Disclaimer: All original characters and storyline belong to the brilliant Takeshi Konomi. Nothing in POT belongs to me. All storylines, OoC-ness, OCs, events, situations, venues and tournaments in this story are just figments of my imagination.
Thanks to princeoftennis .wikia .com for all the relevant information.
CAUTION: Some plotlines might not be following the original storyline from manga, anime or movie! Characters may be out of original character-ness!
"xxxxx" Conversation
'xxxxx' Thoughts
XxxxxxFlashback
Current Age: Tezuka, Oishi, Eiji, Fuji, Takashi & Inui (18) Sakuno (16) Tezuka Kunikazu (74) Tezuka Kuniharu (50) Tezuka Ayano (47)
UNEXPECTED CHANGES
Chapter 16: Bullied
"Who do you think you are?!"
"Nothing but a selfish s**t!"
"You are just plain with long girly braids!"
"There's nothing special about you!"
"You don't deserve to be Tezuka-san's girlfriend!"
Ryuzaki Sakuno had been bullied before but never to this violent extent. The girls, surrounding her kneeling figure, shouted at her while they punched and kicked her, pulled her braids and slapped her head and face.
"STOP RIGHT THERE!" A loud shriek halted their abuse.
The bullies turned around and went pale. The whole tennis club and Tomoka Osakada were fiercely glaring at the bullies.
"It seems you girls have been very busy" Inui Sadaharu quipped from behind a running camcorder, "I am sure your parents would be delighted to see you in action."
The bullies quickly huddled into a corner as Tomoka and Fuji Syusuke sprinted toward Sakuno with a blanket. They wrapped it around her shaking shoulders and helped her to stand up. She was quietly led away but not before pausing to receive a loving look and a gentle caress on her reddened cheek from her boyfriend.
Once Sakuno had left, the whole team turned their attention toward the group of cowering bullies.
"Fsshh, what shall we do with these girls?" Kaido Kaoru's angry eyes caused the bullies to whimper in fear.
Suggestions came left and right, "Throw rubbish on them!" "Shave off their hair!" "Paint their face black!" "Write BULLY on their foreheads!"
"What should we do with them, Tezuka?" Oishi Syuichiro finally asked the one who should decide on the bullies' punishment.
"Nothing." Everyone stared at the calm looking Tezuka Kunimitsu with disbelief.
"Demo, Tezuka, they have hurt Sakuno-chan really badly nyah!" Kikumaru Eiji pouted.
"Let the Principal and the Discipline Teacher deal with them. Inui?"
"Hai, Tezuka?"
"I leave them in your hands. I need to see Sakuno." He left them in a hurry.
"It would be my pleasure." The wicked grin from the Tennis Club buchou spread uneasiness among the members and the bullies.
"Wh..what are…you..going to do to us?" The leader of the bullies asked tearfully.
"I do need volunteers to taste a couple of my new energy boosting juices." Inui's glasses flashed.
The rest of the tennis club stepped away from him immediately. But no one felt sorry for the bullies who screamed in horror. After all, Inui's juices were quite infamous in the whole school district.
Chapter 17: At the nurse's office
The nurse treated the few wounds Sakuno had received and gave her some ointments for the bruises. Then she was directed to rest for a few hours before going home.
"Really, Sakuno, you shouldn't have gone with those girls." Tomoka scolded her friend. She was sitting on the hospital bed where Sakuno was tucked into.
"I..I didn't know, Tomoka-chan. They said they needed help with their school work."
"Nani? And you believe them? Those kind of girls care for nothing but money, looks and boys."
The door to the nurse office slided open and Sakuno's eyes lighted up to see Tezuka walking in. Tomoka gave her a wink and left the nurse's office.
Once the door was closed, Tezuka came to her side and leaned down to hug her tightly in his arms. Sakuno snuggled her head on his shoulder and sighed tiredly.
"How are you feeling, Sakuno?"
"I'm fine, Mitsu-kun."
"I'm so sorry."
"What for?"
"I should have foreseen this and done something to protect you."
"Mitsu-kun, none of us expected such reactions when we first announced our status as a couple. Don't feel guilty about this."
"It won't happen again, I promise you, Sakuno. With our friends, you'll be better protected."
"I'm sure it won't, Mitsu-kun." Knowing his and their friends' protectiveness, Sakuno was certain this incident would be the first and the last one.
"I don't know what will happen if you…" His voice broke off as he struggled to hold back his fears. Sakuno pushed away a little to comfort him with her sweet kisses and words of assurance.
Chapter 18: The News
With the video recording from Inui and eyewitness report from the Tennis club members, the bullies were kicked out of school. No one dared to do or say anything bad to Sakuno ever again. The good side of the incident was it caused the bonds between the young couple to grow stronger.
Many months had passed without any further incidence. Soon, the time has come for the seniors to graduate from Seishun High School.
At the Tezuka residence, Kunimitsu and Sakuno were sitting on the veranda facing the garden. Earlier, the whole family, together with the Echizens (minus Ryoma) had had dinner together to celebrate Kunimitsu's graduation. Once everything had been cleared and washed up, everyone spread out to the living room and veranda to enjoy green tea and desserts.
"Let's walk around the garden." Kunimitsu stood up and held out a hand.
"Hai." Sakuno smiled and placed her dainty hand in his. The older people watched the young couple with fondness as they slowly strolled around the garden hand in hand.
Once they were far from listening ears, Tezuka drew a deep breath because he had something important to tell her, something that could affect their lives.
"Sakuno, I received two emails today. They were from my coach and my company sponsor."
Sakuno nearly stopped breathing. She had been expecting him to leave after graduation but she was still unprepared to hear the actual news.
"I see."
"They wanted me to go back to Germany and start training for the next Grand Slam tournaments."
"That's great, Mitsu-kun!" She tried to inject enthusiasm into her words, "So when are you leaving?"
"Next week."
Her heart fell, "Ne..next week?"
"I want you to come with me." Kunimitsu looked at her earnestly.
"Nani?" Sakuno wasn't sure she had heard right but she gasped and covered her mouth with a hand when Kunimitsu gave her smile and knelt on one knee on the grass.
"Sakuno, you are the love of my life. Will you marry me?"
She looked into his eyes and could see the future they would have with him playing professional tennis and she….
"I can't Mitsu-kun. I'm sorry."
- To Be Continued -
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