Ace!

Class 11 – Humility
part 01

"Coach.. tell us again why we're on a boat… and not a plane," Akizuki said as he leaned over and released his lunch. Coach glared at the figure, then at his other players.

"It's cheaper you morons. Any idea how much the entrance fees to all those tourneys cost," he taunted, "Come on, tell me!"

Sakura's eyes widened and she bit her lip in worry. Coach… wasn't cursing. In fact, in the entire trip not one explicative left his mouth. She side glanced at Syaoran, who wore his same devil may care expression. Her other teammates (save Akizuki) seemed to be normal as well. Could Coach be worried about this tourney?

Their last tourneys had gone well… sure, they skimmed by the edges of their teeth on some, but in the end they won. That was the point, right? Sure, this time they were up against one of the top schools in the nation, and these last two matches would be the most important of them all…

And they were undefeated, just like the other top two schools. The second school in the nation would be next… Sakura's stomach flip flopped in anticipation.

She breathed in an out, letting the sea air calm her. "Excited," Eriol asked, and she nodded. He chuckled. "I think we all are… even Coach."

Sakura arched an eyebrow. "I think he's worried."

Eriol shook his head. "He's excited - that's why he's not normal. When he's worried he works us twenty times as hard. But we're not doing pushups on deck or pull-ups off the edge, are we?" Sakura nodded and returned to her breathing exercise.

"Hey Mom, I'm about to play one of the most important matches in my life. Cheer me on, okay," she thought silently and did a quick stretch. The closer they got, the antsier she got. The others looked the same, each wanting something to occupy their energies.

Perhaps a workout would do them good after all. Sakura started the workout, doing suicide runs across the deck. The people under her must have been annoyed, but they didn't matter. They weren't about to play one of the most important tennis matches of their lives.

Eriol joined her next, and the two started a racing competition which drew Hideki in. Akizuki didn't join, preferring to keep his sickness at bay, and Syaoran busied himself by doing pushups, sit ups, and other strength exercises. Coach watched them with pride. The last team that willingly worked themselves before a match had been the school's ultimate 'dream team' with players that went on to dominate the tennis scene for decades.

He knew it – this team had that little something that the former teams lacked. Not that the former teams were bad – far from it – but this team had the something that would make them not just great, but legends. He felt a little bit of pride knowing that he would be able to shape them in the most important time of their development.

As he watched them work out, he thought about the match lineup.

Sakura collapsed after running non stop for an hour. Hideki followed, but Eriol kept moving, easily racing back and forth across the deck. Sakura watched him with admiration. No matter what Eriol did, he had a way of making it look graceful and natural.

"He's unreal," Hideki gasped, staring at Eriol in horror, "Some kinda machine or demon…"

Sakura shook her head. "I think that's more Syaoran-kun's style." Hideki turned his gaze to Syaoran, who was doing one handed pushups, sweat dripping from his hair onto the deck. He wrinkled his nose in distaste. Sakura sighed and massaged her sore muscles. How could they still go on? Was it a difference between boys and girls? "I'll surpass them," she thought, determination filling her and replacing the pain. She stood, walked next to Syaoran, and dropped down to do pushups in time with him.

He side glanced at her, impressed, before returning his concentration to his own training. The two did this for the next hour, mimicking each other in perfect time, switching from pushups to sit ups to pull ups to shuffle sprints…

Coach watched the two roommates with a curious eye. He could make those two a doubles team – they already matched each other's rhythm perfectly – but the two had not trained doubles together before. Syaoran was also their second strongest singles player, and they would need him to win. But Kira would not be a strong singles player – her net game suited doubles. He sighed and looked down at his paper. If Syaoran and Kira would be put in doubles then Akizuki and Hideki would be forced to play singles. He looked at Hideki, heaving, and decided his stamina wouldn't be enough. Akizuki would need nutrition replacement when they reached the hotel – barfing nonstop for the entire trip taxed his reserves… Losing the doubles match would be alright as long as the singles players won all their matches.

Knowing Maisha though, she had more than one trick up her sleeve. "It's just like her to put her top two singles players as doubles partners," he groaned, "But she'd also do the same with her two worst." He crumpled up the paper with the lineup and threw it into the sea. "Damned woman," he muttered before starting the lineup anew.

"I feel like I'm going to die," Sakura moaned and collapsed on the bunk.

Syaoran half laughed. "I'm impressed you could keep up with me though."

"Barely. I wanted to fall over and die countless times. But I had my pride," she replied and rolled over to face him. "Did you really have limitless stamina, or were you the same?"

He smirked, "I have limitless stamina."

