"Laughing Matters"

-a Tennis no Oujisama fan-fiction by Calliope-

Chapter Six: Falling Down

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Message: three chapters up in a matter of minutes... that's speedy-quickie for me, heehhe. Well, this is it for now, I'll post the last three chapters when I get back from my trip! See you all later! R&R if yah can! VAI!

Summery: Eiji has found himself torn, between his new best friend, and the one person who has always been their for him. Confused and feeling like he can't have both - overcome with guilt and wishing there was something he could do - Eiji has to find a way to sort things out before he loses them both!

Warnings: shounen-ai, language, etc. EijiXOishi, EijiXJirou

(Disclaimer: as much as I wish it wasn't true - none of these characters belong to me. TT sadness)

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Six days had passed, the freshmen had taken over the club room cleaning duties again, and he was only one day away from being aloud to leave his house again, but Eiji couldn't be certain just how much he cared if he could or not. None of his teammates had bothered him yet, about how quiet he was being, or about how he left so promptly after practice. He assumed that Oishi had, in his good nature, told them what had happened, and not to bother him. He was like that - he even looked out for people he was mad at.

It was raining that day, but not hard enough to hinder practice, so the tennis club members were out in their jackets swinging away at the rain as it fell on them. Eiji felt listless as the rain soaked ball made thick, heavy, clopping sounds against the court, rather then it's usual happy thlipping. Even the weather seemed to be against him. His hair hung heavily around his face, and he had to push it out of his eyes ever minute to keep from losing sight of his target. Fuji offered to play him, but he was in just as bad a shape, with his long bangs hanging in his line of sight, even worse then usual.

Even the Regulars were playing especially shitty games, and you could tell by the short way people were talking to one another that everyone was getting irritated. But a hush fell over the far corner of the court, and the freshmen began to whisper and point, making everyone's eyes fall in the same direction.

"It's a spy!" Eiji heard one of the freshmen exclaim, and he finally turned his attention to the back corner of the court.

Standing in the wet, muddy grass outside the fence around the court, was a tall, thin, boy, with dusty, shaggy-cut hair, soaked from head to toe despite his heavy jersey. His familiar colored jacket made everyone stop; a spy indeed - a Hyotei regular. Eiji's racket fell from his hand and clattered against the court.

"Jirou."

Eiji went wide eyed all of a sudden, fumbling and laughing nervously as he noticed everyone had looked at him suddenly, and bent down to pick it up. He bit his lip and wondered for a moment wether or not he should go talk to him, but, he couldn't resist. He ran across the court, his wet sneakers splashing across the wet surface.

"Oy! Everyone! Pay attention to your games!" Eiji heard Oishi's voice call from behind him, as everyone was no doubt watching him as he walked up to the Hyotei rival.

"Jirou, why are you here?" Eiji whispered to him, when he got up to the fence.

"How else was I gonna get to see you?" he smiled, as he tried to push his rain soaked hair out of his face.

"Hehehe! Idiot!" Eiji laughed, genuinely happy to see him.

"Hehe, everyone's staring at us." Jirou snickered, leaning his forehead against the chain-link as he clutched at it with his fingers.

"Hoy hoy," Eiji stuck out his tongue, "let em stair, I don't care."

"I bet they think we're swapping team secrets or something."

"No - we're swapping spit." Eiji corrected him, far too nonchalantly for the subject. To which Jirou promptly covered his mouth with his hand to keep his rather hysterical laughter from drawing attention. Six days in exile had made Eiji a little bitter, and he was about ready to just start yelling to the world, just to get out some of the energy he'd been boxing up in his attempt to prolonge his own sulking.

Eiji looked back over his shoulder; Oishi was watching them tentatively, and when their eyes met they both quickly looked away.

"Think you'll get in trouble?" Jirou asked, noticing the uneasy way Eiji looked away from him.

"I'm already in trouble, what's it matter?" Eiji smiled, turning his eyes back up to him as the rain continued to run down his face. He linked his fingers into the same links and Jirou's and shook his head with a smile. "Still, I'd better get back, Fuji'll wanna finish our game."

"Ehhh! Fuji!? You're so lucky you get to practice with him all the time!!!" he exclaimed.

"Geeze Jirou, if you like him so much, why aren't you here to bother HIM." Eiji questioned him sarcastically.

"Hey hey, none of that!"

"Hehehe! Anyways! Gota go! I'm glad you came though." he grinned at him, tapping his fingers on the back of Jirou's hands threw the fence.

"See you Eiji."

"Just one more day!" he called back at him, waving as he crossed back onto the court.

"Ehhh? What's this?" Momoshiro commented, as Eiji skipped back over, seemingly revitalized by his little visit.

"Chehhh?"

"You given away our secrets or somethin Kikumaru-sempai!" Momoshiro geered him, prodding at him in the shoulder with his racket.

"No, not at all! Just talkin with a friend! Is that such a crime?"

"Friend?! From Hyotei!?" He exclaimed, sounding totally disgusted.

"YESSSSS!" Eiji stuck out his tongue at him, promptly ending that little debte.

