Hye! I am back! I am so sorry guys! I know I rarely update this fic. But now, I will try to focus on updating this along with my Cherry Valentines. Just wait for it. Please endure me for a bit. Domo.
This chapter is dedicated my angel, sweetCRAZYangel. I hope you like this. Belated Happy Birthday to you... :)
DISCLAIMER: I do not own the Prince of Tennis and never ever will.
cposcabee - Thank you for waiting and I hope that you are still waiting. Tee hee hee. Yep, this is a different one and I hope that you still love it. Thank you once again. :)
tenzy - Thank you for choosing this. Unfortunately for him yeah... :3 Well, you'll find that out soon... Thank you once again. :)
RMichuu - Thank you for loving this! Yeah, unfortunately for Ryoma indeed. Well, I made an announcement about this fic at the end. You'll soon find out. And you will also know that in the future too. Tee hee hee. Thank you very much. I hope you like this. Domo... :)
Lu-chanxo - Thank you very much... :) I'll do my best for that. I hope you like this chapter. Domo... :)
yukina-chan15 - I am glad that you like it. Yep, it was funny, indeed. I actually imagined a scene like that in real life and I couldn't stop laughing... tee hee hee. Thank you for loving the chapter. I hope that you like this as well. Thank you... :)
sweetCRAZYangel - Tee hee he, so many things had happened and they were all funny indeed. Thank you very much... :)
Yeah, it's been over a year again. I am sorry for that. There are too many... distractions these days... :3 I hope that you like this one. Domo... :)
Saku-ryukun28 - Hello ! Thank you for reading my fanfics. I really appreciate them. Thank you once again. I hope you like this chapter. :)
Michiyo323 - Thank you for sharing your thoughts with me. Yep, they are growing on each other totally. I guess that thought will to be found out in the future. Thank you for reading this fic. I hope you like this one as well. :)
Guest - Thank you for reading most of my stories. I really appreciate that you did. Sorry, it took so long for me to update this. It did take more than a year for me to update. I hope this will be worth the wait. Thank you once again. :)
Chapter 3: Bond with the Senpais
Chapter Summary: Bonding time with the senpais turned into a chaotic one?
Ryuji's squeal emanated through the whole bedroom which was followed by Sakuno's giggling. Ryoma groaned from under the pillow. He peeked at his wife and son making weird and funny noises. Sakuno was sitting on the bed in an indian sit style while Ryuji was lying on his back in front of her. His wife's index fingers were pointing to his son's side aiming to tickle the four-month old baby. It seemed that he knew what was coming he couldn't stop from squealing.
Like a girl.
"Is that really Ryuji?" Ryoma asked as he slowly sat up and moved beside her, "Why is he making noises like a girl?"
Sakuno looked at him for a brief moment before looking back at their son, "It's a baby's voice, dear. It will change when he grows up." She played with Ryuji once again and he started to do that girly squeal. His wife started to giggle as well.
Ryoma noticed that he was getting impatient. Ryuji tried to turn to his side but Sakuno started to tickle him to the other side so he could lie back once again. His son tried doing the same to the other side. He frowned at that.
"I think he wants to turn to his stomach." He voiced out his thoughts to her.
"Well, he is having strong reflexes. He can easily turn to his sides and probably lie on his stomach completely."
Ryuji smiled as he lifted both of his tiny hands, probably tired of trying to turn to his sides. Ryoma smiled back and grabbed one of his awaiting hands and his son gripped on it.
"Sakuno, look!" He called he grabbed his other hand and he felt same pull, "Ryuji wants to sit." He said when he noticed that his son was pulling himself towards him.
"R-Ryoma! He can't sit yet! Not until his teeth appear first!" Sakuno exclaimed as she picked the baby and placed him on her lap. He started laughing once again, "They will appear two months later."
"How do you know that?" He frowned at her.
"Obaa-chan lend me some books to read about babies. We have to see if his teeth will appear after six months or we will wait for another six months before we can see his first set of teeth."
"Do you seriously believe that?"
"There's nothing wrong believing that."
He looked at her as she kissed Ryuji on the cheek. The baby started to squeal once again. He moved closer to them as he wrapped his arm around her waist as he caressed his son's cheek with his other hand.
"Since when did you become snarky?"
She looked at him incredulously before blushing, "I-I am not snarky!"
"Is that so?"
"H-hai..." Sakuno agreed before moving away from him, "C-come on, we should get going?"
