Hey friends! This is by far, the longest one that I've made I think. Hope you enjoy it! I actually wrote this chapter prior to chapter 20 and was intended to be chapter 20. But it didn't feel right at the moment. So when i uploaded a different chapter 20, i had to tweak this one (since it did contain parts that were already in chapter 20) Sorry, i'm rambling. Anyway!

Again, thanks to all those who have reviewed(comwiz, De hearts 26, inoochichi, GlaresThatKill, Guest), i hope i was able to reply to all of you, favorited, followed. You guys are the best!

One Sided Rivalry

Chapter Twenty-one: Tournament day

It was the day of the tournament. The venue was crowded with different students from different schools clad in their school uniforms and school jerseys. I fanned myself and gulped what amount of water remained in my water bottle. I missed this, multitasking, being able to use two hands at once. I continued to fan myself. Ugh, it's so hot. Thank God for summer uniforms. It's a lot more comfortable on days like these plus less sea foam green. I swear, I will never understand the person who decided to make the girls uniform seafoam green. It's not a bad color. Its pretty. It just doesn't look good on a uniform with a pink bow. Well, that's my opinion at least. I took a seat on one of the benches as we waited for the rest of the team. We were supposed to meet an hour before registration starts. But of course a few people, ahem, Momo and Ryoma-chin, were still missing. I looked at my watch. We have a little over ten minutes left. They're cutting it short, huh?

"Yo! Sorry I'm late!" I heard Momo as he approached us. Now, just there's just one person left. Ryoma-chin. For some reason, my gut was telling me there's trouble up ahead.

Ryuzaki-sensei approached us and placed both hands on her hips. "Is everyone here?"

I shook my head. "Iie. Ryoma-chin's still missing. I tried calling him earlier but he wasn't answering his phone"

She sighed. "That kid's making me older than I already am."

I couldn't help but give a sheepish smile at Ryuzaki-sensei's last comment. "I'll give him another call." I said as I stood up and took my phone out of my pocket and started dialing. I noticed a few eyes staring intently at me. Er, this feels strange. This is the first time I've made a call with this kind of environment. So tense! Oh, it's ringing. Hopefully this time he'll pick up.

Ring. Ring. Ring.

"Ah. Hikari-senpai…"

"Ah! Ryoma-chin! Where are you? We have ten minutes to register."

"I'm helping a pregnant lady to the hospital."

"You're helping a pregnant lady…." I heard a few snickers from the regulars. I sighed. Seriously? This excuse again? How long is he going to use this one? And does he actually think it would work on me when I've fallen victim from using it? I ran a hand through my hair. The fact that he's using an excuse tells me two things. One, he overslept and two, he was no where near the area. "You overslept didn't you? Where are you?"

"…Just leaving the house."

"Just leaving…" I sighed as I pinched the bridge of my nose. That'll probably take more than ten minutes. Twenty minutes tops, but he won't make it in time. "Okay. Just get here as fast as you can. But stay safe!"

"Where is he?" Ryuzaki-sensei asked as she crossed her hands over her chest.

"Er…He just…left his house." I said as I scratched the back of my head

Ryuzaki-sensei sighed. "It'll take him more than twenty minutes to get here. Okay then. Time for plan B." She said as she pulled out a tennis racket and a cap out of the bag and then looked at the three freshmen, namely Horio, Katsuo and Kachiro. "Kaidoh, lend Horio your regulars jacket." For some reason, I feel like this isn't the first time this has happened.

I blinked as Ryuzaki sensei placed a cap on Horio's head and handed him a racket. Well, this is a weird turn of events if I say so myself. So I guess this was plan B; Disguise one of the freshman as the missing regulars player for registration. Huh, that's actually pretty funny if you think about it. Who would they use if someone like, Taka-san was late. I couldn't help but laugh thinking that one of the three freshmen had to dress up like Taka-san and act like him. Imagine either Horio, Katsuo or Kachiro screaming 'burning' every now and then while swaying a racket. Now that would be funny.

I couldn't help but giggle as I watched Ryoma-chin got an earful from Ryuzaki-sensei. Well of course he'd get a lecture from her. He was late after all, on such an important day too. Good thing we were able to register on time with Horio pretending to be Ryoma-chin. How we managed to get away with that, i honestly have no idea. Lets just say Horio isn't the best actor. Plus he talks too much.

I linked my arm with favorite Kohai as soon as he was done getting lectured. "Chibi-chan!"

Ryoma-chin just sighed as he adjusted his hat. "Senpai, why do you keep calling me weird names." Usually, he'd try to get out of my grip whenever I did this. But at some point, I guess he just realized that it was futile. If he did, I'd just cling onto him more. Which is something he doesn't really like, but whatever. I quite enjoy bugging him.

