DOUBLE STORY

Chapter 9

I'm so sorry to have kept you all waiting! Honto ni sumimasen deshita!
I actually had this more or less written when I posted chapter 8, but wanted to refine it and finish the epilogue as well so it had to wait. It was also near my final presentation and exams so I was extremely stressed out. (I'm done with uni now! Yay. Well, until and unless I take up Masters, that is. eheh.)

This chapter may seem a little rushed, but... Oh well. Just read. I'll explain more at the end. )

Suzume sat in one of the chairs on the veranda, staring out into the garden, trying not to feel so exasperated. Why was it always so tiring to deal with Atobe at times like that? She drummed the fingers of her left hand on the armrest of the chair. Why did she have to be the one to deal with him anyway?

All the same, she had a suspicion that her somewhat accelerated heart rate had less to do with exasperation or frustration than with what he had said before leaving and the grim determination in tone when he had said it.

Her hand phone rang. She looked at the caller ID. Yuushi. Hmph. Do I ever have something to say to you now… She answered the call. "Yes, troublemaker?"

She thought she heard him snicker.

"Well… I was going to ask if you and Atobe had a row of sort some, but judging from that greeting, I don't need to ask anymore," Oshitari said. "He called me a while ago and starting ranting about something or other – I don't really know what. He wasn't exactly making sense. I'm not sure if he was mad at me or at someone else," he added in a wondering tone that said he wasn't wondering at all.

"He was probably mad at you," she said, though she really thought that it was likely a combination of both. "You're practically asking for it. Matter of fact, I'm mad at you too. What were you thinking?"

He chuckled. "I just thought you might be of more help than I would be."

She could practically see the glint in his eyes when he said that.

----------

Tezuka felt in his pockets for his hand phone. It wasn't there. He looked around his car. It wasn't there either. Then he remembered that he'd left it in his room.

On entering his room, he found it exactly where he had left it. Dropped it, actually. It lay on the floor, still open, but in screensaver mode now.

He picked it up and pressed a button to deactivate the screensaver. Fuji's earlier message flashed back onto the screen and he smiled, the events of the night coming back to him. He felt like the past hour or so had been like a sort of hazy dream.

He had been trying to read again in an attempt to forget the ache inside him. Then a message had come from Fuji. Short and sharp, it read: I'm only saying this once. She's not in love with him. Get that through your thick head.

It had taken him a few seconds to process what that implied, but he vaguely recalled dropping the phone after that and almost without thinking, had grabbed the box from his table and dashed out. He had gone to Yumi's without really intending to do anything other than give it to her and maybe see for himself if she could possibly care… But as it had happened, he had said more than he meant to – the words escaped him before he quite knew what he was doing.

Then he remembered the look on her face. The surprise and shock, followed by an expression he couldn't even begin to describe except that it had made him – for that moment at least – happier than anyone in the world.

Subconsciously, he raised his hand to his mouth. Now that part he remembered perfectly well. He could feel it still – the firework-like explosion of the senses when his lips touched hers. He hadn't expected that. Then again, he hadn't known what to expect. All at once it had been strange, sweet, wonderful and overwhelming.

Looking out the window at the crescent moon and few visible stars in the sky, he felt like he suddenly understood what all those songwriters were thinking about when they penned love songs that sang about flying to the moon, starry nights and the like.

----------

The bright white spotlights flared to life over the tennis courts. Atobe strode across to stand in the middle of one side, racquet in hand. He hadn't bothered to change his clothes, and so was still in his shirt and slacks. The servant carrying the basket of tennis balls set it down on the ground near him.

"Is there anything else, Keigo–bocchama?"

"No." He flicked a hand in dismissal. "You may go. Thank you."

He picked up a ball and bounced it several times on the ground. He flung it into the air and with all his might, sent it flying over the net. He didn't care that it didn't hit the ground, but shot straight through the air and into the fencing. He just wanted a vent for the pent-up energy inside him.

Half an hour later, he sat down heavily on the court, breathing hard, and dropped his racquet. He wiped his face with a shirtsleeve. It sure did sting when sweat got into his eyes.

Fed up. That's what he was. Just plain fed up. He had tried everything he knew – short of making her Empress of Japan, which he couldn't do and probably wouldn't have worked anyhow – and still she was stubborn as a mule and as unfeeling as… As… He didn't know what.

The exercise had taken much of the fury out of him, though. At least now he didn't feel like he was going to explode from frustration and annoyance.

But he still wondered uncomfortably: Had he been such a jerk in the past as to have put her off so entirely? So much as to be irredeemable?

----------

"You look tired, Suzume-san," the secretary observed, as she passed some letters to Suzume.

"Ah. Just had a long night. Stuff came up," said Suzume. She had spent quite a while berating Oshitari for being an interfering pest. The most irritating part was that he didn't seem penitent at all, even after her scolding. "I'll be okay."

At that point, Yumi sailed into the studio with a pleasant, "Ohayo!"

Suzume was by no means too preoccupied to fail to notice Yumi's brighter-than-usual tone of voice and oddly serene expression.

