This chapter is dedicated to one of my best friends, who's leaving this year. She doesn't know I write fanfiction, but anyway.

I'll miss her. A lot.

Thank you to the reviewers, and to the people who added this story to their favorites!

"Echizen," he said, once he opened the door. His eyes were closed, but he wasn't smiling. "I wanted to talk to you."

Ryoma certainly didn't. "...Now?"

Fuji seemed amused. "Why not?"

Because it would threaten his well-being, obviously. "Er...my parents will be looking for me."

Fuji seemed even more amused. "Don't worry, they won't be. Please, take a seat."

Ryoma sighed, defeated. He settled down on the bench opposite to the tensai, eying him warily.

"There's something bothering you." It was a statement, not a question, so Ryoma thought it unnecessary to respond. "And all of us have noticed."

"And Inui-senpai already told you why," Ryoma said drily. "We heard you talking during practice, senpai."

Fuji frowned slightly. "Yes, Inui told us, but both you and I know that that isn't the only problem."

Ryoma didn't respond, and Fuji didn't press him.

Fuji was a strange person. He never spoke to Ryoma much, so Ryoma never got to know him as well as he did the other regulars. However, he always seemed to know when Ryoma was upset, or angry, or was having a bad day, and would somehow turn up just when Ryoma was sure he didn't want to talk to anyone, but actually did.

Maybe it was because he didn't know his senior that well, that he found it easier to talk to him than the others. Or maybe it was just because Fuji was a manipulative freak.

They were both silent for a long time. Ryoma was thinking, and Fuji was staring at the drops of water dripping off of his damp hair and on to the floor.

"I might be going to America," Ryoma said at last.

Fuji's expression was unreadable. "For tennis?" He asked quietly, eyes still on the ground.

Ryoma shook his head. "Not really. I just don't want to stay at Seigaku anymore."

Fuji looked up at him, eyebrows raised. "And why would that be?"

Ryoma sighed. "When all of you graduated in middle school," he started, "Things turned bad. Really bad. The tennis team was pathetic, and all anyone would do was talk about how awesome the previous year was."

And he'd also missed the third years. The team had seemed empty without them. But he wasn't going to say that out loud.

"Then Momo-senpai and Kaidoh-senpai graduated, too, and things were even worse than before." Ryoma shook his head. He'd had a really bad time back then. "I don't want to go through that again. So, yeah. I'll probably be moving."

Fuji leaned back against the wall, eye calculating. "Have you told Momoshiro?" he asked at last.

Ryoma shook his head again. He hadn't wanted to.

"You should."

"...I know."

Fuji sighed and stood up. "Well, let's get going, ne? It's getting late. I'll wait for you outside." He picked his bag up and headed out, shutting the door softly behind him.

A couple of minutes later, Ryoma joined him.

Time was a dangerous thing.

There were days when Ryoma lay awake all night, clutching his bed sheets, hoping that if he held tight enough it would stop the next day from dawning. He held, and prayed, and hoped with all his heart, but it was all in vain. In the end, the sun would rise, and he'd be one step closer to losing everything he'd ever known.

There were days when Momo stopped talking in the middle of conversations, and chose to watch the third years around him instead. It was sad, he thought, that people only felt the need to hold on to things when they were losing them. Ryoma came over to his house one day and told him that he might be leaving, too, and Momo somehow managed to smile at him and wave it away. In the following days, he became even quieter.

Kikumaru wasn't half as good at hiding his emotions as the others were. On some days he burst into tears in broad daylight, and insisted that he just couldn't do this. His application had already been accepted, but the university was on the other side of Japan, and he doubted that he could ever fit in and get used to his new surroundings. He didn't even want to try anymore.

Oishi would console him by telling him that he'd be there with him, but he didn't expect that to cheer him up much. As much as Kikumaru liked Oishi, he still couldn't bear the thought of leaving his hometown.

Tezuka was, without a doubt, the best at hiding his feelings. He seemed so secure, so normal, that people doubted that he even had feelings. Surely, their buchou would miss them? Surely, beneath that facade, he'd be at least slightly upset? He was moving to a different country, after all. It had to have affected him.

Kaidoh, came close to Tezuka. Not many people could tell that he was affected. But to the regulars, it was obvious. They could see it in the way he stared out at the courts, and how he'd started adjusting his training schedule when it came to team outings, instead of outright refusing to join them.

And when Tezuka named Kaidoh team captain for the following year, even Momo, as dense as he was, could tell that he was holding back tears.

Inui, on the other hand, began to ensure that his name was remembered at school. He spent time with the second and third years in the school labs, probably teaching them dangerous things, and he'd also started staying back after school, talking to the teachers about his experiments. He'd given most of his science notes to the school library for 'later reference', and people had already started using them.

