More Arai bashing… It's not that I don't like the guy, but he's such a jerk sometimes.
I apologize for the constant use of cliché plot lines, but I'm not really creative. -_-()
Also, I'm sorry if the tennis makes no sense. I have but a superficial knowledge of tennis.
I'll see if I could add more Kaidoh. Honestly, I'm not sure how to do it. He usually doesn't talk much unless he's mad, but I don't think he's the type to get into a fight with a girl. He's too traditional and sweet for that. ^_^
About JAC – I made that up, or at least I think I did, so if it was confusing, it was because I didn't bother to really plan it out. Sorry!
About the team finding about Ryoma's history – since they still haven't found out in either the manga or anime, I'm not planning to let them find out.
Thank you for the reviews!!
Text note: In Taka-san's dialog, italicized words are in English (Engrish).
This was just not Arai's day, was it? First he gets rejected by the girl he's been eyeing for a while. Then he has a huge scene with some punk-ass kid, and that kid that he had come so close to hitting turned out to be a girl. Then the worst thing of all: everyone knew and was talking about it. No, it really wasn't Arai's day.
Well, of course Arai had to apologize. He couldn't let the regulars think that he was such a bad guy that he'd pick on a girl. Luckily, Aya was right there, watching the practice with Kikumaru, Momo, Fuji, and Kawamura.
"Aya-kun?"
Aya turned around to face the boy that had threatened her not more than a couple of hours ago. Being the perfect tactful gentlemen they were, the regulars all turned around to listen in.
"Yes?" Aya said cautiously as she folded her arms in front of her. Momo she was willing to forgive, but this guy... she was still a little peeved about what had happened earlier that day.
"Uh… Sorry for my behavior before," Arai muttered quickly.
"Okay," she said with no change in her expression.
Arai's eyebrow twitched. He knew what he had to do, but he didn't really expect this reaction. What is with that attitude? His temper got the better of him, and he said through gritted teeth, "That's it? You don't have anything to say about your behavior?"
Aya raised an eyebrow at him. "My behavior?"
"Yes. I wouldn't have gotten so angry at you if you hadn't been so rude!"
"I was being rude?"
"Yes! You should have just answered me when I asked you who you were! Instead you acted like a punk!"
"You just came up to me and started yelling! How was I supposed to act?"
Arai started to say something, but held himself. He was here to apologize, not create another scene. "Look, I'm not here to pick a fight. I just wanted to apologize."
"Fine, apology accepted." She turned back around.
Arai knew it looked bad; he couldn't let it end like that. He took a deep breath. He needed to do this; if he makes it onto the team, he can't be on the regulars' bad sides.
"You played pretty well," Arai dug. "For a girl, I mean."
Aya turned around slowly to face the boy and took a step forward. "'For a girl'? What do you mean 'for a girl'?"
For any normal person, her tone of voice would have brought to mind big flashing caution signs and loud, annoying alarms. Arai, however, wasn't exactly normal, so he snickered. "Well, you know, you're a girl."
"Naw, really, genius. Did you just realize that?" She paused; her brows knitted. "Oh wait, you did." She gave a sight shake of her head. "So, I'm a girl, and?"
"Oh, come on. We all know that boys are more athletic than girls. It's nature."
Aya huffed out a laugh. "Oh really? We all know that, do we?"
"Shouldn't we stop this?" Taka-san whispered to Fuji.
"Maa, not yet."
"You just want to see what happens, don't you?" Kikumaru asked his classmate.
Fuji turned to him and flashed him a smile.
Momo stayed out of the exchange between his sempais, but he had to admit to himself, he was curious too.
Aya paid no attention to the chatter behind her. "You think that just because I'm a girl and you're a boy, you're automatically better than me?"
"Che, that goes without being said."
"I hate it when people tell me I have to be a certain way because I'm a girl. I get enough of that at home; I'm not going to take it at school," she said in a near-growl. "I'll give you a chance to put your money where your mouth is."
"You're kidding, right? I'm not going to play a girl."
"Scared you can't live up to your boasts?" Aya took the hair elastic from her wrist and tied her hair up. "Does this help?" She walked over to her tennis bag and took out her hat. Tucking in every loose strand of hair, she turned back to Arai. "You thought I was a boy, right?"
"See! I told you she looked like a boy," Momo whispered to Kikumaru.
"Shhh, Momo!" the redhead retorted. "This is getting good!"
"You are not serious," Arai said incredulously.
"I am completely serious."
