Hi, the next chapter's up!~ I personally had fun writing this, but some of the characters may be a little bit OC. -.- I'm not very familiar with the other Hyotei regulars. There's also a bit of Atobe fluff! ^^ I hope you'll like it.
Big thanks to FallenSlayer18 and mewmewlover23 for reviewing again! Also to those who alerted/favorited the story! ^^ Thank you!
Please R&R!
Chapter 14: How to ruin a date
Today was the day of the dreaded date. Even the fact that it was a sunny Sunday didn't improve Rin's mood. She got out of bed grouchily and stumbled to the bathroom to get ready. After a nice warm shower she went downstairs to the kitchen. Her mother was already up and awake, humming cheerfully while she made pancakes.
"Good morning, dear!" She greeted as she noticed Rin, who only mumbled 'morning' in response and started making coffee.
"Why so down? Shouldn't you be excited? It's your first date!" Her mother exclaimed a little angrily.
Rin mumbled some incoherent words and strolled to the table to set down one cup. The other she held with her two hands and drank a mouthful of the cafe.
"I'm still a little tired." She muttered, taking another sip of the coffee. "Are the pancakes done?"
"Here," she handed Rin a plate with delicious, warm pancakes," how was yesterday's tennis match?"
"Our team won 3:2, we lost both doubles, but caught up during singles."
"That's amazing!"
Rin started eating, ending their conversation. After she finished she turned to her mum.
"What's dad doing?"
Her mother thought for awhile, then answered. "I think he's in Osaka right now. There's this baseball final at the Koushien stadium."
"So, just like every year..."
"Now, let's get you dressed up and pretty, how about curling your hair? You'd look really cute!" Her mother squealed.
First she made her change into the clothes they had bought on Thursday, and then she divided her hair and tied it to two not plaited pigtails. Her mother wanted to make her up too; however, Rin refused and only allowed her to use the mascara. The lip gloss would be sticky and unhandy while eating.
The doorbell rang.
"That must be the chauffeur driving you to Keigo's school. Hurry up, Rin!"
"Yeah, yeah." Rin was putting on the sandals, grabbed her satchel and left the house.
"You forgot the camera! Remind yourself to take photos!" Her mother handed her the small device. "Have fun!"
Rin got into the limousine and waved her mum goodbye. The chauffeur immediately started driving. In the car she checked her belongings in the satchel. There was her cell phone, some
money, the keys for the house, the camera, tissues and the most important thing: the small test glass filled with Inui's latest 'juice'. It was a light yellow, quite a normal color if you considered his other inventions. He hadn't told her anything about the exact effects, but had warned her not to use too much of it. Setting the thoughts in the back of her mind, she watched the outside landscape fly by.
The car stopped. They had only driven for ten minutes, it was a short drive, but the car had been very comfortable and she wanted to wait in the limousine for Atobe to come.
"Excuse me, miss," the chauffeur turned to her," could you get Atobe-sama?"
"Sure." Rin answered, but inwardly she sighed and got out of the car.
A boy in the Hyotei school uniform was passing by. Rin stopped him and asked about the whereabouts of the tennis courts. He blushed, pointed with his finger in a direction and stammered:"J-Just up ahead."
Rin thanked him and went into the direction he had told her, a satisfied grin on her face because of the reaction she got. It seemed she looked cuter than she thought.
The Hyotei tennis regulars had just finished their routine Sunday training and were standing on the courts in their changed clothes. Only their captain had been talking to the coach and didn't get the chance to go change. But the regulars were facing a problem: How does one leave the court if it is surrounded by fan girls? The cheering club had already left, now just the fan clubs of the players were still waiting to talk with them, take a photo or get an autograph. Sure, most of them were Atobe's fans and would listen to every word he said, but he was busy with other things right now, so they decided to stand there and wait for him to finish and leave. Someone boxed herself through the crowd of people, earning indignant screams. A girl stumbled out of the group and entered the court. She had black hair tied to pigtails and blue eyes looked around as if they were searching for someone. She was wearing expensive clothes as one could see by the label.
"Oi, you can't just enter the court without permission." Shishido said to her.
"Sorry, but I'm looking for someone. His name is Atobe Keigo. Do you perhaps happen to know him?" Rin asked.
"He's there discussing something with our coach. What do you want from him?" He narrowed his eyes at her.
