Disclaimer: I do not own the characters of PoT

"Yukimura-senpai!"

Sae stopped herself from rushing to Yukimura's bedside when she saw someone else inside the room.

"Keigo Atobe."

Tezuka's deep voice uttered loud enough for the other person to hear.

"Sae, I'm glad you made it here. I thought you already returned to Tokyo," Yukimura turned his attention to Tezuka, "thank you for bringing her here."

"I'm so glad to see you again Senpai. Ah, the team also want to give their regards," Sae cheerfully added.

"You're bright as usual. Hn? What happened to your head?" Yukimura asked seeing the scar on Sae's forehead.

"Ah, this? I just spaced out a little. Nothing serious."

"Ehem," Atobe cleared his throat. He is not used to being ignored after all.

"Ah, you haven't met before. This is Keigo Atobe, the captain of Hyotei tennis club."

"Um, nice to meet you. I'm Sae Ichinomiya."

"I know."

"Huh?"

"We met before."

"We have?" Sae stared at Atobe's face trying to remember where she had seen him.

"It seems you've become lovelier than the last time I saw you. It's really unfortunate that you have forgotten Ore-sama's brilliance."

A tint of red appeared on Sae's face which amused the Hyotei captain.

"T-thank you," Sae averted her eyes, "but I'm very sorry, I really can't recall where we met."

"Don't trouble yourself." Atobe stood up and spoke to the Yukimura, "I'll be going now."

"Thanks for dropping by."

After the door closed, the girl turned her attention to Yukimura.

"The news sure travelled fast."

"Well, he is the owner of the villa we used for the training camp."

"Eh? Really? He is a bit arrogant though."

"It looks like he knows you."

"But I really can't remember where I met him."

Atobe ignored the looks and the squeals of the girls as he walked out of the hospital. He immediately entered the limousine that was already waiting for him outside. He watched the scenery by the window as the car moved to its destination. That girl's face suddenly popped up in his mind. He was surprised himself to find out that he still remembers someone like her. It's not unusual for him to remember the names of the people he met in the high society, but for a common person to be retained in his mind? There must be something about her that caught his eyes.

Flashback

It was a fine sunny morning. He was on his way home when something hard hit the car window. The car immediately stopped on the roadside. The chauffeur checked on him before the he went off outside to check for any damage. Atobe stayed inside the car and pulled out his phone. His eyes trailed from his phone to the car window. He saw a girl apologizing to his chauffeur.

"If this continues, this might take a while," Atobe thought. He slid down the window and instructed his chauffer to let the girl go.

"As you wish Atobe-sama," the man bowed and immediately went inside the car.

"Thank you very much, um, sir," the girl smiled at him.

At that instant, Atobe felt something warm inside him when he saw the girl's smiling face. Her smile had no pretence and very innocent.

"What's your name?"

"It's Sae Ichinomiya."

"Well, Miss Ichinomiya, you sure did a great job of getting Ore-sama's attention."

The girl gave him a perplexed look. Before the girl could answer back, the window closed and the car sped away leaving the girl dumbfounded at what he said.

End of flashback

After some time:

"We'll be going now Yukimura-senpai. You still need to rest," Sae stood up and turned to Tezuka, but the latter was nowhere in the room. "Eh? Where's Tezuka-senpai?" a worried expression showed on her face. She had a bad feeling what her other sempaitachi were doing right now.

Outside the room, Kirihara and Niou were guarding Tezuka's every move. They were watching him intently as he stayed seated on the bench right outside the room.

"What are you doing?" a girl's voice came from the door.

"We didn't do anything."

"We just asked him a few questions but this guy totally ignored us," Kirihara pointed at Tezuka.

"You must be asking him nonsense questions. Where's Sanada-senpai?"

"He said he had something important to do and went home this morning."

"I see. I guess I can't return this to him," Sae held the cap Sanada lent her yesterday. "We'll be going now."

"I'm sorry if Niou-senpai and Kirihara-senpai caused trouble for you. They didn't say anything weird, did they?" Sae asked as soon as she and Tezuka exited the hospital building.

"No, they didn't. You don't need to worry about that."

Sae breathed a sigh of relief.

"Those guys, they always act as my older brothers but they can be overly protective most of the times."

When they were already blocks away from the hospital, Sae suddenly stretched her arms and breathed some air.

"It feels great to see Yukimura-senpai well again. It seemed something heavy was lifted from my shoulders."

"You two are really close," Tezuka uttered.