Fuji...smiled at everyone. His smile was no longer his permanent facial expression, but whenever he met someone, spoke to them, or passed them in the corridors, he gave them a small, genuine smile, just to show them that he knew them, and was glad that he did. He, too, stayed back after school, chatting with the teachers, fellow students, and helping Tezuka with his student council duties.

Taka on the other hand, couldn't. He had to get back home soon to help his father out at the sushi store. But as he chopped vegetables and sliced fish, his expression would grow dreamy, wistful, longing.

"You'll miss them, won't you?" His father asked him, on the third time he burnt the food he was making.

Taka smiled sheepishly. "Of course I will."

On that night, Ryoma held onto his covers tightly, but the sun rose anyway.

And, finally, it was graduation day.

'Congratulations', Ryoma decided later on, was a difficult word to say.

He sat in the last row of the school auditorium, and thanks to his height, had trouble seeing anything happening on stage. He sat next to Kachirou, who seemed strangely contemplative, and Sakuno, who wasn't saying anything at all.

At last, all the students arrived, and everyone rose to sing the national anthem. When they settled down again, the headmaster took the stage, and everyone fell silent. For the most part, Ryoma didn't listen to his speech.

When the speech ended, the homeroom teachers came up, one by one, and called the names of the third years for attendance. Tezuka's response was a quiet, "Here." So was Oishi's. Fuji sounded amused, and Kikumaru was enthusiastic. Inui sounded fairly normal. Taka was initially shy, and then he randomly burst into a "HERE! HERE! BURNING!"

Tezuka, the class representative, was called up to receive a diploma on behalf of the class, and then Fuji, the class speaker, was called up to make a speech. This time, Ryoma listened.

Fuji stood quietly at the podium for a moment, simply looking around him. Then slowly, he smiled, and then thanked everyone in the auditorium for the past three years of his life.

He talked about his classmates, and his teachers. He apologized specifically to his history teacher for making her life so difficult. Then he spoke about their school trips, class outings, and the simple moments that seem to mean nothing at all, but for some reason, are etched so firmly in our memories.

Stupid arguments. Fights. Random silly moments. Making fools of ourselves. Standing up for what we think is right. Endless conversations, pointless talks. Driving each other crazy. Laughing. Crying. Winning, losing, belonging.

"Seishun High made us who we are today," Fuji said at last, eyes shining. "And it will be a part of us forever."

There were claps and cheers as Fuji left the stage, and if Ryoma strained his neck, he could see Kikumaru crying in his seat.

The next couple of hours were a blur. Speeches were made, songs were sung, people laughed and hugged and cried, and Ryoma sat through it all at the back of the auditorium, where no one could even see him.

At last, the ceremony ended, and everyone rose to go. It was Momoshiro who found him first, and he grabbed his arm and dragged him outside, where all the other regulars were waiting.

"Team photograph!" Kikumaru announced, grinning widely. His eyes were still slightly red, and there were tear stains on his face, but his smile was genuine enough.

They kidnapped a random second year to take the photo, and they all, including Tezuka and Kaidoh, huddled together and smiled for all they were worth. Or, as in the case of the aforementioned two, just smiled. Once the photo was taken, the group broke up, and the third years continued taking photos with their own classmates, while the other three stood to the side.

"They're really leaving, aren't they," Momo mused quietly.

Ryoma nodded. "Yeah." Kaidoh hissed softly.

They stared at their former teammates blankly, watching them run around the campus for the last time. Congratulations, Ryoma wanted to say. And thank you for these past six years. I've had the best time of my life.

But his throat was dry, and no words would come out.

Hours later, he and Momoshiro sat silently on the swings at the park, dragging their feet against the ground.

Someone cleared their voice behind them, and they both jumped. Fuji smiled at them.

"Everyone's waiting for you at the school courts," he told them, "I suggest you hurry up."

Sure enough, all the other regulars were there, and once they arrived, Kikumaru pounced on them and gave them a bear hug. It took them a while to escape, and all nine regulars sat on the ground, side by side, leaning against the walls of the clubroom.

No one spoke. It was late, and the stars shone brightly in the sky. There were streetlights somewhere far away as well, but for the most part, they were in darkness.

"It was fun," Oishi said lightly, around ten minutes later. "I loved it."

"I'll miss this," Fuji spoke quietly.

They were silent once more.

"Everyone, don't let your guards down," Tezuka said sternly.

There was a pause. Then Kikumaru giggled.

Momoshiro joined him. Then Echizen, and Taka, and Fuji, until all of them were rolling around and laughing for no reason whatsoever.

"Mada mada dane," Momo added, in the midst of his laughter.

"Rikutsu janai," Kikumaru shrieked.

"Hoi, hoi, nya," Fuji said, grinning.

"Oi, Fuji, you're saying it wrong!"

It took them a long time to calm down, and even after they did, their laughter echoed in the darkness around them.

They knew, in a few days, they might never see each other again.

It hurt, and that made them laugh all the harder.

.

.

That's it.