could do that anytime soon.

Aside from that, there were also matters of the family.

Atobe had never quite been on good terms with the Kitsunes, even from a young age. Ever since he and his cousin Mafuyu were children, they had been competing against each other for almost everything. Mafuyu was better when it came to studies, but sucked at sports. Atobe was an all-rounder, with grades that are above average, dashing good looks and with his beautiful tennis skills, he was the perfect model for the Pinnacle of Perfection…well, a different one from that Echizen's of course.

Atobe snorted. It was a no wonder his aunt had felt threatened. Oh well, she can't blame him for being the better candidate to take over his father's position. But to resort to this, to manipulate the school system in order to kill off competition from the Atobe heir, this was something he cannot let slip. He'd have to find a way to expose her dirty tactics…

He blinked as he was shaken out of his thoughts, How would he not, as the whole corridor had suddenly brightened up like a disco.

Assistant headmistress Kitsune smiled at seeing her nephew coming from the opposite direction.

"Oro? Kei-kun. Heading off for class?" she asked.

"Aa." There was no need to give such a long reply to this woman.

His aunt had a smile plastered on her face, and Atobe found himself wondering what this woman had up her sleeves.

"You'd better hurry then, or you'll be late. I wonder how do you find the L class? Isn't it too common to your liking? I hope you would change your mind soon. Those students are a nasty bunch." She stated casually.

Atobe bristled at that. "I find them to be the most pleasant bunch of peasants in this whole school. I have no intention of switching classes." Nasty bunch? His teammates were in that class, and Atobe would not tolerate any insults thrown at them.

His aunt smiled at that, though her eyes looked menacing. "I see. By the way, Kei-kun. I've heard that your club would be having some kind of competition soon."

Atobe froze. This woman would not suddenly implement a rule banning all clubs from going to competitions now, would she?

"I wish you luck. May your team emerge champion. Then again, with you leading them, I'm sure your team will. I must take my leave now. You had better run along too." With that his aunt left.

Atobe frowned. Wasn't his aunt trying to kill off all the sports activities from this school, so what was she doing encouraging the tennis club?

He had a bad feeling about this.

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It was just one of those days when Tezuka had gotten up from the wrong side of bed, and felt that nothing could go right that day. After Ryoma had cancelled their date yesterday, he was barely able to have a good night's sleep, and woke up late that morning with low blood pressure and a splitting headache.

Needless to say, he was having terrible mood swings that day, with his patience and rationality at their lowest points.

To start off the day, his mother had somehow burnt the toast, which was rare, since she was a good cook.

Then Atobe's limousine had a flat tire, so Tezuka had to run the rest of the way to school, though he couldn't beat the bell and the prefects were more than happy to punish him for being late.

When he finally made his way to class, it turned out that lessons for class 1L were cancelled, as Ayaka-sensei had fallen ill again...

His classmates could literally see the storm clouds rolling above the K-High captain's head, complete with thunderclap effects as he walked over to his seat and dropped himself onto it.

"Oishi. Tezuka-buchou looks like he's in a bad mood today." Kikumaru whispered.

Asakawa blinked. "I thought that he's in a bad mood everyday. I've never seen him crack a smile before."

Oishi chuckled. "You're definitely not too familiar with his character yet."

Kikumaru gave a sigh. "While I'm excited over the competitions, I'm not too thrilled over the fact that our exams would be right after that. Fuji...could you let me see some of your notes?" Kikumaru pleaded.

Fuji, who was currently reading his English notes, chuckled. "I don't mind at all, Eiji. Here." He handed the book over to Kikumaru.

Less than 10 minutes later, Kikumaru had returned the book to Fuji, his eyes spinning. "I could barely understand a word in there..."

Atobe, who was busy revising his history notes, looked up momentarily. "In that case, would you like ore-sama's tutors to teach you?"

"I'll pass." Kikumaru said quickly, his mind already projecting an image of those crazy tutors in black suits.

"I see." Atobe returned to his books.

Kikumaru stretched. "I can't wait until practice later. Oishi and I will try a new formation."

"Oh? Another one?" Fuji smiled. Definitely the Golden Pair, these two.

"Of course! I'm sure we'll be meeting tougher opponents, now that it's senior high level. I would do my very best!" Kikumaru pumped a fist into the air.

"Minna. We must get into the Nationals again this year." Oishi said, and the others gave a chorus in agreement.

The only one who was still silent amongst the tennis players there was Tezuka, who was still staring at the same page of his book for the past 15 minutes, deep in his thoughts.

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Tezuka may put up a very serious front, but currently, he was actually feeling a sense of insecurity.

