Okay new chapter. And guess what??? It's Saeki time for all of you guys who were waiting XD Before I start, I'll give you guys a heads-up. After this chapter I WON'T be able to update for a while. Sorry guys but my summer is all filled up so I can't be sure whether I'll be able to update regularly or not.

"I hope you don't mind."

The rocking chair was gone. The bed was beside the window, in the wrong angle, he noted. His computer, shelves, and books though were relatively untouched aside from the lack of dust that would have gathered on the objects. His vinyl records were probably in an incorrect order. A few pictures were pinned on the wall already, some placed where he would have liked and others were glaring errors.

"No of course not. I'm glad you moved them. It's easier for me now. Thank you."

His mother smiled with relief. Her graying hair was pulled back into a loose ponytail; sweat still lingered on her forehead. She turned to beam at her husband. Fuji Shunsuke only nodded in response.

Feeling he had permission to, he entered his altered room. It was odd that he did not see the banister first when he looked back on the door; everything had been moved to the first floor after all. He supposed it had its benefits, ones that barely healed the underlying hurt. He could smell the pleasant aromas from the kitchen faster than if he was upstairs. Fuji sighed. No more measuring happiness and time: it only made everything pass by so much quicker.

With shaking fingers he carefully pried away the misplaced pictures to pin them to a place he found more appropriate. He scraped at the top of the tack holding up his Mt. Fuji pictures until it began to give away. Unfortunately he was fast enough to avoid the sharp point of the white plastic tack. Fuji took in a breath through his teeth before habitually placing the injured finger in his mouth. I'm getting careless, he thought despite the fact that he knew that was not it. He turned around to look behind him as if he were caught doing a bad deed. And that was when he saw it. The box.

It was poorly shut as an object poked through the corner of the top, letting a small view of the contents but not enough to satisfy the curiosity. He felt a growing dread inside his chest: was it…? Was it what he thought it was? Holding his breath in painfully, he flipped open the flap.

Tennis.

His rackets lay in disarray in the bottom, the guts and frames clashing terribly against each other. Dusty tennis balls covered the rest of the mess, some in their cans while others lay on their own in various spots. One or two tennis magazines were discreetly shoved into the edge; he had thrown the rest away a long time ago. And on top of it all, shining with dull brilliance, lay his Kantou Regional Tournament medal. They lay innocently together in the crowded box but he knew better.

It was enough to make him sick.

A strange swirling sensation began in his stomach, growing greater every moment they looked back up at him. He covered his mouth and made a run for it. He rushed through the hallway, stumbling but never falling. The sensation overrode the rest of his wits. He ignored his old rocking chair on the way to the washroom, its tartan pillow on the ground. Not forgetting to lock the door on the way in, he flew the rest of the short distance to the toilet.

Yet nothing came out. It was all stuck, deep inside of him. It would never fade or fall away. It was caught. Plain and simple. He would never get rid of it. Fuji sat shakily on the cool tile floor, wiping his dry mouth. His sister knocked on the door incessantly as she asked if he was alright in a panic-stricken voice. He wiped his forehead where cold sweat had formed. Yumiko's voice was soon joined by his parents'. A chorus of worry.

The things that were not trapped, he had to get rid of them.

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"As I thought, Tokyo beaches are no match for good old Chiba!"

"Right. But it might be that we're used to Chiba too."

"… maybe a little bit."

Aoi Kentarou stretched and fell back into the sand to lie in the path of the glaring sun. Saeki noted that as per usual, he had failed to put on any sunscreen. Oh well, I'll tell him after he burns a little. Saeki himself yawned; the early afternoon sun stung his back but at the same time lulled him into a sleepy state.

