A/N: Alrighty, a second chapter…I can't believe I'm still going. Anywho, this was an odd one to right simply because; a) I really am bad at righting this fluffy stuff; b) I really have no clue as to what is going on in Ootori's head, I can only go off of what little is shown in the series; c) I had to write this with a big, metal finger brace and bandages galore on my right index finger because I apparently lack the skills necessary for opening a can…But I did manage to put in the Golden Pair. Well, read and enjoy.

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters, I make no money off of this and it always belongs to another person, namely Takeshi Konomi.

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Count on Me

Ring…Ring…Ring…

"Yeah?"

Choutarou smiled at the way his friend answered his phone. He was walking home from practice when he decided to call Shishido.

"Hi, Shishido-san! Are you okay?"

"Wha?…Yeah, I'm fine…Why?...Oh, Choutarou, it's you."

Shishido seemed distracted by something he was working on. Choutarou wondered what it could be. At least he was happy that Shishido was not ill, but part of him then questioned why he would not show up for practice.

"Anou, Shishido-san, why weren't you at practice today?"

"Aww…#$&…"

Choutarou chuckled at his friend's response. Though it was muffled, he could tell Shishido was swearing under his breath.

"What'd his majesty say?"

"Well, let's see…ahem…'Unless he's dying or dead, he better show up or he'll learn the meaning of pain from ore-sama.'"

Choutarou attempted to do his best Keigo impression and to sound as self-important as the captain did. He heard Shishido snort on the other end. He did not know whether it was a result of the actual threat or the fact that he failed miraculously at the impression.

"Serious?…As ridiculous as that sounds, I know Atobe's gonna follow through with that…What'd I miss anyways?"

"Well, we got to run 15 laps around the courts and then played practice matches… You know that Atobe-san is going to make you run. And from the sound of things, make you run a lot."

"#$&…"

Once again, Choutarou could not help but chuckle at the mumbled swearing coming from the other end of the line.

"Ahem…Anyways, who did you play today?"

"Mukahi-san and Oshitari-san."

"You had to play against them both?…How'd that go?"

"Well, we kept tying since I always took service game and they took theirs."

"I see…Forget them, how'd you serve? Did they all go in?"

Choutarou was able to happily reply the affirmative.

"Yup. They even tried to stand towards the right and I still got an ace!"

"Alright! See? Your serve is unbeatable if Mukahi and Oshitari couldn't even get it!"

Shishido-san sounds so happy about that…I'm glad…but still, a part of me wishes he was there to see it himself…

"Hey, Choutarou…Sorry about leaving you alone for practice today."

Choutarou paused for a moment.

"Hello?"

"What? Oh right, sorry about that…anou…Shishido-san? Why weren't you at practice today?"

"Well….I…umm…I had something more important to do…"

"Well…Ah, never mind. I'm glad you're okay though. So I'll see you tomorrow then?"

"Yeah! I mean…yeah. I'll be there tomorrow. Count on it."

"Alright! Goodbye, Shishido-san!"

"Ya, see ya later!"

Choutarou smiled as he ended the call. He continued to walk home, looking at all the decorations in all the store windows. It was the month of February and everybody was busy trying to sell anything related to Valentine's Day. He enjoyed all the pastel colors and all the cheerful ornaments. As he was walking, he began to wonder about what Shishido had said.

"I wonder what was so much more important?…Well, it doesn't matter, he'll be there tomorrow…I wonder what Atobe-san is going to make him do?"

When he was about to turn the corner, he ended up bumping into somebody.

"What? Oh I'm so sorry!"

"Yeah, that's fine, nya…"

Choutarou paused. "Nya"? He looked down and noticed the shorter boy picking himself off the ground. He looked around and then suddenly panicked.

"Waaah! Oh no! Where did it go, nya!"

Choutarou quickly scanned the area around him and noticed a plastic bag nearby. He grabbed the bag and handed it to the other boy.

"It's still here!…Huh? Oh, you're that really fast server from Hyoutei, aren't you? Remember me? Eiji Kikumaru!"

"Of course I remember. How are you doing?"

Choutarou smiled at the shorter boy. He recalled that Eiji was the one who showed off Gakuto in the first matches. The Seigaku regular was energetic as always.

"Great, nya! I was just out shopping…Hey, what do you think about this?"

Eiji rummaged around in his bag and finally pulled out an overly stuffed pink cat. It was obviously meant to look super-deformed due to the gargantuan head and relatively short body. The fur on its stomach was a creamy white that had the words, "Friends for Life" embroidered in red fancy calligraphy.

