Chapter Four

Look! Happy Couple!

"Ootori-san," Shinku said. She paused, she didn't know what she should say to the boy. She wasn't sure how she was suppose to apologize. "I . . . I—"

"Shinku-san!" Choutarou interrupted. "I wish you would call me by my first name again. We had always called each other by our first names. I know we haven't seen each other in a while, but I don't want it to be awkward between us."

Shinku looked up at Choutarou through her bangs. He had an earnest and thoughtful look on his face. She decided that it would be best to go along with his wishes, since he had been so nice to her; before when they went to school together and now. Shinku obliged and said, "Choutarou-kun."

A smile burst out on Choutarou's face as he heard that. "That's more like it; now I can start calling you Shinku-chan again instead of Shinku-san."

"I need to tell you something important," Shinku finally said.

"What is it?" Choutarou asked.

Shinku gave a deep breath and said, "I'm sorry."—she looked at Choutarou in the eyes—"I'm so sorry for what I did. I didn't mean to just yell at you like that and then leave you alone when you needed me. I didn't mean to just, leave without telling you. I just . . . I just couldn't bring myself to."

"Shinku-chan, why are you apologizing for that?" Choutarou questioned.

"Because before I left, I yelled at you so much, and I was so mean. I said all of those horrible things. You were the only person who even wanted to be my friend too."

"Let me tell you something." Choutarou placed both of his hands on Shinku's shoulders. "It doesn't matter what you did then, you're back now, and you even apologized. It makes up for it, Shinku-chan. Don't worry anymore. I was never angry about that in the first place." Choutarou gave out a hearty laugh. "You know what I realized just now Shinku-chan?"

"What?" Shinku asked, she had a feeling she wouldn't like the answer.

"Your apology was the most that I've heard you talk!" Choutarou started laughing again as he said that.

"I've said more words." Shinku puffed out her cheeks and looked away.

"You actually haven't. You don't tend to speak a lot. Unless of course it is to blow up at my team."

"Sorry," Shinku mumbled. She wasn't really sorry.

"Well," Choutarou got off the guest bed, "you should be going to sleep now Shinku-chan. Good night, and have good dreams!" Choutarou turned off the lights and closed the bedroom door.

Shinku laid back down on her bed and gave out a sigh. She was wondering how she could ever bring herself to sleep next to Sanada Genichirou in bed.

It was late at night already, and Sanada still couldn't find Shinku. He looked just about everywhere. He even called her parents, but they said she wasn't with them. Sanada was getting annoyed with his so called "fiancee". She was so irresponsible and rude, it was a wonder his grandparents still agreed to the arranged marriage. He had tried calling her several times, but she never picked up her phone.

Sanada sighed before going back to the penthouse and sitting on the couch. He tried to call her phone again.

Ring. Ring. Ring. "Hello?"

Sanada was about to say something.

"This is Miyaharu Shinku, leave a message please."

Nothing.

Just the answering machine.

Once again.

"That woman," Sanada gritted. He laid his head against the arm rest of the couch and decided to wait for her, after all, she would be coming home to sleep sooner or later.

. . . Right?

"Ugh . . ." Shinku groaned as her hand reached out from under the covers to grab at her cell phone. It had been ringing on and off all night, and it was interrupting her sleep like crazy. She grabbed at it and shoved it under her pillow.

It rang several more times, and as Shinku twisted under the blanket, she finally just gave up and looked at her phone. It was ringing because it was her alarm. She was late for school. With all that had happened just the day before, Shinku had forgotten about school. She sat up scratching her head as she took in her surroundings. She was in one of the guest bedrooms in Choutarou's house. She remembered.

A knock came promptly upon the door as Shinku swung her legs over the edge of the bed, "Come in," she muttered.

Choutarou opened the door, dressed in his school uniform.

"Choutarou . . . kun," Shinku yawned.

"Shinku-chan, you're going to be late for school," Choutarou informed her.

"I already am," she answered. "I need to get home, people have been calling and texting me all night. I hope that Sanada-san didn't inform everyone I was missing."

"I'll have one of my drivers drive you home, and just be sure to explain to all of them about what happened."

"I will," Shinku agreed. Choutarou led her outside since she still seemed wobbly on her feet from just waking up.

"Tell him where to go, okay Shinku-chan?" Choutarou asked.

"I'll tell him," Shinku replied.

Choutarou raised an eyebrow at how Shinku said him. He just decided to not comment on it though and instead he said, "Come visit me more often okay? If you don't, then I'll be forced to go to Kanagawa just to meet you and all of the Rikkai tennis members." Choutarou closed the door and waved good bye to Shinku before getting in a different limo that would take him to Hyotei.

The car ride back home was long and uneventful. Shinku didn't try to talk, and neither did the chauffer. They were both silent people, or so Shinku thought until the driver started to talk on his bluetooth since he saw that she wouldn't care. Most of the time in the limo was spent either sleeping or staring at the scenery. Shinku didn't even have Grandfather Hikaru to make fun of this time.