If it was another of those fan girls just trying to get Atobe's attention, he'd kick her out immediately. Damn him for getting all the cute girls. Though she looked a little more...tomboyish. Normally girls would try to look as cute as possible, not that he thought she wasn't, she was a lot cuter than a girl wearing a dress with lots of frills and tons of makeup. He found himself blushing slightly as she stared at him. She was nearly as tall as him.
The other regulars watched their conversation, ready to step in should the girl really be a fan girl who would even try to get to Atobe with force, which had happened a few times before an ended with a fuming fan girl and scratched regulars.
"I have an...appointment with him." She really didn't want to admit in front of someone that it was a date.
Shishido raised an eyebrow. "Really? He's busy right now so you have to come back later."
Rin shrugged indifferently. "If that's so, then tell him it is impolite to make a girl wait. Was nice to meet you."
She turned on her heel and wanted to leave the court, but a hand grabbed her wrist and she heard an all too familiar voice she wished she didn't know.
"So you're already here, Rin. Quite eager on the date, aren't you, ahn? Perhaps...you missed the awesome me?" He whispered in her ear, making her shiver.
"First off, don't you know the word personal space?" she shoved him away from her," and second, the earlier I come, the faster we can get it over and done with."
"You have a point." Atobe snickered. She still had her strong personality and didn't get swayed by him, just as he liked it.
"Ore-sama will go change now, why don't you sit down on the bench and talk a little with those guys?" He winked and left.
Grumbling, she followed his proposal and let herself fall onto the bench.
The regulars had followed the short conversation between their captain and this girl. They were surprised to see her acting so natural and cocky around him without squealing or trying to impress him and even respected her a bit for talking back and shoving him, though they wondered why the girl would dislike him this much. Usually girls would be delighted when he would talk to or only look at them, but she was different. And that was a plus point for Shishido who didn't really like Atobe either.
"Why does Atobe always get all the nice girls?" He sighed.
"What do you mean by that, Ryou?" Mukahi asked. "Are you interested in that girl? She looks a little boyish, though I admit she's cute."
"But there are plenty of girls that have a crush on you, Shishido-senpai!" Ootori tried to cheer him up.
"All of them aren't acting natural," He responded. "And they're all fangirls, you yourself know how creepy they can get."
They shivered as they thought back to last year's Valentine's Day.
"Then, how would your ideal girlfriend be like? We could ask her some questions, perhaps she is even your dream girl." Oshitari proposed with a smirk.
Shishido thought for awhile. "Well, someone a little boyish, but cute, good at cooking, a little cocky, or it wouldn't be fun with her, and she should understand that tennis is important to me."
"Now, how about we ask her? Perhaps she's even your dream girl, a girlfriend would be agood confidence boost. Let's choose someone..." Oshitari looked around in the group and stopped at a second year. "How about you, Hiyoshi?"
He frantically shook his head in response. "Senpai can do it himself."
"How about everyone walks over to her together? This way no one will have to face her alone." Ootori suggested and smiled at his friend Hiyoshi who gratefully looked at him.
The others agreed and they did as Ootori suggested. First they introduced themselves.
"I'm Ootori Choutaro, nice to meet you." The tall, silver haired boy smiled warmly at her. He looked cute, Rin thought to herself.
"Shishido Ryou." A boy with short brown hair and a cap said while avoiding her eyes.
"I'm Mukahi Gakuto." The smallest of them with magenta colored hair bounced around her.
"My name is Oshitari Yuushi, it's a pleasure to meet you, miss." A dark blue haired boy wearing glasses said with a smirk.
"And I'm Wakashi Hiyoshi." The last boy with light brown hair introduced himself.
"Ah, Jirou is sleeping again and Kabaji should be with Atobe," Oshitari said. Then he turned back to Rin. "So what is your name, miss?"
"Moriyama Rin, nice to meet you all." She responded.
"So, Moriyama-san, we'd like to ask you some questions, if that is alright with you?" He continued.
Rin shrugged and he took it as a yes.
"Do you like tennis? Play it perpaps too?" Was his first question.
"Sure, have played before and am now the manager of the tennis club at my school." The boys seemed to like this answer.
"Then can you cook?" He asked next.
She nodded. "Of course, I often make snacks for the tennis players."
"Can you make cheese sandwiches?" Shishido cut in.
"Make them once in a while for the club."
"So, I guess you're good at it." Oshitari took part in the conversation again and Rin just nodded.
"What would you do if a boy asked you out? " he asked next.
Rin blushed. "If I like him or at least have a good impression, I'd consider it. He'd also have to prove to me that he'd be worth going out with. That I could have fun with him-," she stopped. "What's with this personal question? Why do you want to know that?"
