Disclaimer: I don't own Prince of Tennis nor any of its characters.

Author's Notes: Written for the LJ 30Angsts community. Claimed the HiyoGaku pairing, coz I wanted to write more of them. And I wanted to write some angst, too. Don't expect much happy endings. XP

I'm on a writing spree coz I'm bored and I haven't anything better to do. :)

Enjoy the sixth shot!

Warnings: Angst, of course. X( Character death, too. cries

Title: Rejection
Theme: 12. Electric Shock
Summary: I laughed, and I rejected him.

Rejection.

Who knew such a small thing could cause such a big thing? Who knew that because of rejection, one would take out his life?

Who knew I would be doing the rejecting?

I didn't know. I didn't know he was serious. Come to think of it though, he was always serious, that Hiyoshi. Never heard him crack a joke in his life.

But at that time, I just didn't know. I didn't know that when he told me he loved me, as in knelt-down-on-his-knees-in-front-of-everyone-loved me, he wasn't joking. It wasn't a prank. It was real, he had gathered up all his courage for that one act, and what had I done?

I laughed.

Not a small chuckle, but a full-blown-out-hysterical laugh. I just really couldn't believe that Hiyoshi, the stoic, 'gekokujou'-ing Hiyoshi, would get down on his knees in front of me and talk about how my red hair shined in the sun and how my blue eyes would make him go weak on the knees; how he was in love with me.

I still remember how I'd let him down. After calming myself down, he was still on his knees, looking at me with earnest eyes.

"Hiyoshi, you're not serious, are you? I'm already in love with someone else anyway." A bold-faced lie. "I thought you knew that. And you never told me you were gay."

And he ran.

I didn't think much about it then. But when he didn't show up at practice that day, I was a bit worried. Everyone pretty much panicked. Atobe started a search party; he was worried too.

I ran.

I ran past the bathrooms, past the classrooms, and on to the roof. I remember him telling me he liked staying on the roof and watch the cloud float by and how it helped him to meditate.

And there he was; on the ground, laying down and looking at the clouds.

Except when I got closer...there was blood all over him, soaking his front, splattered on his face and pooling on the floor.

I screamed.

Everything that happened next was a blur to me. People coming in, medics rushing. Yuushi was guiding me back to somewhere, but I couldn't move. Kabaji had to carry me. I was crying and crying and screams and gasps were all over and I couldn't stop crying because I knew.

I killed him.

Because of that silly little rejection. I killed Hiyoshi.

I remember I kept on screaming it. I'm a murderer, I killed him, I should die.

Shishido slapped me hard when we reached the clubhouse. I lay pathetically on the floor, still unable to stop my tears.

He tried to talk some sense into me, throwing insults and expecting me to throw one back at him or punch him. I couldn't, Hiyoshi's image was stuck to my brain; it wouldn't go away.

Ohtori was crying, too. He pushed Shishido away, shouting. And then he hugged me, telling me to let out everything.

I've never been so comforted then.

Through my sobs, I could see everyone else was crying too. Atobe and Yuushi were trying to hide it. Jirou was trying to hug Shishido and stop his own tears.

Everyone was a mess.

My life turned out to be better.

After getting past that initial gref, I let myself learn from my mistakes. Never would I take a love confession as a joke,

never would I hand out harsh rejections, never would I let it happen again.

I always visit Hiyoshi's grave. Everyday. I just stand there, talk to him, and wonder if he's listening to me, wonder if he's accepting me here.

And when the wind blows smoothly, and the leaves rustle, and the sky turns even bluer, I know.

He's not rejecting me.

END A.N.G.S.T.