Eventually, the limo pulled up in front of the new penthouse. Shinku bowed to thank the driver before running to her penthouse room. It was already almost the middle of the day, so she decided to just skip school. As she opened the door, the first thing she noticed was that a person was sleeping on her couch. Scratch that, it was Sanada sleeping on the couch. Shinku expected him to have been in school long ago. She sneaked up to look at him sleeping. He looked calm in his sleep, but still sort of serious, as expected of him to be of course. She leaned in forwards a little bit and put her small hand on his cheek. He didn't move. Shinku quietly rubbed her thumb across his cheek before she realized what she was doing. She quickly got up with a strange and weirded-out look on her face as she headed for one of the closets in the penthouse. She got out blanket and laid it on top of Sanada while he slept. She decided to go int the kitchen and set up an early lunch since she didn't get to eat at all.

Sanada slowly woke up to the sounds of boiling broth and the smell of fresh vegetables. He sat up and groaned a bit. His neck was a bit sore from the way he had slept on the couch waiting for Shinku. He sat up to find the blanket on him. He hoped that Shinku was home, it would be weird to go and find someone else in his new home. He stretched a bit before heading into the kitchen.

Shinku's back was turned to Sanada, but she heard his footsteps.

"You're home," Sanada said angrily.

"Of course I am," Shinku replied.

"Where were you last night? When did you come home?"

"I was at a friend's house. I came home a tiny bit ago."

"Oh?" Sanada's eye twitched a bit in anger. He was angry that she just left like that without telling anyone. She didn't know responsibility at all!

Shinku ignored his comment and turned around to glare at him in the eyes. "Do you have a problem with what I do?"

"You should tell me before you leave to go somewhere."

"You don't own me. I don't have to tell you anything."

Sanada closed his eyes and rubbed his temples. If she was just a boy instead and a regular on the tennis team, he could slap her as hard as he wanted for being disrespectful. She was neither a boy or a tennis regular though, so he couldn't do it. Sanada took a deep breath before saying, "We are engaged now. To each other. You're my fiancee and I'm yours. We're both obligated to trust each other and to tell each other where we go when we leave. We have to start being responsible, especially since we're engaged and living together. "

Shinku was silent for a few moments. Sanada was right, but that didn't mean she wanted to listen to him about it all thoroughly. Sanada on the other hand was a bit surprised at what he said to Shinku. He never thought that he would be the person to say such a thing, he always thought the girl would be the first to say something like that, but then again, he wouldn't run away and sleep at another person's house, one of the opposite sex nonetheless.

"You have to be more responsible," Sanada said again.

"I am responsible. I don't need to explain myself to you," Shinku said.

"Your family is a pretty big family wouldn't you say?" Sanada asked, changing the subject all of a sudden.

"Uh . . . yeah," Shinku replied. She was confused. Her family did own a big pharmaceutical company, and her parents' pastry shop just started to get attention too.

"The press is probably working on the story about our engagement as we speak. Wouldn't it be bad for your family if there were rumors going around that while you're engaged you go around and sleep at other guys' house?"

Shinku was silent as she thought about what Sanada said. The one thing that Shinku never wanted was her family name to go down in shame or be disrespected. She didn't want to tarnish her family name. She didn't want to disappoint her family.

Shinku sighed, "I'm sorry, Sanada-san."

Sanada stared at her as he continued to listen.

"I should have told you where I was and I shouldn't have run out like that." Shinku was swallowing a huge part of her pride to say all of those words to Sanada.

"So where were you?" Sanada questioned.

"I was at Choutarou Ootori's house. He's a childhood friend."

Sanada stiffened at the name. He recognized the name of course. Hyotei was one of the most prestigious schools in the country, and they were famously known for their tennis team which had over 200 members. Hearing that Shinku was such close friends with the regular of an enemy school was surprising to hear. Actually, it was surprising to hear that Shinku had any friends, especially friends out of the district.

Sanada's voice was a bit stiff as he asked, "So how long have you two been friends?"

Shinku sighed, preparing for the onslaught of questions that were sure to come. "We both went to the elementary school that Hyotei has. We were friends for about two, maybe three years, but then I moved here." Shinku left out the part where she hurt Choutarou.

"Ah." Sanada didn't say any more as Shinku started serving their lunch. It was a piping hot bowl of miso soup. Sanada licked his lips as he started eating, miso soup was one of his favorite meals, and it helped that Shinku was a good cook. Sanada got seconds and started eating some more.

Then, the unexpected happened as Shinku asked, "Do you want to go out today?"

Sanada almost choked on seaweed that was in the soup as he looked at her. Was she serious? There was no way that Miyaharu Shinku was being serious at the moment.

"Well do you?" Shinku now had an annoyed look on her face. She didn't like repeating things.

Sanada cleared his throat before saying, "If you truly wish to go out, then we'll go." He didn't want to make their marriage any more difficult than it already was. He had taken an oath to both his parents/grandparents and to her parents/grandparents that he would treat her right and take care of her as best as he could. And as much as he didn't want to do that, Sanada was a man of his word, no matter what.