"Ara, Aya-kun" Taka-san interjected nervously. "There's no need to make such a big deal out of this. I'm sure he didn't mean it that way."
"Here, Taka-san," Eiji grinned as he handed the taller boy the nearest tennis racket.
"AHHHHH, I'm BUUUUURRRRRRNNNNNIIINNNNGGGG!!! Very, very BURNING!!"
'What the hell?' Aya took a step back and stared wide-eyed at the boy spewing out a lot of nonsensical English.
"You!!!" Taka-san pointed the racket at Arai. "Are you backing down from a challenge? You scared that a girl will beat you?!? Are you a coward?? FIGHT!"
"Damn it," Arai muttered under his breath.
Still in his burning mode, Taka-san put his arm around Aya's shoulders. "Hora, hora, GIRLIE, you're going to let him insult you like that, are you?!?? KICK HIS ASS!!!!!"
Aya pulled away slightly from the boy who was emitting a strange aura. "Um, sure," she said nervously, looking at him suspiciously.
"YEAH, BABYYYYYYYY!!!!!"
Oh lord, what's going on over there? Oishi sighed. He was tempted to look over at the commotion, but he can't afford to lose his attention when it comes to Echizen – he'll probably end up getting hit in the face. I'll deal with them later.
The free regulars, Arai's friends, and the first-years gathered around the court to watch.
"Rough or smooth?"
"I'll just let you serve. Don't want people to say that I was picking on you."
"Oh, you are so kind," Aya replied, rolling her eyes.
Several minutes later….
"It looks bad for Aya-sempai," Katsuo remarked as another of Arai's shots hit just beyond Aya's reach.
"Game, Arai. Three games to none! Change court!"
"Why don't you just give up now?" Arai grin smugly.
"She doesn't stand a chance," Horio proclaimed to the others. "Arai-sempai is too strong for her. It's over."
"Mada mada dane."
"Ryoma-kun!" Kachiro exclaimed. "What do you mean?" he asked the figure who had already arrived at his usual tree.
"It means you shouldn't count her out yet."
"Inui-sempai!" the three shouted in unison to the tall figure who had suddenly appeared behind them. "What do you mean?"
Inui opened up his notebook and adjusted his glasses. "Elizabeth Ayazumi Tsuyoshi, second year, right-handed. She became a regular on the girls' team only ten days after enrolling in Seigaku, replacing a third-year regular. Singles 2 in her first match for the team, she won 6-0. She is now considered the girls' team's number 1, after beating their captain twice."
"Amazing, as expected from Inui-sempai!" one of the first-years cried out.
"Inui-sempai, I didn't know you collected data on the girls' team," Momo said.
"I don't."
"Then how did you find out that information?"
"Ahhh," Inui pointed to a redhead with pigtails standing several feet away.
Kaidoh sulked past the commotion. That idiot Arai was actually gloating about beating a girl. How pathetic, and he calls himself a man? "Che." He leaned against a tree, folded his arms, and pretended not to watch.
"Our girl's in trouble. You think she can pull it out?" Kikumaru asked no one in particular.
In lieu of a response, Fuji's smile deepened.
"What's going on here?" Oishi asked as he stepped up next to the line of regulars.
Taka-san quickly caught him up to the events that led to the current situation.
"And you guys are just standing here watching? Why didn't you guys prevent this from happening?!" Oishi said. "I have to stop this before any more damage is done."
"No, let it continue. She's not going to be satisfied to have the game end now. Besides, we should see how well she plays," Ryusaki-sensei responded from behind him. She was glad she just happened to be passing by at the right moment. She had heard about this "catch" from Kuroko-sensei, and she wanted to see her in action herself. Besides, not that she'd say it out loud, but, as someone who's heard "you're a girl" a few too many times, she was rooting for the girl. "You worry too much, Oishi."
Kikumaru coughed; the cough sounded suspiciously like "okaasan". It was followed by Momo and Fuji clasping their hands over their mouths, trying to hide their giggling. Even Taka-san and Ryusaki-sensei was smiling strangely as they tried to retain their composure. Oishi glared at his partner, who shot him a huge sheepish grin. Looking at that face, how could Oishi, or anyone for that matter, not forgive him? He let out a long sigh.
Aya fingered the strings on her racket. "You know," she began. "You have a long reach. I've gotten too used to playing people with short reaches." She looked at him. "But that's okay, because your technique is sloppy."
A few shots later, "Game, Tsuyoshi. One game to three!"
"She broke Arai-sempai's serve!"
Several shots more, "Game, Tsuyoshi. Two games to three!"