"Cause I'm your oneechan and I want to." I grinned at him.

He sighed again. "Che. Whatever."

I smiled. At least this time he didn't argue with me saying that he wasn't his oneechan. Now if I can just get him to call me that. "Say it with me, 'o-nee-chan'"

"I-don't-want" he said ever so blankly.

"One of these days Ryoma-chin. One of these days." I shook my head. "Come on, let's go over there. Your game's about to start soon." I said as I started dragging Ryoma-chin with me. He sighed before going along with it. He's been quite…er… 'obedient' lately. I like it. "Kawaii!" I exclaimed as I quickly gave him a side hug.

"Senpai…" He groaned as he lowered his cap.

I stretched my arms as I approached a vending machine. Seigaku's last match ended a half hour ago and there's still an hour left before the next one. At least they'll have some time to rest for a bit. They have been playing matches this whole time. We've been here for over five hours and they've played over three games. Of course they've been winning this whole time, but from what I heard from Eiji, their opponents seem to be using their weaknesses against them. So I guess it was still rather challenging for them.

Clank

The sound of a bottle dropping from the vending machine. I bent down and took my bottle of ice cold green tea. The best way to keep yourself refreshed on such a hot day. I took a sip as I stood up. Ah. That felt nice. I then noticed a familiar figure walking by. I quickly approached him. "Fuji!"

Fuji turned around. "Hikari. I was wondering where you wandered off to."

"Just got something to drink." I said as I showed him the half empty bottle in my hand.

"Hot day huh?" he asked as we continued walking to who knows where. I just followed him.

I nodded. "Yeah. So where have you been running off to? I think it's the first time I've actually talked to you since the tournament started."

"Just around."

"Have you seen him?" I asked as I looked at Fuji.

"Hm?"

"You know. Yuuti. I have this gut feeling that's part of the reason you've been wandering around today. Even Inui-kun said it's a lot more compared to the last tournament you guys had." I said, tucking a few strands of my hair behind my ear.

Fuji looked at me and smiled. It was his fake smile. It was that smile that I never liked. It was the smile he would use to mask whatever it was he was feeling. Lately, Fuji's smile has been more and more genuine. I don't know why, but it has been. To see this smile again, it kind of bothers me. Well, this smile has always bothered me but somehow, it bothers me more now than it did before. "Iie. I haven't. And I doubt he'd show up in front of me. Maybe he really does hate me." Fuji chuckled.

That was a half hearted joke. I could tell. "Fuji…" I looked at him with concern.

"I'm fine. Don't worry about it." He said as he patted my head.

"Are you?" I raised an eyebrow at him

He smiled. "Yes. Thank you for your concern."

Somehow, my gut feeling was telling me that he wasn't. He wasn't completely fine. But the fact that he was hiding it makes me wonder. Was it was a good thing to just pretend not to notice or if I should probe him further to say what he actually feels. I sighed. "Okay then. If you say so. But you know Fuji. I don't think Yuuta hates you. He might be upset, but I doubt he hates you. You never hate family. Besides, it's Yuuti. He's a good kid."

"Ah. He takes after me, no?"

I shook my head at his comment. "Fuji, if he took after you, Yuuti would be some weirdo sadist. I say I've influenced him in becoming a good kid. I am his oneechan after all." I smiled, remembering the countless times I've spent with Yuuti as a kid. I had a soft spot for him. I treated him as though he was my own family, my little brother. Which, when I think about it now, is kind of strange. I looked at Fuji. I mean, I grew up with those two but for some reason, I've never treated Fuji like he was my brother. He was just… Fuji. Huh. I wonder if it's because I couldn't call him my little brother since he was a few months older than I was.

I heard Fuji chuckle. "Well, that would actually explain the competitive spirit in him."

I lightly punched Fuji on the arm. "Hey, don't go blaming me for his competitiveness. You Fuji boys get competitive when it comes to sports. Or any form of game for the matter."

"Then did you influence us both then?" he chuckled.

"Maybe it was the two of you who influenced me. Seems more logical for two people to influence one person rather than the other way around, don't you think?"

"Saa, this is quite a mystery. Ah look out." Fuji quickly grabbed my wrist and pulled me closer to him, just in time too. Because when I looked back, I saw a tennis racket zoom past. A tennis racket. Not a tennis ball, but a tennis racket. Someone threw a tennis racket? A tennis ball I'd understand, but a tennis racket? Seriously?

