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Just Between the Two of Us
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As soon as they got out of the court, Eiji caught up with Momo. "Momo, did something happen to Ochibi-chan? His returns were so weird -nya." He asked, his expression torn between that of curiosity and concern.
"I don't know. Echizen wouldn't tell me anything, but I'm sure there's something going on." Momo answered gravely.
"So it's not just Tezuka, eh…?" Oishi muttered to himself.
"Eh?"
Both Eiji and Momo turned to Oishi. It was only then that the vice-captain noticed he must've voiced his musings out loud.
"What do you mean, Oishi-senpai?" Momo tugged on his sleeve.
"What's Tezuka got to do with this, Oishi?" Eiji tugged on the other one.
"Ah, no… It's just that, Tezuka seemed like he wasn't himself today." Oishi sighed. Those two, he mused, weren't the type to say anything even if there was something wrong. At this rate, he wouldn't know how to help them if there really was a problem.
Oishi snapped out of his thoughts when he heard someone talking as they neared the club room.
"Hoi? That's Fuji's voice." Eiji walked closer and reached for the doorknob. But he stopped and didn't turn it to open the door.
"Eiji?" Oishi looked at his doubles partner questioningly.
"Shhh…" Eiji pressed his index finger to his lips. "I know this voice… I don't hear it often but I'm pretty sure Fuji's a bit angry right now. He sounds so serious -nya…" He bit his lower lip.
Oishi moved closer to Eiji and started listening in too. He frowned.
"You don't look so well."
That was Fuji. Oishi mused that Eiji was right. This wasn't the usual way Fuji talked. This Fuji sounded different. He sounded a little upset.
"It's nothing. I just didn't get enough sleep."
That was Ryoma, and Oishi noted that he sounded a bit tired.
"It's not 'just'. What would you do if you got hurt because you weren't focused enough? You could've…"
"Oishi! Oishi!" Eiji whispered.
Oishi looked around and saw Eiji waving at him from the club room window, where Momo, Inui, Taka-san, and even Kaidoh were all huddled around.
"You… you guys…" He walked towards them. "Don't you think this is a bad idea?"
"No, it's not!" Eiji shook his head vehemently. "We have to know what's going on if we want to help them nya!"
"Sou sou!" Momo nodded eagerly.
Oishi sighed. Arguing with these two often meant being on the losing side. Finally caving in, he went along and peered inside as well.
---
Since the door was locked, neither of the two occupants in the club room expected that there'd be people eavesdropping on their conversation. Consequently, they didn't notice the people peering through the gap between the curtains.
"Morning practices are over. You know you'll have to change after practice. People will see it. It's inevitable." Fuji's tone wasn't stern, but was still unmistakably chiding.
"You said it yourself. It's inevitable. If they see, then that's it. I'm more worried about how troublesome it would be to keep explaining to every person who asks."
Fuji walked closer to Ryoma, gazing down at him with such gentle eyes.
"If you really wanted to do it that much, why didn't you come to me instead? I… I would've never hurt you."
Fuji's hand moved towards Ryoma's face, but Ryoma held his wrist before he could touch him.
"That's precisely why I chose Buchou. You're…" Ryoma shifted uncomfortably. "You're too lenient."
Fuji looked surprised for a moment. Then he chuckled. "Don't you mean 'gentle'? Ryoma, you know I could never hurt you."
Ryoma looked away, tugging his cap down. But Fuji caught his hand and took it away from his cap, before swiftly taking the cap off Ryoma's head. He then held the boy's chin and tilted his head upwards, taking a closer look at his face.
"Does it still hurt?" He asked, looking straight into Ryoma's eyes.
Ryoma looked away, unable to bear the intensity of the other's piercing blue gaze. "Not at all."
Fuji held his cheeks and tried to maintain their eye contact. "Look at me in the eye and tell me."
"A little." Ryoma scowled. But after seeing that Fuji's face no longer had a bright smile, he sighed. "It's just hard during the first time. Buchou said I'll get used to it. Besides…" He smirked. "I'm a fast learner."
Fuji sighed then let go of Ryoma.
"I suppose it's okay for you, isn't it? After all, even if it hurts, it's still Tezuka's mark. And as long as it's from Tezuka, it'll make you happy. You respect him that much."
Fuji walked away then started packing up his things.
Neither one spoke until he was done. He then zipped his bag close before turning to Ryoma with a bright smile on his face.
