Disclaimers: I don't own SD or Initial D, which is really really sad …. *sigh*
NB: … Thoughts
(…) akane's ramblings
"…" character's speech
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Chapter 13 – Beginning…
She'd arrived early. He's probably still at dinner with the others.
Tsuki leaned against the lamppost before the main gates of Michiba. Closing her eyes, she felt a light summer night's breeze caressed her face. The light rustling of the sakura leaves created a subtle yet dolce melody. Just while she was enjoying the concert provided by nature, the sound of light footsteps flowed into her ears. She opened her eyes and turned to the source of the sound. A silhouette of a tall, lean figure can be seen standing on the shadowy, sakura filled path.
Tsuki straightened herself and took a deep breath. "Hi."
"Hi." The silhouette slowing became the figure of a boy as he stepped into the soft beam of the lamp. A gentle smile curled his lips.
Seeing him in person made Tsuki lost for words. She doesn't know how to start 'the talk' she asked for. Scrambling for words, she lowered her head and blurted, "I'm sorry for hurting you."
He stepped closer and held her by the shoulders gently. "You don't have to apologize. It was my fault for being so unexpected. I should've waited a little longer before telling you my feelings."
Tsuki looked up and saw his soft blue orbs. "Rukawa-kun…"
"Shh, you don't have to say anything, I understand." The raven head said as he placed a slender finger onto Tsuki's lips to stop her words from flowing.
The clearest and brightest sapphires. She thought as she drowned herself in his eyes. The finger he laid on her lips sent tinkling shivers down her back. They felt nice…
"Tsuki, I won't force you to do what you don't want to. All I want you to know is that I'll always be here for you, to be your friend and your shoulder to cry on at times of need. So, don't pressure yourself to make decisions because of my brashness, and definitely don't your dare think that you've hurt me with your words." Rukawa spoke in such a way that it was not Rukawa (maybe our dear Rukawa-kun's possessed by a ghost!? :x). His voice was softer than a whisper, yet audible. Emotions were carried into Tsuki's heart by his soft, soothing baritone. "And… I'll wait; I'll wait till you're ready to love again."
Tsuki embraced him. This startled our ice block for a second before he returned her hug. She buried her face in his chest.
"Arigatou Rukawa-kun, honto ni arigatou." She mumbled. Rukawa smiled a smile of relief.
She pulled herself away from his warmth slightly and looked into his eyes. His embrace was so warm. Yes, it was warm and it felt so right to be held by him. Does this mean that I… Could it be?
She began to speak with absolute sincerity as a tear slide down her face. "I don't know why, but I think I have feelings for you too Rukawa-kun. It's just that they're not solid enough for me to make any conclusions, also, I… I'm really scared of feeling that unbearable pain again. I really don't want to go through that torture again…" Her head lowered as she spoke the last word.
"I know," Rukawa wiped her tear away with the gentle strokes of his finger. "I know what you've been through." He said with a croaked voice.
Tsuki smiled weakly, "Kenji-nii chan told you what happened didn't he? I was a fool wasn't I?"
He nodded. "Yes he did, and he told me because he loves you. And, you're not a fool, you're the smartest girl I've seen and know."
Tsuki lowered her head slightly. "…" She paused a little then looked up again, this time her glassy blue eyes filled with not sadness or worry, but with playful curiosities. "Why did you choose me Rukawa-kun?" Her lips curled into a beautiful smile.
Hearing her question, Rukawa sighed heavily. "No reasons, my heart told me you're the one and I'm following my heart." He smiled feebly.
Putting a finger to her cheek and tilting her head to one side, a slinky smile plastered her face. "Mou, could it be of my looks or my intelligence, or was it my skills in basketball that drew you to me?"
Rukawa blushed. "Aho." He muttered.
Hey, teasing this walking block of ice is fun! Tsuki's smile turned more cheeky at the thought that sprang into her mind. "Ne Rukawa-kun, so which one is it?"
"…"
"Oh, c'mon you can tell me."
Rukawa sighed and started to walk in the directions of their dormitories. Tsuki tagged alongside him and kept on nagging him to answer her question, but he remained quiet. When they reached Tsuki's room, he bent down and kissed her on the forehead. She blushed.
"Good night and sweet dreams, neko-chan."
She hit him playfully. "Since when did you start calling me neko like that baka aka ozaru?"
He smirked. "Since now."
Tsuki pouted cutely at his answer. "I'll get you for this Rukawa Kaede."
"Anytime neko, anytime." His grin grew bigger by the minute. "And, call me Kaede from now on?"
"Mmm… How 'bout Kae-chan instead?" She asked him back.
He raised an eyebrow at her and shrugged.
"K, then I'll call you Kae-chan from now on." She smiled happily.
