December 01, 2008
Subzero
AU, TezukaFuji. Fuji looked at Tezuka sadly, "Smile, even if it's a sad smile, because the only thing sadder than a sad smile is the sadness of not knowing how to smile."
Disclaimer: I do not own Prince of Tennis. I wish I did, but alas, I do not.
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Subzero
Five Degrees
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After Tezuka's little revelation, he followed Fuji into the high school building in somewhat of a daze.
It wasn't the fact that it was because he and Fuji were both male; far from it. Just the sheer...implications of the fact that he was in love... maybe.
If Fuji noticed anything strange about him, especially after he nearly walked into the school's gate, the boy didn't say anything. He just gently pulled on Tezuka's elbow, steering him away from the gate, which apparently would be his demise.
"Please be careful, Tezuka. I want you to meet my mother in one piece, after all." Fuji said as he smiled.
This time, Tezuka couldn't even manage an, 'ah'. Too much was going on in his head. Then Fuji became worried. Tezuka was never one to just ignore someone without good reason...except for the fact that in this case, he had a fairly good reason, but Fuji didn't know that. Tezuka planned to keep it that way until he sat down and figured things out.
"Are you all right?" Fuji stopped in the middle of the hallway and reached up a hand.
Tezuka stood there numbly as Fuji pressed the back of his hand against Tezuka's cheek. It was all he could do to keep from flinching against the boy's feather-light touch. After a couple seconds, Fuji took his hand back with a puzzled look on his gentle features.
"That's strange. You don't seem to have a fever of any sort. Maybe we should drop you off at the infirmary..." Fuji murmured to himself, a worried expression crossing his face.
Then, Tezuka frowned. A frown just looked...strange on Fuji's face. Mysterious and alluring maybe, but still strange. Tezuka shook his head briskly after he realized what he had just thought. "No, I'm fine." He protested.
Fuji seemed the bite the inside his of mouth worriedly, "But if you aren't feeling well, I don't want to drag you all over Tokyo... especially when it is this cold outside."
His cheek still tingling from Fuji's cool hands, Tezuka forced an unnatural smile on his face, "I feel fine, Fuji. I'm not sick."
There was still hesitance in the small boy's face. He sighed, "Well, if you're sure--"
"Fuji-samaaaa!"
A loud, high pitched squeal that reminded him of a banshee assaulted Tezuka's ears. He couldn't help but wince. Tezuka noticed that a helpless smile attached itself to Fuji's face. They looked, and a college girl--by the look of her--was dashing through the halls like a mad-woman towards Fuji. She had her hair tied in pigtails at the sides of her head next to her ears. They bobbed wildly in rhythm with her strides.
As she got closer, Tezuka noticed there was a beauty mark underneath her eye. A visitor's tag she wore on the breast-pocket of her collared shirt read, 'Osakada Tomoka'.
"Fuji-sama!" She squealed again, and lunged wildly for Fuji.
Tezuka acted instinctively. He reached for Fuji and dragged him out of harm's way. They hit the wall hard, and the girl missed by a few fractions of an inch. Thankfully and unfortunately at the same time, she didn't slam face-first into the ground. The girl merely recovered and stood, practically bouncing in place.
There was a pout on her face as she glared at Tezuka, "Fuji-sama...you already found someone?"
Fuji smiled smiled, and Tezuka could feel from the slight shaking in his shoulders that he was trying his utmost not to burst out in laughter--presumably after this girl had missed, and not because she thought that....
Tezuka froze.
Because she thought that he and Fuji were... together.
At once, he let go of Fuji, and the boy calmly stepped away as if nothing had happened. "No, I haven't, Osakada-san. This is a colleage from work. Osakada Tomoka, this is Tezuka Kunimitsu. He's a friend." Fuji explained.
A warm feeling lanced through Tezuka as he heard Fuji name him 'friend'.
A look of understanding came over the girl, Tomoka's face as he looked at Tezuka, then to Fuji. She smiled politely and bowed. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't realize. I'm very sorry, Tezuka-san. But you see, Fuji-sama and I are engaged. I just got worried."
Despite the fact that events had been moving at a quick speed, this particular sentence stuck in Tezuka's mind.