"Something good happen?" she queried. She didn't really expect anything big, knowing Yumi's mood swings at times. It could just be due to a sudden rush of fantastic inspiration for a new line or something of the sort. "By the way, is that a new necklace? I feel like I've seen it before…"

Yumi stopped walking, looked at her a moment and then turned and said to Miyu, "She'll be right back." Then she proceeded to drag a bewildered Suzume into their room.

Miyu stared at the closed door for a moment. I wonder what that was about. She shrugged to herself and continued sorting the letters.

Some minutes later, a loud exclamation – almost an excited squeal – from the direction of her bosses' office startled her out of her work.

"What in the world…?"

----------

Suzume clamped her hands over her mouth after her initial shriek. She looked at Yumi, who sat with remarkable calm in her chair, a smile half-hidden behind intertwined fingers.

"How can you just sit there like that?" demanded Suzume. "If I were you, I'd barely be able to sit still!"

Yumi just chuckled and smiled back at her. "I had the whole night to jump and dance around or do whatever I wanted to, Suzu."

"Whatever. You still shouldn't be able to just – just sit there grinning at me!" Suzume fell back into her seat. "I can hardly believe it. So he finally said it… Talk about sudden." She spun her chair round slowly, as if it would help the shock subside.

Yumi watched her, delighting in her friend's reaction. It was funny. But the others would certainly be asking about that shriek of hers later.

Suzume's chair stopped spinning. There was still a rather stunned expression on her face. Yumi felt like laughing once more.

"At least I'll have a happy partner again," said Suzume. "You've been down in the dumps for far too long, my dear."

"Have I?"

"Yeah. It doesn't always show, since you did a pretty good job of hiding it most times. But I always thought that deep inside, you were always somewhat sad about it and annoyed with yourself because you couldn't stop caring."

Yumi had to acknowledge the truth of that.

"I'll bet now you're glad you didn't stop," Suzume said.

"Probably."

"Probably? If I had a pillow here, I'd throw it at you."

"I'm kidding!" laughed Yumi, toying with a pencil.

"So what else happened?" asked Suzume. Now that she'd recovered from the shock, her feminine inquisitiveness bubbled up to the surface.

"Not much else," the other said, twirling the pencil with the fingers of one hand.

"Did he kiss you?"

There was a wobble in the twirl of the pencil and a lovely rose colour spread across Yumi's cheeks, all too obvious on her fair skin.

"He did!" exclaimed Suzume triumphantly. She pulled her chair closer to Yumi, who seemed unable to look at her all of a sudden. "So?" she asked, eyes dancing with interest.

"So what?" said Yumi, looking at the table top. She rested her head in one hand, fingers curling up to cover part of her face. The other hand turned the pencil upside down to tap it on the table.

"How did your first kiss feel?"

Yumi was at a loss as to how to answer her, but Suzume just laughed and gave her a hug.

"Sorry, I'm just teasing you. Couldn't resist. I know you're not the type to talk about things like that."

She got a look from Yumi, who said in a mock-accusing tone, "Evil."

Suzume grinned. "So are you meeting him today?"

"Yeah, I suppose. He said he'd see me tomorrow – I mean, 'today.'"

"When?"

Yumi opened her mouth to answer, but paused for a moment and then closed it again. She looked at Suzume. "You know, I have no idea."

----------

It occurred to Tezuka towards the end of a meeting that he hadn't told Yumi exactly when he'd see her. As far as he could remember, he had only said, "I'll see you tomorrow" and left it at that.

Oops.

----------

Tezuka arrived right on time, having arranged through several text messages to meet her for lunch, and found both designers fussing over a window display with a couple of their staff. When Yumi turned and saw him, the look on her face was enough to tell him that the night before really hadn't been some sort of hyper-real dream.

While she ran up to her office-studio to grab her handbag, he waited below with Suzume, who, by the look of her, had already heard all about it.

"I only have one thing to ask you, Tezuka," she said.

He waited for her question.

"What took you so long?"

Tezuka thought for a moment. "I don't know. Stupidity, perhaps."

Suzume chortled. "So you do realise you were stupid before," she said jokingly.

His smile widened a little in amusement. "I probably was."

Yumi came back then and the two of them went off for lunch. Suzume watched them go, thinking that it was definitely a change to see Tezuka look at Yumi with such frank affection. It was the same the other way around too. Yumi, the expert at constructing facades to hide that particular emotion, seemed to have suddenly found a new facial expression that was relaxed, glad and serene all at once. Anyhow, she was happy for them both. She made a mental note to next start teasing Yumi about a wedding date, though she figured it would probably be some time before that happened, since neither of them looked like they were in much of a rush.

Thinking about weddings and engagements sent her mind back to the previous night. She sighed as she made her way back up the stairs. She'd forgotten about it in the thrill of Yumi's news, but now she remembered all the headache Oshitari and Atobe had produced for her. As for Atobe's omiai, she was neither interested nor disinterested in it. "Apathetic" was the word. She felt strangely uncaring about the whole thing. It really didn't bother her at all in any way.

Because he already said loud and clear that he won't marry Masuda Shiori and he'd only marry you?

The subconscious thought took her aback. No, she told herself. She really did want him to go for the omiai. And she truly hoped that he'd get over her. She did. It was best for him after all, since she didn't care for him that way. Really.