"Ah. Gomen! I lost my grip!" It was a child. He came up to us to apologize before running off to where his racket was. He was probably practicing. I think I kind of did that as a kid too, you know, during the time that I tried to play tennis.

"You did that too before, if I remember correctly." I turned around and bumped came face to face with Fuji's chest. I hadn't realized how close we were. His hand still took hold of my wrist, raised until the level of his shoulder, his other hand placed on the side of my arm rather protectively, my face practically leaning on Fuji's chest. I could feel his every movement, his chest moving as he breathes. I could feel my face getting warmer by the second as my heart started beating louder. I continued to stare at him, wondering if he could hear my heart beating away. What is this? Its happened before. It's a weird feeling, but at the same time, a pleasant one.

"You okay?" He asked as he opened his eyes, releasing me from my weird trance.

"Y-yeah. Thanks." I said as I slowly backed up from Fuji. I then picked up the bottle that had fallen on the floor. Now my hands are dirty. "I'm-I'm going to wash my hands." I said as I walked away and walked towards the faucets, face still warm. I absentmindedly turned the faucet on. What is this? What the hell is wrong with me today? Not just today, these past few days? For the past few days I have been flustered and anxious around Fuji lately. Which, by the way, I really don't understand! What's there to be all anxious about anyway?

"Oi!"

"AAH!" I screamed. And in the process, I ended up turning the faucet on full blast and now the water was just splashing all over the place. Instinctively, smart me decided to place my hands over the nozzle of the faucet, which just made things worse. "AAH!"

"Don't put your hands there! Miyashita! You're making it worse!" It was then that I realized that I wasn't the only one who was getting splashed on. Atobe was here too. He turned the faucet off. Of course at this point it was too late. I was soaking wet. He was soaking wet. We were both soaking wet. Oops.

"G-gomen." I sheepishly looked up at him and let out a nervous laugh.

I heard him sigh as he ran a hand through his now wet hair. "Why is it that things end up this way whenever I'm around you Miyashita?" He said as he took his jacket off and placed it on the stone bench nearby. Well at least he was wearing a jacket so he wasn't all that wet. But still, can't help but feel a tad bit guilty.

I grabbed my now wet hair in between my hands and started twisting it in attempt to get the water out. "Wait. What do you mean by that?" I looked at him.

"To put it simply, You're bad luck."

"Wh-what?" I blinked slightly surprised and looked at him. "I am not bad luck." I mean, I'm kind of unluck, but that doesn't mean I'm bad luck right?

He crossed his hands over his chest. "Well, you have brought Ore-sama some sort of misfortune whenever we see each other."

I stare at him dumfounded, expecting him to continue his sentence. He looked at me with an 'are you seriously asking me to elaborate on that' look on his face. He sighed. "There's the time in the coffee shop where Ore-sama got burned from the coffee, then at the park when we both fell into the pond, and then this"

"But those are just three incidences!"

"Miyashita. That's around half of our encounters. You've brought me bad lack half the time we've met and seen each other." He chuckled.

I put my hair in a really messy braid and started wrinkling my shirt in attempt to get it dry. Come to think of it, most of my encounters with Atobe did involve someone getting slashed with water and in one incident, coffee. "But then again, things end up this way because of you! And you're the one bringing me misfortune. I had both a burn and a stained uniform because you threw your cup f coffee at me, You pulled me into the pond that time at the park and you surprised me just now! If you hadn't then we wouldn't be in this mess would we?" I groaned jokingly. "So you, mister, are the bringer of misfortune, not me." I stuck out a tongue. Childish I know. But whatever. It makes me feel a little bit more accomplished.

"Are you actually blaming-" He stopped midsentence and suddenly grabbed his jacket and shoved it to my face. Well, he didn't actually shove it. He just placed it in front of my face. As annoying as Atobe gets, he's still quite a gentleman. I noticed that he wasn't looking at me. "Here, wear this."

I stopped what I was doing and raised an eyebrow at him. "What?"

He grumbled as he ran a hand through his hair. "Obviously It's a jacket Miyashita. Must Ore-sama point that out?" he said, still not looking at me.

I sighed as I placed my fingers over my temples. "I can't believe you're still referring to yourself as that?"

"What? Just!" He raised his eyebrows as he looked towards my direction before looking away immediately. I could tell he was somewhat frustrated with the expression plastered on his face. He pinched the bridge of his nose. It also seemed as though he was flushed. Is he that mad about me pointing the ore-sama thing or something? Or that I called him the 'bringer of misfortune'? He sighed for the nth time today. "Just wear it already. It's slightly wet but not as bad as your current state."