Shinku raised her eyebrows at his answer, and he replied with a glare. The ever-constant glare that was on her face probed him, and he decided to ignore the look. He finished quickly, and since she didn't want to eat, he grabbed his coat and waited at the door for her while she got her things from the coat closet that she had—just the day before—thought was her room.

The two left their penthouse silently and walked the streets of Kanagawa. Sanada looked mature, and no one would question if he was ditching school or not. He was seventeen already (eighteen in May), and he looked mature for his age. Shinku on the other hand looked as if she could still be in middle school with her short stature. However, a look at her face would prove anyone who dared think that she was a middle schooler otherwise.

The two seemed to attract a lot of attention wherever they went. There were whispers from strangers about how they looked together, and even though the two didn't act like a couple, the diamond ring on Shinku's left hand ring finger was more than enough to show the world that the two were engaged.

"Look at how cute those two look together!" a girl whispered.

"I know! She's so short and he's so tall! I suppose opposites do attract," her friend giggled.

The two ignored the whispers and continued to walk around, once in a while stopping to look in windows. As they stopped in front of a store to window shop, Grandfather Hikaru walked out.

"Eh? Is that my beautiful granddaughter and her fiance standing there?" he chuckled.

"Hello Grandfather Hikaru," the two replied.

"What are you doing outside of school?"

Silence.

"I bet you two are skipping so you can go on a date huh?" Grandfather Hikaru winked at the both of them. He was probably the only adult in both of their families that would be okay with them doing that.

"N-no! Grandfather Hikaru! You have it all wrong!" Shinku tried to argue.

"Bup bup! I won't be hearing any of your excuses. There's no need to be modest when you two are now engaged. Go ahead! Hold hands! Kiss! Make out! Do whatever you would like!"

Sanada stood there as still as a rock when he heard Grandfather Hikaru say all of those things.

"And maybe I'll get a great-grandchild by the time you two get married!"

Sanada stiffened even more until he was like a statue in the middle of the street. Was her grandfather really suggesting that the two of them sleep together?

"I don't mind you two doing anything, I would love great-grandchildren!"

Apparently he was serious.

"Grandfather Hikaru!" Shinku hissed. A genuine glare was seen in her eyes.

"Sorry about that dear," he replied. "I do think you two should hold hands though. I mean, you guys need to step it up!" The two thought that he would leave, but he just stood there, looking at the two expectantly.

Shinku was the first to understand what he wanted, and her face turned an angry, bright red as she snaked her hand into Sanada's. At first, Sanada was surprised, but by the look that was on Grandfather Hikaru's face, he could tell that the old man was enjoying seeing the two of them looking like a real couple.

"Don't you let go of each other now," Grandfather Hikaru joked, winking at them again. He waved with his left hand as he started to walk away from the couple.

The two continued to hold hands as they walked around. Shinku's face was tinted a pink color from embarrassment. She was afraid that if she let go, her grandfather would come sprinting around the corner yelling profanities at them to hold hands again because he wanted them to act more like a couple.

Comments floated around them like snowflakes during the winter.

"Don't those two look so happy together?"

"They look so in love!"

"That guy is really hot."

"Look at that happy couple!"

Shinku ignored the comments that people made. If she listened to them, she felt as if she would burst from anger and just go crazy on them. She didn't think Sanada or her family would approve of such a thing though, so she didn't do anything. Instead, she just plastered a glare on her face and gave anyone who said anything about them the stink eye.

"Eh? And who is this lovely couple?"

The two turned around just to stare at the Rikkai regulars in shock. Marui Bunta was the one who had said that while the others just looked at the two with smiles gracing their faces.

"Who would have thought," Niou snickered, "that Sanada-fukubuchou would skip school to go on a date with his fiancee!"

"That's quite nice of him, don't you think?" Yukimura asked. "They're finally starting to act like a couple."

"What are you guys doing out of school?" Sanada demanded.

"We should ask you the same thing," Renji replied.

Sanada didn't say anything in reply to his friend.

"Anyways, you know that the tennis regulars are allowed to leave school for lunch."

Sanada mentally cursed himself for forgetting that.

"Christmas is coming up soon," Bunta stated. Indeed Christmas was just a month or so away. December was in just a few days and as the days went by, the chilling coldness got worse.

"It is," Sanada grunted.

"Are you two going to celebrate it together?" Yagyuu asked. His glasses gleaming.

Shinku and Sanada both gave a curt nod that expressed their unhappiness at the idea. Of course they were going to spend the holidays together. As if they had a choice. Shinku wanted to bang her head multiple times against a wall just at the idea of waking up to Christmas with Sanada right there, and Sanada was regretting the moment when he would wake up in the morning thinking that he was at home to celebrate a happy holiday with his family just to turn around and see Shinku.

The regulars gave the two creepy smiles as an idea formulated in their minds.

The two were too busy sulking at the inevitable to notice what the regulars were up to.

A/N: I'm sorry for taking so long to update you guys. I've not only been busy, but also lazy during my free time too. -_-

I would really love and appreciate reviews! You know how I am! :) Also, Shinku has been added to the OC list on my website! Go check out her profile!