Chapter 6

When Oishi met Tezuka, they were both first year students at Seigaku. Oishi tended toward shyness, but that was okay with the latter, because Tezuka wasn't the most extroverted person in the world. It seemed naturally that the two quiet, disciplined students gravitate toward each other.

Oishi liked Tezuka, but he was one of the few. Tezuka didn't have that many people who genuinely liked him - he commanded respect, not affection. Even as a first year, there was something about the way he moved that commanded the eye, that demanded acknowledgment.

But that was okay with Oishi. Tezuka wasn't a mean person, and he genuinely meant well.

It came as no surprise to anyone, after six months in the club, that when freshmen were finally allowed to try out for the team, Tezuka was being looked at by his seniors quite nervously, and a few of the more unscrupulous second years tried to make him back down.

Not that he would. Tezuka didn't back down from anything.

Along with Tezuka, there was another first year who had a good shot of securing a regulars position in his first attempt - Atobe Keigo. Oishi wasn't the kind of person who disliked people, which was a good thing when it came to Atobe. The latter was arrogant, boastful and inconsiderate, things which grated on his nerves.

They apparently grated on Tezuka's nerves as well, though the stoic boy did his best to tolerate Atobe. The two carefully avoided each other, and as luck would have it, Yamato, the captain, was kind enough to place them in separate blocks to keep them from going head-to-head.

Or so Oishi thought. Actually, he was quite wrong.

Yamato made one very big mistake during those ranking matches. He actually encouraged the rivalry.

Both tore through their blocks in a manner which terrified some of the older boys and things quickly escalated into something like a score war between the two boys. Both kept a sharp eye on the other's wins and losses, and made it a point not to stay far behind the other, or even try to overtake the other boys' score.

To put it simply, they massacred what was left of the school team.

Their success didn't just make the older boys more wary of them-- they were also angry over how two first year boys could actually beat them at the game. They were young, small and they weren't supposed to be that good. They weren't supposed to stare their opponents down with fires burning in their eyes and confident stances which told of their experience.

Their love for tennis, and their hatred for each other brought them to levels nobody would believe.

At the end of the day, Ryuuzaki was proud of the two young boys, who fought long and hard to reach where they were-- standing shoulder to shoulder on top of the others. It was a pity that both, who were so brilliant and headstrong, also hated each other and refused to cooperate. She could see that there was great potential for the two of them should they work together, but apparently, either one of them must have pissed the other off pretty badly before they joined the club.

"Nice game, Tezuka," Atobe smiled, and there was something saccharine about the way his lips lifted at the corners. Next to him stood Fuji, who had his usual harmless smile on. "But it could have been won more gracefully, I believe. If I was the one playing, I'm sure I would have done better."

Oishi noticed Tezuka narrowing his eyes in a familiar telltale sign of irritation.

He hastened to speak. "Actually, Tezuka-kun-"

"Is a good player, no doubt." Atobe smirked. "But he still has space for improvement. Lots of improvement."

He didn't like trouble, but it always appeared that Atobe seemed to like looking for trouble. Oishi was naturally soft-spoken, and he wasn't as good at arguments as he hoped he could be, so he had a tendency to avoid them. Furthermore, Tezuka was quiet enough and nondescript enough in class that nobody ever bothered to notice him much.

It was nice. Being left alone, that was.

He didn't want them to become the victims of bullies in their school; he didn't want the older boys to pick on them just because they were quiet. So he was thankful when Tezuka supported him and proved his point more than once. The bespectacled boy was good enough to beat them at tennis and make them regret their actions. He was strong enough to face down the older boys and never flinch from the fight dawning in their eyes.

But Tezuka was proper. He never got into fights, simply because it wasn't his way of doing things.

That was why Oishi felt sure that he wasn't going to get into a fight now, even with Atobe inciting him in this manner. The problem laid not in them but in the over-confident first year boy they knew. There wasn't a single peaceful waking moment from the instant they knew the other boy, and Oishi had this feeling that peace with him would not only be hard won, but it would also take years to achieve.