"Well, Yukimura-senpai and I used to be neighbours. Also, he is my first friend in Rikkai Dai. Because of him, I was able to meet the other members of the tennis club there. After my mom died, he stayed by my side and cheered me up and I'm very thankful for that." Sae's expression softened as she described Yukimura.

Tezuka stayed quiet as he listened to the girl but he felt something pricked in his heart.

"I respect Yukimura-senpai a lot," Sae continued, "if I can choose an older brother, I will definitely choose him."

"A brother?"

"Yes, a brother. Is there something wrong with that?"

"No, nothing."

Tezuka was pleased to hear her answer. He felt relieved to hear what she just said.

Sae remembered something.

"Senpai, yesterday after I left the court, have you seen anyone else leave?"

"Yesterday you say?" Tezuka thought for a while. "No I didn't. Why do you ask?"

"Huh?" Sae suddenly remembered the incident while she fell asleep under the tree, "n-nothing."

She suddenly blushed. She cannot tell him what happened after all.

Tezuka watched the girl's reaction.

"What happened?"

"Huh?"

"Something happened right?"

"No, nothing happened." Sae tried her best to act normally. She can't just tell Tezuka that someone stole a kiss from her when she was yesterday.

Tezuka patted her head. He knew something's bothering her but he cannot force her to him about it. He felt a little disappointed that there were things that she still cannot confide to him at this point in time.

"Syusuke, you've been smiling a lot since you came home from the training camp. Did something good happen?"

Yumiko asked her younger brother as they were watching some random program on tv. They just finished dinner and the two of them were the only ones left in the living room.

"It's nothing."

"Is this about a girl?"

"How can you tell?"

"Just a hunch. This is the first time I've seen you that happy. So, who is this girl and what is she like?"

"She's a schoolmate, a kouhai actually."

"Oh my. Is that her?" Yumiko grabbed Syusuke's phone which he had been staring for a while. She looked at the screen and saw a picture of a girl sleeping. She scrolled it down and found pictures of the same person in different time and locations. "She's pretty. I bet you're not the only one interested in her. I like to meet her. Bring her here."

"There is no need." Syusuke grabbed his phone back.

"Eh? Don't be like that. Just make this a present for me. It's almost my birthday anyway."

That morning, pink envelope greeted Ryoma when he opened his shoe locker. He examined it to check to whom it came from but nothing was written on the surface of the envelope. He decided to open it to see if someone made a mistake. Inside was a letter saying: To Ryoma-kun, please come to the rooftop at lunch break.

A head popped behind Ryoma out of nowhere.

"Echizen, is that what I think it is!?" Horio's eyes opened wide when he saw what Ryoma was holding.

"What is it?"

"Don't tell me you don't know what it is!?"

Ryoma's eyes looked at Horio, clueless of what was Horio getting excited about.

"It's a love letter. Someone is going to confess to you."

At the tennis court:

"Ochibi's getting a love confession!?"

"From who?"

"It does not say."

"Way to go Echizen," Kawamura ruffled Ryoma's hair.

"So what are you going to do?" Fuji asked.

"Hey, if she's cute, just go out with her."

"I'm not like you Momo-senpai."

"Eh? What do you mean by that?"

Ryoma just ignored Momo's question.

"At the very least, tell her personally how you feel," Oishi commented.

"Why don't you just give it a try and go out with someone," Inui said, "unless you have someone else in mind."

"You all are being too noisy," Ryoma said before walking away from the group.

"What is the commotion about?"

Coach Ryuzaki just arrived.

"Ryoma re –"

"It's not important." Horio's words were cut short by Ryoma before he went to the other side of the court.

"I think someone's in a foul mood today."

Lunch break

Ryoma opened the door to the rooftop. If Horio was right, he just has to turn down whoever sent him the letter. He is not that heartless not to show up at all.

What he saw was a girl with her back facing him. Ryoma thought that the figure looked familiar while he watched her brown hair fluttered in the wind.

The girl felt the wind on her face. She turned around when she heard the doorknob clicked. She is not alone anymore.

Thump thump

Ryoma's heart beat fast when their eyes met.

"Could it be her who is going to confess to him? He is not dreaming is he?"

All Ryoma did was stood shocked at the idea as he stared at the girl in front of him.

"Ryoma?" Sae's voice was carried by the breeze that it became almost inaudible for Ryoma to hear.

Before Ryoma could respond, a sound came from behind him. The door suddenly opened with a bang. Both of them turned their attention to the person who just arrived.