He smiled back at her. "K…"
"Oyasuminasai Kae-chan." She said softly.
"Oyasumi."
Tsuki smiled at him again then turned the knob of door to her room and went in.
Meanwhile, behind one of the hedging along the sakura path of Michiba, Sakuragi, Ayako, Miyagi and Haruko were dumbfounded by the conversation they unintentionally eve dropped upon. They stared at each other wide-eyed and gasped together, "OH MY GOD!"
The Ayako turned to Haruko in full worry alert. "Haruko-chan, are you ok?"
Haruko smiled weakly at her sisterly senior. "Hai sempai, don't worry about me."
"Haruko-chan…" Sakuragi muttered. He could see the pain was killing her from the inside because her normally warm and happy brown eyes were now filled with sorrow.
Haruko tried to pull a happy smile but it turned out lop-sided. "Don't worry minna, I'll be fine. We all knew that Rukawa-kun was never interested in me, so it's not that big a deal to see him and Tsuki-chan together. Besides, they make a charming couple."
"Haruko…" Ayako sighed then hugged her tightly and warmly. "Daijoubu! You'll find your soul mate one of these days and I guarantee that he'll be someone way better than Rukawa, ne?" She winked at the younger girl playfully.
Haruko smiled a genuine happy smile this time. "Yeah! I'll find someone who's a million times better than Rukawa in the future, and definitely not a person who's an icy block of ice like him." She ended her comment with her tongue sticking out cutely.
Miyagi looked at Sakuragi and they both grinned. "Yosh! We'll start a 'manhunt' for Haruko-chan when we get back to Kanagawa." (o_Ô;)
Sakuragi nodded in agreement, then added, "If any of those guys don't pass our requirements, which are good looking as the tensai, smart as the tensai … ITAI!!!" Everyone present sweat-dropped and he was hit by Ayako's fan before he got to finish his declaration. (^_^;;)
"Urusai baka!" The Shohoku captain shouted while sweat-dropping. "Let's go girls, we don't know this baka." Ayako immediately nodded her head to agree with Miyagi's statement. She pulled Haruko along as she stood up and made her leave with Miyagi. This left our tensai the only person left, squatting behind the hedging holding the smoky bump on his head … … …
o o o o o
Days passed quickly and it was the last day of their training camp at Michiba. The last two games played between Shohoku and Michiba had ended in draws with each winning once on narrow margins. Tsuki had sat out of the last two games, but she decided to play in today's. Therefore, she replaced Goto's shooting guard position while Goto replaced Kakuta as the power forward. But this arrangement was only for the first half of the game where Tsuki did her usual trick of observing and not shooting. Then came the second half, in which Tsuki began to attack their opponent viciously leaving them with no time to breathe. Her speed and skills amazed the Michiba camp, and they had no one to stop her since they already had their hands full with Rukawa, Sakuragi and Goto.
The game ended with a final score of 124 – 98, Shohoku won by 26 points.
"You and your team have played well, Miyagi, and we've learned a lot from you." Kobayashi said as he shook Miyagi's hand after the game.
Miyagi smiled. "It's the same with us. It's been great over the past week playing with you guys, Kobayashi. And we'll see you at the IH."
"Yes." Michiba's captain nodded. "That vice-captain of yours is really something isn't she?"
Miyagi grinned. "Never thought a girl could play bball like that huh?"
"Hai. Her skills are amazing! I've never seen anyone play like that before." Kobayashi said as he glanced over at the Shohoku benches, where he saw Tsuki passing a towel and a bottle of water to Rukawa, who in turn used that towel to wipe away her perspirations.
"Hey, don't even think about chasing after her if you're smart. If not, you'll be pounded into a pulp by our ice block there." Miyagi said half teasing and half serious.
Kobayashi smiled a defeated smile. "I never had a chance from the start…"
Miyagi patted his shoulders friendlily. "You'll find some another girl someday."
"Yeah…"
o o o o o
It's the last night they'd be spending in Sendai before they head back for Kanagawa tomorrow. The Shohoku players were having a night out to celebrate their win over Michiba at one of the local restaurant.
"Kanpai!" Everyone raised their glasses to the toast (fruit juices or soft drinks or teas, nothing alcoholic, ok!! :P hehe…).
"That was a great win guys, well done!" Miyagi commented happily to his team.
"Hai captain!" Everyone replied smiling.
"Anyways, let's enjoy ourselves tonight then we head back to Kanagawa tomorrow and tell everyone the good news." Miyagi paused a little then continued on a more solemn tone. "However, don't be too full of yourselves just because we've just won the games of the training camp. We still have great rivals ahead of us at the IH, and our goal is to be the best of the best, the number one team in Japan."