I pushed the jacket back to him. "It's fine Atobe. I'm not that cold anyway. I feel kind of sticky and gross but other than that, I feel fine." I tugged on the end of my shirt as it stuck to my skin and sighed. This isn't what you'd want to feel on such a hot day. "Plus it'll look weird if I wear a Hyoutei jacket and cheered for Seigaku."

He pushed the jacket in front of me while looking to his side. What's wrong with him? Why can't he even look me in the eye. "No, Ore-sama still insists that you wear it."

"I said I was fine."

He placed a hand over his face. "If you must know, you're shirt is now see through. So please, stop being stubborn and just wear this."

It took a while for Atobe's words to sink in. But eventually it did. I quickly grabbed Atobe's varisty jacket. He turned around as soon as I took the jacket. "T-thanks." I said self-consciously as I put it on. I blinked as I noticed how big Atobe's jacket was. It was like I was wearing a dress that reached almost until my knees. It was then that I realized how big Atobe's built was. Truth be told, he doesn't even look that much big when you talk to him. I stared at the sleeves and slightly flailed them in front of me. This is way too long for me. I rolled up the sleeves of the jacket. "You didn't see anything right?" I shook my head. "N-never mind. Don't answer that. Um, I'm decent now, you can turn around."

He turned around and looked at me with this weird look on his face. He let out a chuckle. "I never realized you were that small."

"What do you mean sm-" I blinked as I rolled the sleeves of his jacket. Did water fill up my ear or did Atobe just refer to himself as 'I' instead of 'Ore-sama'? I continued to stare at Atobe with a surprised yet pleased expression plastered on my face. We all know how much Atobe loves to refer to himself as 'Ore-sama'. The fact that he actually said 'I' is something that I'm actually amused by. I grinned.

Atobe raised his eyebrow as he looked at me like I was crazy. And mind you, I am not. I admit, maybe a little eccentric but definitely not crazy. He backed off a bit as I approached him. "Nande?"

I continued to grin. "You just said 'I' instead of 'Ore-sama' "I said slightly amused as I placed my hands on my hips.

"Ore-sama did no such thing." Atobe flipped his hair. Or at least he tried. His hair was still soaking wet so it just flopped and splashed some water. I could tell he was displeased with that as he rolled his eyes.

"Oh, come on. I heard it." I smirked at him as I nudged him with my elbow.

He smirked. "Then you are mistaken." I couldn't help but roll my eyes at his tone.

"Well, whatever." I giggled as I shook my head. "Anyway, I better get back. The matches might start soon. Thanks for the Jacket. I'll return it once I get it washed."

"It's no problem, no rush." He smiled.

"Neh, promise me you'll start using 'I' more often rather than 'Ore-sama'? Or at least use 'I' when you're talking to me? Makes me want to punch your face a little less."

Atobe just laughed and turned around. He then raised a hand. "Bye Miyashita." He said as he walked away.

I shrugged my shoulders. Well, I tried. Anyway, I better get back before the games start. I really don't want to miss Seugaku's game against St. Rudolph. I then felt my phone vibrate from my pocket. Right, I forgot I had this with me. Good thing it didn't break when I got wet. I took it out and noticed that it was slightly wet. I quickly wiped it with Atobe's slightly damp jacket before reading the message.

I will do no such thing

I shook my head as I placed my phone back inside my pocket. "Idiot"

OSHITARI'S POV

I couldn't help but stare as our 'beloved' buchou returned looking as though he had jumped into a pool rather than just going out to wash his hands, which according to him, had been 'dirtied by

"Atobe, I thought you were just going to wash your hands?" I smirked.

"Well, things turn into a disaster around that Miyashita girl." He said as he let out a soft chuckle. He was happy at this? This is not the Atobe Keigo I knew. He's been a little different these last few days. Atobe Keigo does not laugh boisterously in a public place, he does it with a little more grace. He does not get easily frazzled and has silly outbursts when, not publicly at least. And he definitely would not be happy about being drenched in water, let alone walk around in public looking like that. In a span of a few weeks, this girl, has made Atobe drop his guards enough to actually seem more human rather than a king he says he is. It was, what was the word for it. Ah. Refreshing. It was refreshing.

HIKARI'S POV

I made my way back to where the regulars were. I shivered a bit as I continued to walk. Of course it was starting to get windy. It was extremely hot when I was dry, but now that I was soaking wet, the sun's hiding and the wind's blowing. I swear, I have the worst luck ever. And no, I still don't agree with Atobe. I'm not a bringer of misfortune and I'm not bad luck. I shook my head. Good thing Atobe lent me his jacket. For one, I would be walking around with my shirt all see through and two, I would probably be shivering a lot more. Oh, there they are. I approached where some of the regulars were. Most were still doing stretches and warming up.

