Bokura no Kokoro de
Disclaimer: If you would believe it, I don't own Tenipuri
Summary: "Why do we have so many people who hate to lose on our team?" It's not that Seigaku can't be defeated. Seigaku refuses to be defeated, in and outside of their own team.
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Bokura no Kokoro De
Part One: Chapter Three First Disruptions
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Out of the twenty freshmen who had joined the tennis club that year, only six remained by the beginning of the second week. Takahashi should have expected it, but he was still irked at the fact that there would be so little people to pass the club to after both he and Yamato graduated.
However, the six who remained were beyond his expectations. They were all determined players and hated to lose to anyone. When the freshmen had been given permission to have a little free time, they immediately took up the two remaining free courts and started their own matches. It was as if discipline had already been beaten into them.
"Those six are going to be great," he told Yamato in an after-club meeting. "I haven't seen such disciplined first years before."
"Yes, they're really good," Yamato agreed with a smile. He watched the subjects in question clear up the tennis courts. "It's a good harvest this year."
"Even though they have doubled the pressure because the other freshmen have dropped out, they don't seem to mind at all. It's amazing that they can keep up with the juniors and seniors."
A bout of laughter reached them as Kikumaru Eiji's lithe figure started cart wheeling across the court, launching balls at the baskets as he went. Some of the others clapped his performance, before he started to do back flips, all the while still picking up the tennis balls.
"LOOK AT ME!" he said cheerfully.
"Eiji-kun, be careful!" Oishi's worried voice called. "You might injury yourself!"
"Don't be such a worry wart, Oishi!" Eiji cried, laughing. "Look, I'm a pro! I won't hurt . . ."
He collapsed on the ground like a dead weight. Oishi ran over, worried, while the others dropped their things to see what was wrong. After a lot of worried yells for the teacher later, the redhead sat back up again with a mischievous grin.
"FOOLED YOU!" he crowed.
"Eiji-kun, you . . ." Oishi flushed. "THAT WASN'T FUNNY!"
"Was so! You should have seen your face!"
"Oi!"
The two captains of the club watched as Oishi got up to chase Eiji around the court. Their classmates watched on, holding various brooms, baskets and armfuls of nets. Yamato smiled.
"A fruitful harvest indeed."
XXX
Inui rarely gave up the opportunity to gather data. But he also rarely gave up the chance to test out his data, especially when it proved so fascinating. And he wasn't talking about Kikumaru, Oishi or Kawamura. Their data was unique, yes, but so easy to read. He wasn't even talking about Tezuka, because, though his data was easy to read as well, the other boy continually surpassed them. Tezuka was frustrating, but Fuji was intriguing.
The golden-haired teen was always smiling, always cheerful, but he wasn't naïve as he led people to think. His moves were calculated and precise, planned to fail and never going wrong. He had successfully convinced even the captain and the coach that he was just an ordinary teen. Inui wasn't stupid and he would have been deeply offended if Fuji thought he could trick him as well.
He sought out the boy during break time, in the second week, to tell him that he wasn't stupid.
"I know your game, Fuji-kun," he said without preamble.
"What game?" Fuji asked innocently. He had a smile on his face, which was marred by slight surprise. A mockery, Inui thought. "You really shouldn't be so evasive, Inui-kun, otherwise people will get confused."
"And you should stop thinking you can make a fool out of everyone."
"Is there something you would like to say, Inui-kun?"
"I'm onto you, Fuji-kun." He pushed his glasses further up the bridge of his nose while staring the shorter boy down. "I know about you and your past. You can't hide from it."
Fuji smiled at him as he left, wondering what on earth Inui was talking about. He really had no idea. His friends and teachers used to tell him that too, back in Chiba, but he had always thought that they were all in on some joke he didn't know about. He, frankly, did not find it very funny.
As he turned away from the door, his eyes met Tezuka's. The dark depths of the other's eyes, separated by thin lenses, bore into his. He had heard the conversation. Fuji smiled again at him and went back to his book.
XXX
"It's against the rules, Yamato."
"Such things are made to be broken, Touya-kun."
Yamato twirled the pen in his fingers idly, chin propped up on his other hand as he surveyed his vice behind his spectacles. They were classmates who spent too much time together. Takahashi glared at him. Obviously spending too much time together was rotting his tolerance of the captain into dissatisfaction.
"You know you can't let freshmen play actual matches until the second semester! Think about what the others will say!"
"Capabilities are not meant to be wasted on basics."
"And rank is not to be pulled because you have it!" Takahashi retorted. "It will severely damage relationships within the club members if you allow this!"
"A tear can be mended."
"Stop playing favourites, Yamato!"
"What's going on here?"
They both turned around to face Ryuzaki-sensei, who was glaring at them from the doorway. They remained silent even as they got to their feet and bowed to her politely. Takahashi was still fuming.
"I asked a favour of Yamato," Ryuzaki-sensei told the vice. "I wanted the freshman, Tezuka Kunimitsu, tested for his abilities. Rest assured, Yamato has already told me that he will give it a shot, but if Tezuka fails even once, then the plan will be discarded."
