II
"I-impossible..." Zakuro muttered as she stared in utter disbelief at her own test paper in Math.
In a span of a day and a half, Fuji made a genius out of a flunking Zakuro Amane.
The dumbfounded gal placed the paper in her bag and hurried outside their classroom. Passing her least favorite subject, not to mention ending up as the highest scorer in their class, was just theoretically impossible. Sure, she's an average student. But the level of Mathematics in Seigaku was not something that has to be taken lightly as well.
Zakuro sprinted up to Fuji's classroom on the third floor, as if running for her dear life.
"Fuji-sempai!" she blurted out as soon as she slammed open the door of Fuji's classroom.
Several heads shot up at her direction, apparently surprised from the sudden outburst. Zakuro was surprised as well. Surprised of her own untimely intrusion. The whole class, she believed, was obviously reviewing for the second part of the exams later that afternoon. And there she was...slamming the front door with her mighty force and desperately calling out Fuji's name. So untimely indeed.
Zakuro scanned the crowd of faces in front of her, realizing for the first time that they were all strangers. Even Eiji, whom she knew was Fuji's classmate was nowhere to be found on his usual spot at the middle of the room.
"Crap." she whispered.
Wrong classroom.
She bowed down in apology and immediately turned around to go just in time for her to bump a figure, who was just about to head inside the room. She fell a few steps back from the impact.
"Daijobo?"
She clinched her fist, and was about to deliver a verbal blow to whoever bumped her straight on the face, when recognition hit her. Hard. She swallowed the lump on her throat as she felt the sudden wild beating of her heart.
"H-hai...daijobo...Tezuka-buchou.."
The spectacled man looked at her with worry.
Zakuro didn't know what to do. For the first time in her life, she learned what panic and desperation felt like when mixed together, - a total brain malfunction.
"You don't look fine to me, Amane."
"I'm fine, really." she lied.
Of course there's no way for her to feel fine at the moment. Worse, she knew how she exactly looked like. She was very much aware of how she was blushing judging from the heat she feels on her face...just because 'he' was there.
"A-anou...It's Fuji-sempai...I thought he's...somewhere...in here." she explained, making sure not to land her stare on Tezuka, whose divine brown eyes remain fixed on her figure.
'If looks could kill, I've long been dead.' she thought.
"Fuji's in the next room." Tezuka said.
"H-hai...gomen nasai..Tezuka-buchou,."
She's not really sure what she's apologizing for. It's just that no word came up to her mind when she knew she had to say something. Tezuka always makes her brain dead...and she had happily accepted that.
"I'll go ahead then."
"Amane-san.."
Zakuro flinched.
"H-hai.."
"I just want to make sure that you're fine."
"Hai. Everything's fine." Zakuro said, now looking back straight at the spectacled man she had admired for years.
Seriously, there are times when Zakuro want to question the biology of Tezuka's existence- one who seemed to be too perfect. Save for some natural flaws which she thought were just there to make Tezuka's beautiful imperfection more charismatic. She knew it's somehow unfair. But it's a wonder how 'that' words holds no meaning when it comes to Tezuka. She doesn't really care. She just loves everything about him, and that's what matters.
"Follow me." Tezuka commanded.
Zakuro set aside her thoughts and tried to comprehend what the guy just told her.
"Eh?"
"I'll have Dr. Kate check your condition."
Zakuro felt the second wave of panic in her brain.
"Condition?..But buchou...everything's al - "
"You'll lose nothing if you do what I say."
'Great! 'Coz I'd probably lose the ability to breath if you continue staring at me like that..' she wanted to voice out. Instead she remained silent and still on where she was standing.
"Follow me." Tezuka said in finality which rendered Zakuro unable to say more.
Tezuka, she thought, really has the talent of silencing difficult personalities.
She sighed in surrender and followed him to the infirmary.
"Ne...Kate-sensei..."
"Hai?"
"Anou...Tezuka-buchou...did he...I mean, where did he - "
"He left few minutes ago." Kate said. " I told him that you're perfectly fine, and that there's no reason for him to be worried."
Zakuro sighed.
"I see."
Few moments of silence passed, before Zakuro decided to go back to class and do her preparations for their afternoon practice. Today was the last day of the examination and regular schedules for club practices are back. She thought she was tired, but then dismissed the idea upon realizing that she doesn't have any reason to get worn out in such a lazy day like this.
"Zakuro-chan?"
"H-hai.."
"I lied to Tezuka when I said that nothing's wrong." Kate said with an eerie glimmer of curiosity in her eyes.
"What?"
"There is actually something wrong...with you." Kate added as she walked closer to Zakuro.
"Wrong? Me?.. I don't understand. I mean...Well look, I feel fine. Nothing's wrong. I don't feel pain anywhere...I don't - "
"Really?"
Zakuro frowned.
"Now what if I tell you Tezuka is in love with somebody else?" Kate asked, examining Zakuro's reaction. .." and that he's so in love with that person that he's totally numb to any other affection from somebody else...like you, perhaps.."
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"Uh-huh...Doesn't that give you for instance.." Kate caressed Zakuro's face and trailed her fingers down her neck.."..a sort of pain in here?" finally pointing a finger on the younger gal's chest.
Zakuro swallowed hard. She doesn't like what she's hearing; what she's feeling.
"I don't know...why the hell you are telling me about this."
Kate smiled.
"Because I have to. I promised Tezuka that I'll take care of you, and as far as my profession is concerned, I'm just doing my job."
"Of course you are." Zakuro sarcastically countered, " I should've realized earlier how your job of being a doctor includes intrusion in other people's private lives."
"I'm just taking initial precaution on what could be a potential threat to your sense of judgment. You, at least, have to understand that."
Zakuro smirked. It angered her that none of what Dr. Kate was saying made any sense. What does a school doctor know about tennis, anyway? Nothing, she assumed. Aside perhaps to the technicalities involved in injuries most players acquire on a game. But even that fact doesn't give Kate any reason to get involved with her 'love' life. Nobody should.
"I don't understand any of these." Zakuro muttered, looking away from Kate's direction.
"Exactly my point. Your brain refuses to understand because you're making your emotion rule over your reason." Kate said in confidence like that of a person who is telling a mathematician that the answer to 1 + 1 is 2.
Zakuro darted her an annoyed look.
Kate responded with a lovely smile. She held Zakuro's hands and sighed.
"Zakuro-chan...you knew how Tezuka cares so much for the team, and giving off something for him more than that of respect is just-"
"You 'are' telling me to get away from him." Zakuro said as she withdrew her hands from Kate.
Zakuro nodded in amusement. She can't believe she's hearing any of these. Was she really that big of a threat to be personally confronted with the terrible assumption that Tezuka's not a bit interested at her?
Ridiculous.
"So what I feel is a mistake." she said more like of a statement than a question.
Dr. Kate made no response, and headed instead to a corner of the room, where she prepared herself a cup of coffee. She never cared to ask Zakuro if she want some. Caffeine is the least thing the younger gal needs when she's in the verge of an emotional outburst.
"There are times when consideration is all that matters." Kate said after she took a sip of her coffee.
Zakuro heaved a sigh.
Enough.
She had enough of this crap. Examinations are done, and she doesn't have more plans of abusing her mighty brain just to do some more comprehension - utterly ridiculous and annoying comprehension. She stood up, went for the door, and stopped just in time to face Kate.
"You know what?...I think it's better if you just shut up."
She then went out the infirmary, slamming the door behind her, and leaving a Dr. Kate who just shook her head in amusement and slight disapproval.