Tournament
Pairing: Inui/Shinji
Fandom: Prince of Tennis
Theme: #16. invincible; unrivaled
Disclaimer in part 1
There were only four times when Shinji felt truly alive. When he was with Inui, when he was spending time with Akira, when he was arguing with Echizen, and when he was on the tennis court.
So on a day like today, when he was going to be playing doubles with Akira, had already had words with Echizen, and was sitting next to Inui, Shinji was on top of the world.
There was a tournament, non-school sponsored, for once, and Kamio had had the idea that he and Shinji should enter in order to work on their formation some more in a competitive setting, and Shinji had agreed. Once they registered, though, it was astounding to see how many people had the same idea. "It's like we never left school," Shinji muttered, and Inui had to agree.
He and Kaidoh had had a similar idea…and so, it seemed, did half of the schools in the area. Some of the pairs and singles that weren't affiliated with a school team were starting to look distinctly intimidated, and Inui calculated a 37 percent chance that about half of them might cut and run at some point. "At least we're not playing each other," Inui pointed out.
"Yet. Unless you're going to lose, because Akira and I won't." Shinji smiled sweetly at him. "Though, I can understand if you're afraid to face me in a match."
"We will not lose." Inui shook his head as his glasses glinted. "And if we face you…we won't lose then, either." He smiled. "It almost makes me wish we were playing together, though."
"Next time, maybe." Shinji smiled. "I won't mind playing against each other, too. It's like we're playing together, only not on the same side of the net."
"You have a point, I suppose." Inui grinned. "Either way, I still get to watch you run around a court, getting all hot and flushed, and showing off those legs of yours."
Shinji blushed. "Sadaharu!" Then he laughed. "Well, if you're going to be that distracted by me, I think it would be a safe bet that we'll beat you after all."
"Not a chance." Inui adjusted his glasses and smirked. "You see, Kaidoh won't be distracted at all. But I'll be busy distracting you."
"Akira won't be distracted, either," Shinji pointed out. "So what you're saying is that this will be a match between them while we just stand there and stare at each other?"
"Not just stare. I figure if we're going to be so useless for our doubles partners, we can just go off together and let them fight it out for us."
"I hope you're not serious, Sadaharu." Shinji was trying to look stern, but he couldn't help laughing a little as well.
"No, I suppose I'm not." Inui and Shinji watched Kamio warm up in silence for a minute. "Would you like to warm up with me?"
"Of course." Shinji grabbed his racquet and headed for a practice wall, Inui close behind him.
As he watched Shinji go through his paces, offering the occasional suggestion, Inui did find himself getting distracted some. In his eyes, Shinji was an example of fluid grace. He radiated certainty and poise in a way that he never did off the courts. Inui reflected that, if he was corralled and trained properly, Shinji could become an invincible force on the courts. But he also knew that that was something that Shinji would never want. He was a free spirit, a force of nature.
Shinji would make his way on his own merits, not those of someone else.
"Sadaharu?" At some point while Inui was thinking, Shinji had finished with the board and come back over to him. "You're a million miles away."
"No." Inui pulled him close and kissed Shinji's forehead. "I was right here with you the whole time."
"How…sappy." Shinji shook his head, but was smiling some, too. "Want to rally with me for a bit?"
Inui agreed, and they enjoyed a good rally before Inui stopped them. "You don't want to wear yourself out," he said, leading Shinji to a bench and handing him a water bottle. "Or wear me out, too. Your play has definitely improved. Many times, you managed to defy my data."
"Coming from you, that is high praise, indeed." Shinji took a drink of water and focused on the doubles match playing out in front of them. "But you'll be working on fixing that, won't you?"
Inui fished a notebook out of his bag and held it up. "Gathering more data as we speak."
Shinji shook his head. "Is there ever a moment when you're not collecting data?"
Inui thought about it for a moment. "When I'm kissing you. For some reason, my mind goes blank every time. In a good way, though."
"Sadaharu…." Shinji blushed, then stood as his and Kamio's match was called. "Wish me luck?"
"You don't need luck. There is a 72 percent chance you will defeat your opponents within twenty minutes. This victory is assured for you." Inui suddenly grinned. "But if you really think you need it…." He pulled Shinji down into a quick kiss. "Good luck, Shinji.
Behind them, Kamio yelled, "Shinji! Quit making out with your boyfriend and get over here!"
Shinji blushed and grabbed his racquet. "We're not making out, Akira! Were you wanting to watch or something, because if you need pointers, you know I'd be more than happy to help you out…." Shinji kept up his running commentary as he joined Kamio on the court, ignoring the squawking and protests of his best friend.
Inui settled back to watch the show.
--The End--