The freshman captain, now a 2nd year, had wanted to practice his skills with Saeki but had somehow ended up on the beach partway through a match. Something about strengthening himself since he seemed to be losing. Personally he thought that Aoi's love for energy had lured him to the beach. However he couldn't criticize his kouhai for that since he had allowed himself to be baited too. He just hoped nobody stole their belongings while they dozed off…

Stop. He blinked rapidly, newly sobered. He had seen… or had he seen? He was sure it was someone he knew. Who? He shut his eyes tightly before opening them wider than before. The people blended together, shirts to pants, bathing suits to faces. Somehow there was one that didn't. An anomaly in the predictable masses.

He was skeptical as to believing this was the person that had awoken him. But he recognized him by his motions that had disintegrated to a level that he almost could not identify him by his small habits. He frowned, a question already forming on his tongue.

"Fuji…?"

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He wasn't sure why he picked the beach. He was only aware of a lingering feeling alive in his mind. It felt right to come here. He only regretted that it was not winter. The crowds were overpowering and the heat even more so. His ankles, beneath his black ankle weights, began to perspire thinly. He ignored the few stares he attracted; there were more people preoccupied with their summer day fun than him. His knuckles began to turn white with the effort of holding the box steady. Further up, much further up, there was an empty spot if he remembered correctly…

"Fuji…?"

He froze. Nowadays his name was always used in the form of questions. A muddle of 'are you okay's and 'are you sure's and 'is that him's. Who was it now? A long lost cousin he hadn't been paraded in front of yet? A former schoolmate? Classmate? Teacher?

"Fuji, is that you?"

The sixteen year old was tempted to answer 'no' and walk away. Much easier than any other scenario that might unfold. Nevertheless, he turned around with a smile.

"Yes?"

In the end his voice had failed him. The polite response quickly died in his throat. It was the last person he was expecting and one of the last people he wished to see. His mouth was too parched to even gulp.

"Fuji? What are you doing here? And…"

His friend glanced down at his legs before darting back up again. There was no tact as he had not yet given a reason for it. The lie that had been told played in front of Fuji's eyes. There would be no explanation that would be honest without the truth.

"Saeki, I didn't expect to see you here."

Which was really a sincere fact and the only one that he could muster up enough morale to say. Saeki was not expected at all.

"Yeah, you too. What are you doing here?"

He looked down at the box and back up again with guilt. What was he doing here?

"I'm…"

The shorter of the two friends looked back down at the misshapen box. Saeki waited patiently.

"I'm just getting rid of some things I don't need."

"At the beach?"

Fuji smiled mischievously.

"You'd be surprised at the things you can do at the beach."

Saeki paused, at a loss on what to say. He wasn't sure if he should ask directly about his apparent condition or follow along with the playful banter.

"Do you want to come?"

He had already turned around, showing the honey brown hair that hadn't changed at all since their junior high days. It still fell in light tresses across his head, easily swayed by the wind.

"I…" Saeki looked back to Aoi. He had woken up. "I'll come with you."

"I guess I'll have some company now." Fuji chuckled. He started his slow walk.

"Uh wait! Hold on. Tell me about your-"

"Later. When we get there."

The response was so sharp that Saeki hadn't been sure if it had been Fuji at all; like his movements, it had changed so abruptly. It seemed like he had no choice but to follow.

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"Here we are."

He set the box down before slowly lowering himself down on to the soft sand. The tides were only a few feet off and the sea gulls' piercing cries were heard clearly through the rhythmic waves. Saeki sat beside Fuji on the empty beach, taking in the scent of the sea deeply. He hadn't forgotten yet.

"So tell me. Did you lie to me?"

Fuji hung his head in obvious shame. He had never boded very well with lies, even when he lived in Chiba. He could say that it was alright, but they were never forgiven in his heart. Saeki knew how much it hurt him to realize that he was a liar now.

"I… I have no excuse for that. I'm sorry."

He did not say that it was alright, since it was not. There was anger that boiled inside him but still, he could afford to…

"You're forgiven. But it's not forgotten."

He watched from the corner of his eyes as Fuji shifted to a more comfortable pose.