Yet when Oshitari told her that she could ask Atobe to "go anywhere, anytime, and he'd go," there had been an unexpected flutter of emotion that even now she couldn't decide if that was her just feeling flattered or – or something else.

"Suzume-san, do you want to join us for lunch?" asked Miyu. "I'm going with Erika and Nakata to that new sushi place down the road."

"Hm? Oh, sure! Are you going now?"

"In about ten minutes. Waiting for Nakata."

"Let me know when you're going," said Suzume, entering her room.

The roses Atobe had sent were drying upside down on a hook in the wall. The picture frame that formerly hung there was propped up on top of a low cupboard. Suzume guessed Yumi must have put the roses there after she had left the office. She hadn't noticed them there before somehow. Yumi should have just thrown them away. Why leave them there?

Throw them away yourself then. They're not Yumi's to dispose of – they were for you.

Well, Yumi knew what she thought of the gift. She should know that Suzume wouldn't care if they were in the rubbish bin or in a vase.

Doesn't matter then. You can throw them away now. You threw away last year's.

She sat down at her table and turned on her laptop, meaning to check her e-mail.

You took the orchid home, taunted her mind. And the necklace.

But she couldn't very well have left something worth possibly millions of yen in the office.

Why didn't you send it back to him?

She didn't know. She placed her hand on the external mouse to move the cursor, but realised that she couldn't remember what had wanted to do on her laptop in the first place.

----------

Atobe ended the call and put down his hand phone. There. He'd done it. He'd agreed to that stupid omiai with the Masudas. He sank backwards into the soft leather of his chair. Meet with them he would. Let it not be said that Atobe Keigo went back on his word. He'd meet them. He'd meet this Masuda Shiori. But only because Suzume told him to.

She may have told him to attend the omiai, but she didn't – and couldn't – tell him to love Masuda Shiori. And he wouldn't. Even if she had ordered him to, he still wouldn't. That was one thing in which he could not possibly do as she wished.

----------

"Have you heard?"

Fuji nodded, holding his phone with one hand and adjusting the zoom on his camera with the other. "Yeah. She called me this morning." He straightened, wondering if he should ask one particular question that had been on his mind since he heard from Yumi.

"Aah, yeah. She called me too," said Saeki.

"You haven't drunk all the coffee in my apartment, have you?"

"Nah. I left you enough for a cupful."

"Next time I'm going to lock my coffee in a safe where you can't get to it."

"Is that how you treat a friend?" Saeki asked, sounding hurt.

"Only the ones who drink all my coffee," Fuji answered, looking through the camera viewfinder to check the composition. The horizon line seemed a little tilted. He glanced at the tripod to make sure it was level on the ground.

Saeki chuckled.

"Are you still in Tokyo? Or back in Chiba?" said Fuji.

"I'm at the station already. Can't you hear the noise in the background?"

Fuji paused, then decided to ask, "You sure you're all right?"

"I'm fine, Fuji. In perfectly good spirits. Yu is happy and I'm happy for her."

"Really," he said, sounding a little doubtful.

"Okay, maybe I'm a little miffed. We're not her best guy pals anymore. We've been officially displaced now."

"Always the joker..."

"That I am. But it's true, isn't it?" he laughed. "Tezuka's the number one man now. Not us."

"Does it bother you a lot?"

"Mm… A little, I guess. But probably not as much as it'll bother me when you get a girlfriend."

"… It sounds really weird when you say it like that."

"What, don't you feel the same way, Fuji?"

Fuji placed his finger on the silver button, checked the viewfinder once more, and then pushed the button on the camera. "Keep up the gay act and no more freeloading at my place next time you come to visit. You can go freeload at Yu's. Come to think of it, that's a good idea. You can drink all the coffee at her place instead."

"And risk Tezuka Kunimitsu getting jealous again or angry with me? Not likely! I've never seen him angry, and I don't think I want to. From experience with the hime herself, the quieter they are, the more terrifying it tends to be when you cross them. (It's going to be hell if those two ever get mad at each other.) Besides, I don't think her dad and sister would like it if I drank all their coffee."

"Coffee addict."

"Worrier."

"That's Oishi's nickname, not mine."

"Well, you were acting a bit like him."

"It's your fault," Fuji said, picking up the tripod and camera carefully before moving them to a different spot for another angle.

"My fault?" said Saeki, innocently. "Ah, train's here. Catch you another time, Fuji. Ja."

Tucking the phone back into his pocket, Fuji had a feeling that Saeki would be all right. He smiled. At least he wouldn't be having any headaches over his three friends anymore.

He wondered if Tezuka's actions were largely or only slightly influenced by his text message, which had been a last-gasp attempt at making Tezuka aware and motivated enough to do something – anything – before he washed his hands of the whole affair. Either way, that message had produced most unexpectedly immediate and satisfying results.

Brushing his hair out of his eyes, he bent to peer through the viewfinder once more.

----------

Yumi marvelled that it all seemed so normal. And yet not normal. They were having lunch together, talking about the usual things, laughing over jokes. That was all the same. But the way he looked at her, the now-constant small smile on his face and the mere knowledge of reciprocated feelings made the world of difference.

