Chapter 3: Who Are You?

A/N: Minna-san gomenasai, I'm late again but here it is… the next chapter… read and review onegaii…

The door leading to their living room was left ajar. Curiously, she peeked inside. "Sakuno, we have something to tell you," the gentle voice of her mother was in contrast to her serious expression. "H-Hai…" the girl with long braided hair meekly entered the room and sat in between her mom and dad.

"Your mother and I are going to get a divorce," her father was the one to break it to her eventually. "W-what?" her hazel eyes widen in shock. "We've been having problems ever since… about everything… we've come to a conclusion that getting a divorce is the best way to end it all," her mother wouldn't even look at her as she explained. "What are you talking about? I never see you guys fight…" she desperately tried to rationalize. No one dared to react with her statement. "So… you decided that getting a divorce is good for the two of you… have you forgotten that you have a daughter to consider?" her voice was trembling as her eyes were overflowing with unshed tears.

"I'll take care of you," her mother tried to caress her arm. "Don't touch me! Don't any of you touch me!!!" her parents were surprised to hear their gentle daughter raise her voice so violently. "I don't want to be anywhere near any of you… I'm going back to Japan by myself…"

Lightning split the skies, thunder roared as the rain finally descended from the dark clouds. Sakuno snapped her eyes open as sat up panting. That dream again huh… and at a night like this… how ironic… It was like this stormy night when she left for Japan. On the airplane, she watched how the raindrops would fall on her window as the ground below became smaller and smaller.

Looking at her wall clock, it was half past midnight. A few hours later… she will be playing against Seigaku. After getting dressed, she walked out of her house. The rain mercilessly soaked her though and through but she doesn't seem to care. Her feet took her to the nearest tennis court. Her eyes wandered to its wet grounds as her mind remembered

"Where will I go?" she asked herself as she arrived on the airport. Her first option would be to her grandmother… but deep inside her… there's a feeling that says… "I don't like to depend on anybody anymore." Driven by that thought alone, she hailed a cab. "Ryoma-kun," she muttered as she held her tennis racket to her chest while her unshed tears remained in her eyes.

Somehow her fate wasn't so bad. With the little money she had, she found a good enough place to stay temporarily while she looked for part time jobs. Luckily, she found a job that has a good enough pay plus residential accommodations. The old lady owner of the small bath house was delighted to have her stay at her home saying that she looks just like her only granddaughter, who died in an accident together with her parents leaving her all alone.

The rain finally subsided as the sunlight peeked through the thinning clouds. Looking at her reflection on a large puddle, she saw her empty eyes and her pale face. She knew this day would come… the day they would finally meet again but she was never prepared when she experience the same tingling sensation allover her body as their eyes met. Sakuno had already forgotten about him, she already moved on… that was what she thought… before they met again.

That morning, her team was up against Mori University. Again, she sat on the bleachers as her teammates compete. Waiting for the referee to announce, a "Game set, and match," she scribbled something in her notebook again.

Finally, the last serve was made. In an effort to catch up, the last player of the Mori University did try to return all the shots but in the end it was a Ryuugan who emerged victorious. The familiar cheer erupted from Ryuugan's cheerleaders as her team rejoiced their win. Tearing her eyes away from her team, she saw them vividly… as of they were right in front of her. "Mite, Mite! It's the Seigaku's tennis team!" one of her sempais squealed as the others strained to look.

Mustering all her strength, she averted her eyes away from them before it wanders off to find the one having ambers eyes. The action itself was strenuous. She felt her breath grew short as her heart raced.

His amber eyes reflected the girl that was now anxiously leaving the bleachers, never sparing a glance back at him. "Looks like we'll be up against Sakuno's team," the lady captain of the Seigaku girl's tennis team said to her team mates. "That's more I like it. After all I got to make that bitch eat her words," the girl with high pig tails lightly punched her palm.

Her palms were getting sweaty as she wore her university jersey. This was the first time she wore a complete uniform (Tennis shirt, jogging pants with matching jacket). She knew she will finally be able to play today… against her former team… against Seigaku University.

The line-up was presented. Her hazel eyes scanned the court as the pair from each university shook hands. Lowering the rim of her baseball cap, the first server began the game. Her predictions were right. The first win went to Seigaku.

This was a critical blow to the female pride of Ryuugan University's tennis team. This after all was their first loss. Determined to regain their broken pride, they took two simultaneous wins with their doubles one and singles three. There were no cheers from the Ryuugan's side with those wins. The scowls on their faces reflected their agitation from their first loss. Clearly, they were seriously bent on crushing Seigaku.