"...Wait... you're--"
The doors to classrooms suddenly burst open, and a mob of females crowded the halls, screaming in protest to Tomoka's latest sentence.
"No, Osakada! Fuji-sama is mine!"
"You're wrong! Fuji-dono is engaged to me!"
"Syusuke-dono said he'd marry me!"
"I love, you Fuji!" A male's voice cried out.
There was a slightly disturbed look on Fuji's face as the boy registered that one.
Soon enough, Tezuka and Fuji were pressed against the wall of the hallway. Fuji was waving his hands helplessly as girls assaulted him with questions, screaming and shouting to get his attention. Tezuka just stood, bunched up next to Tezuka uncomfortably. Some girls gave notice to him, and began batting their eyelashes in a type of seductive way that made Tezuka feel deathly ill.
"Are those two together?!" One shrill voice shouted.
Instantly, the halls were silent. Tezuka spotted some boys even peeking their heads out of the classroom nervously, glaring at Tezuka evilly.
Fuji just smiled, but made no move to step away from Tezuka--not that he could have with the proximity they were being given. "N-no, we aren't. He is a friend from work, and I just brought him to help Yumiko and I with something."
It gave Tezuka a small feeling of slightly jealous satisfaction that Fuji didn't say, 'just a friend'.
"Syusuke!" A startled woman's voice called out.
As if on command, the crowd parted for a woman, a couple inches taller than Fuji, but shorter than Tezuka. She wore typical casual clothing, had the same honey colored hair as Fuji, and held a pair of glasses in her right hand.
A relieved look replaced the helpless one of Fuji's face. "Yumiko..." He sighed.
The pretty woman smiled warmly and hugged her brother, successfully ignoring the jealous stares she got from females and men alike. Tezuka still shuddered at the thought.
After the woman had parted from Fuji, she whipped around, her hair barely missed Fuji's face. Apparently, there must have been a terrible scowl on her face, for the students shrank back in fear. "Get back to your classrooms. All of you!" The woman roared in a voice that was the complete opposite of the one he had just heard.
It took just seconds for the students to scramble back into their classrooms, and a few of the teachers shout, "Thank you, Yumiko-san."
With a nod of satisfaction, the woman named Yumiko turned back around. She gave a glare to Tomoka who still remained. "Get back to the classroom, Osakada-san. Make sure the students don't attempt to leave again."
Tomoka gave a dejected nod, "Yes ma'am...." And dragged herself back to a classroom just a little bit away.
Yumiko sighed and smiled at Fuji again before giving him another hug, "I'm sorry about that, Syusuke." She laughed, "Teenagers and hormones, what can I say?"
Fuji smiled, "It's all right. No one was hurt. Oh, that's right. Nee-san, this is the friend I've been talking to you about." He turned to the side and let Yumiko look properly at Tezuka, "Tezuka Kunimitsu."
Tezuka felt a slight bit of awkwardness as Yumiko raked him over with her eyes, again and again. Her gaze was contemplative, critical, and above all--one he had never seen before. It made him nervous and self-aware as he bowed respectfully, "Pleased to meet you." The fact that she was Fuji's sister made the feeling even worse.
It took a few moments, but Yumiko finally smiled, and put a hand on Tezuka's shoulder to straighten him up, "Pleased to meet you too, Tezuka-san."
She turned to Fuji with a bright smile and gave him the thumbs up, "Good choice, Syusuke. I approve!"
Tezuka felt his face become warm.
Fuji smiled and gave the same response as he had done with the others, "Our relationship isn't like that, Nee-san."
"Not yet, Syusuke. But it will; you were listening when I was divining with the cards the other day." Yumiko said, her eyes strangely serious, "My predictions are almost never wrong."
"Almost never." Fuji replied playfully.
Yumiko smiled, "You haven't changed, little brother." She said affectionately.
Tezuka shifted awkardly, and then Fuji sprang to attention. "Does this mean that you're done for the day, Nee-san?"
"Yes," Yumiko replied. "You can leave your car where it is, Syusuke. We can all go in my car."