Just then, she looked at him and caught a glimpse of gentle tenderness that made her face warm rapidly. She hoped she wasn't blushing again. Suzume had kidded her about way she'd turned pink when asked about the kiss.

"You look adorable when you're embarrassed that way," Suzume had laughed. Then she had added, poking Yumi's cheek playfully even as Yumi made a face at her, "I bet if Tezuka saw you now, he'd agree with me. But then he probably thinks you're gorgeous anyway."

Suzume may have thought it cute, but Yumi herself didn't think so. She found blushing a really awkward thing most of the time and would rather her embarrassment didn't show that easily.

Even so, that same rose-pink flush tinted her cheeks again. Tezuka proved Suzume right by thinking that Yumi looked rather endearing that way – and beautiful, even if everyone else didn't think so, in which case he thought everyone else was probably blind or going blind.

He decided not to say anything about it, figuring that she would feel even more discomfited if he pointed it out. Instead he said mildly, "What time do you get off work today?"

"Uh, about six, I think, since we don't have any particular shoot or meeting." She shifted in her chair, the blush fading as fast as it had come. "Why – do you want to see me again?" she joked.

"Yes," he replied bluntly. Seeing her eyes widen for a second, he asked with a smile, "Is that wrong?"

"N-no. I just – I'm not used to it yet," she said, drawing random curly patterns next to her plate on the chequered tablecloth with her finger.

Tezuka rested his chin in his hand and looked at her with a more sombre expression. "Does it bother you?"

She looked taken aback. "Huh? No! I didn't mean that…"

"It looks like it does."

"It doesn't. I may not be used to this type of thing yet, but – that doesn't mean I don't like it," Yumi said, glancing away, feeling a little embarrassed.

He watched her for a few seconds, until her eyes flicked back to meet his.

"Then… Will you meet me again later, Yumi?"

She felt a flash of warmth rise and fade when he said her name.

"If you're not comfortable with it, don't force yourself," he added hurriedly.

A smile touched her lips. "I didn't say I wouldn't or don't want to."

He gave her a questioning look. "And that means?"

"In this case, that means yes, I'll see you tonight."

----------

Winter disappeared to be replaced by spring, and spring turned into summer. For Tezuka, the days seemed to drift by in a pleasant, vague and yet very real dream of work, friends and her. He quickly discovered that he thoroughly enjoyed compensating for all the 'wasted' years. He had passed a florist on his way to lunch with some colleagues one day, and on impulse decided to send her a rose for no reason other than that he had felt like it. The delight with which she had reacted to the unexpected gift spurred him to try it again, and he soon fell into a habit of sending or leaving her little things out of the blue. Sometimes it was as simple as a flower or a handwritten note (or both). Occasionally it was gifts like her favourite buns – sent still warm from the bakery – or chocolate or an old class photo from high school that he had found. He did it fairly often, but irregularly enough so Yumi never quite knew when he would do it and was usually all the more surprised by it.

For Atobe, however, the days dragged on. He avoided Suzume until after the omiai with the Masudas, at which he had been polite and as affable as he could possibly be under the circumstances. Masuda Shiori was, as Suzume had said, a nice person, but though he found her congenial and good-humoured, he still declined the marriage. It was a relief that she did not kick up a fuss about it, but took it easily enough (which made him suspect that she didn't want to marry him either – that piqued him a little). When he finally saw Suzume again, he felt a combination of irritation and longing. Irritation that she didn't seem any worse for not having seen or talked to him for several weeks, and longing because she looked twice as beautiful as before to his eyes. He half-wished that Masuda Shiori had made a huge fuss about him not marrying him – perhaps that would have shown Suzume that he was worth something.

Atobe's mood didn't improve at all when he found out that Tezuka was already 'together' with Yumi. Something of the old rivalry bubbled up, and his aggravation doubled at the thought of Tezuka "achieving his goal" faster than he did. And yet he found distinct relief in the company of this old tennis rival, who knew of his miserable situation, said little, listened a good deal and even appeared to be somewhat sympathetic. (Unlike Oshitari, who knew of it, listened, but talked too much for Atobe's liking and sometimes didn't seem very sympathetic at all, being rather caught up in his own girlfriend.)

He took to playing tennis more often than ever since it gave him a safe vent for emotions he couldn't get rid of easily, and since Oshitari insisted on being exasperating, he played more often with his colleagues, or with Tezuka and Yukimura.

It was on one such day near the end of July that he was at the country club with Tezuka, resting in the garden café after several rounds of exhilarating and exhausting tennis. Tossing his face towel over his shoulder, he said, "I need a favour."

"And what would that be?"

Atobe picked up the glass of cold water brought by a waiter and took a liberal gulp of the liquid before answering him. "I'm going to Germany for a while. A few months, maybe."

"Okay." Tezuka wasn't sure what Atobe going to Germany had to do with him, so he simply waited for him to go on.

"I…" Atobe didn't know how to phrase the request. Even with months of practice 'being nice,' he still found it difficult at times to humble himself to ask for help or favours. "I need you to watch Suzume for me – if you can."

Slightly raised eyebrows were the only indication of Tezuka's surprise.