"Oh, I just wanted to find out what type of guy you preferred, it seems you aren't very fond of Atobe."
"And? Did you find out, Mr. Love-Doctor?"
He cuckled and then paused in a dramatic way. "Well, you'd be compatible with Atobe-"
Rin interrupted him. "I think your results are wrong."
"Just let me continue. You'd be compatible with him, but you'd have small fights everyday because of your personalities. Oh, I have to add I'm not telling you whom you're best compatible with, only with whom you're compatible. So, next I would say Shishido here-"
Shishido, who was drinking something, nearly choked on this and got a coughing fit.
"Well, I'd say you'd be similar in your character, though you'd still tease each other, but also have some peaceful moments."
"Sounds good." Rin flashed a smile at Shishido who turned beet red.
"And the last type, I did this analysis only with the Hyotei regulars, so there aren't that many possibilities..." He smirked. "I'll let you guess."
"I bet it's you yourself, Yuushi!" Mukahi exclaimed.
"I think so too." Shishido agreed.
"I'm not sure..." Ootori murmured while thinking hard. He had no clue how his senpai could get enough information out of these questions and know who'd be compatible with whom.
"I'm not answering this question." Hiyoshi refused.
"What if it's you?" Mukahi teased him.
He didn't answer, but turned slightly red. Jirou snored in the background.
"Tell us, Yuushi!" Mukahi cheered.
"What do you think, miss?" Oshitari instead turned to Rin.
She shrugged. "I don't know you guys very well, but at least I'd think it wasn't that bouncy boy here." She pointed at Mukahi who huffed.
"That's right because you'd be compatible with..." Another dramatic pause. "The nicest and kindest and most selfless boy at our school: Ootori Choutaro."
"Wait, don't you think you've miscalculated something? First two rather, let's say loud and flashy guys and then a quiet one?" Mukahi asked.
"In what way am I flashy? " Shishido grumbled.
So Oshitari started explaining. "Well, she said a guy whom she could have fun with. It's not like she's naturally cocky and likes to fight. That means she's also compatible with a boy like Ootori. They could have nice conversations and be like an ideal couple. Both are responsible, care about others and are rather calm, though they do they have a strong will. So you could say they're even more similar."
"Then tell me, Yuushi, with which girl am I compatible?" Mukahi asked.
"Sorry, but I don't know enough girls this well. I can tell you with whom of the regulars you're compatible with." He smirked.
"Yuck, not interested in boys!"
"What about your perfect doubles partner?"
"Of course that's you, Yuushi!"
"Nice to hear that."
"Hope Ore-sama didn't make you wait too long, Rin." Atobe entered the court wearing a suit, a not too fancy one in black, but he looked gorgeous, that she had to admit. If his personality would be different...
"Then let's go. Kabaji, take my things with you." He snipped his fingers and a broad, tall boy with tanned skin and brown hair and eyes appeared and took his tennis sports bag.
Atobe grabbed Rin's hand in front of the fan girls who were watching. Immediately she was glared at by the whole female population present. Rin struggled to get her hand out of his hold.
"Could you let me go? It's not like I'll run away."
He turned his head and smirked at her, but didn't let go of her hand.
"Getting all flustered because Ore-sama is holding hands with you? Seems like you do have a thing for me."
"N-e-v-e-r, never! I don't like you, you egocentric!"
"Ahhhn, denying it to this extent just means Ore-sama has said the truth."
"Stop teasing me and let go of my hand already!"
"Do you know you're very cute when you're angry?"
Rin shot him a deadly glare, but he didn't flinch and pulled her with him.
"We've got to hurry. Ore-sama has made a reservation and we still need to get you a change of clothes."
"Why? I like the clothes I'm wearing!" Rin protested. 'I even endured shopping with our mothers to pick them out.' She added in her thoughts.
"You won't be able to get in the restaurant with those clothes, it's against the etiquette."
"You didn't have to choose a five star restaurant!"
"Only the best for Ore-sama's date. Don't worry, I'll be the one paying." He responded smugly. They had reached the limousine now. He opened the door, gently pushed her in, closed it and went around getting into the car himself. The fan girls could only watch their beloved Atobe-sama drive away with a female stranger.
"First clothes. My mother already gave me your measurements and Ore-sama has picked some dresses for you, you only have to choose one.
"Thanks for going through the trouble." Rin replied sarcastically.
The Hyotei regular used the chance of all attention being on Atobe to escape their fans. Quietly they sneaked away on the sides, though Jirou, who was still sleeping, was left behind.
