Walking on the moon, cloning, nuclear experiments, men think they've been there, done that. Che, when are they going to do something that's they actually need? Sure, they think they're all that, but how come they mess up some of the most straightforward things?
"Ohayo Kamio-kun!" An beamed up at him, tucking her newly cut hair behind her ears.
"Ohayo An-chan!" Kamio smiled shyly, "You look…nice today."
"Sankyuu!" She grabbed his arm playfully, "Let's hurry or we'll be late for practice!"
Thwap-(insert whatever noise there is when a ball is hit really hard)
"Tachibana six games to two!" An shook hands with her opponent and skipped out of the court.
"Nice game An-chan!" Kamio praised.
"Yes, you're getting quite good." Shinji muttered, "Tachibana-san is going to have to watch out or else you'll beat him. The girls' tennis club is improving greatly, even though they have so few members. Having such few people to practice will slow down your progress. Is that why you always go to the street tennis courts? Or is it because Kamio is always there?"
"Are you getting sick An-chan?" Kamio asked concernedly, "You face is all red."
"Iie, iie, I'm fine!" An waved it aside.
"Ano…Tachibana-san?" Sakurai shuffled his feet nervously, "I have something to ask you."
"What is it Sakurai? Is it about the homework?"
"Iie, I…ano…there's this girl see…" He mumbled.
"It's not An is it?" An aura of brotherly protectiveness flared dangerously, he stood in front of his smaller sister.
"Iie, iie! This girl, she's been smiling at me for a while, and…ano…I was wondering if I should ask her out!"
"Of course!" Tachibana, obviously, had no more experience with girls other than his mother and sister, "As long as it's not An." An smacked for forehead, this just screamed disaster. Call it a woman's intuition.
"Ne nii-san? Isn't that Sakurai-kun over there?" An pointed to a curled up shadow in a corner.
"What's wrong Sakurai? Haven't you asked that girl out yet?" Tachibana asked.
"It turns out it wasn't me that she was interested in." Sakurai moaned. An rolled her eyes, didn't she already mention before that it wasn't going to work?
"Who was it than?"
On the other side of the window they were standing next to…
"Mori-kun!" A pretty blond girl all but pounced on the tall boy. "Are you going to eat lunch now?"
"Huh? Ah, hai." Mori was looking confused.
"Ano…" She traced a toe in the dirt, "Do you want to eat with me?"
"Ah…gomen, demo, I always eat with the other tennis club members." He scratched his head sheepishly, "Kondou, the baseball captain, looks like he's not with his team. Why don't you ask him? Ja!" He walked off.
"Argghh!" Sakurai clutched his temples, "Mori just blew off the girl that I embarrassed myself in front of!"
"Minna-san!" Mori walked over.
"Yo," Ishida and Uchimura sat down, "What was Kimura talking with you about?"
"Kimura? Ah, she asked if I wanted to eat lunch with her." Mori opened his bentou, "I think she got bored with her friends."
"An! Why are you knocking your head against the wall?" Kamio and Shinji slouched down beside everyone else.
"Tetsu-kun!" A bunch of girls waved furiously from the roof, "Konnichiwa!"
"Hmm?" Ishida looked up lazily, "Yo!" The girls burst into fits of giggles. "Is there something on my face or what?"
"Don't mind them." Tachibana said, "The food is getting cold."
"Pssshhht…girls." Uchimura scoffed, "With the exception of you of course An-chan!"
"I think that blond girl likes you Kamio," Ishida commented during after school practice, "She keeps on glancing in your direction.
"Ah, you mean Moriyama?" Kamio squinted, "I thought she was watching Tachibana-san. 'sides, she's not the one I'm interested in."
"I just beat the girls' buchou!" An grinned, she hugged Kamio, "Where's 'nii-san?" She wandered off, leaving behind a red faced Kamio.
"Aahh, I wish An-chan would give me a sign whether she liked me or not." He muttered to himself, not aware that An was right behind him.
'Wahhh! Kamio-kun is so stupid!'
An was beyond frustrated. Because she was raised to be a polite and modest girl, she stopped herself from screaming at the object or objects of her aggravation. Instead, she accepted an invitation to sugary, calorie filled confections and rich coffee.
"What has the ever cake done to you?" Yoshiko asked, stirring her drink, "Ever consider anger management?"
"Nani?" An looked down at what was left of a delicate strawberries and cream cake. "Oh, sorry." She stabbed a berry, "I hate men."
"Join the club." Miyu said sardonically. She was Yukimura's younger sister; all three of them had met at the hospital two years ago. Since all three of them had older brothers, two of them being captains of their respective school's tennis team, they hit it ff immediately. "We don't need men, not while we have chocolate." She scooped up a forkful of chocolate fondue.
"Why is it that the only girl friends I have are all man-haters?" Yoshiko asked, "Kinda ironic isn't it? Since we mostly have guy friends."
"Meh, what's not to hate?" An pointed out.
"Heh, you're just bitter because your wonderful Akira-kun is thicker than a block of wood when it comes to girls, specifically you." Miyu chuckled, "Even if he wasn't, your brother would probably beat him within an inch of his life if he even looked at you the wrong way. I say, unless you ask him out yourself, you're screwed."
"Shut up!" An groan.
"You're not making the situation any better Miyu-chan." Yoshiko scolded, "Besides, you have a very protective brother too you know."
"Yeah, yeah." Miyu waved her off.
"Girls! Back to my problem here!" An complained.
"Of course princess, tell us what happened." Yoshiko soothed.
After listening to her recap of her day, Miyu and Yoshiko burst out laughing. "They're worst than my brother and his friends!"
"Who's worst than Yukimura and Rikkai Dai?" Tachibana's voice suddenly cut in.
"Nii-san!" "Tachibana-san! And everyone else too."
"Saa, since you're all here. We're going to tell you a few things. Sit, sit!" Miyu gestured to a row of benches placed conveniently nearby. She paced back and forth like a lecturing professor. "Girls, women, are generally more modest than guys. So, instead of saying anything outright, they use a discreet but simple body language to communicate."
"Miyu-chan?" Yoshiko interrupted, "I don't think they understand what you're saying." It was true, most of them, which was everyone except for Shinij, Tachibana and Kamio had a glazed look in their eyes. "Let me try."
She whipped out a small pointer out with a flick of her wrist. "Just, because a girl looks in your direction does not mean that she is interested in you. Neither does smiling, passing by your locker or acknowledging you in the halls count unless it is done excessively." Her pointer hovered dangerously close to Ishida's nose like a rapier.
"Any giggling, whispering, blushing and or fainting that is triggered by your name or presence is a sign that they have an interest in you. Physical displays of affection are most likely the most certain hint that she likes you. Invitations to lunch or other extra curricular activities can be either done in admiration or awareness. Not all compliments given are meant to attract you; they maybe just respect you or your skills."
"All in all, don't over think things, but don't assume either. Use your head, if you can't accomplish that, just ask another girl, preferably An, for advice." She plopped down in her chair, "I think that went fairly well."
"That sounded a bit too well Yoshiko-chan." Miyu commented, "I think you broke them." The boys were staring at the space where she was previously occupying, all that was missing was the drool.
Yoshiko shrugged, "I gave the same speech to the St. Rudolph guys." She finished her milk, "You wouldn't believe how innocent the are."
Still looking dazed, Tachibana stood up, "I think we should get going now." The guys all hurried out the door with a few hasty farewells.
And what did Fudomine learn? Absolutely nothing, but at least now they know that if they have girl problems, they should ask a girl.
Dark Nadeshiko- Review!