He wasn't willing to condemn straightaway and he wasn't violent in the least bit but honestly, sometimes... there were moments where he wanted to crack his knuckles on Atobe's pretty face.

Tezuka held eerily still after Atobe's latest insult, and Oishi was of the opinion that a million profound thoughts were racing behind those carefully concealed eyes. Atobe seemed to be lying in wait, and Fuji stood just slightly behind the diva's shoulder, obvious in his support, but out of the direct line of fire.

"Improvement is something we should all strive for," Tezuka said after a moment of thought, agreeing easily enough.

Tezuka's tendency to agree with Atobe in a cutting way was one of the worst things for the diva, Oishi knew. Atobe liked to have people rise to his bait and lose their tempers, but as far as Oishi knew, Tezuka's temper was practically non-existent. He got irritated, but few things really managed to make him ANGRY.

Atobe kept trying his best, though.

"Some more than others," Atobe said, to which Fuji hid a snicker behind his hand. "It's a shame we weren't in the same block, or else I would have-"

Oishi prayed to every deity he knew of and a few he didn't for patience. Atobe Keigo was off, feeding his precious ego, and he was stuck being his audience, since Tezuka seemed to have decided to prove to everyone that he was Not Impressed by standing there with his arms across his chest and a neutral expression on his face.

"-and your serve keeps going dangerously close to the line -- once I think it was even out, but the referee wasn't paying close enough attention. If it was me, I-"

Was Fuji really laughing behind Atobe's back the way he looked?

Oishi was just about ready to grab Tezuka's arm and make up some kind of excuse when a voice cleared. Turning around, the four first years noticed their captain, Yamato, and automatically bowed, even Atobe.

"Yo," he said casually. He had a certain dignity to his manner, but he lacked a lot of formality. "I came over to congratulate our newest regular members," he said, grinning at Tezuka and Atobe. With a smile, he glanced at Fuji and Oishi. "You two did quite well, too -- I expect you'll be making the team soon."

Oishi flushed at the compliment, but Fuji just gave that same annoying smile that never seemed to leave his face.

"Thank you, buchou," Tezuka said formally. "We'll try not to disappoint you."

"I won't disappoint you," said Atobe right on Tezuka's heels, casting a glance over at his rival. Tezuka's eyes didn't waver from Yamato's face, but there was a tightening in his expression that meant Atobe had hit his mark.

Yamato looked at both of them, and a smile played on his lips. "I'm sure you won't, either of you," he said. "Can I ask you two a favor?" he asked.

The two blinked a bit in surprise, wondering what the captain could want, but nodded.

"I'm going to be graduating soon, and team is going to need someone to take my place. Can I count on you to become the new pillars of Seigaku?" he asked.

There was a long period of silence from both boys.

"Yamato-buchou," Atobe began slowly, as if to test the waters. "Are you asking us to lead the school team?"

Yamato smiled. "Why, that would be good too, if the both of you can cooperate and set down examples-"

"Ah," Tezuka's sudden reply made both boys turn to stare at him. "You want us to support the team when there is the need."

"Yes."

Atobe started smirking. "Of course I'll be able to do it, Yamato-buchou. I will not fail you."

Tezuka only stared at his captain in silence, something indecipherable flickering in his eyes. "We have to cooperate?"

The older boy gave both his standard smile. "That would be for the best. After all, how can two people lead the others when they are divided in their beliefs?"

Oishi had a bad feeling about the whole business of cooperating. Simply because that word didn't exist in the common dictionary of Tezuka and Atobe's. In fact, if he was to write a handbook for people dealing with them, the word 'cooperate' would never, ever pop up.

Not while both boys were alive, he believed.

It wasn't because he had no faith in Tezuka's temper. Neither was it because Atobe was as arrogant as a peacock strutting around the courts.

They hated each other.

It had rapidly become an established fact with Oishi from the moment he saw the two boys face off on the courts, one filled with burning determination and fiery indignation, the other filled with cold calm and carefully calculated insults. He knew he had certain private prejudices towards Atobe, but people could hardly blame him for disliking someone who invited others' displeasure.