I then felt some eyes on me. "Uh. Senpai, why are you all wet? And wearing a Hyoutei Jacket?" I looked to my right where Momo and Ryoma-chin were. They stared at me with a befuddled look on their faces. Momo did. Ryoma-chin looked more like he wanted to laugh. Cheeky kid.

"L-long story." I said with a sheepish smile in attempt to avoid the subject. But for some reason both Momo and Ryoma-chin kept look looking at me, gesturing that I should continue my story. I sighed in defeat. "F-fine. I g-got into a little accident w-with the f-faucet with Atobe. And we b-b-both ended up soaking wet. He lent me his j-jacket because... j-just because…" I managed to say in between teeth chattering.

Ryoma-chin chuckled. "Neh, you look like a wet dog senpai."

"Y-you l-l-little brat!" I said as I pinched Ryoma-chin's cheeks. "You c-could at l-least try being n-ni-nice about it!"

"Wait. So you're telling us that somewhere in this area, Atobe is walking around looking like a wet dog." Momo said before he started laughing. I slowly let go of Ryoma-chin's cheeks and laughed.

"K-kinda. Not as bad as me t-though since he had this jacket on. B-but still funny." I said as I remembered how Atobe's usually kempt and styled up hair lay flat and messy a top his head. Although this look was something that I was quite familiar with given my unfortunate and nearly disastrous encounters with Atobe. Maybe I should have taken a photo for blackmail purposes. As I continued to laugh, I suddenly felt something soft drape over my head and my shoulders. It smelled a familiar scent of vanilla with just a hint of peppermint. It was a blue towel. "You can use this to dry up. Don't worry. It's clean. I haven't used it yet." I turned around and found Fuji behind me.

"F-Fuji…" I said as I stared at him for a bit, my last encounter with him was slightly awkward. For me at least. I don't know if it was awkward or weird for him. He seems unfazed. Why was it even awkward for me in the first place? Gosh this is just bugging me too much than it should.

"Staring at me has become a habit of yours over the past few days, huh?"

I blinked as his statement made me snap out of my train of thoughts. "W-what? No. Just. Thanks. For the towel I mean."

"No problem at all." He started rummaging through his bag and grabbed something. It was regulars' shirt. Probably an extra one since he was already wearing one. He then handed it to me. "And you better change out of that as well. I assume the reason you're wearing that jacket is because your shirt's wet?"

"Yeah, but. I'm fine. My body's s-starting to adjust to the temperature. My teeth aren't chattering as much as it did." I said as I clutched the towel that sat on my shoulders.

"Okay then. I just thought you didn't want to risk getting sick with exams coming up soon." He said in a rather taunting manner. I blinked. Oh right. We had a few exams coming up in a few weeks time, huh. I really can't afford getting sick and missing school. Not if I want to maintain my grades. You know, bad grades equals wrath from Obaasan. Plus, even though I have softened around Fuji, I'm still adamant about beating him. Or at least trying to.

"On second thought…." I let out a nervous laugh as I took the shirt that Fuji was subtly held in front of me. "I think I'll take this with me. Thanks."

"Glad you see it my way."

FUJI'S POV

I watched Hikari's retreating figure as she walked further away from me. These past few days, I actually do feel that she is, 'walking further away from me'. I've noticed that she'd been getting rather close with a certain captain over at Hyotei. They've met up a couple of times and have exchanged a few messages every now and then. And I somehow feel uneasy about that. I just hope that that doesn't put any distance between where I stand with Hikari. "Are you two done staring?" I smiled as I looked at Momo and Echizen. Quite amusing these two, especially Momo. He looks terrified. Saa, I didn't do anything for him to look like that, neh?

"You just didn't want her wearing monkey king's jacket, right Fuji senpai?" Echizen smirked.

I looked at Echizen, slightly surprised. "Saa, I don't know what you're talking about, Echizen." I couldn't help but let out a chuckle. Echizen is well known for being dense about how he likes a certain brown-headed girl and vice versa. But when it comes to other people, he's quite observant. I shook my head, kind of reminds me of someone I know. Having said that, I guess that also means that it would be difficult to convey my feelings for her without saying the words 'I like you'. Maybe when the time's right. I'd rather not say anything when I still can't completely grasp where I stand with her. A bit cowardly, yes, but I'd rather not risk what we have.

And that's the end of the chapter. If you enjoyed it or if you have anything you want to say, please leave a review and let me know. Don't forget to click that follow button to get updates when I update. Also feel free to favorite if you want haha.

Love you Lots,

kur-chan