"We've reached the gate. The car to pick me up should be here soon." Mukahi said. "Then we'll be able to chase after Atobe."
"Huh? What do you mean, Gakuto? You seriously aren't suggesting stalking Atobe, are you?" Was Shishido's shocked reply.
"I do not think that is a good idea either, Mukahi-senpai." Ootori agreed with his doubles partner. "It is not good to intrude in a person's private issues."
"I think it could be pretty interesting." Oshitari helped Mukahi.
"What do you say, Hiyoshi?" Mukahi turned to his underclassman, grabbing his shoulders and stared intently into his eyes. Uncomfortable Hiyoshi looked away and gave in. "But please let me go, senpai!"
"Hah! It's three against two!" Mukahi grinned victoriously.
"No fair! You practically pushed Hiyoshi into saying yes and you still haven't asked Kabaji or Jirou!" Shishido protested, trying to get out of this situation. "Say, Kabaji, you wouldn't want to intrude on Atobe's date, right?"
"Usu." Came the immediate reply.
"He doesn't count. He'd always answer with 'usu', isn't that so, Kabaji?" Mukahi countered.
"Usu."
"And I'm sure, Jirou would want to watch the date because it's interesting! It must be when it's Atobe." He added.
"I give up, do what you want, but count me out. Let's go, Choutaro." Shishido turned to leave and Ootori followed him.
"Tch, such an idiot, not participating in the fun." Mukahi huffed.
The car he had mentioned before arrived, Mukahi was the first to get in, dragging an unwilling Hiyoshi with him, behind him was Kabaji with Jirou still sleeping on his back and Oshitari was the last one to get in after making sure everyone had a seat. He closed the door, Mukahi told the chauffeur a few commands and their pursue could start.
Ootori and Shishido had watched their fellow regulars getting into the car worriedly.
"Damn it, I can't let those guys go after Atobe, they'll ruin his date or do something stupid." Shishido scratched his head in frustration.
"Well, Oshitari-senpai is with them..." Ootori tried calming him down.
"That guy only thinks of his own entertainment, he'd probably encourage them to do something stupid."
"Then we could follow them to make sure nothing happens." Ootori smiled sweetly at his senpai, who sighed.
"I guess it's the only option."
First Atobe and Rin had driven to a high class tailor shop where about twenty dresses in Rin's size had been made and she was required to choose one. The too revealing clothes were banned immediately, only ten were left. Then the pink ones were removed because the color was too girly for her. Now seven were left. She decided on a summer dress with a white top which then faded into a dark night blue. It had a flower pattern, was a little longer than knee length and was sleeveless. The shoes, white and blue striped ballerinas, went well with the dress. Her own clothes were packed into a shopping bag and handed to her. She was a little bit displeased about having to change their clothes since she even went through the trouble of finding some specifically for this date, although not completely voluntarily.
"Are you now content?"
"Hmmm, you do look cuter now." He flashed a smirk that would have made any girl blush and giggle, but Rin just ignored it.
"So, let's get going for lunch."
Outside the shop the limousine was already waiting for them. They quickly got in and drove to the restaurant Atobe had chosen. During the drive they talked little, instead listened to classical music which Atobe, Rin found out, liked a lot, particularly Wagner, a German composer. Few minutes later they arrived in front of a big building with an elegant facade in western style instead and a big glowing letters at the front, forming the word 'Le ciel'. Rin guessed it was probably an European language, perhaps French. They got out of the car again, Atobe first who then turned to help her out, playing the role of the gentleman perfectly.
"Shall we go in, mademoiselle?" He asked her, mimicking a French accent, and offered his arm. She stared at it, but didn't take it.
"Let's just go in there." She sighed.
Suddenly Atobe took her hand and went into the building, ignoring her protests.
"You're blushing again, that's cute. Ore-sama likes it." He smirked at her and she gave in, but not without grumbling some incoherent words, clearly not happy.
The door was opened by a man in a uniform and inside another man wearing a suit awaited them. The reception room was large, not very big but high, like the rooms in European castles. It was lighted by chandeliers, decorated with marmoreal pillars; the floor was carpeted in a fancy Bordeaux red and on both sides were small fountains. Rin stopped awhile to look at the paintings that were hanging on the walls. Most of them were landscapes, probably of the French countryside, showing beautiful fields of grasses and flowers or crystal clear lakes and rivers often with mountains in the background.