Sore losers. Sitting again on the bleachers, Sakuno's gaze lazily traveled to the court where the singles two game was about to begin. Let's see how much you've improved Tomoko.

The first set was won by Ryuugan. It all happened so quickly, she didn't even have time to react. It was as if the ball would disappear and then appear when it was about to hit the ground. "See the difference between our levels?" the captain of the Ryuugan team muttered as they crossed ways for a change court.

Her body was trembling both from exhaustion and fear. The fear of losing to an undeserving enemy. That feeling made her want to choke… it made her breathing uneven and her play uncoordinated.

Another love… Tomoko tried to catch her breath as she dribbled the tennis ball, ready to make her serve. A movement at the Ryuugan's court side caught her attention. It was Sakuno, she stood from the bleachers and walked down to the court side, watching her make her serve.

The boy with unruly dark green hair smirked and tipped his baseball cap as he saw Sakuno's actions. Obviously, this was her way of cheering for Tomoko. Not once, did she show any interest in any of her team's game… until now.

Her opponent was shocked by the speed of her ball. It was so much different from the first two sets. Inwardly, the girl from the courtside smirked at the referee announced the third set won by Seigaku.

"I wanna see Sakuno play and in order to do that I got to defeat you," with her signature confidence, Tomoko yelled at her opponent before they start the next set. "Nani?!" the captain exclaimed as she gripped the tennis ball. Sakuno smirked openly upon hearing her friend's statement. Even before that set began, she walked away from the court to start warming up. Seigaku will win this one.

Indeed minutes after she left, Seigaku's cheers resounded throughout the place. In the end, everything turned out as she predicted. Now there she stands holding a black tennis racket as her opponent entered the court.

In a gesture of camaraderie and sportsmanship, the two players shook hands. "Let's see how far you've improved Sakuno," her former captain smiled at her. Her eyes hidden by her cap's shadow, "Gomenasai, sempai," the Seigaku player was bewildered upon hearing her reply.

The first set was like a giveaway. They were merely testing each other's capabilities. But when the second set started, everything changed. The look in her hazel eyes turned as cold as ice as her strikes became heavier and heavier to the point that her opponent would be forced to let go of her racket.

"I never expected Sakuno could play power tennis," almost all of the Seigaku players were dumbstruck at what they saw. The way she delicately held her racket can't possibly pack that much power enough to break the captain's grip.

Who is she? Ryoma gripped the fence until his knuckles turned white. The girl he knew to be Sakuno was a different person compared to the one playing now. Where is that clumsy girl I knew before? Somehow he wanted to see her smiles when she makes a point, hear her apologies when she makes mistakes and receive those stares that were reserved only for him.

Everyone, even the referee himself was speechless as the last ball swiftly bounced at the very corner of the court and crashed on the side fence. "G-Game, set and match! Ryuugan University!" the referee finally recovered from his shock as did everyone watching the game.

The Seigaku team was walking back to their hotel rooms when an old woman wearing pink jogging pants and white T-shirt ran to them. "Looks like I've missed you game," she said. "Ryuuzaki-sensei! I thought you'll be arriving tomorrow," the vice captain assisted their coach to a nearby bench. "So? Did you win?" she turned her attention to the girl's tennis team. "No…" the depressed captain replied.

"Too bad Ryuuzaki," a man about forty wearing the usual tennis attire, stood before them. "Sado Kaname… what do you mean?" this guy who was supposed to be the Ryuugan's coach looked down at her. "You never saw her potential because you look too far ahead," the female coach's eyes narrowed as the other coach merely smirked.

"Coach!" a familiar female voice called from a distance. "Sa-Sakuno," Ryuuzaki abruptly stood up from her seat. Seeing the people her coach was with, she ran to his side. "Ah, hime-chan," Sado put his hand on Sakuno's shoulder. "You know them right?" he mocked the team and their coach. "Stop this already, coach. The team is waiting for you," the look in her brown eyes was frighteningly serious that it made her coach shut up. "Alright, well be seeing you around then Ryuuzaki," with that Sado walked away.

"I'm sorry for my coach's actions," Sakuno stiffly bowed then walked away without another word. "Matte Sakuno," the old woman called making the girl stop. "A-Are you doing okay?" the girl without looking back replied "Hai… Ryuuzaki-sensei…" everyone was surprised to hear Sakuno call her grandmother that way. While their coach merely watched her grand daughter's figure disappear.

Who are you? Who have you become? As the running figure slowly disappear from his sight, Ryoma clenched his fists as his eyes never left the spot were she went.

A/N: Minna-san read and review onegai…