"It's okay, I understand. But don't force yourself too much, okay? I don't know what I might do to Tezuka if something happens to you."
Without another word, they strode towards the door and exited the club room.
---
After hearing such a conversation, no one could possibly imagine how hard it was for Oishi to be in the same class as Tezuka. It was not until the bell signaling the end of the last class had rung that he realized that for the whole day, he had unconsciously- or perhaps subconsciously- been avoiding his best friend. Oishi sighed. He couldn't help it. It just felt too… awkward.
"Oishi."
"AH!" Oishi jumped when he felt a hand on his shoulder.
Tezuka blinked at him. "It's time for practice."
Oishi grinned lopsidedly. "R… right. I'm on cleaning duty so, uh, I'll follow right after. See you during practice."
Tezuka looked as if he was about to ask something, but seemed to have decided to change his mind and simply nodded. "All right. See you there."
Oishi released a breath he hadn't known he had been holding in.
The conversation with Tezuka was short and even casual, but somehow, his cheeks felt very hot the entire time. He wondered how red his face must've been.
---
It was somewhat quiet all over, so Momo grinned brightly when he saw that the club room door was still closed. "Oh-ho! Looks like I'm first!" He proudly adjusted the tennis bag slung on his shoulder.
"Think again, idiot." Kaidoh hissed. He was leaning on the wall just right beside the window. His tennis bag was next to him and was resting against the wall as well.
"What are you doing out here, Mamushi? Why don't you go in?"
Said Mamushi hissed.
"Look inside first." He stepped a bit farther from the window to give way to Momo. "Let me see you dare to try to go in."
Momo noted with amusement that the Mamushi's face turned beet red. He shrugged and walked towards the window then took a peek.
Not even five seconds passed before Momo swiftly turned away and was blushing himself. "You're right." He gulped. "There's no way we can possibly go in."
"Hoi? Watcha doin' out here, nya?" Eiji blinked at them curiously.
"Ah, erm that is…"
"Well, you see…"
Momo and Kaidoh spoke at the same time, and since they were mumbling incoherently, it made what they were saying hard to understand.
Eiji tilted his head to the side. And then he noticed that the two of them were pointing to the window in between their words, so he stepped between them and looked inside as well.
Eiji's eyes widened, then he started sniggering uncontrollably.
This reaction stunned both second years.
"Eiji? Momo and Kaidoh too. Why haven't you guys changed yet? Practice will be starting soon." Oishi, who had just arrived, strode towards them.
"Um, Oishi-senpai, it's because…" Momo started.
"Inside…" Kaidoh followed.
"Who… Who would've thought…" Eiji spoke between giggles. "Tezuka… Ochibi… In the club room… Where anyone could walk in…"
Upon hearing Tezuka and Echizen's names, Oishi's eyes became so wide it looked as though they were about to fall off their sockets. At that, Eiji bent over and fell into a laughing fit, holding his stomach.
"Those two… In here, of all places." Oishi felt his face heat up, but then Fuji's voice started ringing in his ears.
/"You don't look so well."./
/"It's not 'just'. What would you do if you got hurt because you weren't focused enough? You could've…"/
/"But I suppose it's okay for you, isn't it? After all, even if it hurts, it's still Tezuka's mark. And as long as it's from Tezuka, it'll make you happy. You respect him that much."/
Oishi took a deep breath and clenched his fists. He had made up his mind. Tezuka was his best friend, but Echizen was also his responsibility. So even if it meant meddling into other people's business, he wouldn't allow Tezuka to hurt their youngest regular. Definitely not! Not even if Echizen himself consented to it.
With a determined look in his eyes, he walked towards the door and turned the knob, and to his surprise, it wasn't locked. When he had opened the door halfway, he immediately heard Tezuka and Echizen's voices.
"Buchou… someone might walk in."
Oishi mused that Ryoma sounded like he was in pain.
"I might have been too rough. I'll try to be gentler next time."
Tezuka's voice, on the other hand, sounded apologetic. "For now, take it off."
"Buchou… please, not here."
"No. It has to be now."
Oishi couldn't take it anymore. He fully opened the door and stormed in, shortly followed by Eiji and the others. Right in front of their eyes, Tezuka was sitting on the lone bench inside the club room. In front of him, sitting dangerously close, was undoubtedly Echizen, white cap slung on his right knee.
As if finally sensing their presence, Ryoma pulled away. "See? I told you not to do it here."
"But I wasn't able to do it this morning. If I don't do it now..."