She glared, "Shut up Superman." Syaoran smiled and shrugged. "I'm still nervous as hell though," she replied, biting her lip. "And Coach still hasn't told us what we'll be playing."

Syaoran shrugged. "It'll probably be like it always is – Eriol, you, and me on singles; Akizuki and Hideki on doubles."

Sakura frowned. "I guess so…but Coach is really nervous about this match too. Did you notice?" Syaoran arched an eyebrow. Sakura chuckled, "No, I suppose not. Once you're in tennis zone it's impossible to get you out of it."

"What's that supposed to mean," he asked with a snort.

"Nothing, nothing. But Coach being uneasy makes me uneasy. He wasn't like this when we played the other top schools, so why now?"

Syaoran shrugged. "Don't worry about it. If anything, we need to worry about Akizuki and Hideki." Sakura cocked her head to the side, confused. "Akizuki's been throwing up since the boat left. He's not going to have any energy and it's unsafe to overfeed him the night before to make up for lost nutrition. As for Hideki… you saw him after you finished running, right? He started after you and Eriol and didn't have enough stamina to last much longer than you did. Not to mention he was breathing harder than you were."

"You noticed all of that," Sakura said dubiously.

Syaoran smirked, "I couldn't resist checking you out while you were running." Sakura blushed and shot a playful glare. He gave a curious glance before rising and walking toward her. Her blush deepened and she cast a nervous face up at him. He leaned forward with an inquisitive stare. Sakura's heart now pumped all her blood directly to her head. For some strange reason, the lack of touching felt worse than the touching. He just had to look her in the eye to get her body tumbling with nervousness.

"Is something wrong," she asked, stuttering. Syaoran cocked his head to the side and brushed a lock of hair behind her ear. "Syaoran?" He didn't reply and leaned forward for a kiss. When his lips met hers, it felt as though a million fireworks blasted in the air above them, masking them in their warm heat. The heat spread from her lips down to her belly where it rested and simmered. Syaoran broke the kiss and stared into her eyes, glazed over with desire.

"We're alone, you know," he said, nudging her with his nose, "The other guys have problems of their own – they won't stop by tonight." Sakura's eyes widened when she realized what he was suggesting. "Do you have any idea how hard it is to hold back? To restrain your desires? I may be Superman, but," he trailed off, kissing her neck lightly.

Wait. This felt familiar. "Am I dreaming," she asked and pinched herself.

Syaoran laughed and shook his head. "Doing this makes me feel better."

"I-is that so," Sakura replied, hissing as he nibbled her earlobe, "B-but-"

"Hush," Syaoran ordered, and she clamped her mouth shut. Syaoran explored every curve of her face with his lips, fingertips, tongue… Whatever tension she had melted away at his touch.

"Syaoran," she sighed before he claimed her lips. She liked this new, gentler side of Syaoran. Every touch felt so soft… even his kinder kisses had a rough feel to them, but now, everything was feather soft… He suddenly turned her away and kissed the back of her neck as his hands massaged her back roughly. The contrasting sensations of his light kisses and rough hands drove her body insane. She moaned softly, much to Syaoran's enjoyment.

"Do that again," he whispered in her ear, voice thick with desire.

Sakura blushed and shook her head in embarrassment. "I," she squeaked, then blushed again out of the lack of control in her voice. Syaoran's hands slid up and down, around in circles, rubbing her tension away… Sakura thanked the gods she didn't wear her vest so she could feel his hands keenly.

His kisses traveled up and down her neck, sucking, nipping, occasionally letting his rough side emerge. Sakura's body turned to jell-o. Her breathing quickened as his hands moved protectively around her stomach in an embrace, kissing her lips with a restrained passion.

She stared into his chocolate eyes, curious as to why his style of kissing changed. He seemed to understand her question, because he said, "If I break my self control, I can't guarantee I won't force you." The words stopped her heart. Never had a guy said he wanted her like that. Syaoran pulled her close to him, nearly squeezing her insides out. He stopped kissing and just held her like that, breathing in her scent.

They stayed like that, relishing the heartbeat of each other.

Syaoran woke first, feeling refreshed. The slept in an embrace, bodies close and arms wrapped tight the entire night. Fortunately he woke before someone barged in – catching them together would be a bad thing. Not just because Sakura didn't have her vest on (he could see her delicate mounds when she sat up), but also because he didn't want to be removed from being Sakura's roommate. If Eriol or the others spent a night with her… Well, not only would they have her sleepwalking to contend with, but the fact that she was a girl would get obvious quickly.

