Disclaimer: Prince of Tennis does not belong to me.

This chapter is longer. Hope you enjoy reading!

Break time - Terrace

"May I sit here?"
"Sure, whatever. It's not like I own the damn thing", she replied without lifting her head up from the book she was replied.
Fuji sat patiently for a few minutes waiting for her to glance up. When she didn't, he asked, "Which book are you reading?"
She snapped sarcastically, "The one in my hand. If you wanted to know the title you could have just looked at it!"
As she uttered the last few words she looked up irately. On seeing Fuji, she gaped at him silently. Fuji smirked mentally. Serves you right. Now let's see you all flustered and apologetic.
She wasn't flustered and certainly wasn't apologetic. She looked straight into his eyes and asked, "Are you Fuji Syusuke of class 3-6?"
Smiling innocently, he murmured, "Saa, you are right."
"Oh. If I'd noticed I was speaking to a senior, I certainly wouldn't have been myself. Gomen.", she said in a tone that clearly showed she wasn't sorry at all.
"It's alright."
"Arigatou for being so understanding sempai." And once more she buried her nose into the book.
Fuji was livid with anger. It was the years of practice of hiding his emotions behind the beguiling smile that prevented him from showing it. He, the great tensai, the Adonis of Seigaku's formidable was being ignored!
Still smiling he wrested the book out of her hand and asked, "So what is this book about?"
Her eyes flashed with anger for a moment before she replied, "The synopsis is on the back cover of the book sempai."
"Soka. Hmm." He saw it was a popular Japanese thriller novel. He had already read it. However he wanted to exact revenge for being slighted and pretended to glean through the pages. He gleefully thought he must be making the girl quite angry. Very angry if her previous reactions anything to go by.
So he almost yelped in surprise when he heard her say "Arigatou sempai."
He looked up to see her smiling genuinely and so brightly that he could do nothing but stare at the remarkable transformation it brought upon her arresting features. Her beauty which was earlier marred by the irritation writ on her face had now acquired an almost ethereal quality.
"Nani?"
"If it you had taken the book away from me for such a long time, I would have been unable to stop reading."
"Demo, isn't that a bad thing?" He couldn't help widening his smile as he heard her laugh. It was so soothing and enticing. Like the sound of a little brook. "Are you indirectly blaming me?"
"No, no. Once I start I just can't stop reading. And then I feel guilty. And I read again to forget the guilt. A very vicious cycle. You saved me from it for a day."
"You would probably go back to reading after I returned the book to you ne?"
"No. If you had when I was angry, I would have. Now that I am once more grounded to reality, I won't. In fact I can't express how grateful and happy I am. Arigatou gozaimasu."
Fuji leaned closer without realising and opened his eyes to study her carefully. A sudden thought had struck him. What if she wanted to get rid of him so badly that when she realised she couldn't by being rude, she pretended to be sweet so that she could bore him away? He wanted to be sure that she wasn't acting.

So he saw her watching him with frank if slightly puzzled eyes. The tensai's thoughts began to go off-track. She has such sinful sensuous eyes. Mesmerising with surprising depth in the colour of velvety green moss.
Her question jerked him from the reverie. "I'm so sorry I didn't ask you before. Was there something you wanted to ask me?"
Fuji decided to keep the reason to himself. "Nothing in particular. Reading is a lovely habit. Why do you feel guilty?"
"Too much of anything is bad." She rolled her eyes and continue, "That clichéd statement says it all. Plus I read to escape. That makes it worse."
"Escape what?" His cerulean eyes which were wide open bored into her as if to look into her very soul.
"Reality."
"Why?" His mellifluous voice ensnared her.
"It's boring. I need to escape the futility of all these institutionalised activities before it smothers me. Unfortunately, fiction makes it harder to come to terms with it."
"I understand. It's like in summer you take a dip in the pool to beat the heat which makes it even more unbearable when you come out."
"Bingo."
"Then why don't you make the present interesting?"
"For it to be interesting it has to be challenging. How would you feel if you could complete the entire year's course in a week and still retain your ranking? But you are forced to drag it for a year. If you could predict the reactions and replies of most people? What if you were institutionally prevented from discovering your limits and pushing them? Of course you could do it yourself but why would you want to do that when you'll be tested on something basic? So you have just two options - you explore your limits and live vicariously in order to escape the frustrations of reality which is anyways just inertia. Or you don't live in the true sense of the word. You just watch your life like an amused on-looker until you are in a perpetual state mild sarcastic amusement. I'd prefer the first option any day."
She was earnestly leaning forward, her faces inches away from Fuji's while delivering this monologue. Her eyes were filled with fire and conviction.
The tensai was shocked and bereft of words. He could not believe that the girl before him existed. She was his soul mate. There was no doubt about that. He swallowed his shock and tried to play down the sudden havoc she was wreaking on his body and senses. The nearness had set his pulse racing.
He slowly eased back and wondered aloud, "Why are you telling me? If you are good an analyst of human behaviour surely you wouldn't tell this to everyone?"
"Of course. It's because I know you would see through lies. You would figure it out yourself in any case. And because."
"Because?"
"Although you have chosen the second option you can relate to what I just said."
Yes he could. By God he could. He struggled to keep the euphoria from showing on his face.
"To a certain extent, yes."
She smirked and said, "Now will the legendary Fuji Syusuke tell the true reason for accosting me?"
Fuji smiled amiably and said, "No. Shall I save you from the menace of reading tomorrow also? That is if I made these few minutes interesting enough for you. I trust you'll be in the same place?"
"It's always interesting to speak to someone new."
"I promise you I'll not be predictable. And I shall let you know the motive for this encounter tomorrow."
She smiled, "We'll see. And sempai, I'll find it myself."

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