"I don't really know how long I'll be gone," said Atobe, brushing back damp silver bangs from his face. "It could be anything from four to eight months. Hasn't been decided yet." He wiped his face with the towel again, and then dropped it onto the table. "I know you've just got together with Hanazawa and I know you two would want to spend more time together, but – if you can – watch her for me. I mean… Just keep an eye on her. Make sure she's okay and all. I'd ask Oshitari, but I have a feeling that idiot would just lord it over me and be all smug about it and I'd be on the verge of ordering him assassinated all the time –"

"I'm sure Oshitari wouldn't be that bad," interrupted Tezuka. He saw that Atobe was starting to get oddly flustered explaining himself and decided to lessen his misery a bit. "But I'll do that. We'll do that, Yumi and I. You don't have to worry. Besides, it's not like Yumi has ever ignored Suzume-san."

A look of relief passed over Atobe's face.

"You're going there for business?" queried Tezuka.

Atobe nodded. He waved a hand at a waiter and gestured a request for more water. "We've a new branch opening there and I asked to be in charge of the process."

"I see." Tezuka had a feeling that business wasn't the only reason for it.

The waiter came back and refilled Tezuka's glass as well as Atobe's. Atobe drank from his cup and turned his blue eyes towards the tennis courts with a distant, unseeing gaze. Tezuka gave him a few seconds to stare. Then he asked, "Are you running away, Atobe?"

The question made Atobe's eyes snap back to him. There was an angry, indignant look in them. He glared wordlessly at Tezuka for a while before the anger subsided.

"Maybe," he admitted grudgingly. "I hate it when you're right," he muttered in an undertone.

Tezuka gave no indication as to whether he had heard Atobe or not.

Atobe closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose with a sigh. "I can't stand to be in Tokyo right now. It's driving me crazy being here and seeing her but knowing that everything I've tried has failed and she still doesn't think of me as more than a friend."

"How sure are you?"

"The woman practically ordered me to attend an omiai with someone else, for goodness' sake! What does that tell you?" He glared at him again for a second, then added, "Don't answer that."

"Are you giving up then?"

"No – maybe – I don't know. All I know is I'm going insane being in Japan now. Work is the only escape I have. And maybe I can at least clear my head when I'm out of here."

Atobe continued to stare at nothing in particular, a sort of controlled exasperation on his face. Tezuka wondered if Suzume knew the extent to which she affected Atobe.

"Don't look at me like that," snarled Atobe.

"I wasn't aware that I was looking at you 'like that,'" said Tezuka.

"Yes, you are! You've this – this – I-don't-understand-what-he's-doing look on your face."

"And you always say I have no facial expressions."

Atobe glared at him again. "Don't be a smart aleck. What would you have done if your Hanazawa Yumi had refused you? Wouldn't you have felt like going away too?"

The sudden question saw Tezuka pause and think. Then he looked up and quietly replied, "I would have stayed, I think."

"What?"

"I'm not saying you're wrong to leave, Atobe."

Atobe began to find Tezuka's quiet, calm way of talking about serious subjects absolutely infuriating. How did the man maintain his composure? It was like how Oshitari could sometimes talk in a constant and cool, but at the same time subtly mocking tone. Oh, for a day when he could see both of them lose their composures!

Tezuka went on. "But for me – even if she had said 'no' – I would have stayed."

"Why? How could you stand it?"

"Because… I cannot imagine not speaking to her or seeing her for so long. I can't imagine imposing such a long separation of that sort on myself in order to try to forget her." He stopped a second before continuing, "Maybe in a way that in itself is cowardice. I don't know; I'm certainly no judge of these things. But I do know that even if I couldn't be more than her friend, I would still wish to be at least her friend."

Atobe stared at him a while before saying, "Why do you have to sound so damn perfect, Tezuka?"

"Perfect?"

"Yes, perfect!" snapped Atobe. "You don't do anything wrong, you say the 'good' things, you don't fail… I don't know how people like you manage to understand anyone else in your 'perfection!'"

"I am not perfect." The almost angry tone in Tezuka's voice halted Atobe mid-rant. "Don't call me that. If I was perfect, I wouldn't have to worry about whether I'm doing the right thing or not in a relationship – if I was attentive enough or if I was ignoring her at times. If I was perfect, I wouldn't wonder if I'm good enough for her. I wouldn't worry that I'm not capable of making her as happy as she should be. If I was perfect – if I was perfect, I wouldn't have nearly lost Yumi to someone else."

Atobe had been feeling more and more surprised by degrees, but the last sentence threw him completely. For some time, neither spoke. At last, Atobe got up from his chair and picked up his racquet and things. He jerked his head in the direction of the tennis courts and walked off. Tezuka stayed put a second longer before taking up his own bag and following Atobe back onto the courts.

One long game later, both of them came off the court breathing hard and drenched in sweat, but looking markedly less tense and strained. Still silent, they headed for the club's changing rooms.

When Atobe emerged, he found Tezuka seated in the lobby. He dropped down in another chair and said shortly, "Good game."

Tezuka nodded and glanced at his watch. "I need to go now."

Rising from his seat when Tezuka did, Atobe held out his hand to the other man. "I'll probably leave at the end of August or early September. You'll keep an eye on Suzume?"