Sakura sighed sleepily and snuggled closer to him. He cringed and arched his body away. The last thing he needed was her screaming over his morning partial erection. He doubted she understood it was a normal morning process. Besides, the last thing he needed was her sexy wiggles over his body. Lately his lust had been starting to consume him, and he didn't want to hurt her or force her into anything.

Hell, he didn't want to force himself into anything. She was still a girl, she could get pregnant, and then they'd both be screwed. As if on cue, Sakura entangled her legs with his and pressed her body against him. Her soft and steady breaths created a wonderful warm/cool sensation. "Dammit," Syaoran hissed. Anymore of this and he would lose what little self control he had. "Sakura," he whispered, tapping her forehead, "Wake up." She groaned and grinded her body against his for added emphasis.

Shite. Every time he attempted to move her, she pressed back against his body with double the force. Her crotch – he realized – lay next to his own, and each time she solidified her position, she rubbed against him. He gripped the sheets and tried to calm himself down. Hormones, that's all it amounted to. Just try and think other thoughts, like the match today…"Dammit Sakura, stop wriggling," he pleaded in his mind, about to lose the self control he prided himself on.

He looked down at her sleeping face accidentally, and lost the shred of dignity left when her pink lips beckoned. He pushed her head up and kissed her, relishing her taste. Sakura's eyes opened in surprise, but she soon melted into her wake-up kiss.

Syaoran kissed her roughly, wanting to devour her entire form that morning. When she moaned and pressed against him, he went over the edge. He was sure she felt his desire, and he didn't care. He didn't care if she didn't want to do it. He didn't care about anything except hearing that sweet voice coo his name as he brought her to heights unknown.

"Syaoran," she said quizzically in between kisses, "What are you," she trailed off as he nibbled on the sensitive area on the center of her neck. She wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned back slightly to give him better access to her hot spot.

Then, abruptly, he stopped. He looked at her, eyes glazed with lust, and started apologizing. She wrinkled her nose, confused. The morning make out session was the nicest thing she ever woke up to. Better than an alarm clock, that's for sure. "It's okay, Syaoran. I don't mind." Syaoran shook his head. She shifted her weight to stabilize herself, and it was then she noticed the source of Syaoran's frustration. She blushed and quickly separated herself from him. He sighed with relief when she moved. "I'm sorry," she said with a squeaky voice. "I-I didn't know and-"

"No, it's my fault," he said and rose. "I'm going to take a cold shower. Be right back."

Sakura frowned as she watched him walk off. He was becoming extremely forward lately. And she too, was close to giving into her desires last night. For the first time in her life, something other than tennis was on her mind. She bit her lip in worry. Tennis came first, not Syaoran. Tennis is first…tennis…not Syaoran…

"Sleep well," Eriol asked when Sakura approached. She nodded. "Good. Akizuki looks horrible. Hideki is starting to resemble him too. Coach is more worried than angry though." Sakura arched an eyebrow. Since when did Coach not get angry over their illnesses? Weakness of mind, he called it. "Where's Syaoran?"

Sakura blushed. "He's... taking a shower." Eriol gave her an inquisitive look before shrugging it off.

"Morning exercises? I'll take it light today. We need to rest once we get on land." Sakura nodded, eager to get her mind off of this morning and last night. She spent the rest of the morning training with Eriol, mind far from the incidents of earlier.

"Oh land, I love thee," Akizuki cried when they got off the ship. He knelt down and kissed it several times before jumping for joy. "So stable…so hard…so wonderful," he continued, dancing around. Syaoran and Coach rolled their eyes, everyone else laughed at his antics. He glared at Coach, "Please say you used the money saved on fare for a nice hotel."

Coach ignored his question and gestured for them to follow him. Now he wasn't talking? "Just what is making him so nervous," Sakura thought with a frown.

The bus ride was short, though she spent most of the time talking to Eriol, afraid to look Syaoran in the eye, even though she sat next to him. Syaoran did the same, talking with Hideki and Akizuki across the seat from him. Coach sat up straight and looked ahead, not saying or doing anything.

They arrived at a small hostel in the middle of the countryside. Sakura beamed with delight. She loved the country. Akizuki did more of his happy dance, and this time Sakura joined him. Coach glared at them and yelled at them to stop, much to Sakura's relief.

They entered to a complete traditional-styled home. Sakura's eyes widened, it looked beautiful. A petite woman in a kimono walked toward them, shuffling her feet so that she looked as though she floated across the room. "Hello Brother. This is your team this year," she said, smiling gently at the boys, "I welcome you to our home. Mother and Father are out at the moment, but they will be home in time for supper," she continued, looking at her brother, "But please make yourselves at home until then."

