Confirmation

Pairing: Inui/Shinji

Fandom: Prince of Tennis

Theme: #14. radio-cassette player

Disclaimer in part 1.

Rating: PG

Extra note: This is the one of them all I like the least. I rewrote this about 4 different times, and this was the best that I got. So if you hate it, feel free to tell me, and I probably won't argue with you. Just fair warning.


"Sadaharu? Are you in there?"

Inui looked up from where he was staring at the ground and smiled sadly at Shinji. "I'm here."

Shinji sat down next to Inui and wrapped an arm around him. "Is he still not talking to you?"

"No." Inui sounded miserable. After several phone calls being rebuffed the night before, Inui had resolved to talk to Kaidoh in person the next day. Which would've worked out well enough if Kaidoh hadn't been determined to avoid him during morning practice. And lunch. And afternoon practice. Inui had half-contemplated chasing after Kaidoh when the other left for his run, but had decided that would be a little too creepy and stalker-ish, even for him.

"If he'd just talk to me, I might be able to fix it." Inui shifted some so he was leaning into Shinji without looking like he was leaning into him. "For all I know, he's avoiding me for another reason entirely."

"How likely is that, really? I mean, has he ever avoided you before? Is this a habit he has, because if it is, then maybe you should stop worrying so much and let him get over it."

"No…he doesn't avoid. He's almost unbearably polite and would never outright snub a sempai. For him to do this…I don't know. And I don't like not knowing." Inui shook his head and mentally went over all his data on Kaidoh for what seemed like the thousandth time. "This is not in his normal behavior pattern at all."

Shinji thought about that for a minute. "Well…if, and this is still an if…if he is reacting to hearing about…us, who do you think he heard it from?"

"Momoshiro." Inui didn't even have to think about it. "He—and Kikumaru—are the biggest gossips on our team, and Momoshiro would've delighted in spreading this to each and every person personally. Including Kaidoh."

Shinji nodded. "Now, remember, I don't know your team very well, but those I can say I know somewhat well are Echizen and Momoshiro. And it has always seemed to me that Momoshiro and Kaidoh get on each other's nerves with very little prompting. Maybe it's possible that your Kaidoh is reacting more to the bearer of the news, than the news itself? And who knows what Momoshiro actually told him, too."

Inui thought about this for a minute. "You…may have a point. If I only knew what Momoshiro told him…." He looked over at Shinji. "And why wasn't I included in that list of people you know fairly well on my team?"

Shinji grinned. "I thought that was fairly self-evident myself. Was I wrong?"

"No, but it is nice to hear once in awhile." Inui grinned.

"Just hear?"

Inui pretended to ponder this. "Well…sometimes a demonstration is just as good a thing…."

"Well, then. Let me demonstrate." Grinning, Shinji pulled Inui into a kiss, which Inui immediately deepened, with no arguments from Shinji.

They probably would've remained like that for some time, but something dropped and shattered near them. Inui pulled away to see what the noise was…and immediately paled.

Kaidoh was standing in front of them, mouth open in shock. The shattering sound, Inui noted, was caused by a splintered cassette player at Kaidoh's feet.

Or maybe by Kaidoh's heart. He didn't have enough data yet to tell. "Kaidoh…."

"It's true…." Kaidoh's stare went from Inui to Shinji and back. "I thought the moron was lying, but he wasn't, was he?" Kaidoh's hiss radiated discomfort.

"Yes, it is true." Inui stood up and walked slowly over to Kaidoh. "I didn't want you to find out the way you did."

"Then why didn't you tell me, Inui-sempai?"

"At first…it was too new. Then…Momoshiro beat me to the punch."

Kaidoh hissed angrily. "No. Why didn't you tell me first?"

Inui's face cleared as comprehension dawned. "Ahhh. You…thought I told him purposely."

"That's what he implied."

"Kaidoh…it wasn't like that." Inui sighed. "Momoshiro saw something that he wasn't supposed to see. And wasn't polite or restrained enough to not immediately go blabbing about it. I was going to tell once I was fairly confident that this relationship is going to be a lasting thing. And I would have told you personally, Kaidoh."

Kaidoh looked a little mollified as he hissed and thought this over. "Are you happy, Inui-sempai?"

Inui blinked. "Right now, I am grieved that I inadvertently caused you distress."

"Not what I meant. Does he make you happy?"

Inui looked over at Shinji who, honestly, looked as if he wanted to be anywhere but there at that moment. "He does. Very happy."

"Mmmm." Kaidoh transferred his gaze to Shinji, narrowing his eyes some. "You. If you ever hurt him…well, don't hurt him. You are not my sempai." He left implied what that meant for Shinji.

"I won't. I don't want to." Shinji met Kaidoh's eyes, meeting him glare for glare. He didn't appreciate the threat, but he really couldn't say anything, since Akira had threatened Inui, after all.

"See that you remember that." Kaidoh hissed and glared again, then bent to pick up the pieces of his cassette player. Straightening, Kaidoh looked at Inui again and blushed a little. "Can you work with me a little tomorrow?"

"Of course." Inui adjusted his glasses. "I have a new training menu for you to start on. And, there's a new juice that I want you to try…."

Kaidoh was off and running before Inui could elaborate further.

Shinji laughed a little as Inui settled back down beside him. "That didn't seem so painful."

"No. I got lucky there. I didn't think that Kaidoh would be willing to listen to me so soon, though. I was calculating that it would take 2.7 more days for him to calm down long enough to listen to me." Inui thought for a second. "Maybe it was the shock value of us kissing that altered the data."

"Is that all my kisses are good for?" Shinji tried to sound insulted, but he couldn't.

"Of course not…they're also good for accelerating my heartbeat and breathing." Inui grinned. "I think that it is extremely important for me to experience that again right now. I can worry more about Kaidoh later." He reached out and pulled Shinji close to him again, dropping a trail of kisses up Shinji's neck.

Shinji shivered. "That sounds like a good plan to me. Kaidoh doesn't seem to hate you, and training is as good a time as any to talk, though I really hope you don't share any details with him, because—"

Inui's lips covered Shinji's before he could say another word.

--The End--