"I will."

They shook hands – a firm, crisp handshake.

"Does this mean we're – friends, Tezuka?" asked Atobe.

Tezuka lifted one eyebrow. "Just because you once considered me a rival and basically tried to put me permanently out of the tennis scene by causing me to injure my arm doesn't mean I ever thought of you an enemy, Atobe."

Atobe winced. "There you go sounding all 'perfect' again," he said dryly.

Tezuka cracked a smile before bowing slightly and leaving.

----------

Suzume greeted her aunt with a hug. "Akiko-obasan! How are you? I haven't seen you for a while."

"Yes, and the last time I was here, you ran off halfway for some lunch appointment." The petite lady sat down. "Where's your mother?"

"She's out, but she'll be back in a while. I'm afraid you'll have to bear with me for the moment."

"Hm… You aren't going to dash off again on some thin excuse, are you?"

"Obasan! Are you accusing me of purposely running off?" Suzume said with an exaggerated expression of hurt.

"That's what you try to do whenever we ask you if you have any young men in your life."

Suzume looked a little embarrassed. "You always did see through me."

"Probably because you're just like me when I was your age."

"And that's why you're my favourite aunt!" she said, hugging her aunt again, embarrassment all gone. "But I do wish you'd stop harping about a boyfriend for me."

"Your mother was married when she was younger than you."

"But you got married when you were older than I am now."

"It's not nice to be cocky to your elders," said her aunt, calmly smoothing her skirt. "I may have gotten married at a later age, but I was attending omiais when I was your age. I was a nice, obedient daughter and went to meet all the suitable young men that my parents – and my aunts – suggested I meet."

"That was back then..."

"Are you implying that I'm ancient, girl?"

Suzume couldn't help grinning. "I'm not! But times have changed you know. People don't go for omiais that much unless they're really turning into cranky old maids or bachelors. Even if they do go, they don't go that often, and the number of omiais you'd all set up for me would make me look old! Obasan, are you implying that I'm going to be a cranky old spinster?"

"You might be if you don't get a move on."

"I'm not that bad! I have had boyfriends in the past, you know." Suzume noticed the maid come in with a tray of drinks and biscuits. She motioned for the girl to put it down on the table.

"The past is the past," said her aunt. "You had boyfriends. Now you have none. Yes, do pour the tea. Thank you." She nodded to the maid.

"Doesn't mean I can't get another one."

"And you saying that doesn't mean that you will either. Come, my dear. Do let me introduce you to someone. Nagasawa Takeshi is a really nice young fellow."

"Maybe, but I've seen him in photos in the business section of the newspapers and he has curly hair. I hate curly hair on men." Better they have hair like Keigo's – straight and well-cut.

Ookawa Akiko gave her niece a look and took up a cup from the table. "Hair doesn't make the man, my dear. Then what about that boy you met in college? Tsuchiya something or other, I forgot. I recall you said he's good-looking." She sipped the tea. "This is good tea."

"Tsuchiya Akira. You have the strangest memory for all the guys I know, obasan. He was pretty good-looking, I'll admit. But I haven't seen him since graduation and besides, I've seen quite a few better-looking men since. You should see Yumi's friend! Now that is one handsome man…"

"Is he now? Are you sure he's just her 'friend'?"

"Yes, definitely!" Suzume laughed. "She has a boyfriend now! Someone else, not the one I'm talking about, though her boyfriend isn't too bad either."

"Hm. Then why don't you try for this 'handsome man?' Shouldn't be too hard since your friend knows him and you seem to know him too."

"Nah… He's nice and undoubtedly handsome, but somehow… Not my type. His eyes are a little too piercing for me, though. They're this electric blue colour. I think I like a slightly less striking blue…" Suzume trailed off, an image of an all too familiar pair of different blue eyes suddenly forming in her mind.

"I have a friend whose nephew is an engineer," said her aunt, unaware of her thoughts. "I hear he's a pleasant young man and easy on the eyes too. I've seen photos – not a model, but passable as far as the young men today go."

"An engineer? How dull!"

Raised eyebrows greeted her remark. "First, you criticise the hair. Now you criticise the job? Really, Suzume…" She placed her cup back on the table.

"I can't imagine living with an engineer for the rest of my life! He probably wouldn't understand anything about art! He'd be all about math and physics and whatnot."

"What else do you object to then? Lawyers? Doctors? Professors? Businessmen? Architects?"

Suzume leaned back on the sofa. "Never really thought about lawyers – none of those you ever wanted to introduce me to were lawyers. Doctors, bearable I guess. Professors, nah. Businessmen and architects are okay."

"There are a whole lot of them who are in business. You've met some of them, I think, what with all your father's business associates. There's Okamoto, and Watanabe…"

Her aunt reeled off three more names and Suzume just listened, a wry look on her face. She mentally struck them off the list. Okamoto – has a girlfriend already. Hahah, bet you don't know that, obasan. Watanabe – ergh, just not appealing. Sakei… Nah. Kawaguchi… Also no. Hisagi – nice, but boring conversationalist. We've nothing in common. At least I can carry a decent conversation with Keigo…

She shook her head slightly, as if to clear it. What was she doing, thinking of him again?