Then, "Game, Tsuyoshi. Three games all!"
"She's caught up!"
--------------------------
"Five games to three, Tsuyoshi service game."
Arai returned her serve. Even though he hated to, he had to admit that it was not looking good for him. Her shots were faster and harder than they were in the beginning, and more balls were hit to his bad side.
Aya returned his return with a shot straight down the line opposite from him. He never had a chance of reaching it.
"40-30!"
"She's at match point! All she needs to do is win this point!"
Aya bounced the ball as she got ready to serve.
"Watch, her skirt rides way up when she serves. Too bad she's wearing those shorts," said an unabashedly loud boy standing at the side of the court.
"Her legs are nice," chuckled his companion.
Aya's eye twitched. Maybe Arai's not the most annoying person in the club…
"They're okay, but the rest of her is…" and then in a mocking tone "'mada mada dane'." The boys laughed raucously. The two screamed and fell backwards when they were caught unawares by the tennis ball that flew towards them. They stared in horror at the ball caught in the metal fence.
She glared at them with narrowed eyes. "Oops," she said, the words dripping with insincerity.
"Fault!"
"She just threw away the first serve at match point!" came from a random voice in the crowd that had gathered to watch.
"Yare, yare, our girl's got quite a temper," Kikumaru remarked.
Fuji chuckled.
"This is getting boring," Aya said as she threw the ball up into the air. Jumping up, she smashed it just right into the inside corner, sending it flying past Arai, who, in anticipation of a safe, shallow serve, was standing far inside the baseline, towards the outside.
"Game, Tsuyoshi."
"A no-touch ace!" Kachiro cried.
"That was one lucky shot…" Horio said. "Right?"
"Ah, no," Inui answered. "It was a risky move though. That type of serve has a 73% rate of faulting. It must be hit with a high speed and pinpoint precision. Two and a half centimeters to either the side or the back, and she would have double-faulted. To risk going to deuce, she must have been very confident."
"It was a lucky shot," Aya smirked at them as she walked towards the net. When she arrived, without an expression on her face, she held out her hand to the figure who still had yet to budge.
Arai just stared for a second before he grudgingly followed suit and grunted as he took her outstretched hand. Have to be gracious, have to be gracious. Damn, I lost to a girl?! I lost 6 games in a row?? What kind of idiot goes for a second serve like that? And how the hell did she hit that shot anyway?!? Must be gracious. Deep breaths, everyone is watching. Must be good sport.
The two made their way off the court. She couldn't put her finger on it, but Aya wasn't quite satisfied. It was a win; a sloppy game, maybe, but it was still a win. Something was bothering her.
"Tsuyoshi! Arai!"
Aya cringed at the stinging yell. As the rest of the club looked on, she and Arai turned to face an uncharacteristically angry acting-captain.
He glared at them. "What you two did was against the rules," he stated. I will not tolerate those who break the rules. Oishi would have never thought it possible, but he was itching to use Tezuka's line on them. However, he didn't. He sighed as he rubbed his temples. "Since this is your first day, Tsuyoshi, I will be lenient. Make sure this never happens again!"
"Hai," Arai said with a small bow. That was lucky…
"Oishi-sempai," Aya started. "The punishment you would have given… what was it?"
"Why?" He narrowed his eyes at her.
She just looked at him.
Oishi looked in surprise at her expectant face. His brows knitted as he fished for a suitable sentence. "Fine, 20 laps around the courts."
She nodded and began, whispering a small "Thanks" as she jogged past him.
"You too, Arai." Tezuka would make everyone else run too.
"But-"
"Would you rather do 25?" But I'm not Tezuka.
Arai gritted his teeth and starting running. Damned idiot. What the hell did she do that for?
Aya looked at Arai wheezing, out of breath, as the two ran out their punishment. Now she was satisfied.
"Oishi-sempai?" a voice called as Oishi walked out of the locker room.
"Huh? Oh, Aya-kun. What's the matter?"
"Uh, I just wanted to apologize for what happened earlier. I'm sorry I lost my temper and --"
"It's okay," Oishi interrupted. "I'm sorry that some of our members are giving you such a hard time. They're really not that bad. They're just not used to having a girl around."
"'Hard time'?" Aya laughed. "No, today was fun. I already feel more like a part of this team than my own team. Now that's a hard time."
This perplexed Oishi, "Huh?"
"Ahh, it's nothing," she said evasively. "Again, I'm sorry. I really do appreciate the chance to play with you guys." She turned to leave.