"They have quite the artistic paintings here. Ore-sama likes them a lot even though they're all copies, but ore-sama has seen the real ones before." He was still holding onto her hand and Rin feeling uncomfortable at his touch, got out of his hold.
"Atobe-sama, we have already prepared the private room you reserved for lunch. If you would not mind we can lead you there now." The suits man greeted him in a friendly, but also professional tone.
The female receptionists giggled while they ogled Atobe, hoping they'd be the one to accompany him. They ignored Rin's presence, not that she minded, and were flashing smiles and fluttering their eyelashes at him to get his attention. To their dismay a young, male waiter was the one to lead Atobe and his escort to the room.
The waiter first introduced himself. "My name is Kagezaki Takeuchi, I am your personal waiter for today." He smiled at Rin, who smiled back politely, while Atobe let out a quiet huff, so Rin wouldn't notice.
He shouldn't be getting jealous, it should be the other way, also he was a bit interested in her and only thought it would be entertaining to spend time with her. So why did he have this slight feeling of jealousy? Deep in his thoughts, he didn't notice the waiter had stopped in his tracks. He would have collided with him, if Rin didn't grab his arm, causing him to snap out of his own world.
"Is something wrong?" She asked him, a bit of concern showing in her voice. He had been quite silent on the way to the dining room instead of his usual obnoxious self. But the smirk that appeared on his face made her regret her question.
"So you do worry about Ore-sama, don't try to deny it, you like Ore-sama."
She snorted and turned away, following the waiter into the room.
It was big and decorated similar to the reception: There was a chandelier, the floor was carpeted, though in royal blue instead of red and there were also marmoreal pillars in the corners of the room. The wallpaper was also blue with a pattern on it. One side on the room was completely out of glass and you had a great view of Tokyo. In front of the glass wall was a round table with two matching seats. It was made from a dark type of wood, perhaps mahagony. A round, dark blue table cloth was draped on it with a square, light blue one atop of it. There were two blue candles on the table along with the silverware and the glassware. On the other side was a double couch, also in blue, another table, though lower and beautiful blue flowers on it.
"Please make yourself comfortable, the food will soon be served." The waiter left the room and Atobe sat down on the couch, patting the seat beside him. Rin blushed when she remembered what happened the first time she sat together on a couch with him.
He noticed her redness and grinned. "Don't worry, Ore-sama won't do anything unless...you want it." He winked at her in a suggestive manner.
Rin backed away from him and leant onto the wall, as far away as possible.
"Well, Ore-sama doesn't have anything against standing together at the wall, if you prefer it." He stood up and marched over to her.
A last attempt to flee from him.
"Where's the toilet?"
She mentally slapped herself for thinking up such a stupid question. He'd know she was trying to gain time, at least until the waiter was back again.
The Hyotei regular group had successfully followed Atobe without him noticing. Though, Mukahi was the only one really excited, Oshitari was bored as nothing interesting had happened, Jirou was snoring away, Wakashi ignored everyone while concentrating on making plans to defeat Atobe and Kabaji was being Kabaji.
First had been the stop at a clothes store, leaving the boys a little puzzled. Weren't they having lunch together? But Oshitari solved the problem through his deduction skills and his knowledge of Atobe.
"I guess Atobe's trying to show off."
"Huh, why?" Mukahi asked confused.
"He's probably taking miss to a haute cuisine restaurant, presumably french. So, if they want to go in there, she at least needs to wear a dress." Oshitari explained, even though Mukahi was the only one listening.
Suddenly they heard knocking on the car's window and looked outside to find Shishido and Ootori. They opened the door to let them in.
Mukahi greeted them with a smug grin. "So you were interested after all~"
Shishido huffed in response and Ootori explained that they'd only been worried. Mukahi wanted to reply, but the chauffeur started driving again, meaning that Atobe was leaving for another place. It was now a little bit cramped with all the boys in the car and they remained silent during the drive, until the car stopped again, this time in front of a restaurant. They caught a glimpse of Atobe entering the building, but then he was gone.
"Yuushi, what should we do? There's no way we can get in there!" Mukahi whined.
"We should eat too, there's a fast food place right across the street." Shishido suggested.
"Then I'll take the binoculars with me, we could use them." Oshitari grinned, pocketing it into his bag.
"Did someone talk about food? I'm hungry!" An awakened Jirou yelled, causing the other regulars to protect their ears.
