He didn't know what to do. So, he decided to talk to his senpai-tachi. But before talking to them, he needed to decide who he would talk to.
He could have spoken to his best friend Momo, but the news would then spread like wild fire. Eiji wouldn't be of any help. He would just get teased for the rest of his life.
Kaidoh wouldn't help him and neither would Tezuka-he was sure of that.
Inui would not give him any advice in order to get some 'valuable data'.
Kawamura is too nervous to talk to girls himself, let alone give someone else advice.
Oishi would be worried about him more than anything else. So to think he could get any advice from Oishi was just ridiculous.
The only person left was his best option. He was considered a tensai for a reason. He would certainly be able to help without making it a big deal.
He waited for practice to end and caught Fuji as he was exiting the locker room.
"Fuji- senpai!" He called out.
"Echizen?" Fuji exclaimed. "I thought you were'nt feeling well."
"Umm… yeah. I wasn't but I took a nap and now im feeling much better. I wanted to ask you something." He decided to cut to the chase. He would tell Fuji everything and do whatever Fuji told him to.
"What is it Echizen? Spit it out."
"Well…umm…" he hesitated " you know sakuno and her family will be leaving to Paris right?"
"Yeah. Ryuzaki- sensei told us that. But what about it?"
"I don't want Sakuno to leave. She's only been in Seigaku for half a year and she has a very good chance of getting into the girls team too. She should'nt give up!" Echizen said in a rush. He was relieved the minute he got it out of his system.
"Hmm… I see. So, you have a crush on her right?" Fuji said as Echizen turned bright red.
He told Fuji the truth. That was the only way he would know what to do. "Yes. And I can't live without her."
"You don't have to. Tell her how you feel. If she feels the same way, then you two can spend as much time you have left with eachother. If she doesn't, you can forget about it and move on. Alteast you'll be sure about your relationship after that."
"That's exactly what I came to talk to you about senpai. I want to tell her how I feel, but I don't know how to. I've never felt this way before."
"Saa- well, although I don't have much time to think about this, from the top of my head I can say that you should ask her to meet you during lunch. You should have an audience then, and the worst she can do is reject you." Fuji said. He noticed the changes in Echizen's expression the minute the last sentence was complete. So, he amended, "Cheer up! That's only worst case scenario."
"Sure. Very reassuring senpai." Echizen said sarcastically.
"Are you sure you don't want any help?" Fuji asked nervously. He had trained Echizen a lot, but wasn't sure that his kohai had the skill to win this game.
"No, thanks. Im fine. If anyone can do this, it's going to have to be me. Besides the worst she can do is reject me, right?" he repeated his senpai's words.
"Here she comes" Fuji said as he took his seat. It was far enough, so Sakuno wouldn't suspect he was with Ryoma on this; but it was also close enough for him to listen to the conversation.
"Ryoma-kun. Tomo-chan asked me to meet you during lunch. What happened?" Sakuno enquired.
Fuji nodded his head. Ryoma doesn't have the guts to ask her to meet him. How on earth is he goinng to confess to her? This is tough. Even for him. Fuji knew he wasn't thinkin positive, but the situation seemed helpless.
"Um… Ryuzaki, would you-would you- will you…" Ryoma stammered.
"Would I what Ryoma-kun?"
"Um…would you like to play a match with me?"
"I would definitely lose Ryoma-kun. After all, I'm just a beginner. You won at the U.S open. Even if you hadn't won the tournament I wouldn't stand a chance."
"I didn't mean to offend you." Ryoma said as he saw Sakuno's face drop. "I just wanted to teach you a few tricks before you leave. I might never get to see you again you know."
"I won't be gone for long. Maybe just a year or two- definitely not longer."
"Can I ask you something?" ryoma questioned. He was curious about this right from the beginning."
"Sure. What is it?"
"Why exactly are you leaving?"
"I wish I could tell you. But I can't. Especially not you. Believe me I want to but its better if you find out after I'm gone." With this, sakuno exited the cafeteria. Leaving Ryoma baffled.
"What was that?" Fuji asked. "Why didn't you tell her?"
"How could I? Whenever I see her my brain just doesn't seem to function right. And do you have any clue why she's leaving?"
"Nope. None at all. The only people who know are Sakuno, Tomoka, Ryuzaki-sensei and Tezuka."
"How does Tezuka-bucho know?"
"Cause Ryuzaki-sensei trusts him to keep the team together. She didn't want our team to lose its super rookie."
"This is just unfair. Why won't she tell me?"
"Who said that you can find out only from her? Don't worry. I'll think of something." Fuji said with his diabolical smile."
If there was anyone who always got his way, that would be Fuji. But right now, all that seemed distant. He could think of no one but Sakuno. Didn't she trust him enough to tell him? What was she hiding? Was she scared of his reaction? Or just scared of him? These were questions that Ryoma just could find the answers to.
He walked out of the cafeteria, leaving his food untouched. The regulars had just arrived, but he was in no mood to chit- chat. There was only one thing that could take his mind of Sakuno.
He was thinking of whom to challenge when he bumped into a crying Tomoka.