Takahashi was forced to give way. He couldn't go against the coach's orders, but that didn't mean he was willing to do it. Ryuzaki-sensei saw how angry he was and her gaze softened.
"Give it some time, Takahashi," she said. "Tezuka will probably surprise you."
"He's just a freshman, sensei."
"Ah, but one who led his team to win the Nationals last year."
He gaped at her, speechless. Yamato dropped his pen with a soft 'oh', and then bent to pick it up again. When he straightened, Takahashi's expression had changed into one of realisation and he was no longer as angry.
"Sumimasen," he apologised. "I didn't know."
"No hard feelings, ne?" Ryuzaki-sensei assured him.
"No hard feelings."
XXX
"GATHER AROUND!"
The club members scrambled towards the coach bench, where Ryuzaki-sensei and the two captains were standing. The Regulars were standing in a line at the front, the third and second years behind them, while the six freshmen lingered at the back.
"A new system will be implemented from this day on," the coach announced. "Every week, two freshmen will be selected to practice with the second and third years. This is to test them on their tennis abilities, to make them strong enough to support Seigaku once the club is given into their hands."
Murmurings burst forth like water escaping from a dam. The second and third years who weren't Regulars were unimpressed by this new system. They hadn't been given the chance when they were freshmen, so why should this year be any different? The Regulars shrugged, not really caring, as they had a separate training menu to the others and so this didn't affect them.
The freshmen, meanwhile, looked a little brighter. Picking up balls and sweeping the courts weren't exactly very appealing to them. Especially those who had been on their junior high teams and found the basics very dull compared to actual matches.
"The first two freshmen," Ryuzaki-sensei called, "are Tezuka and Oishi."
"Yay! Oishi, you get to play!" Eiji said happily, hugging his friend's shoulder. "That's so cool!"
Fuji congratulated Tezuka with a smile and a nod, but the bespectacled boy gave him an icy look. The other boy's eyes opened in slight shock, but didn't get a chance to say anything before Tezuka turned away again. Fuji stared at the back of his head continually, ignoring what the coach was saying, and wondering why on earth Tezuka was being so cold to him.
"Dismissed!"
"The two selected freshmen please make your way towards the junior and senior courts!" Takahashi called. "Regulars to courts A and B with Yamato! Other freshmen prepare to pick up balls!"
"Hai!"
"Tezuka-kun, matte," Fuji said, grabbing hold of the other's elbow.
"What do you want?" Tezuka asked curtly.
"Is there anything wrong?" Fuji looked worried. "You look angry."
"You of all people should know." Tezuka pried his hand off his arm. "I don't like people playing dumb."
He walked off, leaving Fuji lost and confused. What did he mean 'playing dumb'? Eiji pounced onto his back, startling him out of his thoughts.
"Nya, Fuji-kun, what happened there? Tezuka-kun looked really pissed off."
"Iya, betsuni," Fuji replied, laughing it off. "We just had a little difference in views, that's all."
"Oh . . . well, come on then! Let's go!"
The redhead dragged his friend along to the other courts, hardly noticing that Fuji wasn't paying attention to his ramblings. Instead, he was acutely aware of a dark stare piercing through his back, following his every movement. He then realised that what the people back in Chiba talked about wasn't a joke. There was something wrong with him, something that even Inui and Tezuka knew, but he did not.
What's wrong with me? He wondered silently, staring at the ground. Why does everyone seem to think I'm pretending?
XXX
The second years didn't welcome Tezuka and Oishi into their practice as warmly as the third years. This was already putting aside the fact that the third years weren't exactly thrilled to have them either. First on the agenda was smash practices, and some of the more daring juniors asked loudly if Tezuka and Oishi even knew what a smash was.
"Be quiet you two!" Takahashi barked at them.
Even though the vice captain was in the same grade, the juniors respected him and fell silent. They often didn't mind when Takahashi pulled rank on them, he was that well liked. The smash practice started with Takahashi lobbing balls from one end of the court and the two on the other side taking it in turns to smash them back.
"Tezuka! Oishi! You're up first!"
"Heh, let's see what the freshmen are made of," a junior, the one who had insulted them before, sneered.
"Tezuka ready?" Takahashi called, ignoring him.
"Hai."
The vice captain lobbed it easily, keeping his eyes close on Tezuka's calm figure. The freshmen was watching the ball carefully, not moving a muscle. Suddenly, he disappeared from the ground and was seen somewhere in the air, bringing his arm down in a powerful smash.
The ball landed neatly back into the basket just as he landed on his feet again.
"Sugoi, Tezuka-kun!" Eiji shouted from the other court. He and the others had stopped what they were doing to watch their classmates play. "Did you see that Fuji-kun? That was awesome!"
"Ah."
Fuji looked at the bespectacled boy with open eyes. He had never seen the former chugaku National Champion in play before. When Eiji had told him, in detail, Tezuka's achievements, Fuji had believed them – but actually seeing it was something totally different.