Somehow Rin had survived without Atobe harassing her until the waiter came back and brought them something to drink. They sat together on the table and Rin was thinking about how to put the Inui juice in his glass without him noticing, but it was impossible as they were the only people in this room. Without a distraction or him leaving for the restroom she wouldn't be able to pull it off, so she started a conversation to pass the waiting time.
"Did you have to choose such a fancy restaurant?" Rin inquired.
"Of course. As Ore-sama has said: Only the best for Ore-sama's date."
"For this I had to change clothes. If it isn't good, you'll just have wasted your money. I'm not a great fan of French cuisine."
"Well, Ore-sama is sure you'll like it."
"The last time my mum had taken me to a French restaurant, frog legs and snails had been served."
"Don't worry, Ore-sama has chosen the courses."
The waiter came in with the soup. He put the plates in front of them.
"This is soupe à l'oignon, onion soup, with toasted bread. Please enjoy."
Rin took a look at the cutlery. There were a lot of forks and knives beside the spoon.
"Uhhh, the western style of eating is so complicated. Chopsticks should be sufficient, though spoons are okay for soups." Rin whined.
Atobe chuckled at her behavior. "Then Ore-sama will take you to a traditional japanese restaurant next time."
"Okay...wait, there won't be a next time! I only agreed to today because of our parents!"
"Aww, you still are in denial. Ore-sama knows you like Ore-sama."
"Stop that!" She shot him a glare and decided to have a look at the view outside and ignore Atobe for the time being.
Sure, he hasn't been talking about himself, but instead harassed her, which wasn't much better. Now she'd rather be in this fast food place down there than with the most narcissistic guy in the world in a five star restaurant. Then Rin nearly choked on the soup because she had noticed a magenta red head in that fast food place. Along with a familiar dark blue haired guy, a silver head, several brunettes and an orange head who now was awake. But what grabbed her attention the most was a binocular in the hands of the magenta red head named Mukahi. She face palmed at the Hyotei regulars behavior and pondered whether to tell Atobe about them. She decided against it since she didn't hold a grudge and they were nice guys, though dumber than the Seigaku regulars, who hadn't followed her and Oishi on their 'date', though that was probably because Inui hadn't told them. Also she had the special Inui juice to embarrass Atobe. She turned back to him to avoid staring at his regulars too long.
"So Atobe, have you lived in France before since you obviously like their food?" She tried starting a normal conversation.
"No, Ore-sama has been there only on vacancies, but Ore-sama has spent a long time in the UK in London."
"Then you must speak very good English."
"Ore-sama speaks a lot of languages fluently, what about you?"
"Well, I speak Japanese, English, German and I understand a little bit French."
"German? Have you been to Germany or any of the other German countries before?" Atobe asked now honestly interested.
"Yes, I have spent part of my childhood in Germany. My mum had worked at a rehabilitation center there, it was one of the best, and she took me with her. I even went there to school for a year, but then we moved back to Japan." Rin explained.
After that Atobe told her about his childhood in the UK together with Kabaji, his tennis tournaments there that he all won and other things he considered interesting. Just like this they finished lunch after the main dish and a dessert. Atobe paid and they left the restaurant for their next destination: the art gallery. On their way out the female receptionists giggled again, but were ignored. Atobe's focus was on Rin. They had a meal together and she still withstood his charm-yes, he considered himself a charming person, a gentlemen had to be-, which caused him to be more intrigued by her. Normally girls would do anything to have him LOOK at them, but she ignored his attention, even refused to go on a date with him-most girls would have fainted of only the thought of a date- and in the end agreed to it in order to please her parents, or better: to stop her mother's nagging. That hurt his self esteem, just a little bit of course, but it still left a scratch. He thought after this date she would certainly have fallen for him, sadly she continued reacting defensive when he got too near her or touched her and insulted him, calling him 'egocentric narcissist'-which he most certainly wasn't, perhaps a little overconfident, but obviously not egocentric-, but as a gentleman he had taken it very lightly and hadn't showed his irritation, at least not in front of the girl. And now she disliked him and he had no idea how to turn it into love.
Outside the car was waiting again. The chauffeur came out and helped them both in, then drove to the art gallery. Truth be told: an art gallery wasn't exactly the ideal dating place, Atobe would have preferred to cruise some southern islands as his family had recently acquired a new yacht, but they only had a day and not more.
