Soon, they had arrived at the airport. She plugged her laptop into a nearby outlet and opened up her Skype. Unexpectedly, Leah and Tiffany were online.

"What's that, gonna talk to your friends?"
"Yes. But they still don't know we're coming, so don't come on screen and say hi."

"Aww, but I wanna meet your friends!"

"I'm sorry, but you can't. If they ask, which I know they will, my reason for being at the airport is to make sure Ryoma's dad gets the 'surprise' to them."

She started a video chat with Leah and Tiffany.

"What are you guys doing up at this hour, it's 6 AM over there, is it not?"

"Cheese craving..."

"Is Leah like, drunk or something?"

"Probably just overtired. We had a sleepover to celebrate the beginning of spring break. We pulled an all-nighter."

"But isn't it like, 6 AM? Don't you have to go to school today?"
"Nope, got the day off."

"Aww, you guys suck!"

"What, you didn't get the day off too?"

"No. I had to go to school."

"Listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen!"

"I heard you the first time, Leah!"
"Yeah. Listen! I have a something really cool to tell you!"

"What?"

"After you won the junior tournament and left for Japan, they started building a tennis court in your honour!"

"What?!"
"Shihobu Courts, only a few minutes away from your old house!"

"Really?!"
"Yes!"

Leah yawned and suddenly had a lot more energy.

"So, so, so, so, so, so are there any cute boys in Japan?!"

"Well-"
"Because if there aren't, your school must suck!"

"Well, let's just say my school doesn't suck."

"What school are you at anyway? I know you already told us, but it's 6 in the morning and we haven't slept since like, really late yesterday."

"It's called Seigaku. Why, are you planning to like, look it up on the internet?"
"No..."

"So how is school?"
"It's going pretty good. Anything new going on with you guys?"

"No. School's still boring as ever. And so are holidays without you. Cheers to another boring spring break without you."

Tiffany pulled a glass of water from offscreen and held it up.

"Cheers, but I have a feeling that you'll love the surprise I'm sending."

"Can we get a hint?"
"No."

"Please?"
"Then it'll ruin the whole surprise!"

"You're right. I want to be surprised when I get the surprise."
"Oh trust me, you'll be surprised..."

"So anyway, any cute boys at Seigaku?"

"There are a few..."

"Names? Pictures? Single?"

"I'm not completely sure of all of their names, and I don't know them all that well so I don't have any pictures, not do I know if they're single."

"Aww, you suck!"

"Besides, they're all a few years older than us."

"Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh! Do you remember that cool quiet guy that's been in our class since like, first grade?"
"You mean um...Blade? Blade Harlequin? That guy you never used to shut up about?"

"Yeah, him. I finally got the nerve to ask him out! And he said yes!"

"Really? That's great!"

"Actually, it was more like 'Well I've got nothing better to do...' but either way, I'm going out with Blade!"

Tiffany shoved Leah off camera asked some questions for herself.

"So have you got a boyfriend?!"

"The thing is...I'm not really sure..."

"What do you mean?"

"Well...yes and no."

"Explain..."

Leah got and dusted herself off.

"Thanks for the shove, you bitch! Anyway, what the hell do you mean?"

Ryoma had been listening to the conversation after he heard Sayomi talking about a boyfriend.

"Anger issues much?" he mouthed.

"Well there is one guy...I haven't known him for very long, but we're pretty close."

"Who is it? Is he cute? How old is he? And if he's not your boyfriend, can I date him?"

"Yeah, he's pretty cute. He's around our age and you can't date him because he's all the way across the world!"

"So who is he?"
"It's not important, you don't even know him."

"Damnit, she won't say..." Ryoma thought.

"So Tiffany, do you have a boyfriend?"

"Do you remember Alex Starr?"
"He was the new kid the year I left, right?"
"Yeah, that's him. Well his older sister Alexis, she came over to my house a few weeks ago to hang out with my older sister, and she had to babysit that night, so she brought Alex along. So we hung out and we totally hit it off!"
"So it seems that I'm the only one without a boyfriend..."

"That's ok. I'm sure there's someone who just loves tennis, who'll just love you!"

"Yeah..."

"What?"
"They don't exactly know about my tennis title in North America..."

"You never told them?"

"Why?"
"I didn't want them to feel like I was bragging..."

Sayomi talked to Leah and Tiffany for a while, catching up with them and telling each other how they've been doing. She checked her watch. 6: 27.

"I'd better go. I need to make sure Ryoma's dad gets on the plane and gets the present to you."

"Bye!"
"Be the hell on Skype more often!"

"I'm 13 hours ahead of you guys, when am I supposed to be on?!"

"After school?"
"But after school for you guys is 4 in the morning for me."

"I'll try to be on more often now that there's no school this week."

"Now departing: Flight 861 to Canada."

"I should go, see ya."

She shut down her laptop and put it back in her bag.

"Let's go to Canada, guys!"