The boys stared at the girl in shock. She was the complete antithesis of Coach. They looked at Coach, who took on his quiet and awkward persona. "Thanks, sis," he said, running a hand through his hair. "We'll do that."

"Thank you, Sister," she corrected, frowning. "Father and Mother will not be pleased if such language is used."

"Yeah, yeah, I know," he said, and turned to his team, "Follow me. I'll show you to your rooms."

"The guest rooms are on the second floor," his sister reminded him, "Your room has been moved to the third floor."

"That was insane," Akizuki said as Coach left them to decide what rooms they wanted, "Can you believe a girl like that is related to Coach?"

Eriol chuckled, "I suppose that is why he acted strange all weekend."

"At least we know he's not worried about the match anymore," Sakura said with a sigh.

"That's a relief," Hideki replied. "Well, I call this room," he announced. Eriol opened a door and set his things inside, calling it as well. That left the last room for Sakura and Syaoran. She glanced at him nervously before setting her things inside. Syaoran followed, mechanically unpacking. Sakura followed his motions and left the room to explore the outside.

Eriol knocked on Syaoran's door. He saw Sakura outside while he was looking out the window, so chances were that Syaoran was alone. He opened the door, and arched an eyebrow when he saw Eriol's face. "He's outside," he said and closed the door. Eriol chuckled and knocked again. "What?"

"I need to talk to you." Syaoran frowned and walked to the futon he unrolled. They sat across from each other. "Did you get in a fight with Sakura?"

"No," he replied instantly, then stared at Eriol in shock. "Y-y-you know," he exclaimed in horror.

Eriol smiled, "Yes. Tomoyo told me. Well, she let it slip out accidentally, but I know everything."

Syaoran shook his head, "Does Sakura know you know?"

"No, and I'd like for you to keep that from her."

"Why," Syaoran asked.

"I don't want her to be angry with Tomoyo," he said simply.

Syaoran nodded, relieved. For a second he thought some other motive existed. "It's my fault," he said, "That she's not talking to me."

"What did you do?"

Syaoran groaned, "What haven't I done? This morning I was close to forcing her to have sex. N-not rape," he clarified, "But we're not ready for that sort of thing."

Eriol laughed, "You two are old fashioned. Tomoyo and I have already done that," he said, chuckling.

"A-ah, really? That's good, I guess," he replied, blushing.

"If it bothers you two that much, you should talk about it. Or do it, to get it over with."

Syaoran sighed. "I'm not sure it affects her much. She's a little dense," he said with a small smile, "I'm the bad guy here. This morning I didn't care if I hurt her so long as my own desires were fulfilled."

Eriol shrugged, "I still think you should talk about it. Whether you know it or not, it affects your game."

Syaoran scoffed, "I know that. I'm just a little nervous. I love her, you know." Eriol nodded, urging him to continue, "And it's harder, for me at least, because up until now tennis has been the only thing in my life."

Eriol's corner of his mouth lifted, "She's your first love," he asked, and Syaoran shook his head.

"She's my second love but the first I've done things with. The first love went nowhere," he said with a small laugh.

"And Sakura," Eriol asked.

"I don't know. We never really talked about things like that. Just tennis and everyday stuff."

"Then I think," he said with a bit of authority in his voice, "That you two need to talk before doing anything sexual." Normally things like this would be done in high school, he added to himself. Still, people like Syaoran and Sakura existed? He fought the urge to laugh. They were the first he met that took everything seriously, that's certain.

"Talk? About what," Syaoran said, confused, "And how?"

Eriol sighed. By time he and Syaoran finished their talk, it would be supper time and he would've had no time to rest.

Sakura returned to the house, sleepy. Coach's sister sat in the center of the first room, arranging flowers. Curiosity getting the better of her, she walked over and sat, watching the girl cut and place blooms in a vase. She didn't notice Sakura, or at least ignored her, and worked diligently.

Sakura, obsessed with tennis, never learned how to do girly things like arranging flowers. She watched Coach's sister intently, hoping to learn a bit by watching. When she finished, she looked up and stared at Sakura oddly. "That is the first time one of Brother's players has watched the flowers and not me," she said with an amused tone, though her face betrayed no such emotion.

Sakura then remembered that to everyone but Syaoran, she was a he. She laughed nervously, "The flowers looked more interesting that's all," she replied, and then realized the rudeness of her comment, "Not that you're a boring person, hehe…"

Coach's sister chuckled softly, an airy sound that Sakura knew not how to imitate. "Are you hungry? It is time for supper, I was arranging the centerpiece for the table."