Back to topic: If there wasn't an exhibition about romance, the art gallery would be the most boring dating spot to come up ever. Even a museum was more interesting than staring on paintings or sculptures, except an art museum perhaps. There was nothing romantic about it. That's why it was expected that their date was going bad, really bad. They weren't even talking because of this eerie silence in the gallery that you wouldn't dare interrupt through speaking. They'd stop at a painting, look at it, sometimes Rin took a photo-surprisingly it was allowed-and then they moved to the next one, until Atobe couldn't take it anymore. He was frustrated his efforts on Rin had been wasted and that their date too wasn't fun, so he took her hand and dragged her out of the building.
"Now we've lost them. It's your entire fault, Ryou!" Mukahi whined.
All Hyotei regulars were currently standing outside the car, looking a bit lost.
"Why's it my fault?" Shishido huffed.
"You just had to eat six burgers and take forever."
"Sorry for being a healthy young boy in his growing phase."
"As if you'd grow taller than Ootori by eating double what he eats."
"I'm not frustrated about being smaller than Choutaro even though he's younger than me!" Shishido shouted, causing a passerby to stop and look at hem weirdly. Immediately he quieted down."Let's go home already, we won't find them."
"Oh my god! My parents must be waiting for me at home, we were going out visiting someone today!" Mukahi exclaimed. "Sorry guys, see you tomorrow!"
He climbed into the car and left them standing in the pavement staring after him dumbfounded. The silence stayed for awhile.
"Does anyone know where we are and how to get home?" Ootori timidly asked.
"Now Rin, what do you want to do?" He asked her as he had no clue about what to do after escaping the boredom of an art exhibition.
She looked around, and then her face brightened. "Follow me," was the cryptic answer he received.
Doing as she said, while trying to grab her hand again though she dodged it, they arrived in front of what seemed to be a coffee shop. Big letters were on the front, telling the customer that this was 'The Green Café'.
"Let's enter. They have great cakes and pastries; also their shop design is cool. Plus the food is only made from biological ingredients, another reason why they called it green."
She pushed him in. The inside of the shop was decorated with all different kinds of plants on the wall, hanging down from the ceiling or in between the booths and on the tables. The furniture was garden-like, the one you'd put outside not indoors. There was a small basin filled with water and in it were some kois swimming. Besides this it had a rather western feel to it. No bonsais, but rose bushes, tulips and other European plants.
"A table for two, please."
A waitress led them to the back of the shop where it was rather quiet and one couldn't be seen.
"So you can have some private time together." She winked at them and left.
Rin was blushing heavily; even Atobe had a small tint of red.
"Then, let's have a look at the menu."
They sat down at the table and Rin concentrated on choosing a cake, a very tough choice, until she noticed Atobe staring at the middle of the table. There was a small pot and in it was a cactus, a very small and round one with mini spines.
"Don't worry, Atobe. It's not poisonous." She said to calm him down. He seemed quite distressed. "Have you already decided what you'll have? I just don't know. There are so many good things."
"Ore-sama will have a cappuccino. Don't worry, Ore-sama will pay so you can order as many cakes as you like."
"Seems like you aren't that bad of a guy after all."
The waitress came, stopping their conversation.
"So, what are your orders?"
"A cappuccino."
"For me a mango smoothie to drink, then I'd like an apple pie, a strawberry tart, a Sachertorte[1]and scones."
"Okay, I'll bring it right up."
"Thanks."
The waitress left.
"Are you sure that you can eat this much?"
"Positive."
"We just had lunch."
"There's an extra stomach for sweets."
"Only a cow has more than one stomach."
"Well, but I'm not a cow, am I?"
"You aren't."
"Then everything's alright."
The waitress came back again, balancing all of Rin's orders.
"Have fun eating those, miss." She winked again.
Rin took the small fork and started with the pie.
"You really like cakes." Atobe stated, he was bored and regretted not ordering something to eat.
"Yep, chocolate, ice cream and cookies too. Have you ever tried a chocolate cookie ice cream cake? They're good."
"Never heard of anything like that."
"Now you have."
She had finished the pie and moved on to the tart.
"And what's your favorite fruit?"
"Bananas. I don't like them on cakes, but they're handy if you eat them just like this. I always peel apples and you have to wash strawberries, that's troublesome compared to bananas."
"What about oranges?"
"There are too many parts. A banana has only one."
She was eating at a record speed, now eating the Sachertorte.
"What's your favorite chocolate?"
"Milk chocolate, it has the most neutral taste and you can combine it with a lot of things. Ever tried mixing white and dark chocolate? It's an awful combination, but if you try one of them with milk chocolate, it's good."
"Why'd you mix chocolate together?"
"Because it's fun."
Now she was already at the last plate with the scones.