Fuji nodded and followed his sister as he began walking down the hall. Tezuka followed, and Fuji turned to him, smiling, "So now you've met my sister."
"She is very kind." Tezuka said.
"Yes, that she is. I'm sorry about what happened. I've forgotten how rabid the girls here can get." Fuji apologized. "And my sister can use cards to predict things. When I told her that I was bringing you over to help us shop, she couldn't resist consulting her cards, especially where..." He trailed off and looked away.
Tezuka waited, the only sound in the hall being the sound of their footsteps echoing off of the tiles. "...where what?"
"Where my--erm--love life is concerned." Fuji finished.
Tezuka blinked and looked away. "Ah..."
Fuji smiled apologetically at Tezuka. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you feel awkward. My personal affairs aren't anything you need be concerned about."
Tezuka felt a pang of guilt, as he probably knew more about Fuji than Fuji thought he did. He said nothing however, and just nodded in false agreement.
"Hey, are you guys coming or not? The shop I wanted to get to is closing soon!" Yumiko called.
Fuji smiled at Tezuka and then rushed after his elder sister, saying something about how the store in question didn't close for another four hours.
Tezuka sighed and rubbed his left arm, still radiating warmth from Fuji's body.
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By the time Tezuka, Fuji, and Yumiko were finished with their shopping, the sun was already beginning to dip in the horizon.
Fuji turned to Yumiko, "Was it really necessary to spend an hour and a half in that one store? We need to get to the site before it gets too dark."
Yumiko smiled easily at her brother, "What are you talking about? There were so many choices!"
Fuji and Tezuka sent each other a look. "Nee-san, it was a store of bags." Fuji protested.
His sister just sighed and didn't turn to look at them, nor did she slow her brisk pace, "Well, that's because you guys are male." As if that said everything about the problem. "We females have delicate tastes."
Fuji laughed weakly. He patted his back pocket.
He stopped abruptly; Tezuka followed his lead. "Nee-san," he said to his sister, "I need to stop by somewhere."
She appeared confused. "But...you just said that we needed to get there before it gets dark. How are you going to get there in time?"
Fuji shrugged, unworriedly, "It will work out." He assured her.
She appeared unsure, but agreed anyways. "If you're sure..." she murmured.
The boy just raised a hand in goodbye and ducked down an alleyway and was gone.
Yumiko lowered her hand and stopped waving. Quickly and suddenly, she turned to Tezuka, the fun and laughter gone from her eyes.
Despite the fact that she stood a head smaller than Tezuka still, he found her gaze was actually quite intimidating. "Tezuka-san, I have something that I have to ask you."
"...Which is?"
"Just who are you to my brother?"
The question initially took Tezuka by surprise, but he wasn't altogether shocked to have been asked it. "I thought you already foresaw that." He replied.
Yumiko just gave him an even look and pulled him off to the side of the street. "True, but these things can change. The future is never uncertain, and I am not a professional at cards. But judging by how you have been replying to Syusuke all morning, I assume you know quite a bit about our family."
She was incredibly insightful too.
"Depending on how much depth there is to the Fuji family, I may or may not." Tezuka replied in the end, deciding not to give away too much.
Yumiko smiled at him, "Hm. Not bad. But even so," the smile disappeared from her face. "Yuuta."
Tezuka jumped as a boy, no older than 18, appeared from amidst the crowd. He wore a scowl on his face and a cross-shaped scar to accompany it on his forehead. He also had the same honey-brown hair as Fuji and Yumiko. "Is this him, Nee-san?" he asked.
Yumiko nodded. "Yes. Yuuta, I know you went to Okaa-san's grave already, but could I trouble you to accompany Tezuka-san there separately? Explain to him about Syusuke and our family. He is probably going to find out from Saeki anyways."
Silently, Tezuka apologized to Saeki. He had tried.
Yuuta didn't seem partial to the idea, but agreed nevertheless. With that, Yumiko patted her brother's hand and left, blending instantly with the crowd.
And that left Yuuta and Tezuka staring at each other, sizing each other up.