"I'll try my best." That was Tezuka's eventual answer, and he turned to glance at Atobe for the effect.

The diva scowled, and almost crossed his arms. "I guess it simply can't be helped that some other people need to try while there are others who are talented enough to do things because they know they can do it and not because they know they have to TRY."

Tezuka's answer was nonplussed. "There's something called blind confidence."

Atobe only sneered. "And there's something called inferiority complex. And it applies to certain special individuals."

Oishi would have buried his face in his hands if it helped, but unfortunately, he knew no amount of panic-induced hand wringing or head hanging would aid the situation. It was unfortunate that both boys had to narrow down to this eventually. And as annoying as Atobe could be, Tezuka should have better sense than to-

"I'm glad to see that you're certainly not suffering from that ailment, since you showed more than enough confidence in yourself." Tezuka's reply made Oishi want to slap his own forehead in frustration.

"Why? Don't tell me you're jealous of me, Tezuka. It's really nothing much, you know, to be just a little more confident in myself. I guess it's really a gift I'm born with and I can't help having it. You, on the other hand-"

"I'm not that gifted, unfortunately." The calm, assessing look from the usually quiet boy made Atobe's eyes widened briefly before narrowing. "I sure I can live without the gift."

"You-"

"Boys," Yamato's amused voice broke their concentration and both boys appeared to notice again that there were people standing around them. "I take it that the two of you don't like each other very much then?"

Oishi seriously questioned if his captain had any sense of diplomacy, to bring such an issue out into the open. It was a question that Tezuka would be too polite to answer, Oishi was confident, but Atobe surely wouldn't trouble himself about anything such as common courtesy.

Not good, not good. Oishi wondered if there was any way to dodge the impending explosion.

Fuji's laughter actually grew audible, now, and Oishi decided that glaring at the fair-haired boy would be worth it. He wasn't stupid enough to involve himself in the Tezuka/Atobe spat, but getting annoyed with Fuji seemed like a productive use of his anger.

"If he didn't play tennis as well as he did, I wouldn't even bother with him," Atobe said after a moment.

Oishi blinked, unable to believe Atobe had offered something resembling a compliment - backhanded though it was - toward Tezuka. Turning his head toward his friend, he wondered if this might be the chance to bury some of the rivalry which was quickly festering into an open wound.

Tezuka just stared, and said nothing.

A tick formed in Atobe's eyebrow, and Oishi knew that Tezuka's refusal to acknowledge his skill on the court had seriously dented the diva's ego. Fuji's laughter went away, and Oishi looked over at him, only to meet sapphire eyes that were lacking all mirth.

The temperature around them dropped ten degrees.

"Hmmm." The pensive sound came from Yamato, who was scratching his chin thoughtfully as he stared at the four freshmen. "It's too bad you're so stubborn, especially since you have so much in common," he mused. A mischievous grin lit his face, and Oishi braced himself inside. Something was going on inside of the soon-to-be-graduating captain's head, and it probably wouldn't bode well for him. "If you refuse to get along... how about something else instead?"

Atobe and Tezuka seemed to stop breathing, sensing something profound was about to happen.

"You each seemed to think I meant something a little different when I asked you to be the pillars of Seigaku... how about you show me? What do you think it means, to be a pillar of Seigaku?"

"I-" Atobe began, but Yamato held up a hand to forestall him.

"Shh, shh, Atobe-kun. That was a rhetorical question. If you're going to play, it's going to be by my rules, ne? What I want is for you two to show me the meaning of being a pillar of the team."

Tezuka watched with narrowed eyes. "How do we know if we're right?" he asked.

"You'll know," Yamato said. "There's been few true pillars of the team - few people who've been strong enough. I was thrilled when I saw you two, because I don't think we've ever had a team where two players had that capability... but we do now. I think it will be very interesting to see how you develop - it almost makes me wish I was staying here."

He turned and walked away, his steady stride hypnotizing the four first years until he had disappeared into the club house.

End: Chapter 6