Do you know why I saved the scones for last?"
"No, why should Ore-sama know?"
"Because of the whipped cream. You always feel so full after eating it, so you have to eat it last. Ugh, maybe I should have ordered something lighter."
"Let Ore-sama help you."
Atobe smirked, leaned forward and licked a bit of cream from Rin's cheek. She blushed and first didn't react out of shock, but then pushed him away. The mango smoothie spilled onto him, ruining his suit.
"Please excuse Ore-sama for a bit." He stood up and left for the restroom, smiling inwardly.
Rin was angry for letting Atobe catch her off guard and do this to her. But now she had the chance for revenge. She pulled out the test glass and put two drops of it into the rest of his cappuccino. She wanted to add a little bit more, but hesitated because of Inui's warning and put it back into her bag.
"Sorry to keep you waiting for so long."
Rin looked up at Atobe, and then quickly turned away. He frowned, but ignored her behavior. Sitting down he took his cup and drank the remaining coffee. He didn't notice Rin watching him nervously until he set the cup back onto the table.
There was now an awkward silence as both of them didn't know what to say. Atobe regretted his action a few minutes ago. They had been having a nice chat, but now she was wary of him again, eyeing him suspiciously. And his right arm started feeling really itchy. His left leg too. And now his back. Slowly his whole body was itching and he had to use all his self control not to scratch himself. Then he looked at his hand: there was inflammation on his skin, it was completely red.
"Not good." He thought, then fell unconscious, the itchy feeling was just too much.
When he woke up again, he was staring at a white ceiling. He noticed that he didn't know the room, but then remembered what happened.
"So you're awake."
He moved his head into the direction of the voice and saw Rin sitting on a chair next to the bed he was lying in.
"So you called the ambulance."
She nodded.
"Did they call my parents?"
"No, the doctor said you'd be okay after a little bit of rest and that there was no need to worry them. He added that it was probably an allergic reaction."
When Rin saw Atobe passing out, she was overcome by the feeling of guilt. She thought it was her fault for putting Inui's stupid juice in, that caused him to faint. Of course she called the ambulance, but she had been panicked. The worst she wanted him to have was a stomachache, so they would have to stop the date. She certainly didn't expect to be in the hospital waiting for him to wake up while constantly worrying. She was relieved when the doctor told her it was only an allergic reaction that would subside after an hour, though she still blamed herself for his misery.
"Why aren't you laughing at me in this sorry state?" Atobe's voice sounded a bit strained.
Rin was surprised at the lack of 'Ore-sama' and his normally self confident tone.
"Why would I?"
"Didn't you say you hate me?"
"I only said I can't stand you, there's a difference."
"Then you don't hate me?"
"I don't."
"Do you like me?"
"...at least better than when we first met."
"Oh, a bit of improvement."
"...if you weren't so self centered, I'd like you even better."
"But that wouldn't be the awesome me." He laughed. "Well, you want to know what I'm allergic against, right?"
She stayed silent, but her eyes were looking at him a little curious.
"I'll take it as a yes. I'm allergic to cacti. Just looking at one makes me feel all itchy."
"That's a surprise. Why didn't you say so sooner? We could have changed our table or went to another coffee shop. Then I wouldn't have had to worry about you the whole time you were unconscious!" She exclaimed a little aggregated and was shushed by a passing nurse.
Atobe chuckled. "So you were worried about me. I guess that was worth passing out."
Rin blushed. Atobe turned and smiled at her, causing her turn an even darker shade of red.
"So, how about another date, since this one was ruined?"
"I don't have anything against meeting as friends."
"Come on now. So cold hearted."
This caused Rin to giggle and he joined her laughing.
Then he did something totally unexpected.
He puked.
Rin left the room so the nurses could help poor him.
"Oh, so Inui's juice only took effect now."
Eiji was sitting in his room that he was sharing with his older brother, fidgeting with his cell phone. He had seen something completely impossible: Rin coming out of a restaurant together with Atobe. They looked like they were on a date, though they weren't holding hands and such. Rin hadn't stroke him as a girl that would two time someone, but he couldn't deny what he had seen.
He sighed. Should he call him or not?
"Ahhhh, I can't forget about it, I have to tell him!"
He quickly dialed a number, waiting nervously for the person to pick up.
"Hello?"
Yay, my first cliffhanger! ;P
[1] Sachertorte is a two layer chocolate cake with apricot jam between and chocolate icing. It's a viennese speciality and very popular as birthday cake. I greatly recommend it! :)