"Suzume?"

"Ah, sorry, obasan. I got distracted. What were you saying?"

"I said – what about that Atobe Keigo?"

Suzume stared. Had her aunt developed some sort of sixth sense? "What about him?"

"He's in business, he has straight hair and I don't recall you complaining about his looks before. He just had the most appalling dress sense when he was younger, but he seems to have gained some better sense by now, judging by his appearance at last week's charity dinner."

Suzume felt like laughing again. Atobe would just die if he heard anyone say his dress sense had been horrible (even though it really had been awful). "Yeah, I think he's improved in that department by now. No more ruffles and outrageously purple outfits. Or those flamboyant rose prints."

"That's a relief. So, how about young Atobe, hm?"

"He's my friend," said Suzume. She laughed, but even she knew it was a weak laugh. For some reason, the 'friend' excuse sounded flimsy now.

"No better place to start. And I'm not blind, girl. I saw the way he looked at you at that charity dinner." Akiko looked at her niece.

Suzume flinched inwardly at her aunt's sharp observation. She didn't think her aunt would have noticed that, although she herself had had a heightened awareness of it. "We're friends, obasan," she repeated with a sigh.

"I'm not saying that you aren't friends. I'm saying that there's more than that. Old I may be, but blind I'm not. It's quite clear that the man is besotted with you. Did you not know it? No, I can see from your face that you do know it," the lady said, taking in Suzume's discomfort at a glance. "Well then… Why not him? You don't like him?"

"I do – otherwise he wouldn't be my friend in the first place. But I don't think I'm in love with him."

"You don't think you're in love with him? By the looks of you, I suggest you do a little more thinking about that statement."

----------

Yumi flipped through a magazine, looking at the styles put out by other designers and fashion houses that season. Suzume was at her table, apparently doing some drawing on a paper. Yumi debated whether or not to tell her what she had heard. It was likely that Suzume already knew anyway. Tezuka hadn't said if Atobe planned to tell her or not. He hadn't told her to keep it from Suzume either. Casually, she spoke up.

"I heard Atobe's going to Germany in a week or so."

"Hm?" Suzume looked up. "Where'd you hear that?"

"Tezuka told me." Yumi didn't lift her eyes from the page she was reading.

Suzume frowned. "I haven't heard anything of the sort. What makes him say that?"

"He says Atobe told him."

"Hmm… Well, he's said nothing to me about going anywhere. But maybe it's just a short trip or something. He does that sometimes – goes off somewhere for a few days for business stuff and then comes back. Last time I think he went to the U.S."

"It didn't sound short to me," said Yumi, turning the page. "He said something about Atobe going off for several months."

"Several months? Maybe Tezuka heard wrong. If he was going to be gone that long, I'm pretty sure he'd tell me," Suzume said, shaking her pen to get the ink flowing. "He usually tells me the more important stuff."

Yumi shot a look at Suzume. She really didn't seem to know.

"I don't know. I don't think Tezuka heard wrong," said Yumi.

"Ah, stupid pen." Suzume shook the pen harder then pressed it to the paper again. "Finally." To Yumi she said, "Keigo would have told me if he was going away for that length of time. It's not like him to just disappear without me knowing."

"I guess…" Yumi knew how to tell when Suzume wasn't going to believe her, so she dropped the subject. She couldn't help wondering if Suzume didn't believe her, or didn't want to believe her. It was her personal opinion that Suzume cared more for Atobe than she thought she did.

Suzume didn't think much about what Yumi said. She dismissed it as an error on Tezuka's part. Atobe had always told her when he would be away for long periods of time. Well, "always" since they became closer friends in high school anyway. That he would go off to Germany for months without telling her seemed impossible.

But she got a phone call from Oshitari two days later that overturned her opinion of that.

"Stop, Yuushi. What did you say?"

"I asked if you wanted to join the lot of us tomorrow night for a 'good-riddance-for-six-months' dinner for Atobe."

"No, before that!"

"Er, I said he's going to Germany – until February or March."

"What?"

"You didn't know?" Oshitari sounded genuinely puzzled.

"Do I sound like I knew, idiot?"

"I assumed he would have told you…"

"I assumed he would have too!" she snapped.

Suzume barely heard what Oshitari said next. All of a sudden she felt angry. And a little confused. And angry. Very angry. Almost unreasonably angry. What was he playing at, that Atobe Keigo? Going off to Germany for six months? And more importantly, going off and not telling her?

----------

Yumi's discussion with their patternmaker was interrupted by Suzume storming out of the office and trying to put on her red coat while holding her handbag at the same time.

"Yumi!" she called across the room. "I'm going out for a while."

"Huh? Where?"

"To kill someone. Call me if you need anything." With that, she blazed out of the studio like a furious red whirlwind.

The patternmaker looked at Yumi. "She's not serious, is she?"

Yumi glanced at the door, then back. "I hope not."

----------

Suzume had been to his business headquarters often enough to have little trouble getting to the floor where his personal office was. It was like every other part of the building – sleek lines of pale grey and white with gold accents. Whoever the interior designer was, he – or she – had done an excellent job of it. When she got there, the secretary, a smartly-dressed woman called Anezaki, rose to greet her.