"Ryoma-kun, you came!" the girl exclaimed. Joy is written on her face.

Ryoma recognized the girl. He cannot exactly remember her name but he usually sees her in the corridors. His heart sank when he realized his mistake.

Sae's eyes travelled from the Ryoma to the girl and back to Ryoma. She sensed that something is up and she is not supposed to see, or hear, it.

"Um, I remember I still have something to do. See you later."

Sae walked towards the door. As she reached for the handle, she found it slightly open. Several pairs of eyes are looking at her, but before she could say anything, the door immediately opened and pulled her inside.

"Shhh," the people behind the door said almost simultaneously.

A nod was all Sae could respond since a hand was placed on her mouth to prevent her from screaming. After making sure that she will remained quiet, everyone's attention returned to the two people in the rooftop.

"You know, it's not right to eavesdrop to other people's confession," Sae said as softly as she could while she move to find a good spot to watch the scene that is taking place on the rooftop.

"Then why are you still here?" Momo whispered.

"Well, I'm curious too you know," Sae said as she squeezed herself to peek at the door.

"Quiet. I can't hear them clearly," Inui ordered.

Outside the door:

"…will you go out with me Ryoma-kun?" the girl asked after explaining how she came to like him. She looked at Ryoma with hopeful eyes.

"You're just wasting your time," Ryoma sounded a bit irritated.

"C-can you tell me why?" the girl was already on the verge of crying.

"You don't need to know."

"Please, at least tell me, do you already have someone you like?" tears started to flow from the girl's eyes.

"Hey, stop crying," Ryoma said but girl just kept on crying. "Will you stop if I tell you?" Ryoma said while averting his eyes. He can't stand to see a girl cry especially if he is the reason behind it.

The girl simply nodded.

Ryoma sighed.

"Yes, I already like someone."

"I see," the girl said in between sobs.

Behind the door:

"How can he make her cry like that!?" Sae said as she saw the girl burst into tears.

"Stop it, they might hear us," Oishi said.

"To think Echizen actually likes someone," Inui's glasses shone in the dark.

"But he might have said it just to stop the girl from crying, what do you think Fuji?"

"Only Echizen can answer that," Fuji said with his usual smile while looking at the only girl in the group.

"He's coming this way," Horio immediately moved away from the door.

Everyone rushed downstairs to avoid getting caught by Ryoma.

Sae rushed from the stairs. She was on her way to hide somewhere to make sure that Ryoma cannot see her until the lunch break ends just to make sure he will not suspect her from hearing his 'conversation' with the girl earlier.

"Sae."

Sae suddenly stop when she heard a voice calling her name. She does not even need to look who the voice belongs to know who it is.

"Captain. Do you need something?"

"Coach Ryuzaki is looking for you."

"Thank you."

Sae didn't bother to ask anything. She walked towards the direction of Coach Ryuzaki's office. It is a good hiding place after all.

"Coach, you called for me?" Sae greeted as she entered the room after knocking. Only Sumire was inside.

"Take a seat."

After Sae made her way to seat near the coach's table, Sumire placed a letter in front of the girl.

"This letter came from the girl's tennis club," Coach Ryuzaki studied the girl before she continued, "they want you in their team."

"What!?" Sae reached for the letter and read its contents.

"I will not stop you if you decide to go or to stay. I'll leave that decision to you. But as a coach, I think it will be good for you to join their team. That way you will receive proper training you need as a tennis player and not just as a team manager. Think about it."

Sae gently returned the letter to the table.

"I don't need to think over it Coach. I already decided to join the boy's tennis team as their assistant manager and that decision still remains unchanged."

"But the skills you have can be a great asset for their team."

"I play tennis because I enjoy doing it and not to compete on anything. And I want to remain in the boy's tennis team because I can see a big potential in them. I want to help them realize that potential."

"If that's what you're worried about, we don't need you in the team to reach the finals."

Tezuka is standing by the door as he spoke.

Sumire can read what Tezuka is thinking but she remained quiet about it. She watched the girl's shocked expression.

"C-captain, you can't be serious, right?"

Sae does not want to believe what Tezuka just said.

"You can quit the team anytime. We can still reach our goal without you."

"W-why are you telling me this? What did I do wrong?"

"We don't need someone who can be shaken easily by emotions."

It pains the Seigaku captain to see her sad but his expression remained the same. As the team captain, he has to stay firm for he believes that this is the best for her.