Sakura nodded and stood. "I'll tell the guys," she said, and dashed away.

All but Sakura, Hideki, and Akizuki knew what to do at suppertime. Such mannerisms were not learned by them; and Coach's parents were extremely traditional.

Coach didn't talk during the meal, like his team, for fear of saying something wrong. Instead, the parents discussed politics and the business between themselves. Coach's sister said nothing throughout the meal as well, but took on the role of a server, pouring drinks for everyone and placing the food on their plate. She would not let any of them reciprocate the action for her, and when Sakura attempted to despite her objections, her parents cast such a horrible eye she was fearful of even eating what was placed on her plate.

When they were finally excused to return to their rooms, the odd ones out felt a huge burden lift off their shoulders. Sakura collapsed on her futon, sighing. "I can't believe it. How did you know what to do," she asked Syaoran, who shrugged.

"I grew up like that."

"Oh," Sakura replied, biting her lip. If she ever met his family, she would need to learn how to do that sort of stuff as well… Better ask Tomoyo for advice on how to do such things…assuming she ever got a chance to meet his family…

"It's not that hard," he amended, "I could teach you, if you want," he added abruptly.

Sakura brightened, "Really? Thank you," she said, hugging him. He blushed and hugged her back loosely. "I was worried that I'm not as womanly as the other girls…"

"You're womanly enough," he replied and kissed her forehead. Sakura leaned up for a kiss on the lips, but he put his finger to her and shook his head. "You should know how thin these walls are," he whispered, "I don't want the team to hear you."

Sakura blushed and nodded. He released her and lay down on his futon. She followed and took her position next to him. He lay his arm across her stomach, and they quickly fell asleep, exhausted from the day.

"I have decided on the roster," Coach announced on the bus, "It will be as it always is. Eriol, Syaoran, and Kira on singles, Hideki and Akizuki on doubles."

"Thanks for telling us right before the match, Coach," Akizuki called out, "Was your girlfriend taking up too much of your mind?"

To everyone's shock, Coach blushed and said nothing. Sakura nudged Syaoran, "Is Sakugakuen's coach female?"

Syaoran shrugged. "I guess we'll see when we get there."

Sakugakuen was a small, quaint school, completely the opposite of the modern and sleep Tokodai. Sakura smiled, this would've been a nice school to attend as well. When they got off, the first thing they heard was a high pitched shriek and a loud thud.

Coach lay on the ground, a woman on top of him. "Mikeru-kun," the woman said, "I've missed you!"

"H-hey Ai-chan," he replied, blushing. "I-I've missed you too."

Suddenly Ai slapped him. "That's for not calling or visiting for over three months! Is it so hard to send a reply e-mail too?"

"Ai, we shouldn't talk about this here…"

"Oh bollywocks! It's not like these boys have never seen two adults in a relationship before!"

The team stared at them in shock. "So that's his girlfriend," Akizuki said, "She's a bit like him, don't you think?"

"Somehow I imagined her to be more…"

"…more wild," Hideki finished for Sakura.

As if to counteract Hideki's point, Ai pulled Coach in for a kiss. "You stupid bully," she said after she released him, "We can't see each other when the matches start, you know. How about a quickie in the nurse's office?"

"Ai," Coach interjected in horror. "In private, Ai…"

"Oh bollywocks! It's not like these boys have never had sex before!"

Coach sighed, "Listen Ai, we shouldn't be talking about things like this," he said, dragging her off, "In front of the boys."

"Oh bollywocks," she said and kicked his shin, "I can't believe you're being like this! I should've married that hairdresser, but no I just had to pick my tennis partner!"

Sakura stared at the yellow ball in her hand, then at her opponent. Zero-all, first serve… She breathed in deeply before tossing it in the air and… slam.

Ace baby.

Normally she would be happy about a feat, but her opponent... was snickering? Sakura blinked in confusion before shifting over and serving again. Another ace.

Now the snicker transformed into a smile. Sakura shrugged it off and decided her opponent took delight in losing. Her third serve aced by as well.

"Thirty-love," she said and served…and to her surprise her opponent returned. She didn't have time to react – the ball whizzed by her and into the fence. She turned and looked at the ball wedged into the fence in horror. No possible way a tennis ball could be returned that fast…

Her opponent started laughing at her expense. "Shocked, Love?"

"L-Love," Sakura stuttered, "What are you talking about?"

He chuckled before nodding his head, "Just serve again." Sakura sighed and served, only to have the ball whiz by her faster than she could react.

"Who the hell is he," she muttered in shock.