Ryoma's brows creased once again as he stared at his wife, "Go where?"
His wife looked at him as if he was just born yesterday. She cradled Ryuji in her arms gently, "You promised senpai-tachi to spend the whole day at Obaa-chan's today, remember?"
Sakuno's words slowly registered to his brain and realization dawned on him. He silently cursed when he finally remembered. They wanted to have a bonding moment with their son. They didn't stop until he finally made that stupid promise and that would be today.
He didn't want anything but to spend time with his wife and son but he would not have any of it at the moment. Not until later. Sighing, he slowly got up from the bed and made his way to where his wife was standing. He placed his hand to his son's fragile head and kissed his forehead before leaning up and kissed his wife's lips afterwards. That caught Sakuno by surprise and smirked at her reaction, which her face was blushing at the moment.
It felt nice to know that he still had that effect on her.
"Let's go then."
xxx
"There are the Echizen family!" Momo called getting the other's attention. He could see him standing near the front porch as they made their way to him. Soon after, Eiji and Kawamura appeared behind the former. Eiji grinned as he spotted them and didn't waste any time to approach the young family.
"The Ochibi Jr. is finally here!" He announced. Ryuji squealed when he saw the acrobatic player in front of him. He gently took the baby from Sakuno's arms and walked back to the front door, "Isn't he cute?"
Ryoma placed his arm to his wife's shoulder as he watched his senpai carry his baby inside. Momo and Kawamura cooed on both sides of Eiji. He didn't know what would happen now that his baby was surrounded with his senpais so he would be alert at all time.
They reached the living room and saw Tezuka, Fuji and Oishi sitting in the sofa. The former was reading a novel, while the other two were watching a sports show on TV. They all turned to them when Eiji announced their arrival. Tezuka, however, went back at reading after a short brief of staring.
Eiji watched them for a few moments. Ryuji was making weird noises as his hands were trying to reach that wasn't actually there. The acrobatic player suddenly grinned as he made his way to his captain and without warning, he deposited the baby into his now free hands, book was somehow abandoned.
Sakuno gasped as Ryoma's eyes dilated. They didn't expect Eiji to do that to their captain.
"What's this?" Tezuka exclaimed! He was holding the baby under his arms. His feet started kicking while his hands were moving randomly. Ryoma could see that his son was up for a game.
"It's a baby, buchou?" Eiji said obviously as the others looked at them, "It's Ochibi's baby?"
Tezuka looked at him as if he had just realized the answer of the easiest question ever made. He stared back at the baby who was still giggling being suspended on mid-air.
"B-buchou, I think it would be safe to carry him to your lap." Sakuno awkwardly said. Oishi and Fuji grinned at each other before watching their captain. Tezuka lowered the baby gently on his lap.
"Saa, you look like a father yourself, Tezuka." Fuji smiled as he looked at their tensai. Ryuji was doing something funny on his lap. If Tezuka wasn't securing his hold on him, he would've fallen from his lap, considering that he was moving from side to side. Tezuka's expression was hard to recognize but it wasn't enough not to laugh at him.
"My grandson is finally here," Sumire walked into the room with Inui trailing behind her. Sakuno and Ryoma approached her to show manners before she went to Tezuka and picked the baby up from his lap. Ryoma could see the relief of breath the captain released the moment their sensei took hold of the baby, "You should set the table now so everyone can eat. Sakuno, have you breastfeed Ryuji?"
Sakuno blushed tenfold when her grandmother announced that to everyone, but she nonetheless, nodded. Ryoma feigned a cough when they heard some of them snickering.
"Someone else must have received another breastfeeding in the house." Eiji whispered to Momo who snickered at the same time. Ryoma glared at them making Sakuno to blush even more.
"Mou, stop it you guys!" She covered her face with her hands. She turned around leaning her head to Ryoma's shoulder while he wrapped his arm to her waist.
"Stupid senpais."
"Enough with the teasing! Now, go eat! Let me bond with my grandson for a while." She cooed as Ryuji squealed once again.
The baby was really energetic.
The others followed suit and went to the kitchen. Minutes later, the dining room was a chaos. Tomoka and the trio arrived making the area messier. Ryoma grabbed Sakuno's hand at one point. It caught her attention and smiled at him.
"Ryuji-kun will be surrounded by loud senpais." She commented.
"Don't be like that, Ryuzaki-chi!" Eiji called when he heard her speaking, "We're not that loud." The background's noise intensified after he said that.