"Umm…It's cute…"

"I wanted to get a little something that was kind of fun for Oishi. Think he'll like it, nya?"

"If it's Oishi-san, I'm sure he'll like it."

That was the only response he could come up with. He honestly had no idea if Eiji's double partner would enjoy the gift. Choutarou was actually wondering why he was even asking him.

"Thanks, I'm sure he will too. Well, sorry for troubling you! Got to go, nya! Bye bye!"

Choutarou watched as Eiji carefully placed the stuffed animal back into the bag and bounded off towards wherever he was headed.

"He doesn't change at all. While I'm not sure as to the actual gift, it's nice that he's getting something for his friend…I wonder if I should get something for Shishido?…Probably not…Shishido would probably not like that..."

While he continued to ponder about his friend and what would happen if he himself gave Shishido something like that, he almost walked by somebody who was walking towards him.

"Oh…It's Oishi-san…That's somewhat ironic…"

Sure enough, Eiji's doubles partner walked up next to Choutarou.

"Funny seeing you here. How are you doing?"

As always, Oishi was polite as ever. Choutarou wondered if he was looking for Eiji.

"Anou, are you looking for Eiji?"

"What! He's not here is he?"

Oishi quickly scanned the crowds for any sign of his energetic partner. Choutarou remembered why Eiji was out and what he had gotten for Oishi.

"Well, yeah, he was walking that way."

Choutarou pointed to the opposite direction. Oishi sighed in relief.

"Oh, that's good…I got something for him and I don't want him seeing it."

As he was talking, he reached into his tennis bag and pulled out a stuffed animal. This one, unlike the first, was a super-deformed dog. Once again, the head was too large and the body quite out of proportion. The colors were just as pastel as the first with its fur being a creamy white with a crimson stomach. The second similarity was the embroidery in light pink that said, "Friends Forever."

"Oh…How…cute…" Choutarou tried his hardest to seem surprised and/or charmed by the fluffy animal.

"You think so? It's nothing much, just some seasonal fun."

"I think Eiji-san will really like it."

"Ah, thank you and sorry for bothering you with something like this."

"It's not a problem. Bye!"

"Yeah, bye!" Oishi hurriedly put the animal back in his bag, out of sight from public eyes.

Choutarou watched him walk away and head towards what he guessed was home for him. The second year player watched him become smaller and smaller in the distance.

"Well, this had to be the weirdest and most ironic trip home ever."

He smiled at the strange friends known as the Golden Pair. He then began to think about the topic of his paper.

"As strange as they are, those two really are a good example of reliability…I suppose, though, that's why they can be called a Golden Pair…"

Choutarou continued to wonder all the way until he finally reached his home. After entering his house he immediately went to his room to work on his homework. As he was completing some math problems, he heard his door slowly open. Looking down, he noticed his cat squeeze through. It sauntered into the room and gracefully jumped on his bed.

"Hmm, what are you doing in here?"

He got up from his desk and walked over to the bed. He bent over, picked the cat up and sat down on his bed. Choutarou began to gently stoke it and rub behind its ears. The feline could only purr.

"You know…I can't help but think about those stuffed animals today."

His pet looked up at him when he stopped rubbing it. He smiled then grabbed the cat under its forearms and held it out in front of him.

Meow…Meow?

"I wonder what you would look like all pink and overly fluffy?"

Meow?

"I'm sure you would be totally adorable."

Meow!

"Ha ha…Yeah, I know you're adorable already."

Meow! Meow!

Choutarou set his cat back on his bed as he got up to continue to do his work. As he was attempting another math equation, his mind began to wander about the day's events.

"I still don't understand those two stuffed animals…But whatever the case, those two seem to really care about each other. Shishido-san…I wonder what he's doing right now?"

He shook his head and chuckled at himself for being so distracted by the little things of the day. Concentrating on the problem again, he continued to diligently work on his homework until he came to a problem he could not figure out. While he was trying to think the equation out, he began to loose interest.

"I think I'll get something for him…He might not care about it, but there's nothing wrong with getting something for somebody if they're your friend right?…I wonder if Shishido-san thinks of me as a friend…He did, after all, stay that whole night to help me get my serve down, and he's always excited when I'm able to do it right, so that counts, doesn't it?…But, that's just tennis, and he really was repaying me for helping him…Oh, I don't know…I give up…I really need to finish my homework…"

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A/N: Don't we always have to finish our homework:sigh: Well, see, I put in the Golden Pair. Honestly, I really have no idea as to writing about them, so if they seem OOC, I apologize. But I really did try my best…only I just don't know how to write about the Golden Pair as this is the first time I have ever mentioned them…Anyhoo, third chapter coming soon.