Yuuta was about his brother's height, which meant he would definitely grow to be at least his sister's. His eyes were only slightly hostile, but intelligent and a dark brown color. They were a stark contrast from Fuji's, whose eyes were a startling hue of cerulean. The boy had obvious muscles growing on his body, but he was only partially developed. His face was handsome enough, and the marks from his gang days were well-hidden on the younger boy's features.
"So..." Yuuta began. "You're the Tezuka Kunimitsu." It was not a question.
"Yes." Tezuka replied. "What was Yumiko-san talking about with explaining your family?"
Yuuta smirked. "So you cut right to the chase. Hmph. That works either way. Let's walk." Without waiting for an answer, Yuuta started off at a pace that easily matched Tezuka's, despite the height difference. His strides differed from Fuji's. His were stiffer and less graceful.
"If you cut to the chase, than so will I. So basically, Fuji isn't there because he wants to be." Yuuta said quickly.
Tezuka's mind scrambled a little to catch up. "The company?"
"Yes." Yuuta replied a little impatiently. "When Fuji turned sixteen, or four as he would say," Yuuta permitted himself a brief grin. It quickly faded, though. "Our father...threatened Aniki."
"Threatened? How?" Tezuka dodged around an elderly lady who was about half his height.
"That's what I'm getting to." Yuuta glared at him. "Nee-san told me that Father threatened Aniki with her confectionaries shop she was running at the time. Father had the power to take away funding and close down the shop."
Yuuta stepped to the side of the road and waved down a taxi. Then he resumed, "The shop was everything to Nee-san and she was heart-broken when she heard it was going to be closed. So, Father came to Aniki with a proposition."
A taxi slid over onto the curb lazily. Yuuta and Tezuka jumped in, and Yuuta threw some bills over to the driver. "Skyrock Lookout." He ordered. The taxi driver eyed the bills, and then nodded. He sped off into the traffic, easing in behind a small blue vehicle.
"He told Aniki that he would halt Nee-san's funding and close down the confectionary shop unless he took over the company after college." Yuuta explained.
Tezuka sighed, thankful that he would have more time to concentrate on Yuuta's story, instead of dodging pedestrians. "So why doesn't he quit now? Yumiko-san doesn't work at the shop now."
Yuuta shook his head and rested it against the seat. "Wrong. It's still running. So..." He lowered his gaze. "Aniki can't quit until one of two things happens. Our father actually dies, or the shop fails on its own."
There was an angry look on Yuuta's face. It was bitter and worried and resentful. "Aniki is chained there because he knows how much the shop means to Nee-san. He knows how hard things were for her after our mother's death. She puts on a strong face on the outside, but Aniki and I can tell. Therefore, he is doing everything in his power to keep her shop in good health. He always is concerned about the well-being of other people, and when they are involved with anything even remotely dangerous, he gets...scary. For lack of a better word, he gets scary and angry."
Tezuka nodded. Fuji had indeed been like that when he and Fuji had been attacked in the basement just a few weeks ago.
"But...when he himself is involved, he couldn't care less. His attention and devotion goes towards other people, and he puts them before himself, no matter the kind of situation he is in at the time. He's just...an idiot." Yuuta hissed.
"But a kind one." Tezuka added, hearing the hint of veiled affection in the boy's voice.
Yuuta heaved a heavy sigh, but nodded. "Yeah. He is."
Tezuka watched Yuuta for a little while longer, and then he finally voiced a question that had been bothering him for quite a while.
"Could I ask you something?" he asked. Yuuta looked up, startled. After a pause, the scarred boy nodded hesitantly.
"Could you tell me about Fuji and when you were in a...gang?" Tezuka asked, carefully lowering his voice.
A flash ran through Yuuta's eyes. He stared angrily at the head-rest in front of him, until he gave a sigh. "Fine. What do you want to know about it?" he grumbled.
"Tell me the parts where Fuji is involved. The only thing I know about the matter is that he got you out of it." Tezuka said. Turth be told, he felt a bit guilty at invading the Fuji family's privacy. But nevertheless, he couldn't resist the pull of temptation.
Yuuta appeared to think quietly for a while and then he looked up, but not at Tezuka. "All right, fine. But...not here. Not now."
Tezuka clenched his fist in irritation. "Why not?"