Ayako added, "Ryota's right. Teams we are going to meet up against at the IH will be as strong as or stronger than Michiba, so be on full alert and don't take our current winnings for granted, and underestimate your opponents."
"Hai, Ayako-san!" Everyone replied in unison.
Out of the blue, three guys walked over to the Shohoku table. They were the guys who saw Tsuki at the café a few days back.
"Hey, you're the girl who drove that chrome colored N1." One of them pointed at Tsuki.
Tsuki raised an eyebrow at them since she recognized them immediately. "So what if I am?" She asked sarcastically.
"Hey, we mean no harm, so cool it, k?" Another guy said in a friendly tone and smile.
Tsuki sighed. "So… what do you want?"
"You've got good driving skills. We were wondering if you'd like to go for a race with us." The second guy stated their reason for coming over to her.
"She doesn't race." A flat, cold voice answered the three guys for Tsuki. The owner of the voice was none other than Rukawa of cause. If looks could kill, those guys were probably dead by now because of the 'big chill' they're experiencing.
"Nani?" The third guy who'd been silent till now gasped.
"That's right, I don't race." Tsuki stated flatly.
"Demo, you have such good skills …" Guy number three continued.
Tsuki shrugged. "So what? There's no such law stating that if a person has good driving skills they'd have to be a racer."
The three guys were rendered wordless by her words. Another guy rushed into the restaurant calling to the three guys standing next to the Shohoku table. "Lin! They're here. Project D is here."
The second of the three guys who were here first, Lin became wide-eyed at the announcement. "What? And you came and tell us now, Toshi?"
"Sorry Lin, but I came to tell you as fast as I could." Toshi mumbled innocently.
Lin threw his hands in the air in vexation, "Whatever, here goes nothing." He turned to the other two guys who came together with him, "Let's go meet Takahashi Ryosuke and his Project D then. Sei. Kyo."
Sei and Kyo nodded, and followed Lin. Just before the exited the restaurant, Tsuki called out to them. "Hey, I'll go with you guys." And she got up from her seat, ready to leave.
Lin turned around to look at her in surprise. "Say that again?"
"I said I'll go with you guys." Tsuki grinned.
"You sure?" He asked her uncertainly.
"Yeaps!" Tsuki smiled. "Hey guys, go back to the dorms when you finish, k? Don't wait for me; I'll go back as soon as possible." She grabbed her bag and pushed her chair back to take her leave. But Rukawa took hold of her wrist before she could go and questioned her with his eyes. She smiled at him with reassurance. "Don't worry; just gonna meet my cousin then I'll come back."
Rukawa nodded and released her wrist. She smiled at him again then left with Lin and company.
o o o o o
Walking to their cars, Lin asked Tsuki curiously, "Thought you say you don't race, so how come you're coming with us?"
Tsuki smiled a knowing smiled and said, "You'll know soon. And it's true that I don't race."
As they walked in the direction of the car park, Tsuki knew she'd parked her car there too. After getting their cars, they headed toward the mountain pass. Five mod cars were traveling together, with Tsuki trailing behind the four. They all had a sticker on the rear panel of their cars saying 'Black Knights'. Lin's car was a black Toyota Supra, Kyo's a red Honda NSX, an electric blue Honda Integra Type R for Sei and a yellow Nissan Silvia S15 for Toshi. They sped up the mountain pass at speeds which Tsuki found as ridiculously slow!
There's no way they can win over Project D. In fact they can't even catch up with those guys with this type of speed. She shook her head in disapproval.
Even though they're slow, Tsuki didn't overtake them since she didn't want to cause them any problems with 'losing face'. So she followed them 'slowly' and finally reached the top of the course after a droning twenty minutes. She rolled her eyes and sighed inwardly.
Tsuki parked her car next to her cousin Takumi's AE 86. "Takumi-nii chan!" She said with a bright smile.
"What are you doing here Tsuki?" Takumi asked in a puzzled tone.
"Was just in the area, so thought I'd drop by and say hi." She grinned a very catlike grin (=^.^=).
"Aa." Takumi scratched his cheek with his index finger (this is Fujiwara Takumi's trademark action… ^_^).
"Hey Tsuki." Takahashi Keisuke hollered behind the cousins as he and his brother, Ryosuke walked up to them.
"Konichi wa Keisuke-san, Ryosuke-san."
"Konichi wa." The brothers said in unison.
"So, what are you doing here Tsuki-chan?" The older Takahashi (i.e. Ryosuke) asked her as he ruffled Tsuki's hair in a brotherly manner.
"Hey stop that!" Pouted Tsuki as she tried to avert Ryosuke's hand.
Ryosuke and Keisuke laughed at Tsuki's messy hair, and Takumi also smiled at the situation.
"Takumi-nii chan, how can you stand there and watch these two bully your poor cousin, me?" She complained as she poked her fingers at Takumi.