Tezuka looked right back at him haughtily, as if in challenge. Taken aback, Fuji could only stare back, unable to move. The other players had also stopped to watch, and were currently mumbling and muttering amongst themselves about Tezuka's amazing display of control.
"Excellent!" Takahashi called, breaking the silence as he grabbed another ball from the basket. "Wake up! Oishi, it's your turn!"
"H-Hai!" the green-eyed boy stammered, nervously positioning himself.
XXX
When smash practice was over, Takahashi called out the matches. Some were going to play in doubles and others in singles, depending on who he thought suited those best. Oishi was put into doubles with a second-year senpai and Tezuka in singles, against another second year. Takahashi didn't doubt their abilities, but he wanted to test them against all kinds of opponents.
"Satoshi versus Tezuka! Best of one game match!" the umpire called, sitting in the high seat. "Satoshi to serve!"
"Let's see how good you are in a real match, freshman!" Satoshi sneered, throwing the ball up into the air. He served it over the net with a resounding THWACK.
Tezuka was calm, as he always was, and returned it effortlessly. Undaunted, Satoshi ran to the far corner and hit it back with as much force as he could muster with his unstable footing. Already guessing that it wouldn't be a cross shot, Tezuka was already waiting for him on the other side.
"Love-Fifteen!"
"That was just luck, wasn't it?" a second-year whispered. "There's no way a freshman like him could score so easily."
"I don't know," he friend replied doubtfully, "he seems so fast."
The second-year attacked his opponent aggressively, slamming each ball with all his strength, regardless of control. He double-faulted, giving Tezuka yet another point. On his next serve, Tezuka retaliated with a return ace, making the score love-forty his way. The other second-years began yelling at their classmate.
"Oi, Satoshi! You aren't gonna lose to a freshman, are you?"
"Shut up!" Satoshi screamed. He glared wildly at Tezuka, who stood opposite him. "You little brat! You're going to pay for making a fool of me!"
"Stop it right there."
Yamato-buchou stood at the open gates with Takahashi. The vice-captain was glaring daggers at Satoshi, who was still seething. Tezuka lowered his racquet calmly, not speaking.
"The only person making a fool of you is yourself, Satoshi," Takahashi informed his classmate. "And by this display, you are losing face for the second-years."
"Takahashi! You're not taking the brat's side in this, are you?" Satoshi whirled around to face his vice-captain. "It's not right! Why do they get to participate in practices with us, when they're still freshmen? We had to earn to right to play and it took us a whole year! It's not fair!"
"Now, now," Yamato interrupted his voice cheerful. "Let's not damage friendships when tennis is supposed to be fun! Why don't you run ten laps around the courts to cool off?"
"Hai, buchou," Satoshi grumbled. He threw another glare in Tezuka's direction, before jogging past the captain to start his laps.
"Tezuka-kun, minna, let's all run these ten laps. That way, we won't lose to Satoshi in terms of stamina training."
XXX
The rest of the week went by almost normally, except for the fact that Satoshi had taken Tezuka and all the freshmen as enemies. He got Kawamura into trouble with the seniors, thereby earning the shy teen after-club duties of sweeping the courts and packing away the equipment after everyone had left. Eiji was particularly annoyed, since he had fallen victim to one of these schemes too, and had come out of it with a scraped knee.
"I got in trouble for tripping, stepping on a senpai's racquet and knocking over the ball cart!" he grumbled to Fuji. "I was pushed, I tell you! And now I'm bleeding and have ten laps to run before afternoon practice!"
Tezuka was picked on the most, however, even though he didn't have a word of complaint. He was forced to join Kawamura with the court clean-up duties for the whole week, because he had been 'caught slacking off during practice'. All the freshmen knew that Tezuka slacking off during practice was impossible and resented the fact that the senpai would think of such lame excuses to get him into trouble.
"It's unfair," Oishi said, examining Eiji's knee carefully. "Maybe we should tell Takahashi-fukubuchou and ask him to do something about it. It's not infected, Eiji-kun, but you should keep the bandaid on until it stops bleeding. Then take it off and give it some air, so it can heal faster."
"Thanks, Oishi!"
"Takahashi-senpai wouldn't be able to do much," Inui commented. "He's a second-year himself, even if he's vice captain. The third-year senpais won't react well to his instructions."
"We can't let them walk all over us!" Eiji exclaimed.
"Take it like a man, Kikumaru-kun," Inui replied. He pushed his glasses further up the bridge of his nose. "Like Tezuka-kun. He hasn't complained once and he gets punished the most out of us all."
"Where is he, anyway?"
Tezuka was no where in sight. Fuji walked to the window and peered out at the tennis courts. There was a lone figure in the middle of the courts, surrounded by balls, as well as a large broom. The golden-haired boy turned to his friends.
"He's at the tennis courts, at clean-up duty. The senpai-tachi have been making more mess than usual." His eyes opened. "Let's go help him."
XXX
Translation Notes:
Matte – wait
Iya – no (casual), horrible
Betsuni – nothing much, nothing really
Sugoi – wow, amazing
I'm using less and less new vocab, aren't I? Oh well, that means less translation notes and more . . . um . . . author's notes?
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