Yes, even the calm, collected Tezuka Kunimitsu could feel insecure, especially days like this, with his bad mood leaving him irrational and irritable. You can't really blame him. After all, as much as he looks like a wooden block, he's only human.

He found himself wondering just what kind of a relationship was he and Ryoma having. Whenever they went out together, it was usually to have a game of tennis, not that Tezuka disliked it, since all these dates mean a lot to him, but he found himself questioning just how much do these dates mean to Ryoma.

Considering that Ryoma was cancelling their dates so frequently, he probably had felt nothing about it.

"Irasshaimase!" Kawamura greeted as Tezuka, Fuji, Kikumaru and Oishi had stepped in again.

Kawamura threw a look at Tezuka, knowing immediately that the brunette was in a bad mood. He had a feeling he knew what was going on in the stoic captain's mind, for he hasn't seen both he and his boyfriend coming here recently.

"The usual, Taka-san." Kikumaru said, already drooling buckets.

"Hai. Just wait a while." Kawamura began preparing the food, while Kikumaru watched, salivating all the way.

"Eiji! You'll spoil the sushi." Oishi scolded.

Just then, Tezuka's phone beeped, and he looked at the message.

From: Echizen Ryoma

Gomen. I have to meet Momo-senpai after school. I'll see you on Friday then, if possible.

Tezuka had nearly crushed his phone. It was always "I'll see you on so and so day", and then Ryoma would say that he has something up, and couldn't make it that day either.

He let his mind wander as the others chatted on, his suspicions mounting as time passed. Was Echizen really out with Momoshiro, or maybe he was with that Joou-inu again...

Before he could stop his mind, he found himself questioning just why Ryoma accepted him in the first place. For one, Ryoma had not shown much affection to him before they started dating, and even after they began dating, Ryoma was still so impassive.

Secondly, he was male. Was Ryoma really attracted to his own gender? From the information he had gathered from Inui, Ryoma only seemed to be attracted to cats.

Thirdly, if Ryoma really took their relationship seriously, then why was it the boy had never rejected his dates with this Joou-inu before, and would rather cancel off the dates with his boyfriend?

Tezuka felt a headache building up as he thought of that. He was really unsure about what their relationship was like now, considering he no longer knew what Ryoma was thinking of anymore.

The door opened, and the conversation halted temporarily as Kaidou stepped in.

"Oh, you're here! Come, come. Here's an empty seat." Oishi patted the chair beside him.

Kaidou walked over and sat down. "Konbanwa..." he mumbled in greeting, looking tired.

Oishi chuckled. "Looks like you people are working hard for the inter-school games as well."

"Aa. That baka buchou was making all of us run laps around the whole school. Anyone who didn't make it back to the tennis courts in 15 minutes would be treated to the new green vinegar..." Kaidou gave a shudder, as did Kawamura and the rest.

"Oh? Is there something wrong with my Midorizu?" a voice suddenly asked behind Kaidou, causing the snake shot player to fall out of his seat in fright.

"Inui! Don't scare him like that! It's not good for his heart." Oishi immediately chided.

The data tennis player grinned. It seemed like he had brought company this round, as standing beside him was no other than his doubles partner and best friend, Yanagi Renji.

"Yo." The Rikkai Dai data player greeted.

"Oh, Yanagi-san. What brings you here? Sit down, sit down." Kikumaru said cheerfully.

Yanagi cast a curious look at Tezuka before sitting down. The K-High captain had been so deep in thought that he didn't seem to be aware of any of their presence.

"There is a 300 percent chance that the K-High captain is a bad mood." Yanagi stated.

He didn't have to, for it was obviously written all over Tezuka's face. Inui frowned. He had not gone to Seigaku today, as Kirihara-buchou had ordered for them to practice for the competitions as well. He swept his ever observant gaze around the room.

"Kaidou. Where is Momoshiro-fukubuchou?" he asked.

Kaidou snorted. "That baka Momoshiro had gone off with Echizen-buchou right after practice. Think they went for lunch."

Tezuka looked slightly more relaxed. At least that would mean Ryoma was telling the truth.

Inui, on the other hand frowned. Momoshiro would not go running off with Echizen just for lunch. He was up to something...there was a 75 percent chance that he was definitely up to something. He noticed that Fuji looked wary as well.

Tezuka's mood did not lighten up for long, as now Kikumaru was filling Yanagi up with 'good data' about Ryoma dating.

"Would you believe it? So he likes girls after all. I almost thought that he was asexual." Kikumaru said.