Takumi just shrugged. "Humph!" Tsuki heaved an irritated sigh.
"You haven't answered my question yet, kitty cat." Ryosuke pressed, now using the nick name that her uncle called her by.
Tsuki rolled her eyes (she's been doing a lot of that lately hasn't she?? Hehehe… :P).
"Out team came here for a training camp with Michiba High School, and today's the last day. I'm going back to Kanagawa tomorrow." She paused a little the looked over to the opposite gallery where Lin and his fellow Black Knights, who were gaping at the scene that she and the Project D members created. "As for why I'm here at this place, at this time … Well, those guys, your opponents for tonight dropped by my team's dinner party just now to ask me for a race, and I declined as usual. Then, I overheard their little meet with you guys, so I tagged along."
"I see." Keisuke nodded. "Hey, if you followed them up here, then can you tell us anything about their skills?" He grinned mischievously.
"They're slow." Tsuki said in a hopeless tone.
"You sure? They're the fastest street racing team in Sendai." Ryosuke asked inquisitively.
Nodding, Tsuki said, "They're slow speed wise and their techniques are just slightly above reasonable."
"Aniki?" Keisuke turned to Ryosuke who's in deep thought.
Ryosuke broke out of his thinking session. "Don't forget that looks are sometimes deceiving, Keisuke. We're going to continue as planned. The race will start in half an hour's time." He said rationally.
Keisuke and Takumi both nodded. In the meantime, Lin walked over to Tsuki and asked, "You know them?"
Tsuki smiled at Lin politely this time. "Why of cause, since the famous Akina 86's driver here is my cousin." She then offered her hand to Lin. "Fujima Tsuki desu, yoroshiku."
Lin took her hand and shook it. "Amamiya Lin, yoroshiku." He said smiling.
The sound from roaring engines can be heard coming uphill. In a few minutes, a few cars arrived in front of the already gathered groups. It was Nakazato Takeshi's R32 and his fellow Night Kids, Shouji Shingo in his red Honda Civic EG6. There were also a few more cars that came up behind them, which should be team members of the Black Knights.
Takeshi and Shingo pulled up next to the Takahashi's RX-7s. "Hi Fujima." They greeted Tsuki simultaneously, then glared at each other. "You copied me!" They shouted at each other at the same time. Everyone sweat-dropped. (^_^;;)
Tsuki shook her head and smiled. "Konba wa Takeshi-san, Shingo-san." Ryosuke remained poker faced as usual, Keisuke and Takumi both sighed mushroom breaths.
"Well, looks like we should get ready. Ja." Lin walked back to his team.
Tsuki checked out a few cars she found interesting while the Project D members discuss their plans and tactics for the coming race. At 9:30pm sharp, all the cars which were parked on the road were cleared and members for each team went to their assigned posts to record time etc…
The race soon started with Takumi racing in the downhill leg as usual and Keisuke in the uphill. Just as Tsuki predicted, Black Knights were no match for Project D. Lin who raced against Takumi never had the chance to close the gap between them once Takumi overtook him and sped ahead. In the uphill race, Keisuke trailed Sei's Integra until the last two corners then he overtook Sei. The Black Knights admitted defeat gracefully, and thanked Project D for the race.
Before Tsuki left, she spoke to Lin and Sei. "You guys know the techniques but not how to combine the techniques with speed, and this is your Achilles' heel. If you really want to win, especially against drivers like my cousin and the Takahashi brothers, then you should really polish up on your skills and amalgamate them with you speed. You should've noticed how different the ways they drive are to yours." She said while smiling sincerely.
Lin sighed. "Yeah, I know. Thanks for the tip; I'll make sure that my team practices more to improve."
Sei agreed. "Yeah, those guys are so fast. I've never seen anyone turn a corner like that before."
Tsuki smiled, "They are extremely good drivers you know…"
Both guys nodded. They sure have learnt a lot from the race they just had…
Tsuki bit her goodbyes her new found friends in the Black Knights and headed back to the dormitories at Michiba when Project D left.
o o o o o
Tsuki lay in bed that night and thought about things that'd happened during their week's stay at Sendai.
Things sure have taken a turn for the better. Sakuragi isn't obsessed with Haruko anymore, so he's no longer acting like a fool around her. I myself is on good terms with Kae-chan, and god knows where this coming to be relationship is gonna lead us. Anyways, at least I'm not stuck on juggling emotions around anymore, fate will lead us through it all…somehow… She drifted off to the sweetness of dream world with a smile as one last thought came to mind. This is a new beginning, for me and Kae-chan, and for everyone…
akane の tea house:
Liked it? Hate it? Flames? Comments? All are welcomed… Soshite… Review please? Onegai shimasta… Arigatou gosaimasu. =^.^=