"Tezuka." Oishi began talking breathlessly. "I… I know I don't have the right to interfere in your private matters. But if… if you're going to do something like this, at least do it in the appropriate place. And… please refrain from hurting Echizen. He's still just a child. To do something like that so roughly is…"
"Oishi-senpai." Ryoma interjected. "Please don't blame Buchou. I'm at fault too." He quietly explained, before turning to Tezuka with an angry scowl. "How come he knows?" He asked, surprising everyone in the room. Seeing their smallest member speak to the Tezuka Kunimitsu with a scolding tone was a strange site indeed. "I thought we agreed to keep it a secret?"
Tezuka then turned to Oishi, looking sternly at the Vice Captain. "I'd like to know that as well. I don't remember telling anyone about it."
"Ah, well…" Oishi looked down, face very red.
Tense silence engulfed them, which was broken only when the door opened once more and Fuji, Inui and Taka-san came in.
Fuji was the first one to speak. "Ara, what's with the strange atmosphere? Did something happen?"
"No reaction. Looks like Fuji's right." Inui declared, adjusting his thick, square glasses.
"Buchou, just tell them." Everyone turned to Ryoma who had just put his cap on, the making the shadow of the brim conceal his eyes.
Tezuka turned back to him. "Are you all right with this?"
Ryoma didn't answer. Tezuka took his silence as a yes. A very reluctant yes.
"As some of you may already know, I spent the night at Echizen's house. We wanted to keep this a secret, mainly for Echizen's sake. But somehow, word has gotten out beyond our control. All I ask is, please, don't let this go beyond the four walls of this room. Let us who are here right now be the only ones to know. All right?"
The regulars looked at each other. Then they nodded with a quiet chorus of "Hai."
"Wait. " Oishi took a readying breath then walked towards Tezuka and Ryoma. "Just one more question. Tezuka, Echizen, are you happy with each other?"
Tezuka and Ryoma looked at each other. Then blinked. And blinked.
"Happy, you say… Oishi-senpai, what does that have to do with our kanji lesson last night?"
"Kanji?" Everyone else's jaws dropped.
"Last night… you were teaching him how to write kanji, Tezuka?" Oishi asked, looking thoroughly confused.
"Aa. It even took us all night long. Why do you look so surprised? Weren't we talking about it just now?" Tezuka looked at Oishi with an equally baffled expression.
"But… So, wait, just now, what were you two doing?" Oishi answered Tezuka's question with another one of his own.
"Ah, that. I was applying ointment on his forehead." Tezuka, though still not getting where this was all heading to, decided to answer anyway. "I already did so last night, but I forgot to do it this morning in my haste to come to school on time. And so I insisted to do it as soon as I saw him in the club room, or else the marks might leave a scar."
"Scar…?" Oishi looked more confused than ever.
Ryoma took off his cap. He raised the shorter strands framing his delicate face to show his forehead. "Five swats. We agreed that each time I write or read a kanji wrong, he'll swat my forehead five times. I'll learn faster that way."
"He was too embarrassed to ask for help." Fuji added helpfully. "He actually didn't want to let anyone know that he still doesn't know much about kanji. After all, he grew up in America and only knows Japanese mainly from conversing with his parents at home. When I found out about it, I even offered to teach him myself." Then he sighed theatrically. "But he still chose Tezuka."
"So that's what it was…" Tense laughter escaped Oishi's lips. The rest of the regulars shortly followed. Eiji and Momo laughed the loudest.
Laughter filled the room before Tezuka silenced them with a cough. "I believe we've delayed practice long enough." He stood up, then continued with a commanding voice. "Change into your jerseys quickly and run laps for warm up."
"Uiisu!" The others replied enthusiastically.
After changing, the regulars one by one filed out of the club room and headed for the tennis courts.
Oishi was the last one to leave, still feeling very embarrassed about such thoughts he harbored on his best friend and their youngest regular. Besides, he said so himself. Ryoma was still just a child.
He shook his head, smiling. He'll make it up to them somehow.
As he closed the door behind him, he suddenly remembered a part of Fuji and Ryoma's conversation they had heard earlier.
/"Ryoma, you know I could never hurt you."/
Was he the only one who noticed?
When did Fuji start calling Echizen by his first name?
Disclaimers: Tennis no Oujisama is Komomi-sensei's. Just as Ryoma is very much Fuji's (smirk)
A/N: What kind of idiot would post an April Fool's fic when it's already May? Oo;;