"B-but…" Sae's voice trailed as if her mind is still processing what she heard. Suddenly, she formed her hand into a fist and looked straight at Tezuka. "Even so, I will not quit the team. I will help in any way I can, however small."

Tezuka saw the determination in her eyes.

"She is more stubborn than I thought," Tezuka thought to himself.

"Captain, why do you suddenly want me out of the team? I really can't understand what you're thinking," Sae sighed. Her thoughts are filled with the conversation she had with she was walking back to her classroom, she did not realized she bumped into the person in front of her.

"Hey, watch where you're going."

Sae came to herself.

"S-sorry." When Sae looked up, she saw the person smiling at her. "Ah, Fuji-senpai."

"You look daze. Is there any problem?"

"Nothing. I was just thinking about random things. See you."

Sae turned to continue walking.

"Wait."

"Yes senpai?"

"Do you have any plans tomorrow?"

Sae thought for a while.

"No. I don't have anything to do tomorrow."

"Then, will you help me find a suitable gift for my sister? You see, it's almost her birthday."

"It's fine. I'll be glad to help you."

"See you tomorrow then."

"Auntie, Nanako-nee-san, I'm going out."

"Where to?" Rinko asked.

"I'll help Fuji-senpai look for a gift for his sister's birthday."

"Just the two of you?"

"Um, I guess so."

"Eh? You're going out with a boy dressed like that!?"

Sae looked at her clothes.

"What's wrong with jeans and shirt?"

Rinko and Nanako exchanged glances.

"Eh? What are you doing!?" Sae asked as two pairs of hands grabbed her and drag her upstairs.

"I don't think I'll be sending you off in those clothes."

"Sometimes, you must learn how to dress like a real girl should," Nanako smiled gently at her.

"But, I'll be late if I change now."

"Don't worry. He will forgive you once he sees you."

After a few minutes:

Ryoma is busily eating his breakfast when the noises coming from upstairs reached his ears.

"See, you look really pretty in a dress, right Nanako?"

Nanako nodded satisfied with their work.

"But why do you have to do my hair like this? It's not a date you know," Sae said as she held the curls on the tips of her previously straight hair.

"Ah, Ryoma, there you are," Rinko walked closer to Ryoma, "look at Sae, isn't she lovely?"

Rinko held Ryoma's head and turned it to where Sae was standing.

Ryoma almost did not recognize the girl, in a light blue dress, looking at his direction. He had to admit, Sae looked beautiful in the dress and the hair suited her well. He was too stunned that he almost forgot to chew the food he just put in his mouth.

He immediately return to his breakfast when he came to his senses.

"She looks fine," Ryoma said nonchalantly.

"Oh my, you were almost drooling a moment ago and that's all you have to say?" Rinko teased her son.

"I am not."

"Ah!" Sae suddenly shouted, "I'm so dead. It's already this late. I have to go now. Bye."

The girl frantically ran outside.

Ryoma's eyes trailed to the door as it closed.

"Hey, you like her don't you?"

Ryoma heard the serious tone of his mother but he stayed silent.

"You don't have to admit it. I already know."

Rinko placed her hands on her son's shoulders.

"Listen, I suggest that you stop that feeling right away." Ryoma looked surprise at what Rinko said. "She can never reciprocate the feeling – she never can and never will."

Ryoma was confused at her words.

"She's not the right girl for you. Don't get me wrong. She is a very kind and smart girl but I do believe there is someone else occupying her heart. I just don't want you to get hurt."

Fuji looked at the time. It's almost an hour past the agreed time but Sae still hasn't showed up.

"Senpai… I'm really… sorry... I'm late." Sae said in between pants.

Fuji just stared at the girl.

"Senpai?"

"Huh? I'm sorry. I thought you're someone else."

"I look weird don't I?"

"No, of course not," Fuji said in his usual tone, "on the contrary, the dress suits you very well."

"Auntie insisted me to wear it. Otherwise, she won't let me out of the house."

"Remind me to thank her sometime," Fuji smiled his usual smile, "so, where do we start?"

"Let's see," Sae placed her finger on her chin as she think.

Fuji thought of something as he watched her.

"Why don't we try going somewhere first as we think of what to give her?"

"Would that be alright? Aren't we short in time?"

"Don't worry. We have plenty of time today."

Sae could no longer protest as Fuji pulled her hand. Before she knew it, they are already in front of a large building, not far from their meeting place.

"The Aquarium?"

"I heard they have a dolphin show today."

"Really!?" Sae eyes glistened, "it's been a long time since I watched a dolphin show."