"Takahashi-san, how nice to see you! Are you here to see Atobe-san? He's is in his office; I'll let him know you're here."

"Hello, Anezaki." Suzume gave her a cursory nod. "Thank you, but no, don't bother announcing me." She went straight to his door, ignoring the curious looks of the other staff around.

"Takahashi-san!"

She flung open the door and slammed it shut behind her. Atobe looked up from his table, startled.

"Suzume!" he exclaimed, standing and coming round the table. "What are you – "

"Don't say another word!"

He shut his mouth immediately. She looked furious. It seemed wiser to obey.

"You." She thrust an accusing finger at him. "How could you not tell me you were going to Germany? Why did even Yumi know before I did? Why did I have to hear it from other people and not from you? Why didn't you tell me? Why?" she demanded.

Atobe stared, too stunned to interrupt her torrent of angry words. He barely registered the rest of her tirade as his mind attempted to recover from the shock of her angry arrival and sort out his thoughts.

"…You told everyone but me! How could you? Am I so unimportant that you couldn't be bothered to tell me, Keigo?"

His eyebrows shot up. Unimportant?

"How is it Tezuka knew – and Yumi and Yuushi knew? And – and – I can't even remember who else! Why did everyone seem to know but me?" A lump rose in her throat as she fought to keep up with fury and other emotions that were pouring out of her. "Why didn't you –"

Atobe took one long stride towards her, caught her round the waist and pressed his lips onto hers.

It took Suzume about less than two seconds to decide to (temporarily) abandon her fury. She could scold him later. His lips were insistent and fierce as he continued to kiss her, and she responded with equal fervour. One hand found its way into his hair and the other clutched at his collar, pulling him nearer, to the detriment of the finely-starched article.

"Never – say that – you're – unimportant – to me," he told her between kisses. Then he drew back and looked at her. "Never."

"Then why didn't you tell me?"

"Because I didn't want to hear you say, 'Oh, well, see you again next year, Keigo!' or 'Call sometimes!' Anything that 'just friends' would say. I couldn't stand to hear it."

"What's wrong with that?" she asked, even though she thought she knew the answer.

"Nothing except that those are reminders of how you think – thought – of me. As a 'friend' only."

"And what do you think my opinion is of you now?"

Long moments passed while his blue eyes searched her grey-green eyes.

"Well…" As he brushed aside her bangs, the tiniest bit of hesitation in his voice. "I've asked you to marry me before, Suzume. If I ask again –"

"Yes."

It was quite a while before either of them was able to talk again, but when he found his breath and voice, Atobe said, "Tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?"

"Let's get married tomorrow."

"What?"

"We'll do it as simple as you want – I don't care."

"Whoa. Back up, lover."

"Hm… I like the sound of that name," he said, burying his nose in her hair and smiling.

She shifted so that she could look him in the eyes. "Who said I want a simple wedding?"

"You don't?" He sounded surprised.

"Seeing as a wedding is a once-in-a-lifetime thing, I rather fancied a grand one. Glittering chandeliers, the best food and wine, gowns fit for a princess… The whole works. That'll take some time to plan." Tilting her head towards him again, she added, "Besides, why should it be a 'simple' wedding when the Takahashi heiress is marrying young master Keigo?"

He grinned. "Why indeed?"

The phone rang and he reached out to pick it up. "Yes, Anezaki? Oh. Put her through." He looked at Suzume. "I think your partner's looking for you."

"Yumi?"

He nodded as the call was routed to his line. "Ah, Hanazawa-san? Yes, she's right here. What, she didn't answer your calls? Perhaps she didn't hear her phone…"

Suzume found her bag on the table and pulled out her hand phone. The announcement "6 MISSED CALLS" stared her accusingly in the face. It was nearly one by the clock on her phone. Almost an hour since she flew out of her studio. Yumi would have a fine time laughing at her for going out so enraged but coming back engaged. Engaged… To Atobe Keigo. It was strangely funny somehow. Did she love him? Her mind rang with an unequivocal "yes."

Atobe handed the phone to her with an amused look. "She wants to talk to you."

She took the phone. "Yu? Sorry, I didn't hear the calls. I – er – I was preoccupied when you called." Atobe smirked and she flicked a fingernail against his shoulder to discourage the smirk. "Anything important? Oh… What time is that scheduled for again? Three? Okay, I'll –"

Atobe snatched the phone away from Suzume. "I'll have her back by 2.55. I'm taking her out to lunch." He nodded. "Yes, don't worry. And one more thing before you go." Still holding the phone to his ear, he took Suzume's hand, kissed it and looked at her with an expression that was half-smile, half-smirk. "Congratulate us, Hanazawa-san. And tell Tezuka that you're both invited to the wedding."

If it was unsatisfactory... I'm sorry. :(

Originally I planned this story to last 12 chapters with no epilogue. But in the end I gave up trying to make Atobe happy (haha) and made it nine, with the tenth being an epilogue.

It was tough for me to write the last part - I've discovered that I'm an expert at making Atobe's life a misery, but I flop at making him happy. .;

On to the epilogue then!