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DISCLAIMER: I do not own PoT! Darn, I'm getting tired of always putting this here… Oh, do you mind if I'd no longer put the disclaimer thingy?
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Chapter 21
CRUSHED
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Sakuno arrived at the practice later than she intended too, but she clearly didn't expect this…
"He… he totally crushed Ryoma!" Kachiro exclaimed, horrified. Horio was left speechless.
Ryoma was on his knees. He couldn't believe he lost.
The regulars of Seigaku tennis club gawked at the scene. It was as if it was just some kind of joke that Ryoma pulled on them… if it wasn't the fact that they knew he wasn't.
Sumire didn't expect the result either; it was just a practice game against Daidouji's sister school from Shibuya, Kinimoto Gakuen's tennis club…
The boy on the other side of Ryoma's court sighed.
"Es una verdadera pena…" he said in pure Spanish. "I thought you were a lot better since you were the one who had, in fact, defeated Atobe-san." A smile graced his lips as he saw the other boy in utter shock. He threw the racket on his shoulder and left the court with a smug and triumphant look on his face.
He noticed a small, unnoticed twin braided girl from a corner.
"Konnichiwa, Sakuno-chan." A voice so sweet and kind echoed in Sakuno's ears. A mess of jet black hair met her eyes as she looked up. Brown strands stood up amongst his natural colored ones and his emerald eyes were filled with happiness.
Ryoma clenched his hand while it was still on the dusty ground.
Sakuno couldn't believe it what she had seen… Ryoma was crushed harshly!
0 – 6!
In favor of…
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One week ago…
"You want to what?" Mariko asked, the voice from the other line wafted once more; the fukubuchou then hung the phone. Ayashi, who was eating another bowl of yakisoba, stared up at her.
"Anything wrong, Mariko-chan?" she asked. Mariko sat down beside Ayashi, she looked at the food and sighed.
"You're eating again. You'll get fatter and fatter if you keep on doing that." She commented. Ayashi pouted.
"Aw! That wasn't what I was talking about! What was that phone call?" Ayashi flailed her hands in the air… acting like some kind of young kid.
"A call from Kinimoto Gakuen… it was Akinori Akinosuke… you know, the captain of their tennis club." Answered Mariko, "It seems that they want to have a practice match…"
Ayashi lifted a brow, "But we're not tennis players."
"Who said it would be us?" retorted Mariko. Her brown eyes seemed serious enough though to change Ayashi back into her "office" mode.
"Is it Seigaku?" she asked. Mariko nodded, and then Ayashi put her finger on her lips, "But isn't that weird? How'd they know we know Seigaku?"
"I have no idea."
Ayashi stood up, stretched a little and yawned. She lazily took her blazer from the couch and proceeded to go to the door. Mariko asked where she was going.
"I'm going to Shin's office. He might know."
"I'm coming with you." She sighed. It was NEVER a good idea to let Ayashi wander off on her own.
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Shinichi, who was now in a sailor fuku that wasn't even their own school's uniform, stared at them in disbelief.
"Are you accusing me that I'm the one who gave that away?!" he scowled at them. The two girls nodded imperturbably causing the boy to turn into stone and break into a million pieces of uneven broken hardened cement. Large bubbles of tears bubbled (whoa, whoa, whoa) from his eyes as he saw Emiko and Jun pass by the Journalism Club's office.
"EMI-CHAAAAAAN!!!" he shrieked as he tackle-glomped Emiko who was taken by surprise by the sudden appearance of her friend. She looked at the two indifferent girls inside the room and turned to Jun who still had the clueless look on her face.
"Shinichi, what are you wailing for?" Emiko asked. Shinichi took out a napkin and sneezed. He pointed at the two girls inside the room (who were now by the door).
"Emi-chan! I thought they were my friends! T-They accused me of tattling on them!" he frowned. Emiko stared at him.
"But isn't that what you really do?" Jun asked him, bending down with a smile on her face that even a yakuza would never wish to see. Shinichi felt like the most terrifying of all lightning had just struck him dead.
"KYA! Minna-san! Don't do that!" Emiko exclaimed, Shinichi beamed. "I know that Shinichi is such a pervert," Shinichi blanched, "-a money-making-schemer," all the blood and liquid available in his body was drained, "-and a man who loves only money," his world broke into a million pieces, "-you shouldn't think of rude things such as that!"
"Look. A soul." Mariko pointed at the white thingy that came out of his mouth.
"KYAA!!! SHINICHI!" Emiko screamed.
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"So it wasn't Shinichi after all." Ayashi said, titling the chair she occupied by using her feet as leverage. The third years were back in Ayashi's office; they had already asked Shinichi if he had any contact with the Kinigaku recently, but apparently, he was much more absorbed in his "escapades" on stalking, er… following, er… data gathering on Hyoutei Gakuen.
Mariko slouched on the comfy sofa, "Then who was it?"
Jun sipped from her cup and was watching the birds outside calmly. Emiko on the other hand was typing something on her laptop. Her eyes widened with what she saw.
"Aya-chan!" she whirled at the kendo captain, "You… you have to see this!"
Ayashi, Mariko and Jun went nearer to the glassed batch mate and gasped.
"Could… could it be?!"
Seigaku…
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A young boy with calm features walked on the grounds of Seigaku. His navy blue blazer didn't match in any way with those used by the students in Seigaku; his black necktie didn't seem to be wrinkled and neither did his uniform. A smile was plastered on his face that made girls swoon as he passed by.