Inside was really crowded. The audience was consisted mostly of kids and couples.

"There sure are a lot of people. How did you manage to get a ticket?"

"I have my sources."

"Ah, it's starting."

Sae felt excited every time the dolphins appear out of the water to the mid-air under the trainer's instruction. Fuji, on the other hand, preferred to watch the girl's expression as it changes from time to time throughout the show.

After the show:

"Ah, that was fun. We should watch it again."

"You sure look happy. That's good."

Fuji looked at his watch.

"It's almost time."

"Fuji-senpai?"

"Aren't you hungry?"

Fuji did not wait for her reply and brought her in a restaurant a few blocks away. A beautiful lady waved in their direction when they came inside.

"Nee-san." Fuji greeted when they approached the table.

Sae couldn't believe what Fuji called the lady.

"Nee-san, this is Sae Ichinomiya, our team's assistant manager. Sae, this is my elder sister, Yumiko Fuji."

"Um, nice to meet you. I'm Sae."

Yumiko clapped her hands as if she just remembered something. She stood up and held Sae's hands.

"Hi. So you're Sae. I'm so excited to meet you. Just call me Yumiko by the way."

"Excited to meet me?"

Yumiko stopped when she realized what she said. Syusuke glared at her.

"Um, well, I've been hearing stories from Syusuke about your team and I really wanted to meet you guys especially you. I bet it's really challenging to manage those boys."

Their conversation went on. Most of Yumiko's stories were about Syusuke when he was still young. Sae just kept on laughing evry now and then. Before they knew it, break was almost over.

"Look at the time," Yumiko said as she saw the wall clock, "I need to go now."

Before Yumiko left, she whispered something to Syusuke.

"She's a really nice girl. I actually like her," Yumiko patted Syusuke's shoulder before she left.

"You sure have a lovely sister Fuji-senpai," Sae said as she watched her go out the restaurant door, "anything would suit her."

"You think so? Let's go then."

"Where to?"

"To the shopping mall."

The two went straight to the ladies' section. It took them sometime to choose since both of them were goofing around and tried on matching clothes that caught their eyes. It was already dark when they are finish.

"Time sure runs fast," Fuji said as they were walking on the roadside to Sae's house.

"Do you think she will like this?" Sae asked as she held the paper bag in her hand.

"Don't worry about it. She will like it for sure especially if she learns that's it's from you."

"But I just helped you choose."

"The truth is I just gave her the present she wanted."

"You already have a present?"

"She asked me to introduce to her the girl I want as my girlfriend."

"Eh? So you already like someone. You should introduce her to us next time."

"They already know who she is."

"They do?"

"It's you."

Sae stopped walking. She blinked several times as if she misheard what Fuji said.

"Fuji-senpai, I don't think I heard you right."

"The girl I like, the girl my sister wants to meet, is you. I like you Sae."

Silence

"That's really funny Senpai." Sae laughed weakly.

Fuji moved his face closer to Sae. Too close for Sae to stop laughing.

"Who says I'm joking?"

Sae took a step back but two hands held her arms to prevent from moving. When Sae looked up, Fuji's cerulean orbs were looking straight in her eyes. The girl felt her face becoming hot and her heart beating fast.

"S-senpai, you're too close."

"If I don't hold you close, I'm afraid my feelings will never reach you."

"Fuji-senpai, I-I…" Sae do not know what to say. She felt as if her mind cannot think well.

Awkward silence passed.

After a while, a hand gently patted Sae's head. When Sae looked at Fuji, there is already distance between them and he is now wearing his usual smile.

"You don't have to say anything now. I just want you to know how I feel. I will wait until you're ready. Until then, I'll make sure to make you fall for me."

Fuji's attention was caught by someone behind Sae.

"Fuji-senpai?" Sae asked not understanding Fuji's sudden reaction. He looked somehow angry as his eyebrows furrowed slightly.

"Tezuka."

Sae froze when she heard the name. She still does not want to see him after what happened yesterday. Unconsciously, Sae clutched at Fuji's clothes.

"I'll be going now, Fuji-senpai. Thank you for today."

"I'll take you home."

"I'm fine. I can go home by myself. Thank you very much."

Sae walked away without turning to Tezuka. Fuji watched as the girl's figure became smaller in a distance.

"Tezuka, it seems she's avoiding you. Did you admit it to her already?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Don't play dumb. What you did in the training camp is cheating. Did you think no one saw you kissed her?"

That's all… for now.

(=^.^=)