Disclaimer: I don't own Prince of Tennis/Tennis n Ohjisama.


Fuji looked out the window, watching as several floors below the tennis club practiced. A tournament in two weeks. He could see the regulars on A-court, their skill leaving the rest of the club in the dust. But the one he was looking for wasn't playing. Wasn't watching.

Wasn't even in the country.

He had classroom duty today, so he had an excuse for being late-- and besides, it wasn't as if Oishi would really make him run laps; Oishi didn't know any better --but he knew he should hurry and finish his work and get down to the clubhouse. He may be a prodigy, but practice never hurt anyone. But Fuji couldn't help but miss Tezuka.

Even if there wasn't anything he could do about it.

He had memories dated back as far as they had known each other of Tezuka saying 'No,' of giving him a look, of not replying. Fuji cringed when he thought of the day Tezuka left for Germany, because he had no memory of that day. Nothing remarkable at all. He had been at home.

And Tezuka had boarded the plane. Not even a last memory or a final goodbye. His ever-passive way of re-iterating his 'No.'