"Eiji! Don't gossip." The mother hen was the first to sense the change of atmosphere in the room, as Tezuka's face had darkened.

"But Oishi, it's the truth, not gossip. That Joou-inu isn't really good looking, nor do I really like her shrieks, but I suppose Ochibi's tastes are as unpredictable as his skills." Kikumaru gave a playful grin.

"So Echizen is dating a girl?" Yanagi didn't sound convinced as he cast another glance at Tezuka.

Tezuka's patience was already stretched thin that day, and his temper was extremely explosive. The conversation had gone on, and after Kikumaru had said the name 'Tina' for the third time, the captain finally exploded.

"All of you! 50 laps in tomorrow's practice!" he barked.

That shut the acrobatic player up. "Te...Tezuka-buchou?" Kikumaru gulped.

Hazel eyes flashed his direction. "I will not tolerate any of you gossiping about my successor, nor will I tolerate any excuses. 50 laps!"

Tezuka could feel his mood worsening and decided to excuse himself quickly. He had better hurry home to have a short nap. Hopefully he would wake in a better mood. As he left, he could feel everyone's eyes on him, though Yanagi and Inui were both writing in their notebooks.

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Tezuka walked quickly, trying to reach home as soon as possible. It wasn't fair that he was unleashing all his anger on his teammates, but today, he was just too moody to care, or to even think about it.

He thought he had heard that Joou-inu squeal and bristled. He shook his head, trying to clear off that thought. He really was getting too paranoid.

Not too long later, he heard a familiar laugh. Momoshiro's laughter.

He looked up, and the sight that greeted his eyes caused his blood to boil.

For standing right outside Puppy Love Café, the café all couples go to for romantic outings, was no other than Ryoma. At the moment, his boyfriend did not seem to have noticed him, for he was too busy kissing Joou-inu.

Tezuka felt betrayed as he was rooted to the spot, wishing that the scene before him wasn't real.

Momoshiro's girlfriend had spotted him, and Ryoma's eyes flicked to him moments later. He could see the golden orbs widen in shock.

Momoshiro had spotted him too. "Oh? Tezuka-buchou. What a coincidence! The four of us are on a double date." He stopped abruptly as he gave a yelp of pain, though Tezuka didn't take notice of that, his mind still spinning with Ryoma's betrayal.

'Ryoma had lied...' That line repeated itself in Tezuka's already irrational mind.

He hardened his mask as he threw the Seigaku captain a cold stare.

"I understand. I won't disturb the four of you then." He left. He gave up being so hopeful. That boy could do whatever he wanted. He didn't care anymore.

"Kunimitsu!" he could hear Ryoma calling out to him not too long later, but he stubbornly walked on, getting angrier as Ryoma made feeble attempts to explain himself.

"Four times..." he finally spoke up.

"What?" Ryoma actually had the nerves to be clueless, and Tezuka threw his patience to the winds.

"That was four times you've turned me down, and I find you running around with your girlfriend, and now you tell me there's nothing going on between the both of you?!"

"She's not my girlfriend!" Ryoma's retort did not sound too convincing to him, as he was too angry to think clearly.

His mind replayed the images of Ryoma and Tina in a lip lock. He gave a bitter laugh. "I see. So your public display of affection was a practice for a drama competition, I suppose."

He felt so stupid. Before he knew it, all his frustrations came tumbling out of his mouth.

"I'm tired of hearing all your excuses. I'm tired of trying to convince myself that you are dating me because you might have some feelings for me, cause you have none. You have never taken us seriously in the first place."

"Kunimitsu!" Once more, Ryoma had tried to call him.

He gave Ryoma a weary stare. He had enough.

"Please, just leave me alone. I wish to be alone for now, Echizen."

With that, Tezuka walked away, not once looking back at the other captain...

To be continued...

A/N: As I mentioned in the other fic, would not be updating the next chapter so soon, as I'll be away for the holidays. Sorry bout that.

By the way, I'm having a little trouble deciding which pair to let the K-High regulars face during the inter-school competitions. As Inui had mentioned, while you may be seeing your fav chars appearing in the other schools, not all of them would be in the regulars, and the competitions. I have to be more realistic. After all, it would be weird if the tennis teams consisted of mainly first years.

Anyway, please vote for which doubles partners to make their appearance in the competitions. Would you prefer the Silver Pair-Shishido and Choutarou, or the Dirty Pair-Oshitari and Gakuto. Don't worry. Whichever you vote for would not affect my storyline much. Votings would be open for two chapters. Would check it out after I return from the holidays.

In the meantime, please read and review...

-Gwyn