"Fair enough I think. I'm sorry."

"I know."

"Sorry."

The two teens watched the tides approach inch by inch. They could hear the far off laughter of beach-goers from the beach down the road.

"Do you want to know what's wrong with me?"

Saeki stared off into the sea, still lost in the heavy tension between the two. It wasn't anger or disappointment but…

"If you want to tell me."

"Alright."

Fuji moved the box so that it sat in front of him idly. His cheeks were flushed red from the sun.

"It's called Spinocerebellar Atrophy. I'm losing control of my muscles and nerves. They say there's no cure so I think I'm going to die soon."

"What?!"

He had never never expected this. Not even in his dreams. Spinocerebellar… well he hadn't even heard of it before. Saeki stared, looking for the telltale upward curl of Fuji's mouth for a sign of a joke. But he only watched the ocean silently, his cerulean eyes reflecting the deep green water that was starting to move forward ever so slightly.

"What? Why didn't you tell me before? For how long? I… Why did you lie?!"

The eyes moved to meet his own brown eyes with an aloof maturity that truly frightened him. It was wise in its glance and at the same time innocent in things that were adult.

"You wouldn't understand Saeki. It's not something that can be explained easily. I'm sorry for lying though."

Panic. Anger. Annoyance. Worry. Confusion.

"I already know that. Just tell me!"

It echoed in the emptiness. There was a repetition of 'me' for a brief moment before it was swallowed up by the sounds of the beach again. Saeki leaned back; he had somehow moved forward in his heated revolution of emotions. He calmed himself mentally before asking once again.

"Tell me why. I'll try to understand."

His bangs were a curtain, displaying blue eyes one moment and covering it the next. What he was thinking was impossible to predict.

"I lied because… I wanted to keep some part of myself intact… Some part that wasn't ruined. I hadn't told you yet so I thought maybe I could at least appear whole to you for a while…"

Fuji stopped to let out an apologetic laugh.

"That didn't come out too well…"

Saeki stared at his friend. He was surrounded by a golden light now (was it already evening?). It lightened up the pale features but also revealed the bone structures that had become more prominent over the years. His shirt now clung onto a shrunken frame; he was smaller now… frailer. He could break at any given time.

"No. I understood it."

It came heavily; he was sure it came out slurred. But it didn't seem to matter to Fuji. He watched the lips part slightly and curl at the corners.

"Thank you Saeki."

"You're welcome."

They sat in comfortably in each other's presence until Fuji stood up into the yellowing sky.

"What I'm going to do to the box is probably illegal so don't tell anybody. You're my accomplice anyway."

"Your accomplice?"

Saeki raised his eyebrows and watched inquisitively as his long time friend took out a lighter from his pocket. His eyes widened as the flame burst through while Fuji's shaky hand held it dangerously close to his own skin.

"H-hey what are you-"

It burst into flames quicker than they both expected; they both jumped back as the crimson fire spread throughout the cardboard. They watched as it began to eat up the contents, releasing a peculiar smell into the air.

"Fuji, what did you…"

His eyes were closed. His mouth was so relaxed as if he was in some state of release. The wind blew peacefully around him, tangling the tresses with ease. Saeki recognized a racket inside the flames. He decided not to ask. He wouldn't understand it.

"You know, I think you'll live a really long time."

Another smile: more genuine, more hopeful. He could not see the sapphire underneath the lids.

"Thank you."

If you look up at the sky after falling down, the sky is also today stretching limitlessly and smiles at me…I'm alive.

I'm alive.

Well it's more condensed than when I first wrote it but other than that I kinda like how it turned out XD but I'm not sure if I got the point across. Oh well, people have lots of different interpretations of what something is anyway. So I hope you read my HEADS-UP at the top. Sorry for the inconvenience (lol I'm like one of those machines XD) but yes, I can't rearrange my schedule.

Hope you enjoyed!