Yuuta placed a hand on the handle of the door. He looked at Tezuka pointedly, "Because we're here."
This brought Tezuka back to attention, and he looked out the window on his side. He could hear the faint crash of waves. Vaguely, he wondered just how far they had traveled to get from the heart of the city to a place that was close to the sea. He could see very little from where he sat, but there was a cliff overhanging the sea. On it was what he made out to be a gravestone with a bouquet.
"Here. I've brought you where you needed to be, so I'm going now." Yuuta said quietly. He shoved something at Tezuka before getting back in the taxi. "I'll contact you later on tonight."
The door shut behind the youngest Fuji sibling. Tezuka stepped forward, putting a hand out, as if that would stop the taxi. "Wait, but how are you going to call me? I never gave you my number."
Yuuta gave Tezuka a look, as if he were stupid and rolled the window down. Then, he gave a smirk. "I'm a Fuji. I'll manage it."
With that, the taxi was gone in a swirling cloud of dust.
Tezuka was left at the cliffside, staring after the taxi in disbelief. Neither of Yuuta's other siblings were as...cheeky as he was. He just shook his head, not wanting to understand how the three siblings could have come out so different. Fuji would never have done something as bold as that...or he might have. Tezuka decided he didn't really know Fuji very well to discern something like that.
Then, a small, blue vehicle breezed around the corner and eased to a stop a few feet away from Tezuka.
Speak of the devil.
Fuji opened the car door, and shut it behind him. In his slim arms, he held a bouquet of flowers. The same color as his cerulean eyes.
"Where is nee-san?" he asked, looking around for his sister.
At the mention of Yumiko, Tezuka scrambled for a lie. Naturally, he couldn't tell Fuji, "She left me with your brother to explain everything about you and your past." That wouldn't do. So he settled for a lie he hoped was better than the truth.
"We split up. She said she had to buy another present." Tezuka lied, hoping that the ease he felt telling this lie was truth in Fuji's eyes.
"How did you know where the grave site was?"
Tezuka blurted the first thing that came to mind, "She told me." He realized that the lie wasn't quite as fool-proof as the first one had been, but apparently it was enough. Fuji smiled, and nodded. "All right, then. Let's go." He then proceeded to the grave.
With a grateful sigh, Tezuka followed.
By the time he reached the grave, Fuji had already put down his bouquet. The boy's forehead was pressed to the undoubtedly frigid marble of the grave stone, and he was murmuring a silent prayer in a language he assumed to be English. Tezuka wasn't sure he liked the fact that Fuji's head was on the grave. Not because of the fact that it was a grave, but just because of the fact that the grave was probably making the boy even colder than he always seemed.
Then, Fuji's murmurings switched to Japanese again.
"Okaa-san, I've brought a friend," Fuji held out a hand. It took a moment for Tezuka to realize that Fuji wanted his hand. Tezuka slid his hand into Fuji's smaller one, and realized that his suspicions about Fuji being cold were true. The boy's hand was dangerously cold. "This is Tezuka Kunimitsu, okaa-san."
Fuji's grip on Tezuka's hand tightened. The boy's khaki pants began turning a different color as tears fell from his eyes. "He's a...a friend."
What happened next, Tezuka wasn't sure if it was coincidence or a higher power with a bizarre sense of humor. But it began to rain. Rain began to fall, and soak him and Fuji. It was cold and bitter, but it was nothing compared to the icyness of Fuji's small hand.
Fuji didn't seem to mind the rain, if he realized it was raining in the first place.
"Is it okay, okaa-san? He's a friend. Is that okay?" Fuji's voice trembled with sadness. Tezuka knew he wasn't asking if it was all right to have a friend. Fuji was just asking his mother's permission to have someone who is close. He was asking for permission, upon his mother's grave.
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(A/N:) I'm quite pleased with myself, actually. From the last chapter, I just felt that I should keep going. So I did. More TezukaFuji in the next chapter, since I think it is about time they do at least a little cuddling. And naturally, it has to be while it is raining outside, since rain is just a TezukaFuji moment. =3 Thank you for the reviews in the last chapter. Expect the next chapter at around Christmas time.
Please review!
Sincerely,
-PurificationArrow