On his left hand was a small envelope…
"Ah, anou… ojou-san." He approached a girl with innocent eyes. He gave the girl with a smile.
"Y-yes?" the girl stuttered. She was taken by his attitude.
"Well, I'm sort of lost here in Seigaku…" he scratched the back of his head with his right hand. He seemed to blush, hence the girl blushed twenty times than her original blush.
"Y-yes?"
A smile filled his lips, "Do you know where the… Seigaku tennis club office is?"
The girl nodded enthusiastically. Unknown to her, the boy she was accompanying was thinking more than just "visiting".
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"SA-KU-NO-CHAN!" Tomoka shouted as Sakuno swept the floor clean. She looked up at her friend.
"Hn? What is it, Tomo-chan?" The look on Tomoka's face was almost exactly as when she first saw Ryoma. She was squealing like a fan girl and flailing her hands in the air.
"A REALLY CUTE guy just came earlier!" she walked up to Sakuno, her eyes blazing. She had never looked so… er… infatuated since Ryoma.
Sakuno forced a laugh, "Ha ha, that's nice, Tomo-chan…" Tomoka's eyes flared with blazing fire.
"You HAVE to see him, Sakuno-chan!"
"EH?!"
Sakuno found herself being dragged away from her work. She wondered when she'll be able to sweep the floor in peace.
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Inside the tennis club office, the young boy had already talked with Sumire; though a little taken aback by the sudden visit and the proposal itself, the coach did not sense anything wrong with it, though of course she consulted it with the rest of the team. The regulars were excited to meet them though; it had been a while since they've last had their practice match!
"Arigatou gozaimasu, Ryuzaki-sensei." The boy politely bowed. Sumire shrugged it off and asked him if it was alright if they'll be doing the practice game inside the Seigaku grounds. The boy nodded; it did not bother him that there would be an awful lot of cheers for the Seigaku regulars.
The boy was about to leave just as the regulars came inside the office. They were surprised to see the boy, probably just two inches taller than Ryoma; Sumire greeted them with the fact that the boy was the one who asked for the practice game.
Ryoma's eyes turned into dangerous slits of hazel orbs as he observed the boy. He didn't like the look the other boy was giving him… and he thought… he knew he'd seen that boy somewhere…
The boy went on, of course, not before bowing to the upper-class and the coach. He gave a rather odd twisted smile at Ryoma, who felt like he was being challenged by the boy. Ryoma shot a glare back at him. He then left, with a rather satisfied look in his eyes.
When he passed by Ryoma, he whispered something that made Ryoma turn his head to follow the boy's whisper. Ryoma once again narrowed his eyes.
Now he remembered.
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Sakuno was being dragged away by Tomoka when they came face to face with the boy. Tomoka whispered to Sakuno that 'the boy' was looking for her too. The shy girl blushed furiously as the boy smiled at her. He approached them.
"Arigatou, Osakada-san. Thank you for letting me see my friend once again." He nodded at the energetic girl. Tomoka smiled earnestly at the both. She told Sakuno that the boy had told her they were friends and they haven't seen each other for such a long time; Tomoka waved back at them as she left them together, so they could talk. (Of course, Tomoka whispered to Sakuno that she, Sakuno, shouldn't cheat at Ryoma!)
When Tomoka had already left, the dark haired boy came nearer to Sakuno. He smiled, "Didn't I tell you I was going to visit you?"
The blush on Sakuno's face grew brighter and redder, if it was even possible.
Unknown to her, another boy was looking through a window, looking really pissed off at the proximity that Sakuno and the other boy shared.
A weird grin came to the other boy's face as he took Sakuno by hand and pulled her to him, taking her into a full embrace. It made Sakuno's eyes widen, while Ryoma was seething with unknown anger.
"A-anou…"
"I… will avenge your tears, milady." He said. Still in his arms, Sakuno gasped, "Do not worry. I just don't like a cute girl like you cry again. OK? There is nothing to worry about." He pushed her a little away from him to see her face. He cupped her chin; Ryoma flinched as he watched them. He wanted to look away, but he seemed to be glued on the scene… with a fear that the he might do something to Sakuno.
"Anou… you can let go now…" Sakuno muttered, "Ke-"
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Sakuno stood in horror.
She had never seen Ryoma so worn out since his last match with Hyoutei's Atobe Keigo.
"Es una verdadera pena…" he said in pure Spanish. "I thought you were a lot better since you were the one who had, in fact, defeated Atobe-san." There was no hint of malice in his voice, yet, Ryoma's ears were pounding.
He lost.
He really lost.
The regulars couldn't believe it either. Almost all of them were swept in their feet by the challenging team, well, except for Fuji and Tezuka, though.
The boy left the court; he then noticed the twin braided girl who was frozen in shock.
"Konnichiwa, Sakuno-chan." A voice so sweet and kind echoed in Sakuno's ears. A mess of jet black hair met her eyes as she looked up. Brown strands stood up amongst his natural colored ones and his emerald eyes were filled with happiness.
Sakuno couldn't believe it what she had seen… Ryoma was crushed harshly!
0 – 6!
In favor of…
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A/N: Hahaha, got you there. You really thought I was going to put it here, ne? See ya next time! (oh yeah, I'd probably post just one or two chapters per log in…) (I'm still depressed with the ending of TDH being Harry/Ginny… oh well. It sucks.)
Es una verdadera pena -- NOTE: I'll put it on the next chapter cause I forgot to put the meaning... but it's something like... "It's not yet there" (shame), "That's too bad"... But I'll DEFINITELY put the meaning next chapter!