Ryoma narrowed his eyes at him, "Right."
"Obaa-san! Let me carry Ryuji-chan!" Momo called out from the noise.
"No, Momo-chan-senpai! It's my turn to carry him!" Tomoka debated approaching the sofa where their sensei was sitting.
"No, you don't! You just arrived!" Eiji followed immediately. One minute he was in front of them, the next he disappeared. Oishi shrugged as he showed concern for the baby, who was just miraculously enjoying the commotion.
"Give them a break, Eiji! You just carried the baby when the Echizens arrived here."
Ryoma and Sakuno just watched the scenario in front of them. It was really a mess and the baby like their company.
"Is... Ryuji-kun going to be alright?"
He draped an arm to her shoulder as he drew her closer to his body while watching their baby being cooed by their senpas and sensei, "He should be."
xxx
The commotion died down when they went to the courtyard. Oishi was holding the baby this time while the others started stretching up. Sakuno was sitting beside him smiling at the gesture. Her best friend was on her other side talking to Horio. Or bickering to Horio.
Sumire was preparing for their snacks for later which Sakuno wanted to help only to be rejected by her grandmother.
Oishi placed Ryuji on his lap while he was playing tickles with the baby. The infant just wouldn't stop squealing. The others started to stare at them curiously.
"Oishi, don't make him laugh too much. It could hurt his stomach." Inui reminded him.
"Since when can you calculate the baby's needs, Inui-senpai?" Ryoma asked the data analysis.
Inui pushed the rim of his glasses back to the bridge of his nose, "Since the appearance of the baby."
"Since when did you become a gynecologist?" Ryoma asked again.
He opened his notebook and wrote something in it, "Since the appearance of the baby."
Ryoma frowned, "Since when did you become a pediatrician?"
"Since the appearance of the baby."
"Since when do you two stop talking nonsense about the baby?" Oishi interrupted lifting the baby to his shoulder and pat him on his back.
"Since the appearance of the baby!" The two answered at the same time. They looked at each other. Frowned and looked away afterwards. Sakuno laughed at their antics.
That was when the baby barfed.
The whole court yard was silent after that. They were all looking at the baby who started to wiggle his hands on both sides trying to turn his face around so he could see more familiar faces in front of him.
"There you go," Oishi whispered softly as he held the baby at arms length. Ryuji smiled as he kicked his feet in mid air, "You are so full of energy, aren't you?" He cradled the baby in his arms and smiled at the same time.
"Oishi-senpai, you are amazing!" Momo commented after a few seconds of being silent. The vice captain looked up and stared at their second powerhouse player of the team.
"What do you mean by that?" He frowned at him as he grabbed Ryuji's tiny fingers with his bigger ones.
"The baby has been playing all day and he hasn't eaten his meal yet but you have got him to barf."
Oishi looked at Ryuji who was trying to suck his own thump but he prevented it, "Well, he's been laughing a lot and the air he breathes might stay longer. And just as Inui said, it could hurt his stomach. I made him barf in order to do that."
Everyone felt silent after that, watching as Oishi tend to the baby's demands. It wasn't long until Eiji broke the silence.
"Wow, Oishi... You look like a mother."
Oishi looked at his doubles partner and frowned at him, "What do you mean?"
"That's what I mean!" Eiji grinned wider as he looked around him, "If Tezuka-buchou is the father, then you are definitely the mother."
Tezuka glared at him while Oishi blushed at the comment.
"I-I am not-"
"It's true Oishi-senpai! Ryuji-kun likes you being held by you!" Tomoka agreed. With that detail, the vice captain looked down at the baby. And sure enough, he was reaching for him to grabbed both of his hands. Oishi blushed even more.
"The mother hen in the group." Momo whispered teased.
"Totally!" Eiji agreed.
"Stop it! You guys!"
All of the sudden, Ryuji suddenly shrieked. All eyes were on him. Oishi lifted him from his lap and tried to calm him down.
"What's wrong, Ryuji-kun," He asked worriedly, "Why are you crying?"
"Because you shouted, senpai," Tomoka answered, gesturing to get the baby from him, "You scared the baby."
"I did not shout!" He defended letting her get the baby from him, "Not at least loud."
Sakuno tried to coo him as her best friend craddled him to stop crying, "Hush baby, don't cry. Aunt Tomoka is here to save you."
"From what? Being a nagger?" Horio snickered but she heard him.
