Tap, tap, tap. Sakuno had never been one to complain, but now facing a delay that pulled at the edges of her patience like the constant nattering of an irritable fly, she could not help but give into the swell of petulant thoughts prodding their way through her weary state. Not to mention the massive amounts of caffeine intake required to keep her system running only fueled to further the peevish dismay. Seriously, a twenty hour delay!
Following this unpleasant line of thought further; she abruptly stood up pacing her way up and down the length of the nearly empty airport. She was so absorbed in what little comfort the lulling movement of her limbs provided, that she failed to notice the figure heading her way. In an inevitable collision brought on by her mindlessness, Sakuno found herself pinned to the ground by a rather curious weight heavier than her own.
The weight quickly disappeared followed by an outstretched hand that was quite forcefully thrust in front of her own face. The hand was received with a torrent of murmured apologies occasionally interrupted by a stutter or two."S-sumimasen. A-ano Daijoubu?"The recipient of the prattled apologies watched the flustered woman with a gleam of interest. There was a certain charm to the brunette that the male couldn't pinpoint, for he was not one to give much thought to the opposite sex, instead he contented himself with abiding in a state of indifference.
With a sudden urge to tease the brunette even further the man cut through the increasingly incoherent mumbles with a short remark,"Be careful those braids of yours could hurt someone."In one swift motion he reached down to kiss the edges of soft strands, releasing the locks from their bound state. Sakuno felt her face grow hot as her hair fell in waves around her, convincing herself that the heat had nothing to do with the man's physical features but rather her rising anger.
"Who do you think you are?"Her stutters were instantly replaced by a more aggressive stance, which frankly reminded the man of his Himalayan cat when angered. Perhaps it was because this woman reminded him of his cat, that she captured his interest so. What befuddled him the most however, was the fact that the brunette genuinely had no idea who he was. With a handsome smirk, the man placed a magazine in the brunette's hands.
On the front cover was a neon yellow tennis ball. The man then proceeded to walk away, leaving behind one thoroughly confused woman. Echizen Ryoma was very well aware of the effect he had on women, he saw the way they fumbled for an excuse to talk to him. However, as he walked away he couldn't help but notice an unfamiliar feeling. Was it uncertainty? What if he never saw her again? Nevertheless the fleeting moment of confusion passed as he took a glance back. From the expression on her face he knew they would be meeting each other very soon indeed.
X x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
"Ne, Okaasan is it true that from the moment you met Otousan you knew he was the one? Otousan said you contacted him first, and that he was pleasantly surprised when you did."
Sakuno said nothing but smiled down at her daughter in amusement. Ryoma hid a blush underneath his trademark white cap. Little did the young girl know, her father had so cleverly left his number for her mother to find in a magazine. After all Sakuno was the only woman to ever capture Ryoma's attention, but her father would never admit that. Amber eyes met golden orbs as they twinkled with laughter.
"Want some more Ponta, dear?"