Eiji rubbed his arm stiffly as Momoshiro walked away; he'd done his best not to flinch, but even a light touch from his racket hurt enormously. The bruise Eiji had gotten as a result of taking Jirou's serve directly in the shoulder the other day had completely covered his skin with a huge purple and blue welt far larger the tennis ball itself.

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As practice came to a close that day, the sky really opened up - raining like it hadn't in nearly a month - coming down in sheets and filling the roadsides till it was nearly ankle deep. Popping open his umbrella, Eiji stepped out of the club house and into the storm. Everyone had scattered like cockroaches the minute the downpour had began, and the grounds were feeling especially desolate.

He sighed to himself, and shook his head, slugging his heavy tennis bag over his right shoulder, and carrying his umbrella with the same hand. His left shoulder was hurting to badly, as not long after Momoshiro had been poking at him with his racket, he'd turned around during his game with Fuji and taken the ball in the same place yet again.

He whimpered as he stepped out into the storm, the rain sounding heavily off of his umbrella, as he headed slowly for home. He hadn't even reached the gates before he heard someone calling to him threw the downpour. Turning around he saw Oishi running after him, he felt his teeth clench and his stomach drop, and he contemplated running away, but - there was no point. He knew he'd have to face him sooner or later.

"Oishi -" Eiji muttered, when he caught up to him.

"Eiji - I" he had to stop and catch his breath, "I needed to talk to you."

"Yeah?" he said, as if he weren't expecting it, "Don't suppose we could walk at the same time - I don't really want to stand in the rain." Eiji pointed out, hoping that maybe they could reach his house before they had a chance to discuss much.

"Of course." he nodded, and they walked off the school grounds and into the rain washed streets.

"So - what did you want?" Eiji asked nervously, trying to be calm, not knowing wether to play oblivious or not. His mind was racing trying to decide wether to be mad or upset, or just act like nothing was wrong.

"It's about your arm." he said, catching Eiji a little off guard, as he was expect something different.

"My arm?"

"Yeah, I should have known something was wrong when you were warming up, you weren't swinging normally."

"Eh - really?" he hadn't even noticed himself.

"Yeah, and then Momoshiro hit you with his racket, and you could see it on your face - that you were in pain."

"Could you really?" Eiji was rather amazed, thinking he'd hid it so well.

"Yeah - I mean, I was - well, worried."

"Oishi," Eiji's tone became a little irritated; as it was, after all, Oishi's worrying about him that essentially started his whole problem, "you don't have to get all uppity every time something happens to me - it's not like you're my mother."

"But, I'm just -"

"Worried! I know!" Eiji rolled his eyes, "Well quit worrying I'm fine! It's nothing!"

"Does this look like nothing to you!?" he shouted at Eiji, pulling back on the collar of his jacket to expose the huge bruise underneath his shirt.

Eiji quickly smacked Oishi's hand away from him, dropping his umbrella.

"If I say it's nothing - then it's nothing!" he yelled at him.

"You're being stupid Eiji!"

"Aren't I ALWAYS!" Eiji retorted angrily, never bothering to pick up his umbrella again.

"Come on, would you please just -" Oishi tried to keep calm, but Eiji wouldn't hear it.

"Is that all you wanted!?" the upset and now trembling, red-head, yelled at him. "You're just worried about some stupid injury!?!"

"Well yeah - I"

"Hehehe!" Eiji laughed cruely, "And here I was thinkin' you'd be mad at me for having outside visitors or some shit like that!"

"If you expect me to get up at you about Akutagawa -"

"So you're not mad at me then?!" Eiji kept on shouting.

"No! WHY!? Should I be!? Sure you were a total JERK to me but hey - what more can I expect from someone who's 'always being stupid'!" he shouted back at him, throwing his own words at him.

"I guess not a lot!"

"Apparently not!" the two went on shouting at one another, in the downpour, Eiji getting more and more soaked by the minute.

"Fuck! Sometimes I wish you'd just...!"

"Just WHAT Eiji?!"

"Fuck if I know!" he was just yelling for the sake of yelling now, and he didn't even know why.

"If you'd just calm down a minute maybe you'd see theirs NOTHING to be upset about!" Oishi just went on yelling back at him, neither one able to keep their cool.

"Nothing?!? Nothing!? EXCUSE ME Oishi - but I AM upset! And I can be if I want to!"

"Then go ahead and be! I have no reason to!"

"Fuck, no probably not! What do you care!?! I only fuckin kissed the guy!"

Eiji hands went to his mouth the second the words left it, as though he'd even startled himself by hearing it.

"You... what?" Oishi asked, looking completely stunned, as though someone had just hit him upside the head with a tennis racket.

Eiji just shook his head, his eyes wide with impending tears, and his hands still covering his mouth to keep himself from saying anything else stupid.

"Eiji..." Oishi murmured, reaching out to him - but Eiji stepped back, just shaking his head. Turning his back on him Eiji took off down the road at a dead run, his feet pounding the street as fast as they would take him. He could feel himself slip over and over but he just kept on going.

"EIJI! WAIT!" he could vaguely hear Oishi's voice calling out to him threw the rain. But he didn't turn back, he just kept on running.

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(To be continued)