"Stop being stupid! It's contagious and I don't want Ryuji-kun get it from you." Tomoka retorted.
"What did you say!" Horio shouted as he approached her. Ryuji flinched at the sound of the voice and started to cry once again.
"Oh, look what you've done!" Tomoka glared at him hugging the baby closer to her, "Just when I almost made him from stop crying."
"Well, you started it!"
"I am not!"
They watched the two bicker while Ryuji continued to cry. His face was flushed as he gripped both of his tiny hands. Ryoma sighed in annoyance before he grabbed the baby from Tomoka. The girl was shocked at the sudden action.
"Hey!"
"You guys aren't helping," He brushed Ryuji's cheek making him feel the warmth of his fingers. The baby peered an eye and recognized his father. He sobbed for a few minutes before he grabbed his finger and started playing with it. A smile was crept to his lips when he saw his son smiling again. When he noticed that all eyes were on him, he finally looked. He didn't fail to see everyone staring at him.
"What?"
Everyone remained silent before Momo shook his head, "Nothing, it's just... you are such a natural father."
Ryoma resisted to raise a brow, "Yeah! And my wife is such a natural mother."
Sakuno blushed as she stood beside him.
"Saa, Echizen. No need to be so worked up," Fuji said smiling at them, "It's only natural."
"Why don't we play instead," Kawamura suggested making everyone to look at him, "I think Ryuji-kun likes some entertainment."
"Good idea, Kawamura-san," Momo agreed as he rotated his arm to get ready, "I'll play first. Get your butt here Mamushi and let's play."
Kaidoh hissed as he walked on the other side of the court, "You don't need to tell me twice, idiot."
"Hey! Let's play doubles, nya!" Eiji ran to Momo's side who crinched at his senpai's suggestion.
"Doubles, seriously senpai?"
"Don't worry, Momoshiro. It'll be fine."
"Yeah, because we'll going to beat you." Both people looked at the other side where Inui was standing beside Kaidoh. Racket was in his hand already.
"Ah! That's unfair! You two have at least synchronicity with each other!" Momo pointed at their opponents.
"Hey! Are you saying that we don't have?" Eiji retorted looking at him.
"Your partner is technically Oishi-senpai," Momo defended, "You two have more parallelism than you have with me."
Eiji ducked low as he grinned wider, "It'll be fine. Besides, I love challenges. You are ready for something like this, are you not?"
Momo stared at him a few seconds before walking towards the net and took his stance, "More than I'll ever be."
Ryoma watched the both team taunt each other. From the corner of his eyes, he could hear Ryuji squealing once again. His son was really cheerful and energetic. He could also see the sparkling his eyes were making as he stared at the court. He smirked at the sight.
He knew that his son would be following his footsteps in the future.
xxx
One hour had passed and both teams were down. Kaidoh-Inui pair won the game. It was a close match. Eiji did praise Momo for a job well done. The second powerhouse player grinned awkwardly despite the lack of air he had. Momo would do better for the doubles match if he trained to be one. But he was certain that he wouldn't get it with him.
He wasn't fond of playing doubles anyway.
Oishi and Fuji walked to the court next and started a serious match. The others started cheering the both of them.
"Anata, aren't you going to play?" Sakuno asked him. She had the baby in her arms now.
He faced the both of them, "Later." He brushed Ryuji's dark greenish hair making him laugh a bit.
Sakuno chuckled, "Ryuji-kun is ticklish everywhere."
He looked at her and studied her innocent face, "Just like you?"
His question made her blush, "I-I am not!"
His smirked at her reaction this time, "Do you want me to prove it?"
She blushed even harder, "I told you not!" Ryuji giggled at the expression of his mother.
Ryoma grabbed her neck and placed his forehead to her, "Even Ryuji disagreed with you."
"Mou! Stop teasing me!" She bit her lower lip but she never moved away, "And don't involve Ryuji-kun in this."
"Oi, you lovebirds! Stop being sweet. You're going to steal all the sugar in the world!"
We both leaned back and at the same time, Ryuji laughed raising both of his hands. Sakuno blushed as she looked down on her son and kissed him on the cheek. Ryoma glared at Momo who broke their momentum.