"Aya-kun!" Aya turned around. "Don't let it happen again."
A smile crept over Aya's face. "Sure thing. Goodbye… MINNA-SAN."
Oishi spun around to find that Echizen, Fuji, Momo, and Kikumaru had been listening behind him, the latter two with the most obnoxious grins ever plastered on their faces. Even Echizen seemed to be wearing a smirk. Only Fuji looked normal, but, of course, that meant smiling and unreadable.
"What?" Oishi with beads of sweat formed on his head as the two leered at him, a blush developing on his face.
"Oishi," Kikumaru said in a matter-of-fact voice, "it's nothing to be embarrassed about! I mean, you are at the time where you'll start noticing girls…"
Momo chimed in, "Ahh, to be young again."
"Momo, I'm older than you."
"Oh right," Momo brought his hand up to the back of his head and smiled sheepishly.
Kikumaru wrapped his arm around his partner's neck, then let himself hang from his arm. "It's okay, Oishi, you can admit it. We're all friends here."
My head, it hurts. "Eiji…" Oishi said softly, causing the redhead to look up at him. "Will you two stop being so immature?" Oishi almost yelled, earning another of Eiji's pouts. "I was just talking to her!"
"Suuuuuuure…."
The situation seemed to be heading beyond amusing into downright dangerous. Oishi was reaching his boiling point. The vein in the forehead of normally calm, calculating half of the Golden Pair looked as though it were about to pop. "She is an intriguing person," Fuji interjected.
"Heh?" Kikumaru and Momo's attentions turned to the tensai. Kikumaru pried himself off of his doubles partner to move closer to his classmate.
"You're interested in Aya, Fuji-sempai?" Momo asked incredulously.
"Interested?" Fuji said innocently.
Oishi looked at the smiling boy, glad that the attention was off of him. He needed this second to calm down. Thanks Fuji.
"This looks bad, Momo. This is turning into a love triangle," Eiji whispered to his partner-in-crime.
"Hmm," came a female voice behind them, catching them off guard.
The two boys spun around. "Aya! How long have you been standing back there?"
Not answering them, the girl positioned herself in the middle of the group. Looking at the two rascals of the team, she asked, "Whom do I make a cuter couple with? Fuji-sempai?" She linked arms with the smiling Fuji. "Or Oishi-sempai?" Still connected to Fuji, she then swayed towards Oishi and linked up with him, causing a deep blush to spread on his face.
"Fuji," Kikumaru blurted out immediately. Oops.
Momo looked over at Eiji for a moment. That's strange, he thought. He was sure that Kikumaru would name his partner. Fuji was not as fun to tease as Oishi was. Fuji seemed to take everything in stride, smiling off things that could cause even fluster the ever-levelheaded Tezuka. Plus, he could be downright scary sometimes. Picking him pretty much just killed the fun.
"Really, I think she looks better with Oishi-sempai…" Momo said.
"You're right, Momo. Oishi and Aya do look cute together. But Oishi, you could lose your girlfriend to Fuji if you don't declare your true feelings." Kikumaru waved his finger at Oishi.
"Eiji!"
"It's okay, Oishi-sempai. We have no need for words," she said dramatically.
"Aya!"
She lowered her head and started giggling. Hearing the redhead and boy with spiky hair laughing, she looked back up and stopped suddenly.
"What's wrong?" Kikumaru asked, then turned to trace her line of sight. At the end, he caught sight of three girls staring at them and whispering to each other. Their malicious expressions disappeared when they saw that the boys were looking at them. The group of tennis players could hear their squealing as they walked away.
Aya unhooked herself from the two boys. "Oh great, just what I need. Another group of girls wishing for my death," she muttered.
"Huh?!?" three of the boys exclaimed.
Aya smiled at them. "Nevermind. It's not important. I should get going now." She started to walk off.
"Did you forget something, Aya-kun?"
"Huh? Oh yeah! You guys are such bad influences; I almost forgot why I came back in the first place. Thanks for reminding me, Fuji-sempai." Aya turned to the first-year in the cap. "Ryoma, my mother told me to ask you to tell your mother that she said 'hi', and that she hopes they can get together when she comes to visit."
"Usu."
A/N: Um, I'm not sure I spelled the last word right. It's supposed to be the word that Kabaji always answers Atobe with.
XD I'm not pairing her up with Oishi (I haven't really decided if she is going to be paired up at all). I just wanted to have Kikumaru tease Oishi again. ^_^
Next chapter: First run-in with Inui's juice XD.