Not long before Sumire called everyone for a snack. Tezuka and Fuji volunteered to bring the snack outside. Sakuno placed Ryuji to the makeshift crib that the regulars built for him. Ryoma watched his son wiggled both of his hands and feet as if he saw something interesting in front of him. His wife sat beside the crib while her best friend sat beside her. The others went to their own seat in front of the table Tezuka and Fuji prepared. Ryoma sat next to Momo. As soon as the food was placed on the table, they started digging in.
"So Echizen, how are you faring of being a father?" Momo said after biting his food.
Ryoma frowned as he swallowed his, "Fine."
"What a short answer!" Momo commented.
"Saa, it's not easy to be a father," Fuji said making everyone look at him, "There are nights that these two have to wake when Ryuji-kun cries. They have to tend the baby's needs."
Horio peered at him and asked, "How do you know that, senpai? Have you experienced it?"
"He doesn't, you idiot!" Tomoka retorted, "He has a brother so he knows!"
"Their ages are not far from each other," Horio retorted back, "That doesn't count."
"It's common sense, dummy!"
"Hey, stop it, you two!" Oishi said making them stop from bickering automatically, "You are alarming Ryuji-kun."
Truth be told. Ryuji was on his stomach and he looked awful. He was staring at Tomoka, probably wondering why she was making such a face.
Sakuno went to the crib and comforted Ryuji by rubbing his back with her hand. He looked up and stared at his mother before smiling soundlessly this time.
Ryoma smiled at the scene before he faced Fuji with a determined look, "Let's play, Senpai."
The tensai responded with his signature smile, "I thought you would never ask."
xxx
The rest of the day went like that. There had been teasing, chasing, laughing, brawling, eating and crying, well, in Ryuji's part. The baby was indeed the attention for everyone. The team stopped playing from time to time, surprisingly abandoning their position just to take a peek at the baby.
Ryuji was carried alternatively by the parents, Sumire, Tomoka, Eiji and Oishi. All the time, he squealed whenever someone make funny faces in front of him.
Ryoma just couldn't help but imagine how girly he sounded. He had this thought if he sounded like that when he was a baby but he would never dare ask his father about that.
Afternoon came and Ryuji was finally tired and exhausted from the activities he could see from his baby eyes. Sakuno cradled her in her arms as she looked at him fondly;
"We better head back home." She whispered not tearing her eyes from the baby. Ryoma could only nod at her before he looked at his team.
"It's been a long day. She's right."
Oishi sighed as he placed his hand to the sleeping baby's head, "He's so energetic."
Tomoka peeked from Sakuno's shoulder, "He sure is. I wonder if he's going to be like his father when he grows up."
Ryoma frowned at her before deciding to reply to her words, "He will be." Sakuno could only laugh at him.
He started preparing all the things to bring home. The rest helped Sumire to clean the area. They were a bit upset knowing the the youngest family was about to head home. They actually missed the baby's unusual behaviour. Ryoma and Sakuno said their goodbyes after the latter kissed and hugged her grandmother.
"Be careful."
"Hai." They both said in unison.
The ride home was smooth. Ryuji slept all the way and even when he was placed to his own crib. The baby slept like a log. He watched his wife tend to their son before he walked behind her.
"He's out for a while." He whispered to her ear before wrapping his arms around her stomach.
"Seems like it..." She murmured just to make sure that Ryuji wouldn't wake up. She blushed and tried to resist a gasp when he bit her lower lobe of her ear playfully, "R-Ryoma-kun! What are you doing?" She whispered-shout at him, only to shiver more when he kissed her neck.
"What do you think I am doing?" He asked smirking in the process as he boldly sniffed her scent. His arms tightened around her.
She let out a gasp that time. Her blush intensified as he looked at her, "Y-You are going to wake Ryuji-kun because of your actions." She scolded firmly keeping her voice low.
"Then let's get out of here." Without warming, Ryoma lifted her off her feet making her yelp due to shock then hit him in the shoulder when she recovered from it.
"Ryoma-kun no baka!"
Ryoma could only smile as he carried his wife to their room. He was tired because of the so called 'uneventful' things they did but he didn't care about that. Because he knew that he would be rewarded even before the day ended.
Done! Sorry! This took a whole year to update this. I have an announcement to make. This fic will really have five chapters just like my Marriage Complex. It was planned even before I started this. So sorry that this took a very loooooong time to update. But I'll finish this asap so I can focus on my two other fics. Please, just a bit more... Domo.
Belated Happy White Day! For those readers of this fic who loved it, I am returning the feeling twice as you gave it. Thank you... :)
Next Chapter: The Future
